Wrestling

[Dave]

I didn't mind The Young Bucks / Lucha Bros outcome to be honest. It sets up the match with Cody and Dustin for the next show nicely and I dont think Lucha Bros have signed an exclusive contract as of yet so giving them the win would have been rather risky. 

SCU were great though. With the talk of Gallows, Anderson, Revival and possibly even The Usos having an eye on the company when there contracts expire I was worried they may get pushed aside very quickly, but that performance shows that shouldn't happen. The tag team division is already quite bulky but they look capable of still holding their own.

Cody Rhodes may not be the most technically gifted, but my word he is a great story teller. I quite like seeing a mix of styles throughout a card which is why I enjoyed him so much in Ring of Honor. I know they go on about being different but there is a time and a place to use WWEs story telling style and two thirds of the way in to the card was it.

I dont think the show was as good as people are making it out to be on Twitter. Then again they could have had Kenny Omega wrestle a tree for three hours and people on Twitter would have been praising it. The production felt very similar to WWE and some of the commentary at times was actually very poor. However the majority of wrestling was good, some new characters to the mainstream market got some very good exposure (MJF, Best Friends etc) and they achieved their goal for the show.

I will say that though thank god they signed a well known name in the Western Market in Jon Moxley. Before that I was feeling a little underwhelmed at the lack of surprises.

[JoshBRFC+]

Sami Zayn was trending this morning simply because he mentioned AEW on Raw. I wonder whether it came from him or Vince? Also apparently after Shayne's match the crowd were booing "this is boring" and cheering for AEW. 

Edited May 28, 2019 by JOSHBRFC

[Azeem]

Are there any chance Sami Zayn might team up with Kevin Owens again

[Dave]

On 28/05/2019 at 19:10, JOSHBRFC said:

Sami Zayn was trending this morning simply because he mentioned AEW on Raw. I wonder whether it came from him or Vince? Also apparently after Shayne's match the crowd were booing "this is boring" and cheering for AEW. 

That was ridiculous. 53 minutes we waited for a match and it involved Shane McMahon.

[Devil-Dick Willie]

On 27/05/2019 at 23:17, The Palace Fan said:

I didn't mind The Young Bucks / Lucha Bros outcome to be honest. It sets up the match with Cody and Dustin for the next show nicely and I dont think Lucha Bros have signed an exclusive contract as of yet so giving them the win would have been rather risky. 

SCU were great though. With the talk of Gallows, Anderson, Revival and possibly even The Usos having an eye on the company when there contracts expire I was worried they may get pushed aside very quickly, but that performance shows that shouldn't happen. The tag team division is already quite bulky but they look capable of still holding their own.

Cody Rhodes may not be the most technically gifted, but my word he is a great story teller. I quite like seeing a mix of styles throughout a card which is why I enjoyed him so much in Ring of Honor. I know they go on about being different but there is a time and a place to use WWEs story telling style and two thirds of the way in to the card was it.

I dont think the show was as good as people are making it out to be on Twitter. Then again they could have had Kenny Omega wrestle a tree for three hours and people on Twitter would have been praising it. The production felt very similar to WWE and some of the commentary at times was actually very poor. However the majority of wrestling was good, some new characters to the mainstream market got some very good exposure (MJF, Best Friends etc) and they achieved their goal for the show.

I will say that though thank god they signed a well known name in the Western Market in Jon Moxley. Before that I was feeling a little underwhelmed at the lack of surprises.

 

Why? It's the titles from AAA. Not AEW titles. They probably want them back at some point on a team that actually performs in mexico. 

 

I agree the commentary was poor at times. JR knows very little about the wrestlers and their move sets. 

[Stan]

Who would you all choose?

 

[Dave]

On 29/05/2019 at 23:41, Devil-Dick Willie said:

 

Why? It's the titles from AAA. Not AEW titles. They probably want them back at some point on a team that actually performs in mexico. 

 

I agree the commentary was poor at times. JR knows very little about the wrestlers and their move sets. 

Well it guarantees The Young Bucks will appear for AAA again and they'll lose to a team that will get a good reception. From a political stand point it makes sense.

Im surprised they're not doing Moxley against Omega next given how well Moxley's debut has gone down. Over time I reckon he will get exposed in AEW so it may be best to milk him now whilst hes hot.

[Devil-Dick Willie]

4 hours ago, The Palace Fan said:

Well it guarantees The Young Bucks will appear for AAA again and they'll lose to a team that will get a good reception. From a political stand point it makes sense.

Im surprised they're not doing Moxley against Omega next given how well Moxley's debut has gone down. Over time I reckon he will get exposed in AEW so it may be best to milk him now whilst hes shit hot.

 

He is a very mediocre wrestler it's true. I'd have him do work with Cody for sure, but eventually once the hype goes I'd put him in a tag team

[Devil-Dick Willie]

Takeover 25 was outstanding. NXT takeover is always a gold standard of wresting. Amazing

Strong back on the singles card at takeover and man, what a match. Riddle is starting to really show his class as well

Ladder match was super cool. Other than undisputed era, those teams really needed a takeover spotlight, and everyone really delivered.'

Baszler is the best female heel on the planet.

Breeze. Man. SO wasted on the main roster. They used his and Fandangos promo skills, but those guys fucking rule between the ropes and it was never shown. Back in a huge way. Dream was also excellent in his role as ever.

Adam Cole is one of the best wrestlers in the world. Gargano as well. Those 2 will make sparks fly whenever they collide. A wonderful match, possibly 5 stars again.

[Dave]

On 02/06/2019 at 12:32, Devil-Dick Willie said:

Takeover 25 was outstanding. NXT takeover is always a gold standard of wresting. Amazing

Strong back on the singles card at takeover and man, what a match. Riddle is starting to really show his class as well

Ladder match was super cool. Other than undisputed era, those teams really needed a takeover spotlight, and everyone really delivered.'

Baszler is the best female heel on the planet.

Breeze. Man. SO wasted on the main roster. They used his and Fandangos promo skills, but those guys fucking rule between the ropes and it was never shown. Back in a huge way. Dream was also excellent in his role as ever.

Adam Cole is one of the best wrestlers in the world. Gargano as well. Those 2 will make sparks fly whenever they collide. A wonderful match, possibly 5 stars again.

I wasnt really looking forward to it. I think after seeing what's happened with War Raiders, EC3, Sanity etc has affected my enthusiasm towards NXT. But you're right, it delivered. I didn't expect Cole or Baszler to win but they were both surprising in a good way. All the matches hit expectations. It was a real good advertisement for a brand that needs to be good with the birth of AEW.

[6666]

I like that they've taken what wasn't working on Raw and decided to do the same thing on SmackDown. Now we have two shit shows.

[Devil-Dick Willie]

So frustrating. Last 2 years smackdown was the saving grace of wwes main product. 

 

Put the outstanding wrestlers on Smackdown, with a sprinkling of the big characters on it. 2 hour wrestling show, dominated my matches that go for 10+ minutes. With a bit of shenanigans. 

Put the big characters on Raw, with a smattering of the outstanding wrestlers on raw. 3 hour show with extra shenanigans and things for the Soggy Baguettes from texas. A bit of good wrestling (except every week not once a month)

 

Split the PPVs again. The current PPV system means we see the same 12 wrestlers every single fucking time, with no time for any mid carders from either brand. The 'wildcard' rule has done the same to each show. 

 

Split the roster into 3 sections. Great wrestlers, great entertainers,  and guys who are jobbers/tag teams/midcard development (but are happy to be jobbers, not guys you promised huge roles to then shelved.)

 

Great wrestlers

Andrade, Ricochet, Cesaro, Rey Mysterio, Samoa joe, Aleister black, Ali, Buddy Murphy, Chad Gable, Kofi, Seth Rollins, Dolph Ziggler, AJ Styles, Kofi, Drew Mcintyre Daniel Bryan, Fin Balor, Nakamura, Zayn

Great entertainers/big characters (some of these guys can really wrestle as well)

Roman Reigns, The Miz, Barron Corbin, Braun Strowman, EC3, Randy Orton, Lesnar, Lashley, Jeff Hardy, Elias, KO, Bray Wyatt, R Truth, Rusev

 

Split them up in a rough mix of 80/20 entertainers/ wrestlers on raw and the reverse on smackdown. Everyone else is in a tag team or is a jobber or midcarder. Split them up accordingly If anyone in the mid card wants to leave, let them. Keep your roster efficient and happy. Split the PPVs and make sure your talent are getting time on PPV
 

[Devil-Dick Willie]

Let the undertaker die in peace. 

[Stan]

3 hours ago, Devil-Dick Willie said:

Let the undertaker die in peace. 

Saw a clip of he and Goldberg nearly killing each other. 

[6666]

Undertaker has been terrible for some time. He's just an entrance now.

[Devil-Dick Willie]

TBH other than a handful of matches carried by his opponents he was never exactly a gifted wrestler. But I understand people loving the larger than life character. 

[JoshBRFC+]

What about Goldberg though? It was more his fault than Taker's. I've never understood the hype around Goldberg and bringing him back has been dreadful. 

This Showdown even is the worst thing ever. 

[Devil-Dick Willie]

On 08/06/2019 at 21:42, JOSHBRFC said:

What about Goldberg though? It was more his fault than Taker's. I've never understood the hype around Goldberg and bringing him back has been dreadful. 

This Showdown even is the worst thing ever. 

 

Neither should ever wrestle a match again. At least Goldberg doesn't look like hes about to die on the spot when the match has gone 2 min I guess. 

[JoshBRFC+]

I agree, it's a shame really. I'd let taker go out on a better note though. Have him wrestle an athletic guy like Rollins or AJ etc, someone who can carry him. Why the fuck would WWE have 2 old guys wrestle, it's never going to get great results. 

[Devil-Dick Willie]

In brighter news Dominion at NJPW was fantastic. Dragon lee vs Osprey and Naito vs Ibushi were predictably instant classics. Even Taichi vs Ishii was engaging. I really like Taichi (AKA Japanese Miz) and he really banged hard here. I feel like people are being harsh on the Jericho vs Okada main event. The match wasn't 5 stars, but the pace it was wrestled at was very impressive and the finish left me wanting more. No botches either. The only main card match that disappointed me at all was GoD vs Evil and Sanada. 4 outstanding wrestlers and GoD are very much in the mix for best tag team in the world. But I feel like these 2 teams have wrestled on the big stage so often that they felt the need to do something different, which lead to a story driven, yet more by the numbers medium match. 

 

Moxley had a great promo and this years G1 looks like it could be the best ever, which is saying a lot!!!! Natio all the way baby. 

 

 

[6666]

Haven't seen the match but Jericho isn't great nowadays and hasn't been for some time. AEW would be making a mistake by having him as their first champion in my opinion. Not sure Adam Page is a great choice either though. Should've been between Omega, Cody and Moxley.

[Devil-Dick Willie]

9 hours ago, 6666 said:

Haven't seen the match but Jericho isn't great nowadays and hasn't been for some time. AEW would be making a mistake by having him as their first champion in my opinion. Not sure Adam Page is a great choice either though. Should've been between Omega, Cody and Moxley.

Jericho wrestled a 5 star match last year and a 4,5 star match (that I thought should have been 5) in january this year. He's not as quick as he was but he's skilful and charismatic like always. 

 

Jericho and Page are both better wrestlers than Cody or Moxley though. 

[Devil-Dick Willie]

The Bucks just lost the AAA tag titles in their very next defence. Against the lucha bros. 

 

Should have lost at double or nothing. 

[Dave]

On 17/06/2019 at 23:02, Devil-Dick Willie said:

The Bucks just lost the AAA tag titles in their very next defence. Against the lucha bros. 

 

Should have lost at double or nothing. 

Having them show up in any company is good publicity. This way both tag teams keep their kudos in the company where there immediate loyalties lie. I imagine that will change for the Lucha Bros once the show on TNT starts as (especially Pentagon) they could be big characters in AEW.

I've enjoyed Raw and Smackdown more in the last two weeks. Baron Corbin in particular is doing some of his best work and were seeing more of people. My main gripe at the minute is how much air time Shane McMahon is getting as hes ruining a lot of peoples momentum.

[Dave]

On 07/06/2019 at 02:02, Devil-Dick Willie said:

So frustrating. Last 2 years smackdown was the saving grace of wwes main product. 

 

Put the outstanding wrestlers on Smackdown, with a sprinkling of the big characters on it. 2 hour wrestling show, dominated my matches that go for 10+ minutes. With a bit of shenanigans. 

Put the big characters on Raw, with a smattering of the outstanding wrestlers on raw. 3 hour show with extra shenanigans and things for the Soggy Baguettes from texas. A bit of good wrestling (except every week not once a month)

 

Split the PPVs again. The current PPV system means we see the same 12 wrestlers every single fucking time, with no time for any mid carders from either brand. The 'wildcard' rule has done the same to each show. 

 

Split the roster into 3 sections. Great wrestlers, great entertainers,  and guys who are jobbers/tag teams/midcard development (but are happy to be jobbers, not guys you promised huge roles to then shelved.)

 

Great wrestlers

Andrade, Ricochet, Cesaro, Rey Mysterio, Samoa joe, Aleister black, Ali, Buddy Murphy, Chad Gable, Kofi, Seth Rollins, Dolph Ziggler, AJ Styles, Kofi, Drew Mcintyre Daniel Bryan, Fin Balor, Nakamura, Zayn

Great entertainers/big characters (some of these guys can really wrestle as well)

Roman Reigns, The Miz, Barron Corbin, Braun Strowman, EC3, Randy Orton, Lesnar, Lashley, Jeff Hardy, Elias, KO, Bray Wyatt, R Truth, Rusev

 

Split them up in a rough mix of 80/20 entertainers/ wrestlers on raw and the reverse on smackdown. Everyone else is in a tag team or is a jobber or midcarder. Split them up accordingly If anyone in the mid card wants to leave, let them. Keep your roster efficient and happy. Split the PPVs and make sure your talent are getting time on PPV
 

Good post. Everything I agree with.

The only issue is that now WWE are trying to appease two major networks that are both going to want the likes of Brock and Roman on there shows. I know you cant appease everybody but the chase to make Smackdowns raitings rise ahead of this move to fox has ruined its initial appeal for the viewer.

I agree about releasing certain unhappy superstars and PPV brand splits. I'm sure the likes of The Revival, Harper etc will get picked up by AEW but raitings aren't exactly going to soar because of it.