fakeplastictrees

Toss in Sin Cara, Barrett, and Nikki Bella all being out as well and things look pretty bad. so I guess no Cena/Taker at Mania. The the top two matches being Rock/Brock:Reigns/HHH or Rock/HHH:Reigns:Brock, Mania doesn't look that good on paper. I guess Taker can go against Jericho (they only faced off once one-on-one in 2009) to get the casuals excited, but fuck! I really hope the NJPW guys are coming in because WM32 could potentially be saved based purely off the workrate in the undercard card.

WWE already has Rock signed on for WM32. Jericho is pretty much on-board at this point. Taker, Brock, HHH, Big Show and The Dudleys I am sure are all working the show. Who else can WWE call on to add some 'star power'? RVD and Angle? Does Booker T come out of semi-retirement for a match at Mania? Cena being out is a pretty big blow considering Sting, Orton, and Bryan are all on the self as well.

The WWF sex scandals of the early 90's it really up there in terms of WWE's scummy behind-the-scenes history. WWE in general just comes off as a 'let's surpress this' type of corporation which is why the racism, sexism, etc. has flourished for so many years... more later.

I don't know how WWE can hold this in Texas and not have the 11 Time WCW Tag Team Champions Harlem Heat inducted. It's time for Booker T to become the second 2 time inductee.

When people talk about the WM 30 match between Lesnar/Taker, I see a lot of people seem to forget/gloss over the fact that people in the arena looked disinterested and the same (based off of message board writings) can be said for the people watching at home. I was watching WM30 with two buddies and sometime during the ending streak we began playing with out phones, etc. waiting for the Taker win, pose with the fireworks going out, and JBL screaming about THE LAST GUNSLINGER. That didn't happen and immediate drew us (and the whole arena) back into the match. WWE needs more moments like that happening at Mania. I would say that the WM30 moment is one in just a handful of TRUE WM moments of the last 10 years. Whether it was going to be Taker's last match or not, having a broken down Taker go over Lesnar, Wyatt, etc. and steam rolling toward the end would have been less eventful and I am sure at times sad to see. Cena is the best guy to keep Taker safe in the ring and bring about that WWE main event formula match. This match also hasn't been done in what 13 years or so? So It feels fresh. Just the video package alone can make this feel epic and neither would have to do much promo work or anything before the match. It pretty much sells itself. How would I book it? Simple. -Cena wins -The two shake hands after the match - Undertaker begins beating up on Cena - Officials try to break it up and fail - Taker manages to Tombstone Cena through a table (or multiple times on a steel chair) - Cena is stretchered out of Mania Cena gets his win. Undertaker keeps his heat. The fans are happy. There is intrigue in the air: is Taker a face or heel? Also, this allows WWE to run Cena/Taker II (and even III ) later that year if the company wants.

I don't know how you can say its bullshit when its true. There are people on this board and elsewhere that actively do not like certain wrestlers and it causes them to turn the channel, take a bathroom break, fast forward through that person or persons segment(s), etc. I do not like Randy Orton. When Orton is on TV, I fast forward through it. I am not interested in anything he does and I haven't been in a very long time. I might sit through an Orton match if it looks good on paper, but I have no vested interest in the outcome. Its apathy. So my question is when did apathy become a 'good' form of heat. People want to see the babyface win and the heel lose. If someone is NOT invested either way- how is that a good thing? That means that that person will spend no money, sit on his/her hands, and overall not pay attention. The crickets that Sheamus has been met with when he was champion this last go around cannot be spun a something good. At the end of the day the good heat is what draws money and not what makes people push the fast-forward button on Hulu. The reason this is all mixed I believe is because in the mid 2000's WWE really began pushing people HARD that were getting no-to-very-little reaction. I think of Michelle McCool and JBL as the big ones. Fast forward today and we have the un-over Charlotte getting very little response and yet getting tons of TV time and is currently positioned as the number two woman in the company (because we all know Stephanie is number one). Apathy is not heat. Re: Rock WWE has made Rock's last Mania appearance pretty uninteresting. I am not looking forward to an HHH match and I am also not looking forward to Rock coming out to cut a promo about 'getting goosebumps'. If Sting were heathly, I'd want to see a Rock/Sting match as it would be fresh for both guys.

It's all about the booking. WWE can easily change the narrative to 'this is where stars are born' and ' guys who have never received a title shot are working overtime tonight', etc. I am not saying Stardust should win but surely a mega push for someone like Cesaro, Ziggler, Ambrose, etc. wouldn't be THAT crazy. The last two years have shown us that the fans would totally buy it. I just think RR is a waste if Taker, Brock, Kane, Big Show, Sheamus, or ADR win this year. Would people REALLY not purchase/go to WM if the main event was Cesaro/Reigns? I know Cesaro is hurt, but it would be different and interesting and help set the tone of the rest of the year vs. the stale booking. I just don't think there is any excuse for stale booking at this point.

Yes. I have felt that for a long time. I can't remember the last time I was truly excited/surprised by a Rumble winner. WWE has mis-used that spot for years. Guys like Taker, Brock, HHH, Cena, etc. don't need to win The Rumble. It should be that guy who WWE wants to elevate to the next level. Someone like Ziggler, Ambrose, Cesaro, Big E. , etc. The thing I loved about WW3 is that I never knew who was going to win. It was never really that obvious especially sometimes with the last 4 coming down to some random ass guys like Regal, Savage, Guerrero, Giant, and Luger. WWE needs more of that and less of what they have been doing. The predictable outcomes and the Rumble tropes (stopping during the match to look/point at the WM sign, pointing to the Mania sign after the match, etc. ) has made The Rumble pretty lame. Re: Angle I wouldn't mind seeing Angle come in for Mania and doing something with someone like Alberto or Rusev. I have NO INTEREST in seeing Angle do a full schedule. Angle popping up for the RR, WM, SS, and whatever WWE considers its fourth biggest show of the year is fine with me. No gimmick matches and no moonsaults off the top of ANYTHING and Angle should be fine.

Alternate theory, we all saw Hogan's WCW contract, was this decision based on a stipulation in Hogan's contract? Could WWE have been convinced to do with Bret at the top guy, but decided to take a 'breather' to satisfy Hogan's contract by letting him have a run until WWE could continue the REAL story they wanted to tell. I am going to have to watch it again, but I remember Hogan being a Lame Duck champion in WWE at the time.

I never brought the 'USA wants them' talking point. I know Trips was asked about the format of the main shows and basically said something along the lines of 'we have to adhere to the network wants as well', but that was addresses more than just one thing (constant presence of authority figures). I am going off of memory here so please correct me if I am wrong. I just honestly can't see anyone in TV watching a 3 hour Raw and/or following the product for a number of years and saying 'We need more HHH/Stephanie' and not advocating for less. Do Steph/HHH REALLY draw in viewers or is it that the viewers are so use to HHH/Stephanie that some viewers believe the episode of Raw or Smackdown is a complete throwaway if The Authority don't even want to pop in their heads to mess up everything. I honestly believe that through sheer 'staying-the-course' HHH/Stephanie found a way to make apathetic viewers part of the HHH/Stephanie=ratings narrative simply by booking themselves into over 90% of all the on-air-product. Canon WWE is stale as shit when they are there, when they are NOT there then its just might as well not even exist.

youtube.com/watch?v=lIuDTDymsSo This is the interview in question where Hogan calls the WWE title a toy. I saw this years ago, but totally forgot about it until this discussion.

I view that time period as Vince turning the dial down and then back up in terms of characters. The 80's had larger-than-life superheros, where as the 90's started bringing us more guys with day-to-day jobs and personalities a person would encounter in his/her everyday life. WWE slowly began turning up the dial with characters like Diesel, Razor, Hart, and Michaels without actually reaching that 80's area of pure graphic novel/sci-fi absurdity. Sure you had your Papa Shango's and Max Moon's, but those became the exception and not the rule. I believe this was done in part to not make the Superstars TOO attractive to WCW as it was clear what type of wrestlers WCW was looking to poach. This time was also perhaps Vince's first ( subconscious) foray into making people stars but not TOO big of stars with the larger-than-life personalities as that was a proven commodity for the past decade and brought him bigger success than his father. It was also clear during that period that the fans began taking a shit on some of the more egdy-yet-still-cartoonish personalities (Hogan being the main example) and so a step or two in the opposite direction was needed for ensured longevity. If Vince completely ignored the lessons of the early 90's (steroids, drop off in Hogan's popularity, etc.) and fashioned the New Generation purely off of the 80's Hulkamania formula, what would have that class of guys look like and how would that have impacted business? People shit on parts of early 90's WWF (and rightfully so), but would going the other (more proven) way have resulted in better business? The company is at such a stable point right now that it can (and has) no-sold a ton of recent occurrences. Re: Leaving the business in good shape That's really up to the booker(s)/promoter(s)/owner(s) and not the wrestlers. Everything starts that the top. At any point-in-time, Vince could have called bullshit on anything and everything HBK was doing in the locker room and yet didn't. Vince could have given the guys healthcare, 401K, etc., but chose not to. The WWE and WCW could have stopped being marks and preaching the 'We aren't pussies like other sports, we take no days off!' stuff and actually had 'seasons' to lessen the addiction/substance abuse problems the performers were developing. Doing these (and other things) would have been good for the company, the company image, and the boys in the long run. At the end of the day Kevin Nash is just a guy collecting the check and making suggestions backstage. He is not the guy at the top of the ivory tower making all the parts move. When I think of modern WWE and some of its choices, I can't help but to think of this quote from Sheikh Rashid bin Saeed Al Maktoum in which he said "My grandfather rode a camel, my father rode a camel, I drive a Mercedes, my son drives a Land Rover, his son will drive a Land Rover, but his son will ride a camel." One day this independent contractor stuff is going to be challenged and a union will form and WWE will be forced to change its business model and the fallout from all of that will be both amazing and incredibility sad to see as I do not see the powers that be going quietly into the night.

The slaps (strong or not) are an extension of a bigger problem. The audience doesn't really care about Todd Phillips. He is a guy doing backstage work. This isn't Mean Gene getting his ass kicked, this is just some (for all purposes) random guy. Even if it WAS someone like Mean Gene, what does that do for Mean Gene? And what does it do for Stephanie? If Stephanie was a heel just getting her feet wet and attacked Mean Gene, then it would establish that she is not playing around anymore and it takes her character to another level (which unfortunately is the tired WWE trope of "Bitches Be Crazy!" ). However, as it stands right now Stephanie is the most protected heel in the company and has been in multiple segments over the years where she just cuts off people's balls (WWE champion Seth Rollins) and gets some form of comeuppance that is usually wiped from the records as soon as it happens. This of course nullifies EVERYTHING that happened before it (i.e. the outcome of the Survivor Series 2014). If, in my example, Mean Gene is going to be featured in a over-arching program then the spot makes 'sense' within that story. But if this is just Stephanie beating men up again-- then there is a problem. That segment accomplished nothing for either person. Todd Phillips (who is getting his feet wet as an on air personality who needs to establish credibility with the audience) now looks like a complete punk in order to advance absolutely no storyline or anything. My second problem with this is that even IF Todd Phillips is being used to advance the Reigns/Authority angle...why? How many wrestlers were released over the years and told it was because 'creative has nothing for you!'? At some point-in-time, people backstage decided that it was more important to get the ring crew, announcers, time keeper, and refs into the show. Why? I am not sure, as I know absolutely NO ONE who was ever clamoring to see the WWE time keeper go against SCSA in the main event of WM or see a member of the ring crew go one-on-one with The Great One.

So I clicked on the first post and saw her instagram. I clicked on the second post (just a few seconds later) and apparently Natalie made her IG privat in just those few seconds...amazing.

I would hope not. Ambrose is RIGHT THERE if HHH wants to continue with the Reigns stuff especially seeing how this all started with HHH causing Rollins to turn on The Shield.

That would be the only saving grace of the card as every other match, in all reality, won't matter at all. The majority of the roster just looks bad right now and not many are going into 2016 looking strong. I can see Jericho wanting to have a match with Owens and WWE possibly doing TLC II from last night (Usos/New Day/Lucha Dragons) which would be cool as well. Toss in a Divas 4 way for the title (Sasha,Charlotte,Paige,Becky) and those are 5 matches for Mania I wouldn't mind seeing.

I can't believe we are two years in and WWE doesn't release a quarterly schedule. Sure, there are ads here-and-there telling us what is 'coming up' on the WWE Network, but what's stopping them for letting the subscribers know that in Q2 of 2016 we can expect The first 2 years of WCW Saturday Night, All of Smackdown 2001, the 'first season' of Shotgun Saturday Night (when it was in a club), etc. It doesn't have to be a HUGE announcement with graphics, etc., but just putting something on WWE.com would be great!

In all honesty, the resolution would be to end the social media kayfabe aspect. WWE and its Superstars need to treat Raw, NXT, Mainevent, Smackdown, PPV, etc. as TV/Internet shows and nothing more. WWE cannot find a balance and in all reality, there isn't a balance that will make WWE look good more than 99% of the time. If kayfabe is just flat out killed online and the guys and gals handle it like other TV stars do for BONES, Walking Dead, Better Call Saul, SUV, etc. it would bring WWE, etc. into the 21st century. This would mean WWE would need to remove all the links to all the superstars instagrams on the WWE website. For this to work, WWE will also need to ensure that all angles relating to a show HAPPEN on that show and not on social media. It would be a complete overhaul on how the company currently does business. How can it be done with the same formula? It would have to be in the fashion of the U.S. challenge as mentioned above and returns (but again-how long can that gimmick last until WWE starts going into TNA terrority in bringing in Al Snow and selling it as a big deal?).

I think its simply really. Film something backstage. Example (and this is completely off the top of my head and not the BEST idea, but you will get my point): Someone has been taking out Roman Reigns friends one-by-one backstage and leaving cryptic notes and clues. Its now down to Ambrose and Reigns and Reigns has a main event match against ADR. It has been established earlier that night that Sheamus is not in the arena, The New Day have been taken out by Team Extreme. Reigns is about to beat ADR, but now he has to face the odds: 3-on-1. Somehow- through God's grace Roman surives and heads to the back to find a beaten and bloody Ambrose who is being attended by medical staff. One last clue leads Roman to a locker room door- he opens it and gasps. "What the hell are you doing here!?" FADE TO BLACK Now again...this is not some of the best writing in the whole world (i will need to actually sit down and think of something truly exciting), but this is how Raw can end sometimes. I always felt a big missed opportunity for pro wrestling (especially WWE) in the internet age is to bring in some mystery writers and add that element to the show. Everything should keep people guessing and reward the viewer for paying attention and taking mental notes. To go past the social media aspect, WWE can do what sitcoms in the 80's and 90's did...film 3 different 'endings'. Also, WWE has such a large roster of people not doing anything that it REALLY can't be that hard to setup stories that interwine instead of being its own thing. Arrested Development and other shows are good at doing this and WWE has done it in the past in very small aspects. There are ways WWE can keep a show interesting while social media runs rampart, but they will need to change the format, direction, etc.

Nia has size and presence, but nothing else. The two things she has can't really be taught so that's a good thing, but there is nothing in the ring that she does that makes me think she is a world beater. The simple offense is fine, but she can REALLY use a Vadersault in her list of chosen moves. Finishing everything off with a running sitout powerbomb also wouldn't hurt.

In all honesty I think this all comes down to who is relevant in 2015. Daniel Bryan had 70,000 plus people chanting 'Yes!' at WM30 and was easily one of the most over workers for that year and the year before. Tommy Dreamer is well known, but he isn't THAT over with the WWE fanbase or outside media when compared to Bryan. WWE would take a HUGE PR HIT if the beloved Daniel Bryan did something bad/died on WWE's watch vs. old man Tommy Dream where WWE could explain away other things. I also think it comes down to WWE believing Dreamer will not do anything too stupid until Bryan who was doing headbutt spots with Ziggler at WM31. Christian wasn't working a dangerous style, but he is another one that WWE would rather keep on papers (as the guy is a great personality) while keeping him in the back, because again Christian draws eyes and attention and if anything bad happens...WWE will have a very hard time explaining it. To me it really comes down to relevance. As curel as it sounds, WWE can 'afford' a Tommy Dreamer mis-hap and blame all of it on ECW and prior drug use and then sping the story about how much he loved wrestling and wanted to give back behind and in-front of the cameras after geting clean, etc.

The best thing about these shows are the promos. I cannot watch a wrestling match in a shitty studio like that (insert TNA joke here). I am not going to lie and pretend I am watching the matches, just the promos for me. Also, what is with Tony's mic? In every episode I've seen thus far (granted its only been four), Dave's mic cover is ON his mic while Tony's is not pulled down all the way. Does anyone know if this was on purpose or did Tony just have weak hands?

I don't believe there is anyone in the world looking at a card that includes Austin/Punk, Cena/Taker, Lesnar/Reigns II, etc. and saying "Nope! Not going, because Eva Marie is on the card!". That is a bit extreme. However, I do believe that when Eva Marie comes out there are sighs and sentiments of "Oh man! I just want to see good wrestling!". The last WWE live event I went to I boo'd Orton and Sheamus (not the entire match), because I find them both boring. So Vince (and some other people) might think they have my money, but the truth is I am invested in other aspects of the product that don't include either of those two. If WWE held a show RIGHT DOWN THE STREET from me and the show was FREE, and it had the following wrestlers on it: ADR, Orton, Sheamus, The Ascension, Big Show, and Kane as the only wrestler wrestling in this hour long free show- I would not go. When those guys are on TV, well over 90% of the time I tune out and start doing other stuff. I am not a fan of any of those acts and I find them stale So When I 'boo' or yell 'you suck' at a show, its not because im a huge mark ready to shell out my money to see Orton get his comuppence. Its because I want to see Orton's segment done and over so I can see New Day and other actually entertaining acts. The "Please Retire!" chants Big Show gets might be cutesy for some fans, but for others...they are dead serious. "Go Away" heat exists.

The whole 'go away' or 'X-Pac' heat thing is such a misguided exercise in trying to explain reality to fit your perception. If you want someone to go away so badly that you boo them, you can expect WWE is going to keep them around for the reaction. If you think that crowd is not going to lose its collective mind on a Eva Marie near fall you are out of your gourd. I don't think its mis-guided at all. I have been in arenas where people are getting boo'd (Jack Swagger, Drew Mac, etc.) and it wasn't 'Man! This guy is such a heel!' reaction. It was conversation of "Man! I don't like this guy he is so boring!". I had a buddy who went to the NXT Brooklyn show and Eva Marie didn't get boo'd because she is this GREAT HEEL, she was boo'd because people don't want to see hot girl with zero workrate anymore. The Divas for YEARS have floundered on the main roster because no one gives a shit about semi-decent looking models putting on piss poor matches that offer as little fanfare service as it did 10 years ago. In the majority of Divas matches through the years, you could hear a pin drop in the arena once the entrance music stopped playing. I know some people like to pretend Eva Marie is this once-in-a-lifetime heel and I don't understand the end-game. Why are we pretending that an audience that is use to seeing Emma/Paige, Charlotte/Natalie, Banks/Charlotte, Bayley/Banks, Banks/Bayley II, and Banks/Lynch (just to name a few) are all of a sudden also craving matches from the worse worker on the roster? People are booing because they don't want to see her segments, her interviews, her matches, etc. WWE's meta booking is not going to make them any money in this case and if Eva Marie's gimmick is "I am a bad worker, but I am going to be in top matches anyway"....well...again...we shall see how much money that makes WWE. Again, I don't really think this is my own narrative due to me having some axe to grind, but rather a narrative that is pretty damn clear sight and sound.

Charlotte isn't connecting because her gimmick is: My dad is Ric Flair, I had good matches in NXT (which the Raw/Smackdown audiences may or may not have seen), and my brother is dead. Its so fucking meta. What she has been given can only take her so far, at some point-in-time there needs to be more substance to her character and work or else she will not catch on with the fans. Its an up-hill battle for her at this point with the pinkie swears, Ric Flair cosplaying, and being in placed as a robotic/bland face in back-to-back feuds where the other workers are more over. WWE wants a tall, white, blonde female as the poster-woman of the company and the company is doing its best to force that narrative despite not a lot of poeple buying into it. Its counter-productive, just like the Eva Marie shit in NXT is counter productive. People in the crowd 'wooing' doesn't mean Charlotte is over as then the match starts people are pretty dead for all her stuff unless becomes the Ric Flair tribute act. She has talent and I want to see her suceed and figure it out, but this 'Reality Era' shit ran by a bunch of carnys who want to still (in some respect) maintain kayfabe, is killing her dead.