SomethingSavage

How awesome would it be if they made this summer Rusev Season and basically gave him what they gave Bryan back in the summer of 2013? I mean, I don't think it'll happen. But we can still hope. Way back in the very first season of South Park, they did an episode where Stan had this big, deformed clone. Big Cass basically looks like the massive mutant clone of Edge - right down to the bug-eyed, hair-yanking mannerisms and the catfish face. It's an uncanny resemblance.

I almost always hate WWE comedy, but i thought the filler segment at Backlash was inoffensive and totally harmless. I mean, nothing cracked me up even once or anything. But the crowd was loud & sounded hot for every single act, and that never really died off. Elias toying with the audience was great. I hope they eventually flip the switch with this guy and take him up a notch from comedic filler guy to potential breakthrough star. Rusev is still as over as ever, despite their atrocious handling of his momentum. Hopefully this week's SmackDown is the start of something significant for him, but I'm not exactly getting my hopes up.

Preach! Seriously, I said the same thing elsewhere awhile back - specifically praising some of their early work right away against AMW in the beginning - and people reacted like I had just slapped their children in the mouths. You're absolutely right though. Team 3D (despised the name change back then, although I understand completely why they had to do it) really seemed to rediscover whatever it was that they loved about the business once they parachuted into TNA. Right away, they were taking part in some SOOPAH fun brawls and plunder matches. I dug the alliance with Rhino early on and alot of their tag feuds. The stuff with Christian and the glass table was sick. I remember my roommate TiVoing (hey, 'member TiVo) it that week, and we must have watched that segment back a couple dozen times. We were, of course, in attendance for that Full Metal Mayhem match to blow-off the feud later, too. A lot of people got fully on board with Bully Ray well after he went solo and had the fantastic Slammiversary match with AJ, but he was honestly a truckload of fun way before that. The shit with Team 3D being the bullies of the X Division was great. The little retirement deal that led to them making a BIG deal out of the Machine Guns being the first team to ever kick out of the Death Drop was neat also. I don't expect anyone to agree with me, but I thought D-Von did a decent job as a standalone baby face for awhile, too. There wasn't much to his character or anything, but i thought he showed some genuine baby face fire in his comebacks. He got really lean and was stringing together solid - not spectacular - matches for the TV Title. I was legitimately happy foe the guy when I heard Hogan praising him in an interview around that time. Bully, of course, went on to be involved in a bunch of great stuff. The brief team with Steiner, the constant bullying of Abyss, the incredibly underrated deal with Austin Aries (which practically catapulted A Double from X Division guy to main event made guy), and on & on. But yes. I'm in absolute agreement that they were surprisingly good in TNA. And I'd listen to a case for it being a stronger run overall than their WWE run, which burned brighter & hotter - but also burnt out quickly and never lit up again. They were so stale & stagnant for so long there. I just feel like there were fewer slumps and lulls in their TNA tenure altogether. I'm not sure how familiar you are with those later TNA years - and I hope I'm not just spilling a bunch of spoilers at your feet here - but there's still plenty of good stuff from them after 2008, for sure.

Maybe I'm remembering it wrong, but didn't Ambrose get painted with the brush of being not ambitious enough or something? Back when he did the Austin interview, I seem to recall there being some talk about them seeing him as too casual or carefree or whatever. I don't know. But it does sound like something they'd use to limit or label a guy. But yes. If not Braun... or Roman... or Lashley... then maybe Ambrose. But definitely not Rollins.

I'm trying to picture where it is you're at and recall what I liked about it. I remember BFG that year being fairly fun overall, so there's that maybe? Were the Christian/Booker matches any good? I believe that was Christian's last program before he bolted back to the E, but I can't remember how they turned out. I *think* that was also around the time where Book brought out his own vanity belt, right? Sharmell was around, too. Always thought she added a lot to his act - and especially at ringside. A good chunk of 2009 is scorched earth to me. I'm not even sure if that's because of how bad the product actually was at the time, or if it's just a matter of circumstances. I had just bought my house around that time, and I had a *lot* of priorities on my plate. Wrestling in general took a backseat for me. I kept up with Punk/Jeff later on but almost everything else is a post-traumatic blur. There's an abundance of Main Event Mafia horse shit that year - I do know that much. I think they tease a breakup for about five months before they actually do it, and the whole thing just dies with a whimper. There's some AJ/Nash and AJ/Booker matches that I've considered revisiting, but I just never have. I'd be curious to know how those hold up though. I don't remember them being anything significant at the time. There's that pitiful main event run with Foley. Funnily enough, I remember liking the one-on-one match he had with Kurt, but I couldn't tell you the slightest reason why. Wonder how that looks all these years later also. The end of the year is enjoyable though. Once they put the belt back on AJ and fill the gap with him serving as top star, things are simple but streamlined. The fourth AJ/Daniels/Joe match is every bit as good as the first trilogy, and the Daniels/AJ match the next month is a banger, too. I really should go back and try to catch some of this stuff, but I'm not nearly as brave as you to navigate my way through their weekly television. If I could find the time, I'd definitely give some of the major matches a re-watch at some stage though. Eager to see what you make of them in the meantime.

Hmm. Well I find my tastes line up pretty well with yours on most things, so i'll take your word that there's anything remotely enjoyable in that AJ/Kurt/Karen stuff. I haven't watched it in forever (aside from the Hard Justice match and the Full Metal Mayhem tag from Houston), so I'm not entirely sure. I do remember hating it at the time though. The Prince AJ stuff made him look like a goof. He basically went from southern fired up baby face to being Crash Holly or some shit. Just awful. He eventually scaled his way up eventually, but it was through sheer hard work and yet another turn to get him there. The way I remember it, Tomko was the guy looking like a star in that whole mess. Here he was, basically being portrayed as this big badass enforcer, who just happens to be caught up with all these clowns surrounding him. I know that sounds ridiculous now with everything in the rear view, but Tomko was basically presented as the Batista of the group & several people were buying it. Edit: Come to think of it, my memory of the timeline might be a little off. The Tomko stuff may have been before the AJ/Kurt feud, because I remember Christian being involved. So maybe it was the Christian-AJ-Tomko faction and not the one they later formed with Angle? Hell, I don't know. The point still stands though.

Do you really expect anyone to believe you weren't glued to your screen for the enthralling story of Abyss shooting his father or Prince AJ accidentally marrying Karen Angle? GTFO with that noise. The world was watching!

That's pretty much all it ever was, but there was this belief that it somehow added to the X Division action because there were more angles or turnbuckles or something. I don't know.

When they moved away from the six-sided ring, it felt fine. I know some people were upset, but I stuck with TNA from the beginning (at that point) and didn't mind at all. The concept felt like it had fully run its course & served its purpose by then. I mean, yeah. At first, it helped them to stand out. But by 2010? It made no difference. And it was becoming a case of being a limiting factor, because you had to recruit new talent (Jeff Hardy, RVD, etc.) that felt much more accustomed to the 4-sided ring. Why run the risk of alienating future talent or future deals at that point? Just go with the traditional ring and move on. I remember some talk about it being detrimental more so for the X Division guys, but that didn't turn out to be true either. Once the X Division was restocked, the likes of Aries, Kendrick, Shelley, Kash, etc were tearing it up in the 4 sides like it ain't no thing.

"What an epic 2-year journey this has been!" ... Cause, ya know, Roman wrestled Jinder on Raw that one time that year or something.

Except that Seth's not, in fact, their hottest act if Braun's right there. Plus I never mentioned Seth's longevity as a knock against him. If anything, that would be one of the few things in his favor. And Seth is a proven failure, with a dreadful run on top in 2015 and another terrible run as a main baby face in 2016 against Owens, Hunter, and company. Seth got a chance and flopped miserably. What I was criticizing was the suggestion made to pass on Braun altogether & not give him that chance, based on the idea that they're worried he will eventually cool off.

Yeah, but you don't dumb down your champion and book them down a level. You build up new challengers. This is why the Fed made its bread & butter being a heel factory for so many years. It's the same problem they've had with Brock since at least 2015, if not earlier. They can't book anyone strong enough to oppose him in the interim between his dates. So, even when he does show up, it rarely feels like as big a deal as it should. There's just no competition. Braun's aura is already suffering. The shit with the kid and all the humor-based segments that feel like they were written more specifically for a Rock type than a badass Austin type haven't done that aura any favors. So it's dwindling if they just continue down the current path anyhow. Might as well make the most of their most over act and, ya know, actually strike while it's hot.

Yeah. They kept Austin fresh with creative ideas, stunts, and crazy situations. God forbid the writers have to come up with anything like that to keep a championship reign interesting. And you're still just making a laundry list of excuses to not go with the guy - failing to realize that this same list could/would/should be applied to ANY and everyone in today's landscape. Everyone not named Brock is faced with overexposure. So what? Your solution is to only book part-timers as champ until that changes? That, in itself, is hardly a long-term solution either. This whole mentality is weird to me. You're essentially worrying about problems that may never come.

I found the Big Boss Man episode to be really enjoyable. The first portion is much more fun than the second half - mostly because I prefer his earlier years over his Attitude Era stuff. A lot of the stories are retreads that Bruce has referenced on previous shows, but this was still good fun. I really dig the times Bruce will talk about producing vignettes. You can tell he really relished his role in the company at that time. He always seems to liven up a bit when discussing the TV production side of stuff. One of the stories retold here was the Hogan in handcuffs scenario, with Boss Man putting a beat down on the Hulkster. It's kind of fascinating to think about when you consider where the company's priorities are today versus back then when it comes to that sort of stuff. The measures and lengths they went to in order to protect Hogan's image & presentation is Vince at his finest. It makes me wish he'd be half that protective over ANYBODY in today's landscape. There was another line that had me cracking up. Conrad mentioned Boss Man leaving JCP after he felt shortchanged on a payout - reportedly $5,000 as a bodyguard in a scaffold match in which the actual participants were paid $10,000 apiece. Conrad seems to indicate that Boss Man should have received equal pay and noted that he *was* voted Most Improved Wrestler in the Observer that year, after all. Bruce's response? "Because we base all our payouts on Observer results." Loved that. With all the recent discussion here, I couldn't help but get a kick out of it. The whole exchange felt like a total lay-up. But anyone that listens to the show is used to that sort of shtick from Conrad and Bruce. They totally lean into it.

This line of thinking that Braun can't be champ because he can't show vulnerability is so ass backwards. He's already had shots at the title and lost. He's already traded wins with Roman. It's not like he's undefeated altogether. Maybe I could be convinced to that thinking if he was being kept away from the belt completely, but they're clearly going to use him as a challenger - so why not crown the guy? He's over, he's unique, and he can go. Book him as a dominant champion. It's really that simple. People will tune in for a knockout or a slaughter if they a) LOVE the guy dishing it out or b ) HATE the guy that's going to get it. They're in Braun's corner. They'd be willing to watch him maul challengers for the first few months before you need to have him show any vulnerability. Even then, all you have to do is get a little creative with the buildup. Do sneak attacks and gang-style beat downs on television. Then you book Braun to win in the end. It's really simple shit. Once that's grown repetitive, then you can change it up or address the issue of moving on. But you don't abandon the idea of running with your hottest act - WHILE he is, in fact, your hottest act - just because you're worried about what his longevity will look like in six or twelve months down the road. That's absurd. At that point, it's not even making a decision to *not* go with Braun. It's just indecision altogether. Can you even imagine if that approach was used before? "We can't go with Hogan. He's too over to show vulnerability. He could never be champion!" "Austin just won't work if he has to show vulnerability. He doesn't need the belt, pal." As far as who is better than Seth? Where do I start? AJ is better in every category. He does all the movez people like from Seth, only better. He's light years ahead when it comes to selling and storytelling. And he's an underrated talker - by far better than Seth, even before this WWE run, where he seems to have grown even more comfortable in the role. Lashley has turned into a tremendous all-around performer. And sure. He hasn't been given anything substantial to do since returning, which makes it seem somehow underwhelming. But he's had the pieces all put together since about 2014. Dismissing him based on their piss poor booking would be a mistake.

I thought he was overlooked, for sure. Otunga's reactions to the stiffer strikes and the harder shots always put them over the top for me. Sounded like a guy you'd sit next to at the bar, watching some fights & whatnot. He was far from the worst they've had out there.

Is it really any better if he's a heel who intentionally works as exciting as possible to get stars? Seth doesn't check all the boxes, because his promos are fucking dreadful. And the last time he wrestled anything resembling a blow-off match, it looked like anything but that. His idea of a blood feud was whatever that thing was with Hunter - absolutely absent of any grudge or malice and totally devoid of any sense of danger or urgency. It was just there. You could have missed the years of mentor/protege build up on television and bypassed all the knee injury stuff & nobody would have noticed a bit. If he's checking all the boxes, then you've misplaced a few of them.

Mauro irritates the shit out of me, especially on longer shows, with his constant shower of shitty references. But there's not a day of the week in which I'd ever think about ranking him below Coach - who is absolute bottom of the barrel for me. Honest to god, I'd take Otunga's 2016 run at the booth over what we're getting out of Coach at the moment. There's exactly zero exaggeration in that statement.

I actually enjoyed the shit out of that opening match with Miz, by the way. And I could absolutely see Seth as a valuable player where he's at. In the mid-card. I just have no desire to see him back up top. I simply don't believe he has all the tools. As a one-off challenger here or there? Sure. That's harmless enough. But I don't ever want another 2015 with him or anything. But you're right. Fans are buying him in this role. But a big part of that could be that he's just doing his thing - sticking to his guns, going out there, and having matches. They've eliminated the 20 minutes of dialogue, then hammy acting, and the whining promos from his profile at the moment. And it's working. But the moment you propel him back into the main event program, you reintroduce ALL OF THAT stuff back onto his table, and he simply isn't equipped for it. You can bet he'd be half as over in a heartbeat. Just like that. I say stick with what's working. Like I said, sometimes it's enough for a guy to just carve out a nice spot for himself and have good matches.

I think he'd be just as successful, because the Dave stuff is already old to me, and I've only seen the three Network shows.It's the other stuff - the great stories, the "insider look" into how the WWE was run and Vince's mindset, etc. - that, for me, make the show worthwhile to listen to.I think all of the Dave bashing on the show is a side-effect of Conrad mentioning him every other sentence. "Dave thought this, reported that, gave this match x amount of stars." Bingo. I'd wager he rips on Dave becaus it's the only way he's relevant in 2018. Would he be known as anything other than the guy who was Brother Love if he wasn't using Dave as a means to get himself over with the internet? He was in Vince's inner circle and knows where the bodies are buried in the largest wrestling company on Earth. So yes I think he would be relevant without David Meltzer. Yup. Nailed it. I mean, I get that Bruce's show isn't for everyone. But some of us can enjoy him for what he offers and cut through the bullshit. It's not all that difficult. And you're right that he and Dave aren't at all selling the same thing. So it's entirely possible for someone to value both separately - even if there's nothing Bruce does that is even half as annoying as Dave's overuse (abuse?) of the phrase, "ya know."

Why on God's green earth would anyone think Seth Rollins is viable as a long-term baby face ace for them now? Because he's strung together some good matches recently? I still haven't recovered from those endless matches with Owens and Jericho. And sure. He's improved his baby face game in some areas since then, but that's hardly high praise. He had nowhere to go but up. X-Pac was the promotion's workhorse in 98, but no one was exactly pegging him as the next guy or anything. Sometimes, it's enough for a guy to just hold down a spot on the card and contribute some good matches. Rollins doesn't have an ounce of presence. He doesn't carry himself like anything special. He doesn't sound or look like a star in his black merch shirts. There's just nothing there. Stylistically, you'd think he should function like a Jeff Hardy or a CM Punk niche baby face. But there's no identity. There's zero personality and no trait or defining characteristic to pinpoint. What's Seth Rollins supposed to be? The Architect? The Kingslayer? Freakin? What the actual fuck does any of that even mean? It's just empty, hollow words. The guy's got a dozen nicknames & none of them mean a thing. There's no context for any of it. Seth is just another guy on the roster that can sometimes have good matches. Maybe I'm in the minority here. Maybe ProWrestlingOnly isn't the ideal place to call for stronger emphasis of characters over in-ring acrobatics, but it is what it is. I just feel like he's lacking in a lot of categories. But then again, I'm not a weekly viewer either. So they've already lost me as a regular consumer. Perhaps Seth really *is* the best of what's left and I'm just not the desired demo at this point.

Just how fucking awful was that opening video package? "What IS a backlash?" "Is it a reaction?" "A consequence?" "... MAYBE." That was literally the intro to their opening. Fucking terrible, lazy, and uninspired. This wasn't exactly Over the Edge 98 or anything even remotely close. But hey. That opening match was okay.

It should be hilarious to hear everyone push the idea that it's supposedly been this epic, intriguing 4-year story from day one all along though. Aside from that, you know it's a sad & dire situation whenever people are actually clamoring for a Seth run as top baby face. Christ. It's like hearing survivors of the Great Depression yearn for the good old days. Enough. Seth isn't the answer - regardless of what the question may be. Ever. His grating, irritating, terrible promos aren't designed to rally people. They aren't going to inspire any kind of a baby face reaction. Whatever goodwill he builds up with his in-ring work is quickly evaporated when it comes time for him to promote or sell any sort of story or circumstance. Zero personality. Until that changes, he's precisely where he needs to be, thrilling you with his gymnastics in the mid-card. The answer is Braun, by the way.

What's amusing about that is how you seem to be the only one saying anything about "pushing what he knows is bullshit." I know I never phrased it that way. I said he pushed his own biases. And he does. Always has. I also clarified that both guys could be looked to for different offerings. Why would I mention turning to Dave for news if he was a bullshit artist? Conversely, I gladly turn to Bruce for the bullshit and the entertaining stories. Again, if other people can't spot the bullshit when they hear it, then that's on them. Lumping me into the same category or rephrasing what I said to fit your counterargument (with yourself, apparently) is a little weird & does nothing to address what I *actually* said in the first place.

Example please. Maybe pick up any issue of the Observer ever please. If you can't find instances of Dave pushing his own ideas, agendas, etc. then you're not paying attention. That's not even an indictment of his character or anything. That's just business. He wouldn't be doing a decent job if he didn't try to keep people buying his shit, ya know.