Dean Ambrose Am I missing something?

[Superstar Sleeze]

I want mat wrestling but I want it all to be nostril based holds.

How about a good fishhook? I am a mark for the fishhook.

[Matt D]

Only if he talks like Popeye while doing it.

[Bierschwale]

Huge Ambrose fan. I honestly thought, with the exception of Ryback, that he was the only wrestler who actually had really good matches with Rollins in 2015.

 

I fully agree with the idea that he needs to have more "mat work"-- ugly-looking "take out the leg" stuff. He should never just stop running and swarming at his opponent unless he has control, at which point he can break out the Regal Stretch (Ambrose's consistent usage of the Regal Stretch early in matches when it won't have much end consequence is very weird,it always gets the five-count break when he starts ripping at the opponent's nostrils. It's like he is begging to get to have a sub finisher, but that he's not allowed to have one, so he just does this really painful-looking hold early in the match just because he wants to do it) or something else tortuous. He also regularly does spots working the fingers that go nowhere because they're not allowed to go anywhere.

 

He had the short, short period when he was breaking out a nice-looking figure-4 and getting huge crowd pops, and I can remember him employing some nice transitions into half-crabs and Buffalo sleepers. It all fit what he was doing, but it always just got blown off. And we've all seen the Regal matches, which were spectacular.

 

It all COULD fit the character, but it just... isn't allowed. He has great offense, just not throw-based offense, and as said, that's not going to fit the nearfall-fu style. He doesn't need to be a heel for this to work, though I think that he'd only get the chance to go "methlab BattlARTS" (greatest phrase ever) if he turned.

[Goodear]

I think the double arm DDT is kind of a miss too as it doesn't really get the 'wind up, delivery' treatment that most over face moves have. Ambrose just sorts of hits it and the crowd is sometimes slow to pick up on it being the finish. I think the headlock driver was a better finish for him but still it seems a bit off for whatever reason.

[Superstar Sleeze]

I think the double arm DDT is kind of a miss too as it doesn't really get the 'wind up, delivery' treatment that most over face moves have. Ambrose just sorts of hits it and the crowd is sometimes slow to pick up on it being the finish. I think the headlock driver was a better finish for him but still it seems a bit off for whatever reason.

The headlock driver looked stupid with minimal impact to me, just not my cup of tea. Double arm DDT looks impactful and match-ending. That being said you are right. It is not as over as it should be. Perhaps a little Jake Roberts like signaling before hitting the move could help.

[Mando]

Ambrose cut his teeth in HWA here in Cincinnati where Nigel McGuinness was a big deal hence the Rebound Lariat love. Dean does other things tributing his home town i.e. "Lunatic Fringe" is the motto of WEBN the longest going rock radio station in Cincy. I'm a big backer of Dean's but take that with a grain of salt as I got to watch him come up from school gym and armory shows to the big leagues.

[...TG]

I'm as down on Ambrose as anybody, but he's been damn good in tonight's match. Even his strikes look good, the chops especially.

[Matt D]

Best thing about Ambrose is that he sells like Philip Marlowe getting stomped on by a gangster's muscle.

[Death From Above]

He was great tonight, doing the kind of stuff he doesn't get to do much. And honestly if anything he gains something by going toe to toe with Triple H even if he lost, because I don't think anyone actually expects him to win that battle in The WWE Universe©.

[NintendoLogic]

This past Raw had the only rebound lariat I've ever liked. I love the babyface gets thrown out of the ring and immediately rolls back in spot, and it was like the reverse of that.

[Hegs]

I hope and pray that Ambrose isnt facing Brock at Wrestlemania. Certainly nothing good can come out of it. There's no way Brock should be selling any of that Ambrose offense.

[Hegs]

Now that he's The Guy, I really don't get it. After a Wrestlemania squash andcthe horrible Asylum match, you give the guy the title? I really cant think of a worse world champ in WWE/WWF history.

[El Dragon]

He's over, and him winning sets up an actual interesting story going forward, something the company hasn't had since they pretty much botched the initial SHIELD breakup.

 

We can think whatever we want of him as a wrestler, and I'm not crazy about him in his current role, but the crowd has been wanting him as champ for over a year. His title reign could end tomorrow, but putting the belt on him is the right.

[Grimmas]

Now that he's The Guy, I really don't get it. After a Wrestlemania squash andcthe horrible Asylum match, you give the guy the title? I really cant think of a worse world champ in WWE/WWF history.

Vince. Khali. Sid. etc...

 

come on.

[fakeplastictrees]

Yeah Dean Ambrose's work sometimes (most of the time actually) doesn't do it for me. However, the guy has remained over despite the shit booking and the 'comedy' segments, etc. Remember, this is a guy who jobbed out to a monitor in one match and a ghost in another. And yet, the crowd has stayed with him this entire time.

[Infinit]

OMG a face champion the fans actually like. The question is will this be a short reign or will Dean get a least a few ppvs/specials as champ.

[Al]

I guess the over/under is Ron Garvin.

[PhilTLL]

OMG a face champion the fans actually like. The question is will this be a short reign or will Dean get a least a few ppvs/specials as champ.

 

As a face champion they actually like, the question is how long until they stop cheering him.

[Cap]

I go back and forth on Ambrose. I do think he is inherently pretty interesting because he keeps sort of pushing against (or at worst taking jabs at) the WWE prototype and has sort of kept his momentum despite the odds. I am excited by the prospects of his feuds, but rarely really find myself loving his matches that much (a few exceptions exist). I think I replied to this earlier when I was sort of down on him, but in general I have always liked him and I think he might even be growing more on me a bit.

 

The thing I really like about him is that he is kind of walking that tweener line that Vince said all wrestling was a while back, but doing it as well or better than anyone. I mean he is obviously super over as a face, but he is really cocky and kinda crazy and it really wouldn't take too much of a change to his wrestling style to make him a heel. So for him, it is all about story. I always thought the Austin comparisons were way overblown, but I think they have that ability to be who they are and earn a different kind of love from the fans for it. I saw this morning some article talking about his heel turn and my first response was like, "what heel turn"? I don't see him getting turned on unless they really alter who and what he is in any significant way. He is feuding with a guy many fans already hate (got that Cena love/hate) and a guy that fans actually seem to like booing as a genuine heel, but respect as a performer. I don't see the broader audience turning on him.

 

As for his run. I kind of thought this was a possibility to set up a triple threat match for Summer Slam (though I am surprised they put Rollins over Reigns first. Not sure what they do next month, but I imagine they are planning to build to the big blowoff in Aug. There, I anticipate them putting the belt on Rollins or Reigns.

[DMJ]

Still haven't finished watching the MITB show, but obviously couldn't avoid reading about the title change.

 

Has anyone talked about how ridiculously poor the WWE handled this happening on the same night as the biggest sports story of the year, if not the decade? I mean, they basically guaranteed themselves absolutely zero coverage from any mainstream sports sites when I think one could argue that Ambrose's first title win might've actually gotten at least a little play on a slower news week.

 

I'm a Clevelander, so I'm obviously bias, but of the dozens of texts, Facebook messages, etc. that I've received since Sunday night, not a single one has even mentioned Ambrose, someone who is actually pretty popular among my circle of wrestling fans (and, honestly, among my friends, any World Title change would usually lead to a series of phone calls and texting from across the country as a way to keep in touch).

 

I did read that the Raw rating went up a bit, so I could be wrong...but it still feels like a lost opportunity to elevate Ambrose in an important way. I mean, to Clevelanders at least, it's like having Hogan slam Andre on the night John Lennon was shot.

[Cap]

I mean at some point they can't schedule around who may or may not win. They COULD have called an audible when they found out the result of the game, but were they honesty going to get much more press if Cleveland lost? I doubt it. At that point the building is already booked and the date is set well before we know there is going to be a game 7. I would rather them stick to the plan than do the seat of your pants planning they often time (reportedly) do.

 

I think this is probably less of a thing outside Cleveland. Cleveland is one of my favorite cities (grew up a few hours away) and I was super happy at the result, but I don't think other things are getting lost in the shuffle outside Cleveland really. LeBron failing to bring a title to Cleveland would have sucked up just as much mainstream media and ensured title change didn't get much mainstream traction, at least in terms of a broader audience.

[DMJ]

But isn't the point of the briefcase that Ambrose could've cashed in at anytime? Like the big Draft show coming up? Or even the very next night on Raw? It just seems like they picked the very worst option.

 

Again, I haven't watched it or read detailed results so I could be dead wrong, but even if you argue that the WWE wanted to have the "crowd leave happy" and needed to immediately take the title off Reigns due to the Wellness Violation, it still seems like they made an extra unnecessary and counterproductive step because, unless Vegas was vehemently against Rollins and pro-Reigns, I doubt the crowd would've shat on Rollins leaving with the title. The Ambrose switch was a good idea, but it just seems so narrow-minded to do it on a night when you know you haven't maximized the amount of eyeballs you've got on your show. Ambroses victory will be as remembered as that time Dolph Ziggler became a World Champion on a random episode of SD.

[Matt D]

What was important was the parallel to Rollins cashing in on Reigns.

[DMJ]

I get that and give credit to the company for being poetic...but if a tree falls in the woods and 30 million people don't see it because they were watching the Finals instead, it's not a "moment" to anyone but the most insular fans.

[joeg]

I get what you are saying. I often look at WWE and wonder whether or not they possess a calendar. They regularly schedule shows on the same day, at the same time as events that are much more popular and will thus over shadow whatever happens on WWE.