Ridiculous quotes from WO.com columnists

[Eduardo]

I think Bryan's talked about that photograph and Hemme like 3-4 years ago on one of his podcasts. For whatever reason, he just really, really, really loves that particular photo. I don't visit F4W/Observer as much as I used to, but does that photo still actually get posted on the front page?

[sek69]

It's currently on the front page now, that's what prompted my comment.

[vikingsfan73]

That NCAA Wrestling Championship recap on the front page today is pretty bad. Not sure who wrote it, but they're talking it up like they have some amateur wrestling knowledge. First, they said Cael Sanderson went to Iowa. Sorry, he went to Iowa State. Then, they said the only colleges who have won the NCAA championship who weren't Midwest schools were Penn State, Arizona State, and Cornell. The Cornell that won the NCAA Wrestling Championship isn't Cornell University, but Cornell College, which is a small private school in Iowa. It's something that's talked enough about in wrestling magazines like WIN that anyone attempting to cover college wrestling should know the true story.

 

Of course, Dave got Iowa and Iowa State mixed up in his NCAA preview in this week's Observer, so maybe he did write it!

[S.L.L.]

A fittingly small and petty thing to laugh at from yesterday's update:

 

--The New York Times covered the arrest of Kurt Angle in a one paragraph brief, mentioning him as a 1996 gold medalist but never mentioned that he is or was a pro wrestler. Kind of arrogant if you ask me.

[sek69]

Speaking of arrogant, anyone listen to the latest WO radio where they recap RAW? Dave and Bryan believe the Taker/HHH/HBK segment ended with HHH and HBK having a plan on how to win the match, but when Hunter asked Shawn to reveal it, Shawn got cold feet. They mention that everyone else on the board (and everyone else I've seen talk about it) saw it as Hunter asking Shawn to tell Taker he thinks HHH will beat him, but Shawn now isn't sure he can. Dave's response? A laughing "well... they're wrong". It came off as smarmy and douchebaggy as possible, and ironic considering how often they bash companies for insulting their paying customers.

[KrisZ]

Just about every WWE recap show they do is douchey these days.

[shawmic]

Speaking of arrogant, anyone listen to the latest WO radio where they recap RAW? Dave and Bryan believe the Taker/HHH/HBK segment ended with HHH and HBK having a plan on how to win the match, but when Hunter asked Shawn to reveal it, Shawn got cold feet. They mention that everyone else on the board (and everyone else I've seen talk about it) saw it as Hunter asking Shawn to tell Taker he thinks HHH will beat him, but Shawn now isn't sure he can. Dave's response? A laughing "well... they're wrong". It came off as smarmy and douchebaggy as possible, and ironic considering how often they bash companies for insulting their paying customers.

That wasn't even as good as this:

 

[Talking about WWE writers]

 

BRYAN: "Well you're on call 24/7 but you're not also being yelled at all the time...and told your ideas suck."

DAVE: "My ideas suck...I don't think anyone ever tells me that...even when they do no one tells me that...well sometimes on the message board but most of the time they don't know what they're talking about anyway."

[rovert]

In fairness Dave is right in the main but this SECRET PLAN between HBK and HHH is WTF worthy.

[Bix]

In fairness, HHH's delivery hinted at a plan, IMO, but Michaels walking out can't really be interpreted any other way, especially six days out with him not as special ref. Dave's definitive proclamation was weird, though.

[S.L.L.]

Speaking of arrogant, anyone listen to the latest WO radio where they recap RAW? Dave and Bryan believe the Taker/HHH/HBK segment ended with HHH and HBK having a plan on how to win the match, but when Hunter asked Shawn to reveal it, Shawn got cold feet.

IT'S A SHOOT, BRUTHA!

[kjh]

A couple of paradoxes:

 

We're constantly told by Bryan and Dave that Vince changes his mind all the time and rips up the script at the last minute, yet they're so certain that Shawn and Hunter had hatched a secret plan even though it contradicted what Shawn said on TV.

 

All current WWE writers should be fired and replaced by a booking team of Hunter, Shawn and Taker, yet these writers are supposedly shackled by the backstabbing backstage environment and the ever changing whims of they who must be obeyed.

[Grimmas]

The best part of the Hunter, Taker and HBK booking team is that HBK will be an announcer and get everything over, ala Vince. Also, Shawn can cut promos for all of the guys on the roster.

 

Free shows like that remind me why I don't subsribe anymore.

[Bob Morris]

A couple of paradoxes:

 

We're constantly told by Bryan and Dave that Vince changes his mind all the time and rips up the script at the last minute, yet they're so certain that Shawn and Hunter had hatched a secret plan even though it contradicted what Shawn said on TV.

 

All current WWE writers should be fired and replaced by a booking team of Hunter, Shawn and Taker, yet these writers are supposedly shackled by the backstabbing backstage environment and the ever changing whims of they who must be obeyed.

Well, to be fair, Vince McMahon is also a part of They Who Must Be Obeyed. And I imagine Steph is still in that category, even if she supposedly isn't the control freak she once was. I'm sure if Shawn, for example, became a booker, we'd hear stories about how Vince keeps shooting down all of Shawn's great ideas to get talent over.

[Resident Evil]

Speaking of arrogant, anyone listen to the latest WO radio where they recap RAW? Dave and Bryan believe the Taker/HHH/HBK segment ended with HHH and HBK having a plan on how to win the match, but when Hunter asked Shawn to reveal it, Shawn got cold feet. They mention that everyone else on the board (and everyone else I've seen talk about it) saw it as Hunter asking Shawn to tell Taker he thinks HHH will beat him, but Shawn now isn't sure he can. Dave's response? A laughing "well... they're wrong". It came off as smarmy and douchebaggy as possible, and ironic considering how often they bash companies for insulting their paying customers.

That wasn't even as good as this:

 

[Talking about WWE writers]

 

BRYAN: "Well you're on call 24/7 but you're not also being yelled at all the time...and told your ideas suck."

DAVE: "My ideas suck...I don't think anyone ever tells me that...even when they do no one tells me that...well sometimes on the message board but most of the time they don't know what they're talking about anyway."

 

Yes, I thought the "everyone else I've seen talk about it) saw it as Hunter asking Shawn to tell Taker he thinks HHH will beat him, but Shawn now isn't sure he can" talking point was wrong too. Watching it, I wasn't sure what was up (though I had a coup;le of ideas) but that's partly the reason why I loved that whole talking segment. That talking point doesn't make any sense whatsoever given what was said unless there was a mistake in teh way they coveyed their message but I doubt it.

[Strummer]

Monday's free show certainly was surreal.

 

Dave and Bryan throwing a fit over Kane playing an air trombone and spending about 5-7 minutes on it.

 

The whole Shawn Hunter bit with the "You're right" ending

 

and the capper with Bryan scolding Dave for not knowing that Daniel Larusso was Raplh Macchio's character in Karate Kid

 

oh yeah and the Columbine reference by Dave where he chuckled (and then admonished himself)

[KrisZ]

I laughed when I saw the headline "Mo Chatra looks like the best matches of 2010" because it's Mo of course and then I clicked on the post and I think he ranked 1000 matches at least 4 stars.

[kjh]

209 matches to be exact, though Mo does admit he didn't watch everything so the match list is not exhaustive!

[kjh]

What did Storm say?

This may shock you but Bruce is a deceitful carny.

 

Todd asked Lance his impressions of Bruce Hart he said he didnt know him really well, Lance said he tried to listen to the Bruce interview while sitting in a car waiting for a plane to land and gave up listening after 20-30 minutes to instead watch the stars in the night sky for more excitement. Bryan explained that the show with Bruce was taped at midnight. Lance said that he has had conversations with him in past and it takes forever to get to his point.

 

Lance said he didnt anything against Bruce but hasnt had the greatest experiences with him. Lance said between WCW and WWE he did four shows for Bruce for Stampede. Lance and Bruce did a radio show for PR for the shows and Bruce spent the interview talking about he had a relationship with WWE now meaning in the future fans would see the Rock, Austin etc on Stampede shows. Lance felt that Bruce was coming across as someone who was full of shit and sabotaging the forthcoming shows that weekend feeling people would save their money for when the Rock was coming in.

 

He told Bruce specificly that there was a slim chance that WWE may want him for the KOTR PPV and it was up to Bruce then whether he wanted to advertise him for that Sunday. Bruce said that was ok. But Bruce went ahead and advertised him and Lance got the call from WWE to be at KOTR. Lance told Ross Hart that he was doing the PPV. When Lance called WWE offices he was told that Bruce called WWE to tell them Lance made a commitment to be at the Stampede show Sunday and got Lance canceled off the KOTR AND Johhny Ace told Lance that they were going to bring in Lance for Raw as well but Bruce told WWE there was a Monday show which Lance was booked on but there was no Monday show for Stampede.....

 

On a funny note Lance was asked by Bryan about how the Sunday show went and Lance replied that the ring showed up 45 minutes late and the posters promoting the show arrived an hour after the ring. So Lance missed the KOTR PPV for a show that drew 40.

More fun to report about this from the Cauliflower Alley Club. Ross Hart gave Dave an earful about how so much of what was in Bruce's book never happened particularly the story about Bret attacking Diana over their mother's death bed. No wonder Bret is furious at Bruce's book! A fine victory for those wrestling scholars Todd Martin and Joe Babinsack.

[Johnny Sorrow]

Alverez proposing that the Truth heel turn may be because he failed a pot test is the dopiest thing he's theorized in a long time. Dave sounded baffled by this.

 

And then Dave so over analyzed things he completely missed how Truth's win last week and the loss this week was totally logical. It was a real "can't see the forest for the trees" deal.

 

edit: Hah, Dave while ranting about the "they don't build new stars/ the start to push a guy and then stop" deal said that Kofi Kingston is an example and "He was over a year ago!". I recall posting that Kofi was over and Dave vehemently pointing out to me that despite the crowds going nuts for him, Kofi wasn't over.

[Johnny Sorrow]

Alverez on the Zach Ryder deal:

 

 

Just want to say something about Zach Ryder. Zach has a Youtube show that is very popular among Zach fans. In fact, his videos are being watched by approximately 10 times the number of people who are watching NXT on the official WWE Fan Nation Youtube page. I've also been told that people are, and this is a direct quote, "spamming the WWE facebook and twitter accounts for days now", hoping that this will "help the Ryder Revolution grow". What I'm about to say is probably going to be construed as something against Ryder, but it's not, and in fact he's kind of in a lose-lose situation here. My advice is, stop doing this immediately if you're a Zach Ryder fan. If this was any other company maybe in the world, yes, all of this viral attention would probably serve him well. But this is WWE, and in almost EVERY case historically, if a guy gets over and it was not WWE's doing, then WWE has to prove that, in fact, he can't get over, and that he's really no good at all.

Ok, so far...right on. Then....

 

 

There is a reason Bryan Danielson was given a new name and given Miz as his "mentor" on NXT. Same with Kaval and Laycool. Same with nearly every other guy who got over huge on the indy scene. You get over huge on the indy scene and it's WWE's "job" to prove that you are not, in fact, really any good at all, and if you do finally get over in WWE, like CM Punk, it's after a long period of having to suffer, do jobs, be booked in a ridiculous manner with ridiculous people, hear that you "can't work", etc.

Ok, besides the fact that the POINT of Miz being Bryan's "pro" was to get over Bryan as a guy who was far more talented than his pro (and the name change being a copyright deal), and putting Kaval with Laycool was a big part of him showing some personality and it was good TV, I can't recall Punk "suffering, etc, etc.

 

So, long story short, bombarding WWE's Twitter and Facebook pages with Zach Ryder stuff is FAR more likely to backfire than it is to get him a push on Raw or Smackdown.

True enough. But here we go.

 

 

In fact, quite frankly if you want Zach to get a minor push, your best bet is to have Dave or I write in the newsletter that Zach is on the verge of being released and will never be seen on Raw or Smackdown again, at which point he'll probably get a win on one or both shows the following week.

Bryan Alverez, STAR MAKER?

[Victator]

in fact, really any good at all, and if you do finally get over in WWE, like CM Punk, it's after a long period of having to suffer, do jobs, be booked in a ridiculous manner with ridiculous people, hear that you "can't work", etc.

When did this happen? Punk was getting a steady push even when he was really shitty in ECW.

[Loss]

Also, much of the "he can't work" talk came from Bryan himself.

[kjh]

Maybe Bryan was just trying to help Punk by repeating what his sources told him!

 

I think Punk was really lucky to come up when and how he did. Paul Heyman was rightly a big fan and could easily protect and groom him on ECW. Even after Heyman established him as a star he's had a few hiccups (heat with agents, dress code infringement pettiness), but nothing he couldn't overcome by that point.

[rovert]

Also, much of the "he can't work" talk came from Bryan himself.

He is not over just that his small fanbase is really loud remember

[Jingus]

Punk did have the rug abruptly pulled out from under him on several occasions, though. Bryan's overstating the case, but it did happen to a lesser degree. Although comparing his WWE career to that of someone like Low-Ki is a huge stretch.

 

And I'm pretty sure that his "the best thing for him is to write that he's about to get fired" deal is just a joke, reflecting on WWE's weird human resources decisions and how they frequently go against what most sensible people would predict happening in these situations.