sek69 Posted July 10, 2020 Report Share Posted July 10, 2020 Using managers is definitely something AEW should capitalize on, since it's something WWE refuses to do and can be beneficial to the wrestlers if done right. My only issue is Nya isn't someone I would peg as needing a manager. Her promos are usually pretty good (this one was less so, but I would blame that on the material), and having anyone comedic like Vickie would water down her bad ass potential. I could see someone like Missy in the role, or wouldn't it be wild if Tully still had Dark Journey's number on a Rolodex somewhere? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SirEdger Posted July 10, 2020 Report Share Posted July 10, 2020 10 hours ago, MoS said: Man, I completely disagree with this. I am not even sure Nyla should have a manager, because AEW has too many, but Vickie is a tremendous promo. I mean, is it any different than what WWF was in the day when literally each heel had a manager (Heenan, Fuji, Slick, Jimmy Hart)? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coffey Posted July 10, 2020 Report Share Posted July 10, 2020 If it's done correctly - feels like that's the one consistent with pro-wrestling, regardless of decade or promotion. That whole if. Like, I mean, Rick Rude & Curt Hennig didn't NEED a manager. Neither did Arn Anderson... but it didn't hurt them. A guy like The Warlord? Yeah, he needed some help. I don't think Cody Rhodes needs Arn Anderson but it hasn't hurt him & it might set something up down the road. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
El-P Posted July 10, 2020 Report Share Posted July 10, 2020 A manager should add something to the act. In that sense, thus far in AEW : Tully Blanchard : Worked at first, then not so much. But he was not paired with the right guy. Jake Roberts : hum.... not so sure yet, I do not think he really adds to Archer TBH. Too tall, has a tendency to get himself over in promos rather than Archer, who can cut good promos. Arn : kinda works. Not nearly as good as Brandy in the role though, and in the end I'm not sure he really adds much to Cody, who cuts some of the best promos today. The issue with these three is that they can't bump at all. Well, Tully can a little bit maybe. Don't get me wrong, I really enjoy having those guys on TV, but they're hot & miss in their roles. They sure can cut great promos too. Taz : great thus far. Leva Bates : perfect in her role, which is light hearted and comedic, works spots well too. Penelope Ford was terrific but she deserves to be pushed as a worker at this point. The Bunny clearly added some as a presence, look and to work a spot here and there but again, works better as her own character. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
El-P Posted July 10, 2020 Report Share Posted July 10, 2020 Won't happen because she's stuck in MLW, which is a waste, but you want a great female character/manager that is current ? Salina de la Renta. I would love to see her in AEW reuniting with the Lucha Bros. and wreck hell on the promotion bringing in luchadors from AAA. The promo battle she and Cody could have would be something else too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blehschmidt Posted July 10, 2020 Report Share Posted July 10, 2020 All of this talk just makes me so sad that Larry Sweeney is gone. What a character and manager he could have been for AEW. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WingedEagle Posted July 10, 2020 Report Share Posted July 10, 2020 This week's show was an absolute home run. From top to bottom basically every segment was really strong with the 8 man tag and Taz's promo the clear standouts in my book. Hell, I normally can't stand Joey Janela and though this match was really good. Just a terrific 2 hour television program. Oddly enough I've watched NXT first the past couple weeks because I was more interested in Sasha/Io and Cole/Lee than anything in AEW. Next week is a bit of a toss-up between Io/Nox and Mox/Cage so we'll see who comes out ahead in my house. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MoS Posted July 10, 2020 Author Report Share Posted July 10, 2020 2 hours ago, Blehschmidt said: All of this talk just makes me so sad that Larry Sweeney is gone. What a character and manager he could have been for AEW. This. Reading this thread, one of the issues evident to me about AEW's managers is that all of them are old and none can bump properly. Sweeney would have been perfect. Related to that, who are the young managers in pro wrestling today? Or do young talent not even try to become managers these days? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NintendoLogic Posted July 10, 2020 Report Share Posted July 10, 2020 There's no place for an aspiring manager to go to learn their craft. Vince thinks managers are too Southern, and most indies don't have the budget to bring in someone who doesn't wrestle and isn't a proven commodity. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blehschmidt Posted July 10, 2020 Report Share Posted July 10, 2020 In my experience working no name indies as a ring announcer, you would occasionally see a manager here or there. But in most cases it was A) The guys girlfriend, B.) An old dude who had been around the area forever, or C) Some fat kid trying to be as obnoxious as possible who was likely working for no pay and/or was supplying someone on the card with drugs. Sydney Bakabela and Selina de le Renta are really the only two that I am aware of that have any kind of name. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JustYourAvgBozo Posted July 10, 2020 Report Share Posted July 10, 2020 The show was a pretty quick 2 hours. The only time I even noticed my clock was at the Archer-Janela match, which sent me outside for a smoke break. Came back in to see Nyla had her match already. The added crowd noise helped the show, IMO. (I haven't watched the past couple of months because I am either at work or just didn't really care.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cm funk Posted July 10, 2020 Report Share Posted July 10, 2020 4 hours ago, MoS said: This. Reading this thread, one of the issues evident to me about AEW's managers is that all of them are old and none can bump properly. Sweeney would have been perfect. Related to that, who are the young managers in pro wrestling today? Or do young talent not even try to become managers these days? I'm enjoying Robert Stone in NXT. Drake Maverick can be good in that role but I didn't like the way WWE booked him with AOP. Leo Rush was good with Lashley IMO. It's really simple. Take guys who can talk and bump but don't have the right size/look to push as a regular wrestler. I don't follow the indies like I used to but I'm sure there's guys that fit that bill who could make it work in WWE. It's not rocket science. I like the idea of Vickie managing Rose. She's really entertaining. I wonder if WWE trademarked EXCUSE ME! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coffey Posted July 10, 2020 Report Share Posted July 10, 2020 I have liked Josef Samael in MLW as the manager/mouth piece of CONTRA. He's a lot better in that role than in a wrestling one. He's 46, which isn't young really but he can still bump. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MoS Posted July 10, 2020 Author Report Share Posted July 10, 2020 Jericho and Tony Khan keep arguing on Twitter with fans about key demo ratings as compared to overall viewers. They are absolutely right about the key demo viewership being more important than overall viewers for TV stations and advertisers, and fans who think this focus on key demos is just an imaginary thing cooked up to defend AEW and put down NXT are absolutely stupid. That said, your promoter and your top star arguing publicly with fans about it is a bad look imo and it makes them come across as insecure and bush league. They should publicly be above this kind of petty bullshit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sek69 Posted July 10, 2020 Report Share Posted July 10, 2020 Tony does have that wrestling message board background, he probably can't help himself lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MoS Posted July 10, 2020 Author Report Share Posted July 10, 2020 Imagining him going back and forth with jdw, patented line breaks and quote by quote and all Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sek69 Posted July 10, 2020 Report Share Posted July 10, 2020 9 minutes ago, MoS said: Imagining him going back and forth with jdw, patented line breaks and quote by quote and all I'd be surprised if they didn't at some point. That's one of those "it MUST have happened" things. As far as managers go, there's really several types that have been used in the past that can work today: The Jimmy Hart: annoying pipsqueak who you would pay big money to see get knocked on his ass, can take all sorts of bumps. I could see Kip Sabian in this role, and it would be a twist on the usual expectations if he ended up being the manager for Penelope instead. The Woman: hot lady you first think is just eye candy but is actually a devious mastermind. Selina de la Renta has this role on lock at the moment, but I think it's something Brandi could have pulled off if she wasn't put in that weird Bray Wyatt-ish role. The Paul Ellering: the former wrestler who can still put on the boots if needed, but is primarily concerned with getting his men to the top. MVP is killing this role in WWE, but there's always the fear they'll end up botching it before it can reach the level it could. AEW seems to like this type but so far all the guys they've put in this role are too old to do it effectively. The Bobby Heenan: an elite level talker who either never wrestled or it was so long ago no one remembered it. It's a high bar since there's only been a few people in wrestling history who would even qualify to be in that position. I agree that Larry Sweeney probably would have been at this level if he was around today, but I think Stokely Hathaway could be that guy if he was allowed to do what he does best on TV. I suppose that he managed to get put on WWE TV in a male manager role that isn't complete comedy is a testament to his skills though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
El-P Posted July 10, 2020 Report Share Posted July 10, 2020 If she wasn't locked with IMPACT, I say get Madison Rayne in the role. She would be just great. Can do announcing, cut promos, work angles, bump, be funny, show tons of ass. Just a perfect fit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MoS Posted July 11, 2020 Author Report Share Posted July 11, 2020 Both Mox and Renee apparently tested negative for covid, so that's good news. As far as the actual title match, this situation might have turned out to be a blessing in disguise; giving Taz the chance to cut weekly pissed off promos insulting Mox has made the match feel bigger than it previously felt. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joeg Posted July 13, 2020 Report Share Posted July 13, 2020 As for managers, I've always thought thats where Joey Janela's skills would provide the most use. He's a good talker, he's proven himself a great self promoter, and he can bump and takes some crazy bumps. He's small and and his in ring work is sloppy as fuck so it never made sense to me for him to be a worker. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Log Posted July 13, 2020 Report Share Posted July 13, 2020 10 hours ago, joeg said: As for managers, I've always thought thats where Joey Janela's skills would provide the most use. He's a good talker, he's proven himself a great self promoter, and he can bump and takes some crazy bumps. He's small and and his in ring work is sloppy as fuck so it never made sense to me for him to be a worker. Ironically, I feel like Joey could be a great modern-day update on the Jim Cornette character. He could play one of those assholes that “slums” it and dresses like a dirt bag while having really rich parents. He could use their money to put together a stable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joeg Posted July 14, 2020 Report Share Posted July 14, 2020 ^^^YES!!!! I was envisioning him more as a Bobby Heenan type, with a stable of bigger, more athletic guys around him and then in a multi man tag setting steals the show feeding for the babyface... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Migs Posted July 15, 2020 Report Share Posted July 15, 2020 On 7/13/2020 at 7:57 AM, Log said: Ironically, I feel like Joey could be a great modern-day update on the Jim Cornette character. He could play one of those assholes that “slums” it and dresses like a dirt bag while having really rich parents. He could use their money to put together a stable. He did (does?) famously live with his mom! I do think it'd be tricky with Joey because there's a segment of the fan base for whom he'd always be a babyface (Spring Break / the way he connected with people on the indies). But maybe that chunk of the fan base is small enough that it wouldn't make much of a difference. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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