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WWE TV 08/17 - 08/23 Brazil is barbaric


KawadaSmile

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2 hours ago, Strummer said:

I haven't seen it but I'm reading that Orton had to do the punting spot quick due to sensing a Drew run in coming. I guess that makes it less deadly.

It was certainly less of a direct kick like most of his punts are, but it's not like Shawn just didn't do the death sell that others have done. He was pulling himself back up in the corner literally seconds later as if he was mildly stunned rather than hit by the move that was put over as instant murderdeath by everyone else.

To be fair I'm not suggesting he went in to business for himself or anything, I'm sure that was exactly how the segment was supposed to go down. Which is kind of WWE in a nutshell

Funny thing, I thought the show was pretty good otherwise. MVP continues to be awesome trying to recruit Cedric, they furthered the deal with the Street Profits/Bianca and Zelina and her crew,  Sasha and Bayley were awesome as usual, and we had Shayna and the Horsewomen doing a run in on Underground. 

Even the Drew/Orton stuff was pretty good despite them seeming to take every opportunity to undercut it. Not only the Shawn stuff, but using Drew's very good opening promo as a backdrop for more Retribution horseshit. 

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51 minutes ago, SirEdger said:

Maybe ESPN will finally get to woo her after all.

And honestly, WWE is in trouble because the one girl that could've replaced her (Cathy Kelley) has already left the company. My best guess is that Kayla Braxton will get more responsibilities.

I thought Cathy Kelley was god awful and never seemed interested in being there. Is Charly Caruso still with the company? I always thought that she was pretty decent.

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The media world is her oyster, for sure. ESPN, Fox Sports, hell, ABC and NBC will probably make overtures. The WWE misused her when they tried her out on play-by-play/commentary, but these other companies recognize its smarter to use a talent in a role they can excel at rather than force them to adapt to a role that they aren't necessarily the right fit for - and the key difference is that because these other organizations actively produce segments that highlight the talent for these people, her skills won't be ignored and devalued.

I forget who wrote about it in their book - maybe Bret? maybe it was DDP quoted in Death of WCW or Nitro? - but someone made a comment about how "Mean" Gene Okerlund could help get a wrestler over and how he transcended being "just a backstage interviewer." Gene had such natural, unique charisma/charm that a having a segment with him was, in itself, an important step up the ladder, that Okerlund could help "make" someone without ever making the segment about himself. There really aren't that many guys (or gals) who have transcended the role.

I don't think its being overgenerous to say that Renee had a similar natural, unique charisma and charm. She wasn't a female Gene Okerlund at all either, but like Gene, she did somehow make sense and come off as natural in the surreal, cartoonish world of WWE without being a cartoon herself. Like Gene or Sean Mooney at his best (okay, maybe I'm a bit of a Mooney mark), she was fantastic at being both the best "wallpaper" the company had (and that is a compliment) and also delivering subtle comic takes when needed. It was only when she was clearly being directed to become part of the story with all that WOEFUL bickering with Corey Graves that she fell short of excellence. Some on-air talent, like Renee and Gene, are meant to be "wallpaper."*

 KawadaSmile isn't wrong - there's a strong argument that she's the 2nd best backstage interviewer they've had. I mean, who else is in the running? Guys that were consistently made to look foolish like Cole and Coach in the late 90s/early 00s? The creepy kid's show host Todd Pettengill? Dok fuckin' Hendrix? 


* Just to clarify if you've never heard the expression - "wallpaper" refers to the idea that some elements aren't meant to be the main attraction, but that when they're not there, their absence is noticeable. Just like in a house, bad wallpaper distracts you with its ugliness or intensity and some wallpaper just feels "right." Renee Young, when she was being used correctly, was very good wallpaper for a pro-wrestling show.

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"We take it seriously, but not seriously enough to actually  talk to accusers so we'd really appreciate if you all would stop talking about it please and thank you" - Hunter talking about pedophilia accusations.

I suppose it's consistent with how the company has historically approached such things so I guess you can give him that.

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8 minutes ago, Robert S said:

I thought Cathy Kelley was god awful and never seemed interested in being there. Is Charly Caruso still with the company? I always thought that she was pretty decent.

Charly still does backstage interviews on RAW and RAW Talk, yes, in addition to her part-time gig on ESPN a few days a week.

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Maybe its the "wrestling bubble," but I'd say it's still highly likely she'll be getting plenty of big time offers even in this climate. She is that good.

Bringing up college football is a great example. College football happening in the US this fall is unlikely and even in the spring may be a long shot. But that doesn't mean colleges aren't still recruiting the best high school athletes across the country. When this is all over, Alabama and Ohio State are still going to try to field the best team they can and are going to spend big money on recruiting. The major sports leagues are going to have the worst fiscal years of their existence, but that doesn't mean we're not going to see teams signing top draft picks with big money deals. These entities, the well-run ones at least, are looking at 2021, 2022, etc.

Renee Young is a nationally-recognized, proven broadcaster. She's a "top draft pick." I'm not sure how much her current salary is but a cursory Google search had it around $200k-300k, which is on the rather low end compared to what some of the regular female panel hosts make on ESPN. ESPN or a major network could offer her twice her current salary and still be getting a bargain and they know that (and her agent, if he/she's remotely competent, does too).

I noted "female" above because, across the board, female anchors and hosts make less than their male counterparts. But the top ones still make WAY more than $200k.

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All that is true, but a lot of companies are using covid as an excuse to not hire and/or lowball people right now so even if she knows her worth (and I definitely get the impression she does), it's not the best time to be hitting the free agent market. 

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