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Official WWE/TNA Wrestling Thread

Discussion in 'Other Sports Forum' started by alen1, Mar 25, 2008.

  1. Samphin

    Samphin Κακό σκυλί ψόφο δεν έχει

    People hate Reigns because he was sort of forced on the public. But everyone loved him as part of The Shield. If you actually look at the body of work he has put together this year, he has been a part of some incredible matches. You can make the argument that that is due to who he was in the ring with, and that might be correct, but he has more than held his own. I do think they need to turn him heel proper, which, I think they are going to do. I think they were on their way prior to his suspension (which was for Adderall, reportedly) and I see no reason why the won't now. Point being, doing the double turn of Reigns and Rollins absolutely makes for a compelling story going forward. One that I would watch a few more times over.

    As for the Bayley turnbuckle bump. I believe it was absolutely planned. Although that match was just a half step off of being executed flawlessly, as a whole.

    Having any member of Smackdown, other than Dean Ambrose (and even THAT is pushing it) show up on RAW tonight, and vice versa, is silly and completely makes last week, pointless. The only version that I think could save face is if one of the brands buys "ad space" on the other to sort of up the ante on the competition front. That could get sort of interesting.

    But having Dean, Cena, AJ or any other member of the roster walk out in front of a RAW crowd tonight would be an early misstep in the process, in my opinion.
     
    Ray Finkle likes this.
  2. Ray Finkle

    Ray Finkle Member

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    Yes this times 100. I'm no Reigns fan but the guy has been more than fine in the ring this year. I blame a mixture of him being forced to the fans and been given terrible storylines and material to work with. I do think if they turn him heel, like they should have in November, he will be fine and fans will eventually warm up to him. But I think the backlash is all on the WWE and not Reigns. I think Reigns might even be underrated right now because of all the hate he gets.

    And the rest yes completely agree with too.
     
    Silverphin likes this.
  3. Vertical Limit

    Vertical Limit Senior Member

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    RIP Roman Reigns career. You have just been buried by Vince McMahon.
     
  4. Ray Finkle

    Ray Finkle Member

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    If you didn't like RAW tonight then I don't know what to tell you. A hell of a show from top to bottom.

    I expect Smackdown to follow suit tomorrow.
     
    SICK likes this.
  5. Samphin

    Samphin Κακό σκυλί ψόφο δεν έχει

    Very strong show. GREAT wrestling, great debuts and even small things like a few different camera angles (following Kevin Owens from the Gorilla Position was cool; similar to the old Mark Henry entrance but updated), interviews in the ring (interviewing the jobber before he was eaten by Brong Stewman was a nice touch) and even their back stage skits with Golden Truth were funny and topical. Very well done RAW.

    Also, not for nothing, but I mention them possibly doing a a tournament or a fatal four-way for the new title...and they went ahead and combined the two and did a fatal four-way tournament. HAHAHA.

    Excited to see what Smackdown can follow up with.

    Also...pay attention to the 8 men from those two fatal four-ways. Them, along with Brock Lesnar and Seth Rollins are your top 10 that RAW should, and most likely will, build around.

    The name of the new title is stupid. But then again, I can't think of anything better to call it, either.
     
  6. Section126

    Section126 We are better than you. Luxury Box

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    It really was. Best RAW I can remember in a long while.

    The Sasha v. Charlotte match is a match of the year candidate, and Finn Balor was spot on in both matches.
     
    SICK likes this.
  7. Silverphin

    Silverphin Well-Known Member

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    I legit think they jacked the name of the belt from the World Wrestling Council.
     
  8. Ray Finkle

    Ray Finkle Member

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    Yeah I don't like the new title's name either it sounds like an Indy type title. They were almost better off calling it the World Heavyweight Championship again. Wonder what the title will look like.
     
  9. Vertical Limit

    Vertical Limit Senior Member

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    It was the kind of RAW you expect after Wrestlemania. Cant wait for Smackdown.
     
  10. SICK

    SICK Lounge Moderator

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    Phenomenal RAW. Balor going over was surprising. Refreshing. And fantastic. Stephanie starting the show ****ting on Roman in front of everyone was cringey....god that poor bastard has been destroyed by Vince. He will hopefully build back up slowly. Should start a program with the US title against Rusev.
     
  11. Ray Finkle

    Ray Finkle Member

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    I figured once Foley and Stephanie called out all of the RAW Superstars and Finn Balor didn't come out he was going to do something big that night. I figured once he won his 4 Way match they were going to put him over in the main event although a part of me was still nervous they were going to stick with Reigns.

    I do think the PED bust might have been the best thing for him long term, the whole "burial" storyline of him probably turning heel is the way to go with him right now. Fans still aren't buying him so they might as well turn him heel and hope he catches mega heat and go from there.

    I honestly don't know who I'd have Reigns feud with right now, I probably wouldn't stick him in there against Rusev. Maybe against a Cesaro type mid carder? Jericho?
     
  12. SICK

    SICK Lounge Moderator

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    Best part of RAW being so good, and unanimously well liked by fans and critics alike, is this will cause smackdown roster to step up and not be out shined! An internal competition
     
  13. Vertical Limit

    Vertical Limit Senior Member

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    That part of Stephanie ****ting on Roman is just classic Stephanie McMahon. She needs more moments like that on the mic, she does it so well. And you look at Roman Reigns eyes and see the disturbance.
     
  14. Vertical Limit

    Vertical Limit Senior Member

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    If its not Rusev then Id say Cesaro. A guy with similar size and strength. WWE has turned Reigns into a super wrestler, he was tossing Balor around like a garbage bag and running him over like a child walking towards a train.. I honestly get annoyed to see that kind of wrestling. Brock and Reigns apparently are the super wrestlers now, even Cena has been selling a lot more than years past though he still has his Super Cena moments.

    Jericho match up wont do him any good. Jericho is outclassed strength and size.

    Reigns best matches came from AJ Styles and that rivalry died rather fast.
     
  15. Vertical Limit

    Vertical Limit Senior Member

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    [video=youtube_share;CQpOtnbmePY]https://youtu.be/CQpOtnbmePY[/video]

    People trying hard not to laugh when he gets called a loser..
     
  16. Ray Finkle

    Ray Finkle Member

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    I don't mind a guy the size of Reigns throwing around a wrestler the size of Finn Balor, especially when Reigns was working as the somewhat heel of the match. The only issue I have/had with Reigns is his stupid faces and expressions he makes when a wrestler kicks out of one of his finishes.
     
  17. Ray Finkle

    Ray Finkle Member

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    First quick impressions of Smackdown is I wish they switched up the set a bit more than just getting rid of a ramp. Second is holy hell is that roster thin once they take away Cena, Orton, Ambrose and AJ Styles.

    Also Shelton Benjamin is coming back to SD.
     
  18. Vertical Limit

    Vertical Limit Senior Member

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    Love that Dolph finally gets his main event at a big PPV. Hes been underutilized, very talented. That match is going to be very good.

    Im sure Dean wins though. Because there are still matches to be had against AJ and against Cena. But dolph deserves this, summerslam is the second biggest ppv IMO. He finally is on the spotlight.
     
  19. SICK

    SICK Lounge Moderator

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    Charlotte NC
    Smackdown was.....well a bit like smackdown.....
     
  20. Ray Finkle

    Ray Finkle Member

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    Yeah it was completely underwhelming. Again I think the depth of the roster really stands out. Still don't understand why they can't have the cruiserweight division especially since Bryan/McMahon keep harping on this is the show for in ring talent. I wonder if there's going to be an angle where Bryan and Shane sign all the cruiserweights to Smackdown or something to start up a bidding war.

    Good for Dolph getting his title shot but I don't really get the point other than to make the smarks happy. No one is going to buy him as a top contender and it's not like he's going to move the ratings needle. Odd choice.

    Also having women wrestle on the show with no title for them is kind of meaningless. What's the point of them wrestling? What's the goal?
     
  21. SICK

    SICK Lounge Moderator

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    Hopefully they clear out the title picture (tag/womens) after SS. Think it'd be too much with the new universal title. Probably going to use it to hype Backlash.

    The only way I see Ziggler working is if he comes out and destroys the WWE universe on the mic, blaming them for his failures, saying they didnt get behind him like Bryan or have it given to him like the Shield boys. And go full blown heel.
     
  22. Ray Finkle

    Ray Finkle Member

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    Yeah Dolph probably needs to turn just to freshen up his character a bit. He's been pretty stale for awhile.
     
  23. Section126

    Section126 We are better than you. Luxury Box

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    I think that they can have a SD #1 contender ranking and every PPV, whoever is #1 can get a cross over match with the Women's champ.
     
  24. Samphin

    Samphin Κακό σκυλί ψόφο δεν έχει

    The main thing I saw on Smackdown Live was the somewhat widened hard camera angle that was used quite a bit. Nice to see them use new camera angles, but it was just a bit off. I like the idea of Dolph winning, at least in theory. But the execution was clunky. I think they would have been better off going with Bray, AJ, or even a replicate the RAW ending and have one of the rookies win it to sort of capitalize on "anything can happen on Smackdown" vibe that they said would be present.

    Personally, I would have had Ziggler start off this run by simply having him win matches cleanly for weeks, if not months. Win on SD, house shows and PPVs. Draw attention that he hasn't lost in a long time and do a poor man's Goldberg streak with him. Build him up and even let him get clean wins over people like Cena, Orton, etc. Then, when he earns the title shot (say Survivor Series) against Dean Ambrose, he loses, snaps, and attacks Ambrose like a lunatic.

    Or perhaps even better, have Ziggler cheat to win by pairing him up with Eva Marie (who everyone hates, although I love her finishing move of "look at my ****") and have him win the title, with her as his valet/girlfriend/whatever. He goes back to his snarky, confident heel persona who can feed off of her X-Pac heat and give the roster a significant boost on the heel side of the show.

    Having Heath Slater getting mauled by free agents and rookies eveyr week as he tries to get himself signed would be a funny distraction for awhile.

    The SD women's division has some potential, but it would really help if they had something to fight for. Becky, Nattie, Naomi and Alexa can all go. Carmella is vastly improved (although she would be better served to be with her old running mates on RAW). They are probably one or two women away from having a kick *** little division. Bayley going to Smackdown would be tremendous. But yeah...I don't really know what they are fighting for other than bragging rights?

    I was always a Shelton Benjamin mark. Dude was an insane athlete. It might be kind of fun to see him come back and work with guys like Ziggler, Ambrose, Crews, and AJ.
     
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  25. Ray Finkle

    Ray Finkle Member

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    See that's the problem I have with this and you're not wrong. Dolph has been trading wins with Corbin on PPV pre-shows for the past 3 months or so. He's been viewed as a mid-card goof/loser for years now. Sure the fans love him but they don't buy him as a real threat and rightfully so because he's been in mid card hell with no direction for years.

    I was listening to Scott Keith's new podcast this morning and he hit the nail right on head. He thinks the WWE didn't want to waste a real challenger for Ambrose at Summer Slam because the match would be 4th or 5th from the top already behind Lesnar/Orton, Balor/Rollins, Cena/Styles and possible Sasha/Charlotte so why waste a good opponent for Ambrose when Summer Slam will draw anyway. I think that's a valid point.
     
  26. Samphin

    Samphin Κακό σκυλί ψόφο δεν έχει


    I don't disagree with Scott's logic. I think they are trying to give Dolph a veteran push, for lack of a better term, and prove that opportunity "exists" on Smackdown. But if you're going to do that, it is almost better to do it with someone like Apollo Crews who doesn't have the stain of the mid-card on him, yet. Dolph Ziggler specifically, needs to be handled better for awhile so that fans buy in. It's a miscalculation, in my opinion. But not one that kills SD by any means.
     
  27. Silverphin

    Silverphin Well-Known Member

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    Um, yeah, to be honest, I'd rather hear her do that a lot less. I hated that she's been doing that lately.
     
  28. Ray Finkle

    Ray Finkle Member

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    Yeah again going back to your original post if Dolph was actually built up for the past few months it would make sense but it seems like they basically just decided to throw him in there for the hell of it. I actually would have liked it better if Shelton Benjamin debuted at the first Smackdown and won the #1 contender spot. It brings the surprise factor in, makes Shelton seem like a star right out of the gate and the WWE can plug the Network by saying hey check out Shelton's classic matches as he was the original "Mr. MiTB" or something like that.

    Crews wouldn't have been a bad choice either though. He's talented for sure just needs a character.
     
  29. Vertical Limit

    Vertical Limit Senior Member

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    Rusev vs Roman Reigns, i like it, and the crowd is loving it
     
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  30. Samphin

    Samphin Κακό σκυλί ψόφο δεν έχει

    RAW bored the crap out of me tonight. I fell asleep multiple times. And Randy Orton appearing at the end of it annoyed me to no end.
     
  31. Vertical Limit

    Vertical Limit Senior Member

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    It was very predictable that it was going to happen. It entertained the 12 year olds I guess.
     
  32. Ray Finkle

    Ray Finkle Member

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    What's the point of a brand split if in week 2 guys are appearing on both shows. It would be nice if Shane/Bryan lay into him for showing up on RAW.
     
  33. SICK

    SICK Lounge Moderator

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    RAW was meh...and sadly, Balor was "alright" on the mic tonight. Crowd didnt seem too hot for him/Seth....hope backstage doesnt change their mind, that match will be gold.
     
  34. Vertical Limit

    Vertical Limit Senior Member

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    Cena/Aj Styles promo was a boreeefest, went on too long, was ridiculously cheesy, John Cena plugging every show he's part of plus his late night appearance tomorrow. Good lord, why does Vince allow this.
     
  35. Vertical Limit

    Vertical Limit Senior Member

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    Lol smackdown is so terrible. Randy Orton's match made zero sense, other than to bring Brock in. But that was not even the worst waste of airtime so far.

    That Eva Marie/Becky Lynch match was possibly the biggest waste of air time. If she got injured climbing up the steps, okay.. But really? If im in the crowd im thinking this company is selling me a **** sandwich.

    The Alpha tag team though was impressive. I expect Bray vs Dolph to be a good match.
     
  36. SICK

    SICK Lounge Moderator

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    Smackdown is all "lol Cena" and pushing Bryan down everyones throats.....which I kinda get....but only WWE could make Daniel Bryan over saturated even after in-ring retirement lol.
     
  37. Vertical Limit

    Vertical Limit Senior Member

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    Lots of people think Eva did not want to wrestle tonight. Eh... Anyways enough about that.. I thought dolph vs bray was decent.. But now you know next week itll be a tag match of wyatt vs dolph/ambrose
     
  38. Ray Finkle

    Ray Finkle Member

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    There will be Tag Team titles and a Women's title for Smackdown coming after the Summer Slam PPV. Probably with the champs being crowded on the first Smackdown only PPV.
     
  39. Samphin

    Samphin Κακό σκυλί ψόφο δεν έχει

    Smackdown was better than RAW, overall. But probably only because it was two hours instead of three. I think it is also going to suffer from viewer fatigue, unfortunately. Especially on week's where they are coming off of a PPV event.

    Pros:
    -Ambrose/Ziggler promo. Dean made a great case as to who Dolph Ziggler is, and it gives a good reason to help morph and change Dolph's character, if need be. Great promo work by Dean to help sell the match, up until the Bray Wyatt nonsense.

    -Baron Corbin's development as a lone wolf. He lost the match, but won the segment. Him hitting The Miz with The End of Days helps establish the character in a good way and gives him a nice tweener role that people should be afraid of.

    -Apollo Crews being a contender for the IC Title. I like Apollo a lot. His character is n't much right now, but pairing him with Miz who people genuinely do not like, will hopefully help bring some personality out of him.

    -American Alpha's debut. I wish they had fed them someone other than The Vaudevillains (who I have come all the way around on and now love their who shtick), but it was a nice showcase for what will be the premier tag team on Smackdown.

    -Bray/Dolph match. The match itself, was really well done and helped progress Dolph Ziggler redemption story they are going for. I don't know what the long term plan is for Dolph, but him getting signature, definitive, CLEAN wins over competitors is the best possible way to bring him up to main event status.

    -The opening of the show not starting in the ring with a 30 minute promo. I hate that. I hate that RAW is still doing it and I applaud Smackdown for doing something different.

    Cons:
    -Eva Marie. Other than the entrance (which is perfect for a heel) and the fun bags, there is ismply no redeeming qualities there. I don't know what that segment was supposed to be and I feel stupider having watched it. She needs to go away and make room for Bayley and Nikki Bella (Smackdown NEEDS a quality heel woman beyond Nattie).

    -Bray attacking Dolph/Wyatts reuniting to attack Dean/Dolph. While the match was good and helped Dolph, I don't think they needed to feed Dolph the brand's top heel just yet. If the story is that Dolph is all sizzle an dno steak, then you can get away with having him beat lower tiered guys decisively and build from there. You could have run the EXACT same angle to get to the inevitable tag match next week by having Bray attack AFTER Dolph's match. That way, Bray is protected, Dolph gets the victory still and you set up your angle for next week. Seemed unnecessary to sacrifice Bray here.

    -The backstage interview area. I like the idea of it, but it is still clunky. It needs to be tweaked somewhat. I read an idea elsewhere that suggested that Otunga be removed form the broadcast booth and instead, be used as a "host" who roams the arena and brings people in and out of breaks, recaps storylines and introduces video packages, etc. before throwing it down to a two man booth of Mauro and Bradshaw. I love the idea but think it would be better to get rid of Otunga all together and let Renee handle those duties. It would also help differentiate the two brands by giving SD a different look. Again...like the idea of the backstage studio, it just needs to be dialed in.

    -Orton/Brock. I think the angle itself is really good (also, Brock is CLEARLY off the juice, he looks like he lost 20 pounds overnight) between the two competitors, but wish they had just kept this to one brand or the other. It is too early in the brand split to cross pollinate, in my opinion.


    But overall, better effort from SD over last week, and I think they win the weekly battle with RAW, which was an awful show, imo.
     
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  40. Ray Finkle

    Ray Finkle Member

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    Nice write up Samphin. To be honest, I had forgotten Smackdown was even on last night but even if I remembered I wouldn't have watched it. It's still viewed and treated like the B show and I just don't have the motivation right now. Plus the roster, again, is so thin there's no one I really want to go out of my way to watch.
     

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