The General Wrestling Thread

[ThomasTomasz]

Catching up on random recent shit.

-Did Ibushi get hurt in his match against KUSHIDA? That match, which should have been awesome...was not...dude looked out it.

-TNA has awful writing and show preparation. The idea of taping all of these shows in order and then constructing good shows with the footage is lost on this company. They cut matches short, they don't allow things to breathe, and as a result, fill a show with a ton of shitty backstage shit to string along the two hours they have to fill.

One thing they seemingly got right with the last batch of tapings...they got wrestlers to work the shows that aren't contractually obligated to TNA. Just quick pay, one-offs...and they'll be able to make it look like they have these guys for like two months. Makes the roster look bigger, too.

They need to make matches longer, and stop trying to fit everyone into one show.

-NXT hasn't been good. Lots of junk filler. I did like Neville-RVD and Gabriel-Zayn though. WWE needs to use the Gabriels and Kidds of the world in just this way. Keep them in Florida, use them as gatekeepers.

Am I the only one that thinks Enzo-Big Cass have one of the brighter futures of anyone in NXT right now outside of Zayn? Enzo can talk and oozes charisma unlike most on that level right now...can't work for shit...but he is undercard for life anyway. I have no idea why I like Big Cass...but I do. I want him to do well, despite his chronic chest acne.

I think everyone except TNA knew it would be a mistake to take Impact on the road. It made matters worse when it failed, and Universal already booked their studios again. You had a good size crowd show up at Impact, and most would probably attend if you charged double the price to get in.

I also read where Bully Ray was in an interview, and he said he would jump back to WWE immediately if Vince called him. I am not sure what history he has with Vince to determine if that's likely to happen, but that comes at a worse time when places are reporting he is one of the most influential guys backstage.

I did like the Big Cass and Enzo segments. That was my first exposure to Enzo, and I'm a fan.

Speaking of the goofy NXT undercard acts you and Warner are referencing, is it possible they are developing those because of more potential cuts? It makes sense, because those guys clearly aren't making the money that the guys like Santino are making, especially if they've been around for any length of time.

 

[LiquidLarry2GhostWF]

I think everyone except TNA knew it would be a mistake to take Impact on the road. It made matters worse when it failed, and Universal already booked their studios again. You had a good size crowd show up at Impact, and most would probably attend if you charged double the price to get in.

I also read where Bully Ray was in an interview, and he said he would jump back to WWE immediately if Vince called him. I am not sure what history he has with Vince to determine if that's likely to happen, but that comes at a worse time when places are reporting he is one of the most influential guys backstage.

They've gotten great, pretty hot crowds in Texas, Pennsylvania, and New York as well as London...I don't know what their financials are on these deals, but the crowds are refreshing to see for a TNA event. If they work out financially do to 2 months worth of tapings over the course of three days at different wrestling hotbeds, it sure beats the Impact Zone, IMO.

My gripe really is with how they piece together these shows in post production as well as how they plan their shows out while they are taping. If you've got 10 hours of TV you need to piece together and you need to do it over the course three days of television taping...I would just assume you should maximize the time you have and the talent you have at your disposal at a given time.

TNA has a pretty small roster at this point. So, bring in some local or old TNA talent for one-offs. They seemed to do this for the NYC tapings...good for them. Keeps funds cheap, gives you the guise of a larger roster, and you can diversify yourself on TV. Also, maximize match length. TNA has a small roster, they use some short-term talent...use these guys to put on longer format matches. All of these short matches they have on TV make it so they need to put together a ton of backstage bullshit to end up piecing together a two hour TV show every week. Give some of those matches 5-7 more minutes, fill out the segments.

Since they tape in batches, you can limit how many times you see the contracted talent. Especially the main eventers. I don't want/need to see Bobby Roode, MVP, Lashley, Eric Young every.single.week. Give shit time to breath.

It seems like they definitely do not plan things out with any kind of foresight...not even a little.

I did like the Big Cass and Enzo segments. That was my first exposure to Enzo, and I'm a fan.

Speaking of the goofy NXT undercard acts you and Warner are referencing, is it possible they are developing those because of more potential cuts? It makes sense, because those guys clearly aren't making the money that the guys like Santino are making, especially if they've been around for any length of time.

The gimmicks get great reaction at Full Sail...but Full Sail is full of people that are there every.single.taping...they also travel around and see the NXT House Shows. They are marks for this talent...and they give the desired reaction for everything. So, everyone "seems" over. That doesn't translate to the big shows. Most of which, the fans in those arenas, aren't familiar with these guys before they debut. They expect the BO-LIEVE shit to ironically get over like it did at Full Sail, in front of the live crowd. Same with Adam Rose. You'll see the same thing when Tyler Breeze gets called up. Doesn't work like that...so they've got a ton of gimmicks that are small time acts that probably won't get over enough to be anything other than curtain jerking.

 

[ThomasTomasz]

They've gotten great, pretty hot crowds in Texas, Pennsylvania, and New York as well as London...I don't know what their financials are on these deals, but the crowds are refreshing to see for a TNA event. If they work out financially do to 2 months worth of tapings over the course of three days at different wrestling hotbeds, it sure beats the Impact Zone, IMO.

My gripe really is with how they piece together these shows in post production as well as how they plan their shows out while they are taping. If you've got 10 hours of TV you need to piece together and you need to do it over the course three days of television taping...I would just assume you should maximize the time you have and the talent you have at your disposal at a given time.

TNA has a pretty small roster at this point. So, bring in some local or old TNA talent for one-offs. They seemed to do this for the NYC tapings...good for them. Keeps funds cheap, gives you the guise of a larger roster, and you can diversify yourself on TV. Also, maximize match length. TNA has a small roster, they use some short-term talent...use these guys to put on longer format matches. All of these short matches they have on TV make it so they need to put together a ton of backstage bullshit to end up piecing together a two hour TV show every week. Give some of those matches 5-7 more minutes, fill out the segments.

Since they tape in batches, you can limit how many times you see the contracted talent. Especially the main eventers. I don't want/need to see Bobby Roode, MVP, Lashley, Eric Young every.single.week. Give shit time to breath.

It seems like they definitely do not plan things out with any kind of foresight...not even a little.



The gimmicks get great reaction at Full Sail...but Full Sail is full of people that are there every.single.taping...they also travel around and see the NXT House Shows. They are marks for this talent...and they give the desired reaction for everything. So, everyone "seems" over. That doesn't translate to the big shows. Most of which, the fans in those arenas, aren't familiar with these guys before they debut. They expect the BO-LIEVE shit to ironically get over like it did at Full Sail, in front of the live crowd. Same with Adam Rose. You'll see the same thing when Tyler Breeze gets called up. Doesn't work like that...so they've got a ton of gimmicks that are small time acts that probably won't get over enough to be anything other than curtain jerking.

Sure, the Impact Zone sucked, but they made a big deal about having a live show, which I enjoyed and thought that was at their peak during BFG 2012. You are certainly correct that they have no foresight, and that included taking Impact on the road as a live event expecting huge crowds.

Adam Rose is in Vince's doghouse- apparently his match against Sandow was to see what reaction he got during a match. It bombed, but the match had almost no build, how was he supposed to do better? I agree that the gimmick is poor, but the WWE is doing no favors with it either. The Bo-lieve stuff could be hilarious if they gave him a submission as a finisher and he was "mic'd up" so you could hear him talking to the wrestler trying to talk him out of tapping out. Otherwise, I have no use for the gimmick.

Though I reiterate, there is always a need for curtain jerkers, and if the NXT guys get paid less than the guys who have been around for a few years, they are likely going to make cuts.

 

[ThomasTomasz]

If the plan is for Brock Lesnar to win the title at SummerSlam, and then drop it to Reigns at Wrestlemania, how do they plan on doing that? They have to pay him extra for dates, and if they are so concerned with budget cuts, that doesn't make sense to me.

 

[EmpireWF]

Good question... they'd probably negotiate more dates so be could do some house shows (??) and TV.

They could always use Cesaro in his place for some time with the Heyman connection.

 

[Warner2BruceTD]

If the plan is for Brock Lesnar to win the title at SummerSlam, and then drop it to Reigns at Wrestlemania, how do they plan on doing that? They have to pay him extra for dates, and if they are so concerned with budget cuts, that doesn't make sense to me.

I don't think Lesnar is worth the money he is being paid at this point, especially with no PPV. If I were running things, if SummerSlam doesn't move Network subscriptions in a meaningful way, i'd burn the rest of Lesnar's appearances as soon as possible and cut my losses. You have Rusev who is younger & fresher who can do the unstoppable monster role, cheaper, more efficiently, and possibly with more credibility too since I think the Cena & HHH loses were dumb and hurt Lesnar from the jump. It's possible the Undertaker win gave him a boost, but we'll find that out after SummerSlam.

 

[MrBill]

Looks like Mick Foley will be in Austin next Sunday night at the Cap City Comedy Club. I'm thinking about going but I can't figure out if this is a meet & greet or a speaking gig. Foley has 3-4 different kinds of events on his calendar right now-

https://cap-city-comedy-club.seatengine.com/venues/cap-city-comedy-club/events/4315/shows

 

[EmpireWF]

Looks like Mick Foley will be in Austin next Sunday night at the Cap City Comedy Club. I'm thinking about going but I can't figure out if this is a meet & greet or a speaking gig. Foley has 3-4 different kinds of events on his calendar right now-

https://cap-city-comedy-club.seatengine.com/venues/cap-city-comedy-club/events/4315/shows

It's his one man show. Not a signing/meet & greet.

LocationAustin, TX
VenueCap City Comedy Club

A three-time WWE champion, hardcore legend, and member of the WWE Hall of Fame, Mick Foley is now unleashing the same trademark blend of wit and wisdom, wildness and warmth that made his books so beloved. The five self-penned New York Times Best Seller has turned his work into his one-man spoken-word stage show, “Tales From Wrestling Past.”

Foley has wowed both crowds and critics alike with his unique stage show – leading “Chortle,” the UK’s most respected comedy source, to write “Foley himself is charm personified – eloquent, funny and self-effacing,” and the decidedly non-wrestling publication “Broadway Baby” to muse, “if you’re interested at all in wrestling you’ll love it; if you’re not, you’ll like it.”

Drawing from his 28 years of travel, Foley finds humor in the unlikeliest of places – the loss of an ear, the “dedication” of a porn-star working in a knee-brace, a U.S. President reciting his wrestling catch-phrase. He personally refers to “Tales From Wrestling Past” as “like being in the ring, without getting hurt” – a welcome distinction coming from a man who gave so much, to so many, for so long.

 

[ThomasTomasz]

Jericho/Miz is booked for tonight, and received rave reviews at the live event yesterday. Will be interesting to see if that translates into a good match on Raw.

 

[ThomasTomasz]

Bret The Hitman San-Hart........I don't know if I should be laughing because it's so bad, or appreciating the fact that Sandow is at least making the best of his current booking situation.

 

[Kuzzy Powers]

Observer is reporting that WWE, ROH, TNA, New Japan, & AAA are in an old school bidding war of sorts over Bobby Fish & Kyle O'Reilly.

This is like vindication for me, as I was on the Fish bandwagon going all the way back to 2006 on MM when Fish & Eddie Edwards were an opening match jobber team on the Boston/Edison/Philly ROH shows. To me the potential of both guys as workers was obvious, and the NOAH tours over the years have really helped Fish refine his in ring, but his leaps in personality over the last year with his Marc Maron/hipster routine really came out of nowhere. I can't say I ever pegged him as a charisma machine.

As nice as it would be for Fish and O'Riley to make it to the big show, they'd both be burried terribly in the E and I selfishly would prefer they stay on the Indy scene.

 

[ThomasTomasz]

Where did the Reigns/Rusev match come from?

 

[EmpireWF]

It's on Smavkdown so it doesn't count.

Cena is the most vocal guy calling spots during matches. It's ridiculous this point.

 

[EmpireWF]

As nice as it would be for Fish and O'Riley to make it to the big show, they'd both be burried terribly in the E and I selfishly would prefer they stay on the Indy scene.

O'Reilly will be WWE Champ some day.

 

[Warner2BruceTD]

Popped for the BELIEVE IN DeSHIELDS sign on RAW, complete with the Expos logo.

 

[Warner2BruceTD]

 

[Warner2BruceTD]

"you had me at "omg I'm 20" "

:dead:

Can't hate. He does a nice job here. Solid flirting, never goes full perv, keeps it classy with just enough innuendo to show he means business. He even sneaks in a way to see if she has a bf, then feigns disinterest before reeling her back in. Can't do it much better, especially in public. A+.

https://twitter.com/WWEKidman/status/485238986240053248

 

[ThomasTomasz]

Kidman's new to Twitter too......or maybe that's an illusion:med:

 

[s@ppisgod]

Nice, creepin by a guy who was last relevant before To Catch a Predator was a thing....

 

[EmpireWF]

WWE® SIGNS JAPANESE STAR KENTA TO NXT®


STAMFORD, Conn., July 12, 2014 – WWE (NYSE:WWE) today announced it has signed Kenta, one of Japan’s biggest stars, to its NXT division. The announcement took place during a signing ceremony at a WWE Live Event in Osaka, Japan with WWE icon and Hall of Famer, Hulk Hogan presiding.


Kenta’s intense and straight forward in-ring style has led to his success in Japan, as well as during visits to the U.S. He is expected to reach new heights of global success with WWE.


“Kenta is an incredible performer who brings the crowd to its feet when he steps into the ring”, said Paul Levesque, Executive Vice President, Talent, Creative and Live Events, WWE. “WWE’s signing of Kenta reflects our continued dedication to creating a diverse roster that appeals to our global fan base.”


“I am humbled to join WWE’s NXT division and look forward to honing my craft with the global leader in sports entertainment,” said Kenta.


Kenta will relocate to Orlando, Florida where he will train at WWE’s state-of-the-art Performance Center to enhance his talents both athletically and creatively.