The WWE Thread

[Death Metal]

To be fair though, a lot of the current teams that were previously singles wrestlers do have good chemistry together and have a coherent character direction. The real problem is things like Air Boom or Santino/Ryder who have absolutely no business being in a team together other than the fact that they both happen to have a vaguely similar style. (For the latter example, Santino is a comedy wrestler, and Ryder is a shitty comedy wrestler who only got attention from a WWE-spearheaded experiment into social media)

[Northern Dominus]

I have been watching the Undertakers streak, and I can see a decline in the quality of the matches (not that the WWF/E was ever that good). The problem is, that without any real competition, and the serious lack of attention span on the part of the fans, the quality of the product has declined.

And here's the other thing that needs to be addressed: 'Takers old in Wrestling years, pushing 50 at this point. To make matters worse he was somewhat injury prone even during his younger years, and that's only going to get worse really.
Plus unlike Flair, 'Takers got ventures outside of wrestling with potential or that are already paying so he really doesn't need wrestling as his primary source of income.

As I keep suggesting, maybe this is the year that Undertaker's streak finally comes to an end, and the Deadman rests in peace. Now before everyone jumps on the "Nuuuuu, 'Taker foreverz!" bandwagon, consider the following.

- Taker's already down to once a year appearances, and there's no guarantee that he'll be able to continue that pace. Ending the streak now means 'Taker gives the fans one last match

- The match itself would be epic because this time he has a highly adaptable opponent who is an erstwhile master of in-ring psychology, CM Punk.

- You have the perfect excuse, macabe as it may be; Paul Bearer's death and the theft of 'Takers urn. Call it a distraction or a waning of his power, or whatever.

- CM Punk needs the victory more than 'Taker needs to continue his streak. Most wrestling fans appreciate Punk if not worship the ground he walks on for his work, but the casuals fans don't respect the hard work and in-ring psychology, they're sort of like Yankees fans, they expect their heros to win every single time. Moreover, you have some "old school" fans (people who glom onto either Hulk Hogan or the Attitude/NWO era way too much) who deride Punk for not having X opponent and therefore not being "legit", so by having him go over at WM against the Undertaker, that would once and for all cement Punk's status as the premier talent in the industry for everyone. This is especially true since the WWE decided not to take a chance and push Punk vs Rock all the way to WM but went with the soft option of Rock vs Cena II.

Yeah. Such a shame all these teams like the Usos, Epico and Primo and the Prime Time Players have just been thrown together....

For every Usos though, you have at least three Air Booms.

To be fair, Air Boom hat a lot of potential to become recognizable as a cohesive unit until the WWE suspended Sydal for 60 days, and they built that pairing up over time. Nowadays it seems like they're just mashing people together to bulk up the Tag Team division without much rhyme or reason. Not to give credit to the other company but I think that can at least be partially attributed to TNA refocusing on Tag Team wrestling and having some excellent tag teams to boot. Even their own mash-up team in Roode/Ares is quite entertaining while still being able to pull off a spectacular match.

Odds are someone at WWE Creative took a look at what TNA was doing, went "Oh shit, this is pretty good, we'd better do this!" and acted accordingly.

[Death Metal]

- Taker's already down to once a year appearances, and there's no guarantee that he'll be able to continue that pace. Ending the streak now means 'Taker gives the fans one last match

Not really, he could win and it could still be his last match.

- The match itself would be epic because this time he has a highly adaptable opponent who is an erstwhile master of in-ring psychology, CM Punk.

See above. Also, they could have done the same with people better than Punk. Like Flair. Or HBK. Or HHH.

- You have the perfect excuse, macabe as it may be; Paul Bearer's death and the theft of 'Takers urn. Call it a distraction or a waning of his power, or whatever.

Because the Rey Mysterio/Randy Orton feud about Eddie Guerrero being in Hell did wonders for everyone involved, right? Oh, no, wait, it was a miserable failure.

- CM Punk needs the victory more than 'Taker needs to continue his streak. Most wrestling fans appreciate Punk if not worship the ground he walks on for his work, but the casuals fans don't respect the hard work and in-ring psychology, they're sort of like Yankees fans, they expect their heros to win every single time. Moreover, you have some "old school" fans (people who glom onto either Hulk Hogan or the Attitude/NWO era way too much) who deride Punk for not having X opponent and therefore not being "legit", so by having him go over at WM against the Undertaker, that would once and for all cement Punk's status as the premier talent in the industry for everyone. This is especially true since the WWE decided not to take a chance and push Punk vs Rock all the way to WM but went with the soft option of Rock vs Cena II.

Not really. Punk is already as big a star as he's going to get. Beating Undertaker will do nothing for his status. He's already the Piper to Cena's Hogan.

It's not about Punk benefiting or Taker benefiting. It's WWE benefiting. Ending the streak does NOTHING for Punk or Undertaker. Not ending it means WWE can market the streak for years to come in Wrestlemania compilations. 21-0 looks better on a DVD cover than 20-1.

[The Treorai]

Does anyone else remember the days when tag teams were actually tag teams, and not just two singles wrestlers who pair up for some dodgy/flimsy reason?

Pepperidge Farms Remembers.

[Qazox]

RE: the 225 lb benchpress challenge... notice around 40 the fans stopped counting for Ryback? And somehow he went from 40 to 45? By my count, Mark Henry 53, Ryback 49.

[TaQud]

I'm glad Johnny was back! (I actually like him)

[Death Metal]

Antonio Cesaro, Yodeling Wrestler is the best gimmick ever.

[TaQud]

Antonio Cesaro, Yodeling Wrestler is the best gimmick ever.

that's what he was doing?

[Death Metal]

Antonio Cesaro, Yodeling Wrestler is the best gimmick ever.

that's what he was doing?

Yep. I already knew he had epic yodeling skills, I just never expected him to get to use them in the WWE.

[Qazox]

I'm glad Johnny was back! (I actually like him)

People Power!

[Northern Dominus]

I'm glad Johnny was back! (I actually like him)

... clearly you're not aware of the awful reputation that ol' Ace has backstage, or of the way he constantly screwed with OVW when they were a development territory for the WWE. Turns out FCW got favored due to the party environment down there, so ol' Ace could have a grand ol time while making business trips
Or there's the fact that he's behind the hiring of bikini models rather than female wrestles. Granted, I like eye candy as much as the next guy but all he had to do was to look at certain indie promotions to find incredibly beautiful women who also have talent between the ropes.
Or there's the fact that he constantly tried to screw Fit Finlay over even before he debuted in 2006. Nevermind that he was always underrated and was an excellent coach for the younger stars.
Or there was the fact that Cowboy Bob Orton tested positive for Hep B in 2005 before the cage match between his son and 'Taker, and since they were both going to blade in that match ol' Ace didn't bother telling 'Taker about it.

The only time I'll ever be "happy" to see that idiot in a ring again is if he's on the receiving end of another Miz botch and gets dumped on his head. Until then Ill simply cringe every time I see the king of the brown-nosers on my screen.

[Northern Dominus]

I dunno if anyone's mentioned it yet, but the continuing saga of The Bad Guy, Scott Hall, has taken an interesting turn. He's recently moved in with none other than former wrestler and yoga guru Diamond Dallas Page in Atlanta in an effort to completely sober up and regain his health.
Already present at the house, or the "accountabiltiy crib" as it's been called is none other than Jake "The Snake" Roberts who is on his own path to sobriety and health. And the approach seems to be working, recent youtube posts on Page's youtube channel of Scott Hall show him in remarkable clarity and health, better than he has been in recent years by miles.

However, a big part of Halls' recovery is going to be much-needed hip surgery, and there's an indiegogo fund raising money for the surgery and therapy. Granted, the fund has already broken it's goal of 80,000 dollars, but with more money going to therapy and medical expenses as well as reimbursing Page for his hard work it can only help Hall in the long run.

So what do we think NSG wrestling fans? Do we believe in second third fourth and umpteenth chances? Do we take into account Hall's past failures and believe in him like we used to believe in his persona?

If so, here's the link:
http://www.indiegogo.com/projects/we-ca ... him?c=home

[TaQud]

I'm glad Johnny was back! (I actually like him)

... clearly you're not aware of the awful reputation that ol' Ace has backstage, or of the way he constantly screwed with OVW when they were a development territory for the WWE. Turns out FCW got favored due to the party environment down there, so ol' Ace could have a grand ol time while making business trips
Or there's the fact that he's behind the hiring of bikini models rather than female wrestles. Granted, I like eye candy as much as the next guy but all he had to do was to look at certain indie promotions to find incredibly beautiful women who also have talent between the ropes.
Or there's the fact that he constantly tried to screw Fit Finlay over even before he debuted in 2006. Nevermind that he was always underrated and was an excellent coach for the younger stars.
Or there was the fact that Cowboy Bob Orton tested positive for Hep B in 2005 before the cage match between his son and 'Taker, and since they were both going to blade in that match ol' Ace didn't bother telling 'Taker about it.

The only time I'll ever be "happy" to see that idiot in a ring again is if he's on the receiving end of another Miz botch and gets dumped on his head. Until then Ill simply cringe every time I see the king of the brown-nosers on my screen.

oh....

I just like hearing him....didn't know he had a bad reputation.

[Qazox]

Hall's had more 2nd chances than he deserves. I'm not donating, but I do hope he gets the help he needs.

[Death Metal]

Hall's had more 2nd chances than he deserves. I'm not donating, but I do hope he gets the help he needs.

Alcoholism isn't something you just stop though. If you're dependent enough cold turkey can actually kill you. Hall was if anything enabled, not helped, in WCW, because he never suffered any punishment other than paid vacations.

DDP's system... well, it's fucking miraculous. I mean, if it can get Jake The Snake Roberts clean, sober, and healthy (well, healthy for a recovering cocaine addict in his 50s), then Hall's got a good chance.

[Northern Dominus]

Hall's had more 2nd chances than he deserves. I'm not donating, but I do hope he gets the help he needs.

Addiction's a strange amorphous monster. I've had to deal with it, and you never quite know how or when it will rear its head and what it will do.

The key is having a good support network to help you through rough spots. For the most part Hall didn't have that, hence the slew of rehab and relapses. The fact that he has no cartilage in his left hip and is probably in near-constant pain doesn't help either. If anything it's a wonder that Hall hasn't killed himself by now because of it. I had that support network and I've been able to control those urges pretty well, but Hall, well...

This time... he looks different. He's got DDP as a mentor and The Snake as somebody going through the same process for a support network, and the results, as you can see in the video, are remarkable.

Hall's had more 2nd chances than he deserves. I'm not donating, but I do hope he gets the help he needs.

Alcoholism isn't something you just stop though. If you're dependent enough cold turkey can actually kill you. Hall was if anything enabled, not helped, in WCW, because he never suffered any punishment other than paid vacations.

DDP's system... well, it's fucking miraculous. I mean, if it can get Jake The Snake Roberts clean, sober, and healthy (well, healthy for a recovering cocaine addict in his 50s), then Hall's got a good chance.

If you've seen the videos, Roberts looks remarkably better now than he has in years as well. Sure his shoulder's a little janky right now, but he's sharper than ever. In fact I read an interview somewhere where he's said that he's happy he can feel feelings again, rather than just know of them through a cocaine-induced haze.

If it worked for Roberts than I really think Hall has a fighting chance. Especially since despite certain public rumors he's not some out of control hedonist, he's a guy with a lot of personal and medical problems who really wants to get better.

And who knows? If this works... WWE Hall of Fame 2014 might include both Jake "The Snake" Roberts and Scott Hall?

[Qazox]

CM Punk just upped the ante big time. Until he dumped the urn out, he was getting loud cheers... too bad they can't make it a casket match.

[Death Metal]

I hated it. There's "He's one of the boys, he would have understood", and then there's "EDDIE GUERRERO IS IN HELL!!!!".

[Qazox]

I hated it. There's "He's one of the boys, he would have understood", and then there's "EDDIE GUERRERO IS IN HELL!!!!".

Do you really think they would've done it, IF the Undertaker hadn't signed off on it?

[Northern Dominus]

I hated it. There's "He's one of the boys, he would have understood", and then there's "EDDIE GUERRERO IS IN HELL!!!!".

I have to agree with you on this one. Once was bad enough with King, but this is a re-tread of Orton vs Myserio all over again.

CM Punk is so much better than getting ultra-cheap heat like that. He could have tapped into that place when he laid the "your arms are too short to box with god" line on Rock a few months ago. That would have been so much better.

And he could then move on to end the streak at WM, therefore once and for all putting him over in the minds of the livestock that is the WWE casual fan corps...the one populated by drunken bros, desperate fat girls, and overinflated unattended minors.

[Qazox]

http://www.memegeneokerlund.com/meme/3ltj97

This'll make you marks feel better....

[TaQud]

http://www.memegeneokerlund.com/meme/3ltj97

This'll make you marks feel better....

[Death Metal]

I hated it. There's "He's one of the boys, he would have understood", and then there's "EDDIE GUERRERO IS IN HELL!!!!".

Do you really think they would've done it, IF the Undertaker hadn't signed off on it?

I see, so Undertaker says it's okay then it's okay. Never mind what Moody's wife and children think.

[Northern Dominus]

Do you really think they would've done it, IF the Undertaker hadn't signed off on it?

I see, so Undertaker says it's okay then it's okay. Never mind what Moody's wife and children think.

Plus, again, it's insulting to the psychological capabilities of both Punk and Taker.

[Qazox]

Do you really think they would've done it, IF the Undertaker hadn't signed off on it?

I see, so Undertaker says it's okay then it's okay. Never mind what Moody's wife and children think.

His wife died in 1999, and he was estranged from his 2 sons... besides they never directly stated is was his ashes. Implied it very heavily, yes. And its not like WWE or other pro wrestling federations haven't done similar things before. Big Boss Man interrupted Big Show's father's "funeral", Vader once made fun of a IWJP wrestler's wife after a miscarriage. Tons of cheap shots about another wrestler's alcohol/drug problems or domestic problems...

Yes it was a uncomfortable promo, but if it gets people talking, then that's all Vince cares about, because it'll put more asses in seats.