Lets Discuss All Things Wrestling - Even The T-Shirt Company AEW!

[Mox]

1 hour ago, Dr LBC said:

You have a right to be upset, but being upset doesn't give you the right to outright lie like this.  But hey, enjoy car crash booking and half-assed storytelling.

Oh you mean tonight? He clearly didn't.

[Mox]

That match was great, one of two things that saved a pretty garbage show. Absolutely loved Cody losing. Acknowledge the Tribal chief.

[Edge]

I can just say what i see. And there are some who like the decision, but i also see a LOT of negative responses about this booking. Other companies are getting hate for something like this and here you clearly see WWE missing out on a big moment. They hit it the previous day. They missed out big time on the second day and that's cumulating in fans beeing dissapointed and upset, which is kinda funny, because that's what WWE has been doing for the last 1-2 decades. WWE seems to have had a great story, but it seems they run it into the ground as they keep doing what they're are doing and that's milking out every last drop of it for so long that people get bored by it and therefore they're missing out on the perfect timing. So yeah there are a lot of people upset with this kind of booking and that should be respected by each and everyone, because in the end thre will be some people who love the decision and some who will hate it.

But no matter what each and everyone of us thinks about it, people's opinions should be respected. Don't laugh at someone, just because he's having a different opinion on the booking. Whether he likes it or not, show them some respect. Unfortunately that's the big problem for some wrestling fans today. Sometimes wrestling fans are just to toxic and some people in this thread are an example of it.

Edited April 3, 2023 by Edge

[Livewire]

Finn posted a pic on his IG of the gash on his head. Damn, did he get sliced good.

[Edge]

Stardom just had a press conference, announcing the card for their biggest show of the year so far.

All Star Grand Queendom will be held at April 23th in the Yokohama Arena. It's the first time in 20 years that a joshi promotion will held an event in the Yokohama Arena. The last time it was the 35th anniversary show of the late and great AJPW promotion.

 

Here is the card:

• Yokohama Rumble with Momoe Nakanishi (Momoe was in the main event 20 years ago)
• Fuwa-chan & X vs. Utami Hayashish.ita & Miyu Amasaki
• Thekla, Mariah May, Xena und X (new member of Club Venus) vs. Oedo Tai (Saki Kashima, Natsuko Tora, Momo Watanabe & Ruaka)
• Mei Suruga & X vs. SLK & Mei Seira (formely known as Mei Hoshizuki)
• Himeka Retirement Match: Himeka vs. Maika
• Goddesses of Stardom Championship Match: Nanae Takahashi & Yuu (c) vs. MIRAI & Ami Sourei
• Artist of Stardom Championship Match: Prominence (Risa Sera, Suzu Suzuki, Hiragi Kurumi) (c) vs. REstart (KAIRI, Natsupoi & Saori Anou)
• Syuri vs. Chihiro Hashimoto
• IWGP Women's Championship Match: Mercedes Moné / Hazuki / AZM (c) vs. Mayu Iwatani
• Wonder of Stardom Championship Match: Saya Kamitani (c) vs. Mina Shirakawa
• World of Stardom Championship Match: Giulia (c) vs. Tam Nakano

 

Notes:

In 5 days we're going to get the title Match between Mercedes Moné (formerly known as Sasha Banks), Hazuki & AZM at NJPW Sakura Genesis. I think it's likely to say that Mercedes will win and face the "Icon of Stardom" Mayu Iwatani on this show. AZM will most likely be the Tag Team partner of Mei Suruga and Hazuki might be the Tag Team partner of Fuwa-chan (who is a famous comedian in japan and was trained by Hazuki).

I think we'll get a stipulation added to the main event. They had a brawl at the press conference with Tam ending up bleeding a lot. They both faced 2 years ago in a hair vs. hair match which was won by Tam.

 

This is an absolutely great card. So whoever wants to support the show can buy it via PIA. Follow the Stardom twitter account. They'll post the link to the show a few days before the show.

Edited April 3, 2023 by Edge

[TOUCAN]

The only thing I have against that match is the finish and I also just don't see a point in Solo right now. It got overbooked at the end but Roman winning is fine. He can only lose now at either Summerslam this year, or Mania next. There's no in between. In that way, they've booked themselves into a corner. They must have really wanted to get him to 1000 that's the only thing I can think of.

[Edge]

It's official. Endeavor bought WWE to bringt WWE and UFC under the same roof. An employee meeting is set for 4pm. Most likely in the next days/weeks/months WWE will make a lot of budget cuts. That's at least the normal way of doing those merges. Just look at the Discovery and WBD merger.

I wonder what this will mean for the fans. Nick Khan said a few days ago that he's open to return to the PPV model. I think an UFC PPV costs 80$. It will be interesting to see how much a WWE PPV would cost, if they indeed return to the PPV model and it would be interesting to see if there would be any impacts on the AEW buyrates, because paying multiple 50 $ + PPVs a year for both shows could be difficult for some fans, who're watching both promotions. That's something to monitor in the upcoming months.

 

[beekay414]

 

[Dr LBC]

9 hours ago, Edge said:

I can just say what i see. And there are some who like the decision, but i also see a LOT of negative responses about this booking. Other companies are getting hate for something like this and here you clearly see WWE missing out on a big moment. They hit it the previous day. They missed out big time on the second day and that's cumulating in fans beeing dissapointed and upset, which is kinda funny, because that's what WWE has been doing for the last 1-2 decades. WWE seems to have had a great story, but it seems they run it into the ground as they keep doing what they're are doing and that's milking out every last drop of it for so long that people get bored by it and therefore they're missing out on the perfect timing. So yeah there are a lot of people upset with this kind of booking and that should be respected by each and everyone, because in the end thre will be some people who love the decision and some who will hate it.

But no matter what each and everyone of us thinks about it, people's opinions should be respected. Don't laugh at someone, just because he's having a different opinion on the booking. Whether he likes it or not, show them some respect. Unfortunately that's the big problem for some wrestling fans today. Sometimes wrestling fans are just to toxic and some people in this thread are an example of it.

There's a difference between "being upset" and being so emotionally irresponsible that you say you're swearing off the product because they effectively worked you - in an industry that is designed around working fans.  Last I checked people aren't bored with the Bloodline storyline - I mean, it only just was the most encompassing storyline of the past 5 months.  I'd honestly reckon that a solid half of the people that are behaving childishly that Roman won are mostly just bitter because the only salve they could rub on their "Sami should have been the one to beat him" injuries was the belief that Cody would beat him at Mania.

I'm seeing hyperbole like "Cody will never be as over as he was coming into tonight," which is crap, but that's to be expected because as fans have felt more and more smartened up, the more and more they tend to ignore how and why old school booking worked and was successful for as long as it was, just because they heard some people talking using industry lingo.  The job of the heel is to make sure the babyface gets over, by also making himself so hated and his opponent so sympathetic that it's only natural for people to rally behind them.  Maybe not the best example, but take the Game of Thrones ending: The end result itself wasn't as awful as people made it out to be (as in how the pieces sat in the end, other than the Dani stans not liking her going nuts and getting got), it was just rushed and packed what probably should have been another two seasons (or more) into one semi-shortened (longer episode lengths, but less episodes on the whole) one.

The aim, as has been the biggest criticism of the product for well over a decade, is to build the next great babyface in the company.  If you do that on the back of an injury return and rushing through a good narrative that managed to merge him into the biggest and most over storyline in the company, that's akin to hot-shotting it.  And, contrary to what Vince Russo would have you believe, hot-shotting does not a company-leading babyface make.  The closest thing they've had to an organic company-leading babyface (just the timing was bad because he didn't aesthetically fit what Vince wanted and Vince already had in mind who he wanted to make be that guy already on the roster) was Bryan.  And Bryan had to go through a helluvalot more adversity than Cody has thus far (yes, Stardust and referring back to that was a trainwreck, but he wasn't without meaningful mid-card singles pushes before Stardust, that has people upset when he wasn't awarded MITB as Dashing Cody Rhodes; but to use Cody's own scripted words, he wasn't ready yet back then).

This script moving forward legitimately writes itself.  You have Roman be the one to introduce the new design belt ("I been carrying these two belts around for so long and no one can beat me for them that I decided I'd do it" kind of thing), but just to rub Cody's face in the loss, the new design has enough of a double-winged title belt that Dusty won-but-didn't-win-at-MSG to be a dig.  With the Usos no longer the tag champions, the visual of the whole Bloodline holding up all the belts isn't as effective, so it works.  Cody, realizing that he needs to control the circumstances of a rematch to avoid a repeat affair, wins MITB - it's the first PPV they've done in London since the Bret/Bulldog SummerSlam, that crowd is going to be hot and there's sympathy to be had (and I would argue almost intentional parallels) for how Cody lost at Mania in comparison to how Drew got done at Clash at the Castle.

But the MITB cash-in is largely a heel-ish move, unless you do (and WWE has done this before) the ultra baby twist on it - the Cena/RVD call-your-shot cash-in.  Cody calls his for SummerSlam in Detroit, which is close enough travel-wise to Quebec that we can probably expect strong Montreal contingent in the crowd and that being a very vocal anti-Roman contingent.  And ultimately, because Roman is the bigger, stronger at-that-point 1000+ day reigning juggernaut champion, you don't beat that juggernaut with brawn, you outsmart him... and you out-chess-move Heyman (the character Heyman, it's Paul that's been outlining this whole thing, you can see his fingerprints all over it).  Cody, even in confederation with KO and Sami, is still outnumbered by a full-force Bloodline at 4, so you need a 4th, an ace in the hole.

Anyone else paying attention the fact that Dustin's made no bones about the fact that 2023 is his last year as an "in-ring" competitor and he plans to hang up the boots when his AEW contract expires at the end of July?  Now, I'm not saying it's certain, but given that he's said his aims are to continue into more a coach/producer type position, that's awfully rife for a Legends contract and a backstage job on either the main roster or the PC.  And this ties back in to Cody's last promos going into Mania: "My father isn't here.  My brother isn't here."  If Dustin, not Goldust, Dustin is the one to come out of the crowd to thwart Solo interfering again on Roman behalf and then you get the (sappy) "Go on, do it" urging moment right before Cody actually hits that third Cross Rhodes to pin Roman, followed by Dustin either handing the belt to Cody or strapping it around his waist, emotional hug, etc.  That's a babyface star-making moment that gives you the 2-3 second snippet that you throw into the "WWE Intro" video package (because it's pretty safe to assume that in the wake of the sale we're going to get something that replaces "Then, Now, Forever").

And to be fair, I don't think we see the disintegration of the Bloodline until at least Survivor Series.  You know damn well that Cody's going to be up Hatch's butt to let him work a War Games match.  And while I think if Dustin retires he very likely stays retired, he's an option as a 4th team member in a final sendoff or it's organic story that the BL would pull a very Horsemen like move and take him out ahead of the match and they use Cody, KO, and Sami's babyface cachet to elevate one of the NXT guys (Bron would fit, Charlie Dempsey would oddly fit as someone that could continue to have a sort of weird-but-logical kinship with the like of KO and Sami in the aftermath), or if they do manage to get hold of Jay White this would be a premier place to start him on a rise-to-stardom culminating at Mania 40.

[Dr LBC]

I mean, ultimately, I don't think the plan was ever for Roman to lose the title at this Mania.  Even if they had managed to get what they'd initially set out for - which was Roman/Rock - Rocky wasn't winning the title.  This just gave Cody more skin in the game.

[Dr LBC]

Also, the verdict on Shane is a torn quad.  Which, for a McMahon, is just weirdly apropos.

[Dr LBC]

11 hours ago, Livewire said:

Finn posted a pic on his IG of the gash on his head. Damn, did he get sliced good.

During that 3-minute break away from camera when Edge was filling, apparently Finn had a numbing agent applied and the gash stapled shut.

[Dr LBC]

Also, if anyone hasn't seen Vince's absolutely ridiculous Ricardo Montalban dye-job and pencil mustache that he has now (it's on full display in his and the owner of Endeavor's presser on CNBC).  I almost get the feeling like it definitely ought to keep him off TV because he'd be almost assured of getting "You look stupid" chants.

[biggio7]

2 hours ago, Dr LBC said:

During that 3-minute break away from camera when Edge was filling, apparently Finn had a numbing agent applied and the gash stapled shut.

Finn is insane for that. There are guys like him who completely give it their all consistently. I haven't watched much but having Peacock, it helps with the PPV. I hope that stays but if not it's cool.

I don't mind Roman winning. Is it odd? A little I guess but I think Cody is going to be a chaser for the title. Once those guys get the title, they get stale quickly. I don't know enough but Cody to see what he'd do from there. The only way Cody should have won would be if Rock came back to help him. Rock vs. Roman feud for the Bloodline and have someone else feud with Cody.

But, Rock isn't going to do long story lines like that anymore and people need to give up that thought.

It will be cool to see where they go from here.

 

I'll admit though, I hate 'super kicks'. It's so annoying.

[stl4life07]

People are outraged over Roman beating Cody. I get it. I 100% thought Cody would win bc Ive always said once the Usos loses the tag titles then Roman would lose his titles. My thinking though is continue the story as long as its still fascinating.

Cody has to know while he has an answer for the Usos with Sami and KO, he dont have an answer for Solo. Could that answer be Orton? Cody and Orton once was in a faction together called Legacy. Storyline, Orton did get taken out by the Bloodline so he want revenge. So Orton comes back to help Cody, Sami, and KO even the odds on the Bloodline so Roman has nobody to help him.

Another angle could be Jey. He knows Roman is on top bc of him and his brothers. Roman doesnt care enough to help Solo win. Solo first loss came with no Roman around. The Usos lost their titles and no Roman was around to help them retain. Yet they are always around helping Roman win and retain his titles. When will Jey say enough? Could it be literally when Roman gets literally on the doorstep of 1000 days of holding the title and then Jey screws over Roman and cost him the title against Cody? That will really sting Roman in more ways than one.

So yeah Cody didnt get his moment at WM which sucks and again I understand most people frustration but I want this storyline to continue bc I think it can get even better rather than Cody having a moment and then what for the Bloodline story? Keep it going as long as its compelling. Cody will still win the belt. Plus I think the WWE has to figure out how to split the titles too.