the2ndevil
Grimlock
Super Seducer Survivor
Where Is Your Santa, Now?
Posts: 13,632
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Post by the2ndevil on Jun 13, 2015 23:07:56 GMT -5
Honestly he didn't do a bad job as SRS WANNABE JERICHO. But by god he was booked so terrible. Anti climatic win, becomes serious, jobs to everyone, loses to Rey Mysterio in a feud where he had no momentum, booked like a chump every since That Mysterio feud was honestly all I could remember him doing during that title run. You know things aren't going well for you when the blowoff of your feud is you getting thrown in to a river. He's one of the few to have a 100% clean pinfall victory over Randy Orton in recent years, so there is that going for him.
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Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
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Post by Deleted on Jun 13, 2015 23:12:24 GMT -5
AGAIN!?!?!?
oh, thank God.
I was a big Swagger fan back then actually, I thought he had a ton of potential to grow into a great wrestler. But it's like when he won the title, his progress immediately ground to a halt.
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Post by JTG Fan on Jun 13, 2015 23:15:39 GMT -5
As others here noted, he was actually pretty good as champion despite the bad booking. He had some fun segments like where he brought all his trophies out and basically just acted like a complete dickhead to everybody. The problem was they had no direction for him as champion, as evidenced by his two title singles matches on PPV being against Randy Orton for no reason and Big Show, which is always death given how Show has to be protected.
AFTER he lost the title they let him do more fun stuff with his dad and the Swagger Soaring Eagle.
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Post by ThankGodForSidJustice on Jun 13, 2015 23:56:55 GMT -5
I was hyped for his title run, even when he got the 1-2-3 and did the serious face, I was like okay maybe a new direction. Soon enough it became apparent that they gave him the Jericho approach as we mentioned. He should of been the nerdy jock that is so good and you want someone to knock him off his perch. Feuding with Mysterio did him no favors as well. In my opinion Swagger should of been the one to end Rusev streak at Summerslam considering the build and Swagger being all about America but they def played well off each other. I agree that he should've won at Summerslam as they could've really made him a big babyface star out of that. What I never got was that it was a flag match but it ended up just basically being a regular match. If they would've just did a proper flag match that would've been a perfect win win situation for everyone as you can give Swagger a feel good win to put him over as a big face but at the same you protect Rusev's gimmick of never being pinned or submitted. I get that that they see Rusev's as the bigger commodity and I agree but they could've just had Rusev win in a rematch at the next PPV and he would've been fine and Swagger could then just move onto his next feud with Bo Dallas. I don't think Swagger needed to win the feud he just needed to get that one win. The fact that they were so hell bent on keeping Rusev undefeated period was so he could lose to John Cena, the guy who needed it the least, makes it even more frustrating. Unfortunately I think him deciding to get high right at the start of the biggest push of his career leading into WM29 made the company lose faith in him, and honestly I can't really blame them. As far as Swagger's title reign goes I think his MITB cash in was way too soon. Considering the fact that he had done nothing for six months and was mired in a lower card comedy feud with Santino before Mania, he needed to hold onto the briefcase and get built up with credible wins before his title reign. However at first it seemed like they kind of fell into a good thing with him as he did a great job for about his first month as champion and was getting great heat. That's one thing that I thought Swagger didn't get enough credit for as he could really get a good heat heel. If you watch the WrestleMania where he won MITB he gets a pretty good heel reaction when he comes out which is pretty impressive when you consider how much of a goober he was booked to be in the months leading. He gets way more heat then say Drew McIntyre, another heel in that match who was booked way better and protected a lot more going in then Swagger was at the time. I thought him beating Randy Orton clean was a good start for his title reign and I remember thinking that win was really going to cement him as a main event. The Big Show feud was terrible though as that was the worst opponent they could've possibly put him against him as with Swagger being a new champion who was lacking cred he needed to be put against someone he could look strong against instead of someone like Show who they've always been so hell bent on protecting for some reason. Not only could they not let Swagger ever go over on him but he couldn't even look good in the matches as he couldn't ever get any strong offense in due to being limited in what he could do due to Show's size. Then he started losing non title matches all time not only to World Title contenders to set up title matches but also midcarders he had nothing to do with like Kofi and John Morrison. By the time he lost it to Rey Mysterio it was so anticlimactic as he had been booked iike such a pathetic loser during his whole reign that it meant absolutely nothing. It's really too bad because I think if they would've given a fair shake I think he could be a pretty good upper midcard fringe main eventer type guy (ala Sheamus) today.
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Post by Some Guy on Jun 14, 2015 0:03:56 GMT -5
If he would have beaten Big Show clean or at all, he would have been fine. But no, Big Show had to make him look like utter dogshit like he did everyone else in that two year span.
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Post by Captain Stud Muffin (BLM) on Jun 14, 2015 0:07:23 GMT -5
I was hyped for his title run, even when he got the 1-2-3 and did the serious face, I was like okay maybe a new direction. Soon enough it became apparent that they gave him the Jericho approach as we mentioned. He should of been the nerdy jock that is so good and you want someone to knock him off his perch. Feuding with Mysterio did him no favors as well. In my opinion Swagger should of been the one to end Rusev streak at Summerslam considering the build and Swagger being all about America but they def played well off each other. Unfortunately I think him deciding to get high right at the start of the biggest push of his career leading into WM29 made the company lose faith in him, and honestly I can't really blame them. That right their answers everything. WWE may forgive you for stupid shit but they don't forget. Barret gets injured on or near his biggest pushes so nothing for him. Swagger does something dumb on a big push and still wrestles but is of no significance right now. Dolph same category as Barret. Swagger was doing some good work with Cesaro and I think they can continue that if they wanted.
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Post by xxshoyuweeniexx on Jun 14, 2015 0:08:26 GMT -5
They made him entirely too serious with the belt, losing the pushups and sticking him in a suit. He just looked like he was cosplaying Jericho. That whole 2010-2011 period was dudes copying SRS Jericho. Swagger, Shad after he turned heel, Miz, etc. It sucked.
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Post by Captain Stud Muffin (BLM) on Jun 14, 2015 0:09:56 GMT -5
That Mysterio feud was honestly all I could remember him doing during that title run. You know things aren't going well for you when the blowoff of your feud is you getting thrown in to a river. He's one of the few to have a 100% clean pinfall victory over Randy Orton in recent years, so there is that going for him. The funny thing is I don't think a guy like Randy gets protected as much as he should for a guy his stature but I chalk that up to him willingly losing. Hell, didn't he tap clean on TV a few times to Del Rio and Bryan.
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Post by Ryback on a Pole! on Jun 14, 2015 0:10:55 GMT -5
I liked the start of his reign. Then WWE did what WWE does best and turned him from a goofy, over-the-top buffoon with an eagle mascot into generic SRS heel and just killed my interest in him. Or did that happen after his reign? It's hard to remember.
I know he needlessly jobbed a lot too rather than looking strong. Seriously... I find it baffling how WWE continues to make bad booking decisions. It's not hard. If you've got a guy as a champ or he's going to win a belt (MitB winners), make him look strong. If a guy is over, don't strip away the things that got him over (Swagger's soaring eagle, Cesaro's big swing, Barrett's bad news podium and gable).
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Post by bigjohnsons on Jun 14, 2015 0:15:21 GMT -5
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Post by Oh Cry Me a Screwball on Jun 14, 2015 0:27:10 GMT -5
They made him entirely too serious with the belt, losing the pushups and sticking him in a suit. He just looked like he was cosplaying Jericho. That whole 2010-2011 period was dudes copying SRS Jericho. Swagger, Shad after he turned heel, Miz, etc. It sucked. Shad turned heel in the very next segment, no less.
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Emmet Russell
King Koopa
Quieter
The best wrestler on earth.
Posts: 12,526
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Post by Emmet Russell on Jun 14, 2015 0:30:41 GMT -5
Robo-Swagger was so bad.
Great wrestler, good personality, had everything stripped from him the moment he won the title. WWE's philosophy: take everything that works and strip him of it and turn him boring.
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Post by anticonscience on Jun 14, 2015 1:20:06 GMT -5
I'll never forget it because it led to the all-time funniest moment that I ever witnessed live at a WWE event.
The Smackdown where Swagger had all his trophies and memorabilia in the ring destroyed by Big Show was taped in Buffalo, NY so I was there. Well while everybody was waiting in the lobby, the TVs in there usually show something like the last WWE PPV to help pass the time till gates open (visual only, no audio). Instead that day, we were given a live feed into the arena where Swagger and Big Show were practicing that segment, scripts in hand, with Big Show wearing a pair of grandpa glasses as he read the script and Swagger wearing a ridiculous track suit that I wish they'd let him wear on air (think Jason Sudekis in the "Wassup Wit Dat" SNL sketches). Out of nowhere, somebody wearing a WWE shirt goes running thru the lobby turning the TVs off as parents were trying to explain to their children what was going on without destroying kayfabe.
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Post by The Dark Order Inferno on Jun 14, 2015 7:23:47 GMT -5
The WWE have such a strange 'Less is more' attitude toward main eventers that I'll never understand. If something gets someone over enough they're in consideration for a main event slot surely you want to let them keep at it but no, look at Swagger, heck, look at Cena, they didn't tone him down when the Marine was released, they completely eviscerated his character and cost him half the audience in the process. It feels at times like they keep the writing as generic as they can on purpose so they can have the main event feuds written years in advance as they feel they can shave down the characters of anyone who's remotely over to fit the roles.
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Post by Hit Girl on Jun 14, 2015 7:33:42 GMT -5
Never happened.
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Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
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Post by Deleted on Jun 14, 2015 8:25:59 GMT -5
i hated it, but was oddly looking forward to his impending run with the WHC when he was first paired with Colter.......But then he got high I was gonna win the belt, but I got high I coulda pinned him, and I woulda won, but I got high Now I can't get on TV, and I know why, yeah yeah Cause I got high, cause I got high, cause I got high La da da da da da
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Post by Gerard Gerard on Jun 14, 2015 10:03:00 GMT -5
Do you remember how Swagger bowled everyone over with his work when did that promo on Tommy Dreamer during their ECW feud? Remember every single one of those qualities were absent when he became champion?
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Gummydavidson
Dennis Stamp
Johnny Davidson for Prime Minister!
Posts: 3,933
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Post by Gummydavidson on Jun 14, 2015 10:27:57 GMT -5
Main thing i remember was how shocked I was when he beat Randy Orton clean at Extreme Rules 2010.
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Post by Magic knows Black Lives Matter on Jun 14, 2015 10:32:40 GMT -5
The dumbest world title reign of the past decade.
Why even bother putting a title on someone if you are gonna book them like the same geek they've always been?
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Mozenrath
FANatic
Foppery and Whim
Speedy Speed Boy
Posts: 121,204
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Post by Mozenrath on Jun 14, 2015 10:39:54 GMT -5
The dumbest world title reign of the past decade. Why even bother putting a title on someone if you are gonna book them like the same geek they've always been? Maybe they thought the Rey Mysterio title reign was such a success that everyone with the belt should lose the majority of their matches on free TV for no apparent reason.
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