Why has Bullet Club gone cold?

[Xxcjb01xX [PIECE OF: SH-]]

I do have a feeling if and when Balor walks from WWE, he might try and retake Bullet Club from Jay White, which would be an interesting storyline since Balor fits really well with GoD, they're his boys.

[Mozenrath]

Apr 5, 2022 20:19:56 GMT -5 Dr. Bolty, Disaster Enby said:

So just curious: a few people have mentioned that Jay White just isn't galvanizing the US fanbase like Omega and Styles and, to a lesser extent, Devitt did.

Does anyone think part of that is that Jay White is so thoroughly an NJPW product?

He hasn't gotten the Roman-style backlash, probably because he's a heel's heel and very good at it as well as one of the best in the ring out there. But, as my first post indicated, a lot of the appeal of Bullet Club to US fans seemed to be that they were American guys who made it. Even Kenny Omega, who mostly wrestled in Japan before then, was identified as a Canadian guy and there was something compelling about how the goofy guy with the video game references and the 9-year-old match and the rubber doll match had climbed the mountain. All of that is very different from White's reputation as NJPW's homegrown gaijin main eventer.

Jay did honestly get a decent amount of pushback when he won the world title because, well, he wasn't ready for that, honestly. I don't mean that in the most damning way, though, since frankly speaking, neither was Okada when he first did it. Gedo definitely isn't afraid to put a title on someone in order to try to get them to grow into that role rather than just to put a rubber stamp on someone who was already great.

Jay rose to the occasion eventually, but yeah, to say people weren't impressed at the time would be something of an understatement. He looked thoroughly out of his depth.

[noobeast]

Apr 5, 2022 20:33:25 GMT -5 Fade said:

Apr 4, 2022 13:53:33 GMT -5 noobeast said:

People can give longwinded explanations all day, but it really comes down to 1 thing, whether anybody likes it or not:

Bullet Club was done as soon as The Elite were gone.

Jay White and these other guys are cool and all, but they aren't anywhere near the level that Omega and the Bucks were and are. In fact, I would say they need ro remove the albatross from Jay White's neck and let him go be great without being held back by a dead faction.

They have taken the NWO impression gimmick too far, as just like NWO was in 1999, they are just shambling on years after they should have dissolved.

It’s crazy cause it seemed a lot of “die-hard” NJPW/BC fans got sick of The Elite (within BC,)when their popularity surged. They left and it looked like for a second there would be a return to “legitimacy” but it’s just been pretty boring with the exception of a few things here and there.

If there is one thing I have learned about a lot of "die-hards", it's that an overwhelming portion of them are full of shit, and say things just to be contrary and "edgy."

I always liken these situations to Nickleback: Everyone claims to hate them, but they are selling a lot of f***ing records to SOMEBODY. It's the same shit with the Elite, or anyone else who is successful. And the evidence is right there in what you said; as soon as those guys were gone, so we're the "die-hards" that "hated" them.

[Allie Kitsune]

Apr 6, 2022 2:11:02 GMT -5 Mozenrath said:

Apr 5, 2022 20:19:56 GMT -5 Dr. Bolty, Disaster Enby said:

So just curious: a few people have mentioned that Jay White just isn't galvanizing the US fanbase like Omega and Styles and, to a lesser extent, Devitt did.

Does anyone think part of that is that Jay White is so thoroughly an NJPW product?

He hasn't gotten the Roman-style backlash, probably because he's a heel's heel and very good at it as well as one of the best in the ring out there. But, as my first post indicated, a lot of the appeal of Bullet Club to US fans seemed to be that they were American guys who made it. Even Kenny Omega, who mostly wrestled in Japan before then, was identified as a Canadian guy and there was something compelling about how the goofy guy with the video game references and the 9-year-old match and the rubber doll match had climbed the mountain. All of that is very different from White's reputation as NJPW's homegrown gaijin main eventer.

Jay did honestly get a decent amount of pushback when he won the world title because, well, he wasn't ready for that, honestly. I don't mean that in the most damning way, though, since frankly speaking, neither was Okada when he first did it. Gedo definitely isn't afraid to put a title on someone in order to try to get them to grow into that role rather than just to put a rubber stamp on someone who was already great.

Jay rose to the occasion eventually, but yeah, to say people weren't impressed at the time would be something of an understatement. He looked thoroughly out of his depth.

Yeah, Jay still hadn't fully shaken the stigma of not looking great in his WK match with Tanahashi, and people weren't entirely buying into the whole "Switchblade" thing either, yet.

[Deleted]

Apr 6, 2022 7:20:02 GMT -5 Allie Kitsune said:

Apr 6, 2022 2:11:02 GMT -5 Mozenrath said:

Jay did honestly get a decent amount of pushback when he won the world title because, well, he wasn't ready for that, honestly. I don't mean that in the most damning way, though, since frankly speaking, neither was Okada when he first did it. Gedo definitely isn't afraid to put a title on someone in order to try to get them to grow into that role rather than just to put a rubber stamp on someone who was already great.

Jay rose to the occasion eventually, but yeah, to say people weren't impressed at the time would be something of an understatement. He looked thoroughly out of his depth.

Yeah, Jay still hadn't fully shaken the stigma of not looking great in his WK match with Tanahashi, and people weren't entirely buying into the whole "Switchblade" thing either, yet.

Ding ding. Jay hadn't found himself when he first won the belt. Current Jay would be an incredible world champ.

Though on further reflection the timeliness doesn't quite work. White winning the heavyweight belt was a year after the Tanahashi match, after beating Okada at Wrestle Kingdom. He still wasn't completely thereafter, but was further along that I initially thought.