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Post by "Nature Boy" Ric Moranis on Aug 26, 2007 20:37:25 GMT -5
HHH sucks.
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Post by "Nature Boy" Ric Moranis on Aug 27, 2007 0:20:54 GMT -5
The whole Cena thing is just kind of frustrating, because after all, this is fake, and Vince could really push anybody he wants, and this is the best he's willing to give the audience: A babyface champ that wins everytime, no matter how many people boo, stop watching RAW, stop ordering PPVs, or stop coming to house shows (and RAWs).
And, I realize he runs a global corporation not a Smark Pleasing Factory, so I'm not saying he should make CM Punk world champ, sign Bryan Danielson and have 90-minute draws for the title every week...but he really likes musclebound stiffs for some reason. So Vince does whatever the hell he wants, or else Cena wouldn't have had the belt for a year while pushed as a superman babyface (that gets booed), and we have to watch two clods like Batista and Khali bumble around for the Big Gold Belt while the crowd doesn't seem to care, and ends in a DQ finish. Vince is either stubborn or stupid, and I'm pretty sure he's not stupid.
Other examples of Vince doing whatever the hell he wants at the expense of his audience...
- The live crowds start chanting along with Armando Alejandro Estrada's name during his mic work, so Vince decides to take him off TV for months. WWE modifies his name, eliminates his catchphrase, then sticks him on ECW...instead of just rolling with it and capitalizing on a character that was kinda getting over with the crowd.
- Kennedy comes back from injury, debuts on RAW and gets a huge face pop. Well, gotta make Kennedy a heel, because HHH wants more heels to beat on RAW when he comes back. Nevermind the fact that the crowd still pops for Kennedy's mic work too.
- CM Punk's over. John Morrison isn't. So Morrison is the one who always wins the title matches, with hopes that CM Punk's natural overness may rub off on the charismaless void that is John Morrison...even though it hasn't happened yet, and probably never will no matter how many times you try. Punk's a great talker who never gets to cut promos, while every week on ECW, the audience is subjected to seven minutes of John Morrison trying to learn how to talk. Plus, the poor guy still can't cut a decent promo, even while trying to emulate Jim Morrison, a formula which is almost impossible to smurf up.
Back in the late-1990s, if Vince would've been as blind to the fans as he is now, he would've never pushed a heelish Steve Austin as the top babyface, probably stuck with Rocky Maivia as a boring babyface blue chipper no matter how much he got booed, and kept Mick Foley an evil monster mid-card cartoon character in a mask, subjected us to an endless string of Ultimate Warrior/Sid matches for the world title because they're both big scary muscledudes...and he never would've beaten WCW.
He only seems like he makes smart decisions when his back is to the wall. His back isn't against the wall now, and as a result, we get crapty shows like Summerslam '07. I just don't get it, but that's why I barely watch anymore.
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Post by "Nature Boy" Ric Moranis on Aug 26, 2007 23:28:39 GMT -5
Company stock prices? You think Vince really cares about that? I literally cannot believe you strung these two sentences together in consecutive order... Wow.
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Post by "Nature Boy" Ric Moranis on Aug 26, 2007 23:25:54 GMT -5
When your superman babyface champ is getting booed by 90% of the live crowd You can stop right there ( I know I did) because you are wrong. I can't stand Orton either, but I guess I must have watched a different PPV than you did, because man, it sure seemed like a couple people were booing our controversial champion. Nevermind, I guess that's a really good thing. So are huge drops in company stock prices...
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Post by "Nature Boy" Ric Moranis on Aug 26, 2007 23:04:26 GMT -5
When your superman babyface champ is getting booed by 90% of the live crowd, something is seriously wrong with your product. It's not like Cena was defending the belt at an ROH show, or on a WWE-branded ECW show at the Manhattan Center. He was getting booed out of the building in front of 20,000 fans at a WWE PPV. Even babyface Hogan at his worst (pre-NWO days in WCW) got better reactions in front of an audience that was largely sick of him.
Continuing to push Cena like this is the same kind of booking arrogance/stupidity that's killed wrestling companies in the past. This isn't the death of WWE or anything close, but I'm willing to guess that some people actually left the arena tonight or turned off their TVs saying, "I'll never spend money on that again". It was that lame.
And that kind of booking since 2001 is why their TV ratings have steadily gone down from 6s to 5s to 4s to 3s. Is Cena pushed like this because he sells lots of sweatbands? Well, maybe little kids just like buying sweatbands. The casual fan is going to cheer for whichever babyface Vince pushes the hardest, so why don't they just push somebody decent in Cena's place?
WWE is only good when they try to give the overwhelming majority of their audience what they want (The 80s, and The Attitude Era), not continuing to do whatever the hell they want because they can since they're practically the only major organization left in the industry.
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Post by "Nature Boy" Ric Moranis on Aug 26, 2007 23:17:26 GMT -5
Um, people watch because they like wrestling, but Vince drove all of his competitors out of business, and WWE comprises 83% of the wrestling product on national television in the U.S.?
To use your analogy, it would be more like people griping about the NFL on a football message board, but there was only one college football game on every weekend, and it stinks too. But those people still really liked football, so they basically have no choice but to...
1. Watch the NFL no matter how much it sucks. 2. Try to enjoy the one college football game, even though it sucks, too, and features some guys not even good enough for the NFL. 3. Order low-rent looking DVDs of college football and high school games.
That's one reason so many people watch gripe about WWE.
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Post by "Nature Boy" Ric Moranis on Aug 26, 2007 19:42:26 GMT -5
Curt had a World Title run though. That said, I never saw anything in Val that made me think he was a main event level star. He was good in the ring but, outside of that he was just there. Not a World Title run in the WWF. It's WWF/E I was talking about. They never gave Hennig the ball, same with Val. Curt Hennig never got a WWE World Title run because his back was completely smurfed between 1992-96, and he sat out most of the latter part of that period because he legally couldn't wrestle if he wanted to cash in his Lloyd's of London professional disability insurance. As soon as the insurance policy was fully paid out, he immediately jumped to WCW for big money that Vince couldn't pay him. Mr. Perfect would've totally gotten a WWE World Title run if he stayed healthy. When he got hurt, he was on the same level as Bret, and higher on the card than Shawn. I disagree with saying that Hennig was on the same level as Venis. Hennig was a far bigger star in the grand scheme of things back in WWE, and Vince always treated "Mr. Perfect' like a top star before he jumped to WCW in 1997. Venis has never gotten that kind of treatment on TV.
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Post by "Nature Boy" Ric Moranis on Aug 26, 2007 7:04:20 GMT -5
Wow, people actually voted for a world title reign? Haha.
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Post by "Nature Boy" Ric Moranis on Aug 27, 2007 4:15:55 GMT -5
Seconding the thanks. DDP's ribs were taped non stop from April of 1997 to April of 1999. He won the World Title and his ribs stopped hurting! Was there a reason he did this, or was it some odd fashion statement? Love handles.
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Post by "Nature Boy" Ric Moranis on Aug 27, 2007 5:25:53 GMT -5
If they made a Savage DVD like the Flair one, and included the full, complete, honest story of his career (the ICW days with his pop, meeting Elizabeth in KY, the Memphis "ICW Invasion" angle, then the full gamet through WWF & WCW) it'd be awesome. I mentioned a Teddy Hart comparison earlier, partially because of Savage's early style, but also because Savage and the Poffo family were kind of "blackballed" in the territory days for legit fist-fighting wrestlers out of the ring, and running a renegade territorial promotion against Lawler & the gang in TN and KY.
If it's the story of Savage's full career, I'll pre-order. If it's the story of Savage from 1985-93, that's kind of blah, because he had a really interesting career (though I can't see Mach "shooting" out of character).
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Post by "Nature Boy" Ric Moranis on Aug 26, 2007 18:46:27 GMT -5
Savage...I never saw what people saw in him, and I never will, as a worker in ring he always looked so limited, on the mic he was terrible, why in gods name they would put him on commentary I have no idea. As for the 'Macho Man' personna, could that name have been more opposite to his neon swirly biker fringed cowboy outfits? I'm pretty sure even Freddy Mercury would have pointed and scream, "You look so gay!" Did you only watch Macho Man during the 1990s or something? Before the guy got all roided up and blew out his knees, the guy was great in the ring. In fact, before his days in WWF, the guy was an enormous risktaker, kind of like the Teddy Hart of his era (in and out of the ring). For one, he was one of the first American wrestlers to regularly jump from the top rope to the floor in every match. Doesn't seem like a big deal now, but somebody had to start doing it. And, when Jimmy Snuka was splashing people off 8 foot high cages in MSG, Savage was doing elbow drops off the top of higher, poorly constructed chicken wire cages in front of 200 rednecks in Bumsmurf, KY. Savage's high risk style was pretty influential, plus he was one of the most exciting brawlers of his era. And not that it matters, but when he piledrove Ricky Morton through a table in Memphis, that's pretty much the oldest table spot I've seen on video. Savage was pretty much one of the greatest natural athletes to step in the ring, IMO. Incredibly fast during his prime, and had great leaping ability. I couldn't disagree more with the idea that Savage was "limited". And you do know that the "Macho Man" name was because he was an obnoxious, outlandish heel for like the first eight straight years he used the name, and he was trying to get heat, right? Aside from a few months in Memphis in late-84, he was straight heel from like 1979-87. Before the neon cowboy outfits and WWF days, he used to crush flower pedals and throw them around while wearing terrible shiny robes. Heels do that kind of stuff, because, um, you know, it's obnoxious, and they want people to pay money to watch them get beat up.
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Post by "Nature Boy" Ric Moranis on Aug 25, 2007 19:44:53 GMT -5
Flair has no credibility. He's a jobber. Build him up for about 6 months and then a GIGANTIC MAYBE. He is WAYYYYYYY too old Get your smark cap off (or maybe put it on). He should NOT be World champ again. If Flair's such a jobber, why do his matches always get some of the highest (if not highest) rated quarters on Smackdown? The reason I said he has credibility is that he still plays the same game as he did in 1987. He's never been an asskicking world beater, he's always won by outsmarting people and cheating.
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Post by "Nature Boy" Ric Moranis on Aug 25, 2007 19:41:41 GMT -5
Hacksaw is jobbed out every week and is over like a mother smurfer Should he be WWE champ? If you're seriously comparing Ric Flair to Hacksaw Duggan, I have no idea what to tell you.
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Post by "Nature Boy" Ric Moranis on Aug 25, 2007 19:36:46 GMT -5
Feelgood moments and awesome comebacks are fine if they have some kind of purpose. Otherwise it's just desperation... Imagine being a former fan who stopped watching for years, you casually tune in and see Flair wearing the Big Gold belt... would you think "WOW Flair's amazing, still champ at his age! I'll tune in next week to see what's next" or rather "God, if Flair's still around and he's the champ, WWF are in deep deep trouble. Let's take a look what's on on MTV now..." People in their teens and twenties might think that. I'm 26 and I wouldn't think that. And I guarantee there are millions of die-hard old WCW 'rasslin fans in the South that stopped watching all together when it folded. If not, it's pretty unexplainable why WWE didn't carry WCW's entire audience over after the sale. I'd think those people would tune in for the nostalgia of Flair as the champ one last time. Flair's a true wrestling legend to those people. He's their Hogan or Rock. Plus, Flair still has credibility, IMO. That's what separates him from the Dusty Rhodes/Jim Duggan level of special attractions that should be used sparingly in WWE. The guy's still capable of having better matches than most of the roster, and he's one of the most over guys, even though he's never allowed to cut a promo anymore (his strength). I don't think it's desperate at all. I'm just dumbfounded that there are fans out there that think Flair's this sad, disgusting old man, but buy tickets and PPVs featuring clueless and/or talentless putzes like Khali, Batista, Cena, and Orton. It's like the average WWE fans will eat whatever Vince feeds them anyway, so why not give Flair the belt?
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Post by "Nature Boy" Ric Moranis on Aug 25, 2007 18:58:02 GMT -5
The only way jobber Flair should have won is in place of Khali It didn't happen and it won't unless Smackdown loses Khali and Batista The only reason Flair's a jobber is because they can beat him every single week until the end of time, and it won't matter, and he'll still be over. Even then, JBL still calls him the "best of all-time" every single week on national TV, so it wouldn't take a complete reconditioning of the audience for people to buy it. As smurfed up as the WWE's injury situation is and can be at any single moment, I wouldn't rule anything out between now and Flair's retirement (presumably at Wrestlemania). I'm not holding my breath for a short Flair title reign, but I think it'd be a money angle (and I'm talking literal money), so I can't say never. Especially with two stiffs like Batista and Khali on top, and guys that can't stay healthy (Edge, Undertaker, Rey) being their eventual replacements.
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Post by "Nature Boy" Ric Moranis on Aug 25, 2007 18:11:39 GMT -5
Oh...I also think that Flair winning the Big Gold Belt on a Smackdown taping would lead to WWE's highest Friday night rating in the past year, if not longer.
Especially if you leaked the win on ECW TV, the WWE website, plus you know that Meltzer and the other news sites would treat it like a huge story. After some word of mouth, you might have some people that haven't watched this crap in years (old WCW fans) to see something like that happen.
Smackdown wouldn't pop a 6.1 rating or anything, but they'd beat the 2.8's they normally get. Hell, a few weeks ago, Flair's match popped the highest rating on the entire show. I just never get Flair haters, or people that never "got" Flair. Nobody's ever been better for a longer period of time, and only a couple can ever say they were as good as when he was at his best.
Who knows, a short Flair title reign could even bring some ex-fans back to WWE for a few weeks, and maybe you could get them hooked on the product again. I don't see how a Flair reign would be bad for business in any stretch, it'd be too feelgood/storybook to turn people away.
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Post by "Nature Boy" Ric Moranis on Aug 25, 2007 17:54:38 GMT -5
Flair's better right now than Borton ever has been, or may ever care to be. Yeah, the guy's 58, his physique looks like crap, and he's older than dirt, but that's immaterial.
Batista looks like a million bucks with his shirt off (I guess), but you couldn't pay me to watch him wrestle for more than five straight minutes.
Give Flair a 20-minute match on RAW or Smackdown against the right opponent, and he'll still have the best match on WWE TV that week.
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Post by "Nature Boy" Ric Moranis on Aug 23, 2007 1:00:11 GMT -5
She's gotta end up on Smackdown with Hayes there. Normally, I'd automatically assume that Jesse and Festus would be crap, but I don't think Hayes is gonna let Gordy's son get completely embarrassed, and I agree he'd eventually look out for Lacey as well.
Heck, the guy's even tryin' to make sure Teddy Hart gets a fair shake, and only because Teddy reminds Hayes of himself out of the ring. She'll be fine.
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Post by "Nature Boy" Ric Moranis on Aug 23, 2007 0:44:25 GMT -5
I just hope she has all of her feet.
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Post by "Nature Boy" Ric Moranis on Aug 22, 2007 21:40:46 GMT -5
He was on TV standing in the hallway with Estrada the night that Vince's limo blew up. He must have been brutal if he got fired before a proper debut. He was the guy that was supposed to main event house shows with Rated RKO against DX, correct?*
*-This could've been part of the 37.6% of stuff reported by Meltzer that never happens, not even sort-of.
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