Current guys who would get over in the territory era

[BayleyTiffyCodyCenaJudyHopps]

All of the Wyatts, Cena, Jericho, Bryan (especially with the Yes stuff) and Sheamus would be safe bets, I dunno if they'd be main eventers everywhere but they'd draw. Lesnar would be the biggest question mark, especially as to whether or not a promoter would have that faith in his monster character WWE does as of now.

[Bub (BLM)]

Anyone with promo skills.

[SEAN CARLESS]

All of them. They're athletically superior to most of the stars of yesteryear. And they'd now have the added bonus of learning how to properly work as face and heel and use a crowd, while being booked by traditional wrestling promoters, instead of a carny who thinks he makes movies, has the attention span of a flea, and like a spoiled child, only cares about a few toys in his giant toybox ...and even that is fleeting.

[Deleted]

Brock would be an equivalent of Bruiser Brody, where he could basically do what is best for himself financially.

[Dr. Bolty, Disaster Enby]

I think Lesnar would have gotten over - and would have thrived more in the territory days because he could come into a territory, make big money, then take time off before moving onto another territory.

[saintpat]

Sept 28, 2014 20:02:03 GMT -5 @akeem said:

Brock would be an equivalent of Bruiser Brody, where he could basically do what is best for himself financially.

Yes, I see Brock as a traveling monster attraction like Brody or Abdullah the Butcher or Andre the Giant, going from territory to territory booked as an unstoppable force to face the local top babyface or heel -- or to team with the top face or heel to give that guy an advantage until the other side runs him off ... and he shows up somewhere else the next month to sell out more arenas.

Randy Orton's grounded, methodical style would go over well in the territories. Cena would be a classic babyface who could carry a local promotion.

I'm not 100 percent certain that the Shield guys would be as big a deal.

[Deleted]

Sept 28, 2014 20:02:03 GMT -5 @akeem said:

Brock would be an equivalent of Bruiser Brody

Please, if Lesnar got stabbed the knife would be the one to bleed to death.

[Joe Neglia]

Literally any of them.

Let's be realistic - the territory days were not just good promo guys and fantastic wrestling skills. Boogie Woogie Valiant got over. Thunderbolt Patterson got over. Friggin' Tommy Rich got over and he could barely speak and looked like he was put together in the dark.

Tons of guys back then without promo skills got over; some used managers, some were just great wrestlers (before his heel turn, Backlund was a HORRIBLE interview). Guys who couldn't wrestle a lick could get over just as well as those that could.

The real question is *where* they would/could get over, and how.

Brock would have been huge in the AWA; on the other hand, I don't see him going far beyond a 2-month "Von Erichs defeat the monster" program in World Class. He'd likely have headed to Japan with the likes of Hansen, Gordy and Brody and made his career there.

Bray, if we're going more or less by his current gimmick's style, would have been a natural in Florida or Mid-South. Far too heady for that period of New York though.

Heck, Hornswoggle probably could have been one of the most in-demand of the little guys.

[Raskovnik]

Sept 28, 2014 20:02:03 GMT -5 @akeem said:

Brock would be an equivalent of Bruiser Brody, where he could basically do what is best for himself financially.

Luke Harper is actually the first one I thought of, but Brock works too.

[the2ndevil]

Sept 28, 2014 20:09:10 GMT -5 Joe Neglia said:

Bray, if we're going more or less by his current gimmick's style, would have been a natural in Florida or Mid-South. Far too heady for that period of New York though.

Bray would have been right at home with Kevin Sullivan's Army Of Darkness in Florida, IMO.

[Boo!]

Surely the 'Yes' thing is an example of what wouldn't work in the territories?

If some guy turned up a couple of times a year and starting doing the 'Yes' thing wouldn't most people ask "What's this cretin doing?!". The thing worked because there was a growing continuity to it, something difficult to achieve when you've likely not seen the same guy for a few months.

To work the territories successfully you'd need a gimmick that didn't require a whole lot of backstory knowledge to work or get over.

[Captain & Diet]

Sept 28, 2014 20:55:15 GMT -5 Boo! said:

Surely the 'Yes' thing is an example of what wouldn't work in the territories?

If some guy turned up a couple of times a year and starting doing the 'Yes' thing wouldn't most people ask "What's this cretin doing?!". The thing worked because there was a growing continuity to it, something difficult to achieve when you've likely not seen the same guy for a few months.

To work the territories successfully you'd need a gimmick that didn't require a whole lot of backstory knowledge to work or get over.

The YES! Thing would work if the guy worked the territories and debuted the gimmick there. If it is seen on TV and you ran the loop, after two weeks, two TVs, two house show loops, it would get over. All Bryan would have to do is cut a couple promos and it would work.

[Boo!]

Sept 28, 2014 21:16:10 GMT -5 Captain & Diet said:

Sept 28, 2014 20:55:15 GMT -5 Boo! said:

Surely the 'Yes' thing is an example of what wouldn't work in the territories?

If some guy turned up a couple of times a year and starting doing the 'Yes' thing wouldn't most people ask "What's this cretin doing?!". The thing worked because there was a growing continuity to it, something difficult to achieve when you've likely not seen the same guy for a few months.

To work the territories successfully you'd need a gimmick that didn't require a whole lot of backstory knowledge to work or get over.

The YES! Thing would work if the guy worked the territories and debuted the gimmick there. If it is seen on TV and you ran the loop, after two weeks, two TVs, two house show loops, it would get over. All Bryan would have to do is cut a couple promos and it would work.

But isn't that undermining the purpose of "would it work in the territories?" question by saying it would because they'd watch it on TV? I thought the assumption was pre-TV dominance of the industry. Otherwise everyone would get over because they get over now on TV and the same would just apply.

[Captain & Diet]

Sept 28, 2014 21:18:03 GMT -5 Boo! said:

Sept 28, 2014 21:16:10 GMT -5 Captain & Diet said:

The YES! Thing would work if the guy worked the territories and debuted the gimmick there. If it is seen on TV and you ran the loop, after two weeks, two TVs, two house show loops, it would get over. All Bryan would have to do is cut a couple promos and it would work.

But isn't that undermining the purpose of "would it work in the territories?" question by saying it would because they'd watch it on TV? I thought the assumption was pre-TV dominance of the industry. Otherwise everyone would get over because they get over now on TV and the same would just apply.

Territories had TV. TV tapings, during those days, we're done to sell tickets at the house shows. House shows were the promotions' revenue streams.

[Boo!]

Sept 28, 2014 21:20:47 GMT -5 Captain & Diet said:

Sept 28, 2014 21:18:03 GMT -5 Boo! said:

But isn't that undermining the purpose of "would it work in the territories?" question by saying it would because they'd watch it on TV? I thought the assumption was pre-TV dominance of the industry. Otherwise everyone would get over because they get over now on TV and the same would just apply.

Territories had TV. TV tapings, during those days, we're done to sell tickets at the house shows. House shows were the promotions' revenue streams.

I get that but it surely makes the question less fun to consider if we're just going to go "what works on TV now would work then" as an answer.

[Captain & Diet]

Sept 28, 2014 21:23:46 GMT -5 Boo! said:

Sept 28, 2014 21:20:47 GMT -5 Captain & Diet said:

Territories had TV. TV tapings, during those days, we're done to sell tickets at the house shows. House shows were the promotions' revenue streams.

I get that but it surely makes the question less fun to consider if we're just going to go "what works on TV now would work then" as an answer.

Interesting. So if we are talking about a promotion without weekly TV, a gimmick like that would take a month of house shows to get over but I think it would. The one thing I've always noticed is that any gimmick that gets the fans to interact gets over. Think about Flair's woo! It was designed to get the fans to mimic it as like a catchphrase. Word of mouth, Flair working the house shows in different territories and his charisma got Woo over.

This is why I love debating stuff like this. Because I know you and I are old school and even though we have different opinions, we still love the business.

[Deleted]

I think Cesaro would do especially well, with his versatility and skills. His strengths would come to the forefront.

[Joe Neglia]

Sept 28, 2014 21:16:10 GMT -5 Captain & Diet said:

Sept 28, 2014 20:55:15 GMT -5 Boo! said:

Surely the 'Yes' thing is an example of what wouldn't work in the territories?

If some guy turned up a couple of times a year and starting doing the 'Yes' thing wouldn't most people ask "What's this cretin doing?!". The thing worked because there was a growing continuity to it, something difficult to achieve when you've likely not seen the same guy for a few months.

To work the territories successfully you'd need a gimmick that didn't require a whole lot of backstory knowledge to work or get over.

The YES! Thing would work if the guy worked the territories and debuted the gimmick there. If it is seen on TV and you ran the loop, after two weeks, two TVs, two house show loops, it would get over. All Bryan would have to do is cut a couple promos and it would work.

I'm not entirely sure the Yes thing could work back then. Bryan himself would have done okay, though probably remaindered to junior divisions, Japan and Mexico, but the Yes thing? Not so sure. Even the way it happened in WWE took literally months to grow organically, from his original YESing as a heel, followed by him turning on the fans that had started copying it and doing NO instead, leading to the Sheamus/WM situation and the crowds turning on the situation and foisting Bryan up on their own...then you have to consider that in the territory days, he'd be around 3-6 months or so before moving on to a new territory that had no previous knowledge of him and having to start things all over.

[Captain & Diet]

After Bryan was buried by Sheamus at WM, he was super over. The fans shit all over that match and the next night he was a smark darling

I think he would get that over regardless. The guy just relates to everyone.

[BigJerichool222]

Andre vs Big Show would've been a monster draw, brother.