Deleted
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Post by Deleted on May 30, 2019 11:41:36 GMT -5
Just thinking about the Lord Tensai gimmick and how everyone says the gimmick sucked and was doomed to fail from the beginning.
I agree in some aspects. They shouldn’t have had him wear that stupid face tattoo and speak Japanese. However the LOOK of him was actually pretty cool in my opinion. Maybe it’s because I’m a massive New Generation mark and that was the era I grew up with but I always liked these outlandish colorful characters.
People wanted him back as Albert or Giant Bernard... but to me, that’s just generic. He could have been the next Vader if they pushed him as Lord Tensai. After he beat Punk and Cena clean, they soured on him. He was no longer a “Lord” and they took the entrance gear away and all of a sudden he’s wearing lingerie and dancing around with Brodus Clay.
I know he’s retired now but I can’t help but think he could have been a great big man main eventer like Vader if they just stook to their plan. Thoughts?
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TWERKIN' MAGGLE
Crow T. Robot
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Post by TWERKIN' MAGGLE on May 30, 2019 11:43:42 GMT -5
Will the gimmick being dead for years ruin the Lord Tensai gimmick?
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mrbananagrabber
King Koopa
Paul Heyman's unofficial joke writer
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Post by mrbananagrabber on May 30, 2019 11:51:32 GMT -5
The minute he took off the mask he was doomed. No-one was going to buy Albert as some Vader type killer. Never going to happen.
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Post by häšhtå.gdālėÿ on May 30, 2019 12:03:35 GMT -5
“Ruin the gimmick” is one of my favorite FANisms ever.
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Post by sportatorium on May 30, 2019 12:04:07 GMT -5
I clearly remember how goood Punk made him look. If he had simply been an ass kicking machine, he could have been fine. The pomp & circumstance of Lord Tensai was extremely cheesy. Matt Bloom the guy did everything in his power to get every stupid gimmick they gave him over. Imagine if they just let him be a big, tough guy heel.
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auph10imitated
Dennis Stamp
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Post by auph10imitated on May 30, 2019 12:08:57 GMT -5
For a guy with great agility, wasn’t a bad worker and looked like a Vader type of wrestler. He just got lumbered with some awful gimmicks
Prince Albert Albert (making him keep the name for the sake of the T&A gimmick) A-Train Giant Bernard (Successful but still a horrible name) Lord Tensai Sweet T
Seriously could they never have given this guy a cool monster killer name?
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ASYLUMHAUSEN
Fry's dog Seymour
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Post by ASYLUMHAUSEN on May 30, 2019 12:14:14 GMT -5
“Ruin the gimmick” is one of my favorite FANisms ever. Agreed. You might even say....
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on May 30, 2019 12:17:28 GMT -5
Not to sound as if I work for wwe, but, I feel that was an instance of it being on the fans. Yes, they (wwe) cooled and changed directions on him,but from the jump the audience did the same "lolz thats just albert" thing they initially did to Bray w "husky harris".
The weird "know-it-all, can't let self be invested yet lashes out at anyone who calls its fake", subsect of wrestling fans are the worst part sometimes. "Who cares? This heel will be jobbing in 8 months?" So? Enjoy those 8 months, if it's entertaining, at least give it a chance.
I'm not saying it was Pure gold, but like Negan, I enjoyed and looked forward to it. Oh well. Now we have Best Pure Athletes who smile. Yay.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on May 30, 2019 12:59:31 GMT -5
Other than during his matches with Sheamus, the guy was so damn boring in the ring.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on May 30, 2019 13:12:15 GMT -5
Other than during his matches with Sheamus, the guy was so damn boring in the ring. They made him wrestle a slow plodding style. I don’t know they make anyone wrestle like that. But anyone who’s watched him in Japan knows he was better than that.
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schma
Hank Scorpio
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Post by schma on May 30, 2019 13:18:21 GMT -5
I had started to like Albert at one point during his initial run as he was a more athletic big guy and I loved seeing big guys do more than generic big guy stuff. It was a letdown when he came back as Tensai, he just looked so ridiculous. They should have brought him back, acknowledged his past then pulled a John Morrison where he goes to his 'real' name (not his actual real name). That gives him a reason for the name change. Then just have him be more aggressive and play it up as something he learned in Japan.
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Post by Session Moth is over on May 30, 2019 13:19:14 GMT -5
Not to sound as if I work for wwe, but, I feel that was an instance of it being on the fans. Yes, they (wwe) cooled and changed directions on him,but from the jump the audience did the same "lolz thats just albert" thing they initially did to Bray w "husky harris". The weird "know-it-all, can't let self be invested yet lashes out at anyone who calls its fake", subsect of wrestling fans are the worst part sometimes. "Who cares? This heel will be jobbing in 8 months?" So? Enjoy those 8 months, if it's entertaining, at least give it a chance. I'm not saying it was Pure gold, but like Negan, I enjoyed and looked forward to it. Oh well. Now we have Best Pure Athletes who smile. Yay. It was always supposed to be Albert. I liked that aspect of the gimmick. Here is an ex WWE wrestler who went to Japan and immersed himself in the culture and now here he is back better than ever. It's just that in practice it sucked. Maybe with better writing and a less cartoony version it could have been pulled off better.
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Post by Ecks Ecks Ringout Ecks Ecks on May 30, 2019 13:19:56 GMT -5
I've always been a fan of the guy, and there was some slight potential there (I thought the mist claw was a cool idea), but by and large it was a terrible gimmick and the methodical style was all wrong for him. By the time they turned him loose for the wild matches with Sheamus, the fans didn't care.
Also, that super racist Tout promo with Sakamoto did him no favors.
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Post by A Platypus Rave on May 30, 2019 13:27:13 GMT -5
Not to sound as if I work for wwe, but, I feel that was an instance of it being on the fans. Yes, they (wwe) cooled and changed directions on him,but from the jump the audience did the same "lolz thats just albert" thing they initially did to Bray w "husky harris". The weird "know-it-all, can't let self be invested yet lashes out at anyone who calls its fake", subsect of wrestling fans are the worst part sometimes. "Who cares? This heel will be jobbing in 8 months?" So? Enjoy those 8 months, if it's entertaining, at least give it a chance. I'm not saying it was Pure gold, but like Negan, I enjoyed and looked forward to it. Oh well. Now we have Best Pure Athletes who smile. Yay. It was always supposed to be Albert. I liked that aspect of the gimmick. Here is an ex WWE wrestler who went to Japan and immersed himself in the culture and now here he is back better than ever. It's just that in practice it sucked. Maybe with better writing and a less cartoony version it could have been pulled off better. Yeah, they mentioned it was Albert. It wasn't supposed to be some big secret. That was the entire point of the gimmick. What killed the gimmick was instead of just having him wreck shit they had him... doing like ninja poses and wrestling a slow plodding style. That said I did love the Mist Claw.
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MiLB Fan
Fry's dog Seymour
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Post by MiLB Fan on May 30, 2019 13:34:14 GMT -5
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Post by ThankGodForSidJustice on May 30, 2019 14:54:20 GMT -5
I also liked the look of the gimmick and while I don't think he was main event material (which seemed to be initial plan with him), I think he could've been a solid credible midcard heel. Instead after the crowd crapped on it, they just made him a total jobber. He also was putting in some lackluster performances in ring which didn't help his situation either. By that point he was in his early 40's and moved super slow in the ring probably as a result of the years of wrestling in Japan taking it's toll. Sheamus was the only guy he clicked with but that was only because they just stood toe to toe and stiffed the hell out of each other. There was really no other face on the roster at the time who could work that style of match and play to Tenasi's strengths.
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Pushed to the Moon
Bill S. Preston, Esq.
Tony Schiavone in Disguise
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Post by Pushed to the Moon on May 30, 2019 15:10:03 GMT -5
I've never believed a "got good in Japan" sentiment ever since. (Gallows and Anderson I'm looking at you!)
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Post by carp (SPC, Itoh Respect Army) on May 30, 2019 15:42:52 GMT -5
The fans were really weird about it. Like, "Japanese" is an ethnicity, but it also, like, describes a person who lives in a particular place. And they were like pretty clearly referring to the latter with Albert, but being a white dude who lives in Japan was like... too ridiculous to accept? I don't get it.
What I DO get is hating the character overall, though. GodDAMN he wrestled slow. Sure, his in-ring style in Japan might not have been safe, but still, they coulda done something else.
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fw91
Patti Mayonnaise
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Post by fw91 on May 30, 2019 17:35:08 GMT -5
At least it got him back into the fold as he is a major part of NXT
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adamclark52
El Dandy
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Post by adamclark52 on May 30, 2019 18:03:37 GMT -5
I think what killed it was that it was Albert/A-Train, a guy who couldn’t get over in 2000 when EVERYONE was over
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