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Post by koreycaskets on Dec 15, 2022 12:15:31 GMT -5
Dakota Kai gets an A from me. She's worked her butt off huge since her return.
The rest a c- / c . They all have their place on the roster, just don't stand out to me.
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Post by canceled4truth on Dec 15, 2022 12:31:16 GMT -5
Dakota - B. It's crazy to me that the old regime wasn't gonna put her on the main roster. While she and Damage CTRL haven't set the world on fire she's a good worker and feels like a natural fit on the main roster.
Hit Row - C-. I have a soft spot for them because Ashante and Top Dolla played for Maryland (go Terps!) but they're very forgettable otherwise.
Braun - D. Meh. Seems like kind of an asshole and doesn't add much that Omos couldn't already do.
Bray - F. I already hated his self-indulgent shtick beforehand and he's arguably gotten worse.
Lumis - B-. I'm always entertained by him but something about him just feels...out of place? Like he would've fit better in the Attitude Era. Not necessarily a bad thing.
Kross and Scarlett - D. Idk. Beyond the entrance they just don't do it for me.
Gargano - B+. The Miz storyline was weird but he's been fairly over. I'm just glad to see him on the main roster, honestly, I've always been a mark for the man and I'd never thought I'd see the day.
Candice - C. She's there.
Good Brothers - B. I hated them in AEW and I...actually kinda like them now? Maybe that's the halo effect of making AJ Styles relevant again. Still never gonna go out of my way to watch their matches.
Emma - D. I guess it's early but I'm struggling to see why she was brought back.
Mia Yim - B. Like Candice, she's also kinda "there," but she comes off like a badass. I think she'll prove to be a better pickup in time.
Valhalla - F. Put on some shoes ya damn cracker.
---- Also, for shits and gigs, let's rate the call-ups:
LA Knight - A. Stupid Bray storyline aside I'm so glad his NXT schtick made it to the main roster.
LDF - B+. A little directionless, and I still feel bad for Elektra, but adding in Zelina really gave them an edge.
Solo Sikoa - A. It's wild to think he wasn't in the Bloodline from the start with how natural of a fit he's been.
Vinci - D. If only because I loved his NXT gimmick so much. He's been alright, just a mook now.
Generally speaking, though, it's really cool to see so many people get their jobs back. Even ones I don't like, like Braun and Bray. Not Valhalla though. She sucks.
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Post by Finish Uncle Muffin’s Story on Dec 15, 2022 13:28:32 GMT -5
I think the only genuine flops so far have been Hit Row and Valhalla. Others are finding their way and voice and it'll take a minute. Karrion, for instance, had a good showing on Smackdown in that backstage segment.
I think the one person we aren't talking about here who got a chance during the Triple H regime that isn't delivering is Kevin Patrick. That dude needs to go.
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DichEvans
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Post by DichEvans on Dec 15, 2022 14:36:16 GMT -5
The more Braun does promos, the less likable he is. He was plenty over just being an unstoppable monster. I don't get why everyone needs fully fleshed out personalities.
While I think wrestling is a character based business, you should still work with people's strengths like what they do with Lesnar. Not everyone needs to do a 10 minute promo. Like I swear, if Andre the Giant existed today, Vince/HHH would have him in the ring doing a 10 minute monologue to start every RAW
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Post by chronocross on Dec 15, 2022 14:37:58 GMT -5
I'm not feeling Hit Row, Valhalla and Lumis right now (C). I'd be okay if Hit Row went to NXT or somewhere else to learn a new hold.
Good Brothers and Gargano are channel changers for me.
Iyo Sky & Dakota Kai are a good fit on the main roster.
Karrion Kross, I was intrigued at this debut when he showed signs of challenging Roman but he's meh to me. (C)
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Post by Deleted on Dec 15, 2022 14:40:38 GMT -5
The more Braun does promos, the less likable he is. He was plenty over just being an unstoppable monster. I don't get why everyone needs fully fleshed out personalities. While I think wrestling is a character based business, you should still work with people's strengths like what they do with Lesnar. Not everyone needs to do a 10 minute promo. Like I swear, if Andre the Giant existed today, Vince/HHH would have him in the ring doing a 10 minute monologue to start every RAW
Adam Scherr has a big ol' slab o' beef for brains, but I can't deny that he was most over when he was doing shit like flipping semi trucks and killing jobbers.
They need to try to bring that aura back
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Post by A Platypus Rave is Correct on Dec 15, 2022 14:50:56 GMT -5
only ones I probably wouldn't have rehired are Kross, Hit Row, and Valhalla... Kross and Scarlet - they keep giving him everything and have nothing to show for it... Hit Row - Were not ready for Prime-time without Swerve the first time and they're still floundering without the main act. Valhalla - outside activities and enjoyment of Breakin aside... she was never particularly over or interesting when she was there the first time... if she was just a warm body for the division I'm sure they could have found someone else. The more Braun does promos, the less likable he is. He was plenty over just being an unstoppable monster. I don't get why everyone needs fully fleshed out personalities. While I think wrestling is a character based business, you should still work with people's strengths like what they do with Lesnar. Not everyone needs to do a 10 minute promo. Like I swear, if Andre the Giant existed today, Vince/HHH would have him in the ring doing a 10 minute monologue to start every RAW Adam Scherr has a big ol' slab o' beef for brains, but I can't deny that he was most over when he was doing shit like flipping semi trucks and killing jobbers.
They need to try to bring that aura back
He can still talk and be the monster among men... just have him start being the mountain again. Also Andre did talk quite a bit...
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bob
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Post by bob on Dec 15, 2022 18:51:55 GMT -5
awful:
Hit Row, Karrion Kross, Valhalla, Scarlett
the rest are helping things
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Post by The Rick Jericho on Jul 8, 2023 17:31:29 GMT -5
Taking a look at this list almost a year into some of their returns, it is honestly bleak.
Dakota - Found niche with Damage CTRL, won a few tag titles, at least is a prominent member on the show pre injury. Grade: C
Hit Row - Completely poorly booked without given a chance. Doomed after the "Flop Dolla" spot over the ropes. Turned heel and dead on the roster. Grade: F
Braun - Best thing to happen to Ricochet was his injury. As for Braun himself, he found a spot in the tag division with Ricochet, but it seemed they never wanted to make him a singles star at all this run so far. Grade: D
Karrion: Just became your heel jobber. Challenges a guy to a match via cards. Loses every feud. There is nothing special about him right now. Grade: F
Johnny Gargano: Hasn't done anything of note on the Raw roster. I think he needs to go back to the tag title scene to find his spark again. Grade: D
Candice LeRae: Raw simply doesn't know how to book her. On the Smackdown side she would fit so much better. Complete waste of talent. Grade: F
Good Brothers: Missing in action almost every week. Just goons for Styles. They simply have no direction. Probably the most obvious case of cashing the paychecks. Can't blame them, it's on Hunter. Grade: F
Mia Yim: She needs more ring time, but at least she's featured on the show whenever AJ is around. Grade: C
Emma: Was with Madcap for a bit. This grade I can't be too critical on and she was brought in to add depth to the women's division. More TV time would help. Grade: C
Giovanni Vinci: Kaiser is the star of the team and they don't feel like equals on the tag team. Grade: D
Bray Wyatt: Absolutely a mitigating disaster. Disappeared for good after the Royal Rumble. Many reports of frustration with creative. Maybe Triple H doesn't get the character or The Fiend is simply where the money is at, not plain Bray. Grade: F
Vahalla: Very prominently featured with the Viking Raiders each week. Does her part. Grade: C
Tegan Nox: Just like Candice, they don't know what to do with her. Grade: F
I myself have 6 F's and a lot of D's. Maybe instead of looking at any of these talents as something to amount to on the roster. And instead of just thinking of them as depth roster adds and not to be taken seriously anymore?
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Legion
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Post by Legion on Jul 8, 2023 17:42:31 GMT -5
All fine, everyone has been doing something if healthy.
Some of them may just be jobbers, but even a jobber has it's uses.
Only people being wasted are Lumis/Candice/Johnny who have carried on together, and no even have Indi, but unless they give them time to explain why there are all together, the main audience wont get it or care. But if they did give them time, they totally would get over - especially InDex, that shit is gold.
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Post by polarbearpete on Jul 8, 2023 18:23:36 GMT -5
They were predominantly brought back to fill out the roster, as it had been altogether depleted by all of the cuts and departures.
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Post by CubsFan71 on Jul 8, 2023 20:29:29 GMT -5
With the exception of one or two, it feels like they were all brought back to patch the holes of the cuts and those who left on their own. So I feel like it would be unfair to grade them
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Post by "Evil Brood" Jackson Vanik on Jul 8, 2023 23:18:01 GMT -5
I mean this is what happens when you bring a ton of people in without much of a plan and then the guy who fired them is back in charge a few months later.
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Post by theironyuppie on Jul 9, 2023 0:08:44 GMT -5
They were predominantly brought back to fill out the roster, as it had been altogether depleted by all of the cuts and departures.
Right, they've been handy for depth. Chelsea Green feels like a clear standout among the returns, and Bronson Reed's been doing good work as well.
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Post by EoE: Well There's Your Problem on Jul 9, 2023 0:39:04 GMT -5
I think a lot of this comes back to the question of “What do we want the weekly TV to be?”. Like, there’s literally no way to push EVERYONE at the exact same time (unless you DO have a way, in which case, quit holding out on us), so that leaves us with the situation where the bulk of it generally goes to the talents who are the most over and everyone else is used as secondary players and depth, not really getting the same platforms to get themselves over to the same levels. If we want that to change into some kind of hard rotation where everybody gets their fair shot at being the pushed talent getting a lot of wins, we’d need to actually come to terms with the fact that you may not see your favourite every week or for even weeks at a time. Hypothetically, say when Gunther loses the IC belt, instead of starting his run up to the world title, he’s just… not on TV for the next three months because we’re trying to get Hit Row over instead of Imperium?
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A Little Doo Doo
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Post by A Little Doo Doo on Jul 9, 2023 1:47:24 GMT -5
I think Braun and Chelsea have been the best of the bunch. I'd give Braun an A- because up until this recent injury he showed he can still work and his tag team with Ricochet was surprisingly fun. Chelsea gets a B, she's been very entertaining.
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Xxcjb01xX [PIECE OF: SH-]
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Post by Xxcjb01xX [PIECE OF: SH-] on Jul 9, 2023 6:35:42 GMT -5
I mean this is what happens when you bring a ton of people in without much of a plan and then the guy who fired them is back in charge a few months later. Yeah I've noticed since Vince meddled again a lot of these callups have hit a ceiling or have been booked in circles Take Bronson for example, HHH is protecting him as much as he can, but the guy has had like three separate feuds bottom out, and three separate times where he's just cutting weird vignettes and taking breaks. Dude left a cozy New Japan gig likely being told he was the next big thing and he sure as hell doesn't feel like it. He feuded with two guys who got in MITB over him just for him to... not get in MITB anyway. And he's far from the only one, there are so many of these callups that feel like they've just come back and immediately skid to a halt or are just being used as bodies for a pin. Lumis and Indi are a hell of an example of "They're finally on the roster together to do their NXT act... let's never do it and never show them together or do an angle with them period"... that's shit I expect from Vince, and if Vince keeps meddling, well... this is what you get expecting Vince to stay away from everything.
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Post by avenger on Jul 9, 2023 7:10:52 GMT -5
Dakota - With her size, she's always going to be midcard at best. Eating the pin for Damage CTRL is one of the best spots she can be in, regularly featured, and gets a reaction. C
Hit Row - *Desperately* need to go back to NXT. Top Dolla probably a lost cause, Ashante needs to be given at least one opportunity to stand out on his own. F-
Braun - Biggest problem with this era is that it's hard to make people special attractions, which is what he would have been pre-mid 1990s. Tag team with a polar opposite seems the perfect use for him. A
Karrion: HHH's fave, but he's just an entrance. Once the bell goes he's just a bigger Tony Nese. E
Johnny Gargano: So stop/start with some annoyingly timed injuries. Looks like they're either putting The Way back together, or even reforming DIY (or both?). Weird as it sounds, probably too early to rate. Being a HHH fave definitely helps.
Candice LeRae: A sympathetic babyface in their late 30s division is only ever going to be used as a JTTS. Especially as there is no real women's midcard. C
Good Brothers: Just warm bodies. Like Karrion Kross without the entrance. Even a tag team of Tony Nese and Mike Bennett would be more over. F
Mia Yim: Probably the second best booked member of the OC, if you want damning with faint praise. E
Emma: Just there to be a jobber. F
Giovanni Vinci: The biggest mistake. Kaiser was brought up to be Gunther's mouthpiece, and to be the guy people had to beat, to face Gunther. Kaiser's still kind of in that role, but Vinci & Kaiser don't seem to be in tag matches very often, just short singles and trios. With Gunther & Kaiser on the main roster, Vinci was really showing us what he could do in NXT. Instead of getting potential matches with Wes Lee and Carmelo Hayes, he's spending half his time standing awkwardly silent while Kaiser handles the talking. F
Bray Wyatt: Bray's booking without the Vince filter was the latest in a long line of why management shouldn't let just any wrestler take control of their booking. F
Vahalla: She's featured and it gives the Viking Raiders an extra dimension in certain feuds, but she's been portrayed as being scary and otherworldly, but she's just been beaten in two moves by someone having their kayfabe first match, which kind of kills any aura. D
Tegan Nox: Ummm. First match on Raw, two months after being drafted, and she gets pinned during a commercial break. F
Seems there's a few themes.
1) A lot of these returns were done to bulk the roster off, so that not everyone is featured on TV each week, which keeps people fresher. Dakota, Karrion, Candice, Good Brothers and Emma were never likely to be anything else.
2) Some of these had barely proved themselves on the roster before they were cut - Hit Row and Tegan in particular. They would probably have been much better served going back to NXT, rather than the main roster.
3) There are enough women on the card to have a midcard, but it isn't there. The Tag Titles have always been a mistake, but the women's division really needs a singles title on each brand (including NXT) to give those out of the title scene something to go for.
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champchumpchange
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Post by champchumpchange on Jul 9, 2023 7:31:23 GMT -5
Chelsea Green has been, by and far, the standout in my opinion
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Post by RI Richmark on Jul 9, 2023 10:11:52 GMT -5
Braun - Biggest problem with this era is that it's hard to make people special attractions, which is what he would have been pre-mid 1990s. Tag team with a polar opposite seems the perfect use for him. ABraun's role is going to be the same as Big Show and Kane had in the 2000's. Credible upper card monster. Need someone big to put an scare into a arrogant heel? Braun. Need a obstacle for your plucky babyface to overcome? Braun. Need muscle for a tag team? Braun. Overall it's not a bad spot to be in although he's going to have a thousand heel/face turns before he's through.
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