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Post by lildude8218 on Dec 19, 2023 22:09:04 GMT -5
They're leaning into the fact that people are STILL calling for Ridge's head over Big E. The venom on Twitter after they shot the angle proved it worked. I'm not saying I agree with it. Just explaining it.
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Post by brettappedout (BLM) on Dec 19, 2023 22:09:16 GMT -5
Why would they do this with Ridge? big face as he gets more confident or dirty scumbag heel. He needs something. not saying it's right. just this gives him character or a chance at one.
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Post by Indiana Miz on Dec 19, 2023 22:09:20 GMT -5
Ilja's selling was good enough to make that believable though
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Post by EoE: Well There's Your Problem on Dec 19, 2023 22:09:41 GMT -5
This is a show of sex crimes and gambling yet this is the most tasteless thing they've done. Had it been Ridge hitting him with a weapon, or putting him through a table it would have been fine. That would have been setting up "Who paid Ridge to take out Dragunov" angle, and wouldn't be playing on the Big E injury. And thatβs not even a direction theyβre going in, apparently? Hollandβs not even heel, heβs just really depressed and this has just made it worse?
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asuka007
Fry's dog Seymour
Posts: 23,554
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Post by asuka007 on Dec 19, 2023 22:09:42 GMT -5
Ridge got so much hate for the Big E team injury.β
WTF would you want to go there with him again?
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Post by The Rick Jericho on Dec 19, 2023 22:09:43 GMT -5
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john84
Fry's dog Seymour
Proud Father of 3 :)
Posts: 24,299
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Post by john84 on Dec 19, 2023 22:09:50 GMT -5
1. Big E 2. Elton Prince 3. Ilja Draganov Ridge is the male equivalent of Nia Jax is what I'm thinking when I saw the angle with Ilya.
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Post by HIM on Dec 19, 2023 22:10:09 GMT -5
I still think it's a shitty idea to do this with Ridge Holland of all people. Do it with Corbin, do it with Melo but not this dude. That's stupid.
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Post by "Evil Brood" Jackson Vanik on Dec 19, 2023 22:10:57 GMT -5
Good win by Ridge though. Total domination.
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Post by brettappedout (BLM) on Dec 19, 2023 22:11:35 GMT -5
Good win by Ridge though. Total domination. π€£
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Post by Jedi-El of Tomorrow on Dec 19, 2023 22:12:13 GMT -5
Had it been Ridge hitting him with a weapon, or putting him through a table it would have been fine. That would have been setting up "Who paid Ridge to take out Dragunov" angle, and wouldn't be playing on the Big E injury. And thatβs not even a direction theyβre going in, apparently? Hollandβs not even heel, heβs just really depressed and this has just made it worse? Vic mentioned that Ridge came in as a hired gun for Pat, so they set it up.
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CMWaters
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Member is Online
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Post by CMWaters on Dec 19, 2023 22:12:53 GMT -5
It almost felt like they were doing a recreate of that one Shawn/Owen match in 1995.
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Post by The Rick Jericho on Dec 19, 2023 22:13:35 GMT -5
1. Big E 2. Elton Prince 3. Ilja Draganov Ridge is the male equivalent of Nia Jax Once they call Ridge back up to the main roster. The Rated E-R Superstar Ridge!
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A Little Doo Doo
Salacious Crumb
An unconventional man with unconventional methods.
Posts: 70,964
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Post by A Little Doo Doo on Dec 19, 2023 22:14:56 GMT -5
Wait, so Vince didn't die in the first Fast and the Furious? (It's still the only one I've seen)
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Post by hbkid718 on Dec 19, 2023 22:15:34 GMT -5
Here are my NXT Thoughts, Facts, & Stats: Damn, I blinked & Fallon Henley VS Tiffany Stratton was over. It should have been a longer match. Both women deserve it. The attack afterwards was OK. FACTS: This was the 1st time in her Career that Fallon Henley wrestled 3 weeks in a row on NXT & her 1st 1-on-1 Match since she lost to Tiffany Stratton on 11/7. This was Tiffany Stratton's 1st NXT since she defeated Fallon Henley on 11/7. This was the 6th 1-on-1 Match between them after NXT on 12/28/21 (won by Stratton), 3/8/22 (won by Henley), 5/24/22 (won by Stratton), 6/14/22 (won by Henley), & 11/7/23 (won by Stratton), so Henley won 3 & Stratton won 3. This was NXT's 300th Match on TV in 2023. Another intriguing segment with Carmelo Hayes & Trick Williams. Good promo by Ilja Dragunov. I'm shocked to see Ridge Holland back in NXT & I read the spoilers. Solid promo by Holland. Cool promo by Lexis King. Good segment with Ilja Dragnov & Trick Williams. Solid match between Dion Lennox & Lexis King. Lennox is very impressive. I liked his debut match on Level Up. Nice confrontation with Trey Bearhill. Looking forward to seeing him in action soon. FACTS: This was Dion Lennox's NXT TV debut & his 2nd match in a row against a 2nd generation wrestler after he lost to Brooks Jensen on Level Up on 12/8. This was Lexis King's 1st NXT since he defeated Brooks Jensen on 11/28. This was the 1200th Match on TV & PPV in WWE & NXT in 2023. Cool. Eddy Thorpe VS Dijak in an NXT Underground Match will be awesome. Thea Hail & Jacy Jayne VS Izzi Dame & Kiana James was OK. FACTS: This was Thea Hail & Jacy Jayne's 1st 2-on-2 Tag Team Match since they lost to Chelsea Green & Piper Niven on 10/31. This was Izzi Dame's 1st NXT since she lost to Kelani Jordan on 10/3 & her 1st 2-on-2 Tag Team Match since she & Tatum Paxley defeated Valentina Feroz & Kelani Jordan on Level Up on 10/6. This was Kiana James' 1st 2-on-2 Tag Team Match since she & Tiffany Stratton lost to Becky Lynch & Lyra Valkyria on NXT on 9/19. The segment with Roxanne Perez & Arianna Grace was awful. Santino Marella needs to teach his daughter how to act. LOL Chase U playing dice with OTM & SCRYPTS to raise money. Chase U VS OTM could be a good match. But more horrible acting with that fake accent from Tony D'Angelo's girl. Cool, they're doing the Year End Awards. I will vote tomorrow. Joe Coffey VS Charlie Dempsey VS Dragon Lee was awesome except for the crap with Joe Gacy pulling Coffey under the ring. I love Cruz Del Toro & Joaquin Wilde saving Lee from The No Quarter Catch Crew. That will be a fun 6-Man Tag. FACTS: This was the 1st time that the NXT North American Championship was defended 2 weeks in a row since Leon Ruff VS Johnny Gargano on 11/11 & 11/18/20. This was the 9th Triple Threat Match for the NXT North American Championship & 1st since Tyler Bate VS Joe Gacy VS Wes Lee at Battleground on 5/28 & 1st on NXT TV since Cameron Grimes VS Carmelo Hayes VS Solo Sikoa on 5/3/22. This was Dragon Lee's 2nd North American Championship Defense so if he would have lost, he would have been the 2nd Champion in a row to lose in his 2nd Defense. As of NXT, Dragon Lee's North American Championship Reign has lasted 10 Days, so if he would have lost, it would have been the 3rd Shortest Reign of All-Time after Trick Williams (9/30/23-10/3/23, 3 Days) & Solo Sikoa (9/13/22-9/20/22, 7 Days). This was Dragon Lee's 1st Triple Threat Match in his Career. If Joe Coffey would have won, he would have been the 2nd 1st-time Champion in a row & the 1st UK-born North American Champion. This was Joe Coffey's 3rd Triple Threat Match & 1st since he defeated Nathan Frazer & Duke Hudson on 9/19, giving him a Triple Threat Match Record of 1-2-0. If Charlie Dempsey would have won, he would have been the 2nd 1st-time Champion in a row & the 2nd 2nd Generation North American Champion after Dominik Mysterio. This was Charlie Dempsey's 1st Triple Threat Match in his Career. Another good segment with Carmelo Hayes & Trick Williams. More bad acting with Cora Jade, Karmen Petrovic, Gigi Dolin, & the rest of the NXT Women's Division. Tavion Heights VS Luca Crusifino was a really good match. Both men are very impressive & will be future stars. FACTS: This was Tavion Heights' NXT TV debut as he has only wrestled on Level Up & Main Event. This was only Luca Crusifino's 2nd match on NXT & 1st since he defeated Von Wagner by DQ on 5/23. This was the 2nd 1-on-1 Match between them after Level Up on 6/23, which was won by Crusifino so they each won 1 match. This was Heights' 3rd win of his career after he & Damon Kemp defeated Myles Borne & Tank Ledger on Level Up on 2/24 & he defeated Ikemen Jiro on Level Up on 9/8. Good video on Lyra Valkyria & Blair Davenport bringing up their past in NXT UK. It will be the 1st ever match between an Irish woman & New Zealand woman in WWE History. Damn, more crappy acting with Lyra Valkyria & Nikkita Lyons. Please Shawn Michaels, get an acting coach. More crap with Meta-Four. Get Meta-Four off my TV. They are awful. Nikkita Lyons VS Tatum Paxley was OK. Unlike other big women in WWE, Nikkita is very good & knows how to use her weight to her advantage. FACTS: This was Nikkita Lyons' 1st 1-on-1 Match since she defeated Jakara Jackson on Level Up on 1/20 & 1st on NXT TV since she lost to Zoey Stark on 12/20/22. This was Tatum Paxley's 1st NXT since 12/5. This was Lyons' 1st 1-on-1 win on NXT TV since she defeated Kayden Carter on 9/27/22. OK promo by Hank & Tank. I'm sick & tired of this bad acting, now with Josh Briggs, Brooks Jensen, & Fallon Henley. Tank Ledger & Hank Walker VS Gallus wasn't anything special. The stuff with Joe Coffey & Joe Gacy is horrible. FACTS: This was Tank Ledger & Hank Walker's 1st NXT since they lost the Battle Royal on 10/17 & 1st 2-on-2 Tag Team Match on NXT since they lost to OTM on 9/26. This was Gallus' 1st NXT since they lost the Battle Royal on 10/17 & 1st 2-on-2 Tag Team Match on NXT since they lost to Tyler Bate & Butch on 10/3. This was Gallus' 1st 2-on-2 win on NXT since they defeated Malik Blade & Edris Enofe on 6/27. At least Tiffany Stratton knows how to do a promo. That was good, but the loser becomes a servant stipulation is so outdated. It isn't the 80s. Next week's NXT will be a good show & a good way to end 2023. Ilja Dragunov VS Ridge Holland was really good. The finish was a little silly but it continues the story of Ridge, so I don't mind it. I like reality in my wrestling though it sort of makes light of what really happened to Big E. But it's OK. FACTS: This was Ilja Dragunov's 1st NXT TV since he defeated Nathan Frazer on 11/28. This was Ridge Holland's 1st NXT since he & Butch defeated OTM on 11/14, his 1st 1-on-1 Match since he lost to Austin Theory on Smackdown on 6/30 & 1st on NXT since he lost to Kyle O'Reilly on 9/28/21. This was the 1st ever 1-on-1 Match between a Russian & an Englishman in NXT History.
Here are my NXT Match Rankings: 1) Dragon Lee VS Charlie Dempsey VS Joe Coffey 2) Tavion Heights VS Luca Crusifino 3) Dion Lennox VS Lexis King 4) Ilja Dragunov VS Ridge Holland 5) Nikkita Lyons VS Tatum Paxley 6) Tank Ledger & Hank Walker VS Gallus 7) Thea Hail & Jacy Jayne VS Izzi Dame & Kiana James 8 ) Fallon Henley VS Tiffany Stratton
Overall a solid NXT. There was a lot of bad, but there was more good than bad especially the men's matches.
Ends NXT Thoughts, Facts, & Stats. For W/L Records, Facts, & Stats, check out darrenswinloss.wordpress.com, which will be updated later this weekend.
I will vote for the NXT Year End Awards tomorrow. I just want to relax for the rest of the night. See you Friday for Smackdown Thoughts & Facts & Stats.
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Post by "The Natural" Bustin Loads on Dec 19, 2023 22:15:57 GMT -5
They're leaning into the fact that people are STILL calling for Ridge's head over Big E. The venom on Twitter after they shot the angle proved it worked. I'm not saying I agree with it. Just explaining it. I don't agree either but I can see it. If the Brutes aren't going to be a thing much longer and Ridge is going into singles, a portion of the audience is going to keep bringing it up forever so may as well confront it for his character. It's less tasteless as a face going "why me" than the Jax route. Just don't know that I'd do it here, or with a neck injury.
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Post by Friday Night SmackOwn on Dec 19, 2023 22:17:37 GMT -5
Had it been Ridge hitting him with a weapon, or putting him through a table it would have been fine. That would have been setting up "Who paid Ridge to take out Dragunov" angle, and wouldn't be playing on the Big E injury. And thatβs not even a direction theyβre going in, apparently? Hollandβs not even heel, heβs just really depressed and this has just made it worse? like, the angle of Melo paying someone off to take Dragunov out was right there.
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Post by The Rick Jericho on Dec 19, 2023 22:17:58 GMT -5
Here's a simple way to win the Rumble.
Ridge enters at #30 and everyone else in the ring eliminates themselves before he enters the ring out of fear.
And the winner of the royal rumble is RIDGE!
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City Duck
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Post by City Duck on Dec 19, 2023 22:19:34 GMT -5
Shawnathan I will let you cook on this one but only because I left my morals behind during NXT 2.0 Season 1 Episode 1
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A Little Doo Doo
Salacious Crumb
An unconventional man with unconventional methods.
Posts: 70,964
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Post by A Little Doo Doo on Dec 19, 2023 22:19:37 GMT -5
Ridge Holland is killing Russians now like he's Simo HΓ€yhΓ€.
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