You are not logged in. Please register or login.
- Topics: Active | Unanswered
Re: The Wrestling thread
Read (not sure if true) that Taker did request Cena this year and Vince denied it. Wanted Taker to put over Reigns instead on the way out.
Disgusting if true. Does nothing for Reigns.
Since the streak was over and even the hardcore fans don't really hate Cena anymore (like they did a decade ago). This really would have been the proper way to end Taker's career and bring everything full circle.
Re: The Wrestling thread
Read (not sure if true) that Taker did request Cena this year and Vince denied it. Wanted Taker to put over Reigns instead on the way out.
Disgusting if true. Does nothing for Reigns.
Since the streak was over and even the hardcore fans don't really hate Cena anymore (like they did a decade ago). This really would have been the proper way to end Taker's career and bring everything full circle.
That would've been better for sure...but I can understand why it makes sense for business.
It does seems like it could have been a bit more climactic...but the nature of his character made it difficult. How else is Undertaker going to retire? He can't announce it....Taker was always into kayfabe.
Re: The Wrestling thread
It makes sense.
Cena is the wrestling celebrity. He's your brand ambassador.
He's the new Hogan. Light schedule. Show up, do the five knuckle shuffle, believe in yourself kids.
Taker put over the guy who will never leave and always put in work. Do I like it? No. Is it good entertainment? No. Is it good wrestling? No. But it makes sense.
Re: The Wrestling thread
Michaels got to choose how he went out; he chose Taker!
Reigns is a guy who doesn't draw crowds especially at house shows, doesn't have the IT factor, can't cut a promo, was the least popular member of a 3 man team and is seen as a middle finger to the fans who wanted to see Bryan Danielson and C.M. Punk instead.
Punks interview after he was fired about how the company's mind set back then was "make Roman look strong" is something people won't forget. Reigns is the guy that was pushed at those Royal Rumbles at the expense of Bryan Danielson who was the most over person they had in the company at the time. Now he's the guy who was booked against Taker, against Taker's will in Taker's last match... just to build to a match against Lesnar.
Think about all the guys in this company over the past decade and how they looked physically. You know how hard it is to fail a wellness (steroids/drugs) test for this company giving their policies. Reigns failed one last year, was suspended then immediately re-pushed. He literally must have been injecting his dick with a needle while taking the piss test to fail. Many fan favorites down the years got punished via booking afterwards, him? Nothing.
Re: The Wrestling thread
It's tradition, but it's also a 6 hour plus show of mediocrity/resentment.
Sweet baby Jesus.....six hours?!? 
How the fuck do they pull that off? Even back in the golden age it was only 2 to 3 hours and they were padding it with some crap back then.
Re: The Wrestling thread
It seems weird to say, but Wrestlemania might have to start being spread over two nights if they keep this up, and they have enough talent to do it. Rushing matches, cutting matches, ruining the balance of the show because people are in the building 7 hours... it makes sense for WM to go two nights, especially if they have one world championship on each show. It hurts the show because there are lulls because in pro wrestling, people don't wanna repeat moves/repeat spots/etc. So some matches are glorified TV matches and that is a disservice to fans and talent. UFC events go on for 7 hours, and they don't drag. Wrestling cards can't by structure go that long easily.
Re: The Wrestling thread
A two day event was attempted before. The Jim Crockett Sr. Memorial Cup. It was a disaster.
While Wrestlemania is a different beast, IMO it should not be attempted. Comparing it to the spectacle of real sports isn't a fair comparison. Wrestling is essentially a TV show playing out in front of a live audience. Its not an event worthy of being spread out over the weekend.
If they try it...here's what happens. Just like with the Cup.....about 2k people will show up to the stadium on day one and no...putting one of the main events on day one will not fill it up. While a general sudience may be dumb, not so dumb they wont realize you're going to save the best for last.
They better be careful with ideas like this. This is the kind of shit that exposes much bigger problems and helps bring the whole thing in for a crash landing. Go ask Crockett.
I realize the Cup had many issues but the comparison is valid.
Re: The Wrestling thread
Don't have time to comment on everything, but;
They basically had 4 sellout shows in Orlando from Saturday/Sunday/Monday/Tuesday not counting the NXT tapping on Wednesday night (all be it at a smaller venue). They also had the Hall of Fame ceremony in front of a crowd on Friday night before Wrestlemania weekend.
Wrestlemania is a major event, there was an absurd amount of Indy wrestling events or whatever held that weekend not affiliated with WWE to get in on the money.
Don't forget last year, they had supposedly 97K (this isn't even the worked number) at A&T stadium for an absolutely rubbish show. It was a main event no one wanted to see and the other matchs were just thrown together. The Wrestlemania brand sells itself, not what's going on.
That said outside of Wrestlemania season they aren't doing well with attendances. ...But yes they can absolutely could do 2 stadiums shows back to back nights (just not at A&T). I hope they don't though given how plodding 1 has been for years.
Wrestling cards can't by structure go that long easily.
As a NJPW fan watching a 6 hour Tokyo Dome show (Japan's version of Wrestlemania), it never dragged for me. It's WWE's style with everything being the same/predictable. That Tokyo Dome show this year was headlined by one of the best Wrestling matchs I probably ever seen.
Re: The Wrestling thread
The Crockett Cup never came close to bombing that bad and it wasn't 1% of what WM is globally now. Jim Crockett can't be compared to Vince. JCP never would have folded if they never left the South. Trying to go national and terrible accounting/spending habits did.
The thing about watching at home is you're not sitting in a shitty Stadium chair for 7 hours in sweltering heat after an already exhausting weekend. If, and I'm almost positive this is true, 30 000 out of towners come to see WM, they'd stay two days and that alone would pack a stadium with the local crowds.
WWE has Axxess, HOF, NXT, WM, Raw and SD in Orlando, in addition to Wrestlecon and about 8 other wrestling events, which is why I always am so intimidated to try to go to WM and figure everything out. The two day WM would just let them make even more money via Axxess and everything else, plus give their network more content. I think it's inevitable that it will happen because everyone was bitching about the length this year... everyone. From Twitter to Meltzer to Auston, even to JR. And if it stays one day with a shorter show, people are gonna be bitching that x guy doesn't get a match. The logical thing is they need to make WM a legit wrestling festival. It already is, actually. They just need to restructure.
From my interpretation of Mania weekend, out of towners who travel from across the globe to WM as their vacation fill up all the non-WM venues (HOF, Raw, SD, NXT) by default. So, the only thing they actually have to worry about is two nights in a stadium and I don't think adding one show to a slightly smaller stadium is an issue. It can't be done tomorrow, but the fact is there are tens of thousands who travel just for Mania, they're not gonna worry about two nights. For WWE, it's not gonna cost them much more to run two nights. Axxess gets to be another day, more time to do everything, better shows. Everyone wins.
I don't necessarily want it to go to two days... I just think they're gonna do it for the betterment of everything.
