rolling Jericho calls The New Day trap queens 2016

anyway, i think it's clear that the people who matter want all these guys (and girls) over and i don't buy the idea that they're being held back, so much as that WWE's booking is so backwards and convoluted these days that it can look that way at times. they just have no idea how to book people to build and maintain momentum anymore. as qualx says, maybe it's not even possible with the amount of programming they have to fill

Yeah, I'll concede it's probably more that than anything else.

you people write too much too fast!

i was complaining that sami/rusev was, from the beginning:
a. meaningless
b. way too long for a meaningless nothing match

i mean it COULD have meaning if WWE announcers weren't allergic to talking about wrestling. there are a few easy ways you can spin it to force some meaning or weight into sami/rusev, but all we get is JBL screeching "WOW! LOOK AT WHAT WE HAVE, IT'S SAMI ZAYN VS. RUSEV! YEAH" and that's it. if a match is meaningless, doesn't fit into anything larger than itself except for the post-post-post match attack from the meaningful opponent, and/or it doesn't attempt to tell an interesting story in its own right, then the longer it is the worse it is. this is WWE, the company that's actually supposed to be focused on the theatricality of it all, and these matches are meaningless bullshit that don't accomplish shit besides wasting time. they all end in fucking rollups anyway. who cares if the match goes 15 instead of 3 if it's just gonna end in a rollup? there's 12 minutes that could go towards getting literally anyone on the roster over, which will all probably get shuffled to youtube anyway. how does a 3 hour show feel so long and so understuffed at the same time? if creative can't fill the time with the roster they have, kick creative out.

and there is clearly some sort of directive making sure the announcers never talk about wrestling except in extreme cases. mauro's doing a good job of it so far so maybe it's just ingrained in everyone else. they're not allowed to say... things... about the wrestlers? and how they are? and what they do? mauro said that the ascension need to go their own way instead of taking after the road warriors if they're ever gonna succeed and it was like holy shit. he said a thing about the ascension. i'm worried he's gonna get in trouble. you're not supposed to editorialize about the fictional wrestlers because that might get in the way of the plans creative doesn't have for them.

http://www.theatlantic.com/video/index/479919/the-plight-of-the-female-lucha-libre-star/

just starting payback now because i hate sleep apparently but jfc that was the worst way to open a show

glad i'm not watching live and frantically checking for updates every 5 seconds, looked like enzo straight up died for a few seconds

The AJ/Reigns main event was a hell of a match. Excellent performances from both guys. Going slightly heelish has already done wonders for Reigns, right down to his body language and facial expressions. Matches like this make you understand exactly why the company sees so much potential in him, and also make you frustrated at how rarely they've been able to tap that potential effectively.

It does bother me that Styles lost even after interference from Gallows and Anderson. A finish like that sends one of two messages: (1) the Gallows/Anderson double-team finisher ("Boot of Doom", apparently, which is pretty uninspired) isn't all that powerful of a move, or (2) AJ Styles just isn't nearly as good as Roman Reigns. What they intended was no doubt closer to (2), but that cuts down on the intrigue for the rematch. People will look forward to it anyway because this match was so entertaining, but it would be nice to have the booking actually work with the wrestlers on this.

I would have liked to see the Usos pull off some interference on Reigns's behalf. That would have made sense of the finish, and it would be an interesting direction for the them character-wise, without amounting to a total heel turn (since they would've just been evening the odds). Plus something like that could plant the seeds for an Usos/Reigns storyline down the road.

Is it bad that im kinda annoyed cass didnt go on to fight the vv? I guess they lost by countout? Poor enzo. I really hope hes ok.

Owens calling himself the victim in the vignette though a+ trolling

i'm guessing it was a no contest. i was also wishing they would've done something to end the match but no one really seemed to know how serious the injury was and it would've had to have been organized on the spot. definitely can't blame cass and the villains for not calling a massive audible on their first PPV, can't blame the decision makers for playing it safe in light of ongoing concussion controversy. could've seen the villains heeling it up and cass chasing them up the ramp but w/e.

and if enzo/cass were booked to win it would've been some bullshit if cass beat them singlehandedly

main event was great except the heinous overbooking, i'm never into restarting matches tbh

also way not looking forward to the ongoing mcmahon drama. payback was generally yet another nothing-really-happened-did-it show.

Yeah i feel a bit bad about thinkinh that now.

Lol at punk chants still tbh.

Fun show so far but...

Why did lil naitch do a screwjob finish? Why would anyone agree to that 19 years later? Its fucking lame as shit, bret should have told them to go fuck themselves and book it properly.

Also byron saxton is the most cardboard human in history and anyone involved in giving him a major job should be ashamed.

lol i forgot about that. it would've been ok if it bled into the mcmahon bit but then it didn't. screwjobs don't really work if someone with power didn't order it to happen! they could've gone with lil naitch being a fanboy but they didn't communicate that at all except for jbl mentioning it in passing.

Also how many people in america own giant cutouts of colt cabanas face?
Is it the same guy everytime or are there multiple people who have 4 ft cutouts of colt cabanas face?

Does anyone, like anyone, any fan, any fan anywhere, give a shit about mcmahon family beef?

Watching the title match and when you think they cant do more to make reigns look shit... he loses his first ppv title defense twice by countout and accidental dick punch. This match was looking like it would be great and now i dont care.

Why do they keep booking this guy so badly?

I haven't seen the show yet, but why not do 20 minutes of Styles-Reigns, end the match with the table spot and a countout win for Styles, and create a sliver of doubt for the rematch?

I guess that wouldn't have provided a venue for the fussin and feudin McMahons to restart the match twice. We still don't know who Guns and Gallows are working for, and Reigns looks like a doofus for losing twice in one night and being a sideshow to the McMahon family feud.

It had the makings of a good match, and to be fair, everything AJ and RR do is great. The many fuck finishes just really take the wind out of the sails though.

I want to be all over modern WWE but then they do shit like that and another screwjob finish and it makes it hard.

The KO/Zayn/Miz/Cesaro matches, commentary and mix-ups was all A+. The Miz is... so fucking good at the moment? I don't think I've ever been actively interested in him as a competitor up until now. It seems like most guys are really trying to bring it, and yet all I constantly hear about is roll-up/distraction finishes on RAW, the McMahons and more ways to make Reigns look a mess. Just give Heyman or someone who knows what they are doing the fucking book already and stop pissing about and it will be glorious.

Man yeah there is straight up nobody in the world who is better at their job than Mike the Miz is at his right now huh

pretty excellent show almost top to bottom i thought. such a shame about Enzo getting totalled 3 mins into what was already shaping up to be a good match.

the developing four-man feud around the IC title was great on every level. video package for Zayn/Owens was great and made it feel like a really big deal, they had a great match, Owens was great on commentary, Zayn returning to jump him over the table was a great angle, Miz is the only heel on the roster who gets proper heat which is great, Cesaro is just the greatest. GREAT. more of this please! if they could make the mid-card stuff this engaging all the time then that'd be half the battle.

Ambrose / Jericho was fine I guess but i kinda feel that Ambrose is a really good wrestler shackled by packaging that sucks in several important ways.

main-event was a bit too cute with all the overbooking but i'm fine with it really, i thought the match itself was superb and it was really wild seeing AJ in that setting. table spot was cool. was more relieved that they didn't make AJ look like a chump than I was annoyed they made Reigns look like a chump.

i liked this show! i like lots of the talent and i think a bunch of these guys are gonna get super over in a way that was never gonna happen for some of the bums they've had on the roster in years gone by. a big step in the right direction! except for the McMahon stuff i guess, bleh

I kinda agree. I just really cant stop complaining about the mcmahons.

the stoppages were a bit enh and I wish the Bullet Club stuff had been resolved more interestingly, but I still enjoyed the hell out of seeing Roman throw someone around for the first time in ages and they made me believe AJ Styles was going to win the WWE title at a couple of points

sums it up:

Best: Reigns Vs. Styles, Or
Worst: Just Kidding, Shane Vs. Stephanie

Nodding in agreement with most of what you all are saying about Payback. Should I bother downloading Raw, though, that's the question?

guess i'm done with NXT until it stops being TNA

is that the reason why i haven't felt like watching an NXT ep since the PPV?

Just finished watching the bulk of Payback, and like everyone has been saying, Zayn-Owens was awesome, Jericho-Ambrose was great, and Styles-Reigns was great despite all the dumb restarts. I have no idea why people rag on Jericho and say he can't work at a high level anymore. He's toned down his style (he had to -- he's 45) but he's still a more complete performer than 95% of the roster. Styles and Reigns have amazing chemistry and their match reminded me of the Diesel vs Shawn Michaels wars from the 90's. Reigns wrestled the entire match as the clear heel (and even lost twice in heel-like fashion) and if he keeps having great matches with great opponents he'll eventually turn himself face again (for real this time) by being awesome, like he did when he was in The Shield.

NJPW Wrestling Dontaku was also a great show. Naito is on the roll of a lifetime right now. Sanada vs Okada was really good, but Okada can be so bland sometimes, IDGI. You're facing the guy who screwed you out of the title, try looking pissed off about it and make people believe you want to kill him or something.

jericho can still go but his WM match was so disappointing it got people down. many (including me) had that pegged as a potential show-stealer. meanwhile i have no recollection of his fastlane match and no one looks good in a royal rumble.

his match with neville at beast in the east was so good i've been expecting quality from him since. he and aj just might have shit chemistry or something.

Rip hornswaggle el torito and of course cameron

https://youtu.be/Runl2i7pV-s

if he keeps having great matches with great opponents he'll eventually turn himself face again (for real this time) by being awesome, like he did when he was in The Shield.

I dunno, every time they put Roman on the mic and make him parrot that godwawful catchphrase-by-committee, they undo all the good work he puts in when he's actually wrestling.

RIP Damien Sandow.

That's why Reigns shouldn't be talking! I think (hope) they learned their lesson trying to make him a wisecracking smiling babyface like John Cena. Ambrose and Rollins did most of the talking in the Shield and it was the perfect dynamic.

Seriously, all of Reigns' feuds from now on should start like this one -- he instigates nothing, sits back and waits for guys to fight out the #1 contenderships amongst themselves, and spears the shit out of whoever earns the right to face him. Then the challenger tries to work out a plan to beat Reigns (bringing in friends to jump him, trickery, insults, whatever) while Reigns walks around entitled daring people to get it on.

Hornswoggle -- most unlikely 10-year tenure in the WWE ever?

god i hate steve corino

this weekend, take an hour of your day, sit down, open a delicious beer, and watch GRAVER CONSEQUENCES

i thought it was pretty good but far behind the first one. i was maybe too distracted by matt striker repeatedly saying 'death box' to enjoy it as much as i should have done, wtf matt striker. that 'no mas' match from the week before though, that shit was gnarly

lu has been fantastic. NXT i am now like 3 weeks behind and sadly not really missing it. someone plz send up the bat signal when it gets interesting again

yeah nxt has dipped quite a bit, not even nakamura kneeing jobbers in the nose is enough to keep me tuning in

though speaking of nakamura kneeing jobbers in the nose, i thought this article on strikes in pro wrestling was interesting http://fightland.vice.com/blog/pro-wrestlings-shinsuke-nakamura-and-the-bomaye-knee

wait wtf is thump fightland? how many verticals can vice possibly need

― qualx, Thursday, April 7, 2016 3:36 AM (1 month ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

has anyone been watching raw? if someone has been watching raw can you tell me how they're handling cass? are they still acting like enzo exists or are they just treating him like a singles guy?

as far as i've seen his feuding has remained with tag teams (dudleyz and vaudevillains) and they still mention enzo often, but it does also feel like an attempt to make him seem a legit singles guy

will watch
http://www.diva-dirt.com/123432/orange-new-black-creator-working-womens-wrestling-series-netflix/

cody's statement: https://twitter.com/PrinceCGR/status/734501299337584641

if he ends up in like,ROH, i might actually have to start watching ROH. can't wait to see what he does with an actual opportunity.

also he says no "tell-all nonsense" but makes a pretty damning statement against the current head writer of SD/former head writer of NXT from when it was good i think

at least damning enough if you're used to people going on about how great he is

spare er thoughts:
-IC match was hot fire, fine with the finish except for sami and cesaro both looking like massive idiots at different points (lolwwe)
-new day basically squashed vaudevillains ??
-the jbl/cole-bully-byron thing is the worst, they sound so fucking serious about it sometimes! it sounds like VKM-sanctioned hazing. they went in on him in the beginning of this dumb asylum match (cole said i think "you need a writer" ?) and he's been pretty silent since.

**big ol spoilers**

main event was generally hot fire as well but they are never gonna realize that the #1 way to keep hate alive vs wrestlers they don't want us to hate is wins-outta-nowhere, especially wins with a terrible spear after a zillion chair shots

it doesn't work with roman! it never will. even if he was a beloved babyface it wouldn't work.

**continuing big ol spoilers**

yeah absolutely, though i remain confused as to what they're trying to do with roman - that uso save from the second styles clash was so heelish, and they surely can't have any hope for roman being more popular vs rollins than he was vs styles. shades of grey is one thing and i'd be fully behind a 100% shades of grey roman, but as it is we have shades of never being quite sure what to think and nothing concrete happening to show us

Wow, that main event was incredible, better than almost any Attitude-era brawl. When was the last time a championship feud in the WWE exceeded expectations like this?

The four way was predictably great, and Rusev-Kalisto was exactly what it needed to be. The only zero on the show was the women's championship match.

Ambrose and Jericho had ten minutes tacked onto their match at the last minute, so I skipped the first ten minutes and watched the rest. I thought they did a good job considering the stupid stipulations.

yeah i've seen a lot of negative comments about the main event booking but tbh 1. it maybe wasn't ideal but still not that bad, the spear was a bit anticlimactic but it's hardly like aj hasn't already received a lot of damage (that powerbomb through the table was so gnarly), and 2. aj and roman are good enough at beating each other up that i'd have been happy with anything but a booking nightmare

The crowd didn't give a crap about Kalisto/Rusev until the end, that pissed me off unreasonably. Like, if Sami Zayn busted out that corkscrew off the ropes the place would go bananas but Kalisto does it and nothing.

One thing i love is how the commentary can never explain why every week a half canadian half syrian guy gets massive ole chants and just accept as normal support