The Wrestling Thread

[Breetai]

Lesnar/Taker, in my opinion, is best left in 2002. Especially with Lesnar's contract running out and even worse (for him) - a NY smarky venue. There wouldn't be any drama and Taker would be another year older. Just feels disastrous (but I do think they'll do it).

Honestly, I want Taker to just hang it up. His streak should just stay in place. You'd need an up and coming young guy that could really be a hulk hogan to his andre the giant as it were.

Lesnar is a merc at the end of the day, letting him have something like that would be beyond disgraceful.

If CM Punk beat 'Taker cleanly at WM, he'd get his "respect" for sure then. No way it would happen, though. Losing to 'Taker in a really solid match would do it probably as well. I don't see him getting that either, though. It would be more fun to watch than Lesner/'Taker (I would hate that...).

[Gamerforlife]

I actually like the idea of Punk/Taker the more I think about it. Think about it. Punk has had the belt for what? 10 months now? Imagine if he carries it all the way to Mania. Streak versus streak? If Punk beats the Rock in that time frame, and gets another victory over Cena, he will definitely have the credibility to go up against Taker. My only concern is that Punk is too good on the mic. He might bury the Undertaker during the course of their feud, especially if he makes fun of all of Taker's mind games and parlor tricks.

Personally though, I still would love for Kane to end the streak, ending both of their careers in the process as Kane would be so badly beaten by Taker, and possibly taken off to hell with Taker after the match ends. That sounds ridiculous, but their character gimmicks have ALWAYS been ridiculous. Maybe you introduce some new big, huge, supernatural guy after the match who beats them both down and you see his Undertaker-like minions come out and put Kane and Taker in coffins and take them away. Torch passed. New Kane/Taker replacement introduced to the WWE. He could be the new devil's favorite demon and have Paul Bearer accompanying him. His name could be Tombstone - the man who ended Kane and the Undertaker.

Anyway, I watched last weeks TNA episode (not the most recent one which I haven't seen yet). I really loved the big, epic battle against Aces and Eights taking place everywhere in the building with the whole TNA roster. Seeing them take out the champ Austin Aries and then ride out on their motorcycles like some Sons of Anarchy episode was badass. I love how more Aces and Eights members kept coming out of the wood work as the battle raged on. It's like they added a bunch of expendable new members to their group just for this battle like pawns on a chessboard.

I finally started catching up a bit with Ring of Honor's TV tapings. They have some awesome, awesome, AWESOME matches and do a great job of building up feuds and recapping stuff for people like me who have missed out. I'm still familiarizing myself with the talent, but Adam Cole seems pretty awesome. I also have to make mention of how amazingly, unbelievably, ridiculously gorgeous Maria Kanellis still is in her post WWE days. Seriously. Wow

[Gamerforlife]

I actually like the idea of Punk/Taker the more I think about it. Think about it. Punk has had the belt for what? 10 months now? Imagine if he carries it all the way to Mania. Streak versus streak? If Punk beats the Rock in that time frame, and gets another victory over Cena, he will definitely have the credibility to go up against Taker. My only concern is that Punk is too good on the mic. He might bury the Undertaker during the course of their feud, especially if he makes fun of all of Taker's mind games and parlor tricks.

Personally though, I still would love for Kane to end the streak, ending both of their careers in the process as Kane would be so badly beaten by Taker, and possibly taken off to hell with Taker after the match ends. That sounds ridiculous, but their character gimmicks have ALWAYS been ridiculous. Maybe you introduce some new big, huge, supernatural guy after the match who beats them both down and you see his Undertaker-like minions come out and put Kane and Taker in coffins and take them away. Torch passed. New Kane/Taker replacement introduced to the WWE. He could be the new devil's favorite demon and have Paul Bearer accompanying him. His name could be Tombstone - the man who ended Kane and the Undertaker.

I can actually see how they could build up to a Kane/Taker mania match where both guys retire post match. Kane starts getting a series of big wins over the top WWE guys. He looks more focused and dangerous than ever and he completely stops talking or doing promos. He leaves the mask on in every single appearance and every single match. The commentators start talking about how reminiscent it is of the old days when he first came into the WWE and was this mysterious, unstoppable force, then start talking about his early feuds with Taker. They would be planting the seeds here by reminding people of that stuff.

He starts destroying people every week as we see this growing anger in him. He's attacking referees, doing post match beat downs with chairs on people. The commentators start commenting on how they've never seen Kane like this. He's like a force unleashed. AJ does nothing, after seeing him in her office where he non verbally threatens her by grabbing her by the throat, then leaves without saying a word. She starts making excuses every week, finding ways not to punish him for his actions. Who knows? Maybe she's feeding the board of directors excuses and paying off lawyers to deal with any lawsuits being made towards the WWE for Kane's actions(could give David Otonga some screen time with that). It's pro wrestling, make up whatever reasons you want

He destroys Big Show and Mark Henry, injures them both. He then has a big PPV match with Cena, who - as the WWE poster boy - has had enough of Kane's crap and wants to stop him from terrorizing the WWE. Or maybe they just do a big Raw main event between them. After a hell of a fight with Cena, where Kane dominates but just isn't able to put the stubborn Cena away, he snaps and attacks Cena with a chair. Cena would win by DQ, but Kane continues the beat down and then does THREE tombstones on Cena. The tombstones are symbolic of course. The lights go out. You hear the gong. The lights come back on. There's no sign of Taker, but you see Kane stare up the ramp, then eventually leaves the ring

Then you have a big Raw promo from Kane, finally speaking after months of silence, maybe even taking the mask off. I know Glen Jacobs could do a better promo than this one and deliver it in that slow paced style of his, but it could go something like this

"For the past few months now, I've reigned terror on the WWE. I've laid out everyone in that locker room. I've knocked down a giant and destroyed The World's Strongest Man. I've squashed a snake and destroyed an Irish man. I've sent quivering, cowardly referees, time keepers, announcers and officials to the emergency room. I've made the general manager bow to my will and I've destroyed your hero John Cena - all to try and quell this itch inside. Something eating away at me, this anger that drives me. Why? What is it? I'll tell you. You see, for months now I've had this need. This task I must complete to scratch that itch and quell the rage that burns inside me. And I, nor anyone in the WWE, will know peace until this task is done.

For years now I've stood back and watched the elite in this company try to climb this insurmountable mountain. These small minded, mortal men trying to destroy that which they don't understand. The young upstarts trying to make a name for themselves, the old legends trying to solidify their legacy, names like Shawn Michaels, Triple H, Randy Orton, Batista, Jimmy Superfly Snuka, Ric Flair, Edge, legends in this business. They all fell to this unstoppable force you pathetic fools call...., "The Streak." They all fall to the phenom, the deadman, my brother of destruction, The Undertaker

Every year they fall, every year someone tries try again. Why? Why do they always lose? What is it that makes the Streak so unstoppable. It's simple really. My brother is more than a man, his power is beyond any so called superstar and "The Streak" is something no mere mortal man can comprehend or defeat. It must be taken down by a monster, by a machine, by a creature who has walked through fire and brimstone, who has seen the source of my brother's powers, and wielded those very same powers, a creature who has buried The Undertaker, a creature who holds sway over the legions of hell as the devil's favorite demon.

Brother, it is time. You've basked in the glory of your legacy for too long and the devil is calling for you. He wants you back, and I'm going to bring you to him in a cold, dark coffin where you will rest...in...piece."

Puts his arms up, lights up the ring.

[BurningDoom]

The original king of bling:

[Razzmatazz]

I watched the start of Raw and skipped through most of it to the end, and I must say, the CM Punk backstage beat downs were eerily remensicent of Stone Cold back in 1998. Especially with the jeans and t-shirt look.

[the King]

I'd like to see the wwe use Heyman as a manager to help get over some of their other talent that aren't that great on the mic. Maybe start his own anti wwe/superstar stable or something. It could be centered around Punk and Lesnar, but also bringing in other "wrestlers" who don't fall into the "superstar" mold. I think he could help someone like Matt Bloom(Lord Tensai, Prince Albert). Obviously the Tensai character hasn't gotten over, so have Heyman mock it and talk about how it's more marketing by McMahon and the the wwe and turning a wrestler who dominated in Japan into a silly wwe gimmick.

[Gamerforlife]

Weird Raw

Vickie skipping up the ramp. AJ seriously losing her shit. Alberto Del Rio actually looking sympathetic after Ricardo got knocked out. They really ramped up the drama this week. I actually sort of felt for AJ a bit. When Swagger walked out on her after she pleaded with him I thought, "Damn, that's a cold son of a bitch." I couldn't say no to that cute face, especially when she was acting so desperate.

Punk is awesome on the mic. I love the stuff he gets away with, like basically telling Sheamus that the Smackdown title is just the secondary WWE title. My jaw dropped

I've been enjoying the Bryan/Kane stuff, but I'm glad it's over. It was starting to get old and that in ring, hug segment went on forever. That's the problem with these three hour Raws. They are looooooooooong.

Daniel Bryan is seriously amazing right now. Between his on screen character, crowd interaction, and in ring work he should be given the belt again at some point and maybe get a good babyface run with it. I think him and AJ are the best characters in the WWE right now, although AJ got a little stale in the GM role because they didn't let her play up her crazy side all that much or give her a compelling story line. That's looks to be changing after this week's Raw. I'm not kidding about what I said. Her and Bryan have been built up better than any one in recent months just in terms of character. They seem more fleshed out than a lot of other people on the roster. Compare them to bland, one note characters like Orton, Del Rio, Sheamus, Tensei, R Ruth, Ryback and even broken record Cena. There's nothing even remotely interesting about the other divas either compared to AJ

[retrosportsgamer]

Del Rio is starting to intrigue me with Otunga being added to the group. Plus they've really been building towards what seems like a face turn with him. Meanwhile Sheamus acts like a heel.

The 3-hour RAWs are so drawn out and boring that I find myself watching less than before. Sometimes I'll start at 9:30 and just whip through the DVR of it - but often times I just tune in to the beginning and the end. Not really their desired effect I'd think.

[BurningDoom]

Del Rio is starting to intrigue me with Otunga being added to the group. Plus they've really been building towards what seems like a face turn with him. Meanwhile Sheamus acts like a heel.

The 3-hour RAWs are so drawn out and boring that I find myself watching less than before. Sometimes I'll start at 9:30 and just whip through the DVR of it - but often times I just tune in to the beginning and the end. Not really their desired effect I'd think.

Last week I pretty much FF through a good half of Raw on my DVR. Gotta admit, I'm LOVING the anger management sessions, though.

And is it me, or does it seem like WWE is treating the actual WRESTLING matches like filler? It feels like they're thrown together last minute, and they make em 3 on 3 or 4-way battles, or whatever and they just grab whoever is in the back at the time. There's no chemistry and no wow moments. And nobody is telling a story in the ring anymore. WWE seems far more concerned about their skits and microphone time. Which granted is important, but the wrestling should always be #1.

[Razzmatazz]

Del Rio is starting to intrigue me with Otunga being added to the group. Plus they've really been building towards what seems like a face turn with him. Meanwhile Sheamus acts like a heel.

The 3-hour RAWs are so drawn out and boring that I find myself watching less than before. Sometimes I'll start at 9:30 and just whip through the DVR of it - but often times I just tune in to the beginning and the end. Not really their desired effect I'd think.

Last week I pretty much FF through a good half of Raw on my DVR. Gotta admit, I'm LOVING the anger management sessions, though.

And is it me, or does it seem like WWE is treating the actual WRESTLING matches like filler? It feels like they're thrown together last minute, and they make em 3 on 3 or 4-way battles, or whatever and they just grab whoever is in the back at the time. There's no chemistry and no wow moments. And nobody is telling a story in the ring anymore. WWE seems far more concerned about their skits and microphone time. Which granted is important, but the wrestling should always be #1.

I agree about the wrestling taking a backseat. It's a shame. Considering it's what the fans and the kids want to see, what the guys train their whole lives doing, but WWE are more concerned about trash talking.


On a different topic, sort of, does anyone collect WWE dvds? I've noticed they are getting cheaper with a lot of places having sales. My ultimate aim is to collect every PPV and for about £500 I could probably do it. I've been watching 2005 PPVs in order and Judgment Day's feud between Booker T and Kurt Angle is absolutely hilarious. Does anyone remember it? Where Kurt accidentally mentioned bestiality is what he wants to do to Sharmell. Man I miss Kurt in WWE...