Scott,
Regarding the inevitable HHH vs. Vince thing at WrestleMania 30, what do you think of HHH & Orton facing a McMahon team of Rock & Austin? Doing a tag match would prevent Austin or Rock from having to work a full singles match and would allow them to just do a bunch of hot tags and run through their signature spots. I think it would make sense for Vince to turn to his two biggest Attitude Era stars to combat HHH's new regime. Not sure if Rock's most recent injury prevents him from being able to work again (or if Austin really has any interest in working again for that matter), but if so I think this could work.
) Neither has the ability to work a match at this point.
B) A tag match to pay off this angle would be hella lame. Really, it's gotta be HHH getting his ass kicked in a singles match to make it worthwhile.
"Another Austin match" is up there with "Cena needs to turn heel" as one of the things that's not gonna happen that the IWC needs to shut up about. Please, for the sake of my sanity.
ReplyDeleteI think either Austin or Rock could manage a decent twenty-minute match with the right opponent. I don't think Orton or HHH is the right opponent. Austin/Punk or Rock/HBK, however unlikely, would both be WM Main Event caliber in terms of both star power and workrate, I suspect.
ReplyDeleteAgain, I don;t understand how they get to Vince as a "face" in this angle unless HHH kayfabe tries to BURY Vince's most prized possession in Cena as being "best for business" or something. That would be a hilarious twist where the smarks actually cheer the intentions of the heel. But as it is right now, Vince is ecstatic with the kayfabe burial of Bryan. They have a LOOONG way to go to get there.
ReplyDeleteAustin on and off teases a return on the podcast.
ReplyDeleteI know so many other wrestlers said they were done wrestling and came back, but none of them had any other way to pay the bills. If Rock says he's done, he's done. (I know he came back once before but he had never said he wouldn't wrestle again). He has no other reason to get in the ring again. I'm sure he'll do another appearance at some point.
ReplyDeleteAustin on the other hand has said he'd do another match eventually. I get the feeling he's just shrewd enough to know to wait it out until the other guys from his era are gone so he seems different. I could really see him holding out another 5 years or more and doing a Terry Funk type badass old man gimmick. I'd love that shit.
Are we all missing the obvious ending here... D-Bry vs. HHH. Bryan can finally win the belt back from Orton and carry it to the Rumble when HHH has no choice but to employ another past-rival Brock Lesnar to recapture the belt from Bryan. Lesnar wins the belt at the Rumble, while Punk wins the Royal Rumble match to set up the rematch. Cena returns at the ppv with a huge announcement: his injury has put his career in perspective and he wants the one achievement he has not attained, and NO ONE has... The Streak. Boom: the Rumble sets up Wrestlemania XXX's big 3: Taker/Cena, Bryan/HHH, WWE (c) Lesnar/Punk I'd buy it
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately, I don't see HHH getting his ass handed to anyone outside of John Cena, which is why I hate COOHHH as much as the wrestler HHH.
ReplyDeleteNow, now - I'm ready for the IWC to start penciling Austin vs. Punk for WM for the 8th year in a row.
ReplyDeleteHHH is gonna get more and more over the top in his corporate role. Vince is gonna come back to "save us from the power hungry HHH" and align himself with a top face. Whether we like it is not, that's how they'll get there.
ReplyDeleteAustin may not have the Rock's movie career, but he doesn't seem to be in desperate straits either.
ReplyDeleteHe's had neck surgery and has two bad knees. He's not coming back.
I agree with this. How many more times is someone going to suggest an Austin comeback? Or a Dolph Ziggler push?
ReplyDeleteWhile we're at it, let's all suggest reverting back to TV-14, or a Cena heel turn, or an Evolution reunion, or TNA folding, or a Samoa Joe signing, or a Chris Benoit push...
ReplyDelete*IF* you were going to do one more Austin match (and I agree with the "let it go" school of thought), Shawn Michaels would make the best partner. He could do the body of the match, make the hot tag to Austin who hits stunners on everybody and ends the match.
ReplyDeleteI posted a similar scenario in the Raw thread last week. If that's not the direction they're going they're nuts.
ReplyDeleteMore importantly, it would get in the way of his podcast.
ReplyDeleteAnd, as much as I would love to see Austin doing his thing again, I'm willing to bet I get more enjoyment out of his podcast than I would seeing him in a match at this point. The one where he 'interviewed Stone Cold' was amazing.
ReplyDeleteWell, WWE has already checked "resurrect Corporate Champion gimmick" off the list of IWC booking persistencies.
ReplyDeleteOnly ones remaining are the two you mentioned, and "Reform the Nation of Domination," "#28 and #29 eliminate each other and then #30 walks in and wins," and "Zach Gowen is entered into the Rumble yet, despite being eliminated, is declared the winner because only one of his feet are capable of hitting the floor."
I wish these were ideas I only ever came across once or twice.
Austin/Punk has been a Internet pipe dream for something like 4 Wrestlemanias in a row. I think it's time to close the book on that one.
ReplyDeleteAs for Rock/HBK....HBK apparently has no interest in coming back either :-).
Honestly, I get why these matches have appeal, but I'd rather that WM be built around active wrestlers, instead of being an old-timer's show.
I wasn't suggesting that either was likely, only that both would be viable, and watchable as opposed to watching three forty+ year old guys lay around for eighty percent of the match while Orton flops around doing his tired "viper" schtick.
ReplyDeleteMichaels apparently has little interest in returning either.
ReplyDeleteWhen he was beat up as part of the Brock/HHH feud, most of it happened off-camera, I thought that was because Shawn didn't want to take any more bumps?
This is great. You can have DBry win the title at either this PPV or the next one, you have the inevitable Survivor Series tag match, something something something for the December PPV and then the scenario you laid out. I hope this is what happens. Everyone gets over.
ReplyDeleteYeah, I think depending on exactly how beat up Punk is, he could carry Austin to a good match - I just don't think it's going to happen.
ReplyDeleteAs for Rock/Michaels - that one is more of a reach. Both guys are injured, and I think Michaels has enough pride in his WM appearances that he wouldn't want to do one unless he was 100%. And Rock apparently doesn't like Michaels much and isn't interested in working with him.
Phew, it's been about 2 hours since we've had someone complain about HHH never putting anyone over. I was worried nobody would bring it up.
ReplyDeleteI mean, HBK went out as the best wrestler in the world, so even if he's lost a step he's probably still top ten. And we learned from his comeback match in 2002 that time off doesn't really influence his timing, psychology, etc.
ReplyDeleteRock's contradicted himself on that over the years. During HBK's first retirement he did bitch about HBK trying to get Hunter pushed above him, but when he gave his speech at the HOF whatever year that was, he listed HBK as one of the only three people he still wanted to wrestle (along with Cena, who he did wrestle, and Rey Mysterio, who no one really wants to see him wrestle). HBK might actually be permanently retired, but then again, he was apparently supposed to face Trips at Mania 29 until they got Brock, so who knows?
So, yeah, the match will probably never happen... but if it did, it'd probably still easily break ****, and the promos would be incendiary.
I argued a few weeks back in the comments that Austin couldn't work another match, and I got tons of "but he's in the best shape of his life" and "he wants to work one more money match!". Now we all think he can't work again? C'mon, IWC, I expect at least as much consistency as WWE booking.
ReplyDeleteThe *real* money match would be Lesnar (with the McMahons in his corner) vs. Bryan (with Punk in his corner). But that's just me.
Yeah, I don't think either of them are coming back.
ReplyDeleteWith Punk in his corner? You mean that's what Punk should be doing at Mania, be Bryan's manager?
ReplyDelete"It's our biggest show of the year! Let's take one of our most popular babyfaces and best wrestlers and make him the manager!"
ReplyDeleteHmmm...sounds like something WCW would have done in the mid 90s.
I was thinking similar thoughts and approve your post. other things you can do with this: pair Punk and D-bry, after D-bry is firmly established and it won't be a heat leeching deal, as the two guys going after the corporaHHHion, which gives them enough of an advantage that Trips goes fullest of full sellouts and makes a deal with Heyman to get Brock on his side. Brock is the dreamiest of champions for fake HHH, so it makes sense to me.
ReplyDeleteRock and HBK may have patched things up. Probably more of a 'change of mind' rather 'contradiction'.
ReplyDeleteLots of people hated Shawn before his first retirement, he seems to have made amends over the years.
EN ESPANOOOOOOOOOLLLLLLLLLLLL!!!!!
ReplyDeleteShouldn't it be Orton getting his assed kicked to pay this whole thing off? I mean, Austin beat the piss out of Vince to finally get to The Rock. That's where this thing has the potential to turn into the Triple H Show again - Triple H is firmly established as being better than all involved so even though Orton's the guy who has the title defeating Triple H is the real challenge. It should be Orton losing the title while Triple H moves into the phase of his career where he wrestles matches for control of the company and the like...
ReplyDeleteI could listen to him read the commercials all day.
ReplyDeleteOh yeah Austin doesn't need to and if the timing isn't ever right he won't. But I'm just saying he said at one point he might. Seems like every episode of his show he talks about how hard it is to "get in to get out" and the pull wrestling has on him. He definitely misses it. But he's smart enough to know to pick his spot. Like I said, shrewd.
ReplyDelete"And anything with two legs and a pair of tits walks by and your damn flagpole'll be at full ass salute and I ain't bullshittin'!"
ReplyDeleteI think Punk should be in his own match, too. hey, Vince did double duty in WMX7.
ReplyDeleteIf they ever booked Lesnar/Bryan, as great as the match would be, i'd go blue in the face arguing with people about their stupid hangup about Brock being so much bigger. Even though if it were UFC they'd be in the same weight class. Still. Fuck. That would be so awesome.
ReplyDeleteThose are the only logical outcomes of the current storylines. HHH needs to tap out to Bryan’s YES Lock. No title would be required for that match. Neither Vince nor HHH need to turn babyface ever again.
ReplyDeletePunk taking the belt (and revenge) from monster WWE Champion BROCK LESNAR is such a beautiful thought that it simply needs to happen. The only way that Punk-Brock II would not happen is if Taker says he still wants Brock (or vice versa).
Taker-Cena just sounds like the right money match to have at WM XXX. Cena is the last credible threat to The Streak.
With his newly regained Main Event status, Orton will probably feud with a returning Cody Rhodes and put him over clean, for what it’s worth.
Austin-Punk could still happen on WM 31 or 32 (any time after Punk-Bryan for the WWE title).
"Watch WWE Raw... EN ESPANOOOOOOOOOLLLLLLLLLLLL!!!!!"
ReplyDelete'You don't have your finger on the pulse of this business anymore, Dad'
ReplyDelete[Pedigree]
Face Vince
Am I the only one who wants Shawn to stay retired?
ReplyDeleteWell aparently he started doing DDP yoga
ReplyDelete