Hey Scott.
This was tweeted by The Rock earlier today:
"Mania may have been my last match. The 3 year goal was to come in & elevate the @WWE. Then proudly "do the honors". #RockTalk"
So, yeah. Rock's probably done. Again.
Any thoughts?
I made my peace with him leaving in 2004 and everything else is just gravy anyway.
It was painfully obvious after the WM29 match that he was done. I couldnt have been the only person to notice that
ReplyDeleteWhat a shitty way to go out. You can see it in his face when he's holding up Cena's arm at the end of Mania, with the crowd crapping all over them.
ReplyDeleteDid he really eleveate the WWE?
ReplyDelete72 Million million dollars can buy you a lot of "elevation".
ReplyDeleteI don't know if it was obvious to me that he was done, but it really didn't look like he was enjoying himself. The whole thing with Cena (the salute, etc) was really forced and it looked like he was going through the motions. This last run saw him face to 2 top guys in the company. Not much else for him to do.
ReplyDeleteThis is the time where "I'm never going away" comment will come back to haunt him.
ReplyDeleteExcept end "The Streak".
ReplyDeleteA wrestler said that he's retiring. We should all believe this 100%.
ReplyDeleteIf The Rock really is done, where does the WWE go from here in regards to WrestleMania 30? I hope they can somehow manage to build more stars this year because barring a Steve Austin return, next year's show seems to have no huge main events other than Cena against the Streak.
ReplyDeleteYou don't need any other matches on the card if Cena/Taker is headlining.
ReplyDeleteRather than doing the job for Cena at Wrestlemania, I'd rather the Rock done the job for Punk or someone else the WWE wants to solidify as a big name going forward. Cena's getting long in the tooth and while he may be the face of the company now, he can't realistically be the biggest star forever. I think the best investment with the Rock would have been to use his star power to put over someone who could have benefited from it like Punk or Ryback. I know this isn't a new thought, but short term thinking always bothers me.
ReplyDeleteSo was it worth it? Was this three experiment worth it? I'm not being sarcastic, I'm legitimately asking. Is Rock's legacy somehow lessened by the last three years?
ReplyDeleteLast match doesn't mean last appearance.
ReplyDeleteI think he's more concerned about his bank account.
ReplyDeleteWhy was there not a press release for this?
ReplyDeleteI dont think it was lessened at all. Got some fun 3 star matches out of him, and a good WM Main event (28). I dont think anyone expected him to come in and give us bonafide classics
ReplyDeleteThe Rock's final match should have been Stone Cold in 2003. I'd rather remember him in an era before WWE became an embarrassment.
ReplyDeleteIf it was the average guy who doesnt already have a secondary job locked in making millions, than yea I can agree, but Rock's movie career is good to go and he wont ever NEED wrestling again like a Ric Flair would
ReplyDeleteI'm sure he'll be back - Wrestlers have a hard time "leaving" even if they have a fancy pants movie career to fall back on. That said if The Rock starts looking any more like George Takei I am going to stop taking him seriously.
ReplyDeleteAlso his promo against the Rhode Scholars was awesome.
It wasn't worth it (from an entertainment standpoint), but I don't think it lessens his legacy. The Rock back in the day was THE MAN no matter what he gets up to nowadays.
ReplyDeleteI think he also realizes that his skills have atrophied greatly. Despite staying in great shape and working out constantly, not wrestling for 8 years means you have to be diligent about getting back into the swing of things again. He had a decent match coming back last year, but he wasn't as busy this point last year. So this year he had to juggle wrestling with working on like 4 movies at the same time, so he's been distracted and off his game. If he wrestled more of a cycle like HBK did coming back (only TV and PPVs) he'd have his rhythm back I think...but not now.
ReplyDeleteHe shoulda jobbed to Cena the first time.
ReplyDeleteHe's got 5 movies that have either come out or going to come out and a reality show. His plate is full.
ReplyDeleteYou mean we shouldn't believe anytime Terry Funk says he's retiring?
ReplyDeleteI don't know -- no wrestler has had quite this much of a fancy pants movie career before, I think we're in uncharted territory here. I think he's more likely to come back if that career goes in the toilet, but otherwise I think he'll stick with his day job.
ReplyDeleteAgreed. It was both a poor last image for Rock and a bad way to end a WM to boot.
ReplyDeleteI think it had its moments. It never reached the level of excitement for me that I'dhoped, but it was ok overall. The WM match is really the only part that left a bad taste in my mouth, everything else was at least decent.
ReplyDeleteRock just cut a 140 character promo teasing retirement. How soon before Brock and/or Triple H, Punk, etc. call him out as a whiny loser who can't hack it and was forced into retirement by Cena to set up a match at WM 30?
ReplyDeleteassuming his presence made a difference in buys. We don't know that for certain, however it isn't like anyone is going to do a real scientific poll or research about WM buyers
ReplyDeleteYeah, but peoples concern about elevation is a little bit silly.
ReplyDeleteBoth WWE and Rocky made a a shit-ton of money off of this. I really doubt if they're legitimately concerned about legacies or lasting moments.
As a fan, yes, artistic presentation matters, but Rock has never seemed to be the artiste type. He is the fried chicken of wrestling. Easy to enjoy and simple to get.
But I don't think just a Cena/Taker main event without another huge match will break any records, which seems to be the WWE's goal of lately
ReplyDeleteYeah it's hard to say. They had Brock, it was WM, and the other shows he appeared on, the RAWs and PPVs mostly did respectable improvements over the averages but not overwhelmingly so. Plus we don't know how much the paid him.
ReplyDeleteMost likely, any elevation was short term only I'd say. The RAW numbers are back down to their usual levels and I expect the buyrates to follow suit.
The Rock has always been a better personality than worker, so for me his appeal is in making a few appearances & talking. Having him in the ring again isn't necessary. He can still make appearances at shows until he's old and gray. Tremendous in-ring career as well, but I don't need to see him wrestle again.
ReplyDeleteGood point, I think they can probably get more bang for their buck too.
ReplyDeleteEmbarrassment!
ReplyDeletePunk is one year younger than Cena and arguably more beat up.
ReplyDeleteAlright, substitute Ryback or Barrett or whomever you like. Although, I still think the WWE could have made more money in the long term had Punk returned the job to Punk instead of Cena.
ReplyDeleteI still stand by my opinion that a few matches on TV would have done a world of good. Jumping right into 25 minute main events in admirable but also stupid.
ReplyDeleteI didn't enjoy the Rock's return, but I don't see how it could (or should) tarnish his legacy. Maybe very, very new fans will wonder what the fuss was about, but they're no different than fans a few years older who wondered that about Flair, or fans a few years older again, who wondered it about Andre the Giant. Anyone who sees these elite performers across the breadth of their careers (or bothers to seek out the footage) will get it.
ReplyDeleteYou can have:
ReplyDeleteCena/Taker
HHH/Brock VII for the WWE Title
12 Video Packages for those matches
HoF Induction Segment
Divas Match
Jobber Battle Royale featuring the regular roster for the World Heavyweight Title (May be bumped to preshow or the following SD taping)
Good. They can give Austin his money for a main event match with CM Punk next year. EVERYBODY WINS!
ReplyDeleteHas Austin shown any interest in having another match?
ReplyDeleteNot only has he shown no interest, he has said it absolutely cannot happen.
ReplyDeletePunk/Austin is as likely as Punk/Andre.
ReplyDeleteHaha that sounds about right. Just add a musical performance from some hot, new rapper such as DMX or Nelly and you've got WrestleMania!
ReplyDeleteI can't speak on who is more beat up physically, but in "TV years" Cena is old. he has been on top and featured longer than any wrestler in history. Guys like Flair, Bruno, or Hogan who had long runs were rarely on TV and even had skimpier house show schedules. Cena has been on TV every week (and sometimes twice) for 9-10 years, most of which he has been the focal point. He's the equivalent of Hogan or flair circa 94, on their last legs and needing freshening up.
ReplyDeleteHe said that? Hmm.
ReplyDeleteRyback is only 3 years younger than Punk and was out for about a decade with a broken ankle.
ReplyDeleteI'd like to see him slim down a bit (maybe not to 2004 levels, but at least 2002 levels) and come back to wrestle some younger guys.
ReplyDeleteOtherwise, I sort of agree.
People only see the match after they buy the PPV? Why risk exposing the Rock as busted when you can hide his decay and sucker people into paying for a shitty match.
ReplyDeleteThat is a dirty, stinking lie.
ReplyDeleteBull. Shit.
ReplyDeleteShow me a link
and seeing how much trouble WWE has maintaining a decent rating to their liking, a Rock match would of been HUGE.
ReplyDeleteSo never then?
ReplyDeleteI'm glad he did the honors for Cena. Now hopefully Cena can be taken as a main event threat, win a title or two, and help make the WWE a couple dollars. It's a long shot, I know. But thankfully The Rock passed the torch to a guy who needs, and hasn't been doing a full body burn for the last 8 years.
ReplyDeleteI didn't enjoy Rock's come back besides the WrestleMania 28 match. Nonetheless I'm happy he did it. He's a nice guy, who loves wrestling, and wanted to help it out one more time with his brand new Hollywood star. Did he live up to the old Rock? No his body wasn't in any kind of shape to be the trailblazing--alalalalalow-eyebrow raising-smackdown laying people's champ of old. Even though he did not live up to the standard he had set a decade prior, I appreciate him coming back for this run. I wanted to see it and I'm glad he did it. Regardless of how I enjoyed the matches or promos.
ReplyDeleteI've heard him say that his body could handle another year or two full time. But it seems like in his heart and mind he's not dying to return.
ReplyDeleteYou've got to keep Rock a special attraction. That's why Brock never wrestled on TV either. You want to see them? $70 please.
ReplyDeleteMain event threat? Title or two? Passed the torch?
ReplyDeleteLoving the sarcasm here.
I don't think so. I didn't care for any of the matches(besides WM 28 ****) but none of them were atrociously bad. And while most of his promos were formulaic, during the Punk feud he turned it up enough to prove to me he could still go.
ReplyDeleteThe troubling thing might be that the fans started to turn on him at the end. Punk got a lot of cheers during their match but that's to be expected. But at WrestleMania both him and Cena got lots of boos.
Well, his movie career won't last forever, although lots of guys that have his range of abilities and do the type of movies he does have stuck around for a long time.
ReplyDeleteJust think, in 10 years John Cena will be passing the torch to Randy Orton.
ReplyDeleteThat Rhodes Scholars promo was indeed fantastic.
ReplyDeleteYep. That would be a pretty easy and logical set-up. I can dig it.
ReplyDeleteWhy wouldn't he be?
ReplyDeleteSugarhill Gang
ReplyDeleteYeah, that will be a true "dream match". I'd love to see Brock vs. Punk on there too.
ReplyDeleteI've said it before but a Mania headlined by Taker-Cena, Austin-Punk, and Brock-Rock would crush everything.
ReplyDeleteYeah. He's great for the "guest host" kind of stuff. He's a good "hype man" for episodes of Raw and/or PPVs. Hell, they can make him an ambassador or sorts and bring back "Rock Bottom" as a PPV brand. Rock hosts the show and "books" the card. "The People's PPV" sort of deal. They can get the benefit of his Hollywood rub without him having to wrestle
ReplyDeleteI'm not condemning him at all. Money's real. Respect and "legacies" don't put food in your mouth or gas in the car.
ReplyDeleteI came with peace with Hogan after the Anne Russo incident. I try not to think about the other stuff he's been doing since.
ReplyDeleteAlright, so don't have the Rock elevate anyone, then. You guys really take the fun out of hypotheticals.
ReplyDeleteHe was injured. Dude was probably trying his best to hide it. He didn't want the last image of his final WrestleMania to be him going "OH MY GOD I'M IN HORRIBLE PAIN! SOMEBODY GET THE JAWS OF LIFE!"
ReplyDeleteI think putting Cena over probably did more harm to Rock than it did good to Cena. I didn't take the fans shitting on them at Wrestlemania to be because they didn't like Rock, I took it as them booing him for taking part in the same old shit.
ReplyDeleteI really think they could have just put Rock over Cena, let him be on his way, and Cena would be no worse for wear. Half the crowd hates him and doesn't take him seriously anyway. They've done everything they could possibly do to make people like him - multiple time champion, he's beaten everyone, he defends women, he defends America, he defends your local sports team, he tells you it doesn't bother him if you hate him as long as it makes you happy....putting him over Rock wasn't going to make a Cena hater into a Cena fan.
Or maybe you've touched on the problem with "elevating" guys.
ReplyDeleteWrestling is an incredibly hard business to predict.
I liked pretty much everything the Rock did in his comeback that didn't involve Cena...the only problem was that 80% of his comeback involved Cena. The feud with Punk was good and led to some red-hot promos and segments (if the matches themselves weren't anything special). His comedy segments with the Rhodes Scholars were very amusing, sort of the 'old Rock' type of humour when it's just him ripping on an arrogant heel.
ReplyDeleteIf we'd seen more of Rock interacting with the roster at large, he could've gotten a number of acts over rather than putting all his eggs into the Cena basket.
Rock probably realized what Batista did years ago, WWE's approach to making matches happen suck now. Every build is the same old shit, if Paul Bearer didn't die all we know is Punk won a 4 way to fight the Undertaker, same garbage as every number one contenders match.
ReplyDelete...except that he didn't elevate jack shit. And no, his most recent runs have not been gravy, and if so, they've been lumpy, moldy, dirty gravy.
ReplyDeleteHe Mick Foleyed it.
ReplyDeleteY'know, like in that match with Vader, where a spot went wrong and he didn't want to stop the match cause it'd make him look like a pussy.
Nope. WWE is not in any better position now than they were without Rock. The money they earned won't go towards anything except their usual chugging along. WWE is in exactly the same place creatively and "culturally" it was before Rock came back.
ReplyDeleteBut I think it'll last long enough for him not to have to crawl back to Wrestling. I have no doubt in my mind as long as he keeps the good looks and muscles, the roles will keep coming in.
ReplyDeleteTitle vs. Streak
ReplyDelete(c) John Cena vs. The Undertaker
"Stone Cold" Steve Austin vs. CM Punk
World Heavyweight Championship
(c) Dolph Ziggler vs. Chris Jericho
Shawn Michaels vs. Brock Lesnar
Hell in a Cell
Kane vs. Daniel Bryan
Triple Threat #1 Contender's (WWE Title) Match
Dean Ambrose vs.Seth Rollins vs. Roman Reigns
Intercontinental/United States Title Unification Match
(c) Randy Orton vs. (c) Sheamus
Fatal 4-Way #1 Contender's (World Title) Match
Big Show vs. Mark Henry vs. Ryback vs. Alberto Del Rio
Fandango vs. Rey Mysterio
If Ric Flair is still referred to as the Greatest of All-Time (which he is, by most) after jobbing to Rico and tag-teaming with Carlito, I don't think a two Wrestlemania Main Events and a (slightly disappointing) feud with CM Punk are going to do Rock's legacy any lasting damage.
ReplyDeleteI figured Rock was done when he bailed on the Lesnar angle. If he knew he was going to be back for sure, he could've done a lighter version of the beatdown with no issue. But if you have a question mark on that, why would you want your last memory as a physical competitor being "retired" by Brock vs. kayfabe going out on your own terms?
ReplyDeleteIf you read news that Terry Funk died, you should wait three months just to be sure.
ReplyDeleteAnd why didn't I look at the username before? M.C., is that you?
ReplyDelete