http://camelclutchblog.com/aj-styles-moves-dixie/
Sounded pretty passive-aggressive on AJ's part. Sounds like '97 Bret "I didn't WANT to leave" levels of disappointment, minus the public fuckjob.
Given hindsight, he should have left long before and taken his chances in the WWE development system.
No, UPN is a channel that has turned into nothing more than a syndication graveyard.
ReplyDeleteTo be honest, wouldn't AJ be in the same conversation as Punk/Bryan if he was firmly entrenched in WWE at this point? Don't get me wrong, it's entirely possible that AJ wouldn't catch fire the way Punk and Bryan did, but I just feel like he would be in midcard purgatory at this point. Quite honestly, do you really want to be associated with guys like Kofi and The Miz, who seem to be perfectly content with their spot on the card?
ReplyDeleteYeah, they don't have enough cash to be able to hold grudges.
ReplyDeleteIt's hard to have people skills when you deal with the likes of Nash, Hogan, Bischoff, and Russo.
ReplyDeletePTW had a run on Tuesday for a while (I think in 1991)and then went back to Monday. I wonder why they didn't just ride it out then.
ReplyDeleteIt's probably the same when they read your screen name too. :oP
ReplyDeleteI could see him as a mid carder in WWE, but if he was there long enough, he could easily have gotten a small main event run a la Christian style.
ReplyDeleteMonday Night Football's kind of a Litmus Test for WWE's popularity, now that I think about it. Now, Raw will never beat MNF in the ratings, even if they're going up against the Browns and Dolphins. However, from 98-2000, the NFL used to be concerned about Raw and Nitro taking away from their audience, whereas now it's the other way around.
ReplyDeleteHey, at least it's not the WBF.
ReplyDeleteTAKE A LOOK AT GARY STRYDOM'S DELTS, IF YOU WOULD.
It was really weird and awesome. I was watching the satellite feed.
ReplyDeleteThey do some weird stuff during the commercial breaks on the Sattelite feed. But yeah. During the Shield match a CM Punk chant broke out and Rollins grabbed a microphone and yelled that at the crowd. I was blown away.
It's a shame nobody else saw it!
I wonder if the WWE would want him to change his name - can't have two prominent AJs on the show, after all. Which would mean he'd either need to get his tattoo covered up or just 'romance' AJ Lee and pretend it's for her ;)
ReplyDeleteThe Sullivan 2000 era was one of the worst periods in wrestling. Of course I don't know how much control he had or if he was told that they wanted to go back to the 80s and make Hulk Hogan the focal point of the promotion and he did the best he could out of a bad situation.
ReplyDeleteOf course they would have, because being a WWE castoff is the #1 thing they are looking for in their world champ! I would have loved the inevitable Joe/UUU-MAGAAAAAA feud also.
ReplyDeleteI think he falls under that Russo mold of needing that filter. He's a really creative guy but he should not have final say over anything.
ReplyDeleteMaybe. There's been cases of irreversible damage to a show's fanbase by moving it, but you never know until you move it out of TV purgatory. Still, it's not just SD. I used that as an example in the same industry.
ReplyDeleteThere's been countless network TV shows with ratings comparable to Raw that died after being pinballed around the schedule. Why?
Because people are creatures of habit. Before I cut the cord on cable, I lazily half-watched Raw, mainly as background noise. Why? Because it was Monday and Monday was wrestling night.
Move it to Tuesday and put it up against a show I enjoyed and considered appointment viewing on Tuesdays. Archer or Modern Family, perhaps. Am I going to skip appointment viewing to watch something I wasn't REALLY watching in the first place? Not a chance. It's not in line with the habit. Monday is wrestling night, Tuesday is sitcom night.
Look at some of the most popular shows of all time. Seinfeld. Friends.
When NBC would have to move them for a week, they'd promote the shit out of it, because they knew they were going to lose viewers and wanted to minimize the damage. But wouldn't the millions of fans follow the show for a week to the alternate timeslot? Nope. Because it's not the habit. 8 PM Thursday is Friends time and 9 PM is Seinfeld time.
Look at the NFL. When they have to do the rare Thursday game because of scheduling issues, football fans (who are the first to complain about no Saturday games) grump and grouse about it. It's not because they didn't know and weren't prepared. The NFL promotes the Thursday game so that you HAVE to know it's coming. They do that because they know that game is going to lose viewers and the reason why (as well as the reason for the grumping and grousing) is because Thursday is not football night. Sunday and Monday are.
And this is if you're a single, lazy, shiftless asshole who just has other TV shows to watch.
Add a spouse. Add kids. Add romantic time with your SO. Homework. Family dinner.
Now it's not "do I watch Raw or Modern Family?" anymore. Now it's a LOT more complicated. Any small shift to the routine throws EVERYTHING off balance.
Timeslots matter. BIG time.
Taskmaster Benoit gab 96 rules!
ReplyDeleteBack in the early/mid 2000's I thought it was a bad idea for guys like AJ and Joe to come to the WWE given how they treated London/Kendrick, but later on we learned that London/Kendrick probably fucked things up for themselves given that they made Punk/Bryan into big stars.
ReplyDeleteWasn't the Umaga gimmick supposed to go to Joe before he decided not to jump?
ReplyDeleteTuesday, RAW Tuesday!
ReplyDeleteHey abcs tgif begs to differ...
ReplyDeleteat least those were the rumors.
ReplyDeleteThe irony being that only then he would have got a decent push and a title reign
ReplyDeleteExcept ya know, wwe has shown zero interest in him even when he was fresh and new when wcw folded.
ReplyDeleteCourt Bauer on MLW Radio (he was the WWE writer that wrote all the stuff for Umaga) said that the Umaga gimmick was never meant for Joe.
ReplyDeleteThis may have been said below, so if it was, my apologies...but Punk doesn't believe in depression. Says it's not really a thing (said on Colt's podcast). So you would never get him to admit that he's having that issue.
ReplyDeleteAJ would never have made it in developmental. His skill set isn't THAT unique (which isn't to say he has no talent, but he's not one of a kind) and he talks like he just ate a peanut butter and marble sandwich.
ReplyDeleteI don't have an opinion either way on AJ Styles, but I do enjoy the PB&M visual.
ReplyDeleteSullivan was fairly fucked at this point due to having to somehow please about 10 different people at all times.
ReplyDeleteCan wwe developmental teach charisma? Because styles has none.
ReplyDeleteIt would just be cool to see WWE bring in a guy who made his name in another company and then actually acknowledge him as such. I'm so nostalgic for the days when we might here something like, "Who's that? Oh my god, it's AJ Styles! That's AJ Styles!!! But what is he doing here?!?!"
ReplyDeleteYeah, he's got some physical presence, but it all goes to shit when he opens his mouth and all you hear are banjos, moonshine bottles clinking and your relatives down yonder holler a-hootin' n' a-hollerin'.
ReplyDeleteSame thing that's gonna kill Adrian Neville if he can't pull it together.
I believe it must be pointed out again that Stephanie looked totally do-able again this week...right up to the point where she started to talk.
ReplyDeleteAnd Ziggler has been completely destroyed. I say team him with Christian for the next year and get them over as a team.
And I thought for certain that Big E was going to answer Ambrose's challenge and unify the worthless tier-two belts. Hopefully that's coming soon.
And if we're building to Bryan v. Kane for WrestleMania, then the creative staff is even stupider than I thought.
AJ should join the Wyatts as cousin Jeb, the worker of the group!
ReplyDeleteIt's worse than that. Jeff Hardy cuts an unimaginably shitty promo also. But he's got fucking presence. Styles just doesn't move the needle at all.
ReplyDeleteProbably because he isn't suffering from depression.
ReplyDeleteI don't think London was going to do anything special but The Brian Kendrick had potential to be a star if he behaved himself.
ReplyDeleteBenoit/Sullivan isn't 5 stars. It's 4 star work combined with 5 star commentary (DERS A LADY! DERS A LADY IN DA MEENS BADROOM!!!).
ReplyDeleteBest commentary ever. 92 Rumble can't measure up to this.
Your mom manages it
ReplyDeleteSo, you're longing for "What's *Insert WWE castoff here* doing in the Impact Zone?
ReplyDeleteI think WWE handles this kind of stuff great. They don't acknowledge any history from past promotions, which makes their brand feel like the only one that matters. While TNA looks extremely bush league always acknowledging WWE.
Dude, she's in a coma. Not cool.
ReplyDeleteYou really made an ass of yourself.
ReplyDeleteThe NHL acknowledging goals scored in the American Hockey league doesn't make them seem bush league. The AHL is a minor league.
ReplyDeleteThe UFC acknoledging MMA record outside their company doesn't make them appear equal. Everyone knows who number one is.
This is true for any sport anywhere. Pretending the minor leagues don't exist like you're afraid of other entities is way more bush league then a quick "Daniel Bryan has one titles all over the world in promotions like ROH"
saw that tna is adding a monthly ppv back into the schedule (sacrifice) in april. i wonder if they're thinking that wrestling fans will have more money to spend on them since the wwe network is going to save money for people buying wwe ppv's
ReplyDeleteBobby Heenan opens dressing room door. A man with bleach blond hair walks out.
ReplyDeleteGorilla Monsoon: Who's this youngster?
Okay, I see it. That would have been far less bush league.
they DO acknowledge the past of the "indepedent stars". Cole and others have mentioned several times that guys like Punk and Bryan were huge in the "minor leagues".
ReplyDelete'I believe it must be pointed out again that Stephanie looked totally
ReplyDeletedo-able again this week...right up to the point where she started to
talk"
i knew it would be that way even before she talked. ugh.
but seriously, she's been sexin' it up lately. her shorter skirts, snug clothes, and "fuck me" boots
'I believe it must be pointed out again that Stephanie looked totally do-able again this week...right up to the point where she started to
ReplyDeletetalk"
i knew it would be that way even before she talked
but seriously, she's been sexin' it up lately. her shorter skirts, snug clothes, and "fuck me" boots
so you have christian, who is very over with the crowd, is a hard worker, a veteran, someone who has that "part time main event status" stuff...
ReplyDelete... and your big angle for his return is that he's ugly
ok then
AJ coming in as backup for Bryan or an ally of Punk if he comes back, would make so much sense, that it won't happen. He wouldn't have to talk a ton if he was allied with one of those guys.
ReplyDeleteIf you think that WWE is more bush league than TNA when it comes to acknowledging other promotions, then... WOW...
ReplyDeleteI think he ended up doing pretty well for himself in TNA and the indies, so he was probably right not to take his chances
ReplyDeleteBig E and Henry had that little tag team thing going, so this could be a lead-in to a unification. It could also be Random Matchmaking Example #48364.
ReplyDeleteThe biggest upside I can see if that they can follow up a hot PPV (remember when those used to happen) with a Raw the very next night. One additional day might not seem like a huge deal, but it really could have a negative impact on the momentum of the follow up show.
ReplyDeleteI wonder how many hours Bray Wyatt spent watching old Kevin Sullivan promos?
ReplyDeleteThat definitely sounds like something Vince would say.
ReplyDeleteSullivan was fucked from both sides. All the undercard guys hated him and I doubt the top guys ever heard a word he said.
ReplyDeleteIMO, commentary factors into a match rating, along with the storyline and crowd. 5 stars all the way around.
ReplyDeleteI agree. WWE is clearly number one, so why not mention that this guy has traveled the world and won titles in Indie Promotion A or Japanese Promotion B. I don't know how a casual fan would take it, but I would take it as a way to point out that WWE is the big leagues, and even champions from elsewhere strive to be there.
ReplyDeleteI'd guess that part of it is the same reason why WWE doesn't like the term pro-wrestling. They want to exist in their own little entertainment bubble and separate themselves from the pro-wrestling world at large. That has it's own merits, but to me, playing up the fact that WWE is the top player in the pro-wrestling world would be more interesting.
I also wonder how much of that viewpoint is purely Vince's (and Vince's guys) and how much it may change when HHH/Steph finally and truly take over.
Yeah, Orton should have punted HHH in the skull right after HHH helped him get the belt, to show that he's even more ruthless and devious than his mentor, and that he's not HHH's chump lackey any more.
ReplyDeleteHe's got enough signature spots where the "Vintage Styles" shit would drive me crazy. I'm kinda glad he never made it to WWE for that reason alone.
ReplyDeleteI admit what I wrote is a theory, but Punk's been acting bizarre by his standards lately. Whatever's going on is not normal.
ReplyDeleteWhen every name with a guaranteed contract has say in their character's storylines, then I'd rather not be in charge of booking/creative. Not an enviable position for anyone during those years of WCW's existence.
ReplyDeleteI think that's a reasonable philosophy but I don't entirely agree with it. Matches like major PPV main events should be expected to hold up over time at least reasonably well, since they will be put out on DVD/Blu-ray based on the idea that they're something someone wants to see again. Also, the fact that a great match will often be called "one for the ages" implies that ages from now it could still be watched and enjoyed.
ReplyDeleteYeah, and the thing is, he's not even that ugly. He just looks like some guy.
ReplyDeleteThe thought of the Roger Goodell offering to move Raw when it destroys Raw in the ratings every week is the funniest thing I've read in a while.
ReplyDeleteAs for Tuesdays - isn't there a rumor floating around of SmackDown going live every week to boost those ratings? May have just been a negotiating ploy but if that happens, you could see SmackDown slide into that Tuesday night slot.
And while football crushes Raw on Monday nights, the ratings don't go down that much to necessitate a change, which would probably do more harm than good.
The thing that'll bite them on the ass there is that people are going to have a whole lot more wrestling to watch, for (essentially) free. Why on earth would you pay for more TNA in that circumstance?
ReplyDeleteThey had a much, much deeper (and bigger) roster at that point, though. Styles fits in better since he wouldn't be as ridiculously undersized now.
ReplyDelete"This author is trying really, really hard to sound as eloquent as possible. Thesaurus firmly in hand. It's kinda annoying."
ReplyDeleteDavid Shoemaker has a lot to answer for.
Wasn't he only the booker for like 3 months in early 2000 before Russo/Bischoff came back? Pretty Sullivan can't be blamed for the death of WCW.
ReplyDeleteAnd his stuff as booker in 1996 pre-nWo was pretty good.
RF Video announced that they filmed a shoot with him a few days ago that was over 4 hours long.
ReplyDeleteI have his new Highspots shoot and that wasn't that bad, actually. His first shoot was one of the worst that I have ever seen
He did make the right choice in TNA though. As he made money and has a pretty nice home too. He wouldn't have made that in the WWE. He would be teaming with some scrub there
AJ should have jumped years ago and that ridiculous tattoo is not doing him any favors. TNA never gave the homegrown loyal talent the proper chances to be the faces of the company and be a true alternative. There was a time in 2005-2006 where it looked like they were working towards transitioning the older stars out and the new stars up but it never came to fruition. Now guys like AJ, Joe, Daniels, Storm, Roode, abyss, etc are older and not really worth taking a chance on. I'd love to see AJ and Joe finally get a shot at the WWE but I don't really see them making much of an impact. No pun intended.
ReplyDeleteThe camera finds Eddie Guerrero, Dean Malenko, Saturn, and Chris Benoit in the crowd. They enter into a skirmish with Road Dogg and Billy Gunn.
ReplyDeleteJim Ross: What are those audience members doing? Who do they think they are, some kind of radicals?
Next week:
Al Snow enters the ring followed by EG, DM, S, & CB.
Al Snow: I saw some potential in these guys last week, so I spent the last 7 days training them to wrestle, and now they're here to help me fight DX.
"The show's actual title is Monday Night Raw."
ReplyDeleteyeah, and the company name is world wrestling ENTERTAINMENT, so obviously names mean jack shit!
Mongo was lulz but that heel turn was GLORIOUS.
ReplyDeletei'd venture a guess that part of any major disapproval of sullivan that scott had at the the time was related primarily to how benoit was treated booking-wise
ReplyDeletethat was last year
ReplyDelete"As I was leaving the Impact Zone for the last time I had a long talk with James Storm, who, with tears in his eyes, confided in me that I was always his favourite to watch and I deserved to be TNA Champion."
ReplyDeleteI think any booker has a shelf life of about 2 years maximum. At that point they need to be moved to another position, at least temporarily. The risk of a burnout is just too great. Bill Watts in Mid-South would cycle through bookers all the time.
ReplyDeleteWWE has taken this to the extreme with their writers.
ReplyDeleteHe helped booked both the Dungeon Of Doom angle & 2000 WCW. Keep him the hell away from my wrassling.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ruLQDpdQi4A
The biggest thing WWE did to undercut was TNA was a complete no sell of their talent. They employed the opposite of their usual talent raid strategy. This made TNA seem very bush league. Guys like AJ, Chris Harris, James Storm, etc, all former World Champs would have to toil in developmental and be given a name like "Deacon Hawk". Letting guys pop up on Raw and actually billing them as former champs would have made TNA look very credible. WWE buried them with this brilliant strategy. Nevermind is these guys could have made WWE money or not.
ReplyDeleteThe masked man who was stalking Undertaker's wife takes his mask off.
ReplyDelete"OH MY GAWD! THAT'S SOME GUY!"
I always thought AJ sounded like Butters from South Park.
ReplyDeletewhat if I told you that I don't use a thesaurus?
ReplyDeleteNo, I think TNA is way more bush league about it. Since they are a bush league, that makes sense.
ReplyDeleteWWE acknoleding others > WWE not acknowledging others > TNA doing anything in terms of not looking bush league
"just 'romance' AJ Lee and pretend it's for her ;)"
ReplyDeleteThat's actually an excellent angle idea. Make the crazy stalker the stalked
That's why I have trouble getting into Puro. Good commentary really is that icing on the cake. I think a big reason people look past Mankind/UT HIAC being a stunt fest is JR selling the hell out of it.
ReplyDeleteI don't think it mattered. TNA was not a big enough threat to begin with. If you waste good talent, it is stupid. TNA's problem has always been management and booking.
ReplyDeleteEverything I've read said WWE was never high on him and that he was "Too southern". And he just doesn't have the promo chops to prove them wrong.
ReplyDeleteIf I'm ROH I do what it takes to get an AJ Vs Punk match.
ReplyDeleteGreat call on that one!
ReplyDeleteJR begging for the brutality to stop and basically cringing along with every big spot just took it to another level.
I've said it before, but AJ Styles debuting as the newest "Paul Heyman Guy" to feud with Punk would have been fuckin' MONEY!
ReplyDeleteIt was a joke.
ReplyDeleteAgreed.
ReplyDeleteAs well as some of the other more obvious positives (talent, mic-skills), I always though that Kendrick was VERY underrated when it came to his striking/brawling ability - his punches and kicks looked REALLY good, he appeared much more credible duking it out with larger foes than someone like Rey does.
"buh gawd Maggle!! What is Alibaster January doing in the Rawzone?!"
ReplyDeleteWaiting till October for his no compete to expire for one.
ReplyDeleteBut if they could somehow do it...their biggest gate ever?
I have a feeling that whatever happens with Seth Rollins in the future would pretty much be what we could have expected from AJ Styles.
ReplyDeleteWhich isn't a bad thing. I have a feeling that Rollins is going to have a good ten years as a solid mid-/upper-card guy. That kind of money and job-security is hard to come by.
Easily. They'd pull any ROH fan since the company started and TNA and WWE fans.
ReplyDeleteHow can a promotion that claims to have no rules book a DQ finish to the main event of their biggest show of the year? That's about as dumb as having a DQ in a Steel Cage Match.
ReplyDeleteBecause it's ECW's retarded nephew?
ReplyDeleteNo developmental program in the world can teach charisma. The wrestler either has it or he doesn't and that can never change. AJ Styles definitely has never had it.
ReplyDeleteAnd like you pointed out Dougster, Jeff Hardy has the same terrible Southern twang as Styles but he also has an insane amount of charisma and thus has always been able to move the needle.
The problem with Styles has always been that he's a good worker but he doesn't have a presence, he lacks charisma and thus he was undeserving of his high placement on cards. He would have been a great X Division placeholder (the spot Chris Sabin's permanently stuck in today) but giving him the World title and putting him in main events just didn't work. Vince Russo upstaged him during his first World Title run for crying out loud!
Funny thing is, Christopher Daniels was right there in front of them the whole time and he has the presence, charisma and strong mic skills that Styles never had and yet TNA continuously buried him while pushing Styles to non-existent returns.
Some of the scumbags associated with it do make Grizzly Smith look like a wonderful human being by comparison (*coughNickGagecough*)..
ReplyDeleteAwesome, thanks for finding it.
ReplyDelete94 was much worse for them though because by then FOX had expanded to seven nights a week, added Saturday morning kids programming and had just started adding NFL football on Sundays and also, WCW had finally gotten its shit together and they convinced the few good stations the WWF had left on their syndication package to jump ship which put the WWF in such bad shape that they had to rely solely on their cable shows to carry them because their syndicated shows went from being on the biggest FOX affiliates and the biggest independent stations to being on obscure stations that would go on to be future PAX/Ion affiliates or just go extinct altogether.
ReplyDelete40 min of on screen Dixie Carter ?
ReplyDeleteI remember Cena alluding to TNA in a promo with Mc Mahon, was quite surprise that he mention them
ReplyDeleteIt's finally found it's groove. (Plus someone shot Skye last ep. She's not dead, but she's not annoying fans anymore.)
ReplyDeleteWhy because a boring show bored me?
ReplyDeleteI am likely in the minority, but I didn't mind where Sullivan was going with things pre-Russo/Bischoff. He was dealt a really tough hand with the Radicals leaving and Bret's concussion... and well, Sid is the master and the ruler of the world.
ReplyDeleteEveryone chooses to overlook that he booked ALOT of the early classic nWo stuff
ReplyDelete