People keep bitching and moaning about the treatment that Bryan and Punk have gotten but at least they've gotten a push and made it to the main event.
My question is why did they get pushed but guys like Zack Ryder and Dolph Ziggler are not even given a chance and jobbed repeatedly till even the most loyal fans give up?
Zack Ryder to me was the worst because he had money written all over him. They wrote an article about him in the USA Today for crying out loud. I don't know if you know much about that newspaper but that is as mainstream as mainstream gets. Everything that was going on with Ryder in 2011 was what Vince would normally see and push to the moon.
Yet they literally did everything they could to make people stop caring about him. And it worked. Same thing with Ziggler. But why? And why if your going to ignore what the fans are asking for in one case you don't in another?
Please help me understand.
Because their entire philosophy is one giant self-fulfilling prophecy where they decide in advance who will get over and who won't, and then tailor everything to make sure that happens.
"Zack Ryder to me was the worst because he had money written all over him."
ReplyDeleteNope. There are guys you like rooting for and guys youll pay money to see. Guess which one Ryder is.
The winner of this bout, and NEEEEEWWWWWWWWWW Face Of The WWE.....
ReplyDeleteVince is a control freak, everyone says that. And after decades of having to give the fans what they wanted and having to make deals with wrestlers to get them to do what he wanted them to he can now do whatever he wants to.
ReplyDeleteZiggler is way worse than Ryder since he could really go in the ring and was obviously a main event.
ReplyDeleteI feel bad for Ryder, but the guy was a mid-carder. A very over mid-carder, but not World Title material.
Ziggler on the other hand...just wasted potential.
Ryder's not that good of a wrestler. Hell, some of us were saying that back then when many were whining about him.
ReplyDeleteNot that good? He's terrible.
ReplyDeleteSince when does being a good wrestler factor into whether WWE will push you or not?
ReplyDeleteThe way it went for Ryder makes me kinda question how sincere Cena is when it starts supporting guys. Ryder gets all this fan support so Cena starts publicly backing him, then takes part in the angle that pretty much killed him...and you don't see him mentioning Ryder at all now. If Triple H can make the New Age Outlaws tag team champions in 2014 you'd think the top guy in the company could get Ryder something if he felt that strongly about it.
ReplyDeleteBut he was never given the chance to prove he could draw money. He probably wouldn't have but why not give the guy a chance?
ReplyDeleteZiggler just screams star....the cut up t-shirts, the punk, the #heel, he just seemed to put a lot of effort into little things and appearance to stand out...and I really enjoy him in the ring.
ReplyDeleteI don't think Ryder should have been main eventing but he's probably capable of more than popping up on tv once a month to lose in a minute.
They could have done more with Ryder. He gets a decent crowd reaction (for some strange reason) and could have moved some merchandise. But he's not in Punk or Bryan's league by any standard.
ReplyDeleteI don't understand why they buried him the way they did. But personally - and I know this is my opinion and I could be wrong - there really wasn't a ton of money in a guy's who had a catchphrase of "Woo Woo Woo." To me, his ceiling was to be someone like the Godfather - a midcarder whose shtick could get a decent crowd pop.
The Ryder thing is such revisionist history too me. He was getting over on the undercard in the 3rd tier belt division. Sure he could have been a little more but the idea that he was this pending main event player (which it seems peiple think now) they held down is ludicrous.
ReplyDeleteI think the problem in Ryder's case is that with some guys, they only give one shot - and if they miss it then they don't get another: even if it isn't their fault.
ReplyDeleteRyder was booked to look like a complete and total chump in that horrible angle with Cena and Kane. But they still gave him TV time, so as far as 'creative' is concerned : they did what they're supposed to do and wrote an angle for him. It can't be their fault that he didn't get over: because if it was their fault, then that means you need a new creative team.
The other comparison I can think of Lance Storm (who was a much, much, much better wrestler than Ryder): they thought giving him a gimmick where he was 'boring' was somehow a big push. And when that didn't work they lost interest in pushing him. Because again as far as 'creative is concerned'- if someone doesn't get over it has to be the wrestler's fault.
I wonder if the ziggler thing has any connection to lawlers heart attack.
ReplyDeleteLawler pretty much blamed Ziggler for the stiff elbows on Austin's podcast.
ReplyDeleteRyder was basically Al Snow with a bigger following.
ReplyDeleteZack Ryder was destined to stay where he was because he is terrible, and wouldn't draw flies to shit. He was over, but we've seen countless mid card guys get over, then get a push, and then...crickets. Why? Because we liked rooting for them against the Santino Marella's and Kofi Kingston's of the world, but they just look ridiculous next to thte big dogs.
ReplyDeleteZiggler is a different story, sort of. He has the look and mannerisms of a heel, but his hallmark is selling like a super babyface. Not good.
Pretty often.
ReplyDelete