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Sporting News: Post Royal Rumble Mailbag Part One!


I felt like the "Wrestlemania location announced" post last week was so lame that I owed people a mailbag to make up for it.  

Also, because angry nerds = PAGEVIEWS.  Apparently this thing is hitting a nerve with people.  Who could have foreseen THAT?

Comments

  1. Sexy Flexy Biff KensingtonJanuary 26, 2015 at 11:28 PM

    Your mailbag reads better with theme music. Like this!

    http://www.wrestlecrap.com/induction%20files/countryboys/synth.mp3

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  2. It's one thing for WWE to screw up the original Goldberg since he wasn't their creation. How do they not just copy Goldberg/Road Warriors/Ultimate Warrior with Reigns and be done with it? Too late now but jeez this company is filled with idiots.

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  3. People are saying that Vince has learned nothing from last year, but I think he's shown that he's learned a lot:

    * Had Daniel Bryan lose clean, so he doesn't have a kayfabe claim to being screwed.

    * Had The Rock on the ready to endorse the winner.

    * Inserted Paul Heyman to do the heavy lifting to get this match to Wrestlemania.

    It's not a flawless plan, but it's a hell of a lot better than just assuming everyone will go where Vince wants to take them.

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  4. I like your idea of having Reigns eliminate EVERYONE in the Rumble. That would've been kinda cool and different... in fact, I've read over a dozen different ways the WWE could have approached this clusterfuck over the past 24 hours and they all read better than the execution by their brains trust.

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  5. Wwe got a huuuuuge break with tonight's arena show being canceled. Reigns would have been roasted again, but luck with the weather actually gave them some old school studio interviews which helped all characters, including reigns out significantly. I'm interested next week to see if reigns backlash subsides. I think it will as time heals all wounds

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  6. Just make Reigns be the guy he was in the Shield and it should be fine. Cut out this nursery rhyme bullshit.

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  7. I like the idea Dolph suggested on Twitter. Just have Bryan and Ziggler have a match at Mania and give it twenty minutes and let them attempt to "steal the show" by having the best match they possibly can. Hell, to give it some stakes, it can be a #1 contender match or something.

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  8. Gif of Show and Kane ruining the Rumble http://giant.gfycat.com/VigilantTallCopperbutterfly.gif

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  9. They can't steal the show because Roman-Brock is going to be the biggest WM match of all time!

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  10. This has nothing to do with anything, but thought you guys might like this http://youtu.be/38Av3aol5SU it's the piano version of Undertaker's theme.

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  11. I wouldn't mind if this show helped bring back MORE old school studio interviews--too many roster spots are taken by people without much definable character.

    Wonder why guys aren't getting over, Vince?...it's because you're not getting them over. You can do that with what they do in the ring (hint--it's not 50/50 booking) or you can do that with interviews/promos/storylines. You can't just expect it to happen spontaneously (or despite your best efforts to bury everything that isn't Cena, your son-in-law or your latest fickle-ly chosen one.

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  12. Replace Reigns with Bryan in this scenario and you might have a storyline. Or, travel back in time 15 years to when Kane and Big Show were actually considered potential winners and you might have a storyline.

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  13. It was easier in The Shield. He had two other guys to help him carry the weight. On his own he shown up as having limited wrestling ability, very limited speaking ability and a forced personality.

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  14. Someone made the comparison saying Bryan's elimination was like dumping Hogan early in a Rumble. I think a better analogy would be if the WWE had someone like Ken Shamrock casually eliminate Steve Austin in the 1998 Rumble at the half way point.

    Madness.

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  15. Minor annoyance: No point in the announcers going crazy over a surprise entrant and then reeling off pre-prepared stats about them. "OMG BUBBA DUDLEY! WHAT A SURPRISE! Bubba has competed at 5 Royal Rumble events but never in a Rumble match". Hmmm. Keep it real guys.

    Plus, not having D-Von at number 6 was a let down of large proportions.

    Those are the only two annoying things I can remember about the Rumble on Sunday. Can't think of anything else annoying.

    Ahem.

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  16. Final point (I'm 24 hours behind everyone else in my Rumble angst):

    Conceptually, there is a lot I like about the rumble booking. Conceptually, I like a big name getting eliminated early to keep it real. Conceptually, I love two monsters knocking people out and dumping them like garbage. It's just the wrong guys at the wrong time. Plus, the hottest finishes are the one on one confrontations when you have no idea who'll win (2005, 2007, 2008, 2012 - hell, even 1994). Nobody but nobody buys Kane and Big Show as potential winners!!

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  17. it was easier, yes. but he could still be a lot more popular if they didn't try to change him instead of running with what made him popular in the first place: not goofy and smiling, but some sort of "suave bad ass".

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  18. or how about this comparison: Daniel Bryan being dumped like it was nothing one year after his big WrestleMania victory would be like Shawn Michaels competing in the 1997 Rumble and being thrown out by Vader or Mankind (two guys who had a bigger role a few months before but didn't have it at the time of the Rumble)

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  19. Final final point: Only 17 wrestlers were announced for the Rumble. 13 mystery entrants! Wow!

    But if 10 of those mystery entrants are Jack Swagger, Titus O'Neil, Curtis Axel, Sin Cara, Tyson Kidd, Cesaro, Big E, Adam Rose, Kofi Kingston and Zack Ryder... just announce them in advance FFS! There were actually only 3 proper surprise entrants. Nothing gets the pulse racing like mystery entrant Titus O'Neil.

    I think I'm done with my moaning now.

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  20. Or even Shawn Michaels getting casually dumped in the 96 Rumble. You would totally lose the crowd.

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  21. Or just let him be himself. All the greats of wrestling have just translated their natural personality into a slightly exaggerated on-screen character. If he hasn't got it, he hasn't got it. But forcing a personality onto someone never, ever works.

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  22. Lots of people are on board with that idea - more old school interviews etc. Won't happen though. Vince wants 3 hours of action! Which ironically often doesn't include much action.

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  23. Sadly he hasn't learned that in business you should go with who's popular, not who you WANT to be popular. Even if Reigns is being groomed for that top spot, there's no reason Bryan couldn't win this Rumble and then have Reigns finally do it next year. Hell, maybe in the lead-up to next year they could actually figure out who Reigns is as a character and produce some feuds and matches that make him hot as opposed to making him seem like a giant dweeb.

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  24. A big list of things put in place to help Vince in his fight with the fans

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  25. There are plenty of characters! There's a Big Dog, a Vigilante, a Demon, a Goat - what more do you want?

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  26. Maybe too much of a "panic button," but I'd seriously consider a double switch if the backlash lasts. Brock is the one guy not booked to look like a total goof so fans have no problem getting behind him as the designated badass.

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  27. Vince is 70 and has more money than he'll ever use.

    This is about bringing about his artistic vision, not business.

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  28. Or yo can use Bryan and Rollins in a Money in the Bank Ladder match. And when Reigns win, Bryan can cash in. :-D

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  29. Brock is already the face by default. No switch is necessary. Listen to the crowd reaction to Brock at the Rumble versus the crowd reaction to Reigns.

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  30. Now I want reigns to get Angry Samoans entrance music.

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  31. Here's the thing though: in Scott's mailbag he assumes that pushing Reigns to the moon will eventually get him over because the audience will just accept him as a top guy eventually.

    But what if the audience doesn't? What if Reigns is already damaged goods? So far this doesn't seem to be the same case as Cena where the half of the audience that loves him buys enough t-shirts and tickets to justify his push. What if the audience is in a perpetual state of "fuck this guy" and tunes out?

    I think WWE fans who don't like Cena have begrudgingly accepted him because A) he can bring a good match, B) they realize he makes money and/or C) He's a great PR guy for the company. Reigns is NONE of those things yet. He's not connecting with audiences the way Bryan, Ziggler, Ambrose, and Rollins have. Hell, he hasn't even connected as well as Zack fucking Ryder.

    In short: What if the audience NEVER accepts Reigns as a top guy?

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  32. The problem is, outside of HULKAMANIA, Vince's artistic vision is almost as bad as a Uwe Boll film.

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  33. That's our problem, not his.

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  34. They will eventually. Push anyone long and hard enough and the crowd will eventually get used to it.

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  35. ...Or they just tune out and stop watching, like 1995.

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  36. If they haven't tuned out yet, Reigns isn't gonna break them.

    People will eventually accept anything.

    The "shove him down their throats until they take it" push has, to my knowledge, never not worked for the WWE. It's worked better with some guys than others, but it's never flat out failed.

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  37. Counterpoint: Philly is SO NOT the crowd to use as a representation of the overall fanbase's views. These people chanted SAMI ZAYN during the divas tag match.

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  38. It didn't work for Diesel.

    There are numerous parallels between Reigns and Nash

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  39. That's absolutely true, but it's an early indicator.

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  40. Yeah. If anything Randy orton is proof of that. They'll just retool him (legend killer, viper, apex predator) until something sticks.

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  41. But fat chicks LOVE Randy Orton. He'll always have the support of fatties

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  42. I don't think they even knew until that day.

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  43. How does Roman feel about pot pies and Mountain Dew?

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  44. Extant1979 - Mr. Cable AccessJanuary 27, 2015 at 7:24 AM

    I've seen stories about how WWE fucked up on IGN, Topless Robot and the Outhouse. Apparently, it's a thing.

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  45. Pittsburgh wasn't the crowd to use as a representation of the fans' view of Batista either.

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  46. Those things will improve over time. He has to have the ball to learn to carry it.

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  47. Reigns has fat chick thrilla potential himself. Those eyes!

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  48. Time.com and RollingStone.com too. It's a significant story.

    You know, all this could have been partially avoided if Bryan's return was held off until after the Rumble.

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  49. But are the fatties so loyal to Orton that they won't switch their allegiance to Reigns?

    These are important questions, damn it!

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  50. That's the sticking point for me. What was the point of having Bryan come back if you didn't him to succeed?

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  51. That is the most unimpressive set of unannounced Rumble participants that I've ever seen.

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  52. To get fans to buy into the idea that Bryan would win and thus tune in.

    What's worse is that the last 2 weeks were almost all about The Authority trying to keep Bryan out of the Rumble, which suggested he would eventually triumph. Reigns was an afterthought in some pointless feud with Big Show.

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  53. A boxing analogy may sound silly, but having Reigns vs. Lesnar (instead of Bryan vs. Lesnar) is like getting Maidana vs. Mayweather (instead of Pacquiao vs. Mayweather).

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  54. More importantly, does Roman look impressive when he walks through airports?

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  55. Extant1979 - Mr. Cable AccessJanuary 27, 2015 at 7:39 AM

    And this is why I've always advocated the idea that WWE loves to troll its fans. They've been doing it all through the Daniel Bryan saga. And this was just the topping on the cake.


    No reason Bryan couldn't have come back after the Rumble and tam down that kind of disappointment.

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  56. Right, but there's a difference between Bryan getting to the Final Four, and Bryan getting eliminated before #16. They didn't have to book him *like that*, yet that's what they ran with.

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  57. Vince is using Bryan in a way to get his fanbase to still tune in without giving them the satisfaction of victory. It makes sense in a twisted way because it draws eyeballs, but the question is how much damage it really does.

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  58. WWE stock has dropped 17 cents already this morning.

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  59. Extant1979 - Mr. Cable AccessJanuary 27, 2015 at 7:48 AM

    He can't go to that well again, not after the Rumble. He has a fanbase that's already on the edge. I imagine the WWE needs to tread carefully so as to not lose a significant portion of its audience.

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  60. Personally speaking, I'd wait until he was ready before I put him in the main event of Wrestlemania

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  61. The Ghost of Matt_INDEED!!!January 27, 2015 at 7:57 AM

    They will get 7 minutes on the pre-show, and like it!

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  62. Extant1979 - Mr. Cable AccessJanuary 27, 2015 at 8:01 AM

    Did WWE really show the triple threat and the Rumble from Sunday night on Raw last night?

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  63. I would've too but at this point you may as well go all the way. Double backing on his push this late in the game will do worse damage.

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  64. These hoes ain't loyal!

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  65. True, but I think Reigns will be more over as a babyface as a heel than as a face, which seems to be what they want. Hell, just have him spear the Rock and reform the Shield and you're done. Reigns has a way to hide his deficiencies, and the Numbers Game (TM) can take out Brock to send him packing.

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  66. The Reigns/Heyman/Lesnar stuff was pretty good ... but that Lesnar/Rollins stuff just had me riveted. Seth is so good right now, for get Bryan or Dolph. Lesnar vs. Rollins would be off the charts.

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  67. Having Brock lose at Mania via heel screwjob is not the way to set up the guy who is supposed to be the next big thing.

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  68. Well, it's up to whether or not Bryan fans are the type of fans that will actually stop watching, or are they core wrestling nerds that tune in every week regardless.

    I think it's the latter, but I could be wrong.

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  69. If they drop Bryan to the IC title I really am done. They've turned that into the jobber title , forcing the champs to lose constant non title matches. Bryan doesn't have to be in title matches all the time for me, but if he's just The Miz to you and the company, a guy who had his little run at the top and will now be a loser midcarder going forward, I'm out.

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  70. Apparently Ziggler said on Twiter that he wants to face him at WM. So there's that. I'll probably throw Kane in and make it a 5 minute squash #BigRedMonsterInSlacks

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  71. Probably. 1 hour before the show:

    Writer: We've got a lot of spare slots in the Rumble.

    Vince: What? Argh. Who's fault is this? You're fired.

    *writer leaves*

    Another writer: We've still got the spare slots.

    Vince: Put Kane and Big Show in.

    Writer: They're already in.

    Vince: Ugh. Put that guy in. *points*

    Writer: That's the catering guy.

    Vince: Dammit.

    *looks around*

    Vince: Who's that bald guy?

    Writer: Cesaro sir.

    Vince: Put him in, and tell him to grow some hair. And put Shelton in too.

    Writer: That's Titus O'Neil sir.

    Vince: Great. We're good to go. Now go tell Bryan he can leave early tonight. Haw haw haw

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  72. that's gotta go in his post-retirement video packages.

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  73. just please, not the Rikishi "bad man" theme...

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  74. Sexy Flexy Biff KensingtonJanuary 27, 2015 at 8:55 AM

    I wouldn't be opposed to them having Ziggler and Bryan go at it at WrestleMania. It'd be neat if they had the King of the Ring tournament return, with Ziggler and Bryan competing in the finals at WrestleMania for the #1 Contendership.


    I also wouldn't mind Bryan going on a quest to be recognized as 'the best in the world' and unify the midcard titles into an uberbelt, and restore the prestige to it.

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  75. I do think the boos would have been louder with each Reigns' elimination under Scott's proposed system, but at least it might have given the other parts of the crowd a reason to cheer raw power (or at least not boo): Reigns did get cheered at the end because he wasn't Batista, but I remember general overall people being impressed with his dominant performance.


    In hindsight, what about Reigns eliminating Bryan clean to win? Say it's Wyatt, Rusev, Kane, Show, Bryan, Ambrose, and Reigns. The latter three worked together on Smackdown, so they should have some chemistry. Ambrose sacrifices himself to take out Rusev and Wyatt. Bryan beats the crap out of Kane and tosses him while Reigns does the same to Show. They turn around and face each other, slowly walking around eyeing each other. The crowd would still be mostly pro-Bryan (again, maybe the strong Reigns performance would have helped), but they do the good guy handshake and then basically have a back-and-forth five-minute match (Bryan could make it look good). Bryan gets control and goes for the knee but Reigns either pops up with a Spear or elevates him over the ropes for the win. At least on that night (in WWE world), Reigns was the better man.

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  76. I remember when JR used to do that with particular guys that popped up in the Rumble - the difference was that he was presented as a serious announcer and it was believable that he had an encyclopedic knowledge of wrestlers and their past accomplishments.

    The current crew....well...

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  77. That's probably the only idea worse than letting Bryan make it to the final 4 and then get tossed.

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  78. Yup. Sneaky snowstorms are a bitch and tossing together a three hour TV show on less than 12 hours notice with no talent probably isn't easy.

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  79. Let me ask you (and by proxy, all the people saying this): If Bryan was the runner up or the third to last man out, would you, honestly, have been happier? Would you be more accepting of the end result? Why?

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  80. They didn't commit to Diesel at all. Diesel was never the focus of the company or shoved down anyone's throat.

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  81. HURR DURR, but Batista's whole run was botched AND 2014 was an anomaly with the Bryan thing.

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  82. Here's my feeling on it...
    First, it's not about my happiness. It's about the happiness of the fans. The fans were not going to be happy with Bryan losing, but the WWE did not have to put themselves in a shit position by having Bryan eliminated with 40 MINUTES to go.
    So if I'm armchair booker, I have Bryan draw #27, and make it to the final five before being eliminated by Kane & Show. Yes, the crowd will hate it, but they'll only get a chance to hate it for a few minutes before the actual finish takes place.

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  83. Biff, you've done a lot of talking about Bryan/IC Champ/Unification. Are you saying that this is what he could do (in lieu of the main), or do you not want him in the main event?

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  84. Expect to see Dolph suspended for 6 months for making that comment.

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  85. You are nuts to think that match would be given anything over 12 minutes. Too many featured matches above that on the card that need time for promo package, entrances, match time, etc. Whether BD/Ziggler or DB/Sheamus they are only going 10-12 minutes

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  86. It was good bc it was different. How many years have they been giving us the same format, stage setup, etc? A few characters rotate in and out but same exact show with look and feel for forever

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  87. Give him facepaint and make him more of an ultimate warrior type of wrestler. Runs in kicks ass, crazed ass kicker, out of control, rambles occasional nonsense thats over the top intentionally, just be a complete off the wall ass kicking machine.

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  88. Nah more like austin gets dumped early bc the company is set on forcing us shamrock as the guy to face michaels at WM 14. Shamrock like reigns couldnt cut a promo but was fine at the IC level as a face or heel. That is where reigns belongs.

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  89. Michaels was coming back from injury like DB was and entering the rumble, only to get dumbed by king mabel before the halfway point

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  90. Charismatic eNegro Jef VinsonJanuary 27, 2015 at 11:38 AM

    There was no way that the crowd was going to accept anything other than DBry winning.

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  91. anyone that frequents this forum will never be done despite their ideal threats. They may not watch raw anymore like I dont, but will still follow all news/rumors via online sources and message boards

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  92. knowing kevin dunn we will probably have to sit through retirement video packages of "leave the memories alone" again

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  93. Yeah, but if they openly announce that there will only be 3 mystery entrants, after the third one you stop getting excited about the possibilities. While 13 might be excessive, having a larger "mystery" slots than actual surprise entrants is perfectly understandable.

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  94. do the diesel/austin/punk/bray thing where you are the only one in the ring and eliminate every new guy that comes down. However have this late for like numbers 24-30 with the 30th guy being daniel bryan. Let them fight it out from there

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  95. Diesel was absolutely the focus of the shows from Fall 1994 to at least Summer 1995.

    Who else was the focus? Bret? He was wrestling a pirate for his jacket.

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  96. In what world is "I read news online" the same as watching the product every week? I certainly never said I'd be done with the wrestling business forever or that I'd pretend WWE doesn't exist. I'm saying if they actually decided Bryan was Miz 2.0 as Scott seemed to suggest by saying they should just give him the midcard jobber title (which, and I hate that this is the case, the IC title is now) going forward, then this company clearly is not interested in providing the type of product I'd like to see for the time being, and I'll stop watching raw, smackdown, and PPVs and stick with other wrestling promotions and perhaps NXT as well , which I thoroughly enjoy.

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  97. What happened to flair4dagold then?

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  98. I personally don't agree. The mystery slot thing is overdone and overrated in my opinion. But I can understand how others like them. I'm more old school, back when there were no such thing as mystery entrants.

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  99. Depends on the screwjob.

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  100. I have a question: what if they lose Bryan?
    If the problem is that the fans won't let you make a top face that isn't Bryan, then you've got two options; send Bryan home, or make him look like as much of a doofus as you can in the hopes that the fans will stop liking him.
    If you send him home, the fans will get upset because you've taken him away. So you have to make him look like an idiot. I know Bryan is a team player, but just how much of that is anyone going to take? He's one of their few actual wrestlers, how many 3 minute squash losses to Tyson Kidd do you think he's going to do before he gets bored and walks like Punk? And even if he doesn't, theres a good chance of the fans not buying it and turning against the product instead of Bryan.
    Even if you manage to make him go away and get the fans to forget about him, you've dropped a big draw on the chance that your new guy is going to pay off better than him. Thats a huge, stupid gamble.
    What do you guys think- what happens if WWE makes Bryan disappear? Does it help them in this situation at all?

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  101. The best plan I can think of for the WWE: give Bryan a 20 year contract like Bret had, have him retire from competiton the next week, and have him give a big farewell speech blaming his bad neck for not being able to wrestle any more.
    The best plan for wrestling fans: the WWE fire him, and the next time we see him he's doing ads for his ***** matches against Styles and Tanahashi on NJPW world, where the product isn't an embarrassing mess.

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