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Conrad Link

Member
Oct 29, 2017
3,670
New Zealand
Big E only won to try and steal some headlines away from Phil returning to wrestling but in AEW. That's why he did it on a throw-away Raw no one cared about randomly. There was no plan for Big E, they didn't want him in that spot to begin with.

They made that absoutely clear when they went out of their way to make him look like the biggest geek they could besides Kofi'ing him away in a few seconds. But hey, at least HE, as champion, ate the pinfall in a match with 5 people right Vince? "I'M F**KING THIS LOSER OVER ONE WAY OR THE OTHER."

His whole run we wondered why are they booking him so weak? Because WWE.

Remember when heel Roman cheated to win like an entire year of PPV matches against other people then for no apparent reason at the Survivor Series when it was champion vs champion and it made the most sense ever to cheat to win so they could protect everyone they made Big E job, CLEAN IN THE MIDDLE OF THE RING like the biggest f**king nerd??

When he lost the belt they told him 4 seconds before he went out there he was dropping the title already to a guy that wasn't even supposed to be in the match, also you're taking the pin, also the focus shifts back to Bobby Lindsay afterwards, you go back to being a clown with the other clown Kofi LOL.

"Oh but don't worry, you'll always be a former champion now! You're for sure always going to be considered main event!" is what I'm sure they told him.

Meanwhile they probably got angry at him for taking Martin Luther King Jr. Day off because he knew if he showed up to Raw he'd be taking a curb stomp from Rollins.

I always wanted Big E to be more than he was, but he never felt like champion, it never felt like a big deal when he won. They made sure of that. He was just there to try and take some buzz away from CM Punk being on the rival company, the thing everyone was talking about and never had a chance of taking focus off. Jobbed out into geekdom, playing the same stupid New Day moron doing that crap while carrying a belt.
 
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Professor Beef

Official ResetEra™ Chao Puncher
Member
Oct 25, 2017
22,505
The Digital World
Apparently Shane was one of the producers of the Rumble, and had himself be in the final four.

lol if true

Tuna Meltz apparently is saying Shane is also gonna be working in the Elimination Chamber. More of what everyone needs, more Shane!!
 

Deleted member 31423

Account closed at user request
Banned
Nov 6, 2017
1,201
Can't wait for all those Shane o mac promos where he just stands around and stutters and pauses awkwardly. You would have thought he had a stroke during his feud with Braun strowman and forgot how to speak.
 

AndyVirus

The Fallen
Oct 27, 2017
2,862
Even though I'm sick to death of Roman vs Brock (this will be their 8th match together, 6 of them being singles, 3 at WrestleMania...), this has the biggest potential of all their encounters. I hope they do a Heyman retirement vs Lesnar retirement gimmick or something just to add something because otherwise nothing happens. Either the never-ending Reigns reign continues or it's another "streak" gone for no reason.

But still..this is going to be their third encounter at WM and you just know it's going to hyped before and after as the new Rock/Austin trilogy. For Roman's sake I hope it's good as, bar last year's triple threat, he's had 6 years of absolute stinkers.
 

Ivol

Member
Dec 12, 2017
1,005
They've had SEVEN damn matches? This has reached Orton/Cena levels of 'MEH'. Who even wants this damn match?
 

Nocturnowl

Member
Oct 25, 2017
26,183
Appreciating the Conrad rant, I remember post last years WM saying that Big E should be set up as the one to end Reigns mega run at Summerslam, then he got the MitB and I could see the reality steaming in, another weak cash in that makes the face look crap and the heel champ look wronged.
But even I couldn't have predicted what followed, I mean, I didn't expect good things, but I didn't expect that
He jogged out in the rumble with zero fanfare, no cool spots, no commentary really bigging up the former champ, he should've had a presence comparable to Drew, instead he got like mild clapping, the fans had already been conditioned to not care about him.
If nothing else, this does remind me that Drew managed to actually have a well booked lead in to his title win and a fighting champion defense run, so they can do it.

Apparently Shane was one of the producers of the Rumble, and had himself be in the final four.

lol if true

Tuna Meltz apparently is saying Shane is also gonna be working in the Elimination Chamber. More of what everyone needs, more Shane!!
Shane saw people saying that AEW reminded them of WCW in a good way, so he decided to draw from WCW, in the bad way.

Hey look, Saudi are chomping at the bit for the return of their crowned hero.
 

Rivenblade

Member
Nov 1, 2017
37,132
Listening to Late Night Grin with Joe Hulbert, and one of the co-hosts just reiterated the cyclical nature of WWE's booking throughout the year: People get over on their own, sometimes with the help of booking, and fans start getting invested, but come Mania time, they say "screw it" and pick the same 6 or 7 people they want to feature every year (Brock, Roman, Becky…) and don't reward you for caring for the months you invested in a Big E or a Drew.

I get wanting to put your biggest stars on your biggest show. You run into problems when you just lean on the same people for over a decade, though, and don't create new stars. The declining viewership (even when decline in overall TV viewership is taken into account) is a testament to that.

Like, I loved Bianca's moment at Wrestlemania, but you would think she was Doudrop with how she's dropped out of the conversation in the women's division. (Speaking purely as someone who follows this stuff through pods, so maybe I'm wrong)
 
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Arkaine

Member
Oct 30, 2017
268
Why the hell did people cheer for Rousey? Fans critique WWE for not giving new talent a chance and here we have Rousey returning and winning the Rumble. Smh.
 

Naijaboy

The Fallen
Mar 13, 2018
15,401
I can't say this was the worst Rumble ever, but this was by far the most disappointing. 2025 may be worse, but at least you knew you were gonna get screwed over. The amount of talent that didn't even get into the rumble (even if you didn't believe in a Paige comeback or AEW sighting or Bayley's injury) was baffling WWE still had plenty of people who could have gotten a good pop for a return that just didn't happen. And the fan favorites that did make it in ended up looking like geeks. Like how in the world are Bianca and KO getting less of a spotlight than Madcap Moss and The Bella Twins? Where was the storylines like the Mysterio father/son fall out or RKBro or Sasha/Bianca? Why is freaking Shane in the final 3 in a rumble? And on top of that, it's all for nothing as the rumble was won by two part-timers. Forget Mickie and Melina, the true Forbidden Door ended up being with UFC (not an original joke). Not to mention being back Ronda's toxic ass.

I'm trying, but this Rumble got me worked up about WWE that I haven't been in a long time. So much wasted potential.
 

Radiophonic

Member
Oct 25, 2017
1,601
I never cease to be amazed at people who complain about their favorite wrestler being booked like shit in WWE. I have therefore put together a handy flowchart to refer to when wondering how your favorite guy will be booked:

 

Tackleberry

Member
Oct 31, 2017
4,838
Alliance, OH
Why the hell did people cheer for Rousey? Fans critique WWE for not giving new talent a chance and here we have Rousey returning and winning the Rumble. Smh.
Especially considering she has spent a majority of her time away bad mouthing the company and the people who watch it.

She doesnt want to be there... and frankly I dont feel she adds much of anything to the product.
I think she sucks on the mic, and I'm not that impressed with her in the ring.
 

Rivenblade

Member
Nov 1, 2017
37,132
Cause online fans are a bubble. It may be a big one, but it's still a bubble.

100%. And we're a small part of the actual audience. Would be surprised if Reddit/forum users, Twitter users, and wrestling media content readers/viewers make up more than 10% of the overall audience, especially when it comes to WWE.
 
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Serpens007

Well, Tosca isn't for everyone
Moderator
Oct 31, 2017
8,133
Chile
It's so sad that he was retired by Corbin and didn't got the match against Cena like he wanted
 

UrbanDandy

Member
Oct 25, 2017
12,511
Meanwhile, Lashley's booking was by design. He had to be different from Roman. Only Roman (and Brock) are allowed to look that strong. Much like the Hurt Business got blown up because dominant heel champ + wily manger + tag team champ stable was Roman's thing.
That explains the breakup. Talk about sabotaging your own angle/talent.
This is a billion dollar company. The entire WWE feels like such a fluke sometimes when you read stories like this one.
WWE is too good for Vince. If there's one positive thing WWE has, it's production value, but that doesn't matter when the content is below standards.
 

Rivenblade

Member
Nov 1, 2017
37,132
That explains the breakup. Talk about sabotaging your own angle/talent.

WWE is too good for Vince. If there's one positive thing WWE has, it's production value, but that doesn't matter when the content is below standards.

Their stuff does pop on screen and comes across as professional most of the time, but it's definitely not for me. The AR looks incredibly cheesy to me, the zoom cuts are too much, and during the Rumble, instead of pointing at the ramp when a new participant was coming out, they would point at the ceiling to show AR stuff or at a section of fans before cutting to the wrestler already walking towards the ring. Just a mind-boggling (literally and figuratively) production choice to me, but maybe it works for others.

In other news, WWE Network content is now being streamed on Disney Plus in Indonesia. Maybe it just made sense to extend their reach in this case, or maybe it's the first of other content distribution deals WWE will make with Disney going into the future. Who knows? They're with Peacock Stateside, but with Fox being in the Disney bag, it might not be unreasonable to wonder if we'll be seeing WWE stuff on Disney Plus on this side of the world at some point as well.
variety.com

WWE Network Will Stream Exclusively on Disney Plus Hotstar in Indonesia

Disney and WWE inked a multiyear agreement to make Disney Plus Hotstar the exclusive home for WWE Network in Indonesia.
 
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Mahonay

Member
Oct 25, 2017
33,323
Pencils Vania
Their stuff does pop on screen and comes across as professional most of the time, but it's definitely not for me. The AR looks incredibly cheesy to me, the zoom cuts are too much, and during the Rumble, instead of pointing at the ramp when a new participant was coming out, they would point at the ceiling to show AR stuff or at a section of fans before cutting to the wrestler already walking towards the ring. Just a mind-boggling (literally and figuratively) production choice to me, but maybe it works for others.

In other news, WWE Network content is now being streamed on Disney Plus in Indonesia. Maybe it just made sense to extend their reach in this case, or maybe it's the first of other content distribution deals WWE will make with Disney going into the future. Who knows? They're with Peacock Stateside, but with Fox being in the Disney bag, it might not be unreasonable to wonder if we'll be seeing WWE stuff on Disney Plus on this side of the world at some point as well.
variety.com

WWE Network Will Stream Exclusively on Disney Plus Hotstar in Indonesia

Disney and WWE inked a multiyear agreement to make Disney Plus Hotstar the exclusive home for WWE Network in Indonesia.
A large portion of WWE's content would need to be scrubbed if they are going to ever offer it on Disney Plus. Pretty much new stuff only I would imagine, and even then, they do some messed up shit still today.
 

GalaxyDive

Member
Oct 25, 2017
4,703
I can't say this was the worst Rumble ever, but this was by far the most disappointing. 2025 may be worse, but at least you knew you were gonna get screwed over. The amount of talent that didn't even get into the rumble (even if you didn't believe in a Paige comeback or AEW sighting or Bayley's injury) was baffling WWE still had plenty of people who could have gotten a good pop for a return that just didn't happen. And the fan favorites that did make it in ended up looking like geeks. Like how in the world are Bianca and KO getting less of a spotlight than Madcap Moss and The Bella Twins? Where was the storylines like the Mysterio father/son fall out or RKBro or Sasha/Bianca? Why is freaking Shane in the final 3 in a rumble? And on top of that, it's all for nothing as the rumble was won by two part-timers. Forget Mickie and Melina, the true Forbidden Door ended up being with UFC (not an original joke). Not to mention being back Ronda's toxic ass.

I'm trying, but this Rumble got me worked up about WWE that I haven't been in a long time. So much wasted potential.
Well, that's what happens when a senile loon surrounded by yes men starts rebooking the entire show, from entry numbers to eliminations to individual spots, over and over again until the show goes live.

Not that I should have even been surprised, given how often it sounds like random Raws and Smackdowns have their scripts torn up and rewritten last minute.
 

Anth0ny

Member
Oct 25, 2017
47,277
I hear Pollock and Ting review raw and they talk about some of the absolutely insane bullshit that gets over/becomes a chant and you quickly realize just how dumb that fanbase is

the 18-49 male fans that got bryan over and booed the rock and roman reigns out of the building that year at the rumble are GONE and watching wednesday night on tbs brother
 

Anth0ny

Member
Oct 25, 2017
47,277
I see your posts every Monday here...👀

giphy.gif
 

Valkyr

Member
Oct 26, 2017
2,946
I actively avoid having any WWE content hit my eyeballs. It's very easy to do and I'm much happier for it.
 

SpaceSong

Member
Oct 25, 2017
11,017
I actively avoid having any WWE content hit my eyeballs. It's very easy to do and I'm much happier for it.
Legit the first I've taken in since that awful Undertaker cinematic match people overstated the quality of lmao

Wait, no. I did watch the WALTER and Dragunov stuff people said was legit good. It was! I'd recommend that too! Wouldn't be caught dead watching the rest of NXT UK tho lmfaoooooooooooo
 

Rivenblade

Member
Nov 1, 2017
37,132
Take with a grain of salt. Originally reported by PWInsider:

Matt Riddle was originally planned to be the winner of the WWE Royal Rumble
wrestlingnews.co

Matt Riddle was originally planned to be the winner of the WWE Royal Rumble

One of the big things that changed for the Men's Royal Rumble was who would win the match. Brock Lesnar was not in the original plans to win the match,

One of the big things that changed for the Men's Royal Rumble was who would win the match.

Brock Lesnar was not in the original plans to win the match, according to PWInsider. The report states that Matt Riddle was going to win the match, per the original plans for the show.

Plans reportedly changed over the course of the week a "ton of times" and then it was decided to have Lesnar enter the match as a surprise and win the whole thing. PWI reports that there was also a pitch for Randy Orton to win but Riddle was the frontrunner until the switch was made to Lesnar.

An interesting note from this article (also take with a grain of salt, of course):
The changes were said to have led to morale taking a hit and some pointed to the fact that Triple H and Tyson Kidd not being there as major reasons as to why the Rumble matches felt different this year.

Also keep in mind that Vince's mom passed away the day of the Rumble, which likely helps explain a lot as well.
 

Fhtagn

Member
Oct 25, 2017
5,615
think about how dumb you have to be to still be watching wwe

…and expect it to be any different than the dreck it's been for years.

genuinely can't understand watching it regularly, it's pretty much the opposite of my idea of a good entertainment product. Anything cool that happens will show up as a clip on Twitter later. Nothing cool that happens will ever build to anything meaningful outside of maybe a brief push for a fan favorite after years of them being shit on.

"Royal Rumble sounds fun, those were great when I was a kid" makes sense to me, but sticking with it after a decade plus of contemptuous audience-hostile booking is just incomprehensible, setting aside for the moment the nausea inducing camera work and general shittiness of Vince as a person.

NXT at least had good matches but they killed that too.
 

Serpens007

Well, Tosca isn't for everyone
Moderator
Oct 31, 2017
8,133
Chile
Take with a grain of salt. Originally reported by PWInsider:

Matt Riddle was originally planned to be the winner of the WWE Royal Rumble
wrestlingnews.co

Matt Riddle was originally planned to be the winner of the WWE Royal Rumble

One of the big things that changed for the Men's Royal Rumble was who would win the match. Brock Lesnar was not in the original plans to win the match,



An interesting note from this article (also take with a grain of salt, of course):


Also keep in mind that Vince's mom passed away the day of the Rumble, which likely helps explain a lot as well.

Yeah I don't buy Riddle winning. I mean it would have been better but I don't buy it.

…and expect it to be any different than the dreck it's been for years.

genuinely can't understand watching it regularly, it's pretty much the opposite of my idea of a good entertainment product. Anything cool that happens will show up as a clip on Twitter later. Nothing cool that happens will ever build to anything meaningful outside of maybe a brief push for a fan favorite after years of them being shit on.

"Royal Rumble sounds fun, those were great when I was a kid" makes sense to me, but sticking with it after a decade plus of contemptuous audience-hostile booking is just incomprehensible, setting aside for the moment the nausea inducing camera work and general shittiness of Vince as a person.

NXT at least had good matches but they killed that too.

RR was good the last few years though
 

Stooge

Member
Oct 29, 2017
11,321
I mean, clearly they thought they could get the Rock back and did not and this is why we are getting this weird as fuck build
 

Deleted member 31423

Account closed at user request
Banned
Nov 6, 2017
1,201
Why the hell did people cheer for Rousey? Fans critique WWE for not giving new talent a chance and here we have Rousey returning and winning the Rumble. Smh.

Don't worry. I'm sure by the time her promo ends on Raw tonight people will be booing her because shes still butthurt over people booing her last time. So she'll go into business for herself and bury the wrestling business. What a star.
 

sibarraz

Prophet of Regret - One Winged Slayer
Avenger
Oct 27, 2017
18,146
Listening to Late Night Grin with Joe Hulbert, and one of the co-hosts just reiterated the cyclical nature of WWE's booking throughout the year: People get over on their own, sometimes with the help of booking, and fans start getting invested, but come Mania time, they say "screw it" and pick the same 6 or 7 people they want to feature every year (Brock, Roman, Becky…) and don't reward you for caring for the months you invested in a Big E or a Drew.

I get wanting to put your biggest stars on your biggest show. You run into problems when you just lean on the same people for over a decade, though, and don't create new stars. The declining viewership (even when decline in overall TV viewership is taken into account) is a testament to that.

Like, I loved Bianca's moment at Wrestlemania, but you would think she was Doudrop with how she's dropped out of the conversation in the women's division. (Speaking purely as someone who follows this stuff through pods, so maybe I'm wrong)

The funny thing is they could make a lot of special matches with no titles involved using those stars