19 replies to this topic

[ironmask]

So, in a right-outta-left-field twist, Shane McMahon returned last night, and they booked Shane McMahon vs the Undertaker for Wrestlemania 32.

For those not in the know, Shane has been completely off of television for six years, and appearred only sparingly between 2005-2010. He left to pursue his own endeavors in the communications industry, and it was widely regarded that he got passed over as far as his stake in the business was concerned, for his sister Stephanie. This certainly adds a level of intrigue beyond the story, as far as questions regarding his involvement in the actual business side of the company.

Is he just a performer, or is he actually getting back into the business? It's very interesting.

[rootstudio]

Taker and Shane aint as young as they used to be so I'm kinda curious to see what kind of bumps they'll be taking at HIAC.  I'm gonna guess that Shane wins thanks to outside interference (Cena?  Rollins?  Austin?  ANGLE!?!?) and maybe this will lead to a "brand split" between Raw and SD.

[ironmask]

Here's hoping. The brand split was nice. Heyman written Smackdown was the best wrestling product on television in years... Maybe a decade.

[rootstudio]

Oh how I wish they'd give Heyman the book...

 

At Wrestlemania I really hope they pull the trigger on Dean and let him win.  The dude is SO OVER with the crowd and Brock being taken out in an "anything goes" street fight wouldn't damage his cred as a monster.

 

And I have no idea how they're going to handle the Roman Reigns situation.  I think the best thing they could do with his character is turn him into an arrogant heel.

[ironmask]

"Turn him into"? That's what he's already doing, they just have the announce team insisting that he's a babyface. It's nuts, how clueless that company is with how over Reigns is not. 

I totally agree about Ambrose. 

I think the narrative that they have spun already clearly supports a Reigns heel-turn/feud with Ambrose. That could be hot.

[rootstudio]

It's nuts, how clueless that company is with how over Reigns is not. 

It's crazy how they're still pushing the guy to the moon even though they have to mute all the in-house mics in an attempt to hide the thunderous chorus of boos.  I like how they had him sit out of shows in some of the smarkier cities under the pretense of, "recovering from injuries".

[GasBash]

A few points since I had no idea you guys were into wrestling. Lol
-Shane coming back was definitely a surprise
-reigns needs a heel turn or he is gonna fumble
-dean needs to win at mania. I agree it wouldn't make Brock look bad
-do y'all like the card for mania?

[ironmask]

Nah. The Mania card has had a super weak build, and a lot of the matches just kind of seem mashed together. It probably should have been Shane vs Brock instead of Taker... Taker/Vince's relationship makes no sense at this point. Brock is an easy sell: He did it for the money. This shit? IDK man. 

Ambrose vs Brock in a street fight is probably the best built match on the card... Which isn't saying much, considering how little of interaction we've had between Brock and Dean. 

Nothing about this year's Mania says "must see" in my opinion.

[GasBash]

That is exactly how I feel. Literally the most intriguing thing seems to be the entrances and that is terrible. Bad decisions over and over just made this mania a big pile of the who caresies.

[majinmoo]

Not gonna lie been disappointed by the lack of any really good build up for the card as well.  The new day/League of Nations match seems interesting, the Womens 3 way match has promise and so does Ambrose/LESNAR, however the rest of the card seems like an afterthought.  What are they going to do with Styles?  Why are we getting a Kalisto/Ryback match no one asked for but not an Owens/Zayn match that we all want?  What did Tyler Breeze do to not allow him into the IC title match over Zach Ryder of all people? 

 

Why don't the wyatts have a match but the Dudleys and Stardust do?  Why do they keep adding women to the original Brie bella/Lana matchup?    And how do you promote 2 main events for a 100,000 person stadium and not have those "main eventers" bother to show up to promote said Main Event? 

[rootstudio]

^As far as the Wyatts go...  Bray injured his back and Luke Harper tore his ACL recently. 

 

I think we chalk up the weak card to the fact they're scrambling like mad because everybody keeps getting injured!  On the plus-side of that equation at least that means new guys are getting a chance to shine...  Sami Zayn, Enzo & Cass...

 

And yeah the whole 'Taker buildup is just dumb.

"I'm the dead man and I obey no mortal!  But I'll do this thing you're asking me to do... because... reasons..." 

 

Some thoughts on the card...

-I love the guys involved but the 7-man ladder match sounds like a recipe for more injuries.

-Kalisto vs Ryback?  I predict a win for da little guy because da big guy will get gassed in 45 seconds.

-Is AJ Styles facing Jericho?  That should be good...

-Ambrose vs Lesnar should be the main event.

-And if Reigns goes over clean...?

animated gif by WrasslorMonkey

Edited by rootstudio, 24 March 2016 - 07:10 AM.

[GasBash]

I have always been a fan of aj styles so I'm sure his match with jericho (assuming that is the plan) will be phenomenal(see what I did there)

Charlotte, becky, and sasha really seems to be a good recipe, they just need to go out there and steal the show.

It'll be interesting to see the brutality of the lesnar/ambrose match. Hopefully next weeks raw brings the story around.

I'm excited for the IC match, but I agree seems like a recipe to injure more talent. I think owens and zayne on the ladders may steal the show.

[rootstudio]

TODAY'S THE BIG DAY!  I gotta go to work but I hope those of you get to see Wrestlemania get your full $9.99* worth of entertainment out of it.

 

My predictions...

-Sasha is the new women's champ

-Shane wins over Taker...  Somehow...

-Reigns beats Hunter and then turns heel

-Ambrose beats Brock and which can set up a Dean vs Roman feud

 

 

 

*those of you who simply bought the PPV will be mercilessly mocked for your stupidity by King and/or JBL.

"HEY MAGGLE!  LOOKIT THESE IDIOTS SUPPORTING OUR COMPANY!!!"

[rootstudio]

Any of you guys watch WM32?

 

I didn't catch the show but the consensus of everything I've read has been, "Good matches, bad finishes, almost all the crowd favorites lost".

 

Dammit Vince... 

[ironmask]

I read about it a couple of days afterwards. 

Oh well, at least Shinsuke Nakamura is performing on camera now. At least there is that.

[rootstudio]

Yeah, I heard NXT Takeover was amazing.  It's up on Hulu so there's really no excuse to NOT watch it...

 

The weird thing is that most of the programming post-mania has been pretty good (Mauro Ranallo has been KILLING it on Smackdown.)

[kaijudojay]

Vaudevillains vs. Enzo & Cass at Payback. Who do you think will win and who should win?

[ironmask]

The Vaudvillains need the win way more. Enzo and Cass are pretty over on their own, as it is... So, put the straps on the guys who A. need the push and B. are the heels in the angle, and then you have at least three months worth of program where the faces chase the titles. There's always more money in the baby chasing the title, than the babyface HOLDING the title.

[rootstudio]

The tag division has gotten pretty lively lately and that's a good thing 

 

^Gotta put the belt on the Vaudevillains.  Have they gotten to cut any promos or do any interviews yet?  I'm glad new guys are being pushed (I just wish it wasn't a by-product of so much of the roster being injured...) but it's so weird to me that the WWE does this thing where they just seem to be lobbing new dudes at the audience without really letting people get to know who they are or why they should care about them.

 

Of course the flip side of that coin are the obnoxious SO-AND-SO IS COMING! promo vids they run way too far out from somone's debut ("OUR GIMMICK IS THAT WE'RE FROM PUERTO RICO!!!"...???)

[kaijudojay]

I really like the Vaudevillians and hope they go that route but with the WWE has been pushing Enzo and Cass I think they will get the belts soon.I just don't want to see Vaudevillians end up like The Ascension