Unpopular Wrestling Opinions XIII

[Generations]

On 4/4/2023 at 1:35 PM, Austin3035 said:

I think the fans ruined the post wrestlemania raw  wwe did to in a way by embracing the fans and acknowledging it but the. Fans heightened up the post raw wrestlemania so much that it's just overplayed now and everyone's expects it. It's not natural feeling anymore

This whole post is nothing.

Basically, the "Raw after Mania" hype peaked after Mania 29, when fans were so sick of WWE programming being a joke, that they hijacked the show. After that point, WWE continued to be a joke...and fans continued to hijack the Raw after Mania, but WWE embraced it to make it seem like it was a positive thing.

So, no...fans didn't "ruin" anything. WWE just tried to spin things in their favor.

In addition to that, we had a few years due to covid where there literally was no "Raw after Mania"...and this year's Mania was actually pretty damn good...so the fans didn't have much reason to act up or be crazy. 

Long story short...the "Raw after Mania" hype was a perfect storm of events that came and passed. It happened because it needed to...and then it naturally phased out due to a series of other events. - If WWE is doing their job right, the Raw after Mania should just be a really enjoyable episode of Raw with story progression, and nothing insane should happen (aside from a debut or two, when applicable).

It's also worth noting that things were further complicated this year due to the sale and return of Vince.

Edited April 26, 2023 by Generations

[A N T I -]

I haven’t really liked a single thing Triple H did in his time in charge of WWE, from signings and returns to the new belt. I’m happy people have steady jobs and all, but WWE as a business is gonna be fine without any and all of the people that were released that he brought back imo. Bray Wyatt was the only one that could really draw money and asses to seats, and he handled that poorly as well.

Edited May 9, 2023 by A N T I -

[PaperThinWalls]

Hiring Bray is probably the top mistake he made. lol

Agree with the sentiment, mostly. The change was minimum. I expected the shows to be a little more different and they haven’t. The biggest improvement is LA Knight gets to be LA Knight — but of course, even though he’s doing solid work, his booking is still the shits. All the other changes and hires made no difference to me pretty much, which is a shame.

[Generations]

Don't know what y'all are talking about...but the entire booking style, pacing, and overall watchability of the product improved tremendously.  I had absolutely given up on being entertained by WWE ever again. I would put it on as something to play in the background while I did other things. Literally the first month that Vince was gone, the entire mood of the product shifted and I actually enjoyed watching again.

There was a huge shift in the energy. (Which was also reflected in record numbers across the board). Storylines felt coherent and weighted. - With Vince back, the product hasn't returned to the way it was before Vince left, which is great...but, I'm sure that's entirely due to him actually doing less hands-on stuff (which I do believe is true). 

Anyway, Vince's booking style has always been that of a carny - (here's some some shit that I find funny, and I don't care if it insults your intelligence as a viewer). - Every single thing about Triple H's era has been the opposite of that. Which isn't to say that he does everything perfectly or lands every shot he takes. BUT...it's a huge step forward to be able to watch the show and not feel blatantly insulted every single week.

Edited May 10, 2023 by Generations

[PaperThinWalls]

The presentation is exactly the same. The format is the same. Most promos are still scripted. The tag division is still an afterthought. Awful comedy segments continue. People got excited early on because they hot-shotted and HHH had a huge amount of goodwill. The show is not significantly different from what it was before Triple H.

[Generations]

Literally the only thing I'll give you from that entire rundown are the comedy segments, and even those are NOWHERE near as bad as they were at peak Vince. The format and presentation are nowhere near the same. - You go back and actually watch some of the other shit and say that again. (It ain't true). Matches used to literally stop during commercial breaks. A wrestler would always get knocked to the outside or something. There was always an unnatural break in the action during commercials. And there were a lot more random filler matches that no one gave a single shit about. - HHH has done incredibly well with pacing and match flow in general. There is WAY less wasted time/action.

And of course, the biggest thing...the actual booking of performers and building people into names that have recognition and clout. - The natural growth of stables like Judgement Day, Bloodline, Damage CTRL, Imperium, and LWO under HHH has been huge. I don't believe for one second that we would have seen any of the quality growth we've seen if Vince was booking shit at a whim like he always loved to do. Reigns would be secure in his spot...everyone else would be incredibly questionable. LWO wouldn't even exist...I *censored*ing guarantee that. - Hell, I doubt Vince would have put KO and Zayn back together either. 

It's easy to look at all the nice things we currently have and be like "yeah...I don't see what the fuss is about"...but, some of y'all are really forgetting the distance that has been covered in a short amount of time.

If you're asking me to believe that the current booking and storytelling was set into motion by Vince, and everything we have now would have happened exactly the same, and WWE would literally go from unwatchable garbage to something I genuinely enjoy watching each week...I don't agree with that, and I don't believe that. Lol.

Before Vince left, AEW was a more watchable and coherent product than WWE. (I remember saying "AEW is far from great, but at least it isn't WWE.") - Looking at the state of things now, that sounds completely laughable. - I would put WWE head and shoulders above AEW in every single way, currently...and that is entirely due to the shift in direction after Vince left.

Another thing I forgot to mention...the goddamn commentary was atrocious before Vince left. Everyone sounded like puppets. - Commentary plays a huge role in how difficult or enjoyable it is to sit through a 2 or 3 hour long show. - I can't overstate how much of a relief it is to have commentators who sound like they are not being held at gunpoint. 

Like...when I say it's everything, I mean everything. Every single thing about WWE improved under HHH.

Edited May 10, 2023 by Generations

[PaperThinWalls]

2 hours ago, Generations said:

The format and presentation are nowhere near the same. - You go back and actually watch some of the other shit and say that again. (It ain't true). Matches used to literally stop during commercial breaks. A wrestler would always get knocked to the outside or something. There was always an unnatural break in the action during commercials. And there were a lot more random filler matches that no one gave a single shit about. - HHH has done incredibly well with pacing and match flow in general. There is WAY less wasted time/action.

What? Matches have and still are formatted around commercials. Whenever someone dives or spills to the outside it goes to commercial. That’s still a thing. It’s been like that for years. Triple H taking over did not change that. The guy has done a piss poor job formatting the show just like his father-in-law. Video packages are still highly, HIGHLY prioritized. Same with talking segments. None of that has changed.

And as for the presentation, we’re still getting guys having “private” backstage conversations in front of cameras. Like come on… And then there’s the overproduced crap like the Bray stuff or hokey shit like Demon Balor. It’s same Vince-styled sports entertainment.

No filler matches? Didn’t you see Ali/Otis last night? Talk about bad comedy with these two as well. The stuff they’ve been doing is the exact material you would see on a Vince show.

2 hours ago, Generations said:

And of course, the biggest thing...the actual booking of performers and building people into names that have recognition and clout. - The natural growth of stables like Judgement Day, Bloodline, Damage CTRL, Imperium, and LWO under HHH has been huge. I don't believe for one second that we would have seen any of the quality growth we've seen if Vince was booking shit at a whim like he always loved to do. Reigns would be secure in his spot...everyone else would be incredibly questionable. LWO wouldn't even exist...I *censored*ing guarantee that. - Hell, I doubt Vince would have put KO and Zayn back together either. 

I swear we’re watching a totally different show. Damage Ctrl has failed to get over (and probably will be breaking up soon) and LWO have been booked as feckless punching bags for heels. That’s a good thing? Bloodline existed before Triple H, so I don’t know why you brought them up. The booking of Bloodline has not changed. They’ve always (well, until WM night 2) have had good creative and have been booked well.

 

2 hours ago, Generations said:

Another thing I forgot to mention...the goddamn commentary was atrocious before Vince left. Everyone sounded like puppets. - Commentary plays a huge role in how difficult or enjoyable it is to sit through a 2 or 3 hour long show. - I can't overstate how much of a relief it is to have commentators who sound like they are not being held at gunpoint. 

Are you not listening to Kevin Patrick? lol The guy is the epitome of what your talking about. Conversely, did you forget that Pat McAfee commentated under Vince? He’s been most natural sounding commentator they’ve had in years.

[Craig Warden]

ECW and their reunions/tribute shows are annoying as *Censored*

[Generations]

Honestly, GCW is better now than ECW ever was...and for that reason, I don't think the tribute shows have much of a purpose anymore. But, I do enjoy when random ECW guys show up on GCW shows and stuff. 

[Generations]

Rhea Ripley deserves to be WWE/Heavyweight champion, not just Women's champion.

But WWE are cowards. 

[Jeb ★]

She’s barely involved in the women’s division anymore. If Gunther wasn’t IC champ I believe she would’ve been competing for it by Summerslam

[OPC 2023]

Madusa is a better wrestler than Chyna ever was, and would have been better suited for that storyline with Chris Jericho, and Eddie Guerrero in 1999.  

 

 

 

 

[Reverse DVD]

Roman Reigns' run as the Tribal Chief might've still been effective if Cody Rhodes beat him for the title at WrestleMania. The title kinda has fallen into second place as family drama within the Bloodline has taken the main focus and that could've still happened if Roman lost at WrestleMania.

[PaperThinWalls]

Agreed. They still haven’t changed my mind. Keeping him champion was not necessary for this storyline to continue like it has. 

[Generations]

On 7/22/2023 at 11:24 AM, OPC 2023 said:

Madusa is a better wrestler than Chyna ever was, and would have been better suited for that storyline with Chris Jericho, and Eddie Guerrero in 1999.  

Meh...I have some pretty strong feelings about Madusa.

I respect what she represents and what she accomplished...but I also see her as a somewhat disingenuous person. Always had these kind of mixed feelings about her. Most recently, I was watching the 'Most Wanted Treasures' show, and she claims that she offered to return the WWF women's title to Vince and the WWE for free when she got inducted into the Hall of Fame, but they didn't want it, so now she wants $100,000 for it. Like...give me a break.

She goes on this diatribe about how much that belt means to her, and what it represents in the business. And then immediately makes it about money instead of allowing fans to see the belt on display. None of that even makes sense. - She's always felt like she was playing an angle to me...and I have never been too big on her for that reason.

 

Edited July 31, 2023 by Generations

[Generations]

I don't think this is unpopular at all...but I also don't know where else to say it.

 

It's crazy that almost every breakout star in the current landscape of professional wrestling was part of NWA before Billy Corgan dropped that ball. - That early NWA Powerrr roster was built with names like Thunder Rosa, Eli Drake, Ricky Starks, Nick Aldis, Cody Rhodes, etc. - LA Knight and Ricky Starks are two of the biggest things going in the current landscape. Rhodes is obviously Rhodes. Aldis will likely sign with WWE soon and he will always have potential to be a main event guy. TR is great when she isn't surrounded with drama. 

If Billy had navigated the pandemic better and was able to keep people employed, he could have been sitting on a gold mine. Instead, we have the Tyrus era. Lol.

Edited August 15, 2023 by Generations

[Lunchbox]

I would only give NWA credit for Starks and Thunderosa. Eli Drake was a Impact guy, as well as as Aldis to a point. Rhodes was always a star.

[Generations]

Not giving them credit for anyone...just saying they had a stacked roster of future stars who would have carried that company. No reflection of NWA on their ability to build stars...just that they HAD stars and they lost them all. 

Edited August 15, 2023 by Generations

[BestInTheWorld614]

Don’t forget about Eddie Kingston. That original NWA roster was pretty stacked

[The Nerd]

Edge’s return run was mid.

[OPC 2023]

Looking back. I strongly believe Stacy Keibler could have been a great Womens champion if she'd started doing more wrestling training sooner.  She always played her character great on the mic, and off mic as a manager outside of the ring and such, and she was really starting to show some major improvements before she left in 2005. 

That cheerleading background and her height advantage really gave her such a great in ring presence.  It is what it is though. She just wanted to be a dancer. 

[Senex Beast]

Alex Wright should have had a big career after WCW and be a big name right now. Never great on the mic but very underrated in the ring and had a great look.

Much more to him than just his awesome dance and theme music and the Berlyn character could have been good but of course WCW screw that up

[Generations]

On 8/20/2023 at 7:10 AM, The Nerd said:

Edge’s return run was mid.

Basically a guy who never should have wrestled again, but was able to do so by the miracle of modern medicine. So, I wasn't really bothered with what he was able to do (or not do). His actual return was HUGE. One of the biggest pops in professional wrestling history. After that, he created Judgement Day, which is also a huge historic moment. So...I'd count those as some pretty successful moments. You could definitely say that history wouldn't be the same without him...because Judgement Day might not have existed at all otherwise. Hard to say that a return was "mid" when it literally changed the course of pro wrestling history, IMO.

Edited August 28, 2023 by Generations

[The Nerd]

1 hour ago, Generations said:

Basically a guy who never should have wrestled again, but was able to do so by the miracle of modern medicine. So, I wasn't really bothered with what he was able to do (or not do). His actual return was HUGE. One of the biggest pops in professional wrestling history. After that, he created Judgement Day, which is also a huge historic moment. So...I'd count those as some pretty successful moments. You could definitely say that history wouldn't be the same without him...because Judgement Day might not have existed at all otherwise. Hard to say that a return was "mid" when it literally changed the course of pro wrestling history, IMO.

Fair points.

[A N T I -]

Big reason WWE is so boring at times in my view, and AEW to a degree, is because people never go away. It feels like there used to be a roster turnaround every 6 years or so, cut to now and you’ve got guys like The Miz being near 20 year WWE veterans. They rarely ever leave my television screen. It isn’t like the territory days where a wrestler could bounce around and avoid getting stale. Imo WWE is full of people who’ve been stale for over 10 years.. and then they go to AEW and bring their staleness with them. Maybe it’s creative’s fault for not being able to keep characters fresh. 

Edited August 29, 2023 by A N T I -