The Official WWE / NXT Discussion Thread *May Contain Spoilers*

[The Blonde Bomber]

9 hours ago, BHK1978 said:

I was watching an old WWWF show from the mid-1970's (It had to be from sometime in 1975) the other night.  They had the then new WWWF Tag Team Champions come out who were Tony Parisi and Louis Cerdan.  These two guys proceeded to cut one of the most boring promos I have ever witnessed and it went on forever.  Which surprised me because normally all of the promos I saw from back then were rapid fire.  But this promo had to have lasted at least three minutes.  Neither guy could speak very well or had much of a personality. 

Anyway, I had heard of Tony Parisi before but I had never heard of Louis Cerdan before.  Turns out Louis was the trainer of Dino Bravo.  Another link that both men had was they both had ties to the Montreal underworld.  I do not know, I just found it interesting to learn about this guy I had never heard of and his link to Dino Bravo and the Montreal mafia. 

Since they were trying to make it real still back then there’s a good amount of promos that were Blaise cause of the fact people were speaking off the top of their head. Which can lead to great stuff or terrible stuff. Personally I’d want more stuff like this cause I’d take the terrible to get the great.

[St. Templar]

9 hours ago, The Blonde Bomber said:

Since they were trying to make it real still back then there’s a good amount of promos that were Blaise cause of the fact people were speaking off the top of their head. Which can lead to great stuff or terrible stuff. Personally I’d want more stuff like this cause I’d take the terrible to get the great.

I'm the same. I'm willing to put up with stilted and slow-talking promos to get the gold of the promos that came out from the 1970's and 1980's.

Besides, how do you grow if you don't get out there and do it?

St.T

 

[BHK1978]

11 hours ago, The Blonde Bomber said:

Since they were trying to make it real still back then there’s a good amount of promos that were Blaise cause of the fact people were speaking off the top of their head. Which can lead to great stuff or terrible stuff. Personally I’d want more stuff like this cause I’d take the terrible to get the great.

Even though Backlund's promos were pretty boring back then, they were at least watchable because you can see the context of them treating it as real. and they tended to be like one minute long.  Whereas the promo I was talking about, was just bad and it went on for a long time.  Like I said, the promo had to have lasted about three minutes long (I did not actually time it but it seemed to last that long).  Which is far longer than any other promo on the show.  Tag Team Champions or not, why on earth would you give them that sort of interview time when it is clear they did not have the charisma to do it?

Let Captain Lou or The Grand Wizard of Wrestling have that time to hype up their guys.  At least then you would know you are getting some quality stuff.  Let the Tag Team Champions have the half a minute interview. 

[BHK1978]

1 hour ago, St. Templar said:

Besides, how do you grow if you don't get out there and do it?

 

 

Sorry for the back-to-back posts.  I thought I quoted this in my previous post but I had not.

According to Wikipedia, both Tony Parisi and Louis Cerdan were either 33 or 34 (They were born the same year, so it depends on when the interview was shot) at the time of the interview.  More than likely if you cannot cut a half-way decent promo by that age, you are probably never going to grow into a good promo guy.  Also, as fan favorites in the WWWF at the time, there really did not seem to be much emphasis on having stellar promos (From the stuff I watched).  Most of the time fan favorite promos seemed to be rather on the bland side of things and they usually were rather brief.  The heel promos were also brief as well, but they are usually leaps and bounds better because you could really add character to your interviews that you simply could not do as a fan favorite.

I wonder if that is why Vince Jr. went to the complete opposite end of the spectrum during the 1980's with fan favorites like Hogan, JYD, etc.

[Matt_Black]

Someone should tell Triple H that putting a black and white filter on somebody isn't a substitute for being interesting.

And a main event ends in DQ on a WWE show? I am shocked, SHOCKED to find gambling in this establishment!

[St. Templar]

On 9/7/2022 at 11:08 PM, BHK1978 said:

Sorry for the back-to-back posts.  I thought I quoted this in my previous post but I had not.

According to Wikipedia, both Tony Parisi and Louis Cerdan were either 33 or 34 (They were born the same year, so it depends on when the interview was shot) at the time of the interview.  More than likely if you cannot cut a half-way decent promo by that age, you are probably never going to grow into a good promo guy.  Also, as fan favorites in the WWWF at the time, there really did not seem to be much emphasis on having stellar promos (From the stuff I watched).  Most of the time fan favorite promos seemed to be rather on the bland side of things and they usually were rather brief.  The heel promos were also brief as well, but they are usually leaps and bounds better because you could really add character to your interviews that you simply could not do as a fan favorite.

I wonder if that is why Vince Jr. went to the complete opposite end of the spectrum during the 1980's with fan favorites like Hogan, JYD, etc.

Honestly, my comment was not as much about Parisi and Cerdan, but just a general comment about letting workers go out there and cut promos with less oversight. Bullet points or what-have-you are fine, but taking away the crutch of full-on scripts would let guys work on their improv talents.

St.T

 

[BHK1978]

18 hours ago, St. Templar said:

Honestly, my comment was not as much about Parisi and Cerdan, but just a general comment about letting workers go out there and cut promos with less oversight. Bullet points or what-have-you are fine, but taking away the crutch of full-on scripts would let guys work on their improv talents.

St.T

 

I totally agree with you on that.  I would say if you know someone can talk, let them be free to cut the promo as they see fit.  As long as the get across what they need to get across.  Full on scripted promos are fine for people who are not great on the microphone.  Especially seeing how managers have not really been a big thing for the past twenty years or so.  Sure it leads to their promos all sounding the same, but they are choosing to have them talk so that is on the company.

Last week there was an article on Yahoo talking about how Bianca Belair had signed with some talent agency and there was some hope that she would get acting roles out of it.  Well I made a comment saying something along the lines of, "Well I hope her acting skills are better than her promo skills, because I have yet to see her cut a half-way decent promo."

One of the replies to me was, paraphrasing here , "Bianca is a great talker.  You just hate her cuz she's black, you're racist."

Not going to lie, I was sort of dumbfounded by such a response.  It is the Yahoo comment section so I probably should not have been that shocked, but still. 

My response was, "Me thinking Bianca is bad at promos has nothing to do with the color of her skin and more to do with how every time I hear her do a promo it sounds exactly like any other promo she has ever done.  Maybe it is because her promos are heavily scripted, but I still feel what I am saying is true.  I also thought Lex Luger was bad on the mic and he's a white guy.  I don't discriminate when it comes to people who cannot speak." 

Maybe Bianca would benefit from more freedom on the microphone.  Maybe then her promos would not sound like a carbon copy of every other promo she's ever done, maybe she needs to be restricted.  I don't know the answer to that.

[Matt_Black]

It also doesn't help that they've often put Bianca in promo battles with Becky Lynch, who can blow most people out of the water.

I'd still rather listen to a Bianca promo than a Rousey promo, though.

[Jaysin]

I don't understand the appeal of Becky's promos. She sounds fake and not the least bit sincere in anything she says. Especially as a heel. 

Bianca is charismatic, but her promos all sound the same. She does at least seem sincerely happy to be there, but that's about it. 

[Dawn]

I'm of the opinion Bianca overall feels quite forced as a babyface, character-wise. She can at least back things up in the ring which is a plus. I disagree completely about Becky's promos being fake, she brings the intensity every time and it helps a lot. Compare that to Bianca who seems she's just reciting lines.

[St. Templar]

Two things:

1 (to continue the conversation): I think Bianca (and several other younger folks on the roster) could benefit from the freedom of weaning them off the heavy scripting. Bianca is charismatic as hell, but her promos sound bland. I think letting her personality come out with her character. I feel the same way about Montez, because his charisma comes straight through the camera, but his WWE character seems a bit anachronistic and played-out.

1(b): I can easily see the idiocy of a Yahoo! comment section labelling anybody who makes anything even remotely critical of a minority person as a "racist". I'm a bit surprised you didn't also get called a sexist, since you were referring to a woman. We've forgotten discourse is supposed to be open, and anybody can have flaws or places for growth. Those aren't limited by race, gender, or any other label we get to separate us into our camps.

2: Watching SmackDown Sunday night (on Hulu; my daughter performs at high school football games, so no live SmackDown during football season), and the "fatal five-way" (Dear God, I hate that term) match for a contender for Liv, and I have one question: in what world is Rousey being received as a heel? I mean, she got a smattering of boo-birds after her victory, but most of the crowd popped for her entrance (which even happens to heels, because...nobody knows how to be a heel anymore), but it was mostly popping for her victory, too. And before it, they showed a video about her basically going up against a heel authority figure and being defiant. None of that screams "heel" to me. She's in the ring with two definite heels, a freshly-heel (if I recall correctly) Natalya, and Xia Li (who I'm not at all sure of her alignment, but she seemed to be playing heel). So, she's going up against four heels. Her interaction with Shayna was more heelish, but it made it look like they were teasing a Shayna vs. Ronda program...where I'm thinking Ronda will be the face in the feud. Put all of that together with the feel of face champion Liv Morgan being an underdog-feeling-more-like-a-cowardly-heel when she went against Ronda and Shayna makes me wonder where they're going here. I think Ronda's coming across more as a defiant bad ass, which is a babyface character, and they might be doing a slow-burn heel turn on Liv. Either way, it is more entertaining than I thought it would be, so...that's good.

3 (okay...had to): I worried when they announced Braun was coming back, but I figured that they might realize that keeping him as a special attraction and not overexposing him would be the best thing for him. Then, they had him come out on Raw and destroy everybody, which I was good with, but then they have him announce he'll be on SmackDown, too. That worries me.

St.T

 

[Matt_Black]

That may be at the insistence of the networks. I recall that both FOX and USA expressed dismay when Braun and Bray Wyatt were released, citing how both were good ratings draws.

[Matt_Black]

I hate when they do open challenges and mystery opponents, because they never, ever deliver. It's usually someone we see every week anyway.

[Makhai]

Big No! To teen angst Dom... Put the writers away WWE!

Big Yes! To Rhea making a Man out of Dom. Let her open the FORBIDDEN DOOR!

 

TV-14 HATCHE! TV-14! Go find that ball gag Goldust used! Let's make some sports entertainment!

Edited September 13, 2022 by Makhai

[Matt_Black]

I'm sorry, the next feud for Roman Reigns is WHO?!? Sweet raisin danish, I hope that's not the main event for Extreme Rules, the Philly crowd may riot out of general principle.

[Dawn]

On 9/16/2022 at 9:44 PM, Matt_Black said:

I'm sorry, the next feud for Roman Reigns is WHO?!? Sweet raisin danish, I hope that's not the main event for Extreme Rules, the Philly crowd may riot out of general principle.

It's for Crown Jewel in Saudi Arabia. Extreme Rules? Roman Reigns has never heard of such a small-time PPV like that

[Matt_Black]

1 hour ago, Dawn said:

It's for Crown Jewel in Saudi Arabia. Extreme Rules? Roman Reigns has never heard of such a small-time PPV like that

Considering how dumb the finish was for last year's Extreme Rules, he probably blocked it out of his memory like everyone else did.

[CQI13]

On the topic of scripted promos, I feel like you should be able to get your voice across in the promo, adjusting it as needed. If you suck at them, learn to memorize!

And if you want to have that freedom, get an acting coach/sign up with one of those agencies. Rock was already good to great, pre-Hollywood. Go watch his promos after he came back the first time. Dude elevated himself to another level. Do that, get your freedom. 

On the Bianca front, her character post the title win against Sasha was so annoying...you are supposed to the the EST, enough with getting all emotional and just being happy to be there.

[The Blonde Bomber]

What are y’all’s opinion on War Games being announced?

I think it’s disappointing because it could’ve been a good surprise if the feud was built to fit it. Now we have a match set up and are expecting a feud to be built into it which is something I never liked with other shows like HIAC or TNA Lockdown.

[CQI13]

7 hours ago, The Blonde Bomber said:

What are y’all’s opinion on War Games being announced?

I think it’s disappointing because it could’ve been a good surprise if the feud was built to fit it. Now we have a match set up and are expecting a feud to be built into it which is something I never liked with other shows like HIAC or TNA Lockdown.

I don't mind it. In NXT we all knew it was coming and it was UE against the rival(s) at the time. If they used the old Survivor Series method on this War Games match I qod be all for it - revisit multiple feuds. For example: Drew, Riddle, Street Profits, Sheamus vs Kross, The Usos, Rollins, Gunther.

Don't let it go past 1 match for the men and one for the women for the year and it won't wear out like Lockdown or HIAC (which should be retired or simply used sporadically).

[Jaysin]

I've had a very busy past seven days so I'm playing catch up on wrestling shows. 

Currently on last week's Smackdown and I think I might be Madcap Moss's biggest fan. He's constantly improving, has a good look and size, and is very agile and quick for his size.

He reminds me of the late 90s WCW Power Plant graduates like Mark Jindrak and Johnny the Bull.

Hopefully Moss lives up to his potential unlike previously mentioned talents. 

[Matt_Black]

While I've not been overly impressed with Triple H's run thus far, everyone in the Sami Zayn/ Bloodline storyline has played their parts to perfection. *chef's kiss*

[Wrestling Machine]

HONORARY UCE 😢

Edited September 25, 2022 by Wrestling Machine

[Matt_Black]

2 hours ago, Wrestling Machine said:

HONORARY UCE 😢

That entire segment was pure gold. Everyone involved absolutely nailed what they needed to do.

[CQI13]

I knew it was too soon for them to kick him out, but darn it if they didn't have me believing they were going to do it - AND feeling bad for Sami for it. Incredible storytelling.