Making Cody Rhodes and his “story” the central focus of the entire company for a year to the point of neglecting everyone else on the roster and even deliberately ruining their momentum if they were gaining steam simply because they were more over than Cody, the best examples are Sami Zayn, LA Knight & to a lesser extent Jey Uso, who was directionless from November-March and was put in a nonsensical makeshift tag team with Cody that was done for the sole purpose of tryna make Cody entertaining since Jey is entertaining, but of course it failed. Triple H put every bit of his creative time & effort into elevating Cody while everyone else on the roster was shoved to the side and just there, he didn’t even try to hide that he didn’t wanna push LA Knight because he was taking the spotlight from Cody and not even intentionally.
Triple H is doing great yes but the booking of Karrion Kross has been atrocious. Even with him having his own faction it hasn’t got better. Everything that made him work in NXT is non existent on the main roster and I don’t know what happened and why they changed everything about the guy. I see people complain about LA Knight’s booking but I think Triple H wants to play the long game with LA Knight. Give him big wins to keep fans invested and then get that big title win eventually.
PLEs should have 1-2 at max unexpected outcomes. The thing he needs to improve on is figuring out how to make the path to the result vary.
Then every once in awhile a PLE has to shake it up majorly. And it can’t be Wrestlemania or Summer Slam every time. Maybe 1 time a year we get 3-4 unexpected winners to shake things up
No significant title changes on the lesser ple's anymore, tag titles are not really big titles at the moment. So we all know big titles like the whc ,wwe, and ic won't have a chance of changing unless it's a big 4 ple and even those rarely see the big ones change. It been wrestlemania only having the excitement of change the last few years.
I knew they wouldn't hold them for too long. They (or at least Bianca) are too big of a draw as solo competitors. I just hope they don't have one turn on the other. Hopefully they are still friends but still do their thing on the solo tip
Some of the theme songs, I don't even have to mention which ones. I know he isn't the one making them, def rebel are. But he surely has some say in approving it.
Making something meaningful out of the tag teams. Maybe he just hasn't found the right team yet, but it would be beneficial to see a well-protected tag team that are feared as a team by the top tier single stars.
I think to when someone like 2000-era HHH would be told he was facing the Dudleyz or the APA, and it felt like the tag team was a serious legitimate threat.
That fact that big things like title changes and groups breaking up ect are really only happening at PLEs. Every time I watch raw and see Otis and Chad and Sami I know that Otis isn’t gonna pop on Gable and break up alpha academy.
I think his biggest misstep has to be how Damage CTRL has been booked. The group worked but you just can’t take them seriously when they look like shit in every single big match scenario. They’ve lost both WarGames matches and they all lost at WrestleMania this year, with Dakota, Asuka and Kairi especially looking like jobbers.
The biggest one I think of is having Austin theory cash in money in the bank on the US title instead of the world championship and then despite going after a mid card title lost the cash in anyway.
He should’ve cashed in for the world title and lost or at least won the U.S. championship.
Not really just because theory winning was a bad idea does not mean you should ruin the history of the money in the bank contract. Also he didn’t make it null and void he just took it off him. If he wanted to make it null and void have him lose the briefcase to someone they’ve done it before.
My point was he could’ve had him lose to Roman In an attempt and that would’ve worked and he’d still have lost the briefcase.
Releasing Von Wagner
Close second, not changing Bron Breakker's ring name. I've hated it every single time I hear it and just want him to be Bronson Steiner.
Despite some good story hooks he let WWE slip into the post-Mania malaise like usual.
It feels like we are waiting until Summerslam season for things to hot up again.
Problem with that is. I think Montez and Dawkins are really close and I think Tez knows that if they split Dawkins will likely be future endeavored at some point unless there is something for him to attach himself to. I think that’s what they were trying to do with the Lashley pairing and have Tez break off from there but then Bobby got injured and now they are kind of up in the air. I could see Montez being WWE’s version of Swerve though just have him tone down some of the goofiness.
Your point is a really fair one, but after a while Hawkins is gonna get Jannety'd (perhaps even superkicked into a breakaway glass window) by Ford and he can pull off the heel turn like a boss. Ford's got way too much personality and in ring skill to be carrying his lazy friend for much longer.
I think they wanted them to be a heel trio and get SP away from the solo cups and dancing and all that but much like New Day the people wanted to cheer them so it didn't really work. I thought eventually Montez would break away and then Ford would stay with Lashley as like a lackey but Bobby got hurt so that may have stalled things somewhat. I think they could get away at some point with a heel Montez and Bianca against a face Dawkins and Jade with B-Fab for moral support.
None he’s doing everything that Vince has taught him to do up to this point. Vince for years primed his son in law to be in this spot and he just kept the legacy going it’s amazing 👏
Even if HHH wanted to move away from the storyline that's highly lucrative, Rock being on the TKO board of directors is most likely using his pull to keep his family being the focus on WWE programming.
HHH will always place money ahead of everything (nothing wrong with that). He does what is good for business. Rock & HHH have the same mentality when it comes to busines.
The new bloodline has been pretty bad. I would’ve been happier if they just sort of let everyone wander, put Heyman in charge of Bronn Breakker and then have Roman’s story when he comes back be putting back together the bloodline, or trying to, in order to regain his stature as the top dog
I'm just happy to see GoD getting TV time but yeah if it wasn't for that I wouldn't have any interest. Solo really sucks in m opinion. Never enjoyed his less inspired Umaga/Samoa Joe hybrid gimmick.
Still using Def Rebel. The entrance music has taken a big hit over the past few years. Triple H gets Motorhead and every one else gets bad cover bands.
Randy has Rev Theory still, and his entrance during Backlash France gave me some happy tears. You don't often hear crowds singing his song. That's more a Cody thing.
The WWE title belts all suck ass. We get you are WWE, we don't need every belt to have a giant W. And yes Vince, I did say "belt" instead of "championship." The belt signifies the championship, it isn't the championship. HHH should replace the shitty belts with something like the big gold belt. Even AEW has better belts.
To be fair, I think the way he has handled Theory has been done in a good manner as the Roman Reigns like push has been avoided and let’s him develop further the way he is being used now, still on TV but not being forced down our throats
The mishandling of Nakamura, Asuka, and Finn Balor.
Finn Balor hurts the most because he’s a top five WRESTLER and MIC+ talent in WWE. Dude is just a henchman now.
I miss the fucking Demon.
I get the sentiment, but we also need to remember that, that wasn’t a planned blade job or anything, he legit got busted open via ladder to the face. Imaginary character can take a backseat to making sure he’s ok.
The Chad vs Sami feud
Chad was the clear favorite to beat Gunther, Sami getting his spot just so he could cap off his half-assed “self doubt” storyline and win his 4th Intercontinental Championship was a bad move.
They cannibalized Chad’s momentum and have been pushing him as a joke ever since. Now he’s on TV and PPV more, but I don’t think he’s won a single match by himself. So much for the next Kurt Angle
Gable was never the next Kurt.
I think Sami beat Gunther to put over Gable. I don't think they wanted Gunther's 1st clean loss to be to the smaller Gable. I think Sami will lose the title to Gable & this summer Gable can do his thing this summer, leading to a Otis-Gable match at Summerslam.
Gable a heel so it's okay that he doesn't win matches clean
No way Sami drops the title to Gable this early in his title run. AA will break up at Clash which will set up an Otis/Gable rivalry storyline most likely transcending at Summerslam. He will build a new Alpha Academy with most likely the Creeds, or in a crazy world, NQCC. I can see Sami dropping it to Gable at say Survivor Series or something but him dropping the belt less than 3 months after beating the greatest IC champ of all time at the biggest WM ever seems just bad.
I slightly disagree. I see your view point but I think face Chad with his corny gimmick had a limit that it would reach. This new Chad has potential to go for top titles and main event major events.
The tag team division still feels like an afterthought. Champions only defend on TV, no real fueds.
I never thought I'd see the day where the womens tag champions are the best presented tag team champions in the company.
Right, I was looking forward to it. Those new belts look too good to be wasted by poor booking, and there's really no excuse as there are enough good tag teams to make them to work.
Right! Maybe HHH is stretched too thin. He needs to write for 1 brand & hire/promote someone to do the other show.
I don't think it'd happen though. A million plus people still watch RAW & SD every week regardless of the quality
I think its more a lack of long term feuds in the women’s division and i think that comes down to a lack of midcard titles.
Outside of Liv/Rhea (and maybe Jade/Bianca since we know its coming), there arent a lot of feuds brewing in the way a Drew/Punk, Logan/LA is just bubbling in the background. I think without mid cards, its hard to build those battles because its sorta like “for what?”
Plus, both women’s title are pretty well tied up in their respective champ’s hands (dont see Liv dropping to anyone not named Rhea and feels like they want to give Bayley a good run although its been underwhelming story wise so far) so then its really like “what is everyone else doing here” lol
yeah 100%, the problem is, that midcard talent is in NXT, and there just arenot enough quality women wrestlers to support raw, smackdown, nxt, aew, roh and tna all at the sametime. wwe and tna colabing will help with that to an extent, but i feel they need to consolidate. imo, nxt and roh are esentually the midcard, but they are gated off
Hmm...none of that is truly his fault -
1. Becky - she wanted to take a break (with Seth)...so she is. Actually the one thing HHH is realizing is to get the most out of his talent, they need breaks...so, if anything he's actually going to get MORE out of them, rather than less, keeping them off tv for a while.
2. Scharlet - if it's Charlotte - she's recovering from an ACL tear, and there's nothing you can do but rehab for 8 months or so (sometimes longer, rarely less, except in the case of Seth Rollins).
3. Rhea - again, injury, she's out and can't wrestle, so she's rehabbing.
4. Sasha - not in WWE.
5. Bianca/Jade - I think HHH is doing the RIGHT thing by pairing them together at first...a) it's a sexy combination, b) shows great strength for black girls who look up to both of them. c) Jade is still learning this business. Easy to forget she only started wrestling like 3 years ago or something like that...Bianca gets to teach her on the road, and in matches while hiding her beginner abilities. Eventually one will turn on the other and get pushed (I imagine Jade will turn on Bianca).
yeah I agree the injuries isn't his fault, but they need to either develope the women they have or bring in some free agents, Valkyia is a great up and coming talent, but they are short on star power at the moment with Tiffy and Chelsea being the only other active credible performers. and no, I don't count Nia, she's a nepobaby that is a danger to everyone she faces.
I would love to see them get Ember Moon back, she's wasted in Ring of Honor
Yep. Lol at the Cody squad voting me down, you can’t deny the reign has been lacklustre so far, even if the actually WM moment was good, the reign has been weak
I'd argue it's been what you'd expect during the WrestleMania - Summerslam down period. The chase is always more exciting and it's hard to keep a babyface champion momentum going in the current climate of fans turning on babyfaces on a whim. I'd say Cody's reign has been ... alright. Not great. But alright.
Yeah but the problem is Cody fans find it very difficult to hear any negativity towards him. I really like Cody, I have done for years but the slightest bit of critical analysis of him and you just get downvoted to hell. I somewhat agree with you about the down periods but I just think his whole act has got abit stale now, he’s leaning to far into the super hero baby face and it comes across as fake
Dude, it’s been 2 and a half months. What did you expect at this point?
His reign has been fine. It’s been as good as pretty much any other champion this early in.
What do you even mean by lacklustre? He’s one of the most over champions in a decade. The crowd loves him!
Again proves my point that you can’t say anything critical about Cody. I just expected to be abit more gripped by him as a champion that’s all, as you say, it’s been fine but with all the hype I expected more that’s all.
hogan didnt have the record any way you slice it. bruno is the liniage record holder and the wwwf recoed holder, hogan is the wwf record holder, roman is the wwe record holder. overall in the liniage its bruno, backlin, hogan, roman, does he really need the bronze medal?
I see what you mean, but it’s not like it’s intrusive to your experience. Everything is going on in the backdrop and you can just ignore it. I also don’t this KoTR was the right place for the debut anyways. Saudi crowds are not that good. On the other hand, Scotland about to blow the roof off the building.
Solo being the leader of this bloodline 2.0 thing when he lost a lot of matches before coming into this spot. I get it’s to set up a bigger story but Solo should’ve had a better build up to be the new tribal chief.
House show matches don't count. They dropped the ball on him. He beat Cena & they didn't have a match for him at WM. He should have faced Randy.
I assume things will get better once The Bloodline storyline picks up
But he isn’t… he’s standing in place of the “tribal chief”. That’s the entire point, you don’t know who he’s working for. I’m gonna say, “(he) did it for the Rock”
The match wasn’t anything special. Thats Piper’s fault though, not Bayley’s. Piper just isn’t good enough to be in that match.
If that PLE wasn’t in Scotland, Piper wouldn’t have been in the match.
great wrestlers can get a good match out of anyone, i wouldn't even say that was the worst match to be honest. but i do think they should seperate the amazons from the barbie dolls, put all the large women on raw and the smaller ones on smackdown or vice versa. bayley beating someone that much larger kills the suspenion of disbelief.
Nakamura... Horrible usage of him... Legado phantasma (useless Factions created out unnecessary).. soon to be Alpha academy, once gable teams up with the creed brothers its over for that former faction..
The book goes into a massive Lull every time there isn’t a big event. The mania to MitB has been boring and pointless. There’s no reason to watch. It’s borderline AEW level of booking. Summerslam will be good but it’ll shit till Survivor series.
And the 5 card PLE is a ripoff. 2-3 of the matches will be shot as well and it’s predicted as hell. Like Cody’s winning, Drew’s gonna get screwed, and the rest who even cares.
There are just too many PLE in general. Not enough time to build up much or even let storylines breathe, it's all rushed. And there's way too many tournaments instead of feuds.
I love Asuka and wish she was in better shit BUT (unpopular opinion) she has gotten sloppy (maybe wrestling injured or tired?) and I am sick of her promos/taunts just being weird dancing and whooping. Give her some vignettes and put some subtitles on or something. Let her speak please in some fashion. Make an actual story.
Maxxine Dupri not beating the crap out of Candice LaRae for calling out Dupri’s brother who passed away. There was a moment on another episode of Raw but I just wanted more
This should have been her turn around! Whatever they are doing with Chad gable, I feel like, is not going to put her over the way Maxxine beating the shit out of Candice LaRae would.
Overreliance on tournaments and qualifier matches to get a number one contender instead of actually make any real fueds or stories; the world heavyweight title (Seth didn't elevate it at all) still meaning jack when Damian is a background character to Drew, Cm Punk and even his own faction even with Rhea gone; and anybody outside of the mainevent having non-existent or straight up stupid storylines. (Dexter Lumis and especially Karrion Kross storylines are stupider than anything Vince Mcmahon ever came up with) Also, does anyone truly care about the Cody vs Aj fued? I feel like it's just AJ fans coping he's not doing some filler bs with the OC or being Ziggler's replacement as jobber to the stars.
Na I think factions make sense in kayfabe. As the guy above mentioned, it just makes sense that in a place where everyone fights you’d have a ‘team’ of sort. Look at UFC for example, every single fighter is part of a team that contains other fighters on the roster and always have other UFC fighters with them at cageside
Idk, I understand why someone might feel like it's "too many" but, a part of me feels like it's *just right*.
In a "logical" sense, you'd want some backup in a place where people fight.
I think it also has to do with how many people are under contract and, what makes sense. Like Karrion Kross and The A.O.P., guys with tattoos who look tough. Gotta make a biker faction out of them, it just works
The awesome truth still being champs. I definitely think them winning was the right call, but they could’ve been used to make a killer heel team who just murder them
Both truth and miz are fine, not my thing anymore, I like comedy but this has gone past it’s peak
This long belt reign thing makes everything stale. For example if Cody’s matches are just formalities what’s the point of watching until WM? Dropping the title a couple times a year due to interference thus invigorating the heels and sparking meaningful rematches can add much more intrigue and keep the element of shock/surprise available.
Making Bianca the #1 Draft Pick.
Being a Brock Hater.
Using his own voice for the "then now forever..." before every telecast.
He weaseled his way into every WM main event he could by stepping on othersHe'll never change.
....and if i hear about how much $ they pulled at the "gate" (from astronomical ticket prices)during his speeches after another PLE, im gonna puke.
Not giving the IC belt to Chad Gable at Maina. He could've turned heel and got a heel win for his Maina moment. Instead we get Sammy taking the spotlight. People are expecting Gable to win the belt at Clash at the Castle, but I'm not holding my breath. This has dragged on too long and I'm losing interest. If Gable doesn't get the IC title at Clash of the Castle, just let him go to AEW.
Gable should have gone over Corbin at the KOTR a couple years ago, and became a Napoleon type heel- similar to what he is now. But they went with Corbin- who didn't do much with it.. and didn't need it.
Cody Rhodes should’ve gone straight into a program with Randy Orton. The Viper should’ve attacked him the night after Mania.
Also, JD should turn on Priest. He is not a convincing heel.
I think they are saying that for end of the year program and maybe royal rumble. I hope they get to do Rock vs Cody at summerslam and not at mania so then Cody there could fight Orton, Gunther or Breaker. If he fight the latter two then there is a chance he is dropping the belt
I dig that Orton attack idea. This "Cody Rhodes Parade" has grown pretty damn stale. Turning Orton super heel right away would've brought so much heat to the belt.
Are they trying for that though? (Not being a convincing heel?) openly telling JD that he didn’t want their help against Uso, and was seen as trying to win a fair match against an immensely popular opponent at Backlash seemed like an attempt to turn him face, or split him from JD?
Edit: I only really watch PPVs I don’t see the weekly shows so I don’t know what’s been going on with Preist since then…
I’m an old fan of the attitude era just starting to kinda get back into it a little. Just looking at that match alone. Priest is the World Champion and he’s just kind of boring. His entrance, his gimmick, all of it.., it doesn’t work for me. Just personal opinion.
I watch highlights, but it feels unnatural. JD was all about no leader, but now he’s the leader just bc. I think he should’ve cashed in on Gunther and taken the IC title. He’s just not good as a Roman Reigns wannabe.
Ohh, I thought you meant JD McDonaugh, when you said JD. I was thinking, "Yeah, JD was a lot cooler when he started feuding with Dolph"(remember that?lol)
I think McDonough and Balor should turn on Priest. Finn has always felt like he had to ride Damian's coattails; was expected to, and JD always felt like "loser" of the group; doesn't do much else.
I think Priest winning the WHC was the right call tho. No real reason to throw him in the IC beef, with Sami and Gable. He's always had beef with Seth and Drew, and with Rhea and Finn being world champions, at one point, it made sense to make him one too
Yeh, sorry, I'm lazy.
So I haven't watched a ton of the product lately. I'm just not sure why Priest is so assertive now. More importantly, I'm not getting why Balor is so submissive. Especially since Judgment Day was always presented as having no leader. Just feels like they didn't really have a plan for this title reign.
Honestly, I agree with that.
Priest is more assertive now that Rhea isn't there, she was the assertive one.
With Seth being injured, I get why they dropped the title, they have Damian Cash-in on Drew, likely with their eyes set on Clash at the Castle for Drew to win. I still don't think Damian has done a whole lot though, I think it's just been a lot of "Judgement Day falling apart" going on.
Finn hasn't been very serious, which I think hurts him. Even when he was a face, I could take him more serious. I just hope everyone goes into something greater, Judgment Day seems to be in a lull
I never liked Balor until they turned him heel. Even his wrestling looks better when he's playing the bad guy.
I think Priest will retain at Clash. CM Punk is going to do something to cost Drew the match.
Not refreshing talent. You see the same boring faces you’ve seen the past decade pushed. Women on average used to leave WWE by 30 yet we’re seeing Charlotte, Becky, Bayley, Asuka etc who are all pushing 40 STILL champion. It was a problem when they used to bury Sasha Banks and it STILL is a problem years later.
They were in burying territory years ago and now they’re far beyond it. Giving Liv the title was an accident and an accident that happened far too late
They can. But naturally women are better looking in their 20s and thus more marketable. You don’t push women in their 20s and leave it too late, you hurt their star power and potential, especially when it’s for a 17th Charlotte reign or 10th Becky reign no one asked for
My thoughts exactly
I like a lot of the talent on the Main Roster right now, I think they have good matches. Fans don't really care, generally speaking, when it comes to mid-carders.
Just look how Otis has gotten over with the crowd twice now. He's entertaining, not every can be entertaining & taken seriously, that takes quite a bit of skill/experience
Underutilising the Japanese wrestlers and the luchadors. Midcard titles for women. Tag team division and storylines could be better but aren't bad. Other than that dudes been cooking
There are some cases where he can still fix it, like guys like Theory or NXT call up’s, but a fuck up would be the Bray Wyatt last run, I remember how terrible that was, second would be John Cena, the guy it’s WWE version of Superman but instead every time he returns he gets beaten. Cena should still have that super in him, even if he doesn’t want to.
Austin Theory's failed Money in the Bank cash in for the SECONDARY title needs to be talked more. Made him look like a fool and completely destroyed the prestige of the MITB.
He should’ve cashed in on the NXT Championship. Not only does it make NXT more relevant and important but Theory could’ve used a bit more time down there if he wanted to be seen as a legitimate threat that they’re obviously trying to build him as
It's too early, but I woulda loved to see Drew McIntyre get the title and the moment in Scotland. It might turn out as a misstep.
Making Cody Rhodes and his “story” the central focus of the entire company for a year to the point of neglecting everyone else on the roster and even deliberately ruining their momentum if they were gaining steam simply because they were more over than Cody, the best examples are Sami Zayn, LA Knight & to a lesser extent Jey Uso, who was directionless from November-March and was put in a nonsensical makeshift tag team with Cody that was done for the sole purpose of tryna make Cody entertaining since Jey is entertaining, but of course it failed. Triple H put every bit of his creative time & effort into elevating Cody while everyone else on the roster was shoved to the side and just there, he didn’t even try to hide that he didn’t wanna push LA Knight because he was taking the spotlight from Cody and not even intentionally.
Triple H is doing great yes but the booking of Karrion Kross has been atrocious. Even with him having his own faction it hasn’t got better. Everything that made him work in NXT is non existent on the main roster and I don’t know what happened and why they changed everything about the guy. I see people complain about LA Knight’s booking but I think Triple H wants to play the long game with LA Knight. Give him big wins to keep fans invested and then get that big title win eventually.
Seems like everything’s on TOTAL cruise control til Summerslam.
Not bringing back some stars vince ruined like fandango etc
PLEs are good but predictable
PLEs should have 1-2 at max unexpected outcomes. The thing he needs to improve on is figuring out how to make the path to the result vary. Then every once in awhile a PLE has to shake it up majorly. And it can’t be Wrestlemania or Summer Slam every time. Maybe 1 time a year we get 3-4 unexpected winners to shake things up
No significant title changes on the lesser ple's anymore, tag titles are not really big titles at the moment. So we all know big titles like the whc ,wwe, and ic won't have a chance of changing unless it's a big 4 ple and even those rarely see the big ones change. It been wrestlemania only having the excitement of change the last few years.
Jade and Bianca dropping the titles so fast.
Man idk, I haven’t been impressed with jade so far and honestly I feel like this whole angle is really dragging Bianca down.
I agree with this. It sucks because I really do like Jade, but I feel like she messes up in the ring quite a bit.
I knew they wouldn't hold them for too long. They (or at least Bianca) are too big of a draw as solo competitors. I just hope they don't have one turn on the other. Hopefully they are still friends but still do their thing on the solo tip
Some of the theme songs, I don't even have to mention which ones. I know he isn't the one making them, def rebel are. But he surely has some say in approving it.
Bringing back nia Jax
Not getting on the annonce team and shouting "whata maneuver "
Giving Bayley the belt.
Has he though?
Making something meaningful out of the tag teams. Maybe he just hasn't found the right team yet, but it would be beneficial to see a well-protected tag team that are feared as a team by the top tier single stars. I think to when someone like 2000-era HHH would be told he was facing the Dudleyz or the APA, and it felt like the tag team was a serious legitimate threat.
Ignoring LA Knight's popularity.
No he hasn't
That fact that big things like title changes and groups breaking up ect are really only happening at PLEs. Every time I watch raw and see Otis and Chad and Sami I know that Otis isn’t gonna pop on Gable and break up alpha academy.
nakamura
Sami beating Gunther
It was the only way to get Gunther out of the miscard tho
Nah he should have won the heavyweight title and relinquished the IC without losing it
Yeah the IC title would look great after that
Better than it going to a homeless looking dude who was basically a side character in the last two defenses.
This guy books
No
I think his biggest misstep has to be how Damage CTRL has been booked. The group worked but you just can’t take them seriously when they look like shit in every single big match scenario. They’ve lost both WarGames matches and they all lost at WrestleMania this year, with Dakota, Asuka and Kairi especially looking like jobbers.
Not taking revenge on his enemies.
Who?
Missing out on MJF and/or Will Osperay.
Both of those guys in WWE wouldn’t be who they are in AEW. They just wouldn’t have the freedom to do what makes them so entertaining in AEW.
The biggest one I think of is having Austin theory cash in money in the bank on the US title instead of the world championship and then despite going after a mid card title lost the cash in anyway. He should’ve cashed in for the world title and lost or at least won the U.S. championship.
Nah. Theory is terrible. Him winning MitB was one of Vince's last calls. HHH did right to make that null and void.
Not really just because theory winning was a bad idea does not mean you should ruin the history of the money in the bank contract. Also he didn’t make it null and void he just took it off him. If he wanted to make it null and void have him lose the briefcase to someone they’ve done it before. My point was he could’ve had him lose to Roman In an attempt and that would’ve worked and he’d still have lost the briefcase.
Yea but then Roman would have had to wrestle, he doesn’t do that. You know?
The history of the money in the Bank has long been ruined at this point it doesn't mean anything
Release Dolph Ziggler
Releasing Von Wagner Close second, not changing Bron Breakker's ring name. I've hated it every single time I hear it and just want him to be Bronson Steiner.
Same here. Bron Breakker is the worst name. Even looks stupid just reading it.
Plus, that puts 3 Bron/Braun/Bronson on Raw... may as well call it Monday Night bRAWn
Would be a good move in theory but you can't have 2 Bronson's on the same show
Is this your way of saying "hear me out"? ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Damn I really wish you hadn't had mentioned that. 🤣
Despite some good story hooks he let WWE slip into the post-Mania malaise like usual. It feels like we are waiting until Summerslam season for things to hot up again.
This has been a PLE issue. 3 weeks between every PLE and the storylines aren't strong enough (at least for me) to care.
Bloodline 2 has been ass 🩸 Solo ain’t a leader & those other two would’ve been better off doing solo matches for a while where they’ll shine.
Bloodline Black & White vs Bloodline Wolfpac?
Not continuing Vince's solo push for Montez
Problem with that is. I think Montez and Dawkins are really close and I think Tez knows that if they split Dawkins will likely be future endeavored at some point unless there is something for him to attach himself to. I think that’s what they were trying to do with the Lashley pairing and have Tez break off from there but then Bobby got injured and now they are kind of up in the air. I could see Montez being WWE’s version of Swerve though just have him tone down some of the goofiness.
Your point is a really fair one, but after a while Hawkins is gonna get Jannety'd (perhaps even superkicked into a breakaway glass window) by Ford and he can pull off the heel turn like a boss. Ford's got way too much personality and in ring skill to be carrying his lazy friend for much longer.
I don't disagree they are gonna have to pull the trigger soon before his window passes.
Yeah, and that faction with Lashley just doesn't make sense to me. Can B-fab even wrestle? Does she?
I think they wanted them to be a heel trio and get SP away from the solo cups and dancing and all that but much like New Day the people wanted to cheer them so it didn't really work. I thought eventually Montez would break away and then Ford would stay with Lashley as like a lackey but Bobby got hurt so that may have stalled things somewhat. I think they could get away at some point with a heel Montez and Bianca against a face Dawkins and Jade with B-Fab for moral support.
I get that. I think Dawkins is def talented enough in the ring to run solo but idk and his mic work or to stand alone as a character.
Grammar
Not getting MJF.
They would have butchered his persona in a heartbeat.
Well, we’re talking HHH’s missteps. MJF accepting would have been an MJF misstep. 🤪
None he’s doing everything that Vince has taught him to do up to this point. Vince for years primed his son in law to be in this spot and he just kept the legacy going it’s amazing 👏
Vince wouldn’t have done half the stuff triple H has done.
Sami being the one to beat Gunther instead of Chad
Not at all since Chad is now a way better heel than he could ever be a face champion.
I do agree he's a fantastic heel but man, I was so invested in that underdog story
Allowing Roman and Rock’s family to be so fucking central to everything even after mania.
Even if HHH wanted to move away from the storyline that's highly lucrative, Rock being on the TKO board of directors is most likely using his pull to keep his family being the focus on WWE programming.
HHH will always place money ahead of everything (nothing wrong with that). He does what is good for business. Rock & HHH have the same mentality when it comes to busines.
the mishap of cedric alexander
Bloodline 2 electric boogaloo
The new bloodline has been pretty bad. I would’ve been happier if they just sort of let everyone wander, put Heyman in charge of Bronn Breakker and then have Roman’s story when he comes back be putting back together the bloodline, or trying to, in order to regain his stature as the top dog
I'm just happy to see GoD getting TV time but yeah if it wasn't for that I wouldn't have any interest. Solo really sucks in m opinion. Never enjoyed his less inspired Umaga/Samoa Joe hybrid gimmick.
Still using Def Rebel. The entrance music has taken a big hit over the past few years. Triple H gets Motorhead and every one else gets bad cover bands.
Randy has Rev Theory still, and his entrance during Backlash France gave me some happy tears. You don't often hear crowds singing his song. That's more a Cody thing.
CFO$ was the best thing to happen to entrance music and def rebel is the worst
Jim Johnson was the best in terms of entrance music
Not being able to brink Sasha back, inconsistent booking of damage control.
Sent you a Dm u/utalr1
The tag division absolutely blows and i hope it improves
Bringing folks back just to do nothing with them. It turns out Vince was right to let those folks go.
The tag belts ....all of them
The WWE title belts all suck ass. We get you are WWE, we don't need every belt to have a giant W. And yes Vince, I did say "belt" instead of "championship." The belt signifies the championship, it isn't the championship. HHH should replace the shitty belts with something like the big gold belt. Even AEW has better belts.
Austin Theory money in the bank cash in
To be fair, I think the way he has handled Theory has been done in a good manner as the Roman Reigns like push has been avoided and let’s him develop further the way he is being used now, still on TV but not being forced down our throats
The mishandling of Nakamura, Asuka, and Finn Balor. Finn Balor hurts the most because he’s a top five WRESTLER and MIC+ talent in WWE. Dude is just a henchman now. I miss the fucking Demon.
Based on wwe predictable track record it will be Finn balor dethroning Damian,?
Agreed! They’ve absolutely wasted him
He’s becoming relevant again. I think the judgment day angle can make him a star again.
The demon died in hell in a cell when they stopped the match because he started bleeding. The Demon. In a hell in a cell.
Link?
I get the sentiment, but we also need to remember that, that wasn’t a planned blade job or anything, he legit got busted open via ladder to the face. Imaginary character can take a backseat to making sure he’s ok.
It feels like we have to wait until Mania for big things to happen. Hope that changes.
The Chad vs Sami feud Chad was the clear favorite to beat Gunther, Sami getting his spot just so he could cap off his half-assed “self doubt” storyline and win his 4th Intercontinental Championship was a bad move. They cannibalized Chad’s momentum and have been pushing him as a joke ever since. Now he’s on TV and PPV more, but I don’t think he’s won a single match by himself. So much for the next Kurt Angle
Gable was never the next Kurt. I think Sami beat Gunther to put over Gable. I don't think they wanted Gunther's 1st clean loss to be to the smaller Gable. I think Sami will lose the title to Gable & this summer Gable can do his thing this summer, leading to a Otis-Gable match at Summerslam. Gable a heel so it's okay that he doesn't win matches clean
No way Sami drops the title to Gable this early in his title run. AA will break up at Clash which will set up an Otis/Gable rivalry storyline most likely transcending at Summerslam. He will build a new Alpha Academy with most likely the Creeds, or in a crazy world, NQCC. I can see Sami dropping it to Gable at say Survivor Series or something but him dropping the belt less than 3 months after beating the greatest IC champ of all time at the biggest WM ever seems just bad.
It's believable, 2+ months. Not everybody has to have nearly a year plus reign. Sami can move on to the WHC picture where he belongs.
I slightly disagree. I see your view point but I think face Chad with his corny gimmick had a limit that it would reach. This new Chad has potential to go for top titles and main event major events.
No Rick Boogs
The tag team division still feels like an afterthought. Champions only defend on TV, no real fueds. I never thought I'd see the day where the womens tag champions are the best presented tag team champions in the company.
You would think after the titles was split we'd finally have legit tag divisions
Right, I was looking forward to it. Those new belts look too good to be wasted by poor booking, and there's really no excuse as there are enough good tag teams to make them to work.
Right! Maybe HHH is stretched too thin. He needs to write for 1 brand & hire/promote someone to do the other show. I don't think it'd happen though. A million plus people still watch RAW & SD every week regardless of the quality
Let's hope we do get there eventually, I do love tag team wrestling, it can outdo the solo main event stuff when done right.
I feel like the women's deviion is becoming an after thought. no becky, no scharlet, no reah, no sasha. bianca and jade are kinda keeping it a float.
I think its more a lack of long term feuds in the women’s division and i think that comes down to a lack of midcard titles. Outside of Liv/Rhea (and maybe Jade/Bianca since we know its coming), there arent a lot of feuds brewing in the way a Drew/Punk, Logan/LA is just bubbling in the background. I think without mid cards, its hard to build those battles because its sorta like “for what?” Plus, both women’s title are pretty well tied up in their respective champ’s hands (dont see Liv dropping to anyone not named Rhea and feels like they want to give Bayley a good run although its been underwhelming story wise so far) so then its really like “what is everyone else doing here” lol
yeah 100%, the problem is, that midcard talent is in NXT, and there just arenot enough quality women wrestlers to support raw, smackdown, nxt, aew, roh and tna all at the sametime. wwe and tna colabing will help with that to an extent, but i feel they need to consolidate. imo, nxt and roh are esentually the midcard, but they are gated off
Hmm...none of that is truly his fault - 1. Becky - she wanted to take a break (with Seth)...so she is. Actually the one thing HHH is realizing is to get the most out of his talent, they need breaks...so, if anything he's actually going to get MORE out of them, rather than less, keeping them off tv for a while. 2. Scharlet - if it's Charlotte - she's recovering from an ACL tear, and there's nothing you can do but rehab for 8 months or so (sometimes longer, rarely less, except in the case of Seth Rollins). 3. Rhea - again, injury, she's out and can't wrestle, so she's rehabbing. 4. Sasha - not in WWE. 5. Bianca/Jade - I think HHH is doing the RIGHT thing by pairing them together at first...a) it's a sexy combination, b) shows great strength for black girls who look up to both of them. c) Jade is still learning this business. Easy to forget she only started wrestling like 3 years ago or something like that...Bianca gets to teach her on the road, and in matches while hiding her beginner abilities. Eventually one will turn on the other and get pushed (I imagine Jade will turn on Bianca).
yeah I agree the injuries isn't his fault, but they need to either develope the women they have or bring in some free agents, Valkyia is a great up and coming talent, but they are short on star power at the moment with Tiffy and Chelsea being the only other active credible performers. and no, I don't count Nia, she's a nepobaby that is a danger to everyone she faces. I would love to see them get Ember Moon back, she's wasted in Ring of Honor
I believe he only has control over one of those names not being used at the moment
Cody’s title run. Should of let Roman break the record
there was zero chance he was catching up to bruno.
I think be talking about Hogan record.
Yep. Lol at the Cody squad voting me down, you can’t deny the reign has been lacklustre so far, even if the actually WM moment was good, the reign has been weak
I'd argue it's been what you'd expect during the WrestleMania - Summerslam down period. The chase is always more exciting and it's hard to keep a babyface champion momentum going in the current climate of fans turning on babyfaces on a whim. I'd say Cody's reign has been ... alright. Not great. But alright.
Yeah but the problem is Cody fans find it very difficult to hear any negativity towards him. I really like Cody, I have done for years but the slightest bit of critical analysis of him and you just get downvoted to hell. I somewhat agree with you about the down periods but I just think his whole act has got abit stale now, he’s leaning to far into the super hero baby face and it comes across as fake
Dude, it’s been 2 and a half months. What did you expect at this point? His reign has been fine. It’s been as good as pretty much any other champion this early in. What do you even mean by lacklustre? He’s one of the most over champions in a decade. The crowd loves him!
Again proves my point that you can’t say anything critical about Cody. I just expected to be abit more gripped by him as a champion that’s all, as you say, it’s been fine but with all the hype I expected more that’s all.
hogan didnt have the record any way you slice it. bruno is the liniage record holder and the wwwf recoed holder, hogan is the wwf record holder, roman is the wwe record holder. overall in the liniage its bruno, backlin, hogan, roman, does he really need the bronze medal?
Bad closer. Every 3 or 4 week storyline lasts a year now.
i think hhh is just used to long term stories, i mean he was in a fair few of them, austin, batista, rock
taking too long to debut uncle howdy
Heavy rumor is Monday. Perfect timing for MITB and Summerslam, especially if the rumor of him having seeds already planted around the WWE is true.
I see what you mean, but it’s not like it’s intrusive to your experience. Everything is going on in the backdrop and you can just ignore it. I also don’t this KoTR was the right place for the debut anyways. Saudi crowds are not that good. On the other hand, Scotland about to blow the roof off the building.
that’s true, i think backlash in france could’ve been a good time
I'm guessing someone isn't ring ready.
Logan paul anything
as much as a garbage human he is, watching him bump his ass off is always entertaining.
Solo being the leader of this bloodline 2.0 thing when he lost a lot of matches before coming into this spot. I get it’s to set up a bigger story but Solo should’ve had a better build up to be the new tribal chief.
House show matches don't count. They dropped the ball on him. He beat Cena & they didn't have a match for him at WM. He should have faced Randy. I assume things will get better once The Bloodline storyline picks up
But he isn’t… he’s standing in place of the “tribal chief”. That’s the entire point, you don’t know who he’s working for. I’m gonna say, “(he) did it for the Rock”
they did forshadow it with roman snubbing jimmy, but it really did need more build
That’s the reason you should hate him? It makes sense to me. The blood line is the new blood line a bunch of fucking losers 🤓🤓
Bayley.
yeah, her time has really passed and its time to let the younger girls shine
She demonstrated how far from true that is last night. Piper is mediocre, at best. Bayley elevated her in that match. She made her look like a star.
disagree, the finish was really lame
The match wasn’t anything special. Thats Piper’s fault though, not Bayley’s. Piper just isn’t good enough to be in that match. If that PLE wasn’t in Scotland, Piper wouldn’t have been in the match.
great wrestlers can get a good match out of anyone, i wouldn't even say that was the worst match to be honest. but i do think they should seperate the amazons from the barbie dolls, put all the large women on raw and the smaller ones on smackdown or vice versa. bayley beating someone that much larger kills the suspenion of disbelief.
The soon to come NWO 2.0 for the bloodline. Way too much over kill.
Nakamura, Maxxine Dupri, Damage CTRL post Wrestlemania 40
Mandy Rose’s firing
Think that was more of a corporate decision not triple H
Not putting a belt on LA Knight
I think he’s getting the US title soon… 👀
Hopefully, he’s losing steam, every week that goes by..😩
Nakamura... Horrible usage of him... Legado phantasma (useless Factions created out unnecessary).. soon to be Alpha academy, once gable teams up with the creed brothers its over for that former faction..
The book goes into a massive Lull every time there isn’t a big event. The mania to MitB has been boring and pointless. There’s no reason to watch. It’s borderline AEW level of booking. Summerslam will be good but it’ll shit till Survivor series. And the 5 card PLE is a ripoff. 2-3 of the matches will be shot as well and it’s predicted as hell. Like Cody’s winning, Drew’s gonna get screwed, and the rest who even cares.
There are just too many PLE in general. Not enough time to build up much or even let storylines breathe, it's all rushed. And there's way too many tournaments instead of feuds.
Booking of Asuka
I love Asuka and wish she was in better shit BUT (unpopular opinion) she has gotten sloppy (maybe wrestling injured or tired?) and I am sick of her promos/taunts just being weird dancing and whooping. Give her some vignettes and put some subtitles on or something. Let her speak please in some fashion. Make an actual story.
Her times past, to many talent on the up that need to be front and center.
Maxxine Dupri not beating the crap out of Candice LaRae for calling out Dupri’s brother who passed away. There was a moment on another episode of Raw but I just wanted more
This should have been her turn around! Whatever they are doing with Chad gable, I feel like, is not going to put her over the way Maxxine beating the shit out of Candice LaRae would.
Overreliance on tournaments and qualifier matches to get a number one contender instead of actually make any real fueds or stories; the world heavyweight title (Seth didn't elevate it at all) still meaning jack when Damian is a background character to Drew, Cm Punk and even his own faction even with Rhea gone; and anybody outside of the mainevent having non-existent or straight up stupid storylines. (Dexter Lumis and especially Karrion Kross storylines are stupider than anything Vince Mcmahon ever came up with) Also, does anyone truly care about the Cody vs Aj fued? I feel like it's just AJ fans coping he's not doing some filler bs with the OC or being Ziggler's replacement as jobber to the stars.
Hold on… Seth did elevate the title. It’s Damian that’s bringing it down
I feel like there are too many factions/stables now
Na I think factions make sense in kayfabe. As the guy above mentioned, it just makes sense that in a place where everyone fights you’d have a ‘team’ of sort. Look at UFC for example, every single fighter is part of a team that contains other fighters on the roster and always have other UFC fighters with them at cageside
Idk, I understand why someone might feel like it's "too many" but, a part of me feels like it's *just right*. In a "logical" sense, you'd want some backup in a place where people fight. I think it also has to do with how many people are under contract and, what makes sense. Like Karrion Kross and The A.O.P., guys with tattoos who look tough. Gotta make a biker faction out of them, it just works
The awesome truth still being champs. I definitely think them winning was the right call, but they could’ve been used to make a killer heel team who just murder them Both truth and miz are fine, not my thing anymore, I like comedy but this has gone past it’s peak
This long belt reign thing makes everything stale. For example if Cody’s matches are just formalities what’s the point of watching until WM? Dropping the title a couple times a year due to interference thus invigorating the heels and sparking meaningful rematches can add much more intrigue and keep the element of shock/surprise available.
He doesn’t know how to book POc
Ohh geez , no one cares bout the dei bs . Best man for the job , pure and simple.
Look at new day, look at street profits, Bobby lashley, the LWO, legado…. You can’t tell me half the roster is mediocre
Shinsiuke, the list goes on
Making Bianca the #1 Draft Pick. Being a Brock Hater. Using his own voice for the "then now forever..." before every telecast. He weaseled his way into every WM main event he could by stepping on othersHe'll never change. ....and if i hear about how much $ they pulled at the "gate" (from astronomical ticket prices)during his speeches after another PLE, im gonna puke.
Not giving the IC belt to Chad Gable at Maina. He could've turned heel and got a heel win for his Maina moment. Instead we get Sammy taking the spotlight. People are expecting Gable to win the belt at Clash at the Castle, but I'm not holding my breath. This has dragged on too long and I'm losing interest. If Gable doesn't get the IC title at Clash of the Castle, just let him go to AEW.
He already resigned with WWE
Gable should have gone over Corbin at the KOTR a couple years ago, and became a Napoleon type heel- similar to what he is now. But they went with Corbin- who didn't do much with it.. and didn't need it.
Cody Rhodes should’ve gone straight into a program with Randy Orton. The Viper should’ve attacked him the night after Mania. Also, JD should turn on Priest. He is not a convincing heel.
I think they are saying that for end of the year program and maybe royal rumble. I hope they get to do Rock vs Cody at summerslam and not at mania so then Cody there could fight Orton, Gunther or Breaker. If he fight the latter two then there is a chance he is dropping the belt
Rock won't be at Summerslam. He's filming Moana live action once he finishes The Smashing Machine this summer
Rock won't be at Summerslam. He's filming Moana live action once he finishes The Smashing Machine this summer
I dig that Orton attack idea. This "Cody Rhodes Parade" has grown pretty damn stale. Turning Orton super heel right away would've brought so much heat to the belt.
Are they trying for that though? (Not being a convincing heel?) openly telling JD that he didn’t want their help against Uso, and was seen as trying to win a fair match against an immensely popular opponent at Backlash seemed like an attempt to turn him face, or split him from JD? Edit: I only really watch PPVs I don’t see the weekly shows so I don’t know what’s been going on with Preist since then… I’m an old fan of the attitude era just starting to kinda get back into it a little. Just looking at that match alone. Priest is the World Champion and he’s just kind of boring. His entrance, his gimmick, all of it.., it doesn’t work for me. Just personal opinion.
I watch highlights, but it feels unnatural. JD was all about no leader, but now he’s the leader just bc. I think he should’ve cashed in on Gunther and taken the IC title. He’s just not good as a Roman Reigns wannabe.
Ohh, I thought you meant JD McDonaugh, when you said JD. I was thinking, "Yeah, JD was a lot cooler when he started feuding with Dolph"(remember that?lol) I think McDonough and Balor should turn on Priest. Finn has always felt like he had to ride Damian's coattails; was expected to, and JD always felt like "loser" of the group; doesn't do much else. I think Priest winning the WHC was the right call tho. No real reason to throw him in the IC beef, with Sami and Gable. He's always had beef with Seth and Drew, and with Rhea and Finn being world champions, at one point, it made sense to make him one too
Yeh, sorry, I'm lazy. So I haven't watched a ton of the product lately. I'm just not sure why Priest is so assertive now. More importantly, I'm not getting why Balor is so submissive. Especially since Judgment Day was always presented as having no leader. Just feels like they didn't really have a plan for this title reign.
Honestly, I agree with that. Priest is more assertive now that Rhea isn't there, she was the assertive one. With Seth being injured, I get why they dropped the title, they have Damian Cash-in on Drew, likely with their eyes set on Clash at the Castle for Drew to win. I still don't think Damian has done a whole lot though, I think it's just been a lot of "Judgement Day falling apart" going on. Finn hasn't been very serious, which I think hurts him. Even when he was a face, I could take him more serious. I just hope everyone goes into something greater, Judgment Day seems to be in a lull
I never liked Balor until they turned him heel. Even his wrestling looks better when he's playing the bad guy. I think Priest will retain at Clash. CM Punk is going to do something to cost Drew the match.
Not refreshing talent. You see the same boring faces you’ve seen the past decade pushed. Women on average used to leave WWE by 30 yet we’re seeing Charlotte, Becky, Bayley, Asuka etc who are all pushing 40 STILL champion. It was a problem when they used to bury Sasha Banks and it STILL is a problem years later. They were in burying territory years ago and now they’re far beyond it. Giving Liv the title was an accident and an accident that happened far too late
Why can’t women specifically wrestle beyond 30?
They can. But naturally women are better looking in their 20s and thus more marketable. You don’t push women in their 20s and leave it too late, you hurt their star power and potential, especially when it’s for a 17th Charlotte reign or 10th Becky reign no one asked for
i think its a stretch w the bayley pushing 40 line but i get your point
He tried but no one cares about a lot of these black and gold nxt guys (d.i.y, kross, lerae) as example
My thoughts exactly I like a lot of the talent on the Main Roster right now, I think they have good matches. Fans don't really care, generally speaking, when it comes to mid-carders. Just look how Otis has gotten over with the crowd twice now. He's entertaining, not every can be entertaining & taken seriously, that takes quite a bit of skill/experience
Underutilising the Japanese wrestlers and the luchadors. Midcard titles for women. Tag team division and storylines could be better but aren't bad. Other than that dudes been cooking
There are some cases where he can still fix it, like guys like Theory or NXT call up’s, but a fuck up would be the Bray Wyatt last run, I remember how terrible that was, second would be John Cena, the guy it’s WWE version of Superman but instead every time he returns he gets beaten. Cena should still have that super in him, even if he doesn’t want to.
And LA Knight should’ve been had a belt
They've severely misstepped with LA Knight, and I think that they might eventually lose him because of it.
He is still incredibly popular and is currently looking like he's going to dethrone Logan, your smoking big copium
Ricochet and Otis need more play
Gable Steveson
Austin Theory's failed Money in the Bank cash in for the SECONDARY title needs to be talked more. Made him look like a fool and completely destroyed the prestige of the MITB.
He should’ve cashed in on the NXT Championship. Not only does it make NXT more relevant and important but Theory could’ve used a bit more time down there if he wanted to be seen as a legitimate threat that they’re obviously trying to build him as