The Fear Of The Wrestling Thread Is Far Greater Than The Wrestling Thread Itself - Part 151

[Thread Manager]

This is a continuation thread, the old thread is [split]474951[/split]

 

[sweetre15]

http://pwtorch.com/artman2/publish/WWE_News_3/article_76825.shtml

Monday's WWE Raw from Chicago peaked in Q1 in the quarter-hour TV ratings, then skyrocketed at the top of the third hour for the Daniel Bryan-Triple H/Stephanie McMahon confrontation.

After the confrontation, Raw slid back to the first hour levels. This included Bryan vs. Batista in the over-run segment, which also had a rare commercial break.

Raw opened with an above-average audience in Q1 for the initial check-in on how WWE would handle C.M. Punk in Chicago. Otherwise, the rest of the show performed okay-to-average outside of the Bryan-Authority confrontation in Q9.

Raw Break Down - males 18-49 demographic

- Overall Show: 2.22 m18-49 rating / 1.4 million viewers. (Bryan-Authority scored a 2.57 rating.)

Q1: Raw opened with a 2.29 rating for Paul Heyman addressing the C.M. Punk situation in Chicago. There was no commercial.

Q2: Raw dipped to a 2.24 rating for the end of the opening segment, the first-half of the New Age Outlaws vs. The Usos for the Tag Titles, and one commercial.

Q3: Raw dropped to a 2.06 rating for the second-half of the Tag Title match, two full commercial breaks, and Big E. vs. Cesaro in a two-minute match. Within the minute-by-minute performance, the end of the Tag Title match performed well, but the two commercials had a significant tune-out factor.

Q4: Raw rebounded slightly to a 2.12 rating for the first-half of The Shield vs. The Wyatts, plus two full commercial breaks.

Q5: Raw got a top-of-the-hour bump to a 2.27 rating for the finish of the six-man tag match and one commercial. It was a solid, but not overwhelming quarter-hour rating for a re-match from the Elimination Chamber PPV.

Q6: Raw dropped to a show-low 2.05 rating for the comedown mixed tag match of Fandango & Summer Rae vs. Santino & Emma, one commercial, Stephanie McMahon's Network message, and ring introductions for Christian vs. Sheamus.

Q7: Raw increased to a 2.18 rating for Sheamus vs. Christian and one commercial.

Q8: Raw dipped to a 2.11 rating for The Bellas vs. Foxsana and two full commercial breaks.

Q9: Raw skyrocketed to a 2.57 rating at the top of the third hour for the Bryan-Authority confrontation. There was no commercial. The peak audience was 1.751 million m18-49 viewers at 10:14 p.m. EST when the segment wrapped up after growing from 1.5 to 1.6 to 1.7 million viewers every five minutes.

Q10: Raw dropped to a 2.26 rating for Dolph Ziggler vs. Alberto Del Rio in the comedown match, plus there were two full commercial breaks.

Q11: Raw was about the same at a 2.22 rating for Big E. vs. Jack Swagger, the Real Americans hashing things out, one commercial, and the first-half of John Cena's speech.

Q12: Raw was about the same at a 2.23 rating for the end of Cena's speech, one commercial, and main event ring introductions. Cena's speech topped out in the mid-1.5 million viewers range.

Over-Run: Raw scored a 2.27 rating for Bryan vs. Batista. Before the commercial, the match was in the mid-1.4 million viewers range. Afterward, Raw increased to the mid-to-upper 1.5 million range, peaking with 1.590 million viewers.

People still want to say Daniel Bryan doesnt draw? lol

 

[sweetre15]

Interesting. It has now gotten to the point where it has become a raw talent for Bryan and as long as he keeps doing it, the crowd is gonna be more invested in his character.

Which is insane....Overtime he's managed to become head and shoulders above 90% of the main roster on the mic and was already head and shoulders above the entire main roster in the ring.

It's incredible how long of a way he's come in his career and how much he's evolved.

 

[sweetre15]

Dang it, looks like everyone has went to bed

 

[Keyser Soze]

And just like that, I now want to buy WrestleMania. See how simple it is,WWE?

 

[TX85]

He sure has evolved in so many ways,improved

 

[Wheels]

Dang it, looks like everyone has went to bed

Not me. YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES

 

[sweetre15]

He sure has evolved in so many ways,improved

It speaks volumes on Daniel Bryan's drive and love for the art form that her he willing to improve in every way and maintain a gradually evolving character.

Someone who some considered as "boring/vanilla" as a talker/character has become one of best talkers in wrestling during his time in WWE and possibly has become the best All-Around talent in the US period.....or close to it

 

[TX85]

The WM live stream on the wwe network better work as usual,None of that **** from NXT Arrival's main event

 

[Hunter Rider]

And just like that, I now want to buy WrestleMania. See how simple it is,WWE?

I bet they got a LOT of buys and Network subscriptions off tonights show.

It speaks volumes on Daniel Bryan's drive and love for the art form that her he willing to improve in every way and maintain a gradually evolving character.

Someone who some considered as "boring/vanilla" as a talker/character has become one of best talkers in wrestling during his time in WWE and possibly has become the best All-Around talent in the US period.....or close to it

Without a doubt, he said from the start that he knew he could put on a good match but needed to learn how to be an entertainer as well, it's part of his early career where he worked with Miz and behind the scenes they helped each other. His mic work tonight was his best to date, the way he controlled that crowd during the segment was masterful.

Seth Rollins is going down the same path, a great athlete but very indierific in ROH and couldn't cut a decent promo. His improvements over the last 18 months are very noticeable.

 

[Hunter Rider]

The 30 best big men in wrestling history

Not quite the top 10 I'd have chosen but an interesting read.

 

[DarthSkywalker]

Pretty funny that Bryan basically got screwed at the last two Mania's, and now he might go an hour this year. Also funny that so many thought this wasn't going to happen. They had to do it, especially once they turned Batista. No Face in the main event of WM?

 

[Trainwreck2100]

Pretty funny that Bryan basically got screwed at the last two Mania's, and now he might go an hour this year. Also funny that so many thought this wasn't going to happen. They had to do it, especially once they turned Batista. No Face in the main event of WM?

How'd he get screwed last year?

 

[DarthSkywalker]

How'd he get screwed last year?

Your best worker was left with a sub-10min tag match on a Wrestlemania which lacked compelling matches.

 

[Calavera]

sup yo.
avoiding wwe till wrestlemania.

 

[The Sage]

You should at least try looking for the Occupy RAW segment from last night, Calavera.

That segment got more done than the actual Occupy movement in the US.

 

[Darkness Falls]

so much closer to the vision of daniel bryan closing wrestlemania leading a yes chant while holding up both titles becoming a reality

if hhh does what's best for business that is

 

[Lead Cenobite]

The 30 best big men in wrestling history

Not quite the top 10 I'd have chosen but an interesting read.

I'm surprised they made absolutely no mention of Kevin Nash's run in WCW which was just as notable as his time as Diesel. He was one of the co-founder of the nWo, one half of the Outsiders, the leader of the Wolfpac, a two-time world champion and the man who ended Goldberg's streak. Even Sid's last WCW run from 99-01 got mentioned.

 

[cyclone]

Liked the 'Occupy Raw' stuff. Common sense says WrestleMania has to end with Daniel Bryan lifting the belts, leading a chant of "YES!" with 75,000+ people.

But that's common sense......and this is WWE.

They've got their buys now. People know there's a chance DB will be in that main event, so people will buy. But I'm just doubtful.....

- Will HHH really put Daniel Bryan over clean?
- Batista came back, much like the Rock, because I'm sure he was guaranteed a title win at Mania. So how does that work?

Unless WWE have agreed to pay Batista a 'compensation' type payment for going back on their deal (if Bryan wins), is he really going to be happy with losing at Mania?! Also, what comes next? So Bryan wins. OK great. Wonderful. Does he then feud with Batista? Orton? HHH? Cena? Does the Authority storyline finish? If Bryan wins, it's hard to see what the next angle is. But if he DOESN'T win, it's the biggest screwjob ever, and you've got months of story leading to SummerSlam......

 

[Hotwire]

Liked the 'Occupy Raw' stuff. Common sense says WrestleMania has to end with Daniel Bryan lifting the belts, leading a chant of "YES!" with 75,000+ people.

But that's common sense......and this is WWE.

The WWE used to have a pretty consistent pattern with their PPVs. You would get one that was dominated by the heels and the next was almost always dominated by the faces. Given how long the heels have been dominating the PPVs, we're due for a "Faces Win" PPV. Also, given this is the first PPV to stream on the WWE Network, if they have the heels win, those subscribers are going to drop it once their 6 months is up.

- Will HHH really put Daniel Bryan over clean?
- Batista came back, much like the Rock, because I'm sure he was guaranteed a title win at Mania. So how does that work?

Yes.
New feud between him and Bryan.

Unless WWE have agreed to pay Batista a 'compensation' type payment for going back on their deal (if Bryan wins), is he really going to be happy with losing at Mania?! Also, what comes next? So Bryan wins. OK great. Wonderful. Does he then feud with Batista? Orton? HHH? Cena? Does the Authority storyline finish? If Bryan wins, it's hard to see what the next angle is. But if he DOESN'T win, it's the biggest screwjob ever, and you've got months of story leading to SummerSlam......

See above.

 

[Donnie Darko]

The 30 best big men in wrestling history

Not quite the top 10 I'd have chosen but an interesting read.

I just flipped through the top few. Of course they put Big Show that high because they want to convince us that he is better/more important than he actually is. No way he should be ahead of Kane.

 

[H.U.S.T.L.E.]

I don't buy the idea that Batista was promised a title win at Mania - I know it's a popular opinion online, but I just don't see it personally. That being said, I do think he'll get the title at some point in his two-year run. Right now just isn't the time for two main reasons:

1) He's not yet in ring-shape
2) It's Daniel Bryan's time

And now, it's time for an UNPOPULAR OPINION ALERT - while Daniel Bryan is unquestionably deserving of leaving Mania with the title, I think a long reign as champion isn't the best booking decision for his character. I love the guy to death and he deserves a top spot on the card, period. But I truly believe the money for him will always be in the chase & not necessarily as "the guy." Kinda like Jeff Hardy's WWE career... Jeff got the title a few times, but never had a lengthy reign. Now there's probably other reasons for that (a history of being unreliable being the main one), but a lot of was because he was a great underdog.

Daniel Bryan may be the best (and probably most successful) underdog in the history of WWE. While he's certainly capable of being "the guy," since he proved it in ROH, it makes me wonder the best course of action for him. I really have no clue how they're going to book him, but it wouldn't surprise me to see a 2 or 3 month title reign before getting screwed over by Batista. I know fans won't like it, but I'd understand it from a storyline perspective. I don't think we'll see Bryan get a reign like Punk (if anyone ever does again), but I'm certainly curious to see how long they'd run with him as champ.

What are people's thoughts on this? What's an acceptable length reign of Bryan as champion to you?

 

[Keyser Soze]

I don't buy the idea that Batista was promised a title win at Mania - I know it's a popular opinion online, but I just don't see it personally. That being said, I do think he'll get the title at some point in his two-year run. Right now just isn't the time for two main reasons:

1) He's not yet in ring-shape
2) It's Daniel Bryan's time

And now, it's time for an UNPOPULAR OPINION ALERT - while Daniel Bryan is unquestionably deserving of leaving Mania with the title, I think a long reign as champion isn't the best booking decision for his character. I love the guy to death and he deserves a top spot on the card, period. But I truly believe the money for him will always be in the chase & not necessarily as "the guy." Kinda like Jeff Hardy's WWE career... Jeff got the title a few times, but never had a lengthy reign. Now there's probably other reasons for that (a history of being unreliable being the main one), but a lot of was because he was a great underdog.

Daniel Bryan may be the best (and probably most successful) underdog in the history of WWE. While he's certainly capable of being "the guy," since he proved it in ROH, it makes me wonder the best course of action for him. I really have no clue how they're going to book him, but it wouldn't surprise me to see a 2 or 3 month title reign before getting screwed over by Batista. I know fans won't like it, but I'd understand it from a storyline perspective. I don't think we'll see Bryan get a reign like Punk (if anyone ever does again), but I'm certainly curious to see how long they'd run with him as champ.

What are people's thoughts on this? What's an acceptable length reign of Bryan as champion to you?

I get what you mean. Daniel Bryan is my favourite wrestler, has been for years, but I don't think him having a massively long reign is necessary, or even the best course of action. Even guys like a The a Rock and Steve Austin never really had hugely lengthy babyface title reigns. When I think of great, long-term babyface title reigns that drew money and people were into, obviously you think Hulk Hogan. But in modern years, the only one that really jumps to mind is Samoa Joe in ROH. Most times, if a babyface holds the title for ages, either the crowd turns on them - like with Cena - or they themselves turn heel over the course of their lengthy run, like what happened with CM Punk. It just seems to be much harder to book a babyface strong as champion long-term. So unless they plan on turning Bryan during his reign - which is unlikely - I'd say his reign isn't going to be massive.

Having said that, though, I wouldn't make it a one-month reign. You could get several months out of Bryan as champion, maybe up to Summerslam, or close to Summerslam. And you could extend that further by cycling in some fresh opponents. There seems to be plenty of heels waiting to break big - Bray Wyatt, Dean Ambrose and maybe Roman Reigns when The Shield splits - that could be matched up in strong matches with Bryan. And of course you can have him face Brock Lesnar too. And once he does lose the title, that shouldn't be it for him. Put him right back in the chase to win it again!

 

[cherokeesam]

I don't buy the idea that Batista was promised a title win at Mania - I know it's a popular opinion online, but I just don't see it personally. That being said, I do think he'll get the title at some point in his two-year run. Right now just isn't the time for two main reasons:

1) He's not yet in ring-shape
2) It's Daniel Bryan's time

And now, it's time for an UNPOPULAR OPINION ALERT - while Daniel Bryan is unquestionably deserving of leaving Mania with the title, I think a long reign as champion isn't the best booking decision for his character. I love the guy to death and he deserves a top spot on the card, period. But I truly believe the money for him will always be in the chase & not necessarily as "the guy." Kinda like Jeff Hardy's WWE career... Jeff got the title a few times, but never had a lengthy reign. Now there's probably other reasons for that (a history of being unreliable being the main one), but a lot of was because he was a great underdog.

Daniel Bryan may be the best (and probably most successful) underdog in the history of WWE. While he's certainly capable of being "the guy," since he proved it in ROH, it makes me wonder the best course of action for him. I really have no clue how they're going to book him, but it wouldn't surprise me to see a 2 or 3 month title reign before getting screwed over by Batista. I know fans won't like it, but I'd understand it from a storyline perspective. I don't think we'll see Bryan get a reign like Punk (if anyone ever does again), but I'm certainly curious to see how long they'd run with him as champ.

What are people's thoughts on this? What's an acceptable length reign of Bryan as champion to you?

Well, there's obviously a lot of worry, even within Creative, that once an underdog wins, he's no longer the underdog. So the elephant in the room is how long D-Bry's appeal will last once he gets that win.

Me, I compare it to Stone Cold. Stone Cold was the underdog, the rebel, the guy fighting The Corporation. Once he climbed that mountain, did his appeal stop? Can I get a hell no? Stone Cold stayed on top because he was "the vox populi" of the time. WWE fandom in the Attitude Era was still largely what Stone Cold was: beer-swilling redneck rattlesnakes who fantasized about telling their bosses to take this job 'n' shove it. Fast-forward to 2014, and I think Danielson is in that same spot to be the "people's voice" of fandom --- i.e., the indie smarks, anti-authoritarians, the guys who love technicians instead of corporate assembly-line manufactures, etc.

Just as Austin and Vince continued to feud long after Stone Cold officially "beat" The Corporation, D-Bry and HHH can drag their feud out for years after Daniel puts on that belt.

 

[Keyser Soze]

I bet they got a LOT of buys and Network subscriptions off tonights show.

One thing I will say: if any of you out there weren't going to buy WrestleMania, but have now decided you want to see the show because Bryan could be main eventing.... put your money where your mouth is and buy the PPV. Don't stream it, or illegally download it. Plank down your money, and show that you are willing to support Bryan in a way that WWE Creative can't ignore. I don't want to hear any "low buyrate" excuses for de-pushing Bryan in a couple of months.