The Wrestling Thread Has Until 5! - Part 40

[Slushy]

He was using COP as his theme song when he was in ROH though.

 

[Nell2ThaIzzay]

I don't think the poor ratings were the result of indy love fests but what happens when guys aren't booked right.

While Daniel Bryan as a World Champion is a stretch for a lot of people, the major reason iMO is because there was no build up. His title win came out of nowhere. It's another case of the company hotshotting the title on someone and expecting him to get over instantly because of it despite history showing that can't happen. Bryan was booked horribly after winning MITB. It's pretty much what happened to Jack Swagger.

When Miz won the WWE title, it felt believeable for the most part because he was booked decently for several months. He was over with the crowd. Now what happened afterwards is a whole other story entirely.

Beth as champion isn't a problem...the problem is she's booked like crap, the way majority the women's division is.

Well that's kinda why I didn't really talk about her that much. But the Divas' division is such hot garbage anyways, it really doesn't matter who the champion is.

As far as Bryan goes, I'm not sure it's just booking. I genuinely feel that he's a guy that just doesn't have "it". At least with Punk, I always acknowledged he was good, I just didn't like that Straight Edge b.s. he was doing. But Daniel Bryan is just... he's just Daniel Bryan. A guy who comes and wrestles. Fun to watch for a live crowd, but even he says it himself, he has no personality, no charisma, and it's hard to believe that he is where he is at. Daniel Bryan isn't the reason people tune in to watch pro wrestling.

Sure, Bryan can put on a nice match, but actually -caring- about that match is another thing. He hasn't shown that he can build the storyline up to the match, and I don't think he needs to be holding World Heavyweight gold.

There's a place for guys like him - in the mid card, occasionally grabbing a mid card belt, and being involved in those feuds. But I don't even buy the Chris Benoit comparisons. Benoit may not have had the same type of character of his contemporaries, like Jericho, Guerrero, The Rock, Triple H, Austin, etc... but he still had a character. His character was that of the ultimate fighting machine that was going to lock you into an aptly named Crippler Crossface and... well... cripple you. Benoit was going to absolutely destroy you in the ring, and stepping into the ring with him was a death wish.

What's Bryan's character? Bryan's character is literally the fact that he has no character. His character is literally the vegan, undersized underdog that probably shouldn't be where he's at. That's literally what his character is. He's not even a good underdog character, his character is literally the fact that it's nothing, and when it comes right down to it, that's just not interesting. And having a little bit of an attitude towards Michael Cole isn't enough to change that. I don't know what Bryan's character was like on the Indy circuit when he was Bryan Danielson, American Dragon and all that. I don't know if he was a badass, or if he's character was much the same. But if Bryan is going to be taken seriously, his entire character needs a major facelift. Cole might be a *****e, but there's a tad bit of truth to what he says in regards to Bryan. I mean, continuing the comparison to Chris Benoit, Benoit even had a badass sounding finisher name - the CRIPPLER Crossface. Bryan's is called the Labell Lock... (spelling?)... Oooh, intimidating.

Combine that with the fact that Monday Night had quite possibly the biggest NFL matchup of the remaining season between San Francisco and Pittsburgh, and all the storylines going on there, and it's no wonder people tuned out and didn't tune back in.

 

[Metallo]

thread has had that picture posted around of all the current champions - Punk, Bryan, Ryder, Kofi, Bourne, Cody, Beth...

And that's why ratings tanked. That image might be an IWC circle jerk fest, but that's not exactly a group of stars that are going to carry a company to the next level.

Punk? Good.
Ryder? I still don't understand why he's so over, but he is. He's holding the perfect belt.
Cody? Getting better. Not quite at that "next level", but he's good.
Kofi and Bourne? *yawn*

But the absolute worst in that picture?

Daniel Bryan.

And I'm not trying to knock him. I'm really not. He's a good in ring talent that deserves to get some recognition. But World Heavyweight Championship? No.

When I was at the Money In The Bank PPV watching at Hooters, I saw people walk out of the restaurant when Daniel Bryan won the briefcase.

So it doesn't surprise me that viewers are tuning out when CM Punk is having a circle jerk in the ring with Ryder and Bryan.

It probably doesn't help any that everyone knew how that match was going to end. There was no suspense. Guys like Del Rio, Miz, they aren't allowed to get over clean on someone (wow, did I just say "get over clean"? What's happening to me?? )

But seriously, it's predictable. We all know how it's gonna end. And that segment was way too "indy love" for my tastes, and probably for the tastes of a lot of the general audience.

That doesn't mean take the belt off Punk. Or Ryder. Or even Bryan. I don't like that Bryan has the belt, but he has it, and the answer isn't to make him look bad by ripping it off of him. But let's cut back on the indy love fests. That was way too much for me the other night. Monday Night was like what happens when the smarks get control, and it really showed to me.

The problem is NOBODY is over besides some in the main event. Theres no one else to put most of those belts on to make a difference. They've sacrificed everyone else in order to push a select few.

Theres not one tag team in WWE thats over. Its WWE's own fault they decimated that. They're best shot would have been to put and leave the tag belts on Awesome Truth for a while but they've split.

Same for the diva division. People like Kelly Kelly cause she's hot and she arguably is the most popular diva in WWE but not enough to make any major difference.

They've let the midcard wither on the vine too long. Swagger is less over than Bryan.

WWE is in a rebuilding phase. They have to start fro scratch. And that means making talent matter and giving them opponents that matter. Del Rios a main eventer and most don't give a sh** about him. And he's one of their brightest prospects.

I don't think it was about indie love. Most of that Raw was just boringly predictable. There was no need to watch. I think The Kane segment may have seen a rise because peoples interest was piqued.

I've said it before countless times, but one way to improve the ratings is to strengthen the IC title and tag titles. Whoever was feuding for the IC title was more than enough to keep anyone's attention when the ratings were great. As a matter of fact, it gave a hot as hell Rock and Triple H something to vie for when Shawn Michaels and Stone Cold were feuding for the title. Not only did you have to tune in to see the latest in the main event, but seeing what was happening with the IC title was a really big deal back then. When Hulk Hogan was on top watching Macho Man defending the IC title was an incredibly huge deal to see.

The two guys holding the IC and U.S. title have all the talent in the world to make those titles big again, but who is Cody and Doplh feuding with to make that happen? It's like the tag titles. It was nice putting together Bourne and Kofi, but who have they been feuding with to elevate the title? They won the belts to some fanfare. WWE put some stock into it so that it felt like the tag titles were going to matter again, and now several weeks later they're just hanging out with some gold on their shoulders like all the other tag champs before then. Even before Bourne's suspension it was heading down that path.

Make the secondary titles matter again and everything won't have to rise and fall on what's happening in the main event. Even though that's not the case as y'all have been saying, but WWE thinks too much like that.

I agree, The champions can't matter if there is no one around them to feud with that matters. To few have been pushed consistently. Before thrusting Del Rio into the main event they should have built him into a midcard star and put him in some competitive matches. Instead of booking Christian as a joke so much they should have pushed him better and used him to give the rub to some midcard guys.

Ryders one fo the most over midcarders and he did it in spite of WWE not because of them. That pretty much says everything.

I was watching Austin's latest DVD/Blu-Ray the other day, and noticed they played 'Cult of Personality' over one of his montages. I wonder if that's where Punk got the idea for his new theme, especially considering his admiration for Austin, and that he did 'that' shoot promo wearing an Austin t-shirt.

They used it for his HOF video. I though it was great. Even though Punk isn't trying to be Austin I definitely think he's inspired by some things about Austin. Like how genuine he came off. It wasn't just a gimmick and Austin was a straight shooter. He talked about how he felt when he felt like it. Said what he wanted when he wanted.

I bought the 4 disc dvd and so far I watched the documentary. It was great. One thing that struck me was Austin saying HE should have been in that spot working with Hogan at WM18. That kind of surprised me. I knew he was disappointed with his creative direction and loss of momentum but I have to wonder if he meant that literally? He's never put it like that before and I always thought Austin refused to work with Hogan for whatever reason (Hogan being a d***)

 

[Hunter Rider]

I don't think Monday was meant as an indie love fest, and despite some theories that Triple H knew it would bomb and thus put it out there, I think the idea was to try and show they were indeed moving to knew stars but it was too much too soon and lacking in really over heel opposition.

I disagree. I still think Miz will be in the title scene. Its just that Sheamus is in good favor with management now (kinda of like when Boogeyman squashed JBL clean at the 2006 Rumble) and on a different brand so he got the win. The guy has been on a roll. Hell, I can't even remember the last time Sheamus lost a match so if anything, he'll be in a high profile match at Wrestlemania.

Punk needs a heel that can be a threat to him, to job the Miz out to a guy who isn't even the SD WHC and then expect people to tune into an angle between him and Punk for the WWE title is a potential disaster.

Agreed. But Austin was the catalyst/foundations, which the 'Attitude Era' was built on.

I would say him and DX however as over as Austin was he still needed the hot angles and he got them, first with Bret and the Hart Foundation, then the ultimate one, the everyman tough guy vs the owner, probably the hottest angle in the history of the business.

I don't know what Bryan's character was like on the Indy circuit when he was Bryan Danielson, American Dragon and all that. I don't know if he was a badass, or if he's character was much the same. But if Bryan is going to be taken seriously, his entire character needs a major facelift. Cole might be a *****e, but there's a tad bit of truth to what he says in regards to Bryan. I mean, continuing the comparison to Chris Benoit, Benoit even had a badass sounding finisher name - the CRIPPLER Crossface. Bryan's is called the Labell Lock... (spelling?)... Oooh, intimidating.

You may well be right about the rest of the things you said, right now I am waiting to see how the crowd take to the idea of his gimmick being that he's a great wrestler and can be humourous with it, if that doesn't work then everything you say is pretty on the money. I seperated this to say he was a heel for his ROH title run and it was built around him being 'The Best in the World' and knowing it, he used a lot of real oldschool tactics to heel it up, swaggered around with a smug smile and actually backed it up by beating guys, sometime unconcious like in MMA with the elbow strikes, WWE would never book him that way and in truth couldn't as he was mostly beating guys the same size as him, it would be a harder sell for that type of heel to beat the huge guys in the WWE.

 

[Metallo]

The LeBell Lock is in reference to Judo Gene LeBell. As badass as they come. He also taught Roddy Piper some stuff.

For anybody who gets the reference is pretty impressive. Problem is I doubt most people know who LeBell is. Its more Bryans tribute to him...which makes perfect sense considering Bryans character.

WWE should play up the fact that Bryan was trained by HBK and particularly William Regal. Guys who DO have legit in ring credibility with the fans. Wrestling's always about the rub by association. People know Regal is tough as nails even if he aint a "star" and they believe Michaels can beat men 3 times his size despite being the smallest WWF champion of the 1990's.

Michaels was never seen as a badass or a tough guy a first. That changed when they put him against guy like Vader and Mankind. WWE needs to take a page out of their own book and let Bryan be ferocious in the ring. He might not be the greatest talker but he is a guy who can dish it out on that mat.

 

[Project862006]

bryan is not benoit chris was ultimately seen as a bad ass he had a intimidating look

brian is not and is not trying to be

 

[Dr. Evil]

Of course Bryan is not Chris Benoit, because Benoit was treated better by the WWE than Bryan (who I think will lose the World Championship at the Royal Rumble).

 

[Project862006]

took chris 4 years in wwe to become world champ( late in his career too 37 years old)

bryan has been us champ,MITB,and world champ in what a year?

 

[Wheels]

Benoit wasn't booked as a glorified jobber.

 

[the_ultimate_evil]

i want the title off punk



now lower the weapons i want it off at the rumble, a 2/3 month build up with punk chasing jerchios title would be superb.

 

[Dr. Evil]

Benoit wasn't booked as a glorified jobber.

He also wasn't made to be a dancing idiot being made fun of by a raging tool.

 

[Van Petrol]

He was using COP as his theme song when he was in ROH though.

Oh really? I didn't know that. Actually now you mention it, it does ring a bell.

They used it for his HOF video. I though it was great. Even though Punk isn't trying to be Austin I definitely think he's inspired by some things about Austin. Like how genuine he came off. It wasn't just a gimmick and Austin was a straight shooter. He talked about how he felt when he felt like it. Said what he wanted when he wanted.

I bought the 4 disc dvd and so far I watched the documentary. It was great. One thing that struck me was Austin saying HE should have been in that spot working with Hogan at WM18. That kind of surprised me. I knew he was disappointed with his creative direction and loss of momentum but I have to wonder if he meant that literally? He's never put it like that before and I always thought Austin refused to work with Hogan for whatever reason (Hogan being a d***)

Yeah. The part where he descibes his meeting of Hogan at the Raw 15the anniversary and then his meeting with Austin, are a complete contrast to each other.

I don't know about that. I don't think Austin has a problem with putting anyone over, but he just wants it to be done and set up right (i.e. the Borck Lesnar situation), which I can understand and respect.

I would say him and DX however as over as Austin was he still needed the hot angles and he got them, first with Bret and the Hart Foundation, then the ultimate one, the everyman tough guy vs the owner, probably the hottest angle in the history of the business.

Fair point. I wasn't disregarding these facts, just stating that Austin was the catalst/foundation for the Inception of the 'Attitude Era', which arguably he was.

 

[The Sage]

Here's my list. Bare with me fellas, my mind is still running through the matches from the year. Also, I didn't watch TNA much this year and I still haven't taken the time to watch Final Resolution, so this will probably all WWE for the most part.

Superstar of the year - CM Punk. This guy renewed my interest in wrestling. His promo on Cena at the end of June where he broke the fourth wall came at a time when I was starting to wane and watching wrestling was becoming a chore. Not only did he compel to keep watching, his actions got the media involved. Business Insider lists as a serious Player, the only person from wrestling mentioned. He's had great matches with everyone and I've enjoyed nearly every feud he's had this year. He's one of the few people that forces Cena to wrestle instead of play Superman

Face of the year - CM Punk. Read above.

Heel of the year - Cody Rhodes. Not too many heels stood out to me except for a couple: Ziggler and Rhodes. Cody takes the win because his character work has been good.

Top 5 Matches of the year -

1. Cena vs Punk I, Money In The Bank - The build up for this match had been tremendous. I thought when this match was going to happen that Punk would lose since his contract was ending, but after the promos, it felt like Punk could actually win and walk out with the belt. The emotion, the drama, this was what pro wrestling's all about. It felt epic, you weren't certain who was going to win. Giant, lengthy movesets and head drops don't matter if you can't do any of this stuff.
2. Cena vs Punk II, Summerslam - Cena's best match this year. He showed that he can deliver a technical match if he wanted to, and that his moveset is truly more than five moves. He and Punk have great chemistry together. I truly enjoyed it more from a technical, crisp and sharp move execution standpoint.
3. Edge vs Dolph Ziggler, Royal Rumble - One of Edge's final PPV bouts, he elevated Ziggler and they put on a good showing.
4.
5.

I'll have to come back to the other two slots at some other point. I could include Orton/Punk at Wrestlemania because it was good but I wouldn't call it one of the best matches.

Promo of the year - CM Punk, last RAW in June. Come on now.

PPV of the year - WWE Money in the Bank 2011

Best Moment of the year - CM Punk winning the title at Money in the Bank and escaping through the crowd. The look on Vince's face: PRICELESS.

Worst pushed wrestler of the year - I was going to say Del Rio, but I'm going to go with the Miz. Seriously, leading into Wrestlemania, who believed that Miz was capable of beating Cena? He didn't beat Orton clean at the Royal Rumble, he had problems beating Jerry Lawler, a retired wrestler who's glory days are two decades past. On top of that, he was eclipsed by the Rock/Cena feud. He needed the belt taken off of him ASAP.

Worst big match of the year - Triple H vs Undertaker II at Wrestlemania. While I didn't hate the match, to me it wasn't special outside of a few nice spots. Too much laying around for me.

Worst PPV match of the year - Wrestlemania

Most improved wrestler of the year - Dolph Ziggler. The man started the year as a solid wrestler and closes the year as a solid worker. He's stronger on the mic, even better in the ring, and knows how to work the crowd.

Diva of the year - It would almost have to be Kelly Kelly since they pushed her so hard over every other better Diva. I really can't comment on this. I want to say Beth or Natalya but they're booked like jokes.

Most consistently good in-ring performer of the year - Toss up between CM Punk and Dolph Ziggler.

Best angle of the year - Once again, Cena/Punk over the summer.

 

[Dr. Evil]

I've made my WWE 12 roster accurate from the actual WWE Roster. Raw and Smackdown are almost accurate in real life after I downloaded a bunch of CAWS off Community Creations. The Brodus Clay CAW I have downloaded is not on Raw, instead I put him in one of the other brands I created (there are three: ECW, FCW and AWA, of course the logos were already built into the game). The CAWS I have downloaded of Raw superstars JTG, Tyler Reks and Curt Hawkins I just put on my NXT Brand because those guys are often on NXT anyways and I don't think any of them have been on Raw since they were drafted. I have not moved Kane to Raw yet, although I probably will soon (although I may have to DL Masked Kane off Community creations, unless Masked is alternate attire for Kane like it was in SVR 2011). I moved Husky Harris to my FCW brand since he's no longer on Raw. I am missing CAW's of Justin Roberts and Ricardo Rodriguez.

On the Smackdown side, the downloaded Caw's of The Uso's, Johnny Curtis, Trent Barretta and Tamina I moved to NXT since they too are NXT regulars, moreseo than Smackdown regulars. I'm missing a CAW of Teddy Long. I'll move Booker T to Smackdown.

I put suspended/injured superstars on ECW until they are recovered from injury or they come off suspension, and then I put them back on their original brand. It's where I put Rey Mysterio, R-Truth, Kharma, Christian, Sin Cara and Layla. The game would not let me put the Undertaker on ECW. ECW is also where I put Downloaded CAWS of Road Agents who are not legends (such as Road Dogg, the Brooklyn Brawler to name a few) there, although I may shift them to AWA.

I split the legends of the game into two categories: Legends and WCW. In my WWE 12, Legends are those legendary figures in the WWE who still have relations with the WWE, making guest appearances, like Shawn Michaels, Edge, Trish Stratus, Jim Ross, Stone Cold Steve Austin and Kevin Nash. Also includes those working backstage in the WWE (Arn Anderson, Ricky Steamboat) and any future CAWS I download of Roddy Piper, Mick Foley, Dusty Rhodes, Ted DiBiase Sgt. Slaughter and Bret Hart. It'll be where I put the Rock. I put Eddie Guerrero in Legends.

WCW are those that have no real ties to WWE other than the game. It's where I put Brock Lesnar, The Road Warriors and Demolition.

Free Agents I have are Chavo Guerrero, John Morrison, Maryse and Kozlov. I have nobody in AWA yet. I have Husky Harris and a downloaded CAW of The Big Wiggle in FCW.

 

[TheVileOne]

HHH is an ******* to put **** out there like that.

Bryan's run was booked terribly. He won MITB and then basically went back to midcard jobberville. And then suddenly he's going after Henry and decides to cash in MITB. The whole waiting until Wrestlemania storyline was abandoned as quickly as it was introduced.

These problems are more with WWE creative incompetency more than anything. They've basically set D-Bry up to fail.

I also thought his gimmick was that he was a "nerd."

 

[Dr. Evil]

Bryan will probably lose the title at the Rumble.

 

[Metallo]

Oh really? I didn't know that. Actually now you mention it, it does ring a bell.



Yeah. The part where he descibes his meeting of Hogan at the Raw 15the anniversary and then his meeting with Austin, are a complete contrast to each other.

I don't know about that. I don't think Austin has a problem with putting anyone over, but he just wants it to be done and set up right (i.e. the Borck Lesnar situation), which I can understand and respect.

His issues with Hogan didn't stem from putting him over or not. Or wether it was done right or not. Hogan even claims he would put Austin over in any potential match. In the past Austin seemed to indicate that he didn't care to work with Hogan period. No matter what the circumstances or set up. he also felt the match wouldn't be good because he felt their styles wouldn't mesh well in the ring...which is a valid point.

Now SAYING he should have been the guy that worked with Hogan goes against most of what he said in the past. I've heard before that it was supposed to be Austin vs Hogan but Austin turned it down.

 

[bullets]

Daniel Bryan is a great wrestler and could easily get over with the casual fans, which seems to be the case during some of his matches. The main problem is they threw him in the title scene like Jack Swagger. At least he did have a cage match with Mark Henry( for the title?) a few weeks ago.


I think what Metallo said about hyping Bryan being trained by Hbk to build him up towards Wrestlemania would of worked (sort of how they used Stu's dungeon to build the Harts). Now The Big Show will most likely run right through him. I think the logic behind it was so they could turn Show heel to replace Mark Henry. I like the Davey vs Goliath dynamic so I'm still interested in the feud but hopefully they don't bury Bryan in the process.

 

[Nell2ThaIzzay]

The LeBell Lock is in reference to Judo Gene LeBell. As badass as they come. He also taught Roddy Piper some stuff.

For anybody who gets the reference is pretty impressive. Problem is I doubt most people know who LeBell is. Its more Bryans tribute to him...which makes perfect sense considering Bryans character.

WWE should play up the fact that Bryan was trained by HBK and particularly William Regal. Guys who DO have legit in ring credibility with the fans. Wrestling's always about the rub by association. People know Regal is tough as nails even if he aint a "star" and they believe Michaels can beat men 3 times his size despite being the smallest WWF champion of the 1990's.

Michaels was never seen as a badass or a tough guy a first. That changed when they put him against guy like Vader and Mankind. WWE needs to take a page out of their own book and let Bryan be ferocious in the ring. He might not be the greatest talker but he is a guy who can dish it out on that mat.

See I didn't know that about LeBell, and no, I don't know who he is, so the reference is lost on me.

And that's probably a problem for the character beyond just me - I'm sure a lot of people don't get the reference.

BUT, at least there is a reference, so at least now I understand that there's significance to the name.

 

[Hunter Rider]

I think the push for Bryan is to establish him enough to become Vince's mechanic.

Here's my list. Bare with me fellas, my mind is still running through the matches from the year. Also, I didn't watch TNA much this year and I still haven't taken the time to watch Final Resolution, so this will probably all WWE for the most part.

Superstar of the year - CM Punk. This guy renewed my interest in wrestling. His promo on Cena at the end of June where he broke the fourth wall came at a time when I was starting to wane and watching wrestling was becoming a chore. Not only did he compel to keep watching, his actions got the media involved. Business Insider lists as a serious Player, the only person from wrestling mentioned. He's had great matches with everyone and I've enjoyed nearly every feud he's had this year. He's one of the few people that forces Cena to wrestle instead of play Superman

Face of the year - CM Punk. Read above.

Heel of the year - Cody Rhodes. Not too many heels stood out to me except for a couple: Ziggler and Rhodes. Cody takes the win because his character work has been good.

Top 5 Matches of the year -

1. Cena vs Punk I, Money In The Bank - The build up for this match had been tremendous. I thought when this match was going to happen that Punk would lose since his contract was ending, but after the promos, it felt like Punk could actually win and walk out with the belt. The emotion, the drama, this was what pro wrestling's all about. It felt epic, you weren't certain who was going to win. Giant, lengthy movesets and head drops don't matter if you can't do any of this stuff.
2. Cena vs Punk II, Summerslam - Cena's best match this year. He showed that he can deliver a technical match if he wanted to, and that his moveset is truly more than five moves. He and Punk have great chemistry together. I truly enjoyed it more from a technical, crisp and sharp move execution standpoint.
3. Edge vs Dolph Ziggler, Royal Rumble - One of Edge's final PPV bouts, he elevated Ziggler and they put on a good showing.
4.
5.

I'll have to come back to the other two slots at some other point. I could include Orton/Punk at Wrestlemania because it was good but I wouldn't call it one of the best matches.

Promo of the year - CM Punk, last RAW in June. Come on now.

PPV of the year - WWE Money in the Bank 2011

Best Moment of the year - CM Punk winning the title at Money in the Bank and escaping through the crowd. The look on Vince's face: PRICELESS.

Worst pushed wrestler of the year - I was going to say Del Rio, but I'm going to go with the Miz. Seriously, leading into Wrestlemania, who believed that Miz was capable of beating Cena? He didn't beat Orton clean at the Royal Rumble, he had problems beating Jerry Lawler, a retired wrestler who's glory days are two decades past. On top of that, he was eclipsed by the Rock/Cena feud. He needed the belt taken off of him ASAP.

Worst big match of the year - Triple H vs Undertaker II at Wrestlemania. While I didn't hate the match, to me it wasn't special outside of a few nice spots. Too much laying around for me.

Worst PPV match of the year - Wrestlemania

Most improved wrestler of the year - Dolph Ziggler. The man started the year as a solid wrestler and closes the year as a solid worker. He's stronger on the mic, even better in the ring, and knows how to work the crowd.

Diva of the year - It would almost have to be Kelly Kelly since they pushed her so hard over every other better Diva. I really can't comment on this. I want to say Beth or Natalya but they're booked like jokes.

Most consistently good in-ring performer of the year - Toss up between CM Punk and Dolph Ziggler.

Best angle of the year - Once again, Cena/Punk over the summer.

Well thought out Sage. That Dolph/Edge match was a good one, probably Edge's last quality PPV outing.

Beth posted an update on her injury.



Cool pic from I'm guessing 2008.

 

[Metallo]

See I didn't know that about LeBell, and no, I don't know who he is, so the reference is lost on me.

And that's probably a problem for the character beyond just me - I'm sure a lot of people don't get the reference.

BUT, at least there is a reference, so at least now I understand that there's significance to the name.

LeBell also trained Chuck Norris

And he choked Steven Seagal out like his b*tch until he pissed on himself.

 

[Hunter Rider]

Merry Christmas to one of the best groups of posters on the Hype!

 

[NDX]

And Happy Hanukkah to... well, I guess me. Anyone else?

Yeah, yeah, we all know you are, Barry.

 

[Nell2ThaIzzay]

Who's the girl and the Samoan?

 

[venom892]

Lilian Garcia and Umaga.Umaga before Henry was the last credible monster heel. Actually had a great fued with Cena.