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The way I see it, this was Braun a year ago. He just finished that first pretty good feud with Roman that everyone was mixed on because it involved Roman and he hadn't done enough to completely erase his time as the least important member of the Wyatt Family from everyone's minds yet. If he complained about internet fans now, when people mostly just talk about how he's really good and hasn't been booked very lately, it would feel weird. But when he was interviewed for this book? I can see it. Besides, he's a Vince Project. Him toeing the company line regarding the audience makes sense.
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Sep 2, 2018 16:23
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Here is a little something to soothe you before stressful Monday Chapter 7 - Up, Up, Down, Down August 20th, 2017, WWE Summerslam PRE-SHOW - The chapter opens with New Day and The Usos backstage going over their upcoming match when a word is passed down that Vince Mcmahon wants to change the ending sequence. Xavier Woods: quote:The finish to that match actually changed four times that day. We finished figuring the match out, then they came to us and to change the end. We were going to win, then they switched to The Usos, so we figured out how to make it work. Then they came to us an hour or two later and switched it back. Then, no joke, twenty minutes before we're supposed to go out, they change the finish again. - Woods continues that being relegated to PreShow put a chip on their shoulder. quote:We don't care where we are on the show, because our goal is to always have the best match possible. We don't care if we are on the preshow if we are first or last. Our goal is that when the bell rings, everyone knows that this match is the thing going that night. For us with The Usos, we were on the pre-show of Summerslam and we weren't upset, but we did have a chip on our shoulder if you're going to put on this early, good luck following us. I think the cool thing about this generation of WWE is that everybody has that mentality, and it makes the entire roster better because if we're going out and completely obliterating things on the preshow, once the show starts, those guys know that they have to step their game too. And it works vice versa, when we see people go before us and they tear it up out there, we know we need to make sure we're going even more on point that night. - Jimmy Uso says that their mentality that night was to "hurt the show in a good way" - Woods says that "leading the way for tag team resurgence was always their goal". Says that when they were on RAW, the tag teams were the best thing going on, and now that they are on Smackdown its the best thing on WWE Television. - Mentions that New Day has a "little bit of a longer leash than other people" and they like to spread that wealth throughout the division. They have been able to give opportunities to other guys and it has helped the entire division. Says that at Clash Of The Champions they wanted to put a spotlight on Chad Gable and make him look like the man. - Jey Uso is quoted again, and he says that New Day coming to Smackdown was a real blessing. He feels that every match they have is better than the last because they have the mentality of "topping the last one". quote:
- Next, the book briefly chronicles New Days beginning as a gospel group. Says that the group tried to distance themselves quickly of that gimmick. And that the more that the group focused on creating their own identity the more popular they became quote:I went to E and told him this idea I had for the group. But we had some stuff to figure out because we weren't clicking together as a tag team the way we wanted to. I figured we needed a third member, so I thought about it for a week or two and at the time, Kofi wasn't really doing anything and I thought he might be a good fit with us. So we presented him with the idea and he liked it, so we just started spending a lot of time together, trying to figure out how to make stuff work. Before people saw us together on TV, we had been together backstage for about eight months, so it's not something that just came out nowhere. It developed slowly over time. - Woods says that if he is ever separated from New Day, he will call it quits. Says that he has never had this much fun in his job, and if he can't have that then he doesn't need to do this job anymore. - They tease that they want to have TLC match with Usos at Mania. Both teams agree to that and also to the notion that they deserve to be on the main card for all the hard work they have put to lift the whole division up TheCool69 fucked around with this message at 21:57 on Sep 2, 2018 |
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Sep 2, 2018 21:53
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The New Day rules and and I hope Xavier sticks to his guns about not letting them break up the team.
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Sep 3, 2018 01:07
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The New Day and SHIELD having the good sense to fight like bastards to avoid having their groups arbitrarily broken up until it made/makes sense is awesome. WWE is almost ALWAYS way too quick to split groups up. I know SHIELD's breakup didn't work out but didn't it turn out WWE tried to split them like, 2 months in?
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Sep 3, 2018 01:18
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Yeah, early in the run and then multiple times after that. They basically presented a united front and insisted every single time that they weren't having a bit of it, and they went from strength to strength as a result.
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Sep 3, 2018 01:21
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El Gallinero Gros posted:The New Day and SHIELD having the good sense to fight like bastards to avoid having their groups arbitrarily broken up until it made/makes sense is awesome. WWE is almost ALWAYS way too quick to split groups up. They did it frequently and responded almost the exact same way as New Day has Then WWE got smart to it and didn't inform them of the plan till like literally the half hour before the angle was to happen, which called their bluff. At that point it was either go through with the threat and walk out mid-show or take a chance on the breakup
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Sep 3, 2018 01:27
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The SHIELD are great wrestlers on their own though, and the SHIELD definitely has a shelf life to it, in so far as they'll probably never be heel again and there's not really relevant heel factions to feud against. New Day could go on forever and continue to keep doing new things, their best asset is they can be goofy, serious, heel, or babyface and still remain over and relevant as long as the WWE wants them to be.
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Sep 3, 2018 01:48
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On to the next one. This one ought to arouse some conversation (unlike the last ones) (also there are a lot of long quotes because they say interesting poo poo.. deal with it) Chapter 8 Sierra. Hotel. India. Echo. Lima. Delta August 20, 2017: WWE Summerslam - Book tells us that the most hyped moment of the show was "eagerly awaited" reunion of Rollins and Ambrose (leading to later reunion with Roman.. .LOL) AMBROSE: quote:It's definitely a thing people made clear that they wanted to see. They've been asking about it everywhere we went. "When is The Shield getting back together?" It's electric to see us together. People didn't think they'd ever see it again. In Boston, it was the loudest reaction you'll ever hear for two guys bumping fists together ROLLINS: quote:Everyone wanted to see Shield reunion, and when Ambrose came over from Smackdown, we all realized that this could be a possibility, that there could be a reconciliation, but we didn't know when it was going to happen or where everybody's stories were going to fall. But we found a good time toward the end of the year to make peace with each other and the WWE Universe (goddammit) is super excited. We've seen a ton of the new Shield shirts at live events and the response has been really positive. It has been a cool experience for me and for the fans who have been asking for this reunion to happen for the last three years - Next, the book goes to mention that the match between Shield and The Bar was an "instant classic" that left the crowd breathless... - Okay, this is nice, Dean and Seth talk about what makes them click with Bar and put over Sheamus and Cesaro. ROLLINS quote:It's all about one-upmanship. The Bar fancies themselves as two of the best in the world, and Ambrose and I feel the same way. Sheamus and Cesaro have been together now for almost a year and they really perfected what they do as two big strong world beaters. And Ambrose and I, were all around technicians and brawlers and highflyers, and we think we're the best team in the world, so when push comes to shove, we go out there an try to outdo each other. It's like one of those situations where we're going to make them better and they are going to make us better, and by putting us together, it really brings out the best in all four of us. On top of that, were on a show where we're not the main event and its kind of annoying to us. All four of us have that mindset that we should be the main event so when was the first on the card or sandwiched between to supposedly bigger match, we want to make everyone after we work harder. AMBROSE quote:Cesaro and Sheamus are two the most experienced, two of the top guys here, but I feel like once Seth and I became a team, we instantly became the best tag team in the world. That's just how I feel, whether it's true or not. Our ability to work together is better than anybody else in the world. Its just part of our cocky mentality, call it confidence or whatever, but that's what makes The Shield. Well walk into a ring full of twenty guys, and it's just us three. but we know we're going to win. That's not smart, but that's how we do it. But what I will say is The Bar is a close number two tag team in the world. They work together so exceptional and they match up with us very well because they are a couple of hard-hitting guys and they bring a lot of intensity to the ring. That's the big trademark of a Shield match, that intensity and what those guys bring in spades. We live for those moments where there are bruises and blood and teeth flying everywhere. The blood, sweat, and tears of the moment, where you're digging down twenty minutes into a match to bring out the best in each other - that's what all four of us are all about. Okay here we go, they delve into the origins of Shield. I'm just gonna quote this whole thing because I feel it really puts across their attitude and drives. Really really good stuff! AMBROSE quote:We were thrown to wolves. We were nobodies and nobody in the business wanted to give us any help. It was different time back then. They threw us right out into the deep end and we started swimming. We were like "Okay, you know what we're going to do? We're going to go out there and tear it up. We're going to work harder than everybody else every night" We really upped the pace of the whole company. Matches started getting faster, more stuff started happening and there was an attitude shift when we came in. There was no night offs for us. There is a certain standard to Shield match. Whether its all three of us or just two of us. We have to steal the show. We have to. ROLLINS quote:
- He also mentions that Shield grew up to much bigger thing that anyone ever thought. - The book throws it back to Ambrose who says that he really can't mention one moment or match that made the Shield. He picks out the debut just because they got to make it in Barclay against three Superstars. Apparently, the original plan was for a "gimme" but someone got injured and the card got shifted. They got given the TLC and according to Ambrose their mentality was "gently caress it" quote:When we were coming down to the ring that night, it was very intense. Our careers, our lives could've ended at this moment. Looking back, if we would've pooped the bed that night, our careers could've been over. It was hit a home run or strikeout, and that's how your life is going to go. At the time we were so deadset focused that nobody could mess with us. - The chapter ends on speculation that Shield would break up shortly to set up Rollins vs Ambrose at Mania. Ambrose says that he doesn't stress too much what is coming because anything could happen at a moments notice. quote:I don't look any further than a week ahead. I'm worried about today. You can prepare for the future but you have to be able to change in the wind. Who knows what's coming. Seth and I have always had great chemistry in the ring. I never met Seth until I went to FCW. He always ran in different circles than I did. He was in Ring of Honor and places like that, and you'd find me in the more extreme scenarios. He was thrilling people with his athleticism while I was getting stabbed in the head with objects. We were on two different paths, but our parallel paths finally merged together in FCW. The first time we wrestled as opponents, the chemistry and the mindset and the work ethic immediately clicked. The competitiveness was great and the fact that we were always trying to one-up each other really brought our matches to another level Very good chapter. What did you guys think? TheCool69 fucked around with this message at 21:31 on Sep 5, 2018 |
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Sep 5, 2018 21:20
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I dug it.
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Sep 6, 2018 01:49
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It's interesting to read because it feels like a pretty sanitized version of their history. It's all entirely true: they did fight and scrap and had nobody looking out for them etc, but it's written in such a way to suggest that it wasn't WWE that was actively getting in the way and these three guys basically fighting every week to keep the company from cutting the head off the golden goose. They put so much work into keeping themselves together as a unit and it was probably the absolute best time for all of them. Sure all of them have been champs since, Seth got a giant push, Dean got to headline Smackdown for awhile and of course Roman has had WWE behind him since day 1, but the spark of "specialness" that was present during their initial run as the Shield has never quite been recaptured.
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Sep 6, 2018 05:21
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lmao they didn’t mention CM Punk directly. loving hilarious
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Sep 7, 2018 00:01
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I thought that was probably the least interesting chapter thus far. It's just them going "we just did our own thing and we're so cool and talented and awesome". The real story behind The Shield is much more interesting.
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Sep 7, 2018 11:57
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I mean, for all the sanitising, they continue to make clear that WWE is run like poo poo. Everyone agrees they don't know things until last minute in a Bullshit way.
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Sep 8, 2018 02:20
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I never understand why wwe still lets people say that when they give shoot interviews. I guess to keep the idea of "anything can happen" but it just makes them sound disorganized.
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Sep 8, 2018 03:16
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Gumball Gumption posted:I never understand why wwe still lets people say that when they give shoot interviews. I guess to keep the idea of "anything can happen" but it just makes them sound disorganized. TBF, I think would be hard to stop them complaining about "they changed the finish 4 times that day". Or Roman would be completely right to complain about them changing the Wrestlemania finish on the day, despite it being a year long build to his victory.
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Sep 8, 2018 03:37
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Okay after a short hiatus, here is Chapter 9 Roode Awakening August 22, 2018, Smackdown LIVE - The chapter opens with mention that Bobby Roode is about to make is Smackdown debut just two days after Wrestlemania. The book also mentions that Roodes match against Nakamura at NXT could be considered the best of the whole weekend. Roode speaks about the status of NXT, I found his words very interesting. quote:
- Roode says that the attitude with NXT locker room is to use Takeovers to push the main roster. They want to see which roster has the best show of the weekend. - Then it recaps his debut, and once again I'll just quote the whole thing since I found this very interesting. If you don't remember he was sitting in the crowd at Takeover Dallas. quote:I wasn't signed. I had a conversation with Triple H a few weeks earlier, getting a feel for what both of us were looking for. I told him what I wanted to do and what I wanted to part of, and at the end of the day, I really just wanted an opportunity. I had some experience, and I really felt like I had a good career up to that point, but I wanted the opportunity to come to WWE and show them what I had. - Roode says that Triple H pulled him aside a week before Takeover Brooklyn 3 and told him that the plan was to move Roode up to Smackdown. The timing was not set, in a sense that Triple H was not sure if Roode was to be moved up immediately or would they hold him off for a bit. - Interestingly Roode also says that he was not into the "Glorious" at first. quote:
- Roode puts over Ziggler as someone who was perfect for his first opponent. Dolph apparently made Smackdown Universe care about Roode. (He explains it, that his character in NXT was someone who was well liked, but his character in Smackdown is someone who people care for) - The book also says that WWE Universe can expect some matchups from Roodes pre-WWE career. Mainly Samoa Joe and AJ Styles. quote:We knew we had what it took to be a star in this business; it was just about getting the right eyes on us. We bring a lot of experience, but, obviously, WWE is a different animal, and you have to perform at a certain level and jump over certain barriers, but id like to say that the three of us have adapted quite well and our success up to this point has proved that. It's a great feeling to be a part of WWE and to be a part of it with guys you've come up with - The chapter ends with Roode saying that he hopes to have a high-profile match at Mania 34, but is just happy to be part of the show. Good chapter if you care about Roode. If not then it was poo poo. Next chapter is about Charlotte Flair and the possible Rousey match.
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Sep 9, 2018 20:58
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I noticed you went,"Ugh" the first few times they shoehorned in "Universe", but by the end you'd given up and just accepted it. The WWE's strategy on a micro scale!
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Sep 10, 2018 02:31
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Has WWE main roster actually put on a better show than the preceding Takeover?
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Sep 10, 2018 03:46
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I was gonna say that Wrestlemania 30 was better than the NXT show before it, but that was Arrival and not really a Takeover show.
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Sep 10, 2018 04:11
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Since I have some free time. LET'S HAVE ANOTHER CHAPTER! Chapter 10 - Flair for the Dramatic September 4, 2017: MAE YOUNG CLASSIC This loving book...... quote:While the tournament final eventually crowns Kairi Sane the winner, the moment the WWE Universe is left talking about is the backstage confrontation between members of WWE's Four Horsewomen and the Ronda Rousey-led Four Horsewomen from MMA - The book says that the moment was something that WWE Universe (gently caress off!!) has been waiting since Ronda first proclaimed her love for WWE. - Charlotte sucks Ronda off the whole chapter quote:The match definitely has Wrestlemania written all over it. With the four us in NXT, it was, I hate to use this word but it was so organic. The WWE Universe named us the Four Horsewomen. And I'm pretty sure that's what happened to them in MMA. Everyone knows what Ronda means to that sport as a whole, and she definitely opened the door for the women in WWE to show that women can main-event, women can make a difference, women can be the attraction. And then you add in the fact that I'm actually a Flair - I'm actually related to the original four - it just writes itself and is really cool. - Charlotte says that if Ronda decides to start wrestling it will not be an easy thing and would require a heavy training in NXT. quote:When you think Ronda Rousey, you think badass, so she doesn't need to develop her character in front of the WWE Universe, she already has it, she's already a superstar, so she can come into Wrestlemania as is, no problem. But to be a WWE Superstar full-time, she definitely has to have more training, but she has the type of crossover star power where she can just show up and say "Het, I'm here" and the WWE Universe would love to see it. The equivalent would be Mayweather versus Conor McGregor. Whether or not anybody thought McGregor had a chance, it was everything he brings to the table and what he represents and his confidence and his character.. it didn't matter that it was boxing and not MMA, it was how they built the fight around the characters. The story alone sold the fight and thas what they can do in WWE with the Four versus Four (oh god.. that will be the official tag line for the match). - Next, they plant the SEED for Ronda vs Charlotte singles match. quote:That's my goal. I just don't want to be a WWE Superstar, I want to be an attraction for the company as female. Brock Lesnar, an attraction. John Cena, an attraction. Roman Reigns, an attraction. I want to represent that as a female, and to be able to face her in a one-on-one match would prove that I have that kind of star power, that I can be an attraction. I'm known for my talent, not my looks - not that it's not like that across the board - so that would be a dream to have Charlotte Flair versus Ronda Rousey headlining. Even if its Four versus Four and it breaks down into that, it would be unbelievable - The last part of the chapter is Charlotte talking about how women's wrestling is now the hottest thing and finally, WWE acknowledges that. quote:Its come a long way. For one thing, we went from Divas to Superstars. If you were a fan walking into Wrestlemania 32 at AT&T Stadium, you saw myself, Becky and Sasha (no Bayley :/ ) in the center of that poster alongside legends like Undertaker and Triple H. You had Shane McMahon and Roman Reigns, but with us in the center, it was like the men who looked like the eye candy. When you walked up, it was like, wow these three girls are the main attraction of the largest Wrestlemania we had to date, 101,000 people. Now, that's a statement. Heh the last quote is dedicated to Rovert quote:The change all started when Triple H hired Sara Del Rey as the first female coach. They turned FCW into NXT, and we revamped the entire developmental program into something that now isn't even developmental, its really a third brand. And I think when NXT started having those Takeovers and the women started stealing the show and had just as many fans come to see them and had just as much support as the male matches, Triple H didn't second-guess the women, he just said "Hey this is the story, this is the match, this is what we're going with" Hunter made the executive decision to hire Sara Del Rey, who is known and respected and has done every type of wrestling all over the world from Japan to Mexico. It was Hunter who realized that the women needed women to represent them in the ring and to represent them in the meetings The chapter ends with Charlotte promising that one day soon women will main event Mania. Next one is about Owens headbutting McMahon.
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Sep 10, 2018 14:56
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Wazzu posted:Has WWE main roster actually put on a better show than the preceding Takeover? MITB 2016 was imo better than Takeover: The End, mainly b/c AJ/Cena and the MITB match were both great as heck + the only match at that Takeover which came close to those two was American Alpha/Revival II e: also Seth beat Roman clean for the belt, which was good if you hated Roman Venomous fucked around with this message at 21:29 on Sep 10, 2018 |
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Sep 10, 2018 21:26
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I gotta say, Charlotte reversing her Wrestlemania "debut" by having male eye candy as her serving men as she rode in on a throne was a great callback.
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Sep 11, 2018 00:27
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Next chapter is a quick one, so I'll do it right now. Chapter 11 - Headbutt heard around the world September 12, 2017: Smackdown Live - Chapter recaps Owens and McMahon family's rivalry. - It then gets to KO and Vince in the ring. I love this quote quote:Its always crazy to be in the ring with guys you've watched your whole life. Vince McMahon pretty much shaped my childhood, and he's shaping my adulthood and my entire life at this point, through his creation. So to be in the ring with him and to get to do anything with Vince McMahon is always a big deal. - The book mentions that most people think it would lead to HHH vs Owens, but KO himself is hoping for a match with.. VINCE!!?!?! quote:After doing what we did in the ring, i couldn't help but start thinking about Vince having one last match at Wrestlemania - against myself, fingers crossed. When anybody asks me about dream matches at Mania, Triple H is at the top of the list, but there is something about being in the ring with Vince at Wrestlemania that's just unfathomable. If that became a possibility that the match I would want. If I against Triple H doesn't happen this year, it can happen next year, it can happen the year after that, Triple H still has a lot of good years left in him. But who knows how many matches Vince McMahon has left, or even if he's got one left in him at all. But if he does have one, it has got to be at Wrestlemania and I think, right now, I'm the guy who he should be in a match with - Next, it briefly talks about HIAC with Shane. KO mentions that the fall could not be practiced beforehand, so the only queue Zayn had was to grab Owens once he saw Shanes' feet leave the cell. Owens also puts over how crazy the experience of being in HIAC match is. He says that once he was on top of the cage, he was at eye level with people from the thirtieth row. - After that he gets to put over Sami, mentioning that Sami is one of the guys who are so very good, but people don't realize it (yet). He is happy that Sami has the chance to open up and get the opportunity. - Quickly also mentions how fun the friendship angle with Jericho was, though he says that "he wishes that the match at Mania would have gone differently, he enjoyed the build-up" Then we get an interesting quote, about how Owens ends up in the spotlight so often. quote:It's because of drive and passion for business. That's not a knock on anybody else, and I'm not implying that other people aren't as passionate or driven as I am, but the difference is that ill take no for an answer because once in a while, you have to. - The chapter ends with a passionate Owens quote about his mentality. quote:I'm not looking to be the best match, I'm not looking to be the best, I'm not looking for people to look at me and think that I am the best in the world, I don't care. I want people to look at me and remember what I did and have memorable moments from my match. I want them to walk away and talk about what i did, whether its a moment or part of the match or an actual match. I want to leave them with memories, I've always been about that, whether its Wrestlemania or not. At WrestleMania, that touch is multiplied. That's what its all about. Its about creating memories that will last a lifetime
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Sep 11, 2018 13:32
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I'd pop for Vince vs. KO.
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Sep 11, 2018 13:58
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Vince would have won but the real story would have been the bump he'd make himself do
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Sep 11, 2018 14:01
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Vince vs KO would rule cause say what you will about Vince, but he's a pro and knows how to make his opponent look good. He's willing to do wild rear end poo poo.
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Sep 11, 2018 17:58
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He's also not scared of running around like a coward, freaking out and crying like a baby when he gets cornered/isn't able to cheat his rear end to victory.
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Sep 12, 2018 09:36
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Chapter 11 - Welcome to the USO Penitentiary October 8, 2017: Hell In The Cell - The chapter starts with a quick overview of USOS vs New Day match in HIAC and some of the high spots. It focuses on the spot where USOS beat the poo poo out of Woods with Kendo sticks. This chapter I'll quote big blocks from this start since this offers a cool look into what goes into the mindset of something like this, the end of the chapter I'll just paraphrase. Jey: quote:The most fun part of our job is trying to put something like that together. Were playmakers, all you need is the right dance partner. You need someone who will know all the steps, and when you pop that thing out and you go out there and you execute it, you can hear the reaction, and you know instantly you have something special. You know, okay, when we hit this, the crowd should be at this level, and when we follow that up, they should be at the next level, and you're building the match so the crowd is always going up-up-up. Jimmy: quote:We didn't even go back and watch any of that history of Hell In a Cell - that just wasn't in our mindset. When we got together with The New Day, ideas were just flowing. We laid it out, it sounded good, it looked good on paper. Jey: quote:I wasn't holding back. And in those kinds of matches you cannot hold back, and neither can they. When you hold back, the crowd can see it, and when they see you holding back, you just buried everyone in the ring Woods: quote:It was really horrible, but I knew it was going to be bad when I threw the idea in the hat. For me, I wanted to tell a couple of different stories in that match. Its a full-on, drag-out fight in the beginning, then it turns into me just getting obliterated, and I'm seen as more of E's little brother. Then by the end of it, I come back from the grave, essentially, to try and help E. I realize in the match that yeah, I'm the little brother of this group, and I might not win this fight, but you're not going to win unless you put me down. I think that came across in the match and we were all able to elevate the match and continue to do more stuff - stuff you've never seen before - and I think people in the crowd really respect that. We put so much time and effort into delivering at the show; we're not just going out there and doing the same thing every time. We're actually taking the time to work together and think of new stuff, trying to deliver a match and moments within the match that people will remember. quote:The WWE Universe might not realize how much that kendo stick hurts. It feels terrible. It's not good at all. People know what we do, they understand its entertainment, but things get a little more intense than people realize. They know its entertainment when they buy the ticket, but we add a crux of realism in there so people will feel for us, feel for The New Day a little more because we're being strung up and beat with kendo sticks. After the first shot, everybody in the crowd is like "Oh man, that sucks", but then it turns into them teeing off on me. I told them not to let up, I told them that no matter how much I'm screaming or what I'm screaming, just keep going. I don't if it's too much. Well, talk about it a few days later. By the time they stopped swinging those kendo sticks, there was a different feeling in the crowd. Everyone was like "This is gross, they need to stop, I feel bad for Mr. Woods". Which translates into "I feel bad for The New Day" so they want to see us break out of those handcuffs, come back and beat the crap out of The Usos. The violence level is something that, every now and then, we take advantage of, and I have scars on my body and all over my stomach to keep that reminder fresh in my head. Okay. - Next, the book mentions that for Usos HIAC is more than just having a good match. It's about history. They talk about Rikishi "being chokeslammed" from the top of the cage. Jey says that they are proud of having the first tag team title match at HIAC. - Jimmy says that they were proud that after the match HIAC became literally a USO Penitentiary. - Next, they both talk about how during their childhood wrestling was just something that their pops did. It felt more like he clocked in, went away for a few days and then came back. - At first, they both wanted to become football players, and when that didn't work out they decided to try wrestling. - Apparently, Rikishi warned them that "wrestling was full of sharks" and that they should stick together and watch each other backs. They say that it has been blessing traveling together since they still have fun. - Jimmy says that when they don't feel the tension and nervousness when waiting for the match at Gorilla, they will call it quits. Says that matches and putting them together is not work, work is driving for hours, catching a flight or waiting in line for rental cars. - The chapter ends with Jey saying that they are proud to be a tag team and add the WWE caliber of tag teams like Legion of Doom, Samoan Swat Team and Hard Foundation. Says that when they got to WWE, they wanted to make tag team wrestling great again, and feels like they have been killing it with The Bar, Shield, and Breezango. Says that they have been making it "hard to follow". And that is that. Next one is the big one. The one I've been waiting. It's about Creative. And it's a good one. They talk about 50-50 booking, pushing Roman, VINCE RUMORS. TheCool69 fucked around with this message at 18:48 on Sep 12, 2018 |
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Sep 12, 2018 18:45
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Okay, this is the big one! The one I've been waiting for. Hold on to your butts, this is CHAPTER 13 - CREATIVE CONTROL October 9, 2017: WWE Headquarters, Stamford, Connecticut. - The chapter opens up with the mention that its six months until Mania 34, and the only match penciled in is Reigns vs Lesnar. - It also mentions that "its stark contrast" to how WWE Creative used to work. Writers would plot out what they thought would be the best possible card for Mania a year in advance, then book the storylines backward. - Our main character is Ed Koskey, WWE's Vice President of Creative Writing and one of the most influential writers behind the scenes at the Stamford office. This guy - He says that as they get closer to Mania, the questions among the crew are "What's Undertakers availability?" , Where do we go with Braun?" quote:It's one of those deals where we'll see where everything lays out. Last year we knew we were going to get Jericho and Owens, we knew were doing Seth and Hunter. Some years you have more lined up, and other years you're just waiting to see how stuff pans out. That's just where we're at. WHEW.. that's... that's something.... - Next, they mention that it takes a team of "about 25 people" to come up with storylines. They are split up to different aspects and different shows. - According to Koskey, there's a group that stays back in the offices so they can keep ahead of the weekly shows, one team goes out on the road to weekly TV and PPV's. Every Thursday the whole team is under one roof. - He also mentions that the road team goes both to RAW and Smackdown, but the home team is more split up. One group for each show and their respective PPV's. Back in the old days, the whole team would go on the road and then tried to book after traveling days. - It didn't work out and people were seriously burnt out, both professionally and personally. Mentions that the new ways are better because everything is more regimented and more structured. IT helps people to carry the workload, especially since the home team is also helping with NXT - The last word is still with Vince! quote:In the end, though, its still Vince running the show creatively, and he will until he's no longer with us. There have been different attempts to put different people in charge. Stephanie McMahon was in charge for a while but transferred over to other opportunities with branding. Vince has final say over everything. Anything you see on TV happens because Vince approved it to happen. Koskey says that the way WWE works, and the storylines can change in a heartbeat, its good to learn not to get too attached to ideas. quote:Vince doesn't care if it's his lead writer, a Superstar, or a guy in marketing who comes up with the idea, as long as its a good idea. Koskey says that the rumors that Vince nevers sleeps or calls meetings at 3 a.m are all just urban legends. Says that Vince is always available for texts or calls, but he doesnt call in the middle of the night to ask about what to do with John Cena or anything like that. ... Okay here comes the bullshit about Roman and why is he pushed. Get ready to roll your eyes.. Oh and watch out for the second part. This Koskey guy is full of poo poo!!! - Koskey mentions that deciding which Superstars to push, Vince is always listening. To the crowd, yes, but also taking into account live-event ticket and merchandise sales, what's working what isn't working, what people are buying, what people aren't buying and who they pay to see. quote:Roman Reigns sells tickets. Even though guys may boo him, others may cheer him, either way, when he comes out, its loud in the arena and that's cool with us. He's a star and people want to see him, whether they want to boo him or to cheer him, to see him win or to see him lose, they are there for him. He's a star and he moves the needle. Roman is a second-generation guy, and he just looks the part. He looks like he was created in Vince's lab. He's everything you want a Superstar to be: he has that charisma, that star power, and that star factor. - Says that the most important factor in WWE's creative success is that the writing team is working together to help shape Vince's vision, not what particular Superstar is at the top of the card. quote:When Vince picks a direction and everybody gets behind it, we can do great things. When Great Balls of Fire happened, that was supposed to be Braun versus Brock, but then Braun injured his elbow, so we thought he wasn't going to make the PPV. At that point, we didn't know who was going to get that shot. But then Samoa Joe stepped up. Physically he looks the part, he could be a match for Brock Lesnar. So Vince said "Hey, the next five weeks after Extreme Rules are all about making the wider audience familiar with Samoa Joe's history as a badass in the business. It's all about making him as badass and as much of a threat to Brock as possible" WOW.. this is just... I like the basic idea, but what the hell is this "only one guy at the time" bullshit!!!??! Of course, you can write for more people at the same time THAT IS THE REASON YOU HAVE 25 PEOPLE WORKING ON IT!!! Goddammit, Kosey. The chapter ends with Kosey lamenting that while Roman is the guy, the crew is still trying to piece together the rest of the card. quote:At Wrestlemania 33 Dean Ambrose and Baron Corbin got shifted to the pre-show, where initially they weren't- Again it's one of those deals where we try to look at things with fresh eyes. So you might think this is what we're doing, but as you get closer to the show, you start thinking what if we did it this way. That's one of the fun parts of the job. You might wake up one morning and think you have everything set, but then someone comes in and says "What about this?". And its a better idea, so then you have to change things and shuffle everything around. Usually the day of Wrestlemania we're pretty much set. The production meeting of Wrestlemania takes place on the Friday before the show and that's really the last moment where everybody is in the room together, looking at how the show lays out and giving their thoughts on the order and any other outstanding issues that might pop up. That's where stuff can change. Usually, on game day, things are pretty much set, unless when guys are talking through their match they realize they need more time, that can change things. but for the most part, everything is decided by the time we get to Wrestlemania Sunday! - Finishes the chapter by saying that Raw after Mania has almost as high expectations as Mania itself. Says that it has come to the point, that when he sends the final script to mania, he is already working on Raws script. They have an inside joke that "when Wrestlemania ends to the time of the production meeting for Raw next night is the off-season". I have conflicted feeling about this. Very interesting stuff, but seems so dumb? So limited how they decide to do this.. What are your thoughts?
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Sep 13, 2018 10:56
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quote:With the amount of content we have to fill, it's tough to give the kind of push to more than one guy at the time. It's staggering to consider how much bullshit that guy has to say on a daily basis if he was able to say this and not immediately instinctively try to walk it back
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Sep 13, 2018 11:15
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I'm trying to parse that information "We have so much television we have to film, so we can only push one guy at a time" Doesn't... doesn't having so much television to film mean you should need to push multiple guys to fill time?
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Sep 13, 2018 12:18
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Back after the short break, next chapter is about A....J... STYLEEESSS!!! CHAPTER 14 - They Don't Want None November 19, 2017: Survivor Series - The chapter starts with a mention that the one thing in common with the best matches of 2017, is that they all feature AJ Styles. He is called "The Best in The World" by WWE Universe and fellow Superstars for a reason. - But when he left New Japan Pro Wrestling and was negotiating with WWE, he had serious doubts that the deal was taking place. He had tried to jump years earlier but WWE didn't sign him. quote:It was timing. Timing is everything. It wasn't about me coming, it was about whether or not WWE wanted me. At the time, I knew Shinsuke Nakamura was leaving. He didn't know I knew, but I knew and I thought " Wow, this is going to be a big blow to New Japan. So I thought let me see what I can do to take steps in the right direction, maybe in America. Not necessarily WWE, because I tried to coordinate with them before, but they didnt have any interest. - Next, the book talks about his debut at Royal Rumble. AJ says he was very nervous about the crowd and the reaction. He also mentions that WWE is its own bubble and once you're in, WWE is everything. Says that Vince is in this bubble and he has no time for anything else, his only concern is what he is doing, and how to do it better. Says that Vince didn't actually even know who AJ was, says that he knew Road Dogg was one of the guys who recognized his talents and spread the word. Also, AJ says that the pop he got was the greatest moment in his career. - But still, it took few more months after the debut, before Vince warmed up to him. quote:
- Aj says that he and Shane both knew that they had a good story. He was happy with the match, he felt that it showed another side of Shane to WWE Universe. - Says that most of his success has come because he does care about wins or losses. "You've already won because you are at Wrestlemania". For him its all about the "WOW" factor. Here is a good quote from AJ about something that a lot of guys get wrong about WWE and other orgs. quote:When you are with a different company, you think you're competing with them, and I know from experience. You think we're getting closer, or momentum is heading our way, but then you look at the company from a worldwide perspective, and not just Wrestlemania, but WWE is so much bigger than anyone can imagine. There was a time when I was working with TNA, and they made all their money from another country, I think it may have been India. Now you think about how many countries WWE is in, and it just ridiculous. So its much bigger than I ever could've imagined on every level. Nothing even comes close to WWE, and you may not even know this until you come here and you see it for yourself. You realize how much you're recognized now being in WWE as opposed to being that TNA guy or even a guy from New Japan. When I used to come home through immigration, people would ask what were you doing overseas, and I'd say I was a wrestler and they'd always say "Oh, like WWE?". And I'd be like "Yeah, like WWE". Everything is referenced to WWE. - Talks about how big Mania is and how crazy it was wrestling Jericho. He couldn't hear the crowd to the ring because the sound went straight up. - Talks about the match with Finn. Says poo poo happens and you have to be prepared to go if you are called. Says that they texted briefly with Finn, but they called it in the ring. - The book mentions that his match with Brock was amazing, and led to Heyman saying that AJ "He's everything that Shawn Michales and Bret Hart and Ric Flair were to their generations and he's updated it" - Post- Lesnar Styles says that he wants to face Shinsuke at Mania. He'd like to be champ and tell everybody that he wants the match to happen on United States not in Japan this time. this is actually a sad quote in hindsight. quote:We had three or four days to build up Finn Balor and AJ Styles, which is nothing in terms of building up a match - and the crowd went nuts for the match. So what would they do if we had me defend the title at Wrestlemania against Shinsuke and we had weeks, even months to build it. It would be incredible - The chapter ends with AJ saying that his dream match in WWE is Shawn Michaels. quote:I bought up Shawn Michaels as my dream opponent. I asked "Has anybody talked to Shawn lately? Can we ask him? Worst he could say is no". The call was made but he did say no. Decent chapter. Next one is about Matt Hardy and the effort it took to take Broken from TNA to WWE TheCool69 fucked around with this message at 16:35 on Sep 19, 2018 |
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Sep 19, 2018 16:32
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It really is quite tremendous when you consider just how successfully AJ made the transition from New Japan to WWE, pretty much immediately cemented himself into the main event and has never left it.TheCool69 posted:Decent chapter. Next one is about Matt Hardy and the effort it took to take Broken from TNA to WWE Oh man this is gonna be pretty interesting.
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Sep 20, 2018 04:10
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That last quote about Michaels seems quite silly now.
a cyborg mug fucked around with this message at 17:49 on Sep 20, 2018 |
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Sep 20, 2018 16:42
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Chapter 15 - Imminent Deletion December 4, 2017 - The chapter opens with the writer calling Matt Hardy the master of reinvention: From Hardy Boyz to V1 to Broken. He also says that "Delete or Decay" and "Total Nonstop Deletion" attracted millions of viewers and ignited one of the most viral movements the sport has ever seen. - But when Matt and Jeff's TNA contracts expired in 2017, the Boyz shocked WWE Universe with a surprise return at Mania 33. Not as Broken and Nero but as Hardy Boyz. quote:When my brother Jeff and I were at TNA, I started doing something that was very different. A character that is much larger than life, almost supernatural. It is a throwback to the older days when wrestling had more character-driven personas. A new company bought the company we were working for, and they were going through a lot of changes, and they were downsizing, and we had been offered pretty good deals to stay, but there were other guys who were in the mix and we heard they were trying to undercut them in terms of money. We knew there was an opportunity to return home to WWE. - Triple H made the first call to Matt and put them in touch with Vince and Michael Hayes to work out the details of their return. Together they decided to try to create a diversion so WWE Universe couldn't predict the timetable of their return. quote:During the whole month of March, I and my brother went another promotion, Ring of Honor, and became their tag team champions and we were involved in a really hot rivalry there with a tag team called The Young Bucks. We thought and Triple H agreed with us, that wrestling in Ring Of Honor would be a good way to create a diversion or create a smoke screen so people would be surprised when we showed up at Mania. We told people that we were committed to Ring of Honor and in all of our interviews, we were stringing people along that we were going to stay with Ring of Honor for a certain amount of time. The only thing that maybe gave it away to some of the diehard fans is that we dropped the titles in a Ladder Match the night before. - Matt says that he was proud that while they were "Hardy Boyz" the crowd still chanted DELETE! and BROTHER NERO!. - Says that the popularity is because of social media. It did not because popular because of TNA which according to Matt is "in a grand scheme of things a small company and very small platform" Okay, so here we get into the good stuff. quote:That year that we did it in TNA, my brother and I paid for so many of the shoots that happened on our property and there were so many things that we created. It was our brainchild. Literally, they had one guy, Jeremy Borash who would come out and say we need twenty minutes for the show and then we'd determine whatever the content was going to be. quote:When you're with WWE, obviously Vince is going to have the final say on everything. It's been great, because even when I spoke to him and explained the backstory of Broken Matt Hardy character - what his motivations were, what made him what he is - Vince was very open to saying "Okay, well, let's work together on this thing". Even when I speak on RAW, they'll give me a framework, then I'll add words or phrases that I want in there. Vince still has the final say, but I get a ton of input, more than other people get. WTF MATT??? I went into this chapter excited but Matt.. what the hell? And this next quote... quote:The most interesting thing I tried to do was play to the narrative of the internet and I think that why it became so popular. Vince McMahon made sports-entertainment what it is today, and anyone who is involved in it has to appreciate that and owes him a debt for what he has accomplished, but the internet acts like he's a megalomaniac who gets talent from another territory and immediately tries to bury it. They think he's out of control, so I just played up that narrative. Same thing with Triple H, who has been absolutely incredible to work with since I've come back. Getting our piano music with a little trance-vibe to it., he hooked that up. He's been absolutely phenomenal. But online, the narrative is how he brings talent in only to beat them and embarrass them and how he always needs to stay strong. So I just played off those narratives. That made it very easy and it became a fun thing, especially for those diehard fans. It was cathartic getting to share their jokes on television. At some point, I spoke to Hunter about it and he giggled (WTF??) a little bit, so there are more things I have in mind along those lines that I want to bring out - He ends the chapter by talking how Woken/Broken really is just a way to make more money... no its just a way to add longevity to his career. He says that it has made it so people are looking for more entertaining promos than him being pushed out of huge ladders and going through tables. He says that he can still do it, but it just takes more time to bounce back. Well... that was something. Next chapter is about Bayley and Womens Royal Rumble and the last chapter of the "2017" portion of the book. 2018 deals more with injuries piling up and the question of "Can Bryan be used" TheCool69 fucked around with this message at 19:32 on Sep 20, 2018 |
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Sep 20, 2018 19:29
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They had their unicorn with Daniel Bryan unless I am blind to the fans that booed him.
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Sep 20, 2018 21:15
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That Hardy chapter really didn't age well considering how poorly they used any of his Broken Matt stuff.
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Sep 21, 2018 05:16
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It still surprises me to hear a WWE book talking so openly not just about Ring of Honor or TNA, but The Young Bucks in particular.
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Sep 21, 2018 10:35
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