2015 Pro Wrestling Thread

So, what do they do with Bryan now? Either they write him in the main event in a convoluted way, or they book him with Sheamus (ugh), Ziggler (should be fine, but a big letdown from last year) or have him win the Second annual Andre battle royal (meh).

 

Whatever it is he has to win right? Have the hottest guy in the business come back and job out clean two months in a row can't then turn into 3

 

It could happen. The E jobbed the shit out of Punk for a while. Rock twice, Undertaker, Lesnar, his last Rumble. He won a few times in midcarder fueds with Ryback/Axel. He could have done better during the late run with the Wyatts and Shield, but he was phoning it in by that point, and it was obvious to many of us. Of course, we know why now ...

Would I have liked to see Bryan main event again? Sure. Austin, Rock, Cena, and others had more than one Mania main event. But I just want a great story, title or no title. I am afraid he's pitted against Sheamus, who bores the shit out of me.

Isn't it odd that after Fast Lane, it seems clear where evryone is going except Bryan?

Cena-Rusev 2
Wyatt-Undertaker
Sting-Triple H
Reigns-Lesnar
Orton-Rollins
Ambrose-Barrett 2
Usos-Kidd/Cesaro 2
Dust brothers 2

Bryan? Who knows? That's why I fear a lame Sheamus program. Let it happen, and fans will shit on it. I plan to.

 

Sheamus would be a good guy to win the battle royal. Otherwise, even with a heel turn, he's stale as hell. Which is why I think they'll put him with Bryan.

 

I just don't understand why the WWE insists on trying to pitt Bryan vs. Sheamus at WrestleMania seemingly every year. They had their shot at WM27 to make it a fresh match and they turned it into a dark match battle royal. They had their shot to make it a classic at WM28 and they jobbed DB out in 18 seconds. They tried floating the idea around last year and it was universally panned.
STOP TRYING TO MAKE THIS MATCH NO ONE WANTS HAPPEN.

 

They're never going to push Bryan as hard as his fans want. Never.

 

If they did that, Bryan would beat Brock Lesnar in 30 seconds at Wrestlemania and not lose another match until 2033.

 

IIRC, people were sort of stoked for the WM27 match. They were talking it up as a potential show stealer, which is why there was so much grumbling when it got scuttled.
And I'd argue that the WM28 match was a classic in its own way. If that had been a good 10-minute match, no one would remember it. The 18 second squash was not only memorable, it might have been the best thing that ever happened to Daniel Bryan. In the fans' eyes, it turned him into the shat-upon underdog and was the beginning of his meteoric rise (the comedy run with Kane was a much bigger part of that, but the loss to Sheamus was the start of it).

 

Ha. True.

Really, though, where is he in the hierarchy now? I think each of the Shield guys should get a title run before Bryan gets another one. Rusev and Wyatt are right behind, if they don't get destroyed at Wrestlemania. And, unfortunately, you always have to make room for CenaWinsLOL and Orton. And rumors are getting louder that Lesnar is going to stick around and re-sign.

Overall, it's a good problem to have.

 

Cena is the reliable plow horse, but he's also tricky to figure out right now. They CAN obviously put the belt on him any time they need to, yet sitting on 15 championships with his next one tying Flair makes it a tough question of when to do that. No. 16 (and eventually 17) should be a huge deal and not a two-month placeholder reign.
It's one of the reasons I'm kind of rooting for him to beat Rusev and take the U.S. title. It'd be unique to see an A-lister with a midcard strap, plus it'd elevate it and give them a championship they can actually build angles around on a regular basis.
Anyway, that's my two cents on Cena. Orton and even Sheamus are the same way, without the sticky championship reign situation. Put the belt on them if needed, keep them around the top of the card until then to keep them relevant.

Of the younger guys, right now it should go:
1) Rollins
2) Bryan
3) Reigns
and then distantly
4) Rusev (his first loss is a huge land mine for his character at this point)
5) Wyatt (has faded big time over the past six months)
Rollins desperately needs to cash in MITB soon. He's been jobbing quite a bit lately, and relying on interference too much, which is making him look like more and more of a chump instead of the "future of the company." He's great, but needs a string of strong, clean wins either before or after the cash-in to regain some credibility.
Bryan is what he is. He's over with the fans, and likely at the point he doesn't need the title to continue that. A title reign might actually hurt him more than help him by appeasing the smarks. He's good enough that he doesn't need to be the underdog any more, yet every facet of that persona is what makes him popular. Six months as champion might kill some of that heat.
And Reigns also is what he is. The heir apparent. They're obviously intent on giving him the ball, so we might as well see if he can run with it. No sense booing the guy out of the building until we see what he can do. Hopefully he doesn't get Mizzed.

 

Ziggler doesn't have anything to do so we're probably getting that Bryan-Dolph face/face steal the show thing that was rumored after the Rumble.

Thank god for the Network. I'll watch Mania since its just $10 and I'm never getting rid of the Network. I can't see how anyone would be excited enough for this card to shell out $50-60 whatever it is these days.

It's not even about Bryan, per se, it's just that Lesnar-Reigns as a two man match does nothing for me and the rest of the show feels stale and forced.

 

No Dean Ambrose? Until Rollins' recent surge, Ambrose was easily the best of the former Shield guys. Having him feud with Barrett is a complete waste of time.