2012 Pro Wrestling Thread

Breaking away from Vickie would make him face by default.

 

'Zactly. Edge needed to conjure up every evil heel trick he could to make Vickie even remotely sympathetic when he was bullying her in an effort to get another title shot. No matter what he called her, fans cheered for him because for all his faults, he wasn't Vickie.

 

I think (Hopefully) anyway, that they're going to play up the Swagger/Vickie/Ziggs angle to where Vickie eventually sides with Swagger and costs Ziggs a title shot or a big match down the line. That way they give mega heat to Swagger and give Dolph the babyface push.

 

There's also internet rumors out there that Flair is coming back to WWE from TNA, and would manage Ziggler.

Which might be why Dolph is saying "I'm better than this!"

 

I think that would be pretty sweet, if the E handles it correctly.

 

shhh, don't give them any ideas!

 

According to a few dirtsheets, Cena is going to be back in the title hunt by September.

And Ryder came out after the show last night to help give Laryngitis a send-off along with Cena, Big Show and VKM. Still not sure why they couldn't give Ryder 5 seconds of TV time...

 

Because the WWE cares more about massaging everyone's massive egos and less about what the fans actually want.

Ryder is an example of why the WWE has been in this rut for the last several years, with a few exceptions. The fans are going nuts for the guy and it takes months for them to get him back on TV. Then they give him a small push, and the fans still respond. And then they put him in an angle with their top guy, only end up making him look like a weak idiot. Then they'll wonder why he doesn't get over.

They could have even made Cena/Ryder kinda like a modern version of Sammartino/Zbyzsko. Built Ryder up as a Cena apprentice for a year and see how huge he gets over. If he stays over, then you've got a great No. 2 babyface. If he doesn't, turn him heel.

 

I find your ideas intriguing and wish to subscribe to your newsletter.

 

Two points, one cup:

1. I don't think Flair would be a very good manager. I've not seen anything in his previous managing roles that make me think he would enhance Ziggler or anyone else. He was a sad shell of himself as the Triple H acolyte in Evolution (he was still active, but he was a de facto manager/spokesperson for them), and he added nothing to Fourtune or Immortal when he managed them. Did AJ Styles get over with him at his side? Gunner? In a different way, he presents the same problem Vickie does -- any heat or pop or -reaction he generates will be because he's Ric Flair, not because he's managing Dolph Ziggler. In some ways it'd be worse because WWE fans are conditioned to cheer for Flair no matter what role he plays, so any heel he manages is going to have trouble getting over cleanly until the inevitable breakup, in which Flair would almost certainly be the face. Plus it's really sad seeing him like this. He really IS Randy the Ram from The Wrestler, except at a higher level. He'll milk his name, his background, his legacy and the last dying embers of his performing ability -- in and out of the ring -- until the day he dies because he has no other choice. And it's gotten way beyond painful to watch. There's almost no way he can appear on television in a recurring role and retain anything resembling dignity, and that's a god damn shame.

2. I don't get the Ryder love. Well, I kind of do. He got himself over through a YouTube show, in the face of overwhelming indifference from traditional fans and the upper management. The smart fans gravitated to him accordingly. There's something cool about seeing someone go off the grid to break out. If Tyler Reks or JTG had leveraged their online presence in such a way, maybe we'd be pining for him. But when you drill down to the bedrock of who Zack Ryder is ... it's not that impressive. His in-ring ability isn't any better than Curt Hawkins, stuck in NXT/Superstars purgatory for seemingly ever. His gimmick really isn't much more past WWWYKI, broskis and his show. His acting is dubious; watch him in his role in the Cena-Kane-Eve drama. It wasn't pretty. At best, he's a slightly better Santino, and once his 15 minutes of YouTube fame are up, I don't see him being relevant long-term, at least not as Long Island Iced Z. There's plenty of talents more deserving to get a big push than him.

 

I disagree that his 15 minutes are up.

He still has one of the most-watched videos/shows on YouTube and worked his ass of developing this character and getting himself over. He's deserving of a push because he didn't get over with help from the top, and that's rare these days.

 

This