2016 Pro Wrestling Thread

Only thing I saw was a rumor the Brooklyn show was cancelled because Ticketmaster didn't have the show listed. But the reason they didn't have it listed is that they hadn't begun selling tickets yet.

 

That, coupled with TakeOver "THE END", coupled with the brand extension and the roster rumors that includes the likes of Mojo Rawley....

 

I was thinking The End could be a storyline thing, like Finn and Bayley going to the main roster.

It'd be really dumb, on the level of Gobbledy-Gooker and Hour No. 2 fireworks dumb for them to end the brand.

 

So you're saying it's probably going to happen then?

 

They would have to have Vince or Trips announce it, because the crowd would probably boo it out of the building.

 

NXT grew far beyond expectations. It was never meant to be anything more than a developmental show, but it overachieved.

Maybe Raw should be branded WWE and SmackDown be branded as NXT? Make them feel like completely separate entities. Maybe it could resemble the original plans from late 2001 to run WCW as a separate brand with a title. Because I'm not sold on brand extension again, not when I had nearly a decade of cross pollination that watered down the entire concept.

If you suspend disbelief that it's all one company, I could believe that the NXT title could be on the level with the WWE title because those past NXT title matches were quality.

But branding SmackDown as NXT, giving it an entirely different look and feel and not just have the same LED light walls turn blue ... might just help. It's one thing I hated about the new HD sets: it killed the unique look each show had (The SmackDown fist!). Why does it have to be blue? Keep the NXT look because it's unique from Raw. Or do something else. But it can't be as lazy as changing the lights.

 

Oh, and ....

GOLDBERG!

Sorry, can't deny I was a huge Goldberg mark in high school. I'll definitely be ordering 2K17.

Speaking of, Shoemaker has Da Man on the Ringer rasslin podcast. Night after? These guys are moving fast. Must help to he based in LA? So while Cheap Heat gives me another rapper I don't know, Ringer gives me a guest that's current to the conversation.

 

Apparently, NXT Takeover Brooklyn is still on, although some of the wrestlers were quite concerned when the event was pulled from Ticketmaster.

Big Update On If WWE NXT 'Takeover: Brooklyn' Is Still Happening - WrestlingInc.com

 

The "problem" with NXT as I see it is that its going to get worse. And I sincerely hope HHH knows that that is 100% OK.

As people get called up, it can go back to being what it was pre-Balor and pre-Itami. It doesnt have to be an Indy all-star show that breaks the bank and becomes a financial mess or goes poof because of too many callups. It can be developmental.....but cutting it would royally piss me off as a paying customer. It would brutalize the value for my 9.99. (Which is still good given free PPVs but nonetheless).

Lastly, more guys should be allowed to follow the Tyson Kidd model, go to NXT and figure yourself out. Would've been gold for Cody. Axel should be there now. Sandow. Etc.

Hell you could argue the best nxt match ever is the kidd 4 way that was pre golden era

 

There are some guys on the main roster that could use NXT. Cody wasn't one of them. Cody's problem was that they wouldn't let him drop a bad angle.

 

This is true. It started out as a purely developmental thing, with one or two guys sent down (Kidd, Cesaro) to either find themselves or to try to draw a few extra fans. From there, their young talent developed into stars in their own right (Shield guys, Wyatts, the Horsewomen, Balor, Enzo and Cass), then they started getting some indy guys to draw some more fans (Samoa Joe, Aries), and it happened all at the same time.

But the problem though, is where do they go from here? Eventually, their better talent gets called up (Balor, Bayley), and the young talent left behind is still developing. They've kinda become a victim of their own success.

 

We'll look back on this run in 10 to 20 years and realize how good we really had it.