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Which REALLY reflects poorly on Macho Man...

-Bryan is receiving louder and more sustained pops now than he was prior to the Cena match -Cody cut a money face promo and will return to help Bryan -Big Show has gained sympathy and had people actually chanting his name -Titus appears to be front and center of a possible revolution -Ziggler is bumping around in handicap matches and appears to be in line as someone who will also assist Bryan -Orton is fresh again -Shield are still world beaters and pushed back to the top of the card Yeah, the angle is helping nobody.

These threads are making me start to hate this board. It's like I accidentally went to the comments on Scott Keith's blog for fuck's sake.

I would like to give a special shout-out to the people complaining about HHH and calling Randy Orton boring because you are being worked and it is really interesting to read these threads with that in mind. I honestly thought this place was above that. I can not for the life of me figure out why internet fans can't realize that the reason HHH and Orton are heels right now are exactly the reasons they've been complaining about those two for years. It was the same thing with Cena and folks not realizing that his super hero status is a vital aspect of his character designed to keep him dynamic, controversial, and versatile booking-wise. You are SUPPOSED to think HHH wants to be the focus of the show and is burying Daniel Bryan. You are SUPPOSED to think that Randy Orton doesn't deserve to be the champion or face of the company. It is baffling to me that people can dislike the heels for exactly the right reasons, support the faces for exactly the right reason, and still think the show was terrible and threaten to stop watching WWE altogether. You're adorable. You're terrible.

Did you guys hear Bryan's reaction when he came out tonight and interrupted Triple H's promo? Did you hear the reaction when he came out on Smackdown with the chair? Did you hear the reaction when he kept attacking Big Show as Big Show cried? Did you hear the crowd chant "You sold out!" at the Big Show? So, how is Bryan being buried? Every time he gets beat down, he becomes a bigger and bigger star. I think he's getting even bigger reactions now than he did pre-Summerslam. Bryan is teflon. It's not like Fandango is one-punching him unconscious: he's getting beaten by three guys at once/the biggest guy on the roster/the world champion, and it's never clean one-on-one.

This storyline is like a 20-course meal(no one eats that much, but lets all assume we're of the giant species as according to Steph), where the first six courses have been soup and we keep sitting here drinking it because the soup isnt bad and we were promised an awesome as hell dessert...but man, you better believe some of us are gonna complain if we get soup again. Yeah, this time the soup was saltier and came with some crackers, but really, give me a damn salad or something. In other words...come up with a different ending than..

Calf implants. Butt implants. Pec implants. The only guys who actually still go to the gym are marks.

The important thing is to complain about how badly an angle has paid off before it has paid off. That way you can boost your internet credibility by saying I TOLD YOU SO and it doesn't at all reflect how shitty your life must be.

It's like someone made a terrible create a character of Sheamus in WWE2K13.

EVERY SINGLE SHOW.

So that ending was just mental, right? Like if anyone who wasn't following closely tuned into the last 15 minutes, that must have seemed like the most bizarre sequence of events and character reactions. This angle is being booked according to the Werner Herzog school of philosophical ecstasy (yes, I watched the TCM show about FRITZCARRALDO tonight)...Like, I could hear his voice: "The giant has made the mistake of claiming humanity in the natural world, a world made up of only fornication and asphyxiation. His folly is to believe in the fairy tale of morality that we learn as children so that our parents might sleep at night without fear that we will kill them. The small bearded man has embraced the pain and the chaos that is the order of the world. He will thrive and breathe deeply until his slaughter which will happen soon. Which will suffer more? Undoubtedly the giant."

Still, the fact that the "Internet written" versions of HHH and Stephanie being done as TV characters pisses off the Internet is just delicious.

I wish Dusty could come out whenever Cody returns and do a promo like this for him... http://youtu.be/yQBRC0hlnxE

Sean Waltman ‏@TheRealXPac If everyone that's a wrestling fan would just allow themselves to watch w/o over analyzing it, they would enjoy the show more & be happier

The best thing that came out of this show is Steph saying that she was 12 years old in 1999.

He was just so happy to get the fuck out of Rochester, NY he just grabbed whatever was near him and took off.

Which match were you watching? Bryan was going all-out against Show who spent half the match yelling "I don't want to do this to you" and when he finally pisses Show off enough, Show dominates him and, after the obligatory fight-back, leaves him laying, presumably beaten, then starts to leave, at which point Shield pick the bones. I was watching the match where Bryan got splashed in the corner by a 460 pound guy and NO SOLD IT by dropkicking him in the knee seconds later. Bryan took Big Show down several times, even doing the "Yes" series of kicks. Bryan was actually in control until Show caught him with the spear coming off the top rope. It was a simple transition spot, just like in every other match in the history of forever. Show certainly thought he was going to deliver the KO punch at that point, but who's to say DB wouldn't have reversed it? We will never know because it didn't get to that point. I think folks are just seeing things that aren't there because internet darling Daniel Bryan is the one being "screwed" by internet anti-christ Triple H. Y'all are getting worked and it's mind-boggling you can't see that.

Well sure, but the MOST important thing is to never listen to people who disagree with you and respond to the point they're actually trying to make, but instead just keep repeating the same stupid pithy bullshit over and over again and then fall back on "it's a gimmick, bro!" when you get called out on it. And to make hamfisted blanket statements that perfectly encapsulate your entire worldview while seemingly lacking the self-awareness to recognize the irony therein.

The entire roster is too afraid to fight HHH except for Daniel Bryan. No one will even speak up against him, but Bryan is coming out and running him down on the mic. Legends and other authority figures are telling him to get in line for his own good, and Bryan is basically telling them all to fuck off. None of this is Bryan getting buried. Why? Because he isn't being buried. We all want continuity, both in story telling and character, but it would be a giant left turn if suddenly HHH, the guy who has been portrayed as smarter than basically every wrestler ever and knows exactly when to pick his spots, is showing ass and stooging around for Daniel Bryan, slightly unhinged vegan. It would be actively bad booking if Bryan had come out on top for the past three weeks. Any time he has had the odds even, he has destroyed people. This includes Big Show last night, who threw himself around like a 500 lb Seth Rollins for 10 minutes. Just because we all remember watching VHS tapes of Bryan fighting John Walters and Michael Shane doesn't mean he should be beating up 5 dudes at once every week leading up to the PPV at which he is the underdog babyface.

That the McMahons and Triple H not be involved. Bryan dropping the belt to Orton isn't what made me quit. It's making the McMahons the top story and heel faction YET AGAIN that got me to stop. So why fucking comment on it god damn it

I'd rather Show was a big blubbering pansy than a wrecking machine coming in and saving wee Daniel Bryan from his bullies. BECAUSE THAT'S MARK HENRY'S SPOT WHAT HEY WHAT HEY SAY WHAT HEY WHAT HEY

I really don't understand what everyone is complaining about. This angle, for the most part,is brilliant. And remarkably subversive. The reason why none of the other faces are standing up for DB is because they are essentially brainwashed by the WWE.They believe, like Cena, there is no other place to wrestle other than the WWE. Only DB sees the world differently. He's already stated that if he was fired tomorrow, he'd just go back wrestling in high school gymnasiums. But they won't fire him,because he's too popular and makes them money.I just think it's a really well thought storyline,one of the best they've had in a while.

Of course he doesn't win at NOC. Why would he? It would be like opening a movie with Batman in trouble, then twenty minutes later, he's the winner. I really think, at this point, the WM main event will be Bryan/Orton and Cena/Undertaker (or Lesnar or something), so settle in for the long haul, or start watching TNA where angles are hotshot every week. Wrestling smarks have to have the shortest amounts of patience of any fans ever: "Come on, this has been going on for two weeks now! Where's the payoff!?" Seriously, people, two weeks. That's it. The Triple H turn was on August 17th, today is September 2nd. Also, I seriously doubt we're going to get anyone standing up to the new corporation on Raw, it's probably going to come on a PPV. You want your big pop/big moment, you've gotta pay for it.

Have I ever mentioned my dream of dancing and/or pissing on the ashes of a destroyed Lambeau Field?

I like where this story is going because it's what I would do if were in charge. There's something that feels very different about how this is going, like they're not in a stagnant booking cycle any more, but going someplace where it is legitimately unpredictable. Daniel Bryan eventually regaining the title seems like the obvious payoff and I think it is where this will end up eventually, but I like feeling unsure that they will get there. Having a legitimate heel who is not a cool heel is great. And I think the right time to have Bryan regain the title is probably TLC. Ultimately, I think that management just has a higher opinion of Daniel Bryan than they have of someone like CM Punk and are much more willing to get behind Bryan and commit to a long-term angle. I can see HHH thinking that Bryan is the right guy to have an epic match with and a really obvious time to do that would be Hell in a Cell.

Which left Bryan laying long enough for Show to get halfway to the back (and he wasn't even moving fast by 500-pounder standards) and the Shield to charge the ring. Let's go at this from a different perspective. First, here are the major players and their motives: Big Show is a big scary dude, the most physically imposing man on the roster. He has knocked out everybody from Cena to Brodus Clay with a single punch. Show doesn't want to do what evil boss Triple H wants him to do, but his job and financial future is on the line. Should he do the easy thing and give in to Triple H? Or should he risk everything just to get at the boss, knowing that in the long term no good can come of it. Triple H is the "drunk with power" dictator who is getting off on pulling the puppet strings of his employees and putting his enemies (or people he is fearful of) in positions where they can't succeed. He knows that he can manipulate Show and he also knows that if he can control the monster he makes his position that much more secure. Stephanie is the wife of the dictator who plays the more human role and appeals to your emotions and "logic." Even though she too is evil and manipulating, she has (not yet) completely toyed with someones emotions or threatened their career/livelihood.. Daniel Bryan is this paranoid guy who thinks everyone is out to get him - especially when they really are. His fantasies have turned into realities, and because he spent the better part of 2 years alienating himself from everyone (save Kane) he has no one who is willing to help. Yet. The Shield are basically mercenaries who may or may not have a long term allegiance to Triple H. But, they are effective and have destroyed pretty much everyone they have come in contact with for the better part of a year. Let's pretend you are an agent or producer or whatever WWE is calling it now. Here is the outline of the story they were trying to get across in that main event: Big Show knows he will hurt Daniel Bryan if they have a match. Show is confident in his abilities (as he should be) and therefore he is trying to reason with DB. Daniel Bryan doesn't care. Show isn't his friend or his ally - he is just another obstacle put in his way by Triple H. Bryan has already made it clear he thinks everyone is against him and see's no reason for Big Show to be any different - especially considering the past they have had (and Big Show's own track record). At some point you have to built to a spot where DB is hurt, Show just says "enough is enough" and walks out. You don't want him to hit his finisher (if he is going that far, why wouldn't he pin the guy?). But whatever the spot is, it has to be big enough to keep Bryan down for a minute or two so the angle can play out. Given all these factors, I really don't see a better way this could have played out.

From DropToehold.com

Are you the one who actually used the phrase "Randy Boreton?" You can find Orton boring all you want, but if you say SuperCena or Randy Boreton or CM Drunk etc... Yeah, i'm going to think you are an idiot.

Could you imagine the internet during the '80's? "The Horsemen never got their comeuppance" "How come Roddy Piper has never been pinned?", etc. You fucking guys are a bunch of entitled mofo's, I swear...

If you think Cena beating Lesnar clean in Lesnar's first match was a satisfying payoff, I really don't know what to say.

Fuck the Packers.

Raven's not someone I'd think of when I need workout advice.

It's even harder to believe Bryan's the top face in the company based on the last couple Raws.

-Bryan's opening deal responding to the Doink thing and burying HHH and Orton was great, great stuff. Especially HHH shitting on the "ironclad contract". (And them pointing out that a n ironclad contract written by Johnny Ace must be flawed and able to be torn apart by good lawyers.) HHH and Orton backstage with Cody was great, as HHH and Orton are such awesome dicks. -Miz/ Fandango was fine. Summer Rae rules. I liked Bray Wyatt's tweet, "When the men of power wage war, only the innocent suffer. come with me.........#DownWithTheMachine, (I'm not sure I dig the idea that Bray Wyatt tweets, but whatever. ) -Booker with Bryan was good, and I like the idea that Booker just walks around backstage with nothing to do but dispense advice. -I loved Ziggler getting screwed by the Corporation. Not only does Maddox put him against Ryback, but Ambrose takes him out before the bell, to continue the reign of terror in the mid card. Ziggler's rally popped the crowd and especially the guy dressed in the Dusty polka dots. I also liked Ryback's Frank Gorshin on Star Trek tights. And Ziggler is now done with the AJ/ Big E fued and part of the forming squad of good guys. -I love that Stephanie and HHH are playing the roles written for them by the internet. I mean, her fucking graphic says "Executive VP Creative" And I'm sure someone has pointed it out, but Steph didn't say she knew Show since she was 12 years old, she said "my 12 year old friend" as in, they've been friends for 12 years. And she was such a bitch, I loved it. I'd like to see the Strip Mall Show bought. - Edge next week will probably be the guy telling folks to step up. -I'm loving the PTP's face push. It's a nice bit of restraint that they aren't making it all about Young coming out, and they're focusing on the fact that they've been over and entertaining in a face way anyway. Titus is a fucking star, and Young is really good. And Heath Slater takes a beating like no one else in WWE. -Maddox/ Heyman/ HHH was great. Loved the "meeting of the scumbags, who despite both being heels, still hate each other...based on more "known to the internet" heat, than "Brock and I feuded". -Wyatt promo was cool shit. -JBL being a guy who goes on about how workers should be happy they have jobs is just perfect given that he's been one of those talking heads shitting on the whole "fast food workers are demanding raises" stuff in the news. And JBL being more of a heel has led to him and Cole being really good together again, (I'd imagine them also doing the net show helps) and alot of the time Lawler is really left with nothing to do, as Cole and JBL have always been a great two man act. -Cody/ Orton kicked fucking ass. I loved Dusty Fan cheering on his son with Piper Fan. I love that the locker room all were watching on one TV, with the short chick in the back.. Great visual, though, and this totally helped make Cody after the short tag team breakup feud. And if it wasn't against Corporate Orton backed by dickface corporate HHH, no one would have cared, instead of a crowd going nuts for him. And the whole "days before his wedding, his career is over" stuff was just perfect. Shit, there was a "Thak you, Cody" chant as if some fans actually think he's leaving. Here's hoping Dusty confronts HHH. Especially after Cody's fucking AWESOME "The McMahon's have always hated the Rhodes!" promo. -CM Punk's promo was aces, and I love that he doesn't reference the Regime of Terror, as some feuds, especially blood feuds with a wrestler vs a manager, should stay separate with minimal connection, if any to the big angle. Like they did with HHH talking to Heyman. And I liked Punk basically finally doing the promo that makes him a total good guy, ie: thanking his fans. And him wielding the same kendo stick that he was beaten with last week was cool. -Show/ Bryan backstage? Eh, I liked Bryan pointing out that he beat Show for his first World Title. -Naomi had a tad too much eyeshade under her eyes. AJ getting gang beat up by the Total Divas is more "AJ is the voice of the internet/ real fans vs the reality show fans" deal. AJ came out on top to start last week, this week they get her, etc. She bloodied the Bella's lip. I have no idea what they're doing here, besides filming shit for the next season of Divas on E that we are seeing now. I'd guess from the wrestling perspective, she and Kaitlyn make up and have an uneasy alliance against the Total Divas. - I'm liking Ricardo as RVD's hype man. He's 100% less annoying than Bill Alfonso.Although I think he'll turn on RVD to"prove himself" to Del Rio, as he's such a swarmy dude that he'd take that beating and still want to impress his old boss to get his gig back. RVD/ Sandow was ok. Anyone bitching that the MIB holder is losing all the time hasn't paid attention for the last few years. -Steph with Total Divas was made good by the pic of Jake Roberts looking on. -Again, Edge will confront the Regime of Terror. -I love that they still did the "Roster on the ramp" deal. And Bryan is so god damned over. If you think beat downs and screw jobs over the course of THREE WEEKS is a burial, you're high. No, if you were high you'd probably not be so uptight and hyper for instant payoff. I love that the recession has ruined Show's finances. Bryan continues to be the fighting-est guy alive. Show/ Bryan more great story than great match, and the crying IS a bit much, unless it's still all an act and Show is pretending. Still, if it IS leading to Show finally snapping and knocking out the Shield or HHH, in no way does that "bury" Bryan and make Show the main guy here. It establishes Show as another part of the Face Squad. Again, the crying is too much, but the McMahon's as the 1% while playing the roles that every former creative guy to ever be on an Alverez podcast have cast is great shit. - They're so obviously building up the Squadron of good guys to take on the bad guy Alliance. And "OMG, this is going on too long, buried, blah, blah" is silly. Three WHOLE weeks is too long? Lotsa short attention span, instant gratification junkies. Your heads would have exploded if you were watching in the 80's Or shit, the NWO. "It's been THREE WEEKS, how come Sting hasn't beaten up the NWO yet?"

I don't know how I feel about these new realistic wrestlers with their families and concerns and anxiety. Man, Warrior would have run in, botched a gorilla press on HHH and run around the ring three times before anyone could say "Best for busine....." Randy Savage would have simply said "HHH, you can't fire the Macho Man!" and that would have been legally binding somehow as soon as Mean Gene said "There you have it. The Macho Man has spoken!" I don't know which I prefer yet. But I know I would personally rather be Ultimate Macho Warrior. But I can also see how, in theory, this new way of portraying the business seems more savvy and real or something and may keep people more interested.

Also would note that it is incredibly idiotic to have Bryan even wrestling Orton this soon. Just completely awful. For all the slow burn talk - most of which I don't disagree with in principle - it seems unbelievably disingenuous to claim that this is all genius booking, slow burning, building for the long term, to a huge payoff, when they went and booked him in the main event v. Orton on the very next god damned ppv. It doesn't even make sense from a storyline perspective as the McMahon clan can do whatever the hell they want and there is no reason to believe waiving a rematch clause is outside the scope of their abilities. They could have easily booked him against Bully Ryback first, then maybe Reigns, then an Survivor Series team match where he gets the pin on Orton but not the title, et. People bitching about the people bitching because of three weeks of beatdown and citing slow burn and long term build, really ought to note that their version of "slow burn" and "long term build" is not what is usually meant when those terms are used.

Dude!

Wait - RAW was in Iowa tonight? Did anyone have a .341 sign?

Highly doubt they set out with the intention of burying everyone involved with the final segment, but that's what happened. I've really enjoyed all of this angle up to now, but this was just terrible. They completely lost the crowd and then just kept making it worse. None of it really made sense.....Bryan and Show's backstage promo was bad.....I didn't understand why they were working the match they way they did where Show was just completely dominating Bryan.....the guy who can practically beat the Shield by himself and has beaten Show several times....and Show hasn't been booked like nearly that level of monster in a while.......this was complete shit. And it makes no sense for Show to be overacting the way he was. Why do you care so much about Daniel Bryan? I also loved that they brought up the ironclad contract in the show opening segment, then promptly ignored it for the rest of the show. And now Big Show is supposedly broke?! Just like HBK was broke I guess. complete shit the rest of the show wasn't too bad. I liked all the stuff with Cody, it put him over big and the crowd was digging it, and if they do a Midnight Rider gimmick it will be awesome. Cody and Orton had a good match, I thought RVD/Sandow was a decent match, and I liked how they were hyping up Edge being on next week's show as a big deal. CM Punk's promo was money.

I don't need Big Show crying this much on my tv.

Better than taking viewing advice from someone who has watched multiple sex tapes of Chyna.

Dammit. Impersonating Herzog is the most addicting thing in the world. I urge everyone to do it. WIth apologies this time to PF Tomkins: [Herzog] The Mcmahon family and their minions circle together like the biological cells that collect to form the most primal life and eventually the so-called higher life forms. When it becomes complex enough, the human herd behaves like a kind of blind biological machinery. It's most powerful impulse, and its most pleasurable one, is to strike out at those who raise a voice against it. This they do not out of self-interest, though that is what they believe, but only out of the rage of ignorance. The rage from being encaged in their own bodies. The rage against the pressure of their own blood which seeks to explode from their veins. The rage against the heat that rises from inside their intestines and slowly cooks their brains, the pulsing of their heart against the ribs like an animal locked in a cage pacing and staring at its jailer. They peer out of their skulls as if trapped in an iron mask. They cannot breathe. They cannot think. They can only reach and strike. And so they find a target and they band together and they strike and strike and strike until they open him and release all that pressure in a ritual purging of violent and erotic energy.The bearded one is the chosen one. The mechanism of release. The sacrifice for the herd. It is actually a position of great honor. And his life and death will carry meaning beyond those who survivie him. The giant ironically is too smart. Just smart enough to understand that it is all obscenity. Just smart enough to know that all around him are in misery. That the thousands gathered to watch are not cheering or singing, but screeching. No, I don't think they cheer. They just screech in pain. The giant will live in a special misery. The misery that we call consciousness. He is the best of what humanity can be. That is why he suffers. Because the highest state that humanity can obtain is foolish impotent emotion. That is what we sadly call "enlightenment." He will pay dearly for this sin. [/Herzog]

Of course he doesn't win at NOC. Why would he? It would be like opening a movie with Batman in trouble, then twenty minutes later, he's the winner. I really think, at this point, the WM main event will be Bryan/Orton and Cena/Undertaker (or Lesnar or something), so settle in for the long haul, or start watching TNA where angles are hotshot every week. Wrestling smarks have to have the shortest amounts of patience of any fans ever: "Come on, this has been going on for two weeks now! Where's the payoff!?" Seriously, people, two weeks. That's it. The Triple H turn was on August 17th, today is September 2nd. Also, I seriously doubt we're going to get anyone standing up to the new corporation on Raw, it's probably going to come on a PPV. You want your big pop/big moment, you've gotta pay for it. It's not about patience in my case, it's just that this sucks cock. I mean I get what they are trying to do (I think?), but Bryan being held still by Reigns for what felt like ten minutes, while Big Show blubbered around, and the whole roster just watching again....I mean....I don't see anyway that segment was good. And I really want to because Show, Bryan, The Shield are some of my absolute favorites It was completely compelling TV. Big Show having to sell his soul to the Corporation (It's what I'll call them until they come up with a name), or get fired and punch out the most popular guy on the roster. Bryan having literally no allies. If I was a kid (Who, once again, are the prime audience), I'd be so ticked off at what they were doing to Bryan that I'd be tuning in to each and every show to watch Bryan get his revenge and Show finally find his balls. This is your basic superhero booking: superhero loses his allies and is repeatedly beaten down until there is almost no hope, then starts to fight his way back. I'm honestly baffled at the responses this storyline is generating. I have to chalk it up to Triple H's involvement and everyone suspecting what he's doing is burying Daniel Bryan like he's supposedly done in the past to others. Otherwise, I'm honestly puzzled.

If the goal of tonight's episode was to make me hate everyone on the roster other than Cody Rhodes, it was a smashing success.

The man carried his work with him. Even when he was participating in his hobby, he was thinking about work.

Reeking of awesomeness!

How many people will still be watching when it gets to that point? Hopefully none of you!

Jesus Christ people they just FIRED Cody Rhodes so that he can come back and HELP Bryan... and before his exit he cut a money promo. Yes, they are in a situation where they produce way too much television and that's an issue but the reaction here is way overboard. Buried Bryan? Seriously? He's been fighting 4 on 1.

It's so hard to read sarcasm online. I assume some people are being sarcastic with the burial stuff, right? I think the only guy that is getting hurt in this is Big Show. Between Rhodes/Orton and Cody's promo, it left me wondering where the fuck that guy has been the past few months? I enjoy Orton mockingly firing up the crowd before the RKO. It's like he's saying, "Yeah I know this whole pre-finisher routine was stupid but you guys cheered for it so I had to keep doing it." I actually had to check to see if the PPV was this Sunday after the Punk promo. It felt like a go-home show deal.