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WARGAMES - Survivor Series XXXVI - 11/26/2022


Dolfan in NYC

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I still say one of (to me the) biggest missed opportunities this year was not giving Sami the briefcase instead of Theory. It would have added that much more to the Bloodline angle, plus the thought of Sami cashing in Rollins style to end Wrestlemania is one I can’t believe they didn’t consider.

Just the pop that would have gotten would have been worth it all. Especially if they run Roman/Rock. 

Edited by LF2
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Sami winning the briefcase might have been a fun angle, but it wouldn't have been anything that would have worked long term. A large reason the current storyline works so well is Sami is so sincere compared to normal. That would have been impossible to keep up with briefcase.

The fantasy booking of KO/Sami winning the tag titles is such an odd idea as well. That would be such a waste of the momentum Sami has. Its something that really only makes sense if Cody has it in his contract that he wins the title off of Roman or within his first year.

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8 hours ago, Greggulator said:

The Bloodline arc does not work without Jey being at the absolute elite level of character work. Roman doesn’t become a manipulative mob family leader without having someone to manipulate. Jey managed to be in that role but not become a dignity-less patsy. Sami does not become a player in this without Jey doing the jealous doubter role as magnificent as he has. And the Usos are an incredible tag team.

 

You think if Jey never got slotted into the singles Program against Roman while Jimmy was out do you think this Bloodline angle would be as Strong. The way Vince books things I doubt alot of this was his idea, and very rarely did he ever alow someone currently a part of a Tag team to be in a main event feud against the top singles guy. 

This whole Bloodline angle had to have been mostly Roman's idea. You can tell when he came back , he had as much control over his creative as anyone ever had. They booked accordingly along the way and lucked up on alot of things alot the way.

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I mean, a big factor in this story’s success is that Vince got ousted early on, so it’s been allowed to cook, as opposed to every week there being a risk that Vince will lose interest in it or impulsively blow it off 6 months early or decide that bigger/stronger/better looking guy should be in that spot, etc.

Edited by EVA
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Since I kept falling asleep during Survivor Series. I've went back to watch most of the matches in full. I really thought the Triple treat was one of the best WWE has had. The match had what could've came off as very convoluted spots but everything flowed so well. It's insane how good Lashley is in his mid 40s too and Theory looked like he could really be something soon. 

I'm going to watch the main event tomorrow. AJ and Balor was really good too.

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Just got caught up with WWE (other than last night's Raw).

Wargames was mostly passable entertainment. The rules in front of, and behind the scenes, hinder these matches horribly. They should retire the concept or retool and give generously. Both the Men's and Women's were far too long. 'WWE Hardcore' style isn't exactly what I consider a really good time. I think my expectations were too high for Finn Balor v AJ Styles in a WWE ring. Didn't watch Rousey and Shotsy. I dug the Rollins v Lashley v Theory three way. Generally speaking the sling blade is an ugly and weak looking maneuver, but Seth Rollins' sling blade is even worse than most. Not to say Rollins wasn't mostly the glue here. Really fun finish and ending stretch. The backstage skits are so fucking lame, but Zayn kills it so hard that it's worth the 'cringe' as they say. I had no desire to watch the complete Wargames Main Event match. I ffwd pretty much all the way to the Reigns entry and official start. I skimmed a little, but enjoyed what I saw. Then finish featuring further example of the Genius of Sami Zayn. Holy fucking shit! Everything down the stretch to the finish was just perfection. That feels like as good as it possibly gets in the WWE universe.

Edited by HarryArchieGus
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The US title match was really good. It reminded me a lot of the Brock/Cena/Rollins from the 2015 Rumble, with Lashley as Brock, Rollins as Cena, and Theory as Rollins. Nothing else on the show was bad really, but pretty forgettable compared to the last couple of WWE ppvs.

Main event came across as just kind of weird because nothing suggested the Bloodline had turned or will turn face, but almost everything about them in that match was totally face-ish. Even Sami spurning KO for Roman came across as a big face moment despite using a low blow.

I think a quick fix to help Wargames matches from getting stale would be to do away with the permanent one-person advantage. Have it go ABABBAAB, to mix up the control a bit more and add some layers of strategy. Also, go back to I Quit rules. I won't bother suggesting blood since it's WWE, but at least the I Quit rules would add a little extra brutality beyond a standard WWE No DQ match.

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WWE melodrama is my least favorite genre. Booking the Bloodline like babyfaces? WTF? At times it actively seems like the WWE even post Vince hates anyone getting over as a face. 

What’s the end game? Bloodline turns on Sami? Sami turns on the Bloodline? Sami wins the title at Wrestlemania? I don’t have the optimism required to believe in any of this. 

Both Wargames were fun but generally didn’t feel like a feud ending match with much more stakes than will Jey and Sami become best friends?

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On 11/25/2022 at 3:22 AM, SturmCRF said:

 

Elimination tags often end up underwhelming because people get beaten in contrived circumstances far sooner than they would in a one fall match. The idea of the match is great though, and when it's done properly to sell it as a war of attrition, like some of those epic Japanese ones, or the 2003(?) Team Austin vs Team Bischoff(?) one, it's maybe my favourite stipulation.

 

I agree with this so much. People losing quickly has always bugged me (why not run a normal match and then have people start eating falls?) but I think the 87 main event Team Hogan v Team Andre is perfectly booked and may have never been topped

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8 minutes ago, zendragon said:

I agree with this so much. People losing quickly has always bugged me (why not run a normal match and then have people start eating falls?) but I think the 87 main event Team Hogan v Team Andre is perfectly booked and may have never been topped

It worked out better in the late 80's into like, 92-93 when matches often ended on random moves and at any time, but that started being jarring in the mid-90's when matches went to only end on finishers, and worse after 2000 when some matches needed up to 5-6 finishers.

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 The Main Event was the best WWE/NXT War Games match so far. It was a slugfest and not just guys doing spots. Even bringing in the Tables made sense. The finish didn't come across as forcefully melodramatic as alot of Roman match can get at times. Also , I can see Roman moving his jaw to get his ear back to normal after that shot too

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On 11/29/2022 at 11:55 PM, Go2Sleep said:

The US title match was really good. It reminded me a lot of the Brock/Cena/Rollins from the 2015 Rumble, with Lashley as Brock, Rollins as Cena, and Theory as Rollins. Nothing else on the show was bad really, but pretty forgettable compared to the last couple of WWE ppvs.

Main event came across as just kind of weird because nothing suggested the Bloodline had turned or will turn face, but almost everything about them in that match was totally face-ish. Even Sami spurning KO for Roman came across as a big face moment despite using a low blow.

I think a quick fix to help Wargames matches from getting stale would be to do away with the permanent one-person advantage. Have it go ABABBAAB, to mix up the control a bit more and add some layers of strategy. Also, go back to I Quit rules. I won't bother suggesting blood since it's WWE, but at least the I Quit rules would add a little extra brutality beyond a standard WWE No DQ match.

I've always thought they should try (kayfabe) flipping a coin before every entrant to see which side goes. 

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