GuerrillaMonsoon Posted October 22, 2023 Share Posted October 22, 2023 We sleep on how useful Lance Archer has been to AEW. He constantly puts over guys all over the place. He always makes them look good. He's not afraid to make other big guys look like a bigger monster than he is. There's no stupid bits that need to try and give him his heat back afterwards. He goes away for a bit and he still has it because he has a cool entrance, look and his squashes are enjoyable. He could have easily have done far less for Wardlow, Page, Miro but made them all look huge. I don't need to see more of him, he's in a just right spot, where I just want to see him kill a guy every few months or so. 13 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Godfrey Posted October 22, 2023 Share Posted October 22, 2023 Forgive the long post, I was sick this past week and I passed the time thinking about Wardlow and how he can be a successful heel. He's a bit of blank slate right now, he's semi-established but he has room to grow in this new role. The best heels represent something the audience hates and that can be difficult to pull off in the post-kayfabe era. WWE tackled it by making Vince and the company itself meta-heels so fans got invested not just in the babyface but whether WWE will 'let' the babyface win. This is how Danielson could get over as a face but Roman couldn't and we've seen the technique repeated a few times since, most recently in the stop/start rise of LA Knight In AEW it's the opposite, the most effective heels play on the audience's positive investment in the company and the community, like MJF threatening to go to WWE or Jericho becoming the personification of sports entertainment. The key is to use real life without breaking the fourth wall so I asked myself what are some central aspects of AEW that Wardlow could position himself in opposition to while staying in kayfabe? First things that come to mind are 'people being friends' and 'great matches'. Being a lone wolf who scoffs at people who need help (as in friends or family) is easy enough, the second one is a little harder to integrate. Sure, he could interrupt other people's matches but it would need to be more than that, he needs to kill people's dreams The past 3 Wardlow squashes haven't been the most exciting but they have corrected an issue he had of spamming powerbombs and reducing their effect. Now, one powerbomb can knock someone out and it doesn't matter how hard the opponent fights, it's happening. That's a great reset on a finisher and if played right it makes Wardlow into somewhat of a handsome Jason Voorhees. Whatever the next step is for Wardlow it should be an escalation from there. His goal is MJF but the champ is busy so who can be fed to Wardlow and is established enough for fans to care? At the moment, there aren't a lot of options. Jericho, Omega, and Adam Page are busy trying to cement other heels while Orange Cassidy and Eddie Kingston are just starting reigns with titles Wardlow should not be winning (and I assume people would be opposed to devaluing those titles by having Wardlow wallop the champion and throw the belt in the trash, I don't). That leaves Moxley and Danielson. I'm not sure I would trust Wardlow's career to Mox's selling ability which means, as usual, it falls to the American Dragon. If anyone can get a heel over, Bryan can Anyway, Wardlow only has a few shots left with the AEW audience, hope he can maximize them 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Natural Posted October 22, 2023 Share Posted October 22, 2023 36 minutes ago, Godfrey said: Forgive the long post, I was sick this past week and I passed the time thinking about Wardlow and how he can be a successful heel. He's a bit of blank slate right now, he's semi-established but he has room to grow in this new role. The best heels represent something the audience hates and that can be difficult to pull off in the post-kayfabe era. WWE tackled it by making Vince and the company itself meta-heels so fans got invested not just in the babyface but whether WWE will 'let' the babyface win. This is how Danielson could get over as a face but Roman couldn't and we've seen the technique repeated a few times since, most recently in the stop/start rise of LA Knight In AEW it's the opposite, the most effective heels play on the audience's positive investment in the company and the community, like MJF threatening to go to WWE or Jericho becoming the personification of sports entertainment. The key is to use real life without breaking the fourth wall so I asked myself what are some central aspects of AEW that Wardlow could position himself in opposition to while staying in kayfabe? First things that come to mind are 'people being friends' and 'great matches'. Being a lone wolf who scoffs at people who need help (as in friends or family) is easy enough, the second one is a little harder to integrate. Sure, he could interrupt other people's matches but it would need to be more than that, he needs to kill people's dreams The past 3 Wardlow squashes haven't been the most exciting but they have corrected an issue he had of spamming powerbombs and reducing their effect. Now, one powerbomb can knock someone out and it doesn't matter how hard the opponent fights, it's happening. That's a great reset on a finisher and if played right it makes Wardlow into somewhat of a handsome Jason Voorhees. Whatever the next step is for Wardlow it should be an escalation from there. His goal is MJF but the champ is busy so who can be fed to Wardlow and is established enough for fans to care? At the moment, there aren't a lot of options. Jericho, Omega, and Adam Page are busy trying to cement other heels while Orange Cassidy and Eddie Kingston are just starting reigns with titles Wardlow should not be winning (and I assume people would be opposed to devaluing those titles by having Wardlow wallop the champion and throw the belt in the trash, I don't). That leaves Moxley and Danielson. I'm not sure I would trust Wardlow's career to Mox's selling ability which means, as usual, it falls to the American Dragon. If anyone can get a heel over, Bryan can Anyway, Wardlow only has a few shots left with the AEW audience, hope he can maximize them Get well soon. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tbarrie Posted October 22, 2023 Share Posted October 22, 2023 (edited) 6 hours ago, Godfrey said: Whatever the next step is for Wardlow it should be an escalation from there. His goal is MJF but the champ is busy so who can be fed to Wardlow and is established enough for fans to care? At the moment, there aren't a lot of options. Jericho, Omega, and Adam Page are busy trying to cement other heels while Orange Cassidy and Eddie Kingston are just starting reigns with titles Wardlow should not be winning (and I assume people would be opposed to devaluing those titles by having Wardlow wallop the champion and throw the belt in the trash, I don't). That leaves Moxley and Danielson. I'm not sure I would trust Wardlow's career to Mox's selling ability which means, as usual, it falls to the American Dragon. If anyone can get a heel over, Bryan can Adam Copeland, maybe? While he's not exactly established in AEW specifically, the live crowd reaction suggests the AEW fan base seems willing to accept him as a top guy right off the bat. Of course, he's probably stuck in the Christian storyline for a while. What about Keith Lee? Granted he hasn't really been treated as a top guy (and why not and whether he should be is a whole other discussion). But he generally looks dominant in all his matches and I think the fans like him, so Wardlow going over him should mean something. Edited October 22, 2023 by tbarrie 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StretchMediatedHypertrophy Posted October 22, 2023 Share Posted October 22, 2023 Tbh I really feel like Wardlow is just another title defence at this point. Hobbs is the bigger long-term project, one of the guys who I might buy eventually going over MJF. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coletti Posted October 22, 2023 Share Posted October 22, 2023 (edited) You know, for all the "AEW barely uses certain wrestlers" talk, I wonder how the wrestlers feel. If they're getting their guaranteed contractual pay, how many of them are enjoying the rest of their lives while on the back burner? I'd imagine that anybody who'd done the ol' WWE 330 dates per year probably loves the schedule. Downside I'd assume is less merch sales, though... Edited October 22, 2023 by Coletti Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StretchMediatedHypertrophy Posted October 22, 2023 Share Posted October 22, 2023 (edited) It's going to depend on the individual. It's hard to imagine someone like Nick Comoroto is completely happy with his lot - otoh he's basically being paid to lift weights and that's kind of living the dream. The truth is though that the WWE schedule is *nothing* like it used to be. Cody is on 80+ matches for the year, Seth a little below that. But generally it's 50-60 so far, often with many tags. The NXT guys generally work less, though they are being coached, no offence to anyone else, by some very top guys in an established system that AEW has clearly not duplicated. Point is, I am sure many of them would rather be working more dates - but it's not like they're having to work Sunglass Hut or anything. Edited October 22, 2023 by StretchMediatedHypertrophy 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JLowe Posted October 22, 2023 Share Posted October 22, 2023 Looked at AEW Instagram and maybe these were announced on Collision (haven’t watched it yet) but Philly will get Shida-Ruby Soho for the title. Hoping for a title change. Also Hook and RVD will tag against Silver and Reynolds. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
porksweats Posted October 22, 2023 Share Posted October 22, 2023 5 minutes ago, JLowe said: Looked at AEW Instagram and maybe these were announced on Collision (haven’t watched it yet) but Philly will get Shida-Ruby Soho for the title. Hoping for a title change. Also Hook and RVD will tag against Silver and Reynolds. Shida/Soho was announced on Collision but not the opponents for RVD/Hook, we were just told IN ACTION! That should be a fun tag match, Silver/Hook is the matchup I'm most excited to see out of all combinations. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JLowe Posted October 22, 2023 Share Posted October 22, 2023 8 minutes ago, porksweats said: Shida/Soho was announced on Collision but not the opponents for RVD/Hook, we were just told IN ACTION! That should be a fun tag match, Silver/Hook is the matchup I'm most excited to see out of all combinations. Yeah I like Silver and Reynolds a lot as a tag team, good contrast and have that awesome finishing series. And that should be a fun combo, wonder if the low center of gravity and strength will benefit Silver against the various throws. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zendragon Posted October 23, 2023 Share Posted October 23, 2023 I like who we seemingly trades a cranky straight edger, for a lovable stoner 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JLowe Posted October 23, 2023 Share Posted October 23, 2023 Got my $20 upper deck tickets for Wednesday (well, with Ticketmaster fees for 2 tickets it was actually $67), based on what was available in the different price ranges the side of the arena that's on camera should be almost full in the floor and lower decks and pretty full in the lower parts of the upper deck. 3 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Curt McGirt Posted October 23, 2023 Share Posted October 23, 2023 ... it's time for a ROAD REPORT~! 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JLowe Posted October 23, 2023 Share Posted October 23, 2023 36 minutes ago, Curt McGirt said: ... it's time for a ROAD REPORT~! I'll do what I can but since I am running low on PTO I have to work Thursday. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Curt McGirt Posted October 23, 2023 Share Posted October 23, 2023 Ah hell, just do it after. You can remember the matches and what you ate haha 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zimbra Posted October 23, 2023 Share Posted October 23, 2023 I realized what Bullet Club Gold's dynamic reminds me of: Jay White as the only human in a muppet movie. 3 14 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NikoBaltimore Posted October 24, 2023 Share Posted October 24, 2023 I was feeling very itchy to go to the Philly show but needing a new car plus not being able to take off on Thursday means I'll sit this one out. It sounds great on paper though I'm sure there will be another one. Though all I'm asking for with game 7 is for the town's sake I'm hoping the Phillies win. Along with a slew of other reasons why them winning would lead to a super fun crowd whereas them losing would be no good. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zakk_Sabbath Posted October 24, 2023 Share Posted October 24, 2023 1 minute ago, NikoBaltimore said: I was feeling very itchy to go to the Philly show but needing a new car plus not being able to take off on Thursday means I'll sit this one out. It sounds great on paper though I'm sure there will be another one. Though all I'm asking for with game 7 is for the town's sake I'm hoping the Phillies win. Along with a slew of other reasons why them winning would lead to a super fun crowd whereas them losing would be no good. I almost went down too, but money's a lil tight here too, yadda yadda. If there are any tickets left for Collision when I get paid Friday, we might make a trip to 'The Fucking Hills Have Eyes,' Connecticut as Nyla called it last time around. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NikoBaltimore Posted October 24, 2023 Share Posted October 24, 2023 Actually that's how I'm going to spin this. I'm holding out for a Collision show since I've seen Dynamite, Rampage, and a PPV. Time to fill up the ol' Bingo card and check Collision though oddly enough BOTB appears to be missing from there. Odd. But mostly joking aside I would be delighted to sing some Elton John for starters then go around Baltimore on a Saturday. It would be a lot of fun. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zakk_Sabbath Posted October 24, 2023 Share Posted October 24, 2023 Just now, NikoBaltimore said: Actually that's how I'm going to spin this. I'm holding out for a Collision show since I've seen Dynamite, Rampage, and a PPV. Time to fill up the ol' Bingo card and check Collision though oddly enough BOTB appears to be missing from there. Odd. But mostly joking aside I would be delighted to sing some Elton John for starters then go around Baltimore on a Saturday. It would be a lot of fun. Ya know, in all seriousness, I've only been to one Collision so far, but being on a Saturday instead of a Wednesday really does give it a little bit of a different vibe crowd-wise, in two polar opposite directions actually: you've got the young guys in their 20s-40s putting away dozens of $18 stadium beers because it's Saturday night, but I also saw a lot more kids and families than I traditionally do at Dynamite. On the flip side: this was prior to C'mon Man Punk getting fired, so there was tons of people with WWE-branded merch, replica belts, and that sort of thing - should we make it to the casino Saturday, it should be interesting to see whether or not there's been a shift in that at all 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brandon Bones Posted October 24, 2023 Share Posted October 24, 2023 Saw a DOUBLE TITTY TWISTER in a match. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NikoBaltimore Posted October 24, 2023 Share Posted October 24, 2023 (edited) So y'all remember how I said I'm passing on going tomorrow night? MOTHERFUCKER! Edited October 24, 2023 by NikoBaltimore 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JLowe Posted October 25, 2023 Share Posted October 25, 2023 1 hour ago, NikoBaltimore said: So y'all remember how I said I'm passing on going tomorrow night? MOTHERFUCKER! That was what finally sealed the deal for me. And hoping for Red October to continue so I can see the party. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Infinit Posted October 25, 2023 Share Posted October 25, 2023 7 hours ago, NikoBaltimore said: Actually that's how I'm going to spin this. I'm holding out for a Collision show since I've seen Dynamite, Rampage, and a PPV. Time to fill up the ol' Bingo card and check Collision though oddly enough BOTB appears to be missing from there. Odd. I'm missing BOTB too! I've been to 2 Dynamites, a stand alone Rampage, 2 Collisions and Forbidden Door. Hope to make it to Revolution next year for Sting's final match. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Natural Posted October 25, 2023 Share Posted October 25, 2023 (edited) On 10/23/2023 at 4:44 PM, JLowe said: Got my $20 upper deck tickets for Wednesday (well, with Ticketmaster fees for 2 tickets it was actually $67), based on what was available in the different price ranges the side of the arena that's on camera should be almost full in the floor and lower decks and pretty full in the lower parts of the upper deck. 11 hours ago, NikoBaltimore said: So y'all remember how I said I'm passing on going tomorrow night? MOTHERFUCKER! Enjoy, JLowe. You going now, Niko Baltimore? Edited October 25, 2023 by The Natural 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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