Craig H Posted July 24, 2018 Share Posted July 24, 2018 2 hours ago, Oyaji said: Riddle was telling people recently that he chose WWE over NJPW and that weed wasn't an issue with NJPW (don't get that part but whatever). I would've loved to see him fuck shit up in New Japan but it was time either way. He and Lee had stagnated a bit on the indies. When people ask about 'if not Roman, who?' Matt Riddle is who. He's got it all. Only things I can see going wrong is him not fitting in with the corporate structure of wwe or not being able to pull off scripted promos/being given the RVD treatment with those scripted promos. I still don't see the star power with Riddle. I know you, Rippa, and others really love him. In ring I do think he's great, but I don't dig the bro/stoner gimmick. I want to like it, but I feel something is missing and it will only get worse when he's force fed shit ass lines from creative. Yeah, maybe NJPW would be better... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
odessasteps Posted July 24, 2018 Share Posted July 24, 2018 "Gimmick" ? 4 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Godfrey Posted July 25, 2018 Share Posted July 25, 2018 1 hour ago, Craig H said: I still don't see the star power with Riddle. I know you, Rippa, and others really love him. In ring I do think he's great, but I don't dig the bro/stoner gimmick. I want to like it, but I feel something is missing and it will only get worse when he's force fed shit ass lines from creative. Yeah, maybe NJPW would be better... Dude needs a mouthpiece. He's the least intimidating ass kicker around sounding like Jeff Spicoli. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jiji Posted July 25, 2018 Share Posted July 25, 2018 That's part of his charm. He's a lovable stoner goof with supreme confidence and coolness. I don't get Meltzer's complaint that he can't cut a promo, he can definitely talk. I mean, if you can get Heyman to be his mouthpiece, fine, but I like his promo style. It's not all just "bro, bro, bro," as this mini-doc demonstrates. He's got some range and even he recognizes that he kind of coasted a little bit with the mic/character work for a bit there. The original mini-doc that Kenny Johnson did is still up on Youtube and has him explain his basic approach to pro-wrestling and fleshes out his character. It's great. One plus of him going to WWE is he can't do that silly tombstone slam anymore. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RIPPA Posted July 25, 2018 Share Posted July 25, 2018 To be fair - Meltzer said that Riddle would most likely be a modern day Kerry Von Erich in terms of how big a star he could be. And he also said that he cuts promos basically as well as Roman Reigns and clearly that doesn't stop them from pushing Reigns Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
odessasteps Posted July 25, 2018 Share Posted July 25, 2018 2 minutes ago, RIPPA said: To be fair - Meltzer said that Riddle would most likely be a modern day Kerry Von Erich in terms of how big a star he could be Perhaps not the only reason to compare him to Kerry. 1 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spritenaut 32 Posted July 25, 2018 Share Posted July 25, 2018 Are we talking Kerry Von Erich in Texas or mostly aimless midcarder Texas Tornado Kerry Von Erich? Count me in the crowd that doesn't get Matt Riddle. I don't really dislike him. More like i don't have a strong feeling about him one way or the other. I'd probably prefer to watch Roman Reigns, for whatever that's worth, and I'm mostly indifferent to Roman. 3 hours ago, odessasteps said: "Gimmick" ? Matt Riddle is the most methodist of method actors. Who knew? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nice Guy Eddie Posted July 25, 2018 Share Posted July 25, 2018 1 hour ago, odessasteps said: Perhaps not the only reason to compare him to Kerry. I doubt Riddle has ever been as high as KVE. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Curt McGirt Posted July 25, 2018 Share Posted July 25, 2018 6 hours ago, Oyaji said: Only things I can see going wrong is him not fitting in with the corporate structure of wwe 6 hours ago, Oyaji said: weed 8 hours ago, mattdangerously said: We can't even get all of America to lighten up on pot. Well, if RVD can keep getting away with it periodically? I mean I can't think of anybody else. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jiji Posted July 25, 2018 Share Posted July 25, 2018 A large number of the roster smokes weed pretty liberally (I mean, even for just the pain relief if nothing else I can only imagine) and just pay the stupid fine WWE has for it. I can't see that being a problem. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Curt McGirt Posted July 25, 2018 Share Posted July 25, 2018 I'm misunderstood then. Either I'm not paying enough attention or it doesn't get a lot of press. Also, good for them 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beech27 Posted July 25, 2018 Share Posted July 25, 2018 Even if you don’t think Riddle’s great yet, he’s only been at this for about 3.5 years; and for nearly all of that he’s been a big enough indie star to be totally indulged in terms of wrestling/promo style. While I’d have preferred to see a New Japan run first, he strikes me as the kind of guy real coaching at the PC will help a lot. He’ll get direction, be told no, etc, and probably find more creativity with a little structure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
username Posted July 25, 2018 Share Posted July 25, 2018 So... Matt Riddle in a place where he can't no sell german suplexes and won't be allowed to do canadian destroyers? This sounds like a best case scenario. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paintedbynumbers Posted July 25, 2018 Share Posted July 25, 2018 He is going to debut in the crowd at Brooklyn Takeover. He's been telling people this lately. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Craig H Posted July 25, 2018 Share Posted July 25, 2018 I thought they showed him in the crowd at Takeover Brooklyn last year. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Red is Dead Posted July 25, 2018 Share Posted July 25, 2018 Yeah, but he'll have better seats this time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Victator Posted July 25, 2018 Share Posted July 25, 2018 10 hours ago, Nice Guy Eddie said: I doubt Riddle has ever been as high as KVE. He can dream. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Godfrey Posted July 25, 2018 Share Posted July 25, 2018 12 hours ago, Oyaji said: That's part of his charm. He's a lovable stoner goof with supreme confidence and coolness. I don't get Meltzer's complaint that he can't cut a promo, he can definitely talk. I mean, if you can get Heyman to be his mouthpiece, fine, but I like his promo style. It's not all just "bro, bro, bro," as this mini-doc demonstrates. He's got some range and even he recognizes that he kind of coasted a little bit with the mic/character work for a bit there. The original mini-doc that Kenny Johnson did is still up on Youtube and has him explain his basic approach to pro-wrestling and fleshes out his character. It's great. One plus of him going to WWE is he can't do that silly tombstone slam anymore. Yeah, I have to admit he sounds a lot better in that video than I've seen before. Maybe I just want more managers in wrestling again. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zakk_Sabbath Posted July 25, 2018 Share Posted July 25, 2018 I haven't seen many of Riddles matches, but I did see him interviewed (last year maybe?) by Dan Barry and Chuck Taylor. I oscillated back and forth between loving the dude and thinking he was kinda annoying, to be honest. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mattdangerously Posted July 25, 2018 Share Posted July 25, 2018 13 minutes ago, Zakk_Sabbath said: I haven't seen many of Riddles matches, but I did see him interviewed (last year maybe?) by Dan Barry and Chuck Taylor. I oscillated back and forth between loving the dude and thinking he was kinda annoying, to be honest. That's basically every stoner I've ever known. 2 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Craig H Posted July 25, 2018 Share Posted July 25, 2018 I remember him being on Chuckie T's show and I wasn't enamored. I also thought he was kinda annoying because I knew people like that back in high school and they'd drive me up a wall. Like, the magic mushroom tattoo is lamer than AJ Styles' tattoo on his side. The video of him above is great though and that's a different side of the guy that I haven't seen and I like that side more. I do think he's ultra talented in the ring and I respect the opinions of a lot of you enough to believe that he probably is a once in a generation talent even if I don't currently see it. I just don't want to see that potential wasted. More than the non-stop Roman push, what has turned me off the most to WWE is how they've mismanaged probably the most talented and diverse roster of all time. There are so many folks who have come up from NXT that just wind up being criminally misused. Raw is so incoherent from week to week (SDL is better to be fair) that anyone on that show is hurt as a result. Hell, even on SDL there's a lot of talent that just gets wasted. There's just a total disconnect from how wrestlers are developed in NXT to how they're used on the roster. I'm not saying that everyone that comes up needs a main event push, but damn, at least give people a reason to give a shit. And then there's the memories of the years that RVD spent as the "whatever dude" guy. RVD has far more promo ability than just saying "whatever" and pointing to himself with his thumbs. If the main roster creative has no idea how to use all of the men and women that come up then I have about the lowest expectations for Riddle. Those low expectations are to the point where I could see his ceiling being Apollo Crews. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Craig H Posted July 25, 2018 Share Posted July 25, 2018 4 minutes ago, mattdangerously said: That's basically every stoner I've ever known. The high school and college stoners I knew were like that. The adult stoners I know now do incredible work as contractors, carpenters, roofers, designers and they're also the best golfers I've ever played with. In a lot of videos, Riddle appeared like the former. In that other video where Riddle is talking about how he's coasted off of just saying bro he looked like the latter. I like the latter a whole lot more. That trends more like the Diaz brothers where Nick goes into the ring high as fuck and totally destroys and strangles Gomi. Like, you don't want to fuck with someone like that. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loki Posted July 25, 2018 Share Posted July 25, 2018 Abyss re-signed with Impact Wrestling. Was there ever a time where he would have been a good fit with the WWE? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mattdangerously Posted July 25, 2018 Share Posted July 25, 2018 Since we're talking about him, I'll share a quick Riddle story: He came to Houston the night before NXT Takeover last year for a spot show on the patio of a bar in midtown. Right before they started letting people in, the wrestlers were in the ring working out. Riddle came over to where the audience was standing and started chatting up a fan in one of his shirts (I get the impression he recognized the fan from a previous show.) Riddle had an awesome match against local wrestler Rex Andrews, then came out and watched the rest of the show off to the side of the crowd. People were constantly coming up to chat with him, and he seemed very chill and affable with everyone. So if nothing else, he really carries himself like a nice dude. 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mattdangerously Posted July 25, 2018 Share Posted July 25, 2018 5 minutes ago, Loki said: Abyss re-signed with Impact Wrestling. Was there ever a time where he would have been a good fit with the WWE? I want to say about 12 or 13 years ago when his contract was coming up for renewal, and there were rumors he might leave. I always thought if he went to the WWE, he could have been repackaged as a new Dudley brother. Needless to say, I should probably never book a promotion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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