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The 2021 WWE Forever Purge - Part 3 of ?


Gonzo

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3 hours ago, zendragon said:

Hypothetically if all these releases are to lower costs and move WWE towards more of a "content provider" for NBC/Universal/Peacock do you think we could see a shift in the wrestling landscape where WWE becomes less of "The World Wide Leader" now that MLW, AEW and Impact all have tv deals? especially if some of the WWE cast offs are able to energize those brands?

yes. well, not really how you mean it, but theoretically in a "best case scenario" kinda way, if this practice keeps up for 5+ years and all of those companies continue to grow and eat away at market share, it's possible. Not likely, but possible. This round of cuts won't do it, and no single signing by any of those companies will do it. But, a few years down the road, if AEW or whoever can continue to build momentum and insert itself into the mainstream consciousness, it's possible. 

i certainly wouldn't hold my breath.  WWE's had a stranglehold on the title of "pro wrestling" (even if Vince won't use that word) for over 20 years, and for all but 3-4 years of the last 40. That's not something that goes away easily. 

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26 minutes ago, Wyld Samurai said:

I think John Cena to AEW would be a Hogan-esque move.

Heel Cena coming to wherever with Braun and Black as his back-up would be an NWO-esqe coup. I just have no clue which color scheme they could use that time around?

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Bryan Danielson would be pretty huge, if still second to Cena. Run an AEW commercial featuring him during Raw or Smackdown and you're absolutely getting a lot of new eyes on the product. 

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I’d gather that a Cena signing in AEW wouldn’t have to pass the smell test of “the other league that signs WWE cast offs” stigma.  It’s a leap frogging strategy play into 1st place that actually moves the needle (unlike their other signings).  
 

Unless Cody ruins it.  ?

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I'm not sure that signing any one person will do it.  The main thing AEW has to overcome is the fact that if you ask the average person about pro wrestling, they say "Oh, like WWF/E?"  

The biggest thing Vince has done for himself is that he's made the general public's perception of an industry his company.  When I was a kid, you'd say something about pro wrestling, and you might hear back, "Oh, like Hulk Hogan?"  That's why his move to WCW and his heel turn made such a difference.  He was pro wrestling to most people back then.  John Cena isn't today.  He's a name to the public for sure.  It's just that (IMO), I don't think him appearing in AEW gets people who haven't watched wrestling in years to tune in.

Honestly, I think the only way AEW starts "winning" against WWE is by continuing to put up good numbers on TNT, and somehow, WWE's deal with it's current tv partners goes south.  It's not likely, but that's the only way I see.

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I don't think there is a chance of AEW climbing ahead of WWE, but perhaps WWE could fall below them if the quality remains iffy and they catch a few bad breaks? I just don't know that AEW has many more people to convert and their numbers seems to have rather solidified around 700-800k, peaking to over a million for a big hyped event.

I just always think back to when WCW (and a lesser extent ECW) went out of business and people predicted WWE's ratings going further through the roof due to all those fans who then had no choice but to watch WWE. There was a small bump I believe but most of those fans just stopped watching wrestling on tv. If WWE exploded and just disappeared this year, I think for the most part the same thing would happen.

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  • 3 weeks later...
On 7/7/2021 at 4:29 AM, Ramo2653 said:

Nah, WWE is a legit juggernaut with their resources, funds, roster, etc. Even with all of their cuts, they still have a giant roster not counting the NXT trainees and they keep signing more people.

I enjoy AEW but they still do silly stuff that comes off as bush league at times and they have in theory, tons of money to use towards making the product look better and avoiding those things.

WWE is still viewed as wrestling by a large majority of people. And anything else is seen as "bootleg" even AEW which in general is a good looking product.

WWE has a great roster of talent, but struggles to get people over. AEW has actually got people over - Guevara, Page, Orange, Baker (eventually lol), Rosa, 

Whilst of course a lot of people associate wrestling with WWE obviously, I think the idea that this is so permanently etched in stone is somewhat erroneous. And the whole bush league thing is a bit questionable - it's not like WWE is always *so* slick and besides, in a post-YouTube world I'm just not sure this is such an issue. People want something good above all else - and it's hardly controversial to say that AEW Dynamite is consistently much better television than any of the main 3 WWE shows. Ultimately Dynamite sometimes beats Raw in certain key demos

And in the corporate world, I'm pretty sure they're not thinking bush-league when they think about Shahid Khan. His yacht has its own wikipedia page.

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10 minutes ago, John from Cincinnati said:

SRS is confirming it.

Edit: And tweeted again:

 

Back home after a drinking session. Holy shit. Really like Bray Wyatt as the cult leader of the family and reinventing himself as a host of a kind d's TV show with his alter ego as The Fiend. Hope Bray's okay.

Edited by The Natural
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Kinda shocking like the Braun release but at the same time not really for many Vince quirks and reasons. Guess Randy Orton was the Michaels of the Wyatt Family. Anyway they should hire somebody new to do the Fiend gimmick muhahahhaahha.

Brother Bray and the dark order in AEW soon.

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Anyone else rolling their eyes at the photo they used? Bray from years ago when he looked much worse physically. Just a petty shot on the way from my perspective.

Man you gotta feel for the guy. Hope this is part of what he actually wanted for his own mental health well being, and not something forced upon him.

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5 minutes ago, NoFistsJustFlips said:

Anyone else rolling their eyes at the photo they used? Bray from years ago when he looked much worse physically. Just a petty shot on the way from my perspective.

This is him earlier this week:

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Edited by AxB
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Just now, Niners Fan in CT said:

Everyone will want to fantasy book with Dark Order in mind but first we need to see where he's at mentally.  

One thing you can say is he knows how to move merchandise.  Tony would consider him just based on that alone.. 

Given his closeness with the Huber family, I'd bet that Tony would absolutely leave the door open for Bray whenever he wanted to return to the ring. 

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