2022 WRESTLERS LEAVING COMPANIES THREAD (Releases, FAs, etc...)

[Technico Support]

10 hours ago, Octopus said:

This is interesting. At what point did Cody stop booking his own segments? We often slam the performers of bad segments (Brandi) because the lack of writers, but I feel TK doesn’t get the same criticism as Head of Creative. I’d be shocked if the awkward Brandi/ Lambert and other Rhodes family missteps weren’t approved by Tony. 
If Cody was more hands on in his early AEW angles, that’s when he was at his best. Cody vs Dustin, Cody vs the Inner Circle, Cody vs MJF, the TNT title open challenge. 

I get the impression Cody was allowed to book his own stuff.  I mean obviously, right?  TK ain’t booking this Russo-ass shit.  So my guess is, per the article, he really wanted to be the sole booker.

28 minutes ago, Hagan said:

Time to bring up another topic. This weird rehabilitation of Dusty as a booking genius that Cody yearns to follow is some some interesting historical spin. I mean, Dusty did great stuff developing the early NXT kids and he certainly had Hall of Fame level runs as a booker for short periods but didn't he also help destroy JCP and run territories into the ground and was also on and off the WCW booking committee during its many years of darkness? Not to slander the great name of the American Dream but it seemed that before his death he was more widely mocked as a booker than anything else. I mean, one of the most territory destroying finishes is named after him. 

For some of the grey beards here, what do y'all think? 

Nostalgia is pain plus time.  Dusty was more bad then good but he outlived his bad rep and was integral to NXT at the end, burnishing his overall reputation.  There were enough years between Dusty the spotlight seeking awful booker and NXT Dusty for him to eventually be seen positively.

The point I sort of made about Cody’s upbringing is relevant here, too.  Don’t underestimate Cody’s role in Dusty’s image rehab.  All Cody knows is the good and it’s all he ever talks about.  Cody grew up with retired Dusty regaling him with Big Fish stories to the point where he’s got this legend he can never live up to instead of a father who was flawed and human.

Edited February 17, 2022 by Technico Support

[Hagan]

In regards to Cody's booking his own angles. I mean, the first couple of years of AEW there was definitely a tonal shift between what Cody was doing and the other Elite guys. Cody's stuff was a little more old school and a little more logical and story-driven. It worked out well for Omega, Hangman and the Bucks long-term but that first year for them wasn't great. Early on, a lot of the most praised stuff was the stuff involving Cody and the dissonance between him and the rest of the show indicated that he was probably the main reason. 

Then - TK takes a firmer grasp. The booking gets less scattershot up and down the board and somehow Cody's stuff goes from logical and old school and story-driven to whatever the Cody-verse became. Not that there weren't good matches and feuds but now his stuff was tonally off from the rest of the show. 

It seems like Cody may have always been trying to go his own way and constantly pushed to be different from the tone of the show and clearly Khan gave him plenty of leeway on his stuff and finally things came to a head. 

[chriskbrown50]

39 minutes ago, Hagan said:

Time to bring up another topic. This weird rehabilitation of Dusty as a booking genius that Cody yearns to follow is some some interesting historical spin. I mean, Dusty did great stuff developing the early NXT kids and he certainly had Hall of Fame level runs as a booker for short periods but didn't he also help destroy JCP and run territories into the ground and was also on and off the WCW booking committee during its many years of darkness? Not to slander the great name of the American Dream but it seemed that before his death he was more widely mocked as a booker than anything else. I mean, one of the most territory destroying finishes is named after him. 

For some of the grey beards here, what do y'all think? 

Grey beard here - 

Dusty as a performer is clearly one of the top talents to date ever; his schedule in the late 70s rivaled Andre and only Harley was making more spot shows around the NWA. Dusty was headlining the Omni, Houston and The Garden in the same years.  He could talk almost anyone into the building.  So putting him into a role in NXT to work on promos, to help develop the non-technical side of wrestling was the perfect fit. 

As a booker, Dusty was very good. But like many bookers he had a finite shelf life. Territories tended to move the booking responsibility around.  Talent who booked put themselves towards or at the top because they could trust themselves to show up. WCW should have changed bookers in say late 86 (not sure who frankly; the names of who could have booked at that time is not big) and maybe it does not crater as fast but it was not Dusty; if you don't have a great grasp on expenses in a business on a daily level, you are bound to fail. That's on the Crocketts.  The Crocketts over paid for Mid-South, not Dusty. 

Did Dusty do the false finish too many times - sure.  It can be an effective finish occasionally. 

[Gorman]

The best thing Cody could do in WWE is show up and act like he's as big a deal as John Cena. Fans boo him out of the building, and we're off to the races.

[Zakk_Sabbath]

I read that EC3 and Brown Snowman (we still doing that?) somehow got TV for their new Control Your Narrative promotion. Maybe Cody flexed his vaunted network muscle for 'em.

[colonial]

PW Insider reporting that longtime WWE Spanish announcer Carlos Cabrera has been let go 

[dragonzombie]

Just change wrestlers to people in the topic. 

WWE released commentator Carlos Cabrera. He worked for WWE/WWF for under 30 years, since 1993. He did play by play for 25 plus WM's, more than anyone else in WWE history.

[TheVileOne]

4 hours ago, (BP) said:

Whoever pointed out that they won’t bury Cody on purpose but just as a consequence of how they book 98% of the roster was spot on. Unless he gets a schedule where he only has to wrestle about as much as he does in AEW, I don’t see how he isn’t exchanging roll up pin victories with the same five wrestlers by the end of the year. 

This idea sounds like pure speculation by the IWC to me. The last few years of the WWE product seems to make it pretty plain to see Vince doesn't really care while he's in charge and he will continue to do as he wants. 

I'm sure a few rank and file executives might possibly feel this way. But does anyone honestly think Vince is watching AEW every week desperately thinking, "I have to show we've got the best product so MJF and Wardlow, hmmmm Wardlow, will want to work for me!"

[Hagan]

Yeah - I kind of think the same. I mean, this company either passed on or fired a fairly large portion of the AEW roster. Look at what the NXT roster is right now?  Now, would they take guys just to so AEW doesn't have them, for sure but I don't think they are putting any thought about the optics of how these guys would be booked. 

This company's future is NCAA athletes and models not signing the hot young workers off a competitor's TV. 

This whole "Vince can't afford to blow this" talking point is so bizarre. Are people watching the WWE? Does that look like a company that gives a fuck about how they book outside of the very top stars? Put the "they can't afford to blow Cody" in the bin with the "Big E really can't afford this loss to Roman" nonsense from Survivor Series. They can afford to blow it and they, in fact, will. 

[TheVileOne]

3 hours ago, Hagan said:

Time to bring up another topic. This weird rehabilitation of Dusty as a booking genius that Cody yearns to follow is some some interesting historical spin. I mean, Dusty did great stuff developing the early NXT kids and he certainly had Hall of Fame level runs as a booker for short periods but didn't he also help destroy JCP and run territories into the ground and was also on and off the WCW booking committee during its many years of darkness? Not to slander the great name of the American Dream but it seemed that before his death he was more widely mocked as a booker than anything else. I mean, one of the most territory destroying finishes is named after him. 

For some of the grey beards here, what do y'all think? 

It's not slander if it's true.

[Just Dave]

Also, if Warner still believed Cody was the biggest star in the company after the Punk signing TK might be better off elsewhere. 

[odessasteps]

I think a lot of the anti Dusty booking stuff comes from Dave at the time and his disciples. It's glaring when you go back and read those sheets and or listen to BTS when they examine Dave's opinions with the benefit of 30 years hindsight. 

Not that I'm defending his booking, mind you. Just saying I think there's where the talking points were formed. 

[HarryArchieGus]

4 hours ago, Technico Support said:

Cody grew up with retired Dusty regaling him with Big Fish stories to the point where he’s got this legend he can never live up to instead of a father who was flawed and human.

The bulk of his AEW run proved to me he had very much considered the sins of the father.  Seems to me Cody helped get more ppl over and did more jobs than all of Dusty's Crockett run.  

5 minutes ago, odessasteps said:

I think a lot of the anti Dusty booking stuff comes from Dave at the time and his disciples. It's glaring when you go back and read those sheets and or listen to BTS when they examine Dave's opinions with the benefit of 30 years hindsight. 

I'd say the anti-Dusty booking stuff comes from people watching his work over the years and concluding for themselves that Dusty was often a terrible booker.  I know I felt that way long before I ever read any of Meltzer pamphlets.  

[Craig H]

I'll just pile on and say that the "WWE can't mess up Cody because it will prevent others from AEW coming over" is so totally stupid. Anyone with half the brain that I have...can see that for nearly 10 years now that dudes are going to get booked poorly. Cody getting buried isn't going to stop MJF or Wardlow from going to AEW if WWE gives them Roman type money. Ultimately, that all is going to come down to the individual and there's plenty of examples where guys didn't chase the money and went where the better opportunity was at.

I feel like I always have to add this caveat, but I do like Meltzer. At the same time, he drives me crazy. Dave talks about Vince and WWE like they're a baseball team that MUST play overpaid players even if they suck. Just because someone is going to get a bag doesn't mean they're not going to get booked poorly, hang out in catering, or flat out get cut. For WWE, there's a mountain of evidence for this, but there's this side to Dave where he has a ton of admiration for Vince and WWE where he looks past all of that.

[John from Cincinnati]

Cody being booked poorly won't "prevent" others from jumping. But it could certainly cause some people to think twice. Best practice would be to not tempt fate. 

As I said earlier though, who knows if the people who will be making decisions with Cody are rational enough to think even that far. And as BP alluded to, they'll probably think they're doing fine by Cody and fuck up any momentum he has on accident because that's what they do. 

[Craig H]

What are the chances Vince demands Cody to still do the cartwheel?

 

[John from Cincinnati]

About even with the chances that he thinks people are nostalgic for the mustache. 

[Craig H]

Mustaches are kinda in again I think. Or is that a hipster thing and hipsters just ditched the beard for a mustache?

[Log]

So, is Cody definitely signing with WWE?  Has he already signed?

[TheVileOne]

1 hour ago, Log said:

So, is Cody definitely signing with WWE?  Has he already signed?

It's not confirmed.

[JLowe]

15 hours ago, Cobra Commander said:

having a lot of ambiguity about what you actually do is a good move for a Head of Creative.

"Hey, I don't micromanage and I listen to ideas!"

As the saying goes, “Success has many parents, failure is an orphan”

[BobbyWhioux]

2 hours ago, John from Cincinnati said:

Cody being booked poorly won't "prevent" others from jumping. But it could certainly cause some people to think twice. Best practice would be to not tempt fate. 

As I said earlier though, who knows if the people who will be making decisions with Cody are rational enough to think even that far. And as BP alluded to, they'll probably think they're doing fine by Cody and fuck up any momentum he has on accident because that's what they do. 

Case in point: Look how long it took them to finally get it right with Roman Reigns, and he was their #1 priority.

[cwoy2j]

8 hours ago, Hagan said:

Time to bring up another topic. This weird rehabilitation of Dusty as a booking genius that Cody yearns to follow is some some interesting historical spin. I mean, Dusty did great stuff developing the early NXT kids and he certainly had Hall of Fame level runs as a booker for short periods but didn't he also help destroy JCP and run territories into the ground and was also on and off the WCW booking committee during its many years of darkness? Not to slander the great name of the American Dream but it seemed that before his death he was more widely mocked as a booker than anything else. I mean, one of the most territory destroying finishes is named after him. 

For some of the grey beards here, what do y'all think? 

I think Dusty had some great ideas but went to the well way too often. For instance, the "Dusty Finish" is a great way to build heat and extend a feud if used sparingly. It's also a great way to piss off your fanbase and drive people away if you do them a ton and never pay it off by having the babyface actually win. Also, it's not a terrible idea to lift angles and gimmicks from movies. The Horsemen beating up Dusty in a parking lot while he screams "make it good" because that's their shot at him and they better make it count is right out of an old Western. It is a terrible idea to turn a dude into Oz and put Kevin Sullivan in a rubber mask as The Wizard.

[Guest Stefanie Without Stefanie]

5 minutes ago, cwoy2j said:

The Horsemen beating up Dusty in a parking lot while he screams "make it good" because that's their shot at him and they better make it count is right out of an old Western.

I always used to laugh at people that claimed "make it good" was somehow ineptitude on Dusty's part to leave an instruction on camera in the final cut.

Like... people were so obsessed with mistake-hunting or to find fault with Dusty's booking that they thought that was a mistake. Come on.

[cwoy2j]

5 minutes ago, Stefanie the Human said:

I always used to laugh at people that claimed "make it good" was somehow ineptitude on Dusty's part to leave an instruction on camera in the final cut.

Like... people were so obsessed with mistake-hunting or to find fault with Dusty's booking that they thought that was a mistake. Come on.

Seriously. JJ Dillon talked about that in his book. He said something like, "We taped that thing way in advance of when it was supposed to air. We blurred out Dusty's arm to give the allusion that it was mangled and even bleeped out some curse words. Don't you think we'd have bleeped out 'make it good' if it wasn't planned?"