MORELOCK

NXT fans are typically also WWE fans, but the opposite isn't necessarily true. There have been multiple instances of NXT alumni debuting on WWE shows with no buildup that have come out to weak reactions. WWE essentially sabotaged Emma's first main roster run by thinking "everyone will know this from NXT." The group of callups that showed up late last year are still suffering from the viewpoint of "hey, let's just throw these NXT people on TV because everyone knows who they are." Have you seen EC3 get a strong reaction on the main roster at any point? I've never seen anything that has indicated that NXT has had more viewers than a live PPV during that week. I'm sure it's outdrawn old Manias or something. NXT shows are run in much, much smaller venues than WWE shows. The fans that do attend might come off as more excited on TV because they're the hardcore fans (i.e. us), but that isn't really something you can translate to numbers. If the aborted 205 house shows had been followed through on, booked in smaller venues like NXT, with tickets sold to people that are actually there to see the Cruisers, I'm sure the crowds would look a lot more lively. 205 isn't a failure - it's one of the most-watched network shows each week just like NXT - it just comes off a lot worse because of the circumstances.

Y'all act like you've never read a SorceressKnight post before.

Similar to how Bruce and Eric need to insert Meltzer hate into every podcast, Corny's ranting is what pays the bills. It will almost certainly get worse.

This is more of an issue with who's laying out the matches (presumably per Vince/HHH's specific instructions) than the wrestlers or trainers. It's an issue with every show and match right now, including people that did all of their training and work outside of the company. Rotating fresh trainers in and out hasn't even really helped, as it doesn't matter what those trainers do if the workers are told to go out there and work the exact same matches.

Okay, let's put aside whether or not the face is real or imagined and move right along to the fact that we have verified that Sasha doesn't like to job because it's the reason she walked out in the first place.

Fair enough - I'll edit my post to substitute the terms "that face Sasha regularly makes on television when she's entering a match that she is booked to lose" and "made a decision not to honor her contract," and then maybe you'll feel inclined to engage with the points I was making. If not, that's fine too.

If you're fantasy booking the KotR tourney, it isn't the WWE that will disappoint you - you are in charge of that. You're disappointing yourself.

205's issue has always been the insistence on it being aired live and following SmackDown at shows where people paid to see SmackDown - if NXT was in its place, it would be having the same issue. It's been shown lots of times that the main roster audience doesn't necessarily know who the hell NXT people are.

To be clear: 1. I wasn't actually arguing that Instagram follower numbers should determine anything. I was pointing out the irrelevance. No one actually believes the Kabuki Warriors shouldn't be pushed on the same level as others based on follower numbers *because that is obviously ridiculous.* It isn't me that brings it up during every Sasha-related conversation. 2. No one was ever actually arguing about her hair color. The wig was *inserted into the angle* intentionally for reasons that are still confusing. 3. I don't think Alexa warrants a bigger push than anyone else, but I do think that Sasha's refusal to job to her was 100% inexcusable and people don't want to call that what it was - unprofessional behavior. Shawn and others get raked over the coals for this sort of thing, and there isn't a real reason why Sasha shouldn't be held accountable for her actions. Also, very interesting that people are holding Alexa's size against her - nobody complains about Rey or Ali or Adam Cole or the hundreds of small "indy" guys holding their own against much larger opponents. 4. Sasha's stuff with Bayley and Becky in NXT? Some of the greatest women's matches I've ever seen. The talent is absolutely there and I've never denied that - we just haven't seen anything even close to that level on the main roster, and only one person is arguing that we have. I am not a Sasha "hater" - I just think when her work is on a steady downward slope, she shouldn't be acting cocky and entitled. There are lots of talented women on the main roster that haven't gotten half the build, attention, and opportunity that Sasha has. Ember Moon has a legitimate complaint. Asuka has a legitimate complaint. Naomi has a legitimate complaint. The former Riott Squad has a legitimate complaint. Kairi Sane has a legitimate complaint. Mickie James has a legitimate complaint. Sasha just doesn't, but she was the one with [that face Sasha regularly makes on television when she's entering a match that she is booked to lose] that [made a decision not to honor her contract] while all those other women did their jobs. She doesn't deserve sympathy. She's been given more chances than most.

Loved Dunne-Bate at the time, though I haven't watched it since it aired so I don't recall those terrible punches. I also might have given the match too much credit due to me being way higher on NXT in general at the time - that was the show that Ciampa turned, so it was mostly all downhill from there.

Yes. Sasha was at 3.8 and Alexa at 3.5. The original post for reference:

That's really all it was. The narrative about her was already fully formed, and people were venomous in their hatred for her well before they ever saw her wrestle. It turned out that they were correct, but it felt very unfair at the time. She seemed to be sincerely trying and just couldn't put anything together. It was worth a try - Sable made them a shitload of money working with basically the same amount of talent.

Since we're cherry picking numbers that have no bearing on anything at all: Sasha is at 4.1 million Instagram followers, Alexa at 4. A narrower gap than when I reported the numbers a few months back. If the argument is that pushes should live and die based on social media numbers, the numbers support that Alexa should be pushed on basically the same level as Sasha. Sorry to all you Kabuki Warriors fans out there, too: only two million between them. In the new world of social media-based booking, Alexa should be squashing them instead of having competitive matches. Perhaps they should be using more hashtags!

It's been said that the plan is to cycle main roster guys back down to NXT when it moves to FS1 for the added star power. I know telling long-term stories with the same few wrestlers isn't going to keep me watching - variety is as important in NXT as it is on the main roster, and in both cases they are falling far short. Even their only "big" post-Mania debut in KUSHIDA is already lost in the shuffle.

I'm guessing someone in marketing told them that videos under 2 minutes are more likely to be watched than 3+, but if that's the case then the smart thing to do would be to post the short version in the first place instead of unnecessarily deleting videos and resetting the view count/trending status.

Ugh. AEW TV can't start soon enough.

The number four video on YouTube, among WWE fans aged 17-19 watching in the Upper Midwest between the hours of 3 and 4 am on Wednesday watching via the YouTube app using only first-gen Roku if you don't count literally any video that was posted before that one

If you can watch Benoit matches and still enjoy them, good for you, but I don't know why anyone is so eager to burden young wrestlers with Benoit comparisons. Even if it does fit (and I don't think it does), there are comparisons that fit just as well and don't come along with an enormous amount of baggage that could actively hurt the wrestler.

I don't want to ruin anyone's childhood or anything, but the dreads were fake after a certain point, maybe all along.

Not sure if there's more to it, but he went into semi-retirement after the short run and supposedly went back into law enforcement. (A bully on the police force? Say it ain't so) He was only around for like 3-4 months, so maybe Vince just wasn't too impressed or Bully could see the writing on the wall when they wouldn't let him beat the fucking Brooklyn Brawler cleanly.

They signed a bunch of Chile tryouts and no Alejandro Saez?

As far as I'm concerned, if the metal purist gatekeepers are hating on you, you're doing something right. Did he find another way to let everyone know he's an ass man?

I'll save someone a "nu metal isn't metal" post. There's a big difference between music that I think is good as a wrestling theme and music I would choose to listen to outside the context of the wrestling show. Disturbed is a pretty good example of something I wouldn't be caught dead listening to in my spare time, but it worked for Austin at the time. I don't know if Curt was making that distinction or not.

That is a hair that you can split, but "heavy" was the bar, not "metal."

Ridiculous.