Just a couple of things I am thinking about:
1) With Summerslam being held in Los Angeles exclusively these days should the WWE consider holding the Survivor Series in New York City? In general the Survivor Series has been on the bottom rung of the "traditional" WWE PPVs but the three times it's been held at MSG it was one of the better shows of the year and the opportunity to promote a special attraction seems greater. Rock doing his one-off match at MSG seemed to work better for cross-promotion then if the card were held in...Kansas City or something. Plus the crowds are great.
2) Following up the last question, I guess the WWE still considers Summerslam the second biggest card of the year but is that the general perception from the fans? Or has the Royal Rumble taken over that No. 2 slot given the attraction of the match and it being the start of the "Road to Wrestlemania"?
3) With the Draft coming up what is going to be the big move? Should Punk switch to Smackdown and become the "centerpiece" of that show much like Edge was for many years? With RAW being a "Supershow" he would obviously still work Mondays.
Throw me some ideas.
1) With Summerslam being held in Los Angeles exclusively these days should the WWE consider holding the Survivor Series in New York City? In general the Survivor Series has been on the bottom rung of the "traditional" WWE PPVs but the three times it's been held at MSG it was one of the better shows of the year and the opportunity to promote a special attraction seems greater. Rock doing his one-off match at MSG seemed to work better for cross-promotion then if the card were held in...Kansas City or something. Plus the crowds are great.
2) Following up the last question, I guess the WWE still considers Summerslam the second biggest card of the year but is that the general perception from the fans? Or has the Royal Rumble taken over that No. 2 slot given the attraction of the match and it being the start of the "Road to Wrestlemania"?
3) With the Draft coming up what is going to be the big move? Should Punk switch to Smackdown and become the "centerpiece" of that show much like Edge was for many years? With RAW being a "Supershow" he would obviously still work Mondays.
Throw me some ideas.
1. Think that is a good idea and would be for it.
ReplyDelete2. I still consider Summerslam the #2 show, but think none of the shows hold much cache to the general fan now other than WM.
3. Who cares? The brand split means nothing and is largely non-existent, thus the draft means nothing.
Outside of Punk and Cena being Raw superstars, I honestly couldn't tell you who's on what brand anymore. With one GM, they may as well end the brand split, and get rid of the US Title and the World Title, as neither belt means anything, and would give more room for the Tag Titles to get attention.
ReplyDeleteWas with you until you wanted to place emphasis on the Tag titles. Those things and that style of wrestling is basically dead and that should be put down.
ReplyDeleteI've always considered SummerSlam to be the 2 show of the year. To me, Survivor Series and Royal Rumble always felt like attractions. WrestleMania and SummerSlam were the big shows that something important happened.
ReplyDeleteI've always been in favor of the brand extension, but I honestly cannot think of a single time that the Draft has seemed so insignificant. Everybody already appears on Raw no matter which show they're on. People are challenging for title regardless of their show (Mark Henry is a Smackdown guy, and has been fighting CM Punk, a Raw guy, for the title. Meanwhile, they were just pushing Raw's Alberto Del Rio to fight Sheamus for Smackdown's world title). And plus, with one GM running both shows, from a storyline perspective what's the difference between being on one roster or the other?
1) Sure, why not?
ReplyDelete2) Royal Rumble is number two solidly to most people. It's the most interesting gimmick match of the year (the only of which anyone really pays for), there's almost always a good title match on the undercard, and Summerslam often sucks (last two years excepted, the last 10 years haven't been good for the show after its peak in '01 and '02).
3) Daniel Bryan and Kane to Raw, Dolph Ziggler and Kofi Kingston to SmackDown.
I hate, hate, hate that SummerSlam is basically always in LA now, seems retarded to not move it around the country. Hey Id really like to go to Summerslam but, you know, never will because its always across the damn continent. And in my mine SS is still the #2 big show and Ive always just thought that because it doesnt have its own specialty and could have anything like WM. Not a rumble match or survivor matches (when that was actually SurSer gimmick) so the SS matches could just be anything. With that said though I have always enjoyed the Rumble more because of the Rumble match.
ReplyDeleteWCW held many of their PPVs in the same location for years.
ReplyDeleteStarrcade was in Nashville from 1994-1996, and then in Washington, D.C. from 1997-2000
Halloween Havoc was in Detroit in 1994 and 1995, and then in Las Vegas from 1996-2000
World War 3 was in Norfolk in 1995 and 1996, but was moved to Auburn Hills for 1997 and 1998
SuperBrawl was in San Francisco/Oakland from 1997-2000
Baltimore was THE home of The Great American Bash (1988-1991, 1996, 1998-2000)
Bash at the Beach was usually in Daytona Beach (1996, 1997, 2000)
Hog/Road Wild was in Sturgis from 1996-1999
Fall Brawl was in Winston-Salem from 1996-1999
1. I think that would work really well. The atmosphere of MSG makes any show feel special, and Survivor Series could use that, given that it's been on the chopping block in recent years.
ReplyDelete2. The Rumble's more important, given it's the start of the Road to Wrestlemania and everything, but that also makes it less of standalone show.
3. I could see Bryan going to Raw full time based on the reactions he's getting. They've already tipped their hand on Del Rio going back to Smackdown, which I think will work better for him. He's better off as a big fish in a small pond. And I'm holding out hopes that Punk being responsible for costing Christian his Wrestlemania spot means they'll have a feud soon.
Here's a crazy idea; as part of his storyline, Cena gets drafted to Raw (and it sticks this time) and Big Johnny forces him to start over from the bottom and earn the spot he's had on Raw for years. That's a thing that could happen but probably wouldn't ever!
We always talk about WWE not building new stars. A tag division allows a handful of wrestlers to be at the top of their particular field without threatening the main-event scene.
ReplyDeleteLooks at the Hardys/E&C/Dudleys feud that lasted a few years. these guys had a regular spot, for years, and could be booked strong as hell because they were a separate 'division' from the main-eventers. Lo and behold, ten years later, Edge is a hall-of-famer and three of the others are world title contenders.
It's a waste of space now, but there's no reason it couldn't be a massive part of the card in six months time.
I think Ziggler desperately needs a move back to Smackdown, as his star is falling with all the top guys appearing on Raw every week. He can go be a top guy on Smackdown while still appearing on Raw. Could even split him from Swagger and turn him face. I'd prefer a complete end to the brand split, but they have worse problems than that right now.
ReplyDeleteWait, what did I miss? When did they announce the draft? It makes absolutely zero sense to do one now. The same guy controls both shows and they literally are ignoring the brand split now. The US title is a Raw title held by a SD guy and nobody even commented on it when it happened. The #1 contender to the World Title after Bryan/Sheamus is a Raw guy. There have been literally no comments on the air about the shows being seperate anymore. Why are we all assuming there is a draft this year? Did they announce it and I missed it?
ReplyDeleteI think they should do the dreaded off-camera face turn with Christian. There was no need to turn him in the first place, and he's better in the ring as a face.
ReplyDelete1. Not the worst idea I've ever heard.
ReplyDelete2. Depends on the year, really. Some years the Rumble is a big deal because there's some suspense about who will win, some years they stack up Summerslam with big matches and surprises. It helps when there's a strong storyline leading into either show, too.
3. Kind of surprised they're bothering with the Draft this year. Not only because of the so-called "Supershows", but one of the recurring themes has always been the GMs jockeying for position and trying to claim the best talent for their brand. With Ace as GM of both shows now, what's the point? Is he going to try to outmaneuver himself?
Agreed. Plus LA crowds are the worst.
ReplyDeleteJust my opinion. I'm not nostalgic for tag team wrestling, and won't miss it if it is gone. They don't try with it anyways and have done nothing to make me believe they ever will.
ReplyDeleteI wouldn't say E&C were always booked strongly, or the Hardys, or the Dudleys. They routinely did jobs to the big stars, and E&C were made to look like buffoons against Kane/Taker on numberous occasions.
1) No. MSG is special because they dont run a PPV there every year so it means something when they do. And NYC is too big a market for people to care every year in the middle of football season (im talking the mainstream press, not fans). Every couple of years is fine.
ReplyDelete2) Yes. They rushed CM Punk back because they needed a big SummerSlam main event. The Royal Rumble could be 30 FCW guys and still draw a number. It's an attraction - almost no thought necessary.
3) Why is there a draft?
1) I really think Chicago should become a permanent home for one of the major PPVs before NYC. The Chicago crowd is *way* more fun than the NYC crowd.
ReplyDeleteCouldn't disagree more, Christian as a face bores me to tears, but love him as a heel.
ReplyDelete1) I don't think it could hurt to have either the Rumble or Survivor Series at MSG annually, or in Chicago or some other town with a traditionally hot crowd. Other sports with "majors" typically have a few, if not all, in the same places every year. Survivor Series make the most sense becuase the Rumble would be the better novelty event to tour with each year.
ReplyDelete2) The Royal Rumble is the second biggest event of the year. The entire year revolves around RR through WM. SummerSlam, unfortunately, has gotten lost in the shuffle of the monthly PPVs, along with Survivor Series because the events consist of just another 7-8 match card in a cookie-cutter arena each year. SummerSlam was the second biggest card for years because the only other PPVS consisted of specialty matches which took up the majority of the event. SummerSlam was the only one that built up a WrestleMania like card. The "Road to WrestleMania" is all that matters now and that's kicked off by the Royal Rumble.
3) Punk should only switch if they plan on keeping the title on him for a loooong time. I don't think that's the case with Lesnar, Cena and the Rock all seemingly factoring in to the title picture within the next year, however I just don't see them moving Punk to Fridays. He's seen as too vital to the live show now.
Sheamus and Orton are clearly the centerpieces of SmackDown, as they should be. Orton's too injury prone to focus him on RAW and Sheamus is fine where he is too.
With names like Lesnar and Rock playing a part for the next year, along with the "supershow"/Johnny Ace factors, I don't see why they would make a huge deal about moving bigger stars to either show permanently. I'd draft Ziggler, Brodus and Miz to SD and move Cody and Daniel Bryan to RAW.
I kind of like Punk on RAW but wouldn't mind him joining SD! if it mean programs with Bryan and Christian.
ReplyDeleteI agree. There's no need to "draft" unless they plan to solidifying the brand split through this GM angle in the long run, which I don't see. They argue the split remains primarily because of house shows, which is fine, but i just don't get why they would continue it on TV.
ReplyDeleteHis heel promos are better, but his heel ring work often turns into a lot of chokes and little else. His matches with Orton were tremendous, though.
ReplyDelete1. Hopefully in Buffalo, so I can go see it, most likely with free tickets. With Night of Champions having been here last year it's not gonna happen though.
ReplyDelete2. Definitely the Rumble. Summerslam is just another PPV nowadays.
3. Don't know, don't care.
I'm in the minority in that I prefer tag wrestling to singles wrestling. I think there are more interesting ways to tell stories through them.
ReplyDelete1. I like this idea well enough
ReplyDelete2. I always thought the Rumble was the #2 PPV of the Big 4. For me, Summerslam always revolved around there being a summer vacation and having to have as much fun as possible in August before school got back in session in September. Now August is just sort of there on the calendar, and I probably couldn't tell you anything interesting that happened at any Summerslam beyond 2001
3. Hopefully with Big Johnny in charge of both shows we're another step closer to the end of the brand split
Miami is right up there too.
ReplyDeleteI disagree that there are more ways to tell a story - it makes logical sense with twice the number of wrestlers, but the formula is so entrenched it's rarely the case - but I also love tag wrestling.
ReplyDeleteI felt they were getting somewhere with Air Boom, but we all know what happened there. Have Primo & Epico upset Johnny, stick a bounty on their head and have various talented midcarders team up in order to beat them (Swagger and Ziggler are ready made). It's basic, but at least it's a start.
Summerslam is the lesser of the big 4
ReplyDeleteWrestlemania
Royal Rumble
Survivor Series
Summerslam
Summerslam usually comes off as a generic PPV with a big name, , MITB has been a bigger PPV the last 2 years.
Rumble over Summerslam is fair but Survivor Series? They almost cancelled Survivor Series last year, they don't see it as bigger than Summerslam and I don't know that the fans do either. I sure don't.
DeleteSurvivor Series is in Pittsburgh this year... so no, at least not starting this year.
ReplyDeleteAnd if they're going to do an outdoor show next year, Heinz Field here in town would be a great choice. Plus the Steelers are the true America's Team.
Survivor Series 2011 was a horrible show.
ReplyDelete1. No. As is, I don't like that SummerSlam is exclusively in LA. I don't have any metrics to support it, but just intuitively I feel like it's better for business to give fans in more cities opportunities to attend a big-four event. I'd be okay with MSG hosting a PPV each year though, and a big-four event at least once every few years.
ReplyDelete2. Royal Rumble is definitely No. 2 now, and it is because it's the start of the Road to Wrestlemania. Digging a bit deeper, I think it's because that Road implies that it's part of a plan. Too many recent SummerSlam cards have felt thrown together at the last minute, and in that way are indistinguishable from, say, Night of Champions. This year may be different because of Brock's presence, but does anyone think they have any other matches already booked for SS? If they actually started planning long term again, at least from WM to SS and vice versa, you'd see SS return to that No. 2 spot.
3. I'm tempted by his talent to say no, fuck it, roll the dice, Punk should get a shot to be The Guy on the No. 1 show. And if he was just competing against Cena, I'd take my chances. But with Brock, Rock, HHH, and Taker floating in and out, I just don't see any way that he won't get lost in the shuffle. If he gets to take the WWE title with him, and continue his already long, prestige-restoring reign, then yeah, go for it. Basically what he's been doing since Survivor Series against ADR, Miz, Ziggler, Jericho, and Henry, but as the focus of the show instead of second potato to whatever Cena's doing. Cody, Christian, Bryan, and even a heel-turned Orton would make great foils for the next year. And like you said, he'll still work Mondays.
1. I could see the arguement why Survivor Series should be a NYC-only PPV but it takes away from it being so special. MSG shows are usually considered as being a special show and having a yearly show their would kill it.
ReplyDelete2. Royal Rumble has always been the number 2 to me.
3. If it's not broken, don't fix it.
To the best of my knowledge, they haven't even announced the draft yet. So there's a chance that it will not happen.
ReplyDeleteSurvivor Series 2011 was a terrific show. Punk/ADR was tremendous, Morrison/Ziggler was good, and (and this is where I'm sure we'll have a divide) the main event was very good.
ReplyDeleteI still believe there are more ways, regardless if they're actually executed. One of the reasons I became a big fan of the Briscoes back in the day is because they had a way of flipping the formula on its head -- age-old spots like holding the partner down outside the ring while the opponent was pinned for the three-count were turned into nearfalls by the Briscoe Formula.
ReplyDeleteThe Guns/Beer Money series in TNA also did a great job of working straight formula, ROH-style and some hybrid aspects.
Punk's doing great on Raw so why risk everything by drafting him to the B show? Miz would benefit from being drafted to Smackdown. It would give him a chance to freshen up his character and retain his status as a top heel. I'd also like to see Ziggler get the chance to go to Smackdown and get involved in the world title mix - it's long overdue for him as he's been on fire this past year.
ReplyDeleteThe Rumble has definitely replaced Summerslam as the second most anticipated PPV. Not just because it's the start of the Road to Wrestlemania, but because the Rumble match itself is always intriguing and completely different from the rest of the PPVs. Summerslam hasn't exactly given us legendary match ups in recent years. Guys like Khali have been in title matches there and i seem to recall Kane fighting Rey Mysterio for a world title (no offence to either guy but it's hardly a "dream match".)
I consider the RR #2 and like that it rotates each year (I'd like eventually get to one). LA crowds are pretty meh - although not as bad as anywhere in Florida or Atlanta. I'm in the minority, I wouldn't be opposed to MSG have Survivor Series every year. It would boost a dying show (remember when they nixed it but then brought it back after the backlash?).
ReplyDeleteAs for the draft - Miz is a shoe-in to move. Ziggler should as well.
The last few years they have randomly had a draft the was announced the previous week.
ReplyDeleteWhy hold a draft, it usually draws a bigger rating than normal I believe.
1. I love the MSG crowds. Do it.
ReplyDelete2. I think yo'ure right about RR taking over the #2 spot. I find myself looking forward to (and even purchasing the last couple of years) the RR, whereas most times I have to be reminded exactly which Sunday in August SS is.
3. Punk should definitely move to Smackdown. They always like to load the Smackdown roster up with guys who can "work", while saving the more gimmicky stuff for Raw anyway. He's not going to be the face of Raw, ala Cena.....but Smackdown is definitely do-able for him.
The Steelers suck. They are not Americas team.
ReplyDeleteAs much as I would love for WM to come to Pittsburgh, it's never going to happen. It's not a big enough market to take the risk of doing an outdoor show and there isn't any indoor venues big enough.
ReplyDeleteYou know what, coming from someone who has NEVER liked the idea of the "brand extension", if they decided to end it, I would like that a lot. One of the main reasons I think it should end permanently is that with the roster they have, they don't have enough talent to support "two brands", and we can't forget with most of the roster appearing on both shows within recent times, having a "draft" would make everything essentially pointless, and again, why should the fans like one brand than the other when they're both under the WWE banner? Overall, a draft and "brand split" are both pointless and it's not going to make the product any better.
ReplyDeleteAs long as John Laurinitis is running both shows, there is no point to a draft. Because Laurinitis has the power to move people between brands in any manner he sees fit.
ReplyDeleteAs a Chicago boy, I endorse the notion of Chicago as a PPV destination (but this will make two PPVs in 9 months). However, as much as it pains me to say this, don't know the NYC crowd. WM 20, Survivor Series 96, etc., were all made better by the smarkish NYC crowd. They used to tell wrestlers, "If you can make it in Madison Square Garden, you can make it anywhere," because the crowds were so knowledgeable and entrenched in WWE history.
ReplyDeletealso...
3. Punk or Ziggler definitely need the switch. Punk deserves to be the centerpiece of a show and not play second fiddle to Cena or HHH ever since last year's Summerslam. Ziggler needs a chance to grow, but he has already done "the Smackdown thing" a year or two ago.
I would have to disagree, that Miami crowd for the Raw after WM was awesome.
ReplyDelete1.Personally I like all events to rotate, not a big fan of one city "owning" a PPV event.
ReplyDelete2. Royal Rumble has always felt like the more special #2 show in my eyes but this years jobber rumble where it seemed that only three or four different guys could win really underwhelmed me.
3.Im pretty sure the first time Brock won the undisputed title it led to HHH being handed the Raw World Title. I think lets go full circle and have Brock reunify the titles by destroying the roster and whoever beats him at WM 29 will get a really nice rub.
So no more brand extension which seems to be largely ignored anyway and I would ditch the US title and place more emphasis on the Tag division too.
I think putting Summerslam in LA every year is WWE's concession to the market until Los Angeles builds a modern football stadium fit to hold a Wrestlemania.
ReplyDeleteThe Royal Rumble has long since surpassed Summerslam as the #2 show because the Rumble match itself is so fun and so unique. In fact, I'd say that Money In The Bank is the #3 show --- the stakes of the MITB gimmick has been so firmly established that it's the one time of the year when you really see guys get elevated. It used to be that guys had their breakout moment by finally winning the big one at Wrestlemania, now it's be grabbing the briefcase. Actually, MITB has become the new King Of The Ring; it's eight guys fighting for one breakthrough achievement, except instead of a time-consuming tournament, the eight guys fight it out in one match.
ReplyDeleteBecause Summerslam has no unifying gimmick other than 'just matches,' it comes off as a poor man's Wrestlemania. Even when they give the show a huge and unique main event (Hogan vs. Michaels, the first Cena vs. Orton bout, the first Cena vs. Batista match), it feels weird. Like, doesn't it seem odd that the historic first-ever Hogan vs. HBK encounter took place at Summerslam and not at a Mania? And as good as the build to Batista/Cena at WM26 was, wouldn't have it been even better if that had been their first-ever encounter?
1.) No. The only time a PPV should be reserved for MSG is Wrestlemania and that's every 10 years .
ReplyDelete2. Royal Rumble should be the #2 event, being that it ideally decides who gets the title shot at Wrestlemania. (even though that is being thrown out the window due to the main event for one of the belts being called a year in advance.
3.)Yes. Punk should be on Smackdown and work with up and comers. Hopelly one of them will be Cody Rhodes.
Blasphemy....
ReplyDelete