The thing is, this isn't (mostly) about WWE seeking to add these guys to their team. This is about NJPW (and ROH) making slight inroads in the US, and WWE looking to stamp them out.
They've taken NJPW lead English language announcer, their top English language wrestler, their top English language tag team, and the native who's probably the most over with their English language audience. Maybe that'd be a wild coincidence if it was that alone, but they also announced an NXT tour including dates right before (one literally the day before) ROH shows in the same cities. This is a war, though a tiny one.
I'm sure they'll try to make these four guys work, but they're getting something out of it even if it doesn't.
This is going to take a while to play out still. This morning's NJPW show wrote out Styles, but also seemed to set up matches for Nakamura, Anderson and Gallows on their February NJPW New Beginning shows. It doesn't seem like Japan contracts have no compete clauses, so they may be show up in WWE the moment they're done in NJPW, but they may not be done for a while longer.
Originally posted by DirtyMikeSeaverbefore we go crazy on how they are used, just remember Mistico is no longer with the company. Samoa Joe isn't on the main roster and Alberto Del Rio is just another guy.
Sorry to be so confrontational, but why the fuck would you ever want Samoa Joe on the main roster? He's been doing great work in NXT, and he'd be "just another guy" on RAW. NXT is a viable brand now, and the sellout in Brooklyn indicates a pretty high ceiling for where the product might eventually land.
(edited by Tenken347 on 4.1.16 2104)
I'm just talking about the expectations that fans have when an 'Internet Darling' gets signed to the WWE. Usually when this happens, you see 859 threads about how they will be main eventers and champs within 6 months. The history of WWE says that it takes a LOT for guys like that to get pushed to the top. Either you have to be insanely talented (Benoit/Guerrero/Bryan) or extremely charismatic (Punk). And considering how all 4 of those guys ended up, Vince might not want to go down that road again. I'm just saying we should all realize that maybe, just maybe, Styles vs Nakamura won't headline WM 33.
As for the age thing, I think it is a factor. Sure, Cena's 38, but he got his big push when he was 26. Bryan was 30 when he won his first main title. Same with Punk when he cashed in against Edge. The WWE might look at these guys as too old to really start to build something around them. If there is a guy that has been in that position that they will push, it's Steen (who's 31). He has HHH's backing and he's young enough that he'll be around for a while.
I actually agree with cubsfan in the sense that this is a Win/Win for WWE. They hurt their main Japanese competition while picking up talent.
Kevin Kelly: "Mr. Austin, would you like to comment on Wade Keller's Take that endorsing the XFL hurts your anti-authority character?"
Steve Austin: "Oh shit, he actually said that? I thought the boys in the back were ribbing me!"
Kelly: "No, he really said that. Did they tell you the part about you sitting in the stands, looking all skeptical?"
Austin: "AHAHAHAHAHAHA. Yeah... oh man that was too much."
Originally posted by PowerPB13Kenny Omega pinned Nakamura in a tag match and then led the Bullet Club in turning on A.J. Styles.
Interestingly, Omega has been appearing in teasers for an upcoming Up Up Down Down video, complete with Bullet Club logo being featured prominently. In it, he does a Vince McMahon impersonation. (For those that don't know, Up Up Down Down is a YouTube gaming channel owned by the WWE, primarily hosted by Xavier Woods.)
Originally posted by PowerPB13I had Omega pegged as one of the guys jumping for that very reason. I figure Tama Tonga and Cody Hall are on their radar for family reasons.
Tama has been rumored to be jumping to WWE after his contract comes up and it was a bit surprising his name wasn't in with the other four. Maybe he doesn't have a spot guaranteed yet.
Cody Hall is still so rough that it's not sure thing he'd make NXT TV any time soon, and is better off staying in NJPW for at least another year. It is a weird situation, because he's tall and he's Scott Hall's son, so WWE is obviously going to bring him in whenever he wants - NJPW is basically training a guy who may never work a meaningful match for them. Maybe this situation will change all of that.
Omega is a former WWE Developmental guy, in the gone and mostly forgotten Deep South Wrestling. (Woods was there too, which is probably the backstory to that video.) He is well known for hating his time in WWE and loving all things Japan, and it's hard to see him ever wanting to come back. Still, WWE is a lot different than it was when he was last there and they're more willing to throw money at a guy like that. The angle they ran suggests Omega will be in NJPW for at least another year, but maybe it'll be plausible down the road.
Both Nakamura and AJ Styles are two of the best wrestlers in the world and Nakamura especially has a charisma that knows no language barrier. I look forward to seeing how WWE messes them up.
I am not a fan of this at all. You want to see a guy die a slow death in the WWE? Look no further than AJ. His age doesn't help much but he'd have to rework his entire moveset to just make it on the main roster. As much as I love NXT for everything they've given us, there's no way he's going to be nothing more than another body for Cena to pile up on his road to immortality.
Anderson and Gallows should immediately be brought up to the main roster to make the tag team division relevant. Nakamura would be really cool to see on the main roster but how will that work in a promotion where your mic skills are more valued than your ring work?
Chuck Norris drives an ice cream truck covered in human skulls.
I'll throw in that his finisher won't work/won't be allowed in WWE, casual fans won't know him, and he doesn't actually exude charisma (at least IMO). (I've tried to like him, it just hasn't stuck.)
But, some like Fords and others like Chevrolet, so good on AJ for getting a good paycheck.
Count me as another in that minority. I haven't understood the AJ Styles love for the past 10 years. He's not a bad athlete or anything, but I just find him rather bland. It's not so much that is style is "spot-fest," but that he sets up every move and then checks and double checks before the next one- it doesn't seem organic. Also, anyone who has their own name tattooed on them (excluding Memento-style memory loss)is kind of a tool.
On the other hand, I am 100% all in on Nakamura. I love everything about the guy and I can't wait for him the biggest, craziest, most elaborate entrance on NXT. Edit to add that there are only 45 shopping days left until my birthday (ebay.es)
If this is a rumor, then WWE deserves a spot in the Troll HOF, because they are going all out with teasers with Balor's help.
Nakamura's charisma is obvious, just watching what little I have of his work in NJPW. If he needs a mouthpiece in WWE, could they slot him into the League of Nations, or perhaps a certain Advocate of a certain Beast Incarnate is available?
Originally posted by Packman V2Nakamura's charisma is obvious, just watching what little I have of his work in NJPW. If he needs a mouthpiece in WWE, could they slot him into the League of Nations, or perhaps a certain Advocate of a certain Beast Incarnate is available?
Thought about Heyman, too, but I kind of feel like it'd be when they put Heyman with Angle or when they gave La Parka a voice - gilding the lily or, even with the best of intentions, diluting what works - in a way that risks overshadowing the actual draw. Ideally, you'd use Heyman to introduce Nakamura, talk him up as the best wrestler in the world, a charismatic phenom, a space alien gangster wrestler, etc., etc., only to have Nakamura turn him down. But that would necessitate a Brockamura (!!!) feud they probably don't want to do.
Ideally ideally, they'd have a bunch of decent managers and re-do the Bam Bam Bigelow introduction angle where all of them are competing to land Nakamura as their client, and instead of finishing with an Oliver Humperdink whimper, you finish with Nakamura casually revealing that he speaks exactly the right amount of English to get over that all anybody needs to care is him saying "YEAHOH" and being weird and awesome and kneeing people in the face from all angles.
Sadly, though, they don't have the depth and breadth of managers because of their own damn shortsightedness to do that again. After Heyman, you have Zeb (basically toxic after that MexAmerica stuff, and incompatible with Nakamura gimmick-wise), Lana (would have been potentially great, but now also pretty much radioactive after that disastrous 2015)...uh...Xavier Woods? (I mean, if I'm doing the Bam Bam angle, New Day definitely throws their unicorn horns in the ring and tries to form ShinsuDay NewKamura) Enzo? Summer, who can break up with him two days later? Alexa Bliss? There you go, Alexa Bliss can manage him.
I'll throw in that his finisher won't work/won't be allowed in WWE, casual fans won't know him, and he doesn't actually exude charisma (at least IMO). (I've tried to like him, it just hasn't stuck.)
But, some like Fords and others like Chevrolet, so good on AJ for getting a good paycheck.
Count me as another in that minority.
I would have been in this minority during his TNA years, but I became an honest-to-goodness fan when he joined New Japan. Without the veneer of Russo-slime on him I can finally "get" his talent. I can't fathom how anyone exposed to his work there couldn't see greatness.
I could be wrong, but Asuka seems to have gotten over just fine without having spoken more than maybe two sentences of English max. I think Nakamura would be fine on his own.
Am I in the minority or majority here? I've watched off-and-on since the early '80s...loved WCW and knew all the ECW names before I got to see them on TV. I find this news about these NJPW guys interesting (I love Finn Balor's Instragamming about it) but THIS...
It is unfortunate that WWE can't do the AJ Styles surprise in the Royal Rumble now. That would have been INSANE.
...I think is dramatically overselling. It might look "insane" to guys who never thought AJ Styles would show up in WWE and actually watched TNA (all, like, five of you guys) (j/k) but this isn't Sting showing up, or CM Punk coming back. I actually think this news getting leaked is the BEST thing for AJ, because "surprise Rumble entrant AJ Styles" is going to get a LOT of "who is THIS guy?" reaction from a live crowd that has plenty of "mot internet" fans, IMO.
I could be wrong, but I think AJ would benefit from some NXT time or at least some pre-appearance vignettes, old school-style.
Holy fuck shit motherfucker shit. Read comics. Fuck shit shit fuck shit I sold out when I did my job. Fuck fuck fuck shit fuck. Sorry had to do it....
*snip*
Revenge of the Sith = one thumb up from me. Fuck shit. I want to tittie fuck your ass. -- The Guinness. to Cerebus
"I have enough people telling me I suck online" -- lotjx
Originally posted by JayJayDeanI could be wrong, but I think AJ would benefit from some NXT time or at least some pre-appearance vignettes, old school-style.
Kevin Owens got a pretty big reaction when he debuted on WWE TV and AJ was once on a wrestling show that drew 1.5 million viewers and was a megastar in Japan so I think he'll get a bigger reaction than you think.
Originally posted by graves9Kevin Owens got a pretty big reaction when he debuted on WWE TV and AJ was once on a wrestling show that drew 1.5 million viewers and was a megastar in Japan so I think he'll get a bigger reaction than you think.
Kevin Steen didn't run out into the middle of the Royal Rumble, though. Kevin Steen signed with NXT (which surely leaked and word got around, just like now) and then (as Kevin Owens) he was on NXT and was awesome, and then he went to WWE after several months of being NXT Champ. That's not really the same as "TNA/NJPW/ROH strsight to #19 in the Royal Rumble."
Holy fuck shit motherfucker shit. Read comics. Fuck shit shit fuck shit I sold out when I did my job. Fuck fuck fuck shit fuck. Sorry had to do it....
*snip*
Revenge of the Sith = one thumb up from me. Fuck shit. I want to tittie fuck your ass. -- The Guinness. to Cerebus
"I have enough people telling me I suck online" -- lotjx
Originally posted by graves9Kevin Owens got a pretty big reaction when he debuted on WWE TV and AJ was once on a wrestling show that drew 1.5 million viewers and was a megastar in Japan so I think he'll get a bigger reaction than you think.
Kevin Steen didn't run out into the middle of the Royal Rumble, though. Kevin Steen signed with NXT (which surely leaked and word got around, just like now) and then (as Kevin Owens) he was on NXT and was awesome, and then he went to WWE after several months of being NXT Champ. That's not really the same as "TNA/NJPW/ROH strsight to #19 in the Royal Rumble."
Have you seen the amount of Bullet Club shirts out there?
WWE.com has practically confirmed the signings with all their cutesy "If we did sign these four, they'd be our biggest acquisition since _______" articles.
"Screw soccer, ignorance is the official sport of humanity." --May, Questionable Content
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Co-Winner of Time's Person of the Year Award, 2006
.... or so they'd want you to believe. I heard that the two of them donned yellow and black-striped masks, disappeared under the stage, and then "Springsteen" performed the rest of the concert. Though you couldn't really tell which was which......