....so sayeth Meltz. He took a swing at Garrison Cade in their Heat match on Monday and connected with Cade's kneebrace. Allow me to be the first to say: Fuckety Fuck Fuck. Hopefully they can spin this into Orton injuring him at Bad Blood, so he can come roaring back in time for a vengeance-fuelled SumerSlam rematch.
Once upon a time in China, some believe, around the year one double-ought three, head priest of the White Lotus Clan, Pai Mei was walking down the road, contemplating whatever it is that a man of Pai Mei's infinite power contemplates - which is another way of saying "who knows" - when a Shaolin monk appeared, traveling in the opposite direction. As the monk and the priest crossed paths, Pai Mei, in a practically unfathomable display of generosity, gave the monk the slightest of nods. The nod was not returned. Now was it the intention of the Shaolin monk to insult Pai Mei or did he just fail to see the generous social gesture? The motives of the monk remain unknown. What is known, are the consequences. The next morning Pai Mei appeared at the Shaolin Temple and demanded of the Temple's head abbot that he offer Pai Mei his neck to repay the insult. The Abbot at first tried to console Pai Mei, only to find Pai Mei was inconsolable. So began the massacre of the Shaolin Temple and all 60 of the monks inside at the fists of the White Lotus. And so began the legend of Pai Mei's five point palm exploding heart technique.
Didn't he have a serious injury last year too? I seem to remember Haas wrestling alone for a while.
This is bad news for Raw (beyond the loss of Shelton) because it means they will have to speed up Orton/HHH. OTOH, it might mean that Benoit's title reign will be extended beyond SummerSlam, if they need HHH doing other things.
Wheel of Morality, turn turn turn. Tell us the lesson that we should learn.
A broken hand isn't anything too bad. Didn't Edge wrestle with a broken hand when he came back? Orton can "break" it somehow, the feud continues. No big deal.
So, Brain, what do you want to do tonight?
The same thing we do every night, Pinky: Try to take over the world!
Wasn't his injury from the Smackdown days a knee injury?
I read somewhere (PWInsider, I do believe) that Shelton's hand was broken in two places. Really sucks for him, as he was fast becoming a bright spot on RAW for me. Here's to hoping that he can bounce back pretty quick.
From the house show reports, it looks like they're setting up Edge/Orton as a program, which could also work if they're going to hold off on Edge's heel turn.
Didn't Edge, Kane, and Cena all have injuries along these lines at various points? Didn't they all just work through it?
EDIT: I recall Taker had one during his match with Brock, but I can't recall off the top of my head if it was legit or a work to cover for his elbow problems.
The problem with doing Orton/Edge is the effects it has on the fall booking corridor. Put those two together and *someone's* gonna have to do a high-profile job, but Edge is a step or two away from ME-dom and said loss would damage him no end. But then he's also too far developed to be the guy that finally ends Orton's reign of terror. I'd prefer to see Jericho/Orton as a placeholder feud for Vengeance-working with Jericho would help Orton's learning curve more than working with Edge, and Jericho can stand a semi-clean loss to him with his heat intact. Then you roll our a rehabbed Shelton and do a no-DQ/Ladder/Lumberjill Snowbunny match in August.
Once upon a time in China, some believe, around the year one double-ought three, head priest of the White Lotus Clan, Pai Mei was walking down the road, contemplating whatever it is that a man of Pai Mei's infinite power contemplates - which is another way of saying "who knows" - when a Shaolin monk appeared, traveling in the opposite direction. As the monk and the priest crossed paths, Pai Mei, in a practically unfathomable display of generosity, gave the monk the slightest of nods. The nod was not returned. Now was it the intention of the Shaolin monk to insult Pai Mei or did he just fail to see the generous social gesture? The motives of the monk remain unknown. What is known, are the consequences. The next morning Pai Mei appeared at the Shaolin Temple and demanded of the Temple's head abbot that he offer Pai Mei his neck to repay the insult. The Abbot at first tried to console Pai Mei, only to find Pai Mei was inconsolable. So began the massacre of the Shaolin Temple and all 60 of the monks inside at the fists of the White Lotus. And so began the legend of Pai Mei's five point palm exploding heart technique.
Originally posted by oldschoolheroThe problem with doing Orton/Edge is the effects it has on the fall booking corridor. Put those two together and *someone's* gonna have to do a high-profile job, but Edge is a step or two away from ME-dom and said loss would damage him no end. But then he's also too far developed to be the guy that finally ends Orton's reign of terror. I'd prefer to see Jericho/Orton as a placeholder feud for Vengeance-working with Jericho would help Orton's learning curve more than working with Edge, and Jericho can stand a semi-clean loss to him with his heat intact. Then you roll our a rehabbed Shelton and do a no-DQ/Ladder/Lumberjill Snowbunny match in August.
They could spin it that Edge jobs to Orton, but in the process realizes that sucking up to the fans is a detriment to his career and that only those who only care about themselves get ahead in the wrestling business, so screw the fans. Builds up Orton, and provides impetus for Edge's heel turn, plus built in heat with the crowd when he blames them for his failures.
Are we allowed to use the voices in our heads as sources?
Why turn Edge heel? Raw needs a solid face that is over six feet tall, with Rock, Austin and Foley gone. Unless they're positioning Eugene to have main event programs in the fall.
-- Asteroid Boy
Wiener of the day: 23.7.02, 3.12.03
"In addition, my tickets weren’t really what you’d expect from the webmaster of the internet’s largest independent pro-wrestling website." - Widro
"My brother saw the Undertaker walking through an airport." - Rex "Was he no-selling?" - Me
It seems WWE is kind of spinning their wheels in writing for Benjamin latley, so a little time off shouldn't hurt him or creatvie. I'm not saying they've done a bad job on the follow-up to his wins against Trips, but I think it could've been better, even though he is still in the IC title picture.
Seeing as how TWGTT was the most cohesive unit since Ralph Macchio and Mr. Miyagi in the Karate Kid part two, I think that we should just switch Charilie Hass into Shelton Benjamins push for a little while. Hass and Benjamin are like 1 single cell who has asexually divided into 2 perfect replicas capable of carrying Vianno IV and V to a 5 star match.
(edited by Asian Business Man on 20.6.04 1642)
(edited by Asian Business Man on 20.6.04 1645)
"What do you say to a woman with two black eyes? Nothing, for you have already told her twice." --Confucius
Why does any top-level face need to be over six feet? Jericho is clearly superior to Edge, and has put together enough momentum that he belongs above IC level. And Shawn Michaels, HHH's "equal," is barely six feet.
As for Shelton, he can be "written out," or can battle through the injury en route to taking the IC strap. I like the idea of the Edge heel turn, but if HHH is taking the strap back, someone needs to be sacrificed, and Edge seems as good of a candidate as any. Ideally, I'd want to do Rock-HHH to hold off the match with Benoit, then do Benoit-Edge. However, I guess I wouldn't be mad if Edge battled Orton or Batista, while Jericho and Benoit squared off.
Originally posted by madiqWhy does any top-level face need to be over six feet? Jericho is clearly superior to Edge, and has put together enough momentum that he belongs above IC level. And Shawn Michaels, HHH's "equal," is barely six feet.
I agree. If it were me, I'd have Rey Mysterio in title contention. But it just seems like taller faces have better luck, if historical WWF booking is any inidication. Smaller guys might get a big push, but it doesn't last. And HHH clearly has a hard time consistently selling for guys under 6 feet who aren't named Michaels.
-- Asteroid Boy
Wiener of the day: 23.7.02, 3.12.03
"In addition, my tickets weren’t really what you’d expect from the webmaster of the internet’s largest independent pro-wrestling website." - Widro
"My brother saw the Undertaker walking through an airport." - Rex "Was he no-selling?" - Me
Madiq, you say if HHH is taking the strap back, someone needs to be sacrificed. They just did that w/ him and Michaels. Michaels gave him a clean job, we never even saw a sledgehammer. HHH is already built up as high as he can go w/o a World Title Match, having just beaten the #2 face on the program(Michaels), behind Benoit. A program w/ Edge would be a step down for him at this point.
(I apologize for this post being completely off the topic of Shelton and his hand.)
Originally posted by bigredmachine29Madiq, you say if HHH is taking the strap back, someone needs to be sacrificed. They just did that w/ him and Michaels. Michaels gave him a clean job, we never even saw a sledgehammer. HHH is already built up as high as he can go w/o a World Title Match, having just beaten the #2 face on the program(Michaels), behind Benoit. A program w/ Edge would be a step down for him at this point.
I agree about a program with Edge being a step down, but I think he meant "someone to be sacrificed" in terms of who does the first PPV loss when there's a new champ. At least, that's how I read it.
Everytime someone wins the belt, they defend it at the next PPV successfully to 'validate' their reign. If Triple H wins the title, then someone will have to job at the next PPV, and Edge may as well be the guy.
The problem with Shelton was that they never developed any kind of gimmick for him. This is really disappointing because Y2J's ringwork has been very sloppy since the Christian cage match and not all of it can be blamed on Tomko, and Edge is not up to speed yet.
Edge/Orton is a meaningless feud that even a hardcore mark will realize is placeholding. I say turn Benoit heel have him feud with Y2J, give HHH time off, Batista/Edge feud, rebuild Orton's wrestling credibility by having him squash some undercarders, so he's both a skin of teeth and serious champ.
The problem with Shelton was that they never developed any kind of gimmick for him.
The WWE gave him the scrappy underdog gimmick that I think they always wanted to give to Maven. The problem is that Benjamin started working a Main Event style and limited his moveset to that of a Maven and now he's even got an injury to boot. Benjamin clearly has more upside than Maven, but he's got to add more to his moveset that looks like a rip off of very early Sting. I like the fact that he is getting the IC push, I just don't think that he is quite ready for the IC strap.
Firstly, I think Shelton is as ready as anyone else on the RAW roster. Plus, if anyone is going to end Orton's Rock-like reign, it should be someone who can be positioned as an archnemesis. I think Tony Stewart is right in that Maven was the original option, but injuries and slower development have set him back. Still, Shelton's a true blue-chipper, and if he can break out the WWE Amateur Style instead of WWE Main Event style, he can maintain his heat.
But maybe, if so many people feel like he lacks character, he should spend this injured time getting his persona over. My perspective on the most marketable persona for him is that of The Prodigy, an amateur who sparred with Brock Lesnar and was trained by Kurt Angle, and due to extensive preparation, has a high wrestling IQ. He should approach wrestling like sports phenoms like Kobe Bryant, Lebron James, and Michael Vick did in their respective sports, with a degree of cockiness, but an air of preparedness. He should be constantly adding moves to his repetoire, and should be able to, Mike Tenay-style, explain the origins of moves and detail their effectiveness.
If he is going to be inactive for a few months, I'd use that time to put him on commentary, where that persona can shine through. I'd have JR put over the hours of videotape that Shelton watches, so that he can show how adept he can be at assessing and anticipating strategy. By the time he's ready to wrestle again, the fans would anticipate seeing him put his words into action.
Overall, I thought Shelton was ready before, but if they tighten up his characterization, his worthiness will be undeniable.
Originally posted by TopTenPro all he needs is the "future" technology that the New Breed used!
That was a cast with a Mac computer chip and a couple of wires pasted on. LITERALLY pasted on.
And just remember, we ARE now finally caught up to the New Breed's era in time (they were from 2004 and were partying like it was 1999 for 5 years already, you'll recall) and we're all the better for it.
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