He sold it so well he didn't even show up to Raw!

There's nothing wrong with this if it's done right. Austin (97-99) and Orton (Present) work and talk like heels, but were faces. Most people around here, including myself, seem to like Cena better when he was a face who talked like a heel. Triple H tends to talk like a heel, and sometimes works like a heel, when he is a face. Being a face who talks like a heel can and does work and has been proven to potentially get a guy over.

Morrison can be a face with some of the cocky heelish attitude he had back when he tagged with Miz as long as he is booked right. Just have him talk down to his opponents, avoid talking down to the fans, and occasionally give a nod to the fans here and there (like when Austin adopted the "Give me a 'Hell Yeah!'")

I can't say if this style would work for Morrison, but it's damn well worth a try. Despite his lacking mic skills, we've been seeing some of the best damn ring work we've ever seen from Morrison as a face because he is encouraged to go for those crazy acrobatic spots to get the crowd to pop. heels can't really do that. I hope they don't turn Morrison heel because I enjoy watching him in the ring right now more than anyone else they have, and if done right, a feud between him and Punk has Epic written all over it. Maybe the two of them could headline Wrestlemania next year.

To be fair, Orton and Cena didn't take as brutal of shots as Punk and Morrison.

If anyone should be called out for not selling, it's Barrett. Didn't he go through the glass twice?

There are two kinds of big spots in the EC. The high flyer spot, and the glass spot. Anyone who is the victim in the glass spot should be selling like crazy the next time you see him. Let alone someone who does it twice.

That said I agree they looked a little too spry, given how hyped EC is as deadly match.

Normally I'd agree with you, but I'd rather everyone just forget what happened to Barrett at EC, in his case it might be a good idea not to sell what was essentially him getting squashed and really Barrett just walked to the ring and talked, he didn't wrestle or run around like Orton did so not the same thing.

Orton got pretty beat up.

Taker looks like he smelled a fart.

I wish Undertaker and Triple H didn't return. Watching Triple H come down the aisle made me feel like it was 2008 again.

Fuck off with all this "boring" and "whatta bout sheamus?!?!" fucking shit. Triple H and Undertaker sold fucking $60 a pop ppv without saying a word. Read the emotion in their eyes and the warbling of Triple H's throat as he finally confronts the man who ended the career of his best friend. Triple H and Undertaker did what 98% of the roster...including your precious fucking Sheamus and Barrett CAN'T DO...sell a moment and a match off pure emotion and intensity. There are no words that can describe the goosebumps I felt when Triple H and Undertaker locked eyes. There are no words that can describe the feeling that overtook my body when two of the absolute biggest stars in the history of professional wrestling set the stage for an epic encounter on the grandest stage of them all.

You people bitch about poor midcarders and stifled pushes. You stay bitter, angry, and constantly bitching about what could have been. Accept this gift Vince McMahon has chosen to give us this year. I along with millions around the world will enjoy this epic encounter between two immortals of the wrestling world. Triple H vs The Undertaker at WrestleMania XXVII. Vince, here is $60 may I please have another!

lol

I have a hard time telling when James Steele is serious.

Your undying love for HHH aside, I totally agree with this. Best part of the show.

However, the fear (and justifiably so) is the long run cost of this epicness. Is this going to be along the lines of Undertaker "feature attraction", sporadic appearances that make the world go nucking futs? Or, will this end up becoming business as usual where Hunter is on every TV show 40 minutes every week for 10 months straight after 'mania and everyone gets sick of seeing him and the bitching for new blood again gets louder? Not like there's history behind that or anything... oh wait, there is.

Well given you have HHH's logo as your avatar here, I'm going to assume you kinda sorta love H. So your opinion of the matter might be just a tad bit biased.

Now you raise good points about selling a moment. These two have done it before. But how did they do that last night? They stared at each other, they looked at some logo, and then proceeded to take two minutes to use all their non-verbal taunts and wow we have a match!

I'll admit too my point is a bit biased too. I was totally sold on the youth movement going on in the WWE as they were in a desperate need to have one. With HBK retiring, Y2J, Batista leaving and HHH and Taker being hurt every other PPV the roster was depleted.

And the writers for a period of about five-seven months did a superb job of elevating wrestlers into credible main eventers. And now, on the one show a fan will buy merely because of its name, they had a chance for these guys to showcase WHY they were in these spots.

Instead we get a recycled match that will do neither wrestler any good, AND stunts the growth of the future.

I love HHH and Taker, but I totally disagree with you that there was a good build to this match last night. You want a good build with the heat of him losing his friend? Have HHH try to superkick him to end the segment. THAT would have gotten a lot of people such as myself pretty happy.

I just hated how abrupt HHH's "return" was. There was no pause or anything between the entrances. HHH's music just started playing all of a sudden. I mean, I see why it was like that because it was a silent promo and Taker couldn't really talk about anything. But It's almost like they threw that segment together 20 minutes before it was set to go live.

"Dunn: ok, so Taker goes out, HHH goes out, you get together and do your classic taunts and then you'll both stare at the Mania sign and we're good. No moving on to Sheam....nah fuck him"

I was just hoping for the spectacular HHH return that we are used to seeing. If they weren't going to use Sheamus/HHH, then I would of at least had Sheamus come out and confront Taker and then HHH makes his grand return. Lays out Sheamus real quick and Taker/HHH do there shit.

Honestly, Loose you are onto something...

You want to book Sheamus well and still make everyone happy?

You could have had Sheamus look real strong in the past weeks instead of a noob by having him take out people left and right until he gets on the mic and says something along the lines of "there is not one living person in this world who can take down King Sheamus". That's when the lights go out and bam you have a feud.

At WM, you have Sheamus dominate the Taker using some classic heel moves. But just as Sheamus is about to take him out with a chair or something with a ref out BAM... Time to play the game.

HHH comes out, destroys Sheamus with a sledge hammer so he's now "shelved" and Taker wins and goes 19-0. Following the match, you have the type of staredown you saw on Raw except HHH takes out Taker setting up a post Mania feud.


You would have given the rub to a young star instead of stunting his growth.

Taker keeps his streak going.

HHH fans get to see a WrestleMania moment and still gets to see a Taker/HHH feud in the spring.

It's a big enough "risk" for WWE to have Miz main event as Champion alongside Cena and more than likely The Rock and also having Del Rio win this year's Royal Rumble. To me, that's a huge leap for WWE's main event scene.

If you then go ahead with HHH/Sheamus and Taker/Barrett, there is no marquee match that stands out in terms of all-around "proven" star power. I think if you polled the audience, 95 out of 100 fans would rather see Taker and Triple H square off than the HHH/Sheamus and Taker/Barrett possibilities (even if they continued their strong pushes). Basically, when push comes to shove, WWE wants to make the most amount of money possible at WrestleMania, so they turned to their two biggest cash cows, The Undertaker and Triple H. I for one can't wait.

When was the last time HHH had a truly remarkable match. Just curious.

LOL. Wrestlemania is the biggest show of the year. THey want to make matches that appeal to everyone, and make it must see.

Takers Streak Vs HHH (Who has been the dominant champ in the WWE for the better part of 10 years) is going to sell more than Taker Vs Wade, or HHH vs Sheamus.

Do you REALLY think, that after the last two WM matches he has had, and how huge the steak has been made, that they would ever take the Taker down to a Sheamus or Wade match.

If anyone thinks that, you are too SMARK for your own good.

HHH will get back to Sheamus right after WM, mark it.

And you fuckers complaining about the same old matches, and how the young guys are getting pissed on...

You do realize we are possibly 6 weeks away from seeing the Miz and Del Rio, the two new age poster boys, walk out of the event as champs.

Gay. Also the laziest setup for any WM match I've ever seen.

Only a tad bit biased..:shifty:

To be fair, I MIGHT be able to buy Sheamus vs HHH if Sheamus was booked strongly during HHH's absence. Afterall, they did square off at the last mania.

But yeah, that was what I was saying earlier. The Michaels matches set a precedent for the streak matches. Wade has come far, but he is not ready for that huge a match up yet, imo. Even if he had continued to have been booked strongly instead of stagnating in Corre, I still wouldn't buy him as a legit threat.

Part of making stars is not just giving them that huge moment at mania, but building to make sure that moment is believable. That is why I still don't buy sheamus as a main eventer. He was rushed onto the scene without the proper build.

I feel like they are trying to replicate the meteoric rise of Lesnar with some of these guys, but that kind of thing is one and a million, imo.

OMG! THEY ARE RECYCLING A MATCH FROM 10 YEARS AGO AND UNDERTAKER HAS A DIFFERENT GIMMICK AND HHH IS A FACE NOW BUT THAT STILL SUXORZ CUZ I WANNA SEE SHEAMUS GET A PUSH!?!?!?!

April 25, 2010 - WWE Extreme Rules - Street Fight Match
Triple H vs Sheamus

When was the last time Lara Emily had a comment that mattered. Just curious

epic? Really? okay

lol at Sheamus DOING THE JOB to Henry. Bout time. The guy was given too much too quick anyways. I forget that he's a former WWE Champion. He doesn't deserve Triple H at WrestleMania

I am too happy about Mark Henry getting a clean win, to care about Sheamus.

Wanna make it clear that I am 100% on the Taker/HHH side, as the match should happen instead of HHH/Sheamus, but...

It's annoying how WWE is so inconsistent with pushing Sheamus. I miss the days where if you won the World Title, you never went back down the card, and if you did, it was in a highly promoted grudge match. In the end it just makes the belt look shitty. They've done it to Swagger, and now to Sheamus.

I would like to see HHH and Taker get closure on the people that put them out of action. Both could have been okay non-Mania PPV matches, but there isn't time for them between now and Mania except on Raw. I'm fine with that. Sheamus wouldn't have beaten HHH and Barrett wouldn't have beaten Taker because they are heels. That's just how the feuds would have ended. Just finish them both on Raw and let Sheamus and Barrett move onto other things.

Yes, really. Punk knows how to tell a story in the ring better than most, and Morrison can pull off spots that no one else can. Epic. Deal with it.

It would be very good. Maybe even great. But not epic. That word gets thrown around far too much. Michaels vs Taker I & II were epic. HHH vs Taker has potential to be epic. Everything else can only hope to be great.

Semantics.

HHH vs. Taker will be good, but I will be surprised if it is great, let alone "epic." HHH has a limited moveset, and half of them involve a sledgehammer. Taker is getting more and more limited with every match he has. At this point, both men are pretty injury prone. The reason HBK vs Taker was "epic" is because it was HBK. Like him or not, HBK has always had the ability to bring whoever he was performing with up to his level. The guy can have a match with virtually anyone, and steal the show. He is Mr. Wrestlemania for a reason. But there is also a reason that in their prime, HBK was having 20 minute matches, 30 minute matches, iron man matches, etc. while Taker usually had 5-10 minute matches max. Taker's entrance is incredible, the story he tells in the ring is good, but even in his prime his actual matches themselves (unless a gimmick was involved) were subpar at best. HHH is similar in that he can have a great match with someone like HBK, Austin, or Rock, but he needs someone of that level to play off of. The quality of both Taker's and HHH's matches are dependent on who they are in the ring with, and whether or not that person can put on a hell of a match.

I love HHH and I love Taker, but they are best suited at squashing people in short matches, unless paired with an HBK or a Rock. Don't expect a repeat of what HBK and Taker were able to do.

Between the HHH/Taker promo and the first half of the Lawler interview, at least we know that WWE writers don't get paid by the word.

You guys act like Movesets and work rate make classic moments.

Did you even see Rock vs Hogan?

Easily the BEST match that Wrestlemania, and one of the 5 greatest matches ever IMHO. I dont just look at the moves. There is a story, back story, and history involved.

You have to look at it in Kayfabe as well.

HHH poses the biggest threat to the Streak now, and possibly for the last 5 Wreslemanias or so. He is the Game. Game Vs the Streak. And if they add a major strip like has been mentioned, then you have a game changer. No pun intended.

Wrong. We act like movesets and work rate make for classic MATCHES. Despite the fact that everyone talks about WrestleMania moments, I doubt that many people are paying 60 bucks just to watch a moment that will be replayed on youtube, Raw, Smackdown, etc. Ultimately, the majority of us want good matches to give the moments meaning.

That's because The Rock can wrestle. HBK vs Hogan at SummerSlam was also a great match. Because HBK can wrestle. Did you see Hogan vs. McMahon at Wrestlemania XIX? Great build. Plenty of story. And arguably a story that had been building for decades. Or at least since Hogan defected to WCW. But a pretty bad match because neither man can wrestle. Hell they had to make it a street fight just to cover up the fact that they can't wrestle.

Hogan is the first name that comes to mainstream minds when they think of wrestling, but let's not forget that the majority of mainstream media and mainstream audiences (nonwrestling fans) don't take wrestling very seriously. Many even see it as a joke. Coincidence? This is why so many celebrities won't come near anything associated with wrestling, and one of the reasons The Rock has been gone for so long. He had to distance himself from wrestling just so Hollywood would take him seriously.

Moments are great, but forgive us if many of us tune into wrestling and like to see....um.....wrestling. Isn't that way so many people here argue that Smackdown is superior to Raw? Because Smackdown is more wrestling oriented while Raw is more about "moments."

It seems to me that you are more interested in the kind of wrestling that was made fun of in the South Park episode, "W.T.F." Which, coincidently, is how most people in the mainstream view pro wrestling, and why so many see it as a joke. If you haven't seen that episode, I recommend that you check it out. It's about you :lol:

Jericho v. Steamboat




On to something else besides HHH/Taker...

Something else happened on RAW that went largely unnoticed, and that was Cena's "freestyle" promo. Now it wasn't so much the promo itself that I want to point out, but the style. Nevermind that the PG poster boy went to a few things he would have disqualifed Punk and Barrett for in that match a few weeks ago, but one thing that I wanted to point out was his change in tone for the delivery.

For a brief moment, he went back to the Cena the haters are holding out for. He ditched the "happy go lucky" and "poopie joke" Cena to the stance of taking Rock's comments seriously.

It's good to see some of that edge back in the character, even for just a moment, but I for one just wish this would have happened vs. Nexus instead of just folding them into comedy relief and keeping kid-friendly Cena during "the greatest threat ever to WWE". So, 7 guys constantly jumping your star player and even making him their bitch for a couple weeks doesn't harden him at all, but a few insults from The People's Champ makes him get all serious? I know it seems like I just contradicted how I feel about what happened in the same paragraph, but I'm just sayin'... it was great to see Ruck Fules Cena for a second, just wish it was done a little sooner to make more sense on the whole and maybe quell some of the backlash against the guy.

Anyone else have any thoughts?

Oh I couldn't agree more. Cena alone ruined the Nexus angle for me because if the guy taking a stand against them cant act like they are a serious threat then how can they be looked at as a serious threat. Suddenly they felt more like The Spirit Squad back in 06 when they were the butt of every DX joke (sometimes literally) every week. If Cena would have suddenly got serious after that first night when they beat him down, and gave it a no more mr nice guy attitude, I think the angle would have been a lot better.

Oh fuck off. Have you been watching wrestling for longer than a year? Have you ever seen Triple H wrestle? He is the definition of RING GENERAL.

In your opinion.

I am for HHH/Taker btw

Fucking idiotic statement. He better not bitch if he busts out the indian deathlock or crossface. Also, he only has like 3 moves with the sledgehammer (to the face, to the sternum, to the skull).

Can someone other than James Steele point me to a match HHH has done recently that was super fantastic

Can someone else be an incessant bitch? This one is getting worn out.

It's an honest question. I'm legit curious when the last time in a 1 on 1 match Triple H was omg outstanding.

You will never accept an answer because either a) oh your just an HHH mark posting or b) nah. that match sucked. or c) you feel like bitching about something surrounding the match. You will never give Triple H the credit he is due because you are looking for something to shit all over him on. If they decide to build the entire feud around HHH avenging Shawn Michaels will you still bitch about it not having any build?

If they do it in an entertaining way sure.

BTW I don't hate HHH I just think his time has passed. You are the only one whose opinion on an HHH match I don't trust, you're the only big Triple H mark here.

Yes, because Triple H has hogged up so many main events and title reigns since 2005. He has had three reigns since he dropped the belt to Batista at WrestleMania 21. He has only been in a WM Title match in 3 WMs since, and he lost 2 of them. He is exactly where he is needed as an "enhancement main eventer" in which he is "finishing school" for guys. He cemented John Cena at WrestleMania 22 and solidified the new Randy Orton at WrestleMania XXIV. He went to SmackDown! and helped push Jeff Hardy to the next level and was a part of him being the hottest thing in the business at the time. While on SD!, HHH had to carry Khali through SummerSlam and Kozlov through Survivor Series. He then went on through a great feud with Orton through WM25. The match was underwhelming but the standards set for the night couldn't be reached. Then, DX feuds with Legacy and really give the rub to Rhodes/DiBiase. HHH/HBK/Cena at Survivor Series 09 was a great match and the psychology was tremendous. Then, they have a great match with JeriShow at TLC. Then, Triple H makes Sheamus a fucking STAR. Now, he is back and getting a marquee feud with Undertaker. I along with millions of people am fired up about this and they didn't need to say a word or do some over the top build. It is amazing how having 2 of the biggest stars in the history of wrestling agree to fight just works. I believe they will throw some fuel on the fire with HHH avenging HBK, but at the end of the day there will be asses in seats and eyes on televisions because Triple H and Undertaker are going to kick each others' ass at WRESTLEMANIA!

lol james you are entertaining as hell. so much energy goes into every one of your posts.

i would have personally ignored the trollish posts.

Lara does kind of have a point.

Can't remember the last 'great' match he's had to be honest. No doubting he's very good, but for someone at this level, he hasn't had many memorable matches in the last couple of years.

*runs*

Like we're supposed to take the word of someone whose avatar was the movie poster from "The Chaperone" for a month in what is good taste or high quality......


:rofl:

Good one.

And three moves without the sledgehammer (pedigree, knee to face, spinebuster/flex pose combo). So like I said, half his moves involve a sledgehammer. Thanks for providing the evidence to support my argument. I appreciate it :y:

Maybe Sheamus just won his feud with Triple H last year

Thank you

Y'know, the more I think about it. Guys last 'great' match was probably Summerslam against HBK. That was a long time ago now

C'mon now. WrestleMania XX? WrestleMania 22? Pick one of his PPV matches with Ric Flair. Hell, the Last Man Standing or Hell in a Cell match with HBK in 04 were great matches. Hell in a Cell at Vengeance 05 vs Batista was a great match. After WM22, HHH mostly was involved with DX feuding with the McMahons and the Spirit Squad. He was out for most of 2007. The triple threat at WM24 was a good match, but I wouldn't classify it as "great". Hell, you can't expect a man to constantly put on classic after classic. Hardy/HHH at No Mercy 08 was a damn good match but was over-shadowed by HBK/Jericho. The DX/Legacy matches were pretty fucking good too in 09. He then put on great performances with Sheamus. Please tell me oh Lara and Dave the Gods of Wrestling Greatness, what OTHER than HBK/TAKER and HBK/JERICHO has been "great" in the past 10 years.

Why would it matter who points you to a good match?

Because then she wouldn't have any solid points to her argument other than being a bitchy MegaSmark™.

Angle/Lesnar (Mania 19, Ironman match), Angle/Guerrero, HBK/Flair, Orton/Benoit, Angle/Benoit (pick one), Daniel Bryan/Dolf Ziggler, Edge/Foley, Foley/Orton , Angle/HBK, Benoit/Jericho/Austin, Austin/Rock Wm 17 and 19, Rock/Angle/Taker, Benoit/HHH/HBK (I agree with you on that one), Orton/Taker, Edge/Taker, any number of the Benoit/Austin matches from 01

Because Steele's gimmick is that he think HHH is Jesus.

BTW Cena/HHH Wm 22 was not great. It was solid elevated by a great crowd, kinda like say Cena/RVD ONS 06

Daniel Bryan/Dolf Ziggler is great (which it was), but nothing Triple H has done in 6 years is? Fuck off with that absurdity.

Bryan/Ziggler was an amazing match, dude it fucking tied HBK/UT 2 for match of the year.

They also turned around and had a pretty awesome rematch the next night.

I forgot mania 20. I'd put that In there. It's only my opinion. My main issue with trips is that everyone works his style match and he doesn't change up his game. Which, for me, means that the matches although of high quality, all blend into one. At least in the past few years.

To answer your other question about what matches in the past decade I've personally loved:

Do Fixer v Blood Generation - ROH Chicago
MCMG v Beer Money - The last in the Best of 5 on TV last summer
Angle v HBK - Mania
Sabin v Shelly - Can't remember the PPV, but it was for the X title

That's purely off the top of my head, I relate my favourite matches to the emotional attachment I have to them for different reasons.

Trips hasn't done that for me since 2003, sorry.

That was a great match.

Remember these are 2 fresh guys doing new things, which is what some people like to see

I agree it is a good match, but it wasn't match of the year. Who voted it match of the year? Some newsletter than is geared toward circle-jerking self-righteous smark cunts?

<font color=goldenrod>WWE.com</font>

Oh you got me there it was voted match of the year by the most stuck up smark publication in history...


WWE.com

Here ya go Lara:

http://slamzilla.ca/wp-content/uploa...1/triple-H.jpg

http://i.wrestlinginc.com/featured/a...-del-rio-f.jpg

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_DvghL-6WKs...hhh+vs+rio.bmp

http://www.wwe.com/inside/fanappreci..._Photo_137.jpg

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_DvghL-6WKs...vs+del+rio.bmp

http://cache.daylife.com/imageserve/...fMeua/439x.jpg

http://vthumb.ak.fbcdn.net/hvthumb-a...624_1430_b.jpg

http://www.ac-n1.com/vb/imgcache/48105.imgcache.jpg

The match was go good, he had to wrestle in a t-shirt and jeans

You got me there, but come on. Ziggler/Bryan =/= Taker/HBK

Edit: Ziggler/Bryan was an awesome pure wrestling match, but it won't be remembered by WrestleMania XXX.

HBK/Taker I no but that's light years ahead of almost everything in at least the past 5 years.

HBK/Taker II which it tied with absolutely. That ZIggler/Bryan match was phenomenal and it earned MOTY equal billing for sure.

Ok Lara. Please tell me memorable spots/moments from the Ziggler/Bryan match off the top of your head that you will never forget. (No cheating).

I can't want to know why? It wasn't a match about spots or moments it was just an amazing 16 minute clinic.

So what I will remember about it was being absolutely blown away when it was done.

Show did a 3.9 according to PWInsider, which is huge.

I'm sure largely due to 2.21.11 hype

That and Rock's return. Willing to bet that Rock's return did about 75% of the jump.

Oh good point, it'll be intereasting what happens next week with ratings.

No Rock and a largely mixed reaction 2.21.11 reveal could drop the ratings.

2-21-11 was a huge letdown

Best ratings in a year. So, will they be able to use Taker/Triple H and Cena/Miz to even more ratings with the help of the Rock? Should be interesting.

So, you can't remember anything from the match other than it blew you away? What blew you away? How did they wrestle? I can tell you in graphic detail why I think a match or segment is great. I'm not arguing it wasn't a great match, but to list that match when shitting all over Triple H's work for the past 10 years is asinine.

There were several amazing reversals and close falls. It was just an amazing clinic like I said dude there was no high spots per say, the match just had an unbelievable flow to it, not one moment rose above the rest because it was all just top notch. A great match is not a sum of a bunch of spots.


And yes that match was better than pretty much everything HHH has done recently.

I'd agree considering he has been out for almost a year.

You must spread some reputation before giving it to CSL again.

Recently = past 2-3 years

I've given examples of matches in the past 2-3 years, but of course my opinion isn't valid to you and I gather anyone else won't be either since you will come up with some bullshit excuse to ignore the obvious and live in your bubble of smarkish ignorant bliss.

I'll admit that all of the Rock's movies haven't been great lol

But Cena wants to talk about The Rock "not coming back" to the WWE. First off, he's made appearances here and there, and when you "retire" or go away from wrestling, then GO AWAY. Thats whats wrong with the Hogans, Flairs, etc. Don't know when to say "hey, i got to my PEAK, nothing more for me to do other than help younger talent", but he does need to make money. But idk

While yes, it's true that Hogan and Flair just don't know when to quit, for other's it isn't that easy to stay away. If you are a big name there will always be fans begging for "one more match." Which proves to McMahon or Carter that there is still money to be made off of your name and legacy, so then they ask for "one more match." And if they can get more out of you, they'll take it. Wrestlers are guilty of not being able to walk away, but the fans and the people signing the checks don't make it easy either.