Anyone care about Drew McIntyre now?
 

I'm catching up and trust me it's really tough.

Maybe a McIntyre heel turn right after his belt capture should have been in the plans? He's no longer interesting. If you're setting him up for Lesnar, Lesnar needs to be their. He has to be at the shows. You have to have showdowns. It dont mean shit to me ( now a kinda fan ).

I've grown more interested in Seth Rollins character. But at the same time, I dont care about McIntyre anymore.

This should not have happened. There was clearly not a plan after he won. It fucking sucks man. I might stop watching anymore.

He's a talented guy, but he's not the most dynamic guy. Less than the sum of his parts to me. But then when I see him, he's obviously really good. And the great booking for him has been top notch, whereas the shit booking of him has undercut him tremendously.

When I think about the future, and I can't help but fantasy book, when it comes to his reign I'm always struggling of ways to make it interesting to me. But I don't think they should cut bait with him. It's a tough position to be in.

They don't really have the heels for him. We've seen him beat Brock and I have a feeling that him and Orton will be a very bland mesh. And what then? I'm not longer a fan of the gimmick, but if they gave MITB to someone other than Otis, they could have had them cash in on Drew to give him a nice exit from the title scene, then have Roman Reigns beat that guy, and then you could turn Reigns heel and build a stable around him, Seth Rollins and The Usos -- which would feel like a heel group that could run things for a while. Across the shows, I mean, because the roster split is weak.

Well, first of all... Let's get past the " He's a talented guy " stuff. They are all talented.


I'm not blaming McIntyre. I think WWE has zero future plans and they are ruining guys. There should have been a plan for Drew after WM. They knew Brock wasnt gonna be around. Why would you not have a plan? That's a terrible sign. And I'm not sure why i'm pointing this out because that's been the same sign for 3 years.

Nevermind.

I really like Drew, I haven't been watching Raw regularly since his win but I usually like him when he's on. I wish things were better for him because I think he could be a whole new thing for WWE.

You cant argue that they didnt know Brock would disappear. They knew! We knew! Just the same with Goldberg! They've failed to even attempt to make stars on the biggest show they have. It's a level of incompetence that I can only be rivaled by the current United States Presidency.

I think a lot of us love Drew. I'm not blaming Drew McIntyre! WWE has absolutely failed him and the fans. THey have no fucking clue what they are doing. I'm really not sure how they draw fans to watch anymore.

Drew McIntyre should be the focal point of every RAW. Ya there should be side stories, but no writer in WWE has the ability to write a side story for the fucking champion on RAW?

I could write a side story for Drew McIntyre and Mojo right now that would span the entire RAW... with other people in the midcard getting over on RAW. And it would be amazing! These writers are not just shit! The people hiring them are shit! The people with the vision are shit! And WWE are burning through great talents. Imagine the things that could have been done with Rusev after the Cena feud! FML! How do you squander that????

I CAN WRITE A 3 HOUR STORY BETWEEN DREW and MOJO that would have Drew winning but Mojo getting over. I can do that with ease. I think a lot of us can.


What the motherfuck is the the problems with these writers???

Give me a reasonable explanation why WWE can no longer write a single story or an episode?

It makes no sense.

They cant, because these writers are not versed in wrestling and they cant continue stories. They can write one. And they are done. And that's why we see new stories every week with no continuity what so ever.

He's a talented guy in the sense that he's got the tools to be a top guy. The one thing he might be missing is that intangible charisma. Not everybody has that talent. He's not an insulting choice to be WWE Champion.

There's a difference between writing the story and it playing out and actually working. There are actually stories in the WWE. Apollo Crews and Bobby Lashley/MVP have a story going on. But is that equating to anything? Getting people over is a result not an action.

The problem is that, beyond being a sterile product and guys not being allowed to cut promos or seem like genuine people anymore, you've got a three-hour program on Mondays and a two-hour program on Friday, which might not be the same "brand," as they tell you, but totally is and is followed by a lot of the same people.

The product is fatiguing. It's way too exhausting to be a completionist. And it's way too hard to fill five hours of content each week, featuring two "unique" rosters that places emphasis on people that is conducive to them becoming stars.

Reduce Raw to two hours, take the hit financially and/or produce more content for USA to air at different slots -- things like a one-hour Raw edit, a late night show with a bit more attitude, a studio show on Saturday mornings or just shit like 205 Live. Things that are not going to be priority viewing, but will still probably do a bit better than other things in those slots. Raw can then tighten up. Let guys talk and tighten up their work so they're not all having the same match and leave shit to PPV. Build around the talent you actually want to be stars. Don't be afraid to get rid of people you don't or who aren't. Have one fucking main roster.

That will go a long way to making things better, but even that doesn't feel fresh, because we've seen that all before. In a perfect world where the WWE wasn't so decided to by TV rights fees, it wouldn't hurt having either Raw or SmackDown go dark for a bit and wait until there was demand for a second show back.

But they need a star. If they get that, other things might click into place a bit more nicely. I don't know if that guy is Drew McIntyre.

I'm not sure you read my post at all. I think you had all of that ready to post because you're a fucking wresting forum weirdo.

Yes, that is why it responds to your questions

Agree 100%

I think that Drew has the potential to be a legend of his own making and should be THE guy. I think he has the charisma and I think you will see it more when he gets to work with actual fans supporting him.

And the other chunk I agree with 100%.

Wouldn't mind seeing Drew and Braun swap places. Throw everyone over 40 onto Raw, as well as Braun Strowman, Bray Wyatt and other acts associated with the over 40 club (Sami Zayn, Big E, Xavier Woods). Let that show take care of itself. Focus on SmackDown.

RP going all kinds of bonkers up in this bitch

Even if he has it (I've dug how he's carried himself since getting the push), it will depend on how fans take to him. They can turn resentful of anyone getting a push on a dime. I hope he does well. I don't think he should lose the belt until they've tried it.

Yeah I am hopeful of that they let him reign until they can get a feel for him leading the show and sending everyone home happy with The Claymore. I really like the way he talks to "the universe", like day one when he started this babyface run he was just 10x cooler than he was before. Something quirky but also bad ass about him. The big fear is that WWE would neuter him like we were talking about in that other thread on WWE capping themselves off for fear of a star outgrowing the brand again.

I'm trying my best to talk sense. I think its falling on deaf ears.

I need a cock ear implant

I think he has been better as a face then Reigns or Rollins runs because he hasn't been booked weak or forced to give lame promos.

That said, I would prefer he had gotten this push as his heel psychopath/terminator character. That said, there is a subtle enjoyment watching him claymore the hell out of all the heels.

WWE is at the point where adding content is what matters most. It is a business model a lot of media properties do nowadays.

Two I can think of right off the bat are South Park and Its Always Sunny. Both are incredible shows, but they both have been coming out with 10 episode seasons, because they are simply adding more content each year to an already amazing catalogue.

No matter what WWE does week to week, they are adding 7 hours of prime time content to their catalogue. The end game is what was hinted at prior to covid. If WWE can license let's say 7500 hours of back catalogue to a streamer, let's say Peacock for 3 years, then at the end of that 3 years, the catalogue is now 8500 hours. Even if those extra 1000 hours are the worst 1000 hours of the 8500 total, the catalogue is worth more than it was, because it's still got all of the best content, plus an additional 1000 hours.

This is a good thread. Some good observations in here. I dont really have an opinion but i good reads all the same.

You're right. Where the balance tips is when that bulk volume of content becomes less valuable than less content with more value. If Raw gets to the stage where it is unwanted by Peacock, then suddenly they have a fucking problem, because they can have 8,500 hours of content, but they need to be able to sell it. That 7,500 hours of content might be more valuable. Even if they can peddle the 8,500, they may be able to peddle the 7,500 for an overall gain if the product is hotter.

That being said, I don't think we'll see any of this. If we do, it'll be because that Raw rating keeps tanking and because one guy is in charge of a show he's happy with, but can't replicate it on the other show, then it's the show. Or USA orders that third hour away, which seems unlikely, unless they get really perturbed by the overall Raw decrease.

What I think will happen is, as cable dies, the WWE will endear itself to these budding networks and try to strike up deals where their content provides weekly content to a service that needs it, while they can still exist in the world of cable. I think they're hoping for a slow crunch back down.

Raw and SmackDown both have one hour edit versions that air over here. That tells me that there is interest in the product enough to justify putting those packages together and exporting them. The WWE will try and get Raw and SmackDown onto apps like Peacock, ESPN+, etc. at the full length for as much as they can, but they will probably settle for using those hour edit shows as OTT packages to get their content onto those sorts of mediums and compensate for dying cable or play both sides of the field for a while. Raw might decrease in value exclusively for USA Network, but as something that does really well on USA, plus something they can put on Peacock, they can make up the ground there while not necessarily alienating anyone.

It is not a good sign for the product getting more digestible or necessarily more engaging, but it is probably the best thing for their bottom-line. It would be a great time for a Vince McMahon sale, honestly. The next time their deals come up, they might be the most valuable they've ever been, given how much content they have and how potentially crucial they might be to cable and streaming. But in addition to that, they also have that back catalogue too.

The best sign for the WWE becoming more engaging, in my opinion, is if they decide they need to heat their product up to get metrics up. They would have to understand that they need a star to get those ratings up, as well as those houses up when crowds come back. They've now got the resources to pay top talent a lot of money to stay with them for a long time. A guy like Drew is probably signed on for five years from the start of this year. So, barring something really tragic cutting his active career short, they can probably bank on him to either be someone they can build around or at least be someone that, somehow, transcends the business and can't wrestle anymore for them, but is another beacon of WWE's ability to produce mainstream stars for them to gloat about.

They don't really have the same excuse to not make guys they've had since Brock Lesnar and Bobby Lashley left. Now they can pay them to sit at home and aren't going to let them out of their contracts upon request. Anyone they decide to make is likely WWE for a good half-decade.

Right, what I'm saying is that the good footage is always going to be valuable. If Peacock or whoever decides they want the catalogue because they want classic rock and wrestling and the attitude era, that is not going to change because WWE added another 3 years of shows that aren't as good as the previous eras. They are still going to want the great eras and will pay for the extra 1000 hours to keep the good hours.

The Office is one of the most popular streaming shows on Netflix. Even though the main star left in season 7, Netflix still had to pay for season 8 and season 9.

Now, of course it is all hypothetical that they will ever be able to license their content in this way, but I think that is the next opportunity they are looking to go after.

I like Drew McIntyre and think an Orton/Drew feud would be good.

I think everyone can see where WWE is going. It's going to be very different in 2 to 3 years I think. It's true, you can't turn away the money. Somehow WWE has conned their way into the biggest year in company history during this horrible global pandemic and yet still I can't make it through an entire episode of any of their shows.

Might as well paste this here

I could barely tolerate WWE before the pandemic, I've not watched anything since the empty performance center shows.

Even having a "crowd" there now doesn't really help as they're pro-WWE. They'll cheer to good guys and boo the bad guys and there's no way for the writers to gauge who's truly popular and who isn't.

With that said, yeah, Drew's entire run seemed lacklustre as he's not yet been able to walk out to a huge pop or a "you deserve it" chant. But yeah he does seem just another typical smiley happy face champion.

I could very much do without the "You deserve it!" chants.

If they're going to go down this path with McIntyre, I wouldn't be opposed to them doing a Diesel thing on purpose with him. The WWE are not masters of subtlety, but you can have him glad-handing at a press conference when the WWE gets back to crowds, right next to Vince McMahon. He can defend the company on Twitter, etc. Not to the extent of Seth Rollins, but do it reasonably enough that people won't like it, but see it as part of his job.

Then have someone win the Royal Rumble to go against him at Mania. Someone like Keith Lee. He can still be the NXT Champion. Have Drew unify the belts by beating Braun at the Royal Rumble. Have the story coming out being that one man is going to walk away with all the gold. By this point, with this sort of exposure and presentation, the fans should be getting ready to turn on Drew. Have Keith Lee go into Mania, with all the momentum that Drew had the previous year, and Lee wins the WWE Title and Drew can turn heel afterwards, the bitter champion that carried the company during the pandemic and doesn't even get a thank you from the fans.

I dunno. Spit-balling here.