Paid Members ColinBollocks Posted July 12, 2013 Paid Members Share Posted July 12, 2013 You wonder how long Vince has left. The line is "Vince will be barking orders when he's in his coffin", but with Triple H taking so much control you'd assume he's on the out soon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AshC Posted July 12, 2013 Share Posted July 12, 2013 They did that big 'passing the torch' segment before that a lot of people were saying was legit at the time. I can't imagine Vince not being involved. It'll be wrestling's 'Sir Alex' moment if he ever steps aside completely. Though even Fergie is still poised to have some influence next season, so... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Stephens Posted July 12, 2013 Share Posted July 12, 2013 There has been alot of changes in the product as well since HHH took over. Longer matches, longer title reigns, better developmental system and actually having storylines for people when they are called up to the main roster. Â Back in the mid 2000's they were calling people up and then not using them properly. They would also call people up to the main roster and change their gimmick which they had been using in OVW for months or years. Â There is still alot of shit in the product but on the whole things seem to be getting better. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members IANdrewDiceClay Posted July 12, 2013 Paid Members Share Posted July 12, 2013 (edited) He'll be around until he dies. He still has final say over everything. Triple H isn't stepping on Vince's toes. Vince's role hasn't changed at all. What's Vince going to do? If he wants to do thing outside the business, he'll do it while still WWE Chairman. I cant see him going off to live a quiet life with Linda. He still works 6 days and week and sleeps all day on a Wednesday and he's well into his 60s. He's still the hardest worker there. Â There has been alot of changes in the product as well since HHH took over. Longer matches, longer title reigns, better developmental system and actually having storylines for people when they are called up to the main roster. They also sack the writers every other month leading to a lack of stability and storylines not finishing and heel and babyfaces turns being totally disjointed. Edited July 12, 2013 by IANdrewDiceClay Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
d-d-d-dAz Posted July 12, 2013 Share Posted July 12, 2013 Yeah, if anything he's just found a kindred spirit to consolidate his leadership style. Trips may be more 'rasslin and Vince more entertainment but they're both very, very similar in how thy do business. Â What I find very interesting is how Hunter, and his performance centre brainchild, has prioritised cardiovascular ability and athleticism. There was a time when people bitched about his hardon for bodybuilders, but under his watch the tryouts have become mostly about sport specific circuits, drills and footwork. Â He's turned into the opposite of the 2003 stereotype. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members air_raid Posted July 12, 2013 Paid Members Share Posted July 12, 2013 (edited) He's turned into the opposite of the 2003 stereotype. Â He's turned into the flipside of the 2003 stereotype given that under his watch they've signed a masked Mexican acrobat, a hard-hitting anti-Diva who made her name in Japan, and brought back a former talent that made some noise in New Japan. It's like a 2003 ROH forummer has been given the power to hire and fire. The other stereotype. Edited July 12, 2013 by air_raid Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members ShortOrderCook Posted July 13, 2013 Paid Members Share Posted July 13, 2013 Yeah, if anything he's just found a kindred spirit to consolidate his leadership style. Trips may be more 'rasslin and Vince more entertainment but they're both very, very similar in how thy do business. Â What I find very interesting is how Hunter, and his performance centre brainchild, has prioritised cardiovascular ability and athleticism. There was a time when people bitched about his hardon for bodybuilders, but under his watch the tryouts have become mostly about sport specific circuits, drills and footwork. Â He's turned into the opposite of the 2003 stereotype. Â That's because he and his own training have drastically changed in the same way and he's felt the benefits of his current style and the limitations of the purely bodybuilding methods the hard way. I'm overjoyed to see the transitions he's made and influenced on that front. I really, really love most of the big moves and decisions that Triple H has heavily influenced. I think we're in good hands. Triple H is awesome, he fucking knows. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members Quentin Posted July 13, 2013 Paid Members Share Posted July 13, 2013 Anyone have any examples of the kind of decisions Triple H was influencing at that time he had a load of heat from around a decade ago? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators PowerButchi Posted July 13, 2013 Moderators Share Posted July 13, 2013 Wasn't the Goldberg stuff about that time? That stuck in my craw somewhat. Â Oooooh, also "World Champions have 20 minute matches so I'm going to go that long with a half crippled Scott Steiner". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vamp Posted July 13, 2013 Share Posted July 13, 2013 I've always taken that as HHH thinking "well, that's how Ric got people over" and applying that to guys it didn't suit. Build the guy up, I'll have long matches with them, screw them over, they'll be over. That was even stupider with Goldberg. You can't book Goldberg the way you book everyone else because, as over as he is, he was over as a special attraction. He's the kind of character that you have come in, smash everyone, win, finally gets beaten and then, for a while at least, he's done. That was WCW's problem with Goldberg, once he'd done all that there's little else to him, he's not a rounded character, and so they tried to book him in heel turns and whatever else and it was gone. With the WWE they had him for a year, which is possibly a bit longer than you can keep him fresh for but is ideal in that you don't have to worry about where he's gonna be after that year. They tried to make more of Goldberg then was really there, and didn't make the most of him as a result. There's a big difference between the two. For a company that's known for booking the larger guys, they're not all that great at it sometimes. The same, to a certain extent, happened with Ryback but I moan about that all the time. Just as Punk has to shoulder some of the blame for the Ryback debacle because he shat all over him in the cell match and clearly has the sway and the talent to have lessened some of the damage, HHH could have done more to put over Goldberg on Goldberg's merits. With Scott Steiner they fucked up by putting him in the spot before he was fit enough. Of course the other big issue with that style of booking is you're on worldwide TV and you're the only one worth a damn. Ric did it in the territories. It's a different ball game. Â It's part of the WWE's overall problem of them wanting people around all the time and forever. They've changed a bit lately but only really with the guys who are already over. And so they try and get people a bit more rounded, so that they don't have to booked in a special way and that they can be around in five years time. But everyone comes out rather bland bar very special exceptions, of which Cena's the main one. As much as people rag on Cena staying the same and being around on top forever, he's the only one people really give a shit about. He faced Lesnar and the crowd gave far more of a shit about Cena than Lesnar. I don't even think they like booking truly detestable heels because they're half thinking "we've gotta book him as a face one day." The Husky Harris chants the other day kind of prove them right. Although that's also because they seem to accidently created a chasm between the WWE as a live experience and WWE the TV show. God knows how you fix that while being live. They've got a TV show about wrestling (which is fine) but they play it out in front of a wrestling crowd at a TV show. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members FLips Posted July 13, 2013 Paid Members Share Posted July 13, 2013 (edited) I can't speak for everyone but my problem with HHH circa 2003 was that he systematically went through all the new/new-ish ex WCW guys and crushed them. Goldberg looked strong for a while but then fell to HHH again which just wasted Goldberg. HBK got a win, but he's best mates with HHH and again passed the belt back to HHH. Booker, Steiner, Nash all lost to him too. I'm not saying they shouldn't have lost to anyone, but in the space of the year we had Goldberg, Kevin Nash, Booker T, Scott Steiner, and HBK all lose to HHH, sometimes on more than one occasion. HHH also for some reason looked fucking weird. He looked like Greg Valentine. Â And I remember (though I could be wrong) him constantly opening the show with a 10 minute promo. Edited July 13, 2013 by TripleA Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members air_raid Posted July 13, 2013 Paid Members Share Posted July 13, 2013 There used to be a video on YouTube where a former member of the WWE writing team says that the original plans were for Hunter to drop the World title in 2002 to first RVD and then Kane, but both times he lobbied successfully to get the result changed. It's been taken down now though. Â Apter/Ryder/Meltzer reported at the time that Booker T was meant to take the title from HHH at 'Mania XIX but it was changed last-minute i.e. on the day of the event, and plenty of people suggested it was at HHH's behest. Â Obviously it's kind of logical to keep the title on Hunter if you've got Goldberg coming in, but all the subtle (or not so subtle) racism stuff going into the event really built up the desire to see Hunter get executed on the big stage. Hunter could have regained it before building for the Goldberg match - they could have had the title match later in the year, there were quite a few guys Goldberg could have worked before Hunter. He never wrestled Shawn one on one on PPV, Hunter could have forced him to beat Orton and possibly Batista before agreeing to a title shot (with Bischoff's blessing). Mark Henry came back in the autumn, he could have kept Bill busy another month. Hell, you could have taken that one all the way to the Rumble where upon a victory, there's no denying Goldy his shot any more. Then you get the new monster top babyface slaying the evil champion in the main event of Mania - by which people have forgotten his Booker T detour - and you persuade Goldberg to sign on for another year to defend the belt. Â So yeah, apparently Hunter denied/delayed Booker's World title win. Believe it, or don't. SWSWSWN. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheShowOff Posted July 13, 2013 Share Posted July 13, 2013 The fact that he put on so much muscle mass when he came back in 02 and was a shadow of lovely 2000 HHH was my gripe. That and the consistent show opening, long, boring promos. He only really found his groove again when Evolution got going., IMO. Â The fact that he put on so much muscle mass when he came back in 02 and was a shadow of lovely 2000 HHH was my gripe. That and the consistent show opening, long, boring promos. He only really found his groove again when Evolution got going., IMO. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members IANdrewDiceClay Posted July 13, 2013 Paid Members Share Posted July 13, 2013 (edited) The original match for WrestleMania XIX was supposed to be Sting vs. Triple H. Maybe Sting was right when he said he didn't trust them at that time to do anything with him. The WWE is a far different and less paranoid place now than it was in 2003. I think Triple H would have done Sting up like a kipper in 2003. Whatever plans Sting was told in the negotiations must have really put him off, because I remember Power Slam and every in 2002 thinking they had Sting in the bag. Â 2003 could have been the year to murder the ex-WCW lads if all went to plan. Start off with Steiner, then sort out Sting, you could have gave Booker T his kicking at Backlash, Kevin Nash at Bad Blood was next, then bury Goldberg under ground around the Summer time. He could have even given Flair a beating if he was up for it. Edited July 13, 2013 by IANdrewDiceClay Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members FLips Posted July 13, 2013 Paid Members Share Posted July 13, 2013 I completely forgot about RVD and Kane. HHH really did not want to make any new big stars in 2003 did he? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts