Keith Houchen Posted January 1, 2019 Share Posted January 1, 2019 There seems to be a bit of talk regarding the diminished fanbase and fans not leaving WWE for this, but it's not a binary choice. There's no reason why people can't like, and pay for, both. Granted for those fans who can afford one or the other, that's an issue. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members garynysmon Posted January 1, 2019 Paid Members Share Posted January 1, 2019 Hard to make much of a judgment on this until we know more about the size of the operation, roster etc. What's different now to when WCW and even TNA started throwing some money around, is what big names are actually out there to sign? There are so few household names that would actually make a difference to the casual fan as opposed to those the hardcore fan are into but those are going to be this promotion's fanbase anyway. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members IANdrewDiceClay Posted January 1, 2019 Paid Members Share Posted January 1, 2019 (edited) 13 minutes ago, garynysmon said: What's different now to when WCW and even TNA started throwing some money around, is what big names are actually out there to sign? They sold out a 10,000 seater arena and got a billionaire to invest in starting them up. That's a pretty big start. The business is completely different now to a decade ago. Its quite something that TNA never filled a 10,000 seater. Its amazing if you think about who they had. Maybe if TNA would have put someone younger in the hotseat instead of Jarrett, Russo, Bischoff, Prichard etc. and all that lot, they'd have found their own identity. I mean everyone on that All In show were in TNA at some point. The Young Bucks, Cody Rhodes, Marty Scurll, Okada, Daniels and Kaz etc. You have to find a young audience, instead of hoping the old WCW viewers would return. Edited January 1, 2019 by IANdrewDiceClay Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members garynysmon Posted January 1, 2019 Paid Members Share Posted January 1, 2019 (edited) 19 minutes ago, IANdrewDiceClay said: You have to find a young audience, instead of hoping the old WCW viewers would return. In fairness, I'm probably the worst person on earth to be passing judgment on wrestling in 2019. Its almost purely a nostalgia trip for me by now and am exactly the type of person this won't appeal to. I'd spend good money if there was ever a PPV featuring the stars of the 80's and 90's trundling around a wrestling ring in their 50's, yet I've not watched a New Japan or any non-Wrestlemania WWE show in years. Edited January 1, 2019 by garynysmon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members Supremo Posted January 1, 2019 Paid Members Share Posted January 1, 2019 I suspect it's only a matter of time until Jericho is announced for this. Despite sometimes coming across like The Elite's tragic older brother, desperate to be their mate, there's no denying he's the perfect name to sign. Jericho vs. Omega 2 seems a good match for Double or Nothing after the angle they shot at All In. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MPDTT Posted January 2, 2019 Author Share Posted January 2, 2019 (edited) 1 hour ago, Supremo said: I suspect it's only a matter of time until Jericho is announced for this. Despite sometimes coming across like The Elite's tragic older brother, desperate to be their mate, there's no denying he's the perfect name to sign. Jericho vs. Omega 2 seems a good match for Double or Nothing after the angle they shot at All In. That would be great! Alpha v Omega 2 headlining Double or Nothing! I also saw Jericho name dropped Tony Kahn a couple of days ago and got free tickets ........coincidence? Edited January 2, 2019 by MPDTT Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 2, 2019 Share Posted January 2, 2019 Just looked and there’s only really a year in age difference from Jeff starting TNA to Cody starting this. Wouldn’t have thought it was that close Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members IANdrewDiceClay Posted January 2, 2019 Paid Members Share Posted January 2, 2019 (edited) Jarrett started TNA in 2002. Only 7 years prior to that he was wrestling Shawn Michaels for the IC title. I think people seemed to look at guys as older back then because they used to switch companies and there was so much going on. The likes of Jarrett, Road Dogg, Gangrel and Bagwell etc. all seemed like they were ancient after WCW closed. It stunned me when I found out Bagwell was only in his 40s still. Bagwell's career was over when he was 31, really. He hasnt done much since. These days, though, people seem to be around for decades and still have that "new guy" tag on them. Edited January 2, 2019 by IANdrewDiceClay Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simonworden Posted January 2, 2019 Share Posted January 2, 2019 12 hours ago, Keith Houchen said: There seems to be a bit of talk regarding the diminished fanbase and fans not leaving WWE for this, but it's not a binary choice. There's no reason why people can't like, and pay for, both. Granted for those fans who can afford one or the other, that's an issue. Although i'm sure there are plenty of fans who can't or won't (like me) pay for more than one service, really now more than ever it's cheaper and easier to watch whatever wrestling you want. Back in the last decade you had to slap out loads of money each month if you wanted to support more than 1 company for PPV's DVD's or early download/ streamed shows. Now for under $20 I assume you can get your fill of the top shows from WWE, ROH and NJPW or a mix of whatever else you want. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members BomberPat Posted January 2, 2019 Paid Members Share Posted January 2, 2019 I really want this to succeed, because more variety and more different places for wrestlers to work is always a good thing - I saw on Twitter that there's been talking of them actually treating their wrestlers as employees with health benefits, in which case I wish them all the success in the world - I just can't get into the hype at all. I've seen people, before the promotion was even announced talking about it as a legitimate threat to WWE. Meltzer reported that he was surprised a wrestler signed with ROH and not AEW, as if taking guaranteed money from an established business over one that didn't yet exist was the riskier move. People just seem to have bought into the hype to an unreal degree. Even All In, I thought was fair to middling. Outside of the NWA Title match, there's very little on there that I would remember fondly, if at all. It felt like it got a really positive critical reception because people were willing it to succeed far more than any objective quality. I guess I'm just not particularly invested in "Being The Elite", or in most of the guys attached to this as workers. It's a continuation of an over-egged, often self-indulgent "super-indie" style that's lately become increasingly homogenised across NJPW, PWG, ROH, and to a lesser extent WWE, and what I want from a new promotion isn't more of the same - what I love about watching older wrestling is that different promotions, territories and countries were markedly different in their approach, and nothing about All In suggested that AEW would be interested in trying anything new. In terms of whether they'll succeed - they obviously have an existing fanbase, and All In is a decent sign that they have a brand to build on are capable of selling good sized venues, but unlike All In, AEW won't be able to consistently rely on the hype of it being the first time this has happened, there's a strong possibility they won't be able to rely on talent signed to other promotions (remove NJPW, ROH, CMLL and AAA contracted talent from All In and it starts to look very sparse indeed), and it's a much bigger gamble than it might already appear. That people are already talking about this as a surefire hit is bizarre. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yakashi Posted January 2, 2019 Share Posted January 2, 2019 It will be a success for a while until the novelty wears off. All in was all about an event and wrestling fans feeling like they were part of some sort of rebellion rather than matches, performers and storylines drawing fans. After a few weeks or months they probably won’t have that anymore. New Japan does fuck all on TV ratings wise and has all these guys plus more. I don’t think it’s possible for a wrestling company to get even close in 2019 to where TNA were in the Spike days to be honest. Hopefully I’m wrong as it’s the best thing to happen for wrestlers in years. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members Supremo Posted January 2, 2019 Paid Members Share Posted January 2, 2019 (edited) I'm sure there was a chance that Meltzer had old or incorrect info, but I was fascinated when he reported on Observer Radio that they announed AEW before the Young Bucks had officially signed. Would've been mad if Vince got wind and offered them some insane offer at the last minute. Would AEW even work without the Bucks? Edited January 2, 2019 by Supremo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members tiger_rick Posted January 2, 2019 Paid Members Share Posted January 2, 2019 Who would the Bucks sign for? I thought they were the driving force here? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members Supremo Posted January 2, 2019 Paid Members Share Posted January 2, 2019 I guess they'd be signing with Tony Khan? I dunno. Meltzer made a point that they'd probably be signed within 48 hours though. Looks like it's Cody as Vice President and The Bucks as bookers. What a weird time in pro-wrestling. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members tiger_rick Posted January 2, 2019 Paid Members Share Posted January 2, 2019 Yeah, all very strange. I think at the very least, this will encourage WWE to up their game a bit stateside so it's got to be a positive short-term. Longer-tem if it fails, it sends out a pretty shitty message for anyone trying to un-monopolise the industry. Appreciate lots will go OTT on this, including Meltzer, but that's just desperation for something interesting to happen. WWe has had the most uninteresting year in its history IMO. Something needs to change. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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