Luke Harper released

[BrodyGraham]

If Lance Archer, Albert, DBS Jnr, Tanga Loa, Gallows and Juice Robinson can do alright in NJPW, specifically the tag division, I reckon the Ascension lads have a decent chance.

Also, I don't think any of the lads who've been released expect to be big needle movers elsewhere, just given a chance will do I'd reckon.

Edited December 8, 2019 by BrodyGraham

[Carbomb]

2 hours ago, GarzaJnr said:

Sin Cara has been released as well.

 

50 minutes ago, Loki said:

Again??

 

He's the anti-Bram

[chokeout]

I wonder how much those lads have actually been paid not to work since April. Their downside can’t have been that much. 

[Cod Eye]

I was(we'll, still am) a big fan of Harper. He was really good bell to bell, can work as a face or a heel and had a fairly unique promo style. If the rumours are true that McMahon wrote his off because he couldn't put on a southern accent, then it's a tragedy.

I'll definatly be keeping an eye on what Harper is up to next. You really would think AEW have been in contact with him for a while, what with him making it secret that he was wanting out. I'd imagine there would be a no-compete clause in the release papers, but if he can work social media and keep himself very much in the public's consciousness(maybe a call to whoever made Moxleys "breaking out" videos is in order?), then he could walk into the likes of AEW or the Japanese scene with a fair bit of momentum or the very least hype...

Edited December 9, 2019 by Cod Eye

[BomberPat]

I've been a big fan of Luke Harper since his CHIKARA days, and honestly think he could have been a star in any time period, in any territory, so I'm excited to see what he does next. 

For his bank balance and his family, and at his age, working AEW is probably the most sensible bet, but selfishly I don't want to see him jump straight into another TV gig where, as great as it will be to see him wrestling every week, he'll still have the WWE issue of wrestling the same few people repeatedly.

The indie/international scene has changed so much since he was last available, that I want to see him mix it up everywhere. Go back to CHIKARA and murder all the flippy lads who debuted since he left. Be a Bruiser Brody tribute act in the NWA. Have some old-fashioned hoss fights in NOAH, mix it up with Rhyno over there as a tag team or as opponents. Do a few token BritWres shows. Incongruously show up at Triplemania. Knock about with Daisuke Sekimoto in BJPW. There's so much I'd want to see from him before he does a "lights go out and he attacks Cody Rhodes" spot.

 

Rob Naylor, who used to work for FCW/early NXT, has been really high on the Ascension, saying that Viktor basically carried early FCW house shows, had a great programme with Rollins, and was held back by the gimmick. I don't want to see those two just doing a WWF tribute run on the indies, I want to see them completely reinvent themselves and get away from the gimmick altogether. It's a riskier move, but could be more beneficial for them in the long run, and the indies will always benefit from having people with big league and TV experience who are prepared to try something new.

[Carbomb]

3 minutes ago, BomberPat said:

I've been a big fan of Luke Harper since his CHIKARA days, and honestly think he could have been a star in any time period, in any territory, so I'm excited to see what he does next. 

For his bank balance and his family, and at his age, working AEW is probably the most sensible bet, but selfishly I don't want to see him jump straight into another TV gig where, as great as it will be to see him wrestling every week, he'll still have the WWE issue of wrestling the same few people repeatedly.

The indie/international scene has changed so much since he was last available, that I want to see him mix it up everywhere. Go back to CHIKARA and murder all the flippy lads who debuted since he left. Be a Bruiser Brody tribute act in the NWA. Have some old-fashioned hoss fights in NOAH, mix it up with Rhyno over there as a tag team or as opponents. Do a few token BritWres shows. Incongruously show up at Triplemania. Knock about with Daisuke Sekimoto in BJPW. There's so much I'd want to see from him before he does a "lights go out and he attacks Cody Rhodes" spot.

That's something I've been hoping a lot more released WWE talent do, to be honest. It's becoming far too easy for people to say "they'll do well in AEW"; if they all or mostly show up on AEW shortly after, it's just going to become a continuation of WWE TV. Not to mention that, as you say, the indy scene isn't the same as it was. It's still nowhere near the seasoning ground that the territories were (hence why I think AEW isn't completely comparable to WcW, as the latter had more access to experienced, well-trained talent back in the day), but it's still a good place to hone one's skills in certain areas.

Plus Japan isn't what it was either. NJPW has proved it's an alternative place for wrestlers to not only earn money and improve skills, but also improve marketability. 

[Accident Prone]

14 minutes ago, BomberPat said:

I've been a big fan of Luke Harper since his CHIKARA days, and honestly think he could have been a star in any time period, in any territory, so I'm excited to see what he does next. 

For his bank balance and his family, and at his age, working AEW is probably the most sensible bet, but selfishly I don't want to see him jump straight into another TV gig where, as great as it will be to see him wrestling every week, he'll still have the WWE issue of wrestling the same few people repeatedly.

The indie/international scene has changed so much since he was last available, that I want to see him mix it up everywhere. Go back to CHIKARA and murder all the flippy lads who debuted since he left. Be a Bruiser Brody tribute act in the NWA. Have some old-fashioned hoss fights in NOAH, mix it up with Rhyno over there as a tag team or as opponents. Do a few token BritWres shows. Incongruously show up at Triplemania. Knock about with Daisuke Sekimoto in BJPW. There's so much I'd want to see from him before he does a "lights go out and he attacks Cody Rhodes" spot.

I'm all about this. He'll probably end up in AEW, but with their roster being simultaneously bloated and one-dimensional, he'll be lost in the shuffle pretty quick. 18 months on the indie scene and a mini-run with some puro promotions would be just dandy. Him vs the likes of Ospreay, Gage, Starr and Thatcher are mouth-watering prospects.

[tiger_rick]

We've barely seen Harper on TV for the last couple of years and for several years before that, we didn't see him doing much of any consequence when he was on. For that reason, I'd be more than happy to see him jump to AEW as soon as is possible. I don't want to see every WWE cast off hired or pushed as a big deal but I'd like to see them quickly establish harper as someone who is too big and too dangerous for their midcard and put him into programs at the top that mean something. He talks well when given a chance so I'd hope he could really hold up his end of things.

I'm sure he would be in a position to egotiate a deal where he can work Japan and Mexico too. He's too good for the rest.

[Chris B]

I don't care about any of the others who have been released, and I think AEW should be very careful which former WWE talent they pick up, so they don't become TNA v2 - but I very much want them to pick up Luke Harper. While I agree with what @BomberPat said about wanting him to go elsewhere, I'm selfish enough to say that I don't really watch anywhere else outside of there and NJPW.

He'd be an absolute giant in AEW. I'd have him just destroy people for a few months before a couple of big feuds. No 10 minute matches for months. And some occasional NJPW stops.

Edited December 9, 2019 by Chris B

[Accident Prone]

AEW would be the ideal place for Harper to turn up, but now is not the right time when they're trying (and in some cases, failing) to establish the large roster they all ready have.

Let him work the scene for a while, shake off the WWE style and habits, have a few big match-ups and then hit AEW when they have the room for him to make an proper impact.

[BomberPat]

Oh, absolutely - if he were to show up in AEW this week, he's been away from the limelight long enough, and still has enough of an aura around him, that he'd be a major acquisition, and there'd be a ton of big matches waiting for him there. Because he basically wasn't on TV at all for so long, he doesn't feel like an afterthought the way that Sin Cara would, nor was he booked into oblivion like The Ascension, so it doesn't feel like he's a WWE cast-off, it feels more like a Jon Moxley situation, or Christian in TNA, where it's someone leaving WWE on their own terms to prove what they're capable of elsewhere, and that always brings with it a lot of momentum and goodwill.

Mad that, aside from the Crown Jewel Battle Royal, the last time he was on TV was a PPV match mixing it up with Bryan and Reigns, though. 

[Supremo]

It’s truly madness that they decided that instead of keeping Erick Rowan in a tag team with Luke Harper, it’d be preferable to split them up, sack Luke Harper and make Erick Rowan a singles competitor, who’s genuine hook is that he’s got a mystery animal in a small cage. 

[mim731]

1 hour ago, BomberPat said:

Be a Bruiser Brody tribute act in the NWA.

I hadn't even considered this possibility and now it's all I want from TAFKA Luke Harper. He'd thrive in that NWA/studio wrestling environment without even having to extend himself too much. Sadly i think he'll be AEW-bound pretty sharpishly, but bloody hell that's a tantalising possibility. 

[Shane O' Mac Version 2]

14 hours ago, BrodyGraham said:

If Lance Archer, Albert, DBS Jnr, Tanga Loa, Gallows and Juice Robinson can do alright in NJPW, specifically the tag division, I reckon the Ascension lads have a decent chance.

Also, I don't think any of the lads who've been released expect to be big needle movers elsewhere, just given a chance will do I'd reckon.

Eh, I think The Ascension have the least chance out of basically any WWE cast-off to make it big, or even make it medium. The reason people are excited about Luke Harper being given his "freedom" is that we've seen him knock it out of the park with the limited opportunities he's had. As part of the Wyatt Family, he performed well, and the couple of times he flirted with single stardom in WWE, he had a killer ladder match with Ziggler, then a couple of years later had a barnburner outta nowhere with Randy Orton.

Ascension got the big push, with a ton of time and attention on their act, in NXT. And they were awful. NXT went from strength to strength in 2013-2014, but Ascension's run of dominance over the tag division were a low point of the show. They were big guys with a kinda spooky gimmick, but they were just really poor as "monsters". Really plodding, devoid of intensity, just... dull. The most entertainment they ever gave was when Full Sail started mocking the "sha!" sounds they'd make while delivering their monotonous beatdowns.

Really hope they don't get a shot in Japan or AEW. Let them run the low level indies as "FORMER WWE SUPERSTARS!" As long as they don't end up on anything I watch. Impact will probably take them.

[Guest]

How ascension are told to act as wwe monster style characters, doesn’t mean that’s what that would do as wrestlers with the restrictions taken away