El Generico Debuts In NXT As.... Well.... El Generico

[Jack-Hammer]

This past Wednesday, top indy wrestler El Generico made his debut on NXT. What's unusual about his debut is that WWE, at least for the time being, has decided to keep the El Generico gimmick rather than repackaging them. In the past, whenever a new talent has debuted in NXT, formerly FCW, the WWE always gave them new characters or names. For instance, Chris Hero became Kassius Ohno, Claudio Castagnoli became Antonio Cesaro, Tyler Black became Seth Rollins, etc. As was mentioned on the main page, the last indy wrestler to come up through the ranks in WWE didn't repackage was CM Punk.

I suppose that WWE could go ahead and repackage Generico at a later time if they feel the character doesn't get over enough. Still, this isn't a tactic that's employed often in WWE.

 

[Thriller Ant]

I think I remember Bryan Danielson wrestling as Bryan Danielson in FCW for a match or two, but even I'll admit he didn't have much of a gimmick. As for Generico, the gimmick is great and he has such an innate ability to make people care about him that it would be over in no time. The only concern I would have is that in interviews MVP has talked about how WWE wanted to own his gimmick when he used it, but MVP said no. Hopefully Generico doesn't end up selling himself to the company.

 

[#hamler]

It would quite hilarious if he didn't keep the gimmick. Without his mask, you have another talented kid who can perform well but lacks the looks it takes for him to get over in the WWE. WWE didn't want to sign the dude behind the mask; I'm betting they wanted the gimmick.

The mask brings something different to the table that you wouldn't see in a lot of wrestlers in the WWE today. Seriously, how many white guys have there been to play a luchador from Mexico; it's so damn unique. Shit should play out pretty well. And I'm betting "Ole" could very well be the reason this guy gets over with the WWE crowd. Whatever the case, I'm ready for some Generico/Cesaro classics once again.

 

[ABMorales787]

Well it would've been pretty stupid to repackage him since his gimmick is the whole reason he's so popular. It's great that WWE had that sense. He'd be a skinny, pale guy with a dumb name if WWE did away with the gimmick. His finisher is something I would change though. That Turnbuckle Brainbuster is a nasty botch waiting to happen.

That aside, I hope all goes well as he rises up. He's certainly a fun character to watch and his theme song is catchy.

 

[Trance Metaphor]

El Generico is crazy athletic. I'm excited to see him in the WWE and I do hope he has a match with Daniel Bryan. Hell, if he had a match against Dolph Ziggler and even if it was for a onetime only deal, I'd love to see Ziggler sell the double pumphandle suplex bomb. That is my favourite move.

 

[dwith]

I just hope that WWE is doing this for name recognition. A lot of INDY fans know who he is. It may draw more viewerships in for WWE. Instead of calling him something like EL DICKWAD, they no EL GENERICO and can identify with who he is by name.

CM PUNK is in my opinion the only wrestler that has the most success since jumping to WWE television, and he kept his name, the others haven't.

I think it's a good thing that he get's to keep his name.

 

[lil bitch Kid]

If Genrico has to take the mask off, well, he's screwed!! He'll not just be the gimmick of a generic luchador, he'll actually be a generic, albeit, athletic schmo,that gets lost in the shuffle. By the way, if they signed him for him, then it's for the gimmick,not the guy under the mask. My theory though is tha they signed Generico in order to get Steen. El G will be treated like a fuckin star!! They'll make him love it, he'll talk to Steen, and we'll see Steen in the E by te summer. It should also be noted tat right after word got out about El G signing with the E, Steen tamed down his twitter handle.

 

[dannyd1203]

exactly, they signed him and had him appear so fast because his gimmick is already so over. he's one of those guys that EVERYONE likes and is one of the most believable guys i've ever seen in the ring...even with the ridiculously awesome gimmick. arenas will be chanting "OLE!" and "SI!" for a long time to come. he'll be on raw and definitely smackdown very soon, definitely with him teaming with brodus and tensai.

i think generico vs. cesaro for the u.s. title would be a perfect first feud for him and sooner rather than later. hell, mania is like two months away and new york would be the perfect place for his first big match (roh fanbase). i believe he'd make a perfect u.s. champ and also that'd give cesaro room to grow more, as in winning money in the bank.

generico will be a huge star in wwe and i told him that a few years ago at ACW (anarchy championship wrestling) when he was there. nicest wrestler i've ever met and one of the most humble guys ever. BTW, wwe needs to keep the mask on him because the dude is more generic looking without the mask..lol!

 

[El Rev sXe]

I know little about El Generico, I have seen a few matches, but I think I get what everyone sees and says about him. The guy is talented, has a gimmick that is easily over, has an interesting look.

Obviously it was a smart move by WWE to keep his name and gimmick (man Triple H is really good as a businessman!).

Anyway, it could be a while before he is called to the main roster, but I'm kinda expecting for him to be like D-Bry, a very, very funny character but is really solid on the ring and can put some very good quality matches. It would be cool a feud between the two of them.

El Generico vs Punk, vs Ziggler, vs ADR, vs Jericho, vs Rey etc. I want to see him soon on the main roster.

 

[BK Styles]

Unlike a lot of indy guys who they sign, Generico has a proper gimmick already. Tyler Black really didn't, PAC (aside from being a high flyer) didn't, Chris Hero didn't have much of one, even Bryan Danielson. Or at the least, their gimmick isn't outlandish and is very...slight. They don't really have anything WWE can use, aside from Hero knocking people out (which really isn't working that well IMO). Generico' does have a gimmick, and it's out there; he's the generic Luchador. I can't see him being repackaged to be honest; at the least WWE will let him keep his mask. WWE loves stuff like that to sell. And besides, it's different. Something that should always be embraced, especially when it's been successful.

And, if I remember correctly, Bryan was originally going to be brought up straight away and worked dark matches as Bryan Danielson, before going to FCW and NXT and having the subsequent name change whilst in Florida. So had he been immediately brought up, then I'm not so sure the name change would have happened.

 

[Papa Pillman]

By the way, if they signed him for him, then it's for the gimmick,not the guy under the mask. My theory though is tha they signed Generico in order to get Steen.

The WWE doesn't need some kind of hook to get Steen. If they want Steen they can have him. He's not going to turn down the WWE's money or spotlight. If we were talking TNA you may have a point, I couldn't see Steen willing to make that jump, there just isn't enough upside. But Vince, he gets who he wants. The fact that the WWE hasn't signed Steen likely says more to the point that they are not comfortable with some combination of his weight, injury history, and/or ability to thrive in a PG format.

El G will be treated like a fuckin star!! They'll make him love it, he'll talk to Steen, and we'll see Steen in the E by te summer.

We won't even see Generico above the NXT midcard by summer.

It should also be noted tat right after word got out about El G signing with the E, Steen tamed down his twitter handle.

Steen dropped the "kill" from his twitter handle out of respect for the victims of the Newtown shootings. He openly stated as much.

 

[VictorySauce23]

The fact that he still has his Indy gimmick is surprising. The only guy I can think of who kept his Indy gimmick is Punk. I say the sooner he gets out of NXT the better. Let's all hope he keeps the Brainbuster.

 

[Papa Pillman]

Let's all hope he keeps the Brainbuster.

I agree totally.

I think that Killjoy is right in guessing that the WWE will likely not allow Generico to use the Turnbuckle-Brainbuster, but the real question is- will he be able to use a Brainbuster at all?

Who was the last guy who used a Brainbuster in the WWE? I can't remember anyone since Kid Kash was using it around the time of the Invasion angle.

I wonder if the WWE sees the Brainbuster as "too risky", and has a ban of sorts against it, the same way they do the piledriver.

It would suck to see Generico have to replace the Brainbuster as his finisher. And it would be nice to see a WWE guy using it again.

 

[Azane]

I see this working out for them.

WWE has too many faces, and not enough characters. Generico can bring us back some personality to a company that's been plagued with too much stale real name wrestling.

 

[VictorySauce23]

If he is a big enough hit with the fans (which he most likely will be) he could be like Santino but more successful. I along with many of you can't wait for him to get out of NXT and onto our TV screens.

 

[TWJC: The Beginning]

"Repackaged" guys? Daniel Bryan dressed, wrestled, and acted like Bryan Danielson. Claudio isn't much different, black isn't either, and Ambrose really isn't either. They aren't repackaged, they are renamed. This is likely a mutual thing because the wrestler wants to be able to use their name in the inevitable event they eventually are back on the indies (I'd guess the average time on WWE TV is 2 years". It's mutually beneficial from a business standpoint.

I'm excited though, el generico is awesome. Fantastic at selling.