Hogan and Bully Ray is Good TV

[scottyshowman82]

When Bully Ray and Brooke Hogan started sneaking around together, I was thinking what a lot of people were thinking, TNA keep it simple. This company has some of the best wrestlers in the world, go easy on the storylines and let the guys work in the ring. Usually TNA Angles that have to do with relationships have been quite bad. I love Hulk Hogan, he's done so much for the business but I'll admit he hasn't done much noteworthy since the nWo and fighting Rock at Wrestlemania. But I'll tell you I was watching Impact last night and Hogan was in the ring he called out Bully Ray and Brooke and he laid down the and I bought it. He's Hulk Hogan, not the guy who slammed Andre at Wrestlemania 3, not the guy who led the nWo and stroked his belt like he was Jimmy Hendrix every Nitro, but Hulk Hogan the father. The father with the hot daughter who will show no mercy to any guy in the locker room who messes around with his daughter behind his back. It was good because it felt real. And I don't mind this angle even though it takes one of the best perfomers in the business today Bully Ray away from the title picture.

Bully Ray and Austin Aries have made such awesome strides over the past year, TNA shows they know talent by rewarding them. I feel if you could, put them in the ring and program with a guy like CM Punk and they would set the world on fire. They're both at the top of their games and are a joy to watch. There's only one world title in TNA, and Hardy,Aries and Roode are fighting over it as they should. So give Bully the high profile storyline to work on he deserves it. And kudos to the man in red and yellow for a very authentic segment.

 

[It's Damn Real!]

I wouldn't mind this angle either... if it actually had a payoff. What's the payoff here? Is Hogan gonna get in the ring? What exactly is this supposed to do for Bully Ray? I get that he's getting the Hogan rub, all pun intended, but that rub isn't of use unless Ray can ultimately translate it to the ring. How does he intend to do that with Hulk barely able to walk to the ring, let alone wrestle?

 

[Nate DaMac]

Kudos to you for finding enjoyment in this. To me, it's no different than the horseshit the WWE was doing with AJ/Cena/Vickie. These love interest angles can work sometimes, but I've completely given up on them in wrestling. If these writers were actually talented, they'd have a real job.

No I just fast forward right through all of it. Shame too, I was really digging Bully Ray.

 

[midgensa]

I have to highly disagree. This storyline makes no sense and (as stated by IDR) has no way it can end with a solid payoff.

There is NO REASON at all to be trotting a read hot Bully Ray around in this storyline. There is no reason at all for Hogan to be involved in a storyline when he cannot get physical (god forbid if they go that route).

It just makes no sense at all. Ray doesn't need the rub. And it certainly is not adding anything interesting to the weekly broadcast.

I am just getting nothing out of this storyline.

 

[Zeven_Zion]

I have to highly disagree. This storyline makes no sense and (as stated by IDR) has no way it can end with a solid payoff.

There is NO REASON at all to be trotting a read hot Bully Ray around in this storyline. There is no reason at all for Hogan to be involved in a storyline when he cannot get physical (god forbid if they go that route).

It just makes no sense at all. Ray doesn't need the rub. And it certainly is not adding anything interesting to the weekly broadcast.

I am just getting nothing out of this storyline.

1. The storyline makes perfect sense. Stop throwing these words around for every damn thing. It's just not a storyline that appeals to lots of people. In terms of sense - Bully Ray is having the sex with Hogan's daughter. Hogan - who didn't like Bully to BEGIN WITH - is now furious over the fact that Bully is with his daughter and is seemingly using his power to take his frustrations out on him. Meanwhile, no one knows why the fuck they should care.

2. As far as pay off goes - I see your point. However, I'd rather see it end before I deem the conclusion stupid, non-existent or whatever. I can see this ending in Bully turning heel, somehow. Something will happen, be sure of that. Is it gonna be a good 'something'? Get your grains of salt ready.

As far as the storyline being enjoyable - somewhat. I don't like the storyline itself, I just really enjoy Bully and Hogan's interaction. Say whatever you want about Hulk, the dude can act. He's no Oscar winner but he gets the job done and conveys what he should. Same goes for Bully. They feed off of one another, it feels genuine and nice. I just wish the occasion for such an interaction was a storyline that I could get into.

But I can't. I don't give a shit if Brooke is blowing Bully. It's irrelevant to me. Perhaps if I was a father and my daughter was at an age where she starts bangin' dudes I could associate myself with Hulk, get in his shoes and get invested in it. But I'm not so this isn't my cup of tea.

The worst part about it is that I can't see it concluding in a wrestling match. I doubt Hogan will wrestle again, and running a storyline on the air which does not lead to someone beating someone else's ass is ... odd. For a wrestling show, that is. So is Hogan gonna lace 'em up again? Hope so. I'd love to see it. And I know, he can't move but let me mark out for a minute. I just love the guy. Sweet sextape.

Great work by Bully and Hogan though, they deserve credit for it. The other Hogan, though? Stop taking acting classes from Claire Lynch.

 

[Papa Pillman]

I am actually going to agree with the sentiment of the OP here.

I don't get all of the drastic negative criticism that this angle has been drawing. The only think that I can figure is that people are just so sick of "secret relationship" storylines after the horrible ones that we have had to deal with this year from Dixie/AJ/Claire to Cena/AJ that they are projecting that frustration onto this storyline.

In reality, this angle actually hasn't been bad at all. I agree with the OP from the standpoint that I was hoping that if TNA was going to pursue this angle that they would keep it simple, and thus far they have. What has really driven home my enjoyment of the angle is the men who have been involved. Hogan has done some of his more believable work of the last year in this story, as the angry protective father, which is better than the rambling, time wasting, useless authority figure he was portraying prior to its start. Bully has carried over his mic work momentum into this angle as well, coming across nicely as the guy who just wants the respect he feels he deserves from his legendary boss. Even Aries made the most of his time sticking his nose into this story.

Most of the promos have been on the shorter side, have progressed the situation, and have delivered well from an acting standpoint. It has none of the "prolonged disaster" feeling that plagued the Styles storyline earlier this year.

As for how it pays off?? I don't know. And I understand why that is a problem for some people. But, I don't think ultimate payoff is the goal here. The goal is to create a storyline that can fill some time for the main players involved, to seperate them from the main event without pulling them from TV.

This is better than not seeing Bully Ray each week. Think about it; when TNA had no main event spot for Anderson, what happened? He was pulled off TV. TNA has no main event spot for AJ right now, what happned? He has been pulled off TV. TNA has no main event spot for Storm right now, what has happened? He is feuding with a tag team despite not having a tag team partner(ironic considering he is the most successful/decorated tag team competitor in the company's history, possessing eleven title reigns with three different partners spanning over a thousand total days with the straps).

Considering TV time needed to feature the talent from each division, there is only one other way for the company to use a main event level wrestler right now outside of the main event- feuding/being involved with A&8s. That spot is reserved for Angle, Joe, Sting, and possibly now Anderson in some capacity right now. Plus Bully has already done his time as part of the A&8s resistance, and Hogan's reluctance to trust him to aid the cause is also an integral piece of the current angle we're discussing.

Also, not only has this angle kept Bully visible without challenging for the big gold, they used it do the same for Aries last month, giving him something to do for one PPV cycle while they ushered Roode back into the title picture. So from that perspective it has served a purpose by keeping major players on TV in featured segments without them having to be shoved unceremoniosly to the sidelines.

As long as they keep the segments simple, continue to progress things at a reasonable pace without drawing this out forever, continue to allow Hogan and Bully to interact with believably impassioned mic work, and eventually deliver some sort of logical ending to the story-arch; I'd say this angle has a chance to be viewed overall as successful. Of course it all hinges on that last part, so we have to see what happens, but so far I am willing to give the angle the benefit of the doubt for the time being.

 

[Nate DaMac]

I am actually going to agree with the sentiment of the OP here.

I don't get all of the drastic negative criticism that this angle has been drawing. The only think that I can figure is that people are just so sick of "secret relationship" storylines after the horrible ones that we have had to deal with this year from Dixie/AJ/Claire to Cena/AJ that they are projecting that frustration onto this storyline.

In reality, this angle actually hasn't been bad at all. I agree with the OP from the standpoint that I was hoping that if TNA was going to pursue this angle that they would keep it simple, and thus far they have. What has really driven home my enjoyment of the angle is the men who have been involved. Hogan has done some of his more believable work of the last year in this story, as the angry protective father, which is better than the rambling, time wasting, useless authority figure he was portraying prior to its start. Bully has carried over his mic work momentum into this angle as well, coming across nicely as the guy who just wants the respect he feels he deserves from his legendary boss. Even Aries made the most of his time sticking his nose into this story.

Most of the promos have been on the shorter side, have progressed the situation, and have delivered well from an acting standpoint. It has none of the "prolonged disaster" feeling that plagued the Styles storyline earlier this year.

As for how it pays off?? I don't know. And I understand why that is a problem for some people. But, I don't think ultimate payoff is the goal here. The goal is to create a storyline that can fill some time for the main players involved, to seperate them from the main event without pulling them from TV.

This is better than not seeing Bully Ray each week. Think about it; when TNA had no main event spot for Anderson, what happened? He was pulled off TV. TNA has no main event spot for AJ right now, what happned? He has been pulled off TV. TNA has no main event spot for Storm right now, what has happened? He is feuding with a tag team despite not having a tag team partner(ironic considering he is the most successful/decorated tag team competitor in the company's history, possessing eleven title reigns with three different partners spanning over a thousand total days with the straps).

Considering TV time needed to feature the talent from each division, there is only one other way for the company to use a main event level wrestler right now outside of the main event- feuding/being involved with A&8s. That spot is reserved for Angle, Joe, Sting, and possibly now Anderson in some capacity right now. Plus Bully has already done his time as part of the A&8s resistance, and Hogan's reluctance to trust him to aid the cause is also an integral piece of the current angle we're discussing.

Also, not only has this angle kept Bully visible without challenging for the big gold, they used it do the same for Aries last month, giving him something to do for one PPV cycle while they ushered Roode back into the title picture. So from that perspective it has served a purpose by keeping major players on TV in featured segments without them having to be shoved unceremoniosly to the sidelines.

As long as they keep the segments simple, continue to progress things at a reasonable pace without drawing this out forever, continue to allow Hogan and Bully to interact with believably impassioned mic work, and eventually deliver some sort of logical ending to the story-arch; I'd say this angle has a chance to be viewed overall as successful. Of course it all hinges on that last part, so we have to see what happens, but so far I am willing to give the angle the benefit of the doubt for the time being.

The last sentence is the difference between you and I. I can totally understand the logic behind the story and I think claiming that there's no foreseeable payoff is indicative of your own lack of imagination, I just have no optimism. It's been a long time since a story like this has turned out to be good television, I see no reason to believe it is now.

 

[Mr. Artistic guy]

I'm one of a few people that has little issue with this story. For me it's way above either the Claire Lynch or Cena/AJ storyline. The Lynch story was sabotaged by the awful acting of the woman herself, and Cena and AJ's story was doomed before it had begun because after AJ was no longer the GM, it no longer mattered what either person was doing behind the scenes, and yet they ran with it for weeks.

This story just makes so much more sense than either of those two. Brook is a girl who has been an acting part of the wrestling business for less than a year. It makes sense that, in a world she doesn't know well, she may want to have a comforting head upon which to rest her shoulder, a mature, senior figure. She's vulnerable and susceptible. Bully Ray is a guy who we started to see a more sensitive side of prior to BFG, and within realising that side of himself, he may be more open to more personal relationship and has been taken aback by his connection to Hogan.

Both would naturally want to keep it secret, Bully so that he doesn't get fired, and Brooke so that she doesn't get lambasted by her father. Hogan himself would be very protective of his daughter, especially from guys in the business, especially much older guys as he knows how some of the boys in the back are. If he knew that someone would have taken advantage of his daughter (as he would no doubt see it), he would contravene his duties and go out of his way to make sure that person was punished and separated from his daughter.

If nothing else, as opposed to the two similar stories, it could make sense. Additionally it's performing a special duty, which is to bring Hogan into a light we've never seen him in his career, as the protective father who is emotional and sensitive. It's humbling and puts him in a position that creatively he's never been in, which could lead to new forged paths in his TV career. Also, the story has progressed at a nice rate, logically and sensibly and now has come to a major point with Ray being basically fired. And if nothing else, it's produced some good TV segments between Ray and Hogan, who are two of TNA top talkers.

I'm not really sure where it's going, my personal ambition is for Ray to turn heel, possibly being revealed at the top gunner of Aces n Eights. But either way I'm happy, because I think it's been fine so far. As long as it doesn't have a stupid ending I'm happy to say this is the best relationship story of the last few.

 

[It's Damn Real!]

The last sentence is the difference between you and I. I can totally understand the logic behind the story and I think claiming that there's no foreseeable payoff is indicative of your own lack of imagination, I just have no optimism. It's been a long time since a story like this has turned out to be good television, I see no reason to believe it is now.

So what's the payoff then? Call me unimaginative, but I'm a guy who tends to follow classic storytelling in pro-wrestling, so for me not to see a potential out here says something, even if you don't put any stock into my abilities or intelligence in the first place.

Maybe I'm just stupid and don't get it. So explain it to me, please? What's the payoff? And more importantly, how is it accomplished?

 

[Zeven_Zion]

So what's the payoff then? Call me unimaginative, but I'm a guy who tends to follow classic storytelling in pro-wrestling, so for me not to see a potential out here says something, even if you don't put any stock into my abilities or intelligence in the first place.

Maybe I'm just stupid and don't get it. So explain it to me, please? What's the payoff? And more importantly, how is it accomplished?

Well, one way it could unfold is for instance Bully Ray turning Hulk's own daughter against him, turning heel and revealing himself as the leader of Aces and 8's all along.

Reasons:

1. Hogan keeps saying Bully is no good. There must be a reason why they keep making him say that. Bully turning heel and being the leader of Aces and Eights explains Hogan's attitude. He smells a rat and a rat it is.

As far as Aces and Eights attacking Bully well it ain't like TNA's never done THAT swerve before. I remember everyone in Immortal getting jumped on and ending up in the stable. It's an ends justify the means type of thing.

2. Why is Bully messing with Hogan's daughter? Two ways this may end up as. One - he actually likes her and turns her against him. Two - he only did it to fuck with Hogan. That would make more sense as he can gather some more heat by dumping her on her ass and it'll piss Hogan that much more.

While Aces and Eights are injuring people, Bully does the Brooke bullshit to distract him from what they're up to. He knows he can get under Hulk's skin, especially when he involves Brooke, so Hogan's too pissed to pay attention, thus they can do their thing while Ray is messing with Hogan.

The pay-off? We get the leader of Aces and Eights and most likely their agenda and the whole storyline moves the fuck on. Maybe this sparks the TNA vs Aces and Eights War (boy am I looking forward to that one no I'm not) and who's the dude with the biggest bone to pick? Ta-daaaah! Hulkster himself, who happens to be the GM thus he can book matches and do all that crazy stuff.

It's not completely ******ed. Then again, I'm no writer.

 

[It's Damn Real!]

Well, one way it could unfold is for instance Bully Ray turning Hulk's own daughter against him, turning heel and revealing himself as the leader of Aces and 8's all along.

Reasons:

1. Hogan keeps saying Bully is no good. There must be a reason why they keep making him say that. Bully turning heel and being the leader of Aces and Eights explains Hogan's attitude. He smells a rat and a rat it is.

As far as Aces and Eights attacking Bully well it ain't like TNA's never done THAT swerve before. I remember everyone in Immortal getting jumped on and ending up in the stable. It's an ends justify the means type of thing.

2. Why is Bully messing with Hogan's daughter? Two ways this may end up as. One - he actually likes her and turns her against him. Two - he only did it to fuck with Hogan. That would make more sense as he can gather some more heat by dumping her on her ass and it'll piss Hogan that much more.

While Aces and Eights are injuring people, Bully does the Brooke bullshit to distract him from what they're up to. He knows he can get under Hulk's skin so he doesn't pay attention to them, thus they can do their thing while Ray is messing with Hogan.

The pay-off? We get the leader of Aces and Eights and most likely their agenda and the whole storyline moves the fuck on.

It's not completely ******ed. Then again, I'm no writer.

The first angle I buy. There's a payoff there, because you can still ultimately sell it by ending it in a ring, using one of the Team TNA guys on behalf of Hogan to "make Bully pay", but scenario 2 is exactly how I see this sort of thing panning out, and to me, that's just not good enough. Call me a dinosaur for thinking it, but again, I think classically, and classic booking says this needs to end in a ring, one way or another.

 

[Zeven_Zion]

The first angle I buy. There's a payoff there, because you can still ultimately sell it by ending it in a ring, using one of the Team TNA guys on behalf of Hogan to "make Bully pay", but scenario 2 is exactly how I see this sort of thing panning out, and to me, that's just not good enough. Call me a dinosaur for thinking it, but again, I think classically, and classic booking says this needs to end in a ring, one way or another.

The whole thing is the angle I was thinking of. Ignore points 1 and 2. Both are the angle.

So essentially it does end up in a ring. Just not one on one.

But I see what you mean. I've never seen a storyline that doesn't end up in a match and if THIS doesn't then you might as well turn it into a soap opera because that's really one of the few things that differentiate wrestling from The Bold and the Beautiful.

 

[Lowdown]

After last night's Impact, I pretty much gave up on the whole plot. I know I'm not being patient enough, but it's making little sense to me, especially if the end result doesn't in a title run for Bully. Much like IDR, I'm wondering what the payoff is gonna be. Again, this isn't as bad as the Claire Lynch saga. But I've lost all interest in it. It's filler to me now. I'm not a writer for TNA, but I find it ******ed how Hogan as GM suspends Bully Ray for sneaking around with Brooke, yet you got a whole gang in A&8's trying to take out multiple talents, and there's no reprimand whatsoever. Maybe it's just me trying too hard in attempting to add logic in my mind.

 

[TellMeWhy]

The angle is pretty interesting. This is why I hate the IWC, forums, and the internet in general. The fans pretend to be too masculine to enjoy, give praise, or give due to any angle involving relationships. This right here is good-compelling tv I think possibly, TNA might interject Matt Morgan in this storyline in behalf of Hogan and cause a Ray/Morgan feud or they will somehow mesh this angle with the Aces & Eights storyline.