The New Day

[DCLXVI]

So after months of rumors about a "new Nation of Domination stable" Kofi, Xavier Woods and Big E have all had their vignettes aired on Raw, etc. The result is more of a James Brown, preacher-esque gimmick - full on with a choir of gospel singers in the background. All three of these guys have had a pretty rough year so I don't have a problem with a repackage... I am still a little confused about the gimmick and how they fit into the current storylines/characters.

I honestly think Xavier Woods showed the most character in his vignette, Kofi has always been great in the ring but I can't even remember what he said in his, and Big E has always showed the personality of paint drying other than the Martin Luther King/black southern preacher bravado shtick which was cringeworthy last time he was doing it and it seems his new character is intended to amplify that.

What do you think will come of this? When will they debut? Will they be able to get over or sent back to lower card/jobber hell? I am kind of interested to see.

 

[TheDrix]

Hopefully they can break through, its always nice to see some fresh faces at the top.
And I think that they will definitely show up as "faces"

 

[Scrotie McBoogerballs]

When I saw Xavier Woods video I thought it was an Outkast music video.

 

[laodaron]

Well, besides heel evil monster and rapper/comic jobber, Vince has discovered that black wrestlers can also be southern Gospel preachers. Nope, no racism in the WWE.

 

[LuckyLouie]

They maybe good as a team, but I have not seen them cut a promo yet. But there is nothing that makes me want to turn the channel is TV preachers. It will bring some people in but the whole gimmick will make me dislike the characters.

 

[rbv13]

Just as when the group was teased months ago fan are jumping to conclusions about the direction of the group. Before it was a New NOD because it is a group made up of African American. Now because of the setting in which they are hyping themselves it must be some Southern Gospel act. The majority had no idea what they were talking about before and there is a good chance they know even less now. Maybe the settings within these promo video are symbolic the strength and revival represented by the church.

 

[enviousdominous]

At worst, in my opinion, Kofi is a dork and Big E is goofy as hell when he's trying to be serious.

I'm curious about how this gimmick will turn out, and that's more than I've gotten out of an episode of RAW in months. All I can gather is that Xavier is a high energy motivational speaker. Kofi and Big E don't seem like sidekicks, this is looking to be more like a Three Muskateers type of dynamic.

I really really hope they get over with this one.

 

[Zycho32]

...I don't really wanna speak bad about three guys who to the best of my knowledge have not had any bad stories associated with them and are otherwise decent feel-good wrestlers, but really, I can only see these guys as the first roadblock for the Ascension when they get called up.

I'm probably missing something- or completely misreading it- but the two 'factions' if you will have a little too much compare/contrast to be more than a mere coincidence.

 

[Brushfire]

I like all three guys so I'm really hoping this works out well for them. Woods seems pretty good on the mic and I have so much time for both Big E and Kofi in the ring. Could result in a tag team title feud if Gold/Stardust retain at the weekend, perhaps? Either way I'm a big fan of three-man factions and it's going to be interesting to see who they can go up against to ensure all three are involved.

 

[AH28]

Tit E Langston forgot to use his accent

 

[MartialHorror]

I think this gimmick looks pretty dumb...for one, what is the gimmick? Are they going to be like Preachers? Because religious themed angles never work out. Are they going to be like the face versions of Bo Dallas? Bo only works because he's a heel. He'd make a boring face.

I like all three men, but this gimmick does nothing for me...so far. Plus, Xavier Woods continues to be buried on main event, getting squashed by semi-relevant Mark Henry.

 

[Aquaman6686]

If this group was Kofi Kingston, Xavier Woods, and R-Truth, it MIGHT have a shot. But it has Big E in it, so it's doomed. He's completely useless in the ring and on the microphone. Him being there destroys the group's potential.

 

[DCLXVI]

If this group was Kofi Kingston, Xavier Woods, and R-Truth, it MIGHT have a shot. But it has Big E in it, so it's doomed. He's completely useless in the ring and on the microphone. Him being there destroys the group's potential.

I agree with this for the most part. R-Truth is over with live crowds, can hold his own on segments and in the ring and needs a rehaul... he is one of the older wrestlers with WWE and needs a repackaging. Big E is young talent though and I think there is something there... he just hasn't figured out how to harness it. Then again it may be one of those "charisma factors"... he is just not naturally entertaining like R-Truth and freezes up with crowds... his tweets have shown his comical side and been more interesting than anything he has done on air.

 

[Scrotie McBoogerballs]

Yeah, outside of the ring Big E has loads of personality and is a really entertaining guy. But in the ring he is like a charisma vacuum. Can't put it all on him, he is probably getting little direction off creative, but he really should be badgering the veterans for tips on how to improve himself.

Another problem is his face. Yep, he is not an ugly guy or anything, but he doesn't look mean or menacing. Muscles alone does not make someone look scary these days, the same as Bobby Lashley they have really impressive physiques and look like the could crush people at will. But their faces tell a different story. They have kind faces and no amount of wide eyed staring can make them look menacing. I know in the real world it means nothing but in sports entertainment when it is 80% visual a mean face counts fr a lot. Look at Tazz and Rhyno, bot small guys in comparison but they just 'look' like they are going to rip you apart with just their stare.

And that is what I think Big E's (and Lashleys) main hurdle is, they just look too nice.

 

[HurriKane]

I'm loving it, though though its just getting started, I'm loving the vignettes its really getting pumped to see where WWE takes this. I really doubt they're gonna go the 3MB jobber route especially with guys like Kofi Kingston and Big E. in the group.

Really am excited for this, and finally Xavier Woods will get some more TV time, he's truly talented.

 

[6timehitta]

I actually think adding R-Truth into the group would add another needed angle to this group. At worse he could try to echo Xavier Woods' "preachyness." Plus he would add a bit more legitimacy since Big E and Woods haven't done anything relevant and while Kofi has been there for almost ten years it seems and not done anything outside of a few Rumble spots and an IC Title run or two a year.

Plus if I'm not mistaken this was supposed to be a heelish gimmick at first. I'd like to see a new side of Kofi, and while Woods doesn't seem to be an efficient heel I think adding R-Truth, and making Big E the obvious muscle/monster they could make quite the noise.

Sad thing is they don't need any heel stables at the moment, so they will undoubtedly be faces.

 

[Scrotie McBoogerballs]

WWE seems to favour 3 man groups over 4 these days. Shield, 3MB, Legacy, Los Matadors

 

[HurriKane]

I actually think adding R-Truth into the group would add another needed angle to this group. At worse he could try to echo Xavier Woods' "preachyness." Plus he would add a bit more legitimacy since Big E and Woods haven't done anything relevant and while Kofi has been there for almost ten years it seems and not done anything outside of a few Rumble spots and an IC Title run or two a year.
could make quite the noise.

If they went the Nation of Domination route with this group, R-Truth's conspiracy gimmick would have been perfect to go along with the group.

 

[Navi]

For some reason I can't get into this at all. Maybe because it's been so long since we're heard about it and thought it would be something different. It just seems kind of lame to me. With all the religious overtones, and the fact that Big E can't rap to save his life, it's sort of a turn off.

When I was watching his promo, he was out of sync with the music, and even the choir behind him were giving him looks. It was hilarious. Kofi did well, as he always does, but Xavier Woods just comes across as being very full of himself. Never warmed up to the guy for some reason, and don't see it happening with this new group either.

 

[snazzy]

I don't really understand how you can judge the gimmick without knowing the full extent of the gimmick? We don't know how they will be introduced or presented so it's difficult to say if I'll get into it or not. I'll reserve judgement for when they debut on RAW.

As for the characters in the gimmicks, I think it suits them pretty well. Kofi's promo looked good, Big E's was a little off and I also thought Woods' wasn't bad. Looking forward to seeing how they go with this.

 

[The Samoan Heritage]

I am excited to see this "New day" for the sole purpose of Kofi getting a new well desrved character change. I put Kingston in the same group as Cody and Dolph, yet they get all kinds of pushes, while Kofi has been stuck in a loop for the past 4 or more years.
Woods's vignette seemed to be the best IMO, while Kofi's came off as the guy that takes Woods place if he is ever gone, and big E's was just..........??? (This guy is so funny outside of Wwe, what the heck happens when its wwe time, he should've been taking acting classes with Reigns.)
I kind of see them a little like the Shield, as in each one bring what there best at to help the group. Big E = power, Kingston = athleticism, Woods = the talker

 

[Mustang Sally]

....and Big E has always showed the personality of paint drying ....

Which is the exact reason to place him in a group with people who have big personalities. Admittedly, what they're doing isn't what I was expecting from them, especially since we were reading comparisons to the old Nation of Domination, which was a group based on anger and.....well, dominance. Even the "New Day" name implies a positive outlook, which seems like a good idea.

Xavier Woods seems perfect for this type of program....Kofi can hold his own personality-wise with the best....and Big E can go back to what he was at the beginning; support and muscle for the group he's aligned with. It was only when he went face and split on his own that his deficiencies became obvious. I think he'll be fine in his new team.

As long as it doesn't become an "Up With People" type production, I'm really looking forward to what Creative comes up with.....and how these three guys handle it.

 

[MCMG]

I'm not having anyone say anything negative about Big E. The man is so damn endearing; he's like a puppy. Big E showed some personality in NXT. Indeed, a little bit on social media too and I reckon there is potential if they let him be him.

The thing about this stable is, you CANNOT hate them. Big E, Woods and especially Kofi seem to be likeable guys and that will shine through. The way Kofi and Woods wrestle will also lend to them being a productive stable. I'll admit, I was excited about the though of them as a heel stable (not like the NOD) but when you really think about it, this was the perfect fit.

The WWE need tag-team and these three can provide that. Moreover, they can change combinations so to keep it fresh rather than the same four men wrestling each week. Since they have been working on live events for a while now there should be chemistry and I imagine the Big/Kofi duo could provide us with some spectacular moves.

The limit is probably the tag-titles and maybe the US one too. I still think there is enough potential in Big E for him to have a decent career and maybe this stable gives him the platform to do just that.

 

[THTRobtaylor]

Something has just hit me watching Kofi's one again...

Are we SURE this is about them? The only reason I say this is the wording/font is the Smackdown one... and Smackdown is moving to Thursdays pretty soon...

Not saying their gimmcks won't be similar to what they are portraying but suddenly to me this seems more like a plug for the "New Day" of Smackdown rather than the stable itself...

 

[kadroan]

I really hate what they're doing with Big E, Kofi and Xavier Woods. You don't see the white wrestlers doing any gimmicks like this.

Why can't they be bad asses like The Shield? Not this stereotypical black church gimmick non-sense.