Anderson and Gallows roster use

[Jeff Deliverer of Mail]

One guy has talent (Anderson) and the other has size (Gallows). I don't follow NJPW but it's mentioned many times that they were a great tag team there...Gallows also looked pretty badass with menacing facepaint. They have done shit all in WWE since debuting. I can't think of one match Gallows and Anderson were a part of that was any good at all. I don't even think forming The Bullet Club with Finn Balor would do them any service now, it feels too late to take these guys seriously in a wrestling program, they never win and aren't anywhere near the tag team championsips.

The one option they might have left is to put focus into a singles career with Anderson. Possibly change up his special move, keep his ring gear and entrance music but have him come out with a skull mask on with Gallows as his bodyguard. Give the singles scene mid card area a bit of a try and see how it pans out.

Option two, send them down to NXT to be that stepping stone veterans who you have to beat to become number one contenders to the tag team titles. Even have them promo themselves as such, contender agents for NXT then eventually fight off the gimmick for a run at the gold themselves.

As it stands right now, either guy could be let go and it would have zero impact on the brand and fans alike. They'd be forgotten the next day.

 

[Trance Metaphor]

Honestly, the only thing for them to do is form an actual stable out of the Club. Even if it's not gonna do anything for them immediately, it's all they can do at this point to help them by association with Finn Balor and/or AJ Styles or at least I hope so. The only thing I can even remember Anderson & Gallows doing is capturing the RAW Tag Team Championships. It was a forgettable run, but that's the only thing I remember them doing of any significance. Its unfortunate, and I really do hate the way they've been used. I mean, Karl Anderson defeated Shinsuke Nakamura in a singles match in NJPW for crying out loud. This guy should be fighting for the Intercontinental Championship by now. Instead, both him and Luke Gallows are being treated like chump jobbers that can't take any of their opponents to the limit. It's laughable. Anderson should be one of the most durable guys, not a Zack Ryder 2.0. I do think sending the two guys back to NXT might reward them with more success than where they are right now, and I wouldn't see it as a demotion since they're not even being used the way they should be. However, part of me also feels sad that since AJ Styles will probably be retiring soon, there won't be that large angle or involvement in reintroducing the Club in any variation. Plus, I heard that there are no plans to assemble Karl Anderson, Luke Gallows and Finn Balor together, so it really sucks that this will just be fantasy at best.

 

[Psykohurricane55]

I kinda look at their career in the wwe as a rollercoaster ride. They had some up and down since joining the WWE but i feel since losing the tag belts at mania, that they had more down then up. They kinda in the middle of the pack right now. They not on the Heath slater/rhyno or even worst the colons levels of tag team but their not on the upper tier either. Their just their in the middle to fill a spot if they need a second tag feud on raw or to set up something for cesaro and sheamus but that's pretty much how raw works with pretty much every division. They focus on a couple of wrestlers and everybody else is there as either a secondary feud or to help advance the main storyline.

Gallows and anderson are good hands and i doubt that they'Re role will change in WWE. They might win the tag titles if they move them to smackdown nothing can help them break the glass ceiling.

 

[Dagger Dias]

I find them both to be extremely boring and have no desire to see them on Raw anymore. Anderson is the better of the two, though not by that much based on what I've seen of him in WWE. Gallows was more entertaining as Fake Kane and even as Festus. I've never liked the guy. Either have them form a Balor Club stable with Finn or just release them. There's nothing entertaining about them and they bring nothing to the table at the moment. Every single feud and angle they've had in this WWE run have been awful. The one against The New Day is the only memorable one, and not the good kind of memorable. I don't even want to see them sent down to NXT. They are among the very few I genuinely think do need to get released. I understand they were a bigger deal in Japan. Maybe they can go back there.

 

[Eyrothath]

I think the time is right actually to maybe turn them face for the time being, the whole "High school bully" gimmick isn't working for them and that's what they currently when in fact a more "biker rebel" or "sons of anarchy" gimmick would work probably work better for these guys rather than having them as bullies and just have them smash through the roster until they become tag champs..

 

[Jack-Hammer]

I've been pretty unimpressed with them from day one. I've seen some of their stuff from New Japan and, all in all, I think they're another example of Dave Meltzer being so enamored with New Japan that he's pretty heavily overrated a couple of guys who're just not nearly as good as he hyped them to be.

That's not to say that they don't have some talent, though I think they need a fresh start as they've done all there going to on Raw. If they're not going to form some sort of alliance with Finn Balor, something which may be interesting to see if WWE plans to keep the Shield around long term, then send them to SmackDown in the hopes that having a clean slate will work. Barring either of those options, it might be for the best to just get rid of them. For all I know, however, Gallows and Anderson may be happy working in WWE, they may be having fun, making good money, etc. and they could always be useful as a team used to elevate others.

 

[Kamala316]

Luke Gallows was, is, and always will be (in my opinion) one of the biggest wastes of a big man in the history of the business. Regardless of the gimmick, his in-ring work has always been slow, sloppy, and full of botches. Good for him for going to Japan to "reinvent" himself, but I've never been impressed. I was hoping the real breakout star would be Karl Anderson, but we haven't seen any hint of that yet. "Hot Asian wife" aside, there's still time for him to do his own thing. He has a pretty good move set (I would love to see him use the running/diving neckbreaker more in WWE), and I feel he could be a solid candidate for a midcard singles run. But at the end of the day, WWE signed them to get them away from NJPW, and the Good Brothers probably signed so they could be stateside. The sooner Gallows is off tv the better, he sucks.

 

[TheBadGuy92]

the ONLY way to salvage them at this point is the Balor Club. I still want them to pull the trigger on the trio or sending ALL 3 to smackdown live and having the entire faction of AJ Finn Gallows and Anderson together. Let them cause havoc on smackdown. what do they have to lose at this point

 

[stingray11214]

FWIW, they should never have been signed to begin with. VKM has always had a bad record of pushing people he did not create himself. You knew with the first feud that Anderson and Gallows would be going nowhere. The Club is a good team. They are just in the wrong company. TNA MIGHT have been a better fit. Or, they should have just stayed with New Japan.

 

[Khalifa]

Man the hype around these two guys joining WWE was massive and now people couldn’t care less. Fair call, what works somewhere doesn’t mean it’s going to work everywhere. Once they had a terrible feud and and even a real average match against the New Day it was over. The tag scene really needed legit teams at that time with New Day having wrestled either the Uso’s, Lucas Dragons or whatever that European stable with sheamus, ADR, Rusev and Barrett was called (that’s how bad that was) every day for 6 months. You obviously then had Enzo and Cass come which made things hard and then the focus on Sheamus and Cesaro.

They were never really given a chance and even though I’m not a fan of the guys, I’m all for keeping them together and just moving them to SD to start a legit push. These guys aren’t going to make it on their own and I miss the days when you would have one or two teams just be teams forever, everything is just about crossing your partner. These guys are the prefect candidates to keep as a team. I wouldn’t mind the idea of AJ or Finn being the leader, it’s what these guys need clearly. There is nothing special about them but they aren’t complete waste either.

NXT wouldn’t be a bad idea. They would probably get over again because of the crowd that is NXT, have the ability to hold down the division while you don’t keep teams like Authors of Pain and DIY down to long. Imagine if DIY split up on the main roster. Some fans wouldn’t know what’s going on so maybe the initial crowd reaction wouldn’t be the best (every Nct superstar is pretty over when they join though) but it would keep people invested. I like this idea the best so I would chuck them down there now that I think about it. If they get really hot then just send them back up.

 

[LuCha Libre]

I'm probably the one here with this opinion, but I'd love to seem them as Tex Ferguson and Chad 2 Badd. At least we'll see their charisma. Right now they are so stale.

I feel barely enough of WWE fans have watched Southpaw Regional Wrestling, but with all the silly gimmicks that have become successes i.e Golddust, Honky Tonk Man, Santino, why wouldn't you give this a go?

Otherwise, throw them together with Balor give them good promos to cut.

 

[Deoxyribonucleic A.C.I.D.]

The only reason Anderson and Gallows worked in NJPW was because they were part of the Bullet Club and since they were white, they were the perfect "gaijin heels". They looked different.

In the WWE though, they don't look different. In fact, they are generic tag team #345. They don't stand out. Their attire is generic, their work is generic, their moveset is generic, ther mic skills are generic and their gimmick is generic.
That's just how WWE works. Your persona and character comes first. Then promo work. Then come the in-ring skills.

Their only salvation is if they become part of something bigger, like a stable, in order to hide the weaknesses and enforce their strengths.

And to be honest with you, the Revival will also suffer from the same fate in the future. But that's another subject.

About G&A, I always wanted to see WWE mix up the Bullet Club and the Demon King and create the so-called "Demon Club". Imagine: Kane, Balor, Anderson and Gallows, all in demonic face paint, acting like demons, wrestling like demons.
In fact, a stable feauting Balor, Kane, G&A and Asuka/Ember Moon would be cool for me. That's an idea that could save G&A, give Kane a mentor-like role and turn Balor into a threat. Everybody wins from this.

 

[Macho Mans Beard]

I was a fan of A&G when they first came into WWE. They came in street clothes and wrecked house. The moment WWE gave them that awful entrance attire was the moment I stopped caring.

I love the idea of a Balor Club stable. But the problem with that is A&G are much better heels than faces. So would that mean Balor becomes heel too? Dont see that happening anytime soon. And if it does then why? Balor sells merch, so turning him heel wont do much for that side of advertising. Unless WWE decides to do a full on Balor Club promo kind of like the NWO, where it was cool to be heel and buy their merch.

I do agree that A&G have gotten stale. But I loved their SRW promos. It was very entertaining. But it was just that, entertaining. IF they were to use that gimmick it would be fun for about 1 month, then they will just be back to where they are now. It would be WWE reaching too far with very little payoff.

What I would do is take them off TV for a few months and repackage them. Like I said, I liked them when they showed up in street clothes and beat people down. Maybe that is what you do with them. Make them like a Hall/Nash pre NWO, but dont truely mimic that.

Another way you could have them join Balor is to have them interfere with Balors matchups, where they help him win. Balor would be hesitant to join them. But in a title match (IC Championship) He gets the assit to win and they all throw up the 'Too Sweet' This will get a huge responce from the crowd (Especially the 20-30 age group) Who gives a damn what the kids think, they have Cena let us have the BALOR CLUB!!!!!

 

[JoeMallard]

They were doomed as soon as they didn't come in with Balor when he was pushing hard for it on NXT, it's hurt Balor as well. They came in super hot then got jobbed out to Reigns then Cena, because of course they would... Their time with Styles was forgettable at best because they were made to look like complete fools for Vince's butt buddies. The only way to save them at this point is to put them with Balor and have them go head to head with the Shield, but obviously Vince and his shriveled old brain would have Shield run through them in two weeks rendering them obsolete.

 

[Wildcat66]

Anderson and Gallows's run has been nothing short of a disaster to me. This is probably just me not really being into NJPW, but there is absolutely nothing this team have done that have either impressed me or shown me they deserved all the praise they got in Japan. When you can't even have a good match with The New Day of all teams, you have failed as a top flight tag team.

But truth be told, i'm not completely shocked. Gallows was never really that great a worker; he just came off as generic big guy #8,753,918. Yes, he's improved from his first run; but when the improvement is from comedy fodder to undercard heel, it really feels like you haven't improved at all.

Karl Anderson though has grown on a little. The guy does have charisma and when he can go, he can work a pretty good match. I do think his look is a bit generic, but as a wrestler; he seems like the kind of guy i'd love to have as an uppercard threat.

Honestly, the best thing for G&A is for them to just go their separate ways; maybe even release Gallows all together and let Anderson have a solo run. The team is dead and I highly doubt anything they can do can change it at this point. Especially not when you have them lose to Slater and Rhino in a comedy match. Actually, the more I think about it: The more I think that this idea was doomed from the start.

 

[BestSportsEntertainer]

I think I read somewhere that WWE only signed them so they could get Styles. That makes sense, as Gallows and Anderson haven't done much of anything.

I haven't any of their New Japan stuff, but they haven't been that great in WWE. I'm not really sure if they're misused or just not that good.

They could turn Balor heel and reform the Club. Besides that I could see them being the muscle for a cowardly heel, kinda like an better Miztourage.

 

[Richard Blonoff]

I have a theory on this, as to why people think they are under utilized.

Wrestling is super uncool. In the Attitude Era it was kinda cool, and there was a period when Punk was at the top that it almost felt like it could be cool again, but those are the only two times in my twenty seven years that wrestling has been cool or close to it. Most of us know this, and do everything we can to try and look cool among our fellow fans as a result. Being the coolest nerd still makes you a nerd, but at least you get bragging rights over some people. Because of that, a lot of fans will latch onto any signing the WWE makes in an attempt to look ahead of the curve. "Well I was a fan of Owens when he was Kevin Steen" or "The WWE will kill Tyler Black by cutting off his move set" or "Insert any other generic remark about indy wrestler here." Almost anytime you are a fan of something before it gets mainstream, you get to feel cool.

That's what I think happened with Gallows and Anderson. They were fairly big deals in Japan (mostly due to being in the Bullet Club before it got over saturated and by being foreign heels), so people latched onto them when the rumors of their signing came in. They wanted to feel ahead of everyone else. It's like the people who comment with "first" on news articles. It's just some stupid trend people do in an effort to appear cool. I'd wager most of the people who have complained about their usage didn't actually watch them in New Japan, they just assume every indy talent is supposed to be some godsend to WWE or they just want to be cool by liking something that might eventually get popular.

 

[Jack-Hammer]

I have a theory on this, as to why people think they are under utilized.

Wrestling is super uncool. In the Attitude Era it was kinda cool, and there was a period when Punk was at the top that it almost felt like it could be cool again, but those are the only two times in my twenty seven years that wrestling has been cool or close to it. Most of us know this, and do everything we can to try and look cool among our fellow fans as a result. Being the coolest nerd still makes you a nerd, but at least you get bragging rights over some people. Because of that, a lot of fans will latch onto any signing the WWE makes in an attempt to look ahead of the curve. "Well I was a fan of Owens when he was Kevin Steen" or "The WWE will kill Tyler Black by cutting off his move set" or "Insert any other generic remark about indy wrestler here." Almost anytime you are a fan of something before it gets mainstream, you get to feel cool.

That's what I think happened with Gallows and Anderson. They were fairly big deals in Japan (mostly due to being in the Bullet Club before it got over saturated and by being foreign heels), so people latched onto them when the rumors of their signing came in. They wanted to feel ahead of everyone else. It's like the people who comment with "first" on news articles. It's just some stupid trend people do in an effort to appear cool. I'd wager most of the people who have complained about their usage didn't actually watch them in New Japan, they just assume every indy talent is supposed to be some godsend to WWE or they just want to be cool by liking something that might eventually get popular.

I'd say that there's a good deal of truth to the theory. Whenever someone is out there on the indie scene, whether it's been Daniel Bryan, CM Punk, Neville, Sami Zayn, Kevin Owens or whomever, you'll see people on various boards or commenting on various articles as to how these wrestlers are/were the absolute shit. Upon their arrival in WWE, however, many fans did sort of cool on them because they were no longer indie wrestlers, they were no longer strictly "their guys" anymore. They were now working for the machine, the big, evil corporate machine that, in some instances, would draw more fans and draw more money with a single show than many of the indie companies would draw the entire year.

It sort of puts me in mind of the "controversy" surrounding Metallica's breakthrough to the more mainstream of music with their 1991 self titled release. It was the one that featured Enter Sandman, The Unforgiven and Nothing Else Matters, which were their first songs that garnered significant airplay and they didn't use the exact same sort of formula for the album. The result was that Metallica became mainstream, they won a Grammy, the album was ranked by Rolling Stone among the 500 greatest albums of all time, etc. but some of their hardcore fans accused the band of selling out. They were still Metallica, they were still rocking harder than any other metal group in the business, but they weren't "their" Metallica anymore because they'd been embraced by the mainstream.

 

[Vintage Punk]

I agree with what several others have said. Really the only way to build them back up on main roster is to send them to Smackdown along with Finn Balor (who could use some rebuilding himself) and package them as The Balor Club.

Make them a heel faction that will cause havoc by assaulting other wrestlers having Balor feud with Shinsuke, AJ, etc. I'd also love for them to incorporate a female into the stable like how Nikki Cross is in Sanity. I think someone like an Alexa, Ruby, or someone along that line would work well in Balor Club. I'd even go as far as giving Ziggler a shot at joining too to resurrect his status.

Imagine Ziggler joins and is in US title pic or has the title. Maybe Balor Club does stuff like NWO used to where they attack other wrestlers, clear out commentary for a segment and take it over, sit ringside only to attack, or ask someone to join only to have Ziggler superkick their head off out of nowhere. It would be fun and something to look forward to and would help build all characters involved as long as they don't over script it and just let these guys do their thing. Plus having others help with promos only helps Balor who still needs work on his promos.

Just my thoughts...

 

[BK Styles]

It's a shame because when you listen to them away from WWE (for example, Steve Austin's latest two unleashed podcasts) they are HILARIOUS. I think outside of the Club they've been hamstrung by poor booking and maybe not fully being allowed to be themselves. In the ring they're both decent to good (with Anderson being the better of the two) but that connection with the fans is where they're stuffed.

If nothing else, as has been said they are good hands and are still a scalp that newer, more interesting and popular teams can claim. A good pair of gatekeepers for the tag division.

I honestly think there's still something that can be done with them though (reforming the Club with a heel Finn, maybe? Hell, that could be a lead-in to a full feud with AJ Styles down the line) but they need to connect with us, the audience. They have way more personality than what we see on WWE and I honestly feel like if they can get that across, all will be well.

It feels silly to say that about former Tag Team Champions, but hey, what can ya do?

 

[ISkye]

Gallows is an average worker, but a good talent to have on hand due to his ability to work with almost anyone. Anderson is a better worker, but he isn't so much an AJ Styles. Just the idea of being in Bullet club gets people excited and a lot of North american and WWE fans are complete sheep. A snowball effect turned the signing of two okay and solid hand talent into these borderline fictional great & huge NJPW stars that are coming to WWE with the leader of Bullet club! People were so hyped about this they were planning months of an invasion angle in their heads weeks before AJ even came out at the Rumble.

They're objectively good workers and fall into a niche sense of humor that is often better unfiltered. They work best in an audience actually trying to watch the show and appreciate it as well as one with an equal proportion of women to men. They also had actual time to work a match as it was a wrestling promotion and not kid friendly Jerry Springer. Now cut away good and unique opponents due to the NJPW to WWE in ring talent drop and remove the stable that made them a big deal to begin with. Then take away their time to actually work a good match and throw it in front of an audience who has been conditioned to cheer for silly moments and big moves. They aren't doing anything to throw up on Instagram for all 10 of your followers to see so why bother watching or even giving them the time?

Have them plug some merchandise and tell some forced lines that makes them sound like a 1960's sitcom bully. Alexa Bliss cuts entire promos that I heard on elementary school playgrounds and she's a champion above people who are actually respectable workers. Does it even matter? It's WWE. The pinnacle of pro-wrestling isn't WWE and it really hasn't been for the last couple of years at this point. It's just getting more cool for casual sheep to admit to it now and try and watch something else cause NJPW has some neat things buzzing and they actually cater and respond to overhyped sheep & internet fans.

They tried singing Bad Luck Fale and I believe another member or two with Anderson, Gallows, Nakamura & Styles so they didn't just sign them to get Styles. Styles is 40 and has a few kids as well as a level head. His work opportunities post-wrestling in WWE are far more expansive and he is definitely approaching the point where that's what he wants faster than slower. He would of went no matter what if the deal was good. WWE didn't get everyone they wanted and pretty much just made the Bullet Club even more relevant due to Kenny Omega taking over in Styles's place.

On a more WWE positive note. WWE has so much media that it doesn't even matter if they're on TV or not. These two have been a lot of places and are incredibly laid back guys. A good hand on a house show and great TV filler match guys as well as two people that boost locker room morale quite a bit. Will these guys have more appeal than Bray Wyatt, Cena, Samoa Joe, Strowman, Cesaro, Aj Styles, Finn Balor, A. Black, Seth Rollins, Ambrose, Reigns, Kurt angle, Triple HHH, Jinder Mahal, Dolph Ziggler, Rusev, Bludgeon Brothers, Sasha Banks, C. Flair, Bayley, Authors of Pain, Adam Cole, Drew M., Velveteen Dream, Goldust, etc. etc. etc. No. They are bland look wise and their general humor and appeal is niche. They're perfect where they are in WWE and they're being used much more effectively than a company like ROH AND NJPW could ever be capable of doing.

Note: Don't take this that srsly, lol.

 

[Dolph Ziggler's Gimmick]

I think you're sleeping on Gallows. Seeing the guy in clips like WWE's Ride Along and hearing stories about him, he seems to have a great natural personality that can translate well given the right booking and character. And yes, his size helps. In the ring, he also moves pretty well and has an intensity about him. Honestly, I see him more as the star than Anderson.

But apparently I'm in the minority. That's fine, I just hope Gallows can prove me right.

 

[TDFG]

I think I read somewhere that WWE only signed them so they could get Styles. That makes sense, as Gallows and Anderson haven't done much of anything.

I would agree with this, and also because it sent a message to NJPW, TNA & Dixie Carter at that time because they were also apparently negotiating with these three guys at the same time.

I see Anderson & Gallows as just another tag-team and I have done for quite some time which is disappointing as these two guys were seen as 'big signings' alongside AJ Styles.

 

[Radical]

Another sad example of WWE diluting what could be a much better and money-making gimmick and storylines if used.

By bringing Gallows & Anderson in and then pretty much jobbing them out since their debut they have become a joke and lost almost all credibility.

Cut to right now on Raw and you can only think of TWO tag teams that even remotely seem like competent challengers or tag team champions (Shield and The Bar) and they are beating a dead horse by matching up against each other so many times over the last number of months. It should actually be embarrassing for WWE that fans could look at the so-called Raw Tag Team "Division" and laugh at the lack of credibility the teams have and laugh even harder at the number of tag teams there.


If WWE actually went with "The Club" gimmick for Gallows & Anderson with any amount of care and effort it could AT LEAST mean that G & A would be seen as a credible tag team today and have had at least one tag team title reign.

"The Club" gimmick could have gone a lot of ways, it could have grown as G & A looked for more recruits which could have led to more allegiance and betrayal scenarios along the way as the The Club becomes more of a faction to be reckon with.


But leave it to Vince to do whatever he pleases whether or not it could be great business for him. If he's not into it, it ain't happening.

Just consider the fact that the most popular time for wrestling on TV and in general was the Attitude Era when Vince's company LITERALLY had to do whatever could be best for business because if they didn't they would be done as a company! So Vince's shows only produced its best content when their backs were up against the wall.

Now WWE is too much of Vince's playground with no short-term repercussions for his actions. The company is too big to fail quickly because of short-sighted and selfish reasons for pushing or not pushing certain talent or storylines.

Over the long-term, of course, WWE is and can see a steady decline in popularity but it's not until that decline somehow forces Vince to make DAILY better decisions that those decisions will be made.