"HEEEEEERE'S ABE!!"-- Abraham Washington is a Hit!

[CHAOS]

I don't know about you lot, but I really like Abraham Washington. This guy is charismatic and so comfortable and entertaining on the mic, in my opinion, he and Tony Atlas have done some of the most entertaining segments on WWE TV in the past few weeks.
That got me thinking, does this guy wrestle? Because he could become a top guy on ECW if he is any good in the ring. I presume he does wrestle as he came up from FCW and I doubt he just did his chat show while he was there.

So, does anyone know if Abe does in fact wrestle? And if so, How good is he?

 

[gd]

I have to agree, the AW show is easily one of the best things going on in the WWE at this moment, there isn't much comparable to it. When he first debuted, I thought he was awful and the most pointless man in the history of the WWE. However, as time went on, he got better and better and I started laughing more and more. He is the main thing I look forward to every time I watch ECW.

I also think he did wrestle some in FCW where he was also in a GM-type role. I've heard that he was pretty decent and I'm sure he'll get the oppurtunity to wrestle some time in the future, but there really isn't a reason for him to do so at the moment with the current success he's having.

 

[The Doctor]

I'm a poor judge, but judging by his FCW videos, he isn't bad in the ring at all. I would love him to get into the ring one day after being called out by someone like Shelton Benjamin or even Big Zeke and shock the world by being a hell of a wrestler. It would make him dangerous, and improve his character even more.

 

[Lethalfan]

I like Abe, he is really good on the mic. And I can see this whole Abraham Washington show last all the way to the end of his career. But I think at some point there going to make him General Manager.

And to answer the original post yes he does wrestle he had some matches in FCW against Sheamus they were short but he was not that bad in the ring.

 

[PEP3]

Are we watching the same segments? From the reaction of people here, we must not be. While I think Abraham Washington is talented on the mic, I find The Abraham Washington Show absolutely dreadful.

Thinking back on the lamest moments on ECW TV during 2009, most of them include that chintzy looking black pleather couch and Washington's futile attempts at humor. Of course, I won't blame the worthless bits on Washington. He's simply doing the best he can with whatever awful script WWE writers provide him.

The first "highlight" from Washington's "show" that comes to mind is that embarrassing and painful Ryder/Benjamin karaoke bit. Everyone involved in that bullshit should be ashamed of themselves, including me. I felt humiliated knowing that was five minutes of my life I'd never get back!

The last thing the WWE needs is another lame-ass "talk show" host. If Washington is decent in the ring, they should allow him to utilize his mic skills to develop an in-ring persona. If he's not a qualified competitor, they should allow him to use his verbal skills to help another wrestler in a managerial capacity (too bad WWE doesn't allow ring-side managers any more).

Otherwise, I think "The Abraham Washington Show" is yet another bad joke from WWE. Until they figure out something worthwhile to do with this talented young performer, he only serves one purpose for me. Whenever I hear his "show's" theme music hit, I know it's safe to get up and piss between matches.

 

[Dagger Dias]

I can see why some people don't like it, but I think it serves a good purpose. The Abraham Washington Show is good for getting time on the mic for the members of ECW. It can help a lot of people get more over. If someone is bad on the mic, put them in a feud with someone who's not and then have them talk on Abe's show. Some moments of this show have been awful such as Shelton's singing, some of Abe's bad jokes, or Ryder's poem (sorry, but I can't stand poems), and a few other things. What "talk show segment" doesn't have bad moments though? Sure it's not "The Cutting Edge" or "Piper's Pit" but that doesn't mean it's horrible. The Abraham Washington IS a hit because it is one of the most talked about things in ECW. It also serves its purpose because it allows more mic time for the wrestlers that appear on it as guests.

 

[PEP3]

I can see why some people don't like it, but I think it serves a good purpose. The Abraham Washington Show is good for getting time on the mic for the members of ECW. It can help a lot of people get more over. If someone is bad on the mic, put them in a feud with someone who's not and then have them talk on Abe's show. Some moments of this show have been awful such as Shelton's singing, some of Abe's bad jokes, or Ryder's poem (sorry, but I can't stand poems), and a few other things. What "talk show segment" doesn't have bad moments though? Sure it's not "The Cutting Edge" or "Piper's Pit" but that doesn't mean it's horrible. The Abraham Washington IS a hit because it is one of the most talked about things in ECW. It also serves its purpose because it allows more mic time for the wrestlers that appear on it as guests.

What's wrong with the old stand-by of having a pissed off wrestler storm to the ring, demand the mic and cut a promo?! They do that on RAW all the time, and it works. They don't need a poor excuse for a comedy routine to give guys mic time. Hell, why not just have Gregory Helms talk to them backstage? There are a million ways to give wrestlers opportunities to cut promos.

"The Abraham Washington Show" is one of those, of course, but even as these "talk show"-type segments go, its effectiveness pales in comparison to things like "Piper's Pit," "The Cutting Edge" or so many others before it. I stand by my assertion that Washington could be much better used in some other capacity. Of course, then the WWE couldn't have poor Tony Atlas standing around laughing at horribly unfunny material either...so maybe keeping Atlas in a paycheck is worth all of it?

Whatever the case, as soon as he comes on, I immediately start flipping through the channels, go get something to eat or piss. I suppose it really does serve a purpose for me, so I shouldn't bitch.

 

[It's...Baylariat!]

I think the whole concept of The Abraham Washington Show is funny. With Tony Atlas as his 'Ed McMahon', it makes lots of sense to give the man something to do. He's funny, witty, and can help promote good matches for the less skilled talkers. It's something that should be done more often. Instead of scripting promos for guys who can't really read or follow lines well, have Abe Washington put the match over, or put more fuel to the fire.

It's a great concept and to be honest, he's funny, too.

 

[Toroc102]

I think the show is pretty good, its just on too grand a stage, it seems like it drowns the crowd out imo. If they moved it backstage, or to the ring I think it would come off a lot better, but I get what their doing.

As for Abe, I like him, he holds his own on the show, it just comes off flat sometimes. I'd like to see how he does outside of the confines of the show.

 

[Ambiguous Turd]

I think the show is pretty good, its just on too grand a stage, it seems like it drowns the crowd out imo. If they moved it backstage, or to the ring I think it would come off a lot better, but I get what their doing.

As for Abe, I like him, he holds his own on the show, it just comes off flat sometimes. I'd like to see how he does outside of the confines of the show.

I have a question. The live crowd seems restless enough sometimes with the Abraham Washington show being done in front of them. Do you honestly think doing it backstage is going to help the situation out, if they are doing a 7 or 8 minute segment in the back, that the crowd has to sit and watch on the TitanTron?

That sounds like a recipe for disaster to me.

As far as the show itself, I like it for the most part. Washington plays the obnoxious talk show host down to a T, and the addition of Atlas has only helped him.

Talk show segments give the superstars that much needed time on the mic that is needed to develop their characters, so this is only a plus. In weighing the cost/benefit analysis, I'd rather risk the live crowd getting a little restless inside the actual arena with them .... but doing it in the backstage area at the current length of the segment is going to piss them off to no end, and they will take it out on the show.

 

[Toroc102]

Yeah you're right, I was just thinking of Piper's Pit I guess, but the show is obviously much different from any of the other type of shows WWE ever puts on.

With what they're trying to do, it probably wouldn't work in the ring either. Just thinking on screen though, it seems like the crowd gets drowned out, like their is some kind of noice that I can't explain. Maybe its Atlas laughing for a bit too long on occasion. Maybe a little more crowd interaction would work. Also, the crowd would probably be a lot more receptive if the host was a face(in the case of THIS particular show). Anyhow he does a good job, I just the crowd can be explained by the fact that, Abraham is relatively unknown, its ECW, and crowds just suck in general nowadays.

 

[NSL]

Know what I realized tonight? The shorter the segment, and the less the focus is on Abe, the more I can tolerate the waste of time.

He's OK in small doses, and Maria owning the segment made it so much better. His comments were quick and witty, and Maria's playful banter really completed the package.

They should really take note of that, and remember that for future segments, so we don't get 10 minutes of Abe talking, and absolutely no crowd reaction.

 

[Klown_Karnage]

From what I can tell, Abraham Washington and his segments serve one purpose only: to act as those flashback things on soap operas to recap the storylines of specific wrestlers so that people can know who to cheer and boo for in the ring since ECW is too short to actually have much in the way of actual vignettes to carry the stories along. So long as Washington himself shuts up, I have a chance of staying awake through the segment. Even Atlas is (marginally) more interesting than him, although I still preferred him as the grumpy old trainer of Mark Henry.

Even then, it's only barely effective in its purpose and a complete waste of airtime otherwise. I tend to change channels when he's on, clicking back only with the sincere hope that some of the roster will get just as sick as I am of him and drag him to the ring for a long overdue lesson of what ECW is really about.

 

[Tastycles]

Is everyone watching the same segments as me? Talk show segments are generally a good idea, especially on ECW, where the guys are trying to hone their mic skills. So the format of the Abraham Washington show is good. Washington himself is fucking terrible. He has been doing it almost week in week out for over 6 months, and he still sollicits zero reaction from the audience. When Tony Atlas' mic skills are getting more of a reaction than yours, you aren't good. Abe is annoying, and he basically makes one joke about each roster member and repeats it, which is neither funny nor good. Nobody cares about him at all, which is why he hasn't been in the ring, despite debuting on a wrestling show 6 months ago. Either that or he is too shit to do so, in which case why is he out of developmental? I think the segment and therefore he is worth keeping, but he is not a future star.

 

[Shanks18]

It took a while to get going, but the segments have generally yeilded decent results, i.e. it's fairly enjoyable and serves its purpose well. As others have said it helps those with limited mic skills develop.

However talk show segments tend to have a limited selve live and I'm struggling to see where Abe goes from here without becoming stale. I don't think it's wrestling, look what happened to Estrada once he stopped being GM. I could see him either on Smackdown or ECW as GM possibly.

 

[Mr. Dejan]

I think Abraham Washington is great because we don't get many things like this anymore. But I often find myself wondering would he be as successful if Tony Atlas were not there. I think his success would be the same but tony atlas really makes the show for me.