We just don't agree, Yanks.
I saw it from a completely different perspective. To me, Lethal was pushed hard and given reign-after-reign with the X Division title and even a win over Flair by making him tap to his own friggin' move and it was Lethal who flopped, because "Jay Lethal" the character is incredibly boring, monotonous and dull. The guy came out in a Hogan-colored robe, pointed to TNA's letters and talked about being from Jersey. Who cares? Why should I care about that guy? His persona had NOTHING to do with his name. The only thing lethal about him was his ability to cut a promo or an interview where he wasn't impersonating someone else and make the fans care.
You may not like Pope, but Pope IMO is the superior talent between the two. Pope has more confidence, more swagger, and his gimmick and look actually fit together. Jay Lethal was a good ol' boy from Jersey who had dreads and Hogan-colored rights. Um... OK?
Black Machismo was as awesome as plain 'ol Jay Lethal was boring. That's the truth and there's really no denying it. Just because he did an awesome Flair impersonation and got to fight the Nature Boy doesn't mean he was over. Like many posters have said, it was his ability to mimic others that set him apart more than anything else.
Without Machismo, he's just another guy. Sorry if you don't want to hear it.
This statement can begin my argument that Jay Lethal being released was TNA's fuck-up.
For IDR, as much as I respect you, I'm actually one of the few posters who when I do my RTKC, I always wonder and ask where Jay Lethal is.
The main argument I'm hearing\reading is that Jay Lethal was bland on the mic and even though he could do impressions, the "real him" wasn't working out. Well, this is where teaching comes in. I think we can all remember how much we said A.J. Styles was bland on the mic as recently as last year. We remember how bad and dry Jeff Hardy was, and how lackluster Rob Van Dam is when he doesn't care. And, last I heard, Kazarian is STILL bland on the mic. Do we know how much Ric Flair worked with any of them on cutting promos and talking style? It's obvious that Styles grew light years with his time with Ric, but Kaz hasn't grown much, and Lethal could have EASILY played Kaz's in his role of Fourtune if TNA Creative so inclined. Sure, Kaz has the pretty-boy look, but you want to tell me that Lethal had no promo skill, nothing to grow with? You don't think that maybe if TNA had actually let him join Flair or join Hogan and let him get a much more sustained rub than just the 2-3 months he had, he would have grown up as well? That's why they're called TNA Creative. Does every wrestler have to come in ready-made and do it all themselves? Isn't it TNA Creative's job to give its wrestlers something interesting and, well, creative? Maybe give him a new robe? A new hairstyle? A script maybe?
A guy like Shelton Benjamin didn't have promo skills to start, and it never grew, which is why he never did anything more than IC and US titles. All the ability in the world and he couldn't work a mic, which held him back. Maybe the WWE even tried but he just never got the natural confidence and style to do it consistently. Jay Lethal can work a mic because if he could do a promo as Black Machismo, he can do one as Jay Lethal, and he can do things to make people laugh or take him seriously, and has a natural style that could easily be cultivated if given the chance. How could Lethal have a fighting chance to grow when he disappeared after the Flair feud, popped up to win the X-division title, wrestle at mostly house shows, then appears to build up Robbie E., win it back, then build up Kaz and disappear? How does anyone grow from that?
Let's think of it this way: with the Hogan\Bischoff regime, who has gotten built up from scratch or even from the mid-card to be in a TOP FEUD in their time? Answer: no one! (If I'm wrong, please feel free to enlighten me...) Everyone on top either already was established in TNA or built up from "the other company." Jay Lethal was one of the best young talents that could have grown to be a World Champion, especially because TNA shouldn't and to my knowledge doesn't have the height\size bias that the WWE has. He cuts better promos than Max and Jeremy Buck, wrestles better than Robbie E., and despite what IDR says, was over enough with the crowd and much more than the new Suicide, Douglas Williams or Amazing Red, plus he was loyal to the company and didn't have any issues with the law to my knowledge. Stars are rarely built overnight, and hopefully they realize they made a mistake and bring him back sooner than later and spend the time to work on him, or at least give him one more shot the way Bryan Danielson was brought back.
