JoMo Proved His ProMo Skills Last Night, Right?

[Uncle Sam]

I'm not going to pretend that JoMo's promo with Sheamus last night set the world on fire. Neither am I going to pretend that he's suddenly one of the best in the game at cutting promos. It didn't have the originality or flair of a CM Punk promo - nor did it have the, uh, length of a Miz promo.

However, I think he delivered it with three things. Competence, confidence and clarity. The three C's, if you will. That instantly puts him in the top 50% of promo cutters. Yes, I think the standard is that low. It also shows that his awkwardly delivered drawl about Sheamus being a "bully" was atypical of him and far, far below what he can do. Sheamus, really, ain't much better; he just has the benefit of a funny accent. If nothing else, "John Morrison will never bow down to King Sheamus" will make a great soundbite for the WWE to put in one of its great overproduced build-up videos. That's all I can really ask.

 

[eXtreme Hart]

It was better, but it wasn't great. I was listening and like you said, it was way better than the whole "you're a bully" but he still seemed to struggle a bit to get a reaction. His jokes fell a bit flat but hey it happens to the best of them (HHH, Cena).

But I mean hey the "King" looked like he walked straight out of a Lord of the Rings convention so not really much else to joke about. He did seem confident though and you're right, that is key. Hopefully, he continues to improve.

 

[King_of_Swing1520]

I'm not going to pretend that JoMo's promo with Sheamus last night set the world on fire. Neither am I going to pretend that he's suddenly one of the best in the game at cutting promos. It didn't have the originality or flair of a CM Punk promo - nor did it have the, uh, length of a Miz promo.

However, I think he delivered it with three things. Competence, confidence and clarity. The three C's, if you will. That instantly puts him in the top 50% of promo cutters. Yes, I think the standard is that low. It also shows that his awkwardly delivered drawl about Sheamus being a "bully" was atypical of him and far, far below what he can do. Sheamus, really, ain't much better; he just has the benefit of a funny accent. If nothing else, "John Morrison will never bow down to King Sheamus" will make a great soundbite for the WWE to put in one of its great overproduced build-up videos. That's all I can really ask.

you are 100% right. this promo (and hopefully this feud) proved that morrison is a good enough promo cutter to make it. ur dead on with the three C's and he pulled it off. although he was wrong when he said they are 1-1 in terms of wins and losses. sheamus has now beat him twice (the great match they had that started all of this).



anyway yes i think this goes prove that john morrison can be a mainevent player

 

[Van Gogh]

First post but I've been reading the forum for a while and waiting for something like this to crop up. Everyone always seems to maintain Morrisons mic skills are shit. I have to disagree, like you said, last night was nothing special but it was solid and definetly had the 3 C's which you described.

Hes delivered promos on the past on Smackdown which I thought were actually quite good. I particularly recall one with Swagger and another with Mcintyre where he was dressed in a kilt. I thought both were above average and he seemed pretty confident and clear in what he was doing. On ECW as well, he delivered some solid promos as the heel champ.

If WWE just give him more mic time, he'l get more confident and given the right things to say it will benefit him. We've all seen how good he can be in the ring, with his promo skills given a chance to improve he could well be propelled into the main event scene, where I think he belongs.

 

[Big Sexy]

It's sad when competence and clarity makes people think a promo is good. I thought the promo was absolutely hilarious and it wasn't because of Morrison's awful sense of humor. It was hilarious because the crowd was absolutely silent for about 95% of it. The only time there was anything close to a decent reaction was when Morrison attacked Sheamus. Other then that the crowd was dead silent and could not have cared less about what was being said. The biggest part of cutting a good promo is getting the crowd behind you and emotionally invested in what you are saying. Morrison failed miserably in that regard.

 

[Uncle Sam]

It's sad when competence and clarity makes people think a promo is good.

I agree but, like I said, that's where standards are these days. Which is why, I suppose, people thought the likes of Chris Jericho and The Miz were/are good at cutting promos. I mean, Jericho didn't even have the decency to have clarity most days. I suppose that's another story though. Point is, Morrison isn't the worst offender. There are those out there on the same level or below him who are positively lauded for their efforts.

I hope I used lauded properly.

I thought the promo was absolutely hilarious and it wasn't because of Morrison's awful sense of humor. It was hilarious because the crowd was absolutely silent for about 95% of it. The only time there was anything close to a decent reaction was when Morrison attacked Sheamus. Other then that the crowd was dead silent and could not have cared less about what was being said. The biggest part of cutting a good promo is getting the crowd behind you and emotionally invested in what you are saying. Morrison failed miserably in that regard.

I don't know what you expected. Something on the level of "Lend me your ears"? Your criteria for a good promo is well and away above what the majority of people can deliver these days - or have been able to for a good while. I'd blame cynical and apathetic crowds as much as admittedly mediocre promo cutters. Maybe if it was still the eighties and kayfabe wasn't dead. The crowd - apart from a vocal minority of screeching ladies - just wasn't really that hot for Morrison or the segment as a whole until the end. A shame, but that wasn't the fault of the promo. They were pretty cold for two-time WWE Champion Sheamus as well. The promo itself was perfectly good. Serviceable. Functional. Granted, it wasn't actually a bad looking beatdown. And actually, come think of it, physical violence often does get a bigger pop than talking.

I'll agree that if standards were actually high, JoMo would be considered a perfectly average promo cutter. Unfortunately, they're disappointingly low, making the three C's the criteria for what it takes to be better than most at the moment.

 

[The Doctor]

Morrison is just not very good. Oh look, he can say some words. But can he put emotion behind them? Can he use different inflections to give his words meaning? As we saw last night - hell no. He was wooden, completely wooden. Sheamus at least can scream things, and is fun to listen to. JoMo is just bland.

Honestly, JoMo COULD work, if he was being given better material. He could use that wooden delivery to preach ridiculous hyperbolic statements about his Palace of Wisdom. Back when he was doing that, his delivery didn't matter, because the things he was saying were so outrageous. Now, though, he's just boring.

 

[Big Sexy]

Standards are certainly lower then they have been in the past but there are still plenty of guys that can get at least SOME reaction. Competence and clarity are nice but those are probably the least important things when cutting a good promo. The two big things are:

1. Like I said before, you have to get the crowd emotionally invested in what you are saying. Whether the promo is promoting yourself or a feud, if the crowd doesn't care what you're saying then it's hard for them to really care about you or the feud you are in.

2. You have to be at least somewhat entertaining. Morrison as a heel in ECW was actually somewhat comical, but as a face his sense of humor is just awful. The jokes were competent and clear but in terms of entertainment they sucked.

I admit Sheamus wasn't exactly getting a big response either but he at least drew some boos. Guys like Miz and Punk, and even Barrett and Sheamus to a degree can still draw heat with their promos. Guys like Cena, Orton, and Santino draw big responses from the crowd with their face promos. Shit, even R Truth got a much bigger reaction from the crowd with his promo last week then Morrison has ever really gotten as a face.

There are still plenty of guys that get reactions and give much better promos then Morrison. All JoMo has done is upgrade from shit to competent. The standards are lower but not that low, and I'm not going to praise a guy for being average.

 

[TheMainMan32]

That promo last night was almost as bad as Ortunga's. Compare John Morrison with the man that stood across from him last night, Seamus. It was like night and day. Morrison looks like he's trying to act like a tough guy, while Seamus looks completely invested in his gimmick. It honestly made me cringe when he was telling those jokes, and then again when he kicked Seamus out of the ring and "struck a pose." Ugh. Nothing about him is natural, everything seems forced... And corny.

 

[Remix]

Morrison is just not very good.

You what? Next you'll be telling me that DH Smith is shit.

Oh look, he can say some words. But can he put emotion behind them? Can he use different inflections to give his words meaning? As we saw last night - hell no. He was wooden, completely wooden.

Hmmm monotone promos with no inflections. That reminds me of some people.

[YOUTUBE]jEllc7TkBHU[/YOUTUBE]

[YOUTUBE]3Zn4r00M2v0[/YOUTUBE]

I mean, it's not like the Rock ever did much on the mic than spit out his catchphrases. Now he was insanely charismatic, but if someone tried that shit today there'd be more than a few people shitting on him too. And Jericho was the same during his heel run. He pretty much used the same insults in a different order each week before calling himself the best in the world at what he does.

Morrison isn't close to being that good on the mic, but to shit on him for beeing wooden but not two of the best talkers in WWE history stinks of hypocrisy.

Honestly, JoMo COULD work, if he was being given better material. He could use that wooden delivery to preach ridiculous hyperbolic statements about his Palace of Wisdom. Back when he was doing that, his delivery didn't matter, because the things he was saying were so outrageous.

Which is not his fault. The truth is that Morrison holds up his end of the bargain. The rest is down to creative. Morrison gets the job done with his promos, and is as fun as hell to watch. That's good enough for me.

 

[Big Sexy]

You what? Next you'll be telling me that DH Smith is shit.

He is right now.

I mean, it's not like the Rock ever did much on the mic than spit out his catchphrases. Now he was insanely charismatic, but if someone tried that shit today there'd be more than a few people shitting on him too. And Jericho was the same during his heel run. He pretty much used the same insults in a different order each week before calling himself the best in the world at what he does.

Are you really trying to down talk two of the best talkers the industry has ever seen?

1. The Rock wasn't all catchphrases, he could cut a great promo without really using too many of them. Not only that but pretty much every big name has catchphrases. Rock, Hogan, Austin, Flair, Cena etc.. Catchphrases are a great part of cutting promos because it gets the crowd involved and makes them go insane. Whether it's Austin with "That's the bottom line" or "Hell yeah." Flair with "Wooo" or "Stylin and Profilin." Or Rocky with "If ya smell" or "It doesn't matter." They all get great reactions from the crowd and they get them involved.

2. John Morrison is a face. Him being monotone won't work because of that. He also is not entertaining. Jericho was methodical with his promos not really monotone. He still had emotion in what he was saying. Plus, Jericho was a heel. He was brilliant with the way he was insulting the crowd and he always drew a TON of heat because of it. Morrison draws almost no reaction from the crowd.

Morrison gets the job done with his promos, and is as fun as hell to watch. That's good enough for me.

No, getting the job done on the mic would consist of being entertaining and drawing a big reaction. Morrison is 0 for 2 in those aspects.

 

[Aeon Mathix]

To be honest, I could care less about JoMo's promo skills. Yes I was rooting for him last night to pull it off, because its his mic skills that everyone seems to shit on. I don't watch him for what he says, I watch him for his in ring ability. There are a lot of people in history who were shit on the mic but ended up being main eventers. Benoit, mysterio just to name a few. No one cared what they had to say, they just wanted to see them come out to the ring and tear the house down which they did, well what rey USED to do. Like other people have said, he just needs to be given the right kind of material. Let him throw out some of that poetry cept make it funny.

 

[Remix]

He is right now.

Go watch his matches when he's able to just go out and show what he can do. The man is a beast, and he proved that even in his two minute match last night. Specifically the almost botched superplex.

Are you really trying to down talk two of the best talkers the industry has ever seen?

No. I'm proving a point. Morrison is monotone, the Rock was monotoned as was Jericho in his "best in the world" gimmick.

1. The Rock wasn't all catchphrases, he could cut a great promo without really using too many of them. Not only that but pretty much every big name has catchphrases. Rock, Hogan, Austin, Flair, Cena etc.. Catchphrases are a great part of cutting promos because it gets the crowd involved and makes them go insane. Whether it's Austin with "That's the bottom line" or "Hell yeah." Flair with "Wooo" or "Stylin and Profilin." Or Rocky with "If ya smell" or "It doesn't matter." They all get great reactions from the crowd and they get them involved.

Thing is though that the catchphrases were what made up the majority of his promos. The fact that an insanely charismatic man got them to work doesn't change the fact that The Rock injected no emotion into his promos, and delivered the same lines in the same way every time. The Rock was charismatic, but that doesn't stop his promos being technically awful.

2. John Morrison is a face. Him being monotone won't work because of that. He also is not entertaining.

Doesn't change the fact that people wank over Jericho's monotone promos but derride Morrison for the same thing.

And on th emic Morrison is a bore. In the ring he is anything but.

Jericho was methodical with his promos not really monotone. He still had emotion in what he was saying. Plus, Jericho was a heel. He was brilliant with the way he was insulting the crowd and he always drew a TON of heat because of it.

So, when Jericho does something on the mic, it's great but if Morrison does the same it's unentertaining shit? Not exactly what you're saying, but it fits if you try hard enough.

Morrison draws almost no reaction from the crowd.

He draws a decent midcard reaction. Which is good for him because he's in the midcard.

No, getting the job done on the mic would consist of being entertaining and drawing a big reaction. Morrison is 0 for 2 in those aspects.

Our goalposts are in different places. I judge "getting the job done" when you're as good in one area as Morrison (or in the opposing area Barrett) is, all you need to do is go out and not stink up the joint. His other skills make up for the charisma he lacks.

 

[JGlass]

Go watch his matches when he's able to just go out and show what he can do. The man is a beast, and he proved that even in his two minute match last night. Specifically the almost botched superplex.

I like DH Smith. This is the beginning and end of places I agree with you.

No. I'm proving a point. Morrison is monotone, the Rock was monotoned as was Jericho in his "best in the world" gimmick.

The Rock was monotone? Find one time he delivered a monotone promo as a face, and I'll give you a kidney. What you choose to do with it is up to you.

Thing is though that the catchphrases were what made up the majority of his promos.

No, they made up the END of his promos, or if he was just cutting a quick one backstage with Lillian or Kevin Kelly. He'd give his two cents on the situation and then he'd do his whole jabroni, know your role boulevard, if you smell shpeel.

The fact that an insanely charismatic man got them to work doesn't change the fact that The Rock injected no emotion into his promos, and delivered the same lines in the same way every time. The Rock was charismatic, but that doesn't stop his promos being technically awful.

Since when are promos "technically" good or bad? There's no science behind cutting a promo, it's pure art. If it works, it works, if it doesn't, it doesn't. Did it work for The Rock? Yes, amazingly well.

Doesn't change the fact that people wank over Jericho's monotone promos but derride Morrison for the same thing.

Yes, yes it does. People hated Chris Jericho for being so disrespectful that he would come out there and not even have the dignity to sound interested in what he said. That was awesome, because he was a dick heel. But if a face did that, it wouldn't be good, because the face is supposed to get the crowd excited, so he better damn well bring his speech giving voice to work.

And on th emic Morrison is a bore. In the ring he is anything but.

Morrison has potential. His stuff from when he was with The Miz in the palace of wisdom was fantastic. He needs to get back to that. I think after this Sheamus-bullying angle, which I feel like the WWE wants to be a pretty serious thing, Morrison should go back to being the out there dude he was two years ago.

So, when Jericho does something on the mic, it's great but if Morrison does the same it's unentertaining shit? Not exactly what you're saying, but it fits if you try hard enough.

Because Jericho is trying to get people to hate him, and Morrison is trying to get people to like him. Once again, I remind you that Jericho was a heel, and Morrison is a face, I can't emphasize this enough. Monotony is okay for a heel, because it makes the fans think that they don't give a shit about what they do, which is annoying. Monotony is not okay for a face because faces need to make the audience like them, and nobody likes a boring Bobby.

This is exactly how I would explain the situation to a 7 year old who just found out wrestling isn't real. I hope you understand as well.

Our goalposts are in different places. I judge "getting the job done" when you're as good in one area as Morrison (or in the opposing area Barrett) is, all you need to do is go out and not stink up the joint. His other skills make up for the charisma he lacks.

Goalposts for who your favorite wrestlers are is fine, but that's not the issue here. Surprisingly, I think everyone who has posted in this debate is actually a Morrison fan, which is odd considering the large amount of Morrison detractors.

The issue here is whether or not Morrison can make it in the main event. As we've seen, wrestling skills are important in the main event, but the most important thing is mic skills. If you can't use your mouth to get you over (insert blowjob joke here), you aren't going to make it in the main event for long. Right now Cena, Barrett, Orton, Miz, and Sheamus have all proven to be effective promo cutters, getting a reaction from the audience 10 times out of 10. If Morrison wants to reach that echelon, he's going to have to throw out his A game and bring his A+ game. Right now, he's not there yet. He's getting there, but he's not there yet.

 

[WeAreLasers9097]

Not to flame or be a troll or anything, but I believe this forum has a lack of understanding of the word "competent". This is the Google definition: the quality of being adequately or well qualified physically and intellectually.

As far as the poster of this topic goes, I don't think promos can be competent, nor can a single promo turn you into a competent individual. A competent guy would be someone who is decent and, as the definition said, well qualified.

But to get on topic, Morrison's promo last night was better than what he usually says, but that doesn't mean anything. It was terrible mic work proven at its best: Failure to draw crowd reaction, bad "jokes", if you can even call it that, and as well as a bad voice to project it. I'm not sure how a wrestler can just suddenly lose mic skills, but it seems to happen when someone turns face. Ie; Orton.

 

[Mr. Artistic guy]

The problem with morrison and promo work in terms of his delivery is, and always has been clarity and word order. He has trouble not sounding like he rehersed what he is saying for the last 15 minutes before he came out. I also think he does worse delivering lines he doesn't really feel, it would be better for him to write stuff and have someone moderate and edit it IMO. Hence why dirt sheet stuff was so good, cos he wrote it so he felt it, knew how to say it and it was all delivered better.

But if people will allow me, I'll post a series of promos that to me prove that he has enough potential to go the distance. I've actually posted some of these before but nobody seems to take notice. Given what I'm gonna show, I think morrison's niche is comedy because I've seen him be funny both heel and face as I'll try to show: -

- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F_msm_E462A&playnext=1&list=PL358A0495094F7599&index=42
- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GkDCzNmdoh4
- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R0PGO_gxdrk&feature=related
- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C5oy2h5xitc&feature=related
- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zKz3oqIqzRk
- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RgWpO6PwR_o&feature=fvw
- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ds-KsI7uN3k&feature=related
- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X-r_RlLxHvU&feature=related
- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vIeQtoGzC7A&feature=related

OK admittedly none of these is stand-outish, but you have to admit, the man is funny. That has got to be his niche, but whats important is these are all face promos since he's been on smackdown during the 09 draft. I don't think I have to show you any of his heel promos because they are all billed as being good by most peopl, besides you can always go back and watch dirt sheet episodes anyway...

My point is he DOES have potential, and creative and himself need to work something out so that can be realised, because right now it isn't really working too well for him. Last night's segment with him and sheamus was really good though.

 

[Big Sexy]

No. I'm proving a point. Morrison is monotone, the Rock was monotoned as was Jericho in his "best in the world" gimmick.

Do you know what monotone means? How in the fuck was the Rock monotone? He was the exact opposite that. Please show me some monotone Rock promos.

Thing is though that the catchphrases were what made up the majority of his promos. The fact that an insanely charismatic man got them to work doesn't change the fact that The Rock injected no emotion into his promos, and delivered the same lines in the same way every time. The Rock was charismatic, but that doesn't stop his promos being technically awful.

They really weren't though. He used catchphrases but the meat of the promo was never about that. He delivered very lively, intense, entertaining promos with some catchphrases thrown in at certain points to get the crowd more involved. He used them in the same way as Austin, Hogan, Flair, Cena, etc. The Rock's promos were "technically" fantastic. It's the reason why he is hands down the greatest talker/promo cutter the industry has ever seen. I'm beginning to think you've never really watched a promo from the Rock because if you have you could not be any more wrong.

Doesn't change the fact that people wank over Jericho's monotone promos but derride Morrison for the same thing.

No, it's not the same thing at all. Jericho was a heel delivering entertaining promos that drew tons of heat. Morrison is a face delivering bland promos and getting no reaction. I'm having a hard time seeing many similarities.

So, when Jericho does something on the mic, it's great but if Morrison does the same it's unentertaining shit? Not exactly what you're saying, but it fits if you try hard enough.

Once again, very little is similar when it comes to John Morrison and Jericho on the mic. They are completely different as I've already discussed above.

He draws a decent midcard reaction. Which is good for him because he's in the midcard.

How is no reaction a decent mid card reaction? Watch his promo again last night. The crowd was completely dead.

Our goalposts are in different places. I judge "getting the job done" when you're as good in one area as Morrison (or in the opposing area Barrett) is, all you need to do is go out and not stink up the joint. His other skills make up for the charisma he lacks.

Obviously you have some low standards for Morrison. When it comes to promos he is the epitome of average.

 

[Dzone]

I get what the person said about him being quite monotone and it not working for him as a face, so maybe a "stuck-up-his-own-ass" heel turn could work for him and it would honestly leave him in a good spot.

Morrison was never the greatest person for cutting good promos, comparing him with the likes of The Rock, Flair, CM Punk and Jericho is pretty unfair because those are like your 4 greatest promo-cutters of ALL TIME... Morrison does have decent mic skills but those four are complete naturals who talk on the mic like it's the easiest thing (when it isn't =S). He is pretty funny like Alex pointed out, I'd say all Morrison needs to do is loosen up and not look so bored/wooden when he is on the mic. IF he just does that, I'm almost certain people will like Morrison's mic skills a lot more than they do now *they aren't the greatest, but they are ... "work-able"... ... ... yeh*

 

[LSP]

are you guys crazy?? Morrison's promo last night was terriblly awkward...he was stuttering and tripping over his words the whole time...it was honestly painful to watch. You can tell he has no confidence in his abilities on the mic. Sheamus is carrying this whole feud.

 

[reed214]

i guess none of you remember the dirt sheet (way better than miz,youtube it dammit) and how great JoMo was being a heel. to think JoMo isnt considered to be a better talker than john cena (who yells " will not qiuit blah blah im a thug and a marine combined to equal supercena!!) who just quotes Ali...then please turn the Monday Night delight heel!!!!

 

[Uncle Sam]

are you guys crazy?? Morrison's promo last night was terriblly awkward...he was stuttering and tripping over his words the whole time...it was honestly painful to watch.

Um, I think you want to call up whoever provides your TV service. Sounds like a bad signal. I can assure that he didn't stutter or trip over his words once. I mean, I was surprised that he added intonation, too.

You can tell he has no confidence in his abilities on the mic. Sheamus is carrying this whole feud.

Actually, I think the two have very good chemistry together - meaning they play off each other well. Like, think an Edge feud with anyone; the opposite of that. Chemistry. I haven't seen a brawl that convincing since DBD decked The Miz.

 

[Sean Valjean]

Honestly, JoMo COULD work, if he was being given better material. He could use that wooden delivery to preach ridiculous hyperbolic statements about his Palace of Wisdom. Back when he was doing that, his delivery didn't matter, because the things he was saying were so outrageous. Now, though, he's just boring.

This.

This is what's missing from Morrison: character. Morrison has a very dry, deadpan humor that works with his wooden delivery. Back when he was playing the trippy heel character, he would say the most ridiculous things in the most monotone voice and it was hilarious. It worked so well, that he managed to garner quite a following at the time.

When you take that same delivery and combine it with generic face lines, it just falls flat. "I'll never bow to you, Sheamus" is no where near as entertaining as "We don't wear lobster crowns in the Palace of Wisdom." The WWE needs to loosen up a bit with JoMo's promos and let him improvise, like he did on the Dirt Sheet. Morrison is a naturally funny guy. WWE needs to play of that strength, instead of shoving generic face lines down his throat.

If JoMo is ever going to become a main-eventer, they need to ditch the "generic face who does cool stuff" character and go back to the "spaced out, poetry reading, rock star who also does cool stuff". If they did, he'd get over in no time.

 

[zaculeh]

uhh jomo isnt bad, he is just scripted and booked badly to say lame and stupid things.. he needs his smug voice back.. and he cant really play an ultra face character even though WWE needs more faces at this current time..

 

[Heartbreak_Kid_707]

"Uncle Sam", I so agree with you 100% on everything you said about Morrison. I was a fan of Morrison WHEN he was teamed with one of the top wrestlers ever "The Miz".....Im glad Morrison is recieving this push even if it is by way of SHeamus...

BUT i have to add..your sig..what in the world is that about..Daniel bryan I dont agree with any of that...he is more than laughable

 

[Jack-Hammer]

I don't think that John Morrison will ever be a great talker, I think that's something that we might well just have to accept. It doesn't mean that he can't be a fin addition to any wrestling roster or be a big star, but I highly doubt he'll be on a John Cena or Randy Orton level.

Morrison is better than he used to be and he did deliver his promo last night with "Three Cs" in my view. Look at it this way, those are three things that Morrison's promos haven't really had since he turned face. I highly doubt he's going to set some new standard anytime soon but the guy's just not embarassing to listen to on the mic right now and, sometimes, that's really all you can ask from some guys.