Mark Henry's Reign The Beggining of a Permanent Transition For Smackdown?

[One to Remember]

I think Mark Henry's upset victory over Randy Orton was the begging of a permanent and fundemental shift of how things are done on the blue brand. I think even a six month reign is confirmation of this new way of doing.

After Mark Henry loses the title he will not regain it. After his reign the changes will be this:
I. Wrestlers on SmackDown! will get lesser title runs to work with. We will not see two day reigns like Christians then a subsequent short reign soon after. Your one run will probably be it.

II. Instead of wrestlers working to get a spot as a champion they will be given the title and their goal will not be to prove they deserve it but prove they should keep it. In other words the whole mainevent and upper midcard will be entitled to their fifteen minutes but must choose their timing wisely.

III. The athletes will be put on equal standing with the charismatic wrestlers and be encouraged to compensate by becoming overwhelmingly dominent.

IV. The reigns of yo yo champions if they still exist will be seperated by two or more different title holders.

 

[TWJC: The Beginning]

uh...no, it's all about story. they don't use the belt like you said. It's not a reward, well it is, but it's a tool.

Henry beat Orton, Henry keeps the title and looks like a monster. Sheamus beats Henry and becomes a mega star. That's all it is. it's not "fuck it, let's throw the title on you and see if it works" it's not "you're an athlete, you're a talker, you are different" it's simply this "you are over, we are going to push you, you are more over, we will push you more, you are EVEN more over, we push you even more".

WWE doesn't sit around and go "this guy is an athlete" (btw, they're ALL athletes, mark is a better athlete than CM Punk), so we won't push him. WWE gives guys an opportunity to make them more money, if they don't, the push stops. It's no different than any other business.

 

[Alittude]

uh...no, it's all about story. they don't use the belt like you said. It's not a reward, well it is, but it's a tool.

Henry beat Orton, Henry keeps the title and looks like a monster. Sheamus beats Henry and becomes a mega star. That's all it is. it's not "fuck it, let's throw the title on you and see if it works" it's not "you're an athlete, you're a talker, you are different" it's simply this "you are over, we are going to push you, you are more over, we will push you more, you are EVEN more over, we push you even more".

WWE doesn't sit around and go "this guy is an athlete" (btw, they're ALL athletes, mark is a better athlete than CM Punk), so we won't push him. WWE gives guys an opportunity to make them more money, if they don't, the push stops. It's no different than any other business.

Again you have a shot at CM Punk for no reason. Just like when you called Cena a better athlete? Come on mate. Henry is 10 million times stronger than Punk. But Punk is more agile, faster, is capable of more in the ring. As a wrestler overall Punk is much more athletic. Henry has strength but that's really all we see of his athleticism in the ring. It seems like you think muscles is the only thing that makes someone athletic. No one in their right mind would ever say Cena is more athletic than punk and then have another dig at him saying Henry is.

 

[HKnux5112]

Again you have a shot at CM Punk for no reason. Just like when you called Cena a better athlete? Come on mate. Henry is 10 million times stronger than Punk. But Punk is more agile, faster, is capable of more in the ring. As a wrestler overall Punk is much more athletic. Henry has strength but that's really all we see of his athleticism in the ring. It seems like you think muscles is the only thing that makes someone athletic. No one in their right mind would ever say Cena is more athletic than punk and then have another dig at him saying Henry is.

Technically, Mark Henry is an Olympian winner, and won the Strongman Classic. I call that an athlete.

As to the topic, I believe clean wins were sorely missing from today's era. It was such a breath of fresh air when Henry cleanly pinned Orton. I was surprised. I'm sure this will happen more in the coming months/years, not only on SD!, but on Raw as well.

 

[Ferbian]

If Smackdown was to transition into something like this, I think it would work against the purpose of pushing young stars. If every talent that gets featured on Smackdown eventually gets a world title to see if they can hold it and how long they should hold it, and then never get a reign again (Or at least in the nearest future) would cancel out any use of building talents on that show, because all momentum and build would be lost when they finally drop the championship.

Also if it gets to this, it would eliminate any direct need for actual long feuds, because the rematch clause after losing a championship wouldn't be needed, at least if they publicly admit this transition, and even if it was just admitted to the views of the IWC, nobody would bother watching the World Heavyweight Championship matches after someone lost the belt.

Overall this is a bad idea I'd say. Mostly due to the fact that it wouldn't serve the purpose of truly pushing talent and making them into future stars. Simply due to the fact that if the first title reign bombs heavily really soon, there's nothing left for you, at least not in the nearest future, and a lot of steam would be lost.

 

[Alittude]

Technically, Mark Henry is an Olympian winner, and won the Strongman Classic. I call that an athlete.

As to the topic, I believe clean wins were sorely missing from today's era. It was such a breath of fresh air when Henry cleanly pinned Orton. I was surprised. I'm sure this will happen more in the coming months/years, not only on SD!, but on Raw as well.

Yeah exactly strong man. That's what I said he has strength, but not much else. Did you not read my post? He can't move fast at all and is quite limited to what he can do in the ring. Punk can do a hell of a lot more than Henry ever could.

 

[rocksaviour]

I wouldn't want to see 'everyone' on the roster win the title and then be tested to see how long they should last on top.

Having Henry win the title after being in the company for such a long time is nice to see. He's played so many roles. But to then go and say that Orton, Kane and Christian can't topple them because they have had their turn in the past 12 months is wrong.

So what is the description of the changes to the WWE title over the time period of the last couple of years?

Cena has been involved in every title change apart from Sheamus to Orton to Miz. And basically since April 2005 out of injury he has constantly been in the title picture, no other feud at all, perhaps you would say the Nexus feud/issue was the only time he was out of it and then he was outside assistance or the referee in the title match.

Back on topic and in conclusion here, I'm not a fan of giving everyone the title.

 

[Jack-Hammer]

I don't see this as being part of some new transition for the show. I just think it's a good example of a wrestler just really making a character and a story work extremely well. The key to the success Mark Henry has enjoyed over the course of the last 5 months has to do with, in my opinion, the believability of his character. Mark Henry isn't doing anything complicated or original, he's just doing a character extremely well. He's a big, intimidating, pissed off wrestling veteran that sees himself as someone that nobody respects or talks about in a positive light in wrestling. He also just happens to be one of the physically strongest human beings in the world legitimately. It's simple and it works because Mark Henry makes it believable. His promos, his physical presence and what he does in the ring all fit in perfectly with this type of character. Henry's taken the ball and he's run with it. If this character had flopped, then Henry wouldn't have been given the World Heavyweight Championship.

Since Henry has been champ, SD! has averaged about 3.2 million viewers each week. That's about 300,000-400,000 more viewers than were watching the show before on an average basis. The only thing different on SD! during this 6 week stretch of SD! earning such above average numbers has been the fact that Mark Henry is World Heavyweight Champion. Simply put, Henry's a draw right now. The guy's money at this point in time and that's also a big factor in keeping the title on him.

 

[xoxo French Kiss xoxo]

I don't see this as being part of some new transition for the show. I just think it's a good example of a wrestler just really making a character and a story work extremely well. The key to the success Mark Henry has enjoyed over the course of the last 5 months has to do with, in my opinion, the believability of his character. Mark Henry isn't doing anything complicated or original, he's just doing a character extremely well. He's a big, intimidating, pissed off wrestling veteran that sees himself as someone that nobody respects or talks about in a positive light in wrestling. He also just happens to be one of the physically strongest human beings in the world legitimately. It's simple and it works because Mark Henry makes it believable. His promos, his physical presence and what he does in the ring all fit in perfectly with this type of character. Henry's taken the ball and he's run with it. If this character had flopped, then Henry wouldn't have been given the World Heavyweight Championship.

Since Henry has been champ, SD! has averaged about 3.2 million viewers each week. That's about 300,000-400,000 more viewers than were watching the show before on an average basis. The only thing different on SD! during this 6 week stretch of SD! earning such above average numbers has been the fact that Mark Henry is World Heavyweight Champion. Simply put, Henry's a draw right now. The guy's money at this point in time and that's also a big factor in keeping the title on him.

Exactly.

Henry brought back the "Monster Heel" the WWE was missing. He started taking out the big guys by "injuring" Kane and Big Show. He squashed several smaller middle card fan favorites in Morrison and Ryder. Then he went into a match with Orton, and beat him, cleanly in the middle of the ring. Then not even a month later, he did it again. He proved that he had what it takes to make the fans hate him, then he won the title to make the fans hate him more.

Henry was slowly pushed as a monster, and by having him take out two other Monsters in Big Show and Kane they helped to establish him as a top contender on Smackdown and as someone worthy of a WHC match.

The shift was from the cowardly, whinny, bitchy heel in Christian to a powerful monster, who dominated everyone in his path, and has the "Ill fight anyone" heel persona in Henry.

When time comes to drop the title, it will have to be to Sheamus, a face who isn't afraid of a fight, who likes to battle and can be physically brutal in the ring. I'm not saying that Sheamus vs Henry will be a 5 star classic match, but it will be a physical battle against two monster forces. When it happens and Sheamus captures the WHC from Henry it will sky rocket Sheamus

 

[One to Remember]

I did NOT say everyone on the roster I said the mainevent and upper midcard pool. The fact of the matter is Henry can't drop the title and regain it because its likely to be a clean loss and even with the rematch clause there is no reasonable way to explain his loss. No credible explination. His succesor has got to be another Goldberg type.. WWE will replace him with another monster and it will all start again. He will have to reign so long that his victims look refreshed and their losses to the champ are so far in memory that they can come back.

Guys like Christian are through. "Getting Christianed" is a new method the brass uses to stunt careers in WWE.. Christian doesn't have championship credibily anymore. The champ before him retired then relinqueshed the title, he won it in a free for all match then lost it to a seasoned former champ. Your either going to be a Henry or a Christian/Jack Swagger type off title holder. No middle ground on the nee smackdown.

 

[Headman]

Punk can do a hell of a lot more than Henry ever could.

Except hit his finisher without botching 50% of the time. Ouch... pipe bomb.

But in all seriousness, power is athleticism and Henry is a legit athlete. The comment on Punk was something that people in the know have been saying about Punk for years. Since his ROH days even. He's slow for a small guy, he's sloppy at times but his psychology is sound enough to make people overlook that stuff. That's not a knock on Punk at all, it's just how it is.

 

[Wade's Public Transit Bomb]

They already does this kind of booking with the Divas. Since Trish left actually. We all know how little anyone really cares for them.


"Taking turns" is a fucking dumb idea. We already seen how hard it is for most of the roster to say over because the writers shuffle the deck on who gets treated like a big deal and who doesn't every few months. Some people have used the term 'cool down period' to describe this. I think it is really unfair to guys who have actually worked hard and gotten over just to pull the rug from underneath them. Esp when everyone has notice that there really aren't that many big names on either shows.

 

[TWJC: The Beginning]

Again you have a shot at CM Punk for no reason. Just like when you called Cena a better athlete? Come on mate. Henry is 10 million times stronger than Punk. But Punk is more agile, faster, is capable of more in the ring. As a wrestler overall Punk is much more athletic. Henry has strength but that's really all we see of his athleticism in the ring. It seems like you think muscles is the only thing that makes someone athletic. No one in their right mind would ever say Cena is more athletic than punk and then have another dig at him saying Henry is.

It wasn't a dig on Punk, I said that because most people (most of whom know diddly shit about fitness) think Punk is a great athlete and think all the smaller guys are better athletes than the bigger guys. I love Punk, been following him since BEFORE ROH. However, Punk is no more an athlete than your average high school football player. No, Cena is a much better athlete than Punk. He's strong and more explosive, both have about the same coordination. Punk flails around while throwing kicks, has an extremely ungraceful top rope elbow, looks like he's about to fall everytime he does a springboard. Punk lacks coordination (in comparison to great athletes, not most people who trip going up the stairs), explosiveness (again, in relation to great athletes, not the average person who couldn't jump over a coffee table), and relative strength (I know this because he cheas on a lot of his lifts. Watch Punk lift up even "large" guys like cena for the GTS, he is hunching, it's a sign of core weakness). What Punk excels at is endurance, which is relatively easy to train and smarts. He knows how to work a match, knows how to pace himself, and knows how to control his breathing whenever it does pick up. Trust me, I have actually trained people before for money. I know more about fitness than you. Punk is NOT that good of an athlete. Better than the average person, but in a "world class" sense of the term he's not special. Like I said, the average high school football player, or maybe a "star" high school football player at best is the athletic equivalent of Punk. He has babyfat, Punk is just a nerd without much natural athleticism who worked really REALLY fuckin hard to get to where he is. Cena is a natural athlete (former all american or all state football player) who ALSO works hard. Mark Henry is a legitimate world class athlete. how many people are around 40 years old, 400 pounds, and can move like Mark? Not many, dude is a freak.

As for the topic of the post. The WWE does everything for business. Cena and Orton (and any other top guy) has a lot of title reigns because it's used to help elevate other guys. It's a tool to make different "products" (wrestlers) more valuable.

 

[TWJC: The Beginning]

Yeah exactly strong man. That's what I said he has strength, but not much else. Did you not read my post? He can't move fast at all and is quite limited to what he can do in the ring. Punk can do a hell of a lot more than Henry ever could.

Not really. I guarantee you that Henry could do shitty half speed jiu jitsu holds and throw shitty half speed kicks and stumble afterwards. Just because Mark DOESN'T do them doesn't mean he CAN'T. Mark is smart, he does things that make sense for his character. Sure, Henry probably can't do a sprinboard, but he's fuckin 400 pounds, most people who are 400 pounds you see in an electric scooter. Henry can EASILY pick up big show, Punk can't do that. You're comparing them in a really, REALLY stupid way.

It's all relative. Punk is faster than Henry. However, in relation to other people about 6' tall, about 200-220 pounds (me), Punk is NOT that good of an athlete. I can confidently say that if me and Punk ever worked out, lifting, cardio, core, etc, I could hang with him. Most people Mark's size can't get up off the fucking couch. Shit, mark is more athletic than most people who weigh 275 pounds, much less 400.

I was a 3 sport athlete in high school (which isn't impressive), I workout 5 days a week and have trained people before. I bench more than my bodyweight for 3 sets of 8, can run a mile in under 6:30, and I have a 6 pack. However, I am NOT a great athlete. That's my point. Punk is NOT a great athlete, he's average. If you don't think that, you're the one who's crazy.

Probably gonna get spam for that. I will say that I wasn' trying to rip Punk, just knew that it would be more potent using him. A lot of smarks favor small guys because they think they're "athletes" but being a big motherfucker like Henry, Show, Kane, Taker, JBL, etc and being able to do the stuff they do IS extremely athletic.

gonna tie it into the topic of the thread by saying that the title will be back on Orton within a year and probably also on Rhodes, Sheamus, and maybe christian again. you know, people who get over, which is how they use it.

 

[nWo2]

The shift is good because Henry is over!

Orton does not need the title to stay over. Sheamus is clearly in line to take the strap.

Daniel Bryan needs a heel turn or to lose his MITB briefcase or match.

Best idea I had was have Bryan win the title and then get upset by the Mania MITB winner presumably Wade Barrett or Sheamus