**MERGED** All Ryback Discussion (Keep all of it in here!!)

[ultraviolence]

I really don't think its such a bad thing that people chant "Goldberg" during Ryback's matches. Goldberg was very over, so if they are dubbing him the new "Goldberg" so be it. More importantly, and I said this in another post about Ryback, I think WWE should go with the whole "Goldberg" thing and push him in the exact same way...except they should let Ryback talk, I know he is a good talker.

 

[gdkeen]

Personally I'm enjoying Ryback. I think they should literally have him beat anyone who isn't anyone before he faces anyone that is over. Just keep having him squash until you have a story for him and then run with it.

Seriously? Why bring him up when you don't have something ready for him? Why give him tv time every week for meaningless matches that DON'T elevate him in anybody's eyes?

I'm sure WWE has something lined up for him, but I think the reason you're starting to hear chants is because they've already stretched this lame gimmick out for too long.

If he didn't look like Goldberg, and if his gimmick wasn't a lame parody of Goldberg's, the crowd would chant "BOR-ING" instead.

 

[mikekinkade]

I am a fan of any wrestler, although physically impressive people use to intrigue me. However, since I started watching MMA back in '03 I seem to care less about physical size. Here is what I believe has happened, which may at first seem like a stretch.

The UFC showed that big powerful muscle fighters aren't always the best fighters. Anderson Silva and Fedor, neither who are physically impressive looking, is/were considered the best fighters in the world.

Big wrestlers at the end of the day still have to get over as tough guys that could beat up the average person. If a fan sees a stumbling slow paced physically impressive looking guy, the first thing they may think is how bad they would get beat up in a fight against a quicker athletic person.

A big man is there to get over has the big bruiser tough guy. However, I believe fans are starting to believe that muscles are overrated. Back in the 80's and early 90's, the fans didn't get to see much MMA. I also should add that the most popular boxers nowadays are smaller fighters, while in the 80's and 90's it was the heavyweights.

With Brock Lesnar, he proved in other sports that he was a gifted athlete, and then showed his freakish athleticism in the WWE/UFC. So a big man does now need athleticism.

 

[keith hall]

i think Ryback should be the nxt goldberg...heck give him the spear already...he yells out things like feed me more like goldberg and stuff so give him a streak and the spear...But get RIDDDD of the MUSCLE BUSTER!!! i hate it...

 

[Benson]

Except it isn't superficial. Goldberg didn't always have "The Streak" until he actually started really racking up win and they could call it that. They could say "he's undefeated" but it wasn't a streak until later. Saying "give me more" isn't much different than Goldberg's finish at the end of his matches, and his build up so far is pretty much the same. It's the same squash jobbers as an unstoppable genetic freak of nature from no where just like Goldberg was. It's at this point they have to save it, if they continue with the same Goldberg build he will get buried by those chants and it will hurt his character, just like the Batista chants screwed Mason Ryan.

BTW Lesner wasn't even close to a Goldberg build up, it really makes no sense where you are getting this from. Brock was a "free agent" who "signed" with Paul Heyman. He became Heymans attack dog that Heyman would use to dominate his way back to the top. He started off attacking people like the Hardy's and Dudleys, people with some form of establishment to their name. He wasn't "music hit dominate guy comes out and squash people" he actually started jumping those people from behind before he even had a match to begin with. Goldberg vs lesnar comparisons are only superficial and have nothing to do with character or build up. Ryback on the other hand has been a completely different story up to this point. I'm hoping they fix it before the guy is stuck with this tag following him.

I got this from the fact that the "Goldberg" chants followed Brock everywhere early in his career.

And about their build, who "really" cares? It's still a fairly new, young audience and the demographic that they're catering to. Not to mention, it's a gimmick that was done on a completely different show, 15 years ago. It's seriously not going to kill him at all.

 

[Headman]

I really don't think its such a bad thing that people chant "Goldberg" during Ryback's matches. Goldberg was very over, so if they are dubbing him the new "Goldberg" so be it. More importantly, and I said this in another post about Ryback, I think WWE should go with the whole "Goldberg" thing and push him in the exact same way...except they should let Ryback talk, I know he is a good talker.

They're not dubbing him the new Goldberg, they're making fun of him. I don't think it's his fault, because quite frankly he's not doing anything wrong in the ring. However the WWE has got to be out of their minds as far as presentation goes if they don't expect negative comparisons to past wrestlers. If I were them I'd hurry up and turn Ryback into his own man before he gets written off as a clone of the clone who wasn't that good to begin with.

 

[The 1-2-3 Killam]

There are some guys you can look at and just see potential in them. These are your Eddie Guerrero's, your CM Punk's, and your Jeff Hardy's. Then there are other guys that show up with a bit of potential -- whether it be a great look, in-ring ability, mic skills or a pedigree -- but you just never know until something happens with them. With Ryback, at least for me, it's the later. He's got a great look and he's brutal in the ring. He looks like he could go awhile with somebody the likes of John Cena or Randy Orton, and pull out a decent match under the right conditions. But will he ever ascend to that level? I don't know. Maybe, maybe not. But I'm not going to hate on him just because more often than not guys and gimmicks like Ryback fade in and out, and in the end nobody gives a damn.

Why not get behind them for what they do have, that way if a guy fails at least it's not our fault. I'd rather a wrestler fall out of the company because creative sucks, not because the fans suck and refused to back an otherwise fun character.

Take Batista for instance. How did he get his start in WWE? Damned if I remember! All I remember is him being welcomed into Evolution... A little bit of Wiki study reminds me that he was involved with D-Von for a minute, but who the hell actually remembers that in great detail? I would almost guarantee you that when it came to Batista, zero shits were given. Big guy, good look...dime a dozen. Ten years from now Ryback might be an afterthought as the one guy who was apart of the Nexus for a few months. Or he might be a dominant World Champion who has run programs with the best of the best. Less talented guys have been given the ball, and done absolutely great things with it. If The Miz can have a fun, relatively long WWE Championship run, Ryback can get over in a modern WWE era.

 

[thatotherguy]

i think Ryback should be the nxt goldberg...heck give him the spear already...he yells out things like feed me more like goldberg and stuff so give him a streak and the spear...But get RIDDDD of the MUSCLE BUSTER!!! i hate it...

Actually he sort of has a "spear" equivalent with his lariat. Granted it's never going to be his finisher but that thing is vicious. And wheter you like his finisher or not it is not a Muscle Buster. It's a variation on a Fisherman Suplex.

 

[The Eighties]

Over the years a lot of the best performers have been smaller and inspired a lot of top current stars, so the trend is reversing from years ago when the rep on WWF/WCW fans was they cared more about image and names than in ring talent.

I don't think there is a current bias against big guys from WWE fans, I think they are simply not going to be force fed a monster push for a choad like Mason Ryan, if a big guy comes along who can really deliver on the presence and performance front I'm sure the crowd will get behind it.

For instance I think in time Ryback will be over, the sarcastic Goldberg chants are coming because the squash booking and his routine is identical to early Goldberg, not because he's big.

 

[Danger Burger]

Iv comented earlier, so blah blah blah!

But what i'd relly like in Ryback would be targetted attacks!! Get him to learn how to tear a guy apart, leg attacks, arn attacks, work the neck etc... I know theres no need for that yet, but i'd like to see his style have a little more depth! Its all very well picking things up and putting them down again, but i want a more inteligent form of power!!

 

[waylonmercy]

I am a big fan of Ryback. I think his offense is VERY strong and the crowd buys into it. He is gaining momentum inside the ring and outside the ring with the fans cheering him. They even started a little Goldberg chant on Smackdown. Some may not like him but I think he is pretty good.

 

[Mike D]

1. WWE officials may not be happy with his abilities . To me slater out shined him even in his short offense last week .

2. He's been in wwe for almost 8 years and has 2 failed wellness against him already . Perhaps he failed a 3rd wellness ?? That would be too bad , as it's someones career and living .

3. He got injured . I'm not a fan of his work but would never want this for anyone .

 

[Nate DaMac]

1. WWE officials may not be happy with his abilities . To me slater out shined him even in his short offense last week .

That's stupid.

2. He's been in wwe for almost 8 years and has 2 failed wellness against him already . Perhaps he failed a 3rd wellness ?? That would be too bad , as it's someones career and living .

First of all, he has ONE violation. If he got another one and/or was released, they'd announce it immediately since there's no real reason to write him off of TV.

Personally, I'm digging the Ryback character. The look is there, no doubt. He hasn't had a long enough match to really assess his in ring ability too much but his move-set is off the chain. I've never seen anyone make a clothesline look that rough. He's playing the monster face role very well, can't wait to see him evolve.

 

[Mike D]

That's stupid.



First of all, he has ONE violation. If he got another one and/or was released, they'd announce it immediately since there's no real reason to write him off of TV.

Personally, I'm digging the Ryback character. The look is there, no doubt. He hasn't had a long enough match to really assess his in ring ability too much but his move-set is off the chain. I've never seen anyone make a clothesline look that rough. He's playing the monster face role very well, can't wait to see him evolve.

Actually you are incorrect . He has two failures... his last one got him released .

Did you miss his NXT matches ? His "abilities, or lack thereof " are well known

regardless of all that , why do you think they kept him off tv in the middle of this push ?

 

[Starchild]

I'd just to commend WWE for this article and what appears to be the start of a push for a catchphrase for Ryback in an article on their website.

WWE’s website has a new article up looking at the winning streaks of Brodus Clay, Lord Tensai and Ryback, wondering who will eat defeat first. They predict Lord Tensai’s association with John Laurinaitis will cause him to lose first, followed by Brodus Clay. They wrote about Ryback:

“Meanwhile, Ryback could very likely prove to have the longest winning streak. Undefeated and unchallenged thus far, it seems probable he will continue winning and working his way up the WWE roster. Long story short, the WWE Universe should get used to the phrase, “Finish him!””

I'm not sure how they're going to get away with this legally as I'm sure it's a trademarked phrase, but I find it hilarious that they're using a Mortal Kombat tagline with him.

At any rate, I like Ryback so far and the crowd seems to be starting to dig him too. He's getting bigger cheers, has pyro, slowly moving up the Smackdown food chain...maybe there's something here. If he continues and that catchphrase catches us it good catch on quickly and we've seen with Daniel Bryan what can happen almost overnight with a catchphrase.

 

[shamsmu]

Just wondering if he is going to be the new Goldberg/ Brock Lesnar or just a mid carder monster like Henry and Khali was during most of their career. I'd hate to see him end up like Mason Ryan and Ezikel Jackson.

 

[slice_of_life]

They seem pretty committed to him. He gets PPV time. Some of the best wrestlers on the roster dont even get PPV time. Vince loves guys that look like him and the crowd seems to pretty well entertained by his Goldberg 2.0 showings. I'm convinced he will be a world champ this time next year.

 

[Big Nick Dudley]

Hopefully this takes him straight to the top. No, I'm not kidding.

Lose the ridiculous outfit, add a tad more intensity and that's it. That's your monster. He has the talent. He's not just a moron with muscles, the guy can go. Slowly climbing the ladder is the way to go. Don't jump gears in a hurried fashion. A slow burn sounds fun.

However, I hope he has some interesting angles to work. Just destroying people will get old if it lacks storytelling.

 

[IHW]

Gotta agree with Big Dick Dudley; Ryback needs the slow build to the top. The gimmick needs to be tweaked just a bit. I like it, but more intensity could help. Another thing that could help are longer matches. One can only go so far in squashes.

Ryback seems to have all the tools to make a great superstar, and potential world champion. He has skill, which is something most big men don't have much of. I say give Ryback the proper push, and see just how far he can go.

 

[slice_of_life]

Hopefully this takes him straight to the top. No, I'm not kidding.

Lose the ridiculous outfit, add a tad more intensity and that's it. That's your monster. He has the talent. He's not just a moron with muscles, the guy can go. Slowly climbing the ladder is the way to go. Don't jump gears in a hurried fashion. A slow burn sounds fun.

However, I hope he has some interesting angles to work. Just destroying people will get old if it lacks storytelling.

haha so true. I've learned to accept the RVD tights, but those arm bands are so hard to look at and take seriously.

 

[gwarren]

I'm a bit worried, I actually think they're going for the Terminator thing. Watch his match from Over the Limit, he's pretending he's receiving messages, hence the head hitting and shouting "finish him" at the end. Watch it back. You'll see what I mean, he's almost pretending he has a transmitter in his brain...

 

[SMKM]

Seriously, all I'm seeing from the IWC is hate on Ryback. What exactly is "wrong" with him? Are you all mad he keeps getting compared to Goldberg? Because seriously, even though VKM thinks he could be WWE's Goldberg, who the hell says he can't be? It's be over a decade since Goldberg was at the height of his push....since then we haven't had "an unstoppable force" such as him. You do realize how hard it actually is to make intriguing storylines after all these years? Or how hard it is to find guys like Ryback who have the potential. We've seen Ryback in all these squash matches, the jobbers MAKE Ryback look like a beast. Tell me you don't cringe a little and think to yourself, ok yeah that would probably hurt. Ryback is great at what he does and has the potential to be Goldberg 2.0. You may not like it, but I guarantee in a year or so he'll be over, he'll be pushed, and if VKM is serious, he WILL be the WWE's version of Goldberg. Ryback is not bad at all, you're all hating because you're all still stuck in the Attitude Era. My question to you guys is for any SENSIBLE fan here to tell me what exactly is wrong with Ryback. I don't want blatant biased hate, just logical reasoning. Seriously from what I've seen, he's a beast, and he will be around for awhile granted he doesn't mess up backstage.

 

[HBsam31]

I don't really get the whole hatred of him, but I do think part of it is people want to see him have an actual feud. The jobbers he is having matches against look like guys my 98lb mother could beat up. There needs to be some progression with him. If you look at Goldberg's streak, he faced some jobbers, and very quickly moved to jobbers that were known to fans. He then worked his way to the US title against opponents a little more credible and so on and so forth. Goldberg was basically built to the top in a span of a year. Maybe a little more or less. Goldberg went over Hogan for the title. Could you see Ryback going over Cena for the title? My point is there is work to be done, and he needs to start taking steps forward now. I don't hate him but I am skeptical on how long he will remain this beast that he is now.

 

[matman8540]

I don't hate Ryback. I just hate the way the writers are booking his matches. Actually, Goldberg faced off against quasi-decent competition during the opening stages of his streak. Among them were Steve McMichael (before you start hating on Mongo, he was the US champ at one point), The Barbarian, Meng (both former WWE tag champs with different partners), and Hugh Morrus (in the beginning stages of his career, before he would win the US title). Right now, the only decent wrestler Ryback has faced has been Heath Slater...that's it. Unfortunately, there aren't that many mid-level jobbers to go around these days.

 

[slice_of_life]

First off, I'm going on record of saying that I hate it when people say IWC. . . ON A FUCKING INTERNET FORUM.

To the original topic. I don't hate him. His squash matches have been very entertaining, the problem is: I don't see his matches being entertaining when he faces real competition. There was only one Goldberg, and there never will be another. I know there really is no such thing as originality anymore, but the WWE has to try and do a better job of developing a character for him. Because of his booking he will forever be heckled by Goldberg chants. I don't like Brodus Clay, but he is undefeated and people don't even remember for the most part because of his character.