Would you have booked 2014 differently?

[MartialHorror]

So we of the IWC tend to think we understand the product better than the people who create it, which may or may not be true. So I was wondering, how would you guys have done things differently for the year 2014? Personally, I would've-

1) Had Ambrose defeat Rollins at 'Hell in a Cell'. Rollins more or less came out on top during all of their interactions, even when Ambrose ambushed him. Ambrose needed that win. Honestly, Ambrose keeps losing his PPV matches and his credibility has been shaken. Some fans justify this by claiming that Ambrose isn't about winning matches, but that is always what it is about. I figured Mick Foley was foreshadowing Ambrose's victory when he said that in most cases, he thought Rollins would win, but HiaC is a completely different beast. This would've protected Rollins and put Ambrose over.

2) Kept Ambrose and Bray Wyatt far away from each-other. Bray needed to rehabilitate himself and so did Ambrose. Now I feel that by putting these two together during a fragile time in both of their careers, one is destined to continue their downwards slide. I'd rather it be Bray of the two, but I would've preferred these two to meet later down the line when the feud would matter. Bray gets all this build up for his return and when he finally shows up, Ambrose promptly gets inside his head. This would've been cool if Bray hadn't already lost so much credibility since his Wrestlemania loss.

3) Have Harper retain the IC championship at TLC. WWE is telling me that the only reason he had it was because of the authority. Harper looks weak and Ziggler can't capitalize on his Survivor Series momentum because he's holding a midcarder belt. He just brought down the Authority, the biggest heel stable we've had in years...and he follows that up with the IC belt?

4) 'Orton Vs Cena' at Hell in a Cell: Cena winning was fine, but I think Rollins should've gotten involved and cost Orton the match. As it was, when Orton blamed Rollins for the curbstomp a week before, I was thinking that he was whining like a little bitch...and we're supposed to sympathize with him.

5) Lesnar should not have defeated the Undertaker. Lesnar should've come out on top, but it shouldn't have been an official win. Lesnar isn't around enough to capitalize on that heat. After conquering the streak, he should be a hated heel. Yet he vanishes, so fans start to miss him and will chant his name when he goes after Cena. I kind of wonder if Rusev would've been a better choice for WM31, as beating the Undertaker would be a much bigger deal and presumably Rusev would still be around.

6) Kane...just Kane. The last we saw of CM Punk, he was getting attacked by Kane. The last we saw of Bryan as an active wrestler, he was getting attacked by Kane. They bring back the monster heel, who through sheer coincidence, has ended the careers of two stars (in storyline) and yet...he still never wins. What killed Kane was that RAW (?) where he had the stretcher match with Cena. Losing wasn't a big deal, but they didn't even have Kane come out on top during their confrontation earlier that night.

Certain events like Batista winning the Royal Rumble actually worked out in retrospect, so the only thing I might've changed was having Batista turn heel during the Rumble so that it felt intentional. I'm split as to whether Cena going over Bray was an acceptable thing or a travesty, as Cena needed to be the top guy in order to make Brock's one-sided beatdown on him matter. There wasn't enough room for Bray at that time. Unfortunately, now WWE lacks star power, so maybe Bray should've went over.

 

[Navi]

Yea unfortunately us fans think we do know better than anyone else, we're not always right, but most of it is down to our own individual tastes and who who would like to see win.

I would not have wanted to be a booker this year. Just from an injury standpoint alone it must have been a horrible job to have. You have your Champion Bryan go out, right after winning the belts, then Reigns in the middle of a monster push. The creative team must have been going insane with all of it. And quite honestly it showed. Half the time I had no idea what was going to come next, and wasn't very happy with what happened. But let's take a look at your list.

1) Had Ambrose defeat Rollins at 'Hell in a Cell'. Rollins more or less came out on top during all of their interactions, even when Ambrose ambushed him. Ambrose needed that win. Honestly, Ambrose keeps losing his PPV matches and his credibility has been shaken. Some fans justify this by claiming that Ambrose isn't about winning matches, but that is always what it is about. I figured Mick Foley was foreshadowing Ambrose's victory when he said that in most cases, he thought Rollins would win, but HiaC is a completely different beast. This would've protected Rollins and put Ambrose over.

They have to keep Rollins looking strong, even though he needs lot's of help to win his matches. He doesn't really, but that's the way they're booking him. Plus it leaves the door open for a continuation of this feud down the line. It's not over yet, just taking a breather.

Ambrose is taking what i call the hero's journey. He's losing every almost everyone in sight, but will come out victorious in the end, and the fans will go crazy. Because that's what he's doing right now, getting the fans behind him, and they are rallying to his call. Losing doesn't seem to have made him weaker for some strange reason cause he will come out stronger in the long run.

2) Kept Ambrose and Bray Wyatt far away from each-other. Bray needed to rehabilitate himself and so did Ambrose. Now I feel that by putting these two together during a fragile time in both of their careers, one is destined to continue their downwards slide. I'd rather it be Bray of the two, but I would've preferred these two to meet later down the line when the feud would matter. Bray gets all this build up for his return and when he finally shows up, Ambrose promptly gets inside his head. This would've been cool if Bray hadn't already lost so much credibility since his Wrestlemania loss.

I wouldn't have put them together either. Actually I don't know what I would have done with Bray Wyatt. Like I said before he's way ahead of his time, and there isn't anyone on the roster that I can see him feuding with. He's not interested in titles, I don't know what he's interested in but he drones on endlessly and it's gotten to the point where I've stopped listening.

3) Have Harper retain the IC championship at TLC. WWE is telling me that the only reason he had it was because of the authority. Harper looks weak and Ziggler can't capitalize on his Survivor Series momentum because he's holding a midcarder belt. He just brought down the Authority, the biggest heel stable we've had in years...and he follows that up with the IC belt?

That was a stupid move. With Reigns not ready yet to take the title off Lensar, Ziggler was the only one other than Cena or Orton they could have fallen back on. Now he's back to where he started months ago. It seems like all his hard work was for naught.

5) Lesnar should not have defeated the Undertaker. Lesnar should've come out on top, but it shouldn't have been an official win. Lesnar isn't around enough to capitalize on that heat. After conquering the streak, he should be a hated heel. Yet he vanishes, so fans start to miss him and will chant his name when he goes after Cena. I kind of wonder if Rusev would've been a better choice for WM31, as beating the Undertaker would be a much bigger deal and presumably Rusev would still be around.

I would have preferred to see someone else end the streak, someone who needed the rub. You're right about Lesnar not being around to fan the flames, and then put him in a feud with Cena isn't the way to build heel heat. Half the people watching don't like Cena to begin with. It was a waste of Taker's time building up that streak to see it end this way.

6) Kane...just Kane. The last we saw of CM Punk, he was getting attacked by Kane. The last we saw of Bryan as an active wrestler, he was getting attacked by Kane. They bring back the monster heel, who through sheer coincidence, has ended the careers of two stars (in storyline) and yet...he still never wins. What killed Kane was that RAW (?) where he had the stretcher match with Cena. Losing wasn't a big deal, but they didn't even have Kane come out on top during their confrontation earlier that night.

Kane has become a shadow of himself. I appreciate all the work and effort he's put into his career, but his becoming a pain in the ass now. Who would have thought 5-10 years ago that Kane would be someone's bitch today. I'll wager no one would have said that could or would happen. He needs to get out of the ring and soon. I'm sick to death of him.

2014 wasn't a banner year for the WWE. We saw the streak end, and have had an absentee champion for the latter half of the year. And they wonder why the network isn't doing well. Hopefully next year the WWE won't be so injury plagued and everyone will be on their game. We can't go through another year like this one can we?

 

[The Mattitude Era]

2) Kept Ambrose and Bray Wyatt far away from each-other. Bray needed to rehabilitate himself and so did Ambrose. Now I feel that by putting these two together during a fragile time in both of their careers, one is destined to continue their downwards slide. I'd rather it be Bray of the two, but I would've preferred these two to meet later down the line when the feud would matter. Bray gets all this build up for his return and when he finally shows up, Ambrose promptly gets inside his head. This would've been cool if Bray hadn't already lost so much credibility since his Wrestlemania loss.

My issue with this thought process is that the product will become too stale and predictable if they're constantly keeping hot wrestlers apart for the purpose of "protecting" them so they don't lose a match. Do we just want a constant cycle of wrestler-getting-a-monster-push vs. jobber-who-no-one-cares-if-they-win-or-lose? I think you gotta have feuds like this to keep it interesting. I, like most people I would imagine, don't want to feel like I know who is going to win every match. When they stick Wyatt and Ambrose together, I have no idea who is going to come out on top. Stick Wyatt with Swagger or someone, it's obvious who's going to win. And lastly, like I say all the time, it really doesn't matter who wins. Ambrose hasn't won a match in 14 years, yet he's probably the hottest guy on the roster.

 

[MartialHorror]

My issue with this thought process is that the product will become too stale and predictable if they're constantly keeping hot wrestlers apart for the purpose of "protecting" them so they don't lose a match. Do we just want a constant cycle of wrestler-getting-a-monster-push vs. jobber-who-no-one-cares-if-they-win-or-lose? I think you gotta have feuds like this to keep it interesting. I, like most people I would imagine, don't want to feel like I know who is going to win every match. When they stick Wyatt and Ambrose together, I have no idea who is going to come out on top. Stick Wyatt with Swagger or someone, it's obvious who's going to win. And lastly, like I say all the time, it really doesn't matter who wins. Ambrose hasn't won a match in 14 years, yet he's probably the hottest guy on the roster.

They don't need to constantly keep wrestlers far apart. WWE just needs to be a little more patient. Both Bray and Ambrose were last seen on the receiving ends of beatdowns (while Bray beat Jericho, it was overshadowed by a Jericho victory and a Cena squash), so as I said, one has got to fall.

You say he's the hottest guy on the roster, but I disagree. While Ambrose gets cheers, they seem a little mild. Unlike Reigns, I'm not hearing any boos, but once again...fans were doing the Cena chants while Ambrose was in the ring during their brief tag team alliance...Not what I'd expect from the hottest guy on the roster.

And personally, I think the attempts at making Ambrose look crazy are making him look more like a moron, but whatever.

They have to keep Rollins looking strong, even though he needs lot's of help to win his matches. He doesn't really, but that's the way they're booking him. Plus it leaves the door open for a continuation of this feud down the line. It's not over yet, just taking a breather.

Ambrose is taking what i call the hero's journey. He's losing every almost everyone in sight, but will come out victorious in the end, and the fans will go crazy. Because that's what he's doing right now, getting the fans behind him, and they are rallying to his call. Losing doesn't seem to have made him weaker for some strange reason cause he will come out stronger in the long run.

My issue with this is Rollins tends to look weak these days. They might as well have Riley bury him by saying that he's never been as good as the others, but is crafty enough to somehow remain relevant (or however Riley described Miz at TLC). Hell, I don't see how getting the pin did anything for him either. He was being trashed the entire time. Bray Wyatt brought down Ambrose.

and really...the creative team killed the 'Rollins Vs Ambrose' feud for me. If it wasn't the repetitive confrontations on RAW, it was the copouts in the PPV's. I don't think I want to see them return to that anymore than I wanted to see 'Rusev Vs Swagger' again.

 

[WhiplashUnited]

The only reason I wouldn't change about Lesnar beating Taker is for pure reaction alone. I don't think most people have been that legitimately shocked by anything in wrestling for quite some time. Sure we've had unexpected returns but the looks on the people's faces were unlike any I'd seen in wrestling for an age, especially with Taker getting the 'W' every year. Having taker a broken man but still defeat Lesnar doesn't offer anything different from the wins over HHH and HBK in terms of finish.

WWE dropped the ball with Lesnar on not keeping the heat on Lesnar as much as Heyman's interviews about it were fantastic. Lesnar beating Taker should have been something great, especially as people know Lesnar is a legit badass and the win is a believable one.

Wyatt losing at Wrestlemania and any win Wyatt had over Cena seemed to mean little, especially when it came to building the most unique character WWE has seen in a while.

Ambrose v Wyatt should have been a grudge match best left for Wrestlemania or after.

Rollins and Ziggler should have been the feud straight out of Survivor Series but instead it was made about Cena because WWE doesn't know what to do without a champion who is actually there.

Having 20-30 minute opening segments on RAW really makes the show drag and gives whatever they say the opposite reaction to whatever their intention is especially when HHH Would talk for ages. Thought Stephanie was probably the best at getting heat compared to HHH as well.

The Bellas feuding was a shambles, it was obvious Nikki would turn heel but the way Brie all of a sudden was a heel by siding with her sister (against AJ) who'd been treating her like garbage not only didn't make sense there was no explanation. The way Nattie Hart was booked was poor. Everyone knows she has pedigree but is so poorly used.

 

[kadroan]

1. I would have Naomi end AJ's record-breaking title reign the night after WrestleMania. Paige wasn't ready yet Naomi was rumored to be the one to win the championship against AJ at EC had Aksana not injure her eye.

2. Instead of having Cesaro face both Swagger and RVD at ER. I would have had Cesaro face Swagger at ER because of their history. Then, RVD at Payback and have Heyman turn on him. Leading to a final match between RVD and Cesaro where Cesaro gets the win, putting him more over as a face.

3. Make Big E a Real American. I would have had Big E and Swagger as tag teams. They both had their bouts with Rusev and lost. Swagger at this point of his career is better suited in the tag division. Meanwhile, Big E could have had somebody talk for him and bring out the best of him.

4. Had Bray beat Jericho at Battleground. I understand the win was supposed to establish Jericho as a credible wrestler but if anything it hurt Bray more than help him winning at the end.

5. Had The Wyatt Family beat The Usos. The Usos beat them at MITB. I figured this time around TWF should gotten the win.

6. I would have had Orton beat Cena at HIAC. Orton was over with the RKO Out of Nowhere videos going viral. WWE could have taken advantage of that and find somebody else to film the movie Orton filmed.

7. I would have had Ambrose beat Bray the same way Bray beat Ambrose, being electrocuted. It doesn't make sense for Bray to win, just to lose to Ambrose on Smackdown.

 

[MartialHorror]

1. I would have Naomi end AJ's record-breaking title reign the night after WrestleMania. Paige wasn't ready yet Naomi was rumored to be the one to win the championship against AJ at EC had Aksana not injure her eye.

2. Instead of having Cesaro face both Swagger and RVD at ER. I would have had Cesaro face Swagger at ER because of their history. Then, RVD at Payback and have Heyman turn on him. Leading to a final match between RVD and Cesaro where Cesaro gets the win, putting him more over as a face.

3. Make Big E a Real American. I would have had Big E and Swagger as tag teams. They both had their bouts with Rusev and lost. Swagger at this point of his career is better suited in the tag division. Meanwhile, Big E could have had somebody talk for him and bring out the best of him.

4. Had Bray beat Jericho at Battleground. I understand the win was supposed to establish Jericho as a credible wrestler but if anything it hurt Bray more than help him winning at the end.

5. Had The Wyatt Family beat The Usos. The Usos beat them at MITB. I figured this time around TWF should gotten the win.

6. I would have had Orton beat Cena at HIAC. Orton was over with the RKO Out of Nowhere videos going viral. WWE could have taken advantage of that and find somebody else to film the movie Orton filmed.

7. I would have had Ambrose beat Bray the same way Bray beat Ambrose, being electrocuted. It doesn't make sense for Bray to win, just to lose to Ambrose on Smackdown.

4. The problem is that Jericho got his ass handed to him seemingly at every event, so if Bray won at Battleground, all that build up would've been pointless. Then again, they probably should've done a better job writing that feud in general.

5. Oh yeah, the Wyatts definitely should've beaten the Uso's.