WWE Royal Rumble 2015 **Official** General Discussion Aftermath Thread

[tomthebodz]

I haven't watched the Rumble yet, going to do that this evening. I'm just going to share my 2 cents on what happened, this isn't a comment on the booking.

The negative reaction is 100% WWE's fault, however only because they have pushed Daniel Bryan to a similar level to Cena so fans were inevitably be disappointed when he didn't win. It's like he's the only face in the company. As someone on this already mentioned anyone but him would have got booed winning the match.

I do think DB should have been in the final 4 along with Reigns, Ambrose and Wyatt. That would have been a clear statement from WWE having "young" guys as the final 4.

The other issue is that WWE have built Lesnar to such a level that he seems untouchable and that no one is able to beat him, not even Daniel Bryan or Roman Reigns for that matter.

I'd have had Cena get the win, pinning Rollins, then Lesnar destroys Cena and Rollins cashes in. It gets the belt of Lesnar and onto Rollins, who in my opinion is the best guy in WWE at the moment, without Lesnar looking weak.

 

[MartialHorror]

You know, even if CM Punk has an ego, that probably did contribute to his success. If Bryan does not have one, it could've lead to his loss as the Rumble. Imagine if he said "I aint doing this if I'm not winning"...Granted, maybe that would've saved the show as Bryan did not need to be there and his elimination pissed everyone off in the worst possible way. But maybe he would've won.

As for how they would respond...who knows? We don't know these people in real life. Nice guys might be assholes and guys who seem like assholes might be nice guys. Bryan could be smugly loving all of this, as it can only play to his favor. Or he might feel sorry for Reigns, or annoyed with the company for botching this so badly. It's all speculative based on how you perceive these people, such as immediately disparaging Punk's ego as something negative because you don't like what he did.

 

[BattleCat]

Yikes!

Well, I guess I owe thanks to Vince or Philly or whoever was to blame for last night's atrocity. I'm sure no one remembers--or even saw--my posts this past month or so; but, my point was that I am a long-time fan who is grateful for everything WWF gave me as a kid...and who wants them to go out of business now.

Quickly, so you see where I am coming from, WWF was the world to me as a kid in the mid 80's. My passion left in 1992, with the end of Hulkamania, for the most part. I came back for the Monday Night Wars and Attitude Era. Since then, I watch an occasional RAW and zero Smackdowns, but watch the Rumble and Mania every year. That tradition ended last night.

No, I am not one of these people who overreact to poor booking (which last night definitely was. Like someone else said, when Dean got eliminated, the match was over--terrible, terrible booking) But, I have sat through poor booking for decades. Sometimes they hit homeruns, sometimes they swing and miss. I take the good with the bad.

But, last night I saw that what I once loved about pro wrestling is gone for good. Say what you will about paying your ticket and having the right to boo or cheer; but, I hate the audience now. Today, with the internet and all that comes with it, people just can't sit and watch a show anymore. They need to feel that they are getting exactly what they want---it's arenas full of kids who got participation trophies. These whiners never learned how to compete and how to lose, and now this is what we have to deal with.

I will always cherish my memories of WWF. But I now see that WWE is done. I feel bad for kids that will never get to experience the family-friendly entertainment that I did. Too many jerks out there who think they are part of it all. Sad, but last night was the proof I needed. "See you next month" doesn't apply here. The crowd, the IWC, the internet bitches...they are what have ruined the product, not the booking.

 

[blueskyy]

I haven't watched the Rumble yet, going to do that this evening.

Why are you even here when you haven't watch the Rumble. Reading reviews will just spoil the matches for you. The "only way" (it seems these two words keep popping up out of nowhere all of a sudden) you can have you own opinion is to watch it without spoilers, without a preconception going in.

 

[Aquaman6686]

This Philly crowd was so annoying. CM punk, booing reigns, cena, cheering Seth Rollins, booing NEW DAY? Lol what the heck. Look the WWE pushes people just as they always have. But now we have entitled fans that apparently think daniel bryan should get everything.

You're saying the crowd was annoying because they booed Reigns, Cena, and The New Day? So, we booed the two "superhero" characters being shoved down our throats week in and week out, and a faction that has COMPLETELY flopped, and that's a bad thing? Yeah ok.

 

[MartialHorror]

Philadelphia has always been a tough crowd to please. My question is why put the Rumble there if one of their favorites isn't going to be the winner? STUPID!

 

[MCMG]

It just simply wasn't an enjoyable match. It started off well but the middle and end was awful and Bryan getting eliminated so early was just so anticlimactic. It felt weird more than anything.

When you look at the actual eliminations and who got them it doesn't seem to bad. Almost exactly how I would have predicted with Rusev, Wyatt and Reigns looking strong. Indeed, the issue was Show and Kane dominating while Ziggler, Bryan, Ambrose and others got very little. I understand what they were trying to do but it simply didn't work. ONE elimination for Bryan and he gets eliminated in such a ordinary fashion. He was the World Champ only 8 months ago.

I would have preferred a few of Ziggler, Cesaro and Barrett in earlier just to add to the quality in the ring. Bryan obviously not being eliminated so early, same with Harper. Of all the guys who lasted over a minute Ziggler was gone the quickest. How fucking stupid especially considering he is a guy who is now arguably the best seller on the roster.

If I was to fantasy book the thing; I would have had Rollins enter at 30. It breaks down to Rollins, Kane, Show, Rusev, Wyatt, Reigns, Ambrose and Bryan. The three babyfaces take eliminate Show, Kane and Rusev. Ambrose eliminates Wyatt but also himself in the process. Reigns and Bryan are beating the shit out of Rollins before HHH comes out. They (HHH, Rollins, J&J) destroy Bryan and eliminate him. Before it sinks it for the crowd, The Rock comes out (Sting initially in my mind) to take care of HHH and Reigns eliminates Rollins.

 

[WimpyKid4Life]

// The WWE hipsters are the top heels in my opinion. Remember the Raw after Survivor Series where everyone said. " I want the Authority back NOW! Its going to suck without them. Bring back Authority!!" The authority came back at the end of 2014 and everybody said, " ITs too soon! Survivor Series was a waste!!! I wish the Authority was gone longer!!!". People wanted Dolph Ziggler to win the Rumble. Here's the funny part: he told WWE.com in his interview that the fans already began to turn on him after his phenomenal performance in the survivor series match. Why did people want Ambrose to win the Rumble, so they can complain about his feud with Bray Wyatt and wish it would stop already while making " All he does is elbow drops" jokes. The same people who wanted Daniel Bryan to win chanted "CM Punk!" while he was cutting a promo in what would be his last appearance as WWE WHC. That's SAD!!! People say they hate Roman Reigns because he "can't talk on the mic" and "doesn't put out good wrestling matches". I don't agree with that, but do you know who is GREAT on the mic and puts on top-quality matches day in and day out? Its NEW DAY! You bolieve what New Day is saying and its spoken with enthusiasm and passion. They are a great tag team. That move where Big E lifts up the opponent and Kofi kicks him is SICK!!! Who doesn't like seeing the Midnight Hour and Buddy Dive, plus that incredible Big E spear through the ropes! New Day is awesome and have all the qualities yet all I hear is "New Day sucks!" THAT FUSTRATES ME!!!! I know why they chant that. They think they are being "cool" by bashing the "happy, crowd involving" type of Superstar. IF that's the case, why do they cheer Hulk Hogan? Is it because he buried every Superstar in his path, which includes Andre the Giant and Macho Man and Mr. Perfect to name a few, with 2 moves and he was always in the Main Event over much more talented wrestlers like Ricky Steamboat. Funny, that's the same reason these hipsters LOATH John Cena!!! Top heels= WWE hipsters.// rant over

 

[XXJJ]

The WWE network is great, LOL @ fans canceling it. I guarantee that most fans that subscribed aren't doing that. I bet half the people retweeting that aren't even subscribers.

Just turn the main event into a 6 pack challenge.. Orton finally gets his title rematch at WM. Have the Authority put Rollins in the match and let Bryan and someone else qualify at Fastlane..Everybody seems to hate Reigns.. So this might be the best way to protect him and save the main event.

 

[jtcooky]

"It felt weird more than anything."

My thoughts exactly. Everything after Bryan got eliminated just doesn't feel real. I'm not saying he should have won, but he definitely should have been in there at the end. Now the ONLY way to salvage this is turn Reigns heel. Not sure how they can do that though.

 

[thebigbadfox]

I live in Philly and was there last night..
First there were minimal CMPUNK chants and most people booed the 2 or 3 people that started them.
We were not rioting just b/c Bryan lost but b/c as someone said the shoving of superman characters down our throat is getting old....
We would have been fine with any number of wrestlers winning... just not a few.
We are a harsh crowd and I like to think it is because we know what we want and we are somewhat knowledgeable knowing who can go and cant.
Every paying fan has the right to cheer boo whoever they want.
Honestly rewatched some moments this morning and the crowd was hotter and even more pissed than it came across on tv IMO so there was some sound editing done for sure.

 

[Mac]

If it were up to me I would've been building up Ziggler for months. And have him win the Rumble I think with a little effort Ziggler could be a legit option to main event a WM. But if I were booking the Rumble in a vacuum then the next obvious choice is Daniel Bryan. He never lost his title, the Authority hates his guts so why not have him overcome the odds and win the Rumble, then have him slay the beast Brock Lesner in the main event? In the mean time Reigns gets a year to further develop, and Bryan gets his run at the top.

 

[TDFG]

1. I think the order of the 30 could have been better than what it was. Ambrose, Big Show, Kane, Ryback, Ziggler guys that have been majorly involved in storylines were all left to near the end. Whereas if you take out DB at 10 we had The Boogeyman, Sin Cara, Zack Ryder, Fandango & Tyson Kidd at the early stages from 7-12. Basically it was bottom heavy.

2. Kane & Big Show just dumping guys towards the end killed the match, there was no way either two of those guys were winning the RR. If the final 4 involved the likes of DB & Wyatt then there was always that feeling that it might not be Reigns winning.

 

[MartialHorror]

On another note, was anyone else disappointed that the Boogeyman didn't do more? Because his body has deteriorated too much or something, but I expected more than just two basic hits from Bray to take him out. I wanted a real clash, dammit! WHY DID THIS RUMBLE DO EVERYTHING I DID NOT WANT IT TO DO!?

Although I did get DDP Diamond Cutting everyone...so there's that...

 

[Y2JBL]

I just don't get it. I'm embarrassed to be a fan after last night, but not because of what WWE did, because of the fans. I just can't believe this demand for Bryan again. Did he not get his HUGE MOMENT last year? Going over multiple people in one night? Ending WrestleMania celebrating with the WWE title? People are throwing a FIT because WM isn't going to be built around him for the 2nd year in a row? People complain that WWE doesn't build new stars, but then you want literal repeats of WrestleMania main events with the same people? People are throwing out this complaint that "2 years in a row" WWE didn't give fans what they want, but Bryan got everything he could have wanted last year. Whether you attribute that to the effect CM Punk had by leaving or whatever else, point is the end of last year's WM was a HUGE fan service with all original plans being abandoned.

Don't get me wrong, that Rumble match was so terrible that it was almost surreal, but none of the problem I have with it has to do with Bryan. Yes, he went out a lot earlier than expected. People also complain when things are too predictable. If you suspend your disbelief as a fan and look at this as a match involving 30 stars, any one person's odds are supposed to be incredibly low, and anything can happen. Here's a guy returning from a long injury and apparently people wanted him to bulldoze his way to the top again. I don't even doubt that WWE does things just to troll sometimes, having guys like Dean and Dolph literally tossed out like dead meat by Kane and Big Show working together. I don't blame WWE. This generation of fans is obnoxious like never before.

We got an amazing title match. Everyone cries about part time champion Brock Lesnar but damned if he doesn't get a reaction when he shows up. But that just gets pushed aside as everyone cries that Bryan didn't win everything last night.

What do people seriously want? Clone Bryan and have him wrestle himself in the main event of every show? That wouldn't work either because they'd probably fight over which Bryan should have won.

I'm not a fan of Roman but if that's who they are trying to build as the next big star, it makes sense to get a Rumble win. I can't believe he might go on and be the one to take out Lesnar, but honestly there never will be a believable way for someone to beat Lesnar so he can leave the company and go do whatever else he wants to do, so it's going to look bad no matter what. Again, if you're trying to build a new star, having him beat the guy who beat the Undertaker makes sense.

Why does someone as over as Bryan need a rumble win? I know for a fact in any other situation, if it wasn't about Bryan, people would get mad if a rumble win was wasted on an already established star. Did people like a returning Batista getting the win last year? No. And ironically they were all hoping Roman would have thrown Batista out at the end of the last rumble. Bryan doesn't need it. Everyone is constantly pointing out how over he is, so then why does he need to be winning everything? I still think the chant IS the biggest reason that he is over and I can't imagine the state of DB's career right now if he didn't come up with wonderful idea to shout "yes" everywhere.

I just don't get it. I can sympathize with how the company must feel right now. I'd be ready to say screw it, put Bryan in every single main event, put every single belt on him, and then sit back and wait until the smarks start complaining that this is predictable, boring, no new stars are being created, we're sick of seeing the same thing every month, and they start referring to him as "super"Bryan.

It wasn't a pretty Rumble match by any means. They hardly even let the ring fill up at any one point. Eliminations seemed so constant and quick. But frankly, after that WWE title match, screw Daniel Bryan, SETH ROLLINS deserves to have WrestleMania this year. Brock is probably leaving after this, HE deserves to have some of the spotlight this year. Daniel Bryan got everything on a silver platter last year.

Fans are just disgusting at this point, and it's laughable that they still can't figure out that you are the hardcore, vocal minority. WWE is not going to die because of RR 2015. It seemed like the entire WWE Universe was unhappy, but that was created by being in a smark town like Philly with a loud crowd. They could have put on this PPV somewhere where the crowd doesn't act like that and it wouldn't have seemed so disastrous.

I think this Daniel Bryan thing is actually the worst thing to happen to WWE in a long time. Now EVERYTHING ELSE just gets sh*t on because this weird looking midget apparently needs to have multiple years in a row dedicated to his glory. When's the last time Daniel Bryan put on a show like what we saw in the title match last night? It's just becoming this sarcastic, hipster-ish, self deprecating trend that fans want to see Bryan in everything, just like getting random CM Punk chants at points during shows after the guy has been gone for over a year. I'm not sure if fans are even sure what they are asking for at this point. The longer they make DB the underdog all the time, the longer you get to chant and complain about him. As soon as they sky rocket him to the top and let him main event everything, you'll go back to complaining that you're sick of seeing the same thing.

The reaction to the Royal Rumble was disgusting and hilarious. The usual flood of "I'm done watching" claims from people, who I know would be back watching Raw tonight anyway unless these rumors that the show is actually cancelled due to weather comes true. If so, for once, people who claimed they were done watching might actually have a week with no Raw and SmackDown broadcast if they both get cancelled, and you can sit around and enjoy a week with no WWE.

 

[LBGetBack]

Well, for one I would've booked Bryan to win. He's the most popular guy, he never lost his title, he just came back.....writes itself.

If they wanted someone else to win, it should've been a heel because the winner would get booed anyway.

If they HAD to have Reigns win, then.....let Bryan last long. Have a heel CHEAT to eliminate him and have Reigns win. That may not help the fan reaction for Reigns, but at least Bryan isn't wasted and it sets up a feud for him. As it is, he looked weak, it completely wasted him, and set up nothing. So stupid.

Hmmm, what else. NOT have Big Show and Kane be the two monsters eliminating everyone until the end. EVERYONE knew neither of them would win. Nobody cares about either of them. How about let Wyatt be the unstoppable heel monster all the way through? Or Rusev? As it stands, their strong performances were wasted because they looked like complete wusses at the end. It undid all the good.

Not to mention....could they have possibly made Ziggler and Ambrose look any weaker? Getting dumped out like lifeless wusses. You don't have to make EVERY OTHER POPULAR FACE look like a bitch, to protect Reigns. That just pissed everyone off even more.

A comedy of errors. Whoever booked that mess is so out of touch with the product and fanbase, it's embarrassing. I don't recall ever seeing a fan backlash like that. Well deserved too. I feel bad for Reigns though, he really didn't do anything wrong(well, his mic skills are his fault) and that was not his fault. It was the booking.

 

[BigBombB]

#05. Lesnar/Cena/Rollins going last

So you want Roman Reigns to win, you know he isn't going to get a good reaction, so instead of making THAT the ending story of the night, make the ginormous battle for the World Title the final story. Lesnar wins, Lesnar can't be stopped, Lesnar is going to destroy Reigns at WrestleMania. At least its something. Plus, could you imagine the extra heat that would have been on Cena in this circumstance?

#04. Miz screws Sandow

There is no good reason why this didn't happen. Every casual fan in the world was expecting this to happen. 'Mizdow' is hot right now (well, maybe not anymore). Major dropped ball.

#03. Stardust/Goldust Isn't Botched

After the Bryan elimination, Stardust tries to toss Goldust to a surprisingly big crowd reaction then...the momentum dies. Instead of fighting back and forth with one tossing the other out, everyone else gets involved and people instantly stop feeling it is important. Stardust trying to screw Goldie, Goldie coming back exactly as he did, then Stardust STILL managing to toss him? That would be the makings of a nice feud.

#02. Wyatt/Harper Working Together

If Wyatt and Harper had uneasily worked together to toss a few guys, then the next night on Raw the "Authority" could have liked what they saw and forced the entire Wyatt family (including Rowan) to work together again temporarily...then, when they start winning 6-man matches again, they're forced to unwillingly stay together until Harper and Wyatt can't stand each other any longer and a WrestleMania feud is born.

#01. Same Final Four, Dean Ambrose Wins

You have the exact same set-up, except the absolute unexpected happens. Reigns goes out first, Ambrose finds a way to toss Big Show and Kane, Ambrose is a huge hero. THEN when Rusev hits the ring again, there is uncertainty. If Reigns is gone, could they pull an even bigger surprise and make Rusev/Lesnar??? Somehow Ambrose still pulls it out and we have a new hero.

THEN next night on Raw, Reigns attacks Ambrose for taking "his Royal Rumble win", a big feud is born, people potentially care about Reigns again, and a last minute change could be made to put Reigns back in the main event of 'Mania if he proves to be a commodity in the Ambrose feud.

--------------------

The only good thing to come out of that match is that I now want to see a Bubba Ray vs. Luke Harper match. And that probably isn't even going to happen.

 

[closet_fan]

Y2JBL, I think most have a problem with the finish period, not really that Bryan didn't win. I'm a DB fan, and I knew he wasn't going to win. Last until the near end? Yeah, but everyone and their mother knew RR was going to win.

For me, the disappointment lies with the way it ended. Once Ambrose was gone, I would have started leaving the building. No one thought Kane or BS would win. And I knew Rusev vs. Lesnar was never happening.

Had they had Reigns with a couple guys who might have had a shot, I would have been happier. But the ending was too predictable.

 

[laodaron]

It all could have been fixed by one single thing - not having a WWE event in one of the shittiest fan cities in America.

 

[TheICChampion]

Yeah, WWE made a major f***-up on so many occasions last night. They still have some time to set things up properly, though, so I'm not too worried yet. Although I can't wait for that Lesnar-Reigns staredown at 'Mania when the match begins.

 

[RusevHits]

1. Don't bring Bryan back for the rumble unless you intend to have him win it.

2. Don't bring Ryback and Ziggler back if you have no plans for them.

3. Push and develop your existing talent through out the whole year (shocking concept) so when it comes time for the WM season the fans don't put all their eggs in one basket.

That is all.

 

[stonecoldstunner]

Everybody can't win the rumble. Reigns was going to win 3 months ago when he won Superstar of the year and it's been written he dethrones Brock at WM. So, if anything, WWE is extremely predictable, no? I hope people throw garbage in the ring next time Reigns is there, at least we will all know it's NOT just Philadelphia and the majority of the Universe resents his push and won't back him no matter what.

 

[Reflection]

Hahahaha oh man, I feel so sorry for myself. I didn't come online the whole day so that the Rumble ending won't get spoiled for me... and then there was this shit match. The Rock's presence couldn't change the fact that the Rumble match sucked. My disappointments are as follows:
1. Wyatt lasted nearly an hour, eliminating many guys (including big names), only to get eliminated by the authority's goons (that get their ass kicked on most RAWs and SDs) with ease. What was the use?
2. Rusev showed what he could do, but got one-sidedly owned by a tired Reigns in the end, as if Reigns drew power from Rock like Abyss drew power from Hogan's ring (sorry for bringing that up).
3. Entry number 29 and 30 were obvious since both Dolph and Show had qualified for the match. No suspense there.
4. No surprise returns or anything in the final 10 entries. In fact, we knew the names of about 7-8 of them beforehand.
5. Once it went down to Reigns, Kane, Show and Rusev, I was very sure that Reigns would win this match.
6. The Kane-Show team work towards the end was painful to watch, especially the way they eliminated guys much more entertaining and worth watching, guys that could give a nail-biting final few minutes. It was obvious that neither of two would win the Rumble match anyway, this whole idea seemed futile.
7. Instead, I would have preferred to see Wyatt and Rusev instead, who worked as a team throughout the match, keep the teamwork going, before finally going after each other. It would have been much more logical. Then have the three of them give their everything for a good few minutes, before a winner is decided. Instead, they went with the cheap "typical Vince" route of bringing back an old megastar to compensate for the shit booking.
8. About 1/3rd of the competitors got eliminated before the next guy entered.
9. Even the pyro work on the WrestleMania 32 logo was mistimed and didn't start until Reigns brought his arms down.

 

[LODemolition]

The Rumble is going to be completely predictable every year now that there is only 1 major title. That's why I was against them getting rid of the World Heavyweight Championship. Last night was a complete clusterf*ck. It didn't bother me so much that Reigns won, because I knew that was coming, but the way it played out was one of the worst Rumbles of all-time.

 

[FreezeIzGAWD]

See I hate fake ass people. All of y'all are running from FACTS!!!!

Fact # 1: this time last year you begged for the Shield to break up and become Main Eventers. It happened. Y'all still complain.

Fact # 2: last yeah at the RR y'all were cheering for Roman Reigns and booed when he got eliminated but this year you booed him for WINNING because he is NOT READY. So it was better fir him to win with a YEARS LESS EXPERIENCE HUH?



Fact # 3: Now all of a sudden Roman can't talk. Can't wrestle and can't move and is stale but he has only wrestled about 10 matches since y'all were all on his duck sick!!!!

Fact # 4: you guys hate Super Cena and Roman for being too strong and always winning yet riot when a 5'6 guy who single handedly beat THE ENTIRE EVOLUTION in One night to win the title doesn't get a chance to the VERY NEXT YEAR Beat BROCK LESNAR!!!

Fact # 5 You wanted Bray Wyatt, Diggler to get bigger and meaningful feuds and story lines and for the E to try and make new stars. They did that last night and YOU SHIT ON THE WHOLE PPV!

FACT # 6 MOST OF YALL ARE SOME LAME HO ASS BYTCHES WHO JUST LIKE WHINING LIKE TEENAGE GIRLS AFTER A BAD PROM AND NEED TO QUIT WATCHING THE E BECAUSE IT IS NO LONGER YOUR CUP OF TEA!!!

That way the ones of us who do don't have to hear chants for retired Quitters or crying when your fan favorites don't win every match so you call all chant YES