Why not let Nakamura go off by himself and use AJ, Gallows/Anderson, Joe and Storm as an invasion faction? They need something right now to give them a middle party because the heel/face set up right now is stale.

Storm is apparently already gone. He's expected to be at the TNA tapings later this week, per the dirt sheets.

Either and old school 4 horsemen dominance play or a NWO takeover would be an amazing story line IF tthey would let it run its course fully without dropping WTF losses to say...R Truth along the way.

IOW no chance this wont suck

I hope they keep Nak as far away from the main roster as possible. They could sign the Horesemen in their prime and they'd be wasted on the main roster.

And I hope for my sake they keep Gallows as far away from anything as possible.

Yup, re-formed Beer Money with Roode last nite

Kid was in a mood to surf wrestling online, so we just watched (after some random ROH old matches) Kenta vs Marafuji from 10/29/06.

Damned fine match.

Really showed one of the things good Japanese wrestling does well, which is give you a spot other than the one you think is coming. I'd call an obvious next move, they'd go to something else. That's good shit.

And things just got way more complicated up north.

Cena out indefinitely with shoulder surgery tomorrow morning. WM status in doubt.

John Cena Injury: Updates on WWE Superstar's Recovery from Shoulder Surgery | Bleacher Report

At this pace it's going to be a 10 person Royal Rumble unless they call up the entire NXT roster.

I smell a big night of returning legends.

And, yes, I use the term rather loosely.

With the participants they have announced, I'm afraid they really might give Divas a chance with at least 3 women's matches(counting pre-show).

On that note, Sasha Banks is apparently hurt too.

What are everyone's Rumble predictions? I really hope it's not going to be a Roman win. I like him but enough is enough.

The best thing they could do is have Roman tossed early so the entire match you'd know there'd be a new champ

Well if you are going to have Roman Reigns do the Stone Cold storyline...

Raw 12 14 98 Royal Rumble Drawing - YouTube

Stone Cold won that Royal Rumble. Sound familiar?

If this east coast storm holds up, and I end up alone on Sunday, it's entirely plausible that I don't even bother to watch. Much more hyped for the 3 Fantiscamania shows this weekend.

Sure seems like Roman will win. I've mostly been just reading recaps but it sounds like the show is centered around him these days. He opens and closes every Raw. Rumor is him vs HHH at WM in the Main Event.

And barring some huge surprises this seems like one of the more boring Rumbles I can ever remember. Lot of injuries to top talent and not a lot of hype for anyone else but Reigns.

Roman is just soo boring. just because he has a "look" and was carried to stardom by Ambrose, Rollins and now McMahon doesn't make him any good

Stardom may be an exaggeration.

I'll go with the Dusty ending of Reigns thinks he wins and then the clock starts up again with the #31 on the Titantron. Trips comes down and wins basically giving us him as Vacant title holder until Mania. The league of whatever is the gauntlet they make Reigns go though to get the Mania title shot versus Trips.

The WWE seems to only be writing "overcome the odds" story lines with Becky, Kalisto and Reigns as of late.

Anyone look at the mathcup odds (I know, betting on a fake sport?) Still interesting to me as it's based on "random" entry numbers that aren't known. Odds are based on last eliminated between the two.

Wyatt -275 v Jericho +187
Ryback -120 v Ziggler -120
Rowan +137 v Harper -187
HHH -350 v Reigns +225
Ryback -333 v Breeze +220
ADR -250 v +175 Neville
Rusev +200 v Ambrose -300
Owens -275 v Jericho +187
Ambrose +350 v Lesnar -600
Sheamus -120 v Strowman -120
Kane -110 v Big E -125
Lesnar -150 v Reigns +110
Ambrose -450 v Strowman +275
Sheamus -137 v Ryback +100
Ziggler +120 v Big E -162

They should have turned Reigns heel when the crowds turned on him last year. Turn him into your corporate champ which is what most of the fans thought of him at the time anyway. By this time they could have turned him face and gotten him really over.

Reigns comes in number one. Announcers spend half an hour overselling like crazy that he has no chance. He's still in it towards the end. Announcers oversell like crazy that he's a sure thing -- "The kid is going to do it! He's going to Wrestlemania!". Triple H makes a "shocking" return, probably as #30, and eliminates him, setting up a Wrestlemania main event that everyone will yawn at. Nobody will care who wins the actual belt, because they've spent the last few months establishing that the bad guys who are in charge can just put it on whoever they want. Ratings hit record lows. Cena returns months ahead of schedule and wins the belt back.

But try to look surprised.

Yeah I agree it's the most likely scenario, I hope if so the crowd shits all over it again like last year. I like Roman but they aren't doing him any favors with the booking. I'd like to see them set up Roman vs HHH at the rumble in a way that gets the belt out of the picture. I really primarily only watch the ppvs anymore, after years of not watching at all.

Complications following hip surgery (as well as advancing Alzheimer's)

Rest in peace.

Stampede Wrestling Legend Archie "The Mongolian Stomper" Gouldie Dies at Age 78

Wow, The Greatest Man Who Ever Lived is now a part of NXT.

And we are live from Orlando, Florida ...

kid decided to use the free trial tonight, on the odd chance that AJ Styles actually debuts (tho I think that'll be tomorrow)

It's a good time to use the free trial, as the next PPV is within the same 30 days.

AJ in WWE is so surreal

Tell me about it. Long ass way (for me & him both) from a flea market match in Loganville, GA.

Great moment there with "Xavier Woods" talking to Styles when he was down, one NWA-Anarchy alum to another.

Very cool moment, total markout stuff at my house.

More than nice enough debut.

Him and Jericho could put on some classics.

The last five mins or so are the first time we've experienced buffering issues all night. Guess the traffic increased.

So many good little booking decisions in the Rumble, things that were well done. Others weren't so brilliant, a big logic hole or two ...

and then we get #30 and you just hang your head :(

Sigh.

And that is the direction they take...:banghead:

They have so much talent in the business today and they're going to go with 46 year old HHH.

Havent been watching lately so apparently this means Roman walks out of WM the champion trying to recreate the Daniel Bryan story?

Among the things that I'm convinced of at this point: there isn't a way to salvage Reigns as a face right now.

Maybe someday, but not now.

As bad as the booking ended up, it was still a more popular decision than putting the belt on Reigns.

Think about that for a minute.

Yeah it's pretty obvious they're just going to slap the belt back on him at WM. A 3 time champion in the matter of a few months. Maybe by next years Mania it will be Roman vs Cena to see who can break Flair's record for most title reigns.

The only way to salvage him is reforming the Shield when Seth's knee is ready and that's not happening soon enough.

Fun tweet tonight from @SamoaJoe, make of it whatever you will

Alternative shot of Styles' entrance with the Titantron reveal:

Styles Debut Directed Decently - Streamable

I don't watch Raw anymore, but one of the big complaints I read about is the horrible directing and spastic, constant cuts. Last nights show was unwatchable at times due the bad direction. There was tons of shit missed in the rumble and the tag title match that got very infuriating.

I was a huge fan of his way back in the early TNA days. He's really incredible in the ring. WWE is years late on this but I'm glad he'll finally get to showcase his skills to this kind of audience.

And while I figured he'd make a good impression, I'm surprised at how over he was at the show. Definitely the biggest pop and the fan favorite all night long. Noticed his t-shirt is even sold out.

4 years in a row I've been disappointed by my favorite PPV.

I was surprised about the pop he got -- arguably the biggest of anyone in the Rumble -- until I realized they were in Orlando. Aside from doing the show in his northeast Georgia hometown that was probably the very best place for him to debut after years of TNA tapings.

Honestly, I think I'm happiest that he's at least going to get not only the exposure but also the payday. Not sure how much of an increase it would turn into (estimates had his indy + Japan schedule being worth upwards of $150k a year) but hopefully it's enough to be meaningful for him & his family.

I thought the show was genuinely good. Every match on the card was solid. Rumble was pretty "meh" though I guess.

I'm guessing he'll make well over $150k. Especially if the fan reaction to him continues to be strong. This is a guy who will likely be on the card of every major PPV going forward for some time.

I remember an interview with Bubba Ray on radio years ago when he was with TNA. He pointed out that the royalty checks for WWE are nice. He hadn't been with the company in some time but said every quarter he'd go to the mailbox and have a fat check from stuff. AJ seems like someone who could move some major merchandise.