WWE Elimination Chamber, Sunday 19th February 2023, 12pm AEDT

[BEEG]

Sami got as close as anyone has to beating him, but he apparently didn’t sell the Sami character at all….. hmmm

His feeding off the crowd was excellent, and the taunts to Sami’s wife and family even better.

I know crazy right.

That's the strongest Sami has looked maybe since the night he started on Raw.

PPV was good without being great the crowd was awesome, some great bits in the men's Chamber.

I still think Ford has main event written all over him.

 

[Southerntakeover]

It's not even the strongest he's looked in this storyline. He won his team the wargames match, you know, a main event. Not getting it done with the cards stacked in his favour isn't a moment of strength, it's the end of his main event experiment.

 

[Millky95]

Just need Roman to squash Cody and I'll be happy

 

[Raveneyes]

Those complaining are far more invested in this than they think.
Some are even saying they won't be watching Mania. Oh yes, they'll be watching don't worry about that.

There will be a pay-off. Some are saying it's gone on long enough, some are still enjoying it.

Me? I think it was great.

Those questioning KO coming out late? KO looked strong by destroying Jimmy and Roman both, but he couldn't do that with the titles still up for grabs. Storyline could be explained by KO saving him from a post match beating like Sami did at the Rumble.

There may be more plans we don't see, so I'm still going to be tuning in.

 

[Raveneyes]

Just need Roman to squash Cody and I'll be happy

Many have discounted this, everyone is sure Roman will drop the titles and go on holiday.
The debate was more about who should take them - Sami or Cody.

I'd love to see Roman continue holding until Summerslam (and possibly The Rock), but that might be stretching it too far.
Also with the Usos seemingly imploding, it's increasingly likely it's the end of the Bloodline.

I wonder why Solo didn't appear?

 

[TradeDraft]

His character work has usually been spot in, even in matches. I just don't think he actually wanted to put Sami over here (in winning or defeat).

He needed to look really vulnerable, or actually afraid at some point for Sami to get his moment. He didn't do it.

Vince would hate that to Happen

 

[BEEG]

Those complaining are far more invested in this than they think.
Some are even saying they won't be watching Mania. Oh yes, they'll be watching don't worry about that.

There will be a pay-off. Some are saying it's gone on long enough, some are still enjoying it.

Me? I think it was great.

Those questioning KO coming out late? KO looked strong by destroying Jimmy and Roman both, but he couldn't do that with the titles still up for grabs. Storyline could be explained by KO saving him from a post match beating like Sami did at the Rumble.

There may be more plans we don't see, so I'm still going to be tuning in.

Same people who say they are done every month and somehow still watch it every month.

Get real you guys aren't going anywhere and you'll watch Mania and turn up in here and complain once again.

 

[Southerntakeover]

The audience has consistently shrunken for decades, so yeah totally checks out that people will always tune back in.

 

[Nicho50]

Mens chamber match was great had some awesome spots and thought everyone got good moments. Even though he was first one eliminated Bronson Reed was very impressive.

 

[JP Sauce]

The audience has consistently shrunken for decades, so yeah totally checks out that people will always tune back in.

That’s all of television, barring some live sports. And if Nielsen ratings matter that much, I’m pretty sure both WWE shows are up year on year.

 

[JP Sauce]

Mens chamber match was great had some awesome spots and thought everyone got good moments. Even though he was first one eliminated Bronson Reed was very impressive.

Yep was a terrific match. Everyone came out looking great.

 

[Southerntakeover]

That’s all of television, barring some live sports. And if Nielsen ratings matter that much, I’m pretty sure both WWE shows are up year on year.

Reckon it's as popular as it was in 2001?

 

[BOMBERS 4 LIFE!!!!]

Mens chamber match was great had some awesome spots and thought everyone got good moments. Even though he was first one eliminated Bronson Reed was very impressive.

Splash from the the ceiling by Montez Ford was awesome

 

[Millky95]

Many have discounted this, everyone is sure Roman will drop the titles and go on holiday.
The debate was more about who should take them - Sami or Cody.

I'd love to see Roman continue holding until Summerslam (and possibly The Rock), but that might be stretching it too far.
Also with the Usos seemingly imploding, it's increasingly likely it's the end of the Bloodline.

I wonder why Solo didn't appear?

No I just hate Cody haha

 

[JP Sauce]

Reckon it's as popular as it was in 2001?

Nope, but they're making more money than ever so I don't think they're too concerned.

 

[Xtreme]

Roman must hold the titles until WrestleMania 40!

 

[Cleavy]

Roman must hold the titles until WrestleMania 40!

So at least another 2-3 matches vs Brock in that timeframe?

 

[Xtreme]

So at least another 2-3 matches vs Brock in that timeframe?

Best Of 7 series
I'm sure it won't be boring and they can reinvent themselves over a 7 month period!

 

[TheGhostOfJohnBelushi]

Those kind of organic chances don't come around too often. People can probably point to Kofimania as a, "look, see what happens when you try and please the fans?" But they kinda dragged their feet on that one too, all for the "WrestleMania moment" feels.

They're kinda killing their events, though. These are really becoming fillers, much like the MCU and their TV and movies so s**t only happens at the Royal Rumble and WrestleMania. Trouble is, both those events are too close together.

If it we were still in the PPV era, they'd have capitalised. They need to sell. But now it's all media rights, there's no need for them to do it.

I mean, off the top of my head, you could have had some sort of disputed finish, Sami wins the titles, Heyman pulls some "it was only for the Universal title in the fine print" on the next Raw/Smackdown, the titles are split, Roman still Reigns, Cody can have his moment, SamiMania can shine. Yeah, as fans we're always gonna be impatient, but this whole "payoff" is ultimately going to fall flat whenever it does happen, because it will feel so played out that it just doesn't feel organic.

I mean Clash at the Castle was bad. They flubbed two home-town heroes in the one night. I never expected Drew to win that one, but man they cooked it and left us with America Pie ffs. If they didn't want to roll with Sami, why bother with this one? Just push the Royal Rumble stuff (you know, that event that was less than a month ago?) out to this one. Could have been KO/Reigns main eventing this instead of the Rumble (remember Reigns being challenged and just going "yeah, sure"... really feels like their forethought could easily be corrected to not put themselves into these situations where the fans demand something and are never gonna get it.

Just so... unsatisfying.

 

[TheGhostOfJohnBelushi]

Anyone watched the press conference? I get the impression Triple H knows he blew this one. Didn't answer the actual question about adjusting creative when there's this much crowd momentum. And Sami is definitely not happy with it.

Shoulda shot the shot, worry about course correcting later. Ah well.

 

[The Casey Cat]

Anyone watched the press conference? I get the impression Triple H knows he blew this one. Didn't answer the actual question about adjusting creative when there's this much crowd momentum. And Sami is definitely not happy with it.

Shoulda shot the shot, worry about course correcting later. Ah well.

Agreed. Not ideal Roman losing now but you can get the belt back on him easy enough between now and Mania. Won't get another opportunity with Zayne or anyone else like EC was. Haven't seen the crowd onboard with a baby face like that since Eddie won at NWO 04.

 

[99 Problems]

It was always going to be awkward building a feud for so long only to blow it off in a one-and-done main event at a filler PPV where the result was never in doubt. They had to expect some backlash from fans after getting them to invest in it for so many months.

Assuming they are doing the tag match it’s going to be hard to pull off. Roman now has to be kept completely seperate from this feud, but story wise it’s near enough impossible for that to make any sense or give Sami any satisfaction.

 

[Wickzki]

Elimination Chamber made me finally understand why I believe Roman hasn't been the quality of champion that people have made him out to be.

Perhaps it's with rose coloured glasses. Perhaps I'm forgetting key feuds in previous eras. Please correct me if I'm wrong but doubly please provide examples to demonstrate how I am.

When Rock, Austin, Cena, Hogan, etc. - the true legitimate top WWF (WWE) guys of the past have been booked as the biggest star in the company and were champion the show was booked around them being THE most important aspect of the show at that time.

It just hasn't been that way for Roman. And this more than anything else is what agitates me so much more than anything Roman himself actually does.

At Elimination Chamber the entire show was booked around Sami Zayn and getting his shot in Montreal in front of his adoring hometown fans

At the Royal Rumble the main event was booked around it being the "final test" for Sami Zayn. This was clearly even more important than the actual challenger. They used the challenger's relationship with Zayn to further build it around him.

War Games was booked around Sami Zayn and his relationship with Jey Uso and how he fit into the Bloodline

Crown Jewel was built around the spectacle of Logan Paul challenging against a proper WWE superstar for the title. The champion didn't need to be Roman Reigns for the same storyline to play out the way that it did. He could've challenged Drew McIntyre or any number of legit main event talent and it have the same meaning.

Clash at the Castle was built similarly as Elimination Chamber. Local hero getting an opportunity to win the title (back) in front of his adoring fans.

SummerSlam's central storyline was centred on Paul Heyman and his relationship with both Lesnar and Reigns. But it's as close to legitimate top billing we've had of Reigns's character importance to the title and story in the past 7 months.

Although this is only the most recent 7 months it's not the only significant block of time in this 900+ day reign that Roman hasn't been the most important part of the show. It's littered throughout his entire run

We head into WrestleMania where, you guessed it, the big story is about Cody Rhodes and whether he can claim the ultimate title that alluded his father (and brother) and finally become the top dog.

Sure it helps that his opponent has been champion for so long, that his opponent is a monster and not someone that he should perceivably be on even odds (at worst) at beating but nonetheless we go into WrestleMania where your 900+ day champion is second fiddle to his opponent.

This simply has never happened in WWE history. When Rock, Austin, Hogan, Cena, etc. were at the top they were presented as the focal point

When it has looked like it's about to happen in the past, the WWE has either followed through with the title change or they've teased it and followed through after building it some more (e.g. Jeff Hardy lost the title numerous times before he finally won the title in 2008.

There's always been a pay off

There simply hasn't been one with Roman.

And for a company that believes in him so strongly the fact that they haven't given him top billing so often on his own storylines speaks volumes.

An on point comment in a post show Reddit thread yesterday summed it up perfectly. The original comment was that they'd never seen a crowd go from being so electric and lively to so dead.

The response was.

Thing is, it didn’t go silent in a good way. It went silent in a “we should have known better” way

And that's my number one problem with the WWE.

I'm so sick of being blueballed without a payoff to it

Sorry but in 5 years time when the WWE Universe thinks back at this time people will think of Sami Zayn in Montreal, Drew McIntyre at the Castle, and many of Roman's challengers and how many times WWE had the ability to have their moment of shine but didn't follow through.

Instead of being the man, the catalyst, Roman has been the foil and that makes him fall short of what the WWE so desperately wanted him to be

 

[Southerntakeover]

Anyone watched the press conference? I get the impression Triple H knows he blew this one. Didn't answer the actual question about adjusting creative when there's this much crowd momentum. And Sami is definitely not happy with it.

Shoulda shot the shot, worry about course correcting later. Ah well.

If you were Sami, and you'd heard the lukewarm reaction to the Kevin Owens tag team tease that was apparently going to send people home happy you'd be concerned. No one cared.

I think they really overestimated the appetite that anyone has for that.

Dragging out a story where Sami wins Kevin over for a match that no one wants to see, and Jey adopts the idiot heel can't tell when hit by accident thing isn't going to help.

Last night was the absolute peak of the Bloodline storyline. There's nothing they can do from here that will ever have the same momentum or popularity with these performers. They just blew it.

Sami's at real risk of becoming just another guy again.

 

[Blackhawk42]

I'd convinced myself that Sami was winning and the following was going to take place...

WrestleMania Night 1: Sami vs Roman.
Reigns squashes him in 5 minutes, leaving the audience stunned.

WrestleMania night 2: KO was to tag with somebody else to face the Uso's, however after backstage shenanigans Sami takes that spot and wins the tag titles.

Roman, looking fresh and unstoppable after the previous nights squash, defends against Cody.
Cody pulls off the miraculous victory.


In this convoluted scenario, every outcome has taken place.
Sami won the belt in his hometown.
Reigns defends against Cody.
Sami and KO win the tag team titles.