Big Red Machine wrote:
1. Zeke is just as awkward at selling as most big-men who are trying to portray monsters are (because you have to sell a little, but not too much- Kane and Abyss are particularly good at selling while still being big men because they get the psychology- things like stumbling backwards with the first few shots before finally going down to a bigger strike).
2. But he wasn't doing it to save WCW from the nWo. He was doing it just because his job was to wrestle and they happened to be his opponents. Therefore, he wasn't a part of the WCW vs. nWo angle.
3. I remember that debate, and which matches of his did you watch? He has already proven that he can sell tickets through his work in ROH, PWG, and other companies. And really. Which non-WWE matches of his have you seen that you thought were "predictable?"
4. You keep flip--flopping here. If the talking is secondary, then his in-ring prowess should be enough to get him over.
5. The problem with his feud with Michael Cole was that it had no resolution whatsoever. Whatever they were planning to do (and they were planing something; the "less Daniel Bryan, more Bryan Danielson" promo proves that) was thrown under the bus and forgotten about in favor of the Nexus angle.
1). Allow me to sound childish, but Zeke is doo doo draws (for any who don't know what this means, it's the equivalence of poop). But seriously, he just reminds me of a stiff worker. Say Sid like. Except, he doesn't have anything that says top dog about him. Not memorable on the mic, accompanied by meager ring skills. You can only watch a Zeke power clothesline so many times before you really get dumb bored. That's the thing too. I am all for stiff big men (sounds so wrong). I mean those guys that try moves, and maybe just make it seem like "ouch." You know, guys like Hawk, Animal, Sid, even Goldberg. The bigger guys that were rough in ring, but still had an arsenal of moves. Honestly, Zeke's moveset is worse off than mark Henry's. Might be because guys like Bill DeMott, Bigelow, a younger Kane, the big men than could actually go in the ring, spoiled me. I mean, I don't mind seeing Zeke beat some people up. But just not as the WHC or a long reign IC champ. He needs to adopt a powerslam or 2. A spinebuster, and maybe even a delayed vertical suplex. He literally just does a clothesline, bodyslam, a horrible torture rack or book of Ezekiel.
2). While Goldberg DID take out the whole roster, once he became US champion, he started to shift towards mostly all nwo opponents. By the time he was WHC, with the exception of say Meng, he was targeted by the nWo, & pretty much beat up the whole B team & other members. Not to mention his short feud afterwards with Nash.
3). Again, selling tickets for ROH, PWG, and indy promotions are one thing. That's 1,000 fans in an arena. 20,000 fans nationwide. Out of a pro wrestling fanbase of how many millions? I'm talking WWE here. Not slighting his ROH work, because his matched did have a bit more to it. I'll give it to him, as I do by saying he's hot stuff in the ring. Not really my style I prefer watching, but I can't slight what he CAN do in the ring. It's just in the WWE, he hasn't done what I've seen in ROH as far as keeping suspense of the match. It (his WWE matches), are worked almost in a Cena like fashion. You know what's coming next. He hasn't used some moves I've seen him use in ROH (such as Cattle Mutilation I think it's called), and that could be contributed to the fact he's in the ring with guys less talented, but he can change up from time to time. Maybe do something he didn't do the week before, and in a different order.
4). It is secondary. While I don't believe he's the best talker, he's alright at it. BUT, in the WWE, especially with the direction it's gone now, it takes much more than a good match to get over. This isn't the Benoit era, where most of your show was dedicated to in ring. You know, the 2 minute promo before the 15 minute match. This is an era, where we get 30 minutes of wrestling, on a 2 hour show, which features (commercials taken into consideration), 100 minutes of on screen time. Most of the time is spent with talking. It's not WRESTLING anymore, but rather entertainment.
5). I think people gave too much credit & got behind it because he said his name was Bryan Danielson, not Daniel Bryan. To most WWE fans, that meant nothing. It was like "what are you talking about." To those that followed him in ROH, they may have felt he'd get loose. But that type of spotlight, could've easily propelled him into being a star. I just feel he has underachieved in the WWE so far.