WWE: Smackdown Live 26: Everyone's tough until The Man comes around

[Jussi]

OMG, that Bryan rant was amazing

It really was. Best heel promo in ages.

 

[Jussi]

That Calf Crusher came out of nowhere.

 

[Alex Jones]

Holy f*** that t-shirt is obnoxious.

 

[Sheppy]

Heel DB rules.

 

[M.C.G. 31]

How are Raw and Smackdown the same company lol

 

[GKJ]

How are Raw and Smackdown the same company lol

One has Becky Lynch and the other doesn’t.

 

[WingsMJN2965]

You know Vince was just sitting in his office thinking, "Man this vegan and climate change shit is stupid, lets use it in Bryan's promos!"

 

[M.C.G. 31]

You know Vince was just sitting in his office thinking, "Man this vegan and climate change **** is stupid, lets use it in Bryan's promos!"

I don’t think so. Bryan’s very serious about those causes in real life and probably wanted it a part of his character. It’s a different layer to the typical WWE heel, it’s good heat, and as the greats say, it’s Daniel Bryan turned up to an 11 and those are the best characters.

 

[M.C.G. 31]

holy shit, watched The MizTV segment. That Daniel Bryan promo is unreal. This heel turn and the subsequent promos so far have been home runs. He's so passionate about it all.

He also shut down the "What?" chants perfectly. Look at how they've pulled off Daniel Bryan's turn thus far compared to Dean Ambrose. Both were relatively simple and wrote themselves, Ambrose more so than Bryan, yet they're total opposites as one is f***ing amazing (Bryan) and the other is f***ing awful (Ambrose). I have no clue how these brands are under the same umbrella and oversight of the same guy unless Vince really is super hands off with Smackdown these days and it's more Triple H/Road Dogg. That's the only logical explanation.

got a feeling we're building to Daniel Bryan vs. AJ Styles vs. The Miz at the Royal Rumble for the title, if not in a slow build for Wrestlemania.

 

[Emperoreddy]

His answers to the what chants was amazing.

 

[Emperoreddy]

I think Vince is just more hands off and they are simply letting the talent have more control over their characters.

Smackers was still poorly booked for a long while, but they at least seem more willing to get out of their own ways and let the hot hand run on Tuesday.

 

[GarbageGoal]

Holy shit, just watched the show and the new Daniel Bryan is continuing to be amazing.

 

[Alex Jones]

I don’t think so. Bryan’s very serious about those causes in real life and probably wanted it a part of his character. It’s a different layer to the typical WWE heel, it’s good heat, and as the greats say, it’s Daniel Bryan turned up to an 11 and those are the best characters.

The best heels always speak some level of truth. This is why the traditional WWE heel that does nothing but beat people down and run away never gets heat.

Daniel Bryan gets great heat because deep down he's clawing at our insecurities about our wasteful, consumer culture that genuinely is destroying the planet. Everyone (well, most people) in the crowd know that this is happening and that's it's wrong, but a vast majority of people out there aren't doing much if anything to stop it. The fact that he takes to an extreme level just makes it extra easy for people to hate.

This isn't that dissimilar to a guy like CM Punk, who genuinely spoke a lot of truth about the negatives of drugs and alcohol. A lot of us knew that there was a lot right in what he was saying, but that didn't mean that we were ever going to change or act differently.


This is why Dean's Hypochondriac shtick doesn't work. Being a hypochondriac doesn't make me hate you, it makes me think you need a therapist.

 

[BonMorrison]

Bryan definitely has a say in using actual things he is passionate about in crafting a heel character. I think it's a verrrrry fine line to walk on but as long as Bryan has the creative control I think it'll be fine. If Vince truly had control, it'd be much more stupid and "HAHA CLIMATE CHANGE IS FAKE, STUPID LEFTY VEGAN SJWSSSSSSS".

 

[PeterSidorkiewicz]

The best heels always speak some level of truth. This is why the traditional WWE heel that does nothing but beat people down and run away never gets heat.

Daniel Bryan gets great heat because deep down he's clawing at our insecurities about our wasteful, consumer culture that genuinely is destroying the planet. Everyone (well, most people) in the crowd know that this is happening and that's it's wrong, but a vast majority of people out there aren't doing much if anything to stop it. The fact that he takes to an extreme level just makes it extra easy for people to hate.

This isn't that dissimilar to a guy like CM Punk, who genuinely spoke a lot of truth about the negatives of drugs and alcohol. A lot of us knew that there was a lot right in what he was saying, but that didn't mean that we were ever going to change or act differently.


This is why Dean's Hypochondriac shtick doesn't work. Being a hypochondriac doesn't make me hate you, it makes me think you need a therapist.

Well, he IS on the fringe of being a lunatic!

 

[JackSlater]

I'm sure that this is old news but I feel compelled to comment on how tremendous The New Daniel Bryan is. Sanctimonious progressive type is an easy enough gimmick to do, but it's original in the WWE sphere and he pulls it off very well. Even the little things, like his shirts for instance, fit so well. Great stuff that wouldn't work if not for the all time great wrestler pulling it off. Not too many wrestlers can go from great face to great heel so easily.

 

[GarbageGoal]

Sadly the rating were below 2 million for the first time since 2016. Complete malaise right now.

 

[GKJ]

Sadly the rating were below 2 million for the first time since 2016. Complete malaise right now.

When Raw does bad, it carries over to Smackdown, regardless of quality.

 

[BonMorrison]

 

[Hypernova]

When Raw does bad, it carries over to Smackdown, regardless of quality.

If that were true, SD should also be crap but it actually has been pretty good in the last few months.

 

[Sheppy]

I was a bit worried about DB turning, but good god has he ever been great. He's fantastic, and honestly, his face run was kind of stale (I blame Brie mostly) - The "NEW" Daniel Bryan is tremendous.

 

[MAHJ71]

Was the show worth watching or only the Becky/DB Miz TV segments?

 

[GKJ]

If that were true, SD should also be crap but it actually has been pretty good in the last few months.

I'm talking about in terms of viewership.

 

[GarbageGoal]

When Raw does bad, it carries over to Smackdown, regardless of quality.

More in the sense that people watch Monday and decide “I’m not watching two more hours of trash tomorrow” not thinking it’s better and different. They retain 85% of the audience consistently however.

Bottom line people should spend their WWE time on Tuesdays right now.

 

[Kimi]

They should spend their time on 205 and NXT.