The Rock scheduled to return soon

[Troy]

He has been added to another Smackdown on the 12th of Feb. Impressed by how many Smackdowns he will be appearing at, overall looks like he is going to be appearing on at least a dozen shows in the next few months which is a lot considering his schedule.

 

[Troy]

Unlike last year's build to Wrestlemania, Dwayne Johnson will be with WWE pretty much full-time as a TV character as he will be appearing at pretty much every TV taping and PPV leading into Wrestlemania 29 in April in New Jersey.

Last year, there were a number of WWE talents who quietly griped that Johnson's return did nothing for anyone but himself since he was never around except to promote his own storyline with John Cena leading into Wrestlemania 28.

Well, this year, no one can accuse Johnson of anything for an insane work ethic. Despite having 4-5 movies opening this year, Johnson's WWE schedule (and this is just for appearances and doesn't include travel dates, promotional work, etc) is....

1/7 Raw in Tampa, FL
1/8 Smackdown in Miami, FL
1/15 Raw 20th Anniversary in Houston, Texas
1/21 Raw in San Jose, CA
1/22 Smackdown in Sacramento, CA
1/27 WWE Royal Rumble in Phoenix, Arizona
1/28 Raw in Las Vegas
2/11 Raw in Nashville, TN
2/12 Smackdown in Little Rock, Arkansas
2/17 WWE Elimination Chamber PPV in New Orleans
2/18 Raw in Lafayette, Louisiana
There will be additional dates added as well.

That is an impressive schedule considering he has a number of movies being released this year as well. Good to see him giving up so much of his spare time to give back to the business that made him famous especially at a time when WWE really need him.

 

[We Are Legion]

Oh great. The guy that promised he was NEVER LEAVING EVER AGAIN is finally coming back after like 9 months.

 

[Deezy]

Oh great. The guy that promised he was NEVER LEAVING EVER AGAIN is finally coming back after like 9 months.

Were you expecting him to go on the road full-time and work houseshows?

Everyone on any wrestling roster anywhere wish they could do what The Rock is doing. Let's bitch about how Undertaker only shows up once or twice in the past 3 years while we're at it.

 

[We Are Legion]

Were you expecting him to go on the road full-time and work houseshows?

Everyone on any wrestling roster anywhere wish they could do what The Rock is doing. Let's bitch about how Undertaker only shows up once or twice in the past 3 years while we're at it.

No and I don't want him to. I just find it laughable that he writes checks he knows he can't cash just to get a pop from the crowd and stay in their good graces despite the fact he has no intention of giving them what they want.

 

[SAIYANS]

Cookie Puss, that will stick

 

[Defiant]

With that shedule, hopefully Rocky will more in-ring involvement and plenty of interactions. As long as he treats his opponents like Punk with a bit more credibility along the way so that his presence can actually have some benefit, Rock can make silly jokes with as many people as he likes.

 

[Troy]

Last night's Raw in Tampa, FL was the first complete sellout for a Raw taping in some time. Rock was getting the credit for that.

Rock earning his huge check already, Rumble is already sold out as well. I suspect that the Smackdown taping crowds will be considerably higher than usual as well when Rock appears.

 

[Deezy]

No and I don't want him to. I just find it laughable that he writes checks he knows he can't cash just to get a pop from the crowd and stay in their good graces despite the fact he has no intention of giving them what they want.

What did the wrestling fans wants? The rock to come back to the WWE. What did he do? Go back to the WWE.

What else did the fans want? The Rock to wrestle a match......And what did he do? He wrestled a match.

What does he have to do to placate these lofty expectations of certain selfish wrestling fans? This guys schedule heading up to Wrestlemania is insane. He has movie appearances lined up for most of this and he is still going to be at the majority of WWE TVs going into Wrestlemania and yet, that isn't good enough/

You can't please everyone I guess.

 

[Dale]

I guarantee the majority of the peoples beef is that he doesn't do the house show loop which is hilarious in itself because the people who will be complaining about Rock not being there, won't be there themselves.

 

[We Are Legion]

What did the wrestling fans wants? The rock to come back to the WWE. What did he do? Go back to the WWE.

What else did the fans want? The Rock to wrestle a match......And what did he do? He wrestled a match.

What does he have to do to placate these lofty expectations of certain selfish wrestling fans? This guys schedule heading up to Wrestlemania is insane. He has movie appearances lined up for most of this and he is still going to be at the majority of WWE TVs going into Wrestlemania and yet, that isn't good enough/

You can't please everyone I guess.

You know for someone who shits all over TNA for their fondness of nostalgia, you sure seem to love it yourself. That's all Rock offers WWE when he's not wrestling a full-time schedule... nostalgia. Just so he can drop by once every 9-12 months and make fans feel like they're watching the Attitude era again, make it appear as though "WWE still has it" (lol) and please short-sighted fans. The Cena match last year was fine, but it's being dragged out far too long. He does nothing we haven't seen from him a million times before and it's beyond stale.

 

[Deezy]

You know for someone who shits all over TNA for their fondness of nostalgia, you sure seem to love it yourself. That's all Rock offers WWE when he's not wrestling a full-time schedule... nostalgia. Just so he can drop by once every 9-12 months and make fans feel like they're watching the Attitude era again, make it appear as though "WWE still has it" (lol) and please short-sighted fans. The Cena match last year was fine, but it's being dragged out far too long. He does nothing we haven't seen from him a million times before and it's beyond stale.

Who is on the nostalgia trip here? Me? Hardly, I don't care if Rock is here because he was from the Attitude Era and I'm a blind mark for all things AE. Hardly, if you ever looked at my posts instead of just generalizing everything people say into one nice bow, because you lack the knowledge of distinguishing one post from another.

I see Ther Rock as an attraction, you don't overuse your attractions because you dillute that attraction by having him there week in and week out. Simply showing up for a pop is not what is being done here. But whatever, you obviously don't subscribe to that type of thinking and instead think you have to be rasslin 24/7 or fuck off.

Typical mark shit.

 

[We Are Legion]

Who is on the nostalgia trip here? Me? Hardly, I don't care if Rock is here because he was from the Attitude Era and I'm a blind mark for all things AE. Hardly, if you ever looked at my posts instead of just generalizing everything people say into one nice bow, because you lack the knowledge of distinguishing one post from another.

I see Ther Rock as an attraction, you don't overuse your attractions because you dillute that attraction by having him there week in and week out. Simply showing up for a pop is not what is being done here. But whatever, you obviously don't subscribe to that type of thinking and instead think you have to be rasslin 24/7 or fuck off.

Typical mark shit.

You can get angry all you want. But you ARE nostalgic. And a hypocrite. And very bad at hiding it.

 

[SAIYANS]

It is kinda silly to ask Rock to be there every week. No matter how you slice it, and if you took his comments that way, you're naive

 

[Defiant]

I'm fine with The Rock appearing regularly and just being The Rock, I'm pretty sure he'll even win the title and I'm not that bothered... As long as his presence actually has some benefit apart from more goddamn, motherfucking revenue building stunts for WWE and a paycheck for Dwayne. I want that hectic schedule to be put to good use, to see how they would try to blend modern Rock into today's roster for an active couple of months, to have match-ups with interesting opponents and that he can actually rub off on someone younger and get them over.

A good booker will secure a huge name like The Rock and make that nostalgia dollar. A better booker will consider the ways in which he can be used. I mean, Rock could lose to Tensai next week and he'll still be The bloody Rock. Nothing you could do to him would put a dent in his reputation. The only risk WWE are conceivbly taking by having the Rock show up and do something more complex than making jokes, is that they might not make as much money from it.

But hey, some people just wanna see Rocky show up every now and then, raise the eyebrow and hear the fans go crazy and far be it for me to tell them they are wrong. But if you're content to have one of your all time favourites show up just to repeat the same catchphrases, mock his contenders, take what he wants and not really try anything different... Well, I'm reminded of Super Mario nowadays. Or how about The Undertaker? Someone who - while still capable given the right opponent to work with - just keeps hanging around because WWE are dependant and the fans seem almost afraid to let him bloody go. As a result, his matches (or at least the hype) hardly have the weight they used to.

In any other storytelling medium, when an old or major character sticks around only to appease the audience and not really to drive the narrative or strengthen other characters, its often known as fan service. Fine in small doses, but once it becomes the norm everything around it starts to get stale.

Certainly the sold-out Raw justifies The Rock's presence, but the audience asking for a bit more than that, for things that don't just benefit The Rock, is not selfish or entitlement. Yes he has a heavy shedule lined up, but that's what he signed up for and that's what he's being fucking payed for! If you're fine with The Rock half-arsing it and eating all the pies, then why do we even have him around?