Dolph Ziggler

[Superstar Sleeze]

WWE Intercontinental Champion Bad News Barrett vs Dolph Ziggler - WWE RAW 6/23/14

 

Take a pair of semi-over midcarders and tack on a couple nearfalls and you get "This is Awesome". I remember watching this match and thinking this was one of the most egregious examples of the overexposure of the "This Is Awesome" chant. My beef with "This Is Awesome" chant is that it tends to be the MOVEZ~! that are over rather than the individual wrestlers. If Ziggler was so over. how come Ziggler was not being cheered? A lot of it has to do with how the match was presented and laid out. What did Barrett do that was particularly heelish? Really the only reason Barrett was the heel was because he is the bigger of the two and he would cut off Ziggler. It was a very neutral performance from Barrett and I have noticed over very neutral performances from midcard heels especially Cesaro. It is funny that all these old time great wrestling minds can't put their finger on why these wrestlers can't make it to the next level. I would start right there. Obviously, booking is critical, but if you are talking about things a wrestler can control, it is stronger heel performances. It seems the heels are too concerned with being considered "great" wrestlers, which in the modern context means MOVEZ~!

 

I wanted to review this match because it made one list of top WWE matches of the year I read and I wanted to look at a Ziggler match from before his late year push. I remember ZIggler utilizing the babyface mid-90s Savage formula of taking heat, hitting one counter move and then going home. Of course, Savage would win his match with the big elbow, but most times Ziggler would lose. I think the match would have benefited from that formula. It would afford the opportunity for Barrett to look like a violent bully and for Ziggler to build sympathy for his big dropkick comeback. Instead, it was just I hit a move, you hit a move. There was no sense of struggle or real desire to win. Hell, you can't even claim they had good escalation: The Zig Zag was used as a throwaway transition, which built to a commercial and within one spot, Barrett was up and hitting the Cactus Elbow. Plus Barrett's natural size was totally undermined by the match. Ziggler was countering at will Barrett's offense and it was not like he was using great speed. The selling was generally not good and even when it happened like Ziggler not being able to capitalize the selling felt false (more like frustration) and did not feel warranted based on the limited punishment he took. The finish was pretty awesome with Ziggler going for the Stinger Splash and Barrett hits him with a KO elbow.

 

I think Barrett and Ziggler have great potential, but have their limitations. Barrett really is not a good bumper or seller, which he does not have to be, but it will limit him. Ziggler has the worst punches in the business today and his deadfish/pop-up selling is annoying at best. However, I think even with those limitations, they can construct great matches against other people using Barrett's brute and Ziggler's bumping ability. Tag team wrestling could have taught both these guys a lot. Alas, it is a shame.

 

The match was designed to impress the crowd. You work the audience. Don't let the audience work you. Disposable, mindless match that is fun to watch with your brother on Saturday morning, but not worthwhile on rewatch.

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WWE Intercontinental Champion Dolph Ziggler vs Cesaro vs Tyson Kidd - WWE Smackdown! 11/14/14

 

First thing's first, the new Smackdown ring announcer is realest. I may just start watching Smackdown for her. Hot damn.

 

This match is a great spotfest and besides the Money In The Bank Ladder match, I can't think of a better one this year. Spotfest is a loaded word after all wrestling matches are a collection of spots. It is your fireworks spectacle in lieu of a compelling story. I think there is very much a place for them on pro wrestling cards (no more than one a card). If you are going to have one, then commit to it. The reason I was so down on Barrett and Ziggler is they had a spotfest, but they were just hitting their stock moves on each other. These three came up with creative, fun, and eye-popping spots. Sometimes they got too smart for their own good like trying a more complicated Tower of Doom spot that looked like shit. However, fun stuff like Cesaro covering Ziggler while in the Sharpshooter or Kidd hitting a Blockbuster on Cesaro onto Ziggler's knees. I also have to say after watching all that 00s NOAH that Cesaro hitting a big boot to start a match and then an exploder is the most NOAH beginning to any WWE match ever. In fact, if NOAH ever had a junior heavyweight triple threat match, I would say it would look a lot like this only with more strike exchanges. I liked the opening part with quick pinfalls by each competitor really put over their desire to eliminate a wrestler and setup a one on one match for the title. They also managed not to fall into the triple threat trap of having one wrestler sell for long periods of time on the outside. They all just kept going at each other with vigor. I would say that is what would separate this match from a lot of other typical WWE matches is the urgency of the wrestlers.

 

The finish stretch begins with a Kidd sharpshooter/Cesaro crossface combo on Ziggler. The storyline behind this was that Authority was setting Ziggler (then the only member of Team Cena) to lose his title because of the stacked odds. While Cesaro and Kidd never formally teamed up, these moments drove home that angle. In an idiotic moment, Kidd breaks the hold to attack Cesaro and gets the Giant Swing. Cesaro hotshotting Ziggler into a kick by Kid was sick. Kidd has some really good kicks in this match. Ziggler hits the Zig Zag, but Kidd being the gloryhound he is (remember the storyline with Nattie) he tosses Ziggler out so he can get the pinfall. I like the respect shown for the Zig Zag. Kidd had a really good string of offense on Ziggler and you really felt him press his advantage with nice kicks. He tries for the Sharpshooter, but it is reversed into a cradle and then ZIG ZAG! Ziggler survives with his championship reign intact.

There was no great overarching story and the selling was nothing to write home about, but for a spotfest you could not ask for much more. There were a lot of fun spots that escalated to a satisfying conclusion. Plus Kidd got some time to shine, which is nice and showed some promise. Good shit. ****

[C.S.]

I'll have to catch the second match. Sounds like a fun combo.

 

My feelings about Dolph in general:

 

+ Fun in the ring

+ Hard worker

+ Sells really well

 

- But maybe oversells? Might need to be more selfish?

- Stupid name. I remember him saying he chose it, so that's on him.

- No character whatsoever. Who is Dolph Ziggler? I have no clue.

 

The last point is the killer. Everything else can be overcome.

[NintendoLogic]

- No character whatsoever. Who is Dolph Ziggler? I have no clue.

 

He's a showoff who loves to steal the show and entertain the WWE Universe.

[C.S.]

He's a showoff who loves to steal the show and entertain the WWE Universe.

 

LOL, yeah, and that makes for a pretty terrible non-character.

 

Shawn Michaels said the same kind of stuff too, but he had an actual character on top of that.

[fakeplastictrees]

I like DZ. My biggest problem with him is that he has repeated his stuff so many times that people believe it without really calling any of it into question. There is nothing overly amazing DZ does in-the-ring that makes any of what he says tangible. HBK called himself 'The Showstopper' while he was doing all of this crazy shit in the ring. Sabu was called 'The Homicidal, etc. etc." because he was a nut case in the ring and doing all these crazy moves. What exactly does DZ do in the ring that makes him a 'show off'? Again, the true answer to that question is very meta and the essence of DZ's character is meta as hell which kinda bugs me.

[Zoo Enthusiast]

The whole meta aspect of his character is what I hate. I used to be a very big fan back in late '11 / early '12 when Punk was beating him all the time. He had Vicki with him and was able to get more heat. Now, a lot of his heat seems to be more of the "we are sad that you're being booked to lose" variety than anything else, and I just despise that.

 

I'm not a huge fan of his work, either, but that's not is biggest issue (and my tastes have changed to where I'm not a big fan of guys taking huge bumps for no reason). The biggest problem is the character, or lack thereof.

[The Chief]

His character is that he bumps and flips and flops to entertain the WWE Universe.

 

Shawn Michaels character was a guy who won matches with skill, determination, smarts, and who just happened to entertain fans as a result.

 

Yeah, the meta aspects of Dolph's character are annoying and a huge problem with current wrestling.

[Superstar Sleeze]

I agree with the sentiment that his gimmick is basically to entertain the crowd at best and at worst it is to delight the internet fans with workrate. Wrestling should be built around winning and losing. I hate when it devolves into who is more entertaining and who is more must see. Don't tell me you are must see, just be must see. I am a fan of Ziggler's look because its a throwback. I dig long hair (makes selling and bumping better) and bleach blond makes it all the better. He has a sort of a South Beach party vibe with the Don Johnson suits and the LMFAO-style shirts. He has a weird promo delivery, where everything sounds way too melodramatic, but in an insincere way, which hurts as a babyface. He has a pretty funny twitter so he seems like he is a funny guy, but it does not really come across too well. Stuff like the Harper match will help his credibility a lot. He is essentially a blowjob babyface that gets his ass handed to him and has a handful of moves to put together a finish stretch. Putting him against a big monster in a violent ladder match gets him across as a tough guy rather than just a pretty boy. These situations will build him as a full-fledged, three-dimensional character. I agree that while they are fleshing out the in-ring stuff (and he needs more tools and better punches), that more needs to be done outside the ring.

[Superstar Sleeze]

WWE Intercontinental Champion Luke Harper vs Dolph Ziggler - WWE TLC 2014 Ladder Match

 

Luke Harper may look like Bruiser Brody, but he wrestles like Stan Hansen and the world is a better place for it. He had a total disregard for Ziggler and his own welfare. Having watched wrestling for seventeen years now, it takes a lot to make me cringe, but repeatedly I was wincing in pain with each punishing blow. It was so violent and I even questioned if it was all worth it. I hope it will be because I thought this be HBK/Mankind match for Ziggler. Shawn Michaels needed the match with Foley to establish that he dish out the pain as well as he could take it. It is similar to how in the 80s pretty boy tag teams would be positioned in brutal fights with gnarly heels to show they were tougher than they look and earn credibility with the audience. To keep the Shawn Michaels thread going, matches like The Rockers versus Rose & Somers bloodbath in the AWA come to mind. If exploited properly, this can be that very match. It is so difficult in this day and age to be an asskicker and not come across as a cool babyface. Harper was able to tap into such an uncomfortable violence that he was booed heavily. Yes, eventually there was the obligatory "This Is Awesome" chant, but for the vast majority of the match the people cheered Ziggler and booed Harper. It helped a lot they were in Ziggler's hometown of Cleveland, but regardless, to see such an outpouring of emotion to cheer for one wrestler was so refreshing in this day of "appreciating the match" and other such hogwash.

On the rewatch, with a closer attention to detail, I realized how much Harper really destroyed Ziggler for the opening half of the match. It is a testament to Ziggler that when I was watching with my family that I really never felt like he was totally out of it and that he was always struggling. Too often he can rely on deadfish/pop-up selling, but here, I thought more often than not he kept it a competitive style of selling. Harper established the perfect pace for this brutal masterpiece. It never plodded, but they never rushed to the next spot. He was going to let that ladder just fall on Ziggler's head and then climb the ladder to retain his title. Those ladder timber spots were vicious especially the one that clipped Ziggler in the head. The most violent spot of the match was without a doubt the Harper suicide dive onto the ladder where he basically piledrove himself into a ladder. How he did not break his arms and/or be concussed was beyond me. I could barely watch. The Ziggler pop up and scramble up the ladder was perfect, because up until that point he had basically no offense and now the monster has basically impaled himself it was time to take advantage. It was great drama as the Creature from the Black Lagoon rose again and stopped him. Not to be topped Ziggler took some hellacious bumps like on a powerbomb onto a Ladder (the ladder did not break) and then being catapulted into the middle rope with the ladder around his head (concussion city and getting busted open). Ziggler breaking free of the doctors to stop Harper from climbing the ladder was an awesome moment.

 

This should not be lost in the shuffle, but the effort they put into this and how much they were willing to risk made the Intercontinental Championship feel like a big deal for the first time in forever. As I survey the damage, Ziggler is bleeding from the face and fingers while Harper is bleeding from all sort of odd places on his body. You really felt like whoever wins this demolition derby deserves it. Ziggler makes his grand comeback, but what's great is that it is not just one move. He has to keep beating Harper back, first it is a facebuster onto the ladder, then it is DDT off the ladder, then dropkicking the ladder into his face and finally the superkick off the ladder that wins ZIggler the match. The fact that it was Ziggler had to earn every single step by constantly hitting Harper with big shots really you made it feel like he could earn it.

 

Ziggler proved he could withstand the punishment doled out by one of WWE's most sadistic monsters. Harper made him earn this every step of the way delivering one of the most malevolent performances of the year. Harper gave as good as he got as proved by that suicide dive. For Ziggler, we see if the WWE exploits this newfound credibility as a tough, die hard son of a bitch. The negatives are slight. but apparent: Ziggler's punches still look like shit and they did lose a bit of steam towards the end as the spots got a bit more contrived. In terms of a violent spectacle, where the pretty boy babyface not just survived the monster, this match deserves to be ranked among the best ladder matches of all time. ****1/2

[Bierschwale]

Yeah, the meta aspects of Dolph's character are annoying and a huge problem with current wrestling.

 

I really don't think that it's a big deal as long as Ziggler gets legitimately strong booking. If the character wants to be the most entertaining and exciting guy on the roster, and he's successful in his matches because he won't give up and won't think twice about doing the risky move (and it's not like that he doesn't give the impression of wanting to win, his "Hulk up" is really, really good and is absolutely focused on winning) but it occasionally costs him matches and there's awareness of that flaw, then it works. (I suspect that JBL's "He doesn't know when to stay down" lines are supposed to be that awareness and they're obviously not good enough.) It's the internal character of him knowing when to go "all-out"/when to not and when to not but not listening to his brain and doing it anyway that fails, and that's because almost nobody has an internal character.

 

I'm a fan of Ziggler but I'd put him up as the #1 loser on the current roster of the WWE not giving a shit about the tag division.

[Smack2k]

To me, his name is memorable, not something you forget..

 

I will always love and remember when he first came in as Dolph, and would pop up in interviews or other places with, "Hi, I'm Dolph Ziggler.."

 

Dumb question, but someone he chose the name, is it because its bascially a close variation of Dirk Diggler (Boogie Nights)?

[The Man in Blak]

The thing that really bothers me about the Ziggler/Harper ladder match is neither of the two standout spots -- Harper's suicide dive into the ladder and Harper's middle rope slingshot with the ladder -- make much sense in the match. The dive into the ladder is particularly egregious; Ziggler already has the ladder up before Harper even starts running!

 

It's still a fun ladder match with some brutal moments being dished out by Harper, but it just doesn't have any flow between those moments for me, which further isolates the highspots in my mind and makes the "fridge logic" behind the suicide dive and the slingshot stick out even more.

[Superstar Sleeze]

The thing that really bothers me about the Ziggler/Harper ladder match is neither of the two standout spots -- Harper's suicide dive into the ladder and Harper's middle rope slingshot with the ladder -- make much sense in the match. The dive into the ladder is particularly egregious; Ziggler already has the ladder up before Harper even starts running!

 

It's still a fun ladder match with some brutal moments being dished out by Harper, but it just doesn't have any flow between those moments for me, which further isolates the highspots in my mind and makes the "fridge logic" behind the suicide dive and the slingshot stick out even more.

Harper is a sadistic monster that is willing to hurl himself at Ziggler to inflict more pain. I did not notice that Ziggler had the ladder up and that is an excellent point and it is too bad. I thought the middle rope slingshot was totally in line with Harper's behavior up until that point.

I liked how the match built from Ziggler having no shot to having some glimmers of hope before breaking out into the big finish. I thought it built really well and was best Ziggler gets his ass kicked match. The victory feels like a big deal and when the last time an IC title victory felt like a big deal?

[C.S.]

Dumb question, but someone he chose the name, is it because its bascially a close variation of Dirk Diggler (Boogie Nights)?

 

From Wiki (I know, not the most reliable source, but I remember reading something along these lines elsewhere too):

 

Nemeth later revealed in Colt Cabana's Art of Wrestling Podcast that he chose the name "Dolph" because that was his great grandfather's name and he said that his friend suggested the name "Ziggler".

[Sidebottom]

Pretty sure he said on Jericho's podcast he was handed the name and was all, WTF?

[Loss]

At the time, it was reported that Brian Gewirtz gave him the name to reference Dirk Diggler.

[goc]

Yea I definitely remember Dolph Ziggler, along with Kenny Dykstra, as one of the early "fake real names" that came from creative. Not sure why he's taking credit for it now.