Fantasy Booking Warfare | PFK - PartsFunKnown by WrestleTalk - Dailymotion

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00:00 WWE are the prisoners.

00:02 WWE are the ones who have made it, they're the prison.

00:04 So do you think that WWE would air a vignette where they're saying,

00:07 yeah, we're the prison.

00:09 >> Well, I think- >> Not a family, as we say.

00:10 >> Yeah. >> We're a prison.

00:11 >> We have reached the finale of fantasy booking warfare.

00:17 After a pair of harrowing journeys, Oli Davis having bested Sat and

00:22 Luke faces Tempest, who topped Sullivan and

00:25 Laurie in the tournament final of champions.

00:27 Who is the least terrible booker of fantasy wrestling?

00:32 And who came all this way for absolutely nothing?

00:36 Let's go to our judges and begin the final round as Oli and

00:40 Tempest book the Shield Triple Threat Match.

00:45 >> I'm Dave Bradshaw and for the past 15 years, I've been a play by play

00:49 commentator in British and European wrestling.

00:51 >> Off the top, missile drop kick.

00:53 Did he get it?

00:54 Yes, he can.

00:55 He's the champion of the world.

00:57 >> I am the master of the half crab, the current reigning undisputed British

01:01 heavyweight champion, Michael Oku.

01:03 And who better to tell you how bad things are booked than me?

01:06 [MUSIC]

01:11 >> I'm Nina Samuels, star of the Nina Samuels Show and here on WrestleTalk,

01:15 because of course, WrestleTalk needs more Nina.

01:18 [MUSIC]

01:23 >> It is tense, I can tell you that much.

01:25 Because our two finalists, Oli and Tempest,

01:28 are gonna compete for the title of champion of fantasy booking warfare.

01:33 Mike, we were saying before we came on air,

01:34 both of them in one of their two previous matches have had a clean sweep.

01:37 >> It's not gonna be any time for being sympathetic or being like,

01:41 they were good but there was a bit of bad.

01:43 No, it needs to be perfect.

01:45 >> Yeah. >> In my opinion.

01:46 >> There is no room for error when you're in the final.

01:48 >> We have shaped these two men into the excellent fantasy bookers that they are.

01:54 >> We have coached them.

01:55 >> Absolutely. >> With tough love,

01:56 some would argue.

01:57 >> Well, let's see if they've improved even further into the final.

02:01 Today we are booking the Shield Triple Threat.

02:04 Can't wait to see this one.

02:05 Oli's up first, you guys ready?

02:07 >> I am so ready.

02:08 >> All right, let's see how Oli has booked the Shield Triple Threat.

02:11 >> On the road to WrestleMania 40, the bloodline has been bleeding, members.

02:15 First Jey, then Solo.

02:17 And on WrestleMania itself, Jey and Jimmy embrace after a bloody war,

02:21 leaving Roman Reigns with just Paul Heyman for his main event title defense against Cody Rhodes.

02:27 It's nearing the end of a Reigns match, so you know what that means.

02:31 Breath bump, double down.

02:32 Heyman looks around for backup, but there's no one.

02:35 So he grabs the championship belt when Seth Rollins' music hits.

02:39 On the go home raw, Seth had already told Cody to beat Reigns for him.

02:43 Then Seth can beat Cody for the title afterwards.

02:46 Rollins grabs the belt from Heyman and gets in the ring.

02:49 He looks at Cody, who's on all fours.

02:51 He looks at Roman, who's struggling to his knees.

02:54 He limply holds up a defeated Shield fist bump.

02:57 Rollins throws down the belt in front of Cody for him to use.

03:02 Roman is now visibly crying.

03:04 Rhodes nods, picks up the belt to win the match, when Seth stomps Cody's head onto

03:09 the title as he's getting up.

03:11 The story remains unfinished.

03:13 Roman holds his title in disbelief as Seth exits the ring.

03:18 The next night on Raw, Seth explains his heel turn.

03:21 It pains him to watch Cody come in, beat Seth three times, then not challenge, bear his

03:26 World Heavyweight title.

03:28 Is my title not good enough?

03:30 Seth focuses his anger on Cody, never actually saying he's jealous that Roman, his Shield

03:35 protege, is the real head of the table.

03:38 Heyman suggests a new venture to Roman to replace the Bloodline.

03:42 If anything, the Bloodline was just a prototype for what this new architecture could be.

03:47 And didn't work out for them anyway.

03:50 So why don't we partner with Rollins?

03:53 After weeks of teasing backstage segments, the new partnership is announced.

03:57 Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins are a new two-man power trip called The Protection.

04:03 But unlike the Bloodline, they are true equals, with no one being jealous of each other.

04:09 Seth explains, as long as they've got both world titles, which will be forever, they'll

04:14 run this place.

04:15 He'll run Raw, and Roman will run SmackDown, the heads of two different tables united.

04:21 This begins the Protection Era of WWE.

04:25 And just like the mob bosses Roman and Seth are emulating, they exert control over their

04:29 respective brands by offering Protection.

04:32 You might call it extortion in other words.

04:35 Heels flock to the Protection, realising if you join them, more often than not, you're

04:40 going to win because of interference.

04:42 WWE becomes a heel dominated promotion, where babyfaces like Sami Zayn, Jey Uso and Cody

04:48 Rhodes try to establish a resistance.

04:51 This gets increasingly bad over the Summer, so Nick Aldis and Adam Pearce have devised

04:55 a plan.

04:56 At this year's Survivor Series, it'll be Champion vs Champion.

05:02 It'll be Rollins vs Reigns.

05:05 The Protection have a rare joint in-ring segment as a response.

05:09 Usually, they keep to their respective territories of Raw and SmackDown.

05:13 Seth says WWE can't drive a wedge between them.

05:16 He can see what they're doing.

05:18 They're forgetting that Seth's a mastermind.

05:20 He's the architect of the Shield.

05:22 He's the mastermind of the Protection too.

05:24 Seth stops dead on the mic, realising what he's just said.

05:27 The crowd collectively gasps.

05:30 Just like Roman's Bloodline segment with Jey Uso getting too big for his boots, Reigns

05:34 is behind Rollins with a 'you're what, mate?'

05:37 face.

05:38 Nobody backtracks.

05:39 They're good for now.

05:41 At Survivor Series, Unconnected to anything else, a short film begins to play.

05:45 It shows a high security prison.

05:47 Inmates are being locked up in cells.

05:49 A patrol dog is barking.

05:51 You can hear snippets of Seth's laughter and Roman's 'oooh' in the sound mix.

05:58 It ends.

05:59 It's time for the main event, Rollins vs Reigns.

06:02 At first, they circle each other smiling.

06:04 They have a few standard exchanges.

06:06 Then Seth kicks Roman rather stiffly.

06:09 Reigns didn't like that.

06:10 The strikes get heavier and heavier as the decade long tensions between the two come

06:15 to the surface.

06:16 Getting more and more angry, Reigns goes to low blow Seth, but he stops himself.

06:21 There's a ref bump, of course, and Rollins instinctively grabs a steel chair.

06:25 Roman gets to his feet, Seth's winding up the chair, just like the Shield break up all

06:30 those years ago.

06:32 But Rollins stops himself too.

06:36 A minute away before Roman turns round.

06:39 The shocking swerve here is that neither man cheats.

06:43 There's no distractions, no interference.

06:46 Seth just counters a spear into a stomp to win clean.

06:50 Rollins is almost as surprised as we are.

06:52 Roman is out cold, and when he comes to, he can't believe it either, looking a mixture

06:57 of confused, furious and scared.

07:00 Roman is gone for the next month, and Seth downplays any rumours they've fallen out.

07:05 Weekly TV keeps getting more clips of the prison we saw at Survivor Series and its extensive

07:09 security measures.

07:11 With cracks showing in the protection, Cody Rhodes takes on Seth Rollins for the World

07:15 Heavyweight Championship at the last payback.

07:19 There's a ref bump, so Roman Reigns makes his return to help Rollins, just like Seth

07:24 did at WrestleMania.

07:25 He throws the World Heavyweight title into the ring, but his aim is misjudged.

07:31 It falls exactly between the two men.

07:34 They scramble for it at the same time.

07:36 Cody hits a Crossroads onto it and wins the World Heavyweight Championship.

07:43 The following Raw, Roman, Seth and Paul Heyman all appear in the ring together, a show of

07:47 unity.

07:48 Michael Cole points out that Rollins once said the protection would rule WWE as long

07:53 as they both held World Championships.

07:56 But now Seth doesn't have one.

07:59 Roman clutches his belt a little tighter, starting Reigns becoming increasingly more

08:04 paranoid.

08:05 On the go-home SmackDown for the Royal Rumble, Roman and Seth have an in-ring meeting of

08:10 the families, mediated by Heyman.

08:12 Rollins addresses rumours that he's going to enter the Royal Rumble so he can face Reigns,

08:16 which he won't do.

08:19 The protection only works if they both hold gold.

08:22 If he beats Roman for his belt, like he did at Survivor Series, there would still only

08:26 be one title between them, so he's not going to enter the Royal Rumble.

08:30 He'll focus on winning his title back from Cody in a singles match.

08:35 Roman, a Rollins embrace, and then, for the first time, the prison clips interrupt the

08:42 protection.

08:43 We're shown an inmate locked in a cell.

08:45 One guard says to the other, "why are we putting so much protection in place?

08:48 These punks couldn't break out of paperback."

08:51 "Ain't anyone told you?"

08:52 the other guard says.

08:53 "It ain't there to stop these guys breaking out.

08:55 It's to stop him breaking in."

08:58 At that point, a siren starts to wail.

09:01 We cut closer to the prison in the grounds.

09:03 We're following behind a hooded figure walking intently towards the front gates.

09:07 He takes out one guard.

09:08 He takes out another.

09:10 He pauses at the prison door.

09:12 He stands there, shoulders heaving up and down, up and down.

09:16 He kicks it through.

09:18 The film cuts to black.

09:20 We cut back to Roman and Seth watching confused from the ring, then the familiar chords of

09:25 Wild Thing starts to play.

09:27 Wild Thing!

09:28 You make my heart sing!

09:33 We cut to the arena concourse again, following behind the hooded man.

09:36 He's taking out heel protection wrestlers trying to stop him.

09:40 He walks into the crowd, and there he is, picked up by the TV broadcast cameras.

09:44 Dean Ambrose has returned to WWE.

09:48 He grabs a chair and enters the ring.

09:50 He's looking at them both.

09:52 And he holds out a shield bumping fist.

09:58 Roman and Seth start to smile.

10:00 And then Ambrose flips it into a middle finger and goes to hit Rollins with a chair.

10:04 Seth drags Roman in front of him as a shield, Reigns is knocked out, and Rollins runs away.

10:10 At the Royal Rumble, Ambrose stops Seth from cheating, meaning Cody retains his World Heavyweight

10:15 title.

10:16 So after Ambrose enters the Rumble early, Rollins comes out as number 30.

10:20 They fight to the final two, Reigns watching from ringside, concerned either way.

10:25 He goes to pass his title belt to Seth to help him win, but second guesses himself and

10:30 pulls it away.

10:31 Ambrose comes from nowhere to hit Rollins with a huge lariat, sending them both over

10:35 the top rope and hitting the floor at the exact same time.

10:40 In the weeks that follow, Ambrose is very clear.

10:43 He wants Roman Reigns at WrestleMania.

10:46 He's got years of never being seen as a top guy in WWE.

10:50 He was always the other one in the shield.

10:53 Well now he's going to come and beat the Chosen Boy on the biggest stage.

10:58 Because of the Rumble draw, Rollins could choose to fight for Cody's belt at WrestleMania,

11:02 or Roman's.

11:04 He strings both along, and finally, just weeks away in an in-ring segment with Roman, Cody

11:09 standing on the ramp, Seth announces he'll fight the Weaker Man.

11:15 Reigns grins, turning to look up at Cody.

11:18 While Rollins picks up a steel chair, just like that original Shield turn, the act he

11:23 rejected at Survivor Series, and clatters it on Roman's back.

11:27 WrestleMania will be Reigns vs Rollins vs Ambrose.

11:32 At the end of a War of Amania main event, with all three guys killing each other, Seth

11:37 has the chair once again prepped behind Roman's back.

11:40 He's waiting for Reigns to stand so he can hit him, but Ambrose recovers, hitting Rollins

11:45 with the chair first - revenge for Seth's betrayal all those years ago.

11:49 Roman goes to spear Dean, but Ambrose counters it into a Death Rider onto the fallen chair

11:54 to become the undisputed WWE Universal Champion.

12:04 There we have it, the Shield triple threat as booked by Oli Davis.

12:08 And Nina, it ends with Dean Ambrose at WrestleMania 41, ending the historic title reign of Roman

12:13 Reigns.

12:14 I think that Rollins is the first one to give Reigns a loss.

12:20 I think that's a really clever way of doing it because I think it's got to the point now

12:23 where no one's buying anything of Reigns dropping that title until WrestleMania.

12:28 Giving him a loss when the title's not on the line, I think, was a really clever way

12:32 of adding some jeopardy.

12:34 I didn't like it.

12:36 Okay, explain.

12:37 I didn't like the Survivor Series being a big match because it's champion vs champion,

12:41 Rollins vs Reigns, so much history there.

12:43 Why on earth wouldn't the titles be on the line?

12:45 When you're this deep into a Roman Reigns title reign, you know how many years we are

12:49 at that point by the time you get to Survivor Series, doesn't it deepen Reigns' title reign

12:53 as well?

12:54 Yeah, it's a fair thing to point out for sure.

12:57 At this point, just a singles loss being something to it.

13:01 There's something to revealing a weakness close to the actual end of a big final bosses

13:09 reign that's kind of cool where if it's just 100% unbeaten, unbeaten until they lose, yeah,

13:15 that works.

13:16 But then I guess it just gives some strength to the eventual triple threat.

13:19 It's like, hey, then the triple threat's not just about Roman losing, I think, by that

13:24 happening.

13:25 It's about the three of them.

13:26 I just think there is no way we're buying anything to do with Reigns dropping the title

13:31 until a WrestleMania at this point.

13:33 There needs to be something where we can show a chink in the armor, whether it's a loss

13:37 in a tag match or a triple threat could have been a good way to do it because then you

13:42 could have, especially if Rollins is involved, then you could have some callback moments.

13:45 I think for me, I think he went to the well of the chair shot too many times, the chair

13:54 shot to the back of Reigns.

13:56 It's iconic though, isn't it?

13:57 Yeah, but it doesn't mean that you have to just spray it out whenever and whip it out

14:02 at every opportunity.

14:03 I think that's what he did.

14:04 I think he blew his load.

14:05 I think Oli Davis blew his load.

14:09 If it was there, I think the one time to have done it is where he put it in the main event

14:13 in the actual triple threat match.

14:14 He'd be like, "Oh yeah, remember this?

14:16 If we do this, people will be like, wow, great storytelling because that."

14:21 I think a moment before WrestleMania would have been a good call.

14:25 I do see where you're coming from, maybe not as many.

14:28 Is that the right result in this booking scenario, the way Oli's booked it, Dean Ambrose to go

14:32 over at the end and to end Reigns' title reign?

14:34 What do we think?

14:35 I think there's a great scope for a Rollins and Reigns feud after that.

14:37 Of course, Dean Ambrose being gone for so long, there are all of these fresh feuds that

14:42 he could have.

14:43 In terms of future booking, I think it probably is the right way to go.

14:46 This will be the thing to compare with Tempest of like, "Okay, when we have the two of them,

14:50 what is the one that makes the most sense?"

14:52 I'm definitely intrigued to see what Tempest does.

14:53 It is a great idea.

14:54 We should watch Tempest.

14:55 Should we do that now?

14:56 Let's do that.

14:57 Let's do it.

14:58 Let's see how Tempest would book the Shield triple threat.

14:59 Let's set the scene.

15:00 It is present day.

15:01 Seth Rollins is your world heavyweight champion.

15:04 Roman Reigns, your WWE "undisputed" brackets, we don't know what undisputed means, close

15:10 bracket end quote champion, and both successfully defend their titles at Crown Jewel.

15:15 Seth defeats Drew McIntyre.

15:17 Roman Reigns defeats LA Knight.

15:19 Not too much fantasy for this booking just yet, but bear with me.

15:22 Now I ask that you don't simply deduct points for this immediately.

15:26 I mean you, Michael Oku.

15:27 Give me a chance because it is time for brand warfare.

15:31 With Survivor Series set as the next WWE pay-per-view, Adam Pearce comes to Seth backstage and tells

15:37 him that Raw needs him to do what no one has been able to do in almost four years.

15:42 Beat Roman Reigns one on one.

15:44 Seth simply smiles, maybe he does that stupid laugh, and he walks away.

15:50 That same week on Smackdown, Roman Reigns makes his way to the ring and extends his

15:54 hand for Paul Heyman to give him a mic, but before he can speak, Seth Rollins' music

15:58 hits and he enters the ring as well.

16:00 Seth and Roman stand face to face and Seth says, "Suffer and suck a tash.

16:04 Here we are again, brother."

16:06 Over ten years it has been and now here we stand, about to walk into Survivor Series

16:10 as the top dogs in this business.

16:12 Me number one, he raises his title, you number two.

16:16 Roman laughs, says, "Oh, I'm number two?

16:19 Insert name of town, Acknowledge Me," which receives thunderous applause.

16:23 Doesn't sound like number two to me.

16:25 Seth, you always used to say you were the man and I don't know if it's because your

16:29 wife stole that catchphrase or what, but you don't seem to understand that just carrying

16:33 around a belt doesn't make you the man.

16:36 Being the man makes you the man, he says as Paul Heyman raises his belt in the air.

16:42 Seth laughs, then calms all the way down and says, "How can you be the man when you've

16:47 never beaten me?"

16:49 The crowd goes, "Ooooh," as Seth continues, "See, you can name all the people that you

16:53 have beaten over the course of this monotonous, never-ending reign, Cody, Sammy, Brock, Cena,

17:00 Edge, Brian, but you've been leaving my name out of your mouth, buddy boy, because

17:04 at the Royal Rumble last year, you didn't beat me and I talked to the good man, Adam

17:09 Pearson, we agree, I'm owed a rematch for that title of yours."

17:13 Roman snarls as he is obviously none too happy, but as he and Seth stand face to face, the

17:19 crowd starts going wild, they're buzzing, and as the reaction builds, the camera finds

17:24 AEW World Champion Jon Moxley walking through the crowd.

17:29 Now we are getting into fantasy, of course, but before this booking started, Moxley got

17:33 hold of the AEW World Championship.

17:35 Simple as that.

17:36 Seth and Roman's eyes are as big as saucers, their mouths agape as Mox saunters into the

17:41 ring, grabs the microphone from Seth's hand before allowing the crowd to bask in holy

17:46 s*** chants.

17:47 Moxley finally raises the mic and says, "Well, it's nice to see you too.

17:51 As far as I'm concerned, both you clowns have been fighting over #2 because for the

17:55 last 4 years, I have proven that I am and have always been #1 in this business.

18:01 And I guess you both didn't get the memo because I have it on good authority from Tony

18:05 Khan that Survivor Series isn't going to be Raw vs. SmackDown.

18:09 Who gives a f*** about that?

18:11 You both better prepare for the fight of your lives because Survivor Series is WWE vs. AEW."

18:18 He throws the mic down and leaves the ring, exiting through the crowd, and indeed, wrestling

18:23 social media gets set ablaze as WWE and AEW announce they have struck a deal to make Survivor

18:28 Series 2023 the biggest cross-promotional wrestling event in North American wrestling

18:34 history, with the main event of that show being WWE Undisputed Champion Roman Reigns

18:39 vs. World Heavyweight Champion Seth Rollins vs. AEW World Champion Jon Moxley.

18:45 Seth shows up on Raw the following Monday, first appearing in a backstage segment with

18:49 Adam Pearce, saying, "This is not what I was asked to do.

18:52 I was promised a WWE Undisputed Championship singles match with Roman Reigns, and that

18:58 is the match I expect to receive.

19:00 Pearce says things are more complicated than that now.

19:03 It's out of his hands.

19:04 Seth asks if he's even going to get an Undisputed title match at all, and Pearce says that's

19:08 out of his hands too, as Seth storms off seething.

19:11 On that Wednesday's AEW Dynamite, after the opening match, Seth storms the ring while

19:16 Excalibur is running down the show, saying, "Hey, you wanna invade my show?

19:20 This can go both ways, pal!"

19:22 Similar to how he did at NXT TakeOver San Antonio.

19:26 Before a long, wild thing begins to play as Moxley enters through the arena, and as Mox

19:30 is getting in the ring, Seth starts yelling, "Yeah, I get it.

19:33 You're a big man around these parts, but you think that gives you the right to walk

19:36 into my house and steal my moment?

19:38 You think that belt makes you anything more than the king of a pissant company?"

19:42 As booze rained down on Seth, Mox says, "Man, you're even starting to sound like Papa H

19:47 now.

19:48 What are you so mad about, Seth?

19:50 I thought you'd be thrilled to see me.

19:52 I mean, you don't call anymore.

19:54 Is it that I stepped on your little moment?

19:57 Or is it because once I stepped in the ring with you and Roman, you felt small?

20:01 Almost like you're number three?"

20:04 Seth fires up and says, "No, you don't get it, do you, Dean?

20:08 I don't hate that you came back.

20:10 I hate that you left.

20:12 You cost us so much.

20:14 We could have rode the Shield name for the rest of our careers.

20:18 We could have lived like kings at the top of the wrestling world year in and year out,

20:22 and you gave that up for what?

20:24 So you can bleed every week for these people?

20:27 You quit on me, and now you want to step into my house and take my title shot?

20:32 Not gonna happen, pal!"

20:34 Roman, having listened to all of this, says, "Seth, you really have taken all of this

20:39 far too personally.

20:40 I'm gonna tell you right now what I should have told you ten years ago when we walked

20:44 down those stairs together.

20:46 Not everything is about you.

20:49 You've really got balls to step into my house and tell me that I quit on the Shield.

20:55 If you wanted to stay fat and happy and pad that bank account that you love talking about

20:59 so much, you wouldn't have shoved that knife in our backs in the first place.

21:03 But not everything is about the money, Seth.

21:06 Maybe you would have been happy hearing Sierra Hotel, India Echo, Lima Delta every year until

21:11 you were old and gray for the sake of a Shield reunion paycheck, but me?

21:15 I've paid off my house.

21:16 I've paid off my truck.

21:18 I've bought my mom a house.

21:19 I have enough to put my daughter through college.

21:21 None of this matters to me.

21:23 What matters to me is being the very best in this sport, and for the last four years,

21:29 I have bled buckets proudly to prove that when that bell rings, there is no one in this

21:34 industry that wants to be the best more than Jon f***ing Moxley.

21:38 And I promise you, that includes Seth Rollins, and that damn well includes Roman Reigns.

21:45 He drops the mic and he leaves.

21:47 That Friday, Seth Rollins tries to talk to Nick Aldis regarding his undisputed title

21:51 shot, but Aldis tells him it is not his job to make him happy, and this situation is out

21:56 of his hands too.

21:57 But by next week, the WWE and AEW boards will have come to an agreement regarding the stakes

22:02 for Survivor Series.

22:03 Elsewhere on all these shows, other matches are being made for Survivor Series.

22:07 Gunther vs. Orange Cassidy, a 10-man tag, Io Sky vs. Hikaru Shida, and so on.

22:14 The following Monday on Raw, Seth opens up the show by making his way down to the ring

22:18 when his music is cut off by the music of Roman Reigns, who comes down only to be met

22:23 with the music of Wild Thing as Jon Moxley makes his way through the crowd.

22:28 The Shield once again stands in the ring together, and as Seth faces Moxley and raises the mic,

22:33 Roman Reigns says, "Nah, nah, cut that s***.

22:36 You and you have said more than enough.

22:39 You're both so self-absorbed that neither of you probably realize that because of both

22:43 of you, I have spent the last decade listening to people chatter.

22:47 Oh, you gotta do this, Roman.

22:49 You gotta do that.

22:50 You gotta keep the vest.

22:51 You gotta keep the music.

22:52 People love the Shield.

22:53 All the while you two were on this bickerin' bulls***.

22:56 I had to be what they wanted because you two were too busy fighting each other.

23:01 Oh, he broke up the Shield," he says, pointing at Rollins.

23:04 "Big deal.

23:05 Look at us.

23:06 We're all far better apart than we ever were together."

23:10 Seth sinks his head, but raises the mic to say, "See, you say that, Roman.

23:15 But all three of us know that that one chair shot in 2014 did more to you than it did to

23:21 either of us."

23:22 Roman looks incredulous, but Seth continues, "Dean and I may have our differences, but

23:28 in all these years, Roman, you've never really trusted again, have you?

23:33 You don't trust your own family.

23:35 What?

23:36 All because I hit one little chair shot nine years ago?

23:39 I may not like the choices he's made, but Dean has moved on.

23:43 I have moved on.

23:45 But you, you never really moved on from that night in Indianapolis, have you?"

23:50 Roman is clearly affected by this, and attempts to hit a Superman punch on Seth, but Seth

23:54 dodges and each man involved tries to hit their finisher on the other, but each slips

23:59 out and all three men stand at ringside as Adam Pearce walks out onto the stage to say

24:04 that the WWE board and Tony Khan have come to an agreement regarding Survivor Series.

24:09 This Friday on SmackDown, Jimmy Uso will represent Roman Reigns, Wheeler Uda will represent Jon

24:15 Moxley, and Seth will have four days to find someone to represent him in a triple threat

24:20 match, and the participant that takes the fall in that match, their champion, will put

24:25 their title on the line at Survivor Series.

24:29 That Friday, Seth is approached by one of the members of Team WWE, Chad Gable, to be

24:34 his representative in that night's main event, which Seth accepts.

24:38 That night, it is Chad Gable, representing Seth Rollins, versus Wheeler Uda, representing

24:43 Jon Moxley, versus Jimmy Uso, representing Roman Reigns, with all three champions at

24:48 ringside, and after a great match, Gable is able to pin Jimmy Uso to ensure Roman Reigns'

24:54 undisputed title is at stake at Survivor Series.

24:57 Roman Reigns is none too pleased.

24:59 That Sunday, Survivor Series takes place in Indianapolis, the same building where The

25:04 Shield debuted, and the same venue where The Shield broke up in 2014.

25:09 And in the main event, Roman Reigns, Seth Rollins, and Jon Moxley do battle.

25:14 They have a match worthy of a WrestleMania main event, complete with the pomp, circumstance,

25:18 and aura that would befit such a match.

25:21 There are many highlights of this match, such as Roman going on such a run of dominance,

25:25 trash talking both Seth and Mox, that they are forced to band together to hit Roman with

25:30 a double powerbomb through the announce table.

25:32 But when Seth tries to go for the cover, and Mox inevitably breaks it up, Seth says "What

25:37 is your problem, Dean?" which Mox finally snaps at, beating Seth down long enough for

25:43 Roman to recover and hit a spear on Mox which he kicks out of.

25:47 But as Mox mounts a comeback on Roman, Seth jumps back into the ring, hitting Roman with

25:51 a knee, but as he goes for the curb stomp on Moxley, Mox tenses up and launches Seth

25:57 into the air to be hit with a spear from Roman, who throws Mox out of the ring and covers

26:02 Seth for the 1, 2, 3.

26:05 Retaining his title, finally beating Seth Rollins, sending Mox back to AEW, and ending

26:11 the hopes for a SHIELD reunion for good.

26:16 Wow.

26:19 Something that ended up at Survivor Series, and not a War Games match.

26:22 Yeah, there's no War Games match.

26:24 I can't believe how different the two are.

26:27 Like initially, when I could see this was going to Survivor Series vs Roman Seth, I

26:32 was like "Oh, okay, we're going to go a similar route, but polar opposites."

26:36 Yeah, the epitome of fantasy booking.

26:38 Fantasy booking, go for it, you know?

26:39 It's allowed, within the rules.

26:41 It's like finding logic within the fantasy.

26:44 I do appreciate Tempest going that extra step of like "Well, actually..."

26:49 Which is more fantasy?

26:51 Moxley going back to WWE or AEW doing a co-promotion with WWE?

26:55 That's a great question.

26:56 That's a debate.

26:57 Yeah, so actually...

26:58 What did you think of the promos?

26:59 Because I thought the way that Tempest talked us through everything that they were going

27:03 to say, the motivations of each character, I thought that was pretty stunning.

27:07 Seth explaining to, with Roman having that argument, what I thought was really great

27:11 about just like "Hey, listen, we were better together as the Shield."

27:14 It was just really well done.

27:15 I just really think it was really well done.

27:17 The ego element as well of like the "Who's the one, who's the two?"

27:20 And then being in the "Who's the one, the two?"

27:22 And the three, I feel like given that they have both gone, and they have all gone in

27:27 such different directions, and you know, no secret, they all want to be the top in their

27:32 field, I feel like going down that ego route.

27:34 And I think Mox pointing it out is probably the smartest way because Reigns and Rollins

27:39 is probably most going to get under their skin.

27:42 So again, I think that's a good way to fuel it.

27:47 I wasn't totally convinced by the triple threat match on Smackdown where they all had a different

27:52 representative.

27:53 To start with, why did Rollins get to pick and the other two, I mean I guess the two

27:57 that got picked for Reigns and Moxley were sort of obvious choices, but still, for those

28:03 stakes, Chad Gable, Jimmy Uso, we were Utah.

28:08 Given the element that there are AEW wrestlers and WWE wrestlers going against each other,

28:14 you could argue it doesn't really matter who it is because that in itself is the draw.

28:18 It was over very, very quickly.

28:20 And all this for Reigns to retain.

28:22 Yeah.

28:23 Done by Survivor Series.

28:24 So it's all done in a month.

28:27 Is that a waste of a, you know, if you were fantasy booking this into promotion or war,

28:32 you'd have it go more than three weeks, right?

28:33 100%, 100%.

28:34 Yeah, it's got to be more than that.

28:36 It's the fourth biggest pay-per-view of the year.

28:38 Yeah, yeah, exactly.

28:39 Yeah.

28:40 I can, I can find the, the, the argument and that you're making it big by this happening,

28:45 but too short.

28:46 Hey, we'll ask Tempest.

28:47 Okay, let's ask.

28:48 We'll ask him.

28:49 And actually, should we ask him right now?

28:53 Let's get Tempest and Ollie in there if we can, please.

28:57 Gentlemen, you have arrived.

28:59 The final of fantasy booking warfare, Ollie and Tempest.

29:04 Congratulations on making it this far.

29:06 Ollie, a victory over Sat in the first round and then Luke in the semi-finals.

29:11 How do you feel Tempest is going to compare as an opponent?

29:14 Well, I've seen his booking, obviously, and I'm annoyed at how good it is.

29:21 So yeah, very well.

29:22 So you're expecting a defeat here?

29:24 I, it, wow.

29:26 Tempest, congratulations.

29:28 You had a victory over Sullivan in the first round and then Laurie in the semi-finals.

29:34 Interesting question for you, how do you view your opponent today in the final?

29:38 I mean, it sounds like he's conceding.

29:40 I'm not saying you've got it in the bag.

29:43 Where was the grandness?

29:44 What was the epic year long storyline?

29:46 Yeah.

29:47 We're the judges here.

29:50 We're the judges here.

29:51 We're the ones asking the questions.

29:52 We've gone from humble to hyper aggressive to jump on the table.

29:56 I'm very emotional right now.

29:58 This really has escalated.

30:00 It's the final.

30:02 You calm down, Tempest.

30:03 We'll talk to Oli first.

30:05 It's a year long storyline in your case that ends with Dean Ambrose back in WWE.

30:11 You want to talk us through your logic of having Dean Ambrose be the person who ended

30:15 it?

30:16 Well, arguably a 10 year plus storyline when you factor in all that.

30:20 You didn't write that.

30:21 You're saying the judges are wrong.

30:26 Just for context.

30:28 Dean Ambrose, he's always been the other one in the shield, hasn't he?

30:33 Particularly from WWE management's eyes over who's been pushed.

30:38 He was the one who ended up leaving the company to spread his wings elsewhere.

30:44 And I think it's quite nice for him to come back and him be the one who ends Roman's reign

30:50 and becomes a top star in WWE, rightfully so.

30:53 Early on in your scenario, we end up with Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins together forming

30:58 a new two man power trip.

31:00 Did you just look up synonyms for shield and say, this is, this will do.

31:03 And you don't think people would just chuckle when they hear protection?

31:06 Yeah.

31:07 Yeah.

31:08 So when I did literally do that, I typed in shield.

31:10 I looked through all the names.

31:12 I thought, well, protection works because it was already quite a crime mob boss style dynamic

31:18 I had between them.

31:19 And I thought the protection in terms of racketeering protection money.

31:23 So you looked through all the different synonyms for shield.

31:26 There's not that many good ones.

31:28 And you thought protection's the best one.

31:30 That's the best one.

31:31 Yeah.

31:32 Okay.

31:33 Now, Survivor Series, we end up with Reigns and Rollins.

31:37 No championships on the line.

31:38 I mean, that would make it too high stakes at that point in the story.

31:41 Do you not think there's a bit of a chance of fan backlash?

31:43 One of the biggest pay-per-views of the year, two most important titles in the company,

31:48 neither's on the line.

31:49 I think there's precedent for that in Survivor Series though.

31:52 There's been numerous ones, AJ Styles, Brock Lesnar, Daniel Bryan.

31:58 They had terrific matches without the championship belts being on the line.

32:02 This is a Dave issue, by the way.

32:04 Oh, good.

32:05 Yeah.

32:06 By that point, I think I'm caught up on this.

32:07 You can just direct all of the eye contact to him.

32:09 Both of these two were fine with it.

32:11 We weren't bothered.

32:12 I'm disproportionately angry about it.

32:16 These vignettes playing, and it turns out that it's Dean Ambrose.

32:22 Not a lot of explanation.

32:24 I only had 10 minutes.

32:26 So I just, rather than go, "Oh, and by the way, he was released by AEW earlier this year,"

32:32 or anything, I just thought, "Let's just not get bogged down in it and get Moxley in there."

32:38 With a really cool metaphor.

32:40 What was the- Explain the metaphor to us.

32:42 The protection have turned WWE into somewhat of a prison.

32:46 Yes.

32:47 And of course, when Moxley left WWE in the first place, he broke out of the prison to

32:52 go to AEW.

32:53 Why would he break into a prison?

32:55 Because he's breaking in to free the people that have made it so bad.

33:03 Free the people from the people that have made it so bad.

33:06 Okay.

33:07 Is the people the WWE?

33:08 The protection.

33:09 Yes.

33:10 Yeah, essentially.

33:11 So WWE are the ones who have made it.

33:13 They're the prison.

33:14 So do you think that WWE would air a vignette where they're saying, "Yeah, we're the prison."

33:18 Well, I think-

33:19 Not a family, as we say.

33:20 Yeah.

33:21 We're a prison.

33:22 So back in the day, obviously, the prison was Moxley's way of saying, "No, it's literally

33:27 WWE's the prison."

33:28 But in this one, I think they'd air it because it's, like Nina says, the protection is the

33:32 prison here.

33:33 I feel like I had as many answers for his questions as he did, to be honest.

33:37 You should be his lawyer.

33:39 Tempest.

33:40 Tempest.

33:41 Tempest.

33:42 Tempest.

33:43 Very different scenario in your case.

33:44 The epitome of fantasy booking.

33:47 It's very quick.

33:48 AEW and WWE obviously announced this partnership, or they've come to an agreement to run a show

33:53 together.

33:54 This all happens around Crown Jewel, which is the start of November.

33:57 And we're done at the end of November with Survivor Series.

33:59 Do you want to explain why?

34:01 I didn't think drawing it out for a long period of time would actually be that beneficial.

34:06 I think Survivor Series works best as a setting for a brand warfare type storyline.

34:13 I can't see Roman losing the title to either Seth or Jon Moxley in this kind of scenario

34:21 at a WrestleMania or anything like that.

34:24 It would have taken a lot more setup to have something like that.

34:28 Why not do that?

34:29 Why not do it six months?

34:32 Again for a number of reasons.

34:33 One of which that we saw in Oli's booking, where at that point Roman Reigns would be

34:39 champion for about five years.

34:42 I think even in a fantasy scenario that is a little bit too far.

34:46 Well hang on, in Oli's booking he loses the title.

34:48 In your booking he still has the title.

34:50 That's fine.

34:51 Yes.

34:52 Because in my mind as well, I'm still imagining that Cody eventually challenges Roman at WrestleMania

34:59 and this doesn't interfere in that.

35:01 But this is a fun little arc that they can go through in the fall for Survivor Series

35:09 and then still have all their own things going on going into WrestleMania.

35:14 It just feels like, it's almost like you're diminishing the importance of a Shield triple

35:19 threat story.

35:20 I know it's just something we'll throw in for Survivor Series while we're waiting to

35:22 get to WrestleMania.

35:23 This is huge.

35:24 Plus the AEW/WWE partnership.

35:25 Those are two huge things happening.

35:28 There are instances in the last 10 years or so where Survivor Series has felt very important

35:33 because a really cool big thing was happening at it.

35:36 And you look at the most successful ones that they did, whether that was the first Raw vs.

35:40 SmackDown one in 2016, or whether it was the one where NXT invaded, those things didn't

35:46 have long running things building up to it and they didn't lead to lots of crossover

35:51 coming out of it either.

35:53 It was, "This is a really cool thing to happen for this season."

35:58 And ultimately that I think is probably the most likely scenario if you're going to have

36:03 a WWE/AEW crossover promotional event.

36:08 You've come up with something that's in itself very unlikely, but it's fantasy, right?

36:12 Because we're doing WWE and AEW.

36:14 But now in your own fantasy booking, you're constraining what's possible.

36:17 So if we're going fantasy, why not have them work together for a longer period?

36:22 You've chosen not to.

36:24 I've chosen not to.

36:26 One of the bigger differences between Oli's story and mine, where Oli crafted a long running

36:32 storyline for all of the people to be involved with, and I think he did a very good job with

36:36 that.

36:37 Whereas I think in my booking, I took all three of the different characters in this

36:43 story and just tried to dive deep into how everybody is feeling at this particular time.

36:51 And it's more just a look at how all of these characters have grown as people since they

36:59 started The Shield, broke up with The Shield, Jon Moxley left to go to AEW.

37:03 It was a look at where everybody is at now, how The Shield affected all of them.

37:09 And I'm not going to say that one or the other is a better way of approaching a story like

37:15 this, but I just think they are very, very different in their approaches.

37:20 Well, presumably you think one is better because it's the one you chose.

37:23 Well, of course.

37:24 Yeah.

37:25 All right.

37:26 I'm not going to throw shade just yet.

37:28 Just yet.

37:29 Just yet.

37:30 The title that is up for grabs is decided in a triple threat match between Jimmy Uso,

37:36 Wheelie Uta, and Chad Gable.

37:39 Do you think that the title that's up for grabs shouldn't be decided by those three

37:44 men?

37:45 No, because again, this is one of the things that I was talking about when it was making

37:50 sure that everybody is happy politically in AEW, in WWE.

37:55 So I'm looking at these guys.

37:56 These are the world champions of both companies.

37:59 None of these guys are going to lose to someone from the other company, realistically.

38:04 And I would have liked to maybe put a little bit more story involvement on different people

38:08 coming in and being involved in promos and such.

38:11 But I think that detracted from the overall story of what the shield meant to everybody

38:15 involved.

38:16 Maybe there just wasn't enough time.

38:17 I'm not going to blame the constraints.

38:19 I think it is the best way to get Roman Reigns title on the line in this match without Roman

38:27 Reigns having to do a job to anybody, because that is the most unrealistic thing I could

38:31 possibly fantasy book.

38:33 I mean, here's a suggestion.

38:36 I'm not saying it's better because I'm not a fantasy booker.

38:40 But what if instead of a triple threat match that involves Chad Gable and Wheelie Uta and

38:43 Jim Uso, I just did a fan vote?

38:47 I will never put things to a fan vote, especially after I lost the original Fantasy Booking

38:52 Warfare because of one.

38:53 What you're saying is bring back Taboo Tuesday.

38:56 Cyber Sunday.

38:57 Cyber Sunday.

38:58 You listening people at home?

39:01 Your vote sucks.

39:02 I would say that.

39:03 I'll give you a question for all of you.

39:06 Yes, yes, yes.

39:07 I think you did it at least three times in your story.

39:11 Seth has a chair, a steel chair.

39:13 Roll a three.

39:16 You're rehashing the, "Hey, remember when the turn happened?

39:18 There's a chair shot in the back."

39:20 So a chance that you went to the well of nostalgia way too many times in an effort to make yourself

39:25 look like a good storyteller.

39:27 Possibly.

39:28 Also, I really enjoyed the props in my video, which I haven't done before.

39:34 And the chair was the most fun to swing.

39:36 No, I think, so the first one, obviously he doesn't do it because of an internal battle.

39:43 In the second one, he does do it.

39:44 So he does follow through.

39:46 And then the third one, he tries to do it again in an evil act, in a heelish act.

39:52 And that is the one that goes too far for him.

39:54 So him going to that dark place again, like he did before, is what actually punishes him

40:02 in the end and proves his undoing.

40:04 Well, if we're to judge your prop use, if we talk about your swinging of the steel chair,

40:10 it was a bit low.

40:12 It looked like it was very weak.

40:15 Uncrack-eggable.

40:16 I'm a safe worker.

40:19 Lance Storm over here.

40:21 We would advise that you never swing a chair at anyone.

40:27 And do not call yourself any kind of a worker ever again.

40:31 The holding of the belts was already a little bit of a...

40:34 Just the...

40:35 Enjoyed the props until now.

40:36 It's good to know you had a steel chair.

40:37 It's not like a fraud.

40:38 It's always a day job.

40:39 Well, let's see, though, whether you're good at the fantasy day job that you've been having

40:45 over these past few weeks.

40:47 We are just about ready to make our decision.

40:50 But before we do, you both get a chance to make a closing statement.

40:54 Ollie, the man who was humble at the start, but really hasn't been humble at all.

40:57 What's your final words on this?

40:58 Well, I think actually, if you put ours together, it's some cracking booking, like your character

41:05 dynamics and promo work.

41:06 If you insert that into my Rumble mania bit, which is the least developed, I would say,

41:12 of mine, that would be a good merge of both.

41:16 But overall, I think it's two different approaches.

41:18 I'm just happy to be here in the final.

41:20 Well, ultimately, I do think that we have done a pretty good job in the final of this

41:26 year's show.

41:27 I'm very happy with how both of these turned out.

41:31 But in terms of different approaches to this, I do think that my approach of focusing in

41:37 on the characters and what the shield has meant made for a more satisfying story, ultimately,

41:46 for these characters than what Ollie decided to book.

41:49 But ultimately, I will leave that up to you to decide.

41:52 You may now sit in silence and think about what you've done, while Nina, Michael, and

41:56 I also sit and think who we are going to vote to be the winner of Fantasy Booking Warfare.

42:03 [MUSIC PLAYING]

42:04 The

42:26 judges have made their decision.

42:30 It is time to find out who is the champion of Fantasy Booking Warfare.

42:37 I'll go first.

42:40 Ollie, I appreciated the year-long story you were telling.

42:44 I'm not sure why Dean Ambrose was breaking into a prison.

42:48 I don't think the metaphor worked, but it was an excellent storyline, and you deserve

42:52 to be in the final.

42:55 Tempest, three weeks.

42:58 Three weeks, not really long enough to tell the story, but the story you told was excellent,

43:07 and the promos, I thought, were exceptional.

43:10 Everything about those three weeks was brilliant.

43:15 So we've got two very, very good scenarios, both extremely worthy of being in the final.

43:21 This was the toughest decision of them all, and I think I've made the right choice by

43:28 going for Tempest.

43:33 To echo what Dave said, two great stories.

43:36 I loved how different the two stories were.

43:38 It's really given us as judges something to think about.

43:42 Tempest, as I said, the promo work was fantastic.

43:47 Like the psychology behind the "Who's one, two, three?"

43:51 I think is a great way to go.

43:53 And Ollie, just the epic long build, all the service, the fan service, all the history

43:59 of the Shield.

44:00 I really, really enjoyed culminating a big WrestleMania match with a big twist with lots

44:06 of places for us to go afterwards.

44:08 It's really tough, but I've gone for the one that I was thinking, "I really want to watch

44:15 this and see how it plays out," which was both of them, but slightly more Ollie.

44:19 Oh!

44:20 I thought you were going to go the other way.

44:25 Okay.

44:26 Well, here we go.

44:27 I'd say this was not that difficult for me to decide.

44:40 Maybe I should say, "Oh, it's tough."

44:43 I was in bits, I was in tears trying to figure out who had the better booking choice.

44:47 But I'm all about telling a good story.

44:52 It doesn't matter how long it takes.

44:55 Then again, I've been a part of stories that have taken years.

45:00 Those are the ones that really make people cry in here.

45:02 Grown men hug and cry.

45:05 I've seen it.

45:07 I chose a story that, to me, took from your previous battles.

45:15 As in, you took stylings from people who you battled in the last rounds of Fantasy Booking

45:22 Warfare.

45:23 Saw those story beats and you saw what you could learn from your opponents.

45:28 You applied it to this final, important, Shield Triple threat.

45:33 I also chose the one who, in my opinion, brought the most intriguing aspect of the Fantasy

45:43 Booking to the table.

45:44 That's what sort of happened today.

45:48 Which is why the winner of Fantasy Booking Warfare is...

45:58 Let's go!

46:05 My God, you all need to take jobs as judges because everyone has had me go like, "Oh,

46:10 he's going to pick that one.

46:11 She's going to pick him.

46:12 She's going to pick me."

46:13 Congratulations, Tempest.

46:14 Commiserations, Oli.

46:15 Let's hear from the runner-up.

46:16 Oli, so near yet so far.

46:19 Well, I said it in the office before we came down.

46:24 When I finished watching your one, I was like, "I'd prefer to watch that one."

46:28 The promos were so good, so yeah, worthy winner.

46:31 Tempest, give us your victory speech.

46:33 It's a long time coming.

46:36 A lot of people, when I started on the WrestleTalk podcast two and a half years ago, said I had

46:42 a lot of really dumb ideas.

46:45 And they might have been right, but you know what?

46:48 Sometimes the dumbest ideas are the ones that have popped the most specific amount of people.

46:53 I take great pride in this.

46:55 I think everybody in this tournament has done a fantastic job, and it is not lost on me

46:59 to be standing here, the one at the end of this tournament.

47:03 Be the one standing at the end of this tournament, off camera, that Rich is now adjusting.

47:13 I will take this on the new fantasy booking king of partsFUNknown.

47:19 Thank you all very much.

47:20 Thank you, Oli.

47:22 Thank you, fans, for saying that our bookings are terrible.

47:26 And as the dust settles on this fantastic tournament, it is Tempest, who triple power

47:30 bombs Oli, to be crowned as the least terrible booker of fantasy wrestling.

47:36 We thank our special guests and excellent judges Nina Samuels and Michael Oku for making

47:41 all of this possible, and thank you all for watching partsFUNknown's Fantasy Booking Warfare.

47:50 I thought it meant the most to showcase something that we never got to see on the main roster,

47:55 as well as someone that I think just narratively fit the best.

47:58 Yeah, ditto.

47:59 Yeah, thanks for explaining my booking there, Tempest.

48:04 Beating Asuka Street, being the one to finally finish that, is such a major deal.

Fantasy Booking... The Shield TRIPLE THREAT MATCH! Oli Davis vs Tempest

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Fantasy Booking Warfare | PFK - PartsFunKnown

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