Category Archives: Dean Ambrose

Toy Crazy: Mattel’s WWE Elite Series 63

I’m a self-confessed vintage toy nerd. I collect vintage wrestling action figures from the 80’s & 90’s. I started purchasing some vintage toys out of nostalgia. Well, WWE and Mattel sucked me into their new stuff. I now buy a few figures a month. You can view photos of my collection on my Instagram account.

The lineup for WWE Elite series 63 is a mix of new and old. You have a guy like Shelton Benjamin that was well overdue for an elite, hot sellers like Shinsuke Nakamura and then a couple that may have a hard time selling, even during the holiday season.

The WWE Superstars included in Elite 63 Dusty Rhodes, Shinsuke Nakamura, Sami Zayn, Kane, Dean Ambrose and two Shelton Benjamin elites (yes, there’s a chase version).

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Toy Crazy: Mattel’s WWE Elite Series 58

The lineup for WWE Elite series 58 has been known for awhile, but they have yet to be released. We’ve already seen up-close pictures as they were on display at a few toy shows this Winter.

The WWE Superstars included in Elite 58 are Matt Hardy, Mickie James, Braun Strowman, Dean Ambrose and The Bar (Sheamus and Cesaro).

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Review: WWE SummerSlam 2017

After last night’s NXT Takeover: Brooklyn III, the WWE main roster had to put on a PPV to follow up that amazing show. I wouldn’t say they failed to do so, but the show was too damn long.

If you count the pre-show and the main card, it was SIX HOURS LONG! You could watch two NFL football games, or roughly four football matches (I didn’t want to exclude my International readers). It wasn’t as long as Wrestlemania and thank God.

SummerSlam had five title changes, which could be a record. I know Michael Cole mentioned that this show has the most title matches in one night in the history of WWE. It may or may not be correct since WWE announcers have spewed bullshit records in the past (I’m looking at you Matt Striker).

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Toy Crazy: Mattel’s WWE Elite Series 48

The lineup in Elite 48 is just all right. It is heavy on current Smackdown Live superstars with Cactus Jack and Boogeyman added as flashbacks.

This set could have issues selling out at retail since Dean Ambrose and Kalisto already have quite a few recent elites…but Boogeyman could be one of the best figures of 2017.

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10 Ways to Instantly Improve the WWE

The WWE have lost nearly half of their audience on RAW over the last few years and WWE Network subscribers have hit a plateau, even after giving away free programming month after month.

The WWE is a public company and even if they want to live in a kayfabe world of record profits, it’s not what is really happening. The brand split increased the ratings for Smackdown Live, but Smackdown house show attendance is almost at record lows. The roster is so thin right now that it is really hard to keep booking interesting matches.

Here are ten ways the WWE could improve their product right now.

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Toy Crazy: Mattel’s WWE Elite Series 41

Mattel has been including more flashback figures, which I love. I think it’s largely due to the success of the Target exclusive Hall of Fame series (by the way, series three should be in stores in the near future).

Elite 41 might be the best overall series released this calendar year. I know I said that for elite 40, but Mattel keeps outdoing themselves. The WWE Superstars included in Elite 41 are Finn Balor, 1-2-3 Kid, Terry Funk, Lita, Dean Ambrose and Ryback.

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Roman Reigns Needs to Evolve

WWE is in the midst of a youth movement. Their farm system NXT has been seen as a huge success. Young wrestlers (WWE likes to use the term ‘superstars’) are now more prepared than ever to take the next step and be on the main roster.

Roman Reigns is a product of NXT and is a member of the famed Anoa’i family, which includes The Rock, Rikishi, Yokozuna and over a dozen other former and current wrestlers. WWE had every reason to strap a rocket to him and push him to the top.

They added him to a stable called ‘The Shield’ with two other wrestlers that had a lot of experience in the indies, Dean Ambrose and Seth Rollins. The group has long since been dismantled, yet Reigns still stuck in the same character.

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NXT is Great, but WWE Still Needs Indies

One of the smartest things WWE has done in the last decade was to open the WWE Performance Center to cultivate the stars of the future at NXT (formerly known as Florida Championship Wrestling). Dean Ambrose and current WWE World Heavyweight Champion Seth Rollins both came from NXT…although one could argue that they would have made it to WWE without NXT.

Dean Ambrose was a star in the indies at places like Combat Zone Wrestling as ‘Jon Moxley’ and Seth Rollins (formerly known as Tyler Black) did fantastic things in Ring of Honor prior to signing with WWE. Both could have made the jump the old school way with an immediate spot on WWE’s main roster.

If you look at the top stars at NXT, most made their name prior to signing with WWE.

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Toy Crazy: Mattel’s WWE Elite Series 36

Elite Series 33, Elite Series 34 & Elite Series 35 were all home runs (Elite Series 32…not so much). Even though Elite Series 35 just started to hit retail, Mattel’s Elite Series 36 is starting to come out to collectors that put in early pre-orders.

The WWE Superstars included in Elite 36 are DDP (Flashback), Bray Wyatt, Bo Dallas, Goldust, Startdust & Dean Ambrose

We give our thoughts on each figure and include some pictures.

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WWE Should Stop Making ‘Royal Rumble’ So Predictable

The 2015 ‘Royal Rumble’ pay-per-view happened last night in Philadelphia. Wrestling fans always look forward to this event every year. It’s arguably the second-best wrestling night of the year, just behind ‘Wrestlemania’. Unfortunately, wrestling fans were left disappointed.

The Rumble is the unofficial start to the ‘Road to Wrestlemania’. Not only are fans excited to see which surprise entrants will enter the Rumble, but the other matches help set the table for feuds through Mania. The WWE did a pretty poor job in every facet.

The WWE has been playing it safe since the WWE Network launched. Their storytelling ability has been stuck in the 80’s since they reverted back to a PG rating. What can they do to fix last night’s blunder?

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