Posted December 15, 20177 yr comment_5824084 Was interested in what the rest of you thought about this. It seems...weird, is the only word I can find to describe it. It almost seems like it would have been better to have made it some type of challenge thing with events like a reality show instead of intergender tag matches. FACEBOOK AND WWE® LAUNCH LIVE IN-RING SERIES ON FACEBOOK WATCH STAMFORD, Conn., December 13, 2017 – Facebook and WWE (NYSE: WWE) today announced a new in-ring series, Mixed Match Challenge™, that will stream live in the U.S. exclusively on Facebook on Tuesday nights beginning January 16 at 10 p.m. ET. The 12-episode series will air on Facebook Watch and feature WWE Superstars from both the Raw® and SmackDown® Live rosters competing in a single-elimination mixed tag-team tournament to win $100,000 to support the charity of their choice. Each 20-minute episode will reflect a progressive approach to production, with elements optimized for mobile consumption, experimentation and social interaction. In addition, fans will have the opportunity to select match-ups, match stipulations and more, on Facebook. “As we continue to expand our strategic partnership with Facebook, this new series, Mixed Match Challenge, jointly reflects our innovative approach to content distribution and fan engagement,” said Michelle Wilson, WWE Chief Revenue & Marketing Officer. “This show will deliver the action and excitement our passionate fan base is accustomed to while offering new production elements and social experiences that only Facebook can provide.” “As a leader in entertainment innovation, WWE is an ideal partner to demonstrate how the live sports viewing experience can be reimagined on Facebook Watch,” said Dan Reed, Facebook Head of Global Sports Partnerships. “Mixed Match Challenge is a new competition produced specifically to take advantage of the reach, interaction and ongoing engagement enabled by our platform. Fans will be able to directly influence and interact with the in-ring action, follow the rivalries and storylines in between events, and connect with one another as the drama unfolds. We're excited for the WWE community to come together on our platform to watch some of the biggest Raw and SmackDown LiveSuperstars, and engage with WWE like never before.” “Mixed Match Challenge demonstrates WWE’s flexibility in creating and producing compelling content across platforms in a media landscape that is evolving each day,” said Jayar Donlan, WWE Executive Vice President, Digital & Social Content. “The social interaction leading up to and during each show will connect WWE Superstars with our massive fan base on Facebook in more ways than ever before.” Mixed Match Challenge Participants Mixed Match Challenge is a Raw vs. SmackDown Live tournament, where male and female Superstars team up to determine which combination of strength, skill, athleticism and experience reigns supreme. Fans will have the opportunity to vote on Facebook for the final competitor from the Raw roster, as well as which tag team member of The New Day will be added to the SmackDown Live roster. Teams will be announced beginning Thursday, January 4. Alexa Bliss™ Becky Lynch® Alicia Fox® Bobby Roode™ Asuka™ Carmella™ Bayley™ Charlotte Flair® Braun Strowman® Jimmy Uso™ Enzo Amore™ Lana® Finn Bálor® Naomi® Goldust® Natalya® Nia Jax™ Rusev® Sasha Banks® Sami Zayn® The Miz® Shinsuke Nakamura® Final Fan Vote Final Fan Vote (A member of The New Day) The unique storylines for Mixed Match Challenge will continue between episodes across WWE’s Facebook Pages with short-form videos and social content. WWE will also promote the series across its extensive digital and social footprint, including a new Facebook Watch show Page dedicated to Mixed Match Challenge. A promotional trailer for the show can be watched here. https://www.facebook.com/WWEMixedMatchChallenge/videos/133297540783662/
December 15, 20177 yr comment_5824085 20 minute episodes don't fill me with much confidence of some good matches coming from this. Unless it's one 10 minute match a show and then whatever social bullshit they frame it with taking up the other 10? I'm all for a Braun/Asuka team running through everyone in a series of 4 minute sprints though.
December 15, 20177 yr comment_5824086 The WWE corporate managerial talk is making me want to vomit already. Who wants to read that kind of shit ? The pseudo-interactive stuff is beyond played out. The idea of a mixed tournament was kinda intriguing, the way it's presented is completely yawn inducing. That company... can't wait for that Kane main-event at Rumble...
December 15, 20177 yr Author comment_5824095 The WWE corporate managerial talk is making me want to vomit already. Who wants to read that kind of shit ? The pseudo-interactive stuff is beyond played out. The idea of a mixed tournament was kinda intriguing, the way it's presented is completely yawn inducing. That company... can't wait for that Kane main-event at Rumble... Yeah, sorry, I copied and pasted the press release for those that might not have known what it was. The interactive stuff when you know it's all worked is ridiculous at this point. As is the donation to charity at the end for the winner of said work.
December 15, 20177 yr comment_5824096 No problem, it's interesting they have actual press release that reads like *this*. Says a lot about the promotion and why people on their TV speak like they do. The whole "Facebook-only" concept is idiotic. Social network bullshit. It could have been a cool concept as a one-off holiday show for instance.
December 15, 20177 yr comment_5824097 No problem, it's interesting they have actual press release that reads like *this*. Says a lot about the promotion and why people on their TV speak like they do. The whole "Facebook-only" concept is idiotic. Social network bullshit. It could have been a cool concept as a one-off holiday show for instance. You get a ton of press releases from major companies that sound like that so I can't blame them too much. Check out any EA press release that manages to stretch 3 sentences into 10 through overly convoluted marketing spiel and their attempts to get across their "brand values". I don't think their silly way of saying "We want to diversify to maximise our profit streams" necessarily crosses over into "WWE Universe" since it's something all companies do in press releases like this. The fact that Vince thinks this way of speaking translates into actual dialogue that human beings speak reflects badly on him rather than something that was probably drafted by some office worker somewhere. I imagine Facebook's press release for this is just as cringe-inducing.
December 15, 20177 yr comment_5824100 This is pretty much testing the waters for both sides to see if WWE programming on social media platforms is going to be something worth pursuing. Worst case scenario WWE makes a few bucks off it and gets some extra oddball content to stash on the network.
December 15, 20177 yr comment_5824111 The terminology is nausea-inducing. It's a legitimate eyesore just trying to read that verbose, pretentious logjam of words that ultimately say nothing in the wordiest way possible. I realize that's more of a "this is the world we live in today" issue than it is strictly a WWE issue, but yeah. Just really off-putting and not at all how human beings actually communicate or even interpret information in actual reality.
December 15, 20177 yr comment_5824112 High level business excecuitves seem to have a language all their own, which is almost as bad as the verbiage of a typical WWE promo that reads like an alien trying to approximate human speech.
December 20, 20177 yr comment_5824703 Facebook Live? What’s the target audience here? Grandparents? Racist uncles? Your cousin that overshares about her medical issues? Your mom’s friend that signs all of her comments even though her name is RIGHT THERE on the comment itself?
December 20, 20177 yr comment_5824704 The target audience is "companies that want to give WWE money" which Facebook apparently is one of.
January 9, 20187 yr comment_5827396 https://www.instagram.com/p/BdqnoVKA12V/ These two are fucking old
January 10, 20187 yr comment_5827407 They would be so adorable together as babyfaces. Come on, Rusev wins Rumble. Rusev crushes Brock Lesnar and celebrates with Ravishing Russian Lana at Mania. Let's have something that the audience would actually love, for a change.
January 10, 20187 yr comment_5827408 I love that Rusev in 2018 is on his way to becoming Bulgarian Daniel Bryan.
January 10, 20187 yr comment_5827465 They would be so adorable together as babyfaces. Come on, Rusev wins Rumble. Rusev crushes Brock Lesnar and celebrates with Ravishing Russian Lana at Mania. Let's have something that the audience would actually love, for a change. They definitely could've had a later stage Savage and Elizabeth vibe about them as a beloved couple
January 10, 20187 yr comment_5827466 The talent involved seem legit psyched for this. I'm pretty pumped myself
January 17, 20187 yr comment_5828369 Watched the first ep. Not blown away, but I liked the pacing and the overall length - it's not hard to follow a show that's going to be about a 20 minute per week commitment.
January 17, 20187 yr comment_5828371 This appears to not be available outside of the US. It's airing on the WWE Network Thursday night at 10 PM.
January 17, 20187 yr comment_5828446 Also, have I missed some sort of bracket for this thing? There's 12 teams, so 6 first round matches... and then 2 three way semifinals? A three way final?
January 17, 20187 yr comment_5828447 A three way final? For a mixed match challenge ? Damn. That's hot stuff.
January 17, 20187 yr comment_5828448 Also, have I missed some sort of bracket for this thing? There's 12 teams, so 6 first round matches... and then 2 three way semifinals? A three way final? There will be four teams in the semifinals. The three that advance and one second chance team selected by fan vote (although not sure if it's from all of the eliminated teams or just those eliminated in the quarterfinals).
January 17, 20187 yr comment_5828449 Also, have I missed some sort of bracket for this thing? There's 12 teams, so 6 first round matches... and then 2 three way semifinals? A three way final? There will be four teams in the semifinals. The three that advance and one second chance team selected by fan vote (although not sure if it's from all of the eliminated teams or just those eliminated in the quarterfinals). That seems reasonable enough.
January 19, 20187 yr comment_5828661 So this is a worked tournament where the winning team gets money for their chosen charity? This seems problematic, to say the least. Where can I bet that the Connor's Cure team is going to win?
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