Brock Lesnar is the Pablo Picasso of WWE beatdowns. Hisassault onBig Show atMadison Square Garden was his Les Demoiselles d'Avignon; his throttling of John Cena at SummerSlam 2014 his La Guernica.While Picasso mastered cubism, The Beast Incarnate's expertise is in-ring bulldozing. Lesnar now has composed two quintessential examples of the genre.WWE often tries to create the most dramatic match possible, filled with comebacks, near-finishes and momentum swings. To go against that standard arc, to have one gladiator dominate another, is a powerful tool. It can leave the audience stunned and the victor charging ahead with fistfuls of momentum.The formula to nailing this type of bout requires a trimmed-down repertoire and assistance from the announcers, among other elements.Those were all at play as Lesnar steamrolled The World's Largest Athlete on Saturday night. Looking at that collision as well as the predator's win over Cena at last year's SummerSlam,Kevin Owens vs. Sami Zayn at NXT TakeOver: Rival andSteve Austin vs. Jake Roberts: King of the Ring 1996 make it clear just how to construct the effective WWE drubbing.A Simple PlaybookThe Lesnar-style beatdown does not show off the wrestler's full complement of moves. This isn't about wristlocks and rest holds; this is about punishment.And so many items in a grappler's arsenal are put to the side in favor ofpunches, kicks and slams.One would be hard-pressed to name more than five moves Austin executed against Roberts. To help separate this from a standard match, Stone Cold instead just wailed on his opponent. He spent a good majority of the action stomping on Roberts' injured ribs.That creates the sense that respect and fair play have been ignored for the evening. What follows is more like what one would see from a bully in the schoolyard than in an actual wrestling ring.Repetition is helpful here, as well.Lesnar used that element against Big Show at the MSG show, just as he did against Cena. As Paul Heyman and the crowd began to count, The Beast Incarnate flung Big Show around the ring with the same move again and againtheGerman suplex.Owens used clotheslines and Austin used stomps. The effect is the same.After seeing one man nail another with the same weapon again and again, the point is hammered home: Fans are witnessing domination, not drama.Upending Expectations, Foregoing HonorBefore the bell rings, most fans can tell you how the action will go. Bo Dallas will struggle against Dean Ambrose. Cena and Seth Rollins will trade rallies and haymakers.The beatdown like the one Lesnar issued on Saturday toys with the audience's preconceived notions of how things will play out.One would expect even an injured, aged Roberts to put up more of a fight than he did. Zayn reaching the point where he couldn't even stand is not the script most saw coming.SummerSlam 2014's title bout was so shocking because Cena is not supposed to lose like that.The same goes for Big Show. Regardless of his place on the card, an opponent manhandling him like that is just not supposed to happen.A perfect beatdown also infuses a nastiness from the attacker. Even if there are no official rules broken in the process of the throttling, one feels that something is just not right. Lesnar, Owens or whoever is pounding away on this hapless fighter is going too far.Taunting helps. Smiling while kicking one in the gut adds an air of sadism.Austin slapped Roberts at times rather than punching him, adding to the level of disrespect. Owens gloated, towering over a fallen Zayn with his arms outstretched, seeming as if he was ready to take a bow.Lesnar straddling Cena and just lacing him with punches gets sickening after a point.With Big Show, it made it feel as if he was toying with the giant. He stalked him, delighting in the pain he caused, clearly concerned with causing pain more than earning a win.And after the bell, he returned to nail Big Show with another F-5, the beast showing off his power and disdain for his opponent.The Announcers AccentuateDespite seeing violence every day of their working lives, the announcers during these beatdowns are unsettled by what they see.They serve as the voice of the audience. They are surprised, disturbed, in awe, just as the crowd is supposed to be. Quality commentary amplifies the physicality a man like Lesnar dishes out.Going up against Big Show, Lesnar got that kind of assistance from everyone involved. The announcers seemed genuinely blown away by his performance. RichBrennan sounded simply stunned as he said, "That is a 450-pound man that Lesnar is tossing around with ease."Back in 1996, it was Jim Ross who fired off lines like that, including: "The physical dissection of Jake Roberts is ongoing."At NXT TakeOver: Rival, Corey Graves stopped calling the action and started begging Owens to quit hurting the champion. "Just end it, Owens," he said.During Lesnar vs. Cena, Michael Cole bluntly laid out what we were witnessing: "This is flat-out punishment of Cena."A combination of commentary like that and the beatdown-issuer's actions help create a sense of danger. The brutality the audience becomes accustomed to morphs into something more haunting.Generating ConcernWhen a bruiser has done his job, smashing a foe to the point that the match is no longer competitive and has become a full-fledged assault, the result of the bout stops being the central focus. The concern is not only about one suffering defeat. One's health and career become the issues at hand.That happened less with Big Show than it did in the other examples.The brevity of the bout attributed to that some. The fact that Big Show is so monstrous means it's harder to achieve that.Still, as Big Show hit the mat again and again, he generated more sympathy than a heel is supposed to. He was trapped in a beast's jaws, teeth grinding on his limbs, with no hope for escape.With Cena vs. Lesnar, this element came in the form of the refereeasking Cena if he wanted to quit, after suplexes, not submission holds. This out-of-the-ordinary move for the official added to the feeling that Cena was in trouble. Fans were left to wonder, would he end hobbled and not just dethroned'In Zayn vs. Owens, thereferee and medical staff hovered around Zayn, making sure that he wasn't helpless at any point. The referee ended up stopping the match, a rare sight in WWE action.Austin vs. Roberts featured ateased stoppage. When Roberts showed no resistance to Austin's attack,Gorilla Monsoon came out to check up on him.The focus moved from who would be crowned King of the Ring to whether Roberts would walk out of the ring intact.And delivering that assault helped catapult Austin to take over WWE as its top star. That was the signature win that preceded his signature promo.Owens began his run as a dominant, heartless champ with that beatdown of Zayn.After downing Big Show, Lesnar's path now sees him barreling toward another showdown with Undertaker, this time inside the Hell in a Cell. The match against Big Show was no classic but it aided The Beast Incarnate in charging toward that moment, once again showing off his predatory ways.This kind of dominant display has become Lesnar's forte, his fearsome aura making it the ideal story for him to tell.
Click here to read full news..
