Pro Wrestling discussion topic--WWE, AEW, ROH, Impact, New Japan, indies

Dunno if it's been mentioned before but The Monday Night War series on the Network is definitely worth a watch; even if it can be a bit heavy-handed on the revisionist history.

I renewed the Network days before the Rumble on a lark after binge listening to the Attitude Era podcast (which is very humorous and worth a listen). The idea was to start with Suvivor Series 99 and watch all the WWF PPVs all the way through to WM17; where my love of wrestling (and the product itself) started to die.

I gave up watching full PPVs at Armageddon '99. Turns out, the 98-99 years kinda sucked. However I still stand by my belief that 2000 is probably the best year in WWF history. The talent pool was absolutely stacked, with the mid card being dominated by Benoit Vs Jericho and the main event being stacked with HHH, Angle, Rock all in their absolute primes. Even the tag division was awesome with Dudleys, E&C, Hardy's, Too Cool, RTC, APA giving us plenty of good matches.

At least, that's how my rose-tinted mind remembers it. I'm dead set on running through that era before I drop the network again. Money can be tight and honestly? My diehard love of Pro Wrestling died years ago (probably about the same time Benoit did. But every WM season I get the itch to actively watch and follow all the hub bub.
 
Okay, so I know I'm late, but I just started watching Lucha Underground yesterday. I'm on episode 2, and I'm really liking it so far. I think the pre-packaged, cinematic backstage segments are are a little hokey, but other than that, it's nice to have another WWE alternative to look forward to every week.

 
Purple Flames said:
Okay, so I know I'm late, but I just started watching Lucha Underground yesterday. I'm on episode 2, and I'm really liking it so far. I think the pre-packaged, cinematic backstage segments are are a little hokey, but other than that, it's nice to have another WWE alternative to look forward to every week.
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I haven't been able to catch as many episodes as I would like, but I have seen a few and Alberto El Patron made his first appearance on the most recent episode. I think Lucha Underground does an excellent job at providing an amazing in-ring product along with a different take on the storytelling aspect with the cinematic approach the segments. It's good to see more pro wrestling on TV. We currently have Lucha, ROH, TNA, and NJPW as alternatives to WWE on television now. It's definitely a step in the right direction, it's unfortunate that these networks aren't available in as many markets, but it's at least out there.

 
I'm loving all of the options right now.  I currently watch TNA, ROH, and NJPW along with a smattering of PWG when there's a new show.  WWE would have to do something truly revolutionary to get me to make room for them in my viewing schedule.  Not holding my breath.

 
I'm don't know if things have changed yet (I'm only on episode 3), but so far I find it interesting that there have been no titles introduced yet in Lucha Underground. It really helps with the "guys in a dark dirty warehouse wrestling for cash" presentation they're going for.

 
Redid the ring stage, ramp, steel steps, and ring to look closer to the design from No Mercy. Open the image to see a much higher resolution. Thoughts?

8fsq7n24jyii2707g6rf.jpg


 
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-Never4ever- said:
Dunno if it's been mentioned before but The Monday Night War series on the Network is definitely worth a watch; even if it can be a bit heavy-handed on the revisionist history.

I renewed the Network days before the Rumble on a lark after binge listening to the Attitude Era podcast (which is very humorous and worth a listen). The idea was to start with Suvivor Series 99 and watch all the WWF PPVs all the way through to WM17; where my love of wrestling (and the product itself) started to die.

I gave up watching full PPVs at Armageddon '99. Turns out, the 98-99 years kinda sucked. However I still stand by my belief that 2000 is probably the best year in WWF history. The talent pool was absolutely stacked, with the mid card being dominated by Benoit Vs Jericho and the main event being stacked with HHH, Angle, Rock all in their absolute primes. Even the tag division was awesome with Dudleys, E&C, Hardy's, Too Cool, RTC, APA giving us plenty of good matches.

At least, that's how my rose-tinted mind remembers it. I'm dead set on running through that era before I drop the network again. Money can be tight and honestly? My diehard love of Pro Wrestling died years ago (probably about the same time Benoit did. But every WM season I get the itch to actively watch and follow all the hub bub.
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Hindsight being 20/20, it's really hard to watch hardcore matches - which certainly isn't all of the "Attitude Era," but that style can't be separated from it.

I'll admit, going back and watching matches with loads of nasty spots, chair shots, and blood is really tough for me to do.

I am rewatching Nitro chronologically, though, and enjoying it.

 
mykevermin said:
Hindsight being 20/20, it's really hard to watch hardcore matches - which certainly isn't all of the "Attitude Era," but that style can't be separated from it.

I'll admit, going back and watching matches with loads of nasty spots, chair shots, and blood is really tough for me to do.

I am rewatching Nitro chronologically, though, and enjoying it.
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ECW Hadrcore TV must be really tough for you to watch. I felt like Nitro had a lot less of the nasty spots than you would see on an average episode of Raw back in the Attitude era. WCW may have been a mess in terms of booking and story telling for a large portion of it's existence, but they put on some stellar matches. In hindsight now, of course I loved it when it happend, but Nitro opening up with a match like Flair and Hogan and the absurd amount of PPV quality main event matches (Goldberg winning the World TItle) happening on Monday Nitro. That kind of booking made the PPVs seem less special and one thing the Monday Night Wars was 100% right about. Bischoff was so obsessed with beating RAW in the ratings each week, he just gave away huge money matches for free on a week to week basis. I actually think towards the end of WCW they were starting to get back on track by creating and pushing younger talent and they were putting on some great matches and TV, but it was already too late to survive at that point so we will never know how things would have developed. Really hope to see some of that stuff added to the Network soon, I would love to go back and watch the last couple of years of Nitro.

 
mykevermin said:
Hindsight being 20/20, it's really hard to watch hardcore matches - which certainly isn't all of the "Attitude Era," but that style can't be separated from it.

I'll admit, going back and watching matches with loads of nasty spots, chair shots, and blood is really tough for me to do.

I am rewatching Nitro chronologically, though, and enjoying it.
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I'm doing the same with WCW at the moment. Started with the second Nitro (I've seen most of the first one throughout the years on DVDs) and moved directly to Fall Brawl 95'.

I was a WWE kid growing up. Started with ECW in late 1996 and never really paid much attention to WCW. I saw some truly dire stuff over the years but much of the good undercard was lost to me.

That said, hearing Mongo and Biscoff burying Raw on Nitro comes off a bit desperate. I get it, you're shaking things up and it led to an amazing rivalry but don't call the WWE stupid because they have Nash as their champion and you couldn't figure out how to get a 7 foot tall monster over.

 
Watching the best of Foley in TNA and it's hard to watch him take TWO TOP ROPE BUMPS in the first four minutes. This TNA run was such a mistake in hindsight because he broke his body down so quickly doing stupid shit like this.

 
bardockkun said:
That sums up everyone's TNA run.
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Na, they had some good runs. Their main event almost always sucked, but in the earlier days their tag team and X-Division were always great. I also loved that summer after mean old Hogan and evil Eric came in. Starting from when the 3 masked men attacking Sting after his HoF speech until TNA released Doc, Impact was probably the most watchable wrestling show from start to finish that has been on in decades in America.

 
MushaOne said:
Na, they had some good runs. Their main event almost always sucked, but in the earlier days their tag team and X-Division were always great. I also loved that summer after mean old Hogan and evil Eric came in. Starting from when the 3 masked men attacking Sting after his HoF speech until TNA released Doc, Impact was probably the most watchable wrestling show from start to finish that has been on in decades in America.
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I agree, especially the early days of TNA when they were doing Wednesday night weekly PPV shows under the NWA banner. I really enjoyed a lot of the early X Division stuff from that time period. One of my favorite matches in the history of TNA was a triple threat ladder match between AJ Styles, Jerry Lynn, and Lo-Ki. Of course the early days had some major misses as well with stuff like Vince Russo's stable called S.E.X. (Sports Entertainment Xtreme) and various other stupid gimmicks and angles that TNA ran during this period. The in-ring product was excellent and even today TNA still has a great in-ring product. It's the convoluted storylines and lack of direction that hurts TNA. They have never truly known where they want to take the company and don't seem to stick with any sort of direction longer than a couple of years before pressing the reset button.

 
Bryan's a strawman - unless the fans absolutely rebel against Roman to the point of throwing shit in the ring, Bryan isn't getting anything more than a token WM match.

 
Bryan's there to put over Reigns - both in the match, in a "good show, chap" post-match handshake, and a Monday night-after interview.

End result: worst case scenario, fans don't cheer Reigns, but stop booing him, since Bryan endorsed him. Best case scenario (and also very unlikely), all fans start to rally behind Reigns.

There is *no way* Bryan will take Reigns' spot at WrestleMania.

And, quite frankly, while I would much rather see Bryan in that spot:

a) man, it's just wrestling. it stinks, but it's not a huge deal

b) I'd much rather see winning the Royal Rumble match mean something. Getting the main event match at WM shouldn't be something so flippantly switched because the crowd isn't into it. (Flip side of that coin: the company should start listening to the fans as it says it does, and slow down on telling fans whom to cheer for - Reigns could be huge if given a slow burn, but it's far too late to roll that back.)

c) WWE is right: you're gonna watch WM no matter what. So am I.

 
mykevermin said:
Also: NXT is so fucking dope right now that's all that matters to me. Owens vs Zayn in three days!
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I am beyond hyped for the whole Rival show. I'm going to NXT Live in Ohio next month and am just beyond stoked on NXT right now and definitely have never been this excited to go to a live event. Owens vs. Zayn, Neville vs. Balor, Breeze vs. Itami, and I think Solomon Crowe (Sami Callahan) is finally going to make his debut, Rival should be awesome.

 
So Seth Rollins "accidentally" tweeted a naked pic of Zahra Schreiber (a recently signed NXT diva) and the story just gets downhill from here. His fiancee found out and tweeted out her own picture of Seth's dong. Zahra tweeted out that if he's "the architect", maybe he should have built a stronger password suggesting he was hacked. Wonder if this will have an effect on his current push with the company.

 
The show-opening recap video had tons of talking, then everyone else came out and talked. Bryan got off some great lines about HHH and Roman. We got a terrible tag match in theory with Bryan and Reigns against Show and Kane with an even-worse finish. Bryan nearly beat Show and Kane on his own, so of course after a DQ, Roman needs a chair to fight off Show. Paige's rack looks great in there with Brie, and I dug her tribute to Drew McDonald. Nikki is darker than Ernie Ladd, and we got a JYD video making good use of the MSW library. I dug Cena-Rusev's stuff overall. Bray-Dolph was fine, but Dolph was moving way too quickly for even Bray to keep up with him. Heyman's stuff with Brock wasn't all that great, but had some good moments in it. The Sting-HHH stuff was mind-boggling. HHH said that Sting attacked him at Survivor Series like a coward. How? They had a face to face staredown and "Sting" got the better of it. He somehow lost tons of weight and got a whole new head of hair! HHH's bump for this was just awful - like a Tough Enough bump. Okay little Usos-Uppercats tag set up the Rikishi HOF vid. Loved Bray's promo and AXELMANIA now being a thing. Loved BNZ! Main event wasn't much of a match, but man did Bryan feel like THE GUY right now while Roman was just an accessory - so they're either having Bryan go over, turning Roman, or they've lost their minds.

http://jayreviewsthings.blogspot.com/2015/02/wwe-raw-2-9-15.html

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HHH version of Ascension


This thing called Sting







 

http://www.imagebam.com/gallery/3afi8qcbmjcgn2ercjalh1rpmkh7d5gg

 
I might have to walk back my comments about Bryan not winning at Fastlane. Seems WWE is going full throated with Reigns being the heel now - or at least an unsympathetic opportunist (which is, strangely, the core of American capitalism, yet also how WWE presents heels. Who'dathunk it?).

I don't see Bryan v Lesnar at WM; either Reigns v Lesnar or a three-way-dance.

Some of the other angles they have going are setting up for WM matches that I kinda like: Goldust vs Cody-Star-dust, Miz vs Mizdow. It's really, really basic wrestling booking in both cases, and it just works.

Usos vs Kidd/Cesaro was a solid, exciting match. I see a Fastlane match for them, but I also see Kidd/Cesaro not getting a WM match. Access or Pre-show, maybe. As much as I really am into the combo of Kidd and Cesaro as a tag team, god*damn* Kidd's airbrushed grumpy cat tights are a severe distraction.

New Day: sorry, buds. You were doomed from the start. Wrestling has never been kind to Af-Am culture, and the middle-class white folks in the crowd don't get it. You're Men on a Mission 2015.

That "DERP" sign had me rolling all night long. Also, Columbus, OH: you are a shitty, boring, hands-sitting crowd.

 
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Rikishi.... HoF?

Ahead of people like say, Demolition, Sid, The Steiners, Kamala, Stan the motherfucking MAN Hanson, Ivan Koloff, and many many more? 

This has to be Vince's way of smoothing shit over with Roman Reigns and Rock. It is the ONLY way it makes sense.

 
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mykevermin said:
I might have to walk back my comments about Bryan not winning at Fastlane. Seems WWE is going full throated with Reigns being the heel now - or at least an unsympathetic opportunist (which is, strangely, the core of American capitalism, yet also how WWE presents heels. Who'dathunk it?).

I don't see Bryan v Lesnar at WM; either Reigns v Lesnar or a three-way-dance.
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But see, this is where I get confused. Imagine Bryan had pushed Austin, or Rock, or any other similar figure. Is he not getting a stunner/Rock bottom/etc. for his trouble? And isn't the crowd popping like crazy as a result?

It's almost as if Bryan is so loved and Reigns is so hated that the typical booking dynamic has been flipped on its head. Don't get me wrong, I'd rather go this direction than Reigns/Lesnar, it was just weird to see the crowd react the way it did.

We'll see how fast lane ends.
 
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pitfallharry219 said:
From the SD tapings:

Apparently Big Show did another turn

Just put him out to pasture already.
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Big Show's gimmick is that he is a confused giant who suffers from amnesia and occasionally he has flashbacks of the Dungeon of Doom and Kevin Sullivan. When these flashbacks occur Show turns heel and wants to destroy any wrestler that reminds him of Hulk Hogan. Eventually he snaps out of it and becomes a fun loving giant who likes to make witty jokes occasionally and KO the bad guys.

 
Itami-Breeze ruled! Bull-Corbin was fun. Tag title match was an amusing clusterfuck - it was like a video game match with bad collision detection. Balor-Neville was a match of the year contender and better than anything on New Beginning. The women's title was even better and had me in tears by the end. Then we got the Sami-Owens hype video, which was so good it was the only thing really needed throughout the night to hype the match up and Kevin just dominated. It wasn't quite Brock-Cena, but it was even better.

Sami had A CHANCE with a moonsault, he took a risk, and it cost him as he was "concussed" after the landing and ate powerbomb after powerbomb. One trainer came down, so Kevin prevented aid with TWO POWERBOMBS. TWO MORE POWERBOMBS led to two trainers, and then finally, on the fifth powerbomb, Sami's limp body falls and it's over - Kevin Owens wins the title in only his second WWE match. This was masterful and one of the best shows WWE has ever had their name attached to.

http://jayreviewsthings.blogspot.com/2015/02/nxt-takeover-rival-2-11-15.html

Screens













http://www.imagebam.com/gallery/j27ljxtseupdjwdljgwooucjshb86g5p

 
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