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That *you'd* want to avoid.

Maybe everyone is at fault and who gives a shit.

So NJPW builds their USA expansion around The Elite, then The Elite announces that nah, we are leaving and starting our own company that will operate in USA... Why would NJPW be happy with that and continue promoting them past WK?

That is ridiculous that they had a #1 contender win a match for a date she wouldn't be able to make. I love an AEW defense but that is so bad.

The Elite leaving pretty much sank the possibility of a successful American expansion, and Omega and the Bucks used their NJPW-created stardom as a launching pad to start a rival organization that helped to kill the aforementioned expansion. And NJPW is supposed to promote and thank them? Ridiculous. Also, the answer to "who gives a shit" here is always "a board full of devoted wrestling fans," so I'm not sure why that ever gets rolled out.

That pettiness came from Omega and the Bucks, not NJPW. NJPW were the ones that wanted to put Omega over Tanahashi then run Omega/Okada at MSG, Kenny turned it down then pouted on Twitter for weeks about NJPW not catering to his artist self whining because he didn't get his match with Ibushi. The Bucks blew off the Tag League, then touted on social media how it wasn't worth their time and bitched about the money, then politicked their way into the Tag Title match at the Dome anyway with an angle that was so well recieved that you could hear a gnat fart in the building. Those three hampered the western expansion with getting NJPW to book the entire thing around them, resulting in shows that were largely panned as being glorified RoH shows because RoH was already booking every show around The Elite. They used NJPW's exposure and talent and RoH's talent and production to kick start their promotion they and their fans act as if NJPW and RoH owed them a Heroes sendoff when they should've gotten the Giving Watts notice treatment, and now people want to act like AEW would be doing NJPW and RoH a favor by daning to work with them. The idea that NJPW and RoH are the petty ones is some high end revisionist history.

I know objectively that's a real wrestler and I've seen match footage with my own two eyes but every time I see someone mention the wrestler named "Big Daddy Yum Yum" my first response is still "that sounds made up."

Exactly. Its not even completely a pettiness deal. Bucks and Omega expecting some kind of nice sendoff was arrogant bullshit on their parts. FFS they shit talked NJPW to Meltzer before they even left. Why the hell would they be given a nice sendoff?

Great photo. Liking how Zelina Vega's covering Rey's face up with her hand. Never break up Andrade and Zelina.

Simple explanation they should've given: Kris's visa had expired and she had to go back to her home planet to get things straightened out.

I have a hard time writing an obit on NJPW's "golden age" when they still have Tana, Naito, Jay White, etc. etc. etc. Okay, maybe the plans for major US expansion got back-burnered, but that's hardly the end of the world. I'd venture to say that they didn't lose a single hardcore fan as a result of the aborted expansion. And before anyone jumps in babbling about the casual fans, that isn't NJPW's market in the States and never has been. The hardcores (like me) are the ones buying merch as fast as they can get it, NJPW is just fine as a Japanese promotion with a strong niche fanbase in the US.

Forget Tana. Shooter Stevens vs Yano is the match.

Oh yeah, 40 minute matches between Nick Aldis and Hiroshi Tanahashi is what the people really want.

NJPW and NWA. Shooter Stevens vs Tana.

Pro wrestling should always offer variety in styles. Might be the single biggest problem I have with WWE, how samey so many matches are.

I now want Britt Baker to squash Riho AND Statlander just to read the online meltdowns here afterward.

The rankings are a joke and should be abolished.

I mean, a group of authors managed to keep consistent story points and knowledge of what each were doing through 381 books, why the hell did Lucasfilm and Disney let 5 movies get out of control?

They really need to get this shit straight.

I believe you mean they are working out every wide receiver that was once on the Patriots roster at any time this season this morning in anticipation of a possible Super Bowl matchup. At least the Saints steal opponents game plans the old fashioned way. 2 weeks of Patriots/Saints Super Bowl hype might legit make me quit football if it happens.

The other thing that may have sunk NJPW conquering the US is that while there are undoubtedly a contingent of real fans, a lot the "New Japan fans" in the States are actually "the last half of WrestleKingdom" fans. What I mean is, having a big show in the states or putting big matches on someone else's show is a what most people want. They want Okada/Omega or Tanahashi/Ibushi or Ospreay/Takahashi. Some fans want the G1, but most fans just want the finals. An actual touring promotion with all the meaningless 6 and 8-man tags is way harder to sell without more developed TV (or online) presence. Even with the Elite on the roster, that's still only maximum two matches a card they could carry as names and I'm not convinced NJPW would have got them as over as AEW did to support that anyway. That being said, a full on NJPW:USA with a dedicated roster and team may have been another story and if that's the thing that AEW kiboshed I'd be pissed too. I wouldn't blame anyone though. Everyone saw the hole in the market, it was just a matter of who got there and New Japan tried but didn't quite get there in time. That's business, baby.

NXT: 831,000. AEW: 0. ?

Whoa, that's one helluva comparison that I think we can all agree on. And to tie it together you have Bully Ray working there in some capacity with them doing some shows at the 2300 Arena. But I would argue that the lowest of lows for ECW while still bad were still not as bad as it is for ROH.

That just accentuates the parallels between ROH and ECW even more. Both gained their original cult followings during a relative down period during the main U S. players tenure on top (93-96 for WWF and WCW, and then post-Attitude/pre-Cena in the main event for WWE). And then as both upstart promotions rise in prominence, the largest player in the game starts to scoop talent up, the house style changes to slowly integrate more and more elements that got the upstarts noticed to begin with, and then the upstarts become less special and husks of their former selves.

This might well be an age thing... Recall just how bad 1990s WWE was. Suddenly, there was this little fed in Philly that was the coolest thing most of us had ever seen... With the benefit of hindsight it's easy to say that ROH delivered a superior wrestling product, but those of us that remember the early days of ECW will never forget how it made us feel.

I for one am shocked, just shocked, that a wrestling promotion would bury talent on their way out of the promotion.

They aren't indentured servants. They took a far better deal as any reasonable person would. They gave proper notice unlike Styles, Gallows, and Anderson by the sounds of it. Those three helped their western expansion tremendously. Instead of gratitude or graciousness, there was pettiness in how they handled the Omega/Tanahashi build and the NY Dash show. They along with ROH then refused to work with AEW to their own detriment. ROH is a husk of its former self and NJPW basically just announced the death of their own US expansion by saying they're done with TV in that market. There is little chance they build on what they have in a meaningful way without tv. They can run all the rinky dink shows in America they want now tho.

That is why you can never go wrong with gift cards.

Reunited and it feels so good...

Again, way too many thoughts about NWA Powerrrrrrrr… thanks for indulging me, folks. I wasn’t terribly impressed with the Marty Scurll interview with Stu Bennett they take a piece from for the countdown segment. I’m generally unfamiliar with his work as RoH ran me off awhile back, and I’ve found keeping up with New Japan without paying for it difficult. Really, the most I’ve seen of him was his brief run through 10 Pounds of Gold against Nick Aldis, and this feels like little more than a mulligan on that, right down to the out of character interview. This really feels like a time that we needed something in character rather than “Marty and Stu chat over tea and scones, just without tea and scones.” I’m needing some reason to get interested in Scurll challenging Aldis again, and so far, I haven’t seen it. Right now, Marty Scurll just comes off to me as a moderately less ridiculous Jimmy Havoc. The countdown segment continues with another look at the formation of Aldis’s faction. We need a name for this this team. Royal Flush, maybe? Aldis called himself “The Dealer” during the Cody Rhodes feud, and he’s backed up by Wild Cards… Kamille is the Queen… maybe find a heater to fill out the hand. Also, babyfaces can make toilet jokes when chasing them. I dunno… The show proper opens with a recap of the finish of Aldis’s title match with James Storm at Into the Fire, which I appreciate since I’m a cheap bastard and didn’t buy the show. In light of what’s come after, the finish feels like an aborted story now, though. Aldis takes out the ref, ostensibly by mistake. Aldis pulls of the turnbuckle pad, possibly on accident. Aldis launches Storm into the exposed metal, maybe coincidentally. Lots of things that could be Nick being naughty, but plenty of plausible deniability as well. It set Nick up to continue to be the perfect tweener, gave Tim Storm a good spot as the loyal-but-possibly-duped patsy, and set James Storm up to continue his path of righteous rage at a system that’s wronged him, while Aldis could play dumb. We seem to be abandoning all this now. Can’t say I’m especially pleased with that. It feels like a change McMahon would make after inhaling a few lines of Adderall. We go to the interview desk, with David Marquez hyping the TV Title tournament alongside Trevor Murdoch. Zicky Dice is milling about the side. Trev pays off his story from the earlier episodes by announcing he’s signed a full time contract, and he looks so genuinely pleased that you can’t help but be happy for the big galoot. Wrestling needs more Trevor Murdochs. Zicky is suitably ridiculous trying to rain on Murdoch’s parade, but before he can spoil Trev’s good mood, “Pope” D’Angelo Dinero saunters out to make his NWA Powerrr debut, looking like the proverbial million bucks. Pope does his best Dusty Rhodes impression (no, wait… that’s just his act) indicating he’s looking to find a team or build a stable to lead. Zicky offers himself up as a candidate, and Pope fades out on him, earning a belly laugh from Murdoch. Pope joins the commentary team for the next match which is… Ricky Starks versus Eddie Kingston in a TV Title tournament qualifier. Starks and Kingston start off slower than I’d expect with a 6:05 time limit. Ricky gives Eddie a lot of respect here, toning down his quirkiness substantially. Eddie transitions smooth as butter into a headlock spot that pops the crowd. Have to appreciate a crowd that will applaud a good headlock. We get some good grappling, made urgent by the time limit, until Starks goes to strikes. Kingston starts egging Starks from his knees, looking like he’s setting up a rope-a-dope without ropes, until Ricky kicks him right in the jaw and Eddie just wilts like an orchid in winter and it’s kind of beautiful. Eddie’s sell is so perfect, it sets up a believable near-fall off a simple kick. Newsflash: Eddie Kingston is fucking great. Shocking, I know. Crowd is split, chanting for both men and deservedly so. Pope’s commentary isn’t as over-the-top and distracting as it was in OVW and TNA during his runs there. I still wouldn’t want him at the desk, though. Starks fights to get his finisher (an elevated Pedigree apparently called “Buster Keaton,” which is a reference my old ass gets) and finally hits it for the win. Great little four minute match that leaves me wanting more; exactly the sort of thing I wanted from this format. These two really excel in the studio environment, as Starks mannerisms and Kingston’s trash talk would connect less in an arena environment. Both sell like champs after the match, bringing home the sense that they both went balls out to get it done in the short time limit. Dinero nods to Kingston after the match, so maybe we get a hint at who is being eyed to join the Pope’s congregation. We come back to another look at the debut of Aldis and More (nah… too punny; sounds like something WWE would give to a team of “creative has nothing for you” low-carders). That transitions to Senior Marquez bringing our Wild Cards’ Royce Issacs, who introduces his new ladyfriend May Valentine. I don’t know May at all, but I hardly follow women’s wrestling. She could be a 4x Shimmer champion for all I know. A Google search doesn’t help either, except one chap’s review indicates she was a Diva Search contestant. Anyway, she seems to be playing a bubblehead who’s just happy to be there. Issacs meanwhile comes off as a total dork, apparently whispering something inappropriate about her in Marquez’s ear. Issacs wants to prove his manliness to Ms. Valentine by making an open 1-on-1 challenge. Cowboy James Storm swaggers out to take the challenge, because James MF’n Storm. Valentine is excitedly bouncing and applauding, but Issacs chickenshits around, asking for kisses and shoulder rubs from May. They barely exchange a few shots before Royce bails, taking a seemingly befuddled Valentine with him. Storm keeps the crowd from shitting on the fuck finish by goofing with the ref and fans during the count. Good on Storm, but its cognitive dissonance seeing him be happy and goofy, particularly after being furious last we saw him. Thankfully, he makes the “belt-on-my-waist” motion before we cut, so we know he’s still got his motivation. The Cowboy is a professional, at least. What the fuck were you doing with that segment, NWA? I was begging for some character development for Wild Cards during the earlier episodes, but making Royce a spaz now? After making him ¼ a part of the top heel faction? Royce was looking at the floor, the podium, Marquez, the fans (briefly)… anywhere but the camera. It made him come off as nervous and unready. Then we get a non-match with Storm acting out of character, and all seemingly to introduce a new lady to the show without telling us anything about her. Man… this was WWE bad. Now Marquez brings out Eli Drake, who is packing a half-drunk bottle of J Roget Extra Dry, and is playing a half-drunk Eli Drake. Drake does a tipsy version of his act, drinking straight from the bottle, which honestly is about the appropriate amount of respect to show J Roget. Thankfully everyone resists the urge to say “bubbly.” Drake plays the jolly drunk very well, flubbing a line and getting a laugh. This somehow turns into Drake crashing Josephus Claus and lady-I-don’t-recognize doing a solid rendition of “O Come, All Ye Faithful.” Josephus has a decent set of pipes, and looks suitably annoyed at Drake’s contributions to the chorus while I get flashbacks to unfortunate office parties. It’s goofy and fun and doesn’t overstay its welcome, as the Aldis Alliance (eh… not terrible) comes out to interrupt Drake’s interruption of Josephus’s interruption of Drake (cue the Inception sound). Nick and Kamille are festive in red, while Wild Cards Issacs and Latimer are dressed to wrestle. No May Valentine… guess she’s not part of the team. Both Drake and Josephus look on in annoyance, but are ignored. Aldis presents his team with personalized matching jackets. Classy! He proceeds to revel that everything we’ve seen from him these past few weeks has been part of a master plan. Errr… not sure what this plan accomplished, as the only thing that seems to have happened directly as a result is Tim Storm getting speared by a lady. Maybe it’s still just a work in progress. Nick Aldis asks the Rock ‘N’ Roll Express to come out to address Ricky Morton’s comments last week about Aldis not yet being ready to be on the NWA’s Mt. Rushmore. Though the magic of editing, they oblige instantaneously. Ricky is wearing a RnR-themed ugly Christmas sweater, and I resist the urge to go looking for it to buy online. When confronted, Morton makes nice and, in the spirit of Christmas, apologizes. Aldis accepts the proffered hand, but is suitably menacing when accepting the apology. If they don’t end up grinding Ricky’s face into the concrete someday soon, I’ll be shocked. We recap the women’s stories from Into the Fire, showing Ashley Vox taking the elbow injury from Thunder Rosa, and ODB’s surprise appearance as Allysin Kay’s partner. New we have Vox, Kay, and ODB versus Rosa, Melina, and Marti Belle. I’m only about 50/50 on caring about watching these ladies by the numbers, but I could watch Thunder Rosa watch paint dry, and she starts the match, so no complaints. ODB and Kay both use their size, but Rosa holds her own and takes control. Vox quickly gets the chance to play Ricky Morton, which she excels at. The heels take turns, on her. Belle lays in some adequate stomps, and a hip attack that probably felt worse than it looked. Rosa goes on the attack, and Bennett echoes my thoughts in his commentary when he says he is “equally in awe and terrified of this lady.” Melina gets a turn and while her work is a little slow and rough, her facial expressions are downright scary. She looks very believable as a lady that will gladly kick your goddamn ass. Vox manages to make a tag to Kay, who looks clinical in her attack on Melina. Perez looks a little lost, but in an “I’m in a real fight” kind of way, not an “I forgot the script” one. Then she sells like she was shot when Kay kicks her in the damn face. If we’re building Melina as a veteran who has lost a step and is manipulating Rosa and Belle to keep her relevant, I’ll be pleased. Melina throws Kay off with a jawbreaker and rolls out to recover, so we reset to ODB and Thunder Rosa. Things get chaotic, and Kay gets dropped awkwardly on the top rope and ends up outside checking to be sure she didn’t lose and parts. It ends up with Vox and Rosa, with Rosa literally chewing her way out of Vox’s submission, and hitting a tombstone shoulderbreaker, hanging on to her, flatly declaring to everyone “It’s over,” and then hitting a Michinoku Driver, except with Vox’s neck getting folded over Rosa’s thigh. Fuuuckkk. If you told me Thunder Rosa crawled Ring-style out of a Mortal Kombat game, I’d half believe you. The stipulation of the match gave the winner of the pinfall a singles match of their choice. When Rosa goes to declare at the interview desk, Melina talks over her and picks ODB for the opponent. Of course, the obvious choice for Rosa would have been to demand a shot at Kay and the World title. Instead, Melina has picked her top henchwoman to go after the biggest roadblock in Melina’s way. Good setup for any number of directions they could take things. Marquez is out with the fishbowl to draw for another TV Title tournament qualifier, with Tim Storm and the Dawsons hanging about. A silent, pretty lady named Anastasia Fletcher from a legal firm (it sounded like “Morg, Bork, and Simon” … did I miss an in-joke?) is there to draw. In an amazing coincidence, Tim’s name comes out first, followed by Nick Aldis, and Storm proceeds to cut a promo that is fucking AMERICA; just outstanding, and straight form the heart. Our main event is Colt Cabana versus the Question Mark for a spot in the tournament. I can’t stress enough how much more I enjoy Cabana when he’s reigning in the goofiness and just working as the earnest man of the people. He’s just so much more interesting that way than as a pure comedy act. The Question Mark is still over with the crowd, so I can’t blame the NWA for running with it, even if I’m getting a bored with it. No Aron Stevens with ‘?’ as we’re told the NWA has banned any seconds to prevent outside interference. The crowd is free to cheer ‘?’ to their hearts’ content, despite Cabana being over with them as well. Bennett is having a ball on commentary gravely talking about Mongrovia. Cabana dutifully does the job to ‘?’ Kah-Rah-Tay poke to the neck, and the crowd loves getting to be part of the joke. I find myself looking forward to the day Josephus unmasks and berates the fans for their callow and gullible nature. In the meantime, I hope they sell a million Question Mark t-shirts. The show closes with Aron Stevens and the Question Mark proclaiming their intent to hold all the BELTSBELTSBELTS. Well, the National Title sure means zilch now. No one is chasing it, except maybe Colt, and he just jobbed clean as a sheet to the champ’s partner, and Stevens is more interested in chasing other titles than defending the one he has. Sloppy, NWA… get that thing off Stevens as soon as you can if you’re going to use him as a contender and not a champ. Hopefully it’s a temporary devaluation to get the TV Title heated up as an undercard belt. I still say you shouldn’t have a TV Title without TV, though.

I give it four days. Max.

It's not the end of the world, but it's a really bad look. When it seems you can't use a calendar when setting up matches with someone who has other dates arranged weeks in advance. . . someone dropped the ball. Whether it was Kris in not clarifying her schedule or Khan/Omega in not planning around it, that's a big YIKES.

He is - I am pretty sure Dolfan confused him and Antonio Brown

That 100 people studio will go wild for it.

Under NJPW rules 40 minutes. Under NWA rules 4 minute squash

ANYWAY. I had a dream this morning that I was watching an indie wrestling show with a CMLL logo on the ring, but booked by Bill Watts. Only wish I could remember the wrestlers.

Craig: I'm not going to quote you, because it's an eloquent and accurate response. If I must point out boogeymen that caused the NJPW failure in the US, I'm going to start with ROH. ROH has always been perceived by other companies as far bigger and more successful than they really were, the true fact is that they are ECW without Paul Heyman's genius and have never been more than an eastcoast fed that got a lot of ink in the sheets because there was nothing else to talk about. NJPW hooking their wagon to ROH was a huge mistake, ROH is nothing but a money pit on a national scale.

Some fun trivia I just read on Daily Grindhouse

Christmas may be over, but it's still Hanukkah.

Don't think I have ever seen a starting QB finish his college career by slapping/punching not one but two players on one play but Glass from Eastern Michigan sure did it

Dude spent most of his early life in Minnesota. How has he not learned how to do that yet?