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I was going to make a joke about the Cow Palace being torn down, but it apparently still exists? Now that's some California NIMBYism at it's finest. THE CARD! ONE HOUR IRONMAN MATCH FOR THE AEW WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP - MJF (c) vs. Bryan Danielson THREE WAY MATCH FOR THE AEW WOMEN'S CHAMPIONSHIP - Jaime Hayter (c) vs. Saraya vs. Ruby Soho FOR THE TNT CHAMPIONSHIP - Samoa Joe (c) vs. Wardlow FOUR WAY MATCH FOR THE MEN'S TAG TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP - The Gunns (Austin/Colten, c) vs. The Acclaimed (Bowens/Caster) vs. Jay Lethal / Jeff Jarrett vs. Danhausen / Orange Cassidy FOR THE TRIOS WORLD TAG TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP - The Elite (M. Jackson / Omega / N. Jackson, c) vs. House of Black (Black / King / Matthews) TEXAS DEATHMATCH - Jon Moxley vs. Hangman Adam Page Ricky Starks vs. Chris Jericho * Christian Cage vs. Jungle Boy --- Based on recent news, I'm assuming the loser of the TX death match will have his power cut off and freeze to death while being told it's his own fault.

It seems like Cody just needs an editor. In AEW, I’d have to imagine he had near free reign to do whatever he wanted. In WWE, if he’s coming up with anything, I’m sure it has to clear a few people before it gets on tv. Some people have a lot of ideas and need others to whittle them down to the best ones.

I used to read ten Marvel comics every week. Give me two movies a month!

This show (and AEW in general lately) seems pretty directionless. I still enjoy AEW. And there's still a bunch of good matches every week. But the buzz that had been there, the feeling that most of what was happening was can't miss... that's kinda all gone right now. It seems like I say this every PPV cycle, but I wish they would start announcing a couple matches more than a week or two out. One of the biggest benefits of only doing 4 PPVs is having time to really advertise and push things and make them seem like gigantic events. You lose all of that by waiting until two weeks is left to announce your matches. Here's to hoping some big angle is in the works to spark some momentum. I miss how things felt after All Out 2021. Punk was back. Cole & Danielson debuted. The first Grandslam was upon us. How do we get back to THAT excitement level?

I disagreed with JR when he said it was "ironic" that all 6 guys in the match are basketball fans,but - ironically - I agreed with Ex when he said "Nakazawa played football... Ironically" after JR disrespected Nakazawa. Jericho's Stryper shout-out made me lol, too. Orange vs Wheeler should be great. Jericho got a second lol outa me with "undertaking" because I understood that reference . I like matches based around bodypart selling! I am maybe getting jaded by all those short Cargill squashes. Swerve vs Dustin gets the main event slot! Is Keith Lee coming back to make the save and the full face turn? More chain wrestling! Cinder block! Lee is DEFINITELY coming back! Hooray! Looking like a 400-pound Captain Holt. I love it!

Wrote about some of the great Memphis angles in tribute to Jerry Jarrett https://www.theringer.com/2023/2/17/23604726/jerry-jarrett-three-great-memphis-wrestling-angles

It's certainly possible, but I think having ROH be streaming-only is actually kind of good for AEW in that it doesn't dilute the main brand as much for the average viewer. It's there for the hardcores who want it, its not a huge extra cost to run at Universal since they were doing Dark there anyway. And if you stumble on something great and you can start filling buildings in like an NXT Takeover kind of fashion, great - if not, fuck it, keep running it til you recoup the cost of the library, and move on with your life

To be fair, I don't know anyone who read the Daily Student let alone reviews in it. EDIT: Oh my god, this just brought back a memory. I used to email Scott Keith to say that I wrote for the Daily Student and wanted to review his book and he'd send me a free copy. I did this for all of his books. I never wrote for the newspaper.

NOW it's baseball season.

I wanna see where things go with Mark Briscoe. He's maybe more of a long shot at being a top babyface, but he has so much to offer, and he has something like those goodwill Foley vibes with him right now. I’ve been with the Kingston fandom since his debut, but less with the World Championship clamouring. I just didn't see it or think he needed it. Not until more recently. I’m not sure the exact point that things changed for me, maybe seeing him live and how the audience completely connects to him, I’m not sure. I think the story of Kingston dethroning MJF could be very special. And I think it might actually happen. Akiyama says he'll be World Champion, and that's good enough for me. Really tho, AEW has a lot of potential top babyfaces (many already mentioned in the thread eg. Darby, Hangman etc.). The difference between AEW and WWE is much clearer as it relates to Cody’s appeal in either company. Sure he could have used a better editor in AEW, but the real difference is more obvious - simply put the massive WWE brand/branding machine. Moxley, Danielson etc. jumping back to WWE and given the Cody push would easily be on par with where Cody’s appeal level is right now. If not higher. And I say that as a Cody fan (tho, he's cornier in Titan with the verbiage than he was in AEDub). On top of the branding, WWE is clearly more of a broadly appealing product - something ppl should really consider more when they compare ratings, market share, etc. Further, I’'m very grateful AEW doesn’t look to what WWE is doing to grow their company. I’m thankful there isn’t a sudden emphasis on long winded promos and hackneyed high drama. Sure, there’s some, but it doesn’t dominate the shows. The Bloodline, in particular, has driven great business for WWE, but to me that shit is a total snooze outside of Sami Zayn’s too-good-for-wrestling-chops. I’m very grateful for AEW sticking to their guns and playing the long game with their clearly stronger in ring product. There’s enough room for improvement in what they already do to start booking like a McMahon family member.

Very curious to see how this ROH roster shapes up. Does the gone but not forgotten lost stars of the past (Miro, Archer, Ogogo etc.) come off the bench? I have a hunch the 'Bloated Roster' theorists might receive an answer to their bellyaches. Obviously there's a lot less prestige and exposure working a streaming service compared to Turner Television, but I kinda assume this is where ROH starts to potentially earn a slot. That Friday Night Rampage slot is looking more and more like a nice place to transition to.

Ronda Rousey and Shayna Baszler are legit bad asses. Natalya is a legit bad ass. Shotzi is going to get mauled, I'm assuming. And they do but Rousey goes up BIG for a Released German Suplex. Rousey is bumping all over the ring for Shotzi! Well, this is WAAAAY better than I thought. After the commercial. Shotzi is being mauled finally. Rousey is making Shotzi look like a total KILLER, taking a bump directly on her head on the apron! Natalya is great after the hot tag! Ronda Rousey taps Shotzi. Rousey was mothrfucking GREAT in that match. The Viking Raiders and Sheamus and Drew McIntyre are about to go at it! OH YEAH! THAT'S THE STUFF! Ivar applies a nerve hold. Sheamus and Bald Guy beat the hell out of each other. Drew tag in and throws the eight million pound Viking dudes around the ring! MICHINOKU DRIVER by Drew! FOR TWO! JESUS! SHEAMUS CRUSHES IVAR FROM THE TOPROPE in a Overhand Air Raid Crash! We go to a commercial. We return and Sheamus and Drew are beating on the Viking Raiders like drums. Erik hits a Powerbomb on Seamus! TOPE CON HILO by DREW! SHEAMUS saves Drew! Ivar hits a PREPOSTEROUSLY GIGANTIC SPLASH ON DREW! FOR TWO! Sheamus kicks Ivar! McIntyre Claymores Erik! FOR THE WIN! THAT was fucking GREAT. Asuka and Liv Morgan have a match! Random women wrestlers pop up around the announcing table. Asuka takes a toprope LUNGBLOWER like a fucking KING! And we go to commercial. Asuka and Liv do a bunch of stuff! Nikki Cross is all weird! Postmatch, everybody beats everybody up! That was good. Madcap Moss takes on GUNTHER! GUNTHER is awesome and he brings the STIFF! Moss makes with the Spinebuster! Moss looks good in this, as GUNTHER takes the low grade power offense really well. Nice Vertical Suplex and Swinging Neckbreaker by Moss. Moss with the Samoan Drop off the second rope! GUNTHER finally procures the Sleeper and he puts Moss away with Powerbomb. GUNTHER made Madcap Moss look great. GUNTHER rules. That was really good. That was a good batch of wrestling.

Keith Lee is a bizarro world babyface Uncle Rukus and Swerve is a heel Riley Freeman Nice of Know to allow use of international objects I agree with the first part but after reading his book and how hard he took Jan's death I kinda want him to do this until he dies cause its all he has left Wish they would do something sustained with Dustin, loved with countered Swerve's somersault thingamabob with a CRACKYAINTHEMOUTH kick Also nice little heel promo from Yuta , continuing BCC being tweeners with MOX heeling on Hangman lately

The Basketball Match maybe my new favorite gimmick match. Starting with the tipoff was hilarious. The Elite calling a timeout. He hit him with a three pointer! All balls legal! Nice to see Vertvixen for a minute. Dustin/Swerve ruled. Very bloody and the super rare DQ

They’re at 6951 tickets out right now. I think it will get to 8k just on the sheer momentum of producing an event, but it surely won’t be momentum of hot angles and matches unless these next two dynamites are something else. I’ll post about the live experience. This will be my first time at chase and I’m looking forward to the sexy new building. The contrast between chase and the cow palace 5 days before will be something else.

Only if Mania is in the Egg Dome.

Kenny / Gunther at WM. Let’s get the first ever 19 star match.

I'm getting a very Lawler in ECW from Total Nonstop Associates (see what I did there!) simple, easy effective heat!

Unless they've re-signed and there are big plans for them, why bring FTR back to TV just to beat them again? They lost three straight on the way out, let it rest.

Yeah, we're firmly in the northeast (hence the Indy territory's name lol) so definitely Vince-country - I'm sure that perception is at least somewhat in play here. It's been a long couple decades since March '01

I think critics are very useful if you know that particular critic's quirks. Like, I know to take Meltzer's New Japan ratings with a grain of salt. I'll listen to what Steven Hyden writes about a heartland rock band, because I know that's his wheelhouse. If I know a movie critic has hated every Marvel movie and thinks they're bad for cinema, I may take him/her hating Ant Man lightly. However, if a critic that has generally been into Marvel pans it, then it may mean a little more to me.

Amusingly, I’m the opposite. Audience scores mean absolutely nothing to me. Audience gave Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom a 77% and that movie was shit soup. People are going to like things they want to like to begin with unless it’s a special kind of bad.

Gimme a couple more weeks of this and Punk's definitely coming back.

The whole "he needs to go somewhere else and call plays" thing is infuriating. Doug Pederson and Matt Nagy didn't call plays under Reid either, and they both got head coaching jobs pretty damn quick, while not having as good of offenses as Bieniemy has.

I'd love to see John Dynamite's reality play out. Watching the Elite promo on Wednesday, I struggled to imagine Punk working with those clowns. Give me some of that good Punk-MJF stuff. Re: Cody's weirdness in AEW, that's fair. But seeing how well received he is as a babyface in WWE now, I sometimes wonder if AEW doesn't have it in them to build a top babyface like this and support them in a serious way. Their biggest attempt thus far has been Hangman Page, but that's been so wishy-washy and dripping with anxiety that it's almost undermined him as having had a serious top guy push. That's before we take into account that he was clearly a tier below Punk during that whole run (as he should have been). And everything is so here's a segment and move on that it often feels like there's no serious push behind most things on the show. They don't need to replay things to the degree they do on the other channel, but I have no doubt AEW could have the current version of Cody Rhodes right now if they'd done more to commit to him and his character. For as much as Cody is being rewritten as a bad fit for AEW, AEW might have failed to capitalize and collaborate and shape him into that top spot.

This needs to come back. Heels grabbing the ropes (or a tag team partner or seconds hand) during the move. We need more rope assisted offence from heels period. I bet it would draw huge heat in an era where everyone does flips ad nauseum

Where was this energy from critics for Love & Thunder last year? This feels overdue.

I love the vast difference in opinion on Rotten Tomatoes when it comes to audiences (84%) vs critics (48%). I don’t care what some dude who reviews movies for the New Yorker thinks about a comic book movie.

Yeah the last year's worth of Cody angles in AEW were pretty bad, and the crowds were turning on him. His WWE jump was best for everyone involved.

The Elite, proven ratings poison. Jeff Jarrett, proven ratings draw.

They still make amyl nitrate or some variant these days, I believe. Meanwhile: THE BANSHEES OF INISHERIN Is Actually A Horror Film - Fangoria THIS. Holy shit, they nailed it. If I had to explain why I never want to see Banshees again without going into my personal stuff, I'd ask someone to read this.

I think Mike Rotundo/a did this with his own Syracuse education as part of the Varsity Club as well. It's such an easy heat go-to that I'm surprised more people don't do it now.

I can't stop thinking about the spot in the last Joe/Darby match when Joe picked Darby up off his feet and threw him over the top. Not a hip lock, not a biel, just one human being internally saying "fuck this" and hurling another human being to the ground lack a sack of garbage. It was somehow the least pro wrestling thing ever and the MOST pro wrestling thing ever.

Friend of mine called it "Mass Effect: Picard" and is completely happy.

See, I never just did things just to do them. Come on, what am I gonna do? Just all of a sudden jump up and grind my feet on somebody's couch like it's something to do? Come on. I got a little more sense then that. [pause] Yeah, I remember grinding my feet on Eddie's couch.

9/1/90: Jumbo vs Misawa II: Misawa is even more confident now. Jumbo's even grumpier. They collide. There's a bit earlier on that plays on the previous match's test of strength/surfboard fest. Last time, Jumbo kept overcoming only to get kicked in the face. This time, he's more on the defensive. It's one thing for Misawa to outquick him. It's another entirely for him to beat Jumbo at his own game and he's doing it more and more in this match. That's not to say Jumbo doesn't get mule kicked for his trouble. Misawa even makes headway slugging it out, but Jumbo's too much for him there. After some clever stuff early where Jumbo went low instead of high like Misawa was expecting and those strength spots, the match meanders just a little with some of the holds. There's yet another belly to back attempt where, this time, Misawa turns it into a pin attempt and Jumbo turns it around for two. We're in the land of callback spots now. Misawa really starts to fire back after hitting the top rope forearm smash that knocked out Fuchi, for instance. That finally pushes Jumbo over the edge though and he just beats the hell out of a prone Misawa. Eventually Misawa finds his strength and fires back and beats down Jumbo in the corner and it's ephemeral as he can't keep that pressure on like Jumbo can, but it's also striking since it would have been impossible to imagine a few months before. The finishing stretch is pretty good but Misawa is able to hit a German but not the frog splash or a Tiger Driver and Jumbo just hits too hard. Misawa survives a good deal but eventually succumbs to a bridging belly to back and it's pretty definitive if you just look at the finishing stretch. That would be a mistake as Misawa asserted himself even more here and there was a sense of a tide shifting even more. Post match, Jumbo cuts an awesome promo where he says he wants to see Misawa continue to develop and face him again and that everyone in Japan knows that Jumbo Tsuruta is the true ace of All Japan. Awesome stuff, though I don't think this match was overall as good as their last one maybe (or even the recent Kobashi one but I bet people might disagree with me on that?).

I'm late! It is on at an odd time! It's The Elite! It's AR Fox and Top Flight! There is a basketball theme! FUN! AR Fox is the George Gervin of highflyers- so classy and elegant. Okay, I am now tired of the basketball crap. AR Fox is a great Ricky Morton. Dante Martin and Kenny Omega is as good as Omega and Fox! Then all kinds of stuff happens and this is just an overstuffed crust pizza of a wrestling match. ONE WINGED ANGEL on Darius! OH NO! THE LIGHTS WENT OUT! BRODY KING! MALAKAI BLACK! Oh! That'll be good! Oh man, Yuta vs Orange Cassidy! That'll be good. It's Daniel Garcia! It's Ricky Starks! Oh man! Nice punch by Starks! Garcia hits a beautiful Dragonscrew to start his FORAY into beating the crap out of Starks. So Starks is wrestling like Jerry Lawler. He punches to transition. Great Lariat by Starks to counter his mangled knee! Garcia looks fucking GREAT in this. ACTION ANDRETTI! SAMMY! Ricky Starks goes all out on ADRENALINE and hits a lot of offense. GREAT finish. That match was pretty great. Garcia and Starks have a real chemistry and I hope they battle it out for many years to come. It's Dustin Rhodes! It's Shane Swerve Strickland! DUSTIN BLEEDS after Swerve drops a GNARLY dropkick to Dustin's face. Swerve is fucking great in picture in picture beating on the open wound. CODE RED! FOR TWO! GREAT DEATH VALLEY DRIVER ON THE APRON by Swerve! GREAT SUPERPLEX by Dustin! INTO A PILEDRIVER! FOR TWO! Parker Boudreaux! DQ~! BOUDREAUX IS WARDLOW! KEITH LEE! I would like to see more Dustin/Strickland matches. Well that was an awesome batch of wrestling. AEW RULES THE E E MOTHREFUCKING WORLD!

Apparently Dax said he wants to come back before April now...

Eh, Dark World isn't that bad either. It's like the Mendoza line for MCU movies.

I'm working under the assumption that they're sticking around.

If you had to guess, what would you say the reason is that Bienemy hasn't gotten a head coaching gig?

Sounds a lot like Honky's wwf debut

The CML matches were fun. Gave Becky/Bayley the vote to make sure it got some love, but Lee/OC & ZSJ/Ishii were every bit as good.

I'm of two minds on the MJF reign so far: has it been a slightly underwhelming start? Yes. But, do I think it was really important to go with a young, homegrown star on top after the last champ's public display of 'affection' to his co-workers and bosses? Also yes. I don't have access to any internal numbers, obviously, and I can't speak to any particular thought processes outside of baseless speculation, but it might be a situation where TK weighed what they might lose in eyeballs and asses, and decided it was worth it to reinvigorate and/or reassure the locker room. (As an aside, I feel there's a realistic possibility that Darby's brief TNT title reign and OC's AA title victory may have even served similar purposes) I think the intended vibe was supposed to be something like when Rock won the WWF title at the Survivor Series Deadly Game tournament in '98, where it's obvious you've got this young, future champ on your hands, and you're gonna roll with it even though the guy is probably in reality still 6 months to a year away from solidifying themselves. Now let's see if Danielson can do his best Foley; if anyone can, it's him.

Oh man, the Titan-A is a Constitution Remodel, and the score is totally a rearrangement of the Horner score. Because it looks like we're getting a whole lot of TWoK vibes this time.

This saddens me. Thanks for calling that out, fella xxx.

Which was a silly question and a silly answer because one logically leads to the other. Also annoying as I want there to constantly be something I'm watching on Disney+. There should always be some sort of Marvel or Star Wars (or Willow or Jeff Goldblum learning about LARPing) show every week. There are a billion characters and a billion subgenres. Screw the Zeitgeist. Ride the wave. They haven't even gotten to the X-Men yet. A show every two months!

Darby did a coffin drop with a barrel. Nobody could hate that.

Holy shit! ADAM COLE!