Just Dave

I'd need to give it a second watch. I think this is by far the best use of the Bucks from a character perspective. They aren't at all likeable, so why pretend they are? The cynic in me thinks they grounded Top Flight so as to not be shown up by them, but I'll admit that that's my own extreme cynicism.

I mean, I have trouble believing Tony Schiavone couldn't kick the shit out of both Jacksons, but that was my only real complaint about this show...

What pay per view outlet will that CMLL card be on? Also, I keep hearing here and other places that AEW is on life support. It's nuts; for a company that is allegedly on death's door, there sure are a lot of things picking up/going well. There's the huge pay per view crowds, the huge free agent signings (Okada, Mone, Ospreay), and now QT Marshall coming back on a backstage role. I'm not equating Marshall's importance to those others, but he's definitely a dude who would know if the ship he were re-boarding were sinking or not. Either a) he was told unequivocally "nah. hard pass" by the competition, b) the friend he has who is a huge mover and shaker at the competition told him "hey, not everything is Mai Thai's and Yahtzee over here", or c) QT just sees AEW as a viable long term employer. Marshall coming back will help in several ways, not the least of which would be giving "Cody guys" like Rick Starks, Ethan Page, Red Velvet, Preston Vance and others an advocate backstage. I get the sense Starks is looking for reasons to stay, and having his good friend QT back in a producer/talent relations role can't at all hurt.

I spent the second half of last season as the videographer for the Augusta (GA) Greenjackets. Excited to get going for my second year. Highlights last year; Seeing Hurston Waldrep dominate in his only Low A start. He ended the year in AAA and is a big league camp invitee for the Braves. Meeting Braves organist Matt Kaminski. Fantastic human and exactly my kind of eccentric. Watching Ambioris Tavarez finish strong. He's under tremendous pressure as the Braves first international FA signing post ban, and he appears to finally be making strides. He's a puppy with big paws. All the tools are there. I'd love to see him put it all together. Mostly because I've got lots of signed stuff. Goofing around with Augie, the mascot. My 3 year old son is a huge Augie fan and he thinks Dad is the absolute coolest for being Augie's buddy. We do a thing where we dance on the dugout and throw t-shirts and my son looked at me like I invented cable television. It's comforting that I can one day remind him that at one point, he thought I was cool. Meeting Alex Anthopoulos. I so very rarely get starstruck, but he just exudes... confidence and knowledge. Bobbleheads. I love bobbleheads.

I could be into that, too. I like the Lethal Lottery idea better but this isn't a bad shout, other than I feel like it maybe makes the outcome a little less in doubt...

Rock really is by miles and miles the best part of Be Cool. Jumanji is fun. It's not gonna be mistaken for high art, but it's entertaining from minute 1 until the end. Everyone in those movies is swinging for the fences. It's the goodest of shit.

I think it might be fun with Malakai to like, tease that he has some kind of supernatural abilities. Not out and out say it, and not have anything he does be too outlandish, but just little stuff. Like, in the fantasy booked Lethal Lottery tourney some of us have suggested, have Black & Matthews be paired together at random and Black is standing there smiling like he had something to do with it. Overt magic in pro wrestling is dumb, but mind games are fun. The key is that it would have to be somewhat plausible that Black could just be really sneaky and manipulative, but he could also be influencing the company by supernatural means. And he never gives a straight answer. He just shrugs when asked about it, or says something like "I like magic." You never say he's magic. You never have him do overtly supernatural shit. He just has a lot of things go his way at opportune times that leads to success. I don't think that's ever been done, and I think he's the perfect guy to do that with.

Yes. Adam Cole has much less upside than those people. He should be far, far behind them in the pecking order. Was I not clear? I'm sorry...

Nope. There sure isn't. He has less upside than anyone else you listed there, and there's probably some others, too. Kingston and the HOB guys, for example...

Or Michael Bay working with anyone but Nicholas Cage. Or Bruce Willis.

There's really no reason to do it, but they need established tag teams not named Jackson. It'd be hilarious if Starks/Big Bill said they were amicably going their separate ways and then get partnered up in the draw. They're the team S&O face in the finals. Then maybe you turn Starks on Bill, depending on whether or not Ricky thinks it'd be more fun to toil in nXt as Stark Richards than be in a top spot on AEW TV. If he's leaving, let him shine Large William up on the way out.

Well, I'll tell you this; someone suggested a Lethal Lottery- type tournament when/if Darby & Sting vacate the Tag Titles. I'm predicting, because I'd find it entertaining, that that's how Santana & Ortiz get back together and finally win their long overdue AEW Championships. I'm also predicting some kind of title reign for Ruby Soho, because it would rule, and she deserves it. I'm also predicting that Swerve/Page/Joe will fornicate.

Nobody wants that. All my predictions are based on who I like/think would be good. I don't consider the other audience members or talent. The AEW I've booked in my head is probably really only entertaining to me...

I think I'm just at a stage in life where I don't enjoy this "look how epic this is!" shit. I'm too cynical in nature to buy into all this spectacle, especially because all this spectacle is being employed to divert eyes from how morally bankrupt and reprehensible the people running this company have been for the last 40 years, and we're all just supposed to pretend like some poor girl wasn't g-ng r-ped in a closet at company headquarters just a couple years ago. It fucking sucks, and I'm not gonna pretend it doesn't. These same people knew what Vince McMahon was doing and now they get to go on with business as usual. But yeah, yay! It's gonna be a good show! The only story I wanna see finished in WWE is the one where Vince goes to prison for the rest of his life. Sorry. I really didn't mean to shit on this so hard because I know there are people who genuinely enjoy this product. It just really fucking bothers me that most people don't seem to care that this company is still chock full of both employees and performers who knew what Vince was doing and did absolutely nothing about it.

They gotta re-sign Ricky. Now’s the time, while Cody’s all somber and wwe’s lost the “can do no wrong” luster. Fantastic show. Question: I’ve not paid much attention to CMLL. Have any of those guys been in wwe recently as LHP guys or anything?

Just this once, I’d have Mercedes come out and spoil the announcement that she’ll be debuting in March. You get the surprise AND you get to announce her debut ahead of time. Like, do a thing where TK is gonna say something and then Mercedes appears.

I would think that he, as much as anyone, is watching this Cody situation closely. I’m also skeptical that the current power structure remains intact @ wwe.

Looks like TK is committing dollars to the womens division. Deonna, Mercedes, Kamille. That’s good. Also, Toni Storm is killing it. Mariah May is gonna be a star. Thunder Rosa is back, Red Velvet is back. Jamie Hayter will be back soon. Ruby Soho is a stalwart. This is a deep, talented division, and best of all, there’s no reason to pretend Britt Baker is special anymore…

I’m thinking this announcement is a special show in the Boston area to debut Mercedes.

This show ruled ass, and is exactly what AEW needs to keep doing while WWE offends its audience with nonsense. Keep having banger matches featuring weird-ass matchups that you can't get anywhere else. Your audience will find you.

So, one of my resolutions for 2024 was to not yuck other people's yum. I've never thought that WWE's creative was any more satisfying that it had been, but I also chalked that up to just not caring about the folks WWE was choosing to feature. My thought was "Seth Rollins is an active channel changer for me, but if the people who like him think this is good booking, maybe it is." But this decision to go with Rock instead of Cody. Ooof. That's bad. It also reinforces my belief that deep down, Triple H is still the guy who wants to point and laugh at the smart marks for caring too much about the product. He's still the guy who's default is to answer any criticism with "how's your wrestling company going?" One thing I do hope comes from this is that we can all as a collective move past the idea that bringing back Johnny Gargano to come out to silence every week is Triple H "cooking" somehow. He inherited the Bloodline thing, has run it into the ground, and is right back to creative bankruptcy. He had Sami Zayn get hotter than any babyface since Daniel Bryan and passed him over. He had the chance to do something with the Judgment Day besides making them a total joke, but that's gone. Meanwhile, we're on iteration #7-8 of Karrion Kross, and no one gives a fuck. Tony Khan has many flaws as an executive, but I can't remember the last event he presented where there weren't at least 3-4 matches booked that made me think "goddamn, I didn't know I wanted to see that, but holy shit do I." It feels like WWE is right back to saying "we're the attraction, not the talent." It sucks, and I'm not gonna say it doesn't.

Oh, I just meant the "I used PED's to recover" excuse. Seems like his name never gets brought up with the rest of those guys...

The rolls are the weak link, imo. Get your sub of choice as a wrap. Will blow your mind-hole. Also, they've got every veg under the sun at my Publix. What aren't you seeing there?

It worked for Andy Pettitte.

Oh, this is 100% true, and I think evangelicals by and large get very loose in their interpretation of "redemption" as it pertains to presidents who, i don't know, banged p-rn stars while their wives were in labor or megachurch pastors who embezzle money but tell their congregation what they want to hear about their faith aligning with their personal values. It's my very least favorite thing about religion. Here in the south it's running rampant...