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moribund

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Everything posted by moribund

  1. Hey @AxB I leave this here for you: Katsuyori Shibata has the NJPW NEVER Openweight belt and has been roughing up the Third Generation (arguably not as bad as Inoki worked them over from behind the scenes... end snark) and the last one in his sights is Yuji Nagata. I'm hoping I guessed right here and this is in your wheelhouse.
  2. Thanks @NikoBaltimore, you landed smack in the middle of my most glaring blind spot: Lucha Libre. Considering I've spent most of my life in California (and was born & raised in SoCal) I have probably just admitted to some sort of wrestling crime - a misdemeanor at least. At first, just looking at the competitors, I thought I had seen this before but that was actually the Mask v/ Hair match between Eddie/Barr & Octagon/Hijo so I am essentially going into this blind. Having watched it I can sum up my reaction as follows: I am completely confused, but oddly delighted. I simply do not have enough knowledge of either Lucha conventions or the individual competitors (except for Eddie) to make heads or tails out of most of the match: Who won the first fall? Was there a first fall? Did those two refs have a beef? Why did Art Barr attack Eddie while wearing Hijo's mask? Why so much standing around? Does Lizmark always botch his first high spot? Will Octagon ever actually follow through on a dive? How long has Heavy Metal been hitting Hijo in the family jewels, and will Hijo catch either him or Art in the parking lot after some strategic icing? I am so confused, but had a great time getting there. Niko, did the fact I picked a Tully match weigh at all in your choice of this match? I ask because while I haven't a lot of Art Barr but he obviously had that "You are going to pay money to see me get punched in the face: Hate Me" skill that Tully had. What a tool. What a shame. My biggest wrestling related takeaway is that Hijo Del Santo has that same native smoothness that Barry Windham had. Even though I don't actually come away with a good understanding of this particular match I am absolutely struck by that seemingly effortless way of moving he had. Super impressive. My other takeaway is the delight in the commercials that remain attached to the footage. Why yes, I do want to save 15% on my international calls every Saturday. Thanks AT&T! And what about those poor people in the Penthouse of Death?! Oddly enough, there is a commonality for me in watching both the commercials and the match: I'm left using my vaguely recalled High School Spanish trying to understand both the commerce and the match announcers, and my imperfect understanding of the language of Lucha leaves me just as short in my understanding of the match. Thanks Niko, that was cool.
  3. @NikoBaltimore Here's something short and sweet that I think will satisfy the Territorial request: Maximum Jerkwaffle Tully Blanchard working a squash match on TV while JJ Dillon sells tickets picture-in-picture style...
  4. @Six String Orchestra provided me with this All Japan tag from 2017: I wasn't familiar with any of the participants going in, though did recognize the names Zeus and Jake Lee. Ended up watching it three times before writing about it, and weirdly enough I feel like I'm in three minds about it (if that's even a thing): I think there is a bunch of back story that might inform the match, it felt very much like a car with square wheels, and I ended up liking it more than maybe it deserved given its warts. Given some of the interactions, especially a couple of "I'm taking this opportunity to blast the non-legal opponent on the ring apron" spots, I wonder if everyone was building on either previous singles action or failed title challenges. There might have been more story culminating here than I have to work with. I didn't do any research, though I might later. Let's get those warts (at least as I perceive them) out of the way... I did not care at all for the first two strike exchanges, and blame them for the feeling of disjunction that stuck with me for a lot of the match. They just didn't come across as a replacement for something like an old-fashioned test of strength at the start or some submission reversals mid-match. I kind of wish that workers would come up with something new for that 'tension-building-contest' building block for matches because unless its done by folks like Suzuki, grumpy Nagata, or Ishii with the right opponent its just not grabbing me these days. Some of the timing seemed to be off, though some of that might have been the lingering effect of watching guys stand there waiting to receive chops early on - I think it made me hyper-sensitive to what may have been otherwise ignorable pauses. The match just didn't flow all that well for me, hence the square-wheeled car analogy. Lastly I got a really strong Bill Kazmaier vibes off The Bodyguard. I'm afraid my initial perception of him was heavily colored by the shortcomings of someone that I observed decades before he even got in the ring, and I feel a little bad about that. All of that being said I'm glad that I got to watch this, as even though there are nits (of varying sizes) to pick I ended up enjoying it. They got the crowd into it the match a good number of times which I first noticed when Nomura takes liberties during a very early rope break. For all that I didn't like the first two strike exchanges there was a third one that lead to the finishing stretch that I thought was really good - mostly because it was better timed and didn't have that 'stand there waiting' quality that afflicted the others. Lastly, and I was really surprised by how much I liked this spot in my final viewing, Jake Lee did what I thought was a great bit of delayed, dramatic selling in the closing stretch: Early in the match Lee gets one of his legs savaged - which is sold to varying degrees throughout the match, from 'over-' to 'no-.' With Nomura and The Bodyguard the legal men Lee enters the ring to remove Zeus from the equation. Lee almost reflexively uses a couple of beautiful knee lifts at the end of the sequence to put Zeus down... then makes it immediately obvious that this was a mistake and that while he was successful he's aggravated the damage to his own leg, and while Zeus has been neutralized Lee has done so at the cost of his own further effectiveness. It was a little thing that made me wish there were more things like it throughout the match, but rather than making me sour on the match for the lost opportunity it fit blinders to my head about other shortcomings. So that was neat. Thumbs up from me. Not everything is going to be an all-timer, and this was (im)perfectly acceptable pro wrestling. I will definitely be checking out more modern All Japan. Thanks! (here endeth my very first wrestling review on DVDVR, I feel like a giddy schoolgirl)
  5. Here you go @Six String Orchestra, a bit of All Japan tag action: As for me I have broad and shallow knowledge, as befits someone who has lurked around here for 12+ years. Since I haven't been active doing write ups just about anything is fair game as far as I'm concerned though like you I'd rather stay away from WWE (specifically modern stuff). I'm pretty strictly Youtube/DailyMotion for consumption. The only thing I really don't care for are death matches (some blood in a cage match is one thing, but light tubes etc. just aren't my bag). Let me know if you would like more specific guidance.
  6. I would like to do this thing, hope that's good with folks.
  7. Practicing a bit of thread necromancy here - not entirely sure that is wise given my post count, but what the hell... To add responses to some of the calls that have happened since: Donald "Buck Dharma" Roeser - seriously, listen to "Godzilla," then tell me there isn't a career's worth of licks in one goddamn song. Link Wray - Poison Ivy may not happen without him, and Poison Ivy is as good an answer as anyone and better than a lot. Jimmy Page - I think a victim of his/their (as in 'Zeppelin's) success. Too big, and thus often discounted out of hand and not easily seen as the force that he was. My personal opinion (as if any of my scribblings are objective truth) is that his greatest strength was as an arranger rather than a player. Maybe. Scott Gorham/Brian Robertson - So much feel and spirit in their work. The guitar work in "The Cowboy Song" has literally moved me to tears on multiple occasions, and I am not sorry. Also, "Johnny the Fox" is funky as hell. Zappa/Belew/Vai - I have to go with Adrian Belew here. I know Zappa is a genius but he has seldom grabbed me, and I've seen Steve Vai on a few occasions and he sort of leaves me cold even as I sit there wondering how the hell he did what he was doing. Belew, on the other hand, I've never been lucky enough to see live but hearing his work with The Talking Heads, The Bears, and most of all King Crimson puts him in the lead for me among the three. Robert Fripp - What the FUCK goes on in that guy's head? Seriously? I was fortunate enough to see the 'Crims on two consecutive nights last year and not only were the set lists different, but they had slightly different arrangements on the songs they did play twice. Remarkable, and the best musicianship I've been able to experience outside of the San Francisco Symphony. I kind of wonder how/why Fripp never worked with Alan Holdsworth... Malcom Young - Okay, this is probably the correct answer. Going into Final Jeopardy this is the name I'd write down. New names for discussion: Phil Campbell from Motorhead, Terry Kath from Chicago. Concept for discussion: Are there actually any number of answers to the original question? I think it has to be multiple correct answers, which may then ask another question, "Who's the greatest -X- guitarist?" Example: I can't think of a better Eddie Van Halen than Eddie Van Halen, but for me personally Tony MacAlpine is a better Yngwie Malmsteen... This post brought to you by Sunday Night Cocktails.
  8. Because apparently I am approaching an existential crisis that heavy drinking can no longer stave off, and my internal DJ is aware of the fact...
  9. Dark horse suggestion: Mike Campbell from the late and lamented Tom Petty's Heartbreakers & Mudcrutch. He never seems to have played three notes when two would do, and if any of those ended up being bum notes I never heard them. Other names for the hat... Scotty Moore Buddy Guy Stevie Ray Vaughan Steve Howe Eric Johnson
  10. Watching that Hokuto / Nakano cage match a couple of pages back made me think "Hell, I'd rather be in a strap match with Wahoo McDaniel than in the same ring with either of those two." Which then made me think... Maybe this has too much story for proper clubberin' but I thought I wouldn't be going too far wrong posting this.
  11. Loooong time lurker here. Thought the folks around these parts might like to see this:
  12. Frequent reader, almost non-existent poster, but: I've had the same thing happen, though I can't tell you which link I clicked on. The redirect sends you to 'softwareupdaterlp dot com,' and before I started nuking history & cookies & running MalwareBytes & so forth, I know it happened on this board. Since then it's happened to me twice, though from different boards (vegasmessageboard.com & prowrestlingonly.com). Maybe it's something coming through the banners? Wish I could be of more help.
  13. If you liked Ka, and you have the dough, consider getting tickets to 'O' at the Bellagio. My wife and I have been twice and both think 'O' is amazing. 'Love,' the Beatles inspired show at The Mirage, is also really good - but of course you need to like the Beatles. Excalibur, for all its faults, is a much better location. I second the avoid the Excalibur buffet advice. It's better than Circus Circus, but that is damning with faint praise. If you do end up at the Excalibur you've also got MGM Grand two bridges away, so you are really spoiled for choice as far as restaurant options go. Some of the high end places like Emeril's at the MGM will do pretty reasonable fixed price menus from time to time, and it's a great way to hit above your weight (and add to your weight,as far as that goes) if you are on a budget.
  14. You might consider checking out the Boyd properties downtown: The Fremont, California, or especially Main Street Station. I've stayed at Main Street Station on my last two trips and really enjoyed the place. It's been years since I stayed at Circus Circus, but I am willing to bet the rooms at MSS are cleaner, bigger, and possibly cheaper considering you won't get dinged a "resort fee." The staff is also super engaged and nice, plus there are Hawaiian specialty food items available (which may or may not be a selling point, of course).
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