thee Reverend Axl Future

I dig The Gambler the mostest, always have, but what in Blue Tarnation is a Jimmy Graffiti? - I miss squash matches, RAF That's Gigolo Jimmy Del Ray, baby! Alas, I know who it is but I maybe I should have say "WHY". "Yeah, the kids like this graffiti stuff, so you'll be Jimmy GRAFFITI. Get it?" What if GraffitiMania started running wild, a grassroots swell of disaffected urban teens and rebellious suburban youth, all seeing themselves and their hopes and dreams in the airbrushed tatters of JG, an early Daniel Bryan of Southern stock (southern Pennsylvania, natch), a simple man with a can who made the corporate suits over at Turner stand up and take notice with his ring gyrations and modern murals. He sprayed his way to victory, and We listened. sponsored by Krylon, RAF

But you know that THart would soon turn on the dog: "I'm a Paul Heyman guy - and a cat person!" to set up the ultimate Canine vs. Feline Interspecies Showdown match at WM31. -RAF

I dig The Gambler the mostest, always have, but what in Blue Tarnation is a Jimmy Graffiti? - I miss squash matches, RAF

Re Sato vs. Ueda: the storytelling aspect in the matches of many modern Japanese smaller feds like this example is so so solid*, but the psychology (the way that the story gets expressed) is odd to me. It definitely requires the audience to know some of the background and history of the workers involved (which is cool), but I feel like the wrestlers rely too much on that, as if "hey, you all are in on this so I am gonna play it broadly and light, and when the stiff parts of the match happen it will make it seem so much more significant". Kinda post-modern, by requiring the viewer to work with the participants and meet them halfway, so the audience thusly becomes involved not through emotion (the classic U.S. style of getting the marks into the show) but through identification and humanization of the wrestlers. Sometimes I see this in Chikara as well. Lucha has a similar learning curve for appreciation, but the psychology is less campy, less po-mo, more straightfaced (yeah, plenty of camp and going for the boffo yocks and broad strokes but only with the STORY not the method of storytelling) so the wrestlers seem bigger than life, the crowd gets emotionally (as opposed to intellectually?) involved. Sorry, long day at work and still trying to find a way express my thoughts on this. I did enjoy the match. - RAF *far ahead of what most of the WWE can do (or are given the chance to do).

Brooke's plastic surgery went badly, I guess? On the contrary: it turned out exactly how they wanted it. Next on the slate - the Hulkster gets a boob job. project Pandrogeny, RAF

The Prowrestlingchannel has the free matches of a middling indy group with an option to subscribe (I haven't) and MaddyGTV carries the often festive AAW There is Ringscoops as well, never watched it and TVbyDemand,com has Loco Wrestling. I think there is one more, I gotta check. When no one is around, i have been known to watch OPW on my TV via YouTube. - RAF

Just because you didn't mention it, I am assuming that you haven't been to any indie shows lately. I am outraged: you (still?) live in Philly and haven't tried out any of the dozens of South Jersey groups (On Point Wrestling is fun), CZW, House of Hardcore, that great Masked Republic lucha card a couple months ago, or even some of the silly Extreme Rising shows? If live wrestling doesn't rekindle the fire, then take a sabbatical. If you want to watch again in a few months then do so. What you wrote is as if somebody said to me "gee, I really don't enjoy music lately", and I come to discover that they only listen to pop radio. There's is a whole world of alternative, underground, grass-roots, DIY, indy, cutting edge, etc sounds out there being made, over the inter Webs, on CD/vinyl/cassette and most importantly LIVE. Hell, there is more music than one can listen to in a lifetime that's already been produced. Put a bit of effort into it and you will be rewarded. If the Pizza Hut on the corner is making you sick, then don't tell me you don't like food - get off your duff and try the local pizzeria down the block, or the pub, or the seafood restaurant or buy a cookbook. Not to blame the victim, but since you posted up here for advice or a solution or commiseration, I feel the next step is to be more pro-active, or step away for awhile. I enjoy the WWE, I think it's been fun lately, and I feel like $9.95 is a fair amount to give them a month for what I get back. When I am not enjoying something, I FFw it or turn it off. If I am in the mood for rasslin', I have the rest of the WWENetwork, youTube, tapes, DVDs and so on. On the Roku and 'net I can find indy, Japanese and lucha as well, and there are plenty of shows on the weekends to round up a passel of friends for and go enjoy. It's a fine time to be a fan. pshaw, RAF p,s, - I still love thee, Mr. McMahon.

Not great, even for a B-level PPV---eerrr... "special event". However, the PPVs are merely a bonus for me, Network-wise, so I can't identify with several people's virulent exasperation with the current state of the WWE. - I would love to see a gif that showed Swagger taking that post because Lana's reaction to it was brilliant. - did Roman Reigns get them there fancy cargo pants at a Hardy Boyz garage sale? - the pre-show was horrific. The Cameron/Naoml match was a gawddamn abortion of a bowling shoe. However, Layla looked outstanding with textbook examples of what my Uncle Benji calls "headlights". - was BWyatt wearing makeup to augment his bruised eye? Jericho had smears on him from something. - the tag was fun, but it's easy to have a barnburner with dozens of near falls going on. Everyone's timing was great; Harper for MVP. The Battle Royal was entertaining as well, despite several screw-ups. I anticipate some festive weasely championship shenanigans from the Miz. I do not fear for Cesaro. If there is nothing for him currently, it is typical for a period of de-pushing. - I really dug on Orton's takedown into the half crab. I would rather see some elimination 3 or 4 ways to mix the formula up a bit. - Paige really looks lost on the big stage. - sounded like they had to sweeten the crowd sounds several times. And by Odin's Beard, I can't stand these modern crowds and their chantings. The entrances were very underdeveloped. my $.02/9.95, RAF

Cultivate yourself into this man's confidence, and sit at his knee to learn. He is a sage of deep perception. - RAF

Team Sleazeball: Shinsuke Nakamura & Dean Ambrose, managed by Jimmy Del Ray. They could arrived at ringside in a '74 Chevy van. JDR is driving with Black Oak Arkansas blaring. The side door opens and an avalanche of tallboy beer cans and mini-kegs of saki pour out. Nakamura shakes Ambrose awake while lacing up his boots. Ambrose relights a butt and passes it to his partner as they shuffle to the ring. The aroma of whiskey and truckstop burgers is palpable to the front three rows. Del Ray bums a coke from a fan a ringside and grabs the timekeepers chair: hangovers are a bitch. Another day in paradise... -go jim dandy, RAF

It's from here: Highly recommended, as is the sequel "Gator". - "the good, they die young", RAF

Wrestlers don't get really interesting until after they hit forty, in my opinion. Having to use one's mind and not only one's physical abilities, as well as having a greater wealth of experience to draw on, makes for a deeper performance. This viewpoint is skewed towards an older generation of workers who didn't have such an extreme high-impact ring-style to keep up with. Doing more with less it the sign of brilliance. - RAF

Funk v. Bockwinkel v. Flair for thee RStevens mantle is a heavy heavy concept, and needs more thought then discussion. - RAF

Rick Rude started as a baby (Rick Rood) and Jimmy Hart turned him in Mempho. Rude/Fernandez were heels. One Man Gang was a baby as Crusher Bloomfield in ICW and as Panama Gang (I believe) when Kevin Sullivan threw him out of his coven. He battled them (I saw a Gang v. Superstar Billy Graham match in CWF circa '84, I think) before going to Mid-South/UWF. It's easier to find an all-babyface worker than an all-heel one. Most heels get a face run when they get betrayed and/or at the end of their career. I would have to say there must be a foreign/monster heel who stayed heel. Malenko? Saito? Fuji? Ox Baker? - RAF

...or outed their on-the-road philandering to their wives. not cool, RAF

"Every worker that gets a contract with New York buys three things: a Halliburton briefcase, a Rolex watch and snakeskin cowboy boots." When Greg Valentine told me that, he had two out of three (Adidas sneakers) and no WWF contract. emmis, RAF

The announcers would always imply that the racquet was loaded, and JC would tease it in his interviews. In his Midnight Express record book (highly recommended) he told of multiple rackets, and when they would work in an arena with violent fans he had one with a metal plate under the cover. Occasionally one of the ME or their opponents would use the gimmicked racquet in the match, causing much hurting to the boys, - mama's boy, RAF

From today's WON update: "--The Masked Republic show at the Arena in Philadelphia from April will air on regular PPV on tape delay in the fall. That's the show with L.A. Park vs Dr. Wagner Jr. on top. " Six months, now that's a delay! I hope they can bleep out the cusswords. But seriously, this show was great and well worth a viewing, luchamark, RAF

Modern roller derby, in my experience, is not worked. They take it very easy on each other for a contact sport - if an amateur or semi-pro hockey team was as tentative and "light" as they are, they would get laughed off the ice. The ladies enjoy the theatricality but have no concept of working or heat. Many are not aware that 90% of historical roller derby was worked. It's a very grrl power environment, and a small niche market. Most are run as a co-op, but the frequent fund-raisers show that they don't make to much money. In many leagues the players pay dues to play and practice, so somebody carny enough may be making money off of it. Like an indy wrestling promotion, most of the non-tesm members are volunteers. Dave really liked classic derby and I like his coverage (usually an obit) of the sport, I don't think he is too aware of any of it's modern incarnations. It's too punk rawk for him. Disclaimer: I have more first hand knowledge of Midwest and East Coast RD. The California and PNW versions seem more serious and may actually make a profit. I miss Ms. Georgia Hase and Skinny Minnie, RAF

GIF request from yesterday's MitB: Rowan's lizard-like tongue-lash selling of his missed charge into the corner/shoulder into the ringpost (he did miss a lot of moves in that match) thanks I know you can do it, RAF

FTFY With the fixes, this became truth. Isn't the point of giving someone a belt is because they are over enough? No, not at all. A title is given because the company thinks they can make more money with it on a particular worker over any other. It can be given because someone has gained the trust and respect of management. It can be used to put a target on a babyface or to position someone as the "best wrestler". A heel can use it to get heat by retaining it. I can think of several reasons (the first mentioned being the most important) but I cannot imagine an instance when it was passed to someone because they were "over enough". - RAF

I enjoyed it. The WWEN makes it fun and easy to watch PPVs. I really liked the Usos/Wyatts tag, it was laid out very classically. The Divas title match was amateurish. I really wanted to like Big E v. Rusev but I didn't. JBL was cracking me up: "I never kissed Bronko Lubich" (confession - I also laffed at Lawler's muffler joke). Did anyone else catch an official dragging Jeb away from ringside just before Kane's pyro hit? Both ladder matches were festive. I am a Dust Head. And thank you, Randy Orton, for bringing some color to the modern WWE. - RAF

Those Brits really love their splosh porn. - treacle & custard, RAF

Huzzah for Johnny Legend, the original rock'n'rassling connection! - RAF

Contemplate withholding pin money to get their uncaring/cynical/fresh take on modern wrestling. This is a tough era for journalism, and requires extreme measures. - RAF (bad dad)