Custos
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Posts posted by Custos
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That Dynamite just flew by with so much to enjoy. Kingston/Archer was everything I hoped for (aside from Eddie going arse over tit on that chokeslam) being two of my favourites on the roster. Loved the dynamics and violence between the two, and boy did Lance just keel over like a big redwood with the loaded punch. Very satisfying.
Enjoyed the pace of Jungle Boy/Dax and the match flow did feel like a throwback (although maybe I just have had that word hammered into my brain through the repetition on commentary). Is the Tarzan Boy sing-a-long the most rhythmically complex wrestling chant that could potentially catch on fire? It reminds me of a soccer chant, I could imagine a full stadium joyously belting it out after a few beers.
The juxtaposition of Mox's stripped-down, unplugged, what-you-see-is-what-you-get presentation and PAC's spooky church hall CRT TV-induced rage is quite striking.
Thunder Rosa's exasperated eye-roll after the run-in was not quite at the famous Rock gif level but pretty respectable nonetheless, after another great Britt character performance.
I still have a soft spot for Pillman. He's not bad and he threw a mean missile dropkick so that has to count for something, right? Griff did look great though with all his flurries of offence and I was definitely ready for an upset. But I guess Jericho had to prove his haters and doubters wrong with a vintage Lionsault.
You just knew the amazing Grayson hot tag was coming and it was all the sweeter when it came, for me both he and Silver are neck-and-neck on the best hot tags in the company. I also don't have a problem with the Good Brothers bringing some ole Biz Cliz entertainment on a Wednesday.
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Between Jericho and the Top Flight guy already mentioned and Quen catching his foot on the top rope on way down for the Shooting Star press (which could have ended far worse) it was not a good night for the flippy-do's. I will say though that Darius' tope did look truly suicidal like he was trying to do a number on Hardy, not just give him a slight nudge like Pretty Peter's.
And Santana and Ortiz again are just bit players in the background, can't wait for them to have a featured run after the coming-out party of the brawl last year. At least 'Charles' is in a prominent storyline, albeit as a whipped emasculated servant.
I have to say, Omega's get-up was phenomenal. My late dad had some truly seizure-inducing paisley shirts just like that.
Enjoyed Hirsch/Ford and Mox/Comoroto (having been just introduced to him last night on Dark or the first time) the most out of all the matches tonight.
That main they announced for Beach Blast in a couple of weeks should be a riot too, depending on the level of shenanigans involved.
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6 hours ago, Infinit said:
Is it me or does Nick Comoroto look like a blown up Bobby Roode?
I was trying to think who he reminded me of! I caught Dark for the first time in ages, watching in the background between playing games. Sammy and Lucha Bros matches were entertaining for what they were, and the banter throughout did not disappoint.
I can't say I'm a fan of Butcher's new baggy trousers, they make his legs look skinnier and less flattering on his gut so he's uncomfortably reminiscent of sweatpants-clad Beyond the Mat era Jake the Snake. Considering his look is arguably his biggest positive, it's a puzzling choice.
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Tony S on another level with the facial reactions. Tony K seems to be having shoot with these. Also Tony K never shifting from his knuckles behind the biceps power pose even while mouthing off is hilarious.
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Aaaand Bruce has been kicked. Addendum to the article below. And finally the apology comes from Wade. What a stupid hill for Mitchell to die on.SpoilerAddendum (12-29-20)
Bruce Mitchell is no longer a staff member of Pro Wrestling Torch. I spoke with him earlier today and let him know my decision, as well as the reasons behind it.
I thank him for over 30 years of contributions that helped shape and grow Pro Wrestling Torch. Bruce informed and entertained readers and listeners with sharp, hard-hitting, informed columns and podcasts.
In addition, he has been a dear friend outside of the professional realm. I wish him well.
I also apologize to the Huber family for any pain the column caused.
Edit: Apologies, just saw this was also posted in the RIP thread.
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Pretty much the dictionary definition of mealy mouthed. An explanation, no apology, no acknowledgement of the insensitivity and offensiveness of the whole thrust of the article. Poor.
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I've been a Torch subscriber for a couple of years now and have really enjoyed hearing the diverse range of opinions and analysis across their various contributors, even/especially those that are different from my own position.
This is not that. This is a callous and hurtful disregard for a community of grieving friends, family and well-wishers of a beloved man. It is also a mind boggling lapse in editorial judgement on the part of Wade Keller to let this see the light of day barely 24 hours removed from the terrible news - I had naively thought him better than that.
I'm not big on performative outrage but I don't plan to give Bruce Mitchell a lick of attention in the future.
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Fucking hell. Completely shocked. His wife sent out a message saying that he sadly succumbed to a non-COVID related lung issue. So sad for his family.
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Not sure if this is too random to belong here, but with the news that Russia is forbidden from using their country name, flag and anthem for the next two Olympics, my mind obviously went to wrestling, having all the athletes embrace their ‘otherness’ and insist on being announced ‘...from Parts Unknown......’ with some kickarse alternative flag and entrance music. Just a thought.
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13 hours ago, AxB said:
If they're doing an AEW vs Impact supershow, I hope we get Daniels and Kaz vs Suicide and Manik. There's a certain poetry to it, no?
Id love Curry Man to get involved but that might be a bit trickier to pull off. But yeah, what the hell else is Austin Aries doing nowadays anyway?
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31 minutes ago, matt925 said:
I don’t think any real wrestling fans are truly celebrating, it’s more of the same type of trolls that shit on everything aew does. I just don’t see Vince ever making a change. Remember like 2-3 years ago Stephanie and Vince did a promo straight up saying creative would change? And that was a theme in a number of straight quarterly calls, we are overhauling creative. Honestly Vince won’t change direction until it was officially too late (not that it would get that far, and what a disaster for the industry that would be).
Yeah that was Vince’s carny arrogance on full display, selling the perception of change to investors who don’t know better, papering over it. Just like Heyman and Bischoff coming in. And Raw Underground. And Retribution. And the Thunderdome. And the global NXT expansion. And ‘you are The Authority’. And the draft. And Tyson Fury/Cain Velasquez. And the NXT fresh meat into the Raw grinder. I love some of the WWE talent and the occasional show. I cannot stand its leadership, strategy, and what has been evidenced of its culture.
I think the fervour around the historic low numbers is also those living in naive optimism of a mythical ‘tipping point’ that lights a fire under Vince, ignite innovation etc but to your point it’ll never happen or happen way too late-
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Meltzer confirmed that Snoop will be doing commentary when he appears on Dynamite.
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This week felt like last in that the pacing was high and it was packed but nothing felt stuffed in or cobbled together without thought. Sticking two tag matches back-to-back might have appeared to be a mis-step on the face of it but they were different and (if I recall) we got the Sting hug and Taz reaction in between. Seeing the Varsity Blondes in the mix with FTR was a highlight, those guys have that rookie underdog charm and are starting to get into their groove.
TH2 were crazy though Angelico doing his finishing submission on Matt’s injured leg should have either been a quick tap to fight another day or a very quick save by Nick, not the swanton, to highlight the jeopardy. OC/MJF was good stuff as expected as was all the Kenny cockiness.-
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Shit that is pretty impressive. Also 2nd in demo (18-49) and tied 3rd best all time in the demo. They seem to be steadily onwards and upwards and reaping the dividends for consistent entertainment and intrigue.
Btw a highlight of the week is seeing what reaction gif @Andy in Kansaspulls out in response to the ratings.
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4 hours ago, Hoffman said:
Ox Baker, high school senior:
Spoiler
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So glad I waited until evening local time and avoided getting spoiled. I can't believe how many noteworthy things were baked into a two-hour TV show, without it feeling over-rushed or jumbled.
Would be nice not to have any 'person X wasn't really eliminated' spots at all, but at least they somewhat subverted it in this Battle Royal. Sammy bumping like a loon for Miro just standing up is on-brand for him, and very much enjoyed seeing Miro and Jungle Boy getting to shine. I bet you could cut glass with Wardlow's nipples with that windchill, but I digress.
He was integral in the first few high profile AEW angles but I agree on Jericho giving us a chance to miss him. I expect under normal circumstances he would have had natural breaks with Fozzy touring etc. which I feel would have been more effective.
Yes Sting is old and decrepit but when he's coming out to Schiavone's announcing, brandishing his bat, cupping his hands and shouting in the middle of the AEW ring, it's still a spectacle.
And then the main event war, the end to one of the best and most consistent top babyface championship runs in recent memory, and the start of the Winter of Omega (was mentioning the season in the title an allusion to 'Summer of Punk'?). There's something to be said for predictability, there's also something for leaving you going 'What the fuck is happening?' and having your mind spin with the possibilities. I was thinking about the AEW video game exactly like one of the comments above, and how Impact could have its own sub-division but no idea how the licensing and such would work for that.
As for cross-promotional matches, I'd love to see Leyla Hirsch take on Jordynne Grace and see them throw each other around the ring.
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Really enjoyable show, bookended with great matches. I do like seeing Butcher and Blade with a W.
Is there a reason why Brodie Lee isn’t around? It was all Evil Uno, and I don’t think he even mentioned Brodie. Or is it like where Lance Archer just disappeared and wasn’t mentioned for a couple of months, like they always need to have a monster on the bench to keep them fresh.
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42 minutes ago, FluffSnackwell said:
So it turns out I wasn't hearing things and Taz's son is actually named Hook.
It’s a step up from Rufio or Smee (...or is it?)
I can’t help but envision a Puke-esque Vince pitch ‘He emanates from Red Hook and he’ll hook ya. That’s the hook, pal. And he’ll get his hooks in you. And you’ll be hooked. It’s that simple, quite frankly.’Edit in aid of my community reputation at 666: at home, he puts those hooks in the ceiling for that well-hung feeling
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6 hours ago, Six String Orchestra said:
NJPW's booking has been it's weak spot during the pandemic. WTL and BOTSJ are going on right now, alternating nights. They've been all solid, shorter shows. G1 Climax was good, not great.
Mostly agree, (I've got of a kick out of EVIL's shtick than most), definitely worth re-subbing and the G1 shows were far more digestible without the prelim tags. Crowd has been present but clapping only (no shouting allowed) leading to the likes of Jay White needling them to break the rules. And when you do hear the occasional collective gasp or cheer, it's that much more special seeing folks get genuinely caught up in the moment.
Edit to add: I'm sympathetic to the feeling of checking out during the pandemic era, I checked out from March and it wasn't until about July when I could stomach the empty arenas and got back on the AEW train on a hot couple of weeks just when Eddie Kingston debuted. They'd obviously found their groove with the production etc. by then.
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3 hours ago, Salads said:
WOR Dave recently described Minoru Suzuki as having the best year of work by a 52 year old in history. I thought that sounded like a cool spin on the wrestler of the year debate format - 'Wrestler of the Age'. Competition would be too crowded in the middle of the bell curve, but working in from the edges might be interesting.
Terry Funk was 52 at the time of the Barely Legal PPV.
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Thanks for sharing, that was a very entertaining 19 minutes when I should have been working (I’m sure you guys will put that to shame EDIT @AxB already did as I wrote this lol). Diverse with some humour sprinkled in too.
SpoilerIm pretty sure that she’d call her ‘Mum’ not Mom for that particular answer but I’ll let it slide /s Just kidding, fantastic effort!
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2 hours ago, kafkonia said:
I mean, she was Raesha Saeed in the Kongtourage during what might have been peak TNA Knockouts. Prominent if not exactly... good.
Speaking of Kong, was she just too broken down and that’s why she was phased out? Or was it GLOW related (which has now not been renewed so presumably she’d be free again in some capacity)? Or was it the feedback on the gimmick with Brandi?
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8 hours ago, Eoae said:
My firm’s already talking about how to handle this. We work in a building with hundreds of other people and a lot of us typically work on-site at client’s offices. I know of other employers discussing this. It seems almost impossible to let people return to offices and in-person classes without requiring vaccinations.
In Australia, childcare providers will not admit your child into daycare unless you provide their medical history to show proof of vaccination. If you want the service, you have to play by the rules to keep everyone’s kids safe. I expect our workplaces will follow similar protocols once the vaccine comes along.
My cynical side feels like a black market will mushroom for falsified vaccination documents and these people are gullible enough to fork out for it. Maybe Vince should do it like the piss test, in order to be sure: everyone in the room, pants down, bend over, and the needle in the buttocks, just like the Ambrose skit.-
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Spoiler
The above horse manure posted by Nia Jax. Her and Drake two peas in a pod. Or does this belong in a separate thread to keep track of all the crazies as they out themselves?
Good on Vega standing up for herself and pushing back against the edict. Who knows, if she had a reasonable boss she might even helped the other talent win some concessions or come to a compromise on the side revenue streams, especially considering the paltry revenue % they get versus other high profile sports. But no, an example has to be set, dammit, otherwise they boys'll walk all over you.
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AEW Dynamite - 1/27/2021
in ALL ELITE WRESTLING
Posted
Cheers @The Natural, ZSJ's smug mug is (among many other things) what's great about wrestling. And we're not too dissimilar when it comes to the politics either (though I hastily add that I won't get into it here!). If the forbidden door did open, I do wonder how he'd fare in a featured position on Dynamite. He does thrive though in the no-holds-barred promo setting of New Japan.