Horatio
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Posts posted by Horatio
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Jun Kasai vs Maddog McCrea - BCW 4.28.17
Not exactly my first death-match viewing, not really my first Jun Kasai match, but I'll still venture to say this was a good'un based on it basically ruled.
From the opening moments, we see these two are technically sound. And by technically sound, I mean there's a freak'n beautiful DDT within the first minute that cements Kasai as the veteran, but this is almost immediately follow'd by a single chop on the outside that cements McCrea as not only a worthy, but a much larger, challenger (seriously, gotta see Maddog's reach on this one)...
The battling on the outside/through the crowd was I guess the carniest thing they did; blood was drawn seemingly for visual purposes but you can see these two are fighting a little different as the match progresses. When Kasai outwrestles McCrea for a german-suplex (where the thumbtacks were), he points to his temple to indicate he appreciates his own intelligence. And I get the feel he's not proud, smarmy smart, he's the punk-rock sort of smarter than people realize, and he's proud of the german-takedown, not the "on-the-tacks" shock-factor.
I can't remember every spot of violence, but it was the usual tacks, doors, barb-wire'd, etc. This one was coincidently determine'd to be a classic: Kasai press-slams him F-U style off the top to the floor through a barbwire table that encapsulates him pyramid style when he decides to land in a seat'd position, and when he runs the ropes running over a flaming table, his foot catches fire for a flaming wheel-kick to the face. McCrea also kind of sandbags Kasai on a back body drop that just makes it look like he's not in Kasai's league just when we're ready to see him die.
Why was this worth watching for a smart-fan with an interest in wrestling-psychology? Because it ends when it's suppose'd to. The first superfly-splash doesn't work, but the second one had to work and it did. The finish wasn't fancy, wasn't the most violent part of the match, but there's a level of professionalism on display in this match that puts a higher balance on display. Kasai is charismatic as all hell, but McCrea strangely comes out of it seeming like The Crazy Monkey's larger Australian baby brother. For star ratings, I'd give it at least ***1/2 with a little shave'd off for the token brawling on the outside/blading for the sake of blading, and also it would have been a different story with more time. 21:12 (according to cagematch) is a good length for an exhibitionists style match like this, but I get the feeling each guy has deeper blood to spill for the record books...
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18 hours ago, Godfrey said:
I don't think he stuck around long but Hidaka was a fun addition to ECW's juniors scene to break up the Tajiri/Crazy/Guido series. Great sprint of a match too, built well, both guys looked good, and it ended at the right time
Well put.
Not to spoil it for those who like surprises but I could tell from the moment Hidaka got seriously SLAM'd by a 'judo-style hip-toss' that this was going to be a heavyweight performance from both guys. Hidaka's great offense was solidly sold by Crazy (being a true professional - truly makeing it clear why Eddie did the job for him in R.O.H.), but he was seriously outweighing Hidaka, and it was clear by the way he appear'd to jump to the top-rope faster than one can imagine; he almost springboard'd before his feet hit the top-rope (that's what it look'd like to me - I only watch'd it once).
I mean, who would get up from a straight pancaking moonsault like that? Undertaker? Kane? Someone "already dead so you can't kill'em"?
They even got into the crowd for a few moments to cater to the Extreme audience in attendance that night, but it never felt like a crowd-pleasing performance as much as a do-or-die opportunity for Hidaka.
A beautiful match that makes one wonder what Rey and Prince Puma accomplish'd in L.U. by useing up more time, as I kind of remember they did....
Vampiro vs Lex Luger - Monday Night Nitro the night after Uncensored 2000Lex Luger vs Vampiro - video Dailymotion
I wasn't aware that this match took place, but I had to see it. I'm researching Vampiro because he's always had the tools to be the best in the world, and also, Lex is kind of who I lean on to see solid, tight pro-style in 90's wrestling (I love his 15-minute draw against Tatanka, for example). It's a 9-minute clip but I sat through the entrances and Lex (looking larger than ever with Elizabeth behind him to boot) makes a cute comment about the Vamp's inexperience but Vampiro shows up in the ring while it's dark, (and then someone turn'd the lights off again for a second accidently), but Vamp was gung-ho and suprise'd Luger anyways.
[spoilers]He hits a spin-wheel kick and an enziguri, some chops, a good atomic drop (something I never say because I never see it, but Vamp is 6'3" and Luger is looking heavier than Triple-H's 270; plus Luger is shorter than Triple-H so the atomic drop seems to give one the idea that 'atoms' are 'testicles', at least pit'd by these two in a rare dynamic ratio. Gosh, I sound like Bill Nye the Science Guy...), but when he goes for a top-rope hurican, Luger hits him low and then something cool happens: he lifts the Vamp for the Human-Torture Rack but instead, unkindly turns it into a back-suplex in mid-move. It's hard to tell how or why, but visually it appears like heel Luger want'd to torture the rookie just to prove he's the vet.
He starts stomping the Undead-guy; kicking him in the ribs, even point-of-the-toe like Dean said he saw Finley doing one time. Luger looks a mix between Kurt Angle and Triple-H in this and it's intense if not sickening considering the pills he claims to have been takeing at the time, but I digress; I am a fan of his work. He kicks him some more in the ribs and almost hammerfists him in the back of the head just to get a moment to catch his breath. He sends the Millie-Vanilly former bodyguard to the ropes only to use that momentum to make a gorrilla press-slam even simpler. And he holds the Ghoul in the hair for longer than he needs to just to give him a chance to survive, I guess....
There's 4 minutes left in this clip and I'm already sold that Luger is an even better heel than he was against Tatanka in '93. I'm talking best-in-the-world just from a psychological perspective. I'm convince'd he thought he had it all with Elizabeth by his side. It's jarring to think of in hindsight. Just to note, I'm surprise'd Vampiro went up for the press-slam as he runs to the ropes with vast energy...Let's see how it ends....
Alright, so Luger continues his onslaught: throws him to the outside, double-axhandle to the back that appears to push Vampiro a good 6-7 feet in the guard-rail, hits thigh-slappy loud knee-lift while back in the ring, and then takes too long putting on the Torture Rack. Vampiro backflips out of it, and although he doesn't land on his feet, he's back on his feet and kicking Luger in the chest within a millisecond. That's what I love about Vampiro. He has a reverse wheel-kick where he spins and kicks with the instep of the foot instead of the heel and he always looks like Bruce Lee, Bruce Le, or Bruce Li, when he does it. This one I was bum'd to see him land on his face but I literally blink'd and he was kicking back by the time I open'd my eyes. Ian throws the Total Package to the corner and hits a running lariat Roman Reigns style, and then throws him into the opposing corner, and does a Sting-style handful-of-hair bulldog off the ropes. He basically gets me marking for using familiar offense and then hits an X-FACTOR on Lex Luger to win hearts and gentle people for all eternity. Running shoulder-block next and then, he goes to the top for what I think will be his old super wheel-kick off the top, but instead does a hard flying clothesline and for a nice nearfall. He should have done his go-to finisher, but instead, he does a makeshift move (one of Kane's for further interest) and that was wisdom, because Lex is wiley and mean not just gonna walk into a flying wheel-kick.It basically ends there, except you want to keep watching for greater theft by Vampiro and violence by Luger with his excercise tool. [/spoilers]
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Sorry if this has been mentioned before, but I just watched Ikuto Hidaka versus Super Crazy from ECW on dailymotion. It's a 7 minute file including entrances and a commercial break and it's still the most action-filled awesome match of all-time. I would accept pay to watch it for the rest of my life. Holy cow, those two...
ECW SuperCrazy vs Ikuto Hidaka - video Dailymotion
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Black Terry
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Just watched Jon Davis vs Bojack from PWX X16 tournamlent.
Holy crap, Bojack is fast. Afutura! Jon Davis is ancient of days; how old is he? 600? Someone said Chris Dickinson is in line to take Eddie Kingston's Love of the Common People role in indie-wrestling. In a just society, Jon Davis would be that man.
awesome dynamic action. I don't know, it was like 11 minutes but that's extra long for a couple heavies.
Lately I've been finding the greatest intricacy in wrestling is size ratio. These two have incredibly precise size-ratio: they are a legit match.
I love how they fought for the superplex spot. Sometimes it's just a couple scraps to assert dominance at the top, other times, it's an extended scrap where the man in the corner has to drumroll on a dude's head to refuse taking a superbump. This exchange seemed buried to the forehead in exhaustion, maybe because of the fact they are shaped like two stones that once formed the same egg and it's like watching the cosmic egg crack itself from a high place. Bojack has a damn fine Superkick tho!
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Can't believe a dream match in ROH delivered in 2022.
I still can't afford PPV.
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Attention on The Steiners is what God made wrestling fans for.
They're still getting inducted right?
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5 hours ago, Infinit said:
Toni has the potential to be such a star. It's crazy that her "gimmick" was that she loved 80s music and her mom was a hippie or some wack ass horseshit like that.
Her origin story's something like: "someone told me I was SO punk rock. But I had never heard of any of the groups patched all over Ruby Riott. So I just went back to being a loner and kicking ass. *wink*"
That's how I believe it happened anyways...
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2 hours ago, For Great Justice said:
Is Randy the Meryl Streep of wrestlers? Uber respected and admired by his peers, super longevity, it’s all functionally and structurally good and sound…but to the lay audience it’s a little cold and uninteresting most of the time (IED run = Devil Wears Prada though)
You're forgetting The River Wild. RKO could never take on Kevin Bacon. Wouldn't have him arrested. Wouldn't get within 6 degrees of him (if I do say so myself)!
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Darby almost slid on his back, away from the corner, on a back-bump, from getting thrown upside-down, into said corner. Look on his face was like he didn't know he could bounce like so...
Also, that back-flipping crucifix (facebuster?) was the greatest pancake I've ever seen. I feel like I was seeing way too many pancakes 20 years ago and that back-flipping flapjack made it all worth it. I don't know if he was supposed to land on his head and neck, but I still feel like I did see him land on his head and neck, because I can't imagine him saying, Okay, I'll try to land on my face...I mean, wtf?
Btw, Toni Storm is my new girlfriend and I decided I'm gonna share her. I think you will all be very happy with her. Thanks Toni and thanks to all of you as well. If it doesn't work out, I'm still happy i got to donate her OF-proceedings right back to her. This feels right.
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I've always liked Billy Gunn, but shouldn't we pretend a Billy Gunn and Hardcore Holly team never happened?
Hardcore Assmen? I don't get it...
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3 hours ago, zendragon said:
This man does not gaf.
Really like him since he got back. Some people need time to themselves to ever be themselves. CM Punk seems to be one of those people.
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On 3/12/2022 at 3:33 PM, BloodyChamp said:
This is about as good as it gets between 2 heavyweights, heavyweights who are just a few pounds shy of being super heavyweights no less, in the normally allowed TV time. You couldn’t have crammed another big move into this or more intensity in general. The same goes for offsetting qualities. This also had comedy relief and a GOAT 1 liner to start the match from BPP. The typical result when you put 2 machines in the ring really. I obviously love all the fun TV but it’s a shame that’s how so much good stuff came and went.
Just noticed this. It wasn't at all what I expected. I never thought of Steiner as a selfish worker, but I was at least expecting him to win the collar-and-elbow, and get the first headlock of the match. Steiner's offense wasn't even too dominant; he got in just enough suplays to stay on top and he ate Saturn's (usually questionable) superkick (/sidekick) better than anyone. This was a rare more-than-happy BPP era Steiner match and you can see the 1.25.99 trios match versus Benoit to see just how disjoyous he could be in comparison. The "hat-trick" was even low enough to make Saturn seem even like all the more the honorable of the two. Plus, Buff Bagwell being ditzy enough to accidently insult his own hat more than Saturn's dress was really something you don't see much these days.
Also, my newly discovered eggshell heart just broke hearing of Regal's eggshell heart. All I can see are his nosebleeds now
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2 hours ago, John from Cincinnati said:
Delirious is reportedly done with ROH after the show.
Communication problems, I'm guessing...
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29 minutes ago, SirSmellingtonofCascadia said:
Butch Reed is pretty great, too. DOOM is an awesome tag team, IMO.
After knowing Zeus to be the scariest dude my toddler ass had ever seen (& to this day, not caring about the results of his PPV match, because I still believe Hogan had no chance), seeing Doom was kind of like a waking nightmare. Really didn't believe Steiners had a chance against them...When The Acolytes came around, I was sure the Hardyz were getting sent back to jobberland.
Never having cable-TV growing up, I still support no-selling kayfabe killers and don't care if it led to my mental/social ills. When it comes down to it, I still blame the evils of TV-programming on instances like Triple H entering WM as champ and leaving as a heel...with the title. There's just no forgiving that in my mind...
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6 hours ago, Wyld Samurai said:
Is anyone really going to care at Wrestlemania when Cody comes out? I seriously rhink he will be met with a wall of apathy.
AEW fans will care. Otherwise, just apathy and hate. Obviously, Cody hasn't been on instagram to find out he's been on the job squad and he's not Seth's level.
That's when he comes out, though. He will surely win over many morons by the time he's done.
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So, I was gonna put this in the Scott Hall Memorial thread, but decided not to for obvious reasons.
This is the last episode of Nitro in January 1999.
I chose it because the graphic on Peacock was of Hall and BamBam having their ladder match. I thought at some point there was a 3-way ladder match (for the taser) between Hall, BamBam, and Goldberg, but it turns out Hall just had individual ladder matches against both Goldberg and BamBam...this episode of Nitro turned out to be so much more, though.
Show opens with unseen backstage segment from the previous episode of Thunder. It's Virgil with the nWo B-team in their lockerroom and Virgil is saying he doesn't wanna be called Vincent anymore, he demands to be called "Vince!" from now on. No one is into it, not even Stevie Ray in his snazzy black-n-white pinstripe wrestling gear. (If you follow Virgil on IG, you probably know that he claims to have invented the Royal Rumble, among other things, so this segment kind of makes you wonder...he seems eerily confident that he's the one guy who can pull this ridiculous shit off and it makes it that much funnier to see today). As the dudes leave Vince alone, he goes to his locker, opens it up to reveal a glass of egg-yolks and two cartons of eggs stacked in the corner; although he tries to guzzle it, he fails and notices a hidden camera. We see nWo wolf-pac guys watching from their limo and shaking their heads as Virgil repeats, "hey guys, we're being filmed" to an empty locker room. Seriously gotta wonder who could have come up with this crap but Virgil, but it's already the coolest into a wrestling show that I can remember seeing. Even the sound of static feed from within the limo gives it an eery whats-really-going-on/who-would-do-this that makes Virgil's b-level acting actually intriguing.
Then, we cut to the arena and Mike Tenay is doing his best to refer to dude as Vince!, and it's obvious they were totally into this idea.
More great acting from the nWo B-team earlier in the day. Stevie Ray is concerned and Curt Hennig is saying he's been suspicious for months, hasn't been sporting colors for months. Stevie Ray turns to the dudes (Norton, Adams, and Horace) and says he's going to the Black-and-Red and give em a piece of his mind. "What's with the $500 shirt?," quips Norton. This sets up the dramedy the nWo would bring to this episode of Nitro.
Next, another segment from a period we don't hear enough about these days: when Ric Flair was President of WCW. This episode he's forcing Bischoff to sell merchandise. Bischoff does his best to stay in character but at times, you can see it in his eyes that Flair is doing a great thing humiliating him the way he is. Wasn't 'Flair for President' a thing for a long time or was I dreaming?
Show intro happens and we see Scott Steiner's detestable harrassment of the Nitro Girls. I guess he and DDP were set to feud? I don't remember this, tbh.
More pyro and Schivaoni welcomes us to a 3-hour episode of Nitro.
Next we're in the parking lot and Stevie Ray insists that he's gonna do the talking to Hollywood, but it ends with a comment about his shirt...
First match is Disco Inferno vs Al Greene. Disco as nWo member was insufferable for me as a kid, but I now see that he actually made the transition from obnoxious to annoying and Disco in red-n-black is actually not so bad. He's still a curtain-jerker, but his dancing backed with confidence is really a sight to see.
At the airport with nWo B-team and they're bitching about the limo and their two Ford Tauruses as the jet/plane pulls in. Inside the jet/plane, they're discussing the B-team and Hollywood opens the door to a, "Let's take care of business," and Hall is saying it's time to "trim a little more fat"... Stevie Ray, who is waiting for them as they exit the plane, goes straight into sucking up to Nash and badmouthing Vincent ("someone needs to talk that guy~"). He then tears into concern about Curt, saying he tried to give him a rednblack shirt and a black-n-white shirt, and it was his own one shirt, that's why he wasn't sporting colors at the moment ("that's why I have this $500 shirt on right now, and you KNOW I don't wanna have it on out here!"). Dude is nearly in tears, it's great. Hollywood gives him a pat and the wolves take to motion as you can hear Hall repeating the phrase "trim a little fat" ... they approach the B-team in their Ford Tauruses and we see more excellence in the writing of this villianry. Hollywood walks between the two cars and says, "What's up? I thought this thing was for life?" ... all of a sudden, we hear Hennig says, "I got him! I got him!" from the backseat where from behind he's choking out Vincent in the passenger's seat. Steiner pulls Hennig out of the backseat while beating the shit out of him, and we see Hollywood with his arm around Vincent as Nash watches and smiles. Hall, Steiner, and Bagwell are kicking the shit out of Hennig behind the Taurus as Brian Adams says, "What's going on here? Curt's like a brother to us!" Nash tells him it's just business (I remember seeing this live; cannot erase this or those words from my memory). Adams immediately goes to hugging Hennig with one arm and delivering body shots with the other as the B-team joins in on the beatdown...Curt has a look of regret as he props himself up with the car, but he never leaves his feet. Gang life never seemed so real as Hogan finally throws in a "you ain't nothin'!" as he lifts a boot to Curt's midsection... they walk away talking shit, even about the rental-cars (Hall kicks a visible dent in one, saying "you got a dent in it now" as he smiles). Hogan says, "do me a favor, run over him," which seems to elicit a genuine laugh from himself...Hall gets the honor of entering the limo before Hogan. Damn straight... oh yeah, and Stevie Ray still has to ride in the Taurus ("get over, Vincent!...man, I thought I was riding with them guys! I don't ride in no Ford Tauruses! I'm tired of this B-team crap!")...
we're still just 18 minutes into the show.
We see the nWo (all of them except Disco?) walking through the backstage hall to their dressing room. They get in and Stevie Ray, the last to enter, has to change his shirt; Vincent had one for him, and he even gets a hug from Hollywood ("we're real proud of you"). Steiner gets to step up and be a jerk, "get rid of that shirt! It looks terrible!" Stevie Ray has to walk past everyone haranguing him to find room to change his shirt and finally Nash makes fun of his "$50 slacks" which prompts Hogan to say, "Liz! Rip the slacks off him, Liz!" Bagwell: "he's got his church-shoes on, too." Nash: "you're slackin'!"
Next, we see Bigelow carrying a ladder to the ring. Challenges Scott Hall to a ladder match for intefering in his feud with Goldberg. Bigelow makes cool references to electricity and being "extreme" ... nWo are seen making fun of Bigelow which is minor, except someone, I think Nash, quotes David Lynch's Elephant Man, sarcastically saying "I'm not an animal, I'm a human being" ... this is the greatest wrestling show on earth. It gets better.
Skeezy Bischoff rips a nice lady off from getting her proper change, claiming the only $20 he has is his own $20 in his pocket. Really Bischoff makes up for sucking the life out of wrestling by performing these acts of community service for President Flair. Really.
Flair does an in-ring interview with Mean Gene, announces the matches for tonight's card. It's Presidential Flair. The best possible Flair. He fuckin loves being the president. Oh what could have been in America, smh...
We see clips of Scott Hall falling on his ass after tasing both BamBam and a fallen Goldberg at Souled Out. Unbelievable violence...Disco and Hall come out carrying a ladder together. They set it up in the aisle and climb each side at the same time as the Never Turn Your Back in the Wolfpac hip-hop song plays. Hall answers the challenge from BamBam, claims to be more handsome than 10 moviestars, "don't sing it, bring it" ... BamBam comes out, still doesn't have entrance music. These two fought many years previously in WWF, so it's cool to see them again with different face/heel dynamics. Disco gets sent away for interfering (by old Billy Silverman!) Bam Bam throws the ladder on Hall when they were out in the aisle and it looks painful as fuck. It's not the heaviest ladder, but it flies even faster and you can see Hall needing a second to react. Bigelow does it again in the ring, this time while Hall is face up where the ladder gets dangerously close to hitting him in the head...Hall does a cool teeter-totter spot with the ladder, hitting Bam Bam when it starts getting scary for him. Hall raises the ladder high above his head and gets BamBam back for the earlier ladder throws. He forcefully almost slams the ladder onto BamBam's back and ribs, and rebounds off the ropes to stomp the ladder over Bigelow and it gave me a chuckle 'cause he did it so hard. Unfortunately we hit a commercial break just as Hall is slamming Bigelow's leg in the ladder...cool exchange happens when we return: BamBam returns a bodyslam, hits a diving headbutt from halfway up the ladder, but hurts himself in the process so Hall rises first, and does a Jeff Hardy style leg-drop on Bigelow's crotch, he proceeds to climb the ladder, but Bigelow grabs his leg, gets kicked down, and Hall immediately drops an elbow from up on the ladder. This entire exchange is so seemless, it's like watching kids wrestling with pillows rather than with uncooperative others. Hall again climbs the ladder but Bigelow brings him down with a back suplex. Hall dropkicks the ladder and Bigelow falls flat on his back from like 4-ft up. Hall crosses himself before climbing the ladder but for the second time, Bigelow lifts the ladder from underneath and Hall falls to the mat. In an awesome finish, Bigelow is able to grab the taser, but Hall is behind him with a low-blow. Bigelow still has the taser, but the low-blow gives Disco enough time to run out and give Hall a taser of his own. Disco's stupid ass backs up the aisle, cheering, only to turn around just in time to get a spear from Goldberg. Goldberg gets in the ring and double spears Hall and Bigelow, takes their tasers, and tases each of them until Scott Norton (Goldberg's opponent this night) knocks him down from behind. In a hilarious anecdot to close this part of the show, Norton pulls out Hall who is able to grab his taser and electrocute Goldberg through the ropes even though he can barely stand. Goldberg hardly sells the tasing and Chuck Norris can be seen clapping in the front row. This was another night when Goldberg had a weird scab on his forehead.
Mean Gene Okerland interviews Bret "The Hitman" Hart. It is the funniest interview Bret Hart ever did. Maybe the best comedic heel shit ever done on the mic. Bret claims to be a "jam-up guy", says Ric Flair has a grudge against him and that Booker T (who Flair scheduled him to face) is a loser. Mean Gene corrects him that Booker T is not a loser, and without skipping a beat, Bret averts his attention to the camera as he assures everyone "he's a looooser." Bret lays down some lines of intimidation for Booker T that are more to the point and hilarious than anything you hear these days. Some of it doesn't even make sense. This is, of course, the famous interview where Bret talks up El Dandy and Psicosis as worthy contenders for his U.S. Championship. This also cements Nitro as the greatest show ever. Fuck you. Bret Hart has a groin injury the likes of which Dean Malenko has never seen. We need this shit. Eternally relevant. It ends with a genuine, absolutely genuine, "whatever" from the Hitman. This is some hard-to-find greatness of the highest magnitude. January 25, 1999.
Next, there's a tag team tournament bout which Ric Flair said would be surrounded by WCW guys to ensure the nWo do nit interfere. So first we see Hippie Van Hammer and behind him Kenny Kaos is talking to Rey-Rey as Rey nods his head. Everyone is out there. Jerry Flynn, the luchadors, Chris Adams in a karate-gi. But it gets better. Match is Faces of Fear versus Finlay and Taylor. What is this? Christmas? We see clips of nWo tasing Meng the week before. Shit that will shake you to your core. These teams basically elbow and chop the shit out of eachother for a decent amount of time, but there are some highlights. Finlay has the edge over Barbarian to start, but Finlay is having trouble with Dungeon of Doom at ringside. Dave Taylor does a headscissor takeover on Meng, but he hangs in the air for a second and before flipping the big man. Really lets the match breathe. Meng stomps Taylor in the forehead with the heel of his boot. It's sick. Finlay hits a hard shoulder in the corner on Meng, but rather than hitting the midsection, it hits high on the ribs and sternum and looks incredibly stiff. Finlay gets Barbarian with some stiff clubs in the corner, so Barbarian hits him with an overhead palm strike to the forehead. Beautiful. I've always wondered about how much a diving headbutt really hurts, but there's no question when it comes to Meng and Barbarian doubling the move from opposite corners of the ring. Even if it's just from the middle rope, I don't ever want that ti happen to me. Match ends with a back body drop into a sitout powerbomb on Taylor, but it doesn't go so smoothly, so Barbarian has to power him up and land him HARD for the victory. I wonder if the fans in Dallas realized they were witnessing the birth of Christ this evening?
We see clips of young Chavo and Kidman against Adams and Horace. Kidman reverses a powerbomb into a facebuster. Wish you coulda seen it. I don't remember Adams wrestling without a top, or Stevie Ray in his pin-stripe gear, but Vincent using ghe slapjack is a great way to treat Kidman. He was a glory hog.
This is when Saturn had to wear a dress and he liked it. So again, greatest show ever, greatest era of the show ever. It's Norman Smiley versus Perry Saturn, but Norman is not yet Screamin', he's just getting the Big Wiggle over. Can you imagine that? It was 1999 and the Big Wiggle was new. Perry Saturn is in a red-dress and on his way to the ring, Bobby Heenan whistles and says, "Hey sweetheart!" (amazing what Heenan would say even if not a total heel in the nWo era). Incredibly, we barely get a chance to take a breath when Saturn growls to the camera, "Smiley! You're not gettin' jiggy with me!" The match goes long although it's not bad by any means. You actually wish these two had fought a lot more. It's just weird that Saturn in the dress is the Saturn that seems to be on showcase. I don't remember seeing Smiley in any long matches either. Heenan gets inappropriate about Saturn: "I can see his panties." Schivaoni: "they're wrestling trunks, lamebrain." Heenan: "if you're wearing a dress, they're..." I still think Saturn is underrated. He had one of the best movesets at the time. He even does a little bit of Big Wiggle in this match.
Referee Scott Dickinson is suspended for helping Jericho but he's got a front-row seat. He does an intentionally awkward interview with Mean Gene. He closes his eyes while talking and he's supposed to be wearing glasses but he refuses to talk about it over his "bogus suspension." In a moment of subtle brilliance, he sits back down before the interview is over, and by the time Mean Gene has agreed to talk to someone about his plight, he's up and leaving accompanied by Event Staff. Scott Dickinson looks like he's related to Stephen King btw...
The Bret Hart/Booker T non-title match is dope shit. Feels just as much like a Booker T match as a Bret Hart match. Hart eats a beating early on with disbelief. Booker is stiff and explosive and mean, overpowering, stepping on Bret's hands. Bret gets him back on the outside, not only choking Booker with an electric cord, but wrapping it around his neck several times and leaving him breathless on the floor. Match goes to a commercial when Booker is reversing a figure-4, but when we come back, Bret is re-applying a figure-4, so it feels like God was watching out for us, he knew what was in our hearts, the story we were invested in. Also, at some point Bret lands a great atomic drop. I don't like that move, but I'm always paying attention for a good one and Booker takes one by Bret best. Booker nearly hits a Harlem Hangover close to the ropes, but when Bret tries to smash him with the US title belt from the second rope, you should see how his head shoots back from eating Booker's boot. He looked like an accidental idiot, but an idiot nonetheless. You should see it. Booker gets out of hand with the revenge spot, choking Bret with any electrical cord within reach and I didn't see the finish coming. Absolutely awesome performance by both guys.
We see Scott Steiner harrassing the Nitro girls, mainly Kimberly. He tells her how he beat her man like a dog. Also follows her into their dressing room and tells her she needs to treat him like a man. How he has a great body and she needs him. He repeats that he has a great body, so ... maybe we all need him? Not a great dude at this point, but he surely does believe in his vessel.
Jean Claude Van Damme is also in the front row, seated next to a real cutie.
Bischoff is walking through the stands with an armful of foam-fingers, upsettedly asking, "do you have any money?" Apparently he's wearing a wig underneath his backwards ballcap.
Next is Norton versus Goldberg. Norton assures us Goldberg is going down. I love heavyweight wrestling and this is just about as heavy as it gets. Goldberg is so strong he almost throws Scott Norton on a powerslam, he has to shift mid-move and carefully land him. On the outside, Norton is chopping the shit out of Goldberg who starts to hulk-up for a second, so Norton headbutts him. That sort of ready decision-making is ultimately all that a wrestler has to master to be a good wrestler. Goldberg has a little bit of time, so he does on an elbow-drop on the outside of the ring. Random beauty. And they say Goldberg had no moves. Fuck em. Well, Goldberg does aimlessly irish whip Norton on the outside, which Norton is visibly perturbed about, so he takes the opportunity to teach Greenberg a thing or two about fighting. He falls into an awesome, heavy short-arm clothesline for some much needed rest. This is the greatest match-up possible. "Combat" as Mike Tenay tells us. Norton lands are far-reaching shoulder tackle off the top, but it only gets a one. Could have been much hurtier. Another backdrop and short-arm clothesline and the Goldberg chants start up. When Norton goes for a powerbomb, Goldberg looks like he wants to drop an x-factor but instead he runs to the ropes and hits a spear. Goldberg is a Billy Kidman wannabe. nWo B-team is out to make short work of Bill, but it's pointless. THEN, Norris, Van Damme, Herschel Walker, and some NHL guy enter the ring to get hugs from Goldberg and eachother, which is weird, but I like weird. This is still the greatest show on n earth. Goldberg holds the ropes like a gentleman for these gentlemen and they walk to the back together, presumably to get hammered drunk.
Big Poppa Pump is at the announce booth, sitting against the table and stoicly watching the Nitro girls through tinted shades. He looks to be so horny it's hurting him at this point. He believes in his body, why can't they? Too bad this was the real Scott Steiner at one point, but I mean, he is a genetic freak with the keys to nirvana.
This was after they whipped David Flair and spraypainted him for being yet a brunette though he claimed to be a Flair.
Main event is a 6-man tag match, Flair, Benoit, and Mongo versus Hogan and two partners of his choice. And there's like 25 minutes left to go (holy shit, bear with me). This is my first time watching Benoit in almost 15 years. Hogan is walking to the ring saying, "You don't mess with Hell's Angels! You don't mess with Chuck Zito! You don't mess with my homies!" Apparently, he's chosen Steiner and Nash, so 4 Horsemen have literally no chance. In the prematch promo, Nash hands Steiner the mic and Steiner has to shake it off a couple times (uhh...)... Hollywood says WCW/4 Horsemen fans "stink...real bad!" He also badmouths Ric Flair, how he beat his child in the center of the ring and Eric Bischoff kissed his wife. Poor Ric. Not the greatest Hogan promo, but the words he says are true...4 Horsemen guitar-shredding song is better than "Thus Spake Zarathustra" and even Flair knew it on this night. Match opening brawl is sloppy, no one wants to sell for Benoit. Hogan thinks raking the eyes will save him. Steiner clears the ring for his homies; get the man a prostitute. Still can't imagine from looking at Benoit that he would do what he did. He and Steiner are gonna start things off and Steiner looks like he got seated next to the smelly guy on the bus, but maybe he's just got blueballs. Benoit sells so Steiner can flex. It's kinda sad, but yeah, I wish there was more of these two together. Nash tags in, but Benoit stays in, which is admirable. Mongo is wrestling in a shirt for some reason. Wish there was more Mongo versus Nash, but Benoit comes back in with a diving headbutt on Big Kev, which is cool with me. Steiner cheats and Benoit has to eat a big boot, which is a thing of beauty in this context. Hogan comes in and punches the shit out of Benoit, then back rakes him. Just ruthless. Absolutely ruthless. He runs an axe-bomber and spits at Flair only to skip away in a hurry. They're extra mean to Benoit, probably because he does snot-rockets and they're busy entertaining HA's and shit. Hogan pulls out a high back-suplex on Benoit and we go to a commercial. What did Dallas do to deserve this night of entertainment? Benoit gets a chop and a punch on Hogan, but Steiner is quick to interfere (from the apron) when he thinks he's allowed to kick big Red-and-Yellow. Hogan chops him back, runs him to the corner, and lands a huge clothesline, so big he smiles at Benoit while Benoit falls to the mat. Hogan was already crotch-chopping at this point in history which I didn't remember; I figured it was a habit he picked up in TNA. Flair still hasn't tagged in and Benoit looks like he just shat himself when Nash hits him with a scoop slam from 4-ft in the air. Good God, they played with this dude. They even put him in their corner for a Tree of Woe. Kevin Sullivan book this shit? Fresh out of the Tree of Woe, Hogan takes off his belt and whips Benoit on the back of his head/neck. No wonder Benoit would be WCW champion in a year's time. He earned his stripes this night. Literally. Hogan puts his belt back on and rakes Benoit in the eyes. Then, he goes for a pin. Big Hogan vertical suplex, but Benoit is too short to land on his back by the time Hogan falls so it looks for like a brainbuster. No lie. He lays over Benoit and looks genuinely concerned when the ref doesn't initiate a fast-count. I mean, why the fuck not, ref? Finally Nash misses a big boot in the corner, but Benoit still can't make it to his corner; Steiner is back in. He puts Chris in a bearhug, but Chris is too proud to stick a thumb in his eye before it turns into an overhead belly-to-belly. Hogan tags back in just to go for a cover. He misses a legdrop! Flair with the hot tag and all hell breaks loose. Even Benoit is on his feet and taking his turn on Steiner. Bischoff enthusiastically selling foam-fingers at ringside all of a sudden, hands one to Nash as Flair locks a figure-4 on Hollywood. Not sure why it hurts, but it breaks on Flair's back and thevmatch ends in a DQ. Bischoff threatens hair-clippers and Chavo is the first WCW lumberjack to hit the ring, then it's Hugh Morris, Damian, and La Parka. nWo and WCW in the brawl of all brawls. La Parka helps Flair to his feet. Not a hair on his head was harmed. WCW clears the ring. They've got the numbers game. Kaz Hayashi and Scotty f'in Riggs. Silver King and Glacier. La Parka is perched on the second rope like a night watchman. nWo back up the aisle into Goldberg. Show ends as he's killing them on the stage.
What the fuck did I just see?
I understand that someone in WWE must have seen this episode and said, "We need three hours!" But this will never happen again. January 25th, people. I guess the next episode opens with Curt Hennig and Barry Windham arriving at the arena with their luggage, talking about winning the tag team title tournament. Holy cow...
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1 hour ago, Technico Support said:
Why was Matt Lee dressed like it's 1998 and he's auditioning for the I Want It That Way video? TELL ME WHY!
*Dad Magic* "he didn't like it at the time, but he's coming around..."
That, and sex. He probably got laid for the first time last night. I think they all got laid for the first time last night. Except it wasn't Jericho's first time, and Jake Hager is obviously still taking a pass, but last night was a big night for those five.
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7 hours ago, A_K said:
Yes they do need stakes. Batista over Devon worked because Devon was a gatekeeper. Batista over Triple H worked because it was for the title. This is completely the wrong time. MJF lost blow off matches vs Jericho & Punk. He loses this one too (eventually). That completely cools him for any title run, and he shouldn’t be a gate keeper either. Wardlow out there last week talking like Tito Ortiz (keep him away from 90 s + promos).
Devon? You mean Devon Dudley? Devon Dudley in his Brother Devon the Preacher stage? That worked?
Is there some other Devon I don't know about? Was Brock Lesnar's run that year a success because he was able to plow through "gatekeeper" Bubba?
Batista over Triple H worked for a variety of reasons. How about years of Triple H being greedy with the belt? Batista couldn't have gone over just anyone for the title and still charmed his way into a permanent main-event stay. He got face pops the moment he rolled over Benoit on an inevitable climb towards the top, but the Triple H feud making more sense than anything since Brock Lesnar is why that feud worked.
But hey, I don't remember Devon(who?) leading Deacon Batista to anything but an extended vacation until he switched brands and showed up with Evolution, so maybe I don't know how to watch wrestling, but you've got some mechanical theories on how a wrestling show needs to be booked.
Maybe you should have listened to what Wardlow actually said last week instead of timing it and complaining about the presentation. I haven't cast my vote in favor of the promo yet, but I thought it was great. It was drug-free Crush. If you can't appreciate a drug-free Crush promo in 2022, well, then wholesome may not be for you.
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8 minutes ago, A_K said:
As noted last week, it is not possible for Scorpio Sky to drop the title in short order after the diversity row on Twitter.
Separately, you heard it here first that they have blown the Wardlow/MJF feud. There are no stakes, and after the intense & lengthy CM Punk program this was not the one to run. It is also going to present problems for the mid-term representation of both talents.
It's not necessary for Scorpio to drop the title. I can't remember the last time someone was so competent for pulling off 'undeserving champ' and with the company he keeps, it could go on for a long time before it really starts to irk people.
And Wardlow doesn't need a belt to be over, no way. The program tonight was great and seemed to go over very well. He and Max have history, they need no stakes.
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1 minute ago, ka-to said:
I know that there is a 2.0 team, but don't know their names.
That's gonna be even more difficult after tonight.
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Jericho's got some of the blandest, most unappealing dudes in wrestling history surrounding him and it turned out to be one of the best in-ring promo segments I can remember. Garcia did the unthinkable tonight. Lenard is wrestlecrap ridiculous in his intensity on the mic and his partner is finally looking less like a paper cutout of a wrestler. I really think Hager is cool if not a consistently awesome wrestler, but they even got the guy with the lisp to say "J.A.S." and it really seemed like a revolutionary pro-vanilla moment in wrestling history.
The backstage stuff with FTR/Bucks and Jade Cargill were good, too.
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Lambert wearing that big old belt looked hilarious on his old man frame.
Scorpio holding the title as an inevitable loser has tons of appeal, in my opinion. It's exactly what I was hoping for since he won the title. His ring-side goons are terrific.
I liked the sloppy feel of the main-event. I don't think they should have made it look any prettier. The finish was uncomplicated but satisfying. I think it'll get better on repeated viewings.
Jeff Hardy can't land on his back for a swanton anymore, can he? Love to see him bombing now that he's bigger than ever, but ouch for his opponents.
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3 minutes ago, SirSmellingtonofCascadia said:
Sorry to 2x post, but the wrestling fan who runs the playlist for Arsenal just hit Razor's music as the clubs came out for the second half.
That shit will forever slap.
GOAT music contender. K-Dogg single as well, if I'm honest...
General Music Discussion Catch-All
in MUSIC
Posted
I've been rediscovering lots of punk music I had to miss while delving into the entirety of Bob Dylan's catalogue for like 20 years. Back in the old days, I had a pretty random collection of stuff by Green Day, Social Distortion, blink-182, The Bouncing Souls, rancid, and The Sex Pistols. I think I move'd onto the popcore emo stuff after I got into The Clash, and Combat-Rock kind of open'd my mind to try anything alternative to the radio in the Napster era. I really liked how A New Found Glory mix'd the pop-punk with a little more mid-pace'd hardcore but with them, it seem'd like something that couldn't go on forever. I moved on completely to folk-music once I heard of Bright Eyes and the rest is history, except lately I realize'd I somehow forgot Saves The Day. I had Through Being Cool and Stay What You Are and I think that on those two albums, they did perfectly what NFG aim'd to accomplish in those early years.
As far as the punk rock goes, does anyone hate where the old bands have gone with the music in the last 20 years? I saw a Green Day MV the other day about getting-drunk and I thought it was terrific. "Redundant" was always one of my favorite G.D. songs and I love when Billy Joe offers his version of the Lennon-esque psychedelia, plus I'm glad to hear them looking and sounding somewhat happy with where they are right now (it can't be easy coming down from that American Idiot high). I've heard great things about blink-182's newest album and MxPx are likewise said to be on a musical peak right now; I like that The Ataris are still around.
Social Distortion I've always been kind of in-the-middle towards. I really, really like WLWHWT and Somewhere B/W Heaven & Hell, but the rest of the stuff is hit and miss with me. Sex, Love, and Rock'n'roll sounds great, but I don't know how bad I want to hear Hard-Time and Nursey Rhymes. I wish Mike Ness would do another solo album; Under The Influences is a large part of why I start'd giving country-music a chance in my younger years. Their concert at Hellfest is a great watch on youtube.
Rancid are easily the most impressive of the bunch, if you ask me. "Red Hot Moon" and "Last One to Die" are old as hell already but it's hard to tell when I listen to them. Hell, "Evil's My Friend" might be consider'd old already and I'm still dreaming of the towns where that song is play'd on the radio. Is "New American" about meeting the guy from The Butcher and The Blade? I know I could look it up, but I'd rather just listen to the song to be honest.
As far as I new stuff I look to pick up some Good Riddance and Hot Water Music when I've got some coin in my pocket. If Chuck Ragan has solo stuff, I'll be dumping whatever I can find in my pockets at his feet; I can't believe it took me so long to remember Hot Water Music exists.