Horatio

Can't see Randy Orton changing to be honest. I think last time I saw him was against Kofi on SummerSlam and he controlled and kicked Kofi's ass so good it really bothered me that he couldn't or wouldn't talk management into giving him one more title run even if just to drop it back to Kofi within a month or two. Kofi sucked as champion and I guess they wanted him to drop the title to Brock, but WWE is such a headscratcher under an analytical eye I just had to give it up. And no, Orton is not a guy I miss. He's the same as all WWE guys not named Brock: ever stupider for being there. Am not anti-Vince either; I understand he basically steps in and tweaks the shows here and there, and man, their writers must really suck if they come up with stuff worse than what we get on TV in general. Orton in AEW is cringey at best. Regardless of how he wrestles, ego is too much a part of what he's good at and I don't see that meshing with AEW at any point. Would rather see him grow old and THEN take his act to Japan, culminating with some heavy violence against Kento Miahara and Jake Lee (they still active?)...

Have not seen Danhausen do his thing yet either, but I can see Old Man Sting at least trying to turn heel and walk out after losing patience with and snapping on that gothball, while Darby looks on and somehow becomes a man in the process. Good way to split those two without any I'll feelings between and no goodbyes or sorry shit. Also, how long has Cody been throwing dead accurate forearm smashes like that? Is it a height ratio thing with him and Sammy's head?

Cole/Orange was good TV main event that gave the fans what they wanted. Can't expect absolute brutality all the time but it wasn't bad for an Epic Adam Cole match. Honestly, all I could think of was his skinny arms and pale complexion (great way to get heat), but then he went straight upside down on that table and although I don't think he meant to fall retarded like that (first thing I noticed was Orange pulling him down in almost seated position), it took my mind off Cole's physical imperfections and showed me the heart of the man. But it was indeed a retarded way to fall.

Orton strikes me as Tarantino fan sort of art appreciator. "Vince, have you even seen Pulp Fiction? That one scene, though..."

So it was a suicide?

Further notes on Southeast First: -- Jon Davis and Drew Adler have awesome chemistry. Davis is built like Hansen but way more sympathetic wrestling from underneathe, and Adler is just like Drew Gulak as the guy who knows the rules of wrestling better than the fans and doesn't care if they realize how on top of things he is. -- Adam Pearce vs Anthony Henry was some booking genius. How often do you get a great heel (Pearce) against a basically unlikeable asskicker (Henry)? Henry was ever dominant but Pearce was more than willing to trade middle fingers and remain in character. I could go on about how much I like Pearce, but basically just look at how he sells the piledriver and neckbreaker in addition to getting whooped the entire match (not to mention the exposed turnbuckle). He just really knows how to keep it real in there, as does Henry. With B-Boy making his way back, Henry should TOTALLY start calling himself the New Age Punisher and eventually beat B-Boy for the nick, because Henry's got serious Punisher vibes since he added some mass. This is must watch if you're familiar with these guys, or if you're just ready to see great heel on heel action. -- Jade Newman & Arik Royal vs Violence Is Forever -- Add Newman to the list of guys who should be added to Danielson's unborn stable. His white-guy-with-a-chip-on-his-shoulder demeanor and jawing really come off as Brother Danielson in a way, but not uncomfortably so. Royal still looking great. I don't put pressure on anyone to learn a second language, but I do think Royal would kill in Japan, especially New Japan if he got the chance. VIF are ever the gods of indy tag wrestling and I can't wait to see Ku/Royal. So glad these guys have found a home in the southeast. They're much welcome. -- IWTV Title match: Alex Shelley (c) vs AC Mack -- what a main event for an awesome show. These two over-delivered if you ask me and that was mainly due to a great performance from Mack, believe it or not. Not saying I haven't liked Mack before but this might be my first time seeing him on this level with a real veteran and he really showed up to play. His selling of the arm carried over even into the aftermatch, and my favorite part was when he lost his grip on the Mack 10 and let out a sincerely exasperated "oh come on!," which I'm really glad was caught perfectly on camera. I think the announcers said he went for the Mack 10 five times and never nailed it because of the damage to the arm... As far as Shelley goes, I like Shelley. Not a fan of everything he does, but he does so many things well and this really should go down in the books as one of his greatest singles matches. The crowd was on fire for this and I can't remember the last time a win/title change both surprised and pleased the way this did; the crowd went insane when Shelley actually lost to their man. Big kudos to Shelley for putting Mack over the way he did. I HOPE this doesn't mean we won't be seeing anymore Shelley in Action Wrestling, though. Would love to boo his ass here forever.

Highlighting Action/IWTV's Southeast First from Tyrone, GA BOJACK, BK Westbrook, and Diego Hill vs Bobby Flaco, Brogan Finlay, and Ashton Starr -- my first time seeing BOJACK and Hill, and my God, I'm on board. BOJACK takes up about as much space as Mark Henry but he's pretty young looking and he's got one of the nicest (big) running centons I've ever seen. He has awesome presence and seemed to know how to use his size to tell the story without coming off too brick wall in his youth. HILL on the other hand seemed to be everything people like about Swerve without being the least bit mechanical or cold; his kicks are fast as hell and well varied, and he showed great fluidity running the ropes and flying... I have said before that BK Westbrook reminds me of the late Jimmy Rave and I'll stand by that after seeing him again. He's just got a confidence that is bound to rub people the wrong way and his look is, well... jimmy. He does an awesome twisting sliced bread off of BOJACK's back, but his aura is that of someone who doesn't care if you cheer him... On the other side of the ring, Brogan continues to impress. He's still finding his place as a humble wrestling prodigy, but he is without a doubt the guy to watch. He's not his dad or his brother, he's his own person and he knows it and it's cool to see. Bobby Flaco does everything so well and natural, there's something old school (think RnRExpress) about his presentation, but he pulls off stuff that really makes me wonder what anyone sees in Mustafa Ali. And although Ashton Starr was maybe the weak link in this match, he's got great charisma and doesn't come off as a sissy despite his flamboyant appearance; his meteora on BOJACK looked great since he actually had room to land his knees on BOJACK's mass-o-plenty...This match wasn't long but it really has to be seen; all 6 of these guys come off as the future of indy wrestling. I'm glad the match climaxed with Brogan and BOJACK as the last two men in the ring and Action would be smart to keep these two together on the regular. The handshaking after the match just shows where their heads are at (in a good way), and the finish has got to be seen.

His upside could end up being his absolute twerpishness. I could see The Young Bucks inning him into the Elite while Adam Cole can just get miffed and paranoid about his big dumb friends faction.

Would rather see him and Thatcher tame all the wild demons of NJPW myself...but yeah, NJ Strong seems like a natural fit for them. Them "ordinary" would be best to stick together at this point. Same for Gulak if he ever comes out of E-land. I think Danielson should wait on these guys if he ever does start a stable. I can see adding young Garcia to the mix but Garcia's got Judas written all over him (NOT A FOZZY REFERENCE). On a different topic, I have been wanting to do a deep dive on Brian Pillman, jr. ... I keep hearing people say he's best he's ever been but then others saying he just doesn't fit. Can anyone single out what his best matches have been? I think I've only seen him in tags with DBS, jr.

Yeah.

Briscoes had a pretty awesome video on Facebook where Jay told Tony Khan to land his plane in their cornfield and it ended with Jay saying he was going to clear a path for the jet to land or something, so hopefully Briscoes are onto something. I think their promos would put AEW through the roof but who knows...

Both the Sheamus idea and the Brock one are top notch thinking skills. I don't watch WWE anymore but this Brock has me paying attention and a challenge from Sheamus (easily the most interesting and appealing guy on the roster the last couple years) sounds like the sort of hella rad thing they'll never get around to, unfortunately. Brock raging from a title loss and then entering the Rumble as the Beast, and winning it only to burst into a smile and remind us he's Mr. Funny/Money, is genius.

Same here. They have no choice but to be assholes, those 5.

Haven't watched wrestling in months, I think, but I was super-impressed by how far Thunder Rosa has come along. Her fire was relentless only to eat those two backbreakers like death. Call me a Wolverine mark, but her as X-23 is the most on point a wrestler has been with cosplay. I freakin loved that match. Ending had Wolvie vs Omega Red & Sabretooth vibes.

The most incredible thing, to me, about Michael Nesmith is his lyrics. He's so stuck in a world of intangibles that no one really compares to him. Even when he brings in physical objects and such, he's still talking about his thoughts and feelings rather than poetic [i]images[/i]. Dylan's rise was raw lucifer in hindsight. If His Bobness hadn't risen up as a societal voice in an uproarious political climate, Michael Nesmith would have ruled as an American voice of the people. His songs seem to exist in a Dylan-less vacuum, and that can't be said for Lennon, Van Zandt, Van the Man, Hendrix, Hartford, etc. He was both McCartney and Cash, Texas and California, a star and a nobody, psychedelic and traditional - and everyone else who can claim those dichotomies was also Dylanesque. Not Nesmith. Nesmith could have taken Woody and Hank and put them together, he never needed Dylan to do it first --and if you say he did, as on say "Roll with the Flow", it still sounds uniquely Nez and not so Dylanesque as other country-rock pioneers like Paul Siebel, Jerry Jeff, The Byrds, The Flatlanders; only Dylanesque in form and more Harlan Howard by-way-of Buck Owens than Nashville Skyline. I haven't listened to Mike in a long time because I knew he was not well, and I didn't want to fall under his spell only for it to end in death, but yesterday still hit me harder than I expected. Cheers, Mike. Your records still sound like they're from the future, and you were so good.

Word. I was just gonna say, how long 'til Bryan realizes that he HAS to kick this kid's head in, and ... does he put him over? Now, the second question seems ridiculous. Hook obviously has Bryan's number. Punk and Cole probably become best friends to help hold him down.

"Listen/even if that's not your style" Jim Lauderdale shares sage wisdom.

Billy Gunn has always worked hard to stay fresh.

CM Punk is still proud to be called 'C.M. Punk' ... I don't see how that dude has matured and grown. Kingston's not all ego, that's why he has bros in the business.

I wish R-Truth would go AEW. I know he's got a good spot and he ain't greedy or nothin, but damn, that guy should shoot for the stars...

i really liked Suge D in the mini-royal rumble that Action Wrestling did a couple months back. He does desperate really well; his attempts to get an honest win are pathetic. I never thought I'd be the guy who wanted someone else to tuck their shirt in, but yeah, I don't get Moriarty's look. He must do it to be completely comfortable while he fights.

Uhh...that sucks. Was not expecting this news. Always liked his wrestling.

"Bustin' rocks for getting stoned..." This is a hella weird performance from Mickey Newbury. He plays an instrument called an omnichord, which seems to be a mix of a synthesizer, autoharp, and steel-guitar. It's an extended version of "Workin' Man" from a recently unearthed song-trading gig he did with Larry Gatlin in the 80s. Not sure if it was meant for TV or what; the entire thing can be found on youtube.

all this talk about what to do with Kingston from here, it's got me dreaming Chris Hero would just show up and begin the Punk/Kingston/Hero forever feud. Takes care of booking those three for life.

If Nese can learn to embrace his inner doucheness as a positive, they would make a great WCW Saturday Night babyface team. Cage should grow his hair/sideburns and embrace his inner wolverine/sabretooth/spirit-cat.