Gordi the former AEW fan

Good on ya, mate! Keep it up. Stick to it. Seriously, consistent,persistent effort is the absolute key. Going to the closer gym is definitely the right call. The best exercise is, always, the exercise that you actually do. As a friend, please let me suggest that you also pay attention to what you eat. For most people, it is impossible to out-exercise a bad diet. Do the cardio for better health (heart and lungs) and the machines for muscle and strength. Diet for fat loss. I personally ballooned way up in weight while training hard 3 or 4 times a week. I had to start counting calories to get my weight under control. Fat Secret or Fitness Pal, for example, are free and easy to use. Makes a HUGE difference to actually keep track of what you eat, in my experience. Don't hesitate to ask for advice about diet or training! I am sure everyone here is pulling for you to succeed.

I can understand if I am alone in feeling this way, but this show was WAY more what I want out of AEW than what Revolution seems like it's going to be. An all-action Go! Go! Go! extravaganza. A straight up really good Joshi match. A complete squash. A train wreck main event with a big green tattooed football guy looking kinda lost in there and three pretty great wrestlers working around him. JR going FULL JR (Do you think he maybe actually had difficulty distinguishing between Riho and Emi)? I am not being facetious in any way. That was full on weird/indie/Japanese/amusing/enjoyable pro wrestling, warts and all. Loved it! ROH sounds like literally TOO MUCH good wrestling. Too much good wrestling to watch it all is my favourite problem to have! Enjoy the PPV! That crazy hour was my fix for this week. It totally hit the spot. Oh! And I am happy that Fenix and Mark Briscoe now both more or less have a match on the PPV. I might even get to watch that one before I have to head out to work.

Oh hell yeah! Top Flight vs Dark Order vs BCC vs Aussie Open! RIHO VS EMI! And, according to the FITE app, Swerve & Boudreaux vs KEITH LEE & DUSTIN! OH BABY! That is more up my personal alley (phrasing) than most of the matches on the PPV! LET'S GO! Perfect card for me, after the rough week or so I have just gone through. (Everything is pretty good now, and trending better).

I am absolutely not looking for a sympathy pop, but I had to rush over to Canada to deal with a family emergency and I haven't had time to watch, read about, or discuss much AEW or any pro wrestling for a week or so. I am back in Japan now but very busy as a result of having to rush off. I might have time to watch, and discuss, Rampage tomorrow morning (J-time), but I'll be working Monday AM (can't afford to cancel any more lessons) and will not be able to watch the Revolution as it is being televised. (That's a Gil Scott-Heron reference. I am sure a lot of you got that). I I looked at the PPV card on the airplane coming home. The flight from Tokyo to Osaka had free WiFi. It bummed me out. As we stand now, Eddie Kingston ain't got no match on the PPV. Takeshita ain't got no match on the PPV. Claudio ain't got no match on the PPV. Wheeler ain't got no match on the PPV. Garcia ain't got no match on the PPV. Ortiz ain't got no match on the PPV. Top Flight ain't got no match on the PPV. Darby ain't got no match on the PPV. Rush ain't got no match on the PPV. Fenix ain't got no match on the PPV. Bandido ain't got no match on the PPV. FTR ain't got no match on the PPV. HOOK ain't got no match on the PPV. Keith Lee ain't got no match on the PPV. Sonny Kiss ain't got no match on the PPV. Lance Archer ain't got no match on the PPV. Of course JD and Boulder and Toa and Nicky Boy and Pretty Peter and Fuego and Dustin and Hungie ain't got no match on the PPV. MJF is headlining the PPV. Jeff Jarrett has a major role in a title match on the PPV. Athena ain't got no match on the PPV. Toni Storm ain't got no match on the PPV. Willow ain't got no match on the PPV. Emi ain't got no match on the PPV. Shida ain't got no match on the PPV. Riho ain't got no match on the PPV. The Magical Girl ain't got no match on the PPV. Deeb ain't got no match on the PPV. Of course Kiera and Abadon and Mercedes ain't got no match on the PPV. Saraya has a major role in a title match on the PPV. I GET IT! I did a whole fantasy booking thing to help me understand that it's not really feasible to book all my favourites on every PPV. And maybe they'll squeeze some of the people I really wanna see onto the buy-in or something. And maybe some of those people are "more ROH than AEW now" or something. Possibly some of them are injured or busy or whatever. FTR are a whole other thing right now... But Jarrett and Saraya getting clear priority over all of them just kind of confirms my worries about the direction that MY SECOND FAVOURITE PRO WRESTLING PROMOTION IN THE ENTIRE WORLD (After Osaka Pro) is heading in. And I don't wanna complain about a one-hour American Dragon match. BUT There are SO MANY wrestlers on the roster I would MUCH rather see him fight for an hour. So many. Still: Bryan has a match on the PPV. An hour-long match! Orange Cassidy has a match on the PPV. Potentially an Osaka/Chikara Pro type comedy match! Mox has a match on the PPV. Hanger has a match on the PPV. Joe has a match on the PPV. Wardlow has a match on the PPV. Hayter has a match on the PPV. Jungle Boy has a match on the PPV. And so on. So it's not like there's NO reason to watch. It's not like there won't be a ton of fun-to-great in-ring action tomorrow. But I think I'm just gonna skip this one, and not just because of everything else going on in my life at the moment. if Bryan actually WINS the title, I'll probably regret that decision. Otherwise I imagine I'll be fine with it.

Gorilla Press Slam Overhead Press Slam Reverse Press Slam Double Press Slam Lariat One-handed Press Slam Warrior Press Shoot-style Gordlow: Guillotine Open-handed slap Roundhouse kick Double wrist lock Leg lock Omoplata Wishbone Japanese-influenced Gordlow: Gamngiri Octopus hold Rolling Elbow Dragon suplex Lariat Overhead chop Wheelbarrow suplex

I disagreed with JR when he said it was "ironic" that all 6 guys in the match are basketball fans,but - ironically - I agreed with Ex when he said "Nakazawa played football... Ironically" after JR disrespected Nakazawa. Jericho's Stryper shout-out made me lol, too. Orange vs Wheeler should be great. Jericho got a second lol outa me with "undertaking" because I understood that reference . I like matches based around bodypart selling! I am maybe getting jaded by all those short Cargill squashes. Swerve vs Dustin gets the main event slot! Is Keith Lee coming back to make the save and the full face turn? More chain wrestling! Cinder block! Lee is DEFINITELY coming back! Hooray! Looking like a 400-pound Captain Holt. I love it!

@The Naturaliit's not who I am underneath... Did you understand that reference?

Dang. Hats off to Jarrett for going out there and working a fun match today. I didn't take a bathroom break this time. Dude gets a day off from me... But not from Caster! If I ever have to fight Mox I'm definitely gonna request a first blood match. It was refreshing to see so much classic chain wrestling in that tag match. (I hope I'm the first one to make that joke). Was that Jungle Boy's second best Cage match in AEW? Looks like he is gonna have another one soon. I was more stoked for Dark than for Dynamite this week (TAKESHITA vs BRONSON!!) but this show was an absolute blast. Uno's suit might have been THE highlight. Just fun match after fun match capped off by a VERY fun main event with CREATIVE use of the spray paint. I LOVE that the story is that we don't know where Ruby will end up. Like, as if her destination is yet to be determined.

RIP Eric Froelich. He was probably the first technical/European-style wrestler I ever saw, at the Vancouver All Star showsxtaped at BCTV studios when I was a little kid. By all accounts he was a guy with legit skills and an even better person than he was a wrestler . https://slamwrestling.net/index.php/2023/02/11/eric-froelich-dead-at-85/

Hey do you think Wheeler's emerald green and white/silver gear is meant as a tip of the hat to someone or something from pro wrestling's past? Like how Eddie Kingston's black and yellow gear is a nod to Toshiaki Kawada? I think It might be. Not sure who, though. Ooooo. Darby & Ortiz vs Mad King & ? YEAH! LET'S GO! I think the Impractical Jokers were actually talking about Jericho's penis. You might have missed that because it was so subt!e and clever. Swerve vs Dustin should be great. I think if I HAD TO choose one, I'd rather watch Dana White Presents Slapfighting over Impractical Jokers. Fortunately, I do not have to watch either. I CHOOSE PRO WRESTLING! I enjoyed Ruby's confused/conflicted facial expressions. Josh Woods vs Mark Briscoe should be great. "Swoleverine" is pretty funny, in my opinion. But so is "Gordlow" in my opinion. So, my opinion about what's funny might not count for much. Speaking of: "I ate his ass..." - Hangman Page. Nice pop for The AEW All Atlantic Champion. VERY fun main event with a couple of ROUGH-looking bumps. As always, hats off to Satnam's tailor.

Dynamite keeps dishing out PPV-level bouts while Rampage goes kinda indie and weird and unpredictable and I am LOVING IT!! Mox, Claudio, and Wheeler vs Butcher,Blade, & Kip! Sure! Why not! Mox and Butcher gonna LAY IT IN on one another for sure. Marina vs Ruby! Should be violent! Orangey Boy defends the All Atlantic Championship Title Belt against Tiga Style! Yes! This is the kind of match that I personally watch AEW for. This, Emi vs Hayter, Eddie Kingston vs QT Marshall... Just two folks who are very very good at pro wrestling going out there and having some fun beating each other up. Nothing better, in my way of looking at things. Reportedly also: Jungle Boy vs Hollywood Hunk! Random enough matchup for me. Can Perry pull a fun match outa Nemeth? Probably! JAS come out to confront The Impractical Jokers w/r/t the rightful ownership of Floyd The Bat in a segment I simply cannot imagine anyone I know giving half a runny shit about but who knows maybe it will be entertaining. We'll hear from Mark Briscoe! That is a positive development! Will he announce a new tag team partner? Will it be the start of the tastefully executed non-"I did it for Eddie" style Mark Briscoe face run I wished for on Dean's thread? Will Terry Funk be name-dropped? I'm actually stoked for a "We'll hear from" segment! About 24.5 hours to go! I like having stuff to look forward to every week.

Dragon and Hanger, obviously. Strap either of them up at any time and nobody is going to complain. No reasonable person, anyway. You could pretty easily heat Wardlow or Mad King up again. People want to cheer for them. I cannot think of ANYBODY I'd rather they bring in or push right now over seeing Bryan or Kingston on top. With a bit more build: You could turn Fenix full good guy, give him a mouthpiece. Keith Lee, when he returns, could EASILY be made into a top guy. Speaking of which: Either Dax or Cash would work for me, though I wouldn't want to break up the team. They can both go, they can both talk, and they are both naturally likable. Darby, Orange, Starks ,Jungle Boy, Claudio... Garcia after he turns on Sammy. Bowens single run with Caster by his side, rapping him to the ring? My current top choice: Imagine the potential of a tastefully-handled Mark Bricoe face singles run. They've got a TON of options.

Don't have time for a full write-up, but: I LOVE that Dragon and Takeshita are friends. Last week, DEAN's poll was a near-impossible choice between Joe vs Darby, Mox vs Hanger, and Bryan vs Thatcher. This week we need to try and choose between Dragon vs Roosh and Takeshita vs MJF! I am in favour of Dynamite just WRECKING the poll every week. In my opinion: MJF as a wrestler > MJF as a promo guy > MJF on commentary. YMMV, obviously. There is TOO MUCH great wrestling, and I am LOVING IT!

Dang! Almost everything that has been announced so far for this week's Dynamite feels like a showcase for that unique way AEW has of mixing ridiculous horseshit with truly excellent professional wrestling. And doing so in a variety of ways. Kenny and the Bucks are the all time masters and innovators when it comes to mixing ridiculous horseshit with truly excellent professional wrestling! And AEW stands for All ELITE Wrestling. So maybe THAT is the house style. Top Flight & AR Fox are IDEAL dance partners who can match Kenny, Matt, and Nick's creativity and athleticism. This match should be NUTS. Jamie Hayter is the hardest-hitting wrestler in AEW. Maybe third or fourth in the world (the competition being: MiSu, Ishii, WALTER in my opinion) The Bunny is GREAT but she's often primarily shtick in the ring. Will Hayter drag out Bunny's violent side? (We know it's there. She probably will) BUT: It's an Eliminator Match. We cannot completely dismiss the possibility that Bunny will steal a horseshit win so we can get a second (much more violent) match between the two! It's possible! The Acclaimed (C) vs The Gunns for the AEW World Tag Team Championship is LIKELY to lean more toward the horseshit side of things, for storytelling reasons, and the storytelling has been good enough that the outcome is actually in doubt! Plus, these guys can go, they keep improving, and they have developed great chemistry. MJF brings the old school heel horseshit and Konosuke Takeshita brings the athletic, hard-hitting wrestling to their AEW World Championship Eliminator Match. I hope either Soup or Bun Bun wins their Eliminator! I wouldn't mind a repeat of either match. The Garcia-Guevara Gauntlet is ABSOLUTELY gonna be showcase-level horseshit/wrestling mixture! With the first stage mostly the former and the second stage mostly (entirely?) the latter, I am assuming. Rush and Bryan Danielson bring the professional wrestling. TRENCH and Boudreaux bring the horseshit! It's gonna be TOO MUCH FUN!

I am also not an action figure guy, but I have to admit that this new Jamie Hayter one looks AMAZING!

Get well DEAN! Get electricity, John! I marked out for a bunch of non-actual-wrestling stuff today: TONY SAID "STOKED!" and he even emphasised it by pausing for a moment beforehand! DUSTIN ran in for the save, brandishing a TURNBUCKLE! The Mad King/HoB story kind of makes sense now. Corrupting the realest and least corruptible guy! I like it. RENEGADE TWINS!! I AGREE WITH JR! (About Emi vs Hayter). Rush using fat wads of cash to fan himself in picture in picture. Maybe the first time I have marked out more for the extracurriculars than for the in-ring action while watching an AEW show. I'm guessing Rush wouldn't get that reference.

Elite vs Ethan Hardy Isiah. Which will absolutely be entertaining, and probably make me laugh out loud at least a couple of times. Saraya (boo) teaming with Toni Storm (yay) as part of the endlessly fascinating "does this division belong to AEW Originals or ex-WWE newcomers? " storyline that I love so much. Swerve vs Pillman Jr. (rather than Dustin or recovered - from - the - cinderblock - attack Keith Lee). Roooosh vs Christopher Daniels. To warm up Rush before Bryan or something? Rampage seems to be getting more YouTube - ish while Dynamite has been on a run of PPV-level matches. That probably sounds like a complaint, but if you know me at all you'll understand that I'm actually stoked that Rampage is getting weirder and more random. Who can say where our next semi-random totally great Hayter vs Emi type of matchup might come from? Likewise, I am already extraordinary stoked for Rush vs Dragon and Hayter vs Bunny next week on Dynamite. Predictably great is also great. I'm kinda stoked for Ibushi vs Takeshita and Golden Lovers vs Young Bucks even though neither has really even been hinted at yet. I think those matches are close to inevitable this year. Basically, this is me thinking about pro wrestling: t

Blood before the first commercial break! THAT is how you start a big episode of prowrestling TV! YES!!! OUTRUNNERS!!! I ASKED FOR IT, I GOT IT!!! Takeshita to Cage: "I kneed you." Trios Title matches gonna be fun! BRYAN vs THATCHER! Oh baby! Starting out with a JOHNNY VALENTINE reference sets a pretty high bar! (Which they clear). TAKESOUP vs FRIEDMAN! Good heavens. No time to breathe. Is White Umaga's name "Trench"? Did I hear that correctly? Dragon vs Roosh?!?!?! Yowza. "That sounded a bit longer than 'we have a deal.' " Jade is Claudio-level STRONG. What an INSANE main event! WARDLOW! Dynamite today had enough action, and enough variety, for a PPV. GREAT show!

Off to work so no time for a full write-up, but Workhorsemen and Magical Girl both on YouTube TWICE in one week feels like pure Gordlow Fan Service and I am VERY HAPPY about that. Also: Takeshita vs Angelico (w/Luther & Serpentico) was SUCH glorious bullshit and a PERFECT YouTube main event. I am off to work full of joy today.

AEW is straight up doing weekly PPV quality cards now. Maybe I need to be grateful for Jeff Jarrett showing up! Weekly PPVs are kind of a Jarrett thing, right? Dragon vs Thatcher is a genuine DREAM MATCH. I am WAY more stoked for this than for Bryan vs MJF. Mox vs Hangman III is FOR SURE a PPV level bout and will be STIFF AS FUCK. Joe vs Darby... Ditto, plus insanity. Jade vs Velvet has been building for a long time. Takeshita vs Cage should be ALL ACTION and also innovative, for people who like that kind of thing. And Acclaimed "in action" (hopefully against Workhorsemen or Outrunners)! I prefer Acclaimed in the ring to Acclaimed doing skits by a WIDE margin, personally. Oh boy am I excited for tomorrow morning (our time).

Starkz throws a very nice suplex! Athena & Diamante as partners who wanna fight should be fun. If I was booking AEW, Workhorsemen vs Dark Order would be main eventing Dynamite. I LIKE THE NEW MATCHING GEAR! The match more than lived up to my VERY high expectations! Roosh just absolutely demolished Pillman! Magical Girl! Hey. Whaddaya know? Athena & Diamante as partners who wanna fight each other WAS entertaining. Sakazaki LAYING IT IN was just great, too. Finish marked me right out! HEYYYYY I'M LIVIN' Top Flight vs Ari & Neece was RIDICULOUSLY nifty. If I am being honest, I enjoyed the goofy LET'S REMEMBER SOME GUYS NBA references on commentary ALMOST as much as I enjoyed the match. The Yuka/Dark Order skit KILLED me. I LOVE The Outrunners. Outrunners vs Workhorsemen and vs Bear Country and vs Gates of Agony please! WHAT A MAIN EVENT! They pulled out all the stops for Elevation #100. I was distracted throughout the show by the guy with the same facial hair as me in the loud shirt apparently mansplaining the entire show to his wife. What a patient woman. I hope he appreciates her.

Happy birthday, Brocktopus, Spocktopus, Indian Death Locktopus... Hope you get a nice pic from Natural. You deserve one! @Octopusy

That was a pretty darned entertaining Sports Entertainment Premium Live Event. I don't watch a ton of WWE, obviously, but that's the most I've enjoyed one of their shows since the Rumble where KANA and Shinsuke both won, whenever that was. A lot of pleasant surprises. Didn't lean too hard on nostalgia, camera work was relatively restrained, commentary was mostly solid... Nothing distracted from the action in the ring (except for the black lights glow in the dark stuff) and the action itself was all really good. Also: I saw the sign, and it opened up my eyes. I saw the sign:

I was LITERALLY thinking, while watching Emi vs Hayter, that there was no way I could vote for anything other than the tribute match this week regardless of how good the Rampage main event turned out to be. At the risk of putting too fine a point on it: I appreciate your understanding that everyone feels the same way, and 100% support your choice to make this a vote for second place.

1) I think I'm gonna start calling her Emi SAKURABA. Good Lord. 2) "Those are heavy hands, ladies and gentlemen, take it from me..." - Good Ole Uh. How does JR have first-hand knowledge of how hard Emi Sakuraba hits? Oh geez. I thought about it for a minute and it took me to a dark place. Maybe don't think about it.