twiztor

he's a good dude. i used to post at another board with him. he would always post them to that board before they made it to reddit. I think i even met him in person once, WAY back when.

pretty sure that a Ventura quote. At least, it is Jesse's voice when i hear it in my head.

i read this as Megan Bayne and was very confused. First, she's only been on TV for like 2 months. She hasn't been a major part of the program, so why would we/anyone be worried about her contract being up? Mariah May makes way more sense.

taking a real "the floor is lava" approach to wrestling. i like it.

the "is/isn't it canon" never bothered me. I have fully embraced the concept of so many resets/reboots/reimaginings/etc: "something LIKE that event happened, but the details may not be the exact same". close enough for me. as an aside, i always liked the idea that Golden Age Wonder Woman was Hippolyta. I was also fine with the idea of Earth-1/Earth-2 and all those that came afterwards. But i've never been too hung up on what the name of the current Earth is. New? 0? Prime? i honestly couldn't tell you and don't care in the slightest. Is this the approximate same Batman i've read 80 years of stories about? Yes? good enough for me. And yes, i realize that i was one of the voices complaining about renumberings.

because UFC hyped it up with an octagon literally on a beach. Plus, that would've been so badass. Instead, we got proto-Apex shows.

ah yes, that will clear up any confusion!

i fully understand that criticism of Stevie's pod, but i have to say that i do enjoy when i selectively watch clips on YouTube. Emphasis on "selectively". Stevie also has a tendency to view WWE as "big time" and everybody else as minor league. He was talking about the Edge/Moxley match with the nailbat spot, and was saying something like "Moxley doesn't have to do that. It might actually hurt his chances of going back to WWE." He's made other similar comments as well, but that one stood out to me since Mox has been explicit in not wanting to go back.

i just wish the major organizations changed up venue style more often. i know the modern world trends further and further into homogenization across the board, but it's just such a bummer.

maybe you're just conflating it with SuperFriends? That series got revamped every couple years, with rotating characters and differing titles. It gave me a headache a few years back when i was trying to track down all the DVD sets.

A little bit different format here. I listed them in chronological order, but ranked them instead. NR = No Rating, as i haven't seen enough of the show to form an opinion: Live Action: The Batman / Batman & Robin (the 1940s serials) - 2/5. fine for what they are, but not my bag. i only watched the first half o the first serial and didn't feel the need to continue. Batman (1966) - 5/5. i LOVE this show. the tongue-in-cheek zaniness is the exact point, and i'm saddened that so many people miss the fun inherent in the concept of a grown man dressing as a bat to sock! pow! thwack! themed bad guys in the face. Gotham (2014) - NR Animated: Adventures of Batman (1968) - 3/5. This is Batman and the Casey Kasem Robin seen on Scooby-Doo and SuperFriends as well. It's goofy but fun. The New Adventures of Batman (1977) - 3/5. this brings back Adam West & Burt Ward to the role. It's fine. It's probably worse than the prior series, but the novelty of having West & Ward back works for me. Notable for introducing Bat-Mite. Batman: TAS (1992) - 5/5. along with X-Men TAS, THE staple of my childhood TV viewing habits. The Batman (2004) - 1/5. hated the art style. Batman: The Brave and the Bold (2008) - 5/5. this series is so much FUN. Batman is usually the straight man surrounded by so much hijinks and absurdity, and it works wonders. Special shoutout to Aquaman, who is Outrageous!-ly good Beware the Batman (2013) - NR. i really can't get down with computer animated series, so i never watched this. Batman: Caped Crusader (2024) - NR. i didn't even know this existed, but am interested in checking it out.

Here's how i would rank them. Not on discord enough to even know this poll was happening. And obviously i'm a month late here on the board, so i'm not paying close enough attention. Will try to make a Batman series ranking list later this afternoon, but i haven't seen everything, so will probably forget some stuff. not ranked: The Batman (2022) as i haven't seen it and don't plan to. 11. Batman vs. Superman (2016). completely awful. Zach Snyder is a hack. 10. Batman and Robin (1997). also completely awful, in the totally opposite way. 9. Dark Knight Rises (2012). this was just one huge plot hole and i hate watched my way all the way through 8. Lego Batman Movie (2017). just felt underwhelming. I loved the Lego Movie, FWIW 7. Batman Begins (2005). promising, but it loses points because i hate the Tumbler/Bat Tank. 6. Batman (1989). enjoyed this but it is surpassed by its sequels 5. Batman (1966). campy in all the best ways. a slight step down from the series itself, however 4. The Dark Knight (2008). Heath Ledger's Joker completely changed the character for all media. That alone is enormous praise for a character/franchise that was almost 70 years old at that point. 3. Batman Returns (1992). Michelle Pfeiffer's Catwoman. 'nuff said! 2. Batman: Mask of the Phantasm (1993). this is peak Batman: TAS. 1. Batman Forever (1995). i fucking love this movie, and i am not ashamed in the slightest. Combines the zaniness of the '60s film with the moodiness of the '89 series. I totally get why people don't enjoy it, but it is the top of the heap as far as i'm concerned.

i played BOTW once, back in 2017 when it came out. Bold of you to assume that i have any remaining memories of locations or specifics about that game. [Spoiler: I Don't] But i think that is a pretty cool idea. Apropos of nothing, i do still have my homemade maps from the NES Zeldas from when i was a kid. Not sure if i still have the SNES/GB Zelda maps i made, but probably not.

where does everyone think he's headed? AEW?

legit surprised that Paddy beat Chandler. Paddy has looked like he's *just* out of his depth for the last couple fights of his i've seen, and i thought that Chandler, even on the downswing, would be too much for him. also good on Chase Hooper getting the W over Jim Miller. I like Miller, but it's gotta be time for him to bow out. I think it would have been a fitting ending to go out with the UFC300 bout, even with a Loss. I don't see him getting that kind of fan support again, and his skills will only deteriorate from here. i wonder how much he has left on his contract. As it stands now, a 17 year octagon career is damned impressive.

'promotion' gives off the wrong impression. It is closer to the "WCW International Sanctioning Body" or "WCW International Championship Committee" but yeah, it definitely was just referred to as the "Big Gold Belt" for a good chunk of time.

In your opinion, did TNA's licensing and use of the NWA Title from 2002-2007 give it World Title status again, or is it lost forever?

Yeah, the whole NWA Title history is wonky around that time. I just watched '93 WCW a year or so ago. Rick Rude carried and presented himself as the World Champ. But WCW clearly showed him and his title as second to their WCW Champ. I say this not to disparage him, and i fully believe they should have presented those titles as being on the same level, but they did not. WCW made it feel like it was more on par with the US Title, which is a huge disservice. That's why i mentioned that he was A champ instead of THE champ. There was still a higher tier, as presented on WCW TV. (i can't comment on the WCCW as i've not seen it) When WWE first enacted the brand split, each championship (WWE/SmackDown, World/Raw) were presented on vaguely equal platforms. [Personally, i continued to view them as the WWE and WCW belts, despite what WWE officially recognized, so i was amenable to that presentation.] I know they later got unified, and re-split, and then the Universal was created, and also there's the ECW and NXT championships to consider, but originally they were co-equal. I would recognize both as legitimate. I think Cena's reign, when the spinner belt was introduced, is when that became the semi-official #1 belt with the other brand's belt being bumped to #2. This is when i really began to lose interest, so if somebody has other views or thoughts i wouldn't argue them too much. And how the Universal and 2023 World belt factor in are best left for somebody else to elaborate. i read the question a little bit differently, but i fully agree with this take on Scott Hall. excellent worker, and his talent absolutely would have been perfect for a World Champion/top main eventer. His feuds, while not centered around the World Title generally, definitely gave credence to his opponents who would instead be at that level. Well said.

FYI tomorrow is Record Store Day. Hit up your local spot! I'm not really one for new/current releases, but it gives me a reason to dig through the bays and flesh out some of my collection. Good deals on LPs, CDs, and whatever else your favorite shops offer!

yes. a long, long, world tour.

Rick Rude was the "WCW International Champion", which was (to oversimply the situation) a placeholder belt for the NWA belt after WCW had established their own belt. So he was A champ, but not THE champ. I still think he's the best answer to the question. Scott Hall put out some great matches, but he didn't have much in the way of World Title feuds.

Kaz Hayashi is good every time he is on TV. But he's always in very forgettable segments, so he doesn't really get any benefit from being good in them. It's incredibly disappointing in that way. I know this can and has been said of my wrestlers, but i would have liked to see Kaz get a higher profile with the company. Maybe that's just a side effect of us never getting a post-Jung Dragons WCW. As an aside, everytime you type "Kaz", i think of Frankie Kazarian, who is featured fairly prominently in my 2007 TNA watch. A cursory search tells me they've never faced off, so now i am doubly disappointed. In fact, it looks like post-WCW, Hayashi does a short stint in WWE developmental (2002), then he returns to Japan and has only made one short return stateside (2005). this was indeed Crowbar's last match for WCW. I'm surprised he never got a run with WWE after this (looks like he did get a couple tryouts, notably one with "Prototype" John Cena). But i'm not too disappointed, as he was a highlight of the WWA run of shows. Surprisingly, he's largely irrelevant in TNA, as he only made a few appearances. I would have thought that would have been his bread and butter. there's every chance i mentioned this back when you covered it, but Shane Douglas did get a PPV win over Ric Flair at Slamboree 2000. I know they didn't have the headlining feud that Douglas probably envisioned, but he can always hang his hat on that win at least. I have no evidence of this, but i've always believed that he had that put into his contract. He based his entire ECW career around "Dick Flair" holding him back, so i can see him needing that as justification (either IRL or purely kayfabe, i don't know his personal thoughts). The match, like his entire WCW existence except tonight's promo apparently, sucked.

started playing the Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom last weekend. open world games are not what i typically enjoy playing. I'm more an old school platformer. But there's something about BOTW and TOTK that just feel so inviting. i start playing and hours just melt away. and all with very little frustration. Sure, there's some, but mostly i just get to relax and live in this world. Pure bliss. Definitely taking my time to enjoy this as much as possible. There's a reason this is the last game on my list to beat for the year. i don't want to feel rushed, or that something else is waiting for me. This gives me a chance to complete any and all side quests that compel me. So yeah, this will be my only game for the next 4-5-6 months. And i couldn't be happier.

this right here. if there is a hard line where a renumbering makes complete sense for both publishing and storyline sense, i have no issue (no pun intended) with it. more often, it is done as a sales tool. and that is where i have a problem with it. i'm sure it is mainly the collector in me, but having runs interrupted by renumberings are just a pain.

re: the cruiserweight tag team division, outside of Kidman/Rey, there are no established teams. But that may also show my unimpressedness of the whole 3 Count/Jung Dragons feud that spun its wheels for 6 months. i don't hate the IDEA of the division, but i feel like it should have had more of a build. And obviously it never goes anywhere, but it's hard to hold that against it in hindsight. I just think it started off with a shrug and never proved its reason to exist. i came in here to point out that the "E" spelling was correct, but decided to double check my own knowledge. Wikipedia shows no E. Cagematch shows the E. but his official facebook and twitter links do NOT include the E. edit: i just looked, and my records showed Clarke with an "E". just had to update them all. luckily, he only had a handful of non-tag team matches under that name.