twiztor

this is a really good question. i'll have to ponder it for awhile, but you've got a hell of a good start so far.

Shane McMahon as the goofy boss' son worked when that was the core of the character in 1999ish. And bad punches were acceptable due to the gimmick. i LOVE his 2001 KOTR match vs. Angle. i totally understand the argument that he shouldn't be going move-for-move, but i overlook it because of how much that match rules. Likewise, Shane's feud with Kane (2003? 04?) i thought worked, but this time because of the emotional/anger issue. any match of Shane's i've seen since has been largely bad, or at the very least completely forgettable. And in every example, yeah his punches stunk.

i agree with @Ziggy in principle, but @The Natural in practice. the problem, at least for me, is that Kurt would snatch an ankle lock and it was treated like death.......except when it wasn't. when you have some guys be in excruciating pain and tap out right away, that's fine. When you have some guys that treat it like any other submission hold and are able to claw their way to the ropes after 3 minutes, that can also be fine. But once #2 is established, #1 feels cheap (keeping in mind card placement/talent level). Maybe my view is tainted as i'm waist deep in my TNA viewing right now, but Angle's Ankle Lock is so inconsistently sold for that it diminishes the whole thing. TNA really is Angle's tendencies to their absolute nadir.

i forgot this week was the 4 hour marathon. I usually watch Dynamite on Saturday mornings and skip Collision. I guess i'll have to do Dynamite Saturday and Collision Sunday. an AEW DOUBLE FEATURE!

i have never even heard of Capture. i take it they're a Japanese promotion, but could you give a brief overview? any notable events? standout wrestlers that saw larger scale success, either beforehand or subsequently? top tier feuds?

personally, i would appreciate more Outrunners.

that crossed my mind a couple of times, but if that's what he was trying to channel, he badly missed the mark. Rammstein is glued together by the industrial sound behind everything. Plus, they are tight musicians and everything comes across very clean and clear. This.... is not that. @Curt, i don't regret listening to this (it's significantly better than the Jillian Hall record i subjected myself to), so no apologies necessary. I'm glad you mentioned it so that i could add it to this thread.

Tony “Viikinki” Halme – Mestarit Salilla [“Champions in the Hall”] Viikinki ['Viking'] (3:14) Mä Oon Tällainen ['I Am Like This'] (3:43) Painu Pelle Hiiteen ['Get Lost in the Forest'] (3:43) Kuningas Voittamaton ['King Undefeated'] (3:16) Fysiikkaa ['Physics'] (3:19) Jos Jotain Yrittää ['If Something Tries'] (3:03) Tony, Missä Sä Oot ['Tony, Where Are You?'] (2:56) Läähätän Ja Läkähdyn ['I'm Breathing and I'm Exhausted'] (3:13) Turpa Kii! ['Shut Up, Kii!'] (4:23) Tahdon Olla Sulle Hellä ['I Want to Be Tender to You'] (3:55) Jos Sä Tartut Mun Hanuriin ['If You Grab My Accordion'] (3:05) Samurai (3:31) Alibi (3:08) Nukkumatti ['Sandman'] (1:21) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L1akU8cNY64&list=OLAK5uy_nSb5HofrSOA7Mdm5GO0qk1QcPJGiH8fpw&index=2 https://www.discogs.com/master/429885-Tony-Viikinki-Halme-Mestarit-Salilla Ring Introduction: Per discogs, this was released in 2001. I had never heard of it until Curt pointed it out after the Vice episode. I was shocked to find this available on YouTube. Before wrestling, Tony made his fame on a Finnish version of American Gladiators, under the name “Viikinki.” I guess that prepared him for pro wrestling, and he got trained by Verne Gagne. Anyway, that's all pointless backstory as he retired in 1997. Then he tried MMA, where he also washed out, before releasing this album. 2 years after its release, he gets elected to the Finnish Parliament. What a weird life. Anyway (again), I don't recognize a single name associated with this album. The Match: “Viikinki' is a techno song that starts off with some metal undertones, but shifts to dance pretty quick. OH MY GOD, now Ludvig Borga is shouting at me. It is presumably in Finnish and off beat. I don't dislike the chorus, but at this point this is me trying to figure out how my life went so wrong that I am spending a night listening to this. “Mä Oon Tällainen” starts with “BROU-HA-HA” and then shifts into a.... folkish song? This is a massive shift from the previous song, with the only thing the same is Borga's complete aversion to matching his vocals with the music. “Painu Pelle Hiiteen” OK, the above translation led me astray. This is a remake of Twisted Sister's “We're Not Gonna Take It”. It isn't bad, but i'm just kind of perplexed on what is happening here. “Kuningas Voittamaton” decides to shift the vibe again, this time to a more hip-hop flavor. In fact, the beat is completely stolen from heavily inspired by “The Real Slim Shady”. Tony even says “I don't give a fuck” in English partway through. I.... don't hate this? But it's certainly not what i'd call “good”. “Fysiikkaa” I was prepared to make a joke that Ludvig Borga teaching physics through song, while a terrible choice, wouldn't feel out of place on this album. Instead, we get a remake of Olivia Newton-John's famous song “Physical”. I didn't have a solid grasp on what this album was beforehand, and now i'm like 1/3 of the way finished, yet I have even less of an idea. “Jos Jotain Yrittää”. Tony's definitely emulating something here, but I can't quite place it. Much like the first song, this oscillates between a metal feel and a disco dance. It is on the tip of my tongue, but between the Finnish lyrics and the weird techno back beat, it shifts it just outside my brain. “Tony, Missä Sä Oot” is built around a marching chant and features a female vocalist providing the chorus. It's a weird combination of elements that just leaves me fairly empty. But Tony adding in “HOU-HA”s and “BROU-HA-HA”s midsong certainly adds.....something. 'Läähätän Ja Läkähdyn” gives another new look. This song again starts with a techno dance theme, but builds onto it with bells that have a distinct Eastern European composition. It feels a bit like filler outside of that. Or maybe, and I can't believe i'm saying this, it is a letdown because i'm appreciating the weirdness that came before. “Turpa Kii!” OK, the Eurodance beats are really starting to wear on me now. Why am I listening to this, and not only listening, but focusing and analyzing? This song is repetitive and I kinda hate it. “Tahdon Olla Sulle Hellä” HOLD UP. Tony adds a second voice on a couple of the verses. It's deeper, and while I think it's supposed to be sensual (per the title), it actually comes across more sinister. And we also started off with a weird distorted digital filer on a voice. None of this makes the song any better, but it definitely stands out, for what that's worth. “Jos Sä Tartut Mun Hanuriin” is still Eurodance, but this song seems to take inspiration from circus or Roma music. It seems to flow pretty well while not really treading any new ground. “Samurai” is a little bit faster tempo but still the same techno style. I thought this was OK if forgettable at first, but it is VERY repetitive by the end and i've heard enough. “Alibi” is the song that Tony tries to show off his range. I emphasize “try”, because he has no range whatsoever. The chorus has them saying “Alibi”, but to me it sounds like “Halibut”. Make of that what you will. “Nukkumatti” isn't even a song, really. Tony is doing some sort of half chant, half speech while a triangle or something that sounds like it dings. The Finnish: err, Finish. Sorry, couldn't resist. A foreign language techno album by a non-musician is a distinct string of words that AI couldn't piece together if it was trying to assemble my own personal musical hell. I can't find a reason that this exists other than Tony trying to capitalize on whatever level of fame he was afforded in his home country. I do have to wonder why there were so many songs where he just interjects a “HOU-HA” in for seemingly no reason. I'm not a fan of techno music, but I AM a fan of interesting covers, so my rating votes are split on where to go. Ultimately, i'm only awarding this 1 ringbell out of 5. It just is too far outside my musical realm.

i had no idea Aoki was even doing pro wrestling.

yeah, i'm in for this, but can we book it for May 19th?

@RIPPA, we've been on this version of the board since 2013..... twelve years is a long time. at what point does it make sense to have a relaunch? At this point, the list of things that DON'T work is longer than those that DO.

i was shocked how much i enjoyed Flair when i rewatched '93-94 WCW a year or two back. I've always been in the "flair is overrated" camp, so it really was nice to get a glimpse past that. the aborted/kneecapped Austin feud really felt like it was about to be a 'passing of the torch' kind of magic. I feel that once Hogan came in and Flair got pushed to a secondary character, a lot of his motivation dropped as well. Him being a largely non-factor in the monstrous nWo angle likely further diminished his desire. Add in the problems he had with Bischoff, and i think it's right in this time period.

you're not in for Hush 2? i haven't been reading it (will wait for the conclusion), but i know there was a lot of hype leading into it.

you know, that is actually somewhat surprising. Even Ric was leaning into that with his late '90s heeling. Maybe it's less good taste, and more that no prospective wrestlers want to claim relation to David Flair.

Ric couldn't work his match on his show called "Ric Flair's Last Match". That was 3 years ago and he is now 76. his final match in TNA (vs. Sting on Impact) was FOURTEEN years ago. his final match in WWE (vs. Shawn Michaels @ WrestleMania 24) was SEVENTEEN years ago.

new Batman header/logo incoming. this whole cover is giving me strong Nightwing vibes, so obviously i like it.

yeah, i saw a handful of Abadon matches on Dark, and the annual Halloween showcases, but i would've liked to see more.

is this still in the one hour Nitro era? my hypothesis is that WCW can't figure out how to hold attention for much longer than that yet. If memory serves, we're also at the beginning of the 12 yearly PPV events. That translates to roughly 4 Nitros per PPV. at 45 minutes per (without commercials), that means a single PPV is as much TV time as a whole month of Nitros. I postulate that once the TV show expands to two hours, it helps WCW figure out a consistency of time management.

i played thru the Sonic games a year or two back. I was playing on an actual Genesis, so no save states. But i did get some passwords for at least one of the games. i'm not about that Chaos Emerald life.

i forgot they existed until i watched Dynamite and saw the Frat Boys debut. My first thought was "that's gimmick infringement!" PP has been off TV since losing the tag titles back in January. Is one of them hurt (again)?

i think we likely saw Mariah's peak in AEW, but to say 'all the meat was off the bone' or question 'if' she could be useful in another role is giving me "you're either the top star or you have no value" vibes. i agree that both she and AEW extracted max value otherwise, and i have no issue with her jumping territories.

seconded

last time the comix were brought up, i remember RIPPA saying that none of them were lost and all were archived. he was coy on if/when/how people could read them again.

a face Repo Man is just Robin Hood

i feel like soccer would be the easiest to halfass teach someone. Especially here in the States and in the '90s, it's not like soccer was hugely popular. Most people i know/knew were only familiar with it because they played on their local league as kids. They didn't have to make PJ into Pelé to get the point across. really, just show him the correct form for a header and kids would've been sold. And then of course incorporate the headbutt into his moveset. i'm now super overthinking this, but there could definitely be mileage of a wrestler being a former soccer player. kick based offense. lots of running moves. high stamina. OTOH, it would've just as likely been Abe "Knuckleball" Schwartz or MVP (Lombardi, not Porter).