SirSmUgly

The idea is solid, but Boyd had a tough time conveying annoyance or much of anything at all. I will say that the only time he's ever been able to show much of a reaction is when Cornette would shit on his suits, though. Hilarious. I could have sworn Watts namechecked the AWA specifically when he mentioned Okerlund, but yeah, maybe Watts got mixed up or I misheard. In which case, I suppose the "three men claiming to be World Champion, but only Ric Flair really is" comment is the one shot at the AWA.

I genuinely don't know about Okerlund. He also said that Mantell was up North and decided it was too easy, but I didn't think Mantell had gone to WWF by this point. Watts could just be saying shit just to say it. I forgot to mention that Watts was super-angry about the Stossel/Dr. D 20/20 segment on that show and is still irate about it two weeks later. Butch Reed is not "a Hollywood actor" or "overweight pachyderm from Titan Sports," he's a real athlete, according to Watts on 4/27/85 MSW. Jim Cornette could never rant half as good as Watts. One more edit: I thought the "overweight pachyderm" comment was about King Kong Bundy, and sure enough, after the break, we see 1983 footage of rookie Dr. Death giving the business to said overweight pachyderm who ran up north to hide from real competition.

It's Southern wrestling. Race is naturally intertwined into it in a way that honestly offends me way less than in other territories. I wasn't bothered by the Akbar promo - it was a FANTASTIC heel promo - but yeah, it stood out to me because it wouldn't be done today.

The first WrestleMania triggered Bill Watts, and I don't mean to use that word lightly or even outside of a strict psychological meaning. The 4/13/85 MSW is quite the performance from Watts on commentary. Watts starts the show with a five-minute rant about how WrestleMania is some fraud shit, really, and actual real wrestling only happens in places like Mid-South. He's especially disgusted that they let Mr. T, a fucking ACTOR, in the ring. The AWA gets some shots fired at it when Watts makes fun of it for once letting Gene Okerlund, a fucking BACKSTAGE INTERVIEWER, in the ring at a show. NWA champion Ric Flair will be making appearances in Mid-South. He's a world champion, and really the only world champion if you think about it, unlike those frauds Hulk Hogan or Rick Martel, who are FRAUDS. OK, he doesn't mention those two by name unlike T or Okerlund, but still. Dutch Mantel, an ostensible heel, is given plaudits by Watts on commentary for the first half of his squash match victory because Mantel doesn't believe in negotiating settlements with the enemy due to his experience in 'Nam. Yeah, bomb them all for *checks notes* wanting self-determination and trying to cast out the colonizing French. Now, you think this might be hypocrisy because usually Watts loves the idea of freedom in self-determination. However, Watts is clear that he's not for self-determination when we go to war! When we mobilize, who gives a FUCK what anyone else wants? Then he laments the young Americans who don't understand how bombing people who don't fit neatly into a U.S. hegemonic worldview is good, actually. It's pretty wild, even for Watts! Oh yeah, and also apparently Mantel declares that it's too easy in New York and that he wants real competition in Mid-South. Everyone is saying that it's too easy in New York except for the losers who can't hack it in Mid-South *coughJYDcough*. I have completely passed over some of the other amazing shit about this show - Skandor Akbar declaring a "NO BLACKS (except Kamala)" policy in what is a somewhat bananas promo, for example, or the Roberts/Nord vs. Rock 'n Rolls match which has a finish in which Ricky gets hung in the ropes and that leads to Jake and Nord fighting off like five faces and looking like absolute KINGS even though they're supposed to be heels - but yeah, Watts on commentary was absolutely on one this show to the point of almost overshadowing it. Nothing like this show could possibly exist in 2023, and I for one am thrilled that it has been preserved for posterity.

Oh man, Dok Hendrix shilling merch in a room full of posters and standees. Now that brings me back. WEEEEEEELLLLLLLLLLLL please buy this Bret Hart-themed fanny pack, please. We're broke, we don't have water coolers in the office anymore. Please help.

You made a Wreddit-level post, which is peak internet-gonna-internet when it comes to the art of pro wrestling. Most of us have done it before. Take the L and let it go. On a totally different note, I ended up running across that old Rumblemetrics blogspot again for the first time in years, and it's still entertaining: http://rumblemetrics.blogspot.com/2012/?m=0 I am, however, miffed by this Canadian gentleperson's misunderstanding of what makes Barbarian great, and I simply assume that as a Canadian, he simply didn't watch enough JCP or WCW.

Watching '85 MSW: Just put the big gold on Jake Roberts, Watts. Oddly, I think Jake's said that Watts didn't rate him, which is complete nonsense if true. The guy walks out as a heel and within the first few weeks, he gets cheers and "DDT" chants that only increase. Turn him face, but don't change his act and just let him dick around the heels. It's obvious money.

Yeah, and I believe everyone says someone different won the fight.

Not a fan of the new opening music on the 3/23/85 MSW. Change it back. Not a fan of Terry Taylor being the new North American Champion, which happened the episode before this one. Change it back. I am a fan of Butch Reed and John Nord having a street fight, though. Nord is pretty fun.

This was true for me, but with WoS. late '70s/early '80s WoS is one of my favorite promotions ever, and I got into it when a couple of very thorough uploaders started to put it on YouTube.

Because those are illegal methods of payment and southern promoters were out here keeping kayfabe, I guess. Imagine an IRS agent showing up and asking Bill Watts if he paid payroll taxes on his masked workers' salaries because he claimed to be paying the Grappler under the table on commentary, and Watts responding with I DON'T HAVE TO TELL YOU ANYTHING, TAXATION IS THEFT ANYWAY.

She's just workin', my dude.

I genuinely can't remember a moment. There's an old pic of me as a toddler wearing a Hulkamania t-shirt. As far as I can remember, I always loved pro wrestling.

That'd make a great WM-to-WM yearlong story. Have a babyface you want to rocket to the top get a title shot at the World Champ heel on the RAW after WM, have it not happen for whatever reason, and then announce a rematch that the babyface never quite gets because of multiple diversions, each one becoming more violent (or more wacky, depending on the booker) than the last until there's a reveal ten months later that the heel has been dodging that title match by pulling strings, paying heels off, and even bringing in a monster heel on his own dime. That's probably a much better story in the territory times where you can bring in monsters-of-the-week from other promotions and then let them go elsewhere when their program is over.

I'm glad that I got back to watching more Mid-South in 1985 because Jake Roberts RULES and is the best. Terry Taylor's punk ass is ducking him, it's obvious.