Old Goat

RIP Dean. Your writing and words have been in my head since 1996.

vs. Kaito Kiyomiya felt like Jimmy Olsen mistakenly entering Dr. Gonzo and HJT's hotel room. I must say thank you for this one. NOAH has been a blind spot for me, and I wouldn't have known about a new favorite guy. What is fantastic is that I can't decide which persona I like better.

This is a small thing, but Rhea Ripley's running leap into the ring was cool as hell

Zbyszko hitting Bruno with the chair and leaving him in a pool of blood was my hook into this magical world. RIP to the true champ.

aka: Baron Ichikawa

What an introduction. Not my first time around, but that scene has been in my head for 25 years. too.

quote: Paul E, 9/28/91: Geeez!

In my kid brain, the wildest, coolest bad guy that there was. RIP Hot Rod, always #1.

The only real spark I felt during the Rumble itself was the slow approach between Bray and the Boogeyman -- which was the supernatural counterpart of the Umaga meets Kamala encounter of '06. I assume this is a Vince touch, and I love him for that rare (but very much alive) theme. (Disappointed in this incident's outcome, though, even though it went down nearly the same -- only Kamala and Stalker Ichikawa can pull off the squashed jungle insect twitch)

I have the same tape(!) -- The Doink match was on YT as of a couple of weeks ago -- strange that it's gone now. Also, that Tiger Driver on CIMA in the J Cup is nuts.

What JRV said. Has anyone else used the Onryo Clutch? I'm surprised that the whole sequence hasn't been stolen in latter-day WWE.

The clown is particularly rough on the ghost. It's worth tracking down.