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PURE RULES TITLE MATCH! Isiah Kassidy is a treasure.

Shiiiiit. I’ll post compliments: @The Natural, you are a wonderful human and I love you. @Matt D, bless your heart. I was down and you showed up when you didn’t know I needed a hey. You’re a good man and I wish the best for you and your family. @Gordlow, you muscly motherfucker. I like you. @zendragon, sup. @AxB, read Gordlow but for arms. @Jiji, you are a sweet man and I really appreciate our conversations. @Stefanie the Human, I still have to try that sushi restaurant appetizer and I’m afraid to ask what it’s called. fuck, I don’t know if they put my food in. I’ll get another drink. @Technico Support, I like you also. @DEAN, you like my posts sometimes and that’s cool. Let’s hang out. I’m getting these weird voicemails where it starts before the recording starts so I don’t know who I owe money to. Hopefully someone doesn’t show up and blow my big toe off. Because I didn’t t pay a bill. @Kropotkin's Beard, one day we will become NOAH friends but I’m not ready. It will happen though. @John from Cincinnati, dear lord you are great. Bless your Cody heart. @Infinit, you seem like a very positive person and I enjoy your posts. @Curt McGirt, you’re a a cool dude. If you say you like me it’ll up my cool points by 20. OH NO, MY BIG TOE!!!!! @Zimbra, sup. @kenyabaxterZXW, are you Xavier Woods? So many more I can’t type. Derpin. Still no good. I’ll order another. To be continued?!!??

I have watched wrestling for over 40 years; and there have been few sequences better than the beginning of the FTW championship match to the end of Ricky Starks being vertical and conscious. Masterful work, and the lions share of credit easily goes to Ricky Starks. I don't like to throw around ultimatums, but this better be the start of something big for Starks and Hobbs or I will flip tables like Jesus in the Temple.

There's an actual rumor going around that, during his heated argument with TK, Gresham brought up his PWI 500 ranking as evidence of why he should have a certain spot in the company. I want that to be true so bad. That's like the story about the wrestler who tried to cash the gimmick check for the battle royal.

I agree it's not 100% necessary but they've made it a fun touring belt where they show the matches on Dark -- Pac just defended it in OTT in Ireland. It's kinda cool to see "AEW SUPERSTARS" in these intimate little buildings and it promotes indy wrestling.

When this is your mascot you’re going to do well.

One of the things the old fogies in the biz generally get right is that there is a way to lose for the betterment of your career. Even Danhausen seems to have it down. Dude got beat in a minute and a half and he’ll still have the credit to stay over and even do the underdog rallies to victory later on. AmDrag is a master of this if his 2013 is any illustration. Now let’s compete over who loves him more. ?

Maybe he goes into a cocoon and whatever comes out of it is some kind of fucking super-beast that will dominate wrestling on all continents (that have decent fast food and baked goods)?

Fuck it, I want to double down because it makes me pretty angry. In pro wrestling anything can work and anything can be effective. It takes 3-4 things. Conviction from the person delivering the offense: they have to believe in what they're doing and project that belief, embody it. Reaction from the person taking the offense: this is selling; the person has to show that it has an effect upon them through their physical reactions. The announcers putting it over: it was done with conviction, it was sold with conviction; just explain and express that it worked and come up with reasons how and why and put it in context. Consistency over time: if these three above things all happen and they happen repeatedly, the fans become conditioned to accept what they're seeing. JR crapping on something that was done with conviction and is being sold not only means he's failing at what he's doing, but he's actively betraying not just the wrestler doing the move, but the wrestler that dared to sell it. It means that any other time that wrestler sells anything, it's put to doubt. It means that any other time the initial wrestler does any offense, it's put to doubt. The only one who potentially gets any credibility out of it is JR himself, who comes off like a maverick who calls things fake even when the wrestlers aren't brave enough to avoid doing them or to avoid selling it or the fans in the audience aren't brave enough to avoid reacting to it. Only JR is above all of them. He has to go. He 100% has to go. What an absolute liability. What a horrible announcer. A bad announcer who fails to do his job and get something over is one thing. A terrible, wretched, counter-productive announcer who actively sabotages the product is something else entirely.

I love this post I found years ago on NJPW's faction system and how it contrasts with WWE's (and, really, America's) bullshit myth of individualism, bootstraps, etc etc. Maybe this changes with new creative, but in Vince's WWE, babyfaces don't need friends, needing help is a weakness, partners always turn on each other, and all that. What a terrible way to view the world.

With Claudio stating that he won March Madness as winning argument.

This is so great, I want them to show this on TV.

There are supposedly two locations of Sugar Shack somewhere in RVA. One day I will not be lazy and will go find one myself. I have had them before and they are delicious. You would fight someone over the last maple glazed in the box.. Yes, you would. To get back on topic, Marcel brings up an interesting point. AEW fans seem to have really accepted matches being enforced under RoH Pure rules, so can we maybe expect to see Trios title matches with Lucha Trios rules enforced? I honestly think we're ready for Lucha Trios rules to go mainstream. I always liked the kayfabe concept of "specialists" who excelled in certain matches and putting three good singles workers or a tag-team and a singles worker together should not automatically mean that they will have success as a Trios team. The group that is able to take the best advantage of Trios rules while still functioning as a cohesive unit should thrive in that environment.

FUCK YEAH! DO IT AGAIN!

what a king-sized episode! Moxley/Rush was aces Ricky Starks put over 3 people in an all-time great segment (hook, himself, and hobbs). Jungle Boy with a freaking great promo. seriously, this will be mentioned in his history for a LONG time. Thunder Rosa and Yamashita looked like they had a lot of timing or communication issues. was looking forward to this match but was disappointed. Garcia upsets Dragon! and the long expected Trios titles get announced. hyped!

Agreed 110% and thanks for articulating it so well. "I don't see any skin lost!" was just awful. In trying to give him the benefit of the doubt, he may still have his referee mentality towards his credibility where if he doesn't call out the bullshit and sells it as anything less, then he's seen as lacking credibility the next time he's required to put something over, rather than the announcer role where he's supposed to sell the stupid shit. Even though he's sold far more ridiculous for the past 30 years without missing a beat. The misogynistic "She's just worried about when she's going to the mall next!" line re: Tay Conti was awful too. It wasn't even consistent with the character they have her doing either. Just his weird view of women.

It's funny that you mentioned Florida because JJ Dillon specifically talked about that in his book when describing how good of a booker Eddie Graham was. He said that if there was going to be a heel beatdown of a face in the show, Eddie would book it for later in the show. He'd then specifically book Jack Brisco or another top face to wrestle earlier and have Gordon Solie do an interview with him and they'd poignantly drop a line like, "Thanks for your time Jack, I know we have to make this short as you have to go visit the children's hospital/sick kid/charity work/insert good guy deed here". The face would then do a short promo and then leave and that way later in the show, when the heels are running roughshod, the fans weren't like, "where the eff is Brisco? He's supposed to be such a good guy and he can't help his friends?!" Plus it put even more heat on the heels because the fans would think, "those guys are assholes. They waited until Brisco left! Wait till he gets back and hears about this!"

I'm lucky enough to live in a joint Krispy Kreme/Dunkin area. I have both pretty equal distance from my house. Also, I'm blessed with three or four excellent local bakeries with amazing donuts. Also, I could stand to lose a few pounds. Wonder why?

The Acclaimed ripping this off was great. Plus a DUMPSTER MATCH?! Please have some styrofoam peanuts, but please no wood planks in the bottom. Singh is a winner though I wanna see what he can do outside being a brick wall. He has a ton of charisma just coming out to the ring. That was a real fun match. Ethan Page squash YES PLEASE. The Lee Moriarty kick against the rail during the PnP was evil; Dean will find the gif for us soon. Petulant Child Jericho is the Best Jericho. Main was alright. Ruby is really good at selling if you didn't know that already. The hidden object choke seems like an innovation, has anyone ever done that before? All in all a perfectly fine show.

I really loved the Ruby/Anna JAS match. Ruby is so good. I think her strength is that she knows her limitations. She was a theater kid/punk fan as a kid. She does not have an athletic background. I think that has shaped her so well into focusing on making sure her offense look effective but most importantly in knowing how to react in the ring instead of selling (to quote Mr. Regal). That was just a quality story-driven match. Ruby comes in hurt and has her arm braced. Anna attacks her hand and just does some basic lock-up stuff that Ruby very realistically makes look like death with what I assume is a fully kayfabe injury. Ruby fights back with her good arm and when she’s doing so also has a little head bob that I like a lot - it creates a rhythm for the crowd to feel. And then Anna Jay can cut off that rhythm and build heat. Anna looks nasty doing just a really basic offense on her end. I think the most complex move she did was a super kick. The end was a really good callback to her previous attempt to use Ruby’s brace and also her being heel smart enough to dispose of it at ringside. That was not a MOTY or anything of the sort but that was a perfect match and a shining example of why I think Ruby Soho is a fantastic professional wrestler.

F. Long dumb day at work. End of the fiscal year craziness in shipping and miscommunications I get no lunch and stay late. Hungry and mad. I pick my son up at my parents and he’s super smiley to see me. All is good and I’m happy. My wife takes so. To her mom’s. Cool. I get Mexican food. Derp with the locals at the bar derpin and good. Food forgets to be placed so I’m a few tall beer and free shot of Tullamore Dew in on an empty stomach. I see Zendragon post and say to myself “hey, I like Zendragon”. AxB, “hey, I like AxB”. Life is good right now. It’ll suck again but derpin hard in the paint and all about that life.

Sorry if this has been posted elsewhere...but this is a ️️️️️ Tweet thread.

Oh, man. Stokely's roped Regal into his videos? That's amazing news.

“You know who I am, but you don’t know why I’m here…”

I'd like to sample those! We have a chain called Arnold's here and I would put their Creamy Pomada or Creamy White Chocolade against pretty much anything (it's not cream filled, it's vanilla custard filled, though), but yeah! Bring it! Those look *drool*

Wait, people think that Scorpio was graceful? Scorpio was cool as fuck, innovative, but every one of his high spots looked like he was about half an inch from blowing out both his knees and killing his opponent. He didn't give off out of control and dangerous like Sabu, but I don't know why people were signing up to take his 450 or that moonsault legdrop thing.

Yeah, he wanted to be called "Ramblin' Ricky Rhodes". It's funny because I remember Dusty related that story in a shoot interview in the early 2000s and people (myself included) kinda wrote it off as Dusty just putting himself over and exaggerating. Then Flair actually confirmed it in his book and in other interviews.

Danhausen has come close to getting him to break. Somebody will, and it will be awesome.

The gluttony tour continues, @DEAN. Konosuke Takeshita when he returns to Japan will go into hibernation with the food he's consumed.

I sent that dominos clip to friends and coworkers and everyone got a kick out of it.

NSFW Thread of Eddie Kingston's reactions on the AEW roster:

Oh look, another bad post from you. ?

Yes, Trump had mainstream celebrity BUT his family was never accepted by the "upper crust" of NYC. He was always seen as a bit gauche or, as one NY writer called him, a "short-fingered vulgarian." His fame was always of a trashy variety unbecoming of the social circles he really wanted to be part of. It is exactly like Vince's desperate need to be seen as something more than just a vulgar, carny rasslin promoter. Both guys had wealth and success, but not the validation of being seen as part of true high society. It really is fascinating to me how similar the two are.

Continuing my 80s/90s WWF nostalgia watch, I almost finished Summerslam 88 and man, there' s almost nothing to write about here, but I won't let that stop me! ? Muraco vs Bravo: Was the world clamoring for a rematch of their Mania 4 bout that ended in a really dumb DQ? Announcers reference Muraco feuding with Valentine over kayfabe injuring Billy Graham, so this is another meaningless filler match in a really bad card that's chock full of them. Speaking of Graham, watching four matches in a row of him yelling BROTHAAAHHHH and MY MAAAN and other assorted old white guy jive talk has me wanting to rip my fucking ears off. Also speaking of Graham, he won't shut the fuck up about powerlifting and Bravo's fake lift. It comes off like he's trying to create his own angle where he leads Muraco into a powerlifting contest vs Bravo. He's insufferable. Weird finish as Muraco goes for a slam, Bravo's leg grazes the ref, who bumps and gets right back up, then Bravo hits the side slam out of nowhere for the pin. Average match, bizarre finish, commentary that made me jealous of Marlee Matlin. Muraco was fired less than two months later (what's the story there?) while Bravo apparently hung around for three and a half more years. So I have that to look forward to. Demolition (c) vs Hart Foundation: the gimmick here is that Bret & Anvil dumped Jimmy Hart but he still owns their contracts. The jilted manager is in Demolition's corner to get revenge. WAIT. If he still owns their contracts, wouldn't he make more money by the Harts winning the belts? 80s WWF: Don't Think Too Hard About This Shit. Very good match, of course, because you have three very good workers and one generational worker. The finish, which saw the ref trying to pull Neidhart off Fuji while Ax glommed Bret with the megaphone, was too much of a retread of the Mania 4 finish for me. Somewhere in here, the Ultimate Warrior and his tag team partner, Cocaine, are interviewed. Bossman vs Koko: Not a lot to say about this one. Koko is really good, Traylor is kind of a prodigy who had just gotten to the WWF. A prison guard managed by a pimp is a weird angle but bad guys are supposed to be hypocrites, so I'll allow it. Bossman wins with a rather unimpressive Bossman Slam. After years of seeing guys like Abyss and Brody King catch opponents, spin them around, and just fucking plant them in the mat, this one looks like Bossman is helping Koko lay down for a nap. MAN this show is a slog. Jake vs Herc is next and I ffwd'd to the end. Let me talk to you for a minute, friends. I've got some anxiety from time to time and sometimes I watch this stuff legit thinking, about or even worrying about, what I'll write here about it. Sometimes it stresses me out because a match comes that I just can't get into or just am not inspired by. So I tell you what. For my own mental health, I'll ffwd and just tell you "fuck it, this match looked like shit, there's nothing to say about it, and we'll move on." Thanks! Jake wins with a DDT because apparently the story here is that Heenan was too preoccupied by the main event to come out with his guy. Can't say I blame him. I started dozing off on the main event so I'll revisit it next time. I will say that master politician Hogan somehow gaming Savage into wearing the red and yellow so he looks like he's just Hulk's Lil' Buddy instead of the motherfucking champeen of the world is some masterstroke genius shit. I'm actually surprised both entered together to Savage's music instead of separately to their own themes. I originally quoted my bud The Natural here but that is hilariously filtered ? Til next time, friends!

I want them to go further and use Paradigm Pro's version of UWFI rules for the Pure Title. Yeah, it's kinda weird in kayfabe to have one division where a back suplex is a knockout, finishing blow, while it's just another move everywhere else, but fuck it. Regal could explain it away. ? For donuts, man, I'm really torn. Krispy Kreme is good BUT their donuts are kinda small while somehow also being way too sweet. Dunkin, on the other hand, are too big and doughy. Neither hits that balance of dough and accoutrements.

My better half had a major crush on Cole during the NXT days until I took her to Takeover XXV and she realized she was a good 4 inches taller than him in person (not at all height/body shaming Cole for the record, she's just tall for a lady).

They actually tried to get a foot in the door in New England but it fizzled out QUICKLY. Dunkins is fine but we've got Heav'nly Donuts in parts of NH/MA and it's worlds better.

If they base the game sometime between 1985 and 2001, that would work. Their "Bonnie & Clyde" could be Catalina and Claude. BUT if they're working on doing less "punching down" and fewer stereotypes, they may need to avoid Catalina altogether. On a side note, I just watched Heat over the weekend and GTA 5 definitely borrows from it. The two things that jump right out at me is the robbery that starts the film is a lot like the Blitz Play mission, and Michael DeSanta's default fancy outfit looks a lot like DeNiro's character (gray suit, white shirt, no tie).

LOOOOL they turned Lacey Evans heel? Didn't they do a bunch of vignettes about her overcoming a broken home, drugs, and all kinds of adversity? This company, man.