SorceressKnight

According to THE RUMBLINGZ~!, he failed his physical.

There's no password/etc. for new entrants available, is there?

Well, being fair- he should have just hit an animal instead of a human. Then, everyone would demand he get banned for life and given the chair for it. Really, the "letting people get drunk and killed back on their team" IS partially on the fans there.

He's a big fat dude in a fedora who cuts promos like Raven. He's exactly the person half of the IWC think they'd be if they were in WWE.

IIRC, they made the offer to Tammy, and she took them up on it so many times that she's the first person that WWE has formally ceased offering to send to rehab.

Another last place finish. I have no regrets, it's the game that's fun. ...well, except for thinking Guardians of the Galaxy would bomb hard. THAT I regret.

-Even the most shut-in, creepy, obsessive fan of the most blatant, terrible "obsess over one of these girls as a fake girlfriend" anime series, is less of a total prat than the anime fan who claims "I only watch Studio Ghibli films".

A big instance for it is armchair booking, IMO: Most transactions in sports or stupid booking decisions get maligned with it, and there's usually that twinge of "I wouldn't have done that, so it must suck". With Vince's shitty decisions, they're things only Vince or Dunn would have- so there's a scapegoat and knowing that "well, if I had Vince's power, I'd do something different and it'd be a new boom period." HHH, though- when he's failing with people like Sin Cara, Tensai, or Kharma- on the one hand, they're failures- but fans who play EWR inherently kind of know if they had HHH's position, they'd have probably done the same thing and hired Mistico/Bernard/Kong just like HHH. Put it together, it's a lot easier to forgive knowing that on paper, HHH made the right decisions- they just didn't turn out right.

The problem, though, is that going to geek culture is both a blessing and a curse for pro wrestling. Right now, pro wrestling has kind of succeeded in getting away from "the redneck sport" to becoming "the nerds' sport", which helps mainstream pro wrestling- but at the same time, that very fact is what will keep pro wrestling from being mainstream. If a sport is designed for an audience you know is unintelligent, then you're going to adjust your writing to pander to the lowest common denominator- and when you pander to the lowest common denominator, then you'll make simplistic storylines that anyone can understand. By contrast, geeks OBSESS over the things they love, and they care so much about the objects of their desire they'll make you do the same homework they did when you're writing, nitpicking to a point where you have to have everything down pat so it will stand up to anything they throw at you. This leads to a problem, because Geeks actually care about what entertains them, and the average person, quite frankly, DOESN'T. It's the same for any other geek culture hit show, which are predominantly ignored by the average- simply because they'll never be the normal person. The average TV viewer is, and always will be, the person who got home from a hard day at work and just wants to turn their brain off and just laugh, or just had a tough day of the boss giving them crap and just wants reinforcement that they're smart by knowing who did it before the main characters did, or just wants to feel better about themselves by watching completely unlikable people and thinking "No matter how much my life sucks, at least I'm not THEM"- and that will never change, no matter how nerdy the world gets. Pro wrestling's done exactly what it needed to do in the modern era to go forward...and that's exactly why they'll never reach the heights they did before.

Elevate: Alicia Fox- One of the sneakiest-complete Divas in the company- getting slightly more use, but could be more of a genuine threat. Zack Ryder- Why he couldn't be in the comedy midcarder position is beyond me- he was popular enough, so he should at least be a regular on TV. Tyson Kidd- A Quadruple-A player, but his NXT heel turn is ready to use him as a possible midcard heel in WWE now. Titus O'Neil- If he was five years younger, he's a future World Champ. As it is he could easily be a top contender. Big E- On the verge of one of the faces of the next generation of WWE, and needs something to get him there. Bo Dallas- So great in his role he could make himself one of the top guys in the future. Cameron- Not to the peak of the WWE or anything, but WWE needs some more viable women, there's some potential in her as an uber-bitch...go with it. Ryback- The downfall for him last year is insane, and he's proven he can do so much more. Paige- Elevate her to this level. Boom. There's your Diva to take you into the 2020s with. Done. Darren Young- The potential for mainstream boosts is just too good to ignore- doesn't have to be The Man, but needs to be a rotation guy for as long as he wants. Naomi- At least she's athletic enough, and the Divas need more credible names. Emma- The talent and potential are there to keep her- Emma vs. Paige should give you the next few years as a top feud. Fandango- Could be a viable tag guy or IC/US guy. Justin Gabriel- See Tyson Kidd, but WWE can always use a good heel tag team. Heath Slater- Put on this earth to be a midcard heel. Give him the IC or US Title and watch the fun. Jack Swagger- For years I was certain the moment he turned face he would finally put it all together. But they didn't believe me. They all laughed at the possibility. With the last few weeks, who's laughing now? Hold Steady: Adam Rose- Right now he seems to be the comedy midcarder, and that's really how he should be used. AJ Lee- The top Diva in the company right now, and deserves to be there. Should stay in the role. El Torito- You have to have one pure joke, and he could be Hornswoggle 2.0. Bad News Barrett- I think the ship's sailed for him as a main eventer, but in this role it could prove me wrong. Summer Rae- Right on the verge of being a top Diva in the company, but just barely not there yet. Sin Cara- The name is at its low point, but the talent is there- is a good gatekeeper-level AAAA-player for them. Bray Wyatt- Right on the verge, about where he should be right now. Not ready yet to be the champ, but worthy of being a top threat. Brock Lesnar- How much more could they elevate him? He's the worldbeater, the final boss, the last person you want to see- and anything less than that right now is business-exposing. Roman Reigns- He's already The Next One, he's going to be The Next One, keep going as it is right now. Damien Sandow- Wherever they're going with it, it seems to work...keep the course going. Daniel Bryan- How much higher can he GO? Randy Orton- One of the best heels out there today, underrated because he's so hatable. Natalya- Only needs to be kept steady for Tyson Kidd's, but keep there. Dean Ambrose- Right now, being the apparent "Jannetty" of the Shield works best for him. Luke Harper- Maybe Brodie Lee (NOT! Luke Harper!) was good on the indies, but the Wyatts is such a perfect spot for him, and Harper and Rowan are so good, that it's best he's here. Erick Rowan- See Luke Harper. The only reason you would want Harper over Rowan is due to marking for Harper on the indies- and that's just not a good enough reason. John Cena- Until someone else takes it from him, he's the Man and should be at the top. Jimmy Uso- There's not much further they can go, but they deserve it. Jey Uso- See Jimmy Uso. Demote: Xavier Woods- The definition of a "Quadruple-A" player. Better to be in NXT as a big name than the low man on WWE TV. Tamina Snuka- I just don't buy her as this huge threat- she's sold as this amazing wrestler or dominating presence, and she's just...whatever. Still worth being on TV, but not as a huge star. Stardust- It's over. It's never going to happen for Cody Rhodes as a future name. Just make him a low-card comedy guy for good and shut the door totally. Sheamus- Quit trying to make Sheamus happen. It's never going to happen. Put him in midcard-level stuff from here on out. Seth Rollins- Not so much because I dislike Rollins as the future, but quite frankly, I just don't want the ROHbots to win with him because if they win with a guy they despised when he was in ROH and make him a main event long-term WWE Champion, WWE is dead, over, finito, just hire everyone who ever worked for ROH and SHIMMER and be done with it. Brie Bella- I buy her as a top Diva, but still don't see her as THE Face of the Divas. A slight demotion could help things. Rusev- It's just not happening. Meld him into the midcard race, make him US Champ and run there, but he's just not a main event player. Curtis Axel- just doesn't have it as a top threat, but still just too good to let walk. Better to mold him into the new Gatekeeper guy. Nikki Bella- See Brie Bella. Diego- The gimmick's not working, make them AAAA-level guys for NXT. Dolph Ziggler- It's over. It's never going to happen, deal with it. Keep him a low-level midcarder. The Miz- He is what he is. He's not a top guy and never will be again. Keep him in the midcard. Eva Marie- Demote her to the beginner class of NXT. And to an acting class that can teach her how to act with more skill than a six year old playing a tree in a school play only because the teacher had to give every kid a part and who spends half the play eating paste in the background. Fernando- See Diego. Goldust- See Stardust. HHH- The Authority's Teflon antics are the biggest problem with WWE right now. Not a lower level, but...let them LOSE more. Release: Alberto Del Rio- he's great in the ring, but it's not going to happen. He won't be anything less than a star- let him go already. Undertaker- Well, replace "release" with "let retire", but same thing. Once the streak ended, the last thing keeping him in WWE ended. Let the Deadman walk off into the sunset. Rob Van Dam- As said, Done. The Big Show- They've done everything they can with him, he's lost it as a top guy...just let him walk away. Rosa Mendes- It's been 8 years and she's still terrible. It's never going to happen. Ever. Just fire her she is beyond hope. Rey Mysterio- He doesn't even want to be there. Let him go. Chris Jericho- The WWE doesn't- or shouldn't- need him around. Let him walk. Christian- He's become injury prone, he's finished as anything more than a jobber, thanks for the memories and follow Edge to retirement. R-Truth- Nothing more than a low-level jobber. If TNA or GFW wants to try with him, LET THEM. David Otunga- He's still around? Mark Henry- He's great, yes, but he's done everything- literally everything- he could do. He's too good to be anything but a top guy, and not good enough to be a top guy going forward. TIme to let him go. Layla- Defer to letting go the oldest of the Divas to get new blood in. Kofi Kingston- My mother raised three wrestling-obsessed children. She never watched much pro wrestling herself unless one of us had it on. If I have it on sometimes, that's the most she sees of it. And yet, for that little experience with pro wrestling- especially modern pro wrestling: She despises Kofi Kingston. When it's THAT BAD, that might be a sign he's done. Kane- See Big Show. The Great Khali- If they're just using him for India, why fire Jinder Mahal, who at least was fresher and could have turned? Hornswoggle- The fork's been sticking from his back since Finlay left the company. From NXT (Maximum 5): Tyler Breeze- Because Fandango could use a tag partner. The Ascension- WWE needs more tag teams. Bayley- WWE needs more Divas. Sasha Banks- See Bayley. Charlotte- See Sasha Banks. No choices for hiring.

Hearing it, I prefer the theory just told to me recently: During "Occupy Raw", the fans and Daniel Bryan rush the ring in protest to get their way. This directly leads to The Authority being forced to fight Bryan, leading to Bryan beating HHH, winning the title, and giving The Authority their ultimate comeuppance. However, the first way HHH and Stephanie tried to stop the act was by starting a new match- sending Damien Sandow out to the ring, Sandow, however, was scared off by the mob and refused to fight them, staying away from the ring. Shortly after Wrestlemania, Sandow began dressing up as random people and doing this. You are now aware: The "Sandow dresses up as an idiot" storyline/gimmick is Damien Sandow being kayfabe-punished by The Authority for refusing to fight at Occupy Raw- but since Sandow is a coward, he won't come right out and finger The Authority for making him do it.

The date when regular XBox Live started to use these apps has passed...anyone know if it's a rollout or what's happening there? I don't use Gold, and can use it for some, including subscriptions (WWE Network/Hulu Plus), but not others (Netflix).

C- Bill Russell ($4) PF- Tim Duncan ($3) SF- Scottie Pippen ($1) PG- John Stockton ($2) SG- Michael Jordan ($5) Between Jordan, Russell, and Duncan- the intangibles will win it all.. Stockton sets everyone up, Pippen already knows his role better than most there. EDIT: Maybe Dewar picked it too- but you never said everyone had to pick a different team...

Well, the biggest thing in the NBA, at least, is that NBA teams continue to hold a player's rights, in perpetuity, held in stasis until the player signs. So, if you're, say, Chris Paul or Blake Griffin and you tell the Clippers "I refuse to put on a Clippers uniform again as long as Donald Sterling owns the team", and the case is in court- they could show they mean business by going to Europe- but unless they trade one of them, the Clippers would still own Paul or Griffin's rights, and get four years of Paul or Griffin when they did come back, even if they come back in their forties or fifties. (It's the same reason a lot of Euroleague players can get stashed and refuse to sign.)

The Red Sox were in a no-win situation at that time. Now that the "Curse" has been laid to rest, people can get past the romanticized "Harry Frazee sold Ruth to the Yankees to finance a play" and into the more accurate "Babe Ruth had become a clubhouse cancer, he frequently threatened to retire to become a boxer or an actor, and it had gotten to the point where the Red Sox had to trade him no matter how good he was just to get that guy off the team". So, if Babe Ruth stayed on the Red Sox...you get the 2012 Red Sox team 90 years beforehand and Dan Shaughnessy needs to find some other excuse.

I'm in: Finally on the upswing: BOX OFFICE: 1- Transformers: Age of Extinction 2- The Amazing Spider-Man 2 3- How to Train Your Dragon 2 4-A Million Ways to Die In The West 5- X-Men: Days of Future Past 6- The Expendables 3 7- Hercules 8- The Purge: Anarchy (TIEBREAKER: $100 million) 9- Maleficent 10-Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 11- Sin City: A Dame to Kill For 12- The Giver 13- 22 Jump Street 14- Dawn of the Planet of the Apes 15- Guardians of the Galaxy ROTTEN TOMATOES: 1- How to Train Your Dragon 2 2- Sin City: A Dame to Kill For 3- The Amazing Spider-Man 2 4- Maleficent 5- A Million Ways to Die In The West 6- The Purge: Anarchy 7- Hercules 8- Guardians of the Galaxy 9- The Expendables 3 10- The Giver 11- Edge of Tomorrow 12- Transformers: Edge of Extinction 13- 22 Jump Street 14- Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 15- X-Men: Days of Future Past ( This is harder- not only are there a lot of turkeys and things that have bomb written all over them, but some that might not be could plummet on RT (I'd bet on the "tsk, tsk" factor giving Days of Future Past a lot of bad reviews, for one lower example.)

But even then, there also has to be the other side. Some rules getting enforced, like punches and hair pulls, have just become so common in wrestling matches that calling them as illegal will do more to get heel heat on the referee for calling the violation (and holding it against one person) instead of giving heel heat to the person who tried it- which gives some heat, but not the traditional way.

Modern day John Cena vs. Steve Austin at his peak would be an amazing matchup- on either side. All the drawing power of Cena vs. Rock, only the matchup is even more electric (instead of efed-level petty sniping and derailing the show to get to the endgame of Cena/Rock, a matchup of Cena/Austin, two big top stars, two clear heroes of the time period- but both guys are such polar opposites of each other that they can't possibly co-exist and each guy would assume the other one's as bad as the bad guys...?)

Giving a quick update for the people who subscribed to the DVDVR Spotify playlist for the thread (either this one or older) that I created: With the new Spotify update allowing it to be a collaborative playlist, I changed it so anyone who subscribes can add to it. For it... DVDVR Poptimism

To add to it, JBL being such a bitch about Daniel Bryan and believing the Authority's brown nosing and heelishness actually improves the story because of that dynamic: By Michael Cole stopping doing it- and being the one who always defends Bryan to JBL and says he's being hard on him, that Daniel Bryan's one of the best in the company right now- it does more to sell the overarching storyline than anything else (Michael Cole became despised by the WWE fanbase, LEGIT, because of how Cole had bitched about Daniel Bryan for 18 months. COLE being the one to defend Daniel Bryan to JBL really sells the whole thing perfectly- Daniel Bryan's so good in the ring he even won Michael Cole, his single biggest detractor, over.)

No one- not even the biggest Cleveland fan, can deny Lebron is one of the best to ever play the game. But that's never been the issue- the question is: IS LeBron THE BEST EVER? That's the real problem as a whole. Yes, Jordan got his career in before the current "Embrace Debate" era of ESPN- but that era also HELPED LeBron's aura as much as it could hurt it, simply because the same talking heads who would have been arguing about any little thing LeBron does or doesn't do for time-eating debates are the same talking heads who anoint "LEBRON JAMES PLAYS BASKETBALL BETTER THAN ANY PERSON HAS, DOES, OR EVER WILL EVER AGAIN, When he retires THEY SHOULD FOLD THE NBA ENTIRELY! An MVP is not enough for LeBron anymore- make his nickname real and crown him King of the United States!" any time James has a game even slightly above his own average- whether or not it was all that great (and this isn't just Miami- they said it all the way back from the time he had his great game in the 2007 playoffs against Detroit, and talking heads fell all over themselves to claim it was better than any and every Michael Jordan playoff game in history combined. Never mind that it was one game in a series, that (even though screw replacement level, if you replaced LeBron with even the second-best player in the NBA in 2007 the Cavaliers are in the lottery- but with him they win the East) they lost to the Spurs in the Finals, or that Jordan had scored more than that in the Playoffs before- it was the first moment where they had a case to claim LeBron James was the Best Ever that they'd been waiting for for years. Lebron's ONE of the best- but he's not THE BEST yet.

More than you know.... more than you know... Ugh, I'm continually amazed at how stupid people are. Sadly, I am not. Not a sane way to live. Imagine if it were 1 inning! Then you could play 9 games a day and the season would be over in 3 weeks! Shortening all the games would be idiotic- but what about using the minor league rule instead of shortening games wholesale (if a single game is scheduled, it's 9 innings- but both games in a doubleheader are shortened to 7 innings a piece?) It's slightly easier to take than going all out, but helps on the other issues (18 innings of play in one game's going to destroy team's bullpens, leading to either pitcher injuries or bringing hitters in to throw an inning or two, leading to other injuries.)

Might be late, but may or may not exactly tie into the early "when does Paige get called up" question from before: Did anyone else notice that on Raw, Cole had said "the title will be on the line in a fifteen-Diva Invitational" (and said "Fifteen" twice), while also saying "AJ will defend the Divas' title against 13 other Divas"? Once could have been a slip-up, but twice: Did Cole inadvertantly spoil that there's going to be a mystery 15th Diva in the match?

Most likely, Zybysko would have been the one to unseat Bob Backlund around the same time period. Naturally, this would also, in all likeliness, lead to Bruno getting the title from Zybysko back...and then, there is the real question. Does Bruno agree to lose the title to Hogan when he comes in?

From the "Franchise Reviving moments" threads for some that weren't in: -What if the New Orleans Jazz didn't go after Gail Goodrich in 1976? (With how the rule worked at the beginning of NBA free agency, teams had to agree on compensation when a player signed. The compensation for Goodrich was a couple of Jazz first-rounders. One of the picks was the one the Lakers used on Magic Johnson- but, a 1975 draft for the draft rights to ABA players who weren't eligible for the NBA Draft yet had Moses Malone's rights go to New Orleans in exchange for a first rounder. The Jazz then proceeded to renounce their rights to Malone so they could trade that first to the Lakers in the Goodrich trade.)