Zakk_Sabbath

FWIW, I enjoyed the Sheamus-Christian match (and I am not a Sheamus guy) but I think Christian attacking him backstage should have happened maybe last week on Raw or SD. It's strange-- that simple little angle kind of made me give more of a shit about the match, but in retrospect. I'd assume they fight at WM, maybe in a multi-man with del Rio or Show and some other poor, lost souls? Also, another detail that's sort of been lost amongst all the Bryan and Punk talk-- when the Real Americans break-up, you guys think Zeb will stay with Swagger or go with Cesaro? I think Swagger probably needs him more, but I'd be crushed if Cesaro had a lower ceiling because of his accent or something silly like that.

I think the better question would be why they are still running ownership/authority type angles after it's been done to death over the last 17 years, and is currently being run further into the ground by WWE. One would think that with the shape they're in financially, the amount of guys that are gone, and the recent ratings drop, that they would at least try something new. I dunno... watching Impact just makes me very ornery and curmudgeonly now. Hollywood Cibernetico-- I agree 110% with everything you wrote, but I have one tiny nitpick: You mentioned the Wolves having to prove themselves to the casual TNA fan... I'm not entirely sure there is such a thing. Maybe I'm just being negative again.

Me personally, I'd have Bryan in the Batista/Orton match, and then run Bryan/Punk all summer long.

You have no idea how badly I want to see this, possibly even more so than when many were suggesting it during the summer after the pipebomb promo. I think it's been long enough now. I think Punk's walkout will end up being a blessing in disguise. It has given them a second chance to make Punk just as hot as he was that summer vis a vis a reality based type angle. I really thought there was a lot of missed opportunities there, and this might be the right time for them to execute and capitalize on some of them. Ultimately, if it were up to me, I'd have the main event tomorrow be a shot for Bryan to be added to Batista/Orton, and as Bryan is about to be screwed yet again, Punk runs through the crowd like Owen at DX IYH and helps him win. Sets up HHH-Punk and Bryan/Batista/Orton. Or maybe Bryan could win on his own? You know, that's my bad, I phrased that wrong. Keeps him from losing, lets say. Cuts off some sort of interference before it even happens. I don't think that makes Bryan look weak at all. Something similar to what Austin's role in Foley's first WWF title win was. But without outright putting a lifeless Bryan on top for the win. Let Bryan hit the knee and all that.

You have no idea how badly I want to see this, possibly even more so than when many were suggesting it during the summer after the pipebomb promo. I think it's been long enough now. I think Punk's walkout will end up being a blessing in disguise. It has given them a second chance to make Punk just as hot as he was that summer vis a vis a reality based type angle. I really thought there was a lot of missed opportunities there, and this might be the right time for them to execute and capitalize on some of them. Ultimately, if it were up to me, I'd have the main event tomorrow be a shot for Bryan to be added to Batista/Orton, and as Bryan is about to be screwed yet again, Punk runs through the crowd like Owen at DX IYH and helps him win. Sets up HHH-Punk and Bryan/Batista/Orton. EDIT: Per my post below, "helps him win" should be "keeps him from losing" for example cutting off interference before it happens. That type of thing.

credit PWInsider

I kept waiting for Nick Kroll and Chelsea Perretti to come on-screen. I cannot fathom that this is a real thing.

I'm a little younger than most here, but I got turned on to watching old tapes as a kid because the video store near me had a HUGE wrestling section. So since the A-Team was on well before I was born, I really had no idea that Mr. T. was known for anything besides WM I and the handful of WCW appearances he made for the longest time. I figured he was just another WWF star in semi-retirement.

I always thought the same thing, for some reason. Maybe it was the King Kong Bundy appearance on Married... With Children. I wonder if WWE would even be allowed on Fox depending on the specifics of the UFC deal, which I don't know anything about. Does anyone know the reason there weren't more SNMEs on Fox?

As much as I enjoy Bray Wyatt's character, it is interesting that he's been booked in a WM match with Cena so quickly. But, I must say, If anyone can pull a good-to-great match out of him on such a big stage, it's probably Cena. I would definitely enjoy another Cena-Bryan match, especially at WM, but my enjoyment of it would kind of depend on how they set it up and when. I already feel like tonight, Friday, or at EC would probably even be too late. Granted a lot has changed since the RR, with Punk leaving, the reaction to Bryan, etc., but if they were going to run Cena-Bryan at WM the seeds should have been planted on the Raw following the RR at the latest IMO. I can't remember if someone was saying this here or on another board, but someone wrote that it just does not feel like the WM build is not the same as it usually is. I fully agree! I don't know if its because of the network, or Punk, or what. Nothing's been done with Lesnar/Taker on TV yet, if that's still the plan. Batista is just simply not as high caliber of a return as Rock at ALL, especially with the crowd shitting on him and his RR win. Maybe I should just lower my expectations from now on..

I think this, above anything else said in this thread, is the best commentary on Jarrett's drawing power

This is awesome, thanks a lot BAHU and Kevin. I'm going to definitely try to hunt down as many of those matches as I can. I was thinking about maybe writing some entries about my reactions to watching FMW on a consistent basis for the first time, but I dunno. rzombie-- I actually recently watched that Hayabusa/Tanaka vs Pogo/Funk on YT! I was a huge fan of Tanaka's ECW stuff, and of course I love Funk, so I figured that would be a good place to start when I made the post in the omnibus thread. I also remember seeing a lot of Hayabusa on my buddy's older brother's tapes we would raid in middle school. That match is one of the most over the top things I have ever seen! I can't believe how crazy it was, especially went they went over the side and into the exploding board. Then immediately into another exploading board. The fire breathing stuff looked great on camera too. It all feels pretty irresponsible now, but shit, it was a different time.

I know that YT links are traditionally frowned upon in the omnibus, but I need to share this Kevin Nash shoot. It's from 2012, but I don't think I've ever seen it mentioned here, and this is the first I'm seeing it. The interviewer here is pretty comical for a couple reasons. But holy shit, the balls on that guy. Just really going nuts with the steroid stuff towards the middle-to-end.

Please stop spying on my EWR game

I asked this in the omnibus thread, and was told the puro forum would be the place for it: Does anyone have some good FMW match recommendations? I know I'm like 15 years late to the party on this one. I spoke with Dusty Finish and he said the mid-90s were the highlight, so I've been looking up a lot of that stuff on YouTube. I've also been easing myself in by watching stuff from names I know: Hayabusa, Terry Funk, Mr. Pogo, Tanaka, Awesome, etc.

Awesome. I just checked and I think there might even be a thread for it aready. Thanks a lot

According to Wiki and Cagematch he hasn't had a match since 2002, apparently some dark matches for WWE. I never even knew that he had a developmental deal after WCW closed, to be honest. If I did, I forgot. After reading your post, I watched Horace/Awesome/Oya vs. Headhunters and Leatherface from FMW. I really enjoyed the match, though I don't know that it isn't only because I've really only had time to watch current WWE lately. It was a brawl around the stadium, full of fat guys and weapons shots, so it might have been nice just to see something different for the first time in a while (full disclosure: I watched Impact two weeks ago from Scotland since I happned to be home on a Thursday night). Anyway, it made me realize that I really have not watched enough nor do I have enough knowledge about FMW. Especially for someone who enjoys that style of match. Any recommendations/essential viewing?

A few thoughts on this show from a lapsed TNA viewer: I really like the design of their new World title belt. The new X-Division belt looks like butt, though. Rockstar Spud is one of the best things on the show. He's like a Brad Maddox but with a weird, English, Seacrest-y kinda vibe happening. Without the dye-job, Mr. Kennedy looks scarily like Brett Favre. I fuckin hate Favre, but I'm willing to bet he could've thrown better punches. Bubba, however, is still the man. How disappointed are the Wolves gonna be when they see the houses TNA draws in the States?

I'd prefer a Kevin Nash-run "Wrestling is 'We Didn't Have That Bullshit'"

Did she end up in adult films by any chance?

After reading this post, I just watched a few minutes of the first TNA weekly PPV on YouTube for the first time since it aired live. I completely forgot about Ferrera (and his dumbass white guy dreads) drawing attention to how fucking stupid the TNA name was merely seconds into the show.

Otherwise known as "August through December"