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Showing posts from May, 2021

RAW Takes Another Whack at It...

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  Happy Memorial Day, Enthusiasts!     I hope you’re taking time to enjoy it. I’m attempting some baked ribs. I usually leave the job to someone else but with the extra time and it being a special occasion, I figured why not. May those in the midst of culinary experiments find success. As for the wrestling world, there are some grumblings. Let’s examine a few, shall we.     Well, the most eyebrow-raising piece of news is that Mark Henry signed with AEW. Not sure if that’s a good or bad thing. I have nothing against Henry. If he’s just sitting at home at least AEW will give him something to do but AEW is becoming the place where WWE veterans go to end their careers. Not sure that’s a precedent AEW really wants to carry but we’ll see if it ever matters. Hopefully Henry makes the best of the move. Lio Rush apparently also made a guest appearance at last night’s Double or Nothing PPV. In cases like that, I’m just glad they’re working.     In the WWE Universe, SmackDown suffere

SmackDown Tries to Keep WWE Respectable...

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Happy Memorial Day Weekend, Enthusiasts!   That includes any international readers. You may not have Monday off but more than likely your country’s armed forces have suffered casualties. Let us all take a moment to commemorate their sacrifice. As for news in the wrestling world, there’s actually been a lot going on. I’ll touch on some of it.     Let’s start outside the WWE. So, AEW is moving to TBS mainly due to the types of scheduling conflicts that occurred this week. NBA being more popular, AEW got bumped to Friday night at 7pm EST, right after SmackDown. Ratings should be interesting.   Also, Cody Rhodes made some statements this week, most of which went over well enough. He caught a little flak for saying he focus grouped some material only to walk it back to explain that he circulated it around his personal confidants for feedback. I wasn’t really concerned one way or the other but I knew he would probably get a little shit when I saw the statement. Everyone goes to,

RAW Gets Us Ready for a Long Stretch...

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  What’s Going On, Enthusiasts?   How’s this Monday treating you? Can’t really complain to be honest. Yet, there is some intriguing buzz circulating around the wrestling world. Let’s cut to the chase and get into it.     So, the Velveteen Dream situation has a new dimension. Dream has posted an earnest statement explaining his side of the story. Well…from what I can gather, it’s a mild form of pederasty that may have occurred. Yet, given the minors involved are also questionable, it’s just hard to get a clean read. What seems to be safe to presume is that no physical transgression has actually occurred, meaning he did not actually molest anyone but there is talk that a dick pic was exchanged so, it’s unlikely WWE will bring him back anytime soon. Well, it’s like I was saying last post. Riddle should be a little nervous. He actually transgressed. I won’t say he’s next but if he’s not well-received anytime soon don’t be surprised if they quietly show him the door.     In happ

SmackDown Files Backlash Away...

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Happy Friday, Enthusiasts!   I hope it is a good one for you. So, a lot went down since we last spoke. I’m not going to comment on everything but I think I’ll hit upon the major talking points. Let’s get to it, shall we?     So, the big news is that the infamous Velveteen Dream finally got canned from NXT/WWE. I didn’t see much of this guy in the ring but I did hear about him slipping into minors’ DMs. That just doesn’t fly right now. Not that it ever really did it’s just now that we are generally more aware as a civilization, we can’t lie and say pedophilic tendencies are okay. Everyone’s got to wait until they’re 18 at the very least. On top of that, figures like R. Kelly getting exposed don’t help. There’s a strong general sense of nipping that sort of thing in the bud. WWE actually dragged their feet on it but what are you gonna do? These are delicate matters and we have to admit we’ll never have all the facts. All that’s really clear is that whatever went down, it’s not a

BackLash Now Complete, RAW Falls Out..

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How’s Monday Treating You, Enthusiasts?   Did you like Backlash? You know what, I didn’t mind it. Could have done without the zombies but I see what they were doing a lot of cross promoting last night. If I were them, I’d be cheekier with that sort of thing because done too gratuitously and it just comes off tacky. I get it, though. You got sponsors and a limited amount of time. Just trying to pay everyone the proper lip-service and be creative about it. I’d say keep trying.     As for the action, tonight was fun. I liked how the Ladies didn’t disappoint per usual. Rhea Ripley is proving me right by showing she’s quite the obstacle. Will she just have a dominating rule that we eventually grow tired of? I would hope they come up with something more nuanced than that but yeesh, you never know with these guys. Last night was definitely proof they can be hit or miss. Yet, there were more hits than misses. I’m actually not sure which match was match of the night.     I liked the

So, Got Some Time for Backlash?...

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How’s It Going Enthusiasts?   Feeling good this Sunday? I have to say, not feeling too bad. So, let’s get right to it shall we. Let’s break down Backlash a bit.   As usual, I’m not going to get into every match, though I could, this should be a succinct PPV, I’m just going to look at the ones that have my interest. We’ll see who surprises. To start, I like the idea of the Lumberjack Match between Damian Priest and The Miz. Though they’re going for it again, they’re at least trying to mix it up, so good on them. The name of the game is entertainment in the end. Not a good idea to make things boring. I don’t know who came up with it but I’m just glad they’re thinking. If they’re really smart, they let this be a fun one. Let it get a little silly, playfully ridiculous but keep to the point. The goal should really be leaving cheeky smiles on our faces. Let’s see if they let loose.   Then the RAW Ladies in Asuka, Charlotte and Rhea Ripley for the Triple Threat come to mind next.

SmackDown Cooks Up Something Worth "Going Home" For...

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A Good Friday to You, Enthusiasts!   This one had some twists and turns for me but they sat me right back where I always am so, let’s see what’s going on in the world of wrestling. There are a few rumblings going around.   The first that raised an eyebrow is news that there may be some dissension within the AEW ranks. The word is that Cody Rhodes, Kenny Omega and the Young Bucks, Matt and Nick Jackson haven’t been seeing eye-to-eye on too much recently. It’s all talk and speculation but those close to the situation don’t appear to be surprised. The only thing that comes to mind with this development is what if things get so bad that Rhodes considers returning to WWE.   The thing about reality is that it gets you to think. Anything is possible but once you put something into motion and it manifests how to maintain it becomes the next hurdle. The reality of the venture of AEW is developing. As with anything, as one gets better acquainted with circumstances, one can more easil

RAW Comes Through, Not Sure It Will Do the Job, Though...

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A Good Monday to You, Enthusiasts.   How’s it going? Not too taxing I hope. As for the wrestling world, it appears to be a slow news day. The stuff going around doesn’t exactly grab me but there’s some news floating through. I suppose the most appropriate being that a date for Summer Slam has been chosen. August 22 nd is the special day. All they need now is a venue. Early reports suggest that they’re interested in the West Coast but they might settle for somewhere in between. California tends to be persnickety about their rules and regulations. Somewhere in between may not be so much. We’ll have to keep an eye on it.   As for tonight’s action, well, RAW has a big job ahead of it. Backlash is not a huge PPV and it’s honest in being the follow-up to WrestleMania but RAW has been subpar of late, even for it. It has to prove it’s worth the 3 hours it shows for and perform the customary Go-Home duties.   Twitter speaks of a return of Jinder Mahal, perhaps the 3MB history can fina

Retro SmackDown Is Too Busy for Cleanup Duty....

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What’s Going On, Enthusiasts!   Happy Friday. So there’s some chatter in the wrestling world but nothing too exciting in my opinion but I’ll hit the main points. Let’s get to it, shall we?   So, AEW had their Blood & Guts for free this week and it was what it was. With RAW currently back in the toilet, I can’t say that it was bad but from what I saw, I didn’t see anything that would make me watch more. Yet, it’s clear that not having NXT as same day/time competition has helped their numbers. AEW is now reaching a million viewers according to rating reports. NXT is holding steady at around 770,000. This kinda proves my American League vs. National League baseball comparison. NXT is the minor leagues so naturally, not everyone is keen on seeing them. They’re in training. We don’t know if they’ll ever make it to The Show. If you love the sport so to speak or like to scout, then why not check ‘em out. You can say that you saw them when. AEW, on the other hand, has a lot of est

RAW Wants to Prove It Brings Something to the Table...

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It’s Another Monday, Enthusiasts.   And we have some “jarring” news upon us. Daniel Bryan, after his stellar match against Roman Reigns last Friday, is now listed as “Alumni” on the WWE website. Does this mean he is no longer with the company? Or is that just what they want us to think? This is one of those days when my point of how we can’t trust this wrestling industry rings true. Yet, I am not upset at not knowing what’s going on, I guess as long as it results in something I want to hear 😉 I suppose that is the caveat. I said last post how I don’t see Bryan leaving WWE…there’s really no place for him to go and given his tone in recent interviews seems like if he is “alumni”, he’s not wrestling anymore in general or at least is going to be really selective in picking his spots. Bryan isn’t getting any younger and he’s reaching the twilight years as a wrestler. Perhaps he is prepping for life after wrestling. On the other hand, 40 is the new 30, has been for some time now. If he