The Swamp

sancarlos wrote:I don't mean to dog on you guys. Entertainment is entertainment. But, I'm amused at all the shock and surprise across the interwebs about the outcome of scripted, staged theater.

It's sort of common

You apparently weren't in the audience for the May 12, 1984 Broadway performance of Julius Caesar. Crowd went nuts when JC started slitting throats.

Then don't look at the GoT or Walking Dead threads.

Nothing like live theater/performance.

teeteebee wrote:Boot covers a tribute to Bruiser Brody?

Hey TTB, I just read on one of the wrestling dirt sheets that Daniel Bryan started wearing fur-lined kick pads as a tribute to Bruiser Brody. My guess is he decided to do this now as a kind of "fuck you" to Carlos Colon.

Sabo wrote:

teeteebee wrote:Boot covers a tribute to Bruiser Brody?

Hey TTB, I just read on one of the wrestling dirt sheets that Daniel Bryan started wearing fur-lined kick pads as a tribute to Bruiser Brody. My guess is he decided to do this now as a kind of "fuck you" to Carlos Colon.

That's what I was figuring. Loved that the Ultimate Warrior mentioned Brody's name during his induction speech as well. It was a bad idea to honor Colon; especially after what I read/heard about the situation. Not only the incident but the garbage afterwards mocking the issue. I heard that the Colon induction was probably driven by Vince's interest in getting access to content from P.R. which Colon ran, I believe. Who knows.

Speaking of the Ultimate Warrior, according to the WWE, he just passed away.

Johnnie wrote:Speaking of the Ultimate Warrior, according to the WWE, he just passed away.

Was coming on here to note that as well.

What the fuck? Dude was on Raw last night. Had a big weekend. Now I have to find out the deal. Crazy...

Eta: link - http://pwtorch.com/artman2/publish/WWE_ ... 7605.shtml

"Back in the win column" - The Undertaker

I had the Undertaker match spoiled by The Daily Show Monday night. I never thought that would be a possibility

Pat Patterson is gay.

Johnnie wrote:Pat Patterson is gay.

That was pretty much the worst-kept secret in pro wrestling.

I think Patterson may have been the object lesson used by whichever 7th grade classmate explained to me what gay was. He was certainly one of the first examples pointed out to me. Not just poorly kept secret, but old too.

Terry Funk turns 70 today

Excellent article on Grantland about Paul Heyman's promo from this week's Raw.

Right before Wrestlemania, Heyman recorded an interview with Steve Austin for Austin's podcast. They talked for several hours and split the conversation into three or four podcasts. It's a fantastic listen if you're interested in wrestling history (and if you like hearing Heyman's imitations of various wrestlers and managers, like Austin, Classy Freddie Blassie and Sir Oliver Humperdink).

Sabo wrote:Excellent article on Grantland about Paul Heyman's promo from this week's Raw.

Right before Wrestlemania, Heyman recorded an interview with Steve Austin for Austin's podcast. They talked for several hours and split the conversation into three or four podcasts. It's a fantastic listen if you're interested in wrestling history (and if you like hearing Heyman's imitations of various wrestlers and managers, like Austin, Classy Freddie Blassie and Sir Oliver Humperdink).

That was a great breakdown of the promo. WWE has been hitting on almost everything lately.

nWo reunion at Raw

Jake the Snake fighting for life. Ran into him (but not Damian) at the Detroit airport coming back from the 1990 Macaabi games
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Here's just another run-of-the-mill picture of a 19-year-old Andre the Giant.

So I'm watching an old WWF show on YouTube, as I shall from time to time. This one's a Superstars of Wrestling from September '86. I'm about 15 minutes in Jesse already called Koko B. Ware's "Buckwheat with less hair", Bruno called Kamala "one of the most savage creatures to enter the WWF", and CLASSY Freddie Blassie wonders what a phone call would be like between Capt. Lou and "those slanty-eyed idiots" in Japan.

Anyway, AND I TURNED OUT FINE.

Ryan wrote:So I'm watching an old WWF show on YouTube, as I shall from time to time. This one's a Superstars of Wrestling from September '86. I'm about 15 minutes in Jesse already called Koko B. Ware's "Buckwheat with less hair", Bruno called Kamala "one of the most savage creatures to enter the WWF", and CLASSY Freddie Blassie wonders what a phone call would be like between Capt. Lou and "those slanty-eyed idiots" in Japan.

Anyway, AND I TURNED OUT FINE.

I listened to SCSA's podcast interview with James Harris, aka Kamala, last night. Mr. Harris sounds exactly like Bubba from the Forrest Gump movie.

How to properly defend yourself from a drop toe hold.

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Cena would be proud of that no sell.

Anyone else playing the WWE Supercard game?

Crazy-ass lucha libre match.

90 minutes of Scott Steiner stories. Click the "Show More" button to reveal links to stories in the video. The story that starts at 1:14:43 is the best.

A WWE wrestler made a rather dramatic entrance at their event on Thursday. I was watching it live and I was in awe.

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I went to the WWE Tables Ladders and Chairs PPV last night here in Cleveland. It was better than I was expecting, although a couple of matches really sucked. Going to live wrestling shows is infinitely better than watching it on TV.

Seth Rollins called out The Daily Show and Jon Stewart on Monday Night Raw and Stewart shot back with a decent promo. Here's a link to TMZ's coverage of it with Rollins reaction.

via Bleacher Report

Wrestlemania is less than a week away. Time to bump this thread and start discussing the matches.

Actually, bapo (sans !) is the inspiration for this post, as he e-mailed me about a wrestling video and asked me about Wrestlemania. I wrote a lengthy, rambling report about the state of pro wrestling and why I'm frustrated with the WWE, but I'll save that for another time.

I also wrote up some thoughts and a prediction about each Wrestlemania match and thought I'd post them. I’m going to have a few friends over to watch the PPV, but I have low expectations for this event. I’m not overly excited about any one match. To be honest, the build for this year's Wrestlemania has sucked in my opinion.

Usos vs. Los Matadores vs. New Day vs. Cesaro and Kidd for the Tag Team Titles: Usos are stale, Los Matadores are a comedy act and New Day has the charisma of a dead jellyfish. Although I’m not a fan of the angle where Kidd treats Natalya like an idiot, I am a fan of the Cesaro and Kidd tag team. (That said, the WWE botched Cesaro’s push after Wrestlemania 30 so horribly that I’m afraid he’ll be stuck in the mid card forever. Which is a shame, because he has main event talent.) Cesaro and Kidd retain.

Bray Wyatt vs. The Undertaker: I love Bray Wyatt’s promos and his entrance. I was at the WWE TLC PPV this past December here in Cleveland, and being in the crowd for his entrance was AMAZING. The arena is completely dark but it was lit by all the cell phone flashlights. Very cool. As for the match, I fully expect the Undertaker to win in a slow, methodical slugfest. A Wyatt loss won't hurt him, and I think the Undertaker wins before his retirement match at Wrestlemania 32 in Dallas.

AJ Lee and Paige vs. The Bella Twins: Well, this *could* be good. It all depends on if the Bellas can keep up with Paige and AJ. I don’t expect they will, but I bet they win after AJ and Paige argue or fight with themselves. Put this match down as a Bellas victory.

Sting vs. Triple H: This should be Sting vs. The Undertaker. But this is the WWE, and they have to put Triple H on the card for the biggest show of the year. I used to hate Triple H, but my respect for him has increased greatly because of his influence over NXT. He will be a good replacement for Vince once he retires or dies. And I’ll give him credit for doing the job at Wrestlemania, especially in recent years. But I think the winner here is based on one thing … whether this is Sting’s only WWE match, or if he’ll wrestle at Wrestlemania 32 in Dallas. My head says the latter, where he’ll face The Undertaker. Triple H picks up the victory.

Andrew the Giant Memorial Battle Royal: I have a confession. I HATE battle royals and the Royal Rumble. They’re boring as hell. It’s not wrestling. I guess it’s supposed to be a big fight, but it’s hard to keep track of things when you have a mass of humanity in a 20-foot-by-20-foot ring. Last year’s AtGMBR wasn’t bad, but it was easy to figure who would win when you saw Cesaro in the ring. I think this year’s AtGMBR will be similarly easy to predict. I’ll bet Damien Mizdow wins by eliminating The Miz last. And frankly, Mizdow winning might get the biggest pop of the night. He's taken a completely horrific gimmick and made it work, but The Miz deserves a lot of credit too for working as an old-fashioned heel to contrast with Mizdow.

Ladder Match for the WWE Intercontinental Title (Dolph Ziggler vs. R-Truth vs. Dean Ambrose vs. Luke Harper vs. Stardust vs. Daniel Bryan vs. Bad News Barrett): What a great collection of talent in this match. Ziggler, Ambrose and Bryan are main event quality, and Barrett, Harper and Stardust can get to that level if they keep improving. My biggest beef with this match is it’s completely thrown together. There’s no real reason why any of these people are in the match except Barrett, since he’s the champ. If you consider Wrestlemania the top event of your company, then why aren’t you making title matches just one vs. one? And on top of that, why the hell is the Divas title not on the line? It’s stupid shit like this that bothers me with the WWE.

Anyway, as for this match, I think the WWE can go a lot of ways here. I can see BNB retaining and I can see Ambrose, Ziggler or Bryan winning. But I think the WWE does a swerve here. My guess is Ziggler looks like a million bucks in this match and is about to grab the title, only to have Bryan turn heel and cost Ziggler the match. Bryan wins the title.

Rusev vs. John Cena for the US Title: What SHOULD happen: Rusev and Cena fight in a close battle, but Rusev is too much and forces Cena to tap. What WILL happen: Cena is super Cena and no sells Rusev’s finisher, does the five-knuckle shuffle and locks on the worst looking STF in pro wrestling, killing all the momentum Rusev built over the last year. Cena wins.

Brock Lesnar vs. Roman Reigns for the WWE World Heavyweight Title: I’m not 100 percent convinced this is a slam-dunk win for Reigns. He hasn’t been getting the huge face pops the WWE has wanted, and there’s no doubt Lesnar is HUGELY over because of Heyman’s promo. (Did you watch Raw last night? Heyman’s promo was perfection.) Honestly, I think this boils down to whether Lesnar re-signs with the WWE. His contract is up shortly after Wrestlemania. If he doesn’t re-sign, then this match is a no-brainer. If he re-signs, I can see him retaining.

Another thing to consider is last year’s Lesnar vs. Undertaker match. Lesnar got the win, ending Undertaker’s undefeated streak. If Reigns goes over Lesnar, you’re effectively saying Reigns can beat Undertaker at Wrestlemania. Now consider how those three have looked in the ring. Do you think the Undertaker would do the job to Reigns right now? I don’t think there’s a snowball’s chance in hell he would agree to that. And to me, that’s all you need to consider for this match. If Lesnar re-signs, he wins. If he doesn’t, Reigns wins. And since Lesnar is 38 years old, does it seem likely he’ll have a long and competitive reign in the UFC or Bellator? I think not. Financially, it makes more sense for Lesnar to stay with the WWE, because he can be a pro wrestler for many more years. I think Lesnar re-signs and retains the WWE title.

I don't have a link yet, but Brock Lesnar re-signed with the WWE today.

That card is horrible. If I were to watch it I would stop after the tag match. Cesaro and Kidd are great fun to watch. All the other matches are not interesting at all. I am with you on the ladder match. Why is there a need to throw all that talent in the ring for the IC belt. If anything make it a three-way with BNB, Ziggler, and Bryant. BNB because he has to be there as the champion, and the other two because they two of the best at this time. Although I see Ambrose winning that match with a Ziggler-Bryant feud starting at RAW.

You forgot to mention the Rollins-Orton bout. Mr. Money in the Bank is the best right now. He has the mic skills and the in ring ability to carry for awhile. I hope to hell that Orton loses. RKO is decent, but he has had his time. They need to push Rollins. And if Reigns wins, it would be a decent storyline for the next HWC contender being they were once in the same stable.

Mizdow all the way for the battle royal.

What is the point of Sting coming to WWE? I have never liked him. I can only dream that HHH brings out the sledgehammer and breaks the Scorpions legs. Please oh please Vince make this happen.

Crap, I can't believe I forgot about Orton-Rollins. If the WWE looked at the long term, his would be an easy call for Rollins. But this is the WWE we're talking about, so they're going to do something that will make no sense. Orton gets the win.

Big fan of that PPV. Ending was great. Was thinking that would likely be the swerve to get the most out of the match while losing the least (i.e. Lesnar didn't get pinned and still looks strong. Reigns had a solid match and he didn't win). All around great ending.

Looking forward to Raw tomorrow night.

I enjoyed the show. It was a lot better than I expected. I loved the finish in the Orton-Rollins match ... I wonder how many times they practiced that move to make it perfect. The Intercontinental match was very exciting because they did so many high spots, and the finish was something I've never seen before. I hope this leads to an extended Bryan-Ziggler feud.

All of the matches were above average at minimum, but the title match and Triple H vs. Sting were the best. I wouldn't be surprised to see them rematch at WM 32 in Dallas. I have some quibbles with who went over in some of the matches but they're minor. The best thing about this PPV was the booking made sense, which is rarely seen in the WWE these days.

I too am looking forward to Raw tomorrow. I haven't said that in a while.

Sabo wrote:I loved the finish in the Orton-Rollins match ... I wonder how many times they practiced that move to make it perfect.

https://vine.co/v/OLODtH7d7re

Fuck. Is that where Kevin Klein has been the last couple weeks?

Sabo wrote:I enjoyed the show. It was a lot better than I expected. I loved the finish in the Orton-Rollins match ... I wonder how many times they practiced that move to make it perfect. The Intercontinental match was very exciting because they did so many high spots, and the finish was something I've never seen before. I hope this leads to an extended Bryan-Ziggler feud.

All of the matches were above average at minimum, but the title match and Triple H vs. Sting were the best. I wouldn't be surprised to see them rematch at WM 32 in Dallas. I have some quibbles with who went over in some of the matches but they're minor. The best thing about this PPV was the booking made sense, which is rarely seen in the WWE these days.

I too am looking forward to Raw tomorrow. I haven't said that in a while.

It sounds like a great Mania; looking forward to seeing a replay of it. And Raw should be great tonight if they keep the booking along those lines.

I'm watching Raw on DVR and have only caught the first 75 minutes or so, but this has been the best stretch of Raw in ages.