PRO wrestling thread

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thrill
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Re: PRO wrestling thread

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I like Caster, but I'm more of a Bowens guy. And of course, Bill Ass.

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Re: PRO wrestling thread

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Fact: Billy Gunn is older than The Undertaker.

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Re: PRO wrestling thread

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I don’t think I’m going to buy Forbidden Door, but man if it ain’t intriguing.

-The 4-way match for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship is some dream [expletive]. I’m not even a huge Jay White fan, but Hangman is my favorite AEW wrestler, Adam Cole Bay Bay was my favorite NXT guy, and Okada might be the best wrestler on the planet.

-Mox vs Tanahashi should be a ton of fun. I wouldn’t be surprised if Mox wins and becomes AEW’s first two-time champ, but I hope it’s Tanahashi so we still get the Punk match eventually. Plus, I think it would be neat for a New Japan wrestler to hold the AEW belt. In that same vein, I want Hangman or Cole to win the 4-way.

-FTR needs to win the tag match and get all the gold eventually. I don’t know anyone on more of a roll, and I can’t really even point to anything specific that got them there.

-I want Malakai Black to win the All-Atlantic title. Miro would be a good champ too, but Black needs it more. He was severely underutilized in WWE, and I worry it’s already been too long that he hasn’t even been in a title picture.

-Preparing to be let down for the ZSJ mystery opponent. Danielson is hurt and that sucks, and anyone you put in to replace him will be a step down. The hope is that it’s Claudio/Cesaro, but if it was, why wouldn’t you announce it last night? People who were on the fence would buy if you announced him.

-I think Toni Storm should win the Women’s match but believe it will be Thunder Rosa. I’m afraid of Toni becoming just another wrestler as has happened with Ruby Soho.

-Ospreay should beat Orange Cassidy but not really feeling this one.

-The Jericho/Guevara/Suzuki vs Kingston/Yuta/Umino is so randomly thrown together. Similar situation with The Bullet Club match.

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Re: PRO wrestling thread

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Well, I got a lot wrong on this card, but it sounds like Forbidden Door was great and compensated for lackluster builds with simply amazing wrestling.

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Re: PRO wrestling thread

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WWE's first female referee accused Vince of assaulting her in 1986. For the first time, someone else is corroborating her story.

TW, description of the assault: https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2022/06 ... feree.html

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Re: PRO wrestling thread

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Cena did his 20-year appearance on Raw last night, and I love that man so much that I nearly forgot Vince did his introduction. He said don't rule out a return to the ring, but he was very vague about when it could happen. Personally, I think he's going to face Theory at Summerslam in August. They also had several superstars record congratulations videos for Cena, including Big Show, Daniel Bryan, and Chris Jericho. I really don't think that forbidden door is going to be kicked open, but I'm glad AEW and WWE at least let that much happen. I do wonder if CM Punk was approached about recording a video; he and Cena reportedly had a good relationship, which is a minor miracle considering Punk is so prickly with everyone else, but Punk also despises WWE enough that he might have rejected it on that basis.

Also, WWE put out a 28-minute video (no one is watching that) breaking down their nominations for the ESPYs WWE Moment of the Year. If it's an option, it has to be Cody at Hell in a Cell, and if it's not, then it's Cody returning at Wrestlemania. Nothing else comes close.

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Re: PRO wrestling thread

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MrCrowesGarden wrote:
June 27 22, 6:59 am
Well, I got a lot wrong on this card, but it sounds like Forbidden Door was great and compensated for lackluster builds with simply amazing wrestling.
I bought it!

I think the build was supposed to be just great matches and matchup's, but when the injuries hit, they had to do some last minute story-telling that didn't quite land. That said, would it have been better with a healthy card?

Yes, but the pivot to replace Bryan Danielson was fortunately timed, because I'm assuming Claudio coming to AEW was just a matter of time, so at least they got the pop and cover for BD.

Giving Mox the belt to build for Punk's return is probably best case scenario and he certainly was able to do the heavy lifting to carry Tanahashi, who I will take everyone's word on the fact that he was spectacular but can't go like he used to.


The match with Ospreay and Orange Cassidy was great. I think they'll try to bring him over full-time. Jay White, as far as I can tell as someone who hasn't followed his career, does a passable Conor McGregor impression as his angle, but I'm not super into him and I wasn't super into that 4-way title match.

I have hit the point with watching Adam Cole where I've realized a few things. His "BAY BAY" pop is the best thing he does. His move sets are repetitive, his matches produce a bunch of awkward, clunky move-reversing transitions that read as overtly fake, and it is exacerbated by the fact that I'm pretty sure I could beat him up. He's freaking tiny. I'm not a size queen in my pro wrestling fandom (Punk and Danielson are my all-time favs), but he is way too small and super kicks only get me so far. I believe the Bucks could beat me up. I believe Shawn Michaels could beat me up. I'm not sure Adam Cole could beat me up, and that's an issue. You don't have to be huge to be believable as a performer, but he just gets carried too much by his opponents for me to get into his offense.

FTR rule, they're on another level right now, and it's cool that they're getting this push. There isn't enough "cool southerner" representation in the world, and I like how they're carrying themselves in and out of the ring.

My inner 12 year old still pops for Sting every time. The fake out from the rafters was great. Sting jumping off high objects to hit the stinger splash since he now has a 1/2 in vertical is awesome.

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Re: PRO wrestling thread

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I'm glad you enjoyed it! I had some last-minute bills come in that prevented me from buying. I really think every PPV this year from AEW and WWE has been good except for the Royal Rumble, which is sad since that's a flagship event.

I want to say Claudio was a slam dunk for AEW-- that's certainly where I envisioned him landing when his WWE contract ran out-- but I also felt like I read maybe just a month ago that he was close to a new deal with WWE. If it wasn't Claudio, the only other guy I could see fans not being disappointed by would be Johnny Gargano (Bray Wyatt I don't feel fits AEW's style, and certainly not in a show with NJPW.) Regardless, the Blackpool Combat Club is a perfect fit for Claudio in my opinion, and I hope it keeps him from becoming just another guy as Keith Lee, Samoa Joe, and Johnny Elite/Nitro/Impact/Mundo/Morrison have.

Mox is probably the safest pick for Wrestler of the Year in 2022, at least in the American promotions, even if I would personally choose Seth Rollins.

I'm not a big Jay White fan either mostly because I see him as more of a Scott Steiner-level nWo member than a Nash, Hall or Hogan, but it definitely sounds as though he saved Adam Cole in the 4-way match. From what I've seen, Cole likely took too stiff of a dropkick and got concussed, which led to White improvising the finish. In any case, it certainly seems like Cole was only there to be the designated pin-eater. And speaking of Cole...

While he hasn't been so relegated downcard as other recent WWE castoffs, he also hasn't been elevated to the level of Danielson or Punk. I like him a fair bit more than you do, but I absolutely think the complaints about his size are fair. I met Jeff Jarrett when I was 14. He was a relatively small wrestler for the Attitude Era, but I had met several hockey and football players before, and Double J had the biggest biceps of anyone I'd ever seen to that point. Cole looks to be about the size of one of his biceps. I'm also not a size guy (Bret Hart is my GOAT), but Cole looks markedly smaller than everyone he's in the ring with, even relatively smallish guys like Dante Martin. The only "little man" who's ever been credible as champion is Rey Mysterio, but his runs at the top were short (and fueled by Eddie Guerrero storylines), and even he has bulked up. I enjoy his matches a lot more than you do, though (and that's OK!) His programs with Gargano were great, and if you haven't watched his matches with Pat McAfee, I recommend it (also because McAfee really can go, to his credit.) I also struggle to dislike Cole just because of what I know of him as a person, in that he's Cena-level nice, if not more so. Watch his Twitch channel if you ever get a chance. The man will earnestly say something like "thank you bonerjamz420 for the 75-cent tip, yes I would love for you to share with me the poem your grandma wrote for you when you were 7." He's one of the few good Florida Men out there.

FTR... man, what can I say? I don't love tag team wrestling, but I love how much they love it. Sean Ross Sapp just recently shared a story about how they told WWE when their contract was coming up that they were going elsewhere where tag team wrestling is more appreciated. WWE can't upping their contract offers, but the fed couldn't understand that it wasn't about money. They even offered a million a year, FTR turned it down, and that's when they got stuck with the stupid storylines about getting their backs shaved and Ucey Hot. The throwback theme that's a tribute to Midnight Express is very cool. We're obviously heading for an "All The Gold" match with the Bucks at the next PPV. Their first contest in AEW wasn't necessarily bad, but underwhelming.

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thrill
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Re: PRO wrestling thread

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I actually really like Adam Cole the guy and persona. I just don’t think his in ring lives up to everything else and unfortunately I do think it’s down to size. Rey Mysterio and Dante Martin have the violent acrobatics to give them credibility.

I like Cole, I guess. I don’t get what they’re doing with him though. Feel like they half baked a few things for him and just dropped them. It seems like AEW is having some WWE problems ironically when it comes to taking the guys they make from mid card to main event. They’ve done similar false starts with their young core. I’m glad MJF isn’t going to let them do it to him too.


In other news, they can keep doing the Jericho v Eddie feud indefinitely. I would still watch when Eddie is at Jericho’s actual funeral doing one last work.

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Re: PRO wrestling thread

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I get what you're saying about Cole. His presentation absolutely has slid from NXT when he got a Superman reign with the title, which also helped Keith Lee look like a big deal when he won. And Keith is in limbo now, too. AEW would probably benefit from having more guys take off months at a time since their roster is so big.

And Eddie Kingston feuds rule because everything about them feels personal. It's what I enjoy about Kevin Owens in WWE.

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