The Wrestling Thread

[Reprise]

Ouch, AEW have a new Ethan Page figure coming out next week

[Raging Justice]

Well well welll... NXT's ratings have surged and are now nearly in line with AEW's. Know whose ratings haven't increased, like, at all? TNA's...

I'm not exactly shocked by that. To be fair though, this crossover has been one sided so far. There was a hint this week that Tatum Paxley may want to go after the TNA Knockouts title. Also, Jordynne Grace has put out an open challenge. So they are clearly setting things up for an NXT wrestler to show up in TNA

Oh, and the Kamille thing was in regards to a deleted tweet by her in response to a fan wondering when the hell is AEW going to use her. So I think that story is legit. She seemed mildly annoyed at not being used by AEW and her tweet implied that she is indeed signed with them. I mentioned Megan Bayne as well because she's been doing good work in Stardom and a lot of people want to know why AEW isn't using her since they are supposedly the ones who sent her there.

I do think the idea of Scott D'Amore in AEW would be interesting (he could have been the new general manager)

The AEW/TNA crossover has been criticized by many. I think it gave Christian a great moment though, and it helped kickstart this great run he's currently on with a meaningful win over Kenny Omega

I think Meltzer was speculating what this means for TNA's future i.e. will WWE buy them. This should be treated with a grain of salt. One thing he said about a month ago kind of bugs me though, assuming he is right (and he might not be). He said that AEW is no longer perceived as "cool". I would assume he is implying that WWE currently is. I wonder when exactly did AEW become "not cool". One interesting thing I saw in a recent reddit thread was people saying that NXT has created a product that is very appealing to Gen Z. Alvarez also had a lot of praise recently for NXT's current product. My only issue with NXT is that I don't like the arena they use. I miss the Black and Gold era one.

I also heard that Alvarez was recently criticizing the build to Mina/Toni Storm. I don't know if that's true, but if it is I agree with him.

Ouch, AEW have a new Ethan Page figure coming out next week

The funny thing is I can totally see Ethan Page being the first one to want to buy it too

[Raging Justice]

I think people are ready for another Jade Cargill type wrestler in the women's division. Megan Bayne has the presence and body type for it, and Kamille could certainly get a Jade Cargill style push. I think she held the NWA Women's title for close to three years

Also, fun fact. Roxanne Perez didn't know who her opponent for Battleground was until Jordynne Grace's music hit and she made her entrance.

[Raging Justice]

Imagine an alternate reality where Forbidden Door featured Toni Storm defending her AEW title against a Stardom wrestler (Mina Shirakawa), Mercedes Mone is challenging a CMLL star for a New Japan women's title while also defending a title named after a TV network. Deonna Purrazzo is challenging Jordynne Grace, who is now holding a WWE title AND a TNA title. Meanwhile, Ethan Paige is on NXT television as the champion doing promos where he's basically saying, "Screw you AEW! I finally went somewhere that stop screwing me and ignoring me and now the WORLD knows just how *censored* great I am!!!". An then Marigold's Giulia debuts in NXT using her Marigold entrance and ring attire



You wanna talk about a "forbidden door"?

[Raging Justice]

Roxanne actually referenced her match with Purrazzo in the WWE interview I linked to:

"I main evented TNA" - Roxanne

I'm telling you, AEW should maybe give Deonna a mini-push or something right now

[Raging Justice]

I gotta say, nothing screams hillbilly, redneck, trash pro wrestling fan more than WWE fans going, "What?", "What?", "What?, "What?, every time someone tries to do a serious in ring promo. This is the one thing I legitimately view as a stain on Stone Cold's legacy, the fact that he gave birth to this crap that REFUSES to go away. Why are what chants still a thing in 2024?

The annoying, AEW equivalent that I have noticed on some recent shows are the "CM Punk" chants that people randomly start doing for no apparent reason.

I'm watching Smackdown right now, and I still don't get it. This still feels like Vince McMahon WWE. Also, Cody Rhodes can't cut a promo to save his life.

"Get out here AJ Styles!"
"Let's settle this!"
"You want a match at the pay per view! Fine! I'm gonna make you say "I quit!"



I don't know why MJF played student to Cody for so long in AEW, because Cody could learn a ton of things from MJF, like how to cut a fucking promo

The Bloodline story line is basically just a never ending series of TV re-runs. Oh look! Kevin Owens is feuding with the Bloodline! Again! Oh look! We have two more members! Basically two more Solo Sikoas!



Oh look! What a shock! Bianca Belair and Jade Cargill are burying everyone who enters their hemisphere!



I can't believe Logan Paul cut a promo basically saying, "I've got no time for you LA Knight! I'm at a Tetris tournament!"

That's right. A Tetris tournament is more important than LA Knight now. THAT ACTUALLY HAPPENED. Logan also called him a mid carder, which given his booking seems pretty accurate. The irony of course is that Logan Paul is also a mid carder.

Remember when people used to call pro wrestling a soap opera? Never did that feel more accurate than right now in AEW



This is so fucking stupid and I fucking hate it. Here's what REAL FUCKING WOMEN'S FEUDS LOOK LIKE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D_FJApJXyrM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xo7KmKamb-E

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V9MLmHnmIr0

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xmw3TyNtZhE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o57EWyUvDvc

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZRHNNY5Mg7E

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uyvN87kiFXA

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PsX-msfpmsI

I chose that last one for obvious reasons

To quote Jade Cargill, it's time to "Cut the shit" Tony Kahn

[Raging Justice]

Any time I research Logan Paul I discover a lot of really shady, messed up things about him. I also see that a LOT of people legit hate this guy. Yet, WWE keeps on pushing him. I guess if I had to make a comparison to something that gamers would understand, it would be like seeing Jirard the Completionist getting a big push in WWE. There's plenty of indications that Logan Paul is actually a very shitty human being in real life

Oh well, money talks I guess. WWE is a corporation after all. This is why I roll my eyes when they have someone like Cena on TV talking about "hustle, loyalty, and respect". Trying to push a face as a bastion of morality in a company like WWE feels very disingenuous

I don't talk too much about Saudi Arabia or the Vince McMahon allegations. I let people draw their own conclusions about that stuff, but something about Logan Paul really rubs me the wrong way.

[Raging Justice]

Instead of the time we've wasted on this bullshit with Timeless Toni, we could have had the title on Mina Shirakawa already. We could have given her big wins over a few people, done a bunch of cool video packages and interviews with her, and the Forbidden Door match could have been the continuation of this clip with her defending her title against Tam:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PsX-msfpmsI

This also would have been a perfect follow up to Tam's match with Willow, with her trying to go after the OTHER women's title in AEW. The build for this could have been great. Sporadic appearances by Tam on Dynamite and Collision. Video packages on why she's a big deal in Stardom, and her history with Mina Shirakawa. Mariah could have been used as part of the build up too. In fact, you could have had a great match between her and Tam as an appetizer for Forbidden Door

Forbidden Door could have featured a full on Cosmic Angels entrance with her whole faction, while Mina comes out with her current faction. Excalibur on commentary, "and there we see the Stardom world champion Maika and co-leader of ExV along with Mina Shirakawa. You know she must be VERY interested in the outcome of this match as Tam Nakano was the one who previously held Maika's title, and was never beaten for it"

Anyway, the official poster for Battleground looks pretty cool. I like how both world champions and the tag champions are prominently featured as the top prizes in the promotion:



EDIT: THIS...IS...AWESOME

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aR27XhP5y0Q

[Reprise]

There are reports coming out that Ricochet is leaving WWE. I am not sure if that means he will be going to AEW or not. Speaking of AEW though, it has reported that Penta's contract ends soon and he is making moves to trademark his name and all that stuff in case he goes to WWE.

EDIT: THIS...IS...AWESOME

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aR27XhP5y0Q

Lol that's pretty awesome.

Chad Gable's contract also expires soon. I am pretty sure he will re-sign with WWE though. I am not sure why they are currently letting their stars' contracts run out. Maybe it's arrogance.

Any time I research Logan Paul I discover a lot of really shady, messed up things about him. I also see that a LOT of people legit hate this guy. Yet, WWE keeps on pushing him. I guess if I had to make a comparison to something that gamers would understand, it would be like seeing Jirard the Completionist getting a big push in WWE. There's plenty of indications that Logan Paul is actually a very shitty human being in real life

Oh well, money talks I guess. WWE is a corporation after all. This is why I roll my eyes when they have someone like Cena on TV talking about "hustle, loyalty, and respect". Trying to push a face as a bastion of morality in a company like WWE feels very disingenuous

I don't talk too much about Saudi Arabia or the Vince McMahon allegations. I let people draw their own conclusions about that stuff, but something about Logan Paul really rubs me the wrong way.

I don't like Logan Paul at all for those reasons. He's like the poster child for obnoxious youtubers. He spent years annoying the public with boneheaded cruel pranks. There was the whole insensitive thing he did in Japan, then more recently there has been crypto controversies. And also his Prime drink is facing a lawsuit as it is alleged it contains harmful chemicals. I am sure there are other shitty things he has done or been involved in that I am forgetting.

[Reprise]

Lol cool move by AEW