The Wrestling Thread

[Raging Justice]

My interest in AEW is at an all time low. I didn't even watch Dynamite. The company's literally got nothing going on right now.

[Reprise]

What would get me excited by wrestling again is if WWE (or AEW - I don't care who) could do something genuinely shocking. Not in an over the top way with some mad angle or surprise debut, but just in terms of someone winning a major match that no one expects them to win.

Like imagine the reaction if KO won this. Nobody expects it. Cody will win and the fans will all clap and cheer for it, even though it is predictable, and John Cena will win the Rumble and face Cody at Mania and blah blah blah. You can tell when Paul for WWE or Tony for AEW are planning title changes. But if I watched this and KO actually pinned him and won the title? Wow, then I'd know I definitely needed to check out Raw the next night.



As for AEW, I have watched Collision and Dynamite (and even some Rampages consistently for the last 3 or so weeks and honestly it is the most consistent AEW's television product has been in months if not longer. I wouldn't say I am excited by some of their storylines. The deathriders nonsense is just silly and I wish they would just pivot the hell away from it and start a new storyline But the continental classic has been great, matches have been excellent and episodes have flowed much better. And I am excited about Kenny Omega returning tonight (I mean it isn't confirmed, but it writes itself and we already know he's cleared and ready to return).

But that's just my opinion. I could go over my criticisms again and say how I would fix some of their issues (step one is unify some belts and establish a clear hierarchy), but I would just be repeating myself. I am pleased that (in my view) the quality of their television has at least improved a lot in recent weeks. The crowds have been way hotter too and that makes things better for us at home watching

[Raging Justice]

The most exciting thing either company can do is convince me that 2025 won't be another year of predictable booking.

Fat chance of that happening

[Reprise]

The most exciting thing either company can do is convince me that 2025 won't be another year of predictable booking.

Fat chance of that happening

See, if it was me, I would use the first episode of Raw and Dynamite on streaming to have a totally unexpected title change. The Netflix and Max deals are a big deal for both companies, so they should use the potential bigger audience to show them that their product is must-see television.

What's the worst that could happen? Why do both companies hate to have titles change outside of big PPVs? (Usually the big four with WWE, for example) And both companies meticulously plan, to the point of it being pretty obviously telegraphed where you can tell what is a "filler feud" and what is a "major feud" featuring the next champion.

[Reprise]

I like Seth Rollins, but his promos are always so derivative.

"Blah blah blah [insert reference to Punk being a cancer] blah blah blah [insert AEW reference] blah blah blah [insert reference to talent leaving WWE and joining competition whilst he's WWE for life]" etc.

He always says the same shit when doing promo battles with people like Punk and Cody.

[Raging Justice]

Seth dropped some truth in that promo, while Punk was just being phony

Also, Punk calling Seth "corporate" is possibly the most hypocritical thing Punk has ever said.

I hope Seth hands Punk his ass then moves on to better things.

[Reprise]

Sure, I agree with that. Punk is as phony as they come. I can't believe I was ever invested or believed his shtick. I am even more surprised that other people seem to love corporate Punk so much right now. He reminds me of those anti-establishment punks who grow up to be ultra conservative and conformist. He's the wrestling equivalent of John Lydon.

I still think his HIAC match at Bad Blood against Drew was WWE's match of the year though.

Cody's the same. Now I just see him as the politician I never realised he was.

My only issue with Seth's promos is it becomes repetitive and he's in danger of coming across as too much of a simp for WWE. Yes, how dare anyone ever leave a company and join another one. Even if in Punk's case, he is a hypocrite and a fraud.

[Reprise]

Last night was the first 3 hour Smackdown. I would probably be catching up with it now, but I am watching Wrestle Kingdom instead. I might skip through Smackdown later.

Looks like Tiffany Stratton cashed in and is the new Women's Champion. Hey, something surprising on a weekly televised wrestling program. It must be the first cash in on Smackdown in a long time.

[Reprise]

Wrestle Dynasty felt a lot more special than Wrestle Kingdom. Wrestle Kingdom was a bit of a drag at times, to be honest. It's the first one (and first NJPW PPV) I have watched in a few years and it paled in comparison to how great the shows were between WK9 and 14, which was probably the last one I watched.

At Wrestle Dynasty, Kenny Omega returned and showed that he's still one of the best in the world. What an incredible match! Elsewhere Mercedes had a pretty great match against Mina and won her 4th(belt), which has the usual crowd seething. Takeshita worked both nights and both matches were great. Zack Sabre Jr. and Ricochet had a much better match than Zack's match against Shota Umino the night before. That said, it never had any hope of matching Kenny and Gabe Kidd. It was still a great match though.

[Raging Justice]

Four matches and a garbage LA crowd. Sounds like the first Raw on Netflix was awful.