CM Punk & Wrestling's Best Storyline in Years...

[907]

Damn shame that Bray got hurt, right when it looked like he was getting some momentum for the first time in forever, hopefully he's not out too long.

[battlecatmeowstab212]

Alright gang, if you've ever been curious about Ring of Honor, they're having an absolutely absurd sale right now on their catalog DVDs:

ROH is having a "Flashback Friday" sale:

- all ROH on HDNet dvds are $1
- all 2009-2013 event dvds are $2
- all 2014 event dvds are $5

Sale ends at 9 AM (eastern) on Monday

These are the essentials I'd suggest:

WAR OF THE WORLDS 2014
http://rohwrestling.com/product/51714-r ... worlds-dvd" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
You get Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Kevin Owens & reDRagon vs. The Young Bucks in the two best matches of 2014
It's as good of an event as Wrestlemania XXX. If you pick up just one disc from all this, make it $5.00 for War of the Worlds. It's also a great introduction to the entire New Japan roster as well as this event boiled down to the best of ROH vs the best of New Japan.

FLYIN HIGH
http://www.rohwrestling.com/product/032 ... n-ohio-dvd" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Really cool sleeper event that has AJ Styles vs. Chris Hero, Kevin Steen vs. Bobby Fish and some other great stuff. Well worth $5.00

A NEW DAWN
http://rohwrestling.com/product/new-daw ... -92813-dvd" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Great show for $2.00 after the conclusion of the Death Before Dishonor tournament that crowned Adam Cole as ROH champion. This event features a Royal Rumble style battle royal (Honor Rumble), an outstanding Kevin Steen vs Jimmy Jacobs match that no-one knows about, and a really strong undercard.

FINAL BATTLE 2013 & 2014
http://www.rohwrestling.com/product/fin ... n-ballroom" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
http://www.rohwrestling.com/product/120 ... tle-14-dvd" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Final Battle is ROH's Wrestlemania, the biggest show of the year where all the feuds culminate. I'm surprised these two are still in stock, but they're excellent events. Jay Briscoe and Adam Cole have one of the most violent matches I've ever seen in their Fight Without Honor, Tomasso Ciampa vs. Matt Taven and the House of Truth is an unbelievable spectacle, Christopher Daniels, Frankie Kazarian & Cedric Alexander vs. The Young Bucks & ACH is a fast paced high flying masterpiece, Mark Briscoe and Silas Young have an incredible strap match, you really can't go wrong (especially for $5 and $2) with either event.

Hope you guys dig these, and take a look at their $6.99 Best-of wrestler compilations too.

[seagrams hotsauce]

RIP Chyna :(

[907]

RIP Chyna :(

Was just coming here to say the same thing. Shit sucks, even if everyone saw it coming for a while now.

[battlecatmeowstab212]

RIP Chyna


Two things that first come to mind and will always stand out about her for me:

1) That debut choking Marlena over the guardrail at In Your House: Final Four. With wrestling being about such unique physical specimins, the way her uncompromising charisma just bulldozes the small screen is such an strong example of how someone can make themselves a star in six seconds. Just an event horizon, she made herself a career from that moment forward. One of the all time "WHAT WAS THAT?!" debuts in the medium's history.

2) This is microscopic in the grand scheme of things, but my all time favorite Chyna moment was when she played Bossman in the otherwise dire DX sendup of the corporation, and she twirls around the billyclub like a baton, throws it in the air, and catches it perfectly without saying a word, getting a genuinely impressed round of applause from the crowd. One of those moments where wrestling stops being the "World of wrestling" and says so much about a real individual through the shades of a performance.

[battlecatmeowstab212]

Mick Foley's post about her is great too:



"GOODBYE JOANIE
My heart is aching. My eyes are swollen from crying, having just talked to Joan Laurer's manager Anthony Anzaldo on the phone and been told that Chyna, the 9th Wonder of the World was no longer with us; gone at only 45.
I will always be grateful for the friendship I shared with her, but particularly so for the kindness she showed my children, especially Noelle when she was younger - taking her by the hand at WWE events in the late 90's - off to have her makeup done, her fingernails painted; bonding time between big, strong Joanie, and her tiny sidekick. A father doesn't forget that type of kindness.
I didn't know whether to post a classic photo of Chyna in her WWE prime or of Joanie from the last time I saw her - about 10 months ago at a convention on Long Island. I went with the photo from the convention because of the emotion; because it was taken at the exact moment I saw her for the first time in many years. I was told later that Joanie wasn't sure how I would react to her, and that it meant a great deal to be accepted. Like I said, a father doesn't forget. I called home on my way back from the convention – only about 40 minutes from my house. "I'm bringing a friend over to watch the pay-per-view" I said to my wife.
"Who's that?", my wife asked.
"Chyna"
"Chyna?"
"Yeah, Chyna!"
And that was pretty much that. A mother, you see, doesn't forget the kindness shown to her child, either.

I am so glad we had that night with Joanie. A night to let her know how much we cared about her, whether it was politically correct or not. A night to let her know we loved her -and always will. RIP my dear friend. I pray that somehow in death, you can find the peace that eluded you so frequently during the latter years of your remarkable life."

[Brougham33]

So in happier news...this happened:

[blastmaster]

Balor on Raw. Nervous.

[GUCCI CONDOMS]

RIP Chyna, she was special.

[battlecatmeowstab212]

So in happier news...this happened:

Gold looks great on him.

If you get a moment, look up all the recordings of the final moments of that match. Seeing the look on the faces of the fans in attendance is a great reminder why we watch this stuff.

[GUCCI CONDOMS]

RIP Chyna


Two things that first come to mind and will always stand out about her for me:

1) That debut choking Marlena over the guardrail at In Your House: Final Four. With wrestling being about such unique physical specimins, the way her uncompromising charisma just bulldozes the small screen is such an strong example of how someone can make themselves a star in six seconds. Just an event horizon, she made herself a career from that moment forward. One of the all time "WHAT WAS THAT?!" debuts in the medium's history.

2) This is microscopic in the grand scheme of things, but my all time favorite Chyna moment was when she played Bossman in the otherwise dire DX sendup of the corporation, and she twirls around the billyclub like a baton, throws it in the air, and catches it perfectly without saying a word, getting a genuinely impressed round of applause from the crowd. One of those moments where wrestling stops being the "World of wrestling" and says so much about a real individual through the shades of a performance.

[CarlosDelgothoes]

actuaLOL'd @ "is that a woman?" tho

[battlecatmeowstab212]

For those who may have never seen it as the network (obviously) dubs it over, here's Dusty Rhodes entering the ring to Prince's "Purple Rain" from Starrcade '84 - http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xy5oxc ... start=1741" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[battlecatmeowstab212]

Minnesota Twins are having "Wrestling Night" this Friday.

This is so wonderfully unexpected - http://m.mlb.com/twins/tickets/info/wrestling-night" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

I'm seriously considering going

[battlecatmeowstab212]

Payback this Sunday

Is AJ getting the belt? Is Shane getting Raw?

It's funny, I remember Wrestlemania 27 being completely inconsequential as nothing having any effect on storyline occurred during it, but it seems Wrestlemania 32 is weirdly just being ignored. Do they even reference it on the broadcasts?

[GUCCI CONDOMS]

Payback this Sunday

Is AJ getting the belt? Is Shane getting Raw?

It's funny, I remember Wrestlemania 27 being completely inconsequential as nothing having any effect on storyline occurred during it, but it seems Wrestlemania 32 is weirdly just being ignored. Do they even reference it on the broadcasts?

No, they actually don't even mention mania 32 on raw. It's cool that they brought in new talent onto raw, but I must say Shane has been absolutely awful on the mic since he took over raw.

[battlecatmeowstab212]

Payback this Sunday

Is AJ getting the belt? Is Shane getting Raw?

It's funny, I remember Wrestlemania 27 being completely inconsequential as nothing having any effect on storyline occurred during it, but it seems Wrestlemania 32 is weirdly just being ignored. Do they even reference it on the broadcasts?

No, they actually don't even mention mania 32 on raw. It's cool that they brought in new talent onto raw, but I must say Shane has been absolutely awful on the mic since he took over raw.

It's kind of astounding that Mania 32 has all these possibilities and promised to be a night that changed WWE forever, and yet here we are with this thread having probably the slowest activity it's had in almost five years.

Big news right now is Eric Young was seen backstage at NXT. Young, of all the TNA talent WWE's acquired over the past two years, probably has the biggest chance to make a splash in the company as his abilities are of such a wide-range, and his sensibilities are just ideal for "sports entertainment."

How are we all feeling about the WWE right now? NXT? Lucha Underground?

Also, for those of you looking to watch ROH, the Comet channel they now air on just got picked up by a bunch more cable packages so you can catch it Wednesdays.

[alpha]

Big rumor is that Balor will debut with gallows and Anderson and cost aj the match.
I like the card should be pretty entertaining.

[GUCCI CONDOMS]

Payback this Sunday

Is AJ getting the belt? Is Shane getting Raw?

It's funny, I remember Wrestlemania 27 being completely inconsequential as nothing having any effect on storyline occurred during it, but it seems Wrestlemania 32 is weirdly just being ignored. Do they even reference it on the broadcasts?

No, they actually don't even mention mania 32 on raw. It's cool that they brought in new talent onto raw, but I must say Shane has been absolutely awful on the mic since he took over raw.

It's kind of astounding that Mania 32 has all these possibilities and promised to be a night that changed WWE forever, and yet here we are with this thread having probably the slowest activity it's had in almost five years.

Big news right now is Eric Young was seen backstage at NXT. Young, of all the TNA talent WWE's acquired over the past two years, probably has the biggest chance to make a splash in the company as his abilities are of such a wide-range, and his sensibilities are just ideal for "sports entertainment."

How are we all feeling about the WWE right now? NXT? Lucha Underground?

Also, for those of you looking to watch ROH, the Comet channel they now air on just got picked up by a bunch more cable packages so you can catch it Wednesdays.

Agreed on Eric Young. Just off the top of my head they could have him join the wyatts or they could easily use him as a comedy heel or face like Santino.

[BigCat8]

Not sure if everyone's watching live, so I'll throw some thoughts into spoiler tags.

That Enzo Amore injury was sickening to watch. His glazed over look, momentary fencing response, and the labored breathing all looked terrible. Kudos to Zayn and Owens for getting the crowd back, but I still had trouble focusing on the match until they gave an update on EA.

The finish to Nattie/Charlotte happened while I was writing up this post, and... how fucking hacky was that? I know they'll play up the Lil Naitch thing, but man... even with Bret involved (especially with Bret involved), it made me roll my eyes.

[battlecatmeowstab212]

The Enzo injury was the most unsettling thing WWE's broadcasted in years. When freak occurrences like this happen, I'm always baffled at the choice to constantly replay it. Somewhat related, this is why I absolutely hate fake-injury angles. When really shit like this goes down, you want the audience to know and respect what it is. i guess these are just on my mind after the Chyna-paralysis angle in late 2000/early 2001 which I found to be in super poor taste.

[Brougham33]

Was there live, so didn't see all the replays, but I absolutely hate when they show multiple replays. It was clear almost instantly he was hurt, Cass was over there in a split second. It really sucked the air out the building. Kudos to Zayn and Owens for going on after that. Glad KO looked like a million bucks last night, I hope they book him strong all year and have Zayn cost him at every corner. All in all, very enjoyable PPV top to bottom. Peak WCW stupid booking aside, I thought that main event was great and Reigns/Styles had crazy chemistry. That Phenomenal Forearm through the table was some videogame shit.

[battlecatmeowstab212]

Big day of unfortunate releases.

[907]

Pretty bummed about Sandow and Barett. The rest are whatever, especially Alex Riley. Fuck that guy.

[battlecatmeowstab212]

Pretty bummed about Sandow and Barett. The rest are whatever, especially Alex Riley. Fuck that guy.

Sandow, Barrett, Zeb and Torito for me. Wish we could have seen more of what Torito can do. He's one of the absolute best on the planet who just happens to be a little person. Wish they could have found a way to stick him with someone else.

Sandow and Barrett are just baffling cuts. Two guys who got repeatedly over with absolutely everything they were given.

Zeb's always been excellent, but apparently the toll that the travel was taking on his health was becoming too much.

[GUCCI CONDOMS]

I have a really good feeling about this...

[blastmaster]

Seemed like Riley was about to get a main event push in NXT. He seemed like a huge asshole though.

Sandow is a victim of the jam packed roster and his own social media comments. Pretty obvious Vince doesn't take kindly to people bitching on Twitter.

Barrett always got hurt when he was being pushed. Sucks for him. I could see him coming back eventually.

Zeb just needs to retire.

[tehgiftofgab]

So sad about sandow, he had so much charisma ane potential.. any shitty gimmick they threw at him he managed to get over

[BigCat8]

Barrett's release was basically at his request, so I'm not super broken up about it. Still, dude should've held the big belt at some point- and likely would have, had the injuries been timed a little bit better. He's a guy that'd benefit from a reduced schedule.

Sandow should've had a long-term gig as enhancement talent at least. He had the ability to connect to an audience regardless of what he was given (save for that worked shoot thing that didn't really get off the ground). He did stellar character work. I didn't think much of his ring work, but he was adequate enough and had enough personality to compensate. I can't say I'm surprised, though...

On-screen and in the ring, Alex Riley was relatively entertaining. But his social media stuff, his out of the ring stuff... he was King of the cRinge. And the whole "RAGE" thing was like something a 15-year old would think is cool. The letterman jacket snobby heel schtick was way more interesting. Not happy to see him go, not sad either.

Surprised that Zeb wasn't kept around in some form. He's been around so long in so many roles that he undoubtedly has quite a bit left to offer the company. Weird cut.

Torito is amazing, but what can you really do with him? He was the only mini on the roster, so he really didn't have any contemporaries to work with/against.

People I'm moderately surprised survived this round:
-Jack Swagger
-Tyler Breeze (saved by R-Truth, I'd say)
-Titus O'Neil
-Adam Rose (can you cut a guy that's suspended?)
-The Ascension

[tehgiftofgab]

I heard Zeb was for health reasons