The Thread Killer

I was at that show, in the 11th row or so. It was years ago, but what I do remember is it being cold, being blown away by how huge Andre was in person (I had a seat right on the aisle and he walked past us to get to the ring) and I remember really enjoying the Jake the Snake (with no snake!) vs. Steamboat and Hogan vs. Wonderful matches.

That was brutal. I counted at least three headlocks or rear chinlocks where Owens basically laid down on the mat next to or behind Reigns, and the action in the match basically ground to a complete halt. And it was really early in the match, so it can't be because he was already gassed, could it? Was he trying to get heel heat by doing that, or do the agents tell him to do it? I cannot for the life of me understand the logic behind wrestling like that in a Main Event on a PPV. So BORING.

See, that wasn't so hard, was it? And now don't you feel better? That's too bad. I can't say that I'm terribly surprised, but it's still a shame. I remember one of the first times I ever saw Foley, he did that deal where he used to run along the ring apron and then leap into the air and drop an elbow on his opponent who was laying prone on the outside, usually on bare concrete. I remember at the time (and this was 20 + years ago) thinking that must be absolute hell on his hip joints, and wondering how he wasn't going to end up needing surgery if he did that move with any frequency. We all know he did end doing that move quite a lot - I believe in his first book he claims that exact move helped him get his first job in WCW. And now look what it has done to him. This is a guy (annoying/creepy personality traits aside) that has literally crippled himself to entertain the fans. I appreciate what he put himself through to try and entertain me, especially since I know he would bust those moves out for a tiny ECW crowd just as quick as he did on WCW TV. I hope he is going to be okay. The only solace I can take now is from knowledge I gained during one of my previous careers as a Social Worker, of all things. I worked for a while with Seniors, trying to educate them on the seriousness of hip injuries. There was a time that if you had a hip replacement, the odds were 1 in 4 you wouldn't even survive the surgery. If you did, your mobility would be very limited and you would be in a lot of pain. Thankfully, medical science has made a ton of gains over the past 20 years. For people who come from an athletic background, they actually have replacement hip joints which are just as flexible and even tougher than the real thing. I know they were looking at a model where NFL players could have a hip replacement, and still play, believe it or not. So as sad as it is that it has come to this for Foley, at least this procedure is not the crippling or dangerous process it was a few years ago. Of course, it's really expensive. For Mick, that might be a fate worse than death.

I wonder what Foley loves most, Money, The Divas or Christmas. His ultimate dream is probably finding a way to get paid for hosting a Divas Christmas Special.

Shawn openly admits that in the (really well done) WWE Rivalries special they did on Shawn vs. Bret, where the two of them are sitting there side by side, being interviewed by JR. Which is a must see, if for nothing else than to see how much Shawn has since moved on, and how much Bret really still hasn't.

Except for it obviously was complicated. It was pretty much the dictionary definition of complicated, actually. A situation consisting of many interconnecting parts or elements. If it wasn't complicated, then the Montreal Screwjob would never have happened. The fact that you clearly favor the viewpoint of one of the "interconnecting parts" rather than have the ability to look at entire situation and acknowledge it's complexity does not actually make the situation any less complex.

I hate when this happens, but I agree with . I don't think anybody was really "right" in this situation. It was a "heel angle."

What the hell? Who said anything about Cena, Mark Henry, Kane or Heath Slater? The quote was by Orton, I don't know why you're dragging other names into it. If that quote is to be believed, Randy Orton thinks he is suddenly now in a position to judge what is and isn't appropriate or respectful behavior backstage. That is laughable. This is a guy who admitted that he once fired up a joint in the arena before a televised show, in front of everybody, as a "fuck you" to the office and the wellness policy and to see if they'd do something about it. Not to mention his rumored behavior towards the Divas early in his career. And the fact that he reportedly whined when people were too stiff with him. (If Bubba Dudley and Bob Holly are to be believed.) In short, I don't know when Randy Orton became the expert on backstage etiquette or "respect for the business." Even if he is a changed man now, him acting like he's the new grizzled vet backstage is a bit rich, considering his history. If I was new to the WWE, one of the first people I'd get advice from would be Mark Henry. Lord knows that dude has side stepped (and stepped on) his share of political landmines over the years.

Exactly. I don't even like Kevin Owens one little bit, but I have so much more respect for him than I do for a guy like Orton. Owens got himself trained, and spent years and years wrestling in armories and high school gyms for next to no money, in front of next to no people. Out of love of the business. I'll never forget seeing Kevin Steen bust his ass wrestling in front of a few hundred people at a county fair, and he hustled that night. Guys like him have paid dues twice over and don't owe guys like Orton a damn thing. Meanwhile Orton spends a whopping year and a half in OVW, and spends the rest of his career on the gravy train, racking up a reputation for being a Class A Douche-nozzle in the process - but guys like Owens or Styles or Zayn are supposed to going to him for advice? If anything, it should be the other way around and Orton should be asking those guys what it's like to have to really pay your dues or work for the love of it. Orton is such a damn dolt.

Exactly. The only point I want to make is that fat people are unpleasant to look at, and are therefore less deserving of love and/or social acceptance than attractive people. Especially if they're also poor.

THANK YOU! I don't know who is laying out these matches, but WTF? I've been amazed at the amount of rest holds I've been seeing in the CW matches. At first, I just blamed Tony Nese (which I still do, to a point) but he's not the only who has been doing it. These guys are slapping on rear-chinlocks like they're Randy Freaking Orton.

I used to think that, for sure. But if NXT is what Triple H's version of WWE would be like, then sign me up.

That impression seemed loud and clear with Shane's responses concerning Trips on that podcast he did with Foley after his return. That's what I thought at the time...Shane seemed visibly unimpressed with Triple H, but when I mentioned it here, people suggested the whole thing was a work. I didn't think it was, since they tend to be more shooty and less worky on those podcasts, but these are wrestlers, so who ever really knows?

Hmmm... this shit is awesome, what are you talking about? It ran its course a while ago. Styles seemed to make some silly comedy out of it last night, but beyond that there's nothing you can do with Ellsworth at this point. Well past the sell by date. Exactly. Even if you are easily entertained and found this angle amusing at it's onset, it has been ridden well past the point where it's still fresh or has anything to offer.

I wonder if being bogged down in this seemingly never-ending Dean Ambrose/James Ellsworth mess isn't hurting Styles, as well. I was hoping he would be on to a fresh new angle/opponent by now, instead of still piddling around with this mess.

You really need to learn to spell Snuka correctly.

Oh good gawd. I don't think I'm ready to hear Stephanie McMahon's version of history on anything. "The McMahon family founded the United States sometime before 1940. After that, nothing important happened in the world, until the United States government tried to unfairly imprison my father for no reason whatsoever. And then Ted Turner tried to put my family out of business for no reason whatsoever. Despite being cruelly persecuted, the McMahon's gave a lot of money to charity, because it's an excellent branding and marketing opportunity. Oh and also, it helps sick children, or something like that."

That was horrible to watch. I am assuming they meant to powerbomb one guy onto the other guy, and didn't mean for their heads to make contact, but when you plan out stupid unnecessarily risky spots, this is what happens. I really hope both those guys are okay.

That's the problem. I don't even know what "Strong Style" really is. If you say "ECW style" I expect broken tables and fire and crowd brawls. If you say "Lucha style" then I expect a lot of intricate, complex, multi-man spots and dives through the ropes. If you said "Worked shoot style" I expect a lot of grappling and submission attempts, and not so much (or any) high flying. If you say "King's Road" I (unfortunately) expect hard elbow strikes, hard chops, and people getting suplexed onto the top of their heads. Because I didn't watch a lot of NJPW Heavyweights (except for Hashimoto) I never really understood what Strong Style was supposed to mean anyhow, which is why I assumed it was a NJPW marketing thing.

I had never heard "Strong Style" used as a description of anything other than the wrestling style used by the heavyweights in New Japan Pro Wrestling, "invented" by Inoki. Just like people referred to the guys in All Japan wrestling "King's Road Style." I always assumed it was a marketing term exclusive to New Japan. I figured it was getting traction in North America now because of Nakamura calling himself the King of Strong Style.

Yeah but American Alpha have been kinda meh since they got called up, IMO. They always seem like they're trying too hard. Plus, they ain't hype.

Tony Nese gets in the opening match of the debut episode of 205 Live, and he does it again! Rear chinlock, laying down no less! SO BORING! I really dug the opening episode of 205 Live though, and I was glad to see the crowd was into it.

Thirded on Owens. He's one of the main reasons I don't enjoy Raw. I don't get his appeal, I really don't. Goofy look, middling promos at best, and boring as hell in the ring. If they ever do pull the trigger on an actual program between he and Jericho, I don't hold out much hope for the quality of the matches, I'll tell you that. Oh and one other thing... So Cedric Alexander gets the loudest reaction from the crowd to date for a Raw CW match. So of course, Cedric gets beat in his hometown, because WWE. But my other bitch is, this is a cruiserweight match on television, where they only have a few scant minutes. Tony "I have a head the size of Andre The Giant's head" Nese decides that an exciting move would be a rear chinlock. But not just any rear chinlock, no. He actually lays down behind Cedric to slap it on, to make sure it's EXTRA boring. WTF?!

Wait, what? That's crazy. So it's not just me, then. Although fair warning: you disagreed with him, so apparently that means you're "attacking" him. Expect a hysterical plea to drop the whole discussion and move on, forthwith.

I don't know if you've read the book by Heath McCoy about Stampede Wrestling, called "Pain & Passion?" (If not, you should. It's really good.) McCoy works as a reporter for the Calgary Sun. He covers Pro Wrestling. In the book, McCoy writes that when Stampede was active, he would report on particular angles or matches if Bruce Hart asked him to. If I remember correctly, McCoy used to actually contact Hart and initiate these deals. One would assume the flip side was that Hart would grant him access at Stampede shows and give interviews when asked. I don't see a problem with any of that. It's symbiotic between the reporter and promoter. I am sure there is a line that needs to be drawn in there somewhere, and that the line might be hard to find sometimes, but I don't have a big issue with it. What I would have an issue with, would be people denying that Heath McCoy is actually a journalist at all, just because he had a relationship with a promoter. I would also question the intelligence of those who were unable to tell the difference between when McCoy was reporting on a story, or helping out a promotion by publicizing an angle by reporting on it. Finally, I would have an issue with anybody who was unable to discern the difference between a journalist who reports on something, and a promoter who usually has a different agenda.