The Thread Killer

Gresham really did seem off, as soon as he came out. I actually commented on it at the time, I wondered where his normal ring gear was and why he was acting differently. I had no idea what was going on backstage at the time of course, but in retrospect it is now pretty clear what was happening. He was doing his James Storm imitation, basically.

My feelings exactly. The whole point of these podcasts is to talk about what was really happening behind the scenes, if you use them to try and work people, especially if it’s obvious, it pretty much defeats the entire purpose of the shows to begin with. It struck me as a ridiculously stupid idea.

As I mentioned earlier, I watched the show with a couple of friends who are lapsed fans, so I didn't do the usual PWO deal of posting along as I watched it. I also didn't see the pre-show. I know it was available on YouTube but it wasn't on FITE, so I didn't watch it...so I missed everything that happened there. I took the time to show my friends the first Briscoes/FTR match from Supercard of Honor in April, so see what they thought and get them prepped for the rematch. - I was surprised to see Gresham/Claudio go on first. The FITE feed was super glitchy during the first few minutes of this match, which didn't help. I was worried it was going to be an issue all night, but after a couple of minutes it wasn't, thankfully. I thought this match was just okay. I actually quite like Gresham, but I found the size difference between he and Claudio to be a bit distracting. I hate to say it, but I think Gresham needs to stick to fighting guys closer to his own size in order to have compelling and believable matches. There are smaller guys who can pull these kinds of matches off (Taz, PAC and even Low Ki spring to mind) but the size difference in this match really kind of took me out of it. Maybe it was more in the style of match they were trying to work...I don't know if you can have a believable 50/50 technical wrestling match with such a huge size difference. If there is that big a difference, I think the smaller guy should work more as an underdog from "underneath" as they say...and Gresham didn't seem to want to work that way. This match was shorter than I expected too. It was alright. I have no complaints regarding Claudio winning. So much of how this is going to work depends on if ROH get TV and how much they separate the two brands. I don't want to see all the ROH guys running around on AEW TV with these titles, defending them. That's just too many titles on TV. But we'll wait and see. - The 6 Man match did nothing for me. I am glad to see Castle and The Boys back in ROH and I hope they stay. This match was what it was...I don't know much about "The Righteous" and after seeing this match, to be honest I don't much care if I ever see them again. - I really liked Garcia vs. Yuta. Yuta especially is really growing on me. I loved the Pure Wrestling tournament ROH did during the pandemic, I like the concept and the rules so I enjoyed this. I'm not quite as enthused about Garcia as some other people seem to be, but this was a solid match. I also really enjoyed Regal on commentary both here and during the World Title match. This was good stuff. - As far as Dragon Lee vs. Rush? I'm just going to say it...Dragon Lee's tights make me very uncomfortable. He looks like a male stripper wearing a Batman mask and a speedo, and I don't care for it. This match was pretty good. I tend to not enjoy the lucha style stuff as a rule...I never "get" the psychology during a lucha match...if there is any. These guys beat the holy hell out of each other, but then you've got Rush kicking out on a one count, right before the finish. This probably went longer than it had to, and probably could have done without the multiple near falls...but as I said, lucha psychology is not like normal old school psychology. Having said all that, this was still an excellent match. I have heard elsewhere that at times Rush tends to suffer from a lack of effort and motivation, but he sure looked motivated here. It's impossible to find anything too negative to say about this match...except for Dragon Lee's tights, which get a -50 stars from me. - I didn't hate Martinez vs. Deeb. Serena Deeb can generally do no wrong in my eyes, I don't know that I have ever seen her have a truly bad match. I don't much care for Mercedes Martinez. I've never seen her as anything all that special. I remember her from NXT and I didn't see much there, and I don't see a whole lot now. Maybe I'm missing something, but I've never seen her in what I consider to be a great match. This was alright. There were some good sequences, but to me this match felt like it was stuck in second gear and never really kicked it up to the level where it was a great or even very good match. - I really liked Samoa Joe vs. Jay Lethal. This was the best match I've seen Joe have in a very long time. If he can still perform at this level, I think he's still got a great last run in him. After that last match against Kross he had in NXT, I wasn't sure he wasn't done. Sure, he is not the Samoa Joe from his great ROH years (or even his TNA years, I guess...who was really watching those?) but he still has something left in the tank, for sure. Jay Lethal deserves a lot of credit for this too. These guys had good chemistry. I enjoy the old "attack before the bell and have a big brawl before the match officially starts" angle, when it isn't overdone. I hadn't seen anybody do that in a while, and I think it paid off here. Great stuff. - What can you say about that Main Event? If you didn't like this match...maybe you don't like Pro Wrestling. I was worried these guys wouldn't be able to follow up on their first match, but they did it and then some. It's hard for me to find anything bad to say about this match. My friends both said it was the best Tag Team match they'd ever seen. I'm not 100% sure I would go that far...I have a soft spot for a few of the big Tag Matches from AJPW in the 90's, but this match is certainly in the conversation. I would say it would definitely make my Top 5 of all time great Tag Matches. My only quibble would be that I would have liked to see the Briscoes win, especially since they are staying in ROH. But as I said...there is nothing negative to say here. That finishing sequence with Mark going through the table and Dax hitting the elevated piledriver on Jay was just perfect. I love the fact that ROH is going to be spotlighting traditional style, old school Tag Team wresting. The fact this match was the Main Event says a lot...this is exactly what FTR wanted when they left WWE. They knew they'd never get to have these kinds of matches with this kind of spotlight if they stayed there. When you look at the run FTR is on right now...it's unreal. Everything they touch turns to a classic, they are operating on a whole different level. It's a blast to watch. Overall, this was a very good PPV. I'd say the Main Event made it a great PPV, if that match hadn't been on the show, I'd probably be less impressed but even still...there was nothing really bad on this show. It was super solid, with a Main Event which will probably go down in the books as an all time classic...how can you complain about that? -

By all accounts, Stephanie HATES Paul Heyman, stemming mostly from when he was Head Writer on Smackdown and she was Head of Creative. She actually suspended him for insubordination. I don’t know what her plans are going to be, but it’s probably a safe bet Paul Heyman does not figure into them, at least if she really has anything to say about it. At this point in his life, I get the impression Heyman is just happy to be collecting a big paycheck.

I watched it but I was with friends so I wasn’t able to post along as I watched it. I actually used the show as a chance to reintroduce a couple of old friends of mine to pro wrestling again. They had both stopped watching shortly after WCW went out of business. That was one hell of a show, and that Main Event was incredible. That may have been the greatest Tag Team match I’ve ever seen.

That is a good question. I think if TK really wants to run ROH as it’s own brand, it might be better to keep the title on Gresham, to be honest. It wouldn’t break my heart to see Claudio win, but until ROH get a TV deal I am not sure it does them any good to have him running around on AEW TV every week wearing the world heavyweight championship from another organization.

Or Shane-O-Mac

That’s a great question, although you have to figure at this point pretty much anybody could do a better job than what has been done lately. With that company really needs badly is a creative reset. New ideas when it comes to booking, and a nice bonus would be getting rid of those ridiculous quick cut camera angles.

Like I said, there is a ton of smoke so there has to be some fire. It’s pretty much a confirmed fact that Triple H and Stephanie forced Prichard out years ago. Vince brought him back. If they get rid of him again, and then we know they do have actual power. If they don’t, then it’s a safe bet that Vince is still running things behind the scenes. I think about it, just a few months ago Triple H was doing basically nothing, ostensibly due to his health issues. Vince took NXT away from him and gave it to Bruce. Then they tried to force Stephanie out when she decided to “spend more time with family.” This is quite an interesting internal family power-play.

Rumor has always had it that Stephanie and Trips do not like Prichard and Dunn, and vice versa. I don’t see those four willing to coexist, or even being able to coexist voluntarily. If they do then we know that Vince is still pulling the strings, which is what I assume will happen. I am kind of curious what role Nick Khan will take in all of this as well.

I am very curious to see what happens with Bruce Prichard and to a lesser degree, Kevin Dunn now. If those two end up being shown the door some time in the next 3-6 months, then actual organizational changes might actually be coming to WWE. If not, then it’s a safe guess that Vince will just be calling the shots from afar.

Has anybody been following the news regarding the supposed backstage drama in Corgan’s NWA? Supposedly Nick Aldis was scheduled to face Trevor Murdoch for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship at their big upcoming anniversary PPV. Aldis and Corgan have had some sort of falling out and Aldis is out of the match. Corgan has apparently named Tyrus as the replacement for Aldis. Either this is an angle, and a very bad one at that, or Billy Corgan has lost his mind. I have heard rumours online that Aldis is an egomaniac, hard to deal with and unpopular in the Locker Room. I don’t blame Corgan for pulling him…but Tyrus?! In the Main Event of your biggest PPV of the year? Seriously?

I’m not lying, as soon as I read that news item I thought to myself “Boy, poor old @El-P is NOT gonna like this news, one little bit!” I was tempted to open my window and aim my ear in the direction of France, to see if I could pick up the faint sound of French profanity being screamed.

I made the mistake of perusing Twitter earlier today and found it highly humourous that more than one person (quite a few, actually) have taken to preemptively assuming what Jim Cornette is GOING to say about a particular match, angle, wrestler or topic…and then proceeding to tweet a particularly vitriolic and detailed rebuttal to what they assume Cornette is going to say…when he hasn’t even said it yet. I admit there have been times where I have watched a particular segment or match and thought to myself “Boy, this is going to make Cornette’s head explode.” But I have never considered posting a comeback as part of an argument that hasn’t even started yet. This dude is definitely living rent free in a lot of heads.

So apparently Dave Meltzer is reporting that AEW had talks with Mauro Ranallo. I was really worried at first, but when I thought about it I realized that deal will most likely not happen. In his last interview after he left WWE, Ranallo said that one of the things he did not like about working there was the three-man booth. (Which of course he didn’t like it, because that means he couldn’t be the only one talking, all the time. Or should I say bellowing.) So if he hates the three-man booth, I can only imagine he would feel about the four or sometimes five man set up that AEW uses. I just hope and pray he is not going to sign there. That’s the LAST thing AEW needs, is that windbag shouting stupid pop culture references at the top of his lungs.

Tony Khan announced on Busted Open that he has re-signed the Briscoes to long term contracts with ROH, and that he considers them a “key act” and the biggest signing he has made since buying ROH. Thank Jeebus. I was getting a little worried that TK was going to proceed with this relaunch without them, which would have been a mistake, in my opinion. Very happy with this announcement.

I didn’t like Hogan one little bit, either. I think it was partially because a lot of his appeal was to Americans and younger kids in the 1980s and of course I’m Canadian and was in my mid-teens, so the whole “Real American” thing didn’t appeal to me. But I had friends who I used to go to the shows with, and they were diehard Hulkamaniacs. I was a Jake “The Snake” guy. And I am somewhat ashamed to admit, The Ultimate Warrior too. We did not get NWA here, so we had no choice but to watch nothing but WWF. I only knew about the other stuff from the Apter mags. But yeah in general, the appeal of Hulk Hogan was totally lost on me. He was a big part of the reason that as soon as I could watch another product, I did. I only started to appreciate him as a performer when he turned heel.

You’re the man, brother. You found that fast! What a great thread.

I vaguely remember that thread and I wish I knew where it was, because I remember agreeing with it at the time.

I agree. I never liked Hogan to begin with, but I found it highly humorous at the time that even in the storyline, Orndorff had perfectly valid issues with Hogan. Quite honestly, Hogan was a terrible friend to most of his allies in storylines.

So today is 36 years ago to the day that Mr. Wonderful Paul Orndorff turned on Hulk Hogan. And now I feel very old, because I remember that angle vividly.

I have to admit, I kind of lost respect for Titus O’Neil when they suspended him for having the audacity to lay his hands on Vince McMahon in a joking manner, and O’Neil just took it and went right back to being a PR guy for WWE. I know the man has a family to feed and it’s probably not my place to judge him for what he decides to do, but I have to be honest, if I was in a similar position and I was humiliated like he was, I cannot see myself going back there. I remember Bautista publicly saying at the time that he was shocked Titus did not quit after that mess.

There is a 90 minute segment on the most recent episode of The Jim Cornette Experience which covers Cornette’s early years as a fan and tape trader, and his friend Norman “Weasel” Dooley who had one of the very first newsletter/dirt sheets. He also discusses the creation of the “star rating” system and the first match to ever get a 5 Star rating. It’s absolutely fantastic stuff. This is the Jim Cornette I love listening to. Highly recommended.

I listened to the whole first episode because I wanted to give it a chance. There was some good in there for sure, but there was a lot of…not so good stuff, in my humble opinion. I always knew this, but this podcast pretty much confirmed that Kevin Nash doesn’t really care about pro wrestling all that much. And I don’t blame him for that. He has always viewed it as a business first and foremost, which is why he is doing this podcast. To make money. But he doesn’t really follow the product right now, and I really don’t want to hear any more old Kliq stories…especially ones which have been told a million times in shoot interviews or other podcasts. One episode in, and we are already rehashing the curtain call, and the time that Vince had to fly halfway cross the country to meet with them and hear their demands. I also really don’t want to listen to a professional wrestler opine about politics. I didn’t like it when Cornette used to do it, and I don’t like it now. To his credit, Nash is definitely more intelligent than your average pro wrestler, but I really don’t want to spend my time listening to him and Sean Oliver discussing abortion, gun control, the 2024 presidential race, or any of that other stuff. I have a limited amount of time to listen to podcasts and there is a lot of competition for that time. I can’t see myself carving out two hours every week to listen to this show. It’s too damn long. Nash came across as very sincere and heartfelt when he was discussing the last days of Scott Hall. That was very moving. And Sean Oliver as expected, was outstanding. He is so much better at this than any other possible host it’s not even close. I was on the fence about listening to the second episode, when I saw what the topic is for this week. “Who would play the Kliq in a movie?” Yeah…hard pass.

I find the announcement about Honor Club to be confusing. I guess I can see paying 10 bucks a month for access to the complete ROH archive, but the fact that current PPV’s are not going to be included in this until 2 months later, seems like a bad decision. Unless, by the time the new service launches…Honor Club includes the COMPLETE archive and a new weekly TV show as part of the package. I guess I could see that. Mind you, as a Canadian this means I would end up paying almost $14 a month when you factor in the currency exchange rate.