The Thread Killer

Very interesting episode of Jim Cornette's Drive-Thru this week. Normally he just takes fan questions (which seem to be getting progressively dumber the more popular Cornette's podcasts become...he used to get really interesting questions about Pro Wrestling history...a couple of weeks ago somebody asked if John Cena should be in the WWE Hall of Fame) but during this week's episode he used the same format he does for the Jim Cornette Experience. There will not be a new episode of The Experience this week, due to the Thanksgiving Holiday in the States. Cornette responded to more of the fallout from his quitting the NWA in this episode, specifically in three different areas. Firstly, he once again reiterated and emphasized to all the people who keep claiming that he is "finished" in Pro Wrestling due to this joke, that he was already finished because he hasn't worked full time in Pro Wrestling since 2012, and he doesn't want to. This really hurts the whole "Cornette will never work again" narrative that some people are pushing but as proof he goes into great detail about how he has been drastically cutting back on his appearances over the past few years. Even in 2019, he only actually attended a grand total of nine Pro Wrestling shows and he attended even less in 2018 (not counting conventions and fanfests.) Secondly, Cornette issued a rebuttal to Dave Meltzer. I guess Cornette's quitting the NWA was major story in the most recent issue of the Observer. Even though they are friends, Meltzer apparently never called Cornette to get his side of the story or any comment from him. Meltzer also pushed the "Cornette is finished in Pro Wrestling" narrative, and went so far as to suggest that this situation with the NWA pretty much killed any chance Cornette had of working in AEW(?!) This comment almost gave Cornette a stroke. He once again told the story about how he was one of the first people Tony Khan met with when he first decided to form AEW, and how that meeting and subsequent conversations went. The end result was that Cornette could have worked with AEW but made the choice not to do so, long ago. Cornette did admit that if The Revival had ever gotten free of WWE and went to AEW, he would have agreed to manage them for a couple of months, but that was the only scenario where he had ever seen himself working with AEW. Cornette has a further rebuttal to Meltzer's points about Cornette's opinion of modern wrestling. Finally, I guess there have been people trying to claim that Cornette has a long history of getting fired and burning bridges in Pro Wrestling, so he literally goes through every major job he ever had in the industry and recaps if he was fired, quit and if he said "Fuck you" on the way out. It's quite interesting, especially his recapping the end of his time with ROH and his time running OVW. If anybody is interested in hearing any of this, his official YouTube channel has each individual topic broken up into separate videos, so if you want to hear his rebuttal to Meltzer that's one video, or his leaving ROH that's another, etc. It makes it much easier to listen to, especially if you don't want to listen to the whole show.

That's the problem, right there. Like you, I have also read online that at this point, they only have 2-3 matches left from their first set of tapings which haven't aired yet. And they have two weeks of TV left before the PPV. People can blame the Cornette situation for the negative reaction to this week's episode, but Cornette quitting didn't magically make all the matches they had in the can mysteriously vanish. Yeah, they had to probably record over his commentary for that empty arena match, and I assume they are going to voice-over the Cabana/Starks match and the RnR World Tag Team Titles match. He reportedly joined the Rock n Rolls in the ring after the match, which I assume they're going to have to try and cut out or minimize. But even if Cornette was still around, by all reports they just don't have enough content to get them to the PPV. Like you said, @chapstarfall I can see them doing a recap show the week before the PPV, but they sure as shit didn't have to do one this week. It's bad enough that the card for the PPV is garbage, it looks like the TV up until the PPV is also going to be garbage and they're going to lose all of their momentum leading into the biggest show they've had so far, due to bad planning and terrible booking. The only way I can see out of this for them is if the reports online are wrong and they have more stuff in the can than we've heard. Or if they go the route they did with the Eli Drake promo this week and use stuff from Championship Wrestling from Hollywood. Otherwise I guess we have nothing to look forward to but weak promos, bad vignettes and no matches for two weeks. I will check out the show next week, but unless something drastic changes, there is no way in hell I am paying for that PPV, and until they announced the card I had really been looking forward to it.

I am personally struggling with this whole situation. The part of me that is a former Mental Health worker would never take any enjoyment out of somebody having a breakdown of any kind. Quite the opposite. However...if I am being honest...the part of me that is a Pro Wrestling fan, and wants to enjoy NXT and actually watch the show with the volume up? I have to admit I'm not entirely upset by this news. That may make me a terrible person, but at least I'm somewhat conflicted about it?

Yeah, and apparently Corey Graves apologized for the comments he made about Mauro Ranallo on that podcast he does. So I'm guessing he got his ass chewed out. I hope they pull Tom Phillips out of mothballs for tonight's episode.

It's like they taped nine weeks of TV and then figured out on the last day that they needed to book a PPV, and in doing so decided to totally ignore all the angles they had shot over the past nine episodes. And just for fun, they decided to totally ignore concepts like logic or storytelling as well. They could have had a drunk, brain-damaged monkey randomly pull the names on the NWA roster out of a bag and slap them on the table, and it would have booked a better PPV than this.

I don't think this week's episode being garbage was just because of the Cornette fallout. This episode was always going to be just filler. In the interview Billy Corgan did with Mike Johnson a few weeks back, even he sounded unsure how many episodes of Power they were going to get out of their first set of tapings. He said it "might be as many as nine." This week was episode eight, so I'm guessing he was right. They obviously didn't think ahead (which seems to be a recurring theme with them) and I don't think they had enough TV taped to make it all the way to the PPV. I think next week we get the final episode of what was taped, and then I assume the following week we get a PPV preview show. Then they do the next set of tapings right after the PPV for two days. There isn't really any nice way to say it...this week's episode was basically garbage and a complete waste of time. I'm pretty disgusted with Corgan and Lagana right now, because tonight pretty much proved that all that "storytelling" they have done up to this point was utterly pointless. They clearly had no long term creative plan going into this PPV. All that supposed story they built up with Tim Storm and Nick Aldis and Kamille and Latimer and Drake went NOWHERE and they end up giving the Main Event to a guy who lost his last major match on TV, and his title in the process. It makes absolutely no sense. It's like having a murder mystery movie with a bunch of suspects, and then in the final scene you find out the killer was somebody who wasn't even in the story up to that point. They basically spent the last two months jerking us around with angles about Kamille and Storm and Drake and then even Bram...that ended up going absolutely nowhere. Hell, when was the last time Tim Storm was even on the show? Like I said, what a pointless waste of time. The Eli Drake promo was great, and I think Eli Drake is great in general. I get people saying that he sounds like Austin or The Rock or whatever, but he's good at it so more power to him (excuse the pun.) Plus, the guy can go in the ring. Why they're wasting him in this stupid feud with Anderson is beyond me. And I'm not even one of the people who hates Mr. Anderson, but lets be real. The guy was just "okay" at best when he was in his prime, that was quite a long time ago and he's basically been semi-retired for a couple of years now. In the NWA so far he's had to wrestle in a t-shirt advertising his wrestling school in order to try and hide his gut. I will personally be shocked if Eli Drake can drag a watchable match out of Mr. Anderson. They should be focusing on big promos and short matches for Anderson, not putting him in a major angle like this. This is just a waste of Eli Drake. The mini-documentary on Thunder Rosa was okay, I guess. But I don't really care about the NWA's women division because it sucks, and this didn't make me care about it any more. This was basically just filler. It was decent filler, but it was filler. So let me get this straight...they've been building up Colt Cabana vs. Ricky Starks for the past three weeks now, and instead of having them fight at the PPV...they're giving the match away on TV next week and then announcing a different opponent for Cabana's title next week as well? Brilliant booking. Brilliant, I say. I was fine with The Question Mark being a comedy character that got over with the Atlanta studio audience as a joke. I was even fine with them making Aron Stevens his mouthpiece and partner, as a joke. But this week they took the joke way too far. They obviously taped this ridiculous "empty arena" match after they discovered that they didn't have enough wrestling content to get them to the PPV. A couple of weeks ago the Dawsons were tough enough to beat Kingston and Homicide, but now one of them loses to The Question Mark in under two minutes? Brilliant. One thing this match did prove is that Joe Galli is no Joey Styles. He badly needs a color commentator and they'd better hope they find and hire a decent one by the PPV...which I am assuming they won't. This match was a joke but it wasn't ha-ha funny and the post match segment was beyond ridiculous. That segment and The Question Mark angle in general has graduated quickly from mildly amusing to embarrassing. The fact that they're wasting Trevor Murdoch in a match against this guy at the PPV is a travesty. Murdoch should be one of their top guys and the fact that they have him wrestling a fat comedy relief guy on the PPV is ridiculous and outright stupid. If they can't see what they have with Murdoch now, they're a bunch of morons. I really didn't care about the Melina promo. I never really paid all that much attention to her in the WWE and I don't care now. One thing I do find interesting is that they have what could have been a serviceable Women's Title Match in Thunder Rosa vs. Allysin Kay for the PPV. But of course...they aren't giving us that. We're getting a fucking tag team match featuring Marti Fucking Belle. Another example of brilliant booking. And we haven't even got to the episode where the senior citizens win the World Tag Team Championships yet! I loved the concept of NWA Power, and I loved the first 5-6 episodes...but it is quickly becoming clear that whoever is making the major creative decisions for the NWA is a complete fucking moron and has no business booking an independent show at fucking flea market, never mind a PPV. We are in the process of watching this promotion totally shit the bed. What a waste of potential. Cornette is lucky he got out when he did.

I agree, it's kind of a shame it won't be Tim Storm getting the shot at the World Title, because I think there is still some mileage left in that rivalry. I never saw their match at the CZW show back in 2017, so out of their "trilogy" I've only seen the match they had on Championship Wrestling from Hollywood and of course their third match on the debut episode of Power. I think they could have easily had a couple more matches before using the stipulation that Storm doesn't get any more shots at the title. Of all the other available options, I'd most likely enjoy Drake vs. Aldis the most. Although I hope Trevor Murdoch gets another chance to fight Aldis again in the future as well.

So apparently on tonight's episode of Power they are announcing who Aldis will be defending the NWA World Heavyweight Championship against at the PPV. My money would have been on Eli Drake, but after his attack on Ken Anderson, I assume that feud is the direction they're going? The other possibility is James Storm although as I said previously, in kayfabe terms I don't understand how losing the secondary championship makes you the #1 contender for the World Championship...but we'll see. I can't really see anybody else in the picture who they would grant a World Title shot to, especially in a spot as important as the Main Event of their first major PPV. Maybe the Question Mark?

I should clarify, I suppose. I have no issue with cannabis as a treatment for mental illnesses that do not originate as a result of a chemical imbalance of the brain. For example, I do believe medicinal marijuana can be helpful with conditions like PTSD or Social Anxiety Disorder. Even with some cases of depression which aren't caused by a Serotonin uptake imbalance. But as soon as you add THC to a chemical imbalance, in my opinion you're rolling the dice on triggering a psychotic episode, and I feel there is adequate clinical proof of that. Like I said, I've seen it with my own two eyes and it's not a pretty sight.

What Graves said is unprofessional, yes. Not sure how snide criticisms constitute "bullying" regardless of Mauro's mental state. Exactly my feeling.

I am absolutely not against medical marijuana, not even one little bit. In fact, I am an advocate for medicinal marijuana for physical illnesses. Physical...not psychological. Medical marijuana as treatment for bipolar disorder or other serious psychological illnesses is medically unfounded and ethically irresponsible. I know a lot of cannabis advocates love to promote it as a cure for pretty much everything up to and including the common cold, and that's fine. For ailments of the body. Not the mind.

Fuck Frank Shamrock, I hate that guy. He's scum. He abandoned a dog to die and left it tied up in a parking lot during a heat wave and flew away. Nobody should give a flying fuck what he thinks about anything, that fucking asshole.

No, the research really isn't "still out there." It is a clinically, scientifically proven fact that cannabis is not a successful treatment for many mental health issues and it absolutely can exacerbate mental health problems at best and initiate previously undiagnosed or asymptomatic psychological issues and full blown psychotic episodes at worst. Not with everybody, of course but definitely with people who have certain preexisting psychological conditions. I know. I've seen it with my own two eyes, and studied the clinical documentation. I may not know about a lot of topics, but this topic I do happen to know quite a lot about. I have 22 years experience working in the mental health field, and you my friend are clearly talking through your ass.

Now let's find out where @FMKK works, and get him fired from his job for not liking Mauro.

Knowledge of Mauro Ranallo's mental health issues are out there, because he put them out there. You do know he's bi-polar, and had a documentary made about him and his struggles with bi-polar disorder, right? And there absolutely is a clear and obvious treatment for bi-polar disorder...and cannabis use isn't it.

I have generally agreed with Jim Cornette more often than not when it comes to his assessment of the talent in AEW. Specifically about being too small, too obsessed with spots and near falls and not enough psychology, and not looking like traditional Pro Wrestlers. However, I think Darby Allin is a superstar in waiting. I can't even really put my finger on it, but this guy has the proverbial "it factor" promoters go on about. His look, his style and everything else about him combine to make him an exceptionally compelling character that you really want to watch. In his case, I don't care how small or reckless he is...that just adds to his appeal. I first saw him when he fought Cody and after that I made it a point to check out whatever he did in AEW. So far, I'm convinced this kid is money. I really hope AEW listens to the fans (which unlike some other Pro Wrestling companies we could name, AEW actually does) and sees the star they have in their hands, and focus on him. They need to push this guy to the moon. It may not have been a technical masterpiece, but I freaking loved his match with Moxley last week. He has become one of the main reasons I watch AEW and I look forward to seeing more. You guys are right, he really does give off a modern day Raven vibe, and to quote DDP: "That's a good thing!"

I don't think you guys are wrong. Remember we got into this when discussing Mauro Ranallo a couple of months ago in this thread. Firstly, there have been unsubstantiated allegations that Mauro Ranallo is a bit of an asshole, and that has nothing to do with his mental health. Hell, Dave Meltzer alluded to that fact when he covered the whole Mauro/JBL debacle, and Meltzer and Mauro are friends. Secondly, as I ranted about in the thread linked above, Mauro Ranallo has gone on record and is quite proud of the fact he doesn't follow the traditional, prescribed treatment for his mental illness, so I have a hard time feeling a lot of sympathy for him. Let's face it, any time you get me and @El-P to agree on something, as we do about Mauro...then we MUST be right, because the statistical odds of us having the same opinion about something are infinitesimal.

WWE is a company that considers Micheal Fucking Cole "The Voice of WWE." Clearly, their bar when it comes to the quality of the announcing is really not all that high. They don't want good announcers, they want mindless corporate yesbots who will happily spout inane WWE approved euphemisms and approved catch phrases on cue while Vince instructs them in their headset. Or in WWE-speak, they want to ensure the WWE Universe hears the best action about their favorite Sports Entertainers. I love NXT, but I don't think you can attribute their success and ratings to Mauro Ranallo. I'd be more likely to think they've succeeded despite him, not because of him.

Uh...what? I'm as big a Cornette fan as you're likely to find (especially here at PWO) and even I don't think he has a high IQ. He's one of those people who knows a ton about one particular subject, but outside of his comfort zone he really isn't all that much smarter than your average man on the street. In fact he's probably dumber, if it comes to that. Jim Cornette is pretty much a savant when it comes to his knowledge of Pro Wrestling history, due to being an accomplished and experienced archivist. But get him talking about pretty much anything else and it becomes clear he really isn't of above average intelligence. He is famous for his political rants, but his overall understanding of politics is incredibly two-dimensional and frighteningly simplistic.

His enthusiasm isn't the problem, dude. I could almost handle the screaming and shouting and jumping out of his seat. I can almost deal with that, although it's fucking annoying. His enthusiasm I can at least appreciate and understand. The problem is that much of the time he seems more concerned with shoe-horning his stupid pop culture references and allegories into the match than he is with actually you know...calling the match. It's never natural when he does that, it always sounds incredibly forced and corny. Whether he means to do this or not, he sounds like he trying to get himself over as some sort of character, not be the play-by-play guy. Secondly, he's unprofessional. He doesn't let his fellow announcers talk, he is constantly cutting them off and interrupting them and there is literally no excuse for that. I know there are plenty of people who like the guy, and that's fine. But even his biggest defenders would have to admit that he interrupts Nigel and Beth all the time, and like I said there is no excuse for that shit. Secondly, for those that don't like him he actually detracts from the show. I've lost count of the times I've read about people either not watching NXT or having to mute the volume because they don't want to listen to Mauro Ranallo bellowing nonsense at the top of his lungs. He doesn't add to the product, for a lot of people he actually takes away from the enjoyment of the product. That isn't made up or imagined. I can't stand Josh Mathews as an example, but I've never let him get to me so much that I have to turn the volume down. But I habitually turn the volume extra low when I watch NXT because I literally can't stand listening to Mauro Ranallo's nonsense. I've never tweeted something negative to the guy, and I personally could care less if he uses Twitter or not. But if he didn't call NXT anymore I wouldn't shed a tear and I honestly think it would make the product considerably better, and I'm not going to feel guilty or apologize for that either.

@Slasher you're the man and you're one of my favorite posters here at PWO...but in this particular case I believe you're wrong brother. As I have ranted about previously, Messiah has two literal definitions: 1) "The prophesied king and deliverer of the Jews" which does not apply here, unless Roderick Strong is planning on delivering the Jews through the use of the backbreaker? or... 2) "A professed or accepted leader of some hope or cause" which would imply that the backbreaker is a "hope or cause?" It doesn't work. As I've bitched about previously, there is no earthly reason that they can't call him "The Master of the Backbreaker." Otherwise it's a stupid nickname and it makes no sense. And it's mildly sacrilegious, to boot.

One of the things that struck me when I listened to the podcast was that Cornette seemed uncharacteristically calm about the whole situation. He got a little fired up, but I expected him to go into full on insane rant mode. I thought his apology was actually fairly reasonable. If he had done that on Wednesday this might have actually blown over, but from his perspective I can see why he didn't. He was right about one thing, this kind of thing was just going to keep happening until he got fired, so it's just as well that he quit. There were two things Cornette said that I liked. Firstly he talked about how this whole controversy was overshadowing the NWA and taking attention away from the promotion and the workers and one of the reasons he quit is because he didn't want to do that to them. Secondly, he encouraged his fans to continue to support the NWA and he even reiterated that point at the end of the show, so that was good I thought. One thing that really surprised me was Brian Last during that podcast. He told Cornette flat out that he thought the joke was inappropriate and he could absolutely see why people would think it was racist. He did say that he doesn't think Cornette is a racist person, but the joke was bad and he never should have made it. I respect Brian Last for being so blunt about that. I can only imagine how Alice Radley would have reacted. Well, I guess I don't have to imagine that...when something similar to this happened when she was co-host, she quit.

I only want to see an AEW version of War Games if one of the teams is made up of Marko Stunt, Michael Nakazawa, Peter Avalon, Sonny Kiss, and the fat guy from The Dark Order.

Finally got around to watching NXT last night and saw this match. It did not disappoint, one little bit. In fact (and I know nobody will agree with me, but I'm going to say it anyhow) I think I would go as far as to say it was a MOTYC. They wisely gave it around 25 minutes and let it breathe, and I thought it was outstanding. Agree/Disagree anybody?

The Women's War Games was far and away the best match on the show, and since it was the opener all the other matches paled in comparison...but having said that, I agree with you. I still enjoyed the Men's War Games and overall I thought this was an excellent show and very enjoyable. Except the commentary of Mauro Ranallo, who I hope gets a terminal case of mouth herpes.