JaymeFuture

As mentioned on last week's podcast (which you can find in my sig if you'd like to check it out), we're doing a show on the top Summerslam matches of all time this week and did a panel voting on the top 20 matches. Below is the outcome, based on the mean average score of the votes. For the podcast, besides a debate on the final outcome below, we'd like your thoughts on which matches you rate higher or lower (and more importantly why), or if you think any should be on the list that aren't. As always we'll be reading the best contributions on the show and crediting you accordingly. 1. Shawn Michaels Vs. Triple H (2002) 2. Bret Hart Vs. Mr. Perfect (1991) 3. Bret Hart Vs. Davey Boy Smith (1992) 4. Bret Hart Vs. Owen Hart (1994) 5. Edge & Christian Vs. Hardy Boyz Vs. Dudley Boyz (2000) 6. The Rock Vs. Triple H (1998) 7. Shawn Michaels Vs. Razor Ramon (1995) 8. Kurt Angle Vs. Rey Mysterio (2002) 9. Steve Austin Vs. Kurt Angle (2001) 10. Brock Lesnar Vs. CM Punk (2013) 11a. Bret Hart Vs. Doink/Jerry Lawler (1993) 11b. Brock Lesnar Vs. John Cena (2014) 13. Hart Foundation Vs. Brain Busters (1989) 14. The Rock Vs. Brock Lesnar (2002) 15. Hart Foundation Vs. Demolition (1990) 16a. Daniel Bryan Vs. John Cena (2013) 16b. The Ultimate Warrior Vs. Rick Rude (1989) 18. Steiner Brothers Vs. Heavenly Bodies (1993) 19. Shane McMahon Vs. Test (1999) 20. Christian Vs. Randy Orton (2011) EDIT - The show discussing the list, your comments on it and any notable omissions is now online and available to listen to at the following link: http://squaredcirclegazette.podbean.com/mf/play/234e8w/SCGRadio51-RankingTheBestSummerslamMatchesEver.mp3

Well, we have reached episode number 50, and decided this was as good a time as any to dive into the mailbag and take your comments and questions on all things pro wrestling. We ended up discussing a wide variety of topics such as the vocal minority versus casual fan dilemma in WWE, Brock Vs. Taker at Summerslam, our favourite WrestleCrap moments, least favourite wrestlers when we were kids, definitive champions, recasting gimmicks, dream matches, the worst fuck finishes ever and much much more. A very fun show this week, and a big thanks to all of our great listeners and contributors, we hope you enjoy the show! http://squaredcirclegazette.podbean.com/mf/web/fhgnix/SCGRadio50-TheMailbag.mp3

Never did post Mania 11 thoughts. Well, what the hell. This is being booked on the assumption that I have inherited the situation as it was at the start of 1995, with the roster as it was in March. WrestleMania XI WWF Title Diesel © Vs. Shawn Michaels w/Sid This is the only match on the card I'd keep the same. If Diesel is champion, the only ready made big match challenger he has is Shawn Michaels, which poses a problem because 1) the dynamic of the feud was bad with Shawn as the undersized and overmatched heel challenger, and 2) the match itself didn't work out as a result. I think this has to be more of a grudge match than it was, in the vain of Taker/Shawn at Ground Zero. I'd have Shawn and Sid beat the living hell out of Diesel with a steel chair in the run-up, and the idea that after all the superkicks, the spotlight hogging, and the assisted beatdowns, Diesel is finally going to get Shawn one-on-one. In the real world, they tried to position them as equals, which was a big mistake. Since they'd paid the cash to get Pamela Anderson, I guess use her here in the same way they did, but she has to be supplemental to the revenge story. Same outcome, if you're going with Diesel as champ in the first place, he had to win here. Winner: Diesel Bret Hart Vs. Lex Luger Lex turns heel at the Royal Rumble, costing Bret the WWF Title. The bitter, obnoxious Luger starts to show himself in his post-match explanation - last year at the Rumble, the Lex Express hit a Pink and Black brick wall, and the fans chose Bret over him when they tied at the finish. He dropped his Narcissistic way to represent his country, and they spat in his face when he needed them. As much as it pissed him off, he swallowed the bitter pill to be the nice guy. Hell, he even raised Bret's hand at Mania X. Then as soon as Bret lost the belt, he immediately was given a chance to get it back against Diesel, while Lex was never given a title shot by Bret after he got blatantly screwed at Summerslam 93 and Mania X. Luger is an angry, bitter heel in the build to this match, desperate to prove he is better than the Hitman. And in the cheapest, most gutless fashion, he wins, which marks a turn in the character to super obnoxious, holier than thou self-entitled dickhead Luger a la 1989 Total Package, because he "proved" he was right after all. This can continue with Luger either going after Diesel, or continuing the Bret feud all the way through to Summerslam, where the Hitman gets the win. Bret can "get his win back" over Backlund on one of the In Your House Pay-Per-Views if its actually needed. Winner: Lex Luger Lawrence Taylor/Razor Ramon Vs. Jerry Lawler/Jeff Jarrett w/Roadie Jerry Lawler was perfect for the LT program. He wasn't the most credible guy after the Doink feud, so he really had nothing to lose. He was that perfect heel to antagonise the celebrity and incorporate some of the Kaufman elements again (hell, could even reference Lawler's past fending off outsiders), and his promo work could have made this a bigger deal than it was. As evidenced by Bigelow, nobody that worked opposite Taylor was going to come out better for it, so I think LT works better in a tag format where his partner gets the shine of being next to him in all the pubicity and promos, a la Hogan and Mr. T. And Razor in 1995 would have benefitted from some celebrity shine to avoid the midcard typecasting a little bit. I'd keep Razor as IC Champion at the Rumble, but continue the Jarrett/Roadie feud going. Lawler gets eliminated by Doink or the 1-2-3 Kid in the Royal Rumble, and gets the shove on LT for laughing at him. Lawler, Jarrett and Roadie as a heel trio has big potential as their paths cross leading up to the match, the Memphis-style stooging and verbal prodding is ideal for this scenario, and Lawler gets to complain forever about the loss and doesn't get killed off the way Bigelow did. Winners: Razor and LT Undertaker Vs. Bam Bam Bigelow Because lets face it, King Kong Bundy sucked balls. They'd need to do some serious work near the end of 94 and in the beginning of 95 to heat up Bigelow because he'd been treading water in the middle for a while, but this has a lot of potential. There was a standard formula for Taker feuds at the time - bad guy steals the urn, Taker beats him and gets it back. I'd go a little more hardcore here and have Bigelow beat the shit out of Paul Bearer, giving him three headbutts off the top rope while Taker is restrained or incapacitated by the rest of the Million Dollar Corporation. A Bearer-less Taker goes it alone, until Paul returns just in time at the finish, urn in hand, encouraging Taker to victory. Winner: Undertaker Yokozuna Vs. Davey Boy Smith Was contemplating going with Owen Vs. Davey for a good match and strong win for Owen, but two reasons why I'll go with booking logic over a good match - number one, Yokozuna did barely anything for 1995, as his team with Owen didn't produce a lot of good anyway, and number two, given the big problem in 1995 with a lack of credible heels for Diesel, Yoko is good for one PPV defense at least. Again, they went with Sid and Mabel, people. I'd maybe change Yoko's look up slightly in his big return, make him a bit darker after losing the Casket Match, and give an impressive win over Davey Boy here, a strong midcard face, to help put some steam back on him after he'd been phased down a bit after losing the title in 94. Winner: Yokozuna WWF Tag Team Titles Smoking Gunns © Vs. Owen Hart/Bob Backlund Owen Vs. Davey left me with a Backlund/Yoko team, which is kind of funny in an absurd way, but the matches would be awful, because both Yoko and Backlund needed help for a team to work. Owen and Backlund have the Bret connection from Survivor Series, and I see them being a potential good act together, with Bob as the crazy hyper-intelligent type, with Owen's cocky heel shtick beside it. Gunns lose the belts, and hopefully this team can elevate the belts a bit. Winners: Owen & Backlund 1-2-3 Kid Vs. Hakushi This replaces Owen Vs. Davey as the hot action match on the undercard, serves to give Hakushi his first win on a big stage, and sets him up for some good stuff throughout the Summer. Winner: Hakushi Heavenly Bodies/Tatanka/IRS Vs. Headshrinkers/Adam Bomb/Bob Holly The traditional "lets get a bunch of guys on the card" match, just a fun and quick way to open the show, babyfaces get the win. Winners: Headshrinkers/Car Bombs ¬_¬ Final Thoughts: Overall, not only do I think this is significantly better than what we got, but it's very plausible that they could have gone this direction just as easily. One of the major problems coming out of the real show was that there were absolutely no heels worth a fuck afterwards, as the babyfaces smoked through them all in the key matches. Here we elevate Razor as a babyface, get some awesome promos with Jerry Lawler, give Bret a hot issue which he sorely needed since he spent his 1995 in the midcard, create a hot new heel in Lex Luger, we give Yoko some heat, we don't eviscerate Bigelow, Taker gets a notch on his belt and MUCH needed good match, the tag titles are set up nicely on an important team, Hakushi heads into the Spring with some steam, and the Diesel/Michaels story gets its blowoff. And more importantly, no Harris Twins or King Kong Bundy.

Am curious to see what people's thoughts on this match are in general, as it's held in generally high esteem and I like it a lot, though it feels a tiny bit clunky at the end. Apparently Dave Meltzer only gave this two stars at the time, which I'm floored by.

It says something when you question whether HHH is cooler than the guy with lips on his ass that moons the fans.

Off the top of my head, that's the same promo he does the backflip off the top rope to show his knee is fine. It's almost funny how much of an asshole he was. But he was absolutely despised in that promo. Including the very loud "faggot" chant that illustrates just how much times have changed. Also, may be reading too much into things, but Shawn seems to absolutely hate the Rick Rude association and barely acknowledges his existence during that run.

Shawn amused me a little, he seemed to be far more self-aware at how stupid it was to be playing cool guy at his age, but those brief moments aside ("Oh I LOVE Mr. Fuji!"), the first few months of the returning DX was horrible. Never needed to see Coach's ass. 2006 is a pet peeve in general in terms of reaching for the past so often. Was hilarious to hear them give the company line of "the new ECW can't be about the past, it has be about new guys like Test and Knox", and then see them trot out Hogan, Foley, Flair, DX, McMahons and others for key spots throughout the year.

The latest SCG Radio is now online as we take your nominations talking about "McMyths" - WWE's revisionist history or company line on countless topics, as the panel gives their thoughts on Vince's spin on The Brass Ring, the 1994 Steroid Trial, taking on "Ted Turner", crying foul over Eric Bischoff's dirty tactics, Saddam Hussein threatens WrestleMania, the Ultimate Warrior DVD, Montreal, DX's invasion of WCW, wrestling in smoky arenas, Black Saturday and much, much more. A fun show this week, check it out and let us know what you think! http://squaredcirclegazette.podbean.com/mf/play/8awtz6/SCGRadio49-BustingMcMyths.mp3 In addition, next week is our 50th episode, and we're going to be going a mailbag show for the first time this year, so if you have any questions, points of discussion or random comments and thoughts you'd like to hear discussed, drop them in a PM or send them to [email protected], and we'll get to them on next week's show!

Just wanted to thank everybody for the nominations, as the podcast discussing "McMyths" is now available at the following link: http://squaredcirclegazette.podbean.com/mf/play/8awtz6/SCGRadio49-BustingMcMyths.mp3 We get to all things revisionist history and company line, including Vince's spin on The Brass Ring, the 1994 Steroid Trial, taking on "Ted Turner", crying foul over Eric Bischoff's dirty tactics, Saddam Hussein threatens WrestleMania, the Ultimate Warrior DVD, Montreal, DX's invasion of WCW, wrestling in smoky arenas, Black Saturday and many many more, a really fun show, check it out and let us know what you think! In addition, next week is our 50th episode, and we're going to be going a mailbag show for the first time this year, so if you have any questions, points of discussion or random comments and thoughts you'd like to hear discussed, drop them below, in a PM or send them to [email protected], and we'll get to them on next week's show.

Topped only by Cole throwing to a video of the WrestleMania Rage Party as a man hangs dead above the wrestling ring.

I always ponder the "what if Brian Pillman never had that humvee wreck". Meltzer often says Pillman wanted to stay in WCW, and I believe him, but the way the business went anyway with Hall and Nash heading in, Hogan staying on top, and all his supporters on the other side, I think Pillman would have found his way to the WWF a couple of years later injury free with the great character and dynamic promo style in a time and place that was custom made for it.

For our podcast this week, we're going to be talking about WWE's revisionist version of history and stances on different wrestlers and events, and in particular the ones we disagree with, and want to get some feedback from you guys - what myth that WWE propagates do you disagree with the most, or in particular bothers you when they try to force it on the general public? I saw a similar thread that pertains to the entire business elsewhere on the forum, but thought this would be good to narrow it down to WWE's. Whether it's something small on a DVD or documentary that strikes you as bullshit, or just a WWE/Vince trait that rattles your cage, what WWE company line or mentality annoys you the most, and most importantly, why? As always we'll be reading the best nominations on the show and crediting you accordingly, so what do you think? EDIT - The show discussing your nominations for McMyths is now online and available to listen to at the following link: http://squaredcirclegazette.podbean.com/mf/play/8awtz6/SCGRadio49-BustingMcMyths.mp3

As sick to death as everybody is of the subject, it should never be underestimated how dumb Vince McMahon was to help Bret Hart, WWF Champion, negotiate with WCW and leave the belt on him right up to Survivor Series during a war time situation.

The latest Squared Circle Gazette Radio is up, as we talk from April to June of 1997 in our Monday Night War Timeline. Accompanied as always by inside notes from the Wrestling Observer Newsletters of the time, the panel discusses all the key talking points such as on-air shoot promos, the overwhelming tensions leading to backstage fights with Bret Vs. Shawn and Nash Vs. Piper, the rise of babyface Steve Austin against the Hart Foundation, the shocking original plan for The Undertaker's "secret", Sting continues to hunt Hulk Hogan, epic stories of Sid, constantly changing plans, WCW makes a little-known historic mistake for the ages, and much more. With all the facts and figures of the quarter, we have a fascinating look back this week, check it out and let me know what you think! http://squaredcirclegazette.podbean.com/mf/web/4p9yuk/SCGRadio48-TheMondayNightWarin1997Q2.mp3

Brutus Beefcake's short run as unnamed run in guy mentioned by CarpetCrawler actually intrigued me as a kid. Shame it went nowhere. Or maybe not. Hercules under the masks of Super Invader in WCW and Mr. Wrestling 3 in Mid-South surely qualify. Paul Orndoff's 1990 WCW run as part of the Dudes With Attitudes. The aforementioned Caul Ouelette's extremely brief run as "X", with incredibly short shorts and a senton from the top rope to the wooden ramp that was horrific looking.

It was indeed, although they used the same name (Brock Lock) when he was using the bearhug as a big move after he killed Hogan with it. Scott Steiner using a flatliner in WWE. Test using the Roll The Dice as "The Test Drive" didn't last too long.

Kane briefly using a falling powerbomb. Angle using the chicken wing briefly during the Backlund mentor period. Eddie's leglock was called the Lasso from El Paso. The Brock Lock mixed between an awesome looking move at best to a clunky pile of shit at worst. Pillman using the Octagon Special as a babyface shortly before the Horsemen run.

Join us for this week's show as talk about the all-time great build-ups in wrestling history! Discussing the hype and storylines behind Hogan Vs. Sting, Sabu Vs. Taz, WrestleMania 3, Rock Vs. Austin, Austin Vs. Bret, Highway to Hell, Flair at Starrcade 93, Bret Vs. Owen, Foley Vs. Orton, Money In The Bank 2011, Virgil and Batista's babyface turns, the journey of Book-Dust, Michaels Vs. Taker and many many more, as we break down some of the best jobs creating anticipation we've ever seen. A fun trip down memory lane this week, check it out and as always, let us know what you think! http://squaredcirclegazette.podbean.com/mf/web/2h6fxu/SCGRadio47-TheBestBuildUpsinWrestlingHistory.mp3

I want to thank everybody for the suggestions in this thread, we got to a lot of them on the show, which is now available to listen to at the following link: http://squaredcirclegazette.podbean.com/mf/web/2h6fxu/SCGRadio47-TheBestBuildUpsinWrestlingHistory.mp3 Join us as talk about the all-time great build-ups in wrestling history, discussing the hype and storylines behind Hogan Vs. Sting, Sabu Vs. Taz, WrestleMania 3, Rock Vs. Austin, Austin Vs. Bret, Highway to Hell, Flair at Starrcade 93, Virgil and Batista's babyface turns, the journey of Book-Dust, Michaels Vs. Taker and many many more, as we break down some of the best jobs creating anticipation we've ever seen. A fun trip down memory lane this week, check it out and let us know what you think!

I thought it had tons of promise. Remember reading in the Observer that Vince stood them up in a company wide meeting and praised them for coming off so good in their debut. I guess Juvi blew it for them.

So for this week's podcast we're looking at the Best Build-Ups in Wrestling History, and would like to get some feedback on which ones really struck a chord with you and why. The only criteria is that it can apply to a show, a match or a debut, but essentially it's simple - which hype jobs were the best ones you ever saw and truly worked to get you more excited to see something than you've ever been otherwise for wrestling? The more explanation on why you loved the build, the better. As always, we'll be reading the best contributions on the show and crediting you accordingly, so what do you think? EDIT - The show discussing your candidates for Best Build-Ups is now online and available to listen to at the following link: http://squaredcirclegazette.podbean.com/mf/web/2h6fxu/SCGRadio47-TheBestBuildUpsinWrestlingHistory.mp3

Big Show and Billy Gunn's run as "The Show-Gunns" tag team fits the bill I think. They'd argue and basically take potshots at each other to send the company message, but they weren't a terrible team.

After taking nominations from a variety of message boards, join myself and the panel as we debate the Most Useless PPV in wrestling history! Taking your suggestions, we discuss shows such as King Of The Ring 95, WrestleManias 9 and 11, BattleBowl 93, ECW December To Dismember, many In Your House events, many TNA shows, many Great American Bashes, WCW New Blood Rising, No Mercy in the UK, nWo Souled Out, Battleground 2013, Heroes of Wrestling and many more questionable shows, as we debate their merits (or lack thereof) and get to the bottom of what makes a big event truly worthless. A very fun show this week, check it out~! http://squaredcirclegazette.podbean.com/mf/web/4285da/SCGRadio46-TheMostUselessPPVEver.mp3

I want to thank everybody for the suggestions in this thread, we got to a lot of them on the show, which is now available to listen to at the following link: http://squaredcirclegazette.podbean.com/mf/web/4285da/SCGRadio46-TheMostUselessPPVEver.mp3 Join us as we debate the Most Useless PPV in wrestling history! Taking your suggestions, we discuss shows such as King Of The Ring 95, WrestleManias 9 and 11, BattleBowl 93, ECW December To Dismember, many In Your House events, many TNA shows, many Great American Bashes, nWo Souled Out, WCW New Blood Rising, Battleground 2013, No Mercy in the UK, Heroes of Wrestling and many more, as we get to the bottom of what makes a big event truly worthless. A very fun show this week, check it out~!

It is a fine line in terms of definition, I'll grant you, but I think you can have a show with no narrative function or purpose, but if you get a good entertaining match on it or something positive, it at least contributed something. If a show has no purpose and also has nothing of merit, that's when you get the real candidates for this I think.