JaymeFuture

Funny that a lot of people have issues with the way Mania is presented. As an additional pet peeve of mine I do think the road to Mania has become very formulaic in recent years - not just the pointing and the commentary, but there's element of just throwing top matches together with no real build or dynamic stuff to set them up. Rock/Cena Part 2, Lesnar/Taker and even Brock/Reigns to a degree certainly fit in this category.

After a one week break, SCG Radio is back as we return to our History of the Monday Night War Timeline, complete with notes from the Wrestling Observer Newsletters of the era. This week the panel covers from July through to the end of September, talking the heel turn of Hulk Hogan, the early days of the nWo, Shawn Michaels' struggles as WWF champion, great angles and promos, fake Razors and Diesels, as well as a look at a lot of numbers that tell the story blow by blow. A great show this week, check it out and as always, let me know what you think! http://squaredcirclegazette.podbean.com/mf/web/2axgr8/SCGRadio39-TheMondayNightWarin1996-Part2.mp3

Just wanted to thank everybody in this thread for the awesome suggestions - the podcast discussing a great many of the Bad Gimmicks mentioned in this thread is now available to listen to at the following link: http://squaredcirclegazette.podbean.com/mf/web/w32phd/SCGRadio38-BadGimmicksMadeGood.mp3 This was a really fun trip down memory lane this week, talking about the dynamics of making bad gimmicks work, and discussing your suggestions such as The Undertaker, Heel Doink, Goldust, Umaga, Kane, Rusev, "The Model" Rick Martel, Akeem, Polka Dot Dusty Rhodes, Barry Darsow, Billy & Chuck and countless more - check it out and let me know what you think!

This week's Squared Circle Gazette Radio is now online, after taking suggestions from here, there and everywhere on Bad Gimmicks Made Good, or Bad Gimmicks you just flat out enjoyed, we talk about all the dynamics of wrestlers turning chicken salad into chicken shit. This was a really fun trip down memory lane, as we discuss candidates such as The Undertaker, Heel Doink, Goldust, Umaga, Kane, Rusev, "The Model" Rick Martel, Akeem, Polka Dot Dusty Rhodes, Barry Darsow, Billy & Chuck and countless more, talking about the great (or not so great) elements that made them what they were - check it out and let me know what you think! http://squaredcirclegazette.podbean.com/mf/web/w32phd/SCGRadio38-BadGimmicksMadeGood.mp3

For this week's podcast, we're looking at examples in wrestling history of bad gimmicks made good, and are keen to get some feedback on cases that you always thought stood out to you in that vain. Couple of ways to look at this one, so feel free to give your stand-out example of either (or both): 1 - A bad gimmick that either the promotion or the wrestler worked hard at and made it work, and what you feel was the reason it did. Or 2 - A bad gimmick that, for whatever reason, worked for you and you personally enjoyed despite the common opinion that it sucked, and why you got into it. Of course the key question is why - the more detail the better. As always the best posts will be read on the show and you'll be credited accordingly, but looking forward to seeing which ones stand out to you guys. EDIT - The podcast discussing Bad Gimmicks Made Good, or ones you just flat out enjoyed, is now available at the following link: http://squaredcirclegazette.podbean.com/mf/web/w32phd/SCGRadio38-BadGimmicksMadeGood.mp3

Thanks for listening, first of all (this is Liam) - your initial messages to me when I started this up have never been forgotten and I always bear them in mind. I was very time conscious through the show, 4 people talking in-depth about 50 guys could go 3 or 4 hours easy, so Wizard did get short-changed a little. He absolutely did make more money as a talker than Pillman, and as I said, I'm the biggest Pillman fan in the world but he's realistically not Top 50 of all time either. Wizard was very good, but to elaborate a little further I thought he was most effective as a talker and an act when he was garnish to somebody else's act like a Slaughter or a Superstar, as opposed to on his own, where I'd say I thought he was good, a great voice and knew what to say, but Top 50 ever just feels like a push. Albano I fucking love, so dynamic, versatile and flexible to different situations, had such a commanding presence whenever he talked and just an utter heat machine. Whereas Wizard was better as a sidedish to somebody else, when a heel was with Albano they were hated via association, which I think speaks not only to the heat but the pure ability to talk in a way to draw money. Did Superstar need Wizard to draw? I don't feel he did, but a Crusher Verdu or the Wild Samoans or the Executioners without Albano? I think the main thing that translates for me is that, despite time and place and watching in retrospect, I can watch Albano and feel the pure ability to hate him when he talks, all while he's entertaining as hell, and it may be unfair since its so many years later, but I never get that with Wizard.

This week we decided to dive in to WWE.Com's Top 50 Talkers in Wrestling History list that they put out a while ago, since it caught my eye as an interesting topic of discussion. So for those interested in promo talk and analysis, below is the link as we talk about the rankings, who should be higher or lower, who shouldn't be on at all, and some of the names that were inexplicably left off. A really fun show this week, check it out and let me know what you think~! http://squaredcirclegazette.podbean.com/mf/play/argj43/SCGRadio37-WWEComsTop50TalkersOfAllTime.mp3 And as a general point of reference, here was the list itself: 50. Scott Steiner 49. Joel Gertner 48. Jimmy Valiant 47. Zeb Colter 46. New Jack 45. The Grand Wizard of Wrestling 44. Brian Pillman 43. JBL 42. Thunderbolt Patterson 41. The Miz 40. Kevin Sullivan 39. William Regal 38. Tazz 37. Stephanie McMahon 36. Ernie Ladd 35. Kurt Angle 34. Bray Wyatt 33. Rick Rude 32. Gary Hart 31. Ultimate Warrior 30. Michael P.S. Hayes 29. Nick Bockwinkel 28. Raven 27. Jesse Ventura 26. Jerry Lawler 25. The Million Dollar Man 24. Terry Funk 23. Shawn Michaels 22. Harley Race 21. Edge 20. Captain Lou Albano 19. Triple H 18. Macho Man Randy Savage 17. Jim Cornette 16. CM Punk 15. Arn Anderson 14. Superstar Billy Graham 13. Mr. McMahon 12. John Cena 11. Jake Roberts 10. Chris Jericho 9. Hulk Hogan 8. Bobby The Brain Heenan 7. Mick Foley 6. Paul Heyman 5. Dusty Rhodes 4. Stone Cold Steve Austin 3. Roddy Piper 2. The Rock 1. Ric Flair

And on the Lauranitis point, Jim Cornette ranting about how Doug Basham walked into OVW "looking like a 40 year old truck driver" because WWE wanted to see what he looked like bald is one of his funnier tirades.

I'm a video editor, so I obviously adore music videos and talking about them, and any time this question is asked about whacky old music videos I immediately think of the Magnum TA music video to Sweet Dreams by Eurythmics that they played a few times on Mid-South in early 84. It's just awesome - Magnum posing in all his manly glory to appeal to the ladies, riding his bike, hanging out in the bar and making out with multiple random women one after the other, it's just fantastically symbolic of the early era of music videos. In terms of pure effectiveness, the Kurt Angle comeback video to "Clocks" and the Randy Savage tribute video they played on Raw should be mentioned, I thought both were incredible in their own ways.

This week's Squared Circle Gazette Radio takes examples from here and a number of other forums of matches where the Wrong Guy Went Over. Talking the many examples provided by Hulk Hogan and Triple H (including Randy Orton, Randy Savage, Booker T, Rob Van Dam, CM Punk and more), main event pushes gone awry in Ryback and Lex Luger, Super Sunday, perfect endings ruined by overthinking, as well as some outright travesties through recent wrestling history. Give it a listen and, as always, let me know what you think! http://squaredcirclegazette.podbean.com/mf/play/nqmshk/SCGRadio36-TheWrongGuyWentOver.mp3

Just wanted to thank everybody in this thread for the awesome suggestions - the podcast discussing a lot of the matches mentioned in this thread where the Wrong Guy Went Over is now available to listen to at the following link: http://squaredcirclegazette.podbean.com/mf/play/nqmshk/SCGRadio36-TheWrongGuyWentOver.mp3 This ended up being a really fun show, talking the many examples provided by Hulk Hogan and Triple H, main event pushes gone awry in Ryback and Lex Luger, Super Sunday, perfect endings ruined by overthinking, and some outright travesties. Give it a listen and, as always, let me know what you think!

Old hat or not, I agree that as much as HHH and Stephanie can deliver great performances, the application of the characters, reliance of a gimmick from 17 years ago and inconsistency in the execution is such an anchor for the guys trying to get over as top stars today, because their role is the only constant on top and people know they're the true stars, just through positioning.

For this weeks podcast, we're going to be looking at matches that, for whatever reason, stand out as having the wrong outcome, and would like to get some feedback and hypothetical discussion going on examples that always stood out to you. So, what is the one match you always think about and say "_______ should have won", and why? It can be a case where the guy who lost should have won because it was a critical time for the character or they could have gone in an interesting future direction, or it can be where the guy that won had no business getting the victory for one reason or another. The more explanation for your choice, the better. As always, the best examples will be read on the show and you'll be namedropped accordingly, but interested to see which different matches stand out for different people on this one. EDIT - The podcast discussing matches where The Wrong Guy Went Over, including many of the examples below, is now online at the following link: http://squaredcirclegazette.podbean.com/mf/play/nqmshk/SCGRadio36-TheWrongGuyWentOver.mp3

Thanks very much man, glad you enjoyed it....and you and me both >_>

After taking suggestions from this forum and many others, our podcast talking about Wrestling Pet Peeves and Irrational Hatreds is now online. Talking everything from WWE buzzwords, booking policy and conventions, to commonly held opinions and some tremendously humorous foibles that people have with the Greatest Sport Of Them All, the panel runs through them all and add their own to the pile, as well as inserting to logic to try and dispell a few along the way. This ended up being a really fun show, and I especially want to thank everybody here for their candidates, as it led to some really interesting discussion. Have a listen and as always, let me know what you think! http://squaredcirclegazette.podbean.com/mf/play/5jscg6/SCGRadio35-WrestlingPetPeeves.mp3

Just wanted to thank everybody in this thread for the awesome suggestions - the podcast discussing a great many of the Pet Peeves/Utter Hatreds mentioned in this thread is now available to listen to at the following link: http://squaredcirclegazette.podbean.com/mf/play/5jscg6/SCGRadio35-WrestlingPetPeeves.mp3 This ended up being a really fun podcast, talking everything from wide-reaching issues such as WWE buzzwords, hypocrisy and policies, to the humorous minor foibles that many have with the Greatest Sport Of Them All, if you've never listened to the show before (and especially if you have) - check it out and let me know what you think!

So, for this week's podcast, we're looking to tap into the more cynical and humourous part of people's minds, and talk about different pet peeves or just utter hatreds you have when it comes to the world of wrestling. Is there one wrestler you always just utterly despised? A TV or PPV show that grates on your nerves? A commonly held belief that you completely disagree with? A pet peeve you constantly have to deal with that you'd like to eradicate? Ultimately, who or what do you hate, and more importantly, why? As always we'll be reading the best submissions on the show and crediting you accordingly, so this should be fun to get a handle on who and what people personally don't like about their wrestling. EDIT - The podcast discussing Wrestling Pet Peeves and Irrational Hatreds, including many mentioned in this thread, is now available to listen to at the following link: http://squaredcirclegazette.podbean.com/mf/play/5jscg6/SCGRadio35-WrestlingPetPeeves.mp3

Since it's the obvious topic, this week's show focuses on WrestleMania 31, the post-Mania Raw, and the immediate future of the WWE - talking babyface Brock, Roman Reigns' next move, the use of Sting in WWE, problems with Rusev and Bray Wyatt going forward, the greatness of Rock and Ronda Rousey, Seth Rollins and the direction of the WWE Title, and of course, scattered comments on WrestleMania itself. A fun show as always, give it a listen and let me know what you think... http://squaredcirclegazette.podbean.com/mf/play/xnc3as/SCGRadio34-Mania31RawandBeyond.mp3

As yes, the old Bill Watts explanation for Krusher Khruschev - he's more scary than a blind fanatic because he'll abandon his own prinicples and adopt others for his own benefit. Not 2D enough for WWE, sadly.

They absolutely matter - the biggest grossing teams in any sport are typically the most consistent winners, and it translates to wrestling. Casual fans pay money for the characters they can believe in (even in a fake world) and see as the stars, and stars don't lose often. Tyson didn't become a PPV phenom by losing. A guy you like and want to believe in failing time and again is deflating, its just not what people pay to see. It may not be the be all end all, but it's hugely important.

Kieran made a case for it on the show, basically that he's a powerball bumping his ass off for the first half of the match taking crazy bumps, and it's as soon as he took over on offense, that's when he began selling and playing for sympathy to make it more about him and less about Austin, including screaming at the announcers about how tough he is. Austin alluded to issues with how the match went on his DVD, and given that he went from never wrestling again to doing eight more years, the question was whether the injury was really as bad as it was first reported.

Certain elements of the Mania X7 match review I disagree with - the roll-up finish with the tights was the last desperate act of Angle to try and prove he was better. The entire build was built on Angle's complex of having tapped out on Raw and being "outwrestled". So he immediately tries to outwrestle him but they go to dead heats every time, until Angle takes a cheap shot to gain the upper hand. It comes down to "you hold-my hold", as mentioned, because again the driving force was trying to make each other tap after the Raw angle and Angle's inferiority complex. The ref bump is unnecessary, but it sets up Angle being outdone and tapping again, and so completely forgoes the priniciple of trying to prove that point to take the cheap, hollow victory any way he can with the tights.

After taking feedback from here, there and everywhere, the latest SCG Radio is up discussing my article ranking every WrestleMania in history, the final part in the three part series, this time debating the Top 10. The panel gets together to discuss the list, breaking down the shows and any objections they have, talking WrestleManias 3, 10, 14, 17, 19, 20, 21, 23, 28 & 30, which all made it into this section of the countdown. http://squaredcirclegazette.podbean.com/mf/play/er62xj/SCGRadio33-RankingtheWrestleManias-TheTop10.mp3 A very interactive show taking your thoughts and feedback on the Top 10, with some really fun discussion on the elements that make such a list so interesting, give it a listen and as always, let me know what you think!

Absolutely love the responses here, and am happy to say I was able to read the majority of them on the show, which is now up to listen to at the following link: http://squaredcirclegazette.podbean.com/mf/play/er62xj/SCGRadio33-RankingtheWrestleManias-TheTop10.mp3 This ended up being a really fun podcast, breaking down the different elements of all the shows in the Top 10 and strongly debating the order of the list itself, a great final part to the series. Check it out and, as always, let me know what you think!

This week we are doing the final part in our series of podcasts debating the rankings for all 30 WrestleManias in order, from worst to first in blocks of ten, and would like to get some feedback to read on the shows. I've written an article on what I feel are the Top 10 (if you're interested in the rationale behind the rankings you can read the article here: http://steelchair.co.uk/ranking-the-wrestlemanias-the-top-10), and want to hear what agreements or disagreements people have with it, what you would rank higher or lower, and most importantly, why. For those who don't want to read the whole article, the Top 10 as I have them are: #10 - WrestleMania 30 (2014) #9 - WrestleMania 28 (2012) #8 - WrestleMania 20 (2004) #7 - WrestleMania 23 (2007) #6 - WrestleMania 21 (2005) #5 - WrestleMania 19 (2003) #4 - WrestleMania 14 (1998) #3 - WrestleMania 10 (1994) #2 - WrestleMania 3 (1987) #1 - WrestleMania 17 (2001) We'll be debating the order on the shows and reading your responses and crediting you accordingly, so what do you think? The podcast debating the list and discussing your feedback and thoughts is now available at the following link: http://squaredcirclegazette.podbean.com/mf/play/er62xj/SCGRadio33-RankingtheWrestleManias-TheTop10.mp3