C.S.

I wish Mauro was commentating this. (I started typing this, lost track of my thought, and don't remember what I was going to say. But I'll keep it anyway for posterity.) Well, aside from Wyatt, it was still pointless because you had Roman and a geek fighting over which brand gets first draft pick, when neither were guaranteed to be on those brands five minutes later. (Obviously, as we now know, Roman is staying with Smackdown. But still...)

Mauro is God's gift to commentary!

Should've started SD with a hot draft pick. No one cares about this pointless match with a pointless and completely illogical stipulation.

I wonder if the original plan was The Dentist vs. Smiley Kylie.

Which was such a stupid, shortsighted, arrogant move in retrospect, because “The Rock” will always be associated with WWE but there are probably people who have no idea Dwayne Johnson used to be a wrestler. The name change might have happened anyway - probably would have - but Vince really shot himself in the foot because he was so desperate for mainstream credibility.

The one thing I was worried about with AEW when it was first announced was that it would be just a bunch of “rasslin’” and “movez,” which by themselves don’t draw interest and I don’t give a fuck about - part of why current NXT and even WWE are such slogs in places - but everyone in AEW has an easily definable character. If I care about the wrestlers, I care about the matches. Such a lost art, in WWE/NXT anyway, but AEW understands that small basic fundamental and it’s amazing what a big difference it makes.

Thank you, sir. However, I do feel I've been unfairly consigned a rep as a "hot take" poster. I don't think it holds up to any kind of scrutiny though. Asuka: In WWE, doesn't draw and no one cares. I've been proven right on both counts. Granted, some of the blame is definitely on WWE's inconsistent booking. With that said, I can recognize that she would immediately be a draw and fan favorite in AEW's decidedly underwhelming (so far) women's division. Brock: A colossal bore. I sounded the trumpet on this earlier than most, and I've been proven right. That wasn't always the case, of course, but it is now. People want to argue that he "feels special" and use that to justify the bullshit way Kofi's reign ended. No, he used to feel special. Not anymore. Suplex City = an excuse for him to have lazy, dull matches. Credit to Paul "accentuate the positives, hide the negatives" Heyman for perpetuating this fraud. Drew Gulak: If he was future endeavored tomorrow, no one would notice and it would make zero difference to WWE's bottom line. Even AEW, which somehow managed to make Jake freakin' Hager seem special (for now) would struggle with Drew. He'd probably be a good fit for the NWA though (and this isn't a knock on the NWA - I genuinely feel guys like Drew would do well there). Mauro Ranallo: C.S.'s "hot takes" are more sizzling than a steak dinner at the Sizzler! Mamma Mia!!!

Wow, really?! How the fuck am I supposed to know that Drew Gulak is Jewish? (Don't waste my time pointing to some obscure promo I obviously didn't hear or obscure tweet I definitely didn't read.) Seriously, I really hope this is a tongue-in-cheek post on your part, because Drew's religion never entered my mind for even a split second. Rasslin' in a vacuum will never, ever impress me. I don't give a shit about Drew as a character. I don't give a shit about "Drew on steroids" Tony Nese as a character. Therefore, I can't get into anything they do. The only time I have been even remotely entertained by Drew's shtick is when he piggybacked off the Orton "...dive" stuff (which I found hysterical, even if I think Orton was the wrong person to be delivering that message and was never in a position where he felt he had to go overboard in the ring to get noticed). With that said, even in a vacuum, I also haven't been impressed with what I have seen with Drew in-ring. But maybe I haven't been watching the right matches? The few I've seen have been plodding, heatless affairs. The heatless part isn't his fault, but the plodding is. He's not Bret Hart and can't pull off "methodical." I like Lio Rush. But if we're talking about wrestling alone, the match stunk, and Mauro probably stunk during it too, because Mamma Mia, it was a bore. I don't necessarily blame Drew or Lio for it - WWE has neutered its cruiserweights into oblivion. The Young Bucks-Private Party match is what 205 Live and the Cruiserweight Division should have been all along. DAMN IT, MY REPLY TO KAWADA SOMEHOW GOT ERASED. I'LL TRY TO RE-CREATE IT.

Glad they didn't turn MJF yet. Too early to do that. They have to assume most of their audience has no idea what BTE is. But they probably do need to explain this next week for those same folks.

For what I said about everyone coming across like a star, "Hangman" Adam Page simply isn't yet. He looks like a 1995 WWF or WCW midcarder. It's a good thing he didn't win the AEW World Title because he would've been lost doing all of the promotional appearances and interviews Jericho is.

Well, surely they can dress up Full Sail more. Being in a smaller venue isn't the issue - looking dark and dingy compared to AEW is.

The problem with NXT this week is that no one's coming across as a star so far, except maybe Lio Rush and the Dream. Whereas, with AEW, almost everyone seems like a star - even Orange fucking Cassidy.

I like my dentists.

I guess no one is watching NXT tonight, or at least flipping back and forth. Lio Rush over Drew "Tony Neese off steroids" Gulak was the right move. But as I said in the Dynamite: Week 2 thread, the opening match of AEW is what the WWE/NXT CW division has always needed to be. This match was a clash of styles and bore, even with the right result, but Jesus Christ Himself couldn't carry a stiff like Drew Gulak to anything decent. Westley Blake's biker gimmick team, which will die an instant death on Raw or SD, over a fan favorite act like Breezango was the wrong move.

Can Jericho get AEW into any legal hot water for referencing "The List" so many times?

Jake Hager looks stoned.

I'm watching NXT because of Lio Rush, but flipping back and forth. The AEW opener is what the WWE/NXT CW division has always needed to be. Then again, Jesus Christ couldn't get much out of a stiff like Drew Gulak.

TNT is showing Guardians of the Galaxy for me, not baseball. Anybody else?

Hoping to watch the show tonight... I personally think Jim Cornette is a man-child and embarrassment to wrestling, but I've always enjoyed the hell out of his character - and his commentary is an extension of that, so I don't anticipate myself having any problems with his presence. He is knowledgeable about wrestling, and his outdated retro leanings actually sound like a perfect fit for what it seems this show is trying to do and be. I'm really looking forward to watching it.

Roman is a top guy. He could take the heat. Seth isn't and can't.

This is hilarious and probably would've happened under normal circumstances.

Lamest, tamest brawl ever. Probably doesn't help that I don't give a single flying fuck about Tyson Fury.

Same here. That functionality was actually available on the board, but the button was immediately disabled and eventually removed. Shame, because I think it's a fun feature to have. If the word "likes" is triggering, change it to "thanks" like another board I go to.

What?

The commentary is so terrible - yes, even this new team, because they're still forced to spout off inorganic WWE speak - that you'd have to be listening intently to notice, and who wants to put themselves through that ordeal?