SomethingSavage

I've been letting these episodes build up for about 2 months now, but I randomly decided to listen to the Spring Stampede '97 show at the gym today. It's another easy, solid listen. Eric's thorough breakdown on the skills & talents of the one Lord Steven Regal was epic. That was some GWE on PWO level shit and should be sought out by all immediately. Truly good stuff. Oof. Conrad goes in HARD AF on the Public Enemy. "Na-na-na-NOBODY. THAT'S WHO." legitimately cracked me up though. And I still get a kick out of the running joke of Bischoff shitting on Jimmy Hart at every available opportunity. He doesn't go out of his way to say anything here. But there's a point where Conrad lists off Hart's name, and Eric audibly lets out this groan of suffering & sheer agony. It's hilarious. Like the sound of a middle-aged man wrestling with the world's worst recorded case of heartburn known to man. Eric's hang-up on the front back kicks & front round kicks and whateverthefuck else kicks is just bizarre. It's his equivalent of McMahon's corporate buzz speak and mandated terminology. The rant about Tony calling the kick by the wrong name was funny through, because absolutely no one on God's green earth gave a single solitary fuck what the kick was called. Except Eric Bischoff, of course. "Rob Van Dam as Glacier" was a rumor I was totally unaware of. Never realized that was even a thing. Eric actually had quite a bit of fun with the gossip & rumors on this show. Hope that trend continues, actually. I don't know how much of Ultimo Dragon's stuff holds up, but I think the question has me interested enough to go back and check out some of that stuff. I remember really digging the matches with Rey and especially Psicosis from WCW, but that's going off memory alone. I may go back & scope some of those out real soon, if nothing else.

The Bucks of 2010 were not the same Bucks of 2013 onward, tbf. And yeah. Kennedy is really rough as a worker. He has the cage match with Angle (which, to me, is still top notch) and a fun street fight with Bully Ray to his credit. Outside of those two brawls, the dude's pretty much bankrupt in the quality matches department.

They were eventually able to turn it around. TNA from Lockdown 2011 up to Lockdown 2013 is one of the best week-to-week wrestling television shows in the last 20 years. But yeah. 2010 was one misstep after another. Did anything good come from that time period? I dug the Kennedy/Angle cage match and... Literally can't remember much else that's worth watching. I *seem* to recall that Angle/AJ Genesis match being really solid up until the shit-show finish, but I'm not 100% on that and may be confusing it with one of their other encounters. The Jeff Hardy "anti-Christ of professional wrestling" deal is truly an all-time career low for the guy.

One thing I forgot to mention - I thought it was interesting to hear JR describe JJ Dillon as such a loyal, stand-up guy. I'm not disputing that as the general consensus or anything, but it just reminded me of when Dillon came up on 83 Weeks a few months back. Bischoff was pretty harsh on Dillon, describing him as being as useful as a piece of furniture. Regarding the real point of contention, Eric said he felt he never could trust JJ from day one. Eric specifically told a story about Dillon approaching Bischoff with confidential information (regarding contracts, dates, etc.) as soon as JJ jumped ship from being head of WWF talent relations back to the WCW camp. Bischoff freely admits to using the information to his advantage, but he also says he felt like it showed Dillon's true character - and thus, he never fully trusted him as a part of the team. After all, if JJ would stab Vince in the back like that, what's stopping him from turning around and doing the same once the grass is greener on the other side again? I say all that just to ask - this made me wonder if JR is even aware of that story. I kind of doubt it, and I *really* would've been interested in hearing Conrad recall the issue and getting JR's take on it - especially since he eventually inherited the talent relations position further down the road.

I like the chemistry between Jim and Conrad. Their back & forth kind of carries the show for me. As you guys noted, this is mostly stuff we've heard before. It's cool to hear things from JR's perspective though. I got a kick out of hearing JR giggle with glee when Conrad told the story about Hall and Nash working their last MSG stoned, for example. It was just a moment of capturing his natural reaction, and I dug that. It was also pretty cool to hear JR defend Kevin Nash. I wasn't expecting that. Although the best part was another similar moment when JR reacted to Cornette's infamous line about Nash having five moves (six, if you count the hair flip). So yeah. This isn't exactly new ground or anything, and the topics they seem to want to tackle in the near future all sound like more of the same. But it's coming from a slightly new angle, and I do enjoy hearing JR's slant on these things for now.

I know some people like to shit on old man Jericho and his in-ring limitations, but I think having him onboard already is going to provide a boost - perhaps one that isn't really getting as much attention or talk as it should just yet. No, he's not exactly a household name. But he isn't far off. He can still go, even if it is under the guise of dog & pony show style booking. Give me another Jericho street fight or Jericho/Omega any day and I'm there. The guy understands the importance of telling stories. He's on the same wavelength as me and doesn't really buy into the idea that five-star matches make any significant dent in business. Because they don't. It takes characters, stories, and rivalries. Jericho seems to push that idea to the forefront. He fully embraces the concept of building up a match, promoting himself & his opponent, and then capturing that big fight feel. We talk a lot about what's wrong with WWE television and how nothing matters anymore. Just think back over the last 20 years about the few moments that did "stick" or stand out, and a lot of them tend to involve Jericho. The guy is super creative and has been hands-on with his own angles since the 2008 reinvention. Not to derail the direction of this thread or anything, but I do think his involvement is just one piece of the puzzle that's going to help them feel different. Cody and the Bucks are similar, too. They're very creative guys, and they all seem to be pushing for the idea of their roster being individuals - with the freedom to catch fire, to break out, or to become bigger stars in their own right. Lifting that limitation alone is something that could instantly separate AEW from the WWE. Changing the design of the sets and shit is something, sure. But I feel like it's an aesthetic detail that is getting a bit too much attention really.

Just so we're clear, comic books > wrestling all day every day. Come at me, bro. While there has historically been a high crossover between the two fandoms, I don't think that really applies to the MCU and its success since 2008. Those movies are so well-crafted and targeted at the mainstream. You're really reaching if you're suggesting that it's only "geeks" going to see those movies. I work in refineries and the petrochemical industry. Everyone from engineers to construction hands have been talking about Endgame for two months now. You telling me those people are buzzing about the Young Bucks or flipping through comics on their time off? No fucking way. It's not a direct correlation. It's a movie with a lot of steam and popularity behind it. Sometimes that's it. There's no deep-seeded connection in EVERYTHING, as fun as it may be to imply otherwise. But yeah. I'm stoked for AEW.

Tremendous post. Accurate af, too.

The in-ring style becomes the issue when everything looks, feels, and functions the same though. When all their big matches accomplish just as little as their everyday TV matches, then that's an issue. When their main event is completely indistinguishable from their opening match, then that's an issue. When the only thing that separates their blood feuds from everything else is horrible dinner theater dialogue tacked on at the end of another indie-riffic superkick-fest, then that's an issue. Roman Reigns seems like an odd choice, because I mostly love the dude's work. He's one of the few that's excluded from my complaint about not showing enough fire. But he doesn't dive enough or grapple fuck, so I guess he's seen as a limited worker? Hell if I know. In any case, Roman is a prime example of being an excellent in-ring babyface but a terrible character babyface. And the booking has failed him immensely. Time after time after time... And I think you're misunderstanding me. I'm not saying WWE is the place to go for great matches. But it does seem to be their MO lately. Everything is about the matches for the sake of more matches. Every interview is centered around stealing the show and performing and yup. You guessed it. Having great matches. That's what I'm referring to. They're so lost in the woods when it comes to presenting things.

Great post. All very good, valid points. I can't speak for anyone else, but I'm not yearning for the lumbering 80s ring style to come back anymore than I'm yearning for the sexual deviants of the Attitude Era to come back. But I would like to see things matter again, as they did in those eras. I would like to see characters again. I would like to hear guys speak with conviction in their promos again. The problem now is all their focus & energy goes into the shit that really doesn't matter much. It's all motion, zero emotion. All the focus is on having "great matches", with next to no emphasis on character development or story progression of any kind. It's working harder when you could be working smarter. They're having matches without context. Matches without subtext. Matches without meaning. Matches WITHOUT. Period. It's all very pointless. It's busy work, designed to kill time and little else. There are exceptions, but a lot of these workers just aren't very good - not at the things that matter. Sure. They're incredible athletes. But their understanding and grasp of the how's & why's simply aren't there. It's like they all admired and idolized the Shawn Michael's and Eddie Guerrero's growing up, but they never bothered to look beyond the surface of WHY those guys were so great in the first place. It's not just about a soaring crossbody or a spectacular moonsault. It's about the mounted punches you pepper in during a grudge match AS SOON as you pull off that move. It's about fire, urgency, and intensity to separate the moments that matter from the exhibitions you have every usual week on television. There's none of that variety or separation in today's landscape. Watch one Seth Rollins match and you've seen every Seth Rollins match. His title matches look no different than his grudge matches or his opening matches or his matches that are just thrown together to eat up time on television. They're all worked the exact same way. I don't care that the in-ring work was worse. Tell me I've got to watch three Saturday Night's Main Events or one episode of today's Raw, and I'm choosing the lumbering stuff from the 80s every single time & twice on Sunday. Ditto for the Attitude Era. As awful and off-putting as the late 90s looks today, I'd still rather watch a show where something actually happens over whateverthefuck it is they're doing today. And if we're talking 97/98 Raw then yeah. No comparison.

I've seen you say it before a few years back, but I love your take on 90s WCW being the unauthorized fanfic of 80s WWF. That's accurate as hell. It's basically, "Here's all your favorite cartoon characters and action figures. But now they're a little older, bitter, resentful, and darker." And I get your point about how wrestling is limited in terms of storytelling. Again though, I'm not suggesting they should be The Wire or The Shield here. But they could certainly aim to be better - MUCH BETTER - storytellers in the grand scheme of things. Nah, we don't need to see children or death involved. (Although they don't seem to mind reaching for that stuff.) But we could use definitive beginnings & endings. And maybe the antagonists can't die a horrible death befitting their numerous evil acts. But they could certainly canonize a match or a moment when the antagonists meets their big moment of comeuppance. We get very little of this anymore. Strive to be better storytellers. That's all I'm saying. And I don't think it's some unattainable goal. You're absolutely right about pro wrestling working best when it's very basic and simple. And both boom periods worked because the characters were so broad and easily defined. They had large personalities, distinct traits, and identifiable features. You barely see ANY of that in today's WWE. Everyone is a lean, keto-dieting CrossFit geek with gear that looks like it was leftover from a cheap YouTube-exclusive Marvel fan film. Nobody is really recognizable for any certain thing. I guess they think dying their hair different colors or striking signature poses is enough, but it's no substitute for the classic characters that really resonate and stand out. They used to put so much effort into that sort of stuff. The characters used to come with logos and fully customized merchandising ideas. Now they sign a one of a kind athlete like Ricochet and debut him ice cold, as some part of a random three-week tag team with a guy he has no actual connection to or any logical reason to be with. They couldn't possibly seem any more different. But hey. They need more time-killing matches. And maybe they'll get another "great match" or two along the way. Nevermind that there's ZERO forethought put into his character direction, motivation, backstory, packaging, presentation, or anything else. People bitch about the silly WWE name generator and the audacity they had to assign new names to indie darlings... But fuck, man. At least they seemed to imply they were invested in a guy. I don't know if it's a positive sign that a guy can get signed and just thrown on TV to be a warm body and possibly have more time-killing matches. Give me an investment with these characters. Polish them up a bit. Show me some vignettes. Do something other than trot them out there for more of these boring af "great matches" already.

I don't mean to suggest that pro wrestling can function or operate like a TV show with 13-episode seasons or anything. Of course it doesn't work that way. But it could aspire to be something similar. Milestones. Moments. Episodic storytelling, with enticing hooks and twists. Pro wrestling CAN do these things. And yeah. As you mentioned, satisfying resolutions to mark the end of chapters. Good call, man. Impact (and NXT at times) have certainly kept me invested with some of their storytelling these past two years. But it's mainly WWE we are addressing here. Think I just got caught up in hitting my main talking points. I would say there are a lot of other promotions that are influenced by them and follow their lead though, and that's equally worrisome. The reliance on "great matches" as the end-all, be-all is not a winning business model. Hell, PWG is a dream match promotion at its core - and even there, Super Dragon tells much more engaging, enthralling stories than ANYTHING that's been presented by WWE since at least 2014... Maybe much longer if you really look at it.

I need to listen to this, but yeah. Their business model is basically a dinosaur. Young viewers today have grown up on prestige/peak TV. This is a post-Sopranos quality TV landscape. Whether wrestling wants to acknowledge that the bar has been raised or not is irrelevant. Ignoring that or pretending it isn't a factor is just burying your head in the sand at this point. Young viewers are tuned into shows with actual plot development, character growth, world building, etc. Pro wrestling doesn't even begin to approach any of these things anymore. They've totally abandoned all forms of storytelling in favor of this lazier, easier path of putting on "great matches" instead. Young viewers aren't going to be enticed by wrestling matches alone. It doesn't matter how many dives or exciting moves you cram into them. The absolute BEST they can hope for is that a spectacular move goes viral or gets made into a GIF. That's literally the ceiling with their current business model. Young viewers may watch a fifteen second clip of a great wrestling match they stumble across online. But they aren't sitting through 3-6 hours of disposable, meaningless television to say they saw "great matches." Nothing is getting fixed until they address these issues. Stories. Stakes. Suspense. Drama. Characters. Conflicts. Real resolution. These are all things young viewers are requiring from today's television. Something like CW shows used to be a punchline, but even the worst of those runs circles around today's wrestling. In every one of these categories.

Didn't the Usos just sign a big new contract? And I only watch the Raw highlights, but that "stop, drop, and roll" on the stage looked like the best thing on the show. Revival was selling it like somebody set off a car bomb on their crotches, and that's literally like the greatest thing to happen on Raw in years. The bar has been lowered, folks. And this Usos/Revival thing has somehow found a way to limbo a little bit lower... In glorious fashion.

This guy gets it. It's such a bizarre situation right now. There's almost no evidence that they THEMSELVES are convinced Seth can cut it as a top guy - zero promotional effort behind the guy really, no clear direction in marketing him, no focus on his merchandising, and nothing in general that they usually stockpile into their true top guys. Yet there he is. Banana peeling his way into another awful main event run by way of being in the right place at the right time. What in the actual fuck did we do to deserve this fresh serving of nightmare? Madness. What is this logical, reasonable business strategy you speak of? It sounds like far too much work.

Don't sleep on the Eddie cage match from SmackDown or the two Hardcore Holly matches either. And there's a really fun, overbooked Last Man Standing match with Kurt Angle from TV as well. I dig the title reign overall. Like I said, I hated it in real time and couldn't wrap my head around the idea that this guy was plucked from the lower card and forced into a main event spot overnight. But the JBL push is a thing now, and it's mostly owed to how well this actually panned out in the end. Like it or not, the dude was successfully elevated. Compare that to a Jinder Mahal or something, where it's a clear case of things not clicking. JBL could talk. He took some big, nasty bumps. He stooged. He cowered. He showed ass. It was basically like seeing the Honky Tonk Man template lifted & applied into a main event spot. And I gotta tell ya - as far as vulnerable heel champs go, Bradshaw is far from the worst.

Yeah. There was a time when it felt appealing and refreshing. 2019 is not that time. Statistics in real sports are fascinating to talk about. Statistics in a completely worked scenario cannot be a go-to. They can work sparingly and are best utilized for specific performers. Kurt Angles. Brocks. Even just a tremendous talker that can antagonize & set the stage to be usurped by a conquering challenger in the making. But the New Day? Charlotte? Sasha? Finn Balor? Everyone on God's green earth gets a storyline centered around numbers and days and dates and times and calendars and statistics. And it's all so samey. So none of it means a thing. Oh well hell, son. In that case, back up the Brinks truck. Let's swim in that sweet green cheddar, y'all. What a money concept! Creative services comes through again!

Almost forgot - there was one thing I hadn't fully wrapped my head around when I was listening to the show, and I'm still undecided as to what it actually meant. When discussing the Judgment Day 2004 title match, Conrad asks Bruce for Vince's reaction to the massive blood loss by Eddie. Bruce says Vince hated the gusher blade job and said it "put the sympathy in the wrong place." "That's not the sort of sympathy we want." Bruce doesn't really elaborate on the point, but it got me wondering what Vince might have meant by that. How would you guys interpret it? I only really raise it as a point because I'm always fascinated by what gets over with Vince - and particularly what he views as a great wrestling match versus one that doesn't achieve what it set out to do. So yeah. Thoughts on that statement? And specifically, thoughts on WHERE Vince saw the sympathy being directed, if not fully in support of a bleeding-half-to-death Eddie in peril?

Well, I know it won't be for everybody's tastes - but I freaking loved the JBL episode this week. It felt like a real rare return to form. Bruce was in full storyteller mode, and that's Prichard at his best for me. There are some slumps in the show, to be fair. And they all revolve around Conrad getting into his usual flow of reading results, rattling off a bunch of stuff all at once. But anytime he pauses & pitches to Bruce for a tale, it's super fun stuff. And yeah. Bruce is a bit overprotective & defensive of Bradshaw, but come on. You HAD to know there'd be some of that going in, so I ain't mad at it. The story about why Bruce felt like "Bradshaw" should be Justin Hawk's WWF name was weird. It just goes to show that inspiration comes from all sorts of silly outside shit. The Taka/Yakuza story was tremendous, too. I fucking love the idea of Taka playing along to kayfabe the locker room. It ranks right up there with Tajiri pretending he doesn't speak English. I cracked up at the story about Chyna at the airport also. "What a heel!" And Bruce is absolutely right on this one. I don't care who you are - when the average everyman sees somebody pull out hand sanitizer IMMEDIATELY after shaking their hand, they're walking away with that impression in mind. What a dick. Legitimately laughed my ass off at hearing about Chavo Classic suggesting that JBL "get color" on his mom. "Hey, Mom. You can take the clothesline, right? Maybe just the boot? How about the boot, Ma?" On Mother's Day! Simply glorious. I mentioned how I appreciate and even admire the JBL title reign experiment so much more in hindsight, and that's true. But even just hearing about it again here reminded me just how committed everyone was to making it work. Eddie was motivated to make it work. Bradshaw was all in. Bruce was determined. Vince felt like it was make or break time. Compare & contrast JBL's reign of terror to Hunter's from the same time frame, and there's no question in terms of quality. On one side, you've got Bradshaw heeling it up - stirring up real heat, striking raw nerves and picking at real issues with fans. The guy was determined to connect and elicit a response. On the other side you've got Hunter, who is like this inbred, mutated, deformed amalgamation of five different main event acts or something. He isn't fully committed to being any ONE thing, because he so badly & desperately wants to be EVERY thing all at once. He's trying to be hard-nosed Harley cosplaying as cocky, cool Naitch underneath a coat of witty, comedic Rock wrapped in a layer of asskicker Austin. It's utterly fucking ridiculous. So yeah. I certainly didn't feel the same way when it was happening in real time. In fact, I remember really hating the JBL push of doom as it unfolded. But fuck me running. I dig it in retrospect. He was a MUCH better heel than Hunter in that role. I know people will criticize Bruce for his stance on the Blue Meanie stuff (and possibly the Public Enemy deal), but I'm not going to go into it. I'll just say it wasn't a good look, but it's exactly how I expected Prichard to respond. I *did* enjoy Conrad calling him out on the idea that these guys have an unspoken trust to take care of one another though. So at least there was that. And Bruce did admit that it was really tasteless when JBL pulled the goosestepping stunt in Germany. I don't expect that too many of you will enjoy the show as much as I did, mostly due to Bruce's defensiveness over some of those bullying situations (and the way he attempted to dodge the Joey Styles deal). But I did my best to overlook them, because the stories all around them are rich and highly entertaining. Bruce hasn't been this good or this dialed in for a long while. So I'll take the good with the bad. As far as JBL goes, I really enjoyed listening to him on Sean Mooney's podcast awhile back. And he does come across as a smart, positive, well-adjusted guy. But hey. I've lived my entire life in SETX/SWLA, so the whole football fraternity stereotype is a staple around here. The bullying thing looks pretty overblown to me, for the most part. But I think I may have thicker skin when it comes to that sort of stuff.

Ahh, alright. I had no idea. I threw in the towel after that awful NWA Anniversary show last year, where Tony Schiavone showed up looking like an unmade bed & Corny was doing his best to hold shit together through a hailstorm of production flubs.

There's no real investment or care put into creating or crafting these characters or personalities anymore. That was a staple in their marketing strategies throughout both boom periods. The company knew you needed to distinguish each character and make them a viable, marketable individual. In the 80s, everyone seemed like they mattered at every level of the card - from the opening acts to the tag teams on over to the middle of the pack and on up to the main attractions. Ditto for the Attitude Era. Everyone had their role & served a purpose. And everyone was over. Today, their top World Champion is a lifeless nobody. Zero personality. Absolutely no defining qualities or traits. What is a Seth Rollins? What does he stand for? What does he oppose? What's he about? How do you sell this void to anybody as a star? There is no there there. What are you going to market? Shitty skunk hair dye? Bulletproof vests? What is this empty shell supposed to be? Dude's been given a million nicknames and still can't manage to make a single one of them mean a thing. What is he about again? The answer is always the same - nothing. The best they can come up with for ANY (and literally EVERY) babyface is that they're living their childhood dream. Seth would kill to be as recognizable as the Birdman. He's their top World Champion and doesn't even sniff the same air of overness as somebody like Crash Holly. Hell, Scott Taylor knew enough to get over silly shit like the Worm and his lid. Because it's about having noticeable identifiers. It's about having presence. Most of today's guys think it's about impressing their peers & diving all over the place in hopes of earning some faux sense of respect or admiration. No, Colby. It's about figuring out your own thing and establishing your own identity with the fans - that way you're not just this fucking mannequin stand-in where they happen to store Bossman's old black gear. The more likely reason they run an endless string of title matches on their cards is because that's the only thing they know how to book anymore. It's the easiest, laziest path. Numbers of title reigns, lengths of title reigns. That's all they can muster anymore. I was recently reminded of the absurdity of their horseshit when I clicked on the Daniel Bryan WM30 match with Triple H via their YouTube channel. Somewhere along the way, Michael Cole and JBL are talking about the winner going on to face Randy Orton and Batista later that night. And they constantly refer to Orton as "the first ever WWE World Heavyweight Champion." Gross. And utterly fucking ridiculous. I mean, yeah. This was at the time when Randy had just "unified" the two belts again. But to any casual viewer or normal Joe Schmo watching? That statement sounds beyond stupid. They're thinking, "Then what the fuck was Stone Cold? Or Rock? Or Hogan, or Bret? Or Bruno?" Nah, man. Only Randy Orton in 2014, apparently. Those other guys are lesser thans.

Agreed. That street fight was the bee's tits - right down to the ladies' attire. Tessa was sporting the Horsemen shirt, and Taya was rocking her Perros tee. It's the little things like that which are very cool & help to buy some good will with me. Also helped that the atmosphere & the crowd were with them the whole time that night. Here's a random thing that crossed my mind: where the hell is James Storm? Did he completely drop out of the scene after his last run with TNA? Because I'd love to see a full-blown Storm/Callihan program if I'm being honest. I know Storm has had his critics for being inconsistent or lazy at times, but I always dug the dude's work. He's a fiery interview when he wants to be. He's a great bleeder. And he's somewhat underrated when it comes to working feuds & getting angles over. Give them a few months to build it up, and you better believe I would absolutely be there to watch a Sami/Storm brawl.

Absolutely agreed on everything. Nice summarization here, and my early impressions pretty much line up with yours. Only thing I'd offer up or expand upon is that I greatly enjoyed the personal sidebars as well. I got a real kick out of JR's story about showing his dad one of his first big earnings statements. You could tell it meant a great deal to him. I don't want to derail things into a negative tailspin with this thread so early on, but I have to know - did anyone else get the scuzzy feeling when Conrad kept on & on with the Jan stuff? I mean, I get why it's a significant part of the story. It puts Jim in a very specific headspace at the time and everything. But if Conrad brought it up once, he must've mentioned it 20 times. And I fully admit that the tragedy around her passing perhaps colors the situation a little darker for me, but yeah. It just felt like one of those baiting deals where I wish he would've stopped mentioning her name & moved on much quicker than he actually did.

Great review. Absolutely agreed on Callihan, so you're not alone at all in that thinking. The guy's been so strong in terms of angles and getting over his rivalries. Every feud feels real, raw, and visceral. The shit with Eddie got people talking. The stuff with Penta was simply awesome. And now this deal with Rich has shown the Edwards incident wasn't a freak accident or a happy fluke. Sami can totally help MAKE someone by way of these feuds. I like your take on the Tessa/Gail scenario. It's what I was attempting to say, but you worded it way better & summarized things perfectly. There's a reason I didn't roll my eyes at this or come away feeling like it undid the program I had just finished watching come to a close. I also believe you nailed the problem I had with the Elgin appearance. I mean, the Josh commentary about Twitter and shit certainly didn't help. But you're right. The guy strolled out there with all the enthusiasm of a lamp & looked like he had just rolled out of bed and thrown on some gym shorts. Impact gets A LOT of the little things right these days, but this presentation could've used a tune-up or some finer attention to detail.

It truly is a real dilemma. The perceived damage from the old regime is hanging around like a black cloud, even though the product is arguably better than most other wrestling on TV right now.