PhilTLL

If it leads to more old-fashioned heat and fewer people tuckering out like kids at the end of a theme park weekend they couldn't pace themselves through, all the better.

There's not a whole lot to add to this thread, except that when you combine the video package buildup with Vince and Todd Pettengill being SHOCKED at the heel turn, the sizzling intros with the "from CALGARY!" fake out, the match/its commentary, the finish, and the interview afterwards, it's maybe the best pay-per-view segment of all time. The one detail I have to add is: after the second lock up that Owen celebrates getting the escape from, in spite of how collected and cool Bret is, Bret hears somebody yell "Come on Owen!" and he GLARES at the guy... for just a second. Because goddamn it, how dare that guy? After all Bret's done? It's a perfect little moment.

At the quarterback position, yes. Mahomes won the league MVP last year in his 2nd season and now a Super Bowl (and MVP of that) in his 3rd, an unprecedented combination.

If they had done it in the other "traditional" SS cards... 1988: Hogan, Savage, and Warrior vs Perfect, Bravo, and the Powers of Pain 1989: Hogan, Warrior, Rhodes, and Beefcake vs Savage, Perfect, Bravo, and Earthquake 1991: LOD, Duggan, Slaughter, Santana, and Von Erich vs Flair, the Nasty Boys, and Blake Beverly The first two would have been pretty fun, all heat-killing concerns aside, and they could have put Flair over again in the third (the night was already such anti-face booking anyway), so of course the one year they booked it was safe and boring as hell. 1993, speaking of safe and boring, would have been a huge mass of faces versus either no one, or maybe Owen Hart.

It's hard for anything to succeed in the "main" event spot of today's 4+ hour shows, and granted I haven't seen a whole ton of her, but Shayna Baszler is just boring as hell to me.

I am re-watching this match for the 25th time or so on WWE Network, and there is just something so fucking real about it--like, if he had just bashed Mad Dog's head into the hardwood floor three or four more times in the first few minutes, Hacksaw might have KEEEEELED him! If Mad Dog had just been able to JAB HIS EYES OUT he might have woooon! etc.--it is still one of my favorite matches of all goddamn time. I have watched this stone cold sober and howling drunk and somewhere in between, and the only way I could imagine calling this "decent not great" is if you just don't like the style of violent Southern pro wrestling.

Oh, absolutely--in 2006, there was an insurgent attack using mortars on the base where staff was setting up for the next day's Tribute show. I believe some talent was on-base as well.

I assume this is a sarcastic reference to the mortar attack and the Ashley Massaro incident.

Also, in terms of imperial propaganda, these shows were always starting from 15th place or so, behind all the Tribute to the Troops shows (especially the ones from Iraq).

If we voted again tomorrow I'd put it #1.

We had the Duggan/Sawyer match, but not the upscaled and retouched version *without* postdated JR commentary, so I consider that a win.

He had a bunch of awful plastic surgery between those years. I guess that's one of those facts that got so well-known, people stopped repeating it.

All of the matches in the 1988 part of this feud are great, and this is the wildest one with the craziest spots, befitting its place on the Mania-facing Clash 1. I like the Worldwide match from May more, but this is excellent and the heat is off the meter. You know you're watching all of Clash 1 anyway--it's one of the best shows of all time--but get extra hyped for this, because it's quite possibly MOTN.

If you're talking about Starrcade, the singles round-robin wrestlers were Flair, Sting, Luger, and Muta, and Funk didn't work. In any case, the show was pretty average, and several of the nights you described would be better candidates for "legendary". Or the Last Battle. Fun fact about the Omni: the exterior weathering steel that created its distinctive rust color did not work as intended, and it never stopped rusting, which eventually resulted in holes large enough for people to climb through. They blocked those off with extremely classy chain link fences. It was a major reason they tore it down.

MX vs Fantastics - Clash 1, Worldwide 5/88, GAB 88 MX vs Southern Boys, GAB 90

The hidden gem factor here is that this version won't have Matt Striker doing commentary.

I'm really glad they got rid of the watchlist, a basic feature of every streaming service I've ever had except maybe MLB.TV.

Objectivity and neutrality are the domain of journalists, not pro wrestling fans. But I agree that the combination of "hot take" culture that only embraces the loudest, simplest, most brazen opinions and "fuck the haters" and superfan cultures that reject all criticism has led to much louder, less interesting conversation.

It took me a second to realize you were referring to the tape library purchase.

I touched the doors of the Mid-South Coliseum last night! I haven't been to Memphis in over 20 years, though I did get to see USWA there in June 1994 (I was only 10). I knew it had been closed since 2006, but I had no idea it was still standing until I was ambling around town and drove by the fairgrounds to look at the Liberty Bowl (actually kinda neat at night). They keep some lights on inside and there's still some wayfinding, box office, and billboard signs up, and they keep doors open in the south entrance that allow for a slight glimpse at the seating bowl, which actually took my breath away. The grounds are clean, and the south entrance is actually quite pristine inside, but the box office/north entrance area has a fair amount of trash and equipment piled in it. I tried to picture a full parking lot on a Monday night until someone drove up who might have been unmarked security, but I didn't want to find out. They were probably very confused.

The incident today at the Arnold Classic in South Africa had all the strangeness of a pro wrestling moment, plus a dropkick with beautiful, 80s/90s type form. https://deadspin.com/man-dropkicks-arnold-schwarzenegger-screams-help-me-1834867847

It appears to be complete, with intros and everything. Program rundown: 0:00 Promos: Slaughter, Freebirds 0:05 Flair vs. Slaughter 0:45 Road Warriors vs. Freebirds I'm about to watch it now. If I have any revelatory thoughts about it, I'll scribble them down.

Oh no, it totally worked, it's just funny that you wrote it in promo voice and then capped it with the former USA Network slogan.

This is a really weird end to your promo.

If they're going to make Mania weekend something like a music festival, maybe the fans should respond the same way, by getting totally faced on stimulants to power through the nights.