El-P

I would agree Tajiri and Owen (and others now too) were making an effort to not have it as obvious as some others do. I mean, I've seen some slap their own tighs when they get hit, now that is pushing it way to fucking far ! I would still say the stomp looked more ridiculous because there was no hiding it and really, when you throw a punch but stomp both feet at the same times, it looks dumb as hell. The best punchers were always those who did not need to do that yet still made the punch look good. Bobby Eaton says hello. Or Terry Funk, but there was no magic trick with him apparently... As far as Orton, he can't be funny, ever, because he's the ultimate black hole of boredom by essence. The same joke that would be funny by anyone else ever has to be considered unfunny by virtue of being produced by Randy Orton. That's the way of the universe.

The leg slapping stuff looks no less ridiculous than the old stomping your feet whenever you used to punch or kick (Lawler, Hart, Austin, Rude, Savage among others). And at least the sound is more "realistic" than a stomp on the mat. Some clearly overdo it, but making fun of leg-slapping as if it's some awful shit those-youngsters-who-don't-know-how-to-work-proper do is completely ridiculous. The first two people I remember seeing do it were Owen Hart (enzuigiri) and Tajiri ("stiff" kicks)... Also, that makes Orton looks like a complete tool to shit on his fellow co-workers. But that's nothing new.

Dream winning would get #DickPicsDontMatter trending.

Maybe the pool can get a contract now and cry on TV about making the most out of the opportunity while its owner did not.

Fun show. Highlights to me were Sammy being downright hilarious (this guy is such a star already), the Britt Baker vignette and Role's Royce (totally out of Austin's playbook when he was injured in 97 yet still stealing shows with his stuff), Jericho vs Cabana (really fun TV match) and the main event, although the ending was totally rushed. The blade-job was kinda hilarious in that it was so totally needless and so Dusty in spirit. The table spot puzzled me, they did not sell it one second after they got back into the ring, so yeah I would think they had a timing issue here. Taz managing Cage >>>>> Jake managing Archer (who doesn't need a manager, and certainly not Jake who makes him look not that big) If I may, looking closely it is totally Sabian's fault, as he's juts not getting up quickly enough after his own dropkick and Omega can't bump in the ropes with too much force as he's waiting for the poison rana (for which he bumped wonderfully), so he's just looking awkward as Sabian is getting up and wasting time before hitting his spot. Just not enough pacing and intensity on his part. I dunno what's missing with Sabian, he's like those ok NJ juniors who are doing some dynamic stuff but aren't special either in character nor execution, so he's kinda there... I like the team with Havoc, but he's the third wheel to me after Penelope. Speaking of people I don't get, I don't get Big Swole's appeal at all. She isn't very good still and I find her to be rather annoying. Maybe she should be a heel, as a babyface I just want someone to slap the shit out of her so she stops doing stupid pauses like a dumb jock (is there a feminine equivalent of the term ?). Pair her with Austin Gunn already. Nyla on the other hand is quickly getting more and more solid. Loving the new look with the multicolored braids, that gives her an Awesome Kong kinda feel. This is so spot on ! I haven't watch a FTR match in four years, so I have no earthly idea who is called what.

How much more stereotypical can you get. Gotta love Jessy with an Y. I've seen that guy in the early 90's too. Crappy, from memory. Where the hell do you even find all of this stuff BTW ?

You win. (which also means I'm older than dirt and repeating myself way too much, probably !)

Hey, Trip helped more people than anyone else ever in his career too. By beating them. So he knows what's up...

Otis answer is like the worst possible ever. Awful PPV that marks the end of me being a WWF fan after 10 years, and godawful match too for obvious reasons. The rest is lips service to the usual ones and a PR spot. What would you expect ? At least Drew mentioned one of the right ones.

Oh yeah, that one too.

Well, sorry but it sounds like complete bullshit. That's ignoring the fact that IMPACT's booking has been extremely consistent and logical since the rebuild, why would they want to get advice from someone who has hurt them so much in the past on so many levels when they have spent all this time distancing themselves from this era? Case in point, Russo booking that kind of angle would have Wentz go over. Which would make no sense expect "swerve bro". In the end, the guy who went through the whole tournament won. And the Trey angle and Wentz switch clearly is only the beginning of some sort of storyline with the Rascalz, maybe Trey splitting up eventually (as he was mostly working solo for a while already), as hinted by Madison Rayne on commentary. I don't worry to much about this one not going anywhere that makes sense in the end. Madison Square Garden Rayne is a good one. Got me. Swinger is gold. So are the vignettes with Rosemary & John E Bravo, culminating with the best yet.

Wow. Like others, I had not heard less much thought of that name in forever. He was probably the first pro-wrestling writer I was reading back when I got Internet. I absolutely remember reading his Raw/Nitro reviews in like late 97/98 I'd say. And yeah, I'd remember the signs on both shows, which was quite the early signs of internet "celebrity". No idea how his stuff has aged, probably not really well, but back then I was definitely a fan. This is quite a sad story.

Come on, you know she isn't working in the company.... that has nothing to do with WWE.... eww... BlackLivesMatter !!!!! .... ewww... Putting smiles on faces ! .... eww.. Fuck. Yeah, of course it should stir up a whole lot more shit, because the other dude is just an ignorant fool, but this is the true face of the family who is working on re-electing a white supremacist maniac. But it won't of course.

Who hasn't ? Everyone loves a dick pic.

Yes, you can get a temporary green card for two years I believe and then ask for its renewal.

Maybe they would. Maybe they would not. Maybe they would but not agree to cut that promo, at least not the bit about "ceasing the opportunity". We don't know. The fact is, he did and did it in a way that emphasize how tasteless and cynical this whole thing is. He's agreed to go all the way. Like I said in my first post : "good for him. Or not." But hey, all of this will be forgotten when they strap Velveteen Dreams with the title...

I don't know and I don't give a fuck. Because what about all the others who got cut ? Apparently it's because they didn't "cease the opportunity". For that comment alone, this guy is on my shitlist. And if I was one of his former co-worker fired at the same time, I would be pissed as fuck all for agreeing to say that stuff and he would have a phone call and ask for an explanation. Well, he obviously has none. What you forget to mention is that this all was used to send a message. Because really, you think WWE gives a flying fuck about Drake Maverick or the cruiserweight tournament ? This is the company who gave Chad Gable the Shorty Gable gimmick. They had him piss his pants before. He's just been a tool to play with people's emotions and manipulate the audience and send a memo to the employees independent contractors : "Be thankfull you have a job. Cry for the opportunity. Be good boys and girls and maybe you'll get your job back if you're of some use to us. Say the corporate things." That's the crux of the whole thing, not the "emotional story of a guy who got his job back" (but... why did he need to have his job back ? Oh, because he was fucking fired, or maybe not, who knows, in which case it's even worse). And that's what should be emphasized here. I don't know Drake Maverick but from what I've seen in these few weeks alone, the cringeworthy promo when he was "allowed" in the tournament and this one, I would not want to know him IRL either, thank you very much. I have zero sympathy for this guy, none whatsoever.

So are they running a subtle joke on WWE with Billy Gunn being called only Billy now. And when he was about to do what I think is a piledriver, which used to be one of his spot, Austin stopped him, because, you know... That Brasilian Girl apparently has been signed ? If so, good, she's got talent and presence. Hope she feuds with Shanna and they cut promos on each other in portuguese that only @KawadaSmile will understand. The Peter Avalon / Brandon Cutler rivalry for won will win one first is the best angle no one talks about. Just great stuff. They have to have this match and end with a draw or a double count out. Also enjoying what they are doing with QT and Allie, that's an interesting development. Allie is a better character than pure worker (although she's pretty solid), so that plays into her strenght. Those squashed by Ortiz & Santana and Butcher & Blade were quite fun. Their tag team division is getting quite loaded, and hopefully when TH2 gets out of Mexico they'll finally get some push.

Oh for fuck's sake, not that "food on the table" bit. What about the other ones BTW, who didn't "cease the opportunity", as Mr. Mop so eloquently said ? They wouldn't have to get their job back if they weren't fucking fired in the first place by the benevolent bosses. The whole "I got fired but I'm gonna prove I'm worth working for those who fired me and get back in their good graces with tears of joy" thing is atrocious. How can anyone rationalize this shit ? No. Defending this *is* being stuck in the bubble. This whole thing is godawful and Drake Maverick should be fucking ashamed of agreeing to go along and cut THAT fucking promo while people, not meaning just people from WWE but people in the real world, lost their jobs. But like I said, his dream job had him pissing his pants on TV, so yeah that was worth crying like a little bitch when your boss "allows you" the "opportunity" to "win the heart" of the Brand, after releasing you during a fucking pandemic (while NO OTHER pro-wrestling company did it, not even NWA or IMPACT, those juggernauts). Fuck that managerial bullshit. Fuck Drake Maverick for playing along (to remain polite) and fuck this company seven ways to Sunday. There's no defending that shit.

I'll call him "Corporate Mop" from now on. Pass the bucket so I can watch that promo again and vomit. And he was most known in WWE before that point for the "pissing himself" angle. So, the "not exploitable" and "very intelligent" argument don't fly. No pride and no dignity however, yes indeed.

On a purely pro-wrestling side, this also is the perfect picture of why his company can't make any stars. Because they are all painted as corporate dolts, who just want to have Mania Moments tm, and are petrified at the idea of not working for the company (because no one makes a living out of WWE of course). And you wonder why WWE's audience has been shrinking without fail forever now ?

Oh and BTW, the whole bit about "people who don't cease opportunity" is the most disgusting part. This promo is actual propaganda for the most brutal über capitalism and tells that if you get fired, it's pretty much your fault because you did not "cease the opportunity". While in the middle of a pandemic where people lost their jobs and are in very precarious situation because of it. The message this whole deal and this promo sends is amazingly disgusting and disturbing : be glad if you boss allows you to work. I hope for his sake Drake Maverick sleeps well at night, because he just cut one of the most historically disgusting promo ever. I hope this guy gets a job for life with them for being the corporate mop that he is.

One thing is for sure, as long as workers will have that kind of mentality, the concept of a union is not even thinkable. They get fucked and ask for more and say thanks when their employers "make their dream" by allowing them to have a job. Clap clap clap.

Drake Maverick has about as much pride as a mop. Good for him, being the good little soldier allowing his disgusting company to have an "emotional" angle and cutting a promo about "keeping your dreams" and other managerial/positive thinking bullshit when people actually got cut during a pandemic. Just watched that promo he cut, and I legit feel ashamed for this guy. That's something I guess...

If I look back at TNA 2010 now that I'm done with it, I'd say overall it wasn't as bad as most of 2009. Well, it was sometimes as bad, but not as boring because of the Hogan/Bischoff factor. There wasn't any super fun stretch like the final run of 2009 though. And although 2009 was bad, it was a still a year where the company grew, for whatever reason (can we credit Foley although his stint had been mostly awful ?), and I believe by the end of 2010, the company was actually declining thanks to the genius idea of the Monday Night Wars redux. Really, Hogan coming in did nothing positive for the product in the end. Bischoff is always a good performer, so when he's not fed bullshit, he can be entertaining. Of course he overseas the bullshit he was fed, so all the blame goes to him anyway. If there was an MVP, it's still Kurt Angle. Great worker, had the MOTY for the promotion with Anderson in the cage, terrific promo and angle worker too, works perfect in every role you put him in. The guy has been amazing since he showed up and his work in TNA by far surpasses his WWE stuff to me. His "climbing the top ten" angle leading to a great three-way (which in itself is amazing considering I don't like that formula) with Anderson (again) and Jeff Hardy (who never looked better than against Angle... wonder why) was quite the compelling stuff. Speaking of Mr. Anderson, he was a good surprise in the end after a bad first impression. I was not familiar at all with his WWE stuff (or I forgot the very few I had seen back then if I ever). Not a great worker, but he sure works his ass off. Not that much of a Rock/Austin clone (not to the ridiculous level of Eli Drake), although he's definitely influenced by them, and why not. Terrific mic worker, easily the best in the company in term of charismatic promos and a bunch of solid matches and eventually more than that when put in with really strong ones. Doug Williams was also a highlight of the year, working strong TV and PPV matches for the forgotten X-div title and the brand new TV title (because when you fuck up your secondary title, what you need is add another one). On the tag team front, Motor CIty MachineGuns vs Young BucksMe was clearly one of the peak of the company for this year, with two great matches, including one you would call MOTYC if it happened today (not the ladder match, the straight one). Insane to think the Bucks were in TNA ten years ago and already so fucking good too (and terrific heel workers). This was clearly the style of the upcoming decade. The women's division was sad, because of course the booking did them zero favors. Not to mention Awesome Kong getting fired because of racist piece of shit Bubba the Love Sponge. Sarita and Taylor Wilde (the forgotten super strong worker of the era) really carried the load. Way too much emphasis on the Beautiful People catty stuff, which got really terrible when they turned babyface, which doesn't work at all to me. On the more positive side, great signing of Mickie James who had quite a terrific brawl with Tara (the first time I ever really enjoyed a Tara match) toward the end of the year. And the rise of Madison Rayne, whom I became a fan of really this year on IMPACT, but now I can see she was already quite the terrific heel character by the second half of 2010, once she got away from the BP. But really, the women division still is not out of the trappings of the awful Russo booking yet. Long gone are the glory days of Gail Kim vs Awesome Kong... Tons of wasted guys too of course. A.J Styles turned into a Nature Boy and soon relegated in the mid-card, to make space for the former WWE guys. Ditto Samoa Joe, who at least ditched the stupid face tattoo but was even more of an afterthought. Pope for a moment looked like a legit star but then got injured and never got the momentum again. They had Desmond Wolfe and had him in a stupid angle with Abyss.... The talent level was ridiculous, and yet... Yeah, Abyss. Clear lowlight all year long, including the eye gouging Abyss-a-mania angle, a Evad Sullivan Redux legit main event push. Stupid beauty and the beast angle with Chelsea, who not only was hot as fuck but displayed some potential to be a cool character (as opposed to, say, Miss Tessmacher, your typical Russo bullshit Attitude Era/WCW redux). Dumb as fuck "THEY" angle followed by a swerve and more nWo redux (only the second one this year mind you)... Yeah, Russo and Hogan in the same company... yikes... Fast-forward worker of the year : Eric Young. From the last days of his lame stable to his involvement with Da Band to his GODFUCKINGAWFUL tag team with totally useless Orlando Jordan doing the worst Goldust ever, poor Eric Young had easily his worst year yet. That's saying something. Best show of the year : the ECW reunion show and angle. Not even close. The only legit great moment of the year in TNA. Loved the two main event of Dreamer vs Raven and RVD vs Sabu. Fucked-up angle/match that I liked despite... whatever good taste I have left : Mick Foley vs Ric Flair. The promo segment itself was insane, both were totally out of control. The match was disgustingly entertaining. As a matter of fact, I have mostly enjoyed Flair as the old, out of his mind manager, he also had a good match with Jay Lethal, whoever he is. Oh, and of course, the infamous Benny Hill moment... WCW Highway to Hell level hilarity. The concussion angle at the end of the year was the closest thing approaching to smart and relevant this company has probably ever done in term of dealing with a real life issue. But sadly, Matt Morgan on top doesn't work. He's just too nice to be a pro-wrestler, that's the way he comes off to me. And Jeff Hardy doing third rate Raven-like promo doesn't work either. I don't feel his heel work at all. His heel theme song is great though... Anyway. It took me a long time to go through that one. Probably because now I have much more interest in current companies, including IMPACT. Hey, I was warned it was terrible and it mostly was, really. One day I'll probably watch those supposedly "last glory years" of 2011-2013. As of yet, only 2005, half of 2006 and then 2008 were really good. That's 2,5 out of 7,5... Yeah... TNA.