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Showing posts from July, 2013

Cucch's Book Review: "Chris and Nancy: The True Story of the Benoit Murder-Suicide and Pro Wrestling's Cocktail of Death."

Well, my last book review had someone allege that I had fallen off the wagon and was back on drugs. So WHY NOT this book?

Newman's Take: PRIDE 1

-Alright, so the original plan was to continue with the UFC reviews where I left off, which meant UFC on Fuel 7 from London in February was next. Buuut plans change and drqshadow’s been pestering me for a while to do these old PRIDE shows so here we are. Basically I’ve got a bit of a confession – sure, I’m as hardcore an MMA fan as you’ll find....but I’ve never actually seen the early – pre-2000 Grand Prix – PRIDE shows. Why? Not sure really – I blame the guys who got me into MMA in the first place as I’m sure I remember them saying to start with PRIDE 10 and run from there. I could be wrong. Anyway I never got around to getting hold of the older PRIDEs until I spotted that FightDVD were selling them very cheaply last month, so I ended up picking up the double-disc sets for PRIDE 1 to 8. And here we are. Bear in mind, I know approximately squat about Japanese culture and/or Japanese pro-wrestling, and so I’ll be trying my absolute best not to come off as a racist or a bigot. Ignorance

QOTD - July 31st, 2013

Greetings. Today our question comes from the man who shall inherit the Earth, Mr. Paul Meekin. Caliber my man! Here is a question of the day! Have you ever seen a trailer for a sequel, adaptation, or spin-off of a series, and got excited it for it despite not liking it's source material. Case and point I saw the Amazing Spider-man 2 trailer, and loved it, despite hating the first film with a passion.  I loved the first one. I thought it was a lot of fun and they really nailed the character of Spider-Man. I hated Batman Begins when I first saw it [I've lightened up on it over the years] but was very excited for The Dark Knight once I saw the trailer, which was mostly due in part to Ledger's Joker, of course. How say you? Send in your QOTD to caliberw@hotmail.com. Also, if you want to be super-awesome facebook buddies, you can send it to me via msg. Find your boy here - http://www.facebook.com/calibertholomew.winfield

Monday Nitro - March 9, 1998

Monday Nitro #130 Date: March 9, 1998 Location: Lawrence Joel Memorial Veterans Coliseum, Winston-Salem, North Carolina Commentators: Mike Tenay, Tony Schiavone, Bobby Heenan, Larry Zbyszko Reviewed by Tommy Hall It's the go home show for Uncensored and the card is almost entirely set. Tonight is going to be about finalizing everything for Sunday with the focus likely being on Savage vs. Hogan instead of Sting vs. Hall. Other than that there might be some time spent on Page vs. Benoit vs. Raven but it's going to pale in comparison to Age in the Cage. Let's get to it.

Looking for a plug

----------  I'm a daily visitor to the blog who has one of his own. I am starting to post pro wrestling matches and do plan on expanding that to MMA, kickboxing, etc. I also post links to my writing. http://philsworldview.blogspot.com/ ------------ Enjoy!

BoD Daily Update

  Former Memphis Wrestling Announcer Cory Maclin Dies in Car Accident He was 43 years old and leaves behind a wife and six children. http://pwinsider.com/article/79309/corey-maclin-passes-away.html?p=1 TNA Announces Champion vs. Champion Match for Tomorrow's Impact Heavyweight Champion Chris Sabin will face off against X Division Champion Manik. http://www.f4wonline.com/more/more-top-stories/100-tna/32437-impact-main-match-for-thursday WWE.com "Where are they Now" Article on Mideon It talks about how he is now a chef and is writing a screenplay featuring the Undertaker http://www.wwe.com/classics/wherearetheynow/where-are-they-now-mideon-26136284

DC Comics Action Figures

---------- Forwarded message ---------- Hey Scott, I know there's a ton of other comics fans on your blog. Every year, Mattel does a subscription service for DC figures - one figure a month, with the first three for 2014 scheduled to be 90s harpoon-hand Aquaman, Superboy Conner Kent, and Ice, with a Doomsday subscription-exclusive figure. Since the sub needs a certain number of subscribers to go through each year and is only available on the barely-advertised MattyCollector.com site, I was wondering if you could let everyone who reads your blog know about it. Subscription period ends August 19th. More information is available in this flyer: http://24.media.tumblr.com/9dc8667d4b9bbeead41944ded2156208/tumblr_mqiyy89IBl1rh91t7o1_1280.jpg Thanks! Joel

Cucch's Book Review: "Lita: A Less Traveled R.O.A.D."

I am sad to report, the origin and definition of OH TAG is not included in this book.

New E-Book - KB's Complete 2001 Monday Night Raw Reviews

It's that time again as I've put together a new book with reviews of every episode of Monday Night Raw from 2001 for just $5. The book covers everything from the road to Wrestlemania XVII through the Invasion through the Undisputed Title to close out the year. It runs over 270 pages and contains 52 episodes of Raw. The book is available worldwide and can be picked up in America here In the UK here And in Canada here . The British version isn't available yet but I'll update this when it's up. If you live somewhere else and want to pick it up, just search "KB's Complete 2001 Monday Night Raw Reviews" on your Amazon site and it should be there. It's an e-book format, but if you don't have a Kindle or any other kind of e-reader, there are free Apps which can let you read it on your computer, phone or whatever else you prefer. You can find those free apps here:   Apps Also please check out my author page with my other wrestling e-

What the World Was Watching: Monday Night Raw - November 3, 1997

by Logan Scisco - Jim Ross, and Jim Cornette are in the booth and they are live from Hershey, Pennsylvania. - McMahon interviews Steve Austin, who reiterates his hatred of Owen Hart and says that he attacked Ahmed Johnson last week because he wants to make sure Owen held onto the Intercontinental title at Survivor Series.  Ahmed comes out and says he respected Austin until last week and proceeds to challenge Austin to a match.  Austin gets a “hell yeah” from the crowd to agree to the match, but in storyline terms that is non-sensical since Austin’s reinstatement was not supposed to take effect until the Survivor Series. - Sunny comes out to do guest ring announcing duties for the next match.  She makes some ten year old’s night by giving him a kiss on the cheek.

EVERYTHING IS FINE

Scott,   Just received an e-mail from TNA that their Video OnDemand will stop service on August 2nd.  I'm thinking its shutting down because of their new YouTube subscription, but maybe its something more.  In the e-mail it says that refunds will be given by Friday to subscribers.  Let's see if that actually happens or we get delayed in payment just like the wrestlers.   Take care! This is all stuff that every perfectly healthy wrestling company does in the span of a few weeks to drastically slash costs.   Insert Airplane clip here.

Hogan v Sting

Hello Scott. Since nobody's sent in any videos lately I thought I'd  send this along:  http://youtu.be/lSA4oKXGMz8   It's more of a curiosity  than anything. This was during Hogan's "dark side" period when he was  wearing all black and the fan apathy to him is particularly noticeable  here. He's ripping up the dirt sheets, brother!  He was just kayfabbing the Dungeon all along, Mean Gene!

BoD Daily Update

WWE.com Ranks the Top Ten SummerSlam PPV's of All-Time http://www.wwe.com/shows/summerslam/2013/10-greatest-summerslams Several WWE Stars Going Shark Diving in South Africa Today Although not very informative, the photo is noticeable as Randy Orton is seen looking away from everyone else. https://pbs.twimg.com/media/BQaMal9CYAAEzHc.jpg:large Article on the Hypocrisy of the WWE "Be a Star" Campaign. This is from some guy named Adam Johnson that was posted on F4W online. http://www.f4wonline.com/more/more-top-stories/96-wwe/32428-adam-johnson-talks-the-natalya-qugly-ducklingq-gimmick-and-be-a-star

QOTD - July 30th, 2013

Greetings. Today we have a question from Farva, regarding organized athletics. Or as you may know it "sports" "Caliber, hope all is well.  Haven't had any sports QOTDs so figured I'd send one in.  What's the most ecstatic and most depressed you've ever been after a sporting event? Spending summers in New England, my most depressing was the Aaron Boone home run in game 7 vs the Yankees.  Just fucking heart breaking as a Red Sox fan.  Close second is the Eagles losing at home to the Bucs as favorites in NFC title game. Best moment was the Sox winning game 7 vs the Yankees the next year.  Not only had they come back from an 0-3 defecit but it was vs the Yankees.  Just awesome. OfficerFarva " I actually don't have an answer, because outside of pro-wrestling, I'm not into sports. Although, there was a period when I was really into arm-wrestling, and seeing Lincoln Hawk go over the top in Las Vegas was incredible! That was a hell of a tournam

Summer slam 88

---------- Forwarded message ---------- Scott, Why didn't Beefcake participate in the first Summerslam? Was he hurt and supposed to win title? What was plan with Ultimate Warrior if Beefcake would've participated and/or won the IC title? Thanks, Jim ---------------------------------------- Although Beefcake missing out on Summerslam 90 was a legit accident, the 88 thing was planned months in advance.  They should totes bring back the BIG RED X OF DOOM to cover up blood instead of stopping matches, though.  

ROH TV June 27th-28th Edition: Steel Cage Warefare for the Fate of Honor!!!

Tonight's main event has been marketed as the most important television match in ROH's history.  Should S.C.U.M. win Steve Corino will become match maker and run the company into the ground, but should team ROH prove victorious then S.C.U.M. will be forced to disband.  Before that however, we have the opening contest...

Herb Kunze

Scott, Whatever happened to Herb Kunze and his wrestling tidbits? I've been readings his archives and it seems that around 2002 they just stopped. Given that Herb has a real career as a math professor and was pretty sick of wrestling even during the glory days, I can't imagine he lasted as a serious fan much past the death of WCW.  Maybe someday he'll drop me an e-mail and update me, I dunno.  

Chris Benoit "technically" in HOF

Hey Scott! First I'd like to say love your blog and your reviews from past wrestling shows. I think the reviews are honest and something a TRUE wrestling fan would say instead of saying the political correct answer. Now on to my question; The Four Horseman were inducted into the 2012 WWE Hall of Fame and it was the stable that was  inducted with Flair, Windham, Blanchard, Dillon and Anderson were representing? But my thing is that Benoit is in because it was the stable that was inducted not the 4 wrestlers that were on stage so he is in the Hall of Fame in my mind. I mean when Metallica was inducted into the Rock n Roll Hall of Fame; it was the band that was inducted which means that Dave Mustaine is in the Hall of Fame as well by association. So WWE in my view shot themselves in the foot because even though his name is not in the Hall of Fame he's in because of the group and the same can be said for guys like Luger, Malenko, Pillman and the not so great members like McMichael,

AAW2 Trailer

This seems like it'll be pretty cool. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Jp3kiNp3yk&feature=youtube_gdata_player Sadly I'm only doing PS3 gaming now, but it seems like an updated version of the original Smackdown PS2 games.

Newman's Take: UFC 156: Aldo vs. Edgar

-This year’s Superbowl UFC show was typically stacked from top to bottom – not only with three awesome fights at the top of the card (Aldo vs. Edgar, Evans vs. Nogueira and Overeem vs. Bigfoot) but with the added intrigue of two of the world’s top three Flyweights clashing AND a number of StrikeForce imports making their UFC debuts. I was as hyped for this one as I was for any recent UFC show – mainly for the Return of the Reem though, gotta admit it!

Monday Night Open Mic

Howdy Blog O' Doomers I hope the weekend has treated you well. Not too much exciting to report. As I start to think about Summerslam I'm of the belief that both Cena-Bryan and Punk-Lesnar could be amazing show stoppers. Cena-Bryan definitely has ***** potential and I believe Punk will try to carry Lesnar to a better match than Cena did at the 2012 Extreme Rules. And that had me thinking when was the last card that had two matches that are generally believed to be in the five-star range. Wrestlemania 10 is the first that comes to mind. Fully Loaded 2000 had the Jericho-HHH Last Man Standing match that was off the charts but I don't think Rock-Benoit reached much past a **** affair. No Way Out 2001 had the HHH-Austin Three Stages of Hell match that was near perfect and the Rock-Angle match was really really good. Wrestlemania 17 maybe? Anyway just some food for thought. Enjoy tonight's show and come out swinging but, as always, keep it clean.

How will they book Wrestle-1's invasion of TNA?

> Scott, > > Since you know you love to take questions regarding a certain invasion...I figured I'd throw this question to you. Wrestling news sites are reporting that The Great Muta's new Wrestle-1 promotion is in talks to have a talent exchange with TNA. How would you book this? Would you have them invade TNA? Or do you just see them simply sending talent back and forth like New Japan did with Okada, Tanahashi, Naito, Yujiro a few years back and having that talent wrestle meaningless matches?  > > Here is Wrestle-1's roster so far for when they have their debut show 9/8.  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wrestle-1#Wrestlers > > I know Mutoh showed up at a TNA PPV in the locker room to confront then World Champion Christian, but hopefully this time he'll get in the ring. Imagine Sting vs. Muta in 2013! But seriously, Muta throwing on the old facepaint and challenging Kurt Angle or Samoa Joe has awesome written all over it. Kai would make

Total Divas Is A...Hit?

http://www.f4wonline.com/more/more-top-stories/118-daily-updates/32418-wwe-total-divas-rating-on-e-network-was 1.3 million people is more along the lines of an Impact rating, but I guess that's good for E?  E the network, not 'E the wrestling promotion.  And not the WWE Network, just the plain E network.  You know what I mean. Anyway, good for the Bellas?  I guess?

Scott Steiner in WWE?

Scott, What are the odds we'll see: A). Scott Steiner return to the WWE as a wrestler? and/or B). Scott Steiner in the WWE Hall Of Fame within the next 5 years? Hmm, that calls for some high-level math.  Let me consult someone. I think that should give you all the answers needed. 

This Week in PTB Nation!

Hey Scott...thanks as always! Catch up on what happened last week at Place to Be Nation! With new material every day you may have missed something along the way. Here's a recap of the last week at the only Place to Be in your Pop Culture World. Our Comics coverage had a banner week analyzing the events at  Comic Con ,  Having a Discussion on Wolverine ,  A Discussion on minorities in Comics ,   and the Latest  Weber Has Issues Looking at Deadpool . Andrew Riche Contributed a  Comic Con Movie Roundup  and an article on  famous trios in wrestling history . Our  Desert Island Tournament  for Pop Culture Supremacy Rages on. Thomas Pondick made his column debut looking at the  UFC on Fox Card . Bob Colling Looked at  Mankind vs. The Undertaker . Marc Clair looked at the  TNA licensing fiasco in Missouri . Jen Engle celebrated the  Royal Baby's arrival . Andrew Duvall wrote a tribute to  Dennis Farina  and discussed  Deliverance . We had new po

BoD Daily Update

RAW Preview for Tonight Matches Include: Ryback vs. John Cena in a tables match Kane vs. Daniel Bryan RVD vs. Fandango Kaitlyn vs. AJ Lee http://www.wwe.com/shows/raw/2013-07-29/five-point-preview-26134553 WWE.com Article Listing the 50 Greatest Ring Names Ever http://www.wwe.com/classics/classic-lists/the-50-greatest-ring-names-ever

QOTD - July 29th, 2013

Greetings. Alright, today's QOTD comes from Phil, and he asks "Hey Caliber, I thought this might make a fun question of the day. Which Superhero has the best "Rogues Gallery". You can include a team if you like, instead of a singular super hero. Personally, I'm veering towards Darkwing Duck. Mostly because the nature of the show allowed them to steal from literally every other comic/story which existed ever. They even had a Kthulu monster in the form Duckthulu. But I digress...what say you?"   Spider-Man has a pretty healthy selection. Probably the best of the Marvel Universe.    But I think it's a safe bet when I say Batman is the clear winner. He has countless bad guys you could build an entire film off of. I mean, King Tut, Egghead, The Mad Hatter, Purple Lilac. Then you have the B list villains like The Joker, Two-Face, The Riddler, Catwoman, and Bane. That's movie Bane, not comic book Bane. And that's Bane before it&#

Tony Schiavone question

Reading that review for Eric Bischoff's book where Eric got promoted over Tony Schiavone and got to be head booker of WCW, I just want to know what the fate of WCW would have been if Schiavonewas given that gig instead? Did he have a good mind for the business or would WCW continue having the same fate where they would get more in debt as the years rolled on. I think if Tony got the job, WCW would still be around today in roughly the same position TNA is -- the second-rate promotion still chugging along and using the guys WWE can't or won't use.  Bischoff's thing was taking the big chance of going on Monday nights, and while it was spectacularly successful for a while, he also racked up big losses and of course made them a product that AOL/TW didn't want to support any longer.  I'm sure Tony would have just kind of done the same stuff as Jim Ross and the other previous bookers, and wouldn't have gone after Hogan, and we would have just kind of run with Sti

My New DB Article

---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Stuart Chartock Date: Sunday, July 28, 2013 Subject: My New DB Article To: skeith@gmail.com My ridiculously long rebuttal on the "Bryan should get 'Banked' by Orton" discussion: Part 1 -  http://www.wrestlenewz.com/wrestling/exclusive-articles/daniel-bryan-win-lose-but-dont-draw-part-1/ Part 2 -  http://www.wrestlenewz.com/wrestling/exclusive-articles/daniel-bryan-win-lose-but-dont-draw-part-2/ Thanks a lot, - Stu

Total Divas

In case you didn't see it, catch the replay.  This show is one of the most hilarious train wrecks you'll ever see.  If you're a fan of the so bad it's good style of television, definitely check it out.

Fwd: Awesome match for the blog: Savage/Warrior from Feb. 1989

---------- Forwarded message ---------- Never seen this one before. It's Savage/Warrior, Title vs. Title, from the Boston Garden in February 1989, about 1 week after Savage turned on Hogan. Fun match and the crowd, as you can imagine, is nuclear. Just the heat for Savage's entrance is worth clicking for.   Championship - Randy Savage vs Ultimate Warrior - Boston Garden Feb 11th, 1989 ---------------------- We have indeed discussed this one before, but heel Savage was the greatest thing ever so I'm always happy to pimp it again.  Macho Man should have been champ until he died.

When did the hate end?

---------- Forwarded message ---------- I've been reading your older rants, and I see you had a hatred for the Undertaker. I get how it started, when he came back in 2000 he was awful in every aspect, but in the later parts of 2002 he got better and you still hated him from then until about 2007, when you weren't watching much of the product. When did you stop hating Undertaker and why? ------------------------------ Probably the Batista match where he had nearly the best match of the show and the promotion didn't have to be booked around protecting him outside of the streak.

Sunday Matinee - July 28th, 2013

Greetings. What's the greatest movie opening of all time? I'm not really setting any parameters, but you can figure it out. For your boy, it's Scream. Hands down. It's an absolutely captivating piece of film and some of the most brilliant writing in film history. It starts off so innocent and calm, and keeps building until something as benign as a telephone ring is the scariest sound in the world. I love how it all starts off so innocent, and the killer has his subtle slip ups like "Why do you want to know my name?" "Because I want to know who I'm looking at" "...what did you say?" "....I said I want to know who I'm...talking to" And it builds until "YOU HANG UP ON ME AND I'LL GUT YOU LIKE A FISH!". Then they play the game, and man, I could just talk about the scene all day. Absolutely incredible. How say you? Also, I have an ask, my people. I've recently started working on short stories, perhap

WWE DVD Ideas

Hi, Scott! I'm not sure if this is being done already, but just in case it hasn't yet, what do you think of the idea of the WWE releasing DVD's that cover: a.) Memorable feuds & storylines ( Rock-Austin, Kane-Taker, Shawn-HHH, Cena-Punk, etc.); or b.) Recaps of a single year in wrestling history (WWF 1997, WCW 1998, etc.); That way, viewers can see the context of the matches, as in why they take place, and they can also see some of the angles that made these feuds/years memorable. Thanks and more power to your blog! a)  They're already doing this one with Shawn v. Bret and soon Rock v. Austin.  It's a great idea and a whole-heartedly approve. b) They usually do yearly recap DVDs now (Best of RAW 2012, etc) and I whole-heartedly approve of that as well.  The yearly retro thing might be a bit too niche for most people, which is another instance where a DVD-on-demand service would be beneficial. 

Will TNA's "Clash" shows help or hurt their PPV buys?

Scott, Hope you are having a wonderful summer weekend. With TNA just having Destination X on free TV and with Hardcore Justice on free TV as well, do you think it will help or hurt TNA's PPV buys? If they are putting "Clash" style shows on free TV for 6-8 months out of the year, why would the casual viewer care to order the PPV's the other 4 months? We got a World title change on free TV at Destination X and probably another one at Hardcore Justice. I just can't see TNA building up a stronger PPV consumer base with them giving away free World title matches on a monthly basis on TV. While I love the free shows, I think it would be better if they used that show as a "medium" to build stronger feuds heading into the PPV's.  O h, the 4 PPV model has been a disaster on several levels.  Buyrates didn't go up, and now Dixie Carter is claiming that the cost of taping all the replacement shows in one shot is the reason for their financial woes.  P

List of WWE personnel is one of Wikipedia's 10 Most Controversial Pages

http://www.cnn.com/2013/07/24/tech/web/controversial-wikipedia-pages Yeah, it's only based on the amount of times a page has been tweaked or rewritten but still humorous considering the 'E's crusade of being recognized by the mainstream media. Plus everything else is related to politics or religion. Think they'll bring this up on RAW? I still picture Vince trying to install Netscape Navigator on the computer in HHH's fake office, so I doubt he's hip to the controversies of Wikipedia.  Plus WWE would probably want to develop their own WWE-kipedia where only authorized WWE Universe members can add and edit things.  So probably no "Did you know..." about this one.  

Cucch's Book Review: "Controversy Creates Cash."

Lance Storm's favorite book in the world...

NWA-TNA Weekly PPV #53

July 16, 2003 Your hosts are Don West and Mike Tenay The show starts with Jeff Jarrett and Joe Legend brawling around ringside. Security struggles to intervene. After that, Tenay tells us that they will have a match tonight. Tenay also notes that next week, D’Lo Brown will face AJ Styles in a ladder match for the Heavyweight Championship. D’Lo Brown comes out to the ring. He plays to the crowd then lets us know that next week, it is in fact a 2-out-of-3 falls match, with the first being a regular singles match, second fall a submission match, and the third fall is the ladder match. He then calls out Sonny Siaki, stating that if he beats him tonight, the NWA Board told him that he could get five minutes with Vince Russo in the ring.

Best heel ever

---------- Forwarded  Scott, was listening to "The Place To Be" podcast about WWE 98 and it got me thinking, is Vince McMahon the greatest heel ever?  I went back and watched some of his older stuff and the heat he was getting was fucking NUCLEAR.  He also cut some superb promos and was just always locked in it seems like.  The freaking Patterson and Brisco stuff was fantastic and just topped it off.  I know he didn't wrestle and got a lot of TV time but I can't think of a hotter heel then maybe Hollywood Rock or vintage Flair, but I'd still argue Vince was a hotter heel. Thoughts? Also, don't know if you ever heard it but Kevin Kelly tells a GREAT story about Vince shitting himself on the way to the ring to cut a promo, having no choice but to stand there with shit dripping down his leg in front of a live crown until the TV segment ended, and then placing his shit soaked underwear on a camera pole in the back and chasing Patterson around with it.

Thunder - March 5, 1998

Thunder Date: March 5, 1998 Location: Columbus Civic Center, Columbus, Ohio Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Bobby Heenan, Lee Marshall Reviewed by Tommy Hall WCW is in an interesting little groove right now as they're not taking their shows seriously at all other than the main event and it's making things much easier to get through. We're ten days from Uncensored and the show is shaping up pretty well which means the TV has been good lately. Tonight's main event is Page defending the US Title against Raven, assuming we don't get more NWO drama instead. Let's get to it.

Did Austin put a hit on Owen?

I'd like to start this off by saying I was at Kemper that night. I was 13 years old at the time, and after finding out that he had passed my parents banned WWF tv from our house, only lifting the ban after WCW went out of business. My father still thinks that them not telling us in the crowd what happened is one of the most deplorable things ever to happen in wrestling. He's only recently started watching old Wrestling at The Chase shows on youtube. What I'm trying to say is that I'm not some sicko trying to troll or sully anyone's good name, nor am I trying to make you mad by bringing it up. In many ways, I'm still that scared, confused kid who witnessed something traumatic, still trying to compartmentalize the most horrible thing I've ever seen in my life. I feel dirty even thinking this... I can't help it Scott. I don't have this big conspiracy theory or anything, I just keep seeing Austin saying, "Fuck it, let'em drop." Is t

Smackdown - July 26, 2013

Smackdown Date: July 26, 2013 Location: American Bank Center, Corpus Christi, Texas Commentators: Michael Cole, John Bradshaw Layfield Reviewed by Tommy Hall We're closing in on Summerslam and the main story on Smackdown is we have no #1 contender to the title. Orton beat Del Rio clean last week but wasn't even on Raw to acknowledge the win. Alberto doesn't have any feud going right now and is just kind of floating around having random match after random match. Odds are tonight will be spent building up the Raw matches for the PPV. Let's get to it.

Elvy Hearts Me

Nice to see elvy still keeping busy.

Question

Scott,   I saw where you were debating scrapping TNA for NJPW or Mid South, I assume this is the Bill Watts and what sometime pops up on YouTube as Memphis wrestling with Jerry Lawler.   Either would probably be fascinating depending on how far back you get with the Mid South stuff.   One other question, have you ever recapped the 1994 When Worlds Collide PPV?  It was headlined I believe with an Eddy Guerrero/Art Barr match and I believe was a joint WCW/AAA venture pre NWO venture to introduce Lucha Libre to US audiences.   http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/When_Worlds_Collide_(wrestling)   N ever reviewed When Worlds Collide as a whole, no, although the famous tag match was one of my ***** ones.  Lucha libre is pretty far out of my comfort zone and I wouldn't have much of interest to add.   As for Mid South, I have a variety of stuff bought from the Micah Watts site before they got bought out by WWE, and a 12-disc "best of" set that I got onlin

Antonio Caesaro

Quick question. Do you think Antonio has a future in the WWE? He has a great look, great moveset and was featured well on RAW against Bryan. He also has Zeb as his manager. For some reason though, they don't seem to be utilising him as well as they could. Eh, I'm neutral towards him.

BoD Daily Update

WWE Refusing to Speak With TNA Talent who are Still Under Contract? A source told Bryan Alvarez that while the WWE will not speak with those under contract, they are still monitoring the talent who is getting released. The same source also believes that Matt Morgan will be back with the WWE by the end of the year. Credit Bryan Alvarez, Figure Four Weekly Newsletter Backstage Update on the Shield According to this week's Figure Four Weekly Newsletter, a source as told Bryan Alvarez that Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns had heat on them in recent weeks. The source said that he believes Rollins got heat from an issue with the Big Show, which was described as petty, and Reigns got heat on him after a tag match at a house show when he was involved in a shouting match with Randy Orton over a blown spot. The source also said that Vince wanted them punished but that HHH did not and was fighting to keep them strong on TV. Another source states that the heat on both men went away af

QOTD - Jul 26th, 2013

Greetings. Today I thought we'd harken back to the days of yesteryear. As a kid, what was your favorite TV show? Not counting wrestling. For me, it's a tough call between GI Joe and Saved By The Bell. Although I'd probably have to go with The Bell because my love of GI Joe stemmed more from the action figures than it did the actual TV show. I mean, was there a cooler dude than Zack? Or a hotter chick than Kelly? What other group of kids on TV were saving homeless people, and having murder mystery weekends? None. That's who. How say you? Also, over at wcwin2000.wordpress.com, I recently updated with a review of what is hands down the worst single episode of wrestling programming I, or anyone has ever seen.

NXT - July 24, 2013

NXT Date: July 24, 2013 Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida Commentators: Brad Maddox, Tom Phillips Reviewed by Tommy Hall The main event this week is Paige vs. Emma for the inaugural Women's Title. Other than that we have new tag team champions in the form of Neville and Graves. They took the titles from the Wyatt Family tonight, meaning we need to find out what's next for Bray and company. Let's get to it.

TNA Impact Thread

Tonight, Chris Sabin addresses the crowd for the first time as the TNA Heavyweight champion. Also, the X Division Title is on the line in an "Ultimate X" match between Sonjay Dutt vs. Manik vs. Greg Marasculio The Knockouts Title will also be on the line as Mickie James defends the belt against Gail Kim Plus, three BFG Series matches will take place: Jeff Hardy vs. AJ Styles Samoa Joe vs. Christopher Daniels Mr. Anderson vs. Hernandez

Original Ziggler plan?

Hey Scott, any idea what the original plan was for Dolph Ziggler pre-concussion? It seems as though they've temporarily moved him out of the title picture again to maybe make way for a Del Rio/RVD feud. Was the plan always to have Ziggler lose the title back to Del Rio and stick him in a feud with Langston instead? Also while I'm at it, do the people in charge believe in Ziggler's all-round ability the way we do? Because I don't recall anyone of prominence speaking particular highly of him the way they do Bryan, Punk etc. Thanks Well it couldn't have been too long-term because they wanted Del Rio to be the big Latino babyface star for the next generation and such.  I know they really like Ziggler but I don't know how much, if any, they trust in him as a big star, as evidenced by the constant jobs and total non-protection.  I think they're trying for that 95 Shawn vibe where they make him a sympathetic babyface and create demand for the chase until he wins

Kayfabe Commentaries YouShoot Interview with Perry Saturn

For those not familiar with the “YouShoot” series, it is a shoot interview that is comprised of fan questions submitted by either email or video. A majority of the questions are submitted by people from the F4W message board and video submissions by several recurring folks. Sean Oliver is the moderator. They also play games during the shoots (The first few did not include games but all of the newer installments have them), including “What’s in the Bag, “Ho Bag,” “What a Dick,” and “Medicine Man.” This was released July 2011. The shoot is divided into chapters and that is how I will break down the review.

QOTD - July 25th, 2013

Greetings. Today we're gonna double-stack the QOTD, to give you, the people, a treat. First question comes from White Thunder, and he wants know about Stone Cold: "White Thunder here, The discussion about wrestlers fitting into different eras really got me thinking about Stone Cold. What is his shelf life at this point? Is there still a window for Austin to come back and have one more match? Would he have to have a short run (similar to Jericho) to get back over first? Personally I felt the perfect opportunity would of been against CM Punk around the time of Wrestlemania 27 or during the SES phase. Evidently this never came to fruition even though it appeared that Punk wanted a match badly. I feel the window is closing very rapidly, what do you think?" Honestly, I think Stone Cold's shelf-life is infinite. There will never be a wrestling fan who doesn't know who he is. He's in a constant state of being over, and could head-line any PPV without anyone b

BoD Daily Update

Former WWE Developmental Wrestler Charged with First-Degree Murder Brian McGhee, who went by the name DT Porter while in FCW, was charged with stabbing a woman to death in her apartment. Apparently, McGhee changed his profile pic on Facebook to show his arm covered in blood taking out how he killed her and that he was next. http://pwinsider.com/article/79148/former-wwe-developmental-talent-to-be-charged-with-murder.html?p=1 Big Show Still Not Medically Cleared to Return to TV The reason that he did not appear on RAW this past Monday, despite being advertised, is that he was unable to get medical clearance due to his injured leg Credit Dave Meltzer, Wrestling Observer Newsletter Mark Henry Signs a Three-Year Contract with the WWE Looks like he will be splitting wigs on RAW until 2016. This should also put those retirement rumors to rest for a while. Credit Dave Meltzer, Wrestling Observer Newsletter Jesse Sorensen Backs Away From Claim that Dixie Carter Told Him He

Possible Orton cash-in on Bryan

"And then if Orton screws him out of the belt immediately afterwards, all the better.  " Recently, while discussing the possibility of Orton's cash-in on Bryan, you said you believed WWE would go all the way with Bryan's push, cause they know they need a top guy. You even mentioned they want to put him at Punk's level. However, I'd like you to clarify, why do you think Orton screwing him over can help? With the fans now completely on Bryan's side, fueled by VKM antics, shouldn't be the time to do the opposite? To give him a solid title reign with the WWE title, like they did with Punk? (of course I don't think they'll give a 400 days type of reign to Bryan, but you get my point) I'd like you to clarify this, thank you! B ecause that's actual "We want this person to get his revenge on this other person" heat instead of their usual "go away heat" or token boos or "cool heel" heat where peop

Monday Nitro - March 2, 1998

Monday Nitro #129 Date: March 2, 1998 Location: Corestates Spectrum, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Commentators: Mike Tenay, Larry Zbyszko, Tony Schiavone, Bobby Heenan Reviewed by Tommy Hall The main story tonight is we have an NWO guy teaming with a WCW guy to face two more NWO guys in the main event of Hall/Hogan vs. Sting/Savage. We're less than two weeks away from Uncensored and the card is already shaping up very nicely. Hopefully WCW can rebound after a weak showing on last week's show. Let's get to it.

Time of death?

The bad news keeps piling on for TNA, and I really am curious as to what your thoughts are for the survivability of the company.  Are these really necessary measures which are going to sustain TNA, or the last desperate attempts of a dying company to stay afloat for a tiny bit longer? N ah, their survival is 100% dependent on Spike and Panda and nothing else.  They could die tomorrow at the whim of both companies, but Spike keeps them around for solid ratings in that timeslot and Panda presumably uses them as a tax writeoff.  The question is how MUCH money can the company lose before Panda no longer finds them useful as a plaything, which is probably why Dixie is doing the desperate cost cutting to remain an attractive loss leader instead of a giant albatross ala WCW 2000.  If they're content with giant losses, TNA will be around forever.  If not, they'll be shut down next week.  No way to call it otherwise.  

#AskDixie hilarity

Some of the questions and comments for Dixie are hilarious https://twitter.com/search?q=%23AskDixie&src=hash     Dixie Carter, master of awesome timing.     I think I’ve figured out her problem, though.  Everyone kept bugging her about hiring Paul Heyman to book, but she accidentally hired him to DO the books…and well, you know…

BoD Daily Update

Jesse Sorensen Claims that Dixie Carter Promised Him a Job for Life TNA continues to look worse by the day. http://pwinsider.com/article/79123/jesse-sorensen-says-dixie-carter-broke-promise-he-would-always-have-a-job-with-company.html?p=1 Scott Hall will be on Steve Austin's Podcast Tomorrow Click on the link below for a preview http://www.podcastone.com/f/Steve-Austin-Show Match Listing is Announced for the WWE's "Goldberg: The Ultimate Collection" DVD The three-disc collection will be available on DVD and Blu-Ray. It will be released on October 7th. http://www.wwedvd.co.uk/match-listing-goldberg-ultimate-collection-i-95.html

The obvious scenario we are all overlooking

Everyone is talking about Orton cashing in at Summerslam against Bryan like it's a forgone conclusion...but I feel like we're missing the most obvious scenario of them all.   Cena beats Bryan in a war, and Orton cashes on Cena...doesn't that really seem the most plausible of all of the scenarios?  It keeps Bryan hot, gives him a built in feud, and keeps Orton in the grey area of heel/face.   Right? No, because I honestly think they're pulling the trigger and making Bryan a member of the Tippy Top Guy Club out of necessity.  They NEED a new top guy and they've invested this much in him already, so they're gonna keep pushing until people see him at the CM Punk level for good.  And that means he beats John Cena to win the WWE title.  And then if Orton screws him out of the belt immediately afterwards, all the better.  

Deadspin story about Hall and Roberts living with DDP

In case anyone hasn't hit you up with it yet, this is a pretty fantastic read on DDP helping out Jake and Hall. http://deadspin.com/can-diamond-dallas-page-save-wrestlings-walking-dead-793015043 G reat read.  I'm just endlessly fascinated by this whole DDP/Hall/Roberts story.  And Jake's "spaghetti" promo in there had me laughing for a bit because you can just picture him delivering that exact reading.  Kudos to the author of this.

QOTD - July 24th, 2013

Greetings. Today's question comes from Magoonie, in regards to the literary world. "What's your favorite book(s)? And what are you reading right now? For me, I really enjoy The Dark Tower series as well as The Stand. The Kid Stays In The Picture is fantastic. Aztec and Aztec Autumn are really good too. Another one is The Gospel According To Biff, funny stuff. As for what I'm reading now, I'm most of the way through The Missionary Position: Mother Teresa In Theory And Practice which is really eye opening. Did you know Mother Teresa was a sadomachist bitch? Neither did I. Also I'm reading Much Ado About Nothing again before I see the Joss Whedon movie." My all time favorite author is Brian Keene. He's a horror/fantasy writer, and I have absolutely no qualms in saying he's the greatest of all time. Besting Mr. King. I know that's sacrilege, but Keene's work just sucks you in like nothing I've ever read. He's absolutely incred

Good ol' fashion Christian revival?

Got an email from BoD Main Eventer, Jobber123, with a small request for some talk about Christian's possible assent back to the main. "Hey dude I was wondering if would put up a post on Christian going over ADR in a non title match on raw (a "week" after adr goes over sheamus). It seemed like he was coming back to be a jtts, and was an afterthought as any kind of main guy. But since he's come back he's gone over a few big names (and del Rio is probably in the top 5 of most protected guys). Is he getting another main event push? I think so. Why not? Fantastic worker, attitude era tie in, great on the mic. I'm not saying he main events any ppv but I'm betting he gets a run at a couple whc feuds. Does the blog think this is a good thing? I know we all love Christian, but guess whose spot he's taking? Dolph zigglers. So are we OK with that or is this hhh putting an old vet name up the card and fucking ziggler?"  In all honesty, I do

Netflix = Money Mark?

http://www.avclub.com/articles/netflix-will-expand-its-original-programming-to-in,100638/ As I'm sure Dixie Carter would attest to, wrestling is not the best business to get into right now.  What they should do is buy the rights to NJPW and dub over with Mauro Ranallo or the ROH announce crew. Or just buy ROH from Sinclair, since their business model is selling DVDs anyway.  

WWF Championship Wrestling: January 5th, 1985

Since I haven’t done a WWF Syndicated TV show review since the November 17 th show, I will recap the major angles that took place between these shows. I do have all of the Championship Wrestling shows from this one until August 1986, when it became Superstars and taped on the road. On the November 17 th episode of All-Star Wrestling, Blackjack Mulligan’s “Mulligan’s BBQ” talk show debuted. This was created in response to him being upset over Piper basically burying the faces on his show. Piper would send jobber Ted Grizzly to challenge Mulligan and he got squashed the following week. Also, a series of vignettes featuring Don Muraco would air, with him in Hawaii on the beach. This was to build him up for his return.   On the November 24 th episode of Championship Wrestling, Cowboy Bob Orton debuted as Roddy Piper’s bodyguard on Piper’s Pit. On the December 8th episode of Championship Wrestling, Albano was a guest on Piper’s Pit and was not given a chance to speak as Piper cu