I know you're not big on WWE video games anymore, but if WWE2K14 offered this up as the main mode, we at WrestleCrap feel you'd make an exception for this.
Yeah, I skipped WWE 13 since 12 was basically the same game as 11.
I think RD should make his own Wrestlecrap game though.
So Ryback is turning into a hybrid of Big Show and Zack Ryder. Multiple turns and being buried while he's at it. I don't think he would have other opportunities like Ryder and Ziggler so I'd just stick this one out until they started pushing him again or fire him.
ReplyDeleteESPN only considers wrestling a sport when it's something negative. I don't doubt the documentary will be good, but don't understand why they feel the need to bury the business.
To be fair, World Class was one of ESPN's highest rated shows when the network sarted
ReplyDeleteShane McMahon vs. Daniel Bryan at Wrestlemania. Book it! For some reason.
ReplyDeleteSo I saw the AWA documentary (the WWE one) on Netflix like two years ago and loved it. As a casual hardcore fan, I learned that there were a ton of issues with it? What were they?
ReplyDeleteThat should be about it for Ryback once and for all. Another turn and a Brock squashing? Looks like somebody has a snarky, Ryder-esque "whatcha up to?" tweet in their near future.
ReplyDeleteScott , I also saw that doc and agree with you. Brock Leanar and CM Punk could probably pull off that dynamic, though you'd ruin Lesnar's monster edge. Maybe Big E Langston or Reigns in the big heel role?
ReplyDeleteThe Attitude Era mode in wwe 13 totally made up for the fact that the gameplay didn't change at all. You play from mid 97 through 99 and recreate specific matches. Everything is very detail oriented for nerds like us, so hbk will be wearing different tights based on whatever he was actually wearing during a match. The raw sets change from year to year. You get nifty video packages for matches. It's a lot of fun and totally worth picking up now that it's discounted, Scott.
ReplyDeleteThe wrestlecrap article is hilarious and I'd easily spend $60 on their version of the game.
World Class was on ESPN? I thought only the AWA got air time on that channel...
ReplyDeleteI remember it when I was very young and then it stayed on ESPN when it became the USWA.
ReplyDeleteWCCW got bigger ratings in Boston than the WWF at one time in the 1980's.
Between World Class and Mid-South, you could have had one hell of a "counterweight" to McMahon and Crockett... but between the oil bust and the drugs, that weight might have been too brittle.
ReplyDeleteI think Ryback could work well as a solid mid card heel. Don't make him a pussy but keep the bullying people trait. Have him barrel through mid carders or lower for 3 months. Then when you want to push somebody you have them beat Ryback. Rinse, repeat. Decent enough formula.
ReplyDeleteI just want to let everyone know that 2K games doesn't care about wrestling people. I sent them a press request and got a "We're really backlogged" message, followed by silence.
ReplyDeleteI don't get what is making them so persistent with Ryback. I get that he's roided up and what not, but what is making them stick with him instead of, say, someone with upside?
ReplyDeleteI think Ryback could work just fine as a tag team guy. Not buying him as a main eventer though. He's worked with Cena and Punk and neither set the world on fire, so what else is there for him as a main eventer right now?
ReplyDeleteI sense a Ryback/Miz tag team? Why?...because wwe hates us all.
ReplyDeleteHonestly, that sounds like a good heel team.
ReplyDeleteI also have interest in Shane coming back. Shane as Vince's avatar v. HHH. LET'S BOOK THAT SHIT.
ReplyDeleteThe more useless workers in a match, the less matches they can ruin. I'm all for a Miz/Ryback team.
ReplyDeletePerhaps. I was anti Miz and Morrison at first and grew fond of them, so maybe it would be that .
ReplyDeleteI always liked the idea of teaming up two monsters, like Ryback/Show.
HE'S BIG.
ReplyDeleteLet's see, he's big and been a failure in every program he's been in since he debuted… that makes him Big Show circa 2002? If they stick with him long enough, he'll be main eventing ppvs again by 2026.
Did Ryback wrestle as a heel on last night's Smackdown?
ReplyDeleteThe ship has sailed on Ryback. It boggles the mind that they'd consider wasting a Lesnar match on him, unless by "confrontation," they mean "Brock tosses Ryback out of the ring in five seconds during the Rumble match."
ReplyDeleteThis was kind of Ryback's arc, minus winning the title (and jobbing in big matches as opposed to "crushing everyone"....ok, so it's not a perfect comparison)
ReplyDeleteI loved that they also used the various themes of a specific wrestler too; during Foley's chapter, you go from the traditional Mankind theme to the post-SS98 remixed Schizophrenic to finally the car-wreck Mick Foley theme. That was a nice touch.
ReplyDeleteThat mode alone was worth the $$$ for me, and the match objectives gave the bouts a different feel than just beating on a guy for the pin.
But they have been on this bury wrestling kick for the last decade plus. Of course they can pick and choose what they want to talk about, and I'm also going to call bs when it's only about drugs and death.
ReplyDeleteFunny you mention this as I ran into my ex fiancée a few days ago. I took my mom out to lunch at Red Lobster for her birthday. Right before we got our orders I felt a tap on my shoulder and there she was. With her new boyfriend. I won't lie, it stung a bit but I got over the bitch a while ago. I had no want to see her again but I handled it gracefully and was polite while she talked about her inane bullshit. What would it have helped if I caused a scene? Although she deserves it, I wouldn't have looked good.
ReplyDeleteI can dig that; however, I don't think that's where this is going.
ReplyDeleteHow ya doin tonight Deal?!
ReplyDeleteCool stuff. BIG fan of the 30 for 30 series
ReplyDeleteEven though they would screw it up, I'd love to see Shane lead an invasion. He may or may not have a bone to pick in real life, but if he said he did everyone would believe it.
ReplyDeleteI so wish they would do Punk/Lesnar for the title, but it doesn't seem like that's happening.
ReplyDeleteAlso, I don't think you ruin that edge. It's kind of like Vader/Flair, Vader runs roughshod over the promotion for a year, the over-the-hill hero who has NO CHANCE comes back to beat him for the belt. Vader was able to stay a dominant heel for years after that.
and now I have to watch my best of starrcade.
I be JACKING THIS THREAD: was flipping through the channels on my DirecTV, and found a channel called the Pursuit Channel. Basically an outdoor type channel, not unlike the Outdoor Network. Anyway, around midnight came a program called TCW or Traditional Championship Wrestling. I gave it a whirl. Their slogan is "Wrestling is Back". The action was your average non-spot monkey indy fed. Some of the better know stars on this show included Chris Adonis aka Chris Masters, Tommy Dreamer, Lance Hoyt, Michael Tarver. There was a t-shirt shill spot on the show that featured Matt Hardy, there was also a Zach Gowan spot. Their champ was some guy named Tim Storm, and a heel stable called The Empire. And Hacksaw Jim Duggan fought some fat Middle Eastern foreigner named Prince Al-Farat. It was only interesting as an alternative to the same old stuff. The wrestling didn't really stand out, but it wasn't horrible.
ReplyDeleteAnyway, that's all. Carry on.
Bill Simmons runs 30 for 30 and he is a big wrestling fan. He is also pushing Shoemaker's book too, so this will prob all tie in.
ReplyDelete'Ryback Turning Again?'
ReplyDeletehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RLcQG6utIIA
Huh, sounds cool. I might have to see if I get that channel. I like watching Indy Feds. Most of them have something entertaining to them. And it's nice to change it up and watch something different in rasslin.
ReplyDeleteMe neither, the WWE doesn't seem to book that way. Just thought it could be a decent idea on what to do with Ryback, the tag team idea wasn't bad either.
ReplyDelete'I'd love to see Shane lead an invasion.'
ReplyDeleteif only there was a group of wrestlers, perhaps frm rival organizations, that he could employ...
'wwe hates us all.'
ReplyDeletehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AQsUSOmUAIw
'WWE.com Interview with Mickie James'
ReplyDeleteon monday at raw country, we'll be thinkin' arby's
They never should have gotten Ryback involved in the Punk feud last year. he was starting to really get over but there was no way he could win that feud because it would fuck up their long term booking plans so they needed up jobbing him out PPV after PPV and killed what people found fun about him.
ReplyDeleteThe Bully thing could have worked also but they gave up on that to again feud him with Punk.
he isn't as bad in the ring or on the mic. as his reputation but they have killed off his value for the time being. have him go away for a while, then come back and start murdering people again and in time people will get behind him again.
Shane can't come back because he hates WWE for giving the company to Steph and HHH and is going to buy TNA to REALLY show them!
ReplyDeleteLets rebook the invasion!
ReplyDeletehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cHWJ-7BUCNg
ReplyDeletehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SpC6r0GD1uw
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZUEHa35k-aI
vince should have gotten goldberg, nash, hall, sting, bischoff, and flair from the outset... did no one think of that?!
ReplyDeleteLosing pretty much every ppv match for over a year usually doesn't translate to a good career trajectory. Just sayin
ReplyDeleteBy the way Paul, what did you think of my idea in the email I sent you?
ReplyDeleteApparently, they have a YouTube channel.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.youtube.com/TCWWrestlingOnline/
Let me check my email, I need to keep up with that a little more haha.
ReplyDeleteInteresting. When David Shoemaker was on with Bill Simmons' podcast recently, Simmons mentioned this as a 30 for 30 they'd love to do (though Andre the Giant was #1), but that Vince was so stingy with the licensing rights that they feared they'd never get enough footage to make such documentaries worth it.
ReplyDeletesolicitation is solicitation, dude, whether in person or by e-mail
ReplyDeleteTotally agreed. The attention to detail was fantastic. I loved this year's wrestlemania mode also. Curious to see what they do next year after two stellar themes. I'm thinking maybe a Monday Night Wars mode?
ReplyDeleteWant me to fuck her and ruin her relationship?
ReplyDeletei have a few friends I've thought about, especially from childhood who i could reconnect with it, but i shy away from reconnecting with people from my past (who already havent been with me on a continual basis) b/c i'm honestly so embarrassed by where i'm *not* in life (on a number of levels, not just the stuff i've talked about here) by the thought of exposing myself like that while everyone else is so much farther along and closer to where they should be/want to be that there's less shame in just hiding in my own little world and coming out only when necessary
ReplyDeletehey, you asked
Most of the 30 for 30's are very well done, so this is awesome news for a WCCW/ Von Erich mark like myself.
ReplyDeleteI grew up on the AWA starting in 81 so what they covered on the doc 80's wise was pretty decent. They obviously really highlighted guys who made it in the WWF which is fine IMO since they are in buisness to sell these things. Unfortunately they really glossed over the 60's and 70's. A lot of fans who bought the set were fans of that era and they didn't get much substance on that. Plus the match selection is pretty damn weak.
ReplyDeleteOverall I would rank it 3rd when it comes to promotion docs that WWE produced with ECW being 1st and World Class 2nd.
Yet another argument in favor of a forced two month break from wrestling for the workers per year.
ReplyDeletemaybe he's going to referee Sting vs. Undertaker or Punk vs. Austin
ReplyDeleteHe's right, I would play the WMII race the ring cart around the Silverdome game for hours.
ReplyDelete"I was watching the one about Sugar Ray Leonard and Roberto Duran"
ReplyDeleteI tried to watch that one, but my old DVR decided it didn't want me to. Fucking DirecTV...
The one about the Colombian soccer goalie that was shot and killed because he gave up a soft goal was really good. So was the one about Pat Summit, and I have absolutely no interest in women's college basketball, or NCAA sports in general.
ReplyDelete2015 - A McMahon in every corner...again!
ReplyDeleteFor the record, the guy who wrote The King's Speech was...50 before he even sold a screenplay.
ReplyDeleteHarvey Pekar was near forty before he even thought of making a graphic novel.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=APpxQm7sH5k
I heard Shoemaker on WBUR today.
ReplyDeleteLeave the past in the past is typically good policy.
ReplyDeleteThis reminds of that scene in Major League where Jake spots his ex-wife with some other guy in the restaurant and Charlie Sheen just says "You want me to take him out back and beat the shit out of him?"
ReplyDeleteI had a pretty good friend in College & University who I just drifted apart from, as he kept moving around town, and had a tendency to flake out of planned hanging-out at the last second because something came up. All of a sudden, the next time I talked to him he'd moved a province away.
ReplyDeleteGetting in touch with him after that was basically impossible (though we still talked online), as he would plan to call me, but then never do so. I kind of assumed I'd never see him again, until a random check on Facebook revealed that he not only lived in Edmonton again, but in the same NEIGHBORHOOD as me. I was a bit shocked (and annoyed, since he hadn't contacted me at ALL, despite us not hanging out during his last several months here), but a random message later and all of a sudden we were hanging out every couple weeks or so.
I don't talk to anyone I went to high school with or anything like that, I thought they were assholes then, I sure as hell don't want to talk to them now. Though I'll admit I'm an anti-social type of guy anyway.
ReplyDeleteThere is a girl that worked with back in 2000 or so that I was too scared to make a move on that I would like to get a hold of, and I know where to find her. But I'm not going to do it. I'm not afraid that when I see her she'll tell me he's married or has a boyfriend or whatever, I'm afraid she won't remember me at all. As White Thunder said, it's better to leave the past in the past.
That Ryback/Lesnar rumor is complete bullshit.
ReplyDeleteThey should have just bit the bullet, and put the title on Ryback.
ReplyDeleteThe look of pure confusion on Vaughn's face when Taylor says no is priceless
ReplyDeleteI moved back to my hometown in my 20s so I reconnected with a lot of old friends from childhood. Me & my best friend Shawn picked up right where we left off and have been like brothers ever since (although last night we got drunk and he was being a dickhead to everyone and I was ready to piss pound him, so I think he's out as a drinking buddy). I've reconnected with a lot of old friends and exes through Facebook too. Really the only few I haven't gotten in touch with are a former friend from high schol who I had a falling out with over a girl I fucked who was a lesbian (I think I'm still the only guy she's been with, she does roller derby and shit) because he wanted to hook up with her girlfriend and tried to break them up by telling her I fucked her girlfriend. I tried to bury the hatchet about 10 years ago but he wanted none of it. Then there's an old roomate and my first teenage girlfriend I can't find, but I'm not really too concerned.
ReplyDeleteYes, it is. But the guy came up to the majors from the California Penal League, what else would you expect?
ReplyDeleteThere is no money in Ryback as a face, especially after he's tapped clean to Punk and almost to Bryan, and lost clean to R-Truth.
ReplyDeleteWhat a great movie
ReplyDeleteThis. There is one of those stupid pictures people like to post on Facebook from time to time that says something like "Forget the people in your past there is a reason they didn't make it to your future" much as I hate those things and think they are corny I think that one is accurate.
ReplyDelete"There is an *idea* of Brock Lesnar either confronting or blah blah blah." All that says is that someone probably pitched it or thought of it, not hard to believe since it would be a natural thing if Ryback goes against Heyman.
ReplyDeleteAre you saying Jesus Christ can't hit a curveball?
ReplyDeleteI think the sequel is even better. "So I should tell the pitcher to pitch from second base?"
I barely remember the second one... I like the third one with Scott Bakula though
ReplyDeleteAm I being a curmudgeon for thinking this Wrestlemania retrospective idea has been done to death? They had a whole game dedicated to that, plus countless DVDs and things. I'm all for nostalgia but let's go to a different well for a little bit.
ReplyDeleteI would only enjoy seeing people from the past via time machine.
ReplyDeleteIf you don't talk to someone anymore there is a reason for it. If you end up working together again or something and you organically get to know them again that's one thing, but seeking them out is a bad idea.
ReplyDeleteI don't think I've ever seen the third one.
ReplyDeleteGet the fuck out of here, the sequel was horse shit.
ReplyDeleteA decent graphics mode?
ReplyDeleteI feel the need to invade every video game related thread with a comment about how unbelievable it is WWE never made another game with AKI (now Syn Sophia).
ReplyDeleteNostalgia keeps the older fans who continually swear off the company coming back. That'd why at least 3-4 Raws a year have some sort of retro designation
ReplyDeleteWith this game I find it disappointing that Taker/Triple-H from WM17 wasn't a featured match in the 30 years mode.
ReplyDeleteObjective: Beat the shit out of Triple-H for 20 minutes.
Surprised TNA haven't approached them. A great engine without a western I.P to attach it to. But then I still want an updated Saturday Night Slam Masters.
ReplyDeleteYes to all of this. A former friend of mine got married a few years go and I didn't go (note my use of the word "former"), and the guy organizing the party (his presence was the real reason I didn't want to go) was trying to talk me into it and told me "You'll see a lot of people you haven't seen since back in the day". I responded by saying that there's a good reason I haven't seen those people, it's because I try to avoid them because I don't like them.
ReplyDeleteI used to love Wrestlecrap, but it's got to be tough to maintain, since the WWE doesn't do anything stupid or ridiculous anymore.
ReplyDeleteMurph, either you're my Tony B. or I'm your Tony B.
ReplyDeleteI feel bad for Ryback, he's the perfect example of a promotional failure and not a failuer of talent.
ReplyDeleteThey never ever ever should have put him in with Punk last year. I realize they needed a main event for HiaC and needed a face to step in after Cena got hurt but they put Ryback in a no win situation that he wasn't ready for. He should have been beating up on mid card talent and getting the IC/US title (there was a potential feud with him destroying Miz for a midcard belt that they built up and abandoned for no reason) instead of getting Luger'd by Punk.
Then they never ever ever should have turned him heel. The company has a huge problem getting new faces over. They spent months and months getting him and his catch phrase over, then they throw it away just to give Cena a monster-of-the-month feud. WTF.
They never should have killed the bully gimmick and they never should have given him the Heyman affiliation if he wasn't going to win any matches.
I mean, I don't see how anyone could blame Ryback for anything that's happened. When he gets time in big matches he usually delivers. He works hard for a guy his size and has pretty consistent wind in longer matches, which isn't a given with the musclebound guys. He obviously has a good look. But every time he gets over with something WWE just cuts him off at the knees. What they're doing to him is every bit as bad as what they've done to some other guys we talk about on the blog all the time and nobody notices.
I just don't understand this company sometimes.
I think it's funnier, just the whole thing with the rookie catcher not being able to throw the ball back to the mound and having to memorize Victoria's Secret catalogs and shit was so fucking hilarious that it puts it over the top. The original is great too, you might run like Mays, but you hit like shit.
ReplyDeleteI don't see how they could. If you put the title on Ryback at HitC then you either have to job him out to Punk or Rock before Wrestlemania, or do Rock/Cena without the belt which they would never have done. I guess you could do a triple threat with Punk/Rock/Ryback at Rumble but I don't find that very appealing either. They should have just kept him out of it until the timing was better.
ReplyDeleteI think the site went off the boil when RD stopped being the main writer. It's still good, but not what it used to be. And I don't like the new layout.
ReplyDeleteWhy would AKI get with TNA?
ReplyDeleteLesnar making his return by destroying Ryback and re-aligning with Heyman is certainly plausible
ReplyDeletewell, if they just put in updated movesets and characters then stuck the thing up for download for 10 bucks, that might get some units moved?
ReplyDeleteObjective: Make sure the fans se and know that HHH did NOT die from the chokeslam off the cherry picker, despite JR's call. (AKA what actually happened)
ReplyDeleteAdd in a "Raven driving the golf cart at WM17" mode, and I'd play for days.
ReplyDeleteAlternating between the two modes, of course.
Youtube killed it for me. Why go read moderately funny comedy analyses when you can go watch the real thing?
ReplyDeleteI've seen (that I definitely remember):
ReplyDeleteKings Ransom
Straight Outta L.A.
June 17, 1994
The Two Escobars
Four Days In October
Pony Excess
9.79
You Don't Know Bo
I know I've seen parts of other episodes, especially The U... just can't remember if I saw that one in full.
And yes, I think it'll be another excellent entry to that film library... the Von Erichs were as much tragedy as triumph.
The sequel was PG while the original was rated R. I missed the swearing and adult themes.
ReplyDeleteI agree they've completely messed up the booking with him but I don't know that he always delivers, I can't remember a great match he was a part of apart from the TLC 6 man. But agreed this thing with Heyman has been a big, pointless shambles and the thought of Ryback doing anything now is just lame.
ReplyDeleteSpeaking of Wrestlemania did anyone else get tickets yet? I'm going to be in the front risers in the corner. I was concerned about the view but then I remembered that it's indoors so I won't have those pillars holding the canopy blocking my view.
ReplyDeletequit downvoting me, mickie's left labium
ReplyDeleteSo I'm working on this series of sitcoms about WWE's superstars.
ReplyDeleteAJ Lee: "Honey, I'm home!"
CM Punk: "Oh, good."
(Punk brutally fucks her)
Steph: "Honey, I'm home!"
Triple H: "Did you get those jalapenos I asked for?"
Steph: "Yeah."
Triple H: "Oh, good."
(Triple H brutally fucks her)
Good point.
ReplyDeleteThrow in a "Hall/Nash/Waltman running Flair off the road" mode too.
ReplyDelete'If you don't talk to someone anymore there is a reason for it. If you
ReplyDeleteend up working together again or something and you organically get to
know them again that's one thing, but seeking them out is a bad idea."
...so i'm never gonna get a phone call from you then, am i?
The offer stands email me your phone number and I will happilycall you.
ReplyDeleteI went to a Catholic HS for 2 years. I made friends with this dude, went to his house every Sunday, talked to him every morning, and gederally revered him. After awhile his crew started getting really pretentious, obnoxious, and just ignorant. I don't think I have to tell you his name. ..With are are estranged
ReplyDeleteThat angle would have been tailor made for the Big Show.
ReplyDeleteThere was a Von Erich documentary awhile ago that was good. I'll definiely watch this one.
HHH needs to be fucking on the contracts of WWE wrestlers while watching that Booker T match from Wrestlemania.
ReplyDeleteThey should buy the old 6-sided ring from TNA so they can include Linda, Shane and Aurora.
ReplyDeleteCena/Rock without the belt was a better way to go (with a possible 3rd match for the title.)
ReplyDeleteRyback with Warrior as his manager vs. The Big Show with McMahon in his corner.
ReplyDeleteOverbook this to all hell with including an appearance by Hulk Hogan at Wrestlemania.
Henry and Show for the win please. If not, turn Tons of Funk.
ReplyDeletemoderately funny? Best endorsement I've gotten this year!
ReplyDelete"As much?" I think the tragedy blew past the triumph around 1987 and never looked back.
ReplyDeleteTo me the booking for Ryback vs. Lesnar is pretty clear cut: Lesnar F5s Ryback on a chair, concussing him so badly he develops Foreign Accent Syndrome and changes his name to Comrade Rykoff. While spouting anti-patriotic rhetoric in the ring one night, he's attacked by the Real Americans. He's saved, however, by the returning Vladimir Koslov with whom he forms a vicious heel team known as The Sickle Cell. They set their sights on destroying the "American pig" Lesnar and disable both Swagger and Cesaro to make an example of their capacity for destruction.
ReplyDeleteLesnar's is ostensibly partnerless against the terrifying tandem but announces that he's bringing a mystery partner to back him up at Wrestlemania; this turns out to be the one "Real American" they haven't destroyed, Hulk Hogan. Hogan and Lesnar scar the reds with defeat at WM 30 when Brock hits an F5 and Hulk lands a Legdrop, but as Hogan poses for his Hulkamaniacs after the match, a glint of jealousy is visible in Lesnar's eye as he is clearly being upstaged.
I know the new trend with the WWE is to book against the grain, but this direction is so obvious and logical that I would really be surprised if this isn't what they have planned.
I find it interesting how WWE sort of whitewashes stuff with WCCW like Kevin talking of Fritz being a great guy but on the "heroes of World Class" doc (which is awesome), Kevin is up front over what a bastard his father could be. Both of them are must-sees to highlight how hot the place was but how Fritz's refusal to be a father over a promoter caused so much trouble for everyone. If anything, I hope this reminds us how stupid it is to put the long list of WCCW deaths under "wrestlers who died under Vince's watch" when he had nothing to do with that promotion.
ReplyDeleteI think HBK's hunting show is on that channel.
ReplyDeleteI'd rather see Michael Elgin against Lesnar.
ReplyDeleteI no shit all about boxing, I didn't even know who Duran was before I happened across that doc a few minutes in.
ReplyDeleteI watched the whole thing, those 30-in-30s are very well done
This probably goes without saying, but in the above scenario The Meat Hook is renamed The Bread Line.
ReplyDeleteI don't like Ryback, so the more they fuck up his career the better for me personally.
ReplyDeleteBut the way they've booked him is just mind-boggling. It was reported for years Vince was high on him and saw him as a huge babyface, and he has the type of body that Vince loves so he's a guy they want to succeed.
But they push him hard as a face. He starts to get over with his dominant undefeated gimmick. So they put him in a title match he can't win. And then a rematch he can't win. So now he's a choker. So then they decided to turn him into a bad guy, after trying to hard to get people to like him. They've done a good job with that because he does come off as an asshole heel, although even as a heel he didn't seem to win any matches of significance. So now he's an asshole who can't win big matches and the plan is to turn him into a good guy again? Imagine how popular he would be if they didn't spend the last year trying to make people NOT like him.
Section J (floor, next to entrance ramp), Row 25 seats 7-8
ReplyDelete50/50 on whether I hold on to them or try to make a couple/few hundred more off selling them.
I post something similar above. It's scary to think this is how they booked someone they really WANT to succeed. There have been reports that he has attitude problems, and anytime I've heard him talk outside of the ring he sounds like an asshole, so maybe that has something to do with it.
ReplyDeleteIt looked really good, I should try to find it online somewhere. I wonder if 30 for 30 is on Netflix.
ReplyDeleteI can't think of a single time Ryback delivered when he wasn't being carried from bell to bell by an immensely superior worker (Bryan) or a group of them (Shield). The guy is not only an asshole, but a supremely untalented one. I have no idea why they continue to shove him down our throats.
ReplyDelete"Fuck me, Hunter! Fuck me like I'm Dolph Ziggler in contract negotiations!"
ReplyDeleteYou want to create a UFC/Whatever the hell else is going on tonight thread to make up for it?
ReplyDelete30 for 30 is one of the maybe 5 things ESPN has ever done right. The thing is though, while we are all concerned about the journalistic integrity of this when it comes to wrestling because of how notorious wrestlers are for lying, whats to say baseball and football aren't fiercely clannish when it comes to burying dirt? I don't think 30 for 30 scratches the surface on some topics (especially noticeable in the Gretzky trade one, which was brutal all-around.). Is it entertaining? Yes. Informative? Well, that depends on the story, and somehow I don't believe everyone connected to Pablo Escobar really told us the truth during The Two Escobars. It sounded good on the stump, but whether or not it was factual is a whole other matter.
ReplyDeleteThat website was dying a quick death before Justin Henry came along. RD Reynolds went from posting fact-based recaps of gimmicks and events to posting his own personal opinion, and that's when you went from reading funny and entertaining articles to reading one man's egotistical ramblings. The main thing I couldn't stand and what turned me away from viewing the site was when someone else would write a massive article, complete with pictures and audio samples, and RD would add one line, usually something like "I remember this gimmick. I did not like it." and give himself top author credits, meaning it would say that the article was written by RD Reynolds and so-and-so. That's pathetic.
ReplyDeleteJustin Henry, though, is such a good writer. I hate to see RD and his website benifit from him. He's good enough to go solo.
Scott, WWE '13 was a massive improvement over WWE '12. '12 doesn't even belong in the same category with '13. They improved nearly everything, including the grapple system, which allowed you to give wrestlers all of their trademark, technical and power grapples, along with their wear-down stuff like Dragon Screws and Arm Wrenches. No other game allowed that... you always had to choose and sacrifice. Because of that you'd most likely drop Wrist Clutch & Elbow or Armbar for Suplexes and Scoop Slams, for example. That's just one of manymanymany improvements.
ReplyDeleteNow, 2K14 *is* a lot like its predecessor, and thank jebus that it is. I'm so fucking tired of them switching things around each year and calling them innovations. Swapping the pin button around isn't an innovation, you 'tards. The only noticable difference is that the action is quicker and more reminiscent of the original Smackdown games because of it.
If you're unsure, try picking up '13 at a discounted price.
The hell?
ReplyDeleteYou're probably not wrong
ReplyDeleteDude, OF COURSE that happens.
ReplyDeleteThat said, given how craven ESPN is with regards to how it does business, we are lucky we are even getting something like 30 For 30 that is honest as it is. And yes, there are those that are full of shit (the Len Bias one was full of shit in terms of being a blowjob piece) but there are a great deal of great specials there that have a good amount of warts and all coverage to the topics being discussed.
Outside the original 30 documentaries, IIRC only about 4-5 of them are not on Netflix. I have no clue of the second and third waves of 30 for 30 documentaries, or the Bartman one (which took hell and ever to get released due to the documentary maker desperately trying to get Bartman to appear in it) ever got put on Netflix
ReplyDeleteIf you're a wrestler at that level, you are at least in part responsible for your career... but I almost feel like it's not Ryback's fault. Vince seemed to think he was the next Cena (which I'll still never buy, but that's the popular story).
ReplyDeleteHe's no Cena in the ring, but on the other side of things, never got booked in a match like Cena... and wasn't put into Cena situations. He was never given a truly fair shot to get over. They should have kept building him as a face until crowds were BEGGING for him in the main event.
His legs just got chopped off too many times in the past year.
He had a couple excellent ones with Daniel Bryan on RAW... but then again... you could put just about anyone in that role.
ReplyDeleteI honestly just think he has Asshole Resting Face.
ReplyDeleteI love 30 for 30 and growing up my mother who is now in her 60's and from Texas would always tell me about the Von Erichs and how much of a heel(asshole) Fritz was....I cant wait to watch it.
ReplyDeleteThe difference is in the infinite difference of daily mainstream journalism attention real sports get compared to wrestling.
ReplyDeletewhile I appreciate your kindness toward me, I have to say that your opinion of RD's a bit fuzzy. I don't believe he gave himself top author credit intentionally, probably just something he never realized he was doing. I know he'd never done that with anything I've posted.
ReplyDeleteIf anything, RD's been incredibly encouraging and helpful if I've needed a boost. He's as positive an influence as I've ever known, not just in the writing world either. It's rare to find someone as optimistic and nurturing as him, even with his busy life.
It's one thing to not like any change in direction he's made, and that's fine. He'll agree with your right to dislike. But besides that, I don't want you getting the wrong idea about my friend. Without him, I wouldn't have thrived, and I wouldn't continue to thrive.
I originally made a snarky Jesus/friend comment. Thought better of it.
ReplyDeleteCheap license to get a game released in the US, UK, Australia. TNA is still one of Spikes bigger ratings draws and is popular in the UK. Creatively and management wise TN A ain't great but it is on TV in 24 countries outside the US.
ReplyDeleteWrestlemania Moment: Hit the ref so hard he stays down longer then anyone else ever hit in a wrestling ring.
ReplyDeleteI'm starting to think a next-gen WWE Crush Hour needs to be made with more of a Mario Kart engine.
ReplyDeleteI thought the one would have been a better draw.
ReplyDeleteI don't doubt that Shoemaker and Simmons are wrestling fans. All of their wrestling stuff is relegated to grantland. My point is that if there was something positive or non-negative about wrestling then espn is not going to run it on the main site.
ReplyDeleteDefiantly has a wrestlemania 27 vibe to it.
ReplyDeleteYep.. they both were. Even though I was a WWF fan, I enjoyed watching guys like Chris Adams, The Fantastics, Rick Rude and the Dingo (Ultimate) Warrior. it was easily my 3rd favorite wrestling promotion right above the AWA.
ReplyDeleteMy favorite one is probably Elway to Marino for personal reasons, but the Muhammad and Larry one was fantastic. Sad as hell, but fantastic.
ReplyDeleteFor a topic I was so incredibly removed from, I found Pony Excess amazing and end up watching anytime I come across it.
ReplyDelete