August 30, 1986
Your hosts are Bruno Sammartino and Vince McMahon
This would be the final episode of "Championship Wrestling" as the show would be renamed "Superstars of Wrestling" and film on the road instead of the dreary Mid-Hudson Civic Center in Poughkeepsie, NY. The improved production values are quite noitceable too on the first show.
In action tonight will be Paul Orndorff, Randy Savage, and Dick Slater will take on Jimmy Jack Funk. Plus, a special coronation ceremony involving Harley Race and much more.
Mario Mancini vs. Randy "Macho Man" Savage w/ Elizabeth
Savage attacks Mancini before the bell then we get an insert promo from George Steele, who is holding a photo of Elizabeth and repeating the word "nice." Savage hits a gutwrench suplex and a slam before heading up top and finishing off Mancini with the flying elbow smash (2:38).
Thoughts: Your typical squash match from Savage as they are going back to his feud with Steele, who is obsessed with Elizabeth.
WWF Update with Gene Okerlund. This week's subject is Billy Jack Haynes, who cuts a promo about how he is in the best shape of his life and in the WWF to face the top competition. Okerlund puts over his finisher, the full nelson, at the end of the segment.
The Gladiator & Mr. X vs. Junkyard Dog & George "The Animal" Steele
Match starts with Steele chasing the Gladiator out of the ring. Mr. X tags and Steele lifts him up in a choke then tosses him down. He then bites open the turnbuckle and puts the stuffing in the face of Mr. X and the referee. JYD tags as we get an insert promo from the Honky Tonk Man, who says that he is coming to the WWF real soon. Before he finishes, JYD gets the win after hitting The Gladiator with a powerslam (2:18). JYD then grabs the mic and welcomes us to the Honky Tonk Man as the crowd couldn't care less. AS Honky grabs the mic, they cut away to Ken Resnick for an interview.
Thoughts: They sure did cut away very quickly when the Honky Tonk Man grabbed the mic. The crowd did not care for him at all. The match was the same thing you get with Steele & JYD whenever they appear on TV.
Ken Resnick is with Randy Savage, who says that he is going to embarrass George Steele at the Boston Garden on Sept 6th. Savage cut a good promo here.
Tommy Sharpe vs. "Mr. Wonderful" Paul Orndorff w/ Bobby Heenan
Orndorff continues to come out to Hogan's "Real American" theme song. The crowd is all over Orndorff as Sharpe surprises him with an armdrag. The crowd is screaming for Hogan as Orndorff regroups with Heenan. Poffo recites a poem in an insert promo about Orndorff an how Hogan will end up winning their war. Orndorff catches Sharpe with a knee then beats him down for a bit. Orndorff hits a clothesline then mocks one of Hogan's poses before getting the win with a piledriver (2:41).
Thoughts: The crowd fucking hated Orndorff with a passion. Orndorff did a good job pissing off the crowd too and really was a good heel wrestler. He knew how to get the crowd into his matches.
Resnick is with Bobby Heenan, who says that the Machines are Andre the Giant and some other American. He then promises that Studd and Bundy will expose the Machines for the frauds that they are when rip off their masks.
Jimmy Jack Funk w/ Jimmy Hart & Hoss Funk vs. "The Rebel" Dick Slater
Slater comes out to a faster version of "I wish I was in Dixie Land." Jimmy Jack attacks Slater from behind outside of the ring after he got distracted by Hoss. Back inside, Slater hits an atomic drop then gets a nearfall with a suplex. Jimmy Jack regains control and hammers away as we get another Superstar Billy Graham insert promo speaking about his return. Slater takes down Jimmy Jack with a Russian leg sweep then hits an elbow smash from the top rope. He goes to bounce off of the ropes but Hoss trips him up as the referee rules the match a disqualification (2:17). Hoss goes into the ring and beats on Slater and attempts to tie him up with his rope but Slater fights back and grabs the rope as the Funk's and Jimmy Hart flee.
Thoughts: This was the last TV appearance by Hoss Funk, meaning this feud did not continue. Slater got some cheers at least but Jimmy Jack Funk was worthless on his own and would soon become a TV jobber until he left the company.
The Flower Shop with guests Capt. Lou Albano and Bobby Heenan, who wants the Machines to come out so he can inspect them personally. He tells Super Machine that he knows him from somewhere as Adonis thinks he might be the "Nightstalker." He thinks asks for the Giant Machine and instead another Machine comes out (Big Machine) then he gets sent back and Heenan asks for him to come out again and Giant Machine comes out as Heenan is confused then gets pissed as the segment ends. The Machines gimmick has already run it's course and with Andre not wrestling, there was really no reason to care about the Super Machine or the new Machine either.
Heenan is now in the ring with the other heel managers and their clients. In the ring is a throne then Heenan brings out Harley Race, who comes out behind a midget that is holding his crown on a pillow. Heenan then reads from a scroll and declares from now on, Race will be known as the "King of Professional Wrestling." Everyone in the ring cheers then Studd & Bundy put Race on their shoulders and carry him around the ring then up the aisle. Race did not look comfortable at all on their shoulders and this segment did not get that much heel heat to be honest.
Gino Carabello & Steve Lombardi vs. The American Express
Carabello grabs a side headlock to start. Rotundo hiptosses Carabello then hits a slam. They have some major miscommunication with an elbow drop spot then Spivey tags into the match and works the arm. Lombardi tags as Spivey overpowers him but more importantly, Roddy Piper is shown in an insert promo saying that he has been granted permission to appear on the Flower Shop. Carabello gets hit with a double dropkick and shortly after that, Spivey gets the win with a bulldog (4:35).
Thoughts: Spivey & Rotundo were getting better as a team but there was too much depth in the tag division so they did not stick out enough to get a push.
Resnick is with Big & Super Machine as they talk about their match in Boston against Studd & Bundy. Half of this show revolved around the Machines.
Adonis interrupts Bruno and Vince, saying that the Flower Shop is his show and he does what he wants as he is pissed that Piper will be appearing on his show next week.
Final Thoughts: This show was heavily dominated by the Machines/Heenan feud and by the end, it was tiresome. The angle was DOA when Andre was too hurt to compete. Besides that, the Piper/Adonis confrontation for next week was the only newsworthy event to happen. They started to make a feud between Slater and the Funk's but Dory would leave the company before that got going. Really not much of a show to be honest.
Here is my schedule for the next seven days:
Saturday: RoH Unscripted 9/21/02
Sunday: WWF Superstars 9/6/86 (Debut Episode)
Tuesday: WWF Challenge 9/7/86 (Debut Episode)
Thursday: RF Video Shoot Interview with Bret Hart, Volume 1
Friday: WWF Superstars 9/13/86
All feedback can be sent to BBayless781@gmail.com
Follow me on Twitter at Twitter.com/MrBayless1982
Your hosts are Bruno Sammartino and Vince McMahon
This would be the final episode of "Championship Wrestling" as the show would be renamed "Superstars of Wrestling" and film on the road instead of the dreary Mid-Hudson Civic Center in Poughkeepsie, NY. The improved production values are quite noitceable too on the first show.
In action tonight will be Paul Orndorff, Randy Savage, and Dick Slater will take on Jimmy Jack Funk. Plus, a special coronation ceremony involving Harley Race and much more.
Mario Mancini vs. Randy "Macho Man" Savage w/ Elizabeth
Savage attacks Mancini before the bell then we get an insert promo from George Steele, who is holding a photo of Elizabeth and repeating the word "nice." Savage hits a gutwrench suplex and a slam before heading up top and finishing off Mancini with the flying elbow smash (2:38).
Thoughts: Your typical squash match from Savage as they are going back to his feud with Steele, who is obsessed with Elizabeth.
WWF Update with Gene Okerlund. This week's subject is Billy Jack Haynes, who cuts a promo about how he is in the best shape of his life and in the WWF to face the top competition. Okerlund puts over his finisher, the full nelson, at the end of the segment.
The Gladiator & Mr. X vs. Junkyard Dog & George "The Animal" Steele
Match starts with Steele chasing the Gladiator out of the ring. Mr. X tags and Steele lifts him up in a choke then tosses him down. He then bites open the turnbuckle and puts the stuffing in the face of Mr. X and the referee. JYD tags as we get an insert promo from the Honky Tonk Man, who says that he is coming to the WWF real soon. Before he finishes, JYD gets the win after hitting The Gladiator with a powerslam (2:18). JYD then grabs the mic and welcomes us to the Honky Tonk Man as the crowd couldn't care less. AS Honky grabs the mic, they cut away to Ken Resnick for an interview.
Thoughts: They sure did cut away very quickly when the Honky Tonk Man grabbed the mic. The crowd did not care for him at all. The match was the same thing you get with Steele & JYD whenever they appear on TV.
Ken Resnick is with Randy Savage, who says that he is going to embarrass George Steele at the Boston Garden on Sept 6th. Savage cut a good promo here.
Tommy Sharpe vs. "Mr. Wonderful" Paul Orndorff w/ Bobby Heenan
Orndorff continues to come out to Hogan's "Real American" theme song. The crowd is all over Orndorff as Sharpe surprises him with an armdrag. The crowd is screaming for Hogan as Orndorff regroups with Heenan. Poffo recites a poem in an insert promo about Orndorff an how Hogan will end up winning their war. Orndorff catches Sharpe with a knee then beats him down for a bit. Orndorff hits a clothesline then mocks one of Hogan's poses before getting the win with a piledriver (2:41).
Thoughts: The crowd fucking hated Orndorff with a passion. Orndorff did a good job pissing off the crowd too and really was a good heel wrestler. He knew how to get the crowd into his matches.
Resnick is with Bobby Heenan, who says that the Machines are Andre the Giant and some other American. He then promises that Studd and Bundy will expose the Machines for the frauds that they are when rip off their masks.
Jimmy Jack Funk w/ Jimmy Hart & Hoss Funk vs. "The Rebel" Dick Slater
Slater comes out to a faster version of "I wish I was in Dixie Land." Jimmy Jack attacks Slater from behind outside of the ring after he got distracted by Hoss. Back inside, Slater hits an atomic drop then gets a nearfall with a suplex. Jimmy Jack regains control and hammers away as we get another Superstar Billy Graham insert promo speaking about his return. Slater takes down Jimmy Jack with a Russian leg sweep then hits an elbow smash from the top rope. He goes to bounce off of the ropes but Hoss trips him up as the referee rules the match a disqualification (2:17). Hoss goes into the ring and beats on Slater and attempts to tie him up with his rope but Slater fights back and grabs the rope as the Funk's and Jimmy Hart flee.
Thoughts: This was the last TV appearance by Hoss Funk, meaning this feud did not continue. Slater got some cheers at least but Jimmy Jack Funk was worthless on his own and would soon become a TV jobber until he left the company.
The Flower Shop with guests Capt. Lou Albano and Bobby Heenan, who wants the Machines to come out so he can inspect them personally. He tells Super Machine that he knows him from somewhere as Adonis thinks he might be the "Nightstalker." He thinks asks for the Giant Machine and instead another Machine comes out (Big Machine) then he gets sent back and Heenan asks for him to come out again and Giant Machine comes out as Heenan is confused then gets pissed as the segment ends. The Machines gimmick has already run it's course and with Andre not wrestling, there was really no reason to care about the Super Machine or the new Machine either.
Heenan is now in the ring with the other heel managers and their clients. In the ring is a throne then Heenan brings out Harley Race, who comes out behind a midget that is holding his crown on a pillow. Heenan then reads from a scroll and declares from now on, Race will be known as the "King of Professional Wrestling." Everyone in the ring cheers then Studd & Bundy put Race on their shoulders and carry him around the ring then up the aisle. Race did not look comfortable at all on their shoulders and this segment did not get that much heel heat to be honest.
Gino Carabello & Steve Lombardi vs. The American Express
Carabello grabs a side headlock to start. Rotundo hiptosses Carabello then hits a slam. They have some major miscommunication with an elbow drop spot then Spivey tags into the match and works the arm. Lombardi tags as Spivey overpowers him but more importantly, Roddy Piper is shown in an insert promo saying that he has been granted permission to appear on the Flower Shop. Carabello gets hit with a double dropkick and shortly after that, Spivey gets the win with a bulldog (4:35).
Thoughts: Spivey & Rotundo were getting better as a team but there was too much depth in the tag division so they did not stick out enough to get a push.
Resnick is with Big & Super Machine as they talk about their match in Boston against Studd & Bundy. Half of this show revolved around the Machines.
Adonis interrupts Bruno and Vince, saying that the Flower Shop is his show and he does what he wants as he is pissed that Piper will be appearing on his show next week.
Final Thoughts: This show was heavily dominated by the Machines/Heenan feud and by the end, it was tiresome. The angle was DOA when Andre was too hurt to compete. Besides that, the Piper/Adonis confrontation for next week was the only newsworthy event to happen. They started to make a feud between Slater and the Funk's but Dory would leave the company before that got going. Really not much of a show to be honest.
Here is my schedule for the next seven days:
Saturday: RoH Unscripted 9/21/02
Sunday: WWF Superstars 9/6/86 (Debut Episode)
Tuesday: WWF Challenge 9/7/86 (Debut Episode)
Thursday: RF Video Shoot Interview with Bret Hart, Volume 1
Friday: WWF Superstars 9/13/86
All feedback can be sent to BBayless781@gmail.com
Follow me on Twitter at Twitter.com/MrBayless1982
Fuuuck. That is genuinely unlistenable.
ReplyDeleteI believe we got Superstars of Wrestling from the outset. They'd just officially run the St. Louis promoters entirely out shortly before that time. They'd come into town pretty regularly, to be fair.
ReplyDelete@SchiavoneTony
ReplyDeleteCommercial. Tenay telling me he hasn't slept since his mom died again. Quietly unplug my headset and stare at Van Hammer Polaroid. #Mmmm
They sadly did use the Oculus mirror with that ridiculous Adam Rose skit, where he saw himself dressed in a suit. I wish I hadn't seen it either.,
ReplyDeleteI loved the Harley Race coronation at the time and still do. Something about all those heels together celebrating one of their own like wrestlings own version of the DC Legion Of Doom.
ReplyDeleteor like klinger bucking for a section 8
ReplyDeleteI agree, another Boom period is growing less and less likely but at the same time another bust is too.
ReplyDeleteAt least before they risked so much on the Network launch anyway.
That was probably the intent all along, focus on the brand and eliminate the valleys of bad business, if that means the peak will never be sky high anymore, so be it.
There is no WCW around for them to still make a decent amount of money.
ReplyDeleteryder does something and the agent is like "wait, you still work here?"
ReplyDeleteThat's a classic. He introduces Mr Slave, puts a gerbil (Lemmiwinks) up his ass, "OOH, JESUS CHRIST!". Great episode.
ReplyDeleteRyan Byers has had an over the top hatred of TNA for years.
ReplyDeleteAw, that was my 12th birthday and I would have been watching Wrestlemania 2 at the time this aired.
ReplyDeletehe actually starts out the column by saying that what he has to say in the column is in no way a reflection of his feelings towards tna
ReplyDeleteThis needs an Onion style headline:
ReplyDelete"Wrestling fan shocked by the use of violence to conclude a storyline."
Then Vince would just market Ryder 'nude bodysuits'.
ReplyDeletehey jef, i saw this and thought of you
ReplyDeletehttp://giphy.com/posts/13-amazing-kate-upton-gifs?utm_source=taboola&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=411mania-411mania
wait, that didn't sound right...
Jesus Christ, Darth Morris is still doing that goddamn schtick? I remember him from the even shittier iteration of 411's comment section circa 2007. It's always sad to see how long some people keep up troll gimmicks.
ReplyDeleteTNA's been pretty decent lately, but WCW also got pretty good right before the end too. So.....
ReplyDeleteI'm not much of a fan of Kate Upton. Her body looks like a sausage with giant tits attached to it.
ReplyDeleteYou're insane dude.
ReplyDeleteBouncy, bouncy....
ReplyDeletei always think of the tribesman on the simpsons when i hear that phrase
ReplyDeleteheh heh
ReplyDeletekate certainly got me up a ton
huh huh
Del Rio was actually my favorite wrestler on the WWE roster. Arguably the best pure in-ring worker in the company, and when he was actually given angles and story lines to work with, a great overall performer.
ReplyDeleteI know it's popular on this blog to trash Del Rio and claim nobody cares about him, but I honestly think that was the fault of WWE, not Del Rio himself. If you think about every other heel on the roster who gets a decent reaction, they're all given material to work with. HHH, Kane, Orton, Rollins, Miz, Bray Wyatt ... even lower-card acts like Sandow and Cameron are at least given a character motivation, a REASON why they're out there heeling it up.
Del Rio? Over the last year and a half, I can recall 3 storylines he was given: the Ziggler feud over the World Heavyweight Championship (in which he pulled a fantastic double-turn), the breakup with Ricardo (in which he channeled some DiBiase-Virgil), and a brief angle with Batista around Elimination Chamber 2014. In all of those stories, Del Rio was good and played his role admirably. But since the Batista feud, he's literally had NOTHING to work with. Obviously, the company respected him as a worker. As recently as last month he was in the PPV main event. WWE would throw him out there to put on good matches, and he delivered against the likes of Daniel Bryan and Roman Reigns and Dean Ambrose and RVD, but there was never any backstory. No character motivation, no angle, no story. Either they thought his in-ring work alone would keep people interested (and for people like me, it did), or they really thought his "character" of being Mexican and ... well, Mexican was good enough to draw heat.
Just a few days ago I compared 2014 Del Rio to late-1990s Dean Malenko. Great worker at best, solid worker at worst, but when the company doesn't give the fans a reason to care about him, he's going to be labeled as boring and heatless.
I really thought Del Rio's recent matches with Reigns and Ambrose, in which he looked really good and even carried Reigns to his first decent singles match, was a sign that WWE might actually have some plans for him beyond, "Hey, go out there and kill 15 minutes." Now we'll never know. It sucks for Del Rio that he let his temper get the best of him if these reports are true, and it sucks for people like me who are fans and liked what he brought to the table.
Oh well. I've been getting into lucha libre lately. Maybe ADR will return to Mexico and work some shows there.
True but they did book Kevin Federline to beat John Cena for no valid reason.
ReplyDeleteStrange how they never bring that up when they mention dumb moments in wrestling.
lol. "chores." more like day labor
ReplyDeleteTMZ
reports that ex-boyfriend for Hulk Hogan's ex-wife, Linda, is suing her
for $1.5 million and taking advantage of their relationship.
Linda Hogan started Charlie Hill when he was 19 years old after she
split up with Hulk. Per Hill's lawsuit against Linda, he claims that
Linda made him do things such as wax her yacht, dig a creek and
fertilize 25 acres of avocado trees, and other various chores.
According to the report, Linda and Hill previously agreed to a
settlement when they broke up. Hill is said to have promised
confidentiality over their relationship, and she allowed him to keep a
truck, dirt bike, and the engagement ring he gave her. He also received
$9,000 payment. However, Hill later did an interview which violated
their confidentiality agreement. As a result, Linda's lawyer, Ray
Rafool has filed a lawsuit against Hill and asked for an order to gag
him.
She's lackin' in the backend.
ReplyDeletewell, it was the spirit, if not the execution
ReplyDeleteYou'd be shocked at how prevailing his belief is though. I expect it out of jealous females but surprised to hear it from guys.
ReplyDeleteTime for history to repeat itself.
ReplyDeleteI wish both would get literally gagged and suffocated. What wastes of human space.
ReplyDelete"Yeah but what I meant was that forever on the internet, people looked
ReplyDeleteback on them like "the fuckin' Kliq, what a bunch of politicking
assholes!""
Honestly, I think that was more about unified hatred of Nash more than anyone - especially later when he went to WCW and continued further "politicking".
I'm shocked that Ryder has survived longer than JTG and Del Rio.
ReplyDeleteThey rewrite history and say that Reigns killed him.
ReplyDeleteI mean don't get me wrong, tits are tits, but the rest of her body just isn't very appealing.
ReplyDelete"tits are tits"
ReplyDeletei believe that's somewhere in the book of BOING
Part of me was curious to read her book to see what she had to say but I just couldn't make myself do it.
ReplyDeleteWas that what that was? I turned away for a second, and then came back and was wondering what the hell happened.
ReplyDeleteIf only Chavo could reprise his Kerwin White character with ADR playing his brother Burt and Homicide as his cousin Nelson.
ReplyDeleteYou wish you could have seen this.
ReplyDeleteFor Piperfan.
ReplyDeletehttp://youtu.be/TZ82-8USv9o
Yeah, that's all it was.
ReplyDeleteThere's a lot of money to be had in fake wins, though.
ReplyDeleteThe copy I had cut out after Adonis interrupted.
ReplyDeleteThe original "Superstars of Wrestling" show turned into WWE's C-level syndicated show "Wrestling Spotlight" the weekend after this when all 3 syndicated shows changed names
ReplyDeleteThis show turned into the Superstars that was WWE's main program for years.
oh there's no doubt, wins in WWE > Losses in WWE. But the option here seems to be Losses in WWE vs Wins in TNA, or indys. 99.9% of the time, the WWE option will be the better one.
ReplyDeleteBetter that than a bunch of segments revolving around the Machines
ReplyDelete25 ACRES?! WTF?
ReplyDeleteNope. Superstars just took over the next week and had the things promised at the end of this show.
ReplyDeleteBecause, Cena lost, lol.
ReplyDeleteYeah.
ReplyDeleteEverybody has different tastes and all, but Kate is pretty hot.
I never saw or really heard much about Oculous so I thought this was a, oh so timely, The Neverending story reference, thought he had visited the Southern Oracle. Either way, it's ridiculous.
ReplyDeleteHe was blown up halfway through the match. Plus, whoever thought having him try to match Ki kick for kick needs to have their head examined
ReplyDeleteThis should make for a fun few days.
ReplyDeleteAgree. Maintain a status quo that is profitable and will not rock the boat
ReplyDeleteI can picture Seth laughing now as he's getting choked.
ReplyDeleteTurns out I was wrong anyway. Looks like KPLR St. Louis even had Championship Wrestling. I don't remember that at all. We may never have gotten that original show with Vince and Lord Alfred because we had Championship Wrestling.
ReplyDeleteYeah it's weird the lengths they go to protect Cena now yet they still inexplicably jobbed him out to K-Fed, Johnny Ace and future rarely used announcer Tensai.
ReplyDeleteThat would be like booking Hogan to beat Andre The Giant, Randy Savage and Ted DiBiase at every turn yet still losing to Regis Philbin, Jack Tunney and Hillbilly Jim.
And because K-Fed was pretty fucking funny in his cheesy heel role.
ReplyDeleteThat reboot was stupid to begin with.
ReplyDeleteI did enjoy him in the role.
ReplyDeleteI liked how Harley was clearly off his ass. Memories of Checkerdome shows *snif*.
ReplyDeleteMy guess is if Ryder did something to try and get fired, he'd actually get pushed, since he got over and was immediately jobbed into oblivion. He's in some sort of weird wrestling twilight zone.
ReplyDeleteOr losing to The Genius?
ReplyDeleteI taped this episode and I remember the coronation getting cut-off because I ran out of tape. Not long after this I only started taping the feature matches of each episode if they had one. If you tape a Dick Slater WWF match, and rewatch it many times, he actually made more of an impact because I remember that two minute match with Jimmy Jack clearly.
ReplyDeleteSee? EVERYTHING IS FINE!
ReplyDeleteWe don't know if the talent is getting paid or if there's a big picture plan beyond next month, in terms of angles and storylines, but EVERYTHING IS FINE!
Holy crap, you're going to be 40! I AM NOT ALONE!!!!!
ReplyDeleteLanny Poffo was a better worker than K-Fed, Tensai and Johnny Ace combined so it's not quite the same thing.
ReplyDeletePlus the general rule of thumb is if you bring in a celebrity, you should bring them in to lose. If they're getting paid well and think it's all fake anyway then they should have no beef with losing. Booking a celeb to win then never appear again does absolutely nothing for the company (How did that whole Snooki deal work out? Oh yeah they got no extra publicity and no extra viewers for it).
I anxiously await Alberto Del Rio showing up and buying the company from Dixie Carter on the next Impact to become the new owner.
ReplyDelete(Wait, what do you mean MVP already did that? Damn.)
She lacks hips and is void of booty meat.
ReplyDelete2/10
She fails from the waist down.
ReplyDeleteThis is awesome. They deserve one another.
ReplyDeleteI can answer your first batch of questions with one word: Hubris
ReplyDeleteDel Rio slapped someone over a racial comment? I didn't know Bill Watts was working for the company again.
ReplyDeleteThis kills off Dixie as the top heel. Now the focus will shift to Lashley, MVP, and Kenny King, and Bobby Roode's pursuit of the title, while Bully & Devon reunite as a tag team.
ReplyDeleteThat's a great word.
ReplyDeleteDidn't make for compelling tv on this night...but it answers my questions perfectly.
Michael Hayes is.
ReplyDeleteThis was taped so far in advance they would have had to juggle shows around to make this the last show.
ReplyDelete...and NO ONE watches their PPV's
Did YOU like the end segment of Impact last night? The heavily hyped pay-off of one of their top angles at their heavily promoted NY tapings...did it really work for you?
ReplyDeleteDon't get this twisted that my comments are some sort of rote anti-TNA bias. I turn the channel to catch the end of Impact hoping to be entertained. If the segment entertained me...I'd have said so. I've got nothing to gain by needlessly tearing a company that I have no direct connection to down.
The segment failed as compelling television. It made no sense. It had no dramatic tension. It highlighted problems that TNA has had for years. If TNA is going away--and I don't see many reasons why they shouldn't--then this failed segment is as good of a way to end it as any.
I watched it and I thought...there are so many things that went wrong here, so many things that they should have gotten right to pay this off, so many things that they needed to do and either didn't or couldn't do to make this compelling.
Do I break down segments like this for other companies? Not as a rule, no. I have huge frustrations with RAW these days. I think in many ways, WWE Creative has lost the ability to consistently tell coherent stories with characters that connect with the crowd (especially when they simply ignore the stories that the crowd would get behind.) I like watching NXT--but they don't do these type of stories and angles (and for good reason.)
But I could do a breakdown of a pay-off segment to a long term program on RAW that highlights the functional difference between what makes compelling television and what doesn't, when compared to this closing segment on Impact. It was a segment on RAW that I wasn't particularly a fan of...a program that I never cared about...but the payoff worked in a way that the payoff on Impact clearly didn't.
It was the end of the Vickie Guerrero storyline...where both Vickie and Stephanie McMahon end up in the butterscotch. There were reasons for why Stephanie forced Vickie into a "match" with her career on the line. There were reasons for why Vickie agreed to it...and why she came out eager to succeed in her match. There were reasons why Stephanie swerved her into not giving her the match Vickie thought she was getting. There were reasons for why Stephanie could send other wrestlers after Vickie and there was dramatic tension in how it went down and how Vickie tried to win... They managed to get a face reaction for a character that has been pretty much nuclear heat heel her entire time in the WWE. And then, there was a reason for Stephanie putting herself in harms way, there was a great moment where Stephanie realized what she'd done, there was a satisfying payoff as Vickie regains her dignity. And yes, that all lead to us being happy to see Steph in the butterscotch in a way that TNA couldn't make us happy to see Dixie get put through a table.
Was it perfect? No, it dragged out too long...the pacing was sometimes off...and, frankly, I never cared about Vickie Guerrero one way or the other... I'm also ready for Raw to be about something other than what happens to a McMahon (it's been, what, eighteen years?)
But that was a throwaway segment on RAW that the WWE managed to do competently. Compare that to this heavily-hyped, end of the show, end of a program, should have been the best thing they could do, segment on Impact...and you should see why this was disappointing.
It made no sense. It was badly done. It didn't work.
And, if you're fighting for your survival...shit like that HAS to work.
It was bad. Predictability had nothing to do with it.
ReplyDeleteAnybody who quits a several hundred thousand dollar per year
ReplyDeletejob, in a unique field where most will never find a similar opportunity elsewhere, has either made enough money, or is a moron.
I think it's awesome he's trolling the TNA fanbase with, "After TNA lost their TV contract I went to Japan to find work as an announcer for NJPW."
ReplyDeleteThat's awesome.
Yeah, Raven in 1999 had options, Kofi Kingston in 2014 doesn’t.
ReplyDeleteTo TNA: Dude your getting a Del...Rio!!!
ReplyDeleteWWE should take the last hour of RAW on Monday and just make it a Lesnar/Cena documentary/hype type thing. Detail the last couple weeks or so and last year's Extreme Rules match + lead-up to that, too.
ReplyDeleteNo way that's really his doing. I don't buy it.
ReplyDeleteEXACTLY. No one watches their PPV's. Why? Because for most of the last 10 years they haven't given the fans reason to. They've wasted their time doing stuff like this. You're arguing that it was a foregone conclusion that they had to do a storyline where Dixie ended up going through a table... I'm arguing that it's all been a massive waste of time. Whether it's been the Main Event Mafia, Aces & Eights, the Hogan/Bischoff Era, or Evil Owners MVP & Dixie, TNA has spent a decade try to redo some variation of the NWO Invasion or Austin/McMahon feud: Angles which themselves both fizzled out because WCW & the WWF dragged them out too long, and which WWE have been trying to redo themselves with little success for the last 15 years. How do you position yourself as an alternative to WWE when you keep doing the same as them, and how do you say that you're better while doing the exact same as them but more poorly?
ReplyDeleteThose same guys would shove their current girlfriends in front of a train for one night with Kate.
ReplyDeleteYeah but del Rio is in a spot where he can make huge money without Vince so fuck it
ReplyDeleteUgh
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely. Saving them money
ReplyDelete"According to speculation..." Well there's a sentence that shouldn't be allowed.
ReplyDeleteWtf?
ReplyDeleteYeah.
ReplyDeleteJoe's title reign was incredibly important to the company.
With a super short Low-ki reign and fucking Xaivier as your only two championship reigns, there isn't much prestige.
Samoa Joe built the RoH house, everything earlier was just setting down a foundation
I always kinda liked that too, and the way they repeated it with every "King" crowned. It was so bizarre to see old enemies of Randy Savage, like the Twin Towers and Honky Tonk Man, suddenly cheering him on at his coronation.
ReplyDelete37 here...got hooked watching the Bulldogs' non-title win over the Dream Team in early '86. Cracks me up reading posts by guys who mention getting initially hooked on wrestling during the Attitude era.
ReplyDeleteThe Cruncher and his nunchucks would like a word with you.
ReplyDeleteIT isn't him. Twitter of the guy doing this isn't verified and Tenay does have a verified Twitter. This would be a modified variation of the troll.
ReplyDeleteThe denial is strong in TNA.
ReplyDeleteI don't go back in time without a red vest and Huey Lewis.
ReplyDeleteDoes she even have 5 bucks to her?
ReplyDeleteHow that company can't sell wrestling in the Southeast... oh yeah because they don't give Southern fans what they want.
ReplyDeleteIf that Del Rio story is true I'm glad they fired him and I hope he is black balled from the industry.
ReplyDeleteShe doesn't have that great of a body either.
ReplyDeleteSave your breath. People never seem to get that.
ReplyDeleteI'd guess that most of the people reading this are unhappy with their job to one degree or another but keep doing it because they need to get paid.
ReplyDeleteHe'll go back to Mexico and make bank, I'm certain.
ReplyDeleteBlack balled for defending himself from a racist?
ReplyDeleteI couldn't care less that Del Rio got fired, yeah I saw he had some skill in the ring but to me he was just sooooo boring.
ReplyDeleteTJ: Saw GotG last night, GREAT movie just all around. They had a lot to do in one movie and pulled it all off. Every one of the team got some great moments and some very funny lines. The villian did seem a little on the weak side character wise but that's a minor gripe. I gotta say Batista really surprised me, I expected him to be kinda cringe inducing but damn did he nail the deadpan funny lines. I still have to see it again for a full opinion, but I would say it was pound for pound better than Avengers. And the after credit scene: AWESOME!
ReplyDeleteShe will never learn with arrogant comments like that.
ReplyDeleteDo you know what the alleged racist comment was? We don't. But i do know that I hate how wimpy and scrared this country has become just from words.
ReplyDeleteAgreed
ReplyDeleteDodges she even watch her own product? There are plenty of times the fans got behind somebody and he was jobbed out and shunted down the card.
ReplyDeleteHow the fuck come those dickbags (tm Adam Curry) at gawker get my favorite radio show canceled over a dude trashing some black beeeyatch on twitter but they don't fuck with the wwe over racist ass shit like this, come on gawker fuck with the wwe
ReplyDeleteHer comments are so pathetically off base I doubled checked that quote in Google to make sure she actually said that because I thought it might have been a parody. No she said it and that is just soooooooooo stupid. Craziest shit I've ever heard a McMahon say
ReplyDeleteSupposedly at catering they told some social media worker to clean his plate and he said that's adrs job. Adr got in the guys face, the guy laughed like Del Rio couldn't do anything about it, Del Rio slapped him around
ReplyDeleteDon't worry about USA basketball in this world cup thing. We just replaced Kevin Durant with Rudy Gay!!!
ReplyDeleteThey may use strategy for their characters but that strategy is usually about as good as that of Custer.
ReplyDeleteyeah I started watching during the run up to WM 1. I'm 41 now. Bunch of younguns talking about the "good old days" of the Monday Night Wars.
ReplyDeleteFuck that.
ReplyDeleteWell, when you describe the woman that way, it makes sense that was your favorite radio show.
ReplyDeleteI remember Superstars, Challenge, Spotlight, and also All-American Wrestling being syndicated WWF shows, plus Primetime and SNME of course.
ReplyDeleteUr the man bro!!!
ReplyDeleteJust checked this out as I didn't know about it and surprisingly they've got it showing on the WWE YouTube account
ReplyDeleteYou can't hit people though. I'd have fired the guy talking shit to Del Rio and then suspended Del Rio but I'm easy on punishment. I'd have also hired the racist guy back in a month or two after this blew over with the boys and give him a second chance
ReplyDeleteI heard talk that he purposely stunk the joint up to make the workrate fans hate him more. I don't know if I buy that or if he was truly that terrible.
ReplyDeleteThe racist thing is what is being claimed at the moment. No proof of whether or not it's true, so for Gawker to tackle it right now would be jumping the gun and potentially embarrassing if they ended up getting the facts wrong.
ReplyDeleteThis is the same team that's going cut Boogie Cousins over Mason Plumlee.
ReplyDeleteNot disagreeing with you, but other than Ryder I'm having a hard time of coming up with recent examples of that. Bryan this past fall was technically jobbed out and shunted down the card for the Wyatt feud, but he was protected throughout all of that.
ReplyDeleteGawker jump the gun and call for someone's head without all the facts and context??????????? No way
ReplyDeleteTwo quick observations, sorry if anyone already said this, but 1) Why the fuck do they need to employ a social media manager, if not more than one, and 2) if I'm a WWE talent, I don't tweet shit unless it's completely in character.
ReplyDeleteStephanie says the dumbest/most arrogant stuff out of any of the McMahons. A little while back there was some mockery of HHH because people thought he claimed to have ruled the Attitude Era "with an iron fist", but Stephanie was the one who said that.
ReplyDeleteDream team 3.0
ReplyDeleteIf by Dream Team, you mean that team that placed 3rd(I wanna say in '06), then I agree.
ReplyDeleteCould team with Plumlee and Gay as there stars in the NBA win 25 games?
ReplyDeleteThat's probably the exact number of games they'd win.
ReplyDeleteImplying Gawker has credibility.
ReplyDeleteThis didn't say anything about racism. But even if it did then yes, slapping someone is unacceptable behavior. Go to HR that's what they're there for.
ReplyDeleteAll-American aired on USA Network Sunday mornings (and was WWE's first weekly USA show, before TNT or Prime Time existed).
ReplyDeleteYeah but what if this guy called Del Rio poopy?
ReplyDelete#FightingWords
Ziggler, though they seem to be getting behind him again. Christian in 2005, and arguably again in 2011. Cesaro got the 2nd loudest pop behind Bryan at WM and is dead in the water right now.
ReplyDeleteI will say that they are a lot better about this than they used to be even 2-3 years ago, but Stephanie's comments are revisionist history, at best. They haven't "made a megastar" since Stephanie happened to overhear Cena freestyle before they fired him.
Poopy is obviously a bridge too far
ReplyDeleteWho knew that they hired Vince Jordan to be Steph's speechwriter?
ReplyDeleteYou can go to hell and die for saying that.
ReplyDeleteThe correct verbiage is "You're the man now, dawg."
ReplyDeleteWhen in doubt, always quote Connery.
The 9/11 comment is still more embarrassing.
ReplyDeleteOh yeah that was way worse, Stephanie may be slightly out of touch I think
ReplyDeleteDamn, that is some shitty grammar.
ReplyDelete"...arguably the best pure in-ring worker in the company..."
ReplyDeleteOh, I'll argue the SHIT out of that. I'll agree the dude was talented, and that he kinda got screwed over in the character department. He even has some natural charisma (but not that much, in my opinion - they should've never broken him up with Ricardo, because not only was that the most entertaining part about the character but it went fucking NOWHERE) ...but c'mon, dude. Bryan is RIGHT THERE.
Oh, when your parents are Vince and Linda McMahon, and you marry the guy that may be the son Vince always wanted, you're definitely out of touch.
ReplyDeleteWhile I think he went about it the wrong way, there are plenty of people in the industry who have done much worse.
ReplyDelete...Canada?
ReplyDeleteI'll contend that ADR could hang right in there with Bryan. In fact, wasn't that Bryan's last good match before he got hurt, a random RAW match with ADR that was good on both sides?
ReplyDeleteCouldn't say, I haven't watched regularly in years. I DID happen to catch the match ADR had with Reigns on Smackdown a little while back, and that was the match that finally turned me around to "okay, he may be boring, but he's a talented wrestler." So of course they let him go soon after.
ReplyDeleteThe last Raw I watched live was the one where Lawler had a heart attack. Maybe I should just stop watching, I think I'm cursed.
I thought this would be Professor Griff :(
ReplyDeleteToday you've got 18 year olds talking about getting hooked wayyy back when John Cena beat the Big Show for the U.S. Title. And they refer to Wrestlemania 14 as one of the early Wrestlemanias. And it's always been WWE. Beloit College needs to start doing a mindset list for young wrestling fans.
ReplyDeleteOh, Scotty.....oh no....don't do me like that.
ReplyDeleteDenial is not just a river in Egypt, it's also a river through your soul.
Would you rather watch the vignettes surrounding Outback Jack?
ReplyDelete