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Post by J12 on Jun 22, 2018 15:25:41 GMT -5
Looking forward to it. Haven't enjoyed the last couple of seasons, though (OTT not withstanding.)
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Post by J12 on Jun 22, 2018 12:22:54 GMT -5
I've been planning to get one for a little bit now. My best friend just got his first two and sort of upped my desire to follow through with my own.
I'm working on a couple of ideas inspired by the band in my signature, The Wonder Years. A lucky break sort of fell into my lap yesterday, though.
The band's moniker for years has been a cartoonish drawing of a pigeon, affectionately named Hank. It symbolizes a lot for the band, and to me personally. I wanted to incorporate Hank into my idea in some way. Well, the original artist, who has never done commission work for his Wonder Years pieces, offered up hand drawn Hanks in exchange for donations to any number of charities helping to reunite children and parents separated during the border crisis. I put in a donation, and will be receiving my own Hank shortly.
So now it almost feels like I have to do it, since it became that much more distinctly personal.
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Post by J12 on Jun 22, 2018 12:15:34 GMT -5
I don't have a dog in this fight, because I didn't like the original show or the return, but I'm glad that everyone else involved isn't being punished.
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Post by J12 on Jun 22, 2018 9:48:58 GMT -5
At this point, I don't really see how there's any way he doesn't at least tie it.
And that's fine. Miz is one of the only relevant IC Champions of the last several years, and he's become one of the best and most reliable acts in the company.
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Post by J12 on Jun 22, 2018 9:46:15 GMT -5
This sucks, for sure. But, let's be honest here, it may wind up being a really good thing for him. After that Lashley feud, he really couldn't get much lower on the card. It's time for a refresh.
That sounds horribly painful, though. Wish him the best.
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Post by J12 on Jun 22, 2018 9:45:10 GMT -5
This is really interesting. Still feel bad for Itami, but at least he's going to get some additional opportunities.
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Post by J12 on Jun 20, 2018 10:34:21 GMT -5
Carmella came off like Alexa Bliss-Lite last night. Not good.
The gauntlet was really interesting and a lot of fun. Bryan/Big E had one hell of a match, and it makes me want to see Big E take on a more serious role all that much more. That dude is really talented. Rusev came out of left field, but I like it. It's a great little program for a B level Pay-Per-View, and it buys time before they move to (I assume) AJ/Joe at Summerslam.
I don't think we're getting Bryan/Miz this month. I assume they save that until Summerslam, at least. My guess would be Kane is coming in for a brief stint with Bryan against Harper & Rowan, which is just about the only way I could ever imagine wanting to see Kane again.
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Post by J12 on Jun 19, 2018 14:19:36 GMT -5
What a fall from grace for he and Enzo, jeeze.
No future endeavor note is interesting. He must have REALLY pissed someone off to be dropped unceremoniously like this. Big guys get every chance in the world, and then a few more after that.
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Post by J12 on Jun 19, 2018 9:58:53 GMT -5
Oh, that gauntlet is gonna be good.
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Post by J12 on Jun 19, 2018 9:56:39 GMT -5
People need to see the forest from the trees with the Ziggler situation. Ziggler won the title so McIntyre could win the title. Also, Rollins lost the title so he can move up the card. He's the top babyface on the show. He could legitimately face Brock at SummerSlam imo. I think Rollins is primed to win the Royal Rumble and WWE is just letting this build happen naturally. Rollins is the guy they've been trying to create with Roman Reigns for 4 years. It happened organically, too. After he was away from the title and when they gave him time to shine with no expectation. Triple H ing loves Seth Rollins. Don't think he doesn't know that Rollins is being wasted on the IC Title when he could be on top. The Ziggler/Rollins match was great. The crowd was hooked and there were some great kickouts. I can't believe how they popped for that famouser spot. Also, Ziggler's promo work has been great lately. So the internet can not want to give him credit but he's still awesome and this is the best he's been since 2014. I just wish he'd change his tights and music. Hopefully this ends up being Ziggler's singles Mania match. They'll go on a run of terror and then turn Drew babyface and have him go over Ziggler. They need to add another guy so it's a stable. Zack Daddy seems like the no brainer to me. The first half or so of Raw was great. I thought everything through the B Team promo was good to great. Then the show fell off a cliff. Ronda was amazing in her segment. Her sh*t talking Alexa after she put her through the table gave me legit goosebumps. Damn near every time she's out there it's another pleasant surprise. I'm really happy to see how well she's clicking so far. I also think it was smart to do the suspension to give us a reprieve from that feud so we can get the Nia rematch and then go back to Ronda for SummerSlam. I think it's important to note, too, that last night was a character building moment for Seth. He could've complained about Ziggler pulling the tights, he could've complained about McIntyre getting on the apron, but he didn't. He lost because he's so much of a fighting champion that he doesn't know when to quit and let his body rest for a night. That's the story they told, and it makes Seth out to be a huge babyface, and the antithesis of Brock Lesnar.
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Post by J12 on Jun 18, 2018 23:45:27 GMT -5
Didn’t care much for the rest of the show, but I thought Ronda was great again tonight. Sending her home for 30 days is smart. She’s going to get a huge pop when she comes back.
They’ve got a star on their hands.
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Post by J12 on Jun 18, 2018 15:38:56 GMT -5
Toooooo many titles.
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Post by J12 on Jun 18, 2018 15:37:47 GMT -5
As far as we're aware, Bryan hasn't signed a new deal. So, on one hand, you can't fault WWE all that much for not going all-in with him right out of the gate.
By the same token, by not going all-in with him right out of the gate, they're probably stoking the fire just a little bit, making him more interested in testing the waters.
Regardless of whether Bryan signs a new deal or not, I don't think he's ever going to be in the position fans want him to be in. He, like every upstart babyface on the roster in the last 5-6 years, has been, and will continue to be hampered by Vince McMahon's unwavering, psychotic obsession with Roman Reigns. There's simply no room for anyone to upstage the guy, even if they're not even on the same show.
I should note, though, that Bryan's matches with Cass have been telling. Vince McMahon wouldn't just let any undersized guy make a huge guy tap out cleanly twice. It says something about the doghouse Cass is supposedly in, but it also shows that they are invested in Bryan, at least to some extent.
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Post by J12 on Jun 18, 2018 15:31:38 GMT -5
I absolutely hated MITB with a passion. For me, the show was absolutely ruined the second Alexa ing Bliss won MITB. I could not enjoy anything else after that. There are so many reasons why that was the dumbest move they could have made: - They literally JUST got Alexa out of the title picture? They can't even go 2 and a half months without her on top?! - Money in the Bank is a great match to get someone in the title picture who hasn't been there in a long time, or at all before. Becky, Ember, and Sasha all fit that perfectly. Alexa Bliss was champion THREE MONTHS AGO! Why on earth does she need to be in the title picture again so soon?! - They couldn't give Nia Jax a decent length title reign? What was the point of making her champion if they didn't want to stick with her?! - Minus a couple of minor blips, Alexa Bliss was champion from December 2016 until April 2018. Why on earth do they think that wasn't long enough?! Her reigns were terribly dull, and almost EVERYONE has come out of every feud looking like a complete joke. Bayley, Mickie James, Sasha Banks. Do WWE really want to continue killing their RAW Women's division?! - If they wanted to cop out of Nia/Ronda, why choose Bliss?! Why not Sasha or Ember? If they didn't want a decisive winner, why make the match?! - After how well letting Charlotte lay low for a while worked out last year, why not do the same for Alexa? Just like with Charlotte throughout 2016 and the early part of 2017, Alexa Bliss' CONSTANT dominance has really made me unable to stand watching her, no matter how good her mic skills are. I had hoped they'd give Alexa a lengthy break from the title picture, but the fact that they have refused to do so has ensured that I will continue to be unable to stand her. - Becky really deserved the win tonight. Sasha's gimmick is perfect for MITB. MITB would have been a great way to break Ember into the title picture. All of those would have been excellent choices. Alexa Bliss was a ing awful choice, and the absolute worst choice they could have been made. Even Natalya or Lana winning would have been better!!! After this, I'm done with the RAW Women's title picture until Bliss loses the title permanently. WWE really know how to kill interest in their championships. Both the Universal and RAW Women's title pictures are now dead to me. I understand the frustration of having Alexa hold the title again after just getting out of the title picture, but I don't think it's quite so nonsensical. Becky, Ember, and Sasha are all babyfaces and MITB is better as a heel gimmick. Obviously, the match was designed with what would play out later in the title match in mind, and you don't really want a babyface cashing in on (technically) two babyfaces. You don't want a babyface beating the crap out of Ronda with a briefcase right now. They booked themselves into a corner with Nia. It appears, in hindsight, that they never even really wanted the title on her all that much to begin with, but they basically had to give it to her because of the way they handled the Nia/Bliss feud. If you look at Nia's performances over the last couple of months, you can see that she just wasn't clicking and they were obviously looking for a way out of her title reign without throwing the belt on Rousey immediately. They made the match because it was a big talking point at the NBCU Upfronts. You have to remember, they're booking to engage the mainstream media now, not the wrestling fan. It may not always be pretty, but it is what it is and now that they're going to a major network TV station, they're going to be doing it more, not less. Did letting Charlotte lay low actually work well? She's been a total mess of a character since her title reigns stopped, and she's regressed in the ring and on the microphone. Not to say the same fate necessarily would or wouldn't await Alexa, but Charlotte is not a good example of a character benefiting from time out of the spotlight. She's been in a terrible spot since going to Smackdown.
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Post by J12 on Jun 18, 2018 12:49:35 GMT -5
Styles/Nakamura was very, very good, especially given the fact that I find Last Man Standing matches to be pretty bad/boring as a rule. They finally redeemed themselves. Rousey/Jax was excellent. Brilliantly booked. Alexa cashing in was a perfect way out of the match without hurting either of them. Ronda is unbelievably good already. First, I agree with Rousey and Jax. Second, I don't agree with the concept of redeem. I thought this was the ultimate encounter for them and it more than delivered. But there was nothing to redeem. You had a well built up story stemming from Wrestlemania. Obviously I would have done it a different way where it builds to Wrestlemania, but WWE went a new route. I think of it like this. Tomasso and Gargano had two great matches back to back. Their first was incredible. Their second was alright. They did so much on their first encounter, t hat they needed to up it to insnae levels this time. I expect their third one to involve chains and vehicular assault. They did too much the first time, that the second was alright until the end. AJ and Naka did what they had to do to make us want more and mroe each time. I honestly want another match. With Gargano and Tomasso, I'm cool if they ended it as it is now crossed into absurdity. I agree with pacing a feud to build to a payoff, but I don't think AJ and Nakamura did that. I feel like they just flat out under delivered, multiple times. This feud hasn't been about "oh man, where can they go next?", it's been, "when will they finally click?" It felt a lot like the Styles/Owens feud from last year, to me. We kept getting match after match and assuming eventually they would knock it out of the park because they're AJ Styles and Kevin Owens, but they just never did. Thankfully, Styles and Nakamura seem to have gone out on a pretty high note.
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Post by J12 on Jun 18, 2018 11:25:07 GMT -5
So, another over hyped house show with some big names? K.
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Post by J12 on Jun 18, 2018 11:23:15 GMT -5
First two matches were excellent, Women's title match wasn't very good, NXT Championship match was good, Ciampa/Gargano was incredible. This is the best feud in NXT history, hands down.
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Post by J12 on Jun 18, 2018 10:09:01 GMT -5
I usually loathe stuff in the vain of Post Malone, but he's completely self-aware of how he comes off. He's a gimmick and he knows it. He also happens to be incredibly talented.
This is crazy.
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Post by J12 on Jun 18, 2018 10:03:50 GMT -5
Thought Bryan/Cass and Rollins/Elias overdelivered, though I'm not nearly as high on the Rollins/Elias match as most people seem to be. This card needed a couple over-deliveries and it got them.
I thought Zayn/Lashley was bad, and more or less fit in with this entire angle and Bobby Lashley so far.
Women's MITB was excellent, save a couple of "save" delays that took me out of it temporarily.
I disliked Carmella/Asuka and while I'm fine with Ellsworth coming back, I'm not interested in that gimmick being in the title picture. Would've definitely gone with Asuka here. Carmella has zero credibility.
Styles/Nakamura was very, very good, especially given the fact that I find Last Man Standing matches to be pretty bad/boring as a rule. They finally redeemed themselves.
Rousey/Jax was excellent. Brilliantly booked. Alexa cashing in was a perfect way out of the match without hurting either of them. Ronda is unbelievably good already.
Men's MITB was a huge letdown. It felt disjointed and poorly paced. Really disliked Braun winning. He doesn't need it, it doesn't make a whole lot of sense, and there were other candidates that could have made really compelling television (see: Miz.)
Hindsight being 20/20, I think they should have closed with Rousey/Jax.
Mixed bag of a show. The good was really good and the bad was pretty bad. Huge improvement over Backlash, though.
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Post by J12 on Jun 17, 2018 22:19:04 GMT -5
Not keen on Braun with the briefcase at all. I thought Miz was the pretty clear choice there. Owens being a close second.
Not a very good match, either. The women outdid them by a long shot.
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