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Post by ahunter8056 on Mar 19, 2019 10:05:03 GMT -5
I'm really sick of all the kayfabe breaking that seems abundant at the minute. We're up to three different WrestleMania rivalries that have broken kayfabe so far by using real people's names instead of their ring name. And who knows how many more will follow that trend in the next three weeks?
Firstly, obviously we had Ronda breaking kayfabe to ridicule the entire industry on social media (dumb move whichever way you look at it).
Then we had Triple H talking about "Richard Fliehr" (no need for it).
And now we have Drew McIntyre talking to "Joe" rather than "Roman". This one isn't as bad as the other two, considering Roman referred to himself as "Joe", which is where McIntyre is coming from. But this brings the count up to three, and that's just way too much at once.
I really hope they realise that it's entirely unnecessary. I don't know about anyone else, but I just find it jarring. Why continuously break the fourth wall?
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Post by ahunter8056 on Mar 19, 2019 9:56:28 GMT -5
Managed to order an Elite Curt Hawkins from Amazon for £18.95. Arrived today - wasn't so sure it would be Curt, given the random code in the title but it was. Also ordered the USO's elites from Amazon too...£19.95 each. Interestingly that the seller is listed as being WWE DVD UK...?? May be 3count.co.uk I think they're owned/run by same people as WWE DVD UK but I've not used them before. Yeah, 3 Count is definitely run by the same people as WWE DVD. Not used them before either, but their stock on their website seems decently priced.
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Post by ahunter8056 on Mar 17, 2019 7:38:31 GMT -5
After watching a little bit of nL playing the Fire Promoter mode, I'm interested in purchasing Fire Pro World. I wouldn't mind some outside opinions to suggest whether the mode is for me or not. Waiting for the game to be in a Steam sale, so I'm guessing I've got plenty of time.
For me, I always liked the idea of EWR, and I have tried playing it on multiple occasions. But I've always found that in EWR there is way, way, way too much micromanagement, with the player having to keep on top of hundreds of different things each week. Is Fire Pro Promoter the same, or is it far less intensive? Because that's really what I'm looking for here. Something along the lines of EWR in terms of running your own company, but made much more streamlined and with much less micromanagement.
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Post by ahunter8056 on Mar 16, 2019 9:49:23 GMT -5
I both agree and disagree to an extent.
For one thing, gimmicks are good when they're unique, have a purpose and stand out. Gimmicks like Ultimate Warrior, the Undertaker, Kane, the Rock. They're all great gimmicks, with huge connection to the audience. Occupational gimmicks like Repo Man, Duke "The Dumpster" Drose, Matt Striker less so. Those types of gimmicks where it's just "choose an occupation" are just incredibly poor, and rarely create a connection.
To retort to your question of "we all know it’s fake. So why wouldn’t we just watch real fights then?", I am not interested in real fighting in the slightest. I find real fighting barbaric and I really do not understand the appeal of watching one person try to cripple another. I find that sickening, personally. Besides storytelling of course, what draws me to wrestling is the knowledge that they're not actually trying to hurt each other. They're trying to protect each other while providing athletic entertainment. If I did not know that, I would definitely not be watching professional wrestling. While I know not everyone shares my point of view, I'm sure there are enough that do.
While I think there should always be at least a few gimmicks around, I do really enjoy having people that are presented as relatable humans. In fiction, relatability is very important in getting the audience invested. Professional wrestling is no different. That's the main reason why I enjoy listening to podcasts. Hearing the life story of the people behind the characters really helps get me invested in their wrestling career. You can't get that with wrestlers who have a strong gimmick.
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Post by ahunter8056 on Mar 15, 2019 6:45:08 GMT -5
Honestly, I think this should be the end of the Gargano/Ciampa story. It's come full circle. Ciampa doesn't need to claim revenge upon his return, because he got what he deserved. I could write an essay on how much I love their story. I honestly believe it to be the best story ever told in pro wrestling history. But I honestly think they've taken it as far as it could possibly go, and there's nothing else they could do without repeating what they've already done.
I think this week was the perfect ending. It doesn't get any better than that.
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Post by ahunter8056 on Mar 13, 2019 15:48:13 GMT -5
As respectfully as I can possibly put it, Undertaker simply cannot wrestle to the level he used to anymore. All of his matches since WM29 have been poor. There's a reason Cena VS Undertaker last year lasted less than three minutes. Even with an entire year off, he clearly just can't go anymore.
It doesn't matter who he faces. I just can't get excited for an Undertaker match anymore, for the reasons I outlined above.
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Post by ahunter8056 on Mar 13, 2019 11:26:54 GMT -5
Last night's SmackDown Live was fantastic for promos.
First we got the promo between Randy Orton and AJ Styles. That was fantastic. I honestly wasn't super interested in this match until last night's promo, but now I am. "King of the Indies" VS "Mr WWE" gives it that depth to make me invested.
Then we had Becky Lynch's promo on Ronda Rousey. Becky once again shows her good her mic skills and connection with the crowd are. Her lines about Ronda were hilarious! She spoke with exactly the right inflections, and paused for exactly the appropriate amount of time to be heard perfectly above the crowd.
So yeah, two excellent, memorable segments last night for me. There are usually ups and downs, but those two promos were better than anything else I can recall recently.
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Post by ahunter8056 on Mar 13, 2019 11:16:54 GMT -5
Pyro and unique PPV stages would be the first things off the top of my head.
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Post by ahunter8056 on Mar 13, 2019 11:10:22 GMT -5
For me personally, a figure has to be in an attire I like for me to purchase it. For AJ, his Carolina Blue attire is my favourite, which is why I have my eye on the upcoming E66 AJ. But given that that figure doesn't come with an entrance jacket, I'd feel something was missing without it. And the Top Picks AJ jacket is the closest to it. I'll just wait for someone to sell the jacket loose on eBay. To be honest, I'm far more miffed about missing out on Top Picks Finn Balor than AJ. That's my favourite Balor attire. You can get TP Balor for about £25 shipped from Amazon US, or again try Ringside. Edit: Just checked, using the Ringside, WFIGS code, you can get the TP Balor for £21 odd shipped - same for TP AJ. There won't be any customs charge, because the value of the figure itself, is only £12.99. Thanks for the advice, but I'm not dealing with international shipping. If I can't purchase it from within the EU, then it may as well not exist. I might change my stance if I read up on customs and can be 100% sure that I wouldn't be charged extra, but at the minute I don't see international purchasing as an option.
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Post by ahunter8056 on Mar 12, 2019 18:10:43 GMT -5
Nobody would give WWE credit regardless. And why should anyone? It's entirely about trying to get the money whilst maintaining a vaguely okay image. They're definitely not going to Saudi Arabia to try and break down social barriers. Exactly. Triple H can give any excuse he wants, they're not helping things in any way by going there and giving into their demands of no women. Refusing to go there and deal with them until they meet their standards would make a bigger impact. If WWE were genuine about wanting to change their ideals by wearing them down with requests to allow women to be involved, I'd admire their ambitions. But I highly doubt a wrestling company is going to change an entire country's ideals. That would be incredibly naive on their part, if it was a genuine excuse to go over there. They had to apologise for merely showing women during a video package, for s sake! They're clearly not going to stop living in the Middle Ages anytime soon. More than that, if WWE ever reached the point of getting them to reluctantly agree to allow women to be involved in any way, I'd be genuinely concerned for their safety.
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Post by ahunter8056 on Mar 12, 2019 12:19:00 GMT -5
He's already been in and sold out once - it was £35 then iirc. Of course they're not coming to Smyths. Nobody in the UK has these, so they are exclusives in all but name, atm. Ringside is probably cheaper in the sale - if they have him. Mine from Ringside cost me about £37, 'cos I got hit with a customs charge. Maybe they'll turn up in the Entertainer later on. I mean I didn't realize people cared that much about the attire. Having the actual superstar is enough for me unless they drastically change. For me personally, a figure has to be in an attire I like for me to purchase it. For AJ, his Carolina Blue attire is my favourite, which is why I have my eye on the upcoming E66 AJ. But given that that figure doesn't come with an entrance jacket, I'd feel something was missing without it. And the Top Picks AJ jacket is the closest to it. I'll just wait for someone to sell the jacket loose on eBay. To be honest, I'm far more miffed about missing out on Top Picks Finn Balor than AJ. That's my favourite Balor attire.
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Post by ahunter8056 on Mar 12, 2019 10:40:12 GMT -5
Got an email from Wrestling Shop today to notify that the Top Picks AJ Styles Elite is in-stock. Shocked at the price. Are these Top Picks not coming to Smyths? Are they just being marked up at WS because they've yet to arrive elsewhere? I didn't expect these to be exclusives.
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Post by ahunter8056 on Mar 11, 2019 21:34:49 GMT -5
It's a real shame that you're not able to engage with Becky Lynch. Honestly, while creative have really botched this storyline as of late, that blame falls on creative. Not Becky Lynch. And even then, it's not so bad that it's become ruined. I'm not going to address every single point you made, but I've got a couple of things to retort:
There's no such thing as an "illegal elimination" in a Royal Rumble match. The rules are simply that a competitor is tossed over the top rope, with both feet landing on the floor. Doesn't matter how it is achieved, just that it happens. Is it unfair in the context of kayfabe if a competitor is eliminated by someone who shouldn't be there? Yes. But illegal? No. Furthermore, from a storyline perspective, Becky Lynch's actions were not completely unwarranted. In kayfabe terms, Nia Jax is the one who broke her face and took away her biggest match to date on one of the biggest shows of the year, and then repeatedly ran her mouth about it. Could anyone blame Becky Lynch for wanting to make sure that Nia didn't end up winning?
It doesn't matter that Charlotte had been in the match for a long time. She was still playing the role of cocky, sadistic, physically larger heel acting as a roadblock in Becky's path. All those attributes made Becky the underdog, fighting on one leg and not giving up. One of the key defining roles of a babyfaces is to be perseverant.
Biggest marquee women's match of all time is Charlotte VS Ronda Rousey? No. And all of the crowds wholeheartedly chanting for Becky throughout all that's gone on the past few months don't think so either. We already saw Charlotte VS Ronda at Survivor Series. We never got to see Becky VS Ronda. It doesn't matter that you aren't personally invested in Becky Lynch. You don't have to feel personally attached to realise that Becky Lynch has been the most popular superstar in the company for the past few months. Crowds have gone crazy for her, and hellbent on chanting for her even when she wasn't there. Becky Lynch is a big star, whether you like it or not.
Lynch is "all bark and no bite"? Did you watch Hell in a Cell? Evolution? She dominated Charlotte Flair, causing Charlotte to pretty much lose her mind and switch back to a sadistic, arrogant heel. In 2018 she had quite a long winning streak on SmackDown Live before Summerslam. Just because they've made booking mishaps in the past when it comes to Lynch, doesn't mean that she doesn't deserve to get big wins going forward. And are you seriously going to cite Lynch's real life injury during the invasion as her looking weak? That's the moment that people really grabbed onto for her looking strong! Standing tall grinning with her face covered in blood, that image went all around Twitter and really made people pay attention. That can't possibly be regarded as a low point.
I think fans disagreeing with the Austin comparisons are pretty much rendered obsolete when the man himself agrees. Austin has stated recently that he agrees with the comparisons people have made between himself and Becky.
People love Becky Lynch because she's engaging, and right now she's just badass. She refuses to ever give up, and makes no apologies, nor holds back on her words. She has a history of putting on great performances and creating show-stealing matches. She's been very funny in promos in the past, and has always came across as 100% genuine. And let's be honest, who doesn't love puns?
The bottom line is that Becky Lynch connects with audiences and resonates with people. That's why they're pushing her so hard (while making questionable creative choices along the way). That's what pro wrestling is all about. You don't have to like it, but you have to respect the fact that she's incredibly popular with the fans right now.
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Post by ahunter8056 on Mar 11, 2019 13:07:31 GMT -5
I think that was the best NXT TV episode of all time. I've been here from the actual start and seen some great matches, but Holy ing $hit. Every match or promo in between on that show was absolutely insane I'm so ed up about Ciampas injury now. When the DIY song hit I legit popped. Then again I think it saved them from their random, premature Call- up Yeah, I completely agree. I watched every single episode of NXT last year and have been watching every single week since, and I still say that last week's episode was the best one out of all of them, even so soon after watching all the rest. Every single match was exceptional, every segment in between was great and advanced the other storylines. And that moment when #DIY's music hit? It was perfect. I think the week before was a contender for second best. I really hope NXT can keep this up.
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Post by ahunter8056 on Mar 11, 2019 12:56:32 GMT -5
This was honestly a pretty good PPV, considering how awful a lot of PPVS have been for the past couple of years. A long-term problem I've had with PPVs is that there don't tend to be any surprises anymore. Surprises are what make PPVs memorable, in my opinion. The formula for the past couple of years at least has been "match happens, predictable result occurs, the end". That's quite a dull formula when it happens every single time without alteration. However on this PPV, we saw the surprise inclusion of Mustafa Ali, the surprise altercation between Beth Phoenix and Nia/Tamina, the jiggling around of Kofi Kingston (like it or not, it certainly wasn't something I expected). We also saw a heel turn for Shane McMahon, and the kickstarting of a rivalry between Orton and AJ (I know Orton made a snide comment about AJ last week, but that was just the foundation).
I quite enjoyed Mandy Rose VS Asuka. Okay, we all knew Mandy stood no chance, because she's just not ready for a championship run yet. But it felt refreshing to see her get her first singles opportunity. It appears that they're splitting up Mandy & Sonya (though obviously they strongly teased it back in November and it never happened). I think they need to split to reach their potential.
I kind of hoped Johnny Gargano would make the save for Kofi, given that he's from Cleveland, has a history of being a strong babyface hero, and the New Day were banned from ringside, and Gargano is supposed to be on the main roster now. I can only assume he's sticking around in NXT, now that Ciampa is out.
I really liked the ending of the Triple Threat RAW Tag Team title match.
Boss 'n' Hug Connection VS Nia Jax & Tamina was a pretty solid match. I'm glad that Boss 'n' Hug Connection were portrayed as getting more offense in. To be honest (and I don't think I'm saying anything revolutionary here), Nia and Tamina are just not a good team at all. Nia is a strong heel who can attract major heel heat, but Tamina has never elicited a reaction from anyone for anything. She just makes Nia look weak for needing her around, when Nia should be portrayed as a lone, dominant monster. I'll be honest here. I was really hoping Sky Pirates would debut to make the save for the Boss 'n' Hug Connection. After WWE uploaded that video of the Boss 'n' Hug Connection making the save for them at an NXT Live Event, I thought it would make sense for them to return the favour. It would be a strong way to debut, and they seem ready for the main roster. But Beth trying to make the save was a solid substitute, I guess. I wouldn't mind seeing Beth make a short-term comeback. It worked for Trish & Lita, and it worked for the Bellas, it can work for Beth. Plus, her teaming with Natalya is probably the only way I'll ever be even slightly invested in anything so strongly connected to Natalya.
I really enjoyed the match with Becky and Charlotte. I thought the video package beforehand was really well edited and the music fit perfectly. They told a perfect story with lots of little details, like Charlotte mocking Becky's hobble, and Becky repeatedly swatting at thin air. I'm thrilled that they made the sensible choice and get Becky in the match at WrestleMania. Like many others though, I'm going to state that it's ridiculous how convoluted and nonsensical they've made this storyline. Becky should never have had to earn her way back into the match to begin with. At least they didn't go with the insane possibility of keeping it to Charlotte VS Ronda.
The Shield reunion was made out to be a much bigger deal than I thought it was. But it feels like this is truly the last time. Otherwise it would be dumb to have invested so much energy into this. I wonder what this Dean leaving storyline is going to lead to.
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Post by ahunter8056 on Mar 10, 2019 12:10:16 GMT -5
Went to go see 'Fighting with my Family' last night. It was such a great film! Loved it so much. Even though the wrestling fan in me was irked by a couple of things, it was so well done that it didn't matter. Definitely want to see it again, it was that good! Waited over a year for this film to be released, and it was worth the wait!
Non-wrestling fans who don't understand the appeal of professional wrestling definitely need to watch it. The film did such a fantastic job of explaining the appeal to a broad audience. Both people watching the film with me were non-wrestling fans who at the end commented that they had "a new appreciation for wrestling".
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Post by ahunter8056 on Mar 8, 2019 8:20:44 GMT -5
Far, far, far too much kayfabe breaking going on at the moment. I don't care if everybody knows the ins and outs of professional wrestling nowadays. You wouldn't watch a regular TV show and have the cast breaking character constantly throughout. Why should wrestling be any different? You wouldn't be watching Doctor Who and have Jodie Whittaker pause and say "you know this time travel plot? It's not real".
And how does it make any sense for a wrestler to belittle the industry they're in? It's Brock Lesnar "I don't watch the show, Paul!" all over again...
Any fictional TV show, all the characters think they're in that world, and behave accordingly. None of them are self-aware that they're just characters with actors portraying them (obviously comedies are an exception). Wrestling should be no different. Why the creative team seem to think otherwise is beyond me.
Breaking character like the Four Horsewomen embracing at TakeOver: Brooklyn, that's the kind of kayfabe breaking I can support. It gives the audience more reason to care. But having a wrestler break character to take the piss out of the industry and feed into the common misconception that non-wrestling fans have? That's bullcrap.
I was a fan of Ronda after her amazing performance at WrestleMania 34, but I really don't give a crap about her anymore after what creative have had her say for the past couple of weeks on social media.
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Post by ahunter8056 on Mar 8, 2019 8:18:18 GMT -5
Just NXT and the big 4 four PPVs for me, really. I consistently watch the YouTube clips of RAW and SmackDown Live that WWE uploads the morning after, every single week though. I don't have access to the full shows, but I probably wouldn't want to sit down and watch the entire thing. I do watch every episode of NXT: UK, but I never watch it live anymore, I just have it on in the background during the weekend while I do something else. It's just not entertaining enough to grab my attention the way NXT does.
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Post by ahunter8056 on Mar 7, 2019 11:10:29 GMT -5
Was this the "huge" breaking announcement scheduled for today? Not really that big if you ask me. WrestleMania is still WrestleMania, regardless of where they host it. It could take place on the Moon and it wouldn't make any real difference to me. Perhaps I'm just thinking selfishly, but I was expecting bigger news.
Logo is certainly unique though.
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Post by ahunter8056 on Mar 7, 2019 8:20:48 GMT -5
2012 heel Daniel Bryan was entertaining. 2019 heel Daniel Bryan is the most boring superstar on the roster.
So easily 2012 heel Daniel Bryan by miles. Wrestling is sports entertainment, and if you're not entertaining, you're doing it wrong.
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