Category: Wrestling Musings

All posts related to pro rasslin’ that isn’t covering specific shows or events.

Case Closed On Jeff Hardy’s Latest Drunk Driving Offense

Source: https://www.f4wonline.com/news/aew/jeff-hardys-license-suspended-for-10-years-dui-case-closed

So once upon a time, there was a guy named Jeff Hardy. He did rasslin’ things. He also did drug things. He apparently got off the drug things… or so his family says. But then he caught drunk driving. And so he was doing the court thing for quite a while until recently, when Jeff pleaded no contest and the case was closed.

Jeff Hardy’s full sentence is as follows (copied and pasted from the F4WOnline article linked above):

– A 38-day county jail sentence with 38 days credit for time served
– Two years probation
– $4586 in fines and court fees
– A 10-year suspension of his license
– Two years with an interlock device and 90-day vehicle impoundment
– Court-mandated DUI school or drug rehab program
– Community service

So now that the case is closed, cue the folks wondering when Jeff Hardy is going to get back to the rasslin’ thing. And if there is any good sense in the world… not for a very long time.

Will get back to this soon…

Random Thoughts On… Jay Briscoe, PPV Musings, And The WWE Sale

First off, my thoughts and prayers to the family and friends of ROH wrestler Jay Briscoe, who passed away last night in a horrific car accident. Jay, along with his brother Mark, are best known for their run in Ring Of Honor, where they held the tag titles thirteen times. Jay himself is a former two-time ROH World Champion. I was never familiar with the Briscoes beyond word of mouth; they were a name I always hear mentioned, but nobody I’ve watched beyond that one Tony Khan ROH PPV last year, so… yeah, what do you say other than… Godspeed, Jay.

For anyone wondering when the PPV Musings are coming back, well, you’re going to be waiting a while because the first show I intend to muse would be the Rumble in a couple weeks, which is coincidentally when there’s going to be a new edition of the DTM-Cast. As to what we’ll be looking at afterwards… well, you’re going to have to wait a while to find out.

Regarding recent developments in WWE involving Vince coming back, people freaking out over rumored Saudi sales that were proven false, Stephanie resigning and what have you… well, things continue to develop and at this point, trying to add my five cents to a growing pile of junk only to get lost in the shuffle of continually falling spare change is destined to be nothing short of a fruitless endeavor… I have no idea what that means, but the point is that there’s no point in gathering any thoughts and we might as well let it play out and see where it goes… you know, like the usual WWE storyline bullshit that goes nowhere fast.

That’s pretty much all I’ve got for now.

Later.

I Genuinely Don't Care About Ring Of Honor

Your weekly PPV Musings has been put on hiatus because I don’t feel like talking about PPVs anymore. So in its place, I’ll fill the void with some other stuff… such as today’s piece on why I don’t care about Ring Of Honor.

I’m going to clarify that I’m not talking about Ring Of Honor as a whole; my exposure to the promotion during its active years has been minimal, but the few shows that I would watch – be it the Best Of shows that would air on the Fight Network or the rare PPV show – I had enjoyed tremendously. It was never a product that I followed closely, but every so often, I would check out whenever I can.
Ring Of Honor had been around for two decades and when word broke that the promotion would be undergoing a restructuring hiatus, I was somewhat concerned yet unsurprised. The past couple years have been a trying period with the whole pandemic and some companies have struggled to stay afloat while others vanished into the ether. Ring Of Honor plodded along as best as it could, but realized it needed to change. Some assumed that the company would be going out of business. Given that all contracts were null and void – allowing talent to go anywhere else – the possibility was more than likely.
And then one day, on an episode of AEW Dynamite, president and CEO Tony Khan announces that he had acquired Ring Of Honor. Everyone rejoiced. ROH was saved and it was under the ownership of someone who was a fan of the sport and would carry on the legacy of Ring Of Honor. Then the first PPV of the new era, Supercard of Honor, took place and it was a good show. People were hyped and excited.
And then ROH titles and stars started appearing on AEW television. Okay, fine. We need to keep the brand alive until we can get a TV deal. And we can still do the occasional PPV event; Death By Dishonor was the other show they did… didn’t watch it, but I’ve heard good things.
And then ROH titles and stars continued to appear on AEW television… while the guys signed to AEW who were really hot signings that people were excited about seeing was nowhere to be found.
Where the fuck is Miro?
It seems like as time went on, more time was devoted to ROH talent and storylines rather than spotlighting AEW stars on the AEW show that the AEW audience was watching. And the more often I would see ROH on my screen, the more I started to not care about ROH. Because at the end of the day, I watch AEW programming for AEW matches, stars, and stories. That’s the brand I’m interested in, not this half-baked ROH zombie that you’re keeping on life support until you find a TV deal.
Where the fuck is Miro?
So this past weekend, AEW held its final Ring Of Honor PPV of the year. I did not watch it. I’ve heard good things about the show, but I wasn’t interested. (I did see the post-PPV press conference and man, was that a fucking embarrassmentTo be honest with you, I haven’t watched a single AEW PPV since Double Or Nothing. And the funny thing about that is that I not only didn’t watch the shows, but I don’t even know that they’re on until the day of or long after the fact. It’s no secret that AEW is in a bit of a creative lull and there’s a lot of things that needs to be fixed.
This ROH thing is one of them.
Looks like there’s good news on that front; Tony Khan announced that there’s going to be a weekly ROH show… on the ROH Honor Club subscription service and nowhere else. Not exactly sure how that’s a positive in that you have to pay for your weekly fix of ROH, but hey, as long as it gets ROH off my AEW television and we can start bringing back some of that neglected AEW talent, I’ll all for it.
I know I’ve been down on this ROH thing. I’m not the only one, as many people have voiced similar concerns over the overabundance of ROH on AEW. Maybe someday, I’ll be a fan of ROH when it’s its own thing and not something that’s part of the AEW show. I don’t know.
That’s all I’ve got.
Later.
P.S. – Where the fuck is Miro?

How Long Before I’m Accused Of Being An Anti-AEW Bot?

So let me get this straight…

CM Punk – your AEW World Champion – returned to TV last week and clashed with Jon Moxley – your interim AEW World Champion and last night, the two had a bit of a kerfluffle if you will. This match to unify both belts is supposed to be a big deal. Jim Ross went so far to say on his podcast that this could be the biggest match in AEW history. Clearly, if there was a bonafine main event for your big All Out PPV that’s coming in three weeks, this would be it.

So why in the blue hell would you book that match next week on Dynamite… FOR FREE?

I think ol’ TK is starting to lose his marbles. Just when you think things are on the up and up with some good shows, there’s a couple whacko decisions that make me wonder what the fuck. This PPV is in three weeks and they haven’t done much of a good job of building this bloody thing. Give me a reason to watch this show, is what I’m saying.

I’m not upset enough to throw up the Corny Face… but was I ever tempted here.

On the bright side, Danielson/Garcia was top-notch.

THQnordiq Shows Off AEW Video Game With MINIGAMES!

The newest trailer for the upcoming AEW Fight Forever – featuring MINIGAMES – is here.
Looks more arcade-y compared to the other ones, so it’ll probably be easier to pick up and play. I’m not too crazy about the minigames; they look silly and I hope they’re not part of the career mode. Other than that, it looks okay.
I know some concerns have been raised about the graphics, but that’s not a concern. The concern is how the game plays and if it plays great, then the game could look like dog shit for all I care. We’ll see what happens when this game eventually comes out.

Lana Cries Foul At Brock Lesnar Not Being Buried Because He's A Professional

Source: https://rajah.com/node/cj-lana-perry-calls-out-wwe-giving-brock-lesnar-special-treatment-compared-sasha-banks-naomi

Reposting a comment I left on the article:
“What’s the difference between Brock walking out and Sasha and Naomi walking out?”

Drawing and star power aside, Brock came back and did his job, thus making him a professional in their eyes. Sasha and Naomi didn’t. Anyone with one-eighth of a functioning brain could figure this out even if they don’t agree with it.

Oh, by the way, remember when Steve Austin walked out in 2002 because he didn’t want to job to Brock Lesnar? Because I do. And I don’t remember him getting special treatment. He got suspended, buried, and had domestic issues. He eventually came back, but that was months after the fact.

If Sasha and Naomi come back, it’ll be water under the bridge. If not, then it won’t.
There’s having your girls’ backs and there’s being a brain-dead idiot. And unfortunately, she’s not the only one who has this mindset.

Random Thoughts On Vince McMahon’s Retirement

So if you didn’t catch the news this past Friday afternoon – July 22nd, 2022 – Vincent Kennedy McMahon, 77, had announced his retirement from WWE, stepping down from all responsibilities including CEO, Chairman, and head of WWE Creative. The news came amid a series of allegations directed towards McMahon regarding hush money payouts to various female employees regarding personal favors, if you get my drift.

There is a lot to process here and quite frankly, even a couple days after the fact, I’m still trying to find the right words that convey how I feel about this. Regardless of whether the allegations are true or not – and part of me feels that this is Vince making the move to get out of WWE on his terms before external forces would’ve pushed him out if things didn’t go his way – the fact that Vince is actually, honest to god, retiring – as a shoot, brutha – is something that many have thought would never happen. Everyone figured Vince would keep doing this until he very much died… and then found a way to cheat death and run WWE from beyond the grave.

Fact is, if this scandal hadn’t been brought up, he still could very well have been. I say that without a hint of malice or benevolence; just what I believe deep down is the truth. Vince McMahon’s life was WWE, everything he did revolved around WWE, and trying to picture him retired and out of the public eye while WWE is still a thing is almost akin to division by zero; it’s impossible to picture.

And yet, here we are.

There is a lot you can say about Vince McMahon. Some have called him a father figure. Others have called him an asshole. Some have referred to him as a creative genius. Others consider him to be out of touch. Some know him as the man who took his father’s regional wrestling promotion and turned it into a global brand in sports entertainment and beyond. Others have decried him for making a mockery of the sports of professional wrestling. Some will bring up some of the good that he has done over the decades while others will accuse him of things more scandalous than others.

There is, indeed, a lot to say about Vince McMahon. But when all is said and done, one thing remains absolutely crystal clear; there will only ever be one Vincent Kennedy McMahon. Anyone else coming up in the wrestling business will never be able to match up to the incredible life and career that this man has had. They can try, but it’s never going to happen.

One will undoubtedly wonder what WWE will be like now that Vince is gone… and that is another story for another time. For now, all I will say is… Thanks for the memories, Vince. You may have slipped off the wagon in recent years, but it was your product and your performances that made me a regular fan of this genre of entertainment and for that, you have my thanks. Wish all the best in all your future endeavors.

P.S. So now that Vince is gone, does that mean Maria Kanellis is open to coming back to WWE?

P.P.S. Can we start digging up some shit on Kevin Dunn so he can step down and we can have a show that doesn’t look like shit? You can have anybody behind the wheel on creative, but if the camera work and production looks like amateur hour, what does it matter?

P.P.P.S. Congratulations to Tony Khan for being the longest tenured CEO in sports entertainment today. Keep up the good work. (I assume check’s in the mail?)

P.P.P.P.S. Don’t be surprised if this whole thing ultimately blows over and Vince comes back better than ever or however that goes. It’s wrestling, after all. Retirement is another word for extended sabbatical.

P.P.P.P.P.S. I’ve got nothing else. Go away.

Hell Freezes Over As Vince McMahon Retires… For Real

Source: https://corporate.wwe.com/investors/news/press-releases/2022/07-22-2022-210511643

Well… that was a thing that happened.
Seriously, I just got back home a short while ago and this popped up.
So, um… yeah… I guess all it takes a couple dozen allegations to take down the king.
I’ll come up with a proper thing down the road.

No Review Today, Pausing On Dynamites

I’m currently in the dumps… as in I’m writing this blog post on my laptop while in the john and it’s been tremendous fun waiting for the drizzle to stop. It’s that time of year where I’m currently having to put up with some timely bowel pains. Nothing that a few choice medicines can’t fix, but it has taken a toll on the fun stuff that I usually post on this here blog. So today’s regularly scheduled review has been pushed back to Monday and we’ll just continue from there.

As far as Dynamite musings are concerned… yeah, I’m going to pause on those. To be honest with you, I missed the last episode this week, only managing to catch Wardlow’s TNT title win as well as the Christian Cage/Matt Hardy interactions. From all accounts, it was a nothing happening episode of Dynamite with some good wrestling, but nothing important happened. They’re apparently building towards the next ROH PPV, which probably means a bunch of stuff to try and convince people to buy this show. I’m wondering if this is AEW’s way of getting more PPVs on the cycle without actually booking more AEW PPVs on the cycle.
Personally, I’m not all that interested in ROH and quite frankly, if that’s where the focus is going to be, then I might as well give the show a rest for a little while. The fact is that I want to watch AEW for the AEW stuff. The stuff with New Japan and ROH does nothing for me. I don’t care if those shows are going to have good wrestling. I can get good wrestling anyway. It’s not something that’s in short supply at the moment.
When AEW is ready to start building towards their All Out PPV and when we’re done having Mox defend the Interim “I’m Just Keeping The Belt Warm Until Punk Comes Back” title against midcard guys, then I’ll jump back on board, but until then, I’m giving this show a rest. I’ll follow second-hand reports, but that’s about as far as I’ll go. I’ve got stuff to do in the coming weeks and I’d rather focus on stuff that I can get into. Don’t worry about me as far as the wrestling goes; I’ve got that covered.