Category: Wrestling Musings

So since it’s been a couple days since the announcement of the WWE Network’s Canadian portover was announced, I might as well chime in with a couple cents. I had considered doing this in “vlog” form (and maybe I will), but I just want to jot my thoughts down quickly.

For the uninformed, WWE and Rogers Communications signed a deal that would not only grant Rogers broadcast rights to various WWE shows (RAW, Smackdown, NXT, etc.) for the next ten years, but also gives them distribution rights to the WWE Network. In regards to the network, it’s presently only the live feed and not the on-demand stuff that most people would probably care more about… although they say it’s on the tables or something.

My feelings are mixed in this regard. On the one hand, I’m glad that WWE Network is finally making its way over to Canada (even if it’s part of the Rogers network that may not make it to Bell systems), because it means no longer having to shell out 50 to 60 dollars on substandard PPV offerings. But on the other hand, the only real selling point for me (the on-demand archives with all the old stuff) isn’t part of the deal… and that’s the only reason why I’d considered the Network to begin with.

Maybe I should consider a workaround after all.

From Dave Meltzer, F4WOnline.com, and stolen from Scott’s Blog Of Doom:

Two Stars Not Expected to be at RAW This Coming Monday: Brock Lesnar and John Cena are not expected on the next episode of RAW.

Way to promote that hot Summerslam main event, boys, by not having either one of your participants show up for RAW to push the show! Absolutely brilliant. You know, John Cena used to rail on the Rock for not showing up to WWE events despite not having reason to do so beyond the Wrestlemania payday he didn’t deserve… and yet here’s John Cena taking a week off to do fuck all… and he’s the one who’s defending the title for a big PPV.

That just leaves us more room for Paul Heyman to re-iterate his tired rhetoric (not shitting on Heyman here, who’s brilliant as always, but there’s only some much you can do before that schtick gets tired) and also more room for that “compelling” Brie Bella/Stephanie McMahon drama that is “awesome” and so “exciting”.

The last time I felt the same level of “excitement” and “awesome” as I do with this Brie/Steph storyline was back in 1999 when Jake “The Snake” Roberts was drunk out of his mind and waving around a snake like a surrogate penis at an independent PPV. But then again, I’d probably have to be drunk out of my mind to enjoy this tripe. I’ll tell you what; if they present this in a way that’s interesting – presumably by having Brie take acting lessons and looking for other insults besides “female dog” to shoot at Stephanie; I would suggest “Roided Horseface” or “Macho Sperm Rag” – then I will proceed to praise this like the second coming of Austin Vs. McMahon…

On second thought… maybe not. That’s too high for these chuckleheads to achieve.

From 411mania.com:

According to The Wrestling Observer, the last issue of WWE Magazine produced by the company itself will be in October. The Magazine will have been in operation for thirty years; it first began as WWE Victory Magazine in 1984.

There is still the possibility that another publisher will pick up the magazine, with WWE licensing the magazine name to them. This probably isn’t that surprising of news as print media has been dwindling down in many forms over the past several years, from magazines to newspapers.

Well, it was going to happen sooner or later, with print essentially being something of a dying medium. And while it’d be hard to imagine a world without a WWE Magazine, I can take solace in the fact that, at the very least, it would have died while a lesser form of itself.

Original Source: http://www.wrestlenewz.com/wwe-news/wwe-reveals-latest-wwe-network-subscriber-count/

WWE announced today that they have 700,000 WWE Network subscribers.

They previously announced 667,000 subscribers on April 7th. They added 161,000 subscribers since then but also lost 128,000, a difference of 33,000.

Anyone who wagered close to 700,000 can now collect their winnings in the appropriate betting pools.

Riveting details after the break…

Continue reading “My client, ARR TRUTH, defeated Bo Dallas’ streak at Monday Night RAW.”

Once upon a time, the WWF Rulebook was akin to a bottle of Jack Daniels… there was no rulebook. Shit happened and you just didn’t question it. When you watch this stuff transpire on television, there was no way in hell you could claim that this was a real sport. And when they try to inject “reality” into the mix with backstage politics and things of that nature, the whole thing came off as hokey and unbelievable.

At the same time, however, the ride it offered was a fun one and it had compelling characters and storytelling that made you come back for more, just to see where things would go. Whether it was Austin vs. McMahon on the WWF side of things, or watching Bill Goldberg mow down challenger after challenger to see who would be the first to break the streak, there were enough hooks to keep your interest and make you forgive the horrid stuff that came along for the ride.

1998 was the year I started watching as much wrestling as I could muster and I simply couldn’t get enough of the stuff. And then 2000 came along and we got actual wrestling matches. And they were good! Turns out I not only enjoyed the crazy hijinx, but I also enjoyed the wrestling matches, especially when they featured really talented badasses in the ring.

Real sports didn’t do it for me. The only appeal to hockey or baseball or things like that would be to watch them live in the arena and soak in the experience of sitting in the crowd, taking in the sights, sounds, and smells, and just enjoy the moment. Beyond that, however, it wasn’t anything special. It was a bunch of players in same looking uniforms going through the motions to win a game. Nothing to pique my interest until the final moments of the season when you had a few teams left over to win the championship.

When I thought wrestling was real, I didn’t follow it. But when I got what it was all about, I was able to get into it more. It was the kind of thing that I enjoyed for whatever reason that I can’t explain. I still watch wrestling to this day; even if it’s just the WWE stuff when it’s at its weakest. But it’s nowhere as high a preference as it was decades ago. Only have a couple favorites that I enjoyed watching, but with one fucked off to better things and one on the verge of an extended hiatus due to injury, I find myself struggling to find something that’s worth my while.

Who knows? Maybe something amazing will happen that will re-ignite my love for wrestling, again.

Stranger things have happened.

John Cena overcame the odds, making his match with Brock Lesnar at Summerslam a title affair. Try and act surprised when that gets announced tomorrow.