NintendoLogic

They're even using his TNA theme. Fucking hell.

Why, um...no, of course not. What ever gave you that idea? *nervously scratches back with tennis racket* I recognize a degree of inconsistency in deploring deathmatch wrestling and revering 90s All Japan. If someone were to say there's no meaningful difference between the two in terms of needless risk and physical toll, I wouldn't argue the point. The distinction for me is partially aesthetic, but it's more than that. Unlike some, I always enjoyed All Japan in spite of the dangerous moves, not because of them. I suppose it's kind of like loving George Carlin despite being uncomfortable with foul language while despising Andrew Dice Clay.

For what it's worth, Omega actually competed in MMA for a while after being released from WWE. https://www.sherdog.com/fighter/Tyson-Smith-22395 I believe he said that his experiences in developmental killed his passion for pro wrestling, albeit temporarily.

That was back when Marilyn Manson and Jerry Springer were huge. Let's keep all that trash in the 90s where it belongs, thank you very much.

None of the announced matches really appeal to me on paper, particularly the outlaw mudshow bullshit world title match. I can't justify spending 50 bucks just to watch a contract signing, but I'll try to follow along as best I can.

Maybe they have sensitive ears and can't handle all the screaming.

Last night highlighted two key ways in which UFC differs from pro wrestling. 1. Titles can change hands on a DQ 2. The kamigoye is illegal I'll stick to wrestling, thank you.

He has to be ribbing us (or maybe trying to frighten Vince into panicking and giving him a new deal). I mean, there's no way AEW would be cool with him spoiling the surprise the day before the show, right? Because otherwise...

The Nation if it were led by Saba Simba.

What the actual fuck

It holds in your gut and makes you look taller by making your legs look longer.

WTF I love WWE now

Who said anything about signing him away? It's entirely possible to have contracts with two different companies. Again, Ibushi himself had a similar arrangement a few years ago. It's not something I'd stake my life on, but I'm convinced it's a real possibility. Whoever it is, it has to be huge. Asking people to fork over 50 bucks with the promise of a blockbuster signing and then giving them Christian would be a disaster. It would take years to undo the damage.

I'm pretty sure they didn't say anything about signing someone to an exclusive contract. And Ibushi used to have a deal where he was simultaneously signed to New Japan and DDT, so that'd be an arrangement he has experience with. Also consider that most of the names that have been bandied about can probably be ruled out based on the clues we've been given. For example, look at the adjective: "Hall of Fame-worthy." Like others have said, if it was an actual Hall of Famer, you'd think they'd just say so. That likely rules out guys like Angle, Cena, and Lesnar. "It's not who you think" would seem to rule out Punk. Tony called the signee "he" on the AEW podcast, which rules out Rousey. He also described the signee as a "major, huge, huge star in the world of wrestling," which rules out someone like Christian as well as someone coming in from MMA or boxing. That pretty much only leaves the tippy-top New Japan guys. And as has been noted, almost all of them are involved in the New Japan Cup. I suppose Naito is a possibility since he got bounced in the first round, but he's part of the advertised lineups for all the upcoming shows and New Japan doesn't false advertise. Of course, it could end up being a giant bait and switch, but I think Tony has too much respect for the fanbase to pull a stunt like that.

All except one: Kota Ibushi. As the reigning IWGP champion, he's not in the New Japan Cup. Not only that, he's not advertised on the cards of any of the upcoming New Japan shows. He wouldn't be needed back in Japan until Sakura Genesis on April 4, so he could show up at Revolution and still have plenty of time to quarantine. He also checks all the other boxes (major star in wrestling, HOF-worthy talent, not who you would expect) and is tight with the Elite to boot. If it is Ibushi, to call it a home run would be an understatement.

The whitesplaining was bad enough, but trying to jabronisplain to THE ROCK is just next level. Also, it looks like that guy is currently training to be a pro wrestler. Way to kill your career before it even begins.

You can't really call them castoffs if they asked to be released or WWE tried and failed to keep them, as is the case for many (most?) of them. If it is Angle, I have faith in Tony to not put him in a position where he'd stink out the joint or make the rest of the roster look second-rate. And when all the WWE-AEW movement is in one direction, it creates a perception that WWE is a sinking ship and AEW is the place people want to be.

Actually, now that I think about it more, I don't even necessarily agree that AEW doesn't sweat the details. They just have a different vision of how to employ those details in the service of the big picture. Like, I'm sure the Young Bucks genuinely believe that a throwaway one-liner about Jericho at the PC improved the promo and was effective at building interest in a grudge match. I disagree, but I wouldn't call it phoning it in. The thing is, AEW has always presented itself as a smorgasbord. Everything they do isn't going to land with everybody, but everyone should be able to find at least something to like. On that note, it sounds like my man Darby Allin didn't do anything last night, and that's a shame.

I haven't watched Taker/HHH at 28 since it happened and have no interest in revisiting it, but I enjoyed it at the time and thought it was far superior to their match at 27. They tried to deliver an epic sports entertainment spectacle and mostly succeeded, while the previous year they tried to deliver an epic wrestling match and failed miserably.

According to Inoki's Japanese Wikipedia page, his Brazilian biofuel venture was called アントン・ハイセル, which would be Romanized as anton haiseru. Maybe it's supposed to mean Highcell or something like that.

A wrestler selling for Shaq is much more respectable than getting gotten to by Soulja Boy. And yeah, if you're a stickler for things making sense and not having your intelligence insulted, pro wrestling is not the sport for you.

In fairness, building anticipation for something people want to see and then delivering does seem like a pretty solid ratings strategy.

If she was tweeting in character, she shouldn't have been since she was coming to the defense of the person she's kayfabe feuding with.

I watched WM28 at a bar. The other patrons were literally laughing at Shawn's attempts to act dramatic.

Vince's mind is a scary place. JJ Dillon told a story in his about about how when he quit the WWF, Vince managed to convince himself that it was part of an elaborate scheme by Dillon to extort Vince for more money to prevent him from airing the company's dirty laundry on the weekend of Shane's wedding.