C.S.

When WCW was around, WWE used to promote their "freedom of speech" of not taking away signs, etc. How quickly things change when there's no real competition.

I doubt it, since the season ended on a "cliffhanger" (lol) with the Bellas not wanting to sign their new contracts + Eva Marie and her husband having marital problems.

To a certain extent, it is. I mean, NXT is one of the most watched shows on the Network. Even saying only 10% of Network subscribers watch NXT, which is probably an absurdly conservative number, that's still 100,000 viewers, which is likely twice to three times the number of people who were following ROH. Plus, NXT is also on Hulu Plus. Even if only a tiny fraction of Hulu's customers watch it, that's still more exposure than ROH. TNA, ROH, etc. are fucking dumb for not trying to get on some kind of streaming service.

And he'll be inducted by Bruno. http://www.rollingstone.com/culture/news/larry-zbyszko-wrestlings-living-legend-to-enter-wwe-hall-of-fame-20150316

When I saw this topic, I was really hoping it was going to be about bitching over old school stuff. There's really none of that on this board (or elsewhere) because everyone naturally cherry-picks the good stuff.

I do too. I don't know if she's mentally ill or just suffering the ill-effects of a traumatic childhood and bad break up with H/split from WWE, but it's a sad story either way.

I doubt Vince regrets not getting into MMA. Just because something is successful doesn't mean it's necessarily a good investment for him. He clearly has no interest in it or passion for it, so why bother? That's like expecting Vince to invest in Chipotle because they're successful, even though he might not care about Mexican takeout food at all.

My thoughts on some of the NXT wrestlers mentioned in this thread: Becky Lynch: WHAT character?! Seriously, what IS her character? She doesn't really have one IMO. CJ Parker: Not sure why he's still a jobber. He always looks good and gets heat, and he actually has a character, unlike some. Bull Dempsey: I like him a lot, but he looks like a male Rosie O'Donnell with his long hair and women's bathing suit tights. He needs to up his presentation considerably. Solomon Crowe: Only saw his debut and wasn't impressed. He looks like a modern-day Blue Meanie, and not in a good way. (I like Meanie.) Tye Dillinger and Jason Jordan: I thought they should have gotten the push Blake and Murphy received. Vaudevillians: Like most NXT tag teams, they haven't really had any classic matches. But their gimmick is great. Can it succeed on the main roster though? Enzo and Cass: Their act would succeed on the main roster right now, but they probably need more ring-time first. Nothing wrong with that. Enzo is still in his rookie year, I believe. Baron Corbin: He has the push, and...that's it. I'm not a fan. Needs another year or two. Hideo Itami: This will be controversial, but he hasn't connected with me at all. I don't know if he's being forced to hold back in the ring, but I find him bland for the most part. He's even worse as a character, but I understand he's still learning English. The only match I've really liked is the one he had with Breeze - not their most recent PPV match, but the one a few weeks earlier. A heel turn might help? But I hate saying that, because it feels like the stereotypical "every foreigner has to be a heel" mindset. Still, Tajiri and Hakushi were both way more over than he is. Yeah, I said it. It's the truth!

Double post.

I'm surprised the WWE is interested in the Briscoes, especially when one of them is a homophobic douchebag and complete liability to a corporate-minded, publicly-traded company. No matter how good they may (or may not) be, they're not worth the potential headaches. It's not like either of them are the next Rock or Cena, especially in a company that has historically de-emphasized tag team wrestling.

Joe confirmed on Jericho's podcast that "there's some negotiations going on" with WWE. http://wrestlinginc.com/wi/news/2015/0307/590123/samoa-joe-confirms-wwe-negotiations/

Another pick: Modern-day Ric Flair. I don't mean the wrestler or the proud dad of Charlotte - I mean the bitter asshole on pre-shows, roundtables, etc. who snaps at every little thing and acts like a total dismissive dick. Meanwhile, no one would dare disagree with or correct him, because "he's Ric Flair."

Baron Corbin? Yeah, I know... Did Charlotte start with NXT? Bayley? Edit: Even if they did, I believe the women are trained separately anyway - by Sara Del Ray. Either way, I don't want to look like I'm defending Demott - I'm not - and he's gone now anyway. This is the first I've heard of that, and it's a weird thing to say about Cornette of all people, who definitely drew money.

I love that most of the reasons you hate Brock is because of the contract he was given. The mic stuff is a weird complaint as well, because Heyman does his promos for him. If you don't like him in the ring, that is a different story. Hating on him for his contract he was offered is silly though. I don't hate him for getting a big fat contract and making a fat wad of cash - good for him - but I do hate the effect it has on the overall show and how that affects me as a viewer, which is a totally different thing. Good for Brock, bad for me - and I'm gonna side with myself. I don't like him in the ring either.

Could the influence of a notorious malcontent like Punk have anything to do with it?

His third book is especially bad in this regard. He comes across as such an obnoxious, drunken asshole. I don't blame Punk for distancing himself from Jericho. I'm not about to defend Demott, but hyperbolic posts like this is where it gets ridiculous. 1. Who the hell did Bruce successfully train? And don't say Goldberg, whose rise to stardom had very little to do with what Bruce taught him. The Regal match proves that Goldberg was pretty lost in the ring early on. Good job, DeWayne Bruce! BTW, Bruce was also an abusive tool - according to Batista's book. 2. Demott was actually a decent wrestler. Very agile for a big man, with a certain level of charisma. Main eventer? No. But he could've been used better in WCW for sure. With that said, he could've been the love child of Ric Flair and Rey Mysterio, and that still wouldn't excuse his actions. Look at the season of Tough Enough that Austin hosted. Demott was an absolute cunt. He kept calling that poor kid Ryan Howe "Skidmark," just because Howe was a thin, blond, pretty boy type - exactly the kind of guy you'd figure Demott would instantly hate - but I always found it unfair, because this kid's career was basically snuffed out by an insecure bully. Who knows what potential Howe might've actually had?

I've never listened to Cornette's podcast, so I don't know who this Alice is - but posting her pics rates pretty high on the creep-o-meter for me, and I'm not sure what the point of it was, as she's by no means unattractive. Even if she's the worst co-host ever, I can't imagine her even coming close to some of wrestling's bottom feeders. I'm not too familiar with Colt Cabana either, but boy did he act like a pompous, self-righteous dick to Mick Foley a few months ago. https://twitter.com/coltcabana/status/538571108887564289 Really, Colt?! My pick: Brock Lesnar. I understand the "big star" and "train wreck" appeal he brings to the table, but I just don't care. He's dead weight on the mic, boring to me in the ring ("BROCK WITH HIS 50th GERMAN SUPLEX OF THE MATCH, MAGGLE!"), and his limited dates do more harm than good IMO. I can recognize his good points, but that doesn't mean I have to find him entertaining. I don't. I really hope he does return to UFC after WrestleMania, because I'm sick of him. I was the only one who thought John Cena winning Brock's first match back was the absolute right move to make. It only seems bad in hindsight because Vince later made the ridiculous decision to hand Brock the Streak. I'll also second Randy Orton. He hasn't excited me since he was a cocky pretty boy rookie. It's a shame he went away from that and embraced this horrible, ill-fitting, "bad ass" Viper role that he's not even close to being tough enough or convincing enough to pull off.

This is not insignificant. On most, if not all, nights, this means you're basically watching a different show. Usually better, but completely different. And whose fault is that? Not his. I can't see any reason why WWE isn't airing the full show on Hulu. It's ridiculous.

Amazingly sloppy by WWE's normally very high standards. Usually they've always been top-notch about preserving their footage...even dating back to the '70s and '80s. I wonder what the hell happened here.

I didn't pay for his website, but he did apparently have a lot of unique shoot interviews with people who haven't really done any other podcasts or DVDs. Chyna is the obvious one, but he also snagged guests like King Kong Bundy, Big Vito, etc. Even though someone like Big Vito may not seem as "exciting" as CM Punk or whoever, I'd bet a guy like that has a lot of great stories to tell. But like I said, I didn't pay for Russo's site, so I have no idea if the interviews were any good or not. Either way, as the poster above me pointed out, there are so many free options now that it's hard to imagine too many people paying for Russo's site - even if he did (apparently) get guests no one else had.

The hell? https://www.facebook.com/officialvincerusso

Call me crazy, but I believe Russo over Meltzer on this one. Unless Lucha Underground is fucking stupid, they're not going to be hiring the guy that took a crap all over Mexican wrestlers/wrestling in that infamous interview from 15+ years ago.

LOL. Well, in addition to your post, I was talking about PWO threads in general when it comes to Rusev. After Rusev/Sheamus, people here were calling that a MOTY contender. I was like "really?!" Fun match, yeah, but come on now.

Most of the finishes either came out of nowhere in a bad, clunky way or just flat out sucked - with the worst of the night going to Dean Ambrose and Bad News Barrett. WTF was that? The only thing that didn't come out of nowhere was that RKO. Randy's return felt flat and lifeless, which is a shame, because it should've been good. I'm glad Kidd and Cesaro won the Tag Team Titles. I'm shocked that they'll be the "it" team going into WrestleMania (assuming they don't lose before then). They deserve it. Goldust vs. Stardust sucked, because it was hyped as an ass-kicking and ended up being anything but. I can only assume Goldust took Dusty's advice about not killing his brother. Poor Dusty was so obviously scripted, and it hurt the segment. Just let Dusty loose! How hard is that? Stupid WWE writers. I love Stardust's new look though. Am I the only one? I thought the HHH-Sting segment was absolutely fantastic, and I haven't cared about their feud before now and don't consider their pairing a dream match, but credit where credit is due for a damn good angle. The WCW aspect is weird though and seems 15 years too late. LOL at the usual PWO banter about Rusev having a "match of the year." Those kinds of comments only happen on this board. Rusev is a lot of fun, and I like him, but please... With that said, it was cool seeing him beat Cena. Bray Wyatt is the most overrated guy on the roster and seems like no threat whatsoever to the Undertaker. I am not in the least bit excited or interested. Daniel Bryan made Roman Reigns look like a million bucks - something that sluggish slug Randy Orton was unable to accomplish at SummerSlam - but I'm disappointed with the finish and couldn't give two shits about Brock vs. Roman.

I can't agree with the notion that commentary isn't necessary or important because you don't hear it at live events. Live events and televised shows are completely different experiences. The feeling of being there can't be replicated by watching it on TV, and certain things about watching it on TV can't be replicated at the arena.