El-P

I think he's undervaluing the fact that we're in 2016 and not in 1970 too. I love the idea that Eric Bischoff, Vince Russo and Paul Heyman of all people are responsible for guys like AJ Styles & Daniel Bryan (two objectively great, great wrestlers) becoming stars in the 10's. Eric "nWo Hollywood" Bischoff, Vince "David Arquette" Russo and Paul "Sandman & RVD" Heyman. Oh, the hilarity. And yes, Jim Ross & Jim Cornette (whom I have defended for way long before I just couldn't stand some of his shit) are acting like two old fucks lost in an era that doesn't exist. Lucha Underground rules, people.

I like creepy. And it seems like in 95/96, the WWF had its share of creepy characters and vignettes. Hell, I dunno why, but it seems like the vignettes from that timeframe resonnated with me in a peculiar way, in that I still hold them in a special place. Not all of them, but for instance I really liked the Fatu "Make a difference" stuff. Probably because I was a big Head Shrinker fan and a Fatu single push sounded nice to me. Plus I enjoyed the smooth ghetto-but-friendly vibe. But like I said, I like creepy. The Mankind stuff in 1996 was some of the most intriguing stuff I've ever seen to that point. Plus I had no idea who Cactus Jack was since I hadn't really seen any WCW or ECW at that point. So yeah, those promos, and the genius of the two different music themes. This was insane. I think people have forgotten how brillant this stuff was and only think of good-old (and annoying crowd panderer) Mick Foley these days, but the early Mankind shit was the best character introduced on WWE TV since, well, the Undertaker (expect much better all around). Creepiness was also a huge part of the appeal of the Goldust vignettes to me. Loved the music. Loved the super bizarre promos and Dustin's delivery, with the shots of Hollywood on green screens. Probably to this day, my all-time favourite vignettes. And yeah, I realize Vince Russo had quite a bit to do with them, so I gues that 0,01% of his contribution to the business was his peak and only streak of greatness. Then, let's say the debut left me a bit puzzled. The robe and wig was great, but Dustin's work wasn't very impressive at first. Really, Goldust didn't click on TV before Marlena came around. Then it was a winner. Finally some glamour back on WWF TV (which had been gone for years now). Another case of great vignette/not so great debut was Waylon Mercy. Those vignettes, to this day. Well, pretty much what I've said about the Goldust ones. Spivey was incredibly spooky and creepy in those. I don't think I had seen the Scorcese movie yet, so some stuff flew over my head. In the ring, it wasn't as impactful though, as Spivey was physically shot and it showed, although the piano music was wonderful and Spivey's "character work" was immediately great too, with truly disturbing facials and fake politeness. Funny, as I also remember the whole Body Donnas stuff well. Goofy but sexy thanks to Sunny and promising of good in-ring stuff thanks to Candido (whom I recognized from old WWF magazine talking about Smokey Mountains in 93). No idea why these years were the most stricking to me. I even loved the Jean Pierre Lafitte "old pirate tells story about his ancester" stuff Maybe because he was throwing a few words of french in those. Yeah, 95/96 was a good time for vignettes to me.

Cool to see some of these pics again. Well. As far as promotion I watched as it happened : WWF from 96 to Summerslam 98 ECW 95-98 roughly WCW 96-97 ARSION from 98 to 00 Hey, there's a pattern here (although I watched most of the ECW stuff a few years after the fact)

Not to mention people gushing over 60 years old Jerry Lawler matches, the fact we all pretty much praised past 40's Tenryu's career as one of the best ever, or even I singing the praise of physically washed up but smarter veteran Shane Douglas on TNA PPV from 2003 as well as Raven's work in 2004 when he was already past his physical prime himself. Not to mention the smarkiest, most obnoxious bunch of pro-wrestling fans ever in the ECW Arena Mutants treating past 50 years old Terry Funk like a deity. Not to mention the old fuckers lucha guys being revered and still packing crowds for their last mask matches, the japanese veterans always being showed shitloads of respect by their audience etc... Wanna talk about the nWo and those pesky young guys Hulk Hogan, Kevin Nash & Scott Hall jumpstarting the last boom in pro-wrestling history, before 55 years old Vince McMahon became the biggest heel ever ?

Thanks for the answer. I was really just referencing this though :

Qu'est-ce que c'est ?

Because some old fucks are acting out like old fucks. That's why. The whole "it's not as it used to be, these young pricks don't know what they are doing and they play X-box instead of drug raping rats" is indeed old fucks talk. So there. They are the one making their age an issue. Likewise some young pricks who don't know shit and get worked by an MMA troll on Twitter. The old fuck Jericho was the only one carny enough to make a smart reply.

A lot of what I read here is not ageism at all. It's valid points. And yeah, older pro-wrestling as probably never been appreciated more than before.

Come on. The biggest show of the year is built around nostalgia and old fuckers.

What is your level in Japanese at this point Dan ?

This is so right ! Ozaki's nemesis : Dynamite Kansai Ozaki's archenemy : Chiggy Megumi Kudo's nemesis : Combat Toyoda Megumi Kudo's archenemy : Shark Tsuchiya

No matter how Corgan is an egomaniac, how the current Pumpkins are irrelevant, I love the fact he's a true pro-wrestling fan at heart.

Flair's nemesis : Steamboat Flair's archenemy : Hulk Hogan Ricky Steamboat's nemesis : Ric Flair Ricky Steamboat's archenemy : Randy Savage Randy Savage's nemesis : Hulk Hogan (way too many times on the same side of the track despite real-life loathing) Randy Savage's archenemy : Ric Flair Raven's nemesis : Sandman Raven's archenemy : Tommy Dreamer Misawa's nemesis : Kobashi Misawa's archenemy : Kawada

(should be moved into the August folder, sorry about that)

Raven vs Sabu (TNA 04/08/04) An ECW dream match that never happened before. And it's a chance it happens in 2004 in TNA, as Raven is a much better in-ring worker at this point, plus the setting doesn't encourage the ridiculous excess of the original house of hardcore. Although I admit I would have marked the fuck out if it happened back then. Anyway, this is a very good brawl with all kind of gimmick spots that they deliver well, with nice counters and some bloodletting, Sabu paying tribute to his late uncle (the whole feud was about a so-called promise both Sabu & Raven made to the Sheik of never fighting each other, which was neat, you can see again that Raven was booking his own stuff) by using a spike at one point. He also badly fucks up his left knee on a table spot and still does the triple jump moonsault perfectly (yeah, Sabu the blownspot machine is a ridiculous urban myth by this point). Back and forth beating the shit out of each other until Raven gets the win, not after Sabu did kick out of the DDT, to Raven's great facial reaction. Hell, his face after he won was terrific too. I obviously love both guys but they did deliver a very good bloody brawl here, not going overboard with stupidity, making chair shots looking much more bruta than they actually were for instance (you can see Raven protecting himself and Sabu throwing chairs strictly vertical toward his body, so nothing real bad can happen). These veterans are still better than 95% of the roster and they bring tons of character to their work too. Really enjoyed this.

Bingo. Well, it has always been fake, but, yeah.

Dixie Carter has a funny eye ? Never noticed.

RVD's finest moment. Sean Oliver's reaction never fail to crack me up.

RVD was the most carryable awful worker (meaning his attributes could be mixed to get a spectacular match if you found the way like Jerry Lynn, Tracy Smothers or later Bob Holly did) , but an awful worker nonetheless. By the end of my ECW watch, I couldn't handle watching a minute of RVD anymore. And yeah, you can spot all those awful indy workers inspired by him. Seems like a nice enough guy though and quite idiosyncratic, which is why he was so popular too.

I think it's actually the RAW from South Africa, later in the year.

AJ Styles vs Michael Shane vs Kazarian (Ultimate X match - 07/28) The Ultimate X has been a winner gimmick thus far. This is probably the best one thus far to. Terrific match. Kazarian & Shane are a tag team of sorts, dressed with the same bright color that I'd call Constructicon Green. So early 90's, so good. So the dynamic is simple at first, one tries to keep AJ on the ground while the other goes for the belt. Then of course AJ has to fight both at the same time, until finally the bodies are split becuase of both selling and the fact that at one point, obvioulsy, the two heels fuck up and get at each other. Then selling and big spots prevails so it make sense no-one would simply jump to make a save. The dynamics are so much varied and interesting than in a stupid ladder match that had been bastardized into a stunt show over the years. And there is a share of unbelievable spots here, but they make sense in the context of the match. And they are sold. All three guys really shine here, although AJ is, yes, phenomenal working the ropes (he and Kazarian do a Style Clash from up here that looks insane, well done guys). The ending has an interesting twist too, as both heels grab the belt and fall down at the same time, so they end up… co-champs ! Hey, it might be stupid, but then again, it can also work like a reversed Freebird gimmick, plus the execution was so good and it's a new idea that goes well with the result of the match, so why not try it ? Excellent, maybe great match, and without a doubt a TNA MOTYC for 2004.

Here's one for you : Enzo Amore & Cass are basically Kid Kash & Dallas doing a NAO routine, while Enzo is way worse than Kash was in 2004 (sloppy but decent at times) and Cass is about as good as Lance Hoyt at that time (Test wannabe).

Uh, yeah. I love Kobashi, but really this isn't a reason why he's been great, at all. That being said, the Kojima version is infinitely worse.

The best quote about that is Rick Martel talking about stupid Booker T giving him a concussion. "You have to convince the audience, you don't have to convince me." Then again, it's more about bieng reckless (and sloppy) than stiff here. Still, it's a great quote. Then, there are difference of approach. Mid-South & Texas were snug territories, to keep it US based. Japan has its own culture about stiffness, and all in all it's not more ridiculous than say, luchadors doing stupid little slaps on the chest and doing ridiculous basic sequences that look 100% collaborations. Plus, working stiff doesn't mean working dangerous. When it's done right. Good worker can work stiff and be safe. Then again, looking like it hurts when it doesn't is an artform. Great punches are a lost art, kinda. I love great worked punches. Lawler's are a thing of beauty. Then again, if you're going back to an era when kayfabe prevaled, Lawler throwing a hundred punches to the face of his opponent in one single match was stupid as fuck since there was obviously no bruise on the opponent's face in the end. There's a reason why closed fists were forbidden in pro-wrestling. A heel throwing one in the back of the ref was much better work than Lawler regular punch barrage (which is one reason I'll never suscribe to the Lawler = great worker argument, this and the no-sell comebacks as a babyface). Then again, in the modern era, seemingly everyone throws a hundred punches a match, and I wish they'd look like Lawler's. If I were a worker, I'd rather work with Lance Storm than Toshiaki Kawada. As a fan, I'd rather watch Hashimoto than RVD, both of whom were "stiff", one in a great worker way, the other in a reckless, stupid and dangerous way. Apparently, Meng could be light as a feather and you could simply not feel him at all. He could also throw mean chops. But a crowbar would just hit hard because he doesn't know any other way. Then again, Terry Funk's answer to Mick Foley when Foley asks him about his punches was that he pretty much laid them in. So there. Not one answer. Stiffness is just like everything else in pro-wrestling. It can be great. It can be stupid. It can be safe. It can be dangerous.

There's a paradox lying somewhere though. You don't control a translation and there's always the risk of something being lost in it. If you're fluent, it means you're able to pass whatever message you want to with the upmost precision. If not, then you're simply not fluent. Hell, I don't consider myself *fluent* in English. So yeah. Then again, sports men... well.