Pro Wrasslin' Thread: I don't know what I just saw

[Himu]

Watching New Years Dash now. Looking for the road show to New Beginning even if New Beginning is going to be WK9 rematch city.

I haven't seen Fantasticamania advertised a lot except on NJPW World.

[Himu]

Feels great to have a legal option to catch up on NJPW shows instead of googling for dailymotion vids. Christ.

[Eric P]

yeah in MUCH better quality too.  i hope they continue to add older matches as well

[Himu]

Oh yeah, the quality difference is just insane.

On one hand, I now have a legal option to watch NJPW - both on tv via AXS and now via their own site. But now I don't have a legal option to watch TNA because their new channel is not carried on my satellite plan. One step forward, one step back.

[Himu]

Going from 2012 WK - to 2015 WK in PPV order so I can catch up on storylines and see the entire Tanahashi and Okada storyline play out.

Wrestle Kingdom VI

Kyōsuke Mikami and Tomoaki Honma vs Tama-Tonga and Captain New Japan - ** 1/2

Rocky Romero and Davey Richards vs Ryusuke Taguchi and Prince Devitt for IWGP JR Tag championship - *** 1/2

Okada Kazuhcika vs Nobuo Yoshihashi - ***

Wataru Inoue and Yuji Nagata vs Masayuki Kono and Masakatsu Funaki - **

Shelton · X · Benjamin and MVP vs Yujiro Takahashi and Masato Tanaka - **

Carl Anderson and Giant Bernard vs Tianshan Satoshi and Kojima Hirokichi  for IWGP Tag Chamionship - ***

Hirooki Goto vs Takashi Sugiura - ** 1/2

Togi Makabe vs Yoshihiro Takayama - ** 1/2

Go Shiozaki & Naomichi Marufuji vs Shinsuke Nakamura & Toru Yano - ****

Tetsuya Naito vs Keiji Muto - *** 1/2

Suzuki vs Tanahashi - ****

Notable wrestlers I liked: Apollo 55, No Remorse Corps, Okada, Yuji Nagata, Carl Anderson, Shinsuke Nakamura, Naomichi Marufuji, Naito, Muto, Suzuki, Tanahashi.

Review: Most of this show bored the crap out of me. Unlike WK7 (my first WK), 8, and 9, I really didn't find it too impressive outside of a few matches.  The best thing to come from this for was the Jr Tag Championship, Okada's homecoming, Nakamura and Marafuji nailing a fantastic tag match, and the main event. I have no idea how anyone seriously say that the wrestling in WK6 was better than most WWE shows. Like with WWE, there was a problem with this show in that the it was padded with boring match ups and little star power and almost zero sense of storytelling. A lot of those matches, like Shelton Benjamin and MVP vs Takahashi and Tanaka were so fucking vanilla it wasn't even funny. The IWGP tag match gave me higher hopes and the only thing I was really impressed with during the match was Anderson. Just overall underwhelming show. While I gave WK9 a 4 1/2, this would have be no higher than a 3 1/2. Really disappointing show, especially for a 40th anniversary tour, but gives hope in the eventual Okada and Tanahashi meet up, Nakamura still getting down his mannerisms and swagger, and the sheer potential and awesome of Apollo 55. Completely cutting out the entrances isn't helping matters, either, so it feels like I missed a shit ton of awesome content. Apparently Astroboy came out and Apollo 55 dressed as astronauts and I missed it.



Still, when it was good...



It was good.

[Himu]

This is awful advertising for NJPW. Which, while certainly having some silly moments here and there, treats their promotion like a serious real sport, with match timers and everything. But oh well, beggars can't be choosers. But just... odd.

[Eric P]

Showed a friend the opening match to WK9 and she said it was the greatest dumbest thing she'd ever seen

[Himu]

The New Beginning 2012

Apollo 55 v No Remorse Corps for JR IGWP Tag Championship - ****
Suzukigun v Kushida, Tiger Mask, Togi Makabe, Wataru Inoue and Yuji Nagata - *** 1/2
Tencozy v Bad Intentions for the IGWP Tag Championship - *** 1/2
Hirooki Goto v Masato Tanaka for the IWGP IC Championship - *** 1/2
Tetsuya Naito v Shinsuke Nakamura - ****
Kazuchika Okada v Hiroshi Tanahashi for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship - **** 1/2

Review: A lot of this is a continuation of Wrestle Kingdom VI and yet the outcome is far more balanced and entertaining. Not a single blah or boring match on this card. I enjoyed this thoroughly more than WK6. The tag matches were all fun as hell, and all the singles brought it. It's beautiful seeing Okada come into his own in this match. At WK6 he looked less than stellar in his match with Yoshi-hashi, and yet he stepped it up completely in this heavyweight match. The psychology and storytelling is fantastic in this bout. Speaking of progression, it's still fun to see Nakamura get into his new gimmick still. He's still getting some of his entrance down and it's lacking that trademark Nakamura oomph, but he's starting to get there. Naito pulled some good moves but still does not impress me at all. With his win against Nakamura he challenges Okada directly after his title win, so I'm looking forward to see how he handles Okada in the ring. Here's hoping for a great match up!

Favorite wrestler this PPV: Kazuchika Okada.

PPV rating: ****

[Eric P]

Rysuke Taguchi is becoming my man in Japan.  Everything I've seen him do is a lot of fun.

[Himu]

You've gotta see some of these Apollo 55 matches then! His tag team with Devitt (Balor) are straight bananas. It'll also give you new appreciation for his tag team with Kenta in NXT. Taguchi is loads of fun!

[Eric P]

I went back and watched a rack of Devitt stuff when I first got the network.  Dude is brutal looking.  He doesn't seem as strong in NXT and I don't know if that's just the people that he's working with (essentially jobbing The Ascension for the past few months) or what

[Himu]

I think they had to neuter his move list to fit wwe style. Devitt routinely hits that ground stomp on people's backs, soemtimes necks and WWE ain't having that.

Gonna get into some ROH and Shimmer. :p

Missed the REALITY OF WRESTLING show last night. ROW is Booker T's promotion. It's fun. TASW has a show later this month so no skin is off my nose.

[Eric P]

I want to watch Shimmer because all of the female jobbers in NXT come from there, including Blue Pants

[Himu]

I wanna watch shimmer because NXT and TNA are the only promotions I watch now that have women's wrestling. I should get a best of shimmer dvd

[Himu]

Now more than any time since the monday night wars, has there been a better time to be a wrestling fan.

Aside from WWE, we have three international wrestling shows available on tv: Lucha, TNA, and NJPW. ROh and Chikara offer ippv options. You can watch 40  years of New Japan for 8 dollars a month.

WWE is no longer the place wrestlers aim for because there's less money in WWE now. The one thing WWE had over indie stars was more money. Now you can tour the world without being in WWE, make tons of money, and still be an international star without WWE's backing (see: AJ Styles, The Young Bucks).

More and more top tier talent are giving WWE the finger because there are so many better options, both creatively and financially. It's an interesting turn of events.

We may not be in a new golden age of wrestling, but it has never been easier to be a wrestling fan and avoid watching WWE since WCW and ECW had their doors open.

Meanwhile, WWE is running towards crisis mode.

[Eric P]

I wanna watch shimmer because NXT and TNA are the only promotions I watch now that have women's wrestling. I should get a best of shimmer dvd

There's a local New York show called Valkyrie which is predominately women of color.  You can rent their stuff on Vimeo.

http://www.valkyriewomens.com/

[Himu]

You've told me about that. I didn't realize they were black

[Eric P]

there's no way that this isn't a sex thing, is it?

http://queensofwrestling.com/Customs.aspx

sfw

[bork]

It’s not official yet, but it is expected that “Macho Man” Randy Savage will be announced tonight on Raw as the first inductee into the WWE Hall of Fame’s Class of 2015, WWE.com has learned.

One of the most colorful characters and most popular Superstars in WWE history, fans worldwide have been clamoring for Savage’s induction since the hallowed Hall opened its doors. Even WWE Hall of Famer “Stone Cold” Steve Austin broached the topic in his must-see live podcast on WWE Network with Mr. McMahon just weeks ago. The WWE Chairman said that Savage would “definitely” take his place in the Hall of Fame, though he did not indicate when.

A former two-time WWE Champion, Intercontinental Champion and WCW Champion, the late “Macho Man” also took part in what is considered one of the greatest matches in sports-entertainment history when he battled Ricky “The Dragon Steamboat at WrestleMania III.

The 2015 WWE Hall of Fame induction ceremony takes place on Saturday March 28, the night before WrestleMania 31, at San Jose's SAP Center. Tickets for the event go on sale this Saturday at 1 p.m. ET/10 a.m. PT.

Will “Macho Man” Randy Savage take his rightful place in history and be enshrined in the WWE Hall of Fame? Tune into Monday Night Raw, live tonight at 8 p.m. ET on USA Network, to find out — plus, be sure to watch WWE Network throughout the day for updates on this major announcement!

...

It’s not official yet

WWE.com has learned

[iconoclast]

I wasn't going to watch the AXS NJPW shows since I've already seen all that stuff, but Meltzer and Alvarez are really hyping up how great the commentary is on the latest Observer podcast. They're acting like it's the best commentary they've ever heard. Definitely makes me curious.

Apparently the last Lucha Underground show with the Azteca Warfare match on it was really great as well. I've only seen the first few episodes of the show but I liked it a lot. Makes me want to catch up.

Going from 2012 WK - to 2015 WK in PPV order so I can catch up on storylines and see the entire Tanahashi and Okada storyline play out.

Whatever you do, just make sure you watch King of Pro Wrestling 2012. That Suzuki vs. Tanahashi match...

[Himu]

I like Lucha Underground a lot, but unfortunately can't catch it too much because I don't have El Rey and I feel fucking AWFUL pirating such a progressive and well made wrestling show.

And Suzuki and Tanahashi have a rematch? Their match at WK6 was already worthy. I'm such a big Suzuki fan at this point. I haven't seen one single match of his, tag or otherwise, that has been bad. Just an all around pro. Tanahashi is similar. Devitt is good, great even, but I think he works better as a tag guy. Am I alone in that? His moveset is MADE for tag moves. I think Okada may be my favorite wrestler in the world though. The guy just oozes awesome, and he did these set of matches when he was...24? 23? Who knows, but now he's 27 and he's pulling shit like this.

https://twitter.com/BaneofWrestling/status/518541960315826176/photo/1


Man traveled to Mexico to master lucha style, worked in America to build experience, has mastered the Japanese puro style. All around one of the most complete wrestlers I have ever seen. Him crying at the end of WK9 sold me on him being probably being the best wrestler I've seen working in the biz today because he made it feel so real.

This guy is just 27. He's won the top belt in the #2 wrestling fed in the world twice. He's the number 2 guy in the #2 wrestling fed in the world. He's fluent in English and has the complete package. We are looking at a future wrestling legend.

[Himu]

It’s not official yet, but it is expected that “Macho Man” Randy Savage will be announced tonight on Raw as the first inductee into the WWE Hall of Fame’s Class of 2015, WWE.com has learned.

One of the most colorful characters and most popular Superstars in WWE history, fans worldwide have been clamoring for Savage’s induction since the hallowed Hall opened its doors. Even WWE Hall of Famer “Stone Cold” Steve Austin broached the topic in his must-see live podcast on WWE Network with Mr. McMahon just weeks ago. The WWE Chairman said that Savage would “definitely” take his place in the Hall of Fame, though he did not indicate when.

A former two-time WWE Champion, Intercontinental Champion and WCW Champion, the late “Macho Man” also took part in what is considered one of the greatest matches in sports-entertainment history when he battled Ricky “The Dragon Steamboat at WrestleMania III.

The 2015 WWE Hall of Fame induction ceremony takes place on Saturday March 28, the night before WrestleMania 31, at San Jose's SAP Center. Tickets for the event go on sale this Saturday at 1 p.m. ET/10 a.m. PT.

Will “Macho Man” Randy Savage take his rightful place in history and be enshrined in the WWE Hall of Fame? Tune into Monday Night Raw, live tonight at 8 p.m. ET on USA Network, to find out — plus, be sure to watch WWE Network throughout the day for updates on this major announcement!

...

It’s not official yet

WWE.com has learned

I heard it was official though. It's certainly been treated as such. Hopefully DDP makes it in.

[Trent Dole]

Macho being in was confirmed on this week's Raw.

[bork]

Yeah, it was pretty obvious that it was official when wwe.com was "reporting" it.  That's what I was saying- I watched a chunk of RAW Monday and they kept acting as if it were some kind of rumor throughout the night, until they made an "official" announcement.  Shit makes no sense.   

Speaking of RAW, it was awful as usual.  And now for storyline purposes, Ziggler, Rowen, and Ryback are off the show due to being "fired!"  Rumble build-up?  What build-up?  There's very little being said about the Rumble itself.  All the focus is on the main event instead.  Then they announced Usos-Miz/Mizdow for the Rumble too.  That's it.  Three fucking matches and one week left to build real hype and get more matches announced.  This is terrible, even the for the WWE.

Good things about RAW: Close-ups of Naomi's ass.   And um...that's about it.  Looks like Heyman is going be Seth Rollins' manager soon, too.

[Eric P]

If anyone else needed a primer on Fantasticamania 2015 on the NJPW World site

http://www.voicesofwrestling.com/2015/01/12/njpwcmll-fantasticamania-2015-preview-cmll/

[Himu]

Thank you for subjecting yourself to raw for us, lyte

The whole "fired" storylines are awful.

You guys may notice that this year I haven't organized the rumble royal roulette. Well, I didn't see a point this year. You guys can totally do it, but honestly I'm not even sure if im watching Mania this year. 2014 was the most consistently awful year of WWE I've ever seen. WCW 1999-2000 status. It actually reminded me why I quit watching wrestling in the early 2000's to begin with.

[Himu]

Also from what I hear, Ambrose is being shat on still? And they're still trying to make Roman talk and give him awful promos despite the fact that during The Shield he was endearing BECAUSE he was a silent giant of few words who just kicked ass?

Does WWE know how to look at things and know what worked? What didn't work? Or what?

How can a multi-million public corporation get away with such mediocrity?

[Himu]

Apparently he and bray are feuding. Still. Could be wrong. Taking Ambrose out of the Rollins feud made no sense to me. For weeks it was literally the only good thing about RAW and the only thing looked forward to. Then they replaced him with Cena, and dropped it altogether. They never even finished their feud despite Seth betraying the Shield, you know, the stable they were in for two years.

Absolute bollocks writing.

[bork]

Thank you for subjecting yourself to raw for us, lyte

The whole "fired" storylines are awful.

There wasn't anything else on and I didn't feel like playing games, so I watched most of the show.  I turned it off right as the "main event" segment was about to start (contract signing ) and again wondered why I'd wasted a good two and a half hours on this crap.

You just know that all three "fired" guys are going to show up as "big surprises" in the Rumble.  Orton too.

You guys may notice that this year I haven't organized the rumble royal roulette. Well, I didn't see a point this year. You guys can totally do it, but honestly I'm not even sure if im watching Mania this year. 2014 was the most consistently awful year of WWE I've ever seen. WCW 1999-2000 status. It actually reminded me why I quit watching wrestling in the early 2000's to begin with.

It's at the point now for me where I feel the same way.  I think I am at least going to go through Mania -Sting/HHH should be a laugh- but after that it may be time to stop all of this for a while and cancel that Network sub.

Also from what I hear, Ambrose is being shat on still? And they're still trying to make Roman talk and give him awful promos despite the fact that during The Shield he was endearing BECAUSE he was a silent giant of few words who just kicked ass?

Amrbose was put into this stupid segment where Stephanie forced him to talk to a psychiatrist.  If he didn't pass the psych eval, he wouldn't be cleared to wrestle.  So what we got throughout the night were little segments of him making stupid jokes to the doctor - a few were funny, to be fair- including recycled shit like the Hacksaw Jim Duggan "hoooooo" in reference to Stephanie.  It ended with Ambrose in the chair and the doctor on the couch, crying in what was supposed to be a 'funny' role reversal.  Amrbose gets the doctor to sign the paper clearing him and that was all entirely pointless garbage.

Roman's promos are just plain awful.  Not even LOL-worthy...just bad.  He needs a manager, badly.  Too bad he's face...if anything, put him with Heyman, not Rollins as they're hinting.

How can a multi-million public corporation get away with such mediocrity?

No competition on their level.  Nothing is going to ever change unless someone starts kicking their ass again.

Apparently he and bray are feuding. Still. Could be wrong. Taking Ambrose out of the Rollins feud made no sense to me. For weeks it was literally the only good thing about RAW and the only thing looked forward to. Then they replaced him with Cena, and dropped it altogether. They never even finished their feud despite Seth betraying the Shield, you know, the stable they were in for two years.

Absolute bollocks writing.

Yup.  Ambrose and Wyatt are still feuding but they're in the Rumble, so there's no match on the PPV to end anything. 

[Himu]

From what I hear, Rollins is building up a really good heel run and really filling in his niche. Shame I'm not there to see it but I refuse to watch the other stuff surrounding that.

Wait, the Bray and Ambrose STILL isn't done at Rumble? They've been feauding since at least Hell in a Cell.

[bork]

From what I hear, Rollins is building up a really good heel run and really filling in his niche. Shame I'm not there to see it but I refuse to watch the other stuff surrounding that.

He does the same shtick every week and fights like a cowardly heel with J&J Security getting involved.  I guess that's standard stuff.  Dude just needs to change his ring gear, stat.  It looks so stupid.  Ditto for Reigns I guess.

Wait, the Bray and Ambrose STILL isn't done at Rumble? They've been feauding since at least Hell in a Cell.

Yup, they had an ambulance match last week which I did not watch.  It's a never ending feud. 

[Himu]

In any case, Daniel Bryan's hyping for his in-ring return has me actually excited to watch Smackdown. That's my little guy. He reigniting my Daniel Bryan fan thing!

That's my humble guy

Some excerpts from some interviews:

On Vince McMahon encouraging talent to reach for the 'brass ring' on the WWE Network: (Laughs) "You know it’s funny, because one of the things that he had mentioned was, he said something about the Millennials not having any ambition, right. It’s funny, because the WWE does this personality test with some of their more successful superstars, where they rank you on all of these scores, like your desire for power, and your personality, and all that kind of stuff. One of the things they ranked was ambition, and it’s funny, because in this personality assessment, I got the lowest score for ambition that the lady had ever seen. So they do it on a percentile basis, so from 0 to 100, I was in the bottom 1 percentile of ambition.

(Laughs) It’s funny because the lady was like, ‘How on earth are you so successful given that you seem to have no ambition?’ I said, ‘Well, that’s where there’s a flaw on the test. I have no ambition for what society says is important as far as things like money, and all that kind of stuff.’ What I am ambitious about is I want to be the best wrestler that I can possibly be, and I think there’s some sort of mistake in generations, as far as what he thinks as far as our generation lacking ambition. Our generation just wants different things than what his generation wants, and I think that’s a societal thing as well. There’s an older generation of people who say, ‘No, you guys should want this, you guys should want this, you guys should want this.’ Whereas our generation, a lot of us say, ‘No, we don’t want that, we want something different, and a lot of the things that you guys wanted, are the reason that the world is messed up. We need to change our value system.’ So that’s it, that’s a very different take on what’s going on."

On WWE's lack of competition: "But people do need to stand up and say, ‘No, this isn’t what I want, I want to do this. This is me, this is how I want to present myself on television. This is how I want to be within WWE, this is how I view professional wrestling, this is what I would like it to be.’ People have to have the courage to come up and say that. But the hard thing is, he was talking about the Attitude Era and how things were different, well things wouldn’t have been that much different if there wasn’t a WCW. Like guys could say, ‘Hey, I don’t want to do this. If you want to fire me fine, because I’m going to go to WCW and make just as much money.’ That doesn’t exist right now. It’s people who are okay with like, ‘Hey, my life without WWE, is as good as my life with the WWE.’ They have to be able to say, ‘Okay, if I’m going to say this is what I want to do, or else I’m taking my ball and going home.’ They have to have some sort of plan for when they take their ball and go home, they have something else to do, which is hard, especially when you have a family, and all that kind of stuff. So yeah, I have very interesting thoughts on that whole podcast. It’s a very interesting look into the mind of Vince McMahon, so it was fascinating."

On Triple H's leadership in WWE and NXT: "I have never actually talked to him about his vision for the future of wrestling, and that is actually something I should talk to him about, because we think a lot alike in a lot of ways. I like what he’s done with NXT, I think NXT is an awesome show. That last special that they did was an awesome product. I think Hunter is very intelligent wrestling wise, like he knows wrestling, he knows what works wrestling wise. I’m not exactly sure what are his ideas, and what aren’t his ideas within the WWE, but I want to say two of the most successful current acts that happened in the last year, like The Shield and the Wyatts, I think those are Triple H ideas, but I’m not exactly sure, as far as their execution and that sort of thing."

Full interview found here:

http://www.alternativenation.net/daniel-bryan-interview/

And you guys got to read this interview with Bleacher Report on his road to recovery:

Bleacher Report: Wrestling fans rarely agree about anything. But I think, to a fan, everyone believes it's pretty great to have you back. Are you as excited as we are?

Daniel Bryan: I'm so excited (laughs). You know, I don't remember being this excited in a very, very long time. There's nothing I love more than getting in the ring and wrestling. And it's been a long, long eight months being out. I can't wait to come back.

B/R: I remember hearing you were going to be out for a couple of months. And then all of the sudden, a couple of months turned into eight months and even rumors you'd never return at all. It sounds like quite a journey. Can you walk me through how we ended up where we are today, with you returning to SmackDown this Thursday?

Bryan: It actually happened in the summer of 2013. I was in a match with Randy Orton and did a suicide dive out of the ring and missed. My head hit the guardrail, and I felt a shooting pain go down my arm.

But I thought, "Ah, I'm not really worried about it." Later in that match, though, I did a dropkick off the top rope, and when I landed, I literally couldn't feel my arms, and I couldn't get up. It's what's called a stinger, and after that match, they had me go and get MRIs, and I had a bulging disc in my neck.

That's not unusual for wrestlers, but what was happening is that it was closing the space around the nerves in my neck, which was sending shooting pains down my arm.

B/R: That wasn't enough to stop you. I think we all remember your path to glory at WrestleMania 30. Was there something that made you reconsider just working through it?

Bryan: Around May of 2014, after all the WrestleMania stuff, all of the sudden it went from shooting pain down my arm to weakness. When that happens, that's when you need to fix it right away, or it could be permanent.


B/R: You're a professional athlete. What constitutes weakness?

Bryan: Like, it was so weak—Brie and I don't have automatic locks. We actually have to turn the key in the car to open it. And I was so weak I couldn't even unlock the car door.


B/R: Wow.

Bryan: Yeah. And that's when they said, "No, you need to go get surgery now so that this doesn't get any worse. So I went to get the surgery and they were expecting only a six- to eight-week recovery. But the strength just wasn't coming back.

The theory was the nerve had been crushed for so long it might not come back. So we were trying all these different things. There's a nerve that runs from your neck all the way down to the end of your hand. So there was talk of a second surgery on my neck, there was talk of a surgery on my arm, on my elbow.

There was just so much weakness and sometimes this shooting pain. But the doctors really couldn't agree on what to do. I was set to do the elbow surgery because we couldn't think of anything else to do.

B/R: Obviously that didn't happen. What did?

Bryan: I saw a naturopath who works with Carson Palmer, a quarterback for the Arizona Cardinals who was having a horrible shoulder problem. He could barely even pick up a football. Then, all of a sudden, he was able to play.

That's because he saw this guy in Denver who does something called "Muscle Activation Technique." And so I went and saw that guy, and for the first time in months, after just one visit, I had strength in my arm.

B/R: That was all it took?

Bryan: It only lasted about five days. But then I went and saw him a second time, and it's lasted all the way until now. It's been very interesting, very confusing, very frustrating. But the last month has been very hopeful.

I was at this point where I wondered "Man, is this ever going to get better?" I was actually facing the fact that I might not be able to come back to wrestling. And then it's almost like a miracle healing. And that's been pretty exciting to me.

B/R: What do you think it is about professional wrestling that makes guys so susceptible to injury just as they finally reach the pinnacle of success? I think of Paul Orndorff, just as he gets his big chance against Hulk Hogan in 1986. Of Stone Cold Steve Austin as he prepared for his run on top in 1997. For you it was in 2013, right in the middle of your greatest run. What is it about rising to the top that is so fraught with danger?

Bryan: You know what? I've actually never thought about it like that. But that's interesting. And I think it's because you have to work so hard to get to the top.

I trained with Shawn Michaels, and I started when I was 18 down in San Antonio, Texas. And one of the things that Shawn told me was that it's much easier once you actually get to the top than it is to get there. Because you have to work so hard to get the fans to appreciate you. To cheer you or to boo you.

In working that hard, a lot of times that's where the injuries come. When you get to the top, you still have to work hard. But you don't have to constantly prove to the fans that you can be a top star.

B/R: You went to Denver and have been given a second life in your wrestling career. But I assume you can't just waltz back into the ring and be Daniel Bryan. What have you done to prepare your body for being a professional wrestler again?

Bryan: I've been doing a lot of jiu-jitsu and kickboxing. To me, that's what transfers over best to wrestling. Because what we do is a lot of up and down, right? It's a lot of falling, it's a lot of getting up. It's a lot of jumping.

But there is a saying that goes a little something like this: "Nothing prepares you for wrestling like wrestling." If you get on a treadmill and say, "Oh, I can run 20 minutes and 10 miles per hour," that's not the same as going out and doing an eight-minute match.

B/R: Any chance you were working with another certain pro wrestler with similar interests? Or was this down in Phoenix?

Bryan: I was working at the MMA Lab out in Phoenix. And I was doing that before I was even healing. This was kind of my thought process: "Maybe even if my strength doesn't come back, maybe I can still come back and do things that don't require my right arm."

B/R: (Laughs)

Bryan: Right? So I was working on this file of stuff I could do. Because normally, I don't pick people up anyway in my style of wrestling.

To me, wrestling is the ultimate martial art. If you focus on the art part of martial arts, it's a very artistic expression of combat. How can I express myself in this creative fashion where it's still believable, where the fans would still enjoy it, without using my right arm? It's almost like a fun problem to try to explore.

B/R: It's a fun problem you're glad you don't have to solve anymore.

Bryan: Obviously, I'm thrilled I can use my right arm again. (Laughs).

Perhaps a thing of the past?

B/R: Do you think you will mitigate some of the risks now? Will you eliminate some of the daredevil things you do, like the diving headbutt or missile dropkick off the top rope? Or do you think we'll see the same Daniel Bryan?

Bryan: It's hard for me to say. It's all going to depend on how my body feels.

This has happened to me before when I was on the independents. I would go away—I wouldn't get hurt or anything—but I'd go England for six months. And in that time period, I would be changing my style.

So, I've been home for eight months, watching WWE TV and seeing what I need to do to make myself better and make myself different than anyone else.

B/R: A change was coming, regardless of physical limitations?

Bryan: My style was going to change anyway. But it's true, I'll be asking myself, "Do I need to do the top-rope dropkick and all that stuff every night?" (Laughs). Probably not. It's hard, though, because I think that's exciting.

But there are other exciting things I could do that won't put as much pressure on my neck. I've been doing exercises to strengthen my neck, but I won't really know how it's going to feel until I get in there and do it.

B/R: I would imagine you take some comfort in having a regular opponent like Kane for your first match back Thursday on SmackDown. Or is it difficult because you've had so many matches it might be hard to give people something fresh?

Bryan: I'm not worried about that. Especially now. I might worry about that in three or four months. But my brain works in wrestling. That's how my brain thinks. It's frustrating being at home, because that's how I creatively express myself.

I've been coming up with wrestling ideas my entire adult life. And I've been doing that for the last eight months, too—I just haven't been able to do any of them.

So, no. I'm not worried about running out of ideas and doing the same old stuff. Because it's not going to be the same old stuff. I'm not going to be the same old Daniel Bryan. I'm going to be a different Daniel Bryan. A Daniel Bryan better suited to what's going on in the WWE right now to make things more exciting and different.

B/R: Finally, they are building this entire campaign around you. Launching SmackDown's move to Thursday on the strength of your return. How does it feel to come back after all this time and still be right at the top? That has to be a good feeling?

Bryan: It's pretty crazy to me, this whole thing with the "Yes Movement." A lot of it is just luck. Why did the people choose me? As opposed to choosing Cesaro, or choosing Dolph [Ziggler], or any number of the great superstars we have in WWE?

For some reason, they specifically got behind me. And they've been with me for this entire time. Even during this time off.

B/R: They didn't forget about you.

Bryan: They're constantly reminded of me. That's different than when someone like Sheamus is out with an injury. When someone else is out, there's just not any mention of them.

It helps that my wife is with WWE. When Brie comes out, a lot of times she'll get "Yes" chants. And so they are reminded of me. When The Authority comes out, people are reminded about what they did to me. That's helped keeping my name out there.

A lot of that is just luck and our fans being awesome. There are a lot of guys who have been top guys and don't acknowledge the luck factor. (Laughs).



B/R: But sometimes success really is beyond your control?

Bryan: It takes a spark. It takes something that captures the fans' imaginations. And if I knew what that was, everybody would have it. But I don't know what it is! (Laughs).

I can't explain it. If I could, I would tell everybody, everybody would be super popular, and the whole thing would be through the roof. It doesn't happen like that, though. It's every bit as big a mystery to me as it is to people who look at me and wonder, "Why in the world are people supporting this guy? He looks like a goat."

I'm not big. I'm not this. I'm not that. There must be something relatable about me that the fans enjoy. That's one of the things I love about this. They have their own voice. As much as you want to tell them what to think and how to react, you can't.

I main evented WrestleMania 30, not because I was chosen to. It's because the fans would accept nothing else. And there's nowhere else, in entertainment or in sport, where the fans have that kind of voice. To me, that is very powerful.

Source: BleacherReport

[bork]

Probably should have posted this last month, but Wrestlecrap Gooker Award voting is still up.

http://www.wrestlecrap.com/inductions/gooker-award-voting-what-was-the-worst-of-the-worst-in-2014/

None of those nominations really stands out as the worst of 2014 to me, although I don't know about any of the TNA stuff.  I went with the Bellas because that Brie heel turn made absolutely zero sense.

[Himu]

Probably should have posted this last month, but Wrestlecrap Gooker Award voting is still up.

http://www.wrestlecrap.com/inductions/gooker-award-voting-what-was-the-worst-of-the-worst-in-2014/

None of those nominations really stands out as the worst of 2014 to me, although I don't know about any of the TNA stuff.  I went with the Bellas because that Brie heel turn made absolutely zero sense.

Just awful.

Throw in that Reigns is pretty much Diesel 2.0 and WWE wants him as the new top guy and not Bryan and we're just fucked.

[Himu]

axs tv njpw schedule:

1/16 - Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kazuchika Okada (Wrestle Kingdom 7)
1/23 - Kazuchika Okada vs. Hirooki Goto (New Japan Cup 2013 Final)
Shinsuke Nakamura & Tomohiro Ishii & Jado vs. Minoru Suzuki & Lance Archer & Taka Michinoku (New Japan Cup 2013 Final)
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kazuchika Okada (Invasion Attack 2013)
1/30 - Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kazuchika Okada (Invasion Attack 2013 Replay)
2/6 - Kazuchika Okada vs. Togi Makabe (Dominion 6.22)
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Prince Devitt (Dominion 6.22)
2/13 - Kazuchika Okada vs. Prince Devitt (Kizuna Road 2013)
Hiroshi Tanahashi & Togi Makabe & Jushin Thunder Liger & Captain New Japan vs. Karl Anderson & El Terrible & Tama Tonga & Bad Luck Fale (Kizuna Road 2013)
2/20 - Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Kota Ibushi (G1 Climax 23 Day 4)
Satoshi Kojima vs. Davey Boy Smith Jr. (G1 Climax 23 Day 4)
Hiroyoshi Tenzan vs. Karl Anderson (G1 Climax 23 Day 4)
2/27 - Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Tetsuya Naito (G1 Climax 23 Final)
3/6 - Nakamura vs. Naomichi Marufuji (Power Struggle 2013)
Tetsuya Naito vs. Yujiro Takahashi (Power Struggle 2013)
3/13 - Kazuchika Okada vs. Tetsuya Naito (Wrestle Kingdom
3/20 - Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi (Wrestle Kingdom
3/27 - Shinuske Nakamura vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi (Invasion Attack 2014)
Tetsuya Naito vs. Tomohiro Ishii (Invasion Attack 2014)
4/3 - Kazuchika Okada vs. A.J. Styles (Wrestling Dontaku 2014)
Kota Ibushi vs. Ryusuke Taguchi and Rocky Romero & Alex Koslov vs. Young Bucks (Wrestling Dontaku 2014)
4/10 - AJ Styles vs. Kazuchika Okada (Back to the Yokohama Arena 2014)
Takashi Iizuka & Toru Yano vs. Suzuki & Shelton Benjamin (Back to the Yokohama Arena 2014)

[Am_I_Anonymous]

Know when I knew US wrestling was dead?

When we gave a shit that a midget returned to the ring.

Feels bad man.

[Himu]

Daniel Bryan has more media attention and cultural relevance in one year than what John Cena and HHH did in ten. So it's probably just you. Kids love him, adults love him, hardcore love him, casual love him. If your opposition of Bryan is his size, I don't know what to say, but he's definitely not a symptom that US pro wrestling is dead

[iconoclast]

I'm surprised AXS is going to show the Invasion Attack match for Ishii vs. Naito. It was really great, but their first match at New Beginning is probably my choice for 2014 MOTY. I guess it wouldn't have the same impact if you hadn't seen Ishii before then, though. The lack of Shibata is pretty surprising as well. They could have put one of his matches with Goto up or his G1 match with Ishii. I think anyone would immediately like his style, especially since they're trying to appeal to the MMA fans that regularly watch the network. Oh well. It's still a great lineup of matches either way.

[Eric P]

This week's NXT was super good, y'all

The Kidd / Balor match was a hell of a lot of fun and the Zayn / Neville match was fast furious wrestling

good stuff

[Himu]

Haven't caught it yet. I watch the day after it airs because I watch on Hulu.

[Himu]

Daniel Bryana and CM Punk are like the only two in the past few years who got mainstream media attention and are very recognizable by people who aren't wrestling fans. I'd argue that both were able to break that barrier very well and WWE not taking good advantage of that is why a new Wrestling boom didn't happen.

Instead we're stuck with Cena and Orton 

WWE are going with roman reigns as the next top guy and not Daniel Bryan. It's baffling.

I'd argue WWE had multiple chances to become mainstream again. Daniel Bryan is a great example, but they didn't capitalize on Punk. He went to Comic Con with the belt and created a lot of buzz. People were actually talking about WWE in a non-joking way. He brought attention to the company again. Instead of building on that they still made him second fiddle to Cena, had him lose to HHH and a bunch of other shit. They ruined their own natural build.

Another example is the invasion angle. They fucked it up.

WWE has had so many opportunities just handed to them that they've fucked up over the years. It's hilarious.

[Himu]

I'm surprised AXS is going to show the Invasion Attack match for Ishii vs. Naito. It was really great, but their first match at New Beginning is probably my choice for 2014 MOTY. I guess it wouldn't have the same impact if you hadn't seen Ishii before then, though. The lack of Shibata is pretty surprising as well. They could have put one of his matches with Goto up or his G1 match with Ishii. I think anyone would immediately like his style, especially since they're trying to appeal to the MMA fans that regularly watch the network. Oh well. It's still a great lineup of matches either way.

I keep hearing great things about that Ishii and Naito match.

I'm surprised there's not more Devitt or Low-ki or Ibushi. I think they could use the hype of Balor to score some more ratings (I.e. YOUVE SEEN HIM ON NXT NOW WATCH HIS JAPAN MATCHES)

[Eric P]

Haven't caught it yet. I watch the day after it airs because I watch on Hulu.

It's moved to wed on the network.  Maybe it's now up on Thursdays on Hulu?

[bork]

WWE are going with roman reigns as the next top guy and not Daniel Bryan. It's baffling.

No it's not.  Reigns is a big guy and is more handsome than Bryan.  This is TV...that kind of shit matters.  It's just fucking stupid because the audience makes the stars in pro wrestling, not the company.  Shoving Reigns down our throats is just going to make for another boring 'top guy' that gets booed, Cena-style.     They shoved Rocky Maivia down everyone's throats in the 90s and that backfired big time.  Only by completely reinventing himself and turning heel did it work...and you know they won't do that with Reigns.  He doesn't have the talent for that anyway.

Another example is the invasion angle. They fucked it up.

Yup.  The funny thing is that the Invasion angle ended up being their backup plan.  The original storyline was going to have it be a brand split and they decided against this...only to end up doing it anyway with RAW and Smackdown later on.   

WWE has had so many opportunities just handed to them that they've fucked up over the years. It's hilarious.

So did WCW.  So did TNA, even.  The bigger they get, the more out of touch they become.

[Eric P]

This week's Colt Cobana podcast is interesting.  It features Rocky Romero who talks a bit about his history in NJPW and NOAH.  I'm new to wrestling in general so I had no idea that NJ was almost out of business (Tokyo dome shows used to have 8k people just a few years ago).

It's full of fascinating tidbits about Black Tiger legacy, Romero producing music, WWE approaching him and his attempts to audition for acting parts.

[Himu]

Yeah, contrary to popular belief from western wrestling fans, japanese wrestling is decidedly niche. It, like in the west, has lost a lot of its past popularity. njpw is doing great right now, though.

What did Rocky say about Koslov?

WWE are going with roman reigns as the next top guy and not Daniel Bryan. It's baffling.

No it's not.  Reigns is a big guy and is more handsome than Bryan.  This is TV...that kind of shit matters.  It's just fucking stupid because the audience makes the stars in pro wrestling, not the company.  Shoving Reigns down our throats is just going to make for another boring 'top guy' that gets booed, Cena-style.     They shoved Rocky Maivia down everyone's throats in the 90s and that backfired big time.  Only by completely reinventing himself and turning heel did it work...and you know they won't do that with Reigns.  He doesn't have the talent for that anyway.

Another example is the invasion angle. They fucked it up.

Yup.  The funny thing is that the Invasion angle ended up being their backup plan.  The original storyline was going to have it be a brand split and they decided against this...only to end up doing it anyway with RAW and Smackdown later on.   

WWE has had so many opportunities just handed to them that they've fucked up over the years. It's hilarious.

So did WCW.  So did TNA, even.  The bigger they get, the more out of touch they become.

They say reigns is the new Cena but WWE doesn't need a new Cena.

They lost so much ground and popularity while Cena was on top. Have no clue why they'd do it again.

Also, Daniel Bryan is incredibly handsome when groomed.

[Eric P]

What did Rocky say about Koslov?

Not much, weirdly.  Nothing about their tag team or anything.  It seemed to singularly focus on Rocky.  I think that this is another interview constrained by the 45 minute interview time unfortunately

[Himu]

Tanahashi vs Okada on AXS tonight at 9pm est!

What did Rocky say about Koslov?

Not much, weirdly.  Nothing about their tag team or anything.  It seemed to singularly focus on Rocky.  I think that this is another interview constrained by the 45 minute interview time unfortunately

I'll give it a listen. I like Rocky! I wonder how he's going to be doing without a tag partner now though.

[Eric P]

http://www.dailymotion.com/video/k4i5g6aZAdbapd9SsUi?start=1

njpw axs

[iconoclast]

One episode in and Josh Barnett and Mauro Ranallo have already put every other English wrestling commentary team to shame.

[Eric P]

Yeah I was REALLY impressed from the presentation angle of things.  Good job of editing everything to a very nice package w/ the interviews and everything else. 

[Himu]

Yeap.

[Himu]

Lucha Libre (at least today) is available on the network.

[Eric P]

Real Hero on Daily Motion has Day1 of the TV Fantasticamania

http://www.dailymotion.com/playlist/x3ldc9_JAHMAL1111_njpw-and-cmll-1-13-15/1#video=x2eoypo

[Himu]

yeah njpw world only has the last two days

sucks

[Himu]

Taguchi's mask!

[Eric P]

Tonight is RAWLTERNATIVE

Who:

-Young Bucks vs. Super Smash Bros courtesy of Smash Wrestling (Twitter: @smashwrestling)

-Ricochet vs. Josh Alexander courtesy of Alpha-1 Wrestling (Twitter: @A1Wrestling)

-Chris Hero vs. Colin Delaney courtesy of 2CW: Squared Circle Wrestling (Twitter: @2CW)

-Johnny Gargano vs. Ethan Page courtesy of Absolute Intense Wrestling (Twitter: @aiwrestling)

-Takaaki Watanabe vs. Andy Dalton courtesy of Inspire Pro (Twitter: @InspireProWres)

-Ninjas With Altitude vs. Food Fighters courtesy of Inter Species Wrestling (Twitter: @ISDub)

-Eddie Kingston vs. Keith Walker courtesy of AAW Pro (Twitter: @AAWPro)

-Kevin Steen vs. Mike Bailey courtesy of C*4 (Twitter: @C4Wrestling)

-Brian Kendrick vs. Dark Sheik courtesy of Hoodslam (Twitter: @HOODSLAM)

-Rich Swann & AR Fox vs. Christian Rose & Matt Cage courtesy of DREAMWAVE Wrestling (Twitter: @DWWrestling)

-Kyle O'Reilly vs. Gary Jay courtesy of St. Louis Anarchy (Twitter: @stlanarchy)

-Athena vs. Mia Yim courtesy of Girls Night Out

Plus a previously unreleased match from Beyond Wrestling (Twitter: @beyondwrestling)

What:

13 of the best independent wrestling matches produced in 2014!

Where:



Why:

To raise awareness for independent wrestling!

When:

7:30pm EST!

[Himu]

WATCHING

[Eric P]

Himu is fired for not telling me that Taguchi came out in pharaoh  gear at Fantasticamania

[Himu]

Taguchi's mask!