[Aptorian]

I hadn't thought of the WWE2K game but surely Goldbergs return wont move that many extra copies. Those games are mostly trash to begin with.

This post has been edited by Apt: 02 November 2016 - 01:53 PM

[Gorefest]

I think you are severely underestimating what a big seller their wrestling games are. And this year they have Brock and Goldberg as the cover pictures (i.e. sales pushers). The games definitely are not trash. Just do a quick youtube search on the amount of channels that run wrestling game content. It is right up there with things like minecraft and call of duty and destiny etc.

[Aptorian]

My assement remains that 2Ks Wrestling series is almost complete garbage. Then again I guess it depends on what you are looking for in a game.

Anyway, on a side tangent, I have been making my way through the WWE Networks Pay Per View library. I have now reached 2000. Most of the old wrestlers I remembered are now gone but all kinds of new Wrestlers are emerging. Some of them I realise now have had several different titles or gimmicks over the years.

Like Bradshaw becoming a part of the Acolytes and I imagine soon becoming JBL. Similarly Farooq was the leader of the Nation of Domination and now he's just an enforcer for the Undertaker who has become the prince of darkness and I think he might soon be coming back as Biker Taker. Also funny to see Mick Foley transitioning between Dude Love, Mankind, Cactus Jack and just Foley like taking off a hat and somehow he is over with every single character.

I guess it's the side effect of watching months or years worth of Wrestling stories in quick succession.

I didn't watch Wrestling in the 2000s, besides clips downloaded on Kazaa and Limewire, so I missed the entire attitude era. Great to finally see all these names in action. The Rock and Stone Cold is incredibly over with the crowd. It's fascinating to see just how good The Rock is on the mic. HHH is also a great Heel. Compared to modern day WWE it feels like WWE really is in a vacuum of talent that encompass the idea of "The total Package".

Less impressive is pretty much anything to do with women's wrestling. I am more of an equalitarian than a feminist, but boy is the Women aspect of WWE terrible. It's more strippers and fitness models, than anything resembling talent. Evening Gown matches? Arm wrestling contests? At one point they had a bunch of ancient wrestlers from the 50s-70s come in a judge who is the sexist female wrestler? What in the fuck?

[Gorefest]

Yeah, it was pretty tasteless, to put it mildly. All the more awesome to see a match like Charlotte vs Sasha Banks in a HiaC match on Sunday in the main event. The women have finally arrived.

[Aptorian]

Been watching more pay per views from 2000. It took me a while but I think I am finally starting to understand the Wrestling fascination with smashing people through tables.

I'd never seen the Dudley Boys before but knew they were a really popular tag team. I thought they looked pretty dumb, with their matching clothes and weird glasses. However I just got done with King of the Ring 2000 which seems to be a culmination of a feud between The Dudley Boys and DX. Following it has also been a ton of matches against the Hardy Boys.

I've always thought the Hardy boys were dumb. All those guys are about is doing high flying daredevil stunts which gets old quickly. But the Dudley Boys won me over once I realised their entire Gimmick revolves around Bubba being addicted to smashing people through tables. His face when ever he manages to smash somebody through a table (or doesn't get to) is just hilarious. And it helps that both guys are built like a refrigerator. They just look strong and intimidating.

[DeadHedge]

 Gorefest, on 31 October 2016 - 11:53 AM, said:

Watching it tonight, so cannot comment yet. But I do think having three Hell in a Cell matches is massive overkill.

Going to the live tapings in Glasgow next week. Fingers crossed that Mick Foley will show!

I hate you Gore, I had a chance to go to Smackdown tonight but decided not too as its the inferior brand as I didn't realise RAW was in Glasgow too.

Not watched last nights RAW yet, but how was the crowd, was it worth going?

[Gorefest]

The crowd was awesome! One of the loudest and boisterous that I've been a part of. So they'll probably have to turn them down quite a bit for the broadcast. Debut for local lad Noam Dar who got a massive chant, great segment with the New Day doing a Braveheart impression, and Bayley got the loudest and longest 'heeeey Bayley, I wanna know...' etc. Minutes and minutes long, Charlotte couldnt get a word in. Really good fun, with an amazingly funny dark segment afterwards with Rollins + Enzo & Caz versus Kevin Owens and Jericho. Hilarious stuff, KO and Jericho impersonating Enzo & Caz's gimmick and having a great time with the audience.

Really looking forward to Smackdown tonight. AJ Styles, Dean Ambrose, a women's title match, and apparently James Elsworth is in Glasgow as well. Should be good fun with this crowd.

[DeadHedge]

 Gorefest, on 08 November 2016 - 09:31 AM, said:

The crowd was awesome! One of the loudest and boisterous that I've been a part of. So they'll probably have to turn them down quite a bit for the broadcast. Debut for local lad Noam Dar who got a massive chant, great segment with the New Day doing a Braveheart impression, and Bayley got the loudest and longest 'heeeey Bayley, I wanna know...' etc. Minutes and minutes long, Charlotte couldnt get a word in. Really good fun, with an amazingly funny dark segment afterwards with Rollins + Enzo & Caz versus Kevin Owens and Jericho. Hilarious stuff, KO and Jericho impersonating Enzo & Caz's gimmick and having a great time with the audience.

Really looking forward to Smackdown tonight. AJ Styles, Dean Ambrose, a women's title match, and apparently James Elsworth is in Glasgow as well. Should be good fun with this crowd.

I hate you. Starting to wish that I bought tickets for smackdown, but would have been as far away as comes.

I'll get tickets next time they come, but for now I will have to satisfy myself from watching it on TV.

I've actually only just got back into wrestling (was too cheap to get sky sports) and I have realised I don't know anyone these days lol

[Aptorian]

I only get to catch glimpses of it on the net but I love how they continue to use Elseworth.

https://streamable.com/glkz

[Andorion]

 Apt, on 15 November 2016 - 12:18 PM, said:

I only get to catch glimpses of it on the net but I love how they continue to use Elseworth.

https://streamable.com/glkz

I am really loving this Ellsworth run. They brought him to RAW and Jericho's reaction was priceless

[Gorefest]

Ellsworth is awesome. He also runs his own little wrestling promotion. It's a great gimmick and long may it last.

[Aptorian]

Just watched the pre-match face-off between Goldberg and Lesnar. Okay, Goldberg finally took of his shirt. He's not looking that bad, I was afraid they'd been hiding his dad-body from the Camera's but he looks like he's ready to go.



I wonder about the angle though. They're actually selling this as though Lesnar is afraid of Goldberg, which makes me afraid Lesnar is going to win at Summerslam.

I rrrrrrreally want Lesnar to start losing some matches because watching him squashing people like Randy Orton is tiresome.

[Aptorian]

I didn't know where to post this but god damn it's funny:

[Aptorian]

Brock Lesnar vs Goldberg

Spoiler

Holy fucking shit.

I mean in retrospect, the way they planned that match, it makes complete sense.

But holy fucking shit.

If you look at the storytelling, you could see Lesnar's fear/uncertainty at their pre-show face-off. You could see it again when Goldberg pushed him out of the corner. Lesnar was afraid of Goldberg.

It also makes sense that they would make the match short, to protect Goldberg. But they didn't even try to make it a challenge. This was basically a exhibition match meant to give Goldberg a proper send off and create a match "for the kids".

Was Goldberg actually so old/rusty that they couldn't risk him getting injured or botching something? Was the stipulation always that he just comes back and crushes Lesnar? Did they change it last minute to just be a quick finish?

In terms of Goldberg's legacy it was great to see him doing the patented squash mash, but for a PPV? I think it would have been a bit less obvious if they'd shown Lesnar doing the corner shoulder tackle a handful of times and Goldberg shrugging it off. Then Lesnar supplexing Goldberg a couple of times and Goldberg getting right up and spearing Lesnar 3 times and then the Jackhammer.

This was way too scripted looking.

But that aside. Holy fucking shit, Goldberg looked way better than I had every hoped.

EDIT: What if this is a part of a series of matches?

Rematch at Royal Rumble that Lesnar wins? Proper final match at Wrestlemania?

This post has been edited by Apt: 21 November 2016 - 10:53 AM

[Gorefest]

Haven't watched the PPV yet, gonna see it tonight after work. But you should REALLY check out the NXT takeover show from Saturday. It is awesome. I doubt that Survivor Series can live up to that standard, but I live in hope.

[Andorion]

 Apt, on 21 November 2016 - 10:34 AM, said:

Brock Lesnar vs Goldberg

Spoiler

Holy fucking shit.

I mean in retrospect, the way they planned that match, it makes complete sense.

But holy fucking shit.

If you look at the storytelling, you could see Lesnar's fear/uncertainty at their pre-show face-off. You could see it again when Goldberg pushed him out of the corner. Lesnar was afraid of Goldberg.

It also makes sense that they would make the match short, to protect Goldberg. But they didn't even try to make it a challenge. This was basically a exhibition match meant to give Goldberg a proper send off and create a match "for the kids".

Was Goldberg actually so old/rusty that they couldn't risk him getting injured or botching something? Was the stipulation always that he just comes back and crushes Lesnar? Did they change it last minute to just be a quick finish?

In terms of Goldberg's legacy it was great to see him doing the patented squash mash, but for a PPV? I think it would have been a bit less obvious if they'd shown Lesnar doing the corner shoulder tackle a handful of times and Goldberg shrugging it off. Then Lesnar supplexing Goldberg a couple of times and Goldberg getting right up and spearing Lesnar 3 times and then the Jackhammer.

This was way too scripted looking.

But that aside. Holy fucking shit, Goldberg looked way better than I had every hoped.

EDIT: What if this is a part of a series of matches?

Rematch at Royal Rumble that Lesnar wins? Proper final match at Wrestlemania?

That was basically my reaction.

Spoiler

I don't think they could risk Goldberg at all. And so, probably for the first time Lesnar got squashed.

[Aptorian]

 Gorefest, on 21 November 2016 - 02:20 PM, said:

Haven't watched the PPV yet, gonna see it tonight after work. But you should REALLY check out the NXT takeover show from Saturday. It is awesome. I doubt that Survivor Series can live up to that standard, but I live in hope.

I generally think all survivor series matches are crap. There's too many wrestlers in the ring and it more or less either becomes a brawl or a finisher spam fest. But the ending of SS was crazy this year.

As for NXT I watched the Samoa Joe vs Shinsuke Nakamura match live. That was a hell of a fight. I find Nakamura weird and awkward and not nearly as awesome as the audience seems to but Samoa Joe is a beast. He feels like a throw back to old school wrestling. Just a big, thick looking, mean bastard that will kick your ass.

Loved the ending.

EDIT: Just went back an re-watched the Smackdown vs Raw match. I take back what I said. That was an awesome fight.

This post has been edited by Apt: 21 November 2016 - 03:53 PM

[Gorefest]

Right. WTF did I just watch?

Spoiler

The women's match was meh. I had high hopes, but there were just too many of them and no storytelling whatsoever. Nikki getting decked beforehand may throw up something nice on Smackdown (although i assume it was Natalya). Bailey getting The victory was nice and builds the feud between her and Charlotte, but the rest was just filler.

Sami Zayn vs Miz could have been a lot better than a decent Monday night style brawl, but never really hit any high notes. Interesting finish though.

The big tag team match was okay, but again just way too many people involved. Some nice spots though. New Day going out so quick was a shock. And I was very surprised when Raw won it, cuz it very much broke the usual 'paint by numbers' scenario (win for Raw, then Smackdown draws, and we get a big finale to see which is the best brand....wait, what? 2-0?).

Kalisto vs The Brian Kendrick: entertaining match with some really nice spots. I never really expected them to move the cruiserweight division over to Smackdown (even though it would be a better fit there) so I figured that Kendrick would retain by count-out or disqualification. But *sigh* Corbin intervention means more boring Kalisto vs Corbin bullshit for the next months. It's a dead horse, just let it rest in peace and dignity.

Men's survivor series match, after a rather slow start, got really exciting. Some great stuff on display with awesome moves from Shane (surely that was a concussion? He looked completely out of it after that spear). Funny and creatively used Elsworth involvement. Nice little Shield activity. And we blessfully got spared another Reigns forcefeed with some good old Wyatt family intervention. And a win for Bray! And another amazing RKO from Orton! Great match, all considered.

That leaves the elephant in the room. What the sodding sods? A Lesnar destruction? Why? What? That wasnt even two minutes! I cannot decide whether i am pissed off or elated. I guess it all depends on what happens on Raw tonight. I just cannot make up my mind. It makes no sense. Why would you have your prime legitimate bad ass champion, the guy who gives credibility to the brand, be decimated by a 50-year old ex-wrestler who hasnt been in a ring for twelve years? Surely not just to boost some video games sales? It makes no sense. Surely Goldberg cannot come back to active wrestling, otherwise he wouldnt have been away for over a decade in the first place. He's a fossil. So at most he's maybe got one or two more matches in him, royal rumble and wrestlemania. But that would still only set the overall score at 2-2. There is no realistic coming back for Brock from this. It serves no purpose. I appreciate that Goldberg was incapable of doing a 15-minute clobber match that most people wanted to see, but this is the other extreme. It is not doing anything for Brock and I cannot see how it does anything for the company in the long run either.

But then again it was a pretty epic holy shit moment, so there is that. That's worth something in itself. I just hope that they dare to run with this and not just use it as a cheap pop moment for a PPV closure. We now need to see a different Brock emerge. Raw tonight will be vital to how this will go down in WWE canon. How will Brock react?

So yeah. Holy shit. That was different.

On a side note, awesome tweet by Kofi afterwards.

Spoiler

"It's okay Brock. Damn near same thing happened to me earlier."

[DeadHedge]

I haven't finished SS yet (still got to finish Men's match), but I did watch The Myth vs The Beast. A few things were done that I wasn't happy with, but some that went well.

Spoiler

Agree with Gore, the women's match was a little lacklustre and I appreciate the need to give Charlotte a new angle as the Sasha one is becoming old. I did like that Bailey got the win as she was meant to be the 'weak link' in the Raw's chain and it showed that she can in fact hold her own. It clearly rubbed Charlotte the wrong way though and I felt that the beatdown was unnecessary and I was hoping that the rest of team raw were going to come and save her from Charlotte.

Sami Zayn vs Miz, I enjoyed this match and although I wanted Sami to win, I had my money on The Miz as if they gave up the title there would have been no mid-card title on Smackdown anymore. It was a very well done match and I would like to see Sami Vs Ziggler instead, but I can see why the Miz as you don't really want Face vs Face. I hope that there is more to come from this and personally believe that Sami would get a big boost if he went to Smackdown. Although the match was well done, I cant help but be irked by the Miz's character, always hiding behind his wife and relying on her getting the win for him.

Tag match was a good one showcased some of the best of the shows, I was actually surprised by the Shining Stars performace as I hadn't put much stock in them. Seeing Twatdango and Tyler Sleeze being eliminated so quick was brilliant, but I never expected New Day to go out so quick, being put out by the Uso's was good though as I know that there is an old rivalry there. I wasn't happy with Raw's win on this one though to be honest, as much as I like the Cesaro/Shaemus angle, winning it for Raw has made them seem too much of a power house and I felt that the Uso's were the better tag team.

Kalisto vs The Brian Kendrick: I admittedly fast forwarded this match, I'm not really a fan of Kendrick (like Kalisto though, but who doesn't like a Lucho?) but I did see the finish with Corbin. I didn't expect Raw to let this one go to be honest although I feel that the Cruisers would go better on Smackdown as lets be honest, it isn't a very strong show and they seem to rely on more promos that actual matches these days (my opinion)

Men's survivor series match, cant really comment on this one yet, but may do later tonight. I got to the point where Roman pretty much killed Shane O Mac, and yet Shane was genuinely hurt there and had to receive medical attention (also if you look closely, you can see Randy approach the crowd and console Shane's family to let them know he will be ok). From what I have seen it has ben a really good match and I am looking forward to finishing it. I am looking forward to seeing the dynamic between KO and Jericho on RAW as you could see the fury and sadness in Jericho when he saw his poor list.

And brings us to the The Myth vs The Beast: I accidentally watched this first (don't ask me how I have no idea). The match (can we actually call it that?) was extremely short ( shorter than the intros actually) and involved a grand total of 5 moves (shove from Brock, shove from Goldberg, Spear, Spear then Jackhammer) and as much as it showed Goldberg as most would remember him, I felt that the build up was too big for such a quick payoff. I can see the reason for such a quick match (Goldberg's age) and for making Goldberg win, especially when they Paul kept saying how much Brock was going to destroy him, and it was a predictable (if short and surprisingly enjoyable) finish. I am very interested in seeing where they take this in the future and I know that there was a Goldberg announcement on raw last night, but I don't know what.


Kofi's tweet is pretty good and it shows how much of a good sport TND are (unlike Charlotte, who is so much like her dad.)

[Gorefest]

Damn, the inaugural UK championship has gotten off to an awesome start. Fantastic first round matches, some great in-ring action, top notch commentary from Nigel McGuinness and Michael Cole (losing his voice by the end of the night from sheer enthousiasm), smarky UK crowd and some proper characters. I had no idea that Tyler Bate was only freaking 19! Geez. Bruiserweight Pete Dunne the top-heel, Mark Andrews with some neat moves, blood, superkicks, just woe. Can't wait until tomorrow for the semi-finals and final. Great advertisement for British wrestling.