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Wrestling I Watched Tonight
OK, forget all that "keeping in touch" nonsense. Here's the real reason for starting this blog. I wanted to write about wrestling. Specifically, WWE 24/7, the OnDemand wrestling network. My DVR is sitting at about 88% full, but 24/7 rotates programming every Tuesday.
First up: WCCW
- I never get tired of Michael P.S. Hayes introducing this old footage. I would sit and listen to him talk about the Freebirds for hours (as long as he included his many, many marijuana stories. "DON'T YOU DO IT, BITCH!")
- Goddamn, this whole build up between the Von Erichs and the Freebirds is epic. Now two weeks after the infamous Flair match and the 'birds "refuse" to get in the ring with a single Von Erich. This week it's Gordy's turn to beat up Mike Adias, close personal friend of Kerry. And after that it's interviews on that Flair match with Kerry and the referee. They sure knew how to sit a stool down a milk a storyline for absolutely everything it was worth in those days.
- Not one but TWO King Kong Bundy matches on this show means I get to catch up on my back issues of the Stranger. Although 24/7 does show an old picture of Bundy in the corner...WITH HAIR. He almost looks like a normal guy when he had hair...back in '81.
ECW
- This episode contains Rob Van Dam's first match. And it's all basically there from the start. The backflip shoulder block in the corner. The split-legged moonsault. All it's missing is the pointing at himself and the Five Star Frogsplash and this could have been a squash match from Raw in 2003. Only Axl Rotten wasn't in the E at that point.
- God, I'd forgotten how awesome that Beulah pregnancy angle was. Thank you for replaying it, opening credits of ECW.
- I don't care what anybody says. Tazz and Joey Styles are a worse announce team than Don West and Mike Tenay.
- I probably should watch Sandman vs. Konnan, but I started a blog instead.
Also, if Adam is reading this, a new Legends Roundtable starts on Thanksgiving.
On a somber note, I also finished off DEATH GRIP: A CNN Investigation. They basically take the Dateline NBC approach to the Benoit murder/suicide. It's been months now and that is still the most depressing story I've ever heard. For those that don't follow wrestling, Chris Benoit, one of my absolute favorite wrestlers for the last seven years, murdered his wife and son, then hung himself.
Yeah. Well, the show goes away from heartbreaking details and more towards the overall trends of death in wrestling, the preponderance of steroids, and the WWE's responsibility for those aforementioned trends. They interview Vince McMahon and apparently the presence of his wife Linda keeps him from strangling the reporter when he asks him questions like "Is the WWE 100% drug free?" I did not know that losing millions in his fight with WCW was Vince's reason for cutting the original 1993 drug testing program.
Of note to wrestling fans are appearances by Chris "Who's Betta Than" Kanyon, The Patriot, and even Eric Bischoff to give a 10 second recap of the Monday Night Wars. And they do a little bit on the Dynamite Kid/Benoit connection. Holy cow, Dynamite is even more fucked up than you imagine. I mean, yeah, he put a shotgun to his wife's head, but there weren't any shells in it.
He only pretended.
Travis
First up: WCCW
- I never get tired of Michael P.S. Hayes introducing this old footage. I would sit and listen to him talk about the Freebirds for hours (as long as he included his many, many marijuana stories. "DON'T YOU DO IT, BITCH!")
- Goddamn, this whole build up between the Von Erichs and the Freebirds is epic. Now two weeks after the infamous Flair match and the 'birds "refuse" to get in the ring with a single Von Erich. This week it's Gordy's turn to beat up Mike Adias, close personal friend of Kerry. And after that it's interviews on that Flair match with Kerry and the referee. They sure knew how to sit a stool down a milk a storyline for absolutely everything it was worth in those days.
- Not one but TWO King Kong Bundy matches on this show means I get to catch up on my back issues of the Stranger. Although 24/7 does show an old picture of Bundy in the corner...WITH HAIR. He almost looks like a normal guy when he had hair...back in '81.
ECW
- This episode contains Rob Van Dam's first match. And it's all basically there from the start. The backflip shoulder block in the corner. The split-legged moonsault. All it's missing is the pointing at himself and the Five Star Frogsplash and this could have been a squash match from Raw in 2003. Only Axl Rotten wasn't in the E at that point.
- God, I'd forgotten how awesome that Beulah pregnancy angle was. Thank you for replaying it, opening credits of ECW.
- I don't care what anybody says. Tazz and Joey Styles are a worse announce team than Don West and Mike Tenay.
- I probably should watch Sandman vs. Konnan, but I started a blog instead.
Also, if Adam is reading this, a new Legends Roundtable starts on Thanksgiving.
On a somber note, I also finished off DEATH GRIP: A CNN Investigation. They basically take the Dateline NBC approach to the Benoit murder/suicide. It's been months now and that is still the most depressing story I've ever heard. For those that don't follow wrestling, Chris Benoit, one of my absolute favorite wrestlers for the last seven years, murdered his wife and son, then hung himself.
Yeah. Well, the show goes away from heartbreaking details and more towards the overall trends of death in wrestling, the preponderance of steroids, and the WWE's responsibility for those aforementioned trends. They interview Vince McMahon and apparently the presence of his wife Linda keeps him from strangling the reporter when he asks him questions like "Is the WWE 100% drug free?" I did not know that losing millions in his fight with WCW was Vince's reason for cutting the original 1993 drug testing program.
Of note to wrestling fans are appearances by Chris "Who's Betta Than" Kanyon, The Patriot, and even Eric Bischoff to give a 10 second recap of the Monday Night Wars. And they do a little bit on the Dynamite Kid/Benoit connection. Holy cow, Dynamite is even more fucked up than you imagine. I mean, yeah, he put a shotgun to his wife's head, but there weren't any shells in it.
He only pretended.
Travis
