forameus Posted April 8 Author Share Posted April 8 Probably a more reasoned post tomorrow once I'm less fucking exhausted and find out what day it really is, but what I'll say now is that it's absolutely amazing the difference that a good ending makes to a WM. I think from memory WM was pretty good last year, but they absolutely fucked it by having Reigns go over. At the time at least, because having him hold another year and slowly build this story led to just how amazing that final moment was. You go back a decade, and you've just watched probably one of the greatest endings in WM history with Bryan winning, at the end of a candidate for the best show ever. If someone suddenly appeared from the future and told you everything that would happen in the next ten years, and how it would culminate with Stardust not only winning the big one, but having done so by the entire fanbase rejecting the Rock of all people, you'd almost certainly imagine they were on something. Michael Cole summed it up at the end. Genuinely tearful, unscripted, "I love Professional Wrestling". Me too, Cole. Me too. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djchapsticks Posted April 8 Share Posted April 8 1 minute ago, forameus said: If someone suddenly appeared from the future and told you everything that would happen in the next ten years, and how it would culminate with Stardust not only winning the big one, but having done so by the entire fanbase rejecting the Rock of all people, you'd almost certainly imagine they were on something. If you'd told me this three years ago when a Cody led AEW could seemingly do no wrong and WWE were hemorrhaging wantaway talent, I'd have not believed a word of it. It has fully flipped on it's lid though. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeff Venom Posted April 8 Share Posted April 8 1 hour ago, djchapsticks said: Make no mistake as well, this weekend was the end. A definitive line in the sand of Vince's era and his quirks and preferences in terms of how he wants things said and done and when. Everyone still argues when eras ended and begun in WWE. This weekend from the HoF onwards was a line drawn under Vince's 'Sports Entertainment' eras for sure. Anyone who has watched WWE for a long time can surely see and feel that change. It feels like the biggest Professional Wrestling company on the planet is no longer ashamed to call itself or be a Professional Wrestling company. One moment in the stadium last night which absolutely demonstrated this (and I assume it was the same stuff shown on TV) was the Cody 'story' video before the start of the main, where they showed him with the Jacksons. Got a pretty cool reaction in the stadium. One other cool reaction in the stadium was the advert for the next Saudi show. Massive boos for that. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
forameus Posted April 8 Author Share Posted April 8 Another thing that will likely be glossed over because the product is extremely hot is just how egregious their commercial approach is now. I'd be interested to know over the 11 hours or so of programming between NXT and the two nights of WM just how much actual wrestling there was. Even if you included entrances, I imagine the amount of time they spent on adverts and actively shilling products was just sent into overdrive. That's something you'll likely get away with if you're running a show people are enjoying, but no-one is going to able to have the kind of hit rate HHH is having forever. Now that the Rhodes stuff is pretty much done, and we're likely into at least the epilogue of the Bloodline, they're going to need to keep telling these great stories, or all those little unpalatable things that WWE are doing are going to start to matter a lot more. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Naitch Posted April 8 Share Posted April 8 Night 2 thoughts… Seth vs Drew - no mucking about in this one, both of them went full pelt which is how it should be. First time Punk has wore that brace all weekend so knew right away there’d be shenanigans. Then the cash in. Chuffed for Priest, hope he gets a good run at it and sets up Punk vs Drew. Lashley/Street Profits vs Final Testament - aye, that was fun even if they did totally bury the Final Testament. Should have got the likes of Dreamer and RVD involved as well seeing as they’re in town. LA Knight vs AJ - it was fine, served a purpose. Time for LA to really push on. Logan Paul vs Orton vs KO - pretty good match, I thought. That guy in the prime bottle got absolutely rag dolled by Orton. Fine with Logan Paul retaining - for now. Iyo Sky vs Bayley - that was superb. The crowd were really into this which added to the brilliant storytelling in the ring. Reigns vs Cody - Oaft! Exactly what I wanted it to be. Just magic. The crowd were hot all night, much better than the Saturday night crowd. Definitely made a difference. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrpaddyx Posted April 8 Share Posted April 8 On 07/04/2024 at 14:47, mrpaddyx said: The Network seems fine now. I'm hoping night 2 is significantly better than night 1. Night 2 WAS significantly better than night 1. There wasn’t a single dud and even though it was preposterously booked at the end the main event was fantastic. “I love professional wrestling” ”Pro wrestling is back” “Pro wrestling is beautiful” Lines that never would have been said under the previous management 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hoose Rice Posted April 8 Share Posted April 8 Lots of wm weekend from heyman at the ceremony seemed to relay the message f**k vince mcmahon. Even Trips in the conf last night saying Steph came back for a few days and hes glad because shes got to see first hand how its safe and comfortable now and it's her home. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cb_diamond Posted April 8 Share Posted April 8 I love that Cole gets his Dobby the house elf freedom sock. We saw in the blackpool UK Championship tournament shows a couple of years ago how amazing he was when given freedom, albeit it was because Vince didn't give a f**k about that then haha 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
8MileBU Posted April 8 Share Posted April 8 (edited) Think Samantha Irvin’s reaction to Cody winning the title pretty much sums up how great a main event and night 2 of Wrestlemania that was and how much Cody deserved it. So much genuine emotion. Also; and this is just my thoughts - I get the feeling that with all the Austin rumours circulating in recent times, it was probably decided NOT to have him as part of the main event since it was almost too predictable given his historic rivalry with The Rock Having it be ‘Taker who showed up was an absolute masterstroke piece of booking. Having the next biggest (or arguably equal biggest) superstar show up was genius. The lights out and gong sounding was just fucking perfect for that “HOLY f**k!” factor and getting a huge crowd pop. Lights out, gong, then Undertaker in Rocks face just absolutely nailed the shock-factor. For me it was easily more effective for that element of surprise, instant impact moment, more than it would have been had it been the sound of glass shattering instead then Austin stomping and snarling all the way down the ramp to the ring before getting involved. Just fucking brilliant! Edited April 8 by 8MileBU 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sherrif John Bunnell Posted April 8 Share Posted April 8 You need the sound on for this 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sherrif John Bunnell Posted April 8 Share Posted April 8 Samantha Irvin is woman of many talents 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AmbroseKihn Posted April 9 Share Posted April 9 (edited) On 08/04/2024 at 23:49, The Naitch said: Night 2 thoughts… Seth vs Drew - no mucking about in this one, both of them went full pelt which is how it should be. First time Punk has wore that brace all weekend so knew right away there’d be shenanigans. Then the cash in. Chuffed for Priest, hope he gets a good run at it and sets up Punk vs Drew. Lashley/Street Profits vs Final Testament - aye, that was fun even if they did totally bury the Final Testament. Should have got the likes of Dreamer and RVD involved as well seeing as they’re in town. LA Knight vs AJ - it was fine, served a purpose. Time for LA to really push on. Logan Paul vs Orton vs KO - pretty good match, I thought. That guy in the prime bottle got absolutely rag dolled by Orton. Fine with Logan Paul retaining - for now. Iyo Sky vs Bayley - that was superb. The crowd were really into this which added to the brilliant storytelling in the ring. Reigns vs Cody - Oaft! Exactly what I wanted it to be. Just magic. The crowd were hot all night, much better than the Saturday night crowd. Definitely made a difference. It was so much fun. My favorite match was watching Rock and John Cena, Randy Orton and YouTuber Logan Paul, Cody and Roman Reigns. I have spent so much money to upgrade my system, and I was broke at that time, but now I have found a solution to my money-related problem, which is gambling and now I am doing well in it. But first, it was not easy, because, I met with some frauds and after so many those things, I found Playfina https://casinosanalyzer.com/casino-bonuses/playfina.com and also got Playfina casino no deposit bonus there. The saver of my life is casinosanalyzers, because they helped me find that casino, and it is very helpful in other bases as well. They also give reviews about websites, and they also make lists of casinos based on many criteria. To learn more, you can visit their website. It was so much fun. My favorite match was watching Rock and John Cena, Randy Orton and YouTuber Logan Paul, Cody and Roman Reigns. Edited May 9 by AmbroseKihn 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GNU_Linux Posted April 9 Share Posted April 9 (edited) On 04/04/2024 at 23:35, TheGoon said: Really enjoyed Bloodsport, one of the highlights of these weekends every time. If you haven't seen it yet the Abe vs Nomura match from last year that probably got them a spot on Bloodsport is a fucking doozy. Two best mates trying to murder each other with some comedy thrown in too boot. On 04/04/2024 at 00:16, Sherrif John Bunnell said: I'd fully recommend paying for one month of Triller+ or signing up for the 7 day trial, as you get all of The Collective shows with it. It's worth it just for Bloodsport alone. I haven't seen everything yet but the Clusterfuck might unironically be my favourite thing from this years collective. An absolute indyriffic big dumb fun car crash in the best way possible. Edited April 9 by GNU_Linux 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeff Venom Posted April 9 Share Posted April 9 Something I forgot to mention too, at the conclusion of the Reigns-Cody match (and I'm not just saying this with hindsight), there was a huge wind of change feeling, like a massive cathartic release of emotion. Obviously in storyline terms, it's a big change of direction, but you really felt it in the stadium. I imagine it was similar back when DB had his famous night. Only this time we don't have a deluded old piece of shit steering the ship. Hope they're able to keep riding this wave. It might be partly jetlag but my comedown is horrific 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FifeArab Posted April 10 Share Posted April 10 Cody is as close to a Cena replacement as they’ve had in many years, i trust triple h won’t screw it up. Everything feels different now. The production. The presentation. The happiness of the staff and stars. It’s like they actually want to cater to the audience. For many years watching WWE felt like a chore but now it feels fresh again and you’re more excited to watch the product. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cardinal Richelieu Posted April 11 Share Posted April 11 Personally, I can't stand Cody Rhodes. His dyed hair, that fucking tattoo, his voice. I was pleased that he won cos it was quite the spectacle and a change was needed, but hopefully he's just a temporary titleholder until they can put the title on someone else. Maybe Gunther 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DA Baracus Posted April 11 Share Posted April 11 43 minutes ago, Cardinal Richelieu said: Personally, I can't stand Cody Rhodes. His dyed hair, that fucking tattoo, his voice. I was pleased that he won cos it was quite the spectacle and a change was needed, but hopefully he's just a temporary titleholder until they can put the title on someone else. Maybe Gunther Think he's holding the belt for a long time. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
forameus Posted April 11 Author Share Posted April 11 I didn't really notice because they fucked up the camera angles on him actually appearing before Reigns took him down, but Rollins really committed to his Shield bit not just by having a full costume change after his own match, but dying the blonde streak back into his hair. Commitment to the bit. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cardinal Richelieu Posted April 11 Share Posted April 11 Shame they couldn't have brought back Moxley / Ambrose for a brief appearance. Obviously he's at a rival promotion, but a wee bit of quid prod quo and having a similarly statured WWE person appear on an AEW show would be great business for both companies, and reinforce the fact that the old perv really is no longer in charge. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
forameus Posted April 11 Author Share Posted April 11 Honestly, when that Shield music hit, although I knew it wasn't going to happen, in that brief moment Moxley was definitely coming out in the Shield gear. Khan should have asked if he could have Punk for the evening so the Bucks could pants him or something. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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