2012 Pro Wrestling Thread

btw, that Santa did a great Mick Foley impersonation

 

If Flair comes back, we still may see a man die on live TV. I really believe the crazy bastard wants that. If this was 1998, VKM would allow it.

 

Since I'm more into wrestling nostalgia nowadays and don't get on this thread as much as I used to, I thought I would pose a question:

What non-star wrestler(s) would you say were some of your favorites?

Please don't say Hulk Hogan. I'm talking about wrestlers who weren't World championship material. They may have been jobbers, mid-card or tag-team specialists.

I will list mine, in no particular order:

* Jumpin' Jim Brunzell. He was my favorite wrestler as a child, growing up in the Central States territory. Very nice guy, almost too shy to be in a business as sleazy as this.

* Omar Atlas. Same territory. He was known as "Mr. Excitement" in Kansas City. He later was a jobber in WWF. I likened him to Pedro Morales without the push.

* Beautiful Bobby Eaton. Probably the most underrated wrestler of all time. Another guy who didn't seem to like the limelight.

 

Wrath. End of discussion. ;D

 

The Patriot.

I don't know why but the guy showed up, got hot and then disappeared. For some reason, that always sat odd with me. And, knowing what I know now, he was probably awful but I only remember thinking he was awesome and then wondering where he went when he was gone.

 

Looked up The Patriot to try to jog my memory.
He fought Hitman for the WWF title on a episode of RAW in like 1997...and came out to what would become Kurt Angle's music (The song is called "Medal")

So...yeah. There's that.

 

Best angle/feud: Although it's not a specific angle or feud, the best thing of 2012 is that the tag team division and its championship mean something again. Supposedly, part of Triple H's vision for WWE is to have longer title reigns and to strengthen the tag team division. Instead of having a brief, gimmick paring (like SuperCena and Shawn Michaels or SuperCena and David Outunga, etc.) we have pairs of wrestlers who are sticking together for extended periods. We have lengthy tournaments. We have championships defended on PPV once again, after a few years of being relegated to the WGN Superstars show.

The year started off well enough with Kofi and R-Truth as champs, and it blossomed from there. Kane and Daniel Bryan made a surprising pair, as did Cody Rhodes and Damien Sandow. Rey Mysterio and Sin Cara teaming was a no-brainer, and I'm always entertained by the Prime Time Players. The Usos and Epico and Primo are cannon fodder, but they do solid work. Seriously, when was the last time the tag team division meant anything? It means something now.

Worst angle/feud: Tie between SuperCena/Johnny Ace and Brock Lesnar/Triple H.
Argument for the never-ending GM drama: The never-ending GM drama. Really, no one cares who plays the figurehead to book the matches. It gets in the way of the actual matches. We don't want to focus on a talent feuding with a manager. You're not going to catch lightning in a bottle again with Austin/McMahon, no matter how many times per year you try to have a talent and GM square off. Year after year since 1998, we've watched this shit. Thank God for DVR. Now I can fast-forward through it.
Argument for Lesnar/Triple H: Who was I supposed to cheer in this? The elitist, career heel who slept his way to the top? The guy who walked out 10 years ago and only came back for a few paydays because he was forced to retire from UFC? Fuck them both. I fail to see how either character earned my empathy and backing.

Match of the year: Triple H vs. Undertaker, Hell in a Cell, End of an Era, Wrestlemania. These guys beat the shit out of each other, while telling a compelling story that began nearly five years ago. Even though deep down I know the streak is not ending, I'm always surprised at how they get me with false finishes. I should know better, but I get too caught up in what I'm watching. That's what a damn fine match should do.

Worst match: Any Divas match. The division is full-on shit.

Nicest surprise: The Shield. Ambrose, Rollins and Reigns are giving off the early, dangerous vibe the nWo had in its early days, but without being a direct ripoff. Just as the nWo, their motives aren't spelled out. That's fine. Just three guys who want to run rough-shod over the WWE roster because they think they're badass and want things done their way is enough. Definitely better than The Nexus, though Nexus had a much better theme song. I like that they're not going the route of immediately having a cheesy logo T-shirt for sale. Of course, the actual debut match at TLC was a delight. Really strong work, given it was a gimmick match to give people their twice-yearly appetite for destruction, whetted by TLC and Extreme Rules. I think Ambrose will be the eventual breakout star.

I would also say the fallout of Daniel Bryan's 18-second Wrestlemania squash was a big surprise. Surely, VKM didn't book it thinking it would propel Bryan to the next level. The fans made this happen. We didn't care what VKM tried to shove down our throats. This is the guy we want to watch, either as face or comedic heel, whatever. This guy is entertaining. Now do more with him.

Wrestler of the Year: Kane. I know. Whoa, what the hell? Not Punk? Not Bryan? No. I say Kane. The guy re-debuted early in the year he would celebrate his 15th as the character, and he went back to his roots. Scary music, fire, mask, long hair, mysterious intentions. Sure, the angle with SuperCena kinda sucked, but it was done with quickly. He moved on to Randy Orton, and the two had a solid opening match at Wrestlemania, and he didn't slow down from there. Realizing that he's in the stage of his career in which people won't boo him out of respect -- well-deserved respect -- he was booked back as a comedic heel/borderline face and paired with Daniel Bryan. Together, they've had some of the best non-match segments while putting on good matches. Although he hasn't added much to his move set, he still tells a story when he's between the ropes. Who knew, 15 years after first wearing the mask, Kane would be this over?

Biggest disappointment: The booking of CM Punk's one year title reign and the character itself. Absolutely no consistency within the bounds of what they wanted him to play. The biggest crime is that the long championship reign is still an afterthought to whatever SuperCena is doing.

WTF!? moment of the year: Depends on my emotion behind the "WTF?" moment.
For a serious "WTF?" it hands-down goes to Jerry Lawler's near death on live television. Do I really have to explain it?
For a funny "WTF?" it's Brodus Clay. When he finally debuted, I wasn't sure what to do.
For a I can't believe the show ended that way "WTF?" it's the double count-out at Night of Champions. It has been a long, long time since The E has had the balls to book a Dusty finish for a main event title match. Not complaining, because it was some refreshing, old-school rasslin' booking. Sure, it wore out its welcome in the 90s thanks to WCW, but this ... I didn't see it coming.

 

Repo Man.

The gimmick is he repossesses your car. I still can't get over it. It's damn funny.

 

OMG, I don't know if it was the stupid Retard Man gimmick, or his stupid expressions while Ivan and Nikita did all the mic work when he was Krusher Kruschev, but either is good enough reason why Barry Darsow is in my top 10 all-time most hated wrestlers.

 

A couple popped right up from WCW (and all are on Nitro in my WWE 13 Universe. Actually, the first one may be on Thunder):

Konnan: After being a huge Hulkamaniac from ages like 5-7, I got back into wrestling in the summer of '98, when the Wolfpac was hot. There was just something about the short, pudgy thug yelling in Spanish that screamed, "CHARISMA!!!" to me.

Billy Kidman: I absolutely loved the cruiserweights because they were awesome. They flew around, they did cool stuff, and I decided if I ever were a professional wrestler in an alternate universe, I'd be a cruiserweight. In the late '90s, I probably would've been like Kidman, a grungy dude who wrestles in a beater and jorts and does shooting star presses all over the place. When I was 13, I always enjoyed watching Billy Kidman wrestle.

Disco Inferno and Alex Wright: I loved these characters then. I love them now. I don't give a damn if they can't wrestle a lick. I marked out whenever Alex Wright did that stupid one-move dance, and I feel a sudden urge to replicate it as soon as possible in a semi-public venue. I wanted Disco to earn the right to join the Wolfpac. I thought the swinging neckbreaker was awesome. It's inexplicable (except maybe for watching a ton of WCW Saturday Night before I really became interested in wrestling again).

Honorable mention: Juventud Guerrera (sans mask), Rey Mysterio (also sans mask), Chavo Guerrero Jr. (con Pepe) and, of course, La Parka (con chair, of course).

 

I always had a huge soft spot for Disco Inferno. I wanted to see him get a push.

 

Before going to the WWF, Del Wilkes had a couple of pretty good pushes in the dying AWA as the Trooper and in the Global Wrestling Federation as The Patriot. The GWF, for a short time at least, seemed like a viable No. 3 because they were televised on ESPN and had some good wrestlers (Foley for one). But they ended up fading away, to the point where Barry Horowitz (!) was one of their top guys.

Wilkes went to Japan and the independents for a few years before showing up in the WWF. I think he ended up getting hurt (neck?), which is why he left after only a short run. Plus, he came in at the wrong time to be a goody-two-shoes babyface. Some fans were booing him (like Cena nowadays) because they wanted to cheer guys like Austin.