Poll: Ask a Wrestling fan, for Non-Fans

[SadakoMoose]

So how about "Kane" eh? I'm not gonna lie, he totally looks like the Undertaker behind that new mask.

Yeah man, it so looks like that one from the mid 90's, you know?
I wonder when Glenn will finally hang up the boots?
Anyway, here's an early Kane match, WAY before he was Kane.
Glenn Jacobs vs Daisuke Ikeda, only 2 years after Glenn's debut in St. Louis.

I have to admit I am coming back to liking wrestling after a long time of not being bothered but being English with only terrestrial TV to watch, I can only catch WWE on YouTube, which is hit and miss.

I have to admit that I am an Undertaker fan and not just because we share the same birthday!

Wardy

Man, that must have been rough. No cable meant no TWC (The Wrestling Channel).
Damn.
Here's some Jinsei Shinzaki, he's like the Undertaker but more agile.

And if you need links to any more GOOD quality wrestling, like RoH or NJPW or CMLL, then PM me, and I'll see what I can get you.
Merry Christmas

-snips-

Do you think Christ Jericho will be coming back soon? Y2J stands for January 2nd 2012 which just so happens to be a monday, so I really hope so because he was one of my favorites when I used to watch and I may start watching again if he does.

He may come back soon, sure. Right now he's trying not to get burned out on wrestling, since he loves it so much, and is focusing on his band Fozzy as well as his family.
In the mean time, enjoy this classic Jericho match from 1995
And, as with the poster above you, if you have the need for any other kind of wrestling you can imagine (Wanna see him as Corazon de Leon, or Super Liger?) then send me a PM, and I'll hook you up.
Merry Christmas.

 

[SadakoMoose]

Mexican Escapists? Any Lucha questions?
Non-Mexican escapists? Any lucha questions?

 

[Metal_Head]

I havent watched WWW in ages but one question.

what do you say to people when they laugh and say its fake and gay?
or compare it to UFC? *which i prefer btw*

 

[Aprilgold]

If Wrestling amounts to acting with stunts, why do they try to sell it as a thing that is real?
You don't see Plays trying to sell themselves as something 100% real, so why wrestling?

And do you think that Wrestling is losing its audience? My take on it is that it was more or less in relation to something of the Gladiator Arenas, however in a less deadly and more safe way, that we, as a culture, have become desensitized to the Wrestling violence.

 

[Kenbo Slice]

Is John Cena really as good as everyone says he is? From what I've seen he's not that great.

 

[SadakoMoose]

I havent watched WWW in ages but one question.

what do you say to people when they laugh and say its fake and gay?
or compare it to UFC? *which i prefer btw*

I don't say anything to them.
They are clearly aren't people I want to associate with.
ESPECIALLY if they're the kind to make homophobic remarks.

As for UFC comparisons, I think it's kind of like comparing apples and oranges.
Yeah, they both offer a kind of physical action, but they have completely different flavors to them. That, and you always have the option to eat both.
Anyway here's some shootfighting for you:
Kazushi Sakuraba (The man would beat 4 Gracies) vs Kiyoshi Tamura
Merry Christmas

If Wrestling amounts to acting with stunts, why do they try to sell it as a thing that is real?
You don't see Plays trying to sell themselves as something 100% real, so why wrestling?

And do you think that Wrestling is losing its audience? My take on it is that it was more or less in relation to something of the Gladiator Arenas, however in a less deadly and more safe way, that we, as a culture, have become desensitized to the Wrestling violence.

No they don't, actually. No one really tries to sell wrestling as real anymore. This isn't 1956. People may stay in character longer, and no one's going to break character on television, but at the end of the day wrestlers don't show up to court wearing their gimmicks. Although some of them did, mostly before the 1970's. Living your gimmick, to some reasonable extent, is a part of the fun and a part of how wrestling does it's job.

While I have noticed a major decline in overall popularity, I don't think it's because people don't think it's violent enough. The biggest problem comes from the fact that only 1 company basically owns the public's perception of the sport.
Quick, name another wrestling company on TV right now.
As far as cable is concerned, there are only 2, the other being TNA and they never do better than a 1.00 on the Nielsen ratings. Imagine a world where EA was the ONLY video game company that anyone had ever heard of and Nintendo had NO presence in the US whatsoever. Oh sure, Mario and Zelda and Metroid would still exist, but noone of them would be in English, and only importers would have ever heard of them.
Would you still play?

The point of watching pro wrestling, for most people, really isn't the violence but instead for the fun and the impressive athletics. In order for pro wrestling to get back on the horse, two things are going to have to happen. Either the WWE is going to have to improve greatly in quality, which it may just yet. Or, companies like Chikara Pro or Ring of Honor are going to have to explode on the mainstream.

But anyway, here's something from Chikara Pro, the most fun pro wrestling on the planet.
Merry Christmas

Is John Cena really as good as everyone says he is? From what I've seen he's not that great.

Not really, he's just really popular with children. He's a decent guy, though. Likes Fist of the North Star.
Mike Quackenbush is pretty good though:

 

[Otaku World Order]

Why do TNA matches feel like everyone is moving in slow motion?

Conversely, why are WWE Diva matches such crap? There is potential there and it seems like they just jerk around(....) a lot with their women's division.

I know, very subjective and loaded questions. >.>

Because TNA is a terrible place to work, where noone is paid enough, nothing is done about drugs, and nobody really cares anymore. It's a GREAT place to get burned out...

Because most of these Divas weren't trained well. The difference between Divas and actual lady wrestlers comes in that Divas were trained with kid gloves on, and are often models who see wrestling as a first step towards an acting career or a playboy shoot.
Look up the documentary Gaia Girls, and take a look at what REAL lady wrestlers look like.
My faves:
Cheerleader Mellisa
Sara Del Ray
Meiko Satomura
Syuri
Ayako Hamada

So, basically the Shimmer/WSU/Arsion type of performers.

One thing I always heard that TNA had over WWE was that the Knockouts were better then the Divas, but I have to wonder, is it because the performers are actually better or is it just the fact that TNA has something resembling actual womens' matches rather then two and a half minute bathroom breaks?

 

[SadakoMoose]

Why do TNA matches feel like everyone is moving in slow motion?

Conversely, why are WWE Diva matches such crap? There is potential there and it seems like they just jerk around(....) a lot with their women's division.

I know, very subjective and loaded questions. >.>

Because TNA is a terrible place to work, where noone is paid enough, nothing is done about drugs, and nobody really cares anymore. It's a GREAT place to get burned out...

Because most of these Divas weren't trained well. The difference between Divas and actual lady wrestlers comes in that Divas were trained with kid gloves on, and are often models who see wrestling as a first step towards an acting career or a playboy shoot.
Look up the documentary Gaia Girls, and take a look at what REAL lady wrestlers look like.
My faves:
Cheerleader Mellisa
Sara Del Ray
Meiko Satomura
Syuri
Ayako Hamada

So, basically the Shimmer/WSU/Arsion type of performers.

One thing I always heard that TNA had over WWE was that the Knockouts were better then the Divas, but I have to wonder, is it because the performers are actually better or is it just the fact that TNA has something resembling actual womens' matches rather then two and a half minute bathroom breaks?

A little bit of both, I'd imagine.
Most of TNA's women's talent comes from better schools and trainers, as opposed to Divas, which are usually home grown out of developmental, rather than be serious wrestlers that have paid their dues one way or another. For example, most CMLL ladies talent is trained by Gran Apache, and they usually turn out better for it. It's the difference between female athletes, and slightly athletic models. Not that TNA does a good job with it's ladies talent, if we remember the disaster that was the Lock Box Challenge, or that fact that their former Women's Champion Taylor Wilde wasn't being paid enough to quit her day job at the Sunglass Hut.
That, and they put one of my other favorites, Daphne, up against an untrained fat ass that ended up injuring her, and THEN had the gall to not pay for her medical bills.
So I boycott TNA...

 

[Otaku World Order]

A little bit of both, I'd imagine.
Most of TNA's women's talent comes from better schools and trainers, as opposed to Divas, which are usually home grown out of developmental, rather than be serious wrestlers that have paid their dues one way or another. For example, most CMLL ladies talent is trained by Gran Apache, and they usually turn out better for it. It's the difference between female athletes, and slightly athletic models. Not that TNA does a good job with it's ladies talent, if we remember the disaster that was the Lock Box Challenge, or that fact that their former Women's Champion Taylor Wilde wasn't being paid enough to quit her day job at the Sunglass Hut.
That, and they put one of my other favorites, Daphne, up against an untrained fat ass that ended up injuring her, and THEN had the gall to not pay for her medical bills.
So I boycott TNA...

I miss Taylor Wilde. But, hey, if they aren't going to pay her enough to live on, I'm glad she left. And to all the people who complain about Alicia Fox in WWE, let's not forget that TNA used to have Lacey Von Erich, who was much worse.

But if I wanted to say what really makes TNA a bunch of tools, I can summarize it with four words: Jeff Hardy, Victory Road.

 

[SadakoMoose]

A little bit of both, I'd imagine.
Most of TNA's women's talent comes from better schools and trainers, as opposed to Divas, which are usually home grown out of developmental, rather than be serious wrestlers that have paid their dues one way or another. For example, most CMLL ladies talent is trained by Gran Apache, and they usually turn out better for it. It's the difference between female athletes, and slightly athletic models. Not that TNA does a good job with it's ladies talent, if we remember the disaster that was the Lock Box Challenge, or that fact that their former Women's Champion Taylor Wilde wasn't being paid enough to quit her day job at the Sunglass Hut.
That, and they put one of my other favorites, Daphne, up against an untrained fat ass that ended up injuring her, and THEN had the gall to not pay for her medical bills.
So I boycott TNA...

I miss Taylor Wilde. But, hey, if they aren't going to pay her enough to live on, I'm glad she left. And to all the people who complain about Alicia Fox in WWE, let's not forget that TNA used to have Lacey Von Erich, who was much worse.

But if I wanted to say what really makes TNA a bunch of tools, I can summarize it with four words: Jeff Hardy, Victory Road.

Or Pac Man...
Hey, here's a question, when I do a multi user quote, does it PM all three of them or not at all?
I'm just wondering since none of those dudes above us have returned despite all the kick ass videos I gave them...
Oh, btw, any other wrestling questions?

 

[SadakoMoose]

Here's some wrestling Trivia:
First Pro Wrestling Video Game: The Big Pro Wrestling! (Featuring a team called "The Strong Bads")
First Pro wrestling video game to feature real wrestlers: Apoooh! Arcades, 1984. Japan only.
First Lucha Libre Video Game: Heroes Del Ring, 2011.

Big gap right?
Man, I wish there'd been a lucha game in the 80's, like that Wrestlefest arcade cabinet.
Featuring Super Astro, El Hijo Del Santo, Fishman, Black Shadow Jr., Super Muneco
And all kinds of Mexican dudes you could be asking me about right now...

 

[omega 616]

1) why the fuck did the attitude era end?

2) Why did awesome Kane get subbed for Darth Kane (come on that weirdly heavy breathing when he is mad is silly)

3) What is with WWE releasing people like crazy? I was looking up old names from WWF and loads of them end with in 20XX so and so was released from there contract. At one point they released 6 in one go!

4) I don't follow it that closely but it seems "leave WWE go to TNA" was the best thing in the world or at least it was.

 

[AlmostLikeLife]

To answer the poll: Yes, big wrestling fan. Have been since I was 7.

Would you agree that Dolph Ziggler is one of the best guys in the business right now? He's a big part of why I'm excited to watch Raw every week; just to see who he'll have a great match with next. His match with Randy Orton a few weeks ago was nothing short of fantastic.

Also, how great is Prince Devitt? I've watched several of his matches and I've loved every one of 'em.

 

[SadakoMoose]

1) why the fuck did the attitude era end?

2) Why did awesome Kane get subbed for Darth Kane (come on that weirdly heavy breathing when he is mad is silly)

3) What is with WWE releasing people like crazy? I was looking up old names from WWF and loads of them end with in 20XX so and so was released from there contract. At one point they released 6 in one go!

4) I don't follow it that closely but it seems "leave WWE go to TNA" was the best thing in the world or at least it was.

1: People got tired, plus the Invasion angle.
After the disaster that was the Invasion angle, they tried to keep the attitude era going. Problem was that a number of their most popular talents from the time were on their way out, such Shawn Michaels going on hiatus for more than half a decade or the Rock moving on to Hollywood. That, and fans got tired of the constant shock tactics, especially when they started going too far (Katie Vick, Mae Young)
Nothing lasts forever.

2: I really don't know, maybe they thought that Glen was getting stale.

3: For a while there it felt like there were releases every other day. I think that most of those releases come down to "Creative not having anything for them"
What can you really do with Vance Archer anyway?

4: Me, I left for Chikara/RoH/PWG.
It was a good choice.

 

[Otaku World Order]

I have a couple of new questions:

1) I never saw the "original" ECW (aka the one that went broke). Was it really the sort of God company that fans make it out to be or is that just the nostalgia talking?

2) Is it just me or is the Money In The Bank concept really starting to suck? I found it really odd when Daniel Bryan cashed in his MitB at the TLC Pay Per View. Again, maybe it's just me, but when a guy who has been built up as a major babyface rushes out to pin a guy who's already beaten down and take his title it just seems off.

 

[omega 616]

1: People got tired, plus the Invasion angle.
After the disaster that was the Invasion angle, they tried to keep the attitude era going. Problem was that a number of their most popular talents from the time were on their way out, such Shawn Michaels going on hiatus for more than half a decade or the Rock moving on to Hollywood. That, and fans got tired of the constant shock tactics, especially when they started going too far (Katie Vick, Mae Young)
Nothing lasts forever.

2: I really don't know, maybe they thought that Glen was getting stale.

3: For a while there it felt like there were releases every other day. I think that most of those releases come down to "Creative not having anything for them"
What can you really do with Vance Archer anyway?

4: Me, I left for Chikara/RoH/PWG.
It was a good choice.

1) I am not sure what the invasion thing was but all I remember from WWF was the people seeming more edgy, throwing insults at each other ... I mean watch this from 4 to 8 minutes, that is fucking funny shit! Real personal attacks and harsh put downs, maybe even a racist one ... I just can't imagine Cena saying something like that, sure he is a little bit cheeky but no where near as bold as talking like this! (Like I said I haven't watched in years but it just seems more PG)


2) What is the difference between awesome Kane and unmasked Kane? Sure he could have the romance with Lita but it's not like they can use that one again.

3) To me there are a few categories you can stick wrestlers in, there are the huge guys ... the ones who never leap from the turnbuckle and usually dominate (Kane, undertaker, big show etc), you have the little high flyers like Ray and Shelton Benjamen ... then you have normal guys, which are by far the largest group, they are muscly and don't really dominate but don't really fly.

I think there also maybe a normal/flying group that usually tag team like the hardy boys, Dudley boys and Edge and Christian but that's not really important.

So what really is the difference between say HHH, "the miz" and John Cena? One could be face or heel, they each could have done any story.

It's not like there has been a new thing happen in WWE in years, it seems every match has some fucker come down, interfere in the match causing one person to win or just maul the guy in an attempt to "injure" him before he risks his title.

4) I meant wrestlers leaving WWE for TNA, I can think of Kurt Angle, Rhino and Jeff Hardey off the top of my head.

 

[SadakoMoose]

1: People got tired, plus the Invasion angle.
After the disaster that was the Invasion angle, they tried to keep the attitude era going. Problem was that a number of their most popular talents from the time were on their way out, such Shawn Michaels going on hiatus for more than half a decade or the Rock moving on to Hollywood. That, and fans got tired of the constant shock tactics, especially when they started going too far (Katie Vick, Mae Young)
Nothing lasts forever.

2: I really don't know, maybe they thought that Glen was getting stale.

3: For a while there it felt like there were releases every other day. I think that most of those releases come down to "Creative not having anything for them"
What can you really do with Vance Archer anyway?

4: Me, I left for Chikara/RoH/PWG.
It was a good choice.

1) I am not sure what the invasion thing was but all I remember from WWF was the people seeming more edgy, throwing insults at each other ... I mean watch this from 4 to 8 minutes, that is fucking funny shit! Real personal attacks and harsh put downs, maybe even a racist one ... I just can't imagine Cena saying something like that, sure he is a little bit cheeky but no where near as bold as talking like this! (Like I said I haven't watched in years but it just seems more PG)


2) What is the difference between awesome Kane and unmasked Kane? Sure he could have the romance with Lita but it's not like they can use that one again.

3) To me there are a few categories you can stick wrestlers in, there are the huge guys ... the ones who never leap from the turnbuckle and usually dominate (Kane, undertaker, big show etc), you have the little high flyers like Ray and Shelton Benjamen ... then you have normal guys, which are by far the largest group, they are muscly and don't really dominate but don't really fly.

I think there also maybe a normal/flying group that usually tag team like the hardy boys, Dudley boys and Edge and Christian but that's not really important.

So what really is the difference between say HHH, "the miz" and John Cena? One could be face or heel, they each could have done any story.

It's not like there has been a new thing happen in WWE in years, it seems every match has some fucker come down, interfere in the match causing one person to win or just maul the guy in an attempt to "injure" him before he risks his title.

4) I meant wrestlers leaving WWE for TNA, I can think of Kurt Angle, Rhino and Jeff Hardey off the top of my head.

1: Yeah, it was funny for a while, but then things went too far and I think the TV audience just got tired.
Oh, and the Invasion angle was after the WCW buyout
Read about it here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Invasion_%28professional_wrestling%29

2: There's no real difference. Maybe creative is hoping that it reminds older fans of when he wasn't boring.

3: I wouldn't put it down to 3 classes, you know? I'd do it more like Brawler, Technician, Shoot Style, Traditional Heavyweight, Hardcore/Deathmatch, Gimmick Men, Comedians, High Fliers, Strong style, and even create separate classes for Lucha style fliers and technicians. Idunno, that's just me.

4: Likely because it's the second highest paying gig in the US right now.
Unless you're a woman, in which case TNA won't even pay for your medical bills.
BTW, Jeff's in jail.

 

[SadakoMoose]

AAA TV taping, 8/18/95 Queretaro
Oh look, wrestling Power Rangers.
I wonder if anyone has a question about them?

 

[Sassafrass]

BTW, Jeff's in jail.

Has this just happened? As I've just watched the TNA on the 16th of December and Hardy's on it, fighting Bully Ray.

Anyway, whatever happened to Zach Gowen? The guy was awesome and he just sort of vanished.
Oh, and while I'm at it, why are all of TNA's heels portraying chicken shits? Seriously, these guys run more than they fight.

Hard questions, I know.

 

[SadakoMoose]

BTW, Jeff's in jail.

Has this just happened? As I've just watched the TNA on the 16th of December and Hardy's on it, fighting Bully Ray.

Anyway, whatever happened to Zach Gowen? The guy was awesome and he just sort of vanished.
Oh, and while I'm at it, why are all of TNA's heels portraying chicken shits? Seriously, these guys run more than they fight.

Hard questions, I know.

Sorry, just getting ready for the future.
I boycott TNA, so what I do know about them is 2nd hand from 420chan's Wooo board.

Zach's made spurious appearances for Ring of Honor, but mostly just works low rent Indy feds and occasionally Jugalo Championship Wrestling. I know, right?


Yeah, TNA doesn't know how to book for crap...

Oh, btw, try to invite some of your non wrestling fan friends to come and ask questions, if you happen to have a few lying around.
I like talking about wrestling, but I'd really like to start educating people about it.