Rambles about the wonderful world of wrestling.
Mitusharu Misawa vs. Jumbo Tsuruta is seen as a turning point for All Japan Pro Wrestling. It was the moment when the supremely talented Misawa stepped up to take his place at the top of the company. I’m by no means an All Japan historian, though, so rather than setting up this scenario myself, I’ll point you in the direction of this article which does the job wonderfully.
Continue reading “Meltzer’s Classics: Mitsuharu Misawa vs. Jumbo Tsuruta, 8/6/90”
Us Brits do a hell of a lot of things right when it comes to music. Punk, metal and rock and roll, we have it all. However, if there’s one thing that America nails and we don’t, it’s skate punk bands who discover feelings and get all earnest on us. Which sounds like an insult but is intended as nothing of the sort. There’s something about America’s long roads and tiny towns that breed bands like The Wonder Years and The Menzingers that we just don’t have here. Or at least we didn’t.
If you took the hipster mumblecore of Noah Baumbach strapped it into a sports car and drove it at a 100 miles-per-hour into Godzilla, then the resultant debris would look a bit like Colossal. I mean it wouldn’t, Godzilla is massive so he probably wouldn’t even notice, but you can at least pretend to play along.
You didn’t think we’d seen the last of Ric Flair, did you? Following his iconic series with Ricky Steamboat, it didn’t take the Nature Boy long to find his next opponent. Just minutes after their final match Terry Funk put his boot up Flair’s ass and all roads led to Clash of the Champions IX in an I Quit match.
Continue reading “Meltzer’s Classics: Ric Flair vs. Terry Funk, I Quit Match, 15/11/89”
I almost can’t be arsed writing this. WWE obviously couldn’t be arsed putting much effort into Backlash so why should I bother? This PPV (are they still PPVs? What do we call them now?) was a massive waste of time, and while the crowning of Jinder Mahal will help people to forget that, it’s still true. However, I’m nothing if not a pro with a lot of time on their hands so here is eight things I observed at Backlash.
There’s not much you can rely on with WWE. Their unreliability is the most reliable thing about them. Yet, over the last few years, NXT TakeOver shows have consistently stood up and been brilliant. From Nakamura vs. Zayn to the rise of the tag-team division; you are always guaranteed at least one classic match and if you’re lucky you’ll get a few more. With the TV product slowly heating up post-Mania, it’s no surprise to say that Chicago continued that streak. Here are eight things we noticed while watching NXT TakeOver Chicago.
Continue reading “8 Observations From NXT TakeOver: Chicago”
Reviewing the entirety of Lost Evenings is too big a task for me. I am but one man. From making new friends in the pub to Frank Turner & The Sleeping Souls reigning supreme over the Roundhouse, it was a smorgasbord of incredible moments and beautiful music. Plus, a shitload of beer. I got a lot of words bouncing around this head but getting them all onto paper won’t be easy.
I Don’t Feel At Home In This World Anymore asks the question: why can’t people stop being dicks? Why do decent folk have to suffer through the shit that complete asshats put them through every day? And what happens when they’ve had enough?
Continue reading “I Don’t Feel At Home In This World Anymore (2017)”
Well, we couldn’t watch Ric Flair and Ricky Steamboat forever. Our latest five-star match sees us heading back to Japan where Jumbo Tsuruta is taking on Genichiro Tenryu. I’ll be honest, this is one of those matches where I hadn’t heard of the competitors. Ten minutes of research tells me that coming into this fight Jumbo Tsuruta is the Triple Crown Heavyweight Champion, a title which he unified by winning the PWF World Heavyweight Championship, NWA United National Championship and the NWA International Heavyweight Championship. While Tenyru only retired a couple of years back in a match against Okada.
Continue reading “Meltzer’s Classics: Jumbo Tsuruta vs. Genichiro Tenryu 5/6/89”
As AFI play to a fairly full SECC in Glasgow, you have to wonder whether they have been away for too long. Everything on stage sounds great. The Blood Album is their best album in a long time and songs like ‘So Beneath You’ manage to fill the cavernous room. Davey Havok’s voice is untouchable and as he roars through ’17 Burials’ it feels like they should be laying waste to the place. So, why does no one care? Most of the crowd are stood still, watching respectfully but with as much passion as an atheist who has been roped into Sunday service. It’s been eight years since AFI were in the UK and you worry that people have simply stopped caring. What you’re watching on stage suggests that this band can still be a big deal and ‘Miss Murder’ perks people up, but judging by Glasgow, they’ve got a way to go before the UK is back on side.
Ramblings About Wrestling 