weekend of 02/19

Velocity. Heat For all your undercard heavyweight needs. I try not to go on long weird segues unless I really feel strongly about it, and I hope I feel like a complete idiot about about it in a week.

Velocity. Heat For all your undercard heavyweight needs.

I try not to go on long weird segues unless I really feel strongly about it, and I hope I feel like a complete idiot about about it in a week.

amateurs

So I scanned thru Velocity, and I’m thinking ‘uh, not tonight’. When the most interesting thing appears to be Charlie Haas wearing WGTT-style gear, you really start to hate six man tags on SmackDown! your Loyola Ramblers season highpoints one two three four five six seven eight nine TEN (Div II wins count to ME, … Continue reading “amateurs”

So I scanned thru Velocity, and I’m thinking ‘uh, not tonight’. When the most interesting thing appears to be Charlie Haas wearing WGTT-style gear, you really start to hate six man tags on SmackDown!

your Loyola Ramblers season highpoints

one
two
three
four
five
six
seven
eight
nine
TEN

(Div II wins count to ME, but not everyone, so they’re listed as 9 wins in places.)

One more versus Cleveland State and then the tournament. And anything’s possible with the way this division is setting up.

Wisc-Mil    13-2
Wisc-GB     10-4
UIC          7-7
Wright       7-7
Detroit      7-7
Loyola       7-8
Cleveland    6-8
Butler       5-9
Youngstown   2-12

Loyola’s whipped UW-GB twice, so they don’t scare me. And even though all the games they play from here on out will be at home, UWM doesn’t either – it was there where they lost to the middle of the pack Detroit team.

(Come back next week, as I randomly make tournament picks.)

ketchup

Been spending the day catching up with people. Catching up on comments: This list is terrible. – Former DDT Digest House Show Reporter Ben D. YET, you have Hurricane’s music. C’mon. Thinking about it, of there’s any other music that absolutely has to be on the list besides New Jack is Austin’s glass breaking, since … Continue reading “ketchup”

Been spending the day catching up with people.

Catching up on comments:

This list is terrible.

– Former DDT Digest House Show Reporter Ben D.

YET, you have Hurricane’s music. C’mon.

Thinking about it, of there’s any other music that absolutely has to be on the list besides New Jack is Austin’s glass breaking, since it set the template for all the WWE music which came after, including Hurricane’s.

The sad, lonely JG link in SD 2005 is actually a dead OO link.

Fixed.

There aren’t as many WV recaps because while I find them entertaining, they’re not as accesible to the person just looking for results.

NWO Picks

bottom line: me, not so good. And I’m probably going to do this three times. PICKS FOR VALIDATION PURPOSES JBL b Big Show This is a boring matchup. Because of the way the NWO tournament has been scheduled – final not set till the last hour of the last major lead in show – they’ve … Continue reading “NWO Picks”

bottom line: me, not so good. And I’m probably going to do this three times.

PICKS FOR VALIDATION PURPOSES
JBL b Big Show

This is a boring matchup. Because of the way the NWO tournament has been scheduled – final not set till the last hour of the last major lead in show – they’ve not left themselves any time to hint towards the less obvious WrestleMania combinations could happen. I don’t even know if it’d be possible with, say, Kurt Angle vs Big Show, but Big Show vs John Cena lead off last year’s WM, and it would’ve been nice to give Show a chance to promise revenge in a rematch to make you thinking he could actually be there. He’s not, of course.

Anyway, boring match. The WWE, not being dummies, realizes this and is trying to make it interesting by coming up with a unique gimmick for the boring match to happen in and while I could see barbed wire doing that for some, barbed wire as a top of the cage ornament seems unlikely. It seems no different than any cage match where escape doesn’t get a victory. JBL will still find a way to bleed a bucket, I’m sure.

If we come out of No Way Out with the impression we’d like to see more barbed wire cage matches like this in the future, these two have easily exceeded expectations.

John Cena b Kurt Angle

Nice stab at trying to build something quick from their first match to this match. Since everyone knows the finish, what’s going to be interesting here is how they get there, and how they balance giving Cena a big victory while not pissing off Angle’s hometown fans.

Undertaker b Luther Reigns

This is a weird build up. Luther does promos about how he doesn’t fear anything anymore including Undertakers, and then he’s acts in fearful ways of the Undertaker. I don’t think we’re supposed to think he’s a boastful liar, but his actions haven’t matched his motivations.

If Luther makes something of this match, it could springboard him to a more consistent role. If he doesn’t, it’s going to be quickly forgotten in the midst of a billion similar Undertaker matches. Nothing to lose here. Good shot for him.

Basham Brothers b Eddie/Rey

The problem with SmackDown! is Eddie and Rey are logistically unable to win the tag titles, because they’re needed for more important action than the tag team titles currently rate. The tag titles are always the path to get many people on the WrestleMania card in a meaningless match, while Eddie and Rey are going to be counted to carry a meaningful match (or two) for SD! at the show. These two things don’t go together, and it wouldn’t seem to help anyone for a quickie double switch.

I wish I’d talk more about storylines and less about meta, but there’s not much to dig into here. Rey should be mad at the Bashams for putting RVD out of action, but he kinda got over it and forgot it till it became necessary for the writers again. Tough to care about the grudge when the people involved don’t.

Funaki b Shannon Moore in the CW 6-Way

The Six Way will probably be a fun match; these things usually are and that’s why they use them as card filler. However, I really hate to see it on the card, because it’s an illustration of the complete lack of effort in this division (and to be fair, the whole midcard.)

This match really should be Funaki vs London for the title (or Funaki/Akio), with Long proving he watches Velocity by rewarding one of the feuding duo a title shot for the performance. Juvi and Kidman had all those neat matches (and I’m not sure we’re at that level of neat), but at some point, they stopped being opening card filler and started meaning something as far as the titles. If Akio/London is going to be remembered by most, it’s got to start meaning something.

It’s also a really bad sign, because if they’re going to the multiple cruiserweight match one month out of WM, they’re unlikely to be at WM. Hope Shannon is saving his money and not counting on a big bonus.

They could go any in direction here – each of them have the same meaning. Status quo is the easiest, so I’ll pick that here. The Cruiserweight title has essentially been zombified since Spike beat Rey after the turn. It’s a shame they waste it like this.

Booker T b Heidenriech

Wishful thinking, but I’m hoping they’ve given up on Heidenreich here, at least to the extent they don’t need Booker to lose to him to build him up anymore. They seem to feel the feud with Undertaker is over – Heidenreich would’ve been a much more likely DCO opponent than Rene Dupree in the tournament if they felt otherwise – so maybe it’s about time to start salvaging whatever value Heidenreich has in him, and start using it to payoff other people.

Other Notes:

I follow SD!, though not as strong and as frequent as I once did, but I still occasionally make charts and lists to explain to others what’s going on. I know who Joy is, because they randomlly attached her to Big Show. I know who Michelle is, because she was the killer in Diva Dodgeball and “stretching assistant” has to be dumbest idea for a character based on a likely real occupation. I have absolutely no clue who these other two girls are – Rochelle and the Other One. They could pull off masks and outfits on Sunday to reveal themselves as Mae and Moolah and I wouldn’t be (too) surprised, because they don’t seem like real actual people who’ve been on SmackDown! – it feels like an inside joke I need explained.

Why you’d put people on television when you have absolutely nothing for them to do, I can not begin to understand.

Hopefully, one year, they’ll figure out a way to make this February PPV seem less like a pointless weigh station on the road to WrestleMania. They haven’t done it this year.

understand less as the pages turn

(the RAW/Rumble recaps aren’t updated, but I didn’t plan on burying them on the side bar, so I forced them back to the top.) – 2005 SD! Index (thru last week) – 2005 RAW Index (thru RAW) – 2002 SD! Index (post-split, now complete) – 2002 RAW Index (post-split, now complete) These should’ve been done … Continue reading “understand less as the pages turn”

(the RAW/Rumble recaps aren’t updated, but I didn’t plan on burying them on the side bar, so I forced them back to the top.)

2005 SD! Index (thru last week)
2005 RAW Index (thru RAW)

2002 SD! Index (post-split, now complete)
2002 RAW Index (post-split, now complete)
These should’ve been done before, but I was missing ’02 PPVs; today I remembered OO and WV’s archives go back that far. Duh.

Cruiserwight Title History
US Title History
WWE Tag Title History
Women’s Title Histoy

All up to today, thanks to no one on SD! defending a belt. Since I’ve got 2002 cleared up, I probably could backtrack a bit on the Women’s Title History, and may when I have a chance.

There’s a billion things I want to improve (like the whole interface) but, I think having a list of every match that’s counted since the Brand Split is an achivement.

Or a scream for help, whatever. Let’s all be glad I’m going home for the weekend.

cha ching

I like the Tilt theme music and open a little too much. I’m pleasantly disappionted the show hasn’t suck as much as I really thought it might. I think it helps they have no illusions about saving anything for a second season – though just watching the beginning of Today’s episode, I’m thinking they’ve maybe … Continue reading “cha ching”

I like the Tilt theme music and open a little too much.

I’m pleasantly disappionted the show hasn’t suck as much as I really thought it might. I think it helps they have no illusions about saving anything for a second season – though just watching the beginning of Today’s episode, I’m thinking they’ve maybe flipped on that – or trying to cram even more in.

(In other neat commerical art work, the hype video/motiff for No Way Out is quite good.)

Edit: Yea. That was slightly awesome.

I was figuring the poker game was going to happen – bringing up the World Championship and reminding us of it as the real climax gave it away. (I’m sure figured out they had to have more than a six show run would’ve illuminated me too.)

I just presumed they’d be interrupted by unknown drug dealer person (and wow, could that casting job make or break a couple of episodes) – I didn’t figure it all coming apart like that.

I still stand by one and out, because the show revolves around

1) Michael Madsen
2) out of place soliloquies by theoretically truculent poker players
3) guy solving murder in a tangential storyline

3’s gonna be over after this season, but I think everyone might be fine with that. 2 obviously will not be.

But how can you have Everest around as a guy who got beat? Can you give this a satisfying ending without the logical conclusion of someone (Eddie, duh) busting him out of Vegas?

Because that’d be pretty good. He is the Show.

data dump

updated – ’04 RAW Index (finished) – ’04 SD! Index (finished) – Cruiserweight Title History (updated thru Armageddon) – US Title History (updated thru Armageddon) – WWE Tag Title History (updated thru Armageddon) – Women’s Title History (updated thru NYR) boredom and lack of travel may lead me to setting up the ’05 table tommorow … Continue reading “data dump”

updated
’04 RAW Index (finished)
’04 SD! Index (finished)
Cruiserweight Title History (updated thru Armageddon)
US Title History (updated thru Armageddon)
WWE Tag Title History (updated thru Armageddon)
Women’s Title History (updated thru NYR)

boredom and lack of travel may lead me to setting up the ’05 table tommorow and getting things up to date.

frightening: I was spured to do all of this because I inserted 1 ’98 Cruiserweight title defense. And I was planning on working on exciting document integration solutions until I got sidetracked.

random bit of trivia: Heat show type, over the last nine weeks and this upcoming one:

12/12 – PPV show
12/19 – normal
12/26 – best of show
01/02 – normal
01/09 – PPV show
01/16 – normal
01/23 – normal
02/06 – PPV show
02/13 – normal
02/20 – PPV show

5 out of 10 filler shows is crappy to watch, but pretty lovely to recap when you’re short on time.

inside note post

Edit: LiveJournal Diaryland’s RSS feed does NOT work. LiveJournal is fine, though perhaps only I use it. Which works well with people who post every day (jtron) and people who post 12 times a year (albert)

Edit: LiveJournal Diaryland’s RSS feed does NOT work.

LiveJournal is fine, though perhaps only I use it. Which works well with people who post every day (jtron) and people who post 12 times a year (albert)

weekend stuff

Velocity. Heat. Special guest Royal Rumble recap. I wanted to write more, but I think I’ll probably sleep. I have no idea when/if I’ll be doing lucha recaps in the near future. I keep wanting to write about Arthur Miller, but I can’t come up with something I don’t dislike. I think it boils down … Continue reading “weekend stuff”

Velocity.

Heat.

Special guest Royal Rumble recap.

I wanted to write more, but I think I’ll probably sleep. I have no idea when/if I’ll be doing lucha recaps in the near future.

I keep wanting to write about Arthur Miller, but I can’t come up with something I don’t dislike. I think it boils down to next paragraph:

You have to read a lot of books in high school. You’re told they’re all great. Some of them are annoyingly overrated. Death of a Salesman was the odd really good one.

oh man, Brendon Small is complaining about Writer’s Block too right now in cartoon world. How odd.

If you don’t mind, I have to get back to my panicing.