Professional Wrestling (WWE, TNA, ROH, etc)

AEW

A fair point. The potential for competition and better storylines moving forward is what has people feeling hopeful, though.

For all the hate Vince is getting now for running the company, he thrives well when faced with actual competition.
If AEW do become a real threat it might be just the thing to reinvigorate the ruthless Vince that made pro wrestling what it is today.

I feel like wrestling fans should be hoping both companies succeed. With WWE stagnating as much as it has, an alternative to watch and an incentive to do better is most welcome.

So I plan on watching MITB later, I preferred to watch the Bucks-Raptors game and then switched to Game of Thrones, but I heard it was a pretty good show with a crappy ending.

Jericho weighing on Twitter said:

Awesome to see @BrockLesnar win the #MoneyInTheBank match...even though he wasn’t officially entered! Brock is the future of the biz and this perfect example of genius booking shows why @WWE will remain on top FOREVER! #GoBrockGo

I listen to his podcast before and I like how Jericho changes his views about WWE depending on his guests.

Lesnar winning the MITB briefcase despite not being in the match...well, they found a way to top the stupidity of him causing a double DQ in a Hell in a Cell match, I'll give them that.

All that's left is for Brock to interfere in a women's match.

Wouldn't be the first time Brock Lesnar has interfered with a woman.

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I literally turned it off when Brock's music hit lol

I had an idea that Bayley would win the ladder match since WWE handed out those signs for her. I did think they'd let Becky 2belts reign a bit longer. I was so mad when Charlotte pinned her but it made sense after Bayley won.

Some of the spots in both ladder matches were pretty cool. I liked the Eclipse from the ladder outside the ring.

Man they must be making a ton of money on these Saudi shows if they can bring back Goldberg, Taker, and Brock for these shows.

It's kind of worth it to rebuild Bayley, but man, another meaningless reign for Charlotte. They really want to get her to 16/17 reigns as quickly as possible.

They could've made it that Bayley attack Charlotte before the match rather than doing what they did so that Charlotte's reign count doesn't get a +1, but I think that's what are they going for.

But I'm glad Bayley won.

It just shows how repetitive the booking has been. Even with so many belts, it''s still the same names competing for them; just like the previous brand split, actually.

Still watching MITB, and currently at the WWE title match. Women's ladder match and Universal title match have been great. There's a spot where Carmella was warding off Mandy after being kicked in the knee, which I thought was a shoot.

A new title was introduced by Mick Foley on Raw, and it's not the Hardcore Championship. It's called the "24/7 Championship" which is like the Hardcore Title, but apparently, people should just grab the belt off of someone -- and not pin them -- to become champion.

The reaction to the title unveiling was embarrassing. The crowd got into it a little by the end, but they were sitting on their hands when it came out of the bag. WWE has too many titles already, without a dedicated jobber title that's a rehash of an old idea that was fun back in the day, but eventually run into the ground.

Also, Renee's bashing of The IIconics highlighted a recurring problem with commentary: rather than emphasising characters' status as faces or heels to garner sympathy or play up dastardly deeds, the announcers just dump on them. Graves does it a lot to faces, as well as heels he doesn't like. That's another problem as well. I know some fans like that Graves' allegiance doesn't change based on heel and face alignments changing, but it doesn't allow him to properly shape the narrative. It only compounds the mess that is the current product.

That's cool, they're bringing the hardcore title back. I wonder if creative stole the idea from Xavier Woods's Up Up Down Down Championship and how popular that has been on his YouTube channel.

It gives an opportunity for guys lower on the card to have their faces shown since we'll see the same losers taking up most of the time every week now.

It's cool to see Truth, a former Hardcore champion win it

I suppose that's one benefit. It gives them something to do, which is better than nothing, but worse than something more substantial.

That title looks like a neon sign outside of a diner. I love bringing back 24/7, but feel it could've been something better even if they didn't want to go the Hardcore route. I don't mind it as a way to showcase lower card under utilized talent, though.

I wonder if creative stole the idea from Xavier Woods's Up Up Down Down Championship and how popular that has been on his YouTube channel.

Oh man, I was laughing so hard at that recent episode.

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UpUpDownDown is a lot of fun in general. The bowling episodes are still some of my favourites.

Jon Moxley debuts at AEW Double or Nothing, and Cody smashes Triple H's throne.

Gonna have to give Double or Nothing a watch sometime this weekend, hopefully. If they still have it available. Good reviews coming out of that show, although personally, I would've preferred the smashing of the throne spot to not have been done at all. Felt petty and cringey to me. Now we'll see if Triple H and NXT would respond this coming Takeover. Part of me wants them to, but part of me don't because it feels so petty.

Moxley cut a promo after that backstage, and then it was reported he'd be doing NJPW next to feud with Juice Robinson (formerly CJ Parker in 2014-2015 NXT) for the IWGP US Championship.

Meanwhile, Sami Zayn mentioned AEW on Raw during an interview segment in the ring. And Brock's MITB briefcase now has speakers on it, resembling a boom box.

Side note regarding Jericho's tweet of Lesnar winning MITB: it's kinda ironic now since he got over Kenny Omega at Double or Nothing, with him being the number 1 contender for the AEW Championship along with Hangman Page. Of course, Jericho and Lesnar are two different performers, but you guys probably get my drift.

Yeah, it's a bit hypocritical. That being said, AEW did reportedly have a strong showing, while RAW didn't have a single match within the first hour. People saying that WWE is in trouble and going to be put out of business are being ridiculous - they survived losing Hulk Hogan to WCW, they can survive losing Ambrose/Moxley - but the product is in shambles right now, no question.

And that's the problem with Raw being three hours (which I think is a part of their deal with USA Network), you'd think with the number of talent they have, they'd be able to fill in those three hours quickly.

If anything, I'd say Vince would step up his game if the TV viewership and live attendance drop, and if more talent become unhappy and wants to jump ship.

I watched the Rhodes match and it was brutal. Reminiscent of Owen vs Bret

Nice surprise for the women's match

And that's the problem with Raw being three hours (which I think is a part of their deal with USA Network), you'd think with the number of talent they have, they'd be able to fill in those three hours quickly.

If anything, I'd say Vince would step up his game if the TV viewership and live attendance drop, and if more talent become unhappy and wants to jump ship.

It really is reminiscent of late stage WCW at this point. I don't think they'll fall as they did, but the similarities are eerie.