Any Pro-Wrestling Fans Around?

[Patty Thundersnow 4,129]

Here's a good take on why this year's main event at Hell in a Cell ended in referee stoppage. Also, stop praising and glorifying AEW like it is the savior to all of wrestling's problems. It's not, because it's nothing more than yet another WCW clone.
 

 

[Denim&Venöm 16,529]

On 10/8/2019 at 9:43 AM, Fiendstorm said:

Here's a good take on why this year's main event at Hell in a Cell ended in referee stoppage. Also, stop praising and glorifying AEW like it is the savior to all of wrestling's problems. It's not, because it's nothing more than yet another WCW clone.

While it's an interesting take, it only makes wwe look even more foolish if it's true. If they wanted to convey The Fiend as a sadist, then they should've kept it as a regular match and then have it end on a DQ, either because the fiend cares not for the belt but for sadistic glee or have Seth end it in a DQ trying to rid himself of the fiend by any means necessary, only for that to fail. Wwe overbooked this match, to the extent that they booked themselves into a corner. You just don't take your supposed most dangerous career ending match, and end it on a DQ.

Also the logic of the referee freaking out falls flat when you realize that Becky and Sasha were being just as violent earlier in the night and the ref never bothered to stop them. This is just wwe showcasing a lack of both logic and foresight. And if all this was their master plan, then why did they practically sweep any mention of the show under the rug, instead of building on it? Sorry but this doesn't hold water. 

And why should we stop our adulation for AEW? They haven't let us down yet. 

[Patty Thundersnow 4,129]

On 10/9/2019 at 2:54 PM, Denim&Venom said:

While it's an interesting take, it only makes wwe look even more foolish if it's true. If they wanted to convey The Fiend as a sadist, then they should've kept it as a regular match and then have it end on a DQ, either because the fiend cares not for the belt but for sadistic glee or have Seth end it in a DQ trying to rid himself of the fiend by any means necessary, only for that to fail. Wwe overbooked this match, to the extent that they booked themselves into a corner. You just don't take your supposed most dangerous career ending match, and end it on a DQ.

Also the logic of the referee freaking out falls flat when you realize that Becky and Sasha were being just as violent earlier in the night and the ref never bothered to stop them. This is just wwe showcasing a lack of both logic and foresight. And if all this was their master plan, then why did they practically sweep any mention of the show under the rug, instead of building on it? Sorry but this doesn't hold water. 

And why should we stop our adulation for AEW? They haven't let us down yet. 

Because I think it will end up as another WCW clone, but this could be due to them being an upstart. Plus, I wasn't all that interested in AEW personally. I do like that they have CHris Jericho at their helm as a heel champion. Hoping that he and Kenny Omega fight over the title at some point. Another drawback is that I've never really seen NXT outside of the shows the past few weeks. I'd rather watch that for now, but I"m going to try to watch both next week. Wasn't really able to watch AEW and NXT this week at the same time due to the MLB playoffs.

[Denim&Venöm 16,529]

This is relevant for various reasons.

https://www.fimfiction.net/story/450906/ponies-have-long-been-the-adorable-denizens-of-equestria-but-dont-let-this-distract-you-from-the-fact-that-in-1998-the-undertaker-threw-mankind-off-hell-in-a-cell-and-he-plummeted-sixteen-feet-through-the-spanish-announcers-table

 

 

[BrawnyCharger 511]

Upon learning the WWE 2k20 roster. I was rather disappointed in the omissions of certain legends, such as British Bulldog, Mr. Perfect, Vader, Surfer Sting, Rick Martel, etc. I don't know why they're getting the boot. If it was up to me, they'd keep all the various Legends and Retro versions from previous WWE 2k video games.

Edited October 13, 2019 by BrawnyCharger

[Sparklefan1234 161,903]

30 minutes ago, BrawnyCharger said:

Upon learning the WWE 2k20 roster. I was rather disappointed in the omissions of certain legends, such as British Bulldog, Mr. Perfect, Vader, Surfer Sting, Rick Martel, etc. I don't know why they're getting the boot.

 

It probably had to do with their WWE Legends merchandise contracts expiring. 

[Patty Thundersnow 4,129]

37 minutes ago, BrawnyCharger said:

Upon learning the WWE 2k20 roster. I was rather disappointed in the omissions of certain legends, such as British Bulldog, Mr. Perfect, Vader, Surfer Sting, Rick Martel, etc. I don't know why they're getting the boot. If it was up to me, they'd keep all the various Legends and Retro versions from previous WWE 2k video games.

It's probably because 2K is releasing the '2K Originals' this year, giving a lot more dlc to the game.

[Denim&Venöm 16,529]

I haven't bought a WWE game since SDvRaw '11. And I don't think I will given the way 2K games have acted with their NBA franchise and them defending blatant gambling mechanics. So while I have no wish to fund WWE and how they operate, my biggest issue is with the publisher. I have zero interest in supporting 2K and their predatory practices. 

[Patty Thundersnow 4,129]

30 minutes ago, Denim&Venom said:

I haven't bought a WWE game since SDvRaw '11. And I don't think I will given the way 2K games have acted with their NBA franchise and them defending blatant gambling mechanics. So while I have no wish to fund WWE and how they operate, my biggest issue is with the publisher. I have zero interest in supporting 2K and their predatory practices. 

They really don't use those tactics in the WWE games, aside from the buyable loot boxes in MyCareer mode (which I hope the eliminate moving forward).

[Castle Bleck 19,167]

Speaking of WWE games, SVR '07 was my fondest.

[Denim&Venöm 16,529]

22 hours ago, Fiendstorm said:

They really don't use those tactics in the WWE games, aside from the buyable loot boxes in MyCareer mode (which I hope the eliminate moving forward).

Hopefully it stays that way. Though gambling mechanics aren't my only concern. There's also the possibility that 2K20 could be just a glitchy re-skin of the last game. If they're willing to do such a copy/ paste rush job on an NBA title, why would they treat WWE any better? 

[Sparklefan1234 161,903]

On 10/14/2019 at 10:01 AM, Denim&Venom said:

There's also the possibility that 2K20 could be just a glitchy re-skin of the last game.

 

It seems you were correct.

 

Every single "Youtube WWE Games influencer" that 2K sent out to play/test their game said it was a mess. 

 

That being said,

 

I'm still excited & I have confidence that I will be able to find something fun to do in WWE2K20 after the full patch run for the game is done.

Edited October 19, 2019 by Sparklefan1234

[Denim&Venöm 16,529]

11 hours ago, Sparklefan1234 said:

 

It seems you were correct.

 

Every single "Youtube WWE Games influencer" that 2K sent out to play/test their game said it was a mess. 

 

That being said,

 

I'm still excited & I have confidence that I will be able to find something fun to do in WWE2K20 after the full patch run for the game is done.

But still, you shouldn't have to wait that long for a game to be fun. They had a whole year, yet this is how they treat us, their loyal fans? 

[Sparklefan1234 161,903]

10 minutes ago, Denim&Venom said:

But still, you shouldn't have to wait that long for a game to be fun. They had a whole year, yet this is how they treat us, their loyal fans? 

 

That's true. 

Also, as excited as I am for this game, it feels like this series is becoming "Midway Games WWE" with all of these weird add-ons that I don't use. 

Edited October 19, 2019 by Sparklefan1234

[Denim&Venöm 16,529]

And in other WWE news, the -E have been working to establish a beach head in Japan for their NeXT expansion. And their first attempt was through buying out

For those who don't know, NOAH is one of Japan's big 3, alongside New Japan and All Japan. Though out the 00s they were considered the best wrestling on the planet and were a huge influence on guys like Bryan Danielson, Samoa Joe and Eddie Edwards as well as having gifted us KENTA, Taiji Ishimori and Naomichi Marufuji. 

Though due to a combination of poor decisions and bad luck, they've been in the midst of a rebuilding phase, with a new logo, a new world title belt and a new owner, Riki Chosu. Y'know, the guy who invented the sharp shooter? 

Apperently WWE didn't make them a big enough offer nor did they give them a concrete plan for the future, so NOAH passed them up. Good on them, as I want to see them prosper. But WWE weren't done yet.

Determined to prevail, WWE set their sights on Joshi promotion Stardom, Joshi being the term for women's wrestling. Stardom today is doing for women's wrestling what Shimmer and TNA did in the 00s and what the likes of AJWW, WWWA and FMW did in the 90s. They are helping to ressurect a lost art and were the starting ground for Asuka, Io Shirai and Kari Sayne. 

Makes sense that WWE would want more, so they made an offer. And Stardom declined. They didn't like the fact that they were gonna be merged with some random men's promotion and they didn't like WWE's plans (or lack thereof) for house shows. Even with the deal being sweetened to have all the Joshi over for Mania and the company founder, Rossy Ogawa, inducted into the HoF, Stardom said no. 

But they did eventually say yes. To Bushi-road, the owners of NJPW. Stardom liked Bushi-roads plan for the future. It'll be easier for them to work with a local company. May help New Japan establish a women's division. May even strengthen the NJPW/ROH alliance now that both companies have ties to Stardom. 

Obviously this has set WWE's expansion plans back. Japan is probably the hardest place to try and set up shop. Not only is the country super saturated with well established feds, but there's also a culture of loyalty between the wrestlers and their companies. WWE won't be getting many defections.  Their treatment of Asian talents as of late isn't doing much to sway opinions. And i'm sure they've seen what NXT UK has done to that countries wrestling scene. Just ask the folks at Defiant Wrestling. 

Nevertheless, they're still trying, maybe making offers to someone like Tokyo Joshi (AEW's Joshi partner). If I were WWE, i'd drop their plans on expansion anywhere and just focus on stabilizing their internal issues. 

[Sparklefan1234 161,903]

@Denim&Venom

Bushiroad acquired Stardom. A Joshi league in New Japan perhaps? 

[Denim&Venöm 16,529]

13 hours ago, Sparklefan1234 said:

@Denim&Venom

Bushiroad acquired Stardom. A Joshi league in New Japan perhaps? 

The more I'm learning about this, the less likely that is. Sounds like it'll be business as usual for both brands. Just that stardom will now have more exposure. The one exception to that might be overseas tours & crossover events w/ ROH, CMLL & RPW. They might try and put Stardom stars on those shows to boost attention abroad. That and it'll be likely that the Stardom gals will get a match at the 2 day WrestleKindom event.

[Denim&Venöm 16,529]

So the Super Jr tag league is well under way. Admittedly in the eyes of NJPW, it's the second least important of the tournaments, only managing to edge out World Tag League thanks to the calibur of action involved. Regardless, it should still be an exciting tournament, especially with so many new teams. We've got: 

• Rysuke Taguchi and Rocky Romero. 
• Clark Connors and TJP
• Kanemaru and El Despy
• Tiger Mask and Yuemura
• Osprey and Eagles
• Titan and Volador Jr.
• Tag Champs Ishimori and El Phantasmo
• Defending winners Roppongi 3K

So who are your picks to win. My money is on Osprey/ Eagles.

[TheRockARooster 47,341]

Hi guys, I wanted to share some videos of a young heel at Suplex Pro Wrestling.

His name is Tyler Gunn.

 

Here's his titantron.

 

And here's a promo he cut on another young guy named JB Hazard.

 

[Denim&Venöm 16,529]

And breaking news!

New Japan is officially setting up their U.S. territory! 

 

Taken straight from the website:

NJPW of America launched: Press conference report

 

New NJPW subsidiary set to begin operations this November

Follow New Japan Pro Wrestling of America on Twitter!

Watch all the action of NJPW around the world on NJPW World!

At a press conference delivered to assembled media on October 21, New japan Pro-Wrestling formally announced the establishment of a US based subsidiary. Named New Japan Pro-Wrestling of America, the company will be based in California and begin operations in November.

Company profile

Name: New Japan Pro-Wrestling of America, Incorporated

Chairman: Naoki Sugabayashi 

CEO: Takami Ohbari

CFO: Michiaki Nishizawa

COO: Kaname Tezuka

Base: California, US

Operations begin: November 2019  (planned)

Ownership: 100% owned by New Japan Pro-Wrestling

CEO Ohbari gave a presentation detailing the structure of NJPW of America, and the decision making behind its establishment. The creation of the subsidiary, Ohbari explained, is the third phase of NJPW’s expansion into the US and other international markets.

Phase one: discovering new wrestlers in markets outside Japan and developing talent through the LA Dojo.

Phase two: run events in the US, including at Madison Square Garden and Dallas this year, both independently, and with the assistance of other promotions.  

Phase three: establish a company within the US, and be ingrained in the everyday fabric when it comes to fans’ wrestling consciousness. 

Ohbari went on to explain what had to come next as NJPW of America moves forward. Growing a footprint and increased consciousness in America will become a key factor, especially as competing cash rich promotions are being established. Ohbari explained that fans of NJPW are strongly invested in the concepts of Strong Style and the high level of wrestling that New Japan provides and is farmed by Dojos in Noge and LA. The majority of fans surveyed during the recent Dallas event stated that they watched other wrestling besides NJPW, and that they still expressed a preference to the different style and approach that New Japan presents. 

To those ends, NJPW of America will be putting live events at the core of its business within the US. Just like fans in Japan currently, the goal will be for American fans to experience NJPW up close and in person on a regular basis. This will all happen under the name and branding of New Japan Pro-Wrestling, maintaining the brand that fans know and love as-is. 

The touring structure for NJPW of America will see events being run in five key areas:

WEST: 6 cities across 4 states

MID: 7 cities across 6 states

TEXAS: 4 cities

SOUTH EAST: 6 cities across 4 states

EAST: 4 cities across 3 states

With this in mind, the plan will be for the majority of the US fanbase- some 70% according to market research- to be able to attend an NJPW event and see New Japan action near to them. 

Ohbari went onto explain the benefits that fans both in Japan and America can expect to experience from the establishment of NJPW of America. The Japanese fans will not be abandoned, but rather the expansion will see benefits on both sides of the Pacific.

While the LA Dojo has existed solely as a Dojo up to now, it will now see a full office environment that is designed to support business in the States, as well as to support talent. Perhaps wrestlers who have what it takes and have a passion for NJPW, but for whatever reason are unable to perform in Japan, will be able to represent NJPW in America. At the same time, tryouts and camps will ensure new talent is discovered, developed and trained to the point where they can perform in both America and Japan. This will lead to a deeper roster of talent and better matches and events going forward.

The press were then invited to ask questions on the day’s announcements:

–As NJPW runs more events in America, what are the differences between the two markets?

Ohbari: I’ve been involved with and working in the market for over a year now, and in my experiences, what you see in America is more of a range. There’s a bigger range of ages, from kids to the elderly, and part of that comes from it being so pervasive on television I think, that the whole family ends up watching. Audiences also skew more male; in Japan, our male female balance at events is 60:40, while in America it’s more 80:20.

That said, you do have that diverse age range, and also diverse tastes, I feel, to where American fans enjoy a mix of several different styles of wrestling. Also because there are a lot of young fans, they often view content digitally rather than through TV, and that’s something we hope to take advantage of.

–Will there be plans for longer tours in the US, of the order of the three to four week Power Struggle tour that crosses the whole country, as distinct from the condensed Super J-Cup and Fighting Spirit Unleashed weekends?

Ohbari: You saw the map as part of the presentation earlier, and I think we’ll be keeping to tours taking place in those areas and not outside. It isn’t practical to be jumping between the east and west coast, but you’ll have the west coast tour, and then the Texas tour later, then the central tour and so on. That’s the plan.   

–Will tours in the US run concurrently with Japanese tours, or could it be that American and Japanese tours run at the same time?

Ohbari: The main idea will be that US events will take place while the Japanese schedule is between tours. If there is high demand from fans, simultaneous tours may become a possibility. 

–What are your plans in terms of scale of events?

Ohbari: We’re currently running and looking at venues in the 2000 seat range, that may be lower depending on circumstances. We are a live event company, and the first priority of a live event company is to run in more venues. Once people are in those venues, then we can fire them up and have them ready to spread the word to larger and larger audiences. First though, it’s about growing the number rather than the size of venues. The long term plan will absolutely be to run big venues on a regular basis. 

–Do you have plans for a certain number of events per year in the US?

Ohbari: This is something that I’m discussing with Chairman Sugabayashi, but with 12-13 events run in the calendar year 2019, I think that we could be in the region of double that next year.

–Will events be primarily broadcast on NJPW World? Also will there be dark match only Dojo events?

Ohbari: As much as is humanly possible, we plan for events to be live on NJPW World. Where we can’t arrange for live broadcast, they will be on demand. As far as Dojo events are concerned, that isn’t decided at all, but we have a large space in the LA Dojo and it may be a possibility in future.

–Will the increase in American events necessitate a reduction in the number of Japanese events?

Ohbari: There are no plans to reduce the number of Japanese events.

–So there will be more total events on the calendar?

Ohbari: Correct.

–Can you give any details with regards to television rights?

Ohbari: Up to now we have been working very well with our partners at AXS TV, and plan to continue doing so. As events increase in number in the US, we would like to be able to make more opportunities for fans to watch those events live and in real time on TV, and those are opportunities we’re excited to discuss with TV partners going forward. 

[Sparklefan1234 161,903]

On 10/19/2019 at 10:35 AM, Denim&Venom said:

But still, you shouldn't have to wait that long for a game to be fun. They had a whole year, yet this is how they treat us, their loyal fans? 

 

I saw a legit Destino animation in WWE 2K20 yesterday. Naito would be proud. 

[Denim&Venöm 16,529]

10 minutes ago, Sparklefan1234 said:

 

I saw a legit Destino animation in WWE 2K20 yesterday. Naito would be proud. 

Wonder who they got to mocap it. 

[Sparklefan1234 161,903]

Just now, Denim&Venom said:

Wonder who they got to mocap it. 

 

I know they had Cesaro do mocap one year but I don't know who did mocap for WWE2K19 or WWE2K20. 

[Denim&Venöm 16,529]

1 hour ago, Sparklefan1234 said:

 

I know they had Cesaro do mocap one year but I don't know who did mocap for WWE2K19 or WWE2K20. 

Brief glance online says it might be husband-wife wrestling duo Mica and Tracy Tailor, who were around during the old Deep South and FCW days.  

I wonder if Cesaro did the Mocap work for the game where Austin Aries was voicing the CAW. This is tempting me to make a Claustin Castnignaries abomination. 

[Sparklefan1234 161,903]

28 minutes ago, Denim&Venom said:

I wonder if Cesaro did the Mocap work for the game where Austin Aries was voicing the CAW. This is tempting me to make a Claustin Castnignaries abomination. 

 

"The Greatest Superman Who Ever Lived" Claustin Castnigaries.