Pro Wrestling Thread- Part 2

[bono_212]

 

[david]

So they're going to attempt to draw 100 thousand people to AT&T stadium next year for Wrestlemania.

 

[MrPryck2U]

They'll probably do it too. They've never had a WrestleMania in a venue that could hold 100,000 plus.

 

[PhilsFan]

My friend works for WWE as a commentator under a stage name that I continue to forget. He's like a 6-foot guy in his mid-20s with a buzzcut.

 

[MrPryck2U]

My friend works for WWE as a commentator under a stage name that I continue to forget. He's like a 6-foot guy in his mid-20s with a buzzcut.

Holy shit! Your friend is Tom Phillips. He's the lead announcer on Smackdown.

 

[PhilsFan]

Yeah, I'm almost sure that's it. I did broadcasting with him at Penn State. Great dude.

 

[Hewson]

 

[PhilsFan]

Oh yes, that's Tom. He was one of the better broadcasters I worked with in school, and he also did stand-up and sketch comedy while he was there, so I'm not surprised he's done well with this gig. I've seen some video of him and it's funny stuff.

 

[MrPryck2U]

I wasn't watching Smackdown too much because it was on Friday nights. WWE recently moved SD to Thursday nights, so I watch it every week. Phillips is definitely a good announcer. I think he's actually a perfect fit for WWE. I hope he sticks around for a long time. Good pro wrestling announcers are hard to find.

 

[MrPryck2U]

Yeah, I'm almost sure that's it. I did broadcasting with him at Penn State. Great dude.

His bio is pretty cool over at WWE's website. I'd give you a link, but I'm a spaz.

 

[PhilsFan]

I don't understand the difference between things like Main Event and Raw and SmackDown so I don't know the hierarchy here.

 

[bono_212]

If it's anything like WCW was: PPV Events are once a month, Raw is the flagship show that airs Monday nights and SmackDown is the less spectacular, but still decent show that airs on Thursdays. (Again, that's how it went for WCW, at least PPV > Nitro > Thunder)

 

[MrPryck2U]

I don't understand the difference between things like Main Event and Raw and SmackDown so I don't know the hierarchy here.

-Raw is WWE's flagship show. It debuted in 1993 and airs live for 3 hours Mondays on the USA network.
-Smackdown is WWE's "B" show. It debuted in 1999. It is a 2 hour show that is recorded on Tuesdays and is shown on Thursdays on the SyFy channel.
-Main Event is WWE's "C" show and is also taped on Tuesdays, but airs on Wednesday nights on the WWE Network.

WWE PPV's run almost every month, but the major ones are Royal Rumble, WrestleMania, Summer Slam and Survivor Series. WrestleMania is the Super Bowl of pro wrestling.

 

[bono_212]

Oh I didn't realize that Main Event was a show. Jesus, they have THREE?!

 

[MrPryck2U]

Oh I didn't realize that Main Event was a show. Jesus, they have THREE?!

Main Event used to air on the Ion channel, but now it has been relegated to the WWE Network. WWE Superstars is a compilation show that also runs on the WWE Network. That show used to air on WGN America. And finally, there's NXT, which is WWE's developmental organization. That airs on the WWE Network too.

 

[bono_212]

It's strange to think that something that kinda disappeared out of a person's life can still be out there and possibly larger than ever.

 

[MrPryck2U]

It's strange to think that something that kinda disappeared out of a person's life can still be out there and possibly larger than ever.

Just think, WCW died nearly 14 years ago. A year later, McMahon had to change the name of his company to WWE due to legal problems with the other WWF (World Wildlife Fund) and was prohibited from even saying the letters "WWF" on his programming. This went on for over a decade until he and the Fund came to an agreement to be able to use the WWF scratch logo and utter the letters "WWF" once again. Meanwhile, "WCW", which McMahon killed, could be mentioned with no problems whatsoever.

Many argue that pro wrestling hasn't been the same since McMahon killed WCW. Before WCW imploded, they came damn close to putting McMahon out of business. It forced McMahon to think outside of the box and take risks that he usually wouldn't take. Before WCW became a major threat, the WWF was a family oriented show. In an effort to compete, the WWF evolved to feature racier content. A character like Goldust best illustrates this transition. This of course ushered in the Attitude Era and provided the KO punch to WCW.

 

[bono_212]

There was certainly a reason why I never watched WWF as a kid. I just straight up wasn't allowed. And then whenever I'd sneak a peek, I was just at the age where I was uncomfortable enough watching it that I'd just turn it myself anyways.

When I was a VERY little kid, though, I watched WWF with my Grandfather. Jake the Snake was our guy, and we'd watch it together every week. So, I do have these residual positive feelings, and now that the two are basically one big merged entity it hardly matters.


Though I still can't get used to The Giant being called The Big Show, and I don't understand what the fuck happened to Kane.

 

[MrPryck2U]

That is funny that you mentioned not being allowed to even watch WWF/E. I was in my 20's and 30's during their whole TV-14 era from roughly 1997-2008 and I definitely had to make sure to not let any kids watch the show. Hell, I even had an ex who despised WWE because of all of the scantily clad divas. I couldn't even watch it when she was around.

Also Paul Wight was only The Giant for 5 years, but he's been The Big Show for 16 years. Crazy, huh? Even more useless info, when Show first came to the WWF, they called him Big Nasty. Kind of like when Kevin Nash was called Big Sexy in WCW.

As for Kane, that's an interesting evolution. You'd have to search him on wikipedia to get the whole story. Unfortunately, he was unwittingly involved in one of the more disgraceful storylines in pro wrestling history. If you get the chance, go on youtube and search "Katie Vick". She was a fictional character created for a feud between Triple H and Kane.

 

[bono_212]

I got lost in a Wiki rabbit hole reading about NWO a few months back, so this should be fun.

Yeah, it's funny, I always remember that he's been Big Show for quite some time now, but he's still The Giant, in my mind .

 

[MrPryck2U]

Well, the best, of course, was when The Giant debuted in WCW, they were saying that he was Andre The Giant's son. Andre didn't have a son.

 

[bono_212]

Oh yeah, I believed that for SO LONG.

 

[MrPryck2U]

I guess we can cut you some slack. You were what, 6 or 7 at the time?

 

[bono_212]

9/10

 

[MrPryck2U]

9/10

Well, I scanned your profile and saw that your birth year was 1987. The Giant debuted in 1995, so I was just doing some math.

 

[bono_212]

...I was in 4th grade when I started watching wrestling, so that was when I was 8/9. I know I started watching right after NWO started, to give you some time idea, but kids at my school never stopped insisting that the Giant was Andre's kid. It wasn't until I was in middle school and the internet was more of a thing, that I was able to find out how wrong that actually was. So, the numbers may not add up, timeline wise, but it's mostly just because that rumor stuck around for a long time.

 

[MrPryck2U]

Oh ok. That makes sense. I started watching pro wrestling when I was about 8 or 9 too. I remember my mom being concerned that it was too violent. I had to "smarten" her up and explain to her that if a guy actually got his head rammed into a steel post, he'd probably be dead.

 

[mikal]

Wow I feel old. I was 35 when nWO first debuted.

 

[bono_212]

That's what I'm here for.... Though I'm getting to that point now where I truly realize how dangerously close I'm getting to being thirty.

 

[mikal]

That's what I'm here for.... Though I'm getting to that point now where I truly realize how dangerously close I'm getting to being thirty.

30's are the new 20's!