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[M-A-G]

SmackDown!: December 7, 2040

Twenty Minute Opening Promo of Doom Time as Haven makes his way out. He's aware of what Victor Dark is trying to do, but if what occured on Raw was his best shot, he's in for more disappointment. "Victor can speak grandly as much as he wants, but until he himself has the guts to get his hands dirty and try on his own to break me, he is but words. I have never been beaten or swayed by mere words. So throw whatever grunts you can my way and I shall send them back to you, bruised and demoralized and humiliated as a message. I am the Dark Shepherd and no one..."

"Please, for the love of God, shut up, Haven", interrupts someone. What the hell? Quinten McDaniels comes out to the stage and has a mic in hand, looking to speak with Haven. "I've heard sermons like this before so many times from you and I'm just about at the end of my rope. Now, I don't really know or particularly care about whatever history happened between you and this Victor Dark person, but there is a grain of truth coming from his camp that struck a chord in me. It wasn't that long ago when you had a collection of us at your beck and call. You promised us the world. Chet and Lyle and Orlando and Eclypse and, of course, me among others, we went along for the ride. Now I was never completely on board with what you were selling so I don't really feel any major sense of betrayal when it comes to that department, but you really never did end up taking as big of a hit when that whole Order thing collapsed. You went on to headline WrestleManias and win King of the Ring and continue to march these people along with this whole messed up pied piper schtick. That's not really fair, now is it? It's about time I get around to doing what I should've done a long time ago and that's finally knocking you off this throne of yours. Now seeing as you look ready and willing to get physical, I don't see a reason why you can't meet me in that ring later and you can try to shut me up. I have nothing left to fear from you, Haven. I...have been set free."

That's the third person in the last few weeks who's used that phrase. What the hell is going on? Well we can't worry about that right now as Quinten takes his leave and Haven is left to think about what was just said.

First Match: Adam Hail and Lonny Richards vs. Simon Bennett and Mathias
Paul Andrews speaks for Simon and wants Adam Hail to know that he can have his retribution if he really wants it. Simon Bennett is offering Hail a one-on-one match between the two of them at Bragging Rights. It's high time that things get settled because Simon isn't going to stop. Adam has nobody else but himself to blame for his headaches right now, but if he's so sure of himself and his goal to get to the top of the mountain is a surefire thing, he should have no problem accepting this match. A great match rating here with an 80% crowd reaction to remind me that these guys aren't rocking it in the charisma department. This match is costing me at least half a million to put on so it'd better be fucking good and the crowd had better appreciate it. Simon is a house afire and gets all up in everyone's business off the hot tag. Hail evidently thinks it's too much for him to handle for now and he decides to bail and call it a night and get counted out. No doubt this isn't over. ****1/2, 90% overall.

It's time for another edition of the Hot Button with everyone's favorite host, The Hero to Millions Around the World, the Host With THE Highest Rated Interview Show In All of Entertainment, The New Age Intellectual Savior to the Masses, The 2031 Fulton County First Place Conga Award Winner, The Luscious Lover of the Manager of the Year Slammy Award Winner and Undefeated Steel Cage Master and REAL 2040 King of the Ring, The Supreme Submission Machine, Mister Twenty-Forty, The Two Time Slammy Award Winner Including the Rookie of the Year and the Most Envied Superstar of the Year, the Man Who is the Rightful Winner of the Slammy for Cruiserweight of the Year, Former WWE Cruiserweight Champion-Elect, the Cruiserweight Champion Michael Hotbody! Has Luscious with him, of course, as he feels that last night wasn't enough to celebrate all of the Slammys that the two of them acquired. "I mean, there was indeed a lot of celebrating all night. You'd think the two of us would be too tired to even show up here tonight, but never let it be said that Michael Hotbody isn't full of energy! I'm a walking, living, breathing dynamo and I lit up all of 2040! The Energizer Bunny has got nothing on me. And may I just say that bunnies of any sort have got NOTHING on dear, dear Luscious over here."
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Luscious blushes and fans herself with her hands at that comment as Hotbody presses on. "So tonight, I am proud to present to all of you a special in-depth edition of the Hot Button, as we take a look at our awards and reflect on our success and what it is about us that led us to win these prestigious accolades. I know you're all chomping at the bits so let's get this show on the road. Bring them on down, boys!"

A music cue hits and one-by-one, Zed Jones and Galino & Farnes each bring down a Slammy on a mobile pedestal with Hotbody naming each one as he and Luscious look on with tears in their eyes. The Douche of the Year Slammy is covered with a piece of paper taped on with MOST ENVIED written on it in marker. Hotbody asks us all to bask in the beauty of them all. "It's the culmination of hard work and grit and determination that makes one the best in their chosen field. The only tragedy that one can and should find in all of this is that there is one particular Slammy missing and THAT'S THE CRUISERWEIGHT OF THE YEAR! Jordan Demiras, you know that deep down in your black soul, in your selfish unloving heart, you have no right to claim that award. Rest assured that I have my TOP LEGAL COUNSEL working on finding any irregularities! I don't know if it's a case of ballot stuffing, or Lisa Benton pulling some nonsense, or you people not knowing how a poll works, but there isn't any other person on this roster other than me that can say they were the best cruiserweight of the whole year. None of them have this belt around them and none of them are going to take it from me anytime soon! So to Jordan Demiras, I say you can choke on that statue and to Gavin Jones, good freaking luck because it's going to be one hell of a disappointment come Bragging Rights! Look at all you see before you, Gavin, and tremble!"

This is obviously the time for the number one contender himself to sneak up from behind the champion. Gavin spins Hotbody around and delivers a boot to the mid-section and Gavin sends Hotbody flying over the top, knocking over the pedestals and awards. Luscious bails and that leaves Gavin alone in the ring with the title belt. He hoists it up briefly before taking his leave through the crowd as Hotbody and crew start to recover.

Backstage, Sophie Waters is with the Academy who feel the need to unleash on Brooke and company. Justin Mitchell and Randy Ellis came to the realization that Brooke needed them way more than they ever needed Brooke. They're still up for a fight against Ronnie Costello and Salvatore Scabbia, but they feel the need to make this statement: there's always time for anyone thinking about abandoning that ship.

Second Match: Jason Sorola vs. Nigel Gallagher
It's rebuilding time for Sorola as he's coming off a pretty substantial loss on Monday. SmackDown! can always stand some hot cruiserweight action. I need to brainstorm his next feud. In the meantime, he can help rock this match like a hurricane. The match ends when Sorola yanks Nigel off the top rope by his leg and the Englishman hits hard. Sorola locks in the STF and that's going to give him the submission win. ****1/2, 91% overall.

Once again we go backstage where we see Cameron Harper looking dejected and disappointed. He runs into Jake Connelly, who he says he's been looking for. Connelly asks why Harper is sulking. Harper answers that he feels like he let Jake Connelly down. First, he couldn't win the Intercontinental Title on Raw. Then he couldn't win the Slammy for Rookie of the Year. Harper was really hoping to impress Connelly and it all blew up in his face.

Connelly tries his hand at reassurance and says that he's not disappointed in Harper at all. He says that what Harper did on Raw was bold. It got people talking and they had to pay attention. As far as the Slammy goes, it might sting a little, but think about what some proper guidance can do for Harper in the next year. Harper is surprised at this line of conversation and asks if Connelly is saying what he thinks he's saying. Connelly offers a handshake and says that while he has nothing on him right now to make it official, he would be elated to have Harper on board as a client. Harper is ecstatic and accepts the handshake and declares that Connelly will not regret this. The two take their leave as we head back to the ring for the next match.

Third Match: The Perfections vs. The Glamour Brigade
The Perfections need MOMENTUM as they have a date with destiny at Bragging Rights against the Women's Tag Team Champions. All four women bring it like their jobs are counting on it and thus we have a fucking sweet match. It comes to an end when Bonnie manages to hot shot Arianna on the top rope and that leaves her open to the Bluebonnet from Bonnie to pick up the win. Nathan Quinn starts to make his way down and Paul Andrews moves to intercept but that allows the Southern Belles to sneak in from behind their challengers and lay them out with belt shots. This is getting ugly between these two teams. ****1/2, 93% overall.

In-Ring Super Special Talky Time this time with Chris Collins. Collins begins by saying that he has defined his entire WWE career by making sure he is not lost in the quagmire. There is an entire locker room of some of the best this business has to offer and it's easy to get overlooked. "I have done what I can to keep my name on the tips of all of your tongues. I embarrassed and beat up my own father for crying out loud! Unfortunately, it seems like all I've been doing these past few months is struggling to keep my head above water. Well last night was the first step in me changing all of that. Tonight, is step two. Now it's far too late for me to do anything about the main event for Bragging Rights; that's already locked in and set. But I can do something about another title and seeing as how the man who wears that gold has been happily throwing it down this past week, I can't help but wonder if he's still game. So Seth Von Kamp, I hope you're listening, because I'm making my move. I am daring you to accept my challenge to face me at Bragging Rights and put that Intercontinental Title on the line. Seth, I know you like nobody else. We once rode into battle at each other's side. A lot has changed since then, but I know you're a proud man. I expect an answer soon, and I hope for your sake that you don't disappoint me."

Well, Collins isn't going to have to wait long as Seth's music hits and the Intercontinental Champion makes his way out onto the stage. He stares at Collins for a bit before nodding and raising the title over his head with one hand. Looks like we've got another match set for the PPV!

Fourth Match: Haven vs. Quinten McDaniels
Quinten gets back on the mic and says that he hopes Haven accepts this challenge. Haven has gone on for too long without punishment and Quinten feels like he needs to tackle this one gaping wound from his past before he can really move on. Haven can forget about Victor Dark, Andrea, Hugo, or whoever the hell else. Quinten is the man to worry about!

The music of Haven hits as evidently the Dark Shepherd will be accepting this challenge. They get right to it as Quinten seems to be reinvigorated. It was a pretty hefty loss at Survivor Series, but it appears he's not letting it get to him. It's a solid heavyweight slugfest, but things are about to get worse for Haven. He gets Quinten by the throat and looks to deliver something devastating but CHET MORRIS RUNS IN FROM BEHIND!!! He's got a chair and smacks Haven across the back with it. That's going to be a DQ but that's of no concern to neither Quinten or Chet. Quinten holds Haven and that allows Chet to deliver some more shots to Haven's mid-section. Victor Dark makes his way out onto the stage and observes the 2-on-1 beatdown with a smirk on his face. What the hell is the deal with guy? Quinten and Chet eventually take their leave as once again Haven has been left brutalized. *****, 94% overall.

Fifth Match: Jenna Kyle vs. Vivian Merrick
The Women's Champion and Woman of the Year Sonya Braddock joins the commentary team to observe this match. She's congratulated on her Slammy win and Sonya responds by saying it'll look great with the one she's going to win next year. She's asked about Naomi's injury and she replies by pointing out how much it sucks that she's not going to be able to knock her ass out again anytime soon. Naomi only needs to worry about getting better because despite the fight that Jenna Kyle is going to bring at Bragging Rights, Sonya is still going to be waiting for Naomi if she wants to take another shot at taking the title.

The match at hand, though, is all kinds of awesome. I often forget that Vivian is also a worker despite being a manager to the Future Foundation. Jenna BUILDS MOMENTUM by picking up a hell of a hard-fought win by nailing the Kyle Driver and scoring the pinfall. She has a staredown with Sonya Braddock as the champion looks on from the announce table. *****, 95% overall.

MAIN EVENT: Kerry Cemenko vs. Wrakk
If I'm going to have Kerry talk a big game, I should probably be sticking him in some high profile spots. This main event should do nicely. Wrakk is, of course, his dominating self. Kerry manages to escape the Demon Cross and gets the champion down in position for a Curb Stomp but Brandon Reigns is at ringside and he trips up Kerry as he goes to the ropes. That's a DQ as Reigns climbs in to deliver some more abuse. Things look bad for Cemenko BUT HERE COMES RYAN PATTILLO!!! He evens the odds as he tosses Reigns out and slugs it out with Wrakk. Cemenko recovers and he and Pattillo team up to clothesline Wrakk over the top rope. We go off the air with the four men exchanging gestures and threats. ****1/2, 92% overall.

Overall show rating: 89%

[M-A-G]

Originally Posted by Evil Vito AEW Collision June 24, 2023 Title for Title: AEW Women's World Champion Toni Storm vs. NJPW Strong Women's Champion Willow Nightingale As expected, on the real-life Dynamite that just ended, this match got announced for the actual PPV. Glad they are getting the shine in real life. In EWR land though, sorry ladies, I only have so many PPV spots. But throwing them out there first when the crowd is often at a fever pitch is hopefully something of a make-good. Anyway, they had themselves a strong match with a lot of NJPW-esque hard hitting befitting of the occasion. Toni uses some underhanded tactics throughout the match and Willow begins charging back. However, as the match seems to be reaching a crescendo, both women are suddenly taken out by a crossbody by someone else! Is that who I think it is, yes it is! It's ATHENA! The Ring of Honor Women's Champion Athena has been doing her thing on the red and black brand for months, and apparently she feels overlooked. She uses the element of surprise to her advantage, hitting Toni with the O-Face and locking Willow into a Crossface. The surprise appearance of Athena has caught everybody off-guard The Fallen Goddess holds the ROH Women's Title above her head as we fade to commercial. ***, 75% overall ---

I had to look up Athena and to say I'm scared would be an understatement. You may not need Kong after all. I, on the other hand, need more Toni in my life.

Mark Henry: "Ladies and Gentlemen, I'm here backstage with none other than Samoa Joe. Joe, a lot has been said about your surprise attack on CM Punk last week, with people even speculating you're working on behalf of MJF. Can you clarify things for us?" Samoa Joe: "Mark, I want to get one thing straight, I don't work for anyone but myself. People are quick to make stories to suit their own narratives, aren't they? MJF? No, that's not the case. This is about CM Punk, and me. This goes way back, Mark, to the Ring of Honor days. Punk has always been selfish. He seems to think he can just waltz back into the business and hog the spotlight. The spotlight that those of us, who have been grinding and carrying this company on our backs since he's been gone, have earned. That doesn't sit right with me. He wants back in, he has to know that he's walking into my yard." Mark Henry: "Strong words, Joe. Looking ahead, there's been a lot of buzz around your Forbidden Door match against Zack Sabre Jr. What's your take on that?" Samoa Joe: "Forbidden Door, yeah, it's a buzzword. A lot of talent is booked for Forbidden Door, but it seems like they're all conveniently not booked to wrestle tonight. Are they scared? Do they lack the courage to step up on Collision? But let me tell you something, Mark. I'm not like them. I'm here. I'm willing to put my ROH Television Title on the line right here tonight against anyone brave enough to step up to the plate. Because that's who Samoa Joe is. I'm not a coward. I'm a fighter, and I'm here to fight." Mark Henry: "There you have it, folks. Samoa Joe is here and he's laying down the challenge. Whoever decides to step up, they've got a fight waiting for them. Back to you at ringside." ---

How is this ROH deal supposed to be working? Do people just go back and forth as they please or is a title necessary? The pieces are there to do a big time promotion vs. promotion angle if you were so inclined.

The Hardys (Matt and Jeff Hardy) vs. The Kingdom (Matt Taven and Mike Bennett) w/ Maria Kanellis The reunited Men of the Year, Ethan Page and Scorpio Sky, join the commentary table for this one as they spend the entire time egotistically running down the Hardys. A pretty solid showing here all things considered, as all four guys are seasoned pros. Although I will likely not have the Hardys win too many matches in this universe, The Kingdom are an underneath ROH tag team I don't see myself doing too much with so a Hardys win to avoid jobbing them out too much makes sense as I build their program. Jeff Hardy hits the Swanton Bomb on Taven for the win. The Hardys stand on the turnbuckles and point at Men of the Year, letting them know they haven't forgotten about the cheap shots last week. ***, 76% overall ---

LOL, OMG @ Maria Kinellis. I remember your crush on her. I wonder if she has any regrets and hard feelings seeing Punk happily married. Forget Matt and Jeff; SHE'S the big shock to me if she's still sticking her hand in wrestling these days. I would've thought Matt and Jeff would be two of the most over members of the roster and boost that rating a bit more. Still, this was nothing to sneeze at.

Madison Rayne vs. Thunder Rosa Thunder Rosa was among the handful of AEW returnees who turned up for the Collision debut, and this is her in-ring return. As you could expect, she's going to be kept looking strong in this match. I more or less visualized this as an extended squash with Rosa largely dominating proceedings, finishing it off with a Fire Thunder Driver. This was the worst match of the night and still got the Perfectly Acceptable Wrestling label, so that's a mark of a solid night. **3/4, 71% overall ---

Madison Rayne is another blast from the past. I'd give her a blast, I tell you what.

Mark Henry is standing backstage with Ricky Starks, FTR, The Lucha Brothers, and Alex Abrahantes. Mark Henry: Hello agin ladies and gentlemen. Joining me now are an intimidating assembly of talent. Ricky, there's no denying there's been some serious friction between you and Bullet Club Gold recently, especially with Powerhouse Hobbs. Could you enlighten us on this ongoing issue? Ricky Starks: Mark, let me tell you something, man. Bullet Club Gold thinks they're the biggest game in town, but they're nothing more than a cheap knockoff brand. Jay White, Juice Robinson, and Powerhouse Hobbs – it's like a group project where no one did their homework. As for Hobbs... now, that's a special case. We go way back, all the way back three years ago to the Team Taz days. But I've never seen such a massive man accomplish so little. His name is 'Powerhouse' Hobbs, right? More like 'Out-of-Power' Hobbs, if you ask me. He's all brawn, no brain. I've never met a man who could lift so much but understand so little. I beat him in a Street Fight last year, and I'll do it again if I have to. Mark Henry: Tonight, Jay White and Juice Robinson are scheduled to meet the Lucha Brothers in tag team action. Do you have any thoughts? Ricky Starks: I think Bullet Club Gold has forgotten what they're dealing with here. It's one thing to have issues with me and FTR, we've been dealing with their nonsense for a while now. But now, they've gone ahead and pissed off even more people. Let me tell you something about the Lucha Brothers. Fenix and Penta don't know the meaning of fear. These boys were wrestling in barns and fields before any of these goons even laced up their boots. Tonight, they're going to show Bullet Club Gold what "cero miedo" truly means. Mark Henry: Well, it sounds like Bullet Club Gold is going to have their hands full tonight. We look forward to seeing this intense rivalry unfold in the ring. Best of luck to you all. ---

Abrahantes is a new last name that I've never heard. I imagine him ending up in Vince Land being named Abraham Alexanderson. Mark Henry doing interviews still continues to be funny. It's just a weird visual to imagine.

Dalton Castle w/ The Boys vs. Andrade El Idolo w/ La Faccion Ingobernable Similarly, this is Andrade's in-ring return after a surprise return last week. I don't view this one as quite as much of a squash though. Although Castle is mostly in ROH land, he's got charisma coming out the ass and has a compelling, entertaining personality for any great heel to play off of. I'm not sure how much I'll push him him as an in-ring competitor but worst case he should make a brilliant manager someday. Be that as it may, these two have a solid-in ring showing with Andrade getting most of his big moves in as he starts to take charge. LFI and the Boys have a proper fuck-about at ringside and Andrade hits La Sombra for the win. Afterwards, here comes JungleHook again to get them some and we've got a good 'ol brawl to send us into the next add break. ***, 75% overall ---

La Sombra translates to "the shade" so it's safe to say that Andrade threw some shade on him. Dalton has a cool name and it would fit well for a manager.

Miro vs. Jeff Cobb Now here's a juicy Forbidden Door preview. I didn't think I was going to book any NJPW talent outside of the PPV, but I was trying to think of an opponent for Miro and I was browsing through available talent and Cobb's name stood out immediately. Incredibly similar stats to Miro, overness in the high 60s which at worse isn't gonna drag a match down beyond repair. Figured it was as good a time as any to use him before he heads off on his next tour. So I said fuck it, booked it, and magic resulted. These two guys blended insanely well together and now that I've done this I really wanna see this match in real-life. They're both similarly built barrel-chested dudes. Anyway, big meaty men were slapping meat in this one before Miro gets a pin with the Machka Kick. Consider this an early 1-0 edge for AEW as we head into Forbidden Door. ****, 83% overall ---

I'm going to try to be an adult about the slapping meat line. Big beefy men reaching four stars is a rarity so enjoy it when it happens. I'd make Cobb's finisher the Tossed Salad. Hey, I said I was going to be an adult about the meat thing. I didn't say anything about anything else.

[The scene opens in a dimly lit room, shadows dancing across the grim visage of the three members of The House of Black. Malakai's eyes, one darker than the night itself, look straight into the camera, as he begins to speak, his voice as cold as the grave.] Malakai Black: "The Acclaimed, Billy Gunn... last week was merely the beginning. The reckoning that fell upon you... that wasn't personal. No, you were just... inconvenient obstacles, standing in the path of the inevitable. This is not about you, it is about me... and the darkness we must bring forth." [Malakai walks slowly across the room in front of the other two members, his steps echoing in the eerie silence, the camera follows.] Malakai Black: "You, like so many others, live in the light. But that light is not purity. It's an illusion, it's blindness... and we are the ones who will open your eyes." [A slight grimace touches his lips, not quite a smile, as he continues.] Malakai Black: "You wear your victories like badges of honor, but they are nothing. They are the shackles that bind you to the illusion. Each victory, each cheer from the crowd, they only tighten your bonds." [He comes to a stop, turning back to the camera, his gaze piercing the darkness.] Malakai Black: "The Acclaimed... Billy Gunn... we have already taken you out in the ring. You wanted to fight again, but last week you were forced to realize how quickly your reality can shatter. That was merely a glimpse into the void, a taste of the House of Black. You can no longer ignore the darkness at your doorstep, the rot within." [He leans forward, his voice dropping lower, the gravity of his words echoing throughout the room.] Malakai Black: "This is your fate. You are just lambs in the grander scheme, sacrifices on the altar of the inevitable. I didn't choose you... the darkness did." [He steps back into the shadows, his figure becoming one with the darkness.] Malakai Black: "You will understand, in time. When all the lights have gone out, when all the cheers have turned to silence... You will understand once and for all, that the House always wins. [The scene fades, leaving only his chilling words hanging in the air.] ---

This is some old school Undertaker/Mankind/Jake Roberts stuff. I try my best to do this kind of thing with Haven, but it's always a chore because there's a certain way to do stuff like this without it sounding hokey.

Samoa Joe cockily struts out, ready to defend his TV Title less than 24 hours before a technical war with Zack Sabre Jr. Perhaps the fans were expecting someone else from NJPW to walk through the Forbidden Door...but instead they got a hometown hero. It's Ontario's own Shawn Spears! ROH Television Championship: Samoa Joe (C) vs. Shawn Spears Feel like this is a good spot for a hometown guy. Wrestling fans are predominantly smarks now and I'm sure everybody realistically knows Joe would go over, but adding that hometown element is enough to plant even the slightest bit of doubt in the minds of even the jaded fans. Anyway the story here is Joe was being arrogant and figuring he'd just roll through anyone he faced. Instead, Spears came in like a house of fire, catching him off guard and nearly pulling off the upset a few times. Eventually though he gets his shit together and pulls off a flurry of submissions, send a statement to Sabre ahead of their match. He gets the win with the Coquina Clutch. Sending another statement, he leaves the Clutch locked in on the hometown guy long after the bell as the ref tries in vain to brain it up. Eventually Cult of Personality hits and Punk charges to the ring! Joe rolls out of there and takes his leave. ***1/4, 79% overall --- CM Punk, standing in the middle of the ring with a microphone in hand, watches Samoa Joe flee the scene. There's a mixture of anger and determination on his face. CM Punk: "Joe, you can run all you want but there's nowhere to hide. You see, I heard your cute little interview earlier. You don't like me 'waltzing' back into the business, 'hogging the spotlight'. Well, I'm sorry, Joe, but you've got it all wrong. This isn't about the spotlight. This is about the love of this business, the fans, the fight. You attacked me, you took the shot. You had your reasons, and honestly, I don't give a damn about them. You thought it was about making a statement? Well, I'm here to tell you, Joe, you've just written a check your mouth can't cash. Now, we've got some business at Forbidden Door, sure, and I'm not one to overlook a challenge. I've got Hiroshi Tanahashi to focus on. You've got your hands full with Zack Sabre Jr. But you best believe, once that's over, I'm coming for you, Joe. Next week, on Collision... Joe, I don't want to hear any more of your interviews, I don't want to hear about who you are or aren't working for. I want you. No running, no hiding. You fired the shot, Joe... now it's time to pay the price. See you next week, Joe." And with that, Punk drops the microphone, leaving his message to echo through the arena, the fans erupting in cheers, as the tension for next week's Collision intensifies. ---

Shawn Spears has a good name. I'd book him as a Britney fanboy who's way too obsessed and went the extra mile to change his last name to match hers. God damn, I can be stupid when I really put my mind to it, so to speak.

It sucks that my flame for real world wrestling is dead and gone because I just know Punk would be bringing the goods just like this promo. It just feels so odd how some indy schmuck from over 20 years ago now has the ability to command so much attention and conversation...even from people who want to claim that he sucks and isn't worth shit.

Bullet Club Gold ("Switchblade" Jay White and Juice Robinson) w/ Powerhouse Hobbs vs. The Lucha Brothers (Penta El Cero Miedo and Rey Fenix) w/ Alex Abrahantes Four episodes of TV in a row where a really fucking good match is closing out the proceedings, including both episodes of Collision. That's always a damn good sign here. My tag division feels like it's gonna be magic to book as I have so many combinations to work with. Jay White and Juice Robinson aren't even set up as an official tag team in-game but Dean Malenko told me afterwards their styles blend well as a team...meaning I think I got another bonus to the match rating. Anyway, this ruled as you'd come to expect. Lots of nearfalls and drama, lots of Bullet Club shithousery. Powerhouse makes a menace of himself and the heels pick up the win with an illegal double team. Afterwards, Bullet Club Gold pick up where they left off last week by putting the boots to the Brothers, and even look like they're gonna do some damage to poor Alex Abrahantes. But FTR and Ricky Starks run in for the save, I sense a trios match can't be much further into the future. ****1/4, 87% overall rating 81% overall show rating

I could go either way on the name Juice Robinson. Of course, it could be an easy target for ridicule if the guy was ripped and overly muscular. But when you're racking up ratings like that, what does it matter? One of my favorite eye-rolling things of EWR is when you have an established team on a show and your road agent is apparently gobsmacked over how well they mesh and work together. It's like, how much am I paying you again?

[Evil Vito]

Originally Posted by M-A-G SmackDown!: December 7, 2040 Twenty Minute Opening Promo of Doom Time as Haven makes his way out. He's aware of what Victor Dark is trying to do, but if what occured on Raw was his best shot, he's in for more disappointment. "Victor can speak grandly as much as he wants, but until he himself has the guts to get his hands dirty and try on his own to break me, he is but words. I have never been beaten or swayed by mere words. So throw whatever grunts you can my way and I shall send them back to you, bruised and demoralized and humiliated as a message. I am the Dark Shepherd and no one..." "Please, for the love of God, shut up, Haven", interrupts someone. What the hell? Quinten McDaniels comes out to the stage and has a mic in hand, looking to speak with Haven. "I've heard sermons like this before so many times from you and I'm just about at the end of my rope. Now, I don't really know or particularly care about whatever history happened between you and this Victor Dark person, but there is a grain of truth coming from his camp that struck a chord in me. It wasn't that long ago when you had a collection of us at your beck and call. You promised us the world. Chet and Lyle and Orlando and Eclypse and, of course, me among others, we went along for the ride. Now I was never completely on board with what you were selling so I don't really feel any major sense of betrayal when it comes to that department, but you really never did end up taking as big of a hit when that whole Order thing collapsed. You went on to headline WrestleManias and win King of the Ring and continue to march these people along with this whole messed up pied piper schtick. That's not really fair, now is it? It's about time I get around to doing what I should've done a long time ago and that's finally knocking you off this throne of yours. Now seeing as you look ready and willing to get physical, I don't see a reason why you can't meet me in that ring later and you can try to shut me up. I have nothing left to fear from you, Haven. I...have been set free." That's the third person in the last few weeks who's used that phrase. What the hell is going on? Well we can't worry about that right now as Quinten takes his leave and Haven is left to think about what was just said.

I'm assuming you are going for some sort of a stable formation with everybody dropping the "set free" line, and I'm all for it. The slow realization that all of these folks are up to something is good shit.

First Match: Adam Hail and Lonny Richards vs. Simon Bennett and Mathias Paul Andrews speaks for Simon and wants Adam Hail to know that he can have his retribution if he really wants it. Simon Bennett is offering Hail a one-on-one match between the two of them at Bragging Rights. It's high time that things get settled because Simon isn't going to stop. Adam has nobody else but himself to blame for his headaches right now, but if he's so sure of himself and his goal to get to the top of the mountain is a surefire thing, he should have no problem accepting this match. A great match rating here with an 80% crowd reaction to remind me that these guys aren't rocking it in the charisma department. This match is costing me at least half a million to put on so it'd better be fucking good and the crowd had better appreciate it. Simon is a house afire and gets all up in everyone's business off the hot tag. Hail evidently thinks it's too much for him to handle for now and he decides to bail and call it a night and get counted out. No doubt this isn't over. ****1/2, 90% overall.

Always have a soft spot for heels getting themselves counted out. It's a well you can't go to too often and I feel like, in kayfabe, there should be some level of financial incentive tied to every match. Even if not explicitly stated, there's a winner's purse and that's reason enough for heels to not just skirt there way out of every match they're in.

But then you have a deeply personal rivalry where someone just says "nah I'm good" and the countout hits different.

It's time for another edition of the Hot Button with everyone's favorite host, The Hero to Millions Around the World, the Host With THE Highest Rated Interview Show In All of Entertainment, The New Age Intellectual Savior to the Masses, The 2031 Fulton County First Place Conga Award Winner, The Luscious Lover of the Manager of the Year Slammy Award Winner and Undefeated Steel Cage Master and REAL 2040 King of the Ring, The Supreme Submission Machine, Mister Twenty-Forty, The Two Time Slammy Award Winner Including the Rookie of the Year and the Most Envied Superstar of the Year, the Man Who is the Rightful Winner of the Slammy for Cruiserweight of the Year, Former WWE Cruiserweight Champion-Elect, the Cruiserweight Champion Michael Hotbody! Has Luscious with him, of course, as he feels that last night wasn't enough to celebrate all of the Slammys that the two of them acquired. "I mean, there was indeed a lot of celebrating all night. You'd think the two of us would be too tired to even show up here tonight, but never let it be said that Michael Hotbody isn't full of energy! I'm a walking, living, breathing dynamo and I lit up all of 2040! The Energizer Bunny has got nothing on me. And may I just say that bunnies of any sort have got NOTHING on dear, dear Luscious over here." ` Luscious blushes and fans herself with her hands at that comment as Hotbody presses on. "So tonight, I am proud to present to all of you a special in-depth edition of the Hot Button, as we take a look at our awards and reflect on our success and what it is about us that led us to win these prestigious accolades. I know you're all chomping at the bits so let's get this show on the road. Bring them on down, boys!" A music cue hits and one-by-one, Zed Jones and Galino & Farnes each bring down a Slammy on a mobile pedestal with Hotbody naming each one as he and Luscious look on with tears in their eyes. The Douche of the Year Slammy is covered with a piece of paper taped on with MOST ENVIED written on it in marker. Hotbody asks us all to bask in the beauty of them all. "It's the culmination of hard work and grit and determination that makes one the best in their chosen field. The only tragedy that one can and should find in all of this is that there is one particular Slammy missing and THAT'S THE CRUISERWEIGHT OF THE YEAR! Jordan Demiras, you know that deep down in your black soul, in your selfish unloving heart, you have no right to claim that award. Rest assured that I have my TOP LEGAL COUNSEL working on finding any irregularities! I don't know if it's a case of ballot stuffing, or Lisa Benton pulling some nonsense, or you people not knowing how a poll works, but there isn't any other person on this roster other than me that can say they were the best cruiserweight of the whole year. None of them have this belt around them and none of them are going to take it from me anytime soon! So to Jordan Demiras, I say you can choke on that statue and to Gavin Jones, good freaking luck because it's going to be one hell of a disappointment come Bragging Rights! Look at all you see before you, Gavin, and tremble!" This is obviously the time for the number one contender himself to sneak up from behind the champion. Gavin spins Hotbody around and delivers a boot to the mid-section and Gavin sends Hotbody flying over the top, knocking over the pedestals and awards. Luscious bails and that leaves Gavin alone in the ring with the title belt. He hoists it up briefly before taking his leave through the crowd as Hotbody and crew start to recover.

Really good shit as you'd expect. Hotbody is now up to a whopping 4 and a half lines of an intro even on my large gaming monitor, so if I read this thread on my phone it's probably take up the whole screen. Covering up Douche of the Year is just classic.

At this stage I feel like Hotbody's eventual dethroning could be saved for a WrestleMania moment, but he's run through nearly everyone so I'm not entirely sure who will get the honor. I firmly enjoy this angle.

Second Match: Jason Sorola vs. Nigel Gallagher It's rebuilding time for Sorola as he's coming off a pretty substantial loss on Monday. SmackDown! can always stand some hot cruiserweight action. I need to brainstorm his next feud. In the meantime, he can help rock this match like a hurricane. The match ends when Sorola yanks Nigel off the top rope by his leg and the Englishman hits hard. Sorola locks in the STF and that's going to give him the submission win. ****1/2, 91% overall.

I like the simplicity here. Sometimes guys are just between feuds and you need to keep them busy, and that's fine. That's where the hypothetical, unspoken winner's purse comes into play. You get yourself a good match to keep yourself going and that's good enough.

Fifth Match: Jenna Kyle vs. Vivian Merrick The Women's Champion and Woman of the Year Sonya Braddock joins the commentary team to observe this match. She's congratulated on her Slammy win and Sonya responds by saying it'll look great with the one she's going to win next year. She's asked about Naomi's injury and she replies by pointing out how much it sucks that she's not going to be able to knock her ass out again anytime soon. Naomi only needs to worry about getting better because despite the fight that Jenna Kyle is going to bring at Bragging Rights, Sonya is still going to be waiting for Naomi if she wants to take another shot at taking the title. The match at hand, though, is all kinds of awesome. I often forget that Vivian is also a worker despite being a manager to the Future Foundation. Jenna BUILDS MOMENTUM by picking up a hell of a hard-fought win by nailing the Kyle Driver and scoring the pinfall. She has a staredown with Sonya Braddock as the champion looks on from the announce table. *****, 95% overall.

I've said it before but I just love the ability to freely move people from wrestling to managing, and am just as happy sticking people into a "Manager" spot if I want to ensure they're standing there at ringside for any teammates or partners. EWR doesn't really know the difference between the roles.

Good to see Jenna BUILD MOMENTUM. I would like to BUILD MOMENTUM in my personal courtship of her.

[Evil Vito]

Originally Posted by M-A-G I had to look up Athena and to say I'm scared would be an understatement. You may not need Kong after all. I, on the other hand, need more Toni in my life.

If this were mid-2000s WWE, Toni and Athena would having an ass-and-thigh contest. Not saying I wouldn't like to see that, but I'm glad to have women in the business now who are both hot and kick ass.

How is this ROH deal supposed to be working? Do people just go back and forth as they please or is a title necessary? The pieces are there to do a big time promotion vs. promotion angle if you were so inclined.

So ROH was owned by Sinclair broadcasting. Once COVID hit the company more or less went dormant aside from a few shows in 2021, and the word was that Sinclair was looking to dump it.

Tony Khan proceeded to buy ROH in 2022, including the entire tape library which has led to some cool callbacks, like CM Punk entering to AFI's Miseria Cantare for a PPV match. Sinclair didn't include any TV deals in the buyout however. Tony's claimed he's searching for a cable deal for them, but he's been saying that for so long now I don't know it'll happen.

Instead, he re-opened the Honor Club (ROH's streaming service), made the entire back catalog available and new episodes of ROH stream weekly. They generally tape ROH either before/after Dynamite, or do standalone tapings in Universal.

There are no roster rules with ROH, anyone is free to go and most of the titles are held by main AEW roster talent, though I'm currently offloading the belts. Technically, I could've set up a 4th weekly TV show for ROH in-game. But that's just far too much weekly booking, plus it would mess with the in-game morale mechanics to have a 4th show.

But in real life most ROH matches feature undercard guys or developmental guys. So I turned ROH into my Development Fed in-game. I will shuffle people back and forth from there as needed, obviously if the game decides you can't possibly improve and I still can't use you, you'll be on your way out.

LOL, OMG @ Maria Kinellis. I remember your crush on her. I wonder if she has any regrets and hard feelings seeing Punk happily married. Forget Matt and Jeff; SHE'S the big shock to me if she's still sticking her hand in wrestling these days. I would've thought Matt and Jeff would be two of the most over members of the roster and boost that rating a bit more. Still, this was nothing to sneeze at.

Maria's still around and still fine as fuck.



That is a 41-year old woman whose given birth twice. Not bad. Not bad at all. She's married to Mike Bennett (on the right). Been with him since 2011 so she moved on from Punk without issue.

Abrahantes is a new last name that I've never heard. I imagine him ending up in Vince Land being named Abraham Alexanderson. Mark Henry doing interviews still continues to be funny. It's just a weird visual to imagine.

Henry's a pretty fun interviewer. The aesthetic they were going for with Rampage for a while is he'd always do an interview before the main event, and it would be a split-screen style deal like you'd see in a sporting event.

This is some old school Undertaker/Mankind/Jake Roberts stuff. I try my best to do this kind of thing with Haven, but it's always a chore because there's a certain way to do stuff like this without it sounding hokey.

I was genuinely impressed by the promo the chatbot spit out. I asked for dark and brooding and god dammit, they gave me dark and brooding!

I could go either way on the name Juice Robinson. Of course, it could be an easy target for ridicule if the guy was ripped and overly muscular. But when you're racking up ratings like that, what does it matter? One of my favorite eye-rolling things of EWR is when you have an established team on a show and your road agent is apparently gobsmacked over how well they mesh and work together. It's like, how much am I paying you again?

Juice has some pretty decent size to him, and he's got a big personality and solid charisma. Real good over-the-top obnoxious kinda character but knows how to get serious when the time calls.

Also, he's married to Toni Storm so he's clearly got something going for him.

[M-A-G]

LOL, I checked my Merchandise section and of all the fucking people on my roster to be in the top ten, there's God damn Ethan Lang at number 7. The motherfucker isn't even close to the other people on the list in terms of overness and his charisma sucks dong. WTF are you smoking, EWR?

[Evil Vito]

Does he have the Fonz Factor or have any sort of an outlandish gimmick? I've never paid too much attention to the merch section but I could see why someone "cool" would do well with merch.

Forbidden Door coming shortly.

[M-A-G]

Holy shit, he does have the Fonz Factor!!! That's probably why I picked him up in the first place.

[Evil Vito]

So before I post this afternoon I'm going to add some disclaimers and say this pre-emptively about Forbidden Door...this is probably the closest I will get to having an "M-A-G" level show. I have a great base roster but most shows won't be this good because they aren't interpromotional spectaculars.

1. The NJPW guys I booked for this are largely their top guys. First off they are very talented. Very high brawl numbers generally (Japanese Strong Style), and some solid technical skills for many of them. But also pretty reasonably over even compared to my midcarders (most of the guys booked are around low 80s overness, except Okada who is legit main event 90+ overness level)

2. The overness ratings being that high is up for debate, casual WWE fans won't know these guys. BUT, I'd argue, in today's wrestling landscape the vast majority of people who attend shows are smarks but that's doubly so for AEW, the indies, etc. Basically if you booked a major NJPW name on any random show and promoted it accordingly, chances are a lot of people there would pop and know these guys.

3. As a result of the above, this show rules tons of ass and even though this card would bang in real life I'm not sure it'd get this many snowflakes in a row.

4. Technically I could "cheat" in this game by using these talented and over NJPW guys all over my programming year-round. Since the only times they are unavailable to me is when NJPW's touring commitments are happening. But that's not reflective of the real-life working relationship between the companies. NJPW guys make sporadic appearances outside of Forbidden Door season, and even then, the very top level guys don't usually come over. Most of them live in Japan and the real-life NJPW schedule is far longer than it is in EWR.

5. Even if I did "cheat" by booking them most of the year, I'd be in financial ruin. Case in point, there are 9 NJPW talents wrestling on this show, plus Jeff Cobb on Collision. According to my finance page, my workers costs so far this month is $406,000. Well, that only accounts for Open contract guys used so far, so that's those 10 guys. The money I brought in for PPV revenue? $405,000. So basically the guys paid for themselves for this show, but if I booked them constantly I'd go broke, especially with Okada charging like $85k per appearance.

6. As a Global promotion I can't even sign anyone with Japanese commitments to contracts, even on Open deals. The NJPW roster was on the AEW roster on open deals in my game save. There's a chance when the month ends, everyone from NJPW will make a mass exodus. Not sure if that happens. They might also quit working for me if I don't book them since they aren't earning money. If this happens I might just Arsenic them onto my roster for next Forbidden Door season but it otherwise changes nothing about my day-to-day booking of the promotion.

TLDR; a 20-year old game unsurprisingly does not really lend itself to the modern workings of a wrestling promotion

[Evil Vito]

AEW/NJPW Forbidden Door
June 25, 2023
Scotiabank Arena, Toronto, ON

Tony Schiavone and Excalibur welcome us to the proceedings as the early arriving crowd is already in a frenzy. Let Scott Keith, Dave Meltzer, and everyone else run out of stars before the night is over! But before the main show kicks off, we have Zero Hour!

---

Zero Hour - ROH Pure Championship: "Red Death" Daniel Garcia vs. "The Wrestler" Katsuyori Shibata

As the lights dimmed in the jam-packed arena, the thrilling anticipation rippled through the crowd. The stage was set for a brutal clash of two renowned wrestlers, Daniel Garcia, the defending ROH Pure Champion, and the challenger, Katsuyori Shibata. Known for their hard-hitting styles and relentless grappling skills, both wrestlers promised a match that would leave the audience on the edge of their seats.

The bell rang, and the match got underway. Garcia, calm and focused, circled Shibata, analyzing his opponent's movements, ready to seize any hint of vulnerability. Shibata, on the other hand, exuded an air of relentless determination. The intensity in the ring was palpable.

The first part of the match was a grappling masterclass. Garcia, known for his remarkable technical wrestling skills, locked Shibata in a series of innovative submissions, trying to force the challenger to tap out early. However, Shibata's endurance and resilience shone through, as he tenaciously wriggled free from each hold, much to the crowd's astonishment.

Shibata, renowned for his striking prowess, retaliated with a series of stiff elbow strikes, each blow resonating through the arena like a gunshot. Garcia absorbed the punishment, gritting his teeth, refusing to stay down. Back-and-forth they went, exchanging punishing blows and complex submission holds, each wrestler looking to gain the upper hand.

The end came after an exhausting, high-intensity encounter. Shibata, summoning his last ounces of strength, struck Garcia with his feared finisher, the Penalty Kick. The sound of his boot connecting with Garcia echoed throughout the arena, followed by a gasp from the crowd. Garcia fell to the mat, unable to rise, and the referee counted the pin. 1...2...3!

With that, Katsuyori Shibata was declared the new ROH Pure Champion. The crowd erupted, acknowledging the amazing display of technical mastery and brutal toughness. Despite the loss, Garcia's stock had only risen after the incredible match. Both warriors had pushed each other to their limits, creating a contest that would perfectly set the tone for the show ahead.

Winner and NEW ROH Pure Champion: Katsuyori Shibata
***
73% overall rating

---

Match 1 - Title for Title: ROH Television Champion "The Samoan Submission Machine" Samoa Joe vs. IWGP Television Champion Zack Sabre Jr.

The crowd is still buzzing from the opening pyro detonations as Samoa Joe's music hits. The arena darkened once again to herald the arrival of Joe, smugly and confidently walking to the ring after his impromptu title defense not even 24 hours ago. Samoa Joe, the ROH Television Champion, squared off against IWGP Television Champion, Zack Sabre Jr. This encounter promised to be a submission spectacle.

The bell tolled, and both champions eyed each other, circling around the ring with the gaze of eagles. The initial few minutes of the match were a slow, meticulous dance, a chess match where each participant was sizing the other up, looking for a chink in their armor to exploit.

Joe, the embodiment of power and intensity, swiftly gained momentum with a flurry of high-impact moves. His explosive chops echoed through the arena, each landing with resounding thuds on Sabre's chest. The ROH Champion's goal was clear: wear Sabre down, sap his strength, and lock in the feared Coquina Clutch.

But Sabre was not to be underestimated. The IWGP Champion, known for his unparalleled technical skills, parried Joe's onslaught with an impressive array of submission holds. Arm-bars, leg-locks, and intricate choke holds were dished out with surgical precision, turning the match into a masterclass of grappling artistry.

The climax came in a stunning and unexpected sequence. Joe, sensing victory, managed to lock Sabre in a headlock and seemed poised to transition into his signature Coquina Clutch. The crowd held its breath, anticipating Sabre's imminent defeat. But the resilient Brit had one final trick up his sleeve.

Demonstrating his agility and quick-thinking, Sabre used the ring to his advantage and maneuvered towards the turnbuckle, using his feet to jump off and flip over Joe's head, turning it into a flash pin. The referee hit the mat. 1...2...3! Against all odds, Sabre had reversed the tide and emerged victorious.

The crowd erupted in thunderous applause as Sabre was declared the winner, now holding both the ROH and IWGP Television Championships. The match proved to be a technical spectacle and a testament to the cunning and guile of Zack Sabre Jr. As Sabre leaves with his two championships, Joe is left gob-smacked in the ring, pounding the mat in frustration.

Winner, still IWGP Television Champion and NEW ROH Television Champion: Zack Sabre Jr.
****
83% overall rating

---

Match 2 - Jon Moxley vs. "Stone Pitbull" Tomohiro Ishii

As the dust settled from the prior contest, a sense of foreboding and raw energy filled the air. This was no ordinary match. It was a clash of titans. Two men known for their brutality, their tenacity, and their complete disregard for their own wellbeing: Jon Moxley and Tomohiro Ishii.

The match began with a roaring bell, and the audience could immediately feel the visceral tension between the two gladiators. It was evident that this would not be a contest of finesse or high-flying acrobatics, but a brutal, punishing display of sheer willpower and resilience.

Their hard-hitting strong style approach was evident from the get-go. Each punch, each knee, each stinging chop was met with a defiant retort from the other. Neither was willing to back down, their attacks echoing throughout the arena like war drums.

The action soon spilled out of the ring, as both Moxley and Ishii began brawling with unchained ferocity amongst the ringside area. Ishii, ever the bruiser, relentlessly assaulted Moxley, his blows pushing Moxley into the barricade landing with brutal precision. But Moxley absorbed the punishment, his bloodied face a testament to his indomitable spirit.

The match eventually made its way back into the ring, with Moxley's bleeding getting worse. Blood trickled down his face, his battle-scarred visage the personification of his warrior spirit. Yet, he continued to fight, his resilience further cementing his reputation as one of the toughest men in professional wrestling.

The climax of the match came when Moxley, his face a mask of crimson, managed to hook Ishii under his arms. With a roar that echoed through the arena, he drove Ishii into the mat with the Paradigm Shift. The impact shook the ring, and the audience watched with bated breath as the referee counted. 1...2...3!

Despite the grueling brutality of the match, Moxley had emerged victorious. The crowd erupted into thunderous applause, acknowledging the breathtaking spectacle they had just witnessed. It was a match that embodied the spirit of wrestling: raw, intense, and completely unforgettable. A testament to the tenacity of both men, it was a reminder of why Jon Moxley and Tomohiro Ishii are regarded as two of the toughest men in the business.

Winner: Jon Moxley
****1/2
89% overall rating

---

Match 3 - AEW International Championship: "Freshly Squeezed" Orange Cassidy (C) vs. "The King" Minoru Suzuki

After the sheer brutality of the prior bout, the tone shifted as the ever-enigmatic Orange Cassidy, the AEW International Champion, sauntered out to the ring, his casual nonchalance a stark contrast to the storm about to break. The storm had a name: Minoru Suzuki, a name synonymous with brutality and a reputation that commanded fear and respect in equal measure.

From the outset, the juxtaposition of styles was as stark as night and day. Cassidy, renowned for his laid-back approach, and Suzuki, the embodiment of relentless aggression. Cassidy left his signature sunglasses on, kept his hands in his pockets, and started with his signature slow kick spot, trying to offset the rhythm of the match. But Suzuki was not to be swayed.

Ignoring the mind games, Suzuki retaliated with a resounding forearm that rocked Cassidy to the ground, a shocking exclamation point that even broke Cassidy's glasses. This brutal awakening seemed to flip a switch in Cassidy. The comedic antics vanished, replaced by a determination that surprised the crowd and perhaps even Suzuki himself.

The rest of the match saw Cassidy, usually the master of minimal effort, take the fight to Suzuki in earnest. The man known for his sloth-like approach now moved with purpose, utilizing a mix of unorthodox offense and technical wrestling that kept Suzuki on the back foot.

The end came when Cassidy, with a surge of adrenaline, hit Suzuki with his finisher, the Beach Blast. The audience counted along with the referee, their voices echoing in unison. 1...2...3! Cassidy had defended his championship, once again proving that he could get serious when needed and continuing his run of maintaining the gold even in the face of brutal punishment.

In the aftermath of the match, a shocking development unfolded. Suzuki, known for his lack of respect for his defeated opponents, extended his hand to Cassidy. The crowd hushed in disbelief as Cassidy, equally surprised, accepted the gesture. This unexpected display of sportsmanship from Suzuki was the perfect end to a match that proved the mettle of both men and showcased the unpredictable and diverse nature of professional wrestling.

Winner and STILL AEW International Champion: Orange Cassidy
***1/4
81% overall rating

---

Match 4: CM Punk vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi

There's no rest for the crowd in this one. Onto a dream match between two legends of the wrestling world, CM Punk and Hiroshi Tanahashi. The Best in the World vs. The Ace of New Japan. The match was a year in the making, initially slated for the previous year's Forbidden Door event. However, an injury to Punk had derailed their encounter, turning the dream match into a 'what could have been'.

Both Punk and Tanahashi entered the ring to an explosive ovation. There were no titles at stake like there would have been a year ago, but the prestige of victory in this battle of titans was reward enough. From the opening bell, both men showed why they are considered among the best in the business, putting on a spectacular display of athleticism and in-ring psychology.

The crowd was thoroughly engaged, every near-fall, every reversal met with a chorus of cheers and gasps. Tanahashi and Punk fought tooth and nail, each landing their signature moves to the delight of the audience. But the turning point came as Tanahashi went for his signature High Fly Flow.

As Tanahashi launched himself from the top rope, Punk managed to get his knees up at the last second, causing Tanahashi to crash and burn. Capitalizing on the situation, Punk quickly hit his Go To Sleep (GTS) finisher on the fallen Tanahashi. The referee's count followed: 1...2...3! Punk was declared the winner of this highly-anticipated bout.

Following the match, a show of respect was seen as the two icons shook hands in the center of the ring. Tanahashi exited, leaving Punk alone to soak up the applause. But the moment was shattered when Samoa Joe, still seething from his earlier loss, stormed the ring and blindsided Punk.

Joe's assault was brutal, and it took multiple officials to pull him off Punk. The turn of events left the crowd booing, a stark contrast to the loud cheers just moments before. Despite the tumultuous ending, the showdown between Punk and Tanahashi would undoubtedly go down as one of the most memorable matches of the evening, a testament to their enduring legacy in the world of professional wrestling.

Winner: CM Punk
****1/4
92% overall rating

---

Match 5 - IWGP United States Heavyweight Championship: Kenny Omega vs. "The Aerial Assassin" Will Ospreay

The atmosphere in the arena was electric as the fifth match of the night was set to commence. In this battle, Canada's very own Kenny Omega, the IWGP United States Champion, prepared to defend his title against the spectacular high-flyer, Will Ospreay. The stakes were high, the tension palpable, as this was a rematch of their epic clash at Wrestle Kingdom earlier in the year - a match hailed as one of the best in recent memory.

Before proceedings could begin, Don Callis made his way out from behind the apron to massive boos and even chants of "fuck you Callis" from the crowd. Callis took a seat on the commentary desk, seemingly disowning his own Canadian brethren, calling them classless heathens. He's here for one reason and one reason only - to insult Omega on commentary.

Omega, the hometown hero, was received with thunderous applause as he made his entrance, his every move accompanied by the roar of the excited crowd. Across the ring, Ospreay, a human highlight reel, accepted the challenge, his steely gaze fixed on the championship he so eagerly desired.

Once the bell rang, the ring came alive with an awe-inspiring blend of jaw-dropping aerial maneuvers and hard-hitting blows. Ospreay demonstrated his mastery of high-flying offense, his every leap and flip defying gravity, while Omega showcased his potent mix of powerful strikes and exceptional technical prowess.

The decisive moment came when Omega hoisted Ospreay onto his shoulders, ready to deliver his infamous One Winged Angel. The crowd held its breath, fully expecting to see Omega seal his victory. However, Ospreay proved his mettle by fighting his way out of the precarious position and landing a precise strike that sent Omega staggering into the ropes. Ospreay lands awkwardly, on landing, forcing the referee to check on him.

All of a sudden, one of the New Japan cameramen, wearing a COVID mask, clocked Omega with his camera! What in the world? Ospreay, seeing what transpired, quickly waved off the ref and regained his composure. Seizing the opportunity, Ospreay capitalized on the distraction and landed the Stormbreaker, his signature move. The referee counted - 1...2...3! Will Ospreay has won back the IWGP United States title, in Omega's home country!

But the surprises weren't over. As Ospreay celebrated his victory, the masked cameraman revealed himself to be none other than Konosuke Takeshita. Of course it was Takeshita! He has ensured Ospreay steals the title from Omega.

Takeshita continues to put the boots to Omega as the crowd boos. Ospreay joins in, making it a 2-on-1 situation. All of a sudden, a golden star appears on the video board. HOLY FUCK, IT'S KOTA IBUSHI!!!!!!!

The crowd loses its collective shit as Kenny Omega's long-time tag team partner from Japan rushes the ring and sends the heels packing with a mixture of lariats and knees. He helps to bring Kenny to his feet as they embrace. The Golden Lovers have reunited!

Winner and NEW IWGP United States Heavyweight Champion: Will Ospreay
****
86% overall rating

---

Match 6 - IWGP World Heavyweight Championship: Adam Cole vs. "Cold Skull" SANADA (C)

It's weird to imagine a World title match being something of a cooldown bout, but boy do the crowd ever need a collective cigarette after that moment. But we must press on! Adam Cole, a charismatic force of energy, sought to challenge the icy composure of the reigning IWGP World Heavyweight Champion, SANADA. The stakes were enormous, the tension thick, as both wrestlers prepared for a match that could define their careers.

Cole started the match by firing up the crowd, his every gesture and word drawing them in. His infectious energy was a stark contrast to SANADA's icy calm. SANADA, despite being cast as the heel, opted to fight a clean match, seeking to unequivocally prove his superiority through pure wrestling skill and strategy.

The bell rang, and the battle for supremacy began in earnest. It was a contest of equal matches, with neither wrestler gaining a decisive upper hand. Each move, each counter, seemed to be met with an equally powerful response. Cole's fiery passion clashed with SANADA's cool determination, creating a riveting spectacle of athleticism and strategy.

The match swung back and forth, a brutal ballet of power moves, technical finesse, and high-flying stunts. However, the end came when SANADA managed to lock Cole into his dreaded submission move, the Skull End. Despite his best efforts, Cole found himself unable to escape. After a valiant struggle, Cole had no choice but to tap out, awarding the match and title retention to SANADA.

The crowd erupted in applause, recognizing the fantastic display of wrestling they had just witnessed. While Cole's quest for the championship fell short, his performance against SANADA only solidified his reputation as one of the best in the business. As for SANADA, he proved that he was a champion who could defend his title with honor and skill, standing tall in the ring as the true IWGP World Heavyweight Champion and proving that his run to the top of the New Japan ranks was no fluke.

Winner and STILL IWGP World Heavyweight Champion: SANADA
****
84% overall rating

---

Match 7 - AEW World Championship: MJF (C) vs. Tetsuya Naito

We continue on to the second of our World Title matches. This was a clash of personalities as the AEW World Champion, MJF, defended his title against Tetsuya Naito. MJF had made it clear before the match that he saw himself above this event, expressing disdain for having to defend his title against a New Japan Pro-Wrestling star. In contrast, Naito remained unphased, using his own brand of mind games to rile up the self-proclaimed "salt of the earth".

From the moment the bell rang, it was clear this was going to be a unique encounter. MJF's usual cocky demeanor was shaken by Naito's nonchalant attitude. The champion struggled to understand Naito's unorthodox approach, his every taunt met with a tranquil smirk or a dismissive gesture.

For as much as SANADA proved in the previous match that you can win a clean match even when you're not a fan favorite, MJF went for the complete opposite approach and opted to employ every underhanded tactic in the book. From distractions to attempted cheap shots, MJF did everything he could to retain his title, but Naito managed to thwart him at every turn.

The match reached its climax when Naito prepared to hit his finisher, Destino. However, MJF managed to shove Naito into the referee. The ref bump served to create the chaos he needed. With the official down, MJF took the opportunity to retrieve his Dynamite Diamond Ring hidden in his trunks.

MJF landed a punishing blow on Naito with the ring, sending him sprawling on the canvas. As the referee regained consciousness, MJF disposed of his illicit weapon. MJF covered Naito for the pin as the referee, unaware of the deceit, counted - 1...2...3!

Despite the boos from the crowd, MJF celebrated his underhanded victory, clutching his championship with a smug satisfaction. The match, while tainted by MJF's tactics, had still been an exciting back-and-forth affair, showcasing the diverse personalities and styles of AEW and NJPW's finest. The night was not over yet, but the controversy surrounding MJF's win would undoubtedly continue to fuel discussions long after the event's end.

Winner and STILL AEW World Champion: MJF
****1/2
93% overall rating

---

Main Event - "The American Dragon" Bryan Danielson vs. "Rainmaker" Kazuchika Okada

The final bout of the night was a dream match that had fans buzzing with anticipation since the inception of the AEW-NJPW partnership. Bryan Danielson, known worldwide as "The American Dragon", would face Kazuchika Okada, the "Rainmaker" and unquestionably the top NJPW star for over the past decade. Although there were no titles at stake, the magnitude of this encounter was so significant that both promotions agreed it deserved to close the show.

Before the match, Okada extended a hand in a show of sportsmanship. Danielson, however, dismissed him, setting the tone for the intense clash that was about to unfold. The ring was their battleground, and the crowd could not contain their excitement.

The match was a showcase of Danielson's ruthless aggression against Okada's unwavering resilience. Each move was delivered with precision and strength, with Danielson seeming to take a perverse joy in pushing Okada to his limits. Yet, Okada, who had battled against the very best in his illustrious career, remained undeterred. His every counter and offensive move resonated with the promise of a fightback.

The closing moments of the match were nothing short of dramatic. Danielson aimed for his Busaiku Knee, but Okada evaded it, retaliating with a massive running version of his infamous Rainmaker lariat. The crowd was on their feet as Okada proceeded to land not one, not two, but three consecutive Rainmakers on Danielson, an emphatic statement that silenced even the most skeptical of observers.

The referee's count followed: 1...2...3! Okada emerged victorious from the epic battle. The final image of the night was of golden streamers cascading from the ceiling, bathing the triumphant Okada in a sea of gold. The crowd erupted in cheers and applause, celebrating the victorious Rainmaker and the fantastic night of wrestling they had witnessed.

AEW/NJPW Forbidden Door 2023 concluded on this high note, and the fans knew they had witnessed a night that would be etched in the annals of wrestling history.

Winner: Kazuchika Okada
****
89% overall rating

87% overall show rating

[Evil Vito]

Post-Show Notes:

-Dean Malenko praised several of the matchups, saying their styles blended together. No shit, Dean...it's almost like I researched the stats before I put the card together.

-Suzuki and Orange were the only match where the guys really didn't have THAT similar of styles, which was by design since that was meant to be a bizarre social experiment of a match I'd love to see in real life. And they're over so it worked. ***1/4 being the worst match on a loaded card is ridiculous.

-My one booking fuck-up was I accidentally got Suzuki docked overness. It wasn't because he lost to Orange (Oranges' overness rating is higher) but it's presumably because he did the handshake afterwards despite being a heel with a Bad Ass gimmick. Oops, please don't hurt me, Suzuki-san.

-The way the show was going I swear I was ready for Okada/Danielson to get to 5 stars. In hindsight, their stats are at least somewhat more different compared to some of the others on there. Plus add in MJF being like 97 over with 97 charisma and it being a world title match, I get it. Still, last year's show ended with an AEW Title match going on last with Mox going over Tanahashi, so it seemed fair to put a NJPW guy over in the finale. Plus in real life Danielson/Okada is happening Sunday and man I hope they close out the show.

-Speaking of fair, NJPW went 5-4 on the PPV but add Miro's win over Cobb and it's 5-5 on the weekend. Par for the course for an interpromotional arrangement. Last year's Forbidden Door featured a bunch of tags with guys mixed in from both promotions on each side so it wasn't a full-on promotion vs. promotion match like I was shooting for here.

-Following his surprise debut, Kota Ibushi has signed with AEW full-time. In real-life his NJPW contract expired this year, in this game data he's a free agent with no Japanese commitments, so I signed him on literal day one just waiting for this moment.

[M-A-G]

I have to laugh at a dude with the moniker of "The Wrestler". As opposed to what, the Bassist?

I have to ask if you went to the AI again to come up with the report because this was a very different presentation. Like there was an actual storytelling element to each match breakdown. That's quite scary when you think about it if that's the case. All you have to do is give the thing a few points and the thing churns out some great captivating shit.

I would absolutely play up Joe being angry over not being victorious on the same show where Punk stole the show and came out on top. I don't think there's a reason to not extend this program out, especially if you're not in a rush to do Punk/MJF. It's some easy stars at the very least.

But stars were definitely the theme with this show. Plus you got that overall rating in the high 80s, which is always a win. It blows that you can't get all of these guys locked down but if nothing else, it almost makes the show that much more special. I still remember my one SummerSlam show from way back when getting a 98% overall rating and I've been chasing it ever since.

The elusive 5-star match is the result of high stats, similar styles, charisma up the ass from both competitors, and good morale. In real life I imagine Danielson and Okada can get there in their sleep but this is the game we're talking about. It has its fickle moments and knows how to disappoint you in the worst ways.

A guy losing overness always hurts because you want to do what you can to get it back up and there's not always a guaranteed way to do it, other than a feud, but that takes a while. When I did the finish to Jenna/Faith in the Iron Woman Match, I knew the handshake was going to hurt Jenna because she was still a heel basically, but I was confident she'd regain those points with the face turn and subsequent feud against Naomi and Eclypse.

So with this show taken care of, and the fact that you need to do PPV events every month despite the real AEW not following the same format, what's next for you? Do you have your own names for the shows that aren't on the real life schedule?

[Evil Vito]

Originally Posted by M-A-G I have to laugh at a dude with the moniker of "The Wrestler". As opposed to what, the Bassist?

I believe the moniker is primarily because Shibata was the definition of EWR's "No Gimmick Needed" gimmick. Wrestlers who work as young boys in the New Japan dojo always start off in plain black trunks and black boots, then go away on excursion to either the US, UK, or Mexico for a year or two and then return to NJPW with flashier attire and maybe a gimmick.

Shibata never did this, keeping the plain gear and just staying purely a wrestler. And a total shit-kicker at that.

If you ever think you're in pain, just watch highlights of Shibata vs. Okada and you'll remember it could always be worse.

I have to ask if you went to the AI again to come up with the report because this was a very different presentation. Like there was an actual storytelling element to each match breakdown. That's quite scary when you think about it if that's the case. All you have to do is give the thing a few points and the thing churns out some great captivating shit.

Yeah I figured PPVs called for longer than the quick TV write-ups. So I asked ChatGPT if it would be possible to recap of a hypothetical wrestling card one match at a time and it said yes, just give me the participants, outcome, and any specific spots.

So I did Shibata vs. Garcia first. Had it generate three different recaps for it, decided which one I liked the best and then responded to that one and said "this is exactly what I'm looking for, now onto the next match" and gave it the next match parameters etc.

It's really kinda fascinating to give it certain spots/tones etc and watching it "come to life". Obviously I did clean a few things up and add in some of my own stuff too but it made for a fantastic baseline.

I feel like the one advantage I have here is the AI knows these are actual wrestlers. So in knows the mannerisms, characters etc. Using AI to write results for your game would be near-impossible because you'd have to train it on all the characters. Although having it try its hand at a standalone Michael Hotbody promo would be kinda interesting.

I would absolutely play up Joe being angry over not being victorious on the same show where Punk stole the show and came out on top. I don't think there's a reason to not extend this program out, especially if you're not in a rush to do Punk/MJF. It's some easy stars at the very least.

Yeah I'm sorta imagining it being Punk wanting MJF but Joe being the roadblock he has to get through first. So figure Joe/Punk at the July "PPV" and then Punk/MJF in August.

But stars were definitely the theme with this show. Plus you got that overall rating in the high 80s, which is always a win. It blows that you can't get all of these guys locked down but if nothing else, it almost makes the show that much more special. I still remember my one SummerSlam show from way back when getting a 98% overall rating and I've been chasing it ever since.

If I could lock these guys down my game would basically become an NJPW game instead of an AEW game. I might book some underneath NJPW guys here and there and maybe bring in a big star or two for a major show if the calendar allows (August's PPV, in theory, is in Wembley Stadium which is the kinda show you go all out for) but otherwise I'll keep it realistic and keep most of these guys away until next year's Forbidden Door.

So with this show taken care of, and the fact that you need to do PPV events every month despite the real AEW not following the same format, what's next for you? Do you have your own names for the shows that aren't on the real life schedule?

The game data I downloaded had the core AEW PPVs set as PPVs and then the other months had ROH PPVs as large events. But I'm not booking ROH.

Real-life AEW often will have one big "special" episode of Dynamite a month where the card feels like a mini-PPV on free TV. I might borrow some of those names for the new "PPVs" I set up. In my imagination, these might be bonus shows they stream on HBO Max or something vs. true PPVs. Like July can be Fight for the Fallen, which originated as an AEW PPV where all the proceeds went to gun violence. But yeah, the game will basically force me into running monthly PPVs.

August/September will be interesting to me because I believe the plan in real life is to run PPVs in consecutive weekends. Wembley (All In) the last weekend in August. But then the following weekend is Labor Day weekend where they do one of their core US PPVs (All Out). I'd presume it'll be like building a giant mega-card between the two shows. I'd expect the Wembley show to have more involvement with NJPW etc and be more like a super-show while the September show would be strictly AEW.

I think I'll try running it like that in my game too, the benefit is I'll then have a shitload of time before my October pseudo-PPV and my actual main November PPV (Full Gear).

[Evil Vito]

AEW Dynamite
June 28, 2023
Hamilton, ON, Canada

The crowd is still buzzing from Forbidden Door a few days ago, and one can only imagine how anyone could possibly top that show. But there's a whole locker room of talents willing to try.

Owen Hart Foundation Cup - Men's First Round Match: Adam Cole vs. Daniel Garcia

The Owen Hart Foundation Cup is back for a 2nd year as 8 men and 8 women will look to win their respective brackets and earn a future championship opportunity. The finals will be taking place July 23rd at Fight for the Fallen. As last year's winner, Adam Cole is the first man out of the box looking to repeat. He's got a first-round match against Daniel Garcia. Both men are coming off of losses at Forbidden Door, with this tournament giving them the opportunity to have quick turnaround of fortune.

These two have history with one another, meeting up in tag team action a few weeks ago with the Jericho Appreciation Society earning a cheap victory. Speaking of Jericho, the announcers remind viewers of Cole's brutal cage match victory over Jericho last week. Jericho seemingly walked out of an interview in stunned silence, and reportedly none of the other Jericho Appreciation Society members have seen him since.

Anyway, these guys have themselves a really nice back-and-forth match, showcasing a nice blend of speed and technical wrestling befitting of an Owen tribute. However, Cole manages to work Garcia down onto the mat long enough to lower The Boom and get the win. Clearly these guys have gotten the "try to keep the banger PPV quality matches going" memo. ****, 81% overall rating

---

As Cole walks up the ramp to celebrate, the music of Dr. Britt Baker hits. Baker makes her way out for her match, giving Cole a smooch on the way out.

Owen Hart Foundation Cup - Women's First Round Match: Dr. Britt Baker vs. Saraya w/ Ruby Soho

Much like her beau Adam Cole, Britt Baker won the women's side of last year's Owen tournament, providing a nice visual for the crowd with the couple celebrating their newly won trophies. As last year's winner, she's also the first one out in her bracket this year. Tonight she is facing off against Saraya, who beat Britt in her AEW debut last fall.

Britt's had no shortage of issues with The Outcasts for several months now. Luckily for her, the Outcasts have also done a good job of pissing off most of the AEW women's roster in the process. Including referee Aubrey Edwards. Ruby Soho makes a nuisance of herself at ringside a few times behind Aubrey's back, but when she catches Ruby trying to help drag Saraya to the ropes during a submission hold, she gets thrown out in no time.

With Ruby ejected and Toni being tied up in other business, Saraya has no backup and no hope against a game and determined Saraya. The Lock Jaw submission is put on and Britt gets the first victory on her road to repeating. ***, 79% overall

---

[The video opens to MJF sitting in a lavish home, his AEW World Title sitting prominently on a table next to him.]

MJF: Hello, AEW Universe. As you can see, I'm not there tonight. You see, I refused to spend one more second in Canada than I was contractually obligated to.

[He grins, crossing his arms. The crowd in the arena boos, both at the insult to Canada and at the gall of MJF to refer to an AEW crowd as the "AEW Universe".]

MJF: So here I am, back in the most magical place on earth, Long Island, resting and recuperating from my epic battle against Tetsuya Naito at Forbidden Door.

[He chuckles, shaking his head.]

MJF: Naito and his glorified indie fed, New Japan Pro-Wrestling, thought they could take me down. But guess what? Just like every other challenger, they failed. So, Naito, why don't you go back to your rinky-dink company and tell them who the real champion is.

[He lifts the AEW World Title and smirks.]

MJF: Now let's talk about CM Punk and his encounter with Samoa Joe. Punk, I told you to watch your back. But did you listen? No. Instead, you got choked out after your little match with Tanahashi. Have fun trying to calm down the Samoan Submission Machine.

[He laughs, leaning back in his chair.]

MJF: And then there's the Owen Hart Cup. Tony Khan trying to determine a number one contender for my title? It's all a big formality.

[He scoffs.]

MJF: No matter who comes out on top, they won't be on my level. They won't be able to touch me. Khan's just lucky I don't take the entire summer off and leave AEW without a world champion. Just like I might take this gorgeous belt with me wherever I may go in the Bidding War of 2024!

[He smiles, leaning towards the camera.]

MJF: So keep watching, AEW Universe. Keep cheering for your heroes. Because no matter who they are, they'll never be MJF.

[He raises his title one last time, the camera focusing on the gleaming gold before the video ends.]

---

FTW Championship: "Jungle Boy" Jack Perry vs. "El Toro Blanco" Rush (C)

This match just keeps the JungleHook vs. LFI feud plugging along nicely, with the face Perry trying to win the title that Rush stole from his friend. These two guys have clashing styles but in a way that actually benefits the match, with the smaller Perry selling like hell for Rush's stiff shots.

As the match winds down and Perry gains moment, Andrade saunters out to the ring to run interference but Hook is right behind him. Hook locks in the Redrum on Andrade at ringside as the crowd goes nuts. Unfortunately, these ringside happenings also distract referee Mike Posey, and he doesn't see Rush clock Perry with a chain. Rush steals the win. ***, 77% overall rating

---

The scene transitions to Renee Paquette, the experienced wrestling journalist standing ready, microphone in hand. She is flanked by The Dark Order, each of them donning their characteristic masks and attire.

"Thank you, everyone. I'm here with The Dark Order, who have requested this time to speak," Renee begins. She turns towards Evil Uno. "So, what would you like to say?"

Before Evil Uno can respond, the shot of Adam Page comes into view. He walks into frame, his eyes focused on The Dark Order. "I've been looking all over for you guys since last week. I need to speak to you."

Evil Uno raises a hand, effectively silencing Page. "Save it, Hangman. You've already made your point clear," Uno states, his voice cold. "You teamed with The Elite against the Blackpool Combat Club. What? Didn't trust us to have your back like we always have?"

Page begins to speak, to defend his actions, but Uno doesn't let him. "We've noticed, Page," he continues, looking straight into the camera. "The Dark Order has been on a mean streak lately on Rampage. And now, we want to show you that you've placed your bet on the wrong group."

The camera zooms in on Uno's face, his eyes filled with determination. "Blackpool Combat Club," he calls out, "we challenge you. Next week. No disqualification, no holds barred, anything goes."

Page looks shocked, he tries to step in, to talk The Dark Order out of this reckless challenge, but they turn their backs on him, ignoring his words, leaving him behind as they march out of the frame, leaving Renee and a silenced Hangman in their wake. The camera lingers on Page's face, full of concern and regret, before the scene fades to black.

---

TNT Championship: Lance Archer w/ Jake Roberts vs. Wardlow (C) w/ Arn Anderson

Wardlow vs. Lance Archer was exactly as advertised - a match between two big, yet also surprisingly agile hosses. These guys gelled really well and got the crowd engaged in the action in the ring. Meanwhile, fans got a nice burst of nostalgia outside of it as Arn Anderson and Jake "The Snake" Roberts got into a shouting match. Fans were eagerly awaiting to see the legends throw down, although it ultimately did not come to blows.

In the ring, Archer gets Wardlow up for a Blackout but he manages to slide loose, hit the ropes and then run through Archer with a big lariat. He goes up the top and hits an impressive Senton, followed by a Powerbomb for the win. Wardlow keeps his hoss winning streak intact while Jake the Snake is pissed off at ringside. The only question now is who's next for Wardlow? ***, 74% overall

---

The AEW arena is charged with energy as the titantron flickers to life. Christian Cage, with Luchasaurus towering behind him, appears on the screen. A smug smile plays on Christian's face as the audience reacts with a mix of cheers and boos. The music fades, and he begins to speak, his voice cutting through the crowd noise.

Christian Cage: "Well, well, well... If it isn't the AEW International Champion, Orange Cassidy. The 'King of Sloth Style', the man who's held onto that title for nearly a year now. I gotta hand it to you, Cassidy. You've gone up against some of the toughest men in this business and still managed to keep that title around your waist. Hell, even Minoru Suzuki seemed to give you a nod of respect at Forbidden Door."

Christian pauses, his smirk growing wider as he leans closer to the camera.

Christian Cage: "But let me make one thing perfectly clear, Cassidy... You may have fooled some people with your gimmicks and your aviators, but you haven't fooled me. You haven't earned my respect."

Christian's voice lowers, and the intensity in his eyes becomes more pronounced.

Christian Cage: "You see, I've been in this business long enough to know that it's not about how long you can hold a title. It's about the impact you make, the stories you tell in the ring. And what's your story, Cassidy? That you can put your hands in your pockets and still win matches?"

He chuckles, shaking his head.

Christian Cage: "I'll admit, it's entertaining. A great trick for the crowd. But this is professional wrestling, not a comedy show. When I step in the ring, I do more than just entertain, I leave a mark. I create moments that will be remembered long after I retire. Can you say the same, Cassidy? Or will you just be remembered as the guy with the lazy kicks and the constant smirk?"

Christian stands tall, Luchasaurus roaring behind him, as he looks directly into the camera.

Christian Cage: "You can keep your aviators, your half-hearted thumbs up, and your sloth-style wrestling, Cassidy. Because I'm coming for that title. And when I take it from you, everyone, including you, will know what real respect feels like."

The titantron fades to black, the image of Christian's intense gaze and Luchasaurus' roar echoing in the minds of the audience. The challenge is set. The hunt for the AEW International Championship has begun.

---

Later in the night, Renee Paquette finds herself in the locker room of the Blackpool Combat Club: Bryan Danielson, Jon Moxley, Claudio Castagnoli, and Wheeler Yuta.

"Blackpool Combat Club," Renee begins, standing amidst the group, microphone extended. "The Dark Order has issued a challenge to you all for next week. A no disqualification, no holds barred match. Do you accept?"

Before any of them can answer, Bryan Danielson steps forward. "Before we get to that," he starts, running a hand through his hair. "I want to address something. Yes, I suffered a deeply personal loss against Kazuchika Okada at Forbidden Door. And now, everyone thinks he's dethroned me as the best wrestler in the world."

He shakes his head, a determined look on his face. "I want everyone to know that this has made me more focused, more dangerous than ever. Okada, I don't care what country or what continent we meet in again. Mark my words, you haven't seen the last of me, and next time, I'll make you tap out."

Before Danielson can continue, Jon Moxley interjects, a wicked smile playing on his lips. "Now, about that challenge," he begins, his eyes gleaming with excitement. "The Dark Order wants to dance with us in a no disqualification, no holds barred match? That's right up our alley."

His smile broadens, the thrill of the upcoming fight evident in his eyes. "They want violence? We'll give them violence. They want chaos? We're the kings of chaos."

Moxley leans into the camera, his voice dropping to a growl. "Dark Order, be careful what you wish for. You're stepping into our world now. And trust me, it's a world of pain. See you next week."

With that, the segment concludes, the Blackpool Combat Club standing united, their expressions promising an intense match for next week's show.

---

AEW Tag Team Championship: Sammy Hager (Sammy Guevara and Jake Hager) vs. FTR (Dax Harwood and Cash Wheeler) (C)

FTR remain fighting champions, willing to take on all comers and answering the call of Sammy Hager who called them out during the JAS' promo last week. The announcers again speculate on the status and whereabouts of Chris Jericho, remarking that there have rarely been any Dynamites in company history without him.

Anyway, it's an FTR match so you know it's going to kick all sorts of ass. In addition to their stats being great, their tag experience is high so it feels damn near impossible for them to not pull a 4-star match out of anyone, even a team that's somewhat thrown together.

Finish sequence sees Hager make a blind tag as Sammy goes up for a 630 and misses, leaving Hager all alone for the Big Rig for the win. After the bell, the familiar intro sound effect for Bullet Club plays over the arena. FTR drop their titles and begin scanning all corners of the crowd, anticipating a run-in that never comes. Some head games from Bullet Club Gold as the champs retain. ****1/4, 86% overall

---

[CAMERA ON: The scene unfolds backstage on Dynamite. RENEE PAQUETTE stands with DON CALLIS and KONOSUKE TAKESHITA. Callis' face is a mask of smug satisfaction, Takeshita's, as ever, is cool and focused.]

PAQUETTE: [Microphone in hand, addresses Callis] "Don, Kenny Omega lost his IWGP United States Championship to Will Ospreay at Forbidden Door, but some would say it was your 'son' Takeshita's interference that made that happen. How do you respond?"

CALLIS: [Laughs, dismisses the question with a wave of his hand] "Let's not get lost in the details, Renee. The important thing here is Kenny Omega is no longer the IWGP United States Champion. Will Ospreay is. The wrestling world is shifting, and I dare say it's moving in our favor."

[Paquette seems to want to follow up, but Callis continues.]

CALLIS: "And speaking of change, Kota Ibushi having the nerve to show up in AEW. Coming to Kenny's aid at Forbidden Door. Getting involved in something that doesn't concern him. How... [His lips curl in distaste] touching."

[Callis leans in closer to the camera, his gaze intense.]

CALLIS: "But listen here, Ibushi. I don't care about your past with Kenny, or whatever bond you think you two share. In fact, your arrival here is, in my eyes, nothing more than a temporary blip. Because my 'son', Konosuke Takeshita..."

[He turns, placing a hand on Takeshita's shoulder, who meets the camera with a cold, challenging stare.]

CALLIS: "...is ready and waiting. You might be a Golden Star, but remember, even stars burn out. And when Takeshita is done with you, your time in AEW will indeed be very short-lived."

[CAMERA OFF: The scene ends on that chilling note, Callis grinning menacingly into the camera, his confident gaze not faltering as the frame goes black.]

---

Konosuke Takeshita w/ Don Callis vs. "Golden Star" Kota Ibushi

Konosuke Takeshita vs. Kota Ibushi...in the spirit of Forbidden Door, the kind of match that seemed unfathomable just a few days ago is now taking place in the main event of AEW Dynamite! Excalibur explains that, despite both men spending nearly their entire careers in Japan, they've nearly always been in different companies and their paths haven't crossed. They haven't shared a ring since 2015, and their lone singles matchup was just over a decade ago on January 27th, 2013.

Anyway, Takeshita's been running through some luchadores to get him established as a heel. But Ibushi is a whole other level. Really the purpose of this match is to familiarize the audience with Ibushi (not particularly difficult as smark heavy crowds would know him) and make sure he has a banger of a first AEW match.

And boy does he ever. These guys' stats match up nearly identically and it shows, as they pull off the elusive 100% match quality stat. Tons of hard hitting, a flurry of nearfalls and acrobatics all in one epic PPV quality main event. Ibushi connects with the Kamigoye for the win.

Don Callis pounds the mat in anger, and Takeshita pounces right back on Ibushi, acting like a sore loser. Here comes Kenny Omega for the save. Omega and Ibushi embrace again, as the crowd goes off the air with the pop at the reunion of the Golden Lovers. ****1/2, 86% overall rating

82% overall show rating

[M-A-G]

Originally Posted by Evil Vito Owen Hart Foundation Cup - Men's First Round Match: Adam Cole vs. Daniel Garcia The Owen Hart Foundation Cup is back for a 2nd year as 8 men and 8 women will look to win their respective brackets and earn a future championship opportunity. The finals will be taking place July 23rd at Fight for the Fallen. As last year's winner, Adam Cole is the first man out of the box looking to repeat. He's got a first-round match against Daniel Garcia. Both men are coming off of losses at Forbidden Door, with this tournament giving them the opportunity to have quick turnaround of fortune. These two have history with one another, meeting up in tag team action a few weeks ago with the Jericho Appreciation Society earning a cheap victory. Speaking of Jericho, the announcers remind viewers of Cole's brutal cage match victory over Jericho last week. Jericho seemingly walked out of an interview in stunned silence, and reportedly none of the other Jericho Appreciation Society members have seen him since. Anyway, these guys have themselves a really nice back-and-forth match, showcasing a nice blend of speed and technical wrestling befitting of an Owen tribute. However, Cole manages to work Garcia down onto the mat long enough to lower The Boom and get the win. Clearly these guys have gotten the "try to keep the banger PPV quality matches going" memo. ****, 81% overall rating ---

Aww, yeah, tournaments! You're going to need some neat looking brackets so that I can keep track of things. This is a solid opener. Actually more than solid if it reached 4 stars.

As Cole walks up the ramp to celebrate, the music of Dr. Britt Baker hits. Baker makes her way out for her match, giving Cole a smooch on the way out. Owen Hart Foundation Cup - Women's First Round Match: Dr. Britt Baker vs. Saraya w/ Ruby Soho Much like her beau Adam Cole, Britt Baker won the women's side of last year's Owen tournament, providing a nice visual for the crowd with the couple celebrating their newly won trophies. As last year's winner, she's also the first one out in her bracket this year. Tonight she is facing off against Saraya, who beat Britt in her AEW debut last fall. Britt's had no shortage of issues with The Outcasts for several months now. Luckily for her, the Outcasts have also done a good job of pissing off most of the AEW women's roster in the process. Including referee Aubrey Edwards. Ruby Soho makes a nuisance of herself at ringside a few times behind Aubrey's back, but when she catches Ruby trying to help drag Saraya to the ropes during a submission hold, she gets thrown out in no time. With Ruby ejected and Toni being tied up in other business, Saraya has no backup and no hope against a game and determined Saraya. The Lock Jaw submission is put on and Britt gets the first victory on her road to repeating. ***, 79% overall ---

Hey, if you like women's tournaments as much as I do, you're going to love what's coming up for me in a few months after the Rumble...

[The video opens to MJF sitting in a lavish home, his AEW World Title sitting prominently on a table next to him.] MJF: Hello, AEW Universe. As you can see, I'm not there tonight. You see, I refused to spend one more second in Canada than I was contractually obligated to. [He grins, crossing his arms. The crowd in the arena boos, both at the insult to Canada and at the gall of MJF to refer to an AEW crowd as the "AEW Universe".] MJF: So here I am, back in the most magical place on earth, Long Island, resting and recuperating from my epic battle against Tetsuya Naito at Forbidden Door. [He chuckles, shaking his head.] MJF: Naito and his glorified indie fed, New Japan Pro-Wrestling, thought they could take me down. But guess what? Just like every other challenger, they failed. So, Naito, why don't you go back to your rinky-dink company and tell them who the real champion is. [He lifts the AEW World Title and smirks.] MJF: Now let's talk about CM Punk and his encounter with Samoa Joe. Punk, I told you to watch your back. But did you listen? No. Instead, you got choked out after your little match with Tanahashi. Have fun trying to calm down the Samoan Submission Machine. [He laughs, leaning back in his chair.] MJF: And then there's the Owen Hart Cup. Tony Khan trying to determine a number one contender for my title? It's all a big formality. [He scoffs.] MJF: No matter who comes out on top, they won't be on my level. They won't be able to touch me. Khan's just lucky I don't take the entire summer off and leave AEW without a world champion. Just like I might take this gorgeous belt with me wherever I may go in the Bidding War of 2024! [He smiles, leaning towards the camera.] MJF: So keep watching, AEW Universe. Keep cheering for your heroes. Because no matter who they are, they'll never be MJF. [He raises his title one last time, the camera focusing on the gleaming gold before the video ends.] ---

I missed stuff like this. World Class would do this kind of thing all the time with Jimmy Garvin and Gino Hernandez and the like. It gave a much deeper look into the lives of these people you're watching every week. There's social media now, but it doesn't really register the same. I try to read these promos in the same manner as that video you linked me and I can absolutely see it. Letting guys talk for themselves...what a wacky idea, am I right?

FTW Championship: "Jungle Boy" Jack Perry vs. "El Toro Blanco" Rush (C) This match just keeps the JungleHook vs. LFI feud plugging along nicely, with the face Perry trying to win the title that Rush stole from his friend. These two guys have clashing styles but in a way that actually benefits the match, with the smaller Perry selling like hell for Rush's stiff shots. As the match winds down and Perry gains moment, Andrade saunters out to the ring to run interference but Hook is right behind him. Hook locks in the Redrum on Andrade at ringside as the crowd goes nuts. Unfortunately, these ringside happenings also distract referee Mike Posey, and he doesn't see Rush clock Perry with a chain. Rush steals the win. ***, 77% overall rating ---

Hey, you can't give the referees names! Don't you know they're just supposed to be anonymous, amorphous entities that for some reason are just there in the general vicinity of the action? That's what the WWE taught me, at least. I actually need to look at my staff because for the life of me I'm not sure who is still a ref in my promotion. I don't know if you've ever sent me a picture of it, but is the FTW Title belt still the same from ECW back in the day or did someone decide to give it an "update"?

The scene transitions to Renee Paquette, the experienced wrestling journalist standing ready, microphone in hand. She is flanked by The Dark Order, each of them donning their characteristic masks and attire. "Thank you, everyone. I'm here with The Dark Order, who have requested this time to speak," Renee begins. She turns towards Evil Uno. "So, what would you like to say?" Before Evil Uno can respond, the shot of Adam Page comes into view. He walks into frame, his eyes focused on The Dark Order. "I've been looking all over for you guys since last week. I need to speak to you." Evil Uno raises a hand, effectively silencing Page. "Save it, Hangman. You've already made your point clear," Uno states, his voice cold. "You teamed with The Elite against the Blackpool Combat Club. What? Didn't trust us to have your back like we always have?" Page begins to speak, to defend his actions, but Uno doesn't let him. "We've noticed, Page," he continues, looking straight into the camera. "The Dark Order has been on a mean streak lately on Rampage. And now, we want to show you that you've placed your bet on the wrong group." The camera zooms in on Uno's face, his eyes filled with determination. "Blackpool Combat Club," he calls out, "we challenge you. Next week. No disqualification, no holds barred, anything goes." Page looks shocked, he tries to step in, to talk The Dark Order out of this reckless challenge, but they turn their backs on him, ignoring his words, leaving him behind as they march out of the frame, leaving Renee and a silenced Hangman in their wake. The camera lingers on Page's face, full of concern and regret, before the scene fades to black. ---

This reminds me of when Lex Luger got jumped by "Sting" and the NWO and everyone wasn't sure about Sting's loyalties and for whatever reason Sting waited like 6 fucking days to even try to talk with Lex and the Horseman. Like, you all don't have phones? Wrestling asks us to accept this really weird world where people need an audience present to talk to one another. AND WE GO ALONG WITH IT!!! I'm guessing this is leading to Page doing some kind of turn.

TNT Championship: Lance Archer w/ Jake Roberts vs. Wardlow (C) w/ Arn Anderson Wardlow vs. Lance Archer was exactly as advertised - a match between two big, yet also surprisingly agile hosses. These guys gelled really well and got the crowd engaged in the action in the ring. Meanwhile, fans got a nice burst of nostalgia outside of it as Arn Anderson and Jake "The Snake" Roberts got into a shouting match. Fans were eagerly awaiting to see the legends throw down, although it ultimately did not come to blows. In the ring, Archer gets Wardlow up for a Blackout but he manages to slide loose, hit the ropes and then run through Archer with a big lariat. He goes up the top and hits an impressive Senton, followed by a Powerbomb for the win. Wardlow keeps his hoss winning streak intact while Jake the Snake is pissed off at ringside. The only question now is who's next for Wardlow? ***, 74% overall ---

Oh, man, Jake Roberts vs. Arn Anderson? Did that ever happen? The promos alone would've been amazing. Shame you have Mark Henry, I assume, as a mere member of the staff, because he'd make a great payoff to this thing you've got Wardlow doing, going through hosses and all.

The AEW arena is charged with energy as the titantron flickers to life. Christian Cage, with Luchasaurus towering behind him, appears on the screen. A smug smile plays on Christian's face as the audience reacts with a mix of cheers and boos. The music fades, and he begins to speak, his voice cutting through the crowd noise. Christian Cage: "Well, well, well... If it isn't the AEW International Champion, Orange Cassidy. The 'King of Sloth Style', the man who's held onto that title for nearly a year now. I gotta hand it to you, Cassidy. You've gone up against some of the toughest men in this business and still managed to keep that title around your waist. Hell, even Minoru Suzuki seemed to give you a nod of respect at Forbidden Door." Christian pauses, his smirk growing wider as he leans closer to the camera. Christian Cage: "But let me make one thing perfectly clear, Cassidy... You may have fooled some people with your gimmicks and your aviators, but you haven't fooled me. You haven't earned my respect." Christian's voice lowers, and the intensity in his eyes becomes more pronounced. Christian Cage: "You see, I've been in this business long enough to know that it's not about how long you can hold a title. It's about the impact you make, the stories you tell in the ring. And what's your story, Cassidy? That you can put your hands in your pockets and still win matches?" He chuckles, shaking his head. Christian Cage: "I'll admit, it's entertaining. A great trick for the crowd. But this is professional wrestling, not a comedy show. When I step in the ring, I do more than just entertain, I leave a mark. I create moments that will be remembered long after I retire. Can you say the same, Cassidy? Or will you just be remembered as the guy with the lazy kicks and the constant smirk?" Christian stands tall, Luchasaurus roaring behind him, as he looks directly into the camera. Christian Cage: "You can keep your aviators, your half-hearted thumbs up, and your sloth-style wrestling, Cassidy. Because I'm coming for that title. And when I take it from you, everyone, including you, will know what real respect feels like." The titantron fades to black, the image of Christian's intense gaze and Luchasaurus' roar echoing in the minds of the audience. The challenge is set. The hunt for the AEW International Championship has begun. ---

This is exactly the kind of thing Christian would say about someone like Cassidy. I'm trying to imagine what the actual roars would sound like. Like, is he actually trying to do dinosaur roars or is it just a normal yell? Why does this promotion bring up so many questions?

Later in the night, Renee Paquette finds herself in the locker room of the Blackpool Combat Club: Bryan Danielson, Jon Moxley, Claudio Castagnoli, and Wheeler Yuta. "Blackpool Combat Club," Renee begins, standing amidst the group, microphone extended. "The Dark Order has issued a challenge to you all for next week. A no disqualification, no holds barred match. Do you accept?" Before any of them can answer, Bryan Danielson steps forward. "Before we get to that," he starts, running a hand through his hair. "I want to address something. Yes, I suffered a deeply personal loss against Kazuchika Okada at Forbidden Door. And now, everyone thinks he's dethroned me as the best wrestler in the world." He shakes his head, a determined look on his face. "I want everyone to know that this has made me more focused, more dangerous than ever. Okada, I don't care what country or what continent we meet in again. Mark my words, you haven't seen the last of me, and next time, I'll make you tap out." Before Danielson can continue, Jon Moxley interjects, a wicked smile playing on his lips. "Now, about that challenge," he begins, his eyes gleaming with excitement. "The Dark Order wants to dance with us in a no disqualification, no holds barred match? That's right up our alley." His smile broadens, the thrill of the upcoming fight evident in his eyes. "They want violence? We'll give them violence. They want chaos? We're the kings of chaos." Moxley leans into the camera, his voice dropping to a growl. "Dark Order, be careful what you wish for. You're stepping into our world now. And trust me, it's a world of pain. See you next week." With that, the segment concludes, the Blackpool Combat Club standing united, their expressions promising an intense match for next week's show. ---

I'm surprised that I haven't asked this question yet, but does AEW acknowledge the marriage between Renee and Moxley? They acknowledge so many other relationships from what you've told me, so I don't see why they wouldn't go for it here with these two. How soon do you think you'd be able to do Danielson/Okada again if you were so inclined?

AEW Tag Team Championship: Sammy Hager (Sammy Guevara and Jake Hager) vs. FTR (Dax Harwood and Cash Wheeler) (C) FTR remain fighting champions, willing to take on all comers and answering the call of Sammy Hager who called them out during the JAS' promo last week. The announcers again speculate on the status and whereabouts of Chris Jericho, remarking that there have rarely been any Dynamites in company history without him. Anyway, it's an FTR match so you know it's going to kick all sorts of ass. In addition to their stats being great, their tag experience is high so it feels damn near impossible for them to not pull a 4-star match out of anyone, even a team that's somewhat thrown together. Finish sequence sees Hager make a blind tag as Sammy goes up for a 630 and misses, leaving Hager all alone for the Big Rig for the win. After the bell, the familiar intro sound effect for Bullet Club plays over the arena. FTR drop their titles and begin scanning all corners of the crowd, anticipating a run-in that never comes. Some head games from Bullet Club Gold as the champs retain. ****1/4, 86% overall ---

I don't think I ever knew Harwood and Wheeler before I stopped following. I know a couple of guys on your roster just by name, like Omega, and a few that I knew in previous incarnations like Hager, but FTR are a complete unknown, I think. Everyone seems to praise them so I'll accept that such an outcome as this is absolutely possible.

[CAMERA ON: The scene unfolds backstage on Dynamite. RENEE PAQUETTE stands with DON CALLIS and KONOSUKE TAKESHITA. Callis' face is a mask of smug satisfaction, Takeshita's, as ever, is cool and focused.] PAQUETTE: [Microphone in hand, addresses Callis] "Don, Kenny Omega lost his IWGP United States Championship to Will Ospreay at Forbidden Door, but some would say it was your 'son' Takeshita's interference that made that happen. How do you respond?" CALLIS: [Laughs, dismisses the question with a wave of his hand] "Let's not get lost in the details, Renee. The important thing here is Kenny Omega is no longer the IWGP United States Champion. Will Ospreay is. The wrestling world is shifting, and I dare say it's moving in our favor." [Paquette seems to want to follow up, but Callis continues.] CALLIS: "And speaking of change, Kota Ibushi having the nerve to show up in AEW. Coming to Kenny's aid at Forbidden Door. Getting involved in something that doesn't concern him. How... [His lips curl in distaste] touching." [Callis leans in closer to the camera, his gaze intense.] CALLIS: "But listen here, Ibushi. I don't care about your past with Kenny, or whatever bond you think you two share. In fact, your arrival here is, in my eyes, nothing more than a temporary blip. Because my 'son', Konosuke Takeshita..." [He turns, placing a hand on Takeshita's shoulder, who meets the camera with a cold, challenging stare.] CALLIS: "...is ready and waiting. You might be a Golden Star, but remember, even stars burn out. And when Takeshita is done with you, your time in AEW will indeed be very short-lived." [CAMERA OFF: The scene ends on that chilling note, Callis grinning menacingly into the camera, his confident gaze not faltering as the frame goes black.] --- Konosuke Takeshita w/ Don Callis vs. "Golden Star" Kota Ibushi Konosuke Takeshita vs. Kota Ibushi...in the spirit of Forbidden Door, the kind of match that seemed unfathomable just a few days ago is now taking place in the main event of AEW Dynamite! Excalibur explains that, despite both men spending nearly their entire careers in Japan, they've nearly always been in different companies and their paths haven't crossed. They haven't shared a ring since 2015, and their lone singles matchup was just over a decade ago on January 27th, 2013. Anyway, Takeshita's been running through some luchadores to get him established as a heel. But Ibushi is a whole other level. Really the purpose of this match is to familiarize the audience with Ibushi (not particularly difficult as smark heavy crowds would know him) and make sure he has a banger of a first AEW match. And boy does he ever. These guys' stats match up nearly identically and it shows, as they pull off the elusive 100% match quality stat. Tons of hard hitting, a flurry of nearfalls and acrobatics all in one epic PPV quality main event. Ibushi connects with the Kamigoye for the win. Don Callis pounds the mat in anger, and Takeshita pounces right back on Ibushi, acting like a sore loser. Here comes Kenny Omega for the save. Omega and Ibushi embrace again, as the crowd goes off the air with the pop at the reunion of the Golden Lovers. ****1/2, 86% overall rating

I would've thought you'd save an encounter like this up for another show, possibly a PPV, but how can you argue with a rating like that? The next step I assume you're going to make is building towards Ospreay/Takeshita vs. the, uh, Golden Lovers?

[M-A-G]

Raw: December 10, 2040

Twenty Minute Opening Promo of Doom Time as Orlando Kincaid of all people decides to start things off. He's not going to lie to us, he's had a rough couple of weeks. It was a rough pill to swallow losing at Survivor Series, but then it was an even rougher one last week when Ryan Pattillo came out on top. Now he has to watch Pattillo go on to possibly win the Unified World Title at Bragging Rights. "Well, Ryan, last week you said you owe me for your new found focus. I'd hate for you to carry such a debt with you so on the off chance that you're able crank out a miracle and take home the title twenty days from tonight, I've got a great idea about how you can repay me and that's giving me a crack at it."

"Orlando, Orlando, Orlando...", speaks a voice, interrupting things. Everyone looks to the stage and out from the back, one at a time, emerges Chet Morris, Quinten McDaniels...and Hugo! What's the deal with these three? They all step into the ring and stand facing Orlando as Quinten continues on the mic.

"At ease, Orlando. You've got nothing to worry about when it comes to the three of us. You know Chet and myself, obviously, and you know that if we're coming to you, we have nothing but the best of intentions. The three of us have come together for very different, yet very similar reasons. There's been a weight tied to each of us and it's what's been holding us back from our real potential. Chet had his worthless cousin dragging him down. Hugo was too confined by rules and regulations. And myself? Unfinished business. Orlando, I think it's safe to say that I know you better than anyone and I definitely sympathize with what you're saying out here. But take it from us, you can't move forward unless you're willing to be honest with yourself. You see there is a great man that we think you should meet, Orlando, and his name is Victor Dark."

Chet takes the mic and continues from where Quinten started. "Orlando, we go way back, so we can be honest with each other. Victor Dark helped us all realize what was wrong in our lives, and in turn, we can now see what's wrong in yours. We would all love to have you at our side as we help you get rid of the baggage that's holding you back."

Orlando takes this opportunity to interrupt. "Are you talking about Haven? Uh, hate to break it you guys, but I've been over him and that whole mess for a long time now, so I don't know where all of this is coming from."

Quinten takes back the mic and sighs before responding. "Orlando, you can't kid yourself and you can't kid us. Victor Dark has shined the light on something so obvious. We're prisoners of our past until the moment we confront it and destroy it. This is why Noah Carmichael and Seth Von Kamp managed to get the better of me. It's because I've been letting myself get the better of me. Victor is reaching out to you as a former victim of Haven's nonsense, but more importantly, I'm reaching out to you as a friend. We'll happily be at your side as you take the first real step towards actual rehabilitation."

Orlando takes his time as he looks at each of the other men and then gives his reply. "Quinten, no offense, but what the hell have you been smoking? Chet, don't take this wrong way, but I've always thought you smelled kind of funky. You, Hugo, I don't know what your deal is and we've never had any kind of relationship, but just the fact that you're standing here swallowing all of this crap tells me you're as dumb as you are big. And Quinten, did it ever occur to you that the reason you couldn't beat Noah and Seth is because you just suck?"

The crowd cheers all of this as each man is aghast at what Orlando is saying. He's not done, though. "Last I checked, Quinten, when we all split, you wanted nothing to do with me. Well, I learned to deal with that so you're a little late to the party. And as far as your great man Victor Dark goes, all I need to know about the guy is that he apparently doesn't have the balls to even come out here himself and face me. So thanks, but no thanks. I've got better things to do. You guys have fun with whatever the hell this is."

With that, Orlando tosses the mic down and makes his exit. Upon reaching the stage, he meets Victor Dark himself who merely looks at him briefly before closing his eyes and shaking his head. He steps aside and gestures to Kincaid to continue his exit. This isn't stopping Quinten McDaniels, though, and he gets back on the mic. "That's fine and dandy, Orlando. I guess we're just going to have to make a better pitch. We dare any team back there to come on out and face any two of us right here and now and maybe then you'll see what you're turning down!" With that we go to break as the three men await an answer.

First Match: Hugo and Chet Morris vs. The Wasteland
Well, we've our answer as we return from break as Duke and Drakken have stepped up to the plate. Quinten plays cheerleader on the outside as Hugo and Chet pretty much dominate this motherfucker. It comes to an end when the faces manage to get their shit together and have Chet set up for the Toxic Kiss but Quinten drags Drakken out of the ring behind the ref's back. Duke turns around to see this and that allows Chet to low blow him and deliver his Backwoods Bomb variation to score the pin. WAIT A MINUTE!!! HERE COMES EDDY CLASH!!! He's full of piss and vinegar and tries his hand at getting to Hugo. The three heels decide to regroup instead and make their escape. Like I said, more twists and turns. *****, 87% overall.

Second Match: Neil Quint vs. Ozzy Mandias
Ozzy gets on the mic as he wants to explain his actions. He declares that both Martyn LaSalle and Jordan Demiras got what was coming to them, something that was overdue. If it weren't for their incompetence and arrogance, Ozzy Mandias would be standing before all of us as the Cruiserweight Champion. Martyn LaSalle talked himself into a corner and ended up not being able to cash that check. "It's not my problem that he couldn't handle being called out on his BS! And then to add to the misery, all of you people though that freaking Jordan Demiras deserved a Slammy? For what?!? If he thinks he's earned that Slammy so badly, I'll knock him upside the head with it and then shove it up his ass because I'm through with being in the backseat!" So with that said, we've got a match to take care of and it's pretty lit. I've got plans for both guys and there's no need to end Quint's streak just yet. Neil has Ozzy set up for the Quintessential Top Rope Maneuver but Ozzy rolls out of the ring before Neil can launch. Ozzy tries taking a breather BUT HERE COMES JORDAN DEMIRAS!!! He's looking none too happy and Ozzy realizes this and thus gets the bright idea of running away with Demiras in pursuit. That's going to give Neil the count out win as he continues his winning ways but no doubt this isn't over between Demiras and Ozzy. ****1/4, 81% overall.

Hey, suck my balls, DUD show!

Third Match: Ethan Lang and Cameron Harper vs. The Sin City Rollers
So this is the first team up between Jake Connelly's clients. Connelly declares that he sees great potential in both of these young talents, but he wants to be see how well they fire on all cylinders together. That's why he issued an open challenge earlier to see if there is any team that can put his new project to the test. Connelly believes that Lang and Harper can go far...now they have to prove it. Vic Gambler and Luis Ortega have answered the call and are ready to put these two newbies over. With Lang being a top merchandise seller, I may have a hidden gem here on my hands. I didn't foresee that big of a future for him but the game might be giving me a sign. Connelly gets his two clients through this ordeal with his verbal orders as the Rollers obviously have a huge experience advantage here. Lang does the job of clean up after Harper gets the hot tag. Lang hits Gambler with the Bitter Languish and stumbles into the corner for a brief respite. Harper tags himself in and jumps on Gambler's body to score the pin. Connelly slides in to celebrate and congratulate the two as it appears he's got himself another pair of winners. ****1/2, 81% overall.

Seriously, suck my balls.

In-Ring Super Special Talky Time this time with the WWE Intercontinental Champion Seth Von Kamp. "I knew from the moment I won this strap there was going to be nothing a barrage of would-be potential champions coming right at me, all looking to want to make a mark and all at the expense of my name. I scratched and clawed for nearly a decade to finally get my hands on this beauty so my only real message to the poor SOBs who are thinking of trying their hand is good freaking luck and sorry about what I'm going to do to your face. This belt will definitely get you noticed so it should be no surprise that I've got Chris Collins knocking at my door. Chris, we go back, and I always wondered where we'd each end up after we went our separate ways. Fast forward to right now, and I have to say that I'm not exactly interested in being part of your crisis. But like I said before, the struggle for this belt was real and I'm prepared to do it again, especially against someone like you. So I'll be there at Bragging Rights just like you asked. Think of it as a little something for old times sake. But as far as what you're going to do with yourself after I beat you, well, I can't help you there."

The arena gets blasted with the sounds of the entrance music of Chris Collins and the second-generation star makes his way on out to the stage. How's he going to respond to this? "Seth, if I hadn't been dealing with so many small fry issues this past year, understand that I would have surpassed where you are without so much as breaking a sweat. Now it's time for me to start catching the big fish again. Today, the Intercontinental Title; tomorrow...well, the sky is limit as far as I'm concerned. You can parade that lovely piece of hardware around all you like, but you're still the same Seth Von Kamp I used to know. I, on the other hand, am a new man. Sorry to have to cut your new lease on life short, but destiny is calling and you're in the damn way. Keep your apologies, Seth. I'm going to be just fine after Bragging Rights." And with that, Chris drops the mic and confidently struts his way to the back leaving Seth with a ponderous look on his face.

Backstage, Brooke is with Salvatore Scabbia and Ronnie Costello, and none of them are having what the Academy said on SmackDown!. Brooke has all of her ducks in a row. The Academy just didn't have what it took to measure up to the standards she has and so they decided it'd be easier to tuck tail and run. Well, it's not easier. Scabbia and Ronnie are prepared to make things VERY difficult for them. They've actually been toying with the idea of challenging the Academy to a match at Bragging Rights. Brooke thinks it's a great idea...or is that too tough for Justin and Randy?

Fourth Match: Gavin Jones and Clubber Harris vs. The Hero to Millions Around the World, the Host With THE Highest Rated Interview Show In All of Entertainment, The New Age Intellectual Savior to the Masses, The 2031 Fulton County First Place Conga Award Winner, The Luscious Lover of the Manager of the Year Slammy Award Winner and Undefeated Steel Cage Master and REAL 2040 King of the Ring, The Supreme Submission Machine, Mister Twenty-Forty, The Two Time Slammy Award Winner Including the Rookie of the Year and the Most Envied Superstar of the Year, the Man Who is the Rightful Winner of the Slammy for Cruiserweight of the Year, Former WWE Cruiserweight Champion-Elect, the Cruiserweight Champion Michael Hotbody and Zed Jones
Gavin Jones gets on the mic and addresses his current deal with Michael Hotbody. "I may have lost my crew and I may have lost my partnership, but I haven't lost my ability to get under people's skin. And if there's one person who's been asking for it for a very long time, it's none other than a guy who managed to win an award called Douche of the Year. Don't get me wrong, it was a beautiful ceremony on SmackDown!, but you'll forgive me for reading the room and reaching the conclusion that, just like me, everyone is sick and tired of Michael Hotbody and company. But there's a bigger issue at hand than Hotbody being a stain on this business. Hotbody, you've got the Cruiserweight Championship, and every day that passes where you're able to call yourself that is an embarrassment and a slap in my face. I've damn near broken my body for that belt in the past and I'm ready to do it all over again because a coward like you doesn't deserve it. But that's Bragging Rights; tonight is another deal entirely. And as I mentioned before, I am without my crew but I am not without backup. You've got a whole other problem with the man standing right next to me. I think he's got something to get off his chest, too. What say you, Clubber?"

Clubber Harris takes the mic and focuses his words on Zed Jones. "It's nice and all that Michael Hotbody has got himself a bodyguard in you, Zed. Unfortunately, there ain't nobody guarding your sorry ass. There ain't nobody that CAN guard your sorry ass. So when you step up to me, son, with your tough act and steel gaze, and then get smacked down into paste by an even tougher and badder sumbitch like Clubber Harris, I want you to look at each and every cut, every scrape, every bruise, and every bloodstain, and I want you to remember that your boy, Hotbody, was the one that put you up to it! I've been in fights that'll make your skin crawl, Zed. I have seen some stuff. So by all means, when you're ready to get some quality one-on-one time, I will give you an education you won't believe. COUNT ON IT!"

The heels make their way out and Luscious isn't about to let all that talk go unanswered. "All that talk and nothing to show for it! Look at all of this shine that we've got going on over here! Neither Michael nor Zed have anything to fear from two people like you! Gavin, you don't have a belt. Harris, you don't have a prayer." Everyone seems to have gotten what they need to say out of their system so now it's go time. Hotbody, of course, doesn't actually want to do anything here and is more than happy to let Zed muscle everyone else around. The Slammys need polishing you know! Gavin manages a hot tag to Harris and thus begins the part where Harris is on fire. Zed gets knocked around and Harris proceeds to bring in Hotbody against his will. Zed prevents any harm and slugs it out with Harris. Luscious slides a Slammy award to Hotbody and he tries to nail Clubber with it from behind. Clubber turns and catches Hotbody's arm and yanks the award away. Hotbody bails but Zed spins Harris around and he instinctively retaliates by striking Zed with the award causing the DQ. Gavin chases Hotbody around the ring and manages to grab him and send him back inside with Harris. Harris looks to drill Hotbody with the same award but Zed shoves Harris down from behind, scoops up Hotbody and gets his crew out of there. Heated doesn't even begin to describe this situation. ****1/2, 83% overall.

More backstage goodness as Madison and the WWE Unified Tag Team Champions The Wyldhearts want to rip into The Royal Effect. They hope that winning the Tag Team of the Year Slammy Award doesn't go to the heads of Moses McKay and King Kavovit. After all, the two of them were riding high as the Tag Team Champions not that long ago and living in a little bubble thinking they were untouchable and then that blew up in their faces. The Wyldhearts delivered a nice stiff jab when they captured these titles. So now all that's left is to knock out the Royal Effect for good. Believe Blaine and Robbie when they say they're ready whenever the Royal Effect are. 2041 is going to be year where everyone will have to pay attention to the Wyldhearts.

Fifth Match: Adam Hail and The Southern Belles vs. Simon Bennett and The Perfections
Nathan Quinn wants to laugh at the pathetic assemblage of clients under the banner of Paul Andrews. Andrews can get whoever he wants, they'll all be doing nothing but chasing rainbows and fantasies because they'll be chasing the best. Adam Hail is better than he's ever been. Hannah McCormick and Bobbi Jo are the Women's Tag Team Champions and the finest well-oiled machine in any of the tag divisions. "Paul, you need to understand that the main reason we're all in these positions is because you and your crew failed to see what was coming. You never suspected a damn thing because you lack vision. That's going to be your downfall. Bragging Rights is shaping up to be one of the worst nights of your career. First, my girls are going to keep these titles. Then, Adam Hail is going to put the finishing touches on what he started when he embarrasses Simon Bennett again. But don't take my word for it. By all means, come on down and get a piece!"

I've been wanting to do this trios match for a while, but Survivor Series kind of forced my hand to do other stuff. I'd have saved it for the PPV but I feel Bennett/Hail deserves a PPV slot on its own. The only issue is getting a buyrate large enough to cover their cost. Anyway, the match is the bomb as they work hard to offset the DUD factor. We head home as it's down to Bobbi and Bonnie as the legal competitors. The ref is distracted with Hail and Bennett going at it on the outside. Bobbi has Bonnie waistlocked and it looks like she's trying a suplex or takedown or whatever. Bonnie makes the ropes, trying to break free but Hannah uses this opportunity to clobber Bonnie with a title belt over the head. Bobbi uses the momentum to get a roll up and she uses the tights for good measure. Andrews and Quinn have managed to separate their clients the ref is free to count the cheap pin for the heels. Nathan Quinn might have had a point. ****1/2, 81% overall.

Sixth Match: Xavier Cross vs. Alexander Piero
This is essentially the main event but the final segment is going to be more talky stuff. Piero needs to be rebuilt, too, but Cross is the one with a major feud going on that still needs resolution. Cross declares that he's still looking to get retribution for being triple teamed at Survivor Series. He can't do anything about Ryan Pattillo now as he's got business at Bragging Rights. But Alexander Piero and Kyle Jacobs are ripe for the ass kicking. Cross hopes Jacobs is watching because he'll be bringing the same to his doorstep. Once that's all done, he hopes and prays that Ryan Pattillo is champion after Bragging Rights, because his beating will be the hat trick and just the start of the new year Cross is hoping for! We get a good outing here. Piero has managed to rack up some decent mileage this year despite still being relatively new and certainly way less seasoned than a guy like Cross. Cross makes good on his word, being hella vicious on Piero and working over the arm. It comes to an end when Piero fights back enough to where he can try a Flashpoint but his arm isn't up to snuff and he doubles over in pain, clutching the source. Cross grabs the arm and jumps over the rop, snapping the arm across it to make things worse. Cross slides in to go for the kill and he hits the Cross Cutter on a vulnerable Piero to get the pin. Afterwards, Cross looks like he's going to really deliver some punishment but HERE COME KYLE JACOBS!!! Cross feels discretion is the better form of valor and decides to bail. ****1/2, 83% overall.

SPORTZ ENTERTAINMENT!!!!~~~ Time to close us out and we've got the number one contender for the WWE Unified World Title, Ryan Pattillo, joining us. "Against all odds and hope beyond hope, I knew that eventually I would be here again someday. I knew that I would be in prime position to once again take that top spot on the mountain and wear that gold one more time. It wasn't easy, watching the title scene get overrun with all of the drama and chaos and uncertainty. It's been a long time and while I may have forgotten a few things as time has passed, I haven't forgotten how to be a champion. I haven't forgotten how to win. At Bragging Rights I have the chance to close the book on a really bad time in my career and begin writing a new epic. In one night, in one big move, I can undo the bad and bring about something that you people deserve!"

"These people don't deserve a damn thing, Ryan." Well we knew this wasn't going to go on too long without an interruption. It's the Money in the Bank winner himself, Brandon Reigns! He talks as he makes way down to the ring to join Pattillo. "Oh, sure, I can give them a bit of credit for actually having the brains to name me as the Superstar of the Year, but a room full of monkeys could've made that same call. Although, maybe I can sort of see where you're coming from. A group of mediocrity definitely does deserve someone like you. You didn't just have a "bad time", Ryan. You had a disaster. And now you think you can somehow turn a negative into a positive? Well, points for enthusiasm, but you need to understand that should you succeed, it'll be fleeting. I'm here to remind you of what's in store for any champion that makes it out of the WrestleMania main event. The trail of bodies I've been leaving is leading to that night."

The music of Kerry Cemenko hits and the man himself makes his way out to give his thoughts, standing in the aisle. "Brandon, it's nice that you can make such bold plans, but the problem is that a lot can happen in the next few months. There could be a stock market crash. A new species of ocean life can be discovered! Crocs could make a comeback! But most importantly, I could probably mess you up so badly that WrestleMania won't even be possible for you. I know you feel like you have to come out here all the time and bluster and make a big showing for the sake of your ego, but I have to wonder as the days to WrestleMania begin to dry up, do you secretly look at yourself in the mirror and worry? Could all of your best laid plans be snuffed out in an instant? Would you be better off choosing to cash in that contract sooner? I don't envy your position, Reigns, but I know what I would've already done. I'd already be standing here the Unified Champion and I'd be the one looking towards WrestleMania."

Pattillo takes this opportunity to reply. "No, you'd be the one I'd be taking down at Bragging Rights."

Reigns interjects with his own take. "Sorry, but this is all moot anyway. You don't have this contract, Kerry. I do. Neither one of you was selected as Superstar of the Year. I WAS! There is nothing the two of you bring to the table that can shake my resolve!"

The music of the WWE Unified World Champion hits and Wrakk makes his way out onto the stage. "Maybe they can't rattle you, Brandon, but I sure as hell can. You got a trail of bodies? I've got a pile. You got a Slammy? I've got the Unified World Championship. You got the briefcase? I can shove it right up your ass. I am going to plow through everybody that gets thrown at me. Haven was the first. Ryan, you're going to be next. And when it all comes to pass, Brandon, once I've finished annihilating whoever is in that main event across from me at WrestleMania 57, if you're actually going to be there at ringside like you claim, I'm going to kneel over the broken body of my opponent, I'm going to hold up their head, face them towards you so you can see what's left of them, and I'm going to watch the piss drip from you as you slowly realize what a huge mistake you made in waiting so long. Now I don't have many vulnerable moments, but should you ever be so lucky to stumble across such an opportunity, you'd be stupid to not go for it. Of course, that actually might be worse."

Patillo responds by calling Wrakk stupid if he thinks he's heading into a cake walk at Bragging Rights. Wrakk counters that the two of them have already danced to this number before and it didn't turn out so great for Ryan in the end. Ryan dares Wrakk to test him right now if he's so confident. It'd be a great way to show a jackass like Reigns what he's getting himself into. Reigns takes offense to this comment and tries to cheap shot Pattillo in response. Pattillo blocks the shot and he and Reigns slug it out. Kerry slides in to lend a hand but Wrakk isn't too far behind. It's a wild four-man brawl. It comes to a close as Wrakk tries whacking Pattillo with one of his title belts but he swings too wildly and Pattillo avoids getting hit and manages to land the Shutdown on the champion. Reigns nails Pattillo from behind with his briefcase, sending Pattillo to the outside, leaving him standing over the fallen body of Wrakk. He looks down at the champion and it slowly dawns on him what an opportunity this is. He looks at the Money in the Bank briefcase, then back at Wrakk. He looks around the arena with an expression of uncertainty. Is he thinking about cashing in right now?!? This could really disrupt things if he decides to do it. He clutches the briefcase, still looking unsure, but Kerry Cemenko is going to make the decision for him by getting back into the fight and clotheslining Reigns over the top. Reigns decides he's done for the night and takes off in disgust as we go off the air. Would Reigns have done it??? The march towards Bragging Rights continues!

Overall show rating: 82%

I didn't say to stop sucking my balls!!!

[Evil Vito]

Loved the opening promo with the heels all finally acknowledging why they've come together. Selfishly I hope the group winds up being called the Dark Order

I also kinda have to crack up at the open challenge being answered by two guys that I automatically picture as The Ascension from WWE. Total jobbers, inasmuch as a jobber can exist in this world where everyone just rules ass in the ring.

I've said this before but I love the role of managers in this game. I don't know why but at some point WWE got to the mindset of managers only being allowed to have one and only one client at a time and that's just totally different from how managers operated in the '80s. It would make sense for managers to try to recruit a robust list of candidates, bringing them together when necessary but ultimately just trying to make bank.

AEW does something similar, solid amount of managers. Smart Mark Sterling manages the jobber Trustbusters stable but his highest profile client is Jade Cargill....and he's responsible for costing Jade the title and undefeated streak because he decided to issue an open challenge on her behalf.

Nice work with the promo before the Hotbody match, he continues to grate on everyone's skin which is great, but I also love Clubber going after the bodyguard too. Zed Jones vs. Clubber Harris feels like it should be a boxing match from 1985.

Also good on you for not shying away from ending the show with a talking segment. I'm so used to the way AEW books that I very rarely don't end with a match, but ending with a promo makes for a nice change of pace.

[Evil Vito]

Originally Posted by M-A-G Aww, yeah, tournaments! You're going to need some neat looking brackets so that I can keep track of things. This is a solid opener. Actually more than solid if it reached 4 stars.

I've set both tournaments up to be reasonably quick sprints. The next Dynamite and next two Collisions will have the first round matches and then it's right onto the semi's and we're then set for the finals on the "PPV".

I don't know if you've ever sent me a picture of it, but is the FTW Title belt still the same from ECW back in the day or did someone decide to give it an "update"?

As best I can tell it's the original ECW belt. Taz reintroduced it in 2020, awarding it to his client Brian Cage. Over time the Team Taz stable got built. By summer of 2021 they were having some in-fighting between Brian Cage and Ricky Starks and Taz was like "I'm sick of this shit, you guys fight it out for the FTW title". Taz proceeded to screw Cage out of the match, booting him from the stable.

Starks mostly just carried the belt for a year, only sporadically defending it, until Taz's son Hook won the belt last summer and he's held it ever since. It's not a sanctioned title so it really is just a prop. But I like the idea of the belt falling out of the realm of Taz's family.

This reminds me of when Lex Luger got jumped by "Sting" and the NWO and everyone wasn't sure about Sting's loyalties and for whatever reason Sting waited like 6 fucking days to even try to talk with Lex and the Horseman. Like, you all don't have phones? Wrestling asks us to accept this really weird world where people need an audience present to talk to one another. AND WE GO ALONG WITH IT!!! I'm guessing this is leading to Page doing some kind of turn.

It really is kinda daft, isn't it? I feel like with wrestling I do have to suspend my disbelief for things like this. Also when a miscommunication happens and apparently nobody bothers to sit down and watch a replay until the next week. Also people bouncing off the ropes in general. Man this sport is so dumb, I love it.

Oh, man, Jake Roberts vs. Arn Anderson? Did that ever happen? The promos alone would've been amazing. Shame you have Mark Henry, I assume, as a mere member of the staff, because he'd make a great payoff to this thing you've got Wardlow doing, going through hosses and all.

I have no knowledge of that match actually happening but if I have legends available as managers, dammit I'm gonna use 'em.

As for Henry, he's said in interviews he'd be open to a proper retirement match but since he's not worked a match since 2018, whoever made this data set up up as a staff member only. Whereas I have some other staff members that ARE available to be booked because they at least sporadically wrestle.

I've got some fun ideas for Wardlow that are in the realm of "probably wouldn't be a good match, wouldn't want to see it in real life, but it would still kinda pop me because of how surreal it is"

This is exactly the kind of thing Christian would say about someone like Cassidy. I'm trying to imagine what the actual roars would sound like. Like, is he actually trying to do dinosaur roars or is it just a normal yell? Why does this promotion bring up so many questions?

I've never once heard Luchasaurus roar it's not the first time ChatGPT has made him roar in a generated promo either. It must read his name and decide, DAMMIT, SOMEONE WHO LOOKS LIKE THAT MUST ROAR! I read that in Vince's voice.

I'm surprised that I haven't asked this question yet, but does AEW acknowledge the marriage between Renee and Moxley? They acknowledge so many other relationships from what you've told me, so I don't see why they wouldn't go for it here with these two. How soon do you think you'd be able to do Danielson/Okada again if you were so inclined?

Yeah, real-world relationships are definitely canon in AEW. Although I don't believe Renee ever actually interviews Mox, maybe for conflict of interest reasons + him being a heel and all of that. It's been acknowledged in passing that they're together but since it's not a part of the story it kinda is glossed over.

In game, NJPW are touring for all of July-much of August. There's a brief window in late August where I could hypothetically book them for the All In Wembley show to fit the "supershow" theme.

Dunno if I'd do Okada/Danielson again in-game though - I had him hint it in his promo but with this being a working relationship with NJPW, my headcanon is that he might go over and work the match during the January 4th Tokyo Dome show.

I don't think I ever knew Harwood and Wheeler before I stopped following. I know a couple of guys on your roster just by name, like Omega, and a few that I knew in previous incarnations like Hager, but FTR are a complete unknown, I think. Everyone seems to praise them so I'll accept that such an outcome as this is absolutely possible.

This timeline checks out since you stopped watching around WM32. I believe 2016 was the year The Revival (as they were known in NXT then) exploded and went on a run of tag team greatness. They ended up being called up to the main roster a year later.

Though they did hold main roster gold, they were always gonna be kinda fucked there. The Revival's best work came from really long-form matches packed with psychology. Main roster WWE at the time was just quick 5 minute TV matches, which was the opposite of their strength.

I would've thought you'd save an encounter like this up for another show, possibly a PPV, but how can you argue with a rating like that? The next step I assume you're going to make is building towards Ospreay/Takeshita vs. the, uh, Golden Lovers?

I probably should've saved Ibushi/Takeshita for a bigger show, but the conundrum I have is that my next "PPV" in July I've softly targeted as being the big blowoff to the Elite/BCC angle that, in real life, has been going on since late March. Not sure I want to stretch it all the way to late August at this point. In game it would be great, in reality it's time to wrap the feud up.

As for the Golden Lovers...if you ever care to read a very long/geeky blog post, this is a very in-depth glimpse onto the origins of their story. TLDR it's like a 15+ year gay story arc and they've done such a brilliant job of blending the angle with kayfabe that nobody even total knows the extent to their personal relationship outside of the ring.

Just kinda love the idea that angles like this can slowly go from being hush-hush/being played for laughs in the early to mid 2000s to being something you can actually bring over to mainstream.

https://medium.com/we-need-to-talk-a...d-e9fc604e3a7f

[Evil Vito]

Well, it's the last day of the month so may as well power through a quick Rampage to get to my first batch of month-end goodness.



AEW Rampage
June 30, 2023

The Dark Order (Evil Uno and Stu Grayson) w/ Alex Reynolds and John Silver vs. The Wingmen ("Pretty" Peter Avalon and Ryan Nemeth) w/ Cezar Bononi

Third Rampage in a row I'm opening up with The Dark Order as they continue to mow their way through jobbers to look more serious ahead of their match with Blackpool Combat Club on Dynamite.

More or less a one-sided affair with the heels impressively selling their asses off for Dark Order here. Bononi tries to get involved by Reynolds and Silver thwart his attempts, as Uno and Grayson finish Avalon off with The Fatality for the win.

After the bell, Nemeth is slid into the ring to get a Fatality of his own. And then the big man Bononi is impressively given one as well. We haven't seen the Dark Order look this imposing since 2020. Maybe they'll give the BCC more of a run for their money than Hangman thinks (narrator: or not). The group all do their signature claw gesture as we go to commercial. ***, 69% overall rating

---

Roderick Strong vs. Tony Deppen

Booking Rampage really is a breeze sometimes. Scan my roster, find someone "important" I want to book and give some reps, scan through my list of "already in the ring" jobbers and enhancement talent to see if someone could be of use.

Picked Tony Deppen for the task as I felt like their stats would mesh well. Apparently was wrong here which surprised me, both guys have really nice brawl and technical. They still pulled a Perfectly Acceptable rating but nothing to write home about.

Alas, Deppen is also a vacuum of overness so that probably didn't help. Either way, he's here to make Strong look good and put over his shit. Strong wins with the Death by Roderick and that's that. **3/4, 68% overall

---

CM Punk and Samoa Joe hype video building to their clash on Collision tomorrow. Naturally this pulls a rating somewhere in the 90s as I continue to use videos to artificially bump up the fact that the wrestling itself is often just for enhancement purposes so the network doesn't cancel me.

---

TBS Championship: Kris Statlander (C) vs. Penelope Ford w/ The Bunny

Last week, Stat defended against the Bunny in a good match, but got jumped by Ford afterwards. Today it's Ford's chance to get her some as the champion takes on all comers.

I.....did not realize how bad Ford's stats were in this data. Because yikes, this was the worst rated match I've had in this save. I mean with that said it could've been way worse, but yeah the bar is quite high in this universe. I didn't realize but if you have a bad match and read the match results, Scott Keith will say stuff like "Ford hits a crap dropkick" and whatever, basically telling you the match sucks. Case in point, the TBS Title lost image in this match. It's hard to have an image-losing title match in this game.

Anyway, Stat avoids Bunny interference and wins with the Big Bang Theory. After the bell, Ford and Bunny double team her (there aren't enough zeroes for what I'd pay for THAT double team ) and Thunder Rosa runs out for the save. Rosa has come in to save the woman she's been targeting for a title opportunity. In theory this is building to a tag match that I might go through with despite Ford's showing here, just for the sake of the story. We'll see. **, 65% overall

---

Bryan Danielson is standing by with Claudio Castagnoli, building to tonight's main event.

DANIELSON: "Forbidden Door might be in our rear view mirror, but the Blackpool Combat Club have come out of it learning some valuable lessons. Jon Moxley reminded everyone why he's one of the toughest sons of bitches on the planet, and I went toe-to-toe with the so called best in the world.

But my loss on Sunday will not be in vain, the Blackpool Combat Club enjoy being pushed. We push each other to the limits every single day in training. We push ourselves to be the best.

So tonight, Claudio steps into the ring with a man many others consider to be one of the best.

Chris Daniels, you've done a lot for us in our careers. You're a legend in this business. You're much more skilled than those clowns in the Dark Order that want to fight us next week. You're damn sure more reputable than those amateurs in The Elite. We don't want to hurt you. But tonight you're in the wrong place, wrong time."

---

"The Fallen Angel" Christopher Daniels vs. Claudio Castagnoli

Come on, just look at those names. Is there any doubt that this is gonna rule all kinds of ass?

Sure enough, it does! Danielson joins commentary and tries to refrain from letting his inner wrestling fan geekdom come out as Claudio and Daniels just put on a clinic in the ring. Given the squash-ish nature of the other three matches I'm seriously imagining this one being given the last 20 minutes or so of an hour-long broadcast, just let 'em cook.

Anyway, after captivating the audience with Daniels pulling off a number of surprise nearfalls, a brutal uppercut stalls his moment. Ricola Bomb and that's all she wrote, Claudio gets the win. Danielson hops in to raise his hand in celebration as we go off the air. ****1/4, 86% overall rating

80% overall show rating

[Evil Vito]

End of Month Notes as we head into July:

-Not an e-mail note but I'm retconning my referring to the July "PPV" as Fight for the Fallen. I've re-named it to Blood and Guts. If you recall from my previous game, Blood and Guts is basically War Games. Well, I'm doing one of those matches at the show. And calling it "Fight for the Fallen", a show meant to raise money for gun violence and having a match called Blood and Guts on it would be, well, a choice

-NOAH announced their touring roster which includes Timothy Thatcher, who was on my roster on an Open deal but I couldn't use him because he was away for most of the month on a NOAH tour. Anyway, Thatcher announced he was dropping me and any other global-level bookings because of pressure from his Japan commitments.

What this means is that, all of the New Japan guys are going to leave me in March 2024 when NJPW announce their roster for the next year. I will need to use Arsenic if I want to get them all back on Open deals for Forbidden Door 2024. I probably will, because I'm not really here to "win" the game, just have fun booking.

-Also some of the Open contract guys demanded a 10% wage hike, it's whatever, they are independent contractors and can ask for whatever they want I suppose. It's mostly the lower paid guys on the NJPW crew I won't be using much if at all anyway.

-Staff member Danny Davis retired. I hired him and every other good trainer in the game immediately upon starting, including a bunch of WWE's jettisoned trainers that were good (Norman Smiley, Matt Bloom). Thankfully I've got the workload more than covered.

-Minoru Suzuki turned 55 years old and subsequently has announced he will retire at the end of the month alas, I saw that coming which is why I wanted to do the handshake thing with Orange. NJPW are on tour the entire month of July so that was my one and only Suzuki match.

-Main Roster Birthdays (not including NJPW birthdays since they'll be used sparingly, nor ROH birthdays because I have no idea when or if they'll be called up)

The Blade (43)
Dax Harwood (39)
Cezar Bononi (37)
Brandon Cutler (36)
Hikaru Shida (35)
Max Caster (34)
Peter Avalon (34)
John Silver (33)
Tay Melo (28)
Jack Perry (26)
Riho (26)

Next week I'll have over twice as many e-mails because I'll start getting some developmental reports from ROH.

[M-A-G]

Originally Posted by Evil Vito AEW Rampage June 30, 2023 The Dark Order (Evil Uno and Stu Grayson) w/ Alex Reynolds and John Silver vs. The Wingmen ("Pretty" Peter Avalon and Ryan Nemeth) w/ Cezar Bononi Third Rampage in a row I'm opening up with The Dark Order as they continue to mow their way through jobbers to look more serious ahead of their match with Blackpool Combat Club on Dynamite. More or less a one-sided affair with the heels impressively selling their asses off for Dark Order here. Bononi tries to get involved by Reynolds and Silver thwart his attempts, as Uno and Grayson finish Avalon off with The Fatality for the win. After the bell, Nemeth is slid into the ring to get a Fatality of his own. And then the big man Bononi is impressively given one as well. We haven't seen the Dark Order look this imposing since 2020. Maybe they'll give the BCC more of a run for their money than Hangman thinks (narrator: or not). The group all do their signature claw gesture as we go to commercial. ***, 69% overall rating ---

With a name like the Wingmen, their gimmick should either be old timey pilots or the sidekicks of one guy and they help him land dates. The comedy of the latter writes itself. Like, imagine them macking on Brit Baker and it draws the ire of Cole and it leads to some matches or whatever. It's a good idea to have some anchor talent for a show that's not really considered the flagship. I should probably focus my efforts better in that regard because sometimes I want Superstars to be important and others it's just some matches with guys I'm not using on a consistent basis.

Roderick Strong vs. Tony Deppen Booking Rampage really is a breeze sometimes. Scan my roster, find someone "important" I want to book and give some reps, scan through my list of "already in the ring" jobbers and enhancement talent to see if someone could be of use. Picked Tony Deppen for the task as I felt like their stats would mesh well. Apparently was wrong here which surprised me, both guys have really nice brawl and technical. They still pulled a Perfectly Acceptable rating but nothing to write home about. Alas, Deppen is also a vacuum of overness so that probably didn't help. Either way, he's here to make Strong look good and put over his shit. Strong wins with the Death by Roderick and that's that. **3/4, 68% overall ---

Death by Roderick is a good name. Gaps in overness are often an issue because it kind of reflects real life where a crowd may not really get into a match where it's a main eventer taking on an opener. Like, is the outcome really in doubt? A 10-point difference or less between workers should be a good rule of thumb. Perfectly Acceptable Wrestling is fine because you want people to pay for the really good shit. One thing I wish the game had for the television shows is segment breakdowns and how they did in the TV ratings. There's a segment rating, sure, but I always imagined that to be the audience at the show.

CM Punk and Samoa Joe hype video building to their clash on Collision tomorrow. Naturally this pulls a rating somewhere in the 90s as I continue to use videos to artificially bump up the fact that the wrestling itself is often just for enhancement purposes so the network doesn't cancel me. ---

LOL, network cancellation. The closest I've ever come to pissing off my partners is when I bumped up my risk level to 100% just so I could do a Death Match. They were not happy. I spent the PPV money on hookers and blow. I think I got the better end of that deal. Punk and Joe is going to be a great payoff, unless the DUD show wants to be a douche.

TBS Championship: Kris Statlander (C) vs. Penelope Ford w/ The Bunny Last week, Stat defended against the Bunny in a good match, but got jumped by Ford afterwards. Today it's Ford's chance to get her some as the champion takes on all comers. I.....did not realize how bad Ford's stats were in this data. Because yikes, this was the worst rated match I've had in this save. I mean with that said it could've been way worse, but yeah the bar is quite high in this universe. I didn't realize but if you have a bad match and read the match results, Scott Keith will say stuff like "Ford hits a crap dropkick" and whatever, basically telling you the match sucks. Case in point, the TBS Title lost image in this match. It's hard to have an image-losing title match in this game. Anyway, Stat avoids Bunny interference and wins with the Big Bang Theory. After the bell, Ford and Bunny double team her (there aren't enough zeroes for what I'd pay for THAT double team ) and Thunder Rosa runs out for the save. Rosa has come in to save the woman she's been targeting for a title opportunity. In theory this is building to a tag match that I might go through with despite Ford's showing here, just for the sake of the story. We'll see. **, 65% overall ---

Yeah, I've seen some of that Scott Keith commentary and it's all hilarious. It's usually when I would get some random worker in for a one-shot jobber deal to get someone else over. It can be offset if they're in the ring with someone REALLY good who can carry things or if they've got charisma up the yahoo. I've seen it whenever I've stuck a manager into the proceedings. I need to ready myself for when it happens again. There's a match I have lined up down the road that I'm dreading for this reason, but for the sake of the story I feel like it needs to be done. Stay tuned!

Bryan Danielson is standing by with Claudio Castagnoli, building to tonight's main event. DANIELSON: "Forbidden Door might be in our rear view mirror, but the Blackpool Combat Club have come out of it learning some valuable lessons. Jon Moxley reminded everyone why he's one of the toughest sons of bitches on the planet, and I went toe-to-toe with the so called best in the world. But my loss on Sunday will not be in vain, the Blackpool Combat Club enjoy being pushed. We push each other to the limits every single day in training. We push ourselves to be the best. So tonight, Claudio steps into the ring with a man many others consider to be one of the best. Chris Daniels, you've done a lot for us in our careers. You're a legend in this business. You're much more skilled than those clowns in the Dark Order that want to fight us next week. You're damn sure more reputable than those amateurs in The Elite. We don't want to hurt you. But tonight you're in the wrong place, wrong time." ---

An added benefit of starting another game is you get Daniels back into play as a worker as opposed to him switching to non-wrestler in your other game. Do what you can with him while you can because I'm sure the game is looking to screw you regarding him. Of course the alternative may happen like it does with me where he could end up going into his late fifties and refusing to take it easy or hang it up. I know I had Daniels way back when but I honestly can't remember what I did with him as far as feuds go. To me, he was always in the background to guys like Punk, Joe, Styles, and Danielson.

"The Fallen Angel" Christopher Daniels vs. Claudio Castagnoli Come on, just look at those names. Is there any doubt that this is gonna rule all kinds of ass? Sure enough, it does! Danielson joins commentary and tries to refrain from letting his inner wrestling fan geekdom come out as Claudio and Daniels just put on a clinic in the ring. Given the squash-ish nature of the other three matches I'm seriously imagining this one being given the last 20 minutes or so of an hour-long broadcast, just let 'em cook. Anyway, after captivating the audience with Daniels pulling off a number of surprise nearfalls, a brutal uppercut stalls his moment. Ricola Bomb and that's all she wrote, Claudio gets the win. Danielson hops in to raise his hand in celebration as we go off the air. ****1/4, 86% overall rating 80% overall show rating

Even a lesser show deserves to have a quality main event. Shame Vince and Company never really wanted to do stuff like this with Main Event and Superstars in its later incarnation. I remember starting fairly strong and then slowly degrading to the fucking D-shows. Like, fine if he's got people that he doesn't want to push, but at the very least stick them on a show like this and let them go all out. It's like, "Yeah, pal, I signed you because they told me you had some great wrestling skills, but I'm just going to give you 5 minutes every 6 six weeks on Saturday Morning Slam and let you be a lumberjack in a Raw main event every so often. Oh, I also need you on hand in case Stephanie needs to emasculate someone in a backstage segment."

[M-A-G]

Originally Posted by Evil Vito Loved the opening promo with the heels all finally acknowledging why they've come together. Selfishly I hope the group winds up being called the Dark Order I also kinda have to crack up at the open challenge being answered by two guys that I automatically picture as The Ascension from WWE. Total jobbers, inasmuch as a jobber can exist in this world where everyone just rules ass in the ring. I've said this before but I love the role of managers in this game. I don't know why but at some point WWE got to the mindset of managers only being allowed to have one and only one client at a time and that's just totally different from how managers operated in the '80s. It would make sense for managers to try to recruit a robust list of candidates, bringing them together when necessary but ultimately just trying to make bank. AEW does something similar, solid amount of managers. Smart Mark Sterling manages the jobber Trustbusters stable but his highest profile client is Jade Cargill....and he's responsible for costing Jade the title and undefeated streak because he decided to issue an open challenge on her behalf. Nice work with the promo before the Hotbody match, he continues to grate on everyone's skin which is great, but I also love Clubber going after the bodyguard too. Zed Jones vs. Clubber Harris feels like it should be a boxing match from 1985. Also good on you for not shying away from ending the show with a talking segment. I'm so used to the way AEW books that I very rarely don't end with a match, but ending with a promo makes for a nice change of pace.

Calling them the Dark Order would be appropriate because it'd be in opposition to what Haven had done and it's the brainchild of a dude called Victor Dark. Although, I'm doing something slightly different here because they're not really a stable, per se. I'm looking to send them all off on their own respective journeys after Bragging Rights as I just need people to keep Haven occupied until the inevitable showdown with Dark himself. It's also going to give me a chance to...oops, wait. I can't give away all the details just yet.

The thing with the Wasteland is that they're super over and ridiculously talented. I should probably be pushing them, but I'm bloated as it is. They give a great hand when it comes to filling up the undercard with a quality match at the very least.

Just like with the non-Dark Order angle, I want to stay really tight-lipped about what's in store for Hotbody down the road. I have his whole run mapped out and so far, we're on track, barring the game being a fucking piece of shit. I'm sure you could think of a certain somebody who could be the one to dethrone him for the title. Damn it, I need to pick up the pace so I can get to that part already.

I'm likely to do a special edition of SmackDown! to tackle some of these high-profile matches that aren't going to fit on the PPV. Stuff like Ozzy/Demiras, Cross/Jacobs, a tag title rematch, and Clubber/Zed. It'll be a good hoss fest, I'm sure.

The thing about me closing things out with an angle as opposed to a match is that I can only run so many matches in the time between PPVs and it's even worse now when I have a 5-week gap between Survivor Series and Bragging Rights. I figure Cemenko and Reigns could use some more heat and rubbing shoulders with main event guys like Pattillo and the freaking World Champion can only do wonders for them. The thing with Reigns is realistically he doesn't really have anything to do until WrestleMania and he doesn't really have to. He's got his ticket punched already so him participating in matches is kind of a waste of his time. In fact, that gives me an idea for him after Bragging Rights.

[M-A-G]

Superstars: December 13, 2040

I think I can afford to be a little laid back here after the hurricanes of both SmackDown! and Raw in the last two shows.

Opening Match: The Love Connection vs. Southern Gentlemen
This is more like it. This is how Raw should've opened up with no pesky DUD show sneaking its way in. I'm thinking of doing a big four way for the tag titles and the Love Connection ought to be one of the teams involved. Aphrodite is her usual sexy self and she adds a lot to the scenery, if not the match. Brody Lee gets isolated towards the end of the match and he's going to fall victim to the Love Letter and unfortunately get pinned by Coleman, giving the faces the win. The Future Foundation come out onto the stage to give Greene and Coleman and Aphrodite some dirty looks and remind them that things aren't over between them. *****, 95% overall

PROMO TIME as it looks like we're going to get Andrea and Victor Dark to deliver some more of their spiel. Victor is disappointed in Orlando Kincaid's refusal to allow his friends to help him. However, he doesn't want Orlando to feel pressured into anything. Victor is a much more forgiving individual than someone like Haven. Victor wants to make it clear to Haven that he doesn't have "grunts" under him. What Quinten McDaniels, Hugo, and Chet have embarked upon is their own doing and they are free to do so. It's not Victor's fault that Haven has made so many enemies. Nonetheless, Victor will monitor the situation very closely. When a man is put out of his misery, you want as close of a view as you can get.

Backstage, Nathan Quinn and Adam Hail are prepped to give Simon Bennett some more of their minds. They want to inform Simon Bennett that Adam accepts Simon's challenge to a match at Bragging Rights. It's not because they believe Simon deserves it, but rather Adam deserves it. Adam deserves the opportunity to finally kick Bennett to the curb with an exclamation point because apparently he didn't get the message the last time. Adam will get to prove that he's better than Simon in every way and show the world that Adam is ready for the big stage. All Adam has ever wanted was to be acknowledged as one of the greatest, and if Simon Bennett is going to deny him that, then let Bragging Rights be the end of him.

Second Match: Ainsley vs. Debra Phillips
Fuck me for putting this after that banger of an opener. I don't know if anyone wouldn't have suffered after that one. You'd think the segments in between would give me some breathing room, but NOOOOO! A crowd reaction rating of 54% is pretty rough. Debra is just not up to snuff in the charisma department to help ease the pain. Either way, before the match Debra talks about merely using Ainsley to get her own foot in the door here in the WWE. It's an every woman for herself scenario once you bust your way in and Ainsley needed to find that out the hard way. She'll be more than happy to leave Ainsley in the dust while she skyrockets to the top. So, yeah, despite the circumstances, technically the match works so that it's not a complete disaster of a segment. They brawl to the outside as the referee begins her count. Debra gets desparate and rakes Ainsley's eyes to stop an onslaught. She goes for both legs and sets Ainsley up for a catapult into the ringpost and that knocks her loopy. Debra quickly slips back in to break the count and unfortunately Ainsley isn't going to be so lucky and that's a countout win for Debra, who bolts as if she's got something on the stove in the back. ****, 75% overall.

Third Match: Neil Quint vs. Sammy Brady
Sammy was Neil's original opponent for Raw until I realized I needed to address the Ozzy Mandias heel turn so he got the spot. Well, now we're here and it's some good shit. Neil is on a path and I've got plans for him. Sammy gets set up for the Quintessential Top Rope Maneuver. Neil starts to climb but Sammy's partner Johnny Dangerson hops on the apron to get in Neil's face. The two exchange some pleasantries until Sammy gets his bearings back and tries attacking Neil from behind. Neil is quicker to the punch and sidesteps Sammy, sending him into Dangerson. Neil gets Sammy back into position and goes up top for the Quintessential Top Rope Maneuver to score the pin. Quint once again leaves the ring undefeated. ****1/2, 90% overall.

We get a video showcasing the awesomeness that is the Woman of the Year, the WWE Women's Champion Sonya Braddock. She had a hell of a year and is looking for a strong closing come Bragging Rights.

Well, that segues perfectly into our next backstage interview with Jenna Kyle and Faith Connors, the Lonely Girls. Jenna is asked about what was shown in that video for Sonya Braddock as that's the woman Jenna needs to beat at Bragging Rights if she wants to win the Women's Title. Jenna points out that it was interesting and captivating and certainly very informative. The one thing it wasn't, however, is scary. Jenna knows scary. That fifth Halloween reboot? Very scary. The band that played at her prom? Also very scary. Sonya Braddock? Not so much. Sonya can be content with her 2040, but Jenna Kyle is set to kick off 2041 on one hell of a positive note. Faith gets her turn to speak as she calls out someone else who isn't scary, that being Dusk. Faith took a chair to the face from her at Survivor Series and she wants more. Faith personifies fearlessness every time she gets in that ring. If Dusk thinks her spooky Spirit Halloween nonsense is going to get the job done against Faith, then all of those nail polish fumes must be going to her head. The Lonely Girls can take anything anyone wants to throw at them.

Fourth Match: Ethan Lang and Cameron Harper vs. The Agents of Change
Harper looks thrilled beyond reason to be here. He wants to thank Jake Connelly for what is a huge opportunity. The chance to learn from and be properly guided by one of the greatest legends the WWE has seen is something he's not going to squander. He hopes Ethan Lang feels the same way and shows it by picking up some more slack because it's a two-man effort. Harper can't always carry things like on Raw. It's OK, though, because they've got another great chance here against Corey Mattis and Clayton North. Ethan looks like he doesn't know how to respond to that, but it doesn't matter as the match gets underway when Harper chucks the mic, not allowing either Connelly or Lang to respond. Nevertheless, Connelly's boys work well here against yet another fairly established team. Lang once again plays the role of getting the hot tag and unloading on the heels. He manages to hit the Bitter Languish on North. Mattis tries attacking Lang as the latter is against the ropes, but Lang ducks and pulls the top rope down causing Mattis to stumble to the outside. Harper gets back into the thick of things and picks up North's body and hits the Cam Jam and gestures to Lang to get the cover. Lang does so with a confused look on his face and gets the victory. Harper goes nuts with the celebrating as things continue to look somewhat good for this new duo of Connelly's. ****1/2, 91% overall.

Fifth Match: Ronnie Costello vs. Randy Ellis
We get back to the battle between Sophie Waters's Academey and what's left over in the camp of Brooke. Sophie tells Brooke that the Academy have found some much better company. She's open to any kind of match Brooke has in mind. She's also open to anyone else who might be tired of their current circumstances and are looking for a change of scenery. Brooke insists that she doesn't have any deserters under her watch because she's managing people with actual brains! She's also managing people with actual guts and Ronnie here is willing to demonstrate that fact. So the match that ensues rules all kinds of ass. The conclusion comes about when Ellis and Ronnie end up on one side of the ring as the former is taking a beating. Sophie goes over to provide some more encouragement, but C4 are over there, too. Carmella starts jawing with Sophie, but Cordelia keeps her eyes on the match. Eventually, Carmella gives Sophie a shove and she responds with a shove of her own, sending Carmella into Cordelia, knocking her into the steps. The ref goes over to break up this chaos and that allows Brooke to slide in a chain to Ronnie and he uses it to KO Randy and that's enough for the cheap pin. Brooke goes over to her girls to sort things out. More trouble brewing? Hey, Ronnie actually gained some overness here. ****1/2, 93% overall.

In-Ring Super Special Talky Time, this time with Kyle Jacobs. Kyle Jacobs agrees with the frustrations felt by Xavier Cross over what went down at Survivor Series. Nothing against Alexander Piero and Ryan Pattillo, and he's naturally happy that he walked out with a win, but it wasn't as satisfying as a good old one-on-one, mano y mano, up close and personal battle where Cross still gets his ass kicked. Kyle should know, because he's already done it before. "You remember, don't you, Cross? I pinned you in a big time PPV match and if you lost you'd have to be my servant? I remember. I especially remember what happened afterwards, where you threw a tantrum like a bitch, refused to own up to the deal, watched me return, and then somehow turn into an even bigger bitch by cowering away from me. You talked a big game on Raw, so you'll forgive me for wanting to test your resolve in getting your payback. I am standing here, willing, ready, and able to take the fight to you one more time, Cross. By all means, come forward and make me suffer. Get your retribution! All you have to do is take down little old me. That won't be so hard, right?"

Time for this shiznit to get interrupted and freaking Ziggy Styles of all people feels the need to make himself known. He joins Kyle in the ring and states his business. "Oh, man, the WWE these past few weeks is getting way too hot and way too stressful. Things really need to settle down and bit. Never fear, because I feel with all my heart that deep down in the bowels of this man, Kyle Jacobs, is a rumbling of excitement. A need to just let go and be happy. My friends, I think now is the right time for Kyle Jacobs to Get Ziggy With it!"

Kyle Jacobs merely shoots Ziggy a death stare that doesn't waiver for an instant. Ziggy reads the room and adjusts his focus and continues on. "Well, maybe you're not quite ready just yet. But there is another reason why I felt the need to come on out here and maybe, just maybe, with Kyle and me jiving on similar wavelengths, we can get to that place where you feel like you can get Ziggy with it. You're out here throwing out challenges and all, looking to finally settle old scores and move on to bigger and brighter things. Well, I, too, have some unfinished business and I am absolutely feeling your initiative, Kyle, if not your attitude. I am giving Mr. Michael Haywood a major opportunity here to consider throwing down in one more match to get things square between us. Michael, you didn't need to keep that hold on me for that long at Survivor Series! It's not my fault you're such a stick in the mud! I'm lucky to even be able to talk after what you did! And have I even heard anything remotely close to an apology? No! So the way I see it is this: you owe me, Michael! You owe me this. I deserve my chance to beat you once and for all, so that I may continue on my quest to bring joy and good vibes to the WWE!"

Kyle looks like he's had enough of Ziggy's talk and gets back on the mic to admonish him. "Hate to break it to you, pal, but you stumbled onto the wrong set. This isn't your stupid little talk show and it's certainly not a dance floor. This is a place for actual adult men and if you can't understand that or bring yourself to get involved in that, then you need to go shake your ass somewhere else."

Ziggy tries calming Kyle down BUT HERE COMES XAVIER CROSS! Kyle takes his attention off Ziggy and locks eyes with Cross who is making his way down to the ring. Kyle demands Cross get in the ring, but Ziggy decides to low blow Kyle from behind. Cross immediately gets in and starts to assault Kyle. Ziggy leans back in the corner and observes the attack BUT HERE COMES MICHAEL HAYWOOD!!! Ziggy freaks the hell out as Cross stops his attack and steps in front of a charging Michael. Michael just plows through Cross with a clothesline like he wasn't even there and continues his pursuit of Ziggy, who has decided now might be a good time to take Kyle up on his advice. Both Cross and Kyle start to recover and Kyle goes for the Legacy Bomb but Cross slips out and also decides to bail. If these guys are serious about their respective matches, when will they be taking place?

MAIN EVENT: Quinten McDaniels and Chet Morris vs. The Dillingers
Chet Morris talks about how Orlando Kincaid's rejection hurt, but it can't keep him, Quinten, and Hugo from moving forward. They're all confident that Orlando will eventually come around once he sees what can be accomplished with a bit of introspection and the realization that he needs to overcome his past. Quinten continues by claiming that they can and will handle Haven with or without Orlando. The thing Orlando needs to understand is should he not come around, well, that would be yet another problem from the past that would need correcting. And considering how they've been correcting their problems in recent weeks, it'd be a shame for Orlando to be a part of that. In fact, let Eddy Clash try his hand at the three of them again and it'll be quite clear what's on the horizon for Haven and anyone else that wants to become a problem.

This match is nothing but win as the heels once again shine like a boss. Maybe they really did go through some rejuvenating process. Hugo is on the outside for obvious moral support. He starts to notice that Fantasee might also need some guidance and begins to approach her to make a pitch. Ben Dillinger sees this as the match has broken down to BONZO GONZO levels and tries to dive onto Hugo to intercept him. Hugo catches him in mid-air as poor Joey is left alone in the ring and Quinten sends him into Chet for his Backwoods Bomb variation and that's going to give the heels the win. Meanwhile, Hugo sends Ben through the announce table. These three look strong once more and...WAIT A MINUTE!!! It's Eddy Clash again! He tries to get at Hugo but Quinten and Chet go on the attack and Eddy unfortunately suffers a 3-on-1 beatdown as the heels all grab chairs and just demolish the big man on the outside. We go off the air as we're left to ponder what all this means for the WWE and if anyone can stand against these guys. *****, 97% overall. I mean...damn. I may have stumbled ass backwards into some pretty good angles here.

Overall show rating: 88%

Oh, why did I have to put that women's match there? I could've probably broken the 90% barrier.

Leah wants me to let her work with Cordelia Capriati as she thinks I'll be impressed with the results.



Yeah, I can see that.

Cameron Harper thinks he and Lang should be a regular tag team so that they can then use it to springboard their singles careers. Oh, Harper...you sweet summer child.

[Evil Vito]

OK I'm even more intrigued with the Dark "stable" now, knowing they're still more or less doing their own thing but not being his underlings. I don't know what the end game is but it'll be fun to follow.

****, 75% overall is literally an amazing rating in my game universe so the idea that in the world of 2040, something like that is viewed as a dud of a segment, good lord just imagine the workrate. a 54% crowd reaction makes me imagine you could hear a pin drop vs. the normal crowd reaction

That main event segment

LOL Cameron Harper - reading his mannerisms as described I just automatically imagine him as a short little shit trying to overcompensate in any way he can. And I love that he lobbied to stay part of a team

[M-A-G]

For shits and giggles I decided to check for any updates as far as relationships between workers go. Here is what the game has decided for some of the workers:

Adrian Gallagher is loyal to Nate Exley. Not surprising considering their partnership.

Aphrodite loves some schmuck named Marc Godecker who isn't even on the fucking roster.

Arianna dislikes Marcus Dean, who is also not on the fucking roster.

Blaine Bellamey dislikes Robbie Greer. That's your fucking partner, dipshit.

Brody Lee hates El Siliencio. Why? He doesn't say anything.

Cameron Harper is friends with Taylor Matheny. She WAS on the roster way back when.

Clayton North is friends with Tiger Mulligan. HOW ARE YOU FUCKERS INTERACTING?!?

Doug Michaels is evidently a blood relative to Emilio London. Half-siblings maybe?

Drakken is friends with Tokyo Kid. Well that's sweet. You'd think my teams would be like Adrian and Exley, gelling and being bros and shit.

El Silencio reciprocates the hatred from Brody Lee. I wonder what happened there.

Galino & Farnes apparently hate each other also. This is making me worry.

Joey Dillinger is friends with Big Coburn. Do my teams just not talk to each other in the back and they need to seek out companionship with people outside of the company?

Justin Mitchell has loyalty to Randy Ellis. See? That's more like it.

L.A. Xander dislikes Devin Nash. I doubt he'd even still be alive at this point, but sure, I can see someone disliking him. Oh, wait, DEVIN Nash? My bad...

Lisa Benton is friends with Mike Preston, yet another fuck not on my roster. I hope none of these fucks are going to try to pressure me into hiring their buddies. Can't you and Riott just seek a close, close intimate relationship with each other?

Matt Riley is loyal to Sweet Dreams. Well go fuck off and leave and go be with her if you want it so much.

Nathan Quinn is another fucker making friends with someone not under contract: Mike Majors. I will not be signing him.

Robbie Greer dislikes Lindsey. She's not on the roster, bro. Get over it.

Stephan Q. Sterling is friends with Blazin' Benny Chong and James Watkins, who are two more people not under contract.

Vivian Merrick is friends with J.J. Johnston. Woman, I surrounded you with two guys and it's like you don't even give a shit.

Wu and Tokyo Kid dislike each other. Fuck you all, you bunch of ingrates.

Zachary Vale is loyal to Plague. HOW?!?!? He hasn't been on my roster since fucking 3.0 and you were a God damn training camp worker!!!

And that about does it. I only checked the main roster, but I'll give NXT a looksee sometime and see how little sense I make of what may be going over there.

[Evil Vito]

brilliant, I completely forgot that worker relationships can change over time (except for ones that existed before the game started, because apparently humans are inflexible to change)

Reading through the FAQ and I think this one in particular can be explained away:

Originally Posted by M-A-G Zachary Vale is loyal to Plague. HOW?!?!? He hasn't been on my roster since fucking 3.0 and you were a God damn training camp worker!!!

The FAQsays Loyalty exists in 2 main ways - student/trainer and long-time tag partners. My guess is that Plague had Trainer as a secondary worker characteristic, so the implication here is that anyone who can train can potentially develop bonds with your Training Camp workers.

However, that also makes it very surprising that some of your tag teams hate each other. As far as I know, you don't get an e-mail or anything if you pair two workers that hate each other in a tag team. So either they had bad blood that was never noticed before, or the game programmed a mechanism where tag teams apparently spend so much time on the road together that they get on each others' nerves to various levels (hence some having dislike and others having hate)

I'm now imagining the eventual Galino & Farnes breakup resulting in a massive lawsuit over who gets to control the firm, culminating in a Legal Papers on a Pole match. Only downside of course is that the loser will have a huge morale drop from putting over someone they hate, but if you're either trimming the fat or one of them is retiring anyway it would be A+.

[Evil Vito]

The worker relationships in my save data were pretty lazily done. In fairness, the updates are done by one guy over at EWBattleground and he does monthly updates. That's already enough work without bothering to keep changing worker relationships.

For instance I see no Loyalty ones for tag partners. The 2 teams within Dark Order (Evil Uno/Stu Grayson, Alex Reynolds/John Silver) have been teaming for 17 years and 12 years respectively. FTR are definitely loyal etc. Feel like these ones should've been in there. No friendships either.

But they do have Love relationships for the couples and blood relatives for those it applies to.

I don't see any adverse relationships except for one guy......



They don't even all fit on the screen (Nick Jackson is underneath). I'm kinda shocked they didn't make Colt Cabana a hate relationship really.

Is it any wonder why I've basically kept The Elite, Jericho, and Mox away from Punk? I kinda doubt I'll put the title on him since he'll likely never win it again in real life, but I wonder if morale in the company would tank among my top guys if I put it on Punk. Low key want to create a second save file just to see.

[Evil Vito]

Did some more digging and it would seem on GameFAQS the consensus is that tag teams will develop a dislike or hate relationship if there is a perceived imbalance in the tag team.

Things that could cause this include one worker being higher up on the card than the other and beginning to feel "held back" by their partner. Or one worker consistently getting the pins or being the one getting pinned. As an example, by this metric Ron Simmons should've eventually gotten fed up with Bradshaw because he was clearly the one always scoring the victory for the APA.

First off, that's pretty impressive coding/tracking something like that for a 20+ year old game.

Second off, holy shit I can't believe I've had the game this long and never knew about it.

[M-A-G]

Well here's how things stand with the Wyldhearts and Galino & Farnes. That overness gap might help explain things between Blaine and Robbie, but I'm not sure what's crawling up the ass of Galino and/or Farnes. I wonder how recently these relationship statuses formed and if it's been affecting things, because I haven't noticed.









Also, that Punk screenshot is just gold. Punk not putting up with any horseshit is at least still consistent.

[M-A-G]

I put off doing more for a bit because of some nonsense, but I have SmackDown! done. I need to get to the report for that one, but another post I did brought up this question: did anyone try doing a simulation game using TPWW posters as the roster? That'd have been fucking amazing.

[Evil Vito]

Yeah I was trying to stay ahead of the real-life calendar but, sadly, life had other plans. Would've rather been gaming that being outside in a cemetery, in a suit on a 100+ degree day but alas.

I'm pretty sure somebody tried doing an EWR game with TPWW posters way back when this game first started, whenever they had a data editor which I think it always did. This would've been 2002 when the game first came out and seemingly everyone was playing it, but also so far back that it pre-dates the current board (2003) so there wouldn't be any record of it.

[Evil Vito]

AEW Collision
July 1, 2023
Hamilton, ON, Canada


Owen Hart Foundation Cup - Men's First Round Match: "The Natural" Dustin Rhodes vs. "Switchblade" Jay White

The first round of the Owen Hart Cup kicked off on Wednesday and continues along tonight. The announcers point out that Dustin's been tied up in some other business with the Mogul Embassy, but that is put on hold for tonight as, as one of the few members of the AEW roster to share a locker room with Owen Hart, he wanted to be sure to participate in this.

Anyway these two have a pretty solid match with Dustin bringing an intense brawling and White working a sound brawling tactic in return, mixed with slimy heel sneakiness. Dustin reverses the Blade Runner but White turns it into a roll-up with his hands on the trunks to steal the win!

The production team flash a graphic on the bracket. Jay White next week will face the winner of the other first round match tonight between Ricky Starks and Brian Cage. Also, in the spirit of having Owen's locker room mates compete, the crowd pops as it's revealed that the final first round match that will happen on Dynamite will be......Matt Hardy vs. Jeff Hardy! (side note: god dammit Jeff Jarrett, way to check into rehab at the worst time)

This match got a ***1/4, 72% overall rating however the overall was lower than both the crowd reaction and match quality, which means I'm kicking off my July with the first DUD show of the game. And White was one of the most over guys I'm using tonight, ruh roh.

---

Backstage we see a limousine arrive and out walks Samoa Joe! That's certainly a fancier arrival than we're accustomed to seeing from Joe. We last saw Joe attacking Punk after his match at Forbidden Door. Punk's demanded to get Joe face to face tonight.

---

Owen Hart Foundation Cup - Women's First Round Match: NJPW Strong Women's Champion Willow Nightingale vs. Ruby Soho w/ Saraya and Toni Storm

We last saw Willow having a solid outing against Toni next week only to have the match disrupted by the surprise appearance of the ROH Women's champion Athena. Fellow Outcast Saraya lost on Wednesday to Britt Baker. Ruby Soho was a finalist in this tournament a year ago, but this year she doesn't provide much more help to get on the board. Botched interference from Toni leads to Willow picking up the win and just like that, both members of the Outcasts are out of the tournament, ensuring Toni won't be seeing one of her stablemates as a challenger.

The women's bracket is shown, much like with the men's tournament - another first round match is taking place tonight. The aforementioned Athena makes her in-ring return against Riho, with the winner facing Willow next week. On Wednesday, the final first round match will see Emi Sakura face off against Hikaru Shida. **3/4, 62% overall rating

---

We cut to an eerie looking room. At the forefront of it all is “The Redeemer” Miro, fresh off of picking up impressive wins in each of the first two Collision episodes. Miro has a deadly serious expression on his face.

“There are only three things that had motivated me – my TNT Championship, a vengeful god, and a flexible, double-jointed wife. Before two weeks ago, it had been a long time since anybody saw me in AEW. I took my time, I waited for an opportunity. I trusted God to give me a sign when the time would be right to make a return. To give me a higher purpose. I’d been in exile for almost a year. And then at one point I was summoned.

And then when he finally spoke to me, he told me I would be his favorite champion once again. That I would retain my beloved TNT championship gold. That I would receive the glory and adoration. There were his blessings in my muscles that I would never lose again. And all I’d need to do is praise him.

It was at that moment that I realized that this coward was not the one kneel to. The Redeemer kneels before no man or god. So now I know what I must do. I must walk alone and I must be what this fool is not – righteous without seeking reward.

Therefore I now renounce my god, my gold, and my beautiful wife. Because I am Miro, and I am godless.”

---

AEW World Trios Championship: The House of Black (Malakai Black, Brody King, and Buddy Matthews) (C) vs. The Spanish Announce Project (Angelico, Serpentico, and Luther)

I envisioned this open challenge as a glorified squash, which actually parlayed into a decent match rating here. Probably because Serpentico and Angelico are very much guys who can sell their asses off and make everything the House does look like death. Side note – Serpentico is the losingest wrestler in AEW history with a career AEW record of 14-122 as of right now. Fittingly, he also takes the loss here with Buddy pinning him after Matthews Law. ***, 63% overall rating

---

As we return from commercial, the House of Black are still in the ring, Malakai with a microphone in hand. Before he can even utter a word, the music of The Acclaimed hits. Out come The Acclaimed and Daddy Ass! No time to chat here tonight, tonight is all about them trying to kick ass. The House exchange a flurry of rights with the faces before eventually taking their leave and deciding to fight another day.

Anthony Bowens grabs a microphone. “House of Black! We still want our Trios title match. You and us, 2 weeks, Blood and Guts. No disqualification.”

A sinister grin works its way across the face of Malakai Black, with a nod to seemingly accept the challenge.

---

Owen Hart Foundation Cup - Women's First Round Match: ROH Women's Champion "The Fallen Goddess" Athena vs. Riho

The first round matches continue and here is where I give the DUD rating a nice hearty fuck you as these two women went out there and proceeded to have the best women's match I've had so far in the game, only to be punished with a lower overall rating than it should have.

The Outcasts were shown backstage watching on, trying not to interfere in this one but Toni Storm clearly not liking seeing Athena here kicking all kinds of ass. Anyway these two beat the shit out of each other with Athena's typical mean streak being matched by the diminutive Riho breaking out every bit of hard-hitting joshi upbringing she could muster.

In the end though it was Athena prevailing with the O-Face, setting up a semi-match with a fellow champion in Willow Nightingale next week! ****, 71% overall rating

---

Mark Henry is backstage with the AEW World Tag Team Champions, FTR.

Henry: "Dax, Cash, on Wednesday we saw you guys successfully defend your titles against the Jericho Appreciation Society, only for Bullet Club Gold to send a signal to you. It would seem your issues with them are far from over."

Dax: "You're right Mark, we have a much bigger issue looming with Bullet Club Gold. They seem to like cheap shotting people from behind, and we're not sure why. We've made it clear to everyone that we'll put the titles on the line for anyone that wants to take their shot. All they have to do is name a time and a place."

Cash: "And we know they still want a piece of our good friend Ricky Starks too. He's got business to tend to in just a few minutes against Brian Cage in the Owen Hart tournament. But he's been wanting to get his hands on Bullet Club too, and if he wins tonight he can kill two birds with one stone next week. Hope you're paying attention, Jay White!"

Dax: "Oh and one more thing, we didn't forget about you, Cage. We know you've got your Mogul Embassy friends on speed dial. Don't even think about calling for help, because we've got a few friends who have a score to settle with you."

*Sting and Darby Allin walk on scene, brandishing baseball bats as we go to break*

---

Owen Hart Foundation Cup - Men's First Round Match: "The Machine" Brian Cage w/ Swerve Strickland and Prince Nana vs. "Absolute" Ricky Starks

Our final tournament match of the evening sees Starks opting to go it alone, knowing he's always got backup on hand in case the Mogul Embassy choose to make nuisances of themselves.

To the heels' credit, they opted to let Brian Cage largely do his thing, as the big man dominated the early part of the contest. The announcers reminded us of the bitter history these two have had over the years, dating back to their time together and subsequent fallout in Team Taz.

Starks eventually regains momentum and the Mogul Embassy try to intervene. But true to their backstage appearance, Darby and Sting make their way out to the ring. Swerve tries to play it cool and exit gracefully at the threat of Sting's baseball bat, while Nana is chased around the ring by Darby on a Skateboard.

All of the hijinx around the ring leave Cage alone with Starks in the ring, where Starks impressively gets the big guy up for the Roshambo and the win. Ricky Starks advances to the semi-final as Jay White and the rest of Bullet Club Gold look on from backstage. ***, 67% overall rating

---

We see CM Punk backstage, heading out to the ring ready to face Samoa Joe. Mark Henry asks him if he has any words before tonight's main event. Punk tells Mark he has no comments other than the fact that Joe is about to find out that it's clobberin' time.

---

CM Punk makes his way out to the ring, looking focused and determined as he throws his shirt into the stands and waits for Joe's arrival. And waits. And waits. Referee Bryce Remsburg and ring announcer Dasha Gonzalez find themselves asking the same thing - where is Samoa Joe?

After Dasha makes another attempt at introducing him and his music hits again, Joe finally saunters out to the ring but noticeably still in street clothes. He gets into the ring and yanks the mic out of Dasha's hand.

Joe: "Punk, Punk, Punk...we must have a misunderstanding. Last week you said you wanted to see me here on Collision. All week AEW have been saying we'd be facing off one-on-one. But I don't recall AEW ever saying we'd have an actual match.

We've had more than enough matches over the year, Punk. I assumed you'd be tired of that. I just thought we were here to fight."

Punk yells at Joe that he's fine with that, let's just have a fight then. Joe gets right in Punk's face.

Joe: "Good, I'm glad to hear that. Honestly, I'm not paid enough to wrestle you. I beat you almost 2 decades ago, I've got nothing left to prove there.

But if you wanted to fight, well, I've got no prob---"

Joe abruptly cuts himself off as he clocks Punk with the microphone, the cheap shot sending Punk down.

What we have now is the two men getting into a big fight that Joe is very clearly winning with the element of the cheap shot on his side. The slow beat-down of Punk does last for a while, effectively making this a proper main event angle.

The announcers ask what has gotten into Joe, why does he seem to hellbent on actually taking Punk out of commission in this brawl. The fight spills to the outside and a few officials are tossed aside by Joe who has a plan and is damned if he's not going to execute it.

Joe eventually wedges Punk's arm in between the steel steps and the ring post, and he then uses his full body weight to crash into the steps, sending nearly 300 lbs of force on Punk's arm.

Joe leaves the ring smiling as Punk writhes in agony, with the medical staff tending to Punk's damaged arm.

77% overall show rating

In the grand scheme, considering that your roster is loaded with ****1/2 matches even on DUD shows and you pull low 80s, having a 77% DUD show with my roster is nothing to sneeze at at all. That's roughly what I'd expect from a Rampage. Somewhat glad I had a good amount of angles and promos as those aren't as susceptible to the DUD hits as matches are.

[M-A-G]

Originally Posted by Evil Vito Owen Hart Foundation Cup - Men's First Round Match: "The Natural" Dustin Rhodes vs. "Switchblade" Jay White[/b] The first round of the Owen Hart Cup kicked off on Wednesday and continues along tonight. The announcers point out that Dustin's been tied up in some other business with the Mogul Embassy, but that is put on hold for tonight as, as one of the few members of the AEW roster to share a locker room with Owen Hart, he wanted to be sure to participate in this. Anyway these two have a pretty solid match with Dustin bringing an intense brawling and White working a sound brawling tactic in return, mixed with slimy heel sneakiness. Dustin reverses the Blade Runner but White turns it into a roll-up with his hands on the trunks to steal the win! The production team flash a graphic on the bracket. Jay White next week will face the winner of the other first round match tonight between Ricky Starks and Brian Cage. Also, in the spirit of having Owen's locker room mates compete, the crowd pops as it's revealed that the final first round match that will happen on Dynamite will be......Matt Hardy vs. Jeff Hardy! (side note: god dammit Jeff Jarrett, way to check into rehab at the worst time) This match got a ***1/4, 72% overall rating however the overall was lower than both the crowd reaction and match quality, which means I'm kicking off my July with the first DUD show of the game. And White was one of the most over guys I'm using tonight, ruh roh. ---

The DUD show just loves popping up when you're really expecting a banger. But Dustin pulling out a ***+ match in this day and age should be something worth remembering and praising. Jeff Jarrett being gone definitely sucks as he'd be a fine choice to take the whole thing just out of sympathy and to create a catharsis. The WWE would probably have him go all the way to the finals along with some other sympathetic babyface, then have him get screwed over when the other guy turns heel with the aide of a bunch of other heels to create a stable and then he suffers a beatdown afterwards...in Tennessee.

Backstage we see a limousine arrive and out walks Samoa Joe! That's certainly a fancier arrival than we're accustomed to seeing from Joe. We last saw Joe attacking Punk after his match at Forbidden Door. Punk's demanded to get Joe face to face tonight. ---

I could've sworn Joe used to ride in limos in TNA as part of the Main Event Mafia thing. A lot of TNA stuff blurs together so I don't remember it all that well. He SHOULD be doing the Batista thing of dressing like a sharp motherfucker that looks cool and badass.

Owen Hart Foundation Cup - Women's First Round Match: NJPW Strong Women's Champion Willow Nightingale vs. Ruby Soho w/ Saraya and Toni Storm We last saw Willow having a solid outing against Toni next week only to have the match disrupted by the surprise appearance of the ROH Women's champion Athena. Fellow Outcast Saraya lost on Wednesday to Britt Baker. Ruby Soho was a finalist in this tournament a year ago, but this year she doesn't provide much more help to get on the board. Botched interference from Toni leads to Willow picking up the win and just like that, both members of the Outcasts are out of the tournament, ensuring Toni won't be seeing one of her stablemates as a challenger. The women's bracket is shown, much like with the men's tournament - another first round match is taking place tonight. The aforementioned Athena makes her in-ring return against Riho, with the winner facing Willow next week. On Wednesday, the final first round match will see Emi Sakura face off against Hikaru Shida. **3/4, 62% overall rating ---

I can't help but think of the song whenever I see Ruby Soho. If you're not going to give this tournament to Toni Storm, I can only guess that you're going with Willow as secondary to take the whole thing.

We cut to an eerie looking room. At the forefront of it all is “The Redeemer” Miro, fresh off of picking up impressive wins in each of the first two Collision episodes. Miro has a deadly serious expression on his face. “There are only three things that had motivated me – my TNT Championship, a vengeful god, and a flexible, double-jointed wife. Before two weeks ago, it had been a long time since anybody saw me in AEW. I took my time, I waited for an opportunity. I trusted God to give me a sign when the time would be right to make a return. To give me a higher purpose. I’d been in exile for almost a year. And then at one point I was summoned. And then when he finally spoke to me, he told me I would be his favorite champion once again. That I would retain my beloved TNT championship gold. That I would receive the glory and adoration. There were his blessings in my muscles that I would never lose again. And all I’d need to do is praise him. It was at that moment that I realized that this coward was not the one kneel to. The Redeemer kneels before no man or god. So now I know what I must do. I must walk alone and I must be what this fool is not – righteous without seeking reward. Therefore I now renounce my god, my gold, and my beautiful wife. Because I am Miro, and I am godless.” ---

I mean, it's hard not to believe in a god when you're blessed with a gorgeous double-jointed wife, but I can get behind something like this. He'd draw millions in the Bible Belt. I often wonder what would he be doing currently had he not left the WWE...aside from his gorgeous double-jointed wife.

AEW World Trios Championship: The House of Black (Malakai Black, Brody King, and Buddy Matthews) (C) vs. The Spanish Announce Project (Angelico, Serpentico, and Luther) I envisioned this open challenge as a glorified squash, which actually parlayed into a decent match rating here. Probably because Serpentico and Angelico are very much guys who can sell their asses off and make everything the House does look like death. Side note – Serpentico is the losingest wrestler in AEW history with a career AEW record of 14-122 as of right now. Fittingly, he also takes the loss here with Buddy pinning him after Matthews Law. ***, 63% overall rating ---

Have they modified the game to where you can do a six-man championship? I know which collection of superstars I'd slap those puppies on over on my roster. Is there someone actually keeping track of the win/loss records of wrestlers? That's some dedication for sure. Jesus, even the Detroit Lions would be probably be all, "Wow, what a loser." He joins the elite company that is JTG, Curt Hawkins, Slam Master J, and Heath Slater.

As we return from commercial, the House of Black are still in the ring, Malakai with a microphone in hand. Before he can even utter a word, the music of The Acclaimed hits. Out come The Acclaimed and Daddy Ass! No time to chat here tonight, tonight is all about them trying to kick ass. The House exchange a flurry of rights with the faces before eventually taking their leave and deciding to fight another day. Anthony Bowens grabs a microphone. “House of Black! We still want our Trios title match. You and us, 2 weeks, Blood and Guts. No disqualification.” A sinister grin works its way across the face of Malakai Black, with a nod to seemingly accept the challenge. ---

The Acclaimed and Daddy Ass should unite under one solid team name if they're serious about this. How about The Acclaimed Ass? Find a way to get Toni Storm with them and it's a gold mine, I tell you.

Owen Hart Foundation Cup - Women's First Round Match: ROH Women's Champion "The Fallen Goddess" Athena vs. Riho The first round matches continue and here is where I give the DUD rating a nice hearty fuck you as these two women went out there and proceeded to have the best women's match I've had so far in the game, only to be punished with a lower overall rating than it should have. The Outcasts were shown backstage watching on, trying not to interfere in this one but Toni Storm clearly not liking seeing Athena here kicking all kinds of ass. Anyway these two beat the shit out of each other with Athena's typical mean streak being matched by the diminutive Riho breaking out every bit of hard-hitting joshi upbringing she could muster. In the end though it was Athena prevailing with the O-Face, setting up a semi-match with a fellow champion in Willow Nightingale next week! ****, 71% overall rating ---

Aw, that stings. A solid 4 stars and the game is just "LOL". I'm very curious as to what Athena's O-Face looks like...along with the other women...

Mark Henry is backstage with the AEW World Tag Team Champions, FTR. Henry: "Dax, Cash, on Wednesday we saw you guys successfully defend your titles against the Jericho Appreciation Society, only for Bullet Club Gold to send a signal to you. It would seem your issues with them are far from over." Dax: "You're right Mark, we have a much bigger issue looming with Bullet Club Gold. They seem to like cheap shotting people from behind, and we're not sure why. We've made it clear to everyone that we'll put the titles on the line for anyone that wants to take their shot. All they have to do is name a time and a place." Cash: "And we know they still want a piece of our good friend Ricky Starks too. He's got business to tend to in just a few minutes against Brian Cage in the Owen Hart tournament. But he's been wanting to get his hands on Bullet Club too, and if he wins tonight he can kill two birds with one stone next week. Hope you're paying attention, Jay White!" Dax: "Oh and one more thing, we didn't forget about you, Cage. We know you've got your Mogul Embassy friends on speed dial. Don't even think about calling for help, because we've got a few friends who have a score to settle with you." *Sting and Darby Allin walk on scene, brandishing baseball bats as we go to break* --- Owen Hart Foundation Cup - Men's First Round Match: "The Machine" Brian Cage w/ Swerve Strickland and Prince Nana vs. "Absolute" Ricky Starks Our final tournament match of the evening sees Starks opting to go it alone, knowing he's always got backup on hand in case the Mogul Embassy choose to make nuisances of themselves. To the heels' credit, they opted to let Brian Cage largely do his thing, as the big man dominated the early part of the contest. The announcers reminded us of the bitter history these two have had over the years, dating back to their time together and subsequent fallout in Team Taz. Starks eventually regains momentum and the Mogul Embassy try to intervene. But true to their backstage appearance, Darby and Sting make their way out to the ring. Swerve tries to play it cool and exit gracefully at the threat of Sting's baseball bat, while Nana is chased around the ring by Darby on a Skateboard. All of the hijinx around the ring leave Cage alone with Starks in the ring, where Starks impressively gets the big guy up for the Roshambo and the win. Ricky Starks advances to the semi-final as Jay White and the rest of Bullet Club Gold look on from backstage. ***, 67% overall rating ---

I actually had to re-read that last bit to make sure it said what I thought it said. I would've thought Darby would be chasing someone WITH his skateboard, not actually ON it. Now I'm trying to visualize that and it's all kinds of hilarious. The DUD show continues to be a dick, unfortunately.

We see CM Punk backstage, heading out to the ring ready to face Samoa Joe. Mark Henry asks him if he has any words before tonight's main event. Punk tells Mark he has no comments other than the fact that Joe is about to find out that it's clobberin' time. --- CM Punk makes his way out to the ring, looking focused and determined as he throws his shirt into the stands and waits for Joe's arrival. And waits. And waits. Referee Bryce Remsburg and ring announcer Dasha Gonzalez find themselves asking the same thing - where is Samoa Joe? After Dasha makes another attempt at introducing him and his music hits again, Joe finally saunters out to the ring but noticeably still in street clothes. He gets into the ring and yanks the mic out of Dasha's hand. Joe: "Punk, Punk, Punk...we must have a misunderstanding. Last week you said you wanted to see me here on Collision. All week AEW have been saying we'd be facing off one-on-one. But I don't recall AEW ever saying we'd have an actual match. We've had more than enough matches over the year, Punk. I assumed you'd be tired of that. I just thought we were here to fight." Punk yells at Joe that he's fine with that, let's just have a fight then. Joe gets right in Punk's face. Joe: "Good, I'm glad to hear that. Honestly, I'm not paid enough to wrestle you. I beat you almost 2 decades ago, I've got nothing left to prove there. But if you wanted to fight, well, I've got no prob---" Joe abruptly cuts himself off as he clocks Punk with the microphone, the cheap shot sending Punk down. What we have now is the two men getting into a big fight that Joe is very clearly winning with the element of the cheap shot on his side. The slow beat-down of Punk does last for a while, effectively making this a proper main event angle. The announcers ask what has gotten into Joe, why does he seem to hellbent on actually taking Punk out of commission in this brawl. The fight spills to the outside and a few officials are tossed aside by Joe who has a plan and is damned if he's not going to execute it. Joe eventually wedges Punk's arm in between the steel steps and the ring post, and he then uses his full body weight to crash into the steps, sending nearly 300 lbs of force on Punk's arm. Joe leaves the ring smiling as Punk writhes in agony, with the medical staff tending to Punk's damaged arm. 77% overall show rating

This is the kind of stuff that fans who have been following the careers of both men would absolutely dig. Digging up the past and using it for fuel is what makes angles work. I also love the dichotomy of Joe being all, "Meh, I've got nothing to prove, but I'm still just going to be a dick to you and beat you up CAUSE I CAN!" Doing the main event angle is nothing to shy away from when you've got people who the audience gives a shit about. Plus, you got two other shows where a match can close things out. In terms of the real world, it's nice to give your guys a break and the fans some variety.

In the grand scheme, considering that your roster is loaded with ****1/2 matches even on DUD shows and you pull low 80s, having a 77% DUD show with my roster is nothing to sneeze at at all. That's roughly what I'd expect from a Rampage. Somewhat glad I had a good amount of angles and promos as those aren't as susceptible to the DUD hits as matches are.

Yeah, this version of EWR is hella weird considering 3.0 would have a DUD show and knock off at least a star and a half along with the low percentage rating for the matches. Willow/Soho would have been 2 stars at best and Scott Keith would be pointing out flaws in his commentary. This is another reason why doing angles, especially a really strong main event segment, is important as they're spared from the ravages of the DUD show for some reason. That's actually my dirty little secret as to why some of my DUD shows still turn out fairly well. I should probably start putting in the ratings for those segments. I need to use whatever spare time I have later today to get back at it. I was in such a nice little groove these last few weeks.

[Evil Vito]

Originally Posted by M-A-G The DUD show just loves popping up when you're really expecting a banger. But Dustin pulling out a ***+ match in this day and age should be something worth remembering and praising. Jeff Jarrett being gone definitely sucks as he'd be a fine choice to take the whole thing just out of sympathy and to create a catharsis. The WWE would probably have him go all the way to the finals along with some other sympathetic babyface, then have him get screwed over when the other guy turns heel with the aide of a bunch of other heels to create a stable and then he suffers a beatdown afterwards...in Tennessee.

Yeah there were some fun possibilities for Jarrett. I probably wouldn't have had him win it all given a title shot being at stake but I'd have at least thought about it. I suspect the game is going to give me the "one week til retirement" notice after July, and if so I could've quickly turned him face and had him put over MJF on the way out.

I could've sworn Joe used to ride in limos in TNA as part of the Main Event Mafia thing. A lot of TNA stuff blurs together so I don't remember it all that well. He SHOULD be doing the Batista thing of dressing like a sharp motherfucker that looks cool and badass.

Man I forgot so much about TNA, even some of their bigger angles. And I say this as someone who watched them regularly for a while, and was all but desperately rooting for them to gain some traction to give WWE actual competition so they couldn't just coast anymore.

I can't help but think of the song whenever I see Ruby Soho. If you're not going to give this tournament to Toni Storm, I can only guess that you're going with Willow as secondary to take the whole thing.

She actually used it as her theme upon joining AEW. Was given the blessing of Rancid and all of that (Rancid being super tight with CM Punk surely helped matter sas well). Since she's turned heel and joined the Outcasts though she's using their generic ass heel rock music which is a shame.

I've left both Toni (as well as Kris Stat) out of the tourney as a shot at an AEW title is a prize for winning. But I'm purposefully vague on when the title shot will happen. I imagine it as sorta a hybrid MITB. You can't cash in as a surprise but you can get your title shot at any time with a one week notice. I don't really imagine an expiration date either, you're just guaranteed a one-time title shot whenever you decide you want it. Makes it easier to, say, have a heel win this thing even if there's a heel champ at the moment.

I mean, it's hard not to believe in a god when you're blessed with a gorgeous double-jointed wife, but I can get behind something like this. He'd draw millions in the Bible Belt. I often wonder what would he be doing currently had he not left the WWE...aside from his gorgeous double-jointed wife.

Gotta say, I straight up ripped this promo from one he did 2 weeks ago in real life. Thought it was so good and better than what I'd come up with, curious to see where they take his character in reality.

[quote]Have they modified the game to where you can do a six-man championship? I know which collection of superstars I'd slap those puppies on over on my roster. Is there someone actually keeping track of the win/loss records of wrestlers? That's some dedication for sure. Jesus, even the Detroit Lions would be probably be all, "Wow, what a loser." He joins the elite company that is JTG, Curt Hawkins, Slam Master J, and Heath Slater.

Nah, the Trios belts don't exist in-game, just gotta use my imagination for that one. But there are tons of stables in AEW so I like having the "imaginary" belts around.

As for records, AEW does track everything back to the inception of the company and the records are kept on the roster page. For example:



5 tag wins + 8 trios wins = 13 wins. The 14th win was a 10-man tag back in February. 8-man tags, 10-man tags, battle royals or whatever else still count toward the record but only singles/tag/trios for the current year are shown separately.

I'm not tracking records since it would be too cumbersome, BUT this is the first time I've booked Serpentico and I took a gander at that poor bastard's record.

Aw, that stings. A solid 4 stars and the game is just "LOL". I'm very curious as to what Athena's O-Face looks like...along with the other women...

I actually had to re-read that last bit to make sure it said what I thought it said. I would've thought Darby would be chasing someone WITH his skateboard, not actually ON it. Now I'm trying to visualize that and it's all kinds of hilarious. The DUD show continues to be a dick, unfortunately.

Given that Darby Allin is friends with Tony Hawk, I'm sad that there wasn't proper Darby facepaint in the THPS 1+2 remake or I totally would've made him as my custom skater instead of making a half-assed version of myself. Maybe in the THPS 3 + 4 remake (please Activision...please put that project back in motion )

This is the kind of stuff that fans who have been following the careers of both men would absolutely dig. Digging up the past and using it for fuel is what makes angles work. I also love the dichotomy of Joe being all, "Meh, I've got nothing to prove, but I'm still just going to be a dick to you and beat you up CAUSE I CAN!" Doing the main event angle is nothing to shy away from when you've got people who the audience gives a shit about. Plus, you got two other shows where a match can close things out. In terms of the real world, it's nice to give your guys a break and the fans some variety.

I like the idea of Joe still knowing Punk's never beaten him. Of course in the real-life AEW this just changed over the weekend with Punker finally getting one over on Joe, but I enjoy the idea of keeping it going here. And perhaps this angle is to build to a match where Punk can finally beat him without actually pinning him, always giving the heel something he can be a dick about later

Yeah, this version of EWR is hella weird considering 3.0 would have a DUD show and knock off at least a star and a half along with the low percentage rating for the matches. Willow/Soho would have been 2 stars at best and Scott Keith would be pointing out flaws in his commentary. This is another reason why doing angles, especially a really strong main event segment, is important as they're spared from the ravages of the DUD show for some reason. That's actually my dirty little secret as to why some of my DUD shows still turn out fairly well. I should probably start putting in the ratings for those segments. I need to use whatever spare time I have later today to get back at it. I was in such a nice little groove these last few weeks.

I quite appreciate the way they do it in this game. In theory, good wrestlers can still have good matches even on a DUD show. Yes, good wrestlers can also have an off-night but I'd say the majority of the time, the good'uns are gonna be able to do their thing even if the crowd isn't feeling it, the announcers are having a bad day, the "vibe" is just off etc

Of course you end up seeing the differences in overall rating anyway. I do try to limit myself to 5/6 matches per TV show at most with the rest being angles, both to hedge against a DUD and also for realism. I'd low key have a hard time booking an Attitude Era show realistically in this game, it wasn't unusual to have 10+ matches on a 2-hour Raw, but they were all like 2 minutes long. That era really was just all about the angles.

[M-A-G]

SmackDown!: December 14, 2040

Let's see if I can get back on schedule here.

Opening Match: Ziggy Styles vs. Stone Walsh
Ziggy takes the mic and declares that he feels a great deal of sadness and pity for people who don't have it in them to get Ziggy with it. Those people cling on ever so desperately to their darkness and failures and it ruins them! Take Michael Haywood for instance. The destruction of his little group was no one else's fault but his own, and now he thinks that gives him leeway to just be a big meanie to everyone! To the credit of his former teammates, Ryan Pattillo has a chance to become the new Unified World Champion come Bragging Rights, and Gavin Jones also has a championship opportunity at the same event! What's Michael been doing? He's been nothing but a sour puss! "I've only been trying to help! But I am not without mercy and generosity. I am offering Michael his own day in the sun by challenging him to face me next week! It's high time we put this business of ours to rest and see what is more powerful here in the WWE: your cancerous negativity or the positive energy that is the Zig-Meister!" Ziggy's stupidity aside, this is a banger of an opener. Walsh is someone else who should be in a better position considering his attributes, but alas, he has to play the role of making this doofus look good here. The top turnbuckle in one corner gets exposed by Ziggy during the match and it comes to into play in the end as Ziggy escapes an attempt at the Stone Cutter from Walsh. He slips behind Walsh and yanks him into the exposed steel and catches Walsh in a small package off the rebound to score the pin. No time for celebration as HERE COMES MICHAEL HAYWOOD after the match to help Ziggy get his steps in for the day and chase him and the two go off into the night through the crowd. *****, 94% overall.

It's time for another edition of the Hot Button with everyone's favortie host, The Hero to Millions Around the World, the Host With THE Highest Rated Interview Show In All of Entertainment, The New Age Intellectual Savior to the Masses, The 2031 Fulton County First Place Conga Award Winner, The Luscious Lover of the Manager of the Year Slammy Award Winner and Undefeated Steel Cage Master and REAL 2040 King of the Ring, The Supreme Submission Machine, Mister Twenty-Forty, The Two Time Slammy Award Winner Including the Rookie of the Year and the Most Envied Superstar of the Year, the Man Who is the Rightful Winner of the Slammy for Cruiserweight of the Year, Former WWE Cruiserweight Champion-Elect, the Cruiserweight Champion Michael Hotbody! Hotbody gets on the mic as he wants to talk about Gavin Jones. "Ladies and gentlemen, if there was ever a time when I needed your support and well wishes, it is definitely now. The thought of a degenerate holding this Cruiserweight Title quite frankly makes me a little nervous. Gavin Jones, last week you defiled the beautiful Slammys that I and Madison EARNED! You're lucky none of them were scratched otherwise you would've been hit with a lawsuit from Galino & Farnes so hard you'd think you were hit by a bus! But Gavin is just the latest in a long line of people who want to take away the things that I have worked so hard to obtain, and he thinks he can do it by being an annoyance and a punk. Well, if there's one thing that I can't stand, it's a goof! I will absolutely not tolerate silliness while I'm the champion, and the amount of arrogance that you have, Gavin, in thinking that you of all people are going to be one to end the year that was Michael Hotbody is a clown show! But the thing is, I don't fear clowns. I punch them in their stupid noses and stomp their teeth in. The time for funny business is over, Gavin, because you're not going to be laughing come Bragging Rights. When it's all said and done, the term "tears of a clown" will never be more appropriate!"

This calls for the number one contender himself to interrupt the show and make himself a guest. Gavin Jones steps into the ring with a mic and gets in Hotbody's face. "You know, you can run me down about goofing off, but if you'd been paying attention to me and all of the Hunters, you'd know that when something serious like gold is on the line, we all get serious about that business. And you? Your big claim to fame when the going gets tough is to whine and find an excuse to explain why you're not a man."

"Hey! Who the hell do..."

"NO, THIS IS WHERE YOU ZIP IT!" Gavin explodes. "90% of your entire God damn career here ever since you showed up is you flapping those gums of yours! So right now, you don't get to speak. You've done enough talking! You're going to stand there and listen and you had better listen good! Every cheap shot you take at me, that's one body part of yours I'm going to break at Bragging Rights. Every insult you throw towards my former teammates, that's another body part I'm going to break at Bragging Rights. Every dumb tactic you might try to get out of this, well, hell, I won't wait until Bragging Rights to break something. You think me a clown? Well, that's going to be one hell of a boot shoved up your ass. Keep your Slammys. Keep that jezebel of yours. Keep your stupid lawyers. Keep that big dumb oaf. I hope they all provide you comfort when I take that Cruiserweight Title from you!"

With that, Gavin shoves his microphone into Hotbody and makes his way to leave the ring, but Hotbody isn't phased by the words we all just heard and takes offense to it all and makes the decision to jump Gavin from behind. He stomps on Gavin a couple of times, screaming at Gavin and asking him who the hell he think he is. He tries going for a Hot Ticket, but Gavin grabs Hotbody's leg and latches on. Hotbody panics and kicks away with his free leg and bails once he's free. Gavin glares at the champion as the latter makes his escape.

Second Match: Leah vs. Cordelia Capriati
Cordelia has Brooke with her, but she doesn't look particularly thrilled about it. Leah may have business with the Southern Belles come Bragging Rights, but she's all focused here and shit. This is another fucking sweet women's encounter, with some good back and forth shit. Sadly, it has to get ruined by Hannah McCormick who is looking to ruin things for Leah. Leah tries a Sultry Splash, but Hannah pulls the rope causing Leah to slip and tumble. That's going to be a DQ. Hannah slips into the ring and looks to get her some of Leah. Cordelia recovers and is understandably miffed at this turn of events and spins Hannah around to get in her face. The two argue for a bit, but Brooke hops up on the apron and tries to reason with Cordelia, beckoning her to just back off and let it go and take her leave. Cordelia turns around and starts to leave, but Leah is back up on her feet and drop kicks Hannah into Cordelia. Cordelia responds by turning around and knocking Hannah down with a forearm! She must've though Hannah pushed her on purpose! Leah grabs Hannah and tosses her out of the ring. Brooke is incredulous as it looks like she's losing more and more control over her ranks. ****1/2, 87% overall.

Third Match: Neil Quint vs. Johnny Dangerson
Gotta keep Neil's momentum going. He's already trounced Sammy Brady. Let's see how he fares against his more experienced tag team partner. Johnny may have the better name, but his future isn't as bright as other people on the roster. Case in point, Neil has Johnny down and set up for the Quintessential Top Rope Maneuver. Sammy Brady slides in and covers Johnny's prone body and tries to call off Neil from executing the move. Neil says "Fuck it" and comes off with the move anyway on both men and that's going to be enough to give Neil the victory via pinfall. ****1/4, 89% overall.

In-Ring Super Special Talky Time as we're joined by the Woman of the Year, the WWE Women's Champion Sonya Braddock! She brings up the year that she had and how she was looking forward to bringing closure to it all. "That closure would've come by getting a chance to once again make Naomi Bailey my bitch and knocking her ass out. I was actually on board with her complaining and lobbying because it was going to make it all the more sweet when I still walked away from that fight with this belt on my shoulder. Now, Naomi isn't cleared to compete, but in a way I've got something even better lined up come Bragging Rights. I've got Jenna Kyle. And while Naomi's humiliating defeat would satisfy me because I'd be destroying a big mouthed pretender to my throne, beating Jenna Kyle is a whole other beast. You see, Jenna, you're one of the few women who has managed to elude utter destruction at my hand. And look at all you managed to acheive. You racked up 3 Slammy wins for some of the biggest historical moments this year alone. As Woman of the Year, and as the WWE Women's Champion, what kind of person would I be if I let all of that go unchallenged. You're the unicorn, Jenna. You are just the thing that's going to help put a nice bow on this year. Everyone will be able to take a step back and look at that package and they'll be able to say that Sonya Braddock made that and she made it because she was the best. It's nothing personal, Jenna, but you know how things go. And upsetting you will be just the message I need to be sent to Naomi to let her know what's waiting for her when she's ready to go another round."

Well, like before with Hotbody and Gavin, this is the time for the number one contender to come on out here and give their take on the matter. Jenna Kyle comes on down and shows no fear getting into the ring with Braddock as she takes the mic.

"Let's clear up a misconception you seem to have, Sonya. I am not now nor will I ever be made a stepping stone or an example. I am a 3 time Women's Champion. I am a two time, back-to-back Queen of the Ring winner. I made history with Faith Connors by being part of the first team to capture the Women's Tag Team Titles. So, yeah, getting one over on me would be a pretty big deal. Which is why you're going to have such a hard time pulling it off. I promise you right here and now, if you walk into Bragging Rights thinking you've got it in the bag, your hopes of ever getting that chance to humilitate Naomi are dead before you even climb in between the ropes. I'm on my own path towards redemption, Sonya, so I hope you understand that it also isn't personal and that you don't take it as such when I take that title for the fourth time."

Sonya smirks as she circles Jenna while making her retort. "If I say you're a stepping stone, then a stepping stone is what you'll be. Everyone eventually gets crushed. But you don't need to take my word for it. The next time you have yourself a heart to heart with your pal Faith, I want you to ask her yourself how things went for her earlier this year. In fact, if things had gone even worse, you probably wouldn't have had someone to call a partner. I believe you when you say that you're not going to make things easy for me, but unless you've grown more vicious, unless you're willing to go to that dark place in your mind, and unless you've grown a stomach for the unpleasant, you don't have a prayer at Bragging Rights. Take solace in what you have managed to accomplish, Jenna. Let that be more than enough."

Jenna steps up to Sonya and looks the champion in the eye. "Until I get that title off of you, Sonya, it's never going to be enough. I'll see you at Bragging Rights." And with that we go to break as the two women stare each other down.

Fourth Match: The Royal Effect vs. The Tokyo Titans
The Royal Effect are, of course, due their rematch for the Unified Tag Team Titles, something we're all looking forward to. They have their Slammys with them and they take the time to remind the audience that they won the award for Tag Team of the Year because they are just too damn good to ignore. They are making it their new year's resolution to start the next year as the champions! The dislike between the two members of the face team has no noticable effect on the match as things are cooking. Things break down as it's BONZO GONZO and Wu and McKay are the legal men with Kavovit and Tokyo Kid fighting on the outside. The ref is distracted with the outside brawl and he goes out to check on Wu when Kavovit sends him into the steps. Kavovit slips McKay one of the Slammy awards while the ref is busy and McKay clobbers Wu with it. Kavovit informs the ref of the pinfall attempt and the shenanigans lead to the three count giving the Royal Effect another win. *****, 96% overall.

To the back we go as we see Jake Connelly waiting on his clients for the next match when Cameron Harper steps up to him. Jake looks confused as to Cameron's presence and asks him what he's doing here seeing as Jake didn't arrange a match for Cameron. Cameron says that he's here to continue showing his gratitude and loyalty to the Jake Connelly brand and he wants to lend a hand in any way he can. After all, Zoey and Katie are also his fellow clients so he should be working with them, too. Connelly says that he appreciates the gesture, but after the last couple of outings with Ethan Lang, Cameron might need a bit more seasoning with him before branching out. Cameron should consider it a hard rule with Connelly, in that if you're not booked, you're not needed. Connelly has got this covered. Cameron looks dejected, but he says that he understands and apologizes for stepping out of bounds. He wishes Connelly luck and takes his leave.

Fifth Match: The Lady Liberties vs. The Brooklyn Sisterhood
Zoey and Katie have themselves quite the test here with the monstrous veterans in Billie Padgett and Emma Edwards. Fortunately, Jake Connelly is behind them as their manager and mentor. Nothing can wrong! Right? Well, after a pretty cool underdog vs. monster match, things boil down to Billie and Katie. Cameron Harper decides his fellow clients are in need of his assistance despite what Connelly said earlier and comes on down and hops up on the apron to play cheerleader. Connelly is confused as all fuck and goes over to talk him down. Katie escapes an attempt from Billie at the Red Hook and she tries to run off the ropes for her next move but stops when she sees Cameron in the way. She's just as puzzled as everyone else but Cameron continues to encourage her. Billie comes up from behind and shoves Katie into Cameron, knocking him off, and that allows Billie to hit the Red Hook and give the Sisterhood the pin. That's actually their first loss since coming under the wing of Connelly. Speaking of which, he doesn't look too thrilled with Cameron's actions. ****1/2, 89% overall.

PROMO TIME as the WWE Unified World Champion Wrakk feels the need to address his upcoming match with Ryan Pattillo. He tells Pattillo that the two of them have had this dance before and it didn't end so well for Pattillo. He asks us all to think about the fact that the previous encounter between the two of them didn't even have the belts on the line and Wrakk was STILL willing to brutalize Pattillo beyond belief. Just imagine what's in store for Bragging Rights now that that piece of crap is daring to try to take away the one thing that Wrakk thought about day in and day out for that entire year that was stolen from him. Ryan is trying his best to lash out at the cruel, cruel world that had forgotten him and do what he can to right what he perceives as wrongs. Wrakk can emphathize somewhat, but none of that is Wrakk's fault or problem. Now the embarrassment that Ryan is going to suffer at Bragging Rights? Well, that's going to be all Wrakk's fault and he's going to laugh about it. Wrakk has come too far to let it get taken away. And as far as Brandon Reigns goes? That moment of vulnerability on Raw is something he should remember for the rest of his life, because Reigns is never going to have another opportunity like that again. Not while Wrakk is the WWE Unified World Champion.

Sixth Match: Eddy Clash vs. Chet Morris
Good to get Eddy back into the thick of things. He's really had a roller coaster of a time since his debut. I didn't really think of sticking him where I'm going to stick him for Bragging Rights. Oops. Got to save that bit for later. Anyways, Eddy is out for revenge and he's his usual monstrous self, but Chet isn't going down easy. It's an awesome brawl, but Eddy gets Chet set up for the Thunderstrike and that's going to cause Hugo to slide in to save Chet by attacking Eddy for the DQ. It looks like we're going to get another beatdown BUT THE LIGHTS GO OUT!!! Everyone freaks out and when they come back on Haven is in front of Quinten McDaniels in the aisle and he takes him out with a choke slam. He then slides into the ring to even things up. Things start to look bad as Haven looks like he can't do much against Hugo and the latter starts to hammer the Dark Shepherd silly in retaliation. Haven goes down in the corner and looks like he's toast, but Eddy disposes of Chet and just rams his entire body into Hugo knocking the big man through the ropes and to the outside. He runs out to the timekeeper's area to grab a chair and slides back in to ward off the heels. It looks like Haven has himself an ally in this battle. But three on two hardly seems fair. Hmmmm.... ****1/2, 92% overall.

MAIN EVENT: Seth Von Kamp and Kyle Jacobs vs. Chris Collins and Xavier Cross
Kyle Jacobs declares that he's ready to go against Xavier anytime he wants to put pen to paper. What happened to Cross at Survivor Series was unfortunate, but he shouldn't have signed up if he was going to whine about the outcome. Kyle says that he would've much preferred going one-on-one with Cross and he can't think of any reason why that can't happen now, other than Cross not being as bold as he wants us to believe. "So name the time and place, Cross, and I'll finish what I started all that time ago." This is one excellent choice for a main event as the rating shows. It breaks down and Seth and Collins are the legal men. The ref tries to get things back in control with Cross and Jacobs fighting on the outside. Jacobs stalks Cross but Cross suckers him in and kicks the ring steps into Kyle's knee. Cross goes in for the kill and delivers a Cross Cutter ON THE STEPS! While this is happening Collins snatches Seth's Intercontinental Title belt from ringside and clobbers the champion from behind with it. He disposes of the evidence and picks up Seth's carcass and hits the Fall From Heaven as the ref gets his attention back to the match as EMTs attend to Kyle Jacobs. The pinfall is academic after that as Collins BUILDS MOMENTUM for Bragging Rights. *****, 94% overall.

Overall show rating: 88%

[Evil Vito]

Ziggy's promo was great. I'm a fan of a heel just using tons of corny language. I also think Positively Page was a low key banger of a gimmick so I'm happy with any sort of "overly happy heel" gimmick.

And then doubling it up with the Hotbody/Gavin promo was gold too. Gavin cuts a nice promo and damn, Hotbody gives his opponents so much to work with it really does get crowds thinking that maybe, just maybe, this is the time when he can finally get taken down.

Heels now having the Slammy Award available to be used as a weapon = ratings, classic heelery there

Oooh, Eddy Clash and Haven teaming up now for THE GREATER GOOD. I like that. 2 on 3 does hardly seem fair, even if EWR allows it. But it's a hell of a spot for someone else to come in and form an unlikely bond.

Nice to see the DUD show disappeared and fucked off into the ether. The usual goodness here and lots of BUILDING MOMENTUM!

[M-A-G]

Raw: December 17, 2040

We open with our illustrious General Manager Lisa Benton on the stage, where she's got presents all over the place. She's excited about tonight and has a lot to announce. This time of year is her favorite as it's all about the holiday season. She can't wait to get the festivities started so she's going to kick them off a little early. So tonight is hereby dubbed Christmas Comes Early Night! She has three very important presents that she wants to give away to a lucky few, all of which will have a bearing on their respective matches at Bragging Rights. Also, SmackDown! next week is not just the last SmackDown! before Bragging Rights, but also the the last SmackDown! of the year, so it's only fitting to try to make it extra special. It'll be a SmackDown! Send-off. She has some great matches planned for that event, but we have to get through tonight first. Right now she wants to give away the first present and it's going to be awarded to the winner of this opening match!

Opening Match: Orlando Kincaid vs. Cameron Harper
Harper is with Jake Connelly and he gets on the mic, declaring that he wants to let everyone know that he apologized to Jake Connelly in a major way over what happened on SmackDown! this past Friday. "I was overly enthusiastic and I let it cause me to overstep my boundaries. But I just want Jake and everyone to understand that this is such a huge deal for me. Being under the guidance of one of the biggest stars, one of the greatest legends, of the industry is overwhemling and it's tough to keep a lid on some of these emotions. Nevertheless, I am more than prepared to make it up to you, Jake. I don't know what's in that box that Lisa Benton is giving way, but I'm sure it's good and I'm sure it's worth kicking ass over, so let's do this!" Both participants do indeed do this as this gets us up and running in a strong fashion. After an awesome exchange things come to an end when Harper goes for a pin after a superplex. Kincaid saves himself from a three count by placing his foot on the bottom rope at the last second. Harper thinks he's got the win, however, and leaps off in celebration. Jake Connelly and the ref both try letting Harper know that the match isn't over but he's not hearing it and he turns to Connelly on the outside, posturing for approval. Connelly keeps pointing at Kincaid who is behind Harper and has recovered and nails Harper with a German suplex with a bridge to get the actual pin and the present, whatever that may be.

Post-match, Harper is dejected as Kincaid makes his way back up the ramp to the stage. Lisa Benton stands there waiting for him next to the present that he's won and tell him that he's free to open it now. Kincaid has a "WTF" kind of look on his face about all of this, but nonetheless goes forward with opening the box and taking out what's inside. It looks like...a contract?

Lisa Benton clarifies what it is. "What you have in your hand, Orlando, is a document giving you the right to book your own match for Bragging Rights. There are some limitations, of course, as we already have some matches set, but outside of those parameters, you've got final say. Choose wisely...and happy holidays." Kincaid's confused expression turns into a sly grin, no doubt contemplating the possibilities as he looks at the contract. What will he end up doing? ****1/2, 92% overall.

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Backstage, Jordan Demiras has some thoughts on Ozzy Mandias that he wants to share. Jordan 100% believed in Ozzy and in the future that he was going to have here in the WWE. But then he got bitter. He got bitter and angry and desperate and foolish. That foolishness drove him to cross Jordan Demiras. "Well, now that future Ozzy had? It's not looking too bright. Let him come and try to bring that bitterness and anger to my doorstep one more time."

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Second Match: The Lonely Girls vs. C4
Brooke once again gets on the mic and demands unity from her clients. She believes that no doubt Randy Ellis and Justin Mitchell and Sophie Waters are having a laugh at her misfortunes and one of the last things Brooke wants to be known as is a laughingstock. So this match rules all kinds of ass. Jenna and Faith are just a well-oiled machine. Jenna, naturally, has to stand out here as she's got Braddock lined up at the PPV. Dusk decides she wants to make her presence known and comes out to the stage to observe, catching the attention of Faith. The trouble comes not from Dusk, however, as there's miscommunication over on the heel side of things. Carmella holds Jenna as Cordelia looks to nail her with a clothesline. Jenna escapes and rolls out of the way. Cordelia stops herself in time and she and Carmella have a few words. Faith takes advantage of this exchange to try a Mirror's Edge on Carmella. Carmella moves out of the way and Faith hits Cordelia. Jenna tackles Carmella out of the ring as Faith goes for the pin on Cordelia and gets the duke. The Lonely Girls take their leave in celebration, but that's not the end of this ordeal as Brooke is furious at what went down and starts to berate Cordelia. Well, that's all she can stands and she can stands no more as Cordelia just drops Brooke with a forearm and then proceeds to toss her to the outside into Carmella. Looks like a face turn to me and the crowd seems to agree. *****, 95% overall. I think the turn is what put it over the top.

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Third Match: Simon Bennett vs. Lonny Richards
Lisa Benton is back out on the stage standing next to a very large present and explains the conditions as to how it's going to be won. It will go to either Simon Bennett or Adam Hail, whose match at Bragging Rights has been made official. Simon will compete first here tonight and should he win, Adam Hail has a chance to take the prize if he can win his own match later tonight by beating Simon's time. If Adam can't do that, then Simon will get the prize. Should Simon lose right here and now, though, Adam will take it by default. So let's get down to business and kick things off.

The match is solid and naturally there is a sense of urgency from Bennett to wrap things up as quickly as possible. Things come to a head when Lonny tries locking in the Dragon Sleeper, but Bennett forces the two of them to the corner, causing Lonny to lose his grip. Bennett snap mares Lonny over and locks in the Bennet Lock to score the submission win. It's going to be all up to Adam Hail later tonight to try to do better. ****1/2, 91% overall.

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We go backstage again as Orlando Kincaid is gathering his things, apparently getting ready to leave for the night. Quinten McDaniels decides to approach him and make another overture. Orlando looks annoyed as he asks Quinten what he wants. Quinten expresses his dismay over Orlando's decision to not be part of the tremendous undertaking that Victor Dark has begun. Haven is still up and about and he made fools out Quinten, Hugo, and Chet when he made his return. Had Orlando been part of this great movement like the three of them wanted, there's no doubt Haven would've been struck down by a unified force that even he couldn't overcome.

Orlando breaks up the tirade by pointing out that he doesn't give a damn about any of that. "I didn't care when the three of you got all up in my face and asked me about this whole nonsense, and I don't care now. I've got a lot on my mind with what I picked up earlier tonight...on my own, I might add."

"Well, that brings me to why I'm here, Orlando," Quinten continues. "That's a lot of power in your hands right there with that contract. Imagine it, Orlando; 4 of us all against one man. One selfish man who let all of us down, and you wield the power to make him pay and suffer and quite possibly hang things up for good. Out of sight, out of mind, and we can all move on. And all you have to do is let us in and help."

"You know, I'm glad it's just us one-on-one right now, because maybe your hearing will be much better this time around. I'm not interested in whatever it is you're selling. I don't care about Victor Dark. I don't care about Haven. If you still got issues, go see a God damn therapist. Just leave me the hell alone. The whole Order thing collapsing and scattering us all over was probably the best thing to happen to me to date. I haven't needed any of y'all since and that's not looking to change anytime soon."

"Orlando, I'm going to still cling onto a small sliver of faith that you'll come around, because the alternative isn't pretty. The alternative is me being pissed off at you."

"Then you should get therapy for that, too." And with that final line, Orlando takes his leave.

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To another location in the back we go as Andrea is with Victor Dark as they feel the need to address Haven again. They talk about how dangerous it is for Haven to gain power. That's why intervention was necessary at Survivor Series, because making Haven into a figurehead just opens the doors to more of his manipulation and smoke and mirrors. Haven serves himself and no one else. Let that be something that needs to sink in to anyone who might be thinking of aligning with Haven. The destruction of Haven is inevitable. There's no need for anyone else to suffer the same fate.

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Fourth Match: Gavin Jones and Clubber Harris vs. Galino & Farnes
Lisa Benton is back out as she declares that this match is also for one of the presents she's giving away, with the prize affecting the match between Gavin and Hotbody for the Cruiserweight Title at Bragging Rights. The winning team will claim the present, with Galino & Farnes being the representatives for Michael Hotbody. Lisa also announces that Clubber Harris vs. Zed Jones will be one of the feature matches for next week's SmackDown! Send Off.

Michael Hotbody isn't deterred by these declarations. He has worked so hard and so long to ascend the ladder to where he is now. Rung by rung, commoner by commoner, the voyage to the top hasn't been easy, but prevailing in the face of adversity and hostility has been the name of the game. But by all means, opening presents is always fun, so he'll be happy to take whatever's in that box. So the match gets underway and it's fun all around. Things break down towards the end as the ref is distracted with Hotbody on the apron. Harris and Farnes are legal and Harris stalks the latter as he's getting to his feet. Zed Jones tries sneaking in with a big boot but Harris moves out of the way and Farnes eats the boot instead. Gavin dives into Hotbody, taking him off the apron and Harris tosses Zed. Farnes then falls victim to the Club Pain and that's going to give the faces the win via pinfall.

The heels are all kinds of upset as Gavin and Harris make their way back up the ramp. Lisa greets Gavin with his present and tells him to open it. Gavin does so and what should be inside but...another contract? Lisa explains that this particular contract awards the holder the right to name the stipulation for their match at Bragging Rights. Lisa tells Gavin that this is a big decision and she doesn't expect him to come up with an idea anytime soon, so he's welcome to take some time to think about it.

Gavin isn't having that and he takes the mic. "Actually, I don't see a reason why I can't name the stipulation right now. Hotbody, you wanted to talk about climbing the proverbial ladder? Well, climbing a real one should be no problem. So at Bragging Rights, our match for that Cruiserweight Title you're holding, is going to be...A LADDER MATCH!" The crowd pops in enthusiastic glee as Hotbody throws a fit. Maybe Gavin has found the magic key to ending Hotbody's reign? *****, 95% overall.

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Fifth Match: Brandon Reigns vs. Jordan Demiras
Brandon Reigns does a little pre-match gabbing, talking about how his match with Kerry Cemenko at Bragging Rights is about justifying the award he received. Reigns has no problem stepping up to the challenge because he's not insecure. Superstar of the Year isn't some gimmick. It's a reality. Reigns talked the big game at the award ceremony because he's not afraid of backing it up. Cemenko made the right move...he just made it against the wrong person. This is another great outing for the night. Demiras plays underdog, but he holds strong against the Money in the Bank winner. Unfortunately, Ozzy Mandias must've heard Jordan's comments earlier and he comes out to ruin things. He does so by shoving Demiras off the ropes when he goes for an Axe Kick and that causes Demiras to land into the waiting arms of Reigns and into the Reignfire to give him the pinfall win. Ozzy stands over Jordan's body and berates him while Reigns starts to take his leave and goes to gather his briefcase. However, when he goes to collect it, Kerry Cemenko is on the other side of the barrier next to the case. Kerry teases going for the case and it's a game of chicken as Cemenko and Reigns stare each other down. Ultimately, security comes to get in Cemenko's way allowing Reigns to take the case and retreat while shouting some less-than-friendly verbage towards Cemenko. *****, 95% overall. I mean, God damn.

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In-Ring Super Special Talky Time as this time around we're going to be blessed to hear from Michael Haywood. "I'm going to try to make this short as there's been enough chatter tonight and I'm sure you're sick of it. I know I am. Sure, you can chalk it up to me not being much of a speaker to begin with and it's hard dealing with so many loud mouths, but boy, has there been one particular son of a bitch that's just been asking for a fist down his throat, and that's Ziggy Styles. Ziggy, I am not now or ever will be down with 'getting Ziggy with it'. None of these people are interested either. What they are interested in is when they'll get to see me finally shut that trap of yours. Well, consider your challenge accepted, but it's come to my attention that Lisa Benton is going to hold that encounter next week on SmackDown! Send Off. And how fitting is that, Ziggy, because I know just the way to give you your own little send off: your broken body being wheeled out of the building."

This is going to open the door for Ryan Pattillo to come on out and join Michael in the ring. Everyone's surprised, but happy as it's been a while since the two have shared the ring. Pattillo takes the mic and starts his spiel. "It's so odd how things change with enough time, but still manage to stay the same in a lot of ways. The last time you and I were in the ring together, Michael, it was one of the most difficult things I think either one of us had to do. Fast forward to right now, however, and I don't believe for a second that any of us let that night get the better of us. Here we stand, more determined than ever, and still the winners we've always been. We can't rewind things and they'll never be like they were, but that doesn't mean they can't be good again. Gavin has got Bragging Rights in the bag. You are on your way towards teaching Ziggy Styles what real rage is all about. And of course, I've got Wrakk's number, and even though I can't get back our crew, I damn sure can get back that Unified World Title."

Cue the music of the Unified World Champion himself, Wrakk, and he decides to come out to the stage to address Michael and Ryan. "Looking at the two of you, it really does hit me how you really are a pair. So delusional, so sad, and most importantly, I've managed to wreck the both you in the past. You two want to whine about what you've lost? I lost a whole damn year. Don't try to trivialize that, ever! It's actually quite the conundrum. I can't tell if you were more pathetic as a group or now as individuals. But here's something you can all hang your hat on. I'm still Wrakk. I'm still the measuring stick. I'm still the man I was when I first came on to the scene. And as far as the two of you are concerned, we can all count on you guys to still be losers!"

Cue the music of Ziggy Styles and he comes out next to Wrakk with his usual stupid idiot expression on his face. He wants everyone to just take a breath because it's getting way too gloomy in here. "Michael, I am so happy that you want to take that next bold step in your career by facing me next week. Now I don't want you to go into the match thinking that there won't be an upside when you lose. The personal reflection that you will undergo afterwards will be tremendously healthy. You won't have to carry around the burdensome question of whether or not I'm better than you. And with revelation, comes healing. And with healing, comes transformation."

Wrakk interrupts Ziggy by asking him who the hell he thinks he is and tells him to take a hike. Ziggy tries to speak up in defense but Wrakk grabs him by the collar. Michael warns Wrakk not to do anything that might cause Ziggy to not make to next week. "Otherwise, I'll have to do something to you that'll keep you from making it to Bragging Rights, and Ryan won't get his chance at taking that title of yours."

Wrakk takes offense to this and declares that the two of them together still couldn't add up to him. Ryan dares Wrakk to try to test that hypothesis. Wrakk lets go of Ziggy and stares at the ring while pondering things over. "The two of you deserve each other. Keep thinking that things are going your way. I always enjoy a good laugh when things blow up in someone's face." Wrakk decides to leave things at that and heads to back, pointing menacingly at Ziggy as he does so.

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Backstage, Chris Collins and Xavier Cross feel like bragging about their recent success. Cross brings up the fact that Lisa Benton has made it official that he and Kyle Jacobs will be squaring off against each other at next week's SmackDown! Send-off. Cross hopes to send Kyle off to obscurity. This has been boiling for a long between Cross and Jacobs and it's time for finality. Is Kyle worthy of that last name of his? Is he destined for a prosperous future? Or will it be the same story as always? The story of Xavier Cross being the cornerstone of the WWE, of being the gatekeeper. Cross has been in a lot of battles, but credit to where it's due, none of them have been as annoying as this one with Kyle Jacobs. Cross understands Kyle wanting to finish things off the same way he started the year. Cross just isn't the doormat Kyle thinks he is. It's all OK, because Kyle can dust himself off afterwards and he is more than welcome to try his luck with some other sap.

Collins takes his turn and runs down Seth Von Kamp, his opponent for the Intercontinental Title at Bragging Rights. Seth had to have known that their paths would cross again someday. But Collins had imagined it with him being on top of the pack with Seth being the one nipping at his ankles. Collins isn't thrilled with the scenario as he is superior to Seth in virtually every measure you want to think of. The frustrations that Collins has experienced being sidetracked with so much nonsense are all going to come out at Bragging Rights. It sucks to be Seth Von Kamp, but those are the cards he got dealt. The house Seth has built for himself has been flimsy at best. It's time for a new chapter in the book of Chris Collins and he's going to write the opening statement in Seth's blood.

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MAIN EVENT: Adam Hail vs. Alexander Piero
Lisa Benton comes back onto the stage to remind everyone of the stakes here. Simon Bennett has set the time to beat and if Adam Hail can't do better, Simon Bennett is the one walking out of here with the present. If Adam is successful, then he gets the spoils. Bennett comes out to the stage to watch the match, obviously interested in the outcome. The match itself is a banger of a way to close the show. Piero is only going to improve as time goes on. Like I said before in another report, Piero needs to be rebuilt. Being able to hang tough with a vet like Hail is a good thing for him, I think, plus there's the matter of the present. So the match concludes with Hail getting more and more desperate to put the rookie away as time slips away. Hail looks like he's got Piero in position for the Hailstorm, but Piero recovers in time to nail Hail with a dropkick as Hail is perched on the top rope. Hail loses his balance and stumbles off the top and collapses onto the apron and down to the floor. The clock reaches Bennett's time and that's going to end the match in a draw. Simon Bennett gets the prize. Nathan Quinn is upset as he tries to get Hail back to his feet.

Lisa Benton makes it official and allows Bennett to claim his spoils. What the hell could be in that big box? We get our answer as Bennett lifts the thing and reveals a table loaded with all sort of implements. A chair. Brass knuckles. A pipe. A leather strap. A kendo stick. Lots of goodies. Bennett is confused, but Lisa explains that Simon has won the right to pick any one of the items before him and that item will be legal in his match against Adam Hail at Bragging Rights. Bennett gets a devilish grin on his face as he looks over his options. Hail and Quinn look on with concern. Ultimately, Bennett settles on the steel chain as he picks it up and points at Hail. Like that match needed to be even more out of control. Hail and Quinn are livid as we go off the air with Bennett holding the chain up. ****1/2, 90% overall.

Overall show rating: 87%

[Evil Vito]

Loved the show structure of this episode. I like the idea of wrestlers being able to pick their own matches, their own stipulations etc sometimes.

Quentin trying to talk Orlando into a 4-on-1 match tickles me if only because I know such a match isn't even possible in EWR land. But I also like the idea of the delusional heel being unwilling to ever listen to the face even after clear rejection. Dude, he's just not that into you!

Hotbody in a ladder match is gonna make for some really good times. The best part of his run isn't just the promos but the fact that he keeps getting thrown into these blowoff gimmick matches and finding some way to bullshit his way through it every time. It's gold. I'm half expecting the Gavin to be ready to grab the belt only for Luscious or someone to climb the ladder on her man's behalf to get into a tug of war which, somehow, ends with the title falling on Hotbody's corpse for the win.

Ziggy Styles promos are fucking awesome too. That perfect type of annoying heel that even the other heels are like STFU.

[Evil Vito]

Think the comments I'd drafted a week ago were more robust but ah well. Just wanted to make sure I said something.

I've got a bunch of shows "in the can" that I've booked and just need to write up, but this month has been pure chaos. Sadly barring a server turnaround I think my time here is coming to a close

[M-A-G]

Originally Posted by Evil Vito Loved the show structure of this episode. I like the idea of wrestlers being able to pick their own matches, their own stipulations etc sometimes. Quentin trying to talk Orlando into a 4-on-1 match tickles me if only because I know such a match isn't even possible in EWR land. But I also like the idea of the delusional heel being unwilling to ever listen to the face even after clear rejection. Dude, he's just not that into you! Hotbody in a ladder match is gonna make for some really good times. The best part of his run isn't just the promos but the fact that he keeps getting thrown into these blowoff gimmick matches and finding some way to bullshit his way through it every time. It's gold. I'm half expecting the Gavin to be ready to grab the belt only for Luscious or someone to climb the ladder on her man's behalf to get into a tug of war which, somehow, ends with the title falling on Hotbody's corpse for the win. Ziggy Styles promos are fucking awesome too. That perfect type of annoying heel that even the other heels are like STFU.

Were this a real show I would imagine getting pressure to do some kind of Christmas themed nonsense and I figured doing a night like this would help break up some of the monotony. Plus, it's a cheap way to get some of these Bragging Rights matches booked, the ladder match especially.

Doing 4-on-1 would be amazing. I don't like handicap matches, but I would allow it for an angle like this. First and foremost I would want Elimination Chamber. Needless to say, there's a different approach I'm taking with Kincaid. I feel like he's been really underutilized and what I've got in store for him should help reinvigorate him, if only for a bit. The end game is still getting around to doing Haven vs. Dark, but there's a lot I need to do to get there. I'm cooking up quite the fireworks factory.

Speaking of which, booking Hotbody the way I have has been a treat. Doing a ladder match should make for some more idiocy from him. Your idea for the finish would be hilarious, but I could absolutely envision the same finish from King of the Ring 1999 with the Magic Briefcase where someone lowers the belt all the fucking way down to the ground so that he doesn't have to climb.

I've got time coming up so I need to use it wisely and try to finish up December. The dread of the Rumble is coming up, too. I'm both looking and not looking forward to that ordeal.

[M-A-G]

Superstars: December 20, 2040

It's time for another edition of the Hot Button with everyone's favortie host, The Hero to Millions Around the World, the Host With THE Highest Rated Interview Show In All of Entertainment, The New Age Intellectual Savior to the Masses, The 2031 Fulton County First Place Conga Award Winner, The Luscious Lover of the Manager of the Year Slammy Award Winner and Undefeated Steel Cage Master and REAL 2040 King of the Ring, The Supreme Submission Machine, Mister Twenty-Forty, The Two Time Slammy Award Winner Including the Rookie of the Year and the Most Envied Superstar of the Year, the Man Who is the Rightful Winner of the Slammy for Cruiserweight of the Year, Former WWE Cruiserweight Champion-Elect, the Cruiserweight Champion Michael Hotbody! Hotbody has his crew with him as he wants to talk about what went down on Raw and the match that Gavin Jones wants to have with him at Bragging Rights.

"Now far be it from me to want to have a gripe with a proposed match as I am the most fighting-est Cruiserweight Champion in history, but I have to say that this ladder match that Gavin wants to have, well, it's just not going to work for me. Now, I am well aware of the horribly veiled threats to my person that Gavin made to me should I try to pull some kind of shenanigans to get out of this match. Look, no one is looking more forward to beating the snot out of Gavin Jones than I am, OK? I am watering at the mouth thinking about conquering another delusional opponent who thinks they're better than me! I WANT to face Gavin Jones! But, this is a bridge too far and it has nothing to do with any kind of tricks of any kind. My CRACK LEGAL TEAM Galino & Farnes is out here with me to explain the situation and how I cannot be penalized for refusing to partake in Gavin's silliness. What this is all about is something that I've kept to myself and is very difficult for me to confess in public. It's embarrassing and deeply personal and I know it may lower my image in the eyes of my multitude of fans across the world. It's something that I've kept from even my dear Luscious. But in light of what Gavin is asking for, I feel the need to bring it to light and I only pray that you, Luscious, don't think of me as less of a man because of it. This isn't easy for me, but it's necessary. The ladder match that Gavin demanded between himself and me can't happen because...I'm afraid of heights!" The crowd boos as Luscious looks shocked but sympathetic. The announcers express their doubts as Hotbody continues.

"No, it's true. It's something I've carried with me for practically my entire life. It's why I'm a champion conga dancer and not a skydiver or bungee jumper or pilot. I'm just a nervous, sweaty mess when I have to deal with heights, OK? Gavin, I know you earned your spot as number one contender and I know you had the right to name a stipulation, but those rights mean nothing if they are going to be discriminatory! I turn things over to Galino & Farnes to elaborate."

Freddie Galino takes the mic and continues from where Hotbody left off. "In this line of business, forcing someone into a situation where there is a clear disadvantage towards one party due to any physical or psychological ailments is unfair. What Gavin Jones and Lisa Benton have done is orchestrate a scenario in which our client cannot possibly win. The rights of our client take precedence as you wouldn't ask someone with a fear of blood to participate in a First Blood match. This is yet another gross abuse of authority excerised by Lisa Benton."

Jimmy Farnes takes over, following up on Galino's statement. "But fear not because Michael Hotbody is not without mercy. Gavin Jones and the WWE can avoid any unnecessary legal drama by simply calling off the match and have Gavin relinquish his status as number one contender to the WWE Cruiserweight Title, whereupon Michael Hotbody will find a suitable replacement, one who will not be so brazen in exploiting a severe handicap. This is the only fair and just and acceptable outcome, otherwise Lisa Benton will be facing some very real discrimination paperwork! We have the necessary documents lined up and ready so the threat is very real and if Gavin Jones had even slightest bit of humanity in him, he would make the moves to limit his liability!"

Speak of the devil and he'll appear as Gavin Jones has evidently heard enough and makes his way out to respond to all of this. He's wiping his brow in what appears to be frustration, but nonetheless he presses on. "Michael, I only just became the number one contender a few weeks ago and I'm already God damn sick of you. That's talent right there. You don't have a fear of heights, you have a fear of being a man. You have a fear of the ass kicking that's been long overdue. I warned you about what was coming to you if you tried to weasel your way out this. Unlike you, I don't view that belt as a toy to carry around with that trophy bitch you got. That belt, to me, means that you're the best at what you do, so having to watch you, day in and day out, walk around with it pisses me off to no end."

Michael interrupts Gavin with an incredulous tone. "Yeah, well, what the hell do you want to do about it? You're not going to get your match and I've got my entire crew here ready to back me up in wiping the floor with you! I should let you get in here and take your licks for daring to insult my precious Luscious! It's the least I could do for her being so understanding and supporting even after learning about my deepest, darkest secret. But I have a lot to process and consider after all of this so the best thing you can do, Gavin, is go walking back to Lisa Benton and have a good cry with each other. You have nobody to blame but yourself for this!"

Gavin stares at the site in the ring, but he appears undeterred by the entirety of Hotbody's crew. "That would be smart, but unlike you, Mikey, I actually have balls and I can actually back it up."

Gavin starts to make his way down to the ring but who should interrupt this turn of events but Miles Shawcross! He comes out to the stage bemoaning what he's seeing. He tells Gavin that sometimes things need to just be let go and that he's holding up the show with all of this self righteous horse crap. The people want to see a real top level cruiserweight and Miles Shawcross is all that and then some! In fact, he'll be happy to take Gavin down a peg or two by facing him tonight!

Michael Hotbody takes this opportunity to deflect from himself and calls out Gavin Jones, asking him if he's going to just stand there and take that from Miles. "Well, seeing as how Gavin isn't going to get any kind of match out of me and the fact that I'm willing to show a bit of mercy, I don't see why Gavin can't get his jollies by facing Miles Shawcross here tonight! We'll let you two hash things out. Gavin, hopefully when we next meet, it's under better circumstances and this ladder match nonsense is behind us!" And with that, Hotbody signals his crew that they should depart. They make their way through the crowd as Gavin and Miles exchange stares.

First Match: Mathias vs. Steve Hayes
Nothing really major here. Just some quality big man on big man action. I figure if Simon Bennett is going to be parked in the same camp as a guy like Mathias, then the dude should get some shine here and there. Anyways, Mathias gets a hard-fought win here, finishing Hayes off with a Goliath Gore for the pin. ****1/2, 90% overall.

Promo time as somewhere backstage Dusk is with her raven, Sorrow. Faith Connors is what's on their mind. Well, Dusk's mind, but I like to imagine she and the bird are simpatico. Anyways, what's she got to say about the Parkour Princess? "Can you sense it, Faith? Can you not feel it all around you? That shining spotlight under which you exist and thrive is slowly being engulfed by a vile, choking, all-consuming blackness. It eminates from me, Faith, and it has no compassion. I hope that in your mind you didn't truly believe you were always going to remain safe in that light forever. Light ultimately reaches two possible outcomes: it burns out...or it is extinguished."

Elsewhere backstage, Cameron Harper is pacing in the dressing area when Ethan Lang walks in. Lang has a rather disapproving expression on his face as he confronts Harper. Harper is quick to be defensive as he addresses Lang. "OK, look, I know why you're upset. Believe me, I'd be just as upset if the situation was reversed. I blew it on Raw, and I'm sorry, OK?"

"Blowing it is a bit of an understatement, Cameron," Lang counters. "It wasn't that you made a simple mistake or that you got out-wrestled by someone better than you. You just flat out ignored Jake Connelly and what he was trying to do for you on Monday in that match! The same Jake Connelly you made such a stink about wanting to learn from and have as your manager! And you missed out on that contract. Think of what you could've done with that, man!"

"Yeah, yeah, I get it, Ethan," Cameron continues. "I'm well aware now of how badly I screwed the pooch. Believe me, I've spent a lot of hours thinking over the matches I could've booked for myself."

"Wait, for yourself? You could've used that contract to give the two of us a shot at the Tag Team Championship."

"Oh, right, right, of course. Of course I was absolutely thinking about the two of us!" Cameron assures Ethan. "Of course, if you really think about it, it would've been MY choice since it would've been ME doing all the work in winning the match so I'm not sure where you would fit in to all of it...."

Jake Connelly comes in to interrupt this exchange that looks like it's getting more tense as Ethan looks offended at what Cameron said. Connelly tries to calm things down. "Hey, hey, let's not go all out of control sniping at each other here, OK? Ethan, you don't need to browbeat Cameron. He made a mistake, this is a learning opportunity. That's why we accepted him into the fold, right, because he wanted to learn?" Ethan inhales deeply and lets it out as he begrudgingly agrees with Connelly. Connelly continues, however. "Now with that being said, Cameron, I take it that you're going to listen to me from here on out, right? Opportunities like the one on Raw don't come around often and they need to be snatched up when you can. The two of you are capable of great things, I know it. But it's not going to happen if there isn't a united dedication. The sky is the limit, guys. So tonight, let's get on the same page. What happened on Monday, we're just going to set it aside. We're going to build on that. We're going to make so much noise that opportunity will be breaking down our doors. Emilio London and Doyle Hughes, the Wolves of Wall Street, they haven't seen a pack like this before. Let's do this, alright?" And with that, Ethan and Cameron look at each other, give a nod and bump fists. Looks like things are back in order on this end.

Second Match: Southern Gentlemen vs. The Wyldhearts
Madison gets on the mic and announces that Lisa Benton has made it official that her boys, the Unified Tag Team Champions The Wyldhearts, will be defending the title against the former champions The Royal Effect next week on the SmackDown! Send-Off. Blaine and Robbie have been looking forward to that match just as much as Kavovit and McKay have because it's a chance to show the Royal Effect how it wasn't a fluke when her boys took the belts the first time around. The Wyldhearts are more than just a couple of pretty faces, and it looks like Kavovit and McKay have been getting too wrapped up in their own hype to remember that fact. "You can't call yourselves the Best Tag Team if you're not wearing these belts. We'll be waiting for you next week." To say this match is fire is underselling it quite a bit. A far cry from that first match, this is a great display of technique and high-flying goodness. The champs look to finish things cleanly here as Murdoch gets back body dropped over the top rope to the outside by Bellamey. Brody Lee moves in to try to clothesline Bellamey but the latter ducks. Greer comes back in and joins Bellamey and Lee turns around from his missed opportunity and eats the Heartstopper from the champions to give them the win. It's celebration time as the Wyldhearts hold up their belts in victory, but in true heel tag team fashion, the Royal Effect come sneaking in from behind to lay them out. Things are getting uglier and uglier between these two teams. *****, 95% overall.

Third Match: Gavin Jones vs. Miles Shawcross
Michael Hotbody plants himself at ringside to provide commentary and his expert insight on Gavin Jones. This match is all goodness all around. I figure giving Gavin a lot of strong outings helps in Hotbody putting out a strong aura of fear so that the audience buys Gavin having a good shot at dethroning him at Bragging Rights. Hotbody continues to reiterate his point about not going through with a ladder match as the match goes on. He's not going to walk into a situation where he's at an obvious disadvantage. It's discrimination at its worst and Gavin should feel ashamed of himself for even bringing it up! Anyways, Shawcross and Gavin slug it out on the top rope as Gavin tries escaping an attempt at a superplex from Shawcross. Hotbody declares that he's a nervous wreck just looking at this and that he'd be sweating Crisco if had to be at that height. Jones eventualy wins the exchange by landing a massive European uppercut on Shawcross that sends the latter flying back into the ring in perfect position for Jones to come off with the Frog Splash and get the win by pinfall. Jones then proceeds to stare a hole through Hotbody, for all the good it does him as Zed stands in the way of anything Gavin might be thinking about. How is this situation going to get resolved? *****, 95% overall.

Fourth Match: The Wolves of Wall Street vs. Ethan Lang and Cameron Harper
Well, let's see if that backstage pow-wow meant anything. Harper comes across as more reserved here, not going off half-cocked like in previous outings. I feel bad having a perfectly fine team in the Wolves that I can utilize as major players, but I'm sticking them out here to further an angle. Oh, well, it's not like the match sucks or anything. It breaks down at the end with all four men battling it out. Lang sends London to the outside through the middle rope. He goes down to one knee to get his breath with his back turned. Meanwhile, Hughes sets himself up as he looks like he's going to charge Lang. Lang starts to get back up and Hughes pounces by going for a big boot but Harper shoves Lang out of the way and ends up eating the kick instead. Hughes is confused as he looks down on Harper's body and Lang capitalizes by doing that twisty Booker T sunset flip thing on Hughes to get the roll up and the pin. Connelly and Lang check on Harper, but he's fine and Connelly looks proud as it looks like everyone is operating like one. ****1/2, 93% overall.

More backstage interview goodness as Paul Andrews is with Simon Bennett. Bennett gets asked why he picked the chain on Monday to be legal in his match against Adam Hail at Bragging Rights from all of the available choices. Bennett says that it wasn't an easy choice. "I stood there on that stage on Monday looking at all the options. Each time I looked at an object, my mind would race with creativity, thinking about what would bring me the most joy when I used it on Adam. What was going to put the biggest smile on my face as I put it to good use in beating the smugness out of his ass. The chain, though, caught my eye for one major reason. It's symbolic. A chain is all about connection, linking things together. Well, Adam had a link with me. We forged a chain together. A then he decided to throw it all away. He decided to break that chain. Well, congratulations for that, Adam, because now it's come full circle and I'm going to enjoy using that chain to bring karma right to your doorstep. And with each choke, with each whip, and with each fist you experience, I hope the thing that runs through your mind is the question of what the hell you were thinking in ever turning your back on me! The chain that you so callously discarded is going to be the thing that comes back around and wrecks you at Bragging Rights!"

Fifth Match: The Future Foundation and Vivian Merrick vs. The Academy and...Cordelia Capriati???
Wait a second. On Monday, Cordelia looked like she finally had enough of Brooke and her attitude. What is she doing here now? Sophie Waters gets on the mic and explains the situation. "Let me set the stage for everyone, especially Brooke, who is no doubt throwing a tantrum and pulling her hair out as she watches this. Much like Randy Ellis and Justin Mitchell before her, Cordelia was fortunate enough to stumble into a revelation. And that revelation was a simple one, one that I even had way back when. And that is the fact that Brooke is such a bitch. A snobby, screeching, stuck up, know-it-all little bitch to be more precise. Her loss is my gain, though, as I can actually appreciate these three outstanding talents. But don't worry, Brooke. I know you had high hopes for them. So take comfort in knowing that I'll be helping them along the way in reaching those high hopes." Well, how about that for a wrinkle? Sophie's words prove prophetic as her crew looks like they've got things well in hand here. It shouldn't be a surprise, as they operated as a unit before, just under different circumstances. Anyways, it boils down to Vivian and Cordelia as the legal participants. Vivian reverses an Irish whip from Cordelia, sending her into the corner. Vivian tries following up with a charge, but she eats knees from Cordelia. That sends Vivian reeling backwards, dazed and hurting and Cordelia strikes while the iron is hot, coming off the turnbuckle to nail Vivian with the Crowning Achievement to score the pin. How is all of this going to affect Brooke and what remains of her crew? ****1/2, 91% overall.

Sixth Match: Orlando Kincaid vs. Josh Turmell
Quinten McDaniels comes down to join the announce team for commentary as we're told that so far nobody has heard anything about what Kincaid plans to do with the contract that he won on Monday. Quinten says that it's a good thing and that it's a sign that maybe, just maybe, Orlando is coming around to what Quinten, Chet, and Hugo have been asking from him. Orlando has a history with Quinten and Chet, and it's not something so easily forgotten, but perhaps Orlando just needs a few reminders. The match goes on smoothly as Quinten observes and regales us all with stories of his time with Orlando. Orlando looks laser focused here. The calm can't last forever, though, as Josh ends up stumbling to the outside in front of the announce table. Quinten sees this as an opportunity to lend a hand and he gets up and goes over to Josh. Orlando yells at Quinten to back the hell off. Quinten looks shocked and incredulous and tries pleading his case again. Orlando isn't hearing it, though, and he heads out to grab Josh himself and sends him back into the ring. Quinten and Orlando exchange words as Orlando threatens Quinten again. Quinten turns back around to go back to the announce table, but Josh baseball slides into Orlando, sending him into Quinten. Josh brings Orlando back into the ring and he goes up, looking to land a crossbody block, but Orlando rolls through with it and ends up on top and scores the pin. Orlando celebrates, but here comes Quinten to ruin things as he slides in behind Orlando and nails him, sending him to the mat. Quinten yells at the fallen Orlando and pulls him up only to send him to the outside. Quinten looks disappointed and conflicted, but ultimately he decides to send Orlando into the steps. Quinten decides that an exclamation point needs to be added so he picks up part of the steps and nails Orlando in the face with it when he tries getting up. If Orlando hadn't wanted to be a part of whatever Quinten was offering, I doubt it's happening now. ****1/2, 92% overall.

MAIN EVENT: Haven vs. Hugo
I started with big man on big man, it feels right to end the show the same way. This is the kind of match I feel I can get away with putting on a show like Superstars as the main event. The real money match I would imagine people wanting to pay to see is the eventual Haven vs. Victor Dark showdown. As you'd expect, this is a power match, helped by Haven's overness and more athletic prowess. Hugo just monsters his way through this, and it's an odd sight seeing Haven as a vulnerable underdog, but here we are. That Victor Dark is such a weasel. A cunning weasel, though. Haven starts a comeback after surprisingly nailing a Stun Gun on Hugo, disorienting the big man. It comes to an end when Haven looks to hit the Sting of Solace, but Hugo escapes and back body drops Haven to the outside. Chet Morris comes over and taunts Haven while the latter is on his knees, but Haven responds by grabbing Chet by the throat as he gets up. Hugo goes out to continue the match and breaks up the grasp Haven has on Chet. Haven shoves Hugo away, but that leaves him open to Chet just kicking him in the balls to draw the DQ. Things looks bad for Haven in this 2-on-1 scenario but fortunately Eddy Clash comes running down, chair in hand to help chase away the heels. Quinten McDaniels comes down to withdraw his crew as we're left to ponder just how Eddy Clash and Haven are going to fight this battle fairly when it's just the two of them? ****1/2, 92% overall.

Overall show rating: 89%