AEW Promotion of the YEAR?! NJPW World Tag League Finals

The moment John Cena smiled and tapped to Gunther split the fanbase in two. We go beyond the finish to ask a bigger question: did WWE earn that ending, or did they skip the story that would have made it sting in the right way? We sketch the simple month-long build that could have turned a polarizing tap into a legendary farewell—public choke-outs, relentless promos, and a final match where inevitability felt earned and both men left larger.

From there, we widen the lens to a year that’s been all whiplash. AEW’s three-hour Dynamite exposed how fatigue creeps in when great matches lack a narrative spine—but when MJF returned, the gap between star and standout was obvious. He doesn’t just cut a promo; he raises the ceiling for Swerve, Hangman, and Joe by sheer presence. Is that enough to call AEW promotion of the year? It depends on your metric: match quality or storytelling continuity. We debate both, honestly.

We also pick apart NXT’s viral botch and what it reveals about live production, contingency, and how a chaotic moment can still “make” a talent. Then we head to New Japan, where House of Torture’s gleeful nonsense, the Young Lion system, and an anime-like canon prove that growth and memory are the true engines of wrestling storytelling. Zack Sabre Jr. remains a master technician with minimal flash; meanwhile, wrestlers with aura win hearts before the lock-up. It’s a lesson every company can use: honor continuity, and the crowd will carry you to the payoff.

If you like straight talk, hard laughs, and real solutions, you’re in the right place. Hit follow, share this with a wrestling friend who argues in caps, and drop a review to tell us: tap or pass out—what’s the better goodbye?

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Chapters

• 0:34 Hosts Set The Tone
• 1:42 Pinkies Out For Pro Wrestling
• 2:48 Cena’s Farewell And Gunther’s Win
• 5:21 How WWE Could Have Booked It Better
• 9:20 Tap, Pass Out, And Protecting Aura
• 12:42 Personal Memories Tied To Cena
• 18:38 Legends, Rubs, And Sting’s Exit
• 22:28 SmackDown Notes And Cody vs Drew
• 26:43 AEW’s Three-Hour Dynamite Fatigue
• 29:05 MJF Returns And Real Star Power
• 33:28 Promotion Of The Year Debate
• 37:55 NXT Botch Chaos And Backstage Rules
• 43:50 Iron Survivor Logic And Call-Ups
• 49:21 First Real Look At New Japan
• 53:02 Characters, Aura, And ZSJ’s Ceiling
• 57:30 House Of Torture’s Beautiful Nonsense
• 1:01:12 Young Lions And Long-Form Stories
• 1:06:20 Canon, Continuity, And AEW’s Gaps
• 1:10:30 Best Matches Vs Best Storytelling
• 1:13:42 Is This Wrestling’s Worst Year?
• 1:16:51 Sign-Off And Listener Support

Transcript

SPEAKER_01: 0:00

AW is that one shorty who give you the best. But that bitch crazy. But she a pillow princess.

SPEAKER_02: 0:19

See your side piece. It's AEW.

SPEAKER_01: 0:34

Welcome to another episode of the Big Brothers of Destruction podcast. It's Damasuku. It's your boy, Swag Switcher in the building. And as always, it's the demon that be leaving your girl screaming. All right.

SPEAKER_00: 0:49

The demon that be leaving your girl screaming.

SPEAKER_01: 0:51

Oh no, man. I'm trying to make up something better.

SPEAKER_00: 0:53

It's coming. I mean, see, I mean, see, the funny thing is I've always had one. I have several. Yes. I got the marker perfection with the platinum complexion. You know, what is it? The uh the king of bling, the embodiment of swag. Like, I I can go on for.

SPEAKER_01: 1:12

I mean, I had Manica Lee General Miles Fleet back in the day, but that wasn't really like a similar moniker, you know.

SPEAKER_00: 1:18

I mean, well, I mean, you could. Well, actually, no, that now that you say that, that originally kind of was that was, yeah, yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_01: 1:26

So I don't, I'm not, I'm not added anymore. So, anyway, guys, uh, welcome to another episode, as I said before, where we are going to uh elegantly pull our pinkies out and uh talk about um wrestling while sipping tea. So uh swag, you weren't here last episode and uh very much talked about my frustrations from the John Cena uh Farewell Tour and how Gunther took that win and how John Cena went out like a bitch.

SPEAKER_00: 1:59

But it's uh it's crazy. And there is so much that could be said, but I'll I'm gonna try and keep it uh I'm gonna try and keep it sweet because uh the overall pay-per-view was not bad, or or or whatever you want to consider Saturday Nightmare, man. If it's really technically a pay per view, it's a pay-per-view kind of sort of.

SPEAKER_01: 2:22

PLE we forget, sorry.

SPEAKER_00: 2:24

But like I know my ultimate view on this whole John Cena uh in the moment and in the moment it was weird uh with how it went down and and and and how the finish was. Um but I know in the moment I thought it was kind of goofy the way that he went out with the you know the smile and the little baby tap type situation. Now, in the hindsight of it all, I understand what they were trying to do, type situation, and I get the whole idea of it's John Cena being like, you know what? It's okay to let go and all this other stuff, all right? And that's fine and dead, but for me, I think the end all be all situation of this whole ordeal is just the fact that they've dropped the ball all the way through this whole deal, and I feel that the ending that we got is because that's all they have, that's all that they thought they had the capacity to be able to deliver. Because as I've said throughout this whole John Cena run, you this could have been this was an easy thing for them to do, and they overbooked and overcomplicated it. You know what would have actually like if we wanted to keep this exact ending the exact same way that it happened, you know what would have made this ending completely okay and no one would have complained about it? And what would that be good, sir? If we told a story about Gunther, instead of Gunther doing a stupid gimmick fucking tournament, imagine if Gunther just showed up and said, Hey, John Cena, I'm going to beat you, I'm going to choke you out, and I'm gonna make you give up. And we had a month of Gunther going on and on about the fact that he's going to show up, beat him, brutalize him, choke him out, and make him give up. We see a couple of matches of Gunther literally just beating people like that, and then having a mode where John Cena acknowledges Gunther and is all like, no, I'm not gonna go out like that. You're not gonna beat me. I'm never going to give up, and and all this other stuff. And there at least they have two confrontations, and then, you know, one time, and then one time they leave us where Gunther does jump John Cena and then choke his ass out, and then he's standing over him like he won type deal before the match, kind of thing. And then it's all like, damn, is that really what's gonna happen? Oh man, what's gonna go down? And then everything plays out exactly as it did. John Cena does all this fighting, blah, blah, blah. And then when he realizes that, like, damn, there's really nothing else that I could do. Now, granted, I do think he could have sold a little bit better at that tail end, like, give it a little bit more kind of thing. Because a lot of people say the fact that they wanted to make sure that Gunther had to win by tap out because, you know, John Cena just passing out would not be a strong enough win for Gunther to make him be this, you know, the most hated diabolical thing that is out there. And I can kind of understand that. I do feel they could have still just let John Cena at least pass out, or he passed out in a way where it's like you see him really trying to fight, and you really see the light just get snuffed out by Gunther. Like he still never gave up. Well, even in the sense he technically gave up. Even in the sense of him, like not like, you know, because you know, not Tappy is like, you see, he's like, he's trying so hard, and you just and you just like, you know, you sell the fact that Gunther got that shit locked in so hard. Like you're fading, and you see John Cena fading, and it's like you see the fact that he's like, damn, like you like you, he gives you that facial that that that that facial expression of that look of someone who realizes, oh, I'm about to die right now.

SPEAKER_01: 7:41

Yeah, like if he can make his face like turn red, which you could you know, tense your face up, yeah, like that.

SPEAKER_00: 7:47

Yeah, like like, and this is talk about if going the non-tapping route. You know what I'm saying? Because a lot of people, I I well, I've heard people compare it to different things, but one of my favorite ones was when they compared it to when Optimus Prime went into this, went into his fight with Megatron, being like, hey y'all, so um, I know I'm probably going to die, okay? But I'm gonna go into this fight anyway because it's what I have to do. And when I do die, just know I'm okay with that. I am okay with dying right here right now. But I just need that once that does happen, someone else is gonna come in and continue what I pick up where I left off at. Yeah. Because that's really the whole thing that John Cena was wanting to get across. It's like he has died, but now someone has to come and pick up where he left off at.

SPEAKER_01: 8:40

The thing about it is with that though, Gunther, by the way, your team might be getting cold. Uh, with Gunther, though, nobody's really gonna do that because now it's gonna be legend after legend after legend that they're trying to get and sell this, like he's knocking off the legends, because now we know from you know Fightful Select and all them kind of people that Brock is gonna get uh Gunther's gonna retire Brock.

SPEAKER_00: 9:06

So when it comes to that piece, that is a later on down the line issue that they will have to deal with. And when it comes to that piece, but the but even then though, it's like, yeah, so he does that, but in this process, we because as I've I I've I've made the statement before, Atlas is gone. Okay, Atlas is crazy. Atlas is no longer here, so somebody has to hold the weight and the burden of the world on their back since Atlas is gone. Granted, at well, I no, not gonna be nice, but uh, but yeah, like you know, someone has to take that spot. If it's gonna be Cody Rose or if someone new is gonna come up from the from the ashes of John Cena's uh uh uh uh uh uh metaphorical death.

SPEAKER_01: 10:00

Well, Cody does want to do John's uh strongman feats. He's mentioning once John is done, he wants to be able to do his uh his strongman feats. But I'm like, nigga, you ain't strong John Cena though.

SPEAKER_00: 10:11

He has to get he has to get there. But it's like the overall thing for me though is with the John with the the the finish I'm the finish I am okay with after you know in the moment in in the hindsight of it all uh and as far as how I felt it's weird because like compared to what he was talking about it, it's like I remember at one point I was like, I ain't gonna feel no sad or I ain't gonna cry about this guy, but I ain't gonna lie, it did happen, but it wasn't because of what happened in the match. My feelings and my like how I felt about the moment that was going on, it wasn't whatever happened with the match, it was more so just the idea of the fact that John Cena is going and what he represented and what kind of a staple he has played, you know, in my life and uh with the people who were around me type thing. Like I know you being a big John Cena fan, the uh what came to my mind as well was you know, our brother Big Cease. He was a big John Cena fan. Yeah, man. And like there was a moment it's making me all Yeah, I know but there was like there was a moment that I was like, oh John Cena's gone. Yeah, my boy, he is also God, yeah, that kind of thing. But it's like that that thing that linked us together, yeah type deal. It was like, and so I had I had that moment, and I was like, Okay. Alright, I guess I'll miss John Cena a little bit.

SPEAKER_01: 12:10

It it was it's definitely a thing, man, because when I was I forgot I was with I'm with my partners last night, and uh suddenly uh I'm scrolling through Facebook and it was showing me all of John Cena's interests for WrestleMania. And I'm like, man, from the Doctor of Thugonomics theme and him coming out to the ring. And I noticed that here comes the pain. They literally could cut cut and copied that interest from when he went against Big Show for the US title, straight from that that interest. Watch it again, watch it again, and then watch John Cena come out like you know, do all that shit that straight from the motherfucking WrestleMania one. And I was like, wow, that's crazy. And then just to think, I'm hearing the theme song and I'm seeing this, and I'm like, I'm never gonna hear this again in the way I would want to hear it. Yeah, because he's still gonna make appearances, but to me, honestly, him coming out in a suit to that song does not feel right.

SPEAKER_00: 13:13

Yeah, it's like the like when like after he got beat, and then he's like he's staying in the ring, and you know, he's doing all that stuff. It's it's almost as if like what was happening on the TV did not actually matter. It was because like I didn't care about John Cena winning or losing to Gunther, really, but it was more so just the overall idea that this is going to be the last time I'm seeing him in that particular kind of capacity. And then it was the initial just thinking of all of the past moments that I've had, good or bad, in reaction to whatever John Cena was doing. And so one of my one of my top moment, there's two very top moments of reacting to what John Cena has done. That, you know, that that always that comes to mind if I was going to say like my quote unquote favorite Cena moment. Okay. And it was like thir number 30? Yeah, he was number 30. Yes, that shit was high. It is more so my favorite in the sense that it is the most rememorable moment for me because of how fucking pissed I was that he showed up because there was no way that he would he should have come back. Like he was not gone long enough. I was told this thing is supposed to be gone for like six to eight months. Six to eight months. He came back in three. I'm over here thinking six to eight months of no John Cena, maybe I'm gonna miss him finally. And then he comes in at number 30. And at the time, I remember it was like what triple H was in the ring. I know Batista was in the ring. I think Edge was in there, yeah. And I I want to say it was like somebody else. And I'm over here, I'm like, at that time, I'm like, Triple H wins, fuck it, sure. Batista, I'm for it at this time. Fuck Edge. God, I hate that motherfucker. Yes, and uh, but like, and whoever else was like, anyone just give it to Batista, give him this W. And then all of a sudden, John C. His music starts playing. I remember Cecil, he's going crazy. He's like, yo, he's back. I'm over here like, oh my.

SPEAKER_01: 15:51

And then he fucking wins. Um, you gotta you gotta give him credit, though. He did have an injury where he was supposed to be gone that long, and he recovered. He he hit the gym, he did rehab, and he was able to make it.

SPEAKER_00: 16:04

Yes, he fucking was. And you know what? Good for him, but fuck him at that very moment when it was happening. That shit was hype as fuck. JR was losing it. Bro, at the time, because I think everyone was at the house when we was watching it, and we all were losing it too. In different ways. Yes, in different ways. Because I I was losing it because I'm like, because as soon as his music started playing, I'm like, fuck, he's gonna win. And then next person gets eliminated. Oh my god, John Cena's gonna win. Another person gets eliminated. Fuck. Why is he winning this? He doesn't need to win this, and then he wins, and now I'm just yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_01: 16:51

A lot of people's opinions on it are different. What's the second one? Now I'm curious. The second one.

SPEAKER_00: 16:56

So the second one, it was I'm a little cloudy on it, but it was, I think it was during a time when John Cena was kind of sort of feuding with John Laronidas. And it was a pay-per-view where John Cena was fighting someone, and like if he was to win, it would like like John Laronidas would just go away. Oh yeah, yeah, yeah. And whatnot. And I'll never and if I was actually, I I haven't, I gotta, I gotta look for it. Because the picture exists. There is a picture of me sitting there where at the wing house, I have my heavyweight title on my shoulder, and it would be the it is the first time anyone had ever seen me in full John Cena garbage. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I never forget that. I had the I had the green hat on. Never forget that. I had the green shirt. Never forget. I had the I put my little I had my spinner chain on that said, you can't see me. I was, and this was at a time when I severely still disliked John Cena, but I hated the person who he was going up against a lot worse. And you know what John Cena did? He failed me. He lost the fucking match. John Leonard and I stayed there, and I wore all of that shit for absolutely nothing. I was livid. Absolutely livid. But yeah. Thanks for the thanks for the memories, even if they weren't so great.

SPEAKER_01: 18:42

Nah. Um, it was I'm trying to see if I could find it. There was the John Laronidas match where he went against John Laronidas. I think that was the one. It was at a big show. Oh, yeah, because Big Show came out there.

SPEAKER_00: 18:56

There it is. Yeah, yeah. And John Laronidas won, and I was just like, come the fu John Cena had one job. One job. And he let me go. But yeah. Overall, John Cena will be missed, but it is too bad they've done him the injustice of giving him a very pisspoor retirement run. And it's funny, because something that I want to just bring up and say out loud, because when people were talking about the fact of like, you know, John Cena should have won, kind of thing, and they talk about when Sting won and stuff like that. Whenever we talk when when when wrestlers retire, you know, whether they're gonna win or lose, usually they say, you know, you lose and you put over the person on your way out. Yeah. And it's like Sting, and I know I've told you this on the phone. When we talked about it briefly, I was like, when people talk about like oh yeah, well, well, Sting, he won on the way out. He didn't put the Young Bucks over. And I'm like, to a certain degree, he did put the Young Bucks over because they were heels. But also at the same time, Sting won. It was a tag team match. Sting winning, Sting won that match with Darby Allen. And for all intents and purposes, Sting really put Darby Allen on with that match. Sting and Darby Allen Sting winning that match with Darby Allen. It obviously, you know, let Sting have a very glorious retirement. But he also, like through the whole time, it put Darby Allen over because Darby Allen, number one, won the tag team titles with Sting. And then number two, Darby Allen, for all intents and purposes, Darby Allen got the rub, got the Sting rub. Like he passed down.

SPEAKER_01: 21:03

He's starting, he's now doing the Scorpion Def Like and everything.

SPEAKER_00: 21:05

Exactly. Like he's officially like he's passed down pretty much, you know, the Sting's tutelage type thing. Like what he has learned from Sting. He has Sting's bat down. And so it's like Sting, though he did not lose, he still did the thing that you do when you retire, and that's put over the other talent on the way out. And so it's like John Cena, to a certain degree, yes, he is, you know, him losing is putting over Gunther. And I feel if he would have beaten Gunther, there is a way where they could have done it to put Gunther over and let John Cena win at the same time. Because in my mind, what I would have cut what I would have said they could have done is let John Cena win, give everybody their happy ending, right? And you know how John Cena left out and stuff like that. And it's like you're they show John Cena he's leaving and he's you know shaking hands with everybody, passing Gorilla and everything. And that's when you have Gunther go and jump him and dog walk him after the match.

SPEAKER_01: 22:17

But how would you prevent people from like backstage eating into that situation?

SPEAKER_00: 22:23

Because it's Gunther.

SPEAKER_01: 22:26

So people don't want to go up there.

SPEAKER_00: 22:28

No, no one or because it is Gunther, maybe someone some like people do try to break it up. Yeah. And then Gunther beats the shit out of them, and then he continues to beat up John Cena. And then he like does a thing where it's like almost as if he like he he like he injures John Cena. And then since John Cena's gone, you know, it's like on his way out, it's like, you know, like we find out on Monday, it's like, yeah, John Cena's got like three cracked ribs and you know, uh severed spine and a broken pinky toe and all this other shit. You know, like like like he's you know in a in a bruised neck, you know, and all this other stuff in a slight concussion, like like like he beats John Cena. Like AJ Styles did. I'm talking up John Cena. I'm talking, I'm like, sh like short of running him over with a semi-truck type shit, bro. Like, beat John Cena. And now, John Cena, he got his win, but on the way out, he has now allowed Gunther to look like this monster, destructive force of nature who is now pissed off and just wants blood type situation. And so it's like Sulda woulda coulda. Shoulda about a Honda. But instead, we got what we got.

SPEAKER_01: 23:57

And can you imagine if they if he would have done a similar thing, like where a big show threw John in that light? Anything, fam. Yeah, I'm just saying, that would've been.

SPEAKER_00: 24:07

It could have been they they could have done anything. But uh, but right now, we all know WWE's not firing on all cylinders in the creative department right now. They are uh very uh well, I don't know, man.

SPEAKER_01: 24:24

We got recent news and it's all over the internet because you know, people can't pull out, people can't go to a wrestling event and not pull out a goddamn phone. But our boy, Carmelo Hayes fully has a fucking title.

SPEAKER_00: 24:41

Uh, I mean, so yeah, this that that that's this is talking about stuff that I I think technically all that happens this week. Uh no, it happens, yeah, next week. Next Friday. Yeah, next Friday is when it's going to happen. Carmelo Hayes is going to. You know what's crazy is the fact, like talking about what's going to happen on SmackDown, it's like it's kind of almost it's almost fine to talk about it right now because I watched SmackDown. Nothing happened on Smackdown.

SPEAKER_01: 25:11

Yeah, no, nothing. I mean, besides the really cool match that those two had that Drag and Carmelo had against DIY, that was a cool match.

SPEAKER_00: 25:19

Like, the only things that was really worth noting about SmackDown is that uh uh Drew McIntyre damn near has like a restraining order on Cody Rhodes. Uh the YS6 and uh the the the SMTs are um are feuding it are feuding against each other. And and and now they're they're like it's now they're going at each other for real, for real.

SPEAKER_01: 25:49

Here's the thing you didn't uh no, I don't know if anybody notices this about the stipulation with Cody situation. Cody can't touch him. There is no stipulation that he can't touch Cody, and that's where the line is gonna get drawn later. Think about it.

SPEAKER_00: 26:08

That is the wording that they kind of promoted.

SPEAKER_01: 26:12

And once they said that shit, I said, okay, now this is basically Triple H and uh Austin all over again. Remember when Triple H was supposed to sign the fucking contract and he just starts beating up Austin and Vince like, what? What the fuck? He said I didn't sign the contract, asshole. Now I did. Now you can't touch me, bitch.

SPEAKER_00: 26:33

Yeah, we had he beat him up and then after he beat him up, signs the contract, and now he can't get his lick back. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_01: 26:39

It's basically that because now Drew can kick the fuck out of him. I don't know. I find he did not say he said you he didn't say both of you cannot touch each other. In that whole conversation they had at his house, there was nothing where uh Nick said you can't touch Cody. He's he said the terms. He said he cannot touch me. He did not say, Okay, well, you can't touch him. He just said, That can't touch me.

SPEAKER_00: 27:06

I'm curious to see if that's what that happens.

SPEAKER_01: 27:10

I feel it because yeah, literally, uh as as someone who plays DD, when you look at what it says, the what you gotta read them words carefully, and that's why I feel like he's gonna jump him either in the ring or backstage, and then Nick's like, yo, yo, he says, he can't touch me. And then Nick is gonna be like, and Nick's gonna realize I I I I fucked. I fucked up.

SPEAKER_00: 27:39

Yeah. Uh if that is the case, if that is the case, number one, that's absolutely fucked up.

SPEAKER_01: 27:45

I mean, it's it's good, I feel like it's a good storytelling.

SPEAKER_00: 27:48

That's hella foul. Yeah. But like if that expect if that do end up being the case, he said, boy, I'd tell you. That's a good story. But I did kind of like uh Cody Rhodes' little like like when he little promo that he cut talking to talking to Nick on some like listen, uh uh I run shit around here. I'm like, Cody, Cody Raheem, Cody Raheem Rhodes. If your daddy could hear you right now, goddamn, bro. Like, oh no.

SPEAKER_01: 28:22

The black the the the the Atlanta in him is coming out because he is an Atlanta nigga. When you think about it.

SPEAKER_00: 28:29

Listen, it I mean, it's a thing.

SPEAKER_01: 28:33

He is he is in black capital of you United States, he's born there.

SPEAKER_00: 28:39

Oh, you know what? I just remember something that I was going to talk to you about that also happened this week in in wrestling.

SPEAKER_01: 28:48

Oh my god.

SPEAKER_00: 28:51

No, that wasn't it. However, that did you you bringing that up, going in to talking about some of those things, and actually it is this is all going to be related, but the first thing I did want I that's because you brought that up. We had a three-hour AEW dynamite. But then we still had collision this weekend, apparently. Like I was looking and it was like I saw like a show what the episode of collision. I'm like, wait, what is what are we doing out here, AEW? Like, you like why three hours? And I thought they were doing the three hours because they weren't going to do collision this weekend. But apparently collision still happened this weekend. And I and I do believe that particular collision is supposed to be the one where Windsor took.

SPEAKER_01: 29:46

I feel bad for her though, because while she won that belt, the audience was not caring. If you look at the comments, they cannot help but look at her ass, bro. Every fucking like there's a photo, it's literally a photo, and it's out of context. Well, not out of context, it's like completely off. Um, it's literally Monet in a corner crying, and you see Windsor backside, cheeks, just just all cheeks. That's hilarious. And somebody says, move over, Hunter. I'm looking at something. I can't remember if it's Hunter, but it's just somebody that's not even in the fucking image. And they just, yo, my bad. Uh move out the way I'm trying to look at them. And I'm just like, and and that's all the fucking comments. Like, this is the thing about the IWC I cannot stand. Sometimes it's like, bro, y'all sexualize these women so much, bro. I can't scroll Facebook, Instagram. It's it's the it's the it's the internet.

SPEAKER_00: 30:48

The internet. No, that's what I'm saying. Like, it's it's just the internet. The internet has always been horny, bro. Yes. Like the like straight the internet out here, like they like they suck down five honey packs, bruh.

SPEAKER_01: 31:04

And it'd be like, yo, uh, which room you would you want to be in? Or like it'll be fucking Soruka, Rhea, Io, and like it's just like y'all just showcasing the body, and it's like, bro, why why are we constantly doing this? Because I think because some things just die hard.

SPEAKER_00: 31:25

All right, that is a Christmas reference, technically. I did not make that particular reference in on purpose, but I'll take it anyway. But uh, so it's one of my gripes, but you talked about how nobody cares. I mean, dynamite, bro. That three-hour dynamite, fam. When I tell you it was hard for me to stay away.

SPEAKER_01: 31:53

Were you not streaming?

SPEAKER_00: 31:56

That's the problem. I fucking was. I was streaming and I almost was and I was nodding, dog. Like it was now grant. I also, though I was streaming, I was having some internet issues because the internet was busted in my area.

SPEAKER_01: 32:09

But still, bam, it's so the this this is this is how I looked at AEW. How much I don't give a fuck about watching AEW. I literally have free subscription to watch it because of story. Nigga don't even watch.

SPEAKER_00: 32:27

You have it for free and still. That's crazy. But I mean, I don't blame you for it, right? So, cause like AEW that night, the only there was there was only really two high spots that night. Number one, the number one high spot was MJF coming back.

SPEAKER_01: 32:50

Oh yeah, the swear again called Diddy.

SPEAKER_00: 32:54

And that too. So it was like that was the high spot. The second high spot was Pac versus Kyle Fletcher.

SPEAKER_01: 33:02

Oh, that that already right there. The names alone.

SPEAKER_00: 33:05

And the only reason why it was just a really good match. That mat that ring probably exploded. But it's like, I'm watching it, right? Freaking Roderick Strong versus John Moxley. Boring. Who cares?

SPEAKER_01: 33:21

Okay, but I'm sorry, but like Roger Strong do this though. Like, he wanted them, he wanted them motherfuckers that do this shit, but go ahead.

SPEAKER_00: 33:29

And that's the thing. Great wrestler, but who cares about Roger Strong and John Moxley? It it didn't do it doesn't do anything for nobody for this tournament. No story, no reasons, just these two going at each other. And I don't, I think John Moxley don't do this shit, dog. And so that happens. Eddie Kingston. Oh god, it's it's unfortunate for him. Because like I look at Eddie Kingston and he's when he gives these promos and he's doing what he's doing, and it's like I've I know what Eddie Kingston sounds like when he cares. I don't think he cares.

SPEAKER_01: 34:12

You know, is it weird to say that and then because they have uh a relation because of TNA? Um Mike Santana is almost the equival uh excuse me. I'm only talking about in not caring right now because of that NXT NXT bullshit that's going on.

SPEAKER_00: 34:40

No, no, no, hold on now. Because where I can see where you might be coming from, what we're getting with Mike Santana now, because like granted, I don't think he is world heavyweight, he was ready, he was he's ready for the world heavyweight title. However, with what I've been seeing of him since he lost the title, and the way that TNA is you know starting to ramp things up, and because they're they got that TV deal. So they're gonna be on regular TV now.

SPEAKER_01: 35:19

Are you telling me they're trying to save him winning the belt on till until he's on TV?

SPEAKER_00: 35:23

The answer is yes. It's probably going to happen on the first episode on A E. But the way, and maybe it's just because they was in uh they weren't in Mexico, they was like in Texas.

SPEAKER_01: 35:40

They were in Texas, yeah.

SPEAKER_00: 35:41

They were yeah, they was in Texas. But like, with the way that Mike Santana is, and the way that he's kind of carrying himself, like there's been like a weird shift in the way he's moving that. And I think like he's I it's one of those things where it's like when they first gave it to him, I don't think he needed it or he deserved it per se. No, the the trigger was not pulled at the right time. That too. But like where they're at right now, I think it's starting to make sense. And he's in my eyes, he has kind of sort of proved himself worthy to be in such a spot. Especially when you it's because like especially when you look at the past people who have held that title, the star power who has been TNA champion, and then it's like I'm looking at him, and though what needs to happen is just the fact that he needs to be put on TV more, and actually, so that he can be that star that makes sense for having the title. Because prior to this, I don't think he he did not feel like he had the star power to hold the title. But oddly enough, with everything that he's been doing in the in the process, in the story that's been going on, to me, he's kind of he's actually now won that spot to me, kind of thing. And I know a lot of people are are extremely high on him on a personal level, but I think story-wise, and like where he is currently sitting in the company, because they're trying to put him as that top baby face, and I feel he is I think he's finally ready to be that important, kind of thing.

SPEAKER_01: 37:43

I I I do want to see him do good, and I feel like I said before, when they didn't pull the trigger on him when it was right and then now, it's like the equivalent of like, all right, the the the target's right here. The target moved, boom, and you you pulled the trigger, but you missed the target.

SPEAKER_03: 37:58

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00: 37:58

That's literally what it was. Because at the time when he won the belt and he was like, they was putting him in that position to win, like, I did not see him. Let me see. Well, let me think of one. Well, I well, here's the thing.

SPEAKER_01: 38:13

I didn't see an opponent that would matter to make him look good at that time. Think about think about him just winning that belt from Trick. Who is a worthy enough opponent for his first opponent? It damn sure wasn't the you know, uh uh not Nick Nick Aldis. Not Aldus, um fucking man. Yeah, Nick Namath. Wasn't him, you know what I'm saying? There was no like position person to be next up.

SPEAKER_00: 38:45

Which I agree. So they gotta create a big bad. And and I think right now is it with with TNA, and I know we've been uh on the side having a lot of talks about this, TNA does not have that star power in the main event. So I would say the the a person who I know who has held the title and I felt was like had that big star power, you know, feel to them is Moose. Okay. Moose was Moose was quite uh was quite the TNA champion, right? And it's like when you look at TNA right now, Moose is kind of sort of off to the side, you know, you know, chilling in the mid-card with his little team that he has, right? And so it's like when they was trying to push Mike Santana to be the champion, you know, when I think of someone who had the star power of Moose, I'm like, Mike Santana does not compare. And I don't see him as being ready to be that champion kind of thing. It was like, you know, at that time, even compared to like Nick Nimeth. Like the star power that Nick Nimeth has does not compare to the lack that uh that he had at the time when they was trying to really push him to be like, hey, y'all should really look at this guy and consider him to be like a champion. Like he's the main inventor. And it was like, I wasn't feeling that. However, after they gave it to him and took it back from him, even though that was a crazy thing to do, literally, I feel that maybe somebody knew what they was doing, they were cooking. Because what has happened going up into this, it has made him look like he is a worthy person to actually be the next champion and feel like a star in that position.

SPEAKER_01: 40:56

I know those promos he's been cutting have been really compelling. Very compelling. Very much not a hangman and a Will Ospreay, but it's like a like one third. One third of possibility. Anyway, uh back to your notes, because I definitely want to talk about the ending of uh World Tag Week.

SPEAKER_00: 41:17

So the thing that was uh the thing that I was getting ready to round up to when it came to AEW, right? Because like everything that was on Dynamite slash collision, the little special that they was doing, it was very lackluster. It was like, it was very, I don't care. You know, like they they're trying to make us care about this whole Takeshka and Okada thing, and it's just like it's dragging, everything is slow, everything is boring. Like I said, the only things that actually made me pop was Pac versus Kyle, uh Pac vs Kyle, uh uh not Kyle O'Reilly, Kyle Fletcher. Kyle Fletcher. And but the MJF showing up, and now because this has been such a thing we've been talking about, right? When with when MJF showed up, and in that ring was the three top contenders for the heavyweight title. When we talk about that star power and that aura whole situation, that that that that niss that makes you feel like an actual superstar, that thing that 97% of the AEW roster has missing. When MJF showed up, if you watch it and you think about what we've talked about and how I said the fact that, like, in my opinion, Swerve, he is one of their main inventors, but he's not quite a superstar yet. Freaking Hangman, he's very close to being a superstar, an AEW superstar. But unfortunately, Creative keeps fucking him. Samoa Joe Which is his boys, crazy. I know, right? Samoa Joe. You just got aura, my nigga. Yeah, he just has Aura is 10,000. And it's like, I I it's hard for me to want to say that he's not a superstar. He he would be a superstar if he was just him just wrecking shit, but the ops kind of make it like uh it kind of yeah, it does kind of hold him back, but it does kind of feel like it it it dims his light a little bit, yeah, yeah, yeah. But it's like when MJF comes out there, you see the difference between all of them versus what MJF is. Yes, and that is a true superstar, eat that nigga. Like, and god dang, he was shining very, very brightly with the promos. And right now, the MJF that we're about to get, we're getting the MJF heel, but now he has recognized the fact that like I'm actually a really good wrestler in the ring. So now I'm going to be a heel and I'm going to be able to back it up, which is just going to make you hate me even more. And I'm really looking forward to that so much that the fact that I'm actually excited about the fact of MJF just being present. And I haven't been very excited about jack shit in AEW for a for quite some time.

SPEAKER_01: 45:05

So one Atlas left, Atlas left, the other one came back.

SPEAKER_00: 45:10

Honestly, when you really think about it, yes. And MJF, I'm hoping they're going to make him stay there for a while because MJF is what they need to make these those other three men in that ring superstars. MJF is what is necessary to bring them up to that next level so that if MJF does go away again, there's actual star power there in AEW. Because MJF has that ability to do it. He's done it in the past. And he continues to do it. It's just the fact that hopefully the story that they're going to use to make that happen actually goes forward and and it and it actually works. And they don't screw the pooch, which unfortunately AEW probably will, but it is AEW. Yeah. And so I say those things because and I don't have the article pulled up, but have you heard about the article that came out this week where uh they were talking about AEW is promotion of the year? Yes, I was actually gonna ask you that. Yeah. Yeah. I went and I've heard. Yeah. And I feel I honestly really want to.

SPEAKER_01: 46:51

You gotta think about their matches this this year.

SPEAKER_00: 46:54

I want to, because I don't I don't want to dwell on it now, but I feel like we should maybe like for the next podcast, we like go into it to kind of break it down. Because like I low, very, very low key can understand the argument of why.

SPEAKER_01: 47:17

Because they kept giving like with every pay-per-view, there was something special happening, and we weren't getting four match bullshit. You you would get your money's worth in these fucking pay-per-views, and then two, they did the biggest Uno reverse card to WWE with blood and guts. It was like, nah, nigga, let me see how you do it. I mean, which that is fair. Hey, they made you you went to war games and said, I don't know why I'm watching this shit. They ain't gonna do what the fuck they did there, and they didn't, and it fucked war games, it it fucked it hard.

SPEAKER_00: 48:00

Like what it when I think about you know, promoter of the year, it's one of those things where there's like I say there's like that real low-key possibility that one could really argue AEW being promoter of the year, but there's also a part of me that feels as if they're only saying that because they're only looking at half of the picture.

SPEAKER_01: 48:25

Well, also, I want to I want to take this back to Swag, you know, out of everything we've talked about so far in this year, you know how many times you you hyped up a match? It was never from WWE, it was always AW. You said multiple times the Takesha, even Joe Kennedy, not Joe Hero, but um the John Moxley and Takesha match, nigga, you you sat and said, bro, if you're gonna watch any match, watch that. You've never done that with WWE, even though John Cena and AJ Styles gave one of the best like homage matches, and you was like, I don't give a fuck about that, which is true, which is true, and I think that and I but I I also think based on that particular piece is the main argument as to why AEW, why one would say that AEW was promotion of the year, because it's like I would say AEW has throughout this whole year, they have very dark, dank dips, but then they will hit a very high peak. So like they're like a GMO, their mut their their weeks are always in the red, but then that pay-per-view?

SPEAKER_00: 49:49

Very much so. That that for sure is the that for sure is a deal. Or sometimes they might actually have because there was a time where like, damn, they're doing really good during the week, and then they'll have the most ass pay-per-view you could possibly imagine, and just be like, wow, that was a wet fart. They don't they don't have balance. Exactly. As where with WWE, they are a relatively smooth line.

SPEAKER_01: 50:22

They're just cruising, bro.

SPEAKER_00: 50:24

They are a they are a relative, this specifically this year, there was a smooth line that would it was a smooth line that never did this, it mostly did this. Mm-hmm. Where AEW would be like and because of that, because and one could also almost say, I mean, granted, that though this wouldn't be it, but it's like when you look at what we've done this podcast, crazily enough, AEW is probably the the promotion we talk about the absolute most. Because WWE doesn't do shit, it doesn't do nothing, and that's exactly what it is because WWE has not done anything worth really talking about besides screw up John Cena's retirement run.

SPEAKER_01: 51:29

Here's the thing where we be talking about AEW so much is because we know what this promotion can do. We know, and it pisses you off every time when you're like, it's like trying to tell that homeboy, yo, listen to that one track from that one artist, you gonna you're gonna fuck with that artist. And then you listen to the track, and it's like, bro, why do you say like wet fart in the in the bro, bro? He sometimes he just do some goofy shit, don't mind it, but like this song, this song's fire. And he just said something like I lick it, but you know, some some wild shit, and the homie just cannot respect it.

SPEAKER_00: 52:02

They just for some reason can't get past it. No, like, bro, did you not hear like I don't know, the the first eight bars before he said before he said that weird stuff at the end there?

SPEAKER_01: 52:12

Like, that was just him being goofy, but those for those other eight focus on almost even like anime when people tell you, bro, after the first season, it gets good. It's the same thing. It's literally you have so much hope because you know the potential that it has, but it just keeps fucking you up, bro. You can't defend it, and that's why I was telling you before. It's really hard to defend AEW, it's really hard.

SPEAKER_00: 52:38

It really it, man, it really is. It's really hard. It's like I as I always say, I'm not an AEW hater. I really do like AEW, I just don't like what they're doing and why and the fact that they're not they're they're literally not making moves to be better.

SPEAKER_01: 53:01

It's literally because it's where the best wrestle. And that's it. Speaking of uh good wrestling, I don't know if you had any additional notes.

SPEAKER_00: 53:09

No, no, no. That pretty much covered all the main pieces that I wanted to talk on. That I mean, uh, now hold on. Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait. Because I would be remiss if I don't bring this up. Not about AEW, because like I said, that AEW shit, we we we I'm not I'm going to spare AEW and not continuing talking about the the shit on dynamite, but I do want to talk about NXT real quick.

SPEAKER_01: 53:41

What's up? Oh, you talking about this botch shit, fam.

SPEAKER_00: 53:49

Watching this botch and then seeing the things that are being talked about online.

SPEAKER_01: 53:56

The homegirl saying the tweet, take this, take this photo off, this fuck ass photo off your bat, and then delete the tweet. She said fuck ass. Listen, like are these bitch ass? He's bitch ass or fuck ass. Either one. Oh, she said fuck ass. Oh, it's fuck ass. Okay, I couldn't remember if it's fuck ass or bitch ass. And I'm just like, bruh, um Monroe.

SPEAKER_00: 54:20

Uh it's hilarious watching it and then seeing the fact, like, oh, that and what makes it even funnier to me is like, cause it's like the like if they could have just went forward and just played it off, like like, oh well, I guess that did happen, but it's like they give themselves away so hard. Cause it's like he counts the three, one, two, three. Freaking Thea out here, she's reacting like you just got three. You count you count three? I I win, and then the referee's like, yeah, ring the bell. Go ahead. And then it proceeds, and then it proceeds to play Blake Monroe's theme song. So they just let the cue stay how the cue'd was. So now it's all like, no, don't play Blake's theme song. She didn't win. What are you doing? And it's just like just the the awkwardness of it all is so funny to me.

SPEAKER_01: 55:45

Bro, do who I want to know who was more fucked from that situation? Was it Blake or was it Home Girl? Was it the ref? I want to know who was more fucked in that situation.

SPEAKER_00: 55:55

So I was not I don't have any uh the most back information that I've heard that I was able to uh get some kind of hands on is just the the fact uh is the fact that there is a lot of there there was there's a lot of fingers being pointed. There's a lot of fingers being pointed. Nobody wants to take the blame. And uh and and it's one of those deals where it's like a lot of fingers are being pointed, and there's a lot of realization of there's so many other things that apparently could have been done besides what are what initially happened. But one of my one of the interesting bits that I was able to hear about is the fact like because apparently like after this all happened, there was like this whole like apparently like back uh what was it? Back like pretty much like backstage, there's like apparently like this whole new uh uh process. Yeah, the the rule. There's like this whole new rule saying the fact that like now talent, like if they're like when they show up for for for the show, like they have to be there till the very, very end type situation.

SPEAKER_01: 57:15

Oh yeah, because people be leaving. That's what I remember uh Bailey was saying something about that, like not liking people leaving so early.

SPEAKER_00: 57:21

Yeah, yeah, and so like uh apparent because like apparently on the internet, like people are like people are doing like the pointing finger scams, like, ooh, who who was not there when they should who left and who wasn't supposed to be there, type deal, and all this other stuff. And it's like the it's like the story that I've heard about who left and and why this whole rule went into play. Because I think it pretty much it was the whole fact of someone was that was there, they left early because you know how everything is being recorded right now with the holidays. And so it's like they only had one thing to record and they went home. But because of the botch, they couldn't use that recording anymore, and they had to re-record something else. So when this happened, they're all like, oh fuck, where are they? We need them here, they're not here. So it's like, well, they need to get here. Why did they leave? It was like they had one thing to shoot, and they were done like 12, like four hours ago. Like there was they why why did they why did we need to keep them here? Type situation. It's oh oh it was uh a dumpster fire. Oh, a dumpster fire is the correct term to use on how ridiculous everything ended up being at NXT. Hilarious though. It's absolutely hilarious, but I'm I'm really interested. I'm more very interested to see what they're going to do and how they're going to deal with this uh this happy accident. But in the meantime, hell yeah, Thea got that belt though. Like she got hers, she got hers. She's a made girl now. She in the books. History, baby.

SPEAKER_01: 59:26

Like, I will say, outside of that botch, I mean, like, I hold up. I could have sworn this was a thing, and maybe maybe I'm wrong. When a person wins the sole survivor or the iron survivor, they're supposed to get a title shot match, right?

SPEAKER_00: 59:42

Yes.

SPEAKER_01: 59:42

Why the fuck is Javon Evans fighting for an attempt for a title shot when he was the iron survivor?

SPEAKER_00: 59:49

Oh, so to catch you up on that is because Javon Evans showed up after winning on that Tuesday. Hey, so like I know I won the Iron Survivor. I was supposed to get my uh match on uh New Year's Evil, but fuck that. I want this shit now. And he lost because Ricky Saints.

SPEAKER_01: 1:00:14

Oh yeah! Okay now, okay.

SPEAKER_00: 1:00:19

I remember seeing because Ricky Saints came out there as like, hey, Javon, Javon, why don't you just wait, bro? Like, why don't you wait? Get your get your thing in on New Year's Evil and let me handle Oba Femi right quick. And Javon's like, hey, respectfully, no. And Ricky Saints, like, do that shit, bro. Do that shit.

SPEAKER_01: 1:00:43

And then he's when he went out there and pulled a ref, yeah.

SPEAKER_00: 1:00:46

And then he pulled the ref and screwed him over and cost him the match.

SPEAKER_01: 1:00:50

I remember that shit, yeah.

SPEAKER_00: 1:00:51

And it's funny because like when that happened, I'm like, ah. We're finally going to get the real Rickies. Not this babyface bullshit that he's been doing. I'm just like, this is good. This is good. Although I don't think it's gonna be like a really long thing, because like I'm pretty certain Javon, Javon Evans is getting moved up. He's main roster. I don't think he should go until he wins that title.

SPEAKER_01: 1:01:19

I don't think he's doing that.

SPEAKER_00: 1:01:20

He's not winning that title. Yeah, he ain't getting he ain't getting that NXT belt. That's that's that's a done deal.

SPEAKER_01: 1:01:28

No, I I don't think he's going up yet.

SPEAKER_00: 1:01:31

But I mean, bro, he he's literally about to be on Raw. Like they're like, yeah, we want you on Raw. Like, I what I'm thinking is he's probably gonna have this last little Fallout match at New Year's Evil with with Saints, and they're gonna finish in their little squabble, and after he finishes their squabble, he's going to do the main roster. Which is kind of unfortunate because I kind of really want him and uh uh and Slater to still get do their thing, but then again, there's a part of me that's all like though Slater is a uh is a TNA guy, fam, he's getting the shine right now, bro. Like I'm talking from the match that he had at the pay-per-view uh with uh the tag team. Like from that, and then now he has they since Javon Evans, since they're like, we still need a title match at New Year's Evil, uh, we're going to have everyone who was in that match, because since because they all tied in the Iron Survivor match. So that's why they had the four-way match, and that's why he won and is going on to fight over Femi. But could you imagine because this is the other piece that I'm kind of like I wonder what they're gonna do? Could you imagine him as the ex the youngest X Division champion? Uh uh no no no no uh Leon Slayer.

SPEAKER_01: 1:03:02

He is the youngest.

SPEAKER_00: 1:03:03

So imagine they have him as that youngest, and then he goes and they had and they let him beat Oba Femi for the NXT belt, bro. Could you imagine? Could you imagine the hype and the push they would put on for that boy if they let him take on Oba Femi and win?

SPEAKER_01: 1:03:26

First off, first off, first off, if that nigga wins, but Javon, you better ride. I mean, he's literally the same nigga, huh?

SPEAKER_00: 1:03:35

Once British though. I mean, you're not wrong. To be fair. To be fair, huh? To be fair. They really had him looking like he won that match when Ricky Saints did what he did.

SPEAKER_01: 1:03:50

Oh, yeah, they put him over.

SPEAKER_00: 1:03:52

Like we we got the visual win, just not the actual. However, I do kind of agree with that, though. It's like, oh damn. But but but you you couldn't, but but Leon could? All right, bro. That's what I'm saying, bro. If that happened, that might cause some tension. Damn. But at the same time, I I would actually be okay with that. Like, that's because then we'll get that match and get a finish to it. Like we should have.

SPEAKER_01: 1:04:26

Are you talking about Leon losing the belt to Javon?

SPEAKER_00: 1:04:30

Now that could be debated. That's what I would see, because you know, but like being Uber, you know, Oba. But but just I'm just talking about them having the match in general. Like that now, who wins that. But yeah, because we never got that finish.

SPEAKER_01: 1:04:44

No, no, we never got that finish. Yeah, you're right. To see who is really the true young OG.

SPEAKER_00: 1:04:51

But um, but yeah, what I but but uh I just wanted to bring that piece up about NXT, and I also think we I I really think I I want us to do because I'm gonna pull, I'm gonna get the article so that we can go through it about because there were other things that they talked about in that article outside of AEW being the the promotion of the.

SPEAKER_01: 1:05:17

You were saying some people to break out stars, and most of them were AEW people.

SPEAKER_00: 1:05:21

Yes. Not maybe not I not rightfully, but but yes, they they had them there. Um, I think the one that was all like, because they uh female wrestler of the year was Monet.

SPEAKER_01: 1:05:34

I said bitch.

SPEAKER_00: 1:05:35

Yeah, I was like, all right. I said bitch.

SPEAKER_01: 1:05:37

I said Dave Melzer did this, no way.

SPEAKER_00: 1:05:40

Yeah, there's there's a lot of like I think what they said, match of the year was like, oh man, what was it? It was an AEW match that they said was match of the year, and it absolutely wasn't, but it's like you when you look at that whole article, it's almost as if that whoever was looking at whoever made that article, they only watched a certain period of wrestling for both brands and made very eh suggestions. But I want to go over it like like more in depth and then give our more accurate idea of what probably should be for those because I know for a fact the match of the year that they gave is absolutely not match of the year. In my opinion. Okay, but there's been a lot of really there's some tough matches to say for match of the year because I know in my upper echelon of matches of the year, we got Javon Evans versus Leon Slater, we have EOSky versus Rhea, and then I would even also throw in there uh EOSky versus Rhea versus uh Bianca Bel Air. Okay. And I I I do there is one other match, but right now it's not coming to my brain. But I know those three matches right now, off the top of my head, are at least three of my top contender matches for a match of the year candidate. As of right now.

SPEAKER_01: 1:07:29

But that's just me. Well, well, I've been wanting to talk about this. This it's New Japan! It's World Tag League! I'm mad at my boys, I'm mad at my boys, but I know why they did it. But overall, your first introduction to New Japan. Tell me what were your thoughts about World Tag League?

SPEAKER_00: 1:07:54

So, with World Tag League being my introduction, my my real introduction. But see, I wouldn't even count that as me being introduced to that was more so me being introduced to Kenny Omega. Okay, okay. You know what I'm saying? Because like, I yeah, it's like I I've never truly like watched New Japan. I've seen clips and I've seen some key matches, but I've never just like from start to finish on a consistent basis, watch the product.

SPEAKER_01: 1:08:32

I'm not gonna lie, if you watched uh December 19th, that highlight of the year, or like the just the entire year of New Japan, that shit look lit. I I'm kind of mad I ain't see that shit. But if you watched December 19th, you see some of the shit, some of the matches down there, shit's like that was lit, but continue.

SPEAKER_00: 1:08:48

But like I know for me right now, with what I my my current view on New Japan, uh, number one, I'm I am very upset with the finish of the tag league because I'm not a Zack Sabres Jr. guy. All right, I'm gonna just put it out there. Listen, fam. And I'm gonna I'm gonna tell it to you guys like how me and him have had the conversation about, right? Uh when I look at when I look at wrestlers, and I wanna eventually like mm better define it, but at this very moment, I look at wrestlers, and especially new Japan wrestlers with the way that they work, I look at them in three ways. Their wrestling abilities, their overall aura that they have, and then their actual charisma that they possess, right? And I am a person who likes someone who has that aura and charisma, that that that those two things that make a character, you know what I'm saying? I like characters. New Japan has a lot of characters, a lot of interesting characters to have a very particular kind of personality that really makes them stick out amongst every New Japan person that is there, kind of thing, just from that charisma in character, and this is before I ever see them make a move, kind of thing. Like when I was watching, all I watched, all I saw was evil come down to the ring and he do his pose, and I'm like, I fucks with him.

SPEAKER_01: 1:10:50

Yeah, the camera, how the camera goes, that shit. I don't know if you ever noticed that. Yeah, I did.

SPEAKER_00: 1:10:55

It's just lit. Yeah, I did. It's just lit. And so it was like, like that alone, I'm like, I fucked with him. I like that. Yup. Freaking, I I didn't know who the hell the war dogs were. Okay.

SPEAKER_01: 1:11:07

Yeah, this is um, that's uh bullet club war dogs now. That's what they are.

SPEAKER_00: 1:11:10

But it's like when I saw the war dogs come down to the ring, and then just the way they presented themselves. Oh, you mean war dragons? I'm sorry, war dragons. Yeah, war dragons.

SPEAKER_01: 1:11:19

They just made that team up, by the way.

SPEAKER_00: 1:11:20

And it's like, I saw the way they presented themselves, and I see each of the persons that they were. Shingo and uh Driller. And I'm like, I like those guys a lot. I need them to win, and they didn't. Drill's Drill's theme song alone is and even like you know, talk about with uh uh the um uh the knockout bros who are the champions. Freaking Yoto Ice There you go. And his boy Henry, like no, it's Oscar. Oscar. Where the fuck I get because he's big as hell I get it. Shout out to the homie Henry, shout out to the homie Vash Dragon, my boy, Big Daddy V, but uh crazy, but uh I'm sorry, yeah. V for villain. Nah, no, no, I I knew, I knew, but uh, but yeah, so it's like I see them, and like before I've watched these guys do a match, I'm looking at them and I'm like, the presentation, the character that they got, the swagger that they got, I'm with it, I'm about it, I love it type situation. And then when I see them have their matches, that just draws me in even more, and that's how I digest my wrestling. When it comes to Zack Saber Jr., he is if I was to make it like an overall standing, his wrestling is maxed out at a hundred percent. But those other two pieces are like 0.4 and less. I don't he does not have character to me. He doesn't he does not have aura, in my opinion. Like he doesn't have that thing that makes me all like, yeah, that motherfucker right there. You know what I'm saying? Like he he does not have that, he's just a good match.

SPEAKER_01: 1:13:20

He's a bloke who knows how to fight.

SPEAKER_00: 1:13:22

Yes, he's Finley, but even then, Finley had some character to him. My name is Finlay, and I love to fight. Even Finley has some character to him. That thing. A little bit of a swagger of some sort, some kind of aura. To me, Zach does not have like aura. He's just he's just someone who mastered the art of professional wrestling, in my opinion. Or making the bitch tap out. Mainly that. He is a top-tier technician. All right, he is a he is a top-tier technician who really, really, really knows how to wrestle. And loves to pop his collar.

SPEAKER_01: 1:14:09

I guess. Pops his collar.

SPEAKER_00: 1:14:13

And that's the ball. That's literally as bright as his aura shines. That that is literally his taunt is popping his collar. And it's funny, you say it's like in the wrestling game, like in the wrestling game, he's one of those few wrestlers who only has one taunt. Like, you know how like when you're like your wrestler and you can have like four taunts, yeah, and it'll be like Zach, it'll say uh Zack Zabra Jr. one, Zack Zabra Jr. two, three, four, five, and they'll have several taunts. No, he just had Zack Zabra Jr. And that's the and it's just that one taunt. Yep. And that's it. Yep. As where someone like Yota Ice, he'll have it'll say Yota Ice, and he'll have like six, seven, eight, nine different taunts.

SPEAKER_01: 1:14:57

He got the one, he'll have everything.

SPEAKER_00: 1:15:00

He'll have so many taunts that if you don't like the ones that he currently has, you can just switch them to taunt eight and taunt seven and then taunt five. Like, but like overall, when it came to that whole tag league, like I understand and I kind of get him winning, because like, you know, he's he kind of because as you told me, he represents what New Japan is kind of about, which is combat sport, the combat of it all. And Zach Saber Jr. is definitely a combat fighter, but put him on the mic, and I'm going to fall asleep. Or not be entertained.

SPEAKER_01: 1:15:47

Beer on the nips, like, yeah, man, yeah, and then putting beer in in on the trousers and on on your on your uh uh I'm not even gonna say the term. I was about to say shiboinga, but that's crazy. Whoa, yeah, shiboing is crazy.

SPEAKER_00: 1:16:03

Wow, I that's a that is a term I haven't heard in a long time.

SPEAKER_01: 1:16:07

So putting putting ice putting ice on damn, I can't even say put ice. You know, fuck it. Putting ice on his meat. Fuck it. I don't give a fuck. I don't give a fuck. I don't give a fuck. Because like, you know, you want to f you know you keep you you're keeping your ice on your meat to make sure the the meat is is frozen and in the freezer, you know what I'm saying? I'm just gonna move on. Anyway, uh so world tag leave. World Tag League. What I enjoyed about it is that it makes you get familiar with people. There are so like you said before, there's so many characters. I wish I could literally wish I wish I could listen to Dick Toga to his fucking promos because that that was such a random and goofy encounter that they have a character in the House of Torture. His name is Dick Toga. Apparently, he went away on business or some shit like that. And one of their people in the actual team's name is Sho. He just it it was put on the card that Dick Toga was in the match, and so he goes out there and says, Hey, I know Dick Toga's in the match. I am Dick Toga. And they're like, No, you're not. It's no, I'm Dick Toga. And now he becomes Dick Toga too. Yeah, and that shit was hilarious because anytime he'll cut a promo, he'd be cutting promos, arm on the rope, and then they start beating him up immediately. Like, I love how House of Torture, their whole philosophy is the bell doesn't ring, bitch.

SPEAKER_00: 1:17:47

Just jump, jump. Yeah, there was literally a match that they had where it was like they they attacked, took the match outside of the ring, and they fought for like a for damn near like 10-15 minutes outside of the ring. One of my favorite things that happened was they had a match. In the match, you know, something's going on, and then all of a sudden Dick Toga goes and he starts he like rings the bell. Yes, or evil will do that. That shit be hilarious. He rings the bell. And it was like on the last episode that they had there, it's like he does the he does that, it's like he rings the bell, and then like just like everyone just comes out of the woodwork and they it's just like this big jump session to the point where they had to separate everyone, get everyone out of there who didn't need to be, and they literally restarted the whole fucking match.

SPEAKER_01: 1:18:43

Yes, like it got that ridiculous, or that time where he did it, he got somebody says, and you know what the evil move away. It's just like bro, it's that's the kind of comedy of like get this nigga out of here.

SPEAKER_00: 1:18:59

Bro, they're they're an absolute, they are an absolute mess.

SPEAKER_01: 1:19:03

Yes, they're evil is no better.

SPEAKER_00: 1:19:06

But it's like I feel as far as New Japan as a whole, like you know, taking Zach's. I will say, Gabe Kid, because Gabe Kid was someone who I wasn't really big on, kind of thing, which I think is more just a personal thing because like the way he carries himself, he's because it's just because of Death Riders. The way that he carries himself. Well, it maybe it's when he was doing a Death Riders thing, because now he's kind of like this anti-hero baby face. Yeah, he's not really a bad guy anymore. No, he's not he's not really showing up in AEW, but it's like like him as a bad guy. I was like, he he he he just reminds me of the kind of people who I really don't like being around. But it's like his mat the match that they had, I will say he he definitely impressed me because he was like he was standing ten tones down with fucking uh um Um with uh with with uh Zach. Oh yeah. Like he would like going, he was going reversal, reversal, bar for bar in there with the tech with the technical wrestling, which I was all like, well, damn, game kid. So you're more than just a fucking beat em up brute. Okay. I see.

SPEAKER_01: 1:20:16

I did find it funny that the two blokes were just in each other's faces, just pissing each other off, and the two Japanese guys are like, See, I'm gonna see you in the ring. You know, we're gonna get it, we're gonna get in. And you just see the two differences of them in the ring, and then uh Yacht uh is is a um I always pronounce his first name correct incorrectly, even though I'm supposed to go uh last name, but uh Yota he uh he calls us yeah yeah yeah we're we're done we're done we're done and and it's just like we're calm, we're chill. But these two motherfuckers they can they can y'all all day. Let them do that.

SPEAKER_00: 1:20:56

So I um I am thoroughly enjoying my New Japan experience. And I feel like it'll once like we get into like the because Brussel Kingdom's next week.

SPEAKER_01: 1:21:07

No, yeah, next is it? Two weeks. Uh two weeks, yeah. Because it's the third, the fourth, third or the fourth of January. So I'm definitely eager to see it. No, actually, that would be one week because we're going into Christmas next week, and then as the weekend passes, it's like on because Friday, I think it's the second, it's a Saturday. Yeah, okay. It's a Saturday, yeah. And it's a two-day event because they're like WrestleMania now.

SPEAKER_00: 1:21:37

Uh well over, I think, I mean, I'm looking forward to it and whatnot. Because like I'm uh I I definitely want to see David Finley's match. Who isn't I like at first I was like David Finley, oh his last name is like fucking is because he's actually Finley's son and whatnot, and he's fucking badass. Like, I I was like, damn, all right. Apples don't fall too far from the trees. Freaking David Finley's a goddamn monster. And then he had his whole little promo. He was like, because he got busted over, he was all like, you know, taste of my own blood kind of made me realize, damn, I was starting to get a little soft there. Nah, you don't woke me up now. I'm fucking you up. I'm like, oh okay, all right, all right.

SPEAKER_01: 1:22:24

The fact they be throwing F bombs on there, too. Oh, bro, they like gay kid. I was like that backstage promo at the end of that that last match for the semifinal for the finals. He just like F bomb, F bomb. I'm like, damn, nigga, how much money you losing right now? Because this is on TV. This on TV.

SPEAKER_00: 1:22:43

But and I think and and once again, like when it comes to like him and and Zach and Zack Saber Jr., like I feel and maybe it's just because of the fact that they like I just don't feel Gabe Kid, he's kind of okay. He does have a character. I just am not a fan of the type of character that he is. But I feel like like Zach Saber Jr., he's just a dude who is just so happily really good at wrestling, like extremely amazing at wrestling. And and but it's like, you know, he like I don't get that sense of like he can talk shit outside of just being like, I'm better than you, kind of thing. Like that's that's his talking shit, kind of thing. There's no, you know, real back and forth.

SPEAKER_01: 1:23:29

He's talking shit, get hit.

SPEAKER_00: 1:23:31

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Like, because like, for instance, like looking at someone like him and then looking like someone at Daniel Bryan, right? Or Brian Danielson. Brian Danielson. Brian Danielson, he is as if not, no, no, I'm gonna I'm gonna just say he is just as technical in the ring as Zack Saber Jr. But you know what Daniel Bryan has that Zach does not have charisma. You want me to tell you the difference?

SPEAKER_01: 1:24:00

Why?

SPEAKER_00: 1:24:01

He has aura.

SPEAKER_01: 1:24:02

American wrestling, Japanese wrestling. In America, you have to have charisma. You have to be able to talk to sell to us. Why should I fucking care? Where in Japan, as you can see in a lot of their opening, like preview matches, it's just niggas out there just going. Niggas should be just going for the love of the sport. But there are people who can talk, but it's just mostly they're going out there for the love of the game.

SPEAKER_00: 1:24:38

Which is which you're which is complete, which you're completely right. And that is the part that I feel like maybe once we get into like the next phase of what's going on with New Japan, maybe I'll see more of it, or maybe New Japan will just continue to prove to be the fact of why I don't like Zack Saber Jr. But because it's like, yeah, I know everyone wrestles there, and it's mostly wrestling, it's more so the focus, but at the same time, you know, with the characters that they have, there is a unspoken story that that is there and that exists that does draw me into the match. And of course, you know, the and I mean it's I feel like I'm like it's a comic book because like I'm watching the match, but I'm getting the work-sided stuff from commentary where they'll be all like, Well, yeah, it's like these two are fighting, you know, uh a couple years ago. There was this, this, this that was going on, and then and then this happened, and then this happened, and now, you know, moving forward here, they still don't like each other, and blah blah blah. And we got this going on right now, and so I'm like, Okay, all right, I'm following, I'm I'm getting the story, kind of thing. And uh, even though and and once again, sometimes we do get the promo promos and where they do talk, but it's like when it comes to the I I understand why Zach Saber Jr. is in New Japan and he's really only been in New Japan. Like, why why he's there and why he stays there, and why I can imagine him retiring there because he does not seem like someone who would want to really talk on the mic. Like he doesn't seem like the kind of person that's got much of anything to really say that's going to be entertaining.

SPEAKER_01: 1:26:35

So, one of the things I do also like about New Japan is obviously the young lion system. It's very interesting. I like how rather than doing a developmental, they just do the preview matches and just throw the young lions in the ring with the vets. So rather than like, okay, we're gonna shoot the shit amongst us as young lions and do those moments, we are in the ring with the vets doing things with them and seeing how they flow. Granted, I'm going to take the pen, I'm going to tap, but I got to rub shoulders with uh Takesha, with fucking you know, Zach Saber Jr. with the big people. I'm rubbing shoulders in the ring with them early and learning from them early.

SPEAKER_00: 1:27:27

I uh in that particular sense with how they were doing it in the tag league, I do like that idea. I I like how that works because it puts it gives the visual of them being in the ring with that person, with someone who is, you know, there. And then from a story perspective, kind of thing, because I know like, you know, certain people who are in the upper echelon, I like they talk, I I heard them talking about how like you know, they will take one of the young lions under their wing and kind of sort of make them be there.

SPEAKER_01: 1:28:08

Shingo is that for uh no um Daike is that for Shingo.

SPEAKER_00: 1:28:12

Yeah, and so it's like it there is there are stories that are there that happens with all of that because when they like for how they talked about with you know like Yoto Ice kind of thing, and how like you know, when he was a young lion, and then the reason why the knockout brothers are even a thing is because he went over to Germany on his little excursion, excursion, and then they linked up and they realized like hey yo, we're we're kind of dope together. Let's do this, let's run that. And you know, and uh and and that and Oscar himself, there was they talked about like I think it was there was like a little thing that was with him and the murder hawk.

SPEAKER_01: 1:28:50

Oh yeah.

SPEAKER_00: 1:28:51

Where, you know, like when they were when he was still when he was a young lion himself, you know, uh uh our resident murder hawk kind of sort of was like, you know, kind of took him under the wing a little bit, type situation. Uh and you know, kind of like gave him some pointers, showed him away, like gave him like they said something about like, you know, he like he gave him like this red wristband, yeah, which is they were doing with Zayn J too. Zane J, yeah. Yeah, so it was like he talked all about that, and that also played a lot in that, and all of that came up when they had their match against each other type situation, and so it's all like story. Here we go, here we go, boy. Here we go, and it's one of those things, and and and I'm happy about that because prior to watching, I had this preconceived notion, it's kind of AEW's fault, that New Japan did not really actually tell stories. And to a small degree, it's true, they don't tell stories necessarily in the traditional sense of American storytelling, but there is a continuous story happening.

SPEAKER_01: 1:30:17

There is a whereas uh in in in American wrestling, you see it through plot points and and points that get you there. In New Japan, you see it through growth, yeah. You see it from like with Tanahashi himself, being a young line to being the ace of the universe. Yes, you see that shit.

SPEAKER_00: 1:30:38

Yes, that that yes, there is it is a progression. Funny enough, that uh like it it's very anime-like, honestly. Yes, like which makes sense. That's a little wild right there. Like, like, like it's very on the nose, but it does make sense, and you can see that because with animes, there is a overarching story, but it is told in that sense of there is a continuous growth of this character leading to you know what may be that overarching story at the very end of the line, kind of thing. You know what I'm saying? Like, and then it's like and then like when that story, you know, gets to that end of the line, let's say, you know, the it's like something going on, like with winning like the the the heavyweight tile or whatnot, and it culminates at um what's the big pay-per-view?

SPEAKER_01: 1:31:45

Um Wrestle Kingdom.

SPEAKER_00: 1:31:47

So it's like it culminates at Wrestle Kingdom. It's like after that happens, everything continues, and that is not forgotten in any kind of way. And it and but but it's like though it becomes that new arc, everything that happened and culminated to Wrestle Kingdom stays canon. It stays canon and it never goes away, and it's and and everything that happened there, it is indeed getting built up on kind of thing. And as where it is like, as where like with you know, in in WWE, especially nowadays, they used to do this a little bit better, but now you know their their canons and all this other stuff are are a bit out of whack. But it's like, you know, with the stories that are happening right now, the stories are going moment for moment for moment for moment.

SPEAKER_01: 1:32:42

Yep, and then you forget about the fact that oh, uh, I used to hate you really fucking bad like three weeks ago.

SPEAKER_00: 1:32:51

You forget, but it's not so much we forget, it's they're just acting like we forgot.

SPEAKER_03: 1:33:01

Yep.

SPEAKER_00: 1:33:02

But we remember. Petra's Farm remembers. Which then circles back to the one of the problems that AEW has is the fact that they they either think we forgot, or they don't care if we remember. And we're just going to do this. And we're not going to care about the canon of what happened last week. That canon, no that what happened last week happened last week. It's no longer it's no longer necessary canon that we need to bring up unless we decide that we really do want to bring it up. You know what I'm saying? It's like where like uh like old cartoons where it's just you watch an episode of Angry Beavers here, and then the next episode has no relation, does not even bring up anything that happened in the previous episode.

SPEAKER_01: 1:34:09

I mean, yeah, perfect example. Remember, it's bopping you into last week, and like, yeah, uh Norbit boxed Daggett into BC time. Next episode, everything's honky dory.

SPEAKER_00: 1:34:24

That's the storytelling that AEW's been trying to do. Sometimes WWE too. Yes, but AEW's the promotion of the year.

SPEAKER_01: 1:34:33

Because they give me the best damn wrestling of the year, anyway.

SPEAKER_00: 1:34:38

Um, I mean, I can easily say they really have. Because WWE hasn't. Not in the slightest. Not in the slightest, not in the slightest, not in the slightest. It's crazy.

SPEAKER_01: 1:34:50

It's one of those things where you're like, man, going to the best restaurant in town, and the food is shite, but you do it for status. Just to be like, oh, where were you at yesterday? Oh, I was at.

SPEAKER_00: 1:35:07

I ate that one spot. Oh, I heard that place is expensive. Yeah, bro. Yeah, I I went there.

SPEAKER_01: 1:35:13

You gotta pay$30 just to do a reservation. And then the reservation system don't even like what the product is giving out right now. They're like, y'all serving frozen food?

SPEAKER_02: 1:35:28

It's fucking wild, bro.

SPEAKER_00: 1:35:31

How you go to go go to an upscale fancy restaurant, you're eating frozen. Frozen food. That's where AEW. AEW is almost like a food truck. You know what I mean? My nigga, the cheese slap. Well, that shit is in the weirdest hole of the world. Listen, it's it's a food, it is a food truck, and it's one, it's probably one of the best food you'll ever have, but you gotta go slap dive in the middle of the projects to get it. And you you looking over your shoulder every second.

SPEAKER_01: 1:36:08

Or matter of fact, the line too damn long. One of the line too damn long. So you get pissed off because you like, man, I want to go there early. And if I go there early, I'm gonna get my plate quick. And you get, God damn it, I trusted you, my nigga. But then you bite into that food and say, nigga, it was worth it.

SPEAKER_00: 1:36:29

At the end of that, after that, at the end of that piece, yeah, they're like, all right, you know what? Yeah, I was sitting here for like an hour and a half to get this food. Well, I guess the but the food at least was worth it. Yep. But man, am I really going to come back here and wait another hour and a half to get this one plate of food again? Yep. Yeah, that's AEW for sure. Yep.

SPEAKER_01: 1:36:55

Or or or AEW is that one shorty who give you the best. But that bitch crazy. And you gotta cosplay with your mind. I know this motherfucker crazy.

SPEAKER_00: 1:37:08

Do I really want to get involved and deal with all of this madness just to get that really, really good for this one night?

SPEAKER_01: 1:37:18

And your shorty and in in WWE Germain shorty was she a pillow princess.

SPEAKER_02: 1:37:36

You want her to be the main, but she too damn crazy.

SPEAKER_00: 1:37:41

Yo, this man.

SPEAKER_01: 1:37:43

Oh my god. Yeah, final thoughts, my guy.

SPEAKER_00: 1:37:49

Listen. Um Pillow Princess. I'm just saying, though, but you know what I'm talking about. Absolute wild. You know what I'm talking about. Oh my goodness. All right. As as far as everything that's going on, because like we're we are running up on the end of the year activities here. World end. You know, like we're we're we're on that that final run of of stuff, wrapping up what has easily been the worst year of one of the worst years of wrestling in a good minute. WWE wrestling. Period, bro.

SPEAKER_01: 1:38:30

AEW's matches are good, man. But that story, though, we're saying you said wrestling, bro. Just sports entertainment. There you go. That's what I'm saying.

SPEAKER_00: 1:38:39

And not wrestling, sports entertainment. Like, well, I mean, honestly, it it's been worse. The sports entertainment aspect has been shit. And in some places, the wrestling has been garbo. Not everyone's wrestling is garbo, but some people's wrestling has been garbo. I mean Monet. It's like the book horror worst booking uh and probably some of the worst booking I we've witnessed in years. What was that one year of wrestling that we just like?

SPEAKER_01: 1:39:14

I want to look back at that one. It's like that.

SPEAKER_00: 1:39:18

Oh, this one definitely would be. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01: 1:39:21

This this this year is definitely one of those years where it's all like Oh, the beginning of Super Cena when he beat the Nexus, like, you don't want to look back at that year.

SPEAKER_00: 1:39:30

Yeah. And it's funny, because like that's something that I almost I almost kind of want to look back and like do a quick study on of like the different years of wrestling that we've had. Like what year because now, granted, it's also because of the fact that there's been a lot of wrestling where it's only just been really WWE. But it's like throughout the years, there was it's mostly just WWE. And I guess you could bring in New Japan. Although it's funny, because like Like when I think back on it now, a lot of like the time when like WWE wrestling was at its worst was actually when New Japan was putting on some of the best stuff ever. Like when Kenny Omega was having his run, WWE was some of the worst shit on TV. Yes. And and and that was the PG year, I believe, right? Very much so. I'm I I do believe. Now I gotta do the research to just just so I can have my bearing straits on it. And so I'm and so I'm I am going to do that because now I kind of want to like think. I want to compare this year of wrestling to past years, and I want to see if this year really is as bad as it's ever been, or have I just blacked out some of the past wrestling that we've had?

SPEAKER_01: 1:40:57

Because I'm gonna say this year right now, the best year of wrestling was 98. Possibly. That was that was when Austin was at his peak 98 was that was the royal that was the royal one where he got jumped by McMahon, and McMahon won, and then we got WrestleMania 17 with him and him in The Rock, and we got Backlash, the next the next pay-per-view.

SPEAKER_00: 1:41:24

Where we got the you can take your anger this to everybody, and you get Austin coming up and doing the middle, and then stop maybe we'll have to look. Now now now I have to now I have to do now. The research has to be done to see comparatively speaking, was this truly like the worst year of wrestling? All right. I'm gonna do it.

SPEAKER_01: 1:41:50

Well, guys, as always, thank you for watching our content. Matter of fact, just listening to us in general, whether if you're listening to us on any other streaming platforms, we are all on uh we're all on every streaming platform or all streaming platforms. Uh please, when you can, go ahead and like the video if you haven't already yet. And also please subscribe because it helps out the channel as much as it can. Oh, we're supposed to choke slam the like button actually in Tombstone the subscribe button. Uh I've slipped it a little bit, but uh as always, it's Damasuku. It's your boy Swag Switch in the building. Until next time, guys, have a good one. See you soon.