#also WWE is PG crowd

[elitehanitje]

[smolwritingchick]

Forced To Believe Chapter 23- You Look Like You've Seen A Ghost

Chapter Summary: Melanie visits another wrestling company which sparks a ton of debate as she reunites with an old friend

Words: 2,000+

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After Melanie got off the phone, it was revealed to be Dixie Carter from TNA who was hoping she could come by for a short time to join AJ Styles in a storyline. Surprisingly enough, WWE had talked with TNA about it and had permitted Melanie to attend, They made sure to keep it under wraps with everyone besides the higher ups of each company. It would also enhance the current storyline she was in since her character stormed out of the ring, yelling that she was done.

She was excited for the extremely rare opportunity and she hoped the forbidden door would continue to be open for future opportunities in the future of WWE.

'Next Morning'

When she got through security and all the other qualifications, she knocked on Dixie's office door. 

"Melanie! I am so happy to see you here sweetheart." She grinned and hugged her. "Come on in." 

Melanie walked in with her gym bag and smiled. "Thanks for having me. I missed TNA."

"TNA has missed you, honey. Since you will be here a little while, I have not told anyone you are here but some producers and Allen (AJ Styles) since you will be in a little storyline with him. I know the fans want to see you and him reunite."

"Yeah, I've been seeing a lot of that on Twitter."

"I'm shocked WWE agreed to this. But we won't take it for granted. I know your stay on TNA is temporary but it's never too late to consider staying full time. You have some loyal fans here sweetheart."

The Philly Diva nodded. "For now my heart is with WWE. But in the future never say never to coming back full time for TNA,"

'Knock Knock Knock'

Allen (AJ Styles) walked in. "Long time Melanie."

"Hey!" She hugged him and kissed him on the cheek. "Long time no see! How are your wife and kids?"

"They are doing great. They miss you."

"I miss them too. I gotta visit them again one day." She turned her attention back to Dixie. "So Dixie, what do you have planned for me?"

"For this week, Allen will do a promo and you'll come out to confront him. Just a simple thing. Later on, Gail Kim will do a promo about you and you confront her." Dixie explained.

"This is going to be really fun." Melanie grinned

'In the TNA Ring'

AJ Styles was in the ring doing a promo but all of a sudden his old 'I am 11' remix' theme surrounded the arena. 

"What is going on?" Mike Tenay asked on commentary.

"What is this? Mind games from Bully Ray? Dixie Carter?" Taz asked on commentary. 

All of a sudden, Melanie slowly walked onto the stage as the crowd began to go wild. 

"What the hell!? What the-what is she doing here!? Did you know about this!?" Taz yelled.

"No, no, I did not. Why is Melanie here on TNA?" Mike asked.

A smile came across her lips as she tagged some hands before walking to the ring while AJ stared at her in shock. 

'Melanie! Melanie! Melanie!' chants surrounded the arena as her heart soared. She missed the PG 14 wrestling and the TNA crowd. It was different from the WWE crowds. Both are unique in their own way. She wore light blue skinny jeans, black Converses and an 'AJ Styles P1' Raglan sleeve shirt. The shirt had a wide scoop neck that rocked off her shoulders a little bit and stopped below her belly button. Her hair was also straightened and she wore black eyeliner.

"AJ Styles looks pale as a ghost. It's been years since they last seen each other." Mike looked on.

"Yeah, and it was all AJ's fault. That man blew her off and embarrassed her in front of the world." Taz spat.

"Hello AJ. It's been a while. You okay? You look like you've seen a ghost?" Melanie stared at him dead in the eyes with a mic in her hands. 

The two stared at each other intently. He changed. To his dark attire, to his beard and hair. AJ stepped up to her in the ring as the crowd cheered. The crowd really wanted them to reunite.

"I cannot believe Melanie is back on TNA. This is awesome. This is freaking awesome." Taz exclaimed.

"Do you think she has forgiven AJ?" Mike asked

"I don't know but all I know is, AJ looks speechless."

'To Celeste'

Celeste was in her hotel room and was on Twitter on her phone and saw a fan tweet 'Oh my gosh! I just saw Melanie on TNA!'

"What?" She asked herself and quickly turned on her hotel TV. "What the hell!?" She exclaimed as she watched Melanie in the ring with AJ Styles. 

She quickly called April on the phone. "April! Get over here! Bring all the divas!"

"Whoa! Whoa! Calm down! What is going on!?" April exclaimed. "I just got out of the shower!­"

"Melanie is on TNA!" 

"What!?" April screamed on the other line. 

Not even 5 minutes later, Celeste's door was pounded by all the divas and she quickly ran to open the door as they rushed to the TV.

April, still in a towel, looked at the TV in shock. "Oh my gosh..."

"Why the heck is she on TNA!?" Layla exclaimed.

"Shh! Let's just watch!" Celeste replied.

"Wait, we gotta tell the guys!" Danielle grabbed her phone.

"Wait! Wait! How will they react!?" Trinity exclaimed, trying to calm everyone down.

"Call the guys!" Ariane yelled. 

All the girls were in shock and confusion. Why didn't Melanie tell them that she was going to TNA? What is going on? Did she really quit WWE? Was she really going to stay on TNA? Was this just for a storyline?

Trinity quickly called Jon (Jimmy Uso) "Jon, get the guys and bring them to Celeste's room. Melanie is on TNA!"

30 Seconds later, the guys barge in. "What the hell do you mean she's on TNA?!" Colby exclaimed as he, Joe and Jon stared at the screen.

"She really looks like a different person. What happened?" Eva Marie asks, looking at her hair and makeup.

'To TNA'

"Why so quiet? Is that any way to treat a friend? Your old friend? So what is this?" She touched his jacket. "You being the lone wolf? Forgetting about me after all we've been through?" 

She released her hand from his jacket. She could remember the incident like it was yesterday.

"Well...don't want to talk? I'll let my actions speak," she added and pulled him in for a hug as the crowd cheered. 

AJ stood there motionless, still in shock that she was here. 

After she released him, she spoke, "I know what you are going through right now. You and Dixie. But, whether you like it or not, I'm standing by you. I forgive you for everything and I want us to have that strong bond again. I hope you think about it. Why? Because the Lone Wolf's girl has arrived." She smiled before dropping the mic as AJ's old theme came on.

"You think Melanie and AJ are going to reunite?" Mike asked as she got out of the ring.

"I think so. Maybe Melanie can take AJ's head out his­-" Taz began.

"Okay! Well! Melanie is back on TNA Impact!" Mike exclaimed. "Let's hope we'll see more of 'The Phenomenal Prince and Princess' as a tag duo once again on TNA Impact."

AJ began to smirk, nodding to himself, accepting everything that just happened. 

'To Celeste'

In the room were the Total Divas, April, Celeste, Victoria, The Shield, Fandango, Danielle, The Usos, and Stu watching the TV.

"Damn..." Ariane said.

"Yeah," Trinity replied.

"What's going on Twitter?" Victoria asked as Celeste looked at her phone. 

TNA's ratings skyrocketed because of how a popular WWE diva is on another company's show.

People tweet:

'Melanie looks better than ever! She looks awesome! #TNANeedsMelanie'

'OMG YES! YES! #MelanieIsBackOnTNA'

'Please don't go back to TNA! Please! #WWENeedsMorgan'

'Stay on TNA! DO NOT go back to WWE! No one wants to see that PG crap! PG 14 is where it's at! #TNANeedsMelanie'

'#WWENeedsMelanie Please don't go back to TNA! You are the Shield's girl! Not the Lone Wolf's girl!'

'Melanie made the right choice when she decided to go back to TNA. #WWEIsBuryingMelanie'

'So glad she's back where she belongs. #MelanieBelongsOnTNA'

'Ugh, why is she on TNA? #MelanieBelongsInTheWWE'

'Yay! I hope Melanie and AJ reunite! I would love Melanie as #TheLoneWolfsGirl'

'Yes! #TheLoneWolfsGirl is back! No more Shields girl. Melanie is back where she belongs.'

'I don't care if Melanie is on WWE or TNA but it's nice for her to be #ThePhenomenalPrincess again.'

'Why is WWEMorgan101 on TNAwful!? #MelanieBelongsInTheWWE'

"She is all over Twitter. She's one of the top trends along with TNA Impact." Celeste looked on.

"As expected from her with the way she worked hard to make a name for herself," Joe replied. 

"I just want an explanation. I thought she was having time off." Ariane said as the divas agreed.

"Maybe she knew we would protest?" Jojo asked.

"Damn right! It's TNA! WWE is against TNA!" Colby exclaimed.

"Maybe she's just visiting?" Celeste said

"Nah, she had her wrestling mode on. She isn't there to visit." Jon (Jimmy Uso) added.

"Or it could be a storyline," April pondered.

"Let's just wait till the show is over and we'll call her," Stu recommended.

"Good idea. Maybe we should finish watching TNA just in case she is still on the show." Nattie mentioned.

'To Melanie, offscreen'

After Melanie to the Knockout's locker room, she was attacked with hugs.

"Oh my gosh! I didn't know you were coming back!" Gail Kim grinned.

"Aw, thanks! Long time no see Gail!" Melanie smiled. It was so nice to see her old friends from TNA.

"I'm so happy you're back!" Jamie (Velvet Sky) exclaimed.

Brooke walked in. "Ahh! Melanie!" she yelled as they ran and hugged each other. "I missed you girl!"

"Haha, missed you too! So glad to be back!"

Jessica (ODB) hugged her as well. "Nice to see you back here on TNA Mel."

"Good to be back!" The Philly Diva smiled. 

After she was greeted by the knockouts, she went to walk backstage.

She said some hellos to some people and while she was walking, she heard a voice. 

"We meet again short one."

She grinned and turned around to look up at a tall figure smiling down at her. 

"Hey, Jake! Long time no see!"

"Yeah, it's been a while. How's the weather down there?"

She chuckled. "It's great. We have a lot to catch up on. You got a match, right? Mind If I go watch?"

"Not at all. I was just heading to the stage now."

"All right! Let's do this!"

'In The Ring'

In the ring, Venom by muzeOne surrounded the arena. "This match is scheduled for one fall! Introducing the challenger, accompanied by Melanie! The Giant Boa, Jake Roberts!" Christy Hemme announced.

"Melanie is out here again, accompanying her old friend Jake Roberts. Do you see how tall this guy is? Wow." Taz said.

"Jake and Melanie have history together. He helped her out during her feud with Madison Rayne." Mike informed as Jake got in the ring while Chris Sabin was already in the ring, warming up.

'Ding Ding Ding'

Melanie watches on as Chris tries to give Jake some kicks but it does little damage. Jake gains control of him and gives him a suplex, making the ring shake a little bit. "What a suplex! Wow. Did you feel the ground shake?" Taz asks.

Jake grabs Chris into the chokeslam hold but goes to the ropes and performs a chokeslam off the turnbuckle. "And Jake goes to the world's biggest chokeslam." Mike exclaims.

"Yeah!" Melanie cheers. Jake pins him for the win.

"Here is your winner! Jake Roberts!" Christy announces as Melanie gets in the ring to congratulate him.

'To Jon'

Jon was watching TNA in his hotel room as Colby and Joe glanced at each other. Even though Melanie was looking smoking hot on TNA, he really wanted some answers from her. 

"Dude, you all right?" Colby asked.

Jon ignored him and just stared at the TV. He couldn't believe Melanie was on TNA of all places. He had a feeling she would still do wrestling while she was having time off but thought it would be in an independent circuit. 

"Look, we'll talk to her after TNA goes off all right?" Joe said. "I'm sure she'll give us all a good explanation."

"She better." Colby sighed

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'At TNA, onscreen'

Later on TNA, Gail Kim walked out as the crowd booed her. 

"While I was backstage, watching TNA, I couldn't help but feel disgusted at what I saw. Who the hell does Melanie think she is, going around here, thinking she can take my spotlight? Why is she getting so many chants? She barely did anything in this place! Only a 1 time TNA Knockouts champion. Look at me! I've won it plenty of times and I was the first Knockouts Champion-" she was cut off by AJ's old 2011 theme

Melanie walked out to a loud reception. She was working overtime today and the crowd was eating it up every time she came back on stage. Instead of having her right hand up in the air to do her taunt, she had both her hands up and did her taunt before she twirled around and got in the ring. She grabbed a mic and chuckled at Gail as she stood before her but not too close. 

"Here we go, week after week I have to deal with girls hating on me. You're no different." She snapped as Gail glared at her. "The reason you're hating on me and everyone appreciating me is that your welcome back appreciation party sucked ass and no one gave a shit. I mean, come on, you walk down the ring and ignore the fans. Now, I'll admit, Gail, you've done a lot more than I have during my stay on TNA, but that doesn't mean I don't have anything left in the tank." 

Gail laughed. "So you're here to prove something? That you're better than me? No one is better than me Melanie."

"Oh really? You're not going to be the best forever. Someone is going to take you down."

"Oh really?" she dropped the mic and speared her down to the mat.

"And here we have a brawl!" Mike exclaimed as Gail started unloading on her with punches. 

The crowd booed as Gail continued her attack on her but then Melanie fought back and started taking control.

"And Melanie is fighting back!" Taz looked on

Melanie picked her up and was about to do her finisher but Gail escaped the hold and scrambled out of the ring. 

"This close." The Philly Diva said with her hair disheveled as she pointed at Gail. 

"I'm the best knockout here!" Gail yelled

"Oh sure! Sure! Prove it!"

"I will! That was just a test! A test! I'll show you next week!" 

Melanie got on the turnbuckle and put both her hands up in the air to do her taunt. 

"Well, next week on TNA Impact, we'll have a knockouts tag match. Melanie and Velvet Sky against Gail Kim and Brooke. What a match that is going to be." Mike said.

"Oh man, I cannot wait to see Melanie in action. I know she still has a lot to show after being away from TNA for so long. Good to have Melanie back." Taz said.

"Yes, it is. We'll see if what she says is true next week on Impact Wrestling."

'To Jon'

Jon had to admit, Melanie looked awesome and better than ever. 

"Hey, the good thing is, you see Melanie in the TNA ring and she looks hot for you right?" Colby tried to calm down Jon who looked a little upset. "Guess that didn't work..."

"I'm not really bothered with Melanie going to TNA. It's wrestling and she wants to wrestle. I think she knows what she's doing. I mean, it's not like she's going to stay there." Joe replied.

"What if she does?" Jon spoke up and looked at him. Joe had no answer to that.

"That's why we are upset, Joe." Colby sighed. "She's like the glue of The Shield. No one can ever take her place. She can't stay on TNA. She just can't."

Joe nodded. What would The Shield do without Melanie?

'After The Show'

Melanie, back at home, Skyped with Chyna. 

"Hey, Mel. I saw you on TNA. Shocker. Guess you couldn't stay from the ring huh?" Chyna smiles.

"Yeah, WWE permitted me to attend for a little bit until it was time for me to go back to WWE for my storyline! They kept it under wraps for a surprise. I know everybody is probably losing their minds right now. Also, my mom is going to be a part of the storyline in WWE soon."

"No way! Jane? I'll be tuning in for that. Hey, you'll be on TNA next week, right? I'll be there to see you in action next Thursday."

"Really? That'll be awesome!"

"Uh huh. Can't wait to see you in action, live. So how's Jon treating you?"

"He is treating me great."

"Good and it better stay that way. I don't want to kick his ass."

"I don't think that'll be necessary." Melanie laughed.

"I was cracking up with you called Stephanie a bitch. That made my night."

"Haha. Glad to hear." 

"So have you talked to your WWE friends yet about the storyline?"

Melanie chuckled nervously and looked at her phone at the numerous texts and missed calls.

"Hoo boy...I guess I should start explaining huh?"

Chyna laughed, "Have fun."

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Favorite hashtag?

#TNANeedsMelanie

#WWENeedsMelanie

#WWENeedsMorgan

#WWEIsBuryingMelanie

#MelanieBelongsOnTNA

#MelanieBelongsInTheWWE

#TheLoneWolfsGirl

#ThePhenomenalPrincess

[rickygoldman34]

Hello everyone Ricky Goldman here.

Its WWE Payback 2023 live from PG Paints arena in Pittsburgh,Pennsylvania. 1st match is Becky Lynch vs Trish Stratus in a steel cage match. Becky took control slamming Trish into the cage but Trish back in it and looked to escape early but Becky pulled her back down again but this would get Trish into it again. This was a see-saw battle between the 2 women,this was hard hitting leaving a welt on the forehead of Trish. Good match to begin things. Trish hitting the widows peak to no avail,Becky with a twist of Fate also to no avail. Both women up to the top rope and Trish hits a bulldog but didnt get the pin,both wome fought on the top rope and used the cage as a weapon. Super plex from Becky,both women fight on. Becky climbed whilst Trish went for the door but here is Zoey Stark,Becky with a man handle slam but Zoey breaks up the count. Becky dispatches her and hits another man handle slam from the top to win. After the match Zoey turned on Trish.

Out comes the host John Cena,he will be special guest referee for the next match The Miz vs La Knight. Miz dominated most of this match not allowing Knight any offence,really taking his time doing what ever he pleases. Knight get back into though,back and forth the momentum swung between both men. Miz took over,Knight almost ran into Cena,Miz took this as an advantage and hit skull crushing finale to no avail. Elbow followed by blunt force trauma for knight to pick up the victory.

Onto the next Rey Mysterio vs Austin Theory for the us title. Austin from the opening bell just wouldn't let Rey do anything, slamming him down giving him no way of getting back into it but the champion did he made short work of it as he hits a 619 he tried to follow up with a senton but Theory got the knees up,he went for A town down but Rey rolled him up to retain.

Up next here is Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens in a steel city street fight match for the undisputed WWE tag team titles. Fight on right away as the weapons came into play,many chairs,kendo sticks and trash cans. They fought everywhere including into the crowd more than once,Owens getting busted open the hard way. The champions with hockey jerseys and sticks,the fight caries on with no sign of slowing down. More chairs tossed into the ring and Zayn with a blue thunder bomb to no avail. Owens takes out Dominick in the crowd with a senton bomb through a table as Owens leapt off a high level. Zayn takes over looking to end it all by himself,Owens back in with a stunner,Zayn with a helluva kick,pinfall but JD McDonough pulls Zayn out the ring. Pop up powerbomb to Jd onto the announce tae,Rhea Ripley spears Owens through a barricade. Zayn fought on with another helluva kick but Dominick hits Zayn with the money in the bank briefcase,Finn covers Zayn and Judgement day do it we got new champions.

[littletroubledgrrrl]

In 2015, a Youtuber made a video about how the fanbase of the WWE has deteriorated in recent years, and in his piece of shit video, he says how instead of the college-like atmosphere of the Attitude era, the WWE's fans in the audience are now filled with screaming kids and adults who look like they have a fifth grade education.

Even though I admit the PG Era is worse than the Attitude era, there were plenty of people in the Attitude era who looked like they had a fifth grade education and looked like complete lowest common denominator:

There's also that infamous fat homely lady in the front row at the beginning of a 1998 WWF show who wore a black top with the white letters "DX" at her chest and Shawn pointed to her and asked her "Are you double or triple D Generation X?" and some guy with Juggalo face paint crotch chopping in the front row at the beginning of a WWF show near the end of 1998, but I can't find the videos of them to make gifs out of them.

I've seen the way WWE fans in 2015 look in the audience and they don't look much different from some of the Attitude era crowds.

[shining-red-diamond]

Ch. 1

Words: 3.1k

Pairing: NCT Misfit Unit x OCs

Genre: Fluff, angst, suggestive, mystery!AU

Rating: PG-13

Warnings: murder scene, violence, blood, brief sensuality

Savannah could smell the sweat and excitement the second she entered the clausterous arena. Two fighters were already in the middle of a match as she strolled in, and all of the men were screaming loudly for the fighter they were rooting for to defeat the opponent. The arena was once an abandoned nightclub, but some of the locals got the lights and electricity working again. After that, it became a place for underground WWE matches. The ring itself was made of metal wires with a tattered mat used as the floor. Sweat and old stains covered it so much that Savannah began to wonder when the last time it had been cleaned. It was certainly where she didn’t want to be on a Friday night, but she had a deadline to meet.

“Hey, lady,” a deep voice grunted from beside her. A young man with long, light blue hair and doe eyes was sitting at a table with a metal box filled with cash sitting on top of it.

“You gonna place a bet or what?” he said in a sharp tone.

“I’m looking for Johnny Suh,” she shot back. “Is he here?”

“Yeah, but you’re gonna have to wait until after the last fight is done to talk to him.”

Savannah just nodded, not very pleased with the young man’s attitude.

“Hey, babe,” a taller, young woman around five foot six with red hair approached the man and planted a loving kiss on his cheek. “Are we late? Astrid had to work an extra hour.”

“You’re in time for the last fight,” he replied, the biggest grin on his face as he looked up at her. His sudden change in attitude surprised Savannah, but she decided not to think too deeply about it.

The young woman was dressed in a cherry red, long sleeved crop top, denim shorts with a silver belt, and black combat books. Her friend, whom Savannah guessed was the one named Astrid, had shorter, dirty-blonde hair and sported an oversized military jacket and dark-wash jeans. Both of them seemed like sweet girls from what Savannah observed, so she decided to speak with them.

“Oh, hi!” the redhead greeted. “I’m Brittany. This is Astrid, and I’m sure you’ve met my boyfriend Hendery.”

“Savannah,” the journalist replied, not expecting such an enthusiastic welcome.

“You’re the reporter girl, right?”

“Journalist, but similar thing.”

“I’ve seen your picture in the papers before. You’re incredible.”

“I never knew I had such a fanbase,” Savannah nervously chuckled.

“I read your stuff when I’m in line at the grocery store, and you’re really changing the way cases get solved around here.”

Savannah got the impression that she was seen as a hero in this girl’s eyes, but she never considered herself one. She was just wanting to tell stories from her point of view, even if it meant solving a mystery. Her husband had the more heroic job with his fire chief occupation, and she was more than proud of him.

“Thank you,” was all she could say.

The two women made a beeline to the ring, Savannah following close behind them, and immediately climbed the fence to the top to get a bird’s eye view of the fight.

“Ten bucks, and I bet you Sledge gets his teeth knocked out within the first five minutes of the fight,” Brittany smirked at her friend.

“Really?” Astrid scoffed. “Twenty dollars and Wrecker breaks his fist in the process.”

“Excuse me,” Savannah waved. “I’m looking for a Johnny Suh.”

The two girls turned their heads towards the journalist, confused of why this fancy-dressed business woman was at such a fighting place built into an abandoned nightclub.

“Well, he’s the emcee,” Astrid shrugged, her voice having a light Danish accent, “so you will have to wait until the fight’s over. You’re welcome to hang with me and Brittany.”

Sit near a fight? Near where bones are known to break? Where blood is said to be splattered? Where humiliation overwhelms the loser? She wasn’t sure if she was ready to see that up close.

“I think I’m just going to find an empty seat,” she excused.

“Okay. You can sit with Jeno.” Brittany waved to a young man with jet black hair, and he nodded in acknowledgement. “You two can talk if you can, but it gets loud in here. It might be hard to hear, so fair warning.”

“I figured that.”

Brittany led Savannah to where Jeno was sitting, and after introducing each other she went back to her perch with Astrid.

“Lee Jeno,” Savannah repeated his name, half-shouting over the comotion. “Why have I heard your name somewhere?”

“Well, I’m not one of the top most wanted, but I’ve seen you at the fire station. Your husband is Chief Lee Taeyong, right?”

It then clicked in her mind. Jeno was part of Taeyong’s company, and she had seen him cleaning the firetrucks whenever she would bring something for her husband. The two had acknowledged each other, but never really spoke until now. Jeno seemed like a respectful young man, so Savannah felt no threat when she was around him. Seeing him now, she couldn’t help but notice his behavior. He was friendly, but he definitely seemed anxious about something. His knee bounced rapidly as his fingers drummed on it as if he was dribbling a basketball. When he spoke, he was calm; but his actions were saying that he had something on his mind.

“Yes, he is,” Savannah confirmed as she sat down next to him. “What’s a guy like you doing here?”

“I’m one of the fighters here when I’m not on duty, but I hurt my shoulder at a house fire. The doctor doesn’t want me doing any work for six weeks, so I just came to cheer on my friends.”

Savannah listened intently as the younger man told his story. He was a strong, young man at almost twenty-one, and he was one of the best fighters at the ring. The other fighters had given him the nickname “Hercules” to signify his strength, but he was one of the kindest fighters as well. Hercules could talk smack before a fight but make sure that his opponent got proper treatment for their injuries afterwards. If he ever lost a fight, he always gave the winner his congratulations.

“My family doesn’t like that I come here as a side hustle,” he continued as two beefy fighters entered the ring, “but as long as I come home after each one, then they let it slide.”

“Where do you get the money from?” Savannah asked.

“Some of it comes from lost bets, and some come from whatever gets made at the snack bar.” He pointed to a lit up area where someone was serving drinks to two women. “It’s a variety of things.”

“Laaaddiieeeesss and gentleduuuuudddeeeesss,” a voice boomed over a loudspeaker, causing the crowds to cheer.

Savannah looked over to see a man about six foot two and wearing a blue and black flame shirt half opened, and he was carrying a bullhorn instead of a microphone. The energy he radiated seemed almost out of place, but he managed to hype up the crowd with it.

“Is that Johnny?” she asked Jeno, and he nodded.

“We’ve had quite a night, tonight, haven’t we?” Johnny continued. “Well, we have one more round of action before I have noise complaints from the cops.”

The audience laughed.

“Let’s bring out Sledge and Wrecker!”

As the crowd roared in excitement, two large men on opposite sides of the ring entered it. One had a deep tan, bright purple hair, and a whole tattoo sleeve on his right arm. The other was thinner, but still muscular; and he had lighter skin and a buzz cut. Both men got in each other’s faces as to try to outdo each other in intimidating the other. Savannah just rolled her eyes and shook her head. To her, it was like watching two middle schoolers in a fight; but she still pulled out her notebook to jot things down.

Vibrations pulled Savannah out of her focus. Jeno’s phone was going off, and after seeing who it was his eyes seemed to pop out of his head.

“Is everything alright?” Savannah asked.

“I have to go right now,” he said as he quickly stood from his seat, “but I’ll see you around. It was nice to meet you, Mrs. Lee. Excuse me.”

Without another word, Jeno rushed out of the building. Out of her curiosity, Savannah sneaked out of her seat to follow Jeno, but she remained a good distance behind him. Once he was outside, he lifted his phone to his ear.

“Where are you right now?” he asked someone over the phone as concern laced his voice. “Is she okay?...Is she about to?...I’m on my way now. Tell her I’m coming.”

Jeno hung up the phone, shoved it into his pocket, and flagged down a taxi once he had reached the sidewalk in the fastest sprint Savannah had ever witnessed.

Many questions filled her head. Who was he talking to? Who was the girl mentioned? A girlfriend? A cousin? A sister? Was she hurt? Where was Jeno headed? The most logical answer would be he was close with a female acquaintance and needed him for something while she was in the hospital, but it was only a theory. Even if Savannah knew the answer, she figured it was probably none of her business.

As she headed back into the old building, the noise from the crowd had changed from whooping chants to cries of concern. When Savannah looked towards the ring, Wrecker was sprawled out on the floor, his body twitching and what looked like blood was pooling around his mouth. Is this what happens when fighters get knocked out? Savannah thought.

Brittany was still with Astrid when Savannah found them. “What happened?” she asked them.

The redhead was speechless and seemed near to tears.

“He was about to throw a punch,” Astrid explained in a panic, “but then he just collapsed out of nowhere.”

Two medics -a tall, lanky boy and a shorter, blonde girl- rushed over with a first aid kit to the fallen fighter and checked him; but the boy’s face immediately went into panic mode.

“Wrecker’s not breathing!” he wailed. “Someone call an ambulance!”

The girl didn’t hesitate to do so, and within a few minutes paramedics were trying everything to revive the fighter as they loaded him onto a gurney and into the large, white emergency vehicle. The police were also on scene as Hendery had seen something strange beforehand, so the incident quickly was turned into a homicide case. Everything happened in a flash, and Savannah wasn’t sure how something that was already chaotic became a place of death. Police lights were flashing by the abandoned building, yellow tape surrounded the ring, and investigators worked to find any evidence of what could have killed Wrecker.

“Hey,” a voice approached her. Johnny was jogging towards Savannah. “I heard you were looking for me.”

“Pleasure to meet you,” she forced a smile. “Do you think we can meet another time?”

“Yeah, yeah. I just wanted to see how you were.”

“I’m not hurt, if that’s what you mean.”

Johnny stood there with his hands on his hips and looked out to the crime scene. Savannah figured he was probably in shock as much as she was as beads of sweat were starting to form on his forehead. She wanted to ask him about what happened, but she figured now was not a good time.

“How about tomorrow at noon?” Johnny finally suggested after about a minute of silence. “I run the Iron Bell gym, so you can come by my office, and we’ll talk.”

“That’ll be perfect,” she agreed. “I think we all need some rest after what happened tonight.”

An officer then approached Savannah, took her statement and allowed her to head home.

-

Eleven o’clock in the evening rolled around when Savannah got home. An exhausted sigh escaped her lips as she set her purse and keys on the kitchen counter. Her fingers massaged her temples, her head throbbing with the weight of all the stress from what happened with Wrecker. He had died just after the paramedics arrived, and now the ring was a crime scene. Savannah didn’t know what to think. All she wanted to do was sleep away her worries and rest before meeting with Johnny the next day.

“Hey, babe,” Taeyong’s voice greeted her.

She hadn’t noticed her husband sitting on the couch with a bottle of cider in his hand and the tv turned on to a basketball game. He looked tired, but a small, welcoming smile was present on his face.

“Hi, honey,” Savannah greeted back as she trudged over to him.

“How was your day?” he asked as his wife kicked off her shoes and threw her coat on the recliner.

In an exhausted exhale, she allowed herself to fall over the arm of the couch and into Taeyong’s lap. Her face was immediately buried into his neck, and his strong arms captured her waist.

“Long?” he teased, guessing from her body language.

“Just hold me,” she requested with a nod.

“Can I have a kiss first?”

Savannah pulled her husband towards her and placed a soft but loving kiss on his lips. Taeyong always craved her touch, especially when he was on duty. He loved being at the fire station and having the opportunity to save lives, but at the end of the day he wanted to be home with his beautiful wife. Ever since they wed, whenever he was home early or off duty Taeyong would always have something to drink and watch a show before bed with Savannah. Occasionally, she would come home later than usual if she was on location for a story, and if she was exhausted like tonight she was extra snuggly. A year and a half into marriage, and this became almost routine for them.

For a few minutes, Savannah cuddled Taeyong as he caressed her like a swaddled baby. She was almost asleep until he tapped her awake so they could get ready for bed. He disposed of the now empty bottle before following his wife into their shared bedroom.

“Did you go to that ring tonight?” Taeyong asked as Savannah removed her makeup in the bathroom.

“Yeah,” she answered honestly. “But it was for a story for the Star.” She then began to cleanse her face.

“I know. Jeno goes there,” -he began to undress by the closet- “so I hoped he would see you.”

“I met him. Nice young man, but he left just before the last fight could happen.”

Taeyong came into the bathroom and pulled out his toothbrush and toothpaste. “He probably had a good reason.”

“Well, it sounded like an emergency,” she explained once she had rinsed her face. “He sounded concerned when he asked someone on the phone where they were and if they were with someone about to do something.”

The fire chief didn’t answer right away as he was occupied brushing his teeth, but he did shrug in response.

“I figured it was probably a sister or friend,” Savannah continued as she patted her face dry with a towel. “He said ‘she.’”

“Probably something with his girlfriend,” her husband finally answered after rinsing his mouth. “I don’t know.”

“Well, it fits the context.”

The two reentered their bedroom, and he insisted on undressing her and putting her pajamas on her as she was so tired. It was one of the intimate ways they both enjoyed to show each other; Taeyong more, because it allowed him to care for the woman he loved the most. A few soft kisses were stolen as he changed her, and they both swayed a little to some soft music Savannah put on to help them unwind for the night. Both of them had demanding careers, but when they had intimate moments like this, they were something worth treasuring.

After Savannah’s pj's slipped onto her body, Taeyong spun her out and back into himself before kissing her.

“I love you,” he whispered.

“I love you, too.”

“You’re not mad I went to the ring?” Savannah asked as she crawled into bed.

“Did I like that you were going there? No,” Taeyong admitted, climbing in after her. “But knowing that you didn’t get hurt puts my mind at ease. I just hate that this assignment was handed to you.”

Savannah scoffed. “You act as if I’m made of glass. I’m a big girl, and I can take care of myself.”

Taeyong removed his glasses and set them on his nightstand as soon as he was on his side of the bed. He then wrapped his arms around his wife and stared into her eyes. “But I’m your husband, so I also have to take care of you.”

“You’re a fireman. You take care of everyone.” Savannah’s fingers ran through her husband’s dyed-velvet red hair.

Taeyong gave her a loving kiss. “It’s my job, and I love helping out the community. But you’re the one I want to come home to at the end of my shifts. Everyone means nothing compared to you.”

With small scoff disguised as a laugh, Savannah pulled her husband closer to her and began a small makeout. Despite being exhausted, she was just as hungry for his embrace as he was for hers. Her heart picked up the pace as Taeyong’s thumbs rubbed small circles on her lower back.

“Have you thought about it?” Taeyong asked, his lips trailing kisses down Savannah’s neck.

“About what?” she replied in a breathy tone.

“Trying, again.”

Taeyong and Savannah both desired children, but they wanted to adjust to married life and having careers before they decided to begin trying to conceive. A year into their marriage and they started doing so, but it was proving difficult. Each of their doctors had told them that they were healthy and doing everything right, but not every pregnancy will begin right after the first try. It was a lot to process, but the couple decided to focus on their careers and each other for a bit before trying again.

“Sometimes,” she shrugged, “but work has gotten so hectic for the both of us recently. I don’t know if we’ll have time for a baby. Plus, I’m so tired from what happened tonight.”

“I know,” nodded Taeyong before pressing a kiss to her forehead. “We can make time, but I’ll be ready when you are.”

[domesticblisss]

Summer is Almost Gone

Timothy Thatcher x Female Reader Rating: PG-13 Word Count: 1565 Warnings: Angst, fluff. Some cursing, I guess. Just exes bumping into each other and some nostalgia. Summary: Reader finds Tim where she least expected. A/N: Another Lana Del Rey inspired one, but mostly because of the feeling of nostalgia “White Dress” gives. Tried to not make it super sad. Hope you guys like it.

→ “You’re coming, right?” ← “Yeah, I’m going, Marcel. It’s just us, right?” → “Just you and I and Fabian and a couple of our friends.” ← “Cool, I’ll be there in 10.”

She did arrive there in ten. But what was supposed to be a get together between her, Marcel and a few friends turned out to be a full blown house party. Some rapper that she has heard Marcel listening to before was blasting on the speakers, people were already intoxicated, couple were making out, and dancing bodies were tightly pressed together crowded his living room that it took her almost five minutes to make her way from the front door to Marcel’s kitchen.

She finds Fabian sitting on the counter, drowning in a beer and talking to Shotzi. “Oh my god, you came!” Shotzi exclaims, hugging her.

“Ugh, I did. Missed you much, girlie.” she hugs Shotzi back, before turning to Fabian. “Dude, what’s going on? Marcel said it was going to be just us.”

“You know how he is, this was just a ploy to invite that new girl he is head over heels for.”

“Ah, of course. Did she actually come?”

“Yeah...” Fabian answered with a slight embarrassed tone to his voice, raising his eyebrows and scratching the back of his head.

“Ok, that face tells me he’s somewhere with her already. Anyways, love you guys but I’m going to head out a bit. It’s way too crowded here.”

“See ya later, babe.” Shotzi yelled over and got a blown kiss in return.

She made her way to the backyard, hoping the swing set she helped Marcel build was still free. It was a typical end of summer night. The days got darker earlier, the hot day air slowly turning to a chilly night breeze. To her surprise, the backyard was empty besides one figure sitting on the left bench of the swing set.

Tim.

They haven’t seen nor talked to each other in four years, after she signed with WWE and things ended in a rocky path for the both of them.

He sat in her favourite bench, the one Marcel made sure to paint purple and write her name on.

Tim had his head bowed down, but from the little she could see, he looked older, the same tired expression he always had, hair cut short, beard full like she always asked him to let it grow. He was sporting his navy-blue dickies and the long sleeved Black Flag shirt she loved so much. He looked beautiful. Taking in the sight in front of her, she couldn’t help but think about how much she missed him, how much she still loved him.

As he raised his head to take another swig of his beer, he saw her standing there with a tiny amused smiled on her face.

“Dove, hey!” his strong voice boomed and he instantly regretted calling her by the pet name he used during their relationship. “I’m sorry, force of habit.”

“It’s fine, Tim. You know I don’t mind.” she told him as he got up to greet her, torn between a handshake or a hug. They ended up hugging, a little awkwardly in the beginning, but quickly getting used to the other’s touch once again.

“Why is your name written in the swing?” Tim asked, laughing.

“Marcel and I were talking about our childhood one day and we found out we both had this obsession with swings. He decided to get one and I helped him build it. So, he painted it and wrote my name on it so, and I quote, ‘everyone knows this place is mine’.” she smiled at the memory.

“So, I think it’s only fitting for you to sit here, ma’am.”

They sat side by side, engulfed by awkward silence, nervously drinking their beers. Tim decided to break the silence.

“How’s everything going?”

“It’s fine.”

“Dove, c’mon. We haven’t talked to each other in four years. You have nothing new to tell me?” Tim pressed on.

When she looked at him, he had the same look of adoration in his eyes he always had when he asked her to talk about her day, or when she watched an interesting movie and decided to tell him its plot. That brought her back the safe feeling she had whenever they were together. So, she told him, told him how the transition was, how much she learned on NXT, the plans they had for her to hold the championship and how her life was going in general.

Tim couldn’t do anything besides stare at her. He took in her figure, thinking about how the years apart did her wonders, thinking about how she was always the most beautiful woman in the world to him and how she looks even more beautiful now. He thought about how he missed the way she would move her hands while she talked excitedly about a subject, or how she would bite her bottom lip when she needed to concentrate or remember a word, or the way she would scrunch her nose when she made a crappy joke. He couldn’t stop thinking about how much he missed her, how much he missed these little things that she did, and how even after so long, they hadn’t changed. He couldn’t stop thinking about how stupid he was to break things up so abruptly. He got back to the real world after hearing her call his name.

“So, you finally accepted it and gave in to the dark side, right Tim?”

“Well, I’m old and I needed to at least end my career in a good place, so why not?” he answered, knowing what was coming.

“Oh for fuck sake, Timothy. You’re not old, sto–“

“I miss you, dove. I miss you so much” he interrupted her.

It caught her off guard, the feelings she suppressed for years rising up once again. She battled with herself for a few seconds but allowed herself to show her vulnerable side to him.

“I miss you too, you have no idea how these four felt like to me.” her voice was quiet, soft, almost a whisper.

“I am so, so sorry for being such a prick to you and ending things how I did. Just know that I was always happy for you and that your dreams came true.”

“I know.” she nodded, holding herself together so the tears that was at bay wouldn’t spill.

“Come here.” he took her hand and pulled her to his lap. Tim held her tight, as close as he could, almost making themselves one. He sensed the tears coming and kissed her. Kissed her forehead, her eyes, her nose, her cheeks, and her lips, one by one, begging her not to cry. Apologising for all the hurt he made her go through.

“I know,” she sobbed, “you have no idea how many times I thought about this, about seeing you again.”

“Me too, dove. I dreamed about coming back to you countless times.”

He kept holding her as she laid her head on his shoulder, her nose touching the crook of his neck. They enjoyed their presences in silence, the only noises heard were the distant sound of the party and the squeaking of the swing as Tim rocked them both back and forth.

She lifted her hand, scratching his head the way she knew he liked and kissed his neck. Breaking their little moment, she asked “What are you doing here, anyway? You hate these things.”

“Marcel said he was having a little dinner get together with me and three other people. I haven’t been around for a while, so I thought ‘why not?’”

She started laughing and Tim looked at her confused.

“What?”

“Marcel is a fucking idiot. He did all of this because he wanted to ask this girl out. He probably told her he was throwing a party and needed an excuse for us to come.”

“He didn’t change one bit, huh?

“Nope!”

“Have you even seen him after you arrived?” Tim asked.

“Not really, I met Fabian and Shotzi and Fabian said he disappeared with the girl. I texted him saying I had arrived and came out here because I’m not in the mood to deal with whatever is going on inside.”

“Me too.”

“Tim, you are never in the mood for these.”

“Wow.” he looked at her with a fake shocked face. “You’re right as always.”

They looked at each other, lose smiles on both of their faces.

“I still love you, you know that. Right, doll?”

“I still love you too. Very, very much.” she told him between pecks on his lips, to which he grabbed the opportunity to turn into a kiss. A slow but powerful kiss, that was filled with missing, with four years of unresolved feelings, filled with regret but also filled with hope for new beginnings. Tim pecked her lips several times after the kiss ended, making her smile once again.

“Sooo...” he began

“So...?”

“Do you wanna get out of here? There is this lebanese place near my apartment that I think you would like.”

“Oh god, yes! I’m starving.”

And they left, hand in hand, in a silent agreement that this time nothing was getting on their way.

[theworldofotps]

Our Girl

Pairing: Finn Balor x Reader Word Counter: 1,744 Description: Finn overhears Baron talking about you and plans to handle it in the ring. Your brother Dean along with his shield brothers standing ringside to help him.-Angst Not too sure how I feel about this one lemme know your thoughts and if I should change anything around! I definitely will take some constructive suggestions. ___________ Tag list: @writtingrose @biforbecky2belts @sjwrites22 @detectiveramen @sassymox @trent7thirsting @the-beastslayers-queen @thewrestlingwarehouse @new-zealand-chic @reigns420 @sassyspacedust @burnitbalor @mrsambroserollinsacklesmgk @xladyxfatex @biforrollynch If you wanna be added to the tag list lemme know! _____________ Finn’s P.O.V "Hey, Finn you got a minute?"

"Sure Apollo what's up?"

"Baron is talking about your girl and it's not the most pg things being said."

Raising a brow I follow after him from catering down a few hallways we come to a stop near the locker room. Standing outside we listen as Baron talks about (y/n) when a worker walks by we place a finger to our lips so he'll be quiet.

"I don't think I've ever seen a woman look as good as (y/n) does in her ring gear fuck what I wouldn't give to have her in bed screaming my."

"Care to say that sentence where I can hear ya?"

I asked shoving the door open the room goes silent as Baron looks at me a smug grin on his face.

"Of course, I was just telling Dolph here about how fucking hot (y/n) looks in her ring gear and how it would be so much better to have her in my bed instead of yours. She deserves a real man, not a little wimp who doesn't know the first thing about pleasing a woman."

"I know more about pleasing a woman fella then you do about being a wrestler ya wouldn't stand a chance with someone like (y/n). She's too far out of your fucking league to even waste her time on you."

"That's right I forgot you only date cheap whores."

Punching him in the face I spear him into the wall hitting him with a left and right punch a few of the superstars pull us apart.

"You're a dead man Corbin I want to handle this in the ring you and me no disqualification match."

"You got it."

He spits wiping the blood dripping from his nose I storm from the locker room to go find Hunter to set the match. Walking to the women's locker room I spot (y/n) talking to Dean, Roman, and Seth outside.

"There you are, babe, I was wondering where you got off too."

(Y/n) smiles when she spots me it quickly falling from her face when she sees my chest heaving a concerned look taking over.

"What's the matter?"

"I plan on killing Baron Corbin if possible."

"What did he do?"

"Ya don't even wanna fucking know."

I nearly growl pacing in front of them my blood boiling as I replay the scene in the locker room.

"Hey, you better calm down a little man you're going to wear a hole in the floor."

Seth says as they watch me stopping I run a hand over my face looking at them and then (y/n) I step forward pressing a kiss to her forehead.

"I'll talk with ya after my match I need to talk to your brother and the guys."

"Okay just be careful alright?"

"Always am I love ya."

"I love you."

She smiles kissing my lips before walking off we wait till she's out of sight before I turn my attention back to them.

"What happened?"

"So Apollo came up to me in catering and said that Baron was talking about (y/n) and it wasn't really pg. So I followed him to the locker room and heard Corbin talking about how good she looks in her ring gear ect. When I confronted him he said and this is literally what he said. It would be so much better to have her in his bed instead of mine. That she deserves a real man, not some wimp that doesn't know the first thing about pleasing a woman."

"What did you say to the egotistic prick?"

"That he didn't stand a chance with her I know more about pleasing then he does wrestling and that he was too far out of her league. She wouldn't waste her time on someone like him which we all know is true."

Dean chuckles nodding his head as the other two chuckled with him shaking their heads.

“That’s right my sister isn’t gonna settle for someone like him over my dead body would that ever happen.

I wait till they're finished before continuing on they wouldn’t be laughing for long.

"Then and this is where I wanted to take his fuckin head off he said that's right I forgot you only date cheap whores."

"He said what?!"

Dean bellows rage covering his face as I nod my head anger crossing the faces of his shield brothers.

"He's a dead man did you beat the shit out of him?"

"I started too but they managed to separate us but don't worry I got a match with him thanks to Hunter and it's a no disqualification match."

"We want to be out there nobody talks about or calls my sister shit like that."

"That's what I was hoping for."

"We'll be more than willing to stand ringside to keep him from getting away or anyone coming to save him. She's Dean's sister which automatically makes her family and one thing you don't do is mess with our girl."

Roman says the other two nodding in agreement I tell them to follow me to my locker room so we can discuss a few things I wanted to happen.

"Before we go out there I want to thank you for sticking up for her."

"She's the love of my life I don't plan on ever letting someone disrespect her if they do I intend to make them pay."

Closing the door we start going over our strategies I planned on addressing Baron before he came out so the WWE universe would know why I was beating the shit out of him. A tap on the locker door tells us it's time to head out grabbing my jacket I pull it on heading out and down the ramp. Doing my entrance I make my way to the middle of the ring grabbing a microphone waiting for the crowd to be silent.

"I hadn't planned on a match like this tonight but some people in the back don't know when to shut up. One sure-fire way ta piss me off is to disrespect my girlfriend and Corbin you sure as hell achieved that tonight. Talking about how you could and parents you'll want to cover your children's ears but talking about how she would be much better in your bed than mine and then calling her a cheap whore. That isn't something I take lightly so get your bald ass out here so I can smear you across this ring."

His music starts and I glare as he walks smugly down the ramp tossing my jacket to the side I watch as he gets in the ring. Motioning for a microphone he chuckles shaking his head before saying my name.

"Finn Finn Finn it's always entertaining watching you talk and act tough but we both know I can kick your ass in and out of the ring."

"You're one to talk about acting tough when everyone knows how you run scared every time someone comes after you. But this time you screwed up really bad because not only did ya talk about my girl but ya also talked shit about someone's little sister, or should I say, three peoples, little sister."

The Shield's music starts playing and I can't help but smirk as his face pales his eyes quickly scanning the crowd. They make their way down the steps quickly circling the ring before slipping inside Dean nearly foaming at the mouth.

"These three came out to make sure you don't try to escape or have anyone to help ya.”

Tossing my mic out I stand as we wait for them to slide out the three of them circling the ring like vultures. After a moment the bell rings and I go straight in with a right hook to the face running across the ring I clothesline him. Doing a sling blade I toss him around the ring every time he manages to slide out one of the guys punches him then shoved him back inside.

"Corbin is barely able to stand let alone continue to fend off Balor."

"Well, Michael, this is a side of Finn we haven't seen before you can't blame him tho the things Corbin said were terrible."

Watching as his face smashes into the turnbuckle I get on the top rope doing the coupe de grace and pinning him for a three count.

"Ladies and gentlemen your winner Finn Balor!”

The crowd cheer as Dean climbs into the ring with Roman and Seth behind him grins on their faces as they look down at Corbin. We watch as he staggers to his feet Dean delivering a dirty deed the anger on his face still clear. Referees come out trying to keep Dean from getting any closer myself Seth and Roman letting him be. Corbin was getting what was coming to him and we weren't going to stand in the way. Scaring the refs out of the ring Dean picks Baron up throwing him into the ropes as more people come down followed by Stephanie.

"Dean that's enough I think he's learned his lesson he needs medical attention."

Sending Stephanie a glare he grabs Baron for another dirty deed and Stephanie steps forward.

"I mean it, Dean, if you deed him again I'm going to suspend you for thirty days."

When (y/n)'s music hits we all turn our attention to the ramp as the crowd cheers loudly for her. Walking to the ring she calls out to Dean with a concerned expression holding the ropes for her I take her hand in mine as she reaches her free one out for his.

"Come on D he's not worth it anymore."

With a mutter under his breath, Dean releases Baron watching as he drops to the floor brushing his hand against her cheek he slides out of the ring with Seth and Roman following behind him after kissing the top of her head. Shooting a final glare at Baron I help (y/n) out wrapping my arm around her waist as we head backstage.

"Why did you come out and stop Dean?"

"Because I know my brother and he wouldn't care what Steph said he'd keep beating the shit out of him until he was satisfied. Baron isn't worth losing his job or ending up in jail as much as I appreciate you all sticking up for me he's not worth it."

"Well, baby like Roman said earlier nobody messes with our girl and gets away with it."

Pressing a kiss to her lips we head to the locker room so we could get changed and head out with the guys for some food.

[emblem-333]

Let’s Save The Hitman

In my eyes wrestling is corny, formulaic, and whenever someone tries something creative for the sake of change it is immediately the worst. There’s a fine line between PG and PG-13 the WWE walks today. In some ways for the better. The women, while often forgotten, aren’t treated primarily as sex objects. Wrestlers of various ethnicities are treated better, at least in their on-screen portrayal. The Attitude Era content fans yearn to return never will. No matter the platform WWE finds itself on they want to appeal to children to obtain mainstream credibility they enjoyed for a very brief time in the Hulk Hogan-era, and in 2000. You can gauge how in-vogue wrestling is with the casual audience with if one of them hosts Saturday Night Live.

As of today, the WWE doesn’t know what it wants to be. Every year they beg celebrities to show their faces for WrestleMania for that mainstream appeal. They are also grooming Shane McMahon to be the edgy, son of a billionaire heel to fill his father’s shoes from The Attitude Era. Women are challenging man’s masculinity on live television on Raw, then on Smackdown the champion is hugging little children on the way to the ring. C.M Punk is right when he describes wrestling as the most “bipolar” industry.

In 1997 the WWE appealed solely to the crowd who wanted the edgier product. The rejection of the clean-cut Babyface Bret Hart and his stereotypical tendencies, despite his superior in-ring and fine promo skills, the days of the black and white were long over. In ‘97 World Championship Wrestling simply was kicking WWF’s ass. The New World Order was setting the landscape on fire. Heel Hogan rejuvenated his career. It didn’t even matter the wrestling matches featuring the nWo were subpar. The characters were just that great. Meanwhile, the WWF in late in the year knew what had to be done, only they lacked the funds to do it. It wasn’t enough to give the red hot “Stone Cold” Steve Austin the title. Vince McMahon needed more juice in the building for the occasion. He set his eyes for heavyweight champion Mike Tyson. His expensive price tag was paid after McMahon ran Bret out of the WWF into the arms of WCW. WHAT A COINCIDENCE!

The first hurdle McMahon had to conquer wasn’t simply getting the belt off Bret. It was the squeeze a pay day out of the illustrious Shawn Michaels/Bret Hart rivalry before The Hitman walked out the door. The two have worked in singles matches only twice prior. The first time at Survivor Series, 1992, and the famous Iron-Man Match at WrestleMania XII. Each match a four-in-a-half star affair. The two were penciled to have a rubber-match for WrestleMania XIII. Except the champion Michaels “Lost his smile”.

Translation: “I’m the champion. I don’t have to do jobs for anybody. Also, my knee hurts.”

As you can imagine, this caused a rift between The Heartbreak Kid and The Hitman. Prior to Survivor Series, in 1997, all Hart asked McMahon was he’d end his WWF career with his dignity. McMahon insisting he drop the championship to Michaels. Hart won the title from The Undertaker at Summerslam earlier in the year.

The infamous Montreal Screwjob ruined the life of one of the greatest performers the business had ever seen. While simultaneously catapulting the cutthroat McMahon above his competitors to the point he currently holds a monopoly on the wrestling industry. (We’ll see how All Elite Wrestling does)

So what-if a compromise was reached? Or if the whole scene was avoided all together? Obviously the Monday Night War continues into the 21st century. Even as WCW decayed under the inmates running the asylum (*coughs Hulk Hogan*) if the company never felt the need to try anything different after losing their lead in the ratings maybe the company is still around today? With no “Mr. McMahon” character to act as a foil for the anti-Hero Austin how much of what made Stone Cold so great is missed?

How do we arrive at such an occurrence? Simple. Have The Undertaker go over Bret Hart at Summerslam. Referee Michaels catches Bret using a chair on Undertaker and disqualifies him. The stipulation for this match was if Hart were to lose he would no longer compete on American soil. This is earth shattering to the WWF world in 1997 if Hart had to adhere to this stipulation. Hard to imagine this not being an appropriate end for Hart’s WWF career if his heel run comes to a screeching halt at the hands of his arch nemesis. The Madison Square Garden crowd goes bonkers obviously buying the now anti-American Hart.

With no Monday Night Raw scheduled for Canada we probably never see Hart wrestle for the WWF again. Fun fact: his contract was expired by the time Survivor Series rolled around. He didn’t have to work the show. Being the champion at the time he felt obliged. If we do arrive at Survivor Series in Montreal with Hart and Michaels main eventing HBK is the one with the belt. You need this match to have the belt at stake. Is the sting of Montreal still momentous if Hart is screwed out of the title he did not have? I have no clue. It’s awfully hard to believe Hart refusing to do the job if Michaels was already champion at Survivor Series. The circumstances would be different. Michaels could retain via D.Q. McMahon wouldn’t be so hellbent on destroying Hart’s reputation Canada. Perhaps a more dignified exit means no racist angle involving the D-Generation X vs The Hart Foundation vs The Nation of Domination? People forget how clumsy and nonsensical the early stages of The Attitude Era was. HBK and Triple H frequently would crack unfunny, immature jokes. They would blabber on and on and find themselves miles away from the initial subject matter.

Hopefully, in this universe, Undertaker retaining washes all of that away. As for Undertaker, Michaels probably gets the belt at either of the In Your House PPVs prior to Survivor Series. ‘Taker’s younger brother Kane was scheduled to debut at Badd Blood. So his appearance can cause ‘Taker to lose the belt to Michaels and transition both participants to the next story.

Scenario Number 2: The Patriot Defeats Bret at IYH: Ground Zero

Hey! Remember The Patriot? Of course you don’t! Nobody does. But for a brief time (oh, so brief) Del Wilkes was red hot debuting in the WWF after stints in Japan and WCW, popping in just as Bret got one over on Michaels and won the belt from ‘Taker at Summerslam. The Patriot didn’t take too kindly to Hart’s defaming America and challenged him to match on July 14th edition of Raw is War. With a little help from The Showstoppa' Patriot scores a monumental upset win over Hart. Sgt. Slaughter acting as commissioner later ordered The Hitman to defend his recently won title against the Patriot at Ground Zero: In Your House.

Funny side-note: this is the feud that turned Vader face. While Vader and Hart were slugging it out for the title on Raw the Hart Foundation attacked Vader, The Patriot ran out to make the save. The next week The Patriot found himself triple-teamed by Bret, Owen and the British Bulldog where Vader repaid the favor by saving Patriots’ bacon.

Del Wilkes was an average wrestler. He spoke in a slow southern accent, lacked charisma and his backstory never was a mystery despite wearing a mask. His gimmick didn’t make much. Why was he wearing a mask if he was a Lucha Libra? The video package prior to the match tells us who The Patriot is. Informing us he played offensive tackle for the South Carolina Gamecocks with Heisman Trophy winner running back George Rogers.

Watching the match I’m convinced Bret could make me look like a thousand dollars because he made The Patriot look like a million. While the crowd chanted “Austin! Austin! Austin!”, I found myself engrossed. Even though I was well aware of the outcome, with each near-fall I wondered if the upset was possible.

I’m sure Wilkes was a hard worker, but he was not championship material. That all being said, if there was ever a night to crown a Cinderella it was right then and there. Even if it was for ONE NIGHT no matter the aftermath the WWE today could have benefited from an out of nowhere challenger turn champion back when their belts meant something.

In his promos after conquering Michaels, and ‘Taker, Hart still is nagging about how the American fans don’t appreciate him. It’s so bizarre. He is on top of the world and can’t transition from complaining to gloating self-righteousness. I don’t fault Hart for this. Creative just saw him as a whiny heel. But then why give him the belt if you were only going to write him a certain way?

You can have Hart win the title back on Raw (even on the night after Ground Zero), or turn Vader heel and take advantage of a weakened, naive Patriot. Be nice to see what Vader could have done with the WWF World Championship around his waist.

To close out this scenario, I searched for Wilkes on Twitter. He is unverified. Also, he’s a MAGA chud. What is it with wrestlers having terrible political beliefs???

Scenario 3: Owen Hart defeated Shawn Michaels to face Bret at WrestleMania XII

We never really did get that Bret vs Owen rubber-match. The two put on absolute clinics to open WrestleMania X in 1994, and a couple months later at Summerslam. Owen winning the first in an upset over his brother. Bret won the steel cage rematch for the world title. It was Owen’s only world title match. The little brother would never rise outside of the mid-card for the rest of his career. It’s unfair for a great many reasons. Owen was the most technically sound wrestler - even more than Bret. Arguably, Owen was superior on promos because there’s more depth in his heel persona than Bret’s portrayal as a face. After his victory at ‘Mania Owen delivered a stuttering, delusional promo. Owen simply didn’t know how to handle the success overcoming his big brother, feeling he’s finally escaped The Hitman’s shadow — only for Bret to win the world title hours later over Yokozuna.

In 1996 in the run-up to WrestleMania XII the red hot Shawn Michaels recently turned face and was gearing up to take the torch from Bret, having won his second straight Royal Rumble; in his first win, he did it coming in at number one. But Owen earned the right to challenge Michaels’ #1 contender status at In Your House: Rage In The Cage. The two put on an absolute show ending in HBK solidifying his status as the one to challenge Bret at ‘Mania. HBK would go on to win the strap, Bret would go on to dip his toes in acting.

But what-If Owen beat HBK? What-if his manager Jim Cornette waffled Michaels with his tennis racket while the referee was distracted and Owen got the cheap pin?

Well, for starters: it will be the first year where the Royal Rumble winner wouldn’t have gone on to challenge for the title at ‘Mania. A scheme McMahon didn’t concoct until the Rumble Rey Mysterio won in the prelude of WrestleMania XXII a decade later.

Owen relinquishes his brother of the strap, as Bret would not have any qualms doing the honors for his brother like he did in their first matchup since he was already leaving. This wipes away Michaels losing his smile, and Owen nearly killing Austin at Summerslam ‘97.

Owen and Bret meet for WrestleMania XIII, so no iconic submission match for Austin (we’re just cutting off Stone Cold’s legs right now). Austin probably finds himself challenging the white-meat Babyface Rocky Maivia for the I.C title. He probably does the job for Rocky. No feud with Bret means no heat for Austin.

If either of these scenarios became reality we’re watching WCW right now. There’s no way without sacrificing Hart the WWF could have overcome the Atlanta base promotion. At the end of the day, the bad guy did win. It’s a damn shame. But that’s the real world.

[beingallelite]

Independent wrestling's ultimate bad boy Joey Janela didn't close the show at All Elite Wrestling's inaugural pay-per-view, Double or Nothing, this May. He's hoping that will come in time. But he definitely left a heck of an impression in the new promotion's opening match, the Casino Battle Royale.

Not only did he take the craziest fall of the entire night, a reckless crash through a table courtesy of a Luchasaurus chokeslam, but he also had a lit cigarette stapled to his forehead by the dastardly Jimmy Havoc.

You did not read that wrong.

I'll repeat it for emphasis—he had a lit cigarette stapled to his forehead.

Such hijinks are typical of the world that spawned him, the gritty "garbage" matches that often include much wilder stunts and decisions somehow even more questionable. But it was something new for mainstream wrestling, a level of violence not seen since the last time wrestling had a good old-fashioned war: the famed Attitude Era of the late 1990s.

The 30-year-old Janela, it turns out, isn't looking to usher in a new era of ultra-violence, instead preferring to adjust what he does for a wider audience.

Bleacher Report had a chance to sit down with him last week for a wide-ranging discussion, covering everything from his influences to the fact that he still lives at home with his mom.

Jonathan Snowden: How does it feel to be one of those overnight successes who were 10 years in the making? Did you ever think about just walking away from this life and getting a regular job? At some point, it must have been kind of disheartening.

Joey Janela: It's definitely humbled me a bit. The few times I felt like quitting when I was younger. Wrestling really wasn't going anywhere, and I was taking off work and stuff on the weekend to make $25 and putting it all toward gas. It really isn't ideal, but I stuck with it, and sure enough, I've found myself in a position where I can make a living wrestling and make it to the mainstream.

JS: What are some of the ways you used to pay the bills while trying to get to the position every independent wrestler craves: earning your living from wrestling alone? Someone told me you used to deliver pizzas a couple of years ago?

Janela: I don't know when was the last time [I delivered pizzas]. Maybe three years ago? I tried to get a job at a factory. It was going to be a job making those gold credit cards, like Visas. That didn't work out and that wasn't ideal for me. I tried Uber and delivering pizza. I had pretty much done it all or tried to. Most of the time I found myself getting fired. That was basically my run in real-life work.

JS: This must be a pretty nice change. Has your life changed a lot since signing with AEW?

Janela: For sure. There's a lot less to worry about now. I used to throw all my money to wrestling. Now I'm living comfortably. I'm still living at home, but I'm usually not home at all. Usually I'm here like once a week, so it's not a bad deal.

JS: Home, like with your parents?

Janela: I still live with my mom, but I'm never home, really. When TV starts, I'm gonna get my own place and stuff, but right now my mom, she doesn't mind, and I don't mind, either.

JS: You are so closely identified with the indy scene that I wasn't sure I'd ever see you in a mainstream promotion on a channel like TNT. Did you imagine yourself reigning as the king of the underground shows forever? Or was this always your goal, wrestling on a national stage like this?

Janela: Absolutely. If you're not in the business to make a living and get to that point, I don't know what you're doing it for. Some people say they do it for the love, but there's got to be an endgame when you're killing yourself week in and week out.

My body right now is not as bad as you think it would be, but I've been doing this for half my life now—15 years. I feel it. I have to get adjusted, get massages and all that stuff to make sure I'm good to go every week for TV and for the future.

You need to make money and you need to have an endgame to make it to a mainstream, national wrestling company. It's never been closer for a lot of these new people getting into the business.

I remember when I first started it was almost unattainable to get to that point, to get to WWE. Yeah, TNA was still in town but to get to WWE was so hard. Really just the cream-of-the-crop guys made it in: the CM Punks and Bryan Danielsons. It was almost unattainable back then.

Now there's a light at the end of the tunnel, and if you work hard enough and bust your ass, you can not only get to a national wrestling company, now you have your choice of them.

JS:  I know you're used to having a lot of creative freedom on the independent scene, especially in the shows for Game Changer Wrestling that you helped create and run. How has your experience in AEW been so far?

Janela: So far, they've given me a lot of creative freedom. The agents, like Jerry Lynn, have been great. At All Out, we had Tommy Dreamer. He just wanted to know where we were going with stuff and that was it. It was no different from calling a match at any company. We really haven't crossed the line yet. And we won't, especially with TV coming.

JS: I wonder where that line is? At Double or Nothing, you had the famous spot where a cigarette was stapled to your head. The match with Jon Moxley was brutal. And the three-way match (against Jimmy Havoc and Darby Allin) at All Out was beyond bonkers. Have they given you any idea yet where the left and right limits are?

Janela: The three way, I think it was good, harmless fun with some craziness in there. We were within the boundaries of a PG-14 environment. And, if we had done it without the staple gun, I think the match could work in a PG environment. For the most part, the craziness was contained.

I'm not really big on people taking chairs to the head. I know how bad concussions can be. When I was younger, I did take chair shots to the head. That's a no-no for me now.

JS: It's been funny for me to watch your ongoing feud with former wrestling manager Jim Cornette on social media. While he's been insulting you as a "mud show" wrestler, I actually think you've had one of the best years of anyone in the sport. What do you make of it all?

Janela: With my knee injury, you have to realize, I haven't even had the full year to work. So, I'm really happy with what I've done. I had two good matches at Joey Janela's Spring Break, with Marko Stunt and Jungle Boy, when I wasn't 100 percent ready to be in the ring again. But I had to get in there and do what I had to do.

For a month or so after that, I was hurting. I did a show in Alaska two weeks later and I could barely walk because of the cold and the way my knee was doing.

It lit a fire under me, and now I'm better than ever in the ring. I think I'm having a great year. Guys like Jim Cornette, of course they're not going to watch the matches that people say are great matches. They're going to watch the matches where the craziness happens and try to pull out things to engage his followers. It is what it is.

I think me and Cornette, we rub each other's back when it comes to getting each other publicity. So I have no problem with it.

JS: Every time he posts something about your belly or wrestling skill, a small army of people follow behind in the mentions. It's almost scary.

Janela: I'd rather deal with Jim Cornette than his followers, that's for sure. It's fine. I don't care if people want to s--t on my physique. I've gotten in better shape in the last year and I am looking to get into even better shape for TV. I'm starting to diet now. But, when you talk about my wrestling, that's where I draw the line. Other than that, have fun.

JS: I've been most impressed with you in the kind of old-school match that you'd think most of your critics would love. You and David Starr went an hour at Beyond Wrestling's Americanrana 19 in July, and it was one of the most incredible bouts of the entire year.

You spent almost the entirety of the first 10 minutes doing really old-school Ole Anderson-style armbars and matwork—and it was amazing. Then it became one of the best hardcore matches of the year. That's what I love about you. You never know what to expect. Are you trying hard not to have a template you follow in every match?

Janela: I don't have a set move set or a formula. A lot of these guys, they get lazy. They develop a formula which they use every match. And it makes their matches lack excitement.

I've always been a good technical wrestler. I'm pretty good at adapting to my opponent. I wrestled a match with Zach Sabre Jr. a couple years ago where we went to a 30-minute time limit draw. Thirty minutes of technical wrestling. That's the kind of match my critics are never going to watch, because they don't want to admit I have that aspect.

Starr is one of the best wrestlers in the world and easy to wrestle. And that's what happens. The crowd was very involved from the beginning of that match, because we'd built a storyline over three years. They showed us the proper respect and were into the story we were telling.

The match was organic. We didn't call it in the back. We just went out there and did it. We talked about the high points, what we were going to hit and the rest was done in the ring organically in the ring. It was one of the finest performances of my wrestling career. Fans were telling me the hour flew by, which is something that's hard to do in a one-hour match. I'm happy with it.

JS: October is coming up fast, and that means TNT and television. That's something, a production on this level at least, you've never really done. Is it daunting to try something new like this?

Janela: It's taken me 15 years to get to this point, and I'm ready to learn other phases of the business. I'm not too nervous about it. Every time I've gone out for a pay-per-view for AEW, I've smoked it. I don't think it will be any different on TV. I think I'm going to excel on TV.

A few years ago, people were doubting my ability, saying I was just a stuntman. I proved a lot of those people wrong, and they became huge fans.

Now I'm dealing with that on a larger, mainstream level. A lot of people who watch the TV show are going to be surprised at how much I grasp every element of professional wrestling. It's going to be fun doing a lot of interviews and stuff I haven't done too much of. And it's also going to be great on my body, giving it a rest and not having a crazy schedule like I've had over the last couple of years.

Outside of TV and outside the ring, I may still have a bit to learn. But, you know, these guys knew what they were getting with me. What you see is what you get. I'm not really a character. Joey Janela is Joey Janela, inside the ring and outside.

You can follow the further exploits of Joey Janela on Twitter and, starting October 2, on AEW television. Tickets are on sale for the promotion's next PPV Full Gear and weekly events across the country.

Hard Times Promo of the Week

Cody Rhodes has become one of wrestling's great heroes, not just because of his excellent body of work inside the wrestling ring, but also because of his galvanizing personality outside it. He's taken us into his life and his battle with the wrestling industry, making that fight our own.

Rhodes feels like a real person. We love his television persona, sure. But it's the real Cody, the one we've grown close to on social media, who truly shines—and that's the Cody Rhodes who was present for a sitdown interview on the latest episode of Road to TNT.

I'm admittedly biased because I saw this filmed in person when I was at Cody's beautiful home in the Atlanta suburbs for a feature profile coming soon to Bleacher Report, but it's typical of what is quickly becoming that series' signature style: just two guys having a conversation about life and sports.

It's as good as wrestling programming gets.

The Illegal Double Team Hot Take

I've seen a lot of criticism online about AEW's decision to book Rhodes into a title match against the promotion's inaugural champion, Chris Jericho, at the next pay-per-view Full Gear.

And, of course, I understand where that criticism is coming from.

Rhodes, along with his running buddies from Being the Elite, have been publicly acknowledged as AEW executive vice presidents. And that's not just in name only. I've seen firsthand just how much responsibility Cody is carrying on his shoulders as they attempt to launch a new brand into a space that has been very unwelcoming in the recent past. In a very real sense, he isn't being chosen to represent AEW at the top of the card—he's chosen himself.

But was there really any other decision to make?

I've been to each of the promotion's first four cards live and, while it's technically true that Rhodes has put himself into the main event, it's also pretty clear he and the rest of the AEW team are just listening to the audience.

He's captured their hearts in a way that doesn't happen every day. To AEW's fans, Cody isn't just another wrestler. He's family.

Rhodes, Kenny Omega and The Young Bucks aren't EVPs who happen to wrestle. They've earned those positions by being some of the top acts in the world. Pretending otherwise, and refusing to promote them as AEW's top stars in the name of fairness, would just be a terrible idea—it would be promotional malpractice.

Jonathan and Kristina Snowden host Illegal Double Team, a weekly podcast about wrestling and life. Available wherever podcasts are found.

[a-home-for-stray-stories]

WWE Preference - You take a hit meant for him - (Version 1)Pt. 2

Roman, Seth, Dean, Samoa Joe, and Finn Balor.

I have a second version of this preference with different guys coming out soon.

Tags: @i-ship-it-okay @macfizzle

You take a hit meant for him - part 1

Roman - Something about taking a hit with a chair for someone breaks the ice between the two of you. After the incident with Bray, you and Roman were nearly inseparable. The trainers always want to check wrestlers out after hits like that, and Roman never left your side as they were feeling your shoulder. Nothing was injured and they let you go. A conversation outside the locker room turned into riding together which turned into hanging out with each other, and of course Seth and Dean. Roman turned into one of your best friends, if not your best friend. Management let Roman and Bray feud and you and Paige feud, but after a few weeks you gave up hope of them putting y’all together again. Paige was the Women’s Champion and your feud with her was set to end with an opportunity at her championship during Fastlane. You were nervous and while Seth and Dean goofed off, Roman was sitting on a crate next to you. You stared at your feet as they kicked the box and you were lost in thought. “Don’t go mouse on me again.” Roman’s voice pulled you out of your head. “I’m just nervous. I really want to get that title.” You took a deep breath and let out a shaky sigh. “Don’t be nervous, babygirl, you got this. You’ll walk out of here Champion.” His words forced you to smile, “How are you so confident about that?” “Y/n! Paige! It’s time.” Kurt called down the hallway. Your heart went back to racing and you hopped off the crate. When you turned around, Roman was standing too and a lot closer than you had anticipated. “Because you’re you and you’re amazing, and so much better than Paige.” His words made you blush and before you realized it, his lips were on yours. You pushed up onto your tiptoes and moved your lips against his. He pulled away, but kept his arms wrapped around your waist, “Now, go whoop her ass.” You nodded your head, and reluctantly pulled out of his grasp to head to the ring. It wasn’t going to be easy to just whoop Paige’s ass, but you were up to the challenge. The match started and neither of you could get the upper hand. No matter what you each threw at the other, the two of you were resilient and evenly matched. After fifteen minutes and no one getting close to a pin, you and Paige were exhausted. It was a battle of sheer will. You were propped against a corner and Paige was clinging to the ring post opposite you. You stared at her as she tried to get herself back up, and you knew that it was now or never. You mustered all of your strength, blasted out of the corner, and caught Paige with a stiff boot to the face. Your entire body burned as you dragged her out of the corner and finally got the pin. Your body collapsed on the mat when the bell rang, too tired to react to your win. No sooner had the ref handed you the title, the lights cut off. You almost thought you had passed out, but when the lights came back on you saw Bray Wyatt standing on the other side of the ring. You used the the ropes to pull yourself up and motioned for a mic. Bray had started talking, but you had no intentions to listen. “Whoa, Whoa, Whoa...” You cut Bray off, “You know what, Bray, I’m exhausted and you are just so high maintenance. I don’t have the energy to deal with your bullshit.” He gave a little smile as the audience laughed, “I was just going to compliment you, Y/n. You’ve impressed me.” You stared at him a second, “I impress at lot of people on a regular basis. Why are you so important?” “I want you to join me.” “After you hit me with a chair? Hell no. Besides, I’m already spoken for.” The Shield’s music hit right after you said that. Bray turned around to see Roman, Seth, and Dean marching down the audience. There was a silent standoff when they got to ringside. Roman didn’t waste any time hopping up on the apron and squaring off with Bray. Seth and Dean took their places on each side and slowly Bray backed out of the ring. You held up your title and wave a little goodbye to him as he retreated up the ramp.

Seth - That match turned into one of the most brutal in the PG Era. Dean ended up with stitches in his head, after Cesaro went back into the ring he ended up falling awkwardly between two ladders tearing a tendon in his arm, Seth’s knee started buckling underneath him, forcing him to get looked at by the doctors, but of course, Sheamus came out nearly unscathed. A few minor cuts and bruises, he fared better that you did. It was a week later and it still hurt to breathe and move your arms. Cesaro called you to tell you that he wouldn’t be coming to Raw for the next couple of weeks. “I’m so sorry, Cesaro, let me know if there’s anything I can do.” “Just give me a little wave tonight.” You laughed and agreed. Before you hung up with him, you had to give him a heads up about what you were doing tonight, “I’m telling him that I’m done tonight.” There was a few seconds of silence from the other side. “Is there someone else there that can be out there with you?” “I’ll be fine.” “I’m serious, Y/n. I don’t care who. Is Seth there? I know Dean isn’t.” You had also heard Dean was trying to get cleared of his concussion and wouldn’t be there tonight, but Seth had disappeared. Not that y’all texted or called each other constantly, but you thought you would have heard something by now. “I haven’t heard anything from Seth. I’ll try, but I’m not making promises.” He reluctantly took that answer, knowing you would do what you wanted. And there you stood, alone, watching Sheamus on the monitor, getting ready to walk through the curtains next to you. Your heart grew heavy with nerves. He seemed to be in a pretty bad mood. You were about a minute away from your entrance and you heard someone call your name. “Y/n.” You turned around to see Seth, wearing his black zip up hoodie and a new brace on his knee. You gave him a soft smile, “Hey, Seth. How’s your knee?” “It’s fine. Just need to rest it.” He said as you walked towards him, giving him a hug. He felt you wince as his arm wrapped around your waist, immediately letting go when you did. You saw the concern in his face, “It’s fine. Just sore.” “You have 45 seconds, Y/n.” The stage manager called to you. Seth looked at the screen, then back to you, “What are you going to do?” “I’m telling him that I’m not his manager anymore.” “Uh, you think that’s a good idea tonight?” You let out a little laugh, “You and Cesaro need to trust me a little more.” “It’s not you we don’t trust, it’s him. Especially after last week.” You placed a hand on his arm, “I can handle him.” “15 seconds, Y/n” You moved towards the curtain, but Seth caught your arm, “Do you want to ride with me tonight, maybe get some dinner?” Just as he finished his question, your music hit. You nodded a yes to him, before walking out. Sheamus is a large man, but you weren’t intimidated. You did exactly what you meant to do. Cut to the chase and let him know that you were done. “What? Why?” He practically yelled. “You’re out of control, self-centered, and childish.” You didn’t want this to drag out more, so you turned to walk away, but he wasn’t done. He grabbed your arm and forced you back to him. The pain burned into your stomach. “I didn’t know ye wanted to be me girlfriend and control me. Is that what this is about? You need a good lay?” You couldn’t believe the words came out of his mouth, but before you could react Seth came out. “If you don’t take your hand’s off of her, I’ll rip the dumbass mohawk out of you scalp.” Sheamus went to give him a comeback, but you plucked the mic right out of his hand. “What in the hell did you just say to me?” Sheamus went to get his mic back, but you tossed it out of the ring. “No one wants to hear you talk. I am your manager. It is my job to keep you on track and in line, but you’re impossible to work with. That’s why I chose to drop your snowball ass. They couldn’t pay me enough to be your girlfriend. Hell, they couldn’t give me enough money to be your manager.” You threw your mic at his face to finish you statement, gave Cesaro a little wave, and walked out. Seth laughed along with the audience and the two of you left Sheamus in the ring.

Dean - The next week you and Dean were sitting in front of a monitor watching the kickoff of Raw. The two of you were schedule for something towards the end of the show, but neither of you knew what it was. You had your head on his shoulder and you could feel him looking around every few seconds. It was starting to get irritating. “What are you looking for?” You asked. “Miz” He answered. You rolled your eyes, “You gonna throw the monitor at him or something?” “I was thinking the chair, but the monitor would be better. Good idea, babe.” You laughed, “I was not being serious, and I’m worried you were.” He wrapped an arm around your shoulder, pulling you closer to him, “You know me too well.” “We’ll get him back. He’s probably avoiding us at all costs.” Dean hummed in agreement. About that time Kurt’s music hit and the two of you watched him walk down the ramp and into the ring. “He’s always got the two idiots with him, so we’ll have to figure out how to get him alone.” You nodded, “We should probably do it backstage...” Before you could finish your thought, something Kurt said caught your attention. Kurt said, “I want to address the actions of Miz last week. What he did to Y/n just didn’t sit well with me, so I’ve decided to do something about it.” You sat up and looked at Dean. Kurt continued, “I want to give Y/n and Dean an opportunity to get even. So, later on tonight, it will be The Miz versus Dean Ambrose and Y/n in a handicap match.” The crowd roared and the two of you got excited. “Oh, and one more thing...” Kurt added, “Bo Dallas and Curtis Axel are banned from ringside.” You looked at Dean, “Well, that took care of that problem.” He let out a laugh, “This is going to be so much fun.” Miz didn’t quite feel the same way. You even caught him begging Kurt to reconsider. Dean and you went to the ring first and you laughed as he danced around unable to contain his excitement. The second Miz’s music hit, Dean froze center-ring, beaming as Miz slowly walked to the ring. Dean waltzed over to you, cupped your face, and kissed your forehead. “I got this babe.” His gravelly voice was full of joy, and you kissed his cheek. “At least let me get a few good hits in.” He nodded as you ducked onto the apron. It was all over the moment the bell rang.

Samoa Joe - The doctors checked you out and cleared you to continue in NXT the very next week. There was a tiny cut just above your right eyebrow and a bit of a bruise that formed after the headache subsided, but you were fine. You were currently fixing your hair in the mirror before heading out to the ring with Joe for his match. “It’s healing fast.” A smile cut across your face and you turned to find Joe with his towel wrapped around his neck. “It was tiny, so of course it’s going to heal fast.” You fixed the towel on his chest, and he took your hands in his. “It could’ve been much worse. Don’t do that again, alright?” You let out a deep sigh, “I’ve been wrestling since high school. I can take a hit.” you walked passed him towards the guerrilla, “I’m not made of porcelain.”  He followed you, “I know you’re tough, but I still can’t stand seeing you hurt because of me.” Your head flipped around, “This...” you pointed towards your head, “was because of Kevin, not you.” “Ah, speaking of Kevin, I’m scheduled to do something at the end of the show tonight. I can’t leave early.” He caught up to you, lacing his fingers with yours. You looked up to him, “You jumping Kevin tonight?” Joe smirked, “Tonight. Next week. The following weeks. Kevin has entered a mental and physical hell.” And that’s exactly what happened. For the next couple weeks Joe attacked Kevin either before, during, or after Kevin’s matches. It made Kevin so paranoid, and it was hilarious to see him so jittery. Kevin finally took things into his own hands one night while you were addressing the crowd by yourself. You were shocked when his music hit and you giggled as he cautiously made his way to the ring. He used the same caution getting into the ring and coming towards you.”I’m so sorry for hitting you. Please make him stop. I didn’t mean it, it was an accident. Just, please, I’m sorry. Tell him to stop.” Kevin’s words came out jumbled and rushed and you started to feel a little sorry for him. Before you could say anything, Joe came out and Kevin scrambled to get behind you. “I apologized! Tell him I apologized.” You put your hand up, stopping Joe at the top of the ramp, “Ok, let’s just calm down. Let’s just breathe a minute.This has gone on a little long, and he did apologize, Joe. I think he’s learned his lesson.” Joe shook his head. You continued, “Besides...” You turned to Kevin, “I’m sure Kevin wants to be at his best when he defends his title against Joe next week.” You let the mic slip out of your hand as Kevin stared at you dumbfounded. He starting yelling no’s as you got out of the ring and headed up the ramp to Joe.

Finn - His chest was heaving against you as he carried you to the trainers room. “Finn...I can walk.” You spoke out, but he just ignored you. You had been hurt worse before but you had never seen such a lack of remorse from the culprit afterwards. Elias had laughed after he hurt you and that pissed you off. You were still no where near as pissed off as Finn was at the moment. It was rare for him to get so angry that he couldn’t speak. He finally put you down when y’all got the the trainers door. Still silent, he held the door open for you and you could feel the heat radiating from his body as you passed through. He stayed out of the way as they began to tend to your arm. As they stitched up the cut, there was talk of possibly going to get it x-rayed to check for a broken bone, but you shut it down. You knew Finn would want you to get it checked, but he was still simmering by the door and you looked at him while you explained your reasons. You knew what a broken bone felt like and what to watch for in the next couple of hours. The medic was tying off the last stitch when you all heard someone throw something against a wall outside. “That was a waste of a guitar.” Your eyes shot up when you heard Elias’ voice down the hall and when you looked to Finn, he was on his way out the door. “Finn!” You called for him, but he was gone. “Shit!” You hopped off the table as the medic was still cleaning up the newly stitched cut. “Are you done? I gotta go, like right now.” You stuttered out, pulling your arm away from him. He quickly gave it one more wipe, “Go. Go. Go.” He let go of your arm and hurried you out the door. Your heart was pounding as you followed what sounded like a war. Just around the corner you found Finn and Elias going at it, but when you went to stop it Karl caught you. “Luke will stop it. Don’t want you hurt again.” You saw Luke standing down the hall observing. “He’s not doing anything.” You held out your hand and looked at Karl. He just shrugged his shoulders, “Eh, I said he will stop. He’s just letting Finn get a few good hits in.” Karl thought it was funny, but you didn’t. You gave him a good side eye. They were starting to attract a crowd, so Luke decided to intervene. “Alright, brother, get off him.” Luke said trying to coax Finn off Elias. He finally was able to get Finn up and was holding him back while Kurt Angle ran down the hall and took care of Elias. You were finally able to get to Finn and you grabbed his elbow pulling him back. The haze in his eyes was clearing up and you kept telling him to calm down. Kurt looked over his shoulder towards y’all, “I’m willing to forget this, if you promise it’s over.” “Of course, it is.” You said to him, but he waited for a nod from Finn. You, Finn, Karl, and Luke were left in the hallway alone. Finn tenderly grabbed your arm and examined the injury while Karl and Luke laughed to themselves. “It’s really not that bad and I seriously don’t think he meant to do it.” You whispered, then tilted your head, “He didn’t care that he did it, but he did mean to hit you.” Finn just shook his head and sighed, “Whether he meant to or not, he hurt you and I couldn’t let it go.” “Can you let it go now?” He up into your eyes and thought about it. He leaned down and softly kissed your shoulder, “Now, I can.”

[dang-misha]

Request – Hey can I have an imagine where the reader is in her first falls count anywhere title match and Matt Hardy (her best friend) is watching the match backstage. However, as the match goes on she gets seriously injured, but she’s to stubborn to give up- which causes Matt to go out and comfort her, revealing his feelings for her in front of the whole wwe universe. Sorry that was long but I love your writing!! Also, I understand if you’re not feeling well or up for it. I’m not pushing you

Word Count – 1605

Warnings – Injury?? Mention of blood

A/N – I love, love, love this idea! I sadly couldn’t find a gif of Matt so I just had to use a normal pic. Hope you enjoy and thanks for the request! (requests are always open. I write supernatural, wwe, greys anatomy, and the walking dead imagines.)

-

Tonight is a big night for you. You’re main eventing Raw with Charlotte Flair for the women’s championship and winning it! You cried tears of joy when Vince announced the news to you. The first person you told was your best friend Matt Hardy.

You and Matt have been best friends since you both started your careers. You used to be tag team partners and you just connected so much more since then. You guys helped each other with everything. You’ve helped each other with every heart ache, every injury and so on. When he found out Lita cheated on him and when he lost his job with wwe you were his rock through it all.

“You ready for tonight?” Matt said behind you, making you jump

“I’ve been ready for this forever it feels like.”

“You deserve it more than anyone I know. You work your ass off, it’s about time your hard work gets paid off.”

You both sat and watched the monitor until it was almost time for your match. You made sure everything was right with your gear, boots and wrapped some tape around your hands.

“Hold on, I want to do something.” Matt said, pulling a sharpie out of his pocket.

“You’re braver than you think, you got this champ.” He wrote on the tape, making you teary eyed. You gave him a big hug, a thank you and before you knew it you got called to wait at the curtains.

Your theme blared through the arena. You could feel your heart racing what seemed like a mile a minute. You’ve wanted this your entire career and now it’s finally time. Time to show the world why you deserve to be champion.

You stood in the ring and watched as Charlotte walked down the ramp and all you could do was look at the title. You couldn’t wait to have it around your waist. It was beautiful, the most beautiful thing you’ve ever saw. It’d look even better when it’s on your shelf.

The match was going well. Since it was a falls count anywhere match you could basically go wherever you wanted which made it a lot of fun. You fought in the crowds, on the announce table, backstage for about 10 minutes and on the ramp.

Charlotte was doing a moonsault which she’s very good at. She never messes up on it and you trusted her. You were laying on the announce table, waiting for her to hit the move then when she finally did everything went black. You felt an instant horrible pain all over your face, especially your nose. Charlotte landed the move but she landed it right on your head.

The ref panicked, asking doctors to come quick because your nose was gushing blood and your eyes were swelling up in seconds. You were injured in the most important match of your career.

Matt felt like he was going to throw up he was so scared. He wanted to be there with you, to make sure you’re ok.

You pushed the ref away, telling him you weren’t finishing this match just because of an injury. The match went on for about 10 more minutes but Matt could tell you were horribly concussed and your nose was broken. He watched as you wobbled and messed up every move but still didn’t give up. He watched as the blood poured down your face, getting inside your mouth so much that you kept spitting it out which isn’t good especially since you’re on a PG show. You were in trouble for sure.

You hit a twist of fate on Charlotte and finally the match was over. You were happy, but the injury was making it hard for you to enjoy any of it which broke your heart.

You sat in the ring with the title in your hands, holding it up high while putting on a fake smile. Your legs got weak so you sat down in the corner, taking this moment in as much as you could when you felt a few tears slip down your cheek. You weren’t sure if it was form pain or from happiness. Maybe both?

You closed your eyes and enjoyed the crowd chanting “you deserve it!” over and over again. It was an awesome feeling.

You opened your eyes to see Matt standing in the middle of the ring, tears in his eyes as he smiled at you. He helped you up and gave you a huge hug. You cried while whispering to him “I’m scared.” He hugged you tighter.

He went over and grabbed the microphone, leaving you confused.

“Y/N, congratulations! You’re finally the champion after 18 years of hard work and I couldn’t be more proud. I know this isn’t how you planned tonight on going, I know you’re scared and I’m sorry but I got a few things to say that might cheer you up a little. So you know we’re best friends. That’s a fact. You’ve seen me at my worst and never left my side not once. You never left when I had problems with drugs, when Lita tore my heart apart, or when I was injured. You were front row at all my huge matches like when I first won the tag team titles with Jeff or when I returned at Wrestlemania you were there and I can’t put into words how much you mean to me. I guess what I’m trying to say is I love you, and I know you know but I mean more than a friend. I want to be yours, I want us to be together. Please y/n, please love me too.”

It was hard to move fast due to your concussion but that didn’t matter at all at that moment. You got up, quickly walked up to him, grabbed his face and kissed him as hard as you could. You could feel him smile between it, making you smile too. The crowd was screaming so loud you thought the roof was going to blow off. For a few moments you forgot about how much pain you were in.

“I love you, I love you so much and I’ve loved you for as long as I can remember.” You said, giving him another kiss.

When you got backstage the doctors checked on you right away. It was like you didn’t even have time to celebrate. Matt held your hand the whole time you were getting checked out. Every time he’d notice you flinch or groan from pain he’d rub his thumb on your hand, letting you know it’s ok.

“She got you pretty good, y/n. Sorry I know this isn’t how you probably wanted to celebrate your first title win.” The doctor said

“So your nose is broke and you have a concussion. You should be out for about a month, but good news you don’t have to relinquish the title!” He doctor smiled, making you really happy.

“Thank you doctor, we really appreciate it!” You smiled, giving him a hug then Matt a kiss after.

Matt took you out for pizza after.

“I know this isn’t fancy, I’m sorry.”

“Matt, I really don’t mind. I love pizza better than “fancy food” anyways” You chuckled, making him smile. God you loved his smile.

“So how long have you loved me?” You asked, making him blush.

“For years. The second I met you I knew you were going to be someone special in my life. Especially after all the crap we’ve been through and you still put up with me? You’re amazing.” He kissed your hand after.

You guys finished your pizza and headed back to the hotel. You both always shared a room but never shared a bed unless you had to. It felt nice to not worry about that anymore.

Matt bought you a few ice packs at the pharmacy along with some medicine to help with the pain. He made sure to keep the lights low so it wouldn’t hurt your head. You appreciated him so much.

“You took care of me for a long time in my life, now it’s my turn to take care of you.”

You two got ready for bed, snuggling with each other felt amazing. You were getting ready to fall asleep until you remembered something

“Hey Matt?”

“Yeah?”

“Can baby sleep with us tonight?’

“Who’s baby? What?” He was half asleep, you tried your best to not crack up.

“Baby is my title.” He sighed of relief, chuckling after

“Oh, yeah. As long as you leave room for me.”

You grabbed your belt and wrapped it around your arms while Matt wrapped you in his arms. Both of you falling asleep shortly after.

[ahoforhavoc]

Mine

Muse: Pete Dunne Words: 1465 Contains: smut, language warning

This was an exciting time for the Monday Night Raw broadcast. Approaching the twenty-fifth anniversary of their show, a spectacular show packed to the gills with legends slated for appearances, it also seemed as if the contract hell that WWE had started to fall into was slowly starting to subside. There had been returns, such as Nia Jax, Bo Dallas, and Paige reported to return to counterbalance a series of releases that have left bad tastes in the mouth of some WWE fans.

Without a doubt, the most exciting return/signing... whichever category it fell into... was the Monday Night Raw debut of Pete Dunne in Manchester, England.

The UK Championship was a beautiful title and it was one that was sorely lacking a presence on WWE television programming. If the champion appearing on Raw would open doors for the division to become a more permanent fixture on the flagship show, it was something that was welcomed. And it was your job, as the newest interviewer for Monday Night Raw, to get the inside scoop from the man who had kicked those doors down: Pete Dunne.

Something about Pete made you intrinsically nervous. Maybe it was the perpetual scowl on his face, or the way he carried himself like an animal, always ready to pounce. You'd implored WWE to let Renee or Charly take the interview spot. Someone with more experience; more confidence. But, Hunter only thought you were crazy, wanting to give up your spot on your debut segment with a man with some of the loudest buzz in the wrestling world right now, Pete Dunne. The answer was no.

With a nervous energy, you cleared you throat, right before you were given the signal that the cameras were rolling.

"Ladies and gentlemen, joining me at this time: the WWE UK Champion, Pete Dunne."

So far, so good, you praised yourself as the butterflies rumbled and roared through your belly. However, it was when Pete actually walked into the frame that you felt that sense of pride crumble. Pete stood there in a tailored suit with his UK Championship slung over his shoulder, a far cry from the way he normally bit down on it and carried it around. He looked at you with a look that you could only describe as contempt, making you feel like absolutely nothing in the process. You did your best to hide it with a TV-ready smile.

"Pete, you made your WWE Raw debut in Manchester and the ovation of the crowd was absolutely deafening. The question is... are you and the other members of the UK Division going to be appearing in a more prominent role on Raw?"

Pete looked at you, a singular eyebrow arching in the air. "Y/N, there's something that you should know..."

You watched as he hoisted the title on his shoulder with one hand. He turned his cold glare to the title, then back to you.

"I'm the Bruiserweight. There's nothing that I want that doesn't belong to me. I wanted dominance over the UK Division? It's mine. I wanted to arrive and take charge of the Cruiserweight division? It's mine. Manchester? It's mine. I do what I want, when I want to do it. If I want to do the same to Raw? I will. Until then? I'll watch that little cretin Enzo Amore squirm."

PG really did Pete little favors. That likely wasn't even the C-word he wanted to use to refer to Enzo.

"But, Pete," you said, a momentary flash of fear in your eyes not at all going undetected by Pete, but he didn't break. "You didn't show up to 205 Live. Enzo had some pretty unsavory things to say about you. Do you plan to retaliate?"

He chuckled once or twice - the kind that showed he was not at all impressed. "Enzo doesn't know my name... to be fair, he took some pretty hard knocks, yeah? But, rest assured... he'll know it soon enough."

He smirked, turning on his heels and heading away. The camera had signaled the end of the feed, the cameraman gathering the gaffers and the mics to head towards the next area - a live show having little time to waste to be on cue. You sigh in relief, taking hold of a bottle of water and unscrewing the lid, taking a swig of it. You were sure Pete was gone... but you were wrong. He turned around, marching back towards you with a purpose.

"Y/N!" He said, as if he had a complete change of heart, making you raise an eyebrow.

"Uh..." You cough slightly, his powerful stepping towards you and the dark look on his face, placing your bottle back down on the table. "Y-yes, Pete?"

"There's something I forgot to mention." He said, on his way to you.

"Well, it's too late..." You said, uncertain. THIS was Triple H's prodigy? Confused, you explained to him what was obvious. "The camera's gone."

"Even bettah."

He eased his hands to the small of your back, pulling you in close. Your eyes flew wide, but not for long. His lips crushed hard to yours, and you felt your breath catch right in your throat for a moment before you gave in. He barely resisted a smirk, the WWE UK Champion knowing you would give in. You returned his kiss, your fingers lingering softly on his cheeks.

Unfortunately, Pete wasn't much of a guy for 'softly.' He lifted you up, placing you on the nearby table. Then, he parted your thighs, your eyes dilating and a shiver running up and down your spine.

"Pete, I-" You didn't even know how to end that. You weren't going to protest.

"Shut. The Fuck. Up." He said, much more like himself now that the cameras were gone. His hands went under your skirt, his rough fingers peeling your thong down with ease, leaving them pooled around your ankles and supported by your heels.

You didn't say a word. You wouldn't dare. As wrong as you knew this was, you were curious to see where it would go. The only noise that came from you was a cry as you felt two rough, calloused fingers push into you. Your eyes closed, while you snuggly squeezed down on his fingers, while a sickly delighted smile found its way to the face of The Bruiserweight.

He pumped you fast and hard, unrelenting while your toes curled. He had little care for the fact that you two were in the corridors. In fact, that likely only pushed him forward in his task. It was when his teeth clipped down on your neck, right at that sweet spot under your ear, almost as if he'd been given a roadmap to it that you seized and pleasure washed over your face, his pumping with his fore and middle finger slowing down as he made you ride the waves of your climax, before he pulled out and pressed them to your lips.

"Suck."

He demanded, his cold expression unrelenting even when you obliged, tasting yourself on his fingers. He pulled his fingers form your mouth with a "pop" from how you were still trying to please him. He then wiped his wet fingers on the material of your dress. Had this been anyone else, you'd have been infuriated. Offended. Mortified. But... now? You were swayed to believe otherwise. As he turned to walk away, you hobbled off of the table, flushed with humiliation as you lifted your panties back up your legs.

"Wait!"

You called out, making him stop in his tracks while a look of irritation took over his face that was nothing short of par for the course. He didn't turn around though. You approached him with slow steps, mostly due to jello knees.

"You... you said you forgot something..." You were quickly making excuses; ironically looking for any reason to make him stay after dreading his arrival so much beforehand. "What was it?"

"Oh, right, that." He dismissively shrugged, turning on his heels. "Just wanted to make sure that you were aware that you're mine, too."

The cold look in his eyes was one that made your heart beat a little bit faster, before he turned on his heels and walked away, this time, turning the corner with no intention of turning back. You were floored. You were now something that belonged to Pete Dunne? You didn't have your answers about whether or not he was a permanent fixture on Raw. But, you were definitely more hopeful that he was.

[wrestlinghasmelike-blog]

Royal Rumble Review- January 28th, 2018: Men’s Royal Rumble Match

Hello everyone! What a pay per view, am I right?! A few hits and misses, but overall, a fantastic show, and what an ending!! For this post, I’ll start with the men’s match, and then I’ll make a different post for the women’s match.

Please let me know what your thoughts on the match were, and let me know what you thought of this review! Any type of feedback is welcomed. Thanks for checking this out! 

Men’s Royal Rumble Match

This was amazing from start to finish. It stayed intense all throughout, and it had a huge ending. Such a phenomenal performance from everyone involved.

The first entrant we had was Rusev, which I thought was a brilliant choice for the first person because the crowd was chanting Rusev Day all throughout the pre-show and all throughout the beginning matches.

Our second entrant was none other than my boy, Finn Balor, rocking a spicy maroon/burgundy jacket and matching shorts. Having him second personally, through me for a loop, and I was sweaty the entire time. Logically, having Finn be second in his first Rumble is fine, but hopefully, that doesn’t mean he’ll be eliminated early.

Rusev and Finn put on a good back and forth as we waited for our third entrant, Rhyno. A bit of a shocking entrant, but introducing another big guy this early on does not bode well for the entrants already entered, or any future entrants. Rhyno immediately scared me by trying to eliminate Finn, but thank god he was unsuccessful.

Baron Corbin was our fourth, which was surprising to me, partly because I forgot about him and because fourth seems early for the young wolf. He seemed to be on a dominating path, and gave us our first elimination when he threw Rhyno over the top rope, but was shortly eliminated himself by Finn. Irate, Corbin went on a rampage and attacked everyone involved, knocking everyone down to the ground outside the ring, but not eliminating anyone else.

Our next entrant was Heath Slater, but as Slater was walking down the ramp he was attacked by Corbin, never making it to the ring. This attack makes sense from Corbin because our next entrant was Elias, who got to play his new song for the people of Philadelphia. It was a good comedy bit, and after the craziness that Baron caused, it made sense.

Andrade Cien Almas, Bray Wyatt, and Big E were the next people to come down, and it was surprising to see Almas after his match with Gargano at Takeover the previous night! He got a well-received reaction from the crowd, deservedly so. Our tenth entrant was supposed to be Tye Dillinger, fittingly, but the cameras showed us that he was too busy being attacked by Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn, who had lost their match against AJ Styles at the beginning of the show. In his place came Sami Zayn, who said, “I got this!”

Sheamus was the eleventh man to enter the match, and he decided to help out poor Heath Slater, who was still ringside after the attack from Baron. As soon as they both were in the ring, Heath eliminated Sheamus, then was eliminated himself by Bray Wyatt. This goes to show that you should never help anyone out, especially in the Rumble match.

The match was progressing nicely as the next people to come down were Xavier Woods, Apollo Crews, and my pick as the winner, Shinsuke Nakamura. If you’ve been following this blog, you might ask why Finn wasn’t my pick to win. Of course I would’ve loved to see that boy win, but logically, it didn’t make sense.

Still in the match at this point are Rusev, Finn, Elias, Andrade, Bray Wyatt, Big E, Sami Zayn, Xavier Woods, Apollo, and Shinsuke, and were then joined by Cesaro and Kofi Kingston. You know with Kofi’s Rumble history, he’s going to something spectacular when he gets eliminated. Also at this point, all members of the New Day are out, which should be interesting to see if they all stay on the same page or not.

The next competitors entered were Jinder Mahal, Seth Rollins, and Matt Hardy. We have had 19 people in the Rumble so far, and the eliminations should have gone quicker at this point since this is the middle of the card. The match is very enjoyable nonetheless. The next eliminations we had were Xavier Woods and Big E, who were both thrown over by Jinder. After Jinder was feeling high and mighty, Kofi actually got to eliminate Jinder. Kofi was then thrown over the ropes, but his friends saved him, as well as a plate of pancakes. He skillfully entered the ring again, only to be thrown over by Cien Almas. Sami Zayn was also eliminated by Shinsuke, an interesting angle given their history from their days in NXT. 

Apollo Crews and Cesaro were going at it, and Cesaro got the upper hand and threw Crews out, but he himself was then eliminated by Seth Rollins, who was going to face The Bar for the titles later on in the night. Bray Wyatt and Matt Hardy were the next guys who were showcased, and we’ve seen their rivalry increase in the past few weeks. They actually worked together to eliminate Rusev, leaving Finn to be the iron man in the match (thank god). In a surprising but messy turn of events, Bray and Matt went over the top rope at the same time, making them the next entrants to be eliminated.

The 20th entrant in the match was a Mr. John Cena. Once he rushed to the ring, our remaining wrestlers were Finn, Elias, Cien Almas, Shinsuke, and Seth Rollins. Once these six saw Cena in the ring, they all ganged up on him and took him down. Not a super surprising team up, but I got some joy out of it seeing Finn beat him up at least. We also got to see Elias keep his promise on beating up John Cena, but it didn’t last long as John threw Elias right over the ropes. Bye bye!

A surprise entrant for number 21 as Hurricane Helms has crawled out of the Hurri-Cave to compete in the Rumble! A great childhood memory of mine, the Hurricane was gone as soon as he arrived when he was eliminated by John. The crowd was super into it, and this was a nice break from the action. Thanks Hurricane!

The next guy to make his entrance known was Aiden English, but it would’ve been nice to see him with Rusev in the rumble! Everyone loves those two guys, but when it’s just Aiden, he barely gets a reaction. Aiden did his best in this match, but he was soon eliminated by Finn. At this point, Finn and Almas are the only men entered who entered in before the number ten.

The number 23 and 24 spots went to Adam Cole and Randy Orton. I am in awe of the fact that Adam Cole is in the match. He went through a gruelling battle with Aleister at TakeOver, and his wounds are showing tonight with his ribs taped up. I’m surprised that Randy is this late in the game, considering he won last year. In the match is still Finn, Almas, Shinsuke, Seth, and John. 

Number 25 was Titus, which was kind of a bland entrant for me, but he’s been climbing through the ranks on the main roster, so we’ll see where this goes for him. Number 26 was The Miz and I can’t believe I forgot about him being an entrant! He just came back, and now he’s hoping to win the Rumble. What a guy!

REY MYSTERIO IS BACK AND HE CAME IN AS NUMBER 27 WHAT A COMEBACK THIS IS AWESOME 

Cien Almas was the next guy eliminated, and he was thrown over by Orton. The match is still going pretty well at this point, and it’s keeping time really well. 

Number 28 was Roman Reigns, and thank god he was number 28 because if he was number 30, WWE would’ve had a lot of issues on their hands. Not from me personally, but a lot of people on social media were very angry with Roman being in the Rumble at all. 

The Miz was the next one to be eliminated, and he was eliminated by both Seth and Roman. Unsurprisingly, Roman turned his back on Seth and threw him out as well. Titus was also eliminated by Roman, and Adam Cole was eliminated by Rey.

Goldust was the 29th entrant, and while it’s really cool to see him still wrestle and everything and be involved in this match, but the crowd was expecting to see anyone other than Goldust.

The 30th and last entrant in the Rumble, making his comeback, was none other than Dolph Ziggler. We haven’t seen Ziggler since mid-December when he vacated the US title and “quit” the business. He eliminated Goldust immediately, but was then eliminated by Finn. The remaining people left in the match are now Finn Balor, Shinsuke Nakamura, John Cena, Randy Orton, Rey Mysterio, and Roman Reigns.

With these 6 guys left, we’re gonna have a great end result, no matter what. It soon becomes Finn, Shinsuke, and Reigns up against Rey, Randy, and John. The PG-era versus the Ruthless Aggression Era. They all go back and forth, each member throwing punches. Eventually, Randy Orton gets eliminated by Roman Reigns, and we’re down to five.

We see some potential dream matches with these last five guys. Shinsuke and Rey, to name one. Finn and Rey exchange in a sequence, and Finn comes out victorious when he throws Rey over the ropes! BUT THEN OUT COMES JOHN CENA, AND CENA THROWS FINN OVER

I was definitely disappointed to see him go, but being in the match for 57 minutes and 38 seconds (he tweeted it I didn’t count lol) is a great accomplishment. I’m so proud of this boy, and I know he’ll have a great road to Mania. He was the Iron Man tonight, no one can take that from him. 

Cena, Roman, and Shinsuke are our last three contenders. They all put up a fantastic fight. After playing round a bout, Shinsuke threw John over the ropes, leaving it up to Roman and Shinsuke. These guys put up a really great fight, but after going back and forth for a couple of minutes, shiNSUKE GOT ROMAN OVER THE ROPES TO BECOME THE WINNER OF THE MEN’S ROYAL RUMBLE!

This was so great, and he was my pick! Shinsuke made history at the Rumble, and I’m so looking forward to his match against AJ at Mania in April!

-Casey

[placetobenation]

So, WWE Universe! What got you excited this week?

Was it the return of Goldberg, LIVE and in person on Friday Night SmackDown? Or maybe it was the Bella Twins getting the nod into the WWE Hall of Fame? Was it Randy Orton’s thorough thrashing of Matt Hardy? The return to the ring of The Velveteen Dream and that sweet entrance! Or maybe, it was the continued heartbreak of the Mandy-Otis coupling.

I don’t know about you, but outside of Orton, all of that played second fiddle.

Hands down, the best show of the week goes to the folks from Full Sail! NXT TakeOver: Portland dominated the WWE airwaves on the WWE Network. Champions stood tall, new tag team champs crowned on a night that looked like The Undisputed Era looked to lose all the gold, only to see Johnny Gargano turn on his friend and former foe, Tommaso Ciampa moments before he was going to get his NXT Championship back.

Across the board from in-ring to furthering storylines to crowd excitement, NXT led the way. And that’s the way it’s been lately. RAW’s been better in the past few weeks, but SmackDown has really lacked that “it” factor. That surprises me that the level of “WOW” just hasn’t been there for the blue brand, especially considering how much FOX is spending for it. That 2.4 million viewers a week is a nice, safe number, but FOX at some point will ask why the needle hasn’t moved much. Plus, just watching the show, you can see that it’s lacking the drama and needed creativity.

Simply put, imagine how much different the Road to WrestleMania would look, especially for the women if not for NXT! We wouldn’t have Rhea Ripley vs. Charlotte Flair. We wouldn’t have Shayna Baszler (ahem, possibly) against Becky Lynch. Two of the hottest stories across the brands!

With Super Showdown this Thursday in Saudi Arabia, expect things to get much clearer on the Road to WrestleMania. After all, remember, we do get the return of John Cena as well Friday night in Boston on SmackDown. Then, it’s Elimination Chamber just over one week later on March 8th.

NXT TakeOver: Portland

RESULTS

NXT North American Championship Match: Keith Lee defeated Domink Dijakovic to retain title

Street Fight: Dakota Kai defeated Tegan Nox

Finn Balor defeated Johnny Gargano

NXT Women’s Championship Match: Rhea Ripley defeated Bianca Belair to retain title

NXT Tag Team Championship Match: The BroserWeights (Matt Riddle & Pete Dunne) defeated The Undisputed Era to win the titles

NXT Championship Match: Adam Cole defeated Tommaso Ciampa to retain title

.@ShinsukeN, @WWECesaro, @BraunStrowman and @IAmEliasWWE let the music speak for itself in brutal Symphony of Destruction matchup.

#SmackDown pic.twitter.com/oa2w8xAAgl

— WWE (@WWE) February 22, 2020

Star of the Week:

It’s not a person or particular person this week. It’s a match. The Symphony of Destruction Match between Braun Strowman/Elias vs. Shinsuke Nakamura/Cesaro. In just its second edition, this match was fun, physical, entertaining and all four, plus Sami Zayn, really had me invested! Unfortunately, that piano didn’t cooperate. Damn, those backs must have felt that one! Well done guys!

RAW

RESULTS

Aleister Black defeated Erick Rowan

24/7 Championship Match: Riddick Moss defeated R-Truth & Mojo Rawley in triple-threat match

Drew McIntyre defeated MVP

Bobby Lashley & Angel Garza defeated Rusev & Humberto Carrillo

Kairi Sane defeated Natalya (countout)

Ricochet defeated Karl Anderson

Kevin Owens & The Viking Raiders defeated Buddy Murphy & The Authors of Pain (DQ)

Overall:

This one just didn’t have that “it” factor either this week. The show seemed off all night. Nothing really stuck out other than Randy Orton’s deletion of Matt Hardy. This is the Road to WrestleMania and the WWE needs to start treating that way with must-see shows EVERY week. This one seemed like a take-off week instead after some very good shows.

What we loved:

Red-hot RKO – The hottest heel on the planet continues to be one Randy Orton. We thought The Viper put Matt Hardy to pasture last week, but that attack was nothing compared to a pair of conchairto shots in and out of the ring this week. Scary to think that at one point, Orton had the crowd cheering him to give Hardy one more shot. You have to wonder what Orton has in store next.

JOIN THE REVOLUTION.@FightOwensFight & The #VikingRaiders get some EXTRA back-up in the form of The #StreetProfits on #Raw! pic.twitter.com/c9PHlYpwkp

— WWE (@WWE) February 18, 2020

Substance to The Street Profits – It’s good to see the WWE finally using The Street Profits for more than just comedic fodder. Their infusion into the main even match with Seth Rollins and his Monday Night Messiah Minions gives the storyline some freshness.

No squash here – How about that! Instead of a pair of squashes for Aleister Black and Erik Rowan, we get a physical match between the two. Plus, Black gets elevated into what looks to be a mid-card match WrestleMania. Nice step up for Mr. Black.

Horror on #Raw. What has @RandyOrton done?! pic.twitter.com/73tDU6FgEU

— WWE (@WWE) February 18, 2020

Hey Lucy, you got some ‘splanin to do:

Hard-ly any help – It always bothers me when there will be a flurry of help from the locker room for some random disturbance in the ring, yet when there’s a vicious attack on a fan favorite, like this week on Matt Hardy, absolutely no one comes out to help! Why is that? Does Matt Hardy have no friends after more than two decades in the company? He was out there getting his ass and neck killed for almost ten minutes. Makes no sense. Even Humberto Carrillo has gotten help at one point.

Becky vs. Shayna – Why exactly is Becky Lynch shelling out money for what she’ll do to Shayna Baszler? Why is Baszler’s s-bomb not bleeped and is she getting the non-PG treatment on purpose? Is it me, or is the Elimination Chamber just a mere formality?

What we didn’t love:

24/7 – It seems we’ve lost some creative and fun to the once beloved 24/7 title. The past few weeks, it’s just turned into another throwaway match. I need it to return to the wild, crazy, out of the ring, defended everywhere mayhem it was the first few months.

NXT

RESULTS

NXT Cruiserweight Title Match: Jordan Devlin defeated Lio Rush to retain title

The Grizzled Young Veterans defeated Raul Mendoza & Joaquin Wilde

Non-title NXT Tag Team Match: The BroserWeights (Pete Dunne & Matt Riddle) defeated Oney Lorcan & Danny Burch

Non-title North American Title Match: Keith Lee defeated Kona Reeves

Chelsea Green defeated Kayden Carter

The Velveteen Dream defeated Roderick Strong

Overall:

Coming out what so far could be the show of the year at TakeOver: Portland, NXT delivers another solid, but lacking big moments show. A pair of champions, Keith Lee and The BroserWeights, looked strong while The Velveteen Dream steals the show, dealing another nightmarish ending to TUE with a clean win over Roderick Strong. I am VERY curious to see where Bianca Belair will land after calling out Charlotte Flair again. Belair, despite the loss at TakeOver: Portland, remains a rockstar with a tremendous upside.

What we loved:

If this is a Dream, we never wanna wake up. #WWENXT @DreamWWE pic.twitter.com/JrDk28Io1Y

— WWE (@WWE) February 20, 2020

The Dream Delights – Great to see TVD back in the ring in the main event. Match of the night between the Dream and Roderick Strong delivers on what it promised. Plus, an expected beatdown keeps the feud going.

"There can be no @JohnnyGargano in #WWENXT." – @NXTCiampa pic.twitter.com/6oRZHv9Xn5

— WWE (@WWE) February 20, 2020

Ciampa’s challenge – Not only did Tommaso Ciampa challenge former partner and nemesis Johnny Gargano’s spot in NXT, but also set up a battle next week vs. Austin Theory. Ciampa’s chomping at the bit to not only get Gargano, but another shot at Goldie and the NXT Championship.

Celebrate the cruiserweights – Jordan Devlin and Lio Rush got out Wednesday night off to a hot start with a thrilling title match start. Rush has really changed my mind on him with his latest run in NXT. Devlin has definitely taken the baton and kept the cruiserweight championship at an elevated state.

What we didn’t love:

Home not-so-sweet Home – After a capacity crowd in Portland, Oregon Sunday night at TakeOver: Portland, it was a bit of a letdown to go back to Full Sail Wednesday night. I’ll say it once and I’ll say it every week until it changes, NXT has to go big or stay home (and stay safe). Staying safe isn’t going to cut it against All Elite Wrestling, who continues to bang it out in bigtime arenas on a week-in, week-out basis.

SMACKDOWN

RESULTS

The Usos and The New Day defeated The Miz, John Morrison, Dolph Ziggler and Robert Roode

Symphony of Destruction Match: Braun Strowman & Elias defeated Shinsuke Nakamura & Cesaro

Daniel Bryan defeated Heath Slater

#1 Contender’s Match Smackdown Women’s Championship: Naomi defeated Carmella

What we loved:

Tag-team toughness – LOVED a little smack talk between The Usos and The New Day before a good ol’ fashioned tussle to start the night with The Miz, John Morrison, Dolph Ziggler and Robert Roode. Always quality stuff from these 8 men in the ring! Plus, always a little tease for a fight down the road if a turn’s needed.

Standing O for Symphony – LOVED all the musical destruction between Elias, Braun Strowman, Cesaro and Shinsuke Nakamura. Tag teams are ruling the night and count me as one if they wanted to push Elias and Strowman as future tag champs. Good chemistry and the crowd loves both of them at the moment.

"@heelziggler is such a piece of trash." – @TheMarkHenry Poor @otiswwe #SmackDown pic.twitter.com/chp7to7ZXy

— WWE on FOX (@WWEonFOX) February 22, 2020

Stalking Otis – Otis is about to snap my friends! Simmer. Simmer. Boil! It’s coming, folks! Mr. Ziggler is about to get a whooping! Can’t wait to see where they take it before getting that feel good moment we all know is coming, but will all stand tall and enjoy when it comes!

Oh so predictable:

.@Goldberg encounters #TheFiend @WWEBrayWyatt for the first time on #SmackDown! pic.twitter.com/jH7bgddbmN

— WWE (@WWE) February 22, 2020

Goldberg spears The Fiend….and that’s it – I get that you have to put some kind of notion that Goldberg could actually beat Bray Wyatt/The Fiend at Super Showdown. But, it was oh so predictable in how it was laid out, complete with Goldberg telling us how it would happen. There’s ZERO chance The Fiend loses at Super Showdown on the Road to WrestleMania.

Meh:

Naomi vs. Carmella – Flat and clunky at times. Don’t get me wrong, it was fine, but for a main event, I need to be wowed. If not, it’s just there. Kind of like this whole episode of SmackDown. It was just there.

Bryan vs. Slater II – Why?

Parting shots:

Congrats to the Bella Twins as the newest announced inductees to the WWE Hall of Fame!

How about the latest rumor – WWE in talks with ESPN to show their PPV’s on the ESPN+ streaming service. Could be a big blow to the WWE Network, but worth guaranteed money for the WWE and more mainstream publicity from ESPN. Something to watch as this one could develop quickly – BEFORE WrestleMania.

Super Showdown is next Thursday in Saudi Arabia at 12pm (ET) on the WWE Network.

WWE Championship: Brock Lesnar vs. Ricochet

Universal Championship: The Fiend vs. Goldberg

Smackdown Women’s Championship – Bayley vs. Naomi

Smackdown Tag Team Championship: The New Day vs. The Miz & John Morrison

Raw Tag Team Championship: Seth Rollins & Buddy Murphy vs. The Street Profits

Steel Cage Match: Roman Reigns vs. King Corbin

Tuwaiq Trophy Gauntlet Match: AJ Styles vs. R-Truth vs. Rusev vs. Bobby Lashley vs. Erik Rowan vs. Andrade (if he’s back off Wellness Suspension)

Thanks for letting us share our thoughts! Shoot me an email at jcrowe567@gmail.com. We’d love to hear your comments and suggestions! You can also check out my blog, The Crowe’s Nest as we delve into more pro wrestling, sports entertainment and the World of Sports. My apologies ahead of time – I AM a Patriots and Red Sox fan! If you’re not down with that, I’ve got TWO WORDS for you… NEW ENGLAND!

[weekendwarriorblog]

WHAT TO WATCH THIS WEEKEND February 15, 2019  - HAPPY DEATH DAY 2 U, ALITA: BATTLE ANGEL, ISN’T IT ROMANTIC

Well, it looks like I’ve already gotten myself into a bind trying to write two movie columns a week, and unfortunately, this one can only be written as my time allows. It’s President’s Day weekend, incorporating Valentine’s Day on Thursday, with three new wide releases hitting theatres either on Weds or Thursday hoping to grab some early biz before the long weekend.

Also, a reminder that if you want to read my box office analysis and predictions, you can find those over at The Beat later today. (My box office preview column will post around 9:30AM on Weds.)

HAPPY DEATH DAY 2 U (Universal)

Written and directed by Christopher Landon (Happy Death Day,Scouts Guide to the Zombie Apocalypse, Paranormal Activity: The Marked Ones) Cast: Jessica Rothe, Rudy Modine, Israel Broussard, Rachel Matthews, Suraj Sharma, Phi Vu, Charles Aitken MPAA Rating: PG-13

The movie with the best bet of succeeding this weekend is the sequel to Universal and Blumhouse Pictures’ 2017 hit Happy Death Day with director Christopher Landon, Jessica Rothe and the rest of the cast returning… and returning… and returning. The horror version of Bill Murray’s Groundhog’s Day featured a mostly-unknown cast of young actors, including Jessica Rothe, who is destined to be a superstar, and all of them return for this sequel, which ups the ante on the original’s high-concept premise. Unfortunately, I didn’t have a chance to see the movie before opening – I plan on going Wednesday afternoon – but I really enjoyed the first movie, and I expect the sequel to be more of the same i.e. obvious but funny and not necessarily as gory as a slasher movie like this might normally be.

ALITA: BATTLE ANGEL (20thCentury Fox)

Directed by Robert Rodriguez (Spy Kids, Sin City, Predators, Once Upon a Time in Mexico, Desperado and many more) Written by James Cameron, Laeta Kalogridis, Robert Rodriguez Cast: Rosa Salazar, Christoph Waltz, Jennifer Connelly, Mahershala Ali, Ed Skrein, Jackie Earle Haley, Keann Johnson, Lana Condor, Eiza Gonzalez MPAA Rating:  PG-13

Next up is an adaptation of Yukito Kishiro’s popular Manga series which premiered way back in 1990 and has been a passion project for Titanic and Avatar director James Cameron to make for almost as long.  It’s definitely interesting to see Cameron work with a young upstart (by comparison) like Rodriguez, who has built quite a solid industry out of his Austin-based Troublemaker Studios, but I’m not sure if American moviegoers are nearly as gung-ho about the collaboration. The cast is generally solid with The Maze Runner star Rosa Salazar getting the title role, joined by Oscar-caliber actors like Christoph Waltz, Jennifer Connelly and Mahershala Ali, as well as newcomer Keann Johnson. Blink and you might miss the heavily CG-ed Ed Skrein, Lana Condor, Eiza Gonzalez and Jackie Earle Haley – I think he plays the Dogmaster. Reviews have generally been mixed but I really didn’t like it much at all (see my review below) and I’m not sure if moviegoers will feel too differently, as this is going to be a divisive movie. I’m not even sure if and how fans of the Manga will enjoy seeing it brought to life, but that’s really going to be seen for sure after its extended opening weekend that runs from Thursday through Monday.

My Review of Alita

Another Piece I Wrote About Alita

ISN’T IT ROMANTIC (New Line/WB)

Directed by Todd Strauss-Schulson (The Final Girls, A VeryHarold and Kumar 3D Christmas) Written by Erin Cardillo, Dana Fox, Katie Silberman Cast: Rebel Wilson, Liam Hemsworth, Adam Devine, Jennifer Saunders, Priyanka Chopra, Betty Gilpin, Jennifer Saunders MPAA Rating: PG-13

Last but not least, especially with this week’s Valentine’s Hallmark Holiday on Thursday, is this unconventional romantic comedy that acts almost as a satire of the medium without going into Date Movie territory. It’s another chance for the very funny Rebel Wilson and Adam Devine, both from the Pitch Perfect movies, to break out on their own after mainly playing supporting roles in other comedies. Devine at least has a fanbase from his Comedy Central show Workaholics, and he’s had more featured roles in movies like Mike and Dave Need Wedding Dates, but this movie has more of an opportunity to reach young lovers and the date night crowd than the other two movies. I probably won’t review this, but I generally liked it quite a bit. I thought it was quite clever and funny in a snarky way that the kids seem to like and really its only straight competition is last week’s What Men Want.

LIMITED RELEASES

Not a ton of limited releases this weekend thankfully, but one of the big ones is the New York and L.A. release of Stephen Merchant’s FIGHTING WITH MY FAMILY (MGM), a comedic biopic about WWE Superstar Paige, as played by Florence Pugh (Lady MacBeth) and also starring Jack Lowden, Nick Frost, Lena Headey, Vince Vaughn and Dwayne Johnson, who also produced the film along with WWE Films.  It follows the story of how Paige and her brother Zak (Lowden) have dreams of becoming WWE superstars, coming from a family of wrestlers, and Paige’s struggles to fit in at the NXT training camp with Vaughn playing her tough coach. Johnson produced the film along with WWE Films, and he makes a couple brief apperances as himself. It’s a fun movie that I really enjoyed. You can read my full review below, and then look for my interview with Paige over at VitalThrills.com.

https://weekendwarriorblog.tumblr.com/post/182726024603/fighting-with-my-family-eds-very-important

Another pleasant surprise for the weekend is RUBEN BRANDT, COLLECTOR (Sony Pictures Classics), Slovenian filmmaker Milorad Krstic’s amazing animated feature centered around the title character, Ruben Brandt, a psychotherapist who has been having nightmares involving 13 famous paintings, so he puts together a band of art thieves (actual pieces of art who are also criminals) to steal some of the greatest artworks in the world. He quickly earns a reputation as “The Collector,” and a group of insurance companies hire private detective Mike Kowalski to get the art back.  I didn’t really know what to expect when I saw this movie a few weeks back, and the premise and characters are so bizarre, that it took me some time to adjust to the pace, but there’s some really cool stuff on display here including a number of action setpieces right out of Mission: Impossible or The Fast and the Furious, but all animated with a unique style that reminded me about what I loved about Terry Gilliam’s animation on Monty Python’s Flying Circus. If you’re a fan of animation and/or looking for something different this weekend, this is what I recommend.

Opening in New York Friday at the Quad Cinema and on VOD is Tim Sutton’s DONNYBROOK  (IFC Films), based on the novel by Frank Bill, in which Jamie Bell plays Jarhead Earl, who wants to keep his family together, so he robs a gun shop and goes on the road with his son to enter a legendary bare-knuckle brawl called Donnybrook, in which the winner gets $100,000. On his trail is drugdealer Chainsaw Angus, played by Frank Grillo (Captain America: The Winter Soldier), and Angus’ sister (Margaret Qualley).  (FYI, Sutton will be at select screenings at the Quad.)

Opening on Weds at New York’s Film Forum and at several L.A. theaters on Friday is BIRDS OF PASSAGE  (The Orchard), Colombia’s Oscar entry directed by Cristina Gallego and Ciro Guerra (Embrace of the Serpent). It’s an amazing story set in the rural Colombian drug trade over the course of several decades. The winner of three Colombian Fenix Film Awards, Birds of Passageopened the Directors’ Fortnight at last year’s Cannes Film Festival and has played a number of major festivals since then. It’s a really strong film that showcases the indigenous Wayuu tribe based in the rural area of Colombia who get involved with the drug trade as a way to survive financially. It focuses primarily on the growing feud between two families and the plight of a young man named Rapayet to get out of the drug trade once he’s pulled into it in order to afford the dowry for his beautiful bride.  It’s another great-looking film but one that feels a little more contemporary than Guerra’s previous film even though it takes place between the ‘60s and ‘80s and could actually be viewed as a companion film to Tom Cruise’s American Madein the sense that it shows the very beginnings of the drug journey to the States.

Opening Friday at Lincoln Center is Hong Sang-soo’s Hotel by the River  (Cinema Guild), which played at the New York Film Festival last year. It involves two intersecting tales, one about an old poet who calls his estranged sons to be by his side as he reaches the end, and the other about a young woman with a broken heart.

Ryan Reynolds narrates the IMAX documentary Great Bear Rainforest: Land of the Spirit Bear, which opens solely in IMAX screens on Friday. It’s a movie about the Great Bear Rainforest in Canada where resides the rare all-white spirit bear, and the indigenous First Nations tribe.

Dog lovers who didn’t get enough canine cuteness with A Dog’s Way Home can also catch the dog movie Patrick (Screen Media), written and directed by Mandy Fletcher (Absolutely Fabulous), which will open in select cities and VOD Friday. It revolves around a young woman named Sarah Francis (Beattie Edmonson) whose life is a mess even before her grandmother (played by her real-life mother Jennifer Saunders, who is also in Isn’t It Romantic) bequeathes her spoiled pug Patrick to her. It also stars Ed Skrein (also in Alita), Gemma Jones and Emily Atack.

STREAMING

The only new movie streaming on Netflix this Friday is the New Zealand comedy The Breaker Upperers, written and directed by Madeleine Sami and Jackie van Beek, who also star as BFFs Jen and Mel who get paid for ending romances, although their own relationship is put to the test when one of gets a conscience about what they’re doing.

As far as series, Netflix is debuting the new series The Umbrella Academy, based on the comic series by My Chemical Romance frontman Gerard Way and artist Gabriel Ba, this Friday. Meanwhile, on DC Universe’s streaming platform, the new Doom Patrol will premiere, and that’s a pretty crazy bit of counter-programming.

Not exactly “streaming” but Tina Brown and Dyana Winkler’s doc United Skates will premiere on HBO on Monday the 18th. I saw this at the Tribeca Film Festival last year where it won the Audience Award for documentary, and it’s won many other festival audience awards. It looks at the vanishing world of roller rinks and the “adult nights” that brought many of the African-American communities together in cities in North Carolina and California, but one that’s quickly fading away.

REPERTORY

METROGRAPH (NYC):

Valentine’s Day at the Metrograph is always a fun time, and this year is no exception with screenings of Casablanca (1942), Ernst Lubisch’s Heaven Can Wait  (1943), Werner Fassbinder’s Querelle (1982), David Cronenberg’s Crash  (1996), Claire Denis’ Trouble All Day  (2001) and even Barry Jenkins’ Oscar-winning Moonlight. (These are all playing on Valentine’s Day and a couple screenings before/after.) Produced by David O. Selznick ends this weekend with screenings of Alfred Hitchcock’s Rebecca and George Cukor’sWhat Price Hollywood?  (1932). This week’s Late Nites at Metrograph is the Chinese crime film Black Coal Thin Ice  (2014) on Thursday night and Trouble All Day on Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights. This weekend’s  Playtime: Family Matineesis the beloved 2017 family film Paddington 2, directed by Paul King.

THE NEW BEVERLY  (L.A.):

Not to be outdone by that young upstart Metrograph, Tarantino’s rep theater will screen the late great Burt Reynolds’ Deliverance (1972) and Paul Thomas Anderson’s Boogie Nights (1997), also starring Reynolds, on Weds. and Thursday, then continuing their Reynolds tribute with double features of White Lightning (1973) and 1974’s The Longest Yard (one of my personal favorites). Saturday night’s midnight screening is D.A. Pannebaker’s classic concert film Monterey Pop  from 1968, featuring performances by The Who, Jimi Hendrix and more, while the weekend’s Kiddee Matinee on Saturday and Sunday is Ralph Nelson’s 1971 film Flight of the Doves. Sunday and Monday night are double features of Laurel and Hardy’s Flying Deuces (1939) and Mel Brooks’ The Last Remake of Beau Geste (1977), starring the wonderful Marty Feldman. There’s also a screening on Sunday afternoon of Carl Franklin’s 1995 film Devil with a Blue Dress, starring Denzel Washington and Don Cheadle.

FILM FORUM (NYC):

Opening on Friday is the exclusive premiere of Milestone Films’ 4k rerelease of Mikhail Kalatozov’s 1964 documentary I Am Cuba, presented by Francis Ford Coppola and Martin Scorsese, which features amazing footage of Havana in the late ‘50s.  This weekend’s Film Forum Jr. offering is a new 4k restoration of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Carousel  (1956)

EGYPTIAN THEATRE (LA):

Other than Valentine’s Day screenings of Hal Ashby’s 1971 dark comedy Harold and Maude (another personal favorite of mine) and Ivan Nagy’s Skinner  (1993) starring Ted Raimi, the Egyptian is mainly focusing on making sure Oscar voters have a chance to see some of this year’s Best Picture nominees like Roma and Bohemian Rhapsody.

AERO  (LA):

The Aero is also showing the 1942 classic Casablanca on Valentine’s Day, but mostly, the entire weekend is dedicated to screening Jean Luc Godard’s most recent effort, The Image Book.

QUAD CINEMA (NYC):

The Goldblum Variations, celebrating the great Jeff Goldblum, continues this weekend with screenings of Wes Anderson’s The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou, The Fly, Invasion of the Body Snatchers, Thank God It’s Friday, Into the Night and more.

IFC CENTER (NYC)

Waverly Midnights: The Feds  presents a 35mm print of Sandra Bullock’s Miss Congeniality  from 2000, this weekend’s Weekend Classics: Early Godard  is Vivre Sa Vie from 1962, which is playing Friday through Monday at 11AM.  Late Night Favorites has two movies running over the weekend, David Lynch’s Blue Velvetand Dario Argento’s Suspiria.

LANDMARK THEATRES NUART  (LA):

Friday night’s midnight movie is Blood Diner from 1987!

FILM SOCIETY OF LINCOLN CENTER (NYC):

On Friday, the Film Society will show Sergey Bondarchuk’s four-part War and Peace  (1969), presented by Mosfilm Cinema Concern, an epic that runs for seven ours over the four parts, each which will run two or three times over the weekend.

BAM CINEMATEK (NYC):

Starting Thursday, the Brooklyn Arts Museum will begin Programmer’s Note: On Love, a series that will include romantic films such as Love & Basketball on Thursday, Pedro Almodovar’s Bad Education on Friday, and much more all running over the course of the next week.

MOMA (NYC):

Modern Matinees: Sir Sidney PoitierscreensTo Sir with Love  (1967) on Weds, Lillies of the Field (1963) on Thursday, and Stanley Kramer’s Guessing Who’s Coming to Dinner? (1967) on Friday.

MUSEUM OF THE MOVING IMAGE (NYC):

The Derek Jarman-Humphrey Jennings retrospective continues with Sebastiane (1976) on Friday, preceded by the short The Silent Village, plus two more films on Saturday and Sunday nights. MOMI is also screening Roman Holiday (1953) on Saturday as part of the Edith Head series.

That’s it for this week, but next week is a bit lighter with DreamWorks Animation’s How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World and Fighting with My Family expands natiowide. Don’t forget to check out my weekly box office column at The Beat, which you can read right here.

[thesexypolitico]

New Post has been published on https://thesexypolitico.com/2019/02/01/inter-gender-wrestling-in-the-wwe/

Inter-gender Wrestling in the WWE

If you watched this year’s Royal Rumble you would have seen a surprising development during the Men’s Royal Rumble. The number 30 spot was set aside for the winners of the Mixed Match Challenge. There are only 30 superstars in each Royal Rumble. The winners were Carmella and R-Truth. Carmella came out as number 30 durring the Women’s Rumble, and so during the Men’s Rumble the number 30 spot hits and we hear R-Truth’s music. As he was doing his usual crowd hype, Nia Jax punches R-Truth and takes his spot in the Men’s Royal Rumble.

WWE

For those of you who are not WWE fans, Nia Jax is a female WWE superstar. She is now the fourth female wrestler to compete in the Men’s Royal Rumble, and the first one to compete in both the Men’s and Women’s Royal Rumble.

What makes this interesting is that since the “PG” era of wrestling has begun there has been a strict, “no male on female violence” within WWE. During the “Attitude Era” that was not the case and if you look on YouTube or the WWE network you can find a lot of examples of male on female violence in the 90s and early 2000s. This mandate has come from both the higher ups in WWE and from advertisers who wanted to make WWE more family friendly. During this years mixed match challenge you could see a few female wrestlers take cheap shots at the male wrestlers, but not vice versa.

When Nia Jax entered this year’s Men’s Rumble she threw Mustafa Ali over the top rope. She also took two finishers from popular wrestlers, (an RKO and a 619) and was then thrown over the top rope.

Why? Why has WWE all of a sudden decided that intergender wrestling is OK? I am not sure that they have. I think they are testing the waters with this idea, and so they picked the biggest girl who could match the size of the male wrestlers in the ring and wanted to see what the reaction is with their sponcers and their fans.

Other wrestling promotions already have intergender wrestiing, my favorite being Lucha Underground, and it isn’t treated like a special event; it is treated like equality. How would WWE treat intergender wrestling? Would it be a special event or would it become something that is normal, especially in the mid-lightweight classes? I’m curious to see how the WWE would actually treat intergendered wrestling. I just wouldn’t want it to go back to the era where small women are dropped through tables for no reason.