#ddt best in the world

[realgraps]

:]

[crossvise]

Summary; reader and Phil have a fight and says some hurtful things but they make up in the end.

Warnings; some swearing and some hurtful words

angst ( with a good ending )

Recovery was hard and painful both physically and mentally, it was challenging and sometimes, you were just upset at the whole world that it had to be you. Phil was barely back in the WWE and got badly injured on the first big event he participated.

That night, you were there backstage, watching the men’s Royal Rumble, you saw that DDT and how Phil was different after taking it. You could’ve sworn something was wrong- the way he kept reaching for his elbow, you were honestly more worried about this than the outcome of the match.

When he came back after losing against Cody, your fears were confirmed as his elbow was wrapped in ice. At that time, you didn’t even know how bad it truly was, yet your heart broke for him- he didn’t deserve to go through that. He was finally back and his moment was taken away from him.

Before you even had the confirmation that Phil’s injury was a torn tricep, you promised him you’d be there for him for each step of recovery- no matter if it would be a short or long one. Sadly, what was suspected ended up being right, your boyfriend would require surgery for his torn tricep and would be out for months.

It had been a couple of weeks since the Royal Rumble and Phil’s injury, it hadn’t been easy but you had been there for your boyfriend- you tried your best to make his life easier wether it was bringing a few more cushions on the sofa so his arm could lay comfortably or do chores that weren’t easy with one arm.

However, the last few days were getting harder, mostly for Phil but you were the one who had to suffer through his bad mood. You knew he probably didn’t even realize he was being an ass, so you just let it flow, you didn’t want to cause an argument as you never had a big one with your boyfriend and you wanted it to remain that way.

Today, Phil had been in a particularly bad mood- everything seemed to annoy him, even your mere presence. You didn’t say much and just let him be for the time being. When you came back from work, Phil wasn’t back from rehab for his elbow- which was unusual. It became a routine for you to get back home and be greeted by your boyfriend, then you’d go on a walk with Larry.

It wasn’t without your heart feeling heavy that you went on a walk with Larry. Phil adopted him years ago, way before you, but from the start of your relationship, Larry became so important to you, in a way, he was like your son. You tried not to overthink during your walk but it was hard- you were wondering if you had done something wrong? Perhaps, it was worse than that and Phil didn’t love you anymore.

Larry and you made it back home at the same time as Phil but you didn’t address him a single word until you were sitting on the couch- you were too upset with him to start a conversation.

Phil probably realized something was wrong as you didn’t initiate a conversation or even ask him how rehab had been today, “ how was work? ”

“ Fine. How was rehab? ”

“ Fine too.”

You nodded, not having much to say but a part of you was also being petty and chose to give him as much energy as he gave you. Phil sighed, “ are you going to tell me what’s going on?”

“ There’s nothing going on.”

“ I’m not stupid, y/n. You usually ask me right away how rehab was, you always talk to me but not today?”

You shrugged, hesitating a few seconds, wondering if you should bring up his behavior for the past few days- it couldn’t keep going like this, “ I don’t know, you’ve be an ass to me for the past few days and I don’t get why. I don’t get it, I’ve been doing my best to make sure you’re not in pain or doing something that could hurt you more.”

“ Didn’t you consider that maybe I don’t need you to do all that? I’m not helpless, I’ve been through plenty of injuries and surgeries. It’s sweet that you want to help me but honestly? You’ve been suffocating.”

Those words stung like hell, you didn’t really expect to hear that in all honesty, all you wanted was to make it easier for him, “ and you couldn’t just tell me I was doing too much instead of being an asshole?”

“ Oh come on! I was not an asshole, I’ve just been annoyed with you.”

“ Okay, I won’t do anything for you anymore.”

Phil rolled his eyes dramatically, accompanied by a loud sigh, “ that’s not what I said, don’t dramatize it. I just want to breathe, to be left alone and not have someone babying me as if I’m not a grown ass man.”

“ This someone happens to be your girlfriend Phil, and I was not babying you. I’m sorry if it seemed that way, I just wanted to help.”

“ Well, if I had known you’d be like this when we got together, I would’ve thought twice before asking you out.”

If you had been shot at that same moment, you were sure it would’ve hurt less than Phil’s words, from the look on his face, he also realized what he said but it was too late to take it back. You choked up on your words as only a “ oh ” came out. Maybe you had been right when you wondered if he didn’t love you anymore, it sure seemed the case at this moment.

Tears in your eyes, you got up and rushed to your shared bedroom- you didn’t think much but if there was something you knew, it was that you didn’t want to see Phil’s face anymore today. You grabbed an empty sport bag and shoved a couple of clothes in it, you’d come back to get more if needed later.

Once you were done, you headed to your car but not before giving Larry a kiss on the top of his head. Phil rushed after you as soon as he saw you leaving with a bag, “ baby, please wait! ”

“ Fuck you, Phil.”

With that, you drove away from the place you called home- you hadn’t really planned where you’d go for the night, you just drove for a while to cool off and ended finding a hotel to spend the time. You had friends you could’ve crashed at for the night but you didn’t want to burden them with the fight you just had with Phil.

It was only later in the night when you were laying in the hotel’s bed that you finally dared to look at your phone- Phil had tried to call you countless of times and texted you a couple of times asking you to come back, that he was sorry and begging you to, at least, tell him you were somewhere safe.

Which you did, you replied with a simple and short “ I’m safe, sleeping at a hotel.” as soon as you hit the send button, you shut your phone off for the night and tried your best to fall asleep. It wasn’t an easy task, the fight you had with your boyfriend replying in your head for a majority of the night until exhaustion took over and allowed you a few hours of sleep.

The next morning, you found it hard to get up from bed, not only you had only gotten a couple hours of sleep but they also had been terrible- this bed wasn’t as comfortable as the one from home and honestly, sleeping without Phil next to you was hard. When you looked up at your phone, mostly to call in sick for work, you had a few more texts from your boyfriend.

Some were more apologies, other were begging you to come home or to give him the address so he could come to you to talk. Did you want to see and talk to Phil again after yesterday? You weren’t sure but you needed clarity- you wanted to know if he still loved you at least or if you were over.

The latter thought broke your heart a bit more than it already was, you didn’t really imagine your future without Phil in it- that’s why you ended up texting him the address of the hotel you were staying at for now.

Only an hour later, Phil was knocking on the door of the hotel room you were staying in- you had taken a shower and ate a little in the meantime but let’s be honest, you looked like a mess. You took a deep breath before you slowly opened the door and let Phil in with a barely audible “ hi. ”

Your boyfriend came with a beautiful bouquet of your favorite flowers, “ these are for you, sweetheart. ”

“ Thank you, they’re beautiful. ”

“ Not as beautiful as you.”

You dramatically rolled your eyes at this, these one liners wouldn’t be enough to have you forgive him, “ yeah, I look miserable today but thank you still. ”

“ You look beautiful even when you look tired. ”

“ So… you wanted to talk?”

Phil stayed silent for a second, as if he was carefully choosing how to words what he wanted to say, “ I’ve fucked up, I know it and I’m so sorry for everything I’ve said. I didn’t mean it, these past few days, I’ve grown really frustrated but not with you. With myself. I’m frustrated to have to stay back and miss many events, I thought this year was finally my year- that I’d get to main event Wrestlemania and keeping it all for me wasn’t the right move because I ended up lashing out on you when you just wanted to help.”

“ You should’ve talked to me, Phil. I don’t mind giving you space, I just needed to know that.”

“ I know and again, I’m sorry. I don’t think you’re suffocating, I like that you care so much for me, sometimes it’s a bit too much but that’s on me for not telling you to stop.”

You nodded, you were glad that Phil was finally opening up to you, that’s all you needed from the get-go. Yet, there was still a thought lingering on your mind and you needed clarification on it, “ do you still love me?”

“ What? Sweetheart, of course I love you! You’re the love of my life, you are so important to me. I’m sorry for being such an asshole that you thought I didn’t love you anymore.”

Pain could be read in Phil’s eyes and his words managed to reassure you, a small smile tugging you your lips, you said, “ this was the worst night in my life, I don’t think I can sleep without you anymore.”

Phil laughed at this and gently pulled you into a hug, you had missed him so much.

[mamisfavmosher]

hi, can you write about damian winning the tag team championship but reader making a surprise appearance at the Raquel and Rhea match making it a triple threat and won the womens title from rhea and have a cute moment backstage

thanks for the request! sorry for the wait! realistically, I don't think Rhea would react this calmly...

a surprise champion// damian priest x reader

Readers POV

I watched in shock as Dom ran down the entrance ramp to save Rhea, but before he could do more than grab her hands, I was running out after him. If anyone deserved a fair shot at this title, it was Raquel and I'll be damned if Dom Dom ruins her chances. Jumping up, both of my feet harshly impacted his ribs, sending him flying into the steel stairs. I felt a tight grip on my arm as Rhea pulled me between the ropes and attempted to riptide me, but I countered with a DDT.

"This match has just turned into a triple threat!" The announcers exclaimed into their mics. "(your ring name) has reversed Ripley's riptide with a brutal DDT sending the Women's World Champion across the ring!" I stood in surprise as I realized I now had a shot at Rhea's title. Scanning the ring, I noticed Raquel was still stunned in ringside and Rhea was weakly draped across the corner ropes. Before I could overthink my next moves, I charged at her in hopes of ramming her back into the turnbuckle. She grunted at the impact and I grabbed her arm and leg, dragging her to the center of the ring. I ran back to the corner and climbed to the top rope, perfectly performing a hurricanrana. As soon as I landed, I pulled Rhea into a pin.

1...2....3!!

The crowd erupted into a loud mix of cheers and boos, my theme song beginning to blare through the speakers. The ref handed me the championship belt and I held it high in the air, showing off to the fans. I admired the intricate details on the belt as I held it in my hands, a big smile painted across my lips.

I glanced down as I noticed Rhea starting to stand up and I instantly panicked. She was a tough competitor and I don't know if I would have honestly won the championship if she hadn't already been worn out. I took a few steps back as she slowly approached me.

"Proud of you." She mouthed and reached for my wrist to hold up. Once I was satisfied with the reaction from the crowd, I waltzed backstage and jumped into Damian's waiting arms.

"I'm so proud of you, sweetheart!" Damian exclaimed and spun me around in the air. I giggled and clung on to him tightly, barely able to keep hold of my new championship belt. "You're absolutely insane for beating on Rhea like that, but you were amazing out there, princesa." He planted a soft kiss on my lips and helped me strap the belt onto my waist.

"Thanks, papi." I sent him a wink and did a twirl for him. "How does it look? Like I'm the best Women's World Champion there ever was?" I joked.

"Without a doubt, babygirl." He pulled me close to him by my hips and pecked my lips again. "Now, pose for a picture." He smirked and pulled out his phone, snapping an off-guard photo.

"Priest! I wasn't ready!" I reached for his phone, but he held it high above his head, knowing full well I couldn't reach that height even by jumping.

"The rest of the Judgment Day is going to find this hilarious!" Damian said and quickly walked away while I chased after him.

"Well, folks, those are two of your newest champions from tonight. Looks like we are in for a treat." Byron Saxton said with chuckle as he watched the two of us run through the backstage hallways, closing out the show.

[aritamargarita]

ATTITUDE || 001

IT'S YOUR FIRST introduction to the World Wrestling Federation and you’re surprised at the fan reaction. It makes you giddy, but now people (including those in the back) are going to be expecting much of you. Your two best friends, Torrie Wilson and Stacy Keibler, return back to the hotel room and you guys chat before heading to sleep.

The adrenaline rush is still coursing through your veins as Shane McMahon helps you back over the barricade. You had just shown up to interfere in a match between Matt Hardy and the Big Show.

Shane told you that you needed to focus your attention on the redhead, Lita, and deal with the other, Trish Stratus, if necessary.

At one point in the match, Lita yanks Trish off of the apron and her shirt went along with it. Yikes.

Shane figured that this was a wonderful opportunity for you to get in there. He lightly pushes you forward and that was your cue to get the hell in there.

Lita was so busy with trying to beat on Trish that she hadn’t even noticed you jumped over the barricade. You can see her scream at Trish to “get up” as you approach. Her back is toward you. Perfect!

At first, the crowd was confused, but once realizing that you weren’t a fan, they holler and cheers at your appearance, quickly recognizing you from WCW.

“Is that—my god!” JR yells. “That’s [Name], from WCW!”

The crowd seems to get even louder when you yank Lita‘s shoulder and turn her toward you to smash your forearm right in her face.

Trish is looking on in awe, covering herself and scooting backward from the scene. Whoever you were, you kind of saved her?!

“She’s not taking too kindly to Lita right now!” Paul exclaims with laughter in his voice. “Fight, fight, fight!”

Lita doesn’t even get a chance to fight back, you’re moving way too fast.

It’s a little strange to hear the crowd so excited, but you try not to let it distract you as much.

Before you had gotten out of there, you made sure to give Lita a final parting gift. A swift DDT. You throw your arm around her neck and sweep your leg back, before pulling both of you down to the floor. Lita’s head slams into the concrete and you hop up from your spot.

The crowd gives a resound “ooooh” in response. If your DDT was in a box, it’d be wrapped with the prettiest bow anyone has ever seen.

Meanwhile, Trish wants to be thankful to you, this stranger that beat the hell out of Lita. Yet, she’s not sure if she should be feeling so grateful.

Covering herself with her coat, she slowly starts to make her way to the other side of the ring. She doesn’t want any problems with you!

And luckily for Trish, you didn’t have enough time to handle her, so you’ll save it for next show. Just disrupting the match equilibrium is enough.

No one was expecting you at all. You’re following behind the footsteps of people like Lance Storm, Hugh Morrus, and Booker T…..you are officially the fourth star to appear from WCW.

These random occurrences were no coincidence. To the WWF, it just meant man or woman, anyone could get it at any time.

Let it be known that the forbidden door is completely blown off its hinges. There was no longer any boundaries.

You had quickly made your way out before security could retrieve you and Shane had been waiting for you by the barricade. You two made a swift exit, with him encouragingly patting your side as he holds onto you.

Right now, he’s still guiding you out to the limousine with a camera trailing behind you two. The crowd cheers don’t end despite you two getting the hell out of there. You can still hear the noise from the arena.

“Great job, [Name]!” He exclaims. “Bet my father wasn’t expecting that! Now both divisions have something to look out for!” Shane quickly opens the door for you. “Get in!”

You quickly hop into the limo, shuffling in. Shane follows you and closes the door afterwards.

And just like that, it was the start of your WWF journey. You had always wondered if it’ll be like WCW. The backstage environment was sure to be different than this ones.

You suppose there was only one way to find out.

You’re splayed out in the seat of the limo, and though Shane had squished in there with you, he finds it to be a better idea to go sit across from you.

“I haven’t heard people cheer like that for a woman in years!” A but of an exaggeration, but it still holds true. People made a lot of noise for you.

Your attention is on the ceiling. It still hasn’t set in that the crowd might actually like you. You’re more focused on the fact that you’re actually here in the WWF.

You wouldn’t have ever guessed it. WCW was the place you wanted to be when you started. Years before you debuted, all you did was practice.

Really. Practice, practice, practice. Until you couldn’t move anymore. Your old mentor, Madusa, ensured that you were conditioned enough to be in the ring.

She kept you there for a while. You’d jokingly say that she was holding you hostage, but it ended up being for your benefit. You learned that they would pull the women from the school too early.

Madusa did not want them to make that mistake. She made sure you knew what you were doing before you could go anywhere!

You have to admit though, the training at the power-plant facility wasn’t the best. There were other woman who didn’t exactly know what they were doing. It was easy for them to mess up.

And it’s actually where you met your two close friends, Stacy and Torrie. You were nervous, they were nervous, it’s only inevitable you three would mutter things to one another.

You were more than happy to give them tips on what you knew. From you, they were more than happy to learn. Eventually it grew from only talking in the school to completely hanging out with each other.

It was really nice to finally make some genuine friends.

Shane takes you out of your daydream by holding out a bottle of champagne. “A performance like that deserves some reward! Want some?”

“No, I’m okay.” You shake your head. “But hey, I’m just glad I could get in there!”

Shane thinks you’re downplaying yourself. “Seriously, that was amazing.” He says. “I couldn’t believe it. WWF should know by now there’s one hell of a storm brewing.”

You didn’t realize it at first, but maybe you like this so called “invasion” more than you thought you would.

“You mind if we head to Times Square? I’m due to speak WWF New York.”

Your reply is sluggish. “Yeah, yeah, sure. What is that?”

“It’s mainly a restaurant, but we do some live events there too.” He summarized. 

That quickly reminds you of the WCW Grill in Vegas. You’ve been there many times, whether it to be signing things or just hanging out with other coworkers. 

You lean up from your seat. “WCW had something like that in Vegas! They closed last year though. Bummer, I kinda liked their food. And I think I had a menu item once!”

“Really? Well, I’m sure the WWF’s will be better.” Shane pauses for a second. “I mean, for once. Besides, we’ll be bigger and better. Then you can really get your name on the menu.”

You let out a chuckle. He slipped up a little. “Right.”

”I’m gonna need you for Smackdown too.” Shane says. “You don’t have to worry that much about transportation since we’re staying here for it.”

Oh joy! Seriously! No worrying about catching a flight tonight, that’s less stress on your shoulders. 

“Then I’ll be there.” It’s not like you wouldn’t be anyway.

”While you’re at it, mind asking Torrie if she could attend as well?” He requests you.  “I’ve got a great idea for the both of you.”

A great idea, he says. Not like you’ve heard that before. “Color me intrigued, what’s the plan?” 

“I want you ladies to go undercover in the WWF. Somehow, someway. Get as much information as you can from anyone you run into.” He explains. “If anything goes wrong, WCW will protect you. You’ve got my word on that.”

“I believe you. But how should I do that? Just waltz up in there and proclaim I’m one of them now? I just attacked Lita!” You throw your arms out for extra emphasis.

“Relax. Just act like you were misguided. And when you learned that I wasn’t in the right, you want to change your ways. If I were you, I’d apologize to Lita first.”

It was only a six minute drive from MSG to WWF New York. When the limo pulls up, you can hear the sound of the crowd on the outside of it.

The only thing you could do was nod at Shane. It’s go-time.

Leaning up from your spot, you take a second to fix yourself up, fixing your shirt and adjusting your hair so that it’s presentable. Wouldn’t want people to get the wrong idea…

Rumors still can circulate, even if you were seen in the ring earlier! The last thing you wanted was for dirt sheets to grasp at straws, with your boss of all people.

Shane gets out first, then takes a second to open the door. He then pulls it open and you are greeted with the crowd on both sides of the sidewalk.

When they turn their heads to see who else was in the vehicle, they cheer over at you. All you can really do is wave with a smile.

Do they really know who you are?

Photographers are at the ready, their bright white lights flashing at you. It makes you squint every time a camera would go off. You just hoped those photos won’t come out bad.

Shane waits for you, offering his arm for you to take while you get out of the car. You happily take it and he ushers you to go inside.

It’s like walking the red carpet, albeit shorter and quicker. You two go in, and you try to look at what they’ve got on display as you walk.

Lots and lots of action figures. You can only look over there for a few seconds, but you do catch a Lita figure on one of the holders.

There’s a lot of others, but you’re not quite sure who they are. Stone Cold Steve Austin? Triple H? Edge? None of those people ring a bell.

As you two approach the steps, there’s only one thing pops into your mind.

…You can’t believe that this place has two floors! So far, it was beating that WCW Grill by a long shot. Upstairs was for merchandise, and as you two go down you assume that the restaurant was around here.

You’re greeted by another large crowd of people and the both of you make your way over toward the stage.

The camera nearby moves over to the both of you.

Shane lets go of your arm and goes to grab a mic from a stagehand. You wait for him by the center of the stage.

Before he says anything, he reaches down toward the crowd to give them high fives. Shane comes back toward you.

“Surprise,” He says. “Well obviously, I’m not Perry Saturn, and she’s not Terri Runnels. But dad, I know you can hear me. It’s your son Shane, how’re you doing?”

The crowd cheers his name and you keep the smile on your face. This place was WWF New York, but before anyone knew it, it could easily become WCW New York.

“You know, the one that owns WCW. The very organization that has you a little heated under the collar. Because WCW continues to infiltrate your WWF.” Shane motions over toward you.

“[Name] made an example out of two women on your roster, and believe me, that won’t be the end of it.”

You nod your head. You’re eager to take these women down, one at a time. You definitely need to make a mental checklist.

Shane continues on. “You see dad, that is done out of necessity. Because in order to build a brand like WCW, we need television exposure. But I’ve gotta give you credit on this because I didn’t think it was possible, through all of your connections you have been able to block WCW from airing on any television network period.”

When he pauses again for a split second, the crowd cheers him.

“Here’s how it’s gonna go down.” He says. “I may not be able to compete with your checkbook but I can compete with your brains. Since you have prevented WCW from airing on any network, it’s now time for WCW to invade the WWF.”

You clap your hands toward him, then try to signal for the crowd to make some noise. They do and you smile. “Thank you!” Although your words were drowned out by the crowd.

“One of the people to lead the charge in one division stands here next to me,” Shane turns to you. “I reckon that she’ll become the next Women’s Champion in no time..”

You hope so. That’s a big step in your career. You were one year too late in getting the WCW Women’s Championship, despite Madusa’s efforts to revive it.

To your surprise, Shane holds out the mic toward you. He must’ve expected you to say something.

You try not to look like a deer in headlights as you take the mic and speak up.

“All I want is to lead WCW to victory. Whatever it takes, I will do…so let this be a warning to the entire women’s division. What I did to Lita was a demonstration of what’s to come. Trust me when I say that no one can stop me, but feel free to try if you want to…that is if you don’t want to end your career early!”

Shane laughs at your words. Hopefully the women (and men if they so dared,) would take heed. You pass the mic back to him.

“Oh, but that’s not all,” He points a finger up. “Might I introduce the second person to lead the charge, I’m sure that you and Stone Cold Steve Austin know this man very well. Ladies and Gentlemen, the WCW Champion, give it up for Booker T!”

As Booker makes his way from behind the curtain with a mic, he throws up his arms.

You watch as he reaches down to high five the fans. After of which, you reach out your own hand for him to shake. He grabs your hand and shakes firmly.

Shane mimics you, shaking his hand as well.

“Last night, at King of the Ring, it was just too easy, no, it was just too damn easy to take you outta the game!” Booker says.

There are mixed reactions at his words, with more cheering than booing from the antsy crowd.

“—And you call yourself the WWF Champion? I respect that, but ask me what I call you. I’m calling you out to let you know that if you want some you can come and get some, because I’m gonna be here at WWF New York, kicking it all night long!”

Shane brought back up his own mic. “I’d like to call this my dream team. These two are going to lead my brand new company to victory. Dad, this is a warning to you.  I’m just here to say that you’re on borrowed time..”

That’s all that was needed to say.

Shane was 100% sure that his father was watching. He’s also sure that he was boiling in anger. It’s exactly what he wanted.

The camera makes sure to get all three of you into frame. It’s up to you, as that’s left was for you and Booker T to apply pressure on the WWF..

After the segment at WWF New York, Shane fortunately allowed you to return to your hotel, but told you to watch the remainder of Raw when you could on the television.

You’re not exactly sure what his plan was, but now you’re curious to see. All you knew is that Booker T was asked to stay and they went off somewhere else while you just left through the back this time.

Just what in the world were they up to?

Shane was nice enough to send you your own limousine after bidding you a good night. Most of your energy had fizzed out and you could tell that his had too.

All you were excited for was to flop onto your bed. You don’t even move the comforters, all you do is just lie down for a few minutes. You’re sure you can move a little later.

There’s a lot of big changes going on in your life right now. You think the first biggest one was Shane McMahon’s entry to WCW and how quickly everyone went on his side.

It’s only fair. It’s the competition, hell, it’s the son OF the competition. Who specifically came in saying that he was against his father.

But what made him so trustworthy anyway? A lot of your coworkers were immediately on his side. You knew WCW was declining, but you never thought everyone else would stoop low enough to side with competition.

At least, not that quickly. The way things were going in the company, it made you feel like you had no choice but to trust him. So far, no betrayals, so everything is going okay so far.

You do get enough energy to at least turn on the television to Raw. You figure it’s only right to honor Shane’s request.

Immediately, you’re greeted by the sight of Shane McMahon heading down the ramp with a pep in his step. His father is not happy to see him at all.

Seeing the brand new WCW logo projected onto the ramp makes you feel…

Well, you don’t know how it makes you feel. You can safely say it makes you feel weird though.

You’re so used to it having an obnoxiously large watermark behind it, with the barely visible text of “World Championship Wrestling”.

Now it’s all small, jagged with the points on each letter. You have to tilt your head slightly in order to see it better.

Eventually, the camera moves away from the ramp and decided to follow Shane who was circling around the ring.

With you being able to hear the commentators properly, you wonder what they had to say about your prior run-in. You should’ve asked someone back at home to tape it!

“WCW does NOT belong in Madison Square Garden!” Paul is almost standing out of his seat by now with all of his screaming. 

“You may be right about that, but—“ Unfortunately, JR isn’t allowed to get one single word out thanks to his partner.

“You’re damn right I’m right! I grew up here, I know these things, I see these things!”

You roll your eyes. Shouldn’t Paul Heyman be worried about his own company instead of everyone else’s?

Oh, wait…

You chuckle to yourself. Thank god no one could hear your thoughts or that you were backstage. That wouldn’t have been good.

Vince is beckoning Shane into the ring, but unbeknownst to him, Booker had hopped right up into the ring, ripping his jacket off in the process.

It’s so over for him! You can’t help but smile. You watch as Booker lays in punches onto him, causing him to stagger backwards.

Booker takes advantage of this and runs toward the ropes, bounces off of them, then lifting one of his legs to give him a scissor kick.

Just to add salt in the wound, he hits a spinaroonie to get off the canvas.

How amazing is this?! You can see the entire WWF locker room run down the ramp but Shane and Booker are way too fast, making their exit.

This obviously must’ve been what Shane wanted you to see. Maybe this means that the ball is back in your court now.

You wonder how you can upstage Booker this time. It’ll definitely be hard since he literally knocked the hell out of the literal CEO of the WWF! Vince McMahon!!

Although, Shane offhandedly mentioned he has a sister who also happens to be in the business. You could always find something to do with her if he allows it.

Are you still buzzing from earlier? You had thought your energy was all gone, but it seemed like there was still bits of adrenaline in your veins.

You had only a few seconds to make your appearance count and from what you can think back on, you did a pretty damn good job.

The sound of the door unlocking makes you snap your head to your right.

“Helloooo!” Torrie sings from the doorway. “[Naaame], are you here? I’ve got Stacy with meee!”

Ah yes, your unofficial roommate for this trip. Torrie Wilson. And Stacy, who insisted that she room with you guys this time.

You think she’s just scared of being alone, which is understandable. But there was no need for her to try and sneak into your bed when she could use the pull out couch!

“I saw you on TV,” Stacy exclaims. “You were great! You really kicked….what’s her name? Ah, who cares?! The crowd was really loud too!”

“Yeah.” Is all you can really say to that. And then you fall back onto your bed, turning away from them and putting your head onto the cold pillow.

The both of them share a look, but Torrie’s the first to question you. She takes a seat next to you on the bed. “What’s your problem tonight? I’m surprised you haven’t called us on that dying Nokia you’ve got. Normally you’d be the one to drag us out after a show.”

Torrie teasing you about your phone was nothing new, but you still take offense anyway!

“I’m holding onto it!” Your words are muffled. “My 1999 phone is getting me places, okay?!”

Stacy takes a seat on the opposite side of you. “Aren’t they making a new one in like November?”

“Are they?” You turn your head so that they can hear you better. “I hope they have other colors. But honestly, I’m tired. Kinda.”

“Kind of?” Stacy repeated. “How much sleep did you get last night?”

You hold up five fingers.  “Five, so just enough to me. I had a flight to catch to get here, so five was really pushing it. I can’t really tell if this schedule’s gonna be worse than our old one.”

“Oh, you poor thing!” Torrie exclaimed, rubbing her hand on your back. “You’re right, but with Shane McMahon being our boss, I’ve gotten more sleep than I would normally! But that’s pretty bad to say, huh?”

“Yes,” You mumble. “Yes it is.” She just haaad to rub it in your face.

“Listen, I don’t think we have to be at the next show—“  You quickly interrupt Torrie. “About that, Shane wanted me to ask you to be at Smackdown. He didn’t say anything about Stacy this time.”

It makes Stacy cheer. “Yay! I get to relax aallll day tomorrow. You know what? [Name], I saw this really cute top at Delia’s earlier today. Now I can go back and buy it for you!”

“Was it that crop top with all those safety pins on the side?” Torrie turns over to Stacy. “If it was, that one totally screamed [Name].”

”YES!” She exclaimed. “That’s exactly the one I’m talking about!”

”From the sound of it, it sounds like I’m gonna have to have a lot of trust in that top.” You say. “And when did you guys go shopping??”

”Earlier. See, they said they needed us.” Torrie removes her hand from your back. “Then I guess they changed their minds since they had you?” It’s the only logical explanation she comes up with.

Whatever, it’s really no big deal. ”Well, you’re gonna be needed tomorrow anyway. And Stacy, I’m sure they’re gonna ask you to show up again. People went crazy! It would be bad if we just left you two in New York.” 

“I wouldn’t mind at all!” Stacy finally decides to take a seat too. “Times Square is beautiful! If I could, I’d totally live here.”

“I saw a rat walking down the street with pizza.” You comment. “And you’d stay here. Crazy, crazy, girl.” 

Stacy definitely rethinks it. “…Well, now that you say that, shopping only!”

“Hold on a second, it had pizza?!” Torrie exclaims.

It’s gonna be a long, long night, that’s for sure.

*painfully gives a thumbs up.* I SWEAR THIS WAS LONGER WHEN I LOOKED AT THIS OMG. but, yeah. Here we go again, please strap in for the ride

[NEXT CHAPTER]

[renee-ckstrong]

My Favourite Wrestling Match of all Time

In 2006, a Canadian wrestler became Captivated by a Japanese man for whom standard limitations on human athleticism don't apply. Twelve years later, they had the greatest professional wrestling match of all time.

I'll keep the background explanation brief because there is already a better explanation than I could ever do. Read here if you do not know the story of the Golden Lovers: https://medium.com/we-need-to-talk-about-wrestling/that-one-tweet-thread-about-the-golden-lovers-annotated-e9fc604e3a7f

Now Kenny Omega and Kota Ibushi have wrestled each other three times in their lives. And their second match from 2012 is arguably better than their the 2018 match that I am supposed to be looking at. So why would I say that the best match is worse than another one from six years prior. Well the twenty twelve match back in DDT is generational, and the greatest spectacle of athleticism in wrestling ever. The 2018 is far more emotional. With six more years of context they put on a match that made me feel more than any other match.

An important thread in the plotline of their story is this, Kenny Omega has never beaten Kota Ibushi. And because of that there is an unconfirmed insinuation that Kenny Omega can't beat Kota Ibushi. And it was because of this that Kenny grew resentful of how much better Kota was than him, and he turned to the dark side.

Kenny Omega is a fighter who compromised his morals to become the best in the world.

Kota Ibushi is a fighter who ran away from a fight and lost his chance to become the best in the world.

Kenny would join the Bullet Club, which at the time was like a villainous biker gang. He not only joined Bullet Club but he also distracted Kota costing him the top men's singles championship in all of Japan. After this Kota left New Japan Pro Wrestling unable to face the person his boyfriend Kenny was becoming. Kota did have some success in his absence, including but not limited to getting to the final of WWE's Cruiserweight Classic (but it has come out since that the plan was for him to win but the plan was changes when he expressed that he didn't want to sign with WWE). But he wasn't achieving success to the level he perhaps could. Kenny on the other had become THE GUY. The first non-Japanese person to win the annual G1 Climax tournament, won the IWGP Heavyweight Championship and had a match against Kazuchika Okada that broke the scales of how good wrestling matches could be.

So that is the state of play going into this match. Kota Ibushi had returned to NJPW after Kenny had taken over the Bullet Club and become the top star in the company. It is during the 28th G1 Climax tournament and these two have been matched up to fight each other. Kenny Omega is the best wrestler in the world right now, so can he beat Kota Ibushi now.

Another important detail is that the two men (in storyline at least, I can't speak for them in real life) are in love. Like genuinely actual queer storytelling, and it's not shit if you can believe it. So they obviously want to win but they don't want to hurt each other. They are worried that they will go to far.

And that's I think the beauty of it. The question of whether Kenny has surpassed Kota or whether he's still unable to beat his boyfriend even after all he's done. And the question of how far they'll go without wanting to do permanent damage to the other. Like their 2012 match is technically more impressive simply because men in their 20s can do feats of athleticism that men in their 30s can't. But that helps build the plot of the G1 match. In their 2012 match they do a disgusting spot where Kenny takes a hurricanrana of the top rope to the floor. In the 2018 match they tease doing it again but both men know that it isn't the kind of thing that either of their bodies can take these days.

It's brilliant. It's really beautiful. And I want to talk about the result of the match but I shan't because I want anyone reading this who hasn't seen it to go watch it. You can probably find it in full somewhere if you search 'omega vs ibushi g1'

So yeah that's my favourite wrestling match. It's pretty cool.

[rjzimmerman]

Excerpt from this story from Smithsonian Magazine:

Long absent from Yosemite National Park, peregrine falcons are making a comeback with help from some unlikely allies: rock climbers.

Rock climbers and peregrine falcons could easily be at odds, since they both flock to the sheer granite cliffs of the 1,169-square-mile California park. The presence of climbers can disturb nesting falcons, and rock climbing is listed as a potential threat to the species. But instead, humans and birds have forged a unique partnership that has allowed peregrine falcons to flourish after decades of decline.

This week, the National Park Service and the Yosemite Conservancy provided an update on the peregrine falcon recovery within the park. In the spring of 2024, naturalists counted 17 breeding pairs—a nearly 113 percent increase from the eight pairs counted in 2009—as well as 15 nests and 25 chicks. Since 2009, 51 total nesting sites located within Yosemite have produced 385 baby birds.

“Peregrines are at the top of the food chain and the most susceptible to contamination,” says Frank Dean, president of Yosemite Conservancy, to the San Francisco Chronicle’s Sam Whiting. “So to have them bounce back to this degree is a sign of the health of the entire Yosemite ecosystem.”

Peregrine falcons are the world’s fastest animal, reaching speeds of up to 200 miles per hour when they dive from great heights to catch their prey. These majestic birds live on every continent except Antarctica, seeking out rocky cliffs to build their nests and raise their young.

Once abundant around the world, their numbers began to dwindle after World War II because of the use of pesticides like dieldrin, aldrin and DDT (dichloro-diphenyl-trichloroethane). Dieldrin and aldrin are toxic and killed the birds outright, while DDT weakened chicks’ eggshells, lowering their odds of survival.

At the behest of the Santa Cruz Predatory Bird Research Group, climbers once again scaled El Capitan writes the Mercury News’ Lisa M. Krieger—but this time, they collected samples of eggshells from the nest and brought them back down for testing.

The eggs were delicate and thin, so researchers decided the best course of action was to incubate them in a laboratory, then return the hatchlings to the nest. Rock climbers helped with this, too, much to the chagrin of the protective peregrine falcon parents: As the climbers carefully removed eggs or replaced chicks, the falcons dive-bombed them—one bird even struck a climber’s backpack.

“Just when I thought I was going to die, they would flare their wings above my neck and glide off, just inches from me,” says Ken Yager, one of the climbers who helped with the efforts and the founder of the Yosemite Climbing Association, to the Mercury News.

Yager’s story illustrates how climbers were willing to “risk all” to help the birds, as Rob Roy Ramey II, a biologist and climber who helped with the project, told Outside’s Ula Chrobak in 2018.

[fantasyfantasygames]

The Fall of the House of Crusher

The Fall of the House of Crusher, Wild World Entertainment, 2018

No connection to Wesley or Beverly.

I have been very happy in the past decade to see more and more games that get outside the traditional RPG box. I like fantasy adventures and sci-fi merchant ventures and maybe some modern fantasy, but we have a lot of that. So when other kinds of games come along, even if I wouldn't play them myself, I'm always intrigued.

The Fall of the House of Crusher (FoHoC, pronounced like faux-hawk) is a drama that follows a pro wrestler and his family as events unfold and unravel in their lives. The eponymous Crusher has been a heel for years, both in the ring and out. His wife is cheating on him with his best friend and he knows but hasn't called them on it yet. His daughter, "Generation", also a wrestler, is infatuated with a new wrestler who's a face in the ring, but Crusher knows he's an asshole outside it. You pick up the pre-gens and make a few tweaks (including gender options). Then play what is assumed to be a three-part game, whether that's three acts in one day or across multiple sessions.

One of my favorite bits is that all of your moves (this is a PbtA-type game) are both wrestling moves and emotional moves. It's not that you have to choose which version you're using - every move does both things at the same time. So the DDT dazes someone, which switches their stance to "unready", which means your next move is more likely to land. Then you can hit them with a Giant Swing, which forces them to Reset, losing any momentum they had. That can be physical, with the slam and the spin, and at the same time it can be emotional, where you stun someone with a revelation and then turn the tables on them to force them out of the argument they've been building.

Another cool piece is how you switch from playing your character to playing the crowd. When you're in the limelight, it's assumed that you have an audience. It might be a wrestling match, an argument at an outdoor restaurant, an argument at an outdoor restaurant that devolves into a wrestling match, a date at a movie theater where the other moviegoers are heckling you and it becomes a wrestling match, etc. There's a lot of assumed wrestling is what I'm saying. The mechanics only cover wrestling.

The game definitely has a good ending and a bad ending, and several mixed ones. They give short suggestions for other ways things might go, but honestly I think "the wedding" and "the divorce" cover a lot of ground.

In the end this might make a better LARP than tabletop game. The story could be condensed, the mechanics could be adjusted, you could keep the PC/audience switching for major events... I could see this running at Intercon very nicely. You just need a strict reminder that no actual wrestling moves are to be performed.

[fallynleaf]

!مرحبا

took another unintentional tumblr hiatus because i've been extremely busy doing irl activism for most of the past year, but especially over the past 6 months. it has been really stressful and scary at times, and i'm not really cut out for it at all, but i've been trying to do my best to learn on the job so to speak. i can't talk too much about that here though lol so my life probably won't seem that exciting just from reading this post fgkjhdh

some other life updates:

finished reading the tanka book in Japanese! i wrote several poems, including one for Hyper Misao's produce show (and yes she did in fact see my poems on twitter!)

started learning Palestinian Arabic with a few local Palestinian friends after seeing this post on twitter! i'm still continuing to study Spanish and Japanese, though i've scaled back a bit on those because i'm pretty solidly intermediate in both so i can maintain them just by reading and listening to media in the language. Arabic was always kind of vaguely the third language i wanted to learn after Spanish and Japanese (i think i listed it in every single "if you could instantly learn 5 languages, what would they be?" posts on here lol), and so i ended up going for it when the opportunity to learn it presented itself. no idea how far i'll get, but even knowing a little bit has been very rewarding

our Arabic lessons are currently on hold due to irl stuff on our end, and i worry every day that we won't be able to resume them due to the West Bank being invaded...

started playing my first VN, Umineko: When They Cry, after being a lifelong hater of the medium lol. i'm playing it in Japanese along with our book club here on the WK forum

had several extremely bad depressive episodes and strongly considered killing myself. the only thing that has really stopped me so far is knowing that Palestine needs me to be alive rn

almost quit watching pro wrestling, translating TJPW, and studying Japanese entirely. i had made up my mind to retire as a fan translator (and as a pro wrestling fan, period) after Nao Kakuta's retirement, but then a few days before that show i watched DDT Wrestle Peter Pan, and Kota Ibushi came back to DDT for the first time in like eight years, and i cried my eyes out and knew i couldn't quit yet

reached my TJPW translation account's two year debut anniversary

i'm going to try to be around a bit more going forward, and will try to go back and catch up on at least some of the stuff i missed (i still have a bunch of old posts from 2023 left to read lol)

hope y'all have all been well! life has been pretty bleak for me for quite some time, so i'm kind of barely holding on. but i do miss seeing what my friends have been up to here, and i hope the world has been kinder to you than it has been to me

[borgiabeacon]

When Cats Fly: Operation Cat Drop

In the early 1950s, the World Health Organization embarked on a mission to eradicate malaria in Borneo through the widespread application of a toxic chemical called DDT. While effective against mosquitoes, the DDT also set off a peculiar chain of ecological events: it poisoned the insects, which were then eaten by geckos. The geckos, with their longer lifespans, accumulated the toxin and were eaten by local cats, leading to a drastic decline in the feline population on the island. This unforeseen consequence resulted in a rodent population boom, threatening both grain supplies and public health with the potential spread of typhus and plague. In an operation that sounds like the plot of a cat superhero movie, the British Royal Air Force was called in to parachute live cats into Borneo in what was humorously dubbed "Operation Cat Drop." This unconventional solution helped restore the ecological balance, proving sometimes the best way to fight nature’s battles is to let a cat out of the bag—or in this case, drop them by air.

For more context, historiographical sources:

1. "Silent Spring" by Rachel Carson, highlighting the broader impact of pesticides like DDT on wildlife.

2. "The Ecology of Invasions by Animals and Plants" by Charles S. Elton, which examines how human actions can drastically alter ecological balances.

3. "Man and Nature: Or, Physical Geography as Modified by Human Action" by George Perkins Marsh, an early work discussing human impact on the environment, setting the stage for understanding incidents like Operation Cat Drop within a broader ecological and environmental context.

[scarskelly]

The Dramatic Dream World of DDT Pro-Wrestling by Scar The Skelly [Schadenfreude International]

Last but certainly not least! Click slides for best quality and check out the Presentation Notes.

Presentation Notes

Chris Brookes

I would put a out injured label on Brookes' slide if not for the fact that he's returning later this month (January) and it wouldn't be relevant for very long (which I want this to be...a least for a bit).

Antonio Honda

Honda's current theme song is Daisetz' debut single, which you can listen to in full here!

Takeshi Masada

A babygirl to many (they are not wrong).

[thesupreme316]

Is the Grass Greener on the Other Side? EP.1

Genre: Feelgood, Angst, Slowburn

Pairing(s): Carmelo Hayes x Fem!Reader, Sasha Banks (Mercedes Mone) x Fem!Reader (Platonic), Bianca Belair x Fem!Reader (Platonic), Naomi (Trinity Fatu) x Fem!Reader (Platonic)

Summary: Y/N’s career and life is met with drama after she won the Smackdown Women’s Championship at Wrestlemania 38.

Word Count: 1,742

Supreme Speaks: FINALLY I HAVE STARTED THE SERIES! so i kind of lied in terms of the teaser, i was gonna input those things but I needed ✨drama✨. i will try my best to make this a slow burn series so bare with me. Thanks once again to @triscillal for the series premise/storyline and for trusting me with your vision. i hope you and everyone enjoys this. i hope everyone is doing well and remember you are loved and appreciated.

Warnings: slightly proofread, wrestling storylines (actions/reactions and participants) are changed, mentions of toxic relationship, please don’t take any negative depictions of characters to heart (i just needed “toxic” people) 

Taglist (if you wanna be a part of it, lemme know): @triscillal @wwenhlimagines @hooks-martin @diabloguapos @sheinthatfandom​ @hookerforhook​

January 2022- Royal Rumble

“She did it! Y/R/N did it! She’s going to Wrestlemania!” Michael Cole’s voice boomed from commentary as you pointed to Wrestlemania, making fireworks go off in the background. The crowd was on their feet, cheering. Happy tears were flying down your face, clouding up your vision. You got down from the turnbuckle and started walking to the stage, with the audience chanting “You deserve it!” in the background. You high-fived kids and thanked your supporters.

As soon as you got backstage you were tackled in a hug by Naomi (Trinity) and your cousin, Sasha Banks (Mercedes). You grinned as other people congratulated you, both friends and foes, including Charlotte Flair (who you eliminated last in the rumble). After completing an interview, you sat backstage with Trinity and Mercedes, discussing the plans for tonight and tomorrow.

“I’m so happy you won lil cousin.” Mercedes with a big grin. “I told Trin that if it wasn’t one of us, it had better been you.”

“Yeah girl, you truly deserve it,” Trinity said giving you a huge hug.

You debuted in WWE at 20, after being in the independent scene since you were 15 years old. You spent the latter part of your teenage years wrestling all over the world (specifically in Japan and the United States), so much so that you had to get your GED. But it was all worth it just to be able to stand in the ring. You won multiple championships and accomplishments in companies such as Stardom, Revolution Pro Wrestling, Shimmer, DDT, and Ice Ribbon; you quickly became popular in the wrestling community. But you always had a dream to wrestle in the WWE, especially alongside your cousin.

After being opted out of NXT, you debuted on Raw in 2016; before going on to win the Raw Women’s Championship 3 times and the Smackdown Women’s Championship twice. You’ve been toe-to-toe and head-to-head with the best, including Charlotte, Becky Lynch, Natalya, Mickie James, and Mercedes. But like how it is to everyone on the roster, Wrestlemania is a very important event to you, and being able to have a guaranteed ticket to it; is the best thing in the world at the moment.

“Thanks, y’all! Do you know who was supposed to win this year?” You ask

Both Mercedes and Trinity made a face. Mercedes rolled her eyes while asking, “Who do you think?”

You exclaimed. “Ah, Miss Part-Time.”

“Exactly. At times, I wonder why she’s here.”

“No, because it’s the fact people who have been working here for almost a decade and they don’t get half of the opportunities that Ronda gets. It makes no sense.” You said to pack up some of your things. You had respect for Ronda, in terms of her UFC career. But as a wrestler (and sometimes as a person), you had little to no respect for her. As a person who has given up multiple aspects of her life just to have the opportunity to get in the ring, you were beyond disgusted and angry at her perspective of the wrestling industry and towards your friends (including Mercedes).

However, that is a story for a little bit later….Now, you have to focus on an actual champ.

“But enough about her. What championship are you going win at the grandest stage of them all?” Trinity asked nudging you.

You gave a small smile, filled with determination and mischief, and said, “I’m going to win that Smackdown Women’s Championship from Charlotte Flair.”

And in 3 months, you did exactly that…

April 2022 - Wrestlemania 38

Imagine how you felt winning the Royal Rumble….okay…now times those emotions by 10,000.

That’s how it felt as the confetti came down, fireworks sounded off, fans chanted your name, tears overwhelmed your face, and your newly won championship was wrapped around your waist by Charlotte.

“Y/R/N has truly become the Real Deal in the WWE! After beating Charlotte Flair in a legendary match, Y/R/N stands before you, on the glorious stage of Wrestlemania, as your new Smackdown Women’s Champion!” 


“Y/R/N! Congrats!”

“Great performance Y/R/N!”

All these sayings and more just filled your ears as you hugged your parents, who were there at ringside. As you walked up the ramp of Wrestlemania, you took in the last couple of moments of the crowd before being met with even more cheers from your coworkers; being pulled into hugs left and right. Then Mercedes, Trinity, and Bianca Belair hugged you while bringing you to the photoshoot area. You took multiple pictures with your friends before going to your locker room.

“Girl, we’re gonna celebrate tonight!” Trinity exclaimed.

“No, we’re gonna celebrate after you and Sasha win those tag titles,” Bianca said making you laugh. You smiled before looking at your phone, looking through all your notifications. But your smile soon became a frown as you didn’t see the one you were looking for the one you wanted. “He didn’t text yet?”

Sighing, you said, “Nope. He said he was gonna be here. I haven’t seen him yet.”

“All you need to do is turn around.” A voice said behind you. You turned around and immediately started to squeal, running towards the voice. As you jumped their arms, their body rumbled with a chuckle. It was your boyfriend of six months, Carmelo Hayes. “My baby is so cute.” He gave you a bouquet of roses, filled with your favorite colors.

“Awe, look at the happy couple.” Bianca cooed.

“Thanks, baby.” You smiled, kissing him on the cheek. You lead him over to a private corner real quick as your friends kept making kissing faces.

“I’m so proud of you. My little champ.” You could honestly say that Carmelo is the best boyfriend you’ve ever had. He was so sweet: buying you gifts, showering you with love, and ensuring that you get the best of the best. “So what are we doing tonight? I was thinking candlelight dinner in that nice restaurant downtown-“

“Um, actually, I wanted to either go out to drinks with the girls or just go to sleep honestly. But you are more than welcome to come out with u-“

His smile dropped. “Are you serious?” Carmelo said, raising his voice. “You rather hang with your friends than me?”

On other days, you could honestly say that Carmelo is an arrogant and envious man on a bad day. But you told him (and yourself) that you would love him no matter what. “No, it’s just I haven’t hung out with them in a hot minute.”

“Y/N, You never have time for me now.”

“What are you talking about? We hung out after Stand & Deliver, literally two days ago.” You rolled your eyes before briefly glancing towards your friends, who were standing with concerned faces.

“Yeah, that was after I lost-“ He paused before squinting at you. “So what you think you’re too good for me now?”

“What? No-“

“Just cause you have a championship now? You think you’re better than me?” He said getting closer to your face. Started to feel angry yet sad, and you just looked up at him. “Fine, go out. I don’t care. But I better not get a call tonight.” He said before stomping away from you, slamming your locker room door shut. Immediately, Bianca, Trinity, and Mercedes looked at you, with Bianca walking towards you.

“Are you okay?” Bianca said, rubbing your back.

“Yeah. He’s just having a bad day” You quietly stated. Were you? Yeah, only because it’s now a regular occurrence. It happens almost every time something good happens. You liked Carmelo, hell you like him more than the other people you were involved with. He always had this charm that convinced you to stay or to get over it after anything bad; it wasn’t your fault, and it wasn’t his (it never was). After a while, you decided not to let this little thing get in the way of a quote-on-quote good relationship. And now, you decided to not let him ruin your good night.

“I never liked him for you,” Mercedes said throwing her heels in her bag. Mercedes, being your cousin, was always protective of you. She tried her best to ensure that no harm could reach you, including men who she thought weren’t good enough for you. Seeing how you are now, it’s safe to say you never listen. Always drowning her out to go after anything heart first. “I always thought that he was a douche to a certain extent.”

“Talented,” Trinity started. “But a talented douche.” She finished as Mercedes nodded.

“Anyways!” Bianca started, rolling her eyes at your friends. “Get ready, 'cause we’re about to go out!”

Nodding, you walked away to take a shower. Around 30 minutes later, you got dressed in another outfit before leaving the locker with your friends in tow. You made it to the parking garage; and as you were about to turn the corner, you were face to face with a person who: one- you didn’t like, and two- who was going to be gunning for your new title soon. “Rousey.” You said with a monotone voice.

“Congratulations, champ,” Ronda said with emphasis on the last word. “You won the title on the grandest stage of them all. But you also won the opportunity to be the person I’m gonna beat for it. I say by Money in the Bank, I’ll be the new champion.” She smirked as you lifted a brow.

You slightly chuckled, “We’ll see about that. Don’t get it twisted, I’ve beaten you before and I can beat you again. And this-“ You motioned to your championship. “Will be just the icing on the cake” Ronda looked around at Trinity, Bianca, and Mercedes before deciding to walk away.

“I really don’t like her,” Mercedes said before putting her bags in the car. You followed before getting in the passenger seat. You whipped out your phone, which had more notifications than the last time you checked it. However, only two stuck out to you. Each of them makes your heart skip a beat and gives you butterflies in your stomach for different reasons.

“Y/N?” Trinity said pulling you out of your thoughts. You looked at her. “Are you ready for the trip?”

“Oh, yeah. I am.” You said looking back at the phone.

But truth be told, you weren’t ready. You weren’t ready for the trip of your career or life. 

Not at all.

Link to Part 2

[wrestlingisfake]

G1 Climax night 1 preview

This is the opening night of New Japan's annual heavyweight singles tournament. This year's format involves twenty men, divided into two blocks of ten. Over the next month, each participant will have one match against each of the other nine men in his block. The goal is to have the best win-loss record among your block.

The top three in each block advance to a knockout stage on July 15 and 17. This is a pretty big change that I'm excited about, because it means more wrestlers will be mathematically alive much later in the block stage. Basically it'll be #2 vs. #3, for the right to face #1, to decide the block winner. Finally, on July 18, the winner of A Block meets the winner of B Block, with the winner earning a trophy, a flag, and the right to challenge the IWGP world champion on January 4, at Wrestle Kingdom in the Tokyo Dome.

A Block: Tetsuya Naito vs. Shingo Takagi - Naito regained the IWGP world title a couple of weeks ago in New York; the title is not at stake throughout the tournament. If Naito wins the G1, he'd earn the right to choose the challenger for Wrestle Kingdom, but I don't expect that to happen. On the other hand, if anyone beats Naito during the tournament, they'll likely get a title shot within the next couple of months, and I definitely see that happening.

Naito won the tournament in 2013, 2017, and 2023. Takagi's personal best is 7-2-1, which would probably be good enough to get out of the blocks this year. This is only the second time these two have met one-on-one; Naito won their last encounter.

Star power aside, the big draw here is that Naito and Shingo are members of the same faction, Los Ingobernables de Japon. I don't expect any dissension in the ranks, but they're also not going to go easy on each other. Takagi's whole style is to clobber the fuck out of dudes, which is a problem when Naito has been visibly banged up for years. The most exciting finish would be for Shingo to score a bit of an upset over his leader, the world champion. But I can't really see them running this match back in September, so I'm picking Naito to win.

B Block: Yota Tsuji vs. Konosuke Takeshita - This is Tsuji's second trip to the G1; last year he debuted with a 3-3-1 record that I found somewhat disappointing given all the hype around him. Takeshita is new to the tournament. He's been affiliated with DDT for years, and his big claim to fame is AEW, but if he's representing any group it's probably the Don Callis Family. Not counting crossover shows like Forbidden Door and All Together, I think this is his first time stepping onto New Japan's cerulean blue canvas.

I like that Tsuji is second from the top because he's one of the guys they need to elevate, and quickly. I don't know that I'd pick him to win the tournament, but I would definitely give him a a lot of key wins, and probably finish in the top three. But he's got a tough draw tonight, because this is a must-win situation for Takeshita.

I think Takeshita will probably end up in the middle of the pack, maybe finishing around 4-5. Newcomers and outsiders tend to only do so well in the G1, and he's both at once. But in light of that, New Japan knows he needs a strong start, and Tsuji is the kind of guy they can feed to someone who needs a strong start.

A Block: EVIL vs. Gabe Kidd - Evil reached the semifinals last year, mostly to tease what a debacle it would be if he won the whole thing, without actually doing it. I can't imagine they'll take it that far again this year. Kidd, the STRONG men's champion, debuted last year with a 2-4-1 record, because he's more concerned with hurting people and freaking out than figuring out how to win. That's a good character for him to play, but this tournament is about results, not tantrums, so he's probably not going to be competitive in the G1 for a couple more years.

Back in the day, whenever two Bullet Club guys faced off in a tournament, they'd do a comedy routine about how one of them is willing to lay down for the other, but then they'd have second thoughts and end up having an actual match. Nowadays, though, they don't even bother to act like collusion is possible--the War Dogs (such as Kidd) are too belligerent, and everybody in House of Torture (like Evil) is too devious. My guess is that Kidd will come out swinging, and Evil will hit a low blow (or get someone else to do it) to level the playing field. Evil should probably win here, although I don't expect him to be a major factor late in the tournament.

B Block: David Finlay vs. Yuya Uemura - Finlay is the IWGP global champion, and he was one of the quarterfinalists in last year's G1. Uemura returned from excursion last fall, so this is his first trip to the big dance. Typically when Young Lions graduate to full-time wrestlers and qualify for the G1, they do very poorly in the first year, so it'll be a moral victory for Yuya to secure even one win. But he's definitely not going to pick up that win here. I expect Finlay to start very strong and then stumble in the home stretch. This is going to be a mugging.

A Block: SANADA vs. Jake Lee - Sanada won the 2020 tournament; last year he went 7-0 in block matches, so you'd have to figure he's a heavy favorite. Lee, coming in from Pro Wrestling NOAH, is appearing in the tournament for the first time.

The big story is that, on July 13, Lee disbanded NOAH's Good Looking Guys stable, turned on his ex-partners, aligned with New Japan's War Dogs, and declared his exit from NOAH altogether. I'm not exactly sure what that means, but this will be our first glimpse of Lee and whatever repackaging he'll undergo for this new direction.

Sanada is an easy pick to win the G1, simply because he lost the world title at the last Wrestle Kingdom, and it'd be straightforward to tell a story about him getting it back one year later. But the easiest story to tell for Sanada in this tournament is if he stumbles early and has to climb out of a hole. So Lee is my pick to win here.

B Block: Jeff Cobb vs. Hirooki Goto - Cobb, the NJPW World television champion, went 8-1 in the 2021 tournament, so he's got what it takes. Goto has won the whole thing, but that was waaaay back in 2008; even his big second-place finish in 2016 feels like a lifetime ago. Much has been made of the way this year's tournament excluded aging mainstays like Hiroshi Tanahashi, Tomohiro Ishii, and KENTA; the fact Goto made the cut suggests they have a purpose for him here. But I suspect that purpose is to finish 2-7 so he can put over a bunch of guys like Cobb.

A Block: Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Great-O-Khan - Sabre was a quarterfinalist last year. Khan (the KOPW champion, for whatever that's worth) has never scored better than 4 wins and 5 losses. Throughout 2024, Sabre has been acting like he knows big things are awaiting him on the horizon, and he's repeatedly commented that he needs to win the G1 this year. He sounds like someone who's been told he's getting a big push. Now, I don't know why he would telegraph that to the audience in such a blatant fashion. So I could be totally off the mark, or he could be feeding us a red herring.

Regardless, I think Sabre will finish in the top 3 for the block. To create suspense about that, though, he should give up some wins against weaker opponents, and I think Khan fits the bill nicely.

B Block: HENARE vs. El Phantasmo - Henare only won one match in his first G1, and only two in his second, and that really pissed me off. I'm always pulling for this guy and being bitterly disappointed. Hopefully that's going to change after he recently won the NEVER championship in the biggest match of his career so far. Phantasmo's personal best isn't much better--three wins, three losses--but I'm not as worried about him finding ways to get ahead.

In 2023 Phantasmo was turfed out of Bullet Club, and he went into last year's G1 feeling incredibly isolated until the Guerillas of Destiny invited him into their stable. In 2024, all the Tongans in GOD have left to join the Bloodline in WWE, so Phantasmo is headed into this year's G1 feeling even more isolated. Will Jado still be by his side? Will he introduce a new look or something? Will he just be a sad sack devoid of motivation? This match will answer those questions. I just hope ELP protects his neck, or Henare will run him down like a truck.

A Block: Shota Umino vs. Callum Newman - You'd think Umino would be pushed as the future of the company, but his G1 debut last year with a 2-3-2 record suggests otherwise. He needs to post a higher score, and it'd be pretty hard not to. Newman is a newcomer, and I wouldn't have expected him to make the cut in 2024 except that he won a six-man tournament to qualify, scoring upset wins over the likes of Kenta and YOSHI-HASHI.

Umino ran into some trouble a month ago when he suffered hip and back injuries in a routine AEW match. I was real curious if he'd even make it to the G1, and he didn't confirm so until this past Monday. I doubt they would rebook the tournament to give him more losses on account of that. But if he's still hurting, this could be a particularly grueling tournament for him. I don't expect Shota to get out of the block, but he could surprise me. As for Newman, he's at the "just happy to be here" level where a 0-9 record is very possible; he's the heavy underdog in all of his matches, including this one.

B Block: Ren Narita vs. Oleg Boltin - Narita debuted in the G1 last year with an anemic 3-4 record. Boltin is entering for the first time, following a six-man qualifying tournament where he knocked Toru Yano, Hiroshi Tanahashi, and Taichi out of the field.

Boltin was a Young Lion when he, Tanahashi, and Toru Yano captured the NEVER trios title a few months ago. I expected that to effectively "graudate" him out of the Young Lions system, and he'd get to pick out custom gear and have his own entrance music. But so far, he's had none of that--even when he qualified for this spot, he was wearing the plain black trunks and they played the generic curtain jerker theme. So maybe this match will be his big coming out moment. Or maybe he just doesn't give a crap, I don't know.

If any other Young Lion made it into the G1 like this, I'd expect him to lose every match. But Oleg is 265 pounds of solid muscle, and they've given him Brock Lesnar's finisher. They have big plans for this guy. Big enough to get past the chicanery Ren Narita brings to the table? Well, we'll see. I think this one could go either way.

[sychosid]

untitled unfinished codykota

There was a quiet hush as the two sneaked around the hotel, finding a way to get outside without alerting anyone. Kota had snuck out first, slipping out from his shared room with Kenny and the Young Bucks. Cody, who had been bunking up with Hangman and Cole, found it easier to get out, so he had been waiting outside of Kota’s room.

The two of them felt giddy about it. Like they were doing something they shouldn’t. Kenny’s lover and Kenny’s rival, secretly together. Behind the scenes. There had been guilt on Kota’s part, originally. That he had been betraying Kenny. But Kenny was so tied up in his own world, in all this Bullet Club nonsense. Cody was right, is what Kota found. Cody loved him in a way Kenny Omega didn’t.

So they departed the halls, hand in hand. Lucky to be on tour, making this all much easier.

To the outside they went, hands squeezing each other tight. Rhythmically, they played a little game. Squeezing harder and harder, until Kota finally broke into a stiffled giggle. His reaction only made Cody laugh, covering his mouth with his free hand. He turned around, smiling wide at Kota who smiled back. Sincerely, the Golden Star of wrestling couldn’t remember the last time he smiled so much. Maybe it was with Kenny, back in those DDT days.

Now it was with Cody, here in NJPW. New romance, in the middle of a civil war between warring sides.

“Okay think we’re in the clear.” Cody whispered, as he pulled Kota along with him to a little side patio area, over looking the parking lot.. It was just after midnight, with no risk of any late night or early morning visitors that were their friends.

“Romantic,” Kota grinned, making Cody laugh.

“Better than being caught, starlight,” He sat down on a bench, Kota following behind him to sit next to him.

They sat like that, Kota’s head on Cody’s shoulder, who was leaning on him in return. Their fingers intertwined, both giving a firm squeeze.

“I’d like to stay like this,” Kota sighed after a while.

Cody nodded best he could. “Me too,” Cody’s response was quiet. Even if it was staying in some small hotel out in the suburbs, looking out past the parking lot, up towards the cloudless sky. Stars littered against the deep blue background of space. Maybe somewhere far away, two other lovers sat, looking up at the sky like them. Cody liked to think that the star he was looking at was from the same galaxy as those hypothetical other lovers.

Maybe his love of sci-fi got to him, but it only made the setting more romantic for him.

It was chilly, compared to the summer heat of the morning. The two of them huddled together more. It was when Cody pulled Kota’s hand into his hoodie’s sleeve, that he got that hum in response that he adored.

[a-student-out-of-time]

One thing that this blog and real life seems to have in common is if you want scumbag rich bastards killed off, the ocean is the best way to do it. All the money in the world won’t save you if Mother Nature decides to ruin your day. No I’m not saying this in light of recent events which I’m saying is complete and utter karma.

//I recently watched a documentary on environmental trends of the 1960s, including how the pesticide DDT was polluting ocean waters and could even be (and still is) found in the tissues of penguins in the Antarctic.

//The ocean wants her revenge : P

[heartsoulrocknroll]

AEW Dynamite 5/1/24

TK is on the screen from Jacksonville, but the feed cuts as he talks. The Bucks say they lost connection with Tony. They say they are not fired after what they did to Tony because of ironclad contracts with a founders clause. And if Tony is unreachable, the EVPs succeed him in running the show, so they are in charge now. Nice.

Swerve promo. He says he is a champion the people deserve, but what they don't deserve is power-hungry EVPs. He says to bring out his DON opponent. The Bucks appear on the screen. They say this is the first time we hear from Swerve as champion, and he insults his bosses and curses. The network didn't like that, so that will be a fine for Swerve. They misdirect saying that Swerve's opponent for DON is Canadian, a former champion, and has been gone for a while. But it's not Kenny Omega, it's Christian Cage! Haaaha. Christian attacks Swerve and lands Killswitch on the belt! Nick Wayne lands a cutter on Nana!

Christian says he hasn't forgotten when Swerve left his son Nick in a pool of his own blood in his home gym. He and Swerve were a tag team at the biggest show in the history of this business, and Swerve lost the match and embarrassed him. Now is the best time to make Swerve pay for his mistakes. He is going to embarrass Swerve and make him a footnote in AEW history. Swerve says his daughter barely knows him because of how hard he has been working for the championship. Christian says when he is done with Swerve, his daughter won't want to know him, but she will have a father she can look up to for the rest of her life. Lmao.

Christian getting a world title shot makes no sense, as he has done nothing to earn it, after just losing the TNT Championship. But I guess we're supposed to think the Bucks are just handing opportunities to their friends. Great promo work here by Christian as usual.

Copeland is defending his TNT Championship against a member of the House of Black, but he won't know which member until just before the bell. It's Buddy Matthews.

Adam Copeland (c) vs. Buddy Matthews for the TNT Championship -- They start on the mat. Rana takedown by Matthews. Topé by Copeland. Huge boot from Matthews to Copeland into the barricade as Copeland sits on a chair outside. Spike, draping DDT by Matthews over the rope! Matthews stands on Copeland's back and lands a nasty kick to the back. Choke by Matthews, and Copeland finally escapes. Copeland with a flapjack. They trade right hands on the top rope, and both fall off to the outside, hitting the apron on the way down. Both make it back in the ring at 9.5. Matthews escapes an impaler DDT attempt and lands a nasty elbow. Copeland with an elbow of his own. They collide off the ropes with cross bodies at the same time. Matthews is bleeding from the mouth. Copeland dominates the break with kicks to the midsection as Matthews lies on the mat. Matthews lands a sit-out powerbomb for two! Copeland lands an avalanche impaler DDT and makes a slow cover for two! Matthews cuts off a spear attempt with a kick to the midsection, then lands two more knee strikes, then a jackhammer for two, then locks in a cross face with the arm trapped! Copeland gets Matthews' shoulders down for two, then lands an Olympic slam for two. Matthews side steps a spear and drives Copeland into the corner! Matthews lands a G2S and goes for a curb stomp, but Copeland reverses, slings Matthews into the ropes, and meets him with a spear for the pinfall!

Good back and forth match, but I never got super into it. Matthews spitting up blood and Copeland subsequently targeting the midsection add a lot to the match. Good finish too. Hope Matthews is okay. Rating: 3

Copeland attacks Matthews after the match and goes for a conchairto, but the lights go out, and Black shows up. He dares Copeland to hit Matthews with the chair. Matthews tells him to do it. Copeland turns on Black with the chair raised, but the lights go out, and HOB disappear.

Samoa Joe vs. Isiah Kassidy -- Joe throws Kassidy up, Kassidy screams, and Joe drops him to the mat. Lmaooo. Joe with jabs to the face and strikes in the corner. Kassidy lands a cutter off the top to Joe on the outside, driving Joe's face into the top rope! Kassidy goes for a topé con giro, but Joe walks away, and Kassidy lands flat on his back on the floor!!!! Damn! Kassidy comes back in the ring with a chop to the throat and a dropkick. Kassidy goes to the top, but Joe lands a headbutt and a Muscle Buster for the pinfall!

Very good short match. Love watching Joe work. Kassidy landing flat on his back on the floor off that topé after Joe just walked away was a crazy spot. Rating: 2.5

Skye Blue promo. She says she had Willow pinned last time if it weren't for that bitch on a leash, Stokely. Lol. She challenges Willow to a match for the TBS Championship.

Orange comes out with a mic. He says he thought Trent and Chuck would beat each other up in the parking lot and get it out of their systems, and they would all stand together again as best friends. But that's not going to happen. Orange says Chuck will never wrestle again. Trent comes out and says big surprise, Orange Cassidy is trying to make everything about himself again. Trent says Orange is trying to make somebody else's career ending about himself. He says Chuck's career is over because of Orange. Don Callis comes out, whispers in Orange's ear, and walks to the back with Orange.

Trent was great here yet again. I really hope the stuff about Chuck's career being over isn't legit. That would suck. Don't really care about the Don Callis of it all.

Renee is with Jack Perry. He says he meant it when he said the only thing he wants is what is best for AEW. And some people may not see it right now, but what he did to Tony is what's best for AEW. Tony made him the scapegoat, but he accepted it, because it was a sacrifice that someone was going to have to make. Now AEW is entering a new era under the Elite. Good promo!!!!

Chris Jericho (c) vs. Katsuyori Shibata for the FTW Championship -- Chop exchange! Jericho lands a lionsault to Shibata's knees, then takes a trash can lid to his head! Jericho pulls out a bag of hockey pucks. Shibata lands an STO, followed by a vertical suplex onto the hockey pucks! Shibata throws away the trash can lid, kicks away the hockey pucks, and MURDERS Jericho with chops!!!!! Hot damn!!!!! They continue with a nasty chop exchange that continues through the whole commercial break!!! Good god!!! Jericho cuts off a corner dropkick attempt by Shibata by hurling a hockey puck at Shibata's head!!! Geez!!! Jericho with a double leg takedown, then locks in the Walls! Shibata escapes smoothly and counters into a Figure Four! Jericho breaks the hold by throwing a hockey puck at Shibata's face at close range!!! Damn!!! Jericho puts a trash can on Shibata's head and hits him with the kendo stick! Shibata just keeps taking the kendo stick shots and backing Jericho toward the corner with the trash can still on his head. Lmaooo. Shibata backs him all the way into the opposite corner and lands headbutts with the trash can on his head! Lool. Shibata puts the trash can on Jericho's head and lands a corner dropkick for two! Shibata grabs a kendo stick and hands one to Jericho. They sit down and just nail each other in the face and neck with the kendo sticks!!! Geez!!!! Shibata lands a back suplex on Jericho with the kendo stick between Jericho's legs onto the hockey pucks!!!!! Damn!!! Shibata lands alternating jabs to the face and disgusting, heavy chops to the chest!!! Shibata goes for a running dropkick through a table propped up in the corner, but Jericho stops him with a Codebreaker for two!! Shibata avoids the Judas Effect and catches Jericho in a rear choke! Shibata lands the ripcord overhand chop!!!! Hot damn!! Big Bill comes into the ring with a big boot and chokeslams Shibata through a table! Jericho covers Shibata for three.

Iam well aware that this match won't be for everybody, but I loved the hell out of it. The neverending chop exchanges, the kendo stick shots to each other's face and neck, the comedy, the hockey puck spots, just the unbridled insanity of it all -- I thought everything about it was great. Shibata is the GOAT. I don't like the interference finish, but it's better than Shibata losing to Jericho clean, so I'll take it. Rating: 3.75

Willow, Stat, and Stokely are with Renee. Willow says last week's fiasco with Mercedes left her in a fighting mood. She will mop the floor with Skye and will massacre and maim her. Stokely says he can't even complain about what Skye said about him, because those pricks the EVPs beat up Tony Khan, and they did it before payday. They couldn't wait until Friday? Lol. Stokely is told that he is banned from ringside for Willow's match against Skye. He responds, "Aside from my own actions, what did I do to deserve this?" Lmaooo, classic.

Claudio does a promo about showing up and working every week.

Claudio Castagnoli vs. Brian Cage -- Head scissors takedown by Cage. Backbreaker by Claudio. Claudio with a double stomp to the chest. Cage lands a vertical suplex on Claudio off the second rope, pulling him over the ropes from the apron to the inside. Cage lands a corner uppercut, lariat, and back suplex for two. Cage lands a 619 and a huge discus lariat for two. Claudio lands a springboard, corkscrew uppercut. Boot exchange! Claudio with an uppercut and thrust kick. Claudio lands a 619!! Claudio lands a big lariat for two. Claudio with a pop-up uppercut, then the Swing, and then locks in a Sharpshooter for the submission. Very good match!!! Rating: 3.5

Rocky says Trent and Chuck's dispute is tearing him apart, but he is done with it. He is doing his own thing now and focusing on becoming a champion in AEW. Rocky challenges O'Reilly to a match!

Serena Deeb vs. Mariah May -- Deeb catches Mariah in the paradise lock and dropkicks her. Deeb with a snapmare, a shoulder tackle, and a beautiful leg pick into a surfboard stretch! Mariah lays in some big elbow strikes and lands handstand rana off the ropes in the corner. Strike exchange! Mariah lands a knee and a nice spinning side slam for only one! Mariah lands a lariat and something of a uranage slam for two. Deeb catches Mariah's leg, slaps her in the face, and lands a dragon screw! Deeb with a corner lariat and a neckbreaker over the ropes! Series of counters! Deeb lands a swinging neckbreaker! Deeb ducks a round kick and lands an uppercut. Waist lock by Deeb, but Mariah escapes with back elbows! Deeb bounces Mariah off the ropes into a German suplex! Deeb lands a beautiful, nasty hammerlock lariat for two! Mariah blocks a Figure Four attempt, then lands a round kick to the head, a missile dropkick off the top, and a corner hip attack for two! Mariah lands a vicious running knee for two! Deeb jumps on Mariah's back with a hanging submission hold, spins around to disoreient Mariah, and gets a backslide for two! Nice! Mariah lands a headbutt and a back suplex and goes for a handstand rana in the corner, but Deeb reverses into a single-leg crab and slams Mariah's knee into the mat repeatedly!! Toni throws in the towel, and Deeb wins!

I really liked this match. Just great wrestling by Deeb, with some really great-looking moves and reversals and good submission work. And Mariah holds her own very well here. Rating: 3.5

Renee is with Copeland. O'Reilly shows up. He says he has looked up to Copeland and will have his back against the House of Black.

Justin with a great into for Omega!! And here is Omega!!!! He has a mic. He says he has never been good at this sort of stuff, talking about injuries and weakness. He was diagnosed with diverticulitis. The doctors told him he was 24 hours away from dying. He says he told them, "Cool, can you patch me up and send me back to Dynamite?" They said it's not that simple, that he needed surgery and would have to have a colostomy bag, maybe for the rest of his life. He asked what if he didn't have the surgery, and the doctor said he might wake up in the hospital one day having it done anyway. Any blunt force trauma to the abdomen could kill him. He says he had to stop watching AEW because, for the first time in his career, he was scared. He thought he was going to come here and announce his retirement, but then he watched Dynasty. He saw Ospreay and Danielson put on one of the greatest matches he had ever seen. But his hands were shaking. Was it because he is scared of being a wrestler? No, it was because he was going through withdrawal. He needed to be back in the ring more than he needed to breathe. Being called the best is what fueled him. All these people are now in the conversation for being the best, and he has already been forgotten. So he made a promise to himself and to each and every one of the fans. This isn't over until he exhausts every option. If there is even a 1% chance, bag or no bag, they aren't done with Kenny Omega yet. 🥺 He made a mission statement to change the world. While he is talking about colostomy bags, why not talk about two other shitbags while they are at it? Lmao. He says the Bucks have embarrassed themselves. They are EVPs, and they are free to do what they want, but they forget that there is another EVP. He may be fired from the Elite, but they can't fire him as an EVP. Until someone says otherwise, a part of the power in this company belongs to the Best Bout Machine!!!!!!

Okada comes out!! Holy shit indeed!!!!!!!!!!!!! Omega says they had a bit of a rivalry in New Japan. He tells Okada to give him a couple of months, and they will settle it right here in an AEW ring!!!! Okada says he's sorry, but he is the Best Bout Machine now!!!! Hell yeah, buddy!! Jack attacks Omega from behind!! Omega turns it around and lands a snap dragon on Jack, but he immediately holds his stomach. He sets up for a V-trigger, but Okada trips him, and Jack nails him in the stomach with a chair!!! Damn!!! The Bucks come out and hit him with a BTE trigger!! Okada goes for a Rainmaker, but FTR come out to help Omega, and the Elite run away! Omega gets stetchered out!!!

The Elite attack Omega again backstage as he is about to be put into the ambulance. Matt gets in his face and says he loves him to death, but this is just business, and they have to change the world. They dump Omega off the stretcher onto the concrete!!!!

What a segment!!! Oh man, what a ride. It was so incredible to see Omega back here, even just for a moment. Very genuine, emotional promo from Omega. Man, I hope he can get better and get back. But this was a great use of Omega for now, using his injury to make the new Elite look even more merciless and vicious. Jack attacking Omega's abdomen after Omega had just said that the doctors told him any blunt force trauma could kill him was a great touch. And the continued attack on Omega in the back as he is being put in the ambulance? Matt saying it's just business? Excellent. Not to mention the face-off with Okada. My god, the chills I got when Omega said to give him a few months and they'll settle it in the ring, and when Okada responded that he is the Best Bout Machine now!! Incredible stuff. This story has such great potential if Omega ever gets better.

[blowflyfag]

the Wrestler: Volume 25, 2009

WE’RE NOT LISTENING!

How DiBiase Jr. & Rhodes Were Nearly Derailed By Their Dads

Ted Dibiase SR. doesn’t trust Dusty Rhodes, and the “American Dream” Certainly doesn’t trust the “Million-Dollar Man.” So why does the bond between Ted DiBiase Jr. and Cody Rhodes seems unbreakable?

BY HARRY BURKETT

“CODY RHODES PROVED something that I’ve said for many, many years: Everybody’s got a price!” Ted DiBiase SR. said as he let loose with his evil laugh while watching his son, Ted Jr., and Cody Rhodes on the backstage monitor, preparing for a match against The Highlanders on Raw. “A cash transaction might not have taken place, but Teddy promised Cody fame and fortune. That’s why Cody turned on Hardcore Holly and that’s why Teddy and Cody are the World tag team champions.”

Obviously, the legendary “Million-Dollar Man” has fond memories of that fateful night in June when DiBiase Jr. and a mystery partner were slated to face WWE World tag team champions  Rhodes and Holly. It turned out that Rhodes was DiBiase’s mystery partner, as he went on to DDT Holly, enabling DiBiase to plant Holly with the Million-Dollar legsweep and win the belts for his newly formed team. In effect Rhodes remained a World tag team champion; he simply changed partners.

[The contentious history between Dusty Rhodes and Ted DiBiase Sr. goes back to when the “Million-Dollar Man” tried to bribe Rhodes (above). When the “American Dream” refused , they clashed )below). Clearly, these men do not trust each other and had some very pointed advice for their sons, the WWE World tag team champions.]

It was a profitable acquisition for “Simply Priceless” Ted DiBiase Jr., a third-generation wrestler who–along with second-generation star Cody Rhodes–was preparing to declare war on WWE’s veterans, much like Randy Orton had done a few years earlier. But isn’t the elder DiBiase, who has cleaned up his act outside the ring in recent years, ashamed of his son’s methods?

“THis is the wrestling business. Leaving partners behind and making new alliances are all part of the strategic game to move your career forward. The time had come for Cody to ditch Holly and form a partnership with Teddy,” DiBiase Sr. said. “But, with that said, Ted needs to be careful. For as much as he should trust that Rhodes boy, he should be wary.”

From the very beginning it seems, the fathers of both tag team champions were warning their sons of what could happen. DiBiase Sr. taught his son to do what is best for himself, and make sure no one gets in the way, while Dusty was teaching Cody that he needed to do the right thing and live the same way he would like to be treated. This tag team seems perfect on paper–both come from a championship lineage, have talent seeping from every pore in their bodies, and have the hunger to become better than their fathers even were in the ring–by both Dusty and Ted know how similar they were in their own fathers and how similar their own sons are to them.

[Following his father’s example, Ted DiBiase promised Cody Rhodes big things in WWE in exchange for his tag team partnership. So far, Rhodes has profited from the arrangement much to Dusty’s disappointment.]

“My only concern is that Cody’s old man will stick his nose in their business,” said DiBiase Sr. “I had a few problems with Dusty in the past, we weren’t what you would call  ‘friends’. I worry  for Teddy that some day, old Cody may decide he needs to right some great wrong he feels he’s doing by his actions now. And that old dad of his will be the one egging him on from behind. 

“But I think Dusty understands that these boys have to find their own way, for now. I still don’t think that means he hasn’t hinted at that boy of his to keep an eye open for a better opportunity. Remember, Dusty and Dick Murdoch back-stabbed and beat the heck out of a lot of guys before Dusty became the “American Dream.” In fact, I warned him that DiBiases and Rhodeses don’t really mix.”

Cody’s actions have to come as a disappointment to his father. Even when Dusty’s relationship with his oldest son, Dustin, was tumultuous, he could always depend on honest, reliable, no-nonsense Cody. While Dustin–as Goldust–was sending love notes to Razor Ramon, Cody was getting A’s on his report card. While Dustin was struggling in the dying days of WCW, Cody–as a high school junior–was going undefeated en route to winning the 189-pound amateur wrestling championship in his home state of Georgia. While Black Reign was forming a bond with his pet rat Cody was defending the WWE World tag team title with Hardcore Holly. 

Now this son has gone astray, soiling the Rhodes name as he and DiBiase Jr. take every shortcut imaginable and take every opportunity to spit on the legends that built the sport. Cody is no better than Randy Orton, who sidelined the “American Dream” with a vicious punt kick last year. 

“I don’t know how 230 pounds of blue-eyed soul could have gone so wrong,” said Dusty Rhodes in his first public comments regarding his son’s heel turn. “I see this strappin’ young man, my own flesh and blood if you will, actin’ like that no-good Randy Orton, spittin’ in the face of men like Jerry ‘The King’ Lawler and ‘Hacksaw’ Jim Duggan, and I’m downright ashamed. 

“When Cody first did this thing, and left Hardcore Holly layin’ in that ring, I said don’t get involved with that DiBiase clan. That’s nasty business. That’s dancin’ on the dark side.”

Dusty had every right to be a little worried. In his time with the WWF, he and Ted Sr. didn’t always have the most personable of relationships. Dusty got to see firsthand just how evil the “Million-Dollar Man” could be, and even worse, turn good people his way. Doing what any good father would, Dusty tried to warn Cody of the temptations that the money, and power, of working with Ted Jr. could bring.

“You see, I don’t have a price for the ‘Million-Dollar Man.’  Never did, never will. And that son of his don’t seem no better. But I made Cody a promise, an oath, and a vow when he broke into this business: I would not second-guess his decisions and there’s nothing that he could do in that ring that would diminish the love I have for him. But, for his own sake, he needs to watch Teddy Jr. like a hawk eyein’ a rattlesnake. I don’t trust Daddy Junior DiBiase because I don’t trust Daddy DiBiase. They’re bad news, Jack.”

And what about Ted and Cody? Are they genuine friends who trust each other, or is this merely an alliance of convenience? Are they heading their famous fathers’ advice?

“I understand why Teddy and Cody’s old men are cautious about this whole thing,” commented Afa Anoa’i Jr., who recently debuted on Raw as an ally of the World tag team champions. “Everybody’s paths cross sometime in wrestling, just like Ted DiBiase’s and Dusty Rhodes’ did. Teddy and Cody know all about that, but this is 2008 and there’s no need to hold those grudges. When your family’s been in the business for two or three generations, wrestling’s in your DNA. The bond between Teddy and Cody is stronger than any bad blood between their dads. Take it from me: I’ve seen my own dad kiss guys that he was headbutting 20 or 30 years ago.” 

[To this point, ignoring their father’s advice has served DiBiase Jr. and Rhodes very well. Regardless of their fathers’ sentiments, the World tag champs have formed an efficient and impressive team.]

For now, the champions have chosen to ignore their parents. They have found that with each other, they are truly the best tag team out there. If they had listened to their fathers, the current WWE World tag team champions may have ended up languishing in mid-card singles purgatory. This doesn’t mean that someday their fathers’ words won’t creep into their heads and a struggle for power won’t ensue, it just means these two have shown that they are beyond whatever bickering their fathers once had. 

Both Ted Jr. and Cody realize there’s something about this business that–over  time–makes brothers of the bitterest adversaries and vice-versa. Ted Sr. may not trust Dusty or any of his sons, and Dusty may not trust Ted Sr. or any of his sons, but what they have taught their boys and the legacy they helped create is what binds their two sons. And that bond is simply priceless.