#the road to

[the-bar-sinister]

I feel like if Road to El Dorado had been released just a little bit later in the timeline it would have made millions. And it should have made millions.

One of my favorite things about RtED that I didn;t know watching it as a kid/teenager is that it's a homage to a specific loose series of movies from the 40s/50s the "Road To" movies, which were musical comedy adventure movies starring Bing Crosby and Bob Hope.

One of the major elements carried over from the original "Road to" movies into "The Road to El Dorado" is the chemistry and banter between the two main leads, which makes going back and watching the Crosby/Hope movies really fun.

Admittedly, you have to be prepared for 1940s exoticism and frankly, racism, but if you're willing to sit through the "society marches on" moments, they're really fun movies.

But genuinely I think Road to El Dorado does everything that the original movies set out to do, but better.

Mostly because I think every movie would benefit from being animated.

[solarsonicsoda]

The Road to... Wrestlemania XL

Part 4: Sami Zayn vs. Gunther, LWO vs. Escobar & Dominik, 6-Way Tag Team Ladder Match, & Damage CTRL vs. Belair, Naomi, & Cargill

On top of the three I have already mentioned, there are four other matches on Wrestlemania XL Saturday!

We have Damage CTRL, who have been running roughshod over the Smackdown Women's Division for the better part of the year. We'll get to the crown jewel of that faction tomorrow, but their three other members are in action on Saturday. The Women's Tag Team Champions, The Kabuki Warriors (Kairi Sane & Asuka), and Dakota Kai are representing the unit as they take on a trio of popular women's stars.

There's the returning Naomi, who rejoined the WWE in January, and is keen to show-up the unruly faction. There's also Bianca Belair, a multi-time women's champion who has been frequently undone by Damage CTRL. Completing their team is the debuting Jade Cargill. She has wrestled just one WWE match, that being the 2024 Royal Rumble where she made an immediate impression. She's joined Naomi & Belair in their fight against Damage CTRL, so the stage is set for Wrestlemania.

There's also a big 6-team ladder match for both the Raw Tag Team Championships and the Smackdown Tag Team Championships! The Judgment Day have been on top of the tag team division, holding both titles for almost the entirety of the last 9 months. This will prove a challenge for the dark and dominant team of Damien Priest and Finn Balor...

There's the 11-time champions The New Day, Kofi Kingston & Xavier Woods. The happy-go-lucky team are always favourites to win a big match, having been some of the strongest champions in recent years. The team of #DIY are also in the match. Johnny Gargano & Tommaso Ciampa have had their ups and downs, but when they're on the same page like they are now they're one of the best teams out there. You can never count out the team of Awesome Truth though, The Miz & R-Truth. The cocky and opinionated Miz will do anything to win, and Truth is entirely unpredictable, whether he means to be or not! He may have extra motivation too, having thought he was in The Judgment Day despite their dislike for him, leading to them feuding with the rapping wrestler.

Smackdown has some hot tag teams also in contention too though! There's the New Catch Republic, the former British Strong Style team of Tyler Bate & Pete Dunne. They challenged for the titles at Elimination Chamber in a losing effort, but these awesome young wrestlers are some of the best in the world and they'll want to get the belts on the second attempt. Lastly, there's also A-Town Down Under, Austin Theory & Grayson Waller. This mouthy and underhanded pair will be keen to win here and laud this accomplishment over the rest of the roster. Who will claim each set of titles in this chaotic matchup?

Speaking of tag teams, we have a tag team matchup between the Latino World Order and the team of Santos Escobar & Dominik Mysterio. When Rey Mysterio revived the LWO name, Santos Escobar was honoured to be a part of such a legendary faction. However, he grew frustrated with the Hall of Famer, and he would shockingly and brutally turn his back on Mysterio with a vicious beatdown. He would bring back his faction Legado del Fantasma with new members Angel Garza and Humberto Carillo, and they have been at loggerheads with the remaining LWO for months. However, when Mysterio & Escobar finally went head-to-head, the masked man's son Dominik, who had long-since distanced himself from his father, helped Escobar cheat a win.

A year after Rey defeated his son at Wrestlemania, a tag match was set up with Santos & Dominik against Rey and the newest member of the LWO, Dragon Lee. Despite the faction containing the tag team of Joaquin Wilde & Cruz Del Toro, plus legend Carlito, already in their ranks, Mysterio reached out to his fellow masked man for assistance. Carlito would find Lee injured on Friday Night Smackdown though, and a change had to be made. But in a surprise, Andrade El Idolo, a former rival of Mysterio's, showed up to assist the LWO against Legado del Fantasma and The Judgment Day's Dominik. Andrade would join LWO and be the man to tag with Rey at Wrestlemania.

Will it be the nefarious team of Santos Escobar & Dominik Mysterio?

Or will the veteran Rey Mysterio and his ally Andrade El Idolo come out on top?

And of course, there's the big match for the Intercontinental Championship. Gunther, the big man from Austria, has held the title for a record-breaking 665 days. However, if there's anyone who can defy the odds, it's Sami Zayn. Zayn has gone through a lot in recent years: joining The Bloodline, breaking out of The Bloodline, winning the tag team titles in the main event of Wrestlemania 39 Saturday. He has yet to taste singles gold since he became a fan favourite again, and he is struggling to wear his heart on his sleeve once again to defeat the champion. He was able to win a gauntlet match to earn the opportunity though, despite his previous doubts of how he gets onto the card, and has been working with one of Gunther's biggest rivals throughout his reign, Chad Gable. The former Olympian has been training Zayn on all his experience with Gunther, but only time will tell if he can defeat the leader of Imperium, Gunther.

That's all for Wrestlemania XL Saturday! You can also check out WWE's compilation videos for the ladder match, Rey & Andrade vs. Dom & Santos and Zayn vs. Gunther!

[fashioninpaper]

[dragoncarrion]

you tell a bitch to keep their cat indoors and suddenly their town is the first in the world to have eradicated every viral, bacterial and parasitic disease, they invented completely harmless cars, dogs and predators dont exist either but somehow the native songbird population is fine since the cats in this place have lost the hunting instinct, there's no pollutants or toxic plants and human cruelty has ceased to exist. and mr mittens has a chip in his brain that will explode if he doesnt go outside 10 hours of the day

[thoughtportal]

the things that are reported matters. the language used matters. what is left out of the story matters.

[orofeaiel]

Magical Spot on the River

[linktoo-doodles]

resurrection is sort of romantic, isnt it

[ur-daily-inspiration]

[swordy-da-goat]

An amorphous black blob thingy that shape-shifts into any hazard related thing.

[aadrawings]

Current Status

[victusinveritas]

[solarsonicsoda]

The Road to... Wrestlemania XL

Part 1: Roman Reigns & The Rock vs. Cody Rhodes & Seth Rollins, Seth Rollins vs. Drew McIntyre, and Roman Reigns vs. Cody Rhodes

On 30th August 2020, nearly over 3 and a half years ago, Roman Reigns won the WWE Universal Championship in his return match. On 7th April 2024, he will enter the main event of Wrestlemania XL Sunday still champion, as well as the WWE Champion. This is the Tribal Chief.

Roman Reigns "The Tribal Chief", leader of The Bloodline, and member of the legendary Anoa'i family. Standing at 6'3'', weighing 265lbs, from Pensacola, Florida, USA, he is the reigning Universal Champion for 1300+ consecutive days, and reigning WWE Champion for 720+ days. Finishers: Spear, Guillotine Hold

Reigns has been the top of the WWE ever since. This brutal bad guy has used his power and familial ties to reign supreme across the whole roster. He's defeated pretty much every major name in the company, he's turned even on his close family in Jey Uso, done it multiple times too, and he's only taken one pinfall loss in this whole reign. There is no stopping Roman Reigns.

Cody Rhodes hopes that isn't true though.

Cody Rhodes "The American Nightmare", son of the legendary Dusty Rhodes, seeking to finally claim the WWE Title for his family since returning to the company. Standing at 6'2'', weighing 220lbs, from Marietta, Georgia, USA, he is the winner of the Royal Rumble 2024, the first man to win consecutive Rumble matches since 1998. Finisher: Cross Rhodes

Cody Rhodes made his WWE debut in 2007, aged just 22. He was with the company for 9 years, and while he achieved success, this waned and he grew frustrated. He left, and over the next 6 years he would play a part in changing the wrestling industry. He would take the independent scene by storm, be a major player in other companies like New Japan Pro Wrestling and Impact Wrestling, and he would even form WWE's current biggest rival company, All Elite Wrestling.

He was a key part of AEW's early success, and many there cite him as a big help to them in the company. He was an Executive Vice President and one of the biggest stars they had, but in 2022, Rhodes decided he had unfinished business in the WWE. He would leave AEW at the expiry of his contract, and at Wrestlemania 38 in Arlington, Texas, USA, he would return to the WWE. His opponent that night? Seth "Freakin'" Rollins

Seth Rollins "The Visionary", former indie standout who's now one of the major stars on the WWE roster Standing at 6'1'', weighing 225lbs, from Davenport, Iowa, USA, he is a multi-time world champion and as of now, World Heavyweight Champion for 300+ days Finisher: Blackout Stomp

These two men would feud for the early months of Rhodes' WWE return, with the American Nightmare coming out on top in every match, but Rhodes made it clear what his goal was. He aimed to "finish the story" and become WWE Champion, the title his legendary late father was never able to achieve in his career. Fast-forward to the Royal Rumble 2023. After missing much of 2022 with a torn pectoral, an injury he would wrestle through in a Hell in a Cell match, Rhodes had returned. Now, out of thirty men, he was the only one not to be thrown over the top rope with both feet hitting the floor. Cody Rhodes had won the 2023 Royal Rumble. With this victory, he'd challenge Undisputed WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns at Wrestlemania 39. The Tribal Chief had by this point become both WWE and Universal Champion, which are the two top titles for men's wrestlers in the WWE. Having seemingly achieved all there was to achieve, many thought this would be the night Reigns finally loses these belts... But this isn't what happened.

Like so many others, even with all his momentum, Rhodes was undone by The Bloodline. This faction built around Reigns consisted then of his "wise man" Paul Heyman and three cousins of Reigns': Jey Uso, Jimmy Uso, & Solo Sikoa. It was the youngest of these three brothers, Solo, who would use his Samoan Spike finisher to tee Rhodes up for Reigns and his Spear. Roman Reigns had defeated Cody Rhodes.

This was a pretty big shock for fans, but as they hoped, Rhodes didn't let this keep him down. He would feud with high-ranking wrestler Brock Lesnar, winning that feud, as well as briefly holding the Tag Team Championships alongside Jey Uso, who had recently defected from The Bloodline. This year, he would again win the Royal Rumble, giving him a choice: face Reigns again for his Undisputed Title, or instead challenge old foe Rollins for his World Heavyweight Championship.

Reigns seemed to be Rhodes' choice before a man who likely needs no introduction reared his bald head.

The Rock Dwayne Johnson, Rocky Maivia, "The People's Champ", "The Great One", "The Most Electrifying Man in Sports Entertainment", and another member of the Anoa'i family. Standing at 6'5'', weighing 260lbs, from Miami, Florida, USA, he is one of the most decorated world champions in WWE history as well as, y'know, The Rock Finishers: Rock Bottom, People's Elbow

The Rock returned to the WWE, having just become a major shareholder in parent company TKO, and he had his sights set on his cousin, Roman Reigns. Cody seemed to let Rock step up to the plate to take on Reigns, perhaps indicating he would take on World Heavyweight Champion Seth Rollins. However, it was at the Wrestlemania XL Kickoff Event, as the two possible tribal chiefs stood face-to-face, that Cody stood back up and declared he wanted to face Roman Reigns at Wrestlemania XL.

Unfortunately, as he condemned the frequently absent and dishonourable champion, Rhodes drew the ire of The Rock when he suggested Reigns brought shame on the family. Unwittingly, Cody Rhodes had created a dangerous alliance as Reigns and Rock joined forces against the "Grandson of a Plumber". However, a surprising ally revealed himself in the form of Seth Rollins. He and Reigns were once close friends, reigning as Tag Team Champions as part of the impactful Shield team. Rollins is also the only title challenger of Reigns' he never truly defeated, losing by disqualification.

Over the coming weeks, many of Rock's grandiose stylings returned as this super Bloodline team were out for Rhodes & Rollins. The newest iteration of The Rock was here: The Final Boss. Rhodes would challenge Rock for a match on Night One, but The Bloodline would propose a counter offer: Wrestlemania XL, Night One. Rhodes & Rollins vs. Reigns & Rock. If Rhodes' team wins, then The Bloodline are barred from ringside on Night Two. If The Bloodline win, then it's Bloodline Rules, meaning anything goes. Rhodes & Rollins would accept. The stage was set... but there's another story that we haven't mentioned.

Drew McIntyre "The Scottish Warrior", a top level wrestler who's justifiably frustrated with everyone around him, and a contender for Hater of the Year. Standing at 6'5'', weighing 275 lbs, from Ayr, Ayrshire, Scotland, he's a multi-time WWE Champion but never got to hold the title with fans in attendance due to the COVID-19 Pandemic. Finisher: Claymore Kick

At Elimination Chamber 2024, McIntyre would outlast five other men to earn the number one contendership for the World Heavyweight Championship held by Seth Rollins. He has had issues with much of the roster for sometime, all stemming from... The Bloodline. At Clash at the Castle 2022, McIntyre, a hometown-ish hero, would fail to defeat Roman Reigns due to Bloodline interference. For this, he would never forgive any of these men. This included later defectees, Sami Zayn and Jey Uso. He would take umbrage with both men and with the likes of Rhodes & Rollins for forgiving them. McIntyre would also become a dedicated hater of the returning CM Punk, but the story of "DM Hunk" is one for another day.

Adding one more reasonable gripe to the salty Scotsman's list of complaints, Rollins seems to have largely overlooked his challenger for Night Two of Wrestlemania XL. With a man so angry on his tail, should Rollins really be tussling with The Bloodline?

Tensions have been escalating week-by-week, with The Bloodline looking to get one over on their fan-favourite foes every week. The Rock even unleashed a brutal attack on Cody Rhodes just two weeks out from the show, leaving him in a heap. With the star-studded tag team main event of Night One leading into two major championship matches on Night Two, Wrestlemania XL's biggest matches are set with a lot of moving parts between the three of them. What's gonna happen? There's only one way to find out...

For those of you interested in seeing this story unfold in preperation for the Showcase of the Immortals, WWE have put out a video including much of this build, as well as posting many of the segments in full on their YouTube. Find the compilation video here for the Bloodline story, and here for Drew vs. Seth.

[brucespringsteencomments]

[huariqueje]

Did you check the weather? - Jeremy Miranda , 2024.

American , b. 1980 -

Acrylic on board , 7 x 8 in.