On a whim, I decided to watch this movie over Labor Day Weekend because it was the weekend of All-In and Dolph Ziggler is big on Raw again. For those who don’t know, “Dolph Ziggler” is the stage name of Nick Nemeth. He has been part of the World Wrestling Entertainment machine for at least a decade now. I knew that he had done some stand up comedy on the side so I wanted to see what his acting was like away from the ring. Turns out it is actually pretty good. The movie is about a rogue cop (Nemeth) who is about to be fired for being a loose cannon cop when he is drawn into an extortion plot involving a kid strapped with explosives. So this time it’s personal. Literally. He is in a race to find the boy and save him from the explosives all the while being opposed by his fellow cops and Russian criminals. Along the way, there is an action sequence and chase sequence in the backstage of a WWE show so we get great cameos from stars like The New Day, The Usos, Brock Lesnar, and Rusev. Also, the police captain is played by new Mayor of Knox County Glenn Jacobs (aka Kane) who is imposing but not the greatest actor. Oh well. Ziggler is joined by Katharine Isabelle, a tough internal affairs cop who is forced to tag along in order to save the kid. The movie is actually pretty tense and, although it is cheesy, it was a lot of fun to watch. Give it a shot and just relax and watch it.
Brick Mansions
I have previously expressed how much I like Luc Besson movies both as a writer and a director. Even his worst movies are more entertaining than most movies and he is really good at building strange and exciting worlds. This one is based on one of his earliest movies (which I have not seen) but it really captured my imagination. It has probably the most likely and believable future world that I have ever seen. The setting is called Brick Mansions, an area of Detroit that was built for newly rich citizens. However, a financial collapse happened and the area was abandoned and taken over by squatters and criminals. Eventually, Detroit just walled that neighborhood in and no longer provided it with law enforcement or emergency services. The movie is basically just a buddy cop film between Paul Walker and David Belle and an excuse to watch them engage in gunplay and parkour. In fact, David Belle’s parkour is both a plot point and a running joke. They are up against a gangster played by the RZA at his most charming. What I liked most is that everybody’s motivations in the movie make sense and they all make believable choices. It is a fun throwaway action film with a pleasant plot and I definitely recommend it.
Hitman
I never played any of the Hitman games so I am not really aware of how much plot they contain. In the movie, Timothy Oliphant plays a member of an elite group of assassins who are raised from childhood to be the best at combat. I have a few issues with the aesthetics of these “master assassins” who are all bald and have barcodes tattooed onto the back of their heads but I guess I need to take that up with the video game franchise. They did the best they could with this movie and it shows. I was prepared to just enjoy the action and hate everything else but I was wrong. One of the best decisions is how they modeled the movie on the style of Luc Besson. I definitely got some Leon vibes from the movie in the best ways. Also, casting Timothy Oliphant was a great choice as he has natural charisma that shows even when he is trying to be emotionless. Olga Kurylenko is a relative innocent whose lively demeanor draws more emotion out of Oliphant. Dougray Scott plays an Interpol agent who has been pursuing Oliphant for years and is a fun plot element. Robert Knepper plays a villainous agent who is also chasing Oliphant. It is a fun romp that is basically just an excuse for awesome gunfights and martial arts combat. I also recommend it.
Weekly Updates:
– This week’s theme is “Deadly Pairs”
– I started watching Once Upon a Time Season 7
– I kept watching The Good Place Season 2
– I watched more Glitter Force Doki Doki Season 2
– I watched more Disenchantment Season 1
– I went back and watched some Charmed episodes I had missed
– I watched more Voltron: Legendary Defender Season 1
It might be cheesy and it might sound a little like a cop out but I have to choose the entrance for “Dashing” Cody Rhodes from years ago. Until he was Dashing, Cody had not shown much of the spark he would show later (and currently). He was like a Create A Wrestler in one of WWE’s video games but everything set on “default”. As he evolved, he started to develop more character and sure the character has been done before and since. He was the arrogant pretty boy who went berzerk when somebody so much as brushed up against his face. It eventually led to one of his best gimmicks in the WWE. First, the song “Smoke and Mirrors” was about how he was the real deal and his opponents were nothing but an illusion. The song is catchy as heck but it also kind of annoyed me at the time because it was just infused with his as yet undeserved arrogance. However, the reason why this entrance leaped to mind as my favorite entrance is that it used the screens at the top of the ramp in ways that few other performers have been able to do. He pauses next to one of the lower panels and a mirror appears and his face is projected live to the crowd as he admires himself. The crowd hated him for it (but a lot of us secretly loved it). There have been so many opportunities to use those lower panels to greater effect but they constantly pass it up. I would love to have that explained to me.
Runner-up: It has to be The Undertaker. Granted, this is only probably the runner-up only because I have been exposed to him for so long and the edge has worn off a bit. However, when that gong hits and he walks out slow and methodical, I still get chills. His music has always been a perfect reflection of his character. He also consistently had the best special effects for his entrances because he is a legend. It is hard to pick just which entrance of his is my favorite. I have a special place in my heart for his entrance at the 1998 King of the Ring. (Which, I could not find on YouTube unfortunately but the one above is from the same time period.)
10 – Favorite Entrance Music
Again, as a matter of personal preference, I am going to pick probably an unpopular choice. I pick Dolph Ziggler’s “Here to Show the World” entrance music. I was recently watching a pay per view from eight years ago and Dolph had not settled on his current music. However, eventually, he picked the current song by Downstait (the same band that did the Miz’ theme). The music is so high energy and, whether he is a babyface or a heel, it always fits his particular brand of arrogance. I have been listening to it lately to fire myself up for the gym and tabletop sessions and I have absolutely fallen in love with the lyrics. “If you ever doubted me, you don’t have a clue.” “Go check the scores again, I come out a perfect 10” And then there is the messy breakdown two-thirds in. It may sound ridiculous but I never seem to get tired of this song. It does not hurt that I have often been on the Dolph Ziggler bandwagon as he is a great worker and a great character. Currently, the WWE is adding a record scratch sound to the beginning of it and each time I hear it I cannot decide if I love it or hate it but it definitely is getting a reaction from me.
Runner-up: I have to go with Shawn Michaels theme “Sexy Boy”. This was a song that at one point I listened to on loop but with headphones on. I did not want anybody at school or my family to know how much I liked a song called “Sexy Boy”. However, now that I have grown and evolved a bit, I will freely admit that I still love this song. While the lyrics are not all that clever, they tell the exact story that the Heartbreak Kid always wanted to tell since he first became a singles star. It was absolutely an excellent choice to have Shawn himself sing the song. It is definitely touched off by an awesome beat and dynamite cheesy guitar riffs (and screaming girl sounds). Unfortunately, it was things like these that drove the homophobic crowds of 1996 – 1998 crazy.
11 – Favorite Match of All Time
Shawn Michaels vs. Triple H vs. Chris Jericho vs. Rob Van Dam vs. Booker T vs. Kane
Ellimination Chamber match at Survivor Series 2002.
I am a big fan of elimination-style matches mostly because it allows performers to get plenty of finishers in without ending the match right away. The tension of a match is seeing the drama and the damage unfold while waiting to see what the finish is going to be. In the Elimination Chamber match, there are five finishes so it’s a bit like Christmas for me. For those that do not know, the rules of the match are this: Two people start in the ring, surrounded by a metal cage. Built into that cage are four pods into which four other competitors go in. Periodically, those pods are opened and a new person enters the match. If somebody gets pinned or submits, they are eliminated from the match. This keeps going until there is only one person left. Anyway, this match blew my mind when it happened. The match just flows so well. The match has both Shawn Michaels and Triple H who had such great chemistry whether they were teaming up or fighting each other. Jericho always made anybody look good. Kane may have never been the greatest wrestler but he definitely always knew how to tell a story. This is probably my favorite Booker T match of all time. Finally, Rob Van Dam provides the crazy, extreme moments which are just great seasoning on an already great meal. There are so many false finishes and fun story elements that I was on the edge of my seat until the end.
Runner-up:
Mankind vs. the Rock
Raw – January 4, 1999
I have posted about this match before as it was filmed on my birthday the year before and it is a very famous match. As I have written about on multiple occasions, I am a big Mick Foley fan. At this point in his career, the character of Mankind had kind of morphed into a tough but lovable muppet. Meanwhile, the Rock was at the height of his powers as an arrogant but entertaining heel. The story of the match was that The Rock and the McMahon family had screwed Mankind out of winning his first heavyweight title. So Mankind forced The Rock into an impromptu title match in the main event of Monday Night Raw. The match was no technical masterpiece but it was definitely enjoyable to watch. First, the chemistry between Foley and The Rock was always hard to beat. Second, at ringside was D-Generation X 2.0 and The Corporation, two of the most fun factions of that time period. Also, there’s probably the biggest cheer that Steve Austin ever got in his career. It has a feel of something that should not have happened but it does and it felt so good.
I have touched upon this before but I have great respect for High School, Collegiate and Olympic wrestling. I cringe every time that I see or hear it referred to as “amateur wrestling”. There is nothing amateur about what can often be a high-speed, physical chess game with a crowd watching. I wrestled in middle school and high school and it was probably the most physically demanding thing that I have ever done. Training to wrestle competitively is an exercise in conditioning and adding to your physical memory. When you’re out there facing an opponent, you must pull the correct series of moves out of a mental Rolodex in order to win. You must learn about leverage and at least a little about human anatomy and how to dominate another human being. That’s why I call it “real wrestling”.
I am especially proud of my little brother who went to several local and state championships and dominated because he combined fitness with intelligence. My own career paled in comparison because he truly had a passion for the sport.
That being said, I wanted to pay tribute to just a handful of the real wrestlers who decided to become sports entertainers when they retired from the sport. There are more guys than are contained in this list but I don’t want to take that much of your time up. By and large, those who were wrestlers first have a larger list of moves their capable of doing, adapt easier and have the best conditioning. This makes them the best performers in the ring and if they are blessed to have charisma, they usually excel in the business.
Even those who have just dabbled in amateur wrestling did better than their bodybuilder co-workers. To name just a few dabblers: Ric Flair, Mick Foley, The Rock and Owen Hart. All of them wrestled in high school and are some of the best at putting a solid match together. Compare them to guys like Hulk Hogan and the Ultimate Warrior and you can see where the benefits of being a real wrestler come in.
Dolph Ziggler
I have three words about Real Wrestling’s effect on Dolph Ziggler’s in-ring style: Conditioning, conditioning and conditioning. It really seems to me like the man could wrestle forever. His athleticism is unquestionable and he portrays a vicious tenacity. He is currently one of the best at showing pain in his body language and facial expressions and I bet he got a lot of practice during his real wrestling career. After all, he was an All-Mid-American Conference champion three times and is second all-time in victories at Kent State.
Shelton Benjamin
Look at the bottom of this post to see who Shelton Benjamin first teamed with when he hit the mainstream. The WWE immediately embraced Benjamin’s real wrestling career and brought him in as a trained tactician who had speed and agility on his side as well. Benjamin’s career shone bright as he used a combination of kicks, high-flying and mat skills to take on opponents. Unfortunately, he left the bright lights of the WWE when they dropped the ball but he still continues in Japan and independent promotions in the US. He won the South Carolina State High School Championship two times and had a win-loss record of 122-10.
Jack Swagger
There is no questioning that Swagger was involved in real wrestling. His build and the way he moves are clear indicators and he obviously understands leverage a lot. There have been some bumps in the road of Jack Swagger’s career because he lacks some of the necessary charisma but nobody has ever questioned his skill or athleticism. He does his best work when paired up with a mouthpiece so that he can do all of his talking in the ring. He was a two-sport athlete at The University of Oklahoma but once he quit football he was an All-American.
Brock Lesnar
A controversial success story like no other, Brock Lesnar keeps taking the time to stop by and dominate the world of sports entertainment. Brock Lesnar is a physical specimen and it shows with how easily he picks up and manages a human being. Even with the power game he has had since day one, he has tried to update his list of moves every so often. Unfortunately, this resulted in him blowing a shooting star press and landing on his head but everybody has setbacks. I wish Brock would either stick around or leave sports entertainment but I like his current run as champ. He was a two-time NJCAA All-American, 1998 NJCAA Heavyweight Champion, two-time NCAA All-American, two-time Big Ten Conference Champion and the 2000 NCAA heavyweight champion with a record of 106–5 overall in four years of college.
Kurt Angle
I have been pretty impressed by Kurt Angle since day one. He showed up in the WWE during the late nineties at the height of the attitude era. He became a heel because he was a legit athlete and was not afraid to tell everybody in the building at home about it. His gold medal was shoved down our throats so much that we hated him for it. However, looking back his accomplishments are amazing and completely impressive. He is from a pretty exclusive club of real Olympic athletes and there aren’t many of them in the business. It’s a shame his later career was marred a bit by drug abuse but he seems to be mostly past that and still outperforms younger guys. He is one of only four people to complete a Grand Slam in amateur wrestling (junior nationals, NCAAs, World Championships and the Olympics).
Just kidding, I love it but there are some things I hate about it. Let’s talk about them from time to time. Shall we?
Dangerous Behavior
Last episode I talked about sports entertainers purposefully putting themselves in potentially career-ending or life-ending situations. This can be exciting and, in the right arena, it can mean a higher box office or ratings. (I exclude pay-per-view buyrates because under the current system they barely still exist.) I worry about the performers when they do this but I know that they plan these things out and should be alright as long as a mistake isn’t made.
The problem is that an accident isn’t the only way somebody can get hurt in or out of the ring. When a performer gets injured the industry suffers, the performer suffers and we all suffer. When Dolph Ziggler suffered a concussion he spent months recovering and all that time the company was down one talented performer. The same thing happened with Daniel Bryan’s ongoing neck surgeries. His momentum was killed and we’re left wondering when he’ll be back. That is if he returns at all.
Edge (Adam Copeland) had so many neck surgeries he had to retire in his late thirties but at least he was still walking. Darren Drozdov was injured and left in a wheelchair for life. Owen Hart fell several stories to his death in the middle of the ring because of a stunt gone wrong. The lists of performers goes on and on those are all just from accidents.
Performers can hurt each other or themselves for a multitude of reasons and none of them are good. I like my Pro-Wrestling more fake than real so that the performers that I enjoy get to have long, fruitful careers. Here are some of the horrible reasons that wrestlers get hurt besides accidents.
1: The performers are angry at each other in real life
Most performers seem to be alright with keeping their emotions in check while they are in the ring. Most of the time when performers hate each other, this sort of combat is done outside of the ring. The only way we hear about it is through rumors or years later when they do documentaries on it. It probably happens a lot more in the independent promotions where conditions are worse. Since it’s easier to get fired this way, most people seem to decide against scrapping backstage or just don’t report it. Besides, it’s embarassing for people to find out you lost a real fight.
Trying to hold onto your spot seems to be one of the hardest things to do in wrestling. The only thing harder is trying to get to a higher spot on the card. This causes young performers to try their hardest to nearly kill themselves for a shot at the big time. If they don’t get too injured it sometimes works…. unfortunately. When these tactics work, it encourages the next young guy or girl to nearly kill themself for their big break. It worked for the examples below but it probably did not for countless others you will never hear about.
JT Smith intentionaly screwed up moves for attention (No video)
3: People working stiff
Some performers are known for “working stiff” which means that their strikes and maneuvers are done as real as possible. When they work this way means that they are actually laying into their opponent pretty much as hard as they can. Most of them do it because it looks better or because they want to test their opponent. This has a tendency to make the other person work stiff to keep from being steamrolled. This turns a fake fight into a real one really quickly. The business tends to give these guys a pass because they legitimize the product but it’s still dangerous.
Wolf of Words 