The Pro Wrestling Thread #5

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KELLER'S BLOG: Chris Jericho - Now that was funny (and I'm assuming it was supposed to be)

That was funny. Chris Jericho made a memorable return to Raw tonight in Memphis, spoofing babyfaces who milk the crowd for cheers with various tricks and techniques. His obnoxiously sustained wide smile for what seemed like ten minutes straight was hilarious. Eventually some in the crowd seemed to catch on and started to boo him.

His two laps around ringside slapping hands like Eugene... His pausing in silence and acting like the crowd was blowing the roof off the place for him was classic.... His repeated attempts to get everyone to cheer him and chant for him over and over while never moving to the next phase where, you know, you're expected to speak, was brilliant.

The light-up jacket, the sprayed on abs and botox (okay, the abs were real), the pearly white teeth, the perfectly groomed hair, everything added up to Jericho giving at least the first hint of his makeover, so to speak.

He has said if he ever returned to WWE, he'd want to do something entirely different in order to stay engaged. This was a fun start, and because he didn't show all of his cards up front, it gives us something to talk about all week.

I'm assuming he'll be the WrestleMania opponent for C.M. Punk and fight over the title "Best in the World." I'm assuming Jericho and Punk will bring out of each other some of their best mic work to date. And when the bell rings, with the type of shape Jericho appeared to be in and given his track record, I think we'll have a match of the year contender.

I'm looking forward to seeing how they get from tonight's Point A to WrestleMania 28's Point Z. I'm curious how Jericho turns on the fans and what his speech (guilt trip?) turns out to be when he finally speaks.

Hats off to Jericho for essentially spoofing his original Y2J return with the sparkly jacket and pearly white smile. It shows a self-deprecation and self-awareness that he can use to talk about who he once was and why he is no longer that person (and why he is thankful he has seen the light).

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KELLER BLOG: Was Chris Jericho boring last night? The pros and cons of being too clever

PWTorch VIP member Efren sent this question for today's PWTorch Livecast. I'll address it here on PWTorch below and also, I'm sure, later on the PWTorch Livecast. He wrote:

"Laying the ground work for Jericho's heel run is fine, but what other route could they had gone last night? One word I can use for part of his segment was this: bored. That should never be an option on TV! Changing the channel after x number of minutes also occurred...am I in the minority?"

We'll see if you're in the minority, Efren, but I think so. I think everyone was waiting for something to happen. Who could turn out during that and not see how it ended?

I understand some people were frustrated because they felt for all of that build up there should be a payoff. But I think this is in part a reflection on a misnomer, forwarded by pro wrestling promoters in recent years, that their primary job is to entertain fans and give them what they want. It's not.

The job of pro wrestling promoters and wrestlers is to create compelling television that hooks them into watching again and wanting to see a babyface get revenge or show up a cocky heel. If pro wrestling promoters always gave fans everything they wanted, Dolph Ziggler wouldn't have won by countout last night and John Cena would always (I mean, never) have been WWE Champion.

What Jericho did last night was stage one of a character change for him. His goal was to frustrate his fans, leaving them scratching their heads going, "What was that?!" It's part of a voyage he plans to take WWE viewers on as he defines his new character and makes you want to pay money to see a babyface whom fans like and identify with beat him up (presumably C.M. Punk).

That's pro wrestling promoting. It's not about giving everyone ice cream cones and balloons. It's about creating a strong emotional reaction.

If you were bored during the ten minutes Jericho spoof love-fest, that's part of the frustration Jericho was trying to create. I couldn't take my eyes off of it, even if it was monotonous.

Remember, this is a bit of a throwback to Jericho's career-defining promo on Nitro where he monotonously listed the 1,004 holds he knew. They cut to a break, and when they came back he was still listing them. He was going for the same thing last night as he did back then. Drive people nuts so he could get heel heat and draw money against a babyface.

[Read my original WCW Nitro report on that very Jericho promo here: KELLER'S 3/30/98 REPORT (http://tinyurl.com/KellerNitro98)]

Back when wrestler's felt their pay was tied directly to the gate at the arena, wrestlers were much more into these fundamental basics of drawing heel heat. That's what draws money on a large scale. Not highspots. Not wink-wink pandering to the Internet fans. Not soap opera storylines about who has power in the front office. Not comedy routines like R-Truth last night that felt like an audition for him to host "Blue's Clues" for four year olds. Not plugs for Twitter or shout-outs to Facebook followers. Not even funny one-liners about Fruity Pebbles. That's all background noise to fill time, with various levels of merit, that should at best enhance and at the very least stay out of the way of what draws...

What draws is fans despising a heel and paying to see a hero they identify with beat the crap out of him. That's what Jericho was going for. If a few people got bored, that's a price worth paying, I'd argue.

Kurt Angle eyes spot on Olympic wrestling team

By ANTHONY SULLA-HEFFINGER

Last Updated: 11:04 AM, January 6, 2012

Posted: 9:31 AM, January 6, 2012

It’s been nearly 16 years since Kurt Angle won his Olympic gold medal. Since then, Angle has had five neck injuries, become a major star for two professional wrestling organizations, has gotten divorced and then remarried.

Now, Angle’s goal is to wrestle again by trying to make Team USA at the age of 43 and represent his country once again at the Olympic Games this summer in London.

“I’ve been wrestling professionally for 12 years and I have been training for the Olympics for seven months. It’s going really well,” Angle told The Post. “I can guarantee that I will either make the Olympic team or be an alternate. I will go over to London and represent my country.”

At age 43, Angle would be the oldest wrestler on Team USA.

Angle won Olympic gold in the Men's Freestyle wrestling class in Atlanta in 1996.

Angle’s lists of accomplishments in the wrestling world, both professional and amateur, speak for themselves. By age 26, Angle achieved something only four people have ever managed to do. He won the Junior World Championship, NCAA Championship, World Championship and an Olympic gold medal. All before making the jump to the WWE in 1998.

In professional wrestling, Angle has won a championship belt 18 times between the World Wrestling Entertainment and Total Nonstop Action organizations.

But after nearly 12 years of pro wrestling, Angle decided last year to return to his roots as a freestyle amateur wrestler.

Angle juggles a schedule that incorporates his training for the Olympic team along with wrestling at shows for TNA. January will prove to be one tough month for the former gold medal winner. TNA is preparing for its biggest time of the year and heading overseas.

“This month has been a little difficult because we have a lot of dates,” Angle said. “I’m going to wrestle at a wrestling club in Orlando when I’m there for five days, when I go over to England I have a Bulgarian guy that I am going to wrestle with for three or four days. Just to keep me sharp.”

TNA has been completely behind Angle as he prepares for his attempt at making the Olympic team. He is one of the company’s biggest names, after all. Normally, Angle works for the company 20-30 days a month, with long stretches on the road and performing shows.

“Thank God TNA has backed me up. They have supported me. They gave me 25 days a month to train [for the Olympics],” Angle said.

There have been three Olympic Games since Angle won the gold medal in Atlanta in 1996. And despite the passion to come back, Angle had been deterred by other influences in his life.

“[In 2000] I had just joined WWE, [in 2004] I broke my neck, [in 2008] I went through a terrible divorce and then in 2011 everything went well for me,” Angle said. “I felt good, my neck was fine, my body was fine. I knew this is what I wanted to do. I wanted to go for it one more time.”

Angle would be the oldest competitor on the Olympic team, but that does not worry him. The former Olympian believes that when he won in 1996, he was not at his peak. And even though he acknowledges there will be younger wrestlers who are in better shape, he believes he can pull off the incredible.

“My wrestling is awesome right now. It’s smarter. I didn’t have a game plan back in 1996. Now, in 2012, I have a game plan. I know how to beat these guys,” Angle said. “I’m not going to beat [wrestlers] 10-0, I might beat them 1-0, 2-0, but I have a game plan. I know what I need to do. I know how to set the pace for the match and I know how to win the match.”

In order for Angle to make the Olympic team, he will need to place in the top three at the qualifying event in Iowa City in April. If Angle can place first, he will be Team USA’s representative in the 96 kg (211.5 lbs) weight class. If he finishes in second or third, he will be an alternate.

“I really believe I can do well. There’s one guy I’m really nervous about: Jake Varner. He won the silver and bronze medal at the World Championships, but he has never medaled at the Olympics,” Angle said. “I believe I have a chance of beating him though, even at 43.”

Angle is learning quickly that his body is much different now than it was 16 years ago. He has taken a different, more cerebral approach to amateur wrestling. As a brash 26-year-old, Angle was able to rely on conditioning to make up for mistakes he had made, but now, he’d rather sit back and wait to capitalize.

“I’ve got to get ahead near the beginning and hold that lead and make these guys make mistakes,” Angle said. “Wrestlers in the USA are very aggressive. All they want to do is attack, but they’ll make mistakes. When they shoot, the guy will spin around them and then boom, they’re up 3-0.”

In addition to changing his wrestling style, Angle has also changed the way he trains.

“I don’t train like a professional wrestler,” Angle said. “[Professional wrestlers] body-sculpt. It’s a completely different league.”

This will be the second time in his career that Angle has made a transition between the professional and amateur levels. The first time it happened, he fit in immediately.

“It was a complete career adaptation. It wasn’t a step above, going from amateur wrestling to pro wrestling, it was going from real wrestling to sports entertainment,” Angle said. “A lot of people put me up there as far as saying he’s one of the best ever. And I’ve only been wrestling for 11 and a half years. I think that Ric Flair, Shawn Michaels and The Undertaker, guys who have put 30 years into it deserve it. Me getting that praise after only 11 years -- it’s not fair.”

Angle left the WWE in 2006, but his impact is still seen in the current generation of superstars. And even though some say imitation is the most sincere form of flattery, Angle doesn’t appreciate his moves and style being replicated.

“When Jack Swagger copies my ankle lock and Randy Orton does my Angle Slam, it’s disrespectful,” Angle said. “I didn’t come up with the Ankle Lock, Ken Shamrock came up with the Ankle Lock but I waited until he retired to do the Ankle Lock. That company has no respect for me.”

Despite his dislike for WWE talent using his moves, Angle is thankful that he has been able to parlay WWE Chairman Vince McMahon’s vision for him into a successful career in both the WWE and with Dixie Carter’s TNA.

“I love Vince McMahon. He came up with the Kurt Angle character,” Angle said. “He ran with it and then I was able to run with it. I thank him for the opportunity he gave me. Vince McMahon was one of my best friends, period. Now I’m loyal to Dixie Carter.”

In addition to training, Angle has a full TNA schedule ahead of him over the next month. In February, he will head to the USOC facilities to showcase his talent for Team USA’s coach Zeke Jones. Angle is excited about the road ahead despite its hectic nature.

“I put everything I could into this. My true love is with amateur wrestling, that’s where I was born. I’ve always wanted to wrestle,” Angle said.

There is one downside to all of the training for Angle, though.

“I wrestled for 22 years and I never got cauliflower ear ... I’m pissed,” Angle said.

Paris9748430	bboy87 said: Paris9748430 said: Man, if they don't get Iron Sheik on that show, everyone involved with that network needs to be FIRED!!! They'd have the censors doing overtime when Sheik was in the show I bet Sgt. Slaughter will part of it and maybe Dusty And if they get Sheik to do it, they better get B. Brian Blair to do it too! JERKIN' EVERYTHING IN SIGHT!!!!!
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Paris9748430	bboy87 said: Paris9748430 said: And if they get Sheik to do it, they better get B. Brian Blair to do it too! And Koko B Ware. That job at UPS ain't doin' much for him Imagine if Missy Hyatt was part of it Why Koko gotta be working at UPS? And Missy Hyatt would just sleep with everybody, including the women! JERKIN' EVERYTHING IN SIGHT!!!!!
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alexnvrmnd777	bboy87 said: Paris9748430 said: And if they get Sheik to do it, they better get B. Brian Blair to do it too! And Koko B Ware. That job at UPS ain't doin' much for him Imagine if Missy Hyatt was part of it Hey, hey, HEY!! Don't nobody better talk about my Koko B. Ware!!
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Paris9748430	L4OATheOriginal said: [img:$uid]http://i61.photobucket.com/albums/h60/L4OA1969/bPWZ6.gif[/img:$uid] I was DYIN' the 1st time I saw that! Jericho is that dude! [Edited 1/5/12 21:06pm] JERKIN' EVERYTHING IN SIGHT!!!!!
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Timmy84	@ the sparkling Jericho gif.
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Timmy84	bboy87 said: Wow, damn I'm slow because I'm just realizing that Swagger is a complete Angle rip off I thought it was common knowledge.
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Timmy84	bboy87 said: Timmy84 said: Angle may have not had much of a personality but believe me it didn't stop me from yelling YOU SUCK to the TV screen at him. With Swagger, I was like I didn't say Kurt didn't have a personality, I said Swagger doesn't have the personality or toughness Kurt had Oh. The way you worded it sounded like you said Kurt. Because I'm like "he DID have personality... "
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Paris9748430	It looks like Daniel Bryan turned heel, which I'm all for. He was a complete dickhead on Smackdown and showed that he can be entertaining. Hell, he was more entertaining his 1st night as a heel than Wade Barrett has ever been! Just hilarious. Hope they keep the belt on him at least until Wrestlemania. JERKIN' EVERYTHING IN SIGHT!!!!!
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