Some Pro Wrestling Notes
I really didn't intend to write a regular segment in my journal format posts on the scripted world of pro wrestling. It's coming up again, stimulated by Trump using a mock video from his Wrestlemania "hair vs. hair match" with WWE owner/CEO Vince McMahon (replacing Vince's head with a CNN logo) in an infamous tweet. (I'm sure Trump is reasonably fit, giving his golf habit, but if you've ever seen McMahon, even at over 70 years old, he's jacked (just do an image search, and you'll probably catch a photo or two from Muscle & Fitness). Heel McMahon has always put over other personalities and athletes (Stone Cold Steve Austin comes immediately to mind); I seriously doubt Trump wanted an honest fight with McMahon or would risk his trademark hairstyle.The other recent note is the news that WWE released Austin Aries after a short-lived stay in the developmental NXT and a high-profile challenge to cruiserweight champ Neville on the main (Raw) roster (not to mention a gruesome eye socket injury along the way). I just don't understand how WWE books some things and/or talent. Aries is a case in point; he's extraordinarily agile and a good talker. I could have easily seen him reignite or start feuds with ex-TNA alumni (e.g., Samoa Joe, AJ Styles, etc.), Finn Balor, Kevin Owens, Ziggler, Zahn or Orton. I would have found him a much more compelling heel champion than Jinder Mahal.
It's not just Aries that WWE didn't seem to know how to book. Take Apollo Crews, who not only has phenomenal high-flying moves (including a trademark standing moonsault) but is a powerhouse, an instantly credible challenger for a title; I had never seen anyone like him when he debuted on NXT. But they have him in some weak storyline with Titus O'Neil as part of his brand and jobbed him to monster Braun Strowman in a recent Raw.
I'm still not a fan of Jinder Mahal and his politically correct promos; I mean, a heel champion shouldn't really give a damn what the fans think of him The obvious booking is to have returning "All American" John Cena feud with him to a record count championship reign.
The thing that is working is the Samoa Joe-Lesnar feud. Also, it looks like WWE has finally made an unlikely star as a big man in Braun Strowman. But as for Balor, Orton, Styles, the Shield, the Bullet Club, the Hardyz, etc., creative doesn't seem to have much going for them. The tag divisions are uninspired; the only compelling team is a novelty act, the New Day. We need some heel or face turns, some reunions or new alliances. They finally did bust up the Enzo-Big Cass tag team (long overdue); there had been an unrequited rumor they would put the tag team belts on them. Enzo is a very good talker; my guess is he's headed for the talented cruiserweight division; he's not a credible threat for one of the other belts. As for Big Cass, I'm not a fan; he has a limited, predictable arsenal (e.g., the big boot). WWE has a history of pushing gigantic men who just don't go over, so when someone like Braun Strowman does go over in his "Monster Among Men" persona, it's notable. I feared when they brought over his old mentor, Bray Wyatt, they might tinker with his emerging character. I have heard one Internet rumor that they might do a Goldust/Wyatt conflict after Goldust finishes his feud with ex-tag partner, R-Truth. Wyatt is another character they don't know what to do with, although they briefly put the belt on him before switching brands. For someone who has scripted secret powers, he goes under in far too many of his matches, and his "I am a god" talk is over the top..
The biggest news over the weekend is they put Styles over Owens to win the US championship at a live event in NYC, a fairly rare move (usually title changes occur during the PPV's or the weekly brand TV shows); I can recall the tag titles changing hands in the 1980's at a house show. The US title had been a minor belt picked up from WWE's acquisition of WCW; I can recall Ambrose holding the title while still with the Shield and rarely defending it. It's not that I mind Styles having a title, especially since it doesn't look like he's going to get a shot at the WWE championship anytime soon, but I don't like them making Owens look weak in taking a belt off him--again. I'm sure there will be the usual rematch. But I think it unlikely that they swap the belt again over the next PPV. I suspect they are planning to put Nakamura up against Styles for the championship. But what becomes of Owens? Could we see old friends Owens and Zahn reunite into a tag team?
And we have yet to see why WWE has heavily promoted returning "Free Agent" John Cena. Presumably that means they can shuttle Cena between the 2 brands.
Nostalgia
Twitter had a recent hashtag game of how you know you're getting old. I had a trio of related Tweets (see earlier posts this week), but I was pleasantly surprised when people seemed to respond to the memory of my siblings and me picking out penny candy at a variety store (ironically bearing the given name of my Dad). Heaven knows the proprietors didn't make much profit over a quarter's worth of candy to us kids, but I think they got a kick out of it. I remember all sorts of goodies: candy cigarettes, Bazooka bubble gum, wax lips, pixy stix, candy buttons, etc. My (maternal) Grandfather was the owner of a mom-and-pop grocer across the street from the variety store and frequently gave us each a nickel to spend there. (I never knew my paternal grandfather, who died during my Dad's middle school years,)My maternal grandfather was also my godfather. He loved his 7 grandchildren, but he had a stern side too. He loved to watch the national news (two of the broadcasts, because one started a half hour later in the local market), and you didn't dare talk during the news. But when we stayed with him twice for a few weeks of the school year (my Dad was assigned to France and then the next year to South Carolina and had to secure family housing), I and/or the oldest of my 4 sisters would drop by the store to bring home some groceries for Mom to prepare for dinner; Grandfather used to keep a huge jar of Hershey's kisses on his counter and would put in a few into the bags we would carry home. I still recall him playing "Ring Around the Rosie" with us in our front yard.
I don't know how my Grandfather's business survived during the Depression, never mind the supermarkets, but he would often preach his pro-customer ethic, sometimes opening his store (a few blocks away from home, no car) in the middle of the night if they needed milk, a loaf of bread or whatever. (I've never had a milk or bread emergency, but I once went to shop at WalMart for moving boxes at 4 AM.) With only 2 children, who turned out to be a priest and a homemaker, and his partner, younger brother Oscar with no dependents, he closed down the store when he retired. I think it was replaced by a bar.
Which leads to one of the sadder stories of his life. I never really knew my godmother, my maternal grandmother, who died while I was 2, my mother barely in her twenties. She died from complications of colon cancer. I think I have a card or two in my trunk signed by her "GrandMA and GrandPA". This may not sound that unusual, but my bilingual grandparents (and parents) usually spoke French at home, and my mom and the oldest sister go by traditional Mémère. (Well, my folks spoke it at home until I started kindergarten with French my dominant language. The teacher couldn't cope, and there were some empty threats to hold me back, so my parents went all-English, all-the-time at home. To this day, my younger siblings hold me responsible for their not being bilingual.) In any event, Grandfather was a workaholic; in fact, my folks got married on a holiday which wouldn't interfere with store operations. His plan had been for him and his wife to travel during retirement. When she died a few years shy of retirement, his whole world turned upside down.
I really liked his store. Granduncle Oscar was the butcher, and I swear to God he made the tastiest sausages. But I'm afraid I didn't make a good impression on him. One day we kids were in the back of the store and saw a huge barrel with a spigot. My sister and brother double-dog dared me, the oldest, to open the spigot to see what was in there. We watched in fascination as this brown liquid oozed down (molasses). Only I couldn't shut off the spigot. My siblings quickly went out front, yelling to everyone come see the mess Ronald made. Uncle Oscar cleaned up the mess and never forgot it. More than a decade later, I went to visit Grandfather for Christmas while my family was at an AFB in Germany. We went to Oscar and Millie's for dinner, and Oscar brings up the molasses story.
