Confessions of a middle-age wrestling fan

Episode II: we don’t know jack.

Welcome back.  This is a quick hit, today.  My intended next textcast was simply going to look at some of my top 10 favorite wrestlers and top 10 favorite finisher names.  The events of the last few days, and more specifically, mouth-breathers on Twitter today, have altered my plans.

First off, let me lead off by saying that I am probably going to buy TNA’s Bound For Glory PPV, the first TNA PPV I’ve bought since Lethal Lockdown to watch Raven vs. Jeff Hardy in 2005.  So yeah, I’m no TNA apologist.  Hogan has basically talked me into the matches and I have great affinity for Bobby Roode, AJ and Daniels.  Also, Kurt Angle does not have bad PPV matches.  Period.  There is just something in the air about this PPV which leads me to believe that TNA (I just can’t call it Impact Wrestling yet – I still call Deer Creek, Deer Creek, rather than Verizon Wireless Music Center) will pivot off this PPV into their next stage of evolution.  I have not watched a full episode of Impact since Hogan and Bischoff returned.  I want to now, though.

The social media coverage of this PPV has been interesting to watch.  And I have to say, as a fan of wrestling since the early 80s, I have finally decided that wrestling fans do not understand what is going on.  Sure, the curtain is lifted about worked finishes and fake rivalries, but we clearly do not understand what the work is psychologically.

This past week, Hulk Hogan said the following things about Bobby Roode and AJ Styles:

(http://bleacherreport.com/articles/895759-tna-wrestling-hulk-hogan-was-right-with-his-pre-bound-for-glory-comments):

On Bobby Roode:  “Nah, he’s not ready. He’s not the next guy. Ya’ know, they might think he is. Dixie Carter might think he is. The whole world might think he is. He’s not the next guy. If I had to bet money on anybody and really be serious about betting
money on anybody, I’d say Jeff Hardy is the next guy if he keeps his act
together. Um, that’s what you gotta to have, man.

“This is much more than being a wrestler, this is crossing barriers, medias, ya’ know media barriers, and, and entertainment barriers of all kind. Getting your character down verbally has 90 percent to do with getting over. I just have a very strong feeling Kurt Angle’s going to clean his clock performance wise, and carry the match, and basically remains the champion. He’s training for the Olympics. He’s had some up and down moments, and I think this is not gonna be a down
moment for Kurt Angle, so I’m betting that farm on him.”

On AJ Styles:  “It’s never too late. I mean, I just don’t know. I, when I first came in all
bright-eyed and bushy-tailed a couple of years ago, I had a ton of suggestions
which I was kind of pushing real hard, which I thought would take him to a
crazy, crazy level, and nobody responded. So, I don’t know at this point. I
have my ideas, but a lot of things that I believe in, and what I feel from the
crowd, and what I know. The little I know about this business. Sometimes, it’s
either taken and used, or used and it doesn’t work, or it’s not used at all. So,
it’s just...it’s my opinion. I don’t know at this point.”

And the internet devices wept.  Listen, I am no expert whatsoever in wrestling.  Never trained (not yet, anyway!).  Never laced up a boot.  Never been on the inside.  But I am a rationally thinking person, and I have a rudimentary understanding of how storytelling works.  A guy, especially THE guy who is the George Washington of modern professional wrestling, does not go onto ESPN mere days before an important PPV and talk about people that he does not believe in; that he thinks are never-gonna-bes.  Talking about Roode and AJ on ESPN instantly elevates their stock.  TNA has taken a lot of criticism for keeping their home-grown talent mid-card level and Hogan’s comments play off that perception, building heat.  His comments also firmly place Roode and AJ as underdogs.  You’re supposed to root for them and his comment ought to make you want to root for them.  Hogan’s media blitz this week was thoughtful and intentional.

And Boom!  Now you want to see AJ and Roode do well at the PPV, and you want to see Hogan taken down a notch.  Will you spend money to see those things happen?  That is the true measure of Hogan’s press blitz this week.  Not whether you believe he insulted some fan favorites.  I, for one, do want to see.  I did not before Hogan went to the masses this week.  Mission accomplished.

My father, a big fan from the 60s and 70s era and less so in the 80s, brought me into the wrestling when I was growing up in the 80s.  He was an NWA and WCCW guy.  He loved the Von Erichs, Magnum TA and Ronnie Garvin.  It would drive him nuts when Flair (the heel champion at the time) Ronnie Garvin.  “That mealy mouth Flair shouldn’t last a minute against Garvin,” he’d rail on and on.  He hated Flair.  Even as a kid, though, I got it.  You were supposed to hate Flair, who was unrivaled on a microphone, so you would root for Garvin, who was not called the “Man with the Mouth of Stone.”  I remember those battles with Flair and Garvin.  And of course, I remember Flair running his mouth.  I do not recall a single word uttered by Garvin. 

You’re supposed to be angry with Hogan.  Not because he’s doing it wrong!  Because he’s doing it old school right!  And I’ll tell you something else.  In the interim since I started writing this textcast and right now, I’ve had a few angered Twitter responses about Hogan needing to retire, he’s selfish, blah blah blah.  I’ll tell you what.  Growing up in the WWF 80s, I was more of a Piper guy (kid) than Hogan guy (kid).  But I finally had the pleasure of watching Hogan wrestling at a Smackdown taping in Indianapolis when he and Edge were tag teaming back in 2002.  I’ll never forget it. 

As long as guys like Dusty, Ric, Hogan and Sting still want to and can safely lace up their boots and perform, they will be worth seeing.  In any combination, thereof.  Or all of them in a Fatal 4-Way.   Or Ric and Hogan vs. Sting and Dusty (the only real sensible tag team booking for this foursome).

So… here endith the lesson.  Internet wrestling fans:  Take a deep breath.  Calm down.  And buy Bound For Glory.

Next time, we’ll talk about those favorite finishers and favorite wrestlers and I’ll defend the unpopular notion of why the October 10^th RAW was not as bad as all that.  Or at least, why I have hope because of it.

Leave comments in the comment device.

Follow-me on Twitter: @TheWinterCraig.

Deuces!

PostScript:  Yup.  People are mad about Roode's match.  Not I.  I am glad to know that they are not rushing things with him.  Too many really talented guys have been pushed too far too quickly.  I know fans are frustrated.  Just like fans of WWE are frustrated about CM Punk.  But here is a little history lesson:  a young up can comer named Stone Cold Steve Austin finally broke from the pack in a little-known promo against Jake The Snake Roberts.  Austin 3:16 something something or other.  That was June of 1996.  Austin, under other names, had already been in the business for five years.  3:16 put him on the map, and his Wrestlemania 13 match against Bret Hart made him.  Face covered in juice.  Passing out from the Sharpshooter.  Gimme a Hell Yeah!  That was March of 1997.  With the crowd firmly behind him, Austin still did not win his first World Championship until a year later at Wrestlemania 14 in March of 1998. 

As in the case of Punk, who already has admirable accolades in WWE (MitB wins back to back, multiple world title reigns), his "3:16" moment was the shoot interview back in June.  Here we are only a handful of months later and fans are crying foul because he has not been crowned king champion supreme of WWE.  Let it breath.  Give it time.

Professional Wrestling is a marathon, not a sprint.  Be patient, keep cheering for Roode.  Keep cheering for AJ.  Keep cheering for Punk.  Enjoy the ride, and the story and let these happen.

Confessions of a middle-age comic book fan

Episode I: A middle-age book report on launch month of DC’s New 52

*Author’s note:  This review has been largely written for two weeks.  The delay in going to “press” is that I am still awaiting the arrival of two DC subscriptions from the middle of last month: NIGHTWING and RED HOOD & THE OUTLAWS.  I called DC subscriptions; they said they sent them but I do not have them, etc etc.  So here we are, two weeks late and two books short. I did finally get TEEN TITANS just this weekend, so we’re going forward; “we’re doing it live!

There are really four phases of books that I encountered last month, so I’ll present them to you on the level that I engaged with them.  First, the books that I already subscribed to before the relaunch (or news of the relaunch).  Second, books that I picked up because I lost two titles to the relaunch.  Third, books that I picked up at the store because of recommendations or impulse buys.  Fourth, books that that skimmed through off the rack, but opted not to purchase.

Before the relaunch, I subscribed to BATMAN, DETECTIVE, BATMAN & ROBIN, BATMAN INC., RED ROBIN, GREEN LANTERN and THE DARK KNIGHT.  Despite my initial hesitation, and conflicting information from DC subscription service, I kept my subscriptions to most of these titles.  I loved what Scott Snyder did with Dick Grayson in Detective over the last year, so I was excited to see what he would do with Bruce Wayne in the core Batman book. 

BATMAN was exceptional.  I cannot say enough positive things about Snyder’s work.  And in the interest of full disclosure, Snyder’s promotion to BATMAN is the sole reason I kept my DC subscriptions.  BATMAN & ROBIN was fun, but lacked the ingenuity, energy and verve of Morrison’s run.  Also, poor Damian can’t catch a break.  It feels like we are reliving the initial arc of B&R where Damian must earn trust and goodwill once more.  It has the benefit of being familiar, yet different, a necessary growing pain in the new father & son dynamic.

GREEN LANTERN.  I’m of mixed feeling on this book.  I have not read War of the Green Lanterns yet; I missed one of the early GLC tie-ins and I hate missing an issue before reading a story for the first time.  So until I get off my duff and buy that backissue, I’m a little out of touch about exactly why Sinestro has Hal’s ring.  I do enjoy seeing Hal adjust to being a guy, and being further down the ladder than he was before getting the ring.  This will be a great opportunity to define who Hal is first before inevitably putting a GL ring back on his finger.

DETECTIVE COMICS.  Again, I do not wish to get into spoilers, but the shock ending of this book ruined it for me.  It’s not a story-telling concern.  I’m patient enough to see where a story goes before passing judgment on it.  The visual itself was a downer.  And, as the father of a 13 year old budding comic book fan, it was a deal-breaker.  That book is not new reader friendly for young readers.  I’ll likely drop this book for something better (which I’ll get to in a minute) if Tony Daniel cannot lock it down.

I dropped Finch’s DARK KNIGHT.  For a couple reasons.  One, I’m of the opinion that we fans should not enable late issues, especially on “monthly” titles.   Two, the story felt right out of the Loeb playbook.  I thought I was rereading HUSH on accident at first.  I do, finally, have all five issues of this volume, but I dropped the title for the relaunch and I’ll most likely HFB (Half Price Book) it.  **Author’s note:  In the time since I first wrote this review and, well, today, I have already sold all of Finch’s DARK KNIGHT to HPB.  Three, I just didn’t like it.  I’m not here to convince you not to like it.  Just not my tea cup.

BATMAN INC. and RED ROBIN are no more.  So I swapped three subscriptions (counting the exile of DARK KNIGH) and added: NIGHTWING (I’m a Dick Grayson fan for the first time thanks largely to Morrison and Snyder’s work with him.  I also picked up TEEN TITANS, as I am a huge Tim Drake fan (I made my own Robin costume for Halloween a few years back using Tim’s red One Year Later costume) and with the loss the of the excellent RED ROBIN, TEEN TITANS is my only Tim Drake recourse.  I also picked up RED HOOD & THE OUTSIDERS.  I have loved what Judd Winick has down with Jason Todd since Under the Hood and Red Hood: Lost Days and even though my favorite former REAL WORLD cast member is not writing Red Hood & Co., I felt I owe Jason some support.

Both Red Hood and Teen Titans are written by Lobdell and both have the distinction of being the first two new 52 books that I will probably drop.  How in the world DC can produce books that portray women in such a strong, non-objectified manner (Wonder Woman, Batwoman, Batgirl) alongside the treatment of Catwoman (sorry Judd, but no) and Starfire in Red Hood is beyond me.

Now that I finally have TEEN TITANS in my hand, I can say that I will at least give it a try.  The art is solid and I’m just too much of a Tim Drake fan to completely let it go.  The most difficult part is that I have no interest at all in Wonder Girl, Superboy or Kid Flash.  While this could be a negative, I view it as a golden opportunity to sell me on the rest of the Titans.  I did enjoy Kid Flash’s impulsive (get it?) “heroics” at the beginning of the book.

Speaking of Batwoman, this was one of my impulse buys.  Well, not really impulse.  G4’s Blair Butler (@BlairButler – follow her!) gave the JH Williams book high marks.  Williams penciled Greg Rucka’s run on Batwoman when she headlined Detective for nine issues.  Batwoman is visually outstanding (it might take a few re-glances to follow the panel flow) because the art is so gorgeous.  It almost looks like a mosaic.

Other impulse buys: ACTION COMICS (which is fantastic and the last Superman book that I enjoyed was Red Son).  Superman is fun and flippant and fights the man with a smile and a wink.  You need know nothing at all about Superman to get into this book, and if you are a long time fan, there are plenty of Easter Eggs to keep you smiling.  Wonder Woman (touted as a horror story related to mythology and delivering on the touting).  It’s moody and bloody and not the most kid-friendly introduction to Wonder Woman.  I’m a fan of Harley Quin (from B:TAS and  the Arkham Asylum video game) so I had to check her out in SUICIDE SQUAD.  I am not overly familiar with the rest of the cast, so I did not have much expectation other than to want to read the next issue.  I do not.  There’s no since in grading this comic because not wanting to read another issue of it is a greater indictment against it than any subjective rating I can give.

I did buy Batgirl, mostly out of curiosity about whether KILLING JOKE, never intended for main continuity to begin with, was still around.  And it is.  I must give credit to Gail Simone: I’ve never liked what has been done with Barbara Gordon since Killing Joke.  I didn’t like that DC maintained her crippling.  That being said, Simone clearly is setting up some great character growth with Barbara’s post traumatic stress disorder.  As we have a whole generation of brave young men and women at risk of PTSD for their service in Iraq and Afghanistan, I hope Simone uses this as a teachable moment about PTSD in the way Aaron Sorkin chose to give President Bartlett MS in WEST WING.  We CAN have great drama and learn something at the same time.  I will likely not continue buying BATGIRL, but not because of quality.  I just cannot make room for it in my budget.  Just as with Simone’s SECRET SIX, I’ll have to HPB or eBay it.  But Batgirl looks to be the best book I am not getting.

Books I passed on, for various reasons.  Grifter was the only IMAGE comic character that I really enjoyed (KINDRED crossover was pretty cool).  I was tempted to buy Grifter’s book and skimmed it at the LCS.  But I passed.  It was not just appealing to me.

I was tempted to buy FLASH, having enjoyed Geoff Johns REBIRTH treatment last year, but I did not read FLASHPOINT.

Now, if you are any good at maths, you’ll notice that the paltry sum of books discussed here are < 52.  I never promised you that I’d review all 52 books.  Or a rose garden (Google it!)  I think that I have read enough “cornerstone” books to get a sense on whether the DC relaunch is successful, for me, as a collector and father of a new collector.   It’s too early to be sure, of course, but so far, so good.   Action Comics, Batman, Batwoman, Batman & Robin, Green Lantern, Wonder Woman and Batgirl are all worth the price of admission.  It is a shame that Detective Comics is so unfriendly to children, as one would think Action and Detective ought to be flagship all-age titles.  For my money, Batwoman is the best of the crop.  I even went out and bought her backissues by Rucka and Williams (and you should, too).

Ah, well after all that let’s take a step back, let out a deep breath to cleanse the pallet.  So what was the best relaunch of September?  ULTIMATE SPIDER-MAN 1 by Bendis.  Fooled you, didn’t I?   My own 13 year old son is engaged with comics in a way he has never been by Miles Morales and the two of us have been chasing down the first USM run, which is no easy task.  We’re only about halfway through the 160 issues and loving every panel of it.

But what about the best DC relaunches, you ask?  BATWOMAN, BATMAN and ACTION COMICS.  In that order.  Get on it.

And I’ll see you all next issue when we take a look at some of the September sales figures, issue #2s and my unveiled excitement over Marvel’s teasers for the coming year.

Follow me on the Twitter device: @TheWinterCraig.  Feel free to post (friendly and/or constructive) all-age friendly commentary in the comment section.  What did I get wrong?  What did I inspire in you?  What do you think about this new DC?