andrew "the ref" coyne Posted March 3 Share Posted March 3 11 hours ago, HarmonicGenerator said: Nigel was having a good time on this show. Floored by Mariah May paying him a bit of attention, and then confirming that Brian Cage is in fact Christian Cage’s cousin during the main event. I know Im probably the only one who thinks this, and as amazing a talent as Mariah May is (she has a very bright future), I can't help but feel AEW and May herself arn't playing the character right consistently. If it's based on the 1950s movie 'All About Eve', she's suppose to be a over eager fan, but in her matches and AEW social content comes across as this incredibly confident, flirty and powerful woman. The only time she seems to be accurate of the character, i.e. humble / nervous / adoring is when she is on screen with Toni. Id rather we had the slow build towards her becoming these things. Like acting a little more shy, dressed a bit more plainly. Then slowly but surely start growing and changing and Toni noticing these changes, before she gets a opportunity at the number one contendership because Toni is running late to work one day etc etc etc. I just feel like they've missed so many milestones in her evolution. Is it just me? Am I being unreasonable?   Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedRooster Posted March 3 Share Posted March 3 26 minutes ago, andrew "the ref" coyne said: Is it just me? Am I being unreasonable? Plenty of confident and powerful seeming people are superfans of celebrities, I don’t think it’s an unrealistic portrayal. Having said that, I’m not sure it’s the best use of Mariah and it doesn’t let her show her personality in a way that could draw money. Her episode of Hey EW really shows what she could be for the company - there’s a level of wit, understanding and comic timing that she’s not been able to show much of on television yet. Which wouldn’t matter so much if she added something to Toni’s act, or if she was gaining something from Toni. I’m not sure the partnership is benefitting either woman. I don’t think it’s hurting them, but I think Mariah is a little underutilised. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andrew "the ref" coyne Posted March 4 Share Posted March 4 3 hours ago, RedRooster said: Plenty of confident and powerful seeming people are superfans of celebrities, I don’t think it’s an unrealistic portrayal. Having said that, I’m not sure it’s the best use of Mariah and it doesn’t let her show her personality in a way that could draw money. Her episode of Hey EW really shows what she could be for the company - there’s a level of wit, understanding and comic timing that she’s not been able to show much of on television yet. Which wouldn’t matter so much if she added something to Toni’s act, or if she was gaining something from Toni. I’m not sure the partnership is benefitting either woman. I don’t think it’s hurting them, but I think Mariah is a little underutilised. Actually that episode of Hey EW is what started me thinking this. The character on that was so different from the fawning super fan. Let me be clear, I don't quite like the portrayal for the sake of the story. She's meant to bloom into this self absorbed asshole like Toni. But I can see Mariah May is fucking awesome as is Toni. The minute her contract with AEW comes to a end, WWE will snap her up (or attempt it). She's really good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedRooster Posted March 4 Share Posted March 4 5 hours ago, andrew "the ref" coyne said: Actually that episode of Hey EW is what started me thinking this. The character on that was so different from the fawning super fan. Let me be clear, I don't quite like the portrayal for the sake of the story. She's meant to bloom into this self absorbed asshole like Toni. But I can see Mariah May is fucking awesome as is Toni. The minute her contract with AEW comes to a end, WWE will snap her up (or attempt it). She's really good. I don't mind the idea of a confident, strong character who has one blind spot - their admiration for a self-absorbed arsehole heel. It's a bit different, and I think it could work. But, like you, I don't think it's working with Mariah. I'm really surprised that WWE didn't snap her up when she was available, but I would be surprised if they didn't aggressively pursue almost every wrestler in that division as their contracts expire. There's a wealth of riches when it comes to female wrestlers in AEW, and I really hope the signing of Mercedes Mone helps give them the profile and prominence they deserve. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members BomberPat Posted March 4 Paid Members Share Posted March 4 I assume that the eventual twist in the story will be Mariah May manipulating Toni into granting her a title shot, or otherwise finding a way to betray and prove that she's been playing her along. She's faking the lack of confidence in front of Toni, and being her real self everywhere else. Toni will still fall for it, because it's established in canon that she never watches Mariah's matches. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Infinity Land Posted March 4 Share Posted March 4 If you remember Toni Storm descended into Timeless after losing her title. I've figured the dynamic between Toni and Mariah will play out more once Toni drops the title and it feels like they're passing each other. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andrew "the ref" coyne Posted March 5 Share Posted March 5 12 hours ago, BomberPat said: I assume that the eventual twist in the story will be Mariah May manipulating Toni into granting her a title shot, or otherwise finding a way to betray and prove that she's been playing her along. She's faking the lack of confidence in front of Toni, and being her real self everywhere else. Toni will still fall for it, because it's established in canon that she never watches Mariah's matches. I reckon she'll take everything. The manager, the gimmick, the title.... it will be fantastic. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members JLM Posted March 5 Paid Members Share Posted March 5 Collison 24/02/24 Sammy vs Hobbs was a belting opener. Classic big man/little man match with great heat and intensity, peppered with some absolutely outrageous highspots. Everything looked fantastic here, though my favourite had to be the flying spinebuster from the ring to the tables on the floor. Hobbs is awesome, wish he'd wrestle more often. I am largely done with Sammy as a character but he was great here too. Shane Taylor Promotions vs FTR was a quality TV tag match. Cash Wheeler in particular was on fire for this one. Moriarty and Taylor both got some shine, Moriarty outwrestling Cash at the start and Taylor looking dominant against Dax for most of it. Beautiful finishing sequence with a series of counters seamlessly ending with a blind tag and Moriarty in position for a powerbomb/top rope clothesline combo. This looked very cool but also made sense, because the story of the match was that Moriarty and Taylor can hang with each FTR member individually but aren't as experienced as a tag team.  Great promo from Dax after the match. They want to take down Mox because he's the king of AEW, most people backstage are afraid of BCC but FTR aren't. The most straightforward build imagineable for this match at Revolution and I have no problem with that at all. Thunder Rosa squashed a jobber. Wonder when she'll get something to do on this show. Acclaimed entrance with Max's rap petering out was very bad. Good lord. I was cautiously willing to let this Bang Bang Scissor Gang thing play out for a bit, but I prefer both acts separately and this is diminishing Bullet Club Gold big time now. Malakai vs Bryan Keith was a match on the show. Loved the Mark Briscoe lights out attack. Lady Frost vs Serena Deeb. I like this match a lot on paper. Two of the better in-ring performers on the roster and a fun clash of styles. The commentators mentioned that this was thrown together after Kiera Hogan dropped out, and I did think it showed a bit during the match. It was OK, but there were definitely moments where they weren't clicking and had to massively telegraph their next move/wait for the other person to do something. Got better as it went on and had the nice simple story of Deeb wearing down the knee. Also liked the classic single leg crab as the finish. Obviously made sense after all the leg work, but I also appreciate it when submission-based wrestlers can win with all sorts of different holds. I like that Deeb gets post-match promos after these exhibition type matches she's having. She's not an amazing promo but is capable enough, and it's important to hear from these characters. I thought the content was pretty good here too: "When the professor wrestles, the lights don't go out, when the professor wrestles, the screen doesn't go black and white, when the professor wrestles, SHE WRESTLES". I know "I'm a serious wrestler" is not the most novel gimmick, but in contrast with the current champions who have all the bells and whistles, it genuinely does set her apart. She also pulls it off in the ring with how smooth and technically sound shei. Interesting that she had a line about "anyone who wants to join" the division too. I'm a fan of this return so far and intrigued to see where she heads next. Main event was fantastic. Akiyama is such a crafty veteran. He can't move quite like he used to but he wrings every bit of value out of every single thing he does. Danielson is the best pro wrestler, so he of course understands exactly how to get the most out of this match too. They got a "this is awesome" chant, and what they had actually done in the match in terms of physical action was so minimal by AEW standards. Akiyama's knee drop to Bryan Danielson on the apron was a great example. It looked great, but more importantly Akiyama waited to make sure every fan in the arena was engaged with what he was about to do before delivering the move. Anything can be a high spot if you can convince the crowd it's a high spot. Pure pro wrestling. Kelly and Kingston nerding out on the desk were a joy to listen to throughout. Akiyama putting the guillotine, Kingston immediately notes that he choked out Kenta Kobashi with it. Kingston says early on Akiyama is a wily veteran and will dig an elbow in/use the old tricks if needed; Akiyama goes for a quick eye rake to escape a hold. All punctuated by Nigel's ongoing verbal assassination of the clam digger. Particularly loved him snitching to Eddie about Danielson's comments when he'd been on the desk. Post match was perfect. I thought Danielson was going to jump Akiyama, but having Akiyama slap him first for disrespecting Eddie and *then* Danielson goes for the low blow was even better. The Kingston/Danielson story is one of the best things in wrestling, can't wait to get to the Revolution match! Ploughing through this backlog at speed to get there before I run into any spoilers. Very strong episode. Keith vs Malakai could have been shorter and I'm not loving Bang Bang Scissor Gang, but everything else was good or excellent. Collision 02/03/24 Briscoe's attack on HOB to start the show was bloody brilliant. I like that Briscoe is brave, pissed off but not stupid. The sneak attack itself was smart, but he was also ready for the reinforcements and had counters to everything they threw at him. Stealing the pyro controls was genius, did not see that one coming! Mark Briscoe is a treasure, was so pumped for him coming out on top. Great little promo from Swerve. Not really even mad about Hangman for the shenanigans on Dynamite, just mildly annoyed at himself for getting Swerved. Bryan Keith vs Penta vs Dante Martin. I'll be honest I was itching to get to Revolution so I skimmed through this one. I wanted Penta to win and was disappointed that he didn't. Amazing promo from Hangman. The absolutely deranged rantings of a dangerously obsessed man. Full on crazy eyes. I appreciate that he still briefly apologises to the fans for lying to them. He still believes he's a good guy but his melon is beyond twisted. It's not even "I did what I had to do" like the ends justify the means, it was an even more base level "I HAD TO DO IT!". Loved this. Nigel hitting the deck from Mariah blowing him a kiss was funny. Nigel is consistently great on Collision these days. Took me a while to warm up to him as I always found him a bit grating in NXT, but he has found his groove and made me a fan. He justifies the heels' actions to a preposterous degree and makes fun quips, but he also clearly understands and helps to convey the stories being told. Mariah was pleasingly mean to the jobber. The running knee to the face in particular looked brutal. Toni ducking under Mariah's hug to get to the mic was hilarious. What a counter. Another strong Purazzo/Storm segment. The split screen with both of them face to face was my favourite use of it yet. Skipped Dark Order vs Bang Bang Scissor Gang. Wardlow/Jericho promo was too long, and nobody wants to hear Jericho talk about winning the World Title in 2024. Warlow still sounded good, but yeah, it was far too long-winded. Ahh the past couple of weeks of Wardlow minus the devil goon bullshit would have been pretty good. Private Party vs Styles and Daniels is a no thank you from me. Jarrett deserves better than this. Main event was fine but of little consequence and I just want to watch Revolution now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members LaGoosh Posted March 6 Paid Members Share Posted March 6 7 hours ago, JLM said: Cash Wheeler in particular was on fire for this one Cash has recently been wrestling every match like it's his last (maybe it will be?). He's been a constant wrecking ball and maniac, love to see it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members BomberPat Posted March 6 Paid Members Share Posted March 6 (edited) 10 hours ago, JLM said: Bryan Keith vs Penta vs Dante Martin. I'll be honest I was itching to get to Revolution so I skimmed through this one. I wanted Penta to win and was disappointed that he didn't. One of the things I really enjoyed about AEW early on is that I was always far more invested just in who would win or lose for winning or losing's sake, whereas in WWE that doesn't tend to matter that much, and you're second-guessing every booking decision based on the politics of it all - "well, they're going to want the belt on this guy so he has it in Saudi Arabia" or "they're not going to have the title change hands before Wrestlemania", or just the more deeply rooted "this isn't the kind of wrestler WWE normally pushes". AEW for a long time was pleasingly free of that, and the downside of the CMLL relationship is that it's brought some of that in - I couldn't buy Penta winning this match, because of the CMLL deal apparently meaning that no other Mexican talent can wrestle on shows they wrestle on. It's a shame to have that kind of political reasoning colouring things. Edited March 6 by BomberPat Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members Supremo Posted March 7 Paid Members Share Posted March 7 Kevin Kelly gone? What a year for this company. Strength to strength. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chili Posted March 7 Share Posted March 7 14 minutes ago, Supremo said: Kevin Kelly gone? What a year for this company. Strength to strength. Which company has more announcers though? We need more tribal conflict!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members Lorne Malvo Posted March 7 Paid Members Share Posted March 7 I hated him at first, but Kevin Kelly had really settled into his role in the past few months and the Kelly-Nigel-Tone team was often a highlight of Collision. I'll be sad if he's gone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr_Danger Posted March 7 Share Posted March 7 19 minutes ago, Chili said: Which company has more announcers though? We need more tribal conflict!!!! One Samantha Irving>Infinite AEW announcers*  *Check the secret troll forum to see who I’ve been commissioned to trigger. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members Lion_of_the_Midlands Posted March 7 Paid Members Share Posted March 7 I really like Ricobani, but not enough to learn how to spell his name correctly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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