Blog Archives
WWF Championship: The Undertaker vs. Hulk Hogan, Survivor Series 1991
Soon after The Undertaker made his World Wrestling Federation debut at the Survivor Series in 1990, he set his cross-hairs on the World Wrestling Federation Championship and it’s then-title holder, Hulk Hogan. Everything initially began on November 16, 1991, when Ric Flair and The Undertaker attacked Hulk Hogan on the set of Paul Bearer’s Funeral Parlor interview show, but later Randy Savage and Roddy Piper fought off both Undertaker and Flair to protect Hogan. This would culminate in Hogan facing off with Undertaker for the championship at the 1991 Survivor Series, coined as “The Gravest Challenge.” Check out more about the match (including a video) and the fallout after the break. Read the rest of this entry
“The Great Gatsby” Coming in December; Don “Dick Whitman” Draper Would Be Proud
The 7th recognized film translation of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s classic 1925 novel, The Great Gatsby, is scheduled to be released on December 25, 2012 (INNNNN THREEEEEE-DDDDDDDDD; why?). The Great Gatsby is an American romantic drama film directed by Baz Luhrmann (director of William Shakespeare’s Romeo + Juliet and Moulin Rouge), and will star Leonardo DiCaprio as Jay Gatsby, Carey Mulligan as Daisy Buchanan, and Tobey Maguire as Nick Carraway (the original novel’s narrator). Check out the trailer after the break.
It’s a bird, it’s a plane, it’s Super Wi-Fi!!
Some number of years ago, there was an announcement of the wonderful technology called Super Wi-Fi. It was proposed to off fast, high-speed internet through the vacant spaces between TV network transmissions. Currently, the first public network that is now actively using Super WiFi is in Wilmington, North Carolina.
Now, why Wilmington exactly. Well, it’s pretty simple; Wilmington (mainly its county, New Hanover County) was the first area to transition to digital TV broadcasts from analog. Based on that, they were able to start ahead over other areas (including larger cities like Los Angeles, New York, Chicago, etc.) to get their local Super Wi-Fi network up. Ugh.
[Thank you NetworkWorld]
Fan Builds Own Custom House from “The Hobbit”
“Lord of the Rings” fan Simon Dale was tired and uninterested in the typical, cookie-cutter suburban homes (or, in his words, “mass produced box design” homes). Dale, who is neither an architect nor contractor, moved his family to a Welsh countryside and designed and built a house in the fashion of “The Hobbit” of his beloved series. Read the rest of this entry
"Bring back WWE King of the Ring," says WWE.com
I’ve been saying this OVER & OVER & OVER again since 2003.
In this article from WWE.com, writer Michael Burdick discusses his wish for the WWE to bring back King of the Ring, one of the company’s trademark and (formally) annual events, citing the history-making moments and the potiential of increasing talent credentials with current WWE stars. What began as a annual live show in 1985 and became an annual pay-per-view event in 1993, WWE cancelled the event after the 2002 edition, only to bring it back in a small-scale form in 2006, 2008, and 2010 during episodes of RAW or SmackDown.
I recall WWE removing King of the Ring due to their wishes to not have so many “gimmicky” pay-per-view events; to quote Mike “The Miz” Mizanin, “Really?! Really?!” The number of gimmicky pay-per-view events that the WWE has produced since the King of the Ring pay-per-view went the way of the do-do include, but not limited to: Elimination Chamber, Hell in a Cell, Money in the Bank, Fatal 4 Way, Breaking Point, Over the Limit, Taboo Tuesday, Cyber Sunday, etc. Don’t worry, I suppose the irony is lost on me, too.
Anyway, give the article below a read. It’s a real treat. LONG LIVE KING OF THE RING!!.
WWE “WWE Bring it Back!: The King of the Ring pay-per-view” | December 22, 2011
G4 Network previews "WWE ’12"
“WWE ’12″ is scheduled to be released for the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, and Wii on November 22, 2011 in North America, and on November 25 in the United Kingdom. If you pre-order the game, you will be able to play as The Rock and receive alternate attires for The Miz. I CAN’T WAIT!!!!!!!!!!
Madris = Architecture + The Sims + Tetris
I first came across the independent video game Madris around this time last year; it was an entry in the “A Game By Its Cover” video game development competition. Madris is a puzzle game designed by Gary Dahl that is essentially a combination of architecture, “The Sims,” and some game called “Tetris” (**wink-wink, nudge-nudge**). The goal of the player is to take each block (which is either a room or a corridor), and to arrange them on the screen. Some of the room blocks will have people inside of them, so the main objective is to arrange the rooms and/or corridors so that the occupants can get to the proper room that will serve their immediate need (for example, the watercloset, a.k.a., the loo, a.k.a., the throne room, a.k.a., the commode, a.k.a., well, you get the idea).
Every time a character enters one of the room blocks that was indicated by their thought bubble, all interconnecting room blocks linked to that character’s destination are removed from the thought bubble as well. You can use the down arrow key to make a room/corridor block reach the bottom part of the screen faster (a’la “Tetris”), and keeping the down button depressed after said block is placed will then speed up the walking animation of the occupant.
Go ahead and check out Madris by clicking here (Windows, 9.34MB), downloading it, and give it a whirl. You’ll be playing the “A Game By Its Cover” competition build of the game. Enjoy!
Please WWE, bring back the old Undisputed Title Belt
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| PLEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEASE, Bring THIS belt back!!! |
This Sunday at WWE SummerSlam, WWE Champion John Cena will face WWE Champion CM Punk. Yes, you read that correctly; both men are recognized as WWE Champion.
Here’s some backstory: Punk defeated Cena last month for the title at the “Money in the Bank” pay-per-view, his contract expired that midnight, and he left WWE. I posted a previous blog concerning WWE entrance music that featured an article that mentions the Punk/Cena/WWE storyline. The next night, the title was vacated, and the following week, Cena won the vacant title. Then that night, Punk returned, with a new contract and HIS WWE Championship belt. At SummerSlam, both titles will be unified into an Undisputed WWE Championship, and this brings me to my topic; John Cena has been a multiple-time champion since 2005, and the form of the WWE Title was customized and changed into what’s known as the “Spinner” WWE Title (to go with Cena’s hip-hop/rebel persona).
| It’s SPINNIN’ Cena, It’s SPINNIN’! It’s SPINNIN’ Cena, It’s SPINNIN’! |
However, for the past few years, that belt’s form was worn thin with me (and some other fans I converse with), and I feel that the new Undisputed WWE Championship belt should resemble the form it was from early-2002 to early-2005 (shown at the beginning of the post). This not a anti-John Cena bias blog post (as I love what both Cena and Punk bring to the table that is professional wrestling), just a gripe concerning that style and symbolism of the current “Spinner” WWE Title belt. Let me list my TWO main reasons:
1) The “Spinner” WWE Title belt works well with John Cena’s persona, and not necessarily everyone else.
| YOU CAN’T SEE ME!!! |
In the early 2000′s, spinners & hip-hop went together like peanut butter & jelly, and since Cena’s persona was that of a hip-hop star and a rebel, this belt suited him very well. He had previously done it with the United States Title, and when he lost that title, it went back to its original form.
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| Note that his name is permanently on the belt, intending it to be Cena’s belt, and CENA’S BELT ONLY. |
Now, to my fellow wrestling fans, think about how the “Spinner” belt looked on Randy Orton (Methodical Sociopath-like, shown below), The Miz (Mr. Hollywood/MTV), Rey Mysterio (Mexican Luchador), Edge (Rock Star), and Sheamus (Irish Warrior). Sounds and feels kinda odd and off, right?
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| Yeeeaaahh….no. |
| Words Unnecessary. |
Question: Remember who else held this belt while they were WWE Champion? Trick question; no one did, (sure, The Rock had “possession” of it for a brief time, but he never held that belt as champion) because when someon else was champion, they used the exisitng WWE Title belt, not this customized version. In the history of the WWE, many champions had their belts customized to fit their persona. The list of such wrestlers include:
A] “Superstar” Billy Graham (red leather strap)
B] The Ultimate Warrior (white, blue, and purple leather straps)
C] Sgt. Slaughter (purple leather strap, changed to original black strap after defeating The Ultimate Warrior)
D] “Stone Cold” Steve Austin (“Smoking Skull” belt)
E] John Cena (Spinner belt with free-motion “spinner” WWE logo in the center)
F] Edge (Modified “Rated-R Superstar” spinner belt, BASED ON CENA’S VERSION; look below)
G] The Miz (Modified spinner design with upside down WWE logo simulating the letter M, ALSO BASED ON CENA’S VERSION; look below)
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| Hmmmm, THIS look kinda familiar…. |
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| Gee, I wonder where he got the idea from? |
Based on that, I feel that a clean break needs to be made from Cena’s persona-based customized WWE Title belt and the new Undisputed WWE Championship belt (whether Punk or Cena win at SummerSlam), focused more on the WWE as a whole, and less focused on John Cena.
2) The old Undisputed WWE Title belt is classy and distinguished, much like SmackDown’s World Heavyweight Championship, and many other World Titles before it.
| Classy & Distinguished. Why, I Declare!! |
The “Spinner” belt would look cool because it would appear that the crews of West Coast Customs and GAS from MTV’s Pimp My Ride worked on it. The problem is that Pimp My Ride stopped being cool when the customizing went overboard and gaudy; much like this customized belt.
| Yo Dawg, I heard you like spinners and stupidly-gaudy diamonds, so we hooked you up and put spinners and stupidly-gaudy diamonds on yo belt!!! |
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| Oh you fancy, huh?!? |
It comes off as bold and powerful because it uses a very simple design. This belt is based on the older WCW World Heavyweight Championship (nicknamed “Big Gold Belt”), which also stemmed from WCW’s roots in the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) and once served as that promotion’s world championship belt.
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| The National Wrestling Alliance World Heavyweight Championship; old-school, classy, & simple |
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| The Ring of Honor (ROH) World Heavyweight Championship; abstract, yet symmetrical and classy |
To close, I feel that the new Undisputed WWE Championship Belt (assuming a newer belt is made) needs to be focused more on the WWE as a whole, and less focused on one superstar/wrestler. While it may be fine and well for John Cena to hold on the “Spinner belt” whenever he’s the WWE Champion because it works for him and his persona, it doesn’t look right on other wrestlers with different personalities, and it subliminally makes Cena the entire focus (and the face) of the Championship and that title’s picture. I also feel that older Undisputed title belt never got it’s fair shake since it never returned to the WWE after Cena won the title in March 2005. It may be time for the WWE to dig back into its past for the benefit of its future.
| Again, PLEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEASE WWE, Bring THIS Title Belt Back!!! |
Rant Over.
ESPN’s Bill Simmons on WWE Entrance Music
Bill Simmons (you know, “The Sports Guy” from ESPN & ESPN.com, the editor-in-chief from Grantland) wrote this awesome article on entrance music in professional wrestling, and why it matters in creating a true superstar, as well as its effect on crowd reaction and connection. Simmons also provides a great example of this claim by using the recent controversies surrounding professional wrestler CM Punk (the guy with the briefcase), his connection to the fans, and the current status and storyline surrounding the status of the WWE Championship.
At the end of the article, he provides a Top 12 list (with some Honorable Mentions) of pro wrestling entrance songs that he deems to be the most effective in both creating a superstar and connecting with fans. Much of the list I agree with, especially with Edge’s theme (“Metallingus” by Alter Bridge, though incorrectly named as “On This Day”) and it’s placement on the list. This is an excellent read for pro wrestling fans (of course) and music fans alike.
“Good Lord, That’s His Music” – Bill Simmons on WWE music – Grantland
YES to Home-Theater PC, NO to Cable/Satellite…
In the past 4 years, I have become disillusioned of cable/satellite television subscriptions (though we have DirecTV at the house), and I have discovered five things about my television habits:
Happy 20th Birthday, Sonic the Hedgehog!!!
GO SONIC, IT’S YA BURFF-DAY!!! GO SON……………….uh………….yeah….anyway…
It was 20 years ago today (June 23rd, 1991) that the original “Sonic the Hedgehog” game was released by Sega for the Genesis (or Mega Drive; depending on what country you live in) console in the United States, Europe, and Japan. Sega is already celebrating by releasing the Sonic 20th Anniversary Bundle for download for the PlayStation 3, along with the 20-day-only temporary download of the demo for the new game, Sonic Generations.
War of the Worlds + Video Games + Patrick Stewart = WIN!!
+ 
+ 
= YAY!!!Hold on!!
There’s going to be a new video game based on H.G. Wells’ “War of the Worlds?!”
And it’s going to be based on the original novel’s setting AND the 1953 movie’s time period?!
So it’s NOT based on the 2005 Tom Cruise version?!? Praise the Lord!!!
ANNNNNND it will be narrated by Captain Jean-Luc Picard, a.k.a. Professor Charles Xavier, a.k.a. MacBeth, a.k.a. “American Dad’s” Avery Bullock himself?! SIGN ME UP!!!!
