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apart from the Goldust promo which I absolutely loved, Raw was meh for me this week. That whole "Fatal Five Way build up to face part-time WWE champion Brock Lesnar" storyline feels like a placeholder to me. Like a substitute for literally anything. A talent packed roster and creative is having this much trouble building decent stories/rivalries? I will say this, my comments about the announce teams don't currently extend to Raw, which has Corey Graves and Booker T (both are awesome).

wut schtick? this is all ril.

I love the intricacy of the first season. Like, people kept accusing it of being random and I'm like "this is all deliberate. there's nothing random in there, watch it again, you'll see if you really pay attention". I love the sort of step by step breadcrumb trail he leaves. It's kind of like an old fashioned murder mystery in a sense, but it's almost the hyper-realized version of that in that it really is like a puzzle, and the pieces are all laid out before you very carefully. I feel like the second season was less focused mostly because they farmed it out to more writers and directors. So at that point, there were more individuals deciding "well this is not important, I really want to bring this element to the forefront" etc. You can really feel the difference there between Seasons 1 and 2 (even though season 2 was good, the second half really suffered, just not as phenomenal as season 1 was) and this series has been just as good as that first season if not better because it has Lynch's focus, attention, and character built into it. I think if they'd gone ahead without Lynch they would have gotten something more like a weaker version of that back half of Season 2 instead of an arguably stronger version of Season 1.

I thought I'd read somewhere that Glaser Loves Gear didn't get picked up. So this makes me happy. Also really like Chris Gethard Show so nice that a network snagged that. The Goldthwaite thing sounds nifty.

Originally was going to watch the first two seasons again as preparation for this. But didn't get a chance. Have the DVDs all dug out now. not sure what ima do. Like watch those two seasons, then come back to new eps. And also - like I said, part of the beauty of it for me was having an entire week to digest an episode. Even though there are two more sitting there waiting it's like - do I want to wait a bit? Or just watch it all the second it comes out?

not sure when I'm going to have a chance to sit down with 3 and 4. Hopefully soon. Watching 1/2 was amazing. And I'd forgotten how watching an episode stays with you for awhile. Like I'm still thinking about it and sort of making connections for days after I watch it. I can already feel that with this episode. Man I sort of remembered how much I loved this show. But not really. I mean, after seeing the first two episodes it's like - "oooooh yeah, I remember! this is what real TV love is like."

so far with episode one I LOVE it. BUT - part of why I think the original show worked was how it sort of, especially at the beginning, managed a ton of story elements in a very step by step way that I think brought the audience along deftly. the first episode I didn't feel quite did that. I feel like a lot of viewers will be left in the dust/scratching their heads. The scenes are all disjointed with a sort of blurred character and story focus that I feel maybe isn't the best way to kick it off after a couple decades hiatus? but I love the pace personally, and the mood. The sound is amazing (took me back all the way to Eraserhead really, Lynch uses a lot of the same sound techniques he developed in his very first movie). And while the scene structure, overall plot and characters are super fuzzy in this first episode, interestingly, none of the emotion is. The emotion he conveys through the episode is direct and almost invasively so. I think it's one of the things that makes Lynch so good at creating genuinely creepy and scary moments. Whether or not you can totally put together what's going on from a story or character perspective, like even when you don't really understand what's going on, Lynch has you feeling what he wants you to feel. Which in some ways is more communication than a sort of standard plot or scene layout. And definitely more difficult to achieve. So it's almost like he's doing the hard stuff first by putting you in an emotional space, before he lays out what's going on. That's a super interesting way to tell a story. I have always loved David Lynch. At another thing that amazes me is - in the decades after Twin Peaks, so many shows have attempted to pay homage, take the ball Twin Peaks kicked and run it up the field, and/or just flat out rip it off. And with a couple decades of that stuff out there - Lynch still does it better than anybody else. I love how the story starts out in fog and then the cloud sort of starts to settle so you can make out the story details and stuff. As good as we've had it TV-wise in the last 10 years or so, I actually forgot how good it could be.

watching it now.

Match #6. HAS to suck right? so - nope. Luke Harper Vs Erik Rowan. Rowan has really emerged from the last injury with some great promos and great ring work. These two have always worked really well together. They even replayed a bit of his Talking Smack promo from last week, which was amazing. Match is interestingly one-sided, almost all Rowan. Harper had some great crowd momentum for awhile there, but WWE unceremoniously killed that. He would have made a great champ, still could. another really good match. fuck you WWE. are you switching things up on me?? Do these PPVs actually mean something again?? wtf? A big man smash up. I'd say "traditional WWE big man smash up" but it's a little more innovative than that. Both of these guys seem able to transcend that traditional WWE "Big Man" role. Crowd doesn't seem quite as into this match as they have been the others. But there's still a lot of chants for Harper and boos for Rowan. Harper wins it. I am satisfied with that. Wouldn't have been sad to see Rowan win it either. I really like both of these guys. They put on a great match. sooo onward. Main Event: Jinder Mahal Vs Randy Orton. I predict Jinder Mahal is taking it because - why push him this far to increase foreign market share if you're not going to push him all the way, just doesn't make sense (but, WWE often doesn't make sense, so there's a very good chance I'm wrong about that). Crowd is chanting bigtime for Orton. wow big cena-esque chants for Mahal (Let's go jinder / jinder sucks) For as bad as I expected this to be, it's actually pretty good. Don't know if the previous matches made me more receptive or it's legitimately not a bad match. It's definitely the most WWE style match in that traditional sense of clotheslines and chest chops etc. As Orton is pummeling the Singh Brothers, he very gingerly picks up JBLs hat and hands it back to him. That was kind of an oddly comic little moment. For the record, the guys that play the Singh Brothers are brothers in real life and were also part of the Cruiserweight Classic tournament on WWE Network, and they're actually very good. Mahal takes the belt. Crowd seems okay with it. I would have expected more negativity. But they seem to be taking it well. Again, maybe it's the amazing matches that came before this one. It's hard to be disgruntled with WWE after 6 fantastic matches in a row. And the 7th (the title match) wasn't terrible. It was maybe even good. wow, totally did not expect this. But I thoroughly enjoyed this Backlash. If I have to put my finger on one thing, it'd have to be the tag title match, which was so nuts, and so good, that it put me in a fantastic mood I think. But then every other match on the card was also great. so - pretty awesome.

FUCK YOU match #5 tonight is AJ Styles Vs Kevin Owens. what the fuck happened to WWE PPVs? Like - just - suddenly. Every single match tonight is fucking awesome. And even watching SD leading up to it, I still somehow didn't see it coming. I guess - you know, the Nakamura debut was just plain going to rock. And the Breezango/Usos match was a crazy surprise. The Women's matches are always great. Zayn is usually a safe bet no matter who he's in there with, and Corbin/Zayn was really good. And now two of WWE's current best (Styles and Owens) for the US title. It somehow snuck up on me how awesome this was going to be. but it is. anyhow - Styles and Owens are magic. AJ Styles gets his foot tangled in wires from the messed up announce table and ends up getting counted out, Owens retains. Forgot to predict ahead of time. But actually I think I expected Styles to take the title. But I love Owens as champ so either one was fine with me. replay of the pre show match (Tye Dillinger Vs Aiden English) dillinger taking the win. I think those two work really well together. It's a good pairing.

NOW it's downhill from here. Given the normal WWE PPV pace, three fantastic matches in one night is practically impossible. The rest of the card has to be shit. oh wait...there's James Elsworth. 6 woman tag is next. So... all the women want James Elsworth. It's just the facts. Carmella is first out. Would like to see her get a title run. Tamina, like her new intro music. And Natalya, would also like to see her get another title run. The other side of the crazy talented women's division six woman tag: Becky Lunch (would like to see her get another title run), Charlotte (she's immensely talented, but she's had enough title runs for awhile) and Naomi (current Smackdown Women's Champion and deservedly so, she's spectacular). I'm going to predict that the underdogs (in this match the heel team) takes it. Honestly don't care which team wins, they're all great. Natayla and Becky are smooth as silk in there. Natalya and Charlotte also good, they've had some genuinely epic matches. Charlotte with some amazing stuff. Natalya carrying a lot of the match, which is good to see, she's one of the best and has never really got her due. And Natalya takes it for her team. That works for me. Not sure a Becky Lynch tapout is optimal from a character/branding perspective. But it's nice to see Natalya getting a win. So - what is this? 4 great matches in a row now. I have no fucking idea what's going on. But this is one of the best PPVs eva.

Zayn V Corbin is good. This match is like - the standard WWE PPV - this would be the best match of the night. As it is, it's #3. But still very good. Corbin is working well with Zayn, the match is unfolding really well. god dammit. You know, so far, this 3rd string Smackdown PPV is way more enjoyable than Wrestlemania was for me. This is nuts. so Corbin is mauling Zayn, Zayn pulls out that kick of his and actually takes it. I'm surprised. Zayn wins what was yet another really great match. taped promo segment, Xavier Woods plays Rocket League w/Ember Moon, Zack Ryder and Brennan Williams. Nice to see Ember Moon in there after missing the Takeover match due to injury. Next we got Jinder Mahal limo arrival (okay, tell me they're not going to float him the belt after that).

they're playing highlights from the match, of which there are like 1000. All four of these dudes tore it up. Breezango really made a name for themselves even in losing. I've not been too hyped on the Usos' promos lately, but holy crap they were spectacular in that match. THERE IS NO WAY the rest of the card can come anywhere near these two opening matches. NO FUCKING WAY. there. the gauntlet is thrown. well... next match is Sami Zayn vs Baron Corbin. Which - could also be good... I predict Corbin win. As usual my personal pick is at odds with where I think creative will go on this, I would love to see Zayn pick up the win. But it's Corbin's push, so I'm about 99.999% sure Corbin will take it. Zayn is amazing, Corbin has improved quite a bit and it'll be cool to see how he does in there with Zayn in a PPV environment. many many many foreign broadcast teams being introduced, as WWE seeks to expand their market share worldwide. that's basically the main reason I fully expect an upset with Jinder Mahal winning the belt tonight off Randy Orton.

watching the 2017 Backlash: Ziggler Vs Nakamura: the crowd is thunderous already with Nakamura chants. Great to hear that intro music again. This should be awesome. These two have it in them to put on a "match of the year" type match. Match is good so far. What I'm noticing is the commentating. Which, like good soundtrack music, should enhance without detracting. WWE seems like it's in a serious slump at the announce table across the board. Ziggler is phenomenal in this. Nakamura is Nakamura. I'm not sure I can even remember off hand a bad match by either of these. Great back and forth, both performers getting some great spots. one of those matches that both combatants come out of looking great, no matter who wins. "The Artist" bugs the holy living shit out of me. It's like - WWE HAS to get its digs in there. Can't take a talent like Nakamura, who literally sells himself, and just let him be him. They have to try to tag him with a dipshit nickname, in this case "the artist known as Shinsuke Nakamura" which is dumb as fuck. anyhow - sidetracked. Nakamura wins his WWE debut match. Ziggler was spectacular. Nakamura was spectacular. Great opener. It's prolly all down hill from here... well - Fashion Files. This has become an oddly well liked segment on Smackdown, getting a lot of positive social media attention. Fandango has been a joke from day one, but he and Breeze are both immensely talented in the ring. These spots have really brought out some of their other talents. They're both pretty funny, and their timing in these bits is almost as good as their timing in the ring. Crowd seems strangely hyped for the Tag Team championship match. Breezango Vs Usos. My prediction was that Usos will retain. I used to really like the Usos. But their recent meth-head-like promos have kind of made me want not to see them anymore. So I would kinda like to see Breezango win. For one thing - Fandango is one of those dudes, he's been around forever, he's always good, and he never gets anywhere. Breeze is one of those phenomenal NXT talents that got kicked "upstairs" to WWE only to be promptly buried. this should be good. All four of these dudes know how to go in the ring. the mop stuff is fucking hilarious. partly because of Breeze's timing, but also the crowd reaction is hilarious. They're actually chanting "mop mop mop". And when the Usos break it, the whole arena erupts in thunderous boos. I have to say, I'm digging the unpredictability of this match. Breeze especially is pulling some crazy shit. Between the mop thing and the rolling back and forth between corners, it has definitely been quite awhile since I've laughed this much at a WWE match. And it's not just Breeze, Jey Uso is selling it well too. Fandango getting a shot. The crowd is super into this. I'm kind of surprised. I'm not surprised that the match is this good (all four are great in the ring) but I'm a bit surprised by the crowd response. Breeze with a costume change, returning in old lady drag. This match is nuts. The whole fucking auditorium is roaring "LETS GO GRAM-MA". and again, this is kind of a neat gimmick, and Breeze is playing it fantastically, but the Usos are really adding to it and selling it from their end as well. Kind of shows how optimal a match can be when all the performers are pulling in the same direction to make it the most entertaining match they can make it. Some beautiful drop kicks by Breeze and a move that can only be described as "old lady flash". AND Gramma Breeze STILL has her glasses on her face. hasn't lost her specs through all this. OH there goes the wig and glasses. Not sure which Uso that is. I think it's Jimmy just tore off Gramma Breeze's dress and pitched it out of the ring and it landed on JBL's head. ... and the crowd goes wild. You know what? this is the most entertaining match I've seen in a long time. I'm super into this. And Breeze keeps playing possum throughout. It's working really well. hah slow motion replay of the dress on JBL's head. I guess those Fashion Files segments have really paid dividends because the crowd is crazy for Breezango. Oh I KNEW the Usos had it that time and Breeze kicks out. One of the Usos kicks the other one in the nards because of Breeze's possumming antics. Another near fall, this time I KNEW Breezango had it. whoops Breeze gets knocked over the barracade into some kids. But looks like everybody's alright. Fandango launches out of the ring into the Usos. Usos retain. I'm sad. But can't be too sad, because that was one of the most entertaining fucking matches I've ever seen.

see? when you ban somebody, the whole ecosystem goes to fuck.

it's new server and new software. we'll eventually be transferring this data to that board. so it won't be like the Proboard. We'll set up the new software, and then you guys (the volunteers) will get early access to it so you can fiddle around and learn how it works and stuff. And then we'll be actually transferring the SMF data to that software. So it will technically be a new board (because it'll be different message board software). But we'll be keeping all the data from the current board, so the "new board" will still have all the posts from this board.

we had decided to move on from SMF and KN wanted us on IPB, and that seemed a good way to go so I am going with the flow on that. Viper also was kind of excited about it. But then we had that thing happen where he wanted to split off and make a different board. I don't know much about that. From recent conversations, I think his board was going to be an IPB because he likes IPB and stuff. I'm not 100% sure what Viper's plans are, and for the moment I think he's not making another board right away, but he may end up doing it somewhere down the road sooner or later. He will be helping us out with the UEMB IPB version. And if/when he makes a board, I hope we can in some way help him with that as well.

Everybody's different. Bans work for some people, for other people it just makes em worse. A side-effect of our botscreen on SMF is that it makes it easier to keep banned users out. I can only surmise that IPB has something similar (as it's just plain across the board better software basically). So - it's not quite the same as it was on the ASMB where - like banned users just kept making SNs and nobody gave a fuck. We have the ability to actually ban people and keep them out. Well - moreso than they did on ASMB. I'm sure there's some sneaky way past anything you can come up with ban-wise. I think having that knowledge (that it's tough to make a new SN and just take up where you left off), might help with a member that might otherwise just keep banging their head into the wall over and over again, like if they know that they can only do that so many times and they're just out. We'll see how it works out.

those weren't daily, they were like hourly I think.

hubbbs never posted here.

Moose is gone forever. Zeni and TIC may be allowed back once we get the new board set up.

Takeover Chicago: opening match was Roderick Strong Vs Eric Young and - smooth as butta. This is the developmental brand at its very best, matches like this, that are actually better than most of the matches going on in WWE right now, are why I like NXT. I was a bit surprised that, not only did Strong win the match, but came out of the gate strong (sneak attacking Wolfe and Dain during his intro music) and remained fairly dominant throughout. The mid-air drop kick as Young came off the top rope was a thing of beauty. My one criticism was perhaps a creative one, in that Wolfe and Dain didn't really play into it much, and I would have liked to see more of a sense of Strong having to overcome odds to win it. But it's a small complaint, as the match itself was great. Bait Vs Dunne: Surprise guest commentator Jim Ross! This is EXACTLY what NXT needs. Somebody like Ross would be an amazing addition to the NXT broadcast team (which frankly is mush right now). Of course, he's basically retired, but I think he's actually a much better fit for NXT than WWE, and would probably even be happier at NXT, and having somebody like Ross around interacting with up and coming talent would also be a huge win. There's nobody on the current broadcast team that needs to stay. They're all pretty much boring as shit. And Tom Phillips has other duties anyway. It'd be great to see Ross on NXT full time. Bait is good. But Dunne is not only good, but also has a great look and character, and is very good on the mic. Bait is a bit uncomfortable seeming on the mic, and while he's great in the ring, he always looks a bit out of place on camera when he's outside the ring. Like he doesn't quite know where to look and what to do. the match is a little weird, but something different. Two younger performers, so there's better energy. But there's a lot of hit and miss as they feel out what they're doing. Not the smooth match that the opener was, but it's no less entertaining. Pete Dunne takes it. I'm a little disappointed in a sense that - like with WWE splintering itself more and more - we'll probably never see Pete Dunne in WWE, since he's like considered NXT, a Cruiser Weight, and UK Version of WWE. So there he will probably languish. But he's got the makings of probably the best heel character to come WWE's way in a long long time. Asuka Vs Ruby Riot Vs Nikki Cross: This should be a perfect combo of the previous two matches. Riot and Asuka are smooth, but also innovative. Cross is just plain wild. Asuka's got one of those entrances that's amazing. And it's all her. She moves in such a cool and creepy way, like a comic book super villain. Good long match. Nobody outshines anybody else. Three spectacular performers. This match had rhythm. It told a great story. And it just never let up. Actually came out better than I expected and my expectations were very high. Ending in an epic near win by both Cross and Riot, and ultimately a double pin by Asuka. Amazing stuff. Most fun I've had in quite awhile watching a match. Itami Vs Roode: I just noticed so far all my predictions came true (still have the tag titles coming up though). We'll see if this one does too. Roode's extended intro kinda kills the mood. Bad choice there. Sometimes the NXT extended PPV intros are amazing. This is not one of those times. The match is alright. Probably the slowest of the night and most traditional WWE type match. I think once Roode goes to WWE, he'll be right at home there and probably do well. Storywise I think right now for NXT Roode makes a good champion. And he's solid in the ring. I'm not trying to take anything away from him. But for better or for worse, Roode's matches are very "WWE"-like. And Roode retains, as expected. Not bad. Glad there's another match. Coming off the first three matches, this one was pretty lackluster. Kevin Owens, Sami Zayn, Pat Patterson and Kassius Ohno in the audience. Authors Of Pain (w/Paul Ellering) Vs DIY (Thomaso Ciampa and Johnny Gargano) ladder match: The crowd is pretty pumped for DIY, and I'm right there with em. I hope they take the titles. I have to say, I think the DIY gimmick isn't very good. I think Ciampa and Gargano deserve a better idea/concept. AOP pacing like caged animals as the titles rise over the ring. Maybe DIY is a good concept, they seem to be taking their time picking out jussst the right ladders. AOP is doing pretty well. I've seen them stumble around a bit here and there even as the tag champs. Really, their jobs in this type of match is to sort of set up mainly gargano (but also ciampa) for the high risk moves, and then pull off the power moves. They're actually doing that really well. And the match is flowing nicely. I would say it doesn't have quite the high energy level of other ladder matches I've seen. But still a good solid successful match so far. Surprised to see Ellering actually climb into the ring and get directly involved. AOP retain. Disappointing. BUT I was more impressed with them this time around. A ladder match is clearly no easy thing, and they did very well I thought. The Ciampa heel turn at the end was CRAZY unexpected. Makes sense in a way, I mean, if DIY weren't getting the belts, they either continue to languish in the tag division or they split em up. I think this would have been cooler if they'd won the belts first, and then had Ciampa lose it after they lost the lost the belts. That gives the story a bit more motivation. But eh. Even though it wasn't the match I would have wanted to see, and wasn't quite "great", it was entertaining. All in all it was a fun show, enjoyed it a lot.

hello and welcome. I know there's some links floating around on the adult swim reddit. might be some other places. I think mostly people just pass the url off to other old asmbers they think might be interested.

dark shadows... is a soap opera.

watching NXT right now. Drew McIntyre is going to the top unless something horrible happens. Lacey Evans Vs Sonya DeVille. Two super diverse talents. Looking for big things from both. For as technical as these two are capable of being, they put on a fairly violent little match. Between these two, Askuka, Riot and Cross, the Women's Division has taken quite a sort of violent turn with this new class of performers. Deville takes it. Could have gone either way. enjoyable match. Kassius Ohno Vs Adrade Cien Almas: These guys are good. You know - I'm watching these two dudes on WWE's developmental brand pull off moves and just yesterday was watching Jinder Mahal botch the simplest freakin moves in his match with AJ Styles. But I digress. Ohno picks up the win (as expected), but the match was very very good. Roode closes it out with a glorious promo. Itami confronts him and Regal attempts to get between them with security. Itami chases Roode from the ring and then systematically dismantles Regal's security, eventually getting his hands on Roode and takin him down. A good segment. I still think Roode shall be victorious at Takeover. But we'll see. so far then we got for Takeover: DIY vs Authors Of Pain in a ladder match. Could be awesome. Could be tragic. This one's tough to predict. But I already think no other NXT titles will change hands, and DIY is definitely a deserving tag team, so I'm going to say DIY will grab the belts from AOP. Asuka Vs Ruby Riot Vs Nikki Cross for the NXT Women's Championship. I'm pretty sure Asuka's gonna retain, but I'm looking forward to this match more than any other I can think of in recent memory. Bobby Roode Vs Hideo Itami for the NXT Championship. Hard to tell if this match will be good or not. I like both of them. But I have to admit, their matches, while sometimes fantastic, are often hit and miss. So we'll see. I expect Roode to retain there. Tyler Bate Vs Peter Dunne for the UK Championship. I honestly think they'll put the title on Dunne for a bit. He's more than proved himself, and I think he's way flashier than Bate and better with promos. They're both good in the ring. I just think overall Dunne makes a better champion/brand anchor. Roderick Strong Vs Eric Young (w/Sanity): It seems obvious Young would prevail, but Strong may steal one here. In fact, I'm going to go with Strong for the win. He might get beat down after that. But hey, a win's a win.