WWE SummerSlam 2015 promised to be the biggest and best SummerSlam of all time. Almost four hours of action and 10 matches with two main events, including the long-anticipated rematch between Undertaker and Brock Lesnar. The show had Jon Stewart as host, a match with Arrow‘s Stephen Amell, and a guest appearance by Mic Foley. […]
“Rowdy” Roddy Piper (1954-2015): The All-Time Great That Wrestling Fans Loved to Hate
At UFC 190 over the weekend, Ronda Rousey dismantled Bethe Correia in just 34 seconds. (Combined length of Rousey’s last three matches: 64 seconds.) Following the match, Rousey gave a shout out to “Rowdy” Roddy Piper, the wrestling legend who passed away last week at the age 61. Piper was one of Rousey’s heroes and friends. […]
Hulkamania Has Finally Run Dry
“Train, say your prayers, eat your vitamins, be true to yourself, true to your country – be a real American,” Hulk Hogan used to say. What happens when your hero turns out to be everything he stood up against? Throughout the ’80s and ’90s, Terry Bollea, better known as the larger-than-life Hulk Hogan, was pushed as […]
WWE Battleground 2015: Results and Match Reviews
WWE Battleground 2015 will probably be notable as a SummerSlam set-up rather than its own decent PPV event. The card was pretty solid overall, yet I couldn’t help but feel a strange middling quality to Battleground. Looking at the main event, the John Cena vs. Kevin Owens rematch match, and the debut of NXT women’s […]
WWE Money in the Bank 2015: Results and Match Reviews
The passing of Dusty Rhodes last week lent a tinge of sadness to WWE Money in the Bank 2015. In the pre-show, Renee Young was so moved by a tribute to Rhodes that she sobbed her way through the script. At the start of the event, the WWE roster assembled beneath the TitanTron as they tolled […]
WWE Elimination Chamber 2015: Results and Match Reviews
Rather than selling it as a traditional pay-per-view, Elimination Chamber 2015 played out as a WWE Network exclusive. This was likely an attempt to get people to sign up for the WWE Network at the end of May (which was free for new subscribers) in hopes that they would not have a chance to cancel before […]
WWE Payback 2015: Results and Match Reviews
A day later than intended, but we’re doing it—we’re looking at WWE Payback 2015, AKA a decent but forgettable episode of Monday Night Raw or Smackdown. This didn’t even feel like a $9.99 network commitment. Payback 2015 should have come with your basic cable package, and woe to anyone who shelled out the coin to buy […]
[Tribeca] Bodyslam: Revenge of the Banana! Shows Why Some Wrestling Gimmicks Succeed and Others Fail
In the documentary Bodyslam: Revenge of the Banana, directors Ryan Harvie and John Paul Horstmann follow the bizarre story of Seattle Semi-Pro (SSP), an independent wrestling promotion whose existence is put in danger by an outsider who becomes part of their roster. SSP is different from other indie wrestling promotions. There’s no ring, for one, […]