What's the status of ROH?

I was shocked when I saw the news on Twitter about the status of Ring Of Honor, as The Wrestling Observer's Dave Meltzer tweeted that the company released all of the wrestlers from their contracts, and then the organization posted a message on social media to announce that the group would go on hiatus in the first quarter of 2022.

Granted, this could be something as simple as restructuring the promotion so that talent are used on a per-night basis instead of the guaranteed money of a contract, but all things considered, the future looks like it could be very bleak for one of the most influential companies of the past two decades.

The history of Ring Of Honor and its influence is well-documented, as some of the biggest stars of today made their names in the original ROH. Bryan Danielson, CM Punk, Samoa Joe, Seth Rollins, Kevin Owens, and several others were put into the national conversation with their work in ROH. While the history of stellar matches are well-known, many of which took place in dingy buildings, the impact that the in-ring style had on the industry as a whole can't be understated. Make no mistake about it, much of the style that is seen on TNT today was popularized in ROH in the early-2000s, influencing an entire generation of pro wrestlers.

So, what happened?

A book could and probably will be written one day about Ring Of Honor's rocky rise from an independently-owned organization to a property of the Sinclair Broadcasting corporation. It's a similar tale, but the premise for most of ROH's existence was that it never quite found a balance as an organization, in that it was too big to be small and too small to be big, very reminiscent of the original ECW. ROH was big enough of a platform for tremendous performers to get noticed and make a name for themselves, but too small to compete with the money offers from WWE and TNA at the time. In many ways, the different eras of the promotion were based around what talent exited and how the company had to respond. When CM Punk left, the company still had many of the talent that it unofficially shared with TNA. When the mass exodus of 2007 took place after TNA finally wanted exclusive talent, the company went through somewhat of a low point, particularly the ill-fated Morshima title reign, which looked to be more of a way to try to secure NOAH talent for shows in the bigger markets than anything else.

Keep in mind, there was a period of time when ROH was built on a DVD business model, but as the group had to run more shows to be able to pay talent, it became difficult to entice even the diehard ROH fan base to purchase three or four DVDs at a time, specially when fans knew that the stacked events were booked for certain shows on the ROH calendar. The economic crunch in 2008 not only made DVDs more difficult to sell to the audience, but when gas prices soared, it wasn't economically feasible for fans to travel to live events.

As we know, the Sinclair purchase kept the company afloat, considering that the economics of attempting to run an independent group on that scale weren't realistic in 2011. Credit to Carey Silkin for his investment in ROH because without it, the company would've folded years earlier and there wouldn't have been a chance for it's glory years to shine. As I've written before, the Sinclair buyout saved the group, but also changed the purpose for the product. While Kevin Steen's great run as ROH champion helped jump start the organization, Sinclair Broadcasting bought Ring Of Honor for its relatively cheap original programming for its syndicated stations, as that secures a better ad rate. Sinclair is in the television business, not the wrestling business, and that philosophy is partially why the company took the path it did in recent years.

As we known, ROH provided a platform for The Elite stable to become one of the most popular factions anywhere in wrestling, even at a time when they didn't have national television exposure. It wasn't a one-sided deal either because the company in 2017 was drawing sellouts for live events and doing the best business it had done in the history of the company with The Elite at the top of the card. Also as history will tell us, the success of All In, a production that was under the ROH umbrella, ultimately shifted the course of the industry since it provided a blue print for AEW.

The bottom line is, All Elite Wrestling took ROH's biggest star and the buzz around them, and put it on a much bigger scale. If Sinclair had offered The Elite $1 million contracts to re-sign with ROH then AEW doesn't exist today. Again, Sinclair isn't in the wrestling business, and ROH never truly rebuilt from the All Elite exodus in 2019. That's not a jab against the ROH office either, it would be extremely difficult for any organization to replace that level of talent all at once. In retrospect, it seems like Sinclair opted to invest some cash into the wrestling project too late because the signing of Rush, Bandido, and others wasn't going to the type of buzz of Cody or The Young Bucks after they went to TNT.

In another form of irony about the similarities throughout the history of the business, the territories were casualties of the expansion of the 80s, WCW and ECW collapsed during the competition of the late-90s, and ROH might be the company to dissolve in the modern era. At a time when AEW has such hype, specifically in recent months, and WWE still has the dominate market share in the United States, the landscape of professional wrestling is very crowded so it's not easy to get the fans to invest in the product. For example, an ROH pay-per-view is $40, which is a difficult sell on its own based on the WWE Network offering literally thousands of hours of content for $4.99 a month or even free based on a viewer's cable provider. Tony Khan knows that if he wants to sell a $50 pay-per-view to fans in the modern era, it has to be a stacked show so naturally, fans are going to invest in the event that will give them the most for their money if they are willing to spend $50 on a broadcast. Don't get me wrong, ROH has a very talented roster that has very good matches, but does the organization have the star power or the hype to sell pay-per-views? How many ROH PPVs have generated the type of rave reviews that AEW events have received?

Again, it's not a knock on the talent, but rather just a realistic look that ROH doesn't have the momentum to rally the type of fan support to compete with AEW for the traditional PPV dollars. While Ring Of Honor hasn't ran many live events as a safety precaution with the pandemic, the fact that All Elite tours weekly will also make it more difficult for ROH to sell live event tickets. In some ways, it goes full-circle because while the circumstances are different, ROH still finds itself too big to be small and too small to be big in terms of finding its audience.

That's why as disappointing as it is to say this, despite the announced plans for a return in April, I definitely think that Final Battle will be the conclusion of Ring Of Honor. Obviously, the pandemic took a toll on the revenue of the promotion, but the bottom line is, ROH is a commodity of Sinclair Broadcasting and if the suits at Sinclair don't think the expenses of the wrestling project are worth the original programming for its stations then the corporation isn't going to keep the company in business. Truth be told, from a strictly business perspective, unless ROH can find a profitable niche within the current pro wrestling landscape then for Sinclair to keep it running would be a negative for the corporation. Maybe the past three years attempting to find that new niche was enough for the executives to reconsider the logistics of the project.

Make no mistake about it, while the potential shutdown of ROH might've been unavoidable, if the company actually closes, it's not good for the industry because there will be talented wrestlers that don't have a major platform to showcase their skills or make a living in the industry, as well as a place for new talent to be discovered. I'd guess that some of the ROH crew will land somewhere else because they have too much talent not to be an asset for another organization, but the biggest takeaway from the ROH announcement might be the level of competition within the industry.

What's the status of Charlotte?

At a time when talent have made more moves within the wrestling industry than any other time in several years, could there be another major jump from the WWE to All Elite Wrestling?

As we saw on Smackdown last week, Charlotte and Becky Lynch were involved in a rather awkward segment where, based on the draft, the two were supposed to trade their championships. Granted, the premise of this promo was tacky and rather flat, but the point being, the exchange is a way to keep women's titles on both shows. Why this wasn't done with a title switch instead is anyone's guess. Charlotte, a multiple-time champion, presumably on her way to beating her dad's record of titles, appeared to be uncooperative, dropping the title to the mat as Becky reached for it. Becky looked foolish, and based on Sonya's reaction in the ring, it certainly looked like the segment went off the rails. Lynch responded by throwing her title at Charlotte before the clunky segment concluded.

Often, internet chatter must to taken with a grain of salt, but there were several reports that Becky and Charlotte got into an argument backstage about the segment, and reportedly, Charlotte was escorted out of the building to avoid any further conflict with Lynch. If this altercation actually happened, it brings several questions to the table, including what does this mean for Charlotte's status, and could she potentially be attempting to force a release from the company?

While there are two sides to every story, on the surface, it looks like Charlotte wouldn't have much to complain about as far as her WWE tenure. She's one of the most pushed and featured wrestlers on the entire roster. Granted, the argument could be made that earlier in her career, some of the opportunities afforded to her were based on her last name, but as I've written before, she has evolved during her in-ring career to a truly polished pro as she gained more experience and is only now at the start of the prime of her career. Make no mistake about it, Charlotte Flair is one of the best performers on the roster and has a level of star power that only a few surpass in the organization. With the way she's been presented on television throughout the duration of her time in WWE, I'm not sure what complaints she could honestly have about how she's booked for television because more often than not, she's the featured star of the women's division.

On the flip side, and this is purely speculation, this could be a scenario where ego, not business sense, shaped a perspective, and if that's the case then it's nothing new in professional wrestling. Charlotte wouldn't be the first or last talented performer to overestimate their value based on ego. Perhaps, Charlotte Flair thinks she's a bigger star than she actually is, which might lead to a reality check at the conclusion of this situation. Again, you have to take online rumors with a grain of salt, but you've heard rumblings of her attitude problems before so this isn't completely out of left field. More than anything, her confrontation with Nia Jax on Raw, where it appeared that a few legitimate punches were exchanged after the match went south, might be an indication that Charlotte's reputation of being difficult might have some validity.

If I had to guess, and this is just a guess, I would say that Charlotte's rumored attitude problems are probably true. It looked like she intentionally sabotaged the segment on Smackdown because she wasn't happy with the writing so that would be a sign of ego getting in the way of business. Becky and Sonya were dragged down in that segment as well because of Flair's antics. Assuming that Flair might think that she's too valuable to the company to face any repercussions then she might be in for a rude awakening. The WWE was fine without Stone Cold, Warrior, and Hogan. The company would be fine without Charlotte Flair, too. That's not to diminish her value either because as I said, she's one of the most talented on the roster, but the company is going to tout record-setting profits the next few years and has a very talented crew in the women's division. In many ways, Charlotte is the star that she is because of the WWE platform and how she was pushed during the past several years. This isn't meant as a criticism of her ability, but Flair was a WWE project from the time she started in the business, without the spotlight of the WWE platform, much of her star power would fade. The value of that amount of WWE TV time can't be understated, especially when a wrestler is pushed to the level she was in recent years.

Of course, it's a valid point to bring up All Elite Wrestling in the conversation because not only is it another major league option for talent, but Andrade is on the roster so it would make sense for her to join him there. Keep in mind, before the Dark Side of The Ring episode shed light on some terrible accusations against Ric Flair, it seemed all but confirmed that he would join AEW as well. That being said, even if Charlotte would attempt to cause enough of a hassle to get a release, I really doubt WWE management would grant it. PWinsider's Mike Johnson, one of the most accurate wrestling journalist, has covered the situation and it was said that Charlotte still has several years left on her WWE contract.

If Charlotte wanted to force the company's hand, they could simply leave her off of television for the duration of her deal and allow as much of the spotlight to fade before the contract expires. Keep in mind, Pac, a top-notch competitor, stood his ground on a release and it took the better part of a year before he could go to AEW. Keep in mind, management didn't use Pac as a major player on television and it still took several months for him to actually get a release from his deal. What are the chances the office would let Charlotte, one of the most featured competitors in the company, get a release from her contract?

Sure, Charlotte has a great contract and makes great money, specifically with merchandise sales added to her downside guarantee, but that's peanuts in the grand scheme of things. The WWE makes literally billions of dollars with their current TV contracts and the Peacock deal. Basically, they can afford to pay Charlotte to stay home just to keep her away from AEW. All things considered, I still find it puzzling why she would have a gripe with her status in the company, but a reputation for being difficult to work with doesn't exactly create optimism around a potential run in AEW either. It will be very interesting to see what happens and if the situation will affect Charlotte's career.

What's the status of Cody Rhodes?

When Cody Rhodes requested his WWE release in 2016, diehard fans applauded him, as they knew he had much more to offer to the sport than the minimal opportunities that were given to him in the Vince McMahon empire. Rhodes, an amateur wrestler in his youth, spent a decade under WWE contract in some form or fashion, breaking into the business in the developmental system before he spent several years on the main roster with varying degrees of success. His ambitious exit from WWE eventually led to him as the original leader of All Elite Wrestling when the group launched in 2019. However, Rhodes, a stellar performer, was recently subjected to boos from the AEW crowds so what happened?

Following the narrative of Cody within the past five years since he departed WWE not only tells a pivotal story that shaped the current wrestling landscape, but also how it shaped the current perspective of the AEW audience.

As mentioned, Cody spent ten years under the McMahon banner, a vast majority of that time while his dad, the legendary Dusty, worked with developmental talent in NXT. Over the years, occasional angles around the IC title gave the impression that management saw enough in Cody to move up the card, but it never materialized. When he was pigeon-holed into the Star Dust gimmick, fans saw it as a waste of his potential, as Cody brought more to the table than just a parody of Goldust's character. So, he requested a release and it was granted.

Cody Rhodes aspired to be more than a secondary persona on television and was willing to bet on himself to accomplish more in the business. Considering his family history with the company, Rhodes could've settled with that spot and took the WWE payday until he decided to retire. It's very easy for fans to rally behind someone that is willing to risk it to reach their potential.

Following up on that, the fact that Cody could've taken that WWE check and coasted, but instead wanted to go to the indies to prove that he could go bell-to-bell is another aspect that makes it easy for the fans to want to see him succeed. Rhodes went from Wrestlemania to smaller venues on a smaller scale just for the chance to get more than six minutes as a lower mid-carder on Raw.

As I've written before and it's too lengthy to repeat here, Rhodes' star power along with the popularity of the Young Bucks combined with the stage they were given with Ring Of Honor, is ultimately what led to the formation of AEW. Tony Khan saw the popularity of The Elite stable and the success of the All In pay-per-view so he was willing to fund a pro wrestling project. Make no mistake about it, regardless of how far All Elite goes within the sports entertainment genre or the bigger names that have signed since its inception, Cody Rhodes was one of the key players that got the concept off the ground. Obviously, Chris Jericho played a major role in that as well, and none of this is to overlooked anyone else, but the point being that the organic success of All In is essentially what made All Elite Wrestling a possibility because that pay-per-view is what made Tony Khan willing to launch a wrestling group.

Cody's role itself was another way that the fans rallied behind him. Fans saw the mishaps and missed opportunities from TNA. Fans saw how stagnant the industry was with only Vince McMahon truly on a national scale. So, it was a noble gesture for Cody Rhodes to make it his mission to spark something new within the professional wrestling landscape. There's a reason the promos about a revolution got such a crowd reaction. A side note, that's also why Tony Khan and AEW as a whole have a certain level of good will with the audience because everyone knows that Khan could buy an island and live a lavish lifestyle from the interest of his family's wealth alone, but he chose to invest in professional wrestling to improve the industry.

The problem is, Cody's role as one of the vice presidents can give him a level of cache of good will, but there's also a very fine line between that and the perception of nepotism, especially with the jaded nature of pro wrestling fans.

As talented as Jeff Jarrett was, he wasn't a main event guy for the majority of his career. Not that this is meant as a knock against him because very few are in this category, but he just wasn't on the same level as Bret Hart, Steve Austin, Goldberg, Sting, or the other top-tier talent of his era. The fact that he created TNA and then booked himself as the champion for an extended period of time, even if he wasn't trying to boost himself up, it always gave the impression that at least a portion of TNA programming was self-serving rather than serving the audience. Perhaps, ego, not a quality product, was the top priority, but that's nothing new in the wrestling industry.

Rhodes winning the TNT title was fine, but when he dropped the belt to film the Go Big Show competition project for TBS and then won it back as soon as he returned, it did seem that his angles were being built around his other projects. Furthermore, and this is probably the biggest issue that has caused the negative feedback currently, The Rhodes to The Top reality show certainly gives the impression that he might be more focused on attempting to become a TV star than being a professional wrestler. Keep in mind, Cody smashed the throne at AEW's first pay-per-view with a sledgehammer as a symbolic snub to Triple H, who was criticized in the past for his position within WWE while he was still wrestling. In some respects, Cody Rhodes is in a similar position because he's an executive vice president of a company that is cross-promoting a reality show about it.

The Rampage ratings

Last Friday, AEW and WWE finally went head-to-head, sort of.

In what looked to be a small jab toward All Elite Wrestling, WWE put an extra thirty minutes of Smackdown on FS1, the much smaller cable channel under the Fox umbrella, to go up against Rampage on TNT. Of course, wrestling pundits, including Tony Khan himself, touted another "wrestling war," a throwback to the ratings battle of the late-90s.

But, is there really a wrestling war at all in 2021?

It might disappoint some, but no, there really isn't. There's true competition within the professional industry for the first time in twenty years. However, there's a difference between a wrestling war and competition.

The Wrestling Observer's Dave Meltzer, one of the most insightful historians on the business, was quick to jump for joy and claim All Elite victory on his recent WOR podcast. Of course, he would, that's his business. No, Meltzer isn't on Tony Khan's payroll and any notion of that is rather ridiculous. Meltzer has made a living for 35 years getting dirty from the sports entertainment genre, he's not going to risk being on the pay roll when exposing insider knowledge is his profession. Working for a promotion would sink his career, and he knows it would leak out so Meltzer is smart enough not to let that happen. That being said, The Wrestling Observer business model is the happenings of the industry, and if there is at least the perception of a wrestling war on the horizon, it furthers the selling point for fans to be "in the know" as a new chapter of sports entertainment begins.

At the same time, Meltzer knows how to play to his audience. Keep in mind, Meltzer's very informative newsletter over the years, by nature, caters to the most diehard niche of fans. In some ways, Meltzer exposing fans to the dazzling work rate of international stars over the past few decades, matches that were often light years ahead of what was seen on American TV at the time, gave his readers a chance to be contrarian for a genre of entertainment with some of the most loyal, but also most jaded fans. Meltzer's readers "knew better" than to willing accept what was being peddled to the general public on national television because quite frankly, Doink vs. Koko B. Ware on Raw didn't exactly have the same standard of Kobashi vs. Misawa.

Much of that same dynamic is used today, albeit with different initials and talent. Meltzer's coverage of New Japan in recent years gave readers an outlet beyond the static state of American wrestling. His criticism, sometimes rightfully so, of the corporate WWE machine served his base well. How many diehard fans of anything gleefully cheer for the corporation?

When All Elite Wrestling launched, it gave Meltzer a new contrarian philosophy to cover and at the same time, a chance for a fans to stick it to Vince McMahon by supporting another promotion. Ironically, the fans that think they "stick it to Vince" are the same that still buy the nostalgia merchandise as if the cash they spend won't still end up in his pocket and watch enough of WWE programming to be able to complain about it on social media. Is Meltzer bias toward WWE? Of course he is, the same way any other viewer makes their choices on products they enjoy to watch. Meltzer is less of a reporter and more of an opinionist, which doesn't take away from his knowledge, but rather shapes his perspective. As far as playing to his base, he quite literally has a vested interest in doing so, and we know that the demographic that buys Roman Reigns merchandise aren't those that subscribe to his newsletter. Praising the wrestlers that subscribers support only makes business sense, and that's nothing wrong with that, that's capitalism.

That's not to say that Meltzer is fabricating his opinion, just playing to his base. The coveted key demos when Smackdown and Rampage went head-to-head were reportedly tied. Meltzer pushed this as an AEW victory because quite frankly, a story to cover is how Meltzer makes a living. If the headline was "Smackdown doesn't divide Rampage audience" there's much less of a hurrah moment. In truth, comparing just one portion of a demo in just a thirty-minute slot isn't a ratings war or an indication of success. Comparing the two scenarios is really apples to oranges.  As we've seen in the past, Smackdown naturally does a lower number on FS1 because it's a smaller channel. Plus, trying to get the audience to jump over from Fox to FS1 isn't automatic either. Let's remember, the total number of viewers for Smackdown on FS1 was 886,000 while Rampage had 578,000 so Smackdown still had better ratings. I'm not trying to diminish AEW either, but the competition of the Monday night wars was based on what show had more viewers so attempting to move the goal post now is an attempt to spin the narrative.

Sure, Tony Khan will tout the success because he's a promoter and that's what promoters should do, but this isn't a second version of Nitro vs. Raw in the late-90s. As disappointing as it might be for some, there isn't going to be another wrestling war like the Attitude era since so much of that time period was based on the specific circumstances of the industry as well as the state of media and society. Some will cite the Wednesday night competition, but look at it objectively, Dynamite beat WWE's third-tier brand and it should've. If the top stars on the AEW roster didn't beat the third-tier brand then there wouldn't be nearly as much optimism around the company today. As far as a wrestling wars, the documentaries and shoots interviews about the era make many fans look back at the era with a skewed perspective. Yes, the Attitude era provided some great television, but it wasn't perfect and based on the casualties of the last wrestling war, the industry took almost twenty years to spark again. Don't get me wrong, I hope All Elite Wrestling continues the success, and as you might've read in the past several months, I think WWE management has missed the boat on several very talented wrestlers, but Vince McMahon still has a dominate market share of sports entertainment in the United States.

As I've written several times before, profitability is the measure of true success in any business venture, and the fact that both organization make a profit is why there's so much optimism in the future. For Meltzer to claim the sky is falling in Stanford is completely ridiculous, the company is literally making more profit now than any other time in its history so how exactly is that a problem? If the organization took the short-end money at the expensive of the future is a completely different matter, particularly after the current TV deals expire in a few years, but that doesn't sell newsletter subscriptions right now, does it?

The career of Zeke Mercer

"I want to do something that brought adventure to my life" -Zeke Mercer

That was the motivation for a 21-year-old professional wrestler to pursue this wild and over-the-top industry of professional wrestling. It might be poetic or dramatic to attempt to claim that Zeke always dreamed of being an in-ring grappler from as long they remembered, but it was more of a spur of the moment decision, an impulse decision that had led them down a very unique road the past few years.

Mercer, a lifelong athlete with training in martial arts and amateur wrestling in high school, always looked for a way to test themselves physically as well as mentally. Sure, Zeke had watched sports entertainment on television, but that was a spectacle that was done in the big arenas and major stages. It wasn't until the native of Western, Pennsylvania stumbled upon the concept of independent wrestling, local cards around their region of the state, that they realized not only was there hometown wrestling, but it also provided a foot in the door into the business.

In mid-2017, an almost 18-year-old Mercer walked into a dingy and dusty building in a less-than-stellar part of town to inquire about training to become a pro, a nearly perfect blend of the combat sports they had experience in previously. Under the now-defunct Pro Wrestling Express banner, Zeke stepped into the ring for the first time to begin an entirely new adventure that would shape the next chapter of their life.

Zeke's thoughts of their next adventure were hit with a harsh reality as soon as they hit the stiff canvas on their first day inside of an actual professional wrestling ring. They repeated the tedious process of learning to land on the mat safely, as well as diligent practice to learn the in-ring maneuvers of the genre. Indeed, Mercer's previous sports background was handy and their natural athleticism allowed them to excel within the learning process of the training center. Zeke's head trainer was Quinn Magnum, a longtime veteran that became instrumental behind-the-scenes in Pittsburgh wrestling for nearly two decades after series of injuries cut his own in-ring career short. One of the most respected in the area, Quinn now runs the Fight Underground organization and assists with other groups around the region. The 25-year veteran is no non-sense, but also very committed to the success of his students, particularly those that show a dedication to the sport.

"When it comes to my background in martial arts, after a while it all blends together, but it does all help with wrestling. It gives me an edge over certain opponents. I had good training under Quinn Magnum, but I can’t say it was easy. I can also say he has prepared me for the business of professional wrestling very well and I owe my success to his training," Zeke explained.

When Mercer put on the tights and strapped on their boots for the first time in 2018 for their first pro bout, they were a ball of nervous energy, but excited to bound through the curtain to greet the rowdy fans in attendance. Observers, including their peers in the building that night, noticed immediately that Mercer possessed a natural poise inside the ropes. They looked like an ambitious youngster with skills, not a nervous rookie afraid of their own shadow under the ring lights. Zeke's skills were noticed by others as well, and soon, they became a regular around the tri-state area, competing for an alphabet soup of promotions.

But, there are entire generations of former wrestling TV stars that have sadly shown that you can't always bank all your chips on professional wrestling. In the wise words of Mick Foley's New York Times #1 best-selling autobiography, Have A Nice Day, a publication that was originally released before Mercer was born, stay in school, and that's exactly what Mercer did. Attending California University of Pennsylvania to major in Criminal Justice, Mercer had a completely unique balancing act for their new sports gig.

"Most people have to balance wrestling with their job, but I have to balance wrestling with college and a job. It's not easy, but it’s possible. Pursuing my major doesn’t really conflict with wrestling, but I would never say it’s easy," Mercer explained.

It wasn't uncommon for Zeke to compete in a championship match Saturday night before they stopped off to grab some cheap gas station food and collapsed in their dorm room for the night. The next day, with their boots next to a book bag, Mercer would study for an upcoming test on Monday morning. Sometimes the studies were more exhausting than the in-ring competition. Already considered a natural by many, Zeke knew that the travels were a necessity to further hone their craft, and was another aspect of the adventure they looked for when they pursued the sport.

"Traveling to different parts of the country makes you realize how big the US actually is and how different the people are, but more importantly the wrestling. Not all places like the same style so traveling from the midwest to the south and even to the east coast has made me more adaptive to different styles of wrestling. Hopefully, that knowledge grows as I travel more and more over the years to come," they remarked.

Just three and a half years into their career, Zeke's pro career has taken him across Pennsylvania, into Ohio, and as far away as Detroit. Smaller in statue, but big in ability, they bring a unique combination of athleticism and technique for a well-rounded style that translates to various promotions. Aside from being based in Western Pennsylvania, working for a myriad of organizations there, Mercer also captured the Real Shoot Wrestling championship in West Virginia.

"Since my debut I’ve kept my head down and kept grinding and winning my first singles title was a great way to show the hard work I put into this. Especially since it’s the top title in a promotion full of hunger and talented wrestlers," Mercer commented.

"Zeke Mercer is hands down one of my favorite opponents ever, they're one of the most underrated wrestlers in Pittsburgh," added Brohemoth, one of the featured wrestlers in the area as well.

Still, the budding wrestling star stays grounded in their approach and expectations for a business that is often considered a shark tank. Despite audiences that cheer for their victories, t-shirt sells, and championship belts, Zeke Mercer keeps their adventures as a pro wrestling in prospective. Proper studies and the pursuit a criminal justice degree take priority, while a rather wholesome view point is used for sports entertainment, Zeke Mercer competes in the ring for the love of the game.

"I never expect to make money out of it or get super famous for it. I have gained some publicity from this but that’s just the by-product of having fun doing what I do. The main goal for me is to have fun and make memories, what more could you ask from that," Mercer concluded.

The sports entertainment effect

With the way the professional wrestling landscape has been a whirlwind the past few months, as we notice a distinctive shift in the direction of the industry, I'm kept busy with a variety of topics to discuss with this column. I'm very thankful for it, cracking open a late-night energy drink after a Saturday night pay-per-view to get fresh thoughts written down for the review of an event is a much better option than staring at a blank page, pondering what in the wide world of sports might be mildly interesting for readers. I point out this contrast because there was a time when content or a discussion point wasn't quite as ripe as you will find now. As I've mentioned occasionally in these articles, I rarely discuss myself in these write-ups, because you click on this page to read about wrestling, not me. The VHS Memoirs series, a more personal look at some of the events that I usually originally watched on tape, are a mixture of retro reviews and some detail about my fan experience. Truthfully, I was surprised the concept received the positive feedback it did, but that's why there are currently twenty articles posted online in that series.

However, I will digress a moment to when the static state of the wrestling business didn't produce nearly as many talking points. Part of the buzz around All Elite Wrestling is the fact that for the first time in two decades, there's a true alternative to Vince McMahon. Credit deserved to Jeff Jarrett for trying, but the bottom line is, for several reasons that a book could be written about, TNA never reached a level where it could truly be considered opposition to WWE. In short, TNA was the place wrestlers went if WWE didn't want them. On the flip side, AEW is the place wrestlers go when they don't want to work for WWE. That's not meant as a knock on the McMahon empire either, but rather to point out that there's another organization that has the resources and the philosophy to better utilize the performers that WWE missed the boat on, which is why the existence of AEW benefits everyone in the industry.

More than a decade ago, that wasn't the case and after TNA failed on their mismanaged attempt to go head-to-head with Raw, it was clear that Vince McMahon still owned professional wrestling in the United States.

While some diehard fans in the "wrestling bubble" can't see the forest through the trees while they debate star ratings and who is or isn't buried by a Goldberg squash, there's an entire other side of the process that is just as important as the action that is eventually presented in the ring.

Obviously, the funding involved is massive and truly the biggest barrier to entry than anything else on an even semi-national scale. There are several insightful shoot interviews from Sean Oliver's Kayfabe Commentaries that dive into the high-priced contract negotiations of the talent that sparked the industry in the late-90s, but what about the production costs? The money it takes to produce a live weekly wrestling show, getting the ring, the stage, and the entire crew to a different city every week? When Dixie Carter took TNA on the road, those expenses, along with Hulk Hogan using her as a money mark, ultimately took the company to the brink of collapse.

You need the funding, the right philosophy, and the right talent to make a push on a national level.

That's ultimately why the right pieces fell into the right place organically for Tony Khan to jump start the sports entertainment industry. That's also why it was such a rare chance for AEW to get off the ground because the organic momentum of The Elite and the buzz from New Japan spontaneously occurred around the same time that the faction's deals with Ring Of Honor expired so there was the possibility to launch a new company. Regardless of Tony Khan's aspirations, if Sinclair Broadcasting, a billion dollar corporation, threw $1 million contracts to everyone in The Elite stable in 2018, we wouldn't be talking about AEW today.

But, as I've written before, Sinclair is in the television business, not the wrestling business. The acquisition of ROH as an entity in 2011 saved the company from going under, as it simply couldn't survive the economics of the industry being independently-owned, but Sinclair didn't look to purchase a wrestling commodity. The reality of the purchase was that pro wrestling is relatively cheap original programming for Sinclair stations. The original programming gives the corporation a better ad rate across the board.

That actually brings me to the main point of this article, as I finally had a chance to watch some programming for leisure rather than analysis, and decided on Kayfabe Commentates "Gabe's Book of Secret," a hypothetical look into the plans that former ROH booker, Gabe Sapolsky before he was dismissed from the promotion in late-2008. I found it very interesting at the level of detail that he put into booking decisions, trying to balance the story-telling process with the reality of the economics of the business model.

I always thought that Gabe was in a no-win situation during this era of the business. In some ways, similar to ECW a few years before it, Ring of Honor was too small to be big and too big to be small. The original ROH provided a stage for some of the best talent in the world to make a name for themselves, and there was a period of a few years during its original run where the argument could've definitely been made that Ring of Honor had the best wrestling in the world. The problem was that once the talent made a name for themselves on that ROH platform, the company wasn't big enough to keep them or compete with the money offered from national organizations. I understand why TNA allowed their talent to work for indy groups, including ROH, but in some ways, the two overlapped, taking away the promotional efforts of TNA. When Dixie Carter finally made talent exclusive, taking them away from ROH, Gabe was tasked with attempting to replace many of the top stars in the company all at once.

Going back to business models and economics, it was interesting to hear Gabe talk about the DVD model in the Kayfabe Commentates production. On the surface, it made sense and a few years prior, it worked, as internet hype translated to DVD sales so that fans could witness the bouts they read live reports about. As ROH tried to expand its territory with more shows to try to generate more revenue, the combination of the economic downturn in the United States in early-2008 and the fact that fans couldn't keep up with DVD releases, they business model more or less fizzled out. This time period was to a point where physical media was too expensive to produce for a promotion at the level of ROH and technology wasn't to the point where it is now for cheaper streaming distribution. I specifically remember checking the very basic ROH website at the time and there were sales of "Buy 3 Get 1 Free" for DVDs, which was a way for customers to buy multiple events at once, but the bottom line was, that would've cost fans $60 on wrestling DVDs and at the time of an economic crunch, it was a tough sell.

It makes you wonder what would've happened if those stellar ROH shows from 2004-2007 had a bigger audience and wider distribution? Would names like Samoa Joe, Homicide, Nigel, and others have become bigger stars in their prime? Would TNA of continued if it didn't have the funnel of talent from ROH? How would any of that have altered the path the industry reached today?

The point being that in the past, some great talent didn't get the chance they truly deserved because the pieces of the puzzle just weren't in the right place at the right time. You can't book or plan when different aspects of the business organically create the opportunity to shift the business. The biggest takeaway from all of this is that the next few years should be very interesting and the direction of the industry.

The WWE draft

The WWE draft took place recently, shuffling up talent across the Raw and Smackdown brands. While the wrestler picks for each show won't take effect until after the Crown Jewel pay-per-view in a week and a half, the question must be asked, does it really matter?

In truth, I haven't been a fan of the draft or brand extension as it was originally called since it was introduced nearly two decades ago. In short, the concept of only certain talent on certain shows becomes too inside baseball so to speak for the casual fan. When someone from the general public ask, "who's the champion?" they want an answer about who the top guy is, not an explanation about what belt belongs to what show. It sounds petty, but the average person doesn't want to have to research anything to figure out what's going on for each brand. When professional wrestling was at a peak in the late-90s, viewers knew when they tuned in to Raw or Nitro that Stone Cold and Goldberg were the top guys in the company. Sometimes the simplest strategy is the most effective option. On the flip side, one of the many reasons the Brawl for All was such a disaster was even now, nobody is sure what the rules were for the bouts. Some fans are still trying to figure out what "shoot promo" Scott Steiner was trying to cut on Nitro.

Granted, there was a relatively short period of time, particularly in the aftermath of the WCW buyout and the shutdown of ECW where the WWF roster was flooded with wrestlers so it made sense to restrict some competitors to only one show because that allowed more TV time for more wrestlers on another show. It was still a concept that was too diluted for the general audience, but you can see the logic behind it. While the WWF didn't do much with almost any of the former WCW talent, and very few ECW guys actually got a chance, when you take a peak at the 2002 roster, a time before a major portion of those same athletes were released, the WWF had considerable roster depth. To put it in prospective, Hogan, Nash, Hall, Booker T, DDP, Rob Van Dam, The Dudleys, Lance Storm, Stone Cold, The Rock, Kurt Angle, Triple H, Chris Jericho, and others were all on the roster at the same time. That's not to mention the OVW crew that arrived shortly after with future top names like Batista, Lesnar, Orton, and Cena.

The problem is, that was 20 years ago and despite the tremendous amount of talent on the current roster, in terms of star power, a brand extension to allow for more TV time isn't really necessarily, especially when there are more hours of programming now than in 2002.

The original concept of "brand competition" was a tough sell because it wasn't as though fans were only going to watch one brand. Granted, Raw was deemed the entertainment based show, while the blue brand had "the Smackdown six" under Paul Heyman, but did anyone really only watch one brand? You can't really sell it as brand competition when it's all the same company. Thankfully, the premise of brand competition isn't a focus of the draft, but at the same time, what's the point?

I don't mean this in a sarcastic way, I just haven't figured out what the major selling point is for the draft? Why does it matter what show Becky Lynch is on? Again, it's not as though the fans are only going to watch one show, and based on the sluggish ratings, Smackdown doing better numbers than Raw is because of the added clearance of  Fox as a broadcast network so the amount of viewers that are willing to watch WWE programming isn't based on the brand since the ratings have eroded to more of a core of viewers that watch sports entertainment on a regular basis anyway.

If the selling point of the draft was to create new match-ups, that makes sense on the surface, but you have to remember that for literally every brand extension, talent eventually ends up wrestling on both shows anyway to try to boost ratings so the point is moot. That underscores the major problem with why a draft hasn't and won't work, because there isn't enough star power on the roster to justify exclusive shows. Regardless of how many times the draft touts exclusive brands, when the ratings slip, there will be some goofy invitation rule, which dilutes the concept even further, that will bring talent to both shows.

More importantly, the draft doesn't really change anything within the company because enough names are shuffled around that the same amount of titles as well as roughly the same amount of main talent eventually land on each show. Roman Reigns has the Universal title on Smackdown so obviously Drew McIntyre, who was drafted to the blue brand, isn't going to win the WWE title at Crown Jewel because Raw will still need a main event title on the show. The same can be said in some ways for the women's division, as Charlotte went to Smackdown and Becky was drafted to Raw. It goes without say that the champions are some of the top talent in the company, but if their plans in the draft are predictable then again, what's the selling point?

The most important question is, will the draft help create new stars or at the very least provide the opportunity to create new stars? If not then the entire concept is cannon fodder while the company secures record-setting revenue through its mega TV deals, but as I've written several times, did WWE brass take the short-end money in exchange for building toward the future?

Wilder vs. Fury III

Last night, Tyson Fury and Deontay Wilder competed in a modern heavyweight classic, completing their trilogy when Fury sent Wilder to the canvas in the eleventh round, which prompted the referee to halt the bout. The third fight was delayed with court decisions on the rematch clause and positive COVID tests on Fury's team so pundits wondered if the bout would be worth the payoff, particularly after Wilder's one-sided loss in their previous bout early last year and the split decision draw in the original  fight.

Thankfully, the heavyweight clash was absolutely thrilling, as the fighters exchanged knockdowns throughout the duration of the contest. The momentum tilted back and fourth, building the drama along the way. However, at the final bell, Fury, albeit not as dominate, basically used a similar plan as the bout last February. Fury used combinations to rack up damage and slick head movement to avoid punches, while Wilder showed variety early, but fell into the pattern of looking for one big punch to end the fight.

In some ways, Deontay Wilder's status as a legitimate heavyweight champion was on the line because while he brought remarkable punching power, his knockout percentage was boosted by fighting tomato cans in the early portion of his career. Truth be told, Wilder fought some solid competition, but the argument could be made that Fury was the most dangerous guy he fought in his career. After the court decision that brought the rematch to the table, which shelved the anticipated Fury/Joshua encounter, Wilder had to prove that this trilogy fight was worthwhile, especially after Anthony Joshua's recent loss diminishes any demand to see him in the ring with Fury.

Wilder is still a mostly one dimensional fighter, that's not a criticism, but rather just who he is as an athlete, and his prior excuses for his last defeat were silly, but he proved himself to be a worthy contender in this classic showdown.

These two exchanged power punches for eleven rounds, and at a time when a clown like Jake Paul tries to claim to be a boxer with sideshow antics, Wilder/Fury was a credit to just how great the sport can be when two fighters in their prime are signed to compete for the championship.

Considering they both lost recently and it fits within the narrative of the heavyweight division, prehaps Wilder/Joshua will be the fight to sign at some point in the future. On the flip side, Fury has a chance to ride the momentum of the victory and possibly wait until another challenger emerges within the division. That being said, what does Tyson Fury do next?

Almost immediately after his name was announced as the winner, speculation surfaced on social media about a potential return to WWE for Fury, who worked a match against Braun Strownman in Saudi Arabia in 2019. Granted, the reported $15 million the Saudis paid him for the propaganda material was the major reason that Fury stepped into sports entertainment, but with the current WWE landscape, there might be another big match as an option for him in the company.

Drew McIntyre has mentioned a potential bout against Fury in the past, probably to attempt to drum up publicity since such a match would bring a big payday for him too, but beyond that, it makes even more sense now. Obviously, their shared European background would be a major draw in that market, and Drew is a much bigger star now, despite management fumbling his title reign than he was when Fury was involved in the WWE in 2019. Considering Fury's level of stardom and the attempt to try to draw crossover fans, he's not going to be booked to work with someone from the 24/7 division. Not only is Drew a big enough star to work with Fury now, but the fact that he's a former champion adds more sizzle to the scenario. Plus, the fact that the classic bout with Wilder generated a tremendous amount of buzz, Fury is probably at his peak in terms of star power so this would be the time to book a return to WWE.

As mentioned, it would be a huge draw in the European market, and since the WWE Network, regardless of the platform where its hosted, eliminates some of the hurdles of traditional pay-per-view, a stadium show in England might be the location for the biggest impact for the company. Again, considering the fight Fury just had and the way it solidifies his status as the undisputed heavyweight champion, a stadium event, somewhat of a throwback to Summer Slam 1992 in England, is probably a reasonable goal. While it wouldn't be a big as Mike Tyson's involvement in WWE in 1998, because there are only a handful on boxers in the history of the sport that would have that type of impact, Tyson Fury as a headliner for a British pay-per-view would be a great PR move for WWE.

Right now, with the recent success of All Elite Wrestling, there's somewhat of a shift within the narrative of sports entertainment. Based on the signings of CM Punk, Bryan Danielson, and Adam Cole, AEW looks like the place to be, giving it the perception that the promotion looks to progress toward the future. At the same time, the common criticism of WWE is that there aren't current stars and those from the past are used to boost events. The eccentric heavyweight champion in a WWE ring would grab some headlines and give the WWE a current star for the sports world to promote on pay-per-view. Speaking of champions, the WWE champion, Big E did introductions for the boxers on the broadcast and was in the crowd. It should be obvious, but Big E has the charisma and the mic skills to be a main stream star for the WWE.

NXT 2.0

NXT 2.0 debuted on the air roughly a month ago, the revamped version of the developmental brand, and looked to shift not only the direction of the show, but also its purpose. The new NXT has yielded mixed results and at least up until this point, has looked like a rather conflicted project.

In theory, NXT was taken from its status as a third-tier brand that aimed to take a piece of the pie from All Elite Wrestling back to its original purpose of talent development, but can that really be accomplished on USA Network? As minor league as it might sound, there's a reason that Ohio Valley Wrestling had such a golden era and produced some of the biggest stars of the today. It's much easier for talent to make those almost necessary mistakes to learn the craft in front of small crowds with minimal exposure than to be put in front of a national television audience. Instead of a valuable learning experience to grow as a performer, relatively new talent made a first impression on such a wide scale that any negative aspects could typecast them in the view of the audience. In some ways, it's almost unfair to expect Performance Center prospects to flourish on national television without the chance to learn on a smaller scale first. Again, it might sound like a silly comparison based on the WWE product being so global now, but it's a good thing that Batista made rookie mistakes at spot shows in Kentucky instead of national television.

Assuming WWE brass legitimately sees potential in some of these newer competitors on the NXT 2.0 show then its almost counterproductive to put them on national television unless they have the level of experience to truly work on that platform. B-Fab and Elektra Lopez might have the potential to be stars at some point, but their match a few weeks ago just looked clumsy, spotlighting their inexperience. This is why a truly developmental brand on national television is a conflicting concept.

This speaks to the more general concept that enhancement shows, or shows that are mostly structured to feature specific stars in more or less one-sided matches, won't work in 2021. The industry had the Attitude era, where the sizzle of the industry sold tickets to house shows, while stars vs. stars drew television ratings. The horse is out of the barn in that regard so an enhancement match on a show can get a performer over, but enhancement matches on a regular basis are a reason for the viewers to change the channel. This isn't 1992 Superstars, Kamala beating up Dwayne Gill isn't going to maintain an audience, particularly when there are already countless hours of programming in the modern era.

That being said, it's clear that the focus of NXT 2.0 will be those on the show that Vince McMahon views as those that will draw money on the main roster, which makes sense, but it also sends a message about those left from the old regime. Basically, if you're a veteran in NXT 2.0, you're typecast as a third-tier guy that didn't have the star power to draw big money on the main roster. Granted, that's not to say it's an accurate assessment of veteran talents, but when the focus of the show is on new performers, where does that leave stellar veterans like Roderick Strong, Pete Dunne, or Kyle O'Reilly?

Perhaps, that's why Adam Cole departed from the company, because anyone from the Triple H era of NXT has more or less hit a ceiling in how far management will push them in the company.

Bron Breakker, the son of Rick Steiner, looks to be the breakout star from the brand, and if nothing else, NXT 2.0 could provide that introduction for him to generate some buzz to eventually make a big splash on the main roster. Even if that scenario is successful, it creates a bigger problem for the brand itself, if the brand is purely developmental for future stars on Raw or Smackdown then the show will continuously have its top talent sent to the main roster so again, a developmental show on USA Network is a conflicting concept. If Breakker becomes the top guy on NXT 2.0, how long is it before Vince sends him to Raw or Smackdown? With Vince and Kevin Dunn running the show, the longevity or depth of NXT 2.0 isn't the goal, but rather the big money that could theoretically be made on the main roster. One of the very few positives about NXT 2.0 is that Breakker has the "it" factor and definitely appears to have the potential of a main event star down the road. On the flip side, nobody else from the new cast of talent looks to be close to that level.

Speaking of the optics, I understand that WWE brass wanted a new look for the show, but I'm not sure the Nickelodeon color scheme or the venue itself presents the brand as a major entity. The venue is very small and you can see the last row of bleachers during most camera angles so it's always obvious that it's a scaled down production. If NXT 2.0 is as perceived minor league than it's possible that it could be more difficult for the competitors to seem like major league stars. The biggest question for any show on cable television is, can it find an audience? All things considered, NXT 2.0 hasn't really found an audience or really done enough to clarify what demographic its attempting to draw for ratings. The established talent on the show that can go bell-to-bell cater to the more diehard fans, which will keep NXT numbers at the show level they were under the Triple H regime. At the same time, the new faces don't have the star power to draw some of the more casual audience that watches Raw or Smackdown so what demographic is supposed to be the target audience for this show?

The Many Saints of Newark

When The Sopranos ushered its way onto HBO in 1999 and hustled its way toward the series finale in 2007, the show was praised as one of the greatest series in television history. Maybe just as important, it paved the way for the concept of DVD releases of series on premium cable, a forerunner to the streaming format that is a major distribution method today. The concept of paying a "bundle" price, albeit for a DVD set in the early-2000s or a streaming subscription now, was popularized by the chance for fans to own complete pieces of the Jersey mob saga. It seems like light years ago, but since HBO is a subscription channel itself, customers that didn't have access to the show during its original run had the chance to watch the complete series through DVD.

A side note, it's very interesting to see how HBO, a network built on full-length movies shortly after they concluded their theater run, and big time boxing, had to re-image its brand in some ways because of the evolution of media distribution. Streaming technology makes content more accessible outside of the traditional cable format so providers include an almost endless amount of on-demand content at no extra cost to attempt to entice customers to keep their cable packages. For HBO, without the championship boxing under its umbrella after the economics of the the sport shoved the network out of the boxing business, and feature films not as exclusive as they were even a decade ago, the channel has focused on accessibility to its stellar catalog of an array of series and the development of new projects. The network, assuming it can maintain viewers, is in a win-win situation because they get a cut of the HBO subscriptions through cable providers and also have revenue from HBO Max, the streaming service that anyone can subscribe to without the usual cable package.

For anyone reading this, if you have a subscription to HBO through your cable provider, you automatically have access to HBO Max, despite the process to sync that information being as easy as swimming with a pair of cement shoes.

Speaking of HBO Max, the streaming service hosted the premiere of The Many Saints of Newark, a prequel film based on The Sopranos series. Written by David Chase, who also wrote the original series, Many Saints takes the audience back to the origins of Tony, the anti-hero that the show was build around. It was only briefly mentioned in the series, but Tony would occasional reference his nephew Christopher's dad, Dickie Moltisanti as an influence on him. Dickie was mentioned enough on the show to create an intrigue about who the character was, but his story wasn't told in detail so theoretically, there was a narrative for this film.

What truly shaped Tony Soprano into one of the most well-known characters in television history?

I'm going to attempt to review this film without giving away too much of the plot so forgive me if anyone reading it hasn't had a chance to watch it yet. I must take a second to note that similar to some of the other mafia dramas that I've written about, my dad and I watched this film, as he sipped coffee and ate some M&Ms, an ironic throwback to years ago.

As far as what the film got right, the cast was well-assembled with names like Jon Bernthal, Ray Liotta, and for some sentimental value, Michael Gandolfini. It's not that Micheal has a stellar resume that he brings to the table, but it's certainly a nice achievement for James Gandolfini's real-life son to play young Tony. In the opening moments of the film, we're greeted by Micheal Imperioli's voice as we see his headstone in a cemetery, a reference back to the final season of The Sopranos  when Tony suffocated his nephew following a car accident because Christopher admitted he used drugs before the wreck. The former wiseguy was nearly clipped during an early season and was told he would eventually go to hell for his life of crime. As the second generation Moltisanti narratives portions of the film to progress the story, he confirms his fate, taking the glamour away from the mob life.

Outside of those few aspects, this film misses the mark on too many levels to truly connect the dots on the Soprano saga, which is why there's much more to say about missteps than successes. Most importantly, by nature, an origin story will appeal to the serious Soprano fan base, but Many Saints doesn't have enough of the original flavor to make that connection. Along with that, while there are clever nods to the series, as basic as it might sounds, there's not really "enough Sopranos" in the Sopranos prequel. One of the reasons the show was so iconic was it's all-star cast of memorable characters, but the attempt to re-create some of those on-screen personas fell short. Stevie Van Zandt, known for his time as a member of Bruce Springsteen's E Street band, was so well-known for his role as Silvio Dante, and Tony Sirico is linked with Paulie Walnuts that to attempt to recast those personas even as young versions fall flat.

Granted, age prevented them from being presented as younger at this point in their careers, but that brings the question to mind, was hitting the mark with a Sopranos project in 2021 possible?

There are a few holes in the logic and timeline of events throughout the film, which might seem like a petty criticism, but again, a prequel will bring in the most dedicated audience so these aspects will be noticed. Joseph Siravo, who passed away earlier this year from cancer, played Johnny Soprano for flashback scenes during the series. Perhaps, it was because of his age or health, but without the usual Johnny Soprano from the same time period in both the film and the series, even the talented Jon Bernthal, who played Tony's dad in Many Saints, wasn't enough to camouflage the replacement. Along with that, there's a scene in the film that is pivotal to the plot, where Johnny Soprano is arrested at a carnival for conducting mob business and is sentenced to four years in prison, which gave Dickie Moltisanti that chance to mentor Tony out of respect for his associate.

In the series, Johnny Soprano is arrested at the carnival and then released a few hours later. So, the entire premise for how Dickie mentored Tony clashes with the narrative of the show.

We already know that Dickie's fate is to be gunned down in front of his house when Christopher is an infant, which set up the dynamic of Tony and Christopher on the show. Unfortunately, this film never actually explores Tony's introduction to mafia life or any of the lessons he learned that built him into the character that eventually became the boss of North Jersey. Instead, his participation in an upcoming hijack is implied before Dickie is assassinated. There wasn't much of a debate, discussion, or interaction with how Tony actually became involved in organization crime. The series told us that he inherited his way of life from his father, while this prequel teases something deeper with an influence from Moltisanti, but this feature barely scratched the surface of any of that.

The main plot, which was scattered at best, was some background on Dickie Moltisanti, but as mentioned, Christopher's dad wasn't a main focus of any portion of the series so it's very doubtful the audience was clamoring for his origin story. In some respects, this script seems like it picked up the pieces of the Sopranos that remained and made a film based on speculation of a full-length movie after the show wrapped in 2007. The major problem is, the demand and the timing to release such a film would've been more than a decade ago. Instead of a "Sopranos movie," this was a movie vaguely about Sopranos characters. Another key point is that the casting of Michael Gandolfini might've unintentionally given the impression that Many Saints was more about the origins of Tony, but that wasn't the narrative.

In fact, it doesn't really get in-depth on Dickie either. After the two-hour film, you're left without much explanation of what actually brought Tony into the mafia life, background of a secondary character for Dickie, and the impression that the story was incomplete. Even the reveal of who set up the hit on Dickie at the conclusion isn't anything earth-shattering or something that would've drastically effected the foundation for the series. If this film gave the audience the moment where young Tony jumped into organized crime then maybe there would be something useful for the prequel. There are some fun Easter eggs with references to the show, and it was nice that Michael Gandolfini got the chance to play the role of his dad, but Many Saints of Newark is a prime example of a concept that sounded like it might get off the ground on paper, but didn't connect the dots on-screen.

Jim Valley Award

"I'm Jim Valley and I f**king love pro wrestling" -Jim Valley

That line was received with cheers and applause in a packed ballroom last month at the Gold Coast Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada for the 55th Cauliflower Alley Club Reunion, a gathering of many of the most respected luminaries of the industry. The CAC, a non-profit organization that provides assistance for those in need with the funds it raises through it's reunions and memberships, honored Valley with its Courage Award.

Valley, a well-known podcast host and interviewer for The Wrestling Observer, Dave Meltzer's longtime reporting platform that is co-anchored by Bryan Alvarez, was surprised with the CAC recognition by its president, B. Brain Blair. Talking pro wrestling on the mic in-studio, at a live card, or as far away as the Tokyo Dome is second nature to Valley so despite the unexpected award, he took the mic with confidence and appreciation at the CAC reunion.

However, just last year Jim Valley was far away from the opportunity to address pro wrestling legends that were in the room to cheer for him, an ironic reversal of when he cheered for the sport's stars in front of his television screen as a youngster when he watched Don Owens' Portland Wrestling. Instead, Valley, a native of a small town outside of Seattle, was unconscious on a ventilator, clinging to life. To say the situation looked grim would be an understatement, as Valley nearly died six times during the months he spent in the hospital. His wife, Kari was a true tag team champion for him, which he cites as the reason he made it through such a unsettling period.

"It sounds brave, but I was unconscious through a lot of it. My wife, Kari is the one who saw the crash carts outside of my room. She's the one who recognized that my numbers looked bad and alerted the doctors and nurses at least once," Valley explained.

That bleak scene in the hospital was about as far away from an award speech as one could get.

The circumstances that put the popular podcaster there were the effects of  Wegener's Vasculitis, an autoimmune disease that causes inflammation of the blood vessels. When Valley was diagnosed with the rare condition in 2012 after coughing up blood, the disorder so under the medical radar that the nurses that initially treated him had to resort to Google searches for some reference point on the disease. He underwent a double lung biopsy as part of treatment after he was transferred to a larger medical facility in Olympia to better handle the unique scenario.

"It was supposed to take four hours. I woke up almost three weeks later. The doctor said I didn't crash, but I clipped the tops of the trees," Valley said.

Valley spent three months at that Olympia hospital and then several more at home to recover from the health scare. Out of the woods, Jim went on with normal life, which consisted of a love for theme parks, video games and of course, professional wrestling. His Portland Wrestlecast audio show, and Pacific Rim, the podcast based on the Japanese side of the sport that he shares with his longtime friend, Fumi Saito, an accomplished historian of Puroresu, found a home on Meltzer's Wrestling Observer website.

After nearly eight years of no major hurdles with the disease, Wegener's landed a cheap shot on Valley. A case of PJP pneumonia caused a flare up of the autoimmune disease, putting Saito's co-host on the ropes. The 2020 bout with the disorder kept him in the hospital for five months, a portions of that either spent on a ventilator or with the use of other medical equipment. The scenario outside those hospital walls with the COVID shutdown was challenging for everyone, but isolated while his life was in jeopardy was one of the most difficult times for Valley. Last November, when it looked like he might be on his way home, a setback kept him in the hospital even longer, further testing his resilience.

"Hospitals are very grey, lonely places. With COVID restrictions, visitors were either limited or completely restricted. One time, I asked a nursing assistant to just hold my hand for a few minutes because I missed human contact," Valley remarked.

During the darkest times in the hospital for Valley, which he doesn't remember because he was unconscious while a ventilator, a show of love and appreciation took place outside of it. Josh Nason of The Observer took the initiative to set up a Go Fund Me to help cover the staggering medical costs that were involved with the care that ultimately saved Valley's life. Those that have spoken with the podcaster can immediately identify his passion and positivity for professional wrestling. In many ways, Jim Valley is the wrestling buddy that many people enjoy the chance to talk shop with, and his kindness was rewarded by many inside the business. With more than a thousand donors, Fozzy front man and bubbly connoisseur, Chris Jericho supported the cause. All Elite Wrestling founder, Tony Khan, and legendary announcer Tony Schiavone were also among those that pitched in to help.

"When I woke up, I discovered we had about $65,000 raised. Just incredible, I still can't believe it," said Valley.

Early this year, Jim finally went home after that extensive stay in the hospital, but that was just the start of an exhausting journey back to a level of normalcy for him. He endured months of therapy and visits to specialists. The checklist of follow-up care might be longer than the 1,0004 holds that Jericho once claimed on a broadcast of Nitro. Despite progress made throughout 2021, the focus to fully restore his health continues today.

"Recovery takes a lot of work. They say it takes a week for every day in the hospital. It takes consistent work in physical therapy and every day continuing to trying to reclaim what you used to do on your own. For example, I still have shower chair in my bathroom, but I just have it there for balance. It just takes time," Jim explained.

Tenacity and the guts to kick out define the characteristics of the babyfaces of the industry. Dusty landed the bionic elbow, Steve Austin stomped the villains, and Jim Valley refused to stay on the canvas. Too often, the professional wrestling business, similar to many other forms of entertainment, has its share of tragic stories. Thankfully, Jim Valley is a shining example of the positivity that can result from the sport, which is why he was such a perfect candidate for this year's CAC courage award.

"I love Jim, we became friends the second we spoke together on a podcast with Fumi Saito.. Passion can’t be hidden, and Jim’s knowledge speaks volumes to that passion. Jim made us all look like amateurs by dealing with an issue most of us will never have to face. He is an inspiration," said Sam Adonis, an international star that was in attendance at the reunion to present the legendary Rey Mysterio with the Lucha Libre award.

Still humble, Valley yields most of the credit for the award and his amazing recovery.

"I don't consider what I've done courageous. I think anyone who wants to live would do what I have done. My wife is the courageous one who managed the house, paid the bills, advocated for me at hospitals, worked full-time from my ICU and took care of me when I was too weak to do it myself. I joke that when it came to wedding vows that she got worse, poorer and in sickness. She's the courageous one. That's why I consider it to be a tag team award," he said.

The plaque with his name will remain a reminder for him to continue the classic comeback to victory as he continues diligent therapy at his home with Sherman, his loyal cat, alongside him. Wegener's Vasculitis put Jim Valley on the mat, but through his courage, the care of Kari, and thousands of dollars raised, he answered the bell.

Jim Valley loves professional wrestling, and professional wrestling loves him, too.

VHS Memoirs Volume 20

Vice's Dark Side of The Ring, an often controversial, but fascinating series took a look at Atsushi Onita's pioneering Frontier Martial Arts Wrestling promotion last week. As infamous as it is legendary, FMW took the wild brawls in Memphis and the barbed wire matches of Puerto Rico, which Onita saw on his travels as a young wrestler for Giant Baba's All Japan group, and imported those concepts to Japan. Onita spent the formative stages of his career as a light heavyweight wrestler under the All Japan banner until a series of serious knee injuries derailed his career and forced him into retirement. After just a few years on the sidelines, Onita emerged back onto the Japanese scene with the FMW organization, where he could work a ground style that was based on blood, barbed wire, and an over-the-top presentation that thrilled audiences.

The Dark Side of The Ring episode did a fairly accurate summary of the rise and fall of FMW so I thought I'd pen an article about how I discovered the promotion and why it remains my favorite Japanese wrestling organization even today. I've watched professional wrestling for as long as I can remember, getting magazines at the grocery story before I was old enough to read just to look at the pictures. I first heard of Frontier Marital Arts Wrestling when I was in elementary school because of it's association with ECW and references to it in a Pro Wrestling Almanac. At the time, I thought Hayabusa's costume was awesome and recognized Jinsei Shinzaki as Hakushi. Again, through ECW I knew Masato Tanaka was from FMW and was amazed to see the ridiculous chair shots he took from Mike Awesome. A comical side note, a few years later, I rented a tape (remember video stores?) that was called "Backyard Dogs" since it had pictures from the infamous late-night commercials that advertised VHS backyard footage on the box. I assumed I rented a tape of backyard wrestling matches, which garnered main stream press at the time for untrained grapplers hitting each other with chairs and jumping off of the roof. Instead, "Backyard Dogs" was a movie about backyard wrestling that was more or less the Wrestling Society X version of film. The movie was terrible with goofy sound effects and a story that was so hokey that WCW 2000 angles were entertaining by comparison. The only good thing about this cinematic train wreck was that Hayabusa had a cameo.

I heard about Hayabusa's injury online, but I had literally just started to get internet access at the time so I didn't know many details when I was still in middle school. Fast forward a few years and when I was in high school, I randomly saw a kid in another grade wearing an original ECW Fully Bloodied Italians t-shirt. He was somewhat of an odd bird, but harmless and he meant well. When he would stop random people in the hallway and tell them he hoped they had a nice day, he actually meant it. Since the fellow was genuinely wishing people well, I made sure to say hello to him when I could since it's not that difficult to be kind to other people. One day, I asked him where he got the original ECW t-shirt, and he explained that he bought it from George Mayfield, who sold many compilation tapes at independent shows and conventions for years before the internet made such footage much more accessible.

He made a point to tell me about a lot of obscure Japanese wrestling references nearly every time I saw him and mentioned that I should watch some of these shows. Ironically, this dude had HUNDREDS of VHS tapes from Highspots when the online store sold footage from Samurai TV, but didn't have some of the rather easily found WWF pay-per-views from the previous decade. We started trading tapes, as he would bring a bag of those random VHS tapes to school and let me make copies over the weekend, and would include a series of blank tapes so I could make copies of those WWF PPVs for him. He didn't have two VCRs to dub tapes, but I didn't mind the extra copying process since he was nice enough to allow me to make copies of shows I hadn't seen before.

Eventually, he sold his entire wrestling tape collection the following year and became a hardcore political viewer so I'm not sure what he's up since 2006, but wherever he is, I hope he's doing well. When he was in the process of selling his collection, he sent me an AIM message and told me that he had a bag of VHS for $20 so I agreed to the purchase. When I got them, there were dozens of Japanese, ECW, and indy shows suffered into a garbage bag.

However, I must go back to the initial tape swap when he gave me a bag of VHS to copy, and one of them was the FMW Kawasaki Stadium 1996 event. Despite being taking place almost a decade earlier, the event was my full-fledged introduction to Frontier Martial Arts Wrestling. As mentioned, I was familiar with FMW, but was memorized by the violence spectacle on screen. There were some fun brawls on the show, including Cactus Jack vs. Wing Kanemura, who I saw previously in ECW, but the two featured matches are what made me track down as much FMW content as possible soon after that. Combat Toyodo vs. Megumi Kudo in an exploding barbed wire match was absolutely insane. It was violence with a level of psychology and storytelling that usually isn't seen within the genre. The main event was Hayabusa and Masato Tanaka vs. Terry Funk and Mr. Pogo in an exploding ring match. Again, the spectacle was insane, but was a compelling showcase of death match wrestling.

I watched and dubbed as much FMW as I could find in the few years after that, garnering a decent collection of footage from throughout the company's history. Thankfully, most of the main footage is on Youtube in some form now, but before that, even when VHS was a fading form of media, I dubbed dozens of FMW tapes just to be able to watch more of the promotion. Also since that time, I found some original FMW programs online that are some of my favorite items in my extensive wrestling collection. Ironically, one of those programs was given to me as a Christmas gift just a few years ago. Within my adventures as a commentator on the local Pittsburgh scene, I've been very thankful to be able to work with and call matches for some very talented wrestlers. Shirley Doe, who actually designed some of Mick Foley's famous airbrushed t-shirts in ECW, is one of the people I respect the most in the wrestling business. He's one of the genuinely good people in life and his vast knowledge of the sport is an asset to any organization. Doe, who has competed for 26 years, actually worked a few tours of Japan, appearing on the previously mentioned Samurai TV. As mentioned, he gave me a Christmas gift a few years ago, it was an original FMW program from 2000 and it's one of the nicest gifts I've ever received. I gave him an Akira Maeda figure that year to go along with a Riki Choshu figure I gave him as a birthday gift previously. The diehard wrestling fans will get the reference.

As we saw last week on Vice TV, nearly 20 years after FMW closed its doors, the company has an enduring legacy. If I had to guess I'd say that the influential style and some of the infamous antics are what kept the organization in the conversation for the past two decades. There were so many compelling characters and wild matches that FMW was undoubtedly a fun viewing experience. Hayabusa was a death match wrestler, but his aerial moves had such grace as he soared with a variety of dives outside of the ring. Mr. Pogo carved his opponents up with a sickle and looked like a maniac. Onita, as shady as he might've been as a business man, was one of the most charismatic performers of his generation. It speaks volumes to the accomplishments of the company and its performers that it's still a topic of conversation within the industry.