I, "The Student of the Game" Russ Stevens, will be giving my opinions about pro wrestling as someone who the Downstate Illinois scene did away with when I was tired of playing "wrestler" and was locked out for calling out the socially unacceptable behavior. While pursuing the dream, I missed Ruthless Aggression. Thus, my indie tape/DVD library and indie attendance became the basis of what I like in. This blogger hopes to educate/correct you about what you should expect from wrestling today.
Imagine We Still Had VHS: "Cat Planet Cuties" and the Curse of Too Much Physical Media
*Blog post started on February 19, 2021.
Trying to optimize my Twitter feeds (@maineventzombie, @catbusruss, @russthebus)
yesterday has put me a day behind in terms of writing. What is the
point of staying up late for content if it is not fresh in your mind the
next day? There is a chance that the thoughts that ruined your original
intentions bleed over into the next day. When you are obsessive
compulsive like me, if one thing is optimized, all must be optimized.
...
Ironically,
anime rarely has those kind of expansive extras to warrant a physical
copy. But does "Cat Planet Cuties" need that when I could grab it for
$10 bucks? I could not pass up something catcentric at that price. It is
still a gamble because it is an anime. This is an anime with an American
title that implies loads of fan service.
Fan service is best kept as an implication like the promises at the end of episodes of "Evangelion" or "Blue Seed". As a series, I have seen that backfire so many times like "Agent AIKa" and "Knights of Ramune".
Reviewing "The Craft" To Clear the Way For More Stuart Gordon
*Blog post started on February 16, 2021.
Stuart
Gordon delivers another Lovecraftian feature, this one seeming more HP
than Gordon. The film again shows how Gordon can work around any
shortcomings including the CG effects that are definitely not ILM.
Mermaids with tentacles instead of fins and flayings make this a must
see for any gore fans. Ezra Godden is a great proxy for Jeffrey Combs.
If it lacks anything, it is a character in the vein of Barbara Crampton.
The
podcast has now lead to a back up in my written blogs. It is more of a
principle thing that upsets me. There is a sense that I am selling out
the written work for clicks. But the pods are getting me twice the clicks.
If
there is a problem with the podcast, it is that I am running out of
themes really quick. I have stocked up on Sean Bean films from Disc
Replay, but how often can I afford to add other actors' sub
100-minute filmographies?
...
An
even better gift would be inquiries about my pro-wrestling, low-budget,
zombie-comedy "Main Event of the Dead". I am more than happy to send
out script treatments and would love suggestions on how to get this
project at developmental hell. Send your advice or request to russthebus07@gmail.com.
As
I finish typing out my plugs, I realize that I might just be writing
this for the sake of practice. Do I have an actual subject to address?
The answer is yes. Thanks for the edibles NuEra. This allowed me to skip
(too stoned to record) the visceral review video, and create a need to write a review for what
the girls at the bank think is a classic, "The Craft".
I
think it might be nothing more than Breckin Meyer-sploitation. Did the
producers think it could not be a hip chick flick if he was not playing a
high school slacker?
I
think I may need to quit following the Nine Inch Nails Facebook group.
It seems "Everyday Is Exactly the Same." There is also the fear that the
Marilyn Manson situation will take down Trent Reznor, but I digress. If
I keep down that rabbit hole, we will get into my thoughts about Armie
Hammer as a patsy to reinforce QAnon's thoughts that liberals are
cannibals and how that will lead to celebrities actually eating people.
If morons are going to believe hearsay as irrefutable facts,
celebrities might as well start doing that because it is expected of
them.
The
point is, "I believe I can see the future, because I make the same
mistakes". At least no one will confuse my quotations from this blog for
being those of Johnny Cash.
It
has been an exhausting few days. Sleeping in is not really a thing when
you have cats. The podcast is requiring me to watch a movie each night.
Between wrestling and "The Daily Social Distancing Show", the movie
start times will take me into the wee hours of the morning.
Getting to
bed before 2 am is a challenge because despite the movies being under
100 minutes, pausing to take notes and many times the need to record my
visceral take on a features can make everything a two-hour affair.
But if I did not mention so many movies on the prior podcast, would it
even have been 20 minutes (19) long if I did not add those reviews in post?
This
exhaustion maybe hindering my enjoyment of WrestleMania season. I try
my best to only have a big meal a day, and with my podcast being
finalized during Monday Night Raw, it is easy to get through that
evening with a the Great Value Glucerna knock off. I ain't got time to snack.
Am
I watching much of Raw? Probably not as much as the McMahons hope. Not
because of my attention being dedicated to my podcast, it is just
difficult to know when to jump in.
I
skip the first half hour because of the 20-minute opening promo. At
7:30 pm (CST), I tune in, but cannot recall seeing anything spectacular
the last couple of weeks. That must be my official disapproval of the
Retribution angle. When 8:00 opens with an effort to get Lacey Evans
over, "Family Guy" is my cable destination. If there is a great story
about the Griffins at 8:30 on TBS, USA should be glad that I can
only take so much of Peter's laugh, so I will be back at 9:00 to spend
the next hour frustrated. Randy Orton being your main event
two weeks in a row does not restore confidence in the product.
I
am starting to have more faith in the Impact product than WWE's. Their
problem is that they are still relying on disqualifications and count
outs to stretch out stories. Because of that, Impact still gives off a
WWE light vibe. Tony Khan is not going to buy Impact, so we are not
going to see a change in the booking style of Impact.
Once
AEW can tour again, they will not need the interpromotional drama. If
Khan's booking style has yet to rub off on Anthem Wrestling Exhibitions,
it is not. So I need energy to watch their product. Tuesday is usually
an off campus trip for lunch, so a Glucerna should be my evening meal.
But after a three midnight movie stretch, I lack the energy to
make it through the broadcast without real food.
And
of course, once I open up the box of Cheetos Mac 'n Cheese and put the
water on the stove, the AEW content comes on. After the paid ad, I could
have turned on "Wrong Turn 2: Dead End", watched Trevor Noah off the
DVR, and be in bed by 11:30 pm. Was I supposed to just let the Cheetos
pasta go stale and waste the water. The water mainly, yes, I have zipper
bags for Chester's stuff. Regardless, waste not want not.
Which
leaves me pondering about whether I eat the Wing Stop wings I was going
to save for last night, tonight. Three-fifths served as lunch
yesterday, I just left the other eight nuggets (Wings have bones.) in the bank's fridge. The idea was to snack
on them last night. Tonight, my take on TGI Fridays Wings will be
prepared (It is a sauce second to Gardner's Pizza and Wings.), but are 12 really going to hold me over?
AEW
being more like a sport leads to sporting event eating habits. After
you spend $7 on a hot dog, you might as well surrender your wallet and
buy an overpriced pretzel. I would be so broke if I was a beer drinker
at a ball park. That money is meant to be spent on comic books and used
video games from the shops three blocks away. Unfortunately, the Ricketts's re-imagination of
Wrigleyville may end up leaving me with high priced drinks as my only
option.
And
that is why I hate evening baseball on the Northside. Being from
Downstate, to catch a game live, I am going to need to take a day. Why
not play during the day any chance you get. There were only suppose to
be 27 night games a year anyhow.
It is a great home field advantage when you catch a team playing on the west coast that needed to play
into the wee morning hours only to have to play ball eight hours later.
Most of the bars around the park stay open to 4 am anyhow.
The
most recent reason for day baseball in Chicago is that mean my podcast
will not take away from my enjoyment of the Cubbies. When the Cubs play
while I am work, it sucks that I cannot watch them, but that is the hand
fate dealt me. Evenings, how can I focus on producing my podcast and
the greatest franchise in all of sports (I said greatest, not the
best. I probably should have used beloved. Fuck the Red Sox)?
Does anyone have any pointers on maximizing movie viewing time to live a normal couch potato life? If you do, send an email to russthebus07@gmail.com. This is probably the simplest thing I will ask for advice on from my readers. Let us develop a report...
So
that you will be cool when I am more aggressive about asking for your help with my
low-budget, pro-wrestling, zombie-comedy feature "Main Event of the
Dead". If you need a script treatment or have any pointers on getting
the flick out of development hell, email russthebus07@gmail.com.
It is a constant theme of "NinetyForChill.com - The Podcast"
for me to call out the wrestler CM Punk for being a sociopath. That is
because he was one of my favorite wrestlers as the Internet became more
prevalent. I just presumed RussTheBus was already taken in most cases
when I was asked for a new username. By 2007, the Internet was something
I had been using for at least 10 years. Why would I expect to be the
only Bus?
The point is, if I am going to mention my Letterboxd account, CMDarth,
I feel I need to explain that I am a mark, but I do not approve of his
inability to take responsibility for his actions. This guy has felt no
need to apologize for nearly destroying Colt Cabana's life and then has the gall (ironic MMA career) to feel
attacked when people call him out for it.
Sociopath
seems like the right word, and I think he may even sell merchandise
suggesting as much. I just verified that. And I always thought it was
the Drug-Free portion of the shirt that prevented me from purchasing it.
I
know the guy has done some good things, but I think his motivation is
because he knows people will further admire him for that. The story
about paying off Joey Mercury's house before it could get foreclosed
upon was wonderful, but it showed no personal responsibility. He saved
the life of a recovering addict, but it was the drugs that lead Mercury
there, not Punk's guilt. Fixing his mistakes like his Cabana
affair would acknowledge that he did something wrong to begin with.
Did
he do anything wrong? He put his best friend in a risky position and
promised that nothing was at stake. This was a bed he made, but he
refused to lie in it. To do so was to acknowledge that he screwed up. If
you expect him to pay anything for him expressing himself, you might as
well accept that you are a fascist.
All
that can be said, is thank the gods he is on our side. Perhaps politics
is a career path he can pursue, but he has been making what I find to
be excellent decisions in term of feature films to star him. He is still
so cool, so it can be difficult to hit the publish button to call him out on his bullshit, but I
gotta take those initials away for my own promotion.
If
he is up for it, I am happy to drive up to Milwaukee to trade holds and
strikes for the moniker. Otherwise, Cool Movies Darth's work will have
to speak for itself.
Spider-Man: Far From Home (2019)
This
might be the "Shazam" of the MCU. It is good, but by this point in a
franchise, I was in the mood for a continuation of the darker elements.
This film was released in the same year as the "Endgame". You cannot put
the darkness away.
It feels like another restart for Peter
Parker, making him seem like he is in the sitcom franchise of this
universe. The character is not evolving in the same sense that Thor,
Cap, and Tony Stark had this many appearances in. At least Ant-Man
second mission was dependent on the first feature. This was just put
"Homecoming" in Europe.
The feature also shows that Sony and
Marvel are playing it safe until it does not work. There is nothing
exceptional about the direction except in the case of the illusions that
Spider-Man faces. I would almost suggest Ruben Fleischer could have put
more into this film.
As for the narrative, Mysterio seems to
have a lot of wasted potential and the final revelation in the credits
makes me think that the conclusion to a suspected trilogy might be
rushed. I am not enough of a comic book reader to suggest who should
lead The Avenger going forward, but counting on an adolescent seems like
they are taking the edge off of the larger narrative.
"Spider-Man:
Far From Home" may have just been released to late in the MCU to feel
like it is on the level of the other features in it. The soft tone is
great for new audiences, but after 22 films, who is new?
Hellboy (2019)
Conceptually,
this incarnation of “Hellboy” is fine. It justifies featuring a
delightfully cranky Ian McShane. There are great set pieces that give it
a crazy comic book vibe. It features the over-the-top violence that
Neil Marshall thrives on. Any movie with a scene set to a Muse song
and/or Motley Crue’s “Kickstart My Heart” cannot be bad.
But this
is very, very flawed. Too much CGI for a Marshall...perhaps even a
George Lucas flick. The biggest thing missing is the charm that we were
provided from Guillermo Del Toro’s franchise. That series featured fully
developed characters, not just bad asses. You can have a movie of just
tough guys. The 80’s thrived on that. But when you recall the emotional
grounding Ron Perlman gave Big Red, this fun feature is just a shell of
its predecessor.
Castle Freak (1995)
It is a pity that “Castle Freak” was a straight to VHS release. The DVD
transfer appears to be straight from VHS. Stewart Gordon presents a
great narrative and that allows for Jeffrey Combs most dynamic
performance. I do not appreciate the cat murder, but the brutality of
all the mutilation is spectacular and the antagonist intelligence and
compassion shines through. Brisk and brutal with a style paying tribute
to goalposts, I cannot ask for more.
The New Mutants (2020)
“New Mutants” would be gold if only released earlier in the franchise.
Nothing spectacular, but not all mutations are grand. It actually
warrants benefiting from a plus 95-minute runtime. This is what happens
if you are not a spoiled Charles Xavier brat. It ties itself to the rest
of the “X-Men” franchise well which is what is most important. This is
how you make “Nightmare on Elm St accessible.
Used Cars (1980)
Robert Zemeckis’s under appreciated debut and effort to shake the House
of Mouse image from Kurt Russell. What happened to simple yet epic
R-Rated comedy? “The Goods” was good, but did not have the nerve to be
excellent.
GeoStorm (2017)
Did Dean Devlin fail to sell a “GI Joe 3” script. No use of good actors,
no humor, and not enough dialogue. It screams an hour ten minute script
with lots of descriptions of disasters that are slow to take hold.
The Gentlemen (2019)
"The Gentlemen" is the best Guy Ritchie film since "Snatch". Aside from
"Swept Away", he doesn't miss. "Revolver" help me become an atheist.
Great dialogue through out, but no home run lines like his first two
flicks.
Fatman (2020)
Mel Gibson stars as a worn Chris Cringle who is fed up with children
needing to receive coal more often than not. But having to accept a
military contract to make up for the lack of toys being delivered has
put things in perspective for him and he will be back to being the jolly
old fat man in no time. Too bad fourth grader Billy does not take
lessons and hires the Skinny Man to take St. Nick out. Too much
exposition in the first act. 2nd act is a solid narrative. The showdown
is great. It is just funny collateral damage away from being a classic.
Ralph Breaks the Internet (2018)
A Disney movie that I would have like to have been high for. Overly
long, a derivative plot, and a possible reason for that Gal Gadot
“Imagine” sing-a-long. Still, there are plenty of fun moments, so it is
the perfect encapsulation on the Internet. It is not all wrong, but
still far from the mark.
I am starting to ponder what will happen when the lobby is finally reopened at the bank. This may as well be a critique of The AV Club and The Ringer.
If they could come up with more content, I may not have to come up
with blog ideas solely to kill time on the first day back from the weekend.
Of
course as I write that, with the bank technically closed (at least the
lobby would be which would mean there aside from deposits and withdraws,
save your queries for 8:30 am or lunch), everyone pulling up to the
drive thru asking about stimulus checks and checking on the status of
accounts that were to be opened and depositing into them regardless. To
hell with instant karma. Please accept my apologies Bill Simmons.
*Blog restarted on January 28, 2021.
It
looks like the previous rant may have just been a case of the Mondays. And
it could be stated that I may have just been more productive with
myself. Writing out tweets to post through out the week can be very time
consuming.
If
only I had a reason for all the B-movie posters images I send with
some of the reviews. There really is not any use for them outside of
those reviews. The right panel on my all blogs have enough odd imagery
to serve as decoration. They do beat selling ad space.
Ad space is for NinetyForChill.com - The Podcast.
With a need for guests on that podcast, you would not even need to pay a
fee for your upcoming plugs and event. Just send me a theme and keep
the movies we are going to talk about to under 100 minutes. My email is russthebus07@gmail.com.
I
may just not have the same energy. The podcast production can take a
toll on me. Trying to nail down guests kind of makes everything a mad
dash to make my Tuesday deadline. If only I was confident enough to
believe the 10's of listeners come solely for my flat monotone and dry
personality, the need to find the appropriate sound bites and trailers
would be unnecessary.
If
I am frustrated about anything, it is the sense that nothing is going
on. We have a respectable president right now and another week till the
impeachment trial starts. There is not much to get worked up about, and
because of that, a need to focus on my screens be it 6.06" to 43" is lacking.
Without podcast needs to meet, is it worth staying up late for?
And
of course wrestling is in that holding pattern to. Nothing Earth
shattering will be happening out of New York until after Sunday's Royal
Rumble. It is great to have Xfinity once the WWE Network migration
occurs. If you get Xfinity's cable TV, you get Peacock Premium. Just
wish I did not have to pay for $9.99 January and February.
When
it comes to streaming services, I do not know how much longer I will
have NBCU's service. "The Office" has never intrigued me and with the
exception of Championship Sunday, they never show enough Newcastle
United. Once my TV package comes up in May, I have my means of getting
all I need via streaming. The likelihood of WWE keeping my interest past
April 11 is not good.
What
will keep my interest...aside from NXT-style matches and booking on
Mondays and Fridays? I do not know. They could take the New Japan route
and introduce more championships. Wrestle Kingdom 13 had nothing but
championship matches with the exception of one. You had to be a top
contender or a champion to be on the show of shows. Does that not add
gravitas to the event?
More championships would be good for the next WWE 2K simulation game, if we ever receive one again.
One
of my favorite things about the game is downloading all of the fan
created championships. Downloading wrestlers is fun until you see an
updated version or need to pay for the DLC to be allowed to download
them. Title belts are usually one and done deals. The biggest challenge
is tracking down the side plates they tried before they found the ideal
ones for a performer. Did you know Natalya and Jinder Mahal had the
plates replaced in their title reigns? Roman Reigns, Daniel Bryan, and
Bray Wyatt seem to get different ones each reign.
Being
a wrestler who was coming up in the business during the National
Wrestling Alliance licensing its names to indie promotions (NWA No
Limits, NWA Midwest, IWA-Midsouth, NWA-Missouri...or so Shane Somers
claimed), I found it fun to find out who is the best in a territory, and
to see if they got the custom belt made, or just repurposed a WWE
replica. The WWE 2K series allowed us to see the classic belts of the
territories. This made me want to optimize the game the best I could
solely to create territorial shows (Dozer City Wrestling was my
interpretation of Peoria).
If
only I had an abundance of friends. This if would allow me to easily
come up with weekly podcasts and when we are gaming against each other
like it was 1992 to 1994 ("Street Fighter 2" to "Mortal Kombat 2")
people would make choices just to spite the games owner. You cannot
justify Smoke being the Pacific Northwest Champion.
Regional
titles sound like a good idea to me when WWE gets back on the road. I
for one think every TV show needs a title defense. Maybe if each region
had a champion (at worst, there would be 52 of them based on how many
loops there can be in a year), the fans would become invested in the
champion. You could have a belt collector gimmick. If anything, it gives
you a dark match main event.
52 titles maybe a bit much, but why not bring back some of these unique belts.
