The Fall of Brandon Barbwire

Brandon Barbwire is counting down the hours until he loses his championship.

It's not a matter of "if" at this point, and you can thank none other than Matt Hardy for putting the final nail in the coffin of the Pinnacle's best.

Hardy made a surprise return to WWE at Wrestlemania on Sunday. and even won the RAW tag titles with his brother Jeff. The WWE fans welcomed Team Xtreme back with open arms. After their stint in TNA, where Matt became broken and embraced an insanity that would make him even more valuable as a performer, the Hardy's could have gone anywhere. They were such a hot commodity that they demanded their own price, and WWE had the biggest bank account. Even though legal battles with Anthem meant the "broken" Matt Hardy was dead in the water, Matt & Jeff were instant stars again when the New Day introduced them on Sunday.

It was a Wrestlemania moment if there ever was on.

And sitting somewhere watching the epic return of Matt Hardy was Brandon Barbwire. I can picture it in my head how he clutched his Cape Championship Wrestling title to his chest that night and reminded himself that he was the man who took Matt Hardy to his limit.

Thanks to his manager and leader of the Pinnacle Jeff O'Dell, he might has well be a member of Batman's rogue gallery, who sat around a Poker table in a classic episode of Batman the Animated Series telling each other about how they "almost got him."

Rewind to just over a month ago.

Matt Hardy, soon to be the biggest free agent of the world, came to CCW in his quest for gold and went toe to toe with the champ. Brandon Barbwire is a lot of things - vindictive, jealous, vile, sneaky, and a cheat, but dammit he's still OUR champ.

CCW Caged Chaos - Brutality at it's Finest

I left Blogzilla 1985 a little over a year ago to focus on this silly little podcast thing that I was never fully committed to. My passion has always been writing. It started with awful short stories on an actual type writer that my mother got me for Christmas when I was a preteen, and continued through my college career as a contributor and eventual editor.

In short - no, Egon. Print is not dead.

Blogzilla 1985 had been very successful for me. I reached a bigger audience through the internet than I did working for a local publication, and I had no restraints on what I could talk about. When the idea was bounced around what would eventually become Podzilla 1985's core group, I was hesitant. How would this translate to an audio form where I couldn't plan out what I was going to say? Were we good enough to improvise and keep people interested?

Of course we were! Podzilla 1985 has been a smashing success for me, and I can trace my excitement back to that original Wrestlemania podcast I did with Double H, Zach, and Louie. I've always had an attachment to the world of professional wrestling, and to be able to work with my old friend and fellow former GameStop victim Hunter was the best introduction I could ever hope for.

One of the perks of covering wrestling regularly on Podzilla 1985 was that I became aware of Cape Championship Wrestling. It's a great alternative to the corporately produced big box federations like World Wrestling Entertainment, and as luck would have it, our old friend and former PWU co-host Hunter was the general manager. I attended my first CCW strictly to see his performance and hear my good friend and pro wrestler Osby Tomlin take his last trip through the curtain and into the squared circle. Years of battling in this sport of barbarians and dreamers had taken a toll on him, and he had to retire that night.

In the silver lining of tragic circumstances, something wonderful grew where he planted the seed of his retirement.

Elimination Chamber Preview

Tonight is the night! For the third time in six weeks, World Wrestling Entertainment is holding another big event, and this time it's only for Network subscribers.

The gang over at Podzilla 1985 has their preview up, and there is still time to listen to it before WWE ignores all of their great fantasy booking and screws up what is an incredible card.

Let's listen!

Through Hell Fire, Brimstone, and Corporate Retreats.

I love professional wrestling. 

I have been a fan since I was seven years old. There would be stretches of time that I wouldn't pay as much attention to the shows themselves, but I would always keep track of the various stories being told. As a kid I completely thought that wrestling was real. These men were competing in a legitimate contest to see who was the best athlete. As I grew up I began to have a better understanding of what wrestling really is. I was able to choose my favorite performers based on their matches and their interviews, instead of just who the shows were telling me who I should root for. Over time my favorites have changed, but there has been one constant in my almost 20 years of being a fan. 

The Devil's Favorite Demon, The Big Red Machine Kane.

My introduction, and love for, professional wrestling came from an unlikely place. As a kid, I was obsessed with action figures. I had boxes of them; Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Power Rangers, heroes and villains from Marvel and DC comics, and anything in between. My friends and I would have giant wars using them with the fate of the entire universe hanging in the balance. 

One day, my friend Andre brought over a couple of his figures to join the good fight against the forces of evil. One of these toys stood out from the rest, it was bigger and more detailed than the others. It was an action figure of the WWE(F)'s Undertaker, and I immediately needed to know more. It wasn't until later that year when I was invited to watch Summerslam '96 at his house that I would finally get to see this dark, creepy, tattooed character in action. 

The Undertaker fought Mankind inside of a boiler room. I enjoyed the Boiler Room Brawl, and the show as a whole, but it wasn't until the following year that I became obsessed with the sport.

WWE Payback Preview

If you haven't listened to the guys preview tonight's WWE Payback event yet, what are you waiting for? It's a show full of drama, promos, gummy bears, and we also preview the show itself. It promises to be a....exciting affair. You've still got an hour and a half to listen to it, so hurry man, before our predictions are as out of style as our clothes!

WWE Extreme Rules Reaction Show

WWE Extreme Rules is in the bag, and it was a very average show that was better than we expected, but not as good as we had hoped.

Join Seanán, Zach, Asa, Jordan, and Tanner as they discuss everything from the PPV, and bicker among themselves about who Sheamus is!

As always, click the banner below or use the handy built in player up top!

WWE Extreme Rules Preview Show

We've got just the companion piece for those of you gearing up for tonight's big WWE PPV. 

Sister site Podzilla 1985 has updated with a preview show for Extreme Rules, where Seanán, Zach, and Real Rock 99.3's Double H go over each match with predictions, observations, and offensive humor. 

The quality of the PPV may be in question, but the enjoyment of listening to three wrestling nerds complain about everything never gets old.

Will SuperCena retain?

Will Daniel Bryan show up?

Will the diva's match not get booed out of the arena?

Listen to our input by clicking the big pic, or use our handy dandy built in streamer at the top of the page!!

Podzilla 1985 Updates

We've got three more shows under our belt, and much like the text based BZ85, they cover a variety of subjects.

Sunday's show was our round table discussion about wrestling, Amiibo's, gay rights, and revenge porn sites.

Monday's show was an informative talk about the new live action Robotech movie.

And Tuesday's show was all about the Chris Jericho podcast with John Cena that aired after Monday Night RAW on the WWE Network.

You can listen to those shows by clicking their respective pics, or by using the handy media player on our main page right here at BZ85!

Thanks and enjoy!

Podzilla 1985 - AJ Lee Quits & Other WWE News

In this special midnight edition of Podzilla 1985, Seanán and Zach try to discuss important WWE affairs like Sheamus' return, Scott Steiner's banishment, Justin Roberts scathing blog, and the huge AJ Lee retirement news while horribly tired, reasonably coherent, and relying almost entirely on Full Throttle.

Podzilla 1985 - Monday Night RAW Recap 3/30/2015

The RAW after Wrestlemania is always nuts, and this years show was no different. From Brock Lesnar going into beast mode to the fans sexually harassing the diva's, RAW was a real spectacle.

Seanan and Zach discuss this week's RAW, or at least the version Hulu Plus version. Plus, we have our first contest! Listen to win!

Podzilla 1985 WRESTLEMANIA REAX

We just wrapped up WrestleMania 31, and it was controversial to say the least. The main event was awesome, and it left our jaws on the floor.

Listen to the Podzilla 1985 reaction show on Podbean right now! 

Spoiler alert - Reigns is NOT the champion.

Click the pic and enjoy.

Podzilla 1985 Wrestlemania Special

It finally happened. Podzilla 1985, the audio version of Blogzilla 1985, has finally arrived with a very special first episode featuring Real Rock 99.3's Double H talking about Wrestlemania 31. Join myself, Hunter, BZ85 writer Louie Benson, and longtime wrestling mark Zach Price as we go match by match giving predictions and discussing all of the controversy surrounding this Sunday's spectacle.

Listen here, which will hopefully be the first of many!

WWE Night of Champions Post PPV Thoughts

Let's see if I can bust one of these out for John.

Another WWE PPV is in the books, and I believe it was the 999th one I've seen. The usual gang reported to BZ85's Broadway Studio for wrasslin' action, and only 99.9% of us were disappointed. We bought a whole truckload of pizza for the event, but I only had $9.99 to throw in on it so I'm glad my cronies had my back.

Are you getting the message?

WWE sure hopes you do. I think they kept the shilling to one segment on this PPV, but damn did they do a good job with it. And, by good job I mean they were so irritating that it made you want to spend the full pay per view purchase and unsubscribe from their goddamn network.

Of course, once the show is over you get a thank you email from your wallet. $9.99 is a lot easier to regret than the outrageous PPV prices once you realize what you just watched. It's like when you catch a movie you were really excited for on Netflix and skip out on the theater experience. I'm looking at you, Mr. Del Toro.

I find it hard to form full cohesive thoughts because the number 9.99 keeps assaulting my brain.

From now on, just to grief World Wrestling Entertainment a tiny bit, I'm going to refer to the Network price as 10 bucks. Screw you, Vince.

This might come across as unexpected, but I did not hate the Night of Champions show. It was actually pretty rock solid from top to bottom, and I can't recall a single match that made me cringe.

One Thing WWE Can Do to Make TV Less Repetitive

Hint Hint

Sometimes it's hard to watch WWE and get excited about the product. There are a lot of reasons for a blanket statement like that, including but not limited to poor writing and too much John Cena.

My biggest problem with the brand, especially the TV side of it, is the reliance on the same matches every week. I don't care how good a story line is between sides, I can only see the same guys go at it weekly so many times before I switch over to Nitro.

And then I realize Nitro isn't on anymore because it isn't 1998.

Then I go cry to my parents, but they're both dead because it isn't 1998.

And then I hug my Gizmo doll, watch Ghostbusters for the 900th time, and I just plain cry.

World Wrestling Entertainment currently has probably their most stale product since the days of the Duke the Dumpster Droese. Very seldom does the product legitimately surprise you like it did during the Attitude Era, and a lot of that can be blamed on the fact there is no competition. Back in my younger days there was an option for viewers, and if you didn't like what was on the USA Network you would switch over to TNT. That forced both products to become better, and the fans were the real winners. There were great talents creating some very memorable characters, and those characters were reinforced with interesting storytelling and a feeling of anything-can-happen.

Those days are gone now.

WWE Summerslam - Cenation Crumbles and the WWE Universe is Without a Hero

Just got done watching Summerslam at Double G with "the gang" plus a few extra. I won't do an in depth review, but I will give some thoughts on the action that took place. Spoilers abound, in case you read this before watching the replay.

Overall, I'd put the PPV somewhere in the B- range. Some things came off better than I expected, while other sure things let me down. On to the thoughts!

The party started before we even turned the Network on. I got the call before heading in to the Grounds that old BZ85 contributors Louie Benson and TV's Phil would be attending the show with us. I should have got a picture of all of us together, but this legendary team up will just have to remain an excited whisper on the lips of my followers. Phil joked about writing for the site again, and we shared a laugh. And then I was disappointed in him.

I have to mention the Pizza-fest that was laid before our hungry eyes. Marco's, Papa John's, and Watami for Phil, who just had to be different, meant that we would be watching the PPV as true wrestling fans - unhealthy and loud.

While we watched the PPV on a set of TVs on one end of the TV row, a group of friends elected to play Smash Bros at the other end instead. As if Falco vs. Marth could ever measure up to Cena vs. Lesnar.

After a relatively entertaining pregame featuring Cesaro vs. RVD, in which part time legend Van Dam went over up and coming future Main Event mainstay Cesaro, we were ready for SUMMERSLAM!

But first, as a special treat for the kids and Asa, Hulk Hogan comes out to shill the network and got a $9.99 chant!

Oh, WWE Universe, you'll cheer anything!

WWE 2K15 Looks Fantastic...Literally! Now with Hulk Hogan Collectors Edition Info!

I was getting worried about the new WWE 2K15 game since it's coming out in about two months and we hadn't even seen a screen shot of it yet. It's not unusual to keep a game under wraps and build anticipation for that big epic reveal, but this was just cutting it too close for my tastes. To me, it was similar to when they don't screen movies for critics. You can almost bet your life savings that that movie is going to suck. Not that I even read movie reviews anymore, after Roger Ebert died... 

Regardless, my hype level went through the roof today after my friend Louie sent me a picture that John Cena tweeted from the WWE 2K15 game.

Holy. Crap. 

For those of you who haven't seen it yet, I present it below along with a side by side comparison to how Cena's in game model looked in WWE 2K14. The differences are astronomical. My fiancee actually thought the new Cena model was a legitimate photograph of the grappler. She wondered why he looked like a gorilla, which I assured her was accurate.

It's not even a challenge. Finally, Cena is a cartoon character in personality only!

Let that eye candy rot your mental tooth for a second and we'll move on.

RAW Review, Ventura Vindicated, TNA Cancelled? Wrestling News & Notes for 7/29

I know what you're thinking.

"Shannon? You've been bashing WWE for months now. You've revitalized your blog on the awful experience that is World Wrestling Entertainment. Bash Raw. Bash it good!"

Well, friends, buckle the fuck in, because here it comes! RAW on 7/28 was a...

PRETTY GOOD SHOW!

I know, right? I'm as surprised as you are. I've grown so accustomed to the awful writing and poor storyline development that I almost skipped the show entirely. I did that for the most part last week, and I missed a seldom seen Zack Ryder victory. Truly, anything can happen on Monday nights! If Zack can beat an A lister like Fandango, who would win this week? Can Cena topple the Beast Incarnate? Does Ambrose have Rollin's number? Will Damien Sandow finally overcome his greatest foe, Vince McMahon?

Whoah, easy there Pokey. It has become official that Damien Sandow is seen in less favorable light than Zack Ryder. The only person he has a chance of beating is Justin Gabriel, and that's in a race to the unemployment line.

To my disappointment, there was no Zack Ryder victory on RAW this week. That's the bad news. The good news is that there wasn't a Ryder match at all, which means he didn't lose, either!

Hey, it's a step in the right direction. Baby steps.

Wonder Woman, Godzilla, Daniel Bryan, YOSHIHIKO and more - Random News for 7/26

I had this big huge great article I was going to write about how I just purchased the Criterion collection version of Godzilla on Blu Ray. I was going to go into just how much the big green monster has influenced my own personal life, including but not limited to inspiring Blogzilla 1985.

I find myself kind of strapped for time today, and I want to make sure a personal post like that gets plenty of time to get over the emotional impact of a boy and his radiated giant lizard.

I still wanted to write something though, because I haven't posted anything since Monday! Lindsey has been picking up my slack and I absolutely recommend checking out her latest articles on some swimming anime and that show with the one really uppity woman who judges everyone else. I don't remember the name, but it has Tim Gunn in it and that dude is straight up pimp.

And so, after all that, I decided to just throw a bunch of interesting and random stuff together. Enjoy!

Or don't. It's really up to you.

WWE Responds to Lana-gate - It's Not Offensive, You're Just Ignorant

World Wrestling Entertainment finally responded to criticism lobbied against them because of Lana's anti-USA promo from Battleground. 

After the story began to make the rounds on some very big publications (and I'd like to think BZ85 had the most impact), Vince and company had no choice but to come out on the defense.

It's a pretty standard tactic with WWE. I've lost count of how many times they've done something stupid and tasteless, ignored criticism to it, then came out with a half assed apology to shut up the masses while still defending themselves. There was the Katie Vick thing, the Iraqi sympathizer angle, the RTC group, etc etc. 

Today's statement was no different.

I already covered how I feel about this turn of events in two previous articles here on the site, but I still feel like the majority fails to grasp just how despicable this situation is. Even if you buy the argument that WWE wasn't exploiting the MH17 tragedy, they're still exploiting the man responsible for some pretty heinous acts. They're glorifying him every time Lana and Rusev come to the ring, no matter how they try to spin it.

It's making my blood pressure spike again.

WWE Battleground - Sponsored by Filler Bunny!

Just got back from the monthly PPV party and am fully prepared to write down my most intimate thoughts. Yes, this time the WWE has pissed me off for the last time with their by the book writing and baffling decisions. THIS TIME, I'm going to come down on them like the hammer of Thor!

The thunder of my vengeance will echo through Titan Towers like the gust of a thousand winds!

I...I just can't do it. What would be the point? No one over there listens. No one cares. If losing millions of dollars, sponsorship deals, and the respect of fans won't change Vince McMahon's mind, neither will I. I just don't have the strength to get so pissed at WWE that blood squirts out of my eyes and my heart explodes in a procession of gore and Woo Woo Woo's.

You want your fucking WWE PPV report? Cena won. That's all you need to know, internet wrestling fan. Go home, hug your children, or more likely your Nascar pillows and Toby Keith CD's, and just forget that this pay per view ever happened.

Can it even be called a pay per view anymore? Most people watching it are using the WWE Network, as the prospect of paying sixty dollars for one PPV when you could be watching the network for ten dollars a month is just insane. But, I guess someone out there is still shelling out for the monthly events, because they spend a good chunk of time during the show promoting the network. It seems completely pointless to those of us who are already paying for the network, but if it gets John Sixpack out of his comfort zone and into the new era of television I can deal with it.

So, aside from the network pimping, what did we really get for our hard earned money at this filler PPV?

Not a lot, friends. And that's why World Wrestling Entertainment is in such dire straits.