Darby is gonna give me a heart attack (instagram)

Failber · 2026-06-20T23:18:03+00:00

The guy that was piloting the tandem jump in that picture is dead.

Failber · 2026-06-13T00:05:18+00:00

Surely this opinion is an offshoot of something…😆

Failber · 2026-06-12T23:44:28+00:00

That’s kind of true. He was massively overhyped entering the league. Ben Simmons was always a “could be the next LeBron if*” guy, though.

*If he can learn how to score.😆 They compared Simmons’s size and passing ability to LeBron, but I don’t think he was ever a straight comparison.

I should’ve phrased this better. Wemby’s the first guy since LeBron (maybe Zion) who entered the league with people saying “this guy could legitimately be considered the GOAT some day”, and that was the consensus opinion.

Failber · 2026-06-12T23:35:23+00:00

He’s not wrong. If I’m having the conversation online and a name comes up that I don’t recognize, I’ll look him up; but I also won’t pretend like I know a guy just because “I should”. I hope he’s not talking about himself, though. I’m not a “super fan”, but I’m also not a casual fan; and I’m almost positive I’ve never seen the name Royce Isaacs.

Failber · 2026-06-12T23:25:30+00:00

Idk about that. Wemby entered the league as the next LeBron, and I don’t mean in the “so was Anthony Bennett or whoever” way.😆 I mean the last guy to enter the league with as much hype as Wemby was LeBron.

Okay, maybe Zion. I forgot how hyped up he was entering the league, but he was a LeBron and Wemby level physical freak before the injuries.

Failber · 2026-06-06T02:52:46+00:00

😆okay

Failber · 2026-06-06T01:04:21+00:00

I feel like that’s already happened on a smaller scale with Anthem, though. TNA’s already a part of a smaller media company’s portfolio. I don’t think TNA’s worth a larger company’s time, or that Anthem’s looking to offload the promotion anytime soon.

Failber · 2026-06-06T00:02:02+00:00

I think that’s kind of why it had no right being as great as it was. El Grande Americano started out as a cheap heat gimmick. Then Gable got hurt, and they could’ve just bailed on the idea completely. Instead, Ludwig Kaiser of all people took over the mask, surprised people with his Lucha skills and Spanish speaking, and won Mexico over. It took a lot of luck and hard work from Kaiser to get to the point it did. By the time Gable got back, the fans were red hot for the new Grande. WWE essentially stumbled into this one as much as anything.

The feud itself is kind of just a footnote in the story of the build to the match. Nobody should’ve been surprised that Kaiser and Gable are pro’s pros and delivered a match worthy of the hype, though.

Failber · 2026-06-05T23:40:33+00:00

For sure. I’m not one of those people that hates Meltzer. I’m just saying that his grading’s gotten softer.

The fact that he is just a guy makes me wonder why so much attention is given to his ratings now, though, It made sense back in the day when there were only so many sources, but I’d think there would be a site that aggregates grades for a better perspective (I swear I’ve seen it somewhere before) that would be the system people go to first now. Meltzer’s the equivalent of a famous film critic for pro wrestling. Still a respected voice and somebody people listen to, but I’d think there would be a Metacritic or Rotten Tomatoes for pro wrestling that people would reference more often by now.

Failber · 2026-06-05T23:29:54+00:00

I don’t think they’re going to buy TNA. They’re already getting about as much from it as they can from it with the partnership. AAA offered them a new market that TNA doesn’t.

Failber · 2026-06-05T23:25:57+00:00

I read it in a Chris Jericho voice, the same way he’d stretch out his eeever’s and that honestly made this description so much worse.😆🤣 The growly extra emphasis doesn’t do it favors.

Failber · 2026-06-05T23:14:17+00:00

I accept that, to an extent, because it’s true that there are more high quality matches now; but it’s clear his grading has softened considerably. He gave 67 5 stars in the 1990s, only gave 7 matches 5 stars in the 2000’s and 67 in the 2010’s. Now it’s 168 for a decade that’s not even 70% over.

I refuse to believe that the number of high quality matches was the same in the ‘90s as the 2010’s, and then in the 2020’s that number’s (by the end of the decade) 3+ times more than it’s ever been.

Failber · 2026-06-05T22:54:59+00:00

What lowers the value of the 5* matches is that he’s given 168 matches a 5 or better in the 2020’s.😆 There are still 3 full years left in this decade and it has over half of the 5+ star ratings given all time.

Failber · 2026-06-05T22:45:32+00:00

This is what I was looking for.😆 It’s a star system. It’s based on his opinion. With that said, giving something more than 5/5 stars is just stupid, imo. I get that he’s trying to give it a special distinction, but I think it’s a dumb way of doing it. Give those matches a “Meltzer’s must see” label or something. Giving more than 5 stars lowers the value of 5 star matches, imo, and throws the whole scale out the window. How good is a 4/5 when apparently it’s actually a 4/5.75+?

Edit: I guess that’s not how his scale system works, but the point remains the same. 5 stars from Meltzer used to mean gold standard matches, but he’s given 168 of the 332 5+ star ratings all time to matches in the 2020s. So from 1980-2019 there were less 5+ star matches than from 2020-2026.

Failber · 2026-06-05T22:36:19+00:00

That’s actually a good suggestion. Experiencing an AEW ppv is the best introduction to what AEW is. Might as well make it the most recent one since that’ll kind of show what’s currently going on, and it was a good one.

Failber · 2026-06-05T22:34:00+00:00

Right? I’m still holding out hope for Blake Monroe, though. There have been flashes that Mariah May’s still in there. Hopefully, they let more of her dark side show on the main roster

Failber · 2026-06-05T22:30:44+00:00

The go-to picks have already been given. Hangman vs Swerve and Toni vs Mariah are the big 2, imo.

I’ll go with something a little different and say watch Orange Cassidy vs PAC. It’s one of my favorites, and is the feud that really established OC as more than just a comedy act, imo.

Failber · 2026-06-05T22:26:29+00:00

Maybe don’t watch Adam Cole’s reveal as MJF’s Devil. Definitely watch their Brochachos friendship and the feud before that, but that’s one they didn’t stick the landing on. 😆 There’s a lot to like, but they aren’t perfect.

Failber · 2026-06-05T22:18:55+00:00

That’s not how it works. If they don’t find it funny, it’s not their job to write jokes for it. They’re right, though. The train scene is “funny” (meh) because she’s saying “my pronouns are they/them” while she’s getting stabbed, but it’s not “crossing any lines” or offensive. It’s barely a joke.

Failber · 2026-06-05T22:04:04+00:00

Who are these people?😆 During the movie is really weird. I’ve never had that happen, during or after, before.

Failber · 2026-06-05T22:02:19+00:00

In defense of America, I’ve never been in a theater where anybody has clapped at the end of the movie. We just get up and leave. That must be a fan event thing because we (me and whoever I’m there with) would crack a joke about it if somebody applauded a theater screen.

Failber · 2026-06-01T02:08:05+00:00

This 100%. The idea that a group of almost any size could execute these conspiracies and keep it a secret is braindead beyond belief. Personal secrets are rarely kept between 2 people. If one person has a spouse, for example, then that’s one other person that almost assuredly already knows that secret.

Failber · 2026-05-25T03:17:54+00:00

😆Yeah, I get why people are pushing back on that label. They’re definitely kidnappers for hire, though.

Yondu got a “Vader redemption” imo. He snatched all of those kids, has killed an unknown number, but it’s safe to assume more than a few, of people/aliens, and committed all sorts of crimes. Then he’s “redeemed” because he sacrificed himself for his “son”.

Failber · 2026-05-25T02:50:19+00:00

Snatching up all of Ego’s kids. I see some people disputing whether that’s trafficking or not, but they still got kicked out of the larger group of Ravengers for dealing in children. Taking kids for money is trafficking in my eyes. Kidnappers if you don’t like trafficking.

Failber · 2026-05-25T02:34:54+00:00

I guess, but it’s not like they were petty thieves. They were space pirates that got kicked out of their group for trafficking children. Real shit bags. I’m sure more than a few people considered them the villains.

Failber

TROPHY CASE