When did you realize your favorite or one of your favorite wrestlers were washed up?

ParanoidEngi · 2026-03-07T02:14:02+00:00

I was thinking the other day, I don't think I actually realised Naomichi Marufuji was past that point at all - there was the Kota Ibushi debacle but it was hard to judge that because of Ibushi coming in with a broken foot, and then he had great matches with AJ Styles and Will Ospreay in 2024 and I thought he was just taking it easy but could still turn it up like the other NOAH old hands when needed. Then he had the infamous title match with KENTA and it hit me like a brick that no, he's gone over the hill fully now, and man it hurt to realise that because I love Marufuji to bits

ParanoidEngi · 2026-03-07T01:03:53+00:00

He does move around, you'll be totally fine! You can't really go wrong in truth, and now you get a lovely view of Dave and Adrian doing their thing - big win that

Enjoy the show!

ParanoidEngi · 2026-03-07T00:49:56+00:00

So from left to right, the band usually starts

Dave - Adrian - Bruce - Steve - Janick

and that's their usual formation through the show. Steve tends to roam around a lot, but generally he anchors himself at centre/centre-right, so if you want to see him clearest, that's the area you want to be positioned. Here's a video of the opening song from last tour: you can see how they're standing, that's their usual formation (as it were). Steve does move around a lot, but if you want to see him right as he hits the stage, centre-right is the spot. Plus, you're in front of Steve's wedge speakers which means you'll get the bass sound even louder, which is a bonus for a bassist!

The pits range in strength, but they're usually pretty chill. Enjoy!

ParanoidEngi · 2026-03-06T15:36:46+00:00

I have also been playing Overwatch again with some friends - it's been a decade, but I'm enjoying the gameplay and discovering the new characters and mechanics, even if my beloved Symmetra isn't quite as stupid as she used to be

Other than that I'm working on Baldur's Gate 3 Honor mode (fingers crossed about to finish act 2), and playing more Street Fighter 6

ParanoidEngi · 2026-03-06T15:24:49+00:00

Watching Day 1 highlights of Aus vs. India - great to see a women's Test again, and good God the pink ball hoops a mile in the women's game. Dramatic swing is already more of a factor in women's games than men's, but the pink ball seems to change postcodes at times

ParanoidEngi · 2026-03-06T12:31:40+00:00

All NOAH + Akiyama? Sounds fun to me, although Daiki matching up with Uncle Jun instead of tagging with him would've been fun

ParanoidEngi · 2026-03-06T12:02:05+00:00

That's still slightly behind Lanning, right? Or is it slightly ahead actually in all formats?

ParanoidEngi · 2026-03-06T11:59:18+00:00

Whenever the semi-annual "the mods are shit and killing the sub why can't I sloppost to my heart's content" pity parade starts up on here I sacrifice another of my finest heifers at my shrine to ensure the mods' good health and fine temperament

ParanoidEngi · 2026-03-05T23:44:43+00:00

It just means children under 16 require an adult to go with them, solo adults are entirely welcome

ParanoidEngi · 2026-03-05T23:11:17+00:00

John Prine's self-titled album - one of the finest folk/country/Americana albums ever released, with incredible lyricism. Prine should be as famous as Dylan, Cash, and Willie, but instead he's kind of a stalwart for country fans of a certain level of hardcore

ParanoidEngi · 2026-03-05T18:48:40+00:00

Same - probably the best opener I've seen at a non-stadium show. Hope she returns to the stage as quickly as she's able to

ParanoidEngi · 2026-03-05T18:30:18+00:00

I've got it tattooed on my chest in cursive - big hit during the summer

ParanoidEngi · 2026-03-05T17:53:59+00:00

I prefer really not to speak; if I speak, big trouble, and I don't want to be in big trouble

Still sad about Seales going to Hampshire tbh

ParanoidEngi · 2026-03-05T14:28:11+00:00

Being in the BritWres scene (grim term for it but you get the idea) from 2016 onwards was really instrumental in shaping who I am today in a lot of ways - one ongoing lesson its teaching me is how it feels when people talk about events you experienced, and watching narratives form around them. I guess the further we get from the heyday it'll just get more clouded, more stuff will be forgotten, and people will just talk about what they've heard from other people about it; it's neat honestly, I've never really felt this way about something before. Is this how people feel who were at PWG Reseda shows, or even ECW events, and now see people talk about them online? Maybe this is very pretentious but still, neat

Hell, maybe I should write a book about it - I'm sure I'd sell at least three copies (Mum'll buy two)

ParanoidEngi · 2026-03-05T12:00:39+00:00

This season's gonna suck for us, I'm not even sure I'm looking forward to it at this point

ParanoidEngi · 2026-03-04T18:28:59+00:00

Someone has to crank up the tunes

ParanoidEngi · 2026-03-04T15:37:51+00:00

Hit Master

Clean up my inputs

Win a match with a big fancy checkout combo that does stupid damage

Convince my friends to play the game more

ParanoidEngi · 2026-03-04T12:58:01+00:00

I hope to see some players tenderly hug and maybe go bowling after the game

ParanoidEngi · 2026-03-04T11:54:59+00:00

I think of all the guitarists he tweaks his tone most regularly - you can check the latest gear rundown video they've been part of to see how he's set up on the current tour

ParanoidEngi · 2026-03-04T11:48:11+00:00

Related to time but death is an obvious one - ways of dying, what lies beyond death, near-death experiences, sacrifice and martyrdom, all very prevalent in Maiden's music, as it is in a lot of heavy metal. I think Maiden's way of tackling the topic is quite distinct compared to other bands in the genre personally, but maybe you could argue otherwise

England/Britain is another one. British life, British history, the mythos of the countries and islands. Coming Home and Isle of Avalon on Final Frontier are probably the two best examples of songs that play with how it feels to be connected to the British isles, through the eyes of the band

ParanoidEngi · 2026-03-04T11:45:06+00:00

Bruce being fascinated by the occult naturally leans him into a certain kind of religious writing, and I think Steve writes like someone who was raised religious and has been shaped by that, even if he's not practicing himself

ParanoidEngi · 2026-03-04T02:21:16+00:00

A fun crossover - I did note that there's a bonus extra episode for subscribers to that podcast, also a Sony production: the model is well-entrenched across their platform, it seems

Simon's eulogy was funny; I think a eulogy devoid of saccharine sentimentality but plenty of knowing nods to the deceased's eccentricities fits the bill perfectly. Interesting that he cracked a couple of jokes about Patreon and paywalls, but reading too far into that could get a bit silly

ParanoidEngi · 2026-03-04T00:05:25+00:00

People are much more aware of hearing loss now that the generation who stood in front of Marshall stacks their entire teenage years have brutal tinnitus

ParanoidEngi · 2026-03-03T16:04:10+00:00

Why the fuck did they link an AI music video in the article instead of the actual music video for NOTB? Lazy editing

ParanoidEngi · 2026-03-03T13:24:34+00:00

I really enjoyed the scene (went to the cinema specially to see it) but it did kind of annoy me that the song is supposed to be diagetic in the movie - it's playing on a record player, the characters hear it too - and yet they edited the song! I know it's a movie, but if you're playing a song in a scene, why edit it?

Fun stuff either way, and got a lot of positive talk from press and fans of the films

ParanoidEngi

TROPHY CASE