Monday/Thursday TV Reviews thread

[Joe Lanza]

Figured i'd make one to discuss the review shows.

The latest: https://www.patreon.com/posts/thursday-tv-29-23014349

A big time Thursday TV Reviews, with the return of a 205 Live legend, a weird, seemingly non-canon NXT, and two NXT UK's featuring JAGs, JAGs everywhere.

[BlizzardAcolyte]

Fucking FINALLY

I'll be honest, I listened to the Monday show solely for the "promoters are going to have to dig deeper" soliloquy and deleted it after that: nothing you reviewed was going to stand up to that by comparison.

[Joe Lanza]

https://www.patreon.com/posts/thursday-tv-6-uk-23176902

The NXT de-butt of Punishment Martinez, the re-de-butt of 205 Legend (cue music) Ariya Daivari, and the introduction of a brand new unofficial NXT UK title highlight this week's Thursday TV Reviews, plus which pushed NXT UK star really, really isn't ready for big time TV.

[rollup]

i recall isla also once went awol on a stardom GP tour (their G1) after some tessa blanchards issues

[Joe Lanza]

i recall isla also once went awol on a stardom GP tour (their G1) after some tessa blanchards issues

I wish she'd go AWOL from my TV screen

[rovert]

i recall isla also once went awol on a stardom GP tour (their G1) after some tessa blanchards issues

Google translation at the time made it sound like STARDOM took Tessa's side and STARDOM accused Isla of stealing money from them - I guess she didn't return the deposit/"draw" she took for living expenses.

[BoxingRobes]

Old Takes - Playing catch up with MLW.

Believe you mentioned the "use you like a whore...and a door" promo by Teddy Hart...best part of that promo was Teddy with a half drank glass of wine and a joint in his hand cutting the promo. Was howling at that nonsense promo.

Which brings me to your point on a recent show...how has Teddy Hart (and Lo Ki) been able to play nice with a singular company for what...a year now? idk...but I gotta think Court Bauer just doesn't care when Teddy does shit like that and just lets him be Teddy. As someone who has gone to a few MLW shows now...I've never seen Teddy MORE personable before, during, and after a show. He's also working his ass off, numerous times during a show. Hart Foundation works a ton of matches at a taping, some of them don't make TV.

Whatever they got going on right now with Teddy and Lo Ki...I hope they keep it up...I love seeing them active and putting forth max effort.

---

re: SWERVE...

Looking for a take here. I feel like he missed an Indie peak. Just as he was about to become an Indie ACE and given opportunities to really perform some top level shit, he mailed it in and was ready to go to WWE.

Feel like we haven't gotten the best from SWERVE since 2016, which was when the HELL OF WAR match was taped (aired in 2017) and never capitalized on being the "next guy" Indie Ace with great matches. Maybe I am missing some of his work somewhere, but he was just never great for any period of time.

I feel like...say...Dijak...Swerve is going to go into the WWE as almost a blank slate and they'll give him some tweaks or something and try and make him theirs since while he has a name, it wasn't a name he made a ton of money off of, so to speak.

[Joe Lanza]

Agree on Strickland. I was never much of a fan, but I turned the corner briefly early on in MLW. He never really clicked in EVOLVE. He's missing something, I just don't know what it is. That usually means charisma.

[rovert]

Strickland is definitely missing something. Like with Devitt/Balor in-ring wise he has a ceiling that tops out at ****. Balor has other things going for him on top of that though.

When Stickland goes to NXT I wonder if management will put him and ACH together as a tag team as they will be in NXT at same time - WWE being WWE and whether that actually is a good idea for both.

[BoxingRobes]

re: Bianca Belair

The EST means she is the:
B-est
Strong-est
Fast-est
etc

[Ckkj14]

Haha WWE broke Joe. Disagree with you saying Bianca looked nervous though, I thought the promo was good. She's got all the potential in the world. Her match v Shayna feels extremely fresh and I'm looking forward to that

[Jeff Hawkins]

she looked a bit nervous, focused, then "acted concerned" when Shayna came out

she's a bully (who's been turned face due to audience/program) who is facing a bigger bully

[thecubsfan]

205 probably doesn't deserve as much credit for changing the format when eliminating the squash match is more about (rightful) fear the remaining fans are going to leave in doves during it now that they're back to taping after SmackDown.

(Adam Pearce's string of tweets about the boos this week had his heart in the right place but "ignore the bad reaction to our show and focus on 205 Live-ers getting practice reps for when they might be called up to a show our fans care about" is not a great selling point for a show that already seems like the 5th most important WWE brand.)

[BoxingRobes]

she looked a bit nervous, focused, then "acted concerned" when Shayna came out

she's a bully (who's been turned face due to audience/program) who is facing a bigger bully

I don't think its that deep...but that nervousness could have been incorporated into this, unfortunately, everything is in the can already.

I'm expecting a nice 10 minute sprint for this match. Could really be Belair's coming out party.

[Joe Lanza]

she looked a bit nervous, focused, then "acted concerned" when Shayna came out

she's a bully (who's been turned face due to audience/program) who is facing a bigger bully

Hadn't considered this and it's possible it went over my head. With that said, her voice had a little crack to it that i've never heard before out of her and her body language was just a little off. I guess it's entirely possible she's a Meryl Streep level actress but I just think she was maybe a little shook for her first big time promo.