WWE vs. TNA 4.22.07: Ten Things I Love About Wrestling (Part Two of Two)

Posted by Jordan Linkous on 04.22.2007

It’s down to the Top Five Things that I Love About Wrestling. Can you say MORE positivity~?

I bring you the second part of my Ten Things I Love About Wrestling. I got some great feedback, and I love making people's day with my writing. Be sure to send me your thoughts after you finish reading this. Alright, enough talking, lets get to the column!

Ten Things I Love About Wrestling (Part Two of Two)

5) Wrestling Videogames
Dear me, I might write the entire column based solely on my love of videogames. Apart from DVDs, videogames are another thing that the wrestling business almost always gets right. My earliest memories of wrestling videogames go back to the old arcade game, WWF Wrestlemania. I remember playing that at every arcade I could find it at, and I actually hope to purchasing it in the future. It was like Mortal Kombat meets WWF. It featured eight of WWF's top stars at that time (1995), which were: Bret Hart, Doink, Undertaker, Bam Bam Bigelow, Lex Luger, Razor Ramon, Yokozuna, and my favorite, Shawn Michaels. It had cartoonish graphics, and silly game play such as Undertaker using purple fireballs, but I'll be damned if it wasn't, and isn't, one of the most fun arcade games I have every played. Once we acquired our N64 in a putt-putt golf tourney, we bought WCW vs. nWo. It was a great game at the time, though with a limited moveset, it made up for it with tons or superstars, including Japanese wrestlers. Now take everything WCW vs. nWo was and multiply it by 17 and you find yourself with No Mercy. Perhaps the greatest wrestling videogames ever, it had countless wrestlers, match types, and tons of storylines. Actually after playing so much wrestling on PS2, No Mercy is really quite difficult. Nevertheless, No Mercy was an extremely fun videogame. The first attempts of the Gamecube were fun, but once Day Of Reckoning came out, I found my favorite. It had a storyline where you rose through the ranks, a bunch of wrestlers, and great graphics. My favorite part of any wrestling videogame, though, is the Create a Wrestler. I would run to the computer and find any of the latest wresters and add them to the game. I have actually had themes on many of my wrestling games. On DoR, I created an ECW roster, ranging from Tommy Dreamer with his custom made "EC F'N W" shirt, and a Rhyno with an entirely custom made outfit. I would do simulations, tourneys, and Royal Rumble using these guys. Once I bought a PS2, however, I found where the true next-gen wrestling gold was. The first game I bought was Here Comes the Pain, and I found the only other wrestling game to rival No Mercy. With a wide array of Superstars, including many legends, this game provided tons of fun. It also debuted several new game modes, such as the Elimination Chamber. On of my fondest memories of that was a legend Elimination Chamber, featuring several legends, and myself as Jimmy Snuka. And I bet you can guess how I won that match, that's right, Superfly off the top of the chamber. I remember trying that and trying that, but always missing. Once I finally hit it, it was awesome. It also had great backstage fight areas, which is a trait that has sadly diminished as wrestling games progress. I skipped Smackdown vs. Raw, but I did pick up SvR 2006. I loved the fact that it finally had commentary, and while many complain about it getting old and repetitive, it was still great for the first couple times you played it. The graphics greatly improved, as did gameplay. You know how I said my CAW's (Create a Wrestler) had themes? Well for SvR 2006, it was a TNA roster. I worked for hours on that. My favorite creating was Abyss because it was so meticulous, and when I finally finished, it was an accomplishment for me. I created Aries, Shelley, Styles, Daniels, and the list just goes on. Now we go on to the latest wrestling game I have been playing, SvR 2007. What a game. Many will complain about the ridiculousness of the storylines, but you know what? There are tons of them, and you can control how the story plays out, much like No Mercy, so I fell in love with that feature. When I bought the game, I said that I WOULD NOT go on a creating rampage. Up until a couple weeks ago, I only had created CM Punk, with all his tattoos. Then it was Roderick Strong, the Evans. Soon enough, I found myself with a roster of twenty-four ROH guys. These are guys from past and present, such as the Kings of Wrestling to Amazing Red. After that, I wound up with my own version of March Madness. All in all, wrestling games should be a part of smark, mark, and non-wrestling fans videogame collections, because they are one of the greatest things wrestling has going right now.

4)Wrestlemania
No matter what kind of crap that the WWE spews out, there is always one time of year wrestling fans have something to look forward to. And it's not just the actual PPV, but the time leading up to it. Everything is in full swing. There is media coverage, wrestlers are busting there butts to build excitement and get on the card, and stuff, in general, seems to matter more. Wrestlemania starts to take shape at the Royal Rumble. The number one contender is announced, and rivalries start to flare up. As time progresses, more rivalries develop, and by the time the big dance shows up, everyone puts in an effort. No matter how ridiculous some things may seem leading up to Wrestlemania, there is always something to look forward to. Whether it is the epic third WM encounter between The Rock and Stone Cold Steve Austin, or the first ever Money in the Bank Match, or the dream match of The Rock vs. Hulk Hogan, everybody has something to look forward to. The fans aren't the only people who get joy from Wrestlemania, but the wrestlers as well. Almost all the time, when a wrestler breaks into the business, their goal is to make it to Wrestlemania. For some the goal is to just make it onto the show, such as the ECW originals, and for some, their destiny is revealed, such as Brock Lesnar, John Cena, and Batista. Wrestlemania has also had its fair share of "Holy Crap" moments. No matter if you love him or hate him, everybody marked out the first time they saw Hogan slam Andre. Who could forget the epic TLC match from WM 17? Jeff Swantoned off the ladder, and then Edge speared him while he was dangling. And at WM 22, who could forget Edge spearing Foley through the flaming table, and in the process going face first into fire. And who really believed John Cena could cleanly beat Triple H? No matter what the circumstances, no matter how bad wrestling may seem at times, and no matter how hopelessly lost the storylines may be, everyone needs to remember one thing: There will always be Wrestlemania to look forward to.

3) Shawn Michaels
Did you think I could leave this guy off? C'mon. He has been my idol for as long as I can remember. The only thing I remember about my first live event was seeing HBK smash a cake in Sunny's face. Oh the memories. Shawn has never failed to entertain me, whether it is his promos or wrestling. He can be serious at times, and no matter what he does, even if it is a slight shake off his head, he is hilarious. From his early days of DX to making fun of Hulk Hogan, Shawn Michaels always gets a good reaction from the crowd. At 41, HBK is still full steam in popularity. His DX reincarnation brought DX to a new set of fans, and is a widely popular nostalgia boost, falling only possibly to Hulk Hogan. Even though DX may have buried a few people, they still get great fan reactions, and have large merchandise sales still. He is also a fantastic wrestler, and can handle many different terrains. He can wrestle a mat based match, an aerial style fight, or even a hardcore brawl. Shawn Michaels has pioneered three different types of wrestling matches. First, he brought the ladder match mainstream with Razor Ramon. That match is still widely regarded as one of the top ladder matches, and it showed HBK in his cocky heel role. Next up is the Iron match. Not many people can say that they have survived through an Iron Man match, but fewer can say they have been in more than one. The match was intense, fast paced, and really established HBK as the top superstar. Then came the brutal Hell in a Cell. This match is probably my favorite Hell in a Cell of all time. HBK showed why he is the man, and UT brought the awesome as well. Before Mankind took his fall off the cell, Shawn Michaels fell through the announce table. Before that match, some of the violence had never been seen. Once it seemed like he finally called it quits many people were disappointed, but he made his triumphant return to put on many great matches, such as his entire feud with Triple H. Shawn Michaels always delivers, no matter who his opponent is. Whether it is Batista or Kurt Angle, the match will still be entertaining, and that's what I love about HBK.

2) Live Events
As I previously mentioned, one of my earliest wrestling memories is going to see RAW at the Key Arena when I was about six. It was an awesome environment, and it was my first taste of wrestling, and I liked it. The next wrestling event that I can remember, and probably my favorite, was a house show I saw in Southern California. It was put on by Smackdown, and I was in the third row. Many of my favorite wrestlers were there. I got to see Rob Van Dam, who is one of my personal favorites. He was tagging with Rey Mysterio, another wrestler that I like. And take into consideration that this was when I was a mark, rather than a smark, so when the good guy won, or something ridiculous happened, I still popped for it. My favorite thing of the night was seeing the Undertaker. No matter how many times I see him, I always get chill for his entrance. All in all, it was a great show, and it is something that I won't likely forget. Since I have moved back to Washington, I have attended two live events. The first was RAW, which featured the epic arrival of fake Kane. I kid, it wasn't that epic, but it did get a lot of people talking. I got to see Triple H be a badass, and the fans were treated to a Street Fight between Edge and John Cena as the dark match. The most recent event I went to was on the road to Wrestlemania, so everything was in full swing. It was an ECW/Smackdown! taping, by the way. We were treated to an opening dark match between Matt Hardy and Chuck Pulumbo. Matt Hardy gets a ridiculously loud pop. For ECW I was able to see CM Punk, which was something I was looking forward to. Then, Tommy Dreamer and Sandman came in a mere row away from me, and that was awesome. For Smackdown, we were treated to two main event caliber tag matches, so that was awesome. Not only that, but four of the top guys from RAW were there. First was MVP and Ken Kennedy vs. HBK and John Cena, so of course I was super excited for that because it was the first time I had seen HBK since I was six, so that was just great. Then the main event was Rated RKO vs. Undertaker and Batista, which was awesome as well. Another thing about live events is the atmosphere. No matter who you are, smark or mark, live events are always something to look forward to. You could have the most self-righteous smark sitting next to a kid who yells at the top of his lungs when he hears Batista's name, and the smark can either join in or be a baby, and most likely he joins in. What I am trying to say is that live events are a great thing to attend, and it brings wrestling fans, young or old, smark or mark, together.

1) Mark Out Moments
My favorite thing about wrestling is a mark out moment. TNA, WWE, ECW, and ROH are all chock full of them. My earliest memory of actually jumping up and down and screaming was when Shawn Michaels made his return as a member of the nWo. Nobody really cared about the nWo, or the fact that he was heel. The only thing that got people excited was HBK being back. And who didn't flip out when Kurt Angle went to TNA? You have one of WWE's biggest names jumping ship, and that means good things for TNA. Another great MOM (Mart Out Moment) for me was when DX finally reunited. There had been tons of speculation, but when it finally happened, it still seemed like it was something spontaneous and out of the blue. The big thing about MOM's is the fact that they are generally unknown before they happen. A MOM can be anything from a superstar return to something as simple as someone busting out a big move from their olden days. I didn't witness this personally, but I know for a fact that several people marked out for Scott Steiner hitting the Frankensteiner for the first time in who knows how long. The great thing about a MOM is that it, like live events, breaks down the wall between marks and smarks. MOM's generally make people feel god. They can be extravagant of subtle, say a Hidden Highlight, but they still get the fan reactions. The reason that I love MOM's the most, though, is the fact that they often remind me why I love wrestling.

Well that ends part two of The Top Ten Things I Love About Wrestling. Be sure to send me you opinions, whether you disagree or agree, and any other feelings about the week's column. Check back next week for the regular. Peace out.