It's The Let's Watch Some Wrestling WWE Survivor Series/ WarGames Preview!

 

Good Morning!

It’s Friday morning as I’m sitting down to write this. The house is still asleep since my wife had to stop in to the emergency animal hospital she helps manage, and I slept in after cooking a massive Thanksgiving meal for the two of us and our buddy. So, leftovers for the next week or so it is! And not just any leftovers: the best idea from one of my favorite TV shows of all time, interpreted by one of my favorite YouTube cooks. It’s Thanksgiving Balls!

That’s right. As Shawn Spencer says, “It is an entire meal of turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes and gravy, string beans, cranberry sauce, pumpkin pie, and an Andes mint rolled into a ball, battered, and deep fried.” A whole-ass Thanksgiving dinner, deconstructed and re-constructed into a handy little ball. And while Psych had a tendency to make up some outlandish foods without giving the viewer much background -- quatro quesos dos fritas, for example -- this is one that the internet was nice enough to prepare a recipe for. I’ve made them in the past, and I’ll be sure to post some pics of the glorious final product.

As for the week, I understand that many folks have a tough relationship with Turkey Day. It can be hard to deal with family for any number of reasons, and pressure to do what one is “supposed to” can really wreak havoc on the nerves. I ain’t here for all that! We run a low-key household, where we welcome anybody to eat and watch Mystery Science Theater and generally just relax. It’s been especially cool to have friends who just moved out here get to enjoy a meal or two with us before they gain a foothold and establish their own traditions, whether that’s with their own families or chosen ones. I just like cooking, eating, and watching robots make fun of movies on Thanksgiving. I’m a simple man that way.

The WWE Survivor Series/ WarGames Preview!

First things first here: I don’t really like the whole “Survivor Series as WarGames” gimmick. WWE went through all the trouble of getting rid of the contrived Hell in a Cell pay-per-view only to do the same thing with WarGames -- force a narrative so that a pair of big matches have to happen for a gimmick match at a gimmick show. And don't get me wrong, Survivor Series was that same thing before it was turned into Triple H’s new baby. But it at least made a little more sense, as teams were generally like-minded individuals, and the matches weren’t of the Blood and Guts variety.

The Fed considers Survivor Series to be one of its “Big Four” shows, although I would say that we hadn’t had many consequences for this big show for years, until recently. Before WarGames, the tacky “Raw vs SmackDown” storyline popped up every November, with superstars briefly becoming incredibly loyal to the brand they wrestled on, just long enough to squeeze a few matches out. But it was the format that I liked! Sole survivors, multi-person tag team elimination format, loose alliances with cool team names. 

Give me that over lousy builds for matches that are way too high-stakes for the storylines. I get it for the Bloodline vs Bloodline thing, that’s just an ongoing feud where every match at this point seems like it’s worth adding a stipulation. But the women’s WarGames match this year stands out for its slapdash construction. And yeah, WWE had to pivot away from Jade Cargill when she got injured, slowing the breakup of our women’s tag team champs. But it’s still a very flimsy set of good guys, teaming up to bring down the champs of both main shows plus some flunkies. And there’s no real stakes, either. You win, you celebrate, you move on. No championships or number-one contenderships are on the line…although there is still a Money in the Bank briefcase in play. We’ll get to that in a bit.

But I digress! The women assembled for this year’s WarGames match include some of the best in recent WarGames history, IYO SKY and Candice LaRae in particular. Bianca Belair and Rhea Ripley are top-tier superstars, and if this match somehow leads to a match between the two of them while Cargill heals up, all the better. And Bayley, well…we love Bayley. I’ve heard some talk that folks would like to see her turn heel again, but I think it’s too soon for that. She had a bummer of a championship run this year, and her theme music and character motivations are crap, but she’s still great in the ring. I just don’t feel like giving up on one of the greatest babyfaces in recent history for a quick bump in crowd noise is necessary -- at least not yet.

So let’s get into this preview. Aside from the two big WarGames matches, we’ve got three championships on the line on Saturday night as well. And since I enjoyed doing it, we’ll do the WWE 2K24 simulations alongside my own predictions. There’s a little hiccup in that the game can only handle eight wrestlers in the ring at a time, meaning our Survivor Series matches will have to lose a member of each team. I tried to pick the person who will have the least impact for their team in terms of outcome and storyline. 

I benched Candice LaRae for Team Evil - Women’s Division, because even though she’s probably going to have a bonkers spot in the real life match, I think she’s the least likely to influence the finish of the match. She also threw off the balance between champs and pals, so she’s out. For Team Good (no relation) I pulled Naomi simply because she isn’t in the game, and I forgot to download her when I was assembling this roster. Sorry, Naomi, although I do see stuff happening with you down the road!

For the men’s match, I had to employ different logic for who to sit. With a tag team on each team, it made more sense to bench the member who’s less likely to affect both this match, and upcoming storylines. So Jimmy Uso and Tonga Loa both were pulled for this one, and non-family members CM Punk and Bronson Reed were allowed to stay.

Bianca Belair, Bayley, Naomi, IYO SKY, and Rhea Ripley versus Liv Morgan, Raquelle Rodriguez, Nia Jax, Tiffany Stratton, and Candice LaRae in a WarGames match

As I said earlier, this match is kind of a slapped-together bit of business. Part of that is due to Jade Cargill being replaced by Bayley, but the whole bad guy team is basically together because the good guys needed people to fight, and those championship rivalries were already established. 

Aside from the constant threat of Tiffany Stratton cashing in her title opportunity, there hasn’t been a lot of excitement from the WWE women’s division. Rhea came back from an injury to resume her feud with Liv Morgan, got injured again, came back again, and just resumed that rivalry. Nia Jax has been dominant as champ, and the assembly of a team of mean girls to help her retain that title has been good for getting other talent on TV, but never really feels necessary, you know? Nia’s not a cowardly heel, she’s a powerhouse that doesn’t need to fall back on the generic tropes that most bad guys in a group use.

So what do we have? A couple champs and their pals, one of whom is worth keeping an eye on throughout this match, as Stratton cashing in is always a possibility. On the other side, we’ve got Bianca Belair learning to trust Bayley, whom IYO SKY turned on earlier this year before turning face herself. Rhea we talked about. That leaves Naomi as kind of a wild card on the good guy team. I think we’ve seen some hints that she could turn heel, as her position as the third wheel to tag champs Belair and Cargill might have birthed a little jealousy. She is a former world champion, why is she relegated to helping the tag champs retain their titles? For that matter, why was she put into a group at all? 

I kind of like the idea of Stratton cashing in mid-match. Inject some fun chaos into this women’s division. While we’re at it, let’s turn Naomi soon, too. Hell, folks have been fantasy booking her into the Bloodline for a while now. Why not bring some women into that whole storyline, too? 

My Pick: The good guys win, Bianca looks strong, some new stories begin

These matches are LONG in real life, and watching the video game version of them felt like it would be a little daunting. But the downtime between entrants is shorter, and the health bars at the bottom of the screen give enough extra information to help navigate downtime. I ran this one after the men’s, and as such plotted entries a little better. Bianca and Tiffy started things off, as I imagined Bianca wanted to show her teammates why she’s the de facto leader of their side, and Nia would want Stratton a little run down early, just in case she decides to try to cash in again. 

A regular back-and-forth between those two was ended when Raquel Rodriguez, with sledgehammer, entered the brawl. Bianca took a helluva beating until IYO ran in to help her out, but her missed dropkick to Rodriguez led to both the good guys taking extended bludgeonings from the baddies. Bianca eventually recovered, tossing Stratton into the other ring and resuming their match for a while. Raquel beat poor IYO up even more before swapping rings to help Tiffy out, and by the time Nia Jax joined in everybody was in the right ring. 

Crowding in that ring did the bad guys no favors, as Raquel “accidentally” whaled on Jax with her sledgehammer a number of times while Bayley made her way to the cage. Bianca and Tiffy really stayed paired up for the better part of the match, which feels like a programming issue but also made me want more of that matchup in a real ring. Bayley separated Rodriguez from the rest of the group, but IYO SKY’s penchant for trash can offense in real WarGames matches came true in the game, and she accidentally took Bayley out after 3 finishers would have ended the match. Nia hit a pinfall on IYO shortly afterward, and that was that. 

2k24 says: Bad guys win due to miscommunication!

L.A. Knight © versus Shinsuke Nakamura for the United States  Championship

Shinsuke is a weird guy. And I don’t just mean, like, his whole aura. I mean he’s hard to figure out. Does he still care about wrestling? His matches aren’t great, and haven’t been for some time. When he hasn’t been injured, there have been long stretches where WWE just hasn’t used him. I wonder if it’s just a case of mutual burnout -- Shin isn’t used, doesn’t like that, doesn’t put his all into his work. WWE sees that, isn’t in any hurry to use him again, doesn’t book him into anything too consequential. 

That brings us to this match, which could be viewed as filler in Knight’s championship run. Since winning the title from Logan Paul at SummerSlam in early August, Knight has defended against Santos Escobar, Ludwig Kaiser, Andrade, and Carmelo Hayes. While those matches haven’t been bad, I’ve never felt like any of his challengers have really had a chance. It’s weird to pick against better wrestlers simply because a guy says YEAUH and the crowd loses their minds, but that’s where we’re at with LA Knight. He’s still super over, despite his ring work being average at best. Plus, look at how happy he looks in the game!

But what if he does lose here? What if Shinsuke feels like proving himself and we get a longer feud and some good matches out of this budding rivalry? Nakamura has only been back for a few weeks now, and it would be a bit weird to have him lose immediately after re-introducing him. And he’s made some good points about LA Knight in his promos: if the US title is Knight’s identity, a decent story could be built around Knight needing to win it back, maybe even turning heelish to do so. It’s more interesting than Knight being the lesser guy in rivalries with guys who always seem to have better matchups floating around while they’re also engaged with Knight. So why not? Let’s be bold here.

My Pick: Shinsuke Nakamura wins, even if only to drop the title back to LA Knight in the near future.

2k24 says:

LA Knight retains, which is probably more likely even if it is a little boring. 

Bronn Breakker © versus Sheamus versus Ludwig Kaiser for the Intercontinental Championship

Sheamus and Kaiser have gone back and forth for weeks now, interfering in each others’ matches when they aren’t fighting directly. So it makes sense to just toss them into a match with Bronn together, although I don’t get why Breakker gets punished for these other guys being idiots. 

Regardless, I can’t imagine this plays out any differently than it has for the buildup to this match -- Sheamus and Ludwig negate each other, and neither walks away with a championship. Bronn should be able to have some fun with the double-ring setup that WarGames provides, though. Maybe all that extra running room results in a super spear for the ages? Who’s to say!

My Pick: Bronn retains, and Sheamus and Kaiser continue their feud.

2k24 says:

Shockingly, Ludwig Kaiser! The little guy managed to sneak a win by taking advantage of Bronn Breakker’s hubris. Bronn laid Kaiser out inside the ring before annihilating Sheamus with a spear near the announce table, but then the champ decided to pose and clear off the table for a big finish. While he was doing that, Sheamus recovered and slid into the ring, right into a possum pin for the quick 1-2-3. Bronn was locked in an animation, and wasn’t able to slide back into the ring to try to break up the pin until it was too late, and his elbow drop to kaiser was just a second too slow. Unlikely, but that’s why we sim the games!

GUNTHER © versus Damien Priest for the World Heavyweight Championship

I think WWE has done a good job with this feud despite it feeling really predictable. Priest isn’t winning here -- I think we can all agree on that. But when the former leader of the Judgment Day (non-Ripley division) won the match that scored him this title shot, I know a lot of us sighed and just figured we were killing time until GUNTHER gets into a real program with a real big deal superstar. However, the narrative of the champ questioning himself, and seeing what happens to his confidence as a result, has made for a few weeks of interesting TV. At least they’re trying.

Priest is always improving, which is a little weird to say for a guy that has been wrestling as long as he has. I think he’s got a lot going for him, too -- the whole “bisexual Undertaker” label is a little much, but he’s definitely got a rockstar vibe working for him. People seem to want to cheer for him, but putting him back into a feud with GUNTHER this soon doesn’t really help him. We know he’s not winning, and while the TV has been good, it’s had less to do with Damien and more to do with GUNTHER and, to a lesser extent, Ludwig Kaiser.

I’m interested to see where both of these guys go after this show. GUNTHER has a number of challengers waiting in the wings, and Priest’s solo face run should get some more time before anyone declares it a success or a failure. But for the purposes of this preview, decent match, GUNTHER wins, we move on.

My Pick: GUNTHER retains

2k24 says:

The same! HOWEVER, it should be noted that Ludwig Kaiser was manager for this match. I didn’t know that when you pick Kaiser to manage GUNTHER, there’s a lengthy cutscene with Ludwig doing the ring announcing for the champ! It’s a cool little Easter egg in a game full of them. Ludwig also directly contributed to the win, distracting Priest several times throughout the match. After hitting a Razor’s Edge that could have won him the match, Damien got into a shouting match with Kaiser that allowed GUNTHER to lock a sleeper hold in, allowing him to retain in a much closer match than I think we’ll see on Saturday.

Roman Reigns, Jey Uso, Jimmy Uso, Sami Zayn, and CM Punk versus Solo Sikoa, Jacob Fatu, Tama Tonga, Tonga Loa, and Bronson Reed in a WarGames match

This match has been so, so well set up that I am willing to forgive the whole forced nature of WarGames for it. Of course, when you have a single narrative that’s been running for the better part of three years, weaving its members into any kind of match isn’t too difficult. However, the addition of CM Punk and Bronson Reed, and by extension Seth Rollins, Drew McIntyre and Paul Heyman, has really put the outcome of this WarGames, and the direction of the story to come, into question. I legit have no idea if there’s a turn coming, although I did notice that Paulie was looking a little like a Solo Sikoa tribute in his red shirt and black jacket the other night. I haven’t seen spoilers for the taped SmackDown that airs tonight, and while I can’t imagine too much will happen before the PLE, you never know what little bread crumbs might be dropped.

I’ll say the bad guys win because there’s never not drama among Triple H’s good guys. It almost feels like the faces he writes are just waiting for their turn to, well, turn, because bad guys are just cooler. I don’t necessarily agree with that, but it has made for a compelling story so far. 

There are just too many moving parts on the OG Bloodline team for me to think that everything will go smoothly. Punk brings the baggage of a Drew McIntyre storyline that hasn’t necessarily finished up. Seth Rollins can say he was really thinking about joining up after being attacked, and Punk is just taking yet another opportunity from him. Heyman may still be holding a grudge against both Punk and/or Roman Reigns, and maybe he’s got another Paul Heyman guy or two waiting for revenge. Sami Zayn and Jimmy Uso aren’t even necessarily on the same page, and that doesn’t even begin to get into Sami’s forever rival/brother Kevin Owens, or KO’s relationship with Randy Orton and Cody Rhodes, too. And Roman, while playing nice for now, is only recently removed from a reign of terror that saw every show and every story revolve around his whims. On top of all that, there’s a nonzero chance that the Final Boss himself, the Rock himself, could make an appearance!

My Pick: As Dark Helmet said, “Evil will always triumph, because good is dumb.”

Solo and Roman started things off, because I didn’t realize that the entrants aren’t randomized. Whoops! That’s fine, though -- let the respective heads of the tables battle it out before their subordinates jump into the fray on their behalf. After some back and forth, Solo nailed Reigns with a spike before Jacob Fatu came into the cage. Roman made a bit of a comeback before the New Bloodliners realized they didn’t have to take turns attacking, and he was at the mercy of the two until Jey Uso popped in to even things out. Jey went right after Solo, giving me the pairing of Jacob and Roman that I really hope plays out on Saturday. 

Tama Tonga was the first to bring a weapon with him into the match, tossing a stop sign and a table in before joining. Sami Zayn took that as inspiration, tossing a steel chair and sledgehammer in, too. Things started to spread out a little more now, with Zayn and Reigns teaming up against Solo in one ring, and Fatu and Loa getting more than they could handle with Jey in the other. The addition of Bronson Reed moved everyone into the right side ring, but crowding started to make things awkward -- twice, Reed tried to put Zayn through a table only for janky pathfinding to force him to abort the attack. 

CM Punk came in last, and Bronson Reed immediately put the veteran through a table for his troubles. That victory was short-lived, though. While that was going on, Roman found Solo Sikoa once again, and locked in a submission that resulted in Solo tapping out and Roman picking up the win for the good guys.

2k24 says: OG Bloodline, with Roman choking out Solo Sikoa.

And that’s it!

Survivor Series, for all its flaws, has become the beginning of the road to WrestleMania. While the Royal Rumble is where it gets going in earnest, I think we learn a lot about who WWE thinks is “main event material” on this show. I’m hoping for strong showings for several of the participants in the matches on this show, as I really do like a lot of the talent involved. Tiffany Stratton is a superstar in waiting. Ludwig Kaiser may have lost his biggest proponent in Samantha Irving’s announcing, but he’s shown a lot of character development to go with his in-ring acumen. Priest and GUNTHER have worked together enough to maybe surprise us with some new wrinkles in their work, and Bronn Breakker could steal the show with some insane spot. 

On top of the non-WarGames matches, that main event is really going to show us where the next few months will lead. Challengers for both GUNTHER and Cody Rhodes may materialize, and undercard titles will also start to have some direction. It’s an exciting time to be a fan, and I can’t wait to see where we are after this weekend! We’ve also got Collision and Rampage on Saturday for the AEW sickos, so I’ll try to make time to watch those before putting together a weekend review of everything for the early part of next week.

Thank you so much for reading. If you liked what you saw, consider telling your friends, mentioning Let’s Watch Some Wrestling on social media, or even buying me a hot cup of coffee using the Ko-Fi button. Have a great week, and I’ll see you back here next time, dear reader. Until then, Let’s Watch Some Wrestling!

2024 Predictions

WWE Royal Rumble 2/4

NXT Vengeance Day 1/6

WWE Elimination Chamber Perth 4/4

AEW Revolution 9/11

NXT Roadblock 4/6

NXT Stand and Deliver 5/7

WWE WrestleMania Night One 4.5/7

WWE WrestleMania Night Two 4/6

AEW Dynasty 11/12

WWE Backlash 5/5

WWE King and Queen of the Ring (SSM XIV) 6/6

AEW Double or Nothing 9/12

NXT Battleground 4/6

WWE Money in the Bank 2/5

NXT Heatwave 3/6

AEW All In 6/10

WWE Bash in Berlin 3/5

NXT No Mercy 3/6

AEW Full Gear 8/9

Total Correct/Total Predictions 93.5/133

2K Predictions

AEW Full Gear 4/9

Bad Blood in our past, and some bloody movies in our future!

Bad Blood definitely cruised on the overwhelming success of its opening and closing matches. The CM Punk/Drew McIntyre feud that has only built in intensity since this year’s Royal Rumble has been incredible -- even more so when you factor in that Punk wasn’t really available for months after his injury at the hands of McIntyre. But they used that real life setback as a great way for Drew to lean into his heel character, attacking a rarely-present Punker until his return to the active roster. Say what you will about the whole “friendship bracelet” angle, that thing paid off in spades when Drew busted out the velvet bag many of us recognize as the holder of tacks from past hardcore matches. The audience’s surprise as McIntyre revealed a sack full of the beads that made up Punk’s bracelet was great.

And the blood! Dear God, these two didn’t need to go as hard as they did, but Punk knows how to get the most out of his broken body, and these days that means ultraviolence to both himself and his opponent. Drew didn’t back down either, earning 18 stitches in his scalp after the match. YIKES.

I really don’t have much to say about the middle portion of the show. Nia Jax retained after another teased cash-in from Tiffany Stratton, but she mostly dominated Bayley while also reminding Tiffy that she won’t succeed in using her Money in the Bank contract unless Nia is either incapacitated or dead. Finn Balor and Damien Priest had a decent match with the expected Judgment Day interference, but it’s been far too long for this rivalry and I’m hoping both of these guys move on to other dance partners. A segment featuring Gunther, Triple H, and Bill Goldberg revealed that the next Sweet Saudi Money show will feature champ-versus-champ matches for gigantic, gaudy, ugly belts that will likely not get referenced after that show passes, but that’s sportswashing for ya. 

Liv Morgan retained her championship with even more shenanigans, this time featuring a returning Raquel Rodriguez -- now a heel and apparently Liv’s muscle. I’m sure we’ll learn a little more about this when Raw starts in about fifteen minutes, but I really wanted to get this little bit written so I can start on a preview for WrestleDream tomorrow, once I get a chance to catch up on AEW Collision.

The violence of the Hell in a Cell fight that opened the show was matched by the spectacle of the main event, with Roman Reigns and a full orchestra teaming up with a college band and Cody Rhodes to take on the Nu Bloodline, represented by Solo Sikoa and Jakob Fatu. The match itself was good, but the post-match was even better, as we saw the return of Jimmy Uso. Jimmy has already shown that he remains loyal to Roman, and when the OG Bloodline returned to the ring to clear out the new guys as they attacked Cody, we got another return to close out the show. The Rock’s music hit, and he strolled out with his questionably-relevant Ali title belt over his shoulder. All kinds of questions can now be asked, and fantasy booking engines are in overdrive plotting everything from Survivor Series all the way to WrestleMania in Las Vegas. 

What’s the Rock’s whole deal? What does he want with Cody and Roman? Is he the true tribal chief, guiding Solo while he’s been on movie sets? WHO’S TO SAY? I’m looking forward to getting some answers, along with somebody addressing whatever happened between Cody Rhodes and Kevin Owens after the show:

Sure, it came off as a little cheesy, with Cody pantoming his emotions bigger than a mime in clown college. But it was also a unique way to have Owens turn on his friend, and I applaud the timing and scouting it must have taken to make sure fans were on hand to spread this story development via social media. 

And now for something completely different: A festival first timer’s guide!

So for the past five years, my lovely wife and I have attended the Telluride Horror show. It’s a fantastic little festival of murder and mayhem that takes place in the lovely little box canyon known as Telluride, in southern Colorado. The drive down from here takes around six hours, and some construction is making this year’s travel a bit longer but hopefully last perilous -- last year’s detour put us into a freak snowstorm that made us incredibly grateful for both my wife’s driving skills and our decision to put new tires on our Jeep Renegade days prior to the trip. 

We’re taking a friend with us for this trip, the first time we’ve ever done so. She had some questions, and it occurred to me that maybe folks who have never been to a movie festival might want to know what they’re in for if it’s their first festival, regardless of genre. So, in the interest of both public knowledge and “content” I’ve assembled her questions, along with some FAQs from the Telluride Horror Show site itself, and attempted to answer them as honestly and helpfully as I could.

Are the theaters usually packed?

They’re rarely not. There are three venues, with the one playing most of the movies we plan on seeing being the largest. The Palm is right at the entrance to town, based in the local high school. The Sheridan Opera House is closer to the heart of town, and feels like the small town theaters I grew up going to, like the old Lake Theater in Oak Park, IL or the Music Box in Chicago. That one tends to fill up quickly. The third venue was the Nugget, but it’s under construction and has been replaced with another theater in the high school, dubbed “The Blob.” So it’s TBA for that one.

Is it first come, first seated?

It is, kinda. Three day passholders are seated first, and there’s almost always a long line for any film. So there’s lots of waiting in line, which makes for nice conversation and a brief, intense rush into the theater. But in five years we’ve never not had seats, and the folks near the doors keep track of how many people are going in. 

Where do you typically sit?

If it’s up to us, we tend to sit in the one row with lots of spare leg room if we’re in the Sheridan Opera House, and near the edges of the middle area in the Palm so we can hop out for drinks or bathroom breaks without disturbing others. This is more of a personal preference thing though, and sometimes you just gotta sit wherever there’s a seat.

Do people applaud after the movie?

Yes! Most often, someone is in attendance who had a hand in bringing that film to life -- a producer, director, or actor. The movies are usually introduced by a host, and they will mention if those folks are there and if there will be a Q&A segment after the movie. But regardless, I think most movies get a round of applause just to show they were appreciated.

Can I bring a reusable water bottle to fill?

As far as I know, water is okay to bring into the venues. There’s nothing in the Official FAQ about it, and we’ve never had an issue bringing in our fancy officially branded Horror Show metal bottles.

What if the movie is too scary?

That’s a fair question! Some people’s lines are different from others, and we all have movies we’ve considered “too much” even if we’ve sat through them. Hell, one of the biggest arguments in wrestling recently was whether the AEW match between “Hangman” Adam Page and Swerve Strickland was too bloody and violent, and nobody even got disemboweled in that one!

The answer is, if the movie is too scary, you don’t have to watch it! There’s no shame in leaving a movie for any reason. There’s a ton of other stuff to watch and do while you’re down there. If you give it a chance, and it’s not for you, you can hang with the delightful people in the lobby while you wait for your pals (especially the Vinegar Syndrome folks at the Palm -- they’re always really pleasant and friendly, and down to talk movies) or just head back to your room! We’ve seen plenty of people leave -- actually, our first experience watching ANY film at Telluride featured a guy who loudly protested that there weren’t any kills fifteen minutes into a movie and stormed out. So, you know, don’t be that guy and you’ll be fine.

Have you ever left a movie because it was terrible?

Nope -- neither in regular movie-going or at the Telluride Horror Show. It could be a combination of poor judgment and believing that walking out meant wasted money and time. Or it could be that I like even bad movies, and can appreciate little things. At worst, it’s certainly something to talk about on the way home. 

But Telluride is special because it’s so well curated. I’ve never seen a movie -- or even just a short film -- I didn’t enjoy, and most of the movies I’ve seen I’ve absolutely loved. Almost all are worth a rewatch at home, and I recommend a lot of our past Telluride views to anyone who asks.

Do you attend any Q&As?

Yes and no. We typically go for the movies, primarily, and so pass on things like chats with filmmakers and authors. But, we’ll almost always stay for post-movie chats with people if we don’t need to sprint to another venue to make a movie in time. I think it’s great that people go to Telluride with different agendas, and the festival caters to all different types of horror fans. I know some folks who only go to see a few films, and spend time hiking and enjoying the town of Telluride on its own merits. We might even end up doing some local dining and shopping this year, since it looks like we may have overbooked our stay and there’s not a welcome movie this year.

Are there kids?

Not in any official capacity. Most folks know what they’re in for, and don’t bring babies or little ones to the movies. There are exceptions, though! We once had a little girl of maybe 8 who was a big horror fan, and her mom seemed to be the one tagging along more than the kid. Parents know their kids, and some kids are smart enough to understand what they’re watching. My mom worked in a local video store, and as a result my sisters and I were exposed to horror movies at a younger age than most. We turned out okay.

And that’s it!

I hope I’ve answered any questions you might have had. I'll take some notes and write movie reviews when we get back next week! If you’ve got any more questions, feel free to reach out on Bluesky @elosopequeno.bsky.social or in the comments on this very blog! I’m looking forward to Telluride, but I’ve also got a couple things to knock out before we head down in a couple days. I’m hoping to have a preview for AEW WrestleDream publish on Friday, even though I’ll be missing that show for the Horror Show. These things happen. I’ll do my best to avoid spoilers, and then I’ll either catch up when I’m home or just give in and read a review after I’m back home. 

Thank you so much for reading. If you liked what you saw, consider telling your friends, mentioning Let’s Watch Some Wrestling on social media, or even buying me a hot cup of coffee using the Ko-Fi button. Have a great week, and I’ll see you back here next time, dear reader. Until then, Let’s Watch Some Wrestling!

It's the Let's Watch Some Wrestling Preview for Night Two of WrestleMania!

 

Good Morning!

A little less wordy for the intro this time around, as I’m trying to knock out some other posts as well. But when I noticed the first half of this preview was already nearing 4500 words, I figured it best to split the posts, both for your sake as a reader, and so the blog has a nice little reference point for each night, in case you need a quick refresh between shows. I’ll get the Stand and Deliver preview finished by tomorrow, as well as a short Casual Friday post to talk about Dynamite and the week in general. 

As I said in other posts, I want this blog to work for both newcomers and die-hard fans. So, we’re gonna try something a little different today, using my wife’s steadfast rules for why wrestling matches happen alongside some brief summaries of the rivalries and personalities involved in the fights this weekend. The rules, of course, are as follows:

1. I don’t like you and want to fight you

2. Something was misunderstood between us and we must fight, only to figure out later that we are friends

3. “Curse your sudden but inevitable betrayal!”

4. I WANT THAT CUMMERBUND (title)

WrestleMania Night Two: Sunday

Seth “Freakin’” Rollins © versus Drew McIntyre for the World Heavyweight Championship

Who’s fighting?

We spoke a bit about Seth Rollins previously, but since this is his championship match I feel like we should dig a little deeper today. Seth has become kind of a third wheel on this WrestleMania card, which seems unfair considering he’s held the World Heavyweight Championship since its debut last year. However, it’s also kind of par for the course – after all, that championship was basically introduced because WWE didn’t want to take the title off of Roman Reigns, and they clearly didn’t want to separate the now-undisputed title either. So, we got a brand-new title and Seth has done his best to make it reputable, which he’s been largely successful at. An injury threatened to keep him out of WrestleMania, but his rehab went better than we could have hoped and he’ll be taking on Drew. 

Drew McIntyre has been a revelation of late. He’s leaned more and more into the heelish aspects of his character, but his initial turn was justifiable! He didn’t like that Jey Uso, a guy who participated in the screwing over of Drew in multiple championship matches, was being given a pass on Raw because Cody Rhodes was acting as kind of a sponsor for him. But he never apologized to Drew, and just kind of went about being a good guy – and the fans bought in! I’d be mad too, honestly.

Why are they fighting?

A few reasons. Drew won his championship during the pandemic, and has expressed a desire to win another in front of fans, a reasonable request. Drew also won the Elimination Chamber match to become the number one contender to Rollins’ championship, so it’s mostly Rule 4 we’re talking about here. But Drew and Seth have also become tangled in the Bloodline storyline, with Seth promising to help Cody, and Drew frequently accepts, or at least benefits from, Bloodline interference in his matches. We’ve also seen Drew and Paul Heyman, the Bloodline’s advocate/wise man/special counsel, chatting in weeks past.

*EDIT* I somehow, shockingly, forgot to mention that Drew's other nemesis, CM Punk, will be on commentary for this match. He's almost certainly gonna get involved, although I'm not sure how physical he can be. Maybe he's completely healed and this has all been a cunning ruse? Or maybe Punk will just talk smack about McIntyre for the whole match? Or, maybe Punk goes full Punk and spends twenty minutes just airing his grievances with current and former co-workers and workplaces -- WHO'S TO SAY?

Who’s gonna win?

I would love a Drew win, and I also can see him getting involved in the tag team main event on Night One, softening up Rollins while also doing some dirty work for Roman Reigns and The Rock. However, while I was researching this bit, I found that Drew’s last eight matches have been dark match losses against Cody Rhodes, with one Jey Uso match in early March breaking the trend. That could just mean the two aren’t involved in big rivalries that can be built at non-televised shows…or it could mean one of them won’t have a title after Sunday night, and a rivalry is warming up between the pair. Since I’m feeling the good vibes of the weekend, we’ll say Seth Rollins overcomes the odds here and defeats Drew. 

Of note here – Damian Priest still holds the Money in the Bank contract, and he might be feeling ready to strike out on his own if he and Finn Balor lose their Undisputed Tag Team Championship on Saturday. I wouldn’t rule out a cash-in on Drew OR Seth, just to add a little more excitement into the proceedings.

IYO SKY © versus Bayley for the Women’s Championship

Who’s fighting?

Bayley has recently become a de facto good guy in the grand scheme of things. She started her career as the good-est of good guys, coming out to bouncy theme music and being flanked by wacky waving inflatable arm flailing tube men as she headed to the ring. She turned against the fans a few years ago, and returned from injury at 2022’s SummerSlam to resume a rivalry with Bianca Belar alongside her new pals, IYO SKY and Dakota Kai, forming the stable Damage CTRL in the process. Bayley’s a solid technical wrestler, and has been involved in some of the greatest NXT matches of all time. She’s also the longest-reigning Smackdown Women’s champion, and this year became the Royal Rumble’s Iron Woman, lasting longer in that match than any other woman, ever.

IYO SKY is a high-flying performer, earning her the nickname “Genius of the Sky.” To be honest, it worked a little better when she went as Io Shirai back in NXT. Regardless, she’s an amazing in-ring talent, and WWE has been letting her show a little more personality by cutting promos in her native Japanese, and putting subtitles over them. I may not know what she’s saying, but you can feel the emotion when she says it, you know? 

Why are they fighting?

The rare 1-3-4 combo for this one! We spoke about Damage CTRL before, and it plays heavily in this match. Bayley and IYO have been frenemies since IYO won Money in the Bank last year by handcuffing Bayley to Becky Lynch. IYO used that case to win her Women’s Championship at SummerSlam, and Becky continued to support her stablemate despite the tension. Once Asuka and Kairi Sane joined Damage CTRL, Becky seemed to be the odd woman out, and when Becky revealed that she’d learned enough Japanese to know when her friends were talking smack about her, she decided to use her Royal Rumble victory to challenge IYO for her title.

Who’s gonna win?

Bayley deserves a big win on a big stage, and while IYO has been a good champ, it seems like a good time for a change. Am I predicting too many good guys to win? Probably. But I’m an optimist and a simple man, and I like when good overcomes bad at WrestleMania. And Bayley will have to overcome a lot to win this match – even though the other members of Damage CTRL have their own match on Saturday, they will likely show up in support of their champ for this fight.

The Pride (Bobby Lashley, Montez Ford, and Angelo Dawkins) versus The Final Testament (Carrion Cross, Akam, and Rezar) in a Six-Man Philadelphia Street Fight

Who’s fighting?

Bobby Lashley is a mountain of a man, the kind of guy one thinks of when they think of a pro wrestler from the 90s. Just a big ol’ slab of beef. Montez Ford and Angelo Dawkins, collectively known as the Street Profits, are the tried-and-true combination of a bigger guy (Dawkins) and a charismatic flippy guy (Ford). Ford’s no little guy, though – a former Marine standing 6’1”, the Chicago native is lean and jacked, and has one of the highest leaps in wrestling. They’ll be accompanied by B-Fab, a young lady formerly of the faction Hit Row before they disbanded.

Carrion Cross leads The Final Testament, and he’s an intense guy with a deep love for his equally intense wife, Scarlett. He’s not Lashley big, but he’s a big dude nonetheless, and he’s got kind of a hardcore/heavy metal vibe going on. His buddies, Akam and Rezar, are giants – no-nonsense beasts who let their actions speak for them as they toss their victims around the ring. They are not, as my wife often mentions, the turtle and wolf from Ninja Turtles 2; they’re a tag team called the Authors of Pain. They’re managed by legendary manager Paul Ellering, who also works as a mouthpiece for the guys when Cross isn’t around. 

Why are they fighting?

They just don’t like each other – rule 1 all the way. I honestly don’t have a lot to add to that – the groups have been involved with each other for a few months, and they’re going to continue that rivalry at the biggest show on the calendar.

Who’s gonna win?

I guess we’ll have the bad guys – The Final Testament – pick up the win here, since we’ve been so good-guy heavy in our picks. There’s no real rhyme or reason for a match like this to have a clear winner, as they’ll probably continue fighting beyond Sunday, so look for some shenanigans to cost the good guys the fight.

Logan Paul © versus Kevin Owens versus Randy Orton in a Triple Threat Match for the United States Championship

Who’s fighting?

If this were the kind of organization that employed a bunch of diverse talents, I’d have somebody younger try to explain to both you and me why Logan Paul is so popular. As it stands, it’s an unpaid one-man operation, so I’ll try my best. He’s a YouTube guy who has made some really questionable life choices, but he also seems to have kinda moved away from that as he’s gotten a little older. What matters to us, the wrestling fans, is that he’s a natural in the ring. He’s tall and lanky, but has a really good grasp on the in-ring stuff, flying around and playing the heel role perfectly. He’s also our United States champ, having won the belt by using some brass knuckles on Rey Mysterio. 

Kevin Owens is a blue-collar everyman, a Canadian veteran of the ring, and one of the most likable people in wrestling. He and longtime friend, partner, and rival Sami Zayn won the Undisputed Tag Team Championships at last year’s ‘Mania, and he’s been a singles champ multiple times over. Lately, he’s been kind of an audience surrogate, calling out the tropes of pro wrestling while getting very close to breaking the fourth wall.

Randy Orton is a wrestler’s wrestler, tall, tanned, and jacked. Orton is a third-generation superstar, and has been in WWE for over twenty years, and in that time he’s established his finisher, the RKO, as one of the best in all of wrestling. He’s always been kind of a “tweener,” ready to turn on his friends at the drop of a hat.

Why are they fighting?

Rule 4 is the obvious pick here – Logan has a belt, neither Randy nor Kevin like him, and they want to relieve him of that responsibility. Orton and Owens have also been pretty buddy-buddy of late. Logan has repeatedly screwed Owens over, using the brass knuckles he deployed to win his US Championship to retain it as well.

Who’s gonna win?

We’ll keep the bad guys on a streak here, and give Logan Paul the win. I hate to get backstage-y, as I don’t really keep up with the rumors and scuttlebutt, but I think WWE likes what they have in Paul – a really famous guy outside of wrestling who brings fresh eyes to the product. Paul almost always brings his friends to WrestleMania, so he’ll have an advantage against Owens and Orton in that regard, and I’d also bet on Orton growing tired of being beloved and turning on KO.

LA Knight versus AJ Styles

Who’s fighting?

We’ll start with LA Knight. He’s been described as a mixture between The Rock and “Stone Cold” Steve Austin on the microphone, which is high praise for a guy who hasn’t been in WWE that long. He’s good in the ring, but his mic work is what’s really gotten him over with the fans, who just really like yelling “YEAUH” along with him – present company included. 

AJ Styles is kind of a journeyman pro wrestler – before joining the WWE at the 2016 Royal Rumble, Styles wrestled on the independent circuit as well as for WCW, NWA, TNA-Impact, and in Japan as well. He was named wrestler of the year multiple times in the 2010s, and also has the honor of being the Undertaker’s last opponent, losing to the Dead Man in a cinematic “Boneyard Match” during the pandemic-era WrestleMania 36.

Why are they fighting?

Some solid Rule 3 stuff here. AJ was going to team up with John Cena against the Bloodline earlier this year, but a backstage attack saw AJ out of that match, and LA Knight as his replacement. AJ was out for a good while, but returned at Elimination Chamber to interfere, attacking LA Knight. Knight would seek revenge ever since, attacking AJ on multiple occasions, including at Styles’ home last month. This is a blood feud thru and thru, and I’m honestly surprised it’s a straight-up singles match and not something more violent.

Who’s gonna win?

Some say WWE missed the boat on LA Knight, because he was WILDLY popular last year, but I think he’s still pretty dang over – just listen to the crowd when he’s talking on the mic. AJ is the kind of professional who doesn’t mind putting someone over, either. I think this is a good time to give Knight a big WrestleMania win, and if they want to keep this rivalry going WWE could always bring AJ Styles back together with his stable, the OC, that he kinda drifted away from after his most recent return to action.

Roman Reigns © versus Cody Rhodes for the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship

Who’s fighting?

You know by now! It’s Cody Rhodes, beloved superstar, haver-of-a-story, and possibly the most popular wrestler in the WWE right now (non-part-time division) fighting Roman Reigns, the Undisputed Universal Champion in both name and in legacy right now, a guy who just feels inevitable and undefeatable.

Why are they fighting?

While we could pepper in some old-fashioned disdain, this is all Rule 4. The phrase “finish the story” has kind of evolved from Cody looking to win the title that his father was never given a chance to truly hold, to Cody needing to win that title and defeat longtime rival Roman Reigns to validate his own story and his return to WWE. Cody was attacked by Bloodline guy and Reigns’ cousin Solo Sikoa to end his championship dreams last year, and Roman has gloated about it ever since. Cody’s been forced to take some side quests since then, engaging in rivalries with Brock Lesnar, the Miz, Shinsuke Nakamura, and members of the Judgment Day while also briefly teaming with Jey Uso. But after winning the Royal Rumble this year, Cody wanted his rematch, and despite The Rock inserting himself into the WrestleMania main event(s), first as a Cody replacement and then as a rival, Cody has been the majority of fans’ choice to dethrone the Tribal Chief.

Who’s gonna win?

I’ve seen a lot of theories about how this match goes down. I think it’s definitely going to be contested under Bloodline Rules, with Rock and Roman defeating Cody and Seth on Saturday. But what shenanigans will take place during the match? I’ve fantasy-booked everything from a straight-up singles match to a full-on Bloodline versus Cody-vengers lineup, with Cody calling in favors from legends like “Stone Cold” Steve Austin and John Cena. 

The theory behind those two is this image from a couple of Raws past, when Rock beat the everloving hell out of Rhodes in the rain in Chicago as the images of those two loomed behind them. Cena actually makes some sense here, as he’s battled the Bloodline over the last few years. Even without bringing in Legends, the idea of all the current wrestlers who have been screwed over by Roman and his family joining together to keep the fight fair would be a really cool WrestleMania moment.

At the end of the day, I think it does all come down to Roman and Cody. There will be interference, but the last big chunk of the match will be these two, overcoming all the distractions and outside attacks and just going at each other in a match-within-a-match. And that’s when Cody will finally finish his story, hopefully putting an end to both Roman’s reign and that phrase. I swear, if I never hear about another story it’ll be too soon.

…and that’s it!

What a packed weekend we’ve got! I’ll see you next week for the usual Casual Friday and Untitled Monday blog posts, with the Monday blog featuring a recap of WrestleMania, Stand and Deliver, and also Collision if I find the time to check that out too! Hell, if I’m feeling particularly saucy I’ll try to post some thoughts on Sunday morning, even, but I can’t make any guarantees. 

If you have questions, concerns, or comments, drop 'em in the comments section below! And follow me on Twitter (X), Facebook, BlueSky and/or Instagram using the links on the right.

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