Hawkius Maximus

I think most, if not all of us saw the main event going the way it did, but it kinda blows. I think just about everyone wanted to see Royce come back and atleast be competitive with Hughes. He got owned. It's going to be interesting to see where Royce goes from here. He said in a post-fight interview that he didn't mind losing to Hughes, but that he'd be back after he was healed up. Seemingly indicating that he wants to fight in the UFC more. The question is, can he turn himself around to compete these days? Also..Why do so many people HATE Diego? I get that he's cocky, and seemingly not overly bright, but the man tries to CATCH LIGHTNING BOLTS. That's GOLD damnit.

From what I know, the Gi provides better grip, some submissions that the opponent may not know (See Yoshida's funkyass phantom Gi Choke on Tank), and it prevents the opponent from easily escaping the guard at any level, due to the contact with the Gi keeping slipping to a minimum. As a disadvantage, it's just as hard for the person wearing the Gi to escape as it is for the person against the Gi-wearer. The heat inside the Gi also gets very hot, which leads to more exhaustion due to the lack of circulation, which could possibly lead to quicker gassing, if not just making you very very uncomfortable. There's also the constant shifting of the gi to keep it on properly, if one part of the Gi comes off it can be used against the wearer. The afformented pulling over the head comes to mind, or simply just grabbing the loose part of the Gi, pull in, uppercut. Rinse, repeat. See Hackney/Royce, since that was pretty much Hackney's tactic. Worked for awhile too. It's kind of a win some, lose some situation. For someone used to constantly fighting in one, it's an advantage, but it can also be a severe disadvantage too.

I would have been more interested in Nogueria v.s. Yoshida, due to their grappling abilities, but Mirko v.s. Yoshida could be interesting. Can Mirko KO Yoshida before Yoshida can get the death vice on? If Yoshida grabs you, you aren't getting away easily, and Mirko's not at the level where he can pose that big of a threat on the ground to Yoshida. Yoshida's got glue on his hands, if he grabs any part of you, you're probably going to get taken down. Maybe with a somewhat nice throw movethat does no damage. Or maybe with the rolling headlock of DOOOOM. I think I'd actually favor Yoshida in that fight, shockingly enough. Silva couldn't KO Yoshida, but Mirko's got the highkick. Problem is, Mirko has a weakness to fighters who come at him full blast, which Yoshida will probably do. Yoshida doesn't fear being KO'd in the least, and I could see Mirko backpedaling a bit, grabbed, and thrown. Fujita v.s. Silva is both insane, and highly interesting. My first thought was "...Fujita's going to DIE", but then I remember that the man is genetically engineered to not be KO-able, and he doesn't give up easily. I really don't know how that one would go. If anyone can KO Fujita, it'll be Silva, but I could see Fujita "Arona'ing" him for the win. With some knees thrown in for added benefit. Werdum I don't think is ready for Nogueria. On the ground, they may be even, but I think standing Nogueria has the huge advantage. Nog can KO people, he just doesn't really prefer to. If Werdum starts, god forbid winning on the ground, I can easily see Nog getting up and tee'ing off on Werdum. Josh v.s. Hunt...I...don't know. I think they wanted to do Hunt/Josh v.s. Fedor this round, but they couldn't. So we get this. Josh has been running his mouth so much that he sorta HAS to win atleast this fight to save face. He's trash talked Fedor so damn much that it'd probably draw as well, or better then any of Fedor's previous fights. Hunt can be beaten, and I think Josh is the one who could do it, or Hunt will knock him the fuck out. PRIDE's final eight is pretty fucking badass. I'm glad I didn't get the opening round, so I can get this and the finals. Money well spent I think.

Wait, wait...wait. Tarja fucking left Nightwish? I had heard rumors. ...that fucking SUCKS.

I personally feel Forrest won that fight, but like most people, I accept Tito winning. It was a close, good fight. I think most people, even "Forrest Nuthuggers", I hate the term "Nuthuggers" by the way, accept that. What most people agree is there is no way in hell Tito won 30-27, and that is what leaves a bad taste in most people's mouths. That one judge, I dunno if he was even watching the fight. 29-28 is fine, but 30-27 is saying Tito won all three rounds, Forrest atleast won Rd 2. That Butterbean fight with Aguilera was awesome fun. He tried, by god, he tried. ANyone who throws a DROPKICK in MMA gets my seal of approval.

Bullshit. I've seen most, if not ALL of their matches, and for one thing, the big difference between Kawada & Kobashi v.s. Misawa, is Kobashi rarely let Misawa stall until late into the match where it made sense. Misawa often would stall his ass off in his "attempt" to sell, such as grabbing his midsection and cough to symbolize that Vader just leapt off the fucking apron and crushed him. No rolling, just...lay there...lightly touch stomach...cough. Misawa only truely sells when he's either A: Hurt. B: Exhausted or C: Just dropped vertically on his fucking head. Big match, yes. Sure as fuck not the biggest of their entire fued, and sure as fuck not as important. Misawa won EVERY SINGLE SINGLES MATCH UNTIL 1997. Kawada beat him in what was basicly a screwjob since Kobashi had already beaten the living fuck out of Misawa for half an hour during the 1997 Champions Carnival playoff. Kawada comes in, six minute victory. THAT was the pay off, an inconsequental victory where Kawada had consistantly lost to Misawa for years. Even to this point in their careers, Misawa brought in Kawada, and against all reasoning, he beat Kawada AGAIN. In the Tokyo Dome. IN THEIR FINAL MATCH. You're trying to tell me, with all that, that Misawa wasn't made to look like he was far and away much better then Kawada? That's bullshit. In their 94 match, the fans DESPERATELY wanted Kawada to win, so he doesn't win a singles match for three more years. Whoooo! I also like the fact that you used Kawada's ONE big victory on the big scale to prove me wrong. Good going! How about all the others? Oh...wait...there's maybe...two? more times that Kawada actually bested Misawa? He beat him for the TC in 1999, but I'm sure you know of so many more. Enlighten me. And yet...You post no factual information at all beyond you're arguments which are conjecture based upon the fact that I dare go against common Puro-elitist standards by disliking their feud. Kawada and Misawa never really cared for each other. They may have been team-mates in the generation war, but they sure as fuck didn't care for each other like Kobashi & Misawa did. Kawada split off with Taue after that, and went his own way to prove himself. Kobashi was Misawa's friend, and they teamed together for some time against Kawada and Taue. Kobashi, in what is often called one of the greatest tag matches in history sacrificed his body, and his health to protect Misawa. Kawada NEVER had that connection. Kawada, even in the Generation wars, was a prick, he never stopped wrestling like a dick. Kawada was only a good guy in the most general term possible, because he was aligned with uber face Misawa, and underdogs Kobashi and Kikuchi. On his own, he was a violent asshole, who'd beat the fuck out of anyone if he meant he could win. Kawada was never honorable, or nice. Nor friends with Misawa. Fuck, if I remember right, they were rivals in SCHOOL. How can you tell me that Kobashi, with his deep friendship with Misawa slowly, over the years turning in severe dislike is anything close to Kawada joining Taue, and within maybe two years trying to kill Misawa? It's totally different, and if anything, you've exposed YOU'RE lack of understanding of the feuds.

Personally, I've never been a fan of the Kawada/Misawa series. Maybe it was due to the fact that I stumbled across their huge 94 match during my first few months of getting into Puro. It caused me to dislike Kawada for agggges too. Now it's reversed, and I loathe Misawa and worship Kawada. Go figure. To me, a good or great wrestling match builds off history (if there is any) but stands alone. That match doesn't live on it's own. Most of their big singles matches don't live on their own, due to long ass periods of inactivity and sequences that make no sense inless you've watched the entire storyline. I cannot honestly say I've ever seen a Misawa/Kawada singles match that I'd rate as godawful, but haven't seen any singles that I'd rate above good. Their tag encounters are some of the finest examples of work in the history of wrestling, but I've never felt the same connection to the singles matches. Historically, the Misawa/Kawada singles feud falls apart when you inspect it. In alot of ways, you could draw the comparison to say...Raven v.s. Dreamer. One guy gets his ass beat in one on one encounters the entire feud. However, the distinct difference is that Dreamer won the major match, and was the winner at the end. Kawada's never gotten that one major victory over Misawa. He never will. He's BEATEN Misawa, but in the grand scheme of things, it never mattered. Misawa won the big matches, with the big hype, with the big consequences. Kawada was never given the ball to run with until Misawa was out of the equasion...and even then got fucked over. If Kawada's career was a storyline, he'd be the asskicking lovable loser that you want to see come ahead, but never will get his true moment to shine. For my money, I rate the Misawa/Kobashi (Notice how Misawa was in all the major storylines?!) feud alot higher. Due to the fact that new chapters are still being writen. It evolved from Kobashi being Misawa's little buddy, to being friendly rivals, to generation enemies, to damn near no good feelings towards each other at all. I guess you could make the claim that the hatred wasn't as evident in their feud as it was in the Kawada one...but that was mostly because Kawada would blast the living holy shit out of Misawa and cave his face in. That type of shit hurt all their careers, due to the punishment. Not that Tiger Suplex's off a fucking stage is much better, but it's better then a broken eyesocket from a boot to the EYE. I'm not sure what I'd rate as the best heavyweight puro match I've ever seen, but I know the Junior one. Ultimo Dragon v.s. Shinjiro Otani from the 96 J Crown. So, so awesome. Little touches are everywhere, including Otani's desperate attempts to escape a jujigatame (I think), only to constantly end up in WORSE situations. It was at the height of both men's skills at that point, and they brought EVEEERYTHING they could. Shoulda been the tournament final. Stupid Sasuke being in the finals, hate you.

I hated Tom, but he did dominate the game through challenges. I doubt he'd have made the final two had he not browbeat Ian the night before into submission. That would have just made me wanna beat him more, but it mentally messed up Ian. Questionable victory at best if you ask me. I'd give it to Tom though, he dominated. Terry's close, but not there. Plus, Terry won a car. He cannot win. It would implode the universe.

When I said everyone, I didn't mean this thread persay. I've read a bunch of columns, and ninty percent of them act as if Terry's this collosial dickface. He hasn't been, so no. I didn't retcon, I used "everyone" as a general term not directly applied to this discussion at hand. Why wouldn't Danielle or Bruce switch sides in that situation with Sally and Terry? That's a PERFECT oppertunity to do so. They would have had the majority, or atleast tied it. Two of them would have been safe (Danielle and Terry) both from immunity. Why should Bruce switch? Because Casaya pretty much made it crystal clear to him for a looooooooong time that he was the odd man out and would be gone. Why the hell wouldn't you opt for a final four place, and not a *AT BEST* sixth spot? Plus, he gave Terry his word if I'm not forgetting that if he convinced someone else to join them, he would switch. Those two not making the play to save their asses then is STOOPID. Terry's biggest flaw, is going to Danielle so damn much. If anything, he should have latched onto Courtney right from the start. She disliked everyone enough that she'd have probably switched immediately. By the time Terry realized that, it was too late. Terry could have been pulled into an alliance, and WHAM, you've got control of the game. He had a deathlock on the Immunity, so you'd never have to worry about that. I think Shane was finally gettign that right before he got booted, but right after Sally left (or before even), Terry could have swung the game in favor of anyone had they hgad the foresight to do so. None of them did.

Is E3 over or something? It sure seems like there isn't a whole lot of news today about any new reveals.

Exactly. People act like Terry's been this jackass the entire season, and he hasn't been. He wasn't even a jackass in the merged tribe until after Casaya COMPLETELY and utterly flaunted their power (and don't give me that only Shane said they were going home. They held a meeting IN THE OPEN right in front of La Mina discussing who would go home. That's arrogance.), and only then because what the hell does he have to lose? Their votes? Most of them probably wouldn't have voted for him anyway. Some probably STILL won't. Shane will vote for Terry because he atleast respects him on a game level, and his tribe pissed him off. Ditto with Courtney. Aras won't vote for Terry, Cirie won't, and Danielle probably won't. So why bother being nice when they treat him like shit anyway? Fact is, Terry hasn't played the best mentally, but he's made the best of his situation that he could. Danielle and Bruce were MORONS for not turning when Danielle was promised the idol. Terry eventually realized that there was no hope, none of them had the foresight to do anything about their situations despite their out being right there, so he sorta gave up for awhile and only made token efforts. Terry would have been a very useful tool to some Casaya members had they decided to use him instead of being so stubbornly ignorant. Danielle finally had a coherent thought in her brain and realized "Hey...two v.s. two...I might actually be able to do something!". Too late to save her probably, but atleast she finally, ya know...had a thought.

WHY MUST THERE BE SPOILERS HERE?!?!?!?? Why must people try to ruin everything damnit?! I always get things spoiled for me! But not TUF3. You hear me? NO! *runs*

Why SHOULDN'T Terry be pissed at them? Why shouldn't at this point be sick of being triple teamed in *EVERYTHING* in the game? Aras was fucking telling Danielle and Cirie to intentionally block Terry so Aras could have his one little moment of glory. I'm pretty sure it's against the rules to KTFO someone, so Aras better be pretty happy it is. I understand that picking off the other tribe is normal (Albeit idiotic in the grand scheme), but Casaya were complete assholes about it from day one. They out right said "Hey, you, we're getting rid of you. Buh bye." one by one. They never tried to hide it, they never tried to be friendly, they never tried to build any type of bridge. They treated La Mina like they were cattle being led to the slaughter. If I had to sit there, and watch my tribe get decimated for no reason other then none of them had any foresight on Casaya, knowing that there was absolutely nothing I could do? I'd be PISSSED. Cirie completely hid in the shadows for 3/4ths of the game, and I don't think she's played all that well since she came out of hidding. If ANYTHING she cost herself the million for doing so. Shane sure as hell won't vote for her. Terry won't vote for her, Courtney won't vote for her. None of the La Mina people will vote for her. She's screwed, all because she decided she had to take out the "final two fodder" as people put it. A daring move? Yes. Smart? Fuck no. Terry has fought his ass off to stay in the game, while most of the other people just sat around. Every time Terry tried to make any sort of alliance, they just laughed at him, even when it would have been smart to do so. Danielle ALONE had about four oppertunities where she could have turned the game, and never had to risk being in the situation she's in. Bruce would have made the final four (Granted if he didn't have his problem), if not higher. None of them had any foresight, nor any imagination. "Ooo, we have the majority! Lets keep going despite the fact that we can't beat this one guy, and I'm on the bottom of the totem pole and next to go! WHEEE!" and about the torch...You dont' fucking just DROP something in the middle of the walking way. Thats common curtesy, regardless if it's night or not. Espcially if it's something like that someone could trip over and possibly break their ankle, or a toe, or something from. That's just being a dick, or unresponsible.

I fully admit I've always loved Nintendo, but in all honesty, did anyone expect this type of showing from them? Having just watched Super Smash Brothers: Brawl, just like with the Gamecube for the past game...they've got my money, if ONLY for that game.

I always assumed they kinda did that on purpose. Then again, they always fuck up their in-ring entrances too, so it might not be. Either way, the point stands.

The fact is, everyweek, the Spirit Squad come out, and get no reaction. By the end of the match, the fans HATE THEM and will pay next time to see them massacred. Why? Because they know how to work the fans. Every week, their gimmick bombs outside of the ring, but in their matches they consistantly use heel tactics, and fan work tactics to get the crowd to hate them. It's not "X-Pac heat", it's legit "These guys are cheating bastards! BOO!" heat. There is a BIG difference. That's the reason these guys are being given so many shots lately. It's not really because Vince loves them, which he might, it's because they are the only people in the company right now, that can keep the fans on Cena's side. Angle, Hunter, JBL, Jericho, none of them could manage that, but put the SS against Cena, and while the crowd may token boo Cena at the beginning, by the end of the match, the fans WANT Cena to win, they WANT Cena to overcome these odds. Combine the fact that the Spirit Squad are so insanely unlikable, with the fact that that even the ones not in the match run around ringside pissing off the fans, and you've got a mega heel heat axis. In a way, they are this generations Honky Tonk Man so far. They will never get a "Oh, hey! YAY!" reaction when they come out, but by the end of their matches, the fans will be rabid to see someone, anyone, whoop the shit out of them. No funny jokes, no "cool" factor, just legitimate ability to control a crowd and get heat. We need more of that. Plus, most of the SS guys are damn good workers to boot. Main event eternally I says.

Something that alot of people gloss over in regards to the Spirit Squad, is that they are VERY VERY good tag team workers. Last night, they consistantly cut off the ring from Cena, doing little movements to keep him as far as away as possible. At one point, Micky(I think) had Cena in a neck crank. Cena was pointed towards Shawn, so Micky spun then around so Cena was pointed towards THEIR corner. That is the type of tag team work that no one does anymore, and reeked up old school 1980's shit, and I loved it. Throw in the SS consistantly keeping the crowd in the match by pissing them off on the apron, and that crowd was going bonkers by the end. That's how you effectively be a heel in wrestling. They understand that. Outside of the ring, Spirit Squad BOOOOMBS, but inside of the ring, they might be some of the best in the promotion at working the crowd to get a reaction. Most of them have obviously been trained veeerrry well on those aspects. It's all in the little details people, the little details.

Does anyone know of a good place to get Anime OST's? I'm looking for Crest/Banner of the Star's music, but haven't had a whole lot of luck thus far. Edit: ...Found em.

Like I said in my earlier post (Hope I didn't spoil anything for anyone), why doesn't PRIDE just put Roman into the GP? He's gotten back to back HOLYFUCKKO'S on two very good strikers in dominate fashion. Putting Fedor into the GP just seems...well...uh...silly.

.............that Youtube video was amazing. I must own this game.

I'm pretty glad I didn't get the show myself. Just doesn't look that great to me. PRIDE should really forget adding Fedor to the tournament, and add the winner of the first match. I think he's earned it.

If you haven't seen it, Saku's entrance and promo are up on Youtube. It's funny that like...the fan's don't pop. They don't BELIEVE it. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2XQFWXAQHzY&search=Sakuraba http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ijsQ_1qLlI0&search=Sakuraba You can just sense that they have a "...what the...fuck?" reaction. They don't pop for anything. Could be because he wore that tiger mask, or whatever, but they didn't know what to make of it. You can hear the excitement, but it's like their holding it in becaus ethey don't want to be worked somehow and it's NOT him.

I thought Chris would nail I Dare You, but it just wasn't there. I think Chris gets in the habit of trying to force his voice way too often, kinda like that one guy on Rock Star (I think it was...Brandon?) who they told would blow out his voice if he kept singing like he did. That song didn't need that much power at all, and he completely overdid it. Not sure why at all either, it's not that hard of a song. He scored big time with Renegade though, easily the best song of the night. Maybe best I've seen in the season so far, it just had an epic "This is a show" type feeling, instead of someone just singing lyrics. Elliot also impressed me. I thought his second was perhaps his best yet. I hadn't enjoyed much of his past stuff, but he naaaailed that one. The rest, aside from Taylor insane dancing was middle of the road to low, I thought.

Chris is my hero if he does those two songs.

This is a MMA related thing, so I figured I'd post it. I co-run a MMA federation that has people create and submit characters to use in the federation, using that MMA sim that I once posted about. This is a pretty kickass place for intelligent MMA posters, and we could really new fighters for it, who won't have a problem with rules and stuff. Anyway, links in my signature, you all should give it a look... And so my post doesn't get deleted due to spam... Brock in MMA would be big, NJPW should really just whore him out to the highest bidder to make whatever money they can off him.