#I lio what I do and want to continue doing it but I’m pretty severely unwell and I hate that is the case | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

juju-on-that-yeet · 4 years

Text

There Are Worse Things I Could Do, Chapter 10/10

Summary: Now that Yancy is finally back home, it’s time for him to talk to Illinois about everything that happened between them. Warnings: None Characters: Yancy, Illinois

Read on AO3

Enjoy!

The first thing Yancy does after he comes back is get his tracker put in.

Actually, no, the first thing he does is sleep.

After crying and carrying on with the others for a while, he flops into his bed and sleeps for nearly twenty-four hours. He can’t help it; his bed’s never felt so comfortable, and he’s never been so tired. After eighteen days of sleeping on benches, it’s a welcome reprieve.

The second thing Yancy does is eat. He didn’t eat too terribly out on the streets, but every bite was stolen, every bite gave him guilt. It’s nice to finally eat something he doesn’t have to feel bad about – especially after sleeping for nearly a full day, which did make him pretty hungry.

So getting his tracker put in is the third thing he does, and it’s the least fun. Google is the one to do it, and he’s none too gentle about injecting the tracker into Yancy’s un-injured arm. Dark is also there to oversee it, which doesn’t make Yancy feel much better. Yancy doesn’t see the tracker for long; it’s small and blue and thin and that’s all he gets from it before it’s inside his arm.

“You may experience some lingering soreness for the next twenty to thirty minutes,” Google says, monotone, as though reciting an instruction manual. “If you attempt to remove or destroy it, we will be notified. It will not need to be replaced, unless your arm is severed from your body, in which case you will need a new tracker once your arm has regenerated.”

“Um, g-good to know,” Yancy mumbles, flexing his arm and rubbing the sore spot where the tracker now lies. He can’t sense the tracker under his skin, but if he squeezes his arm hard enough, he can just barely feel the tracker in there.

“I presume you recall,” Dark says, cracking his neck, “That punishment awaits you if you tamper with your tracker.”

“Y-Yes sir,” Yancy says quickly, shivering a little. He remembers what it was like to be in Dark’s void, even if for only a minute, and he doesn’t want to revisit it.

“Good.” Dark grins, then vanishes. Google rolls his eyes.

“You can go,” he says flippantly, gathering his materials and leaving to do…whatever it is the Googles do all day. Despite being friends with one, Yancy doesn’t quite know.

He’s always felt a bit weird here, in this huge building full of crazies and killers that isn’t a prison. It feels even more like a prison now that Yancy knows he’ll be tracked if he leaves. But there’s a bit of comfort to that. Prison suited him; he only ever left because of Magnum, and because of…

Lio.

The fourth thing Yancy does upon coming back is finally, finally talking to Lio about everything. At least, he will. That’s the plan, but Yancy can’t help but be nervous about it. Aside from Lio mouthing to him that he was glad to see him from across the room when Yancy came home, Yancy and Lio haven’t spoken at all since Yancy accidentally confessed. It feels like it happened ages ago – and true, it’s been over three weeks at this point. Over three weeks of avoiding Lio, yet Yancy is still unstoppably in love with him. Yancy’s heard before that it takes a month to break a habit. Maybe if he stuck it out for another week he’d finally fall out of love, but how could he? It seems inevitable that he’d still love Lio after everything.

All Yancy knows is that he doesn’t want to keep avoiding Lio forever. He misses him because he loves him, but he misses him as a friend, too. He misses their talking, their bantering, their teasing, their support of each other’s passions. If there’s a way they can go back to that, then Yancy will do whatever it takes to get there. Even if Lio doesn’t love him back, Yancy doesn’t want to lose his friendship.

So Yancy stands outside Lio’s door, having failed to find him elsewhere in the building, and waits for the courage to knock.

“C’mon, just do it.”

“I can’t.”

“Look, if you wait until you feel brave enough, you’re never gonna do it. So just do it.”

“Call me out, why don’t youse.”

Yancy continues to stand there, paralyzed with uncertainty. Lio had seemed happy to see him the other night, but that doesn’t mean this conversation will go well. Yancy’s afraid again, but he can’t run away this time. He has to face his fear.

In the end, though, he doesn’t have to make the decision at all. After several long minutes of standing in front of Lio’s door, it opens. Lio is the cause, and he pauses and goes a little wide-eyed when he sees Yancy.

“Oh, hey,” he says, voice cracking just a little. “What’s up?”

Somehow it comforts Yancy a little to know he’s not the only one who’s nervous.

“I just, y’know, wanted to talk to youse.” Yancy clasps his hands together, starts twiddling his fingers. “About…everything.”

“Yeah, we…yeah. Come in.”

Yancy does. Lio closes the door, and they sit on the floor like usual – or what used to be usual.

“How long were you out there?” Lio asks. “Did I miss your knock?”

“Nah, nah, I just…” Yancy turns a little pink. “I didn’t knock. I was tryin’ to, though.”

Lio can’t seem to help smiling a little.

“Were you trying to knock with your mind?”

“Oh, shaddup,” Yancy says, smiling back despite himself.

This is what he missed being apart from Lio. This is what he wants back.

“But really,” Yancy continues, smile falling as quick as it came, “We gotta talk about stuff. I…I guess I’ll start?” He takes a deep breath, clears his throat a little. “I shouldn’t have run away. I know that was stupid. I shoulda talked to youse before that, but I just…I was too angry and messed up about it. So I left, and I shoulda come back sooner, but I was…it felt too hard. If I hadn’t screwed up I’d still be out there.”

Lio nods. His face is drawn with concern.

“Yandere said you killed someone,” he says quietly, softly. “Is that true?”

Yancy looks away. He clenches his hands tight together.

“Yeah,” Yancy whispers. “Some guy with a knife tried to mug me, and I didn’t…I don’t know what happened. One second he’d sliced me and the next I was…I’d killed him. Choked him out just like my ma.” His voice shakes. “There was a girl who saw, called the cops. Part of me wanted to kill her, too.”

He dares not look at Lio. He doesn’t want to see the fear or disgust that must be on his face. He stares down at his own hands instead, at his own fingers twisted together with anxiety. He nearly jumps to see a third hand, much more tan than his own, come into his field of vision and grasp his un-injured arm.

“I’m sorry,” Lio murmurs, “That sounds…scary.”

Yancy’s eyes fill with tears. Of course Lio wouldn’t hate him for this, he already knew Yancy was a killer when they became friends. Lio may not endorse it, but he never let it stop him from caring for Yancy, he never let it scare him away or disgust him. Of course perfect pretty Lio still cares about Yancy after his third murder.

“It was my own fault,” Yancy mumbles, “If I hadn’t run away like a moron it never woulda happened.”

“You were being attacked, it wasn’t your fault,” Lio says, “Besides…” He pulls his arm away. “You wouldn’t have run away if I hadn’t handled your confession so badly.”

It’s finally out in the open, the thing at the bottom of the whole situation. Yancy looks up, back at Lio, and this time Lio is the one looking down at his hands.

“C’mon, Lio, that ain’t your fault,” Yancy says. He tries for a chuckle, but it comes out like a strained huff. “I didn’t mean to tell youse in the first place, and it’s not…it’s not your fault that you don’t like me back.”

You don’t like me back. That hurt more to say out loud than Yancy would like to admit, but it’s nothing he didn’t already know.

“I still should’ve talked to you about it,” Lio insists, “I shouldn’t have avoided you. I told myself that I’d only make you more upset, and that you probably didn’t want to hear from me after all that, but I knew that was stupid.” He shakes his head. “I know I waited way too long to call you. I should’ve talked to you before that.”

Yancy remembers getting that call, remembers throwing his phone in the pond rather than answering.

“Throwing my phone away was a little silly,” Yancy admits, a little embarrassed. Lio laughs quietly.

“A little,” he agrees, “But…I’m the one who made you mad enough to do it.”

“I guess we were both pretty stupid,” Yancy says, “But I…” He sighs, shaky. “I just…I want us to still be friends. I know we can’t have it exactly like before, but…I don’t like avoiding you, Nois. I like being able to hang out with you. I don’t want shit to be all…weird. I hope it ain’t too much to ask.”

Lio finally looks up, and Yancy is surprised to see that Lio’s eyes are wet.

“Nois–”

“I’ve had a lot of partners,” Lio says, cutting Yancy off, but not unkindly. His voice trembles. “Lots of people that I worked with, plenty that I fell in love with.”

“I know, Lio. You’ve told me about that.”

“Yeah, and I mean – you know about what happened to all of them, too.” Lio sighs. “They all died. All of them. Usually in front of me, and I…I guess I just decided to stop.”

“Stop…?”

“Loving.” Lio’s gaze is piercing, watery and sad as it is. “It felt too hard, and I felt like…like I was cursed. I still think I might be. I haven’t tested it out. I just told myself I was done with partners, done with getting hurt, that I can’t love anyone else.” Lio closes his eyes. “But…”

“But what?” Yancy is thoroughly confused now.

“But it doesn’t matter if I can.” Lio opens his eyes again, and there’s something warm there. “Because I do. I never noticed, never wanted to notice, never had the time to think about it until…until…”

“Lio, until what?” Dread circles Yancy’s chest, like he knows what’s coming.

“Until you ran away.” A tear snakes down Lio’s cheek. “Until you weren’t there, and I realized how much I missed you, and how much I needed you. I’m an idiot, Yancy, I’m a huge moron and a coward and I’ve hurt you so badly, because I just – I didn’t want to admit that–”

“Stop,” Yancy gasps. Emotion, heavy and thick and burning fills him as keenly as Lio’s words have. “Don’t fucking tell me – don’t you fucking say–”

“Yance, I’m sorry,” Lio whispers, all the strength gone from his voice. “I’m in love with you, and I was too scared to admit it, even to myself.”

“No fucking way!!” Yancy shouts. He stands, bolting to his feet. He can feel his face getting red. “There’s no fucking way I ran away from home because I was all fucking upset that you don’t like me the way I like you, when the whole time you fucking did and just decided not to tell me!!”

“I didn’t realize it right away,” Lio says, still sitting, staring at the floor. “Not until you’d left already, and I started to realize how much I missed you.” A sob escapes him, and it morphs into an almost-laugh. “You wouldn’t believe how much I’ve been crying these past couple weeks. I’m a mess, Yancy. I’ve really screwed up, but the truth is that I love you back.”

“Don’t do this to me,” Yancy growls, even as his vision blurs with tears. Lio looks so small now, sitting on the floor, swathed in regret. “You don’t get do-overs, Lio. You don’t get to hurt me and change your mind and put me in the palm of your hand.”

“But you are in the palm of his hand! You still love him! This is the best possible outcome!”

Yancy turns away from Lio. He doesn’t know if he wants to leave. Anger is boiling in him, so it might be for the best if he left now. But they can’t leave it on this note, this is so much worse than before. This is so much worse than unrequited love.

But something – someone – Lio slams into Yancy from behind, his arms lock around Yancy’s waist and chest, his head burrows into the small of Yancy’s back.

“Hey–!” Yancy yells, startled.

“Don’t leave,” Lio begs, “Please don’t leave, please don’t hate me, I–” He sobs again, and again, and slides to the ground like his legs can’t hold him up anymore.

“Lio…” Yancy murmurs, astonished, turning to look at him.

Lio kneels, bowed, weeping harder than Yancy’s ever seen him cry before. Not that Yancy’s seen him cry much before: He’s seen Lio shed a few tears after some particularly awful flashbacks, but nothing even close to this. And hadn’t Lio said that he’d been crying a lot since Yancy left? Has Lio truly been hurting just as bad as Yancy, has Lio truly been just as lovestruck, just as longing, just as afraid of this conversation?

“I don’t want to hurt you worse,” Lio whimpers, “I’m cursed to h-hurt the people I love, I know that. S-So if you don’t want to give me a chance th-then you have every right to, and you p-probably shouldn’t, just…” He manages to meet Yancy’s eyes. Tears slide down his cheeks. His face is twisted up with pain. “Please don’t hate me. E-Even if we can’t be friends anymore, p-please don’t hate me.”

Yancy’s heart burns deep in his chest, and the burn rises up in his throat, knotting itself there, nearly stopping his breath. Because his answer is immediate, comes to mind in an instant: He can’t hate Lio. He convinced himself he couldn’t love Lio, same as Lio did for him, but he can’t hate Lio either. He could never hate perfect, beautiful Lio. Lio hurt the man he loves, and he hurt himself, and Yancy did the same. And Yancy knows that this has to stop. They have to stop hurting each other.

“I don’t hate you,” Yancy chokes out. He kneels too, sliding to the floor to look Lio in the eyes. “I don’t – I feel like I shouldn’t just forgive you after all this, but you…you hurt yourself, too. We gotta cut this out. We gotta quit being stupid about this.”

Lio laughs, quiet and rough.

“E-Easier said than done, I guess,” he says. He’s still crying, and Yancy realizes he hates watching Lio cry.

“Quit crying,” he mumbles, reaching out and wiping Lio’s tears away before he can stop himself.

Lio sighs, shaky, leaning into Yancy’s hands. Yancy doesn’t realize what he’s done until he’s cupping Lio’s face in his hands – and Lio has gently wrapped his hands around Yancy’s wrist, loose enough for Yancy to pull away, but tight enough to show that he wants Yancy to stay. Yancy is suddenly very aware of Lio’s skin under his fingers, of the slope of Lio’s face under his hands, of Lio’s cheekbones under his thumbs, of Lio’s warm tears under the pads of his fingers. Lio’s eyes are still wet, still leaking tears, but bright and shining with more than just water.

“Fuck, he really does love me.”

“What do we do now?” Lio asks, voice weak.

“I mean…” Yancy looks for the right words. “What do you want to do?”

Lio’s lips quirk into a barely-there smile.

“Honestly, right this second?” he says, laughing softly, “Kiss you.”

Yancy’s pretty sure his heart stops.

“But that’s probably not what you–”

Lio is cut off as Yancy’s lips cover his.

Okay, now Yancy’s heart stops.

He can’t believe he’s doing this. He can’t believe this is happening. But he is, and it is, and Lio – Lio’s hands are moving from Yancy’s wrists down his arms to his back to pull him closer, and Lio’s mouth is so soft, and Yancy hasn’t kissed anyone in so long, and he knows Lio hasn’t either, he can taste the longing on his lips, taste salt from Lio’s tears, feel his own heart restarting and fluttering the longer they stay connected, and thank god they’re already on the floor because Yancy’s legs are jelly, and Yancy has to break away to breathe – gasp – sob – but he’s not ready to stop, they’re barely apart for a moment before Yancy’s mouth is on Lio’s again, and Lio lets him, parts his lips for something deeper, and Yancy has to break away again, and again, trying so hard to keep kissing through all the emotion, he’s starting to cry now, he can feel sobs coming up between them –

“Hey, easy,” Lio murmurs, pulling away so Yancy can breathe, “You’re gonna hurt yourself, Yancy.”

“Lio,” Yancy gasps, moving forward to kiss him again like it’s all he knows how to do.

But Lio shifts a hand into Yancy’s hair, redirects his path, gently pushes Yancy’s head into his shoulder. Yancy whines, a pathetic noise he’d be embarrassed to have made if he wasn’t so out of his mind from love.

“Shh,” Lio whispers, keeping his hand in Yancy’s hair and rubbing his back.

That’s all it takes for the dam to burst, and suddenly Yancy is sobbing into Lio’s shoulder, clinging helplessly to his back. It hurts, there’s something painful in Yancy’s chest as he sobs, something twisting up his gut, something making him tremble. But there’s something pleasant about it too, cathartic and addicting. Every tear he shed or held back ever since he admitted his love for Lio spills out, burning hot but leaving relief in their wake, a release of tension that Yancy’s been holding in himself for weeks. Yancy by now is accustomed to the pain love can bring, but he never knew love could hurt so good.

When Yancy’s tears subside, he stays curled up in Lio’s arms. He never wants to leave them.

“Are we…” Lio starts to ask, then stops. It takes him a long moment to speak again. “What…what are we now?”

“Can we…” Yancy’s beleaguered heart starts racing. “Can we…be…together?”

“Like…boyfriends?” Lio asks cautiously.

“Maybe?” Yancy says, even as his heartbeat kicks up. “After all this mess, maybe…we shouldn’t…shouldn’t call it anything yet.” He lifts his head out of Lio’s shoulder to look him in the eye, to see his serious but hopeful gaze. “But I want…this. I wanna keep doing this. But youse right, we don’t…I don’t wanna hurt myself. And I don’t want youse hurting yourself either.”

“Yeah,” Lio says slowly, “Yeah, I want…I want more of this. We can go slow, jailbird. I’m still…” He sighs. “I’m still a little worried about everything, but I…I think I need you.”

Yancy’s heart curls around itself, sweet and painful.

“I need you, too,” he whispers, “I…” A pause as he looks for anything more to say. “I’m glad to be home.”

“Yeah,” Lio chuckles, “I’m glad you’re home, too.”

For a long moment, neither person says anything. Yancy is the one to break the silence.

“Hey, weren’t you about to go somewhere when we started talking?”

“Oh, yeah,” Lio admits, grinning sheepishly. “I was gonna get something to eat – not that I’m very hungry anymore. But…I’ll go do that, if you come with me.”

“What, is it my job to make sure you eat, now?” Yancy asks cheekily.

Lio laughs, before standing and holding a hand to Yancy.

“It can if you want it to be,” he says, grinning.

“Alright, I’ll bite,” Yancy chuckles, taking Lio’s hand – oh, his hand is calloused and warm – and letting Lio help him up. “Hey, literally, ‘cause we’re about to eat.”

“I guess my wordplay’s rubbing off on you,” Lio says with a smirk, leading the way to the door.

“Hey, who’s the songwriter here, huh?” Yancy bumps his shoulder as they walk. “I think I’m the one with good wordplay here.”

The pair keep bickering as they leave Lio’s room and walk down the hall, and it feels like old times. That is, until Lio grabs Yancy’s hand as they walk, and Yancy holds on in return, cheeks turning pink even as he continues the conversation. Yancy could mistake it for a dream, but Lio’s hand feels too real. Yancy could cry again at how perfect it is, at how much he’s wanted this, how he thought it was out of his reach when it was this close all along, how nice Lio’s hand feels in his, how well their hands fit together. But he’s far too happy to cry, and it’s a nice change from being too sad to smile.

“I wouldn’t wanna repeat everything, but…” Yancy thinks to himself as he and Lio walk together, “I did end up here, so…I guess there are worse things I could’ve done.”

#yancy/illinois #yancy #illinois jones #markiplier #fanfic #kristin says stuff #worse things #my writing #at last ;w;

19 notes · View notes

hazyheel · 5 years

Text

Monday Night Raw 3/11/19 Review

The night started out with a classic Shield entrance through the crowd, although instead of the riot gear, the men came out in their new merch. Reigns said that if last night was his last match, he would be satisfied. They said that they all had business to take care of tonight. With that, Ambrose and Reigns left Rollins alone in the ring. He was quickly interrupted when Paul Heyman showed up. Rollins took the words out of Heyman’s mouth, saying that while Brock absolutely destroys guys that are his stature, smaller guys are his kryptonite. Heyman argued that Lesnar didn’t have time to prepare for those matches, pointing out that the matches were changed at the last minute. Heyman then showed a Lesnar hype package for some reason. At the end of the promo, Shelton Benjamin of all people attacks Rollins, hitting several German Suplexs and leaving.

Grade: A-. Really good promo, and I love the way they are building this story. The fact that they are acknowleding how good Lesnar works with smaller guys is a step in the right direction

With that, we went right into Benjamin vs. Rollins. Pretty slow match, surprisingly. But there was one point where Rollins went for a suicide dive, but Benjamin intercepted with a high knee. Heyman was on commentary, and he took a phone call, saying that it was Lesnar on the phone, and that he will be on Raw next week. Seth won with a Curb Stomp.

Grade: C-. I had high hopes for this match, but it really disappointed. They decided not to go all out for this match, so it was a bit boring. Right guy won.

Finn Balor came down to the ring as Rollins was leaving, getting in the ring for an Intercontinental Championship match against Bobby Lashley. For some reason, they just had Lashley’s face on the titantron during Balor’s entrance. On a completely unrelated note, apperently Renee Young is from Toronto, but isn’t a maple leafs fan. What a world we live in. Anyway, Lio Rush was not at ringside, apperently still recovering from some random hit from Braun Strowman last week. As Balor was about to hit Lashley with the Coup de Gras, Rush showed up at ringside, ringing the bell. Finn went for some sort of springboard move, but Lashley hit a spear for the win. Lashley is the new intercontinental Champion.

Grade: D. These guys just don’t have chemistry, not really. It’s only once in a blue moon that they put on a good match together. I didn’t want to see Balor lose the belt so soon, especially not to Lashley. Just not too enjoyable.

Backstage, Charly interviewed Baron Corbin about how he was a dick when Roman left to fight leukemia. He just said that he was gonna kick his ass, and that he had been carrying Raw.

Ronda Rousey came out to address her actions from last night. Ronda immediately heeled on the crowd, and honestly, she is kinda better at it than face promos, but it is still awkward. She said that she gave Becky Lynch the win last night so that she can embarass both of them, and that no one can stop her. Dana Brooke came out to interrupt, and I have no idea if she is face or heel. She acted face, and said that she won’t let Ronda keep disrespecting the company. She gave a whole speech, and all I could think about was how she was gonna get her ass kicked. Promo was decent though. She wanted a title shot, but Rousey just beat her up.

Grade: D+. Just not worth having. I think that this could’ve been short and sweet, and we didn’t need an angle of her beating up a low card guy (this is coming from a guy that loves Dana Brooke for no reason at all.) Just keep it simple. Even not showing up would’ve been cool, we all know why she attacked Lynch last night, we didn’t need it spelled out for us. But either way, it was just unnecessary.

Next up, we had Bobby Roode and Chad Gable vs. Aleister Black and Ricochet. Contrary to the normal matches with Black and Ricochet, Black was the one who was selling most of the time. Roode and Gable hit an awesome neckbreaker/ german suplex combo. Match ended quickly after Black tagged in blind, and hitting Roode with a roundhouse kick, a knee and Black mass for the win. After the match, the Revival attacked Black and Ricochet.

Grade: C. It pains me to see a set of such awesome competitors get so overexposed so quickly. This feud should be awesome, but it just feels mundane now. People say it all the time, but the length of the show is really hurting feuds like this, where seeing Black and Ricochet all the time makes us think they aren’t as special. I hope they continue the feud into Wrestlemania, and they pull out all stops. But for now, they need to mix this feud up.

Then was a moment of Bliss, where Alexa was set to reveal who the host of Wrestlemania is. She revealed that she is the host of Wrestlemania. She left just as quickly as she showed up. Young and Graves were making a bunch of jokes on commentary. Graves obviously was thrilled. I’m not a huge fan of Bliss as host, I’m not really sure what she will do, but maybe it’ll be entertaining. I always thought of a comedic host, but we will see what she does. Backstage, Charly interviewed Braun Strowman about attacking Colin Jost last week. He said he didn’t really care if it was okay or not. Then a backstage aid told Strowman that his car was there, but Strowman didn’t know about it. I guess SNL, Colin Jost, bought him a car. In a card, Jost joked about Strowman destroying Vince’s limo, and how he got screwed out of a title shot. Strowman then destroyed the car. Strowman then tells the aid to tell Che and Jost that he will beat them up.

Then we had an Elias concert. He made fun of the city, and No Way Jose came out. Elias attacked him. and the rest of the conga line. Jose had new hair too! So yeah, this happened, not gonna grade it. They then showed the next inductees into the Hall of Fame: Harlem Heat. Definitely into that, Booker T is a 2 time hall of famer now, along with Shawn Michaels and Ric Flair. Lacey Evans came out, and walked over to the commentary desk, while Corey and Renee freaked out and Michael was thoroughly annoyed. She put a fan in Renee’s face. T’was humorous, and the best use of Lacey Evans yet, because she had a staredown with Nia Jax at the top of the ramp. It didn’t lead to anything, but at least it teased the possibility of Evans actually doing something. Progress?!?

So next up was Nia Jax vs. Natalya, after their confrontation last night. She said that she needed someone to have her back tonight, with Beth Phoenix coming out in her corner. The match lasted for a minute, and Beth Phoenix just caused a DQ. The heels retreated, but the Boss n’ Hug connection attacked them backstage.

Grade: D-. Kinda dumb of a segment, although it was cool to see Phoenix back. I just don’t see why Tamina and Jax need to still be in the title picture. They are bad, straight up! I wish they would just fade out of the division, and maybe Bayley and Banks take on a smackdown team. Or even Natalya and Phoenix. Anyone other than Tamina and Jax.

Next, we had the confrontation between Triple H and Batista. Batista came down to the ring dressed like a Hollywood asshole, and had security and I hate him with every bone in my body, so WWE is doing well with booking their heel. Batista was a little rusty on the promo, but he acted like a very tough, and calculating heel. He is fine with fighting Triple H, but on his own terms. He said tells Trips to give him what he wants, and Trips refuses. Trips called his security the “guardians of the independent scene.” Funny. Batista said that he left because Trips always looked down on him, and he wanted to get away. Batista said that the only reason Trips won’t give him the match is because he isn’t in control. The promo devolved into them just shouting at each other like children. The match was confirmed after a shouting match that went on for way too long. Batista’s only line was “give me what I want.” Batista said that this would be his last match, and he wants to end Triple H’s career too. Trips then said it was No Holds Barred.

Grade: D+. I was looking forward to this, but I didn’t like what happened. They ended up just yelling at each other, and it was annoying. Took way too long to get to the point. It would’ve gotten a lower grade, but I like the hint that this may end up a match for Triple H’s career. The No Holds Barred stip was a given, but I didn’t expect a career threatening match. I’m looking forward to it. But the actual segment started out strong, but quickly died a horrible, annoying death.

Kurt Angle was up next, out to address his career. He recapped his career, and put over Pittsburg. He announced that this will Wrestlemania will be his fairwell match. He then said that this would be his final match on Raw, against Apollo Crews. Huge honor for him. The two had a quick match, Angle winning with the Angle Slam.

Grade: C+. Good match, although it was short. More importantly, who will get Kurt Angle’s final match? My mind went to either Drew McIntyre or Roman Reigns. Either would be very good, but I think McIntyre deserves it, given that the two really made TNA together. But Reigns needs a match too. So this is definitely a story I’m looking forward to.

Next, we had Roman Reigns vs. Baron Corbin, but before we started Drew McIntyre attacked, and left him laying. Reigns fought back a bit, but ate a Claymore, and then a second into the ringpost. Rollins came out to check on him, and they sorta played up a concussion angle. Reigns refused medical attention, and waked out very slowly. It was on his own power, but Rollins helped him out a bit. Ambrose was pissed, and he told Trips that he wanted Drew McIntyre in a falls count anywhere match. They battled into the crowd, and Ambrose threw a little table at Mcintyre. At one point, McIntyre was lying down on a rolling case, and Dean pushed it into another equipment case. It didn’t look very good. McIntyre and Ambrose brawled on the announce table, before McIntyre hit a low blow, stabbed Ambrose in the head with a pencil, and then threw him into the LED boards. McIntyre got the win after hitting a Claymore while Ambrose’s head was in the railing.

Grade: C+. A medicore match to end out a mediocre night. The stipulation was kinda fresh, and Drew looked good, but the outcome was not in question. Kinda fun, but ulimately just being used to set up Reigns vs. McIntyre.

Overall Grade: D+

Pros: opening promo; Kurt Angle announcement; main event (kinda)

Cons: pointless Dana brooke beatdown; Intercontinental Championship match; Black and ricochet overexposure; Nia and Tamina still being relevant; triple h and batista “promo;”

Commentary call of the night: Renee Young- “You’re excitement creeps me out.” Corey Graves “Well, uh, leave.”

9 notes · View notes

deepdisireslonging · 5 years

Text

Family Found Part 39: Misplaced Second Chances

Hunter and Stephanie show up to watch the Reader’s every move. They are witnesses to some of the hardest choices she’s had to make in weeks.

Warnings/Promises: wrestling violence, angst

Word Count: 3930

Note: Everything is coming together perfectly. Longer chapter, but it reads quick. I’ve gotten most of the fights down to tiny paragraphs, yay! Please let me know your thoughts on this series with reblogs and comments. I appreciate every single one. Enjoy!

Part 1: Welcome to the Team

Part 38: Squirrels in a Row (Royal Rumble)

For once, it looked like the show was going to run smoothly. You were in the garage clearing up some last-minute details when a long, black limo pulled up. It pulled to a stop in front of you and the driver rushed around to open the door. You swallowed dryly. Triple H got out first. He held out his hand, and Stephanie took the assistance. Plastering on a smile, you welcomed them.

“Hunter. Stephanie. What a surprise. It’s good to see you-“

Hunter grinned back. “Thank you. We tried to call ahead, but your line was busy.”

You shivered. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to miss you. All the general manager stuff, you know how it is. I’ve got quite the show for everyone tonight. Are you going to be watching from your box?”

Sharing a look, Stephanie stepped forward and wrapped her arm around your shoulders. “Actually, no. We’ve been impressed with how things are going, and we wanted to watch from backstage. See how you’ve had such good control over everything. Be your shadows for tonight. We hope that’s not a problem.”

It wasn’t a question. It was a test. “No. Not at all. Right this way. The first match will be starting in just a minute.” You led them out of the garage. They followed at your shoulders like crows’ wings.

***

The placements of the NXT move-ups were still finalizing, but Heavy Machinery wanted to prove that they belonged on Raw. They had challenged the well-established team of Heath Slater and Rhyno.

“If they win this match,” Cole mused, “do you think they’ll challenge AOP?”

Renee thought for a second, then said, “it’s a possibility. Depending on how tonight goes, I think they’ll do great. I’m more worried what will happen to them if they lose this match.”

“Don’t jinx them, Renee,” Corey sputtered. They digressed into a disagreement as the bell rang.

Hunter beamed as he watched from a backstage tv. Occasionally you glanced up from your clipboard to catch Slater dropping Knight. Or Dozovic triumphantly grinning as Rhyno bounced off of him.

The referee had a surprisingly difficult time keeping up with both teams. The tags were frequent but displaced enough to show off each wrestler and their skills. Rhyno engaged Knight on the floor, keeping him from entering the ring to help his partner. His back was turned as the upper hand switched to Dozovic, who did the worm before dropping on Slater. Knight escaped and doubled teamed just long enough to help his partner set up a pin, then kept Rhyno from saving him. Heavy Machinery won the match, already cheering with the fans like Raw was home.

***

Later in the show, there were going to be three matches for the women’s elimination chamber match. Bayley and Natalya were backstage talking about their matches when Alexa walked up. “Well look at you two being all buddy-buddy.”

“Keep walking Alexa,” Natalya shot. Bayley wrapped her arm across her shoulders, holding her from stepping to Alexa.

Miss Bliss gasped and fluttered hand to her chest. “I was just making an observation.”

Bayley stepped between them. “I doubt that. But I’m willing to give you the benefit of a doubt. Any other observations before you… go away?” Bayley stared at her pointedly. Patiently.

Just into Alexa’s plans. She smiled sweetly. “Well, I’m more confused than anything. Sasha and Bayley being in the chamber match sorta makes sense. But, Natty, if you and Rhonda are such good friends, why are you fighting each other tonight? Only one of you can have the spot.” When all Natalya did was growl, she turned her attention back to Bayley and hopped to sit on a crate. “Come on, help a girl out. You know better than anyone how delicate friendship is. It’s the reason you’re holding on so tight to Sasha, right?”

In a split second of pause, Natalya was the one ready to hold back her friend. “Sure, like you’ve never turned on anyone, Alexa. Turn before you get dropped, right? Fine. As the one on the other side of that exchange, yes, Sasha hurt me. But I am still my own woman. My own power. Hell in a Cell proved that. Still, we’ve got something working here. It’s not perfect, but it’s what I’ve got. So, yeah. I’m going to stick to Sasha. Partially to watch my back, and partially to watch hers. Because that’s what friends do. You have to do what you have to do. You can’t wait for your opportunities, you have to make them.”

Natalya guided Bayley away as her voice weakened towards the end. But Alexa kept going, pushing for all she could.

“Speaking of opportunities, Bayley,” Alexa shifted in her seat, “can you explain why both you and Sasha are going after the women’s championship? I mean, aren’t you guys already number one contenders for the tag titles? Sounds like you’re spread yourselves a little thin. Especially for such a delicate friendship.”

Bayley smirked. “Well, as far as either of us can tell, there hasn’t been a woman holding double titles. Sasha and I would like to try for it. The Riott Squad can wait.”

Alexa tilted her head. “Do you think that’s a good idea? Making them wait so you two can go after different titles? I don’t know, Bayley. Sounds greedy and poorly planned if you ask me.”

“Well then it’s a good thing we didn’t ask you, isn’t it?”

Natalya stepping into Alexa’s face inspired the small blonde to retreat from her seat. “And when did this turn into a Moment of Bliss?”

Alexa put up her hands in defense. “I was just curious. Geeze.” She walked away, leaving the other women to process what Bayley had said.

***

Braun already had his spot in the Universal elimination chamber, but he wanted a match anyway. So you gave him one with Bobby Lashley. He was running on a high. Lio Rush was flipped several times outside of the ring, no matter how fast he ran. As for in the ring, Lashley was putting the monster among men through his paces. He had a goal to gain himself.

“We’ve just been told that if Bobby Lashley wins this match, then Y/N will give him another chance to get into a chamber match. Well, how about that?” Cole said.

“Sounds nice of her.” Renee mused. “Except for the part where giving him another opportunity takes it away from someone else.” Corey cut off her next words by telling her to hush and to watch the almighty Lashley perform.

Either way, the second chance was not to be. Braun had enough. He caught a second wind, using it to break Lashley down. And with Lio already out of the picture, there was no one to cause a shift with a distraction. As Braun’s arm was lifted in victory, Dr. M’s laugh sounded over the speakers. He did not appear. But his presence and approval were clear.

***

Behind you, Stephanie and Hunter had nodded their heads in approval of the match, though Hunter did question the double chance even with someone as talented as Lashley. “Agreed, both powerhouses here on Raw. But why such favoritism, Y/N? I thought you were better than that?”

You sputtered. “It’s not supposed to be. Braun is a great wrestler, but he needs something to do every week or things can get a little… destructive. And I knew I could convince Lashley to fight if I promised another chance for the chamber, either of them. Maybe the promise was a little underhanded, but both wrestlers got what they wanted. Braun his match. Lashley his chance, which motivated him during the fight. And the crowd got what they wanted.”

“All around a successful addition to the show,” Stephanie finished. “A great job, Y/N.”

“Thanks.” The word stuck like glue in your throat. You let out a sigh of strangled relief as Seth and Dean walked into the space. “Hey, Seth. Dean. What can I help you guys with? Can’t promise much, but I’ll see what I can do.”

Seth shifted the Universal title on his shoulder. “What do you mean you can’t offer much? You’re the general manager.”

Stephanie spoke up before you could. “And as such, she deserves respect-“

You flinched. “Don’t fire me for saying so, but didn’t you guys say you were going to be my shadows? I didn’t think shadows gave their opinions.” Inside your chest, your heart froze in place. Stephanie’s expression froze too, then slithered into a smile that she shared with her husband.

Hunter’s cheek twitched a smirk. “We did say that. Our apologies. Please continue.”

With a nod and a shuddering breath, you did. “Yeah, I’m GM, but the show is pretty set. There’s not room for another match. So if that’s what you’re here to ask about-“ Their disappointment was immediate. “Um, but there’s some chamber tournament matches soon. Seth, why don’t you join commentary. Get a front row seat for your possible future opponent?”

“Opponent? You mean opponents? I’m the champion. I’m in the elimination chamber match, right?”

The fire in his eyes frightened you, especially with your shadows watching. “Rollins, can we discuss details later? I don’t have room for a match for you tonight. Commentary or nothing?” you shrugged. He looked past you to Hunter and Stephanie, then gave you a nod. You focused on Dean. “I’m sorry, there’s nothing I’ve got for you this week, Dean. But maybe next week? I’m still working on it.”

Dean did the same thing as Seth, glancing over your shoulder. With a grumble, he said, “fine.”

“I’m doing the best I can, Dean.”

“I know.” He rotated his shoulders and looked at Seth. “You heading to commentary?” When he nodded, Dean tapped his forearm. “I’ll walk with you.”

You watched them leave as Hunter complimented you on how you handled it. “You did good. It was a simple no, and they took it well. Who’s been helping you stand up for yourself?”

Over your shoulder your tossed, “Sheamus and Cesaro. They’ve been training me how to deal with guys bigger than myself.” With a huff, you finished, “though I never thought I’d have to use it with either of them.”

They talked amongst themselves like nothing had happened. “I need some coffee. Catering?” Stephanie asked. Hunter agreed. “You need anything, Y/N?”

Pinching the bridge of your nose, you turned to face them. “No, I’m good. Thank you.” Hunter gave you a heavy pat on your shoulder on their way out. This whole thing was starting to make you nervous.

***

The Riott Squad fought a local team, easily squashing them. Charly caught up with Sasha and Rhonda at a backstage tv for an interview. “The Riott Squad is proving themselves to be very dominant. How do both of you think your chances of becoming tag champions are going to go tonight? Especially you, Rhonda, since you’re fighting Natalya tonight?”

Sasha snickered as Rhonda stumbled looking for something to say. “We’re going to be fine. We’ve fought in the past for the Raw women’s title before. Beaten each other for it. Working together is just obvious. We’re two of the best in the business. Why have dozens of matches against one another when we could work together. I mean, Sasha and Bayley are doing the same thing.”

The other woman shrugged. “You could see it like that, I guess.”

“Guess?”

“Yeah. I mean, I’m teaming with Bayley because it means she’s not fighting me for a title. I get to compete for a title, she gets one too as part of the set, and we stay out of each other’s hair.”

Charly grimaced. “So, teaming with Bayley… is a means to an end.”

Again, Sasha shrugged. “You said it, not me. But if I win the elimination chamber, maybe I can go my own way again.” Rhonda looked at her with a grimace, not liking that stance at all.

In the background, Alexa walked by having heard everything. She looked between the women, unnoticed, and then carried on her way.

***

Also backstage, Dolph flipped his vest over his shoulder and rounded a corner. He bumped off a tall torso, smiling when he saw it was Drew McIntyre. The Scotsman growled, “I told you to stay out of my way.”

Dolph shouldered past him. “I don’t know why you’re so irritated. You’re still champion, aren’t you? For now. Don’t get your kilt in a twist.”

Drew roughly grabbed his upper arm. “If you think I’m going to let you hold your actions last week over my head for more than this moment, you’ve got another thing coming.” He glared at him until Dolph raised his hands in surrender. Adding a bit of a shove, he released him. “Where are you going so happily?”

“To challenge an old friend for a spot in a well-deserved opportunity. For your title, come to think of it. See you in the Elimination Chamber.” He chuckled and left for Gorilla as his music started.

A few minutes later, Tyler Breeze entered the arena with Dana Brook at his side. She stayed ringside for the match, giving Breeze notes and helping him watch his back. This addition to the match was not in Dolph’s plan. Her attention for detail was making the match more difficult for him. And his attention to her was making it easier for Breeze to land punches and kicks. Dolph shook his head, refocusing. He flipped the match around, sending Breeze into defense-mode. A zig-zag finished the match.

All according to plan.

***

Two weeks ago, Zack Ryder had failed to place in the Universal elimination chamber. This week he was fighting his former partner, Mojo Rawley, for a place in the Intercontinental elimination chamber. For all of Mojo’s effort, Ryder made good use of his second chance. He won this match. Wrist in the referee’s hand, he missed the way Mojo stared daggers into his back from his huddle in a corner.

***

A pair of Universal placements happened next. Chad Gable and Bobby Roode, while tag partners, both wanted to try to win a spot. Seth sat on commentary. He was talkative, but he dodged any mention of the earlier argument with you. Gable faced Jinder Mahal, accompanied by the Singh brothers. Although he had Roode in his corner, cheering him on, Jinder won the match and the spot. Seth wasn’t bothered. He’d fought and beaten Jinder before. No matter what was going to happen in a few Sundays, Seth said he could handle him.

Gable rolled out of the ring and gave his teammate an ego boosting pat on the back as No Way Jose entered. The second match was more friendly than the first. And as such, when Roode turned on the heat, Jose wasn’t ready. Roode gave his defeated opponent a handshake, then accepted the bear hug from Gable as Jojo announced his spot in the elimination chamber. Seth welcomed this possible opponent too. He hadn’t faced Roode in a while.

“This could be interesting,” he said.

***

Baron stormed into your office, ignoring your groan as your moment of isolation was broken. “I know what you promised Elias,” he said, low and threatening. “Has he picked his WrestleMania match yet, or do you have to tell him which one he can pick?”

It took a moment to breathe down your bristling. “Mr. Corbin, Elias had the same chance as anyone. Including yourself.”

“No, he didn’t. You gave him a better spot because he beat me before the Rumble.”

“And why are you just now getting angry about that match? It was two weeks ago.” You licked your lips, stalling. “I have a feeling that’s not why you’re here.” You crossed your arms and waited for his answer.

He snickered. “I want a spot in the Intercontinental elimination match. And if you don’t give me at least a match to ‘earn my way in’, well, Stephanie and Hunter are here. I’m sure they’d love to hear how you’ve been abusing power around here.”

Honestly, that didn’t really scare you. Part of you knew they’d probably chew him out more than you’d be in trouble. Still. You sighed and rolled your shoulders back. “Mr. Corbin, tonight I was approached by a local wrestler looking for an opportunity. He just got one. Congratulations, you’ve got a chance.” Baron smirked and started to leave. “Oh, and by the way, if he beats you tonight, he takes your place on the roster and in the Intercontinental elimination chamber… and you’re out of a job.”

He spun around to face you. “You can’t do that.”

You smiled sweetly at him, a face you had picked up from Alexa. “Yes, I can. The McMahons trust me as general manager more than they ever did with you, and as such, I have been given special liberties. Unless you would like to be fired now for attempted blackmail?” Baron balanced on the balls of his feet, seconds away from attacking. Rolling his eyes, he stepped back. “Fantastic. Head to the ring. I’ll send for your opponent.”

With a growl, he left your office. As soon as he was gone, you let out a shuddering breath. You sent a text to Gorrilla, letting them know who needed to be where. When you looked up, Dean was standing there. “Dean! Please don’t scare me like that.”

“How is it Baron gets a match tonight, but I don’t? Or Seth?”

“Dean-“

“What are you doing, Y/N? This isn’t like you.” Before you could answer, he spun on his heel and left. You struggled to regain some composure, despite the pain in your stomach.

***

The match was about to start when Dean’s music hit. He waved at the ring, sniggering as the local wrestler waved back, then walked over to join the commentary table. “Hey, Renee. Cole. Corey.” Like Seth, he avoided any discussion about your earlier conversations. But he was more than happy to make snarky comments about Baron’s style and lack of control. “It’s like he’s lost his marbles out there.”

To his defense, everyone watching the match agreed with him. Baron was unfocused. The local wrestler was gleefully using this to his advantage. It was a close match. The pin falls reached critical mass with Baron struggling to kick out before anything earlier than two-and-a-half. Thinking he was joining the roster, the wrestler tossed Baron out of the ring and began to celebrate.

“That’s not going to be good,” Dean noted.

Baron swung back in and caught him in a Deep Six. He made sure the other man wouldn’t be able to kick out by picking him up and dropping him in an End of Days. Growling in a mixture of irritation and relief, he got to his feet and let his hand be raised.

Grinning, he waved at Dean. He was going to Elimination Chamber. And so far, Dean was not.

***

The last three matches of the night were for three spots in the elimination chamber for the Raw women’s championship. Well, to become the number one contender for the title, since Ember wasn’t going to be in the match. Bayley entered the ring, pumped and ready. She groaned as Nia Jax’s music played next. The Irresistible Force entered the arena with Tamina at her side. Bayley gave a small sigh of relief as Nia sent her backstage. Their match was going to be between just them.

Or, it should have been.

Bayley was winning the upper hand. She had been able to keep Nia on her knees or at least unstable on her feet. Then Liv Morgan swung into the ring when the referee was checking on Nia and attacked the hugger. By the time he turned around, Liv was again out of sight and Nia was more than happy to take the win. She left the arena triumphantly, laughing as Liv rolled back in a went in to attack Bayley again.

Liv was forced to retreat as Sasha rushed out. Apparently, the only woman who was allowed to beat up Bayley was her, and heaven help any woman who tried otherwise. Sasha made sure Bayley made it safely out of the arena and waited for her opponent.

Several minutes later, Alicia Fox won a similar victory against Sasha. She had to fight harder before Sarah Logan got involved because Sasha was determined to not waste her opportunity. But there was no one to save her like she’d saved Bayley. So just after Alicia’s hand was raised, Sarah and Liv swarmed the ring and launched an attack. They didn’t leave until Sasha was unable to fight back. Then they left cackling, promising that they would give her another dose of damage in their next tag match.

***

Natalya entered the arena. She was all smiles, but it was strained. It quickly turned into a frown as Alexa’s music struck. Miss Bliss was followed by a techie crew who quickly set up for a Moment of Bliss.

“I hope you don’t mind Natty, but I’ve got some questions. For you too, Rhonda!” she called over her shoulder. “And hey, you should be thanking me for postponing your match a bit.” As Rhonda walked out and took a seat she added, “I can’t imagine either of you are eager to fight one another.” When neither woman answered, she continued. “This is a talk-show, ladies. It means you have to talk. What happens if one of you wins the Raw women’s championship after the Elimination Chamber? What happens to the-” she gestured between them, “the friendship?”

“Nothing.” Rhonda squirmed in her seat. “I’ve been here for almost a year. Natalya is my closest friend here.” She faced Natalya. “Why can’t we try one of those things where we help one of us get the title, then we’re the first challenge? Between the two of us, we could either rack of title reigns or help one another ensure long, successful ones.”

Not it was Natalya’s turn to squirm in her seat. “Rhonda, I’ve been in this business my whole life. I’ve seen-“ She sighed. “You know those don’t actually work, right? Someone always wants to be the best. They can’t be that if they’re always in their friend’s shadow.”

Alexa’s eyes glowed in triumph, even as she kept her mouth shut. Well, mostly. “That’s very interesting stances from both of you. I think it’s time we saw that match then. May the best woman win.”

As Alexa’s music played for her exit, the competitors walked down the ring together. There was hesitation from both of them at the start. Rhonda continued to hesitate. What Natalya had said was nothing she’d expected. Natalya sprung forward, beginning her attack. They could work this out later. Right now, she had to make her own opportunity. “Take what you can get,” she muttered. Rhonda heard and faltered in her steps. She caught a kick to the face that put her in the perfect position for a Sharpshooter. Natalya released her as soon as the referee told her Rhonda had tapped.

After all the mixtures of emotions, the women’s elimination chamber was set. Ruby Riott, Nikki Cross, Lacey Evans, Nia Jax, Alicia Fox, and now Natalya would have their chance for gold.

***

Hunter shook your head after he helped Stephanie back into the limo. “Well done, Y/N. I have no doubts now that this is going to work out perfectly.”

You flexed your hand like it burned as the limo pulled away.

Part 40: Sorta Forgiven

Series Masterlist

Masterlist

Forever Tags: @blondekel77 @hallemichelles @laochbaineann @ramblingsofabourbondrinker @savmontreal @southsidebucky @tinyelfperson @zuni21798

WWE/Series Tags: @a-home-for-stray-stories @kingslayers-queen @top-1-percent @mother-forker @neversatisfiedgirl @racheo91 @roman-reigns-princess @secretagentfangirl @thetherianthropydaily @scuzmunkie @likeisaidwhatever @cait-kae @ramsaypants @sony-undead18 @brianaraydean @st4yingstrong @dopeybubbles @crystallizeme @jessica91073 @denise8691 @stalelight @kenyadakblalock @1dluver13xx @lauren-novak @lunatic-desert-child @littledeadrottinghood @livelifewondering

8 notes · View notes

princettegil · 4 years

Text

Life Updates before the year ends!

I haven’t posted a life update on here in a while (minus vague lil posts here and there) and since it’s the very end of the year, now’s a good a time as any! So much has happened!

So, going back about as far as I can remember this year:

APRIL-JULY: I went to Pittsburgh to attend the first con I’ve been to in a few years as well as interview for a job and prepare to move! Some of the visit was okay but a LOT went wrong! It ended in me going home AFTER getting the job and then calling to say I had to turn them down, I also had to get my apartment deposit back cause I decided to no longer move. Why? Lots of things but mostly what eventually occurred around July - I broke up with a longtime, SUPER close friend of mine (who was also my main reason to move in the first place.) So, the whole first half of the year had a LOT of intense emotions! And though I kinda regret that all that had to happen, I’m not that sad about it now. I’ve honestly flourished since then! Some things have to happen, some things have to change. I always hated and feared change and I didn’t think I’d ever go forward in life without him by my side but I think I’m actually doing a lot better without him. Pros: I realized I really want to host a panel! Also, that cute Tenn cosplayer I kept running into at the con!! Cons: Suicide urge and longtime friend breakup.

JUNE-SEPT: I got a job being a dishwasher at a new bar in town. I thought I’d hate it but it was pretty alright. Sometimes hella busy, a lot of the time hella chill, I had good co-workers and got to listen to music in my own little space and enjoy good internet on the weekends they were open. Eventually I got let go cause the business wasn’t doing too great (they closed a few weeks after) but it was good fun even if the pay sucked. Pros: Comfy job and good co-workers. Cons: Loss of job, upset from friend breakup continuing.

August: I made my first HRT appointment! It went very well (the doctor there was super nice!) and I officially started on testosterone in September! Pros/Cons: Moving on.

October: I made a HUGE change! I MOVED! Not as far as Pittsburgh but to Lexington, KY - a place I had always thought about living one day (it is one of the biggest cities in the state, has great shopping, a chill atmosphere, lots to do, is still relatively close to home (2.5-3 hr drive one way), and lots of job opportunities. One of my aunts used to live there and I LOVED visiting every summer to be spoiled rotten!) I moved in on the invite of my cousin and her husband, got a job doing cake decorating again (on the highest pay grade cause I had experience!) and am enjoying life here as a new Lexitonian! Pros: Moving! New job! Good coworkers! Trans respect! Good internet! Cons: Moving stress.

Oct-Now: Thanks to a busy schedule, being new to the roads here, new move stress and just getting started money-wise, I missed a LOT of the cool happenings that went down around Halloween. But now I’ve gotten rather used to my schedule and (most) of the area and have settled in rather well considering how quickly my moving decision was (hopefully I can hit up the Halloween scene here next year!) I adopted a new cat to keep me company after getting my psychiatrist to write me a letter for a companion animal - I couldn’t afford the deposit otherwise and cats help to chill me. She’s a lovely, small, 5 year old black cat I eventually named Nebula (names are hard orz - though her full name is Princess Nebula Crescent the First cause I wanted to be one of THOSE cat people! But I mostly refer to her as Neb.) Neb started off chill and loving to be held but she’s since gotten used to things around here too and now she wakes me at 6am every morning by knocking my phone and glasses off my bedside table, following me in the bathroom (and screaming at the door if I don’t let her in), stealing random weird household items overnight and leaving them in my floor, walking on my keyboard causing my laptop to spaz out and trying to destroy my brand new sheets - but she’s still a super sweetheart who demands attention and loves to be loved! I live on the second floor of the house in a sprawling suburb that’s rather conveniently located near one of the larger shopping areas in the city. It’s a zero crime area and everyone keeps to themselves in the neighborhood, it’s a nice place. I live with my cousin, her hubby and one of his friends along with their big baby Great Dane and her fiesty, old man chihuahua. The internet is great (I’ve missed that since I lived in London!), my coworkers are all pretty nice and chill, I’m out as trans to EVERYONE there and they’ve been really nice about it (my pronouns are respected!), my cuz makes sure I’m fed (too well lol I gained weight!) Some weeks are a little shaky with pay and bills but so far I’ve been able to make ends meet alright and enjoy myself time to time with a little shopping. I’m now on a larger dose of testosterone (giving myself shots is still hard tho! Eek! Big needle stab! >_<) I’ve attended a few of the local LGBTQ gatherings (first actual non-event meet is this Saturday - wish me well! I’ve been super shy at the last few and pretty much managed to talk to NO one! I’m hoping to be a little more social next time (fingers crossed!) I’ve become open to the idea of dating (and possibly sex...I’d like to try it at least.) Some days (like the last two) the depression likes to come back and smack me upside the head but all in all, I can tell that I’m doing SO much better than I was at the beginning of the year! Heck, I’ve only had ONE anxiety attack since July! My biggest issue lately has been feeling left out and lonely with no one to really talk to but I hope I can fix that next year! One of my goals is to not have to spend another holiday single (one can dream!) Pros: New cat! Adapting to new job well. Furthering the tans journey. Hopes for the future. Getting better acquainted with my body and sexuality. Cons: Having to get used to the new manager. Shorter work hours over the holiday weeks. Awkward with social situations and bad lonely feels. I really need a new laptop. Neb, please let me sleep! Still got that ‘have to stab myself in the leg’ fear. Gotta do more Halloween stuff next year!

So, to sum up the most important bits (tl;dr) - lost a super close friendship, started taking T, got a job, moved, got a new cat and have been doing much better the last several months! I’m really proud of myself actually! I hope to reach out and be a little more social in the new year (especially in the LGBTQ and anime communities) and hopefully score me an adorable, sweet partner before the end of 2020 as well as attend another anime con (missed YamaCon this month due to last minute financial issues OTL.) I have #GOALS! I’m feeling better, doing my best to keep depression at bay, and actually WANT to branch out! Wish me well, ya’ll! See you in the new decade soon!

Nerd comments: I’m HEAVY into Idolish7 hell! And finally watched Promare! Lio and Tenn are life now.

#personal #life updates #ie this means i'm still taking those friendship applications! XD #and heck partner applications as well! *winkwonk*

0 notes

scheduledfor1fall · 7 years

Text

Observer Award Mid-Year Predictions

Hey, everyone. Today’s post is one I’ve been thinking about doing for years, actually; one of the things I look forward to every January, behind the Rumble and Tokyo Dome shows, is the release of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter Awards, as decided by readers of the publication at the end of every calendar year. Much like the Oscars for instance, I enjoy being able to sit down and guess the winners, as well as look back in history and reflect on, or even dispute, winners in the past. With 2017 already half-way over and then some, I figured now was as good a time as any to try and predict who at this stage would be primed to win each award come January.

I will say, first off, that 2017 has been of the weaker years I can recall for both wrestling and MMA, at least in the past few years. Don’t get me wrong, there’s still plenty enjoyable wrestling from companies like NJPW, PWG, and other companies around the world. Even WWE has had some things going for it. But wrestling in general just seemed much more exciting to me the last few years then it does at this moment. As for MMA, I think most can agree this has been a pretty off year for UFC, without their previous draws McGregor and Rousey along, as well as a number of strange, often boneheaded moves from Dana White. That said, let’s get into the predictions:

WRESTLER OF THE YEAR: Gotta go with Okada on this one. I think some people would probably put Omega, but I actually think he was more deserving last year. Okada has been having a title reign like few others have had, with several successful defenses and numerous high-rated matches. If anyone deserves it, it’s him.

MOST VALUABLE MMA FIGHTER: As I said, it’s been sort of an odd year for UFC in terms of star power. I’d be inclined to say Tyron Woodley, though I’m not sure how many people really buy shows for him, plus his style is pretty controversial. Cormier could be an option, given his defeat of Rumble Johnson, and his part in the highest buyrate of the year with Jon Jones. My gut tells me depending on what happens with him the rest of the year, however, Jon Jones is probably the safe choice.

MOST OUTSTANDING WRESTLER: This one has always kind of vexed me. I understand the Wrestler of the Year category covers a variety of qualities not necessarily related to workrate, but this almost seems like a cross between that award and Technical Wrestler of the Year. In any case, I’d probably go with Okada once again, but I wouldn’t mind if Omega got the nod, either. I understand Styles has won the award the last two years, as well as Wrestler of the Year, but I just don’t think he’s had nearly the number of great performances this year as he did before to warrant the win at this point.

MOST OUTSTANDING FIGHTER: Again, not sure how this really differs much from Most Valuable. I’m really not sure who would stand out from this year, but I’d personally go with Mighty Mouse, or maybe Joanna Jedrzejczyk, just because they’ve had more successful defenses.

BEST BOX OFFICE DRAW: Well, Jon Jones should probably get some consideration, given that he managed to pull the highest buyrate of the year for UFC. It’s probably a lock for Conor McGregor though, given the upcoming superfight with Mayweather.

FEUD OF THE YEAR: In a year where UFC hasn’t really had that must see rivalry, save Jones/Cormier, which seemed to be more centered around Jones redeeming himself than any beef between the two, it’s anyone’s game in wrestling, to be honest. Strowman vs. Reigns comes to mind as a possibility, at least from the WWE side of things. I’d personally say either Omega vs. Okada, or Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Tetsuya Naito would be the best choices, with the latter getting an advantage due to their legendary matches this year.

TAG TEAM OF THE YEAR: It’s an award that’s been dominated by the Young Bucks for three years in a row, so there’s always that. I would personally go with Cesaro and Sheamus, at least in terms of how much they’ve entertained me and continued to improve as a team. I think The Hardy Boyz probably have the best chance of anyone not named the Young Bucks, however, and seeing as they managed to wrestle in TNA, ROH, and WWE, as well as hold titles in each company within a matter of months, it’s really not that out there.

MOST IMPROVED WRESTLER: Braun Strowman, hands down. At least in terms of perception, I’ve never seen anyone turn a corner quite like this. I can remember people were furious at the idea of him wrestling Undertaker at Wrestlemania 32. To go from that to being heralded as the future of the company is quite an achievement.

BEST ON INTERVIEWS: Probably another easy one for McGregor, even though the media tour with Mayweather kind of went over like a wet fart. There’s just no one great talker in wrestling that stands head and shoulders above anyone else. I’d say John Cena and Kevin Owens are probably the best in WWE, but I think both have had better years.

MOST CHARISMATIC: There’s a potential for Nakamura here, though I’m not sure how many people would agree with that perception. I should probably just save face and pick McGregor again.

BEST TECHNICAL WRESTLER: I think Marty Scurll honestly deserves some consideration. It’s been Zack Sabre Jr. since 2014, however, and with his appearances in NJPW and EVOLVE, as well as the various other companies he works for, the exposure he gets gives him a huge edge.

BEST BRAWLER: I’m not even sure. Kevin Owens? Samoa Joe? Reigns? Perhaps Strowman? I haven’t really kept up with Tomohiro Ishii enough to know if he deserves a fourth win or not, but I’d think he’d still be at the top of people’s list.

BEST FLYING WRESTLER: Hiromu Takahashi has had some outstanding performances this year from his time as Junior Heavyweight Champion, so he’d probably be my first choice. There’s also guys like Dragon Lee and Lio Rush breaking through at such a young age. Will Ospreay won last year, but I think he’s sort of cooled off since then. Neville’s reign as Cruiserweight Champion makes him a tempting choice, but he seems to be subverting a lot of the highflying stuff, so I really wouldn’t go with him. Probably just gonna stick with Takahashi.

MOST OVERRATED: Hoo boy. My gut tells me Reigns is a lock, but there’s always Jinder Mahal, as well. If I had to pick one, I’d say Jinder, just because people have at least acknowledged that Reigns is a solid in-ring talent, just not one they want to see as the next Cena. Jinder’s just kind of an angry looking guy who’s done about as well as one would expect him to do in his position, but realistically probably should’ve never been near the WWE Championship. Baron Corbin is also a possibility, as is Randy Orton, whose dogging of another title reign probably should be the nail in the coffin, but won’t be.

MOST UNDERRATED: I know a lot of people will probably pick Cesaro, but I’d probably have to go with poor Luke Harper, who’s barely featured on TV despite some strong reactions earlier this year. As far as NJPW goes, I personally feel Sanada, and most of the LIJ guys in general are kind of underrated, though they certainly work well as a faction, so it’s hard to say.

PROMOTION OF THE YEAR: New Japan. Not even close.

BEST WEEKLY TV SHOW: Probably NJPW again, maybe NXT. Raw’s getting better, but I think being three hours probably still hurts it’s chances.

PRO WRESTLING MATCH OF THE YEAR: Omega/Okada. Take your pick. I personally preferred their first match to their second, but it did get a higher star rating from Meltzer, so that may sway some voters. There’s been other solid matches from other companies, but I just don’t see anything touching those New Japan matches.

MMA MATCH OF THE YEAR: I really wouldn’t know, to be honest. I’d probably have to defer to more devoted fans on this, since I’ve only really kept up with PPV’s.

ROOKIE OF THE YEAR: I’ve been hearing good things about Katsuya Kitamura, a really jacked-up dude from NJPW who just started wrestling in March. If he gets more exposure as the year goes on, he’d probably be a safe choice. I don’t know, this award seems to be one that’s really dried up as far as many prospects go. There’s just so much wrestling to follow, that unless you’re someone like Matt Riddle who gets around on the scene, it’s just too hard to find any new stand outs.

BEST NON-WRESTLER: I guess Kurt Angle? Paul Heyman’s kind of hit the point of diminishing returns for me, so I don’t know that I’d really pick him.

BEST TELEVISION ANNOUNCER: Corey Graves would probably be the only shoe-in as far as wrestling goes. Mauro just hasn’t been around much, and I’m not sure anyone would be too willing to write in someone like Michael Cole or Tom Phillips, who are just kind of there to do basic announcing. I’d actually make Joe Rogan my choice, as he hasn’t really lost a step since losing Mike Goldberg as a co-commentator.

WORST TELEVISION ANNOUNCER: JBL has earned enough malice that he’ll probably get the nod. Some might even choose JR or Josh Barnett for their performances in the G1 USA Special, but JBL seems like a far more likely choice.

BEST MAJOR WRESTLING SHOW: Wrestle Kingdom 11 or Dominion. I actually haven’t seen much of Dominion beyond the main event, so I guess I’d have to go with Wrestle Kingdom by default. Just a stacked card. The last four matches alone would make this an easy show of the year in any year.

WORST MAJOR WRESTLING SHOW: I didn’t hate Battleground nearly as much as everyone else seemed to, but that seems to be the most likely candidate thus far. I’d personally go with Fastlane or Extreme Rules, or even Money in the Bank as my least favorite shows this year, but Battleground will probably get the nod.

BEST WRESTLING MANEUVER: If I had to guess, I’d say either the Rainmaker or the One-Winged Angel. The mystique around both moves, particularly in Okada and Omega’s matches together, has been something to see.

MOST DISGUSTING PROMOTIONAL TACTIC: This has always been a strange award to me. I’ve alternated between being amused by this award, and being in favor of scrapping it. This year, it doesn’t really seem like there’s much of a clear-cut winner, unless I’m mistaken. Jinder’s title reign may very well qualify, although I guess time will tell with that one. I’d bring up the JBL/Ranallo thing, although they really didn’t publicize that much, save JBL’s comments on “Bring it to the Table.” I guess TNA’s insistence on retaining ownership of the “Broken” gimmick is probably the one I can point to as most angering to fans and wrestlers (they didn’t exactly endear themselves to a lot of people by sending a legal letter to cable providers shortly before ROH’s Anniversary Show featuring the Hardys,) so I’ll just stick with that.

WORST TELEVISION SHOW: Raw, Smackdown, Impact, take your pick. As best I can tell, each have a good chance of winning. 205 Live also has a lot of negative feelings surrounding it, but I’m not sure it’ll really snowball into being declared the outright worst wrestling show out there right now.

WORST MATCH OF THE YEAR: Some have put forth the House of Horrors Match as a possibility. Really, you could probably go with both Orton/Wyatt matches. The Punjabi Prison from Battleground is probably the most likely candidate given that despite being good by Punjabi Prison standards, the match still had the atmosphere of a graveyard, a rarity in today’s environment, particularly in Philadelphia.

WORST FEUD OF THE YEAR: Orton and Wyatt, if I had to guess. Orton and Jinder’s feud has mostly suffered from being boring. Orton and Wyatt’s feud had the distinction of producing bad matches, and being stupid at the same time. Not a great combination.

WORST PROMOTION OF THE YEAR: TNA, which would give the distinction of winning worst promotion of the year every year from 2007 to 2017. That’s 3/5 of their lifespan, I should point out.

BEST BOOKER: Gedo. The man knows how to build up his roster, as well as put on attractive match-ups. Nobody else has really been doing that as well as he has this year.

PROMOTER OF THE YEAR: Naoki Sugabayashi, the chairman of New Japan Pro Wrestling. I’d just like to say that I would be strongly opposed to Dana White receiving the nod this year. Not only has UFC been in a slump throughout the year, but it’s become apparent that Dana White is starting to lose whatever magic touch he had in the past decade. From the attempted sabotage of Demetrious Johnson and the entire Flyweight in the midst of Johnson approaching the most title defenses in UFC history, to the establishment and subsequent bungling of the Women’s Featherweight Championship, a title clearly meant to showcase known drug offender Cristiane Justino, White has shown a seeming ineptitude in attempting to capture lightning in a bottle as he has many times before. That, coupled with UFC’s downturn in business, should be enough to dissuade votes for Dana White. Time will tell I suppose, but that’s just how I feel.

BEST GIMMICK: Marty Scurll or Tetsuya Naito, both of whom I feel deserved consideration for last year’s awards, seem to be the frontrunners as of now, at least from what I’ve seen. I’d personally go with Naito, simply because the Los Ingobernables faction has continued to move a ton of merchandise, making Naito an indispensable member of the New Japan roster after years of attempted pushes.

WORST GIMMICK: My personal choice would probably be Mike and Maria Kannellis, though that’s mainly due to my personal distaste for anything Mike Bennett related. In reality, it’s tough to say. There’s several possibilities, including Jinder and Bray Wyatt, although I personally feel the gimmicks are less of a problem than the handling of them.

BEST PRO WRESTLING BOOK: I really wouldn’t know. Although I recently read a fantastic book entitled “Lion’s Pride: the Turbulent History of New Japan Pro Wrestling,” a quick look tells me that book came out in 2015. I know both AJ Lee and Justin Roberts came out with autobiographies this year. I seem to remember AJ’s being described as powerful, though mostly focusing on her upbringing as opposed to her career, whereas Roberts’ came out around the time of the JBL/Mauro Ranallo controversy, and added fuel to the fire with stories of JBL bullying others in the company during Roberts’ tenure. Since the latter probably has more value to the average wrestling fan, I’d be inclined to go with that one.

BEST PRO WRESTLING DVD: With DVD’s starting to become a less prevalent medium in general, I’d have to think this award may be tweaked or abandoned at some point in the future. In any case, I’ve heard very good things about Kevin Owens’ recent DVD release, so I suppose I’d have to go with that one by default.

Well, there you have it; my mid-year picks for the Wrestling Observer Awards for this year. It should be interesting to revisit these at the end of the year, and in particular when the awards actually come out. Until then, hope you enjoyed this feature, and I will continue brainstorming new ideas for posts in the future.

1 note · View note

hazyheel · 5 years

Text

Monday Night Raw 2/18/19 Review

Well this show had a lot of ups and downs. Several of the matches did very well, but there was not a lot of plot progression. Still, the debut of several of the main event NXT stars created an exciting atmosphere throughout the night.

We started out with a pretty basic promo from Triple H, putting over Sasha Banks, Bayley, Finn Balor and Kofi Kingston. Weirdly, he put over Becky Lynch for attacking Charlotte and Ronda Rousey, acting like he is just one of the fans who thinks that Becky is super cool. He also talked about how D Generation X is being inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame, including Chyna. He then announced a couple new faces from NXT that are coming to the main roster, Ricochet, Aleister Black, Johnny Gargano, and Tommaso Ciampa. Then Triple H hypes up the crowd for the next match. The promo was not bad, even if Trips did stumble a bit when talking about NXT, but it just felt unnecessary. The results of last night’s show could’ve been revealed throughout Raw, and I think a surprise debut from the NXT superstars would’ve been more fun. I am pretty sure he was only really out there to officially announce that D Generation X was gonna be in the Hall of Fame, so I kinda get that. Glad to see that Chyna is finally in the Hall of Fame though.

Grade: C-. It was a harmless segment but it did not really need to be included. Raw can just start out with a match sometimes, and given that it was a fun stipulation match, that would have been refreshing.

So then we went right into the next match, a tables match between Baron Corbin and Braun Strowman. This is a logical continuation of their feud given how the No Disqualification match ended. Early on it was very bluntly explained that Strowman has a rib injury, so naturally Corbin worked them over during the match. Corbin had a weird strategy during the match of getting rid of tables. Maybe that was a character thing to show that he is a dick and wanted to punish Strowman more, but I just saw it as stupid. There was a cool spot where Strowman Irish whipped Corbin towards a table in the corner, and he did the slide out of the ring and close line move, which was a cool application of the move. But in the finish of the match, Corbin tried that same trick, but Strowman caught him and put him through the table for the win. After the match, Paul Heyman was coming out for his segment, and Braun grabbed him. Heyman looked like he was about to piss his pants, but Braun ended up letting him go. It was nice to see that Braun wasn’t forgetting his history with Heyman.

Grade: B-. The match was surprisingly fun, even if it was just a bit of a rehash of last night’s match. It made sense for the feud, there was a clean finish, stupid hardcore fun. I’m sure that they will have at least one more match before transitioning into their respective Wrestlemania feuds, which is a drag, but this seemed like it was the best part of their incredibly long feud so far.

Into Paul Heyman’s promo, he was a bit frazzled by Strowman’s attack. He talked about how everyone was jealous of Brock Lesnar, and then showed a video package of Brock being dominant, because he grew up on a farm I guess? That was a weird bit. Heyman flaunted Brock’s accomplishments, and said that Seth Rollins couldn’t come close to beating him. Finn Balor then interrupted, with his new Intercontinental Championship. And I guess Heyman’s promo was over

Grade: C. No new information from this segment, but it seems like there will be a running series talking about Brock Lesnar’s accomplishments in the WWE, so that could be interesting, but he didn’t have any new points and he was quickly cut off.

Balor then started talking about how proud he was to be holding the Intercontinental Championship, but he got interrupted by Lio Rush quickly. Rush said that Bobby Lashley deserved to be the champion, given that he wasn’t even pinned. Bobby Lashley then attacked Balor from behind, and the two beat him down, and Ricochet came out for the save. The brawl turned into a tag match. Rush and Ricochet had a great sequence to open up the match, and it is clear that Rush will have a storyline where he is desparate to please Lashley. A lot of the match was the faces completely dominating Rush, lest we forget that he is a cruiserweight. The finish of the match was very well done, with Lashley chasing Ricochet around the ring, only to be ambushed by a shotgun dropkick from Balor. Ricochet then hit his 630 senton on Rush for the win.

Grade: B. Another surprisingly good match. Ricochet and Finn Balor have great chemistry with Lio, and even Bobby Lashley was wrestling well tonight. There were some great spots, fun tag team fundamentals, and it was a fresh match. I would’ve preferred Ricochet in a singles match for his debut, but he definitely was the star of this match. I am kinda confused about why Rush and Lashley are still together, but I think that this is the kind of story where, eventually, Rush gets abused too much and leave Lashley. So I am okay with this for now.

Backstage, Drew McIntyre confronts Triple H about wanting in on the Wrestlemania main event, and he wants Rollins. Dean Ambrose then shows up and slapped McIntyre, challenging him. The match was booked.

After a quick video package recapping the Raw Women’s Championship scene, we came to another tag match. Lucha House Party, consisting of Gran Metalik and Lince Durado, against Zack Ryder and Kurt Hawkins. There was a bit of a miscommunication with in the LHP early on, but the match was going pretty well. But the match ended very abruptly, with Durado pinning Hawkins after a hurricanrana.

Grade D. The action was good, but it ended very quick and it seems to have no storyline relevance, so it is hard to care. Plus it was not given any time.

Immediately following the match, Charly interviewed Heavy Machinery, who were hitting their catchphrases, before getting interrupted by Lacy Evans. She did a catwalk, and then Heavy Machinery did a similar catwalk to their entrance music of loud construction noises. It was funny, but nothing else really happened during this.

Grade: D+. It seemed like WWE had a good grasp of Heavy Machinery for a while, but then lost it, and Lacey Evans feels like she will get lost in the shuffle if she actually joins the women’s division right now. So even though this segment was pointless, I am going to give WWE the benefit of the doubt and assume that they are building their characters because their respective divisions are too crowded right now. Still, does not save it from a bad grade.

Backstage, Johnny Gargano and Tommaso Ciampa are discussing their match, when the Glorious Ones confront them about why they are getting a match with the champions. They do not really get an answer before the Revival interrupt and try to intimidate the old #DIY. The segment ended just as quickly as it began, and we jumped to entrances. The match was very good from the start, really recreating their old magic from their NXT Days. Awesome double team moves, quick tags, classic tag wrestling. WWE is really playing up these teams’ rivalry from NXT, which is something they always should have done. In the final stages of the match, Gargano hit a superkick to Dash on the outside, before hitting a slingshot spear to Dawson in the ring, tagging in Ciampa, and the pair hit the superkick and running knee combo for the win.

Grade: B+. Think of this as a weak B+. The match was very good, not their best but still quite exciting. And I would love to see these guys in more matches together. The reason why it is weak is because the Revival just won the belts last week, and they are already losing in a non-title match. That is not a good look, even if this is the debut of Gargano and Ciampa. I couldn’t bring myself to lower the score after a questionable booking decision given the quality of the match. Still, this was a very good debut for the two Champions in NXT, and could even be building to a triple threat tag team match with these two teams and the Glorious ones.

Backstage, Charly interviews Finn Balor and Ricochet. Finn quickly puts over Ricochet, and Ricochet talks about how being on Raw was always his dream. How nice to see. Kevin Owen’s then had another little promo, where he really just seemed like a normal dad. I do not know what his character will be like when he actually returns, but it should be interesting.

The new Women’s Tag Team Champions, the Boss and Hug connection, came out to a chorus of You Deserve It chants. And they really do. They are out to cut a promo about how they made history as the first every Women’s Tag Team Champions. They talk about how their relationship has been a rollercoaster, how they couldn’t imagine doing this with anyone other than each other. They say that they will defend them wherever there are challengers, even NXT. But as they finished up, Nia Jax and Tamina came out to confront them. Nia quickly tries to sow seeds of doubt in the champions’ partnership, and says that Sasha always loses championships on her first defense. They brawl a little bit, but the Boss and Hug Connection come out on top.

Grade: B. It is still very emotional to see the Women’s Tag Team Championships on Raw, and now we have a clear view of the first challengers to the Boss and Hug Connection. Nia has really been doing well with her heel character, even with Tamina was a partner, so I want to see how this feud will continue down the line.

Next up, we had Dean Ambrose vs. Drew McIntyre. They started out fast and furious. and looked like they were gonna have a good match, but McIntyre quickly hit a Claymore, before waiting for Ambrose to get up and hitting another one.

Grade: D-. I think that McIntyre and Strowman are on a colliison course for Wrestlemania. So they are both are in filler feuds until that comes to fruition. I assume that this is just a throwaway match meant to bury Ambrose, which it did. I just didn’t care, and I am sure that it does not matter.

We cut back to more of the Brock Lesnar accomplishment package, where Heyman just listed all of Brock’s wins since he broke the streak. No real reason that we had to split the package up, but whatever. Backstage, Charly interviewed Seth Rollins, where he continues to say that he will win the match, and he does not care about what happens to him during the match. Ambrose then approaches him in the back, and scolds Rollins for not helping him. Rollins asks if Ambrose has lost his mind, because they are not friends. Ambrose stares at him for a while, and says eh, before walking away. har dee har.

Elias was out complaining that he is being disrespected and interrupted. He was about to sing a song, but Aleister Black’s music hit. Good match, stiff hits. These guys definitely have chemistry. Black won with a Black Mass.

Grade C-. While the action was fine, Black didn’t get in nearly enough offense. Easily the least impressive debut of the night. I expected this to be a dominant display of Black’s striking, but instead it felt like any other match. WWE needs to step up their game when it comes to this booking.

And in the main event, in an Elimination Chamber rematch, was Ronda Rousey vs. Ruby Riott for the Raw Women’s Championship. Ruby Riott got a jobber entrance. However, this match is much closer given that the rest of the Riott Squad is in Ruby’s corner. Rousey was selling a lot to Ruby, eating a rough looking senton. Riott even hit the Riot Kick, but Rousey was able to kick out. As Rousey ascended to the top rope, the Riott squad distracted her and Ruby was able to hit a Riott Kick off the top for another near fall. Ruby then went to the top rope for a senton, but Rousey countered into the arm bar, only for the Riott Squad to pull Ruby out of the ring. Ronda then hit a shaky looking crossbody to Liv Morgan and Sarah Logan on the outside. After Rousey hit an Alabama slam into the turnbuckle on Riott, she then locked in the arm bar to retain the championship.

Grade: C+. The match was okay, but the result was never in question. While these two did put together a good match, it was an odd choice to have a rematch right after Rousey basically buried Riott the night before, and to also have Rousey kick out of two riot kicks. This match did not really forward the story on the road to the main event, but it was still an alright match.

Overall Grade: B-

Pros: Tables Match; Ricochet’s debut; DIY vs. The Revival

Cons: Dean Ambrose’s burial; Aleister Black not getting enough offense; a couple pointless matches and promos

3 notes · View notes