WWE

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Royal Rumble 2015 Review

wwe-royal-rumble-2015-bannerOkay, I’ll be the first to admit that I probably shouldn’t be writing wrestling reviews on any sort of basis. I don’t watch the WWE regularly apart from watching their NXT developmental territory. I’ve probably watched more New Japan in the last month than WWE since WrestleMania 30. But it’s the Road to WrestleMania and what better time to tune into the WWE for three months.

But even I with my limited WWE viewing knows that what’s best for business is paying customers. With the relative failure of the WWE Network launch, TV ratings that are stagnant at best and fans who are growing increasingly discontent with the product on-screen, the Royal Rumble had to be bigger than just your standard hype machine for WrestleMania.

It’s just too bad that the WWE failed entirely to get anyone interested in their annual showcase.

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Sunday Link-Off: Let’s Get Ready to Rumble

jennifer-lopez-complex15-01A little late but not any links short, it’s time for the Sunday edition of the links. I’ve been busy working IRL and on the blogs yesterday and I didn’t have as much time as I’d like. But for only a few more hours in the day. Star Trek said there were 26-hour days. Can we do that now?

Anyway, no more waiting. Let’s kick off today’s links with Jennifer Lopez.

Another week, another story about the CBC from Canadaland. This time, we learned they stonewalled Edward Snowden’s story. (Canadaland)

The Beer Store claims that it operates on a breakeven basis. Technically, that’s true. But it’s not like the owners aren’t making money hand over fist. (Toronto Star)

Modern technology was supposed to make life better for all of us. In many ways it has. However, the modern world is taking a toll on your brain. (The Guardian)

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Sunday Link-Off: Canada Strong

anais-pouliot-urbanoutfitters14-43When I posted Wednesday’s links, I couldn’t have imagined how the rest of the day would have played out. I’m glad that Canada was able to pick itself up, dust itself off and carry on without being paralyzed with fear or hate.

So let’s kick off the links. Here’s Canadian model Anais Pouliot.

There are a lot of lessons that American media could learn and the CBC gave them a master class in breaking news reporting this week. (Mother Jones)

If this week’s events happened in America, we would all be talking about gun control. However, gun control is pretty solid in Canada compared to America. (Vox)

And this week’s attack in Ottawa isn’t the only time that a attack has been made against the Parliament buildings. (National Post)

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Leave a comment Posted on by Steve Murray Humour

The Best of Botchamania

Well, I absolutely botched my writing for the blog today. I completely forgot to write a post for today. That realization was a perfect mental segue to an idea for a post for today. It’s a return to our Best of the Interweb series. This time, it’s a look at the funnier, nonsensical and insane side of the wide world of professional wrestling in Botchamania.

For today’s Best of the Interweb, here are ten of the best episodes of Botchamania. At least, ten of my favourite Botchamanias. I might have botched getting the best ones.

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Sunday Link-Off: Well, That Was a Week

martha-hunt-victoriassecret14-11Just when I thought that everything was happening at the start of the week, it just kept going. You didn’t have to the type of person to closely follow the news to know that there was all sorts of things happening in the world this week. We’ll do our best to keep you posted with this week’s links.

Since we have a lot of links from America this week, let’s start with American model Martha Hunt.

Reporter Wesley Lowery was arrested for being a reporter in Ferguson, Missouri. Here’s his account of the arrest. (Washington Post)

A reporter took to the ground in Ferguson as part of the protest movement. This is what happened. (Grantland)

Despite all the riots in Ferguson, Missouri, one question remains unanswered. Why did Michael Brown really die? (The New Yorker)

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Leave a comment Posted on by Steve Murray Man Lab

Man Lab Showdown: Stacy Keibler vs. Trish Stratus

With Summerslam only a few days away, I thought that now was the perfect time for a wrestling-themed edition of the Man Lab Showdown. I’m probably going to sound old when I say this but wrestling was far better in my day. Okay, everyone says that about their generation but wrestling was never better than at the peak of the Monday Night Wars. That includes the WWE (then WWF) Divas.

For today’s battle, in one corner, it’s wrestler turned George Clooney ex turned occasional actress Stacy Keibler. In the other corner is seven-time WWE Women’s Champion turned fitness guru Trish Stratus.

trish-stratus-02

More photos and the poll after the jump.
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Sunday Link-Off: Fireworks

arianny-celeste-fitnessgurls14-02There are two weeks that are an absolute curse to a blogger. One is that stretch between Christmas and New Year’s when the internet basically shuts down. The other is the Canada Day / Independence Day stretch where you want to shut down at the start and the American blogosphere shuts down at the other end and nobody gets anything done. It makes for some short linkdumps is what I’m trying to say.

We do have some links though. If you’re interested in the return of Rob Ford or what the WWE is banking its stock price on, this is a good post for you. First, since this is a post-Independence Day post, let’s start with Arianny Celeste.

Rob Ford is back running the show at City Hall. Is he the new man that he claims to be? (Toronto Sun)

And Ford is only 10 points behind Olivia Chow in the latest poll despite two months in rehab. Despite being closer than any other politician would be, he’s probably not close enough to pull off the comeback. (ThreeHundredEight)

The Grid magazine, Toronto’s free weekly news magazine, is closing its doors after three years due to poor finances. Now who will profile the lovely and talented Robyn Doolittle? (The Globe and Mail)

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Sunday Link-Off: Stars and Stripes

jessica-alba-ew14-04Last weekend was a Victoria Day set of links. Today, it’s a Memorial Day set of links. If you’re a Tea Partier, you’re probably not reading a Canadian blog so you won’t care that today’s links are a reality check.

But since this is an American holiday, let’s start with the one and only Jessica Alba.

India was well on its way to becoming a world power but the election of Narendra Modi could supercharge the country’s growth. (The Economist)

On this Memorial Day, remember that not everyone thinks America is the greatest country in the world. In fact, some people think that life in America is getting worse, not better. (The Nation)

There’s a fallacy that unemployment benefits discourage people from finding jobs and taking them away gets them to search faster. That assertion would be wrong. (Think Progress)

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Sunday Link-Off: A Fresh Take

miranda-kerr-harpersbazaaruk14-01Happy Mothers’ Day to all the mothers reading today. Given our demographics (mostly male, generally under 35 and without children), I somehow doubt that any are reading but it’s nice to get the greeting out there.

With that out of the way, let’s get the links underway. Here’s Miranda Kerr. I think that’s an appropriate choice for the day.

People who follow international news have heard the name Boko Haram for years. Why are they only now becoming a big deal. (Mother Jones)

Prime Minister Stephen Harper is reportedly showing the signs of being drunk on power. (That’s the opposite of how Rob Ford is often found drunk.) He’s reportedly stopped taking advice. (Toronto Star)

The Globe and Mail is trying to negotiate with its union to get journalists to write advertorials. It’s bad enough when I’m covering the video games beat that half of the content is advertorial (to a degree). For a reputable, respected newspaper to want legitimate journalists to do it is reprehensible if you ask me. (The Albatross)

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The Best of the Ultimate Warrior

the-ultimate-warrior-wwe-hall-of-fameI was planning to do a best of the interweb post today but I thought that I would use this space to pay tribute to The Ultimate Warrior instead. I had a few favourite wrestlers growing up. I was a Hulkamaniac like everyone else. Being Canadian, Bret Hart was one of my favourites. Then there were the heels, Mr. Perfect and Ted DiBiase, who were just too good to hate (and/or feuding with Virgil who was terrible and not worth the time, even to a kid).

The most unique wrestler of them all, and another of my favourites, was the Ultimate Warrior. He wasn’t as swollen as Hogan but he looked more muscular. He didn’t have the most coherent interviews but you couldn’t help but be captivated. He had the coolest ring music and entrance in the Fed. And many, many years down the road, I figured out that he could work matches too. (I’ll explain.)

So let’s look back on some of the best and most memorable moments of The Ultimate Warrior’s career.

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