Here’s what matters today in wrestling 👇
Image Credit: TNA
Tommy Dreamer was let go by TNA last week. I can’t comment on whether he was the issue with their creative output or not, but from what I’ve seen of TNA lately there was some type of issue that needed to be addressed. Maybe the show improves without him, maybe it doesn’t. Either way, this development led to some wrestlers feeling comfortable sharing their interactions with Tommy Dreamer over the years that didn’t go so well. Kind of like the Speaking Out movement from a few years back, just focused on one person.
The more shocking and somehow less surprising allegations in my eyes came from the women listed in this headline. Kennedi Hardcastle talked about the time where Dreamer spanked her in the ring, which led to Dani Jordyn talking about the time Dreamer insisted on grabbing her crotch in the ring. The reason I describe these incidents as “less surprising” is because I’m old enough to remember watching ECW in the mid-1990s where Dreamer regularly did these things (and worse) to women in order to get a pop. It wasn’t just Dreamer, and it wasn’t just ECW, but he was one of the more regular men to use those tactics, and they got bigger pops in ECW than most places. Fans reacted positively, and Dreamer kept going to the “beat up women” card. In fairness to Dreamer, fans did keep responding to it years after ECW went out of business, but eventually less of the wrestling fanbase found it cool. Now when things like Mr. Elegance beating up Lei Ying Lee happen on TNA Impact, most fans are wondering who the hell TNA is trying to appeal to. Heck, maybe that was Dreamer’s last contribution to the product.
Dreamer does have plenty of defenders as well. Folks like Missy Hyatt, Mickie James, Brett Lauderdale & others will tell you that he’s a nice guy, and I’m sure he was nice to them. At the end of the day, I do feel that the wrestling business can survive without the creative contributions of Tommy Dreamer.
WRESTLING HEADLINES 👊🏽
•Bully Ray Slams the Death Riders & Jon Moxley
Image Credit: AEW
You can tell it’s the week of an AEW PPV when the likes of Bully Ray are out there giving their wildest takes. There’s a chapter of the wrestling grifter textbook that talks all about using the week of an AEW PPV to talk about how terrible the company is, how the wrestlers don’t know what they’re doing, and how you know everything. I’m not even going to say I disagree with everything that Bully Ray thinks or says about the Death Riders. I’m not the biggest fan of the group and I don’t think that their involvement in Will Ospreay’s march towards the AEW Championship is really helping anything. But, as usual, Bully takes it too far for the sake of shock value and getting clicks. Yes, getting clicks is important, but some of us try to think about things before saying or typing them.
Image Credit: WWE
Sol’s stint on Raw thus far has showcased one of the major differences between NXT & the main roster. When you’re on NXT, you basically live in the Performance Center and get to practice your stuff all the time. Your opponents are in the same boat, they get to practice taking your moves and you get to practice taking their moves. When your finisher is as difficult to execute as the Sol Snatcher is, you practice it over and over again, and people get to practice taking it over and over again. That isn’t the case when you get to the main roster. You get paid more and get to be seen by more people, but you also travel a lot more and have less time to practice your stuff. Folks like Liv Morgan & Becky Lynch have less time on their hands to practice taking your moves. Someone like Sol Ruca that can thrive in a controlled environment with the right people making her look good might not fare so well in a less controlled environment with people she doesn’t know as well that might have less of an interest in her welfare since making her look good doesn’t help their position.
I’ve been a fan of Sol’s for awhile so I admit to some bias in her favor. Some would probably take a more critical stance, and that would be fair given the past couple of months. Unfortunately, many people on social media tend to take their criticism too far, as they’ve grown very comfortable insulting people without having to worry about getting punched in the face. I can only imagine the type of vitriol Sol garners from the more unhinged corners of wrestling fandom, and don't fault her or anybody else for taking steps to avoid it.
MORE MUST-READ LINKS FROM 411MANIA
→411 Wrestling Fact or Fiction: Is Darby Allin the Wrestler Of the Year So Far?
→One Step Forward, Two Steps Back: The Ongoing Saga of TNA
→The Great Eight: Top 8 WWE Women's Champions
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– Steve Cook