Men and Ladies on the Internet 2: Formspring what the hell, now?

There are a huge number of social networking sites on the Internet, these days. Facebook is probably the most popular, now--it has absolutely exploded ever since it was opened up to the general public, and has become almost as annoying as its predecessor, myspace. Livejournal is a great place for the emo among us (if you want a great example check out CM Punk's old lj) and Deviant Art, too, is as much of a dramatic whinescape as it is a place to showcase your World of Warcraft fan-art. Twitter is a lot of fun--and a good way to engage with people in snips and snaps, although not as much as their blogs because it doesn't allow invested discussion--and I like to use it to network with people who share my interest in women's wrestling, both as appreciators and performers.

This networking has led me to an experience with a new website, called Formspring.me. One of the best current performers in female wrestling is the totally amazing Death Rey, Sara Del Rey. Although until recently I had only seen her in a match or two on ROH on HDNet, mostly hanging around with Castagnoli and Chris Hero, and as part of the Four Corners match on the SHIMMER Vol. 2 main event, I became very impressed with Death Rey's blog and twitter feed. Through a little bit of interaction with her, about whey, wheat and hemp protein, I have decided that SDR is a seriously cool chick. I was inspired to look up some of her other matches, considered classics by American joshi fans, and was impressed with those, too, and plan to attend any shows which she works that are within a reasonable geographic distance to my home base.

Most of the questions on her formspring are pretty normal. They are about gossipy stuff, about wrestling matches she likes and/or about music and tv. Some are more personal but understandable, about who she might be dating. Some are... simply incomprehensible or not questions at all. A wide variety of them, however, are crude queries about bra and panties matches and nude photo-shoots. The whole situation seems to be making Death Rey, even a girl as tough as Death Rey, somewhat uncomfortable and I would hate to see it make her less willing to interact with those of us who find her awesome and respect her work. I keep asking myself the same questions that I did about the guy who inquired after (name redacted's) worn panties: who are you, why are you, and which the hell rock did you crawl out from under? Perhaps, in my career, I can do something to teach young men that this is not the proper way to approach a fine, foxy lady-person, or maybe I'm just rage, raging against the dying of the light, as Dylan Thomas would say. Either way, I feel like I'm fighting the good fight, somehow, by at least commenting on all this, and so I'll probably keep doing so. Guys like that just bring you down, though, and make you feel really terrible about the future prospects of the species...

ETA: As of this morning, it's good to see kitty's claws popping out a little more.

TNA Impact 2: ECW reunion and Lacey is adorable

Okay, first things first... Sarita is downright awesome in the ring. She can move more crisply and brings more authority with her rolls and strikes than 95% of the male roster. I like her new outfit, too, and not just because--like Uncle Angelo--I'm a butt man (although... wow), but because it shows off her beautiful, dusky skin tone so well, and actually reminds us that Sarita is an Aztec princess and, yeah, we ought to pretty much be worshiping her. The match was pretty good and, although I'm not really an Angelina Love fan, I don't mind everybody being fed to her (I might as well not...) if it's not being done in matches that last 2 minutes, like what happened to poor Daffney a couple of weeks ago. It's good to see Sarita getting some screen time--especially in that outfit--and with a promised Hamada/Daffney showdown on Xplosion in a couple of weeks I can see wonderful things coming from the Knockouts division in the near future. Also... how freaking adorable is Lacey Von Erich? I didn't have that much love for her when I first started watching TNA, but as this storyline has developed I've really started getting into her sweet, very naive, gentle character. More of this Lacey, please! I adore her!

Women's Wrestling 5: I finally weigh in on the Nikki Roxx fiasco, a month late

I love TNA wrestling, and I respect its president, Dixie Carter. This is why I have decided to finally weigh in on the mess that came up with Nikki Roxx back at the Victory Road Pay Per View, when Nikki was informed that she would be on the losing end of a retirement match only minutes before competing.

This was low class, Dixie; this was bush league. This is the kind of shit that Vince McMahon and Johnny Ace come up with, not what I'd expect from a decent, Southern woman who runs a decent, Southern wrestling promotion. I have always respected you, Dixie, because you seem to really care about your workers, the backbone of your company. The schedule is light, the wellness policy is... well, it's nonexistent, but it doesn't have the same problems that the WWE Wellness policy does, all the same, and you don't force workers into situations which they are uncomfortable with, as a general rule. You let people develop their characters, you let them have room to breathe, and you don't force them to fit a single mold. This is why dropping Nikki, rumored to be because she wasn't "pretty" enough, is such a disgusting situation. For one thing, Nikki is a very physically attractive woman. She is athletic and symmetrical, and beyond that is an accomplished fitness competitor. Even further, Nikki seems--although I don't know her--to be a really kind and decent human being, beautiful inside and out, and she didn't deserve getting screwed like that, not by a company that she's sweated and literally bled for. This was low, Dixie; this was some low class, stinking, black, grainy, stomach cancer, sewer shit, Dixie, and it's beneath you. Beneath Vince and Bikini Johnny? Hell no! But beneath Dixie Carter? I think so, or at least I want to. Maybe I'm wrong. I don't like to think so--I hate being--wrong, but maybe I am.

Furthermore, Dixie, this was a terrible booking decision. The Knockouts are one of your best divisions--heck, in my opinion they are the best!--and Madison Rayne is a great little worker. No one could enjoy her match or appreciate her victory, though, with what had just happened to Nikki Roxx. Any human being with a grain of soul remaining, on seeing her face before the beginning of that match, just wanted to put his or her arms around Nikki, to tell her it was going to be all right. You can't get hyped up for a title match in that situation, not if you're a human being. Afterwards, that same human being with a lettuce shred of soul couldn't boo Madison with a clean spirit, excited and waiting for the heel to get her just desserts the next time around, because that human soul would just want to wipe the blood and tears off Nikki's face, to comfort her, to make her feel better. Maybe that's just a macho trip I'm on, by God, and I know I'm a little too protective of ladies maybe, like I was living in the age of chivalry or something, but I like to think that it's just basic human decency and wrestling booking 101. If people are so uncomfortable that they can't hate the heel more than they hate company management... well, there's no reason for them to watch, right? I used to say that I was going to be quits with TNA when you guys found a crappy reason to cut Daffney--I've been a fan of hers for a long time and her appearance was one of the reasons I started paying attention to the KOs in the first place--but even if you and she come to a parting of the ways, I've been impressed enough and become invested enough in TNA as an alternative to WWE that I'll stick around. However, this will only hold, with me and many others, until TNA stops being an alternative to WWE, on stage and behind it. Be the alternative, Dixie... work hard, treat your workers and your fans well, and we'll treat you and your company the same way!

PPV Night 1: Money in the Bank with Sister

I am watching WWE's Money in the Bank PPV with my sister, tonight. Although I absolutely hate to give Vince McMahon any more of our hard earned money, especially when his company seems to be specifically dedicated to booking decisions that, oh, I don't know, piss me the hell off, watching Sister get excited for the people she likes has been fun. During Cody Rhodes' few little hope spots during the first match of the evening, the WWE Smackdown! Money in the Bank Ladder Match, I thought that her squealing was going to make my eardrums pop. I'm not entirely a fan of Cody Rhodes', although as a fellow former high school wrestler from the same state who competed in the same tournaments and probably against some of the same people I do have to give him some love,, but I just don't think that I'm in his target demographic, especially in his new gimmick as the "Dashing" Cody Rhodes. I did feel myself getting excited a little bit during the hope spot at the end for Christian and Matt Hardy, the two people still in WWE that I find myself marking for hardest (along with, I don't know, the rest of everybody else in every live crowd I've been in where the two wrestled), but it was pretty much a foregone conclusion that Vince and company weren't going to allow anybody who is his own man to go over company golden boys like Drew McIntyre (and his lisp and his diabetes) so I felt kind of silly after they both fell off the ladder. It was nice to see Kane win, though. Kane has been involved in so many freaking stupid angles--and I've been watching him for so long, that I can't feel bad for that at all, so in that I count the first MitB ladder match a success. The RAW Divas match wasn't awful, and so far Mysterio vs. Swagger has been good (especially the throw off the top rope by Swagger). The Wholesome, Adorable Canadian Children vs. the Wholesome, Adorable Samoan Children was also good, even if thought that David Hart Smith had suffered a concussion or broken his neck or something at one sort of scary moment.

More to come, probably, about the RAW Money in the Bank match, later.

RAW Money in the Bank ladder match wasn't bad, either. I went in terrified that Randy Orton would win and... really... do we really need Randy Orton as champion? Again? Really? Really? This constant quoting of the Miz's catch phrase is my way of honoring, I guess, our Money in the Bank winner... John Morrison! No, no, I'm kidding... our winner was... Little Spike Dudley? What the hell? He wasn't even in the match! No, no, no, our winner was the Miz. After an exciting math, with a hope spot by Evan Bourne that caused my sister to shriek so loudly that dogs a mile down the road started barking and a seven man team up against Mark Henry that make look like a beast, and a clever spot on the ladder with Maryse and Ted DiBiase, the Miz took the briefcase and was so happy that he actually cried. This was a beautiful moment, to me, and I was able to appreciate it almost as much as Layla, my little English Muffin, retaining her belt against Kelly Kelly.

Women's Wrestling 4: Blond Canadian Midget Brawl for All

TNA Impact continues to impress me with the quality of the Knockouts and their feuds. Although most of the division has been taken up, lately, with the Beautiful People wrangling over every piece of gold available to a woman in TNA, with a little bit of Tara, Nikki Roxx and Daffney mixed in for fun every once in a while, the feud that I've really been watching has been Taylor Wilde and Sarita.

Mexico City's Sarita is one of the better workers TNA has, male or female, and has been criminally underused lately (probably because she actually requires payment with a check that won't bounce). I love the way she moves, her crisp offense and her sheer intensity. When Sarita bears down after someone with those brown eyes flashing, she sells it so ferociously that you, the viewer, are even a little bit afraid. Add in the fact that Sarita is a solid promo woman and you've got a seriously dangerous package. Taylor Wilde, the first woman in TNA to pin the absolutely amazing Awesome Kong, is no slouch in the ring either. Although I pick on Taylor all the time (often calling her a blond Canadian midget, calling back a great comment of Daffney's on TNA Spin Cycle during their feud during summer 2009, or "an expensive little piece of pookie," due to her Amazon Wish List) there are none of TNA's current Knockouts that I'd rather watch wrestle, including Rosie Lottalove and Daffney. Although those two characters appeal to me more, Taylor's ring work is much better than Rosie's and a little crisper than Daffney's. Although she isn't much to write home about on the stick, she is miles beyond any of the Beautiful People, and her lack of TV time recently is a crime. Hopefully this feud will Sarita will help her to develop her character, get both of these extremely talented women some attention and garner them the pushes they so richly deserve.

The match itself was vicious and exciting. Each strike was stiffer than a board and I could see bruises being raised on Sarita's arms and Taylor's back. Maybe it wasn't the Dreamer/Sandman Singapore Cane match, but it was the rawest, most violent action I've seen between two women since Daffney and Taylor last summer, and miles beyond what WWE is giving us right now. Taylor sold the choke so well at the end, hanging there like she was dead, that I felt myself getting worried for a moment. It was easy to suspend disbelief there and to feel it, to feel that it was a real for a second, and I love that.

Other interests 3: Cheerleader Melissa screwed like Bret Hart?

I call absolute bullshit on this pathetic, low class, trashy decision by RCW. Melissa Anderson, also known as Cheerleader Melissa, Raisha Saeed, Alissa Flash and the Future Legend (she is one!) has been stripped of the River City Wrestling championship because her match went thirty seconds over the fifteen minute time limit. This is a sad little bush league decision by a sad little bush league promotion. Melissa is one of the best workers in the world, male or female, and brought more prestige to River City Wrestling than it's ever seen before and probably ever will again. Because she is the first woman to win any promotion's most eminent title it all makes Jeromy Sage's decision stink of the ugly sexism which pervades the dark corners of our sport, slinking around the spotlight, a spotlight which so recently fell on a tall, slim, beautiful, athletic brunette, smiling radiantly, golden belt upraised. We are not privy to the backstage discussions which precipitated this decision. Perhaps he or someone associated with his organization couldn't stand to share the spotlight with this woman, or believes she should be consigned to those shadowy corners acting as nothing but an object for masculine titillation. We can't know this; we weren't there. We can know this, though, Jeromy Sage: you cannot take that moment in the spotlight away from Melissa, the first woman chosen to hold a promotion's highest honor up to heaven's approval, and we can know that your small promotion's spotlight could never shine bright enough to adequately highlight her glory. Even if this is just a work, and it might be, it's still a bad work and it reflects poorly on the sport as a whole.

Other interests 2: One bad Cheerleader

Melissa Anderson, aka The Future Legend, Alissa Flash and Cheerleader Melissa, is probably the best woman wrestler working today... at least in my humble opinion, that is. To be honest with you, I believe that the Future Legend is better than most male wrestlers, and she proved it earlier this week with a win against River City Wrestling's Joey Spector when she became RCW's first female champion, and the first woman to hold any coed or male wrestling promotion's top belt. Anderson works a vicious style, which mixes occasional technical brilliance with aggressive, nasty brawling and power moves, and leaves her opponents reeling with an array of moves that draws on the Japanese, American and Mexican traditions.

For a short example of Anderson's style, check out http://tinyurl.com/39jqd8e. Her twitter is twitter.com/FutureLegendCF, and her official website is www.cheerleadermelissa.com. Her body of work, especially against arch rival and sometimes partner MsChif, is available on many of the SHIMMER and Chickfight collections, and I cannot recommend it enough. Watch this Cheerleader, ladies and gentlemen... she's hiding hard fists under those pom poms.

Other interests 1: TNA Knockout report for Impact Wrestling, 7/8/2010

Sometimes I like to write about things outside of picking up heavy stuff... actually, I like to write about that a lot! Here's the first such entry, a little commentary on my absolute favorite wrestler's match tonight against... well, it's basically being treated like a filler match before her opponent's match at a PPV (Daffney's feud is currently happening on the web show Xplosion), but Daffney (http://twitter.com/screamqueendaff) wrestled her heart out as always and looked great, especially considering this is her return to Impact after a long, nasty injury sustained against the ring rookie Rosie Lottalove. Angelina Love (er, I don't know her twitter) looked good, too, returning after an arduous few months of injuries and visa troubles, and it's great to see the TNA Knockouts division coming back together after a few wobbly, unfocused months.

The match was short but fierce and included lots of loud chops to the chest, which left pink prints on the Scream Queen's porcelain skin, a nifty looking arm-bar (Chris Jericho would be proud) and a vicious jawbreaker to the top of the head, which left Angelina reeling for a few moments. After few minutes (too few but you can't have everything, right? and most tv matches are fairly short...) of back and forth offense between the two women, Angelina won with a lifting reverse STO which she calls the Lights Out, a move that I've loved since Chris Kanyon called it the Flatliner and Edge called it the Downward Spiral. Madison Rayne, TNA's Knockouts champion, appeared on the ramp after the match to taunt her PPV opponent, Angelina Love, and a career vs. title (with the special stipulation that if Maddie's partners, Velvet Sky or Lacey Von Eric, interfered the title would be forfeit) gimmick was added to the upcoming contest. I enjoyed the match. Watching Daffney wrestle is always a treat, and the match--although short--showcased both women's talents and furthered at least Angelina's story line. All in all a decent show.

Watch the match here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GZIUidfTdNE

For more information on this match and all your women's wrestling needs, check out diva-dirt.com. For all your Daffney merchandising needs (and believe me, if you see this woman wrestle you will have them) check out goth-goddess.org and daffneyshouse.com.