2025 in 2025: Day 92

He Got Game - Public Enemy

Would you believe this is the only full Public Enemy album I have ever actually listened to? I am going to correct that in 2026. This album goes hard, but does also feel very 1998 to me. The samples are great and Chuck D's lyrics are on point!

Highlights: Resurrection, He Got Game, Shake Your Booty, What You Need is Jesus, Go Cat Go

8/10

The Head on the Door - The Cure

This is pretty much the best 80s pop album by The Cure - a stunning combination of dark numbers and upbeat pop danciness. And it is all quick and to the point. No messing around here. That opening riff in Push is the absolute stuff.

Highlights: In Between Days, Push, Close to Me, Sinking

8/10

Heart and Soul - Joy Division

This is, of course, the full 4-disc collection. Which means I am sitting here listening to a full six hours of Joy Division. And, you know, it is great. Ian Curtis was a mad man. Quite literally. I have to say, I think disc 2 is my favourite of all this; the Closer album is solid and Love Will Tear Us Apart is genuinely their greatest track. When I made my terrible punk EP, it is crazy how much I was subconsciously influenced by these guys in part. And then the whole An Ideal for Living EP is so completely different to everything else - just full on punk awesomeness. Yeah, I am taking it back - this whole disc 3 is head-drillingly awesome. What I really enjoyed going through all this is hearing those little bits of the New Order sound coming through every so often. The live disc does not do much for me, however.

Highlights: She's Lost Control, Shadowplay, Love Will Tear Us Apart, Warsaw, These Days, No Love Lost, Insight

7/10

"Albums" listened to so far: 752

FREE PALESTINE

2025 in 2025: Day 78

The FTD marathon continues...

FTD008: One Night in Vegas (10 August 1970) - Elvis Presley
This is actually the opening night of Elvis' Las Vegas residency that was recorded for the That's The Way It Is film (which itself completely rules). It is a great show. I didn't need more rehearsals at the end...
Highlights: I Can't Stop Loving You, You've Lost That Loving Feeling, Patch It Up
7.5/10 for the concert, 3/10 for Elvis doing yodels in rehearsal

FTD009: 6363 Sunset Boulevard
This is another collection of outtakes - this time from 1972 & 1975. This undubbed take of Always On My Mind is stellar. Other than that and a strange version of Burning Love, I am pretty sure I have the rest in similar form; the rehearsals from On Tour are probably included in that set and the outtakes from Today are very similar to the un-overdubbed versions found in that set.
Highlights: Always On My Mind [Take 3], Burning Love [Take 2], See See Rider [Take 2], T-R-O-U-B-L-E [Take 1]
6/10

FTD010: Easter Special - Elvis Presley
A collection of Gospel outtakes. I would say mostly like the masters, but some are slightly different. Like, a couple are a little bit faster and some have less overdubs going on. This version of Saved is bombastic! And I Got a Feeling in My Body is just... wooo!
Highlights: Saved [Take 1], If That Isn't Love [Take 2,6,7], I Got a Feeling in My Body [Take 6,7], I'm Gonna Walk Dem Golden Stairs [Take 2,3]
7/10

FTD012: The Way It Was - Elvis Presley
Rehearsals for That's The Way It Is. And it starts of incredibly poor - not the performances, the recordings. The tape must have been found buried beneath 3 tonnes of mud and lava and dinosaur fossils. Thankfully, things get more listenable after a few songs. I definitely prefer I've Lost You without the horns and whatnot. Oh, there are actual live songs as well
Highlights: I've Lost You, I Can't Stop Loving You, You've Lost That Loving Feeling
6/10

FTD013: Memphis Sessions - Elvis Presley

This is a collection I enjoy a lot; I love From Elvis in Memphis (and Back in Memphis, to a lesser degree) and these are basically undubbed/slightly less polished versions. The harmonica is much more present in Stranger in My Own Home Town (and Elvis is just completely getting into the whole thing). It owns. This is the most chilled version of Suspicious Minds you will ever hear. FTD released a big 5-disc set of all this stuff a few years ago and I sometimes think I should have got it. Today is one of those days...
Highlights: Stranger In My Own Home Town [Undubbed Master], True Love Travels On A Gravel Road [Takes 6 & 7], Wearin' That Loved On Look [Takes 3 & 10], You'll Think Of Me [Take 14]

7/10

FTD014: Silver Screen Stereo - Elvis Presley

More movie song outtakes. I'm sure the world needed more versions of Clambake and to put more focus on those dodgy lyrics of Kissin' Cousins. Elvis going to go and get him cancelled again...
Highlights: Viva Las Vegas [#1, 2], The Lady Loves Me [#9], C'mon Everybody [#1, 2, 3], There's So Much World To See [Alternate Master]

6/10

FTD016: Fame and Fortune - Elvis Presley

Outtakes from the Elvis is Back sessions. Mostly. And they sound mostly like the finished masters. Mostly.

Highlights: Make Me Know It [Take 11], Stuck On You [Take 1], Such a Night [Take 1], Girl Next Door Went a Walking [Takes 1,2,3]

6/10

"Albums" listened to so far: 633

2025 in 2025: Day 77

AKA More Elvis Marathons

I have a whole bunch of Elvis 'Follow That Dream' releases that are all coming up now, because they are labelled in my iTunes as "FTD0xx:". The numbers will jump all over the place, because I have already eliminated the ones that were later released as part of another set (e.g. FTD001 was the 68 Comeback Special outtakes/rehearsals, which were later included in the 40th and 50th anniversary collections). I would imagine that listening to these now will help eliminate some of them from my library, because I really have enough Elvis outtakes and rehearsal on all my box sets.

FTD002: Out In Hollywood - Elvis Presley
This is all alternate takes of songs from movies. There are no undiscovered gems here. The only thing that really stands out is after singing Lonely Man, the engineer can be heard telling Elvis it was "beautiful" and Elvis thanks him for the compliment. Young Elvis was a rebel, but also hella respectful and genuinely appreciated that people liked his voice. Actually, the real highlight here is an isolated vocal overdub of for You're So Square. Quite fun to just here Elvis' voice like that.
Highlights: King of the Whole World [Take 3], Little Egypt [Take 21], Spinout [Take 2]
5/10

FTD003: In A Private Moment - Elvis Presley
This is all very pointless; Elvis jamming with friends and recorded very poorly (as one would expect), and mostly just quick little bits of songs.
Highlights: Impressive these exist, I'll give them that
4/10

FTD004: The Jungle Room Sessions - Elvis Presley
Now this is actually very enjoyable. I can not believe I still have not picked up the other Jungle Room set that would make this obsolete. I love these late 70's numbers and getting them without the overdubs. And Elvis' "Italian" version of Moody Blue is rather entertaining.
Highlights: Fire Down Below [Instrumental], Moody Blue [Take 3], Bitter They Are Harder They Fall [Take 2-5], Solitaire [Take 3]
7/10

FTD005: Long Lonely Highway - Elvis Presley
Alternate takes of a bunch of fantastic 60s tracks. Including a very different version of Too Much Monkey Business.
Highlights: It's Now or Never [Alternate Take 1]. It Feels So Right [Alternate Take 3], Long Lonely Highway [Alternate Take 1], Too Much Monkey Business [Alternate Take 9]
6/10

FTD007: Too Much Monkey Business - Elvis Presley
This is all so weird I actually had to google to understand what was going on here; in the early 80s, Elvis' long-time producer tried to cash in on things by taking some old Elvis vocals and getting a team of musicians to redo the music in a more "modern" way, and this FTD release is the original album PLUS 10 bonus tracks from the same "sessions". We can mock, but they are still doing this sort of thing with Elvis' songs to this day. Look, I am not trying to say these are the definitive versions or anything, but it is kind of fun.
Highlights: Burning Love, After Loving You, Too Much Monkey Business, Blue Suede Shoes
6.5/10

"Albums" listened to so far: 626

2025 in 2025: Day 63

It's an Easter Elvis Extravaganza!

Elvis On Tour: April 9, 1972, Hampton Roads - Elvis Presley

Oh, you thought we were done with Elvis? Silly amateurs. Of course I have the Elvis On Tour boxset, with the original film on blu-ray + 6 CDs of concerts and rehearsals. This, obviously, is the first concert in the set. We lose Elvis' vocals for most of I Got a Woman, so that's not fun. But the rest of this show is a delight. Elvis has some difficulties with the crowd and then gives his piano player some stick for playing Teddy Bear too fast. This rendition of Bridge over Troubled Water is killer, but someone tell Ronnie Tutt to calm down! Suspicious Minds also goes off the rails, but that's because Elvis is getting attacked by female fans or something. They brought more photo albums from the plane...

Highlights: You Gave Me a Mountain, I Can't Stop Loving You, Bridge Over Troubled Water, An American Trilogy, How Great Thou Art

8/10

Elvis On Tour: April 10, 1972, Richmond - Elvis Presley

Concert number two! Never Been to Spain is such an awesome song - I even found a live performance by Three Dog Night that was very enjoyable. Those dudes could sing. Some woman just yelled like she was having a minor orgasm. This show is certainly better in some ways, and not as great in others. The piano seems a bit more defined in the mix (often hard left) and it really lifts a few of the songs, because the playing is fantastic. I never enjoy when Elvis mocks Charlie Hodge - he is your dear friend, you should be nicer and not make the crowd think he's a dork. And his harmonies are perfect. Holy balls that ending for Can't Help Falling In Love is the stuff! The Elvis souvenirs are items you will treasure...

Highlights: Never Been to Spain, You Gave Me a Mountain, Teddy Bear/Don't Be Cruel, Bridge Over Troubled Water, I Can't Stop Loving You, Lawdy Miss Clawdy, Can't Help Falling in Love

8/10

Elvis On Tour: April 14, 1972, Greensboro - Elvis Presley

Something is up with the mix on this album; it sounds a bit dull and I've had to kick up the volume a notch. Which is not what I need when I'm still recovering from a loud concert. So maybe it is just my ears getting tired after two similar sounding concerts? Hawtdam Elvis' voice on Bridge Over Troubled Water is phenomenal, but again Ronnie Tutt gets carried away. The setlist actually gets a bit of a change and a couple of new songs are added; Burning Love is performed with the caveat of "We don't know this one too well" and then they proceed to completely lose it halfway through. Man, Release Me is hilariously unkind. An Elvis button for $0.25? Get me four, please.

Highlights: Never Been to Spain, You Gave Me a Mountain, Teddy Bear/Don't Be Cruel, A Big Hunk O' Love, Bridge Over Troubled Water, Can't Help Falling in Love

7.5/10

Elvis On Tour: April 18, 1972, San Antonio - Elvis Presley

By chance, today is the 53rd Anniversary of this show! Let's hope it's a good one...
It is largely just a complete no-nonsense performance - very little jibber jabber or joking around and a big focus on putting on great performances. That is, until Suspicious Minds and Elvis completely loses the plot. They only make minor mistakes in Burning Love this time, and instead save that for An American Trilogy. They dropped Release Me? Bummer, I would have taken that over Funny How Time Slips Away yet again. A wonderful memento of this evening's show.

Highlights: Never Been to Spain, You Gave Me a Mountain, Teddy Bear/Don't Be Cruel, How Great Thou Art, I Can't Stop Loving You, Burning Love

8/10

Elvis On Tour: The Rehearsals - Elvis Presley

This is all very... here. Clearly even in rehearsal Elvis could not remember the words to Burning Love. I would guess it didn't last too long in the setlist after this tour. One thing this demonstrates that Elvis between songs, Elvis clearly enjoyed just randomly singing some of his old 50s numbers. If you want to hear Elvis and the band mess around with For the Good Times for an hour, then these discs are for you! The final takes are pretty impressive performances and are basically how Elvis and crew would have sounded in concert without an orchestra. I wish he had been around long enough to try that. The gospel jams here are again a standout.

Highlights: Burning Love [Version 1], Burning Love [Version 2], Never Been to Spain [Take 2], I John, Bosom of Abraham, You Better Run

6/10

"Albums" listened to so far: 502

2025 in 2025: Day 2

Aerosmith - Aerosmith
I am almost ashamed to admit this, but... this is probably the first time I'm ever listening to this album. Like, ever. I'm not sure how that happened? I had Aerosmith obsessed friends in high school. I was given all their albums probably close to 20 years ago. So I have absolutely no excuse. Anyways, I'm guessing this is Aerosmith's debut album? It's rad as hell and I should have been listening to this much sooner in life. I think I like the live version of Dream On more, but otherwise this is solid 70s rock good times!
Highlights: Make It, Mama Kin, LOGMAN waking up to the awesome of this album.
7.5/10

Affirmation - Savage Garden
Okay, so no, this is not the full album - simply the song Crash and Burn. There will be more like this, I'm sure. Darren Hayes is a phenomenal singer and seems like a decent dude, but I could never really get into Savage Garden. However, this song is very good.
8/10

Afterglow - Crowded House
This is some sort of rarities compilation released after the band split back in... 1996? It's almost 30 years later and they're still going again, albeit it is now just the Neil Finn Family Travelling Jamboree or something. There's a reason most of this was just b-sides and demos that didn't make the cut for their albums.
Highlights: Private Universe [Acoustic Version], Anyone Can Tell, Recurring Dream
6/10

Afterglow - Sarah McLachlan
Two albums with the same name? I wonder how many times that is going to happen... and things sure have chilled out this morning! This is a solid album, but I can't help feel like it is trying to go somewhere and then just kind of doesn't. Like, she was trying to push her sound a little further on this and then they got scared and decided to stick with the classic mellow Sarah McLachlan sound. Or that is just purely her sound and these couple of tracks were just exceptions? I don't know. Solid album, nonetheless.
Highlights: Fallen, Stupid, Time
7/10

Afterglow [Deluxe Edition] - Crowded House
The Afterglow tour continues! I had expected this album would have been made obsolete by Crowded House releasing all their deluxe edition albums. Instead, they doubled-down and made it a deluxe edition as well - adding a bonus disc of demos and then three great songs from somewhere that almost make this worthwhile.
Highlights: Anthem, Instinct, Everything is Good For You
6/10

Aggression - Various Artists
I'm not sure who put this on iTunes, to be honest, because I thought the album would be called WWF Aggression? And also, it is spelled "Agression" in iTunes?? Anyways, I didn't purchase the whole thing - just the Run-DMC remix of the D-Generation X theme song. It's my theme song now.
10/10

Aladdin Sane - David Bowie
David Bowie was the man. But, I actually don't recall the last time I listened to this album! I know it's iconic and all that, but I've never thought this was Bowie's best work. Definitely some killer stuff, and the lyrics to Time are just brilliantly bizarre.
Highlights: Watch That Man, Cracked Actor, Time, Let's Spend the Night Together, The Jean Genie
7.5/10

Aladdin Sane [30th Anniversary Bonus Disc] - David Bowie
This is some singles versions and live songs. The version of All The Young Dudes here is definitely not the best version. John, I'm Only Dancing seems to be my jam today!
Highlights: John, I'm Only Dancing [Saxophone Version]
6.5/10

Album - Joan Jett & The Blackhearts
Ooooh yeah! I love Joan Jett so much - a true pioneer and just a total badass. This album came after the success of I Love Rock'n Roll and feels a lot more raw, more rough. More punk rock. Well, the original songs do; the cover songs are all much more polished, which seems to be a constant with Joan Jett. Many songs that are just insulting a dude or dudes, so if you were a guy around Jett at this time, you should feel bad. I'm not a fan of Star, Star, personally. Otherwise this has become my favourite Joan Jett album over the years. This album is also a reminder that I need to split out the bonus tracks from these Joan Jett albums, because Had Enough is a perfect album ender and the bonus tracks after kill the vibe (and go on way too long).
Highlights: Fake Friends, Everyday People, A Hundred Feet Away, Secret Love, Coney Island Whitefish, Had Enough
7.5/10 (I'd easily go to 8 without the bonus tracks)

"Albums" listened to so far: 17

2025 in 2025: Day 1

I'm still not convinced there are 2025, but hey - here we go!

ABBA - ABBA
Mamma Mia is a hell of a way to start this whole thing... ABBA's self-titled album is their third studio album and is just a barrel of good times like that opening song and SOS, which is probably one of all-time favourite ABBA songs. The deep cuts here are also pretty freaking great. Man in the Middle is so dang funky. Particularly the lyrics about a 50 year-old dude dating a 17 year-old... I disliked Rock Me when I was younger and first discovered ABBA. However, once I finally joined an ABBA tribute band and was required to do a bit more of a deep-dive on their catalogue, it really grew on. But, man, did I used to shred my voice screaming it! You know, I don't often miss performing live, but ABBA really do that for me. Genuinely one of the greatest pop bands of all-time. And this album at 4am just hits hard! First album in and already I wish I could stop and just listen to ABBA all day...
Highlights: Mamma Mia, SOS, Rock Me, So Long 
8.5/10

Abbey Road - The Beatles
From one brilliant pop act to another! And my favourite album, to boot! This is just perfection after perfection. Even Maxwell's Silver Hammer isn't actually that bad! I'll never understand why that song gets so much hate, yet Beatles fans are totally fine with the other trite Paul McCartney wrote. Anyways, I'm not going to get bogged down in hating, because it's followed by one of McCartney's shining moments and then Harrison hits us with some of his grooviest lead work ever. Then Lennon gets his prog going - I do kinda miss how much this song completely distorted on the old master. And I failed at picking the ending again - couldn't tell if that was the ending or if my headphones had cut out. And taking a bunch of half-finished songs and making that medley may well be one McCartney's finest moments. OK, yes, now I understand; if not for Maxwell and his silver hammer of silly, this would be the most perfect album in the history of history.
Highlights: George Harrison's lead guitar work, The awesome ending to She's So Heavy, The Medley
9.999/10

Ace Frehley - Ace Frehley
Ace's first solo album! I don't have much to add to my initial review, except that Anton Fig is an underappreciated drummer.
Highlights: Ace being Ace.
10/10

Acoustic EP - Charlton Hill
Well, here is something I haven't listened to in a VERY long time! I met Charlton Hill and his guitarist in probably my first week living in Melbourne, so thought I should do the supportive thing and buy his album - and this was a bonus disc that came with it. I'm pretty sure they're all just acoustic versions of songs on the album. I wonder what those dudes are doing now...
Highlights: Not a lot...
5/10

Acoustic Hits - The Cure
The acoustic version of The Cure's greatest hits. Man, I was having so much fun until all this acoustic stuff kicked in - too early in the morning for so much chilling out! Admittedly, I have not actually listened to this CD all that much. Turns out, this is kind of fun, too. I'm not crazy-tied to some of their random 80s singles, so hearing them in this fashion is at least interesting to me. And by the time In Between Days comes on, I'm thinking this may be a totally good vibe; no keyboard brass on Why Can't I Be You, fun acoustic percussion on everything, zero electronic noise on Wrong Number. It's The Cure's hit singles - there is nothing bad going on here.
Highlights: The use of Xylophone.
7.5/10

Active Duty - MC Hammer
It's Hammer! And he's bringing his crew of bad singers with super patriotic pro-USA, pro-war, SUPER pro-church lyrics . Watch out, terrorists!  Hammer's coming to getcha! USA! USA! On the whole, the album has great beats and the flow is tight; it's just the lyrics are mostly stupid. And it did not need to be 80 minutes long. Fun fact; one afternoon I was listening to this album (by choice, even) and decided to tweet MC Hammer to let him know. He replied with a fist bump. That was a great moment in life and I will give the album a pass for that reason.
Highlights: Hammer telling terrorists they gonna get some.
5/10

Actor - 緑黄色社会
Bah gawd this intro is phenomenal! There was no way the rest of the album could live up to it - and it does not. The thing about 緑黄色社会, is that their initial independent releases were so fantastic, they quickly became one of those bands that I just immediately buy anything from. Then they signed with a major label and with each subsequent release, their work just got less interesting. And this, their third album and second major label album, captures that completely. It isn't bad - I'm not sure they're capable of creating bad - but everything just sounds the same and provides me with no real emotional connection. And so this was the album where I tapped out. But hey, their popularity has only increased so hopefully they're making bank now. Good for them.
Highlights: Actor (Opening Track - not the whole album. Or even someone that goes by that for their occupation. Except maybe Tom Cruise. That would be a highlight, for sure!)
6/10

Ænima - Tool
Wow. Talk about a blast from the past... Tool were my favourite band in 1996/97 and this was probably one of those 'day one' albums for me. No doubt my friends and I listened to it a lot in 1997. And now, if not for this marathon, I would probably never choose to put on a Tool song under any circumstances. In fact, I just checked and not only do all my Tool tracks have 0 plays, they have 3 skips. All that said, listening to this does kinda make me want to pick up a guitar and jam along a little. Because Eulogy features a whole bunch of great riffs. Hooker With a Penis is more fun than I remember. But even 16 year-old LOGMAN had no interest in a bunch of transitions that range from windscreen wipers to a baby screaming and thunder. The German recipe still slaps, though.
Highlights: Stinkfist, Eulogy, The big meaty ending to Forty-Six & 2.
5/10

Albums Listened to So Far: 8

Plans Change!

Lockdown had me halt the Motley Crue marathon after day 2, because I don't need to be stuck with headphones on all the time at home like at an office. Which is good, because it wasn't an entertaining read. 

A month later and I was powering through 1990 WCW when it dawned on me; I've now passed the UWF timeline! And after some deep soul searching, I accepted my fate is to now include UWF in my viewing order. It would have been great if I had worked this out a couple of weeks ago when I was watching October and November WCW, because it might have been fun to include a little 'which show was worse' thing for each week... but instead, I will now watch 2 months of UWF to get up to the same point in time as WCW.

YAY ME

WrestleMania March Madness, Day Two: WrestleMania II

7 April 1986
Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum
Uniondale, New York - USA
Rosemont Horizon
Rosemont, Illinois - USA
Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena
Los Angeles, California - USA

Attendance: 40,085 (combined)

Commentators:
New York - Vince McMahon & Susan Saint James
Chicago - Gorilla Monsoon, 'Mean' Gene Okerlund & Cathy Lee Crosby
Los Angeles - Jesse Ventura, Lord Alfred Hayes & Elvira 

My thoughts before this viewing:
I think I first saw this show when i was about 8. I say "I think" because I totally remember seeing a steel cage match between Hulk Hogan and King Kong Bundy but almost nothing else from this show. So maybe I didn't see the whole show? I watched it again a few years ago and it was OK - nothing special. So let's see how it rocks tonight. However, I am quite tired so it will need to be fun to make an impression...

Opening Video Package
We get some sexy saxophone music and quick little title card to tell us we are in New York. Talk about non-event...

America the Beautiful
No more national anthem, but Ray Charles is here to sing America the Beautiful. And he kills it because he is Ray Charles. Though over the song is lots of war footage. OK... And we end with a picture of Hulk Hogan looking heroic, because he represents truth, justice, and the American way!
6/10

'Mean' Gene says hi from Chicago, then sends us back to New York.
Pointless. Even more pointless? Adding this in here...

Backstage
'Rowdy' Roddy Piper cuts a promo about how much he is going to destroy Mr. T in a boxing match. He didn't say Apollo Creed was his boxing coach, so I'm not sure I believe him.
8/10

Opening Match
'Mr. Wonderful' Paul Orndorff vs The Magnificent Muraco (w/Mr. Fuji)
Instead of backstage promos, we get voice overs from the wrestlers while the match starts.
Orndorff gets racist at Fuji and Susan hits us with our first "uh-oh" of the evening. They will form the basis of her commentary tonight.
They brawl outside and the bell rings - looks like the match was thrown out but no one seems to know what the hell just happend - there is no announcement and the officials all just talk amongst themselves for a day.
Double Countout?
3/10

Total "uh-oh" count for the match = 4

The crowd chants "Bullshit!"
Great way to start the show!

Backstage
Mr. T is getting ready to talk with his fists
10/10

Macho Man cuts a promo about madness. He has that in spades.
8/10

WWF Intercontinental Heavyweight Championship
George 'the Animal' Steele vs 'Macho Man' Randy Savage (c) (w/Miss Elizabeth)
Susan thinks that Elizabeth should be dating Steele instead of Macho Man, so clearly she is either blind or has a mental disorder. Proving my point, Steele runs around the ring like he is impersonating Zoidberg.

Apparently, flowers are not an international object so both men decide to beat each other with them at will. Both Susan and Vince claim that Steele has great respect for women. Interesting... constantly making creepy romantic advances towards a woman that has made it abundantly clear she is not interested? I call that stalking
Winner = Randy Savage via pinfall with feet on the ropes
5/10

Total "uh-oh" count for the match = 19
Susan was on fire. And she didn't stop once the match was over - she still had plenty left in the tank.

Back to Chicago
'Mean' Gene is talking with Big John Studd and Bill Fralic - an American footballer. Studd is very annoyed about him so Fralic calls him "Dud". Burn!
2/10

George Wells vs Jake 'the Snake' Roberts
Vince doesn't believe Jake has a snake in his bag. Good to know you obviously don't bother to watch your own show, Vince. This is like a one-sided squash... until Jake reverses something and wins.
Winner = Jake 'the Snake' Roberts via pinfall following DDT
2/10

Total "uh-oh" count for the match = 6

Jake pulls out his snake while the "uh-oh"s rain down from Susan. In a moment that just sums up this show, Jake is doing his best to make it look like the snake is trying to kill George, but it clearly just wants to walk around the ring and chill out.

Vince and Susan are actually just sitting on some chairs and watching the show like they are on Donahue.

History of the feud between Mr. T and 'Rowdy' Roddy Piper.
Mr. T pities Piper - nothing else matters.
6/10

Backstage in Los Angeles
Jesse Ventura talks to Hulk. They go back and forth and it is all kinds of awesome.
8/10

New York Main Event
10 Round Boxing Match
Mr. T (w/Joe Frazier & The Haiti Kid) vs 'Rowdy' Roddy Piper (w/Bob Orton & Lou Duva)
Guest Ring Announcer: Joan Rivers
Guest Judges: Darryl Dawkins, Cab Calloway & G. Gordon Liddy
Guest Timekeeper: Herb

Cab Calloway is cool and I at least know who Joan Rivers is, but those other guys? You may as well have grabbed a few guys from the local Burger King and sent them out there for all I care

Mr. T looks about twice the size he did last year - I'm guessing he has changed his diet to more than just tuna and water. First round is even. Second round and Piper beats up Mr. T and knocks him down - what complete horseshit! Mr. T must be lulling him into a false sense of security. Round three starts and Mr. T proves me right by beating the snot out of Piper - even punches him out of the ring like Clubber Lang should have done to Rocky. Piper throws his stool at Mr. T to start round 4 and after getting punched in the face too many times, hits the ref and then bodyslams Mr. T to officially launch the first MMA fight.
Winner = Mr. T via disqualification
6/10

Total "uh-oh" count for the match = 17

They announce Mr. T as the winner and the crowd boos.
Fuck you, crowd.
Pretty sure this makes Mr. T the first UFC champion in history.

INTERMISSION

Shill for WrestleMania II merch. The t-shirt is actually cheaper this year - but no poster this time. Music is lame and does not inspire me to purchase goodies.

Vince sends us to Gorilla and 'Mean' Gene in Chicago. They have to share one microphone between them and take turns holding it - gotta love those budget cuts, right guys? Cathy Lee Crosby looks like she just came from Battlestar Galactica.

WWF Women's Championship
Velvet McIntyre vs The Fabulous Moolah (c)
This time the graphic says "Ladies Championship" but the announcer says "Women's championship". One day the WWF will figure out what they want to call this division. Velvet is not wearing shoes and almost falls out of her top when she misses a move, which means Moolah wins?
Winner = The Fabulous Moolah via pinfall following Velvet McIntyre missing a cross body block
2/10

Cathy refuses to mess up her hair by wearing the broadcast headset.

Flag Match
Corporal Kirchner vs Nikolai Volkoff (w/'Classy' Freddie Blassie)
Someone show Blassie a documentary about Charlie Chaplin so he can understand what happens to commie sympathisers in Hollywood...
Kirchner gets Blassie's walking cane and hits Volkoff to get the pin.
Winner = Corporal Kirchner via pinfall following international object
That means he gets to take home the Russian flag... but then forgets to take it - which Gorilla covers for by saying he doesn't want it.
Yawn.
2/10

20-Man Battle Royal - WWF vs NFL
Guest Timekeeper: Clara Peller (the "Where's the beef?" old lady)
Guest referee: Dick Butkus. What a funny name!

Lots of American football players. Lots. Shame I care nothing about American football.
But there is Bret Hart. BRET HART! How dare you boo the Hitman, Chicago! Bunch of savages...
And there is Bruno Sammartino! Why in the blue hell is Bruno here and not at the New York show? Good to know Vince McMahon was a complete dick back then as well.
Andre is just HUGE compared to everyone else in this match. Expect maybe Dan Spivey - he looks even bigger than Big John Studd. Perhaps Andre and Spivey should have done another slam challenge match instead? Bruno is looking short and slow... but then he beats up Studd like his is still a spritely 40 year-old man before being eliminated. Bruno and Bret should have just cleared the ring and had a 20 minute match refereed by Jet Li so the world could implode from the awesome. So much awesome.
Eventually it comes down to Andre the Giant against The Hart Foundation. As awesome as The Hart Foundation are, it is getting close to time for Andre's 3rd dinner so he throws them out and heads backstage to eat a bear.
5/10

Bret probably felt sorry for him and let him win...

Back to Vince and Susan
With 'Rowdy' Roddy Piper, who claims that Mr. T cheated by attacking him with his mohawk. Liar! Then he claims he was out-boxing Mr. T - double liar! Surprisingly, no "uh-oh"s from Susan.
8/10

Back to Chicago
'Mean' Gene is with some NFL guy - he is crying about someone cheating. Fuck off, you jock-douchebag. Here comes The Iron Sheik to talk jibberish and remind us that Iran and Russia are both number one because Highlander came out a month ago and Freddie Blassie is obviously ashamed to take this guy to the movies.
1/10

Chicago Main Event
WWF Tag Team Championship
The British Bulldogs (w/Capt. Lou Albano & Ozzy Osbourne) vs The Dream Team (c) (w/Johnny Valiant)
Ozzy Osbourne looks EXACTLY like Nigel Tufnel from Spinal Tap:

Gorilla and Gene discuss where Lord Alfred Hayes comes from in England because that relates to everything in this match.
Brutus Beefcake is still the man and totally wasted in this spot - he should be main eventing every show with that jacket of his.

Holy shit the Bulldogs are all kinds of awesome! This makes me want to watch some of their matches against The Hart Foundation.
Greg Valentine's head collides with The Dynamite Kid's head and is out.
Winners = The British Bulldogs via pinfall following head collision
New champions!
8/10

Ozzy holds up the belt and celebrates with Capt. Lou like Spinal Tap just won the titles themselves, while the Bulldogs are selling death outside the ring. Hilarious.

Back to Vince and Susan in New York
Vince tries hard to play up the challenge Hulk Hogan faces tonight. Susan just goes 'Yay Hulk!'
2/10

INTERMISSION AGAIN
Buy this t-shirt, dammit!

Now to Los Angeles with Jesse Ventura, our hero from last year Lord Alfred Hayes, and Elvira!
This is the best commentary team by a mile. And Jesse is still the best dressed man in the WWF.

Ricky 'the Dragon' Steamboat vs Hercules Hernandez
Elvira calls Steamboat a wimp - I guess Jesse has found a kindred spirit.
I zoned out and Steamboat won.
I may need some Pepsi.
Where's my sponsorship, yo?
Winner = Ricky 'the Dragon' Steamboat via pinfall following top rope cross body block
3/10

We cut to Jesse and he questions the director about the cue.
Then the Hulk Hogan/Lord Alfred Hayes video gets all kind of screwed up.
Live TV is a bitch, huh?
7/10 for the hilarity
 
Uncle Elmer vs 'Adorable' Adrian Adonis (w/Jimmy Hart)
Adonis' boobs are almost bigger than Elvira's, who says she does not trust a man with pink leg-warmers.
Winner = 'Adorable' Adrian Adonis via pinfall following top rope headbutt
2/10

WWF play LET'S TRY THIS AGAIN
Pre-recorded promo featuring Hulk Hogan and Lord Alfred Hayes. His Lordship talks shit to Hulk about his injuries, so Hulk tells him who the champ is.
7/10

Tito Santana & Junkyard Dog vs Terry & Hoss Funk (w/Jimmy Hart)
Elvira gets excited at the thought that someone might have a wardrobe malfunction. She also has a thing for Tito, which upsets Jesse.
Match swings from old school match to wild brawl before Terry Funk hits JYD with the Jimmy Hart's megaphone for the pin.
Winners = Terry & Hoss Funk via pinfall following assault with a megaphone
4/10

The chants of "Bullshit!" have now returned. He must be a popular wrestler in the WWF...

Time to build the cage. Jesse and Elvira kill time by making inappropriate jokes about dungeons in her home.

Recap of the Hulk Hogan/King Kong Bundy feud
Bundy attacked Hogan from behind and then gave him a million splashes, damaging Hogan's ribs and lower back. Hogan's doctor has told him not to go through with the match but Hulk has to defend his belt for all the Hulkamaniacs.
8/10

Backstage
Jesse with King Kong Bundy and Bobby Heenan. Bundy says he is sending Hogan to the hospital and will be the new champion - "Hulk Hogan doesn't have to like it!"
Why would he like you beating him up and taking his title?
Bobby Heenan is so awesome Jesse starts smiling.
8/10

Main Event
WWF World Heavyweight Championship
Hulk Hogan (c) vs King Kong Bundy (w/Bobby Heenan)
Guest Ring Announcer: Tommy Lasorda (WHO???)
Guest Timekeeper: Ricky Schroder
Guest Referee: Robert Conrad

Wow. Talk about a downgrade from the previous year. When Ricky Schroder is your biggest star, you know you got problems.

Hulk comes out to Real American and shakes the cage. That song would pump me up, too. Oh wait - it does! In fact, I think this was the only real song used all night.
Lord Alfred Hayes talks about Hulk having a great strategy while he gets choked out by Bundy - seems like a sound strategy, for sure!
Hogan goes for a body slam but Bundy is too fat. Being too fat is an underrated skill in pro-wrestling.
Bundy is bleeding which makes Elvira hungry.
Hogan 'hulks up' and slams Bundy! Then hits the mighty leg drop of doom and climbs out of the cage like a boss.
Winner = Hulk Hogan
5/10

Hulk then chases Heenan into the cage and beats him up for good measure. Because all good heroes should beat up smaller and weaker men.

Elvira tells Jesse if he can beat up Hulk she will go out with him. What a gold digger.

Back to Vince just so he can have the last word.
Fuck you and your ego, Vince.

Shill for the merch again to take us out...


Fuck this show.


WrestleMania II: The Awards

1. Best Match
   The British Bulldogs vs The Dream Team
   Not. Even. Close.
2. Worst Match
   Probably Corporal Kirchner vs Nikolai Volkoff
   But boy this was close.
3. Highlight of the Show
   Mr. T cutting a promo on 'Rowdy' Roddy Piper. That was pure gold.
4. Lowlight of the Show
   Every time the show went back to New York for pointless comments by Vince McMahon & Susan Saint James.
5. Star of the Show
   Hulk Hogan. His backstage segments were awesome. Honourable mention to Mr. T for being Mr. T. Bret Hart was too busy letting Andre win the battle royal to steal the show.
6. Best Celebrity Appearance
   Mr. T. Not even a competition this time.
7. Worst Celebrity Appearance
   I feel like Ozzy Osbourne achieved nothing except to try and take the tag team titles back to Spinal Tap. And no, I'm not giving up on that joke.
   The others can barely be called celebrities or had even less involvement than Ozzy.
8. Tonight's Meal
   Tonight's wrap was avocado, spinach, kale, cucumber, tomato, capsicum, red onion and alfalfa sprouts with vegetarian meatballs in a tomato and garlic sauce, topped with mustard. Delicious - will certainly be rocking that again. The Oatmeal Creme Pie is already feeling like I'm eating plastic, though I had one for each main event tonight so that could be why. I tried to stick with 7-Up to avoid caffeine but had to reach for a small hit of Pepsi Max when we hit the LA portion of the show.
9. T-Shirt Cleanliness
   Some serious stains hitting the shirt from the sauce and avocado.
10. Overall Score
    Not fun. Maybe I was just tired, but this show felt like a year-long collection of bad and boring matches. The constant ego stroking from Vince McMahon was annoying, Susan Saint James was 20 kinds of a awful, and the D-list celebrities just make everything seem worse. The production errors were kind of entertaining, though. And the promos/interviews were mostly awesome.
    4 out of 10
    
    
    

WrestleMania March Madness, Day One: WrestleMania

31 March 1985
Madison Square Garden
New York City, New York - USA
Attendance: 19,121

Commentators: Jesse Ventura and Gorilla Monsoon

My thoughts before this viewing:
I have actually only seen this event once before - and that first viewing was only about 4 years ago. Bizarre to think that someone so obsessed with pro-wrestling at various points in their life would have not seen the first WrestleMania until then. But it is what it is. I enjoyed it when I watched it, which was also a highly edited version - the edits annoyed me to no end. Hopefully this is just as enjoyable the second time around.

Opening Video Package
And I have already spilled some veges on my t-shirt...

Tiny montage the likes someone could make in MS Paint. I made something similar when I wanted a great Miami Vice desktop wallpaper and couldn't find anything out there that interested me. The background music for this is awesome. I didn't make anything like this for my Miami Vice desktop wallpaper, mainly because the music in Miami Vice was awesome. This theme would have fit in nicely on Miami Vice.

I could totally go for some Miami Vice after this.
What? I have to watch 30 more WrestleManias? Pretty sure the Miami Vice vibe would have passed by then - I won't bother getting my DVDs out of storage, then.
5/10

National Anthem Time
To get us under way, here is 'Mean' Gene Okerlund to sing the American national anthem. Accapella. And it is quite obvious he does not have perfect pitch. Or good timing. Unless he is actually trying to sing this as fast as possible to get it over and done with. I applaud your decision, Gene!
Jesse Ventura just compared him to Robert Goulet. I don't remember Gene Okerlund guesting on The Simpsons and Two Guys a Girl and a Pizza Place...
4/10

Lord Alfred Hayes looks petrified as he opens "Wrestling Mania".

Backstage
'Mean' Gene talks to Tito Santana who says he is going to win. This is followed by The Executioner who is awful and stumbles on all his lines. Apparently he wants to make it clear to Tito that he is a "big leaguer"
3/10

Opening Match

Tito Santana vs The Executioner
The Executioner is from Parts Unknown. His weight is unknown. His height is unknown. How the hell did this guy get a wrestling license if no one knows anything about him?
Jesse Ventura just compared WrestleMania to Woodstock. Sure, I guess - Woodstock was all about peace and love, while WrestleMania is all about beating each other up. Totally the same. And where are all the naked hippies?
The crowd is super excited here. Like, really excited. It is fun.
Winner = Tito Santana via figure 4 leglock
Simple fun match.
6/10

You know that video of that little fat kid on camera who just looks like he is super happy but crapping his pants at the same time? Well, imagine that with an old guy and you have Lord Alfred Hayes as he hangs out around the entrance to the arena.

Backstage
'Mean' Gene with Special Delivery (S.D.) Jones. Funky black dudes always win the promo wars. Then King Kong Bundy comes in and yells a lot about squashing him
7/10

SD Jones vs King Kong Bundy (w/Jimmy Hart)
Bundy is billed at 458 pounds but the announcers aren't buying it - they think he's closer to 500!
I think maybe 200 instead, but I'm not exactly an expert.
Bundy won with a splash before I could even think of that joke. That's why it is so unfunny.
Winner = King Kong Bundy via pinfall following big splash
3/10

Now Gorilla thinks Bundy weighs over 500 pounds. Bundy must have consumed SD Jones' soul when he beat him. Or perhaps the 'Special Delivery' means he brought pizza for everyone. Except Bundy ate them all. Selfish jerk

Lord Alfred Hayes returns to give himself a heart attack.

Backstage
'Mean' Gene with Matt Borne who can't stop pointing. Must be his gimmick. Ricky Steamboat then comes out and cuts a promo featuring the first 'brother' of the night.
4/10

Ricky Steamboat vs Matt Borne
Glorified squash match. Minus the glory.
Winner = Ricky Steamboat via pinfall following cross body block off the top rope
5/10

Back to Lord Alfred Hayes. I just realised he is holding a WrestleMania programme and is shaking like a washing machine on extra spin.
Brutus Beefcake just walked past and yelled at him for being in his way. Brutus Beefcake is awesome.

Backstage
'Mean' Gene with David Sammartino and his father, Bruno Sammartino. Bruno is fucking awesome even in a faded mustard jacket that Vince McMahon obviously made him wear "Here, Bruno I'm not appearing on the show tonight so I wouldn't want wrestling fans to think our broadcasters have any sense of style."
'Luscious' Johnny Valiant talks for Brutus which is stupid because Brutus is awesome. Gene tells them all to shut up and leave.
3/10

David Sammartino (w/Bruno Sammartino) vs Brutus Beefcake (w/Luscious Johnny Valiant)
Beefcake and Valiant have changed outfits since their interview. So has Bruno. In fact, Bruno is wearing such an old man jumper that it looks like he just came from reading the newspaper in Central Park after losing a game of chess to a wise old Chinese man. Bruno wouldn't take that crap and bodyslammed the old Chinese dude into a retirement home, hence the relaxing with a newspaper before heading to WrestleMania and winding down by beating up some bad guys.

David Sammartino is wider than a really wide thing. His shortness only helps to accentuate it.
Beefcake is on all fours and Jesse mentions the crowd are getting a good view...
Bad guys cheat and Bruno doesn't stand for that so he beats them up, which leads to the match being thrown out.
OK back and forth match, but really just an excuse to get Bruno on the show.
As well he should be.
Double disqualification
5/10

Back to Lord Alfred Hayes and Jimmy Hart just laughs at him. I do too.

Backstage
'Mean' Gene talks to Greg 'the Hammer' Valentine and Jimmy Hart. They say nothing and leave. Junkyard Dog comes in and says nothing. Well, nothing I can understand - except he wants a bone...
1/10

WWF Inter-Continental Heavyweight Championship
Junkyard Dog vs Greg 'the Hammer' Valentine (c) (w/Jimmy Hart)

JYD comes out to Another One Bites the Dust so he is immediately the best person in the match. Then he wrestles and undoes all the goodwill that song gave him.
Gorilla confuses a punch for a headbutt. They are very similar; sometimes, I like to wear hats on my fists just to confuse people. Then when they talk to my hand, they think I am a ventriloquist when I talk back. Great times. Unlike this match, which is shit.
I just noticed the referee is wearing his pants up to his armpits - what a nerd.
And I think Jesse just said something about victory smelling like dog food...
Winner = Greg 'the Hammer' Valentine via cheating pinfall with feet on the ropes
1/10

Tito Santana comes to tell the ref he sucks. The ref agrees and orders the match to continue, so Valentine just refuses to get in the ring and is counted out.
Winner = Junkyard Dog via countout
Which doesn't mean shit because the belt doesn't change hands on a countout.
Fuck you.
-2/10

I can't tell if the crowd is chanting "Tito" or "Cheater"
Either chant is just as lame as the other.

Back to Lord Alfred Hayes with a great line: "Both these teams have pointed opinions. Let's us hear some more about these opinions they had to express"

Backstage
'Mean' Gene with the The Iron Sheik, Nikolai Volkoff and 'Classy' Freddie Blassie. The Iron Sheik's moustache is fantastic! His promo skills are not.
In comes Captain Lou Albano with Mike Rotundo and Barry Windham. The fish hooks hanging from Albano's face distract from everything.
2/10

WWF Tag-Team Championship
Barry Windham & Mike Rotundo (c) (w/Capt. Lou Albano) vs The Iron Sheik & Nikolai Volkoff (w/'Classy' Freddie Blassie)
Blassie is from Hollywood, so why is he hanging out with a bunch of commies? Doesn't he know that is the stuff that gets you banned from Hollywood?
The Iron Sheik says Iran is #1. And Russia is #1. His math is shit.
The good guys come out to Born in the USA - hilarious how much the lyrics don't actually fit with the theme of this match...
Sheik hits Windham from behind with a candy cane or something, which leads to Volkoff getting the pin
Winners = The Iron Sheik & Nikolai Volkoff via assault with international object
New champions!
5/10

The Iron Sheik grabs a mic and reiterates his lack of understanding of how rankings work. The crowd boos because they have all been to next year and have seen Highlander, so they know there can be only one. Then they go forward another 6 years and see Highlander II: The Quickening, so they have even more to boo about.

Backstage
Straight to 'Mean' Gene - have they quit on Lord Alfred Hayes already?
He questions the bad guys but then decides its back to ringside when they start answering.
1/10

Gorilla is mad about the title change.
I'm mad because it is back to Lord Alfred Hayes and his inability to not fuck up his lines:
"John Studd says I am the only true champion giant and the Andre the Giant says I am the giant!"

And yes, he really did say "the Andre the Giant".

Backstage
'Mean' Gene is with Big John Studd and Bobby Heenan showing off a bag of money. Remember when $15,000 was a lot of money? Still a lot of money to me. That's because I am poor.
7/10

Shill for WrestleMania merch. $8 for a Mr. T & Hulk Hogan poster? Send me three!
I don't need the t-shirt though because I printed my own.
I told you I am poor.
5/10 for the funky background music.

INTERMISSION

$15,000 Slam Match
Andre the Giant vs Big John Studd (w/Bobby Heenan)
If Andre wins, he gets a bag of money. If Andre can't slam Studd, Andre has to retire.
I'm all for matches like this where you have two huge dudes facing off. Except when in the ring with the Giant, Studd looks like me standing next to Arnold Schwarzenegger. Apparently Andre wears a size 23 shoe. Then it changes to a size 24. Last time I checked my shoes were a 44 so my dick must be twice as big as Andre's.
My math is better than The Iron Sheik's.
Studd tries to slam Andre but fails. Silly Studd doesn't realise this isn't WrestleMania III and he isn't Hulk Hogan. Andre slams Studd and wins the money, throwing it into the crowd. So Bobby Heenan sneaks in and steals the money back before running to the back with Studd.
Winner = Andre the Giant via bodyslam
Good fun!
6/10

Backstage
'Mean' Gene with Andre - once again they cut back when he starts talking. Why bother with these segments if you don't want to hear the answers?
1/10

Lord Alfred Hayes continues his bumbling. The Fabulous Moolah kisses him on the cheek and he freaks out at a woman being near him.

Backstage
'Mean' Gene with Wendi Richter and Cyndi Lauper - Lauper just talks all sorts of trash because she is cool. Moolah and Leilani Kai say they will win but Gene asks them not to cheat.
Silly Gene...
6/10

WWF Women's Championship
Wendi Richter (w/Cyndi Lauper) vs Leilani Kai (c) (w/ The Fabulous Moolah)
The Fink says "Ladies championship" but the graphics say "Women's championship". Good to know WWF didn't know what they were doing 30 years ago.
Richter & Lauper come out to Girls Just Wanna Have Fun.
25 year-old Logman would totally party with 1985 Cyndi Lauper - she is awesome.

Wow - she is actually 31 here! I'm not sure if she is 31 year-old Logman's type...
Compared to everything else on this show so far, this match is like Bret Hart vs Sting. I'm going to go out on a limb and say this will be the best women's match I see in all 31 WrestleManias.
Winner = Windi Richter via reversal of crossbody block by Kai into a pin
New champion! And the crowd is going bananas!
7/10

Backstage
'Mean' Gene with Wendi and Cyndi. They are partying and very happy - Gene doesn't know what to do.
4/10

MAIN EVENT
Hulk Hogan & Mr. T (w/'Superfly' Jimmy Snuka) vs 'Rowdy' Roddy Piper & 'Mr. Wonderful' Paul Orndorff (w/'Cowboy' Bob Orton)
Guest Ring Announcer: Billy Martin. Apparently, he means something. Bring back Cyndi!
Guest Time Keeper: Liberace. He comes out with The Rockettes - they do the 'can can' to New York, New York. He has dressed pretty tame for Liberace.
Guest Referee: Muhammad Ali. Except you can't hear the announcement over the fans chanting "Ali! Ali". Because it is freekin' Muhammad Ali!

A full Scottish pipeband lead out the bad guys.
Eye of the Tiger brings out the Hulkster and Mr. T!

According to Gorilla, Mr. T has been living off tuna and water for the past 3 weeks in preparation for this match. So he will probably run out of energy as soon as he actually does anything.

Lots of brawling. Mr. T beats up some people and the crowd goes nuts. Hogan beats up some people and the crowd goes nuts. Piper and Orndorff cheat a lot against Hogan and the crowd boos. After getting a serious beatdown, Hogan finally tags in Mr. T who only stays in the ring for about a minute before tagging back in Hogan - I guess 30 seconds is plenty of time to recover from a beatdown, because now he is unstoppable! Which leads to more cheating and more brawling.
Piper and Orndorff double-team Hogan, so Mr. T runs in and takes out Piper. Then Orton tries to interfere but it backfires and he takes out Orndorff instead which gets Hogan the pin.
This was MAYHEM!
Winners = Hulk Hogan & Mr. T via pinfall following Orton hitting Orndorff
8/10

The bad guys run away but leave Orndorff behind. The good guys celebrate.

Backstage
'Mean' Gene talks with the good guys backstage. Mr. T cuts a Mr. T promo on the bad guys. Hogan does Hogan. Snuka makes no sense. He should stick to getting away with murder - he is much better at that.
7/10

Holy shit - Jesse Ventura is wearing the greatest outfit on the planet!

Cue ending music - Axel F. Just so you are reminded this is 1985 and life is good.
What? It's 2015 and life is not good?
Fuck you, I have 30 more WrestleManias to watch. My life is awesome.


WrestleMania: The Awards

1. Best Match
   Hulk Hogan & Mr. T vs 'Rowdy' Roddy Piper & 'Mr. Wonderful' Paul Orndorff
   Other than the women's match, it wasn't even close
2. Worst Match
   Junkyard Dog vs Greg 'the Hammer' Valentine
   It had competition, but that was garbage.
3. Highlight of the Show
   Hulk Hogan and Mr. T celebrating. It's Hulk Hogan. And Mr. T!
4. Lowlight of the Show
   Probably the JYD/Valentine match. And every segment featuring Lord Alfred Hayes
5. Star of the Show
   Hulk Hogan, because he got the pin in the main event. Mr. T was pretty close behind, though. The "T" chants were huge.
6. Best Celebrity Appearance
   Mr. T. Duh - did you expect me to mention anyone else?
7. Worst Celebrity Appearance
   Librace. Only because I don't class Billy Martin as any sort of celebrity.
8. Tonight's Meal
   Tonight's wrap was spinach, kale, cucumber, tomato, capsicum, red onion and alfalfa sprouts with basil pesto.Very simple and clean but could probably have used some type of dressing, like maybe honey mustard. The Oatmeal Creme Pie was just right to finish it off and didn't kill me. Pepsi Max helped quench my thirst and keep me awake.
9. T-Shirt Cleanliness
   Still good - only gained a couple of small stains.
10. Overall Score
    Good fun show - is a great example of how fun pro-wrestling was in 1985. Plus Mr. T beats up some dudes. Not as awesomely as he does in The A-Team, but it is still Mr. T beating up dudes. A few celebrities, and average meal and some laughs at the complete awkward that is Lord Alfred Hayes make for an enjoyable show.
    6 out of 10
    

Two Important Pre-Marathon Notes

1. Official foods are locked in:

•  Main meal = wraps. Recipe will change each night, but will always be filled with a variety of salads and vegetables. Because Dujour means good health. And Dujour means tasty wraps.
• Additional snacks = carrot sticks with dip. Dujour means friendship.
• Tasty beverage = something from the Pepsi family. It's the choice of a new generation.
• Main Event Treat = the most ridiculous cookies I could find from the American food store:

• Little Debbie. Oatmeal Cookies. Fake plastic creme. Not sure this could be anymore American. Hopefully one a day won't kill me.

2. The t-shirt is done. And it looks pretty cool

At least, pretty cool for only costing me about the same as footlong from Subway.
It won't look like that in 31 days.

Onwards to the madness of WrestleMania!

Return of the WrestleManiaMania

Hey, remember this?

Another of Logman's failed plans

Yes, that goes on the pile with posting about Kissathon, watching every episode of Gundam and finishing my first album. Except it is a bit different; I did actually listen to Kissathon but didn't post about it, I have every episode of Gundam but am yet to make room for it with all the Lucha Libre and watching Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles again, and I actually did finish my first album! It's just that the finished quality was crap so I trashed the whole thing.

Well, no I didn't. It was my laptop getting stolen and that trashed my work. Stupid thieves. Though the quality was crap. Everything recorded with the mic sounded terrible.

So as I approach another birthday, I can't help but feel like I have a lot of unfinished business here. Perhaps this is why I am still alive?

I don't know, but I'm thinking that WrestleManiaMania may be able to take place but in an even crazier way. You see, this year is WrestleMania 31. There are 31 days in March - get the idea already?

There are so many obstacles here; no holidays whatsoever so I would have to watch every show after work  - including the ones that go over 4 hours, plus Monday and Friday nights already have their designated shows so that would make the show go even longer. And since Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Lucha Underground already have their own designated meals, I have no idea what that means for WrestleMania meals. Would it just be snacks? Would it be full meals and I would just have to get even fatter? Would I go insane from the lack of sleep and overload of terrible pro-wrestling?

That's kinda the fun.

So let's do this.
Seriously, I have the WrestleManias.
I just need to think of a cool name for this...

WrestleMarchia? WrestleMonthia? Godzilla vs WrestleMania?

Holy shit I need to watch my Godzilla movies too...