The Superlink Party: We Don’t Deserve Johnny Gargano vs. Tommaso Ciampa

In today’s edition of “The Superlink Party”, we take a look at some of NXT’s biggest storylines, with a special focus on Johnny Gargano vs. Tommaso Ciampa. There are also some notes on Hulk Hogan and Rey Mysterio.

Let’s start with Johnny Gargano and Tommaso Ciampa. I can’t remember the last time I’ve been this emotionally invested in a WWE feud since CM Punk vs. John Cena. Like, Dolph Ziggler vs. The Miz, Sasha Banks vs. Bayley, and, Kevin Owens vs. Sami Zayn, and Chris Jericho vs. Kevin Owens have all been tremendous feuds, but there’s something special about Gargano/Ciampa.

Maybe it’s because I love Gargano with all of my heart. And I hate Ciampa with every fiber of my being. Maybe it’s because these are two of the best wrestlers in the world, and I know that these two former tag team partners are capable of putting together an all-timer without even accounting for the massive crowd reactions they will get.

On the latest episode of NXT, Ciampa finally spoke after weeks of coming out and getting drowned by boos. He lashed out at the fans, bellowing that Gargano is “gone”. Ciampa confronted the NXT Universe, ripping up signs, wiping them up on his ass, and intimidating any fan he locked eyes with. That is, every fan except for one.

Gargano hid behind a sign and a mask, and he got a couple of good shots on Ciampa before being thrown out by security.

When this match happens at NXT TakeOver: New Orleans, it’ll be WWE’s first match to break Dave Meltzer’s scale, and the emotions will make the five-star classic that was Gargano vs. Almas look like a thing of the past.

I mean, when a feud gives you GIFs like the one below…

Please Don’t Bring Back Hogan

Yesterday, PWInsider.com’s Mike Johnson reported that there are “conversations” backstage that could lead to Hulk Hogan returning to WWE, and Johnson added that these conversations are said to have taken place “several weeks ago”.

I can’t see this benefiting the WWE. While Hogan is one of the most recognizable stars in the history of professional wrestling, he isn’t well-liked anymore. His racist comments still stand out as the first thing many of us think about when his name comes up, and regardless of what the likes of Diamond Dallas Page say in Hogan’s defense, it’s hard to be forgiving.

Hogan’s reputation as a backstage politicker also doesn’t appeal to WWE fans these days, and many of them are willing to let the past stay in the past. Nostalgia does matter to some extent, but Hogan isn’t one of the wrestlers who conjures up feelings of nostalgia in the fan base.

WWE likes to patch up relationships with superstars they’ve cut ties with, and as evidenced by the way they’ve honored Fabulous Moolah and the Ultimate Warrior, they are more than happy with rewriting the histories of a wrestler in order to derive some sort of financial benefit.

In the case of the Fabulous Moolah Battle Royal, the fans weren’t buying it, and they pressured Snickers into forcing WWE to change the name. If the WWE gets serious about bringing Hogan back, we can expect similarly strong backlash.

It’s worth noting that Mark Henry, who will be inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame this year and is an important voice backstage, told TMZ that Hogan can return to WWE if he apologizes to every black wrestler in the company.

Notice how there are several people affiliated with WWE talking to TMZ about Hogan, and notice how they are not strongly negative with their thoughts on Hogan. I wouldn’t be surprised if this is an indication that WWE really wants to bring Hogan back into the fold and wanted to quietly sway public opinion in the background by using the clout of their legends.

Either way, I have no interest in seeing Hogan on my screen or even as an ambassador. I respect everything he’s done for professional wrestling, but I don’t respect his views, nor do I think he’s done enough to earn our forgiveness. At the end of the day, we will see how the fans react, because the voice of the collective will have the ultimate say here.

One Of The Best Episodes Of NXT

If you missed this week’s episode of NXT, do yourself a favor and go watch it. Not only did it have an amazing confrontation between Gargano and Ciampa, but there were two matches that are well worth a close look.

Roderick Strong’s partner in the Dusty Rhodes Classic is indeed Pete Dunne, and the two were just as connected in the ring together as their opponents, Oney Lorcan and Danny Burch. This match was hard-hitting and an orgasmically good example of how pro wrestling can be hella entertaining by just being a bunch of dudes beating the crap out of each other with no frills. Watch it. You won’t regret it.

Adam Cole and Kassius Ohno faced off in the main event, and this was the best match of Ohno’s run on the NXT roster. Cole has a way of making everything he touches turn to gold, and you’ll go crazy the first time you see him pick up Ohno for a vertical suplex into a neckbreaker.

I have no idea how NXT always manages to deliver each and every week, but even with 205 Live hot on its heels, NXT remains the best wrestling show in the world today.

Sasha Banks Has Great Taste

I don’t know if Sasha is pulling a Bayley here by posting an image of a song to Twitter as some sort of subliminal message about her current feud or character, but even if there’s no hidden meaning, it was still great to see her giving a nod to the old SmackDown theme “I Want It All”. I mean, I can just picture the sweat dripping off of Kurt Angle’s face in the video at the mere mention of the song title. And yes, this is the best TV theme in WWE history, with all due respect to Shinedown and Papa Roach.

Massive Tenille Match

Tenille Dashwood has been making the rounds ever since she made her first appearance at ROH’s Honor Reigns Supreme, and she is already the brand’s biggest female star. She’s also been busy outside of the ROH umbrella, and she’s currently announced for a match that will be her biggest outside of WWE to date.

Yes, this absolutely qualifies as a dream match, and, yes, I will do whatever I can to make sure I watch this at some point. These two are going to put on a show both in terms of in-ring work and in terms of shownmanship, because few are better at playing to the crowd than Tenille and Storm.

Here’s How WWE Will Approach Things With Daniel Bryan

The WWE decided to clear Daniel Bryan after months of hesitation, and all parties involved have made it clear that they will make his health a priority. Bryan has a family and obviously wants to make sure he doesn’t make life more difficult for them by worsening his condition. Meanwhile, WWE would feel some serious heat if something were to happen to Bryan, since this occurred on “their watch”.

Because Bryan has been cleared after rigorous testing from multiple doctors, it’s hard to mount any sort of reasonable argument against him wrestling again at all, especially when considering the fact that Bryan is well aware of the risks.

However, it is critical for WWE and Bryan to make sure he is safe after every match, to make sure he takes things step by step, and to make sure any head injuries are caught early and treated appropriately.

According to Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer News (hat tip to Cageside Seats), Bryan must undergo (fun note: I almost typed that as “underdog”, damn you mass marketing) extensive testing backstage after each match as part of the agreement that has allowed him to wrestle in WWE again. Meltzer adds that this will happen until WWE is “comfortable” with Bryan’s health.

It will be interesting to hear more updates on this, specifically with regards to how often these tests actually occur. There’s no doubt that it is critical for WWE to take these precautions, and this backs up the – rather obvious – idea that Bryan won’t wrestle frequently and will be saved for big matches/moments.

Around The Web

I’m a sucker for cool podcasts that offer different perspectives, since so much of what we get from pro wrestling podcasts can lack creativity. Darnell Mitchell’s “The Queer Nerd” is a new podcast worth checking out, as he released the first episode of the show yesterday. Check it out here, and in the realm of wrestling, I’d like to highlight the excellent analysis of the Golden Lovers storyline here. Hopefully y’all are able to learn something.

Michael Niemeier of 720 Wrestling argues that The Miz should retain the Intercontinental Championship at WrestleMania 34. At this point, I agree.

Next: Charlotte Flair Is Reclaiming The Spotlight

Bleacher Report listed Seth Rollins’s most memorable WrestleMania matches, and it’s remarkable what he’s accomplished to this point. Let’s see if his Triple Threat match for the Intercontinental Championship against Finn Balor and The Miz at WrestleMania 34 ends up high on the list, too, because it has all the makings of an absolute banger.