Quad Cities Comic Con: Mick Foley v. Street Fighter Alpha & Shudder Shenanigans

I Dig Crazy Flicks with @CatBusRuss

Episode 271: Quad Cities Comic Con: Mick Foley Movie Star, Street Fighter Alpha: The Animation, Trapped in Anime

CatBusRuss⁠ and ⁠ThePoeticCritic⁠ have made it back to the Heart of Illinois and Chambana respectively from ⁠Quad Cities Comic Con⁠. It was a pretty successful trip to deliver a trio of "⁠I Dig Crazy Flicks⁠" panels despite the growing pains ⁠VXV Events⁠ has in their expansion. If the cosplayers are not gathering by the backdrops, how are they going to find the panel rooms?

The two siblings ended up getting a small crowd for the "⁠1985 Action Movie Triple-Threat Match⁠", but these members of Generation X may have realized that the convention goers are generally 20 years younger than them. ⁠ThePoeticCritic's thoughts ⁠about millennials and gen-z kids not wanting to watch movies before "Jaws" maybe accurate. Fortunately, those who stopped by the panel were polite and supportive despite it not being for them.

If you want to speak about someone who is kind and supportive, ⁠Mick Foley⁠ was kind enough to answer ⁠Russ⁠'s question about the lack of a Cactus Jack Cinematic Universe. After seeing his debut at "AEW: Double or Nothing", our host might have been better served to ask "Will Mrs. Foley's Baby Boy change his clothes from the previous day?" (The panel was on Saturday. #AEWDoN was on Sunday.)

If you want more of CatBus hot takes, Russ included his hot take from "⁠Trapped in Anime⁠". The first comment he saw was, "If gatekeeping was a person," so he thinks he nailed that appearance from ⁠C2E2 2026⁠.

To conclude this #Ani-May, CatBus decided to revisit "⁠Street Fighter Alpha: The Animation⁠". It is an interesting take on the SF franchise, but our host is not a "Dragon Ball" fan. Is he fine with that style mixed with the World Warriors?

What CatBusRuss does like is ⁠Doich! Snacking Dough⁠.

Try a flavor from ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Doich! Snacking Dough. It is cookie dough with more protein, less sugar, and none of the eight major allergens. Our host is not a cookie fan, but this stuff taste great and leaves you feeling full quickly. Follow the link below to save 20% on your order and give Chocolate Chip, Birthday Cake, or WTFudge Brownie dough a try.⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Episode 272 - Shudder Shenanigans: "Deathstalker" (2025) & "The Sadness" (2021) with Gregory Carl

CatBusRuss⁠'s friend, coworker, and ⁠Patreon⁠ backer ⁠Tim Bates⁠ brought up watching "⁠The Dungeonmaster⁠" from 1984 and how wild that film was. The immediate reaction from the "⁠I Dig Crazy Flicks with CatBusRuss⁠'s" host was to comeback the next day with a potentially crazier flick to discuss. This was the push to get him to watch the remake/reimagining of "⁠Deathstalker⁠" that is currently on Shudder, the streaming service that past guest ⁠Gregory Carl⁠ turned to for films to bring up on the podcast.

⁠Russ⁠ is getting ready for a social networking excursion to ⁠Indiana Comic Convention 2026⁠, so it brought back memories of when he hosted his fourth "⁠Ninety For Chill: The Panel⁠" with Gregory Carl as his guest. The two now have a shaky relationship, perhaps from their first IRL meeting, so if it is not going to find solid ground, it is probably best to release the last episode they recorded before the "I Dig Crazy Flicks" era of this podcast. This was another feature from Shudder, the ultra-violent, viral-outbreak horror film from Taiwan "⁠The Sadness⁠".

This #RewindWednesday runs the gamut of what can be done with ultra-violence. "Deathstalker" is a campy, tongue-in-cheek love letter to the Roger Corman produced franchise while "The Sadness" is straight up drama and violence that was perhaps to intense for George A. Romero. One film is an ode to bright blood while the other revels in realistic claret. Russ thinks they are both winners, but you may need a heads up before you delve into either.

If you want a definitive winner, try a flavor from ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Doich! Snacking Dough. It is cookie dough with more protein, less sugar, and none of the eight major allergens. Our host is not a cookie fan, but this stuff taste great and leaves you feeling full quickly. Follow the link below to save 20% on your order and give Chocolate Chip, Birthday Cake, or WTFudge Brownie dough a try.⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

 

Follow me on Bluesky @catbusruss. If you want to be on the show, contact me on Twitter or send an email to russthebus07@gmail.com. All we need is a theme, movie, director, or actor and a focus on sub 100-minute material. As long as the credits start before the 1:39:59 mark on the runtime bar, the movie qualifies.

Turning Japanese: The Distgruntled's Real World Champions - 2026 Edition

*This blog post was started on June 16, 2026.

With the World Cup going on at this time, I thought about calling this blog "Three Lions", but when my most recent wrestling blogs were about establishing the current Disgruntled's Real Tertiary Champion (currently the Disgruntled's Real Southern Television Openweight Champion), that is definitely the more on the nose title for the next edition. Heres hoping I get to add on to that project before Football Comes Home.

The question is, will I have the time to write it? Right now, I have been trying to watch 15 films a month (a weird resolution, I know), actually getting a social life beyond my trivia team, and I have had plenty of two-comic convention months. And then, a new full-time job is about to start, so I am worried about how all of the positives that have kept me sane and optimistic during my underemployment may vanish.

There is going to be three months where I cannot request time off. It will be a second shift job, so that disconnects me from hanging out with all of my university employee friends. If I am stuck on a weekend shift, getting out to any convention for a couple of days will be lost.

How can I live with myself if I miss Christopher Lambert and Dolph Lundgren at Fan Expo Chicago in August? Those are two actors I can ask Trevor Goddard stories. That will be worse than me messing up a friendship with an anti-violence advocate who fails in her messaging and demands that psychology be ignored.

And of course, how do I keep up on All Elite Wrestling? Watching Dynamite and Collision are things that do not feel the same when you miss them on the night they air. Never mind not wanting spoilers means I am out of the loop with online wrestling news.

I guess it ends up being a wise move starting this blog entry as I wait for my laundry. It maybe months...or a year, from me getting back to keeping these title lineages up to date.

The Disgruntled's Real World Champions of Pro-Wrestling:

Title Histories from June 22, 2025 to June 26, 2026.

The 114th and Current Disgruntled's Real World Champion:
AEW Men's World Champion Maxwell Jacob Freeman "MJF"

His reign began when he defeated Darby Allin on May 24, 2026 for the AEW Championship.

I do not like when companies flip-flop championships between two wrestlers, but Allin defended the championship the second most amount of times in his brief reign. Has Cody Rhodes had that many defenses in his three reigns as WWE Champion? We know Yota Tsuji did not defend the IWGP Heavyweight Championship without any thought.

The 113th Disgruntled's Real World Champion: AEW Men's World Champion Darby Allin

His reign began when he defeated MJF on April 15, 2026.

The 112th Disgruntled's Real World Champion: AEW Men's World Champion MJF

His reign began when Konosuke Takeshita lost the IWGP Heavyweight Championship to Yota Tsuji on January 4, 2026.

The 111th Disgruntled's Real World Champion: IWGP World Heavyweight Champion Konosuke Takeshita

His reign began when he defeated Zack Sabre Jr. on October 13, 2025.

He may have only had one successful defense of the championship, but he earned the title by winning the G1 Climax and was holding the title and competing in AEW's Continental Classic. That is quite the workload.

And this is when I changed the title of this blog from "World in Motion" to "Turning Japanese". New Order's number only number one hit in Britain deserves more respect, but it was just a means to sell a greatest hits album three years after their first compilation "Substance".

The 110th Disgruntled's Real World Champion: IWGP World Heavyweight Champion Zack Sabre Jr.

His reign began when he defeated Hirooki Goto on June 29, 2025.

They knew Goto was working hurt since winning the championship from ZSJ. And during his struggles, he defended the championship seven times. The last time an IWGP Heavyweight Champion made that many defenses was Kazuchika Okada during a 13-month title reign.

The 57th and Current Modern Poser Champion:
WWE World Champion Roman Reigns

His reign began when he defeat CM Punk on April 19, 2026.

The 56th Modern Poser Champion: WWE World Champion CM Punk

His reign began when Drew McIntyre lost the WWE Undisputed Championship to Cody Rhodes on March 6, 2026.

McIntyre's was given a stunt title reign because babyface Cody Rhodes is boring.

The 55th Modern Poser Champion: WWE Undisputed Champion Drew McIntyre

His reign began when he defeated Cody Rhodes on January 9, 2026.

The 54th Modern Poser Champion: WWE Undisputed Champion Cody Rhodes

His reign began on August 2, 2025 when he defeated John Cena.

The 53rd Modern Poser Champion: WWE Undisputed Champion John Cena

His reign began on August 2, 2025 after Seth Rollins cashed in Money in the Bank on CM Punk for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship.

Cashing in on a champion without an announcing your challenge a week in advance is just shock television. That is why Tony Khan changed the Casino Battle Royale rule. If you cannot announce the challenge, money is being left on the table.

The 52nd Modern Poser Champion: WWE World Heavyweight Champion CM Punk

His reign began on August 2, 2025 when he defeated Gunther.

The 57th and Current Disgruntled's Real Women's World Champion:
AEW Women's World Champion Thekla

Her reign began when she defeated Kris Statlander on February 11, 2026.

Plea from a Wrestler Named Liger: The Disgruntled's Real Tertiary Champions - Chapter 2

 *Blog post started on January 26, 2026.

I am kind of surprised how busy that I have been able to keep myself since the New Year started and my retail hours fell of a cliff. Car trouble can be thanked. With the cold weather, there has been a lot of driving once I get home from work. Fortunately, the battery seems to be keeping its charge.

Lyft is how I am getting to and from the job because of the cold weather. If my battery is going to die, yet again, I would rather that happen in my private lot. Once the snow came, there is no way that I will trust the owners of the retailer's lot not to tow me because one cannot simply block the snow plows.

The reason for my lack of faith in the battery Nissan claims to be fine is that it was completely dead when I got back from Fan Expo New Orleans. I was gone six days, so no one was keeping the battery charged. This should not have been the case because the month did not start this cold. It maybe pricy to be riding into work each day, but when this NOLA trip was a lot less expensive than the previous. 2026 does not sound like it is starting out that bad, for me at least.

FUCK ICE AND THEIR MURDEROUS, COWARDLY CUNTS WHOSE SOLE PURPOSE IS TO COVER UP TRUMP'S PEDOPHILE FRIENDS.

If you had relationship with Jeffrey Epstein, you are a sexually violent asshole. We know Epstein was sex trafficking young girls, but it does not necessarily mean you partook in that "product". If you did not partake, you are only as bad as Sean Combs. Four years is what the orange twat deserves. Since he is a repeat offender with his 34 other convictions, lets add four more years (FOUR MORE YEARS...).

Dying alone in prison should be how Trump's life ends, but I just hope to wake up to news of him dying alone. You know Melania is not going to be at his side.

Lets get to a segue to the wrestling talk. I will end up depressing myself thinking that I may die alone and I have not done an evil thing to deserve that. Then again, Eva the Queen Kitty will be there for me. Felines make you more worthwhile than POTUS.

Speaking of Presidents, I am currently catching up on NJPW (New Year Dash!!). What is the promotion like not having Hiroshi Tanahashi on the cards? When we left the "Three Card Trick", the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion was the Disgruntled's Real Tertiary Champion. This must have meant a prime for New Japan. Here's hoping that will once again become the vibe of Japan's strongest promotion.

My hope is Tony Khan buys them out to restore the feel of the Best Bout Machine's time in the promotion, but all it takes is another set of Three Musketeers to make me eat those words.

It is nice to be thinking about threes with this blog series.

The 20th Disgruntled's Real Southern Television Openweight Champion: IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion: Naoki Sano.

His reign began when he defeated Jushin Liger for the title on August 10, 1989.

The 21st Disgruntled's Real Southern Television Openweight Champion: IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion: Jushin Thunder Liger (2)

His reign began when he defeated Sano for the title on January 31, 1990.

The NWA had a great champion themselves with Arn Anderson, who defeated The Great Muta (who defeated Sting for the vacant World Television Championship), but he would lose it to Tom Zenk. He does not have the legacy of who ended this Liger reign.

Three Card Trick: The Disgruntled's Real Tertiary Champions

 *Blog started on January 4, 2026.

The advantage of getting unfairly fired from Binny's Beverage Depot (They could have at least asked me to pay for the difference of a 1.75 L bottle of Hennessy that I entered in as a 375 mL.) just before the holidays means there will be lots of hours to be gained at my part-time retail job. I wish I could say sadly, but they are the holidays in retail, those hours do have to come to an end. Thus, my finances are going to be nonexistent.

But why panic? I now have the time to play "Pokemon Legends Z-A". My comic con tour has little employer resistance. And I can bless the world with a new edition of the "Disgruntled's Real World Championship" title history.

Have I been watching as much wrestling as I should be? Probably not. I decided to cancel my NJPW World subscription until Wrestle Kingdom 20. (They do not let you change your method of payment while you are subscribed.) The Royal Rumble will be the only WWE show that I will watch this year...or will I? Here is hoping Bron Breakker will keep CM Flunk off that card.

Speaking of Punk-free wrestling, for the most part, my schedule allows me to watch AEW Collision, but Saturdays are supposed to be social nights. The same goes for Friday nights. Would I have maintained my virginity after I graduated high school in 1999 if there was no "ECW on TNN"? Paul Heyman added five years to my V Card.

I am definitely getting old. To make sure V Card was still a term, a Google search had Virtual Card come up as the top result. What happen to slang for virginity (verified by Urban Dictionary)?

It appears that I am in an existential mess. Just look at how many questions I am asking. I best get to answering some of them, so lets get to this guide to the best wrestling in the world.

The Disgruntled's Real World Champions of Pro-Wrestling:

Title Histories from June 22, 2025 to January 4, 2026.

The 110th Disgruntled's Real Men's World Champion:

And there has got to be a pause on this list because I am still watching Wrestle Kingdom 20. I am not going to spoil the results. This blog was started during the cluster muck matches on the card. Thus, this blog needs to be paused, despite punching Aaron Wolf into Wikipedia giving me the result of the NEVER Openweight Championship match. It at least gives me a chance to look into what the best Tertiary Championship is in pro-wrestling.

Blog post resumed on January 5, 2026.

The History of the Disgruntled's Real Tertiary Wrestling Champions

This title history starts at Starrcade '83: A Flair for the Gold, November 24, 1983.

Yes, I have concluded watching Wrestle Kingdom 20, but there is still New Year's Dash to watch. Why declare champions until we know the result of TMDK vs. The House of Torture?

We start at Starrcade since this was essentially the first wrestling pay-per-view. I also grew up with USA as my primary cable channel, so WWF was the primary product I watched growing up. My little brother rented some WCW videos from Blockbuster back in the day, and I would occasionally check out WCW Saturday Night, but Jim Crockett Promotions was more of a concept that wrestling can be different, and that is a good thing. Was I going to make time for it? I was 12.

The point I am trying to make is that, I grew up with only three championships: The Men's World, The Men's World Tag Team, and The Intercontinental. Territories were something I did not understand. If it was not for my little brother renting those tapes, I would not have known there are promotions with more than three belts. NWA needed extra belts, so that is why I will set the date of the first Starrcade date to kick off this title history.

This history will not allow for any vacancies.

1st Disgruntled's Real Television Champion: NWA TV Champ: The Great Kabuki.

Kabuki's reign began on May 23, 1983.

This was the only singles' championship defended at the event outside of the NWA World's Heavyweight Championship. That may make you think that it should be the number 2 belt, but Roddy Piper faced NWA U.S. Champion Greg Valentine in a dog-collar grudge match. Their hate was stronger than the championship.

2nd Disgruntled's Real Television Champion: NWA TV Champ: Charlie Brown (aka Jimmy Valiant).

Brown's reign began on November 24, 1983, when he defeated the Great Kabuki.

3rd Disgruntled's Real Southern Television Champion: AWA Southern Heavyweight Champ: Jerry Lawler.

Lawler's reign began when Jimmy Valiant vacated the championship on January 18, 1984, by revealing his true identity.

The American Wrestling Association was based in Minneapolis, so why would they need a Southern Championship. It was created just to draw attention to the promotion in Memphis.

4th Disgruntled's Real Southern Television Champion: NWA  Television Champion: Tully Blanchard.

Blanchard's reign began when Jimmy Lawler was defeated by Lord Humongous on April 30, 1984.

Memphis characters should not be taken as anything more than a cheap pop culture rip off. They are not as glorious as Tiger Mask or Jushin Thunder Liger.

5th Disgruntled's Real Southern Television Champion: NWA Television Champion: Dusty Rhodes.

His title reign began when he defeated Blanchard for the championship on March 16, 1985.

I typically do not like to include hot potato scenarios with the belt, but this was one of the most memorable feuds of the 1980s.

6th Disgruntled's Real Southern Television Champion: NWA World Television Champion: Tully Blanchard (2).

His title reign began when he defeated Rhodes for the championship on April 28, 1985.

7th Disgruntled's Real Southern Television Champion: NWA World Television Champion: Dusty Rhodes (2).

His title reign began when he defeated Blanchard for the championship on July 6, 1985.

8th Disgruntled's Real Southern Television Champion: AWA Southern Heavyweight Champion: Bill Dundee.

His title reign began when Rhodes had to vacate the championship on October 19, 1985 due to injury. Coincidently, he also defeated Lawler for the AWA championship on the same day.

9th Disgruntled's Real Southern Television Champion: AWA Southern Heavyweight Champion: Jerry Lawler (2).

His title reign began when he defeated Dundee for the championship on December 21, 1985.

This feud made the Continental Wrestling Association in the 1980s, so we will pardon the hot potato, at least until the NWA fills the TV champ spot.

10th Disgruntled's Real Southern Television Champion: AWA Southern Heavyweight Champion: Bill Dundee (2).

His title reign began when he defeated Lawler for the championship on December 30, 1985.

11th Disgruntled's Real Southern Television Champion: NWA World Television Champion: Arn Anderson.

His title reign began when Lawler defeated Dundee for the championship on April 8, 1986. This will soon transition back to Rhodes vs. The 4 Horsemen.

12th Disgruntled's Real Southern Television Champion: NWA World Television Champion: Dusty Rhodes (3).

His title reign began when he defeated Anderson for the championship on September 9, 1986.

13th Disgruntled's Real Southern Television Champion: NWA World Television Champion: Tully Blanchard (3).

His title reign began when he defeated Rhodes for the championship on November 27, 1986.

14th Disgruntled's Real Southern Television Champion: NWA World Television Champion: Nikita Koloff (3).

His title reign began when he defeated Blanchard for the championship on August 17, 1987.

15th Disgruntled's Real Southern Television Champion: NWA World Television Champion: Mike Rotundo.

His title reign began when he defeated Koloff for the championship on January 26, 1988.

16th Disgruntled's Real Southern Television Champion: NWA World Television Champion: Rick Steiner.

His title reign began when he defeated Rotundo for the championship on December 26, 1988.

17th Disgruntled's Real Southern Television Champion: NWA World Television Champion: Mike Rotundo (2).

His title reign began when he defeated Steiner for the championship on February 20, 1989.

I know this is a hot potato and it is not as grand as Rhodes vs. The Horsemen, but the AWA Southern Heavyweight Championship was unified with the NWA Mid-America Heavyweight Championship to create the CWA Heavyweight Championship.

Why go to Japan when the NWA is not vacating the championship?

18th Disgruntled's Real Southern Television Champion: NWA World Television Champion: Sting.

His title reign began when he defeated Rotundo for the championship on March 31, 1989.

19th Disgruntled's Real Southern Television Openweight Champion: IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion: Jushin Thunder Liger.

His title reign began when Sting vacated the championship due to injuy on July 23, 1989.

What I like best about tertiarys title is that they typically have a different rule set. If you are over 100 kg (220 lbs.), you cannot compete for this belt. Television championships have their television time limits.

Being able to thrive in these rule sets make you seem like a specialist, and in turn, explains why you do not chase the big belt. Niche rules allow you to have a title and argue why it is necessary.

This is why, you cannot have too many title, just a lack of creativity to justify them.

Only Time Will Tell: In Light of the Demise of the AEW International Championship (and possibly NJPW)

*This blog post was started on June 22, 2025.

It has been great for me that AEW is now streaming on Max. Between my 50-hour work week and my efforts to build the "I Dig Crazy Flicks" brand, "Dynamite" is my priority when it comes to must see television, but there are weeks when I still miss that. One of those weeks featured the announcement that the AEW International Championship (held by Kenny Omega) and the Continental Championship (held by Kazuchika Okada) will be unified as the Unified Championship at the All In pay-per-view on July 12. Personally, I think that this is a bad idea.

In my peripheral vision, the most recent NJPW Dominion is playing. New Japan is getting a little goofy as they try and be relevant to audiences that favor American theatrics, but the emphasis is still on treating wrestling as a true sport. I think back to Wrestle Kingdom 13 (2019) and was impressed that they only had one "grudge" match on the card. That mean only one bout did not have a championship on the line, and that was between the greatest IWGP Heavyweight Champion, Okada, and the man who would defeat the winner of that title's match before the month of January concluded, Switchblade Jay White. Thus, only champions, contenders, and the larger than life would be featured on the promotion's biggest card. If you were just good, you did not get that pay day. And that is how I think the sport should be?

I am glad that Sunderland has recently returned to the English Premier League because I want Newcastle United to beat them back to the Championship. But would I want them to be playing in the Major League of English Football because every major city should be represented in a pro sports league? We need not celebrate the Chicago White Sox.

Obviously, with my blog "The Disgruntled's Real Championship Wrestling", I am a fan of championships anyhow, but after that card, if booked correctly, you cannot have too many. It is my opinion that every television show should have a championship match. That way, Mercedes Mone would not be able to be a belt collector. How is she going to defend weekly? Tony Khan gave her too much in that contract.

Before I get back to the unification bout in Texas, I need to write more wrestling blogs. There is still the tertiary championship to determine and now we have secondary women's championships. If only I resisted buying a Switch 2, this would be a priority.

Bringing up the tertiary championship, I am going to miss the Continental Championship which is being retired. What makes a great third-tier championship is a different rule set. Sadly, pro-wrestling is an artistic sport, not a competitive one. We are never going to consider the Junior Heavyweight and Middleweight Championships on the same level as the Heavyweight. But let it be known, "The Student of the Game" Russ Stevens reign as Next Generation Wrestling's (Peoria, IL) Light Heavyweight Championship was probably superior to that of the Heavyweight Champion Apocolypse. And I will digress.

The Continental Championship gave us a more pure style of wrestling that AEW is further, and sadly further getting away from. There was no outside interference, so for at least 15 minutes a night, the show was free of gaga. Now, we are only guaranteed that six weeks a year. But I now wonder, will the Continental Classic end with a briefcase like the G1 Climax. If you want the dumbest thing that NJPW took from the West, that is it.

I think I have declared that the Continental Championship is a tertiary title at best, but I came into this blog thinking about with the International Championship as the belt I did not want to see go. If it was my preference, the title would still be called the All-Atlantic Championship, but I was an English major, so I dig hyphens.

The reason I was focused on the belt that Orange Cassidy established is that I think it may have surpassed the TNT Championship as the second best belt in AEW. It was the first belt that had its champion challenge the AEW World Champion. An argument against this suggestion is that the TNT Champion was the most recent challenger, but you cannot sell a Jack Perry fan like myself that he is better than Will Ospreay.

So before the belt is gone, it is best to address who the real champions in wrestling truly are.

The Disgruntled's Real World Champions of Pro-Wrestling:

Title Histories from September 26, 2024 to June 22, 2025.

The 109th and Current Disgruntled's Real World Champion:
IWGP World Heavyweight Champion: Hirooki Goto

His reign began when he defeated Zack Sabre Jr. for the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship/DRCW World Championship on February 11, 2025.

I did not think that Goto was in a position to beat ZSJ. He is 46 years-old and was never the star of the CHAOS faction. One can only expect that whoever takes the belt off of him will be the face of a new era of greatness like when Okada passed up the Ace Hiroshi Tanahashi.

Hope might be a better term than expect. Regardless of the verb, whoever takes the belt off of John Cena is just going to be one of the same sport entertainers who have been there the past two decades.

The 108th Disgruntled's Real World Champion:
IWGP World Heavyweight Champion: Zack Sabre Jr.

His reign began when Mark Briscoe lost the ROH Championship to Chris Jericho on October 23, 2024.

Another opinion that I seem to be sharing with the minority. Chris Jericho is not a good person (You cannot be if you are a voice for Trump.), but he is still one of the most entertaining wrestlers. The Learning Tree was another reinvention that nobody thought would work, but when I saw him wrestle at the State Farm Center in August, his "Hi Guys!" seemed as over as "Yeet!". If that will get you WWE gold, imagine what Jericho deserves.

I also loved the first title shot that Bandido had against the Nueve. The rematch that resulted in the title change was a bit of bollocks.

But he is not the Technical Wizard. He is not the Submission Master. He is not Z(ed)SJ, the best technical wrestler in the world.

The only flaw with this title history is that ZSJ won the top IWGP prize two days after Bryan Danielson, the greatest technical wrestler, lost his AEW prize.

You have to acknowledge that the first gaijin to win a Wrestle Kingdom main event (as the champion on top of that) is a greater accomplishment than anything Cody Rhodes has done.

The 107th Disgruntled's Real World Champion:
ROH World Champion: Mark Briscoe

His reign began when Bryan Danielson lost the AEW World Championship to Jon Moxley on October 12, 2024.

There were no challenges to Cody Rhodes that made me want to tune in to WWE programming. I did watch the Royal Rumble, so I saw his second defense against Kevin Owens. My cheers were for Owens, but since he came into that bout as challenger on the last major card before WrestleMania, there were no expectations that he would win. Heartbreak was going to be the result.

The only way that the story would work was for Cody to win the championship back from Owens. Since this history is being written with six months of hindsight, neither Owens nor Rhodes would be DRCW World Champion. Swapping a championship rarely wins me over.

That is why Jon Moxley did not regain the DRCW World Championship. He had a lackluster program for the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship with Tetsuya Naito resulting in a title swap. Neither the Moxley victory nor defeat happened in Japan. As I watch Dominion, I saw a street fight with all of the House of Torture running interference and highlights of a crazy cage war which I never associated with the promotion. Gabe Kidd and Yota Tsuji are impressing me and the G1 Climax starts tomorrow, but those prior events leave me wondering if I should keep my NJPW World subscription.

I happen to like the Death Riders story in AEW. If Moxley retains at All In, that would not offend me because I think we all want to see Darby Allin be the guy to get the title next. If not Allin, then everybody's favorite loud mouth in wrestling, Eddie Kingston. Thus, the man who beat the man whom we want to be the man is most qualified to be champ. Hence, Mark Briscoe.

The 51st and Current Modern Poser Champion:
WWE World Champion: Gunther

His reign began when he defeated Jey Uso for the WWE World Championship/DRCW Modern Poser Championship on June 16, 2025.

The 50th Modern Poser Champion:
WWE World Champion: Jey Uso

His reign began when John Cena defeated Cody Rhodes for the Undisputed WWE Championship on April 20, 2025.

The Undisputed WWE Championship at least has been part of the lineage of the DRCW World Championship. Monday Night Raw's current top prize was a consolation prize when they allowed Roman Reigns to not work a champion's schedule.

Gunther is an awesome force. He is the best performer in the promotion, and he lost his barely established championship to a tag team wrestler who ended up with a catchphrase. You can call Goto's title reign a career achievement award, but he had done it all aside from winning the top prize. Uso has had only a year at best to prove he is a singles wrestler. If the sheets are right, he failed.

The 55th and Current Disgruntled's Real Women's World Champion:
AEW Women's World Champion: "Timeless" Toni Storm

Her third reign began when she defeated Mariah May for the AEW Women's World Championship/DRCW Women's World Championship on February 15, 2025.

I know that I have spoken ill of swapping championships, but the Hollywood Ending made her trilogy with May the best the business has had since Okada/Omega.

The 161th and Current Disgruntled's Real World Tag Team Champions:
AEW World Tag Team Champions: Shelton Benjamin  & Bobby Lashley: The Hurt Syndicate

Their reign began when they defeated Private Party for the AEW World Tag Team Championship/DRCW World Tag Team Championship on January 22, 2025.

The 160th Real World Tag Team Champions:
AEW World Tag Team Champions: Isiah Kassidy and Marq Quen

Their reign began when they defeated The Young Bucks for the AEW World Tag Team Championship/DRCW World Tag Team Championship on October 30, 2024.

The 176th and Current Disgruntled's Unified Gnarly Men's Doubles Champions:
ROH World Tag Team Champions: Dustin Rhodes & Sammy Guevara: The Sons of Texas

Their reign began when The War Raiders defeated the Finn Balor and JD McDonagh for the WWE World Tag Team Championship on December 16, 2024.

Outside of Japan, the tag team scene is strong. The Hardy Boys were TNA Champions (brothers) and were defeated by Nick and Ryan Nemmeth (brothers). When The War Raiders lost their titles, they lost them to what was the greatest WWE tag team, The New Day. Aside from The Bloodline, Smackdown is under the control of great indie teams and an NXT standout. It is tough to find a hodge podge pairing.

Rhodes and Guevara are great, but creative had nothing for them on AEW.

C2E2 2025: NJPW Windy City Riot, Extinction (2018), ThePoeticCritic, Civil War (2024), & The Dogs of War (1980)

I Dig Crazy Flicks with @CatBusRuss

Bonus Episode: C2E2 2025 & NJPW Windy City Riot & Extinction (2018)

CatBusRuss⁠ survived the blood loss, his social inadequacies, and the poor scheduling by ReedPop, and came out with quite a rewarding day at ⁠C2E2 2025⁠. The new tattoo that is sure to upset the customers that mock him for wearing a face covering was the priciest investment. Outside of that, only spending a $110 at the con and $140 at ⁠New Japan Windy City Riot⁠ for collectables makes it seem like he won the day. On top of that, he was able to watch a good Netflix Original movie, "⁠Extinction⁠" to warm up for the con that decided to deprive most of its attendees "Here and Back Again: The Lord of the Rings Reunion". Screw you if you think we are all going to whip out our phones and pay $6 to stream it.

Episode 215 - C2E2 2025 with ThePoeticCritic; "Civil War" and "The Dogs of War" with CatBusRuss

CatBusRuss⁠ and ⁠ThePoeticCritic⁠ definitely had two different experiences at 2025's ⁠Chicago Comic & Entertainment Expo⁠. Our host's big sister was allowed to attend all three days while he just got frustrated with ReedPop entering the realm of gouging nerds. But, the two do have different personalities, so perhaps we will discover the common ground that still makes the C2E2 worthwhile.

Russ is more about panels and presentations while ThePoeticCritic just likes the community cons provide. In other words, we do not get the details on the "Robocop Reunion" panel with Peter Weller and Nancy Allen or the Jon Boyega panel that she attended. This episode's guest could really care less about the "Starship Reunion" panel the CatBus checked out.

If only ReedPop had accommodated to those spending the most money, instead they overloaded the second day with the celebrities resulting in a sell out for that day only. ThePoeticCritic says fire codes, but McCormick Place is a huge complex where traffic constantly goes in and out. You cannot stop people from going to train stations, so why here?

Con talk might not be your thing. It may not be ThePoeticCritic's thing since the conversation is broken up twice. If you are listening to "⁠Ninety For Chill: The Podcast⁠" for the movies, CatBusRuss continues is annual trek through the alphabet of sub 100 minute movies with "⁠Civil War⁠" and "⁠The Dogs of War⁠". He thought the title of this episode would be better served by putting these classic wartime movies ahead of the con, but that takes away from the main conversation. But surely, ThePoeticCritic is more than willing to put Christopher Walken ahead of herself in terms of billing.

 

Follow me on Twitter @catbusruss. If you want to be on the show, contact me on Twitter or send an email to russthebus07@gmail.com. All we need is a theme, movie, director, or actor and a focus on sub 100-minute material. As long as the credits start before the 1:39:59 mark on the runtime bar, the movie qualifies.