I apologize if it seems like Beware The Batman is taking over this blog as of late. It's the only show that I happen to be watching regularly that interests me other than professional wrestling that I'm able to consistently write about without it taking a lot of time away from everything else going on in my life at the moment.
All that I ask is hold out a bit as this season is almost over with this being one of the last three episodes left before the season finale in October. Those of you who are fans of the show like myself, I hope you continue to enjoy these write-ups on the last remaining episodes in this first season.
Episode Synopsis (Spoilers):
After failing to capture Dr. Jason Burr in order to gain access to the Ion Cortex, the League of Assassins sends another one of their agents to steal the information from Burr’s mind: a wall-crawling computer-assassin named Cypher. Batman and Katana try to stop him, but Katana inadvertently gets herself captured. Now, Batman must find a way to take down Cypher, while he is in control of both Burr and Katana!
The Verdict:
I knew it was going to happen eventually and this week marks the first episode in this series' run where we have run into a DC Comics villain that I'm not familiar with in the least. From what I have read on message boards and other articles on the show, it seems that the Cypher in this series was a re-imagining of a villain Batman and Robin has faced in the comics who has the ability to mesmerize and hypnotize his victims using his precise voice. His mind-control in conversation can only command the victim to sleep, but if his voice is heard passively (via being held against one's will), he can gain full control of the victim and force him or her to do his bidding (Comicvine). In other words, they simplified his powers by making him a cyborg working for the League of Assassins.
Cypher proved to be an interesting adversary as I personally got the vibe of him being like Spellbinder from Batman Beyond from how he toyed with his victims' minds like it was his own plaything. One thing I couldn't help but wonder is why Cypher didn't probe Katana and Batman's minds and take their darkest secrets rather than just controlling them like puppets. I thought it would have been easier for him just to extract the information that he needed the dispose of his "puppets" after he got what he wanted. That's what he did to the victim shown at the start of the episode, so why didn't he use that method later when he got hold of Jason Burr?
Speaking of Jason Burr, I was surprised that they are still doing something with this sort of "romance" between him and Tatsu Yamashiro. Too bad Cypher had to ruin their "date." It looking like Jason is going to end up being Tatsu's weakness as Batman has already heavily expressed to leave her emotions at the door. Since he is making a habit of doing this for two episodes in a row, I can't help but think that Jason is going to have a big part to play when the League of Assassins finally do get their hands on the Ion Cortex and the Bat-family comes head to head with them once again. It's evident that Jason's mind has been corrupted by Cypher from the tease at the end of this episode, so I'm going to guess that's what's going to push Jason over the edge into becoming a super-villain like his comic book counterpart of the same name. When push comes to shove, Tatsu might not be able to do what's necessary when she has to face Jason as an enemy.
My favorite part of this episode had to be when Tatsu fought off Batman like it was nothing. Unlike during their training session at the start of the episode where she was obviously was blinded by her emotions, she showed little to no remorse to wailing on Batman. My assumption on that was maybe that she knew he could take it and given the abuse he gave her in their training sessions, I honestly wouldn't have held back either given that opportunity to say you got to beat up Batman.
I did enjoy the brief introduction with Batman and Lt. Gordon doing their iconic exchange as Gordon doesn't see Batman sneaking his way in. You can't deny Batman's incredible detective work at the scene of the crime as he instantly identified the clues on the victim's body at the scene of the crime.
I have to wonder though - did the Batmobile crash after Batman unhinged the other trains to corner Cypher? He did leave it on autopilot maintaining the same speed behind the train. I know, I know... I think too much on this stuff to say it's a kids' cartoon.
"Control" proved to be another piece in the puzzle in the ongoing plot between the Bat-Family and the League of Assassins. With two more episodes left in this season, only time will tell what damage that Cypher left on Jason Burr will come back to haunt Batman and Katana before this season comes to a close. I'm giving this episode a 3.5 out of 5.
After last week's episode "Family", I was anxious to see how they would follow up the excitement with the League of Assassins coming into the light and Tatsu Yamashiro officially being brought into the Bat-family.
If you haven't guessed already, but "Allies" marks Tatsu's official costumed debut as Katana in this series.
Episode Synopsis (Spoilers)
Tobias Whale is arrested following a robbery at a Stagg Industries warehouse, but Whale is not going to go down easily. After Whale's lawyer demands that Lieutenant Gordon release Whale, Gordon's daughter is kidnapped. With no other options, and time running out, Gordon is forced to ask Batman for help. While monitoring Whale's men, Batman learns that Barbara has been taken to “The Cauldron” (a former industrial park that became the most dangerous part of Gotham following the city's financial crisis years ago), which is populated by a gang of criminals called “the Ghosts.” With Katana’s help, Batman stages a raid on the Cauldron, but the Ghosts aren’t the big threat here, it's the man guarding Barbara: Phosphorous Rex.
The Verdict:
In terms of costumed debuts, this episode wasn't bad. I should have known that the series would fall back into the usual "one and done" villains after hitting a high note in the previous episode. I hope Katana's costume gets a overhaul for future episodes as her debut look was a bit lacking for the most part...
I guess Tatsu doesn't give a flying fuck about a secret identity, given that she's just wearing a "Robin" mask. Another thing that I'm finding a bit absurd here is that the League of Assassins aren't investigating in why Tatsu was staying with Bruce Wayne in the first place? No one didn't wonder how Wayne's corpse disappeared and Batman just happened to know they were all in there? I don't know... maybe I'm thinking too much into this. I just hope whenever Ra's Al Ghul debuts in this series (it's inevitable with the League already being established), he owns Batman's detective skills and points out how easy it was to figure out that Bruce Wayne and Batman are one in the same.
Once again, this series gets kudos for introducing yet another lesser known villain into the mix. No, I'm not referring to Tobias Whale as I'm sure most DC Comics fans have heard that name one way or another. I'm talking about Phosperus Rex. He's a newer villain, much like Professor Pyg and Mister Toad, and its great to see him get some mainstream exposure here. I loved the twist that Batman, Katana, and Gordon didn't know who they were dealing with during the episode's finale.
Boy, you could tell Tara Strong was having a blast voicing the young Barbara Gordon on this episode. I loved her dialogue throughout the entirety of the episode as she was constantly making fun of the villains' cliched kidnapping plans. Too bad we can't keep Babs around on every episode doing commentary I'm positive everyone watching at home laughed at Gordon's quick refusal of Barbara's proposal of having her be Batman's sidekick like Katana. Gordon, there's nothing you can do about that, buddy... unless this series isn't going by the Batman continuity we know and love. From the way that I see it, it seems like this series will revolve around Batman and the Outsiders. I'm calling that right now. They already introduced Katana and Metamorpho, and I'm sure they will introduce more familiar themes and characters from that comic as this series pans out. Eventually, that could lead into a spin-off Outsiders animated series done in this same style of computer-generated animation while Batman continues his own solo adventures while serving as a mentor to that team in the same shared DC Universe. Hell, if Marvel can do it with that lackluster Ultimate Spider-Man cartoon and allow it to branch off into other related hero-based series, then DC can do the same.
This episode was pretty basic, but it served its purpose. Batman has established two powerful allies over the last two episodes. He has Katana now as an impromptu sidekick while Lt. James Gordon is his ally among the police force. I enjoyed the part where Gordon made the half-assed Bat-signal when he couldn't think of any other way to contact him. Batman's remark afterwards was hilarious. Speaking of quotes, I loved Batman's line about the roles that they have to play to protect Gotham. The writers were definitely rubbing off the Nolan Bat-films with that one.
One major gripe I did have with this episode was with how they portrayed the "Ghosts" in the Cauldron. They looked almost identical to some of the ninja henchmen that Batman and Katana were fighting in the previous episode that were associated with the League of Assassins. I wish they chose a better design for those characters as it's pretty easy to confuse them for the League's ninja. Speaking of that scene, I thought it was hilarious how Batman was constantly critiquing Katana's fighting style as they were fighting - "Just knock them out, that way they don't get back up." I was done after the line about she needed to check her ego at the door when it came to crime fighting. I swear Batman is a douche when it comes to his relationships to other people, but damn, you can't stay mad at the guy - he's telling the damn truth.
In comparison to "Family", "Allies" comes off as a pretty lighthearted episode that brings some humor to the table while continuing to establish the foundations of Batman's relationships with his newfound allies. I'm giving this one a 3.5 out of 5.
Hey Impact Wrestling fans! No Surrender was this past Thursday and from the comments and remarks floating around the 'Net, it seems like everyone didn't get the memo on all of the messages that were sprinkled throughout the broadcast.
I was going to wait until the end of the month to include in the September write-up of wrestling, but I rather write this now while it's still fresh in my mind before I forget.
Subtle Messages in No Surrender:
You (as the fans of wrestling) want wrestling - and they delivered on multiple fronts.
This episode of Impact only featured four matches, but these matches equaled quality performance over quantity with lackluster bouts. The show opened with a PPV-caliber bout between Austin Aries and AJ Styles, which showcased without a shadow of a doubt that TNA can put on a stellar performance. This trend continued throughout the broadcast all the way to its finale.
Younger, homegrown talent were given the platform to shine.
Two examples of this - Magnus defeated Roode in the Semi-Finals of the BFG series and faced AJ Styles in the main event. If that's not enough of a platform to give your younger guys a shot at main event then I don't know what is. AJ Styles makes anyone he works with look good.
Wrestling fans have expressed little to no interest in MMA talent appearing in TNA, so TNA won't be begging to have Rampage and Tito back on their programming.
In a segment backstage, Dixie Carter informed Hulk Hogan that Bellator are pulling Rampage and Tito off of their show. Hogan responds in the same manner the average wrestling fan would have in this situation. TNA is now free to focus back on their own talent instead of striving to get MMA talent over.
Jeff Hardy can be used in other methods than hogging the spotlight in the main event scene.
X-Division Champion Manik/TJ Perkins vs. Jeff Hardy is booked on Impact for this upcoming week. I don't know about anyone else but I have grown sick of Jeff Hardy being magically inserted into the main event scene over the last few years. The X-Division is not a step-down by any means and those in that division would benefit working with him in the long run. This would put more eyes back into the X-Division like TNA has been struggling to do over the last two years.
Aces & Eights are slowly falling apart from within.
This is good on many levels. Bully Ray still walks out of this angle as the strongest heel in the company while Mr. Anderson has a platform to revert back to his beloved "Asshole" tweener gimmick with. It wouldn't be much of a stretch that Knux, Garrett, and Wes are on their way out of the door too much like Devon and DOC before them, leaving Bully Ray with just the lovely Brooke Tessmacher at his side. At this stage, he doesn't need the rest of them. Why you ask? Keep reading...
The stable of E.G.O. established themselves as a pending threat.
Once again, TNA are pushing their homegrown talents in the form of Daniels, Kaz, and Roode. If the other members of Aces & Eights fall out then it's safe to assume that Bully Ray will align himself with these Superstars as a ploy to maintain his control over TNA. Besides, they all have a common enemy in Hulk Hogan.
TNA is giving AJ Styles a reason to stick around by finally rewarding him for the grief he has been put through over the last two years.
He won the BFG series and it's looking like he will be the guy who will end the reign of terror of Bully Ray. What's even more intriguing is that he is being given another platform for a "pipebomb" on the upcoming Impact. For those skeptical of his initial worked shoot will more likely be pleased with the upcoming one as there is little doubt that he will hit those colorful points that he skipped over the first time - namely the Claire Lynch angle.
TNA doesn't need a reality TV show to make their female wrestlers' matches more interesting.
Last but not least, a simple promo hyped up the championship match between ODB and Mickie James for the next Impact.
It's that time again, Avatar: The Last Airbender fans. After the long wait after the end of Book One: Air with the defeat of Amon, Nickelodeon premiered the first two episodes of Book 2: Spirits on Friday, September 13, 2013.
Episode Synopsis (Some Spoilers):
Episode 1: "Rebel Spirit"
Six months after the end of Book One: Air, Korra has mastered airbending, Mako works as a policeman and is up for a promotion as detective, Bolin fares poorly in pro-bending with the new "Fire Ferrets", and Asami tries to keep Future Industries afloat by venturing to the south to plan business with Varrick. With Tenzin, the friends visit Korra's and Tenzin's family in the Southern Water Tribe. After Korra's uncle and tribal chief Unalaq easily repels an angry spirit's attack, Korra chooses him instead of Tenzin as her spiritual teacher.
Episode 2: "The Southern Lights"
Unalaq, Korra and her friends travel to the South Pole, where Korra's dad Tonraq journeys along but is sent back by Korra because of the uproar of spirits when hes around. she opens a portal to the spirit world to release the spirits and the Southern Lights. Learning that her father was banished from the Northern Water Tribe for the destruction of an ancient forest and with Tenzin, responsible for her seclusion in her youth, she orders him to leave her. Returning from the pole, Korra's party witnesses an invasion of the South by Northern Water Tribe troops. Meanwhile, Tenzin and his family arrive at the Southern Air Temple, where Jinora is drawn to the statues of the earlier Avatars and a strange wooden Avatar statue is revealed.
New Voice actors cast for Book Two: Spirits include:
Grey DeLisle, the voice actress of Princess Azula in Avatar: The Last Airbender, as the character "The Dark Spirit", as well as a younger version of an established character, and another role
Lisa Edelstein as Kya, Tenzin's elder sister, the only daughter and waterbender of Aang and Katara.
Alyson Stoner announced in January 2013 on her website that she would voice the character "Opal" in The Legend of Korra, without specifying in which book.
The Verdict:
Boy, they weren't kidding when the producers were saying in an interview that the spirits were going to look awesome -- if I may add, eerie and epicly awesome indeed.
The Spirit World was something that was briefly explored in Avatar: The Last Airbender and it was one aspect that I personally wish they spent more time exploring. Now it seems like this entire season will be devoted to the Avatar and her connection as the middleground between the spiritual and physical realms. I don't have a problem with that at all. Maybe we will finally get an answer to the question of how and why the Avatar(s) was created in this season.
"Rebel Spirit" starts off with a high-speed chase through Republic City as Mako debuts in his new role on the police force, putting on an impressive display of firebending. I was sad at the lack of my personal favorite character from Book One: Air, Lin Beifong but I have hope that she will appear later in this season. They still have a bit of room to explore with her and Tenzin's previous romantic history. Speaking of Tenzin, I can't believe that he is trying to act like Korra is in no position to protect herself when the previous Avatar, Tenzin's own father, Aang could barely use all four elements outside of the Avatar state. C'mon dude, cut the girl a break. She did defeat Amon after all.
I felt the scene with Bolin's impromptu designation as Asami's assistant was a bit rushed as while viewers were graced with the introduction to the rather weird businessman, named Varrick, it just seemed rather odd that Asami would drag Bolin into the mix. How is she coping with her father being in jail? How is she dealing with Mako dumping her in favor of Korra? I guess these are more questions that are going to be explored throughout this season. It just felt rather awkward that Korra and Tenzin's family didn't seem to offer her an invitation to the festival like the rest of their friends. Call me nuts, but I have a feeling that they are going to dump Asami into Bolin's arms as his permanent girlfriend by the time this season is over with.
The bulk of the episode is spent with introducing Korra's family members, notably re-introducing Korra's father, Tonraq, and establishing her uncle, Unalaq, and two cousins, Eska and Desna, as the creepy extended family. I'm sure everyone has that one family member they are embarrassed to introduce people to, and well, Eska and Desna take the cake on that role here. Maybe it's my gut instinct on all things of fantasy, but these newcomers seem too shady to be trusted. I do feel that Korra's father and Tenzin are being a bit too over-protective of Korra than is needed. She has already proven herself capable of responsibility - asking for a bit of breathing room (and faith in her abilities) isn't too much.
I do have to agree with Tenzin's concern about Korra's recklessness with the Avatar State though. Has she not been briefed on that yet? If you are killed while in the Avatar State, all connections to the Avatar's past lives are lost forever - meaning it's not something to be toying around with.
When Team Avatar (minus Asami) took on the rogue spirit, I was quickly reminded why I love the fight sequences in this series. Korra's animation doesn't skip a beat here as the rogue spirit shakes off their offense like a force of nature until Unalaq calms its spirit with his spiritual prowess. At first glance, I thought that was a new type of bending, much like Amon's "ability" to strip away bender's bending powers away. Hopefully, Unalaq can shed some light on what exactly he is doing to calm the rogue spirits.
This episode ends with Korra taking Unalaq up on his offer to be her new teacher and figuratively kicking Tenzin to the curb. I can't blame Korra for that decision - her normal methods proved useless against the spirit. She is going to need to have an ace in her back pocket if she hopes to be able to defeat this type of adversary in the future.
Lisa Edelstein voicing Tenzin's sister, Kya, was better than I expected as her and Bumi (voiced by Richard Riehle) as they both have a natural fit as Tenzin's siblings and contrast to his uptight behavior. For those who don't know, Tenzin is voiced by J.K. Simmons (widely known as J. Jonah Jameson in the Spider-Man live-action films by Sam Raimi and the Ultimate Marvel Animated Universe currently on Disney XD). I'm hoping having his siblings around will loosen Tenzin up for he can finally relax with the new baby as part of his family. I'm anxious to see how this goes throughout the course of this season.
"The Southern Lights" continued Korra's journey to hopefully calm the rogue spirits rampaging through the Southern Water Tribe as Tenzin's family (accompanied by Kya and Bumi) started their vacation to the various Air Temples.
After Tonraq's history lesson and confession about being the one who ordered Korra's "restrictions" I don't blame her reaction. At the same time, it played her right into Unalaq's welcoming arms. As we saw at the end of the episode, Unalaq has other motives in mind than just the balance of the spiritual and physical worlds. It looks like he wants complete domination over the Southern Water Tribe.
Speaking of relationship problems, I'm glad they already got the awkward adjustment phase of the new couple out of the way. Mako found himself in the middle of Korra's family dispute as Korra constantly chewed him out for picking sides. Fortunately, Korra's hotheaded-nature didn't blind her for long as she saw the error of her ways by the end of this episode. Is it just me, but Mako (voiced by David Faustino) is starting to channel his inner Bud Bundy more and more in this series?
Book Two: Spirits' two episode premiere set the stage on what is the come for this season and I definitely can't wait to see how this is going to play out. In terms of quality for the premiere, I really can't complain as Nickelodeon gave fans more than enough to enjoy here and speculate on for in anticipation for the rest of the season. I'm giving this premiere a 4 out of 5.
It's been hard to keep my mouth closed since E3 and as we draw closer to the official launch dates of both the Xbox One and the PlayStation 4, but everywhere I look people are constantly dissecting the other when we have not had the actual consoles in our reach to play to see for ourselves. At this stage of the game, we as gamers are not in a position to hold a respectable, unbiased opinion on neither console.
I'm not writing this to stir up yet another Xbox One vs. PlayStation 4 petty console war debate. Instead, I'm writing this to simply state that let's put this debate on hold for the time being. I want to ask a better question - why are you so anxious to move into the next generation of gaming already?
While you ponder that question, I give you this...
Why Should You NOT Care About the Xbox One and PlayStation 4 at this moment:
Current generation hardware will continued to be supported until at least 2015
Microsoft has stated that they will continue to support the Xbox 360 until roughly 2017, while Sony has expressed a similar approach for the PlayStation 3. That being said, both the PS3 and Xbox 360 have a lot of blockbuster titles in development that are set to release over the next few months, including but not limited to Grand Theft Auto V, WWE 2K14, Watch_Dogs (which is a PS4 & XB1 launch title), Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2, Ultra Street Fighter IV, Call of Duty: Ghosts, and much, much more.
What does that mean you ask? You're literally buying a new console at launch to play CURRENT generation titles. Developers aren't going to learn how to optimize this hardware effectively until another year or two tops, so you're better off waiting.
It annoys me to no end with the way certain gamers are acting like your current consoles are going to simply revert into paperweights once the XB1 and PS4 launch. Your consoles still have plenty of life left in them. There's nothing to be worried about.
Most heavy-hitters for both XB1 and PS4 won't launch until early 2014 or later, especially the highly-anticipated Titanfall and Kingdom Hearts 3
Titanfall isn't expected to release until the early quarter of 2014, while Kingdom Hearts 3, which won over a lot of PlayStation fans, is not said to even start development until after Final Fantasy XV is finished since both games shared the same director.
What's the hold up with Kingdom Hearts 3 you ask? Simply read the article yourself here.
So yeah, there's completely no rush on racing out for a next-gen console just for KH3, Square Enix fans.
The first few thousand units are the beta-testers in terms of customers
Remember the Red Ring of Death factory defect in the original Xbox 360 models? How about the Yellow Light of Death for the early PlayStation 3 models? There's always something wrong with new hardware. There has to be that test group to find the bugs and provide both Microsoft and Sony the feedback for future units can be optimized.
You would think after the last generation of gaming and even with that whole Windows Vista ordeal, that people would not invest themselves into being the first into having new hardware. I choose not to be that token dumbass who ends up buying a console twice.
Visually, next generation hardware is not that much better than visuals found on PC gaming rigs.
If you are looking for visuals to dictate your gaming purchases, then you should be investing into PC gaming, especially if you have enough cash to invest into next-gen gaming right now.
Differences between multiplatform releases between current gen and next gen titles are said to be subtle at best.
Don't take my word for it, read from the folks at EuroGamer.
Do you really have $400-600 to drop on a mere console this year, just to play current generation titles?
In the current recession going on in the United States, jobs are hard to come by - let alone affording to maintain rather expensive hobbies such as buying every $60 game that drops every week. I don't know about anyone else, but I personally can't name anyone who can currently afford to buy every game that releases on a regular basis and have enough left over to afford a next-generation console at launch unless you have some pretty rich parents buying stuff for you or you are one of the few people out there in today's economy with a really sweet high-paying salary profession for a living. I'm not going to sugarcoat it. I know how deep my pockets go - I'm not ashamed to say that I'm a cheap ass gamer.
Closing Words
I know I'm not going to convince everyone to change their minds about racing out and waiting in chaotic lines just for the next taste of next-generation gaming hardware, but I just want to put this opinion out there for my respected readers.
It's been a while hasn't it? I know I missed covering both of the episodes dubbed "Broken" and "Toxic" featuring Humpty Dumpty and Metamorpho during my computer dilemma last month, but I feel like this episode is a good place to start back on track of reviewing sake since this episode marks the end of Cartoon Network's brief hiatus on the series as we head towards the last 4 episodes of this first season. Besides, "Family" continues the story arc with the League of Assassins that was sparked up in "Safe".
The Plot: (FULL Spoilers)
The episode opens with Batman and Katana surrounded by League ninja. The two defeat several ninja but still more keep coming. The fight pauses at the arrival of Silver Monkey. He offers them both quick deaths if they yield now. They pass. Silver Monkey throws a smoke bomb that envelops the heroes and signals his ninja to finish them. The assassins advance into the cloud of smoke, triggering a flashback to six hours earlier.
Bruce and Bethanie Ravencroft are on another date and she urges him to join her at the Argus Club. He declines but she is still insistent. Meanwhile Katana waits in the limo, playing a video game. Suddenly it is revealed that Silver Monkey has gotten into the back seat without her realizing it. The two have an intense battle withing the small confines of the car. He manages to pin her and says that all he wants is the Soultaker Sword. She answers with a headbutt. Eventually Katana is kicked out of the limo and Silver Monkey delivers a final ultimatum before tossing a fire bomb into the limo and vanishing.
Later that evening, Katana goes to Alfred with news of what happened. The two finally decide to admit everything about the Sword and the League to Bruce. Alfred admits to betraying Bruce's trust and tenders his resignation, which Bruce accepts. Katana protests and Bruce accepts her resignation as well and warns both of them to be gone by the time he returns. He leaves for Bethanie's apartment and she urges him again to join her at the Argus Club. This time, he accepts. The two arrive at the Club mansion and, once inside, Bruce is immediately ambushed by ninja, Silver Monkey appears from the shadows, and Bethanie aims a crossbow at Bruce. It seems that she and Silver Monkey are together and the League has set a trap for Katana.
Back at the Manor, Katana has just finished packing and is about to go out to her taxi when her phone rings. The caller is Silver Monkey, who tells her that he has Wayne and to bring the sword to the club within the hour. Tatsu rushes out on her motorcycle as Alfred looks on.
At the Club, Bruce fishes for information but only receives threats from Bethanie and Silver Monkey. Just then, Katana bursts into the room with the sword. Silver Monkey demands it but Katana orders him to release Wayne first. Silver Monkey counters that she is in no place to negotiate and reveals a large squad of ninja that have surrounded the room. Bruce breaks the standoff by loudly announcing that this has nothing to do with him. Silver Monkey replies that he is right and, seizing the crossbow from Bethanie, shoots Bruce in the chest, knocking him out the window. Enraged, Tatsu lunges at Silver Monkey with the Soultaker but is blocked by two ninja. As she continues to engage the ninja, Bethanie admonishes Silver Monkey, saying that he told her that Wayne wouldn't have to die. He coldly replies that if she misses him, she can join him. However, Bruce opens his eyes and gets up, revealing that he had armored himself under his clothes. As he rises, Alfred walks up carrying a suitcase containing the Bat Suit, revealing that the two had had this planned all along.
Katana continues to battle the ninja but is being worn down. Fully suited up, Batman arrives to her aid. She welcomes him to the ninja but asks that he leave Silver Monkey to her. This brings us to where the episode began as more ninja approach and Silver Monkey throws the smoke bomb. In the noxious smoke, the two heroes are quickly overcome and the Soultaker sword is seized. A ninja brings the jade blade to Silver Monkey who plans to demonstrate its power by taking their souls. Batman and Katana counter that the same fate will befall him when Lady Shiva betrays him. Silver Monkey replies that, now that he has the sword, Lady Shiva is no longer a threat. Just then, Lady Shiva herself enters the room. Shiva casually tells Silver Monkey that she had known all about his plans to displace her and take over the League but considers it no threat. Silver Monkey orders the ninja to seize her but none of them move. They fear her more than him. Two darts are shot into Silver Monkey's neck and the ninja enclose in on him. While he staggers under the effects of the darts, a ninja grabs Bethanie and moves her away. Silver Monkey puts up a valiant fight but, with the drugs of the darts coursing through him, he soon falls. Through all of this, Batman has managed to retrieve a vial of acid from his belt and uses it to eat through the cable that binds his hands.
Lady Shiva takes up the Soultaker sword and moves towards Bethanie. Bethanie pleaded with her, saying that she never meant to betray her, that it was all Silver Monkey's doing. Shiva ignores this and recites an incantation that causes the runes on the green blade to glow. From the blade a green beam shoots out and envelops Bethanie. Her soul is forcefully drained out of her and siphoned into the blade, leaving her body a withered husk. Lady Shiva assures Silver Monkey that she isn't dead but imprisoned within the blade and that he will not be joining her in the sword, as her plans for him are much more interesting and painful.
As Silver Monkey is dragged away, Lady Shiva prepares to use the sword on Batman and Katana. However, Batman reminds her that she forgot about the rocket. As she asks, "What rocket?" Alfred fires a rocket into the building, taking out a large part of the ceiling. Batman breaks his weakened bonds and frees Katana. The two battle Lady Shiva's ninja together and manage to land several blows on the Lady herself but she summons several archers that hold the duo at bay while she makes her escape on a helicopter. Batman tosses a smoke canister that covers their run to the Batmobile and they make their escape.
Batman drives Tatsu in the Batmobile. She mentions that he is holding her against her will and he tells her that she can get out if she wants. She says nothing, and they arrive at the Bat Cave. He brings her to the Bat Computer and reveals that he is aware of her past with the League and the fire she set to stage her death and escape with the Soultaker Sword. He also knew that Bethanie Ravencroft was working with Silver Monkey to leverage Bruce Wayne for the sword. He used Katana to turn the league against itself, and it worked. Katana is furious. She admonishes Batman, saying that Bruce Wayne is dead, Ravencroft's soul taken, and Lady Shiva has the sword. She states that, at this point, his hands are as dirty as the League's. She turns to go and Batman offers to show her one more thing. He then removes his cowl and reveals his identity to her. She is struck speechless and he tells her that he regrets what happened to Bethanie and that together they will get the sword back. Alfred enters the Cave as Bruce reveals that the actions of this night were her final test and she aced it. They officially welcome her to the family.
The Verdict:
Since it's referenced SO many times at the start of this episode, I'm going to start with an explanation to what the term A.R.G.U.S. is in association to the DC Universe:
A.R.G.U.S. (Advanced Research Group Uniting Super-Humans) is a U.S. federal agency under the command of Col. Steve Trevor and Amanda Waller. It is introduced into the DC Comics continuity in 2011, as part of DC's The New 52 relaunch. A.R.G.U.S. acts as support and liaison to the Justice League, supplying them with resources and cleaning up afterwards. Trevor was asked to stand down as head liaison after their battle with Graves, having gotten too close to Wonder Woman. It also attempts to control the magical superhero group the Justice League Dark, and later still directly establishes the a counterpart group to the Justice League in the form of the Justice League of America, of which Trevor is himself a member.
Now as for why it's being referenced in this series is completely unsure at this stage of the game as I honestly can't see them introducing Amanda Waller into this continuity - at least not so early into this series' run anyway. For now, I'm not going to think much of it as it was possibly the writers' way of conveniently namedropping popular lore and terminology into this show as if we didn't learn anything else from the "Toxic" episode, this series isn't going to pull a lot of concepts spot-on from the source material.
As for this episode, I have to say that I loved this one just as much as, if not more, than "Safe" just from how much action was packed into the duration of this episode. The episode was structured like a Hollywood action-flick and that's not necessary a bad thing. The episode dropped viewers right into the middle of the action with Tatsu Yamashiro and Batman surrounded by the League's ninja and Silver Monkey. Tatsu and Batman's team-up is a spectacle to behold, but I would be doing this review a great injustice if I didn't mention Tatsu and Silver Monkey's one-on-one encounter within the confines of Bruce Wayne's limo. Sweet Jeebus that fight was awesome.
Can we all agree that we knew Dr. Bethanie Ravencroft (voiced by Cree Summer) was up to something? They made that a bit too obvious from how they were snuggling her up into the role of Bruce's love interest for this series in a pretty rapid pace. How Bethanie met her untimely "demise" (Lady Shiva mentioned that she wasn't dead just without a soul) was pretty gruesome for a kids' show, but it definitely got the point across on the true power of the Soultaker Sword.
I honestly can't believe that people were expecting Talia to be the leader of the League of Assassins instead of Lady Shiva. If anyone who would be over the League out of Ra's family it's going to be Ra's Al Ghul himself, who would more likely appear by the end of this first season. And yes, I know that Talia has taken over the League leadership duties in the comics, but c'mon she's not going to have that role already since this is set in Bats' early years. Lady Shiva (voiced by Finola Hughes) is a good stand-in for this rookie Batman can get his first healthy dose of dealing with the League of Assassins. She can easily hold her own in a fight - she's without a doubt one of top (if not the best) martial-artists in DC Universe. That being said, I was surprised that both Tatsu and Batman were able to hold their own against her, given Lady Shiva's extensive background. Of course, she has no super-human abilities, but still, it was rather impressive that she held off Batman and Tatsu with little effort whatsoever.
I do have one gripe about Lady Shiva in this series. Her costume looks almost like a rip-off of Titania's from Gargoyles but I can't be too surprised as Greg Weisman is one of this series' lead writers. I'm guessing her costume is a cheap nod towards that series. I was hoping for something on the lines of this, but that's just my opinion.
Last but not least, let's talk about this Bat-Family finally coming together during the episode's finale. After Batman's Sherlock-esque explanation, it was obvious that he was going to reveal his identity to Tatsu. Good to know that Tatsu passed his tests with flying colors as it seemed like they completely dropped that subplot after the League of Assassins were first introduced. Next week's episode is said to feature Batman and Katana's first official outing as a team. I'm looking forward to Tatsu's costumed debut.
If I may add, I wouldn't mind Anthony Ruivivar voicing Bruce Wayne/Batman in Batman: Arkham Origins rather than Roger Craig Smith. No offense to Roger Craig Smith, but I really like Ruivivar's voice for this younger Batman.
"Family" featured the deterioration of one family (League of Assassins) while another family's bond was strengthened (Bat-Family) as it stood out as Beware The Batman's best episode to date. I give this episode a 4.5 out of 5.
First off, I want to start off with an apology. This month's write-up will NOT be as lengthy as last month's since I didn't have the means to outline this out over the course of last month thanks to my dilemma with my laptop going out of commission. So if it seems like I'm skimming over this month's events, then I apologize as I'm going to discuss the "major" topics from this past month. I'll definitely make it up to you guys in the coverage for the month of September.
(August 1, 2013)
Champion vs. Champion Match - Manik vs. Chris Sabin
I loved how TNA provided a homage to Sabin's humble beginnings as his first act as champion (out of respect) was to challenge the new reigning X-Division Champion, Manik (TJ Perkins). As I stated last month, Manik is very talented and to get this opportunity to showcase his talents against the newly crowned TNA Heavyweight Champion speaks volumes. Seeing Sabin back into the mix like this really took me back to the NWA-TNA days of TNA when "Super Sabin" (obvious Dragonball Z reference) first graced the X-Division.
(August 2, 2013)
I would be lying if I said that I regularly watch Smackdown!, so don't be surprised that I don't mention this brand much in these write-ups. I read the spoilers, but I rarely have the time to endure a full episode of the blue brand nowadays.
Layla FINALLY turns heel on Kaitlyn
As funny as it was to see AJ Lee and Layla skip off together into the sunset, I have to say that WWE waited a bit too late to pull this card. Layla should have turned heel during the "rematch" build-up in the Kaitlyn feud, not now when it's pretty much guaranteed that Kaitlyn has been quietly ushered out of the title picture. Oh well, at least Layla is relevant again with something to do - even if it is a slight rehash of LayCool...
(August 12, 2013)
Daniel Bryan and John Cena's verbal confrontation on MizTV
I loved how they played off Daniel Bryan's extensive independent wrestling history against John Cena's history as WWE's poster boy, but at the same time, all of these promos where people are trying to sell Cena short of being a credible wrestler are getting old and starting to sound the same. CM Punk said it, The Rock said it, and now Daniel Bryan's saying it. As far as I'm concerned, John Cena has proven his worth as a wrestler. Is he a great one? Not really, but people manage to mark out over guys like Batista, Goldberg, and Ryback with even smaller arsenals in their movesets. How about WWE Creative find something else for Cena's antagonists to belittle him with? There's more than enough ammunition floating around on that Total Divas show...
CM Punk surprises Paul Heyman and Brock Lesnar
CM Punk had to gain the upper hand if WWE wanted to play off any glimmer of hope of the Best in the World defeating Heyman's Monster. If anything, this segment showed that he wasn't going to be a mere footnote in Brock Lesnar's warpath.
Hardcore Justice Special (August 18, 2013)
Bound for Glory Ladder Match: Austin Aries vs. Kazarian vs. AJ Styles vs. Jeff Hardy
Sue me, I grew up in the heights of the Attitude Era, so I love a good ladder match. I have to say I was surprised that they didn't allow Jeff Hardy to win this one, but I'm under the impression that Jeff Hardy is going to stick around no matter what so the think tank over TNA are just going to keep giving false promises of him reigning supreme again. If you ask me, I would migrate him over to X-Division. If Rob Van Dam can do it, then why not this guy? I was surprised they allowed Kazarian to pick up the win here as I could have sworn that he (along with Christopher Daniels) just won the ladder match at Hardcore Justice at One Night Only too.
No DQ Three Way Dance: Knockout’s Champion Mickie James vs. Gail Kim vs. ODB
Last month in the One Night Only Hardcore Justice special, ODB proved that she could work a stellar hardcore match with Jacqueline Moore, but this match topped that tenfold. There were a lot of crazy spots that loved in this match, especially the one where ODB removed one of her (multiple?) bras and used it as a weapon in this hardcore match. I have joked with friends for years about using that as an offensive move in e-federations, but who would have thought that I would live to see the day that someone would use it in an actual women's wrestling match. It was good to see that Mickie James and Gail Kim are learning to get around that "incompatibility" they have in wrestling as well as they weren't struggling to keep up with the others' offense.
TNA World Heavyweight Championship Steel Cage Match: Chris Sabin (c) vs. Bully Ray
I can't say I was mad off the end result. We knew it was coming regardless. Bully Ray had to regain the championship to continue this Aces & Eights storyline. Besides, I was laughing too hard at Mr. Anderson's "YOU SHALL NOT PASS!!" chant (obvious Lord of the Rings reference) to Sabin during the finale to be mad. As for the match itself, I was actually surprised. Chris Sabin managed to put on a solid offense against the obviously bigger in size and stature, Bully Ray, despite their size differences. I still can't believe that I actually heard people reference Sabin as a "vanilla X-Division midget" who shouldn't have won the TNA Heavyweight Championship in the first place.
Summerslam 2013
CM Punk vs. Brock Lesnar
Excuse me while I go mark out at Punk's Wolverine-inspired ring gear for this match. Holy shit. I know I joked about it for over the past month that CM Punk would need a gun if he hoped to have a chance at beating Brock Lesnar, but damn, CM Punk did come incredibly close to beating Heyman's monster without the use of a firearm. I watched the match only a few days ago with my oldest nephew (who hasn't been keeping up with WWE nowadays either) and we were both in amazement at the hell these two Superstars put themselves through from start to finish. My favorite spot was the F-5 counter into the DDT near the end as I totally thought Lesnar had it won during that moment, but Punk turned it around again. Despite the fact that CM Punk didn't manage to pull a win out of his ass, this was still an amazing match. I dare say that it's definitely a step up from both of Lesnar's previous bouts with Triple H and John Cena over the past year.
WWE Championship Match - John Cena (c) vs. Daniel Bryan - Special Referee: Triple H
The match itself was nothing less short of amazing between these two Superstars as that neither one of these guys were going to skip a beat here after talking a big game on RAW. I didn't see the event live, but when I did get home that night afterwards, I remember seeing my News Feed on Facebook blowing up with people having bitch fits about the title change. In typical WWE fashion, Vince trolled you guys, so I don't see why people were so upset at the end result. You got what you wanted with Daniel Bryan defeating John Cena - CLEAN. No bullshit interference or questionable finish. It was clean, no dispute there - at all. The swerve with Triple H was a bit of a shock if I may add, but as I was watching the aftermath, Triple H stood in the ring a bit TOO long during the celebration and kept looking back at the stage so those watching live should have known that something was up. Last but not least, we all knew Randy Orton had Money in the Bank so why was everyone surprised that he cashed it in? I rather him cash it in now for Daniel Bryan to beat him for the belt at least by the end of the year and have a decent title run before John Cena comes back around Royal Rumble time and takes back his property Hulkamania-style.
As for the swerve, I think it was executed well and could have potentially worked even better for the crowd reaction if John Cena went heel instead of Randy Orton. The IWC (internet wrestling community) have been complaining for months that Orton was past overdue for a heel-turn so in a way everyone got what they wanted here tonight.
(Summerslam aftermath - August 19, 2013)
Daniel Bryan crashes Randy Orton's Championship Conoration
Whereas John Cena figuratively passed the torch down to Daniel Bryan at the top of the show to formally bless him with the honor as WWE's top babyface in his absence, this segment drove the point home that Daniel Bryan will play the part of this generation's Stone Cold Steve Austin fighting against this revamped version of the Attitude Era's Corporation stable.
Unlike most people who have been bitching since Summerslam, I don't have a gripe with this stable. The only thing I want to know is why did Vince and Stephanie McMahon forgive Randy Orton after this...
And more recently this...
From the way Triple H looked like Bruce Banner when he's about to change into the Incredible Hulk there, you would think he would never forgive Orton. And I thought Orton was done trusting Triple H after the fall out in Evolution, but the weak excuse they are giving here is that Randy Orton is the lesser of two evils when you have only him and Daniel Bryan to work with.
(August 21, 2013)
Best of Three Falls Match - Sami Zayn vs. Antonio Cesaro
This is the match that is referred to by many as a match of the year candidate for WWE. If you don't watch any other NXT-related match this year, then at least do yourself a favor and watch this one. Trust me, you will NOT be disappointed.
Is this Match of the Year? I dunno, but it's a VERY strong candidate. Who would have guessed that we would have seen El Generico and Claudio Castanogli paired up in a match this early in their WWE careers? That being said, this is borderline an indy match from how it's designed and approached. There's that warm-up period, the "okay, let's get serious" middleground, and the "Let's give the fans their money's worth" end phase.
While I have nothing but praise for these two guys, it pisses me off that WWE isn't doing anything with Cesaro on the main roster. The Real Americans are going nowhere, so why not have Cesaro splinter off and "attempt" to regain his lost momentum before WWE killed his buzz with that yodeling gimmick?
As for Sami, I just don't get why WWE is holding so many talented individuals down on NXT. Vince, you clearly have money in these guys. How about draft the ass clowns who aren't doing shit on the main roster down to NXT and swap them out with these some of these guys?
Lastly, O-M-G at that finish. I doubt that would have been possible if these two haven't worked with each other enough prior to coming to WWE. That takes a LOT trust on both sides with the degree of some of the crazy spots they pulled off. Bravo gentlemen, well done.
Sami Zayn (El Generico) and Antonio Cesaro (Claudio Castagnoli) are no strangers to competing to each other and they know each other's styles so well. I cannot express in words on this amazing spectacle that these two put on in this match. Of course, WWE are using this as a catalyst to inject Sami Zayn into a NXT Championship feud with Bo Dallas with the increased popularity, but I would rather see this feud (Cesaro vs. Zayn) being showcased on the red and blue brands.
(August 22, 2013)
Brooke Tessmacher revealed as love interest to Bully Ray
With all of the releases to the Knockouts in the company, I was beginning to wonder if Brooke Tessmacher's contract was on the chopping block next, especially with her lengthy absence from the company for a while now. I like how they modified this angle to help cover up Brooke Hogan's departure with this. If you ask me, TNA can fire the rest of the Aces & Eights guys, save for Mr. Anderson. WWE doesn't want him back as long as Randy Orton is still on their roster, so he might as well stay in TNA. Anderson can go back to his "asshole" gimmick and play the Steve Austin-style babyface again while Aces & Eights can exist as merely Bully Ray, Tito Ortiz, and Brooke Tessmacher. If Bully Ray needs more back-up, he could always recruit Bad Influence to his ranks as replacements.
Gail Kim vs. ODB
If I'm perfectly honest, I don't care who wins this feud as when it comes to women's wrestling matches I usually have one favorite picked to win, but this feud has been full of great matches. Gail Kim and ODB have a natural in-ring chemistry with each other and they compliment each other's styles to boot.
Aces & Eights vs. Main Event Mafia
For the last few months, we have endured AJ Styles mope around the Impact Zone as the emo-version of Peter Parker from Spider-Man 3. Tonight, that ended here. It was ended prematurely as Kurt Angle is in rehab from yet another drug bust, so TNA had to do something to keep the ball rolling with the Main Event Mafia and Aces & Eights storylines.
I was completely shocked that Devon was the one who was pinned in this match and lost his job, but I guess he was yet another victim (Taz reference) to the ongoing "trimming of the fat" on TNA's roster. I can't say that I'm going to miss him as he never amounted to anything to me throughout his singles career in TNA. Bully Ray managed to completely revamp himself from top to bottom to stand tall as the company's reigning champion and strongest heel seen in years. Devon is still the same dead weight Bully Ray kicked to the curb when he started his solo run.
RAW (August 26, 2013)
AJ Lee drops a "pipebomb" for the Total Divas' cast
Ah yes, I have to bring up this moment. For current WWE Divas fans, you are either split into two categories - either you hate or love the Total Divas reality TV show. From my posts on the show, you guys should know that I don't mind it, but I'm not saying it's the best thing on television either. It's just another guilty pleasure to watch on the TV, much like Keeping up with the Kardashians, Big Brother, MTV's The Real World, or any other token reality TV series that people are raving about nowadays. As for AJ's promo, I thought it was well-done, and properly timed.
The thing that pisses me off about this promo are the Diva marks who are acting like this is the first time that this has been done before and it's changing the division forever. Boy, you can tell who don't know their wrestling history, huh?
Tell me... doesn't this sound familiar?
Yeah... that's what I thought. The same ol' song and dance. For those who don't get the reference from that image of AJ pushing down the ladder then allow me to educate you, Lita was shoving Superstars off ladders back in the Attitude Era so let's stop bringing up that moment as such a "blockbuster" moment in AJ's career, okay?
I don't want Diva fans to get me wrong. It's not that I don't like AJ as champion, it's just that I want her to impress me and blow me away in AND out of the ring. I was glad that she won it, but don't do like everyone else for the last 2-3 years and continue to bore me with it as you play the typical "Mean Girls" stereotype (bully random babyface Diva until she folds then claim you're the best ever in the company's history) that WWE has stuck with the Divas for ages now. People keep acting as if she's the "Great White Hope" and will change the division forever since she's so different than the rest. Wake up call, the closest thing to that dream is Paige in NXT, folks. Eve Torres and Maryse played the golddigger roles, while LayCool and Trish Stratus were infamous for bullying other Divas, so how about we admit that AJ is still part of the typical Diva mold? The only thing different about AJ is that she has the body of a 15 year old. I love AJ Lee as a wrestler, but the thing that annoys me the most about 90% of her current bandwagon of fans is that they are placing her on a pedestal so high that even AJ Lee herself will not be able to live up to those extreme expectations that they are placing onto her shoulders. She is not the female equivalent of CM Punk and will not usher in a new age for the WWE Divas. Like it or not, but AJ Lee wouldn't have a "pipebomb" period if there wasn't that Total Divas show to begin with.
Truth be told, Diva-Dirt reported that AJ's pipebomb was a complete work and used as part of Total Divas Season 2 as E! Network had extra cameras backstage for filming the Divas' reactions after this event. That being said, don't be surprised that AJ loses the Divas Championship to one of the Total Divas' stars at Night of Champions. If you ask me, I rather Natalya win it from AJ more than anyone else out of the Total Divas cast. Naomi is talented but she's not championship material yet while Brie Bella holding it wouldn't do anything as that would be just rotating out one heel for another. Besides, I can't see WWE giving her the belt without Nikki being medically cleared to compete again after recovering from that nasty knee injury.
To everyone that "fears" AJ losing at NOC, I will say this as a reminder. WWE's current standard pretty much ushers in that the championship gold is merely a footnote/reminder of who "the suits" think should be over. A true success story in wrestling is how over (read: popular) you are WITHOUT said title. Perfect current generation examples: CM Punk, Daniel Bryan, Kurt Angle, AJ Styles, etc. Never allow a title to dictate whether how "successful" a wrestler should be.
Now, if AJ wins at NOC, it's pretty much going to make the follow-up rather stale if you ask me. The Total Divas girls lose because they got too caught up in their own drama? So where does that leave AJ? Simple, we are back to square one like Kaitlyn before her without a challenger for said title. AJ boasts about beating the Total Divas girls while AJ feuds with one of the lackluster girls not on Total Divas? The only person I could see her feuding with that's not in that circle is Layla but I can't see them breaking up that "besties" clique up so soon. It's a damn shame that a Kaitlyn vs. Layla feud didn't spark up out of that either.
Gauntlet Match - Daniel Bryan vs. The Shield
Daniel Bryan definitely earned his work horse stripes tonight, putting on a wrestling clinic with long-time ROH rival, Tyler Black, now known as The Shield's Seth Rollins. As great as this match was, the end of RAW continued a trend that's getting pretty damn repetitive at this rate that ends with Daniel Bryan overwhelmed by the numbers game of the unholy union of the McMahons, Triple H, The Shield, and current WWE Champion Randy Orton making a public display of what it means to cross them to the rest of the WWE roster. Even of this posting (9/6/13) Daniel Bryan hasn't managed to make it through an entire WWE broadcast without finding himself out cold on the canvas by the show's end.
The thing that got to me the most about this match was that Triple H said that anyone that didn't have their eyes on the ring throughout the course of the match as The Shield made an example of Daniel Bryan was going to get fired. If you would look at the WWE roster throughout the course of this match, everyone save for a few token players - notably The Big Show, Dolph Ziggler, Divas Champion AJ Lee, and a handful of other Superstars - were acting completely out of character. I was watching this segment and shouting at the TV, "Show some professionalism at least stay in character for crying out loud..." You could spot most of the other Divas talking to their boyfriends (namely Naomi chatting it up with Jimmy Uso), Hornswoggle, Alberto Del Rio, Rob Van Dam, Damien Sandow, and Ricardo Rodriguez chatting it up like they are all best friends but are in a "heated" rivalry. Then when Triple H's music hit, it was like ringing the bell for Festus and everyone put their game faces back on like they were in-character throughout this entire bit.
I can't wait for the moment when The Big Show delivers the WMD to Triple H and wipes that smile clean off his face...
(August 29, 2013)
Gail Kim vs. ODB in a 2/3 Falls Match to determine the #1 Contender for the Knockouts Title
Ladies and gentlemen, this is what you call a women's wrestling match. Much like Gail Kim's ladder and last man standing matches against Taryn Terrell that have been talked about as two of the greatest women's wrestling matches (in mainstream wrestling anyway...) in recent memory, Gail Kim can easily add this match to her impressive resume of A+ grade matches this year. It's great to see that TNA is doing something with ODB rather her wasting away as a mere referee and occasional comedy relief, as the woman is vastly over with the bulk of TNA's live crowds.
AJ Styles drops a "pipebomb"
I applauded this "worked shoot" from start to finish as I'm glad they gave AJ Styles the platform to speak his grievances with TNA as of late. While almost every wrestling column, website, and IWC mark raved about AJ Lee's pipebomb this week, it really pissed me off to see that so-called wrestling fans haven't given AJ Styles props for this promo as well. Much like AJ Lee, he said a lot of things that needed to be said, but of course, since it's not WWE-flavored people act negatively to it.
The older I get, the more I'm starting to wonder about the other people who call themselves "fans" of this sport. Sure, TNA makes a lot of mistakes as WWE's competition on the mainstream market, but it's this double-standard that always pisses me off when I talk to people about the two companies. TNA does one thing wrong and they forsake watching the product, while WWE does the same thing, those same said "fans" are back watching that following week. For every mistake TNA does, "fans" are quick to point it out and talk down negatively about everything in this company, but the second WWE does something stupid, it's brushed underneath the rug like it's nothing. How about you "fans" show WWE how much you dislike their mistakes as how vocal you "fans" are about TNA's? From the way that I see it, there are more artificial "fans" of this sport than actual fans - meaning that they are merely "fans" as long as the product caters to their interest.
Okay, okay. Rant over...
The total WTF? ending to tonight's broadcast
The battle royal for 20 extra points in the BFG series sounded cool, and I was fine with that as I don't want to see Jeff Hardy in the final 4 again after last year's "drama". Sting challenges Bully Ray next week on Impact? Hold up, what the fuck? I thought the stipulation at Slammiversary was that he could NOT challenge for the TNA World Heavyweight Championship EVER again after losing? Edit: As of the 9/5/13 taping of Impact, they explained that this match was a non-title match-up that wasn't clarified at the end of this episode.
That's it for the month of August, wrestling fans. Again, I apologize that this isn't as lengthy a read as the write-up for the month of July.
