Aloha and welcome back to 7-11 thoughts, or somewhere in between!
One of my dreams way back when, small kid time era, was to be a professional wrestler…
If you’ve been on the soul what journey, or know me, you’ve heard the story, Indiana Jones, a pirate, and/or a pro wrestler (maybe Boba Fett depending on which chapter of childhood we’re talking about) and last but not least, help people and make the world better.
Or as I discovered upon reflection and applying the techniques of dream interpretation: An adventure in service.
And let me tell you, there have been soul many good memories in exploring what it means to have adventure while serving the greater collective of humanity!
Rewind back to the Adventures in Urban Mysticism years, for a time whenever my brother from another, Vince ‘Money’ Mesa, and I worked together at hank’s in the old International Market Place during shifts together, it felt like we were the:
Undisputed, Tag Team Champions of the World!
While I’ve never donned trunks or leapt from the top rope, I did find Muay Thai and Jiu-Jitsu, which seemed to quell the combat sports part. And as for the entertainment side of ‘Sports Entertainment’ let’s just say that life never ceases to be entertaining.
I also worked in opera, which is arguably pretty close to the squared circle. I definitely lobbied hard for a Diva Deathmatch concept.
Picture this:
Entrance Themes
Fireworks, okay, maybe not bc of the budget but some kind of crazy lighting that would do justice to a well-lit chair
Live play-by-play announcers calling the ‘bout’ pitting two opera divas in a match of performances
Queue more theatrical lighting, smoke, a screen with some great shadows and a faux steel chair shot, or was it?
And lots and lots of promos between the faces and heels
But alas, I couldn’t sell the vision to the counter-sopranos out there.
Yet, January has come and gone, and so has the Super Bowl and here we are on the road to Wrestlemania where The Rock is back, and once again a heel, just bringing it as The Attitude Era crashes into the contemporary golden era.
Why golden? In an artform that has seen some of the sports and entertainments biggest names take part in the show, today’s professional wrestling scene features arguably some of the best professional wrestling content, in history.
Let’s look start with Cody Rhodes, who took his personal brand on the road in 2016, elevated it, and returned to the WWE in hopes of finishing the story.
A story which has crashed, twice now into the longest modern championship reign by, no pun intended, Roman Reigns, your Tribal Chief, Head of the Table, and the focal point of the even greater longterm story that has been The Bloodline.
That just grazes the surface of a handful of big names because if you dive deep, you can find compelling stories and top performers everywhere you look.
Take a trip to Mondays and you’ll be greeted each week by The Visionary, Seth ‘Freakin’ Rollins, the champion over on one of the longest running TV shows ever - Monday Night Raw (or as he’s said many times over Monday Night Rollins). Each week, you’ll be greeted by one of his many challengers. Most notably right now is former Champion Drew McIntrye, or DM Punk, a name he mockingly created while he attempts to steal future Hall of Famer CM Punk’s dream of being in the Wrestlemania Main Event.
Punk lost his shot at his dream this year after tearing his triceps at the Royal Rumble. You know, since it’s fake and all.
While the veil has been lifted and is admittedly scripted, look up Carmelo Hayes and watch as Melo Don’t Miss in a heartbreaking-even though-you-could-see-it-come-a-mile-away turn against former bestie Trick Williams.
As we approached the milestone 40th Wrestlemania, it’s not just WWE that’s firing on all cylinders.
Over at AEW, a company Cody helped to start, you have the charismatic and intense Swerve Strickland vying for a shot at facing world champion, Samoa Joe, a legend with nothing else to prove yet is somehow doing some of his best work this late in his career.
Joe’s victory a couple months back over the generational talent of MJF, Maxwell Jacob Friedman, as ridiculous a character as many in the storied history of professional wrestling characters, was a reset after back-to-back record setting runs by MJF and The Best Bout Machine, Kenny Omega. Omega is considered by many to be the best in the world over the past decade, and each year finds his way into matches that could be considered match of the year.
Omega is a veteran of New Japan, which has also seen its share of talents like Omega develop and flourish. New Japan regularly takes contests outside to new markets around the world and its Bullet Club, with an endless amounts of remixes, have seemingly popped up in every promotion.
All that’s just the men’s side, without talking about brands like NWA, MLW, or TNA either, where its women’s champ, Jordynne Grace competed in the Women’s Royal Rumble as a surprise entrant.
Without a doubt, the women’s divisions are more compelling than ever before in history due to all the years of work of women breaking new ground, the development of strong characters, and the evolution of styles that have taken it all to a new level.
In watching the final minutes of the aforementioned Women’s Rumble earlier this year, you could have made the case for any of the final competitors to be the last woman standing, earning a shot at its champions Rhea Ripley or Iyo Sky.
Bianca Belair, who set a record for longest title run
‘The Man’ Becky Lynch, who has been chomping at the bit to battle Ripley
Back from injury fan favorite Liv Morgan
And Naomi, who was the second competitor in the bout, battling all comers for over an hour
Each of these ladies could challenge for the title on any night and carry the storylines forward against the roster. Let’s not forget newcomers like the highly touted Jade Cargill, who went on a Goldberg like massive undefeated run over at AEW, and made her debut eliminating the seemingly unstoppable Nia Jax.
But this year, it was another future Hall of Famer’s time as Bayley came out victorious. The Role Model will go on to face Sky, her former stable mate in Damage CTRL, the top women’s faction today (and possibly ever).
This is all going down without Charlotte Flair, the most decorated women’s competitor, as she recovers from injury. And we shouldn’t forget the imminent return of another superstar, Mercedes Moné (fka Sasha Banks).
Moné and Naomi notably walked out of the WWE over what no one really knows but from multiple reports, it sounds like they took a stand against some creative booking decisions. It cost them their jobs but they’d both go on to win gold in other promotions. We talked about Naomi’s Rumble return but it remains to be seen where Moné ends up.
Will it be with AEW?
Or rejoin the WWE ?
Or continuing to chase her dream of competing in Japan?
Having starred in The Mandalorian, is she now focused on acting?
You know, in her case, though not at the same time, I think we’ll see all of the above happen along the way.
Don’t get me wrong, Pro Wrestling isn’t perfect.
Just watch Dark Side of the Ring’s episode about the Von Erich family, a tragic story that sees far too much death. They don’t call the show ‘Dark Side’ for nothing and you can learn about more wrestling tragedies should you dive into the series.
An unforunate unfolding has played out more recently in the headlines.
One of sports entertainment’s most amazing stories, the WWE’s new deal with Netflix has been overshadowed by the ongoing Vince McMahon saga. McMahon helped usher the genre to where it is, but along the way, abused his power in ways that seem to get sadder or more devastating to hear about with each new story that comes to light.
In a way, the real life happenings almost feel too much art imitates life. But as with society as a whole, hopefully, wrestling turns the corner by creating work environment that’s healthier. Because at the end of the day, you got to take care of the people. A business, a brand, its product only get further because of the people who work tirelessly to elevate the craft, and when people authentically carde.
Soul if you have any takeaways here, work hard, show up, respect yourselves and others.
Rinse, repeat, then transform.
And until the next 7-11 thoughts, a hui hou!
Note: This was a new format for 7-11 thoughts. Let us know what you thought in the comments. Mahalo!