The Lariat

Can we get an updated picture for Aria Blake? The assigned picture for Aria is actually Brittany Blake.

Samoan Swat Team vs American Males Van Hammer vs Brian Pillman Tom Zenk vs Dustin Rhodes The Outsiders vs Chaos By Nature The Young Pistols vs The Fabulous Freebirds in a non title match Ron Simmons vs Sting DRAW Tully Blanchard vs One Man Gang Ricky Steamboat vs Lex Luger © DRAW Debated the Outsiders/Chaos By Nature match, but given that I think there’s gonna be two draws, I didn’t want to give a third. Simmons looks to be on a collision course with Lex, while Steamboat is arguably the biggest challenge yet. I see some sort of shenanigans in both matches.

Gaaah. Started from Page 1 and was working my way through the backlog in time to miss out on predictions for this show. That said, I’m enjoying this Stardom and I’m definitely hooked on the product here. From Prominence vs DDM to now ALFA making their mark, it’s been fascinating to watch. Ruaka turned into a star for me in my Impact game, so selfishly I’m rooting for her. Same with Natsupoi and Mina. Here’s hoping HimePoi turn out to be the tag team GOATS and stop ALFA before they really get going

At the risk of sounding negative I thought For The Culture would feature all POC talent, but it’s your diary and I don’t want to impose my own thoughts on it. Looking forward to reading.

<p>Impact Wrestling</p><p> </p><p> My goal was to keep things as close to life as possible and replicate their booking. I made it to about March before things went off course, as Matt Hardy and Brian Cage both found themselves out of a job. With W. Morrissey still on his hiatus, I needed a solid hoss so Cage got slotted in. Warhorse would take Matt Cardona's spot when WWE came calling, same with Alex Shelley and James Storm, and Chris Dickinson and Madman Fulton. Thankfully I signed some of the key talent to exclusive contracts so those were the only real losses we suffered.</p><p> </p><p> I decided to make good use of the Forbidden Door and reach out to AEW talent on non-exclusive contracts. Penelope Ford and Thunder Rosa help our women's division, while Brian Pillman can slot in for Rohit Raju since he's retiring. Matt Hardy takes on Chris Bey as a protege, helping him immensely. He also has the Hardy Family Office, taking Royce Isaacs and Jorel Nelson under his wing. O'Shay Edwards also joins them in June, taking the place of Steve Maclin.</p><p> </p><p> Contracts come up for renewal, giving me a chance to sign them to Impact. We manage to get Roddy Strong, Kyle O'Reilly, Big E, and Austin Theory, adding them to the roster. In our biggest signing, John Cena doesn't renew his contract with WWE and we sign him. Do I know what to do with him? No, but I got him! He might slot into Christian Cage's role if his movie obligations don't prevent that.</p><p> </p><p> We're currently in July, approaching Homecoming. We have three development territories in Global Force, Fight Club Pro, and after purchasing them, All Japan Pro Wrestling. Pro Wrestling NOAH is close to being purchased as well, so wish me luck in that regard.</p><p> </p><p> And finally, AEW didn't renew the contract for one of their big names: Dr. Britt Baker, DMD. I think I found the feud to carry me to Bound For Glory, though Thunder Rosa is another option.</p><p> </p><p> And for fun, let's see who I've had to slot in for one reason or another.</p><p> </p><p> James Storm - Alex Shelley</p><p> Matt Cardona - Warhorse</p><p> Chelsea Green - Shotzi Blackheart</p><p> Madman Fulton - Chris Dickinson</p><p> Rohit Raju - Brian Pillman Jr.</p><p> Shera - Adrian Severe (Fabian Aichner)</p><p> Taylor Wilde - Allie Katch</p><p> W. Morrissey - Brian Cage</p><p> Sam Beale - Jordan Oliver</p><p> No Way - Ross Von Erich</p>

Could I get rules for my Impact game post-Slammiversary? Keeping things mostly true to life in regards to releases, but also managed to get Strong & O'Reilly, Andrade, Big E, and John Cena.

GCW Triple Crown Champion: AJ Gray The lineages of the GCW, CZW, and Defiant Heavyweight Titles came together to form the GCW Triple Crown. Chris Dickinson defeated John Silver to become the first Triple Crown Champion, only to lose the belt to AJ Gray two weeks later at The Wrld On GCW. Gray has defended his belt since then, including two defenses against Chris Dickinson, Jimmy Jacobs, John Silver, and most recently against Bobby Roode. GCW Internet Champion: Tyler Bateman The King of the Crossroads was the last CWFH National Champion, heading into a showdown with CZW Wired Champion Spectre (UC). It was expanded into a fatal four way with Trey Miguel and Jordan Oliver, which Tyler Bateman won with a Chelsea Smile, pinning Trey. Spectre would fail his rematch, as did Jordan Clearwater, but Trey is building steam heading into his challenge at GCW Good Riddance. GCW Tag Team Champions: Effy & Will Hobbs Blame the AI for this random pairing, as Effy and Hobbs were the GCW Tag Champs after an auto booked match against Young Dumb N Broke. Winning a unification match against Azriael and Lee Moriarty, Effy and Hobbs are on a collision course with The Briscoes at Good Riddance. GCW Women’s Double Crown Champion: Deonna Purrazo CWFH’s Femme Fatale Champion, Deonna has been an absolute star for me. Taking on and elevating the women talent, she unified the Femme Fatale and the Defiant Women’s Title by beating Delilah Doom. She’s in a fatal four way against Kiera Hogan, Rosemary, and Su Yung at Good Riddance. Nick Gage Invitational 2021: AJ Gray Eight man tournament, which is a bit harder with the Wrestling Nerd Nirvana style. Took a big hit to run this even as Hardcore, but AJ won the tournament to get his title shot. Acid Cup 2021: Joey Janela Done before I bought them out. Tournament of Death 2021: SHLAK Guns don’t kill people. SHLAK KILLS PEOPLE.

<p>So. <em>So.</em></p><p> </p><p> An attempt at the RTG has yielded some strange results. I went with a RW mod for this attempt and got JBL as my owner, who decided to inject $250,000. I figure that this means the challenge is over, but I kinda like the game setup and decide to forge ahead. An RTG-lite, we'll say.</p><p> </p><p> I figure this has to last me a good long while, so I try to keep most of the cash on hand while using cheap workers. Most expensive was referee Jeremy Marcus at $50 a show, while the wrestlers were on $30 a show contracts for a while. JBL as owner does mean I can spam him for segments, which helps us get good overall ratings in the early days. We run about three shows a month while I pump money into merchandising for later on. We easily get to level three, but the crawl to level four hits hard.</p><p> </p><p> Whether it was thanks to using JBL constantly or not, I manage to get us up to Tiny in nine months thanks to spamming shows like hell and using any and all tricks I know. Free shows and very cheap shows help since I have a nice little nest egg I can fall back on, and keeping the roster small and booking closely manage to help more than hinder.</p><p> </p><p> Here's where it goes to hell in a handbasket. I get greedy and see CZW on sale for about $19,000. The snap decision outweighs my common sense and I make the purchase, which gets me a school, a host of events I can incorporate into my schedule, and a lot of new faces on my roster. After the necessary cuts, we forge on ahead with a unification show. Another part of this purchase was the defunct CZW Wired TV show, which I pick back up and put on IWTV. A weekly show, a monthly showcase show, and our big monthly event. So far, so good.</p><p> </p><p> And then I see Championship Wrestling From Hollywood available. And I make the purchase.</p><p> </p><p> Okay, okay. This was a bit more expensive at $25,000, but we can still afford this. It also helps with our popularity, which pushes us closer to Small. What's the move that gets us there? My compulsion, which tells me that GCW for $98,000 is the move. And it is, but oh man was that a rough one.</p><p> </p><p> So. Three companies, which means three times the titles to manage. We also have the unfortunate position of having the CWFH weekly show, on top of our Wired show. Plus our monthly showcase, which I need to cancel to save myself some stress. It's a lesser show but still tough to deal with.</p><p> </p><p> We're currently Small, which means my Stars and Major Stars have gone down to Well Known and Recognizable. I've had to hire more wrestlers, open a development territory, rework schedules to hold two weekly shows and two events a month, and beef up production lest I fall behind. I haven't been able to move to a different company, but it's fine; I'm having fun buying up everything to eventually put on our network once I have the money.</p><p> </p><p> Since this did start as an RTG, I still like to utilize the rolls to help out my character. I've been fortunate enough to not get a bad roll yet; ended up with a younger brother and a girlfriend, as well as a friend from another region that I end up not really utilizing much. When I buy a new company I give myself a roll as well, since I figure that's an accomplishment that should be rewarded.</p>

Real1 Krew (Adrian Alanis (1-3) and Liam Gray (1-4)) vs. West Coast Wrecking Crew (Debut) "Classico" Eddie Colon (2-1) vs. "The Man With No Country" TK O'Ryan (3-1) Davey Boy Smith Jr (7-2) vs. "The Problem" Sefa Fatu (2-2) Chris Dickinson (5-1) vs. SCHAFF (6-1) I’m excited for this one. The last two matches could’ve gone either way for me, but I feel like Sefa has something planned for this match and The Bloodline could use a huge boost after the past few weeks. Meanwhile Dickinson is too tough so I gotta go with him over SCHAFF.

Jay Briscoe vs. Doug Wiliams Marti Belle, Kamille & Vipress vs. Allysin Kay, Serena Deeb & Holidead Mark Briscoe vs. Nick Aldis I see Thunder Rosa showing up and affecting the outcome of the trios match.

Love the West Coast Wrecking Crew getting a chance to shine. I think Royce is a great talent who didn’t get much opportunity to really shine in NWA, so I’m glad he’s getting a shot here. Unashamedly rooting for these boys as a west coast guy who’s seen them live on a few occasions. I’ve got some idea on who Pretty Boy is, and they’d fit the role of nZo’s bodyguard well. Gonna be smooth sailing for nZo’s group, even if I predict they don’t get the Gods of War. Still not fully sold on JR Kratos but I’m warming up to him. Representing The Bloodline: The Anoa'i's (Afa 2-3, Lance 1-3) vs. Local Talents Cezar Bononi (1-2) vs. "Big" Sean Studd (5-3) Chris Dickinson (4-1) vs. Odinson (7-1) SCHAFF (5-1) vs. Kratos (7-0)

<p><strong>Trevor Murdock</strong> vs. Aron Stevens - One Last Time!</p><p> If there was a time for Stevens to win, it would be now... but he’s not winning here.</p><p> </p><p> NWA World Television Championship: Anthony Bennett © vs. <strong>Jocephus</strong></p><p> I’m all in on Jocephus here.</p><p> </p><p> <strong>Eli Drake</strong> vs. ROH's Kenny King</p><p> Just a fact of life</p>

The woman in the middle of Drago/Puma King Row is Lufisto, followed by Laredo Kid and Ophidian. Far left in the Facade/Taurus row is Son of Havoc. The middle I think is played by Zeuxis but I’m not sure it’s her. Next to Zicky Dice is Mark Angelosetti, aka Mr. Touchdown of Chikara fame.

Knew I should’ve gotten my predictions early. Ah well. Brian Milonas vs. The Question Mark Marti Belle & Kamille vs. Serena Deeb & Thunder Rosa [unrecognized] Inter-Gender World Championship: James Ellsworth © vs. Maria Jay Briscoe vs. Eli Drake - Double DQ The last two are the toughest to figure out. At best I’d wager Ellsworth wins either off a roll up or Bennett attacking him to give the DQ win. Drake and Briscoe are both positioned well at the title and neither can really afford a loss, so I’m guessing another Strictly Business attack.

1. IWTV Independent Tag Team Championship 6 Way Cage Match: Silver & Statlander (BEYOND) vs Punk Rock Pussycats (Allie Kat/Jodie Threat) (A-1) vs Pain Incorporated (Takeda/Fujita) (FREEDOMS) vs WorkHorsemen (Anthony Henry/JD Drake) (BLP) vs Astronauts (Abe/Nomura) (BJW) vs Bear Country (GCW) - Wanted to say WorkHorsemen or Bear Country, but GCW already has the IWTV World Title so maybe they don’t need it. Anthony Henry always ends up retiring early in my games so I went with the safe choice in Silver/Statlander. 2. Insanity Trios Deathmatch: Janela/??/?? vs 44.OH! (RSP/Effy/Eddy Only) - Bit confused here. I could’ve sworn Effy was with the Second Gear Crew and not 44.OH! 3. GCW Velocity Championship Metal Mayhem Match: Lio Rush © vs Tony Deppen vs Davey Vega vs Orin Veidt 4. GCW King of Fighters Shoot Fight: KTB © vs Douglas James 5. GCW Queen of Fighters Shoot Fight: Leyla Hirsch © vs Kiera Hogan

TIM STORM'S RETIREMENT CEREMONY ARON STEVENS & THE QUESTION MARK VS. JERVIS COTTONBELLY & SAL RINAURO MARTI BELLE VS. ALLYSIN KAY VS. KAMILLE NWA NATIONAL HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP: TREVOR MURDOCK © VS. SCORPIO SKY

One day soon we’ll get THE END and everyone will wake up to how much Parrow kicks ass. Always love your projects and this is the most interesting one yet. I love seeing a SoCal guy get a chance to shine, but Fight Club and Flight Club are both built up well enough that it feels as though he may get lost in the shuffle. Which isn’t a bad thing at all; the roster is just that stacked.

MARIA KANELLIS VS. MARTI BELLE Sal’s showing up after the match and getting beaten down by Mike. Calling it now. KAMILLE VS. VIPRESS Hoping to see more of Vipress in NWA. BATTLE ROYAL FOR A FUTURE SHOT AT THE NWA NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP ERIK WATTS VS. PETER AVALON VS. SCORPIO SKY VS. JAMES ELLSWORTH VS. JR KRATOS VS. JERVIS COTTONBELLY VS. LEVI SHAPIRO VS. DAISUKE SEKIMOTO VS. WARHORSE VS. TRACY WILLIAMS I’ll break from the pack here. Warhorse vs. Trevor could be a good match and I can see him reigning supreme. Plus, WARHORSE RULES ASS.

Eli Drake & Tim Storm vs. SoCal Distancing Mike Bennett vs. Ken Shamrock The Briscoe Brothers vs. Aron Stevens & The Question Mark My boys will still have a good showing and do well, but I don’t see them beating Storm and Drake this week.

EPISODE 28: Who will Nick Aldis bring out as his challenger for Hard Times 2? Kahagas I could see Aldis picking a lesser challenge, and Kahagas unfortunately fits that bill. It could very well be someone else (Tim Storm probably) but I think that’s a decent choice. NWA World Television Championship match: Anthony Bennett © vs. "Uptown" Andy Brown I love Andy Brown, but it’s not his time just yet. The Rock N' Roll Express vs. FKA "the Authors of Pain" Occam’s Razor has this one. Kamille vs. Thunder Rosa I like Thunder Rosa

NWA World TV Championship: The Pope © vs. Anthony Bennett Serena Deeb vs. Marti Belle Question Mark vs. Mark Briscoe

ROUND 1 Tim Storm & Trevor Murdock vs. The Briscoe Brothers Strong BJ vs. Thom Latimer & Doug Williams Da Pope & Erick Stevens vs. Andy Brown and Adrian Quest SCU vs.Flip Gordon & Brody King ROUND 2 The Briscoe Brothers vs. Thom Latimer & Doug Williams Da Pope & Erick Stevens vs. SCU FINALS Da Pope & Erick Stevens vs. Briscoes Would love for SoCal Distancing to go far in this tournament, but Quest and Brown are probably taking the early loss. Would still love for them to get a look as they’ve been crushing it on the SoCal scene.

DAN THE MAN! As a SoCal guy, I’m excited to see this. Looking forward to quite a few talent get some great exposure.

Impact World Championship: Eddie Edwards {C} vs. Ace Austin - Tempted to call a draw or DQ, but on one of the big PPV’s? Not a chance. I could see Alisha turning though. Impact Tag: The North {C} vs. ??? - I’d love to call MCMG here, but the allusion to Canada has me thinking otherwise. Going out on a limb and saying TDT but I could be wrong. Impact Knockouts Triple Threat: Jordynne Grace vs. Deonna Purrazzo vs. Tenille Dashwood Impact X-Division Triple Threat: TJ Perkins {C} vs. Chris Bey vs. Willie Mack Moose vs. "Any Former Champion Of The Company" ??? Clockwork Orange House of Fun: The Last Stand; Dual Retirement Match: Raven vs. Tommy Dreamer The Rascalz vs. The Unkindness (Madman Fulton and Trey Miguel) -Idk why but I see him using his full name now) Jake Crist vs. Sami Callihan PRESHOW: Rob Van Dam vs. Rich Swann

Matt Jackson vs. Sammy Guevara AEW TNT Championship: Darby Allin © vs. MYSTERY OPPONENT Dark Order vs. Jurassic Express Kris Statlander/Hikaru Shida vs. Nyla Rose/Bea Priestley Richard Holliday vs. Wardlow BONUS: Who is the Mystery Opponent? Eddie Kingston