In wrestling usually there’s something that happens once a year that gets fans and non-fans talking. Sadly its never a match. Its something that someone says that gets all of us riled up. Last year it was CM Punk blasting WWE for being, well, WWE. That whole thing led to Punk getting a lot of attention, a world title, and a Wrestlemania match.
Right now the name on everyone’s lips is Jon Moxley better known currently as Dean Ambrose. I had heard of this guy from Combat Zone Wrestling and saw some brutal ass matches he had. I wont lie and say “I saw something special in the guy” because I didn’t. He looked pretty average physically but there was something about his face that got my attention.
Fast forward to a few months ago while trolling Youtube for Florida Championship Wrestling matches and I see Ambrose facing Seth Rollins in a match that I sat through. Its sad to say I “sat through” a match but for years now I cant even force myself to watch Raw or Smackdown in real time. Ambrose and Rollins had some amazing time limit draw matches that had me hooked from beginning to end.
Ambrose brought William Regal back from the dead and they had a great match. He’s been in dark matches against Daniel Bryan, Drew McIntyre, and even Alex Riley marking the first time I watched an entire Alex Riley match. Now Ambrose has focused his attention on Mick Foley. Not Cactus Jack. Not Dude Love. The husband and father, Mick Foley.
Now this isn’t a situation where I want to see the two of them in the ring. Hell, Vader got attention fucking with Gorilla Monsoon and they never fought. But the fact that Ambrose chose to use Foley’s own past against him and saying he helped put people in wheelchairs and ruined careers by having guys imitate him hits hard. Because the shit is true. The same way guys like Bret Hart, Superstar Billy Graham, and Hulk Hogan inspired kids to become a certain type of wrestler you have to acknowledge that guys like The Hardy Boys and Cactus Jack inspired kids to do the crazy shit they saw them do.
With Ambrose inevitably being brought up from FCW and sent to the main roster the only thing I can think of is “Please don’t.” That’s not a knock against him whatsoever. I believe that he is valuable as fuck and that FCW can be built around him and guys like Kassius Ohno (Chris Hero) and Antonio Cesaro (Claudio Castagnoli). Why not make FCW a great program that is aired where I can watch it live weekly? I get to watch Ambrose wrestle for 15 minutes and once even half a damn hour. Seeing him watered down to three minute matches makes me frown.
Back to the online feud between Ambrose and Foley. People are arguing about whether or not its real or not. Someone even asked, and I’m paraphrasing, “I cant figure out if Ambrose is a good heel or a real prick.” That is awesome! You shouldn’t know. I’m like Voodoo Drew in that I miss not knowing things. I love the younger part of me that still thinks its real. Yes, it is naïve but I don’t give a fuck. I don’t like watching movies and nodding at how great CGI looks and how great the directing is while I’m watching. I just like good movies. With wrestling when I watch I watch to see guys get in the ring and do things I cant and forget that they hang out afterwards and have meetings where they learn how to use the internet properly.
I don’t care if Dean Ambrose is actually crazy or not. He looks and acts it and that’s good enough for me. I don’t care if what is happening between him and Foley is real or not. It feels real and that’s nice. I’ve been watching wrestling for 30 years now and the character Ambrose portrays makes me feel 10 years old. And scared. I’d never ask this psycho for an autograph.
2 comments: on "Dean Ambrose Scares Me"
Good article.
Jon Moxley shares the exact same birthday as me (7th Dec 1985). So for that reason alone I'm probably gonna be a fan of his for life. That aside, he just seems to have IT. A friend of mine asked me to describe Moxley last year and I called him a 'Terry Funk for the 21st Century'. That's essentially what he is. A wild, frenzied, mean bastard who you're just not sure about. So if Foley wants to work one last major angle with him, that's all good in my book. Fuck putting the Miz over - Cactus making Ambrose on television could be huge. Foley has stated for years that he feels bad that so many of the hradcore/backyard wrestlers who've anihilated their own bodies cite him as an inspiration - Moxley is exploiting those real emotions. Shoot or not, it could play out brilliantly as an angle. But first, they have to establish Dean Ambrose on TV. We'll see whether or not it actually leads anywhere. Like you, I will be watching closely.
Terry Funk is a very good comparison, DRB. Ambrose just has something, like you said "IT", that makes me want to see him wrestle and listen to him talk. His FCW matches have all made me more and more interested in him. Thanks for commenting.
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