Sports have been in a bit of a standstill of late, with the NBA, NHL, and NFL halting their seasons. However, the interesting stories come from the many unique ways that each federation is finding ways to entertain their fans. NBA players started to compete against each other in NBA 2K20, with Nascar following the same technic. As for the WWE, instead of finding alternative, they taped their largest event Wrestlemania 36 a week in advance and split the showing over the weekend with the first four hours on Saturday and the rest on Sunday. The result is one of a unique wrestling experience that WWE has delivered in years.
Most Wrestling fans have a love/hate relationship with Wrestlemania. On the one hand, Wrestlemania is the biggest event of the year, with thousands of fans gathering to watch a true spectacle. On the other hand, the events are usually mixed with a pair of good matches and a pair of bad matches. The biggest hindrance to the show (speaking from experience) is that the show is extremely long clocking in at 7 to 8 hours. This year was meant to be no different with the event originally taking place in Raymond James Stadium in Tampa. However, do to the current Coronavirus pandemic there was doubt if the event was going to go through at all.
As a compromise, WWE taped their event a week in advance in their performance center. The show was shot in an empty arena with only essential personnel. The show was hosted by Rob Gronkowski, along with his partner Mojo Rawley. It was fun to see everyone perform with the idea that there is an audience, but as we will see some matches benefited while others did not.
For night one the event started with the first surprise of the night as Alexa Bliss and Nikki Cross defeated The Kabuki Warriors (Asuka and Kairi Sane) for the Women’s Tag Team Championship. Both teams had great chemistry and while is disappointing that The Kabuki Warriors lost their titles, it is a feel-good moment for Alexa Bliss and Niki Cross.
Elias defeated King Corbin in the first misfire of the night because this match is not a match that wouldn’t even main event on a regular episode of Raw.
Becky Lynch retained her title by defeating Shayna Baszler. It says a lot about Becky’s role when she main event the show last year to win the title, now she has the second shortest match of the night. This match didn’t help anyone and in fact it made Shayna look weak, confirming reports that Vince Mcmahon was not behind her.
Sami Zayn retained his tittle in a fun match against Daniel Bryan.
John Morrison retained the tag titles in a triple threat latter match against Jimmy Uso and Kofi Kingston. This was the first math that was able to pull off all of its tricks thanks to the power of editing. With the finish possible with a few camera cuts.
Kevin Owen defeated Seth Rollins putting on the best match of the night.
FTW Staff
What was originally booked as Roman Reign vs Goldberg. After backing out do to health concerns, Braun Strowman became a last minute replacer. The match was short (standard for Goldberg’s abilities) clocking in at two minutes and ten seconds. Braun defeated Goldberg, however the real question is what was the original plan, was Goldberg always meant to lose the title?
Finally, wrapping up night 1, AJ Styles vs. The Undertaker in a Boneyard match. The match was pre-recorded on a graveyard stage. This isn’t the first time WWE showed a match that was recorded in advance, but what this match benefited from was that fans did not need to watch it in the stadium. Usually, all the fans would stare at the titantron as the match would play. Knowing that everyone watching the match at home, give the match the ability to be as long and as over the top as possible. The match felt like you were watching a cheesy TV show, with all the twist and turn you would expect. Despite this, Undertaker vs. AJ Styles delivered one of the best matches in the whole show.
Night 2 started with Charlotte Flair delivering one of her best matches defeating Rhea Ripley for the NXT Women’s belt.
Aleister Black defeated Bobby Lashley.
Otis defeated Dolph Ziggler in a match that needed an audience, simply for Otis to get the hero pop he deserved.
Edge vs. Randy Orton was the longest match on the whole night as the two fought in a last man standing match for half an hour. The two spend most of the match hitting each other with weapons while walking around the Performance Center. The opening and finish of the match were the highlights, but what dragged the match was everything else. Without fans, there is no way of knowing whether or not this was a good or bad match.
The Street Profit defeated Angle Garza and Austin Theory with a surprise debut from Bianca Belair.
Bayley defeated four other superstars in a fatal 5-way elimination match to retain her championship.
The second match to be shot in another set was John Cena vs Bray Wyatt. The delivered a strange homage to the career of John Cena. Referencing his past as the Prototype, all the way to his battle with Bray Wyatt. There are so many reference and fun Easter eggs for wrestling fans that this is a can’t miss match.
Unlike night one the final match was for the WWE Championship, as Drew McIntyre defeated Brock Lesnar. While not the most entertainment match, it is always a treat to watch someone defeat Brock Lesnar.
Overall WWE managed to deliver a fun event in the mist of hard time. While events moving the way they are it is not clear if we will see another episode of Raw, or another PPV. It is great to see that despite the uncertainty this show at least left a smile in everyone’s face.
April Fools is canceled, as extreme as that sound the reality does seem so. With the Coronavirus seemly closing down most of the country, you can still prank your parents or your roommates, but while the spirit is there, it is just not the same. Every year the internet would be flooded with trailer after trailer of fake ads and products meant to excite, but overall trick the viewer. The pranks were so elaborate and realistic that April 1, would also be known as the official Stay Away From the Internet Day. Apple and Google were the biggest contributors, every year they would come up with some of the best pranks.
One of the most memorable pranks was when Google turned Google Maps into Pac-Man:
Video games also seem to have the most fun with April Fool, IGN.com loves to make up elaborate trailers for fake products, and of course the infamous Live Action Legend of Zelda Movie:
These trailers were over the top, but this was the spirit of the holiday, to make people believe that this was real, just to go for a simple lol kidding. When I was younger, I opened magazines that had ads for products and games that made me lose my mind, just to find out that I was getting pranked. Respawn Entertainment shock the internet when they did a Titanfall x Transformers crossover:
Television channels and streaming also had their own fun with the holiday, with Netflix adding over-detailing categories of films and their own categories made entirely of cooking shows. Not to be outdone by Cartoon Network: Their Adult Swim block brought back Toonami, and for April Fools they showed all their programs in Japanese:
Outside of the big companies, Youtubers and Comedians also flood the internet with their pranks. Outside of jokes, and clickbait April Fools also helps bring the spirit of spring. There is something uplifting about going to the internet on a sunny day and laugh at all the great pranks. While there have been some pranks posted this year, all the major players decided to skip this year, pretty much announcing that April Fools Day is canceled. This article is not meant to upset people but to remind people of some of the best April Fools pranks, so please, during this hard time, stay safe.
According to a recent Live Q&A on Instagram via Screenrant Dwayne, The Rock Johnson revealed that plans are already moving forward for the sequel to last year’s The Fast and Furious Present Hobb and Shaw. The spinoff focused on Hobb (Introduced in Fast 5) and Shaw (Introduced in Fast 7) as the unlikely duo team up to stop a criminal superpower man played by Idris Alba. The movie is a massive departure from the original series (granted you could say that about every movie past Fast and Furious: Tokyo Drift). However, that didn’t stop the movie from becoming one of the most successful films of the franchise and 2019, in general, earning 700 million worldwide.
Before this, the only confirmation of any plans for future sequels came from Fast & Furious writer Chris Morgan previously confirmed the plan is to bring back the spinoff’s mystery villain, the director of the Eteon organization in the future. Chris Morgan also wrote Hobbs & Shaw. When speculating why there hasn’t been much news about the project, the conclusion is the busy schedule of each actor (especially The Rock). However, with Hollywood pretty much on lockdown, major Hollywood projects have been put on hold.
During the Live Q&A. The actor confirmed, “We are developing now the next film, the next [Hobbs & Shaw] movie, and I’m pretty excited about it.” He went on to say he and the rest of the Hobbs & Shaw team “Just gotta figure out the creative right now, and the direction we’re going to go” before thanking fans around the world for making the first movie “a huge success.”
While this is good news for the franchise going forward, keep in mind that with Hollywood in lockdown, there is no way of knowing how long it will take for any of this to go through. As of now, no movie has debuted on theaters, while other movies are releasing digitally. The latest film in the Fast and Furious franchise F9, was placed on hold with no real release date given.
Onward has had a tough time in theaters, with the movie becoming one of the lowest-grossing Disney movies. The movie is going to find new-life going digital with the movie already available for digital purchase and the movie is also hitting Disney+ on April 3. The moves comes at no surprise with the wave of films hitting digital release early as a response to the Coronavirus.
This is not new for Disney as Frozen 2 arrived on Disney+ earlier this month. Harley Quinn: Birds of Prey movie hit digital purchases over the weekend. While Troll 2: World Tour is set to release both on theater and digital.
Disney Plus Release Schedule:
April 3
Onward
Life on the Edge (new episode)
Dolphin Reef (new episode)
Diving With Dolphins (new episode)
Star Wars: The Clone Wars (new episode)
Disney’s Fairy Tale Weddings (new episode, finale)
Shop Class (new episode)
Disney Family Sundays (new episode)
One Day At Disney (new episode)
Be Our Chef (new episode)
A Tale of Two Critters
In a Nutshell
Don’s Fountain of Youth
Don’s Fountain of Youth
Donald’s Dog Laundry
Double Dribble
Dragon Around
Elmer Elephant
Fish Hooks (S1-3)
How to Play Football
Lambert, The Sheepish Lion
On Ice
Out of Scale
Penguins
Pluto’s Party
Sea Scouts
Sonny with a Chance (S1-3)
The Boy Who Talked to Badgers
The New Neighbor
The Small One
The Straight Story
April 10
A Celebration of Music from the Coco Premiere
Star Wars: The Clone Wars (new episode)
Shop Class (new episode)
Disney Family Sundays (new episode)
One Day At Disney (new episode)
Be Our Chef (new episode)
Life Below Zero (S14)
Paradise Island (S1)
Playtime with Puppy Dog Pals (S1)
Running Wild with Bear Grylls (S5)
Tut’s Treasures: Hidden Secrets (S1)
April 12
PJ Masks (S3)
April 17
Star Wars: The Clone Wars (new episode)
Shop Class (new episode, finale)
Disney Family Sundays (new episode)
One Day At Disney (new episode)
Be Our Chef (new episode)
Brain Games (S8)
Let’s Stick Together
Mickey and the Roadster Racers: Nutty Tales (S1-2)
IOC president Thomas Bach said in his statement: “I am confident that, working together with the Tokyo 2020 Organising Committee, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government, the Japanese Government, and all our stakeholders, we can master this unprecedented challenge.
Tokyo 2020 president Yoshiro Mori (center table) made the announcement at a news conference on Monday
“Humankind currently finds itself in a dark tunnel. These Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 can be a light at the end of this tunnel.”
International Paralympic Committee president Andrew Parsons added: “When the Paralympic Games do take place in Tokyo next year, they will be an extra-special display of humanity uniting as one, a global celebration of human resilience and a sensational showcase of sport.
“With the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games 512 days away, the priority for all those involved in the Paralympic movement must be to focus on staying safe with their friends and family during this unprecedented and difficult time.”
As we explained before, while the Olympics are massive events that draw the entire world, they create enormous schedule shifts for other events. The World Athletics Championships, originally set to take place in Oregon, USA, between 6 August – 15 August 2021, will now be postponed until 2022.
Tickets are still valid for people who bought them earlier, and they are entitled to refunds if they wish.
Tokyo 2020 organizing committee president Yoshiro Mori said he had proposed the 23 July to 8 August time frame to the IOC, and that Bach had agreed, following consultations with the international sports federations.
“A certain amount of time is required for the selection and qualification of athletes and for their training and preparation, and the consensus was that staging the rescheduled Games during the summer vacation in Japan would be preferable,” Mori said.
“In terms of transport, arranging volunteers and the provision of tickets for those in Japan and overseas, as well as allowing for the Covid-19 situation, we think that it would be better to reschedule the Games to one year later than planned, in the summer of 2021.”
Despite changing their dates, the 2020 Olympics are still keeping the title. Keeping the title is probably meant to keep the consistent pattern of the games. The Olympics is the largest event to be canceled due to the Coronavirus. The world has been on a standstill as countries are locking down their borders, along with quarantine orders. The hope is that by the time the Olympics return, the world is back to normal.
