Wrestling loses a real one in Pete Doherty
The community is genuinely hurting after PWInsider reported that Pete Doherty, the legendary Duke of Dorchester, passed away at 85. If you only know the modern high-flying era, you’re missing the point of what made guys like him vital. He wasn't doing 450 splashes; he was working crowds into a frenzy with pure personality.
As Ringside News noted, the tribute poured in from the Cauliflower Alley Club. It feels like every time we turn around, another piece of the territory days vanishes into the ether. Seeing the younger generation acknowledge his footprint is the only thing keeping the thread from becoming a total doom-scroll.
Danhausen and the dental obsession
Then we have Danhausen, who is currently subjecting us all to his jar of teeth. WrestleTalk recently dug into his logic, and apparently, the guy thinks it’s just a great visual sensation for the audience. I mean, it’s creepy, it’s bizarre, and it’s effectively the most Danhausen thing possible.
Some fans on the forums are absolutely eating it up, calling it a stroke of character genius. Others, myself included, are wondering if we've reached peak absurdity in the mid-card. If you hold one of these things, you're either a wrestling visionary or you’ve spent way too much time staring at Goth aesthetics in a basement.
The backstage buzz of the week
It hasn't been all somber news or jars of human remains. Nattie is out here playing mentor, praising B-Fab for her work at the Dungeon 2.0 facility. It’s actually refreshing to hear active talent talking up lower-card performers who are clearly grinding, as highlighted by WrestleTalk. When you look at the training output from that facility, it’s arguably the most productive spot for long-term development in the company.
Meanwhile, the chaos continues elsewhere. Michin admitted she sent a hate letter to Stephanie McMahon back in the day, expecting a response like she was writing a fan-mail pen pal. It’s the kind of unhinged anecdote that makes you realize even your favorite performers probably grew up doing cringe-worthy stuff. CM Punk is also popping up in UFC ads for an A&E show, leading to the usual internet shouting matches about his past versus his present status.
The verdict on the current state of booking
Look, the talent is working hard, but the narrative consistency is all over the place. We’ve got guys like Randy Orton causing enough friction to drive people out of the company, and then we’ve got people acting like they're in a high school drama. The report that an unnamed AEW star left specifically because of an Orton-related split, as F4WOnline covered, just proves that egos are still the most dangerous weapon in a locker room.
My take? The sentiment is mixed because we are stuck in a transition period between legacy pillars like Doherty and the weird, teeth-chucking modern era. We have to respect the foundation, but the booking needs to stop treating us like we don't remember what happened six months ago. If the product wants to keep people hooked, it needs to stop relying on nostalgia or teeth in jars and start booking matches that carry actual weight. The talent is there, but the direction feels like it’s being decided by a dartboard in a back office somewhere.
