After a month off, it’s time to reflect on who we’ve enjoyed in the world of pro wrestling recently! Booker T made it famous, and we’re continuing it here because it’s a good time.

That’s right, it’s time for the Fave Five!

5. Baron Corbin

I know, we don’t give ol’ Baron much praise around these parts. His recent storyline has been one of the more entertaining things on WWE television recently, and I think we need to explain things a little big since I see a take out there that’s completely wrong. See, some people want to tell you that this story is WWE’s way of making fun of poor people. I’m not going to tell you that Vince McMahon doesn’t hate poor people and doesn’t get a kick out of making fun of anybody he can, but there’s a key point here that people choose to ignore to make their complaint…

Baron Corbin has been an asshole for the past few years now. He annoys everybody he comes into contact with. He’s done horrible things to people that he doesn’t like. And as we’ve found out, the guy has no idea of the concept of money. He spends more than he makes without any thought of what could happen when the money stops coming in. So when the money stops coming in and he ends up out on the street, it’s ok for us to laugh at him for being an idiot. He deserves it for the way he’s conducted himself on WWE television over the years. Plus, we’ve all heard about how millionaire athletes eventually fall on hard times because of poor spending habits and lending money to the wrong people.

I don’t see the problem here. It’s an actual interesting story involving Baron Corbin!

4. Jay & Mark Briscoe

If you haven’t seen Jay & Mark’s Fight on the Farm, I highly recommend it. What says “pro wrestling” more than two brothers fighting on a farm? Papa Briscoe was there officiating and keeping things in line. Jay & Mark were as crazy as they usually are, and at the end of the day ROH got one of their more memorable segments in recent memory.

It’s a bit strange that these two never went to larger promotions, but apparently their family business does really well. Not having to rely on pro wrestling for funding isn’t the worst thing in the world. It’s a good thing for ROH too, as the Briscoes are one of the main things connecting today’s ROH to the company of the 2000s that the Internet fans crowned as the best workrate fed ever.

3. Dr. Britt Baker D.M.D.

The Good Doctor returned home to Pittsburgh this week and was accepted as a conquering hero. Folks online talked about how it was nice how AEW didn’t try to make Britt turn heel on her hometown. I wondered why people thought she was a heel. OK, so people interfere in her matches? What AEW matches don’t have people interfering? What AEW babyfaces don’t have people at ringside getting involved in some form or fashion?

From where I sit, Britt Baker is a good person that deserves your respect. Maybe that makes one a heel in certain circles, but not in mine. From what I see, Britt is the type of character that can be cheered in some situations and booed in others. Some see that as a problem, I see it as a sign of versatility. I just watched SummerSlam 1995 and was reminded of one of the weaknesses of the Diesel WWF Championship run. Since they wanted him to be the smiling good guy, he mainly wrestled the likes of Sid & Mabel. Pretty much anybody of value in 1995 was a good guy. Had Kevin Nash been in his natural state of badass tweener, he could have worked with good talent that would have made him look better more often.

We’ve talked about how AEW’s women’s roster isn’t as strong as other promotions. We’ve also noted how AEW hasn’t been the best at building up their women’s roster. There aren’t a ton of established faces for Dr. Baker to go against. Heck, a lot of the women aren’t really established faces or heels. The best way to find out what they’d work being? Have them wrestle the champ and see what the crowd thinks. So Britt’s like the anti-Kevin Nash, but I think the analogy still makes sense.

2. Hangman Adam Page

People told me that AEW had missed the boat on the Hangman. The fans had given up on Hangman while he spent the last year or so being a sad drunk that hung out with the Dark Order. Turns out the fans hadn’t given up on Hangman, as when AEW went on the road again, live audiences went crazy for the guy. Seemed like they were building Hangman vs. Kenny Omega at All Out, and the people were really into it. Turns out, Hangman lost the shot at the title, and the scuttlebutt is he won’t be available for All Out anyway. Talk about bad timing. My hope is that we’re not sitting here in a few months talking about how AEW missed the opportunity with the Hangman, and it’d actually be true.

Until then, we’ll sit here and hope that Hangman doesn’t get overshadowed by all the incoming talent. Adam Page shouldn’t get overshadowed, he’s built a natural connection with the fanbase. But you never know how long those things last.

1. Nick F’n Gage

I’m a big fan of the whole story of Nick Gage. Comes up in the early days of CZW, becomes their first heavyweight champion and one of the promotion’s featured wrestlers for the entirety of the 2000s. Falls on hard times & robs a bank. Spends years in jail, during which he reflects on his mistakes, gets clean and leaves prison better than he came in. Returns to independent wrestling and becomes a bigger star than he was before.

Even before the events of the last couple of months, it was a pretty amazing story. Things kicked up a notch once Gage started working with television stars. Who would have thought ten years ago that Zack Ryder & Chris Jericho would work deathmatches with Nick Gage? Certainly not I, but that’s exactly what happened. Matt Cardona beat Gage for the GCW Championship in a moment that drew more interest than anything else that company’s ever done. Don’t get me wrong, there’s a long list of crazy stuff that happened in GCW that drew some interest, but nothing on the level of Matt Cardona winning their championship and getting pelted with garbage by the audience.

Then, Nick F’n Gage main events an episode of AEW Dynamite against Chris Jericho. It’s one of those things you have to see in order to believe. It drew a good rating and got over well with the audience. We don’t know if Gage will be back in AEW or not, but his first appearance there accomplished the goal it set out for.

I enjoy a good comeback story. I also enjoy when that comeback story makes the haters mad. Lots of people out there mad at Nick Gage. Poor souls, they just don’t understand the idea of giving people a second chance. Gage has thrived with his, much to the dismay of some. A pity for them.