Kayfabe

Royal Rumble 2012 Thoughts

2012-01-29T16:46:00.002-05:00

So we are only a few short hours away from the 25th Royal Rumble!

I am going to keep this pretty brief as I've been up for 17 hours after only 4 hours sleep, and I'm very tired right now. :)

So we only have three other matches besides the Royal Rumble match. I'm sure that's happened before, but with it being knocked back down to a 30-man match it seems like there would be more, at least one or two.

We have both main titles on the line, of course, and the Kane/Cena match.

My "predictions" are going to be more like "it might be cool if" this time around as opposed to full-on predictions. With not knowing most of the entrants into the main event it's kind of hard to give a solid prediction in my opinion.

As for the whole "it's the first year everyone's eligible," I don't really get that. It's always been that way, unless we see either the WWE or World champion in the match. That would mark the first time that's happened since 1991 when a title shot wasn't the prize, if I've got my dates correct. 1992 Flair won it to become champion, the only time the title has been up for grabs in a Rumble match. And I believe every year after that it was for a title shot at Wrestlemania.

But I'm getting ahead of myself. Back to Kane and Cena... I almost see Zack Ryder getting involved somehow and perhaps inadvertently causing Cena the match, furthering Cena's anger. I don't see full closure with Kane yet, I say we'll get that at Elimination Chamber.

In the World Title match, I see Bryan avoiding Show and Henry and letting them go at each other, trying to escape constantly. In the end, either he barely escapes with the belt, or he loses to Show and enters the Rumble match.

With Punk vs. Ziggler, I want Ziggler to win. I love Punk, but I want to see something different, and I really like Ziggler as well. He deserves it. Regardless of who wins between the two, I actually see them both entering the Rumble match. Another thing that might be cool is if Ziggler loses to Punk, then enters the Rumble at #2 (since Miz is at #1) and pulls a Shawn Michaels winning the whole thing, solidifying his showing off gimmick, backing it up quite nicely.

But there is another variable here: Chris Jericho. I find it hard to believe his cryptic "at the Royal Rumble, the world as you know it will end" is just simply him entering the Rumble and possibly winning it. That just seems too easy to me. So I don't know what he has in store. It could involve Punk's match, maybe he costs him the title. Maybe he enters at #30. Maybe he pulls a Shawn Michaels and does what I suggested for Ziggler above. I don't know.

Surprise entrants into the Rumble? I have avoided dirt sheets, so I have no idea what the physical status is currently on any of these guys, but I could totally see Christian, Alberto Del Rio or Rey Mysterio making a return. If they really wanted to surprise people, maybe Batista, though he does look quite different these days.

I don't see Cena or Orton winning it. I think Punk, Ziggler, Bryan, Jericho or someone else on that level winning it. I think Barrett and Orton eliminate each other, Cena, if he's in it, either eliminates himself somehow, or gets eliminated by Kane. Sheamus could possibly win it, or Rhodes, but I'm not sure either of them are there just yet.

It is shaping up to be a fun and somewhat unpredictable one. I'm really hoping for the 25th anniversary they pull out all the stops.

So that's what I'm thinking. Soon we'll see if I was even close!

-B

Current WWE Storylines

2012-01-25T11:21:00.000-05:00

I don't have a lot of time today to blog, but I did want to get some thoughts out real quick as we head into the Royal Rumble.

I don't know about you, but for the most part, I am enjoying the current storylines the WWE has going on. It's fun and entertaining, and I can't complain too much. I do wish there was some big feud the likes of the build-ups of old got. Like Hogan and Savage, or Steamboat and Flair. They just don't do stuff like that anymore. But at least they are making things interesting.

Starting off small, I actually like what they've been doing with the tag division. I hate that Evan Bourne has screwed up and thus cost us one of the three tag teams we had. But that aside, the Usos and the Colons are at least real tag teams and not just people tossed together. There's history there, both being family teams (the Usos being brothers, the Colons being cousins). And they could possibly throw Hunico and Haku's son in as a tag team if they wanted to. It's certainly not the era of the Hardys/E&C/Dudleys, or even the Hart Foundation/Demoition/Strike Force/Rockers/etc., but at least it's something, which is more than we've gotten in years.

I like the Cody Rhodes/Booker T/Goldust thing they have going on as well. I hope we get to see the Rhodes brothers throw down before all is said and done, and Cody is just gold these days.

Cena and Kane are okay. Kane still hasn't impressed me too much, and I'm not a fan of the iron mask or the tights. And Cena can't act (did you see his sorry attempts at grief and shock after Ryder got chokeslammed through the stage?). But the whole Cena turning angry bit is good. It may give him a bit more character heading into Wrestlemania against the Rock.

Speaking of Ryder, at least he's been kept active.

The Big Show/Daniel Bryan/Mark Henry triangle has kept me entertained as well. More personality out of Bryan than I've ever seen, and the way they've creatively been able to keep the strap on him amidst the two behemoths is impressive.

And finally that brings me to CM Punk. Granted, we were all a little let down after WWE rushed and dropped the ball last summer. But Punk is still in the main event scene, he's still controversial, and they have been building the Stone Cold/Vince McMahon type feud with Johnny Ace very well. Slow builds are a good thing when you capitalize on them at just the right moment, and I think they have really played this out well so far. And the way Raw ended, with Ziggler getting the jump on Punk heading into the Rumble was classic as well.

So there you have it, some of the main stories going on in the WWE, and they are fun to watch. They could be better, and there is still something missing. But at least they are trying, and entertaining us in the process.

I'll be back later in the week to give my final thoughts before heading into the Rumble.

-B

Genesis and Other Stuff

2012-01-17T09:15:00.002-05:00

Sorry, I know I said I'd return late last week to talk about Genesis, but I have been very busy. Since it's well past the event now, I'm just going to give my general thoughts on the event as a whole.

I actually liked it. TNA has not done very well with their weekly programming or PPV events for a long time now, save for Destination X earlier last year. This, in my opinion, was the best TNA PPV since Destination X. Granted, it wasn't as good, but it was far better than any other event or the majority of their weekly programming. I really had no problems with any of the matches and how they went down. Which is surprising as several of the participants I am bored of or just sick of, like Devon and Jeff Hardy to name a couple. Even they performed well here though.

So no complaints from me on a TNA PPV. Who woulda thunk it? Kudos, TNA, for turning some bad booking decisions in recent months into a pretty decent wrestling program, even if it was only for one night.

On the other side of the fence, WWE, I hear, is getting really good lately. I was podcasting last night and only caught the tail end of RAW, so I didn't get to see the show everyone's saying was the best RAW in months. I did see some of Cena's beat down on Swagger, and some of the main event. Jericho is really playing up the heel factor now, it's become obvious even to the average viewer I think. I honestly thought he just wouldn't tag in and then walk away, but he took it a step further. I'm just glad it wasn't another week of not speaking and just riling the crowd up. I was bored with that before it began.

Not sure if I like what they've been doing with Daniel Bryan or not now. It seems very subtle heelish, which is a mistake in my opinion. But I guess we'll see how it plays out. At least he's not stale and boring anymore.

So that's my thoughts for now. I know they are brief, but as I said, very busy right now. I am hoping to somehow see the Royal Rumble as it's my favorite event, and if time allows, I'll do a full post on the Royal Rumble over the years being the 25th anniversary and all. Just to tease, I've seen every single Royal Rumble to date and it was always the one event I got most excited about. I miss the WWE when they had limited events per year because they were more special. Having them monthly takes something away. The Royal Rumble was one of the original four along with Wrestlemania, Summerslam and the Survivor Series.

Fun facts for those who may not know (though if you're reading this blog surely you do). The first Wrestlemania was in 1985. The first Survivor Series was in 1987. The first Summerslam and Royal Rumble were in 1988. Those were the only four monthly pay-per-view events until 1993 when King of the Ring was added, and then in 1996 it started expanding. These days we sometimes get 13 or 14 PPVs in a year, which is ridiculous both cost-wise and story wise. I liken it to big summer comic book events. If you have them all the time there's nothing special about them. But it's not going to change now.

Regardless, the Royal Rumble will always be special to me. Here's hoping not only that I get to see this year's, but also that it's spectacular!

-B

RAW 1-9-12

2012-01-10T00:53:00.001-05:00

So tonight's RAW was... interesting. Actually, I enjoyed most of it, I was just a little baffled and little disappointed by some of it.

Most of the matches were pretty solid. There was that referee foible during the Punk/Swagger match, but all in all it was a decent card.

The long awaited debut of Brodus Clay, however, left me baffled. Now I'm not saying he should have come out there like another Mark Henry and started running through people. That really rarely works anyway. And I'm not saying they couldn't have done something fun with him. But what they did with him, the whole Funkasaurus gimmick, it's just another example of WWE going back to their well and pulling something out.

I was on two Facebook pages devoted to wrestling tonight and on both there were SO many references to past characters that used a similar gimmick. From the Godfather, to Flash Funk, to PN News, to Rikishi, to Viscera, to The Cat Ernest Miller, and so on and so on. He even used The Cat's music for crying out loud.

I will give them credit for doing something unexpected after this very long build up. But I will not give them credit for what they gave us. It was not fun to me, it was not shocking in a good way, it was just contrived, poorly conceived and lame, in my humble opinion. Feel free to disagree, it does seem like the internet fans are split right down the middle on this.

Moving on as I spent way too much time on that debacle to begin with... I loved Ricardo Rodriguez in his segment with R Truth. I admit that Truth was being a bit racist with his comments and such, but Ricardo trying to bad mouth truth reluctantly, and then doing that song and dance with the remix was just priceless. It was fun.

Santino was fun in his tag match with Sheamus against Barrett and Mahal also. Sheamus... I worry about him. He's everybody's friend now. He's placating Santino and Hornswoggle. He needs to break away from that. It's not like when John Cena does it. Whether you like Cena or hate him, Sheamus doesn't have the credit or command to be in that role yet without making himself look like a total chump. He's not putting them over, he's allowing them to outshine him. That's the difference.

The only other part of this week's RAW I didn't like as much as I wanted was the ending with Ryder trying to change the tire. Now changing the tire without the jack and taking so long, that I liked. It was funny, if a little drawn out. But that's also what I didn't like. It was drawn out and a bit disjointed. It could have been done better.

Overall, it was a pretty good and fun show though, so I can't complain. And what about those Hall of Fame announcements? I was pretty surprised by both. I think everyone was expecting Macho Man and The Rock - and we may still get them - but not Edge and the Horsemen!

Edge I honestly expected next year. I didn't think he'd be inducted this soon, but there he is. A year after his last match he gets inducted into the Hall of Fame.

And the Horsemen? All jokes aside, we are talking the originals here, or rather the most notable version of the team, being JJ Dillon managing Ric Flair, Arn Anderson, Barry Windham and Tully Blanchard. I'd say Arn Anderson will be the one accepting it on the Horsemen's behalf. Personally I think it's the general group of the Horsemen being inducted, but I doubt there will be mention of the various members of the group like Steve "Mongo" McMichaels, Paul Roma and so on. There certainly won't be mention of Benoit. But it's still very cool that the greatest faction in wrestling is finally getting their just dues in the WWE. Even though they never competed as that group in the WWE, every single member (save McMichaels and maybe Ole? (not counting Sting, he was a Horseman for like a day)) competed in the WWE at some point.

So that's that. I'll have thoughts on TNA Genesis later in the week.

-B

Brock Lesnar

2012-01-05T07:25:00.001-05:00

So Brock Lesnar retired from MMA and the UFC after a crushing defeat in his last bout last weekend. I didn't see the fight (in fact, I haven't kept up with MMA as much as I had been this past year), but I read about it, and man, Lesnar really was humbled.

Honestly, as soon as I started hearing about the continued battles with diverticulitis he was having, and especially after the surgery, I figured it was only a matter of time. So now he is officially retired from "real" fighting and is free to do whatever he wants.

Does that mean he will go back to the WWE? I don't know. It wouldn't surprise me really, but at the same time there was a reason he left. I know everyone was really upset with him when he did leave because it was pretty sudden and he was arguably the biggest star at the time. With The Rock and Stone Cold already starting to perform less and less, Brock and Kurt Angle were the top stars. They had that epic battle at Wrestlemania where Brock gave himself a concussion in that failed attempt at a Shooting Star Press, the match that actually made me a believer in Brock. I wasn't a fan up to that point.

Brock left at the top of his game to pursue other passions. He failed at Football, and though he had some success in the UFC, he didn't last long there either. The difference being he actually made it to the pinnacle of that profession rather quickly, so really, he did what he set out to do. Same with WWE.

The guy has to be rich, between his earnings for WWE and UFC, not to mention endorsements, royalties from merchandise and games and so forth. He's a happily married man who could retire very early compared to the majority of the working class. So why come back to the WWE?

Sure, fans would love to see it. There are a lot of new, younger guys with great skills Brock could have some awesome matches with. But would he be the same? Could his body handle the rugged schedule of the WWE at this stage?

Then there's the real question of do we want him back? Does the WWE want him back? Obviously the WWE does. There were talks of he and Undertaker even a couple of years ago. Brock was the top guy in the UFC for a while, and UFC does better buy rates on PPV than WWE. So it would be a no-brainer to bring him back.

From a fan standpoint, wouldn't we be afraid he'd be like The Rock or Triple H and only appear once in a while. Or worse, come for a big payday, then leave again? Is it, then, even worth it for him to come back?

I don't know. I have mixed feelings about it, as I'm sure many do. Brock was the youngest WWE champion of all time at age 25, until he left and they tossed the strap momentarily on Orton at age 24 to erase that record. Brock had a faster rise to fame and fortune than Goldberg or anyone else for that matter. He got a big ego and left. That said, I don't blame him for pursuing his dreams after accomplishing that goal. He should have done it in a better way, but I don't blame him.

But that brings us back to the point of would he even want to return. One of the reasons he left in the first place was because he hated the schedule. But given the clout I'm sure he has now he may be able to choose a lighter schedule. But again, we'd be left with a Triple H or Rock like appearance schedule from Brock, and I'm just not sure it's worth it.

There was talk that he could be free to return as of March. There's speculation that maybe he'd be at Wrestlemania this year. I personally think if he does come back, it would be wise to have that occur after Wrestlemania. Otherwise, there's no build up, and the show is already stacked.

That said, if he is to be Undertaker's 20th Wrestlemania opponent, then I could see that happening... maybe. Obviously he'd have to lose to keep Taker's streak intact at 20-0, and I personally doubt his ego would allow him to return just to lose his first big match back. That doesn't make sense to me.

So I guess we'll just have to wait and see how things play out. I personally think it could go one of two ways. Either Brock wants to take some time off anything to regroup and will come back in time for a build up to Summerslam. Or he'll come in to face Taker.

What do you all think?

The End... Begins?

2012-01-03T22:27:00.001-05:00

I almost didn't want to post about last night's Raw, but as I promised, here goes.

Let me just start with the topic we were all, not necessarily on pins and needles waiting for, but were curious about... the revelation of who was behind the cryptic videos for the past few weeks.

If you haven't seen Raw yet and have somehow managed to miss any spoilers, don't read any further.

If you did see Raw or already know, or don't care to be spoiled, then you're fine to read on.

The man behind the videos was apparently Y2J himself, Chris Jericho, one of the two most speculated people behind them to begin with. But it wasn't the reveal that was the shocker here, it was what he did after he was revealed, which was just... odd.

So, we get a couple of teaser videos throughout the show, saying he's here and so forth. Then, past the halfway mark after the WWE title match we get a montage of all the past videos with some new footage saying she has spoken and the world ends now or something of that sort.

The arena goes dark, everyone is already chanting Y-2-J, and then we see a lighted figure standing on the stage in Jericho's signature pose, back to us arms outstretched to the sides. His "Break the Walls Down" music plays, the lights come on and the arena erupts.

Jericho plays the crowd like a fiddle for a good few minutes, walking around ringside multiple times gladhanding and posing with fans. He gets in the ring a few times and feigns talking in the mic before going back to pandering.

The final time he brings the mic up to his mouth, then drops it on the mat and gets out of the ring, still pandering to the crowd, which has now started to die down a bit let down by Jericho not talking. Then he leaves.

So all we got was Jericho yelling a few times "come on, baby" and "yeah yeah yeah."

Like I said... odd.

On WWE. com following Raw they posted a backstage interview with Jericho where he just walked through the hall smiling while the interviewer tried to ask him questions. At one point he stops just to turn the lights on his jacket back on. O...K...

So there you have it, Jericho is back with his strangest re-debut yet. Jericho is known for his creativity and reinvention of himself. This almost felt like a social experiment though, to see how long fans would stay with him if he just walked around smiling.

I've read online some thinking this is great, others being really upset by it, but I just think it's kind of lame. It was boring and kind of anti-climactic. Hopefully we'll get more from this in the weeks to come, but for now it's just odd.

And as for the rest of Raw, it was a pretty average episode this week. The Punk/Ziggler match was the highlight of the show. And while I would have preferred a definitive winner, I didn't mind the advancing of the Punk/Laurinaitis story line here.

The Bryan/Rhodes match was okay, though I expect at this point for Bryan to put up more of a fight instead of just coming out on top towards the end. The 6-man main event was really tame, and Kane tripping up on the hole not once, but twice kind of ruined any dramatic impact that was supposed to have. And R-Truth's segments were decent as well.

Everything else was average, nothing special. As I was podcasting, I watched half of Raw silent the first go-around. Upon viewing it later with sound I realized I didn't miss anything. That's not a good thing, especially for the kick-off show of the year.

-B

Year in Review - 2011

2011-12-30T12:16:00.000-05:00

Did you think I forgot about this? Nope, just took time collecting my thoughts amid all the holiday goings on.

As promised, this is my quick look at wrestling in the year of 2011.

I do have to preface this by stating that I have not watched much indie wrestling this year, so this will mostly be focused on WWE and TNA. I watched very little ROH or Chikara, too little to comment on really, and I don't think I even caught any FCW or any other fed this year. So take that as you will.

Ok, so this isn't going to be a comprehensive list, just some thoughts on various highlights of the year, and I'll talk about those wrestlers and events that stood out to me.

On the TNA side, they kind of opened the year weakly with Anderson and Morgan set to mix it up at Genesis, and things just sadly got worse from there.

On the WWE side, it was time for the Road to Wrestlemania. The Miz was still the champ heading into the Rumble. We get an announcement that this year's Royal Rumble match will be the biggest one ever with 40 people participating whereas past years have typically been 30 (the first ever was 20).

Alberto Del Rio would go on to win said match guaranteeing him a title shot at Wrestlemania. That match would end up being against Edge, one of the biggest stars in the company at the time and quite possibly the most popular.

Fast-forwarding a little, at Wrestlemania Edge retains his title, but then retires afterward, making one of the shocking moments of the year. Due to a serious injury to his neck he would never wrestle again.

Wrestlemania also saw the return of The Rock... sort of. A major disappointment because we barely saw him during the event save for a monologue. And then in the main event... Miz vs. Cena. The Rock helped Miz win by Rock-Bottoming Cena. A dazed (and concussed) Miz got the win and retained his title. A fact that has been used in his promos ever since to this day.

Undertaker and Triple H had what some call the match of the year at Wrestlemania as well, and it would be the last time we'd see the Undertaker for the entire year. He may be coming back next week, but more on that later.

Over in TNA, March was a notable month for them also, but not for a good reason. At Victory Road Jeff Hardy would show up in the main event stoned out of his mind. He was to face Sting in the world title match main event. He was so wasted that Sting quickly got him to the mat and sand bagged on top of him literally not allowing him to kick out. He was supposed to kick out - he tried to kick out. But Sting would not let the fiasco go on and so he broke kayfabe and forced him down for the count. Hardy got up and was visibly upset about this. He would then go to rehab and not be seen for many months.

So March really kicked off both companies for the year in very different ways. The Raw after Wrestlemania, for the first time ever, the main event for the next Wrestlemania was set as Cena challenged The Rock. And that gradual build-up would continue on and off throughout the year. Del Rio and Miz, both relatively young in the WWE were going on to greater heights, and because of Edge's retirement, Christian would finally get the push fans knew he deserved.

For TNA, however, it was dark times ahead. They lost the guy who they were building the company around at the time in Hardy. He was the main guy in Immortal championed by Hogan and Bischoff, and he just made a complete joke of the company on live television. Going into panic mode, TNA, who soon after changed their name to Impact Wrestling (which is still confusing today as no one knows if that's the name of the company or just the show - conflicting reports out of Hogan, Carter and others). They were grasping for straws trying to find something that worked.

Eventually they settled on pushing the core guys that built the company... for a while anyway. They would later on start the Bound for Glory tournament which Bobby Roode, a member of Fortune, would win. They spent months building him as the company's top face, only to unnecessarily swerve the fans by turning him heel at the last minute.

TNA did have another bright spot this year, though, with it's PPV Destination X. This event would see the return of the six-sided ring for one night only, and would highlight X-Division stars. Sadly this included Abyss because he was the champion at the time, but aside from that there were some really good matches on the card. We had Christopher Daniels vs. AJ Styles (though Samoa Joe should have really been involved in that match) and RVD vs. Jerry Lynn. It wasn't a perfect show, but it was far better than anything else TNA had been handing us or would hand us for the year.

WWE on the other hand would have several notable events occur that had everybody abuzz. Christian would finally win the World Title, only to lose it five days later to Randy Orton (which was actually only two days later because Smackdown pre-records on Tuesdays). This would lead into a number of wonderful matches between Orton and Christian. Sadly Christian would lose most of them, and would incessantly beg for "One More Match." Then he would eventually get injured and be out for the rest of the year.

Alberto Del Rio would have a banner year. After winning the Royal Rumble he went on to win Money in the Bank and the WWE title twice before the year was out. Sadly, he also would get injured pulling his groin toward the end of the year.

Then there was Money in the Bank. CM Punk had been an entertaining heel for a while, though the Straight Edge Society thing had grown thin, and his version of Nexus was nothing like the superior original concept. But then one Monday he came out and did a worked shoot that incited the world of wrestling. He was given an open mic and he railed on everything in one of the best moments in wrestling in years. He claimed he would leave the WWE with the title. And at Money in the Bank he did just that. In another match many call the best of the year at the best PPV of the year, Punk defeated Cena to win the WWE title and left the company for a time. It was exciting, it was fresh, and it was far too short.

The luster wore off as they rushed the story line after his return, but it was still probably the most memorable time for wrestling in 2011 and for the last ten years arguably.

The Rock would also return to in-ring action at Survivor Series, which was exciting to see, even if he only left again after.

And Kane made his masked return in December targeting Cena heading into the new year.

There are many other highlights I'm sure I've forgotten or left out either purposely or on accident. One of the reasons being I wanted to cover some stuff in my picks for the year.

WRESTLERS OF THE YEAR

I'm going to do a simple list here, then I'll expound.

For TNA the list is going to be short:

Bobby Roode

James Storm

Austin Aries

Velvet Sky

For WWE, a little bit longer:

Alberto Del Rio

The Miz

R-Truth

CM Punk

Dolph Ziggler

Zack Ryder

Sheamus

Mark Henry

You may note that some important names were left off these lists, and I'll explain why later.

Back to TNA...

BOBBY ROODE - As I mentioned, he was built up as the face of the company. At first I was confused because AJ Styles is still the best they have in-ring, and one of the best in the world. But Bobby is a solid wrestler and good on the mic. He had fan support and became the unofficial spokesman for Fortune. He was groomed to be the top guy in the company, and after suffering through the older guys getting the spotlight, this was fresh and welcomed. So despite what happened with the whole heel turn angle they've settled on, Roode stood out this year as most improved and one of the better things in TNA as a whole.

JAMES STORM - While I don't think the guy should have gotten the World Title before Roode (or even at all for that matter) I can't deny how much he has grown also. No doubt thanks to the success of Beer Money, Storm (and Roode) gained a ton of popularity as one of the best tag teams in years. And as a part of Fortune, they were some of the top faces in the company. And thus Storm deserves some of the success he's had, which is why he's on this list.

AUSTIN ARIES - I was never an Aries fan. In fact, I HATED him in every other TNA stint he had, and what little I saw of him in ROH. I just did not like the guy. I thought he over-sold everything, was goofy and was just boring. He proved me wrong when he came back in the latter part of the year and made the X-Division relevant again. This version of Aries I like, and thus he gets the honor from me.

VELVET SKY - Velvet is by far the women's wrestler of the year. I'm personally a big Gail Kim fan, but because WWE so greatly underused her, and since she's been in TNA she has done very little, the only other standout in my opinion is Velvet. Talk about most improved, she really stepped up her game in the ring and on the mic, and she got the fans behind her. While TNA is terrible at objectifying women to the Nth degree, Velvet still comes out as a people's champion of sorts and thus makes this list.

I honestly could not think of any other stand outs from TNA this year. No one else grabbed me the way these four did. And for a roster as deep and ever-changing as TNA's is, that's sad.

On to WWE...

ALBERTO DEL RIO - I already mentioned all his accomplishments this year, and those stand alone as the reason for his inclusion here. I know some people got bored of his "destiny" promos and so forth, but I still think he's got the potential to be a top heel in the business. He's great in the ring and pretty good on the mic. And he is FAR better with that rich gimmick than JBL ever could have hoped to be in my opinion. I'm not a JBL fan, he bored me to sleep constantly. Del Rio bored me in his feuds with Mysterio for some reason, but after that he has been very entertaining.

THE MIZ - A 5-month title reign and a win in the main event of Wrestlemania. Not too shabby for a Real World alumni who would occasionally on that show wrestle the air on the couch holding up a toy title. I have respected and admired Mike Mizanin since the Real World because he wasn't afraid to put his dreams out there, and he wasn't afraid to follow them. And not only that, he actually succeeded in his dream and got to the pinnacle of that profession in pretty short time. While he did get derailed after losing the belt, he is still one of the best both in the ring and on the mic, and is most deserving of this honor. I don't think people realize how innovative he actually is in the ring. Several of his signature moves are fresh and unlike anything anyone else does in WWE or TNA. Hopefully he gets back on track for 2012.

R-TRUTH - He is only on this list because of his heel turn and how he made that work for him. He was going nowhere as a face. Kids may have liked him somewhat, but he was boring. His moves, while impressive, are predictable. He's been using that same move set since his first stint in WWE as K-Kwik. But the crazy gimmick with all the Little Jimmys and all that made him entertaining. So kudos to Truth for finally being entertaining after many years of not so much.

CM PUNK - It goes without saying that Punk is probably the top dog of the year in all of wrestling. Even though his story line died down and got rushed, he has remained a fan favorite, and is one of the best wrestlers in the WWE. He always puts on top notch matches, and most times is entertaining on the mic. I just hope he can breath some fresh air into things in the coming year as it is getting just a tad bit old at this point.

DOLPH ZIGGLER - This has actually been a trying year for the Zig-Zag man as Booker T would say. He had that awful makeover dying and cutting his hair and just going out there with no promos and wrestling straight for a short time. It seemed like the end for him. But then he got back to what brought him to the dance (well, after that whole Spirit Squad thing anyway) and really shined on the mic. He's another guy that is one of the best wrestlers in the business, and with his flamboyance and arrogance it makes him a formidable heel. He's also one of the best sellers today. And using all those old finishers of the likes of Angle, HBK and even Billy Gunn, he brings something unique to the table. I look for big things for Ziggler in 2012. And we'll see... his first match of the year is for the WWE title on Raw against CM Punk.

ZACK RYDER - This list would not be complete without Zack Ryder, the self-made man. I have to admit, I HATED this guy. I didn't like him and Hawkins when they were pretending to be twins, I didn't care for the Edge Heads, and I hated him and his Fantastics-like one-legged tights. When I found out the guy was doing a web show that people were clamoring for I immediately dismissed it and thought people were crazy. Then I actually watched an episode. And then another, and another, and the entire archive. It got to the point I would eagerly await the next installment. He hooked me with his goofiness and creativity. And while he's not the greatest wrestler or talker, and, let's face it, his gimmick is kind of cheesy, there's something about his drive and cleverness that appeals to the masses. He got himself over, and as a result had a banner year. So my hat's off to Zack Ryder.

SHEAMUS - He has his ups and downs, but Sheamus is a solid performer. He may confuse everyone with his tales of his oddball family, but he's at least entertaining. And his mean streak in the ring comes out great even as a face. I think there are better things in store for him down the road. He's what Test could have been had he personality and better skills. Sheamus had a lot of success thrown at him early in his career, much like Randy Orton in fact. And both suffered for that. Sheamus has bounced back rather quickly though and has shown he's here to stay.

MARK HENRY - At the beginning of this year I never thought I'd be typing Henry's name in a Wrestler of the Year category. But lo and behold, here I am doing just that. He surprised everyone this time around. It all started, I think, when he through that audio-tech guy into oblivion. That just set the tone for what he would be like from this point on. We'd seen them do the monster angle with Henry before in ECW and it didn't really work. But this time there was just something different. He was a raging monster that broke legs and tossed people around like rag dolls, but he also showed fear and vulnerability in certain situations. After all these years, Henry has finally become a well-rounded performer and thus captivated us all.

So there you have it, my picks of the year. You might wonder why I left Daniel Bryan off this list, and the answer is simple. While he may be the champ now, he didn't do much all year. Sure, he won Money in the Bank too, and there was some fun with that. But he only started getting interesting toward the end of the year. Before that he was irrelevant. Even after winning MITB he lost almost every match.

On the last Smackdown of the year last night, Bryan showed something he hadn't shown since he entered the WWE: personality. I am a fan now. He's improved his look, his persona, his gimmick, and his skills. Maybe at the end of 2012 he'll find his way onto this list. Until then he still has a long way to go.

IT BEGINS

One more final note before I end this post. This week saw all the last episodes of the various shows for the year. Raw was good, Smackdown was pretty good, and even Impact was decent. All three shows gave me hopes for the coming year in various ways. I won't go into detail on any of them here, but I wanted to note that while none of those shows were ground-breaking or anything, they were decent ways to head into the new year.

I'd be remiss if I didn't mention these cryptic videos we have been getting on RAW the past few weeks. Will it be the Undertaker? Will it be Chris Jericho? Those are the two guys fans seem split over who it will be that returns on the first RAW of 2012. Others think it may be Brock Lesnar, especially since he retired from MMA last night after losing in less than three minutes. I certainly don't think it'll be Lesnar, though I do see him coming back to WWE soon.

I thought from day one it would be The Undertaker. But as many have pointed out, it may be too soon for that. Taker typically either returns at the Rumble or in early February for the Wrestlemania build-up. Returning now would mean three full months of Taker, which does seem unlikely. So maybe it is Jericho, to once again "save us" as he has claimed to do in his previous two debuts. Personally, I was bored to tears with his last stint, and Miz does that gimmick better. So if he does come back I hope he changes.

If it's not one of those two, all jokes aside, I haven't a clue who it could be.

But that's the next time I'll be posting, the day after this coming Monday's RAW. So I'll talk all about it then.

Until then, everyone have a very Happy New Year!

-B

Building Stars

2011-12-20T08:54:00.002-05:00

This is my 100th post on this blog!!! Congrats, me, you finally did it. haha

Ok, so in light of the results from TLC, and looking back over the course of this year, it seems to me that budding stars are really coming to the forefront. I'll get into this more in depth in my year in review sometime next week, but I wanted to touch on it here.

Just think about it. Look at who the champs are in both WWE and TNA.

WWE Champion - CM Punk
World Heavyweight Champion - Daniel Bryan
Intercontinental Champion - Cody Rhodes
United States Champion - Zack Ryder
World Tag Team Champions - Kofi Kingston and Evan Bourne
Divas Champion - Beth Phoenix

Five to ten years ago would you have thought any of these people would be the leaders of the WWE? Me either.

As for TNA, it's not as bright to be sure, but we've seen the likes of Bobby Roode and James Storm holding the world title recently, and various other unknowns getting some kind of push. Granted, TNA isn't what it used to be, and stuff that happens there sadly doesn't really matter much. But still.

Over the past five years it seems WWE has really been building tomorrow's stars. Looking at that list of champions above it's clear the WWE finally realized, "Hey, Triple H and Undertaker aren't going to be around forever, and aside from Cena, who's still fairly young, all our other top stars have either moved on or retired."

It may have taken a while, but especially over the past couple of years, these superstars above as well as the likes of Sheamus, Dolph Ziggler and Alberto Del Rio have really been groomed to become the Triple H, Shawn Michaels, Rock, Stone Cold, etc. of the next era. They are tomorrow's Hall-of-Famers as it were.

It's also wild to think that just several months ago titles meant virtually nothing in the WWE. Now much of the emphasis is on making those titles relevant and special again. Both Bryan's and Punk's rise to power this year have really made those titles important, and even The Miz's title reign last year running into this year helped solidify their main title as something to be sought after.

So kudos to the WWE and the wrestling world in general for taking these steps to making us care again.

-B

Wrestling Comic?

2011-12-15T00:04:00.000-05:00

I've wanted to do a comic about wrestling for a while now. I know, they've been done. From the Acclaim WWF ones, to the Marvel WCW ones, to Headlocked, the recent WWE ones from Titan and so on and so forth.

Across the web, there have been some webcomics as well, both long-form and comic strip style. Most notably Rival Angels and Botched Spot come to mind. But I know there are others as well.

I've had two ideas I've wanted to do for a long while now. One would be an actual comic, long-form style. I have a writing partner for it who used to be a wrestler on the indie circuit. We've been talking about it on and off for several years now. Eventually I'd like to get that done. More on that at some point I hope.

The other idea is for a webcomic gag strip, somewhat similar to Botched Spot. In fact, when I saw Botched Spot I kicked myself. It's a really good comic, though, and you all should check it out.

My idea is similar, but I'd be doing it from another perspective. I have a name picked out for it already, and some of the characters fleshed out. I just need to find the time to do it. I'd want to update it at least three times a week. I'd want it to be current, and for it to gain a following. So I think it would have to be updated at least that much to keep up.

Time is currently against me, but I'm hoping to launch it next year. We'll see how that pans out.

If you're reading this, what do you think? Would you read another gag strip about wrestling? I think it could be fun.

-B

Daniel Bryan's Ring Gear

2011-12-13T13:56:00.000-05:00

I just read an interview that revealed Daniel Bryan's newest ring gear was designed by a comic book artist! How cool is that?

Being both a comic book and wrestling fan, I thought that was a pretty awesome thing to learn. Jill Thompson (Sandman, Swamp Thing, etc.) designed the black, red and white dragon themed gear Bryan's been wearing for the past few weeks.

I remember when I first saw the new attire I thought it was a HUGE improvement over anything else I had seen him wear, and it actually made him look cool. Now I know who to thank for that!

Now if only someone could do him up some good music...

Anyway, here's the designs Jill came up with:

And Bryan wearing the realized gear:

The Slammys

2011-12-13T07:01:00.000-05:00

Before I get started on the wrestling stuff, you may have noticed I spruced up the place a bit. I really want to return to semi-regular blogging here, and I figured if I cleaned up the page it would give me some incentive to actually follow through this time as opposed to starting and stopping frequently. Fingers are crossed.

If you're new to this blog, just a little quick info. I've been watching wrestling for about 28 years nonstop. I've watched CWA, AWA, WCCW, USWA, ECW, WWF/E, WCW, NWA, TNA, UWF, ROH, you name it. While I may not be as well versed in some of those, I have watched a LOT of wrestling over the years.

This blog is basically my personal space to talk about whatever's caught my interest at any given time in the world of wrestling.

The most recent topic at hand is last night's Monday Night Raw, in which we saw a few returning stars. Most notably the masked Kane, which I'll get to in a minute.

I'm not going to give a full review of the show, I'm just going to point out some interesting stuff that happened.

This was the Slammys episode, which meant three hours of Raw. If only it was three hours of wrestling, but it wasn't. Still, overall I thought it was a solid and fun show, and much better than past Slammy episodes. Thank goodness they didn't get a lame celebrity host this year like last with Dennis Miller, whose jokes fell not just flat, but dead on the wrestling crowd.

First thing of note... Hornswoggle, now that he can talk - thanks to a Christmas wish from Santa on Smackdown - has a southern accent. Either that, or when he tries to talk like Booker T it comes out VERY southern.

Michael Cole broke kayfabe a couple of times tonight. It's live, folks. The first time I noticed was when he and Jim Ross were in the ring and JR was taunting him with his Slammy. Cole almost broke down laughing and had to bow his head and compose himself. Then later, he said JR forgot his rap that he had planned (they had a rap battle) even though they had supposedly just been notified of the battle right before doing it.

Two really good matches on the card. First, the four-way between Dolph Ziggler, Zack Ryder, Daniel Bryan and Cody Rhodes. These four have grown and improved so much and are tomorrow's big stars. I'm glad they are getting the push. And it's funny because all four of these guys had lackluster beginnings. And now they are some of the must-see performers in the company.

Next was the tag match pitting Randy Orton and CM Punk against The Miz and Alberto Del Rio. Great match that saw Del Rio and Miz beating the crap out of Punk and ultimately winning the match. Since those three have a triple threat TLC match at the upcoming PPV, it was really good to see how this played out. And Miz was awesome (pun intended) on the mic with the "pipe-bomb engaged" promo.

The rest of the matches were very short and just throw-aways, save for the main event between Mark Henry and John Cena. Granted, that was a slow and kind of boring match, but what happened at the end made it worth watching. More on that in a sec.

Christian came back as a presenter wearing a cast on his leg and a neck brace. Even though we won't see him in action for a while, he delivered a great promo and reminded everyone he was still a player.

Rey Mysterio also came back as a presenter.

The one that surprised me coming back, though, was Roaddogg, who also came out as a presenter and did a version of his usual rap to introduce the award. It was good to see him back in the WWE, even if it was only for one night. And he was wearing a DX shirt.

The most notable return of the night, though, happened during the aforementioned main event. It was nearing the end of the match, and Henry had dominated Cena most of the match. Then all of a sudden fire shoots up out of the stage and the arena goes dark. There's a pause, then Kane's old music starts playing and out comes Kane wearing an iron mask. Ok, strange. He gets in the ring and Mark Henry takes a powder leaving Kane and Cena in the ring. Kane turns to Cena and delivers a monstrous choke slam. Following the choke slam, Kane takes off the iron mask to reveal, yes, a version of his classic mask. And he has the long hair again as well (which, astute viewers will remember, is part of the mask as we saw way back when Kane was originally unmasked).

That was worth watching the whole show really. It was nostalgia, sure, but let's be honest. Kane was boring without the mask. He just wasn't the same. And it was time for a change. So now we have masked Kane coming out of nowhere and decimating anyone in his path, just as it should be.

So, this begs the question, what are the plans for him? He was put out of action by Mark Henry, who inducted him into the hall of pain by crashing down on his leg, which was wrapped in a folding chair. So it would stand to reason that Kane went through some psychological breakdown realizing he needed to find that inner monster again, hence the transformation. So logic would dictate that he go after Henry. But Henry is currently in a feud with Big Show.

Insert Cena, who doesn't have a match for the PPV. Cena is the top star in the company and he doesn't have a match on the last PPV of the year. Of course he will now face Kane, he has to. And that will provide both men a something to do before moving on to the feuds they're supposed to be in. The Royal Rumble is the next PPV. Kane has a huge history at the Rumble. Either he'll be in the Rumble match, or he'll get a title shot at Henry at the Rumble. Depends on who wins between Show and Henry.

Cena, I don't know. I can't see him being in the Rumble unless he's going to win. And him winning doesn't make sense because then he'd be facing the champ at Wrestlemania. So I kind of see him facing whoever the champ is between Punk, Miz and Del Rio at the Rumble.

So, like I said, a pretty good Raw all things considered. Once we get past TLC things will really start to pick up and get better. That always happens on the road to Wrestlemania. Things get intense and very good for the first three months of the year, then tend to fizzle out for a bit, or rather tone back down to the norm. Exciting times ahead.

That's enough for this post. Please check back often as I do fully intend to update regularly. Hopefully that happens this time and I don't go another 6 months without a post!

-B

Punk's "Shoot"

2011-06-28T05:11:00.003-04:00

Wow, what a Raw! Well, ok, the majority of the show was just okay. Not terrible, but nothing spectacular either. But the ending? That was classic. Gold. The best ending to Raw since the Nexus debut in my opinion.

But before I get to that and the reason for the title of this post, let me comment on a couple of things.

First, CAPITOL PUNISHMENT since I made my predictions beforehand.

Punk beat Rey Mysterio, which I was pleasantly surprised by. It was a great match I hear and Punk deserved to win, especially if he really is leaving the company.

Ziggler went over Kofi and won the US title. I was really glad to hear this, and they put on a pretty good match as well as far as I understand. Ziggler needs a push, and Kofi's had the title for a while. Nice time for a change. Now if they'll just get both of these guys some other opponents that can work well with them.

Alberto Del Rio defeated the Big Show, but not clean. It was because of Mark Henry interfering. But I have to say that I love what they're doing with Henry. And after seeing footage of what he did, putting Big Show through the announce table with the World's Strongest Slam? Man, that boy is one strong guy! Pretty cool, and it saves Del Rio from jobbing. So I'm okay with it.

Zeke beats Wade Barrett... sigh. I called that, and I'm disappointed that I was right. B-O-R-I-N-G.

Riley wins over Miz? In the words of The Miz.... AWESOME! Seriously, I think it's cool they're giving him a push, and he's doing well with it. He has really surprised me of late, he being Riley. More on that in a minute.

Orton vs Christian resulted in Orton winning again, which keeps the storyline going, but it's getting to a ridiculous point with Christian getting umpteen opportunities. They put on great matches, but still, it's starting to get stale.

And R Truth loses to Cena thanks to a Little Jimmy in the crowd distracting him by throwing water in his face. That was pretty funny actually, and fits with the character. So, cool.

MONDAY NIGHT RAW

Live from Vegas, it's Raw Roulette. I know the internet, and even the live crowd were not all that excited about this. But there was some cool stuff that took place.

First, Booker T is the wheel spinner because, you know, he's the master of the Spinarooni after all. But it's fine, he does a good job with it, really playing up the matches, and has some fun interactions backstage.

Shawn Michaels was there plugging his new hunting show on the Outdoor channel, and CM Punk, flanked by the tag champs and fellow members of Nexus, David Otunga and Michael "don't call me Joe Hennig" Magillicutty. Punk tells HBK he's the future and he's upset that fans choose to cheer the past, being him. And how he's the best and they're a lot alike, yadda yadda. HBK says they have similarities, but when it comes down to it, Punk has his style, and HBK has his, at which point he proceeds to superkick Otunga's head off. Shortly after he does the same to Magillicutty. And it turns out thanks to a spin of the wheel that Punk has a mystery opponent right then, being Kane.

So they have a match, which Punk walks out on, getting counted out. So a solid opening to the show.

We get the match that should have happened last week with Sin Cara vs Evan Bourne, and it's a no countout match, which was pointless as they were outside all of 10 seconds the entire match. But they had an okay match. Some cool exchanges between the two, but the live crowd was cold during this match. Sin Cara wins, of course. I think he's overrated honestly.

My memory is foggy on the order of things from here on out, so I'll just cover them as I remember them.

Kofi gets to spin the wheel to determine what kind of match he and Ziggler will have. But Vicki comes in and spins it. It lands on Player's Choice, so Kofi picks the stipulation that we should have had, again, last week, being Vicki banned from ringside. So Dolph and Kofi fight another solid match, but not their best by far. Kofi nails Trouble in Paradise for the win.

Booker T is talking up Maryse when Del Rio comes in and allows Maryse to spin the wheel for him. While he is flirting her up, the wheel lands on a cage match for him and Big Show, so he's upset with Maryse. Big Show dominates Del Rio for a short period, then Del Rio gets the leglock on him and Mark Henry comes out. Again, looking awesome, ripping the cage door off its hinges, then taking it in the ring. Del Rio crawls out for the win. Then, with Big Show between the ropes and the cage, Henry takes the door and rams Show with it. The whole side of the cage falls off as Show slides down it unconscious. Pretty cool visual, and Henry was just on tonight.

Booker at one point is backstage and sees someone off camera he's surprised to see. Coming into from is Diamond Dallas Page, who says he's there to promote the Best of WCW Nitro DVD. They start talking about some of the matches and mention Jeff Jarrett and Sting surprisingly given that they are two of the main guys at TNA. Then Drew McIntyre comes up talking about how he's sick of these "legends" taking his TV time. All of a sudden a boot comes into frame kicking him in the jaw, then HBK walks into frame to a huge pop. He then tells Booker and DDP that he never watched Nitro because he was working that night.

I enjoyed DDP's cameo and the talk about WCW, and while HBK's joke was funny, I hated that he kind of crapped on WCW with it. Seems like a funny way for WWE to promote a DVD they have produced.

Anyway, moving on. Rey Mysterio and Alex Riley have a Tornado Tag match with The Miz and Jack Swagger. Riley and Rey are an awesome combination and really kill it in this match. The ending had several spots in a row with them double teaming for the win that was pretty fun to watch.

At some point there was a Diva's match with Kelly Kelly vs Nicki Bella... in a submission match. Boring, though Kelly's version of the Boston Crab was pretty cool as she leaned way back for the win.

R Truth is backstage in front of the wheel talking to himself when Booker interrupts him and tells him he has to spin the wheel. So he does and it lands on Tables Match for him and John Cena. He seems happy about that and starts talking to himself again. Booker tells him he's starting to scare him, so he needs to leave. Then he says "Better yet" and turns and leaves himself.

The match was ok, nothing great. Back and forth near spots. Then for the finish, Cena's about to AA Truth through the table when Punk runs down and pulls the table out of the way. The two fight outside for a minute, but Truth uses the distraction to put Cena through the table set up in the corner.

Then comes the best ending of Raw in a long time, and the reason for the title of this post.

Punk gets on the mic and just lets loose. It's a shoot promo, meaning it's real. Yes, it is a work in that they allowed him to do it, and it does build up to the PPV title match between him and Cena. But they really let him cut loose, and some of the things he said were just pretty shocking.

To give some background for those who may not know, Punk's contract with WWE ends soon. That's legit. According to the storyline, it ends on the same day as the PPV, Money in the Bank. So Punk has stated he will win the title then leave the WWE with the belt. It's been rumored for a while now that Punk is unhappy in the WWE and feels he's under appreciated and underutilized. So either there's some truth in that, or they wisely decided to work the rumors into a story that people would latch onto. Either way, the result, so far, is very cool.

So Punk talks about Cena being a butt kisser like Hogan and Rock before him, and how fans moronically feed the crap by buying the merchandise and supporting the crappy product that is the WWE. He talks about how he's the best WRESTLER in the world, and how he was a Paul Heyman guy, like Brock Lesnar, and is leaving like Lesnar wisely did. He says he may take the belt and go to New Japan Pro Wrestling, or back to Ring of Honor (which just got bought by the Sinclair Group and will have a TV show in certain markets this Fall). He even does a live shout out to Colt Cabana. Then he talks about the McMahon family, saying it would be better once Vince was dead, except that his kids are taking over... rather than read me butcher it, here's the video of it:

See what I mean? Pretty awesome if you ask me. Yeah, it's a work, but it's the best work WWE has done in a long, long time. It has me excited for the PPV to see what Punk does.

SPOILER

After Raw went off the air they pre-recorded next week's Raw because they'll be in Australia and won't be able to do a live show. During that taping, apparently McMahon and Cena have a confrontation talking about Punk, who was "immediately suspended" after tonight's Raw went off the air.

Nice lead in to the PPV. It made Raw a great show in the end. I'm actually excited to see this play out.

What about you all, what did you think of the show and Punk's rant?

Capitol Punishment

2011-06-19T18:54:00.002-04:00

Ok, first off, I have to apologize. A couple of weeks ago, I started working on a long post reviewing all that week's wrestling programming. I worked on that post like 10 times, but never was able to finish it due to work and other things. So I'm just abandoning that post and will post as I can here from now on.

Now, onto tonight's WWE pay-per-view, Capitol Punishment.

Is it just me, or does everyone immediately think of WCW's Capitol Combat from 1990 when Robocop saved Sting from the Four Horsemen? No joke, Google it.

Anyway, I figured I'd pull a JR and give a match-by-match breakdown of tonight's event, that starts in an hour as I'm typing this.

CM PUNK vs REY MYSTERIO

Honestly, I'm tired of these two facing each other. But I can't deny that they do put on solid matches, which is why they keep getting paired up. But it's a waste of Punk at this point to put him in a low to mid card match that really has very little build up and no real reason to be happening. It may be a good match, but it's a throw-away match, and that sucks. I hope Punk at least goes over here, but I have a feeling Rey Rey will win.

BIG SHOW vs ALBERTO DEL RIO

This is one of two matches I just don't care about. The reason for them fighting was poorly done, but Big Show's rage trying to get his hands on Del Rio the past couple of weeks has been tremendous. He has darted to the ring - no small feat for one of his stature - and has appeared monstrous and vicious as he well should. Del Rio has played the perfect heel here as well. But let's face it, in the ring together in a match setting these two will probably not make each other look good, and it'll be a quick match, probably with Del Rio going over to prolong the feud and give him more heat.

ALEX RILEY vs THE MIZ

This match I'm actually looking forward to (if I were watching the PPV - I'm poor. lol). If Riley can wrestle well (he has always jobbed up to this point, and I didn't follow him on NXT) this could be really good match. The feud between these two has been built up really, really well. Riley has come out and demolished Miz a couple of times, and I personally think Miz is one of the best heels and best superstars right now, so I'll be curious to see how this one turns out.

US TITLE - KOFI KINGSTON vs DOLPH ZIGGLER

Whoa, what's this? Four titles on the line on a WWE PPV? Does that happen anymore? Anyway, this match has the capability to steal the show. These two have put on tremendous bouts before and work really well together. Both are two of the most athletic guys in the company and are both really solid wrestlers as well. I'm a Ziggler fan and hope he wins. I'd like for both of these guys to grow themselves both inside and outside the ring, and this is a good starting point. Put on one killer match that gets people talking and then take that ball and run with it tomorrow on Raw.

IC TITLE - WADE BARRETT vs EZEKIEL JACKSON

This is the other match I could care less about. Wade is solid, always has been. When the original Nexus disbanded he should have went solo, but instead got buried in the awful Nexus B group The Corre. He has the potential to be a main eventer, but instead he gets to carry guys like Big Zeke, who WWE has been trying to get over for a few years now. Take a hint, Vince, he's still green, has less moves than John Cena and none of the charisma, and nobody cares. He's boring. This will be a short match, and sadly I think Zeke will win.

WORLD HEAVYWEIGHT TITLE - RANDY ORTON vs CHRISTIAN

I don't get where all the hate for Orton came all of a sudden over the past few months from the IWC (Internet Wrestling Community), but I couldn't disagree with it more. I've been a fan of Orton's since Evolution and think he's one of the best today. And he and Christian have been putting on some great matches in recent weeks. I expect another great one here, and hopefully with Christian getting a second (and longer!) title reign as a result. He deserves it. Both of these guys deserve to be in main events, and Christian deserves a bigger push.

WWE TITLE - JOHN CENA vs R TRUTH

I was a casual fan of R Truth in his first WWE run as K-Kwik, but he then just faded into the background. He was exciting to watch in the ring the first few times you saw his moves, but then there was nothing else. No personality, no variation, nothing. Even in TNA as Ron The Truth Killings, I was not a fan. He was nothing more than a gimmick with no depth, and he carried that persona into the WWE as R Truth. Then the heel turn came, and I have to admit I've enjoyed every minute of it. This is the route he should have gone years ago, and he's become one of the most entertaining guys on Raw. Cena, I, like many, used to be a fan of in his heel and early face days. He was cool, had more moves, and lost legitimately sometimes. Now he's Hulk Hogan 2.0 and it is a little boring. That said, I know he can wrestle, despite what others say. He is solid, and he's got the crowd WWE markets to in the palm of his hands. He also does sell well, even if he turns it around and wins at the last minute. I think this will be a fun match. Not the best match on the card by far, but a fun match. I think Cena wins, no doubt, but it's a huge opportunity for Truth and I hope he and Cena don't blow it.

So there you have it, my thoughts and predictions for tonight's event, which now starts in under 45 minutes. Agree? Disagree? Share your thoughts in the comment section below.

RIP Macho Man

2011-05-20T13:34:00.002-04:00

I just heard the news and can't believe it... Macho Man Randy Savage has died at the age of 58 from a heart attack. Randy Poffo - his real name - was born just a few hours north of me in Columbus, OH.

TMZ has the story, with a follow-up and another.

Randy Savage was a little out there to be sure, but no one can deny that he was one of the all-time great wrestling legends. He ranks up there with Hogan, Andre, Sammartino, Stone Cold, The Rock, HBK and so forth. He had some of the greatest matches back in the day, had an interesting and sometimes outlandish personality, and he always captivated the viewers' attention. Whether he was a heel or a face, Macho Man was someone you wanted to watch.

I remember way back in the day when he feuded with Ricky the Dragon Steamboat, culminating in that epic battle at Wrestlemania III, one of my all-time favorite matches, and the match that stole the show, yes, even from Hogan and Andre.

Then there was his run against the Honky Tonk Man for the Intercontinental title.

I remember like it was yesterday when he won the tournament at Wrestlemania IV to become the World Champion for the first time. It was historic. He would hold that belt for a year before dropping it to Hogan at Wrestlemania V after that whole tumultuous storyline with Hogan. They became friends and partners at WM IV forming the Mega Powers, and would go on to become the first force of its kind, many times repeated since, but never duplicated.

There was intense build up between the two as Savage became increasingly jealous of Hogan and Miss Elizabeth, Savage's valet. At the second annual Royal Rumble it all came to a head when Hogan dumped Savage over the top rope, which enraged Savage. This led to their battle at the aforementioned WM V.

Two years later, Savage had a loser leaves match with the Ultimate Warrior at WM VII. Savage did everything he could, but could not find a way to beat Warrior. So he got fired. At the end of the match, Elizabeth, who he had been estranged from, rushed the ring and they embraced. It was a magical moment.

Savage and Elizabeth were to be married at Summerslam, but Jake "The Snake" Roberts and the Undertaker began messing with the couple, which ultimately led to Savage's reinstatement (and getting bit by a cobra) so he could have a match with Roberts.

I remember his feud with Ric Flair, again with Elizabeth at the center of the storyline, which ended with another Wrestlemania moment as the two faced off.

They just don't make storylines like those anymore, and there aren't a lot of personalities like Savage's anymore.

Savage was the same age as my mother, and that really hits home. Whatever can be said about Savage and all the stuff he's done, the fact remains that he was one of the guys I watched growing up. I even used to rent old tapes of him before he came to the WWF. He was one of those larger than life guys, and one of the truly smaller guys that made it big. He paved the way for a guy like Shawn Michaels or Bret Hart to be able to achieve the success they did.

My thoughts and prayers go out to his family and loved ones. Macho Man, you will be missed.

Brant

RAW 5-16-11

2011-05-18T04:48:00.002-04:00

Sorry folks, wanted to post about Smackdown and TNA Sacrifice, but I saw neither as of yet (probably won't see Sacrifice, but may see Smackdown). But I got very busy and then got ill today.

So, I figured I'd instead talk about RAW. I missed Tough Enough and will have to catch a replay Saturday night, but I did see RAW today as I had recorded it. Don't ever get to watch stuff live anymore.

This was just an okay episode. There were a couple of things that just made me shake my head, and nothing really stood out as great at all. I just kind of watched it, got through it and went on with my day. This happens more times than not, sadly.

The show opened with John Cena coming out to the ring, but he was quickly interrupted by Alex Riley who introduced The Miz, as the two are going to have a match at the next PPV for the title. Riley did most of the talking, and for the record, he is improving on the mic. So good for him. I still want to see him eventually grow a set and turn on Miz, but he's not at that level yet. He needs to actually get over first, and I don't think he is yet.

Anyway, they played a video package of Miz beating down Cena time after time, and it was a good video. Cena of course had to retort, and as usual he used some lame jokes to do so.

The anonymous RAW General Manager (anyone else getting tired of that gimmick?) emailed and said Miz gets to pick Cena's opponent tonight since Cena got to pick the stipulation for their match.

One note on that real quick. Their match is an I Quit match, and through the episode there were several times Cena said the words "I QUIT" very emphatically. It brought me back to the Rock vs Mankind I Quit match at, I believe the Royal Rumble one year, where Rock used a recording of Mankind's voice saying "I QUIT, I QUIT, I QUIT" to win the match. I swear I really think they may go that route. It would be funny, given that the Rock and Cena are building up to that match at next year's Wrestlemania. That would probably be giving too much credit to WWE though to think they would plan that well.

At any rate, this pronouncement from the GM resulted in Miz backstage talking to various superstars through the night trying to recruit them to take out Cena in the main event.

Like last post, I deleted the episode and didn't take notes, so I don't know the order of events. There was one good match on the card, and that was the 15000th match between Alberto Del Rio and Rey Mysterio. It was a solid match, though, that went back and forth until R Truth, whom, Rey had tried to call out before the match, interrupted from the cheap seats calling Mysterio a thief. After the match, R Truth came in and beat down Rey, then continued with his psychotic "I didn't want to do that" schtick.

A divas match took place with Kelly Kelly beating one of the Bellas. It's funny, you just know the Divas matches, now, are only held so that Kharma (Awesome Kong) can come beat one of them up, so there is at least some anticipation to the match. This time, she took out one of the Bellas while the other left her sister in harm's way. Then Kharma flicked Kelly Kelly in the head. What? That was just weird.

Michael Cole and Jerry Lawler had their contract signing for their match at Over the Limit, where if Jerry loses he'll have to give Cole his Hall of Fame ring. Cole makes it a Kiss My Foot match and pulls out his fungus covered foot again, showing the footage of King losing a Kiss My Foot match to Bret Hart many years ago. After a bit of posturing, Cole insults Swagger at King's goading saying no one remembers his title reign and such. Swagger gets up in Cole's face, tells him good luck on his match, then turns his back on him... again.

So we think Swagger is going on his own, maybe even a face turn. Until the main event, which is the only other thing on the card worth mentioning, even though there were other matches. They slip my mind because they were all boring. Miz and Riley come out and call Cena out. He comes, and they deem the match a no holds barred match. Which is funny since no weapons were used and there was no interference.

Out comes Swagger. Ok, so he gets fed up with Cole and walks out only to be Miz's lackey in taking out Cena? That was a TNA move if ever I saw one.

So Swagger actually takes Cena to task, including an ugly spot where Cena didn't turn his body and nearly crushed his face on the fall. Then, of course, Super Cena emerges and wins the match with an AA and an STF.

Then the best part of the show... Miz walks up to the ring all while mentioning various ways he could beat Cena in the I Quit match, including swinging the camera into the stage, using the steps, and even a big lead pipe (which is another TNA nod as Hogan's been walking around with one for weeks). But he then says he has another method in mind (and hopeful me goes back to that Rock/Mankind match - yes, it's a lame finish, but it would be poetic) that he'll keep to himself. But tonight, he'll use the pipe. Riley distracts Cena and Miz lays into Cena with the pipe. Nice. Of course Cena fights back, but it was a realistic fight back this time as opposed to Super Cena just mowing through everyone. The only downfall is Cena just goes ballistic with pipe swings on Riley to the point it wasn't believable the kid could walk away from the ring after that. So a minor misstep.

The show ended as Cena screamed at Miz, full of rage, and I liked seeing that side of him. It was pure aggression, and not that stupid grin and finger shake he normally gives us.

So, like I said, poor show all around with a couple of bright moments. Unfortunately, those bright moments were marred, but still, it was better than what TNA's been giving us lately!

Zack Ryder cameod on RAW again, talking to Cena. Even gave his "Take Care, Spike Your Hair" phrase as Cena walked away, smiling. There was a "Raw is Ryder" sign in the crowd during the matches too.

So that's that. I'll be back on Friday to talk about Impact Wrestling, and I may even get to watch Smackdown this week. We shall see.

Impact Wrestling

2011-05-13T12:46:00.002-04:00

IMPACT

So I watched TNA Impact last night. I had read the spoilers for this episode last week to see if I wanted to watch the episode or not. TNA has been really lame for a while now, and that saddens me. But I still watch for some reason. I guess the same reason I watched WCW in the last two years of its existence: I love wrestling.

So there were three "big" reveals on last night's Impact. The Network was to be revealed, Kurt Angle's "mistress" was to be revealed, and Matt Hardy's partner for the tag title match at Sacrifice was to be revealed.

This episode was a mess from the word go. It opened with Hogan and Bischoff as Flair returned. Hogan laid into Flair accusing him of being the mole for the Network, and Flair goes off. Then Hogan apologizes profusely and Flair says no biggie. What? Whatever, ok, so they're cool, but they have to know who the Network mole is.

I don't remember chronologically what happened from there as I didn't take notes, and I've already deleted the episode from my Tivo, so the rest is going to be at random.

At some point there was a confrontation between AJ Styles and Tommy Dreamer about why Dreamer piledrived AJ last week. Well, they get nose to nose and Dreamer just says over and over again that AJ's too innocent and young and doesn't know what it's like. Lame.

Beer Money is in the ring talking about the tag match at some point and assumes Matt's partner will be Jeff. Reveal number one: it's not, it's Wildcat Chris Harris. Longtime viewers of TNA will know that Chris Harris teamed with James Storm in the early years of the company as America's Most Wanted. They were the top team in TNA for several years. For newer fans, this won't mean anything.

Kurt Angle at some point early in the show, maybe right after Hogan/Flair teased his "business partner" but said the Network rep wanted to introduce her. For weeks Angle has been talking about "Ms. Angle" his "Mistress" and now his "Business Partner". I really don't think he knew what he was talking about. As he closes, he tells Jeff Jarrett that he knows this woman well.

We get a rematch from last week of the only two masked wrestlers on the TNA roster, Suicide and Sangriento (or however you spell that). For those who don't know, these two masked wrestlers are actually on the roster as unmasked talents as well. The weird thing is Sangriento lifts his mask up part way during the match and smiles at the crowd for no apparent reason. There has been no build up, it's only his second match, and the guy that's under the mask, nothing's been done with him to justify him needing to wear a mask and pull something by doing so. So in other words, it's very stupid.

The next reveal is the Network rep. Surprise, surprise, it's Mick Foley. Did anybody not see that coming? Foley declares that he's been thwarting Immortal at every turn, and he dares Hogan to hit him, because he'll go down, but he might get back up. Ok... so Hogan backs off. Foley then proclaims that the show will no longer be called TNA Wrestling it will be called Impact Wrestling. huh? As Mike Tenay covered it up during the replay, what Foley meant to say was it would not be called TNA Impact, but Impact Wrestling because wrestling matters. This, of course, is in reference to the WWE removing the word "wrestling" from their name.

Foley then says there's a new main event, a 25-man battle royal to determine the number one contender for the World Title. He also says to Jarrett - who is in the ring with Hogan, Flair and Bischoff, and of course his wife (Kurt Angle's ex-wife - real life there, folks) Karen Jarrett - that he wants to introduce Angle's partner.

Out comes Chyna. Much smaller in stature than her WWE days, but it's still her.

So that's all the reveals. A bunch of backstage segments that are mostly lame. Either it's bad scripting, or they let too many people freestyle that have no idea what they're doing.

There was a women's tag match at some point, but it was boring.

Real quick, there were two storylines that just got sidelined this week. First, there was no reference to the Velvet Sky/Angelina love angle at all, which was odd. And at the end of last week's show, you had the Bucks, Kendrick and one other guy all pulling that Goldberg prank on Hogan, but none of them were even on the show this week. Ugh. Not that either angle is good, it's just flawed story telling.

So the battle royal starts and Matt Morgan immediately starts tossing people out left and right. But it was all in vain because he got tossed out himself quite unceremoniously. It was an attempt to build heat between him and Scott Steiner, but it was very poorly done. Here's a tip, TNA. If you're going to have Morgan looking all dominate like he could win the thing, then have this guy he's been building a feud with over the past few weeks toss him out sneakily, it might be a good idea to actually show that on camera instead of having the announcers try and clumsily cover it up. Sheesh.

Long story short, it came down to four men: Jeff Jarrett, Kurt Angle, Mr. Anderson and... Bully Ray. Why, oh why is Bully (Bubba) Ray a main event player? Anyway, so Bully and Anderson fall out of the ring through the ropes. Jarrett thinks they've been eliminated. With the help of Karen, Jeff tosses out Kurt. They celebrate, but then realize the other two are still in it. Out comes Chyna who tosses Jeff over the rope then goozles Karen.

So then Anderson finally eliminates Bully Ray to win it, and then compares himself, I kid you not, to the Navy Seals before they killed Osama Bin Laden saying he's locked and loaded and ready for the kill shot, basically calling good guy Sting the terrorist leader. Way to sell your babyfaces, TNA.

TNA should have ended there for the night, but they do these stupid reaction segments after the main event every single week to the point it's stale, old and boring. It's Sting and RVD puffing their chests out talking about who's going to win their match at the pay-per-view. In comes Anderson completely winded from the battle royal, choking in air and trying to deliver lines in the segment.

TNA needs a major overhaul and needs to get back to focusing on the guys that built the company. Lose these sorry storylines and all the dead weight, over the hill "talent" and get it fresh and exciting again. People have been crying the death knell for TNA for years. Every single year people will claim in 6 months, in a year, in whatever TNA will be dead. And they're always wrong. But right now, they resemble WCW in that last year before they were bought out by WWE. I fear for TNA right now, and the talents that we'd lose if that company folded.

Z! TRUE LONG ISLAND STORY

Zach Ryder posted episode 13 of his internet show on YouTube today. In this episode he proves beyond a shadow of a doubt that he can draw money. Plus, his dad and others wish him a happy birthday this weekend. Check it out:

Tonight is WWE Friday Night Smackdown, but I won't be watching it. Instead, I'll be watching the series finale of Smallville. Smackdown's not nearly good enough to skip on that show to say the least.

Until next time...

Recent Wrestling Thoughts

2011-05-10T18:28:00.002-04:00

Wow... a year and a half since I posted on here. Man, I'm sorry, folks. I've been going through a lot and have been very busy.

Had surgery almost two months ago, I'm doing well. But getting back into the swing of things has been difficult.

But I've been itching to write about wrestling for a while now. I even have a wrestling themed webcomic in the works that I'll be writing and drawing. Stay tuned for more on that in the near-ish future.

Not sure whether I'll keep blogging here, or start a new one. Seems I've broken kayfabe by talking about certain things, so I'm not sure the name fits. It wasn't the intention of the name, but still.

Anyway, moving on to random wrestling thoughts.

WRESTLING PODCASTS

I've been listening to a lot of wrestling podcasts lately and have even toyed with doing one of those. I have been doing comic podcasts for two years now, so it only seems natural.

The ones I've mainly been listening to are Solomonster's Sound Off, Smart Wrestling Fan and the Don Tony and Kevin Castle Show. All great shows for different reasons, so if you like podcasts you should check these out. I don't always agree with these guys, but they are fun to listen to.

CHRISTIAN's TITLE REIGN

Been hearing a lot of chatter about Christian losing the belt two days after he won it. I was upset too, and I think they dropped the ball, unless, as fans have been clamoring for, that he turns heel. I like him as a face really, but if they can establish him as a real threat as a heel to Orton and he gets the strap back at some point I'm cool with that. If they put the strap on him just as a kindness to Edge, or to give Edge that final send off at Extreme Rules to wrap up the Del Rio storyline, then I'll be really disappointed.

Christian hit a glass ceiling at WWE several years ago, so he left and went to TNA. TNA couldn't pay him what he needed or deserved, so he went back to WWE and slowly climbed the ladder again (kind of poetic considering the ladder match at the PPV), and captured the strap. It does say a lot that he has held the strap, regardless of how long. They thought enough of him that he deserved to be a former World Champion. Still, I hope this is going somewhere and he doesn't get buried in mid-card again.

CENA and ORTON

I get the hate for Cena, though I don't totally agree with it. Everyone's upset he went PG, which means, in his case, he got corny. But the fact that he's the WWE's proven biggest star should say something, and I'll get back to that in a minute.

But one thing people don't realize, that John shows us every so often, is that he can actually wrestle. I mean chain wrestle. Holds and counter holds, technical moves and whatnot. That's just not his game.

As far as Orton is concerned, I have recently seen this whole "robot" thing trending, and I don't get where it comes from. Everyone loved him when he was a heel. As soon as he turns face everyone hates him? Newsflash, the majority still loves him! And the whole steely, strong, but silent thing is and has been his gimmick for a while now, folks. He's the Viper!

See, the thing about the internet is that everyone on it has a VERY VOCAL opinion, and because enough of us share this opinion it starts to spread, on dirt sheets, podcasts, etc. So then all of a sudden, all of us reading and listening to this ASSUME that EVERYONE agrees with this, because that's what we see trending.

Here's the reality. The internet fans are but a mere small portion of the fans of wrestling, and WWE in particular. A very vocal minority, but a minority at best. So if you sit back wondering why things don't change, it's because the MAJORITY is out there cheering Cena and Orton and buying their merchandise. Love it or hate it, that's the fact.

I'm not really a Cena fan, he bores me, so I'm with you. I loved his first slam on the Rock (who is my fave of all time), but in general, I get tired of Super Cena too. I really, REALLY wanted to see him turn out to be the leader of Nexus at the end of his Wade Barrett feud. I thought that would have been a brilliant swerve, but they dropped the ball on that.

I have been an Orton fan, though, since his Evolution days, and while I hate what happened to Christian, I'm glad to see him with a strap again.

LONG ISLAND ICED Z

So apparently Zach Ryder has gained himself some sort of internet following. I was honestly baffled by this when I started hearing all the Ryder love across the net. I didn't understand it. He was terrible as a Major Brother, terrible as an Edge Head, and terrible with his Fantastics style one-leg tights (don't know who the Fantastics were? Google them - the one-leg tights didn't come from just nowhere). So why on earth would people be falling over themselves after this guy now?

Admittedly, at this time I hadn't watched his YouTube show, Z! True Long Island Story, and had no desire to. I just didn't care. He's a mediocre wrestler with a lame knock-off gimmick. But all the clamoring and constant reports about him started to intrigue me. Then he was on Raw last night interacting with John Cena. So this morning I was taking a break from work and decided to check out an episode. It was terrible and lame. But it was only 3 minutes and I still had time, so I watched a few more.

I have to admit that about 6 episodes in, the guy was starting to grow on me. Still cheesy, still lame, but oddly entertaining. His scenes with his dad, who is a fan of John Morrison and not his own son, were hilarious. So I kept watching.

I ended up watching all 12 episodes, and by the end, while I may not be a fan of Ryder in the ring, I was a fan of this show and his over the top, purposely cheesy personality. My favorite segments, which I also thought were very bold, were the WWE dropping the ball and missing the boat, and him trying to get over. Clever ideas, nicely executed.

So, I get the support for the new Z-man, but I'm certainly not sold that he's a rising star in the ring. I guess time will tell. At any rate, I am a fan of his web show and will continue to watch.

IN CLOSING

Those are my random thoughts for now, more to come later either here or elsewhere. I'll let you know, and I will be updating consistently from here on out.

Where Has the Time Gone?

2009-09-28T07:55:00.002-04:00

Yes, I know it's been like 9 months since my last post. Sorry, life got in the way, and I just haven't been inspired enough to write about wrestling.

Not that I haven't enjoyed some of what has gone on, but as I'm sure you will all agree, by and large it's just boring anymore.

The 50th reunion of DX that's still played up like it's a big thing is beyond old and stale.

The Main Event Mafia is as boring as ever despite a cool concept.

The only cool thing is AJ Styles is the TNA champ again, but he's still terrible on the mic, and TNA just isn't where it should be by now with storytelling.

Orton is still a favorite of mine, but he just lost the title and already he seems a bit buried.

So I don't know, it's just not that exciting right now, and I don't have much to say about it, or time to do so either. I've thought about killing this blog several times, but something inside says someday I'll want to start writing about this stuff again.

So we'll see. I'll keep it up a while longer, but I guarantee you I won't be posting here often unless wrestling starts inspiring me again.

Orton Tees Off On McMahon

2009-01-20T15:50:00.002-05:00

LOVED the ending of Raw, though I wish Orton hadn't gone soft after doing the deed. I was so rooting for an RKO right along with the crowd, but the punt was definitely sufficient. Great turn of events that was.

I think Orton is one of the best heels in the business today and one of the best in the business today. Love him or hate him, the dude's got mad potential and a persona that is memorable and likable, whether it's true like or liking to hate the guy.

I have to admit I was expecting a little more out of McMahon's return, but the Orton incident made up for it.

Raw 1-5-09

2009-01-05T22:21:00.002-05:00

So far Raw has been pretty good this week. The banter between Jericho and Orton and JBL and HBK was a little weak, but the outcome was interesting.

Melina and Golddust vs Glamorella was a fun match, even if the after the match interference from a fan of Beth's is a recycled plot (most recently used in TNA in fact).

Punk and Regal put on a decent match, and the promise of a rematch is a good twist to the loss.

Kingston and Mysterio looked great as usual, as did their opponents Miz and Morrison. Great match between those four.

Even Kelly Kelly vs Jillian was a good match.

The progress of Orton's group is actually, in my opinion, the most interesting arc Rhodes and crew have been involved in. I think it's pretty poetic that Snuka and Orton would be in the same group, if you know your wrestling history. Right now Rhodes and Snuka are about to face Cryme Tyme, which should be a decent match. Good match with Rhodes and Snuka coming out on top. Rhodes used a move many have used before. Everytime a WWE guy tries to use that move as a finisher it never goes over well. Plus it's too similar to what Mike Knox is using. But it's better than a DDT, which EVERYBODY uses these days.

Ok, so I guess we'll not see Snuka and Orton together. Looks like it's just Rhodes and Orton. Then again, it kind of makes me wonder if Orton isn't just picking apart the group turning them against one another. I don't know, this is weird now.

Vince McMahon returns in two weeks to confront Stephanie. Should be interesting, though I was kind of enjoying not seeing Vince take up half the show with his antics. We'll have to see how he does this time around.

Next up the main event, Cena and HBK vs Jericho and Orton.

Jericho and Orton stay in control for the second half of the match after a misstep between HBK and Cena. HBK playing the part of conflicted pretty well. Now Cena's starting to fight back, but he's cut off. Cena goes for a tag, but HBK is hesitant, now trying a bit, but Jericho prevails. JBL watches on from the back.

Well, Cena makes the tag, but at first HBK almost goes after Cena. Now he's taking it to Jericho going for the elbow off the top. Blocked.

Hmm, HBK hits Sweet Chin Music and gets the pinfall. I wonder what this will mean for HBK.

Oh, ok, next week it will be Cena vs HBK with JBL in his corner. I didn't like this angle at first, but this is a little entertaining at least.

Cena is a terrible actor though, man. He's supposed to be the man, but every time HBK came close he cowered, then bucked up. I don't know, it just didn't sell well.

Oh well, another epsiode of Raw wrapped. Decent showing this week.

Latest Rumors

2009-01-05T00:18:00.002-05:00

*POSSIBLE SPOILERS AHEAD*

For the first time in a long time I read some of the spoilers and rumors tonight out of boredom. And I'm glad I did, because some of the things I've wanted seem to be coming to pass.

Well, I wasn't too happy finding out about this MVP quitting angle, but I hope that still leads to a feud with Mr. Kennedy as that would be too perfect.

Gail Kim is supposedly returning to the WWE, which is really cool. While the TNA Knockouts are so much better in the ring than the Divas, Kim got buried by Kong and other rising stars, and currently the WWE Divas are picking up their game (most of them are really learning to wrestle) while TNA is showcasing the likes of Christy Hemme. Please. So seeing Gail come in and face the likes of Maryse, Melina and the Glamazon is promising.

Also I just found out it's pretty certain that Christian is actually coming back to the WWE, possibly at the Royal Rumble and to be revealed as Jeff's attacker prior to the Survivor Series. Of course it's also possible Matt is the attacker, which I wouldn't care for. I really want to see the Hardys vs E&C at least one more time. Though Matt and Edge vs Christian and Jeff would be interesting as well.

So Hulk Hogan wants to appear at Wrestlemania 25 in some capacity. He suggested main eventing the PPV with... John Cena. Um, that would be like THE most BORING match EVER! But Cena is the top superstar right now, and I can see that. Maybe as a double main event, or as prior to the title matches if Cena's not champ that could work, but not as THE main event of the show. But regardless of what we all think of Hogan's skills, WM25 would NOT be the same without the Hulkster. I'd personally love to see the likes of Flair, Piper and Macho Man at least in attendance as well as each of them were integral parts of the biggest show of them all at one point or another, and all are legends.

Bobby Lashley says he will definitely be wrestling again, but has no preference over WWE or TNA. Though he did express interest in wrestling Kurt Angle, which would be a really good match.

Speaking of Kurt Angle, Kofi Kingston said in a recent article that Kurt's the top non-WWE guy he'd like to have a match with. That would be an interesting match. I personally think Shelton Benjamin vs Angle would be a better match because of the wrestling background of both, and I'd love to see Kofi vs AJ Styles, but still, Kofi/Angle would be fun to watch.

Ok, going back to Christian, I just read this, and I'm not sure I like the way this plays out at all, or the fact that it requires Jeff to lose the strap he just one very soon. Ugh.

"Credit: Wrestling Observer Newsletter

According to various sources, WWE has already started the creative process of the return of Christian. Edge will cost Jeff Hardy the title, and reveal Christian as the "mystery person" who attacked Jeff the morning of Survivor Series. Triple H vs. Edge and Jeff Hardy vs. Christian is the current plan for WrestleMania 25. Jeff will get a chance to win back his title at WrestleMania by winning the Royal Rumble or in an Elimination Chamber at No Way Out against Edge, but will pass on the title shot for a grudge match against Christian.

There has been no confirmation of Christian signing with WWE, but the belief from people within TNA and WWE is that he will return to the company."

I guess we'll just have to wait and see what happens, but I'm still holding out for Hardys vs E&C at least once before it's all done. And honestly, with the hype Christian got from being in TNA and WWE seeing his worth, and with stars like both Hardys and Edge being main eventers, I think it's a very good time for Christian to come back and show what he's made of.

Whoa, wait a minute, Kurt Angle is supposedly dating, of all people, Rhaka Kahn? What? Honestly, I didn't know the Angle split up was legit, I thought it was all story. Hmm.

I like what Paul Heyman recently had to say about TNA, and I'll tell you why in a moment. Here's what he said:

"Heyman then goes on a rant on TNA, praising their roster and basically saying they need to go beyond being "WWE Lite." "TNA is so hell bent on trying to present a WWE-style product that it loses its own audience, which just aches to be given a reason to brag "we're better," or "we're cooler," or simply "we're different," Heyman wrote. "Until Dixie Carter and TNA management wake up and play to the potential audience that's out there, their big claim to fame will be "we're number two." "

The reason I like this is in the vain hope that maybe TNA will see that they need someone like Heyman, and that Heyman will see that he could make a difference with TNA. TNA does indeed need to rekindle what made them special to begin with, and Heyman could be just the guy to get them back on track. Regardless of whether that ever happens or not, TNA needs somebody to step and and set them on a course that takes them beyond where they're at right now.

And that's all the rumors, spoilers and news I've had time to dig into tonight. I may keep away from them again for a while, or at least until after the Rumble so I can try to be surprised. Though I don't think they'll be able to top their Cena surprise from last year, especially with the proposed Christian storyline being out of the bag now.

Smackdown 1-2-09

2009-01-04T01:27:00.002-05:00

After discovering that ABC plays Smackdown late on Sat. night I finally got to see an episode since the move to My Network. I hate to say it's just not that great an episode. There just weren't any really interesting matches or backstage stuff going on. The Hardys vs Edge and Show is okay, though I still wish it was E&C instead.

Looks like the WWE read my brain (probably not the blog) and are putting Kennedy and MVP into a gradual feud, which is cool. Those two could potentially tear it up, and I stand by that.

Uh-oh, looks like Show is leaving Edge to face the Hardys on his own. Interesting. Yeah, you've already seen this, but I'm watching it now, so that's that.

Side Effect, now Matt's going for the tag and Jeff is in. Edge and Jeff are facing for the WWE title at my favorite event, the Royal Rumble, which should be a great match. But right now it's history back again. Hardy's with poetry in motion, now the twist of fate followed by the Swanton. Really makes me long for a rekindling of that old tag feud right there. I wonder if we'll ever see it.

And that seems to wrap the show, with the only decent match of the show.

2008 Props

2009-01-01T01:00:00.002-05:00

I'm sure every wrestling site out there has put out there best and worst of 2008 lists and votes, so I'm not going to get that detailed about it, especially since I don't post here often and nobody reads it anyway.

What I will do is mention a few I think deserve props in 2008. Let's keep it positive though. I could spend several posts talking about the negative, but I don't have that much time, interest, or energy.

So here we go.

Jeff Hardy gets the first props for overcoming personal adversity and getting himself to a place where the WWE was comfortable with putting the strap on him. 2008 saw both Hardys holding major titles, and that's a good thing. The only thing that would make it better was if Christian really did come back to the WWE this Friday and replaced the Big Show as Edge's partner against the reunited Hardys. That's not gonna happen, but it would be awesome if it did.

AJ Styles gets a slight nod for overcoming that sorry lackey character he had become and stepping up and being the AJ we all know and love, finally.

LAX, Beer Money Inc, Miz and Morrison, and the Motor City Machine Guns get major props for being THE tag teams of the year, and possibly of several years. Related to that, TNA gets the nod for keeping tag team wrestling significant and strong.

Hat's off to many of the young guns in the WWE (Borne, Kingston, Swagger, Punk, etc.) for taking their breaks and making something special out of them. These guys along with the likes of MVP, Mr. Kennedy, Orton, Rhodes and so forth are truly the future of this business, or at least the future of the WWE. HHH, Undertaker and HBK can't go on forever after all.

Props to John Cena for his surprise appearance at the Royal Rumble, which was the first time anybody was truly surprised at a show in a long time. Plus props to him for really pushing and representing the company outside the ring, regardless of what we think of his wrestling skills.

Not a whole lot of props to dole out, but these truly deserve it. Hopefully there are many more to give in 2009.

Armageddon 2008 Review

2008-12-24T01:25:00.002-05:00

I have recently posted a review of Armageddon on a website I've become affiliated with. Check it out by clicking the title of this post.

Thanks!

B

Impact 12-11-08

2008-12-13T20:42:00.002-05:00

I don't even know where to begin with this one. Oh yeah...

THIS WAS THE WORST EPISODE OF IMPACT E-V-E-R!!!

I'm sorry, but come on! This one was bad, bad, bad. I recently discovered a YouTube poster who talks about wrestling, MMA, boxing and other stuff, and he gave a review of the last TNA PPV Final Resolution this past Sunday, and it was far from a glowing review. He tore TNA a new one for the lackluster PPV. And I can imagine when I get around to listening to his take on this latest episode of Impact that it will be equally disparaging.

The events of the show and how they unfolded were so forgettable I'm not sure I'll be able to recall it correctly for you, and certainly not in order, so just bear with me.

First thing's first, in case you're not aware, the Main Event Mafia beat out the Front Line at Final Resolution. Angle beat Rhino, so now he gets to fight Jarrett. And the MEM defeated Styles, Joe and Team 3-D, so Sting is still champ.

So Impact opens with the MEM bragging about this, with Angle doing all the talking, basically burning up time. Then AJ comes out, and while his mic work still needs a lot of improvement, he gave one of the best talks he's done. He then enters the ring to confront Sting and tells him off. Sting clocks him, they start fighting, then of course the MEM get involved, and the Front Line hits the ring as well.

Later Bubba Ray says he has a proposition for Angle.

Then we get to the tournament for the X-Division belt that should be held by Eric Young. Why? Well, we all know that Bashir has had problems with referee Shane Sol (or however you spell that), and the ref usually gets involved in the match. Well, he kept his cool at Final Resolution for the most part, but when Young did a sunset flip over Bashir into the ring from the apron, Bashir grabbed the ropes. Shane kicked his arms off the ropes and Young won the match.

Now this is where it gets screwy. How many times have we seen referees kick the arms off the rope in such situations before? Many, many times, and never is it an interference on the ref's part. It's a clean win because, as we know, grabbing the ropes like that is illegal. So Young won the match clean, but Cornette strips him of the belt and puts it in a tournament. The first match of that tournament? Bashir and Young of course. Sigh.

It's just a mess.

I don't remember what came next, but I know at some point Bubba hit the ring and called Angle out. Basically he challenged Angle to a fight one-on-one, and the loser's team would disband. Each team, save Angle and Bubba, would leave the building. Ok. Putting aside the question of why Bubba instead of, say, Styles or Joe, let's move to the finish. Well, I guess we should talk about the rest of the card first.

The whole Sarah Palin thing with the Beautiful people is just lame and boring. Yep, TNA has no divas, just ditzy blondes who can't tell the difference between a fellow wrestler and the almos Vice President of our country.

Chris Sabin actually spoke? I was beginning to think he was just Shelley's lackey, but all of a sudden he's got the mic. Of course then Suicide hits the ring, and now that I know who it is, I can tell who it is. He totally botched the DOA finishing move, and the whole exchange was severly lacking.

What's up with Foley going into the MEM's lockerroom and laughing it up after being adamantly against them from day one of his TNA career? That just made no sense at all.

Christy Hemme vs whoever that was... completely forgettable.

Shelly vs Lethal... both of them could have performed better in my opinion.

I am actually enjoying the Morgan/Abyss - Beer Money feud now. The exchanges between Morgan and Abyss are entertaining to me, and I can see the inevitable feud between the two "friends" building up, if TNA does it right. But the match with Storm was short and boring sadly. And why, oh, why are weapons legal in weapon on a pole matches? I'm talking about other weapons, not the ones on the pole. I mean, why would it be worth getting a beer bottle if using a chair is legal? It just makes no sense.

Oh, the Feast or Fired reveal... man that was bad and so predictable. JB really thinks he's Howie Seacrest, if you will, with his poor and sad attempts at turning a wrestling story into a gameshow complete with corny music. And why does he feel the need to repeat everything ten times and drag it out for sooooo long??? Come on, we all knew Hernandez would get the world title shot, Homicide the X-title shot, and Curry Man fired. CM not realizing he was fired fell flat, and I'm sure everyone was just relieved when the segment was over.

And Tenay wondering who Lethal's tag partner will be since he won a tag title shot? Um, he high-fived Creed as soon as he won, and they've been tagging up for weeks. It's pretty obvious.

Those rough cut segments were ill-placed and really took you out of the story. You have Angelina Love and James Storm as their real selves being all nice and totally out of character right before their heel matches or segments. It just made no sense at all.

If there were other matches, which I doubt, I've completely forgotten them. I know there were a lot of backstage interviews, but they were forgettable as well.

So that leaves us with the main event, which was just a boring cluster of punches and slaps. When Bubba went through the bottom of the stage he wasn't really running fast enough for one, and another he stopped short and didn't hit it all that hard. It totally took away from the affect of it to the audience. And the finish was even worse.

So they get counted out, which is just stupid and made the whole match pointless. Then Bubba continues to beat Angle all about the backstage, finally cornering him against a dumpster. Keep in mind the MEM, who were supposed to have left the building, had promised to take one of the Front Line out for good that night. So it's obvious they were going to stick around. But what was so lame was Angle stuck out his hands and told Bubba to wait, that he wasn't with the MEM anymore. Then not two seconds later he smiles as the MEM 'ambushes' Bubba, and Mike Tenay starts screaming how bad the MEM swerved us. Yeah, um, O-Kaaayyy. Because, you know, we're all completely DUMB! And the reason for the quotes around ambushes is because Steiner is the WORST weapon weilder "of all the times" (borrowing a line from Santino there). I could make a pillow look more painful than his shots with a lead pipe, or any weapon for that matter.

And of course Sting walks away again.

It was just soooo lame! And what gets me about the pacing of the program is they used to cram so much into their shows that you couldn't keep track of it all. Now their answer to that seems to be to put as little in as possible and stretch it out with TONS of interview segments. It's just ridiculous and poor management, and poor use of all the great stars they have on that roster. I mean we had all that senseless filler and didn't even see Nash, Booker, Steiner, Sting, AJ, Joe, Rhino, Creed and others in the ring! Pathetic.

TNA will fail and crumble in a very short time if they don't start thinking outside the box. Ten gimmick matches a week is not what's going to change the tide. Doing something creative and unexpected, and (keyword alert!) GOOD is.

B

The End Is Near

2008-12-11T08:21:00.003-05:00

With 2008 nearly at a close I figured I'd make a post. Not that anyone still reads this thing (and I certainly don't blame you!), but I'm trying to get myself psyched to work, and figured I'd work up to it with this.

This past Monday was the 2008 Slammys. They kind of somewhat mocked popular award shows with it this time (or maybe they were actually trying to legitimize them, I don't know), and had it take place during the broadcast as opposed to past years when they were held on a separate night. The winners of each category were boringly predictable, and not all the choices were that great either.

They did build up to Armageddon quite nicely, though, especially with the double main event situations. Edge, HHH and Hardy all ended the show with a typical send off, but it was entertaining to watch. Cena's promised attack on Jericho that never came, however, was lackluster and disappointing. It was instead Jericho who once again took it to Cena, then they disappeared off camera never to be seen again.

Punk vs Morrison and Mysterio vs Kofi were by far the best matches on the card, and were comparable to TNA X Division matches, if a little milder. And the Glamorella vs Finlay and Hornswaggle match was fun.

I was really hoping someone would ring a bell when Miz was slapping around Festus.

Striker and Grisham won best announcing team of 2008? They've only been together, what, for a few months? As the Hurricane used to say, "What's up with that?".

Speaking of the Hurricane, he made his return last Friday to a decent amount of applause, but his performance was very lacking. He grew his hair out again and looked like he did in his WCW days, only he wasn't as toned or proficient. His match with MVP was a mess, as both men kept misstepping.

As for MVP, he should be a top heel by now, and I'm not liking this current storyline at all. Put him and Mr. Kennedy back on the same show and have them feud for several months. They will put on an exciting program together I say.

Over on TNA, tonight will be the fallout of Final Resolution. The Main Event Mafia trumped the Front Line at every turn this past Sunday at the PPV. Angle won over Rhino with the help of Al Snow of all people (what does he have to do with the Main Event Mafia? I know he has history with Mick Foley, but come on! That's a reach to be sure), and Sting retained his title with a low blow from Nash. However, he walked away as the other members celebrated obviously not crazy about how he got the win, leading to his predictable and eventual face turn.

Beer Money Inc. is a good tag team and are fun to watch in my opinion. Them feuding with Morgan and Abyss is okay, but I'd rather see LAX back in the mix, as well as the Motor City Machine Guns.

Speaking of the Guns, I'm just wondering what's going to become of this current storyline. I just hope that somewhere down the line they don't turn it into them breaking up. In my opinion, they are the best tag team today. It should be interesting to see how it all unfolds.

Who Is Suicide? I have no clue. The seated dropkick into the turnbuckle definitely reminded me of Loki/Senshi, but he looked a bit too big to be him.

I will say one thing: TNA needs to bring someone in to teach their people how to do interviews. Some of them are okay, like the Beautiful People, Beer Money Inc, Alex Shelley, and even Abyss at times. But most of them just ramble. Heck, even Rhino and Steiner are incoherent or corny most of the time.

I'd really like to see TNA get some bigger backing and production in the new year and really step up their game. They have it in them to be a legitimate competitor to the WWE, and really it would be in the WWE's best interest for that to happen. During the Monday Night Wars, ratings were higher than ever, and more than just wrestling fans were watching. It became a pop culture phenomenon, and everyone was watching and talking about it. WWE needs that strong competition to get that kind of following, and to think anything less is a mistake on their part.

If Vince McMahon had been smart and not petty when he purchased WCW, he would have handled the invasion completely differently. First off, he should have negotiated for Sting, Goldberg, Nash and Steiner to get out of their exclusive contracts and bring them on TV at least a couple of months after the invasion started, and not a year later (though Sting would probably have still turned them down). And they should have kept a WCW program on the air, or brought it back on the air at a later date. They should have had WCW put up a much stronger fight, and just handled it much differently. But sadly all they had was Booker T and a bunch of young guys who couldn't hold a candle to the roster of WWE stars at the time. So they had to put Stone Cold and Angle and so forth onto the Alliance, and mix in ECW with them to make it work.

Man, they failed on so many things. For me, there were two excellent happenings in the Invasion storyline. The first was when Booker T came out of the crowd and axe kicked Austin, which kickstarted the feud. And the second was when ECW reformed during a WWE vs WCW match (Kane and Jericho vs Mike Awesome and Lance Storm). At this point Raven, the Dudleys, Rhyno, Tazz and Justin Credible were WWE (or F) superstars, and so they came in supposedly to defend Kane and Jericho after RVD and Dreamer had interfered. Then they turn around and face Jericho and Kane and all of them attack. Awesome and Storm defect to ECW and Paul Heyman comes out.

Had Vince capitalized on moments like that and handled it right we could still be seeing great feuding shows today. Oh well. Hopefully TNA will get there eventually and not be bought out by Vince, who will just bury them and go back to boring and predictable programming.

Not So Bright Future

2008-10-18T04:20:00.002-04:00

What seemed to be a great idea at the time, and what was originally a consistently updated blog just now seems like a wasted effort. I barely even post here anymore, and when I do I no longer have anything important to say.

Part of that reason is because of time, but the real reason is because wrestling just isn't as entertaining as it used to be. I still watch WWE and TNA when I can, which is usually days after they air on video tape (yep, I'm still using that archaic method of recording). I never watch ECW, and I don't get the new channel Smackdown is on, so all I have is Raw (which comes on opposite Heroes, so I miss it most of the time) and Impact (which comes on opposite of Supernatural, so I catch the replay on the weekend).

Wrestling in general has become stale. WWE is using their same tired storylines with the same outcomes week after week, and nothing original ever happens anymore. The superstars of the future (Mr. Kennedy, Carlito, MVP, et al) are buried while guys like HBK and HHH take the spotlight, which spells a dim future for the brand.

Over in TNA, they are seemingly trying to revive the old WCW feud that killed that brand, the Old School guys versus the New Blood. Anyone remember that? Kidman and Hogan on opposing sides? Yeah, so fill in Sting and Samoa Joe, or Sting and AJ Styles and you've got the same thing. I can hear the chants now... "FIRE RUSSO! FIRE RUSSO!".

I merely watch out of habit anymore. Sure, there are some really good matches on occasion, but more times than not I'm fast forwarding through the bulk of the broadcasts, and I never get the pay-per-views anymore.

Wrestling needs new life breathed into it. Until then, I can't bring myself to faithfully track it, much less write about it.

So I guess this is the official announcement of hiatus for this blog. Like it wasn't evident already, right?

Somebody wake me up when wrestling gets good again.

Out

Dualing Main Events

2008-08-23T12:33:00.003-04:00

Why?

Why are they doing it again?

Did they not learn anything from the dual Elimination Chambers?

In case you're wondering, and maybe if you missed Smackdown last night, I'm referring to now both Raw and Smackdown having a Championship Scramble match at Unforgiven.

First of all, from what I've been reading, people aren't too inspired with the Scramble to begin with, let alone two of them. And innovative? Please. They did the same thing with the Hardcore title several years ago. It's hardly anything new. And the pains it takes to explain the match is nearly as bad as sitting through the explanation of the TNA reverse battle royal scenario, where everyone who's not familiar with the match is completely confused by the end of it.

That aside, though, why have two? Does their writing department really lack that much creativity that they couldn't come up with something different for Smackdown?

Scratch that, I just answered my own question.

Come on, WWE, say what you will about TNA and nearly EVERY match being a stipulation or specialty match, but at least they are pretty creative with them. WWE, you can't even come up with two different ideas at once, so you have to use the same one twice... in the SAME NIGHT! Sigh.

Please, WWE, hire me to write for you. I'll do it, and I'll do it well. I get that you now have big time actor Freddie Prinze Jr. on your writing staff (where did that come from, really? I like the guy, but that was out of left field), but I can do a good job, and I certainly won't have you doing the same exact main events for both of your top 'brands' on the same night! Please, I'm beggin' ya.

ECW: New Talent Initiative

2008-08-21T06:47:00.002-04:00

Ok, first of all, this is a good idea. I like that WWE is using ECW to gauge fan response and interest of new talents, and to get them "wet" in the WWE pool as it were. It's a good idea, and it's worked for the likes of CM Punk at the least.

However, there are a few problems with how they handle it. First, those cheesy promos right before the bell rings echoes back to the days of Superstars on Saturday mornings in the late '80s/early '90s. I don't know why they even bother as no one cares.

Second, they don't give these guys enough air time and then expect them to build an audience overnight. Yes, Colin Delaney, for whatever reason, got the chance of a lifetime, but then was cast away. But Chris Harris had, what, three appearances? And then he was cut. Granted, I never liked Chris Harris in TNA or as his lame ECW character, but still.

I also question the guys they do bring in. Evan Borne is good, I like him. But other choices... not so much.

Which brings me to Ricky Ortiz. I just don't get the appeal personally. From what I've seen so far he's just an average talent, and his persona is more annoying than entertaining. What I will say, though, is on some levels he reminds me of The Rock's early days in the WWE as Rocky Maivia, so maybe there is potential in the kid. I guess we'll have to wait and see, if he survives the cuts that long.

So all in all, the initiative is a good thing, but it's so flawed at present I don't know how good it will end up being in the long run.

Copying or Showing How it's Done?

2008-08-21T06:31:00.002-04:00

Is it just me, or has WWE recently duplicated TNA in a couple of instances? But I guess the true question is if they really are copying TNA, or if they're simply attempting to show TNA how it's done?

The obvious example is the altercation with Chris Jericho and Shawn Michaels' wife, which is very similar to the Robert Roode/Booker T's wife angle not too long ago in TNA. Both involved inadvertent hits to the jaw of the wife by the heels in the scenarios.

The thing is, though, that even though my first reaction to the WWE version was "here we go again", I have to admit they carried it out much better. The feud between HBK and Jericho has been building for quite some time and at a steady pace, so a turn like this, especially with HBK's supposed retirement, just adds to the drama. Whereas in TNA, there was no significant feud, just an angry Roode at another superstar coming in to knock him down on the totem pole. There was no big build up prior to the punch, just a small one. And because Roode wasn't yet a major singles player it didn't quite hold the weight of WWE's version.

So in that regard, maybe WWE was just trying to improve on a promising angle. But it still comes far too soon after TNA's to be a coincidence.

There was another recent example I had in mind, but it was a minor one, and it has eluded my thoughts this morning.

To close, I still don't think WWE views TNA as a competitor, but I do think they are subtly doing what they can to keep it that way, such as the above example. And with the way TNA has handled this whole Sting/Jarrett angle of late, the WWE may just succeed.

Summerslam

2008-08-16T12:24:00.002-04:00

Man, two and a half months since my last post. Honestly, wrestling hasn't been interesting enough to keep me talking. That and I've been busy.

Summerslam does not look too promising. Only two matches on the card are even remotely intriguing (Jeff Hardy vs. MVP and Taker vs. Edge). The rest of the matches are uninspired and boring.

MVP is one of the true up and coming future big stars in my opinion along with Mr. Kennedy. And Jeff Hardy is great in PPV situations. So these two should put on a pretty good show. My prediction is MVP.

Taker and Edge in the Cell is a culmination of a long feud, which is always good. And Edge is one of the best in the business, love him or hate him. Taker is also one of the best, and these two should put on one heck of a main event.

Cena/Batista does not appeal too much. Two big, strong guys battling it out. It'll get boring fast. I predict Batista.

Matt Hardy vs Mark Henry is just a monumental mismatch. Either Henry comes out looking like a joke, or Hardy comes out a loser again. It's a lose/lose situation.

HHH/Khali? Please, what a joke.

Mixed tag match... the only entertaining thing about it is Kofi's talents.

And finally, HBK's announcement? Will he retire? Not likely.

So yeah, not too much to write home about. We'll see...

All About the Mon-Ney

2008-06-03T21:13:00.002-04:00

So, Vince McMahon is now giving away a million dollars. All the details came out today, indicating that there would actually be eight separate winners, with the total amounts equaling one million dollars, as so:

* You can enter the contest at WWE.com at this link.

* The Official Contest Rules can be viewed this link.

* From Section 6 of the contest rules, here are the cash amounts that WWE will be giving away over the next 8 weeks:

- ONE (1) GRAND PRIZE: Two-hundred fifty thousand dollars ($250,000 USD) to be awarded in the form of a check.

- TWO (2) FIRST PRIZES: Each consisting of two-hundred thousand dollars ($200,000 USD) to be awarded in the form of a check.

- ONE (1) SECOND PRIZE: One-hundred twenty five thousand dollars ($125,000 USD) to be awarded in the form of a check.

- ONE (1) THIRD PRIZE: Ninety-eight thousand dollars ($98,000 USD) to be awarded in the form of a check.

- ONE (1) FOURTH PRIZE: Seventy-five thousand dollars ($75,000 USD) to be awarded in the form of a check. ONE (1) FIFTH PRIZE: Fifty-one thousand nine hundred ninety-eight dollars ($51,998 USD) to be awarded in the form of a check.

- ONE (1) SIXTH PRIZE: Two dollars ($2.00 USD) to be awarded in the form of a check.

So, that's eight weeks of prizes, and one week somebody's only getting two bucks! But the rest of the winners will get some nice sums... at least before taxes. After taxes, there won't be much left to write home about I'm sure.

It's a promotional ploy, of course, and everyone knows a million dollars to McMahon is like ten bucks to you and I. It's intriguing, and yes, I've signed up for it and entered twice (yesterday and today) and will continue to do so, even though I'm well aware my chances of being called are one in a billion. But hey, I can dream can't I? My luck, I'll get the $2 check if I'm called.

But I have to say, wouldn't it be better to just improve the storylines and give more action than trying to bribe viewers? And will more people really tune in for this, or will those watching it just keep it on longer instead of switching channels? I guess the ratings will show in the end.

I watch it every week regardless, though, as I mentioned before, things have declined since Wrestlemania. And with Orton injured, Taker gone for several months, and Batista begging for time off, things don't look good for the short term. I sincerely hope the upcoming draft does something positive to shake things up. Because right now things are dull and ordinary. And while the prospect of winning thousands of dollars does sound awfully nice, throwing money at a lack of entertainment quality is not going to solve the problem for longer than 8 weeks.

Boredom Reigns

2008-05-28T16:37:00.001-04:00

If not evidenced by my lack of posting, then let me state emphatically that I have been rather bored with programming of late. Granted, a large reason behind my not posting is because of out of town trips, both personal and professional, a death in the family, and being swamped with work. But truth be told, I just haven't had anything interesting to say about wrestling of late.

While TNA has slowed their pacing down, and is really trying to do something special, they still fall into the same cliches that have riddled wrestling for years. TNA feels very much like WCW, post NWO, and given the history, that's not a good thing. They have top tier talent that they seemingly don't know what to do with. And if Angle is booking his own stuff like he claims in a myriad of interviews, then they need to go a different direction. While seeing Angle vs Joe is always exciting, there are too many up and comers that would put on incredible programs with the Gold Medalist to cut the title picture off at three or four guys. It's backwards thinking, and if it continues they will fold within a couple of years.

As for WWE, well, I'm sincerely hoping the draft mixes things up a bit. I mean, every pay-per-view these days features stars from all brands, and most programming features at least one star from another brand, so I'm not sure how a draft is really going to change things. But maybe it will do something, anything to liven things up. I am glad to see Regal get booted as GM and I hope somebody fresh gets that spot. If Vickie remains GM of Smackdown I certainly wouldn't mind Long coming to Raw. Though personally, seeing Flair take that role would be a nice way for things to play out.

But the match ups lately have been pretty lackluster. ECW is still sporting some great athletes in Benjamin, Kingston, and Burke, but Miz, Morrison and Punk, rightfully so, get the spotlight on other brands as well as on ECW. Smackdown just seems lost these days. You have Edge and Undertaker, and occasionally Batista, and everything else is in disarray. And then Raw is all Orton, HHH, Cena and JBL, with a little Jericho and HBK thrown in the mix. But by and large, things have simmered down exponentially since Wrestlemania. It saddens me that the WWE didn't capitalize on their brilliant build up to that event and the event itself by instead allowing things to return to the mediocre status quo.

Hopefully this is just a lull in the business and things will light up once again going into the summer. Only time will tell.

Absentee

2008-04-23T09:39:00.002-04:00

Sorry, folks, I know I've been MIA for weeks. I've just been busy and not online more than I had to be. Plus I haven't been feeling well the past few days.

I'm not going to promise to try to post more frequently. I'd love to say I'll post every day, but the truth is I'm still usually a couple of days behind on all the shows and so forth, and so I avoid news sites, so I don't have a whole lot to talk about save opinions on general topics. And I haven't had time to properly research or properly postulate on any of those kinds of topics here of late. I'd say posting a couple of times a week is probably more likely right now, but I'll try to at least give you something worth reading if you'll hang with me for a bit.

Just touching on a few things in recent memory though...

Raw - While the Hilary/Obama match was cheesy, I thought it was cool all the candidates actually spoke to the fans and used wrestling lingo to do it. That was nicely done.

The King of the Ring tournament used to mean something, but now it's reduced to a Raw sideshow. That's sad seeing as how once upon a time the winner of the tournament had the same stroke at Summerslam as the winner of the Royal Rumble had at Wrestlemania, meaning they'd get a title shot at SS.

That said, I was surprised, but pleasantly, that Regal took the whole thing. It totally fits in his character, will make him even more impossible to live with, and frankly, him getting back in the ring has made him more interesting. He's not the greatest orator when it comes to announcing the card as GM, though backstage he's great. Oddly, I was never a fan of him in the ring, but over the past couple of years he's really grown on me.

Most of the KOR matches were pretty good in my opinion, as was the main event for this week. Great finish to that match. And even the womens' confrontation was far more interesting than most (ALL) WWE womens' matches in recent memory.

Smackdown - I don't know why, but this show just aggravates me. It has more and better overall action most of the time, but it feels very second rate in production values. Plus since it's pre-taped it doesn't have the same on screen quality. It looks great when they recap it on Raw, but terrible on CW. I hope that changes on MyNetworkTV, that is, if I even get that station in my area when it moves.

Aside from appearances, they still have some hot talent over there, and the booking is still pretty decent. Show knocking out Khali was cool, the climaxing heat between Hardy and MVP is well done, the whole Edge/Taker feud with Batista thrown in is cool, the tag team scene is okay, etc.

ECW - Why, oh, why did they put Mike Adamle in that chair??? I don't mind Styles moving on to WWE.com IF that's what he wanted and it's a better opportunity for him. But at least get someone with some skills, or at least the most basic of wrestling knowledge, to take his place. Adamle may be a fan, but he was terrible as an interviewer and general commentator, and he's just dead air and missteps as a play-by-play guy. I mean Taz is doing the pbp while Adamle attempts to add something to it, which is just awkward. Why, WWE, why?!

Kofi is awesome, and his match with Benjamin was great. More of that, please.

The tag team scene from SD spreads over here, and that's cool.

Not much else going on there. Kane/Chavo, eh.

Impact - They seem to be keeping the slowed down pace, but last week's show fell apart a little bit. I think they started to get a bit overwhelmed, and they tried some things that didn't work (did you hear how dead the crowd was during Matt Morgan's tirade?). And where did Sting vs Booker T come from? Great matchup for this week, as is Joe/Angle (though that whole exchange was incredibly clumsy), but it just didn't make sense. I hope this doesn't signal a heel turn for Booker...

UFC - First, Matt Serra gets dominated by GSP. Man, I was actually pulling for Serra, but GSP is truly on top of his game. I think in their first fight two things happened. One, GSP was not his usual self, and two, he grossly underestimated Serra, as did everyone else including Dana White. This time, I think Serra was a bit too cocky and underestimated GSP. GSP just schooled him and confused him, and wore him out. I would love to see these guys have a rubber match when both of them are at the top of their games. Let's also remember Serra is just coming back off an injury as well. No excuses, though, he got whipped.

Ultimate Fighter is coming along nicely. I like the way they made the contenders fight their way onto the show this time as that quickly eliminated anyone who wasn't cut out for this... in theory. Only time will tell. Too early to call any predictions, but I'll be watching.

And that's it for now. More later this week, hopefully.

Impact 4-3-08

2008-04-04T17:37:00.002-04:00

Last night's Impact was pretty solid. I liked the whole swerve with the Lethal Lockdown match and Matt Morgan's involvement. It was a little predictable, but still intriguing. With his size and power, that just upped the advantage Team Cage has exponentially.

The Super Eric angle is still working, though that whole "Monsters of Rock" segment was a complete T-R-A-I-N W-R-E-C-K!!! I really hate that whole Rock 'N' Rave/Guitar Hero thing they got going on, with a passion. Not hate as in they're great heels I love to boo, but hate as in I would like to never see them on TV again.

The TNA Knock Outs are the best female wrestlers out there, and the whole brawl was fun to watch. Then Sharmelle coming out there and getting involved, then telling Booker where she stands was a nice progression in that angle.

Speaking of "Angle", I must have missed it, but did he ever come out and say what he was going to do to make sure Samoa Joe kept his word? I saw him in the back talking to Jeremy and EY, but then not again for the rest of the show.

Elix Skipper? I thought he was gone. Of course it seems he was just there to job, but still.

Oh wait, I do remember the Angle interview now only because Steiner interrupted, and as usual, left me a bit confused for a moment. But it was still a decent progression in both storylines.

The rough cuts with BG and Kip are still going strong, and they feel like they're coming to a head now.

I didn't care at all for the interview with Kong though as it was completely pointless and a waste of time. Equally un-entertaining was the promo for the Consequences kid (can't remember his name, but I wasn't impressed).

All in all, though, I have to say that they kept the proper pace intact again this week, and didn't take two steps back as many feared they might. They held their ground and gave just enough time to the most important segments for this week, and let some just kind of simmer off camera. Nice work, TNA. Not your best show, and not without its missteps, but definitely a step in the right direction.

Nattie Neidhardt On Smackdown Tonight

2008-04-04T17:36:00.001-04:00

According to SE Scoops, the daughter of the "Anvil" Jim Neidhardt (sp?) will debut on Smackdown tonight. I don't know what capacity, but I know she's been training with the Florida based developmental company for a while.

Flair's Final Farewell

2008-04-01T08:29:00.002-04:00

I've read several accounts of last night's Raw where most state they can't remember what happened on the show before those last 20 minutes, and I can understand why. They also state that those last 20 minutes caused their rating of the show to rise exponentially, and again, I understand. Because in those last 20 minutes we saw history made, and a true legend of the ring honored like no other.

Before getting into that, though, I do want to talk about the rest of the show, even though, I admit, I had to think really hard to refresh my own memory with what occured prior.

This night was all about one man, and I thought that sentiment was well preserved throughout. Having said that, I thought the false openings with Cena and Triple H's respective music was clever and totally in character for Orton. I also thought his confrontation with JBL and tussel with Matt Hardy were very well done. I, unlike most, don't mind Orton as champ. He's a perfect heel, and people truly hate him. His father must be extremely proud, and I mean that sincerely. Randy has surpassed what the "Cowboy" could have ever hoped to do, and I'm sure ol' Bob lights up every time he talks about the "Legend Killer".

Wow, we got not one, but TWO tag matches, and saw the return of Cryme Time (which I love) and saw London and Kendrick reunited (which was also very cool - thank you, WWE, maybe you're finally listening - unless you do something stupid and split them up in the rumored draft later this month...).

Jericho and Punk put on a good match, though I do agree that Jericho has lost some of his shine since returning.

Orton and Hardy put on a great match, and I'm not even mad about the way it ended.

I won't even mention the mixed gender match...

Now, what we all tuned in for, the final farewell of one "Nature Boy", the incomparable Ric Flair.

It was obvious there was more to it than Flair's initial speech, but I honestly don't think Flair knew exactly what was coming. He had told reporters that they had something planned for Raw, but nobody would tell him. And there was genuine surprise on his face, and of course, real tears flowed down it as every wrestler in the building poured into the arena.

It was great to see the Horsemen and Steamboat come out, as well as all the other superstars of yesterday and today. I, like many, would have loved to have seen Sting come out, as well as Hogan, Piper and even Luger. And it woudl even be nice if TNA's website at least had a tribute or a message of thanks to Flair instead of capitalizing so much on WWE being in their neighborhood to drum up business for themselves. But it was very classy for all the superstars, Orton and Edge included, to break kayfabe and come out and join in the chants of "Thank you, Ric!".

I understand that after Raw went off the air, Vince McMahon came down and held Flair's hand up on both sides of the ring, and the Undertaker came down to his full entrance as the wrestlers parted, then he entered the ring and bowed to Flair before embracing him. Very classy all the way around.

There couldn't have been a better send off for the Naitch with the Hall of Fame, Wrestlemania, and then the final send off on Raw. I so wish I could have been there live in person in Orlando this past weekend and seen these events unfold. It was truly a memorable moment in the history of wrestling, and will forever go down as one of the greatest moments of all time.

I hope we do get to see Flair involved, on camera, in some capacity in the near future, but it will still never be the same. Flair is the legend of wrestling, and we'll miss him. Thank you, Ric.

Still the Man

2008-03-31T11:08:00.002-04:00

Thirty-Five years ago, before I was even a thought in my mother's mind, a legendary career began. Through over three decades, that career became synonymous with wrestling and cemented the man whose career it was in the annals of wrestling history as the greatest of all time, hands down. That man, of course, is Ric Flair.

To true wrestling fans, Ric Flair has been "The Man" since the day he laced up boots, but to the casual fans abroad his star has only shone for the past 15 years or so when WCW went head to head with the WWE. While the rest of us had watched Flair in the days of the AWA and NWA, and some of us even longer than that, the world got to know Ric Flair better in 1992 when he first debuted in the WWE. It was a treat for fans and non-fans alike to finally see Ric Flair on the grandest stage of them all, at Wrestlemania fighting Randy Savage. And to see him feuding with the likes of Hulk Hogan and other greats we never thought we'd see him face.

But for me, Ric Flair was a superstar far before that first WWE stint. My fondest memories of Flair are his feuds with Ricky the Dragon Steamboat and the man called Sting. In those days, Flair was at his best, with his Horsemen by his side. They personified wrestling. One can't forget the legendary battles with Dusty Rhodes either, and the classic matches had back in the 80s.

But I'll never forget the three fall match with Ricky Steamboat at Clash of the Champions in the late 80s that went an hour long, and showed Flair at his absolute best. Or in '86 when a newcomer, Sting, would take Flair to the distance for 45 minutes, thus beginning a decade and a half rivalry/partnership between the two mega stars.

Ric Flair never had a thousand moves he would utilize, nor did he ever fly off the top of a cage, or launch himself from a ladder. He wasn't known for taking huge risks and exciting the crowd with stunts and death-defying maneuvers. But he didn't have to. His tools were far more effective, and he utilized them well. He was and is the absolute showman. He's flamboyant, bold, blunt and arrogant. He can incite a riot, or bring the house down with cheers and chants of "Whooooo".

While watching today's stars takes excitement to another level, what many of them lack Flair had in spades - ring psychology. Every single move or gesture Flair ever made in a ring had a purpose, had some element of the story he was telling in it. From every strut, to every arm lock, to every knee drop, every single thing Flair did told a story, and told it eloquently and perfectly.

Students of the game would be hard pressed to find a better all around wrestler in terms of one containing the charisma, the personality, the in ring skills and the ring psychology all in one. The likes of Bret Hart, Shawn Michaels, Triple H, and other such stars of recent memory have this, but most don't. Even Randy Orton illustrates these traits. And one thing all these and all the others have in common is that they learned it all from watching wrestlers like Ric Flair.

Many years from now, when talk about the legends of wrestling, some names can't be escaped. Hulk Hogan, The Rock, Stone Cold Steve Austin, Macho Man Randy Savage, Sting, Bret Hart, and so on and so forth. These men are legends, and their personalities and skills propelled them into the history books. But before all these was Ric Flair, the ultimate showman. Whether his rants inspired, enticed, or made one laugh at his insanity, Flair always has and always will be able to get the crowd in a ruckus. And that is the true mark of a great entertainer.

Watching Ric Flair on stage during the Hall of Fame ceremonies this year, one couldn't help but get emotional. These men and women may be performers, and put on shows with predetermined endings. But their passion, their desire, and their sacrifices are very real. And Ric Flair was real and genuine on that stage, speaking about his family, his peers and his fans. It was an emotional evening, and my respect for Flair climbed even higher if that's possible. He's human and flawed, but he recognizes that, and that makes all the difference.

From rumors and spoilers, and talk amongst fans, it was pretty clear that Wrestlemania 24, vs Shawn Michaels, would be Flair's last match. He would lose and retire, and never lace up the boots again, unlike many of his contemporaries that have "retired". Flair stated he may come back as a manager or in some other capacity, but for the first time in 35 years, wrestling won't have Flair in the ring competing.

Even knowing the outcome, though, it was hard not to root for Flair to somehow pull one out and surprise us all. One more year would be so nice, to see Flair at Wrestlemania 25. But it was not to be. This was the end of the road for Flair, and he gave it his all to entertain us to the best of his ability at this stage in his career and life. For that I commend you, Nature Boy.

Many times has Ric Flair walked that aisle, stylin' and profilin', and many times has he said that famous phrase, "To be the man, you've got to beat the man". Flair has been beaten in the ring many times over, and he's been beaten 16 times for the world title. He's been beaten by Hulk Hogan, Sting, The Undertaker, Shawn Michaels, Bret Hart, Curt Hennig, and so many other greats.

But the thing about that statement, that catch phrase, is that it goes beyond the mat. It goes beyond pinfalls or submissions. It goes to the heart of the performer, and the overall presentation of their personas. And in that, no one has ever beaten Ric Flair, and most likely no one ever will. There is no one like Ric Flair.

Mr. Flair, you are the man. I applaud you, and I thank you. God bless.

Smackdown vs Raw 2009

2008-03-28T12:52:00.002-04:00

SE Scoops has video, screen shots and info on the latest installment in the franchise (click this post's title to find the article), and I just had to point out two new features. One is very intriguing, the other is very confusing, but cool.

The intriguing one is the new Create-A-Finisher, where users will have over 500 animations to choose from to create their own unique finishing move. Now, first off this reminds me a bit of the Create-A-Taunt they had a few installments back, which was okay, but confusing and very time consuming. Hopefully this will be a lot smoother. Because how cool would it be to create the Canadian Destroyer or some other cool move they don't typically have?!

The confusing, but cool one is... wait for it... a focus on TAG TEAM WRESTLING, both in and out of the Road to Wrestlemania mode. Wait, what?

Ok, so you've all read my mini rants on WWE's lack of respect or interest in tag team wrestling, so it's beyond a little odd and ironic that the next installment of their game franchise is making a point to focus on tag team wrestling. Maybe the peeps at THQ want tag team wrestling back as much as we do? Who knows, but it struck me as odd to say the least.

That said, it is very cool that there will be tag angles in the story mode. I hope this means we'll be able to have a 2 player story mode as that would be the perfect avenue for it. I'm not holding my breath, but I am crossing my fingers.

TNA Impact 3-27-08

2008-03-28T12:36:00.003-04:00

According to one person, well over 2000 people were lined up to fill the 900 capacity Impact Zone before last night's live taping. Unfortunately, according to another article, TNA admitted 700 VIPs first, and only 200 actual fans, so there were a lot of ANGRY fans that waited for hours for the FREE show only to be turned away. Yeah, that wasn't such a great strategy.

Not to mention that the TNA website crashed shortly after the broadcast began due to people presumedly trying to vote for the women's title and Booker/Roode matches, and it stayed down for most of the first hour.

Then, of course, there were the many technical difficulties that occurred that you'd think TNA would have tested ahead of time.

As for the broadcast itself, it was ok. I was glad they limited the amount of angles and wrestlers they used, but I was a little disappointed there wasn't more of an X division presence. TNA seems to forget what made them what they are today.

Aside from that, everything was handled pretty nicely I thought. The matches went well, the backstage segments and so forth went smoothly and so forth. I definitely like the look of the product much better live. When wrestling shows are taped there's a certain glaze, for lack of a better time, over the video. I don't know the technical terms, but everything seems much more crisp and clear when it's live.

I thought being their first live televised event all the wrestlers did very well. There were few missteps and no big hitches in the show. So despite technical difficulties and poor planning for attendance and other things, it was a promising first live broadcast.

As for the way things progressed story wise, I though the build up to both the Angle/Joe match and the Lethal Lockdown match were very well done. I didn't care for Styles running around like a scared dog from Angle, but it still played out ok. And Sting's entrance was definitely a highlight, as was his involvement in the main event.

I don't understand why James Storm was involved at the end, or why he attacked Sting instead of, hmm, say, Rhino maybe? That was a little bit odd. So what, is it now going to be 5 man teams? And if so, who will team Cage get now?

So like I said, it was a decent show all things considered. They've had better shows, but they've certainly had worse.

Impact LIVE Tonight!

2008-03-27T10:38:00.002-04:00

Very clever of TNA to do a live event while the WWE fans are in town for Wrestlemania. Might have been even smarter for them to try to get a larger venue for the night to house more fans, but you can't think of everything...

A column on 1Wrestling.com yesterday talked about how 7 years ago yesterday was the last episode of WCW Nitro, which was the last live non-WWE broadcast since. Tonight, coincidentally (or not) is the first live non-WWE wrestling broadcast since, and even more coincidentally (or not, again) is that Sting, who was on that last Nitro, will be on this first live TNA broadcast. Pretty cool, huh? I thought so.

I just hope TNA plays things cool and doesn't try to do too much. If they mess this up it's not going to look too good.

But I am looking forward to watching TNA live for the first time, and I hope they step up their game and don't look like amateur hour next to this weekend's Wrestelmania.

Which now makes me wonder... will we be hearing any T-N-A chants at the Granddaddy of Them All? Hmm...

Kurt Angle vs Randy Couture

2008-03-26T15:56:00.003-04:00

According to SE Scoops, this actually might be a reality. Kurt Angle, who has been interested in MMA for a while, vs "The Natural" Randy Couture, former multiple UFC champion. Personally, while Angle is a great athlete and an outstanding wrestler, I think Couture would kill him out there. I don't know how wise it is for Angle to do this at this point in his career.

Angle also notes on the site that he and Samoa Joe are doing an MMA style match at Lockdown, even losing the boots and wearing gloves, and says that TNA is going to start doing more of this? Um, ok...

ECW 3-25-08

2008-03-25T22:26:00.003-04:00

Strong opening for the last ECW before Wrestlemania as the 24 participants in the ECW #1 contender battle royal face each other in a huge 12-on-12 tag team match! I think that's the biggest tag match since the tag team survivors match at the first Survivor Series!

The match was crazy, of course, with lots of finishes and chaos. Though it's Snitsky that comes off with the pin? Ok. Then all 24 just stand around staring at each other, taking a page from Raw's Money in the Bank guys. Yeah, that works. Sigh. Still, a decent match.

Then Tommy Dreamer, Colin Delaney and Chavo Guerrero have a very awkward segment backstage as Dreamer challenges Chavo for a non-title match.

Next up is another MitB preview match between Carlito and Shelton Benjamin. Though in my mind, it should have been Benjamin vs. Morrison. We saw MVP, Carlito, Punk and Jericho in a tag match, then Kennedy on the screen, so Morrison is the only one we didn't get to see that's involved in the match.

That said, Carlito and Benjamin put on a great match, and it's a shame the crowd wasn't into it as much as they should have been for most of the match. They didn't seem to wake up until towards the end of the match.

Well what do you know? Gordon Solie is the final inductee into the 2008 Hall of Fame. Very classy - no better announcer to receive this honor. Congratulations, and rest in peace, Dean!

And we follow that up with Stevie Richards and Kelly Kelly vs Mike Knox (sp?) and Layla. Interesting matchup here because of the multiple histories involved. Kelly and Knox were an "item" when they both debuted. Layla and Kelly have their history from their Miz stint. And of course, Richards and Knox have been feuding for a few weeks now, if you can call it that. So this is at least an interesting match that plays to storylines we've seen in the past.

The match itself was decent with a good ending that will certainly lead to future altercations.

Then we have Dreamer vs Chavo as the program runs long. And surrounding the ring are the 24 battle royal participants (well, 23 more accurately since Dreamer is in the match). So it was an ok match, though Dreamer catching Chavo's frog splash was so obvious. But I did like how everybody spilled into the ring and started attacking Chavo afterards. Nice lead in to Sunday.

Raw 3-24-08

2008-03-25T09:15:00.002-04:00

Strong opening for Raw last night with Cena coming out and getting the crowd hyped, when he's joined by the Big Show, JBL, Randy Orton, Umaga and Triple H all claiming to be the main attractions for Wrestlemania. This also gave us a few humorous moments. Then Regal announces the 8 man tag Wrestlemania showcase. And that was a pretty good main event for the last Raw before WM.

Jericho and CM Punk vs MVP and Carlito was an ok match. It was also a preview of sorts of the Money in the Bank match. I like how Jericho accidentally nailed Punk and cost them the win, though it did seem a bit odd that there were no altercations afterwards.

Then Kennedy does the taped promo, which was kind of lame and obviously just space filler.

We then got treated to a wonderful video package highlighting the career of Ric Flair. It's obvious this will be one huge match for Flair at Wrestlemania. If it is his last match, I still wish it could be against Sting as there is just so much history there, or Steamboat. But HBK is a great icon for Flair to go out to.

Then we get... The Great Khali vs Hardcore Holly? I guess they're both in the ECW battle royal? I know Khali is, but wasn't sure about Holly. Still, it's kind of an odd match to have. Anyway, is anyone else impressed with Khali's growth (no pun intended) as a performer? I mean he hasn't become some great wrestler, but there are subtle things that indicate he's learned a thing or two, at least to my eye.

The Flair/HBK confrontation was as good as it could possibly have been. Flair once again channeled his former self and laid it all out there. And finally we saw the HBK of old with mutual respect thrown out the window, and egos in check. It was a very nice lead in to their match, and I sincerely think they could steal the show.

Another package airs after the break, this time of the Big Show on Conan O'Brien, and some other Mayweather highlights. Decent.

Maria vs Melina was lame at first. But man, when I said Torrie Wilson I completely forgot about Ashley in my last Raw post. Duh. Of course she'd be the one to replace Candice. Anyway, all broke loose, Santino came in, and Lawler joined the fray. You just knew we were about to see a 6 person tag match, and we did. And Santino pinned Maria. So this is sure to now involve the King in a Wrestlemania match in some fashion (and what better match for Lawler than a Playboy Bunny match?).

Cena and HHH had a really good face off back stage with some powerful statements, which led to the heat in the main event later in the evening.

John Legend does a promo - he's singing "America the Beautiful" at WM.

The last Hall of Fame inductee is to be named tonight on ECW, then the HoM ceremoney is on USA Saturday night. at 11pm. I'm eager to find out who the last inductee is.

And finally the main event. HBK starts the match and pretty much gets beat the entire match by Big Show, Umaga, Orton and JBL. Then it got crazy, which was kind of cool. Finlay comes down, so he and JBL fight out of the arena. Then Batista comes down and he and Umaga fight out of the arena. So it's just Orton and Show against Triple H, Cena, Flair and the beaten down HBK. Orton keeps shouting orders to Show and he is visibly upset about it. So while the two argue, HBK makes the tag and both Cena and HHH come in, but Show takes them down and then Flair as well before tossing Orton in and walking out leaving Orton to face four men alone. Fortunately for Orton, Cena and HHH go at it and fight out of the arena, then Flair and HBK go at it. But Orton then gets schooled by the Nature Boy, who then stands tall and alone in the middle of the ring as Raw goes off the air.

If this indeed Flair's last match Sunday, Raw did a great job in sending him off in what would be his last match on Raw. Bravo.

Impact 3-20-08

2008-03-24T08:53:00.002-04:00

In case anyone was wondering, I had a nice birthday and Easter weekend. Thanks for asking! :)

Now, onto TNA, which I watched Sunday morning as it were.

This will be a relatively short recap since I'm so late in posting about it. Basically, it was a decent show, but not as good as the past two weeks. They have started to go back to forcing things and putting too much into it, and I wish they would learn their lesson. They have two good weeks that spark hope in we, the fans. Then it's back to the same old stuff. Sigh.

The whole angle with Booker and Roode is a good one, and this new spin with Sharmelle was a nice surprise. It really adds to the tension of the situation. Nicely done. And Booker's match later in the broadcast with AJ Styles was a great match by both athletes.

The Eric Young story works, and it was nicely played also. Though the Steiner/Williams angle is a little boring only because Big Poppa Pump is a terrible speaker and he ruins it most of the time. They should let Petey do all the talking. I did think it was clever to combine these two angles to ensure they both got TV time. That was nice.

The Rhino/Christian thing got resolved far too quickly. If they had to have it resolved this week, then they should have started the road to healing sooner. It just felt forced. As did Sting's involvement. I mean what the heck? The only connection I can make is that when Sting walked out once he told Christian, who was still a face at the time, that he loved him like a brother (despite them only knowing each other for what, a few weeks?). Aside from that, I can't understand why Sting would come to the rescue of Christian and Kevin Nash. Just doesn't make sense. Oh well.

I am still enjoying the Rough Cut segments with BG and Kip. This is probably the best way to play these guys right now, and I do commend TNA for that approach. It's unique and hopefully will build some interest in them.

The Sonjay/Val/Lethal segment was very forced this week and basically crammed in.

Women's match was decent even though there were a few missteps.

Karen Angle walking out when AJ lost was intriguing.

Angle mixing it up and going almost MMA on four opponents was entertaining as well. Though I don't understand why all of them had to be ethnic. Doesn't that send some kind of negative message to someone out there? I would like to hope not, but in the world we live in everything is offensive to someone.

So those are the highlights more or less. What did you think?

Smackdown 3-21-08

2008-03-23T06:59:00.003-04:00

Being my birthday Friday, I taped Smackdown and didn't watch it until last night, so now that I've had a chance to watch it, my thoughts.

First, I'm really disappointed about the lack of content on the show this week. Where I taped it, I was able to fast forward through all unnecessary stuff. I was shocked to find that by fast forwarding past all the entrances, commercials, recaps, Hall of Fame and Wrestlemania promos that it only took me about 30-45 minutes to watch the entire 2-hour program! And that's watching every single match in its entirety as well as the diva competition (which I'm still not sure why I watched). I'm sorry, but that's just sad.

Anyway, moving on... it was interesting to see TNA's The Naturals in a WWE ring. I either didn't know or completely forgot that they had gone over. I was a little disappointed to see them get fed to the Big Show like fodder and have absolutely no momentum whatsoever. They were jobbers. And while I understand paying dues and all that, I think that was a little harsh. On the plus side, they were on Smackdown as a tag team, so maybe we'll see them again in the near future.

As for Batista taking on the tag team of Deuce and Domino, I'm a little frustrated. First, we've seen that before when Batista was gearing up for a big match. He had gone out there alone and face these two by himself before, but that time at least they fought back more. A lot more. This time they had a couple of shots, but ultimately got torn apart by the Animal. These are former tag team champs, who won the titles almost immediately after their debut! Come on. They should be tougher than that!

Second, while I understand a Big Show or Great Khali, or even Big Daddy V or Mark Henry, running through multiple opponents, Batista doing it is a bit of a stretch. I can even understand Umaga doing so, as he did this week on Raw. But then his opponents were London and Kendrick, who were much smaller than the Samoan Bulldozer. Batista, on the other hand, took on two men that were both nearly as big as himself.

Third, it just further confirms WWE's general lack of respect and interest for tag teams. London and Kendrick, Deuce and Domino, and even the debuting Naturals all got mauled by single opponents in the same week! Wake up, WWE, you are spitting on years of tradition and a whole other division of wrestling you've practically ignored now for years!

Edge vs Funaki? O...k. That was a little strange. I didn't even know Funaki was still around, and nearly didn't recognize him without the highlights in his hair. But Edge mimicking the Undertaker was a fun way to build up the momentum.

While the Kane/Palumbo match wasn't great, it was decent. And the ending was even better on two levels. First, seeing the biggest men involved in the ECW battle royal go at it was a nice treat. And seeing Henry best all of them including Khali was really cool to see. Second, we got to see that when a shot for the gold is on the line the lines of friendship or face and heel become blurred. It was a nice lead in to the battle royal.

Chavo vs. The Undertaker was a better match than I anticipated. I do think Chavo is overrated as a performer, but he performed well this week. Or maybe it was just that Taker, being the veteran he is, knows how to sell and make his opponents look good. Regardless, the match went well. And the ending was that much better. Edge and his cronies got the jump on the Dead Man and really beat him down. With only one more week to go before Wrestlemania that left things in an interesting place. Had it happened next week instead of this week, it might have been predictable that since Edge got the one-up that he would lose at WM. However, now we're not sure if Taker will retaliate next week, or if things will be left up in the air a bit, which is a good thing.

So elements of the show were good, others not so much. They still managed to salvage it through the mistakes though.

ECW 3-18-08

2008-03-18T23:02:00.002-04:00

Not much to say here, really, just more of the same. Another decent show showcasing the same talents in similar situations.

Kofi was fed the same OVW guy he's faced three times now, and won. Punk, Festus and Jesse vs Miz, Morrison and Benjamin was a decent match, probably the best of the night. Burke was fed to yet another guy, this time being Kane.

So pretty much the same stuff. Not bad, just expected.

It was nice to see Eddie Graham as the next inductee into the Hall of Fame, though to hear Vince McMahon say that the Grahams were his favorite tag team of all time, and considering the amount of tag team wrestlers showcased in this year's HoF, it was kind of ironic considering WWE's attitude towards tag teams these days.

The Big Show's video package was pretty cool too I thought. We got to see a peak into Big Show's personal life, which was pretty cool.

Then there's the Colin Delaney angle. This week he was tasked with beating the ECW champ Chavo Guerrero for a contract. While this was a neat twist, and it was cool to see Delaney fighting back a bit, he ultimately lost, then the show just abruptly went off the air since it ran late. So it kind of fell flat there at the end.

Yeah, the more I think about it, it was a pretty average episode this week. Given that Wrestlemania is less than two weeks away, it should have been a little better than that.

Rest in Peace, Gary Hart

2008-03-18T06:11:00.002-04:00

I remember Gary Hart fondly from his WCCW days I used to watch on ESPN. My thoughts and prayers go out to the loved ones of the "Playboy". You will be missed.

Raw - St. Patrick's Day - 3-17-08

2008-03-18T05:31:00.002-04:00

Was anyone else saddened that we didn't get to see Finlay and Hornswaggle on this particular day? Say what you want about their McMahon -centric storyline, but the pair is entertaining at times, and this day would have been one of those naturally.

Anyway, Raw this week was ok. I had a couple of problems with it, but overall it was a good show with a lot of build up to Wrestlemania and furthering of storylines. The backstage shenanigans and promos weren't too long or annoying this week, and things played out pretty well by and large.

I have to admit I got scared for a minute there with the Highlight Reel. With Jericho having the Big Show on it was SOOO predictable that the two were going to end up having a match, and I feared it would be for the IC strap. I'll tell you why later. And sure enough, the insults are traded, and Jericho finds his silver tongue again, and the match is set for later tonight.

Then we hear that McMahon is going to face Flair in a street fight? Interesting...

CM Punk vs Carlito was a nice surprise, and the two put on a decent match. It had some sloppy moments and a predictable end, but they did ok with it. Carlito, though, seems to have lost a step or two in recent weeks. I hope he steps it up for Wrestlemania though.

The Snoop Dogg/Santino segment was mildly entertaining.

Now we get to complaint #1: London and Kendrick vs Umaga. The match itself I didn't have a problem with, and it was an understandable occurrence. Plus I was happy to see London and Kendrick back together in the ring. So imagine my dismay when WWE ruined yet another tag team by having Kendrick walk out on London! I swear, it's like the WWE has no respect, no creativity, and worse, no respect for tag team wrestling. The ONLY thing they know to do to shake up tag teams is to break them up. What? Why not just throw the tag titles in the trash? You have two separate tag titles in the WWE, and only about 5 actual tag teams between all the brands. And then just because London and Kendrick have been out of action due to London's injury, instead of involving them in an actual tag team angle, they break them up? Ridiculous. When it comes to tag teams, WWE sucks!

Triple H backstage saying that if Orton walks out he is stripped of the title, and if Cena walks out he's out of the match at WM (and by walking out, I mean of the main event, which was Cena and Orton vs the entire Raw roster). And I thought it was a nice touch that when Regal asked him why he doesn't just strip Orton of the title and give it to himself that he mentions about being handed titles in the past with there being no satisfaction in it. No doubt a stab at internet fans that trash talk Triple H's backstage power and selfishness.

When Flair stepped up to HBK and laid down the law I was having flashbacks. For the Grandaddy of them All, Flair is channelling his younger self and doing it well. That is nice to see.

JBL vs Colin Delany was a nice nod to the holiday at least. Though I expected McMahon to do something a bit more since technically he is Irish after all. But anyway, the match went as expected, and while it felt a little bit like filler, it still served its purpose - to perpetuate the threat that is JBL. I don't personally like JBL as a performer, but they are doing well to develop this particular feud.

McMahon vs Flair brings about a slight complaint #2. While the match was pretty good, and it was fun seeing Flair just begin pummelling the chairmen from the get go, I didn't like how McMahon pretty much decimated Flair after he got the upper hand. And if it weren't for HBK pulling the referee out, he may have lost... to Vince McMahon? Come on. Just days before he was in a 4 on 2 steel cage match that he would not die in, then he gets bested by a couple of cheapshots with some weapons by Vince McMahon? Still, though, Flair was his old self and put on a great show.

Jared from Subway was pretty cool, and as soon as King got the sandwich I could feel a humorous moment coming. When Santino's music hit after the ladies entered for their tag match, I just knew that sandwich would come into play. I don't care too much for Santino, but he does add some comic relief now and then.

The womens' tag match was not good until Candace got in there and went wild. Unfortunately, it's been reported she may have reinjured her clavicle during the match. She was sent for X-Rays after the show. If she has she won't make it to Wrestlemania, which to me means that maybe Torrie Wilson will substitute?

Afterwards, Santino throws the drink in Lawler's face, and then as he's leaving he dashes back for the sandwich adding a bit of levity to the segment. Not the greatest way to utilize the prop, but decent nevertheless.

Then we have what could have been complaint #3 in Jericho vs Big Show for the IC title. My fear was that Jericho was going to drop the title to Show. We had seen a promo earlier of Mayweather with the money belt and all his titles claiming he was gonna be the WWE champ and have all the belts. My biggest fear here was that Show was going to take the IC belt and then drop it to Mayweather at Wrestlemania. That certainly would have been a David Arquette type situation. While I have so far enjoyed the Show/Mayweather feud, that would have ruined it for me personally.

Luckily, Jericho retained by cheating, which was a little cheap. But man, he really sold that punch from Big Show!

Skipping past the pointless backstage segment with Cena and Orton, we finally come to the main event, which nearly lived up to its hype, but not quite.

First, I am getting tired of them saying the "entire" Raw roster when in actuality it's not. It was the same case when they all came out to support Big Show. If you are missing the biggest players in the locker room (ie, HBK, Flair, etc.) then you can't say it's the "entire" Raw roster. It's most of the Raw roster, but not the entire Raw roster. That aggravates me. I understand not using those big names in those situations, but it still gets on my nerves.

Nevertheless, the match started intensely with Cena getting the drop on a couple, but soon the Raw guys were beating the crap out of Cena and Orton, and that was cool to see. The quick tags, the one upsmanship, and so forth came into play quite nicely. And then when Cena and Orton retaliated and really started double teaming, love them or hate them, that was pure magic. Though you knew eventually it would all break loose. What I did and didn't like about that, though, was the unpredictable part of it. Yeah, go figure. If it was predictable, the Raw roster wouldn't have been DQ'd, and Cena and Orton would have come back and beat them all except JBL and Umaga, who would have beat them for a while before getting felled themselves. Then when they think they've beaten everyone, Triple H comes out nails the pedigree on them both and wins the match. However, as you know, it went slightly different. I did kind of like the fact that they did get beat up by the Raw guys and not become supermen and defeat them all. But I didn't care for the whole DQ thing. Small, minor nitpick, though, as the match and the ending were fun, entertaining and a nice delivery on the whole Triple Threat angle the past few weeks.

It will be interesting to see how they top this next week being the last Raw leading into Wrestlemania.

Updated Lockdown Card

2008-03-15T17:38:00.002-04:00

This post contains spoilers from next week's Impact. I accidentally read it before I saw the spoiler tag (big bummer there on my part as I don't like spoilers), so I figured I'd go ahead and post it. Just be warned, there are spoilers in the second match and some others following.

TNA World Title Match
Kurt Angle (c) vs Samoa Joe.

This one we already knew of course.

Lethal Lockdown
Tomko, AJ Styles & Team 3D vs Christian Cage, Rhino, Kevin Nash & Sting.

This is the interesting one. Everything's pretty easily deduced except for the last participant, which comes completely out of nowhere. I don't know how Sting even relates to this situation, but it'll be fun to see how it plays out this Thursday and next.

X-Scape match for the X Division Title
Jay Lethal (c) vs Curry Man vs Shark Boy vs Johnny Devine vs Sonjay Dutt.

This makes sense, though now I wonder what role Steiner and Williams will play at Lockdown if any at all.

Six Women Tag for the Knockouts Title
Awesome Kong (c), Angelina Love & Velvet Sky vs ODB, Gail Kim and Roxxi Levoux.

This was also pretty predictable. A six women tag match for the title in a cage. That's interesting.

Robert Roode & Payton Banks vs Booker T & Traci Brooks.

Also pretty predictable. Will this be the end of the feud? Though honestly I wish it was a singles match being in the cage and all. And where will Sharmelle come into the equation?

BG James vs Kip James.

I actually wasn't expecting these two to come to blows so soon. I guess they're going to slowly phase from the rough cuts (which have been excellent and enlightening, btw, as they are partial shoots) to bringing them back on screen.

Black Reign's Cage of Doom Match
Kaz & Super Eric vs Black Reign & Rellik.

Another predictable match, but Kaz in a cage excites me.

LAX's Tag Title Shot on the Line
Rock & Rave Infection vs LAX vs The Motorcity Machine Guns

It's interesting that the tag title hunt will draw out for a few more weeks, and that this match will just be for a shot. I like it because, again, it adds validity to the titles, and makes a title shot a precious commodity and not something any team can challenge for on any given night. This should be an explosive match. We've seen what LAX can do in the six sides of steel, and the MCMG are awesome wherever you put them. RNRI... I have to admit they both have their merits as well. Should be a good match.

This event is shaping up to be quite a show. I can't wait to see how they continue to lead up to it over the next few weeks.

Jeff Hardy Suspended and Homeless

2008-03-15T17:31:00.002-04:00

Man, the hits just keep adding up for Jeff Hardy, don't they? First he gets suspended for 60 days on his second wellness offense, causing him to drop the IC title and miss Wrestlemania. Now his house burns down with all his belongings and even his dog being lost to the fire.

I want to feel bad for Jeff. I mean, I do feel really bad for him losing his home, belongings and dog, and I'm just glad he and his girlfriend weren't there also. But I can't let myself feel bad for him for the suspension. He's had tons of chances to get his act together and he just keeps throwing them away. When someone is self-destructive like that there's nothing anyone can really do but be there for them and try to encourage them. But if someone doesn't want to help themself there's little anyone else can do.

That said, I am still pulling for you, Jeff, because, while I don't know you personally, I think you're a great performer and I really do hope you are able to pull yourself out of this for good, bro.

Smackdown 3-14-08

2008-03-15T17:16:00.003-04:00

Last night's Smackdown was thoroughly entertaining as far as I'm concerned. And they played up to Wrestlemania quite nicely. It will be interesting to see how they follow all that up over the next two weeks.

Ok, so the Diva challenge wasn't all that exciting, but still. Moving on...

Big Show's match against Shannon Moore and Jimmy Wang Yang was even good. Wang and Moore weren't made to look like jobbers, but they still got pummeled by Show. And the massive shoulder block he ran over Wang with looked monstrous. While many may complain about yet another celebrity angle in wrestling, I actually find this particular one quite entertaining.

Morrison and Miz put on a pretty good showing with it ending as I predicted, which, in my opinion, makes for a better MIB match. Though I'm sure Miz will be one of the participants in the 24 man battle royal with the winner facing Chavo the same night for the ECW title.

Then we have another rematch between MVP and Batista, this time being no holds barred with the US title on the line. I had previously stated I thought MVP might drop the title this time, but right before the match started the thought that became a reality crossed my mind that Umaga might get involved. Probably a no brainer for the rest of you out there, but I missed that one. Oh well.

Still, the match was excellent as much as their previous encounters have been. MVP squeaks by, so now we have both the IC and US champs in the MIB match.

Khali and Palumbo vs Kane and Noble went as well as could be expected. Poor Jamie Noble.

Sometime during the show Finlay did an awesome promo on JBL.

And then we come to the main event, which was originally supposed to be Edge, Ryder and Hawkins vs Flair, but now HBK is Flair's partner, in a steel cage. Then Vickie adds Chavo to Edge's team making it a 4 on 2 affair. And I have to say that I was impressed with the way it was handled. I've seen Flair in tons of steel cage matches through the years, and he was true to form in this one. He and HBK fought as well as they could, but for the most part the numbers game had them down and out. But the duo kept coming back as they should. Then just as Edge is about to escape the cage there appears the Undertaker. Edge still manages to squirm free while Taker is dealing with his teammates and Flair and HBK are down and out again, so Edge's team wins. But it was a borderline classic style cage match in my opinion.

So I had a good time and enjoyed the show immensely.

I also understand that Chris Harris had his first dark match against Shelton Benjamin prior to the taping, and the fans chanted TNA. I wonder how long it will be before he's on TV? I'm sure it will be after Wrestlemania, same for Ron Killings, but we'll see.

Smackdown Tonight

2008-03-14T12:08:00.002-04:00

Ok, so I just checked WWE.com and it turns out MVP qualified for the MIB match at a house show, so that explains that. But as we found out on ECW, Miz and Morrison will face each other tonight to determine the seventh and final participant in the match. Huh?

So does this mean there were originally going to be seven competitors, or were there originally going to be eight? If seven, one could infer that instead of Punk taking Hardy's place, it was MVP who got the call at a house show.

That said, without having read any spoilers for tonight's Smackdow broadcast, I do know MVP will defend the US title against Batista in a no holds barred match. My guess is that Batista will take the strap and then his match with Umaga could potentially be a US title match. Kind of odd that they would defend it at WM instead of the IC title, which hasn't been defended at WM for years, but whatever.

The inclusion of either Miz or Morrison (though especially Morrison) will just add even more excitement to the MIB match, so it will be interesting to see how that plays out. Morrison is the more athletic of the two, and he's a former ECW champ, so my prediction is he wins.

But of course this basically means we get no tag title defenses at WM either. Sigh.

Do you all remember when Wrestlemania was the place all titles were on the line, and it was always high stakes? I miss those days. While this year's card isn't a bad one, and WWE does have a lot of great performers these days, I still miss Wrestlemania, the titles, and everything just meaning more than it does.

The main event tonight of course is the handi-cap cage match between Edge and the Edgeheads vs Flair and HBK. With the heat that has started to develop between Flair and HBK it will be interesting to see if tempers flare (no pun intended) at any point in the match. I guess we'll know in a few hours.

Impact 3-13-08

2008-03-14T08:29:00.002-04:00

Now that's what I'm talking about! Not perfect, mind you, but the pacing this week on the show was 10 times better than it has been in weeks. Maybe they're actually listening to the fans?

Odd there was no Booker T though given what happened at Destination X with Sharmelle (sp?) coming back, but then I myself suggested they switch out stories each week, so who knows?

The show opens with Cornette announcing the double main event for the April PPV, Lockdown, the first, which we knew of, being Angle vs Joe in the six sides of steel of course. The second naturally being the Lethal Lockdown match with Christian and Tomko being the respective captains. Cue both their music and words, then fists fly. Styles and Nash enter the fray, setting up the eventual main event for the evening.

Karen Angle enters the arena in the back telling JB after Kurt's match she's going to drop the bombshell.

At some point, maybe here, Christian approaches Rhino and tries to apologize for their previous conflict, but Rhino didn't want to hear it.

Samoa Joe at some point (I think here, but I can't remember) and addresses the fans with a powerful speech. He thanks Nash, and then he thanks the fans for sticking by him when the critics said he didn't have the right look or the right style to make it. He added that he won't be back in an Impact ring until he has the title, and if he somehow loses to Angle at Lockdown he will leave TNA.

Next up, we have Steiner stumble through another interview segment, but the basic gist of it is if Petey doesn't win his Lockdown X Division Xcape qualifying match tonight he'll face the consequences. His opponent is Curry Man, and unfortunately for Petey, and suprising to me, Curry Man takes the win! So Petey is handcuffed and has his head covered with a sack and is taken who knows where by Big Poppa Pump and Raka Kahn (sp?).

Black Reign and Rellik (that's killer backwards, by the way - if ya don't know, now ya know) faced off against the Motor City Machine Guns, and surprisingly defeated them after a good match by the Guns, a not so great showing by the "monsters". Then they call out Super Eric who Sunday had delivered the Double Death Valley Driver on the team (did I call it with Super Eric or what?). So out comes Super Eric who quickly dispenses with the deadly duo.

Karen meets briefly with AJ telling him not to worry, but to trust her.

Then we are treated to a superb rematch to a superb match from last year featuring Kaz vs Kurt Angle. Kaz was all over Angle this match, showing why he deserves to be a top player. He delivered everything from the Wave of the Future to the Flux Capacitor, but Angle pulls out an ankle lock for the win. Then Karen comes to the ring and tells Kurt she wants a separation. Kurt's response was a very uncomfortable fountain of enthusiasm as he can now focus everything on Samoa Joe. He just wanted to make sure Karen was keeping the kids...

Again, I'm not sure when all the backstage stuff happened in relation to the matches, but at some point Team 3D again stormed the office of Jim Cornette and said they were fed up, and they would be causing havoc tonight.

We then have to suffer through another Rock 'N' Rave Infection promo and entrance, but then are treated to an LAX beating. Sadly, thanks to some Guitar Hero interference, RNR takes the win.

We go backstage to see Angelina Love and Velvet Sky trying to give Roxie a makeover, but she isn't feeling it. So the two prom queens attack her and smear make-up all over her face.

Gail Kim does a promo wondering why she's facing Velvet Sky instead of Kong and warns Kong to find her first or she won't know what hit her.

Kim carries a clumsy Velvet Sky in their match and takes the win before being attacked by Sky and Love. She fends them off and escapes only to be attacked from behind by Kong, who nearly decimates her before ODB comes out for the save.

Last promo of the evening as Christian is still partnerless for his tag match against Tomko and Styles. Enter Nash who is questioning why he wasn't approached first. So the pair go out together one more time.

Main Event time with basically a brawl to start things off. Christian and Nash have control until Angle shows up and distracts them before being ejected from ringside. Then Tomko and Styles take charge for most of the match until Nash finally gets the tag in, delivering the Jackknife to Styles followed by a frog splash from Christian, but Tomko pulls the ref out. But then Team 3D came in and the four pummeled Nash and Christian, thus more or less revealing they will be Styles and Tomko's partners for Lethal Lockdown.

After the match, Team 3D attacked Joel from Survivor: Micronesia, but not before taking out the knees of Kevin Nash.

So, as you can see, this was a full Impact episode, but none of it felt rushed, and all of it felt like it was building towards something. A very well done follow-up to a PPV and lead-up to another. Maybe they're stepping things up because they know this is Wrestlemania month up north. Also, they are gearing towards their first live taping in two weeks.

The events of that last match, though, make me wonder if Rhino and Joel from Survivor will be Christian's other partners. Rhino I don't mind, but I hope that's not the case with Joel. And is Nash going to be able to even compete? If not, then who will fill his rather large shoes?

Joe taking off until Lockdown was a cool thing to see as well. It brings a credibility to both his dedication and to the importance of the world title.

Kaz and Angle stole the show, period! What I really like about what happened tonight is that TNA is finally doing something they began doing before the former WWE stars came in, which is building their own superstars. They are branding Samoa Joe, Kaz, and even Tomko and Styles to an extent, and it's fun to watch.

Hats off to TNA for stepping it up this week.

ECW 3-11-08

2008-03-14T02:11:00.004-04:00

Yep, I'm a little late as usual with this one, but hey, at least I'm talking about it, right? Later today (Friday) I'll post about Impact, then of course Smackdown, and then I think I'm going to do a post on Tag Team Wrestling, something I would love to see more of these days.

Anyway, ECW was again this week pretty decent. Opening the show up with the extreme rules tag title match was brilliant, as was the match itself. Delaney doing a plancha to the outside was also a pleasant surprise, and even though he and Dreamer didn't win, they put on a great match with Miz and Morrison, who were also impressive - especially that moonsault to the floor with the trash can!

The announcement of the 24 man battle royal to determine the number one contender for the ECW title was pretty interesting, especially considering that superstars from other brands will be in it.

Which brings us to the Great Khali. While I understand he's a big guy and top dog and all that, it's still sad to see Stevie Richards get all this momentum underneath him and then be finished off by Khali in seconds. And then Mike Knox of all people is going to be Richards' first feud? Boring.

The same can be said with feeding Elijah Burke to Festus. Burke is too good a wrestler to be jobbing to guys, especially newcomers. Burke should be a top player in ECW by now. Surely he's paid his dues.

Kofi Kingston was great as usual against Deuce this week, and I love how instead of setting up his finisher as usual, he hit it out of nowhere. Nicely done.

Then we have the Money in the Bank qualifier between CM Punk and Big Daddy V to fill Jeff Hardy's vacant spot (Don't even get me started on that one - Jeff, I love ya, and I want to give you the benefit of the doubt, but come on, man! This was the biggest push of your career and you may have just thrown it away...). The match went as expected, with Punk trying to be offensive, but getting stopped by V most of the match. Punk eventually wins by count out after two failed attempts at the GTS (Whatever happened to the Anaconda Vise? A move like that would seem perfect for bigger opponents like V...).

So Punk fills out the MIB match quite nicely alongside Shelton Benjamin, Mr. Kennedy, Carlito, Chris Jericho and MVP (When did he qualify? I knew he would, but I totally missed when he did!).

So those six should put on quite a ladder match. Yeah, it would have been at a whole other level with Hardy in it, but they picked a nice replacement, and I'm sure Punk is the only guy glad about Hardy missing the match as he gets showcased in what is becoming a Wrestlemania tradition.

So this episode had its missteps, but generally good I guess. I just wish they'd stop building stars up just to bury them...

Raw 3-10-08

2008-03-11T12:05:00.002-04:00

The best laid plans of mice and men...

Well, I thought I would get back to regular posting, but then I had an attach. Read my regular blog (linked to the title) to read all about my gallbladder. Ugh.

As far as Raw goes, what a rip-off! Some Wrestlemania rewind that was. Out of about 10 matches only 4 were actual Wrestlemania rematches, and one of them didn't even take place! For a night that was toted about as having "every match a Wrestlemania rematch" I was sorely disappointed.

The Wrestlemania rematches:

Undertaker vs Mark Henry in a Casket Match
Triple H vs Kane
Iron Sheik and Nikolai Volkoff vs Barry Whindam and Mike Rotunda (US Express)
Shawn Michaels vs John Cena

(I'm not counting the Finlay vs Kennedy match as a rematch as that was a Money in the Bank match they were involved in)

Undertaker vs Henry wasn't good the first time around, and was worse the second time around. Having this type of specialty match as the opening contest pretty much destroyed any credibility of their first encounter using it because it ended so quickly.

Triple H vs Kane was boring also because we knew who was going to win. HHH always beats Kane.

I was really disappointed that the WM 1 tag team rematch didn't actually take place. Sure, none of them are in any shape at all, but it still would have been fun to watch. It's been ages since I've seen Barry Whindam in a ring.

Then we have HBK vs Cena. Actually, this was a decent match even if the ending was somewhat predictable. I didn't think they'd have either of them lose such a big match right before Wrestlemania. But the two put on a good show. Orton getting nailed with the FU was a foregone conclusion for the evening, though HHH's announcement at the end was a bit surprising.

We all knew HHH would be in charge next week, but I thought they'd wait until next week to announce what he was doing. Then when he said Cena and Orton would be teammates I was intrigued, though I honestly believed because of the altercation in the main event it would be against DX. Then Trips pulled out the surprise of having the duo face off against the entire Raw roster! Very interesting indeed. Hopefully next week delivers what is promised unlike this week did.

Concerning other matches...

Finlay vs. Mr. Kennedy - As mentioned, this was their idea of a WM rematch because both were in last year's MIB match, but that's not cool, so I don't count it as such. Plus we can't really call it a match considering what happened. Though it was probably one of the most entertaining moments of the three hour night with Finlay snapping after JBL's Titan Tron comments. Nice build up on that feud at least.

Chris Jericho vs. Jeff Hardy for the IC title - obviously this was no WM rematch and was explained as being excused because of what transpired on the Highlight Reel last week. The real and very unfortunate truth is that Jeff Hardy has been suspended for 60 days due to a wellness violation and had to lose the title, and furthermore reportedly WON'T be in the MIB match at Wrestlemania!

The match they put on was the best of the night in my opinion, as it went from brawling to wrestling, and they are both great performers. When Jericho won the strap, before I read any online news, I was hoping the reason was because Hardy would go over in the MIB match. But now he won't even be in it! Bummer.

Melina vs Maria was supposed to be Melina vs Ashley, which would have been a WM rematch, but Ashley was injured. And while Maria has improved, this match was about as good as could be expected. And of course Santino had to get involved. Decent build up, but boring outcome.

Then we have the official weigh in for Floyd "Money" Mayweather and the Big Show. Throughout the night we got a look at both (though Mayweather's video looked more like an episode of MTV Cribs than a highlight reel, and I had wished they showed some of Big Show's WCW footage in his). But now it was on. Big Show stood in the ring opposite Mayweather and his entire posse, with Shane O'Mac in the middle. After the weigh in the two exchanged words, then Big Show brought out his posse: the entire locker room (save the big dogs of course)! That was cool to see actually. Then we actually have a moment where Show and Money are alone in the ring, and Show tosses Money over the top rope into some superstars, which encites a brawl between the posses.

This was also a very entertaining segment, and I'm actually looking forward to seeing how they handle this match. Most matches involving professional athletes are nothing more than publicity hype and don't deliver in the ring. But so far this one has been a bit different, and hopefully the actual showdown will deliver as well.

CM Punk and Edge, also formerly in the MIB match I guess, but still not counted as a rematch in my book. They had a decent match until the Edge... guys (as HBK said) got involved. I'd love to see a fair fight between these two. They could potentially steal the show.

And the altercation between Umaga and Batista was also pretty cool, though it feels like Batista just got thrown back to midcard status.

So I'm 50/50 on the night as there were a couple of really good matches and build ups, but sour on the whole Wrestlemania rematch theme. Sure, there were a lot of matches not feasible, but there were a lot that were also. I just wish they had been a bit more creative.

ECW 3-4-08

2008-03-05T14:51:00.002-05:00

Welcome to the land of the... not so extreme! But it looks like Tommy Dreamer and Colin Delaney are about to take it back to its roots after last night's surprising chair fest from young Delaney. He also impressed in the ring a bit. Even ECW is stepping it up. They'll never be the old ECW, but at least they're trying not to be the WWE lite they have been for a while now.

Benjamin and Richards had a pretty good match, though I hated to see Richards come back after all those wins and take a dive to Benjamin. I will say, though, that the way Benjamin delivers that move is better than any of the variations I've seen from the likes of Carlito, The Undertaker, Mr. Kennedy, and so on and so forth. It's like a backwards RKO. Lethal.

I guess they didn't have enough time to put Kofi in a match, so they included him in the backstage tiff between Layla and Kelly, which played out nicely.

Since when do Chuck Palumbo and Kane have a feud? Did I miss something somewhere? It makes sense that they would as they're both big guys without a whole lot of other competition to go around. It was just kind of an odd introduction to the feud. I guess they're having a match on Smackdown this week?

Then there's Punk and his quest to regain the ECW title. And for the second time, Chavo beats Punk clean! Now I'm not a fan of Chavo, and I don't feel he deserves to be in the spot he is. But at least booking is trying to make him a believable champion and not just a jerk who keeps stealing wins.

And what's up with the dive Punk took? After Monday night's Big Show toss it seems like it's the week for nasty dives to the floor!

Still the "C" show by far, but getting better and better each week surprisingly.

No Money in the Bank qualifiers, which leads me to believe that the last qualifier will be a Smackdown guy, and smart money is on MVP. He's not involved in any feuds right now, so he doesn't really have anyone to defend the US title against at Wrestlemania unless Matt Hardy comes back early. And he'd be a great addition to the already qualified participants. I actually hope it is him as that would just make the match that much more entertaining. Punk would be my next choice.

From Turnbuckles to Canvas

2008-03-04T14:38:00.003-05:00

So last week was pretty much a bust, and I'm getting a late start this week because of a terrible toothache I have. But I said I'd be back to regular posting this week, so I'm going to try my best to keep with that. I do apologize for the almost week long absence.

RAW

I watched Raw this morning (slept through it last night trying to get past the pain), and I have to say it was decent, then leading up to Wrestlemania usually is. I do think, and feel free to disagree with me, that ever since TNA started making efforts to compete with WWE, that WWE has stepped up their game. Not because they felt TNA was a threat, per se, but to assert their authority and dominance in the field. Love them or hate them, WWE, save 80+ weeks back in the late 90s, has always been the top dog and continue to be. TNA has a long way to go to even match WCW's success. Do I think WWE considers TNA a threat? No. I think WWE considers TNA a potential future threat, and instead of letting them grow unimpeded, they've decided to show them who's boss. They probably wouldn't have done so, though, if TNA hadn't tried to take a stab at WWE and compete with them.

But I digress, and I'll touch back on all that in a moment.

The Triple Threat Takeover of Raw for the next three weeks is nothing new, but still interesting. What "Cena" did with it though was totally predictable. I'll be very suprised if we don't see HHH vs Cena and Cena vs Orton over the course of the next two weeks. Actually, with next week being Wrestlemania rematches (used before, but great idea anyway), I wouldn't be surprised if it's Orton's turn and we see Cena vs HHH from WM 22. Seems like a no brainer actually.

HBK and Flair were entertaining in their tag match, but more so in the aftermath. I was waiting for this promo from HBK. We knew it was coming, but it was still nice to see. HBK declaring he is the Showstopper and that Flair's show is the one that will be stopped added a new layer to this match, which is always good.

Big Show's mauling of the boxer in preparation for Mayweather went as expected. Though, man, that toss over the top rope was brutal! The way he landed was worst than I've seen most trained wrestlers land, on his shoulder like that. That was pretty impressive looking. I don't have high hopes for the Mayweather match, but at least it's interesting. I mean, part of me thinks because WWE can't deal with UFC they're trying to hype boxing as a counter. But regardless, Mayweather actually hitting Show (and breaking his nose) was a very nice and unexpected occurrence.

Carlito going over Rhodes for the Money in the Bank qualifier was also a no-brainer. MitB is shaping up to be a good match. So far we have Jeff Hardy, Chris Jericho, Mr. Kennedy, Carlito and Shelton Benjamin. Add in someone like CM Punk, Elijah Burke or MVP and you've got the makings of one very entertaining match - possibly a show stealer in my estimation.

And what about Hardy's attack on Jericho during the Highlight Reel? I loved seeing that, and then hearing half the crowd boo, half of them cheer. Again, layers, my friends, layers.

Then there's Finlay and JBL. While the whole "Hornswaggle McMahon" storyline has been not so great, the payoff is at least interesting. So Hornswaggle is actually Finlay's son, and JBL attacks him twice, and now the two (Finlay and JBL) will go at it at WM. I'm not a fan of JBL and think he is highly overrated as a performer, but the brawl that could potentially take place between these two should be worth seeing once. So hopefully they step up their game and really bring it home.

The rest of Raw wasn't very memorable. I mean, the ending to the main event was predictable somewhat. I loved the twist of Orton delivering the RKO to a celebratory Cena after his FU on HHH. I expected him to FU both Orton and HHH, but this was a nice twist, and something I cheered for.

TNA IMPACT

Going back to TNA, I caught Impact even later than usual (I finished watching it this morning in fact), so it's still a little fresh in my mind. I will say that I do think they showed they can slow things down a bit with this latest installment. They've got a ways to go, but there was improvement.

The opening with Booker T, which led to the brawl between Banks and Brooks, was a nice way to start off the show. And more importantly, there was the payoff later on in the show with Roode getting the drop on Booker and them handcuffing and whipping both Booker and Traci. This was done really well.

Jumping around a bit, EY's conversation with Kaz leads me to believe we'll soon be seeing another persona for Eric - possibly the superhero again as he is facing monsters. Anything involving EY is entertaining, though, and that's coming from someone who was a hater of EY in his Team Canada days.

I was glad to see Team 3D not making weight, and their cut scenes were actually funny this time. And then them attacking Shark Boy and Curry Man, enter Kaz and then EY before getting scared was all a nice build up to those storylines and they didn't feel rushed.

Angelina Love was actually impressive against Kong this week, which was a pleasant surprise. Then the aftermath with ODB and Gail Kim played out well.

Nash and Angle even put on a good match, and the stuff with Karen was less boring and more entertaining this week.

Overall, this installment showed that TNA does have the tools to slow things down and build up before a PPV. Let's just hope they continue the trend, and also that they finally realize that they need better audio so Tenay and West aren't completely drowned out by the crowd. Then again, that might not be such a bad thing...

And just a reminder, March 27th is the first live Impact episode. It will be very interesting to see how well they do live as I've never been to a live TNA event before.

WWE WEBSITE

Did anyone notice that Drillbit Taylor (the titular character of Owen Wilson's new movie) is listed on the Raw roster, as are Ryan, Wade and Emmit, the kids that hire him in the movie? They've done this before with movies they promote, but it just caught me by surprise as I was browsing through them today.

VARIOUS NOTES

So now rapper 50 Cent will be accompanying Mayweather at Wrestlemania? Interesting...

SE Scoops has a list of other celebrities that will reportedly be in attendance also, including John Legend and Raven Symone: http://www.sescoops.com/wwe/More_Celebrities_Confirmed_For_WrestleMania_XXIV.shtml

Today is the first I heard of Cena's comments about The Rock, which no doubt echo those of many fans. I disagree as I think Dwayne Johnson made a wise decision to move on and preserve his health at a young age after becoming a mega star that propelled him into an even more lucrative money-making field that puts far less pressure on his physical well being and his family life. If the man feels he needed to make a clean break from the business by not coming back for special appearances anymore, that's his prerogative, and no one should question that or talk trash about him because of it. That's just my take on it.

Cena, it seems, disagrees with me as he called The Rock out saying he shouldn't spout off about how much he loves the business because he's basically a liar. Though that's my interpretation on the comments. Make your own after you read it: I will say that aside from the tiny comment he made, Cena was respectful and played up The Rock as a nice guy. It's also been said by WWE that his comments were taken out of context. So who knows?

http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/sport/wrestling/article871607.ece

SE Scoops reports that Booker T and Kurt Angle are pushing officials to approach Lashley:
http://www.sescoops.com/tna/Bobby_Lashley.shtml

I'll say it again, I would like to see Lashley either in TNA or MMA. But the fact is if he goes for MMA he'll be off the map for a while to get prepared. By the time he is prepared any hype he's built by being a wrestler will be out the window, and he'll start at the bottom. Lesnar was different as he was a top star in the WWE before the decline was in full swing. So he was better known by fans of both sports, and thus had more leverage and backing. Lashley doesn't have that. Going to TNA first maybe even while training for MMA would seem to be the best move both for Lashley and the fans in my estimation.

SE Scoops is reporting that several TNA stars have purchased tickets to WWE's Hall of Fame event. It will be cool to see them in the crowd if WWE shows them.

And that's all I've got this time around. More throughout the week. I'm toying with once a week doing a profile or simply a post about one wrestler each week. Not sure yet though, I'll keep you... posted! :)

ECW 2-26-08

2008-02-29T09:33:00.002-05:00

I feel asleep and missed ECW Tuesday night, so I caught it on WWE.com this morning. It was a decent show all around.

The opening mixed tag match between Kofi and Kelly vs Layla and Santino was better than I expected it to be. I loved the double dropkick by Kelly and Kofi.

Stevie Richards seems to be gaining more and more ground since his comeback, and while Mike Knox is a boring, average wrestler, at least he's a big guy that knows how to give and take in a match. He made Stevie look good coming back from that beating.

The match of the night had to be Dreamer and Delaney vs. Miz and Morrison. Delaney getting in the ring and gaining a little momentum was nice to see, but then of course he got mauled throughout most of the match. But the storybook win they got over the champs was well played.

I was a little disappointed with all the missteps in the main event between Burke, Benjamin and Punk for a title shot next week. These are three of the most promising young stars on the roster, yet they made so many mistakes in that match. If not for Benjamin's amazing athleticism in a couple of exchanges the whole match would've been a bust. And I was also a little disappointed to see Punk win. Give someone else a chance. We know Benjamin and Burke aren't going to win the title right now, but at least give them a match for it over Punk, whose had several matches with Chavo already.

I'd give this episode a B-.

TNA Impact Thoughts

2008-02-26T14:01:00.003-05:00

Ok, so it's today and not yesterday, but at least I'm here, right? Man, I started off good with multiple posts daily, then life got in the way. This week is going to be kind of sporadic, but next week I promise to return to daily updates with more than just recaps of the various programs.

Now, onto last week's Impact. I may forget things or get them out of order, so forgive me. But I'm going to do my best to touch on the highlights at the very least.

Kip James. So my prediction came true. A little later than I expected, and almost as an after thought, but still, there it is. It was so obvious, and so lame.

And this goes back to the way Impact is structured, jumping from one segment to the next. I don't think they realize what they're doing. I sincerely think they are sitting back thinking they are being inovative, putting out this frenetic, fast paced, massive delivery product each and every week. What they don't realize is they are killing every single one of their storylines by doing so. They don't give the TV watchers a chance to get invested in a match or an angle because before they can they've already moved on to something else a minute and a half ago! The Kip James turn is the perfect example. We've seen this angle gradually built up for weeks, albeit, again, as kind of an after thought that felt like space-filler. Then when it's finally time for the payoff, we get a very short match with a very quick turn and then the camera jumps into something else faster than we can realize what just happened. You lost us. And then you go back to Kip a bit later and he gives some crappy promo about something we've already forgotten about.

Say what you will about the decompressed style of the WWE and their long backstage promos and in ring chatter, but at least they get the fans invested in their characters. TNA should definitely focus on action, and fast paced action at that. But they should not take that process to their editing and direction of the program itself.

It boils down to what we all know and have talked about tirelessly, and that is TNA trying to squeeze too much into a 2-hour broadcast. Face it, if they are going to use WWE style storylines, then they have too many wrestlers on the roster to showcase all of them in one weekly program. My advice? Keep your top angles and performers on every week, and alternate your mid and lower tier angles every other week. That way you showcase all of your stars in a decent paced manner and give the fans something different every week as a bonus.

What do you all think?

Moving on, let's talk about the X Division title picture since I botched that whole thing up already. So Lethal is the champ, he's got the girl and the apparent jealous best friend, which will undoubtedly lead to a feud between the two. Then we have the forerunners, Johnny Devine and Petey Williams, along with Scott Steiner, who is now supporting Maple Leaf Muscle? Doubtful. Maybe he plans on helping Williams win the title so he can beat him later since he has that title shot?

Regardless, I guess Petey Williams has a shot at the X Division Title at Destination X now, right? Or have I missed something again?

Nope, there it is on their website. Lethal vs Williams for the title.

So what about Ultimate X? Are we really going to have a Destination X without Ultimate X? Seems kind of pointless doesn't it? But then again, we are having Elevation X. So who knows. Just seems odd not to have it. Of course it would have to be a number one contender match, and as it stands that would have to contain Sonjay Dutt, Johnny Devine and a third party most likely. I guess we'll just have to wait and see.

What are they doing to Kaz? They're still burying him, that's what. And now they're trying to make Rellik and Black Reign as these unstoppable monsters? If not for the inclusion of Eric Young in the mix, I would cry foul. But because of EY's popularity with the fans, it could give Kaz a boost. Kaz deserves to be in the bigger picture though, no as fodder for the mid card wannabes.

Team 3D I won't even discuss. I'm bored just thinking abut them.

Karen Styles" Come on. I mean, of course they can't be legally married, that's just ridiculous. So why the charade" This is Angle's real-life wife, so it's not like she's going to leave Kurt for AJ. And why play this with AJ if he's Angle's right hand man? It's like some bad comedy film. AJ plays the part well, but this isn't the AJ Styles that we want to see, nor is it the one Jay Lethal praised as a pioneer of the X Division.

I'm still confused as to where this leaves Lethal Lockdown. If Angle is facing Joe at Lockdwon, then what's the point of Lethal Lockdwon as it has always been a title match? Or are they copying WWE's Elimination Chamber story and having it be a number one contender match now?

Next week, Angle vs Nash. I have mixed feelings about this match. On the one hand, had this happened years earlier it would have been a great match. But we know Big Kev is very limited now, and therefore this can't be a great match. And we're almost guaranteed interference heading into Destination X. So I don't know...

I will say that I loved seeing Booker T as he was this week. This was the Booker T of old that became,e a star in WCW before he was ruined and buried in the WWE. When he emerged from that burial he a different performer all together, but he truly seems to feel at home in TNA, and I love seeing him take center stage like the Booker T I know and love.

Now, can you dig that?

SUCKAAAAAA

TNA Correction

2008-02-25T07:09:00.003-05:00

Wow. I feel like a complete moron! I mean seriously, I totally forgot Lethal was the X Division champ in my last TNA post, and thus expressed a completely impossible scenario for Destination X.

On top of that, Lockdown will be Angle/Samoa Joe, so that shoots my whole Lethal Lockdown prediction out of the water.

I gotta stop watching TNA on Saturdays - it throws me completely off!

I'll post later today with an updated hypothesis.

Sorry.

Who Should Flair Face at Wreslemania XXIV?

2008-02-23T20:13:00.002-05:00

So we've all heard the hype and rumors, and the posturing and guessing. But who really would be a good opponent for Ric Flair on "the biggest stage of them all" IF this truly is to be his last match?

Just to put it out there, here are the names I've heard associated with Flair for the match:

Triple H
Shawn Michaels
Hulk Hogan
Ricky Steamboat
Rowdy Roddy Piper

Sure, there have been others mentioned, but those are the main ones. Personally, I'd love to see Bret Hart vs Flair, but we all know that's never going to happen again.

So let's break these five down.

Triple H - This one is a no-go of course with Trips in the WWE title match, so the point is kind of moot. But it would have been the ultimate passing of the torch to say the least. It's obvious that Triple H wants to be the Flair of this era. And the two are close as Flair has touted HHH as the greatest wrestler in the world today. They would have a great match, but could you really see HHH going over Flair at Wrestlemania? To me, it wouldn't be as much of a torch passing as a slap in the face.

Shawn Michaels - This seems to be the most likely choice, and the two would put on a great showing. HBK could carry out a great mat match with the Nature Boy and really give him a great send off. HBK steals the show at big events, as does Flair when he's on his game, and he would be. So this one is pretty much a no-brainer.

Hulk Hogan - Naturally, this one would get the most publicity and the most buy rates bar none. The two biggest icons in the business fighting for all the marbles at the biggest show of them all. But Flair and Hogan have such huge egos it's hard for me to picture either of them giving the nod to the other. Hogan has been saying he wants it to happen, but everything I've read says it's unlikely. I guess we'll just have to wait and see.

Ricky Steamboat - Would I love to see another three-fall, hour long classic by "The Dragon" and "The Nature Boy"? Absolutely! Could they do it justice? Probably not. I don't even know if Steamboat could wrestle these days. And their feud isn't as well known to the general WWE audience as it is to hardcore fans. So while these two rematching for Flair's last match, and Steamboat being the one to retire Flair would be magical, it ain't gonna happen.

Rowdy Roddy Piper - Two of the biggest heels in the business, and they have a history. But Piper has no business being in the ring, and it wouldn't be a great program with those two. Plus I can't imagine Piper being the one to retire Flair.

So HBK seems the logical choice, with Hogan a close second. That is IF this will be Flair's swan song.

What do you think?

WWE Rumblings

2008-02-21T12:10:00.002-05:00

According to SEScoops.com, it was announced to the ECW/Smackdown crowd this week that the ECW PPV One Night Stand would take place in San Diego on June 1st. They're going to hold an ECW PPV in California. O...K... Not that I'm against expanding, but it's a shame that they don't hold it on the East Coast to get the ECW faithful there to really intensify the event like the first ONS PPV.

Then again, maybe they fear the East Coast crowd will boo the entire program because of what it's become...

March 10th will be a 3-Hour Raw, so mark your calendars.

Kid Kash said Chris Harris had an attitude problem in TNA (big shocker there), and that if he pulled that stuff in WWE they wouldn't stand for it. Kash should know.

LiLo (Lindsay Lohan - I hear that's her press given nickname) was backstage at Raw, and is now rumored to be involved in Wrestlemania. See pictures and get more info here.

Sounds like Lindsay is trying to turn things around for herself. Recently she did a photo shoot in the New York Magazine recreating Marilyn Monroe's last shoot, all in the nude. And now she's possibly appearing at Wrestlemania. An odd way to turn one's career around, but who am I to judge?

According to JR's latest blog, Lindsay was very professional and had a long talk with John Cena, whom apparently she hit it off with. No, not romantically (at least I don't think so), but whatever the case may be, I'm curious to find out what possible role Lohan could play at the Grandaddy of them all...

Brock's Next Fight

2008-02-21T12:03:00.003-05:00

Rumor has it that Brock will face his next opponent at UFC 85 on June 7th. No word on who his opponent will be, but Frank Mir thinks it should be someone who doesn't fight well from their back. And given how the tide quickly changed for Brock in his bout against Mir I would most certainly concur with that opinion.

The thing is, though, that Brock has to face a big name, just not someone as big as Mir. If they gave Brock a throw away opponent it would do Brock no favors. He needs to go out there and beat a big name to redeem himself to be perfectly honest. The UFC is highly competitive, and regardless of how much hype is behind Lesnar, if he doesn't deliver the Buy Rates they will part ways. The UFC is, after all, a business, and they'll do what's best for the bottom line.

That said, Brock's next fight will not gain as much publicity or sales for the UFC, or at least I don't think so. The reason being because it's not Brock's first fight anymore. Had he won that first fight then yes, people would keep tuning in to see what he did next. But as it is, how well the buy rate does will depend heavily upon who Lesnar's opponent is, and how much build up and hype there is going into the fight. If we don't see some solid promotion of this by April then my hopes aren't high.

TNA Happenings

2008-02-21T11:36:00.005-05:00

Looks like the first live Impact will be on my birthday, March 21st! If any of you want to send me to Orlando for the live broadcast as a birthday, by all means, email me!

Seriously, it will be interesting to see how they handle going live. I'll definitely be tuning in. I never do anything for my birthday anyway.

Lockdown will be in Massachusetts in a town near Boston it seems, and Lethal Lockdown will return as the main event. If I had to guess the participants at this stage I'd say:

Kurt Angle, AJ Styles, Tomko, Robert Roode and ?

vs

Christian Cage, Samoa Joe, Kevin Nash, Booker T and ?

I'm not sure who they would get to fill that last spot. Perhaps a surprise like last year? I just can't think of anyone off the top of my head that would fit into the same category as the rest. Maybe they'll throw Eric Young in there and somebody to counter him, though I don't know who that would be now that Storm is feuding with Rhino.

And I may have just answered my own question. Maybe it's Rhino and Storm that will join them. I kind of doubt it because I'd say they'll face off in a singles match instead.

Maybe Scott Steiner and Petey Williams? But they might have their own match also, or have moved on from each other by then.

So the jury's still out for me on who the final two participants will be.

As for other matches, Kong vs ODB vs Gail Kim sounds like a strong possibility. And those three in a cage would be very entertaining.

It's certain that Team 3D will have some kind of match, though I'm not sure who against at this point.

Kaz and Black Reign will probably end their feud at the PPV as well.

Of course, with Destination X coming up first, it's probably premature to assume any of these matches will happen as such just yet.

Speaking of Destination X, we know of two matches (Rhino vs Storm in Elevation X, and the Angle Alliance vs Samoa Joe, Nash and Christian), and according to TNA's website, 6 more matches have yet to be announced. Though I said (most likely prematurely) that Kaz and Black Reign's feud would end at Lockdown, it may end, or escalate, in match at Destination X.

We know there won't be tag titles at stake, but it's pretty much a given that there will be an Ultimate X match for the X Division title. And that almost has to include Jay Lethal. Of course I wouldn't be surprised if Scott Steiner invoked his title shot instead, and thus the Ultimate X match would become a number one contender match. Of course for that to happen someone would have to win the title beforehand as I don't think they'd pit Devine against Steiner. Regardless, I'd love to see an Ultimate X match involving 3 or more competitors personally.

The lineup for tonight's Impact seems pretty bland to me. Here are the confirmed matches:

TNA World Tag Team Championship Match
- AJ Styles & Tomko (c) vs. Kip James & Bullet Bob Armstrong

- Kaz vs. Rellik

#1 Contender For TNA X-Division Championship
- Johnny Devine vs. Petey Williams vs. Sonjay Dutt

Handicap Match
- Brother Ray vs. Curry Man & Shark Boy

- Gail Kim & ODB vs. Roxxi & Jackie Moore

Non-Title Match
- Booker T vs. Kurt Angle (c)

Jim Cornette, Christian, Samoa Joe, Kevin Nash, SoCal Val, Kip James, Black Machismo Jay Lethal, Black Reign, Eric Young, and other TNA stars are all also scheduled to be appearing on tonight’s edition of TNA iMPACT.

Breaking them down, the tag title match seems pointless. With Tomko and Styles now on the same page it's obvious they're not going to lose the belts anytime soon. And why is Kip teaming up with the Bullet? They're trying to force some kind of angle involving VKM on us, and it's just boring me.

Since Black Reign is scheduled to appear also, it's pretty predictable that he'll interfere in the match between Kaz and Rellik. Then maybe Eric Young will also, but I doubt it. If he does we can be sure to see a tag match next week. Sigh.

The X Division title bout should be as entertaining as always, and it's about time they had one! I mean a real one, one actually involving X Division superstars! Though I'd be surprised if Steiner wasn't somewhere nearby either getting involved or "scouting" the match. My prediction is that Petey will be on the verge of victory, but Scott will cost him the match and Devine will retain. Then again, if Petey won tonight that would set up my scenario for Destination X above...

Now it's Brother Ray in Brother Devon's place last week in a handicap match? So what, we're supposed to believe that Brother Ray dropped down, but Devon gained weight? How stupid do they think the fans are? Ugh.

The womens tag match should actually be decent. All four can wrestle somewhat, so it shouldn't be too bad. Interesting that ODB and Gail are teaming up. I wonder if Kong will make an appearance?

Then we have Booker T and Kurt Angle in a non-title bout. I really don't know where they're going with this other than to involve Booker in the main angle (no pun intended) leading up possibly to April's Lockdown PPV. But it's a safe bet that Roode will be present as well as the Angle Alliance, and thus Christian and crew as well.

We'll see how right or wrong I am in, oh, about 11 hours when Impact goes off.

ECW 2-19-08

2008-02-20T06:07:00.002-05:00

Ok, so tonight's show was different and was better. Opening up with Ric Flair was a classy move, and involving CM Punk in something aside from Chavo and the hunt for the title was a nice change of pace. Plus we got to see Elijah Burke back in the main event even if he did sort of play second fiddle to the more experienced Shelton Benjamin. The four wound up putting on a decent back and forth match as well, so that was nice to see, and a great follow-up to No Way Out in my opinion.

Stevie Richards and Kofi Kingston got fed nobodies, which really affected the crowd reaction during the matches. I would have even liked to see them beat a Val Venis or Balls Mahoney as opposed to the jobbers. It does nothing for them in my opinion.

The Dreamer/Delaney vs Miz/Morrison thing continued, and escalated quite well this week with Delaney in the match this time and he actually got a near pinfall and delivered a couple of shots. The way they've built this storyline up was a little shaky at first, but over time it's made fans care about Delaney much like they did about Dreamer or someone like Mikey Whipwreck in the old ECW.

All around, this was a decent show. It still feels like the "proving ground" for Smackdown though, which feels like the "proving ground" for Raw, but for what it is, ECW worked this week.

Though honestly, I'd rather see more action than all the hype given to Raw's happenings and so forth. I know that's not gonna happen, but it would be nice to see regardless.

Paul Heyman

2008-02-19T14:25:00.002-05:00

Heyman, always the center of controversy, shoots on WWE, TNA and more here. I like what he said about TNA - he called them out for not having a distinctive brand, and he's right. TNA, wake up! Reestablish who you are and STOP TRYING TO BE WWE OR WCW!

And Heyman's new video show, Heyman Hustle, aired its first episode recently, which you can find by clicking the title of this post.

He starts off saying they were supposed to go to the premiere party for Survivor, but at the last minute their press credentials were revoked, so they had nothing to shoot. Time to... hustle of course.

What follows is a very random and frenetic series of interviews with regular people and reality show "celebrities". Not what I really expected, but it definitely does suit. Paul E.

Covering Ground

2008-02-19T13:49:00.003-05:00

Whoa, almost an entire week between posts?! That's just not acceptable! I do sincerely apologize, my friends, life has been hectic.

I just got caught up on all my wrestling (had to tape it all over the weekend and watch it yesterday and today), so forgive me for lumping it all together, and if I miss anything.

TNA Impact on Valentine's Day - was anyone else completely bored with the whole Angle renewing of vows? I know I was! Though the ending was priceless.

What's up with Abyss? He's throwing down the mask. Does this indicate he's quitting, or he's giving up the Abyss persona? And if the latter, what will that do for his career? Back to that in a minute.

So this week Booker faces Angle. Kind of odd all things considered, but wasn't Robert Roode supposed to be part of the Angle Alliance at one point too? Could be interesting.

I'm sick to death of Team 3D. Not entertaining, not funny, just outright boring.

Kong-ODB-Gail Kim: Cool.

Rellik: Not cool.

Scott Steiner and the amazon freak: Old hat.

Moving on...

Smackdown - the proposal. Lame, predictable, but a good build up to the match at No Way Out.

If Domino yells "Deuce and Domino!" one more time I think I'm gonna scream.

Is it just me, or as far as the Elimination Chamber happenings, is Smackdown just copying Raw's format? Great thinking, creative team...

That must have been all that was noteworthy about the night because nothing else comes to mind...

No Way Out - The Big Show returns, #1 Contenders are named, and no titles change hands. (Actually got to see this one thanks to a friend).

I have to say that Chavo wrestled pretty well in his match with Punk. And he won it clean - very surprising.

The Smackdown EC was comparatively short, and not nearly as entertaining. Did anyone really think anyone but the Undertaker was going to win? I did like the very good showing by Finlay though.

Kennedy showed up Flair, but Flair was the Flair I knew of old, and that was nice to see. Great match.

Edge vs Mysterio ended a lot quicker than I thought it would, and Edge won clean after all that build up. I knew he'd win, but winning quickly and cleanly I did not expect.

Ah, the Big Show's return. He looked really good, and he was better on the mic than he'd been in a long time. He got a great pop, but then went all heel on us. And as far as the Mayweather thing, I honestly thought that was real. Not the whole set up, but the punches I thought Mayweather took liberty with and Show got sucker punched. But I haven't read anything that says it was anything but a work, though I could have sworn I heard Shane tell Show that he "didn't know he was going to do that", though my ears could be playing tricks on me.

What do I think of the whole thing? At first, it screamed Austin/Tyson on a smaller scale, but the fact of the actual physicality (which makes me wonder where the athletic commission stands on the whole thing) of this one makes it more interesting. Tyson never legitimately punched anyone, so it's a bit different.

Orton and Cena was completely predictable up until the Ref slap. Getting DQ'd wasn't surprising, but the slap caught me off guard.

The Raw EC match was pretty good. Every single one of those guys laid it all out there, and it was very fun to watch. It was obvious who was going to win of course, but I'm glad Hardy was in there 'til the end even kicking out of the Pedigree.

Raw - Cena's last chance. Ok, did anyone really believe Cena would not be in the main event at Wrestlemania one way or another? And of course now he is after an almost identical repeat of the No Way Out title match save HHH being the guest referee.

We also had some Money in the Bank qualifying matches that saw Jeff Hardy and Mr. Kennedy qualify. I'd say Shelton Benjamin will be another, possibly the only one from ECW, and then maybe MVP from Smackdown, maybe even Matt Hardy if he's better by then. I guess we'll have to wait and see.

When HBK came out to announce Flair was going to be inducted into the Hall of Fame this year I half expected the Nature Boy to walk that aisle and tell Shawn he wasn't ready to be inducted, thus inciting their match at WM. Though now I hear Hulk Hogan wants to fight Flair at WM. That would actually be cool in my opinion.

So Candace Michelle returns and helps Maria beat the Glamazon so she can pose for Playboy. What a noble deed (note the sarcasm).

Big Show apologizes, then calls Mayweather out again challenging him to a match. Mayweather looks terrified the whole time and can't even look Show in the face, but still fakes a punch, which makes Show jump and look like a punk, despite the fact that the crowd was booing the WBC champ. And he's the face in this pairing...

Did anything else happen that's worth mentioning? Oh, the Hornswaggle cage match in which Finlay was handcuffed and JBL decimated the poor little guy. I guess Jericho and JBL are done as it looks like the beginning of JBL/Finlay.

Yep, that's it.

Tonight's ECW, which will most likely largely be boring. I can see Chavo gloating with terrible mic skills once more, but hopefully they do something to mix things up instead of having Punk and Chavo in another altercation for like the fifth week in a row. I doubt it though.

In other news, Mysterio won't be wrestling at WM as he will be having surgery on his torn bicep this Friday. Also, apparently Lindsay Lohan was backstage at Raw? There were supposedly photos on WWE's website, but they've all been taken down now.

Shinsuke Nakamara defeated Angle for the IWGP title, and wife Karen opened a MySpace page.

Yep, that's a lot of covered ground.

WWE Notes

2008-02-13T15:31:00.002-05:00

As I mentioned in the TNA Notes post, WWE awarded their toy license to Mattel. We won't see these in stores for two years, but it's still a big deal as Mattel is one of the leading toy makers out there.

SE Scoops reports that Cena has heat for being friendly with the boss, while Orton is known as someone who stands up to management. Oddly enough, as I understand it, the two are good friends behind the curtain.

As you all probably know by now, the Benoit case has been officially closed, and now both Chris and Nancy's families are considering suing the WWE for wrongful death. Just keeps getting better and better.

What's with all the energy drinks of late? Now Goldberg has one coming out called... wait for it... Jackhammer Java. Yeah...

ECW 2-12-08

2008-02-13T15:27:00.002-05:00

So, ECW wasn't great this week. It was good to see Stevie Richards after last week's interview (which I forgot to talk about last time). It really speaks to the true ECW spirit. Speaking of which, I like what they're doing with Tommy Dreamer of late, and the whole feud with Morrison and Miz. It does feel just the tiniest bit like the old ECW with Richards and Dreamer.

Kofi Kingston continues to impress, and this time they put him up against Mike Knox, who I wasn't even aware was still on the roster! It was a great showing for Kofi who has star potential written all over him.

Unfortunately, we were forced to hear Chavo on the mic again, but at least it was short, and the end where Punk nailed him with the GTS was a nice finish going into No Way Out.

Not much else to say really...

TNA Notes

2008-02-13T15:14:00.002-05:00

TNA is possibly looking at Chicago for the April PPV, Lockdown. And they're considering doing a PPV in the Southwest Ohio area later this year. That would be cool, because I might actually get to go to that one! I hope they do hold one in Ohio, and that I'm able to go as I've never been to a TNA event before. I'll keep you posted.

It seems that TNA's new slogan, "Cross the Line", refers to their not having clear cut faces or heels...

Jakks, who used to do the WWE toys, will now be doing the TNA toys according to this press release.

That's a big deal for TNA, though WWE going with Mattel now kind of dwarfs it. But still, Jakks did a ton of WWE figures, so collectors know they're reliable and produce good products.

Matt Morgan, along with Chris Masters, are being looked at as possible gladiators for the next season of American Gladiators. Both are excellent choices for the show in my opinion. Masters just has that persona and look, and Morgan is huge. That'll be interesting to see what comes of it.

MTV's Made show, which features kids learning to do what they dream of, will have an upcoming episode about a 14 year old, Chris Hendricks, wanting to become a wrestler. The show will have clips of him training with Alex Shelley, Chris Sabin, Petey Williams and others.

Bill Apter of 1Wrestling.com will be at a TNA show in New York on Feb. 21st and will have the 1Wrestling cam there to interview TNA stars. He's asking that people email in questions for the stars in attendance if you like. You can read the article here. I'm going to ask him to ask AJ Styles how he feels about his current character/gimmick. Who's with me?

A Few Interesting Notes

2008-02-12T05:59:00.000-05:00

John Cena's dad has a show and a website now? Evidently so, and his first show is available on the site: www.FabulousProductions.com

And yes, it's a wrestling show, called MWF Xtra: The John Cena, Sr. Show

And oddly enough, the MWF shows are headlined by a bunch of TNA superstars...

Read more here.

If you've heard about the movie "The Wrestler", apparently the Blue Meanie was in it (no speaking parts though), and had a message about it here. This movie is supposed to be the most accurate wrestling movie ever made, and it stars Mickey Rourke. I'll be talking more about this one soon.

Jake "The Snake" Roberts credits Vince McMahon and the WWE with saving his life on his MySpace blog, albeit a little begrudgingly.

SE Scoops has an interesting note on Samoa Joe's contract. Oddly enough, Joe, in character, just signed a 5 year deal with TNA, when in reality, his contract expires in June, and last year he did not reup for a 3 year deal as he had done in 2005. Is Samoa Joe headed for the WWE? I hope not.

Jay Lethal's push is also mentioned in that link.

In JR's new blog, he says that TNA isn't a threat yet, and that Bobby Lashley, in his opinion, will take a deliberate route to MMA. Read it all here. And I agree with him on both points, for what it's worth.

MyNetwork TV (which I've never heard of) seems to be the future home for Smackdown. The CW doesn't think the show leaving its network will hurt it as most people watching Smackdown only tune into the network to watch Smackdown from their research. And by and large I'd say that's probably accurate, though I personally watch several shows on the CW network. Smackdown leaving the network won't change that, but I have to imagine they will take a huge dive on Friday nights unless they move some of their more popular shows to that night.

And that's all I got for now. Ding Ding

Against All Odds

2008-02-12T05:35:00.000-05:00

Well, I was right about a turn, but not the turn I originally thought.

While I didn't see the PPV, from what I've read it was a pretty good showing. I wish I could have watched it now.

On the turn I mentioned, I'll get back to that in a minute.

There's a pretty good recap of the show in the link attached to the title of this post, by the way.

While I obviously can't go into detail on what I didn't see, from what I understand there wasn't really a bad match on the card. I had said previously that Impact and the build ups didn't really entice me to see the PPV. I wish TNA had done a better job at building up to the PPV, though, because if a lot of people felt like me, a lot of people seemingly missed out on a great show.

The tag match sounds more competitive than I thought it would be, and the tension between AJ and Tomko continued. Though, Kip did not turn on the Armstrongs, and I'm glad, because that would have resulted in a stale feud between BG and Kip.

Then even Steiner and Petey put on a good show. I was kind of skeptical about their feud in the beginning, but I have to say that Petey is a good foil for Steiner, and the two have a good chemistry together.

"EY" Eric Young seemed to have pulled out all the stops, ending with a double Death Valley Driver on Storm and Jacqueline. Impressive. And while I don't care for Rhino (never did really), hearing he came back and the way he came back was not quite the level of surprise Cena's return at the Rumble was, but it was still a surprise, and a perfect place because of his history with Storm.

ODB and Awesome Kong had to be entertaining. I doubt it was all that athletic in terms of moves and catch as catch can action, but the two personalities are so over the top it had to be cool to watch.

I still think given the circumstances, TNA did the right thing with the Barbwire Massacre match. Though, I had read that they pretaped that match, but they say it's live, so I don't know. Regardless, it was a good way to handle it as opposed to just scrapping it. And while I can't stand Mesias, it sounds like the match was still decent.

Roode and Booker sounds like more of a match than a fight, which is what I was afraid of, but in my opinion, the two are both great workers, so I'm sure it was still entertaining. It just couldn't have done justice to the angle. If my wife was hit by another man, I wouldn't go into a match, play to the crowd, and hit some chops. I'd come in street gear, attack from behind, and just beat the crap out of the guy, if I were a violent type that is. :) So I just can't justify how this angle is playing out. I just can't.

As for Roode, I keep reading everywhere that the guy is a cheap knock-off of Terry Taylor (in the York Foundation days) and Rick Rude. Now, I have to say that the only similarity between Roode and Rude is the hair color and the robe. Aside from that, the gimmicks are nothing alike, but because the last names are similar people just throw that out there. If Roode was a clone of anyone it would be Mr. Perfect Curt Hennig. Not only does he use the same finisher, but many of the moves and mannerisms are the same. I'd say Roode was a fan of Hennig. But I also think Roode is underrated and that he is his own performer.

Then we have the six-man between Team 3D & Devine vs the Motor City Machine Guns and Lethal. From what I've read, this was an awesome match, and Jay Lethal really took center stage and showed his worth. He's a rising star, and this could have been the launchpad he needed to solidify his superstar status. Hopefully they'll continue to push him in this direction a continue to veer off the Macho Man persona a bit at a time.

And finally we have Angle and Christian. The match was filled with false finishes, and everything I've read indicates this match was Wrestlemania caliber, which is very cool. These two are the two biggest stars in TNA right now, and they are excellent performers. It's good to know that they can go like that and deliver big when the time is right.

The swerve came with the ending, though. AJ got involved, but got chased out by Joe, and then the unthinkable happens... Tomko turns on Christian costing him the strap.

Now, in all honesty, if I had really given it much thought this probably would have been a bit more obvious to me than it was, but I gotta admit that this caught me by surprise. And it definitely adds some controversy to the situation.

Now, if only TNA would put as much thought into their weekly Impact shows as they do into their PPVs, all would be good with the world (of wrestling).

Oh, I understand the new slogan for TNA is "Cross the Line", which is pretty cool marketing. I know some people who think TNA will disappear in the next two years, but I have to wholeheartedly disagree with that. I think TNA is here to stay, and because the owners are invested in the wrestling business and not just a money-making opportunity (ie, Ted Turner), I don't think their future will be the same as a WCW. TNA has grown slowly and smartly, and if they continue to pace themselves and not jump the gun, TNA will become viable competition for WWE, mark my words.

Next up: Destination X!

TNA Impact 2-7-08

2008-02-09T23:51:00.001-05:00

Again we have an example of TNA trying to cram way too much stuff into their shows. The whole episode went at breakneck speed, and it was hard to keep up. From the very get go, it was just frustrating. How many times have we seen TNA open up with a brawl that quickly gets thrown off camera to show Tenay and West talking up the show, only to revisit the brawl 15 minutes later backstage? It's just ridiculous, and it does nothing to help those particular feuds.

Aside from the cramming and problems with focus, the matches were decent, as were most of the other segments. Not great, but they did somewhat build up tomorrow's pay-per-view, Against All Odds. Not enough that I care about the feuds or matches, unfortunately, but at least they tried.

But, let me say that the whole Rock & Rave Infection is boring me too tears, and I just want to change the channel every time they're on. I mean, come on, how weird was it to see Lance Hoyt playing air guitar on Curry Man's butt? Yeah...

I do love that Curry Man uses his version of the Burning Hammer, The Spice Rack though.

I really like Kaz, but if they keep him feuding with Black Reign they will kill his career before it can really take off. I mean they had him go toe-to-toe with Christian Cage and Kurt Angle, then threw him back with Black Reign. It's WWE style booking, and it does Kaz no favors.

Is it just me, or is it pretty obvious Kip is going to turn on the Armstrongs?

I've not been overly impressed with Tiger Mask in TNA, but his match with Styles was decent. It's nice to see AJ without Angle or Christian around again, even if he's still playing a little goofy heel. But his in ring skills are still on point and unmatched. I sincerely hope they eventually have him turn on Angle and fight a program with him as that would really put Styles over and solidify him as a top star, which I think he already is.

So, Tomko and Christian... I like Christian's kind of anti-hero status right now, and I like Tomko on his own. I hope they keep them like that for a while, even if they help each other out from time to time. I have to admit it is kind of interesting to have the tag champs each supporting opposing individuals.

But Judas Mesias? Please send him back to whatever other organization he came from because he's not imposing, he's not greatly skilled, and he's just not entertaining....

I do like how they ended the episode, however, with the sides being split, which leads to an interesting problem especially where the tag titles are concerned. I want to see what comes of that.

Not the best episode, not the best send off into a pay-per-view, but it is a step up still as they continue to veer away from the goofy into the serious. We'll see how that works for them.

The UFC and Brock Lesnar

2008-02-06T14:43:00.000-05:00

JR played up Brock's celebrity status at UFC 81 stating that most of the fans were there to see him, and that he was the star of the night. A bold statement considering the other UFC fighters on that card, but a hard point to argue.

I want to see Brock fight again, though, very soon, and against an opponent that would be a challenge, but maybe not at the level of a Frank Mir. Dana White is smart, though, and he's not going to set Brock up to lose again (not that that's what happened this time - I think everyone, including White, thought Brock had the potential to win that fight, as much of an upset as that may have been). But Brock continuing to lose wouldn't bring in money. Brock losing this fight, however, did, because he is a celebrity of sorts, and because he went out there in his second MMA fight and dominated a former world champion. Brock has a bright MMA future should he get the right opponents to build up his legacy.

Referee Steve Mazzagati spoke up about his decision to temporarily stop the fight and deduct a point from Lesnar here. He says he issued a warning, but personally, I saw the Lesnar fight footage the other day, and first, I saw or heard no warning issued, and second, I only saw two hits to the back of the head, and they were in the same flurry, not separate flurries as Steve suggests. I generally think Mazzagati is a fair referee, but I think he royally messed up here. And not because I'm a wrestling fan (I actually never cared for Brock that much in WWE), but because I really, strongly disagree with his call in that fight. Had he not stopped the fight and instead issued a clear warning I believe Brock may have won that fight. But Brock handled it well, and didn't call foul. That was very mature and very wise on Lesnar's part.

In other UFC news, George St. Pierre (GSP) and Matt Serra will finally have their rematch on April 19th. I would honestly still love to see Hughes vs Serra, but it will be interesting to see this fight as I'm sure, if he did before, GSP won't underestimate Serra this time around. And GSP is a different, better fighter than he was at that stage, so I think GSP will probably come away with this one. But regardless if that happens, please, UFC, let Serra's next fight be against Hughes.

Bobby Lashley Updates

2008-02-06T14:36:00.000-05:00

Apparently, the day before Lashley announced his leaving the WWE on his website, Vince was telling the boys in the back that he fired Lashley to set an example. Of course, all that is hearsay, so take it with a grain of salt.

JR, in his latest blog, attributes Lashley's leaving to not being prepared for the business or its demands on your life. I don't know how fair that is considering what we've heard from Lashley, but again, it's all hearsay, and there are always two (or two dozen) sides to a story.

But Lashley's MMA career appears, at least at this early stage, to be a reality as Zinkin Entertainment, who represent Chuck Lidell and Forest Griffen, among others, have taken Lashley on as a client. It'll be interesting to see what develops of this.

Raw 2-4-08 and ECW 2-5-08

2008-02-06T14:05:00.000-05:00

I ended up having to tape both of these due to tragic loss of a loved one Monday night (read about it here). So I do apologize for going silent for a couple of days, but I hope you all understand given the circumstances.

In trying to keep my mind occupied, I watched the tapes, and so I'm commenting on them now, if you haven't guessed. I honestly don't remember the order of things, so forgive me if I'm jumping all over the place.

I missed the part of the broadcast where they commented on Triple H not being there for a family emergency (which, I understand, was not a work), so Snitsky being in the mix with the five Elimination Chamber participants confused me. I'm guessing it was originally planned for HHH to be out there, and they winged this one. Under the circumstances, the segment was okay. It just bored me that again we have a good 10 minute block of talking, which was just a bunch of posturing and filler, and none of it very entertaining. Though the resulting tag match later in the night was decent. Not great, but decent.

Great, now I'm blanking on the matches. Did Cody and Holly face Cade and Murdoch? I think that's who they faced, yeah. It wasn't much of a match, so forgive my poor memory on it. I guess it just didn't leave a lasting impression...

It was good, however, to see London back with Kendrick, even if he never really got involved. I guess he's still healing up, though one would think running around the ring the whole match when recovering from a foot injury wouldn't be the wisest strategy. But what do I know?

The women's tag match? Fast forwarded through it. Mickie James bores me to no end.

Orton and Cena started off the show good I thought. Little talk, and a lot of intensity. And I actually thought the inclusion of Henry in that segment was a good idea. It worked. However, later on in the arm wrestling match, two things really bothered me to no end. First, did anyone else notice that they had the table turned the wrong way? Their elbows are supposed to go in the circular pads, but they had it the other way. They should have just turned the table, or even had Cena make a joke about it helping to have the table turned the right way. It just looked stupid that they left it that way. Second, Cena beating the world's strongest man in an arm wrestling contest after just having surgery on his pectoral? Give me a break. Yeah, yeah, they need to hype Cena up as this super strong dude who can destroy all, but against Mark Henry? No, should have never happened.

And I won't even get into Vince's little club...

If anything else happened on the show, it wasn't memorable enough for me to recall. Sorry, WWE, you bombed with this one, and it had nothing to do with HHH being absent.

ECW, in my opinion - and this is saying a LOT - was much better than Raw this week. Yep, I said it. Everything on ECW was a build up of storylines that have played out for several weeks. You had Kelly Kelly with Michelle McCool taking on Victoria and Layla, and while the match itself wasn't great, nor did I really pay all that much attention to it, it was still more entertaining than Raw's women's tag match by far.

Then you have Tommy Dreamer facing John Morrison, and the two, while completely contrasting in styles, really put on a clinic. It was the Dreamer of old, which we don't see very often, and it was nice to watch. And he was defending Colin Delaney, who got unmercifully attacked by Miz and Morrison the week prior. So it was a nice payoff of that.

Kofi was actually fed another decent opponent this week who can actually wrestle a bit, so it really played up the very athletic Kofi. I will say, though, that as impressive as his agility is, some of the moves Kofi does, like the leap to the top, just to sit down and punch, just don't make any sense. But it was still a good showing for this rising star.

And finally, there's Chavo and Punk. They start off the show with Punk reliving his surprise attack on Chavo last week, which brings out Chavo, who must have had writers give him script this week as he actually ended his promo nicely for a change. We find out the two will battle that night in a Gulf of Mexico match where the loser will be the one tossed into the Gulf of Mexico. And they will have a title match at No Way Out also. But Chavo's line to Punk as the segment ended was probably the best line Chavo has ever said in his career: "At No Way Out, I'm going to leave you drowning in defeat. But tonight, I'm just going to leave you drowning." Well, it may not have been those exact words, but however it was said, it was full of impact and quite a nice quip.

The match the two put on was decent, though once they got outside it was a little dull. It was almost as if Chavo was afraid to do anything for fear of actually getting hurt. Punk didn't seem to care as he tossed his own body carelessly about. But Chavo just looked sad.

I listened to a podcast over at SE Scoops by the Solomonster the other day, and in it he talked a bit about Chavo, and how he just doesn't belong in the spot he's in, or with the push he's getting. As you may recall, I basically said the same thing a few posts back, and I still stand by that. Chavo is lacking in so many areas to be given a top spot like this. Of course, one could argue that the ECW title isn't really a world title, or of world title caliber in its current state, but still, there are better guys to be in that spot, and guys who would put on a better program with Punk, than Chavo.

Overall, I'd have to say ECW was a solid 7 of 10 this week, and that's saying a lot coming from me, as I have been disappointed with ECW since it came back. And I'm not the only one (okay, there are THOUSANDS of us really), as Paul Heyman recently did an interview talking in depth about why he left and why ECW is failing. Check it out by clicking the title of this post. It's a very interesting read.

WWE News

2008-02-04T18:09:00.000-05:00

Apparently, due to the Japan tour, the next two weeks of Raw will be taped tonight in Austin, Texas. Bully for all those in Austin attending the show as they'll get a bunch of extra matches!

According to the Wrestling Observer newsletter, HHH is wanting a Cena fight at WM instead of a match with Orton, and Michael Hayes is suggesting they bill it as HHH-Cena II. Yawn.

The WWE told Ron Killings to fulfill all his indy bookings through the end of March, so it's likely we won't see him until after WM. Which is good, because I don't think they could give him any kind of build up or attention this close to the big show, no pun intended.

Oh boy, Nathan Jones is in talks with the WWE about coming back. He's a big guy, and Vince loves big guys, so I'm sure they'll give him another shot. But man, the guy was abysmal in the ring! I don't want to see him come back unless he can be at the level of a Nash, Taker, Kane or any other skilled big man.

Cena is apparently filming some new project called "12 Rounds". I didn't hate The Marine (didn't love it either), so maybe it'll be okay. I have no clue what it's about though.

Ugh. According to this story, Raw sounds like more of the cheap shenanigans and played out crap. Sigh.

SE Scoops has a recap of JR's latest blog post here, in which he discusses consolidating titles, the legitimacy of the ECW title, a Sting DVD and more. I do agree with him about consolidating the belts, but I fear the truth of his statement on the brand extension. And though Sting's best years may be behind him as far as wrestling is concerned, even though I doubt he'd ever do it, I'd love to see Sting in the WWE just once, to see what they could do with him with all his history, and I'd love to see it before Flair hangs up the boots.

I'll be watching Raw tonight, and hopefully it will be a lot better than the official preview is lining it up to be.

TNA News

2008-02-04T17:51:00.000-05:00

I mentioned a couple of posts back that TNA is considering taping Impact live every other Thursday, and it now appears that they may do a trial run the week before Wrestlemania, on March 27th. As we know, Wrestlemania is taking place in Orlando, TNA's backyard (coincidence?). So it would make sense to try to do something special for all the fans in the area.

I'm concerned, though, as I stated before, that TNA will blow it, and then with WWE's biggest show of the year only days away, they could come off looking really bad.

Apparently there is "heat" between Team 3D's wrestling school and Booker T's wrestling school (gotta be a work). Team 3D posted a video calling out Booker's school on their MySpace page.

Here's the updated card for this Sunday's Against All Odds PPV:

TNA World Championship Match
(Special Enforcer: Samoa Joe)
Kurt Angle (c) vs. Christian Cage

I think Angle will take this one, but it's hard to say. It could go both ways.

Barbed Wire Massacre 2
Abyss vs. Judas Mesias

I don't even care...

TNA Knockouts Championship Match
Awesome Kong (c) vs. ODB

Kong will take this one most likely, but I kind of look for interference from Gail Kim.

TNA Tag Team Championship Match
AJ Styles & Tomko (c) vs. BG James & Bob Armstrong

With what happened on Impact, the Styles/Tomko team may implode. Though, I can't really see BG and Bullet being the tag champs... It's possible Kip will turn on BG causing them the loss.

Hardcore Street Fight for the X-Division Title
Motor City Machineguns & Jay Lethal vs. Team 3D & TNA X-Division Champion Johnny Devine

I sincerely hope MCMG and Lethal win this one as I don't want to see the X Division go the way of the Dodo in the least bit. Plus, I'm so sick of this feud, and Team 3D...

Booker T vs. Robert Roode

Booker is out for revenge, but unfortunately, instead of this turning into a fight, as it should be since Booker's defending his wife's honor, it will probably be a straight wrestling match, which makes no sense to me.

Traci Brooks vs. Payton Banks

Whatever...

"Drinking Championship"
Eric Young vs. James Storm

I'd like to see EY take this, but anything could happen.

I really hope the PPV isn't as lame as it sounds to be. I won't be getting this one regardless, but I just want to see TNA do what it does best, and use its best stars in the best way possible, instead of doing the drivel they've been doing lately.

Brock Loses First UFC Fight

2008-02-03T03:31:00.001-05:00

Well, color me disappointed as I was really pulling for Brock. But from what I understand, he had complete control before he got sloppy and left his leg open for a submission. This only shows Lesnar's inexperience in the sport, but if he sticks with it, I look for Lesnar to truly be "The Next Big Thing" of the UFC.

Let's Get it On!

Ultimate Warrior

2008-02-03T00:31:00.000-05:00

Ok, so everybody hates the Warrior these days, right? I gotta admit, the guy gets on my nerves as well. And with his comments on Heath Ledger, he's been getting a lot of heat. Recently he has begun posting videos, though, and in the one I saw I have to say that I agreed with a lot of what he said. Not everything, but a lot. I don't agree with the way he goes about things, or his hypocritical and sometimes contradictory statements. But what he sasy about society, and about what we tolerate as a people, I do agree, overall, with his sentiments.

That said, I am going to continue to watch these videos and at some point do a long post on my thoughts of the Warrior and his opinions, for what it's worth.

Argghhrowwwll

TNA Impact 1-31-08

2008-02-03T00:25:00.000-05:00

I'm watching Impact right now, and while there's still 30 minutes left I thought I'd start this post anyway. Though you won't see it until after 1, so I don't know why I'm typing this. Ah well, what the heck.

This has really been a lackluster episode thus far. Team 3D still sucks, the parodies and clones still suck, and most of the angles still suck. The only thing that has interested me so far this episode is the Tomko/Angle feud, and how AJ showed shades of his old self standing up to Angle, getting in his face and throwing the crown down. But then he went right back into lackey mode. Hopefully this will lead to an AJ turn and him being the AJ we all know and love.

So now as I type this Robert Roode, James Storm and Peyton Banks are about to face Sonjay Dutt, Eric Young and Miss Brooks in a mixed 6 person tag match. Now, I used to be an EY hater when he was in Team Canada, but I gotta admit I love the guy now. And Roode is a solid wrestler, and Dutt is amazing and underrated. So this should be a good match.

Ok, so it was decent, but ended too soon. Booker T showed up, but they didn't really follow the fight very long.

I'm baffled by how much they try to fit into the show, as many are. They need to pick about 3 or 4 storylines at a time and just focus on those each week. When those run out, alternate out some of the guys and involve some new ones in the storylines.

I mean, come on, how many angles do we have right now? Let's see...

Angle/Christian
Angle/AJ
Angle/Tomko
Christian/AJ
Booker/Roode
Sharkboy
Team 3D & Devine/MCMG & Jay Lethal (X Division)
Kaz/Black Reign
Abyss/Mesias/Mitchell
Knockouts
VKM
Steiner/Willians
Samoa Joe/Nash/Matt Morgan
Eric Young/James Storm
Rock & Rave Infection

Granted, all the Angle ones could be lumped into one, but I'm sure I left one or two out. And they try to get a bit of every single one of these in on each 2 hour broadcast! It's just way too much!

There are rumors that Spike is interested in doing a second TNA show, but it would be all about the Knockouts with matches, interviews and so forth.

In addition, it's possible that starting in March Impact will be taping live every other week and moving their tapings for the alternate week to Fridays. It will be interesting to see how they handle live broadcasts in light of the mess they've made of things lately.

Now, I get that some of you may think I'm flip-flopping on TNA constantly, and you're right! And the reason is because they are NOT consistent. They'll have a killer show, then give us two weeks of crap. They just can't get in a good flow, and with WWE picking up and doing a few things right, I'm beginning to worry about TNA.

Anyway, I just watched Samoa Joe about to sign a 5 year deal, and Matt Morgan interfered. So I don't know if they're trying to build a Morgan/Nash program or a Morgan/Joe program, but it's obvious they are trying to move Morgan out of the office role and into a ring role. We'll see how that goes...

Next up is Tomko/Angle with AJ as the special referee. I hope this match delivers, because otherwise, this broadcast will be terrible all around.

Well, that was a pretty solid match. I wish Tomko could have won clean, but Christian's interference was kind of expected. It'll be interesting to watch how this all develops.

A little redemption, but overall it was still a poor show. Hopefully next week will be better.

Smackdown 2-1-08

2008-02-01T20:10:00.000-05:00

I'm going to attempt to recap and comment on tonight's Smackdown as I watch it. I'll be updating this post at intervals throughout the next 2 hours.

The show opened up with Teddy Long announcing what I reported earlier, the two big Smackdown matches for No Way Out. Briefly, there will be a Smackdown Elimination Chamber match also with the winner facing the World Heavyweight Champion at Wreslemania XXIV. The participants are: Batista, The Great Khali, MVP, Big Daddy V, Finlay and The Undertaker.

In addition to that, Rey Mysterio will get another shot at the title against Edge at No Way Out.

Then Edge entered complaining and begging to face anyone but Rey. Long wouldn't hear it though, and the match stands.

It is good to see Teddy Long back in the role of GM even if it's only one night due to Vicki Guerrero's injuries from the Royal Rumble.

The first match tonight is Ric Flair vs MVP in a Royal Rumble rematch. MVP believes he won at the Rumble since there was a three count until the referee realized Flair's foot was on the ropes. MVP is controlling the entire match working over Flair's arm, suplexing him, and getting several near pinfalls. But Flair won't go down. No matter how many times MVP knocks him down, Flair gets back up in MVP's face. MVP goes for the boot in the turnbuckle, but Flair moves and nails MVP with a chop block, then proceeds to work over the leg. MVP counters the first Figure 4 attempt, and the second, but then Flair cinches it in, but MVP reverses. Flair's in the ropes, but MVP won't let go, so he gets DQ'd. Still not letting go, and finally the ref. breaks the hold. But MVP's not done, as he wraps Flair's leg repeatedly around the steel post. Then he kicks the steel stairs with Flair's leg trapped in them before finally leaving the ring area.

This was actually a better match than their Royal Rumble match if I'm being honest. I would have liked to see Flair get the edge a little more than he did, like he did at the Rumble, but overall, the moves, the chemistry and the finish was much better tonight.

Commercial.

Back from break, we go to Flair in the back telling the trainers not to straighten his leg out. Then back to the ring as Chuck Palumbo enters and he actually gets a little pop. He's grabbed the mic, and starts talking about Jamie Noble causing the friction between him and Michelle McCool. Now Palumbo is getting booed for his comments about beating the crap out of Noble. But he says what happened to Michelle was an accident as we go to a video of her getting knocked off the apron last week. The people don't get it, but he told us guys that it was all Noble's fight, and then he starts whining about having to pay a fee for hitting a referee. Now he wants Michelle to come out so he can publicly apologize to her. Out comes Michelle after a slight pause, and she doesn't look happy. Palumbo says he's sorry, and Michelle says he is sorry, and that she doesn't buy anything he's saying. Then she slaps Palumbo who charges, but stops short. Then he tells her she messed up this time, and it's all her fault. Palumbo says next time he sees Noble he's going to "stretch his body apart from limb to limb" and he's going to make Michelle watch.

I still don't understand why they switched the heel and face spots for Noble and Palumbo, but in my opinion, Palumbo will never be anything past a midcarder at best. And man, neither one of these two can act worth a crap. I'm sorry, but this angle has really just become incredibly boring to me because of the participants involved.

Commercial.

Back with Rey Mysterio coming to the ring followed by his tag team partner, CM Punk. A recap video of Punk hitting Chavo with the guitar on ECW this past Tuesday, then Chavo and Edge, their opponents, come out. Punk and Chavo start things off with Punk taking the lead then quickly tagging Rey in. Chavo takes over working on Rey's arm, but Rey counters and works on Chavo's then tags in Punk who gets a one count after a double team. Then Edge comes in and gets schooled by Punk. So far it's a catch as catch can between all four. Chavo back in and things go back and forth. Punk goes for the knee in the corner, but Chavo ducks sending Punk outside as it goes to...

Commercial.

Back as Edge works over Punk. Punk tries to counter, but Edge flapjacks him and tags in Chavo, who places Punk in an abdominal stretch. Punk finally tags and both Rey and Edge are in with Rey in complete control. Rey takes Chavo out, which allowed Edge to to take advantage and regain control. Rey almost gets counted out before being brought back in by Edge, who begins taunting before working over Rey again. Rey fights back, but it's short-lived. Chavo's in working on Rey's left knee. Rey counters with a dropkick to the face, but Chavo traps his leg and brings Edge in, who's beaming with confidence now. Big boot to the face, followed by a near pinfall. Edge continues to work the submission holds as he and Chavo have been doing all match long. Rey bites Edge's hand, and Chavo comes in, bur Rey is fighting back. He takes them both down and finally tags in Punk who's on fire. Edge goes flying to the outside and Chavo gets beat from pillar to post, but escapes the pin. High knee in corner connects this time and leapfrogs an attempted spear by Edge who stops short before hitting Chavo. Punk knocks Chavo down on the ropes, Rey knocks Edge in place to nail both with a 619. He goes for it, Edge ducks, but Chavo doesn't. Rey launches himself at Edge and Punk nails the GTS on Chavo for the win.

Main event promo of Undertaker and Kane vs Big Daddy V and Mark Henry.

Commercial.

Back with a Slam of the Week from Raw with Hornswaggle getting berated my Vince. Now on SD, Vince is confronting Finlay and Hornswaggle telling them both of them are disappointing him. Finlay tells Vince he's got loyalty and friendship, but Vince tells him he was just stupid. The two then go out to face Deuce & Domino, who are already in the ring.

On a quick side note, does anyone else find it strange that since Coach has become a Smackdown commentator he's no longer a jerk, but almost a face commentator?

Anyway, back to the match. Finlay is running roughshod over the team, but then Finlay goes outside with Cherry. Hornswaggle sneaks up behind and takes a peak under her skirt before the duo schoolboy her. Then Finlay fends off the duo, hits the Celtic Cross, and then Hornswaggle hits the Tadpole Splash for the win.

I personally really enjoy Finlay and Hornswaggle and all their antics. Hornswaggle was the best thing to ever happen to Finlay because it gave him that extra something to propel him to the next level in my opinion.

Commercial.

Back with a Raw Recap. Then Eve Torres, this year's Diva Search winner is in the ring to introduce Batista. Eve asks Batista how he feels about being in the Elimination Chamber match. Batista welcomes Eve, then talks about the Royal Rumble, giving props to HHH and Cena. Batista plays up the horror of the match, and he's got the experience. He's the only one in the match that's been in there before. And of course, he ends the segment saying he'll win the match.

I love the Chamber match, and having two at the PPV is pretty cool. I wonder, though, how all the big men in this one are going to take advantage of the structure. We've seen people like HBK and RVD use it to amplify their highflying skills, and we've seen Goldberg gash open his leg kicking through one of the Chamber doors. So it'll be interesting to see what Khali and Big Daddy V do in it, as well as how MVP and Finlay will handle being the small men in the match.

Commercial.

Back with Jesse talking about Festus. He claims Festus is a brand new man as the doctors have found a cure. Next week Jesse and Festus are coming back better than ever.

Cut to the Edge Heads, Zack Ryder and Kurt Hawkins, entering the ring for their match with Jimmy Wang Yang and Shannon Moore. Apparently Moore owns a tattoo parlor and gives tattoo tips in the new issue of WWE Magazine. Some posturing in the ring then Hawkins takes control briefly before Wang's unique style schools the Edge clone. Moore in who gets taken into the opposite corner as Ryder is tagged in. But Moore takes over and tags Wang in, who continues to control until a blind tag to Hawkins takes him down. Quick tags keep the Edge Heads in control for a while. Wang finally counters and gets Moore in who starts flying. Now all four are in, and Wang goes flying on Ryder outside. But Hawkins ducks out of the way of a Moore high risk move and lands a DeVon like reverse DDT for the win.

I really like this team of Moore and Wang. They are very unique and both very skilled, and probably two of the most underrated on the roster for years before hitting their stride. It's also interesting, if you know your WCW history, to see these two together. Wang was a member of the Jung Dragons, who feuded with the trio of 3 Count, which included Moore. And of course, the Edge Heads were once known as the Major Brothers.

Another main event promo, then, you guessed it...

Commercial.

Main Event time. Kane and Taker enter the ring first, then their opponents to a new entrance song, led by Matt Stryker.

Commercial.

We join the match in progress as Kane works Mark Henry over in the corner. Henry takes over briefly, then Taker comes in and goes for Old School shortly after. Henry counters though, but Taker comes right back with a boot to the face followed by a near pinfall. Kane back in continuing to punish the World's Strongest Man, who doesn't look so strong against the Brothers of Destruction. Just as I type that, though, Henry plows into Kane in the corner and brings Big Daddy V in. A back and forth ensues between the two monsters, then Kane brings Taker back in, who takes it to V. V quickly gets his breath, though, and brings Henry back in who gets a momentary advantage over the Dead Man, but then Kane is back in and the battle continues. Kane goes to the top, hits the clothesline, and signals for the chokeslam. But Henry plows Kane again and throws him outside. V bounces Kane's head off the announce table, but Taker is in tow. Henry, though, takes over where V left off, then tosses Kane back in. V is back in and continues to maul Kane in his corner. Henry comes back in and latches on the bear hug, but it doesn't put Kane out. Henry tries another charge, but Kane counters and then brings in big brother. It's a house of fire as The Phenom lays into Henry with vintage Undertaker moves. he then attacks V, and goes back to Henry for the cover, but it's broken up by V. Double chokeslam by the BoD on V, then a Taker chokeslam on Henry followed by the new submission move (a modified triangle hold) for the submission win.

A pretty good match for four big guys. I mean, Taker and Kane are always on top of their game, but in the past, V and Henry have been pretty lackluster. I have to give them props this time around though, as the four put on a clinic.

The BoD end the match with a pose as Smackdown goes off the air.

I'd give this episode a 7 of 10 because it was pretty enjoyable.

Whew, this play-by-play was brutal! I don't think I'll be doing this again for a while. But it was fun this once. :)

More Miscellany

2008-02-01T14:57:00.000-05:00

I missed Impact last night, so I'll watch the replay Saturday night and post about that Sunday. Tomorrow I'll post about Smackdown. For now, more various and sundry...

Randy Couture likes Mir over Lesnar at UFC 81 this weekend, and he makes a legitimate point for that choice here.

I understand where Randy is coming from, but I am torn. Brock is bigger and stronger, and from what I've seen of his NCAA wrestling and his limited MMA experience, I think he has a shot at taking it. And what better way to make an impact and burst onto the scene than to defeat a former world champion? I'm leaning towards Brock in honesty.

Speaking of UFC 81, Kurt Angle, Jeremy Borash and possibly Mike Tenay of TNA will be at the event.

RVD talks about his fear for ECW here. Honestly though, did anyone really expect the new ECW to be an extension of the old ECW? I mean, maybe, when they were doing the One Night Stand PPVs and there were rumors of a show, I might have gotten a bit hopeful and nostalgic, but realistically, the minute the first episode of ECW on Sci-Fi aired you had to know that it just wasn't and would never be the same.

There's a potential spoiler about Flair's Wrestlemania opponent here.

I'd say that's a likely occurrence actually, now that I think about it. Makes sense.

And believe it or not, that's all I have today. Sad, ain't it? Man, and I was on a roll! Hopefully it'll pick up soon. Otherwise, I'll just start writing some commentary on various topics that you'll hopefully find interesting and compelling. :)

And if anyone visits any good wrestling sites that I don't have linked on the sidebar please send me or post a link. Those are the main ones I go to as the rest I know of don't update very often.

Catch you in the ring!

Miscellaneous

2008-01-31T15:02:00.000-05:00

Nothing in today's wrestling news or happenings has really caught my interest enough to dedicate an entire post to, so instead you get snippets of various things. :)

Bobby "The Brain" Heenan is said to be recovering nicely from his jawbone replacement surgery. He's also gearing up for physical therapy to start walking again as he's ben bed-ridden for some time now.

Heenan is a legend as far as I'm concerned. He and Gorilla Monsoon were a classic broadcast team, and Heenan was one of the best heel managers ever. I also loved how in WCW when he was announcing you could feel and hear the semi-shoots he did on the WCW management almost breaking kayfabe. I sincerely hope recovery continues to go well for "The Weasel".

You can see pictures of indy wrestler (best known in ROH) Jack Evans' face here from the accident that I am clueless about. I tried to read about it on his MySpace, but it wouldn't load for me at the time of this writing.

Here's the press release on JBL's new energy drink. Whoopee.

On Impact tonight, Brock Lesnar and Kurt Angle both talk about their history together, and about Frank Mir, Lesnar's first UFC opponent this Saturday night on the UFC PPV.

There's an article on Yahoo by Dave Meltzer about Lesnar here. Am I the only one who finds it disconcerting that celebrated wrestling reporter Meltzer constantly refers to Brock as a fake wrestler? What does that say about the supporters of wrestling? I know it's staged, but fake is not the proper word to use in my estimation. Fixed would be more appropriate in sporting terms, as that still implies the pain is real, as it is.

Now, to be fair, it may not be Meltzer, per se, using the term "fake", but rather the title Yahoo puts on it in advertising it, I don't know. It still rubs me the wrong way though.

According to Matt Hardy's MySpace page, he's recovering nicely from the emergency appendectomy.

Booker T's wrestling school is offering a free scholarship to one lucky star between now and April 15th. Check the info out here.

And that'll do it for now. Sorry for the lack of interesting stuff today, though I hope you read something that interests you.

Ding, Ding.

Smackdown/No Way Out SPOILER

2008-01-30T11:08:00.000-05:00

Okay, I don't generally read spoilers of the shows or PPVs because I like to be surprised, but when the article (linked to the title of this post) read "Two Big Matches Added to No Way Out At SD Tapings" I couldn't resist.

So... *SPOILER ALERT*

This is HUGE.

First, predictably, Edge will defend the title against Rey Mysterio in a Royal Rumble rematch. Ok, so that one's not huge, and we expected it, but the next one is a big surprise.

At No Way Out, we will have not one, but TWO Elimination Chamber matches! And both are for number one contenders spots at Wrestlemania.

That's right! Smackdown will also have an Elimination Chamber match, and it will include:
Batista, Undertaker, MVP, Finlay, The Great Khali and Big Daddy V.

That is going to be an interesting, if slower paced, Chamber match indeed.

And I must say that moving the Elimination Chamber match to the No Way Out event is genius. I mean, come on. NO WAY OUT. It just fits, y'know?

WWE Moving to... NBC?

2008-01-30T11:04:00.000-05:00

SE Scoops reported (see post title link for story) that due to the writers' strike, NBC is considering moving some of its cable programming, including Monday Night Raw, to it's network channel.

According to the article, NBC has been considering for some time bringing wrestling to NBC in more of a consistent schedule than the occasional Saturday Night's Main Event. And with the writers' strike still being unresolved, one would think this would be the perfect time to do so.

I'd be really curious to see how the ratings do on NBC personally. Not everyone has cable, believe it or not, so a lot of people who don't get to watch Raw every week would have that opportunity.

I guess only time will tell.

Chris Harris to WWE

2008-01-30T10:59:00.000-05:00

Former TNA wrestler Wildcat Chris Harris has officially signed with the WWE according to his website (linked to the title of this post). Here's a snippet of what he said:

Due to confidential negotiations, I have had to keep quiet for some time. I have read a number of wrestling sites reporting what they suspected was happening with me. I have had numerous calls from radio stations and internet sites and have answered none. Fans on the site and in person want to know. Truth is, I wanted to keep quiet until it was official. Yesterday evening, I signed a contract with the World Wrestling Entertainment.

He goes on to say that he won't say anything bad about TNA, and that he is grateful for all TNA gave him over the last five and a half years. But that he had lost a love for the business, and it was time for a change.

You gotta respect the way he handled himself in that statement if nothing else. Very classy. And while I'm not really a big Harris fan, I've gotta wish the home state boy luck and give him props. Hopefully the WWE will be able to find a good spot to best utilize Chris in. After all, he is a pretty big guy, and we know how much the WWE loves big guys.

ECW 1-29-08

2008-01-30T10:40:00.000-05:00

Last night's ECW was actually pretty good in my estimation. Most of the time, ECW is pretty stale by comparison, but there were some good matches last night.

Shelton Benjamin and Kane put on a surprisingly good show. I didn't really see these two as having good matches together, but then both are very skilled and unique, so I guess I just misjudged that. Benjamin is a very athletic individual, and of late his mic skills have really improved. And last night, he was in top form. The only thing I didn't like about the match was the ending, with Benjamin getting purposely counted out. I would have much rather have seen a clean finish, or even a DQ as opposed to that.

Kelly Kelly even had an impressive showing against one of the few women who can actually wrestle in the WWE, Victoria. I was pretty impressed with the match compared to the womens matches WWE usually put on.

Then there's Colon Delaney. Now, I talked about previously how I wasn't crazy about this gimmick, and how I felt it was almost a rip-off on the Shark Boy segments (and let me clarify, even though I did agree with Lance Storm on the angle of Shark Boy, I did still enjoy the Stone Cold thing as a one-off, if anyone thought I was contradicting myself). But last night, the Delaney angle started to grow on me. The video package showing his misfortune was pretty good and lessened the goofiness of the whole thing. And then in his match this week, against the tag champs Morrison and The Miz no less, he actually fought back... sort of. And then Dreamer comes to his rescue afterwards, so I can see they are actually building to something here.

Kofi Kingston had a much better outing this week as his opponent this time around didn't botch anything up. Kofi is unique, athletic and has a lot of personality. I really hope he goes far and continues to grow. And for some reason, I'd love to see a Kofi/Carlito feud down the line. Maybe it's the whole Jamaica/ Caribbean thing?

And we also saw the return of Elijah Burke to television in a bout against former ECW champ CM Punk. These two have fought many times before, and this match wasn't their best. But Burke, in my opinion, showed why he should be on TV over some other bad booking in previous weeks.

ECW has a lot of talented, young guys they need to continue to push. I sincerely believe the guys in ECW are part of the future of the WWE, and it looks like they're finally starting to treat them as such.

Then we come to the end of the show and Chavo's celebration fiesta. Edge and Vickie couldn't be there because of Mysterio's inadvertent shot on Vickie at the Royal Rumble, but they prepared a video package on Chavo, voiced by Bobby Heenan of all people talking about the talents of the Guerrero family (obviously from old WCW broadcasts). Now, behind Chavo was a Mariachi band, and it was pretty obvious the biggest guy with his back to the camera was going to be CM Punk. And it was, and he turned around and crashed a guitar over Chavo's head, saving us from one of the worst talkers in the biz. In fact, the only thing worse than Chavo on the mic is his dancing last night.

So, overally it was a good show. Some missteps here and there, but better than it has been. Hopefully they'll continue that trend.

Lance Storm on TNA

2008-01-29T14:43:00.000-05:00

Lance Storm has a couple of posts on his website talking about what is wrong with TNA right now. And while I am a fan of TNA, I do have to agree with a lot of what he's saying.

Check out his TNA in general post here. And check out his post on Shark Boy here.

TNA has tons of great performers including some of the WWE's former finest and some superstars in the making. There is no reason TNA should become, as many are referring to it of late, WWE light. They have far too much talent to go that route.

I can't express enough how much I enjoy the in ring skills of the TNA stars over the WWE's, but recently the WWE has been stepping up their game in that and other areas. TNA needs to remember that it got a following because it was different, and that just because it's got that two-hour slot that it doesn't have to compete with WWE at this stage. They instead need to focus on making their product the best it can be.

What Storm says about the drastic differences between Impact and Global Impact, I couldn't agree more. TNA has it in them to be a top show with a very different offering, but it's almost as if they're afraid to take that chance since getting the TV spot.

New Posters

2008-01-29T05:46:00.000-05:00

Two new posters have been revealed, one from WWE and one from TNA.

First is the TNA poster for this year's Destination X:

"Are you afraid of heights? Are you scared of falling? Over two stories high… Over two tons in mass… It is the ultimate test in TNA Wrestling! Prepare yourself as Elevation X makes its return to Pay-per-View Who will fall and who will stand tall? TNA Wrestling presents Destination X Live! Sunday, March 9th on Pay-per-View."

With the MCMG on the poster and the description talking about Elevation X, it makes one wonder if we're going to see a tag match on the scaffold?

Next up is the poster for Wrestlemania XXIV:

"WrestleMania 24, the biggest pay-per-view spectacular of the year, invades the Citrus Bowl in Orlando, FL. Tune in to see John Cena, Triple H, Chris Jericho, Randy Orton, Batista, Undertaker, Edge, Rey Mysterio, Ric Flair, Jeff Hardy, Shawn Michaels, and all your favorite Superstars clash in epic battles. WrestleMania 24. Sunday, March 30th, live at 7pm ET/4pm PT, only on Pay-Per-View. Available in HD."

Not the greatest Wrestlemania poster I've ever seen, and not very telling at all, but pretty much in line with past ones. Though, it looks more like a Summerslam poster due to the Orlando setting.

Raw 1-28-08

2008-01-28T23:19:00.000-05:00

Well, WWE changed things up again it seems as they revealed three big matches for No Way Out.

The episode opened, predictably with John Cena coming to the ring and talking about his injury, how good it is to be back and hear the "Cena Sucks" chants, blah, blah, blah. He then reveals he wants to use his Wrestlemania title match tonight. Orton comes out, and denies him, but says he'll face him at No Way Out. So the main event is set with Cena vs Orton for the strap.

Of course, that leaves the number one contender spot vacant at Wrestlemania. So Regal has the idea of putting contenders in the Elimination Chamber and the winner facing the winner of the Cena/Orton match at Wrestlemania. And the participants are: Umaga, Shawn Michaels, Chris Jericho, JBL, Jeff Hardy and Triple H.

So what of Mr. Kennedy? Well, he'll be facing Ric Flar in yet another career threatening match. That should actually be a pretty good match, though, as will the Chamber match.

The only other highlight of Raw tonight was another DX reunion as the duo, who will face each other in the Elimination Chamber, teamed up to take on Umaga and Snitsky in a decent showing. Of course they won, but the "monsters" gave them a good fight, all things considered.

The rest of Raw was filled with average matches (Cody Rhodes vs Carlito, Maria vs Melina, Beth Phoenix and Jillian Hall vs Mickie James and Ashley...)

Then the main event came around, which saw Jericho teaming up with Jeff Hardy to take on the team of JBL and Orton. Earlier in the night the two had an exchange stating they would have each others' backs tonight, but Wrestlemania would be different if they met. But tonight, JBL would take care of Jericho, and Orton would handle Hardy. And if Cena, who said he was going to get some tonight, showed up, they'd both take care of him.

The match was a strong showing with a nice flow of control between the two teams, and since most of you probably saw it, I won't bore you with the play-by-play. Suffice it to say, in the end, with the referee distracted, Orton hit the RKO on Jericho as he was holding the Walls of Jericho on JBL for the win. Then Cena comes out, and JBL takes a powder leaving Orton to take an FU as the show goes off the air.

Not the best episode of Raw, but Raw rarely is great the day following a Pay-Per-View. I almost think they plan it that way so that then pay events seem more spectacular.

I like what they've done with the No Way Out card, though. It's a slight twist on things, and because of the way it could play out now, it still leaves the possibility of an Orton/HHH match at Wrestlemania. Unlikely, but possible. It could, however, be another HHH/Cena match up, though I don't think that will be the case.

I guess we'll just have to wait and see.

No Way Out

2008-01-28T13:29:00.000-05:00

Not much to talk about on this one yet since it's a month away and no matches are made, but the WWE subsite for it is up (click the title of this post to find it), so...

First thing to talk about is the obvious innuendo in the image featured on the subsite, as seen below:

If you can't make it out, Jeff Hardy is under water in the Elimination Chamber, the main event match that used to be showcased at the early January PPV, New Years Revolution. In it, 4 men are placed in chambers while two men start. Every so often (If I recall correctly, the first period is 5 minutes, then every period afterwards is 2 minutes) a chamber will open and another participant joins the fray. The 6 men battle eliminating each other by pinfall or submission until one man is left. This match has always been over a world title, so it's safe to say the WWE title will be at stake, more than likely.

One can only hope that since Jeff Hardy is featured in the image in the chamber that he will be part of the match. And of course Randy Orton would have to be a participant. But who will the other participants be?

Well, smart money would definitely say Triple H would be included. And in light of the events of the Royal Rumble, John Cena would also be a good guess. Which leaves the final two participants.

Shawn Michaels is always a possibility, and unless there's an inter-brand match between he and Taker at No Way Out, then I'd put HBK and Mr. Kennedy in the chamber.

If there is, however, an HBK/Taker match then that presents a challenge. Would Kennedy still be in it? And who would the other superstar be? Feel free to speculate in the comments section!

This information will all become clearer over the next few weeks of course, and I'll be posting about it all right here.

As for Cena being in the Chamber, I'm not sure how that will play out. I can't imagine him not being in it, but then why does he get a shot at Orton in the Chamber and at Wrestlemania? Maybe he won't be in the chamber, which then just adds another question mark to the participants.

It's pretty obvious as it stands it will be Cena/Orton at Wrestlemania, so if Cena's in the Chamber he could come out with the strap and rematch Orton at WM. If Cena's not in the match, Orton probably walks away from the chamber with the strap.

Now, since Big Show did not come back last night, I suppose it's possible that he could come back and be in the Chamber.

This could just play out so many ways, and it's too early to tell at this point. Maybe tonight's Raw will shed some light.

See you after the show!

Royal Rumble Results

2008-01-28T09:43:00.000-05:00

*SPOILER ALERT* If you haven't seen the event yet, or are waiting for the results on Raw tonight, don't read the rest of this post.

The 21st Royal Rumble was full of surprises, and great matches. Madison Square Garden is the mecca of sporting events with a lot of history being made there. And the crowd was hyped from start to finish, which always makes it more enjoyable to watch. I'd have to give it a 7.5 out of 10 overall. It would have been a bit higher if not for a couple of disappointments (which I'll discuss in a bit) throughout the night.

RIC FLAIR vs MVP
"To be the man, you've got to beat the man". Well, MVP is not the man because he didn't get the job done. As I figured, this match was up first, and it was a back and forth contest that was sure to excite fans of both athletes. Flair came out first talking about how his first match took place there in the Garden in March of 1976 (1 year before I was born), and then continued to thank the fans before being interrupted by MVP's music. The match from there, as I said, was back and forth. MVP would get the upper hand, then Flair would counter and get MVP in trouble. A few times Flair went for the figure four, but MVP managed to escape. Then MVP thought he had it all won as the referee counted three, but then realized Flair's foot was on the ropes, so he restarted the match. After a short exchange, MVP went for the Playmaker, and Flair countered it into the Figure Four resulting in MVP tapping out. Flair is safe for another day.

The way the match ended was controversial, so don't expect this feud to be over anytime soon. Both men put on a great showing for what little time they had, though Flair looked completely gassed halfway through the match. I think age is catching up with ol' Naytch. But he still knows how to entertain, and it was a magical, emotional moment as he stood in the center of that ring, tears rolling down his face, victorious. He did not go on to enter the Rumble as many (included myself) thought he might, and I'm kind of glad, because that would have signaled the ending of the Rumble from the get-go.

That's on prediction of mine that came true.

JBL vs CHRIS JERICHO
Jericho comes out first, and he's looking like the old Jericho with the determination on his face. He's sporting some new tights for the first time since his debut (Jericho was always known for wearing many different pairs of tights even before it was acceptable to do so). JBL then followed, on foot, and had a strange look on his face. The two stared down in the ring, with JBL looking something in between indifferent and disgusted. Jericho was ready to go at JBL, but JBL was either hesitant or trying to get under Jericho's skin. (And as a sidenote, JBL was in a little better shape than we've seen him in for the past few weeks). Once things got going Jericho was a house of fire. JBL got on top of things a couple of times, but Jericho kept fighting back fiercely. Then it went to the outside. Jericho had been busted open a little earlier when his head struck the turnbuckle, so he had the crimson streaming all over his body profusely. JBL thought he had Jericho in his sights, but as JBL went after Jericho on the outside he turned right into one vicious chair shot full on the head, causing the DQ. Jericho then proceeded to wrap a cable around JBL's throat, toss him in the ring, and then hang him from outside the ring by standing on the ECW announce table and pulling as hard as he could. But JBL wins the match.

Despite a little botched move, which the crowd intensely booed, this match was far better than I thought it would be. They did with it what they've done with the Hardy/Orton feud for the past few weeks. They made it personal and made it into more than just a match. My money's still on a rematch at No Way Out for these two.

Another prediction sort of comes true for yours truly.

EDGE vs REY MYSTERIO - WORLD HEAVYWEIGHT TITLE MATCH
Edge comes out to the ring followed by Vickie Guerrero and then Ryder and Hawkins. They're on top of the world feeling like they've got this thing in the bag. Then Mysterio comes out to a popped crowd and the match gets underway. Not too long into it, Rey finds himself on the outside about to get attacked by the Edge Heads when the referee catches them and removes them from ringside. So the odds have now been evened as Chavo is nowhere in sight, and does not appear for the entire match surprisingly. Instead, we see an even back and forth match between the two former tag team champions. Edge shows why he's the champ, countering some of Rey's signature moves and highflying risk taking moves. But Rey uses some new tricks, like belly sliding out of the ring landing in a DDT on Edge. But even without the Edge Heads and Chavo, the numbers were still against Rey as Vickie "miraculously" rises from the wheelchair as Rey's about to go for the 619, and throws herself into harms way, taking the blow for Edge. Rey hesitates before doing the follow up West Coast Pop to check on Vickie. This pause cost him as Edge catches Rey from the top rope in a spear for the 1-2-3.

While I was surprised by Chavo's absence a little, this match played out as expected. Both Rey and Edge are tremendous athletes, and they put on a great showing. These two are exciting to watch together, and I don't see this being over just yet. But because of Vickie's interference, Edge is still champ, which means...

Chalk up another prediction come true for me.

Now here comes disappointment number one. Instead of making the previous three matches (which only took up one hour of time) last a little longer, or adding a match (maybe the ECW title), what we are inundated with is 25 minutes of filler programming. If it's not backstage promos with McMahon and Hornswaggle, it's Flair, HHH, Batista and Michaels together, or it's Maria coming out to do a Kiss Cam. Then we have New York native Ashley come out and tell Maria the Hef is interested in having her pose for Playboy, which incites Santino Morella to come out and provide Ashley with dancing fat guy for some strange reason. Then we have former American Gladiator (the original series) announcer Mike Adamle announce the video packages for Hardy and Orton. Aside from calling Hardy Harvey, he did okay. And the packages, as I mentioned in another thread, were very nicely done.

Anyway...

RANDY ORTON vs JEFF HARDY - WWE CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH
This was, for all things considered, a pretty good match, but not what I expected, and not what we should have gotten. In fairness, it was a good match, and it took the action back to the mat. But it wasn't the mayhem that I thought we'd see. At any rate, the match started intensely with a power for struggle and some shoves from Hardy. Orton was frustrated, but when he got control his cockiness returned. But Hardy battled back strongly staying on top more than usual and showing Orton he's for real. One move, where Orton was on the floor and Hardy in the ring dropkicking him, had Orton fly into the barricade and it looked pretty intense. The tide changed for a while, but Orton regained control. It was back and forth like this until the end when Jeff went on a roll and hit all his signature moves. Then it happened. Hardy went for the Twist of Fate, and Orton countered it with the RKO for a CLEAN pinfall finish.

While they didn't take it to the extreme so to speak, these two put on one heck of a wrestling match, which surprisingly ended with no controversy. Orton came out on top, clean. And that served to solidify both of these guys as top performers in my estimation.

I predicted Orton would win, but I predicted he'd win by cheating, so I got half of this one.

THE ROYAL RUMBLE MATCH
Instead of having the voice of the Rumble announce it, the WWE brought in famous announcer Michael Buffer with his signature, and appropriate, "Let's get ready to RRRRRUMMMBBBLLLE". From there we get introduced to the number one and number two entrants. Number 1? The Undertaker! Number 2? Shawn Michaels! For those that don't recall, these two were the last two men in last year's Rumble, which the Undertaker won. So having these two start out was pretty cool. There's such a history between the two, going back to the original DX days and the first Hell in a Cell and so on. The next entrant was Santino, who swiftly got superkicked and then tossed out by Taker. At every chance he got, though, Michaels would attack Taker and try to eliminate him throughout the night, and they both lasted for quite a while.

There were a lot of cool exchanges in the Rumble, and a lot of the young guys were shining and going toe-to-toe with the big names. It was star-studded and one of the best as far as the competitors involved in the history of the Rumble. And one exchange was magical and sad at the same time. As we know, there were 5 spots open that we didn't know who occupied them. Two of them, we found out, were claimed by Jimmy Superfly Snuka and a very robust Rowdy Roddy Piper. The entire Rumble came to a halt as these two squared off, and continued to fight until Kane came in and tossed them both out in one shot. But it was a magical moment with their history (see Piper's Pit) and the venue (Snuka's Cage leap, Wrestlemania 1). But kind of sad because they both looked pretty awful.

Moving on, Hornswaggle stayed under the ring helping to eliminate people as he could until he tried to pull out Mark Henry. Henry and Big Daddy V then got a hold of him and Finlay, who was next apparently (at the magic number of 27) came out early with shelalie in hand, and proceeded to bust everybody up with it before grabbing Hornswaggle and leaving the arena. We're told he was disqualified for using the weapon, and I guess Hornswaggle was too, I don't know. Taker was eliminated by Sweet Chin Music, then HBK was promptly tossed out by Mr. Kennedy. Then HBK made a run for it to avoid Taker's wrath. Instead, he took it out on Snitsky and the Smackdown announce table.

Number 29 was Triple H, who entered in a whirlwind eliminating four superstars immediately. Still in the ring were Chavo (who was another surprise entrant, as was Elijah Burke, who didn't last long), Kane, Batista, Mark Henry, Carlito, Mr. Kennedy and Umaga. There was only one entry left, which I (and apparently people backstage at the event as well) thought would be filled by a returning Big Show. Instead, disappointment number two comes in the form of a guy who recently said he wouldn't be at Wrestlemania, the also returning John Cena. It was at that moment, when his music hit, that I knew my prediction of HHH winning was wrong.

Time stands still as Triple H stands in the ring in disbelief as Cena enters to a popped crowd (that quickly changed). Cena entered and eliminated three guys instantly, then HHH and Cena went at it. When all was said and done, there were three men left - three favorites - HHH, Cena and Batista. The three stared each other down for a minute, and then Batista gave the thumbs down. Cena retaliated with the "You can't see me", followed by Triple H's crotch chop as the three began to brawl. Batista got the upper hand for a minute, but was then eliminated leaving only Cena and HHH. The two went back and forth with teased FUs and Pedigrees all over the place. Then finally HHH went for a final Pedigree only to be countered into an FU tossing HHH over the rope as Cena takes the win.

Yep, I was close with HHH, and even my top four weren't that far off. But I did not expect Cena at all. So Cena will most likely go to Wrestlemania to face Orton, who "put him out" earlier in the year.

4 out of 5 ain't bad.

Like I said, overall it was a great Rumble - just a couple of disappointments mixed in with all the high points. But WWE did a great job at returning this event to its former glory in my estimation over the past three or four years, and this year was no different.

Can't wait to see how everything unfolds on Raw tonight.