Professional Wrestling [Archive] - Page 2

Pharaoh

03-22-2009, 12:52 AM

There used to be various titles in the WWF/WWE, like the Heaviweight, U.S., Intercontinental, and I believe Cruiserweight (though i could be wrong). Now, the titles mean nothing. WHAT IS the Intercontinental title? Why does it exist? The U.S. title? OK... so what?

Make those titles relate to something, and there'll be more value placed upon the respective champions.

The lesser titles are not hyped anymore because the business has changed. Back in the day if a promotion thought you had "World Title" potential they gave you a decent run (or runs) with the lesser title. You fought former World Champs, veteran guys that the crowd knew and respected and you won! They put you over. If your run with the lesser title was a success at the box office (in-ring ability isn't everything) you were elevated to the World Title.

At least that's how the NWA/WCW did it - which is why Ric Flair has so many title reigns. He was the guy that elevated you. Sometimes the elevation paid off (Sting/Lex Luger), sometimes it didn't (Ron Garvin).

Today the business doesn't work that way. No one gives a fuck that Shelton Benjamin has been US Champ for ages (and if WWE had made a big deal out of his reign MVP's recent win would have seemed more special, but that's a long tangent that I don't wanna type).

Today the TV shows are all about hyping PPV's and getting a good quarter hour rating so that they can bring in more ad money. That's why a guy like Benjamin doesn't get much TV time (dude is shit on the stick, but can be awesome in the ring. No mic time = who the fuck are you?)

I don't see the day coming when the IC, US and Tag titles mean a great deal. I'm sure there are people behind the scenes that claim that if the IC and US Championships are highly valued then that "de-values" the World Titles. I have a different opinion, but I can see both sides of the debate.

As far as Morgan goes, there's a lot of personal shit that weighs heavily upon who succeeds and who doesn't (Pharaohs posts detail quite a bit of this). Maybe Morgan has an issue with helping wrestlers get over with the crowd (a Hogan problem). Maybe Morgan doesn't have the kind of personality that'll work well as either a headline face OR heel. Or, maybe TNA are a Bunch of Punks® who couldn't tell a solid angle if a million fans screamed in their redneck ears "Hey! We want this guy!!"

I have yet to read or hear of any backstage shit fucking with Matt Morgan. I have read that Kurt Angle thinks Morgan has the potential to be a "featured attraction in this business. That means he'll be so over he doesn't need the belt".

What Angle is saying is that like Triple H, Undertaker, Shawn Michaels etc Morgan can be one of those guys that fans just respond to. He doesn't need to be elevated (in Angle's opinion).

Morgan's problem in TNA is that he is a lot bigger than their real talent (when I say real talent I mean guys like Angle and Styles - smaller than the average WWE guy). This means that if Morgan has an even match with most of them he looks weak.

That's why WWE likes to have only bigger guys in the Main Events - Look at Cena, HHH, Orton, Taker, Batista etc - a guy the size of Rey Mysterio or CM Punk can't really beat them in an even match because it would make the bigger guy appear weak.

The solution for TNA and WWE is to copy a little bit of what Ring of Honor has done - make the "sporting" aspect of wrestling more of a feature. That way a guy who can actually wrestle (like Punk or Benjmain) would not make Batista look weak if they win - because they won due to their superior "technical" skills.

Morgan hasn't really been presented on TV (that I saw) with a personality that people can relate to or connect with. Now that he's a heel it should be easier to make him hated by the masses, but simply beating the crap out of Abyss and slamming him onto tacks isn't enough. He's gotta cut a killer promo where he explains why he's the baddest motherfucker on the planet, what he intends to do to his victims and why he's gonna wreck shop and win the title.

I firmly believe that I could write a 6 month outline that culminates with Morgan winning the title with little to no thought. That said the guys in Creative (lmao) at TNA are a bunch of punks and could not book a long-term angle to promote Samoa Joe and AJ Styles.

I seriously doubt they could book Morgan effectively for 3 weeks in a row and his hopes of winning the World Title in TNA within 5 years depend on Dixie Carter waking up from her fucking slumper and hiring Gabe Sapolsky or Paul Heyman or both.

Maybe he could jump to WWE - a guy that big will always be welcomed by Vince, especially now that it's obvious Morgan can wrestle a bit

DennyMcLain

03-22-2009, 02:56 PM

The solution for TNA and WWE is to copy a little bit of what Ring of Honor has done - make the "sporting" aspect of wrestling more of a feature. That way a guy who can actually wrestle (like Punk or Benjmain) would not make Batista look weak if they win - because they won due to their superior "technical" skills.

They had that for a while with Angle, and recently with Mysterio. I simply think:

a) they couldn't be champion for too long, it would be too unbelievable

b) their bodies probably wouldn't be able to take the week by week abuse
of continuously battling bigger opponents... scripted or not.

c) the fans would rather see Kane vs. Morgan than Punk vs. Styles.

I agree with your earlier assesment. the WWE may realign Smackdown to how it was before, a large contigent of cruiserweight wrestlers with a few big boys mixed in, and get the heavy hardware to Raw.

In fact, if Raw and Smackdown WERE different brands, rather than divisions of one brand, then it would be a perfect scenario for Matt Morgan to come on to the lighter Smackdown roster and positively lay waste. Smackdown would try to land a trade with Raw and try to get a big man, in which Raw would basically tell them to fuck off.

This would ignite a Raw vs. Smackdown war (Alliance vs. WWF all over again), with the general managers ordering their stables to infiltrate each others shows and cause havoc.

This could culminate in a PPV which is solely Raw vs. Smackdown in every match. The overall winner of the PPV would win the war, and everything would be settled.

That is, until the final heavyweight match is the tie-breaker, and one of the brands cheats to win....

Pharaoh

03-23-2009, 08:33 AM

Here comes another essay:

See how easy it is - Denny is not a diehard wrestling fan that knows the inner workings of the business like the back of his hand...

And he can write a fucking outline for a 12 month angle in 30 fucking seconds!

And Morgan laying waste to lots of jobbers is exactly what I would do to get him over. It's the done thing - Goldberg, Brock Lesnar - shit, WWE does it with every big guy they bring in. You do that for a month or 2, with Morgan taking the mic after each squash and demanding better opponents until just before a PPV someone in the upper mid card comes out (someone on the Booker T/Matt Hardy level) and accepts the challenge. (this plants a seed for a future feud)

Morgan gets rocked a few times in their PPV match, but nothing serious before he smashes them too.

Then as the PPV main event is about to reach the climax Morgan would come out, smash the good guy and allow the heel to win the belt. On the next TV show you have a ready made battle between Morgan and your former World Champion Good Guy.

That battle could last 3 months, with Morgan being the big time villan (attacks backstage, in parking lots, interfering in the good guys matches on TV, cutting kick ass promos). The battle would be more of an even fight in the ring but this would be the big test for Morgan - if fans seriously fucking hated him near the end of the 3 months you would use your former World Champ to elevate him (top guy losing convincingly) and if the reaction was not there Morgan would have to do the job (lose to the good guy) and settle back into the middle of the pack for a while before you tried it again.

The difference between him being elevated each time would simply come down to mic skills and the message he was sending on the stick. That's why being able to talk does matter. Shelton Benjamin is awesome in the ring but can't fucking use the stick to save his life so he stays in the middle of the pack. Sorry man, you're quality - but such is life.

And Denny - the reason the Angle reign didn't really work is because of the bullshit storylines that go with the top spot. If Angle v Batista was built more like a MMA match-up (different strengths/weaknesses of each pointed out by commentators) then the tension is there. Both men have certain abilities that allow you as a writer to book that battle well (Angle as the chicken shit heel talking up his technical skills while Batista is the big powerhouse just dying to get his hands on the smart ass that always attacks while his back is turned before bailing)

The pay off? (and this is the proven formula for heel champions)

Batista and Angle #1 - Angle cheats to pin Batista. It has to be as tainted as you can get without it being obvious the ref is fucking blind.

Batista and Angle #2 - Angle gets himself disqualified or counted out - he can't handle Batista.

Batista and Angle #3 - either is a stipulation match (No Holds Barred, No DQ/No Countout, Cage etc) or a straight up match. I would go with a straight up match - Batista wins the title but suffers a beatdown afterwards.

Batista and Angle #4 - this time it is a stipulation match. I'd book Batista to challenge Angle to an I Quit match (and I'd make everyone think Angle had the advantage due to his superior technical skills). Batista would kick his fucking ass. Angle would be beaten bloody.

Now, here's the kicker - you (as writer) don't have to make Angle say "I Quit". You can have him pass out from the pain of some move or you can have him actually tap. You don't need him to utter the words.

Which option you choose can change the way Angle is viewed as a character and can change future shows in many ways but I can't continue on this long ass tangent cause it really is never ending so:

In my scenario Angle would pass out from the pain and not tap or say I Quit. On the next TV show Batista would give Angle props for his courage and he'd ask Angle to come down to the ring - sign of respect as 2 warriors exchange a hand shake. To explain why Batista forgives the earlier attacks from behind you can have him (or the commentator) say "Angle made him a better wrestler with all those tactics or some such shit. Angle would come down and then Batista would fucking lay waste to him. I mean seriously fucking slaughter him. 3 spinebusters and 2 Batista Bombs kind of shit. No chairs or any of that shit though.

Batista explains his actions by saying he hasn't forgiven or forgotten all the shit Angle did. Angle is a coward blah blah blah. Then the next week you team Batista with the next biggest good guy and his brutal assault is forgiven

I'd take Angle off TV for a little while before either bringing him back as a good guy (time away led to change of heart) or bring him back wanting revenge on Batista.

BTW, the whole "sporting aspect" thing would really work if the entire federation/company was booked that way. Wrestling might be fake but if you take out as much of the "fakeness" as you can you will appeal to the both the wrestling and MMA fan.

MMA fans don't wanna see that ground and pound shit - they wanna see pro wrestling that doesn't look fake. Pro wrestling fans want to believe - they wanna see something almost real. The death defying high spots takes you out of the moment.

If a company could successfully merge the 2 that company would kick ass and would reach out to millions ... and millions of fans worldwide.

That's why ECW was so fucking popular. They weren't just hardcore garbage fights. They made cruiserweights popular. They had wrestling matches that were hot shit. They had Rob Van Dam, Shane Douglas, Chris Benoit, Eddie Guerrero, Dean Malenko, Rey Mysterio in the same company at the same time (Chris Jericho arrived after Malenko, Benoit, Eddie had left)!

And Paul Heyman and his team knew what the fuck they were doing but didn;t have enough cash

kdawg32086

03-24-2009, 12:19 AM

Why does Jeff Hardy look like a clown? He just looks retarded.

Pharaoh

03-24-2009, 07:52 AM

Because WWE creative is fucking stupid.

Everybody knows that facial expressions are essential in connecting with the audience. That's why Eric Bischoff forced Rey Mysterio to lose his mask in WCW. There are movies with actors laying in bed for half of it and you connect with that actor (Bone Collector - Denzel in bed for 99% of the fucking flick but you understand him, respect him, connect with him, care about him when he's about to get killed).

So what does WWE do? They paint Hardy's face so badly that you can't really see his expressions. I understand that Hardy isn't the greatest actor (and his mic skills are not where they should be) but they are actually hurting his character by painting his face.

Maybe it was done because Hardy just couldn't make the transition that his character required?

In the beginning of his feud with "brother" Matt young Jeff played the "I don't wanna fight my brother, even though he fucked me over" guy.

Then he had to play the "I'm turning the other cheek - that automatically makes me the good guy" character.

Now he's gone into the "Fuck you Matt - I done run out of cheeks. At Mania I'm gonna kick your ass" mode.

There is no way Jeff Hardy can switch it up. In his defense not many wrestlers can. They just don't know how to do subtle. That era is over. Chris Jericho and guys his age are pretty much the last generation that came up through the old territory system.

That will have a giant impact on the business in the next 5 to 10 years, I guarantee it. Today it's very rare for a wrestler to make an impact in WWE because they are all trained through the same system by the same few guys. They are creating wrestler rebots IMO (that opinion is shared by many).

The only guys that stand out are:

Jack Swagger - big guy with some skills
Ted DiBiase Jr/Cody Rhodes - having Hall of Fame fathers helps
Evan Bourne - worked through the indys and can do a shooting star press!
CM Punk - worked through the indys and is the closest thing to current trends that WWE has.

Morrison/Miz are good too but Miz came up through the development system WWE has now. It took him years to overcome that problem and it took Morrison to bring him up a ton of notches to the point that Miz was worth having on the roster.

Everyone else (I might have missed some people) is a "vanilla midget"

LMAO - that's an inside joke that I just realised no one will get. The term vanilla midget is what Kevin Nash and his buddies use to describe what is essentially a cruiserweight - no character, no tv time, bland, can be replaced with a similar midget and no one will care.

Nash was proven wrong by Benoit, Jericho and Eddie Guerrero (yes, Nash and his crew called them vanilla midgets) so maybe the guys I forgot about in WWE can prove me wrong too.

I seriously doubt we'll see another Jericho or Benoit again though - they are/were the shit IMO.

DennyMcLain

03-24-2009, 02:58 PM

Everybody knows that facial expressions are essential in connecting with the audience. That's why Eric Bischoff forced Rey Mysterio to lose his mask in WCW. There are movies with actors laying in bed for half of it and you connect with that actor (Bone Collector - Denzel in bed for 99% of the fucking flick but you understand him, respect him, connect with him, care about him when he's about to get killed).

Sting?

Darth Thanatos

03-24-2009, 11:16 PM

Sting was from a generation where none of that shit mattered, so he kind of got grandfather'd in.

DennyMcLain

03-24-2009, 11:18 PM

Sting was from a generation where none of that shit mattered, so he kind of got grandfather'd in.

He IS a grandfather.

Pharaoh

03-26-2009, 10:19 AM

Sting wearing facepaint doesn't just suit his character - it is his character.

Same goes for Mysterio and the mask (which is why he wears it in WWE)

It's like the Undertaker - his short and sweet promos, his slow entrance, his pale face all add a lot to his gimmick.

Imagine Sting wrestling without paint - he's just a regular dude. I understand why TNA want him to be "normal" in interviews but they are ruining shit by having him in paint sometimes and being "normal" at others. It drives home the "fakeness".

Either be the character all the time on TV or be "normal" - don't switch back and forth between personas. It does more damage to the business than Tough Enough/Rough Cut ever could.

Pharaoh

04-04-2009, 10:01 AM

Obviously everyone is excited about Wrestlemania XXV lmao

The event has had one of the worst build ups I can remember, but here is the card for you to discuss or comment if you care:

Edge v John Cena v Big Show for World Title

Triple H v Randy Orton for World Title (there are 2 Worlds lol)

Miz/Morrison v Carlito and Primo Colon (both teams are Tag Champs)

JBL v Rey Mysterio IC Title

Benjamin, Kane, Henry, Christian, MVP, Punk in Money in the Bank

Matt Hardy v Jeff Hardy

25 Diva Battle Royal (watch out for Gail Kim)

and the match everyone wants to see:

Chris Jericho v Mickey Rourke... ummm, no it's off
Chris Jericho v Hulk Hogan ..... umm, not happening
Chris Jericho v Ric Flair........ umm, no
Chris Jericho v Randy Savage ........ um never
Chris Jericho v Mick Foley ........ um not now
Chris Jericho v Rick Steamboat .... YES, but 2 other old bums will team with Steamboat to ensure that Jericho never, ever, EEEEEEEEEEEVER really gets insanely over with the crowd.

This match should have been Jericho's crowning glory (fuck the stupid title belts, this was the money match) but instead has been completely fucked up by the creative team that Jericho will have to try and save the day in the ring, just like he has on the mic for the past few weeks.

But that's cool - cause Jericho has been saving WWE creative for a long fucking time - simply because he's a loyal hardcore WWE fan and company AND the best fucking heel in the business today.

Pharaoh

04-06-2009, 08:06 AM

Well, WrestleMania was today and obviously you guys were hyped.

Here's the report in 2 part, cause I tried it once and it fucked up

-- PRIMO & CARLITO beat MIZ & JOHN MORRISON to unify the World and WWE Tag Team Titles. Disappointing that this didn't air on the PPV show. This was my pick as a sleeper match of the night, but having the tag titles unified and not even air it on the main PPV card really shows where the tag titles fit in WWE's list of priorities.

-A really cool video montage opened the event with various wrestlers on the roster picking their favorite WrestleMania moment and match. Hogan-Andre, Michaels-Razor, Owen-Bret, and other obvious picks by a variety of wrestlers.

-After Nicole Scherzinger sang "America the Beautiful," Jim Ross introduced the show. Michael Cole then took over and spoke about the Money in the Bank ladder match. He introduced Jerry Lawler, rounding out what appears is going to be a three-man announce team. Not sure about this. If Ross and Cole trade off doing the play-by-play each match with the other offering supporting comments and questions, that's fine. If they try to share play-by-play all night, that could be messy.

1 -- C.M. PUNK vs. MARK HENRY (w/Tony Atlas) vs. M.V.P. vs. FINLAY (w/Hornswoggle) vs. SHELTON BENJAMIN vs. KOFI KINGSTON vs. CHRISTIAN vs. KANE -- Money in the Bank Ladder match

The order of entry is reflected in the above line listing the competitors. The bell rang and everyone went at it, most of them ending up at ringside as Kane battled Mark Henry. As Shelton and Christian held onto a ladder, Kofi dropkicked it into both of them, then legdropped the ladder in a move that, with a basic understanding physics, was going to hurt Kofi much more than Christian and Shelton who were under it on either end. Finlay was about to climb the ladder when Kane kicked him in the face. Kane and Henry climbed the ladder. The rest of the wrestlers ran into the ring and yanked them down. Shelton, Punk, MVP, Kofi, and Finlay climbed two side-by-side ladders. Henry and Kane knocked them over. Kane then gave Henry a big boot, then threw one of the ladders out of the ring. When Kane climbed the ladder, Henry recovered and knocked the ladder over. Kane took a cautious bump onto the top rope. When Finlay entered the ring Henry threw the ladder at him. The ladder flew to ringside and almost hit the announcers. Finlay dove through the ropes onto Kane and Shelton. Christian then leaped from inside the ring onto both Kane and Finlay at ringside. I half expected a commercial break at this point.

MVP stood on the ring apron and played to the crowd, then flip dove onto Kane, Finlay, and Christian. Kofi and Punk squared off in the ring. They agreed to work together and hit the wrestlers on the floor with stereo shoulder tackles. Shelton climbed a ladder at ringside - the jumbo-sized one - and then flip dove onto the crowd of wrestlers on the floor. That prompted the first "holy sh--"! chant of the night. That was crazy looking. Henry then climbed the ropes. Before he could shock the world with a flip dive, Finlay hit him with a shillelagh. Hornswoggle used a small ladder to climb in the corner. Finlay then launched Hornswoggle off of the back of Henry onto the crowd of all other wrestlers on the floor. Finlay hit Henry with the step ladder. Finlay set up the ladder mid-ring. Kofi leaped into Finlay with a dropkick under the ladder, then knocked the ladder onto Finlay in the corner. Fans chanted "Kofi, Kofi." Finlay threw the step ladder into a flying Kofi. Punk re-entered the ring and went after Finlay. Finlay used a step ladder as a weapon to clear the ring and ring apron. He set up the taller ladder and began climbing it. Kofi knocked him down with a 360 degree roundhouse kick to the head.

Kofi climbed the ladder, but Henry tipped it over easily. Henry then set the ladder against the top rope, headbutted Kofi, and then set up the ladder. In a sweet spot, Kofi climbed the ladder before Henry could even set up it. He used Henry as the base for the ladder to hold it up. As he grasped toward the ladder, Henry shoved the ladder aside, caught Kofi and powerslammed him onto the lader. As Henry climbed the ladder, MVP hit him from behind with the ladder with a jab. MVP then stomped away at Henry and climbed the ladder. Shelton quickly stopped MVP. MVP went for a suplex on a ladder he bridged in the ring over the top rope. Shelton escaped and leaped off the ladder at MVP. MVP caught him and powerbombed him. The crowd chanted "MVP, MVP" as if it were Staples Center for a Laker game. Punk met MVP on the other side. Christian yanked MVP down. Punk kicked Christian away from him. Christian climbed the ladder behind Punk. Punk stood on the bridged ladder and set up a move. Christian escaped and gave Punk the Unprettier off the bridge. Christian sold it as much as Punk. It was a pretty awkward bump.

In the ring MVP climbed the ladder. Shelton climbed a ladder leaning against the ring at ringside, then moved to the bridged lader, and then went for a sunset flip on MVP off the ladder. That didn't go as expected as MVP held on too long and they fell backwards awkwardly. They were thankfully okay, and a "You f---ed up!" chant rang out from jerks in the crowd. Shelton then lifted MVP powerbomb style and tossed him onto several wrestlers at ringside. Finlay and Shelton climbed opposite sides of a ladder. Shelton knocked Finlay off the ladder and he bumped onto the bridged ladder. Christian yanked Shelton down and then unbridged the ladder and set it up next to another ladder for no logical reason strategically. Christian climbed the ladder that was set up. Shelton climbed the other. They battled on one ladder and it tipped over. Shelton fell to the floor as Christian landed on the top rope with hit foot, then pushed the ladder back upright. Cool spot. Punk leaped onto the ladder to try to stop Christian. Christian knocked him backwards and Punk hung from his ankle. Kane climbed a ladder and battled Christian. Kane sorta chokeslammed Christian off the ladder. He more so put his arm on his neck and Christian leaped off the ladder. Punk righted himself and grabbed the briefcase. Kane grabbed Punk's throat. Punk kicked himself free with a series of roundkicks, sending Kane to the floor. Punk then unfastened the briefcase to win it again!

WINNER: Punk in 14:00.

STAR RATING: ****1/4 -- Non-stop creative action with what could be considered a surprise outcome. Punk makes history as the first two-time winner. The crowd was in it all the way. The wrestlers really came through by making it new again with some creative spots. Not every spot was smooth, but I never hold that against wrestlers in a match where they're obviously being creative, as even if it were "real" mistakes would happen in the midst of exchanges between wrestlers. If it's too smooth, it looks more choreographed. That said, you don't want too many botched spots. In this case, they pulled off most of them, with good teases of the finish thrown in.

-They showed two minutes of highlights of the WWE Fan Axxess in Houston over the weekend.

-Kid Rock performed live on the entrance stage. He performed a medley of songs including "All Summer Long" which samples "Sweet Home Alabama" and Warren Zevon's "Werewolves of London." It was a big hit. He's enough of a showman and they had a cool set-up on stage that it was actually all right for a wrestling PPV. These usually bomb badly, but the crowd didn't overwhelm him with boos. Mostly cheers, in fact. Lawler said: "My favorite rock group is Mount Rushmore."

2 -- TWENTY-FIVE DIVA BATTLE ROYAL

They went right from Kid Rock to the bell ringing for this match. All of the women were already in the ring. Mae Young was the guest time keeper at ringside, with Candice Michelle sitting next to her. Rosa Mendez was the first eliminated. Women are eliminated if their feet hit the floor, whether or not they went over the top rope or through the ropes. Regarding May, Lawler said, "She remembers back when she was a beautiful diva. Then the meteor hit and the dinosaurs died." Molly Holly and Sunny were among the early eliminations. They flew to Houston for that? Santino was dressed in drag in the ring just avoiding any contact. The final five were Santino, Michelle McCool, Beth Phoenix, Mickie James, and Melina. McCool and Mickie tumbled to the floor next. Santino then knocked Phoenix and Melina to the floor to win. The crowd chanted "San-tin-o!" afterward. The announcers were instructed to play dumb, as they pretended they didn't know who it was.

WINNER: Santino Marella in 6:00.

STAR RATING: n/a -- Afterward, Santino claimed he was Santina Marella, Santino's twin sister from Italy. He cried as Candice put the Diva Crown on his head. Beth Phoenix was upset that he stole her moment. Santino did a full fledged celebration dance including the splits in the ring. Cole did his fake forced laugh, while people the crowd seemed to getting a kick out of it, although a few seemed disgusted and almost distraught at what they were watching.

-A video package aired on the Jericho-Mickey Rourke storyline. Lilian Garcia then introduced Rourke at ringside. He seemed a little overwhelmed or uncomfortable as fans around him yelled at the top of their lungs near him and mugged for the camera.

3 -- CHRIS JERICHO vs. RICKY STEAMBOAT & JIMMY SNUKA & RODDY PIPER (w/Ric Flair)

Steamboat was in solid shape. Piper spit his gum at Jericho, then tackled him at the bell in a really awkward looking move. He clotheslined him over the top rope to the floor. Piper got his arm caught in the ropes briefly. The ref helped him break free. He went after Jericho on the floor, throwing him into the announce table. Piper hit a sunset flip for a near fall. That would have been hilarious if that was the finish. Piper even hit a dropkick, or something resembling such a move. Piper's t-shirt said "Old School is Cool." Ross talked about Piper and Snuka at WrestleMania 1. Snuka tagged in, headbutting Jericho at the start. He moved around like Mae Young and now has pretty much the same body shape. It was kind of uncanny, actually. He threw his signature chop, then tagged in Steamboat. Steamboat leaped off the top rope with a chop, then two armdrags. He applied an armbar and some knees to the ribs. The crowd chanted "Steamboat." Snuka tagged back in and headbutted Jericho.

Lawler said the shorter the match the better for the legends since they have only so much in the tank. Jericho put Snuka in the Walls of Jericho for the submission. Jericho didn't release it, so Piper and Steambaot entered the ring. Jericho knocked Steamboat out of the ring from behind with a forearm to the back. Piper kneed Jericho and began shouting obscenities, getting bleeped out. Piper poked Jericho in the eyes and then applied his sleeper. Jericho escaped by sending Piper into the top rope throat-first. He followed up with an enzuigiri for the pin. That left Steamboat, who surprised Jericho with a top rope crossbody block for a two count. Jericho fired back with a sudden clothesline. They showed Flair at ringside looking on with concern. Jericho kicked Steamboat in the face, then played to the crowd. Then he settled into a chinlock. Jericho tossed Steamboat over the top rope. Steamboat skinned the cat back into the ring. Flair hopped onto the ring apron. Jericho knocked him to the floor.

Steamboat backdropped a charging Jericho over the top rope to the floor. Steamboat slingshot himself over the top rope onto Jericho on the floor. Ross said: "Oh my God! We turned back the hands of time! How amazing was that move!" Steamboat climbed to the top rope and hit Jericho with a flying chop to the forehead. Jericho charged at Steamboat, but was taken down with chops to the chest. Steamboat rolled up Jericho for a near fall. Jericho came back with a bulldog. Steamboat fired back with a powerslam for a near fall. The crowd was totally into the match. Jericho went for the Walls of Jericho. He locked it on, but Steamboat twisted out of it and small packaged Jericho for a near fall. Steamboat flipped out of a suplex attempt, but Jericho caught him right away with a Code Breaker for the win.

WINNER: Jericho in 9:00.

STAR RATING: **1/4 -- Steamboat made it a special match by performing pretty well, if not very well. Snuka and Piper were very limited, but they worked around that. The crowd ate up everything, especially once it came down to Steamboat-Jericho.

-An enraged Flair entered the ring afterward and went after Jericho. Jericho backdropped Flair and then gave him a Code Breaker. Jericho shoved Flair out of the ring. Cole said Jericho had a smug smile. Jericho asked for a mic and was handed one. Jericho said he is the best in the world at what he does. He said he did what he said he was going to do - eliminate the "legend Hall of Fame washouts forever." He said he had one more piece of business. He pointed at Rourke at ringside. Frank Shamrock was sitting next to Rourke. Jericho demanded he apologize for what he said. He asked if he was a liar and hypocrite. Jericho told him if he didn't get in the ring, he'd jump the rail and slap him in his face. The camera showed a lot of Shamrock (Ken's brother). Rourke stood up and made his way to the ring. The crowd cheered as he took off his jacket and made his way into the ring. He took his time and shadow boxed a little bit in the corner.

Ross noted that Rourke was a pro boxer at one time. Lawler said for a number of years he boxed. They circled mid-ring. Rourke threw a few rapid-fire jabs at him. Jericho looked surprised and the crowd cheers got louder. Rourke landed a punch and Jericho collapsed to the mat faster than you can say Bart Gunn. Flair raised Rourke's arm in victory as Flair's music played. With all of Rourke's wrestling training, it'd have been cool to see him do a wrestling exchange for Jericho, but even his getting in the ring was more than most expected going into this. Flair had a nice WrestleMania 25 moment by being in the spotlight with Rourke.

-A commercial aired for the National Guard.

-They showed Ross, Lawler, and Cole at ringside. Ross commented on the previous segment, then threw to Lawler for analysis of the Hardys match. A lot video package aired on the Hardys.

4 -- MATT HARDY vs. JEFF HARDY -- Extreme Rules match

Matt wore actual long wrestling tights instead of those pants. Jeff smacked Matt after some trash talking mid-ring. Matt rolled out of the ring. Jeff hit Matt with a framed WrestleMania poster he found under the ring. Lawler: "Matt finally got his face on a WrestleMania poster." Funny line, actually. Ross said, "Matt can say he was framed at WrestleMania." Matt dominated for a few minutes, wrapping Jeff around the ringpost at 4:00. Matt struggled to pull a table out from under the ring, then set it up at ringside. Jeff kicked Matt into the ringside steps. Jeff hit Matt with a kendo stick and crutches, then kicked a trash can over his head. Ross talked about brother vs. brother matches at WrestleMania - Owen vs. Bret and Undertaker vs. Kane. It's annoying that Kane and Taker is talked about as a "legit" brother vs. brother match. I'd rather ignore that "fact" than actually say it. Matt surprised Jeff with a Twist of Fate at 7:00.

Jeff came back with a superplex. Jeff hit Matt with an unprotected chairshot to the side of his head. Jeff put Matt on a table at ringside and then set a chair on him. Then he grabbed another table from under the ring and set it up on top of the table that Matt was on. Hardy then played to the crowd and leaped of the table with a splash through both tables, with Matt in the middle. They replayed it a couple times. Jeff pulled two ladders out from under the ring. It took a while, but Hardy leaped off of one ladder in the ring over an even taller ladder and went for a big legdrop. Matt moved and Jeff landed hard on his ass. Matt slowly got up and put Jeff's head in the chair and then gave him a Twist of Fate while in the chair for the win. Ross wondered if Jeff took once big chance too many. Lawler said the answer is yes.

WINNER: Matt Hardy in 13:00.

STAR RATING: ***1/2 -- Some big spots and a memorable finish.

-A commercial aired for the the Legends of WrestleMania videogame.

Pharaoh

04-06-2009, 08:34 AM

FillyCheezeSteak

04-06-2009, 10:23 AM

Pharaoh, I love the recap of the 1st half of Wrestlemania, but what happened to the 2nd half? I know that HHH, Cena, Undertaker and Mysterio all won, but I like your highlights.

For anyone who actually watched it what were some of the major highlights of the night and what were your favorite matches? Also, how much of last night will spill over into RAW tonight?

Pharaoh

04-07-2009, 05:04 AM

My post got fucked up - must have been too big. I didn't watch the event (ain't paying $50 to watch it)

Apparently Shawn Michaels v Undertaker was a classic - no surprise there as Shawn Michaels is pretty much the best wrestler in the world. I can't remember him having a poor match at Mania - that's why they call him Mr. Wrestlemania and the Show stopper.

The tag title unification match would have been good to see, but other than that I would have only been interested in Jericho's match (Steamboat apparently performed very well) and the Money In the Bank match (Benjamin was bound to do some crazy shit).

I think WWE fucked Edge and Orton at the biggest event of the year and the Hardy brother battle just wasn't built the right way for me. Using his real life drug addiction and the house fire (trailer fire) where his dog died to build a wrestling match is just fucking wrong.

WWE needs to move some people around at the Draft to freshen up the product.

On the very bright side - CM Punk won the MITB match again - I hope they don't fuck it up this time.

DennyMcLain

04-07-2009, 05:58 PM

I was kinda hoping Christian would win the MITB match, anticipating either a future team-up of Edge and Christian, or Christian screwing Edge for nearly destroying his career (somehow... I suppose they could have said Edge broke up the team).

The whole Vicki Guerrero angle is completely unbelievable. She's now the GM of Raw, and is over-riding Vince McMahon? It's always "I went to the Board of Directors". That excuse is getting really old.

If those creatives at WWE have any sugar in their sack of shit, they'd have appointed Ricky Stemboat or Roddy Piper as GM, and give Jehrico fits for at least a few months.

FillyCheezeSteak

04-07-2009, 06:28 PM

DennyMcLain

04-07-2009, 07:16 PM

Maybe Christian, or CM Punk, to go after the Intercontinental gold.

DennyMcLain

04-07-2009, 07:16 PM

I'm waiting for the day that Ric Flair becomes GM of one of the shows. I think the draft will be interesting next week. Pharoah give us an update or two before the draft so we know what is going on and what the new battles will be.

Obviously Batista is a major part of the Tripe H/Orton fued right now.

Can you imagine if Batista, HHH, and Flair join forces to re-invent The Four Horsemen? Flair can play the JJ Dillon role, HHH comes to Raw, and Batista goes to Smackdown. There's been so much cross-branding these days it wouldn't be inconceivable for the Horsemen to travel to each show (maybe even ECW) and give their teammates an assist.

Here's how I would have it:

Flair -- manager (Shane McMahon can also play this role)

HHH -- plays the Ric Flair "lead" role (Kennedy would fit better, but he's not big enough with the fans, IMO, to pull it off)

Batista -- Plays the heavy, and also can be the Smackdown champ.

The third wrestling member would be a toss up. Usually it was two solo wrestlers and a tag team, but I can't imagine a team that might fit the Anderson/Blanchard mold within the WWE. Maybe I'm not looking hard enough.

Another option would be to chuck the original mold and acquire Matt Morgan, and stick him in there. Can you imagine that threesome?

HHH
Batista
Morgan

The fourth wrestling member could be a middleweight-type, like Blanchard.

My brain is mush right now. I'll have to get back to it.

Pharaoh

04-08-2009, 08:12 AM

I don't wanna see Triple H form a stable to combat Orton, DiBiase and Rhodes. I wanna see Batista turn on Triple H and join Legacy!

Imagine this shit ...

Triple H has Orton down in the middle of the ring, Shane McMahon is doing some crazy ass stunt off the top rope to the floor on DiBiase (frog splash through a table or a Moonsault through a table) while Batista and Rhodes are battling in a corner.

As HHH picks up Orton and prepares to deliver the Pedigree Batista rushes HHH and clotheslines him! Batista then helps Orton up. Orton tells Batista and Rhodes to go get a couple of sledgehammers (kept under the ring, naturally).

Shane sees what's going on and rushes the ring (DiBiase is now knocked out at ringside). Orton kicks him in the gut and delivers the RKO. Batista and Rhodes return with the sledgehammers.

HHH gets to his knees (it's taken too long to get the hammers - remember Batista only clotheslined him so he can't lay there all night) and ALL 3 bad guys nail him with a sledgehammer!!!

Orton, Batista and Rhodes stand over a bloody, beaten HHH. Medics and security rush the ring and HHH is put on a stretcher and wheeled out.

Oh shit - Orton MUST score the pin on HHH straight after the Batista closthesline so he can actually win the match and the title.

OK, so where was I...

HHH is now out of action for 2 months. This allows Raw to focus on Cena, Jericho, Christian who I would add to Raw, Punk and Legacy. Triple H gets some time off to be with his wife and kids.

In storyline HHH would be in hospital having to undergo surgery to reconstruct his face. The blows from the sledges destroying his cheekbones, nose etc (if he wanted a nose job now is the time lol)

But when he returns he'd have an ally that no one even expected ...

I will try to update you guys when the Draft is happening (I haven't checked my wrestling sites today) and I will try to get the 2nd half of Mania posted as it features the Undertaker/Shawn Michaels classic and the 2 title matches.

BTW, WWE did ZERO follow up to the Shawn/Taker match on RAW!!! WTF?

Pharaoh

04-09-2009, 05:50 AM

PART II of Mania:

-A commercial aired for the the Legends of WrestleMania videogame.

-They went backstage to Randy Orton getting ready for his match. Cody Rhodes and Ted DiBiase were sitting off to the side. Lawler said he appeared very ready for tonight as the camera zoomed in on an intense expression on his face.

5 -- JBL vs. REY MYSTERIO -- IC Title match

JBL walked out, mic in hand, and said this is "the greatest day in JBL's great life." He said just as Julius Caesar returned to Rome the conquering hero, he would return to Texas champion. He held the IC Title belt in the air. He said Texas has no champions and no real men. "You sit around, you drink your little lattes, you do your pilates, lookin' through the Houston Chronicle looking for a job. At this point in life you need hope and along comes your hero, JBL." Rey Mysterio's ring intro them took place. He looked like he was wearing a Joker mask blended with a typical Rey mask. As the ref began instructions to the fighters, JBL surprised Rey with a big boot to the face. The ref yelled at JBL and insisted he respect his authority. He did a nice job telling JBL to back off as he checked on Rey. Usually when a heel jump-starts a match illegally, the ref rewards him by having him ring the bell right away. Rey said he was fine. He ducked a JBL clothesline and hit an enzuigiri. He then hit a sudden 619 and a top rope splash for the win. Lawler had to ask if the match even officially started. Cole said JBL predicted the most dominant win in WrestleMania history. He got that right, but the winner wrong. JBL weeped while sitting center ring.

WINNER: Rey in 0:21 to capture the Intercontinental Title.

STAR RATING: * -- The overall way everything played out was well done. Obviously, not much of a match as just 21 seconds, but satisfying for fans given JBL's cocky pre-match speech and cheapshot at the start.

-JBL stood up and looked around in shock. He said he had something to say. Lawler said he couldn't wait his excuse. Lawler suggested a camera flash got in his eyes. Ross suggested perhaps "Open Mouth Disease." JBL milked the boos and then yelled, "I quit!" He then even seemed shocked at his declaration. He dropped the mic. Ross wondered if we were seeing him leave the ring for the final time. JBL yelled at the booing crowd: "You will regret this! You will never get over this!"

-They showed the Houston skyline. Cole said it's the fourth largest city in the country. Lawler then plugged the National Guard. They showed Carl Edwards, a NASCAR driver, at ringside. Cole said he's a big fan of John Cena.

6 -- UNDERTAKER vs. SHAWN MICHAELS

Ross said this is the most anticipated main event in many years. Michaels came out to different music on a crane type lift with fog shooting out of it. Once it lowered to the ground, his regular intro music kicked in and he danced his way to the ring. He prayed half way to the ring. Undertaker then made his grand entrance. Just over half way into the four hour show, the bell rang to start this match. Michaels threw some early chops in the corner. Taker swung at Michaels, but Michaels ducked and pounded away at Taker's head in the corner. Taker caught another Michaels swing mid-ring and tossed him into the corner. Michaels climbed to the second rope, crotch chopped Taker, and leaped at him. He pretended to have a knee or hamstring injury, but then dove at Taker as soon as his guard was slightly down. Taker again tossed Michaels into the corner and punched away at him. He applied an armbar mid-ring and slowed things down.

He climbed to the top rope and walked the top rope and came off with a forearm, smashing Michaels to the mat. He charged at Michaels in the corner, but Michaels moved. Michaels gave Taker a single leg atomic drop and then clipped him from behind. They're pacing this like a long match. They've got plenty of time to work with. Michaels applied a figure-four leglock. Taker powered out after a minute or so. Taker hit snake eyes, a running boot, and legdrop for a near fall at 8:00. Cole called the near fall. Taker signaled for a chokeslam. Michaels surprised Taker with a crossface with Taker's free arm locked between his legs. Taker rolled Michaels back into a near fall. Michaels kicked back into his leverage advantage, not letting go of his grip during the attempted pin.

On their feet at 10:00 they had a rapid-fire exchange including Michaels chops drawing "woos!" from the crowd. Michaels hit a flying forearm and both men were down on their backs. Michaels nipped up after a few seconds. Michaels hit two inverted atomic drops and then climbed to the top rope. Lawler said, "We have to face it; Shawn Michaels has the Undertaker's number." As Michaels flew off the top rope, Taker caught him by his throat and set up a chokeslam. Michaels escaped and went for a superkick. Taker dropped down to avoid the kick and then applied his Hell's Gate submission hold for a believable near finish. Michaels draped his legs on the bottom rope to force a break. The crowd oohed and ahhed that spot. Taker smashed Michaels head-first into the ringside steps. Then Taker went for a guillotine legdrop off the ring apron. Michaels moved. Michaels slidekicked Taker, then climbed to the top rope. When he leaped at Taker, Taker sidestepped and swatted him hard to the floor. As the ref checked on Michaels, Cole said the match may be over. Taker sat up on the ring apron just as Michaels showed signs of life on the floor with the ref at 15:00.

Taker staggered to his feet, then ran the ropes and dove over the top rope at Michaels. Michaels yanked the cameraman into Taker's way. Taker almost broke his neck. That was one of the scarier moments I've seen in a wrestling match. He literially looked like he was about to land on his head, but he tucked at the last possible second. Taker's eyes went wide afterward, as if he was relieved and mad all at once. Taker's attempt to tuck was blocked a bit by the cameraman's arm trying to protect himself. Cole quietly asked, "Did you see how the Undertaker hit the floor?" Michaels crawled into the ring, then after a few seconds crawled back out of the ring to check with the ref on why he wasn't counting Taker out. He rolled back into the ring. Taker didn't move more than just his fingers for a full minbutes or two after the dive. They replayed the dive again and Lawler said it was hard to watch and scary. Michaels tried to get the groggy ref to count Taker out. Michaels began his own count and then the refere e oined in. Taker was still in the same position where he had landed three minutes earlier. The crowd began to boo, not wanting to see the match end by countout. Taker began to get up. Michaels practically begged for the ref to get to ten, but Taker managed to drag himself up to the ring apron at nine. Taker dramatically rolled in just before ten. Cole and Ross each said, "The streak is alive!" Michaels regrouped.

Michaels set up Sweet Chin Music. He went for it, but Taker side-stepped him and chokeslammed him. The announcers touted what an impressive chokeslam it was, Michaels kicked out and the crowd popped. Taker staggered around the ring and then lifted Michaels for a Tombstone. Michaels escaped it. Michaels went for a superkick. Taker ducked it. Michaels escaped Taker's chokeslam attempt and then hit a sudden Sweet Chin Music. Michaels crawled over and draped an arm over Taker's chest. The crowd counted along and popped when Taker kicked out. As Steamboat said during his Hall of Fame speech, these two get to say under their breath to one another when this ends, "We got 'em," as they had the crowd all the way.

Michaels nipped up and bent over to grab Taker. Taker reached up and grabbed him by his throat. Taker then set up Michaels for a Last Ride. Michaels rolled through into a sunset flip attempt. Taker blocked that and set up another Last Ride. This one he hit. Michaels landed hard and Taker scored what seemed like an inevitable pin. Michaels, though, kicked out. "In the name of all that's decent, how did Michaels kick out of this!" exclaimed Ross. Taker showed frustration as the crowd popped and stood and cheered. Taker climbed to the top rope and went for a flying elbow. Michaels moved. The crowd went silent. Lawler wondered what would happen if neither man could beat the other. Michaels charged at Taker. Taker sidestepped him and threw him over the top rope. Michaels tried to skin the cat in. Taker grabbed him in Tombstone position and went for the pin. Michaels amazingly kicked out. The camera zoomed in at a shocked Taker. "I just had an out of body experience!" said Ross. Cole said that should have been it. The crowd continued to eat it up. This should have been last on the card because this is an impossible to act to follow. Taker dropped his straps and signaled to the crowd the throat-slashing gesture. At 25:00 he then grabbed a KO'd Michaels's limp body. He set up another Tombstone. Michaels countered with an unexpected DDT; the crowd was sure this was it. The DDT was awkward, as Taker's head landed on Michaels's hip in a turning motion, but it still look like it jammed up Taker's neck. Both men lay on the mat again as the crowd sat on their edges of their seats.

Michaels crawled over to the corner. Ross said Shawn Michaels is "special" and "extraordinary." He climbed to the top rope. Lawler said his body appears to be on auto-pilot. Michaels hit a top rope elbow on target. He was slow to be able to make the cover. He crawled over to the top rope to prop himself on his feet. He leaned in the corner and tried to gather enough energy to execute Sweet Chin Music. He stomped the match and the crowd counted along. Taker slowly rose to his feet, using the ropes for leverage. Michaels connected with the kick. Nice looking kick, which Taker sold perfectly. Michaels made the cover and got a super-close three count. Taker was great as he didn't even hint at a kickout until the last possible credible second. "Good God almighty, the match continues. Can you believe, ladies and gentleman, what we are witnessing here together tonight! The world is watching a classic." said Ross.

They finally rose, hanging on each other as they leveraged their way to their respective feet. They exchanged punches and chops, while seeming unsure on their feet. The crowd oohed and ahhed each blow. They're going to give these two a standing ovation like Ric Flair received last year after this is over. They should just each retire after this ends as there's nowhere else to go. Taker surprised Michaels with a kick to the face after a dozen mid-ring back-and-forth exchanges leading up to it. At 30:00 Taker lifted Michaels. Michaels elbowed out of it and chopped Taker four times. He whipped Taker into the corner and charged. Michaels caught him with a boot to the face. Michaels climbed to the top rope. He flipped at Taker. Taker caught him and Tombstoned him and covered him for the three count. "Seventeen and ohhh!" said Ross. Both men lay on the mat on their backs as the crowd stood and cheered. Ross said as a "fan of a sports entertainment," he was honored to sit at ringside and watch that. It's sad he has to say "sports entertainment" and can't say "pro wrestling" consider this is show with "Wrestle" in the title. Ross said: "I feel like we've just seen Heaven. What a match. As a wrestling fan, who could ask for anything more." Good for him for slipping in the term "wrestling match." I hope he's not fined, but if so, who cares. Cole said, "Goosebumps."

WINNER: Undertaker in 31:00.

STAR RATING: ***** -- Five-stars, goes without say. Michaels did it two years in a row. Two five-star matches two years in a row. Those matches are created from two decades of experience, two decades of history that is built up well into this type of climax, and a lot of planning ahead and excellent execution between the ropes. Michaels just leapfrogged whoever was above him on anyone's list of the greatest ever if anyone had him outside of their top two or three.

-A plug aired for the three-hour Raw special in eight days featuring the WWE Draft.

-Back at ringside Lawler said he was exhausted. Cole said he hopes he's not too exhausted, as the three-way world title match is up next. Lawler said he just got refreshed and let out a "woo-hoo!"

Pharaoh

04-09-2009, 05:51 AM

Part III:

-A video package aired on the Edge-Show-Cena-Vickie storyline.

7 -- EDGE vs. THE BIG SHOW vs. JOHN CENA

Chavo Guerrero wheeled Vickie Guerrero to the ring. Edge came out first, then Big Show. The crowd booed in anticipation of Cena coming to the ring. An army of John Cena look-alikes walked to the ring. I mean, an army of maybe 200+ Cena look-alikes as Cena's old "Thug-o-Nomics" song played. The Cenas all waved hands in front of their faces and then the real Cena walked out to his usual entrance song. That was pretty awesome, actually. He saluted and then ran to the ring between two rows of the Cena look-alikes. Cole acknowledged the boos by saying no one draws as much emotion out of WWE fans as John Cena.

With just 70 minutes max left in the show, the bell rang to start the first of two world title matches. Cena went after Edge with a bulldog, and then dove at Show. Show shoulder-tackled Cena to the mat. Ross said Show had the momentum coming into the match with knockout victories over Edge and Cena. Edge held his arm up for a high-five. Show slapped his hand, then clenched his hand and lifted Edge and dropped him crotch-first over the top rope. He shook the top rope a few times and then dropped him to the mat. He chopped him and whipped him into Cena. Cena lifted Edge, but Show kicked Cena. Both Cena and Edge went down. Show punched Cena a few times in the corner. Chavo wheeled Vickie over to get a closer look. Show crotched himself on the top rope at 2:00. Cena dumped him over the top rope to the floor. Edge dropkicked the steps into SHow's knees. Cena then hit a legdrop to the back of Show's neck at ringside. Edge then attacked Cena at ringside, re-entering the match. He dominated Cena in the ring. Cena went for a sudden Attitude Adjustment, but Edge countered with a DDT for a two count at 4:00.

Edge climbed to the top rope. Show returned to the ring and side-slammed Cena for a near fall. Ross pointed out that if Show pinned Cena, he wins Edge's title. Cena began a comeback against Show with a barrage of punches. Chavo, though, yanked Cena to ringside. Cena gave him an Attitude Adjuster. Cena ran back into the ring and shoulder tackled Show into the ropes, where his arms got tied up. Cena then shoulder-tackled Edge and went into his finishing sequence. Cena smiled at Show and played to the crowd. HWaved his hand in front of his face and then dropped a fist on Edge's forehead. Vickie stood on the ring apron. Cena lifted Edge. Cena let go of Edge and moved toward Vickie. Edge charged at Cena. Cena moved. Edge knocked Vickie off the ring apron into Chavo's arms at ringside. Cena schoolboyed Edge for a near fall. Then they collided mid-ring as Show asked the ref help him get free from the ropes. Show got back into the mix, headbutting Cena and Edge. He clotheslined Cena in the corner, then chopped him hard and loud. He splashed Edge in the other corner and chopped him hard. He then threw Edge into Cena in the corner and splashed them both. He set up a chokeslam on Edge. When Cena moved in, he grabbed Cena, too. Show chokeslammed Edge as Cena escaped. Cena went for an Attitude Adjuster. Show escaped and Show punched him in the chin, knocking him to the floor. Show then went after Edge at ringside.

Edge DDT'd Show on the floor to turn momentum at 8:00. Edge leaped off the ring steps and speared Show through the barricades into the crowd. The fans roared with approval in that area. Edge couldn't move Show, who was KO'd on the floor, so he went back at Cena in the ring. He set up a spear, waiting for Cena to stand. Cena sidestepped Edge and applied the STF. Edge struggled toward the bottom rope. Cena yanked him back to center-ring and reapplied it. Edge reached toward the ropes. Show pulled Edge toward the bottom rope by his hand, not to save Edge so much as to get Cena within his reach. He grabbed Cena by his throat and yanked him to the floor. Then he set up a swing splash in the corner, but Edge moved.

Cena got up and went for a suplex on Show. Show didn't budge. Edge joined in and together they suplexed Show. Cena and Edge looked at each other like two people who shared an unexpected kiss and liked it! They looked at Show and charged at him with a double clothesline, knocking him to the floor. Edge then kicked Cena in the face first chance he got and scored a near fall. Cole said, "That was a quick divorce." Cena climbed to the top rope a minute later. Show shoved him off the top rope. Edge speared Cena out of mid-air. Cena rolled to the ring apron's edge. Edge dragged him back to the ring and went for a cover. Show yanked Edge out of the ring by his leg and chopped him in the chest. Back in the ring, Show charged at Edge. Edge lifted his boot and then leaped onto Show's back with a sleeper. Show backed into the corner. Edge held on. Cena then lifted both for an Attitude Adjuster. Edge bailed out, but Cena executed it. He then gave Edge an Attitude Adjuster onto Show and scored the pin. That was a cool finishing sequence. Cena's lifting Show was quite the feat. Wow. No matter how you leverage that, it's impressive.

WINNER: Cena in 14:00 to win the World Heavyweight Title.

STAR RATING: ***1/2 -- That was good, actually very good. It's surprisingly how they totally bailed out on the love triangle aspect as a factor in the match. Cena celebrated in the crowd with fans who were holding Cena signs. He knows friendly territory. It made for a good picture.

-They announced that Wrestlemania 26 will be in Arizona at Reliant Stadium on March 28, 2010. That's actually the 25th Anniversary of WrestleMania I, by the way.

-They plugged the "Legends of WrestleMania" videogame again.

-The Hall of Fame inductees were given acknowledgements on the stage. "Stone Cold" Steve Austin rode a four-wheeler ATV to the ring at a high-speed, and then around the ring at a high-speed, and then back up the ramp. I'd say he's probably driven that before! He then went into reverse and zipped back to the ring. Then he entered the ring and saluted the crowd, accepting their cheers and some beers. A huge "Hell yeah" banner was held up in the crowd. He went to ringside and handed Ross a beer. Ross sipped from the can. Lawler said, "This is going to make the rest of the broadcast interesting." Austin threw the cooler with the rest of the beer into the ring. He waved to the fans and then rode the four-wheeler up the ramp. He saluted the crowd one final time. He even seemed to be a little choked up as the camera zoomed in on him right before he turned to leave the stage.

-A commercial aired for Backlash. Anyone else betting on Vince & Shane McMahon & Triple H vs. Legacy? It's only three weeks away.

-Lilian Garcia announced the attendance at 72,744 - a sellout. Lawler thanked "AC/DC" for the theme song for WM25.

-A long video package aired recapping the Triple H vs. Randy Orton feud.

-Backstage, Triple H approached Vince and Shane in the hallway. He patted Vince on the shoulder and then walked toward the ring. No words were said. Everyone seemed to be treating the match as having a lot of gravity.

8 -- TRIPLE H vs. RANDY ORTON -- WWE Title match

Orton came out first, looking like a bronzed statue. Everyone tries to be at their peak look for WrestleMania, as it's the single appearance all year that by far will be seen by more generations to come than all other appearances all year combined. Three and a half hours into the show, the bell rang and Triple H tackled Orton and went on the aggressive offensive. The ref assigned to this match was Scott Armstrong, a nice honor for him. Orton hit an RKO at 1:00 out of nowhere. That's like an interception for a touchdown on first down in a football playoff game. Orton waited for Triple H to get up. Orton went for a punt kick, but Triple H moved and then hit a sudden Pedigree. Ross said each competitor has hit his most devastating maneuver in the early going. Orton begged off at 3:00. Triple H paused a split second, then jumped Orton. He slingshot him throat-first under the bottom rope.

Triple H gave Orton a neckbreaker in the ring at 5:00. Orton retreated to ringside. Triple H went after him. Orton reversed Triple H into the ringside steps. Then he whipped him ringside. A cameraman could be heard saying he landed on his cable and couldn't go anywhere, so stand by. That gave viewers a close-up of the action. Orton rolled back into the ring to start a potential countout win on Triple H, which given these match rules would have given him the world title. Triple H struggled to his feet and back into the ring to beat the count. After some more offense and a two count, Orton locked on a chinlock for a minute. Triple H battled back at 10:00 with some punches. Triple H then nailed Orton with a high knee as Orton rebounded off the ropes. He followed with a hard clothesline in the corner and then a facebuster to his knee. Orton solid it brilliantly with spaghetti legs. Orton, though, countered Triple H's Pedigree attempt with a catapult into the corner. Triple H followed with a flying clothesline and a two count. Orton dropped Triple H face-first over the top turnbuckle and then leaped at Triple H. Triple H extended his boot. Orton went for a leverage jackknife pin attempt. Triple H fired right back with a schoolboy for a two count. The crowd seemed exhausted still from Michaels-Undertaker. They were into the match, but not nearly as much as for Taker-Michaels. Triple H went for a Pedigree. Orton countered with an inverted backbreaker for a two count. Triple H came back and leaped off the top rope. Orton caught him with a dropkick to the face.

Orton milked the moment and got "that look." He went for the punt kick, but Triple H caught his boot and didn't let go. He stood up and flipped Orton over the top rope by his boot. Triple H grabbed a monitor and thought of hitting Orton with it. The ref said he'd get DQ'd and lose his title if he used it. Triple H wound up, but then thought better of it and dropped it. Triple H set Orton on the announce table in frint of Ross and Cole. Triple H set up a Pedigree, "seething and quivering with anger," said Ross. Orton backdropped out of it, sending Triple H onto the Spanish announce table. Orton stood first. He went after Triple H, but the ref told him he was in danger of being counted out. Orton grabbed Triple H by his hair and DDT'd him onto the floor just as he did to Stephanie. The announcers didn't acknowledge the parallel. Orton rolled back into the ring to beat the count. Cole said this anger has been brewing in Orton for five years, and this is his attempt to get revenue for a defining moment in his career. That is such a strange moment to focus on since Orton was the babyface in that situation when Evolution - including Triple H - turned on him. Triple H barely beat the ten count.

Orton stomped away at Triple H in the ring. Ross called him a "sick sociopath." Triple H showed signs of life with a punch out of the corner. Orton shoved Triple H into the ref, then gave Triple H an RKO. Orton slithered out of the ring Jake Roberts-like. He pulled a sledgehammer out from under the ring. As Orton walked into the ring with the sledgehammer in hand, Triple H surprised him with a symbolic punt kick. Orton's eyes rolled back. He got to his feet just as Tripel H did, but sledgehammer in hand. Triple H nailed Orton with a sledgehammer to the chin. The crowd looked to the stage as if anticipating interference. Triple H got to his feet again, then dropped onto Orton with punches. The ref came to and warned Triple H to wrestle not punch. Triple H set up a Pedigree. He hit it and covered Orton for the three count. Ross said Triple H reached into the soul of Randy Orton and extracted some retribution. "The Game plays on!" declared Ross as pyro blasted and Triple H celebrated his win.

WINNER: Triple H in 23:00.

STAR RATING: ***3/4 -- Triple H, after so many injuries and main event losses at WrestleManias, may have wanted a WrestleMania to go off the air with him celebrating a win for once, but the match that deserved to end this show was Taker-Michaels. His match would have been less anti-climactic had it come earlier. It was good, both well-plotted and well-executed, appropriate to the storyline and feud, but it just wasn't able to follow the classic two matches earlier.

-An excellent WrestleMania 26 recap video followed. The WWE video production crew always shines with this. I'm sure it's easier now than it used to be given advances in technology, but it's still quite a showcase for the staff to put this together so quickly after the event. They actually ran out of time as they went off the air right before they got to highlights of Triple H getting the win.

Pharaoh

04-09-2009, 05:51 AM

NOTE:

The WWE Draft is going to be on this Monday Night Raw.

DennyMcLain

04-09-2009, 02:14 PM

Considering all of the Evolution hype leading up to the HHH/Orton match, it's a possibility.

If the six man fight becomes a no-DQ match, then I think you're on to something, here.

But Batista is not a legacy wrestler. There is no family lineage. I'm not sure how that would work, unless they changed the name.

D's Nuts

04-09-2009, 10:26 PM

I am so sick and tired of Edge/Cena and Orton/HHH. Can we throw in some Jericho, Punk, Christian action PLEASE.

Pharaoh

04-10-2009, 02:48 AM

No, D'Nuts - we can not throw in some Jericho, Punk or Christian. Those 3 are not over with the crowd, do not have the merch sales or the mainstream media attention that Cena, HHH, Orton, Taker, Shawn and Edge have.

It's not my fault - it really isn't. I have been forced to use every single possible combination of those 6 guys for the last 4 years because ...

Sorry D'Nuts - I have to go and prepare for the Draft next Monday. Be sure to tune in as the Draft will notchange the face of WWE.

Pharaoh

04-10-2009, 02:57 AM

Denny - I think the Legacy name could stay - Batista can claim he never knew his father or that he's laying the foundation for the Batista family.

Personally I would want Batista, Orton Rhodes and DiBiase to finish off HHH and his ally in a big way at the Survivor Series before the writers return to the CM Punk/Legacy thing (remember it was their attack that kept him from defending the title in the Scramble match)

Punk would cash in his title shot at the Rumble - announcing it ahead of time to allow WWE to promote it properly like they did with the Rob Van Dam and John Cena thing a couple of years ago.

Punk would lose at the Rumble (can't have the Money in the Bank win it every single time) before claiming the title at No Way Out. Chris Jericho would win the Elimination Chamber at the same PPV and we would see Punk v Jericho at Mania 26.

The other title match would be Edge v Christian.

Punk and Christian would go over to be the Champs.

The last match at Mania 26 could be HHH v Shawn Michaels, or Batista v John Cena, or Undertaker v someone else.

The point is to push some new blood to the top of the show. Only when the old vets are willing to put these guys over will WWE be able to actually start another boom.

While many millions of people think I'm nuts I do believe that CM Punk has a chance to increase TV ratings and PPV buyrates if pushed as a legit star

DennyMcLain

04-10-2009, 10:31 AM

Come to think of it, if Batista turns heel it'd be a great opportunity for Michaels and HHH to reunite as DX, and keep it up for a while. There's huge history between all of those guys. The storylines are endless.

Yeah, it's nothing new. But the WWE is about giving the fans what they want, and an extended stay for DX would be exactly what the fans want.

What I think is going to happen at the draft is Cena goes to Smackdown, and HHH comes back to Raw. There's no reason why Vicky becomes new GM of Raw and Raw only unless this new position suddenly creates a problem for Edge. Also, I'm not sure who the new GM is going to be on Smackdown (I don't watch the show), but if they haven't chosen one yet, I'd like to think it could be a HoFer, which would entice the WWE to send Jehrico to Smackdown as well to really fuck with his character.

Big Show goes to Raw and stays with Vicky, leaving Edge out in the cold (maybe a divorce). Christian comes to Smackdown and turns heel, allying with Edge to bring back Edge and Christian.

This would strengthen both shows, and I'd probably start watching Smackdown again.

D's Nuts

04-10-2009, 11:31 AM

Speaking over getting over, why are there no good heel tag teams? Orton/Rhodes barely do anything, Miz and Morrisons act is getting old. Hmmm, other than that, I cant think of any one else. Meanwhile teams like Cryme Tyme, Carlito/Primo are way over and under utilized. They need to start getting Kendrick and Big Zeke some serious heat and start up a feud with Cryme Tyme or the champs.

I am so done with DX. I could care less. The big 6 are so over exposed I fast forward through any of their matches. LAME. I clearly am in the minority but would it kill WWE to develop people?

DennyMcLain

04-10-2009, 03:31 PM

Those big 6 probably make WWE 50% of their merchandise revenue.

It's more like 61.4%, meathead!

Pharaoh

04-10-2009, 08:07 PM

Teddy Long is going to go back and be the GM of Smackdown (at the moment he's ECW GM) The ECW interim GM will be his assistant Tiffany.

The tag team ranks don't matter to Vince - he doesn't think tag teams can draw ratings, PPV buys or sell merch - which is really fucking stupid when you consider that the Dudley Boys/Edge and Christian/Hardy Boys battles were a cornerstone of the Attitude Era.

All those teams sold merch, likely pushed PPV buys and 2 of those teams broke up in WWE and went on to reasonable success as singles wrestlers (Jeff Hardy only has a job because he sells tons of merchandise)

The problem WWE is going to have when the big 6 retire or ALL become part time players is that the young guys will be viewed as "lesser" stars because they never beat the main players.

Vince should be using those top 6 to put other guys over.

"Putting over" does not mean LOSING - it means making fans believe that a guy like MVP, Shelton Benjamin, CM Punk or Ken Kennedy is capable of knocking off the "big dog".

As for Chris Jericho - the WWE do not really believe in him! They think he's too small and that he doesn't have the crossover potential that other guys have. However, the crowd continues to love the guy and that's why he's in the position he's in now.

Basically Jericho and Punk (and Christian to a lesser extent) are over big time with the crowd and WWE is forced to put them in the upper mid card.

But make no mistake about it - Vince does not see $$$$ when he looks at those 3. He sees 2nd tier players, at best.

Vince is a fucking legend, but he's being screwed by the corporate mentality that while ensuring WWE remains a profitable business also ensures that wrestling will never experience another boom period.

D's Nuts

04-11-2009, 12:31 PM

Very true. I honestly think that not having decent competition has really squashed any hope for the future. If TNA can get their act together (doubtful), then I might believe. I Tivo ECW and Smackdown (not Raw cause I have other shows I am more into) and fast forward through most of them. I have no reason to care because I feel like I have seen it all before.

Pharaoh

04-11-2009, 07:25 PM

Well, you have seen it all before, or at least most of it because WWE refuse to use other players.

CM Punk could be the new Bret Hart - he doesn't do ANY drugs - hence the Straight Edge gimmick/lifestyle. That's worth pushing to the moon simply because casual fans and the mainstream media still believe that professional wrestling is full of steroid freaks.

Which is another reason why Jericho, Christian, MVP, Benjamin and Evan Bourne should be pushed - they don't look like roided up monsters.

I understand why Cena and Batista are pushed, but does that mean we can't have the smaller looking guys pushed as well? There are 3 fucking shows!

I can't wait for the Draft, because while nothing Earth shattering is likely to happen it should at least freshen up the TV shows.

BTW, TNA will now likely never get it's act together. Stupid fucking casual fans have been tuning in to the Main Event Mafia heavy episodes in record numbers (record numbers for TNA) and that means that the casual fans have given Russo/Jarrett/Mantel the green light to continue to de-push the younger guys in TNA.

The only hope is that the "creative" trio at least continue to put AJ Styles and Samoa Joe into the Mafia storyline mix and eventually those 2 should come out on top.

DennyMcLain

04-12-2009, 10:24 AM

Which is another reason why Jericho, Christian, MVP, Benjamin and Evan Bourne should be pushed - they don't look like roided up monsters.

I liken this to Boxing -- the lightweights and middleweights are entertaining, but the heavyweights bring in the money (with the exception of Hatton in the U.K.).

Pharaoh

04-12-2009, 10:35 AM

I just read on a wrestling forum that Benjamin has actually requested that he not be pushed to the moon as he doesn't want the pressure of a main event spot!

No link was given, but 3 or 4 different posters claimed to have read the article. Apparently he's happy to be a good company man and do what they want him to do (put on decent matches, put over mid card guys on the way up) and just chill out.

I find this to be fucking PATHETIC!

The guy isn't great on the mic but he has the ability in the ring and all WWE would have to do to make him a main event player is get him a manager. Not only would the mic skills of the manager come in handy but Benjamin with a manager would make him stand out like Sheed at a midget party simply because NO ONE has a manager anymore.

FUCK! If it's true then I'm not happy

DennyMcLain

04-12-2009, 02:31 PM

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_YHPQ0vRd-5o/R1_7Czzj-MI/AAAAAAAAAvU/FVIR-DMbi00/s200/thats_racist.gif

Pharaoh

04-12-2009, 09:13 PM

I love that Denny, but how is it racist?

It's true that a lot of African American wrestling fans believe Vince to be racist, though.

All you have to do is check out how he's treated minorities since the expansion in the early 1980's.

Weird tangent: Bill Watts, who was inducted into the Hall of Fame at this year's Mania was actually fired in WCW from his position of President because of some racist stuff that apparently appeared in a PWTorch interview he did.

Hank Aaron (yes, that baseball guy) was working for Ted Turner and got wind of it, complained and Watts was fired.

Why is this funny/weird? Because what's is the only promoter I know of who has ever positioned an African American as his star player. He did it in the Mid South region with Junkyard Dog before Vince stole JYD for the WWF and Watts did it again in WCW when he made Ron Simmons (yes, that wanker that used to come on and say "Damn!" in recent years on WWE) the WCW World Champion.

Watts' reason for positioning an African American at the top of the card? Because African American's dominate a ton of athletic competitions, so why should wrestling be any different?

DennyMcLain

04-12-2009, 09:34 PM

It wasn't racist. I just hadn't used that av in a while.

As it always is, once a company goes IPO, it's all over creatively.

Speaking of creative, let's see how that "draft" plays out. I can't stand Vicky Guerrero, but the move to Raw is going to lead her to choose either Show or Edge for Raw -- she can't have them both.

I say she chooses Show.

HHH goes to Raw. No sense of the HHH/Orton flare-up unless both are on the same show. It also brings the correct belt back to Raw.

Cena goes to Smackdown, taking the correct belt to that show, and fuels the Edge/Cena battle.

I'd LOVE to see Bourne come to Raw (or Mysterio go to ECW) and tag team them up. Can you imagine that duo? Shit!! I'll watch them on the tube, them watch them on YOUTube all night long! But Mysterio is probably going to stay solo.... maybe.

Christian comes to Smackdown to eventually reunite him with Edge, with Christian turning heel. IMO, it's the only way to push him right now. Edge has been a pussy for the past year or so. Reuniting him with Christian would be pretty cool.

Then, start a feud with Mysterio/Bourne, who can also feud with Miz and Morrison and BAM, the tag teams are back! Add Legacy and the WWE might have the best stable of teams in quite a while. This does two things for McMahon -- it gives him something to do with his non-heavyweights, and it allows these wrestlers to get some top card spots without diluting those "Big 6" top-billers.

Also the "draft" will look nothing like this and it'll be total and complete shit.

Pharaoh

04-13-2009, 07:31 AM

See, Denny - that's the kind of stuff that fans all over the net are thinking about: using the tag team scene as a stepping stone for future main event players.

Bret Hart, Shawn Michaels, Edge and Jeff Hardy are 4 former World Champions who came up through the tag ranks. Matt Hardy and Christian are over with the crowd, Shelton Benjmain started out in tags, and so on and so forth.

You take Morrison/Miz, Bourne and the released Paul London (I like Rey as a solo wrestler), Carlito/Primo, Cryme Time, DiBiase/Rhodes and then throw in a couple of other tags mixing some of the younger guys they are developing in Florida (Harry Smith and TJ Wilson used to team on the Indy scene before signing development contracts with WWE) and you've got easy writing and solid matches.

The fans will pick who should and should not be pushed as a solo star - look how much the crowd loves CM Punk! Nothing WWE creative did could kill the love fans have for him.

I do think HHH is going back to Raw in the Draft, especially now My Network TV is a fucking joke of a channel. Taker might go to Raw too. I wouldn't be surprised to see Jericho move to Smackdown - the Legends program just proved he has no one left to battle on Raw IMO.

Monday Night should at least be interesting. (There's the reminder that it's on Monday Night)

Pharaoh

04-13-2009, 09:03 AM

BTW, from everything I have read if any of you reading this have ever wanted WWE to just have 1 great match go to youtube or some torrent site and download Shawn Michaels v The Undertaker.

The backstory was simple: Undefeated Streak (Taker was 16-0 at Mania) v The Show Stopper/Mr. WrestleMania (Michaels)

The match is apparently the greatest thing since sliced bread.

I don't have links, but I'm sure some of you know how to do it.

DennyMcLain

04-13-2009, 07:40 PM

Movie night tonight with a beautiful blonde.

Hmmm...

Beautiful blonde woman, or

WWE Draft......

Welp, I suppose that's what YouTube is for.

Plenty of hot blondes on YouTube, right?

kdawg32086

04-13-2009, 11:09 PM

I've got a feeling Shane McMahon is gonna be the traitor at Backlash, not Batista. I mean, Shane himself is a legacy....

Pharaoh

04-14-2009, 09:44 AM

That's true, but everyone is already looking for the "swerve" and predicting Shane will turn on HHH/Batista because Vince has always favoured Steph or some shit.

That's why having it be Batista would come from nowhere and shock people.

The better option? Have VINCE join Orton! He too is a "legacy" (Shane is actually 3rd generation - Vince's dad was the owner of WWWF before ince bought it)

Vince's reason? Hates that HHH is married to Steph - "didn't want her to marry a wrestler" or because of all the shit HHH put him through with DX or ... HHH and Vince have a ton of history they could play off.

Anyway, DRAFT RESULTS:

Raw got:

MVP, Big Show, Matt Hardy, HHH, The Miz and Maryse

Smackdown got:

Melina, CM Punk, Kane, Chris Jericho, Rey Mysterio

ECW got:

Vladmir Kozlov (lol)

As expected Raw got the better end of the dea and for the moment has both World Champs (2 world champs but only 1 world - go figure). The IC Champ (Rey) left Raw, but MVP brings the US Title with him so that's cool.

Show stays with Vickie and this way WWE isn't forced to turn Edge face anytime soon (you know if they left Edge and Vickie together at some point Edge would have to become the good guy)

MVP gets to see if he can rise bove the mid-card - plenty of politic shit going on at Raw though - HHH, Shawn Michaels, Orton, Batista and Cena on the same show doesn't leave much room for main events.

Which brngs me to Matt Hardy - always the trusted veteran that can help the young guys it appars he'll be in this role on Raw. I bet they use him to get Kofi Kingston over or some other young good guy.

The Miz? I hate him but he's been the good soldier for a while now and has improved - this is his reward for hard work (he's not politically looked down on by the main eventers so he gets a fair shot)

Maryse is the Diva Champ so she replaces Melina the Women's Champ - plus she's the kind of woman WWE likes to recruit/hire. Until WWE gets serious with the women it doesn't matter who goes where.

Smackdown:

They've got Edge, Jericho, Punk, Jeff Hardy, Benjamin and Rey - great matches to be had. Maybe we'll finally see Punk pushed to the to of the card? Rey brings the IC Title with him so the mid carders have something to fight over, Jericho is gonna be competition for Edge in getting jeers (which might push Edge to be even better) and Kane gets to be on the same show as Taker (there is a lot of shit they could do with that story)

Melina comes to the "wrestlin" brand, so maybe they are looking at usng the women better - if Gal Kim is on Smackdown then her and Melina are gonna lock horns eventually.

ECW: LMAO - if you ever needed proof that this show was a fucking after thought may I pesent to you Exhibit A: Kozlov! Poor Swagger, Bourne, Dreamer (and possibly) Morrison.

Question: how the fuck does Kozlov have a contract but Paul London, Colt Cobana and Elijah Burke don't?

Answer? e's a big fucker

All 3 guys I named are better in the ring and on the mic (London sucks at promos but Kozlov is just as bad)

Fuck ECW - Swagger and Bourne and Christian and Finlay are gonna carry tat show for a yea! Actually, that's not so bad - especially if they let those gus appear on Smackdown too.

D's Nuts

04-14-2009, 10:53 AM

I am glad they shook it up quite a bit. I will say that right now Jericho is on fire and anything they have done with him has been money. (Jericho/Orton, Jericho/Michaels, Jericho/Legends). I think him and Edge will get a great program going. Glad they broke up Edge/Vickie since that is totally played out.

Seems like all the firepower is on RAW and I imagine at some point SOMEONE is going to have to go back to Smackdown. ECW continues to be the developmental show and get people time/experience. Should be interesting to see how the new WWE Superstars show will be formatted and run. Debuts this week.

I would anticipate some Tag Teams moving to Smackdown as well during the supplemental draft. Maybe they turn Primo/Carlito heel and finally Cryme Tyme will get they run they deserve.

D's Nuts

04-14-2009, 10:54 AM

Also, tonight on E:60 they are spotlighting McMahon and Wrestlemania. Looks intriguing.

Glenn

04-14-2009, 11:34 AM

Also, tonight on E:60 they are spotlighting McMahon and Wrestlemania. Looks intriguing.

That does look good, but I probably still won't watch.

DennyMcLain

04-14-2009, 02:43 PM

I preferred the original Draft, where the GM's would pick and trade like some streetball game. This computer shit is stupid.

This way, it's would allow Vicky a first pick, which she would pick Show. In the locker room, Edge would go fucking nuts... especially if they kissed on stage.

I remember the first "draft", when Vince picked The Rock to go to Raw. The Rock, in the waiting room will all of the other superstars, seemed quite upset at the pick. He walked to the stage, where Vince tried to levy all sorts of rules on him right off the bat. The Rock, being the Rock, embarrassed Vince right there on stage, setting up their feud on Raw.

D's Nuts

04-14-2009, 03:11 PM

Yeah. but that was when Flair and Bischoff and Vince were strong on-air personalities that could carry the brand. Vickie sucks, Teddy is ok but not great, and Tiffany, well let's just say she could manage my brand if you know what I mean.

Too much interbranding has left a middle of the pack feeling that I don't think most people care for. Before, there were strong lines for each brand and you identified each superstar with that brand. Seems like they keep switching the same people (Show, Rey, HHH, Jericho) jump out.

Darth Thanatos

04-14-2009, 03:20 PM

Smackdown has all the athletes. RAW has all the hosses.

Looks like Smackdown is where it's at.

kdawg32086

04-14-2009, 05:30 PM

I was hoping Cena would get moved to Smackdown and Edge to Raw. Would've been nice to see Smackdown get a few more big name guys.

DennyMcLain

04-14-2009, 08:16 PM

Smackdown has all the athletes. RAW has all the hosses.

Looks like Smackdown is where it's at.

But the storylines suck.

DennyMcLain

04-15-2009, 12:36 AM

EPIC match between Morrison and Bourne on ECW. One of the best matches I've seen in a while.

Then, Koslov beat up on a no-name.

Then, Tiffany showed up and tried to act like a GM.

Then I turned the TV off.

Fuck you, WWE.

kdawg32086

04-15-2009, 01:22 AM

Christian is so over with WWE fans, its not even funny. That dude needs a belt. He wrestled Finlay and Dreamer in the main event and I honestly think he might be the most popular guy in al of WWE.

Pharaoh

04-15-2009, 07:57 AM

Denny - from the reports you missed a good match between Finlay, Dremer and Christian. Looks like ECW is the new wrestling show!

KDawg - I agree Christian is very popular, which is why he shouldn't have the belt. He doesn't need the belt to move up and/or be over so why give it to him? Especially the ECW title - I think it's beneath Christian to even be in the title picture for it. He needs to go to Smackdown.

Here is my outline for Christian on SD:

Edge beats Cena at Backlash for the title thanks to some Vickie shit (parting gift for her husband - remember that she is GM of Raw, Cena is on her show so she can do shit to help Edge. Since it's a last man standing match I would have Vickie come on to the stage and Big Show walk down to the ring. As Cena is about to hit the FU (now called Attitude Adjustment or some such PG thing) Show knocks out Cena with a punch! Edge gets up and is declared the Champ.

Vickie and Show kiss on stage, she waves to Edge, he freaks out - commentators claim that the marriage must be over and she's sticking with the Big Show.

Prior to the next PPV (Judgement Day) CM Punk announces that he wants to cash in his title shot at that event (held in Punk's hometown of Chicago). On that show is where Christian helps Edge retain the title!!!

Why would Christian screw Punk out of the title? Who almost grabbed the case before Punk (it was Christian in case you didn't read the Mania report). Christian could say he doesn't believe Punk deserved the case/shot at Edge - "my brother" - as Edge is The Man and Punk is ... "a punk".

This would be some good shit as a) the Money in the Bank winner loses for the first time ever (had to happen at some point) b) re-unites Edge with Christian c) begins a Punk v Christian feud that should go all the way through to just after Mania 26 (WWE could use Punk and Jeff Hardy to battle against Edge/Christian to make the battle last)

At Mania 26 Christian and Punk find themselves in the Money in the Bank match again but this time Christian wins title shot. At Backlash 2010 Edge and Christian square off against Punk and Jeff Hardy in a TLC match with Christian's case and Edge's World Title hanging above the ring. The case and title can only be won by Hardy or Punk - Christian can't win the title due to some bullshit that Edge worked out with Teddy Long.

After what should be an amazing match Christian finds himself at the top of the ladder - all alone. He eyes off the case and the title belt. Edge slowly makes his way into the ring (Hardy and Punk are out of it - they went through tables on the arena floor or something). Christian slowly reaches up ... and grabs the case. He then grabs the belt and throws AT Edge (doesn't throw it TO Edge - he chucks the fucking belt at "his partner, his brother").

Christian then grabs the mic - cashing in his title shot right now! Edge begs and begs but Christian just tells him "it's time for payback" and pins Edge in a singles match that lasts less than 1 minute!!!

BOOM! Christian goes from hero right now to bad boy for 12 months to hero again and the crowd would eat that shit up because it all has a backstory. When the question is asked why Christian's answer would be:

"Cause he pushed me out of WWE for 3 years. He wanted me, The Instant Classic out of the picture because as long as I was around the peeps, MY peeps wouldn't accept him as Champion, as the leader of the next generation. The people wanted me, no... they demanded that I lead them into the future. But Edge played the political game and forced me out. Well, brother - I'm back and I got what I came here for - Your World Title!

Now, it isn't true that Edge played politics backstage and that's why Christian jumped to TNA (he jumped cause WWE refused to push him to the top despite being very popular).

Casual fans that don't read wrestling websites wouldn't really know that it wasn't true and the smarks (the internet fans call themselves smarks lmao - it means smart marks) would search all day and night trying to find some evidence of it in interviews and "dirtsheets" (insider newsletters/magazines that print second or third hand backstage info) .

To go JJ Abrams WWE could edit old interview footage or interviews on their site to include Edge taking shots at Christian (without mentioing him by name) and/or mentioning how Michael Hayes (former SD head writer) had to choose between Edge and Christian ad chose Edge or something.

Anyway, in 12 months I gave Edge another World Title reign, Punk a high profle title shot v Edge and a high profile long running battle at the top of the Smackdown card and gave Christian his day in the sun.

If I was SD booker (writer) they would be my top 3. Jericho would be my #4, Jeff Hardy my #5 and I'd have Morrison moving up the card too. Guys like Kane, Mark Henry and them big fuckers are only there to help promote the real wrestlers, cause my Smackdown Brand would be all about the medium size guys that can talk, wrestle and make you actually want to watch.

Denny: (if you're still reading) I find it funny that you watched the opening match and then the Kozlov squash and then turned it off. Did Kozlov's poor performance turn you away or did the Main Event match not seem like a big deal (in other words - did WWE not sell the main event to you effectively?)

Pharaoh

04-15-2009, 08:04 AM

BTW, Smackdown is not getting any more big names - My Network TV is fucked up and Vince is pissed they changed the way the network does business AFTER he signed.

That's why Superstars is coming back - that's why ECW will feature guys like Christian, Swagger, Bourne, Morrison and Finlay. WWE wants ECW to do well on Sci-Fi so if they wanna pull Smackdown off MyNetworkTV Sci-Fi will give them a timeslot.

DennyMcLain

04-15-2009, 11:33 AM

Denny: (if you're still reading) I find it funny that you watched the opening match and then the Kozlov squash and then turned it off. Did Kozlov's poor performance turn you away or did the Main Event match not seem like a big deal (in other words - did WWE not sell the main event to you effectively?)

I'm a fan of Morrison, and I'm glad he's solo again. Fuckers got some sweet moves. So does Bourne. What's great about that fight was that they were pretty evenly matched, but Morrison simply was more of the veteran and caught Bourne telegraphing some of his moves. If they begin a feud, it would be interesting to see the evolution of Bourne. Obviously, it's all planned out and practiced to death, but a battle like that one "makes sense" -- both are gifted, but one has more ring-smarts and it showed. So, one can say "Morrison was the better of the two... but for how long?" Makes you want to watch more of them.

I didn't watch it through since I thought the show had climaxed with that match. You NEVER start off a show with a match like THAT. You tease it with Morrison, now a solo wrestler, coming out and talking shit about how people think he's lost his touch as a solo wrestler, how he's happy he's done with Miz and now would like to prove it but challenging Bourne (I don't usually watch ECW, but I'm sure there's some history between them).

With Koslov, you can have the crap match, but also have Henry come out and watch from the ramp, hinting of a future clash of the giants.

The Finlay, Christian, Dreamer match meant nothing to me. I don't like Finlay and I think Dreamer is washed up, which is to say I have NEVER seen him win a match outside of ECW (his battle with Jericho was a joke). Finlay is supposed to be a great teacher of young wrestlers, so having him on ECW kinda makes sense from an off-screen perspective. But, no, I don't think the WWE promoted it well enough.

Actually, I would've liked to see Christian open the show, then be interrupted by Morrision, who would THEN be interrupted by Bourne, which would lead to the Bourne/Morrision match after the break. That would set up the first match AND the last match.

Also, Tiffany as a GM is a fucking joke. She just stands around looking hot, telling us what we already know. How about firing that whore and putting Tommy Dreamer up there? He's an original, and would pledge himself to "bringing back the glory of ECW", which would mean things are going to get dirty and bloody real fast.

FillyCheezeSteak

04-15-2009, 01:55 PM

Also, Tiffany as a GM is a fucking joke. She just stands around looking hot, telling us what we already know. How about firing that whore and putting Tommy Dreamer up there? He's an original, and would pledge himself to "bringing back the glory of ECW", which would mean things are going to get dirty and bloody real fast.

Hey Pharoah, do you think something like this would "go over" well with the fans? I know things are always supposed to be 'PG' but it has been a while since there was a good amount of blood and violence in the Wrestling ring. I personally would love to see TD in charge and would love to watch a few violent matches on ECW.

D's Nuts

04-15-2009, 05:10 PM

Hey Pharoah, do you think something like this would "go over" well with the fans? I know things are always supposed to be 'PG' but it has been a while since there was a good amount of blood and violence in the Wrestling ring. I personally would love to see TD in charge and would love to watch a few violent matches on ECW.

Won't happen any time soon. Vince is catering to the families now. I watched the E:60 piece on him and he would play up the "entertainment" aspect of wrestling instead of the sports side. Think about it, when was the last time there was a bra and panties match? This is the first year in the last 10 (I think) that did not have a Diva tie-in with Playboy for Wrestlemania. They have gone soft.

I will say that the supplemental draft has yielded some surprises. Looks like DH Smith might start up something with Tyson Kidd possibly on ECW. Hope Ortiz gets some run on Smackdown too. I really think Smackdown will be my new favorite since it has less of the Big 6. ECW rocks too.

WTFchris

04-15-2009, 05:54 PM

I watched part of the E.60 show last night too. i found it very informative.

DennyMcLain

04-15-2009, 07:51 PM

Won't happen any time soon. Vince is catering to the families now. I watched the E:60 piece on him and he would play up the "entertainment" aspect of wrestling instead of the sports side. Think about it, when was the last time there was a bra and panties match? This is the first year in the last 10 (I think) that did not have a Diva tie-in with Playboy for Wrestlemania. They have gone soft.

I will say that the supplemental draft has yielded some surprises. Looks like DH Smith might start up something with Tyson Kidd possibly on ECW. Hope Ortiz gets some run on Smackdown too. I really think Smackdown will be my new favorite since it has less of the Big 6. ECW rocks too.

I dunno. Dreamer said if he didn't win the title he'd retire. Obviously, that sets up the possibility of Dreamer becoming GM. And, since the WWE have three brands, McMahon could keep Raw and Smackdown "clean" and send the carnage directly to ECW. I'm not talking barbed wire and nails, but "different". More cage matches. More extreme rules matches. More street fight matches. That kind of stuff.

Also, I think the Stryker/Matthews announcing team is the best of the three brands, with apologies to Jim Ross. Stryker simply knows a ton of shit, and it's interesting listening to him.

Pharaoh

04-16-2009, 07:35 AM

Lot's of replies since I posted after the Draft so I'll do them one at a time:

Denny: It's a shame WWE didn't sell you on the ECW Main Event but that just goes to show that Christian isn't as popular as some people would have you believe (I'm talking die hard, hardcore wrestling fans on wrestling websites).

If Christian had that "it" factor you would have watched the whole show, just to see him win/lose in that match.

Of course, nothing could follow the Morrison/Bourne match. I don't really care that they threw it out there with no reason or storyline because it was so good all that other shit fades into the background.

As for Kozlov and Tiffany:

Tiff might not be on as GM for long. Don't know who they might throw in there. Dreamer would be a good option if they were willing to bring back some of the original ECW stuff but I doubt WWE will go down that road. The PG thing is here to stay for a little while (until they grow up into 15 year olds and want their own version of Austin. It will happen. It's the nature of the business model Vince employs). Back to Tiffany - I can't see Vince letting her "run" the show as fans don't give a fuck about her.

Kozlov is gonna have a few squash wins and then ... I wanna see who they toss at the big bum because whoever they use is gonna get smashed. For some reason Vince and his yes-men see money in Kozlov. Um, the Cold War is over boys - deal with it.

Pharaoh

04-16-2009, 07:51 AM

Filly - I touched on this in my reply to Denny but will add to it here.

Vince is not in favour of the hardcore brawls and street fights that ECW was known for (in defence of the original ECW they also featured somehot shit technical matches that introduced Rey Mysterio, Chris Jericho, Rob Van Dam, Chris Benoit, Eddie Guerrero and Dean Malenko to the masses in North America)

The ONLY reason you saw of that kind of thing in WWE was when ECW was taking off in traditional wrestling cities around the country while WCW was kicking Vince's ass at the same time.

So, basically Vince was getting drilled in the market place and had no other option. Given the talent roster he had at the time it was a wis move to go towards a much more adult product. Thanks to Jim Ross, Vince Russo, Ed Ferrera and Vince McMahon the creative team was able to produce some kick ass stuff after the Bret Hart/Montreal Screwjob (if you don't know what the Screwjob is just ask)

Today? Vince is the dominant promotor by a very, very long way and there really is no competition for his crown (thanks to Vince Russo, Dutch Mantel and Jeff Jarrett down in TNA). He has no need to put his great talent roster through the kind of hardcore brawls hat were common place back in the Attitude Era.

Vince does actually care about his talent - he doesn't want Edge out of action with a broken neck, or John Cena out with a torn tricep, or Randy Orton out with a broken collar bone or Chris Jericho walking away for 2 years. He wants those guys and all his other main players reasonably fit, healthy and happy so he can run 4 shows per week and make shit loads of money off them.

So, long rambling post cut short: No, don't think Vince will do it, even if it was only on ECW. Would many fans love to see it? Of course - all the fans that came during the Attitude Era and actually stuck around are bored out of their skulls with this PG shit.

But Vince doesn't care about them - they are now hardcore fans and if they haven't turned off by now after he bullshit they have watched over the past 4 years they aren't gonna turn off now with Jericho, Edge and Orton in their prime and kicking ass in segments every week.

Vince wants t attract casual fans, or fans that did turn off. How do you do that? You target the kids and maybe if the child begs Daddy to watch wrestling Daddy will remember why he liked 3-5 years ago (or in some cases 15 years ago) and watch it with his kids.

If that Dad sees blood, broken tables, chair shots (You will witness less and less chair shots from now on due to the Chris Benoit murder/suicide) and shit he's not gonna let his kid watch wrestling, is he? No.

So there will only be hardcore shit on PPV, like blood, Money in the Bank, Hell in a Cell etc. Not on TV.

Pharaoh

04-16-2009, 08:07 AM

Think about it, when was the last time there was a bra and panties match? This is the first year in the last 10 (I think) that did not have a Diva tie-in with Playboy for Wrestlemania. They have gone soft.

I will say that the supplemental draft has yielded some surprises. Looks like DH Smith might start up something with Tyson Kidd possibly on ECW. Hope Ortiz gets some run on Smackdown too. I really think Smackdown will be my new favorite since it has less of the Big 6. ECW rocks too.

On the Playboy/Diva thing - Kelly Kelly didn't wanna do Playboy! So her push was cut short and the Divas got a shitty battle royal at Mania that was won by a man!

Why they couldn't have Trish Stratus v Beth Phoenix is beyond me - You either give Trish cheap disqualification win when Santino interferes (Trish can kick his ass to make the crowd happy) or you give Phoenix the "rub" and have her pin Trish.

Fuck, they had Gail Kim signed and waiting - they could have pushed her as a legit threat for either women's title and then Kim would have pulled out decent match at Mania (if you haven;t seen a Gail Kim v Awesome Kong women's match from TNA use Youtube and watch one - they are fierce)

Anyway, here is the entie Supplemental Draft (in order with comments frm some due who writes for the PWTorch website:

(1) Mr. Kennedy to Raw brand from Smackdown (11:00 a.m. CST)

(2) Shad Gaspar to Smackdown from Raw. Cryme Tyme apparently split up. (11:10 a.m.)

(3) Alicia Fox to Smackdown from ECW. How do you do, D.J. Gabriel? (11:20 a.m.)

(4) Primo from Smackdown to Raw. WWE trying to do away with tag teams, now the only tag champs in the company are split up. (11:30 a.m.)

(5) Mike Knox to Smackdown from Raw. (11:40 a.m.)

(6) Ezekiel Jackson to ECW from Smackdown. Split up another tandem and ECW gets another big man. (11:50 a.m.)

(7) Nikki Bella to Raw brand from Smackdown. Didn't the Bellas just patch things up and re-unite on .com? (12:00 p.m.)

(8) Candice Michelle to Smackdown brand from Raw. (12:10 p.m.)

(9) Zack Ryder to ECW brand from Smackdown. Another tag team split up. Perhaps Ryder can find personality on Tuesday nights. (12:20 p.m.)

(10) Chavo Guerrero to Raw brand from Smackdown...or perhaps ECW. Chavo re-united officially with Raw GM Vickie Guerrero. (12:30 p.m.)

(11) Ricky Ortiz to Smackdown from ECW. Perhaps a fresh start for Ortiz, who was even with Jack Swagger at one time before Swagger took off. (12:40 p.m.)

(12) Layla to Smackdown brand from Raw. Splitting up Regal and Layla to keep the theme going. (12:50 p.m.)

(13) Hornswoggle to Raw from ECW. Well, there's another split. This time Finlay and Hornswoggle. (1:00 p.m.)

(14) D.H. Smith to ECW from Developmental? Great pick up for ECW if Smith is ready to break-out and realize his potential. (1:10 p.m.)

(15) John Morrison to Smackdown from ECW. Well, that sets up the potential Taker vs. Morrison match at WM26, per our Torch poll this morning. (1:20 p.m.)

(16) Carlito to Raw brand from Smackdown. Carlito back on Raw...and re-united with Primo a few hours later. Apparently tag titles still in-tact despite zero other tag teams remaining. (1:30 p.m.)

(17) Natalya to ECW brand from...um...ECW brand? She was officially on Smackdown, but now the New Hart Foundation can be formed with Kidd, Smith, and Natalya. (1:40 p.m.)

(18) Festus to Raw brand from Smackdown. Another tag team broken up. So long Jesse and Festus. (1:50 p.m.)

(19) JTG to Smackdown brand from Raw. Cryme Tyme re-united a few hours later. (2:00 p.m.)

(20) Dolph Ziggler to Smackdown brand from Raw. Confirms Smackdown taping debut of Dolph last night. (2:10 p.m.)

(21) The Brian Kendrick to Raw brand from Smackdown. TBK could use a fresh start after Smackdown's writers gave up on him as a young star worth building up. (2:20 p.m.)

(22) Charlie Haas to Smackdown brand from Raw. (2:30 p.m.)

(23) Hurricane Helms to ECW brand from Smackdown. Good pick up for ECW, as Helms wasn't doing much of anything on SD after making his return from injury. (2:40 p.m.)

(24) Brie Bella to Raw brand from Smackdown. Bella Twins re-united to close the Draft.

So, ECW gets the chance to do something I saw years ago by a hardcore fan on a wrestling forum: The New Hart Foundation - Smith, Natalya and Kidd could form a stable on ECW and eithr attempt to tak down Swagger or attempt to take down Bourne or Christian.

Fuck! Christian is Canadian - he could join them! (he wasn't trained by the Harts IIRC but since when has the truth stopped Vince?)

The other bolded part is Mr. Kennedy - dude is fucked now. His shoulder injury could force him to retire! If he does come back he's on Raw, with Orton, Cena, HHH, Shawn Michaels, Batista, MVP, Matt Hardy, Big Show and Chavo (who will get a little push due to connection with Vickie) plus Kendrick and Festus who figure to get some kind of little mini push based on their work on Smackdown.

So, Kennedy - who isn't popular with certain members of WWE management isn't in a good place right now.

IMO they should release him and let TNA pick him up. You know TNA would push him to the moon and then he could leave them high and dry when his deal expired and return to WWE like Christian.

Anyway, I'm rambling again so yeah, I agree: Smackdown and ECW should be great shows to watch

Pharaoh

04-16-2009, 08:25 AM

Can anyone (D'Nuts or Chris) give a detailed rundown of that ESPN show, as I won;t see it unless I download it. I don't wanna download it if it's shit I already know.

I bet they showed a production meeting with writers but didn't reveal anything of note and several members of the talent roster put over Vince for his work ethic and I guarantee Vince rarely if ever used the word wrestling. It's "sports entertainment" baby!

Back to the Dreamer thing - I haven't heard if he even wants to be a GM or if he wants to get away from the business. I'll do some looking around and let you guys know what I find.

They could go 3 ways with his storyline line though:

1) He wins the title from Swagger in some flukey way and doesn't have to retire. He hangs around the midcard of ECW/Smackdown and helps to put over the brawler types WWE likes to hire (Kozlov, Knox)

2) He loses his last ditch bid for the title as Swagger smashes him. He gives a nice little retirement speech on an epsiod from Philly and he walks away. Maybe they give him a "producer" job (also called a road agent - they relay the creative team's direction to the talent and map out the matches), maybe not.

3) He is smashed by Kozlov prior to his contract running out and is placed on the injured list (time off to see what he wants to do). Kozlov gets the rub from taking out the ECW Original. If TD wanted to come back he could and you'd have a legit loophole plus you could have the big street fight send off where TD beats the shit out of Kozlv, takes a real fucking beating himself and then TD does the job and puts Kozlov over again!

No way WWE would let TD come back and beat one of their guys cause you know he's not staying around for long even if he did comeback.

I prefer option 2 - the fans in Philly would go nuts for TD and his speech would be awesome. Maybe they could have Rob Van Dam and Paul Heyman in the building that night too, just to make it specil for TD.

I wonder would Vince do that for a guy who, when you break it down, WWE has never liked and has never wanted to put over?

Pharaoh

04-16-2009, 08:34 AM

On the Striker/Matthews pairing - are they gonna stay together?

Apparently Jim Ross, THE greatest commentator EVER is being phased down and with Tazz leaving and JBL not wanting to do commentary WWE sure looks like they are short some commentators.

I could see Striker moving to Raw to help Cole become interesting (never gonna happen) with Lawler and Matthews doing the remaining shows as they don't need to be at the shows to do them.

I wanna know who is commentating the new Superstars show - that will send a message IMO.

Pharaoh

04-16-2009, 09:00 AM

NEWS:

Apparenly Ric Falirwas offered $250,000 per to be the GM of Smackdown and turned it down to remain free of WWE (but on good terms)

Dusty Rhodes also turned it down, to stay in his current role in Florida helping to train the next generation.

TNA's mobile alert thing has been pluggng n appearance by a former World Champion that doesn't wrestle for TNA. Rumour has it that Tazz will be reveale as the former World Champion (held ECW Title way back when)

ECW is moving back to the 10pm timeslot starting May 5th - so you guys might have to tape it if you wanna catch it

Dixie Carter (TNA president) saw Victora (former WWE Diva/actually capable of wresling) at a MMA event in Nashville. Nothing formal was discussed as Victoria is actually training for MMA debut but I would love to see Victoria go to TNA and show everyone that she can wrestle

My old buddy Gabe Sapolsky has been appointed Vice President of Dragon Gate USA - a touring company that will feature the stars of the Japanese based promotion. Gotta love Gabe - one of the best booker's in he last 10 years. If you wanna check out some awesome matches with no bullshit then check out Dragon Gate.

Highspots.com is doing a shoot interview with Ric Flair and Roddy Piper! It would be interesting, but who has spare cash laying around for a shoot interview?

Trish Stratus explaining why she didn't work Mania:

The Reason Why She Decided Against The Match: "Simply, there were no finishes, no 'What's going to happen? Will I win?' discussed. It was just, 'Would you like to be in this 25-woman battle royal at Wrestlemania,' and I said, 'Thank you but I'm going to decline.'"

On Coming Out of Retirement: "I've always said to come out of retirement is a big deal to me – so if I was to come out it is for something special. To be honest, I feel Wrestlemania is a place to create memorable moments in one's career and frankly, with 25 women in the ring, I was just not sure how anyone could come out having their 'Wrestlemania moment,' maybe if it was a little clearer that could be accomplished for someone, I would have been a part of it. If I were to go back, I would like to do something that is new and fresh, there are so many girls right now that can work, I'd want to be able to mix it up with someone I hadn't gotten the chance to before I left."

Pharaoh

04-16-2009, 09:11 AM

News on Bryan Danielson's contract situation with Ring of Honor (go check this guy out - he's likely th best wrestler in the world right now)

Bryan Danielson's contract expires in May and he hasn't renewed. He's getting into MMA training at Xtreme Couture in Las Vegas, to the point he's training five hours a day in that, and the wrestling on weekends is more his time off. He wants to go to Thailand for three months to train exclusively in Muay Thai, which is his weakness, and he can't do that when he's under contract here or for that matter, with any promotion.

PWinsider adds: Many ROH wrestlers, including Bryan Danielson, have their contracts up in May. Danielson has already told ROH that he does plan to continue to wrestle for the promotion but doesn't ant to sign a new contract. The reason for this is because he wants to be able to work overseas or take time off when he wants.

DennyMcLain

04-16-2009, 03:08 PM

Kennedy would do well behind the mic as a commentator, if his injuries are that problematic. It would keep him in the spotlight to prep a possible comeback.

I'd have moved Stryker to Smackdown to team with JR. Matthews gets Kennedy on ECW to hone Ken's commentary skills. Lawler and Cole stay on Raw.

When JR finally decides to hang it up, I'd move Matthews to Smackdown and re-team with his partner. Then maybe Todd grisham can team with Kennedy on ECW, providing Kennedy isn't back in the ring by then.

IMO, the announcers are a major part of a show's success or failure. One huge pet peeve I've got about TNA is that their commentators don't know when to shut up and call the match. They're more interested in pimping an upcoming PPV than actually paying attention to the match, so near-falls matter very little -- you know there isn't going to be a pin if the two announcers are clammoring about anything BUT the match in front of them.

Pharaoh

04-17-2009, 02:29 AM

Agree Denny, which is why I hope that eventually Foley (or Tazz) replaces Don West on commentary.

West can be a heel manager while Tazz or Foley team with Tenay. Tenay and West must have instructions to be the way they are because Tenay has been around for years and I heard him in WCW and he was nothing like he is now.

West is an ad man - was some TV infomercial seller or some shit for a shopping network IIRC so you know he's gonna be in sell mode all the time. That's fine - sell the match that is happening in the ring.

There are times to plug the next PPV, or the main storylines and that is when the rest holds are being used (any tme they lay on the match in a chinlock or some headlock). Maybe if TNA gave each match more time the commentators wouldn't have to forget the match altogether to get in the plug?

D's Nuts

04-17-2009, 11:15 AM

Don West used to sell Sports Memorabilia on late night TV. That guy was insane!

"We got Griffey wax packs for less than half off. GRIFFEY WAX PACKS PEOPLE!!!!!!! WAX PACKS!!!!!! You would be stupid not to get these. WACKS PACKS!!!"

Go to youtube and search Don West Baseball Blowout Extravaganza.

You are welcome.

DennyMcLain

04-17-2009, 01:25 PM

D's Nuts

04-17-2009, 08:42 PM

False.

Signed,

The Sham-Wow Hooker Beater.

Zip Goshboots

04-18-2009, 02:37 AM

http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_jYKXPQ1_P6c/R91PXpIJXPI/AAAAAAAACr4/GQSc_qj_l5o/s320/fonz.jpg

Pharaoh

04-18-2009, 08:47 AM

I should check out you tube more often.

I just can't handle the morons who think they can sing, dance, wrestle, do crazy shit etc

Just cause you have a camea doesn't mean people wanna see your dumbass.

DennyMcLain

04-18-2009, 10:36 AM

http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_jYKXPQ1_P6c/R91PXpIJXPI/AAAAAAAACr4/GQSc_qj_l5o/s320/fonz.jpg
FRAUD

DennyMcLain

04-18-2009, 10:38 AM

Also, Smackdown was pretty good last night. The R Truth/Morrison match was fantastic, but it appeared to end prematurely, like Truth was injured on a move and officials cut it short by five minutes.

Darth Thanatos

04-18-2009, 02:29 PM

And Jim Ross was going on and on about how 2009 will be the year of Morrison. If Jim Ross says that, then they must have something special in store for him.

Darth Thanatos

04-18-2009, 02:30 PM

But then again, Vince McMahon HIMSELF said Elijah Burke would be the future of wrestling, and the last time I checked he was in the Christian Wresting Federation.

D's Nuts

04-18-2009, 05:17 PM

It's a shame too cause I thought Burke would have been great.

Too bad he is black since WWE hates black people.

DennyMcLain

04-18-2009, 07:16 PM

It's a shame too cause I thought Burke would have been great.

Too bad he is black since WWE hates black people.

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_YHPQ0vRd-5o/R1_7Czzj-MI/AAAAAAAAAvU/FVIR-DMbi00/s200/thats_racist.gif

Pharaoh

04-18-2009, 07:29 PM

Burke was released because WWE Creative couldn't think of a way to use him!

How fucking wild is that!

I'll leave the floor open for anyone that wants to propose some story with Burke because quite frankly there are numerous options.

Them saying that 2009 is the year of Morrison doesn't mean much, though there is already speculation of Undertaker losing to Morrison at Mania 26 (which is in 2010)

That would be fucking stupid - the streak needs to remain IMO. It's part of what makes Taker one of the legends. There are other things as well, but the Streak is pretty important.

IF Taker wants to lose then that's fine with me. That would mean he is willing putting over some young guy and WWE would be looking to use this guy in the Main Event for years to come.

IF WWE Creaive just wanna use the Streak to push Morrison for a little while (cause of his size I have my doubts on how long they will push him) then I disagree with the Streak being broken

DennyMcLain

04-19-2009, 08:57 PM

I've always wondered what it might be like for some of those wrestling creatives, working with huge dudes who sometimes KNOW they're the shit and have egos 20 times the size of their biceps. Add the 'roids, and the need to deliver the "entertainment" end of things, and I can see how some players simply "disappear" from the industry.

DennyMcLain

04-21-2009, 11:44 AM

They're wasting Jehrico.

Pharaoh

04-22-2009, 06:51 AM

Always have and always will because he's not a muscle bound moron.

He is the last of a (literally) dying breed - he has been trained the old way. He started in Canada, went to Mexico, toured Europe, went to Japan, came to ECW, WCW and then WWE.

He is obviously one of my favourite wrestlers, but I don't think I'm the only one who sees big money in him. He can put on great matches with anyone, can do a promo, fans love him (or love to hate him) and he doesn't give off that "steriod monster" look when interviewed by regular TV shows.

Cena, HHH, Batista, Orton etc all give off that roided look because they are so much bigger than the normal guy. Jericho is a little smaller in height and girth (he's not even as muscular as Benoit was) so he gives the businss credibility.

But Vince sees the lack of height and girth as a weakness. Vince sees the lack of mucle as a weakness. Vince sees Jericho taking time off a couple of years ago for his Band and other interests as a weakness.

I see them all as a plus, even the time away. He needed a change. He did his thing and now he's back OWNING these dumb fuckers.

Before Jericho's career is hrough I would like to see him get a 6 month World Title run as a career appreciation gift (kind of like what Benoit got) before he puts over some other muscle bound bum.

In the mean time I'm happy to accept his high mid card heel act and transitional title reigns. The way Vince changes his mind about talent Jericho could end up with 5 World Title reigns before his days are done.

BTW, if you wanna see some good shit check out Jericho on Youtube. His arrival in WWF is still one of the most talked about moments in wrestling history (most claim it's the greatest debut segment ever) and then check out his 2nd Coming. Dude is fucking money.

DennyMcLain

04-22-2009, 12:25 PM

The best Jericho moment IMO was the promo he put out with The Rock, where each of them mock the other, with poor "Mitchell Cole" in the middle.

I still prefer Jericho as a face. The shitstorm between him and Stephanie was classic. He's just too damn boring as a heel.

I STILL haven't heard anybody call Jericho out about why HE came back. Apparently, he was a pretty successful radio personality before the second-coming.

Pharaoh

04-24-2009, 05:35 AM

I think I was in one of my "not watching" modes around that time.

WCW really fucked up the Jericho v Goldberg story and I stopped watching for a year or so. This was at the same time that WCW had a great undercard and shitty old main eventers - all the young guys were getting screwed so I stopped watching.

Caused me to miss many great moments, cause the business was in it's boom period - but I just couldn't watch anymore bullshit.

DennyMcLain

04-24-2009, 12:46 PM

Re-education

AB6JXzB4SPU

Pharaoh

04-25-2009, 06:43 AM

Thanks Denny.

And you might have missed it but Jericho came back to "Save Us" from Randy Orton's boring World Title reign. Jericho said so himself when he returned (the 2nd coming).

Apparently Jericho is gonna be facing Rick Steamboat at the next WWE PPV. There is a funny story behind it...

After Mania (where Jericho beat Steamboat, Piper and Snuka) Vince wanted Steamboat in the ring on the next Raw, because of the audience reaction. It was never intended to be anything big.

When the crowd went nuts for Steamboat on the live Raw Vince was PISSED! He demanded that the commentators not mention Steamboat the next week. Obviously something changed after that Raw, because the next week Steamboat was brought out again to argue with Steamboat.

Someone with political pull must have convinced Vince to allow Steamboat back into the ring and on TV, cause there is no way he would have done it by himself. Having Steamboat on TV shows how far below standard several acts really are.

I haven't read who spoke to Vince or who proposed the Jericho v Steamboat one on one match for Backlash but if I had to guess I'd say it was Jericho himself.

Think about it - this angle with Steamboat keeps Jericho in a reasonably high spot, but away from the title. I would imagine Jericho selling Vince on the idea that this angle doesn't really impact any one else's story either.

The best thing about it is that Jericho and Steamboat could steal the fucking show at Backlash, especially with the shitty Main Event of HHH, Shane McMahon & Batista v Orton, Rhodes & Dibiase.

DennyMcLain

04-25-2009, 09:57 AM

Jericho/Steamboat is completely unbelievable, Jericho is at the top of his game, and Steamboat hasn't wrestled in years. Matches have to own an aire of believability before you can appreciate them, which is why Flair wrestling up until recently made no sense.

Tried to watch Smackdown again last night. Main event was predictable, with Batista and Shane winning (but not without tension). If form holds, HHH will lose the belt at Backlash since his team is the one entering with momentum.

The Jeff Hardy bit was fucking stupid. I turned the show off for a good half hour after that. CM Punk must be thinking to himself "Shit, what the fuck are they writing for ME?!!!"

MVP looks to be gaining a ton of popularity... but he's battling Dolph Zigler at Backlash? I like Zigler's talent, but how long can those creative boneheads have him introducing himself to people before the fans start believing he's some retard who can't construct a complete sentence?

And what's with Raw on Smackdown and Smackdown on Raw??? The draft is ovah. Go to your respective brands and STAY THERE!!!!

Pharaoh

04-26-2009, 07:31 AM

I don't care if it's unbelieveable - the whole wrestling scene blows my fucking mind cause bookers are so stupid.

I can appreciate a match that is good/great with no backstory or reason, as long as I care (or the wrestlers make me care) about the people involved. Jericho and Steamboat I care about. That's all I need. I hope they steal the show, if only to show that once again Chris Jericho is The Man and that Ric Flair, HHH and Vince McMahon should be putting him over.

All the other shit right now is exactly that: shit. WWE has no idea IMO (though I am interested to see how the book shows after Backlash when the Brand Split goes back to the way you want it Denny)

TNA on the other side has Mick Foley as Champ, about to battle Jeff Jarrett. So, we got the belt off the Main Event Mafia old timers and put it on the Frontline old timers? WTF? AJ Styles or Samoa Joe should have beaten Sting for the belt - putting them over as legit stars in the eyes of the casual fans.

Instead TNA delays it some more and if Styles or Joe do beat Foley it'll look like crap since Foley's reign will be too short to mean anything! FUCKKKKKKKK!

Stupid ass fuckers.

DennyMcLain

04-26-2009, 08:43 PM

Well Dicklick is on... er, I mean Backlash.

Christian wins the ECW title, according to the internet. Oooooooo... I dident see that one coming.

Pharaoh

04-27-2009, 04:49 AM

Which means he now has the Matt Hardy role on Smackdown - helping the young guys get better. Swagger is going to move on to bigger and better things sooner rather than later and that would leave ECW with no real heel...

Unless Christian turns while Champ! It's easy to do (the "fame and fortune and glory of being Champ sends him over the edge") and would put him back to his strong suit IMO.

He's not bad as a face, but he's great as a cocky heel...

Edge won the World Title so Smackdown has a World Champ, Orton won the 6 man tag (pinning HHH too!!!) so he's now the World Champ on Raw and apparently Jericho v Steamboat was pretty good - but not a classic.

If it was decent enough (and I read that it was) Jericho can move to Smackdown with his head held high, knowing he was the fucking Man on Raw for almost 12 months.

I wonder how they are gonna book Smackdown now with Edge as Champ? He's already faced the Undertaker for a long feud so he needs a new opponent. Maybe Jeff Hardy gets the nod, maybe he doesn't. His contract is up soon and he hasn't re-signed yet.

D's Nuts

04-27-2009, 11:37 AM

CM Punk and Edge will start a program. Lock it.

D's Nuts

04-28-2009, 12:57 AM

Pretty solid RAW in my opinion. I liked the direction of the show where there was little to no backstage crap and then just wrestling. Imagine that! A wrestling show with ACTUAL wrestling. Orton/Batista should be a solid match at Judgement Day. Clearly we are headed to a Cena/Big Slow feud as well. What the hell were they thinking when they booked the chicks match? Kelly Kelly and Mickie James did NOTHING. Well, Kelly looked hot at least.

Pharaoh

04-28-2009, 09:16 AM

Looks like the women on Raw are just gonna be there to support the comedy side of things - not bad but some of them deserve better.

Cena v Show is old, boring and crap. Their matches will suck

Orton v Batista has potential as long as Orton can punt kick Shane back into the office. And is anyone wondering what Vince (TV character, not owner) is thinking, considering he named Batista as his replacement in the PPV match and as a result Triple H not only lost the title but got kicked in the fucking head?

Vince should show up on Raw and be pissed with Batista for letting the team down. Batista could drill Vince with a spear. Security surround the ring as Shane and Vince gang up on Big Dave.

Who saves Batista from the 2 on 1 beatdown? Forget Legacy. How about MVP? Or Kennedy? Or Shawn Michaels?

Won't happen though - cause the creative team suck.

On SD they are gonna have a Scramble match to determine the #1 contender to Edge's title. Rey Mysterio, Jeff Hardy, John Morrison and 2 other dudes I forget right now will be in it.

Most people on the net are thinking Hardy will get the win. I think Rey Rey is gonna win it. He won't beat Edge for the title, though.

I don't want Rey to win the Scamble. I have the perfect scenario for Punk to cash in his MITB case, and it starts next SD.

Have John Morrison win the Scramble match to become #1 contender! (pushes him as a legit threat) Edge comes out and talks shit to the young buck. Morrison talks shit to Edge and just as they look like they are gonna fight CM Punk comes out.

Edge is freaking out cause he's guessing Punk is gonna attack him and cash in the case right now. Edge bails to the floor. Punk, from the stage, announces he wants the shot at Judgement Day - in his hometown of Chicago.

Morrison refuses to give up his spot but says if Punk thinks he can beat him Punk has to put the MITB case on the line so it's title shot v title shot next week. Punk agrees. Edge (at ringside) looks on.

On the next SD Punk pins Morrison after 20 minutes or so to claim the title shot. Edge naturally comes out after the match and attacks Punk. Morrison, fuming that he no longer has his title match grabs the MITB case and smashes Edge with it. Morrison then turns and smashes Punk with it, too.

In those 2 weeks I have put Punk and Morrison into a program with Edge, who can elevate them both over the next 6 months through triple threat matches or singles bouts/interview segments. Edge could try to befriend Morrison and either win him over or not. Christian could come into play here too as Edge/Christian could eventually go up against Punk/Morrison.

The possibilities are endless...

Anyway between Punk, Edge and Morrison the clear cut hero would be Punk - chasing the title while fending off Morrison at every turn (overcoming the odds routine works well). The clear cut heel should be Morrison - he's cocky, arrogant and puts on a show like Rick Rude and Shawn Michaels.

The "tweener" is Edge - he could play the part of the established veteran that everyone wants a piece of cause he's a fucking legend and rules Smackdown. EVERYONE is out to take him down now that Vickie, Chavo and Sgow are on Raw.

This puts Edge up against the wall - will he recruit a new crew? Will someone finally get one over on him. How will he survive?

WWE Creative: Surely those questions could make a storyline run for months?

DennyMcLain

04-28-2009, 02:52 PM

Whatever happened to Ryder and Hawkins?

Pharaoh

04-29-2009, 01:18 AM

Didn't improve at all or generate any interest while they were with Edge so I believe WWE felt that instead of bringing him down by associating with them they would just go their seperate ways and it wouldn't be mentioned again.

In the their defense it's not like WWE tried to do much with them, even when they were tag champs. Another act that could have done something being pissed away by the creative team

DennyMcLain

05-05-2009, 10:46 PM

OK. Shane is gone.

Pharaoh is calling it.

Darth Thanatos

05-05-2009, 11:34 PM

And Morrison has turned face. He could have been the 3rd heel behind Y2K and Edge.

Pharaoh

05-06-2009, 07:22 AM

Been off the net for a week or so and haven't watched/read anything about wrestling in that time.

If Morrison is a face that just proves that the "creative" team has no fucking idea what to do with mid card acts or how to elevate them into the main event.

That's pretty sad, considering Shawn Michaels, Batista, Undertaker and HHH are getting up there in age. I know that all of them (particularly Michaels) are still delivering right now but WWE seriously needs to look ahead a couple of years and work out who they are gonna have other than Cena, Orton and Edge.

They have possibly Jack Swagger, Christian, CM Punk and John Morrison ready to bust through the "glass ceiling" IF Vince allows it and pushes it.

Most people that remember the last big boom in wrestling (The Attitude Era) remember only The Undertaker, Mick Foley, HHH, Austin and The Rock. In actual fact that boom period in WWE started with Bret Hart and Shawn Michaels while over in WCW Bill Goldberg, Ric Flair, Sting, Hulk Hogan, Kevin Nash and Scott Hall were leading the charge.

So, 13 guys were dominant before the last boom period. With very little real competition WWE doesn't need that many guys at or near the top but they do need guys with real credibility that can be slotted in when Taker, Michaels and Batista step back in the next 12 to 36 months.

They really need to start giving Swagger, Punk, Morrison and Christian more credibility in the next few months/years and the only real way to do that is to have the established guys put them over.

Again, putting someone over is much different from losing to them. I don't expect Taker to lose on Pay Per View to Swagger but he needs to "almost" lose, and more than once in order to establish the young buck as a real threat to Cena, Orton and Edge.

I'm gonna go and check out some NBA shit, then I'll check the wrestling stuff and if I find anything interesting I'll post it later.

DennyMcLain

05-06-2009, 01:54 PM

What was great about that era was the two biggest stars in the WWF at the time, The Rock and Austin, were really a new type of face -- they were good guys, but also beat up on good guys. They really didn't give a shit about anybody but themselves.

Then the WWE jumped the shark with both of them, giving Austin a fucking guitar and having Rock get all warm and fuzzy with his humor.

I'd really like to see a wrestler with and angle like Morrison -- an ego bigger than the size of McMahon's bank account -- play the loner. It would perfectly fit the Miz attack against him, and also allow Morrison to play both sides.

kdawg32086

05-06-2009, 10:14 PM

What did he call?

Pharaoh

05-06-2009, 11:10 PM

The Rock and Austin got over huge because they were really the first people to act that way. Morrison doing it now (or something similar) would come off as second rate or forced IMO.

They could just use him as a Rick Rude kind of guy - arrogant, cocky and thinks he's God's gift to women.

I think that WWE or TNA need to come up with something completely different - and I don't mean a scripted MMA.

I'm talking about little subtle things like not having a camera crew in place every single time there is a brawl backstage. If you wanna do a backstage brawl angle then think logically - instead of having a regular interview area (like TNA does) have a roving reporter who conducts those interviews in the locker room, catering area, loading dock etc

When you do a backstage brawl angle the roving reporter and his camera guy could be shown rushing through the backstage area before arriving on the scene.

Another "new" concept (it's not new, just a twist on the current model) would be to have the GM of the show actually play mind games with the talent. Kind of like a Phil Jackson/motivational kind of thing where the GM pushes 1 guy into certain situations to "develop" them, in an effort to see if they have what it takes to make it in the big time.

The GM could also use the roving reporter to pass along some "advice", like "if you attack so and so it would be good for your career" or some shit.

There are so many ways to go that the tired and boring GM role would have new life and the roving reporter thing is something I believe makes too much sense not to happen.

What do you guys think?

DennyMcLain

05-07-2009, 12:01 AM

That would be interesting. On stage, you still have the quality direction and high production value, but backstage it's more like The Office -- haphazard and unpredictable.

Shit would happen out of the blue, like while an interview with MVP is taking place Batista and Orton smash through a door fighting their asses off. I always thought it was gay that these guys hate each other, but share a common backstage area. Backstage should be more dangerous than ONstage.

Pharaoh

05-07-2009, 05:53 AM

Which is how it could be presented.

You could have the top guys, maybe 3 or 4 have their own dressing rooms but the remaining roster would have to dress in the 2 seperate locker rooms.

The perks the top 3 or 4 guys get could include TV, xbox/playstation, phone, lounge and in a storyline I wrote once I even had these guys having a "butler".

Naturally the heel would try to bribe the butler of his enemy to mess with his gear or food or just straight up attack the face. It couldn't be used all the time but it would be a great way to introduce a new wrestler (it could be used to intro some new guy twice in 5 years)

The remaining "regular" wrestlers would want those private locker rooms. They should be coveted because it signifies that you are in line for the title and at the top of the company.

The other good thing about roving reporters/2 seperate locker rooms is that it's natural to assume that CM Punk doesn't just hate Edge - he hates all the other heels on Smackdown too. So if he was to see one of them backstage it could turn into a brawl.

All this stuff could be explained by the commentators at the start of the show, or could be put in a little bit each week until eventually they just say "Now we'll cross to our roving reporter who is standing by with MVP". When they cross to the interview MVP starts talking about whatever he needs to and then off to the side you hear screams and yells.

The camera man and the reporter run to "investigate" and come across Legacy attacking Batista or something.

BOOM! Shit happens backstage.

MVP rushes to Batista's aid, security come in and as Legacy walk away they end up turning into the wrong locker room area. They stand before approx 10 faces and as the faces move forward Legacy turns tail to run but are hit by Batista and MVP.

More security rush in and eventually Legacy are freed enough to RUN down the hall into the heels locker room. The heel locker room enters the hall way and the camera man is caught between 10 heels on one side and 10 faces on the other.

We fade to black...

Now that's a cliff hanger for next week on a TV show.

What's gonna happen? Maybe WWE Creative could figure this shit out and I could stop giving them ideas they don't use.

Pharaoh

05-08-2009, 08:31 AM

You guys may have noticed I haven't mentioned TNA since they put the title on Mick Foley and that's because I hated the move big time....

But, since then TNA have actually done a really good job putting together 2 quality episodes of Impact, full of storyline development, "shades of grey" booking and I'm actually pretty impressed with the amount of character development and layering being done.

If you guys have a chance to check out TNA Impact do so. I'd be interested to know what you guys think of the "other" company.

D's Nuts

05-08-2009, 06:45 PM

I gave up on them a long time ago. If you are telling me it's worth it, I might go again. Then again I would feel like a battered wife going back to my trailer and white trash lifestyle and asking for seconds.

DennyMcLain

05-08-2009, 09:51 PM

I've said it before -- TNA is basically the WWF of the '80's. Cheesy production value, bad acting, stupid characters, waaaay over the top. At least the WWE gives you a show likened to a rock concert.

Also, TNA holds that deep south "hick" feel the WCW always seemed to bring to Nitro. I dunno -- it's like Country comedy (Larry the Cable Guy, Jeff Foxworthy, etc)... I'm TOLD it's funny, but I just can't see the humor. Dixie Carter doesn't help matters, nor does Jeff Jarrett's sweet mullet (if he still has one). I guess what I'm trying to say is, TNA still has a small "regional" feel to it, where the WWE is more polished and "bigger".

Pharaoh

05-08-2009, 11:47 PM

Just watch it for 2 weeks guys. If you hate it you hate.

Some things do change.

Darth Thanatos

05-09-2009, 12:41 AM

I can never turn down wrestling, no matter how bland the product is. Fans like me are probably the reason thy won't try anything new.

Pharaoh

05-09-2009, 08:46 AM

In defense of WWE and TNA they do try new things. It's just that if you're a long time fan like myself you have seen it all before.

Well, not all of it - I've never seen the roving reporter thing done, or have the 2 seperate locker rooms/top few guys have a "butler" kind of thing.

The problem WWE has is that they now answer to shareholders and have a much more corporate mentality then they had when they turned the tide against WCW. The shit they pulled then (using sex, Austin, DX's sophmoric humour) wouldn't even be contemplated today because it's too risky.

TNA is a completely different story and I was just thinking about this the other day. TNA is for ALL wrestling fans. It's the buffet! They have the high flying "spotfests" with next to zero selling/phsycology, they have hardcore brawls, they have quality tag team wrestling, they have the old vets that people remember from the boom period and they have AJ Styles and Samoa Joe if you're looking for "future" stars.

TNA have all that and yet to the casual fan they don't have anything that seperates them or makes them different from WWE! Eric Bischoff once said that when WCW was thinking of doing Nitro he said "we can be less than WWE, better than WWE or different than WWE".

Now, obviously no one wants to be less than WWE - you don't wanna give that impression. TNA does gives people the impression they are less than WWE because like Denny has stated the production values aren't there.

Bischoff said no company could be better than WWE - meaning you couldn't attempt to do what WWE do and do it BETTER. TNA does try to be better than WWE because they basically use the same formula (though they change it up with the shades of grey booking)

So, how do you beat WWE, or at least seperate yourself from them? Be DIFFERENT! That's how the original ECW blew up (to the point they did). It's how WCW kicked the shit out of WWE for more than 80 weeks in a row. TNA does try to be different - they just don't tell you often enough how different they are.

On the last episode of Impact they did make a major step in that direction though, when they mentioned that WWE lead commentator Jim Ross stated in his blog that he longed for the days of great tag team wrestling or something like that. TNA commentators (Mike Tenay and Don West), with Team 3D (aka The Dudley Boys) on commentary for the tag match made a point of telling the audience that if you're longing for great tag team wrestling then TNA is the place you'll get it.

It helps that TNA has featured the tag division well over a long period of time, too - they can make that point and not look stupid.

If they wanna take another major step in the right direction they can continue with this Lethal Consequences, Motor City Machine Guns, Suicide/Chris Daniels thing and have it revolve around the X Division Title. Then in a few months TNA can rightfully claim that if you wanna see top notch high flying action (NOTE: they never refer to the X Division wrestlers as cruiserweights) TNA is the place for you.

To be able to claim that TNA needs to give the X Division matches more TV time, not just give them time for interview segments.

BTW, if no one knows what the deal is with Lethal Consequences, Motor City Machine Guns, Suicide/Chris Daniels just ask.

Pharaoh

05-10-2009, 06:47 AM

BTW, if you do watch Impact remember the following:

They don't have the super-duper, slick production values. It's not crap but it's not WWE level. Just don't complain that TNA looks second rate. If that's your only problem (this is not directed at you, Denny) then move past it or stick to WWE because no other wrestling promotion is ever gonna have the same production values as WWE

They also have a lot of "Shade of Grey" characters. Just like real life! Some guy who does good deeds can also be a bit of an asshole at times. And some guy that beats his wife might save a drowning kid or something. Their whole show isn't "Shades of Grey", but much of it is. WWE is much more good v evil than TNA - so don't complain that "it wasn't clear who the good guy and bad guy was."

I see that complaint on a ton of wrestling sites and my first thought is: What fucking moron posted that? Vince Russo is known for his "Shades of Grey" booking, real life is not all good v all evil and having a wrestling show written this way actually makes it more realistic and less insulting to my intelligence.

So, there's a few things for you guys to remember before you watch an eppy of Impact.

Tahoe

05-10-2009, 09:19 AM

Jeezis Kreist 39 pages of this shit? I'd rather read the 'signing off' thread.

Pharaoh

05-10-2009, 10:00 AM

Well, feel free to do that.

And if Bret Hart knew you called pro wrestling shit he'd come 'round to your house and kick you in the face (wrestling style of course)

I find it funny that people can't accept professional wrestling. Most people claim it's cause it's fake. Um, so are TV shows and movies. But no one gives wrestlers credit for their acting skills (some suck, some are better than some TV actors) and not many think of wrestlers as athletes.

Why not?

Do you think it's easy to "wrestle" someone for 15 minutes, making it look good to the viewer while not injuring your opponent or actually smashing them?

Go try some moves like those morons doing Backyard Wrestling - see how long it takes for you to pull back your punches at just the right moment so your opponent doesn't end up getting hit in the face 20 times in a match and so the audience can't see the massive gap you left between your hand and your opponents face/head.

Better yet go try doing a Moonsault, or a Senton Bomb onto someone and please try not to break your own neck, or your friend's as you land on him with your knees, gut, back or whatever body part you happen to land on.

Then go watch Kurt Angle v Shawn Michaels from a WrestleMania (forget which number) or watch Kurt Angle v Chris Benoit or Bret Hart v Steve Austin from WrestleMania...

I could name a ton of matches that shows what kind of athletes many of these guys are. At least give them credit for their skills. They risk life and limb to entertain people.

If you don't like it Tahoe can you explain why?

Tahoe

05-10-2009, 01:52 PM

I was just fucking around, P.

I was doing the "I don't like this thread so instead of staying away, I'm going to jump in be a dick about it" thing.

I watched it when I was a kid with Bo Bo Brazil, The Sheik with his sleeper hold, etc. Just can't do wrestling anymore.

Pharaoh

05-10-2009, 10:15 PM

I do the "I don't like this thread so instead of staying away, I'm going to jump in be a dick about it" thing all the time.

Darth Thanatos

05-10-2009, 10:33 PM

And remember, like some of the other brutal sports....wrestling has NO OFFSEASON.

Working 300 days a year plus making public appearances as well as going to the gym everyday.

One of the most amazing spots I've seen happened at the recent Wrestlemania. John Cena had Edge AND Big Show on his shoulders in the FU position. Edge gets off, Cena FU's Show, then IMMEDIATELY FU's Edge.

Roids or no roids, that takes a shitload of work, and only a pro wrestler would be capable of it.

Pharaoh

05-10-2009, 11:13 PM

Oh, and the fact that Brock Lesnar went and won the UFC Title kind of indicates that pro wrestlers are quite capable of kicking ass for real.

There are a ton of stories about real life fights backstage. Chris Jericho once took down Bill Goldberg for real and locked him into some kind of submission move in front of a few other wrestlers. Goldberg was pissed - but couldn't do anything about it. He started it and Jericho finished it.

Tahoe

05-10-2009, 11:17 PM

Not only that, but that one guy beat up Andy Kaufman.

Pharaoh

05-10-2009, 11:31 PM

There is a difference between a shoot and work.

The Kaufman stuff with Jerry Lawler was a worked shoot - it appeared legit, but was just like any other wrestling match.

Did you know that?

Tahoe

05-10-2009, 11:35 PM

We need to find a color for humor. Cuz thats what that was supposed to be, P.

I know...
Red is Rant
Green is Sarcasm
White was created by that Pharaoh dude according to Gl'enn, but what the fuck do we do with humor. Or maybe my humor sucks.

My bad again, Andy Kaufman was hilarious for a lot of us. Kind of tragic, but kind of hilarious too.

Pharaoh

05-10-2009, 11:40 PM

Humour doesn't really translate well on the page.

Sarcasm doesn't translate well either.

That's why people sometimes think I'm angry, or taking shots at them. Maybe if I used the "f" word less people wouldn't think I was so angry?

Tahoe

05-10-2009, 11:50 PM

If YOU used the F word less, YOU wouldn't be YOU

Pharaoh

05-11-2009, 08:11 AM

Exactly - so fuck those people who want me to use the word fuck less.

should i have used blue?

Glenn

05-11-2009, 08:35 AM

People like to make fun of wrestling fans (me too, at times) but NBA fans should be careful when they throw stones when you have Mark Cuban telling the mothers of opposing players that their sons are "thugs" and referees that are working with the mob to fix games.

These two "sports" are more connected than most think.

Pharaoh

05-12-2009, 02:21 AM

2 words for ya:

Superstar calls.

DennyMcLain

05-12-2009, 04:06 PM

When Manu flops, I'm always reminded on how The Rock took a Stone Cold Stunner -- like a live fish on the deck of a boat.

I love the NBA. They CARE about us wrestling fanz.

Darth Thanatos

05-13-2009, 12:04 AM

Yeah......

07PHDel7MoE

kdawg32086

05-13-2009, 01:30 AM

So...The New Hart Foundation?

Darth Thanatos

05-13-2009, 01:49 AM

Hell yeah baby. But it'll be called "The Hart Trilogy" or some shit like that.

Pharaoh

05-13-2009, 06:50 AM

Haven't seen or read about ECW yet but I'll take a guess:

Natalya, Tyson Kidd and Harry Smith formed a stable?

I bet I'm right...

And it's about damn time.

That story idea has only been floating around the internet for about 4 years!

All they need to do is sign Teddy Hart and completely steal the numerous booking ideas I have seen during that time.

Gotta love WWE Creative!

How stupid are they?

Just hire 3 or 4 20 year olds and have them read every Be The Booker thread on wrestling fan forums. The amount of quality shit WWE could steal in 1 month would last the company years.

Pharaoh

05-13-2009, 07:12 AM

Just read a review of ECW: Davey Hart Smith!

His Mom's name is/was Diana Hart Smith so I'll go with it.

I don't think they'll call them the Hart Foundation, or the Hart anything for the simple reason that Kidd is not a Hart family member (unless my memory is fading)

I don't know what they'll call them...

Darth Thanatos

05-13-2009, 11:15 AM

D's Nuts

05-13-2009, 05:39 PM

Pharaoh

05-13-2009, 09:01 PM

Kidd isn't a Hart family member, but HE IS a graduate of the Dungeon and Natalya's lover in real life.

Just toss in DJ Gabriel(another Brit) who is pretty decent but isn't doing anything right now and you got a stable.

What connection does DJ have to Kidd, Natalya or Smith?

Other than him being a developmental guy like them I don't see a connection.

BTW, on PWTorch.com they do "Hits and Misses" from each show. Whoever did the ECW one called them the Hart Trilogy...

Darth Thanatos

05-14-2009, 12:20 PM

Other than him being a developmental guy like them I don't see a connection.

There isn't any connection. But I figured since he's young, has a little talent, and isn't being used he can be thrown in.

Pharaoh

05-15-2009, 08:51 AM

Well, you'd have to come up with some kind of scenario that puts them together because you can't just add members to the stable for no reason...

Unless you are WWE, I guess. Witness little horney and Goldust..

I'd love to see the Hart Trilogy show up on Smackdown with Chris Jericho as the centrepiece. (Talent Exchange between Long and his girl Tiffany) Then on the next PPV have Jericho and Orton have a little moment backstage where they eye ball each other and kind of have a staredown but no punches or shoves or anything. They just pass each other in the hallway or on the ramp or something.

Then at some point in the future you could have some interaction between DiBiase/Rhodes and Hart/Kidd as you slowly, slowly build towards what could be a feud that draws money. Jericho v Orton would be money. If the other guys are handled correctly that could be worth $$$ too.

BTW, while I'm rambling about Orton and Legacy did anyone see how Batista out-smarted them on Raw. I think that the whole thing could have been done much better and they could have added some anticipation for Judgement Day PPV. Here's how:

So, we've seen DiBiase/Rhodes (one of them) laying down backstage and it's obvious someone attacked him. Orton and the other one go looking for Batista. As they "search" the hallways Orton keeps yelling out "Wait until Sunday Dave, I've got 2 big surprises for you" or something like that. They should drive that home as the search goes on.

Next thing you know Batista takes out Rhodes/DiBiase, which ever one was searching with Orton. Orton then appears on the scene and yells out again about the 2 surprises he has in store for Batista at the PPV. We cut away to Batista creeping through a hallway and then back to Orton, now with DiBiase and Rhodes.

The 3 Legacy members are still trying to catch Batista, but out of nowhere he comes running down the hallway. The trio run towards the loading dock.(camera man better run too). Rhodes flicks the switch for the roller door as Orton and DiBiase stand guard armed with whatever they can find in the dock (wrench and tyre iron). Security rush onto the scene but still no Batista.

The roller door is up far enough for the Legacy members to crawl underneath it so naturally they do, taking their weapons with them. Batista arrives just as the door reaches waist height. From outside he is hit by the tyre iron and falls to his knees. The camera man goes down to get a close up of the pain and agony on Batista's face.

The camera then pans outside (with some MTV style angle) and we see 2 cars: Orton gets into the first one as DiBiase and Rhodes jump into the second one. The 2 cars burn rubber and leave.

Batista screams in pain again and we go back to the commentators who talk about the search and "who was driving those 2 cars? Are they Orton's 2 surprises? Two new members of Legacy? You'll find out on Judgement Day" or something like that to hype the surprises.

Now, the question WWE creative would ask is: Will anyone not ordering the PPV already purchase it to find out who the 2 new guys are? My realistic answer (and I'll try to be unbiased) is Maybe!

But here's a better question: Will anyone ordering the PPV already CANCEL their purchase of it because this has been added? My realistic answer is Fuck No!

You're more likely to hook more viewers with my idea IMO. So why not add the anticipation? It's not there for something to do either. It serves 5 purposes IMO:

1 - Rumour has it that DiBiase will be turned face before his movie is released on DVD cause WWE don't wanna plug a movie starring a heel. So this puts some new blood in Legacy NOW, before they have to turn DiBiase later.

2 - Now that Orton has won the title does anyone expect him to sit back and chill out? Or do fans expect him to just become this crazy power hungry fucker that put the McMahon's out to pasture and is looking to take over? I'll go with him being a crazy, power hungry fucker. So naturally he recruits some new members for Legacy, to protect him (since DiBiase and Rhodes haven't exactly been doing an awesome job) or just to flex!

3 - depending on who you bring in (there are plenty of second generation wrestlers in the WWE development ranks) you could have another tag team and allow DiBiase and Rhodes to be singles wrestlers. Rhodes might not be ready for that yet but I'm damn sure many people in WWE believe DiBiase is gonna be a huge star for them at some point.

4 - it brings more new blood to Raw

5 - and the one WWE Creative will love: it allows Triple H to truely play the all conquering hero when he returns for his revenge on Orton and Legacy. He has more guys to smash and beatdown and attack and this draws out the feud with Orton so we don't waste their one on one match on some shitty PPV.

Instead we get Triple H v Orton at the next Mania with Triple H looking to overcome all the odds of Legacy (even without DiBiase Orton would have the 2 new guys I put in plus Rhodes). When Triple H does beat the living shit out of all these guys the crowd would go ape (or as ape as they do for the hated Triple H) and HHH gets the show closing moment at Mania again!

See, I can work for WWE - I put Triple H over in a feud where he battles at least 4 different guys on his own! Sign me up Vince.

Pharaoh

05-15-2009, 08:53 AM

How fucking long is that post? Damn -I gotta stop writing all this stuff or do a "Be The Booker" thing on here.

Who wants to see me do a "Be The Booker" thing, though?

DennyMcLain

05-15-2009, 05:49 PM

You wouldn't last one week in shitty Connecticut.

kdawg32086

05-15-2009, 10:38 PM

Here's my idea. With Orton holding the belt, the WWE could make this legacy thing HUGE, just like WCW did with New Blood/Millionaires Club.

Have Orton seen backstage making a deal with a mystery accomplice during the PPV. During the title match, have Batista mauling Orton when DiBiase and Rhodes come down to interfere. Then, Batista destroys them before going back to unleashing a beatdown on Orton. When Batista is about to finish the match, Carlito and Primo come down and help Orton, becoming the newest members of Legacy. This way, they have the talent and numbers to take down Batista. After the match, Legacy issues a beatdown on Batista and the PPV ends with Batista laying lifeless in the ring.

The following night, Legacy comes ojut and introduces their new members. Batista walks out to the ramp and interrupts the celebration. He announces that he has just spoken with GM Vickie Guerrero and that he and a mystery partner get a shot at the tag titles. He says that Legacy can wait until the match to find out who his partner is, but that it will be a BIG surprise(Jerry Lawler can drop a Big Show hint). When the match starts, Batista comes out and announces his partner as Hornswoggle. Batista and Hornswoggle lose the match with the Colons due to interference and get jumped by all of Legacy and a beatdown ensues. As Raw is about to go off the air, Shawn Michaels and the returning Sim Snuka come out and make the save.

Pharaoh

05-16-2009, 08:09 AM

DennyMcLain

05-16-2009, 09:42 AM

Don't look now, but Smackdown doesn't suck anymore. They must've replaced the entire creative team on that bitch.

Good show last night. The ending was great.

Pharaoh

05-18-2009, 06:24 AM

Kind of hard to suck when you have Edge, Jericho, Jeff Hardy, Morrison, Benjamin, Charlie Haas (suddenly motivated), Rey Mysterio, CM Punk and Umaga (getting another push)

The script? Wrestle! Give those guys 10 minutes in the ring for each match (on TV) and you'll be entertained. Edge and Jericho were brought up through the old system so they don't need fully scripted promos either - just bullet points of where the storyline is heading. They'll handle the rest (especially Jericho)

As usual Smackdown is the best WWE Brand!

kdawg32086

05-18-2009, 09:59 PM

I would love to live in Connecticut and get paid $100,000+ for writing storylines, Denny.

Think of all the NBA games I could watch for free...

Kdawg - the idea of the Colons joining Legacy actually works, cause their father was a huge star in Puerto Rico.

But...

Why would you team Batista with Hornswoggle? And why is Shawn Michaels coming out to help Batista? I understand Sim Snuka - he's had issues with legacy but Hornswoggle? And Shawn Michaels? Please explain.

HBK has feuded with Orton in the past and considers Jimmy Snuka to be one of the guys that made him want to be a wrestler, so pairing him off with Sim Snuka would be good. Plus, the guy is a Legend and since Orton is the Legend killer, adding a top level talent like HBK to the mix would be nice. When Dibiase turns face, have a 4 on 4 match at Survivor Series. As far as the Hornswoggle thing, it would be absolutely hilarious.

Pharaoh

05-19-2009, 07:02 AM

Well, you gotta add Flair to the scenario now (and I called it in the Aks Pharaoh thread).

Flair, Batista, HBK, Snuka and Hornswoggle v Legacy for the Survivor Series?

We could book that shit. Flair and Snuka's old man have the connection from this past Mania. HBK and Flair have a history. Batista and Flair have a history. Batista and HBK have a history (and starting feuding after Michaels retired Flair!)

All you gotta script is a way to put Horney in the mix and you're there.

Pharaoh

05-20-2009, 08:08 AM

BTW, believe it or not this is the first time I have really thought about this but:

Montreal Screwjob = Not Real Screwjob - forget the M lol

I'm always looking for weird shit and crap like that AND never saw it in the Screwjob but now that I think about it...

Without the Screwjob WWE gets slammed by WCW and the NWO storyline. The Screwjob basically began the Vince McMahon evil owner story that collided with Steve Austin's Redneck character to save the whole damn company.

Did McMahon and Bret make a deal?

Bret still got his money, only from WCW. And through the years he always goes back to the Screwjob, like he's doing the old "tell a lie enough times and it becomes the truth" thing to make himself believe it.

Vince has also brought up the Screwjob often, like he too is trying to make himself believe the cover story they told the world (in fact either WWE, WCW or TNA has mentioned the Screwjob on the air at least once every year since it happened in 1997!)

And wasn't it convienient that Bret had a documentary crew following him around at this point in time (Wrestling With Shadows documents the Screwjob)?

After all these years Bret Hart and Shawn Michaels still have issues! WFT? Get past it - it's been 12 years - but apparently the Screwjob is the reason!

I'm not saying that I believe the Screwjob was planned between Bret, HBK and Vince, but I'm not the first one to provide some "evidence" that this could be the best "worked/shoot" angle in the history of the business.

Thoughts?

DennyMcLain

05-20-2009, 10:12 AM

IIRC, didn't WCW completely WASTE their opportunity with Hart?

Unless Hart went over to the enemy and caused more problems than solutions.... by design.

Pharaoh

05-20-2009, 06:54 PM

They wasted him and he wasn't into it...

Bischoff claimed in his book that Hart wasn't into it as much as he could/should have been. Bischoff goes so far as to say that you could have had any "director" making the movie and if the actor doesn't feel the role then it'll suck.

So, from the word go people in WCW felt Bret Hart was not enthusiastic about working there.

Rumours have come out that certain members of the locker room were pissed that Hart was making more money than them and didn't really work as hard as they should have to get him over, too.

That was the end of 1997, start of 1998. Once Owen died I can't imagine how Bret Hart actually went to work for WCW. There was a classic match between Hart and Benoit ("Tribute to Owen Hart") and Hart and Flair had some good matches but WCW just didn't use him right.

WCW bookers will blame the fact that he was an Anti-American heel when he left the WWE and when he came to WCW they renounced that gimmick and made him a face. WCW bookers will say that the crowd didn't get his transformation.

Fuck WCW bookers - they were useless and selfish and had no fucking idea what do to with one of the best in the business. How do you use him? Have him form a stable and feud with the NWO. Or the Horsemen.

It writes itself you stupid fucks. At some point on PPV WCW should have had the following matches:

Bret Hart v Hulk Hogan
Bret Hart v Sting
Bret Hart v Ric Flair (they did have this)
Bret Hart v Scott Hall
Bret Hart v Kevin Nash
Bret Hart v Randy Savage
Bret Hart v Bill Goldberg (I think they did this at the end)
Bret Hart v Diamond Dallas Page

That's 8 big money matches. Those feuds could last a company years! WCW fucked it up - plain and simple.

But maybe because Bret wasn't into it all those matches didn't happen and he was left to do bits and pieces of crap?

Darth Thanatos

05-20-2009, 11:23 PM

Pharaoh

05-21-2009, 08:48 AM

I don't want Batista joining Legacy. He'd ruin the group IMO.

They need an Arn Anderson type (big guy built like Mike Knox) or they need to find a tag team partner for Rhodes and let DiBiase be the 2nd in charge behind Orton.

That way you can build towards DiBiase v Orton down the road when DiBiase turns face (I think that will be a major mistake as he has everything you need in a heel)

DennyMcLain

05-21-2009, 10:19 AM

Agreed. With Evolution, you had the champion on HHH, with Batista as the muscle bound big man, and the rising star in Orton. Of course, that's what KILLED Evolution as well -- their role players became solo stars. With the Horsemen, the pecking order remained the same, with Flair ALWAYS being "the man". Batista cannot join legacy for that reason alone.

If the WWE could somehow lure Matt Morgan back to their company and fit him into Legacy, that would be fucking perfect. He fits the body type, though he's no legacy baby. But, according to Wkipedia, his DNA is going to be launched into space.

In August 2008, it was announced that Morgan would contribute a sample of his DNA to be launched into space as part of game designer Richard Garriott's "Operation Immortality" project

That's gotta be cool enough. Can you imagine a bunch of aliens running around space who look just like Matt Morgan. Fuck "Legacy"... dudes gonna be the daddy of an alien super-race!!!!

Pharaoh

05-22-2009, 01:36 AM

LMAO - I thought that was just a bullshit angle TNA made up to make people think Morgan was good.

Did it happen? Did the DNA get launched?

Of all the wrestlers to get DNA off they chose him?

Crazy ass world.

kdawg32086

05-22-2009, 07:59 PM

TNA's storylines are shit now. Foley is killing this shit. If Foley wins at the PPV, then that's gonna be ridiculous.

Pharaoh

05-22-2009, 10:07 PM

The casual fans are telling TNA the opposite Kdawg.

TNA's ratings are not quite as high as they were a month or so ago but they are a reasonable amount higher than before Foley arrived.

TNA used to do a 1.0 every single week. In the last 3 months they have been a lot higher than that and in fact have beaten ECW some weeks!

Not bad for a company that has only been around for 7 years and doesn't have anywhere near the name recognition of ECW or WWE.

I'm not gonna defend some of their stuff, but I think the stuff they are doing with the Machine Guns, Lethal Consequences and Suicide/Daniels is logical and very well executed. The fact that all 6 of them would likely never get a push in WWE just makes me like that much more.

Again, TNA is a buffet for every wrestling fan. Obviously some stuff you're not gonna like. But surely there will be some stuff that you do. The question becomes "Do you like the good stuff enough to tolerate the shit you don't like?"

I know that many WWE fans tolerate a ton of crap each week just to see some good shit. Maybe they should give TNA a try?

kdawg32086

05-22-2009, 11:36 PM

Pharaoh

05-23-2009, 12:09 AM

The casual fans don't like Foley as a heel. It's stupid watching him walk around and make the predictable matches. I think anyone with a pulse knew he was gonna give everyone else a tough matchup and give himself a cake matchup. Congrats TNA, you just pulled something that's been done a million times already. Someone with legit technical skills should have the belt. Foley can barely walk, yet we're supposed to believe that he's the best guy in the company? Yeah.....right.

Is Foley a heel, though? Sure he has a problem with Jarrett (who is a face). He also has a problem with Sting (heel/tweener) and he also has a problem with Angle (heel).

That's something I like about TNA - not every character is strictly good or evil. It's "shades of grey" booking and it mirrors the real world where people aren't only good or only evil.

They might have done something that has been done before, but that doesn't mean it's a bad idea. It's actually logical for Foley to give himself an easy match and give his opponents hard ones. He'd be pretty stupid to book himself in a difficult match, wouldn't he?

Was any of his thing with "Rocky" funny, though? Some people think so.

I will agree I don't like him as Champion but not because he can barely walk. I don't like it because I don't imagine him having a long reign and if he doesn't Sting's long reign was wasted. Samoa Joe or AJ Styles should have ended Sting's reign IMO. I also don't think TNA has done enough to cast Foley in the role of "mastermind" or the veteran that knows every trick in the book.

The try to have him come off like he's seen it all before, but it doesn't feel that way to me.

The only other thing that I don't like is the British Invasion angle. If they put the belts on them, I'm gonna be pissed. Watching doofus Rob Terry run around and demolish people is getting old. I wanna see him put into a match with Matt Morgan to see him get smashed. I mean, Rob Terry sucked nuts in WWE's developmental territories yet we're supposed to believe he's a dominant force....I call bullshit. The reactions people are giving when he hits them is like Hornswoggle getting hit by Big Show. Fact is, if Terry was this dominant he'd be the champ or at least contending for it. But, the fact is, he's just another steroid abuser.

Couldn't agree more on Terry and I think TNA has made a big mistake bringing him in. They brought him and Doug Williams in to help get Brutus over and create another team but I would have just used Williams (who they have had under some kind of contract for a while). Doug Williams is very under-rated and is a quality in-ring performer. It's just a pity he's being used this way.

I don't want the British guys to win the belts, though - even though I like Williams. I think LAX need to be rebuilt and then have them challenge for the Gold. There is a long history between them and Beer Money and 3D. Play on that, use that, milk that. And LAX are over, despite TNA fucking with them for months. Use that to your advantage TNA.

I like the tag team emphasis but really, there are only a few good tag teams. And Beer Money isn't nearly as good as AMW was. British Invasion is like a retarded, less talented version of the Quebecers. I would really like to see Matt Morgan in a tag team, possibly with Eric Young. They should bring back Machete to join up with LAX. Since Hernandez has a legit neck injury, it would work. Then, they can feud with the British Invasion when Hernandez is back. As far as tag teams go, they need to bring back The Naturals....that team always reminded me of the Rockers. Then, if they can bring in Grenier and Dupree, remake La Resistance. That way, you get a deep tag division ala WWE in the Early 90s.
3D
Beer Money
LAX
British Invasion
Naturals
La Resistance

I think you will find that many, many people think that Beer Money is better than AMW were. Beer Money is one thing TNA has got right. The Bristish guys I covered above. Matt Morgan has too much potential as a single main eventer to be in a tag team at this point. He just got done teaming with Abyss (which was just something for them to do). I covered LAX above.

The Naturals are gone - aren't coming back as 1 of them got a WWE development deal a couple of years ago I believe. I think that ship has sailed.

La Resistance? I'm not even sure both are still in the business...

One thing I would like TNA to do is to break up Holiday (Trevor Murdoch from WWE) and Eric Young. Bring in Lance Cade to team with "Holiday". They alluded to the fact Holiday had another partner in his first appearance - they claimed the guy had travel issues or something.

Maybe that was an inside joke as Cade had a seizure on a plane while in WWE and was then fired because of it (must have been due to drugs) or maybe it was planting a seed?

Anyway, after having Cade and Holiday attack Young I would then have Chris Harris return and save Young the next week. This leads to Harris/Young v Cade/Murdoch but it would naturally eventually lead to Beer Money v Young/Harris.

Young and Roode have a long history. Harris and Storm were AMW. It's so simple it basically writes itself.

Darth Thanatos

05-25-2009, 02:17 AM

Mick Foley is still TNA champ even though he lost the match. Now Sting is the new Godfather of the MEM since he pinned Angle That's kind of weird.

Pharaoh

05-25-2009, 06:01 AM

From what I have read it was made pretty clear to the viewer that:

If Foley got pinned he'd lose the title.
If Jarrett got pinned he'd lose his "control of TNA"
If Angle got pinned he'd lose his "Godfather of the MEM" position
If Sting got pinned he'd retire.

Here's my problems with the match:

Foley and Jarrett are "shareholders" in TNA. Why the fuck would either of them try to pin Sting? TNA calls him an Icon, so why would the 2 "owners" wanna retire the Icon?

And why would Angle wanna retire Sting? He's part of the Mafia - he's an Icon of the business, the only guy to pin Hogan and Flair for World Titles and Angle is gonna want him out of the Mafia? Sting's presence in the Mafia is HUGE!

So, IMO no one in the match should have tried to pin Sting at all.

UNLESS

You subscribe to the theory that they all would rather keep their belt/control/Godfather spot than keep Sting around?

I can understand Angle thinking that, and maybe Jarrett - but Foley? Dude could have laid down for Sting and then used his "rematch clause" and pulled out some 'evil owner" trick to win the belt back...

Then again, maybe I'm thinking about this shit too much?

Maybe the only thing to enjoy was the action in the ring, and just forget the bullshit storylines TNA dishes out...

How the fuck do you book Styles and Booker in an I Quit match if you're not gonna have 1 of them say I Quit? They could have just had a Falls Count Anywhere Match or a Street Fight or something.

And why the fuck didn't Suicide or Daniels do some shit to piss off the crowd? One guy has to play the heel in the ring - when neither guy does the fans have no idea who to cheer or boo because of the shades of grey booking.

TNA needs to remember that shades of grey booking is not for everyone - maybe they should use it a little less often (or restrict it to certain characters like Sting, Foley, Jarrett and the MEM) Everyone else should be booked straight up heel or face.

DennyMcLain

05-25-2009, 10:05 AM

I actually watched TNA last week, and kinda liked it. The 6 man tag match was amazing.... with the sound on "mute".

Don West reaaallllly has to shut up. The first half of the match is all promo talk -- the announcers aren't even paying attention to the wrestling, and that includes near pins, so obviously the near pins weren't near pins at all, right?

If TNA would like to improve their ratings, the first thing I'd do is fire the announce team, because if I find them annoying as Hell, then I'm certain many others do, as well.

If TNA is looking to improve numbers against the WWE brands, every little improvement helps. Get Foley the Hell out of there and install a champion who is marketable OUTSIDE of wrestling. Lose the childish gimmicks, and tour Impact at least once a month and pack some arenas.

Pharaoh

05-26-2009, 08:15 AM

From all reports Don West was really good on the PPV and also very bad. That sounds stupid but apparently he was coming with the one-liners thick and fast and was funny for most of the show but during the Suicide/Daniels match he went on and on about them being the same person and that Daniels had got someone to don the suit for the night to deflect attention to the fact they're the same dude.

Now, sating his opinion ONCE would have been enough and he could have called Suicide "Fake Suicide" during the commentary to continue making his point but apparently he just kept going on and on about them being the same dude all match - which takes away from the match.

And Denny - I don't think they are aiming for an audience outside of "wrestling". They aren't tryingt o grab the casual fan - IMO they are trying to grab all those old WCW fans that stopped watching, the WWE fans who are tired of the same old/same old and old ECW fans who hate the "commercial" wrestling companies.

One could argue that because TNA is casting it's net so wide the miss out on identifying their own company with a true, distinct "brand.

One could also argue that by trying to reach those fans that used to watch Raw and Nitro but now don't TNA is looking to hook millions and millions of people who at one time did actually love wrestling.

I don't know if people remember this but back when Nitro and Raw were at their peak and going head to head the combined rating was something close to 15% share!

Now? If on Monday WWE scored a 3.5 they would be over the fucking moon!

That's a HUGE drop in fans and since those fans did at one time actually watch the product and watched it for a reasonable length of time as the Boom was end of 2006 until approx 1999 for WWE.

Those fans left for a reason - maybe they were die-hard WCW fans and hated the company at the end? Maybe they were in their 20's when Austin went into supernova. But at the end of the day it doesn't matter why they left...

TNA just has to find a way to get them back.

IMO Samoa Joe should win the King of the Moutain match at Slammiversary and then move straight into a feud with AJ Styles for the title.

While those 2 steal the fucking show every night for a few months TNA could have Mick Foley v Jeff Jarrett, Mick Foley v Abyss, Matt Morgan v Jeff Jarrett, Kurt Angle v Sting, Kurt Angle v Booker T, Scott Steiner v Booker T, Scott Steiner v Sting

plus there is the "is he or isn't he Suicide" story between the Motor City Machine Guns/Lethal Consequences and of course Suicide/Daniels

plus the tag team war between Team 3D, Beer Money (drop the Inc) and the British Invasion (can't have LAX as Hernandez is injured)

PLUS you have the women wrestlers and the arrival of WWE's Victoria, who will have to use a different name (likely her real name = Lisa Marie Vachon)

Fuck! I could write all those stories NOW and make it interesting. I might not be able to write out full blown scripts for promos or match but I could give story outlines for each and have them be logical.

And I'm thinking I should...

DennyMcLain

05-26-2009, 10:26 AM

Do it, P. Send a wire to TNA with a link to this thread, and let them read.

The anti-WWE should be enough.

DennyMcLain

05-26-2009, 10:46 AM

Also, the Raw/Nitro era numbers didn't just come out of thin air, they were generated by new fans (and old fans) hooked by the superstars who transcended the sport, such as Rock, Austin, Flair, etc.

I used to watch the old WWF, Ultimate Warrior days, when I was a kid. Then, I stopped watching. During breakfast with a friend one morning she mentioned Stone Cold Steve Austin (I think it was the morning after Raw). Apparently, whatever he did was fucking out of sight. She asked if I watch Raw, which of course the answer was "no". In addition, I wouldn't have guessed in a thousand years she was a wrestling fan (she owns a fucking Day Spa). A few days later, he was interviewed on KROQ out here in LA. Well, now i HAVE to watch it... and I got hooked!

Going "outside" of wrestling doesn't necessarily mean doing movies and albums. It DOES mean having a champion who's got a personality and is damn entertaining to watch. Flair, The Rock, Austin, Michaels -- all of these men only need your eyes and ears ONCE, and they've got you!

You need memorable moments. Video and audio blurbs you can send out as teasers to would-be viewers. And, yes, former viewers who gave up on the sport. I think one of the great things about the Attitude Era was that all of these "former" viewers had grown up. The old WWF had a childish feel to it, with the costumes and the over-acting and the weird wrestling names. But the Attitude Era, as well as Nitro, wasn't that -- it was more "adult", and allowed these former fans to sneak back into the mix without feeling like they were watching a kids show. If someone asked them "Isn't wrestling for kids?", they would reply with Austin.

"He did WHAT on live TV?"

And... they're hooked.

kdawg32086

05-27-2009, 04:53 PM

Vladimir Kozlov had yet another squash match last night with a no-name jobber...

Darth Thanatos

05-28-2009, 01:48 PM

ECW has way too many heel wrestlers. They only have like 3 face wrestlers(Cage, Bourne, Finlay) with the rest of them being tweeners or heels. If there isn't a face champ, that brand strugGles.

D's Nuts

05-29-2009, 01:15 AM

I was thinking about why I liked WCW and WWE back in the mid to late 90s and even into 2000s.

Both entities had people within them that had a "stick it to the man" type philosophy. I think that type really resonates with people because the wrestling is something that they can never be. The NWO "invaded" WCW and took over numerous broadcasts and then got the ultimate face (Hogan) to be their leader.

WWE had Austin, Undertaker, Rock, DX that all took their turns sticking it to McMahon.

I lived vicariously through those characters and how they treated their 'bosses' was something I wished I could have done as a teenager/early 20 year old kid.

Now, none of the characters in either brand really do much for me. I like Jericho, CM Punk, and Christian but not for reasons WWE puts forth. They are something different and not cookie cutter type guys. WWE is doing a piss poor job about establishing characters and building history with its talent.

I think turning major heels face or major faces heel is needed. I might care about Cena if he starts acting like an asshole. I cant stand his bullshit now. Likewise for Orton.

DrRay11

05-29-2009, 08:52 AM

Yeah, I tuned in for the end of Raw this week. It was truly awful, and the character building looks the same as it did last time I watched (probably a year or more ago) -- poor.

DennyMcLain

05-29-2009, 01:03 PM

Checked out TNA this week. Maybe it's just me, but it seems to be getting better. More rapid fire action backstage and solid action on the mat. I still can't stand the fact that the announcers are pulling promos the first half of every match. And it's appearing to be a more professional production, though I'll have to admit I don't watch Impact regularly.

kdawg32086

05-29-2009, 10:09 PM

The main event thing at sacrifice was dumb. They should've had it so Angle gets booted from the MEM if he gets pinned. This stuff about him staying in, but as a lesser character within the stable is a garbage idea. Kinda ruins the whole "sacrifice" theme. At least the British Invasion didn't win the tag tournament.

AJ and Daniels had a nice match on Impact. Would like to see Sonny Siaki back in TNA. That guy was an absolute BEAST. I think he's got the potential to be a stud within the company. Still think they should bring back the Naturals. They're wrestling together in the Indy's again. Then, they can bring in some former popular vets like Primetime and Senshi to keep the X division stacked with talent.

I see a huge opportunity with a MEM vs. TNA Frontline feud. Samoa Joe and Mick Foley can choose to stay neutral and not be on either team.

MEM has Sting, Angle, Steiner, Nash, Booker. With Frontline, have Jarrett, Daniels, Styles, Morgan, and Rhino. Have the storyline be that the MEM guys are "old and washed up" and are holding the upper middle tier guys back. Morgan can get rejected and then jumped by the Mafia to make him turn face. It would be a good way to move the upper middle guys into the top tier, as most of the MEM guys are at the tail end of their careers.

D's Nuts

05-30-2009, 04:28 PM

WWE released Ken Kennedy. WTF?

FillyCheezeSteak

05-30-2009, 08:22 PM

WWE released Ken Kennedy. WTF?

Apparently he is injured again after being back for only 4 days. He injured his wrist in the 5 on 5 Main Event last week on RAW. There is also a rumor that he is a major liability to the other main wrestlers as he is labeled as one of the most "unsafe" wrestlers and has no business in the ring if he is only going to get guys injured.

Personally, I really liked his gimmick and thought he was a good wrestler, but if you're going to get everyone injured because you suck at your craft then get out!

Darth Thanatos

05-31-2009, 01:29 AM

Ken Kennedy? Who is that?

Pharaoh

05-31-2009, 02:08 AM

Before I start I wanna say that there are heaps of things that TNA does that piss me off, because I believe they have all the talent they need on their current roster but not the booking smarts to use it.

Denny, D'Nuts, Everyone: I believe TNA has characters that could re-create that feeling you guys used to have when watching Nitro and Raw. Those characters are Kurt Angle, Samoa Joe, Sting and Mick Foley. The problem is that the creative team fuck it up. Joe's "I'm gonna kill you" bit is a prime example of the bookers having no fucking idea.

Everyone knows that Joe isn't gonna kill anyone. To make him say it once is stupid. To make him continue to repeat it over and over again is just fucking moronic.

Angle has serious cred stemming from his time in WWE. He also plays a good heel and face. He's over. He's capable of cutting awesome promos. His matches are usually top notch. So why is he lost in TNA?

Sting is a fucking Icon of the business. The only man to pin Flair and Hogan for World Titles. Everyone associates WCW with him (and Flair). He's over to such an extent that they couldn't turn him heel even when they surrounded him with Nash, Booker T, Steiner and Angle!! He can cut a great promo and his matches aren't shit.

Joe is the new breed. He can be a lot like the Steve Austin character that went supernova and made Vince into a billionaire. His promos can be good, his matches can be great and he has a different look than what people are used to.

Foley? He's Mick fucking Foley. Everyone (except kdawg) loves Mick. He's a Icon, people respect him, his promos can be great and his matches are memorable. Sure he's out of shape now, but if TNA was any kind of legit fucking company they would make him get into better shape in order to present the company in the best light.

Those 4 guys, with AJ Styles (too Southern right now to be a national figure) are the 5 guys you could build a promotion around and a World Title scene around. But TNA are too fucking stupid to work it out.

And if you need proof of TNA being fucking stupid...

The main event thing at sacrifice was dumb. They should've had it so Angle gets booted from the MEM if he gets pinned. This stuff about him staying in, but as a lesser character within the stable is a garbage idea. Kinda ruins the whole "sacrifice" theme. At least the British Invasion didn't win the tag tournament.

Exactly right Kdawg. While I disagree that the stipulation was dumb I agree that it was poorly executed on the night. I mentioned this earlier:

Foley put the title on the line
Jarrett put his "shares" on the line
Sting put his career on the line
Angle put his position of "Godfather" in the Main Event Mafia on the line.

The way it's worded gives TNA an out and allows them to stupidly keep Angle in MEM. But before we even get there...

Explain to me why Jarrett bashes Sting during the Sacrifice main event? Explain to me why Foley bashes Sting? Explain why Angle bashes him?

I understand them all attacking Angle - by taking control of MEM they can make them disband, kick Angle out, do whatever they want with MEM.

I understand them all wanting to pin Foley - you win the belt by pinning him.

I understand them all wanting to pin Jarrett - you get some control of the whole company.

But why the FUCK does Angle wanna retire Sting? They're in the MEM together and are the top 2 guys. Without Sting the Mafia isn't as powerful.

Foley, as majority shareholder in TNA should not want to retire an asset like Sting. Jarrett as the "other" shareholder shouldn't wanna retire Sting either.

TNA failed to sell the idea that Foley, Jarrett and Angle all valued their own shit more than they valued Sting's presence on the roster. And that's why people found it "dumb"

Now, back to keeping Angle in MEM: Why the fuck would the creative team do that? Have Sting toss him out, claiming that Angle only wants control of TNA and doesn't care about "respect" (which is the issue the Frontline v MEM feud was started over).

Angle then forms his own group, grabbing Matt Morgan (who has stated he wants to join MEM on TV) and that could lead to a Steiner/Sting v Angle/Morgan PPV match. In that match Steiner turns on Sting and joins Angle and Morgan.

Now you have a 3 v 3 battle with Sting, Booker and Nash as the good guys fighting off the arrogant heels (Angle, Steiner, Morgan). Morgan would benefit in a big way just from being associated with these guys.

While that was going on you could have Joe win the King of the Mountain match at Slammiversary and go on to square off against AJ Styles, while Foley and Jarrett battle over control of TNA.

There's at least 3 months of storylines.

TNA can steal it if they have a clue.

BTW, I would love to see Kennedy in TNA, but I wouldn't advise him to sign with them because the creative team is fucked. He's a talent, even if he's injury prone. Maybe the lighter TNA schedule wuld help him...

kdawg32086

06-01-2009, 02:08 AM

I don't hate Foley lol....I just hate the way they're using him. I think it would be better if Jarrett was the dick, not Foley. Jarrett makes a GREAT heel(or a face)....Foley not so much. I think Jarrett can pull off shades of gray, but not Foley.

Pharaoh

06-01-2009, 04:18 AM

My mistake, kdawg.

I agree they are mis-using him, but I could claim that they are mis-using most of their talented roster.

On a 2 hour episode of Impact why don't we get a 15 minute X Division Match featuring Sabin or Shelley or Lethal or Creed or Suicide or Daniels or Young or Homicide or Bashir?

Why is TNA content to let these guys blow through a 2 minute spotfest when the Division is something that makes them different from WWE and should be used as an asset.

Why is a tag team like Sabin and Shelley not given a run with the belts? I'm sick of seeing Team 3D in the main event slot of the tag division. I love the fact that Doug Williams is being used, but what is the aim of the Bristish Invasion? Why are they mad?

As for the main event spots I have no fucking idea what TNA creative is thinking. This Joe/Taz alliance thing isn't what it could be, the Foley/Jarrett feud isn't what it could be, the Sting/Angle dissention in the Mafia bit isn't what it could be and where the fuck does AJ Styles and Matt Morgan figure into this shit?

And while I'm whining why the fuck is Abyss being wasted on Dr. Stevie Richards when he should be going one on one with a "hardcore" Mick Foley in falls count anywhere matches. Foley could really teach Abyss some good shit (like actually having some action inbetween spots and the art of making those huge bumps mean something)

Fuck TNA's creative.

Get a clue, read a Be The Booker thread on a website or steal someone's ideas - that company has all the talent it needs in front of the camera. It's just a shame the creative team can't figure out a way to utilise it better.

Pharaoh

06-01-2009, 05:42 AM

BTW, there is some talk going around that the firing of Mr. Kennedy is a work.

WWE either released details of a backstage push and shove between Kennedy and Orton after Raw (due to the botched suplex) or some dude backstage gave the details to a website.

Either way the push and shove, wrist injury and injured past of Kennedy all is supposed to equal his firing.

But now he has posted a video on myspace or facebook where he doesn't speak - he just moves his hands around constantly, obviously showing he doesn't have a wrist injury.

IF this is a work and Kennedy makes some big comeback to battle Orton I'll praise it cause it's "out-of-the-box" thinking. I couldn't imagine Vince doing something like this though - he doesn't view the internet wrestling community in the best light.

It could work - IF they take their time with it and have Kennedy kind of stalk Orton in parking lots and at appearances outside of the ring (autograph signings, press conferences etc).

The storyline would be that Orton used his status as Champ to get Kennedy fired (and it has to be pushed that Kennedy is a big threat to end Orton's reign) and that Kennedy is seeking revenge.

Over 3 months this could work. I just doubt WWE would think about doing this.

DennyMcLain

06-01-2009, 06:34 PM

Though WWE.com has the story, usually the corporate site will also mention the release... but there's nothing about it.

Hmmmm.

Pharaoh

06-02-2009, 03:11 AM

Sweet! That is more evidence of a work. The fact they also called him "Mr. Kennedy" and not Ken Anderson is evidence of a work too.

Usually they give the real names of released talent - not this time.

I'm hoping and praying right now that it is a work. I wanna see how far WWE is willing to go with it. This could be fucking great.

D's Nuts

06-02-2009, 05:01 PM

Remember when Matt Hardy was fired/let go/whatever a few years back and then they teased him on the screen as a joke and got a huge pop? McMahon pretty much begged him to come back and then started "stalking" Edge and Lita? That shit was awesome.

This whole "Kennedy fired as a work thing" seems way too far out of the brain power of WWE creative.

It does make sense but then again why would they hype his return, have him come back, and then release him the next day. He was WAY over.

With MVP dropping the strap to Kofi, who does he go on to feud with? Who feuds with Kofi?

Pharaoh

06-03-2009, 06:10 AM

Don't know who is gonna feud with Kofi - maybe they are pulling the plug on MVP's face run already?

As for the "Kennedy's release is a work" I agree that it seems far beyond WWE creative to do it - but you have to remember that this is the organisation that wrapped the Elimination Chamber in black sheeting so NO ONE outside of the wrestlers in each match knew that Edge lost a World Title and then would win a different World Title on the same show.

It's also the organisation that fooled everyone into thinking John Cena would not return at the Royal Rumble (whatever year it was) but there he was, entering at #30 and getting a MASSIVE face pop.

The Hardy thing is different, simply because they actually did fire him and had no intention of bringing him back. Hardy was fired because he posted the real life Edge/Lita stuff on the net.

Instead of wanting to do an angle with it Vince fired him! But the fans found out (again proving that the internet wrestling community is larger than Vince thought and has influence - Lesnar v Goldberg is another example) and starting chanting for Hardy every time Edge or Lita were on TV.

It got to the point that they had to bring in Hardy - just to stop the fans from fucking with Edge's push.

BTW, Vince can change his mind any time he wants. Christian left TNA and signed with WWE under the assumption that he would be re-introduced to WWE fans at the Rumble (Christian would attack Jeff Hardy and join up with Edge) and that it would be Christian v Jeff at Mania.

Vince thought too many people knew about it (which is true - everyone knew. There are posters saying "Welcome back Christian visible on the PPV) so he changed it to Matt Hardy attacking Jeff.

Christian got his return... on ECW lol

kdawg32086

06-03-2009, 09:46 PM

I'm glad Christian is on ECW. They have so many good young guys on that roster and Christian is so over with wrestling fans(possibly the most popular guy right now) that he has the ability to get all the young guys over.

D's Nuts

06-04-2009, 04:36 PM

Chris Masters has apparently resigned with WWE. Interesting since he has 2 strikes on the WWE Wellness Policy.........

Pharaoh

06-05-2009, 10:24 PM

Christian on ECW is an insult to Christian.

Other than Jack Swagger there is no one for him to square off with on a "Main Event" level.

A match against Tyson Kidd might be good to watch, but Kidd is not in Christian's league and only Kidd could benefit from the match. Same goes for Evan Bourne & Davey Hart Smith.

A Christian v Dreamer battle might be fun, but it doesn't get Christian any closer to a real World Title. A Finlay v Christian battle doesn't do shit for either guy since both are already "over".

The ONLY hope for Christian is if he wins the next Money In The Bank match or leaves ECW via the next Draft. But even then he won't be a priority - Swagger is going to get the monster push (most likely on Smackdown) as soon as he leaves ECW. Where does that leave Christrian?

Unless Edge switches to RAW and Christian joins him via the Draft? Imagine Edge as RAW Champ and Christian with the MITB case! Interesting dynamic between the 2 "brothers" as they both would be chasing the title held by a face (Cena or Triple H)

Pharaoh

06-05-2009, 10:30 PM

IF Masters is going back to WWE then he needs to be squeaky clean cause 1 more failed test means he's gone/fired/dumped again.

I find it funny that he'd even accept an offer to go back. When the WWE told him to slim down and get off the juice he did. But when they brought him back on TV Triple H was scripted to mock Masters "disappearing muscles"

I remember that at the time cause people were going nuts, asking "what kind of message does that promo send to the wrestlers?"

I thought the message was "if all you've got is roided muscles you're not gonna get over". Masters never had much of a personality and his in-ring worked sucked. WWE tried to push him to the moon due to his body and it failed.

Maybe he's improved, maybe he hasn't. If he's coming back we'll find out soon enough

Darth Thanatos

06-08-2009, 11:19 AM

- Tommy Dreamwer ECW Champ
- Batista wins the title......in SEVEN MINUTES......and was seriously injured in the match. YAY!
- Jeff Hardy wins the title..........only to get PWNED by CM Punk.

kdawg32086

06-08-2009, 04:10 PM

Pharaoh, I agree that him on ECW is bad for himself. But it's GREAT for the ECW show and the rest of its roster.

If I were a writer for WWE, this is what I would do for next year's draft:

To Raw:
Edge
Christian
Rey Misterio
Undertaker
Finlay
Edge and Christian both would be good additions to Raw and have great mic skills. Finlay can re-unite with Hornswoggle and feud with Goldust. Misterio and Taker give the show a couple more face wrestlers. Gives them the versatility to use either Christian or HHH as both heel or face.

To ECW:
Jeff Hardy
CM Punk
Two extreme rules type wrestlers. Turn one of them heel and enjoy the show.

To Smackdown:
Jack Swagger
John Cena
Randy Orton
Matt Hardy
Cody Rhodes
Get Cena and Orton off of Raw and onto Smackdown where they can feud. Also gets them away from DiBiase. Matt Hardy isn't a top level talent on Raw, but he's upper level on Smackdown. Develop Swagger on a slightly bigger show.

D's Nuts

06-08-2009, 08:28 PM

Umaga released today. Ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo SEE YA.

kdawg32086

06-08-2009, 11:05 PM

Wow, that sucks. TNA should sign him and Rosey to bring back 3 minute warning.

Pharaoh

06-09-2009, 06:31 AM

Kdawg: If I ran TNA I whould sign Umaga and have him join Samoa Joe and Taz as the Nation of (Domination) Violence.

That's a nice Draft you put together and really helps RAW rebound from it's current "worst show on TV" position.

Darth: I believe Tommy Dreamer's ECW title win was done just to "swerve" the internet fans. If you followed the Dreamer "Win title or Retire" story online then Vince got you AGAIN! Vince loves that shit. NO ONE thought Dreamer would win the title - so naurally it happened!

Batista wins the title [destroying Orton's heat and career momentum]......in SEVEN MINUTES......and was seriously injured in the match. YAY!

Was Batista injured in the match, or did he have the injury heading into it? And how the fuck is it possible for this guy to keep a job while Kennedy gets fired (maybe) for being injury prone and reckless and Umaga gets fired (likely a "Wellness" breach)?

In an age wheen wrestlers are slowly reducing in size Batista stays massive, despite being out of storylines due to injuries. If you as a fan are willing to "believe" that Batista is off injured shouldn't you also expect that when he returns he is not a massive muscle bound hulk? Wouldn't he get smaller cause he couldn't work out like he usually does?

Same with Scott Steiner...

Jeff Hardy wins the title..........only to get PWNED by CM Punk (because Hardy still hasn't signed a new contract and they didn't want Edge getting PWNED by Punk AGAIN!)

Think about it: If Edge retains and Punk cashes in it means that Edge has been "Punked" twice by the same dude - makes Edge look like a dumbass.

But if Punk cashes in v Hardy we can go in all kinds of directions. A face Punk could simply defend his choice to cash in by saying that it was his best chance to win the belt. If Hardy agrees that what Punk did was "smart" and the commentators shill it then the fans will buy it.

You then match Punk v Hardy up in a rematch, have Edge interfere to cost Hardy victory and go into a series of 3-way matches (or go to Punk v Edge while Hardy takes time off to "search his soul")

OR

Punk turns full blown heel on Friday Night - cutting a "real as it gets" promo (think back to the BOOM period - promos were half true and cut deep) about Hardy's drug and alcohol addictions, his TWO "Wellness" violations (one more strike and you're out), the time last year when a stewardess had to get security to remove Hardy from a plane because he was too drunk to be on-board for 2 hours ...

Anything and everything that Hardy has done that conflicts with the "Straight Edge" lifestyle that Punk lives and breathes each and every day.

That's a huge fucking feud IMO and naturally it's on Smackdown.

Raw killed itself by essentially destroying Legacy on the latest edition of Monday Night Raw. Triple H? Fuck! Can't we have someone else?

Anyone that thinks TNA sucks and RAW is good needs to see a shrink.

Pharaoh

06-09-2009, 08:18 AM

Apparently when Kofi Kingston came to the ring for the opening match on RAW Lilian Garcia announced him as the Intercontinental champion.

LMAO! He's the U.S. champion. But, it's just another mid-card title, right?

Kofi then beat Regal in about 2 minutes of a NON-Title match! So the Champ wins the match? Non-title matches are usually used so the challenger builds up some steam heading into the feud.

Kofi is over - that's why they made him champ. Regal ain't over - so give him a cheap win with the brass knuckles or by pulling the tights or something.

I find it hard to believe that the same company that produces Smackdown can produce shit like RAW. Even ECW is better!!!

Vince needs to wake the fuck up and realise that by making every RAW wrestler weak Triple H and Stephanie are killing the brand, not making Trips look strong.

Pharaoh

06-09-2009, 08:43 AM

Also on RAW they continued the Chris Jericho/Goldberg storyline from 1997...

oh, what? Wrong year? Wrong company? Wrong show?

Now I get it - The Miz is challenging John Cena! Right. And Cena never turns up! And if he does show up The Big Show shows up and beats down Cena!

Oh my, how clever! Fuck this shit. The only good thing about this shit is the fact I got to remind myself of the classic Jericho/Goldberg "feud" (and the fact that WCW refused to put them against each other on PPV was the final nail in the coffin for Jericho)

I do think they are trying to get The Miz into the Main Event with these angles/segments - I just don't think it will work. He's great on the mic, he has a decent enough look, he carries himself like a headline heel but in the ring he just hasn't shown it yet. And does anyone believe Vince is gonna push a guy named "The Miz" over the moon? Recockulous name IMO

The fact they brought out Show indicates this was a trial run to see if Miz had created enough heat on himself to sell a Cena/Miz match. Guess what WWE Creative - put the match on PPV! The crowd are dying to see Miz get smashed.

If they do more stuff where Miz hits both Show and Cena with chairs you could actually turn Show in the process! The Miz is super, super over - now it's time to call him his real name and keep "The Miz" as a nickname.

Poor Vickie Guerrero - I don;t wanna go there but I will. She lost Eddie to this fucking company and now they have her go out there and take that shit from Edge? Yeah, yeah - it's all an act - but that doesn't mean you treat people like shit.

They could have done that segment a thousand different ways and not trashed her for her looks and still come to the same end game. They chose to take pot shots at her, cause Vince and his little yes men find that shit funny. Vince must miss High School!

And they follow the Edge/Vickie thing with "Capt WWE" John Cena, preaching his shit for the sake of all mankind! WTF? This is SHIT!

And then we get the UNIFIED tag champs on the show - WTF? Why didnt they get promo time? They're the fucking unified champs and no promo time? Why unify the titles if you're not gonna do shit with 'em? And it's non-title too. Ok, whatever. At least the heels won this match.

So we got a Matt Hardy v MVP match with no hype, and the unified tag non title match got no hype, and the opening match (Kofi v Regal US non title) obviously got no hype...

Is it any wonder why people don;t give a fuck about this show?

The focus is on Miz, Cena, Show (good), Legacy/Batista (good) Santino and the freaks, the crap women wrestlers (at least use ones that can fight), Vickie which is all bad.

The mid card is completely forgotten. Why?

Pharaoh

06-09-2009, 08:53 AM

And for all reading this the Raw main "event" is exactly how you steal the thunder, ladies and gents.

The hottest star on Raw = The Miz. What did he do on Raw? He smashed the #1 hero with a chair. And he bashed the "World's Largest Athlete" with a chair.

But Triple H is better than that! He smashed not 1 guy, not 2 guys, but 3 guys and he not only used a sledgehammer he also used a chair!!!

And while big bad mucle man Batista couldn't stop the 3 bad guys, Triple H could trump them all cause he's The Man!

What utter, utter fucking bullshit!

How did Triple H know to arrive in the ambulance at that moment? How did he get an ambulance? Why was he arriving at Raw so late? This situation brings up a ton of questions but the only 1 that matters is:

1) Why does Triple H continue to shit all over the company he is technically part owner of?

To shit on Miz and Orton and Legacy (again) and slow their roll doesn't make him strong.

He's Triple H. The pop he got tells you how strong people think he is.

By ALWAYS beating the heels at their own game he makes the heels look weak, useless and stupid.

A hero doesn't have to be strong to beat a stupid, useless weakling, does he?

Pharaoh

06-09-2009, 09:38 AM

And just to show you why I am so frustrated with the WWE product and have been telling you all to watch TNA for a bit...

Talent on WWE books (and only 4 they coulda/shoulda kept)

RAW: Only gotta book 2 hours

Triple H
John Cena
Batista
Shawn Michaels
Randy Orton
The Miz
Kofi Kingston
Mr. Kennedy (should have ktp him no matt what)
MVP
Matt Hardy
The Big Show
Jamie Noble (stop the comedy - he can actually wrestle)
Steven Regal (another dude who can have a quality match)

That's 13 single wrestlers, all with the ability to have a good match and/or cut a good promo and/or be real value to the show.

ECW: Only have a 1 hour show

Tommy Dreamer (only on the list cause he's now champ)
Christian
Jack Swagger
Finaly
Evan Bourne (where is he?)
Elijah Burke (they screwed this up big time)
Davey Hart Smith and Tyson Kidd

Smackdown: Only gotta book 2 hours (and do it well)

Edge
CM Punk
Jeff Hardy
Chrs Jericho
Rey Mysterio
The Undertaker
Mark Henry
John Morrison
Shelton Benjamin
Ron Killings (= R-Truth: What's Up? Your time, motherfucker)
Umaga (should have kept him no matter what)
Dolph Ziggler (shit name - dude has potential though)

And if you want tags:

The Colons, Kendrick and Paul London (should not have been released), Cryme Time (they're over with the crowd) Rhodes and DiBiase and The Hart Trilogy.

You want chicks?

Beth Phoenix
Gail Kim
Victoria (should have kept her no matter what)
Mickie James
Maryse
Michelle McCool (shagging the Undertaker so she'll get a push)
Melina
Kelly Kelly

How on Earth can WWE the company that beat damn near every single "regional" promoter into submission in the 1980's, dominated for 10 years before sucking and then recovered to not only defeat but kill ECW and WCW put out SHIT like we've been seeing the last few years?

They have all the talent they need signed, sealed and delievered (the fact I only added recently released guys/girls like Kennedy, Umaga, Victoria and 2 others [Burke/London] tells you all you need to know about their talent roster.

They're Zeke's Knicks - all talent YET no fucking idea.

Just give Paul Heyman $2 mil per and he'll fix this shit in 6 months, if it takes him that long! Fuck!

kdawg32086

06-09-2009, 05:12 PM

Pharaoh, I agree. WWE is screwing shit up. They need to do quite a few things.

For Raw:
Bring over Edge, Christian, and Rey Misterio. Get rid of Cena and Orton and send them to Smackdown. Their faces in the main events of the show are starting to get boring. Bring over Undertaker. Now that Rhodes and Orton are gone, DiBiase can become a face and get time in the IC/US title picture before eventually moving to Smackdown to develop into a main eventer.

For ECW:
Bring in Jeff Hardy and CM Punk from Smackdown. Bring over Jamie Noble and Brian Kendrick from Raw. Bring in Cody Rhodes. ECW already has quite a few small guys on its roster, so you add a few more and you've got the capacity for some high intensity, fast paced action. With all the smaller guys, it would be a good way to get guys like Bourne, Ryder, and Kidd over with fans. I wanna see Gabriel and Bourne paired up.

For Smackdown: Bring in Orton and Cena. New faces on the show. That way, WWE can make these two jerk offs feud with eachother. Bring in Swagger to develop him as a star. Bring over Kofi Kingston to develop him into a main event talent. Bring over the Colons with the tag titles and make the belts exclusive to Smackdown. That leaves Cryme Time, Benjamin/Haas, and the Colons. Then, pair up Hawkins and Ziggler and Wang Yang with Funaki.

DennyMcLain

06-09-2009, 08:23 PM

He's Triple H. The pop he got tells you how strong people think he is.

By ALWAYS beating the heels at their own game he makes the heels look weak, useless and stupid.

A hero doesn't have to be strong to beat a stupid, useless weakling, does he?

I don't agree. What I hate are the STUPID faces. Batista KNOWS a triple team is coming (he's looking around as Orton makes it to the ring), but when he finally has a chance to escape after breaking free, what does he do?... he tries to Batista Bomb Orton.

You've got an opening! Just RUN, motherfucker!!!!!

What I liked most about Austin is that he always seemed one step ahead. But he had some strong, smart heels against him. He simply out-witted them.

I enjoyed the HHH beatdown. But the execution was all wrong. You're right -- what the fuck was he doing in the ambulance? And, as he's "walking" to the ring, why doesn't Legacy just run into the crowd? Hell, they seemed scared enough. Don't stand in the fucking ring, waiting for a maniac with a sledgehammer as he slowly walks toward you. Now, if HHH sneaks into the ring behind Legacy unbeknownst to them, that would've been much better, and without the idiotic 10 count that was mysteriously stopped for no good reason.

What. The ref must've thought to himself "Awww, poor Batista is being held up by the slow paramedics. Maybe I should stop the count". Garbage.

Notice how, whichever brand HHH is on, the brand sucks balls? Smackdown blew hard when he was on it, and now Raw is the suspect brand. On the E:60 program dealing with the WWE, I noticed both HHH and Finlay in the Creative meeting. Now, I know Finlay is a trainer of some sort, and probably has a hand in the execution of the matches (I would think). As for HHH.... welp, I suppose he's there to support himself.

Also, LOL at the pulled chair shot to Orton's neck. HHH stopped about four inches too far away.... then decided to continue a little further at the last split second. Looked like shit.

Darth Thanatos

06-09-2009, 10:54 PM

And HHH's 1st match back will be for the strap. This Monday, on RAW, will be a four way dance(Show/Cena/Orton/HHH).

If HHH wins.....

kdawg32086

06-10-2009, 12:59 AM

Darth Thanatos

06-10-2009, 01:09 AM

I'd agree with you on that 1st part like four years ago, but not now. He's not that great anymore.

kdawg32086

06-10-2009, 01:13 AM

BTW, I love how the fans cheer Dreamer being champ and then also cheer when Christian puts him through a table. I don't think it's possible to get any more over than Christian is with wrestling fans. Dude couldn't be a heel if he tried cuz no matter what, people are gonna cheer for him.

Pharaoh

06-10-2009, 05:51 AM

Quit with the hating on HHH. It's not his fault that hes prob the most popular guy in the WWE not named Christian. He's a good wrestler, hes got the body of Adonis, and he's got mic skills. He deserves the belt....way more than douche bag Randy Orton.

You left out the most important reasons why Triple H is The Man in WWE:

He's married to the Boss's daughter.

Vince's daughter/Trips wife also happens to be head of the creative team

He's the last man standing from the Attitude Era that works a full-time schedule (when he's not out with a legit injury).

Pharaoh

06-10-2009, 06:20 AM

Denny:

The whole situation with Batista was planned that way because he had a legit injury (his other arm) so I'll give WWE a free pass on him looking stupid against Legacy.

Also remember that he has come close a few times to taking them all out at once and was almost successful. Remember him stalking them on Raw not long ago?

As for Triple H being in the creative meeting: Finlay is there because he's a "producer"/road agent and goes through the matches with guys before they go through the curtain. He needs to know where the storyline is going so he can relay the match to the boys. I'm guessing other "producers"/road agents were there, too.

Trips was there to make sure he got over. He's not there because he's a producer/road agent - he's there to make sure they don't make him look weak.

I have read articles in Power Slam magazine where several former writers are quoted on his attitude toward them, the amount of say he has and how he can get shit changed to make himself look stronger than his opponent.

Notice how often Legacy and Orton have been made to look like bitches. Shane McMahon did it to them!!!! Batista did it more than once IIRC! Triple H has done it more than once, too if memory serves.

All since January!! THAT'S how you treat your top heel stable? Damn! Maybe they get the shaft because:

1) Orton has been out-spoken about his "lack of love" for Triple H
2) Cody's Dad Dusty was a superstar outside WWE (basically a sin to Vince)
3) Ted Dibiase's Dad left the business "early" due to his faith (which to Vince is a sin)

Vince views anyone that became almost World famous outside WWE as bad, because he can't fully control their character. And if anyone shows any sign that they are not 100% totally committed to WWE (retiring on your terms, taking extended leave, moving to TNA, moving out of Stamford [Jim Ross]) then you're not one of the "family", not one of the "team".

Chris Jericho is the exception to that and it's likely cause he doesn't need the money. He does it because he loves it (and he couldn't get "over" as a legit actor, singer, tv personality while out of WWE). But I know that he doesn't need the coin - he's a smart fucker.

And it's no surprise to me that every Brand Triple H is on sucks - it's cause of him! It's not that he's not over, not good or whatever. It's because he hogs the limelight, he makes the top heels look weak and he always has to come out on top. ALWAYS!

His character is the same as a face as he is as a heel - it's crazy.

Wrestling 101: To draw heat from the crowd as a heel Triple H is the perfect charcater. He talks shit, backs it up, out smarts the face at every turn. It's perfect!

As a face his job is to draw sympathy from the crowd while allowing the heel to get the heat. He is supposed to be beaten down, out smarted and his revenge is stopped at every turn by the heel until the storyline needs to end and he overcomes all the odds and wins the day like Superman or some shit.

It's basic. But not in WWE. And only Triple H gets that treatment!

Darth:

You better fucking brace yourself cause I seriously think Triple H is gonna capture the vacant World Title.

It moves him closer to matching Flair's record (and even if he breaks it no one in the business is gonna respect him for it cause everyone knows how he got it) and allows them to kind of restart the Orton/Triple H feud.

The 2 of them just couldn't handle the stage at Mania - Shawn Michaels and Undertaker made sure nothing could top their match. Trips likely heard the fall out (the internet wrestling community crapped all over it) so cause Trips is a bitch he wants and will get a do-over.

Or do you think they'll let legacy redeem themselves and have Orton get another reign, with Triple H ending it at Summerslam?

kdawg32086

06-10-2009, 10:12 PM

I deon't think I can handle Orton holding the belt. He's been the top heel on the show for too long. Would be cool if they gave the belt to Big Show for a little bit.

Pharaoh

06-11-2009, 05:39 AM

Big Show has shown he's committed to the cause in the last year or so. He lost weight and kept it off and has put in some good performances...

But I think Vince sees him as a heel challenger/never champ at the moment. He could get a transitional reign but I think they wanna build to Summerslam now and the only way to do that is to put the belt on Triple H, Orton or Cena.

If I'm Vince I'm thinking about the next WrestleMania. I'm thinking Cena v a heel Batista so I'd have Triple H win the belt on TV. Orton then wins it back at Summerslam and Cena wins it at the Rumble (Batista returns at the Rumble and wins the shot).

Hey Vince, long-term booking is the key. Remember that.

kdawg32086

06-11-2009, 11:49 AM

No offense to you or anything Pharaoh, but I think that would be an extremely boring year. We've already seen those 4 guys in the main events over and over and over and over.....and did i say over again? We need new faces. I think that putting the belt on Big Show and having him face a guy like HHH until Batista returns. Honestly, I'm sick of Cena and Orton right now, so I would love to not have to see them in the main events now. And I REALLY hope they both go to Smackdown in the next draft.

Is Batista really out until the rumble? Wow, that sucks. I think ur right. The belt is gonna get whored arouned between Cena, HHH, and Orton. It's gonna be a boring year. I might as well just watch Raw between 9:30 and 10:30 so I don't have to see them doing the same shit over and over again.

Pharaoh

06-12-2009, 07:19 AM

Kdawg - I don't know how long Batista is out, but it's a bicep tear and I think he has suffered the same injury before!

RE: putting the title on Triple H, then Orton at Summerslam, then Cena at Rumble to end up with heel Batista v face Cena at Mania:

Triple H would win the belt thanks to the return of Shawn Michaels! Shawn Michaels and Triple H would then battle Rhodes/DiBiase for a bit while Orton stalked from the side (time off for a job well done since his injury). That takes you through to Summerslam with those 5 guys and the Summerslam matches you get would be:

Shawn v DiBiase (can Teddy Jr hold up his end on PPV and have a Show Stopping match? If he did it would earn serious cool points with Vince)

Triple H v Orton for the title.

While that was going on Cena v Miz gets put into play (moving Big Show on to other things) and we see if Cena can elevate Miz. If their matches are fairly good then the Miz would earn cool points from Vince cause it's widely known Cena has to be "carried" to a better than average match.

So, while I am using the same old tired stars I would also be presenting some new blood, and giving them the TV time and angles to get over, using the established stars as a launching pad.

So, Summerslam would be headlined (from Raw) by Triple H v Orton, Shawn Michaels v Ted Dibiase and Cena v Miz.

That's some good shit, IF WWE wanna go that way.

And right now I think Vince looks at his roster for Raw and sees Cena, Orton and Triple H as the only real options he's got for a World Champ.

kdawg32086

06-14-2009, 12:33 AM

TNA is yet again trying to ruin their tag team division by using the British Invasion. If constantly attacking the champion will put you into a title picture, then wouldn't everyone on the roster be trying it?

Pharaoh

06-14-2009, 09:13 AM

I don't agree with them pushing the Brits, but I understand it.

Beer Money v Team 3D was getting old, Motor City Machine Guns were/are in a battle with Lethal Consequences and Suicide/Daniels and half of LAX was on the shelf.

Doug Williams is the only guy in the British "stable" that should be on TV. If this was WWE the other 2 would be in the developmental territory (also in Florida).

And Kdawg - I wish that ONE wrestling company would bring that up. A challenger attacks the champ and gets a title shot. So why doesn't some other dude attack the champ too and make it a 3-way? r how about a tag team attacks the Champ and hopes to score a 3-way match for the title where they can pound the shit out of the Champ?

One day someone is gonna have to acknowledge that logically the Champ would be attacked every fucking minute he was in the building if title shots were "allowed" to be handed out by wrestlers.

This is where the GM/Commish role should come in, but WWE and TNA are too busy having the GM/Commish abuse his/her power that logic plays no part in the soryline.

Wrestling storylines should be colourful, a little off but logical booking is what has created every single BOOM period in the business. Go back to the 1980's and Hulk Hogan. The booking?

Hogan v foreign invaders - Real American v Soviets or other foreign dudes
Hulk Hogan v big fuckers that used to beat him down before the super hero comeback.

Hogan's friends turned on him because they were jealous of his success and they wanted his title.

Logical shit like that.

Check out Austin v McMahon.

McMahon as owner of WWE doesn't want a redneck hillbilly, beer drinking, bird flippin' S.OB as his Champion so he does everything in his power to defeat, beat down or destroy Austin.

Vince promises the world to certain wrestlers (Foley/The Rock) or joins forces with crazy dudes (Undertaker) in an effort to defeat this redneck.

One could assume that McMahon saw Austin as everything his company was not and while Foley, Undertaker or a heel Rock were not choir boys an intelligent person could come to the conclusion that those 3 were not as bad in McMahon's opinion as Austin.

Today? If I looked hard enough I could find logic - but it should be easy to see and obvious to Ray Charles. It's wrestling - this ain't Oprah's book club. There is no hidden meaning here.

Pharaoh

06-14-2009, 09:20 AM

I just read that Japanese wrestling legend Misawa died in the ring during a TV taping on (your Saturday)!

This guy was a absolute master in-ring performer. He was the equal of Bret Hart, Ric Flair and Shawn Michaels and anyone else you wanna name at one point in time.

Go back to the 1990's and check out this guy on tapes - he's The Man.

Apparently he was the victim of a back body drop (or belly to belly suplex) and after he hit the mat he just stopped breathing!

He was getting old but apparently he put on some clinics in Ring of Honor when he wrestled there in the last 12 months. If you don't know who he is do yourself a favour and check out a few of his matches. Especially v Kenta. They put on matches that rival anyone, including Flair/Steamboat.

Look him up, check out his matches - he was awesome.

A sad day for the business, but especially for Pro Wrestling NOAH in particular as he was part owner.

Prayers and best wishes to his fam and friends.

kdawg32086

06-14-2009, 01:35 PM

So that's now two illogical uses for the British Invasion, no? Rob Terry squashing everyone to look invinceable and The Invasion attacking the champs to get a title shot. GREEEEEAT JOB ruining your tag team division TNA.

Pharaoh

06-15-2009, 06:52 AM

Yeah, TNA are fucking with the tag division and pushing a lame team.

Die hard TNA defenders will claim that "at least we have a tag division" or "it's Doug Williams - he's awesome" but at the end of the day it's still shit.

I am hoping that this British stuff is just so they can convince Nigel McGuinness to sign with them. He was Ring of Honor Champ for a long time and he might be a free agent as you read this. I hope that with Williams in TNA and a British stable in a main storyline McGuinness might make the jump to TNA.

If that doesn't happen I would set up a Williams "turn" as he beats the shit out of his stable mates and becomes a real mid-card heel that likes to fucking smash people. A Benoit/Mike Awesome kinda dude.

But TNA ain't gonna get McGuinness, or have Williams go his own way. They keep their fans hooked by having a great talent roster and doing nothing with it. People tune in week after week hoping that at some point someone with some power will get it and flip the whole fucking company upside down.

The only way that's gonna happen is if the Main Event Mafia disappear off TV. And that ain't gonna happen while Dixie is in charge cause she's the reason Sting is on the books.

kdawg32086

06-15-2009, 10:13 AM

DennyMcLain

06-15-2009, 07:58 PM

Batista is pulling a Cena, it appears. I wouldn't be surprised if he isn't injured at all.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1431191/

Batista and Rob Van Dam in an action film together? Holy shit.

Film is scheduled for 2010 (probably spring to coincide with WrestleMania). Action films take a ton of prep, though I'm sure the script ain't too terribly difficult to learn. Principal photography a half year prior to the release date sounds about right.

Could have done a little better with the leading lady, but she's cute enough.

kdawg32086

06-16-2009, 01:32 AM

HAHA RVD is in the movie too.

Pharaoh

06-16-2009, 09:15 AM

Batista has a legit bicep injury though - likely due to too many roids.

Anyone catch RAW?

Big News: Randy Orton as Champ! Big Surprise there (I was sure Triple H was gonna win)

Bigger News: But to keep Triple H happy he won the Main Event of this massive card that featured 3 world title matches. So what match was the Main Event? A 10-man Battle Royal to determine the #1 contender to the Raw World Title!!!

Why the fuck is that match last? Edge v Punk v Hardy should have been last.

But whatever.

Biggest News: Donald Trump "buys" RAW and next week it's gonna air with no commercial breaks and the Main Event will be a Last Man Standing Match between Orton and HHH!!!

The only problem I see with this Trump storyline? It should have been Eric Bischoff or Paul Heyman that bought Raw. WWE doesn't need to give them creative power backstage (well, they do, but forget that for a second). The storyline, wherever it's going would have been more convincing to fans of the Attitude Era if Bischoff or Heyman bought the brand because they are "known" enemies of Vince.

The return of Bischoff would have been HUGE! Even I would have "marked out" (been stunned). Trump is big news, but I've been a fan long enough to:

a) Expect this to go nowhere and at some point a McMahon (Stephanie or Shane) will buy it back

b) expect this to finish at Mania in a match where someone reps Trump v Vince or his rep for "ownership" of the RAW brand which Vince will win, getting revenge on Trump after having his head shaved one year.

kdawg32086

06-16-2009, 08:22 PM

I wanna see hot Stephanie McMahon on Raw again....lucky ass triple H

Pharaoh

06-17-2009, 06:58 AM

Dude, she's had 2 kids. I don't think she's too hot anymore.

I haven't seen her on TV for a bit though - maybe she got back in shape?

BTW, Triple H and Steph had 2 girls!!! That must have pissed Triple H off that he couldn't "cum" through with a grandson for Vinny-Mac

But good ol' Shane came through. IIRC his wife gave birth to a son and you can see Vince, Shane and baby at the start of Mania 20 (It All Begins Again).

How do I remember that? Cause I watched Benoit's awesome triple threat title win again yesterday! The moment after he wins, with Eddie as World Champ too and balloons and streamers and shit are everywhere...

Kinda sucked to watch it now that both are gone, Benoit by his own hand. The death of Eddie seriously fucked with Benoit and I believe that was the beginning of the end for the "Rabid Wolverine"

D's Nuts

06-17-2009, 09:44 PM

Trump names Ken Kennedy as Raw GM next week.

Massive pop to Kennedy as it emanates from Green Bay and would get Kennedy in over HUGE therefore turning Vince heel. Hello Stone Cold vs. McMahon all over again.

Wait, that would be too easy right?

kdawg32086

06-18-2009, 04:03 PM

I definitely wouldn't be surprised if they did it.

Pharaoh

06-19-2009, 05:55 AM

I doubt it happens, though. It's too logical.

BTW, I read on PWTorch that Kennedy posted another video on his Facebook page or myspace page where he claims it's all a work and he wasn't fired...

Then he turns around and says that he got fired!

I gotta believe it's a work, otherwise why put it out there?

kdawg32086

06-19-2009, 10:51 PM

If he's considered to be so unsafe, then maybe he's off camera so that he can work on his wrestling skills? I know wrestlers have done this in the past, particularly in WCW.

Pharaoh

06-19-2009, 11:26 PM

I have read that Orton thinks Kennedy is "unsafe".

I find that funny, cause the only dude Kennedy ever seems to injure is himself!

Maybe Orton is just worried that if Kennedy does stay healthy for a long period of time Kennedy would take his spot as that 4th guy behind Triple H, Cena and Edge?

Darth Thanatos

06-20-2009, 03:42 AM

DennyMcLain

06-20-2009, 10:12 AM

An amazing Smackdown last night, featuring three great matches. The match of the night had to go Edge/Morrison, with Edge pulling out the victory. The match was very Heyman-esque: near-falls, tons of spots, and a great story being told in-ring. I miss the days Heyman was in charge of Smackdiddy.

Agreed. Smackdown, now that the stupid Vicky/Edge bullshit is done, is pure wrestling, and THE best show the WWE has to offer.

The Edge/Morrison match was unfuckingbelieveable. Just when your think either are finished, they pull an amazing move out of absolutely nowhere. Every week, it seems, Morrison pulls off a little masterpiece. He's got the looks, moves, and mic skills. It's only a matter of time.

I'm digging the CM Punk angle, with him "winning" each match in an unconvincing fashion. It's really beginning to get to him (not sure if it genuinely bothers him, or it's all an act... he's pulling it off nicely). I'm beginning to wonder if Jericho doesn't start trying to get into his mind to face turn CM Punk. After all, the fans booing CM Punk for, literally, doing his job is EXACTLY what Jericho keeps preaching each and every week. It would be a natural evolution of the storyline.

Pharaoh

06-21-2009, 12:40 AM

Smackdown is without question the best wrestling show right now.

Edge, Jericho, Punk, Hardy, Morrison and Rey-Rey are the new "Smackdown 6"

Back when Heyman wrote the show (and the Undisputed Champ was shared by the 2 brands) Heyman came up with a brilliant tag team storyline involving Eddie and Chavo v Angle/Benoit v Edge/Rey.

That one feud alone gave Heyman a ton of singles matches, tag matches and triple threat matches. It made the whole fucking show.

The group they have now has the potential to be just as good and the only thing I hope is that Shelton Benjamin can get into that group of 6 if Hardy takes time off after "The Bash" PPV

Pharaoh

06-22-2009, 04:29 AM

So, TNA had their Slammiversary PPV - the 7th anniversary of the fucking company.

And in 7 years they have not learnt how to book the World fucking Title.

After Sting's long-ass reign they shifted it to Mick Foley - I didn't like it but understood it since Foley is well known outside of wrestling and can cut great promos.

I thought he'd enjoy a long-ish reign before putting over someone like Samoa Joe or AJ Styles or even Abyss.

What did they do?

They have the King of the Mountain match at Slammiversary between Foley, Styles, Joe, Angle and Jarrett. The issues between all of them are/were:

Foley v Jarrett = control of TNA
Foley v Angle = don't like each other
Jarrett v Angle = don't like or respect each other
Joe v Angle = hate each other/Joe wants to hunt and kill Angle
Joe v AJ = even brothers fight.

How did it end?

Joe is up the ladder about to hang the belt, winning the match and becoming World Champ when he HANDS KURT ANGLE the title belt!!!

Angle hangs it to win the match and become Champ!!!

WHAT THE FUCK?

Are these bookers fucking stupid or what?

Pharaoh

06-22-2009, 05:55 AM

IMO they can go 1 of 2 ways here:

ONE: Joe is now part of the Main Event Mafia - the fucking group he's been trying to "kill" for the last year (or thereabouts). They kick Sting out and go full blown heel and attack Sting, AJ, Jarrett, Foley and others.

This makes the MEM the heel stable they were supposed to be and even in the Shades of Grey shit they book TNA fans would have a hard time cheering MY Main Event Mafia.

My MEM is one that:

powerbombs little Amazing Red off the production truck onto a car roof.

beats the snot out of Suicide, then unmasks him on Impact as Frank Kazarian.

drags Abyss, Raven and Dr. Stevie Richards into a locker room, padlocks/barricades the door and then "listens" to the carnage.

drags Foley out to ringside and whips his fat ass all over the ringside area before Samoa Joe "executes" Foley with a Musclebuster onto the announcer's desk.

that goes to Jeff Jarrett's home, drags his ass out into his backyard and proceeds to shave his fucking head bald while his daughters scream and cry in the background.

that goes to AJ's grandma's house (been shown before) and takes her "hostage" to prevent AJ from interfering in a match on a live edition of Impact.

that goes to Sting's "home" and proceeds to burn all the shit he's collected from his "Iconic" career, including title belts and images of Flair, Hogan, Bischoff etc

Who the fuck is gonna cheer my MEM?

But that just sets the scene for a Sting v Angle match at the Bound For Glory PPV, after which Sting is rumoured to retire. Joe v AJ could take place on the undercard.

Two: Joe and Angle move away from MEM, which is really the only logical thing that can happen. Angle can explain that after being "demoted" from the position of "Godfather of MEM" he was pissed and set about forming his own stable, full of real talent, real fighters and not has-beens.

Angle explains he enlisted Joe because Joe hates the MEM as much, if not more than he does. They could enlist AJ and Daniels, who also have history with MEM or recruit Morgan (wanted to join MEM but Sting refused) or Eric Young (who is now feuding with Jeff Jarrett) and this stable can go full blown heel against a face group of Sting, Booker, Nash and Steiner.

Again this would lead to a Bound For Glory PPV main event of Sting v Angle with a possible 3 v 3 undercard match of Joe, AJ and Daniels v Steiner, Booker and Nash. This would help to hide the fact that Steiner and Nash are way past it in the ring.

Or the undercard could feature Joe v Nash (and they have a lot of history) plus AJ/Daniels v Steiner/Booker (playing on the fact that Steiner and Booker were part of 2 of the most dominant teams in the 1990's).

Personally, I prefer option 2, since Joe joining the MEM group makes ZERO fucking sense in the storyline and I'll call bullshit if they try to explain him joining the group in anyway whatsoever.

Option 2 would also give TNA the opportunity to reward AJ and Daniels with top line battles against the big name MEM.

By the end of the year many predict that Sting will be gone from TNA so this whole story (along with Morgan's little interaction with Sting) could finally see TNA elevate some of their own success stories with the MEM angle.

Bound for Glory could be the big send off for Sting. He would have to lose to Angle, but then on the next Impact he claim that he's done and that's it's time to retire. He could then "pass the torch" to Morgan, who would replace Sting in the MEM (by this stage Morgan would have to be on a big win streak and be dominating dudes).

That would led to many months of Booker, Steiner, Nash and Morgan as MEM v the Angle Alliance of Angle, Joe, AJ and Daniels. By the time this MEM storyline was ready to be killed off in a "Lethal Lockdown" battle next February TNA would have positioned Joe, AJ, Daniels and Morgan as main event players.

So what happens when Angle's team wins the Lockdown cage match?

Steiner and Nash retire quietly (no big fucking send off for either of them). Morgan and Booker can have an arguement and Booker would turn face for his final year in the ring.

The Angle Alliance? At some point Joe would turn on Angle in an effort to win the title. It's obvious. AJ and Daniels would side with Joe. Angle could then recruit the Motor City Machine Guns (representing Michigan!!!) and we have another stable war.

By the end of 2010 TNA has Angle, Joe, AJ, Danels, Morgan, Sabin/Shelley in money positions.

And I thought of this shit in 2 fucking seconds!!!!

Dixie Carter - give me the fucking book already.