It has been confirmed earlier this week that two former ECW/TNA/WCW stars will be making a return to TNA. Both Shane Douglas and Raven are returning to TNA. The nature of their return is as of yet unknown. Their contract status is also unknown. There is also no further news on Shane Douglas' proposed final ECW reunion show--N2R: The Final Chairshot--or how his and Raven's return to TNA might affect the show.
Also, TNA has apparently decided to bring back wrestling to their Knockout's Division. Recently we have been subject to boring matches featuring Angelina Love, Velvet Sky, Madison Rayne, Awesome Kong, and ODB. While some of the TNA KNockouts are good wrestlers, they have not been putting on very good matches lately. Hopefully TNA's most recent Knockouts signing will change that. Former WWE Women's Champion Victoria has signed with TNA and should be making her debut within the next few weeks.
Thursday, May 28, 2009
Johnny Devine Talks Dark Matches
CLICK HERE to see another part of the Johnny Devine/WrestleZone shoot interview. In this clip, Devine talks about working dark matches in WWE and ECW (Paul Heyman's ECW, not Vince's) back in 200 and 2001.
Johnny Devine Talks Team Canada and Teddy Hart
CLICK HERE to veiw another part of teh WrestleZone/Johnny Devine shoot interview. In this video, Johnny talks about his feelings on Team Canada in TNA, and also about the extremely talented Teddy Hart.
Monday, May 25, 2009
TNA Sacrifice 2009
1: Bashir & MCMGs vs. Eric Young & Lethal Consequences (8/10)
While this match was very well wrestled, there was no real build-up to the match or reason for it to be on PPV. TNA has spent so much time setting up the 4 way main event of this PPV that the rest of the matches on the card were just not adequately addressed.
The Motor City Machine Guns are very talented in the ring, when they actually slow down a little bit and wrestle. Faster is not necessarily better. As talented as these guys are, the backstage big shots in TNA can’t seem to find anything to do with them. If they are the best tag team in TNA, as many people claim, why not put them into a feud with 3D and Deer Money? Instead they are allied with Shawn Diavari (Sheik Abdul Bashir). It just doesn’t make sense to me. Frankly, I’m kind of sick of these two guys as a tag team. They are incredibly talented as a team, but they are also very talented as singles competitors. Sabin vs. Shelley will eventually happen, and for me, the sooner the better.
2: Daffney vs. Taylor Wild - Monster’s Ball (2/10)
While I was impressed--marginally--with Taylor Wild’s performance in this match, it was still bad. The match barely lasted five minutes. This match was nothing more than another link in the chain of the asinine Abyss/Dr. Stevie storyline. Why don’t they just put Abyss up in a dress and have him ride a unicycle around the Impact Zone. The only good thing about this match was that we did see Abyss deliver the choke slam on Dr. Stevie into the tacks. Hopefully this will mean a return to violence for Abyss, because I’m to sure that he can be repackaged and still be successful.
3: Christopher Daniels vs. Suicide - X Division Title (10/10)
Daniels vs. Suicide is the best wrestled match I’ve seen in all of TNA--including TV, PPV, and web match exclusives--in a long damn time. I don’t like the Suicide character. I think it’s ridiculous to have a videogame character as the X Division Champion. But obviously both Daniels and Franky Kazarian are world class pro wrestlers. That’s right folks, Kaz is Suicide (as if you hadn’t already figured it out). The interference by the MCMGs and the subsequent use of the old 5 more minutes gimmicks was executed perfectly to further push Daniels as a returning baby face. This is the first instance in quite some time that a TNA match has left me saying, “I want more.”
4. Angelina Love vs. Awesome Kong - Knockout’s Title (1/10)
The best word to describe this match is boring. The whole idea of a 118 pound Angelina Love defeating a 280 pound Awesome Kong is ridiculous to begin with, but the cliché heel chicanery that was used by Love to pick up the win was overkill, as was the beat down after the match.
A question that this match, and every Awesome Kong match for that matter, brings up for me is; why is Melissa Anderson (Cheerleader Melissa) acting as Kong’s valet instead of as an in-ring competitor? Melisa Anderson is a very talented wrestler. She is not a talented actress. Her Syrian accent is not in any way passable. This is yet another TNA personnel move that I don’t understand in the least.
5. Samoa Joe vs. Kevin Nash (6/10)
This match did an okay job of selling the Samoa Joe/Nation of Violence gimmick. I will give it to Nash, he put on as good a match as can really be expected of him these days. Also, I have to give it to him for being willing to sell for Joe. This match was not the best as far as actual wrestling goes, but it served it’s purpose.
6. Beer Money Inc. vs. British Invasion - Team 3D Tag Team Invitational Tournament Finals (10/10)
First off, the build-up for this match was pretty dumb. Seeing Team 3d being pushed as such gracious baby faces after so long as vicious heels doesn’t really work for me. I also don’t find the British Invasion to be that entertaining. Brutus Magnus doesn’t strike me as being an excellent wrestler. I think the exact opposite of Doug Williams. He is great, but I would like to see him get a singles push. The man is 35 years old, and if he doesn’t get a descent singles push now, he may never get it.
With all of the above having been said, this was an excellent match. In fact, I think it may be the best match I have seen either of these teams wrestle. Robert Roode was the most entertaining he has ever been. James Storm’s skin-the-cat-with-beer-in-his-mouth spot was entertaining and the spot with the super kick into the briefcase that ended the match was also good.
While this match was very good, I don’t think it established TNA Wrestling as the best in tag team wrestling. Nor does it change the fact that tag team wrestling is a dying art.
7. Booker T vs. A.J. Styles - TNA Legends Title (6/10)
First off, the idea of the Legends Title is idiotic. I wouldn’t exactly refer to Booker T as a legend. He is a multiple time Tag Team Title holder, a former World Champion, and U.S. Champion, but he has never seemed like a great wrestler to me. I think that the only real legends TNA have are Mick Foley and Sting.
In the history of the I Quit match, there are many memorable matches: Tully Blanchard vs. Magnum T.A., Ric Flair vs. Terry Funk, Rock vs. Mankind, John Zandig vs. Wife beater (from CZW), and more. This I Quit match was more in the vain of Flair vs. Funk, but not quite as good. While the match was well-wrestled, the level of violence was not what it needed to be for a type of match that really is the be-all end-all of specialty matches. Also, the ending (which featured the utterly useless Jenna Morasca) was disgusting.
8. Mick Foley vs. Sting vs. Jeff Jarrett vs. Kurt Angle - TNA heavyweight Title (10/10)
This match reads like a Who’s Who of professional wrestling. Sting and Foley are living legends. Angle and Jarrett are both great wrestlers. But coming in, I was not expecting very much out of this match. Foley is--to be blatantly honest--out of shape and beaten from a long career of extreme matches. Stinger is still great in the ring, up until about the twenty-five minute mark of a match, then his age starts to show. Jarrett is a good wrestler, but one of his matches is much like any other. Kurt Angle is without a doubt the best pure wrestler in the match, but his past neck injuries are always there in the background. It makes me wonder exactly how much Kurt is holding back these days.
The reality of it is, the match went far above and beyond my expectations. This was a great match. Jarrett put on a good performance. Angel held nothing back. Sting has still got it. Even Foley looked a bit like his old self. Even the ending, Sting becoming the new leader of the MEM, was not what I expected.
Overall (53/80)
This is the first TNA PPV I have seen in quite a while that I actually enjoyed watching. With the exception of a few bad matches, the card was very good. The Daniels vs. Suicide match took me back to before the “big stars” came to TNA, back to a time when TNA really felt like it was all about the wrestling and not about the star power. Most of the in-ring action was so damn good that I actually found don West’s horrible heel announcer commentary tolerable. Here’s hoping that TNA can put on some good Impact broadcast in the near future and that Slamiversary is as good as this year’s Sacrifice PPV.
While this match was very well wrestled, there was no real build-up to the match or reason for it to be on PPV. TNA has spent so much time setting up the 4 way main event of this PPV that the rest of the matches on the card were just not adequately addressed.
The Motor City Machine Guns are very talented in the ring, when they actually slow down a little bit and wrestle. Faster is not necessarily better. As talented as these guys are, the backstage big shots in TNA can’t seem to find anything to do with them. If they are the best tag team in TNA, as many people claim, why not put them into a feud with 3D and Deer Money? Instead they are allied with Shawn Diavari (Sheik Abdul Bashir). It just doesn’t make sense to me. Frankly, I’m kind of sick of these two guys as a tag team. They are incredibly talented as a team, but they are also very talented as singles competitors. Sabin vs. Shelley will eventually happen, and for me, the sooner the better.
2: Daffney vs. Taylor Wild - Monster’s Ball (2/10)
While I was impressed--marginally--with Taylor Wild’s performance in this match, it was still bad. The match barely lasted five minutes. This match was nothing more than another link in the chain of the asinine Abyss/Dr. Stevie storyline. Why don’t they just put Abyss up in a dress and have him ride a unicycle around the Impact Zone. The only good thing about this match was that we did see Abyss deliver the choke slam on Dr. Stevie into the tacks. Hopefully this will mean a return to violence for Abyss, because I’m to sure that he can be repackaged and still be successful.
3: Christopher Daniels vs. Suicide - X Division Title (10/10)
Daniels vs. Suicide is the best wrestled match I’ve seen in all of TNA--including TV, PPV, and web match exclusives--in a long damn time. I don’t like the Suicide character. I think it’s ridiculous to have a videogame character as the X Division Champion. But obviously both Daniels and Franky Kazarian are world class pro wrestlers. That’s right folks, Kaz is Suicide (as if you hadn’t already figured it out). The interference by the MCMGs and the subsequent use of the old 5 more minutes gimmicks was executed perfectly to further push Daniels as a returning baby face. This is the first instance in quite some time that a TNA match has left me saying, “I want more.”
4. Angelina Love vs. Awesome Kong - Knockout’s Title (1/10)
The best word to describe this match is boring. The whole idea of a 118 pound Angelina Love defeating a 280 pound Awesome Kong is ridiculous to begin with, but the cliché heel chicanery that was used by Love to pick up the win was overkill, as was the beat down after the match.
A question that this match, and every Awesome Kong match for that matter, brings up for me is; why is Melissa Anderson (Cheerleader Melissa) acting as Kong’s valet instead of as an in-ring competitor? Melisa Anderson is a very talented wrestler. She is not a talented actress. Her Syrian accent is not in any way passable. This is yet another TNA personnel move that I don’t understand in the least.
5. Samoa Joe vs. Kevin Nash (6/10)
This match did an okay job of selling the Samoa Joe/Nation of Violence gimmick. I will give it to Nash, he put on as good a match as can really be expected of him these days. Also, I have to give it to him for being willing to sell for Joe. This match was not the best as far as actual wrestling goes, but it served it’s purpose.
6. Beer Money Inc. vs. British Invasion - Team 3D Tag Team Invitational Tournament Finals (10/10)
First off, the build-up for this match was pretty dumb. Seeing Team 3d being pushed as such gracious baby faces after so long as vicious heels doesn’t really work for me. I also don’t find the British Invasion to be that entertaining. Brutus Magnus doesn’t strike me as being an excellent wrestler. I think the exact opposite of Doug Williams. He is great, but I would like to see him get a singles push. The man is 35 years old, and if he doesn’t get a descent singles push now, he may never get it.
With all of the above having been said, this was an excellent match. In fact, I think it may be the best match I have seen either of these teams wrestle. Robert Roode was the most entertaining he has ever been. James Storm’s skin-the-cat-with-beer-in-his-mouth spot was entertaining and the spot with the super kick into the briefcase that ended the match was also good.
While this match was very good, I don’t think it established TNA Wrestling as the best in tag team wrestling. Nor does it change the fact that tag team wrestling is a dying art.
7. Booker T vs. A.J. Styles - TNA Legends Title (6/10)
First off, the idea of the Legends Title is idiotic. I wouldn’t exactly refer to Booker T as a legend. He is a multiple time Tag Team Title holder, a former World Champion, and U.S. Champion, but he has never seemed like a great wrestler to me. I think that the only real legends TNA have are Mick Foley and Sting.
In the history of the I Quit match, there are many memorable matches: Tully Blanchard vs. Magnum T.A., Ric Flair vs. Terry Funk, Rock vs. Mankind, John Zandig vs. Wife beater (from CZW), and more. This I Quit match was more in the vain of Flair vs. Funk, but not quite as good. While the match was well-wrestled, the level of violence was not what it needed to be for a type of match that really is the be-all end-all of specialty matches. Also, the ending (which featured the utterly useless Jenna Morasca) was disgusting.
8. Mick Foley vs. Sting vs. Jeff Jarrett vs. Kurt Angle - TNA heavyweight Title (10/10)
This match reads like a Who’s Who of professional wrestling. Sting and Foley are living legends. Angle and Jarrett are both great wrestlers. But coming in, I was not expecting very much out of this match. Foley is--to be blatantly honest--out of shape and beaten from a long career of extreme matches. Stinger is still great in the ring, up until about the twenty-five minute mark of a match, then his age starts to show. Jarrett is a good wrestler, but one of his matches is much like any other. Kurt Angle is without a doubt the best pure wrestler in the match, but his past neck injuries are always there in the background. It makes me wonder exactly how much Kurt is holding back these days.
The reality of it is, the match went far above and beyond my expectations. This was a great match. Jarrett put on a good performance. Angel held nothing back. Sting has still got it. Even Foley looked a bit like his old self. Even the ending, Sting becoming the new leader of the MEM, was not what I expected.
Overall (53/80)
This is the first TNA PPV I have seen in quite a while that I actually enjoyed watching. With the exception of a few bad matches, the card was very good. The Daniels vs. Suicide match took me back to before the “big stars” came to TNA, back to a time when TNA really felt like it was all about the wrestling and not about the star power. Most of the in-ring action was so damn good that I actually found don West’s horrible heel announcer commentary tolerable. Here’s hoping that TNA can put on some good Impact broadcast in the near future and that Slamiversary is as good as this year’s Sacrifice PPV.
Friday, May 22, 2009
What Happened to the Wrestlign in Wrestling?
Here is a very interesting fact about this week’s ECW show as compared to this week's TNA Impact broadcast.
This week on ECW, there was just under twenty five minutes of in-ring action. By that I mean actual wrestling, not skits or promos that took place in the ring.
This week's TNA Impact broadcast featured--and keep in mind that it is a 2 hours show--just under 18 minutes of in-ring action.
Hence the title of this post. So what the hell has happened to the wrestling in the pro wrestling. WWE, for all it's numerous booking faults as of late still devotes a majority of their programming to actual in-ring action. Whether or not that action is good or not, that's debatable. However, this week's TNA broadcast was dominated by poorly stupid vignettes and unnecessary promos. Let's recap.
I'll recap the things that I saw and deemed as unnecessary. Keep in mind, I didn't see the whole show because I was flipping back and forth between Impact and Ricky Gervais on HBO. I was more entertained by Ricky.
First off, the horrible--and incredibly cliché--contract signing between Awesome Kong and Angelina Love. I'll be very honest, the only thing that kept my attention during this segment was Angelina Love's low cut shirt. The part at then end of the segment when Kong powerbombed Rudy Charles through a table was mildly amusing as well. For the most part, I could have wasted my time on more entertaining things.
Second, the vignette of Kevin Nash and Booker T training for the upcoming I Quit match was useless. In fact, I have objections to the entire match itself. It's more than likely that A.J. Styles--one of the best wrestlers in the world today--will be stuck selling for an aging and an increasingly unentertaining Booker T. If A.J. Styles has to say "I quit" to Booker T, I would recommend he negotiate out of his TNA contract and give Vince's promotion a shot, because he's getting screwed.
Well, Mick Foley promised us the most outrageous segment ever to air on Impact, and he delivered in spades. He should have mentioned that it would also bored, annoy, and disgust all of the long time Foley fans. Mick Foley "wrestled" a cardboard cutout of Rocky Balboa. Why? The worst part of it all was that Foley hinted about Terry Funk all damn night. This has now led to further speculation that Terry Funk could work some shows for TNA. TERRY, DON'T DO IT!!! Not even Terry Funk can help the idiots booking for TNA. Maybe he can beat some damn sense back into Mick Foley, but I doubt it.
While WWE's product as of now is very imperfect, there is still a lot of in-ring action to be seen. Some of that action is very good in fact. You can't help but smile when John Morrison, Shelton Benjamin, MVP, CM Punk, Charlie Haas, or Evan Borne (Matt Sydel) step into the ring. Unfortunately, I cannot now say--nor have I been able to for quite some time--anything remotely as kind about TNA.
Thursday, May 21, 2009
Is a Little Respect Too Much to Ask?
It seems more and more to me that pro wrestling is the Rodney Dangerfield of both the athletic and entertainment worlds. By that I mean that the wrestling business “don’t get no respect.” The recent controversy—if you care enough to call it that—over the double booking of the Denver Nuggets vs. Los Angeles Lakers NBA playoff game and WWE Raw has created a very childish shouting match between the NBA and WWE. While I usually tend not to make a big deal out of these things, it does bring up a persistent point; the professional wrestling business gets no damn respect from the pro sports world or the entertainment world.
Let’s start by looking at the facts. Professional wrestlers work much more than any other professional athletes, especially those in the WWE or TNA. These men work year round, while no other professional athlete can claim that. Not even mixed martial artists hold as grueling a work and travel schedule as professional wrestlers. Professional baseball players (take note that I am a baseball fan) work six months a year, seven if their team gets into the playoffs and makes it to the World Series. Pro basketball players also work six to seven months a year. Pro football players have a schedule of five to six months. Hockey players, soccer players, nobody has as grueling a work and travel schedule as pro wrestlers.
Professional wrestling takes a huge toll on a person’s body. These men are constantly being dropped on theirs backs, heads, arm, legs, and pretty much any other body part you can name, and yet they are not recognized as being “true athletes.” It’s all “just a show.” I think maybe if you asked Terry Taylor about his multiple knee surgeries, he would have a few choice words about those detractions. Then maybe you could go ask Tommy Dreamer about his broken back, multiple dislocated shoulders, multiple broken noses, and—best of all—his ruptured testicle, he would probably have a few things to say as well.
These are incredibly skilled and practiced individuals—men and women. They work for years to hone their craft. They work while they are injured. A few years ago, the marginally talented retards on SportsCenter made a big deal out of the fact that Curt Schilling pitched in the World Series with an injured toe. “You should have seen all the blood on his sock!” Professional wrestlers work through much more than an injured toe. It’s not uncommon for wrestlers to work through cracked ribs, pulled muscles, enflamed tendons, concussions, bone spurs, and any number of injuries that would send the average baseball, football, or basketball player whining to their coach.
Professional wrestler, despite their heavier schedule and the extremely physical nature of their work, don’t get paid even half as much as most other athletes. Alex Rodriguez is making twenty plus millions dollars a year, while the best of the best in the wrestling business are making maybe three million dollars tops. Go out and ask any indy wrestler how much they make. It’s chicken feed.
Not only do professional wrestlers have to go out and put their bodies on the line, they are expected to be competent actors as well. Ask anybody who’s anybody in the wrestling business these days, if you can’t cut a good promo, you’ll never make it big. Professional wrestlers have to put on a good performance not only on TV, but at house shows as well, and they sure as hell aren’t making a million dollars an episode like the cast of Friends (which was a crappy show anyway).
And here’s the big one. There is no union for pro wrestlers. Their employer can screw them at any time. When it happens, they end up paying their own legal bills, their own medical expenses, and a lot more. Chris Candido died from a simple blood clot because he didn’t have the money to stay in the hospital. Raven and several other superstars financed and lost their lawsuit against Vince McMahon and WWE. They tried to change the status of wrestlers form independent contractors to full time employees, which would have given the wrestlers on the WWE roster more rights and privileges, not to mention setting a huge precedent for the business in the future. Why did they lose? Maybe it was because they had to pay their own legal bills. They couldn’t afford the kind of lawyers that the WWE can.
Taking all these things into consideration, I don’t ask much. All I want is for the business to be taken seriously, and maybe for people to take me seriously as a fan and student of the wrestling business. I’m tired of getting the looks and remarks from people that classify me as some kind of perpetual child. I’m tired of seeing incredible athletes get made fun of. I’m tired of seeing wrestlers die because nobody will take the business seriously enough to implement stronger drug policies. I’m tired of people demonizing the business because of the way that Eddie Guerrero and Chris Benoit—in their own right, probably the two best wrestlers to ever live—ended up.
I may be getting into risky territory here, but the whole thing is part of a larger social issue. People make fun of what they don’t understand. They don’t care about things that don’t affect them. When a wrestler dies, nobody but fans and people in the business give a damn. It’s just another joke to the media. This is just a suggestion, but maybe people should try a little more acceptance and a little less ignorance.
Let’s start by looking at the facts. Professional wrestlers work much more than any other professional athletes, especially those in the WWE or TNA. These men work year round, while no other professional athlete can claim that. Not even mixed martial artists hold as grueling a work and travel schedule as professional wrestlers. Professional baseball players (take note that I am a baseball fan) work six months a year, seven if their team gets into the playoffs and makes it to the World Series. Pro basketball players also work six to seven months a year. Pro football players have a schedule of five to six months. Hockey players, soccer players, nobody has as grueling a work and travel schedule as pro wrestlers.
Professional wrestling takes a huge toll on a person’s body. These men are constantly being dropped on theirs backs, heads, arm, legs, and pretty much any other body part you can name, and yet they are not recognized as being “true athletes.” It’s all “just a show.” I think maybe if you asked Terry Taylor about his multiple knee surgeries, he would have a few choice words about those detractions. Then maybe you could go ask Tommy Dreamer about his broken back, multiple dislocated shoulders, multiple broken noses, and—best of all—his ruptured testicle, he would probably have a few things to say as well.
These are incredibly skilled and practiced individuals—men and women. They work for years to hone their craft. They work while they are injured. A few years ago, the marginally talented retards on SportsCenter made a big deal out of the fact that Curt Schilling pitched in the World Series with an injured toe. “You should have seen all the blood on his sock!” Professional wrestlers work through much more than an injured toe. It’s not uncommon for wrestlers to work through cracked ribs, pulled muscles, enflamed tendons, concussions, bone spurs, and any number of injuries that would send the average baseball, football, or basketball player whining to their coach.
Professional wrestler, despite their heavier schedule and the extremely physical nature of their work, don’t get paid even half as much as most other athletes. Alex Rodriguez is making twenty plus millions dollars a year, while the best of the best in the wrestling business are making maybe three million dollars tops. Go out and ask any indy wrestler how much they make. It’s chicken feed.
Not only do professional wrestlers have to go out and put their bodies on the line, they are expected to be competent actors as well. Ask anybody who’s anybody in the wrestling business these days, if you can’t cut a good promo, you’ll never make it big. Professional wrestlers have to put on a good performance not only on TV, but at house shows as well, and they sure as hell aren’t making a million dollars an episode like the cast of Friends (which was a crappy show anyway).
And here’s the big one. There is no union for pro wrestlers. Their employer can screw them at any time. When it happens, they end up paying their own legal bills, their own medical expenses, and a lot more. Chris Candido died from a simple blood clot because he didn’t have the money to stay in the hospital. Raven and several other superstars financed and lost their lawsuit against Vince McMahon and WWE. They tried to change the status of wrestlers form independent contractors to full time employees, which would have given the wrestlers on the WWE roster more rights and privileges, not to mention setting a huge precedent for the business in the future. Why did they lose? Maybe it was because they had to pay their own legal bills. They couldn’t afford the kind of lawyers that the WWE can.
Taking all these things into consideration, I don’t ask much. All I want is for the business to be taken seriously, and maybe for people to take me seriously as a fan and student of the wrestling business. I’m tired of getting the looks and remarks from people that classify me as some kind of perpetual child. I’m tired of seeing incredible athletes get made fun of. I’m tired of seeing wrestlers die because nobody will take the business seriously enough to implement stronger drug policies. I’m tired of people demonizing the business because of the way that Eddie Guerrero and Chris Benoit—in their own right, probably the two best wrestlers to ever live—ended up.
I may be getting into risky territory here, but the whole thing is part of a larger social issue. People make fun of what they don’t understand. They don’t care about things that don’t affect them. When a wrestler dies, nobody but fans and people in the business give a damn. It’s just another joke to the media. This is just a suggestion, but maybe people should try a little more acceptance and a little less ignorance.
Johnny Devine Shoots About the Wrestling Biz
Click Here to check out a small part of an exclusive WrestleZone.com shoot interview with former TNA wrestler Johnny Devine. Devine talks about the lack of respect that wrestlers recieve for both "athletes" and "entertainers." Alsi, check back on WrestleZone later in the week for more.
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
Degeneration Next?
Throughout the past forty years, tag team wrestling has been a staple in the professional wrestling business. The 1970s, 80s, and 90s saw some incredible tag teams. Now, after the millennium, tag team wrestling is a dying art. The WWE is focused on selling poorly crafted generic characters and Hollywood tie-ins, and after TNA broke away from it’s NWA ties, TNA is going in the same direction.While WWE has seen some very good teams in the last ten years--teams like MNM and London & Kendrick for example--the number of those teams is a small one. The Hardy Boyz have split and made lucrative singles careers for themselves. Edge and Christian can no longer be the goofy heels that they were during their run as tag team champs, there characters have changed too much. While a rehashing of the Hardys vs. Edge & Christian feud is probably something to be expected with Christians return to WWE, tag team wrestling is still nearly dead in the WWE. With the recent split of Miz & Morrison, the only cohesive team--and really the only team at all--is the Colon brothers.
While TNA has been making a claim lately that they are the only company that still has good tag team wrestling, the claim rings very hollow in my ears. Yes, they have the Motor City Machine Guns (Alex Shelley and Chris Sabin) as well as the team of No Limit, Beer Money, LAX, The British Invasion (real original right?), and Lethal Consequences (catchy but corny), they still aren’t any match for the greats of the past. There is nothing to me that says any of these teams--with the possible exception of LAX and the MCMGs--have any kind of truly cohesive feel to them. Plus, with the garbage that I have to wade through to find any good wrestling in TNA, I’m just not that excited about the company in general these days. I could care less about the British Invasion. I’m sick of the dumb Black Machismo character, Consequences Creed is a corny cliché, Beer Money is boring, Team 3D (always the Dudley Boyz to me) seem to have grown complacent, and putting Eric young together with a minimally repackaged Trevor Murdock does nothing for me.
Ring of Honor is doing their best to keep tag team wrestling alive, but even they aren’t hitting on all cylinders. Steen and El Generico are great and the Briscoes are awesome. While The American Wolves are good in the ring, they don’t measure up to the greats of the past. Danielson and Tyler Black are both fan favorites, but I don’t see them making careers out of tagging with each other. The Vulture Squad--arguably the best cruiserweights in the world today--have broken up and there’s nobody stepping up to fill the void.
Tag team wrestling is just not as important--in the eyes of bookers and storyline writers--as it once was. Teams like the Fabulous Freebirds, The Eliminators, the Hart Foundation (the original Hart Foundation, not the one WWE is getting ready to push), RVD & Sabu, Benoit & Malenko, and tons of other teams are just not to be found these days. Wrestling is increasingly focused on getting more singles competition onto the card. The only tag team matches I see on a consistent basis are ones that unite two or more different singles feuds. It’s always something like Cena and Batista to take on their current rivals Orton and Big Show. Not only are these matches boring, they’re also completely predictable and of absolutely no consequence to anybody. They’re just an easy way to maximize TV time and to bring bad angles together.
While TNA has been making a claim lately that they are the only company that still has good tag team wrestling, the claim rings very hollow in my ears. Yes, they have the Motor City Machine Guns (Alex Shelley and Chris Sabin) as well as the team of No Limit, Beer Money, LAX, The British Invasion (real original right?), and Lethal Consequences (catchy but corny), they still aren’t any match for the greats of the past. There is nothing to me that says any of these teams--with the possible exception of LAX and the MCMGs--have any kind of truly cohesive feel to them. Plus, with the garbage that I have to wade through to find any good wrestling in TNA, I’m just not that excited about the company in general these days. I could care less about the British Invasion. I’m sick of the dumb Black Machismo character, Consequences Creed is a corny cliché, Beer Money is boring, Team 3D (always the Dudley Boyz to me) seem to have grown complacent, and putting Eric young together with a minimally repackaged Trevor Murdock does nothing for me.
Ring of Honor is doing their best to keep tag team wrestling alive, but even they aren’t hitting on all cylinders. Steen and El Generico are great and the Briscoes are awesome. While The American Wolves are good in the ring, they don’t measure up to the greats of the past. Danielson and Tyler Black are both fan favorites, but I don’t see them making careers out of tagging with each other. The Vulture Squad--arguably the best cruiserweights in the world today--have broken up and there’s nobody stepping up to fill the void.
Tag team wrestling is just not as important--in the eyes of bookers and storyline writers--as it once was. Teams like the Fabulous Freebirds, The Eliminators, the Hart Foundation (the original Hart Foundation, not the one WWE is getting ready to push), RVD & Sabu, Benoit & Malenko, and tons of other teams are just not to be found these days. Wrestling is increasingly focused on getting more singles competition onto the card. The only tag team matches I see on a consistent basis are ones that unite two or more different singles feuds. It’s always something like Cena and Batista to take on their current rivals Orton and Big Show. Not only are these matches boring, they’re also completely predictable and of absolutely no consequence to anybody. They’re just an easy way to maximize TV time and to bring bad angles together.
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
What's the Verdict on Judgment Day?
Coming into WWE Judgment Day 2009, my expectations were fairly low. None of the matches on the card really stood out as being blockbuster matches. While Jericho vs. Mysterio, John Morrison vs. Shelton Benjamin, and Jeff Hardy vs. Edge held the most potential, none of them really screamed “You must see this!” As it turns out, my expectations were pretty reasonable. With the exception of the three matches I just mentioned, most of the PPV was boring.
I have implemented a fairly standard 10 point rating system for each match. I’m not bothering to rate the vignettes, because they usually are just a waste of time.
CM Punk vs. Umaga (4/10):
While I am a huge fan of CM Punk, and have been since his great feud with Raven in 2003, I wasn’t very excited about his match with Umaga. For the most part, I feel like Umaga is just a Samoan version of Yokozuna. Despite that detraction, I was expecting more out of the match than I got. Since coming back from his injury, I have noticed that Umaga looks much more trim and fit than he did before the injury. He has looked good the last few weeks. However, he has only been doing run-ins, and it is hard to tell how good a guy is going to look in an actual match from that kind of limited action.
I didn’t feel that the match was either horrible or spectacular. All in all, it was mediocre at best. The styles of Punk and Umaga didn’t do much to compliment one another. Punk got a predictably large pop from his hometown audience, but other than at the end of the match--when Punk had a descent flurry of action--they didn’t seem all that into the match. In the end, Umaga can up with the win via Samoan Spike and three count.
Vignette 1:
Chavo Guerrero (who has seemingly been neutered of his Guerreroness) entered Vicki Guerrero’s office to inform her that John Cena had been medically cleared to wrestle. First off, why was this necessary? Anybody who bothered to watch SmackDown already knew Cena was medically cleared. From there, we had the privilege of hearing Big Show talk about how he was going to end Cena’s career, and how bad it would be for RAW, particularly since Triple H and HBK are already out of action. After his useless rant, Show left to prepare for his match and Edge entered to speak with Vicki. As I said earlier, these vignettes tend to be a huge waste of time.
ECW Title - Jack Swagger vs. Christian (5/10):
Jack Swagger and Christian had an excellent match at Backlash. In fact, it was one of the only matches that made me feel I was not wasting my time in watching the PPV. I came into the rematch at Judgment Day expecting more of the same. I didn’t get it. The match was wrestled well enough, but did not have the same energy as the match at Backlash. The pace was very methodical, which is not a problem in itself, but when you add the fact that the crowd just didn’t seem to care, it made for a boring match. Christian received a few small pops during the match and a round of cheers upon winning, but other than that, it seemed the fans looked at the match much in the same way I did…as filler.
Vignette 2:
This vignette was yet another waste of time. Edge chastised Chavo Guerrero for not intervening when Santino Morella called Vicki Guerrero a pig on RAW. Chavo, mercifully, had nothing to say. End of vignette.
Shelton Benjamin vs. John Morrison (6/10):
This match was one of the three I was most looking forward to. Both men are extremely talented athletes. Benjamin seems to be making progress of his mic skills, slowly but surely. Morrison is--at least in my mind--a future Heavyweight Champion. WWE needs more athletes like these two guys. While I am a big fan of both of these men, I will admit that they are not superstars on the microphone. Both men are much better at the in-ring part of the business than the acting part. This is something that seems increasingly true with many young up and comers in professional wrestling. But all of this stuff is material for another piece that I am working on.
The match itself was very good. It started out very methodical, with Benjamin controlling the pace. Benjamin, as always, showed some great technical wrestling skills and was able to ground Morrison for several minutes, effectively neutralizing his offense…and making the match a bit boring. When the pendulum of momentum swung the way of John Morrison, things heated up. Both guys really kicked it into gear and started going all out. Charlie Haas, who was present in Benjamin’s corner, tried to involve himself in the match and was promptly taken out by some innovative J-Mo offense. Morrison picked up the victory with his Starship Pain finisher.
Miz promo:
Dusty Rhodes, head booker on RAW, has apparently taken a shine to Mike Mizanin. Miz has been getting quite a bit of face time on RAW. He also got quite a bit of time on the Judgment Day PPV. The segment featured Miz again challenging John Cena. Cena did not come out to the ring--but something tells me that sooner or later he will--and instead Miz moved his focus onto taunting the Chicago audience. Miz said that the audience sounded like ducks when they started up the ever-present “What?’ chant. Miz then turned his attention onto Chicago Cubs outfielder Alfonso Soriano, who was in the front row at ringside. After a few malignant, but not entirely untrue cracks at Soriano (which I found very funny, even as a Cubs fan myself), Santino Morella entered the fray.
In a fairly funny bit, Santino explained how some of the WWE stars looked very much like animals. Vicki Guerrero was described as being a pig, Vladamir Koslov was referred to as having a striking resemblance to Sam the American Eagle, and Miz was referred to as a jackass. While the “You’re a jackass” bit is used very often, it almost always gets a reaction from the crowd. Miz an Santino then proceeded to have the male equivalent of a cat fight, ending with Santino laid out on the may.
Enter Chavo Guerrero, who executed a frog splash on a prone Santion, apparently in retaliation for his unkind words about Vicki.
The segment was not particularly original, but I was entertained. Santino Morella is not much fun to watch in the ring, but he is very good as a comedy wrestler. I am also happy to see Miz getting face time. Three years ago, I hate Mike Mizanin, but he has progressed so much that I actually enjoy watching him now. I think Miz and MVP could have some good matches with the United States Title as the fulcrum of the feud.
Jericho promo:
While Jericho is an excellent wrestler, his promos as of late absolutely bore and annoy the living hell out of me. Jericho’s current gimmick is that of a very generic heel, granted a generic heel with a larger than average vocabulary, but a generic heel nonetheless. While Jericho is great at playing the pretentious jackass, I’m not that entertained by it.
Intercontinental Title - Rey Mysterio vs. Chris Jericho (6/10):
This was another match that I expected good things from, and while it wasn’t horrible, it wasn’t great either. As with every match up to this point, the crowd seemed only limitedly interested in the match. Rey got his obligatory pops and Jericho his obligatory boos. In the end there was a 619 and a pin. As a side note, I think Rey really needs a new finisher. I am sick and damn tired of the 619.
WWE Title - Batista vs. Randy Orton (2/10):
There are many words that I could use to describe this match. I think that atrocious is the most apt. WWE wanted us to believe that there was white heat behind this match. There was all the bull about how Batista “loathes” Randy Orton. The match itself certainly did nothing to support that statement. You would think that two guys who “hate” each other so much would have come out of the gates, steaming from the nose like two bulls. Nope, not at all. The match was downright boring. It is yet more proof of the limited talent of Dave Batista. It is also more proof that, while Randy Orton is talented, he is not yet ready to be the “franchise guy” in WWE.
You might ask me what disgusted me most about the match and I’d say to you, “Ric Flair.” Yes, that’s right, Flair still won’t hang it up. The end of the match featured a run-in by Ric “My Ego Is So Big That I Don’t Care How Much I Tarnish My Legacy And Ignore My Son’s Drug Problem” Flair. I’ll save my criticism of Flair for an entirely different, and potentially much longer, rant.
To make the long and boring storing shorter, Orton pulled the same cheap heel garbage he always does. He tried to get himself disqualified and counted out and it worked. Then we got to see Cody Rhodes and Ted DiBiase Jr. sell for a tired old egomaniac.
Big Show vs. John Cena (0/10):
I’m not going to dignify this horrifically bad performance by writing about it at any length. It was bad and boring, the average John Cena match.
World title - Jeff Hardy vs. Edge (7/10):
Again, this was one of the matches I actually wanted to see. For the most part, it did a descent job of living up to potential. There were a couple big spots that added quite a bit to the match. However, after the problems Jeff Hardy has had in his personal life as of the last year or so, I’m not sure his head is completely in the game. It doesn’t show as much as you might expect it to, but it is noticeable. Edge, who I find boring most of the time, did an okay job in this match as well.
The most I can say about this PPV is that it was mediocre. There was very little time to build any kind of heat or real anticipation between Backlash and Judgment Day. I would recommend that WWE go to a 6 PPV (one every two months or so) schedule, but I know that because of the bottom line ($$$) that is very unlikely.
I have implemented a fairly standard 10 point rating system for each match. I’m not bothering to rate the vignettes, because they usually are just a waste of time.
CM Punk vs. Umaga (4/10):
While I am a huge fan of CM Punk, and have been since his great feud with Raven in 2003, I wasn’t very excited about his match with Umaga. For the most part, I feel like Umaga is just a Samoan version of Yokozuna. Despite that detraction, I was expecting more out of the match than I got. Since coming back from his injury, I have noticed that Umaga looks much more trim and fit than he did before the injury. He has looked good the last few weeks. However, he has only been doing run-ins, and it is hard to tell how good a guy is going to look in an actual match from that kind of limited action.
I didn’t feel that the match was either horrible or spectacular. All in all, it was mediocre at best. The styles of Punk and Umaga didn’t do much to compliment one another. Punk got a predictably large pop from his hometown audience, but other than at the end of the match--when Punk had a descent flurry of action--they didn’t seem all that into the match. In the end, Umaga can up with the win via Samoan Spike and three count.
Vignette 1:
Chavo Guerrero (who has seemingly been neutered of his Guerreroness) entered Vicki Guerrero’s office to inform her that John Cena had been medically cleared to wrestle. First off, why was this necessary? Anybody who bothered to watch SmackDown already knew Cena was medically cleared. From there, we had the privilege of hearing Big Show talk about how he was going to end Cena’s career, and how bad it would be for RAW, particularly since Triple H and HBK are already out of action. After his useless rant, Show left to prepare for his match and Edge entered to speak with Vicki. As I said earlier, these vignettes tend to be a huge waste of time.
ECW Title - Jack Swagger vs. Christian (5/10):
Jack Swagger and Christian had an excellent match at Backlash. In fact, it was one of the only matches that made me feel I was not wasting my time in watching the PPV. I came into the rematch at Judgment Day expecting more of the same. I didn’t get it. The match was wrestled well enough, but did not have the same energy as the match at Backlash. The pace was very methodical, which is not a problem in itself, but when you add the fact that the crowd just didn’t seem to care, it made for a boring match. Christian received a few small pops during the match and a round of cheers upon winning, but other than that, it seemed the fans looked at the match much in the same way I did…as filler.
Vignette 2:
This vignette was yet another waste of time. Edge chastised Chavo Guerrero for not intervening when Santino Morella called Vicki Guerrero a pig on RAW. Chavo, mercifully, had nothing to say. End of vignette.
Shelton Benjamin vs. John Morrison (6/10):
This match was one of the three I was most looking forward to. Both men are extremely talented athletes. Benjamin seems to be making progress of his mic skills, slowly but surely. Morrison is--at least in my mind--a future Heavyweight Champion. WWE needs more athletes like these two guys. While I am a big fan of both of these men, I will admit that they are not superstars on the microphone. Both men are much better at the in-ring part of the business than the acting part. This is something that seems increasingly true with many young up and comers in professional wrestling. But all of this stuff is material for another piece that I am working on.
The match itself was very good. It started out very methodical, with Benjamin controlling the pace. Benjamin, as always, showed some great technical wrestling skills and was able to ground Morrison for several minutes, effectively neutralizing his offense…and making the match a bit boring. When the pendulum of momentum swung the way of John Morrison, things heated up. Both guys really kicked it into gear and started going all out. Charlie Haas, who was present in Benjamin’s corner, tried to involve himself in the match and was promptly taken out by some innovative J-Mo offense. Morrison picked up the victory with his Starship Pain finisher.
Miz promo:
Dusty Rhodes, head booker on RAW, has apparently taken a shine to Mike Mizanin. Miz has been getting quite a bit of face time on RAW. He also got quite a bit of time on the Judgment Day PPV. The segment featured Miz again challenging John Cena. Cena did not come out to the ring--but something tells me that sooner or later he will--and instead Miz moved his focus onto taunting the Chicago audience. Miz said that the audience sounded like ducks when they started up the ever-present “What?’ chant. Miz then turned his attention onto Chicago Cubs outfielder Alfonso Soriano, who was in the front row at ringside. After a few malignant, but not entirely untrue cracks at Soriano (which I found very funny, even as a Cubs fan myself), Santino Morella entered the fray.
In a fairly funny bit, Santino explained how some of the WWE stars looked very much like animals. Vicki Guerrero was described as being a pig, Vladamir Koslov was referred to as having a striking resemblance to Sam the American Eagle, and Miz was referred to as a jackass. While the “You’re a jackass” bit is used very often, it almost always gets a reaction from the crowd. Miz an Santino then proceeded to have the male equivalent of a cat fight, ending with Santino laid out on the may.
Enter Chavo Guerrero, who executed a frog splash on a prone Santion, apparently in retaliation for his unkind words about Vicki.
The segment was not particularly original, but I was entertained. Santino Morella is not much fun to watch in the ring, but he is very good as a comedy wrestler. I am also happy to see Miz getting face time. Three years ago, I hate Mike Mizanin, but he has progressed so much that I actually enjoy watching him now. I think Miz and MVP could have some good matches with the United States Title as the fulcrum of the feud.
Jericho promo:
While Jericho is an excellent wrestler, his promos as of late absolutely bore and annoy the living hell out of me. Jericho’s current gimmick is that of a very generic heel, granted a generic heel with a larger than average vocabulary, but a generic heel nonetheless. While Jericho is great at playing the pretentious jackass, I’m not that entertained by it.
Intercontinental Title - Rey Mysterio vs. Chris Jericho (6/10):
This was another match that I expected good things from, and while it wasn’t horrible, it wasn’t great either. As with every match up to this point, the crowd seemed only limitedly interested in the match. Rey got his obligatory pops and Jericho his obligatory boos. In the end there was a 619 and a pin. As a side note, I think Rey really needs a new finisher. I am sick and damn tired of the 619.
WWE Title - Batista vs. Randy Orton (2/10):
There are many words that I could use to describe this match. I think that atrocious is the most apt. WWE wanted us to believe that there was white heat behind this match. There was all the bull about how Batista “loathes” Randy Orton. The match itself certainly did nothing to support that statement. You would think that two guys who “hate” each other so much would have come out of the gates, steaming from the nose like two bulls. Nope, not at all. The match was downright boring. It is yet more proof of the limited talent of Dave Batista. It is also more proof that, while Randy Orton is talented, he is not yet ready to be the “franchise guy” in WWE.
You might ask me what disgusted me most about the match and I’d say to you, “Ric Flair.” Yes, that’s right, Flair still won’t hang it up. The end of the match featured a run-in by Ric “My Ego Is So Big That I Don’t Care How Much I Tarnish My Legacy And Ignore My Son’s Drug Problem” Flair. I’ll save my criticism of Flair for an entirely different, and potentially much longer, rant.
To make the long and boring storing shorter, Orton pulled the same cheap heel garbage he always does. He tried to get himself disqualified and counted out and it worked. Then we got to see Cody Rhodes and Ted DiBiase Jr. sell for a tired old egomaniac.
Big Show vs. John Cena (0/10):
I’m not going to dignify this horrifically bad performance by writing about it at any length. It was bad and boring, the average John Cena match.
World title - Jeff Hardy vs. Edge (7/10):
Again, this was one of the matches I actually wanted to see. For the most part, it did a descent job of living up to potential. There were a couple big spots that added quite a bit to the match. However, after the problems Jeff Hardy has had in his personal life as of the last year or so, I’m not sure his head is completely in the game. It doesn’t show as much as you might expect it to, but it is noticeable. Edge, who I find boring most of the time, did an okay job in this match as well.
The most I can say about this PPV is that it was mediocre. There was very little time to build any kind of heat or real anticipation between Backlash and Judgment Day. I would recommend that WWE go to a 6 PPV (one every two months or so) schedule, but I know that because of the bottom line ($$$) that is very unlikely.
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