GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOD
My apologies for that random outburst of blasphemy, but we've just stopped at the most disgusting looking fast food joint you could imagine, a world famous brand I'm probably not allowed to mention but it sounds a little like Clucking Bell.. and so do my thoughts on the place.
As you may, or may not, have gathered, I'm on the road again, headed over from Houston to Amarillo for one of the Road to WrestleMania house shows we're doing all over Texas in the run up to Mania. I'm here with MVP, Jeff Hardy, Mickie James and Morten Hansen. Lemme tell ya, things can get rather uncomfortable in the back seat of a car when both Mickie and Jeff are trying to sit on your lap.. not to mention the fact I keep getting hit in the face by Jeff's elbow as he applies his make up in the mirror.
Still, everything was going fine.... when, as usual, Morten decided he was hungry. Seriously, he has the appetite of an elephant... a Danish elephant, with a beard. But unfortunately for us, Clucking Bell was the first restaurant we came across.
I'm afraid in my old age of 25 I'm becoming something of a snob, been watching too many episodes of Fraiser maybe.. but Michael Shane and fast food don't mix anymore so I decide to wait in the car, risking carjacking by irate Texans and desperately trying to hide the "I voted Obama" window sticker.. before we get hit by a rocket, starting to pen my latest missive for you.. the WWE Universe (or fans, as you used to be known)
The road to WrestleMania to all the WWE fans is one smooth transition from Raw to SNME, all the cool extras, Hall of Fame, WrestleMania Sunday... but to us, the workers, its a lot harder than that. There's no breaks, no time to prepare or change out routine. We do the same thing we do every night Pinky... try to entertain the fans.
So tonight, we're off to Amarillo, a great and historic wrestling town, made (in)famous by the Funk clan.
Tonight I'll have the honor of teaming with Ric Flair to take on Matt and Jeff Hardy, WWE always loving these little reunions for the fans off camera, but the biggest honor of the match will be that Terry Funk will be the special guest referee.
Strangely, I've never met Terry despite being on such good terms with his contempories Ric Flair, Dusty Rhodes and Ricky Steamboat and actually being on the same card at One Night Stand 2007 when MNM defeated CM Punk and Colt Cabana. All speak very highly of him as did Mick Foley when we were on speaking terms. Having achieved so much in this business it'll be a pleasure being in the same ring as the icon, plus the cool thing is that the camera will be there as they're filing the match for some sort of Ric Flair special on the Vintage Collection later this year or some such, so you guys may get to see it too.
But the point is, after tonight, we'll be headed back to Houston, our base of operations for this whole month, late, get about 6 hours sleep before having to be up, to the gym, lines to rehearse for the Press Conference we're holding soon (yes, its all scripted, sorry to ruin the magic) and then I've personally an interview for a local radio station, Wednesday I FINALLY manage to get myself on the Howard Stern Show on SIRUS as a phone in guest and then it's another live event Thursday.
What's taking so long... I look at my watch and see, Mickie is climbing all over Morten as they wait for the order, it seems there's some sort of hold up with the sheer volume. Then I see why, Ryan Simmons is here.... nah he's not, but I like a good cheap shot.
Anyway, it's gunna be a hectic few days but I'll still give 110 percent ever night cause every fan deserves to see the best of Michael Shane, the best of Jeff Hardy and the best of all of us. I know many hold back at these house shows, don't give all they could, but these fans are the ones who buy our merchandise, who buy the tickets, they're just as special whether the cameras are there or not. So to all those fans reading in Amarillo tonight, you maybe in for a treat from us....
And...wha... Jesus, as I look out of the window back into Clucking Bell, not only does Morten seem to have enough bacon tacos to give the whole of Reliant Stadium Swine Flu, Jeff Hardy is happily handing me a huge coke, chicken tacos, fries and heaven knows what.... I think I'll need to find a homeless person to hand this off to as my good deed and go grab some bagels (and ask him if indeed, this IS the way to Amarillo, while I'm at it. I always wanted to ask somebody that).
As MVP starts the car, looking around in alarm at a distant police siren, my thoughts about WrestleMania, this good company, Terry Funk and my legacy in the business start to drift away as only one thought fills my head....
They do do bagels in Amarillo, right?
Original Printed: May 25, 2007
Efeds. A word that has many meanings and brings up different feelings in all who come across them. To the outsiders, the people who aren’t fans of Efeds or wrestling in general it can be a boring, stupid, some even say a childish game, many slate the people who are members but most of them stay clear fearing it will lower their reputation as a hip/funky whatever they see themselves as person if they are in any way connected to them. To the people who are members or enjoy reading the great shows put on by many a great writer it can be many different things, all good but different, a place to get away from the stresses of everyday life, relax and chill out in the company of other like minded people all over the world, to the most imaginative person it can be a time to go into a fantasy world where they base their character or characters on themselves and get to live out the dream they have in their imagination, to others it can be a time to enjoy a good read whether it be a column or regular show put on by the many dedicated writers we have these days or just have a laugh in the chat rooms we have. Whatever the reason you like them, love them, dislike them or despise them, they are there and will be for the foreseeable future, online and on mobile wap.
Writers. If you don’t have one of these there is no point in an efed, they write the shows, they tell the stories and in most cases own the efed. I’ve had the privilege to know many writers in my time, some great, some bad, some can’t be beaten and I have also had the privilege to write myself. A huge amount of imagination is a must for an efed writer and a great knowledge of wrestling moves and in most cases the actual wrestlers themselves in the cases of Efeds who base themselves on current wrestling corporations I.e. WWE and TNA, all of these are a must. A writer has to paint a picture, has to make you feel like your there, make you imagine it in your head, make you feel the emotion that so many people get when watching real wrestling i.e. angry or happy. It’s not an easy task to accomplish, many people criticise writers these days claiming it’s the easiest thing to do in the world but I can tell you from experience and I’m sure many of the other writers I know will tell you it is extremely difficult, to capture the emotion to get across the effort and power and strength and will of the characters we write about. I’ve seen so many Efeds come and go, somebody thinks they can do it and starts one up and when they have to meet deadlines and keep the consistency up it gets too much and the fed closes within weeks. Some web based feds I have visited over the past few weeks don’t actually write shows, in the feds that I have been in and seen, the writer/s have written each match whether it’s been good or not is nothing but these web based feds don’t write the matches they just post results, for example: Joe Bloggs beat Steve Davis via pin, and basically that’s all you get, they seem to put so much effort into the site as in how it looks and how it is presented that they either don’t have time or plain can’t be bothered to write even a semi decent show and I sat there and saw all these people ranting and raving about these web based feds saying they were the best, no one could beat them, I looked at the actual sites and thought what a load of bolloks quite frankly. I clicked on my address bar and I saw the address for WVW which is on mywap, basically a small wap and web site you can use supplied by O2, it’s very basic but also very popular with small Efeds and I thought I’d rather join this fed than most of the web based sites, at least they put in the effort when it comes to shows etc, Andy and Fi two good friends of mine do a great job there. It used to be and in many cases still is that people partially judged your writing on how long a match actually was but I think we’re at the stage now were it’s not the length it’s the quality (drums) A thank yow! In my humble opinion that is. On average I think a decent length for a normal show match is about 4 pages of Microsoft word, it all depends on the writer really. I end this paragraph by taking off my hat to the writers I know and the good writers I don’t. I think I speak for many when I say thank you to all of them (They know who they are) for the time they take and the effort they put in to giving us all a great show to read. Thank you guys.
Characters. Another of the main components in an efed, if you don’t have these then you don’t have a show simply because there’s no one to write about. In my almost five years in Efeds I’ve seen a mixed bag of characters, ranging from the lowest of the low, people like Osama bin laden, Ben Dover and Phil McCraken, to the legendary characters, Nightmare, Doomsday and his famous hockey mask, and the awesome characters from the past two years, people like Ryan Simmons, Primal, James Steele, Michael Shane, Nathan James etc. The first three names I mentioned are a plain insult to Efeds in general and thankfully these idiots were in the “Conference league” Efeds if you will so no one really heard of them. Whether your making your own character or using one of the current superstars of WWE or TNA, it can be the easiest or most difficult thing to do. I’m sure I speak for quite a few people here when I say, you expect the world when you first start in Efeds, you have this idea in your head and you think it’s awesome, it’s so good no one can beat it and you think you’ll be heavyweight champ of a fed within weeks, as I’m sure every young start has found out up until now, it doesn’t work like that and that’s what causes so many arguments and problems in Efeds, these new starts don’t get their own way, the dummy has been thrown and the arms are wailing all over the place. In a way a fed is a like a social ladder, if you’re a champ in a fed you feel in some ways like a somebody, it feels like an achievement even if it is the luck of a guess so you always hope your gonna be next when you first start, always looking for your spot and when it doesn’t these guys can be quite disheartened. I think to create a great character knowledge is once again a must, you need to know the basics of how to cut a promo, when I first started out my promo’s were probably about four lines long and consisted of me saying I’m gonna kick someone’s ass and that was it, but as you gain more experience in Efeds the promo’s get longer and more detailed, I.e. the background, the mood, the tone of voice used, description of the characters etc. You also need to build a persona for your character, I think whether some people like to admit it or not there is a bit of reality in our characters, for instance there could be the cockiness of Edge mixed with the confidence of HBK mixed with the defiance of John Cena and so on but it all makes for some great characters but unfortunately It can make for some rubbish ones too. A couple of my personal favourites are Primal, a great character by a great bloke, Morten’s promos are awesome, there are many destructive monsters in Efeds but I think Primal takes it to a new level and not all of them are Danish lol. Another is Ryan Simmons, I personally don’t know Graeme that well but I can see by his promos and feuds that he very detailed with Simmons, most people as I said before go for the dominant monster type in their characters but Graeme has went for something totally different with Simmons, I see him as the CM punk character of Efeds, not the typical moves nor typical character which is actually quite refreshing. All in all you need to really work at your character whether that be a Nathan James or a Randy Orton, have a bit of patience give across your idea’s and hope that the fed owner is decent enough to give them a go or put you into an enjoyable feud but I will say this, sure you may have your idea’s and in your head they may be great but it might just be in your head, I’m Sure the person who had the cheek to be Osama bin laden had a vision of one day becoming a heavyweight champion and I’m sure he thought it was an amazing idea.
My opinions on here some people may agree with some people will not that’s life as they say. In my opinion Efeds are great and whoever started this craze I’d like to shake their hand, it is to me a time to get away from the stress of real life troubles and a time to relax and let my imagination run away for a bit, a time to have a laugh and enjoy some awesome writing by some talented people. Efeds in general will be around forever I think, it is a craze that will spread even more than it already has but in a way it is still an unknown to many, we must spread the word and expand them. To those who have been here since WWW, things have changed, to those who have just started, things are going to change. In my time here there have been casualties of bitter wars, Wars of word and sabotage, we’ve seen traitors, fed jumpers, the humiliation of people who have deserved it, the coming and going of some awesome and some not so awesome Efeds, the coming together of several and the demise of many. It’s been a roller coaster ride from day one and I guarantee if I live to be 100 and Efeds are still about then so shall i.
If you’ve read this far, I appreciate it thanks.
When i was growing up in New York in the 1980s and early 1990s, there was no bigger star than Michael Jackson, his fame and talent cannot be comprehended by many younger fans and people who'll read this blog. He was the Barack Obama of his age and yet, so much more. He was Obama and Elvis Presley all in one. He united black and white, young and old, gay and straight, Christian, athiest, Jew and Muslim all singing and dancing to the tune of all those great albums and works of genius such as Billie Jean, Smooth Criminal and Beat It. Michael Jackson was as much an American icon as McDonalds and Coca-Cola.
Michael Jackson made world leaders listen far more than even Bono could imagine, just like when Presley met Nixon, Reagan wanted to be in the spotlight with Jackson. He was the first MTV megastar, standing alongsode other icons of that era from Madonna to Arnaold Swartzanegger and our own Hulk Hogan. From Motown to the Staples Center, the career of Michael Jackson was played out before our eyes. Before the watching millions, before the fans that loved him and adored him.
And the fans that killed him.
You see when it's all said and done, a heart attack or a drug overdose did not kill Michael Jackson... you did.
Just like you killed Eddie Guerrero... and just like you killed Chris Benoit.
And when it's all said and done, you'll kill me too.
You see, Michael Jackson was the real world Truman Burbank, for anybody who's ever seen that movie The Truman Show. From birth right up until death, the camera and media were on Michael Jackson, he was watched 24/7, fans across the globe wanted a piece of the King, wanted to know every last fact about him. At what point do we stop being a human being with free will and freedom of thought and simply become a prisioner inside our own existance with you the fans and the celebrity obsessed media as our jailers?
But it's not simply some kid wanting an autograph in a resturant, not simply some new story on TMZ, some new lurid false rumor in the New York Post, oh no, it's far more.
You believe we OWE you something, that because you buy our merchandise, because you "pay our wages" you have a right to make a demand of us.
Of course we all love to perform, we all become addicted to the adulation of the crowds, we become high on the love you all give to us and when that's taken from us, just like Ric Flair or Scorpio who signed for TNA, we'll do anything for one last injection of fan appriciation, we're as much to blame... but the fans... well the fans always want more.
"Tell me, can you ask for a little bit more?" asked the song, and you do. You chant for Steve Austin to have one more match despite the fact most of you know he cant and would risk paralysis, you chant for 60 year old men like Ric Flair to have one more match, you beg Jeff Hardy to put his broken, battered and drug addled body through one more table. The sicker of you almost pray at night that John Cena suffers an injury, that CM Punk would break his neck. From "Die Rocky Die" to "Cane Dewey" the wrestling fans have shown that they don't really care about us.
Sat in your comfortable chairs, beer in hand, you demand that i perform for you like a monkey in a freak show or a puppet on your strings. You want me to perform in ever more athletic matches, giving our your little ratings and stars in dirtsheets, you chant "you fucked up" when i prove i'm human, cheer as my blood covers the canvas. When i'm injured, you feel sad for a few minutes... then you start to talk about who'll take my spot. You want matches with ladders and cages.. WWE are now even thinking about a pay-per-view all inside Hell in a Cell... all because you fans will pay a few extra bucks to see me lose few extra braincells. I have to perform like a machine every Monday night, you demand match after match, segment after segment, demand that i perform to your standards, that i serve you on your terms, you want me to be Michael Shane, WWE Superstar, 24/7 just like you demanded album after album from Michael Jackson, demanded he produce another Thriller, demanded songs and performances but called him "Wacko Jacko", mocked and ridiculed him when what he needed was help. Just like you disrespect me and the rest of us in this business whenever we don't come up to your standards or expectectations.
See, Michael Jackson never had any hope of completing his stint at London's o2, it would have been a marathon for him in his prime let alone the man who died dependent on drugs to seemingly even get up in the morning. It would be like Ric Flair, no offense to him, main eventing WrestleMania 50 times in a single year and being expected to put on a thriller and potentially a match of the year each time. It's a ludricous suggestion.
But Michael Jackson had to do it. Don't kid yourself that it was all about paying off debts, he had to do it because he, and you, believed he owed you one last spectacular, one last show, one last memory. Bigger, better, more, and more... and more... and more. Take, take, take. And the greedy music industry, the yes men around him were all to willing to let him kill himself for the money, the fans were all too willing to let him kill himself for one last show. It seems like a fair trade doesn't it... all your love and adulation in exchange for suicide, pushing the body beyond reasonable limits, pumping drugs into our vains to keep us going, our heads screwed up from every crazy little moment. Whether its through a concert at the o2 or just another match at a house show in some tiny town in Florida, this is the deal made between every celebrity and every fan.
You people do not know us. You may think you do, you may watch the characters we play every week on television, read our books and blogs, listen to our music. You may see what you think we are, you may even believe you form a bond with us, like all those fans holding vigils for Michael this past week.... but you don't know us and you don't know me. You weren't there when i went to school, laughed with my friends, when i had my first kiss, lost my virginity or nearly died. You aren't there when i hold my girlfriend at night, when i kiss her goodbye, you aren't there when i share a moment with my parents, when i mock my brother or comfort a friend. You aren't there as i make bagels in the morning or do push ups, you aren't there as i watch TV, down a Coke Zero, workout or go to bed. It's the little things, the normal things we do offscreen that make us who we are, that make us human beings... and mean that you can never know the real us.
You see, that was half the reason for us being in a state of shock and trauma over the Chris Benoit tragedy, we all thought we knew the man. Thought that what we saw of TV gave us a connection, led us to believe he wasn't capable of such an action.. but all we saw was what WWE and WCW before them wanted us to see, what Chris wanted to show us. We didn't know Chris Benoit, we don't know what he was capable of or what was going on inside his own head.
So is it any wonder that Michael Jackson hid himself away inside Neverland and died pumped full of drugs just like Elvis Presley before him? any wonder that Kurt Cobain blew his head off or Eddie Guerrero pumped himself full of drugs as well? is it any wonder that Ric Flair just cannot ever have one last match or Amy Winehouse is drugged up in Jamaica, that Ricky Steamboat and Tommy Dreamer come back for one more chance, one last moment in the spotlight. That for every person we've already lost because of the demands of fame, dozens more are secretly already dying through drug habits and all manner of disorder.
The pressures and demands that you the fans and the mass celebrity obsessed media put upon us is something that you cannot understand. While you think that we live an easy life, that we are rich beyond our dreams, that celebrity and money are a Godsend... it's not as easy as all that. We have to be perfect, beautiful and infallable, the new royalty. We are the World. One hair out of place and we're mocked, one move wrong and the message boards are calling us past it, too fat and WWE are sending you home, too old and you're consigned to TNA.
So the next time Jeff Hardy is suspended for pumping his body full of painkillers and going off the wall.. the next time Mickie James is in the Observer for saying the wrong thing... or the next time i don't put on a 5 star match, or act how you expect... remember one thing - you don't know me. You don't know any of us, whats going on in our heads or our lives.
So the next time you tell me i fucked up, criticize my performance in a match, shoot down my ideas and statements or demand that i perform for you, just picture Michael Shane aged 50, body shattered from years of abuse, pumped with drugs so he can make it down that aisle one more time. Picture his heart giving out before one last night in the sun at a WrestleMania.
And realize... it would be all your fault.
"I'm starting with the man in the mirror, I'm asking him to change his ways and no message could have been any clearer, if you wanna make the world a better place take a look at yourself and make a change"
And to all the Michael Shane fans out there, please don't take this as a personal insult, you know you rock my world... but it's just the way you make me feel. Don't worry, no matter what.... I just can't stop loving you ;)
Michael Shane (OWWW!, I'm bad, i'm bad, ya know it)
Alright, first of all I'd like to personally thank all those fans who've been in touch with me via messages her at the Universe or to the website. The support of my peers and my fans are the only reason that I'm posting this right now because yesterday after No Way Out I felt like taking my ball and going home. I'd also like to apologize to WWE for using the WWE Universe to publish this...
BUT
As much as I respect the boys in the back, despite what some people THINK I respect everybody a hell of a lot, and despite my love for you fans... I do NOT wish to air my laundry in public or speak about other individuals who value their privacy.
I'm not going to confirm or deny anything except to say there was and IS on ongoing situation concerning myself and Mickie James, what that is will remain private.
However, I WILL address a number of individual publications, in particular the Wrestling Observer and the PWTorch Newsletter.
Now Dave Meltzer and myself have been friends for a number of years ever since he used to send that bitch (lol) Bryan Alvarez to come watch my matches and he used to masturbate over me in the Observer. I still have that "Shane vs Punk, five star match" edition from ROH on my wall. And as much as the Observer has irritate me, as least they've pretty much reported facts.
Unlike two other people.
Wade Keller and James Caudwell.
Who the fuck do you think you are?
Keller, you need to get your Goddamn facts right before you start printing them in your little dirtsheet. You think this is entertainment for your legions of 10 year old smarks? that you can treat me like some cut price fucking Lindsay Lohan in a tabloid newspaper? splash lies about me all over the Internet? even compare Mickie to a Courtney Love. Fuck you.
You are the reason that this business stinks and why your name is a joke in every locker room in the country.
Let me state CLEARLY here and now that I do not have any kind of drug addiction, no mental health issues. Yes, I may take prescription medicine.... I am a WRESTLER. My body HURTS. I am not addicted to anything and I do not shirk the Wellness Policy.
I don't care what you think about me leaving after the PPV. I'm an emotional guy. Maybe that's not cool, that's not what WWE should be, but I was upset, I admit it, I was very upset by what happened. I'm not in an mentally unstable state, not on drugs, no drunk. I'm emotionally burnt out by this business. A business you do not understand. Guess I lost my smile somewhere on the road to WrestleMania.
And Caudwell? who the hell even are you? you think your opinion matters? that tomorrow ANYBODY will be bringing up your name in a WWE Creative meet? you'd be so damn lucky. I don't give a fuck what you think. Selfish young man? maybe, but when I speak, WWE takes notice, when I go in front of those camera I mean something. You mean NOTHING.
Talk about burning bridges, how WWE could replace me? aw hell no. Replace me? this is the ERA of Michael Shane and I wage war on you Internet dirtsheets, I wage war on the Internet smarks who've ruined our business. One minute giving me 5 star ratings and jerking off when I do a moonsault, the next running me down as an addict and a lowlife, criticizing my personal life.
Congratulations netmarks, you've just pissed me off, you've just made me angry again... and last time I was this pissed off? I created a boom period with John Cena. So you think I've taken my ball? like hell I have. I'll be there next Monday on Raw and I may just have a few things to say live on national TV.
Peace and love.
There's been a lot of talk over the past week about VWWE 3.0, what it's going to mean, a lot of hype, ideas thrown around... but what does it REALLY mean... and when you strip away all the bullshit, is it going to work, or am I selling you a dream that can never become reality?
The VWWE Originals are becoming and ever rare bunch of people in the VWWE Universe, even those who remember the Monday Night Wars are starting to dwindle, the Monday Wars era is unknown by the majority of VWWE's members for possibly the first time ever.
Here's the history
VWWE was not originally a web E-Fed, it was designed for use with the now defunct WAP platform created in the very late 1990s, WAP being the original form of mobile Internet for cellphones. Cellphone Internet technology being in it's infancy meant that VWWE was a pioneer of sorts in the medium.. but also that shows and scenarios had to be very simple and very short for reading on the old green and black, low powered screens and devices.
VWWE also luckily caught the WAP interest at just about the time the medium peaked, VWWE becoming a leader on the mobile Internet. It may seem amazing now, but VWWE once could have expected 24 hour posting in its chatroom, 1000s of hits every day and over 100 members using the chat. Within the community up to ten rival companies existed at once.
It was a golden era.
Those days are long gone. The mass usership has been replaced by higher production values, a fantastic (and genuinely award winning) website, long shows with excellent writing, more intelligent and experienced members, better posting in the chat.
Yet the old VWWE crew often see something as "missing"
While VWWEs production is at the highest peak its ever been... shows lag behind, there is often an "empty feeling", people become dissatisfied and the excitement that once ran through VWWE, except for a few months in 2008, died.
Its sad to me that people such as Jon, Nath, Nathan and all VWWE's other members never experienced VWWE in full flight. That boom period last year? imagine that for two whole years. Imagine what we could achieve if we produced that boom period last year... at LENGTH, production values, site, shows and chat, all together.
This morning I was excited, believed it was possible... by lunch time, doubt crept into my mind.
Am I selling a dream, a fantasy, that I just cannot pull off? is this going to be another failure to tarnish a legacy?
The honest answer is... I don't know.
I'm not the man I was in 2002. The angry punk has given way to... whatever the hell you see now lol and the same can be said of VWWEs other originals.
In a way, I feel like a band who had great success a few years ago and then a few years of mediocrity, maybe the odd hit... but is now getting ready for a comeback album (no Eminem comparisons please)... can we do it? can we possibly make a comeback and be as great as we once were?
I would love to show so many of you guys what made that era so special, when we had two shows a week regularly, great atmosphere...
And as concerned I am that this will fail... I will do my best to make it happen. I will sweat blood today to finish this list, this LONG list of tasks to do. I will give everything I have today and from now on to bring this fed back up.
The rebranding was inspired by the likes of Batman Begins and Star Trek. What those movies did was strip away the bullshit and went back to what made the franchise great in the first place... and that's what we're going to do. VWWE isnt about these blogs, or about Twitter and videos - its about shows and a community. That's all it is.
There will be no fourth chance, no 4.0. I go back to university in September, I know a lot of others will be going back as well, going to college etc... this maybe truly our last chance to make history.
The movie Gladiator, my all time favorite, gave us a quote
"What we do in life... echoes in eternity"
I ask you to join with me as you have done so often, be inspired, be unified.. be creative and as fantastic as you always are. Join with me and the rest of VWWE in making new legacies, new moments and memories, in recreating the magic for 2009. Destiny awaits us all... and I ask you now, as Gladiator also said....
To "Unleash hell"
World Heavyweight Champion John Cena vs. Edge (Last Man Standing)
I think Edge will win this one. After the Con-Chair-Toe on Monday Night Raw this past Monday then John Cena will lose the World Heavyweight Championship. Edge will be to tired to have another match and then CM Punk will cash in his Money in the Bank and beat Edge for the title
ECW Champion Jack Swagger vs. Christian
Christian will win but both wrestlers have each others numbers
WWE Champion Triple H, Batista & Shane McMahon vs. The Legacy (Randy Orton, Cody Rhodes & Ted DiBiase)
Randy Orton will win the WWE Championship Batista wants Randy Orton and will get his team DQed
Jeff Hardy vs. Matt Hardy ("I Quit" Match)
Matt has three wins over Jeff in the Extreme Rules match at WrestleMania, Strecther Match on SmackDown and Tag Team match. Matt has got Jeff madder than ever and Jeff will win
Chris Jericho vs. Hall of Famer Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat
The Dragon will win this one.
CM Punk vs. Kane
CM Punk will win this one. CM Punk will turn a Chokeslam in to a Go To Sleep
Santina On Khali Kiss Cam
I will laugh out loud
As I proved with my Wrestlemania 25 predictions, i am rubbish! But anyway, these are my predictions for Backlash:
HHH, Shane McMahon and Batista vs Legacy: I am not sure about this match, I think it may be a great match, or a huge disappointment like the Wrestlemania Main Event. I can see Batista screwing HHH in this match but i think that they are going to want to make this fued last longer, so what i see is that HHH retains the championship after Batista gets the pin, then on RAW, HHH comes out and starts talking, then Orton comes out and demands a rematch, then Batista comes out saying that he deserves a title match as he got the pin. This will then lead to Vickie coming out and announcing that at Judgement Day, it will be a triple treat match. I think thhat HHH's team wins but i want Lecay to.
John Cena vs Edge: Again I am not sure about this match, it could be a great match, or another disappointment.I can see 1 of 3 things happening.
1. Edge wins and takes the title to Smackdown
2. Cena wins and keeps the title on RAW until Judgement Day where he is in a match with another Smackdown Superstar.
3. Cena wins then CM Punk cashes in the MITB
I can definatly see Edge winning this match, but even though I am aa huge Edge fan, and I hate Cena, I hope that Cena leaves acklash with the title. I think that it is stupid that at every PPV since Survivor Series there has been either a new WWE or World Heavyweight Champion so I hope that we don't crown a new one because if WWE do, then the world titles will not mean anything so I hope that Cena wins and think he will be lose it at the next PPV.
Christian vs Jack Swagger: I am looking forward to this match! I think that this match will finally make ECW something. I can again see this match going either way. I would not be suprised if Jack Swagger wins, but will not be suprised if Christian wins. I think that Christian will win the title though for a few reasons. The first is that it would make the PPV better for the fans as Christian is now one of the most popular superstars in WWE. The second is that I think that they need to crown at least one new champion and I think this could be the match. The final reason is that with the other titles they need somebody to hold it for a while, but with the ECW, they have only had 4 diferent champions since Wrestlemania 24 so that title already means something, so again I hope that and think that Christian wins this.
Jeff Hardy vs Matt Hardy: I can only see this match going one way, a win for Jeff. Matt has two huge wins over Jeff in the past few wins but i think that Jeff will win this one. If Matt wins this, then I will be shocked a bit, but I think that if Matt does win, then WWE are trying to push him into the Main Event with some possible world title shots coming soon. I still think though that Jeff will win this one but will not be shocked if he doesn't as there has been some rumours...I won't say any more as it may spoil what happens over the next few months. If you want to know just post a comment and i will tell you
Chris Jericho vs Ricky 'The Dragon' Steamboat: I am looking forward to this match a lot. After seeing how good Steamboat still is at Wrestlemania, I think he may win this. If it had of been Jimmy Snuka or Roddy Piper in this match I think Jericho would win because they did'nt look good at Mania but steamboat was amazing. I hope that Steamboat wins because he isn't one of those legends who makes appearances every year, Steamboat hardly maakes appearances and that makes the ones he makes even more special. I want WWE to give him one last moment in the spotlight because he deserves it and I think that WWE will!
CM Punk vs Kane: I am not looking forward to this match at all. I hope that Kane wins but this match just seems pointless. They threw this together at the last minute as they needed more matches. I am expecting a prtty boring match here with Kane winning.
I don't get why they didn't make another title match. They could still have made a Diva's, Women's, IC, US and Tag team title match. They may announce some more on Smackdown and on wwe.com and even some at Backlash but overall I think it is going to be a disapointment. Only 3 title matches! I won't e watching this live and really, I don't mind. Out of these matches I want to see Matt vs Jeff, Jericho vs Steamboat and maybe the ECW and World heavyweight title match. I think they should have had it next week as they new that they only really had 2 shows to make matches because of the draft!
Foley was great once, that there is no argument over, a legendary promo and he sacrificed his body a thousand times over.
But Hulk Hogan was great in the 80s as well.
Mick Foley, like many in the business, seems to have fallen into the trap of believing the generated hype. As far as i'll forever be concerned, as "Mick Foley" and not Cactus Jack or Mankind he's never been as popular as the characterizations. His more successful post retirement run was against Orton, a feud that was lame when he was Foley in the Rock and Sock part of the feud... when he started to act like Cactus? gold.
His feud with edge, the same... till he turned heel, a run that didn't connect with the fans at all in my opinokn despite the later feud with Flair that produced good matches.
What really got the alarm bells ringing at this point was Foleys assertion that WWE "dropped the ball" with Terry Funk and Tommy Dreamer. The fact that Foley genuinely believed WWE should have treated Dreamer like a megastar is ludicrous in 2006 i think it was. Unfortunately Mick seems to be one who doesn't see how WWE has changed and that maybe down to the massive amounts of time off he has.
The commentary deal? i have no words. Foley was a WWE veteran since 1996, there's no way he didn't know how it was done and that he'd have Vince in his ear. I would have expected he's have spoken to Tazz or JBL or King on the matter. I suspect he was "quietly arrogant" enough to believe his status would warrant different treatment or he simply decided it wasn't for him and looked for an excuse to get out of it. Micks always seemed to be a guy for me who gets restless, he moves from gimmick to gimmick, has little short WWE runs, even in TNA hes already gone from on air persona to wrestler, he'll probably be Mankind in a few weeks. What annoyed me was how the Netmarks treated it as "yayz somebodys stood up to nasty Vince!!". Crap, Vince was as usual, right.
Onto TNA.. this fact alone made me sick and we're harking right back to feelings from the Monday Night Wars here.
WWE made Mick Foley. I don't care about WCW or ECW, Foley was made a star and a millionaire in WWE. Mick Foley owes everything he has, his book career, his home, car, everything to Vince McMahon. Its not like Kurt Angle imo who was already an Olympic Gold Medalist, Foley was washed up and broke when he signed for WWE. I personally think that deserved a little loyalty from Foley.
That.. maybe i can get over, one misjudgment... but then Foley decides to run down WrestleMania on iMPACT! 2 weeks ago. That is unforgivable.
Joining a rival is one thing, actively trying to destroy the company and man who made you? well that's another. Foley has become the very thing he once spoke out against. How is Mick Foley trashing WrestleMania while trying to sell a few extra Lockdowns ANY different than Tony Schivone's "that outta put asses on seats" line that Foley mentions so often?
And now.. the coup de grace, Mick Foley is TNA Champion.
After a clusterfuck of a cage match that i will only describe as the natural successor to "Age in the Cage", WCW's Hogan vs Flair contest at Uncensored 1999, Foley defeated the 76 year old Sting to become champion.
Woo, yeah wayda go Mick, *blows party horn*
Remind me again why you joined TNA?
Wasn't is to help young Superstars in TNA, to help TNA challenge?
I'm sure you being champion is REALLY helping the likes of Samoa Joe isn't it.
The sad fact of the matter is, Mick Foleys run is not about TNA, it's not about helping anybody. Its about Mick Foley. An ego-trip directed at Vince McMahon, proving to WWE that Mick Foley still has value, that WWE were wrong. Mick Foley from being a legend has become just another WCW style hasbeen, a Hulk Hogan for 2009, taking a spot that could belong to somebody else, serving his own interests in a business that is leaving him behind.
Is there a place in this business in the era of John Cena, Randy Orton, Edge, MVP, CM Punk, Jack Swagger, Batista, Chris Jericho and Jeff Hardy for Mick Foley? i'm not convinced there is. Still... should all make his latest book interesting shouldn't it.
After being such a fan of Mick Foley for so many years, once listing him amongst my favorite wrestlers of all time, it'd sad to see the man reduced to the levels that i now see him at. Long ago, a man once said something about Mick that i've finally come to realize is true....
"Mick Foley. You're a prostitute"
The WWE draft is something that's sharply divided opinion but like with most things, I always like to take an objective view, look at things from all sides and draw mixed conclusions, the Raw draft is now different.
The opening segment really held little interest for me, we've seen this before and it seemed a little flat. With the monotone Batista and uber-serious Triple H, it really didn't have a spark of life, I'd have much rather gone in with Mysterio vs Borne as a longer opening match, build the crowd up and given them the first big draft of the evening. Not a good start to the Show.. but it wasn't REALLY a disaster, 6/10.
Rey Mysterio vs Evan Bourne. Everybody loved Bourne... and he has potential.. but.... to be honest I'm not feeling it. In ring ability is no guarantee of success, ask Shelton Benjamin, Bourne will also need to learn mat psychology and gain personality, he's rather generic in terms of look and isn't what WWE usually go for. With no cruiserweight division, where does he really fit in? could you really see Evan Bourne as WWE Champion? ... match was too short to amount to much, Rey won, which at this stage of Bourne's career was the correct decision. First draft MVP.
MVP to Raw was a call I made in the run up to the Show and makes absolute sense. MVP is WAY over on SmackDown and needs to be moved to the next level, moving to Raw will do that without pushing him up as far as the main events. Equally, if he'd been pushed to the main event on SmackDown instead of on Raw, in my honest opinion it would mean far less. Raw has the bigger audience and the bigger appeal, its a higher accolade to be in that position on the red brand. I'm eagerly looking forward to MVP on Raw, though its hard to say who he'll feud with. I'm sure Matt Hardy will be in the mix as will Cody and Ted, though who else? maybe one of the later draftees such as Miz or anybody from the supplemental draft.
Kane vs Brian Kendrick went as expected and I fear management has lost a lot of faith in Kendrick. Kendrick is in the same boat as Evan Bourne, talented in the extreme, with an actual personality this time.. but his size and style just do not allow him a chance. Send him to ECW possibly where the smaller guys seems to at least get decent airtime. If I was WWE, id reinstigate the CW title on that brand, make it one of the draws of it. Anyway, squash, Raw gets another pick.
Big Show to Raw. This is called also... well.. I said either Edge or Big Show, with Vickie being on Raw it was obvious. This does bring a few new feuds - Big Show vs HBK? id LOVE to see that, HBK having a history with bigger men.. (that sounds gay lol), Big Show vs Batista, Orton, Triple H again, a good move.
Orton's segments with Vickie = all kinds of great. I like how Orton basically doesn't care whether people are faces or heels, very Steve Austin.... now turn him face and keep it the same.
Divas match - blah.
Melina to SD, this did surprise me as Melina is one of Raw's better divas and of course the champion, sad to see her go :( to be honest, I don't see the point of the swap but more on that later.
Cena vs Swagger: If WWE had the balls, Swagger would have gone over and become a major star in one event, just imagine the reaction had he beaten Cena? WWE have done it before like when Shelton Benjamin beat Triple H and it wouldn't have hurt Cena. In the end Cena went over but Swagger was allowed a lot of decent offense and looked good here, he wasn't buried and that's something. Trust, Swagger will be a star. A lot of people mention his lisp as a drawback, I disagree, I think its an asset, it gives opponents and crowds something easy to mock and is hardly crippling, like having one leg or something. Jack Swagger will be World Champion on day, etch it in stone, remember it, write it down. Match of the night certainly... and we get two picks for Raw.
Matt Hardy: I call this one too lol, yup, expected, good move for Matt and I expect him straight into the US mix after his blow off with Jeff at Backlash
Triple H: there was NOTHING shocking about this, I called it long ago. It was treated as a big deal as it should have been... but cummon guys, he's been on Raw all year lol. What does perturb me is the fact that we're back to a very familiar line up of Batista-Triple H-Orton-Cena-Michaels on Raw, it does feel like we've been here before and I have to ask what feuds there possibly is in that? the drafting of somebody like the Undertaker would have freshened everything up... but anyway, now Raw has two world titles again. Gee... I wonder what happened last time we had that scenario *que up horrific images of CM Punk pinning Edge*
Santino/Khali = all kinds of greatness, even if Khali can barely keep a straight face during any of it. I do think there's potential for comedy in Khali as witnessed at last years draft with the telephone and a few other times since, this is defo the route they should take with him.
Khali wins another squash, really just so SD gets a pick... and thank fucking God its Punk. I don't watch SD as religiously as Raw and often DVR it so I can just skip past him now lol, though it probably means Punk will be world champion soon to get a title on the brand... ugh.
Can I also say at this point that Michael Cole was at his absolute worst during this Show, excruciatingly painful.
Miz vs Kofi was a decent match... Kofi wins... and Miz goes to Raw.
I have issues with what happened afterward, after so long of teaming.. Miz just turning on Morrison like that made little sense at all, no build up. The two should have gone their separate ways amicably or have been drafted together. Miz on his own is not going to be a star but at least Morrison gets a chance to shine again. Maybe he'll move in the supplemental.
Next was the battle royal... and as I always say... I hate battle royals. They just seem so 1980's, there's no psychology or technical skill involved and seems a piss poor way to decide anything. This was always coming down to Edge and Big Show which made sense... Edge won two picks for SmackDown - blah, if you like battle royals I guess this was fine.
Kane to SmackDown, not one of my pre-Show picks but I called it as soon as Big Show went to Raw. He's a perfect replacement for Show in the big man role. Kane is really the new Chris Ben**t in the fact that he gets swapped in every draft.
Chris Jericho: To be honest... im a little sad at that as Jericho was a highlight on Raw over the past year but now he's new opponents and scenarios and I'm already thinking The Undertaker vs Jericho, I'd really like them to save that for WrestleMania however. Jericho has a lot more opportunity now with the thinner main event picture over on the blue brand, a good move for him.
Shelton Benjamin vs Christian was a good match but again, not really enough time to make it special. I like both these guys and was hoping Christian would move to Raw to get in that US mix... not to be. Christian wins ECW a pick... and its Kozlov.
Kozlov suits ECW, he's been buried a little recently so in ECW he can rebuild his reputation, squash some of the chaff like DJ Gabriel and build his way up. I can see Swagger losing to Christian maybe, Christian to Kozlov and the Kozlov vs Dreamer at Extreme Rules, the underdog story for Dreamer, something like that anyway. Good move for Kozlov.
CM Punk vs Matt Hardy: Decent match again, nothing offensive here as you'd expect... Jeff's run in was good and I got a sense that CM Punk may bring it up with Jeff on SmackDown. Punk desperately needs to turn heel, he's MADE to be a heel, he was awesome as a heel in ROH... so whys he a damn face ffs. Have him beat the shit out of Jeff on SD please WWE :) I expect to see TLC at Backlash as the blowoff, Jeff getting the win. Anyway, Matt wins by DQ, giving Raw the win... and....
Maryse to Raw. Obvious but ugh. Frankly I cant stand Maryse and swapping her for Melina = no buys.
Jericho's out next... followed by Dreamer... which means SmackDown will win lol... and sure enough, Dreamer got some offense which is some consolation, but Jericho wins... and.... Rey Mysterio to SmackDown. Another of my calls, it became a lock when MVP went to Raw. And to the person who said "That's not very likely Mick, he was drafted in 2008" ... fuck off :)
Draft makes sense, Rey will re add the Hispanic audience to SmackDown and frankly, he should never have left in the first place.
And that's your lot. What let it down was the fact that the last draft was not last on the show and wasn't a huge name this year so it wasn't as exciting. Had the last draft been Triple H and been the last act of the Show... that would probably have left the audience with a better taste from those who disliked it.
Anyway, still the Legacy shenanigans to come... and whadda ya know, Legacy lose again.
Cody and Ted losing is becoming a farce, are they serious henchmen or jobbers? as they never win a match, why is Orton hanging with them? just what exactly to Cody Rhodes and Ted Dibiase offer to Randy Orton? an no, beating up the Colons doesn't count. Rhodes and Dibiase need to get their heat back, they've lost match after match recently are have zero credibility to me at the moment.
The Batista/Shane/Trips uneasy alliance is a nice and interesting aspect but I think Batista needs to directly address the fact he'll be defending Triple H's WWE title. Why not have Vickie add a stip whereby if Batista wins at Backlash... HE will become Champion?
Anyway, Orton vs Triple H next week? well lets hope its better than WrestleMania.
Well... what a weekend WrestleMania weekend was. All VWWE records were broken as you people went wild for Raw and ECW.... and something called WrestleMania too.. but meh, you know it was Raw you loved more lol.
And lets be honest... you people won't know what to think about WrestleMania 25 till I've reviewed it... so here we go.
As usual, the opening video was absolutely fantastic and a great trip down memory lane, nice to see all the classic moments acknowledged though I felt that a few people were definitely missing giving their thoughts such as Randy Orton, though I guess they wanted to keep it faces only. Maybe doing an updated version of the "20 years ago...." video would have been cool as well.
We kicked off business with Nicole Scherzewatsit singing America the Beautiful. She managed not to massacre the song which was a bonus but WWE always do this with immense class.... and here we go, kicking straight off with the Money in the Bank ladder match.
I'm not going to go over every spot or bump here because I'm not actually watching the show lol, but a few standout moments was that absolutely stunning leap off the ladder in the aisle by Shelton Benjamin. Shelton Benjamin is an enigma to me, he has as much personality and talent as Jeff Hardy as well as the same willingness to do crazy stunts like that but has never come close to getting a push like Jeff. He does desperately need a marketable character, that's the ONLY thing stopping him from being a world champion. Mark Henry throwing the ladder and trying to kill Michael Cole would have been great if only he'd not missed... blown spot obviously.
I'd never been more tired and bored of Hornswoggle than here. As shown in the chat, he's designed to appeal to kids up to about 12 who've amusement level is still at the "poopy" level. Little ladder... very cute.
"You fucked up" is the most ignorant chant in wrestling, Sam said it in chat and was spot on. Lets see how well you chanting morons would do in the match. If you couldn't do better, shut the fuck up.
There was a lot of new innovation in this match which elevated it a lot, Kofi's leap though the ladder, the bumps onto it.. I loved the match BUT....
FUCKING CM PUNK!!!!
A familiar theme this evening - the wrong person won. I really thought MVP was gunna be given the ball this year and was being built to it. The match was brilliant, maybe a few minutes short... but it would have been a lot more memorable for me had somebody other than Punk won... who is still not over to the level that WWE want despite winning everything in sight. CM punk is really the perfect example of how you cannot MAKE a crowd love somebody.
Straight to Kid Rock.. which was a shock as I thought he'd be on far later. Enjoyable performance and he played All Summer Long so that rawked :D hopefully they'll do this every year, it was certainly reminiscent of the Superbowl halftime show style medley of songs. Next time though, maybe keep it for halfway to allow better piss break position.
The Diva Battle Royal.... FAIL. This is going to be an unpopular comment but I fear Santino Marella has jumped the shark. While funny to watch at the PPV, the thing with Santino before WrestleMania was that he was seemingly oblivious to the absurd comments he was making and believed he was a serious wrestler, much of the humor coming from that. There was really no logical reason for Santino to even want to be in this match and as with all characters who take a humorous tone, there's a line that when crossed turned you from being funny into BEING an actual joke. When you look at Santina... that's a former Intercontinental Champion and you have to question where Santino can actually go from here.
Jericho vs the Legends.... no doubt here the legends, class acts they all are, wanted to put Jericho over and it was the right choice but I think it would have been believable had Steamboat won considering his performance. Snuka probably put in the most inept performance ever.. I've never been a fan to be honest and he's really on the bad side of the veteran wrestlers argument. He should never have been in the ring and imo Jerry Lawler deserved his spot in the match. Piper did well and didn't disgrace himself... but this was Steamboats match. I anticipated he'd put on a good show but this was excellent considering he is 56 years old I believe and hasn't wrestler in 15 years. He got the crowd into his hands and I really hope we see a one on one between him and Jericho, maybe at Backlash or as late as SummerSlam.
Post-match angle with Rourke was fine, a good finale and it was nice to see Rourke paying respect to Flair as well as taking the pop, he seems a class act who respects the business.
Extreme Rules... Matt's look is fresh, he still looks odd in tights but I think we'll get used to it The vacuum cleaner was random... nice table spot, haven't seen that before... but this match was about two spots, both at the death. Jeff's leap over the ladder was fucking insane and the Twist of Fate in the chair sick, Matt deserved the win here and it'll elevate him back up the card imo. The feud is still alive and this one will hopefully end with a TLC match. Again, could maybe have had a few more minutes but an excellent match none the less.
JBL vs Rey Mysterio... Great promo from JBL showing why he's such a great heel one last time. Rey looked absurd in my opinion though some people liked it... the match was really not a justified ending to JBL's career. JBL really deserved a much better built match to end it and Rey gained nothing from this.
The Intercontinental Championship has now been held by CM Punk, JBL and Rey Rey... all former World Champions who are, frankly, on their way back down. The title was once used for people who were being built into the next generation, not for washed up former champions. This belt should be being traded between the likes of Ted Dibiase, Cody Rhodes, MVP, Kennedy.
The Undertaker vs Shawn Michaels... well what am I supposed to say? lol
There's been a lot said about this match and there's nothing I can add that would do the match justice. Was it the greatest match of all time? possibly. My favorite match of all time? possibly. The greatest match in WrestleMania history? definitely. You know they've always called Savage vs Steamboat the greatest... but this topped it. EVERY young superstar should watch this match, this is what the business is all about.
Seriously, don't you dare fucking tell that two jumping beans in a barn in front of 100 fans, jumping around like the spot monkeys they are can hold a candle to this. This was sports entertainment, it told a story from start to finish, right from the contrasting entrances. This was drama, it was poetry on a canvas, an epic with twists, turns and everything in between.
I KNEW in my heart and head that the Undertaker would not lose, I was one hundred and ten percent certain... but its a testament to the genius of these two men that I truly believed at two points that Shawn Michaels had won the match - when the Undertaker appeared to be legitimately injured and was being counted out and when Shawn hit Sweet Chin Music late on. When match can get you SO into it that you deny everything you know to be true... then its something special.
This match will be watched and talked of in another 25 years and I've no doubt that when I have kids and they're talking about whatever epic match the veteran Randy Orton had at WrestleMania 40 with the veteran John Cena maybe... I'll be scoffing and telling them of this.
We saw history.
After that, what was ANYBODY gunna do? let alone John Cena lol. To be honest most of the triple threat was lost in me recovering from the match before. I can barely remember what happened except for the yearly Cena absurd entrance and title win. Cena winning the title just felt totally "meh" to me. Cena's been champion so often that he's just like Hogan was at one point. The crowd seemed like the couldn't care less and neither could I. Good match... just didn't care.
And we were onto the main event....
I've major problems with this match to be honest and it marked the biggest letdown ending to a WrestleMania since Triple H downed Chris Jericho at WrestleMania 18.
The build up was absolutely brilliant television and the sense that these two would tare each other apart was immense... and what happened? a bit of a brawl and Triple H won with a single pedigree. I was stunned when Triple H won like that and fully expected Orton to kick out. There was no passion in the match. Triple H and in 2009 Randy Orton are amongst the finest storytellers in the business but for me, and I know its easy for me to criticize from an armchair, but they failed to deliver on what was expected. They didn't get over the hatred, the will to end each other on the biggest stage.
A lot of people were expecting a screwy finish with Shane McMahon or even Stephanie ala WrestleMania 17 or for a Randy Orton win and title change for a shocking ending, none of what came and after the show stealing Undertaker vs HBK, this match really needed it to pull itself up there alongside it. In the end the finale was totally flat.
Overall, the show was as excellent as any WrestleMania, a true and historic spectacle... BUT... it was frustrating, because this should had the potential to have been the greatest WrestleMania of them all. The finish totally let it down while some results were the wrong decision imo - Punk winning, Cena winning, the Rey Mysterio situation.
In terms of matches - 8/10, there were great moments and Undertaker/HBK is still being talked about a week later and im sure will be for a LONG time. In terms of spectacle and historic atmosphere - a full 10/10. Nobody does a big event like WWE, every year they seem to pull up their game to a stunning level, this year was no different.
A flawed masterpiece.
So here we are WrestleMania 25, butterflies in stomachs, lights on bright, careers to be made and broken, titles to be won and moments that will echo through the ages to be created.
WrestleMania 25 will emanate live from the huge Reliant Stadium in Houston, the arena that replaced the iconic Astrodome in 2002, host to WrestleMania 17. Over 70,000 will be on hand for the 25th anniversary spectacular (for 24th anniversay if you're pedantic) but what exactly will go down.... well here's my thoughts.
Nicole Scherzinger is scheduled to open the show with America The Beautiful, Scherzinger for those not in the know is the lead Pussycat Doll and current girlfriend of Lewis Hamilton. She's probably a better driver than he is also... but singer? well we'll see. Either way.. I doubt she'll top Aretha Franklin last year. Being the complete MTV whore that I am, apparently Nicole was struck down by an illness this week and the Dolls had to pull out of supporting Britney in concert so who knows if she'll even show.
But that's really irrelevant.. because it's wrestling we're here for, I'll predict in the rumored run order for the show but personally, I DON'T think this is how things will go.
Rey Mysterio vs John Bradshaw Layfield: After this was given away for FREE on Raw, I have serious doubts this match will even. JBL has suggested he will do something historic at the event and will win "the most complete victory ever" this can mean a few things in my estimation - he will kill Rey Mysterio in the ring, it doesn't come more complete.. or more likely he will leave WrestleMania with more than he entered it with. I personally think that somehow he'll end up with either the United States Title, the MITB or the WWE Championship. With so little information, I cant really even make a guess as to what's gunna happen here... maybe he trades the IC Title for the MITB or buys it, cashes it in, leaves as IC and WWE Champion... for once, I've no idea. I count out JBL retiring at WrestleMania as some have predicted to return to the commentary booth, I don't feel that.
The Money in the Bank Ladder Match: My original process of elimination went like this - WWE don't rate Christian, he won't win. They don't see Kane as a Main Eventer and he doesn't need the case anyway, Finlay, Kofi Kingston and Mark Henry? no chance by common sense. There's been "late betting" on Shelton Benjamin as many seem to think that he's in favor with Vince at the moment... but in favor enough to get a World Title shot? no. Which leaves two men - CM Punk and MVP. Originally I believed that CM Punk was a dead cert to win it back to back.. but I've changed my mind. Management seems to be back in favor and has a lot of momentum on SmackDown, he's over as a face and I think he maybe WWE's project for 2009 - your winner, MVP. Expect an insane splash off the ladder by Mark Henry, a bump by Tony Atlas and something nasty to happen to Hornswoggle.
The Legends match: well the script has long been written for this one, Chris Jericho loses the match after interference by Mickey Rourke and as much as we've joked or speculated that Rourke may turn on the legends... no he won't. Rourke is a one shot deal. As a side note, what a class act of him to be at the HOF last night? I get the sense he genuinely respects this business and he's one of the celebrities who "gets it" like I mentioned in my other blog. We've joked a little about Jimmy Snuka and the state of his health but it is something I am seriously concerned about for both his health and the match quality. Snuka was atrocious in the Royal Rumble two years ago and in his promo with Jericho looks like he could barely walk. Maybe they should bring back the 80's gondolas that stood on to come to the ring as well as Jimmy getting to the ring will probably take longer than the match. Snuka will be eliminate quickly by Jericho and who's eliminated then will depend on how management feel about Ricky Steamboat. Steamboat vs Jericho has long been considered a dream match so MAY get the lions share but depending on ring rust, it's probably more likely to be Piper. Your winner however... will be the legends.
The Tag Team Unification match: Ah, the excuse to get everybody on the show lol, at least it wasn't like at WM20 when everybody actually had matches. I think the winners here will fairly obviously be Miz and Morrison. WWE are building them as the best tag team of this generation and they're already on every brand almost anyway. I just don't see the Colons being high enough in managements estimation to be given the accolade of first undisputed tag champions, I've heard nothing to suggest managements opinion of Carlito in particular has changed.
Matt Hardy vs Jeff Hardy: Smart money is on Jeff... but no, I'm calling Matt Hardy in a nod to Bret Hart vs Owen Hart at another anniversary PPV, WrestleMania 10 where Owen won. This is a feud that is NOT ending here, this is going to go on a lot longer than this and take in a ladder match or TLC before it ends. If Jeff wins, the need for the face to get the win isn't there, there's just no point in going on with the feud if the good guy has already won. Jeff I anticipate will also want to put his brother over and to be honest, I don't think Jeff needs this win while Matt does. A win over Jeff on a show like this will propel Matt into being a genuine upper midcarder player. Your winner? Matthew Moore Hardy.
Next up we'll have an intermission with a medley of Kid Rocks hits. This is WWE doing the Superbowl halftime show frankly... and I like it. On a four hour show a break half way through for a piss and a change to grab snacks could be fantastic, giving the fans change to recharge their batterys. Like the Superbowl, Kid Rock will play four songs apparently... none of them however the ones I want lol. If he doesn't play American Badass and All Summer Long as well as Cowboy... that would be lame. I'd like him to play Fuck You Blind as well.. but that maybe too much to ask for.
Back to the show and we'll now be onto serious business - the Divas Battle Royal, the reason we're all watching.
The sheer fact that if anybody throws Mae Young over the top rope, she will die... leads me to believe Mae will most likely win this thing. WWE have a habit of Mae shenanigans and so long as she's not exposed.. we should be alright. I'd personally like to see Sunny win... but for no other reason than I still all these years on.. have an adolescent fixation on her... the same as Stacy Keibler.. but she isn't there :( I would like to see a few surprises even at this late stage like Stacy or somebody absurd like Bull Nakano just for a bit of fun. The winner could realistically be any number of people, Mae would be a good bet... but I've a feeling Trish Stratus will win... so I'll pick Trish.
Triple Threat: This match really hasn't interested me too much to be honest. It's interesting... but doesn't interest me, if that makes sense. I just get the feeling we've seen it all before, Cena and Edge have feuded for a long time and Cena was involved with a Triple Threat last year. The two have been constantly in the title picture for a while now and it seems like Edge certainly always has a title of some kind. I know I'm probably in the minority but just to be different and give us something new, I really wouldn't mind seeing Big Show leaving as Champion. No matter what happens - Vickie Guerrero will be instrumental in the finish. It'll most likely be John Cena leaving as champion after Vickie accidentally costs Edge the title... but as I say, id rather see it be Show leaving as Champion thanks to Vickie.
Undertaker vs Shawn Michaels. Simply for me, this is match of the decade. I'm concerned that we maybe hyping the match too much but I say that every year, I did last year with HBK/Flair. This match will be the match of the night and I think almost everything has already been said about this match. I really hope the feud doesn't end here but I suspect it will. WWE, as they did last year, have done a good job of making many believe that the Undertakers streak is in jeopardy, against Michaels, its believable in kayfabe terms the Undertaker faces his biggest threat. The build up has been absolute quality... and totally in HBK's favor... and if you didn't believe HBK will lose before, you should because of that fact. Shawn, realistically, stands no chance in hell... the streak continues.
And finally....
Randy Orton vs Triple H. This is hard to judge. Vince always likes to end the show on a positive note and WrestleMania especially. Its no coincidence that it wasn't until WrestleMania 16 a heel left Mania as Champion. Triple H has been abused big style in the run up and everything points to Triple H beating Randy Orton and retaining. The fact that Shane and Vince are now allied with him suggests the new McMahon-Helmsley faction will be facing Legacy at Backlash in a six man. Personally? I'd enjoy a WrestleMania 17 scenario with maybe Shane McMahon turning heel and joining Legacy, as a third generation Superstar he'd fit perfectly... but I'm calling Triple H to retain, i really can't see a swerve being in WWE's mind after Shane and Vince came out last week.
So that's your lot... shenanigans with JBL, MVP to become Mr MITB, Miz and Morrison to win the undisputed tag titles, Undertaers streak to continue, Triple H to retain... and as for the triple threat? well i'd like Big Show, but it'll probably be Cena.
Predictable? we'll soon see.
See you at Wrestlemania folks.
Here is my WrestleMania 25 predictions.
The Undertaker vs. Shawn Michaels
I reckon this will be the best match of the night and match of the year but I think that Undertaker's winning streak will not end tonight he will beat HBK tonight despite the mind games that HBK has done to The Undertaker.
Money in the Bank Ladder Match
This match is going to be exiting but there is two big superstars in this match Mark Henry and Kane but none of those two will win it. It will be a close one between CM Punk and Kofi Kingston. This is tough but in think Kofi Kingston will win.
Triple H (c) vs. Randy Orton for the WWE Championship
What Randy Orton has done to Mr. McMahon, Shane McMahon and his wife Stephanie McMahon Randy has got Triple H madder than he has ever been in the WWE but Randy Orton has got to Triple H and Randy Orton will win the WWE Championship
Edge (c) vs. Big Show vs. John Cena for the World Heavyweight Championship
Both Edge and Big Show don't like John Cena but they don't trust each other but will work together and take John Cena out of the match. John Cena has had one loss in three years last year in a Triple Threat match but he will win this year to become the new World Heavyweight Champion.
25-Diva Battle Royal
I don't know who is in it so can't tell who is going to win
Matt Hardy vs. Jeff Hardy in a Extreme Rules Match
Jeff Hardy will win this one. Matt has got Jeff upset so Jeff will win he's got the high-risk which is what you need in a Extreme Rules match.
Carlito & Primo (c) vs. John Morrison & The Miz (c) in a Lumberjack Match
Primo does not have the expirience at WrestleMania and this match is to unify the Tag Team Championships and both team will bring up there games but I think The Miz & John Morrison will win this match.
JBL (c) vs. Rey Mysterio for the Intercontinental Championship
I think Rey Mysterio will win this match he has the speed to dodge JBL's Clothesline From Hell and will be able to hit the 619 and then he might give JBL a Frog Splash and dedicate the match to Eddie Guerrero
Chris Jericho vs. Roddy Piper, Ricky Steamboat & Jimm Snuka (with Ric Flair)
There is no chance that Chris Jericho will win this one three legends and one other legends to manage them so the legends will beat Chris Jericho.
These are my Wrestlemania 25 Predictions :D
Tag Team Unification Match: I reckon Miz and Morrison will come out on the top in this one. They have a load of accomplishments and are the best Tag Team going around so it would be fitting for them to be Unified Champs. I wouldn't rule out Primo and Carlito though except that I don't really see them being the Unified Champions. I don't like the added part of a Lumberjack Match and thought they should've found something else for the other stars. I also think the build has been alright for this match over the past month or so and I'm looking forward to watching it.
Rey vs. JBL: I reckon this one is fairly obvious in that JBL will retain, this is the match im probably least looking forward to but im keen to see what the historic thing JBL is going to do. Hopefully the match doesn't go for too long and I also thought that the build was horrible for this, all of a sudden the match is there, hardly any interaction between Rey and JBL before the announcement, with a better build the match could've been a bit better.
MITB: Hmmm, a tough one. I'd like to see Christian win it but apparently Vince aint to happy with him but that could easily be a lie. Mark Henry has no hope, hopefully he doesn't kill someone in the process lol. Finlay I hope to hell doesn't win and I don't think he will, hopefully Hornswoggle will get squashed some time during the match. Kane is another good contender and I would like to see win because a good World Title run for him would be awesome. MVP is a posibility but I'm not too sure, if he were to win however I reckon he would probably do what Jon said and sell it to JBL. Shelton can fuck off he bores me to shits and if he wins I riot lol. Kofi hopefully does some sick moves and I wouldn't mind him winning but I don't see it happening. Punk is also a good chance but I would absolutely hate it if he won for a second time in a row. I was also thinking bout Kennedy earlier, maybe he'll play apart but I doubt it and also Evan Bourne could play apart some how...hopefully. Overall however I'm going to say Punk will unfortunately win it :(
Jericho vs. Legends: Most likely will see the Legends win, I'm not gonna think too much about this match, just sit back and see what happens. I would mark out for Rourke to come in and Ram Jam Jericho though =D
Hardy vs. Hardy: I'm actually looking forward to this match despite the shitty (IMO) build. Hopefully they will pull out alot of 'Extreme' moves and put on an entertaining match. I see Jeff coming out on top in the end however and I'm pretty dead set on that decision. If this match had the right build it would be an awesome match but they have just been out shone by the likes of HHH/Orton/HBK/Taker.
Divas Match: SANTINO! It would be awesome to see Santino crowned Miss Wrestlemania but alas I don't think it'll happen. There are too many options to really pull out a winner in this match however. If Mae Young wins it though, I'll be one pissed off fan lol. I'm going to take a guess and say Beth Phoenix winning it, possibly screwing Santino over if he enters it lol.
Triple Threat Match: Even though the competitors in this match aren't particuarly my favourites I'm looking forward to the match, I always like a Triple Threat match. I've started to like Cena over the past few weeks as well. I don't really mind who wins it however. If Cena wins I see Orton winning later on in the night and if Edge wins HHH will win later on. I don't really see Big Show winning but ya never know. I think I'm going to go with Cena however, maybe picking up the win when Edge and Show are arguing over Vickie lol.
HBK/Taker: Taker will win it, no doubt. The WWE have done a good job of making people believe HBK can win it and certainly have sucked me into thinking that but deep down you know Taker is going to win. If the match went last it would've made me think further that HBK would win and it is in his home state. I'm looking forward to an Epic match however and one of the matches im most looking forward to.
HHH/Orton: Well, this is the match I am most looking forward to. I think the build has been absolutely brilliant and right up there, if not above HBK/Taker. From the whole Punting McMahons to the house attack, the hand cuffs etc. etc. I have enjoyed it all the way. I've also started to like HHH more and more in it so I don't mind if he wins it but I would prefer Orton to win. I reckon it could go either way to be honest but seeing as it is the last match on the card I see HHH winning it.
Well, thats me Predictions, I got a bit lazy towards the end in reviewing them etc. but oh well lol.
This blog started life as a single paragraph in my next Raw 1997 review but i got writing so much i couldn't conceivably put it in... so here's a whole new blog.
This one off blog looks at the reasons, causes, rise and fall of the WWF Attitude era. I intended it to be a little background initially but i think it may be interesting for those who don't remember these years. Much of it is just my opinion and thoughts. You'll probably also get a little insight into me and my own booking style as well cause this is where i came from lol
To understand why the attitude era happened and why it was a success you need to look at 90's youth culture in America.
The ultra-patriotism and successful capitalism of the 80s had given way to nationwide scorn of the American political landscape, the continual scandal of the Clinton administration, in particular the resurfacing of the Jennifer Flowers allegations and the national outrage and feelings of injustice over OJ Simpson, in 1995 and 1996 respectively, the Monica Lewinsky scandal following in early 1998, led to a feeling of complete failure in Americas institutions.
Americans, particularly the youth, lost their faith in the America that their parents had known in the 1980s that promoted saying your prayers and eating your vitamins and increasingly turned to alternative culture.
The Grunge scene of the early 1990s with bands like Pearl Jam and Nirvana gave way to seemingly newly rebellious sounds like Rage Against The Machine, new punk like Green Day and The Offspring and a resurgent metal with the likes of Marilyn Manson (who would heavily influence the attitude era and had released Antichrist Superstar in 1996 to great morale furor) and bands such as Korn, Slipknot and The Nine Inch Nails. The rebellion even broke onto TV with networks pushing the envelope as far as they could, starting with one show that probably influenced WWE far more than will ever be realized - The Jerry Springer Show.
The Jerry Springer Show by 1997/1998 was a phenomenon, seemingly well adjusted Americans would tune in to "trash TV" in their millions to see what "trailer trash" were doing this week. The nation was gripped by tales of midgets, incest, affairs, rednecks, alien abduction, transvestites and sexual depravity. It was a modern day freak show, a car crash that didn't take itself seriously and became beloved for it as the worst excess of American bad taste.
The envelope was being pushed... and soon others followed suit. South Park debuted in 1997, the tale of four foul mouthed high school kids that took bad taste to whole new levels. Shock Jocks like Howard Stern ruled the airwaves and there wasn't a day gone by that some moral guardian like the PTC wasn't up in arms about some new outrage, laying the blame for the nations moral corruption at the feet of Marilyn Manson, Tupac Shakur or Bill Clinton.
The WWF however, was still stuck very much in the 1980s still. Cartoon characters, traditional faces and 80s presentation. While the World around them changed, the WWF remained the same. The WWF was uncool.
One company however had managed to tap into the 1990s counterculture - ECW. Paul Heyman had seen what the WWF had done in the 80s and applied the same principle in the 1990s. In the 80s, the WWF tapped into popular culture with the Rock and Wrestling era, they tapped into the Cold War with anti-American heels, they tapped into the wave of ultra patriotism and gave us Hulk Hogan, into the new generation of TV viewers - the MTV generation. Wrestlers helds their heads high alongside the rock stars of the day... but not in the 1990s.
In the 1990s, ECW tapped into popular culture just as Vince had done. They carved out a niche, promoted an adult product and gained a loyal following. While i don't believe ECW was as influential in the WWF Attitude era as some internet marks do, there's no doubt that the WWF and Vince Russo and McMahon looks toward ECW for ideas.
Russo, who was appointed to the creative team in late 1996 realized exactly what Heyman had realized - that to survive the WWF had to tap into popular culture. With Vince controlling his wilder ideas, the two made a perfect team.
Russo gave the rebellious American youth their anti-hero face in Steve Austin, rebelling against authority, the obnoxious punk rebels in DX, the gang wars and angles straight off Springer. The closet homosexual pervert in Goldust, transvestites with Mark Henry, Satan worshiping with the Ministry and so much more. The WWF was cool again, the viewers flocked in droves and the rest is history.
By 2000 and 2001 however, the public's appetite for trash TV had been worn out, the ratings for shows such as South Park and Jerry Springer began to fall and in the place of this crash TV we saw the rise of reality TV, shows such as American Idol capturing the public's attention anew. The onset of the Bush Administration meant that what was previously acceptable on TV was no longer going to happen. Two particular incidents however put paid to "attitude" forever.
The September 11th terror attacks quashed the public's appetite for trash TV forever as the nation "lost its innocence", things such as South Park didn't seem funny anymore, the time for rebelling was over, the nation was united. An era of introspection had begun.
On February 1, 2004 at the Super Bowl half time show, Justin Timberlake and Janet Jackson were involved in a controversy when Jackson's right breast was exposed following a dance routine.. the infamous "wardrobe malfunction."
The Bush era will possibly be remembered politically for the rise of the Religious-Right in politics and public life, individuals such as Rush Limburgh promoting a conservative mob agenda. The reaction to this incident was just that - a mob reaction. A conservative powerbase, in power four years and feeling confident, just waiting for the excuse to go on a moral crusade to clean up the TV that had been spiraling out of control since those heady days of South Park, Raw is War and Springer. No longer would TV be allowed to get away with what they had been doing for the past 8 years, new standards were in place and attitude slipped into a fading memory.
Once i believed that WWE needed to go back to the attitude era, to produce crash TV the like of which TNA iMPACT often does these days. This was more to do with fond memories of the era than common sense. While it was fun while it lasted, this era was a unique point in time just like Rock and Wrestling, it wouldn't work in 2009, American and the viewing audience is a whole different place.
To truly become a force in the ratings again, WWE need to once again tap into popular culture, to promote angles and characters relevant to their target audiences in 2009, to promote an adult product that doesn't talk down to the audience but doesn't descend into trash TV. Going off the quality of Raw over the past few weeks, maybe... just maybe... WWE are starting to do just that.
WWF Attitude: 1997 - 2001, RIP
Hey, Michael Shane here, public enemy number two according to the PTC.
This is one of those times i really haven't any one particular thing to say but feel the need to blog anyway. As it currently is I'm here in Tampa with everybody else as we get set for a live event tonight.. a house show as they used to be known.
I'm feeling pretty under the weather to be honest as a few of the boys seem to have been over the past few days.... maybe it was something i ate. Jeff Hardy looks into my screen and tries to write "HAHA" but it's very probably true, when you're stuck in a car in the Florida heat with The Big Show, Suffering and CM Punk like i was yesterday, show filling the car with a mixture of the vile smell of McDonalds and methane gas.... you're bound to catch something.
Anyway, the show must go on and although I'll be "selling" my injuries on TV and not having another match on Raw till No Way Out, I'll still be on all the house shows, giving the fans what they came to see - me lol. My opponent tonight will be none other than Punk, the man who i pretty much made my name against 7 years ago in Ring of Honor. We've both come a long way since those days and its a great pleasure to get back in the ring with him. As an added little bonus a certain Samoan TNA star has made the short trip up from Orlando and will be in the front row.... I'd best watch that guy, he's still sulking about what happened at Genesis.
The long trip down here though gave me a chance to listen to the new album by U2. Any longtime Michael Shane fans will probably know of my love for the band which is why i was a little disappointed on first listen of No Line on the Horizon. I think with all the hype that the band had given the album, i was expecting classic U2 and another Joshua Tree when after one listen i was convinced this was another Zooropa and nothing but a disaster.... however... this is one of those albums that NEEDs a second, third and fourth listen because every time i listen to it, it seems to get better and better. Don't get me wrong, this is far from being the Joshua Tree, Achtung Baby or even as good as All The You Cant Leave Behind or How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb, but this IS classic U2. There's no real standout track, no big epic song like Beautiful Day but personally, i think there's a lot to be said for the title track - No Line on the Horizon which kicks off a fine opening trio of songs, following it with Magnificent and Moment of Surrender. I love Unknown Caller as well even though it's a very different sound to what you usually expect from U2 i think. A worthy 8/10 or two and three quarters of a thumb up.
I hope it's true about us trying to get U2 for WrestleMania 25 as I'd just mark the fuck out for that. And if they made a second appearance for us... surely U2 would be a dead cert for the Hall of Fame? lol
Last and certainly least i really need to address something that i read online this week. I had the great misfortune to read on WWE.com that L Brent Bozell, the leader (Fuhrer) of the Parents Television Council had issued complains to the company and advertisers concerning the angle between Suffering/The Gathering and myself at the Royal Rumble. His claim being that the angle was violent, unnecessary and a step beyond the bounds of decency. That children and those of a sensitive nature could be hurt by what they saw. You know the deal.
Idiot.
Mr Bozell unfortunately is from the section of our society who are arrogant enough to believe that they can dictate to the rest of us what is and what is not morally acceptable. The kind of people who believe that our minds need to be controlled by religion and dreams of sweet salvation or we'll all descend into barbarism. In short, Mr Bozell is a religious nut.
Ignoring the fact that religion kills hundreds of thousands around the world every year, i continue...
I firmly believe that the biggest threat to the United States in 2009 is not the threat posed by outside forces such as those of Islamic extremism or Communist China, rather the biggest threat to the peace, security and democracy that all out forefathers fought and died for is from within out own borders. For too long not the religious right, a group to which this man belongs, has been gaining a foothold in public life. The Presidency of George W Bush, who for the record i believe at heart to have been a good man, however allowed individuals like Mike Huckabee and Sarah Palin to so nearly ascend to the highest position in the land. When individuals such as these, Rush Limburgh and Bozell are allowed to actively encourage the curtailing of our freedoms and repeal of civil rights, what hope can we possibly have of extending democracy outside our own borders?
The right to freedom of expression, what this company engages in EVERY week, is one that is written in our constitution and one for which i would proudly defend to my death. I believe that the people of this great nation want to stand as free citizens, free to choose what is morally acceptable for them themselves without people like the PTC telling them they are wrong. In the case of children watching... quite frankly we were on PPV with a TV-14 rating, it is not our responsibility to act as a guardian. Its the parents responsibility to make sure that their children are not watching something unsuitable.
WWE is an art form, but its a violent one. Blood, sweat and tears are shed every week, bones are broken, egos run rampant. Its not always pretty. Why should this company tone down its product and be forced to talk down to an adult audience simply because a small number of people complain or because parents cannot take responsibility for their product? WWE is adult entertainment and i would suggest to anybody that is offended by the Royal Rumble that they stop watching because having spoken to Vince McMahon, he has no intention of toning down his product and rightly so.
Well, rant over. Think i'm getting roid rage? lol
Anyway, here's Punk, better dash, he'll need every spot laying out as usual :)
Laters peeps
Oh and PS....
Fuck you Vince Russo, you're a disgrace to my city and my profession.
Sorry I didn't do this earlier guys, I didn't even think to do it lol. Well here goes...
So there I was. Backstage at the Royal Rumble. The place was buzzing. Young stars such as myself equally anticipant as the more experienced members of the locker room such as 'Taker. I decided to catch up with a few guys I hadn't seen for a while due to my time on ECW. I first talked with Assassin and wished him well as we are both still good mates. As we bade each other farewell I was stopped by Ryan Simmons who gave me a few tips for the upcoming Rumble match. As we parted company I decided to go and do a few simple stretches and warm up before my segment. While doing this I was approached by Suffering and we went over some last minute details of our segment. He also confirmed no one knew what was going to happen or that I was even going to be involved. As he left and we wished each other luck the Rumble was starting. You could hear "Let it Rock" loud and clear backstage and it was a fantastic moment in my young career.
I then went to go and watch the first few matches of the PPV alone but was shocked to see Forxx sitting at the TV. I decided it was best not to bother him and so said nothing as I sat down and began watching. Soon enough my mate Assassin's match versus William Regal was on. No one could have seen what was coming at the climax of that match even after his and Randy's brilliant promo.
Forxx had left by this stage to finish his warm up (I presume lol) and so it was just me watching the match on this particular TV. Still shocked I remembered I had a segment to do yet. I dashed into the locker room to grab my baseball bat and just had time to get down near the ramp as Michael Shane's music was fading out. It was an eager few moments for me. My first segment at a major PPV event. I suddenly thought about what I was about to do and for the first time actual fear set in. Were there going to be consequences for this next act? I pushed the thoughts out of my head and raced down the ramp to smash Michael Shane's head open. While it may seem odd it was an exhilirating experience, as I picked up the cable and hung Shane 8 feet above the ring and watched Suffering bathe in his blood.
As I headed backstage after the segment I had a million emotions running through me. Suffering caught up and told me I did great out there. I was thankful but still unsure. I headed to the showers where I decided I'd calm my nerves and conscience with the hot water. It helped a bit. I caught up with Assassin not long after and we both congratulated the other on their respective pushes. We said our farewells again and departed. I met up with Cody Rhodes and Ted DiBiase who were still sour about their loss to The Rock 'n Sock Connection. We sat down and watched the Elimination Chamber as a group. It was truly a brilliant match, no question about that.
Then...It was time for...The ROYAL RUMBLE!!
I was as nervous as I had ever been. Time seemed to fly from the beginning of the match until my entry. I vaguely remember Suffering wishing me luck but thats it. Suddenly I was in the ring wrestling my heart out. I decided to bring a lil' bit of ECW to the match as I would not be returning for a while. The table proved to be my downfall, Kane throwing me through it perfectly shattering the wood. It went as perfectly as I could've hoped. I went backstage and had another shower. I was out in time to see the end of the match as everyone was watching it backstage. A long sigh swept the room when HBK was eliminated then a deathly silence ascended when 'Taker was thrown over the top rope. Of course no one was too displeased at Randy winning it, he had a brilliant match.
All in all it was a truly spectacular, obscenely wonderful PPV. Pushes were given, alliances made and championships retained. I was pleased at my performance and the fact that I had been made a part of a powerful team in the WWE. Learning under Suffering will no doubt be a hard and gruelling task, but no doubt a rewarding one as well. It shall be a fantastic experience, with titles surely soon to come.
Congratulations to All on a great night. Get well rested Ryan Simmons, we will no doubt meet sometime in the future and I wan you at your peak when that time comes.
Again, well done to all...
-Sergio Griffon
The Rumble- Typically a good one.
What about the Gathering segment though? How can that be called classy or even intriguing? Showering in another man's blood as he hangs 8 feet above the ring dying? Well let me tell you something. You don't HAVE to call it classy or intriguing. You can call that neseccary. Michael Shane spat in Suffering's face. What did he expect? Suffering to just walk away? No. Thats not how we do things in the Gathering.
I will admit to having been approached by Suffering prior to the event asking if I wanted the chance at glory. Naturally I accepted, knowing full well that it was by no means going to be glamorous. In fact, since it was Suffering talking to me I knew it would be the exact opposite. I have no regrets in taking Suffering up on his offer.
Now onto the other Gathering member. CM Punk. In my opinion he shouldn't even be in our little 'group.' He prances around with Mickie James like he has no care in the world. But why? Suffering is a fantastic competitor and under his guidance, I will be as well. But Punk? Come on. He didn't even have the guts to follow through with our plan to take out Michael Shane, no, he left me to do the dirty work. I didn't mind as it gave me a chance to show my loyalty to Suffering. Trust me though, soon enough Punk will be out of favour with Suffering and will ultimately be left on his own.
Don't get me wrong, I'm not the greatest competitor ever to roam the Earth. But there is no shame in being eliminated from the Rumble by a rampant Kane is there? In my limited time in the WWE I have achieved more than Punk in his entire career. I am younger, fitter, smarter and more athletic than CM Punk and will ultimately achieve more than him in my career.
Enough has been said about him though, you all know where I stand with him now and we will all get along in the Gathering anyway, because that is how the greatest of teams conquer all. By working together, no matter what we're doing, be it hospitalizing Michael Shane and bathing in his blood or simply winning titles we'll do it together.
The gathering are the greatest stable in wrestling history and will dominate this business until there is no one left to break.
Sergio
That wasn't as good as my last one but I tried. feedback would be nice cheers guys.
Hey I think I have seen the best Royal Rumble... This had a special gleam to it...... Action, Drama, Comedy, Tradegy.... Yep I think I consider this a 4 stars, 2 thumbs up and a 10 outta 10... Simmons man I felt srry for yeah its gotta hurt... But anyway I heard your doing better and its nothing serious so gotta be happy with that... Randy Orton.... Are you rlly serious to give him the chance to win it all he is punk bully I would rather have it be Santino then you and thats saying something. HBK I am very surprised went to the elimanation chamber too bad u didn't win it. Once I knew it was you I rooting for you..... Well you heard my comments about the Royal Rumble... See yeah