Blog Archives
Here’s The Undertaker Tombstoning Brad Maddox Dressed As A Turkey On The Tonight Show Because Life Is Wonderful
In 10 days, The Undertaker will celebrate his 25th anniversary with the WWE, as he debuted at the 1990 edition of Survivor Series. It’s an unprecedented run that will most likely never be matched, and Taker’s legacy in the WWE is arguably the greatest character in wrestling history. To celebrate this milestone, WWE is having Undertaker week on the WWE Network, and Taker has already appeared on Raw and Smackdown overseas this week. Well as if this couldn’t get any better, The Undertaker made a surprise appearance on the Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon and tombstoned Brad Maddox, who was dressed as a turkey. If this two minute video didn’t make you smile then you may not have a pulse. Long live the dead man.
-Ryan
Roman Reigns Is The New #1 Contender For The WWE Championship After Last Night’s Excellent Fatal Four Way #RAW Main Event #WWE
I don’t know who wrote and decided the creative direction for last night’s Raw, but it was one of the better Raw’s in recent memory. For the first time in a long time, it felt fresh, and that storylines were finally heading in a new direction. Even the rehashing of the Paige heel turn felt different because there was actually some action to it, not just Paige verbally bashing everyone within earshot. The biggest development was the #1 contenders tournament, which showcased five awesome matches, concluding with the fatal four way main event. The best kind of triple threat or fatal four ways are the ones in which all of the competitors come off looking like stars, and that’s exactly what happened here. All four guys won clean to get into the main event, and all four had their own unique moments in the match where it looked like they were going to win. People might complain that Reigns won and looked ‘strong’, but the fact is he has the best motivation to be #1 contender over anyone not named Brock Lesnar. Rollins screwed him over by betraying The Shield and then screwed him over again at WrestleMania. Reigns/Rollins should tear down the house whenever they decide to book it, and I hope this momentum rolls over to the secondary and Divas divisions as well.
-Ryan
Stone Cold Steve Austin Kicked Off Last Night’s #RAW In Dallas & Raised Some Old School Hell
The go home Raw before Hell in a Cell Sunday was live last night in Dallas, and ‘The Texas Rattlesnake’ himself Stone Cold Steve Austin opened the show. He half promoted his post Raw podcast with Lesnar and Lesnar’s match with the Undertaker inside Hell in a Cell, and started a trend of cameos by WWE Hall of Famers that included HBK and Ric Flair. WWE tends to overuse it’s stars from the past, but I thought all three were used effectively last night. They hyped up whichever match they were supposed to hype and you believed what they said because they have built-in credibility. This was a better Raw than the past few weeks, and it was certainly helped by the presence of Austin, HBK and Flair.
-Ryan
ESPN Will Now Run A Weekly WWE Recap Segment On Sportscenter & I Guess I’m Watching Sportscenter Again
.@WWE + @ESPN = awesome…hear @TheCoachESPN and @WWERollins tonight on @SportsCenter at 9pm. pic.twitter.com/x4pJhfgAPv
— Triple H (@TripleH) October 14, 2015
I’m sure sports fans/assholes around the world will be OUTRAGED that ESPN is going to start airing WWE recaps on Sportscenter, but as a wrestling fan, I am overjoyed. Jonathan Coachman is our man on the inside and he’s been pushing for a collaboration between ESPN and the WWE for awhile now, so I’m glad it’s finally happening. WWE being ‘PG TV’ helps in situations like this, as you know young kids aren’t going to be tuning in and watching Val Venis get his penis chopped off or Sable with black hand paint as a bra. WrestleMania 31 was a huge success and WM 32 taking place in Dallas has a chance to be the biggest WrestleMania ever, so I’m glad this partnership is starting now. Now, if the main roster writers and Vince can get their heads out their asses and start writing good TV shows we’ll be golden.
-Ryan
5 Stars From Last Night’s #RAW
Raw was live from Buffalo last night. We’re four days away from the live MSG special on the WWE Network and less than four weeks away from Hell in a Cell. Kane is suffering from a personality disorder, The New Day are still wonderful and two young guys tore it up in the main event. Let’s get to the 5 stars from last night’s Raw!
1. Xavier Woods
New Day showed up, entertained my pants off AND beat John Cena and the Dudley Boyz, so you know they’re getting a star, but Xavier Woods earned his own one as well. Woods gets overlooked as the trumpet playing cheerleader on the outside while Big E and Kofi do most of the ring work, and although this match wasn’t as long I’d like it to be, it was easily Woods’ best singles bout on the main roster. Cena is in between feuds right now, as Rollins is preoccupied with Kane and there hasn’t been a new #1 contender to emerge yet, so the first installment of the ‘second round’ of the US Title Open challenge features none other than Xavier Woods. The X-man got in some nice offense, and as usual, his character work was amazing. That character work carried into the six man tag too, as he was constantly yelling about how he should be the new US champ even though it was his New Day partners who caused the DQ finish. I love The New Day so much it hurts my heart.
2. New Day
New Day was once again the most entertaining part of the show, and until the main event went bonkers was also my favorite part of the show. One of my favorite parts of certain Raw’s are when people you don’t expect to show up come out and answer a promo, and that’s exactly what happened here. Cena opened Raw, which was fine, because the US Open challenge is one of the best parts of the show, but then Big E started screaming from backstage and the segment got infinitely better. It’s hysterical to hear Cena talk about how there’s a time to be serious and a time to be entertaining, because this is the same guy who used to rap his promos. Not even Cena’s best Lance Storm impression could stop me from enjoying New Day, AND they won the match. I have a feeling the Dudleyz are going to win the titles Saturday night in MSG, and I’m ok with that, because ultimately they will elevate New Day and make them better than ever. Plus, characters like New Day are always better when they have something to complain about.
3. Braun Stroman & Luke Harper
You know what I’m into? Braun Stroman and Luke Harper turning into Harper & Rowan 2.0 and making a serious run at the tag titles. If Bray is going to be the main singles guy in the group, which he should be, why not pair your monster Stroman with an already ace tag team guy like Harper? Realistically, who is going to beat those two? I know New Day are technically heels, but say you have The Dudleyz win the titles Saturday and then feud with Stroman and Harper who eventually win the belts. New Day going against those two would be instantly turned into good guys. Also yes, most of my fantasy booking involves the New Day one way or another. Back to Stroman and Harper; they dominated PTP here, which I don’t love, but Stroman is unstoppable right now, so it’s doesn’t demean PTP too much. This was a solid episode for the Wyatt Family, who have really looked great lately.
4. Bray Wyatt
So the main event deserves it’s own section, but I’m going to highlight both guys here, because this match and post segment brawl were awesome. As great a job as Seth Rollins has done this year, it’s nice to see someone else in the main event of Raw, and Wyatt and Reigns did not disappoint last night. Wyatt and Reigns have great in ring chemistry, and they really bring out the best in each other. Barring any serious injuries, these are going to be two of the main guys who bring WWE to the next level, and when you put them together, they’re a guarantee for a great feud. The way the match and the show ended definitely made it seem like this feud would continue, and I’m glad that neither man got a clean victory. When utilized correctly, a double count out or DQ can be great. In this case, both guys looked STRONG and WWE created a logical way of continuing the story. Wyatt is known more for his promos, but his move set is severely underrated. He punishes guys, and has one of the best clotheslines on the roster. I also love his version of the Rock Bottom and his throwaway standing suplex. Every move he does has a purpose, and last night was one of the best performances of his career.
5. Roman Reigns
It’d be tough to find someone in the WWE who’s having a better year than Roman Reigns. He’s had his ups and downs, but ever since February he’s been one of the best things on WWE TV. He was booed out the building at the Rumble, but that was more WWE’s booking of the match than Reigns himself. He had a hell of a match against Daniel Bryan at Fast Lane and a brutal bout with Lesnar at WrestleMania, and ever since then he’s been on a nice little roll. You know he’s going to be back in the title picture sooner rather than later, but for now he’s tearing it up with Bray Wyatt. Both these guys aren’t afraid to work a little stiff, and they both sell so well for each other. Reigns takes a couple hellacious clotheslines in this match, but also gives it as good as he takes it. No outside interference made this entire segment special, and Reigns has that ability to recover from a beating but make it seem believable, a trait that John Cena never mastered. Raw ends with Reigns and Wyatt both physically spent, and it was executed perfectly.
-Ryan
Hornswoggle Has Been Suspended For Violating The WWE Wellness Policy & Wait What?
Swogs – In accordance with its Talent Wellness Program, WWE has suspended Dylan Postl (Hornswoggle) for 30 days, effective immediately, for his first violation of the company’s policy.
When you see ‘Wrestler Suspended for Wellness Violation’ the name Hornswoggle doesn’t immediately come to mind, but here we are. The WWE and pro wrestling in general is an insane business, so nothing should really surprise me, but seeing Hornswoggles name pop up on a wellness violation list is pretty shocking. Hopefully The Undertaker hangs around for a few more years so we can finally get that Hornswoggle/Undertaker WrestleMania dream match we’ve all been waiting for.
-Ryan
015 Ask Sting a Question For Five Dollars
The Doctah joins us for our first Podcast in over a month! Needless to say, we picked up right where we left off. We talk fantasy football, wrestling, the price of coffee and so much more.
5 Stars From Last Night’s #RAW
Monday Night Raw hung around in Texas last night after Sunday’s NOC show in Houston. A few titles changed hands, including Charlotte winning her first ever Diva’s championship on the main roster. Last night’s Raw saw Cesaro lose to the Big Show (BOO), John Cena pin the WWE champ clean again (BOOOOO) & New Day tagged with Rusev (*insert heart eyes here*). Let’s get to the 5 stars from last night’s Raw.
This Wyatt’s vs. Reigns, Ambrose & Everyone Else Feud
99% of the time, Raw kicks off with a promo. Out of that 99%, I’d say 98% of the time it’s either Rollins, The Authority or John Cena doing the promo-ing. So when someone else comes out, whether it be Paul Heyman & Lesnar or in this case, the Wyatt Family, it’s a breath of fresh air. Bray kicks things off with a promo about how stupid it is for Roman Reigns to keep fighting this losing battle, and that brings out Reigns, who I have to point out has been pretty awesome throughout this entire thing. Roman is the total package, and he’s a good promo when he’s allowed to just speak his mind instead of the over scripted bullshit WWE feeds to him. Also, he’s a badass. With Reigns and Ambrose holding up their end of the feud, it allows the Wyatt’s to be strong, menacing villains. The John Cena era of the WWE has basically made it impossible for a villain to last. If I gave you five seconds, name me a good villain that was created between 2005 and now. You can’t think of any, because any time a guy got some momentum, Cena squashed him. Pro wrestling 101 is you build up a villain so when the good guy triumphs, it means something. With Cena, the villain builds up, wins a match, and then Cena wins until he’s ready to move onto someone else. When you build a villain like they’re doing with Strowman and the Wyatt Family, it suspends that belief that the good guy is automatically going to win. I’m not saying the villain has to always win, but throw them a bone once in awhile. Also, a supplemental best for Strowman’s promo later in the night where he casually mentions skinning a snake alive and drinking it’s blood.
Paige
Charlotte won the Diva’s championship from Nikki Bella at NOC and as a reward got her own little championship ceremony on Raw. It was a little much, and if the WWE wants us to take this Diva’s Revolution seriously, having your top NXT Diva win a title should be business as usual. I understand it’s Charlotte’s first title on the main roster, but I’m glad Paige ruined it. Paige got her own version of a ‘pipe bomb’ and pretty much ripped apart the entire ‘Diva’s Revolution’, and it was a necessary occurrence. The WWE is obsessed with trying to go from point A to point B without doing any of the leg work. You can’t go from what the Diva’s were with the Bella’s on top to ‘NXT Women’s Division’ just by calling something a revolution. The reason the women’s division in NXT is so great is because the writers, performers and HHH are all invested in it, and they do the leg work. They create characters, put thought into the storylines and trust the performers to fill in the gaps. On Raw, yes you have Sasha and Becky and Charlotte, but you just threw them into groups of three and extended the matches by 10 minutes and hoped for the best. Nikki Bella is still going months in between title defenses and wins and losses don’t matter. This Paige promo was a step in the right direction, and I hope that there’s more storylines besides ‘everyone wants to win the Diva’s title’.
The New Day & Rusev
I don’t know who’s idea it was to pair New Day and Rusev, but that person deserves a gold fucking star. New Day & Rusev are the most entertaining parts of Raw, and seeing them interact was a thing of beauty. I loved everything about this, mostly the beginning when Big E was trying to imitate Rusev’s pre match ritual and Xavier Woods playing Rusev’s theme on the trombone while he’s kicking Dolph Ziggler’s ass. Give me Rusev and The New Day for 3 hours every week and I’m a happy man. The match was solid too, and Rusev won with a secondary move, which I love so much. WWE’s new favorite thing is to have guys kick out of finishers, and while it adds suspense to the match, it’s so dumb for the long run. As much as I loved watching Cesaro kicking out of Cena’s AA, it takes away the move’s effectiveness. Kicking out of a guys finisher should be a rare occurrence so you can maximize the effect of it. It shouldn’t happen every match. On the flip side, beating someone with a secondary move, like Rusev’s super kick, is great. It legitimizes the move and now Rusev doesn’t have to slap on the Accolade to beat you. He can also kick you as hard as he can in the face. Entertaining, smart match.
Big Show’s Promo
As foolish as it was for the Big Show to squash Cesaro (what, was Heath Slater busy?), his post match promo was really good. There’s a negative infinity chance that Big Show beats Lesnar, but you might as well give him some momentum heading into the show. Big Show did an interview a few weeks back and talked about how everyone who wrestles today is overexposed, and he couldn’t be more right. The reason a guy like Andre the Giant was so special was because he was never overexposed in a certain territory. They’d bring him in for a few shows, and then he wouldn’t be back for awhile, so when he did come back, it was special again. It’s the same thing WWE is doing with Brock Lesnar. I don’t care how great you are, if you’re on TV every week people are eventually going to get tired of you. Big Show definitely suffers from that, as he’s been a fixture on TV for almost 20 years. Even if you’re a giant, the act still gets stale. It’s nice to see Show get a chance to talk, as he’s a very underrated promo, and we should enjoy Big Show while he lasts, because after MSG, he’s going to be a shell of a man.
John Cena vs. Seth Rollins (minus the finish)
Cena & Rollins work so well together, and 2015 continues to be the best in ring year of Cena’s career. You can say it’s because of guys like Cesaro, Owens, Neville and Rollins, but any really good match takes two guys working together, and that’s exactly what Cena’s done. The match was good, and I’m glad Cena’s US Champ again. Rollins holding both belts was fine from a storyline point of view, and he can always bring up how he held both, but whenever one guy holds both belts, one of them is going to suffer. Obviously the WWE championship was going to get more of the spotlight, so the longer Rollins had the US belt, the less prestigious it would have been. Now Cena can bring back his US open title challenge and drop the belt to someone who can use it to elevate themselves and the division. As much as I liked the match and that Cena is champ again, does he really need to pin the world champ clean on back to back nights? If I’m an agent or anyone else backstage in the WWE, I’m telling any guy young guy who has to work with Cena to just lose right away. Winning once only to lose four times is not the way to go.
-Ryan
