News and opinion continue to meet
News To Me – Blockbuster Bomb
So apparently there are some who are questioning WWe booking as we wind down the road to Wrestlemania. The dissenters say that there are no blockbuster matches and no big name feel to the show, especially at the main event level.
Well, no shit.
You have roughly 7 people contending for the main event slots available at WM XX.
1) HHH – Certainly a big name, but certainly nothing new or buzzworthy about this guy. He has had his grasp on the title for quite a long time. However, when paired with the right guy, he is certainly capable of generating a buzz, putting a new star over or putting on a wrestling clinic.
2) HBK – Again, another big name but certainly nothing we haven’t seen in the past ten years. He is definitely capable of putting on a big name match with the champ, but the problem is that we have seen it recently at SummerSlam, on RAW and lots of other places, too.
3) Chris Benoit – Hey, a new face but not exactly the magnet for excitement that you’d want main eventing WM. Widro’s point about his weak booking from Friday is well taken, but the point is that the booking team would have to put on an all-star effort to get fans to care about this guy. He simply doesn’t have the personality, feel for the fans and catchiness needed to generate a buzz. Only hardcore mat wrestling people want to see this guy main event, plain and simple.
4) Brock Lesnar – Out of all the 7, Brock seems like the guy that belongs the most. He is a relatively fresh face, has had a couple of impressive runs as champ and could put on a very good show wrestling-wise at WM. Pairing him against a fresh, up-and-coming face would make for a solid half of the main event card.
5) Eddie Guerrero – A new entrant to the main event and may be the title holder going into WM. While new to the main event, he is not exactly a fresh face. However, he does have some heat with the crowd and can put on a clinic in the ring with the right guy.
6) Kurt Angle – Last year’s titleholder spent much of the year on the shelf and may spend more of this year there as well. Due to that injury and some pretty weak booking, Angle is not as over as he once was with the crowd. His involvement in the Guerrero family feud, to me, seemed stitched together and lopsided from a storytelling standpoint.
7) Bill Goldberg – Bill has enough charisma to bottle and sell, but is apparently gone after the pay-per-view is over. He has a logical beef with the champ, HHH, but we have seen them go at it several times recently.
The problem here is obvious. It’s almost like looking at the field of Democratic candidates from a party member’s standpoint. There are some guys here who have great qualities but there is no one standout guy that puts all of the great qualities together and really connects with his constituents (the fans). Just the same way as I’d like to piece Dean’s charisma, Edwards’ charm, Clark’s intelligence, and Kerry’s experience together into a supercandidate, I’d like to take bits and pieces of these wrestlers and throw them into one pot and produce 2 good wrestlers capable of putting on a good match that the fans will be into. On top of this, none of these guys represents anything new. We know what all of these guys are going to do in the ring and we also know that none of them stands a chance at making a rise to the top that is unprecedented for their character.
Because the booking has been inconsistent and there has never been a vision for the pay per view in place beforehand, we have what we have – a hodgepodge of capable wrestlers with good traits but nothing that stands out. Take this into account with the fact that the biggest push in the entire company currently rests on a guy who is simply too green to run with it (Randy Orton) and the man with the most inherent charisma in the locker room (John Cena) has been booked weakly, then it’s really no shock. Not to this reporter, at least
Since it’s really too much to undo at this point, the best hope is for good wrestling matches. That’s why, in my opinion, they are going with Eddie/Angle for one main event and hoping that Benoit factor will make HBK/HHH even better. It’s not exciting, but it is the best they have right now.
Again, think if they had paired that Orton push with Cena’s magic We’d at least stand a shot at being really excited, if you ask me.
News To Me – Swift Spanking II – Revenge Of The Spanking
Hyatte’s AAT regarding indy wrestlers and Spanky Kendrick was well written, but since you know I’m all over this piece of news and its message, I’ll take this spot to disagree.
Spanky very well could have been better served to be a nobody in the WWe and stay content with being a recognizable name with better pay IF he had the pay and the recognition. When you are off-camera for weeks, not wrestling in pay-per-views to earn that extra dough and house show attendance sucks, it kinda defeats the purpose. Spanky did what was best for him and lots of other wrestlers are probably in the same boat. Sure, down the road if he persevers he might emerge from the big pond as a bigger fish, but time is money, injuries happen and he can command more attention in his little pond.
Can’t fault a guy with being conservative sometimes. Especially when the upside can either be fleeting or hard to come by.
PS – The Darkness recently stated in an interview that you can judge a band by its enemies and they have several. You should be able to respect that statement, Chris.
PPS – I’m more like Jimmy Paige than some Monkee. Belee dat.
The Little Things
Let’s do this.
1. Slash And Burn
I’ve been pretty tough on Mr. Benoit recently, so the least I could do is take this space to acknowledge that the throat slash, followed by the downward motion with his arms is a solid indicator that his finisher is on its way. In fact, if he did more little things like this in the ring, he might have that buzz that could’ve saved his main event opportunity from becoming a 3 way affair.
2. Gong Show
Yeah, I know that it’s markish and that the novelty will wear off within a few weeks of his rerereintroduction at WM, but the kid in me still loves to hear that gong go off. Most of us thought the Undertaker kicked ass a kid. Remember that.
3. Strut Your Stuff
Vince may have the best walk to the ring ever. He really does have that I own this place strut down cold. Of course, he basically does own the whole place so it’s to be expected. That he continued it even when he walked into Bischoff’s office was highly commendable.
Also, you cannot deny that when he and Austin are close to one another, there is UNDENIABLE chemistry. Even after all this time.
4. Well Coached
The funniest moment of the night came when Coach asked Goldberg if was going to make like Tom Brady and pack up for Disneyland after his suspension. The best thing about Coach’s character is that he is cocky, but prone to an ass whipping at almost any second.
5. It Was Funny To Me
Did anyone catch that fan waving a French flag in the front row while Foley delivered that promo about Orton being AWOL? I love stuff like that.
Keep those comments coming in and we’ll do this again next week.
Haley
