Okay, I know you came here for your weekly optimistic wrestling fix (or, maybe you meant to click on one of Finger’s half-dozen news updates, and just missed). But, I’m about to get a bit cynical on you, and it’s concerning a completely different sports related topic: Barry Bonds.
Yes, yes — I know, too much has been written/said about the man already. But, I honestly haven’t seen anyone yet put forth the opinion I’m about to give. To put it succinctly: why is this a big deal?
Now, let me preface this: if you hated Barry Bonds back in 1999, when he was the same arrogant prick that he is right now, and you felt back then that he didn’t “deserve” to break Babe Ruth’s home run mark, then fine. I have no problem with someone being consistent. Personally, I think he’s the most unpleasant and unlikable figure in sports today who’s never killed someone while driving drunk, or completely screwed over my home town. He’s an adulterer, a wife-beater, and a terrible teammate. And, he has nothing but contempt for the people who pay his salary.
But the outrage over his steroid (and human growth hormone, and only-God-knows what else) use? Hypocrisy of the highest order. Let me put this in plain English: if you didn’t know that Bonds, McGwire, Sosa, Giambi, et. al. were using performance enhancing drugs back in 1998, then I respectfully submit that you, Sir/Madam, are an idiot. And if you supported him, or cheered for him, or even if you didn’t oppose him as vociferously while he was chasing McGwire’s record back in 2001: you’re a hypocrite. While I applaud some of the cleverness shown by my people in Citizen’s Bank Park last week, I also have to ask: where were those signs last year, or the year before, or back in 2001? (And you just know those people holding up signs were the same that booed everytime Bonds was pitched around back in 2001.)
I don’t know: maybe my exposure to powerlifting back in my late teens made me blase about the whole concept. But honestly, it seemed blatant back then that these guys were injecting things into their bodies that rivaled the stuff that caused so much trouble for Robert Paulson. And hey – I had no problem with it back then, and I don’t now. (No, I never took any myself.) Baseball didn’t test for them, so it wasn’t against the rules to use them. (Was it illegal? Yes – and so is punching someone in the face, but I’ve never seen anyone arrested after a bench-clearing brawl.) And it doesn’t take more than 3 or 4 working brain cells to figure out that this stuff obviously worked. So really, you should be getting upset with anyone on your favorite team that wasn’t using ‘roids back in the late 90’s, because obviously they didn’t care enough.
To sum up: if you didn’t realize he was taking drugs back in 2001, you’re an idiot; if you did and somehow your opinion about him has changed in the last twelve months, you’re a hypocrite. Please keep that in mind while reading the approximately 4,215 articles being written on the web about this subject currently, and feel free to copy-and-paste that last sentence and email it to anyone at ESPN, Sports Illustrated, Fox Sports, or any of the million insignificant sports blogs in existence.
Okay – glad I got that off my chest. Now, let’s get to the goodness. Once again, we’re here to fight against the oppressively negative viewpoint of the IWC, and to celebrate what we actually like about pro wrestling.
Love the concept? Hate it? Think I missed something important from last week? See something this week that you think should be here? Email me by Sunday evening.
But before we get to that: big-time thanks to Haley for his symbolic “passing of the torch” to me in his Midnight Madness column last week. His “Little Things” has been one of my favorite features on IP ever since they started. To get that kind of compliment from him was, honestly, an honor.
Monday Night Raw
1. The little face-to-face between RVD and Cena on the ramp was very nicely understated, and the crowd seemed pretty amped for it. In fact, the entire ECW build-up so far has been well done as a “slow burn” situation (first Trish and Micki, now this – it’s encouraging). We had our “holy shit” moment last week with Joey Styles, a mention of Joey this week from both RVD (kudos to him for getting the word “balls” past the censors) and Lawler, this confrontation, and the Hardcore 3-way (more about that below). They have several storylines to get straight over the next month or so, and they’re not rushing anything, which is good to see.
2. Speaking of that hardcore three-way: please note that Foley in his pre-match promo said, “Whoever wins this match could be conceivably be called the greatest hardcore champ ever.” Then, both Edge and Foley pinned Dreamer at the end. Honestly, when I read the spoiler before Raw that Foley was going to turn heel, I really couldn’t imagine how they could pull it off. But this concept (that the WWE’s Edge has now surpassed any of the supposed “hardcore” guys in ECW) really works well, and sets up what should be an incredibly bloody brawl at Another One Night Stand.
3. Over the years, most of my favorite wrestlers have been what the IWC would label “tweeners”, but which I see as heels who don’t change their behavior but get cheered anyway (Austin and Rock, most noticeably). If you had tried to tell me this just three months ago I would have laughed at you, but I have to admit: Carlito is inching his way onto that list. His pre-match chat with Lillian (who actually *curtsied* at something he said, in a tremendously cute move), his smiling at the crowd after every good move (which, please remember, he did back when he was fully in heel-mode, although then it was to egg the marks on), and his back-cracker on Eugene: all great stuff. If he eventually gets himself at the top of the card and proves he can hang with someone like HHH in the ring, my list will officially become one member longer.
4. There were three pleasant side-notes to the Micki/Maria match: A) it was an absolute squash, which is a good thing, since I believe there should be a clear delineation between the top women wrestlers and the divas that wrestle as on the side; B) Maria’s entrance (I truly do love her; it’s easy to be smoking hot while being a total slut on this show, but to pull it off as someone who’s truly nice and “cute” is much tougher); C) the introduction of Micki’s stalker can take this storyline into yet another direction – and just when I was figuring it had completely run out of option. If this new woman can actually wrestle, then it’s fulfilled several purposes at one time.
5. As with the ECW build-up, the D-X reunion has also been on the slow-burn. There aren’t too many wrestlers with the innate sense of the business that HBK and HHH have. It takes someone comfortable in their own ability to tell a story to know that a simple glance (which Trip gave to Michaels just before the D-X chops) will be that much more effective than the proverbial storyline sledgehammer.
TNA Impact
If you haven’t yet, please check out In the Zone, by Dougie Smith. There’s a man after my own heart: a good detailed recap that actually takes the time to point out what he enjoyed, rather than spending 80% of his words on the 10% of the show that he didn’t like.
Also, give a read to IP’s Roundtable for Sacrifice, and then compare that to the actual results in the Neeldown. And just to explain myself: I wrote my prediction for the Rhyno/Roode match before I remembered that Rhyno was leaving the company. I tried to get in a correction on Saturday night in order to avoid looking completely stupid, but unfortunately it was too late. Ah well – sometimes you just have to suck it up and take one for the team. Can’t wait to see if someone calls me a moron in the forums.
1. It’s not easy to say anything bad about AJ Styles and Chris Daniels to the TNA crowd, and still keep them on your side. Bubba did an excellent job of reading the audience’s reaction in mid-promo, and adjusting properly. The back-and-forth between him and the former Road Dog was also very enjoyable, and as Dougie pointed out in his column: it’s obvious these guys are having fun with this.
2. However, between Road Dog kissing D-Von, Puma spanking Sabin in mid-match (which apparently is a transition move into one of his submissions, which struck me as… unique), Khali making Rey-Rey into his bitch, and the Vito/Jim bedroom scene in “The Sopranos” on Sunday: I think I’ve had my fill of man-to-man sexual tension this week.
3. Kevin Nash is continuing to rile up the IWC as only he can. C’mon people: he’s setting *himself* up for a fall — isn’t it obvious? Does anyone with half a brain really think that TNA will let Kevin “I have no knees left” Nash single-handedly destroy the X Division, the bread-and-butter of the company? Have you all forgotten that he sold for Rey Mysterio back in 1999, seven years before Rey got a sniff of the World title picture, when *nobody* considered him a possibility in a non-cruiserweight match? If you still don’t believe me, read The Botterm Dollar for confirmation.
4. TNA has proven quite definitely that they have the largest supply of in-ring quality wrestlers on TV. What they have to worry about is guys that can get their point across on the mike: y’know, guys that can actually *act*. Alex Shelley, thank you for moving yourself onto that list.
5. The IWC didn’t react to it because of the spoilers weeks ago, but the announcement of Samoa Joe as Sting’s partner was very possibly the mark-out moment of the year for anyone that only watches TNA on TV. And after seeing the results from last night, it’s obvious they are handling this the right way (although I’m still shocked that Jarrett actually took the pin: never saw that coming).
(allegedly) Friday Night Smackdown
1. Eric already mentioned this, but the heat JBL is able to generate from the crowd is simply unreal. (I cannot wait to see what he pulls out for the ECW PPV build-up.) I’m a bit confused about what exactly a “short latino dress” is (as opposed to just a “short dress”), but I did crack up on his enunciation of every syllable of “sti-let-to”.
2. I was at the supershow a couple months ago in Washington, DC, and I was very heartened at the time by the reaction Super Crazy got from the crowd because of his effort against Randy Orton. Good to see that someone backstage was also paying attention.
3. That press slam gutbuster by Lashley was vicious-looking. I’m not sure if he can pull it off with somebody that didn’t, you know, train him and everything: but it’s always good to see two guys that trust each other in the ring. An added bonus of continuity in that match, too: Finlay has certainly seen Lashley’s spear enough by now to have a counter ready for it.
4. Eric also mentioned that he’d never seen an up-and-comer like Burchill so totally squashed by someone as useless as Henry. Well, Eric – I’d like to remind you of Kurt Angle’s match at Backlash 2000 against “The Showster”. Angle somehow managed to have a semi-decent career in the WWE afterwards, so I wouldn’t get too concerned about Paul the Pirate yet.
5. Last week, I commended Rey on his professionalism in his match against Mark Henry. This week… geez, I’m sorry, but I’m having a hard time figuring out the logic in having your face heavyweight champion be completely squashed by a guy with 0 major matches under his belt. Forget the IWC rumors that Khali is going to be sent back down after his PPV with Taker – even ignoring that, this doesn’t make any sense to. So, here’s your chance, dear readers: can anyone out put a positive spin on Rey’s current booking? If so, please email me your thoughts.
Until next week, keep fighting the herd mentality.
-Steve
