This will not be your traditional column, but I can finally write something positive about the WWE, which has been hard until Tribute to the Troops. Tribute To The Troops is the one event that they tend to get right, and regardless of the star quality of the matches, the wrestlers are entertaining the troops and that’s what it is all about, not me picking the matches apart. I was surprised Vince didn’t make a stronger presence for himself, but of course, the placement of Vince standing in the frame shot looking presidential or Sylvester Stalloneian with the American flag as the backdrop was no accident. As usual, Lilian Garcia delivered a very emotional and strong rendition of the National Anthem, I have said this countless times, you can’t appreciate the power she brings to the song until you’ve gone to a WWE live event. I hope next year will be her year to shine with her own music when her record comes out. Having Bobby Lashley there was great because of his armed forces background, but I expected him to get a bigger charge from the crowd. I would say the biggest charge from the crowd was The Undertaker, John Cena and of course, The Divas. I thought CM Punk versus Shelton Benjamin was a excellent teaser for a possible feature cross-brand matchup which I would love to see again. I find Benjamin incredibly amazing to watch his ability and timing when he leapfrogs to the top rope snap superplex. Umaga of course was going to beat Jeff Hardy, maybe there was a limited head count that could go overseas because the lack of Estrada was strange, and imagine how entertaining that would have been to the troops to have Estrada say, “listen…..to me!”
Hopefully RAW next week can keep up the momentum and have a strong show with a over-worked and semi-rested RAW roster. I’m not excited about K-Fed versus Cena, and hope that it will be as least painful as possible (I’m realistic here, it’s going to be painful until the run-in), and of course the DX Revenge Against Rated-RKO. I hope that WWE can keep up the momentum with Victoria and Mickie James and I hope they bring Psycho Mickie back just in time to keep the interest for this match strong.
As far as Christmas, Santa was great to me and hooked me up with some wrestling memorabilia. I received WWE’s World Greatest Managers, The History of the WWE Championship, and the ECW Kurt Angle shirt and mouthpiece. I’ve watched the documentary portion of the WWE’s World Greatest Managers DVD and thought it was pretty good. I wasn’t thrilled with the portrayal of Sunny’s legacy, which was according to the WWE tainted by drugs and success too quickly, however, the positives that were said were right on. I, for one, want to see my close friend Tammy come back to the WWE and show the girls how it’s done (as they said, you never forget the first) and you never know, anything can happen, never say never. The one thing I expected them to put on the disc for her highlight would have been the Godwinns slopping Sunny storyline because that was some of her best work and one of her favorite storylines she ever worked. I will say however, even though I can’t receive WWE 24/7, the WWE has done a amazing job in keeping Sunny’s legacy fresh in the mind of old and new fans by featuring her all the time. The WWE really should have made the collection at least two CDs instead of one, so many great managers over the history of wrestling, that you cannot summarize their legacies one disc. I’m patiently waiting for the WWE to give Bobby Heenan a disc collection, what a entertainer and brilliant mind of the business. There will never be another Brain.
Next year, look for the return of the pro wrestling radio show I’m apart of, the Pro Wrestling Advocates with Big Poppa G and Renegade. I’m very excited and the details are to be announced. Thank you for all your support, and special cheers to my Inside Pulse wrestling family, we’re growing and I couldn’t be prouder to be apart of your family. Cheers to all of you. Always remember, for things to change, you have to make movement. Thanks for reading and for all the feedback, feel free to contact me anytime at Bam@4sternstaging.com.
