Quick News
Brian Kendrick’s push has been curtailed because he likes weed a bit too much.
This is a damn waste. He was getting an upper-card push. Weed’s not physically addictive and he should cut it to hopefully regain his push, assuming Vince hasn’t lost interest/faith in him.
WWE has resigned Tomko
With any kind of a push this is brilliant. For a short time, hugely over even with TNA’s retarded booking. Hopefully WWE shows TNA how to use Tomko correctly and has a breakout star in their hands. If there’s one thing the youth of America can get behind, its sarcasm and Tomko has that in spades.
The Jeff Hardy Survivor Series injury was Michael Hayes idea.
Just to let you know not to be surprised when Karma has a nice surprise for P.S.
In other news, I first heard of Stan Hansen in old wrestling magazines given to me by my uncle. When I first got into wrestling, he was the only person around (being in the northeast it was all WWF) who cheered the heels and knew guys like Flair and Hansen. My uncle died yesterday. Thanks for helping me along, Uncle Richie.
For more on the WWE, including Vince’s reaction to Celebrity Championship Wrestling, check out This Week in ‘E.
Wrestling the Issue
The WWE has announced the return of The Slammy Awards. This week we’ll take a look at the categories and who should win each.
Superstar of the Year: Shawn Michaels.
This has been, without question, the Year of HBK. He began the year by putting over Jeff Hardy in a great match, helping elevated Hardy to the point where now, he’s among the more over wrestlers on the roster. After that, it was on to the epic Flair retirement feud. This played out until Wrestlemania where he and Flair had Ric’s memorable sendoff match, a sure contender for best and most memorable moment. Shawn went on from there to a quick feud with Batista and then the easy feud of the year, his battle with Chris Jericho, first over retiring Flair, then HBK’s legacy and then becoming far more personal. In this feud were many of the best matches of the year. Now, Michaels gets a break from major feuds, with his JBL storyline, but still reunites with Triple H at major moments for Degeneration X. While this is anathema to smarks, it still draws great pops and some ratings.
The other major contenders all have at least one red mark against them. Jericho, pre-Wrestlemania, did essentially nothing, and even for the first month or two after was a background player. Punk had his one moment to shine and then faded. Triple H proved to make no difference in the Smackdown ratings, though in kayfabe he’s a strong contender. The Undertaker did his usual disappear and reappear, though his best stuff was with Edge, Edge was the focus of the show all year… but missed several months, as did Cena. That leaves Jeff Hardy, who was great, but kayfabe wise, couldn’t get that one big win. The Wrestler of the Year in the WWE is Shawn Michaels.
Match of the Year: The Undertaker vs. Edge– Hell in a Cell from Summerslam.
I have a full review of this match and why it’s so awesome up here, so check that out. The other match that compares is the HBK vs. Jericho Ladder Match, which had better spots, but less story and wasn’t as satisfying. I’ll take the story. Michaels vs. Flair was more memorable than either, but not as good a match.
OMG Moment of the Year: CM Punk wins the WWE Title from Edge cashing in Money in the Bank.
This was just awesome. Raw was left without a title, when Edge came out to gloat. This pissed off his enemy Batista, who destroyed him. Punk, sensing his opportunity, came out to hit the Go to Sleep and won the title, leading to some of Raw’s best ratings of the year. Considering Punk was never supposed to win Money in the Bank (Jeff Hardy was but was suspended), this was unexpected and awesome.
Diva of the Year: Beth Phoenix.
Beth has arrived both as a wrestler and a personality. She’s become an expert at not wrestling above the many barely-trained women she works with and letting them bounce off her to make them look good before putting them away impressively. She’s also awesome with Santino, playing the straight woman to his comedic jackass, giving her an unbeatable combination among divas.
“DAMN!†Moment of the Year: Punk getting kicked by Orton and losing the title in a match he wasn’t in.
When Orton kicked Punk prior to the Scramble match, the injury he gave Punk was so severe that Punk was unable to compete. Instead of this making the match non-title, however, this lead to Punk losing the title in a match he wasn’t even in. Damn, indeed.
Tag Team of the Year: Miz and Morrison
The Miz and Morrison have become supremely entertaining. With Morrison’s slow motion entrance, they immediately stand out. His cocky persona and flashiness even allowed him to get a pinfall against Shawn Michaels. Of course, these traits could make him a huge face, so it’s a good thing he’s paired with the Miz, who is just the most hate-able little prick around. Together, their promos, online show, and matches make them one of the most consistently entertaining acts in the WWE.
Best Musical Performance: Santino Marella
Before losing the IC Title, Santino gave a rap about who he had beaten. Anything else winning here would be a travesty.
Best Finishing Maneuver: Evan Bourne’s Shooting Star Press.
Damn, that move is pretty.
Extreme Moment of the Year: Jeff Hardy dives off the scaffolding.
When Randy Orton challenged Jeff Hardy for the IC Title, he couldn’t have expected this.
Couple of the Year: Edge and Vickie Guerrero
This one really creeped me out at first… but thanks to nuclear heat, it worked out. Edge was clearly just using Vickie in a power play, but it was very effective, and Vickie’s smugness all along kept her from becoming sympathetic. Ultimately, whether they were getting along or not, Edge and Vickie spent this year as the WWE’s power couple.
The following awards will also be presented on WWE.com:
Breakout Star of the Year: Jeff Hardy
Jeff went from an upper-card curiosity this year to a real main eventer who shows can be built around. That may be the hardest leap in WWE to make, but at shows, Jeff gets possibly a better response than Triple H or John Cena with less of a push and has really connected to his fanbase. That the matches are at such a high quality surely doesn’t hurt either. He’s had great ones with Triple H and Shawn Michaels and is sure to have a few more with Edge.
Announcer of the Year: Matt Striker
This guy gets it. As a heel, he never sides with the face, constantly explaining why the heels are justified and how intelligent they are. While doing this, he pleases the smarks who tune in by using proper move names, never being at a loss, and mentioning non-WWE legends like Jushin Lyger. What more do you want?
Best WWE.com Exclusive: I refuse to believe this is a real category. Sorry Joey Styles, I still love you.
Best Impersonation: Charlie Haas as Mr. Perfect
Sure this was done to plug a DVD and the vignettes really made it, but it was still the most clever idea in the WWE in months. Haas as Hennig at a Sports Plus type venue, failing at being as Perfect as Hennig was in those memorable vignettes from 20 years ago.
The Smarkish Raw Ranty Short Review Thing for Raw, 12/1/08
My laptop fell into my puppy’s water on Saturday, so I can’t do this live, like normal, this section will take a short hiatus.
I’ll be back Friday with ROH Weekly, and next week with a far longer Wrestling Analyst. See you then.
