Tag Archive: Mark Henry

  1. Raw Is British 4-16-2012

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    I know. Raw is taped tonight. So is Mad Men. It’s still good. Here’s to hoping that we continue the hot streak.

    We start off the night with CM Punk and Mark Henry (who is already in the ring?). The crowd was hot and engaged already. This was a good big man-little man match. Both guys really brought it. And Punk had to go to a crazy place to get the win. Then Jericho went back and forth for a bit. Jericho had a video where he showed Punk going into a pub. Apparently that means he was drinking.

    Santino and Otunga had a match. It was painless. Please nobody ask Otunga to take a blood test. I think he might end up pregnant.

    The Brock interview I think went pretty well. I really liked it.

    Kane killed Zack Ryder. Then he called out Orton.

    John Cena came out and delivered a really good spot-on promo. And then Johnny Ace came out. Cena was going to have a secret opponent. I was hoping for the return of Berzerker.

    We got Kofi vs. Daniel Bryan. Tonight on Facebook, somebody called Daniel Bryan the most over face in the WWE. Too bad the WWE wants him to be a heel. It was a really good match. Daniel Bryan could cut a newborn kitten’s throat on live tv and the fans would chant, “One more time.”

    Eve is having a one-on-one with Johnny Ace. Poor Johnny.

    Great Khali. Because you know, the people haven’t been through enough. Khali was going to be teaming up with Big Show. They got to face the Colons. It was a great squash match. Too bad it was up against the tag champs.

    John Cena comes out and has a mystery opponent-Lord Tensai. It wasn’t a bad match all things considered. Tensai walked away with a win.

    All in all… Not a bad Raw. There were still some moments that left me scratching my head. But they seem to have a purpose, so it can’t be that bad, right?

  2. Smackdown 04/06/12: The Medium is the Message…

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    It’s our first Smackdown back after WrestleMania 28! We wrapped our Celebration of Professional Wrestling 2012. Be sure to click that link to check out any of the fantastic podcasts and articles we saw during our marathon.

    But things changed in some massive ways on RAW to kick off the unofficial start of the new “season” of the WWE. John Laurinitaus took over the reigns of Smackdown from Theodore Long, for example. Jack “The San Jose Shark” Swagger debuted his new look and showed distention with Dolph Ziggler. John Cena questioned his inner being. Brodus finally got elevated. The Rock made allusions to being World Champion one more time. Some oddly familiar, non-Asian looking guy debuted. Oh yeah… and….

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    Let’s hop to it, shall we?

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  3. Raw is Post-Wrestlemania 4-2-2012

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    The night after Wrestlemania. The debut of Mankind, Brock Lesnar. The season premiere that will begin the story that will climax at Wrestlemania 29. It begins tonight.

    Johnny Ace begins begins with a new era. He sets up a match for Santino vs. Ziggler vs. Swagger. Punk smarts off to him and heckles Ace. Ace puts him in a match against Mark Henry. The new theme in his era is Power People.

    Rock came out. The crowd was electric chanting “Boots to Asses” & “You still have it.” Rock came out and did his thing. It was everything it needed to be.

    The first match was Ziggler vs. Swagger vs. Santino. This match was just kind of there for me. But Santino beat both. As Swagger and Ziggler beat on Santino after the match, Santino ran up the ramp and was saved by Brodus Clay. Ziggler charged Brodus Clay and took a crazy bump on the ramp. Ziggler is the most underrated wrestler in the business.

    We had the debut of Lord Tensai. The crowd chanted A-Train at the top of their lungs. I was hoping they would chant “Hip Hop Hippo.” Alex Riley began his Future Endeavored Tour. I liked the debut of the Tensai character. And of course, Larry Stanley died when he saw “The Claw.” It reminded me of a early 90’s monster. Let’s see where they go with him.

    So Punk-Henry was not the same match he had with Daniel Bryan. It was as good a match as Mark Henry is capable of having. This was such a good match. Both guys really brought it. It ended in a countout. I love the booking as this sets up Mark Henry as credible again. Jericho comes out of the crowd and says that after that beating, he and Punk need a drink. What happened to them has to be seen to be believed.

    Sheamus came out to celebrate and then Alberto del Rio’s music hit. Ricardo Rodriguez started up and the crowd went nuts. For Daniel Bryan. Sheamus and Alberto del Rio delivered their lines and went through their motions all the while ignoring that the crowd was cheering someone else. Rock, Austin, Foley, Flair, Piper, those men would have never let a crowd get away with that.

    We came back to get Cody vs. Kofi. Big Show came out to show Cody losing. I thought the story they told was very entertaining. Kofi got a nice win.

    Abraham Washington gave Mark Henry his card. I’m not sure it was him or Teddy Long in a timewarp.

    Eve cut a promo that was not horrible.

    The main event was Miz vs. Ryder.

    John Cena came out cut a promo on The Rock. The crowd was chanting for Lesnar at the top of their lungs. And then they got him. F5 on John Cena.

    I have been watching Raw for the past year pretty much consecutively. This has been the best Raw in ages. 90% of that was the crowd. But the work was great. Lesnar coming back was perhaps one of the most electric things I’ve ever seen.

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  4. An American Dragon Moment: Daniel Bryan heel champion

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    An American Dragon moment is brought to you by Matt B. Wrestle.

    What we have witnessed since this December is Daniel Bryan breaking through the glass ceiling and becoming a main eventer. This has to be a proud moment. Even as a heel how do you stop the train that is Bryan? Sadly this Sunday that might be Sheamus. Why is this sad?

    We watched through tie-gate as Daniel Bryan was released and returned to the independent scene but was so valuable that he was brought back to the fold in no time. This has to mean he was meant for better things.

    We have already seen Sheamus as a heel champion no less and their wasn’t much to be impressed by. He a muscle factory churned out by HHH/MacMahon that has  improved but still doesn’t excuse putting him over Daniel Bryan. Who by far is the better “wrestler’

    Uh oh I’ve said the naughty word that no one in the Universe should say. What I should of said was “entertainer” Daniel Bryan entertains me. He could give the WWE better mileage out of him then say a Sheamus run which would be Hoganesque. Which in this time period is just not worth its salt like it was in the 80’s and 90’s. We like the heels and tweeners of the ring they add to the excitement of the sport.

    I would compare Daniels to Rick Rude and Curt Hennig, when you would watch thier matches you wanted them to lose because they were heel but they wore so “entertaining” that when they went over you were upset but not for their lack of ability in comparison to the faces. With Bryan you have that. He can “entertain” and leaving the belt on him post Wrestlemania would be a better choice.

    He has pulled the best out of Mark Henry, the Miz and has fought Sheamus previously for the United States title. Which by the way he lost while a bland face. And when the rematch was pushed back into a dark match it ended in a no contest due to outside fighting from the lumberjacks around the ring. And to add further insult his resulting rematch on Raw he lost and had to be saved by Sin Cara. So yeah Daniel Bryan the heel needs to be pushed to win in similar fashion to Cody Rhodes who just makes the show more fun.

    King and Queen of the Ring

    And let’s not forget his storyline with AJ Lee and what could quite possibly turn into one of the most entertaining slow burning heel turns in the recent memory. Right now AJ is the video game playing every women that guys wish was more common. Daniel Bryan is slowly molding her into his queen. And seeing as how the Diva division could use a good Glamazon versus SexyNerd feud just to make it interesting I’m all for it. But if Daniel Bryan loses the championship what would be the point of a king and queen of Smackdown when one is titleless.

    I believe like Mark Henry before him he’s a champion that makes the show more fun to watch and could quite possibly be the key to an entertaining Wrestlemania and many others for years to come.

    Bryan! Bryan! Go Bryan, Go.

    This has been an American Dragon moment

     

  5. Smackdown 03/20/12: Expect Lots of Video Packages…

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    This puppy was probably taped so the guys giver, and get themselves to Flo Rida. Translation: “This is the last ditch attempt to get random casual viewers to throw down a bunch of money and watch WrestleMania 28.”

    Look, this will likely be the easiest review I do all year. It will have some Monday pre-taped matches that I didn’t pre-research, so Daniel Bryan could Brie-Slam and get his Twin Magic girlfriend on TV to earn some money to go watch the Hunger Games movie. Anyways, regardless of this episode, I will watch The $1000 Paternity Of Them All! Let’s just get to the jump, so we can all get to possibly having buyer’s remorse on Sunday!

    Seriously, I’m sure I will enjoy the PPV.

    Click below immediately or CM Punk DIES!

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  6. The 25th Anniversary of WrestleMania (so they say)

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    ARRRGGHHHH!  Despite the WWE’s insistence that this is the “25th Anniversary” of WrestleMania, that’s incorrect.  It’s the 25th ANNUAL WrestleMania.  WrestleMania 1 wasn’t the first ANNIVERSARY of WrestleMania, that would’ve been March 31, 1986.  It was the first ANNUAL.  Somebody buy the WWE marketing guys a dictionary.  Anyways, screw it, let’s roll.

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  8. Raw is Pre Wrestlemania-3-26-12

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    There are fewer bigger nights than this. Wrestlemania is the event that all events are measured by. This is the WWE’s second-to-last chance to get us to want to buy Wrestlemania.

    We begin with a tag match, Orton/Sheamus vs. Bryan/Kane. This match (shoot, this whole Raw) had one purpose-to get us to buy Wrestlemania. I like that they kept opponents separate. Heel Daniel Bryan was pretty impressive for me. I also like his commitment. There is no hesitation from him. The crowd seemed to be really hot and into a lot of the match. Commentary was also very strong. AJ got involved in the match and Bryan/Kane won. What a great first match.

    They did a really fun segment/match with Johnny Ace coming out first. Then he introduced his flag-bearer Vickie Guerrero and his team captain David Otunga. Booker T introduced Teddy Long’s flag-bearer Hornswoggle and team captain Santino Marella. As with all good David Otunga matches, it was short. As the match ended Miz did the beatdown and was announced as a member of Team Johnny.

    Eve killed Kelly Kelly. In other news, Beth Phoenix looked really hot in that dress. I was wrong. Kelly Kelly is now Super Cena with breasts.

    Christian walks out solidifying that he and Jack Swagger have a bad haircut contest. Then out comes Punk to reveal Jericho on the screen. He revealed that Punk was illegitimate. Then Christian attacked him which sent my wife into a tirade about his hair. My wife even liked the match enough to tell me. What a beatdown. Punk has snapped!

    Ah, yes. Nothing says focused for Wrestlemania quite like Brodus Clay. Curt Hawkins is on his way to your local Lions Club to put over Johnny Attitude. In his defense, Hawkins sold well.

    Big Show killed Primo. Remember when tag team champs weren’t jobbers? Cody Rhodes cut a really good promo.

    The Bellas demolish dialogue. So Zack Ryder’s gimmick is that he says stupid things to women. At least they had a focus for Wrestlemania.

    Great Khali fought Mark Henry in a match no one wanted to see. It was short and very painless. They had a face off and Booker T came to Teddy’s rescue. So Booker gets his Wrestlemania payday.

    Rock and Cena had their final stand-off. Rock sounded like he needed to work on his material in front of a live crowd. His monologue was awful. Then he was met by Cena. Rock has always put over talent. Shoot, he lost to Hurricane once. Now he has put Cena over verbally.

    It ended up being a really good Raw. They were focused and everything (except for Clay) seemed to be building towards a Wrestlemania. I’m ready for Wrestlemania. Bring it on.

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  9. Smackdown 03/23/12: Living in the Past?

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    Hey hey! What’s going on WPO Crew! AudioMaster G here! Oh wait, that’s my alter-identity on the Wonderpod-cast that usually airs on Fridays… just felt odd this week not hearing that spiel since the computer ate Bruce’s homework. But it is what it is. Speaking of which, it’s time for the holding pattern that is WWE television leading up to the Grand Daddy of Them All, WrestleMania 28! I’m sure tonight will entertain, but don’t expect much advancement in any storylines…. well, perhaps some members of Team Teddy will be announced. Regardless, get your ring gear on, call your Momma (he WILL appear), and let’s get to it, shall we?

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    Not single one was given that Monday.

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  10. Raw is Personal 3-19-12

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    Well, I’d like to write some introduction but for some reason I got home late and it just didn’t quite happen. So I will get right in to Raw.

    CM Punk opened it up talking about his dad being an alcoholic and how his dad had worked really hard to overcome and recover. Chris Jericho appeared on the screen and apologized for bringing up Punk’s father. Now his sister on the other hand… Punk fed off him and they had a really strong build-up.

    Big Show and Kane had a match or something. It was a back drop for Cody Rhodes to build up his and Big Show’s match. As the ambush happened, Cody handcuffed Big Show and went after him. Really strong build-up.

    They continued the build-up of Teddy Long-Johnny Ace by David Otunga facing Santino Marella. They started with a posedown. I gotta admit I popped for the Santino posedown.

    Rock talked a long time.

    Daniel Bryan squashed Zack Ryder.

    John Cena took quite the beating at the hands of Mark Henry.  But he won and The Rock did his move on Henry.

    Miz cuts a great promo. He puts out an open challenge and gets Sheamus. I really like how they are pointing out the way they’re not putting over Miz’ lack of Wrestlemania match.

    I still think that Randy Orton and Kane seem last-minute, but I like that they’re giving it meaning.

    We go from anti-bullying to Vickie Guerrero getting booed out of the building for having an annoying voice.

    We get Swagger and Ziggler vs. Truth & Kofi. It was pretty good build-up. Though I believe all 4 of those should have singles runs, I’m happy they have spots and places. Though I hate Swagger’s character, the guy is a natural athlete and would kill in a world like Ring of Honor or Japan.

    Then we had the 3-way confrontation. Shawn Michaels was the first. Then out came the Undertaker. Then out came HHH. They had a nice exchange, but it just wasn’t quite there.

    Tonight’s Raw was pretty decent. You had a lot of really good buildup and it made me want to see Wrestlemania a bit more.

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