Tag Archive: Paul Heyman

  1. RYTMANS RAW REVIEW 10/15/2012

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    We open with a recap of last week’s main event, Punk vs. Vince. The match ends with Punk running into the stands and Vince demanding that Punk choose either Cena or Ryback to face at Hell in the Cell, or Vince will choose for him.
    The show begins with the Show – Big Show to be exact. He complains about the “joke” debate he had with Sheamus, demands we watch the recap of him blocking a Brogue Kick, (we do,) and challenges Daniel Bryan to face him in a match, to avenge his 45 second world title reign.

    Backstage, R-Truth tells “Little Jimmy” to pay close attention to the monitor. Bryan refuses to go out. RAW GM AJ Lee orders him to go, Kane-his tag team partner-laughs at the thought of having Bryan’s back. Bryan shouts “NO!” Santino and Ryder shout “YES!” Bryan shouts “NO!” R-Truth shouts “YES!” Bryan shouts “NO,” to Little Jimmy, everyone shouts “YES!” Bryan walks to the ring, and rips up a young fan’s paper “goat face” mask.
     BIG SHOW VS WWE TAG TEAM CHAMPION(S) DANIEL BRYAN – Competitive match that goes more than 45 seconds. Bryan hits multiple high-spots however this ends with a choke-slam and a three-count for the Big Show. After the match, Kane comes out to gloat – at first, but when Show teases a WMD, Kane jumps in and protects Bryan.
    After a break, we have Paul Heyman in the ring with a covered easel. He introduces our WWE champion for the past 330 days, C.M. Punk. Punk refers to J.R. as “good ol’ bucket head,” and makes it clear he doesn’t care who it is…
    “Disrespect me, I put you down.” – C.M. Punk
    Punk goes on to reference last week’s show where “typical Vince,” tried to make the show all about himself (author’s note: as opposed to?) and how Punk slapped him in the face, and how two Superstars – Cena and Ryback – had to save him. He then shows us the Hell in the Cell poster, depicting him as the Devil. Punk claims to be an angel compared to any of us, and while he feels angels and devils “don’t exist,” he is willing to play “make believe” with us “for five minutes,” and refers to Cena and Ryback as “the devil you know,” (Cena) vs. “The devil you don’t know” (Ryback.) Punk teases the reveal of his choice by going over to the easel, then decides we need to learn to be patient, and decides he needs more time. This brings out Vince McMahon to tell him he “blew it,” and by the end of the night, there will be a contract signing where Vince will choose Punk’s challenger.
    “Your fate, at Hell in the Cell, is now in my hands, respect that”- Vincent Kennedy McMahon.
    Now you’re probably wondering “isn’t this the same thing Punk was going to do? Make us wait for the big reveal?” You’re missing the point.
    This way, we’re waiting for VINCE to make the announcement.
    After all, why would we want to focus on the WWE champion all night?
    We go to a promo for the Susan G. Komen foundation and breast cancer awareness month, with Layla telling us about losing her mom to breast cancer. If this is true (and I am NOT calling Layla a liar, I’m speaking in terms of work/shoot,) then I have a whole new respect for Layla.
    Back from break, we have a recap of Randy Orton surprising Alberto Del Rio on Smackdown last Friday.
    ALBERTO DEL RIO VS BRODUS CLAY – Del Rio’s aggressiveness completely negates any advantage Clay’s size/strength might give him. Despite some hard shots, Del Rio’s agility and attack on the left arm gets him the victory w/the arm breaker.
    Backstage: Punk is NOT happy with this turn of events. He sends Heyman to challenge Vince to a rematch from last week. Heyman goes, reluctantly.
    Santino Morella and Zack Ryder head to the ring as we go to break.
    PRIME TIME PLAYERS VS CO-BRO (SANTINO/RYDER) – Match is in progress as we come back from break. The match breaks down into a quick spot-fest with Titus O’Neal hitting a D-Lo Brown style power-bomb/spin-buster and getting the tree-count for the PTP.
    After the match, Santino gets a beat down from Heath Slater, Jinder Mahal, and Drew McIntyre, now in matching outfits, and officially known as “3MB.”
    After a break, we get a recap of Vince’s ultimatum to Punk.
    Vicki Guerro asks us to “EXCUSE” her, so she can introduce Dolph Ziggler. Dolph cuts a promo on Ryback and demands a shot at Punk. David Otunga comes out, cuts a promo on Ziggler and Vicki, and demands a shot at punk. AJ Lee comes out, and puts them in a handicap match against Ryback.
    RYBACK VS SHO-TUNGA (DOLPH ZIGGLER/DAVID OTUNGA) – Ziggler bails on his partner, and Ryback shell-shocks Otunga for the win.
    What was supposed to happen?
    Backstage; Vince is on the phone when he’s interrupted by “a plague of locusts.” Paul Heyman – plague in question – proposes a rematch with Punk where, if Punk “should happen” to win, he gets to pick his opponent for HitC. Vince counter-offers with the idea of HEYMAN facing Vince in the ring for Punk’s option to choose. Heyman starts whining and Vince shouts him out of the office, because that wouldn’t have been interesting.
    Elsewhere backstage; Matt Stryker requests an apology from team “Hell No,” for their attack on him last Friday on Smackdown, he makes the mistake of using the word “crazy,” and AJ puts him in a match w/Kane.
    After the break, we see video of Cena being named honorary captain of the NY Jets football team. I’m sure that won’t come back to haunt anyone.
    U.S. CHAMPION ANTONIO CESARO VS JUSTIN GABRIEL – Cesaro is getting the reverse booking of Ryback, getting hard fought wins while making his opponents look good. Gabriel gets in a lot of offense, including a sic 450 off the top, but it ends with Cesaro hitting the “Neutralizer” for the three-count.
    After the break, we see Matt Stryker in the ring, and Kane makes his entrance w/pyro.
    WWE TAG TEAM CHAMPION(S) KANE VS MATT STRYKER – Stryker tries to talk his way out of this match, Kane agrees to “hug it out” w/him. Kan doesn’t let go however, and after a vicious shaking, Stryker takes a choke-slam. Kane decides to “interview” an unconscious Stryker and loudly declares “I AM THE TAG TEAM CHAMPIONS!”
    We get a recap of the lousy Larry King segment from last week and a promo for “MizTV” after the break.
    We come back to the MizTV segment. I’ll cut to the chase. Miz insults Kofi, Kofi challenges him to a match, Miz says Kofi will never be more than his catch phrase, Kofi jumps Miz and trashes the set.  According to the announce team, AJ has confirmed the match.

    Back from break, we get a recap of the Big Show catching Sheamus by the foot and tossing him out of the ring last week.

    WORLD HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPION SHEAMUS VS WADE BARRETT – Hard fought brawl with the pace slowly building while the tide turns back and forth. After the first few minutes, Big Show comes out to ringside as we go to commercial.

    Back from the break, Sheamus and Barrett trade heavy shots and take turns tossing each other around, until Show pulls down the top rope, and Sheamus goes over and out to the floor. Sheamus gets the DQ, and gets in a Brogue kick to Barrett before sending Show out the ring w/a clothesline.

    After a recap of the Vince/Punk face off, we get Vince in the back with Cena. Vince asks Cena about what his doctor said, Cena says it doesn’t matter, and tells Vince it’s up to him.

    Divas Champion Eve comes out to the ring as we go to break.
    DIVAS CHAMPION EVE TORRES VS LAYLA (DIVAS CHAMPIONSHIP) – We get a quick recap of how Eve got the title shot at Night Of Champions after Kaitlyn (who Layla was supposed to face) was injured by a “mysterious attacker.” Match is better than you’d expect with the exception of a few unconvincing kicks by Layla, and ends with the ref counting three on Layla despite her foot being on the ropes. Eve knocks it off after the three-count but before the ref sees it.

    We go to a spot with Stephanie McMahon speaking about the WWE’s partnership with NothingButNets.com, a charity for underprivileged youth.

    Backstage; Kane is laughing at Bryan’s misfortune after facing Big Show. Bryan dares Kane to face Big Show next week.
    Rhodes Scholars come out for their tag match, after the break.

    We come back with 3MB rushing the stage at a nearby bar. They act like they’re going to play but security throws them out.

    RHODES SCHOLARS (CODY RHODES/DAMIEN SANDOW) VS PRIMO/EPICO W/ROSA – We are told the tag team tournament finals will be next week, when Cody and Damien face Rey Mysterio and Sin Cara. This is a solid but standard tag with Rhodes and Sandow getting the win.

    INTERCONTINENTAL CHAMPION THE MIZ VS KOFI KINGSTON – Quick hard fought match ends with Miz taking a SCARY “trouble in paradise” kick to the face. Kofi gets a three-count and Miz gets an open head wound.

    We get an announcement of the Rolling Stones PPV concert sponsored by WWE.

    The show ends with the HitC contract signing. Punk goes off on Vince but Cena interrupts him, and actually hypes the crow into a “FEED ME MORE” chant. The show ends with Vince giving Ryback the shot and Ryback giving Punk the shell-shock.

  2. RYTMANS RAW RECAP 10/01/2012

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    We open w/a replay of Foley facing off w/CM Punk, followed by Punk taking a lead pipe to the gut by Cena, the attack on Foley, and the stare down w/Ryback.

    Out first is WWE Champion C.M. Punk w/Paul Heyman. Heyman carries the WWE title. Punk calls Cena a coward and accuses Mick Foley of shooting him a disrespectful look and muttering something under his breath, which is why Punk put him down like a dog. Punk asks (rhetorically) if Mick would’ve disrespected Cena, The Rock, or Steve Austin like that. Heyman answers “no” to each one. He did listen to one thing Foley said, about his legacy and facing John Cena in Hell in The Cell, and that’s why he’s here to announce that it still will not happen.

    Heyman takes the Mike and moves on to a most relevant piece of business. We see last week when AJ responded to his marriage proposal by slapping him. He points out she never said no, but she did put her hands on him, in direct violation of an edict by the WWE B.O.D. He reads the memo handed down, and demands AJ be removed from office, and replaced with him.

    Vicki Guerro comes out w/Dolph Ziggler and reminds us of AJ attacking her 2 months ago, and we get Heyman vs. Vicki on the mike, briefly. Dolph interjects saying this is all AJ’s fault and suggests Heyman and Vicki team-up to take over.
    AJ skips out, and informs us all she is on probation. She calls Heyman a “slimy, shady, greasy, creepy as all hell, worm-like excuse for a man,” and mentions she now has a “coach” advising her on running the show.

    And Now Daniel Bryan is out. He says he’s just out to apologize for contributing to AJ’s mental state by dumping her. He refers to himself as a handsome, former world champion with “a great beard,” and he is now the Tag Team Champions, plural.

    Out comes Kane to remind us AJ Lee is a “phenomenal kisser,” and agrees with Bryan about everything, except for one item.  HE is the tag team champions – plural. This breaks down into everyone hollering at each other, until AJ brings it to a halt with a freak out. She reminds us she is still in charge and makes a tag team match, Punk/Ziggler vs. Team Hell No. AJ skips off and we get a promo for a World Heavyweight Championship debate between Big Show and Sheamus. We see Sin Cara and Rey Mysterio heading towards the ring as we go to break.

    Side Note: Rey’s mask is designed to look like it’s half his, Half Sin Cara’s. Cara’s mask is half his, half Rey’s.
    Nice touch

    REY MYSTERIO/SIN CARA DEF PRIMO/EPICO W/ROSA – The masked Mexicans dominate a fast-paced match up while the Prime Time Players look on from the stage. Rey ends it with the 619 and a drop of the dime for the 1-2-3.

    We go to break with a reminder of the Sheamus/Big Show debate coming up later.

    U.S. CHAMPION ANTONIO CESARO DEF BRODUS CLAY – This match starts as we come back from break. Cesaro cuts a picture-in-picture promo demanding appreciation in five different languages. Brodus looks strong until he takes a flying back elbow. Cesaro ends it with the neutralizer for the pin.

    Backstage: Kaitlin is pulling up her sock over her injured ankle when AJ comes in with her executive coach Christopher J Stevenson. He’s here to evaluate her performance. She makes like she wants to make nice and asks Kaitlin for forgiveness. When Kaitlin smiles at her, AJ bursts into demonic laughter, saying she wasn’t sorry at all, and skips off, leaving CJS and Kaitlin to look confused at each other. We go to break, teasing JR appreciation night.

    We come back from break with Zack Ryder in the ring and The Miz coming out. We’re told our social media ambassador for the night will be Larry King.

    INTERCONTINENTAL CHAMPION THE MIZ DEF ZACK RYDER – Ryder actually dominates most of the match, but Miz ends it w/a power-bomb to the corner and the Skull-Crushing-Finale.

    We come back from break with Smackdown GM Booker-T making his way to the ring. He introduces the Big Show. As Show comes to the ring, we recap Show giving Randy Orton the WMD on last weeks’ Smackdown. Booker then introduces World Champion Sheamus. Both men make quick opening statements. Booker reads them questions from Twitter. Sheamus keeps reminding Show about losing the World Championship to Daniel Bryan in 45 seconds. Show gets angrier. Show collapses his podium (by accident at first.) Then we go to a Tout from Rey Mysteri-O’Sulivan.
    It’s Sheamus in a Mysterio mask.
    Yep.
    Both men tease a throw-down, but Show just storms off. We get a promo for the main event tag, and we cut to Ryback lumbering towards the ring as we go to break.

    RYBACK DEF TENSAI – Michael Cole informs us of Jerry Lawler’s improving condition as the match gets under way. It’s a pretty even trade-off of power moves, but when Ryback attempts to lift Tensai into the Meat Hook, someone botches, twice. Cole and JR try to sell it as a block by Tensai, and Ryback ends this with a hard clothesline.

    We go to break with a reminder that tonight is JR appreciation night.

    When we come back, we’re introduced to breast cancer survivors and their families in the crowd as part of WWE’s breast cancer awareness month promotion w/the Susan G. Komen foundation.

    WWE DIVAS CHAMP EVE DEF BETH PHEONIX – Before the match, we get a recap of Eve trying to suspend Beth, getting called on it by Booker T, and throwing Teddy Long under the bus. Eve cuts a picture-in-picture promo where she hard sells the entire Diva division just a little too earnestly. This was a short back-and-forth match with Eve winning by faking an eye injury, hitting a low kick, and the neck-breaker for the three-count.

    Backstage: AJ introduces her coach to Wade Barrett. Wade gives her a tongue-lashing before storming off. AJ says her coach looks intimidated.

    We go to break with a promo for the main event.

    When we come back, John Bradshaw Layfield gives us a Tout about his successful climb of Mount Kilimanjaro as part of a campaign to raise money for underprivileged children.

    SANTINO MORELLA DEF HEATH SLATER (DQ) – Short comedy match ends with Santino hitting the “Cobra” on Slater and Slater’s friends, Drew McIntyre and Jinder Mahal jumping Santino. Drew hits the “Future Shock” DDT on Santino and they shove the Cobra sock in Sandino’s mouth. Each man introduces himself to the crowd. Drew is still “the Chosen One;” Jinder is “the Maharaja,” and Slater is “The One Man Band.”

    We go to commercial with a teaser for “JR appreciation night.”

    WORLD HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPION SHEAMUS DEF DAMIEN SANDOW W/CODY RHODES – Earlier tonight, we had a backstage segment where Sandow and Rhodes both denied the WWE universe coming up with their name while bashing the debate segment.  This was one of the most hard-fought matches on RAW in a long time. Both men were booked strong in this match and some are already considering this MOTY material. Match ends with Sheamus throwing Cody in the ring and hitting the Brogue Kick on both men.

    We come back from break, with Cole in the ring re-introducing JR to the crowd. JR comes down from the stage, into the ring. Just as JR starts to speak, C.M. Punk heads out with Paul Heyman. Punk gives JR a big build up as a man who’s earned respect. He asks JR to call him “the best in the world.” JR refuses and gives Punk a dressing down. Punk stomps on JR’s hat and orders him out of the ring. JR is halfway gone when RYBACK steps into view. Ryback brings back JR and Punk decides discretion is the better part of valor and takes a hike.

    ALBERTO DEL RIO DEF KOFI KINGSTON – Del Rio rides out in a $150,000 Mazarati, as Ricardo Rodriguez introduces him. We take a look back at last Friday on Smackdown as Randy Orton gets the WMD from Big Show, and gets attacked by Del Rio after the show. Kofi comes down with R-Truth and “little Jimmy,” while RR joins the announce team. Ricardo comes off a little disoriented on commentary. Kofi hits his spots but the match ends with him tapping out to the arm-breaker.

    Backstage: AJ and her coach are talking. All seems well until AJ suggests that HE be the special guest ref. AJ says a coach “isn’t worth a damn unless he’s been a player,” and her coach “has never been a player.” She throws him out the building, and smirks like a Cheshire Cat.

    Side Note: JR makes a boo-boo as he talks over AJ, suggesting Cole “do the reveal,” and apologizes for “talking when he should’ve been listening,” when they come back. Bryan and Kane make their entrances as we go to break.

    WWE TAG TEAM CHAMPIONS TEAM HELL NO (BRYAN/KANE) DEF WWE CHAMPION C.M. PUNK (W/PAUL HEYMAN) AND DOLPH ZIGGLER (W/VICKI GUERRO) – We come back with everyone in the ring. AJ makes her way out as “special guest ref,” for the match, and nobody is happy about it. The match itself is a well-paced back and forth tag-team battle, with AJ playing it as a hard-line ref. At one point, Heyman pulls Punk’s foot over the bottom rope to break a three count, and AJ sends him to the back. Vicki protests, and gets sent to the back. Ziggler chases after her, leaving Punk alone to take a choke-slam from Kane for the three-count.

    RYTMANS RANT

    AJ Lee IS the star of Monday Night RAW, good and bad. The good is AJ has taken this derpy gimmick and RAN with it. She has the intensity and charisma to play this big and it’s worked. The bad is she’s not technically in-ring talent right now, so she’s basically high-jacking the show from the wrestlers.
    My problem with this is there’s no point to it. She can’t make herself WWE champion, and she doesn’t seem to care who the champion is, as long as she’s the center of attention. She’s basically playing this as an insane child who sees RAW as her toy box, and if you don’t play “right” she sends you into the cornfield. (Twilight Zone Reference:”It’s a good life.”) To me, this is a waste.  AJ is just playing with her “power,” and doesn’t really seem to care about accomplishing anything.

    Here’s another thing, WHO THE HELL ARE THE GOOD GUYS AROUND HERE? Going back to AJ, why should I be happy about her sticking it to the heels if she’s just going to turn around and be nasty to the faces? Are Bryan and Kane supposed to be good guys? Why is Bryan still a douche? WHO AM I SUPPOSED TO ROOT FOR?

    That’s all for this week boys and girls. I’ll see you next week with another Rytman recap and rant.

  3. BWF Radio Episode 32

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    YES! YES! YES!  ThinkSoJoE and G are back with yet another episode of BoredWrestlingFan Radio!  The usual chat about the televised shows ensues, followed by this week in wrestling news.  What can you expect this Monday on the 1000th episode of RAW?  Who does CM Punk want calling his match tomorrow night?  Will Kurt Angle get his PWHOF plaque?  Will Michael McGillicutty ever get his real name back?  Does Paul Heyman really give a crap who owns the ECW trademark?  When was Tyler Reks the ROH World Champion?  Did Sin Cara nearly injure Dolph Ziggler?  What is Mick Foley tweeting about?  Where’s Wade?  All this and much more, on BWF Radio, Episode number 32!

    BoredWrestlingFan Radio Episode 32 (MP3, 1:51:59)

  4. Power Poll 5/20/12

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    This week’s power poll is here!

    1. Paul Heyman (1)

    Take note.  A guy who hadn’t been on WWE Television since he was unceremoniously fired from the company in 2006 is the most over guy in all of professional wrestling right now.

    2. Triple H (NR)

    A guy working a very limited schedule is the second most over guy in pro wrestling right now.

    3. CM Punk (NR)

    The WWE Champion rebounds into the top 10 with a tag team victory on Monday.

    4. Chris Jericho (3)

    Chris Jericho impresses in tag team AND singles action last Friday, and continues against Orton on Monday.

    5. Kevin Steen (NR)

    Ring of Honor is finally represented in the power poll by way of a new World Champion, Wrestling’s Worst Nightmare Kevin Steen!

    6. Bobby Rhoode (NR)

    TNA’s current World Champion makes the top 10 this week as well!

    7. Christopher Daniels & Kaz (NR)

    The new TNA Tag Team Champions make the power poll!

    8. WGTT – Shelton Bemjamin & Charlie Haas (NR)

    As do the new ROH Tag Team Champions!

    9. John Cena (NR)

    John Cena may well have saved the show on Monday, and he makes the Power Poll for it.

    10. Ryback (8)

    Taking Damien Sandow’s discarded opponent doesn’t net Ryback any Power Poll cred, but it’s enough to keep him from falling off the list.

    Fallen Out Of The Top 10:

    Lord Tensai, Daniel Bryan, Sheamus, Alberto Del Rio, Brodus Clay, Randy Orton, Kofi Kingston & R-Truth

    (Last week’s Position)

  5. WWE RAW results 5/14/12

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    Another week, another RAW review. I DID have somebody volunteer, but that somebody’s e-mail address they gave me bounced back to me. So, if you’re interested in being our BWF RAW Blogger, please e-mail contact@boredwrestlingfan.com.

    I don’t remember what happened last week even though I wrote about it and we talked about it on yesterday’s podcast. Well, I remember Paul Heyman. THIS IS EXTREME!

    (more…)

  6. Power Poll for 5/13/12

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    The Power Poll is an opinion poll conducted each week among various professional wrestling sites to pick out the definitive top ten professional wrestling personalities of the week.

    1. Paul Heyman (NR)

    Want to hit the top of the Power Poll?  Show up unannounced after being gone for five years.  Welcome back, Paul!

    2. Lord Tensai (NR)

    Along with the number one contender at Over The Limit, Tensai decimated the WWE Champion on RAW.

    3. Chris Jericho (NR)

    He may have lost his two WWE Championship opportunities at WrestleMania and Extreme Rules, but can he push World Heavyweight Champion Sheamus Over The Limit now that he’s made his way into the Fatal Four Way?

    4. Daniel Bryan (5)

    He may not have pinned the WWE Champion, but it’s a victory for Daniel Bryan nonetheless.

    5. Sheamus (4)

    Sheamus went from having one opponent in Alberto Del Rio at No Way Out to having three.  Taking an RKO on Monday didn’t help his Power Poll rankings either.

    6. Alberto Del Rio (NR)

    Being named number one contender on Friday and then having it changed to a Fatal Four Way on Monday isn’t exactly what Del Rio wanted, but his work has impressed the Power Pollers regardless.

    7. Brodus Clay (NR)

    Today’s Mother’s Day.  Somebody call your Momma!

    8. Ryback (9)

    After weeks of squashing enhancement talent, Ryback steps up to squash Heath Slater.  What’s the difference?  One step on the Power Poll, apparently.

    9. Randy Orton (7)

    A Brogue Kick from Sheamus on RAW knocked Orton down a few notches, but the comeback RKO and the fact he’s now got a title opportunity at Over The Limit allow Orton to hang on to a top ten slot.

    10. R-Truth & Kofi Kingston (6)

    The new WWE Tag Team Champions continue their roll and cling to the bottom of the Power Poll.

    Fallen Out Of The Top 10:

    John Cena, Brock Lesnar, CM Punk, Cody Rhodes, Layla

    (Last week’s Position)


  7. Smackdown 05/11/12: Four Guys From the Original NEXUS Are On This Show.

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    It’s Friday, and that means I’m tired as hell and Smackdown is on. Let’s check out our card for the evening:

    Some dude who knows the BWF and WPO's own Justin Ruff, tagged him on facebook in this picture. Don't thank me, thank the interwebs.

    Looks like a happening to me, so let’s get to it… shall we?

    (more…)

  8. Raw is Coming Pain 4-9-2012

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    Last week was perhaps one of the greatest Raws in history. How do you follow it up? I’m very concerned because I believe that the WWE is really good at having a good episode. But a streak of good episodes is something all together different.

    We begin with a promo about the Three Stooges. Johnny Ace comes out with his lackey David Otunga. He said that David Otunga is not here to entertain us. I was so relieved because if he were supposed to entertain us, he’s doing a very bad job. Johnny Ace plays a video package and then introduces Brock Lesnar. I’m a little disappointed they’re letting him speak yet, but ok. Brock doesn’t need Paul Heyman this time. He cut the best promos in the UFC (aside from Chael Sonnen). He was the man you loved to hate and was so good being that villain. Cena slapped Brock and then Brock did the takedown. They brought out ALL the wrestlers. It took the entire roster to separate both men. And Brock bloodied John Cena’s mouth.

    Johnny Ace is humiliating Teddy Long. Please. That man once managed Jim Powers in WCW. He is beyond humiliation. Now Eve wants her some Ace Crusher and he isn’t having it.

    We had a nice match that happened way too early. This crowd was not last week’s crowd but the match was pretty decent. Santino did the face in peril to perfection. And the match was really well put together. Dolph bumped like Shawn Michaels in 1994. Funkasaurus got the pin.

    Santino is looking for the Three Stooges. Why not?

    R-Truth is taking on Cody Rhodes. So apparently he’s doing the Brian Pillman “wear a dress until he wins” thing.

    Sean Hayes was on Raw. That was surreal.

    Yoshi Tatsu got killed by Lord Tensai. At least they aren’t trying to pretend A-Train never existed. Then he did the claw on Yoshi again. It seems they are focused.

    They continued the CM Punk-Jericho feud. Punk cut a promo. It wasn’t up to the caliber of  the usual Punk promo. But it was real and emotional. Then Jericho appeared on the screen.  Then Punk lit up. It was a thing of beauty. There was genuine fire. And then they killed any possible emotion by bringing out Mark Henry. Punk got dq’ed, mostly on purpose. Then Mark Henry did the beatdown followed by Punk getting a beer-bath.

    Zack Ryder got squashed by Alberto del Rio. I do have to say that Ryder did a really great job of bumping for him.

    They did a really cute segment with Will Sasso (Curly) doing Hulk Hogan. Then Kane came out squashed him.

    Brock did an interview. He has always been a great villain wherever he’s gone.

    David Otunga was in a main event (which made me cry a little, to be honest). They just really need to stop pushing guys this big. Lesnar came in and gave Cena a low blow. Then he had the most sadistic smile ever. EVER.

    This was another pretty good Raw. The wrestling wasn’t that great, but the angles were pretty good. They look focused. I want to see Extreme Rules more than I wanted to see Wrestlemania.

  9. Coming Down The Aisle..

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    Ladies and gentle/wild-men of the “Bored Wrestling Fan” community, welcome to my very first article here in the land of the strange, crazy and indeed wacky. Please let me begin this by stating how awesome it is to be here and how sweet it really is to be back writing about professional wrestling again! Oh wrasslin’ journalism, how I have missed thee!

    I’ve basically been given free reign to chatter away to my hearts content about all things wrestling, which is perhaps the most fantastic welcome email I could have received by “the boss” (I’m very sure he walks just like Vince McMahon into the office every morning), ThinkSoJoe. So, with that said – feel free to thank that man for inflic…erm…bringing me onto your computer screens each week. You can thank him in anyway you see fit, likely by screaming at him in a voice akin to Paul Heyman, “WHO’S THE RAMBLING SCOTSMAN WITH THE GRAMMATICAL SKILLS OF A 4 YEAR OLD!?”.

    It’s plainly obvious why I am here and why I have managed to stumble, with the help of the lovely Drowgoddess, blind drunk into the land of BWF; yours truly simply loves professional wrestling. I have done since I was a very small boy and will continue to do so until I’m a very small old man. It’s always hard for me to convey or put across my true passion for what all those men and women do each and every night. I’ve penned many an article for many a website regarding my thanks for the countless hours of fantastic entertainment they have given me over the years. The sacrifice and dedication to performance is evidently appreciated by millions, with me amongst those millions. I love wrestling for the drama, the spectacle, the over-the-top hammy acting and the head-in-hands moments where you’re failing to believe what you’ve just witnessed. It has made me laugh, it has made me cry. One thing it has never really failed to do however, is fail to entertain me.

    I’ve long pondered why I am so enraptured by this unique form of scripted theatre. In the many years I’ve followed the grap-game, there have been many people I know who have moved on from it’s clutches. “Grown out of it” or grown bored of it, the numbers aren’t exactly sparse. In my circle of friends, I’d go so far as to say that 90% of them now view professional wrestling as “something for kids” or “entertainment for morons”. They don’t mean anything harsh by these statements but they seem to be missing the point of why I’m still heavily into it – it’s more than entertainment to me. I enjoy thinking about what might go on backstage. Where the storylines come from and how they’re put together is a topic which has long kept me awake at night, basking in the afterglow of another Pay-Per-View conclusion. Sure, I know ABSOLUTELY NOTHING that goes on when the lights go down and the show’s over, but it doesn’t stop me from daydreaming about it.

    The above may seem like a pretty wacked-out piece of nonsense to a number of you. I appreciate that there are those and such as those who merely wish to watch the show week-to-week, never thinking of what goes on behind the curtain. Afterall, what’s wrong with that? If you’re getting what entertainment you need out of the product then by all means treat it how you wish to treat it. One thing nobody should ever do however, is tell another fan how to go about enjoying the same product. This is partly what makes pro wrestling such an exclusive commodity however. How many people do you know who watch…say…CSI and when they switch the TV off, they wonder for hours how the show is put together, what the cast are like as real people and will eagerly debate with others on whether or not William Petersen as “Gil Grissom” is protecting his spot and keeping the minor characters in their place, hogging the limelight all for himself?

    Now we all know that if this does happen, it’s a very rare occurrence. Most fans of most TV shows are happy to tune in, enjoy and then tune out, getting on with the rest of their day/evening. Not so in the wrestling world. It’s one of those entertainment mediums which has it’s content scrutinised relentlessly by a huge number of it’s fanbase each and every day of the year.

    The internet itself has become so renowned that the fans who like wrestling AND use the web are now referred to as the “IWC” or “Internet Wrestling Community”. There’s a negative stigma attached to this too, wherein fans who surf the net to talk about wrestling are perceived as fat nerds who just want to pick holes in what happened on Monday Night RAW. Now I’m extremely sure there are those of that ilk among us but, y’know, some of us just want to chat to fellow fans about what’s going down, where the promotion could possibly take the stories from here and wax lyrical regarding Velvet Sky’s entrance sequence.

    Personally, and I’m sure I’m not alone here, this reputation irritates me. It’s not that many wrestlers and creative team members of the various wrestling companies have bias against opinionated forum-users that gets to me. It’s a large portion of the vast number of wrestling-based message boards userbase that gets to me. The very same userbase which I myself am a part of. There does seem to be so much negativity around, to the point that sometimes you find yourself wondering why most of these people even watch the shows anymore. What pleasure can be gained out of watching any entertainment medium you find ridiculous, seething over it and then venting your self-made frustrations to others over the internet? Surely to heck some of these folks need to relax and if wrestling isn’t as good to them as it was back during the “Attitude” era, they should just stick to YouTube clips, videotape libraries and memories?

    Having said all that, I beg of you – please do not get me wrong. There are many things which happen on wrestling shows which perplex me to absolute unholy hell. Do these things ruin my day? No. Do these happenings destroy my enjoyment of the show as a whole? No. I wouldn’t watch it for one minute longer if they did! I guess I do understand where some of the bitching comes from but, like I said, it impresses me how some of these people beat the product up and yet still find the time to tune in. It’s simply something I may never understand.

    If you’re still awake, I must thank you for taking the time to peruse through my article. I really hope it’s apparent how passionate I am about the weird and wacky world of pro wrestling. As much as I know about it, I like humbling myself by saying that I know next to nothing about it, really. I know what I think, what I’ve read and heard, which is possibly not actually what happens in the day-to-day running of World Wrestling Entertainment or Total Non-Stop Action Wrestling.

    I’d really like to hear from you regarding the content of this column. Any opinions, questions or corrections you can think of, I’m more than happy to read them all. I just love talking to others about wrestling! That’s why I’m here! I’d also just like to thank ThinkSoJoe, Drowgoddess and each and every one of you for welcoming me here with such open arms. It’s great to be a part of the family! You can send all correspondence to jamiekennedy@live.com

    I look forward to it! TAKE IT HOME!

  10. An Extreme eulogy

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    Tonight, the very last remnants of a company that I truly loved a decade ago will finally be laid to rest.  The letters ECW, which truly meant something to so many wrestling fans before the WWE got it’s hands on them, will finally be put out of their misery at 11:05 PM following a battle for the brand’s championship between two men who never competed in a real ECW match, Christian and Ezekiel Jackson.

    Though this contest will be contested under Extreme Rules, it will be nothing like the ECW matches that took place under the watch of Paul Heyman.  An independent wrestling promotion that dug and clawed it’s way up from late night showings in the Philadelphia market to become a viable number three (and some would argue number two) promotion in the United States, ECW was a victim of it’s own success.  Vince McMahon and Eric Bischoff started to notice ECW, and started to buy up the promotion’s top stars.  Heyman couldn’t afford to keep his stars paid and ultimately, ECW closed it’s doors in 2001.

    The WWE bought the rights to the promotion, and in 2004 released “The Rise and Fall of ECW” on DVD.  The success of that release, and a suggestion from Rob Van Dam, led to a WWE produced ECW Pay Per View titled “One Night Stand” in 2005.  Several performers from ECW’s past participated in the event, which was a success for World Wrestling Entertainment.  By the time the company put on a followup in 2006, the decision had been made to bring ECW back as a brand of the WWE along with RAW and SmackDown, and at One Night Stand 2006, Rob Van Dam defeated John Cena for the WWE Championship.  Two nights later, he was given the ECW Championship on the first edition of ECW on SciFi.

    By December, Paul Heyman was released from his World Wrestling Entertainment contract following the failed “December to Dismember” Pay Per View, and from there, the brand started to evolve into what we’ve been seeing on SyFy every Tuesday night, which is a far cry from the gift that Todd Gordon and Paul Heyman gave the world in the mid 90’s.  Tonight, the show will air for the last time, and the letters E-C-W will finally be able to R.I.P.