The Wrestling Menu #35 - What? (DVD Review) Austin's Return & PPV Predictions
Submitted by DaveyBoy on Wednesday, February 19, 2003 at 5:03 AM EST




THE WRESTLING MENU #35

Welcome one and all to the 35th edition of The Wrestling Menu, the column that is sure to satisfy your taste buds when it comes to discussing all things wrestling.

Today sees another instalment of my special 'reviews' mini-series. I hope you have enjoyed the reviews I have done so far. If they have helped anyone with purchase decisions, well that's an extra bonus. Just on that, I have to give extra special thanks to Richard Land & Chris Watson who informed me that there were 2 special 'Easter Eggs' (hidden extras) on the 'Hulk Still Rules' DVD. A corny video clip for Real American, plus an even cornier version of Tutti Frutti sung by Mene Gene with the Hulkster playing bass. If anyone wants to know how these can be accessed, send me an e-mail & I'll let you know.

Your meal is about to be served. What? I said your meal is about to be served. What? Ah, forget about it!!!


APPETIZERS - Stone Cold What Review

Before I begin this DVD review, I should state that I am not a fan of the crowd chanting 'what' all the time during anyone's microphone time. I didn't mind it when Austin debuted it when he was talking down to the other alliance wrestlers during 2001, but when the audience participation got out of hand, it started to actually annoy me. Thus, I viewed this DVD with a little trepidation. Luckily, the DVD did not concentrate on the catchphrase at all.

The first 2 segments were an excellent start to the DVD. They were 2 matches from early 2001; No Way Out vs Triple H & WrestleMania X7 vs The Rock. On Triple H, Austin looked forward in time & stated that he had lots of respect for Hunter after finishing the match where he tore his quad. He compared it to Austin's match when Owen Hart accidentally broke his neck. On WrestleMania, Austin talks nicely on how being in the main event of WrestleMania was always his aim, as it meant he earnt his status as being the best in the business.

Furthermore regarding WrestleMania X7, he discusses his heel turn aligning himself with Vince McMahon. He didn't think he would get the appropriate reaction turning heel without Vince, but wanted to turn so that he could also be successful in being hated by the WWF fans. Subsequently, his heel run was highlighted by his May-29 match with Chris Benoit in Edmonton. The fans hated him & loved it when Benoit gave Stone Cold 10 German Suplexes in a row.

A short history is shown next of his Texas, USWA & WCW days. He had both long & short blond hair, and states that his favorite opponent was Ricky Steamboat. Another interesting comment is concerning Jake 'The Snake' Roberts, who Austin admires for being so economical in the ring. Following this section of the DVD, is some of his more entertaining moments. These include some Mad Tv sketches & his angle where he sung to & hugged Vince McMahon. A classic little blooper of Austin singing is also included. I just knew they couldn't have done those segments in one take!!! This leads disjointedly on to his shenanigans after each show has gone off the air, which includes a hilarious situation where Austin constantly makes fun of the fans' occupations, until he runs into a woman who runs a Christian Publishing Company.

Also included in the 63 minutes of the main section of the DVD is the return of the proper Stone Cold during the invasion, his excellent SummerSlam match against Kurt Angle, his brief thoughts on 9-11 & beer. As for the catchphrase, he discusses its origins (a voicemail message to Christian) & its height (or should that be low) when the crowd were chanting 'what' during the national anthem.

The DVD extras include 4 average little interviews. The timely highlight of these is when asked who he trusts, Austin only answers JR & Debra. However, the 3 main extras are the 3 minute speech at King Of The Ring '96 where Austin 3:16 was born, his 40 minute 2001 Match Of The Year contender vs Triple H at No Way Out & a very good 20 minute U.S HeavyWeight Title Bout against Ricky 'The Dragon' Steamboat from Bash At The Beach 1994.

All in all, if you have yet to see this DVD, I would recommend it. It is well put together & has a good combination of entertainment, wrestling & insightful comments. Only die-hard Austin fans should purchase it at full price (as there should have been more extras), but it's probably worth adding to your collection if you can pick it up discounted somewhere. I thought Austin came out of it pretty well, as he's pretty much straight down the line & you can tell that he earnt his status as one of the wrestling greats of all time.


MAIN - No Way Out Predictions

I thought I'd serve up my predictions for the upcoming pay-per-view again this month, as they seemed to go over really well in January. That might have been because I controversially stated that Chris Jericho should have won the Rumble from position #2, but I guess I'll soon find out. My predictions will only be on the matches that I am 100% sure will be on the card. I will give my general thoughts on the match, such as the effectiveness of the feud so far & how good a match I think we will see. Of course, who I believe will win the match will always be included. Here goes:

BILLY KIDMAN vs MATT HARDYfor the Cruiserweight Title: A lot of people feel that the cruiserweight division is a huge step down for Matt, and that he can hold his own in the heavyweight division. While this may be true, I take the positive viewpoint that without a midcard title, a successful reign as cruiserweight champion can do wonders for both Hardy & the division. I hope this match opens the pay-per-view and is given at least 12 minutes. If Kidman puts in a good performance, I don't think he will be buried in a hopefully improved division. Winner: Matt Hardy

CHRIS JERICHO vs JEFF HARDY: I actually don't mind Jeff Hardy being involved here, instead of Test. Either way, Jericho's opponent is only playing a supporting role to what should be a great WrestleMania match between Jericho & Shawn Michaels. Jericho must be victorious in this match cleanly. My preferred method would see HBK attempting to interfere in this bout, only to see Jericho still win. This could lead to the usual Jericho bragging on subsequent Raws, which should result in some humorous & intense segments between the two. Winner: Chris Jericho

THE UNDERTAKER vs THE BIG SHOW: I'm a little confused as to who will win this match. The main reason being that I have no clue who The Undertaker will face at WrestleMania. The Rock, Hogan & Lesnar should all be busy, while I don't think A-Train or Nathan Jones would be ready for such a huge match just yet. The only other obvious choices would be The Big Show or Kevin Nash. There's too many question marks on Nash, so I'm tipping a rematch between these 2 big boys (possibly with a stipulation). For the first time I can remember, I'm predicting The Big Show to win a ppv match. Winner: The Big Show

STONE COLD STEVE AUSTIN vs ERIC BISCHOFF: The WWE must have something up their sleeve with regards to this match. I just can't see the point in Austin coming out & whooping Bischoff's ass, even if he has to go through 3 Minute Warning and/or Chief Morley to do so. I don't know what will happen, but I did see a great idea on the LOP forums by Stan Grubb (writer of the fabulous column 'Corner To Corner' on this very site) saying that while Bischoff is in the ring waiting for Austin, instead of hearing the glass shatter, Bill Goldberg's music plays & he comes out & embraces Bischoff. This could lead to anything happening between Austin & Goldberg. Winner: Stone Cold Steve Austin

LANCE STORM & WILLIAM REGAL vs KANE & ROB VAN DAM for the World Tag-Team Titles: This is a title match that was bound to happen, although I thought it would take place at WrestleMania. It's a tough one to predict too. RVD's Raw victory over Storm on Monday, usually suggests that the champions will defend successfully. But I'm going to naively think that the WWE realizes this division needs some smartening up immediately, and predict that the faces will win here. Winners: Kane & RVD

KURT ANGLE, CHARLIE HAAS & SHELTON BENJAMIN vs BROCK LESNAR, CHRIS BENOIT & EDGE: I love the way this Angle vs Lesnar feud has been set up. It is one of the few instances in the last year or so where the WWE has genuinely had a long-term feud. I just hope their WrestleMania X9 match does not disappoint. This one's a little difficult to predict, seeing that it might depend on who the WWE want to win the WrestleMania match and/or which of the supporting players the WWE want to push right now. I think that the former point might over-shadow the latter, and that Angle will retain at WrestleMania (only to drop the title to Lesnar at a subsequent ppv). Therefore, I'm predicting the faces will be victorious this month. Winners: Lesnar, Benoit & Edge

THE ROCK vs HOLLYWOOD HULK HOGAN: Not quite garnering the interesting of the original showdown, I'm sure this bout will still gather enough buyrates to be worthwhile. The latest heel version of The Rock is already very interesting & entertaining to watch, so let's hope that he sticks around for a little longer than rumored. As for this match, it's not going to be all that pretty to watch. The only way that Hogan could possibly win is if there is a run-in from someone like Austin. I'm going to play the percentages though, and stick with the current Hollywood superstar. Winner: The Rock

TRIPLE H vs SCOTT STEINER for the World Heavyweight Title: I'm not sure what a loss here will mean for Steiner's immediate future in the WWE, but I think that it makes sense for Triple H to retain the title in this bout. Why? Steiner's momentum seems to have stalled a little, while Triple H's Evolution stable is still being established. Furthermore, I don't think the WWE can trust Steiner to practically main event WrestleMania, while Triple H is arguably proven at the highest level. Winner: Triple H


So there you have it, my 'No Way Out' predictions for 2003. I recommend that each of you join me in the 'Official LOP No Way Out Predictions Contest' on the LOP forums. They should be posted toward the end of the week in the PPV Forum & will be as fun as ever. Just a word of warning that you need at least 50 LOP Forums posts to enter. If you register immediately, you may just get 50 posts up by close of voting on Sunday afternoon.


DESSERT - Austin's Return

Now I know every man and his dog has already stated their opinion on Stone Cold Steve Austin's walkout & impending return. But I thought I'd leave my take until I was 99% certain that he would actually return. I think his appearance off air at the Raw taping a couple of weeks back, plus the fact that he is scheduled to take on Eric Bischoff at the pay-per-view this coming Sunday is enough proof for me. I don't want to get too in depth, as I'm only real strong on 2 points concerning the whole situation.

The first point I am strong about is that Austin should not have walked out on the WWE the way he did. I don't know the exact reasons why Austin did what he did, and while we all read & hear a lot of things, I usually take some/most of that as hearsay, and do not treat it as fact. But let's presume that all we have seen (unhappy with the overall direction of the company, unhappy with fighting Scott Hall in a lowly position on the WrestleMania X8 card & unhappy with doing the job/wrestling Lesnar on Raw without any build-up) is true.

To be honest, I don't think the validity of these points has as much importance on the situation as Austin would have us believe. I also see myself as an important part of my workforce (with some power) & am not happy with some of the decisions of my management. But I would never just walk out on the company. Even if Austin would have sat down with Vince McMahon and told him that he must have some time off within 2 weeks, or that things must be changed within a certain period or else I'm walking, then I wouldn't be as strong on the situation as I currently am. But the way I understand it, no-one knew that Austin wasn't going to be at Raw until the actual day. In my opinion, you don't do that to the people that employ you, unless they are basically doing something illegal to you.

So now some 10 months later, it appears as if all may be ok again and Stone Cold Steve Austin will be once more appearing in a WWE wrestling ring. Everything that has happened in the meantime apart from one thing has been fine by me. While not seeing the infamous Confidential show, I have had a read of what was said, and really don't have too much problem with it. That show needed ratings at the time and I don't think anything that JR or Vince said was over-the-top or straight lies. I also didn't have any problem with either Triple H or The Rock mentioning Austin in a negative way on subsequent Raws. This was done to successfully enhance segments and was most probably scripted by WWE management. Austin's mentioning of these 2 segments in his Raw magazine interview was nothing more than fuelling the fire for future feuds in my opinion.

Regarding that article; I'm not going into any great depth on it, because if Austin isn't going to state 100% his true thoughts, then I don't see the point in bothering. He took the time out to speak on Triple H & The Rock, yet said nothing about JR and little on Vince. Plus, why would the WWE let him tell his side of the story unedited in one of their publications? Having said that, I think the interview article was an effective way to hype his return and future feuds, while also successfully raising sales of the magazine. Furthermore, I have no problem with Steve Austin returning to the WWE (despite being against his initial walkout on them) if Vince McMahon as the head of the company is ok with it. If an employer & employee can forgive & forget, and can mutually get something beneficial from a situation, that's great as far as I'm concerned.

However, there is one point that I'm really strong on that a lot of other people who talk about the Austin situation conveniently leave out; Steve Williams' personal life. They cite that we don't know the exact facts & that the personal life of the wrestler in this instance should not come into play. Codswollop, I say. Absolute crap!!! While the former point is to a large extent true, the fact that Austin/Williams has appeared in a court of law on an assault charge, plus the fact that he & Debra filed for divorce, surely proves something. Furthermore, I believe Austin's personal life is relevant in this situation, for both selfish & unselfish reasons.

Lets look at the unselfish reason first. Simply put, if Austin's head is not on straight when he returns to the WWE, then I can practically assure him that life isn't going to get any easier when he is on the road 350 days a year. I just hope that Austin's personal life is in order & that his head is screwed on correctly right now, because it could be too late to straighten all that out once he returns to full active competition. Selfishly, I believe that if Austin's personal life is not in order, this may lead to an increased probability that what happened approximately this time last year, will happen again in 2003. An Austin with an unclear mind worrying about court proceedings and his personal life is more likely to refuse to job & not put the company's best interests as a priority in my opinion.

Reading over what I have just written, it comes off as a little negative toward Austin. It's not supposed to, as I have stated a lot of 'ifs' & 'buts'. But when something of the magnitude of what happened in 2002 happens, then I think these need to be taken into account. Hopefully, the 'ifs' & 'buts' don't come into play and Austin's return will be beneficial for both himself & the WWE. Heaven knows, Raw needs something to boost interest & the quality of the product right now. I just hope that Austin's return is not a little too soon, and that both he and Vince have clearly discussed what his role will be within the company over the next few months. Hell, I even hope there is some sort of contract stating so. That way, there are no misunderstandings both from a personal & professional viewpoint.


That just about does it for the 35th edition of The Wrestling Menu. I might be in the minority on my thoughts of Austin's personal situation & his return, but like Daniel Day Lewis says in 'Gangs of New York' while shooting dead the elected sheriff; "I guess the minority has spoken". Good luck at the Academy Awards Daniel, as I still (almost a decade later) cannot believe that you did not win best actor for 'In The Name Of The Father'. Anyways, as per usual, any feedback would be extremely appreciated. I am interested in anyone's thoughts on Austin's return, or how No Way Out will/should pan out. My e-mail address is DaveyBoy123@bigpond.com

Next Wednesday in The Wrestling Menu, I am unsure whether or not I will have my famous 'PPV Review' for you all. No Way Out is being shown again on the big screen down under, but they have raised the price & I have a busy weekend already ahead of me. I'll wait & see, as I have not missed a WWE pay-per view since early-mid 2001. Either way, I will still discuss the repercussions of the ppv, as well as have my monthly 'Raw Review'. Look out for the column same Wednesday time & same LOP channel next week. Until then, this is Davey Boy signing off & asking you to remember that dinner is best served in 3 courses.














*NEW GALLERY* Must See! Torrie Wilson Out PARTYING HARD in the Clubs!

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