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Submitted by Wevv Mang on Monday, August 14, 2006 at 2:23 AM EST
Ridin’ With The Bossman – The Big Return Of The MegaPowered Rivalry Greetings! Welcome to another edition of Ridin' With The Bossman! The column making sure that Aurora Rose’s first words are either “Wevv Mang!”, “Bossman!”, or “Jobber!”. bets are being taken now in Vegas as I write this. Howdy folks! Can you feel it? A PPV is in the air, and the clock is ticking. One week to go. And what a week we’ve had so far. Hogan is back, the infamous study returns, and Vince loses his mind. Well, that’s not really news. But something that is news is that Randy Macho Man Savage is returning to TV. As a cast member of the Surreal Life. I overheard an interview, I think on CNN, with Phil Hellmuth, and he mentioned some cast members, and well, he said Macho Man. I’ve been looking around, trying to confirm it, and this is what I’ve got. VH1 Surreal Life THread So, it’s not 100% official and could be changed, but from all accounts I’ve seen, it looks like Macho Man is a lock. That’s great news. I’m a Macho Man fan. And you know what else? Surreal Life is a VH1 show. So is Hogan Knows Best. And I bet that Hogan got word of Macho’s hiring before anyone. And what do you think the coincidences are that was around the time that he started having knee problems? But I’ll get all conspiracy theorist on you in OAW. But, for right now, we got three shows to cover. I missed TNA again. Go figure. WWE TV – The Series Raw Recap courtesy of Chad Matthews Vince and Shane Are wearing Elvis costumes. Why? No idea. Comedy? Well, I didn't think it was funny, just that Vince is having a bad spell. What did they say? Again, I’m not sure. Something about revenge I think. Edge, Lita, Trish, and Carlito It was supposed to be a women’s title match, but Edge came out and ran off Mickie. Edge then said he demands respect. He then attacked Trish. A very good segment. Carlito came out to make the save. WE later learn that there will be a mixed tag match later. I think it was a good one night angle. Edge vs Carlito would be good, but Cena vs Edge has a good feel, but it might not last through the Fall. So, if Cena gets the belt, he’ll need some one to feud with. No one is really set up, except the off chance of Umaga. Edge has plenty of guys to work with. Carlito, Benjamin, Nitro, HBK, H, and so on. In other words, the likelihood of Carlito vs Edge is slim, especially if Edge still has the belt. So, it’s time to find something for Carlito to do. I’d say just have him walk up to Shelton and say, we’re both great wretlers, let’s take the tag team belts, and have some great matches. It would give a great boost to the tag division. Ric Flair and Foley Well, both men were nearly incoherent. But they put so much emotion into it, that folks understood the message, in spite of the words spoken. I also found it funny that Ric had Mick’s book, “Foley Is Good”, in which Mick refutes the Indianapolis study. Triple H vs Umaga And there you go! It takes Shane, Vince, Armando, and Umaga to beat Triple H. Four people. And H did lose. Umaga worked harder than H in this match. Afterwards, Vince gave H a Pedigree. Raw had some moments, but it was to build up for the PPV, and that came through. That nothing important is going to happen now, but will later. There’s still one more week of shows to go. ECW Recap courtesy of David Slade Show started off with a complex angle. Dreamer vs Knox, Heyman’s Guards attack, and then Sandman comes to the rescue. All of this in a few minutes. And it’s not over. We got a match. Test and Knox vs Sandman. Thankfully, it’s over quickly. Sandman gets beaten down. Balls Mahoney promo Just not the same as the CM Punk promos, but it was a good way to keep Balls in the minds eye. Kevin Thorn Good name, good match, hot chick, yep, this guy has it made. Only thing they need to watch out for is creative messing it up. Ease up on the post match grope fest. Kurt Angle has a video Rene Dupree has a video He looks very different. I thought Rene had a lot of talent, and suffered from some really bad booking. But he’s been injured, and this is his comeback. Still, he’s only 20 years old. I’m interested in seeing what he can do. From what I remember, Rene was a heat magnet with is little dance. Big Show Speaks Big Show says no one can beat him, and I believe him. Well, not really, but you get the point. Sabu vs Angle Good match. Interesting mix of styles. Angle had it won, when RVD came in and made the save. But that’s not all, RVD finishes off. I liked this show. It still suffers from the one-hour time limit. ECW is finally addressing the complaints about WWE stars coming in and being in the main event. ECW has slowly established the WWE transplants as ECW (Angle, Show, and RVD). They now have a good pool to dip into to have an ECW main scene. They are also working on establishing an ECW midcard, in fact a whole roster. The video clips have done a great job of basically introducing talent to new fans. Fans that may have heard of ECW, but never seen it. As well as Sci-Fi fans who got sucked into it when hoping Ghost Hunters was on. There is a plan in place and that plan is working. I think I read something about a possible ECW PPV, other than One Night Stand. All I know for sure is, Cyber Sunday should involve ECW. More choices for the fans means more fan involvement, and crossing three brands might just turn a C-level PPV into an A level PPV. Which would be a good thing. Smackdown Recap courtesy of Jason We start things out with Khali. Daviari says that Khali does not need to accept Undertaker’s match. Khali has already beaten Taker. And I was there when it happened, and as it turns out, that has been Khali’s only real match. In a true shocker Undertaker shows up. In person. Not a video, but physically. Undertaker beats everybody up, and I have to admit. It was great seeing Khali no sell Taker’s punches. Not deliberately, but because he doesn't know how. Tatanka vs Sugar Shane Helms Hurricane wins. Only after Tatanka gets his foot under the ropes, so it was a cheap win. So, let me get this right. The announcers were going nuts over the fact that Greg is one of the longest reigning current champions. And he has to get a cheap win over frickin’ Tatanka? That’s low, that is. I don't know what Tatanka has on Johnny Ace, but it must be good. Undertaker vs Khali, Last Man Standing It’s been taken off the PPV card and we will get it this Friday. HAHAHAHAHAHAHA! London and Kendrick vs KC James and Idol Stevens Michelle looks hot. Good position for her as a manager. London and Kendrick got their cool masks back. Solid match. London and Kendrick are just exciting to see in action. LUKE MOTHER-FUCKING PERRY! That’s right Luke Perry is at Smackdown and is the guest judge of the Divas Contest. The crowd actually pops for him. He seems to be enjoying himself, and that’s a good thing. Luke puts a move on al the chicks. Then He and Miz try to cover the disaster that was this segment. Yes, I said it. It was horrible. The chicks were hot, but man, tanked is not strong enough of a word. I hesitate to use the word sucks, but it seems appropriate. I think Milena actually hurt that guy too. That was funny. I also think Layla clocked a guy when she threw that beer can into the crowd. Yes, it went through the ropes, right into the crowd. But this segment had Luke Perry. Divas Search OK folks, it’s finally time and these broads have made it perfectly clear. Here’s a plan to get the most of these finals shows. Give each of the girls a role. Cheerleader, Bitch, whatever. Give them a direction. Waiting for them to show some spark of creativity? Well, it ain't happening. Layla can dance, Jen has bitchy down pat, and Milena, she’s a hot chick. JT is white trash. Or could be. Give them roles, and make them play the part. I mean really, once WWE hires them, WWE will be telling them what to do, so why not get a head start on it? Consider it an audition, which is what the Divas Search was supposed to be about all along. Instead, it becomes the Miz show, and that show sucks almost as bad as JBL. Coach should have been the guy hosting this. MVP, Regal and Finlay, and BoogeyMan! Good skit with MVP. I like the “Oh no, baby, talk to my agent!” bit. Regal and Finlay make a great team. Those two guys have great chemistry together. And BoogeyMan will be back! YAY! I wonder how he’ll do this time? And you know what, Booker T did the job to Boogey. Twice. Undertaker can brag about doing to the job to Khali, but Booker actually put Boogey over with his skits before the match. Regal and Finlay vs Batista and Lashley JBL was going nuts on the commentary. Seriously annoying. And bad. Booker was in the booth as well. His cadence was in character and that didn't do him any favors. But the match was good. Interesting to see Booby and Batista standing side by side. I think it was a not so subtle message to Batista to quit his bitching. Give that pyro to Bobby and he’d do just as well. Also on the show, there was more progress of an angle I’m not sure what to make of. Chavo, Eddie, Vickie, and Rey Way back when Eddie and Rey were in a feud, I didn't like the subject matter. It was over Dominic, Rey’s son. I hate the premise to the angle, even though some of the promos were great, and the matches were outstanding. I thought it went on too long, the premise a joke, and that no one could like it. Well, I was wrong. One segment of the population apparently loved it. The Latinos. They tuned in and boosted the Rey and Eddie segments by a million viewers more than once. Not an exaggeration. They were the highest rated segments on the show. And it stayed that way for months. While the angle kept spiraling down in my opinion, the ratings stayed near the top. Finally it was over, and Rey was in line to get the big belt, which he did. He was then buried mercilessly. I mean completely and utterly buried. But he still drew that Latino rating. Now, we’re back to using the name of Eddie Guerrero, after it finally faded into the background. And it is just his name. His family is involved, but it’s their memories we’re being exposed to. So, I’m torn on this angle. Is it going to work? I have no idea. So far, it’s not to my liking. But I was wrong, and boy, howdy, before. It has the same flavor as the Dominic angle. Way too much drama, but then again, Mexican Soap Operas have tons of that. After what WWE did to the name of Eddie, I’m pretty numb to it being used. At least this time, it’s people who knew and were close with Eddie. It’s not Randy Orton. It’s not Batista. It’s Chavo, and Rey, and Eddie’s wife Vickie, who is probably getting a much-needed payday after having to sell her Phoenix area home. Which I hope got a good price, before the market cooled. It’s being built up fairly slowly. Sure, we got the issue right out in the open on the first night, but now, they’re making us think about it. Which is a good thing. So far, it’s just those three, but I get the feeling there will be more Guerrero’s showing up. They did say it was about the family name. So, is this angle a travesty and an insult to the memory of Eddie? I would say no. But it has a lot of preconceived notions when the first hints came out. It has an uphill battle. But so far, it seems like this angle has been thought out to a great degree. Of course, I could be completely wrong. You never know, next week, Vickie could try to seduce Rey. Chavo could claim to be the real father of Dominic. Who the hell knows? What I do know, is while I groaned a lot when watching this show, and this angle in particular, I kept thinking about that first angle, with Eddie and Rey. And a thought kept popping into my head. Latinos love this shit. Not being a Latino, I can't quite understand how, but I can accept it. Hell, I love Bossman, Big Show, and stuff that no one else seems to like. Mark Henry, get well soon buddy. So, I’m trying to get into it. To look past stuff that I don't like and see the big picture. What I do see is that Rey has lost some popularity. That Smackdown ratings are at all time lows. During summer. Facing repeats. And Football season is coming up. In fact, already started. CBS said that they have 16 million people signed up to play their fantasy football. That’s fucking insane. And that’s for one site. Smackdown needs help and in a big way. And this angle gives me a strong sense of deja-vu. So, all I can do is wait and see what happens. And I suggest that you do the same. This is not an angle that will be wrapped up at Summerslam. Quite the contrary. I think this angle is the on that will help carry the brand into the Fall, against sweeps. But that is a long time off. Sorry, no Kane’s House, but instead I will answer some mail before I get to OAW. From loyal reader and great writer Stu, author of Not Kane’s House. Hey Wevv Good column this week, and thanks for using my Not Kane's House story. I'm glad you liked it and I hope that it was well received by your readers (do you get much feedback for Kane's House?). Your topic on the divas was very good and, with Stacy gone, and Trish and Lita about to, a very timely topic as well. My view on it is that I have no problem watching good-looking women on my TV, but at the same time I am watching a "wrestling" show and would hope to see some actual wrestling in-between/during the bra & panties matches (they need new gimmick matches!!). My one problem with the diva search is that the girls aren't being brought in as wrestlers, but with (seemingly) very little training that is exactly what they end up doing (remember Christy at WM?), and yet the WWE have a number of female wrestlers in their development camps (see the wikipedia entry for the gorgeous UK wrestler Katarina Waters here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Katarina_Waters That are not being pulled up on to the main roster. If the WWE is serious about a women's division (when have they ever been?) they need a solid core of good wrestlers with other divas making up the numbers, and those divas need training before being allowed near a ring. I know there have always been critics against women (in) wrestling, but in the past I have seen better matches put on by the women on a card than some of the men. In fact if you look back to 2002/2003 the WWE had a very healthy women's division with Molly (I miss Molly!), Victoria, Jazz, Gail, Ivory, Lita and Trish (am I missing anybody?) with Torrie, Stacy and Dawn-Marie making up the numbers when necessary. Now remember that this is after the dominant reign of Chyna, and the farcical one of Steph. I can only hope that the departure of Lita and Trish will be a wake up call for the WWE, but I think it sounds more like a death knell. I hope I'm wrong. Stu PS. Congratulations on your forthcoming betrothal. Stacy, Nora and I are very happy for you and wish you well. PPS. Just saw some of the photos from Torrie's FHM shoot up on WWE.com. Is it just me or is she turning into Sable circa 2003? Billy needs to start giving her meat injections, and not the one's we despise him for! Thanks for writing Stu. I did get some feedback for the segment, in emails and on my feedback thread in the LOP Forums. All of it was positive. About the Divas, you make a good point. Wrestling is paramount. And no matter how hot the chick, they always make them wrestle. Hell, even announcers have to wrestle. It’s in the name of the show. But one thing I think WWE likes, is to create their own wrestlers. Molly was a WCW person. No matter how much time she spent in WWE, or how well she did, she was always one of them. Also, she wouldn't get naked. She was a great wrestler and she did help train some of the rookies. WWE also fears the Sable complex. Women that get too popular must be knocked down. Why they ever brought Sable back is beyond me. Sorry, quick tangent. Sable came back, pushed aside Torrie, got in Playboy, got to make Vince her toy, and then promptly stole their future star, fucked with his head, and now Brock is going to do MMA. Thanks for coming Sable. Back, and back on topic, the WWE has never really taken the Women’s division seriously, Only when a magazine needs to be sold does the women’s division get much attention. Even then, they seem to resent the women if the magazine does well, or the crowd reacts to the woman. It’s strange. But that Katrina looks good, and if she can wrestle, well, I don't know why they haven't brought her up yet. Maybe it’s a paperwork issue, since she’s foreign. Or maybe, it’s because she isn't blonde and has huge tits. The world may never know. Thanks for writing Stu, and it's always good to hear from you. Over-Analyzing Wrestling Today’s Topic: The Last Nostalgia Match Macho Man Randy Savage, one of the last megastars from the mid eighties to not appear on WWE TV. The Macho Man is a very popular figure from the early days of WWE, and his name is almost as popular as that of Hogan’s to the casual fans. Macho Man is a name, and a big one. Randy left WCW before they went under, just after Vince Russo showed up. Before then, Randy had brought in a valet by the name of Gorgeous George, and had discovered some renewed popularity. When WWE bought WCW, Randy was not under contract, but his name was brought up to be brought in. It never happened. Randy wanted too much money, and Vince apparently hates Randy Why, I’m not sure, but I bet Meltzer tells us in details in the next Observer. In his WCW days, he landed a role as the spokesman of Slim Jim, and his catchphrase is still used to this day. “OHHH YEAHHHH! SNAP INTO A SLIM JIM!!” Macho Man kept busy. He released a rap album. It tanked, but it had one very interesting part on it, that I will get to in a little while. Mach also did some voice work for cartoons. Oh, and he appeared in a movie. He had a small, not a bit, but a small part in the movie called Spiderman. He was Bonesaw McGraw. And now Macho is back again. This time on a TV show that has rejuvenated some semi-cult icons careers. Like Flava Flav. Now, let’s talk about Macho’s biggest rival. Hulk Hogan. Hulk Hogan has a TV show, on VH1. Odds are good that Hulkster knew that Macho was going to be cast for the Surreal Life. In fact, I bet that outside of VH1 execs, that Hulk knew before any one else. Hulk suddenly had knee problems. He wasn’t going to be able to make it to SummerSlam. The net lit up with the news. WWE posted it on their website. Now, is Hogan’s knee injury a fake? I have no idea. I actually know a guy who blew out his knee getting up from a chair. Just a fluke thing. He was in great shape and is a health nut. But he tweaked something in football practice, went home, and that night, just got up and pow. Out goes his knee. But the timing could be better. Then again, HBK has been saying his knee has been bothering him, and was considering surgery, and next thing you know, he gets a five-year contract for 1.5 MILLION per year. That’s huge. Now, Nash is saying he’s injured, and so on and so forth. Everyone loves to take pot shots at the master. Then again, the study that riled up the media came back out, and if WWE is going to fight it, it’s a good idea to have the most popular wrestler in the world on your side, speaking for you. That’s Hogan in case you didn't know. Hogan could very well have timed his injury to coincide with the announcement of Macho Man to the cast of the real world, stealing Randy’s spotlight. He then made the announcement once word started to leak out about Macho joining the cast leaked onto the web, and the wrestling newsites. Back in the early part of the decade, Macho Man made a challenge. He challenged Hulk Hogan to a match. He didn't care whom it was for, just as long as it happened. He said that would make money. That people wanted to see that match. Randy was right. Hogan vs Macho Man is a money match. It’s the last of the WWE big nostalgia feuds, with one exception. Warrior vs Hogan. And Macho is at least sane compared to Warrior. Macho Man is one name that folks would get a kick out of seeing on their TV. TNA tried, but they immediately stuck him with Jarrett, and that means death. But on WWE TV it’s a different thing. I mean WWE makes big deal out of guys from the 70’s showing up on TV. Tatanka was mildly over, and here he is getting a push in 2006. Amazing. Nostalgia runs strong in WWE. Just think of the reaction that Macho showing up would get. Macho is a guy people know, not just another old fart that fans politely cheer, and have to ask the person next to him, who that guy is. They already know. Hogan is currently in a program with Randy Orton. It’s getting mixed results. It’s just another match at this point. Boston is no Canada, where Hogan was cheered out of the building when he faced off against the Rock. Will Macho expect to be paid? OH hell yes. And he’s worth it to. Just in merchandise alone, WWE could make their money back. Savage has a show. Hogan has a show. If WWE passes on it, I’m sure that VH1 will find some way to let these two have some kind of clash. And they’ll be happy to advertise it on Spike TV and TNA. If WWE can bring back Sable then why not bring back some one who will actually make them money? And that’s all for today. Two news blurbs to cover, then Quick Plugs and I’m outta here. Goldberg Signs No-Compete Clause with Spike TV Most likely for the Ultimate Fighter show, or some other show they have in development. But, there is a chance that Spike will be willing to foot some of Goldberg’s contract if he were to appear in TNA. The only thing holding Goldberg out of TNA? A program with Jarrett. Yeah, I would balk at that too. WWE Brings Back Jeff Hardy You know who is really happy that Jeff is back? GONG! Yep. Undertaker has his all time favorite whipping boy back. Take loved squashing those Hardy’s and if he’s even going to pretend to be working a full time schedule, WWE will do everything in their power to keep Taker happy. They’ll even hire Jeff back. So that Taker can squash him week after week, and his little brother too. Welcome back Jeff. First week will be great, and then you’ll be looking at the lights for a long, long time. Fire Breaks Out At TNA PPV Apparently God himself did not want to see Christian turn on Sting and go with Jeff Jarrett. Who won by the way. And that’s a wrap for today. QUICK PLUGS! LOP FORUMS LOP COLUMNS FORUM THE MOVIE BAR! Great place for reviews of DVD's, Music, and special video clips. Your one stop review spot. THE PROJECT LIVES! Looking for submission of creative writing. A great way to get your work published, and noticed. LOP'S PWA E-FED. Best E-Fed on the net. Period. That's all for this week. Thanks for Readin' and Thanks For Ridin' Wevv Mang mrwevv@mac.com - PLEASE LABEL ALL EMAIL AS FEEDBACK. THANK YOU. *NEW GALLERY* Stacy Keibler Looking Hot as Ever with Her New Boyfriend!
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