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Submitted by Randomguy#5 on Sunday, October 21, 2007 at 9:48 PM EST
1) John Cena's injury is a blessing in disguise for the WWE. Wevv: -Fact. But it's a mixed blessing. Cena is a huge draw for WWE, and his presence on TV does equal ratings. But, with Cena out of the picture, it's a problem for creative, because they had plans for Cena, and while the Orton - Cena feud was near it's end, the rest of the plans have to be shuffled. HBK has been rushed back, and has to fill the void, but who knows for how long. And HBK is no Cena. The time off from the injury gives Cena a much-needed break, and allows him to come back fresh. Fresher at least, because once the time gets near for him to return, well, he could be overexposed by that time, due to all the hype. Rated_PG13: This honestly, at least for me, is a yes and no question. It is a blessing because we will get to see some new and interesting matchups centered around the WWE title. Plus, it's always great when things happen to cause WWE Creative to have to actually think about what they do before they do it. They can't bank on Cena, so now they have to push some fresh faces in the main-event scene, for better or worse. It's not a blessing because, quite obviously, Cena was the best worker they had at the time. He was the guy that they could bank on, no matter what the situation. And for all the hate he gets around these parts, the guy genuinely has improved over the last couple of years, and has put on some incredible matches. He's been a complement to the WWE Title and has in no way (besides putting a spinner in the middle...) been a detriment to its prestige. The WWE is going to miss his dependability, and possibly a little bit of merchandising scratch, but he'll be back before we know it. There is a lot of gray area to this topic, so I'll go with a push on whether or not this is a blessing in disguise. I'll bet, however, the loss of Cena will be quelled somewhat with the impending return of Chris Jericho. But that's a whole different topic in itself. Uncle Joe: No, no AND no. For one, it obvious that he was the WWE's number one merch mover. No one was even close, and that part of his absence is sure to be felt. What the WWE needs to do is start to market "Get Well Soon Cena" shirts, and the people will eat that shit up like hotcakes. Anyways, this is not a blessing in disguise, simply because the WWE have not built up a backup plan for such an occasion. Had the E' built up a secondary face (Lashley does not count), this would have really lessened the blow in the case of a Cena absence. Oh and Orton sucks, so fuck that. But it's not all that bad: maybe we'll get a Snitsky run here, or better yet, a Santino Marella run with the WWE gold. And yes, I'm serious. Random: FICTION. I hear ya, I really do. Yeah, I'm glad he's not the champ anymore but I damn sure didn't want to see one of their young, top stars and the only legitimate new main event players they've created in the last five years get hurt. We're all hoping this causes the WWE to look at it's roster and realize it's fairly thin around the main event scene. But do you really think that will happen? Earlier this year they'd lost Taker, Edge, Rey, Triple H and Shawn Michaels to injury and they did nothing to create any "new" main eventers with the possible exception of Kahli. Why should that change now? Still-hope reigns eternal. Maybe this will force the WWE to consider pushing someone like Kennedy, MVP or Carlito and finally see what they have to offer. Chances are-no it won't. Perhaps it made them pick up the phone and call Chris Jericho sooner than they may have but if you're hoping for a Jeff Hardy main event run, you need to go wash off the highlighter juice. Superfan: Fact! While Cena’s injury is major setback for the WWF, its actually a good thing considering more wrestlers have to now step up and pick up the slack. Without Cena’s injury, Jeff Hardy would not be in the Main Event scene at this time. Cena’s injury allows more guys a chance to make their run. I’m sure most fans were disheartened to see Cena go down, but also a sense of relief permeated the IWC. Why? Because now there has to be change. A new Champion. Something fans have been clamoring for, for the longest time. Cena’s injury forces the entire roster to step there game up, so I say it is a blessing. 2) Fan voting for WWE's Cyber Sunday is fixed. Uncle Joe: While the Presidential Election may be rigged, Cyber Sunday's fan vote may be the last thing that actually truly matters. I mean, where else can I go on Earth to vote for either a Bean Burrito On a Pole Match, Border Toss match or a hardcore setting for the infamous Snitsky/Mae Young match? Where else can I determine whether Mickie James wears black panties or white panties during her match with Jillian Hall? Nowhere I tell ya'. So put a big, fat FACT on this one. This shit is rigged. Now please, leave me be: I'm going to order Cyber Sunday and I need total concentration to appreciate the workrate in Punk/Morrison pt.1,209 Random: Regrettably, I must say FICTION. Believe me, I think they way they organize this PPV is the most disgusting thing this side of Hanna Montana tickets going for $2,500. But if the WWE was just going to rig the voting they'd give us more hope than making us choose the shit they leave us to choose. I think sauerkraut is the most disgusting substance on this or any other planet, but were I starving and given the option of eating the slimy, smelly shit or starving to death, I think my fat ass (which presumably wouldn't be so fat at that point) would start inhaling the vial shit. Same logic here-they give us shitty choices they can live with so that our "freedom to choose" (which sounds like a pro-choice campaign) can't take a coat hanger to this abortion of a PPV. Wevv: Fiction. Fans aren't determining who wins, they are just voting on stipulations. WWE will get the final outcome of the matches they want. Fans don't get to vote on who wins. That is just a case of mistaken perception, one that WWE perpetuates. Superfan: Fiction! While the voting isn’t rigged, the choices they give to vote on boxes fans in. WWF is very smart. By making a Pay-Per-View that is “interactive” it makes the show a fun experience for the fans. But the choices they give fans to vote on doesn’t exactly make it empowering. Stone Cold, JBL, or Foley? Gee golly, I wonder who the fans will pick?! The choices to vote on really has fans by the balls. Rated_PG13: Aside from what many people think, I'm going with Fictionon this topic. One could argue that the setup in its design is fixed, but I think the actual voting is real. They have even set up security counters on their site so people can't automate millions of votes in a short time span. I get the argument: it always seems that the one guy they want in the spot gets the vote, but that's because the WWE media machine gets people to vote for who's supposed to be there in the first place. On RAW, SmackDown, or ECW, they will feature a guy more to get him more exposure to fans. Take, for instance, last year's Cyber Sunday. The DX vs. Rated RKO match had a Special Referee stipulation that the fans could vote for. I believe the choices were Vince McMahon, Jonathan Coachman, and Eric Bischoff. This was also the time when Bischoff's book was just coming out. So, obviously, they wanted him to be the referee. On the RAW before the PPV, Vince and Coach are rarely on camera, and Bischoff (if memory serves) was all over the show. The fans voted Eric as the ref. More often than not, the fans will tend to go with the guy the WWE pushes them to vote for. And if Jeff Hardy gets a match with Randy Orton for the WWE Championship next Sunday, then you'll know it isn't rigged. 3) Chris Jericho will hold either the WWE or World Heavyweight Championship again. Rated_PG-13: Fact. This is about as safe a bet as you can make. Despite all the sidetracking the WWE is trying to throw to us that knew the second the first "mystery" promo that aired was indeed for Chris Jericho, it's now only a matter of time before we see Y2J back in the squared circle. He has said on numerous occasions that he feels now is about as good a time as any for a comeback since his work with his book "A Lion's Tale" is completed. For the sake of argument, let's say he is coming back at Cyber Sunday. Do you think they'll put him a feud with Charlie Haas? The man is exactly what RAW (assuming that's where he'll go) needs in the main-event. Someone with charisma, an instinctual ability to cut a promo with a skill that is second to very few, and have an immediate draw to the live crowd. His return will get bigger mark-outs throughout the wrestling fan-world than the second coming of Bret Hart. Alright, I exaggerate. But you get my drift. Especially with Cena out until probably June at the earliest, Jericho can be the guy to hold the WWE Championship at around that time to feud with Cena when he does come back. Even if he doesn't get the belt that soon to his return, he will be a champion again. Mark it down. Uncle Joe: He didn't hold either any of these during his previous stint when he was "at his peak", so what makes you think he's going to hold it now? Sure he will probably light it up on the mic, but I doubt his ring skills will be up to par. The thing I don't understand is that people are clamoring for Jericho's return, and I understand why. I was a fan of the guy as much as the next man, but unless he was secretly training this whole time, I doubt he is the best of ring shape, so he's going to need some ample training time. Besides, he cut his locks; and what have we learned from the Bible? That once Sampson cut his infamous hair, he could no longer do the things he once did, whatever that was, I don't know I didn't read the Bible. So you heard it here: Jericho's hair = source of his power. Maybe I'm wrong and he'll come back and be better than ever, but I doubt it. Besides, Kevin Nash is going to make one of his calls to H to hold Jericho down. So either way, he's doomed. Superfan: Fiction! I’m sure all the Jerichoholics would love to see Y2J hold either strap again, I don’t believe it will happen. That would be too retro. Jericho has been there done that. Y2J will be used as enhancement. He’ll be used to elevate more of these young guys and make them into stars. There is no need to put the strap on Jericho to still utilize him effectively. Random: You know what? This beatch is a mo'fuckin FACT yo. And it has everything to do with an interview he recently gave. I thought it was a travesty the way the WWE used Jericho for his last two years in the business, but I've come to believe he didn't mind it at all and perhaps enjoyed it. Now though as he is seemingly preparing to come back he keeps talking about doing it "on his terms" and "being the best he can be" not to mention "saving the WWE" and that's all rhetoric that just screams CREATIVE CONTROL. I'm not sayin he'll be a top guy for an extended period of time, but the WWE has shown a willingness to upon occasion throw the belt at smaller wrestlers for the sake of sentimental value (Benoit, Mysterio, Eddie) since Jericho won the Undisputed Title. The guy will have definite momentum on his side and if the crowds get behind him like they seem willing to, and like he can certainly make them do, then he'll no doubt have even more stroke with the WWE than what he already does. He's been a good company guy for them even since his release from the company in the wake of the Benoit tragedy and the steroid controversies. He's got a book coming out and the WWE loves to push the books . Yeah, he'll get one more run if nothing else as a reward for being an 'E guy for so long now and because the crowds are/will be behind him. I don't think it'll be anytime soon though. Wevv: Fiction. As much as I would like to believe otherwise, the way WWE has used Jericho in the past makes me expect and brace for the worst, and the worst is Jericho may challenge and get the shot, but in the end, he doesn't win. Jericho is coming back and will be pushed, but unless he's in it for the long haul, I don't think he'll get either of the Big Belts. Even if he is in it for the long haul, meaning several months to a year on WWE TV, I still don't think it will happen. 4) TNA's product is improving. Superfan: Fact! From being a suck ass show to just ass is still an improvement. While they still have a long way to go, TNA is slowly improving. From a one hour show to 2 hours. That in itself is improvement as they have more room to improve. While it won’t be overnight, TNA is headed in the right direction. They’ve kept Jarrett away from the Title, which counts as another improvement. What I like about TNA is they aren’t afraid to try new things. The Ultimate Scaffold match was a disaster, but I commend them for trying something new at least. And yes, they are still a clusterfuck of a show, but they are trying and that’s all I can ask of them. Rated_PG13 Fiction. I will admit at the onset that I do not have much interest in TNA and I really haven't watched a lot of their programming...well, at all, really. But I have been monitoring their news tidbits here at Lords of Pain. I see they now have two hours to fill on Spike TV. And their first show's ratings? Somewhere between 1.0 and 1.1? That's pretty bad, considering this was suppose to be so big and everything. The way I see it...If the fan base is growing and the audience participation grows, then it's a sure sign that your product is on the way up. But TNA has been floundering at the 1.0 mark forever it seems now, and there are absolutely no signs showing it's going to be better anytime soon. You know what their biggest problem is and always has been? They try to reinvent WCW! I mean, look at their roster. A good portion of those guys were headlining Nitro and Thunder a decade ago. Why is Sting their Heavyweight Champion? Why isn't their home-grown talent getting pushed to the top instead of grizzled old hacks who'd have a hard time making the main event on WWE Heat? Look how it turned out for WCW. They don't exist anymore. And I would imagine Spike TV isn't going to be happy with TNA holding the line after giving them two hours in prime time on Thursday nights. The honeymoon will end, sooner or later. TNA thinks they are improving, but they are miles away from where they should/could be after 5 or 6 years. Wevv: Fact. TNA has improved. They still have relapses, and get too goofy both in matches and sports entertainment, but overall, from the early days to now, it has gotten better. Is it perfect? No. Better than WWE? At times, yes. Key words there, at times. Enough to make me convert from WWE to TNA? No. More improvement needs to be made, and with two hours, they have to rethink what they've had time to improve. That being the how to present the angles, and time the matches. Do they have the talent to make it work? I think they do. But again, TNA is still in a learning process. They should still experiment and learn who can do what, not just in the ring, but on the mic, and working in front of the fans, both in the audience and at home, watching on TV. Uncle Joe: This may sound very wrong to some, but TNA needs to stop trying to be WWE jr., and start being WCW pt.II. No, not the Vince Russo WCW, but the WCW that was kicking RAW's ass for over 80 consecutive weeks and almost put Vince out of business. Contrary to what some might believe, at it's peak, Nitro was the best 2 hours this business has ever seen: they had something for everyone. The prototypical Cruiserweight match to get the crowd hot; nice undercard action; good tag matches with a very well developed tag team scene; excellent midcard matches (accompanied with midcard title), the wrestlecrap stuff and the Main event slogs. That sort of variety has been unmatched ever since. So TNA needs to start doing some of that (and getting rid of every ex-WWE castoff sans Christian and Tomko). But even if that happens, that won't guarantee good ratings, but it would be a step in the right direction. Random : ABSOLOUTE FICTION. The company was 10x as entertaining when it was only on weekly PPV's than it is now and if anything I'd say it's regressed in the last two years. The signing of Angle has had the complete opposite effect than what it should have had. TNA has loads of talent that they have no idea what to do with and rather than try to be at all different they're too busy trying to be the 'E and they're simply not as good at it as Vince and Company are. The extra hour didn't add match time, it added more time to clusterfuck and simply more run-ins. The hiring of Vince Russo has been a catastrophic failure and I can't tell who's feuding with who anymore because everybody's feuding with a minimum of three people at once. Unlike WWE, TNA does look to the future and at least SEEM to be booking ahead of time, but they're so worried about trying to set up what's going to happen next week or next month that they can't seem to get it right at the present time. Don West and Mike Tenay are horrible and becoming caricatures of they're already over-animated selves. They need to push they're own talent and some guys main stream hasn't heard of instead of Jarrett/Angle/Sting, knock off the clusterfuck booking, and really consider going live to add some intensity to the shows and perhaps then their announcing wouldn't sound so fucking rehearsed. 5) The WWE Talent Wellness Program is a farce and exists solely to appease Congress and media critics. Random: FICTION. I think the WWE really does want to do something about their drug problems they just don't know how to do it. They know having a policy like they do was the first step, they just don't know how to continue business in lieu of all of their top stars potentially failing drug tests. Obviously people expect more guys ala Batista, Lashley or Triple H to get busted but the simple fact is that most of these guys are on HGH now, which cannot currently be tested for. Why do you think the majority of those suspended have been suspended for recreational drugs? They're easier to detect. Which is what makes the Signature Pharmacy bust so interesting. The WWE didn't catch those suspended, in fact, most of them had never failed a drug test. The WWE has the luxary of looking like they're trying to do something about steroids/HGH but they know that as long as the feds, athletic commissions and pro-sports can't detect them, than neither can they. But with the bust of Signature Pharmacy, it's showing that the WWE's policy is broad enough to punish those who didn't necessarily test guilty. Of course, they still don't have the balls to publicly suspend these guys and take them off TV, but I still think they're intentions are noble. The drug problem there is just so bad right now, the WWE just doesn't' know how to fix it and remain in business at the same time. Wevv: That's a two-part question. The WWE Talent Wellness Program is a farce. Fact - From day one, it was designed to appear to outsiders to actually look like WWE was trying to do something about their drug and health problems. So that they could say it was there, and be the first, and hopefully, last line of any inquiry. However, it's not doing what it was supposed to do. Which is actually making a difference. Instead, it's being used for political purposes. Basically, if some one fails, and WWE doesn't have anything for them, or wants an easy way to get rid of some one, they can say they failed, and presto! Problem solved! The person could either A: Work on TV and not get paid, or B: get suspended and sent home for a period of time, or C: get fired. Did anyone change their ways? Perhaps one or two, but with the information coming out, from an outside source no less, the answer is for all intents and purposes, NO. It exists solely to appease Congress and media critics. Fiction and this is why. Because those two groups will look beyond the smoke screen and look for actual results. When the screening process and the results of the testing are scrutinized, the con falls apart. NO ONE truly believes that WWE is actually doing anything with the Wellness program other than what they want to do with it. And NO ONE believes that everyone is treated the same way, or actually gets punished for failing a test. The only person in WWE who knows the results is Vince and he gets to make the call. If Triple H failed a test, do you honestly think that the public would ever learn about it from WWE source? Hell no. That would be covered up and buried like the location of Jimmy Hoffa. Anyone with a lick of common sense knows that some people are going to be protected, and some people are going to thrown to the wolves to throw the hunters off the scent, and hopefully appease the masses. But I think no one expects WWE to be totally honest. And I think they're correct in believing that. Superfan: Fact! Yes the Wellness Policy is nothing but a front to keep the feds off Vince’s back. Even stars who have violated the policy were still kept on TV. Orton, I believe failed the tests, but he was still kept in the main event world title picture. Chris Masters was suspended, but who cares about Masters. If the Wellness Policy was legit, EVERY SINGLE WRESTLER WOULD BE SUSPENDED! The Wellness policy is a complete farce. Uncle Joe: I call false on this bitch. Wait, fiction, whatever. This isn't to appease Congress, or the media outlets: it's to spit in their respective faces and let them know who's number one. Vince could careless what John McCain, Herb Kohl and the rest of the geezers up in Capitol Hill have to say about him and what goes on behind the scenes at the WWE. Had Vince really gave two Chris Masters' (a.k.a. shits), he would have implemented a Wellness Policy back after he first went to trial for 'roids back in 92' I think it was. Shit, if The E' had given two shits about what the Media thinks about them, they wouldn't have released The Condemned Starring Stone Cold Steve Austin Rated_PG13: I'm not a big expert on WWE timelines, but wasn't the Wellness Policy around long before it became scrutinized by the media and the U.S. Congress? Anyway, this is complete and utter fiction.Sure, it isn't Major League Baseball's program, but the WWE isn't a competitive sport like baseball is. From what I've heard, the wrestlers have to go through some pretty extensive hoops when they are tested, and apparently they get tested often enough. The whole hoopla around the WWE's policy was centered around the Chris Benoit murder/suicide and whether or not it should have detected the obvious "loose screw" in Benoit's brain. I'm not going to go down that road again, but you know what? Vince McMahon would never try to appease to media. He sees them as a bunch of liberal yahoos hell-bent on destroying whatever they don't like. And frankly, I'm not sure I can blame Vince. They immediately blame the WWE for the "10,000 wrestlers" that have died in the past 20 years and the same ones say this Wellness Policy is a sham, without even digging for one shred of evidence to prove themselves. Doesn't Congress have something more important to attend to? Sure! But the WWE has been cooperative, and at the end of the day, I think some common sense will come to this debacle once and for all. Is the policy perfect? No. Can it be improved? Absolutely. Is it a smoke-screen to appease a few itchy ambulance chasers and unbusy politicians? Absolutely not. That wraps up this edition of Fact or Fiction here on LordsofPain.net. Once again if you’d like to check out any of the author’s most recent works you can click the links at the top of this column. If you’d like to send feedback via email to any of the authors, you can do so via the link below. Thanks for reading, catch you next time! Click here to Email Randomguy#5! Click here to Email Wevv Mang! Click here to Email Uncle Joe! Email for Superfan and Rated PG 13 coming soon. *NEW GALLERY* WOW!! Brand New Karen Angle Photos! THE HOTTEST YET!
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