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Submitted by XanMan on Friday, October 10, 2008 at 9:37 AM EST
 With XanMan and aisce Hello boys and girls, welcome to ETA. Today, the WWF Pay Per View schedule, Stone Cold's latest movie role, and why Bloodline is Bloodline. But, We start with Frankie Kazarian. Kaz recently had surgery on his torn triceps and is now out until February. Apparently TNA is considering putting someone else in the Suicide role. Isn't this a really stupid idea? Naturally, I am hoping that they go ahead with the gimmick and introduce an entire stable of wrestlers with the suffix '-icide'. I'm particularly looking forward to the surprise introduction of Steve Austin as 'Uxoricide', and any WWE wrestler who has defeated Ric Flair as 'Senicide'. As for replacing Kaz, I suppose that depends on which is more important to TNA: having this gimmick on the roster, or pushing Kaz. Seeing as some effort has been put into the build-up, it may be the former right now. As knowledge of the identity of Suicide is limited to the spoiler-loving IWC, they may end up looking less silly to the general audience if they just go ahead with the angle, instead of letting it fade out into inconsequential nothingness: something for which TNA has been justly censured in the past. It's tough on Kazarian, who couldn't catch a break in a shrimping net, but the show must go on, etc. One of the things I have to get used to in having a different partner than doublehelix is that my new cohost tends to use logic and look big picture far more. Yes, it may be bad for TNA to just push the Suicide character aside from now, but since when have they ever cared what's bad for them? They're obviously not above looking silly. I think the real issue comes in the fact that according to their tv show and website, Kaz has quit the company. So, how do they write him back in if it's not as this new Suicide character? BTW, don't forget bringing in Snitsky eventually as "Infanticide." What? Too soon? It's always too soon for Snitsky (hey, I think there's a workable gimmick/catchphrase in there), and it's true that my sense of logic has cost me the chance of a dream job on the TNA booking staff, but . . . oh well. Kaz has left TNA? For really real? I hope that's a work as he has considerable potential. Either that or he is a sad illustration of the maxim that it is better to be lucky than good. Anyway, are we really babbling on about TNA in an attempt to gloss over the fact that, contrary to our forecasting in the last column, the main event of No Mercy turned out to be rather . . . errrrr . . . good? Nah, we're babbling on about TNA because I thought the whole Kaz situation would make for a great solo column, but already have the next month of Stars planned, so my editor suggested we debate it here while it was still timely. No, he hasn't left for really real, that's simply the cover for him becoming Suicide--long lost brother of the Notorious 187--much like Christopher Daniels' firing allowed him to become Curry Man. Really, though, Kaz would fit in really well with Ring of Honor. Make it happen. How about we get back to No Mercy in about 8 hours, after I've had a chance to drink it all in? {No, constant reader, that doesn't mean you have to wait 8 hours, just that aisce does, that lucky devil} Ah, I see your cunning plan: lure in the readers with TNA mid-card talk, then we'll have a captive audience for the PPV discussion. As for Kaz in RoH, I believe they are feeling the pinch at the moment and likely couldn't afford him nor his surgeries. Meanwhile, I shall be playing Spore, and watching music videos on YouTube whilst you cogitate further. It's a full life, and no mistake. Full lives are for wussies. Actually, they're for people much richer than either of us. "Wussies" just sounds better. The match was, as you put it, rather good. And considering last tim--according to Wikipedia--you said it was going to be a disappointment, and I said only for those who were, like me, expecting a classic, I'd say that we both nailed it right on the head. It wasn't great, it wasn't a classic, it was good. Nothing more, nothing less. The best match of the night, certainly, but not the match of the year, the decade, or anything, and definitely not the best match the two have put on against each other. Speaking for myself, I preferred the non-sanctioned match even with the crap ending. To me that match was like the Sopranos; at times hard to watch, but always compelling. This match had some nice spots, and an unbelievable ending, but the story as to how they got there didn't add up all the way for me. I think if you combine the Unforgiven and No Mercy matches, you've got possibly the best match of all time; as it stands, I'm not sure this was the right note on which to end their feud. I'm now firmly in the camp of those who would like to see an IronMan either at RAW or at Survivor Series. You want an Iron Man match now? We've already had two more than decent gimmick matches out of an injured HBK: the punishing format of the Iron Man may be a bridge too far and, unlike No-Holds Barred and Ladder encounters, it's much harder to fudge the ending should the need arise. In any case, the end to the No Mercy main event was just about perfect for me. The contest between the two wrestlers was finished in the most fundamental and symbolic way: both were atop the ladder, both had a grip on the belt . . .and Jericho proved to be the victor. I find that both satisfying and conclusive. Mind you, I can see why people would want more. If nothing else, it would delay the challenge of the number one contender. I don't know about you, but Jericho and Batista is not a match up which I see gelling very well, particularly as the latter seems to do his best work with the confines of the big- man match. What the hell are are you talking about? His best two matches have been against Triple H and Eddie Guerrero; he also had compelling matches against Shawn Michaels and Edge. His matches against Umaga were terrible and his matches against JBL have all bored me to tears. Exactly which matches are you thinking of? In any case, I'm really hoping that the fans aren't fucking stupid enough to vote Steve Austin as the special referee over Shawn Michaels, because Michaels being the ref for Jericho vs. Batista brings us back full circle to where this feud started. Think the voters are smart enough to figure that out? If Jerry Lawler's one of them, my guess is "no." I suppose I had in mind Batista's matches with 'Taker when I made that comment, though HHH works that style too, somewhat. As for the vote, I think we both know that most WWE fans would choose Austin under any circumstances, even if the question was 'who would you most like to date your sister?'. I don't think I am alone when I say that Cyber Sunday is my least anticipated PPV of the year. It always amazes me how, despite all of the voting being rigged, they somehow manage to come up with the very worst outcomes, almost without fail. Yeah, they do, but I actually do think there's a chance Austin won't "win" this vote, as Michaels has won overwhelmingly every time he's been an option, also. Granted, this isn't as a wrestler, but his popularity and involvement with Jericho still might carry him through. The "E" seems to be attempting to gauge the amount of interest there is in MVP making a face turn. Do you think he should? Perhaps. He seems to have reached a point where is popularity does not sit entirely comfortably with his heel status. That, and I think he could be very good in the role. Of course, his cameo at No Mercy was absolutely bizarre and left me with no idea whatsoever as to where they will take his character; is he on the cusp of a turn, or in the process of being made everybody's whipping boy? I sure hope they're not just going to do that with him. He's far too talented to be relegated to that role, but here's what's amazing: Smackdown used to have a dearth of talent, and now for main event/upper midcard players they've got: Triple H, Jeff Hardy, Undertaker, Show, Kozlov, and Edge. Meanwhile Shelton Benjamin, Porter, and The Brian Kendrick have the ability to rise up there any time. They seem pretty stacked, but so does RAW. This year's draft balanced the scales like no other before it. MVP seems lost in the shuffle, but maybe that's because there truly is no place to put a guy that's a tweener in two different ways right now. I shall confine myself to a raised eyebrow at your omission of Khali. Khali has been on RAW the last two weeks, so I was assuming they switched him again without notice. It should go without saying that a 7'+ former World Champion fits into any main event scene he so chooses. Yeah, that would be my second choice. My first is for there to be 5 pay per views: Royal Rumble, Wrestlemania, King of the Ring, SummerSlam, and Survivor Series. But, since that ain't gonna happen, despite how much sense it makes, I believe it does make sense to return to single brand PPVs. There's a ton of talent being unused, as you mentioned, better stories could be told, and the individual brand's secondary titles could all shine as brightly as they should. It seems we are in complete agreement about this. With 5 PPVs, the events become 'special', and there is no longer the expectation that every mid-carder will be having their time in the spotlight. When they are being rolled out on a monthly basis, however, we expect them to be more like some kind of WWE compendium with all superstars featured (which is sometimes what the WWE tries to give us by including pointless non-match segments). Meanwhile, I'm not averse to a little crossover taking place at a PPV, especially if it involves some kind of inter-brand feuding in prior weeks, but the way things are organised now just isn't working for me: two World Title bouts on a run-of-the-mill show is a dilution of what the WWE has to offer, and it often affects the pacing of the event in adverse ways. Yeah, it does. Well said. And, I'll even go farther, though I know it's an unpopular viewpoint. Having the World Heavyweight Title makes the WWF Title seem like it's the second most important belt in a company that's named(bear with me) The WWF. Also, it makes the title histories moot. Randy Orton is [i]not[/i] a 3-time World Heavyweight Champion, but that's what they now refer to him as. They did it the right way before Triple H was awarded the World Title. Let the U.S. and I-C titles be the brand titles; and unify those other two back up again. Once again, you'll get no argument from me. A unified champ who is free to defend his title on any or all of the shows would be ideal, opening up more possible feuds and increasing the prestige of the belt. I have no idea why that is an unpopular viewpoint, it makes perfect sense as far as I'm concerned. You know what, why don't we test how popular it is? I've created a poll in the LOP Forums. You can click here to vote on whether you think the WWF should unify the two big titles or keep them separate; then leave comments. The best argument each way will be featured in the next episode. Can we charge them a dollar for their contributions? Sure we can. We might have trouble collecting is all. 5 Good... Questions with Bloodline Hello, Bloodline, and welcome to Excuse the Aggravation. How are you doing today? Pretty good. I mean, I've been better, but I still feel like trash from a full weekend of partying. Scratch that, I feel great, I'm on Excuse the Aggravation, I'm marking out dude. Thanks for inviting me. Our pleasure. We like giving a little something back. And now, on with the questions: 1. Recently you wrote the first part of a series of columns in which you are doing a "six degrees of separation" type of thing between WWF wrestlers. Without using any WWF transplants to TNA, can you connect Stone Cold Steve Austin to Austin Aries in six degrees or less? Alright, I get to drop a piece of my latest work here. Let's see what I got: 1- Austin Aries, in 2005, signed with TNA and upon arriving he joined up with his Generation Next teammates from ROH, Roderick Strong and Alex Shelley (sans Jack Evans…fuck that guy). 2- Speaking of Alex Shelley, not to long after that, he was recruited by Jeff Jarrett to get some candid footage of Sting, thus birthing Paparazzi Production. Shortly thereafter, he joined up with Kevin Nash. 3- Kevin Nash, as Diesel, was brought in to be Shawn Michaels bodyguard…yada, yada, yada. I think everyone knows the story. The two were tag champs and even tried to reform nWo in 2002. Good buddies. 4- Shawn Michaels and Stone Cold were former tag team champions in the summer of 97. They couldn't really coexist, but they were tag champs none the less. So I did it in four. I guess I could have fluffed it up and added Triple H (ties to Michaels by DX, and ties to Austin during the two man power trip). Either way, I did it. Thanks for the challenge. By the way readers, you can check my column out in the forums [/plug]. 2. Does your username indicate an interest in genealogy, or in livestock? I've actually waited on someone to ask me. I think Hustle is the only person that knows. Anyway, upon arrival in the WWF, I was intrigued with The Brood. More importantly, I liked Gangrel's vampire gimmick, as I happen to enjoy horror flicks. When the Brood split from Gangrel, and the Hardy Boys version of the Brood joined Terri, I decided that I was going to form The New Brood. After not much though, I settled on the name Bloodline as a cool Goth/vampire name for my character in this new stable… I was 10 at the time and though it was a good idea. For the record, Gangrel's latest tag team was named Bloodline, so I don't think I did too bad. Upon some rather extensive self-reflection, the name took a deeper meaning to me. My grandfather (Dad's Dad, who raised livestock, haha, after he retired from the Army) was the best friend I had from them time I was born till the day he died, when I was six. My grandfather had two sons, but of the two, my dad was the only one to have a son. Not to mention I'm the only son. So as I got older, I realized the huge pressure on me to father a son some day. So the Bloodline moniker became something more than just a cool name for a character in wrestling. It became an extension of who I was. I've used it here at LoP since I signed up here back in 2005. So to answer your question, I'd say that I do have an interest in genealogy, or at least my own. As for livestock, I was raised in the business, so I know a little, but nothing I partake an, or have been associated with for a while. 3. Sadly, nobody's ever asked me why my username is XanMan. I recently proclaimed--and don't you love how I use words normally associated with royalty to describe my actions?--Shawn Michaels to be the best wrestler in the world. You recently said Michaels "always delivers, but rooting for him just seems futile...out there for a pop and job." Are we both right? Of course we are both right. The fact that Michaels has five star matches, doesn't get title reigns, and does the pop and job doesn't mean that he isn't the best wrestler in the World. To me, he has everything anyone could look for in someone they would want to champion as their face and leader of their company. His issues with drugs which led to his newly found faith in God is a story that anyone can get behind and applaud him for. It makes him an easy role model. The day that Benoit died, I fully believe that Michaels became the best worker, meaning he could wrestling anyone to a five star match. I go back and watch his matches with Vince and wonder how Vince looked so good, and I know it wasn't Vince. It was Michaels, because he has that ability to make anyone look good. If he wasn't broken down, I don't think anyone on the roster could match his dedication and drive. Even with bad knees, he found a way to wrestle Cena to match in England for nearly an hour, and given his health and age, that sounds damn near impossible. Yet in every big time match, he lays down and gets the applause afterward from the crowd, for coming close. Even though he has said numerous times that he doesn't want the spotlight, it still makes it hard to watch one of his main event matches on a PPV, knowing that he won't win. So yes, I don't see how either of us is wrong in either account. 4. Do you still believe in any Chris Benoit conspiracy theories? If so, which ones? I'd love to say that I had the faith and could sit here and say that I believe that Benoit didn't do it, that he was framed, but I can't. I don't think there were any conspiracies here. I think Bruce Banner unleashed the Hulk and paid the consequences. Meaning, I think he killed them without being able to control it. Whether it was brain trauma from concussions or whether it was steroids, or whatever. Something altered him and the after effects were horrendous. 5. Speaking of Benoit, do you believe the WWF should be shunning him the way they are? Me personally, no I don't. As a Benoit fan, still to this day, I along with many other people who knew Chris know that the man that offed his family in his last days wasn't the same man that went to the ring night in and night out, and gave 100% to each and every match he had. The same can't be said of very many others. The man has a legacy in wrestling that can't be erased. Two of WWE's biggest matches in history were dedicated to/won by Benoit. Those being his Rumble victory in 2004, which still holds the time for the longest one man has been in the Rumble. The other being the main event of Wrestlemania's twentieth anniversary. Both were huge and if you were to retell the history of professional wrestling or sports entertainment, whatever, you couldn't do it without mentioned him in someway. He may not have been a name like Rock, or Hogan, or Flair, or even Cena, but he was important. So from my standpoint, either you can be like me, and try to remember the good times when you hear his name, or just don't watch when they do mention his name. Seeing as how we live in a society where people would rather bitch than just ignore it like I suggested, I can't blame WWE for doing it. Maybe one day WWE can mention his name and that elephant can get out of the corner. Role Play You're Vince McMahon. Let's pretend for a minute you aren't still in a coma from having your set fall on you. Don't you think it's a bit silly to be blowing your wad on title matches that are pretaped and results available all over the interwebs just to get your show off and running on its new network? Arghhh . . . I'm Billionaire Vince McMahon, I own Sports Entertainment. Don't these network metrosexuals know who I am? Of course it's silly and, being the control freak that I am, it burns me up inside. If I think about it too much, I'll have an aneurysm and experience the kind of coma which cannot be blamed on shoddy workmanship alone. You work in the WWE's PR Department. How are you going to finesse the news that CYBER Sunday no longer has a computer-related element, and that all votes must be cast (at the cost of $0.99 plus charges) via text messages? Finesse? Hell, those bitches be lucky we let them have a vote at all. We the WWE, sucka, we don't give nothin' away fo' free no mo'. Me and Shad, we gots to be paid with that money money yeah yeah, so we come up with this here scheme, see, and we get 30% of the profits from it. So, if you suckas don't wanna be us stealin' your shit, you best be puttin' down votes like crazy at a buck a pop. You're Jeff Jarrett. Jeff, do you really expect any thinking fan to buy the fact that Kurt Angle was any worse for the company than you were? Hey, just because I read the Daily Star, don't mean I'm stupid. I may have hogged the main event with my mid-card skills for years, but at least I know better than to be bad-mouthing the company to some limey scandal sheet. That right there is a worse crime than any number of rest-holds and depressingly predictable title-bouts. Wait . . . what's that you say? People still aren't interested in our match? . . . Damn. You are Steve Austin, once again playing the role of convicted felon in the latest WWE movie. How do you feel about being typecast in a manner which does not allow you to display your thespian talents to the full? Son, the thing is... I said the thing is... You know what, aisce? You damned sons of bitches need to get your act together. If you two morons want this sumbitch to answer questions, you gotta get yourself a "What" machine. Stone Cold Steve Austin can't just answer a damned question anymore, son, he's got to here the interrogatory "What?" after every 5 Goddamn words he said. Now why don't you go get me a Steveweiser before I stomp a mudhole in your limey ass? Big Finish Tonight, the Red Sox and Rays face off in the ALCS. I've been working on this question all week: Who you got? I'm going to have to go with the 'Rays' here. I can't bring myself to endorse any team which employs deliberately wacky spelling. After the heated controversies surrounding alleged racial abuse in the previous Test series between India and Australia, do you think that there is any hope that the current one can be played in the sportsmanlike manner which one associates with the game of cricket? Of course. And in a sportsmanlike manner, each team should select its best bowler and the two should duel to the death, so as to receive judgement from the gods as to whom was right. If you lived over here would you be planning a revolt over the latest bail out of the rich? Not at all. As a good socialist, I heartily approve of government intervention in order to correct the caprices of the Free Market. I'm just astonished that Bush feels the same way. As a citizen yourself, your share of the National Debt is now over $80,000. How are you going to pay it off? If they were planning on me doing that anytime soon(or at all,) they probably should have sent me some of that money instead of people that already have the $80,000. Dark Knight and the new Eddie Guerrero DVD come out one week apart from each other. If you had to choose one, which would it be? I haven't seen Dark Knight yet (I feel asleep watching Beyond, so that probably explains why I didn't rush to the multiplex). I suppose I should give it a try. It's a lot harder to 'acquire' online than Eddie Guerrero matches too. I think you mean "Begins." If you'd like to send feedback to XanMan Click Here If you'd like to send feedback to aisce Click Here To email feedback to both of us or to send topics you'd like us to cover next time Click Here or if you're a member, in the LOPForums. That's all we've got. We'll try to do better next time.
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