Sass

Why, thank you Captain Obvious. Of course a Kobe Bryant and Lamar Odom tandem isn't going to be good enough to carry the Lakers into the playoffs. Not when the other 3 guys playing with those two put up a combined 10 - 15 points a night while the other guys score 30 and 18 respectively. They need *help* and all the high stats in the world aren't going to help Kobe *and* his *team* if they don't make it into playoffs. Look at the 76ers for the past couple of seasons. AI should league MVP every year for the way he has carried that team on his back. As far as I'm concerned he's the fuckin main man in the NBA and it's a damn shame he doesn't have another 20 + PPG game guy on his team because the Sixers would be going places if he had that kind of help. Kobe Bryant and Lamar Odom are *maybe* like the 4th or 5th best tandem in the West. Maybe. The Suns, the Sonics, the Rockets, and even the Clippers have tandem's on their team that have nights where they just out score and out rebound the KB/LO tandem. Maggette and Simmons have got something going on with the Clips and add a healthy Elton Brand to the mix and it's a damn head shame that the Clips aren't in the 8th or 7th seed in the Western playoffs. This season should have been a winner for them. They're a really good team and if Kobe had switched LA teams and joined up with the Clippers when he offered them a deal then they'd be like 4th or 5th in the West at least. The Clips have got a *better* and *stronger* nucleus of starting players on their team then the Lakers have. Chris Mihm and Kaman are interchangable at C but the Clips have the better team and it's why they've managed to pound on the Lakers this season. Kobe Bryant on the Clippers this season would be *sick* and I'd say it's about time the Clippers fans have something to cheer about. Any championship won by an LA team, whether it's the Lakers or the Clippers, is cool with me. That's one of the reasons why I was happy for the Angels when they won their first World Series. It was about time Angel fans had something to cheer about after all the losing seasons and heart breaking post season appearances. I liked Shaq. But when he got into shape after leaving the Lakers and making demands for a contract extension before, that's when I lost all the respect I had for him as a person. He was a *huge* contributor to the community in LA and he seemed like a stand up guy. The guy never got into any trouble with the law around here and he looked like he was having fun whenever he dressed up as Santa Shaq. Shaq was good people but *way* too insecure about himself. His antics were sometimes just flat out juvenile, especially when he would slag Phil Jackson for daring to ask him to improve his subpar free throw shot. Shaq making at least 2/3's of his free throws could have turned the tide for a lot of games where the team only lost by a handful of points that could have been made up by Shaq's free throws. I never cared for the way Shaq stuck his nose up in the air about that deal and it's why I thought Shaq maybe was a two-faced guy after singing Phil's praises, post Lakers, after the verbal spats they had about Shaq's diminishing playing ability. Two-faced indeed. Speaking of... On the otherhand, Kobe Bryant has what appears to be a *very* questionable character. Kobe Bryant the player is cool with me. Kobe Bryant the person on the otherhand sounds like a spoiled prima donna along with a questionable character who got charged with raping a girl. That mess is always going to haunt him until the day he dies. It's a shame the case never had a final verdict because that did no one involved any favors.

If the movie wants to turn Osborn into Venom, go ahead I say. This is coming from a huge Spidey fanboy too. Right now the Scorpion is the current symbiote suit holder in the comics and I thought that was a pretty cool move. Unless they retool the crummy looking Green Goblin outfit then I say press on with giving the symbiote to Harry in place of the GG costume. It looked horrid and still does. Eddie Brock should have been introduced in the first movie if they were going to go ahead and do Venom with Brock. Maybe have Spidey stop a Cletus Cassady in his first outing as Spidey too. But neither of those guys have been introduced and I think it would have been better to give each guy a slow burn towards joining up with the symbiote suits rather than doing a single movie devoted to introducing the Black suit/Venom/Carnage/etc. because the symbiote story is just something that can't be rushed in one 2 hour flick if you are staying true to the original material. The Spidey cartoon did the best job possible, deviating from the original material but taking key elements from it, at introducing the Black suit with JJJ's son John crash landing his space shuttle on earth after a trip to the moon with the symbiote attacking him and his co-pilot. Eddie Brock had already been introduced in the first episode and had lost his job at the Bugle in an earlier episode so the perfect back drop was already set-up for Brock's hate of Spidey when he took the costume on. The Rhino made his debut along with the Shocker in the pre-Venom episodes and I thought both guys came out of the gates strong there. Just ditch the retarded looking Green Goblin outfit in favor of something else. I like the current design in the comics and hope the studio will go with that outfit if they do decide to give Harry his shot at being GG. Sandman's a big guy and THC doesn't fit the physical description. I'm thinking that Raimi is going to go ahead and insert Electro into the 3rd flick here since that was the guy (or at least someone with electricity powers) James Cameron was going to use when he was set on doing a Spidey movie 10 years ago. The rumor mill said the main villain was going to be a mix of the Kingpin, for his powerful crime connections, and Electro, for his powers, but nothing was ever set in stone. Plus, I think Electro can keep a movie interesting for 2 + hours since he can shoot friggin electric blasts at people. That could make for some really entertaing CGI fights between Spidey and Electro. Electro has moved himself up on the super villain food chain over the last 5 years, he deserves his big break here. Mysterio wouldn't be bad either.

Nice. It looks like the Dodgers and the Padres will be duking it out for 1st in the West this season. The Giants guys have gotta be a little peeved right now since Bonds was the majority of their offense. Bummer for San Francisco.

Where's Henry going to go you think?

Patterson is gay but there has never been any concrete confirmation about BB's sexual preferences. He could just be a confident to Patterson for all we know. Moolah and Mae have had rumors spread about them and some dykish behavior back in their younger wrestling days (along with today) but nothing concrete. None of the 4 people mentioned above have ever been married though. That's enough cause for speculation from anyone.

Buff should have never been picked up in the first place so you're spot on there SG.

Well, yeah, having all those guys under the WWE banner would have made a world's more difference. Tons of difference. But Goldberg, Sting, Flair, Steiner, and other top WCW guys had giant contracts that Vince wasn't willing to buy out at the time WCW went under. JJ on the otherhand had a friendly contract that, had he not stiffed Vince earlier, would have probably gotten picked up since it was drafted the same way like Book's and Bagwell's contracts were and both of those guys got picked up. Bagwell should have never been signed in the first place, which you figure would have happened after all the problems he caused in the final year or so of his run with the company. I mean, he was looking at possible jail time for assault and assault with a deadly weapon after supposedly punching a backstage crew hand in the face, while wearing a big fat ring, that did a nice amount of damage to the punchee's face. DDP at least was willing to dump his contract deal in order to get a shot with the WWF, which in hindsight was a bad mistake after getting reamed out by the Undertaker and others for a variety of petty shit while only a month or so into his run. Flair should have brought in Goldberg, Sting, Steiner, and DDP when he was announced as co-WWF owner. I think the impact would have been able to possibly jumpstart another potential WWF vs. WCW if the company's big players had been involved and brought in all at once.

Ask Whedon himself. Just do some looking around for how to get in touch. Signed stuff is sketchy unless you get the book signed in person with the guy signing it.

Booker T vs. Jeff Jarrett should have been done instead of Booker T vs. Buff Bagwell. JJ wouldn't have dragged ass like Buff did that night. Unlike Steiner, Flair, and Goldberg, JJ's contract wasn't too large that it would have turned Vince off from taking it. Of course, this would take into account JJ never holding Vince up for more money and being on good leaving terms with him.

My condolences go out to the families involved in this awful affair. That's some repugnant crap to see go down.

27 - 20 was nice but I'm hoping for a blow out this time. 2001 was the year the Raiders would have won it but instead it turned out to be the Pats time instead. I hope the Raiders win every game against the Pats because a lost championship can never be replaced until another one is won.

Gibbs at least sees the biggest problem on his team, besides the QB situation, is the subpar O-line, which needs to be rebuilt or else he's going to collect another 8-8 or worse season under his belt. The Skins still have like a top 10 defense but if they can't put any points up on the board then they're screwed. Maybe Gibbs sees something in Brown this season. The guy isn't a total fool, although he did come out of a nice retirement.

I'm talking *primetime* baybeee. Kick the Pats when they look like they're down. Their LB corps look sketchy as fuck for this season compared to past seasons. They still can field a tough defense though.

Paul Newman and Robert Redford together for one last time? If the movie looks good, I'm there. Newman has had a hell of a career. Sizemore is broke? If he stays drugged up, I wouldn't be surprised to hear about a suicide if decided that his life was too fucked up too continue. Great actor but a guy with a *lot* of personal demons. Smacking around women isn't cool. Rosie vs. Alley in a battle of the bulge. Howard Stern could probably have a field day with these two cows.

It's payback time for the silver and black. That's going to be a good game to watch. I hope the Raiders can field a defense that can stop other teams this season because otherwise I could see the Pats torching the Raiders there. And the Pats still have a defense that's nothing to sneeze at. Good, it's time the Raiders get a chance for a little payback against the title thiefs.

Respect must be earned. What was inconsiderate was how Shaq mistreated his body for 3 years without showing any signs of improvement, yet turned himself into an adonis after he was traded. That's incosiderate to the Lakers and the fans who saw the decrease in Shaq's game after his weight increased. Had he slimmed down when he was making demands for a contract extension then the words "fuck Shaq" would never have been uttered from my mouth or the other fans who felt burned by his actions, post Lakers. I will hopefully be able to attend the ceremony where the Lakers retire his number, which Dr.Buss has said he will do, no grudges held. He was great when he was in shape and now the Heat fans have gotten their money's worth with a slim and trim Shaq, who looks like he could lead the team to it's first championship win. Good for them.

Did I make my post in kanji or something? READ it Bob, again it you have to. I want to make this crystal clear since the media has done a very, very hack job at covering how this debacle went down. Those wins were excellent. Very, very, very nice. But Shaq's attitude and weight/injury issues were not excellent. They were becoming an issue because they were effecting his on-court ability. Kobe got charged with rape but as long as the outside problems don't mess with the on-court stuff then all is well. But Shaq kept getting injured and sitting out 10 + games for the last 3 seasons with the Lakers because his wheels were breaking down on him. He wasn't losing any weight and came into summer camp overweight each time Phil Jackson and Mitch Kupchak had asked him to lose 15 - 20 pounds. This weight issue had a negative effect on his on-court activities and all was not well. Shaq got into fighting shape after he got traded from the Lakers. He got into shape after getting traded. He got into shape after getting traded. WHY could he have not done that after the Lakers 2nd round loss to the Spurs in '03 when it became clear that Shaq's injuries were mounting, along with a nagging and very injured big toe? Why? Why? Why? WHY DID HE NOT GET INTO SHAPE BEFORE HE WAS TRADED? Had Shaq lost weight when he was *asked* to then we would not be having this discussion. Dr. Buss would have given Shaq his desired contract extension, no questions asked. Instead, Shaq acted like a lazy jerk and kept missing a dozen or more games that could have maybe earned the Lakers the 1st or 2nd seed in the playoffs had those games not been missed by him. Shaq would still be on the Lakers, Karl Malone would most likely still be on the team and the Lakers would probably have another shot at getting into the NBA Finals this season. But the reality is that Shaq is gone and now the Lakers are going to rebuild for the future, Kobe Bryant that is, and hope that he does ascend the Michael Jordan ladder and become the league's next diety.

Shaq is a force no matter where he goes. A team is nearly guaranteed a .500 + win season with Shaq playing for them. The Lakers just reloaded for the future when they got rid of Shaq, who was making a nuisance of himself to Dr.Buss. Demanding, in Shaq's own "charm", that he should get a contract extension from Dr.Buss when he's checking out a routine scrimage game is not the way to conduct business deals in the NBA. It's a nice way to get your ass dumped as we saw earlier this summer when the Shaq trade went down. If Shaq had trimmed down to 325/330 after the Lakers 2nd loss to the Spurs in the '02/'03 season then he'd still be on the team. That goes without question. Hell, maybe him and Kobe would have gotten along better if Kobe saw Shaq take the initiative to get in fighting shape again like he was in the '99/'00 when he won the MVP award. But he didn't get in shape until Dr.Buss bruised his fragile little ego by trading him to the Heat and *then* Shaq got into shape. Fuck Shaquille O'Neal. That was the biggest slap in the face I could think of. Dr.Buss, Phil Jackson, Mitch Kupchak, *and* Kobe Bryant all asked for Shaq to lose weight for years after he tipped the scales at 350 + lbs. It was hurting his speed and also not doing his lower extremities, like his injured toes and knees, any good by carrying all that unnecessary weight. Most of all, his excess weight issues weren't helping the team either. Dr.Buss was not joking around when he said he wanted a more up-tempo team like the old Showtime Lakers had...or the Spurs for that matter, who have the best blend of speed and on-court ability in the league. He wanted his team to be able to make fast breaks without waiting for Shaq to take a full minute to get up court without gassing himself on a simple court sprint. The big fellas wheels were coming off and something needed to be done. Shaq wanted a contract extension. A *fat* one at that. 3 years with $60 mil + attached to that to go along with the 8 year and $120 + mil deal he initially signed with the team. That's a lot of cash to hand over. But he did *nothing* to show that he deserved such a large deal after getting bumped out of the playoffs and NBA finals for 2 seasons in a row. 2/3's of the team payroll was devoted to Shaq and Kobe's contracts. Dr.Buss is a gambler but Shaq's weight and injury issues was just too much of a crap shoot to go through with so he let the Daddy take an extended vacation down to Miami where he seems to be doing okay. In the process though, the team freed up some much valued cap space. Smart money is on the Lakers getting one, or two, of the top free agents in the next couple of seasons. They'll have enough cap space by the '06/'07 season to offer comfortable deals to guys like Yao Ming and Amare Stoudamire, who will be at the top of their lists for sure when they become FA's. The Pistons and the Heat can enjoy their time at the top for now. But by the end of the decade, the Lakers will win another championship or two. Kobe will (hopefully) grow as a player now that Shaq is gone and also have a better team surrounding him that doesn't need Bryant to hold their hand on the court. Btw, that was a tough loss to Seattle, 100 - 102, where it looked as if the Lakers were going to pull out the miracle win at the end. Oh well, at least there's next season to look forward too.

I thought she was older. I mean, like 26 - 28 range. I thought Joy Giovanni was younger than Jackie G too but I guess not.

Christy Hemme is 24? I never would have guessed. That's the only age that took me by surprise.

It's too bad Freddie Blassie isn't alive because I think him doing the HOF induction for Hulk would have been a nice touch since he was his manager when he showed up in the WWF in '80. Him, Savage or Flair since the latter two were so connected to Hulk throughout the 90's. Stallone can be the token celebrity that the last few Mania's haven't had. He's not a bad choice, all things considered.

Hawk was always the better speaker out of the Roadies. Animal and Bill Eadie united tour. Make it happen. Sherri, from some pics I saw at DVDVR not too long ago, looked haggard. Not obese or anything, but just haggard. She wasn't fat but she was thick. I'm sure she'll (hopefully) be in better shape if she comes back to the WWE. She's 47 now but she looked about 10 years older in the pics. Vince is really letting the nostalgia run free.

For all intents and purposes, yes. It's one of the main reasons why Hart never had a kind word to say about Hogan before jumping ship to WCW in '97 after Survivor Series. Many folks were surprised they managed to get along so well in WCW but Hogan's charm has no bounds with people.

I stand corrected. Meltzer said "no" on Hogan/Hennig headling the Skydome for Wrestlemania 6. The feud never drew and Hennig wasn't a draw in the WWF.

Yes. I'm waiting for a response from Meltzer on this one since I want to be sure about this. But yeah, that's what I remember about the match.