Hunter's Torn Quad

The thing with introducing the Diva Search rejects is that they did it on the same show as the TE contest. If the fans see the Diva Search rejects get jobs, then they'll assume, correctly so, that the TE rejects will get jobs too. And if the rejects of both contests get jobs anyway, why bother voting on who you want to win ? Why bother choosing who you want to get the job, when everyone is going to get a job, regardless of voting ?

Creativity is overrated in the sense that bookers can think they HAVE to be creative just to be creative. There's nothing wrong with creatively booking a modernized version of a classic booking scenario. It's when you try and get TOO creative, and the creativity gets in the way of the booking, that you get problems.

I'd say creativity is overrated, in that a lot of bookers seem to think they've got to be creative just so they're not seen as being passé. The key to creativity is being creative with the presentation of the same basic booking principals that have drawn and can continue draw, while not letting the actual booking get buried beneath the creativity itself.

A good booker can leave you with doubt in your mind about the results of even the most 'obvious' match. I'm not talking about prelim stuff, but more the main event matches. The best bookers should be able to leave a shred of doubt in even the most intelligent of fans minds. By the same token, when it comes to telling a story that doesn't allow for such doubt, such as Brock Lesnar's march towards the WWE Title at Summerslam 2002, where it's obvious that he's winning as soon as the title match is set up, a good booker should be able to get you to want to see that happen, regardless of whether it's obvious or not. That's why Vince and Hunter aren't as smart as a lot of people give them credit for, because a lot of the time, when it comes to pushing stuff that they want, they can't get the people to want it too. I mean, they wanted Orton to be the chosen one, but they couldn't get people to really want it. Sure, Orton was getting some cheers, and he's getting more cheers now, but nobody is clamouring for him to be the king of the mountain. It's also why the Batista swerve on Monday was totally stupid, because if they tease it again, with a view to pulling the trigger, the emotion won't be anywhere near it could be, because fans have been conditioned to expect the swerve. A good booker also doesn't do shit for no reason other than to just do it, or surprise people just to surprise them, with no thought to how it affects the long-term. That's why Russo is a horrible booker; he would lead people to want something, then go in the opposite direction just to swerve them, without thinking about how it would affect things.

Another big problem with filling TV with short matches, is that when it times come for PPV, and you've got 10-20 minute matches going on, you get little heat, because fans have been condition to 5 minute matches, and lose patience for anything longer than that.

You can't go forward by going back. Crash TV was always bad for the long-term, but it was exciting because it was something new and different. Going back to it now would requre regressing the product, and that isn't going to do anyone any good.

I remember the Nitro where Flair pinned Jarrett for the WCW Title. I remeber it because when Flair won the match, the announcers didn't really sell it that well. Why, you ask ? Because NOBODY TOLD THEM IT WAS HAPPENING, and they thought it was a mistake, so panicked, not wanting to bring attention to something they didn't think was meant to happen.

I remember the Nitro where they literally sent one midcarder after the other to the ring to get powerbombed and pinned by Kevin Nash in 5 seconds each time. I think they killed like 12 guys before stopping. Nash did that a lot, kill midcarders.

Not going to happen, for two reasons. 1) They clearly like Batista, and aren't going to make him seem like a guy who can't hack it at the top by giving him a short Word Title reign. Much more likely, if Batista has a Raw title reign in his future, that he'll be the one to take it from Orton. 2) If Orton is still going to face Huner at WM XXI, and they're still wanting to give Orton the super push, he won't be coming into WM with the title. It'll mean a whole lot more if Orton wins the title at WM rather than retains it at WM.

They were on opposite sides of the ring in a six-man flag match on Raw on July 21st 1997. It was Bret, Owen and Davey against Dude Love, Steve Austin and The Undertaker. Also: They worked an opener on Shotgun Saturday Night on January 25th 1997 Bret beat Mankind at a house show in Germany on February 24th, 1997 Mankind and Steve Austin beat Bret Hart and Owen Hart on July 11th 1997 at a house show in Dallas Dude Love and Steve Austin beat Bret Hart and Owen Hart on July 18th 1997 at a house show in Worcester. Bret and Owen beat them the next night in Newfoundland and the night after that as well, both times with Dude Love losing the fall after cheating. Dude Love and Undertaker beat Bret Hart and Jim Neidhart on October 30th 1997 in Baharain Mankind, Steve Austin and Undertaker beat Bret, Jim and Davey Boy on November 7th and 8th 1997, in two of Bret's last WWF matches, both times with Austin pinning Jim after the Stunner.

The Chicago match isn't on the DVD. I don't know why, though, as it would have made so much sense to have all three of their televised matches on there.

Douglas reaching the main event was unlikely. He wasn't over a lick, wasn't seen as carrying his end of things, even by people he didn't have heat with, and WWE couldn't wait to get rid of him.

After Bischoff was sent home, the higher ups at Turner sent down word that they wanted Goldberg to get a big push, and they wanted various of scenarios presented to them that would result in Goldberg winning the World title at Starrcade.

Doug Gilbert is lying through his teeth. At no point did Eddie ever own any part of ECW. Tod Gordon says otherwise. Also not true. Gilbert quit as booker after an argument with Tod Gordon. Gilbert thought Gordon was getting involved with Jim Crockett and Gary Juster, which wasn't true, and Gilbert quit.

Congratulations on getting so many facts wrong. Tod Gordon started ECW in 1992, just after the TWA folded. And Gilbert had nothing to do with it. Gordon was the one who went with Heyman as booker, and it had nothing to do with anything Heyman did. Considering this statement is based on a faulty premise, I'd say the chances of that are slim to none. Eddie Gilbert gets all the credit he deserves in regards to ECW. The W*ING deal was brokered through Victor Quinones. It hasn't been mentioned, probably because Snuka wasn't ECW Champion at all in 1993. He was the first ECW Champion though. In 1992.

Tod Gordon would disagree. Meltzer was really harsh on ECW on over the years, a little too much so on occasion.

Where are Public Enemy ? They are Top 5 material, at least.

If they have serious plans for Batista, he won't be winning. If someone other than Hunter wins Battle Royal, they'll be dropping the belt back to him in short order, and so it won't be anyone they have big plans for.

Replace Benoit with Jericho, and you'll be onto something. Remember, Hunter still has to get all those jobs back he's done to Benoit on PPV this year.

If you want to see who is seen as valuable by management, take note of who gets an entrance. You could tell the jobbers in the #1 contender Battle Royals earlier in the year when they got introduced during the commercial break.

Falling buy-rates and houses back that up too. No one is driving the fans away, but nobody is pulling them in either. If they were, business wouldn't be in state it is.

You aren't over unless you can draw. It's one thing to 'be over' with the live fans, and get them to boo you, cheer you, etc, but it's something else to get them to pay to see you. Unless you can get them to pay to see you, you're not over.

That match is ridiculously overrated. I think the only reason people think it's this classic match is because they went 60:00. Jericho v Rock from No Mercy 2001 blows it out of the water, even with the shitty finish, and the same with Jericho v Rock from the 2002 Rumble.

Getting a big reaction isn't the same as being over. Being over means being a draw, and nobody is a draw right now.

Tommy Dreamer has comments on there too, I believe.... Lance Storm is on it. Wasn't he released a few months ago? No. He's in OVW as a trainer.