Zack Malibu

I met him backstage at a Nitro just before he started on the air when I was backstage with my company. Wicked nice guy, talked to me for about 10 minutes just about this and that. I've got a picture with him somewhere from that night. It's funny reading these results because I was recently watching some of these matches when I started using my DVD recorder to make some comps.

I have never, ever, thought U2 was any good. True story. One of the few bands (U2, REM and The Cure coming immediately to mind) that I absolutely despise.

Heh, I'm still ahead of you in the brownie points department, chief. That wasn't meant to be mean. It was because you insulted Kelly earlier.

She hasn't had any surgeries. And she's always been hot.

There. That makes me feel better. Sooooooooooo hot.

Yes, you do that! Instantly! Hoff, I found a copy of the song! I am a happy prep.

That's actually not a bad idea.

They already have Lance Hoyt, and he comes with a cheaper price tag. No need for Mr. Martin.

Just read a recap of a Sean O'Haire interview on the Observer site. I had always heard Bischoff wanted him to be WCW's new big star during the relaunch, but never knew how. According to Sean, his gimmick would be that he was an anti-hero, an American that was raised in Japan and was therefore a highly skilled martial artist (I assume to both appease the karate mark in Bischoff and utilize Sean's legit toughman background). A few questions stemming from this: Were there any other plans for big pushes to any of the younger talent upon the relaunch? I would figure Shane Helms most definitely would given the efforts thrown behind him doing the Vertebreaker gimmick. Were there any long term plans to keep Kid Kash, AJ Styles, Air Paris around? Would Flair's Magnificent Seven still have been the main heels in the company, or would that have been dropped? And if that was dropped, how would they explain Goldberg, Nash, etc. reappearing on the scene after being destroyed by them?

A lot of guys mentioned have either been here before, or are indy flavor of the month people. Not taking away the talents of most, as I enjoy pretty much everyone mentioned, but there are other people I'd rather see in TNA at the moment than Kevin Steen or Hotstuff Hernandez (who had one of the more unremarkable runs in TNA history as JJ's Elite Guard, wearing a faggy beret and jogging around ringside before being dropped with no explanation). O'Haire I'm a huge mark for and would love to see him come in, but he seems content with MMA right now. Kanyon I'm honestly surprised hasn't shown up yet, and to the person suggesting EZ Money, last I heard he was retiring from the business. Tedd and Low Ki are horrible to deal with because they're both huge marks for themselves. Awesome didn't do too well in his New Church run. Punk would be good as his ROH/indy persona and not a lackey like last time, but he has a bad rep from the Hart fight. Spanky can make more doing indies and Japan, so TNA didn't want him under contract if he wouldn't commit full time. The Noble reason has already been explained, although I honestly can't see him back in WWE anytime.

This concert ruled on so many levels. Right off the bat, she opened with Since U Been Gone and got the crowd rocking. I was one of them, not gonna lie about it. My friend Melissa I went with said she should have taken pictures to blackmail me with. I bought a huge ass poster of her for $10. She did a song called "Don't" that she said she wrote on her last tour, and that somehow made it's way on the net (it's not on her CD's). I can't find it, but am determined. Hoff, I want your help on this project. She did NOT do "Low" for some reason (and I love that song, plus it was one of her biggest singles), and when she did "A Moment Like This", it was a pop rocky version, not the slow ballad. Weird, but cool. In a very nice gesture, she sat on the edge of the stage during her last two songs and signed autographs for all the fans up there (I was about seven rows back). My efforts to get up there were thwarted, and my friend Melissa (whom security would easily allow by since she's a rather hot girl) didn't want to go get my ticket signed for me. That jerk. All in all, an awesome show. Sorry I missed HD for it, but y'know...it's KELLY.

No clue. Pending approval from the talks in the GCF, a possible angle involving moi and several others.

Mind sharing with us when Steven Richards got fired? Since, you know, he wasn't.

While also on the subject of Wright, how did he go from "next big thing" (to the point where Flair loved him so much he wanted to make him a Horsemen but WCW feared turning him heel) to job boy, then back up and back down the card? If they stayed consistent with him, I think he could have been "made". Speaking of the Horsemen, were there any hints to the Rogue Horsemen angle that was to have Pillman and Benoit split off and form their own group with Malenko, Regal and/or Wright? I know the idea was there, but were there any big plans other than "Pillman's a nutcase and unpredictable?" Like, why would Benoit turn on Flair and Arn?

What was the deal with the vignette of Renegade, Joe Gomez, Jim Powers and Alex Wright dressed in Baywatch style swimtrunks and parading around beaches in 1996? Was this to lead to a Beach Patrol gimmick or something? I do recall them working together against the Horsemen or something on one of the Florida Nitro's back then.

I'm guessing they feel the slow burn is better, although taking things TOO slow (as in, how many more weeks is James gonna "accidentally" hit a partner, or get caught talking to Gunn) can reverse the desired effect. SK made a very good point once that if they just crammed the 3LK, Outsiders and ex-DX guys into one super stable of babyfaces, they'd have a merchandising bonanza on their hands.

Shawn Stasiak was also a scab referee at the time. Also, wasn't it Shane McMahon who counted the pin for Vince over Triple H on Smackdown, or am I hazy on those details?

Best of the Best 5?

You know, that tag match sounds like the perfect way to set in motion Brown's return to facedom. Have the NAO reform when James finally turns (why he wouldn't do it on 3LK is beyond me, but hey, that's a problem for the bookers), but Monty is puzzled, not knowing about it. Backstage, JJ can congratulate the two on their reunion, and Brown will get further incensed finding out that JJ had known about it but kept him in the dark. Brown wins the Gauntlet, JJ tries to blow it off, and Monty snaps and leaves the stable, goes back to being a face.

If I were someone higher up in TNA, I'd suggest an incentive program like WCW had in the early 90's where the people who bust their asses off the most and put on the best match/matches get a bonus. It was a good motivational tool and produced some great bouts. When you're getting ****-plus at house shows, you're doing something right.

To respond to Hoff's critique, which I'm not offended with in the slightest: Zack winning this was planned because, like Eski said, there's not really a plan in the works for Black T to be chasing singles glory just yet. As for my portion, I honestly would have liked to have written a lot more than I did, so that's probably why a lot of it reads spotty, as I didn't get to properly explain every sequence. The German off the top was a take on the TNA stacked superplex spot in the AMW/XXX cage match where Daniels took a suplex but wound up taking a face bump when his body was able to shift while in mid-air. It's not what Dan was going for, it's just what happened. The ending, in my head, was supposed to become a knock down drag out because both guys realized that they were going to have to ditch psychology and just try to maim each other. The mulitple kickouts, the frustration, and all the drama leading into this match came to a head. I also didn't want to make it a clear cut blowout for the finish because too much went into this angle for that, and it's a way to extend the angle down the line if certain ideas discussed come into fruition.

I ordered it, and it's taping now (I'm not at home). So I'm of no help with a recap/newsbits from it.

AJ Styles vs. Abyss for the title shot: -I second what bps said earlier...Abyss supposedly HAS a title shot he earned in that match with Hardy. Maybe we're supposed to think that it's on the line here, so that when AJ wins, it'll make a semblance of sense? AJ. King and his Court vs. The Nitro Main Eventers in a "it's not War Games, we swear" bout. -I think this'll be good, and I might be in the minority. The James idea that was posted here is a good one and makes sense, however I think that if the mystery partner isn't someone like Sting or Hall, everyone is going to be let down (which they usually are with mystery men anyhow). I think somehow, JJ's team wins...maybe with Brown getting the duke for his team to again remind JJ how he "owes him one". Team Jarrett. Christopher Daniels vs. Elix Skipper -I'm expecting some type of super highspot out of this one to play into Triple X's cage match history, but I don't think Skipper will get the title here. Daniels to retain. American's Most Wanted vs. Team Canada -Poor Petey, stuck in tag action. He and Young should make for a great combo though, and this match should be above average at the least and MOTN at best. I'd like for a Team Canada win to get Petey back in the mix somewhat and help bring Young out of the lower midcard. Here's to a Team Canada win. Sonjay Dutt vs. Shocker vs. Chris Sabin vs. Michael Shane -Dutt's back, Shane is someone Dusty wants to use, Shocker is another one he wants to make into a star, and Chris Sabin is sadly, just there these days. I look forward to total and complete insanity in this one, however they have to go easy on the highspots as to not overshadow what I *think* Daniels and Skipper will do later in the show. Meltzer says that Shocker won't be available for the next TNA PPV as he's headlining TripleMania in Mexico, so I'm going to go with a Shane win over Shocker to take it. Jeff Hardy vs. Raven -Raven, hopefully. If they allow Raven to drag this angle out, it could work where a new Flock/Gathering/Cult/whatever buzzword he calls it has the odds against Jeff, only for Matt to arrive on the scene and lead to a few of those Hardy Boyz reunion matches before Matt moves onto a solo TNA career. Dustin Rhodes vs. Bobby Roode -Roode was getting a push, but now he's matched again Dustin, whom I don't mind, but isn't anything without a gold outfit and facepaint on. The 2/3 falls stip seems like it's just going to have this drag longer than it should, unless they put some decent spots together. Here's to hoping for Roode, but I have a feeling we know what's coming. Apolo and Siaki vs. Candido and Hoyt -Hoyt's gonna be lost without Cash, Candido has been fun to watch since he got to TNA, Siaki I've always liked, but wasn't he supposed to be a "Dusty favorite"? If that's the case, how does he always wind up in these tossed together matches and shitty stories? Apolo I can live without. I have a feeling Hoyt and Candido are gonna be thrown together in an "instigator/intimidator" style team (kinda like Candido/Brian Lee were) and that could be good for them both. I say they take it. 3LK (I'll assume Truth and BG James) vs. Naturals vs. Quatermain and Lovett -Buck and Lex are supposed to be Fairplay's team, right? Where the hell has he been anyhow? 3LK wins to get the crowd going.

Feedbackery from Zackary. Dug the press conference. All of us did a great job on it. As for my portion, and the build to Dan/Zack, a lot of people questioned why I wanted to go back babyface after making a successful transition into heeldom, but I had felt like the time was right for doing so. The fact that Eski and I have been here for three years and never had a major feud allows a lot of history to be brought up, and the Candie angle is just added fuel to the fire. As for Axel/Tony, again, Tony is a guy here from the beginning (the VERY beginning) and this is his first major title feud. Good stuff in building to a PPV I'm really looking forward to. Speaking of turns, who'd have thought last year at this time that Zack would just be getting back into the fan's good graces again, while Crystal was playing the annoying, bitch heel? She's done a great job in getting the fans to hate her, while the Hoff-Stepper is beloved by all. OAOAST Shopzone needs to get those teddy bears that are dressed as the wrestlers, just so that big lug can have a stuffed animal with the H shirt on it. I'd buy one. KC is the fucking man, and I'm not just saying that because we're an SWF tag team. Last Man Dancing? Nice. Another return that had been building for a while in PK's. I'd always get the occasional PM from him asking for ideas on how to come back, but a lot of times I either couldn't think of anything, or just had real life kicking my ass and was unable to get back to him in a timely fashion. Good to see him back though. It's starting to seem like old times around this place. ::sings "Memories":: OK, continuing on... Nice little match in putting the non-Spike-handled Brock over. PK probably did a better job with him than Spike could! I kid, I kid. Nice little segment and dug the Killings appearance at the end. LOL at the COD/Weekend At Neddy's bit. For those of you impressed with Patty's writing, imagine getting PM's several times a day from the man, all written much like his promo's are. They put a smile on my face. Sly's return, eh? Well, let's face it, there's OMG TENSION! there for whatever reason (I'm as clueless as you all), but if he wants to be back, kudos for him. As Frigid and I can tell you, e-fed spats are pointless. These days, he only dislikes my fandom of the Yankees and Dolphins. I'll come back with more later!

Jericho I would not count on in the least. Hardy, Rhyno and Molly, sure. Heyman for sure as well, because he's not getting resigned, and you know that would just be more fuel on the fire for him to show that he's got the skills that will turn TNA into a competitor.