RavishingRickRudo

Cena vs. JBL - I Quit I think they should have had one more match to justify using an I Quit stip. Hart/Austin went on much longer and was much more heated whereas this has mostly been a farce. Maybe a bullrope/chain match in between their Mania bout would have done something. I haven't liked the direction of this feud at all, especially in how they could have handled it. I have confidence in these two to put together a good match, and I hate that a lot of people (not really here, but elsewhere) have referenced their WM match to determine the quality of this one, since the WM match had a good 10 minutes left on it but was cut short for time. Since HHH/Batista won't be on the card, they can afford to use some tricks - blood, weapons, run ins, finishing sequences, etc. - for heightened drama. It could go to a solid ***1/2. Rey Mysterio vs. Eddie Guerrero Not interested in this match at all, despite DEAN's awesome comic work. How many times have we seen Eddie Guerrero beat the piss outta Rey just for Rey to come back for the win? I just don't "buy" it, because it's been sold to me so many times before. Every time Eddie turns heel (which is often), and if Rey is on the roster at the time, they will have a match like this. Been there, done that, and neither guy is as good as they were in 1997. Their Mania match flopped, and even with direction I don't see this match being fantastic. **** tops, MOTN but that's not really saying anything. In a year, they will be buddies again. MNM vs. Haas & Holly Meltzer says these guys had a good house show match. Meltzer is a giant tool who has a hard-on for OVW. It will be a standard WWE tag match. *** tops. Do Haas and Holly even have a tag move? Orlando Jordan vs. Heidenreich Fuck, if I could be an agent for this match it would fucking rule. I enjoyed, for the most part, the Undertaker/Heidenreich series of matches. Both guys throw good-great punches (especially for the WWE), and the dynamic is pretty fun - the big stupid nice guy, the sinister blackman - there could be heat from this, but the way they have done it hasn't really gotten it. Orlando should have kidnapped one of Heidenreichs 'friends' and then said "If you don't do what I say, you're friend is dead", and the match (and the feud) basically has Heidenreich get the shit beat out of him. Lots of opportunity for drama and punches. The friend gets brought down to ringside, manages to escape, Heidenreich goes nuts on OJ, the friend "turns" on Heidenreich for money, Heidenreich breaks down and cries, gets pinned by OJ. As is, *1/2 Kurt Angle vs. Booker T Eugh. Booker T has been horrible in-ring for YEARS now. If he and Angle can find a similar pace together, this could be passable. The resolution to this is Angle -the rapist- is better than Booker? Jesus, The Bookman gets NO love in the E. **1/2 Carlito Cool (with Matt Morgan) vs. Big Show You've got to be kidding me. ** tops. Chavo Guerrero vs. Paul London Silly cruiserweights. ***1/4 tops, especially if they ground London for most of the match (which they will.)

I hate Degrassi with a passion. All of its incarnations. Fucking Canadian Melodrama, it's the worst kind of television! Dude, I'm ashamed to be a Buck65 fan, and the guy usually gets praise and shit so there's no real reason to be, but the song that introduced me to him wasn't particularly "good", but I still dug it ("Wicked and Weird" btw). But White Rappers nowadays need to be quirky and shit to set themselves apart from the black guys, and I don't see Cena as being that. I don't think most white rappers can get away "My game is tight, check out all my bling, I'll fuck you up motherfucka" because white guys tend not to have the same sort of confidence that black guys do to pull it off. Call it the Eminem Syndrome, or whatever, but I think that's the case with Cena. To me, he's a sheep trying to put on wolves clothing.

I'd reply, but I'm strill trying to wrap my mind around why you'd be watching Degrassi in the first place I'm not going to defend Buck65's work, but I will defend him as being someone who could have done a better job on Cena's album than the current producer. Which is to say, Cena would have benefitted from a different style of hip hop.

Buck65 is Canadian, I believe his underground fame came in the mid-late 90's but I can't confirm or deny anything. He is probably most notable for "The Centaur" which features the rhyme: "I have plenty to say but nobody listens, because my cock is so big and the end of it glistens". The suggestion isn't because I'm a big fan, because I'm not (though I have liked what I have heard from him), it's more because the sound and style (which has changed over the years, but has similar traits throughout) he brings would be better suited for Cena.

The beats sounded like they belonged in 1994, which is odd because Cena is trying to keep the 80's alive. And the thing is, it wouldn't even have been a good album in 1994. It's like it rained on Illmatic and what you have on the CD is the run-off sewer water. The lyrics aren't particularly good, the subject matter is silly -at least for me it is-, and his voice and pacing just doesn't really cut it for me. It's almost the complete opposite of the kind of hip hop I'm listening to now, and the opposite of the current style of hip hop that is out there. I think a lot of people had low expectations where a pretty shitty album surprised them, because they expected it to be really shitty with wrestling-inspired lyrics and content. I actually expected more out of Cena, because "Basic Thuganomics" and his current theme, while not all-time-classics, seemed somewhat inspired and were a little different than what the mainstream is poppin out. That's what Cena should have been trying to do, and with a better producer he could have done it. I think if he hooked up with Buck65, the album would have turned out much differently, and IMO it probably would have been better. Buck65 would have brought an actual quirkiness to it, rather than the manufactured quirk that they tried for in the bad bad man video. I don't know if Buck65 is a great producer, I just know that his sound would have been better fitting for Cena. In the end, Cena just played it safe trying to make a "passable" hip hop album. I would respect his efforts more if he tried to give his album a distinct sound, rather than taking a style and sound 10 years past its due date and putting his voice on it.

I guess I'm just an old fool, who's so cool.

Can I get some references to what those above would consider to be "good" hip hop, because I've heard some of the album and it was horrible and I wouldn't consider myself a big hip hop fan.

The only problem is... those angles aren't interesting, and the writing isn't quality.

I think HHH just blew a fuse. "The people watched because... they hate me so much... they wanted to see what the show would be like with out me, because they hate me so much, it was really me who did that rating.."

http://www.uwahardcorewrestling.com/ They are probably the most constant promotion up here, they run shows in Mississauga, but St Johns Hall is near the QEW so it's not really out of the way.

I think a "King of Cruisers" round-robin would be fun. It wouldn't be affiliated with the Cruiserweight title, and would be under modified rules. The rules would be something like no count-outs, no rope breaks, and maybe three 5 minute rounds (or 5 three minute rounds). This would be an incentive for cruiserweights to push the limits. After the 5 minutes are up, it is left to a select group of judges who score on impressive moves, damage, near falls, etc. Of course, it would be rare for a match to go to a decision. Once the King of Cruisers is decided, then he would defend his title under the modified rules. Eventually -and ultimately- there would be a confrontation between the Cruiserweight Champion and the King of Cruisers, and who is the true "best" cruiserweight in the world. In this scenario, the Cruiserweight champ would refuse to fight the King of Cruisers and in doing that he'll get called a coward. A match will take place, one man will win both titles and defend them both on different occasions. A feud can be based on a cruiser winning the KOC title, then down-the-line (after the KOC title is lost) challenge for the Cruiserweight title and be the odds-on-favourite. This dual title situation can create lots of matches and would be a change of pace in the WWE.

Lucha/WCW style 6 mans where leaving the ring is like a tag? That would be hot. I think if they brought in all the mexican guys in masks and have them side with Rey against Eddie would be great - since the mask has been a focus of the feud. In time, when their masks are removed, then join with Eddie. The symbolism being clear.

Ok, the WWE seems to be doing their annual "let's push the cruiserweights" dealy that -at best- lasts a month. Rather than lament about the lost potential, or get our hopes up for something good, let's just see what the board can come up with in advance before any more bad can happen. Possible feuds, stables, concepts... everything is open for discussion. It's not the best cruiserweight roster ever, but it's not exactly dry either. They have enough guys to make a cruiserweight tag division, for example. Have at it. Roster: Paul London © Chavo Guerrero Rey Mysterio Billy Kidman Spike Dudley Akio Nunzio Funaki Scotty 2 Hotty Shannon Moore Signed: Juvi Nicho Super Crazy Essa Rios

I think they should save Christians face turn for a few more months. Have a strong face run in the fall after a Summer heel build. A good 4 months of building and development would be good for him. Right now I'm thinking about Edge, have him do something with his name. Something like "He always has an edge". He always has an advantage. Always working an angle. They do that with HHH, BUT, if they have Edge getting the better of HHH -as a heel- that would be very effective in getting him over in a top spot and as a serious main eventer. This, of course, would involve HHH giving up his spot, which is unlikely, but if they were serious about Edges future, it would be the best bet. A HHH face turn is due, IMO, since he has done all that he can as a heel. I think they could make 2 more guys off of HHH in this year alone if they were willing to do that, one as a heel, and one as a face.

You considered that a choice?

Skeith brought up Flair turning on Batista, Edge joining Evolution along with Christian. It seems like a WWE-thing to do, but even I don't think they'll turn Flair again... right??!

The episodes in question are "I will remember you" and "Reunion". There is no fucking way "Reunion" would be wasted as an introductory episode. That's an episode you earn. The Buffy episode would be good for a Buffy fan who has never watched Angel, but for anyone else I question how they would be effected by the circumstances. You both have FAILED the Rudo Challenge. You LOSE 20 gold coins. Try again!

I don't think they'd mind us posting, if only we had anything to post. *checks pockets* *pulls out lint* *crickets* I was thinking about doing a mid-year review, posting various wrestlers on the roster to get evaluations from the board - grading them and whatnot - it appears that SOME PEOPLE can't wait until June for that... bastards... I'm not hating Edge, but I think they need to do something different with him. This Lita thing won't cut it, as it will be a generic heel coupleship and I don't find either of them very interesting... in other words, it's all very boring for me. I don't know what they could do to make him more interesting, but I'll think about it...

I think that's just Jack being optimistic that they'll find help and get saved. Jack saying "Just in Case" to Sawyer is a lil more ominous

I can't believe the WWE would even agree to this. They'd be better off moving Smackdown to WGN than they would be letting UPN put it on Friday night. WWE doesn't really have a say in the matter - like most television shows. They used to have leverage by directly getting TV ad revenue, but gave it up a year-or-so ago and now get their revenue directly from UPN. Which means UPN has almost total control over when Smackdown is shown. I mean that just screams "crap television". I guess UPN's trying to punish the WWE for putting all their focus on Raw, but I still don't understand the move. I wouldn't call it "punishment" since I doubt UPN pays much attention to the content the WWE is putting out. I would call it indifference, which is probably worse. If UPN had any sense of what "good" and "bad" wrestling is, then I doubt Smackdown would be where it is right now. I mean isn't Smackdown still one of UPN's highest rated shows? The idea that they'd take that and move it to the second worst TV night of the week is just ridiculous. Why are ratings important? Because highly rated shows attract companies who will pay big money to the networks and studios for commercial time. However, the issue with wrestling is that -while highly rated (in Cable and on UPN, not relative to major network shows)- it doesn't attract big money for advertisements because of the stigma it carries. This has been a concern for Vince, who has said recently that he wants Car Company sponsorship (like GM), to increase his companies profile. So if the WWE's big UPN ratings doesn't attract big sponsors, why should UPN care? The only value Smackdown has is that it increases UPN's overall ratings (the UFC show on SPIKE TV did something similar, where it's 2.0's in the ratings -along with RAW and CSI- put SPIKE at the top for certain demographics, and in this case SPIKE rewarded UFC for it) which could increase a networks overall value/profile in the industry... HOWEVER, UPN tends to do so poorly that I doubt the variance in the rating from Thursday to Friday will really make a big difference in their overall positioning.

Not really. WWE Originals moved about 48,000. There seems to be about 50,000 WWE fans who buy anything the WWE sells.

Whuh? This baby still has life in 'er. I was just about to post THUH CONTUNT~! We've had this discussion before, but I've been thinking about it a lot lately and I think it's suitable. Situation: You want to introduce someone to Angel, which episode do you show to hook them? I think the BEST pick would be "Are you now or have you ever been?" from Season 2. It is a great stand-alone episode, which is important when you hook someone, and gets across the unique-nature of the show. Most importantly, it has the twist ending of Angel letting them all die. I think twists are a great way of getting someone interested, because it actualizes their investment in the show - when you are surprised by something, it means that you are paying enough attention to be surprised. Firefly had 2 particular twists that hooked me on the show - when Mal told Simon Kaylee was dead, and when the fed was shot. When you are introduced to a world, and you see that the world can change and isn't what you always think, and it essentially manipulates you, you get put on your toes and your eyes start to open - it's an active show watching experience, rather than a passive one. So the Rudo Challenge is as such - can you find a better episode to hook someone to Angel??

Flair is only worth a pop of the crowd, and if that's the basis for a title push, then JR should be wearing gold too. I question his overness (cept in the south) as well, since I think its more of a respect pop he gets elsewhere than genuine enthusiasm. Plus, people like to "whooo!". Flair is awful in the ring, his promo work hasn't meant a single damn thing for the longest time, which means he doesn't do anything for anyone. And the biggest knock against him is it doesn't matter if he wins or loses - which is what wrestling, and being a champion, is all about. How many more "final runs" can a guy have? The guy should have retired over 10 years ago, he's done everything he could have done, there's nothing left for him to do, cut the cord, put him to bed, pull the plug, send him out to pasture, turn him to glue. WM XX was the highest selling DVD, IIRC, until TRAFOECW.

Jin kissing the baby was fantastic. I love how the guy managed to not talk to anyone (but Michael) and still be part of the group. And it works - he was the first one who got to feel the baby kick on the beach. Great continuity.

Jin saying "Stay with Jack" to Sun was a mark-out moment. I dunno why, it just was fucking awesome. I think the black smoke and her arrival were mighty convenient.