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Shakin' My Head: Multiple WWE releases, Hart Foundation 2.0, Loser of the Week, a contest (yeah...a CONTEST), plus much more!!
By ZAH
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01-19-07
“Teacher I ain’t foolin’ around with your rules.”
Boo-yah, here we go!!
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Item #1 – Let the releases begin!!! Y’know, some people didn’t really believe Claudio Castagnoli when he told people that he was released by WWE before he even started due to impending cutbacks. Well...it turns out that he was 100% truthful and the proof is in the pudding as WWE has made more cuts than the Bride in Kill Bill volume one.
Let’s take a look-see here...
Sylvester Terkay – This was a surprise hiring from the beginning for me. I mean, I understand that WWE wanted to do an MMA-type gimmick due to the popularity of UFC and such, but while Terkay had experience as a professional wrestler prior to this experiment, it was quite obvious that he didn’t stand a chance in the role and seemed lost at times. He lacked any in-ring charisma and sucked the life out of any arena that he wrestled in.
This move is a good one for one primary reason: it allows Elijah Burke to explode into the role that he was always meant to play and become the Elijah Experience as one super-talented charismatic heel. He should flourish in ECW and be moved back to one of the main rosters in no time.
Terkay, if allowed to eventually return in his Bruiser Brody-esque Wildman gimmick, could become a nice entertaining upper mid-card heel in time. Hell...if Umaga can work then anything’s possible.
BOTTOM LINE: Slightly surprising.
Christopher W. Anderson – How this guy stayed employed this long was beyond me. CW Anderson doesn’t have a look, his gimmick is weak, he comes off only as a generic heel (i.e. “cheap heat hate me because I’m mean” heel tactics), and his in-ring ability is good at best. Anderson was hired 100% because Paul Heyman thought he’d add some authenticity to ECW. Well...he only came along near the end of ECW’s run and really didn’t do much during his time with the promotion before it folded.
Not having Arn Anderson around to help push his gimmick certainly didn’t help his cause any. From top to bottom, CW is average...and that simply doesn’t cut it. I can’t picture you seeing him in any recognizable promotion any time soon.
BOTTOM LINE: Should have seen this coming a mile away.
Rodney Mack – Mack was brought back to work with some of the younger guys in OVW and Deep South and help them get ready for the main roster. I guess somebody forgot that Mack sucked ass on the main roster and really wasn’t in any position to help anybody.
“Back the Mack”? I don’t think so, Tim. There’s a reason you haven’t seen this guy since he was fired the last time...and it’s not because he’s super-talented.
BOTTOM LINE: This is no loss to anybody but his wife, Jazz.
Jazz – Oh shit...that’s gotta suck.
BOTTOM LINE: Jazz is one talented, but scary-ass, bitch...and that’s not really marketable in the world of WWE. What sucks is that she and her husband have now both been fired TWICE on the same day by the same company. Ouch.
Tony Mamaluke – Here’s a guy who you’ll see more of on the indies. Will I watch him? No...not at all. My problem with him is that even though he’s been in the ring for a few years now he still comes off as looking really green when he wrestles. He’s got moves but they’re just not fluid...they’re not smooth...they’re not really believable.
I’ve seen his ROH work (yawn) and he was actually a main event player for FIP (even Bryan Danielson couldn’t pull a good match out of the guy), and I can tell you that ECW wasn’t hiding Mamaluke for nothing. He really isn’t overly charismatic. At all. That in and of itself would be a main reason for letting him go to begin with. You add the fact that his wrestling is sub-par at best and you’ve now got no reason to keep him on the ECW roster other than to be a bumping machine for bigger, more talented performers.
BOTTOM LINE: While sad that the FBI is no more, I don’t think anybody will miss him when he’s gone. I don’t see TNA in his future...so unless he’s burned some bridges with Gabe Sapolsky, you’ll be seeing him pop-up again in ROH and almost 100% with FIP. I mean, where else is he gonna go?
Doug Basham – This one is a little surprising. While the Basham Brother gimmick lasted awhile and was quite successful, once it died and WWE tried to put each “brother” into a singles role it was with a lame gimmick and it failed miserably. Doug was called “The Bash-man” and was a lame rip-off of a lamer Rob Conway gimmick.
This guy has talent. This guy could have been something more if given the opportunity. Hell...down in OVW he was the MACHINE, dammit! He was one part of the infamous OVW Revolution. The bottom line is that this is a talented individual who should have been given a better opportunity to succeed.
It should come as no surprise, then, that he wasn’t given that opportunity and is now on the unemployment line.
BOTTOM LINE: Because he’s been off WWE television for months, nobody will really miss him. Having said that, he will be a pretty hot commodity on the independent circuit. I don’t know if I really see him as a fit with TNA (unless it’s a tag team with his “brother” again), but I see him as a potential champion in ROH. I can only imagine the fantastic matches he could have with the likes of Christopher Daniels, Brent Albright, and Bryan Danielson. He’ll be just fine.
Danny Basham – This guy’s talents and abilities are identical to Doug’s. The story here is that, similar to Doug Basham, this guy should have been given a legit opportunity to shine. Instead, he was traded to RAW and never heard from again.
While I’m not 100% familiar with his gimmick as The Damaja, Danny “Basham” Hollie is another guy I can totally see being successful on the indies as either a singles wrestler or as a tag team with Doug.
BOTTOM LINE: Exactly like Doug Basham, I can see The Damaja working in ROH with the likes of Nigel McGuinness and Homicide. You’ll definitely see more of him.
The Gymini – These old guys sucked in pretty much every fed they’ve worked in. The only reason they’ve been given chance after chance is because of their size. Take that away...and you’ve got "Iron" Mike Sharpe and Barry O.
BOTTOM LINE: You might see them in TNA...you might not. Either way, they will not be missed.
Gangrel – I’m with Matt Dawgs on this one...I had no idea this guy was even re-hired to begin with.
BOTTOM LINE: He’ll be just as invisible as he’s been over the past few years.
Al Snow – Well...he’ll still be training people and more than likely still a commentator for OVW whenever he’s around. The fact that he won’t be jobbing on ECW house shows won’t mean much of anything to anybody.
BOTTOM LINE: He’ll still get a WWE paycheque...it just won’t be quite as big.
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Item #2 – Punk as heel? Oh Vince...you’re a genius!
Okay...maybe not...but you gotta admit that if Vince McMahon thinks he can do something with you, then it’s probably in your best interests to do it...even if the idea has already been done.
What the hell am I talking about? Well, apparently with all of the hoopla following Punk’s loss to Bob Holly last week (i.e. Arn Anderson not liking him, Punk having an attitude, Finlay booking the finish, etc.), it came out that Vince sees a hint of heel genius in Punk’s straight-edge gimmick. Apparently, Vince thinks that when Punk tells people that he doesn’t drink, smoke, or do drugs that he could come off as thinking he’s better than everybody else.
Sigh.
Anybody with an inkling of indie wrestling knowledge would know that Punk’s biggest heel run was in Ring of Honor where his gimmick was pretty much being that “being straight edge means I’m better than you”.
Just don’t tell Vince...let him keep thinking it’s his idea. If he finds out otherwise then Punk will NEVER get a push.
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Item #3 – Wait a second...that’s it? Apparently, the New Year’s day match between Kevin Federline and John Cena was the “blow-off” to the entire angle. That’s it...no more. Nada. Nothin’. Zip. Zero. Zilch.
While some may be extremely happy over the situation, I’m absolutely flabbergasted. You mean to tell me that some D-level celebrity is going to be booked and promoted for a match with over a full month of build-up, he’s gonna PIN YOUR CHAMPION IN A SINGLES MATCH, and then the only pay-back that Cena is gonna get is an F-U at the end of the show??
I’m no Cena lover...but this simply doesn’t make any sense to me. Of course, I was no big fan of David Arquette being WCW champion so what do I know? When I think about it, I guess it makes sense, though. I mean, Bam Bam Bigelow never got his win back over Lawrence Taylor. Heck, Jeff Jarrett never got his win back over Karl Malone. I guess I shouldn’t be surprised.
It just seems like a waste. That definitely shouldn't come as a surprise considering the source.
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Item #4 – Hart Foundation 2.0 coming soon. Possibly.
Nattie Neidhart has been signed. Harry Smith signed a couple of months ago. Teddy Hart is being looked at once his MTV contract expires in February. TJ Wilson is also a possibility.
If done properly, this could be an exciting young faction for WWE. If done the way I think WWE will do it, it’ll be fast-tracked to a Survivor Series screwjob in Montreal later this year.
Still...the possibilities bring a smile to my face.
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Item #5 – Heel Styles > Air Styles I’m absolutely loving this new heel AJ Styles character. . . . . . . . That’s all I got. I’m just loving it.
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Item #6 – I love NFL playoffs... Here’s a little story...
Peyton Manning, after living a full life, died one day. When he got to heaven, God was showing him around. They came to a modest little house with a faded Colts flag in the window.
GO PATS!!!
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Item #7 – What?? ZAH is having a contest?? Yep yep.
Y’know, for the past few months I’ve been placing quotes at the top of every column. Well, those quotes are from 80’s hair-metal classics. All you have to do is tell me the song title, the band, the album, and the year it was released. Go back to the beginning of when I started the quotes and send your answers in. I’ll even give you a couple of weeks to do it. All correct answers will have their name thrown into a bowl and a winner will be drawn at random.
So what can you win? Great question! I have in my possession a few wrestling DVD’s...you can have your choice of TWO. The DVD’s to choose from are:
Ring of Honor: Vendetta – features Delirious, Nigel McGuinness, Christopher Daniels vs. Samoa Joe, Bryan Danielson vs. Roderick Strong, The Embassy vs. Generation Next, plus much more!
Ring of Honor: Main Event Spectacles – features Samoa Joe vs. Steve Corino vs. Christopher Daniels vs. CM Punk, AJ Styles vs. Bryan Danielson, plus much more!
Ring of Honor: One Year Anniversary Show – features Bryan Danielson vs. Samoa Joe, CW Anderson vs. CM Punk, Steve Corino vs. Homicide, plus Paul London vs. AJ Styles vs. Low-Ki.
Ring of Honor: It All Begins – features Alex Shelley vs. “Spanky” Brian Kendrick, Samoe Joe vs. Nigel McGuiness, Homicide vs. Bryan Danielson, plus Austin Aries vs. Colt Cabana.
Pro Wrestling Guerrilla: 2nd Annual PWG Bicentennial Birthday Extravaganza Night One – features Ricky Reyes vs. Petey Williams, Christopher Daniels vs. Chris Sabin, plus AJ Styles, Super Dragon, Human Tornado, plus much more!
Pro Wrestling Guerrilla: 2nd Annual PWG Bicentennial Birthday Extravaganza Night Two – features Human Tornado, Super Dragon, Chris Sabin, Petey Williams, and a main event featuring AJ Styles vs. Christopher Daniels vs. James Gibson.
You can send your answers to ZAH@worldwrestlinginsanity.com. I’ll send the DVD’s anywhere in North America on me and if it’s gotta go overseas...well...we’ll talk.
GOOD LUCK!!
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Item #8 – Austin Starr is lame. Listen...long-time readers know how much I love Austin Aries.
However, I don't believe the Austin Starr persona. It’s not that it’s horrible or anything...I just don’t believe it. Aries looks like a cross between Randy Savage and Jess Ventura and Rip Rogers. Y’know...scratch that. He looks like he's just an indie guy pretending to play dress-up. I simply don't think Aries has the personality/ability to pull it off convincingly.
He does, however, have the ability to draw fans in with his in-ring ability...which is amazing. I’m REALLY looking forward to his upcoming feud with Sen-shi. That, my friends, will rock and rock hard.
*** Item # 9 – LOSER OF THE WEEK. Each and every week, I pick somebody (not necessarily always from wrestling) who has either acted in a dumb way, said something stupid, or generally was an idiot in some way, shape, or form. This week was tough. There were so many choices (how ‘bout all of those WWE releases??) but at the end of the day, I’m going with somebody who thinks they’re better than they really are. I’m going with an idiot. I’m going with somebody who’s got a ton of talent but fails to do what’s expected of him in order to fully realize his potential. This time ZAH’s Loser of the Week is...
Michael Vick!!!
Get this...so the new airline rules are that you cannot carry more than 3 ounces of liquid through airport checkpoints. Makes sense, right? So naturally, Michael Vick tried to sneak his weed onto a plane using a hidden compartment in (drumroll) a 20-ounce water bottle.
Vick was reluctant to throw away his 20-ounce water bottle at a Miami International Airport security checkpoint on Wednesday morning. The reason, police say, was the plastic bottle that he was carrying. It apparently had a secret compartment that, when opened, had a dark residue and a pungent odor of marijuana.
For being a doped-up idiot who costs his team wins due to not putting enough effort into learning the game that he proclaims to love to play so much (oh yeah...and for this ridiculously stupid airport episode), I happily name Michael Vick on being my Loser of the Week!
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Item #10 – World Wrestling Insanity Fantasy WWE! Once again it’s time for WWE to allow its fans to actually have fun while watching the product. It’s WWE’s fantasy game and we’ve got our own little private league to play in.
All you have to do is go here and sign-up.
The league name is: worldwrestlinginsanity The league password is: guttman
C’mon...join and have some fun! It's not like you've got anything better to do, right? Am I right, people??
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Pillar to Post
Each and every week I’ll take three statements that you, the WorldWrestlingInsanity.com readers, have submitted on the hot topics du jour and then get two or three volunteers to give their thoughts and insight. Ladies and gentlemen, this week (and I encourage every reader to throw me an e-mail and volunteer), I was able to find three great World Wrestling Insanity readers in J. Bastard, MC_U.S.TitleBelt, and Keevel!
1. Agree or Disagree
J. Bastard: Agree from a match quality standpoint.
Really, what else is there? Cena vs. Orton would probably be the best main event as far as actually elevating someone new, but the match itself wouldn’t be that great. HBK can always be counted on to deliver a quality PPV match, and if that is the option they go with, it should certainly be a better match-up than Cena vs. HHH 2 would’ve been. I for one was not at all looking forward to a rerun of last year’s main event. In a way it would be nice to see Michaels get one last run with the WWE Title and it would actually mean something this time, unlike when they gave him the belt in 2002.
Of course if WWE had any balls they’d have CM Punk win the Rumble and jump to RAW to challenge Cena. That would seriously shake things up, which is just what the dull WWE needs right now.
MC_U.S.TitleBelt: I'll agree with that based on the fact that HBK, for all the hate he still receives for Montreal, is still an excellent worker who can cover the mistakes of a less technically sound opponent.
Remember Hogan/Michaels from Summerslam '05? Shawn made Hulk look like a million bucks in there on his selling skills alone. While Cena/Orton was somebody's dream match some time ago, Orton's abilities aren't enough to make up for Cena's shortcomings, therefore, no go... and much as I think he is a great heel, we've seen enough of Cena/Edge for awhile. So yeah, HBK is Cena's best hope for a great Main Event in Motown.
Keevel: Agree.
That doesn't mean that I think it's good. They've put a ton of effort into putting Cena over, and love him or hate him HBK is still a good wrestler and a known name. It says a lot for the lack of entertainment quality the WWE has developed and put in the ring.
2. Agree or Disagree
J. Bastard: Agree from a match quality standpoint.
Really, what else is there? Cena vs. Orton would probably be the best main event as far as actually elevating someone new, but the match itself wouldn’t be that great. HBK can always be counted on to deliver a quality PPV match, and if that is the option they go with, it should certainly be a better match-up than Cena vs. HHH 2 would’ve been. I for one was not at all looking forward to a rerun of last year’s main event. In a way it would be nice to see Michaels get one last run with the WWE Title and it would actually mean something this time, unlike when they gave him the belt in 2002.
Of course if WWE had any balls they’d have CM Punk win the Rumble and jump to RAW to challenge Cena. That would seriously shake things up, which is just what the dull WWE needs right now.
MC_U.S.TitleBelt: Disagree.
I never count out the Royal Rumble on being able to deliver an amazing surprise. Even though it was marred by the fact that The E decided to milk Eddie for all he was worth to put his little buddy over, there is no way in hell anybody was thinkin' Rey Rey was coming out a winner last year. As for the undercard, could it really be any worse than JBL being squashed by The Boogeyman, or Ashley vs. Mickie (yes I said something bad about a women's match! Even I know when only one person has talent but not enough to make up for the other). And if they put the title matches after the Rumble again this year, it'll be a total buzz kill. But since the question has a lot of ambiguity as to whether it means the match itself or the whole PPV... take my response for what it's worth.
Keevel: Disagree.
I just can't believe it's possible. The Royal Rumble has a ton of potential all throughout, surprises on who lasts a long time who gets in scuffles and who wins. There is enough young talent and good talent for the Rumble to be good and the writer's couldn't mess it up again.
3. Agree or Disagree
J. Bastard: Agree wholeheartedly.
TNA could be incredible right now if they’d hire someone who actually understands how to create and push new stars. There are literally a dozen TNA wrestlers who could be main event players within the next year if the booking team had the attention span to write logical, compelling storylines for them. Couple this with the fact that Russo loves to hotshot big matches rather than build up to them slowly and you’ll see a company failing to live up to its gigantic potential. The one thing I will say for Russo is that he’s very good at making people care about the entire card. This is something WWE has forgotten how to do, but Russo gives even the curtain-jerkers something to do and involves them in some kind of prominent angle.
But what TNA needs is someone with patience who can present TNA as a very viable alternative to WWE, not the diet version. TNA needs someone who respects great workrate and who presents feuds and angles in a believable, satisfying way. TNA needs someone with a proven track record of creating homegrown stars by highlighting strengths and hiding weaknesses, not someone who sacrifices the homegrown talent for the high-priced ex-WWE talent at every turn. TNA needs a booker who will get behind stars like Samoa Joe and turn them into household names.
I wonder where they could find someone like that…..
MC_U.S.TitleBelt: Agree:
Russo, despite his recently acquired faith, is poison in wrestling, ‘nuff said. We all see it, but as usual the people directly involved won't do anything until it's too late.
Keevel: Disagree
Russo does need to be tempered and cannot be relied on as the sole vision as his toilet humor is incessant and nauseating while constantly flipping titles gets old. Still, he has strong points. He uses tag teams and lets workers have a decent amount of input. If someone can edit Russo TNA will be in great shape, if he runs unchecked, TNA will lack entertainment and storyline depth.
***
Great job guys, thanks!! I’m looking forward to seeing who gets to join me as a guest columnist next week.
No problem. Seriously...it’s not a problem at all. It’s a whole new year and my waiting list is sitting at one so NOW is the time for you to participate. Really...RIGHT NOW!! You can let me know either by e-mailing me at Zah@worldwrestlinginsanity.com or hitting me up at ZAH Nation, found in the Insanity Message Board and letting me know that you’d like to participate. Also, don’t forget to stop by my MySpace page and add me.
So until next week…
L8R
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| © 2005-2007 All content contained here Copyright 2006 by James Guttman *** World Wrestling Insanity and ClubWWI are not affiliated with any wrestling promotion. |
