Pro Wrestling Thread Of Rock-Cena Once I Mean Twice In A Lifetime

[Eric P]

someone linked the Brodus Clay /Funkasaurus matches.  They are amazing.  I love the gay panic triggers.

[bork]

The Ricardo-Del Rio-joke entrance was amazing.   

[Eel O'Brian]

this was the raw we went to:

http://theyearinrawview.com/post/13453224360/monday-night-raw-november-24th-1997

[bork]

There were a few fun spots (Ricardo, Kofi's amazing handstand-walk on the mat to save himself, and the Kharma/Awesome Kong return), but this Rumble really sucked.

[fistfulofmetal]

garbage.  the punk/ziggler match was good. everything else was dumb.

edit: i did like that kane didn't get buried.

[iconoclast]

I thought the Rumble was okay. It started out pretty well, but it went downhill after Foley was eliminated. Then it was completely average until the final bit with Sheamus and Jericho (aside from Kofi being awesome). I don't mind Sheamus winning though, it was a surprise and he's pretty good. Although I hope he doesn't win the belt at WrestleMania.

The whole show was pretty lackluster imo. Not even Ziggler/Punk was as good as it should've been, and I thought it made Ziggler look weak. I was also disappointed to see Khali return. Just when I thought he was gone for good.

[Bloodwake]

That was one hell of the show. I was in the lower arena and had pretty decent seats. I wasn't on the floor though.

My thoughts:

Man, the Titantron and the screens are HUGE. I know they look big on TV but damn, they are intimidating in real life.

I really have a feeling the Bryan match was botched at the end. I had this feeling like Show was supposed to pull him up. I will have to rewatch the PPV to see how the announcers sold it, but the guy I went with had the same feeling.

They showed this five minute Cena promo for the Kane match where everyone around me was openly complaining about Cena. However, the funny thing was, as soon as the Divas match started, everyone in the arena simultaneously got up and headed for the bathrooms. It was hilarious. These guys hate Cena so much but they will sit through a five minute "Cena is so great" promo, but the divas come up and it's piss and a beer time.

I actually really enjoyed the Cena/Kane match mainly because I love that Kane has the mask and the Attitude Era music. The match was so-so, but really cool to see his pyros and everything. It was fun to participate in the back and forth "Let's Go Cena/Cena Sucks" chants. The crowd was definitely divided. It was nice to get all of my rage out over how much I hate Cena after all of these years. The match really wasn't that great but still fun.

Brodus Clay is hilarious. My friend was not amused.

The Punk/Ziggler match was pretty great. It was definitely my favorite match of the night, although I had the most fun during the Rumble.

The crowd was really into the Rumble. I marked the fuck out when Foley came out even though I knew he would be there. Road Dogg and Hacksaw got HUGE pops as well, and Road Dogg wasn't embarrasing. Half of the people were going "oh you didn't know" and the other half were screaming their heads off whenever Road Dogg came out.  Kharma also got a huge pop as well, as no one was really expecting her, at least in my section.

Orton got a huge pop, it being St. Louis and all. Fuck Randy Orton.

KOFI KINGSTON, I AM NOW A FAN. That handstand walk was AWESOME.

Also, I wasn't expecting Sheamus to win although my friend said he thought it was a possibility. I was pretty sure Jericho was going to win and the part of the match where they were facing off was pretty well done. It felt longer than other final Royal Rumble faceoffs. I was satisfied with the outcome of the match considering that wrestling surprised me for once, especially after all of that Jericho buildup.

All in all, I may be watching until Wrestlemania due to tonight. SO MUCH FUN. People bitching now forget about 4-5 years ago when we had fucking shit like the Boogeyman, ECW, Spirit Squad, etc.

[iconoclast]

Every time Kharma's music hits, I think it's the Boogeyman. He was awesome. :'(

[bork]

I thought the Rumble was okay. It started out pretty well, but it went downhill after Foley was eliminated. Then it was completely average until the final bit with Sheamus and Jericho (aside from Kofi being awesome). I don't mind Sheamus winning though, it was a surprise and he's pretty good. Although I hope he doesn't win the belt at WrestleMania.

I don't get why so many people think Sheamus winning was a surprise.  It's been obvious for a little while now.  The guy has been doing jack shit lately and then became the "focus" of the pre-Rumble build-up.  When it was down to him and Jericho, they also did a camera shot of him staring at the WM logo that is going to have to be used in video packages over the next month, too.

As weird as it sounds, Jericho winning would have been more unpredictable, but he doesn't need the win anyway.

The whole show was pretty lackluster imo. Not even Ziggler/Punk was as good as it should've been, and I thought it made Ziggler look weak. I was also disappointed to see Khali return. Just when I thought he was gone for good.

I barely even watched the undercard...just wanted to see the Rumble match.  Khali looked so goddamned awful in the ring.  Same old slow, lumbering walk, then nothing but horrible-looking overhead chops.  Zzzzzzzzzzzz.

All in all, I may be watching until Wrestlemania due to tonight. SO MUCH FUN. People bitching now forget about 4-5 years ago when we had fucking shit like the Boogeyman, ECW, Spirit Squad, etc.

I think it's a different experience live.  Last year's Mania also disappointed me, and when I went to work the next day, a dude that saw it live was gushing about how it was the best show of all time.  He was also one of those "let me guess, you think 'SUPER CENA' SUCKS TOO, HUH?!"  Yes, distinguished mentally-challenged fellow.  He needs a heel turn so badly.

4-5 years ago sucked too, but it was still better than this stale, boring PG era.

[iconoclast]

Sheamus winning wasn't a complete surprise, but I think out of all of the possible winners (Jericho, Orton, Ziggler, Sheamus, Barrett) he and Barrett were the least likely. Jericho was the most obvious choice: he made his big return, hyped the Rumble match last Monday, and he'd be a perfect opponent for Punk at Mania. Orton would've been my second pick since the Rumble was in his home town and because he's right behind Cena as the #2 guy in the company.  Ziggler also could have won since they're trying to push him to the main event right now, but I think Sheamus and Barrett are still mid-card/upper mid-card guys (Sheamus less so).

But really, I think the Rumble was set up perfectly for Jericho to win, so Sheamus winning was a bit of a swerve.


And yeah, I think going to see a show live makes it more enjoyable. I've only been to two (KotR '97 and Raw in 2005), and I still think the Raw I went to was one of the best ones I've ever seen. (It was the one with the Michaels vs. Edge street fight as the main event, where Kurt Angle interfered and started his feud with HBK. And the one where Muhammad Hassan botched the finish in his match with Benoit.)

[bork]

Sheamus winning wasn't a complete surprise, but I think out of all of the possible winners (Jericho, Orton, Ziggler, Sheamus, Barrett) he and Barrett were the least likely.

Do you watch Raw and/or Smackdown! regularly?  It shouldn't have been a surprise, especially when it was down to him and Jericho.

Jericho was the most obvious choice: he made his big return, hyped the Rumble match last Monday, and he'd be a perfect opponent for Punk at Mania.

Again, Jericho doesn't need the boost from winning that rumble that Sheamus does.  He is already totally over.  You're also forgetting that the Elimination Chamber PPV is next, before Mania.  One of those titles, if not both, if gonna end up changing hands.  I doubt they are gonna do a face vs. face program with Punk vs. Sheamus, so I think Punk will face someone else (Jericho) and Shaemus will go after the Smackdown! title.

Orton would've been my second pick since the Rumble was in his home town and because he's right behind Cena as the #2 guy in the company. 

Orton also doesn't need this win and he's still in a feud with Wade Barett.

Ziggler also could have won since they're trying to push him to the main event right now, but I think Sheamus and Barrett are still mid-card/upper mid-card guys (Sheamus less so).

Yeah, Ziggler would have been a good pick too, but he's also already in a program with Punk.  He'll likely been in the RAW Elimination Chamber main event.

I wanted Jericho to win the Rumble too, but I just knew it wasn't going to happen.  Again, the Rumble can be much more beneficial to Sheamus than an established main eventer.

[iconoclast]

Sure, I agree the Rumble -should- be used to elevate someone into the main event, but if you look at past winners, often times that's not the case. Edge won in 2010, Orton won in 2009, Cena won in 2008, Undertaker won in 2007, etc. It would've been Jericho's first Rumble win, so it would've been a little different at least.

I think it's good that Sheamus won btw, I'm not complaining. Smackdown has very few main event caliber guys these days, so it's great if they can move him up the card. Especially since people actually care about him now, unlike the last time he was main eventing on Raw.

(I usually watch Raw every week, but I almost never watch a whole episode of Smackdown. I just check out the matches that look interesting.)

[bork]

You have to take into account all the other feuds already going on for a lot of those previous winners.  SUPER CENA is already tied-up with his match against the Rock at Mania, for example, so it wasn't surprising that he wasn't in.  Kane missing was, however.

Sheamus has nothing going on, so he can be inserted into a new feud on either show.  You can say that about Jericho, too, though.

[Bloodwake]

One of the best free matches I've ever seen on RAW: Bryan and Punk.

I'm still not seeing the "RAW sucks worse than it did five or six years ago" argument.

[bork]

One match does not make up for a bunch of shit.

RAW also sucked 5-6 years ago though. 

[Bloodwake]

I'm not saying that RAW has returned to excellence or anything, but from what I've seen so far, things are looking up. I'm watching again, so there's some proof.

[Trent Dole]

I'm going to some indie show with some friends in Woosta tomorrow night. X-pac and some other shit heads will be there.

[pilonv1]

Every time Kharma's music hits, I think it's the Boogeyman. He was awesome. :'(

I made a thread on another forum with this. I loved Boogeyman. And I like Kharma too but was so disappointed when she came out.

[Momo]

TNA PPV was crappy

[Trent Dole]

TNA PPV was crappy

TNA PPV's are at best bove average episodes of Raw, man. Speaking of which R-Truth was the best part of last night's ep with his insane ranting about Hornswoggle and a box of spiders. Also Cena hate reached an all time high with a crowd chant of WE ALL HATE YOU.

[Mandark]

I haven't followed this for about 7-8 years, before Cena was a main eventer.

I take it he kept getting pushed down people's throats to the point where there was a backlash, and he became the new Hogan/HHH/whoever as a symbol of underserving stars who kept winning and the internet hates him?

[Trent Dole]

I haven't followed this for about 7-8 years, before Cena was a main eventer.

I take it he kept getting pushed down people's throats to the point where there was a backlash, and he became the new Hogan/HHH/whoever as a symbol of underserving stars who kept winning and the internet hates him?

Basically, yeah. He's capable of putting on a good match but he's rammed down everyone's throats so much and he's a mediocre at best promo despite being the top guy and thus getting lots of airtime every goddamn week.

[bork]

Good news for TNA: Vince Russo is no longer with the company!  Maybe it won't suck as much now.

I haven't followed this for about 7-8 years, before Cena was a main eventer.

I take it he kept getting pushed down people's throats to the point where there was a backlash, and he became the new Hogan/HHH/whoever as a symbol of underserving stars who kept winning and the internet hates him?

Yup, although it's not just the Internet that hates him.  Most of the audience (pretty much all the males over the age of 12) hates him too.  So much so that they're currently using that in his dumb Kane feud.  They're only like five years too late!

[Stoney Mason]

I haven't watched wrestling "seriously" in quite awhile. The problem for me is simply there aren't enough charismatic stars recently to make the product enjoyable. For me its always been about good mic work and interesting feuds and they haven't had that in a good long while.

Cena was actually interesting at the beginning when he was an anti-hero. Sort of like a wanna be Eminem. Then they fucked it up and essentially turned him into a boring Hulk Hogan character and I was never interested in that. The rest of the roster isn't much better. Even people like CM Punk who the wrestling in crowd like, I find mostly boring.

[chronovore]

This is in no way intended as a troll: You guys talk a lot about how boring wrestling has become, but isn't it possible you've just grown out of it?

[fistfulofmetal]

raw was pretty awesome. loved the hhh/michaels promo and i think this taker/hhh angle is pretty cool.
loved the debate at the start
LOVED the cena/eve/ryder/kane stuff. the slow pan from cena/eve to ryder was hilarious
mad props to ryder for the sick bump. dude is a pro.

overall great raw. really enjoyed it.

[Stoney Mason]

This is in no way intended as a troll: You guys talk a lot about how boring wrestling has become, but isn't it possible you've just grown out of it?

For me I can say overall I don't think so although I'll certainly admit that MMA has stolen some of the pleasures away that I use to get from wrestling. But over my entire life wrestling has always had stagnant periods where it got dull. The fix was usually a new star who makes the whole thing seems fresh again or reinventing the wheel.

ECW, The Rock, Stone Cold, NWO, The Attitude Era, etc have all come along at dead end moments to make me start watching again. But for the longest time I haven't felt that new thing. I thinks its because the WWE is so dominant. Competition use to force these evolutionary changes but there really is none anymore for them.

[bork]

So Elimination Chamber was quite possibly one of the top 10 worst WWE PPVs yet!  Completely irrelevant and dull as hell.

This is in no way intended as a troll: You guys talk a lot about how boring wrestling has become, but isn't it possible you've just grown out of it?

It's a possibility...the shift to PG meant a lot of shit has been toned down and made more kid-oriented, but I can even go back and watch stuff from the 80s and have some good, cheesy fun.  Everything now is just stale, predictable, and boring.  Or they have ultra-lame jokes.  NATALIE NEINHARDT FARTING GIMMICK HAW HAW!   

[Momo]

Didnt watch the PPV, loling at some of the comments

[fistfulofmetal]

only good things about the ppv:

santino
divas match

[Momo]

I guess I'll just watch TNA then.

/OT
Are there any TNA games out? Are they worthwhile?

[pilonv1]

I guess I'll just watch TNA then.

/OT
Are there any TNA games out? Are they worthwhile?

TNA iOS game was awesome, it was TURN BASED.

If you like wrestling, you should check out RING KA KING.

[Momo]

Thanks Greeny :3

Isnt Ring Ka King that thing where Steiner is scaring away the crowd?

[pilonv1]

Yes, it's awesome.

DR NICHOLAS DINSMORE

[Momo]

Probably will watch it for the hilarity xD

[bork]

I didn't bother watching RAW and Smackdown! (was a live show) this week.  And I didn't miss anything from what I read.  Feels good man.

[Momo]

whats with Christians hobo beard and hat?

[bork]

I still can't get over how they turned Henry into a coward who's afraid of the Botch Show. Dude was a monster and they threw it all away for the guy that fights celebs at Wrestlemania so he could start a TERRIBLE feud with D.Bryan. Bryan should be in a feud with someone closer to his size that can get mobile. Hell, he could have had a feud with Punk over becoming the undisputed champion. Just something interesting and not cowardly heel, fighting guy bigger than him that can kinda wrestle.

Henry injured himself and hasn't been able to do shit for a little while, which is why he's been used sparingly and in limited capacity.  There's nothing else they could have done.

I don't like D. BRINE's current heel gimmick that much and hate that beard.  It's also hilarious how Michael Cole, the HEEL ANNOUNCER GUY, spent all this time when Bryan was a face putting him down, and still kept doing it after his heel turn.  Only in the past few shows has he toned it down.

whats with Christians hobo beard and hat?

He was in Malaysia trying to buy slaves again, so he had to disguise himself with a beard.

 

[Momo]

did he get to keep the slaves this time at least?

[chronovore]

There was a TNA game released for the 360/PS3/PS2/Wii by Midway. It's supposed to be surprisingly good.  The game had some pretty accurate models. Booker T in WWE 12 looks like black Beta Ray Bill (look it up) but in the TNA game he looks exactly as he does in real life.

Southpeak picked up what was left of a PSP version (and the TNA license) after midway died and released it. I'd suspect it isn't very good.

A portion of the team behind the console version was picked up by THQ and developed WWE All Stars. They're currently the new UFC team (their first game will be Undisputed 4, I believe), which is unfortunate because I'd love a WWE game that was less of a sim and more arcadey fun. WWE 12 is a clusterfuck with really difficult AI and confusing controls.

Wait, what? When was this announced?

[ManaByte]

Some kind of Johnny Ace versus Teddy Long match at WM too. Which explains why Orton wasn't in the chamber.

Orton wasn't in the chamber because he's out with another concussion. He got it during Raw the Monday before the PPV.

The Road to Wrestlemania tour is in LA this weekend. It was at Staples last night, and I won tickets to the event tonight:


It's the first live event I'll have been to since SummerSlam 2001.

[Momo]

Only fake concussions arent an issue

[Trent Dole]

Some kind of Johnny Ace versus Teddy Long match at WM too. Which explains why Orton wasn't in the chamber.

Orton wasn't in the chamber because he's out with another concussion. He got it during Raw the Monday before the PPV.

Huh. I was under the impression that wrestlers don't believe that concussions are an issue. Is it WWE policy?

Orton's kind of had a lot of concussion at this point, in the range of 6-8 it's believed. Dude should consider calling it a day but you know that won't happen anytime soon.

[ManaByte]

So they live show was pretty good. Three hours, and even if I didn't win the tickets it probably would've been worth paying for.

Obviously all of the title matches were predicable as you know they'll never let it change hands on a non-televised event. So for the Diva, Tag Team, North America, and WWE titles you knew who would win...but they were good matches anyways.

The Divas title was Beth Phoenix vs. the Twins.

North American was Santino vs. Swagger. Santino may be goofy as fuck, but the crowd LOVES him.

The WWE title match was the main event with a Triple Threat between Punk, Kane, and Dolf with Otunga making Jericho an outside enforcer. That was right after the Jericho/Kofi match.

The Miz had the best pre-match stuff before losing to R Truth. Everyone was "Whating" the Miz, which was hilarious. Only thing that came close was Jericho berating a kid about his sign.

The best thing about the night was the bitter tears from all the little kids in their red Cena shirts because they didn't get to see Cena.

[Bloodwake]

So, I kept watching.

Yeah, Raw is pretty bad now. Painfully so.

[Momo]

TNA PPV tonight should be better than the average WWE PPV

[E-DuB]

What's this I hear about Christian making an appearance tonight? I thought Vince would be in the ground before he let his talent be on the competition. Or is this the "compensation" that TNA wanted for allowing Ric Flair to go to the WWE HoF this year? 

[Momo]

Or is this the "compensation" that TNA wanted for allowing Ric Flair to go to the WWE HoF this year? 

It's exactly that. Also apparently Cena is trying to get Orton fired.

[fistfulofmetal]

the punk/bryan/kane (and aj) feud is pretty entertaining.

[Trent Dole]

Or is this the "compensation" that TNA wanted for allowing Ric Flair to go to the WWE HoF this year? 

It's exactly that. Also apparently Cena is trying to get Orton fired.

I've not heard that it's Cena but some big time peopel want Randy outta there and apparently Vince is shocked/pissed at him for still smoking reefer alongside the roidage.

the punk/bryan/kane (and aj) feud is pretty entertaining.

Punk and D-Bry are the two best reasons to bother tuning in.

[E-DuB]

Or is this the "compensation" that TNA wanted for allowing Ric Flair to go to the WWE HoF this year? 

It's exactly that. Also apparently Cena is trying to get Orton fired.

And not a single fuck was given about Randal

In other news, the first match of Slammiversary was pretty good.

[E-DuB]

In other, other news, Joseph Park is pretty awesome

[bork]

All this wrasslin' shit is so bad now.  I continue to watch it out of habit, but there are plenty of weeks where I shut it off early or don't bother watching it.

Or is this the "compensation" that TNA wanted for allowing Ric Flair to go to the WWE HoF this year? 

It's exactly that. Also apparently Cena is trying to get Orton fired.

I've not heard that it's Cena but some big time peopel want Randy outta there and apparently Vince is shocked/pissed at him for still smoking reefer alongside the roidage.

The first sheets say it's some of the talent relations people, including HHH, that want him out of there.  Cena has nothing to do with it.

Orton still has like eight years left on his contract, but it was put that he will never be trusted for a main event position because one more wellness policy violation means he's outta there for good.  I think Rey Mysterio also had a second violation while he's been out, and Evan Bourne also had a second violation and has yet to come back from it.

WWE's roster continues to look worse and worse.  BUT OH CENA VERSUS BIG SHOW AGAIN YEAH!   

[fistfulofmetal]

there's literally no reason to watch on tv anymore unless you NEED TO SEE IT LIVE

all the important shit on raw is on the website in video form and smackdown gets uploaded to the net usually on wednesday or thursday or officially by WWE on like saturday or whatever.

[fistfulofmetal]

AJ is currently the best thing about the WWE since CM Punk last summer. SUMMER OF AJ.

[Momo]

I'll rather watch TNA

[pilonv1]

TNA is great at the moment. WWE is fucking stupid.

[fistfulofmetal]

tna doesnt have aj so tna is worthless

[pilonv1]

they have an AJ

[fistfulofmetal]

the wrong aj