411mania.com: Wrestling - 411 Fact or Fiction 10.29.09: WWE Bragging Rights, Hogan to TNA, Desmond Wolfe's Debut and More!

Hello ladies and gentlemen, and welcome to another edition of 411 Wrestling Edition of Fact or Fiction! I'm Jeremy Thomas, and he have a week so eventful, we needed an extra question! Bragging Rights is in the books, Nigel McGuinness has made his TNA debut as Desmond Wolfe, and…oh, yeah, someone else signed with TNA too. Some guys named Bollea. Anyway, this week we have Steve Cook of "News From Cook's Corner" going head-to-head with the Movie Zone's Len Archibald, who reviews movies and does one of my favorite column, "Around the World in 24 Days!" All right, so we have nine questions to go here…let's get right into it!

Questions were sent out Monday, with the exception of the bonus question which was sent out Tuesday.

Participants were told to expect WWE & TNA-related questions.

1. Bragging Rights delivered as a Pay-Per-View intended to build toward Survivor Series.

Steve Cook: FACT.From all accounts, Bragging Rights furthered some issues between members of the WWE roster. Batista's heel turn sets him up to feud with Rey Mysterio, who has as much hope of getting a good match out of Batista as anybody on the planet. The John Cena/Randy Orton feud is over, with Cena free to defend the WWE title against challengers other than Randy Orton, while Orton's feud with Kofi Kingston that started on Raw may have been foreshadowed by the dissension between Kofi & Orton's stooge Cody Rhodes. Miz being the only member of Team Raw to win a match set himself up to be even more insufferable than usual. It moved things along, which is all you can really ask.

Len Archibald: FICTION.Bragging Rights delivered as a one-off PPV, which is what the WWE has been doing for over 14 Months. We had a summer-long build of CM Punk climbing the ladder to become the biggest heel in the biz, and now he's JUST ANOTHER GUY (tm, Csonka). The Miz and Morrison had a decent match, but we all know it isn't leading anywhere. If you saw RAW, we know that there were no seeds planted for the RAW Triple-Threat match between Cena and DX. Most of Bragging Rights was a throwaway show unfortunately, with the only things "built" from it leading to Survivor Series was Batista's heel turn. RAW – funnily enough, did more to lead us to Survivor Series than the PPV.

Score: 0 for 1

2. Kurt Angle's face turn will be in both his and the company's best interests.

Steve Cook: FACT.Of course, this depends on how much longer Kurt Angle plans on staying with TNA…*insert dramatic music here*

OK, assuming Angle sticks around for a nice babyface run, I think that's the right path for him with TNA right now. He's been heel for quite awhile now, and the fans have cheered him in most of TNA's venues anyway…why not go with it? He's got a feud going with Desmond Wolfe right now, and whenever that ends (or even during the feud itself) he's bound to have an issue with the World Elite, who pretty much pushed his Main Event Mafia aside as the dominant heel faction in TNA. Get them for America, Kurt!

Len Archibald: FACT.How long has Angle been a heel in TNA? I know he's been a face – I think – for a couple of months (or was he a tweener? I could never tell), but a full-out face is something that is "fresh" (ugh, I hate using IWC terms) and could lead to some intriguing match-ups. Him and Wolfe (or Nigel, depending on your taste) alone should be reason enough that his face turn will be a success.

Score: 1 for 2

3. Snoop Dogg made a positive impression as a guest host on Raw.

Steve Cook: FACT.I wouldn't rate Snoop among my favorite of the guest hosts (Not like anybody will ever top the awesomeness that was Bob Barker), but he didn't really do anything that made the show bad. You could say that his beatdown on Chavo was pretty weak, but Chavo did his best to make it look good and we should be used to Chavo getting punked out by the guest hosts at this point anyway. Snoop never took too much attention away from the purpose of the show, which was building up to the Bragging Rights pay-per-view. He did a fine job.

Len Archibald: FACT.I am for any guest host that the WWE acquires that actually is a fan of the product. Sure, every guest host has a "scratch-my-back-and-I'll-scratch-yours" caveat with it, but as long as they know who the superstars are, what the stories are, what the next PPV is, and how to play up to these – I'll be cool with that. One could tell that Snoop knew full well of everything going on at Raw, and was one of the more enjoyable hosts – and anyone that can get a "stoner" joke on television is okay with me!

Score: 2 for 3

4. You're excited for a Motor City Machine Guns vs. British Invasion Tag Team Title Match.

Steve Cook: FACT.Sure, why not? The Guns haven't exactly been getting a heck of a lot of title shots since entering TNA, which can be due to any number of reasons that you could lay at the feet of TNA or the Guns themselves. However, at the moment it seems that the Guns are back in the good graces of TNA Creative, and are at least going to get a shot at the tag team titles, held by a group that's exceeded everybody's expectations for them going in, the British Invasion. I'm quite familiar with Doug Williams, but his work had tailed off quite a bit since his days in early Ring of Honor, and I can't say I had much hope for Brutus Magnus after seeing some of his early matches. They have been quite impressive since forming this tag team, and Rob Terry plays his role well as their enforcer of the group. I've been liking TNA's tag team division lately, and it'll be nice to see a tag team title match without Team 3D and members of the Main Event Mafia.

Len Archibald: FACT.I am excited for the match, as I think it is a good one, but I'm more excited over the prospect that TNA may finally pull the trigger on the MCMG's and having them be considered as "the best". For me, for YEARS, the Guns were one of the MAIN reasons for me to catch TNA, and even though my wife thinks they're "gay" (oh, you homophobe!) she at least understands that they're exciting. Crap, I didn't mention the British Invasion at all, did I? Uh...Brutus Magnus has improved.

Score: 3 for 4

SWITCH!

5. Replacing the majority of SmackDown's Bragging Rights team on the show before the Pay-Per-View was a poor booking decision.

Len Archibald: FICTION.I won't spend a lot of time on this one: with the exception of Dolph Ziggler and -maybe- Cryme Tyme, who else had any upward credibility on that team? McIntyre? ESCOBARRRRRRRRRRR? No, they made the right call.

Steve Cook: FACT.I didn't disagree with the end result, as the Smackdown Seven heading into Bragging Rights was a lot more impressive looking with Hardy, R-Truth, Finlay & the Harts. However, I thought it made Cryme Tyme, Escobar, McIntrye & Ziggler look much worse to lose the right to appear in the match two days before the PPV than they would have if they had simply lost the qualifying matches to begin with. Whether they actually booked based on fan reaction or not, I'm not sure, but it made Creative look like they didn't know what they were doing when they just flip-flopped on their original team the week after they made it. And if they did book based on fan reaction…that makes Creative look pretty weak. Yes, a member of the vaunted Internet Wrestling Community is saying that WWE Creative shouldn't always listen to the Internet fans. Who'da thunk it?

Score: 3 for 5

6. AJ Styles vs. Samoa Joe vs. Daniels is the right call to make for the Turning Point Main Event to capitalize on Bound for Glory.

Len Archibald: FACT.Have you seen their other matches together? This makes sense since AJ would want to defend his title in the match that helped define him on his evolution to become TNA Champion.

Steve Cook: FICTION.Much like the previous question, my issue is with the technicalities involved, not the end result. I'm fine with revisiting AJ vs. Daniels vs. Joe…it's been a long time coming and it'll be interesting to see what they can do in there. Does it capitalize on Bound For Glory? Considering Joe lost his match to Bobby Lashley and Daniels nearly got killed in Ultimate X, I can't see how it does that. Daniels & Joe both need some rebuilding in the weeks before Turning Point if we're to take them seriously as world title contenders in late 2009.

Score: 3 for 6

7. Batista's heel turn will help revitalize his character and prove to be beneficial to SmackDown.

Len Archibald: FACT.X 1,000,000. Batista has not been a full-fledged heel since 2004. He needed to do SOMETHING to keep his character interesting. The fact that they actually had the balls to mention all the times that he's "come close" to winning the championship is a plus to me. Now, please make him more of a monster "I don't love you and I'm not sorry" kind of heel and not the chickenshit kind of baddie the WWE has been molding all their others after and we should be gravy. I mean, the man is a BEAST – he shouldn't run from ANYONE.

Steve Cook: FICTION.I was leaning towards FACT because I've thought Batista's needed a change for a very long time, but I decided to stop looking at it from my perspective and instead look at it through the eyes of a member of the "WWE Universe". WWE crowds have loved Batista for a very long time, and have stuck by him through injury after injury after injury. When you look at the Smackdown roster, you see that they're not exactly heavy with top babyfaces. You've got Undertaker, Rey, and…

……

……

Yeah, I've got nothing. Meanwhile on the heel side you've got Big Show coming over to challenge for the title right away, Jericho, Punk & Kane, who always gets some sort of reaction from the crowd. I think Smackdown needs faces right now a lot more than they need heels…but surely somebody will step up to the plate and prove me wrong. Maybe they switch Kane over after he gets sick and tired of Jericho bragging about winning the Bragging Rights match all by himself. They can make it work…but I'm not sure I see the point of turning a guy that's as over as Batista.

Score: 3 for 7

8. Nigel McGuiness's TNA debut as Desmond Wolfe is evidence that being in TNA will be better for him than the WWE would have been.

Len Archibald: FACT.I don't think if he debuted with the WWE, he would have attacked and gotten the upper hand on Batista, Triple H or HBK. With Wolfe's attack on Angle, he became an upper-mid carder/potential main event player in one shot. As much as I think the 'E would have been high on him (and I think they were), I feel he would have been given a few vignettes on SmackDown! and debuted against some random jobber before reaching IC title status...next year.

Steve Cook: FACT.Putting aside the fact that Nigel McBritish never would have debuted on Raw attacking Triple H, TNA's lighter work schedule should be great for Desmond Wolfe, whose injury history is well known to everybody who's followed his career in Ring of Honor and other independent promotions. While WWE's schedule isn't nearly as tough as it once was, it can still put people through the grinder pretty bad. I could be completely wrong on this assertion, but I don't see Wolfe as the kind of guy that's going to be wrestling for the rest of his life. He probably wants to get as much as he can as quickly as he can…and spending months, maybe years of his life in Florida completely re-learning how to wrestle so he can fit in with the WWE style wouldn't fit in with that. Is it impatient? Maybe. Sure, CM Punk proved that it is possible for an indy darling to rise through the ranks and become a huge WWE superstar. But for every CM Punk, there are many Scotty Goldmans, Paul Londons, Brian Kendricks and other cautionary tales of how a WWE contract isn't always a ticket to fame and success. The bottom line is that Nigel McGuinness is back in the pub throwing back some pints while Desmond Wolfe is in TNA kicking Kurt Angle's ass. Life is good.

Score: 4 for 8

BONUS: Hulk Hogan and Eric Bischoff signing with TNA will do the company more harm than good.

Steve Cook: FICTION. You know, I've been as outspoken against Hulk Hogan as almost anybody in the Internet Wrestling Community (see, unlike some people I'm not afraid to admit that I'm part of such a thing). Yeah, he's held people down, yeah he's wrestled longer than he should have, yeah his last couple of years haven't gone so well. But signing Hulk Hogan was exactly the move that TNA needed to make at this juncture of their existence.

See, TNA could have remained happy being the distant number two to the WWE machine. They could have run their Impact show on Thursdays, got their 1.1 rating and been perfectly happy with that. They could have run their monthly PPVs and gotten very little buys but still be ok because by god they're a wrestling company on PPV. That isn't enough for TNA. They want to run with the big dogs. They think they're ready for the big time, and they've got the horses to do it. Now that Hulk Hogan is with them, they have the single biggest name in the history of professional wrestling on their side. People who haven't watched WWE in years (heck, they still think it's the WWF) know who Hulk Hogan is. As much as the IWC fans don't want to think that Hogan brings credibility to any wrestling operation he's involved with...that's exactly what he brings in the eyes of his fans and people who don't even know about wrestling but know the name Hulk Hogan.

TNA has never had a better chance to resonate with the mainstream American (and world) public than they do right now. What they do with this chance will define their legacy. I am being incredibly optimistic (as I usually am, despite what some people will have you believe) and saying that Hogan will have a positive influence on the future of TNA.

And should Eric Bischoff become more involved than is currently planned, I think he would also have a great effect on TNA's product. Yes, he spent way too much money in WCW and spent way too much time there kissing stars' asses. But he also introduced a lot of new concepts to wrestling TV that still exist today, and gave a lot of IWC darlings a stage to ply their trade. Maybe he didn't push them enough, but he gave your Mysterios, Jerichos, Guerreros, and yes, Benoits, a national stage to play on before the WWF had any sort of interest in them.

There are a million ways this could backfire, but I choose not to worry about that.

Len Archibald: FACT.I'm gonna tell you the truth: I'm a Hulk Hogan mark. I think he may be the most important figure outside of Vince McMahon to professional wrestling. Also, after Bound For Glory, I obtained a renewed interest and faith in TNA. I watched IMPACT with a sense of glee that I haven't felt in a LONG time. Rhino's passionate promo about "management" holding the veterans back. Angle's admittance that he was wrong about the youngun's of TNA – culminating in his acceptance of AJ as the MAN. Desmond Wolfe's BEATDOWN on Angle. The seeming arrivals of Hernandez, Eric Young and the MCMG's as legitimate threats and players on the up. Hogan coming in will undo ALL of that.

Seriously, look at it this way: Hogan comes in – if he arrives as a heel, he instantly becomes the #1 heel in the company. AJ is the #1 face. They would have to come to a head. Storyline wise, it would be RIGHT for Hogan to win the title and have AJ chase him; but that would destroy everything TNA has done in establishing AJ as the guy TNA has relied on. What if Hogan gets his way (with Russo?) and becomes the TNA Champ? Idealistically, the only man who could possibly take him down would be who? Sting. The guy who just laid down so AJ could take the claim as the best TNA has. Sigh. So many ideas. So many ways to go.

Honestly, the ONLY way Hogan in TNA is going to work is if he comes in with the intention of "making" some stars. He would have to accept being a "mid-card" act, and allow AJ, Angle, Joe, Daniels, Wolfe and the World Elite to take the majority of the spotlight. Sure, give him fanfare and a BIG story upon his arrival, but he would have to be phased into a role that is more akin to what Kevin Nash is doing. But honestly, can YOU see Hogan accepting anything BUT the main event?

Sorry for the rant, but this is hard. Hogan, you got me into pro wrestling, but seriously, dude. Your time has passed. I'm not making any markish declarations that "TNA is the future" or some crazy shit, but pro wrestling needs SOMETHING representative of "a future" and for the time being, TNA was on the path to becoming part of that. His signing has actually set the company back about 4 years.

Final Score: 4 for 9

And the bonus question brings Steve and Len below .500! Some tough questions this week, and I would like to thank both Len and Steve for their great answers, and being flexible with the last-minute bonus question. And of course, I'd like to thank you the viewers for clicking the link and reading what they had to say! There's going to be a lot of news about Hogan and TNA (and maybe Flair and TNA?) coming down the line, and one might just pop up next week too…wait and see! Join us then for more 411 Wrestling Fact or Fiction!

Follow 411 on Twitter!
411mania.com
The Wrestling Zone
The Movie Zone
The Music Zone
The Games
The MMA Zone
The Boxing Zone
Follow Me, Too!

Remember to go to TigerFlashGames.com and play addictive, free flash games when you're bored at work, school, or whenever! If I had any time at my work, you'd find me there all the damn time!

And don't forget 411 on Facebook!

Post Comment (49) | Email Jeremy Thomas | View Jeremy Thomas's 411 Profile

Send To Friend |

Stumble It! |

Digg It! |

Please add your comment below.

If you are registered, you can login and post under your registered name. If not, you can post as a guest or register.

* Please note that 411 moderates all comments. Your comment will show up on the site after it has been approved by an editor.

Name :

Comment :

Remaining Characters :

2800

Comments (49)

Len Archibald is a more popular British name than Desmond Wolfe.

Posted By: y2kev (Guest) on October 28, 2009 at 11:43 PM

Russo and Jarrett gone from TNA and Hogan Bischoff in charge....WOW! Who would have thunk it???

Posted By: Guest#5494 (Guest) on October 28, 2009 at 11:52 PM

fiction for batistas heel turn? im sorry but you need to be shot

Posted By: Guest#2469 (Guest) on October 29, 2009 at 12:28 AM

1.) FACT: Absolutely. With the Batista turn and the start of the Kofi-Legacy feud and the fact that Cena winning "opened up a spot" for a "fresh" challenger, Bragging Rights no doubt helped build toward Survivor Series and probably through the end of the year and further. Watching Raw the next night became important and a point of interest to see who Cena would defend against next and what Orton would do in response to the consequence laid infront of him for losing at the PPV. The triple threat match brings the inevitable questions about the future of DX. The foundation for other "programs to be" were laid. Hey Archibald, I find it quite ironic that you find Raw building to the Survivor Series to be ironic because the irony in that is that's what TV is supposed to do, build interest in the consumer to purchase the PPV! All n' all Bragging Rights was well done.

2.) FACT: Heel Kurt Angle has run it's course. What would Angle do as a heel after the M.E.M basically disbanded? Not much. Kurt turning face completes the "seal of approval" he has given the young guns. So it all makes sense and helps TNA and freshens up his act quite a bit.

3.) FACT: He didn't bomb like Piven, Sharpton, or the NASCAR boys did. He did well and has worked with them before so both parties were quite familiar with eachother. It was a win win for everyone involved.

4.) FACT: I'm not a huge "TNA guy" but I'll get into that later. Sure I'm optimistic. In that way I'm optimistic when I watch some of the talent flourish on ECW. It's kinda like the minor leagues. I'm glad to see talented guys get a good chunk of time to show off their potential and that's what I see here. Not much more to it.

5.) FICTION: Vince wasn't the only guy who saw that 14-man stare down and thought "Raw is gonna kill Smackdown who are these guys!?" My brother who is no longer a wrestling fan but simply only familar with the older faces was watching Raw with me said the same thing. Dolph Ziggler deserved to stay on and so did Cryme Tyme but that's about it. McIntyre may be the future but let him get his feet wet. Escobar has been up in the "bigs" for 1 month and you want him to main event a PPV with virtually no interest from the fans!? No way. The change was good and gave the fans some interest in who might win "Bragging Rights" now that Team Smackdown was "shaken up". Smart decision even if only made after the fact.

6.) FACT: Definetly. These are basically the 3 guys who are being given "the keys to the car" (love my Dr. Evil finger quotations?). Why not let them have it and tear the house down. They're the only real "young stars" TNA could really trust to go out there and sell this youth movement. Good call here coming out of BFG no doubt.

Posted By: Justin (Guest) on October 29, 2009 at 12:41 AM

7.) FACT: I say that with hesitation. It helps him since he's been stuck in limbo as a face for some time. On the face, it didn't seem like SD needed nemore heels. Infact they need more babyfaces. For Batista, he's a MAJOR drawing card needing a tweak 2 his character so the fans could invest emotion into him because like I said he hasn't been the true "Animal" in the WWE since probably one year ago when he was on Monday nights.
Raw at this point had no HHH who was on SD, no Cena for a few months, HBK was busy with Y2J and the only hope: CM Punk (like it or not), wasn't ready to yield the top babyface spot on Raw. So for a few months Dave was the guy who was the best alternative after Cena. Cena came back and shortly afterwards Batista was out with injury.
After Mania, he resurfaced and was playing 2nd fiddle to HHH who then was moved back to Raw and of course John Cena. In short order Batista was back on the sidelines with not much to look forward to when he was set to come back to the Raw scene with HBK coming back n' all. It certainly was making for a crowded main event scene on Raw.
Now he has on SD a "fresh" roster to work off and with Batista working in the title picture vs all the top guys currently on SD a heel turn was right. This run as a baddie can certainly do great for him and the brand but of course how long before he disappears again if not for good?

8.) FACT: Easy. The only show he would see a quick rise up the card on would be ECW but still his place in the "overrall picture" would be small. The major shows would only showcase him in very small roles until creative could figure out the right spot for him. The highest he would get in the near future would be in the IC/US title pictures.

9.) FICTION: Many people seem to forget that Hulk and Bischoff are pretty sharp guys who know a thing or 2 about selling tickets. I don't expect Hulk to be at the top of any card. If he contributes in a wrestling capacity which is inevitable it would be in "money matches" and not necessarily in the title picture. Bigger than Hogan in TNA is Bischoff and his entertainment company. This is the one thing TNA has been longing for to get "over the top" and be seen as competiton. I've been saying it for a LONG time. A marketing savvy individual with the tools to get the product OUT THERE and SELL IT. Hogan is the face for that and Bischoff/Hervey is the machine. I said before I am not a big TNA fan. Let me rephrase that. I gave up on TNA being a viable alternative in the industry when Angle got on top. TNA is showing, that they're looking to take big steps up the wrestling ladder and light a fire under the ass of the business. So for that I'm optmistic about TNA for the first time in a long time and this is gr8 for our wrestling business.

Posted By: Justin pt. 2 (Guest) on October 29, 2009 at 01:20 AM

lol how is "fresh" a IWC term? Fresh just means fresh.

Posted By: DangerousG (Guest) on October 29, 2009 at 01:38 AM

5.) I don't like the way the Smackdown team did the bait and switch.
However, it did serve to give some new talent much more air time and exposure than they would have had otherwise.
Did it hurt them more than losing in a qualification tournament? I'm not sure about that. In a tournament, they would have had an opportunity to show what they could do in the ring and perhaps cut some promos to help them build a character. I'm not sure that they are ready to wow the crow. The way it was done at least gave them the mic time.
And, as unfortunate as it may be, in the 14 PPV/Year era there wasn't time to have a qualification tournament on a bunch of shows. At best, they would have had Team Smackdown completed on the show before the PPV. Kind of a push here.

As for Hogan, WCW didn't get much benefit out of him until Nash and Hall showed up. So TNA has one of the most recognized names in wrestling and that is all well and good. But they need their killer nWo angle to catch fire.

Posted By: Guest#9312 (Guest) on October 29, 2009 at 02:28 AM

Hogan will bump up TNA's ratings for a few weeks.

Posted By: Yes (Guest) on October 29, 2009 at 03:27 AM

Hogan did move the needle for WCW, but it was actually nWo with Hall and Nash joining that did the trick, menaing TNA will need more than Hogan.

Posted By: True (Guest) on October 29, 2009 at 03:28 AM

I know Hulk Hogan is the bigger name, but I think Bischoff going to TNA will be more impactful for the company.

By the end of the year, the following names will be ina TNA ring:

Hogan
Bischoff
Flair
Kennedy
Umaga
Sting
Brutus Beefacke
Nasty Boys
Nick Hogan
Brooke Hogan
Vince Russo

Posted By: My Eyes (Guest) on October 29, 2009 at 03:30 AM

I read where Hulk Hogan has more power than Dixie Carter and the only person he will have to answer to is Dixie's father....good luck!!!

Plus, about wrestling the young guys over and over again, you do know that Hogan is physically unable to do his leg drop anymore?

Posted By: Interesting (Guest) on October 29, 2009 at 03:38 AM

1. N/A (didn't watch)

2. FACT (Angle, unlike Foley, can pull off immediate face/heel turns due to him being perpetually over)

3. FACT (Mainly because almost all other hosts have been god awful)
4. FACT (Sabin/Shelley/Williams = awesomeness)

5. FICTION (This was a good booking decision; the only poor booking decision was the making of the original team)

6. FACT (Steve Cook makes an excellent point, but I gotta go with fact since this main event is so can't-miss it would be the right call to make for ANY PPV)

7. FACT&FICTION (It's really 2 questions, so 2 answers: It WILL revitalise Batista's character, but it WON'T be beneficial to Smackdown due to the reason stated by Steve)

8. FACT (Nigel is ALREADY a main eventer in TNA without wrestling a match, that says it all)

9. FACT (Agree 100% with Steve Cook)

Posted By: poffo316 (Guest) on October 29, 2009 at 05:09 AM

lol how is "fresh" a IWC term? Fresh just means fresh.

Posted By: DangerousG (Guest) on October 29, 2009 at 01:38 AM

Yeah, I was going to say the same thing. How the hell does the term "fresh" have anything to do with the IWC?

Posted By: Answer Me (Guest) on October 29, 2009 at 05:20 AM

"Yes, a member of the vaunted Internet Wrestling Community is saying that WWE Creative shouldn't always listen to the Internet fans. Who'da thunk it?"

Yeah man, you're a real revolutionary

*rolls eyes*

Posted By: Allen (Guest) on October 29, 2009 at 05:22 AM

Sure, Nigel's debut was good and a fued with Angle is pro wrestling purest's dream. But now that Hogan and Bischoff are around, Angel will get pushed to the back and soon head for higher ground and before you know it, Nigel....er, Desmond will be jobbing to D-Ray 3000 on pay-per-view pre-shows.

Posted By: Guest#0323 (Guest) on October 29, 2009 at 06:31 AM

the next 3 TNA champs are Hogan, Beefcake, and Knobbs

Posted By: Guest#0184 (Guest) on October 29, 2009 at 06:34 AM

"and yes, Benoit"

Let it go, Steve.

Posted By: Bimmy (Guest) on October 29, 2009 at 06:43 AM

IF the Hulkster wrestles, I see him taking on the world elite at some time. The Real American vs the Evil Foreigners. What's EY gonna do, BROTHER?!?

Posted By: Angry Bear (Guest) on October 29, 2009 at 07:16 AM

9) FACT!!!!

Hogan has become 100% useless to professional wrestling over the last decade. Just because Joe Schmo has heard of Hogan doesn't mean he's going to tune into a program that features him.

Think about it:

The average person who hasn't watched wrestling in 2 decades may still think that Hogan never left the WWE and is still champion.

This would indicate that these guys do not care enough about Hogan to tune in to see this.

Posted By: Guest#7967 (Guest) on October 29, 2009 at 07:45 AM

I dont know how anyone can say fiction to a Batista heel turn, hes been stale for quite some time now & im looking forward to seeing where they go with this.

Posted By: jbardo (Guest) on October 29, 2009 at 08:10 AM

Dangerous G: "Fresh" is an IWC term because it gets overused on this site.

Also, nobody on this site seems to understand what a "cliche" is (since they call anything that's ever been done before a "cliche")

Posted By: M:-X (Guest) on October 29, 2009 at 08:21 AM

"Paul Londons, Brian Kendricks and other cautionary tales of how a WWE contract isn't always a ticket to fame and success."

They had their ticket, but one scrunched it up and threw it at Vince, and the other smoked it.

Regarding Hogan, he may still be able to pop a crowd, and he is undoubtedly the biggest star in wrestling history, but 'history' is the key word.

2000 WCW proves you need more than Hogan to have a winning wrestlng company.

Posted By: Quimby (Guest) on October 29, 2009 at 08:30 AM

hogan in tna is great. hogan right now is DESPERATE, if he wants to make money hes gonna know how to make it. They're learned from their mistakes and I am ALL FOR aj vs hogan. i guarantee hogan jobs to aj. he has a great business sense and has leanred from his mistakes. he realizes he isnt king of the world anymore after he lost basically everything with linda. things are looking up for tna, im tuning back in

Posted By: K.O.W. (Guest) on October 29, 2009 at 08:45 AM

"Russo and Jarrett gone from TNA and Hogan Bischoff in charge....WOW! Who would have thunk it???

Posted By: Guest#5494 (Guest) on October 28, 2009 at 11:52 PM"

lol. WCW.

Posted By: Banz (Guest) on October 29, 2009 at 09:25 AM

1. Fact - with the 7 on 7 and the Divas 3 on 3 - you set the seeds for several traditional style Survivor Series matches. Plus you introduced two new fueds with Orton/Legacy and Kofi and Batista/Rey (which if it keeps Batista out of the title picture for a while, is fine with me).

2. Fact. It gives him the lead in the #2 storyline in TNA - which is the World Elite (#1 is always the TNA title). To do this, he needed to be a face - and he certainly can handle those duties.

3. Fiction - positive impression? No. He didn't embarass himself, but you can't say it was a positive. It was just there. It's like when Kelly Kelly doesn't botch a spot - she did her job - but it still wasn't really good.

4. Fact. No Steiner, Booker, Dudleys - I'm OK with fresh talent in this division. Re-establish 3 or 4 younger teams and you can claim that you have the best tag team division in all of wrestling.

5. Fact - the booking decision to get there was the wrong path to take. While the right team was out there - how they got there ended up burying some of the newer guys.

6. Fiction - what did Joe and Daniels do to get a shot at the title. At least build a storyline about them earning a shot. Just don't come out and give them a shot just because they had great matches together in the past. You can bring that up AFTER they've earned their spots in the title match.

7. Fact. Sure, you might have more heels than faces on Smackdown right now - but for Batista himself - it turns his character back into a badass monster vs. the loser/lug character he's had over the past few years.

8. Fact. Easiest decision in the bunch. He gets placed into a fued with one of the all-time stars in wrestling from the get go - no way he gets close to something like that in the WWE for at least a year.

BONUS: Fiction - given how TNA has handled the exit of some of the veterans and focused on the younger talent - I think they get it. Older talent builds up younger talent. Plus - when they actually see Hogan working in the ring - they will see that he cannot go and keep him away from any wrestling action. He might tag team or be a spokesperson - but I trust that TNA will handle this correctly.

They better - because if they don't, they will quickly alienate those TNA fans who were looking at TNA as the alternative to WWE.

Posted By: BobbyC (Guest) on October 29, 2009 at 09:55 AM

Say what you will but Hogan will bring TNA to a level it has never seen.
More PPV buys, Better ratings EVERY week, More murchindice sales.
Hogan on TNA TV Every week will be HUGE.

Posted By: Spott (Guest) on October 29, 2009 at 10:49 AM

no way did the original smackdown team look weak. it was 5 on 4, plus finlay had to cheat to win.

Posted By: pat (Guest) on October 29, 2009 at 11:04 AM

I agree with Len on the Hogan situation, BUT maybe it wont end up like that. Crossing my fingers

Posted By: AG Awesome (Guest) on October 29, 2009 at 12:08 PM

I don't understand why people feel that Kendrick/London wasn't a success. Weren't they the tag team champs? To me, that seems like they were pretty successful. That was all you could expect from those two.

FACT, FACT, FACT on Batista's turn. I've been playing my Batista ringtone all day and doing my big gay machine-gunner entrance in front of the mirror non-stop. About damn time, I say!

PaulinOtown - did the IWC hurt you little feelings?

We're sorry, DDDDDOOOOOOOUUUUUUUCCCCCCCHHHHHHEEEEEEE!

Posted By: Big Fat Fag (Guest) on October 29, 2009 at 01:13 PM

Before anybody bitches about Nigel McGuiness eventually losing to Kurt Angle (whether via pin or submission), remember that he submitted to Jimmy fucking Rave in an ROH angle years ago.

Defend Rave all you want - he was a midcarder in ROH. Period. If Nigel was able to overcome that blemish on his career, losing to Kurt won't do much damage.

Posted By: Brad B (Guest) on October 29, 2009 at 01:36 PM

i love how guys do their own version, acting like they are the actual writers of this thing, and anyone cares....you mean so little you cant get a job writing for free on a website, but still do it in the comments section anyway! go channel your energies into something more productive

Posted By: Guest#6008 (Guest) on October 29, 2009 at 02:24 PM

D-RAY 3000 name drop for the win!

Posted By: Guest#3597 (Guest) on October 29, 2009 at 02:42 PM

Good God almighty, Cook is just another one of those cynical IWC assholes who refuses to find anything good in WWE. If you can't be unbiased, don't do a column like this. All it does is show just how much of a prick you really are. If it bothers you as much as it seems, you shouldn't be watching is much less writing about it. Do us all a favor and GO AWAY!

Posted By: Guest#1290 (Guest) on October 29, 2009 at 12:26 AM

Since you are the only person who is allowed to voice an opinion, I've got three words for you. Pot, Kettle and Black. Put them in any order you like. You are a fucking imbecile. This is an opinion based column, you retard. Stop reading it if you don't agree, but just stop whining & shut the fuck up!

Posted By: PaulinOtown (Guest) on October 29, 2009 at 07:38 AM

Look, dipshit...
Yes this is an opinion based column and everyone has the right to their own opinion. But to put someone in the opinion column who clearly has a BIASED opinion is completely idiotic. The way to make this column work is to have people with open minds and can see the product for what it is, not through biased eyes. So here are three words for you: Go fuck yourself. Keep them in that order, bitch.

Posted By: Guest#2501 (Guest) on October 29, 2009 at 01:37 PM

Wow, idiotic to have a biased opinion. Did mommy come up with that one for you? Everyone's opinion is biased one way or another. That's how an opinion is formed. You base your opinions on the facts presented & your bias skews how you view these facts. If we all thought alike, there'd be no comment section for people like you to bitch about.

Not even going to waste my time with Big Fat Fag. Probably Small's alter ego. Call me a douche, as though it actually matters. People don't react to what you say because you aren't interesting. Face facts, bitch. Have something interesting to say, man up & step up, if you can.

Posted By: PaulinOtown (Guest) on October 29, 2009 at 03:30 PM

Not even going to waste my time with Big Fat Fag. Probably Small's alter ego. Call me a douche, as though it actually matters. People don't react to what you say because you aren't interesting. Face facts, bitch. Have something interesting to say, man up & step up, if you can.

Posted By: PaulinOtown (Guest) on October 29, 2009 at 03:30 PM

Oooooo, Paulieboy. Talking mean to me? Are you coming on to me on, big fella? I do so like the rough stuff. But sadly, my heart belongs to another. I'm sure there are other sites where you might be able to meet Mr. Right.

You'll get over me, Paul, my dear. You'll get over me.

Posted By: Big Fat Fag (Guest) on October 29, 2009 at 04:09 PM

1. "Sagging Rights": I didn't miss a thing (I didn't see it, so I didn't miss a thing). 2. Kurt Angle: You Suck! 3. Snoop Dogg: Enoguh with the damn guest host bullshit! 4. MCMG v. The Birts: I'd be more excited for a anal probing. 5. The replacements: insert comment here. 6. AJ/Joe/Daniels: Not again. 7. Batista: One word to describe the heel turn: RESPECT! 8. Nigel McGuiness: You keep your ass there! Bonus: Orange Fucker and Bitchoff signing with TNA: NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

Posted By: David (Guest) on October 29, 2009 at 04:12 PM

Oh, Paul, something else to add:

DDDOOOUUUUCCCCCHHHHHHEEEEE !!!!

Posted By: Big Fat Fag (Guest) on October 29, 2009 at 04:19 PM

Cannot wait for Zodiwack/Beefcack, The Yeti, Glacier, Virgil, Chip Minton, and Knob in TNA's "Road Wild" PPV.

TNA, TNA, TNA.

Posted By: Guest#6751 (Guest) on October 29, 2009 at 04:41 PM

Paul, you are a colossal idiot.
To be biased in this column serves zero purpose. If you can't present things with an open mind, this is not the column to write in. Cook should have a "Why everything WWE does is wrong" column. You can go suck his cock over there. The purpose of THIS column is to openly critique the product, NOT to just slam one side because you are a mark for the opposition. And then we get you, the message board police, out here making a complete fool out of yourself coming to his defense in a completely unintelligent manner.

And if you are not going to waste your time responding someone, why waste a paragraph telling him that, then reposting it right after?

Now, go set your DVR so you can jack off to old man Hogan on TNA tonight.

Posted By: Guest#3507 (Guest) on October 29, 2009 at 04:42 PM

Good God almighty, Cook is just another one of those cynical IWC assholes who refuses to find anything good in WWE. If you can't be unbiased, don't do a column like this. All it does is show just how much of a prick you really are. If it bothers you as much as it seems, you shouldn't be watching is much less writing about it. Do us all a favor and GO AWAY!

Posted By: Guest#1290 (Guest) on October 29, 2009 at 12:26 AM

Since you are the only person who is allowed to voice an opinion, I've got three words for you. Pot, Kettle and Black. Put them in any order you like. You are a fucking imbecile. This is an opinion based column, you retard. Stop reading it if you don't agree, but just stop whining & shut the fuck up!

Posted By: PaulinOtown (Guest) on October 29, 2009 at 07:38 AM

Look, dipshit...
Yes this is an opinion based column and everyone has the right to their own opinion. But to put someone in the opinion column who clearly has a BIASED opinion is completely idiotic. The way to make this column work is to have people with open minds and can see the product for what it is, not through biased eyes. So here are three words for you: Go fuck yourself. Keep them in that order, bitch.

Posted By: Guest#2501 (Guest) on October 29, 2009 at 01:37 PM

Listen asshole, how the fuck do you know he's biased. Oh okay, what he says you don't agree with, he MUST BE FUCKING BIAS! *facepalm* This column works fine because the people who answer aren't afraid to voice their opinions, not think about you and go "oh no, what I just typed might offend them and make them cry...I better re-write it to something nice"
Moron - one simple word so that you don't get confused.

Posted By: The_Mystical_Ninja (Guest) on October 29, 2009 at 05:05 PM

FICTION on Desmond Wolfe cause in 30 to 60 days from now he will be way down the card which will make him look like crap. This has happen a ton of times in TNA with new guys and they never get strong again.

Posted By: Guest#1545 (Guest) on October 29, 2009 at 05:09 PM

Yes, CM Punk is now JUST ANOTHER GUY. And I couldn't be happier about it! I'm so sick of him being shoved down our throats. He is not believable in any way shape or form. Maybe if they brought back the light heavyweight division... I'd rather see what Batista can do as a top heel. CM Punk can go job to Morrison. Or better yet, leave WWE.

Posted By: Guest#1163 (Guest) on October 29, 2009 at 12:28 AM

I for one think you are very wrong on this sir. CM Punk to me is like Jake Roberts in the early nineties. He is sold out to his gimmick and he knows exactly how to tweak it to get the desired reaction. Just because you have some wierd hatred for the guy does not mean he has been, "shoved down our throats" it seems to me he has just been the Bret Hart to the injury/drug prone main events Ric Flair(don't take this out of context I am only pointing out that Harts first title was because he was the right guy in the right place at the right time coming off a big match/series, much like Punk has been for his title wins).

So I for one disagree with you sir...though you will probably never read this.

Posted By: Carnivore (Guest) on October 29, 2009 at 08:33 PM

Unless TNA is trying to gain more viewers from the senior citizens club I dont see what Hogan will offer.

Na Steve Cook Bischoff DID NOT introduced a lot of new concepts to wrestling TV. He stole them from smaller organizations and showed it to a bigger audience. The same goes for Mysterios, Jerichos, Guerreros, and yes, Benoit.

Posted By: Da Truth (Guest) on October 29, 2009 at 08:35 PM

Paul, you are a colossal idiot.
To be biased in this column serves zero purpose. If you can't present things with an open mind, this is not the column to write in. Cook should have a "Why everything WWE does is wrong" column. You can go suck his cock over there. The purpose of THIS column is to openly critique the product, NOT to just slam one side because you are a mark for the opposition. And then we get you, the message board police, out here making a complete fool out of yourself coming to his defense in a completely unintelligent manner.

And if you are not going to waste your time responding someone, why waste a paragraph telling him that, then reposting it right after?

Now, go set your DVR so you can jack off to old man Hogan on TNA tonight.

Posted By: Guest#3507 (Guest) on October 29, 2009 at 04:42 PM

You know it's so funny how someone is considered biased when they call out the WWE but yet this douche was nowhere to be found when Byers was doing his usual anti-TNA rant.

Hypocrite!

Posted By: JR (Guest) on October 30, 2009 at 12:42 AM

"Honestly, the ONLY way Hogan in TNA is going to work is if he comes in with the intention of "making" some stars. He would have to accept being a "mid-card" act"

But we all know Hogan's ego is wayy too big for that... But in all fairness... TNA is Pro Wrestling.. WWE is now entertainment remember? TNA is at the top of pro wrestling I don't care how you compare the 2.. TNA=Wrestling, WWE= Entertainment... Don't belive me? Ask people who have been there for the transitions.. Unlinke Vince claiming to be entertainment and raping whatever arena they are at out of taxes TNA admits they are wrestling. So hmmmm TNA really don't have competition

Posted By: Lucid (Guest) on October 30, 2009 at 02:15 PM

1. Fact: Kofi vs. Orton is coming; Y2J acting like the "assclown" with the trophy will lead to Show turning face; Batista vs. Mysterio; Miz beating Morrison will likely lead to a rematch. Next.

2. Fact: Len is all over this one.

3. Fact: He did his job, which was to push the PPV and made it fun to watch a Raw.

4. Fact: MCMG is, in my opinion, one of those tag teams that should have had multi-title runs at some point. I hope this is the start.

5. Fiction: WWE made the right call, they just should have done it on TV better then what they did.

6. Fiction: Joe vs. Lashley should not be far from over, I would have stuck with Daniels vs. Styles or Nash vs. Styles (sort of the MEM chasing AJ).

7. Smackdown top three heels and faces for the world title next year:
Heels: Y2J/Punk/Batista
Faces: Mysterio/Taker/(Soon to be Edge)
I like it, now can someone tell me RAW's top three next year?

8. Fact: Hate the name, love the match-up with Angle. Angle will push this guy to the top....bank on it.

9. Fiction: TNA need that one name to make TNA a true threat the WWE and they got it. Two, Bischoff, I think, will not repeat the mistakes of the past as he did in WCW and will help make TNA a better product; Three: IWC fans seem to forget that at one time WCW was beating WWE in ratings with guys like Hogan. I think that Russo and Bischoff will put their feelings aside and try to stick it to WWE. Finally, it is good for the business. TNA wants a 2-hour show to compete, Hogan gives them the cred they need. Also it forces WWE to step up their game. I can't wait to see what happens next.

Posted By: KT (Guest) on October 30, 2009 at 02:49 PM