Hidden Highlights 04.30.05: Issue # 35
Posted by Prag-Thomlison on 04.30.2006
Fans at Lockdown become TNAtheists, Carlito still has no friends, Alex Shelly takes production notes, MNM drink Tea, ECW goes to another state, Hulk Hogan gets married, the revenge of the Great Positvity debate and much, much, much more!
Hidden Highlights
By JP Prag and James "JT" Thomlison
Issue #35
Intro
Hello everyone who actually cares about the NHL playoffs, and welcome back to Hidden Highlights!!
Hidden Highlight (n) – a small, hardly noticeable point that makes a big, positive difference. This could be anything from a wrestler putting extra emphasis into his moves to make it believable to a person in the background reacting while not the focus to the cameraman shaking the picture to create an effect. There are just so many unsung heroes of wrestling that it is impossible to cover them all.
Every week we take the top 3 Hidden Highlights from the biggest shows on television (iMPACT!, RAW, SmackDown!, and a PPV or television special if there is one). Plus we turn to you, the readers, to let us know all the Hidden Highlights you saw or that we missed. On top of that we revisit old moments to find Classic Hidden Highlights and then explore other issues that prove why this is the most positive article in the IWC.
And who is this mysterious we, you ask?
First, there is JP Prag who also this past week posted In Defense of… In Defense of… (Part 1 of 1). It was the one year anniversary special where I defended the very concept of In Defense of… Now you should start worrying about what I have planned for our one year anniversary.
And then there is James "JT" Thomlison who also this past week posted his Smallville Recap! Maybe one day JT will write a description here so I don't have to pretend I know a damn thing about Smallville.
We bring you Hidden Highlights with one goal in mind: to appreciate all those little things that make a huge difference. JT?
JT: A week after Lockdown, Backlash tonight, things are goi—
JP: Yeah, yeah, but I have something to say!
JT: Something that couldn't wait until I finished a sentence?
JP: No, it's about something you talked about as well.
JT: Oh good, because I was afraid I was going to have to read another fifteen pages where you talk about yourself.
JP: Ouch!
JT: I'm just messing with you. You know I like your stuff. Even if I think you are out of your mind for some of the things you choose to defend.
JP: Sorry, I got to pick props to newbie Grayson Hamill and his Butterfly Effect. Ok, so he really gets the plug for saying he has the fifteenth most positive article in the IWC. I like when people know their place and don't have to be taught a lesson.
JT: But that one is just because he stole something from Cook and now Cook can't use it.
JP: You know me too well.
JT: Well is that it, or are we ready to go?
JP: Nope, that's it from me. On wi—
JT: Wait, actually that's not it.
JP: …???
JT: Well, I think we have to link High Road/Low Road as well, because there's just something refreshing and original about two guys having a weekly column where they discuss various topics in the current…WWE…er..well…. okay, they're a good read anyway! Show them some love!
JP: Just had to take that shot didn't you?
JT: Of course, they're newbies. On with the Hidden Highlights!
JP: THAT'S MY LINE!
Hidden Highlights for TNA presents Lockdown: Sunday, April 23, 2006 by JT
JT: Frogsplash off a twenty foot cage? The return of Low Ki Senchi? No Traci Brooks (that one's for you Steve)? The whipping of Mexicans? This was indeed quite the odd show. Fortunately, it was all good! There were some hits and misses, but overall I enjoyed the show.
(3) Fan creativity!:
I'm always on the lookout for signs, but the problem tends to be that unless it's someone who is in the first few rows on the TV side, if you blink, you miss them! Fortunately, I thought I spotted something when I watched this, and went back afterwards with a good friend of mine, pause button. Sure enough, I confirmed that for about half a second, there was a sign that read "SCREW MCMAHONISM, I'M A TNAthiest!!!". I thought this was a really creative sign by the fan. It also let's you know that he watches both products, but when it comes to TNA time, screw the WWE! Really great sign, and since we rarely get to mention the fans, I figured give them a shot out for this one.
(2) Slacking at work?:
During the Team Sting vs. Team Jarrett match, Rhino was the previous man in, and time had run out. As Jeff Jarrett came out, the ring announcer (either JB or Dave Penzer, not sure which it was) begins to announce him, and says:
"The next member, representing team-".
And then stops because Rhino was outside on the attack! The ring announcer figured "eh, fuck it, I think we're beyond that". I loved this because you're always supposed to complete your job no matter what, and he made the call that stopping would add to the intensity of Rhino coming out to ‘meet & greet' Jarrett. Good job Jeremy Penzer.
(1) Heels, faces, tweeners… no matter, this is Team USA!:
During the X-Cup "preview" match between Team USA and Team Japan, Lethal was in the ring and getting roughed up a little bit. As Minuru went for the tag on Jay, we saw the 1! 2!; and despite the fact that he wouldn't have made it in time, one of Lethal's team members sticks his body through the ropes to go for the save. Who was it? Alex Shelley! He really came out and tried to show that he was about Team USA, not himself. Him coming in for the non-save (as it was too late and Lethal kicked out) was one of the many little things he did to show he was part of the team, not a bitchy little heel.
JP: Although I do wonder if he is going to "defect" to Canada. I think a real swerve would be if he defected to Mexico. But Canada makes more sense because Toronto is one of the largest film locations in the world, and I think Shelly would be much happier where he can make film cheaply. Where's team India?
Hidden Highlights for WWE RAW: Monday, April 24, 2006 by JP
JP: RAW was live being shown from London England, and that crowd was crazy hot. The wrestling crew brought their A-game, and I had a REALLY tough time picking just three Hidden Highlights.
(3) That's how I… headlock?:
During the Shane McMahon vs. Shawn Michaels "sports-entertainment contest" (Oh Joey, the terms you came up with Monday night, which I think we'll see in the Reader Write-in Section), Shane had Shawn on the outside and was setting him up for the spot on the announce table. Now normally you see a wrestler just guide a guy to the table by dragging them along or pulling their hair or something. Not Shane McMahon! He actually put Shawn Michaels in a headlock to get him to move! Anyone who knows any basic wrestling or self-defense knows that if you control the head, you control the body. Shane was using this real world training to move Shawn in a very credible moment.
On a side note, I'm amazed how many times Shane outshines some of the active wrestlers, not just in terms of in-ring skills or spot-ability, but in terms of Hidden Highlights as well!
(2) We are the champions, my friends:
Earlier in the evening they showed one of those promo spots for the main event pitting Triple H, Edge, and John Cena against the Spirit Squad. Notice something about the Spirit Squad? In the picture they all had a title belt! That's because they are ALL the tag team champions! Excellent job by production, photography, and the guy who puts that graphic together to remember that little detail and give each of the champs their own belt. I also can't forget Daniel Violette who caught this as well.
(1) You think I'm a face?:
Our top kudos this week hands down goes to Carlito. But it's not for what he did, but for what he DID NOT do. Bare with me here. Joey Styles probably said it best when he said, "Carlito actually turned on Masters more times than Masters turned on him, yet the fans seemed to have sided with Carlito." That's important to remember. We touched this last week, but Carlito has done almost nothing to change who he is and is only a face for who is feuding with and hanging around. Now, my biggest complaint in wrestling is when all the faces are friends and all the heels are friends. That's why I love the main event feud. There are no heels or faces really, just three guys who want a title. And that's why I like what's going on with Carlito; he's still Carlito.
As we all now, Carlito takes credit for putting RVD out an additional six months. The two feuded not too long ago and have a lot of problems with each other. But just because they are faces, it does not mean they have to get along. Carlito went out of his way to avoid being near RVD, to not celebrate with him, and to only use him to his favor. Carlito also went right after Shelton Benjamin, remembering their feud over the IC title (although the roles have changed). And I was not the only one who saw this. Bob said:
[D]uring the six man tag with Carlito RVD and Hass against Masters Shelton and Striker after RVD gets the win for his team you see carlito roll out of the ring as RVD and Hass go to celebrate. This is significant because of course Carlito wouldn't celebrate with the faces, especially RVD he may be over as a face right now but as been noted by many people he still acts like a heel in every manner except he feuds with other heels and he has long standing problems with Van Dam specifically that were never settled back from the draft. Even though during the match he did everything to help his team win and was a good team player that was for his own benefit not that of the teams, he got his win and moved on. So Carlito was just maintaining his character and has been since his "switch" every thing he's done has still been heelish just like last weeks reason for confronting Striker as you guys mentioned in last weeks edition
I bet we'll hear more from Bob later on his Mickey James/Trish Stratus stuff (it's gold), but for now we have regular good guy Mike LaFave:
Carlito may be a face now, but that doesn't mean he doesn't have a memory. He's had a bad history w/ RVD, so when it was time to start the match Carlito wasn't all buddy-buddy w/ his partners, instead he was ordering them both out of the ring so he could could start that match. Then when it came time for him to tag out, he made his tag and yelled at RVD to get in the ring. The WWE has made the mistake w/ some of the recent turns (Orton, Cena) by having the person's character change when they turn from heel to face. If Carlito was being cheered for his actions as a heel, and you want him to get more cheers as a face, don't change why he's getting the pop in the first place, simply let him to the same thing, but against other people. Hidden Highlight for Carlito for ALWAYS playing his character and to the WWE for learning from their mistakes!!! (I would have mentioned the Cool One guiding RVD's hand to Haas, but the announcers pointed that one out for me)
Good stuff all, and super kudos to Carlito for all the reasons listed above!
JT: Well I—
JP: Ok! I can't stand it! I have to do two more!
JT: What? Oh come on!
JP: Well, I did give one to the readers, and we have done bonus Hidden Highlights before…
JT: Oh all right…
JP: AWESOME!!!
(BONUS #1) Recycling music:
When they were showing Big Ben outside, they were playing William Regal's old "Gentleman's" music. The one after "Real Man's Man" but before "Regal Rock ‘n Roll." I love recycled music (see The Patriot and Kurt Angle).
(BONUS #2) Thumbs up!:
As Triple H was making his King of King entrance, he quickly gave the thumbs up to the people in the front row bowing to him. So much for always trying to get people to hate you! I guess Triple H has decided to fully embrace his tweener role after learning his lesson at Wrestlemania that YOU CANNOT just take the heel heat on to yourself. Nice!
JT: I can't believe you inserted Reader Hidden Highlights into your RAW section just to talk about Carlito…
JP: It wasn't just for Carlito… And I had it written before I read them. It was only fair! What? I swear!
JT: I'm sure. Nice catch on the music though. I've never paid enough attention to Regal's music to have noticed, but maybe I noticed something else about him later on!
Hidden Highlights for TNA iMPACT: Thursday, April 27, 2006 by JT
JT: Cameos by WCW alumni, Christian Cage gets some wit back, Daniels and AJ going for… tag team gold? All this and more in an Impact I found to be quite enjoyable.
(3) Wait… obvious?:
Yeah, I'll get yelled at for this one but that's okay. As you may have noticed during the Jarrett promo, and again when Steiner came down with him to end the show, he was wearing a Ben Wallace (Detroit Pistons) cut-off T shirt! I know. The Steiner's are from Michigan. I live in Michigan. I get it. But Steiner is usually wearing a self-promoting shirt, or no shirt at all. It was blatantly obvious, but I thought that considering it was playoff time, it was a nice little shout out to the home team and a nice showing of current events.
(2) It's all about the angle:
This is kind of a short one. First let me explain what I mean when I say the ‘wide-angle' camera. I mean the camera that TNA has up in the booth that shows both the entire ring and outside of it, similar to the WWE camera that pans about halfway through the crowd that shows the whole ring and announce tables. At any rate, as Alex Shelley comes down for the first match in the X-Cup tournament, you can see Alex Shelley on the ‘wide-angle' camera, and he looks directly at the camera, winks, and blows a kiss. I thought this really was fitting to his gimmick; after all, he's the main guy at "Papparazzi Productions", and certainly knows all about camera work, camera angles, and cameras in general.
(1) OW! That hurt you crazy beast!:
As Jay Lethal was in the middle of jobbing to Samoa Joe (I kid, we all know they are high on Lethal and we also all knew that there was no way he was winning), he naturally got to get at least some offense in. When he finally was able to, it came roughly 2 minutes after Joe had just finished chopping the Hell out of him. So, Lethal wanted to return the favor, set Joe up in the corner, and went for the monster chop. He gave him a brutal shot, and IMMEDIATELY gave his hand a couple of shakes like "damn, that hurt". I liked this because not only did some twenty year old just sell how intense the move was, but he also continued to show Joe as the absolute beast TNA is trying to build him as. I've got some high hopes for this kid… the scary part of that – in both a good and bad way – is that I haven't heard him on the mic.
JP: I'd also like to note iMPACT has new theme music with a slightly altered main video package. Also, the show was run in a completely different format than the previous week, one where the segments overlapped into each other. With the mysterious new forces at play in TNA management and the beginning of the Thursday Era kicking off into high gear, TNA is doing everything possible to make the show feel fresh, different, and interesting. It really added to the energy level and gave that "things are really happening here" feeling.
Hidden Highlights for WWE SmackDown!: Friday, April 28, 2006 by JT
JT: Oh, how that London crowd is ca-raaaazy! Seriously, Mysterio was actually getting booed!? What's the deal with that? Lashley continues to move up the ladder, MNM continues getting punk'd out, and Tazz continues ribbing on Michael Cole. Added bonus: Booker T on commentary! On a serious note before I get to these, my best wishes go out to Hardcore Holly who is in a bad bad way right now. Get better man! Nobody beats the Hell out of rookies better than you!
(3) That's my man… Bitch:
When Booker T and Sharmelle arrive for their interview with Krystal, they are all smiles. But if you notice, as soon as she starts talking, Sharmelle clings onto Booker and gets this "mmhmmmwhatever" look on her face; and then it hit me! If you recall, when Krystal debuted, it was attempting to get an interview with Booker T. What happened? Sharmelle walked in and saw them, flipped out, and went off on Krystal for trying to hone in on her man! Nice little sell of …what?
JP: CONTINUITY!
JT: Thank you JP. Nice job by Sharmelle to not forget that she's still suspicious of what Krystal was doing that day oh so not so long ago.
(2) Would anyone like some …sorry, can't spoil it. Read.:
After MNM and Helms had lost to London/Kendrick and Super Crazy, they came back from commercial and you saw MNM walking through the arena and pouting. Right before Melina went to her interaction with Jillian Hall, the three of them stopped to discuss the match. They happened to be in front of the snack/concession table set up for wrestlers. And what could you notice a bit in the background of the three? Coffee maker? Water dispenser? NO and NO. It was a massive, steaming tea maker! Tea! We are in England after all. I thought this was a great touch by the people who set up the "stages" in the back of making a little non-obvious touch to balance out the completely obvious ones (like a right-driver-side-Rolls-Royce). Had they have had crumpets next to said tea, we might have had a HHOTY candidate.
(1) There's two of us!:
Speaking of the 3 on 3, we all know that during tag team matches there is a string on the turnbuckle that determines exactly how far a tag team partner can venture in either direction. Well, during the 3 on 3, I noticed that in both corners, there were two strings! You can't have the two men – on opposite sides of the turnbuckle – holding on to the same string! At Survivor Series I noticed there was no string at all, and as for 3 on 3's, I've never paid close enough attention to notice if this was a regular thing or not. Either way, great job by the ring setup guys to keep it "legal". This also got me thinking about Pay-Per-Views. During PPV's, they always show a vignette of the current feud of whatever the next match is. They also show this in the arena, which means that during matches, 70% of the arena is watching, and another 10% is getting a beer/food/using the restroom. Which means that 80% of the arena probably doesn't even see these guys come in and adjust the ring with the strings, so these guys get no credit! Let's show them some love! It got me thinking even further than that and into the fact that tag teams are always in the same two corners! For the TV side, it's top left; for the other, bottom right. ALWAYS! I have no idea if there's a reason for this, but we're just spreading love all over the place so yeah! Whatever!
Point being, whoever made sure there were TWO strings for the 3 on 3 is on their shit, and kudos to them.
JP: Actually, there is a reason. The faces are supposed to go in the top left corner and the heels in the bottom right. That way, the camera always has the best shot of the "hot tag". Also, it keeps the faces (traditional draws) in the camera most of the time so that if someone were to just tune in, they'd be more likely to notice their fan favorite waiting in the corner. It's all marketing.
Speaking of marketing, I'd just like to go back to Krystal. Not only is she the most gorgeous woman on SmackDown! bar none (sorry Melina), but she has been a great character, both in the obvious and the Hidden Highlights. When she was talking to Rey Mysterio, she was not just reading lines. Either she is the greatest actress ever, or you could tell she really knows what she is talking about and is into the product. And her interactions with Sharmelle are priceless! More props to Krystal, although I hope she just sticks to interviewing and avoids the ring.
By the way, I thought you said you had found something for Regal?
JT: No, I said maybe I found something for him.
JP: …….that's lame. You have nothing on Regal? In London no less???
JT: Well, I could talk about how Paul Burchill left him alone this week, and how that seemed to be because London is Regal's "heritage", and we know how important Burchill takes heritage, so he didn't want to disrespect Regals. But I figured the other three did just fine.
JP: I just like how last week Tazz pointed out that because they lost the tag team match, Regal no longer had to wear a dress (after all, Burchill lost that match, too!). It was the perfect setup to his hometown face return (and back to awesome heel antics next week).
Reader Write-in Hidden Highlights
Hidden Highlights aren't just for us to find and tell you about, but for you to spot and share with us. Don't just sit there and stare, but be a more active, attentive, and engaged viewer. Appreciate all the hard work that goes into making the wrestling we have the privilege to watch and then let us know what you caught this and every week.
This week JT gets to pick our Reader Write-in Hidden Highlights of the week.
JT: I'd say we have another great batch, but how cliché' at this point. So, *GENERAL WARNING*:: some parts of the following Reader Write-in Hidden Highlights may be edited for grammar, spelling, and English translation…
First up we had reader RC, who needs to have a talk with JP:
Just read the beginning of this weeks issue and found this:
"Actually, what he said was, "I have recently converted to… como se dice… McMahonism, si!" Como se dice? Hahahaha! Like there was a Spanish word for McMahonism or it existed before thirty minutes beforehand. "
I was just wondering if you guys meant that AAE meant that "como se dice" was the Spanish words for McMahonism.
Just asking coz I might have misunderstood it and you guys might have actually known that como se dice means "as it is said"/"how is it said now again?" in Spanish
JT: Nothing much to add here. Just curious if our good friend caught JP not doing his homework! And of course – in true Defense Of fashion – allow himself the chance to explain!
JP: Apparently you both misread what I meant. No offense RC, but I took six years of Spanish, so I know what "como se dice" means. I meant that it was funny that AAE (like I'm writing out that name again) pretended he had to think about it. That was the funny part, AAE pretending that there was a Spanish word for McMahonism and that he had to think about what the English translation was. That was the gold part.
JT: Works for me. Next up is—
JP: Wait everyone. Unfortunately, the Reader Write-in Section is the last part to be written this week, so everything said in the rest of this section has ABSOLUTELY no input from me! See you in the Classic Section!
JT: Paranoid much?
JP: When it involves you… yes.
JT: Fair enough. Next up is Dana who loves people who love to fight:
A hidden highlight I noticed at the start of tag match with Fit Finlay & Orlando Jordan vs. Bob Lashley & Chris Benoit:
With Bob & Chris already in the ring, Fit came down the ramp with his "shillelagh" in hand (spelling courtesy of the http://johnwhurley.com/ Irish Stick Fighting website).
When Fit's partner, Orlando, came down to the ring, Fit kept the shillelagh in hand until Orlando was completely in the ring to even the odds (2 against 2). The camera stayed on Fit as he put down the shillelagh. As Fit did so, he gave one or two looks over his shoulder making sure Orlando was there to watch his back (or make sure Bob & Chris weren't going to rush him with his back turned). I thought it was a good touch on Fit's part. While most of us see his shillelagh as an "offensive" weapon. Fit (in his mind) sees it as a "defensive" weapon for protecting himself.
JT: That is indeed a good catch Dana. What makes it even funnier is the fact that guys like Benoit and Lashley will always fight the fair fight; thus, there really is no need for Finlay worry about them attacking from behind. That fact alone helps makes this a good Hidden Highlight, because Finlay added these little touches against opponents that don't warrant them. Next up is Douglas who may be pointing out something we've mentioned before, but for a different reason:
I saw a hidden highlight during the Lockdown PPV for TNA. In the war games match Chris Harris puts Sting in a Scorpian Deathlock. What people might not realize is that Chris Harris was the fake Sting during the days when nWo had a Sting working for them.
JT: Nice one Doug. While we have mentioned that Chris Harris was Sting before, this adds to that. It's really funny to think of a fake Sting – years later – putting Sting's own move on him. That has HH written all over it. Manu chimes in as usual and today wants to show RVD some love:
This week on RAW, they went to commercial during the RVD match. Now, some people might see this and complain about them always cutting away from the rvd match (back when he was on raw the first time around, they ALWAYS cut away from his matches), and how its an insult to him and makes him seem unimportant. I, however, see a hidden highlight in this. They strategically place the commercial during his match, thinking that people like him enough that they'll stick around through the commercial break to see the end of his match. Good job by...well, I guess I'd have to say Vince, since he probably decides where in the show the commercial will go (between what segments, in what match, etc).
JT: This of course would insinuate that the E recognizes the fact that he is over. I kid, I kid! Manu is looking at this from a very interesting perspective. RVD is indeed over, as is a guy like Shelton, who also seems to get a lot of commercial love. It is indeed possible that production does this on purpose because I know I am much more liked to wander off for a sandwich or something if they take a commercial break during something involving someone I don't much care for. Etiras has the spirit:
During the 3 on 5 main event, when HHH went for the knee on the head he started with the DX chop, when he chopped, Mickey I think lost his balance on the outside and got tangled between the middle and upper rope, like the chop nailed him. Go Micky again.
JT: What can I say, the Spirit Squad continues to impress most of us in the ring, and their characters are actually becoming bearable outside of the ring. Plus they're champions! The SS is definitely on a roll.
Up next we have James... Walti....Walle...Wank...something or another who chimed in with his thoughts.
JT: Woops, sorry folks! I forgot James was a lame, cockless bitchboy so unimportant he doesn't even warrant a response, merit a comment, or get into anyone's column. Moving on. Bob on the other hand, is back with his second Hidden Highlight of this column!:
During the Trish-Mickie segment, even though Mickie came out dresses normal as herself and ended the mind games Trish continued to act like Mickie even though its assumed that Trish isn't crazy – she's just trying to play mind games back with Mickie. Why is this? Because Trish wouldn't' know what Mickies plans were; she would assume nothing had changed and that Mickie was gonna continue her mind games because even though in real life this was all planed out in Kayfabe their enemies they wouldn't be talking about what they were gonna wear to the ring.
JT: Bob lost me there for a minute, but hey, I love this feud so who cares!? Basically Bob is saying that since they are enemies, Trish had to prepare as if Mickie was going to continue to parade around as her, because she had no idea what Mickie had planned. One piece of advice my good buddy Bob: Commas. They are your friend. And speaking of women, Chris wants to talk about sluts:
When HHH was talking to Edge about Edge's short reign as champ, and insinuating that Edge doesn't last long...in other areas, HHH turned to Lita and said something along the lines of "And as much as you love it I can imagine how frustrating it is for you." Lita turned to Edge and you could see her say "I swear I didn't tell anybody!", which brought a little chuckle out of me. Also, when HHH also said "You and I both know there is only person in this ring that is known worldwide for getting down on their knees.", you see Lita's eyes get wide, knowing the inevitable punch line was coming. In my opinion, Lita is one of the most improved characters over the last few months. She seems to be getting comfortable in her role as a "skank". Her facial expressions are getting better and better every week.
JT: I did see her turn and say something, however I did not catch that it was that! That's hilarious. She was admitting it, which is so super awesome on her part… did I just say so super awesome??? No wonder the higher ups are bringing in new guys… Seriously though Chris, I agree completely that Lita has gone from looking VERY uncomfortable in the role (when this whole thing started a year ago) to embracing her inner-slut. Next up is Leo, who created a new word for what we do!:
Just want to share some observations on RAW, which I watched to fight the boredom in the office!
JT: Jesus, his job is better than mine! Aside from the obvious (actor/musician/pro athlete/etc), I thought that was impossible! He went on to say:
I found a bundle of hidden highlights during the 3-on-3 tag match between the team of Carlito, Charlie Haas and RVD against the team of Masters, Stryker and Benjamin. Although Carlito is already a "face", he still acted like the same old Carlito. A face never, or rarely, pulls down the rope to trip an opponent to the outside. But Mr. Cool did it. Another hidden highlight, which should have been more hidden if it were not for Joey Styles mentioning it, was when Carlito "guided" RVD's hand to that of Haas' for the tag.
JT: It really does seem like creative is letting him continue to be himself, but what we often forget is that it's up to Carlito himself to make sure that happens. He's the one on TV, so he's the one that needs to make sure he doesn't get too "facey" on us. Leo then ended it with:
Continue the positivism!
JT: Yes! Positivism! I love it! Ben had some HH from RAW as well:
Also, the whole Kane/Show segment was a hidden hilight. First, Kane responds by poking Show in the eye, just like the killer in 'See No Evil' removes his victims' eyes. Secondly, a central figure in breaking Show and Kane apart was Snitsky. As far as I can recall, neither Show nor Kane has ever been on good terms with Snitsky. When you have an enemy of two guys fighting break up said fight, that sends a sign that the whole Raw roster does not want to see either Kane or Show on the warpath they are on. Good job there on making the feud seem that more important.
JT: Also kudos to Jay who caught the See No Evil reference. Snitsky breaking them up definitely shows that NOBODY wants these two on a rampage, and Snitsky – being an enemy of both of them – knows firsthand how brutal these guys can be.
JP: Hey I'm back! So, what did I miss?
JT: Actually I only had one more. I think you'll like it.
JP: Very good!
JT: We got this from regular reader Jislaine:
When Triple H begins talking about how Edge "walks like a champion, talks like a champion," notice Edge's body language. As HHH is first showering him in praise, Edge is holding his head high, shoulders thrown back, and looking down his nose at Triple H with a "You got that right!" look on his face. But when HHH reaches the part about how Edge WAS a champion, Edge starts to visibly deflate...with no pun intended on the jokes that follow. In short, it was clever how Edge visibly played up to the image that Triple H was verbally building through the up AND down of it.
JT: Edge – like Lita – has really grown into his "Rated R Superstar" character very, very well. He's a guy with a chip on his shoulder, but at the same time, he thinks the absolute world of himself. He's the first to bask in the sunshine of his greatness, and also the quickest to grimace when thinking of his failures.
…see, isn't that nice? Me having a legit conversation and treating you like a civil wrestling fan??? Unlike JP, who must mindlessly dribble all over every female that writes us.
JP: I-
JT: I'M not done! Speaking of Jislaine, we got this beauty from Jordan:
Remember the girl from about two weeks ago who said her boyfriend referred her to the Hidden Highlights? Jislaine Medina. Yep, that's MY girlfriend. I got my eye on you, JP. All two of them. Don't make me have to start a feud in here!
JT: I believe he's talking to you. Hahahaha JP is gonna get e-smacked. How cute.
JP: YOU'RE going to get e-smacked really soon!
JT: Now now. Settle down. This is my section.
JP: Not anymore! You're actually done.
JT: Oh… so I am! Seriously though Jordan, I'll make sure JP gets your Backlash comment in next week. Your observation was dead on, we're just running out of time here!
Jordan: You're only out of time because you're stirring a pot between JP, Jislaine, and myself.
JT: Ummm... Guilty?
JP: Hey, don't blame JT if your girlfriend finds me irresistable! Unnamed sources say she appreciates a good flirt.
JT: Oh please don-
Jislaine: I have asked Jordan to go easy on the death threats.
JP: See! What did I tell you? Now THAT is appreciation!
Do you have a Hidden Highlight of the week? Or a Classic Hidden Highlight that you would like to share? Please e-mail JP..erT…er…us at jpjthidden@yahoo.com with your thoughts! Send them by Friday afternoon to be considered! And remember, they can be from any show, live or taped, or any house show, or anything you saw… we just like to know!
And speaking of Classic Hidden Highlights…
Classic Hidden Highlight
Every week we take a look into the past and remember something that was done to make a show that much better. Well, sometimes we don't remember, but you remember for us. Anyway, without further ado JP presents the Classic Hidden Highlight of the week:
Where is that again?:
JP: Since some bastardized version of ECW seems be on its way back, I thought I'd look back at one of my favorite little moments in ECW. And this one is so insignificant, it's perfect.
At Heatwave 2000, it was an "International" four way dance between Yoshihiro Tajiri, Little Guido, Psicosis, and Mikey Whipwreck (in the days that he was hanging out with the Sinister Minister aka Father James Mitchell).
So Tajiri was representing Japan, Psicosis representing Mexico, Guido representing Italy and everyone of Italian decent and Whipwreck representing… wait, what was he representing?
Joey Styles put it into perfect context when he said, "Well, Whipwreck is representing another state of mind."
Absolutely perfect! It totally put over Mikey as the insane kid he's become and kept it "international" even though both Mikey and Guido were really American. Excellent work there by Styles.
JT: Yes, it truly seems that anyone hanging out with James Mitchell is in another state of mind, and commentators do a great job of always selling that. Ahhhh, good ol' ECW Joey, how we miss thee.
That Other Section
That Other Section is an idea, a free forum for a few things that just don't have a place. It could be Read Between the Lines where we'll look at a news bite in more detail. It may just be a Pointless Question trying to connect the unconnected dots. You might read a Hidden Highlights Profile where we explore one of the masters of Hidden Highlights (like Chris Jericho) and explain what they do right. It could even be some additional Hidden Highlights, or something else entirely. And sometimes, it might not exist at all. Hey, if we don't have anything to talk about, why force it?
This week, JP has something for That Other Section.
JP: Hogan Knows Best keeps trekking along!!
Hidden Highlights for Hogan Knows Best – Sunday April 23, 2006:
JP: In 23 minutes of television, I saw Hogan perform three wrestling moves! Who said he couldn't wrestle?
(3) Oh right, you have a real name:
As the Hogan's were showing their wedding video, you had to listen really closely, but the minister does ask Linda if she agrees to take "Terry Bollea" as her husband. It is SOOOOO rare to hear Hogan called by his given name, but in 1983 Hulk Hogan really was just a gimmick and wasn't his life. Good history lesson there.
(2) Linda can't dance:
At the end of this week's episode, Hogan brought Linda out on to the dance floor for the Tango. You don't need a trained eye to see what was going on: Linda refused to allow Hogan to lead! Either she still thought Hogan was Frankenstein, or she's a control freak, or a combination of both, but either way she could not let the Hulkster lead the dance. Who's going to tell a thirty year veteran how to book a match in the ring? What? Oh, right…
(1) There are multiple types?:
When Linda was going over the things she thought they might do for their anniversary, she said that she had never been "snow skiing". I thought it was weird that she qualified that with the word "snow" and thought it was a different sport. That's when it occurred to me that she had lived in Florida so long that skiing on the mountains would be the odd thing that needs qualification, while if she just said skiing that would mean WATER skiing. Just one of those great regional differences.
JT: What can I say, I miss this show as much as you miss SmackDown!, so I—
JP: Hey! I saw it this week!
JT: Oh, on your one week home a year, you managed to actually watch a show pertaining to a column you write. Where are my cookies?
JP: Smart alec…
JT: Do I ever miss RAW?
JP: I get it, I get it! Let's move on before things start getting negative! Actually, just to make it a little more positive, congratulations to the whole Hogan crew for getting renewed for a third season! Awesome!
Last Page
The Last Page is where we get to express something else positive in the world of wrestling. Who knows what it might be? Well, actually, you do…
It's time!
By JP Prag
I thought I'd use the last page this week to let everyone (including JT) know that it's time for the return of…
THE GREAT POSITIVITY DEBATE!!!!!!!
Meehan: Oh, so you are finally ready for a fair rematch?
JP: Hell no! We're never defending that title!
No, no. I've got something different in mind.
You see, it's not easy writing a positive article every week. Some people claim it is spin, but I don't think so. I think it's about looking for and highlighting the enjoyable. What's more, it takes a real skill to not just highlight the positive, but also to explain it to others in a convincing manner.
So I thought to myself who are two people out there who are ***intensely*** strong believers in their writing skills and would be willing to put their reputations on the line. Not necessarily people who were members of Team Positivity, but like to fight and test their wrestling ability.
Immediately I knew the answer to that.
So this Friday, May 5th in the afternoon watch out for this matchup:
The Shimmy's Andy Clark takes on Truth-b-Told's Bayani Domingo in a ten count match-up of mat writing skills, verbal jabs, and positivity galore!
Let's see what happens when these two are taken out of their world and are forced to fight under my rules.
Plus, the prizes on the line are hilarious beyond belief. Wait until you see what these two have gotten themselves into!
And once again you will have the power to vote on the winner. Your vote will also have some pretty dire consequences.
THE GREAT POSITIVITY DEBATE II:
THE REVENGE
THE SHIMMY'S ANDY CLARK
VS.
TRUTH-B-TOLD'S BAYANI DOMINGO
TEN ROUNDS
ALL POSITIVITY!!!
FRIDAY, MAY 5TH
VOTING RUNS UNTIL SATURDAY MAY 13TH
RESULTS POSTED IN HIDDEN HIGHLIGHTS
SUNDAY MAY 14TH
BE THERE OR BE… NOT THERE!!!
And the Response
JT: You're putting Bayani in this? Are we sure he'll be on time?
JP: So far he's been pretty good… why?
JT: No reason. Strictly professional curiosity.
JP: What..? He's always gotten his column in on its due date.
JT: Yes, he always got his column into the system on the date that it was due. I cannot argue that.
JP: …Are you hinting at something… or something?
JT: Nope! I'm looking forward to this. Do I actually get to participate with hosting duties?
JP: Well, I mean… it's hard enough to coordinate with thr—
JT: I knew it! I'm being blackballed from the very column I am co-champion of!!!
JP: Alright, alright!!! I'll find… something for you to do. Now, let's get out of here.
Exit, stage left!
JT: I like that you still have no idea what I wrote in the Reader Write-in section.
JP: Scares me to no end!
JT: Serves you right for keeping the Great Positivity Debate II from me!
JP: You should see what else I have planned for that gimmick!
JT: What are you thinking?
JP: Well, here's what I was think..i…ng… Oh, what was that? JT, I'm… I'm sorry.
JT: Sorry?! Sorry what?!
JP: It's… it's… I just gotta go. Later guy!
JT: WAAAAAAAAAAAIIIIIIIIIITTTTTTTTTT!!!!!!!!! GET BACK HERE!!!!!!
Ghost of Chanukah Past: I'm sorry, JP has business to take care of elsewhere.
JT: What the hell…?!?! Ummmm…
Thank you for joining us for the thirty-fifth issue of Hidden Highlights. Be sure to drop us a line and let us know what you think and all the other Hidden Highlights we missed. Plus, we want to hear your Reader Write-ins and Classic Hidden Highlights for all the moments you see this and every week.
We'll catch you again next time in the reader approved most positive article in all of the IWC: Hidden Highlights! Until then!
