The Ripple Effect 7.6.07: For a Fallen Hero
Posted by Zac Calhoun on 07.06.2007
We took a surprise sabbatical last week, both unplanned and unknown to me for three days. But I'm back now, with my thoughts on the Benoit tragedy. After this week, unless a HUGE news bit comes out, I'm done talking about it.
Last week, for the first time in six months, I missed a column without planning to…or even knowing about it.
I went to work on Friday morning less than half an hour after pushing the "submit" button on the RE, thinking that like every other week it would appear on 411 about noon that day. When it didn't show up for about a day, I checked my archive and indeed saw no column dated the 29th of June. Being no stranger to minor foul-ups in the interface (no offense to anyone), I immediately realized that the RE was incognito.
The real unfortunate part of this is that my thoughts about the Benoit tragedy, which I intended to be the only content of the column, were postponed. I felt much better about the situation after writing those words, and I felt a little empty inside that it didn't go out. Of course, I could've just submitted it again, but I wanted to put it on hold and let one more week's worth of news stories and bizarre developments take place. And they did.
This week, I present version 2.0 of the RE special edition, centered on the Benoit tragedy. The regular features will appear, but the focus is squarely on the three family members whose lives are now over.
For a Fallen Hero
Almost two weeks later, and still none of us really know what to think.
On the afternoon of June 26, my girlfriend called me to say she'd just seen my name on TV. She was watching CNN, and a story on the Benoit tragedy was showing different wrestling Web sites, including 411, on camera. She said she could clearly make out the words "ripple effect" and "Zac Calhoun" on the screen, as well as a few others. Well how about that? My name was on national television…a news network no less. Jesus I wish it was for a different reason.
I learned that Benoit and his family had died just thirty minutes before Raw went on the air on the 25th. I logged onto 411, just like I do most days, and saw a small headline in the news section that read "Chris Benoit and Family Found Dead." All I could do, all I can imagine any of us could do, was stare at the screen with a most profound feeling of shock. The last few years have been no picnic to wrestlers or wrestling fans. Everyone connected with the industry has felt the sobering impact of death at some point, and to lose another beloved superstar is terrible any way you want to look at it. But for it to happen this way is simply beyond belief.
The story I read before Raw simply stated that Chris, Nancy and Daniel had all been found dead and that no further details were available. The only explanations my girlfriend and I could conjure at the time were, 1) they'd been killed by a carbon monoxide leak in their homes, or 2) they were all murdered…I repeat, all murdered. Those ideas have legally been proven false now, and the conclusion that Benoit himself perpetrated this brutal, and apparently very calculated, act is pretty much accepted truth. My heart was broken when I heard the news of their deaths, and it has broken more with each disturbing piece of news that emerges.
When Raw went on the air, I began writing a special edition of the RE celebrating the life and career of one of my favorite two wrestlers of all time. I got a good five hundred words written, saved it, and logged back on to the site. The news posts I saw when 411 loaded, which contained the first batch of details surround the circumstances of their deaths, made my words irrelevant and caused my eyes to almost pop out.
Here's a little Calhoun history lesson: I started watching wrestling on a regular basis in the wee early part of 1998. At the time, the WWF was building to WrestleMania XIV (and with it Stone Cold reaching the top for the first time), and WCW was focusing on the disintegration of the nWo. Both of these were big storylines, but the one that got me the most excited, even at the spry young age of twelve, was this interesting three-way feud for the United States title between Diamond Dallas Page, Raven and the Canadian Crippler himself. I didn't know anything about Benoit – I didn't know anything about any wrestlers back then – but I immediately took a liking to him. He was the only guy who didn't seem to need a big character, a flashy wardrobe or a catch phrase. He was able to get over based SOLELY on his ability to wrestle.
From that point on I loyally followed his career, rooting for him with the kind of underappreciated admiration you would expect from a Grateful Dead fan. I watched him try unsuccessfully to win the US title, watched him go to war with Booker T for eight matches, watched him get the horsemen back together with Dean-o Machin-o, watched him win the WCW title and say "fuck you" to the company all in one day. Every time Benoit gained a victory, I felt victorious as well. And I wasn't alone in thinking that either; he became the ultimate "dark horse" for all wrestling fans, the one guy who could always be a convincing main eventer but was never the obvious choice.
After Benoit's WCW fallout, I was right with him when he jumped to McMahonland. In his WM debut, I watched him pin Chris Jericho for the IC title. The next year I watched him put on a classic with Kurt Angle in one of the better matches on the "best show of all time." When his neck gave out on him at King of the Ring 2001, I chose to have faith that his career wouldn't be over when he got back. He was merely getting started.
He hung around the midcard for a while after his return, but the bookers finally got serious in 2003 and firmly planted him in the main event picture. In a role usually occupied by guys like Austin and the Rock, Benoit got the "guy who gets the odds stacked against him" treatment and won the Royal Rumble match after staying alive for 62 minutes. This of course led to what, until last Tuesday, was pretty much every smark's "favorite moment in wrestling history" at WMXX. I will say this: the image of Eddie and Chris holding up those belts already made me tear up a little. Now I'm not sure I can watch it for a few years.
That's the bitch about this whole thing: for Benoit's entire career no one associated him with anything but goodwill and positivity. Not a single person in or out of WWE could have ever expected anything like this to happen. Since their deaths, however, all this information is coming out about how uncomfortable neighbors were around him and how people who were friends with Nancy and Daniel didn't care very much for Chris. Benoit's drug history has apparently been grossly underestimated as well, to the point where his doctor has now been arrested. Then we learn that because the main peacemaker during their whole marriage, Johnny Grunge, died a few years ago, there was no one to stop Chris. None of us, including people in WWE, knew he was a guy you needed to "stop." Now, all we have are questions:
How long had he been planning it?
Was he originally planning to kill Daniel, or did he decide to after Nancy's death?
What kind of choke hold did he use to kill his son (please God not the crossface)?
What role does every drug floating through his system play?
Is the media going to fry Vince because of this?
Is the Wellness Policy going to change?
Did Nancy really attack Kevin Sullivan with a knife back in the day?
Are wrestlers going to start quitting the business, even established superstars?
And the million dollar one, WHY THE HELL DID HE FUCKING DO THIS?
Unless you've got a Quija board handy, only two of those questions are even possible to answer.
Last week I rewatched the "Hard Knocks" DVD, both for the documentary and the matches. The one thing that came across above everything else was that Benoit was a good person. He never slighted other wrestlers to help his career, he always looked for younger guys to help out, and he put the business before himself at all times. That's the thing about this particular tragedy: it doesn't make any damn sense. Brian Pillman's death in 1997 was tragic, but you can't say no one didn't see it coming. Eddie is a similar case, where the death is sad but not the last thing one would expect. The Benoit tragedy is unfathomable.
At the beginning of ECW Tuesday night, Vince McMahon went on the air for the second time since his own "death" to address the fans about the tragedy. In a moment that made me do whatever the opposite of "marking out" is, Vince apologized for the kind words everyone said about Benoit the night before. He said his words would contain the last mention of Benoit on WWE TV. With those statements, he let the fans know that throwing a compliment Benoit's way is an act for which an apology is necessary. With those statements, Vince officially transformed the Crippler from a Hall of Famer to a cautionary tale. It'll be the last we hear of Benoit on TV for a very long time. I don't blame Vince for it; I would've done the same thing, and it's just crisis management. But it still hurts.
I guess that's inescapable though…everything about this situation hurts.
I wish the best for Chris Benoit's family, especially the other two children. I cannot imagine what something like this must do to a young mind. I wish the best for Benoit's friends in the industry, who are watching their friend's name dragged through the mud and experiencing their own latent fears come to life. I wish the best for everyone involved in the wrestling industry, as hard time are probably coming ahead. I wish the best for fans, who are right now witnessing all the reasons not to support the industry.
And for Nancy and Daniel, be at peace.
If I Could Be Serious For a Minute…
I caught two segments of Raw Monday night, and they both featured Randy Orton. It was clearly my lucky day. The first of these segments featured him beating Jeff Hardy at the seven minute mark to set the pace for the Beat the Clock challenge. After the match, which was satisfying, Orton stood in the aisle and gave Hardy one of the creepier looks I've ever seen a person give. It went well beyond the cocky scowl he usually wears and made me downright uncomfortable. Then my girlfriend, whose opinions are becoming more prominent in the column, gave the best description of Orton I've heard to date. From her perspective (and mine too), Randy brings to mind that asshole frat boy who's never had to work for anything and also might be a date rapist. I think that's what his character represents, and I can't imagine many archetypes less likable. I guess that makes a good heel, huh?
On a related note, it looks like HHH is starting to put the good of the business ahead of himself…at least for a couple months. Apparently he said that going after Orton and beating him upon his return wouldn't be the smartest idea and that Orton should get some high profile wins of his own first, including a title win over Cena. After that, Orton and the H's would feud for a title match at either Survivor Series or WM 24. I do agree with him when he says that Cena doesn't need the title to be over; in fact, it would probably help his standing in the eyes of the fans a great deal. Whether or not Orton should be the guy to take it off Cena, and whether or not HHH beating Orton is something people would pay to see, are different stories though. Regular readers of the column know very well of my disdain for the Good Feud Killer, and I certainly don't want to see him hoisting a world title anytime soon. But the H's say the money is with him and Orton, just like it wasn't in 2004.
Pimpin' Ho's Nationwide
Playing catch up due to last week's snafoo, here's first time contributor Stephen Straka, who chimes in on the Raw tag division, discussed in detail two weeks ago:
Alright, first off we need to make a list of the teams currently on Raw. That would be Cade/Murdoch, Londrick, Cryme Tyme, Highlanders, WGTT and maybe the Hardys. Reason I say maybe is because Matt is in perfect position to get a single's push on SmackDown, the only question is whether he'll get another Tag opportunity on Raw at the same time. Right now it's unlikely and aside from a #1 contenders match between the Hardys and Londrick, expect to see Matt and Jeff gradually fade of the tag scene after a loss at Vengeance. The Highlanders are the face jobber team right now and WGTT might go back to being the heel equivilent, especially when you consider how sloppy Shelton has been as of late. Cryme Tyme looked like they were getting a bit of a push but with the addition of Londrick, they'll probably be dominating WGTT and the Highlanders on Heat for a while. Expect to see Cade/Murdoch feud with Londrick and, assuming London keeps his act together enough before then, a Londrick victory at Summerslam for the titles. After that, 4-5 months is a very long time and anything can happen so I wouldn't be surprised if Cryme Tyme and/or WGTT get a brief run but for now, a Londrick/C&M feud seems obvious.
I keep reading subtle little rumors about Matt's supposed World title push on SD, but I'm withholding all belief in that until I see it. There's no one WWE likes to jerk around the card more than v.1. One week he'll go twenty minutes with Finlay and get the win, and the next he'll be jobbing to Khali. They're never consistent enough with him to really get him over.
If the Raw bookers are smart, a Rednecks vs. Londrick match at SummerSlam should be in store. The contract of styles alone should make for a cool series of matches, and the promo work by Cade & Murdoch would add a touch of style for good measure. They have the tools at their disposal, they just have to care enough to put it together. Thanks for the thoughts.
And from RE regular John Reid, who comments on what I admittedly thought was a good comment/joke on my part from the same week:
Cade & Murdoch vs. Cryme Tyme (DUH!)
That's all that needs to be said if they want to give the Tag Team Titles some recognition! It's the perfect contrast angle and the fans are clamoring to see Cryme Tyme win the belts. I guess the WWE figures that they don't need the belts to be over, but I disagree. They could have some great matches with TWGTT and get valuable experience working with the Hardys. They do need to give Cade & Murdoch the titles for a bit, and then reign all the way until Summerslam when they take on Cryme Tyme where they win the belts. They may need to improve their ringwork, but the pop they'll receive will put the belts back in the spotlight.
When Raw last came to Oklahoma City I saw a dark match between Cryme Tyme (who hadn't had a TV match yet) against a team whose name escapes me at the moment. From their entrance to the end of the match, they were over. They wrestled competently, the crowd was behind them the whole way, and they even had some topical (aka Thuggish) double team moves. And they were unique as hell to boot. I still don't understand why these guys never got a chance to go for the titles.
I definitely got your back on this one; I like me some Cryme Tyme. Thanks again brother!
My Peeps
Be sure to check out the whole kit and kabootle of columns here at 411 Wrestling. These are the guys who made me want to do this, and I know their words ring true to you guys too.
With that we bring another edition of the RE to a close. We'll be back with regularly scheduled programming next week, as I'm now officially done talking about Chris Benoit.
On a final note, be sure to check out the 6.25.07 edition of The Shimmy with Andy Clark. It kind of got lost in the shuffle with all this tragedy mess, but it's top notch material to be sure. If you're a One Tree Hill fan (and if you're a regular reader you know I am), it'll make you happy inside your pants.
