Hidden Highlights 06.02.08: Issue #144

Posted by JP Prag on 06.02.2008

Roddy Piper watches Jimmy Kimmel’s cousin Sal, Bam Neely lets Chavo Guerrero know where to go, Sonjay Dutt throws his flower-power down, Jamie Noble still thinks Vickie Guerrero is his friend, and more!

Hidden Highlights
By JP Prag

Issue #144

Hello everyone who is getting to add state #39 (Tennessee) to your list this week, and welcome back to Hidden Highlights!!



Hidden Highlights, they are about the little things that make the product great. They are about showing the positive motions all those involved in wrestling do to make a better show. William Regal may bend his opponent's hand backwards just a little bit harder to dish out the pain. Christian Cage may reference a piece of obscure history. Tazz may bring realism to the product by describing an abdominal stretch in detail. The camera operator may take a low shot looking up at the Great Khali to make him look like a true monster. These are all examples of what Hidden Highlights is about.

Every week this article spotlights Hidden Highlights from the biggest shows on television (RAW, ECW of SciFi, iMPACT, SmackDown!, and a PPV or television special if there is one), delves into the past to find the ones never recorded before, and goes beyond to small shows, live events, tapes, and the indy scene to see what no one else sees. This article may have an author, but it is just as much written by the readers and true fans of professional wrestling—those who love what they watch and want to tell the world what they have found.

I am JP Prag, and I bring you Hidden Highlights with one goal in mind: to appreciate all those little things that make a huge difference.

JP: For anyone who is wondering, I have no problem saying the words Chris Benoit. Christ Benoit, Chris Benoit, Chris Benoit! I will safely say that my all-time favorite match that I saw live was Chris Benoit vs. Kurt Angle at Royal Rumble 2003. I will admit, once again, that I was one of the people who stood and clapped afterwards. I own the "Hard Knocks" DVD and will watch it again when I have time. Chris Benoit is a huge part of my wrestling fandom history and I'm not erasing him from it. But we all know who is! So if, after all this time, you don't get the irony of using "He Who Shall Not Be Named" (which I did not come up with, though I'm not sure who I stole it from), then I cannot help you. But just to drive home the point: CHRIS BENOIT!

Whew, now that I've got that off my chest, I've got a guest co-host to introduce. He reviews The Office (a show I cannot relate to since my "office" is in my house and I work at different client sites with rotating teams) for the Movies/TV Zone and also does TNA PPV Previews, here is Seth Roy! Seth?

Seth: It's great to be here to give my Hidden Highlights for the best show on Thursday nights: The Office! Wait a second… There WERE no hidden highlights because the season finale already aired. Damn it. I guess I'm stuck watching TNA for the summer (Good thing, eh? Since I write the PPV previews.)

JP: That would be good. Now if you watch the PPVs, you could do the PPV Hidden Highlights. In the meanwhile, let's get on with the Hidden Highlights we do have!



Monday, May 26, 2008 by JP

JP: The final push to One Night Stand started on RAW this week. Wow, it feels like just last week that we started the push to One Night Stand. My, how time does fly. Speaking of One Night Stand, does anyone else remember the concept of WCW Uncensored? That's right, in 1995 WCW came up with the idea of a PPV where everything goes. Then, when that wasn't enough anymore, they started adding gimmicks on top of the no rules aspect. Ah well, I can continue to cherish my WCW memories for years to come.

(3) Hey, I can do that too!:

This one is more of a personal Hidden Highlight, but I was so excited I just had to bring it up. Early in the evening, Melina took on Jillian Hall (and kudos to Hall for still playing up being friends with Melina… no face turn suddenly makes you not friends!). At the end of the match, Melina locked in a submission move that consisted of a crossover leg lock with a reverse bridge clutch (think of an upside down STF without the abdominal stretch). Why is that a big deal? Because it is the EXACT same submission move I used to use in my backyard wrestling days. Oh, you didn't know I used to be a backyard wrestler? Two-time tag team champion and one-time Universal champion, thank you very much! Anyway, I didn't use the submission move to often (I preferred using a top rope guillotine leg drop), but it was a move I did employ 10 years ago and was proud of myself for being able to pull off. I know, you don't care, but it meant a lot to me!

(2) Pumping air:

Later in the night, we got a special segment featuring Rowdy Roddy Piper training Jimmy Kimmel's cousin Sal (Celtics vs. Lakers, Deb DiBiase and Roddy Piper on my TV… what year is it?). At the end of their training session, Kimmel told Sal how proud of him he was and held out his fist to knuckle down. Cousin Sal then missed the knuckle down and hit air because he was so exhausted (a nice touch unto itself), but it was Piper who made the segment when he simply said, "You missed it…". Great awareness by Piper to catch that little moment and point it, totally selling the whole segment.

(1) Remember the pain:

The middle of the night match saw John Cena team up with Jeff Hardy to take on JBL and Umaga. As Jeff Hardy was making his way into the ring, a video clip was being played showing Umaga delivering a uranagi to Hardy on the outside. When the cameras came back live, Jeff Hardy was clutching his back in pain, remembering the beating! He then decided to stretch it out to try to relax the pain away. Those were both excellent touched by Jeff Hardy and showed he can remember his injuries from time to time.

Seth: Hey, I used to do some backyard wrestling, too. Until my friend sat on my back while locking in the sharpshooter. And, hey, I have another hidden highlight for Raw: Now, I didn't tape it, so I don't know exactly when it happened, but the camera was looking in the crowd and focused on a sign that said something like "Obama sucks." (That's not an exact quote…) Right after that sign showed, Vince's music hit with "No Chance In Hell." Way to endorse McCain Vinnie!



Tuesday, May 27, 2008 by JP

JP: It was a trip down memory lane as clips were shown from all five competitors in the Singapore Cane #1 Contenders match at One Night Stand. Does anyone have the actual footage of Tommy Dreamer defeating Taz for the ECW Championship? I've seen the hug after the match; I've seen Justin Credible defeat Tommy Dreamer; but I have never seen Tommy Dreamer defeat Taz!

(3) S.O….. PYRO!:

Despite being on the losing end of his match last week, it looks like Kofi Kingston's stock is rising in the WWE. When he came for his entrance during the first hand clap, each clap was accompanied by some huge fireworks! It looks like there is some strong backstage push behind Kofi Kingston there.

(2) Look over there:

As part of the matches highlighting the former ECW Champions, Chavo Guerrero took on CM Punk in their 132493240928095480423 encounter. Deep into the match, Chavo had been knocked to the outside and CM Punk was setting up for a flying dropkick to the ring apron. As he went running backwards, Bam Neely lowered the ropes on the outside and sent CM Punk tumbling on the opposite side of the ring. When Chavo Guerrero recovered and made it back into the ring, he was confused as to the location of his opponent. If you looked off into the corner, you could see Bam Neely standing his hand crossed and gently nodding his head in the direction of Punk. Nice work by Chavo to not know where Punk was and even nicer stuff by Bam to subtly let his boss know.

(1) Re-writing history again:

As mentioned earlier, several video clips were shown where the former champions won their ECW titles. The last one shown was of John Morrison defeating CM Punk at Vengeance Night of Champions 2007. Now, we all know that Morrison was a replacement for CHRIS BENOIT since he was MIA at the time and we had no idea what happened. Because of that, it is no surprise that the audio commentary was dubbed over to remove references to Benoit (and the fans were dubbed over to not hear them chanting "We want Benoit"). But what is surprising is that they dubbed over the match and called John Morrison "John Morrison"! You see, at that time he was still Johnny Nitro and had just recently been drafted to ECW. It would not be until after he won the title that he would rename himself "John Morrison". Whoops, guess we had a little continuity slip there!

Seth: I missed ECW this week. I forget why, exactly, but I'm not sad about it



Thursday, May 29, 2008 by Seth Roy

Seth: Decent show this week, with the King of the Mountain match getting finalized, an appearance by Salinas' upper body and more of AJ Styles getting killed by Kurt Angle and company. Speaking of that, where were the reinforcements at the end of the show when AJ and Christian were getting stomped?

(3) Pinky and the King:

We've seen Booker T beginning to rehash his King Booker gimmick for the past few weeks, and he's taken it a step further this week. As he came out at the beginning of the show, Bookah lifted his left pinky as if he were still the king. Maybe next week he'll be wearing a crown?

(2) Mr. Not-so-generous anymore, isn't so generous any more:

Jay Lethal and So Cal Val's relationship has been well documented, and has been followed from the beginning. Also all along the way, the guru Sonjay Dutt has taken a liking to Val, unbeknownst to Jay Lethal. We've seen Sonjay slowly get angrier and angrier, and give dirty little looks to Jay at every step. Then, there was that series of ridiculous videos where Sonjay got in Jay and Val's way. Well, now that Jay and Val are getting married, Sonjay really isn't in a good mood. He used to be all about peace, and collecting money for the good of humanity and all of that. Well, during his entrance this week, Sonjay just threw out confetti with a dirty look on his face…

(1) What? No more voodoo?:

I know how much JP likes to butter up the production crews, so I figure I'll throw some love their way, too. Roxxi Laveaux's transition from voodoo queen manager of VKM (Who went where?) to bald-headed vixen is near its completion, and her video shows that transition, with the "Laveaux" being removed, and footage of her being bald and successful being plugged in.

Another hidden highlight. (I know, I know…But it has to do with this match). When Roxxi is getting killed at the end and Gail Kim and ODB walk about, ODB is still eating! It's like she was having a snack, like a normal person might during the show, and when she heard about Roxxi getting killed, she grabbed her donut and ran! She also threw the donut at the beautiful people, because they, obviously, don't like donuts.

JP: I just like how show got fed up waiting for slow Gail Kim and just stole her crutch. Gail had this great "WTF" look on her face and bobbled around generally shocked that she was missing her crutch!



Friday, May 30, 2008 by Seth Roy

Seth: This week on Smackdown, we were treated to a Batista/Big Show tag team match, more of Vickie's beautiful chin, an Elijah Burke sighting and maybe the last Undertaker appearance on Smackdown.

(Bonus) Guitar Hero, Legends of Rock:

I don't know if I'm allowed to add a random bonus Hidden Highlight or not, but I'm throwing the rulebook out! Going back to this week's Impact, we all know that the Rock n Rave Infection have been rocking the Guitar Hero guitars for a while. This week, Lance Hoyt was wearing a swank top hat that made him look a bit like Slash. Well, during Smackdown, Chuck Palumbo made a much better look-alike of Slash, as pointed out by Mick Foley. Maybe Lance Hoyt and Palumbo, when he's eventually released by WWE and signed by TNA, can have a hat vs. hat match.

(3) A little foreshadowing by the Animal:

During the opening segment, Vickie told Batista he would fight in a tag team match with the partner of his choosing against Hawkins and Ryder. Now, it's entirely possible that this wasn't on purpose, but when the camera switched back to Batista, he was looking up, as if at someone taller than him. A giant, perhaps? Then, his partner was the Big Show later on in the show. If Hawkins and Ryder would've been paying attention earlier, maybe they wouldn't have been surprised by Show.

(2) Finally, Jamie Noble has come BACK to Smackdown!:

I was very happy to see the Noble One back on TV this week, as it's been too long. (Since the Big Show attack?) Now, I'm not entirely sure what his beef with MVP is, but that's okay. After he and MVP get in their argument, Jamie decides to call in a favor with his favorite general manager. Keeping up with the continuity, Jamie still thinks Vickie is his friend. (Remember, when she kept booking him in squash matches?) He barged in Vickie's office and demanded his match with MVP, which Vickie granted. He felt the need to make sure Vickie didn't have any tricks up her sleeve. (This, also, was a foreshadowing of the Big Show as Batista's partner…or maybe I'm looking too much into it?)

(1) Commemorating the Dead Man's career:

Throughout the night, clips of Undertaker's debut match, and some other career high points showed, including his win over Batista at WrestleMania 23, to go 15-0. The final career "highlight" for Taker was when Edge cashed in his Money in the Bank briefcase and stole the title from him on Smackdown last year. Of course, this makes sense because Edge's fiancée is the general manager of the show, and would be in charge what clips did, or did not, air. (As was Edge, of course). It's just another great characterization by Edge as he shows his heelish ways.

JP: I haven't watched the show yet, but I always enjoy more heelish antics (and I mean real heel stuff, not just showing you are better and dominating every bit of competition). Of course, I rarely watch video clips because of the DVR, but it's a nice touch anyway.




Hidden Highlights are not just about what was written above, but about what you have seen as well. This article strives to not only spotlight the best Hidden Highlights, but to engage you, the viewers, and make you the best audience in the world.

JP: Well, I guess when RAW does a 2.9, ECW does a 1.0, and TNA does a 0.94, there are very few people to write in. So, *GENERAL WARNING*:: some parts of the following Reader Write-in Hidden Highlights may be edited for grammar, spelling, and English translation…

We'll kick it off with Chris Jacobs who just watched the last TNA PPV (Seth should know about this):

This one is from me re-watching the TNA pay per view. Storm was on the outside of the ring when Sting was getting beat down, and the camera panned over to him when his beer was foaming over, and every good redneck knows to just shove your thumb in the top to stop that. The HH is though that the camera crew showed that he does in fact drink real beer out there. Whether it is N/A beer or not, it is beer, and I didn't catch why it foamed over, but I would like to think that the rednecks that him and Jackie are that she beer tapped him. Anyone that doesn't know what a beer tap is, it is when you are drinkin' with some pranksters and you walk up to someone with a beer bottle and you simply tap the bottom of your bottle on the top of theirs and it makes it fiz all over.

JP: Great, now more people are going to do that! Actually, I did that to someone fairly recently, and no it wasn't JT. Of course, even if I did the dude bought like four cases for the 6 days we were in Florida, so I'm sure he'd just get another. Just like I'd get another Hidden Highlight from Kevin Rutherford:

On the Smackdown on May 23, 2008 during the Finlay v. Palumbo match, when Finlay went for the final pin he made sure to cover Chuck's face from the referee so that the referee didn't see the mist until after the match was awarded to Finlay. Smart by the Irish man.

JP: It's a shame that Finlay is so far up there in years because there is no way they are giving him a run with a title. Even the US Title would be good. Imagine Finlay defending the US Title against all the young guns every week. Think back to Steven Regal's WCW Television Title run. Something like that would be awesome! But not as awesome as Susan Duran:

So on Raw, there were a group of fans holding up a "Terra Ryzing" sign when HHH came out. For those who don't know, HHH broke into WCW with the handle of Terra Ryzing. I can't believe he didn't keep that name when he moved over to the WWE. Must've been the whole infringement thing (*sarcasm alert*).

JP: Amazingly, Triple H's DVDs do not consist of a lot of Terra Ryzing matches! I don't see why not?!

Seth: It's likely because he's done enough terra ryzing of the title scene and young wrestlers in the past five years. Man, I'm funny.

JP: I guess you've picked up plenty of humor from that Office show you love so much. Wrapping us up this week (told you it was short) is Jim McDaniel:

This Hidden Highlight is courtesy of Jim Cornette on this weeks TNA! Impact. Cornette was on his tirade about Awesome Kong beating up a fan. In the middle of it all, he said something to the effect of the fans in the Impact Zone paying their salaries. If I remember right, there is no admission to the Impact Zone! Maybe I was the only one who caught it, but I liked how Jimmy sold it!

JP: Hahaha, I think he was speaking metaphorically, like the fans all over the world generate revenue. If he was speaking literally, then yes, everyone's salary would $0. Well, maybe a few bucks for concessions and t-shirts.

Seth: Hey, if you wear a WWE shirt to a TNA show, they'll give you a free shirt, so it can't be that.


Do you have a Hidden Highlight from this or any week in history that you would like to share? Please e-mail this article at [e-mail] with your thoughts! Send them by Saturday afternoon to be considered! And remember, they can be from any show, live or taped, or any house show, or anything you saw… readers just like to know!



JP: Thanks again for the man who took a day off from the Office to only end up working here. Nice work, Seth!

Seth: Hey, thanks for having me! I'd love to be back again sometime. Until then, check out my Just Another Day at the Office reviews (Including retro episodes during the summer) and my TNA Slammiversary preview next week. This has really been a dream come true, writing Hidden Highlights. Something JP doesn't know: It's the first column I ever read on 411mania! Whoo! Now, where do I pick up my paycheck?

JP: Great, now I feel really old. I'm already inspiring another generation of writers. Have I become a craft veteran? Well, so long as I'm an Undertaker or Booker T type veteran and not a Bobby Eaton type.

Well, to see me flex more of my veteran wings, be sure to catch my very own Saturday morning news report The Hamilton Ave Journal: the only wrestling news report focused on the business of wrestling.

Thank you for reading the 144th ISSUE of Hidden Highlights! Be sure to drop a line with all the other Hidden Highlights not covered this time around and everything you catch in the week to come.

Until then, you have just experienced the most positive article in all of the IWC: Hidden Highlights!