Hidden Highlights 02.23.09: Issue #182

Posted by JP Prag on 02.23.2009

The Undertaker prepares to escape from his pod in the Elimination Chamber, Beth Phoenix wears the crown jewels of Italy, Christian gets the lowest spot in the totem pole, Beer Money make sure nobody else comes back under a mask (especially the same person twice), Jeff Hardy stops using Version 1, and more!

Hidden Highlights
By JP Prag

Issue #182

Commentator: Previously, on Hidden Highlights…

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Commentator: The history of the universe of the imagery came to fruition within the first few lines of the commentary section alone.

Jamal: By the way, How is it that Christian is the first person to make fun of Swagger's lisp?! Did none of the Faces notice this before hand, or are were they too goody goody not to bring it up?

Jerry: Ortiz was the first on to make fun of Jack's lisp. Albeit-it wasn't as funny.

Aaron Hubbard: So the Bella Twins are interested in the knowledge of good and evil? Don't they already have that, since they are babyfaces that pull the switcheroo gimmick?

Commentator: Aaron Hubbard was not the only 411mania writer to make an appearance this past week.

Steve Sullivan: If you go back and listen to Striker and Grisham again, they also managed to incorporate the term "Against All Odds", which of course was the last TNA pay-per-view. Pretty quick wit on the commentary!

Stenographer: Yes, JP caught that, too, later in the show during their actual match!

Commentator: Of course, the bigger story was about a certain someone who had not been seen quite some time.

Slick Rick: Was Pepe's appearance in Hidden Highlights a one-shot deal?

RIP Pepe...we hardly knew ye.

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Commentator: And now, 411mania.com proudly presents…





JP: Hello everyone who may or may not be a homeowner today, if only someone with your check would actually get back to you, and welcome back to Hidden Highlights! If you've never been here before, let me tell you what we are doing in these pages.

Hidden Highlights 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. The Miz may hold his opponents hands down to make a pin attempt better. Charles Robinson may let a little tear shed from his eye every time someone mentions Ric Flair. Mike Tenay may tell you about the 17 year history of a visiting wrestler and make them sound huge in one sentence. These are all examples of little things that make the product far better.

Every week this article spotlights up to the Top 15 Hidden Highlights of the week, whether the be from television (RAW, ECW of SciFi, iMPACT, SmackDown!, and a PPV or television special if there is one), the past, small shows, tapes, or the indy scene.

This article may have an author, but it is also dependent upon the readers and true fans of professional wrestling—those who love what they watch and want to tell the world what they have found. The Top 15 are chosen from what I see and what readers write-in. Whatever is the best is what you'll see!

And who am I? Well, 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.

Now let's get on with the Hidden Highlights!


iMPACT – Retro 1 Week

JP: We'll kick it off this week where we always do: the past! I like that place, it's where I'm a Viking!

Governator: From this week's iMPACT. I'm not sure if this was in the US version or not (I'm watching in Australia), but there were video packages for Kurt Angle and some of the other TNA talent. Every single package showed the star beating the crap out of Christian. Nice touch.

JP: Someone also wrote in last week about Christian's video package showing him beating up current TNA talent. Looks like it takes two to tango! Now if only Christian Cage was not still the number one seller on ShopTNA.com (check out the Hamilton Ave Journal where I continue to rip into this subject on a weekly basis).


iMPACT – Retro 1 Week

JP: Sticking with iMPACT, we can move on to something seen not just in Australia, but all over the world!

The DaGreene: During the Motor City Machine Guns vs. Lethal Consequences match I noticed while Creed was on the outside of the ring resting, he was smart enough to not rest on his hurt arm. Very simple yet outstanding way to keep selling an injury from last week.

JP: Ah! A split infinitive! My high school English teacher would have another case of the shingles if he read that!

Stenographer: Actually, several years ago split infinitives became allowable in the English language.

JP: That makes me very sad. I'm not saying we should be protectionist like the French, but is nothing sacred?

Stenographer: Allz I knowz is I be getting straight A's, and that's ain't be not bad.


SmackDown – Retro 1 Week

JP: Ok, we'll get past English talk and move on to SmackDown Retro talk!

The DaGreene: During the MVP vs. Chavo match, a MVP chant starts. Taz let's us know he didn't think it would be something we would hear a month ago. But the Hidden Highlight came when JR said something to the affect of. "Are they chanting for MVP or against Chavo?" Nice one by JR to remind MVP isn't exact a full on face.

JP: I've noticed that MVP hasn't exactly been winning his matches in a very face like manner either. Take this week for example: he only won because Chavo turned on his partner. I like when heels don't change when they become faces and really stay the same character. I'm not sure how MVP is a face, but he is and it works for me!


WWE No Way Out

JP: Moving ahead to this week, we had a PPV to cover. Thankfully, you covered it all for me!

Kazh: I first wanna say that you have poisoned me forever, as I have noticed HH's not only in every wrestling show I watch now, but every show I see! I have to stop myself from writing them down and sending them to you every time there's a reference to past continuity in an episode of How I Met Your Mother...

JP: I know exactly how you feel! My mind is constantly looking, though that is not a show I am looking in.

Kazh: I was at NWO live this past Sunday, and I noticed something I dunno if anyone else has mentioned about live events that I thought was cool. When they wanted to emphasize some part of a wrestler's entrance, the production team (who is, as usual, awesome), turn up the volume of the entrance music! For example, when HHH did his water spit on the ropes, that one part of his song he always does it during got significantly louder. Whether this was just for emphasis for the live crowd, or so the music would carry better on TV (but I always assumed there was a separate audio feed for music and such so it wasn't just being picked up by the cameras, but who knows), it's a nice touch! They did something similar for Edge when he made his last pose with the title belt at the end of the nite!

JP: The production crews are amazing at what they do, especially because they do contradictory things at the same time for the live audience and the people at home. I cannot emphasize enough times how much props these people deserve.


WWE No Way Out

JP: Of course, No Way Out is famous for its Elimination Chamber matches, so we should get something from one of them.

The DaGreene: Big Show, Hardy, and Kozlov were in the chamber and it was time for the next man to enter. Would it be Triple H or The Undertaker? The Hidden Highlight: Taker was poised and ready to push the door open as fast as possible if it him that's next.

JP: That's one of those great "in the moment" deals where the wrestlers act like they don't know what's coming next and have to just go with what is happening. I love when they do things like that and will always point out that type of greatness.


WWE No Way Out

JP: Sticking with the PPV, every once in a while you have to catch a little bit of the carney.

Jeremy from Palmdale: At No Way Out, during the No Holds Barred Match. Ted DiBiase trapped Shane in a full nelson so Randy Orton could swing a chair at McMahon, but Shane reversed it and DiBiase ended up getting hit in the back, however just before Randy swung, I noticed Shane tussle DiBiase's hair, so Ted would know when to turn around and get some steel in the back.

JP: That was nice of him! Or maybe he really did just want to play with DiBiase's hair? Who knows what goes through that guy's mind!


RAW

JP: Finally we move on to RAW with what is undoubtedly the Hidden Highlight of the Week!

ZeroZY: One HH on RAW this week was after the Women's Title match. I noticed that Beth Phoenix's crown was coloured like the Italian flag. Guess she's more committed to "Glamerella" than I thought...

BenPhoenix: On RAW last night, Beth's headband was the colours of the Italian flag!

Nineteen Years: I don't know if you have this one yet, but on the Feb 16/09 RAW, you can see Beth Phoenix's loyalty to Santino in the colours of her tiara headband thingy - if you look, they're red white and green, the colours of Italy.

Corey Van Slyke: At the end of the Melina-Phoenix match, they zoomed in on Beth's face, and what do I see on Beth's headgear... jewels that make up the Italian flag... Nice lil touch for Beth's wardrobe to have some of Santino with her.

Jay 2K Winger: I did notice something about Beth Phoenix's tiara. It had sequins or beads or something on the front, in green, white, and red. I puzzled over it for a moment before I realized that it was the Italian flag! Just goes to show that although the Glamazon gets annoyed with Santino at times (especially with regards to Rosa), she still loves him enough to put his country's flag on her ring attire!

Adam McCormick: Usually when Glamarella comes out, Beth poses with the belt (or pretends to have a belt) and Santino kisses/bites her arms and she shrugs him off. Last night, Rosa the intern rubbed her arm with a towel and Beth gave the same reaction she usually gives Santino.

Later in the match, if you look closely, you'll see that Beth's "crown" is the colors of the Italian flag, apparently a tribute to her on-screen relationship with Santino.

Kazh: When Glamarella entered, I noticed that Beth's headband was green-white-red, the same colours as the Italian flag, and the same colours as Santino's outfit! I dunno if anyone's noticed before, but it was cool! If only Rosa Mendez could get with the program, colour-wise! Or you could argue that it's a way to point out that Santino and Beth are the actual couple, so THEY have to be more coordinated when they're out together!

JP: I have nothing to add. That was just awesome. Kudos to all of you!


RAW

JP: This one isn't really RAW, but just where it happened to get picked up.

Steve: I tried to think about people that have pyro or other effects synchronized with parts of their songs and could not think of any really, as most are usually right off the bat to kick off the theme music. HHH during some stretch I think would time up his water spray during a stretch of his song, but one thing I noticed before, but definitely caught last night on Raw was Orton's entrance. If you watch it, he doesn't have the same lighting throughout the whole song. When the music gets harder, the lights change color and flash or something (hard to explain), but the lights definitely keep the beat of the music.

JP: This goes along with what we covered above from No Way Out. Production crews are just amazing at what they do and we should be covering them move often.


RAW

JP: And since we are going to cover them move often, here's something else the did:

Adamn McCormick: In the recap of No Way Out, there was a clip of JR saying something along the lines of "defending your Title, Defending your future, cementing your legacy". For the "title", they showed Edge, for the "future" they ran a clip of Shawn Michaels, and they said legacy, they showed a graphic of Randy Orton. Nice way to hammer in the name legacy.

JP: I get the first one and the last one, but I wonder why Shawn Michaels is the future? That dude has quite a few years behind him!


RAW

JP: Since you don't have an answer for me just yes, why not throw in one more?

Adam McCormick: During the 6-man tag match, when Punk and Cryme Tyme cleared house, the heels were on the outside. Dibiase tended to Rhodes, while Layla checked up on Regal. Neither checked up on the other's associate. I suppose it shows that even though they were partners, they only cared about their own.

JP: That was an odd team to begin with since to me Regal represents one of the last of a generation of people to really come up the ranks through the old system. He's more akin to their father's and the Jeff Jarretts of the world than to the Legacy!


RAW

JP: Finishing us for RAW, we do have something to see from "The Future" Shawn Michaels.

neverAcquiesce: Jerry Lawler said on Raw last night that, after freeing himself from JBL, Shawn Michaels looked like he had "found his smile." That is all sorts of win.

JP: Man, that took long enough to get that smile back. It's been more than ten years already! Geez.


ECW

JP: Over in the land of extreme, we got what I like to call…

THE CONSPIRACY THEORY OF THE WEEK!!!!

CyberFreak: When Striker or Grisham (can't quite remember) were commentating on the main event tag match between Swagger/Henry and Christian/Finlay, they said something about four of the biggest stars on ECW were in the match. The HH is about the order he listed them: Swagger (the current ECW Champ), Henry (one of the most recent former ECW Champs), Finlay (a WWE midcarder who hadn't really had much 'success' in the 'E) and Christian (a new guy fresh off TNA's main events). Just thought it was important the order they were listed.

JP: So you are saying they were put together in pecking order? I'm not quite sure I agree with that, but it was an interesting read on the situation to say the least.


iMPACT

JP: Would you like to date ODB? I know Jeremy from Palmdale would. He was watching her segment very closely.

Jeremy from Palmdale: On Impact, there was a segment encouraging people to attempt to win a date with ODB, along with videos of animals fornicating, there were also videos of people who submitted to win a date with ODB, among these was a mulleted man who was chugging a beer, the hidden highlight was that this mulleted man is Canadian Indy Wrestler/Contracted but Unassigned TNA wrestler, Cody Deaner.

JP: This actually got covered in the news section, but I liked to put it here anyway. What was especially good about this one is that he was not the focus, just a second and half clip. So if he does "win", it will be more of a surprise. And who knows, maybe he did submit a clip for real to remind TNA that he's still under contract?!


iMPACT

JP: Sticking with iMPACT, we'll stick with Jeremy from Palmdale!

Jeremy from Palmdale: During the announcement of the Beer Money "Off The Wagon" Challenge, Cowboy James Storm said that those who failed to obtain the titles from would be fired and would leave TNA forever and will not be coming back under a mask, the HH here is that several times people who were "fired" by TNA or "quit" TNA have come back under a mask, these people include Christopher Daniels (who came back as Curry Man), Kazarian (who came back as Suicide) and once again Christopher Daniels (who was fired as Curry Man and came back as Suicide).

JP: I got a good chuckle out of that one because so many guy have done it, but Christopher Daniels has done it twice! Also, props to Mike Tenay for later in the night when he pointed out that it was a fellow Team Canada member (Robert Roode) who cost Petey Williams his job. Now were those Team Canada jackets just sitting around in the back or what?


SmackDown

JP: Finishing us off this week is the final nail in the coffin for something originally pointed out here in Hidden Highlights.

Jesus De La Cruz: The first one is about Jeff Hardy. I haven't seen anyone discuss this yet, but he stopped using the Matt Hardy "Version 1" hand signal. He used to use his double-finger gun salute on one hand and Matt's version one signal on the other.

JP: And it comes full circle! When Jeff first started doing that it was pointed out in these pages so it is only fitting that when he finished that it be pointed out as well. And nice work by Jeff to drop his brother's symbol. That is a bit of subtlety and smart thinking that I rarely think him capable of. Was that mean? Ah well, it was still good work and I'll be glad to point out anything good he does again.

Thanks everyone for making this a very relaxing issue of Hidden Highlights for me. In case you didn't notice, you the readers owned this issue. I needed to gain back a few hours and this certainly helped. Let's see if we can do it again!


Well everyone, that wraps up this week's show. Thank you for reading the 182nd ISSUE of Hidden Highlights!

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. The best of the best will be featured among the top 15 next week.

In the meantime, be sure to catch my very own Thursday morning news report The Hamilton Ave Journal: the only wrestling news report focused on the business of wrestling.

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