BEARcast - WrestleCast 6/25/2014

BEARcast - WrestleCast 2014-06-25 with Fred "The Oracle" and joined by special guest Dustin

An Oracle, a BEAR and a Doc-ta walk into a bar and talk Money in the Bank!  In this week’s BEARcast - WrestleCast Fred and I cover EVERYTHING from RAW, the lead up to Sunday’s PPV and our MitB predictions.  With a special guest appearance from Dustin.

Please check us out at www.worldofbear.com and on iTunes https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/world-of-bear/id828777439?mt=2 and don't forget to Subscribe!  Also, don't forget to spread the word to friends, family and fans. 

Thanks,
WK
@wkbear on Twitter or email the show at WorldOfBearBC@gmail.com to send in ideas and comments.
Contact Fred on Twitter @FreddyD15
Contact Dustin on Twitter @Peabody3030

WWE Power Rankings, RAW 6/23/3014

Coming at you from Washington DC, and we are just days away from one of the more exciting and consistently good PPV, Money in the Bank.  The good news is that this Sunday we’re almost assured a new WHC in one MitB match and hopefully another memorable “regular” MitB match.  The bad news is trying to understand the story lines leading up to this PPV might just get you committed to a mental hospital or at the very least held on a 51-50.  Not even with HHH sitting next to you explaining everything on RAW, which was essentially what his segment was, would you understand what’s going on.

Check out this week’s BEARcast - WrestleCast podcast where we’ll breakdown everything leading up to Money in the Bank.  Check out www.worldofbear.com or subscribe on iTunes to listen to the show which will be up later this week.  After weeks of complaining that this PPV hasn’t been set up properly, at least we know three of the matches at Money in the Bank.  Two MitB-style matches and a Tag Team Championship match.  The rest only god and the McMahons know. 

Special thanks to my brother-in-law Chris who was at the show and shared all the in-house crowd moments and dark spots not seen on TV.  I felt bad for Chris because he didn’t get to experience the endless bombardment that this was episode #1100.  Look, I get that the WWE takes great pride in producing a new show each week.  I love it too.  Every week I’m comforted with the knowledge that no matter what, we get a new episode of RAW.  But can we make a deal that we only celebrate milestones every 500 shows?  The WWE must realize that if they’re going to pat themselves on the back every 100 shows, then they’re going to be doing this just shy of every two years?  Oh, I’m sorry.  I forgot who I was talking about.  If they felt they could get away with it, we’d be celebrating every 10th episode.  Silly me.  

Let’s not waste anymore time.  There was a lot of good, bad and ugly.  The one thing that stuck out was that this week felt more like a 90’s era RAW than anything we’ve seen in the past few years.  I can’t wait to get Fred’s take on this week’s WrestleCast (found at www.worldofbear.com) because last week he was so frustrated with the show he was threatening to take a hiatus from watching RAW (BTW, between you and me, this would never happen.  On his wall is a picture of his wedding and next to it is a picture of Bret Hart.  He’s not missing RAW, we just have to let him vent!)

Lastly, don’t think I’ve abandoned by quadrennial love and obsession with Soccer.  I’m still in a fragile state from Sunday night’s tie.  As I put it to my soccer loving friend yesterday, one must be a sadist to watch “Football”.  The whole game feels like a 90-minute version of sudden death overtime in Hockey, which only gets worse if your team advances to the final round of 16.  Even with the devastation of a tie (yes a TIE) we now have to go on to face one of, if not the, best teams in the world.  Luckily if they bring the brätwurst and we bring the beer, we could have a 90-minute picnic and both move on to the next round.  What a sport?  This is why I stick to the scripted stuff.  It’s much safer for my emotions.  Side note: I wonder if Costco allow me to return my TV which won’t work due to a remote sized hole in the screen?  I think it came that way…

So with that, let’s get to the rankings as of this week’s RAW on 6/23/2014…

1. Vickie Guerrero (HM) – Vickie is a performer whom I have tremendous respect for.  I always felt like she was thrown into the spotlight, possibly more willingly than originally suspected, to support herself and her family after the death of Eddie Guerrero.  She never had the looks of a Diva or the skills of a Diva or the youth of a WWE Diva.  Those are facts.  But Vickie outlasted almost every Diva in the WWE.  Sure, do I joke that Vickie knows where the dead bodies (secrets) are that the WWE doesn’t want out and they gave her the opportunity to be employed for the past decade?  Yes and I still find it darkly funny.  But Vickie held her own and created a spot for herself.  We constantly see wrestlers (male and female) complain about not getting chances or the WWE burying them or a million reasons why they didn’t succeed.  For every one of them, I give you Vickie Guerrero.  She had the deck stacked against her in almost every way but she succeeded and shined in a very harsh and cold business.  When she comes back (they always do), I can’t wait to hear that, “Excuse ME!!!!” one more time.
   
2. Stephanie McMahon (10) – Of course the night that Stephanie gets an A-minus from the WWE fashion expert, is the same night she ends up in the mud and gunk of a “crap / vomit match”.  This is one of those times where it proves that the McMahon family isn’t just in this business for the money.  Whether it’s Vince getting an enema from Stone Cold, Shane launching himself off 20+ foot high scaffolding or Stephanie tossing around in the mud, how many heads of billion dollar companies would subject themselves to humiliation and / or injury like the McMahons do?  Clearly they enjoy it.  It was obvious that Stephanie was enjoying herself out there which only sells it better and allows the hardcore fan, such as me and my ilk, to give the McMahons a pass on silly stuff like this.  Having said that, a WWE retirement party wouldn’t be complete without the proper amount of real life shots.  I know Eddie has been dead for 8-9 years and Vickie is over the initial heartache from his death but those where some fairly big bullets coming out of Stephanie’s mouth.  You gotta think that Eddie did a spin or two in his grave over some of the comments Stephanie made?  Again, I’d be surprised if Vickie didn’t OK everything Stephanie said.  That being said, I’ve had to hire and fire people before and I only wish those decisions could be made via a one-on-one match for firing and a MitB match for hirings.  I don’t know where OSHA stands on such practices but I want to see more Ladder Matches to see who gets to work the register at McDonald’s.  
   
   
   
   
3. #BadNewsBarrett (7) – Had the “Match of the Night” with Ziggler.  You can’t say Barrett is getting buried because he is the IC champ but doesn’t it feel like he’s getting buried?  He’s not in the WHC MitB match (which Sheamus is in, a fellow mid-card belt holder), he’s not a favorite for winning the traditional MitB match and he’s not really in a feud with anyone.  If you’re a glass half full person, you can say that he’s probably closest to being in a feud with Ziggler and that the last two matches they’ve had were great.  He’s got the right amount of heat as a heel but also enough support from the fans that he’s extremely hot and a good push will put him in that top tier.  Fred and I discussed this last week on the BEARcast - WrestleCast (www.worldofbear.com) where like The Royal Rumble, characters go in without direction because the main even at the PPV is a bit of a mashup but coming out he’s poised to go on a great run which can easily start with some sort of incident at MitB.  
   
4. Dolph Ziggler (2) – Ziggler is back from Hollywood FL (instead of Cleveland).  Hey, if LeBron can switch from OH to FL as home states, why can’t Ziggler.  Chris, my BiL (we’ll have to get him a better nickname), said this was a great match live.  Not shocking.  What was shocking is that Ziggler might finally be getting out of the doghouse.  HHH specifically mentioned that Us fans “think” that the WWE / HHH do not like him.  Also, Lawler seems to finally be okay with joking about the heart attack elbows on a weekly basis.  As a longtime watcher of wrestling, this tells me that if they’re talking about backstage issues on TV, then it’s not a big deal anymore.  You know you’re in trouble when the WWE doesn’t address rumors.  As with Barrett, maybe these two don’t have anything seriously going on now but coming out of MitB I’d love to see them in a massive feud for the IC belt.  I just don’t know how many teeth Ziggler will have left at the end.  I hope that was gum flying out of Ziggler’s mouth when Barrett cracked him!
5. Main Event: Bray / ADR / RKO / Cesaro vs Cena / Sheamus / Reigns (various) – As Face vs Heel matches go, this is a pretty good one.  If this is the top tier of wrestlers (and you throw Bryan in with the Faces) that’s a quality set of 8 competitors.  Hot main event before a PPV, where everyone gets their moves in.  Semi shock that Sheamus got the win.   AAAAAnd then Kane has to come out.  I don’t know why?  Instead of The Demon, Kane’s nickname should be The Lost One.  He’s constantly being thrown into matches for no reason.  Sure, I suppose if you’re going to add Ambrose to the other MitB match, you can add Kane to the WHC match.  What does it matter, he’s not winning.  With Reigns getting the last word, is he in the driver’s seat to be the new champ?  My guess for winner of the WHC match is Reigns or Cesaro.  Book it.
   
   
   
   
6. Seth Rollins (3) – Last week he got his own theme music and this week he’s got new gear.  Since it seems like RAW was a throwback to the 90’s, it was only appropriate to think that Rollins was dress as one of the other guys in Nine Inch Nails.  That or he was an extra from the movie 9mm, a classic Nic Cage vehicle.  Even his feud for the night with RVD was very late 90’s / early 00’s.  Although Rollins said a wrestler’s famous last words, “I got this!”  You have to rank that with “What could go wrong?” or “We’ll have enough gas to make it.” as shit you don’t want to say out loud in a movie, TV show or real life.  These are life lessons people, and I’m just giving them to you for free.  You’re welcome.  
   
7. Rob Van Dam (N/A) – Great shoot.  Best RVD shoot in years.  RVD!  RVD!  RVD!  It only took 2 months for him to get back in shape.  Now that he is, his matches have been solid and he should be exciting to watch in the MitB match.  There’s no chance he’s winning but as I’ve mentioned, all the athletic talent is in this second MitB match.  I hope I’m not getting my hopes too high but RVD, Kofi, Rollins and Ambrose alone would make an awesome Ladder Match.  
   
8. Dean Ambrose (4) – The Wyatt boys weren’t the only ones to get new music, Ambrose got his own new theme at RAW too.  The only problem is that both Ambrose and Rollins’ themes sound very generic and so similar to The Shield music.  I guess Reigns got The Shield music in the divorce.  I was shocked when HHH failed to mention Ambrose as part of the second MitB match.  But I forgot, this is wrestling and if you want your 7-man match to be an 8-man match, just snap your fingers and it will become reality.  This isn’t a real sporting organizetion like FIFA where the members can be bribed and soccer matches can be “fixed” for gamblers.  All this talk of Ambrose being the “wild card” and hubris is always punished, has me thinking that Ambrose will somehow take the victory from Rollins.  Ambrose is my favorite to win the traditional MitB match.  
   
9. The Usos (9) – No tag team reminds me of a generic 90’s wrestling duo quite like The Usos.  Their characters are so flat and boring, thank god they are great wrestlers.  Rowan and Harper are terrific opponents for The Usos, much better than Ryb-Axel.  Heroes are only as good as their Villains (i.e. Batman is better than Superman) and Rowan and Harper have already made the Usos more dynamic in just the few weeks that they’ve faced off.  Based off the their last few matches, I’d have given them a chance to have the match of the night at any other PPV than MitB.  I still expect them to have a tremendous match at the PPV.
10. Harper and Rowan aka The Wyatt Family (6) – Get used to seeing these two holding those championship belts because I predict they’ll be wearing them officially by next Monday night.  With their weird moonshine version of “He’s got the whole world in his hands” the Wyatt’s are taking over.  Some people, aka Fred “The Oracle”, speculate that Bray is a favorite to win the WHC match and we could very easily see the entire Wyatt family sporting gold.  
    
11. Goldust and Stardust (1) – Add this to my 90’s retro night theory.  It’s too bad they didn’t get to wrestle but David Bowie-esque version of When You Wish Upon A Star, that’s all I need.  Again, no mention of this gift-from-the-wrestling-gods duo’s role at MitB but let’s assume they’re fighting Ryb-Axel or possibly interfere with the Tag Championship match.  It doesn’t matter.  I love it.  Now all we need is Dusty to dawn a black suit and be EclipseDust.  I’ll reiterate from last week, it’s just fucking fun!  Give me more.
    
    
    
    
12. Bo Dallas (N/A) – Oh, how I want to know how he got that shiner?  Was it a mistake during a match or does someone not know how to listen and “ran into a door” or “slipped down the stairs” like my girlfriend keeps doing?  Maybe it’s a sign of solidarity with real life Captain America - Clint Dempsey?  Regardless, he’s 9-and-BO!  The streak continues.  Bo Dallas is hitting on all cylinders.  I know mark fans seem to love the character but I wonder if the average / younger fan gets the gimmick.  I hope he’s able to carry this a bit longer.  The problem is that history has shown these types of ironically positive characters can’t last past an IC or US championship run, except for Kurt Angle.  Can Bo Dallas be the next Kurt Angle?  That’s a lot to ask.  Also, is it too much to ask if he’s going to have a match at the PPV?  
    
13. D-Abe-ien Sandow Lincoln (15) – Finally, some quality to this show!  He's pulling the city to city heel whistle-stop tour that 3MB should have done before they became 1MB last week.  I know it can’t last forever but like Stardust and Goldust, Sandow is fun AND he can wrestle when need be.  I’m not ready to demand a Sandow push like I am for Ziggler but I wouldn’t be against it.
    
14. HHH (10) – The Money in the Bank PPV has been so poorly promoted that HHH literally had to come out and clearly explain that there was indeed TWO MitB matches; one for the WHC and the other for the traditional MitB case.  Because everything has been throw together, there was no better way to announce the contestants than to just rattle off their names.  And who is in the traditional MitB match?  Well… just about everyone else on the second tier.  Has the run-up to MitB been a mess, yes.  Will it matter if the show is good, no.  The promotion of this PPV has been horrible but if we get a solid WHC match crowning a new champ and an exciting traditional MitB match (which with the talent that is in the match should be easy) no one is going to remember what a clusterfuck the last month of the WWE story telling has been. 
    
    
    
    
15. Rusev and Lana (16) – DC road trip for the Kremlin’s favorite couple.  I loved the background folk, especially the black guy with the beer-belly, wandering around during their film-shoot in front of Congress.  The production could not have consisted of more than just Rusev, Lana, a cameraman and maybe a writer / producer.  Imagine tourists walking by listening to these two rip America in what would look like a homemade terrorist movie shoot.  I can’t help but think, as soon as they were done, they had to quickly drop the fake accents and explain that they’re with the WWE and this is all just a joke. 
    
16. Big E (N/A) – Big E needs a rematch against Rusev.  They need to feud.  Their match was surprisingly one of the better matches from the last PPV but then there was no followup.  Besides, we need someone to come out as America’s savior.  I don’t know if he needed to go all Reverend Brown from Coming to America on us but whatever.  As long as we get the Rusev vs Big E match, I’m happy.  By the way, another assumption because god forbid they let us know if this match is on the MitB card?  
    
17. Kofi Kingston (N/A) – Who cares.  I can’t wait to see what Kofi pulls off at MitB.  Too bad he’s not winning it.
18. Swagger w/ Zeb (N/A) – Who cares, part 2.  
19. Titus O’Neil (N/A) – I’m not surprised that a semi-talented wrestler is jobbing to all the newbies but I’m a bit shocked that it’s Titus doing the jobbin’.  First to Adam Rose and now to Bo Dallas.  For sure it was going to be yet another punishment for Ziggler to have to suffer through but Titus is different.  He was the one that should be getting the push.  Does this mean the WWE thinks highly enough of Titus to have him sell his looses to the new arrivals?  Will we finally get to see the Titus vs Darren “Every night off” Young feud that we should have had when the Primetime Players broke up?
20. Alicia Fox vs Naomi (N/A) – I’ve got to agree with Fred about the Funkadactyls still being a thing when Brotus Clay has now been fired.  It’s a bit odd and unnecessary other than to play their music.  Without the Funkasaurus, the bit should go extinct (see what I did there).  I was excited to get Alicia Fox vs the more talented of the ‘Dactyls but it was too bad that we were distracted by the awful commentary bit.  They didn’t even pay it off by having the ‘Dactyls fight at the end.  I suppose they’re saving that breakup for the PPV.  I don’t know if their breakup will be as heavy as The Shield’s recent split but I’m sure it will be close.  No?  No one is going to care?  

Honorable Mentions

Daniel Bryan – They couldn’t find him to bring the belts to the WWE but they’re able to bring him to the pre-show of the PPV?  At this point I’d rather just let him heal and make a surprise out of his return than to drag him and us along with whatever nonsense he’ll be performing during the pre-show.  The WWE’s chance to do his story correctly has passed and we’ve moved on.  Let him return with some flare and dignity.  

Paige and Cameron – This had to be the worse segment of the night.  What should have been solid match between Alicia Fox vs Naomi, somehow got turned into the Cameron show which no one wants to watch.  Cameron better watch what she wishes for.  She won’t like the ending but it will be good “reality” TV to see Cameron being “let go” on Total Divas next season.   

Side Note(s)

It was funny when Barrett took a shot at Washington’s racist named football team (the Redskins) and my brother-in-law texted me that it sent the crowd wild but was a low hanging fruit.  I had to laugh.  Not because it’s beneath the WWE to hit a city below the belt for some heel heat but the fact that the announcers had to do a lot of explaining to the home audience to frame what Barrett was talking about.  I’m just surprised that Vince didn’t take it further and say something like, “The XFL never had a team called the Blackskins!”  They may forgive but Vincent K McMahon and family never forget.  I love seeing the WWE take shots at the NFL even if no one under 20 or into other sports will remember and / or know the reason why.  A little history lesson kids; for one week 2001 the XFL had the NFL shaking in it’s boots.  Obviously the XFL didn’t take off and only had a short run but the effects and some of the innovations can still be seen in the NFL today.  We’ll have to do a retrospect on the XFL one day…

Until next time…

BEARcast - WrestleCast 6/11/2014

BEARcast - WrestleCast 2014-06-18 with Fred "The Oracle"

Fred went off on the WWE’s creative staff on this week’s BEARcast - WrestleCast.  Not even the power of Stardust was strong enough to distract us from complaining about the total confusion regarding the lead up to the Money in the Bank PPV.

Please check us out at www.worldofbear.com and on iTunes https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/world-of-bear/id828777439?mt=2 and don't forget to Subscribe!  Also, don't forget to spread the word to friends, family and fans. 

Thanks,
WK
@wkbear on Twitter or email the show at WorldOfBearBC@gmail.com to send in ideas and comments.
Contact Fred on Twitter @FreddyD15

WWE Power Rankings, RAW 6/16/2014

Coming at you from Cleveland (hello!), and with everything going on within the world of sport, I almost forgot that Kevin Hart was the special guest on Monday’s RAW.  Now, whether this makes for a comedy centric RAW or the usual special guest segment or two, we’ll have to see.  As much as I think Hart can bring the funny, the WWE can definitely become star-struck when they get a guest from Hollywood who especially likes to ham it up and doesn’t mind getting involved.  My biggest issue with Kevin Hart is that when he is out promoting, there isn’t a show he won’t do.  He does EVERYTHING which tends to burn me out.  This could be a perfect storm for a clusterfuck of a show centered around Kevin Hart.

Not only will RAW battle the temptations of Kevin Hart but they’re also in Cleveland.  For some reason, Cleve-onians (?) are weird and obsessive.  This can lead to things like, The Miz’s family being in front row and The Miz getting his ass destroyed which has nothing to do with current story lines.  Ziggler, who magically goes from being from “Hollywood, Florida” to his actual birthplace of Cleveland, starts firing off super enthusiastic tweets from his hometown fans all day.  I think it’s an Ohio thing and specifically a Cleveland thing.  Let’s face it, if you’re unlucky enough to be from Cleveland, you know pain and misery.  It must be a sweet distraction from a horrible Cleveland existence when the WWE is in town.  

Before we go on, let’s give it up to a true American Outlaw who represented the USA on Monday with ultimate badass-ery.  Mr. Clint Dempsey, seen here prior to our first soccer match (or football as the rest of the world calls it) of the World Cup, in which he scored a goal in 33rd second (first 33 seconds!) and played through a broken nose.  A game in which we exorcised the Kane-like demons of losing to Ghana in the last two World Cups with a great 2-1 victory!  USA, USA, USA!!!  

Where were we?  Oh yes, Cleveland… it’s a dump.  But like Mr. Dempsey, we will fight on.  The WWE is coming off two solid weeks of RAW in which Evolution, Rollins, The Shield, The Wyatt Family, Cena, the mid-carders and even the newbies (like Bo Dallas) are providing some quality entertainment.  Also, Money in the Bank is right around the corner and even though the WHC is still in flux due to Daniel Bryan’s medial condition, MitB is usually an exciting PPV.  This is why I don’t want the show to be bogged down with too many Kevin Hart antics.  I have hopes of Hart coming out during an Alicia Fox match, channeling Jules from Pulp Fiction and giving her the “Bitch, be cool” routine.  Fingers crossed. 

So with that, let’s get to the rankings as of this week’s RAW on 6/16/2014…

The show starts with the entire locker room to hear a “critical” announcement.  The announcement, a Battle Royal for a slot in the MitB match (sans Ambrose, Reigns and Cena, which led me to believe they would be involved at some point in the proceedings).

1. Goldust and ??? (16) – “Super Galactic” - Cody is no more, there is only Stardust.  You can hear the attorney’s clocks start ticking away as KISS is filing the copyright infringement papers.  We watch wrestling to be entertained.  Doing these recaps and power rankings can leave you jaded.  Sometimes you have to take a step back and remember none of these things we watch or activities we do have any real meaning.  They’re all for our entertainment.  Nothing put a smile on my face like seeing Cody come out in the full Stardust experience.  Not only was it a costume change but a persona change.  I know there’s going to be a group that doesn’t get it and will probably hate this new gimmick but I love it.  Maybe I’ll grow tired of it in a week, month, year or never but as of today, I LOVE IT.  It’s far better than the Brother vs Brother match we thought the WWE was headed toward.  Take all this love with a grain of salt, poor writing will destroy these two characters.  Having said that, we know both can wrestle so if they want to take a chance and have two characters not of the cookie-cutter wrestler mold, I’m all for it.  Bravo to Cody for taking the chance as well and giving it 100%.  
   
   
   
   
2. Dolph Ziggler (2) – Ziggler and Rollins have been putting on some good matches everywhere except on RAW.  Finally we get to see what these two fan and mark-favorite Superstars can do.  They certainly didn’t disappoint.  That, ladies and gentlemen, is how you put on a match.  You’re telling me that a Rollins / Ziggler match couldn’t headline?  What I’m dubbing as, “The Night of DQ run-ins” Ziggler got the win via Ambrose interrupting at the end.  
   
3. Seth Rollins (1) – Fantastic match with Ziggler.  I still stand by the theory that Rollins has another twist to pull off.  I thought Fred “The Oracle” has a great theory that Rollins could be walking out of MitB with the WHC, which he first predicted on the BEARcast - WrestleCast (found at www.worldofbear.com and subscribe on iTunes).  Although that seems unlikely now because Reigns is in the MitB main event and it seems like an undercard on the PPV could be Rollins vs Ambrose?  IF that does make it on the MitB card, I’ll put an early prediction for Rollins vs Ambrose being Match of the PPV even with a MitB match which is shaping up to be pretty good.  Lastly, isn’t it odd that Rollins came out with his normal Shield costume were as Ambrose had a slightly different look?
   
4. Dean Ambrose (2) – For anyone who doubted that Ambrose could be Piper 2.0, you only have to look at how he interrupted the end of the Ziggler / Rollins match.  I had to do a double take to realize it wasn’t Piper but Ambrose dashing into the fray wearing jeans, black shirt and leather jacket.  Whether it’s great planning or the WWE just got lucky, the fans got a great match from Ziggler and Rollins which led to an impromptu match of Ambrose vs Barrett that was almost as good.  Great booking by the WWE.
   
5. Roman Reigns (2) – Oh, the old dipping you dick in the coffee trick.  It works every time.  There was no surprise that Reigns found a way into the Battle Royal and once in that he was going to win.  The surprising part was that he showed some competent acting chops away from his fellow Shield members.  Reigns is on the short list of possible winners of the MitB match.
   
6. Bray and The Wyatt Family (3) – Bray’s entrance, with the help of the crowd’s cell phone lights, is getting more and more impressive.  We’re told that on SmackDown Bray won a spot in the MitB match.  Fine.  He’s a top guy now and deserves to be in the mix for this particular MitB situation (where the WWE championship is up for grabs) but there’s no chance in hell that he’s winning.  It’s interesting because Bray’s got the heat to win the WHC but is his character actually ready for the WHC and does he really need it?  I think he might be better served, and the WWE as well, if he doesn’t have the WHC belt.  Bray put on a shoot to try and convince you that he needs the WWE WHC belt(s) but what he really needs is a great win at a PPV.  Rowan and Harper are getting their chance to shine as a tag team to fight The Usos at MitB.  If there was a god, I’d be thanking him a million times over that we’re getting Usos vs Wyatt Family at MitB rather than Usos vs Ryb-Axel.  Just look at those two options.  On what planet or alternate universe would anyone want to see Ryb-Axel instead of The Wyatt Family?
   
7. #BadNewsBarrett (7) – What are we to make of BNB at the moment?  He’s over with the crowd, as a heel no less.  He’s got gold around his waste.  He’s putting on good matches but he’s loosing and not in any feud or in the MitB main event like his peers.  You can’t say he’s getting buried because even HHH is using him as a tool.  So what’s he doing?  They have a week to figure something out before MitB.
8. Sheamus (9) – Sheamus has a few good matches and thinks he can go out to beat up Bray, HA!  I will say, Sheamus put on another good performance.  He’s another participant in the MitB match who I give no chance at winning.  At least now he’s got a little heat with Bray which may be the next feud after MitB?  If Sheamus doesn’t join Evolution (rumored), he could do well building on his surprising face heat by taking on Bray for a short window.  I can’t stress enough, SHORT window.  No one wants to see an extended Bray / Sheamus feud.  Nevertheless, Sheamus got the DQ win over Bray with some backup from The Usos.   
   
9. The Usos (10) – As much as I like the Usos, I’ve grown tired of their same gimmick over and over again.  A few weeks ago we got their first real shoot and it was promising.  Since then, nothing.  All they’ve done is sidled up to Superstars that need baby-face backup.  For a while it was Cena and this week it was Sheamus.  Hopefully, now that they’re going against a worthy opponent in Rowan and Harper, they’ll regain their spark.  Otherwise, they’re current gimmick is going to get stale like a freshly chopped body in Hannibal Lecter’s fridge.  Is anyone else watching that show?  Can you believe what they’re getting away with on NBC?  It’s the most horrific cooking show on TV.  
10. HHH and Stephanie (5) – As usual, let’s get the real important business out of the way, as WWE fashion expert, Stephanie got an A-minus on RAW.  An off the shoulder, retro-Rockabilly / neo-con mix that really worked well.  Amazingly she was able to keep a clean sheet even after a two-nil vomit battle vs Vickie Guerrero (my soccer references are on point today!)  Once again, HHH and Stephanie worked well together.  Lest anyone thinks that the WWE would frivolously waste an idea, the Stretcher Match (which was going to make an appearance at MitB if Bryan was healthy was now to be used for a Cena vs Kane match on RAW.  The problem is, a good stretcher match takes time.  Time that is not going to be afforded on the average RAW, let alone one that included a Battle Royal AND Kevin Hart.  I could already tell that the skip button on the remote was going to get a lot of use.  Maybe this will surprise people, but I didn’t mind the Reigns ban / spiked coffee / Stephanie getting sick / Vickie getting tricked to letting Reigns in the Battle Royal story.  Was it very simple and sophomoric?  Yes.  But it was quick, easy and got Reigns into the MitB main event.  Not every week do Lannisters need to die on a toilet for me to be happy.
    
11. Heyman (8) – When he looks to the heavens, I expect him to do a shoot toward god, warning The All Mighty that his client, Brock Lesner, will soon meet him in battle and destroy the Kingdom of Heaven.  Heyman is the best. 
12. John Cena (4) – Why is he selling a little cum rag?  Can’t he sell a beach towel or something a little bigger than a dishrag.  Did the sweatshop that makes the WWE clothing screw up an order and send them a billion small towels by accident and they figured they’ll make a quick buck?  Cena is getting so big that maybe that is a beach towel but Cena is just a monster?  It’s a new dawn in the WWE, you don’t have to look like horse testosterone is coursing through your veins.  From the moment the WWE announced Bray Wyatt is in the MitB match and showed that there was only one slot left for the MitB match, Cena was winning.  Ever since Cena threw the ring stairs at Bray at Payback, Cena has thrown stairs in every match since.  If only the WWE could combine the Special Olympics with a ring-stair-throwing competition, they would have complete synergy.    I’m aware this is not the first time steps have been used but Cena has taken this to a whole new level.  Since stretcher matches, especially on RAW, are so boring and with Cena’s new love of throwing stairs, I’d have rather just watched a wrestler strongman contest to see who can throw the ring stairs the furthest.
    
13. “The Demon” Kane (N/A) – You know why there hasn’t been a stretcher match on RAW in 10 years?  Because they suck.  Someone in the WWE needs to explain to me why / how would an AA from Cena onto the stretcher incapacitate someone?  If anything, it seems like a gentle way of carrying a 300 pound man to bed.  Landing on a soft padded gurney would put Kane asleep if anything.  Once again, Kane proves to be the most resilient of all characters.  Win, loose, DQ, no show, it doesn’t matter.  He’s the Ace up the WWE’s sleeve that they can use at anytime, in any fashion and it doesn’t take away from the character.  
    
14. Adam Rose / Summer Rae vs Fandango / Layla (N/A&20) – “Party-foul” and Rose won.  I actually felt bad for Kevin Hart because while they kept Hart from taking over the show, he was dropped into the RoseBud circus.  At least with Hugh Jackman you got Sandow dressed as Magneto and Ziggler came out with him.  Maybe it’s consolation to the Kofi’s, R-Truth’s, Henry’s and Titus’s of the world that the WWE also buries it’s black guest stars just the same as their wrestling Superstars.
    
15. Sandow (20) – Dressed as Cleveland’s favorite son, LeBron James!  Of course he was the first one out and good for him.  Other than Reigns taking out Rusev for the win, Sandow is the only other thing I remember from a waste of time Battle Royal.  I’m still holding out hope for good things for Sandow.
    
16. Alexander Rusev w/ Lana (12) – Lana’s killing it with Cheap Heat and good looks.  Rusev is getting a massive push.  It was encouraging to see Rusev and Big E go at it, if only for a moment, during the Battle Royal.  The WWE needs to continue with that feud. 
17. Battle Royal match (N/A) – It’s fascinating how the Royal Rumble is so awesome but Battle Royals are usually the worst piece of shit matches.  Rusev’s been on a tare lately and even though he went down to presumably the next WWE star, did it hurt his aura of invincibility?  In this case, perhaps it would have been better for Rusev’s brand to get the “giant’s loss” in which 10 guys need to work together to get him up and over the top?  And again, there were three certainties in life Monday night; Death, Taxes and Roman Reigns winning the Battle Royal.  
18. Cameron w/ Naomi vs Paige (N/A&14) – Divas match alert!!!  Cameron is vastly inferior to Naomi and is in the bottom tier of Divas.  I guess they have to throw a dog a bone every now and then but Naomi should have been the one wrestling Paige.  To Paige’s credit, this is the first time I can recall her being on the offensive for most of the match.  Disappointing match on because there’s a crop of quality wrestlers in the Divas division and for once, I’d like to see what they can do.
19. Ryb-Axel (18) – For anyone who is says Rowan and Harper suck or this Goldust / Stardust gimmick is garbage, I want you to look at Ryb-Axel and remember that these two fools were a botched finisher and sloppy 1-2-3 count away from being WWE World Tag Team Champions at MitB.  Rowan and Harper, Goldust and Stardust are literally saving the tag team division from what was (and still could be) a title reign by one of the least charismatic, poorly performing and all around lame tag teams in the WWE.  These two need to swap places with The Ascension in NXT and rework their gimmick or split up and still work on their gimmicks.  Let The Ascension give the WWE tag division a chance.
20. Heath Slater (HM) – After surviving a WWE purge of talent, the sole MB-er is still just as lame as the others that were cut.  Clearly the WWE sees something in Slater that has yet to translate to RAW.  Look, he barely got any face pop being the champion for the USA vs a heel Rusev.  Not a good sign.  

Honorable Mentions

Kevin Hart – He came out to do announcing during the Summer Rae / Rose vs Fandango / Layla fight.  Why do I get the feeling that’s a baby-Jeezy shirt custom shrunk for Hart?  I worried the WWE was going to wedge Hart in too many segments.  After the show, I wish they did.  Hart was promoting the wrong movie to a WWE audience.

Vickie Guerrero – Reigns pulled a Littlefinger on the coffee that Vickie was delivering to The Authority.  I’ve grown to enjoy her work and willingness to play along.  Having an elderly woman get vomited on is probably their response to the slightly pornographic milking of Layla last week.

Dual Championship coat hanger – Remember when the WWE first set to unify the two WWE championship belts, they used this well crafted hanger that suspended both belts and had the WWE insignia cut into its design.  At the time I questioned the effort and money wasted on a one-off closet tool but I was pleased to see it make another appearance this week.  Suspending both championships (which is still a mystery to why there are still two belts) high above the ring in preparation for the MitB winner is a beautiful thing…and tells us we probably won’t be seeing Daniel Bryan too soon.

Fans of the Night – The four guys dressed as WWE referees about 5 rows back.  Well done gentlemen.

Side Note(s)

Was it me or did anyone else catch Lana mouth, “That’s bullshit” when Stephanie announce Alberto Del RRRRRio as having qualified for the WHC ladder match at MitB?  I don’t know what set Lana off but I’m grateful for friend of the BEARcast (www.worldofbear.com) Ethan for finding a clip of Lana expressing her feelings about the show opening.  I hope she doesn’t get into too much trouble.  

“They” are doing the advertising for this Transformer movie all wrong.  Is there any fan of Transformers that isn’t going to see this new movie?  I can’t wait!  It’s such a tease each time.  All they needed to do was flash the Transformers sign and post three simple words: Dino-Fucking-Bots.  Done deal pal, I’ll be there Thursday night at midnight.  Dinobots!  What else do you need to know?  A promise of a blow job during a movie couldn’t get me more excited for going to a movie than just the word Dinobots.

The Special Olympic athletes have it hard enough, do we really need to punish them by making them travel and compete in New Jersey?  Who’s sick joke is this?  I’m just saying…New Jersey?  At least it’s not Cleveland.  You can always drive to NYC from New Jersey.

Until next time…

BEARcast - WrestleCast 6/11/2014

BEARcast - WrestleCast 2014-06-11 with Fred "The Oracle"

This week’s BEARcast - WrestleCast was so fun and jam-packed, there was hardly time for my usual musical nonsense.  Fred and I jump right in with a little NBA playoff talk.  We transition to all things rasslin’ and burn through this week's news, notes and The World’s Greatest Power Rankings.

Please check us out at www.worldofbear.com and on iTunes https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/world-of-bear/id828777439?mt=2 and don't forget to Subscribe!  Also, don't forget to spread the word to friends, family and fans. 

Thanks,
WK
@wkbear on Twitter or email the show at WorldOfBearBC@gmail.com to send in ideas and comments.
Contact Fred on Twitter @FreddyD15

WWE Power Rankings, RAW 6/09/2014

Coming at you from Minneapolis, and I’m getting a bit of a late start after watching my beloved Kings face off against the dastardly Blueshirts from NYC.  By “beloved” I mean, now that they’re up 2-0 in the Stanley Cup playoffs, I’ll watch every game.  Until two weeks ago, I couldn’t name five players but now I’m a hockey expert.  There’s also a Dodger game on ESPN, second in the past week, which are my first two games that I’ve been able to watch this season because Time-fucking-Warner and DirecTV can’t get their 8 billion dollar shit together.  AND it’s the beginning of the World Cup.  I have to learn about the 32 teams so I can pretend to know what’s going on.  Very busy.

Last week on RAW, we got one of the more surprising “heel turns” in a long while.  Two fascinating sentiments that I noticed was; 1) Everyone seemed to like that it was Rollins who turned and 2) No one has any clue what the fallout from this turn is going to be.  Both points are reasons to congratulate the WWE on a job well done.  

On last week’s BEARcast - WrestleCast (found on iTunes or www.worldofbear.com) Fred and I debated over the quality of the wrestling stories being told, company wide, and if one surprising twist in the main feud should coverup for the failures throughout the rest of the roster.  While it’s a valid question, it’s a new week and time (and story) marches on.  We shall see what the WWE has in store for us.  Strip away all the praise, complaints and speculation, we all want to see what’s going to happen with Bray, Cena, Goldust and Cody, this new Evolution, the remaining Shield members and even to some extent Daniel Bryan and the WHC.  Not to mention Sheamus is putting on good matches, The Usos vs The Wyatt Family continue to entertain, Barrett vs Cesaro could be epic, Rusev vs Big E part 2 would be awesome, can Bo Dallas continue to impress or enrage (depending on if you’re a bo-liever or not) and list goes on.  All of this means the WWE has done the one job inherent to running a wrestling promotion, or any type of entertainment structure, “Keep the audience coming back for more.”

The only way the WWE could drop the ball is if they “kick the can” on everything (as they’ve done with Bryan for the past month-plus) and use this week’s RAW as a mechanism to buy time on all story lines until Money in the Bank.  The audience needs some answers tonight.

So with that, let’s get to the rankings as of this week’s RAW on 6/09/2014…

1. Seth Rollins (2) – He pimped a black on black suit.  Nuff said.  Perfection.  There’s only three reasons to wear all black; 1) you’re accepting an award on BET, 2) you’re going to a funeral, or 3) you just pulled off a dope ass heel turn.  He may sound like Marc Maron but there was nothing funny about his shoot (some might say there’s nothing funny about Maron as well, but that’s for another time).  Seriously, who’d have thought a year ago that Rollins could be the centerpiece of a shocking turn and be able to pull off the mic work necessary to make it work?  Excellent work Mr. Rollins.  BTW, my gut tells me this is a work by The Shield.  I want it on record now just in case.  Assuming this turn is real and long lasting, what’s the future for Rollins?  With a little work, could he be CM Punk 2.0?  Lastly, if you’re going to promote a Rollins / Ziggler match on Main Event, I might have to tune in! 
   
2. The Shield minus Rollins (2) – What a great shoot.  It will be forgotten in a week but it was exactly on point and what Ambrose and Reigns needed.  It also gave me, and my crazy conspiracy loving mind, a few drips of an ultimate Shield double-cross.  That’s the Ambrose that we’ve all been waiting for.  We forget, he’s was the initial 5-tool player (if I can steal a baseball term) of The Shield.  Reigns was great too.  2/3 of The Shield is better than 95% of the other wrestlers.  The brilliance of the Rollins turn was that it automatically put him in the spotlight AND gave Reigns the ability to be a WHC face and give Ambrose a chance to shine.
   
3. The Wyatt Family (3) – Bray is back.  Who cares about the why’s and how’s regarding him being gone last week.  Why bother with details like that?  The WWE can get away with it because Bray is so hot right now.  The crowd loves him.  As they should.  But let’s not forget to throw some dap towards Harper who has quietly been improving each week.  Harper’s fireman’s neck breaker would have ended anyone other than SuperCena.  I can’t even complain about Rowan because he’s been raising his game too.  Since we’re not likely to get any more classic Shield / Wyatt matches, what’s next?  I’m fine with Rowan and Harper vs The Usos or a depleted Shield.  Maybe we can all pray to the Yellow King that Rowan and Harper can destroy Ryb-Axel before that train gets too far down the track.  As the great Eminem would say, “Forgot about Bray?”  Is he thrown in the MitB WHC match?  Do we see round 4 of Bray / Cena?  What’s next for the super hot Bray Wyatt?
   
   
   
   
4. John Cena (9) – Even the harshest Cena haters would have to admit that Cena / Shield vs Wyatts was going to be a good match.  I would have been my last dollar Cena was going to be Ambrose and Reigns partner.  The match was excellent but does this mean we’re getting more Cena / Bray?  Payback should have been the end.  Would it surprise anyone if both Cena and Bray were in the MitB WHC match?  Would it surprise anyone if both were not in the match but still had another gimmick match?  I’m telling you, this is going until SummerSlam.  Someone, please prove me wrong.
   
5. HHH and Stephanie McMahon (1&8) – Who better to open the show?  When you pull off a major turn, why not revel in it’s success.  It’s been a few weeks since HHH and Stephanie were able to do a full tag team promo together.  You forget how well they work together.  Yes, I know they’re married but I know a ton of married couples who I don’t want to get stuck in the same car with, let alone listen to them deliver wrestling plot exposition.  They started off extremely strong.  They laid the foundation for various Daniel Bryan possibilities.  This Dr. Maroon seemed about as credible as the prescription marijuana doctors here in L.A.  Under that desk were Tommy Bahama shorts and Birkenstocks, guaranteed.  Did you notice how he said, “Bryan will be reevaluated in the coming weeks.” while HHH and Stephanie kept insisting on Bryan not being at MitB?  My spidey-sense is tingling.  The part that HHH and Stephanie dropped the ball on was the explanation of what is going to happen at MitB.  I’ve watch the whole show twice and I'm still not clear if there is just one MitB match whose winner gets the WHC or if there’s going to be two matches, a MitB match and then a Ladder Match for the WHC?  Their promo got back on track once they refocused on Shield, Evolution and The Wyatt Family.   HHH’s declaration of, “I believe in Seth Rollins.” was a great way to set up two possibilities.  Either Rollins goes on a becomes a major player with a boost from joining Evolution or Rollins (and the rest of The Shield) are playing the long game and will out cerebralize the cerebral assassin.  What?  I can’t be the only person who thinks The Shield might pulling a grand switch-a-roo.  And lest anyone think I forgot to evaluate Stephanie, the WWE fashion expert gives her a B-plus for last night’s outfit.  You can’t go wrong in all black with some nice heels.  I know “cutouts” are big but I say go big and bold with them or none at all.  
   
   
   
   
6. Randy Orton (1) – Can anyone recall when a top 5 talent like RKO just quietly sat in the way way back of the WWE station wagon for the past six months and you hear nary a complaint?  Why would he complain?  He’s coming off well (for the most part), he’s kept his heel status strong and he’s being tossed into WHC main events at MitB without having to lift a finger.  His Instagram pic, chillin’ by the pool, was great.  After MitB I’d love for RKO to go against a Cesaro or Barrett so he can show off some of his in-ring skills that we’ve been missing for the past few months.  God forbid a RKO / Ziggler match, cause why give the fans something enjoyable to watch.
7. #BNB (5) – Just like last week where BOTH Ziggler and ADR should be in the MitB match, BOTH Sheamus and Barrett should be in the MitB match.  Instead, Sheamus gets the win and Barrett is left who his next opponent will be.  Luckily Barrett is IC champ so they can’t bury him like they do Ziggler.  I was expecting some sort of run in from Cesaro to continue their squabble from last week.  That didn’t happen and Sheamus still got the clean victory over Barrett.  To make matters worse, Cesaro is in the MitB match so what is there for Barrett to do?  Maybe he’s taking a month off to be the WWE’s World Cup correspondent in Brazil?  He could take the JBL & Cole show on the road and do reports from Brazil’s world famous beaches, whorehouses and soccer stadiums.  
   
8. Cesaro w/ advocate Heyman (5) – Heyman was great.  A blind man could where his shoot was going but he still delivers.  He’s able to switch Lesnar into Cesaro in less time than a whore can put on a condom, or so I’m told.  Cesaro’s win puts him into the MitB match.  While it would be nice to have Cesaro vs #BNB, Cesaro is the odds on favorite for winning the MitB match.
   
9. Sheamus (6) – Sheamus had another really good match and win vs Barrett.  It’s no secret that Sheamus has the same appeal to me as a finely cooked haggis but to my shock he’s been really good in-ring of late.  The issue is that he hasn’t found his role with the audience yet.  If he’s a face, who’s his heel opponent?  If he’s going to turn heel (which I’d advocate for) than who’s his face opponent?  He’s a bit stuck.  He’s in the MitB match.  It would be cool to see someone wear all that gold at once, both WHC belts and the US strap.  
   
10. The Usos (4) – Who is next for The Usos?  Ryb-Axel?  The Wyatts?  Remind me, wasn’t it just a few months ago that we were saying how stacked the tag team division was?  What happened?  
11. Bo Dallas (17) – Special shout out to Daniel Bryan’s recovery.  I’m sure equal doses of HGH and bo-lief will get him back on his feet in no time.  Dallas must do 2 things before going to the ring, shower with his close on and puts vaseline on his teeth like MissUSA so he can constantly smile.  He’s the only man who’s less wet after the match than prior.  How great was his 6-and-0 celebration!!!  An accomplishment and streak that will go down in at the annals of history.  
    
12. Alexander Rusev w/ Lana (19) – When I saw the Obama workout video over the weekend, it was a lock that Lana was going to use it on her next promo.  Lana killed her opening.  Much better than last week’s horrific medal ceremony.  I’m still not sold on the accolade hammerlock but it is amazing to see Rusev switch from brute to being able to pull off a very athletic super-kick.  My only question is, for the second week in a row, where’s Big E?  They had a great match at Payback and I want more.  No offense to Zack Ryder but I’m taking Big E over Ryder any day of the week and twice on Sunday.
    
13. Rob Van Dam (6) – He’s back in shape and putting on quality RAW matches.  I don’t know how much longer RVD plans to work, or at least work a limited schedule, but I hope before RVD retires, he and Heyman can go on one last run together.  It would be the fitting and final nod to the greatness of ECW.
14. Paige (N/A) – Back from a week off and what’s her first piece of business?  A rematch with Alicia Fox!  I’m a fan of both Alicia Fox and Paige and think very highly of their wrestling skills.  What I don’t understand is that they now have the female wrestlers to put on variety of good matches.  I just watched Nattie vs Charlotte (Ric Flair’s daughter) and it was great.  Emma can wrestle.  Even Summer Rae has shown skill during her few true wrestling matches.  Let some of these other talents air.  I’d much rather watch Emma vs Paige than any Ryb-Axel match.  Besides, how quickly does a feud fade if one side keeps winning.  Paige has won all but once against Fox.  We need the variety.  It’s not like back in the day when there was ONLY Trish vs Lita.
    
15. Alicia Fox w/ Aksana (18) – Fox’s wrestling is fine.  I won’t waste time complaining that a rivalry is when both sides win, not just Paige winning week after week (sans the one week, I know) or waste finger strokes complaining the WWE needs to mix up the one Divas slot and allow for more than just the same two wrestlers.  I won’t even bitch about Alicia’s post match antics, which I don’t understand and was done with three weeks ago.  What really sent me up a wall was having to sit through all the “marriage advice” The King and the rest of the announce crew deemed necessary for me to sit through.  The King Lawler once quit his job in protest of his wife being fired from the WWE, only to divorce her a few months later.  Tomorrow I have scheduled free throw lessons from DeAndre Jordan and later this week I’m taking financial planning advice from Bernie Madoff.  Can these guys shut up and sell the wrestling matches?  It makes me long for the days when they explained how to download the WWE App.  
    
16. Goldust and ???? (15) – This week’s parter is R-Truth.  Cody, once again gets the coveted TV watching spot.  There was a few minutes that Goldust destroyed Ryb-Axel.  DESTROYED.  Goldust is damn near 50 years old.  He doesn’t need to be loosing to Ryb-Axel.  We should have respect for our elders.  Yet, Cody has an idea.  Who is this person who’s going to magnify Goldust’s brilliance?  Is it that hard to figure out the Brother vs Brother feud?  What’s with all this bullshit?  
17. Swagger w/ Zeb vs SAN-TIN-OOOOOO (14&N/A) – Zeb slaps are like Gamma radiation to Swagger’s Hulk.  After getting juiced up on Zeb slaps, Swagger pulled a great gut-wrench power bomb.  The Real Americans could still have some run in them but they must find another member ASAP.  Meanwhile, if there’s anyone who can save us from Zeb and all the bigots of the world, it’s Santino, hero to the people.  If Santino can’t stop Zeb and Swagger, no one else can.  Clearly Swagger is set on a run for the WHC.
18. Ryb-Axel (16) – When Ryb-Axel gets the cheap win, you know things are not going your way.  This is one of those wins you’ll see added to the list of achievements when Ryb-Axel become the champions.  Just do it now.  Make them the champs so we can get it over with.  The sooner they become the champs, the sooner the loose the belts back to The Usos.  
19. Xavier Woods (N/A) – X-dub seems to be able to grow hair like a chia pet.  He’s raw and his gimmick sucks.  He looks like Sideshow Bob with a beard.  He’s the solution, cut the hair, keep the beard (because it actually makes him look hard) and still keep the basics of his gimmick that he’s a well educated man.  God forbid the WWE play against stereotype and have a menacing black man be the smartest guy in the room.  But then again, the WWE is getting competition from ABC’s Black-ish for most racist show on TV and you don’t want to drop a title like that so keep letting Xavier Woods look like a fool.  The WWE will not loose the racial insensitivity trophy without a fight!  
    
20. Fandango w/ beaten down Layla & Damien “White Swan” Sandow (N/A&7) – Sandow’s got gigantic balls for all the world to see.  Make fun of him all you want but the crowd was still chanting, “Let’s go Sandow!”  I would have loved to be a fly on the wall when the idea was pitched to Sandow.  To his credit, he’s taken each of these potential disastrous gimmicks and has made the most out of them.  Fandango on the other hand, well…not so much.  Sandow is great, they just need to find a story for him.  Fandango is stuck in this Dancing with the Stars / Fatal Attraction gimmick that has nowhere to go.  Fred mentioned this on the BEARcast - WrestleCast (found on www.worldofbear.com and iTunes), Fandango is a perfect example of someone going down to NXT to tweak or rework their gimmick and come back in six months.  Now is the time since Total Divas is off the air and if he’s still paired up with Summer Rae, you’ll want them back when the next season of Total Divas returns.
    

Honorable Mentions

3MB – 3 Tomato Cans for the remaining two members of The Shield to destroy and remind us all that 2/3 of The Shield are better than most.  Keep Cashing Check, boys.  At least you weren’t involved in any midget matches or gored in the crotch by a mini-bull this week.  

Vickie Guerrero – It’s always nice to see Vickie.  Not only does she do whatever they tell her to but it’s good to see that she still knows where Vince has the dead bodies hidden and they can’t fire her, yet.

Kevin Hart – If you thought Hart could get anymore airtime, think again.  Big coup for the WWE to get Hart.  He should be able to have some fun with whomever they put him with.  I’ll go out on a limb and say he and Big Show will be thrown together.  I’ll go even further and say we’ll be seeing Hart riding Big Show like a wooly mammoth from Game of Thrones.  

Zack Ryder – Not only did this poor bastard have to sit through the Lana / Rusev opening, but you knew he was going to get crushed.  It’s called “the pine” Ryder, you should be used to sitting on it by now.

Side Note(s)

There were at least three (3) wrestlers watching TVs backstage this week.  Maybe I notice it more now that it’s on my radar but this must end.  Yet another sign of lazy writing.  Once is understandable.  A wrestler wants to check out his / her opponent, such as Big E watching the IC tournament a few weeks ago.  Now it seems like if there’s ever a wrestler involved in a story but not in the ring, they’re watching the TV.  I haven’t yet pinpointed the reason this bothers me so much but it does.  Here’s a great idea, during RAW, have a camera on the backstage TV and on the app we can watch the other wrestlers watching the action in the ring?!  It’s breaking the fifth wall of reality.  Mind = Blown!

Here’s a special shot for my boy Doron…

Until next time…