BEARcast - WrestleCast 7/30/2014

BEARcast - WrestleCast 2014-07-30 with Fred "The Oracle"

On this week’s BEARcast - WrestleCast we’ve got it all.  From the far reaches of space to a lesson on prison life.  Sit back, relax and let Fred and I relieve you from the dog days of summer.

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 7/28/2014

Coming at you from Houston, and some weeks the WWE / RAW / Wrestling can be great, some weeks it can be horrible, some weeks it can be exciting and some weeks it can be boring.  Then there are weeks like this one.  Weeks that just are-what-they-are and there’s not much to say.

The world is in a funk.  It’s the dog days of July.  It’s hot across the country.  The economy is stagnant (which is the nicest way to put it).  There’s turmoil all over the planet.  The sports world only has baseball, which for this DirecTV customer means no Dodgers, still!  TV’s got nothing of consequence (thank god for Big Brother, my one reality vice which eats up at least three hours a week).  SIDE NOTE, check out You’re The Worst on FX and help me decide if this is a hidden gem or I’m just desperate for an interesting comedy.  Summer movies have been a huge disappointment overall.  Snowpiercer and Godzilla might be the two best movies of the Summer of 2014 (the first being a 2013 movie just now on VOD in the United States and the other is God-fucking-zilla!?).  The San Diego Comic Con just wrapped up which is like going to a strip club; you spend a lot of time / money / effort to NOT go home with the hot chick and to NOT see the new movies / TV shows / comic books being promoted.  Bringing this back full squared-circle, SummerSlam is still a few weeks away.  A big PPV to which we’ve known what the card will be since last month.  

Over the weekend, I was chatting with Fred “The Oracle” about mixing it up a little on this week’s BEARcast - WrestleCast (www.worldofbear.com and on iTunes).  We were trying to think of a new segment or work on one of our previous bonus show ideas.  I’m always worried about going too long and said, “Well, if we have five minutes let’s do _______ (check out the show this week).”  Halfway through RAW, I texted Fred, “I think we’ll need to find something to fill up the remaining 45 minutes after we burn through this countdown!”

RAW wasn’t bad, it just didn’t do anything.  The actual wrestling was solid.  The problem is, we know the basic lineup for all the matches at SummerSlam.  It’s as if you watched the last five minutes of The Usual Suspects and now we’re going back to see what lead up to finding out who Kayser Soze is and why he did what he did.  Does it make The Usual Suspects a bad movie?  NO!  Hell, I’ve seen it 100 times.  It’s a great movie but during the 100th time watching it, am I  riveted watching McManus, Keaton, Fenster, Hockney and Kint pull off the same heists?  

SummerSlam is a few weeks a way.  Other than Goldust / Stardust, Cesaro, Sheamus and the Corporate Nation, we know where almost all the other feuds are headed.  SummerSlam couldn’t get here fast enough.  That being said, I’m very much looking forward to all the SummerSlam matches (save for this Fandango / Summer / Layla nonsense).  

Check out the BEARcast (www.worldofbear.com and subscribe on iTunes) over the next few weeks because we’ll try to spice things up while most of wrestling is just going to repeat itself running up to SummerSlam.

So with that, let’s get to the rankings as of this week’s RAW on 7/28/2014…

1. HHH and Stephanie (3&6) – “Jail Bird” would the be the title of the Orange is the New Black episode that Stephanie should guest star on.  I hear-tell prison changes a person.  That’s certainly the case as Stephanie went full Keller from OZ on B-Bella with “you’re my bitch now!”  I’m going to make an early prediction that this Stephanie / B-Bella match will be better than you expect.  IF my theory that a female wrestler’s in-ring quality matches that of the male wrestler pumping semen into her, than HHH vs Daniel Bryan with an Y chromosome should be good. 
   
2. B-Bella (20) – I got it… we all get it… Stephanie is a BITCH.  The WWE feels they have free license to use that word if it’s one female yelling it at another.  If we know anything about the WWE, once they find something they like, they’ll beat it like Ray Rice in a casino elevator.  Special shot to Fred “The Oracle” for calling this match months ago before anyone else!  Even more reason for you to listen to the BEARcast - WrestleCast (www.worldofbear.com and subscribe on iTunes).
3. Paul Heyman (1) – Ladies and Gentlemen…  Not only did Heyman do a great job to set up SummerSlam but at the same time he’s laying the foundation for the return of Undertaker (which lays the foundation for Sting’s monumental debut, see Side Notes for more on this).  What Heyman is doing contributes more to WWE storytelling than any other performer in the company.  He’s the best.
4. Cena (HM) – M.I.A last week but back to open the show.  He’s taken his shilling dish towels to a new level this week.  It is interesting how SuperCena has continued to be a hero while the crowd had turned to give him the same heat a heel would get.  It’s like watching the world boo for Superman while he’s defending the world against Doomsday.  
   
5. Cesaro (8) – Killed his shoot!  Maybe Cena “can’t wrestle” but more often than not, he rises (and lowers) to the level of his opponent.  You don’t get much better than Cesaro.  This was a classic SuperCena win but at least Cesaro got the “win in defeat” aura from Monday’s match.  Even with his dope “what is this, velvet?” robe and superb wrestling skills, Cesaro is a bit lost.  I’m still calling for a Sheamus / Cesaro feud.  It just makes too much sense so… it probably won’t happen.
   
6. Randy Orton (4) – HHH did a good job of setting up Roman Reigns / RKO and putting pressure on RKO to step up.  Who doesn’t love to hate Angry RKO?  NOT crazy RKO but angry RKO is the best.  Once again RKO proves he’s old school buy making damn sure that announce table was going to get smashed.  I love how a chance at a chance of a title shot is RKO’s “precious”.  It’s so lame and so over the top but that’s when RKO is at his best.  
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
7. Roman Reigns vs Kane (2&5) – Turn about is fair play.  RKO got the jump on Reigns which was a switch from last week.  But you know who I feel sorry for, Kane.  Seeing him ONCE AGAIN take the walk of shame back to the locker room.  He’s did what he was told and now it’s back to the showers to await the next time the WWE needs him.  Don’t feel too bad.  At the SDCC Kane was out promoting the next installment of See No Evil.  We’ll have to check with “The Oracle” but I imagine he’ll be taking time off soon to get in full movie promotion mode.  
8. Usos & Ziggler vs Ryb-Axel & Miz (&10/ &11) – Hollywood Miz and Ziggler are the stars of this match.  Yet another match that should be great.  The Miz is really kicking ass with his character lately.  As for the tag teams involved in this, well one is really great and the other suck donkey balls.  I’ll let you figure out which one is which.  
   
   
   
   
9. Paige and AJ Lee (12) – I thought we were making progress when Paige only mockingly skipped like AJ down to the ring.  But no, yet again, the only two ways a female wrestler can have any exhibition of character is by either being a slut or a crazy screaming bitch.  Putting aside my thoughts on female characters, this was Paige’s best mic work of her short WWE career.  There was no reason to bring back the stupid “crazy” AJ gimmick.  Just get to the match.  Paige vs AJ might be a top three match at SummerSlam.  *snap two times in a circle*
   
10. Seth Rollins (HM) – Plan B vs Y2J.  Like I said, regardless of the storytelling, very good wrestling on this week’s RAW.  Let’s set something straight WWE, if you show a repeat of what you aired on the WWE app, then it’s not “exclusively on the WWE app.”  It’s just a fucking repeat of what happened during the commercial.  You’ve done this for years!  How stupid do you think we are?  OH, wait…
11. Bray and The Wyatt Family (7) – Another day, another Wyatt family run in to jump Y2J.  What would be interesting (and if it doesn’t totally work it won’t matter because Jericho will be leaving soon) is to have Bray preach that he and Y2J are more alike than anyone and should join forces.  Y2J has always fancied himself a man of the people, more Hollywood granted, but maybe Y2J (which is a nickname derived from the destruction of man via a technology error) should see the light and team up with… oh who am I kidding?  The WWE is not spending a like of time trying to get nuanced with this feud.  Let’s the Bray beat-down of Jericho begin!
    
12. Chris Jericho (7) – Such a shit stirrer.  Too bad he’s using jokes from 15 years ago.  Despite Fred’s raving review of the new Fozzy record, all I’m going to say is, “glass houses, bro.”  All joking aside, Bray vs Jericho will be awesome.
13. Bo Dallas (15) – Bo Dallas’ streak is snapped by R-Truth?!  At first I was shocked and pissed but then realized, Bo’s streak was only going to hold him back.  This pushes Bo as a heel and ends the silly streak that would have been a burden in the coming months as he tried to take on wrestlers higher up the food chain.  Now he’s free to step up to an IC or US championship run.  Lastly, are we sure the drought in Los Angeles isn’t being caused by Bo Dallas personally?  The man has all the water.  The boy is wet!  Is no one worried he’s a walking slip-and-fall accident waiting to happen?
    
14. Corporate Nation (14) – Not only did Big E win back his spot in front of the backstage TV but he brought his friends along.  Eventually Woods, Kofi and Big E came out to the ring.  I’m staying clear of this and giving this gimmick a slow burn and crossing my fingers it’s done right.  They must add at least one or two more black wrestlers to the new Nation but it doesn’t seems like R-Truth nor Titus are on their list of pledges.
    
15. R-Truth (N/A) – A slow night = R-Truth Rapping.  Clearly, R-Trizzle is to ghetto for the new Corporate Nation.  If R-Truth (and WWE creative) want to blow people’s minds, they should have Mr. Killings come out and do a shoot that he’s the 1-behind-the-1-in-16-and-Bo-1??  If only for one night, have him be a Paul Heyman guy and let Heyman give him a bump.  What could go wrong, other than everything?
16. Dust Brothers (13) – I’m a sucker and I’m along for the ride!  Let’s hope that whatever this magic key is means some in-ring action.  Any comic book fan will notice something eerily familiar about Stardust’s board.  Let’s hope it doesn’t lead to a New 52 like Rip Hunter’s did.  Fuck it, let’s blow the whole thing up and see what happens!
    
    
    
    
17. Rusev w/ Lana vs Swagger w/ Zeb ( ) – “50 stars and 13 bars” sounds like a great rap lyric.  It’s amazing how Zeb turned from a Fox news pariah to a Normal Rockwell painting.  
    
    
    
    
18. Damien Space-dow vs Adam Rose (16&N/A) – Back to feuding with the Adam Rose machine.  I love Sandow.  He’s pulling off the city-by-city heel tour.  I know there’s not much of a future for this character but can’t I just enjoy something in my life?
    
     
19. Fandango vs a Matador w/ Summer & Layla (18&N/A) – Isn’t bestiality illegal?  Then again, we’re talking about Texas and it wouldn’t surprise me if fucking a bull, albeit a midget humanoid bull, is totally legal.  The fact that it’s a Mexican bull, that’s where Texans will have issues. 
20. Divas Match: Cameron / Alicia Fox vs Naomi / Natalya (20) – So, um, yeah… I needed a #20 so, here you go.  Let’s just hope that Naomi gets to face off with either Paige or AJ sooner than later.   

Honorable Mentions

Dean Ambrose – I like how they flipped from last week, when Rollins wasn’t on the show.  The Ambrose / Rollins feud is going to be awesome but having them at each other’s throat and sneak attacking them over and over again was going to get played out fast.  Essentially putting this feud on hold for a few weeks was perfect.  We all know the war is coming.  I can’t wait for SummerSlam.

Houston Crowd – The Houston crowd was on fire from the opening of the show all the way through the end.  Big up’s to the folks in H-town. 

WWE Production crew – This is not a new development but from time to time we’re reminded on what the WWE does better than any other sport / entertainment company; making promo / clip packages.  The production crew made some outstanding packages for the Stephanie / Bella and the Brock / Cena feuds.  “That’s What WE Do!” should be the WWE Production’s motto.

Side Note(s)

Very quickly, SDCC was this weekend and there was a panel for Mattel and WWE toys.  At the end there was a surprise appearance made by Sting, as he was going to have his own WWE licensed toy for the first time ever.  The only reason to point this out is that watching Sting, at a WWE event, turned me into a wrestling crazed teenager again.  I’m old enough to say, “none of this really maters” or “this is just a TV show I enjoy watching.”  But the realization that Sting might actually make it on to WWE television in the near future really got my juices flowing.  On things that I never thought that I’d see or given up on hoping for, seeing Sting in the WWE was one of them.  I’ve always been a huge Sting mark but as you learn in life, some things weren’t meant to be.  Sting was never going to be in the WWE, which itself was a cool idea.  But now that it seems imminent that Sting will give us at least one match, even an appearance, I can’t tell you how excited I am.  I’m sure anyone under 20 will barely care if Sting ever makes an appearance on RAW.  But if your of my ilk or a historian of wrestling, I can promise you one thing; When Sting finally shows up at a WWE event THE CROWD WILL LOSE THEIR SHIT.  More than even the Undertaker’s streak being broken because that was sad and a shot to the gut.  Sting showing up will bring such joy and turn old men into giddy boys.  I can’t wait.  Thank you WWE.  Thank you Sting.  Thank you San Diego Comic Con, truly the happiest place on earth for all of nerdom.  

Lastly, on the theme of Nerd-culture and movies (“these are a few of my favorite things” - feel free to sing along), I just finished re-watching The Running Man.  With all the sequels and remakes that Hollywood is making, why has the WWE not bought the rights to make a new Running Man.  This should be in production and ready for me to watch in 2015.  Cena would make a perfect Ben Richards.  Granted, no one is like the late great Richard Dawson but Mr. McMahon or better yet Stephanie McMahon would be as close to a perfect replacement as you’re going to find.  The WWE roster is littered with potentially great stalkers.  Out of all the remakes, the original Running Man suffered from the lack of quality CGI and new age costumes.  We didn’t need a new Total Recall or Friday the 13th or Nightmare on Elm Street.  We certainly don’t need a new Gremlins, Escape From New York or Point Break (can you really remake perfection?).  Even though I love the original Running Man, it’s the one that could benefit the most from a new cast and new technology.  There’s my free tip to the WWE.  Spend whatever it takes to get the rights to The Running Man.  You’ll save money on the cast so it will wash out.  Stop with these horror films and give us a movie that couldn’t be more perfectly suited for the WWE!

Until next time…

BEARcast - WrestleCast 7/23/2014

BEARcast - WrestleCast 2014-07-23 with Fred "The Oracle" and special guest Dustin

If you Bo-lieve long and hard enough, the impossible might just happen!  The Corporate Nation has arrived and who best to talk about it than the father of idea, Dustin “The Doc-ta”, who joins this week’s BEARcast - WrestleCast.  Fred and I discuss all the week’s events and at the end, Dustin caps off a fun edition of the BEARcast.

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
Dustin at @Peabody3030

WWE Power Rankings, RAW 7/21/2014

Coming at you from Miami, and while Battleground wasn’t great, the WWE loves to hit a major market on the RAW after a PPV and throw out big stars and big plots.  C’mon Miami, I know you’re down about loosing LeBron but there’s nothing like being host to a good wrestling show to get you out of your funk.  If you can’t get excited for the return of Brock Lesnar, you should be at a wrestling show.

Battleground was exactly what we thought it was going to be.  A few decent matches but nothing overly special and an ending that was not only spoiled a week in advance due to a leaked SummerSlam commercial but also failed to include any of HHH’s backup plans, B or C.  Let’s just say, I’m glad I only pay $9.99 per month for the PPVs.  $50 would have been an obscene amount of money for, what friend of the BEARcast - WrestleCast (www.worldofbear.com or on iTunes) Dustin called, a decent RAW.  

Fortunately RAW is in Miami tonight and rumors are swirling (which basically means my WrestleCast partner Fred has sent me a bunch of gossip from the internet).  You’d have to think that the WWE will pull out the big guns because SummerSlam is now just weeks away and they have to set up the Brock vs Cena main event AND get to the pinnacles of various story lines that were kicked down the road at Sunday’s Battleground.

The late addition of a Rollins / Ambrose match was a bit of a surprise since we all know this feud has SummerSlam written all over it.  As such, we didn’t get a match but a series of silly backstage fighting and parking lot brawls.  Fifteen minutes of filler there, an IC Battle Royal which took longer to intro the entrants than the actual match and three matches that weren’t bad but while you were watching all you could think about was, I can’t wait to see the SummerSlam version of this.  Those three matches were Rusev / Swagger, AJ / Paige and Y2J / Bray Wyatt.

The best match of the night was the curtain jerker.  A best 2 out of 3 pins match between The Usos vs Harper and Rowan.  Once the first two pins to make it a 1-1 match got out of the way the match took off and was spectacular leading up to a surprise Usos victory.  It was a great match and you can only assume they’ll set something up for SummerSlam.  One way or another The Wyatt family is winning the Tag Championships and now that the Usos have retained them once again, you have to imagine they finally loose them at SummerSlam.  The only monkey wrench is that Goldust and Stardust have been getting a lot of promo time to ramble on about taking things to the next step.  I love the Dust Brothers but there’s only so many backstage skits they can do before they must wrestle a meaningful match.  

So with that, let’s get to the rankings as of this week’s RAW on 7/21/2014…

1. Paul Heyman and Brock Lesnar (N/A) – Please stop what you’re doing and give Heyman a standing ovation.  It might not have been the best promo of all time but name me someone else who could have pulled THAT promo off?  Credit to HHH for getting out of the way and handing the closing segment over to Heyman and Brock to let them do their thing.  This might have been one of the worst kept secrets in the WWE and one of the worst crowbar-ing in of a plot line but at the end of the day, who cares?  Brock is back.  He’s a beast.  Heyman is on the mic.  Cena should be shitting his pants.  A last minute question just came to me (check out the BEARcast - WrestleCast at www.worldofbear.com this week for a full discussion); If Cena gets destroyed and Brock wins the belt but puts on a valiant effort, will the mark fans who boo him change their tone and start rooting for Cena?  If by winning and with the hype of Heyman, could Brock become such an unstoppable monster (now tied to The Authority) that the fans all get behind Cena to be the one to win the belt back?  I know plans are for Reigns to be that savior but is he ready to take out Brock?
   
2. Reigns (3) – Had his coming out party during the Fatal-4-Way at Battleground.  While everyone new Cena was going to win thanks to a leaked SummerSlam promo, the other three wrestlers did a great job of putting Reigns over.  He still needs some work on the little things that make a good match and not only relying on his big spots.  Also a few more months of practice on the mic will help on his personal road to WrestleMania.  
3. HHH (7) – I liked how HHH opened the show by going after all the people criticizing him, just seconds after JBL / Cole / King referenced Twitter and gave out the hashtag to follow the show with / “become part of the conversation.”  It just goes to show how much stock the WWE actually puts in to and follows social media.  We got fun HHH on RAW.  When he’s attacking internet trolls and trying to be serious while his wife is being hauled off to jail is a side of HHH you rarely get to see.  I know some hate the HHH character and / or have issues with some of the ways he’s done business in and out of the ring but I’ve always felt he’s probably a great guy to talk to and must have a thousand funny stories.  There’s a jokester in there and you always get to see a little sparkle when the show calls for him to land on the comedic side of the script.  
   
   
   
   
4. Randy Orton (3) – First to interrupt HHH is RKO demanding his long await rematch from WM30.  Is that clause forfeit when the title has already changed hands?  I wish he would have stuck with the “What about me?” a little longer.  At least it seems set for a Reigns vs RKO matchup at SummerSlam, which should be good.
   
5. Kane (3) – Kane, the world’s worst baby sitter.  Kane’s been hit with about 30 Superman punches and spears in the last 24 hours and yet he still chugs along.  Oh, Kane…
   
6. Stephanie McMahon (7) – I don’t know why we have to waste the great Stephanie McMahon on this nonsense. Steph can hold her own against the best in the biz but for some reason this Bella feud is something that the WWE thinks someone cares about.  I challenge the WWE to find one person interested in this feud.  Just one and I’ll shut up.  Nevertheless Stephanie turned chicken shit into chicken salad.  She was awesome and seeing her dragged away, correction; see her SELL the arrest and being dragged away was great.  The rest I couldn’t care less about.  Maybe this whole storyline stems from HHH and Stephanie’s vacation which I’m guessing consisted of a marathon watch of Orange is the New Black.  As a fan of OITNB, I’d love to see Steph be brought into Litchfield prison next season.
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
7. Bray and The Wyatt Family vs Chris Jericho (9) – We’re told that Y2J was beaten down backstage before the Highlight Reel.  So Bray held court.  Let’s face it, all this rhetoric is silly because the fans just want to see Y2J vs Bray Wyatt at SummerSlam.  We got a taste at Battleground and their match at SummerSlam could be EPIC.  If we learn anything over the past few months it is that Bray needs to come to the ring to do his promos.  His entrances are awesome and his shoots are best served live instead of backstage.
   
8. Dean Ambrose (4) – I can see why some fans don’t like Ambrose or his style.  It’s a little odd and unorthodox and of course everyone has different tastes.  To that I say AT LEAST HE HAS A STYLE.  He might be awkward a times but his style isn’t the same cookie cutter wrestling factory that 75% of the other wrestlers have.  If anything, appreciate that he’s performing at a high level and doing it slightly different than most.  And that he’s banging Renee Young might help his pimp hand.  Like his former parter, Rollins, he can take and sell a bump.  That’s why there are such high expectations for the Rollins / Ambrose feud.  Just look at how his body popped like a spring after being clotheslined.  This was AFTER he initially hit the ground!
   
   
   
   
9. Cesaro (8) – Even HHH had to throw pause on the battle to become the next HHH man.  Cesaro and Rollins is certainly a feud I’d like to see down the line.  This sets up the next opponent for Rollins after his run with Ambrose.  As for the here and now, what’s Cesaro doing?  Okay, fine, you dropped Heyman.  Everyone else seems locked up except for Sheamus.  Could this be Cesaro’s chance at US title gold and a feud with Sheamus at SummerSlam?  Side Note; Once again I have to complain that two foreigners are battling for the US belt.  At least one person should always be an American in a US title match.  Lest you think I’m some crazy Tea Partier or xenophobe, there should always be an international wrestler in the mix for the IC belt.  We give these things names for a reason, no?
10. Dolph Ziggler (12) – Ziggler should have been the winner of the IC belt (and from rumors sent to me by Fred “The Oracle” he was originally planned to be).  There were a lot of missteps in the beginning but once they got back from the commercial break, Ziggler and Miz really pulled together a great match.  In what will sure to be fireworks between Fred and I on this week’s BEARcast - WrestleCast (www.worldofbear.com)  Ziggler got the clean win but didn’t win the IC belt.  Hopefully this all gets rectified and Ziggler wins the strap at SummerSlam.
    
11. The Miz (15) – Coming off his cheap win in the IC Battle Royal, The Miz is riding high.  Hollywood heel Miz is my kind of Miz.  The battle for Ohio has begun and The Miz vs Ziggler could come a close second to Rollins vs Ambrose.
    
12. AJ Lee & Paige vs Emma & Natalya  (13&N/A) – Oh look, Emma is out of WWE jail.  I’m not having this “Shining Wizard” move by AJ.  I know she’s into comics and video games but the name is lame.  Back to the show, Paige pulls off her heel turn.  As you can guess, I’m not women’s lib-er but even I find it slightly offensive if not awkward that the only way a woman can be heel is if she’s a “crazy lunatic that has to scream and yell.”  When Paige finally got past the screaming and yelling, she was a far more effective heel when she was mocking all of AJ quirks like skipping and posing.  
    
13. The Dust Brothers (14) – I don’t know what this Cosmic Key is but I’m hoping they’re looking to take on Thanos to obtain it.  I just wished they wrestled more so I could rank them higher.  Time stops when Goldust and Stardust come on my screen.
    
14. Big E & Kofi (8) – Wait…what did I just see?  Are we…are we actually getting a look at the Articles of Incorporation for the Corporate Nation that has been pushed for almost a year on the BEARcast - WrestleCast (www.worldofbear.com)??  Check out the show this week for our special guest Dustin, who first sparked the idea months ago and I have championed for it ever since. 
    
15. Bo Dallas (17) – RAW didn’t get good until Bo vs Sandow started.  Sandow would be a perfect feud for Bo Dallas.  They both have the ability to put on good matches, Sandow can look the fool and it won’t hurt his character, Bo can beat an actual decent opponent and continue his now 16-and-Bo winning streak.  Oh, and it keeps Sandow in the limelight a little longer before he’s sent back to Sonic.
    
16. Damien Sandow (19) – Thank god Sandow got someone to cover his shift at Sonic so that he could make it to Miami in order to shove LeBron’s Decision Part Deux in the face of all Heat fans.  Luckily Michael Cole was gracious enough to explain to the one person in the world that didn’t know about LeBron leaving Miami to go back to Cleveland.  It was understandable since I believe only one or two people may have covered that news story…  
17. Rusev w/ Lana (10) – I guess Swagger and Coulter went down like a Malaysian Airliner because they were no where to be seen after Rusev got the cheap win over Swagger at Battleground.  The Swagger / Rusev match was good and while I didn’t like how it ended, the WWE found a way to keep Rusev’s winning streak and Swagger’s REAL American heat via a cheap count-out on Sunday.    
18. Fandango vs Zack Rider (18&N/A) – Whoo whoo whooooo.  Rider gets a victory on RAW.  I don’t know if this says more about Rider or the state of Fandango?
    
19. Ryb-Axel (N/A) – Ryback had some weird puncture wound on his chest.  Axel never even got officially tagged in.  Rolled over Kofi’s splash and got the win.  Just as it took Rosa Parks to be sent to the back of the bus, it took Big E and Kofi to lose to Ryb-Axel for us to get the Corporate Nation started.  So in a way, I have to thank Ryb-Axel.  
20. Divas Match: 4-on-Bella (20) – N-Bella faces the dregs of the Divas division (except for Alicia Fox who was the only one to perform an actual wrestling move).  Even the production tried to quit on this match by blacking out for a few seconds.  
    

Honorable Mentions

Seth Rollins / John Cena – Rollins was on the show in a very limited capacity and Cena seemed to have the night off.  They’re both integral pieces in the WWE but this week’s RAW was for bringing back Brock, which I’m glad they didn’t have Cena involved, and Rollins hanging back to let the rest of the story flesh out.  How many times do you need to see Rollins being jumped by Ambrose before it gets played out.  Good booking decisions by the WWE this week.  

Flo Rida – Little known fact: Flo Rida is derived from Florida, the state he’s from.  Haven’t I heard his first song for the past 5 years?  There was two things missing from this performance, his 25 lbs. gold and diamond Jesus chain and his valet’s ability to figure out how lip syncing works.

Great Khali – After being MIA for months, now it seems he’s on every week.  Did he swamp schedules with The Big Show? Maybe they’re the same person???  When was the last time you saw them both together?  Mind.  Blown.

Slayer – The Summer Rae and Layla group name.  We can move on from this right?  Even with Summer’s above average ass and Layla’s tig-ole-bitties, I think we’re done with this.

Side Note(s)

Some great fan notes this week:   

Check out this guy reacting B-Bella calling Stephanie a bitch.  This is more excited than a man his age should get.

Here's the worst sign in recent memory.  If you’re going to go through the effort to bring a sign, put in some effort in making the sign.

And as always, I love to keep track of who's watching from backstage.

Until next time…

BEARcast - WrestleCast 7/16/2014

BEARcast - WrestleCast 2014-07-16 with Fred "The Oracle"

This week’s BEARcast - WrestleCast made up for a lackluster “go home show” of RAW leading up to Sunday’s Battleground PPV.  Things got silly as Fred and I went over RAW and previewed the PPV.  You’ll want to listen, if only to hear Fred struggle to decide what’s worse; the Divas match, Fandango’s love life, Sandow’s new job at Sonic or the current state of the Lakers franchise.  Check it out and enjoy.  Don’t forget to follow us on twitter for live tweets during the PPV on Sunday.

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 7/14/2014

Coming at you from Richmond, and yet again I’m crazy busy this week.  Luckily this week’s show was a bit of a dud so I’m happy not to struggle writing a 5,000 word dissertation.  Instead of complaining, I’ll chalk RAW up to being a placeholder for this weekend’s Battleground PPV.  

Oddly, the two main events of Battleground are my least anticipated matches of the PPV.  The Fatal-4-Way of Cena, RKO, Kane and Reigns couldn’t intrigue me less.  I’m only interested in seeing if we see a Plan B or Plan C at the end of the match which Cena is almost guaranteed to win.  

I’ve stated before that the Royal Rumble is the greatest of all matches but Battle Royals are some of the worst.  The only interesting part of this IC Battle Royal is that there’s no clear frontrunner.  All the mid-carders are involved.  As Fred and I have discussed on the BEARcast - WrestleCast (www.worldofbear.com or on iTunes) it seems that Kofi, Ziggler or Cesaro are the most likely to win the IC belt but a dark horse winner is just as likely.   

The individual matches this Sunday are the most anticipated part of the PPV.  It wasn’t surprising that RAW was mostly filler matches to get us ready for Battleground.  

So with that, let’s get to the rankings as of this week’s RAW on 7/14/2014…

1. John Cena (2) – Still screwing up the “fifteen” hand sign.  It’s been two weeks running and he’s still throwing up 5-1 instead of 1-5.  Does someone in the WWE have the ability to tell Cena that he’s doing this wrong and it’s embarrassing?  Even the dumbest wannabe gang-banger gets this process down.  I suppose when Cena is charged with so much to accomplish in the show opener, making sure he gets his hand signals are the least of his concerns.  Not only was he responsible for a huge chunk of exposition for Battleground but he had to pump up the crowd and shill for the WWE Network.  You have to admire all that is asked of Cena and that he delivers on 99% of it.  Having said that, he could get the “1-5” fixed. 
   
2. Roman Reigns (1) – Normally, it’s unlucky to be the closing shot on the RAW leading up to a PPV.  It didn’t do him any good before last month’s MitB PPV.  But look at this guy.  I can picture Vince McMahon orgasming over Reigns being one of the top Superstars in the WWE over the next ten years.  
   
3. RKO / Kane / Rollins (4/HM/3) – These three have what the French call, that certain “I don’t know what”.  They should remake Three Men and a Little Lady (only an insane person would remake the masterpiece that is, Three Men and a Baby).  Let’s cut to the chase.  It seemed as though Rollins seriously injured his knee.  I leave the dirt sheets to Fred, so listen to the BEARcast - WrestleCast (www.worldofbear.com or on iTunes) to get details.  I hope that Rollins knee injury is just a “work” because I’m so excited for the upcoming Rollins / Ambrose feud but the injury seemed legit.  Also, a fake injury angle doesn’t seem to fit in the current storytelling, but with the state of recent WWE storytelling, I wouldn’t put it past the WWE creative to do something incredibly strange.  What throws me off more is that the rest of the 6-man tag match participants played it off so well which makes them the greatest performers or the injury was a work.  I guess we’ll find out at Sunday’s Battleground.
   
4. Dean Ambrose (5) – Maybe not a good sign that the most coherent person in the opener is Ambrose?  Batshit crazy Ambrose gave the best part of the opening promo from the back, which of course meant he was going to get jumped by his three opponents.  Haven’t we learned anything, ‘You’re always safer in the ring.’  It’s one of these unwritten laws in the wrestling handbook, like big men shouldn’t go to the top rope. The Ambrose beat-down surely meant that he was going to make an appearance at the end of the show.  Whether it was actually planned for him not to return or due to a possible real injury to Rollins, check into the BEARcast - WrestleCast (www.worldofbear.com) and Fred “The Oracle” will give us the inside gossip.  I’m sure I’m repeating myself but if Rollins was truly hurt, it will be a shame because we all want to see the Ambrose / Rollins feud.   
   
5. Harper and Rowan (6) – Is their new version of a double choke-slam going to win them the Tag belts?  Probably.  Am I done doing my own Q&A with the Wyatts and Usos?  Not yet…
6. The Usos (7) – At Battleground, it will be a best 2 of 3 match against Harper and Rowan.  Should we expect a good match?  YES.  Am I concerned that this might get tiresome considering you would think the WWE is going to string this out for a conclusion at SummerSlam?  YES.
7. HHH and Stephanie (N/A) – Clearly still in heat from their romantic vacation.  I’m not against love or even some healthy porn but what was the deal with the HHH / Steph PDA?  As WWE fashion expert, I can’t sign off on the green semi camouflage dress, C-minus.  Back to the show; for the love of baby Jesus, just come out and say Plan B is Brock Lesnar.  There might be an interesting twist to all this… Heyman hinted that if HHH’s “Plan B” didn’t work, come see him for “Plan C”.  1) Does that mean HHH’s Plan B isn’t Brock and if so, what could it be?  2) Does “Plan C” refer, in any way, to Cesaro and a push for him (highly unlikely but stranger things have happened lately)?  There could be an additional twist but I wouldn’t bank on it.
   
    
8. Cesaro vs Big E w/ Kofi (8&N/A&9) – Cesaro was Paul Heyman-less?  Interesting.  He’s put on great matches with Kofi of late and this week put on a killer match with Big E.  To pull off two different type of matches is incredible.  Side note; I’m glad to Cesaro has finally given in and started wearing knee pads.  It should be industry standard for all whores and wrestlers to wear knee pads.  #OccupationalHazards  
9. Chris Jericho vs Bray Wyatt (10/6) – With his jacket at full power, Y2J gets almost too much respect from the crowd.  The audience is eerily quite when Jericho speaks, which seems like it is a dead crowd or that Y2J isn’t over but given the chance, they’ll chant whatever he wants.  Wyatt got his first “boring” chant???  I can’t really defend Wyatt this week because it was, well, kinda boring.  I think we all just want to get to, what should be a great match, Jericho vs Wyatt at Battleground.  Besides, the shoots don’t makes sense with this feud.  It’s a classic, “We just want to see it” match.  BTW, what's the deal with Bray's shiner? 
   
   
   
   
10. Rusev / Lana vs Swagger / Zeb (12&N/A) – A detente?  Sometimes it feels like the WWE writers learned a new word and simply want to work it into the show.  Maybe they’re afraid to offend the Indian fans (feather not dot) by not calling this a Pow-Wow.  At least Lana has established who and what is stupid.  I’m no history major but I don’t think Lana and Rusev’s geopolitical lesson is 100% accurate.  I’m still in shock on how in the blink of an eye, Zeb and Swagger went from being a tired and slightly offensive gimmick to actual Real American heroes.  Zeb, America’s favorite terrier, came out swinging.  You know he was speaking truth when his usually flawless delivery was thrown off by real passion and truth about his military service.  Swagger hasn’t gotten a face (or heel) pop like that in years.  It would certainly push the heel of Rusev if he won at Battleground but the standard m.o. for the WWE is to have the USA (Swagger / Zeb) win these matches.  But by winning, Swagger’s face heat might go away.  It will be interesting to see how this plays out at Battleground and the weeks to come.
    
    
    
    
11. Alberto Del Rio vs Rob Van Dam (12/18) – ADR vs RVD in the battle of acronyms.  ADR pulled another variation of the “ring apron” trick.  They’re an odd pairing and don’t really do anything for each other except put on solid matches.  Fifteen years ago, this would have been an ECW main event!  Neither are winning the IC belt Battle Royal, just thought you should know.  
12. Dolph Ziggler (13) – If last week’s dip into the Summer pool wasn’t good enough, how about another win, huge fan pop and took home both Summer and Layla.  Plus, the internets feel like finally Ziggler is going to get his long deserved push.  Life is good for Ziggler these days.  Fingers crossed! 
    
13. AJ Lee vs Eva Marie (20) – Paige was at ringside for commentary.  This is a matchup where only an injury can occur.  Eva isn’t even in the same universe as AJ.  Luckily AJ made it out without injury and Paige wasn’t bad on the mic.  At first, the ending came off weird but upon a second viewing, it all came together for me.  I enjoyed it and can’t remember a Divas match I’m more excited for.  
    
14. The Dust Brothers (16) – I can’t pretend to tell you what’s going on, but I can tell you I love it.  I caught a bit of SmackDown last week.  Goldust w/ Stardust in his corner, demolished Axel w/ Ryback ringside in a great match.  A match that was followed by a great Bo Dallas match.  That 20 minutes of SmackDown might have been the best 20 minutes of WWE product last week.
    
15. The Miz (11) – I’m still enamored with Miz’s revamped opening.  I also loved his “moneymaker” being up on the jumbo-tron during the whole match.  Personally, I always love the heel who pimps himself and calls out to “his fans” and the response from the crowd consists of 4 people.  RKO was great at that.  
    
16. Sheamus (14) – A match so thrilling that they cut away to a video montage of the entrants of the IC Battle Royal.  I’ll give this Sheamus match a pass because he’s been doing great lately and it wasn’t his fault that they throw a commercial and a clip package to breakup the flow of his match.  I am shocked that Sheamus is being thrown into the IC Battle Royal (someone correct me if I’m wrong) since he’s already the US Champion but I suppose it gives him something to do at Battleground.  Suffers a cheap loss to The Miz.  Is this a preview of the next feud for Sheamus?  I wouldn’t have pitted Sheamus against Miz but there could be worse feuds for both wrestlers.   
17. Bo Dallas vs Khali (19&N/A) – Bo was just trying to lift the spirits of Khali and what does he get?  A chop across the face.  Very disrespectful. Obviously Khali does not Bo-lieve in himself nor the inspiration that is Bo Dallas.  What’s funny is that Dallas could be the first eliminated from the IC Battle Royal or in the final group and the crowd will love it. 
    
18. Fandango (HM) – As much as I want to bury Fandango and the silliness of the Summer / Layla feud, you can’t forget that he can wrestle which he showed for a minute until his match with Ziggler was interrupted by said silliness.  Here’s a pic of a guy who knows his gimmick is going down faster than Laker’s fans hopes for a solid team in the coming years. 
    
19. Damien Sandow / Adam Rose (15&N/A) – Fred called it last week on the BEARcast -WrestleCast (www.worldofbear.com and on iTunes), Sandow is taking Santino’s place for character to do the live commercials (which I guess these commercials are a permanent thing now?).  Who gives a shit about Rose?  I’m more concerned that Sandow looks too comfortable in that Sonic outfit.  
    
20. Diva Match: N-Bella vs Cameron & Alicia Fox (HM) – In yet another handicap match… excuse me while I check my emails…

Honorable Mentions

Ric Flair – WHOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!  That wasn’t a whoooo for the Nature Boy but for the fact that he didn’t say or do anything too inappropriate.  Thankfully Renee Young handled the situation well.  At this point, a Flair cameo has the same awkward tension as when your drunk uncle starts to give a speech before Thanksgiving dinner. 

CM Punk – I rarely do this but I implore you to watch the CM Punk special, Best in the World, on the WWE Network.  It’s great.  Also, I can’t help but think this is another sign that the lines of communication between Punk and the WWE are open.  Hopefully we’ll see Punk back sooner than later.

STING – Maybe the best / most exciting / meaningful promo in wrestling history?  We now have official acknowledgment of Sting working with the WWE by having Sting as a playable character in this year’s WWE video game 2k15.  It’s safe to say that it is only a matter of time before we see Sting in a WWE ring.  How or when, listen to the BEARcast - WrestleCast (www.worldofbear.com and subscribe on iTunes) when Fred gives us the latest rumors.  

Side Note(s)

Look, I want the WWE Network to be a success but for god’s sake, The King is begging, literally begging, people to subscribe.  Have some respect for yourself WWE.

Is it just me or the new TMNT movie look really good?  Keep in mind, I was tricked already once this summer with the Transformers / Dinobots debacle, which was one of the worst movies I’ve ever seen, but maybe this time we’ll be pleasantly surprised?  

Until next time…