BEARcast 2018-01-17: WrestleCast w/ Fred “The Oracle”

BEARcast - WrestleCast 2018-01-17 with Fred "The Oracle"

We start off the WrestleCast with a Lakers fight!  The first 25 minutes gets heated when Fred and I discuss free agents which devolves into a Kobe vs Lebron argument.  Then we turn to RAW 25 and wrap up looking towards the Royal Rumble.  Enjoy.

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.

BEARcast 2017-11-29: WrestleCast LIVE Carpool Conversation

BEARcast - WrestleCast 2017-11-29 LIVE experiment

Join us for an experimental Carpool Conversation version of the BearCast.  We discuss all the RAW and SmackDown topics since Survivor Series and a look towards the future.  Then we swerve into NBA talk and finish off with some comic book movie discussions.  Enjoy.

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.

BEARcast 2017-11-15: WrestleCast w/ Fred “The Oracle”

BEARcast - WrestleCast 2017-11-15 with Fred "The Oracle"

Survivor Series is here, and so too are Fred and The Bear to break down all the matches.  We theorize, critique and fantasy book the “bastard PPV” (find out why we call it that).  Also, some NXT / War Games previews.  No filler, all wrestling on this week’s WrestleCast. Enjoy. 

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.

BEARcast - WrestleCast 11/18/2015

BEARcast - WrestleCast 2015-11-18 w/ Fred "The Oracle"

Freddy’s back!  The WrestleCast is whole and we cover all the recent activities leading up to this weekend’s Survivor Series.  Between the WHC tournament and The Bros. o’ Decomposition vs The Wyatt Wrecking Crew, we barely got to TND.  But we’re all just living in The New Day’s world so we found the time.  Enjoy.

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.

BEARcast - WrestleCast 11/04/2015

BEARcast - WrestleCast 2015-11-04 w/ Fred "The Oracle"

Neither cold, rain, snow or sickness can stop the WrestleCast!  Fred and I warm up your day by talking RAW, sports, media and the first steps towards Survivor Series.  Enjoy.

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

BEARcast - WrestleCast 09/23/2015

BEARcast - WrestleCast 2015-09-23 with Fred "The Oracle"

One of the most fun WrestleCast shows ever.  We start off with a new Game Show segment that’s sure to make you smile.  Then Fred and I turn our attention to last Sunday’s Night of Champions and this week’s RAW.  The BEAR provides the 5 major story threads and Fred breaks them all down.  Enjoy!

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

BEARcast - WrestleCast 07/29/2015

BEARcast - WrestleCast 2015-07-29 with Fred "The Oracle" and Dustin

The final, and most diverse, word on the Hulk Hogan situation.  Fred, Dustin and I discuss the Hogan mess but all things come to an end and we’re here to have fun.  At min 44 we switch back to rasslin’ fun time and review this week’s RAW and other events.  It’s well worth the extra few minutes.

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

BEARcast - WrestleCast 04/15/2015

BEARcast - WrestleCast 2015-04-15 with Fred "The Oracle"

Hello London, England!  This week’s WrestleCast flies by as we discuss RAW and all the various stipulations that each match at the upcoming Extreme Rules PPV will have.  Surprise, they’re not all Extreme Rules?!?!  Yeah, it does’t make sense to us either but the card is shaping up nicely.  And, The Bear slowly loses his mind as the Great Move of 2015 continues.  Enjoy.

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

BEARcast - WrestleCast 01/14/2015

BEARcast - WrestleCast 2015-01-14 with Fred "The Oracle"

Short and sweet this on this week’s WrestleCast.  With the Royal Rumble just two weeks away, we discuss all the latest news and rumors from Monday’s RAW.

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

BEARcast - WrestleCast 01/07/2015

BEARcast - WrestleCast 2015-01-07 with Fred "The Oracle"

Welcome to the first WrestleCast of 2015!!!  Fred and I catch up on all the news coming out of the last RAW of 2014 and the first RAW of the New Year, with a look ahead to the Royal Rumble.  It’s great to be back, please enjoy.  

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 01/07/2015

Coming at you from Corpus Christi, and welcome to the first RAW of 2015!  But really, this week’s RAW was just an extension of the final RAW of 2014, which oddly was one of the best RAW’s of 2014.  

Leave it to the WWE to bury one of the their best shows on a Monday that everyone in the world could foresee being the least watched.  Let’s not dwell on the negative.  We’ll chalk that up to all the other mistakes in 2014.  It’s 2015 so we’re going to be positive and look to the future because while the execution of how they delivered the storylines, the WWE pushed almost all their major players forward.

The power rankings will be quick this week because we’re starting the year off fresh but here are a few notes from the past few weeks.  Check out the BEARcast - WrestleCast (www.worldofbear.com and subscribe on iTunes) where we discuss all the goings on from the past two weeks.

Quickly, let’s recap what we learned over the past two RAW’s.  Again, lets not dwell on the execution (which was terrible) but rather, where we are now:

• Daniel Bryan is back and will be in the Royal Rumble.  You would have thought that this would be a big deal considering Bryan had one of the best starts to any year in 2014 but I guess it was only good enough to make note of on last week’s unwatched RAW versus the first RAW of the year which more fans would be watching?  What do I know…
• We have new Tag Champs, congrats to The Usos.
• Wade Barrett is back
• Christian has officially retired.  He and Edge (not my favorite duo but…) had a huge impact on the future of the WWE.  With their health and safety in peril, Cena attempted to save them by bringing back The Authority.
• The Authority is BACK!
• Rollins being the impetus of The Authority’s return, is now part of a triple-threat match for the WHC at Royal Rumble
• A new Total Divas season started and is still a miserable train wreck aside from one new addition which I’ll get to later.
• Randy Orton sightings (not just in Jameis Winston memes / GIFs) have been written about but we’ve not seen him on TV yet.  Is he the surprise comeback of this year’s Royal Rumble?
• The Ascension made their long awaited debut
• Eden “Stiles” took over announcing duties on Smackdown and temporarily on RAW (listen to the podcast for more details).  She’s hot so that’s the only reason I made note of this.  Beyond doing a fantastic job at selling Stardust, locking Eden down was Cody Rhodes greatest accomplishment of 2014.
• The opening of this week’s RAW was interesting to see who and where everyone was placed around John Cena.  There was a mysterious brother just to the right of Cena who for the life of me I could not name.  I challenge anyone to tell me who that was?  The correct answer can be heard on this week’s BEARcast as Fred solved the mystery.  
• I’m sure I’m missing others but…
• BOOKER T was filling in for The King which always brings joy to my life and at the same time turns Miriam Webster’s body in her grave like a roasting pig at a college football tailgating party.  Someone will have to explain to me why black people are not able to correctly pronounce the word “ambulance”.
• Also, listening to Cole try to stay PG and dance around the explanation of the Pot Brownie practical joke Paige pulled on Natalya was comical especially when in the next segment, Booker T just blurts out, “Ambrose shot his load early!”  Did I tell you how much I love Booker T’s announcing?!

2015 is going to be great!  

So with that, let’s get to the rankings as of this week’s RAW on 1/05/2015...

1. HHH and Stephanie – The Authority is back.  Don’t ask me how or why because it will only set me off on story telling 101 tangent.  The point is, they’re back and the WWE does need them.  Stephanie was one of, if not THE best mic workers in 2014 and started off 2015 as if she’s looking to repeat this year.  While HHH was having a hard time trying to get out all the words, what he was trying to say was very important.  They wasted no time making their return felt by firing all of Cena’s teammates from Survivor Series (other than the traitorous Big Show).  I’m sure by The Rumble, Ziggler / Ryback / Rowan will all be back fighting the good fight.  I’d be remiss if I didn’t continue my due diligence regarding being the WWE-fashion monitor, especially in light of the passing of the great Joan Rivers last year.  I love Stephanie.  I think she’s beautiful but she needs (and can afford) a stylist.  It’s as if she can only put together half a good outfit.  She had on a wonderful pair of fuck-me-boots but then destroyed her look with an ill fitting dress that made her look like she had feathers.  C-plus this week.  You can do better Steph, I know you can.   
   
2. Seth Rollins w/ Minions – For the sheer fact that he’s now part of the WHC, which is now a Triple Threat match.  At the moment he’s the top full-time heel.  Also, if he needs help from Kane and J&J just to beat Ryback, how is he supposed to win the WHC against Cena or Lesnar?
3. John Cena – Watching the old clips of Cena makes me wonder how I was ever a fan before.  I have much more appreciation of THIS Cena.  Am I joining Team Cena?  Maybe 2015 is the year I lose my mind?
   
4. Wade Barrett – Yes this is probably too high but he left as a solid IC champ and had to give up his belt.  He regained it in a very good match with Ziggler to start off 2015.  While there could have been more creative ways to put the strap on him (as there could have been more creative ways to bring back The Authority) what’s done is done and he needed it more than Ziggler at this point in time.
   
5. Dolph Ziggler – With the status of his hair, he’s giving me Ric Flair (sans blood) flashbacks.  Once Ziggler lost the IC belt the first time and went on to become the star of Survivor Series, there was no need for him to regain the IC belt.  The match with BnB was a great way to start 2015 and even though he’s “fired” I expect big things.
6. Paige – I’ve got a new crush.  She’s been great in and out of the ring.  She was the only thing interesting on Total Divas.  I’m falling in love with her fun-loving youthful personality that doesn’t seem like every step she takes is methodically planned out.
   
    
7. Miz and Damien Miz-dow w/ Alicia Fox – I forgot how much I missed these guys over the holidays.  I may have checked out Miz and Maryse’s Instagram pics from their holiday party and while I’m not one for the old KayFabe rules, Miz-dow was not at the party and it was a complete disappointment.  Until their eventual feud culminates in the curtain jerker at WM31, Miz and Miz-dow should sleep, breath and eat this gimmick 24/7.  It’s only for four more months, is that too much to ask?
8. Bray Wyatt – We’re still sticking with this feud?  I love both these guys but haven’t we seen all there is between these two?  With back-2-back Sister Abigails, Wyatt beat Ambrose, again.  
   
9. Dean Ambrose – Let me answer some of Booker T’s in depth questions.  Yes, those are tables in the ambulance.  Yes, those are chairs in the ambulance.  AND yes, Dean Ambrose was going to leap from the top of the ambulance.   Why the fuck do you think there was a dedicated camera planted on top of the ambulance, solely to capture Ambrose’s leap so that we can see it over and over again in upcoming previews of how crazy he is.   
10. The Usos w/ Naomi – They’ve got their mean streak, they’re still over as a face tag team, they again hold the Tag Team straps, Naomi got herself off the train wreck that is Total Divas and is proving that she’s going to be one of the top in-ring Divas.  Life is good for The Usos and The Usos Fans.   
11. Roman Reigns – You know how you can tell Michael Cole is a true professional?  He didn’t even flinch or stammer when he had to say, “This is the next chapter in the Big Show / Reigns feud.”  There would be no way those words could come out of my mouth without laughing, stuttering, calling bullshit or choking myself with my own tongue.  The only feud more tiresome than the Wyatt / Ambrose feud is Big Show / Reigns but at least Wyatt and Ambrose can put on a decent match.  Lastly, for all the people that knock Reigns for his lack of mic skills, I’ll again have you look at the Angle / Cena promo from when Cena first debuted.  It was awful too but now look at where Cena’s at.  Hell, the same can be said for all the greats from HBK to SCSA to The Rock to Bret Hart… well maybe not Bret Hart (shhhhh, don’t tell Fred I said that… www.worldofbear.com )
12. Big E w/ The New Day – This is more about potential.  They desperately need to pull a heel turn to make this gimmick work.  If not, they won’t be around past WM31.
13. The Ascension – They should have laid waste to the old school jobbers* first, and then give their blasphemous promo that so desperately tried to put distance between them and being Road Warriors 2.0.  But would being this generation’s Road Warriors be the worst thing?  It would be a hell of a lot better than crowd killers.  Their promo just about put the good people of Corpus Christi into a coma.
    
14. Rusev w/ Lana – So I got a ton of grief leaving Rusev off the Top 20 of 2014 but based on their repetitive and boring promo, I think I was more than justified.  For someone who has the US Championship, an undefeated streak, the Russian Gold Star and a first class side-piece; you’re telling me Jack-fucking-Swagger-round-3 is what we can look forward to?
15. Natalya sans Tyson Kidd – Pleasantly surprised by the match she had with N-Bella, her current gimmick (or non gimmick) with Tyson Kidd and performance with Paige on RAW and Total Divas.  There’s something very nerdy but very enduring about Natalya.  Add in that she always puts on a solid match, she could have a very good 2015.
16. N-Bella w/ B-Bella – If I am surprised by Natalya, The Bellas have been a shock.  They’re not great at any one thing but overall, they’ve been very solid these last few months in everything they’ve done.  I’m not ready to give them Paige, AJ Lee or even Natalya / Alicia Fox credit yet but they both have a distinct style and have stepped up their game from previous years.
    
     
17. Adam Rose / Cesaro / Tyson Kidd – 1) I love the idea of Adam Rose being the Rosebud deity / overload.  “When I say dance, you dance!”  It’s weird but better than a poor-man’s Russell Brand.  2) Cesaro and Kidd are both extremely talented and need something, ANYTHING!  If this partnership gives them a push, I’m all for it.   
18. Luke Harper vs Erick Rowan – We all saw this one coming once The Wyatt Family dissolved but what the fuck is the deal with J&J getting involved.  I’m all for a fun time and some goofiness but this was a classic case of over-booking.  Is Harper with The Authority?  Is this just an act against Rowan by The Authority due to his ties with Cena?  If they were going to have fun, do it elsewhere.  This is just making a mess of a potentially good feud.
19. Big Show – This feud with Reigns can’t end soon enough.  
20. Ryback – Gobbling up negativity like Adderall, horse testosterone, HGH and any other P.E.D. he can get his hands on.  Maybe I watched too many jail shows on MSNBC and CNBC over the holidays but Ryback looks like a convict strait out the yard who could only get a job with a moving company while on parole. 

Honorable Mentions

Korporate Kane – Old man Kane inserted himself into most of the segments.  Later that night he had to hurry home before the neighborhood kids TP’d his house and he could yell at them to “get off his lawn.”

Alicia Fox / Naomi – I feel so uncomfortable with this.  I was squinting through the whole segment which ended with the other Divas getting involved.  The WWE will never truly breakthrough with the Divas division if the only personas are sultry vixen or crazy bitch.   

Jobbers in Blue – I can’t remember the last time we’ve seen actual jobbers.  It took me back to my youth, watching Saturday morning wrestling.  Special props to whomever these guys are but I give them credit because The Ascension could have easily destroyed the likes of Heath Slater and Zack “Broski” Ryder.  

Until next week…

WK

@wkbear

WWE Power Rankings, RAW 11/10/2014

Coming at you from Liverpool, and thank god for a fabulous crown on Monday because the show was garbage.  I halfheartedly joked that we have been sending horrible NFL games to London and new we were going to send a horrible WWE show.  I only wish it had been a joke instead of an accurate psychic premonition.     

"Listen up, Dummy!"

Usually the WWE gives the UK some quality shows but not this time.  Monday saw the WWE send a Jacksonville Jaguars-esque sized crap to the UK as if it were 1783 and the USA was rubbing England’s nose in our newly won independence.  I fell asleep Monday night about an hour into the show.  I thought, maybe I was tired and needed fresh eyes to finish the show.  Nope.  Save for a few good promos and a handful of decent wrestling moves, this show was terrible.  

I do believe that it has everything to do with the fact that the main event for Survivor Series has got to be the worst Main Event for a PPV this year.  Maybe the WWE knew TEAM Cena vs TEAM Authority was going to be a visual Ambien and if they didn’t give November and it’s PPV away for free, the fans would revolt.

As my partner in crime, Fred, has said on the BEARcast - WrestleCast (www.worldofbear.com and on iTunes) the WWE is desperate to get subscribers of the WWE Network up and / or the WWE is under pressure from broadcasters and shareholders to increase its profits / value / ratings / etc.  If this is the case, I’m baffled on the choices the WWE is making with their on-screen product in order to improve their product and increase revenues.  

Well, it’s official, it looks like we’re going to have a full fledged, fully produced, “previously on RAW…”  This is a waste of time when you have three hours to tell your story.  Also, since you have multiple storylines it would be more effective to work the “previously on…” into each new segment.  Basically just do what wrestling has been doing for the past 50 years.  Audiences where able to follow what was happening when wrestling was still territorial and had no national TV show.  

Here are the 4 notes you’ll need when listening to the BEARcast - WrestleCast this week (www.worldofbear.com or on iTunes):

-Which team is Ryback on and is he a HEEL or FACE?

-Team Authority: 1-Rollins, 2-Kane, 3-Rusev, 4-Henry and Ryback???  Luke Harper = 5?

-Team Cena: 1-Cena, 2-Ziggler, 3-Big Show, 4-Sheamus and Ryback???  Surprise #5?

-RKO out “indefinitely”?

So with that, let’s get to the rankings as of this week’s RAW on 11/10/2014...

1. Miz and Damien Miz-dow w/ Mini-Miz (3) – The best thing the WWE is putting out on a weekly basis.  They actually made a match with the Matadors and Bull-ito enjoyable to watch.  Hands down my favorite gimmick and from the fans reaction, I’m not alone.
   
2. Paige (N/A) – Paige and Alicia put on the best match of the night.  It’s a knock to the rest of the roster not because it was a Divas match but because it was so short and the ratio of men to women so huge that the numbers would suggest that the male Superstars should always have the best match.  Not on Monday.  Congrats to Paige and Alicia for putting on the best pure wrestling match.  Also, Paige’s semi-homecoming was great.
   
3. Alicia Fox (N/A) – Fox is great.  Sometimes I argue against the over-the-top hysterics but she can wrestle. 
4. Seth Rollins w/ Minions (Mercury and Noble) (1) – Rollins is not the problem with this Survivor Series mess.  He continues to put on good matches and does whatever is asked of him to the best of his abilities, which are sky high. 
5. Sheamus (9) – He was never a good fit as US Champ but it gave him a push for a minute.  He no longer needs the belt, he no longer has the belt but he’s still toiling with Rusev which he’ll hopefully move on from ASAP.
6. John Cena (HM) – I may not give two shits about this run.  Even if I did, said two shits wouldn’t amount to much because even with a Win, what happens to Cena, the Authority and the WWE?  (shhhhh, I’ll tell you a secret… NOTHING)
   
7. HHH and Stephanie (6) – Yes, yes, I know I’ve spent most of this article bashing the WWE Creative, but when it comes to the characters of HHH and Stephanie, I really like them and what they do.  Chalk this up to my descent into madness and example one of why I should be locked away in the looney bin.
8. AJ Lee (15) – Is it too early to give AJ’s championship run a eulogy?  Here’s what’s going to happen; AJ will drop the belt to N-Bella (or possibly B-Bella on a twist, a term I use loosely) which will lead to a multiple months long feud between the Bellas and ultimately to Bella vs Bella at WM.  If I believed in a god, I’d be praying that the WWE would let the Bellas do their thing on one side of the company and let the good Diva wrestlers still have time to shine.  AJ, Paige, Fox, Emma, Natalya, Layla, Naomi and Summer are all very capable and exciting wrestlers which I’d much rather see than half the male performers.  With one caveat, give their writing and stories the same attention you’d give to the male wrestlers.  Their talents will be wasted if every female storyline is either centered around “fake friends” or “the crazy lady” trope.
9. Dolph Ziggler – (7) It seems like once we get past Survivor Series, Zigglers next feud will be with Harper?  I’m interested.  Let’s see how this plays out.
10. Dean Ambrose (5) – Ambrose and Wyatt don’t need the push that being on Team Cena or Team Authority would provide.  I just want to see them go at it.
11. Bray Wyatt (10) – So what if Wyatt doesn’t make any sense or having him out crazy Ambrose undermines Ambrose’s gimmick.  I just want to see them wrestle.  It should be great. 
12. Rusev w/ Lana (11) – Y’all know how I feel about Lana.  And if the WWE ran with just one of the many scenarios Fred has brought up on the BEARcast - WrestleCast (www.worldofbear.com), I’d be fine.  But they’re not so I’ll just have to keep jerking off to Lana until they do something interesting with Rusev’s character.  BTW, having Ryback be the face that stops Rusev is a HORRIBLE idea.
13. Adam Rose w/ The Bunny (N/A) – I’m only interested in this if Samy Zane turns out to be The Bunny and we get a heel Rose vs face Zane which should provide great matches.
    
14. Tyson Kid sans Natalya (HM) – I had to fill up 20 slots and “TeeJay” did his job.
15. Ryback (14) – I know I’m in the minority but I can’t stand Ryback.  Listen to the BEARcast - WrestleCast (www.worldofbear.com) for my complete rant on this.  Bottomline, he sucks.  Feel free to try to explain otherwise.  I’m all ears.
16. Mark Henry (12) – Slow and boring part 1.
17. Big Show (12) – Slow and boring part 2.
18. Jack Swagger (N/A) – They’re in the UK.  The GOP destroyed the Democrats in last week’s election.  Name me a better time for a classic Zeb rant?  What’s the point of him being there if not to do a Tea Party rant?
19. Los Matadors w/ El “Dorito” (19) – Only the greatness of Miz and Miz-dow made these two clowns somewhat entertaining.  With their huge win last Tuesday, how soon can the Republicans pass anti-immigration laws that would prevent these three from coming back into the USA?  If they could pull that off, I’ll switch over to the GOP party tomorrow.  
    
20. B-Bella on behalf of N-Bella (20) – Garbage.  But as I said in the AJ Lee breakdown, I full expect one of them to win the title and then continue to feud to a WM Bella vs Bella Divas title match.  (gun in mouth, cock hammer, pull triggg……BAM!)

Honorable Mentions

Xavier Woods and Kofi Kingston – The Hardest Working Man in Wrestling, A new day is coming… (times 2).  We went from Corporate Nation to the New Baptist Church of the Holy Cross Body.  Now Big E’s “preacher” shoot makes sense.  He’ll be the third part of this Holy Trinity.  This will either be the face version of the Wyatt’s gimmick or an offensive mess.  

ECW Week – That’s worth 9.99 (or free this week)

Exo-Dan – In a cross promotion with US military technology the WWE, Dan Rose used / showed off a cool new exoskeleton suit that will surely be the future.  The only question is, how badly do I need to wound myself before being eligible to get one of these?

Grumpy Cat – How low is RAW going to get?  Is this really how you get viewers?  As I say this, my girlfriend is asking, “Can you just save the Grumpy Cat part to show me, I don’t need to watch the whole show.”  The key to all media is PUSSY: 1) hot chicks or 2) cat videos.  This is what propels 97% of the internet.  

Side Note(s)

Well, it’s official, it looks like we’re going to have a full fledged, fully produced, “previously on RAW…”  This is a waste of time when you have three hours to tell your story.  Also, since you have multiple storylines it would be more effective to work the “previously on…” into each new segment.  Basically just do what wrestling has been doing for the past 50 years.  Audiences where able to follow what was happening when wrestling was still territorial and had no national TV show.

Until next week…

WWE Power Rankings, RAW 5/19/2014

Coming at you from London, and both the WWE and myself made trips home to visit our “parents”.  While the WWE went to visit London, I found myself in the old hippie mountain community of Idyllwild.  My parents decided not to retire in the metropolis that they’ve lived in for the past 60+ years (and where I live) but instead have chosen to grow old and die in some remote artsy-nudist colony in the woods 6000 feet above sea level.  Like the WWE, I sucked it up and traveled to their home to entertain them for a few days and to make sure they know we still love them.

Back to the WWE’s return to the British Isles.  You’ll find I use the term “British Isles” a lot because I don’t know crap about the geography of England and the surrounding countries that make up the ancient lands were our forefathers descended from.  Most of what I know stems from movies and television shows.  As far as I know, Doctor Who is still fighting William Wallace over same sex marriage rights of the Merry Men of Sherwood Forest and Brad Pitt is the reigning underground fight champion.

WWE is on a European vacation and like the Griswolds, they’ve been a bit lost for the past few weeks but have started to find their way back on track.  Letting wrestlers wrestle, fleshing out the Shield / Evolution feud, using the Beat the Clock gimmick to give the mid-carders something to do (albeit a lame gimmick and resulting in subpar matches, it gave screen time to a handful of wrestlers) and some other positive moves that we’ll get into on the countdown.  

The greatest help for any WWE show is a smart and hot crowd.  When the WWE travels, the crowds are almost always filled with marks because this might be the only chance all year that the hardcore fan gets an opportunity to see a live show.  The diehards flock to the shows and you’ll usually get a crowd similar to the night-after-WM RAW audience.   Also, the fans tend to be regional which means that Sheamus, Paige and Barrett will get huge pops.  

The other point of business that must be addressed is, what’s going to happen with Bryan and the WWE Heavyweight Championship?  A poll I put up on www.ringsidenews.com resulted with a King of the Ring-style tournament as being the voters top choice.  I couldn’t agree more because on the BEARcast - WrestleCast (which can be found on iTunes or www.worldofbear.com) two of the fantasy bookings I push for most are a new Corporate Nation and a new version of The King of the Ring.  We got very few details from Stephanie but it seems like next week’s RAW will shed more light on to what is going on with Bryan and the Championship.  The WWE is very lucky that Kane is Bryan’s current opponent and he 1) wasn’t a real contender to win and 2) is such an established wrestler, didn’t have much else going on and near retirement that his character could essentially be put on pause.  Could you imagine what would have happened if say Bray Wyatt was set for a huge match with Daniel Bryan at Payback?  The WWE got very lucky.  Or it shows how poorly the main WWE championship picture is, that we don’t really care? 

So with that, let’s get to the rankings as of this week’s RAW on 5/19/2014…

1. Bray and The Wyatt Family (3) – Last week The Shield tried to pull off a “cold open” but it didn’t have a great impact on the viewers at home.  I know I’m nitpicking but The Shield’s entrance works much better when they’re music hits and they come down through the crowd.  The Wyatts, on the other hand, are perfectly suited to start off in a blacked out arena, siting in the center of the ring.  It took a trip across the pond (or at least an audience full of marks) to get the Wyatt Army in full swing.  I know the WWE doesn’t want Bray and The Wyatts to be faces but if you’re going to blackout the entire arena and have everyone use their cell phones like lighters at a Lynyrd Skynyrd during Freebird, you’re going to get some face heat.  BUT, that doesn’t mean they couldn’t play the “bad-face” card.  It’s a difficult task, and recent WWE writing doesn’t inspire great confidence that they can pull it off, but NWO did it.  DX did it.  Even Ziggler did it when he was WWE Champ with AJ and Big E at his side (god forbid the WWE remembers that).  It can be done.  This week’s RAW also proved that you don’t always need to push the theatrics.  Maybe the WWE and Wyatts have earned the fan equity, to which the Wyatts have built-in the darkness to their character, using simple lighting and a dark arena with the fan’s lights was a better effect than herding in 100 kids with sheep masks to surround the ring.  Let’s not skip over Harper, who has been showing a lot of promise.  Right as I was thinking this was a pretty good brawler match, Harper pulled off a flurry of high-flying agility moves.  To finish the match, Bray whipped out some of the fastest Sister Abigails ever seen.  As far as RAW endings, going out with Bray singing, Harper counting down and Cena laid out for a 10-count, this was excellent.  Too bad Payback isn’t this Sunday.  We’ll be running this same thing back next week.  Finally, can we call Harper’s power move a “Moonshine Driver” instead of Michinoku? 
   
2. John Cena w/ the Usos (2) – If you listen to the BEARcast - WrestleCast (cheap plug for www.worldofbear.com) you’ll know that Fred “The Oracle” got his wish for the crowd to start singing “John Cena sucks…” in rhythm to Cena’s theme song.  We learned that the Bray / Cena match at Payback will be a Last Man Standing match.  Initially this sounds like a good match but then it hit me that Bray will win via help from Harper and Rowan, which will mean this feud will continue and not end at Payback.  Bray needs to move past Cena.  Ironically, Cena is benefiting more from this feud than Bray is.  Bray’s hot and could challenge for gold or go against anyone.  Where does Cena go after this Wyatt run?  If Cena looses at Payback, this feud will be tied at 1-1 and will continue to the next PPV.  Don’t tell me this lasts until SummerSlam?!?!
   
3. Rollins w/ Shield (1) – The Shield do what they do best, a backstage / bowels of the arena shoot.  Dean Ambrose clearly steals my slurred / stoned vocal delivery (which can be found on the BEARcast at www.worldofbear.com) but imitation is the greatest form of flattery, so I’m honored.  The week wouldn’t be complete if Rollins didn’t steal the show with an awesome move.  I’ve never seen someone sell an elbow or clothesline like Rollins did.  Even guys like Ziggler will flip and make it look like their heads are being taken off but Rollins looked like a dead body flipping around.  It was so amazing that the WWE showed it three times.  I can’t imagine The Shield loosing at Payback but this is wrestling and with the elimination stipulation for the rematch, who knows?  This only makes sense if The Shield wins and Evolution puts them over as faces and during the match, Evolution are the ones who experience some sort of inner turmoil.  (fingers crossed)  
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
4. Batista w/ Evolution (4) – HHH as Guest Announcer and RKO as Guest Time Keeper?  It’s good to be the King of Kings.  This goes to show Boo-tista has the ability to put on quality matches.  Yes, this was filled with interference but Batista and Rollins were good.  The whole match could have been a clusterfuck but it turned out to be really fun and I enjoyed the ending.  It’s fascinating that Evolution was / is supposed to put The Shield over but with their quality mic work and their in-ring excellence, The Shield is helping make Evolution better heels.  Assuming Batista is taking some time off to promote Guardians of the Galaxy, and the elimination / no holds barred stipulations of their match at Payback, I’m guessing we see dissension between Evolution members.  Maybe this time Evolution will turn on Batista versus last time when Evolution turned on RKO?  I’ll give the WWE this, they know how to frame a good camera shot.
   
5. Cesaro w/ advocate Paul Heyman (N/A) – Once again, Heyman is the show stealer.  Only Heyman can piss everyone off everyone by insulting a country’s octogenarian queen and at the same time fight the crowd from chanting with him.  Most wrestling performers die for crowd heat, Heyman plays with it like David Blaine and a deck of cards.  I know the belt’s names don’t really mean anything but is it wrong of me to think that at least one participant in a US Championship match should be, you know, from the United States?  I have the same beliefs with the IC strap.  Ireland’s Sheamus took on the Swiss Superman Cesaro?  The only thing more disturbing than two foreigners battling for the US belt was the way Cesaro started to hump Sheamus like a dog in heat during their lockups.  As you can tell, I’m complaining just to complain.  Cesaro and Heyman are great.  I’ll even look past the cheap win due to Heyman’s distraction.  While I might not agree with the intercontinental participants in the US championship, it will bring out the best in Cesaro trying to win the belt and has clearly helped raise the quality in Sheamus’s matches.  
   
6. Sheamus (11) – He’s going to get a semi-pop for being from the British Isles but he’s still an Irishman.  Every movie, from Braveheart to Rob Roy to Hunger and every Robin Hood incarnation, tells me that the British, Irish and Scottish don’t like each other.  But I supposed it’s similar to being a fan of the Dodgers / Angels or Lakers / Clippers, except without all the bloodshed and war, of course.  My loyalties lie with the Dodgers and Lakers but if they’re not in the playoffs, I’ll root for the Angels or Clippers.  I always figure most of the world lines up against the Swiss.  You can never trust the Swiss and their pacifism.  “Oh, we’re neutral.  Keep us out of any wars.  Feel free to deposit your Nazi money in our banks.”  Pick a side, you spineless bastards!  Up until the cheap loss, the Sheamus / Cesaro match was really good.  The past few weeks Sheamus has put on good segments.  I’m down to see where this feud goes.
   
7. Stephanie McMahon (15) – As the WWE fashion expert, I give her a B- for tonight’s outfit.  She is a master on the mic but it’s the subtle things she does that makes her so good.  Hopping around, mimicking Daniel Bryan’s entrance is a piece of art.  Stephanie is able to shoot and further the story without telling us anything.  Think about the job she had to do.  Nothing was going to happen, assumedly because the WWE still doesn’t know the exact timeframe for Bryan’s return, but Stephanie needed to address the situation, give the audience a Bryan surgery update and then push the storyline to next week.  She offered up options which was the best part of her shoot.  It was great to hear the fans’ reaction to each solution and wrestler she offered up as champion.  In the end, nothing happened and we need to tune in next week to see if Bryan will show up and / or see what The Authority will do with the WWE championship.  Great bit of business of turning something out of nothing.
   
8. Rob Van Dam (12) – RVD vs ADR in the BtC contest.  The acronym match of the night.  The good news was that the match wasn’t going to go longer than the previous match-time set at 5:02.  The bad news was that, out of all the BtC participants, RVD and ADR are two wrestlers that I would have liked to see a normal contest between.  RVD won and set the new BtC time at 4:15.  Not only did RVD take over Big E’s best time but also took over his spot watching the RAW feed.  Doesn’t it feel like RVD looked a bit bewildered at Big E’s post?  “Dude, so, you’re telling me whatever I see on this screen is what’s going on in the ring behind me?  Whaaaoooo.  Mind blown!” 
   
9. Alberto Del Rio (N/A) – Because I’m picking apart every little thing done on RAW, sometimes it feels like I’m watching the Zapruder film for three hours each Monday night.  Looking for clues to what the future holds.  I’d tell you that the future is a world that depends on role models like ADR to guide the children of the world.  To lead them into the light and to follow him to a better tomorrow.  Basically, he’s sticking around and his new character arc will harken back to one of his original themes, as the hero the WWE Universe needs.  This could be the start of his next big push OR nothing at all and I’m way too into Monday nights.  ADR does do a mean Bobby DeNiro.
   
10. Alicia Fox (10) – I hate to work a little blue, but I have to be honest with what I see, we had a bit of a Fox-camel-toe issue to start the match.  Putting my perversions aside, this was a much anticipated match.  Unfortunately it fell a little short compared to Alicia and Paige’s previous match-ups.  This time, it was clear why Alicia snapped and had a tantrum after the match.  She got the clean win and didn’t win the championship.  It was funny watching Alicia checking the cups to find the one that had soda vs beer.  I guess pouring beer on oneself is obscene but a kid’s soda is PG acceptable?  I’ll never understand censorship.
    
     
11. Paige (9) – Paige got the home country pop.  I live by the theory that you can’t have more than two weeks in a row of quality Diva matches.  This week proved that theory.  Paige and Alica didn’t have a horrible match but nothing compared to their previous two.  It was a bit shocking to see Paige lose in front of her home crowd.  But because this wasn’t a sanctioned “Divas Championship Title Match” it meant nothing.  It came off flat because; 1) Paige lost in front of her home crowd and 2) The loss was meaningless because the title wasn’t on the line so it didn’t matter that she lost, Paige is still the champ.  This is where I get to claim that these clean losses by champions but  no title changes hands are bullshit.  I understand the Diva roster might be thin but how many times do Paige and Alicia Fox need to fight before the match actually counts?
    
12. Dolph Ziggler (6) – My excitement to hearing Ziggler’s music hit was muted by the fact that there was no way Ziggler was beating Henry, let alone in less than 4:15.  Ziggler has gotten more run lately and continues to be his awesome self.  He damn near beat Henry in an exciting match.  I don’t want to see a prolonged feud between the two but I’d be more than happy to see Ziggler vs Henry one more time without the clock running to see how that match would end.  It shouldn’t last too much longer.  Part of the beauty of that match was that Ziggler needed to out-quick Henry’s power in order to beat him.  
    
13. Mark Henry (N/A) – Fought Ziggler in the BtC and while neither of them won, both got screen time and as we’ve discussed, being on RAW is one step closer to having a meaningful run.  I don’t expecting Henry and Ziggler to continue fighting each other but they did put on a surprisingly strong match.  The contrast in styles was interesting.  There’s been a lot of rumblings about a new Nation starting.  I’m told TNA is doing something similar with MVP?  Unfortunately it’s happening on TNA and well, “If a tree falls in the woods…”  All I know is that when the new Corporate Nation takes place, I want to be on record of calling it.  It’s so obvious and would be perfect.  Henry could be the leader.  He’s perfect to tie in the previous incarnation and the new one. 
14. #BadNewsBarrett (N/A) – You knew Barrett was going to get the hometown crowd and cheap pop.  It would have been nice to see him in a match before 20,000 of his countrymen and women but I guess that’s too much to ask of the WWE?  Instead we get three BtC matches to decide who will challenge Barrett for his IC belt.  Not to beat a dead horse, but you’ve got an English IC champ in London and on your flagship television program he barely makes an appearance.  What a splendid use of an asset…  
    
15. Big E (17) – Thank you Mr. E for putting us out of our collective misery by finishing off Ryback in 5:02.  Last week I heralded a Big E vs Rusev match to find out which big man with similar styles would prevail.  You’d think that Ryback would fit into that same mold but he don’t.  Can we please have a story where Big E isn’t watching RAW from backstage?  Now it’s just getting creepy.  Big E has used up all his backstage-monitor-watching privileges for 2014.   
    
16. Alexander Rusev w/ Lana (16) – I felt sorry for the UK fans.  Cheer for the hated Russian or the mockery that is the Union Jacks.  Was it not bad enough that 5 Seconds of Summer were compared to the Beatles on Sunday night’s Billboard Music Awards?  What, you know nothing of this because no one watches the BBMA?  I guess I really am a shut-in who watches too much TV.  The only two people truly benefiting from the escalating tensions between the US and it’s allies against Russia are Rusev and Lana.  But as I mentioned last week, how far do they take this if the hostilities get really bad?  With help of Photoshop and a few flag switches, Rusev continued to get some hot heel heat.  Lana has turned into my second favorite manager behind Heyman.  Way behind, she’s still a valet while Heyman is an Advocate.
    
17. Adam Rose vs Jack Swagger w/ Zeb (13&14) – Rose is from Australia but to our uncivilized American ears, he sounds like he’s British.  Close enough, right?  I’m still not totally sold on the gimmick and it will depend on his in-ring skills.  If he does get over he needs to give a portion of his check to Zeb.  Zeb has been a great foil for Mr. Rose.  Payback can’t come soon enough so that we can see Rose in action vs Swagger.  Feuding with Rose is like going to the Halloween costume party from Karate Kid and Swagger’s new “Big Hoss” workout jacket makes him look like the teacher from Cobra Kai.  That should be Swagger’s new gimmick and Zeb can play the über master from Karate Kid part 3.  This is all fun and games.  We’ll see how this little feud plays out and then both Rose and Swagger will be challenged to keep any kind of heat moving on to real opponents.
    
18. Ryback w/ Curtis Axel (20) – “The Big Guy” not only is a horrible name but Ryback also gave us a horrible shoot to set up the Big E / Ryback match.  I delt like I was hit with a tranquilizer dart and it was a race against time to see if I could stay awake through the end of the match.  That’s the true Beat the Clock aspect of their match.  Why does it bother me so much when Ryback starts pounding on his chest like a guerrilla?  Fuck it, just keep doing it for as long as possible.  Thump away for 30 seconds.  Win me over by taking it to the extreme.  I do find Ryback slightly less annoying than Axel, so maybe it’s Curtis Axel that’s the real issue for this tag team?  My time is too valuable to waste thinking about this, so….
    
19. Fandango w/ Layla (18) – Layla is British born?  I thought she was Mexican?  Not to get too geopolitical but Layla is an example of the future of the human race where everyone is just some shade of brown with exotic features.  Not even the stringent of racist could complain about more Laylas in the world.  What I can complain about…talk about poorly worded transitions…is that we didn’t get a good cat fight last week, well the WWE must have been listening because we got one with the returning Summer Rae returning to reclaim her man meat.  Who knows where this is going but once again, it’s a storyline and the last few times we saw Summer, she was putting on some above average Diva matches.  I’m refrain from any rulings until I see more.
    
20. The Union Jacks aka 3MB (N/A) – Heath Slater got slaughtered by Rusev.  Thank you Mother Russia.  While I admire 3MB for being on the KCC crew, I still can’t stand their gimmick.  The only time in the last few years that I’ve found them even slightly acceptable has been when they take on the persona of the city that they are in.  In London, they become The Union Jacks.  When they were in Nashville, they were something else.  If they want to gain favor and be more than nameless jobbers, be creative.  They could still lose each week, but at least lose with flair and get a cheap pop from the crowd.
    

Honorable Mentions

German Announce table – I guess, the German announce table is Europe’s version of our Spanish announce table.  The German announce team looks exactly as I would have pictured them in my mind.  So white, so joyous, so dorky.

Beat the Clock Challenge – Themed events / promotions such as tournaments and Beat the Clock are great tools to give large groups of characters something to do without any backstory.  I hope WWE Creative doesn’t rely too much on cheap gimmicks like these instead of working out fully fleshed out stories.  In the meantime, I’ll take the cheap gimmick over nothing.  The drawback with Beat the Clock is that when you’ve got a boring match (I’m talking to you Ryback), the clock only makes things worse.  The big clock in the corner tells me, “I’ve been watching this crap for 5 minutes?”

Bo-lieve – He’s making his debut this Friday on Smackdown.  Is it enough to get me to watch SmackDown?  I doubt it.  That’s what YouTube and the WWE Network are for.  

R-Truth w/ The Funkadactyls – Well, they got to rap…kinda?

Side Note(s)

Wolfenstein: The New Order is yet another video game that looks awesome but shows how old I am.  Who doesn’t want to kill robot Nazis on the moon?  Like TitanFall a few months ago, there’s no way I can keep up with these kids online.  It also makes me feel old because I remember playing the original Castle Wolfenstein back in computer lab in middle school.  It was the first FPS that I ever played and was addicted to it every recess for a full semester.  That was about 20 years ago.  Shit, I’m fucking old.

Until next time…