Topic: Wrestling Fans Unite!

I'm mixed on tonight:

JR back = awesome, but if they go back to a 3-man team next week with bickering-Cole it will drive me nuts.

Keith Stone + Divas = awesome, but then we get an atrocious botch-fest of a divas match, without the Bellas and with lame Kelly "maybe if i yell real loud when i try to do moves no one will notice how horrible i am" Kelly. Also, humans are not supposed to be orange.

Zack Ryder on RAW = awesome, but they put him in a 10-second throw-away match/segment with Cole, where Cole got more close-ups.

CM Punk shows up = awesome, but i really think they're pulling the trigger way too soon on the champ vs champ thing. Should have let it build for a while longer. We'll see how they're going to play this one out, though.

Honestly, even though it would have been somewhat predictable, i would have preferred that they went the route with Alberto cashing in after Rey won, then giving him a run with the title for a while to freshen things up. But no, we're back to Cena as champ.

Meh.

I was pist that Cena won the title back but Punk returning saved it from being a terrible ending.

I have to say I was taken by surprise with that ending I was expecting Alberto Del Rio to come running out not CM Punk. I have to say I like his new entrance song too. I too also like the fact that they brought good ole JR back too that was a surprise as well. As for the Zach Ryder/Michael Cole fight what a waste. They use someone like Zack Ryder for a stupid squash match but they give Rey Myestrio and John Cena the title for the umpteenth time.

Oh well I am kinda interested to see whats going to unfold between Cena and Punk.

I do have to admit the Rey and Cena match was pretty good even if I didn't like that Cena won. I also thought it was going to end up being Del Rio when all was said and done. JR being back is awesome he makes everything better.

Bill Simmons and WWE champ CM Punk discuss SummerSlam and all of the different angles in the WWE right now.

http://www.grantland.com/podcasts#

Good stuff.

I don't believe a thing CM Punk says in these type of interviews anymore, but it sure is fun to listen to and that's the way it should be.

Just picked up tickets for August 9ths Smackdown. I hope it will be a good show.

@Tasuki: Awesome dude! Hope you have fun

Thanks I dont know if its me but no matter how bad the show is its still a blast to go to the live event. Last time I went to a WWE show here is The Great American Bash 09.

I feel the same way man. I've been to a Raw house show and Live Raw on TV and they have both been great. I hope a PPV comes around close by sometime soon.

@Y2Josh: Yeah I have to say when I went to the American Bash that was by far the best live WWE experience I have ever had. They had Rev Theroy the band that does Randy Orton's theme song and Adilitas Way do free concerts before the PPV it was sweet.

I was thinking about it, and I really think we're going to see John Cena turn heel soon. Makes too much sense at this point, and it'd give new life to what's become a stagnate character. At Raw, when he and CM Punk held their respective WWE Titles up, did you hear how much louder the cheers were for Punk? Not quite like Chicago, but the crowd was clearly on Punk's side.

I can see a scenario at Summer Slam much like one about 16 years earlier in another championship match for the then-WWF Title. It was WWF Champion Kevin Nash (then Diesel) defending against Bret Hart. May've been at Summer Slam, or Survivor Series. I don't remember. Both of them were adored faces at the time. In the end, Hart won by tricking Nash into thinking he was more hurt than he was when he went to deliver his Jackknife Powerbomb. When Kev showed sympathy and concerned for his injured friend, Bret got a surprise small package on him and got the three count. Afterward, in his anger, Nash snapped. Beat the holy Hell out of Bret and a ton of poor referees that came to ring to break it up. I can see Punk winning in similar fashion at Summer Slam, tricking Cena somehow and getting the win. It may be out of character for Cena to snap like Nash did on the spot. But, I could see it the next night on Raw, perhaps going out to shake Punk's hand in congratulations on a great match, and brutally attacking him to the crowd's shock and disgust.

While it'd be similar to what Nash did, I think he'd be more of a Bret Hart-style heel, bearing righteous indignation. Insulted that the fans who had once supported him so are now cheering Punk, especially after he prevented Vince from enacting Montreal Screwjob II, Punk's support of the vicious Nexxus, and fans approving any use of trickeration from Punk with deafening cheers after a would-be Summer Slam win. Can see in subsequent TV events, Cena taking the moral high road with the fans. "You love someone who lead the Nexxus more than you do me? A group that tried to injure people for fun? You don't have the right to boo me! Why don't you all go home and take a good look in the mirror. Not a one of you is any better than the Nexxus... A group of ammoral THUGS". That sort of thing. Doubt he'd go the Rick Rude route, saying how fat and out of shape the fans are, but he'd take his shots.

Just a theory on what's going to take place in the near future.

I bet 1000 bucks Cena isn't turning until at least Wrestlemania.

His character nowadays is mostly just worthwhile when facing faces who he dislikes despite being faces. Really stuff like Rock/Cena and Punk/Cena does a lot to highlight how boring just having good guys vs. bad guys in 21st century wrestling can be. Suspension of disbelief is dead during most heel promos, especially with the painful overuse of every heel insulting the audience despite being over already. Two relatively good guys who dislike each other for having different ideals and storylines like that are far more interesting than "he's good, he's evil, good vs. evil in a match for a title". It would pretty much be a lot like what Russo has tried and failed to do for years now.

of course if they went in this direction, most of the feuds would be botched as that's way too intelligent for wrestling to get right even somewhat consistently

I can't wait for Raw Is Punk... SD just doesn't do it for me.

"Look in my eyes, what do you see? The Cult of Personality"

but Smackdown is the wrestling show

Outside of Christian,Randy Orton and Sin Cara I find SD boring. I like Daniel Bryan's in ring work but I want to jam a pencil in my eye any time he talks dude really has no personality what so ever.

I really don't know what people see in Wade Barrett?

Cody Rhodes and Mark Henry have their moments but other then that blah...

My biggest beef is Theodore Long taking up some much air time. They could squeeze in another match instead.

As much as i'd like to see Cena go back to being a heel, there's too much money in him being the uber-face of the company right now, so i'd doubt it is coming any time soon.

Just cuz I feel like posting it. Classic Dwayne Johnson for ya (hearing OOOOHHH YEAHH is bittersweet now)!

@kkslider5552000
Well, that's 1000 dollars you're gonna have to put in my pocket!

I do agree with you on the whole face/heel thing. The whole good vs. evil thing gives wrestling a more fakey, comic book feel. It's just not real life. There isn't all good/all bad, white/black. Just millions of wierd shades of gray in this world. In the olden days there weren't such extreme superhero and villain-like wrestlers. That gave pro wrestling more of an image of legitimacy and respectability (not to mention believability).

Cena's character could stand to be a few shades darker, as he's every bit as boring and stale as "pre-Hollywood Hogan" Hogan who did/said the same things for over a decade. Think the cheers for Punk is partly a reflection that many fans feel the same.

Also agree with the insulting the audience bit. It's always felt like a show with people like aforementioned Rick Rude and others doing pre-match insults of the audience. It's like a cheap ploy for heat (except maybe after first turning, if the crowd is part of the reason for heeldom). The greatest heels provoke the crowd in other ways, while rarely addressing them personally.

But, dealing with shades of gray, it may get too complex for the writers to deal with (although I give them such credit for the Punk angle), and leave fans confused as to who to root for!

@Splat
First of all, love the avatar. I'm gonna be loving Raw is Punk (man, miss Raw... is... JERICHO)!!! Hope he has a big presence at Raw. The wrestling world is going to be hanging on his every word when he at last speaks! And I haven't even checked on Smackydown in a while. Guess I need to remember I have SyFy now (Cox Cable didn't for the longest time without another subscriber package) and check it out.

@the_bronydar
You and kkslider may be right, but it just feels like it may happen and that it's time. May be awkward having two megafaces vying for "ownership" of the show, because at any one time there's pretty much one main face star for both brands that gets the bulk of the attention. If Cena does turn, it'll be interesting if he can get as much heat as Hogan when he joined the nWo (4 LIFE!!! TM) and had various fruits, vegetables and other unknown contraband thrown into the ring at him!

Daniel Bryan's promos are great classic face promos, Wade Barrett is a really good talker, Cody Rhodes is like a supervillian and it's awesome and more Teddy Long = more Zack Ryder which is in no way a bad thing