thoughts on the SPORT of professional wrestling

So as I often do, I was thinking out loud about certain things regarding the business of professional wrestling aka sports entertainment. Now, due to reasons, I have not been able to watch the product on television lately, but i have been keeping up with everything via social media and the dirt sheets. With that being said, I do have some thoughts.

• Why is wrestling the only source of entertainment that gets heat for being predetermined, but at the same time the some of the people that watch Scandal, Game Of Thrones, Empire, Power, and other shows treat the actors playing the character as if they are the character they are portraying? You know, like wrestling used to be. Are those TV shows more believable than wrestling? Has wrestling become so unbearable that it's not believable anymore? What is the issue? I heard from Steve Austin that, "Kayfabe is dead." But the fact that I called him Steve Austin not Steve Williams kinda proves it's still there. I call him CM Punk not Phil. I call her Charlotte not Ashley. I call him Triple H, not Paul. So there's still some kind of kayfabe there. Now we know that the business has been exposed a little bit, but that shouldn't cause the stories to get lazy. Like, I'm pretty sure the fans of those TV shows I mentioned before know it's a TV Show, but the stories are so believable that they buy into the show. Character development wise, WWE needs to do better. I think that goes with more of the performer than it does the creative team, because the performer still has to perform. The creative can do what they do, but they don't go in front of the camera. 
• I personally think that the creative team picks and chooses who they allow to be more genuine as a character. The more genuine the character is, the more over it gets. Bayley's character, according to what I've seen, has become a bit stale. For some reason or another, what Bayley did as a character in NXT is not working on the main roster. Sasha and Charlotte have been able to make a good transition. Becky has as well, but for some reason Bayley doesn't seem to be transitioning well. I'm a fan of Bayley's work. She can have a good match with just about any other female on the roster, Dana Brooke and Lana aside. Bayley has never really been believable on the microphone. Probably because she's not speaking from her perspective, she's speaking through another person, because reasons. I'm hoping Bayley takes her time, gets healed from her shoulder injury, and comes back with some development to her character. I'm not necessarily saying a heel turn, but I'm saying more of an edge to the character if you will. Like, not being shook by the crowd response.
• It's been 29 years since DX was formed, with the original members being Shawn Michaels, Triple H, Chyna (R.I.P.), and Rick Rude (R.I.P.). I personally think that, a group like DX is definitely needed in today's WWE product. You have a DX like group in wrestling known as the Bullet Club, but WWE is missing that. I mean yes, you have Kevin Owens who is that kind of rebel, but imagine if there was a faction of rebels like DX was almost 30 years ago. I guess the New Day is closest thing we have to a kind of rebel to the normal we have in WWE right now. Plus, you can tell New Day are having fun. I heard Scott Hall say, "This business is supposed to be fun." 
• Going by the clips I've seen on the YouTube, GFW/TNA still sucks. I got to catch a whole episode to get the jest of the product, but by the clips I've seen, it's hard to follow. 
• WCPW is a great product. The return episode of Loaded was a solid show. I'm also enjoying the Pro Wrestling Cup tournament. They're not trying to be something their not, they're just presenting professional wrestling as is. Some of the storylines are questionable, but that comes with the territory. Overall I'm a fan of the WCPW brand.
• Sports Entertainment. Sports and entertainment. WWE tends to focus more on the Entertainment part, but let's not forget how important the sports part is. As a fan, I personally want to see Mickie James and Alicia Fox used more on TV rather than just on house shows. Like Lana and Dana Brooke, below average workers at best, get TV time all the time, while Alicia Fox and Mickie James, get squat. Now Alicia Fox and Mickie James were on TV to become to determine who was going to get the number one contender spot for the Raw Women's Title, but did anybody really believe that either one had a shot to be the final two? 

Just a few thoughts I had on the product overall. Feel free to share your thoughts in the comment section. Give me a follow on the Tweetie and the Gram: @D_Rich864. Thanks for reading.

~Daniel Richerson

IS RAW REALLY THAT BAD?

In the current state of Smackdown vs Raw, I think it's safe to say that Smackdown is winning right now. Smackdown is building characters. It's building new talent just like it did around when the roster first split some years ago. Smackdown built John Cena, Raw then drafted John Cena, and now we got the John Cena we know and---well we got John Cena. John Cena can wrestle. Yes he can. CM Punk did not wrestle those matches by himself. Shawn Michaels did not wrestle those matches by himself. Ever heard that saying, it takes two to tango?

So what is wrong with Raw? What is Raw doing that is not working well enough to get stronger ratings? Is something wrong with Raw? Is Raw doing something wrong? Is there something wrong with us the fans that are burying Raw? First thing we got to understand is that Vince is not running things like a wrestling company. He's running it like an entertainment company. He said it himself . He was talking about when Ted Turner bought WCW, and Ted called Vince and told Vince that, "I'm in the 'rasslin' business." And Vince said something to the fact, "That's good, but I'm not in the 'rasslin' business, I'm in the 'entertainment' business." Once we get that logic in our minds, WWE's booking probably wouldn't bother us so much.

But on the other hand with that being said, some parts of WWE is still wrestling. Like NXT, like Smackdown, like CWC was. Now back to Raw. I watched some of this video with this guy saying that Raw is dead. That Raw has gotten so bad it's dead. One thing we fans got to realize is that we don't know everything, and some of what we think we know, we really don't know. There's a reason Kevin Nash calls us smart marks, or smarks. I watch a lot of shoot interviews involving members of the Kliq, specifically with Kevin Nash and Scott Hall since they do a lot of them. I learn a lot from watching them cause I listen. Why do I listen? Because they were a part of a backstage group of guys that had Vince's ear. Vince listened to them.

I'm going off topic. Anyway, Raw. Is Raw dead? I don't think so. I tune in to Raw and it's looks pretty full to me. I don't see any card board cut outs of fans to fill in the seats. People still go to the shows. So as long as the fans keep buying tickets, Raw is still alive. Is Raw pulling in the numbers they did in the Attitude Era? No, but is the wrestlers from Attitude Era coming through that door? For the most part no. We got to consider that people are not watching TV like they used to. Whatculture's Simon Miller put out a good video on this subject. Simon Miller is not my favorite Whatculture personality, but he made some valid points in it. I'll put the link at the end of the blog. 

So has Raw been as good as it can be? No. Could it be better? Yes. I heard Scott Hall say something recently that was talking about fans and WWE creative, and he was saying that as soon as we think that they don't know what they doing, they show us that they do. So I think that Raw is going to show us soon that they're not as dumb as we think they are. I mean I think it's time for Vince to hand over control to Triple H. Just my opinion. So I don't think Raw is dead. I think Raw is suffering a little, but I wouldn't go straight to death.

~Daniel Richerson

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d9Iz7gVcDb8 (Why WWE's TV Ratings Aren't As Bad As You Think- WhatCulture Wrestling)

The WWE Draft: WHERE-IS-BAYLEY?!!?!!?!?!!?!!?!!?!!?

The build up for the draft was better than the actual draft. The build up from WWE and the dirtsheets I was expecting a night to remember. Honestly, the December to Dismember was more memorable.

First let's look at the positives. Fin Balor is going to RAW. American Alpha is going to Smackdown. Kevin Owens, Sami Zayn, and Cesaro are on the same roster. I expect great matches out of that. Sasha Banks gets drafted to RAW after saying she wanted to go to Smackdown, but she's on the same roster as Charlotte. So we get to see that feud build up to a championship match with Sasha hopefully going over. Also a positive Stephanie McMahon's dress. Yep. Also the New Day is still in tact on RAW as a team. I don't think anybody wanted to see them split. Naomi, aka Trinity Fatu got drafted to Smackdown. I really do hope this is a start of a big push for her. AJ Styles is on Smackdown. Could be good. Heath Slater not drafted, and then the camera shot at the end. Hilarious.

And now...let's start with the flubbed lines by both Shane and Stephanie. And they are supposed to be "running" the show. Stephanie trying to over sell every draft pick they made on the show was just bad. Bad shouldn't have been done. I now understand why Vince wants to script every line. I get it now Vince.

Roman Reigns got drafted to a massive boo. Such a boo for a top baby face, huh? Turn him heel WWE, turn the man heel. It took way to long for Cesaro to get drafted. Easily a top 10 guy. But Cesaro ended up being a 6th round pick. That's a way to put the guy over the top. The Golden Truth is still a tag-team. Let that sink in.

Don't get me wrong. I'm a big R Truth fan. I'm a Golddust fan. I'm not a fan of the tag team. Each guy can carry a match on their own. They're good in the ring as individuals. But just not a fan of the team.

Nia Jax, Alexa Bliss, Eva (yes that one) Marie, Carmella all drafted. Everyone, just about, was waiting to hear Bayley's name. Guess what? We're still waiting. Well, at least we'll get Bayley vs Asuka at least one more time. That should be good. Bayley gets a rematch for the NXT Women's Title. So there's that. But still. Heel move by the WWE on that one. Getting everyone's hope up, and...nothing. Eva Marie? Really? Like her and Dana Brooke on are the "main roster" and Asuka and Bayley are still in NXT. Again just going to let that sink in. 

All this is my opinion. Just another wrestling fan with access to the Internet and a way to put my opinion out there. 

~Daniel Richerson

A FEW THOUGHTS ON "THE GUY"...ROMAN

I was watching this video WWE put on on YouTube and it was showing how some of the superstars on the main roster got their start with the company. One of the superstars they showed was Roman Reigns and he was an NXT guy before getting called up. What's the main the reason we have for not wanting our favorite NXT people getting called up? Bad booking. Tyler Breeze, Baron Corbin, Emma, the Ascension, Becky Lynch, and The Vaudevillains are just some of the examples of getting called up from NXT only to get poorly booked. Some exceptions to that include Seth Rollins, Dean Ambrose, Charlotte, Sasha Banks, Russev, Kevin Owens, and Sami Zayn.

Roman Reigns, bless his heart, has been poorly booked ever since The Shield broke up. It's not all his fault. I always say when he won that Royal Rumble 2015, He was a product of a poorly booked Royal Rumble. I would venture to say that was probably the worst booked Royal Rumble ever. At no fault of Roman or anybody else that was involved in the actual delivery of the match, maybe except Big Show and Kane, but nevertheless--

Now I will say that it's not all the booking's fault. Roman has to take some blame in this as well. I once heard Triple H, you know the guy you love on NXT but hate on Raw, say, "If you think it's going to work, then go out there an do it." I heard it said that it's better to ask for forgiveness than permission. Especially when it's live TV. If it's on live TV, why not go out there and go for broke. Shawn Michaels made a living doing that in the early days of the Attitude Era. I think it worked out well for him. Not saying Roman is on Shawn Michaels' level of talent or charisma but something has got to give.

So let me bring up the obvious, his suspension. We in the IWC have been begging for a heel turn for Roman. Perfect time to do that is at Battleground. One thing WCW did right is when Hogan was getting booed, they turned him heel. I think that worked out, at least for the short term. Nwo was one of the greatest factions of all the times and a lot of it I feel had to do with the way it started. Back to Roman, he's already one of the most hated with the crowd. Why not turn him. He's on his way to becoming another Cena, and NOOOOObody wants that. There's a big but here though. Turning Roman heel may be a bit too obvious. May be a bit to logical. Oops. I say oops because logical and WWE booking go together like Trump and, well, anything.

I actually think Roman can work. He's good in the ring as far as having a decent match is concerned, in my opinion. I know a lot of people will disagree with me on that, and? I also think John Cena can wrestle. Gasp! What?

I think Roman needs better booking, and I also think Roman needs to do a better job of taking advantage of being live TV. And Roman needs to get off of what ever got him suspended, that would help also.

~Daniel Richerson

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MY TAKE: Steve Austin Show feat Ariane Andrew

Before I start, let me say that I do understand that this post may cost me in the fact that I'm just a smark behind a computer that's never been in the business, blah blah blah. Anyway--

I was hesitant to listen to this episode of the Steve Austin Show because of how Ariane sounds. I didn't know how much how I could take listening to that valley girl voice, but I got through it. I liked some of the things she said and some of the things I didn't like. Let's start with the positives. When she talked about the whole Ryback fiasco. She stood her ground on what she tweeted what she did. I liked the fact that she talked about the heat she was getting could have been a good thing because it could've made for a better character. I also like the fact that she said that she presented some ideas that didn't quite get through. I know from following her social media that she was indeed working on her craft. She was doing some house shows or live events for NXT and getting better. I even saw she had a new move she was incorporating in her matches. I was glad that she actually cared enough about the craft to get better at it just in case she got called up to the main roster she wouldn't stink it up. She owned the fact that she was not a wrestling fan but she grew to love the business. She said a key statement when she said something to the fact that if you don't learn to love the business you won't last. I've heard Kevin Nash say something similar to that. So that had me thinking, she kinda gets it.

I even liked the fact that she mentioned that being a heel came natural that it was more fun than being a face. Which I've heard plenty of other people that are or were in the business say.

So later in the interview she gets asked if WWE calls would she take the call, she said she would accept because she feels "she has something to prove." No problem with that at all. Steve then asked her if some other wrestling organization would offer her a job, she basically said that since she's been in the WWE so going any where else would be downgrading. Now in this same interview she said that she still has an "itch" for wrestling. Obviously it isn't a major itch because she wouldn't work an independent show. To me that's a slap in the face to the performers that has worked for WWE and are now working the independents, like Sean Waltman, Sabu, Lisa Marie Varon, Mickie James, and others. Then you got folks like former WWE "diva" Maria who is not working for TNA. She spent time on the independents and worked on her craft and she got much better. Her promos in ROH were not bad in my opinion, but didn't allow the fact that she was no longer working for WWE take away that itch that was there for wrestling. Don't say you have an itch, but you don't want to scratch it. I don't know that kind of rubbed me the wrong way, She got the training, might as well do something with it, Just my opinion. I do wish her all the best in whatever she decides to do in the future.

~Daniel Richerson

Raw Review 4/12/2016: BULLET CLUB TOO SWEET!

From what I watched of Raw, most of the show wasn't that bad. When I wasn't watching I watched The Voice. For those that don't know, I keep the WWE timeline open via Twitter, and when it's something I'm interested in, I change the channel to USA to watch the promo or match. When I become uninterested I change the channel. I got that idea from a tweet I saw on Twitter, Never the less, I enjoyed most of what I saw. The show opened with Shane McMahon. That gimmick has a lot of people up and arms. Some are trying to make sense of Shane losing to Undertaker so why is he running Raw? It's all a work. Wrestling is a work. None of it is real. No matter how much we want it to be. There's a difference between reality, and wrestling reality. Sometimes, art and life intertwine, but most of the time, all the stuff that happens on TV is mostly a work. Some of us think way to hard when it comes to this sport. We forget that WWE is an entertainment company. It's not a wrestling company. Vince said it himself. "I'm not in the wrasslin business, I'm in the entertainment business." So most of us tend to forget that simple thought.

Maybe Vince figured that the Authority angle was running stale and something needed to change on the show. So Shane is probably part of that change. I personally expect a swerve to come along the way with all this. Maybe Stephanie McMahon and Triple H opening up the show and they make the statement, "Didn't Shane lose at WrestleMania? Why has he been running Raw?" And all that. I truly believe all the questions we have, WWE will try to answer them in the coming weeks, and it'll all come together, or apart, at SummerSlam, which is the next "big" PPV or Live Special.

We need to stop watching RAW expecting the same booking we see on NXT. Even though they're under the same umbrella known as WWE, Raw and NXT are two different shows. Raw is coming around to NXT's style of booking little by little, but still two different shows.

Then we had Kevin Owens vs Cesaro. What a clinic that match was. If Cesaro hasn't grabbed that "brass ring" by now, I don't know what Vince is smoking or sniffing. Cesaro is one of the best athletes on the roster. The surprising thing about this match was that it was a clean finish. Cesaro won clean. Another thing this match showed that getting heat and selling is not a lost art that some of the old timers like to think it is. Cesaro sold that shoulder injury, and Kevin Owens had heat most of the match. He blocks people on Twitter. If that's not heat, I don't know what is.

The WWE Tag Team tournament. Who ever came up with that idea seems to have come with a good one. One match was the Dudley Boys vs the Lucha Dragons. Dudley Boys won and team of Enzo and Cass came out. The back and forth between them and the Dudley Boyz was a money segment to me. I missed their appearance on the Raw after Mania, and I missed their stuff on NXT, but they seem to be over with the crowd. They also seem to have the gift of talking on the microphone. I have to look up some matches on the WWE Network to see their ring work. But I'm already a fan of them because of that back and forth with the Dudleys.

The Women's Division gets better and better regarding match quality. But there's an old turd that still seems to have to get his stuff in, and that turd's name is Ric Flair. Ric was great for his time, but Ric Flair, it's time to go home. Charlotte is a grown woman. She can't grow as a character if you keep handcuffing her. Look I understand being a heel, and all that but Flair interfering in Charlotte's matches is not good heat to me. That's cheap heat. I said on Twitter after Flair interfered at WrestleMania that Flair needs to be put in a home. Flair, your time is up. Go away. The women's division doesn't need your old tired self to make it relevant. Other than the old timer, and the ending of the match, Natayla and Charlotte had a good match. Again, Flair needs to go away or at least get away from his daughter.

Dr Phil was on the show and that's all I'm going to say about that.

The Bullet Club. Luke Gallows made his return to the WWE and Anderson made his debut, I think. They saved what was a lack luster match between the Usos and The Social Outcasts. It was expected for them to make an appearance but it wasn't really known in what capacity they were going to show up. So after Usos pick up the W, Gallows and Anderson showed up and beat up the Usos. It was tremendous. I was at home holding up the too sweet. Hopefully WWE doesn't drive Gallows away, again.

AJ Styles vs Sami Zayn. Another match that was a straight clinic. I'm so glad the higher ups and in the WWE let these two wrestlers do their job. It was a great match. They woke up what was a dead crowd. They should've main evented the show, but of course they didn't.

I didn't watch what was the main event, because Reigns' character is not getting over at all, and it all seemed threw together randomly. Roman, in my opinion, is a great worker. His character has just become stale. But he does get a response from the crowd, so I guess that's all Vince cares about. Roman's character needs some upgrading. If Hogan of all people do upgrade his character, why can't Roman upgrade his?

And that's about all I got to say about RAW. From what I watched, it was an ok show. Thanks for reading. I don't claim to know everything, but I'm just stating my thoughts on the product.

~Daniel Richerson

The Real Miyagi

Now with it being Wrestlemania season, and WWE has Roadblock coming along, and NXT has NXT Take over Dallas, one would figure I'd be talking about something pertaining to that. Maybe in another blog, but I just finished watching this amazing documentary on Fumio Demura, who is one of the forefathers of Karate in the U.S. As I was watching this I was thinking to myself this guy could have been a great pro wrestler. He's thought process on making moves look good during demonstrations, and making moves look good for the camera, could, I think, very well contribute to up in comers of the professional wrestling business. Because if you think about it, that's all professional wrestling is, it's a demonstration of precise moves in a time limit to put on a show for the audience that's both watching through streaming or watching live in attendance.

I think wrestling fans and professional wrestlers should study Fumio Demura. Watch this documentary called, The real Miyagi. Fumio was the inspiration for the Mr. Miyagi character in the original Karate Kid movies.

Fumio, I think could very well be in a pro wrestling hall of fame. I know he's technically never been involved with pro wrestling, but again his thought process on precision and making stuff look good for the camera, is part of what's missing in today's professional wrestling. It's one of the things NXT is doing right with the fact of making moves look good. Fumio sold his art as authentic as possible. Made every move look like it hurt. Sold it as the demonstrations were a shoot, if you will.

Now, I'm just a wrestling fan. A mark if you will. By the way, I don't take the term "mark" as duragitory. If a mark is what I am, it's what I am. I'm finding myself now respecting the art of professional wrestling as well as the entertainment value of it. I saw a post on facebook that asked who did more for wrestling, was it Flair or Hogan. I would say Flair because he as an artist in the ring, as well as an entertainer. Hogan was straight entertainer. He had enough of the art form down to get by, but his main focus was on the entertainment factor of the product. Just my opinion.

There's been reports that Vince McMahon is not a fan of NXT. Why would he be? Why would Vince McMahon be a fan of something that's working? That the fans are enjoying? I think that proves that the character of Mr. McMahon is more like the real Vince than he cares to share. Again just my opinion.

But back to Femio Demura. He's a real living legend in the art of fighting. He was sports entertainment before Vince coined the term. Not only was Femio's demonstrations precise, it was also entertaining. Like professional wrestling, but work behind the scenes is hard work. The documentary showed a bit of the training that goes on. Wrestling may be predetermined, but I bet if we tried to do the training that it takes to be a pro wrestler, we'd find out how "fake" the product really is. Again, I highly recommend the documentary, The Real Miyagi, for any wrestling fan and professional wrestler. You can find it on Netflix. Especially if you respect the art of wrestling. Fumio Demura for WWE Hall of Fame!

~Daniel Richerson

The Main Roster is still the Main Roster...

I hear a lot of fellow smarks, yes you're a smark embrace it, say that going to the main roster is a downgrade as far as going from NXT to Raw. Ok, I understand that the main roster has been none too good lately. I understand that NXT has had the better product lately. Now that that's out the way. NXT is on the WWE network. Not everybody has the WWE Network. Raw is on USA. Raw gives you more exposure than NXT. Raw gives you more money. I'm pretty sure they don't come to NXT to stay at NXT. I'm pretty sure if you sign a contract with WWE, your goal should be on the main show, right?

We want Raw to be better. We want Raw to create better stars. You can't create better stars if the NXT stars stay in NXT. Samoa Joe will never have an opportunity to main event a WrestleMania if he stays in NXT. Like it or not, Wrestlemania is a main roster show. Royal Rumble is a main roster show. AJ Styles is on the main roster. AJ Styles is on RAW like it or not. He's not in NXT. He's on RAW. In my opinion, Samoa Joe should be on the main show right now. But the only problem with the main roster is the bad booking. That was my main problem with the Royal Rumble 2015. It was a poorly book Royal Rumble match that year. I feel it was more than the fact Roman Reigns won, it was how he won. My opinion, Big Show and Kane ruined that match.

But back to the topic at hand. The main roster is still the main roster. No matter how bad the show is. It's still the main roster. I know we all want the main roster to be better, but to say that moving to the main roster is a down grade. It's still the main roster. One of the problems with the main roster is like the "it's better to ask for forgiveness than permission" mentality is none existent. When DX was just the Kliq, they did stuff that got them in trouble every week. HBK is now in the Hall of Fame, and HHH is basically Vince's right hand man.

So yes, NXT is the better product in most people's eyes. You tune in to NXT expecting the great, and you tune in to Raw expecting the worse. I get that, but that doesn't change the fact that Raw is still Raw. There's a lot of people that think Football is not as good as it once was, yet people still tune in. Some people don't think the NBA is as good as it once was but people still tune in. I think Raw will get better. Vince still micro-manages the product, which is a major issue that no one talks about. I feel that as soon as Vince lets go of the reigns, not a shot at Roman,  a little bit, that's when the product will get better.

Daniel Richerson

VINCE WILL LISTEN TO RATINGS

It's been a while since I've expressed my thoughts on the wrestling business. I've been focusing more on my other blog, and when I do share some thoughts I want to express I usually tweet it out. Yet and still--

I see some people are finally getting the point that complaining about Raw via twitter is not changing a thing. Vince said that he listens to the fans in the arena not the fans on twitter. So since he doesn't listen to twitter. Hit Vince where he does listen, his pocket. He may not listen to Twitter, but I guarantee he listens to the ratings. I haven't watched Raw in weeks, cause I got tired of complaining about it, and I got tired of being disappointed week after week. The only wrestling I watch now is my DVDs I got and Ring Of Honor on Saturday nights. Ring Of Honor has always been consistent great wrestling. Much like what NXT is to some people. But the supposedly "main show" has been quite a disappointment. I still keep up with the dirt sheets for results and stuff hoping the show gets better. But as it's turns out, the show is getting worse. I saw via twitter and other social media outlets that Survivor Series was one of the worse ever.

Which is sad to see because Survivor Series is one of the big shows of year for WWE, or should I say used to be. Don't be deceived to think that Vince doesn't know what's going on. Vince has an idea of what's going on. I'm willing to bet Triple H and other people working backstage are in Vince's ear letting him know how bad the product is getting. In the early 90s, it was the Kliq who let Vince know very bluntly on what was wrong with the product. Before he left the business, CM Punk was another one who let the office know. My question is who is the guy or gal in the back that will let Vince know the truth.

It's not like they don't have the talent to put on a good show. It's just poorly booked. I understand that some people are injured and some are taking a break to do other projects, but they still got Ziggler, Kevin Owens, Dudley Boyz, Usos, Dean Ambrose, Alberto Del Rio, Charlotte, Paige, Sasha Banks, Natalya, Paige, and others that can carry the product until the "main stars" come back. In all honestly it looks like the booking has become lazy. WCW and TNA esq if you will. So, if the company wants to present a lazy product, I suggest that we all change the channel.

History does show that Vince listens to the ratings. Some of us are old enough to remember the Monday Night Wars. When Nitro was kicking the crap out of Raw in the ratings, Vince sucked it up and went all out, and the product got better because of it. May be what's missing is competition.

~Daniel Richerson

DOES VINCE EVEN CARE ANYMORE?

I didn't watch the 2/23/2015 edition of RAW but this is just going off the reviews of the tweets I saw and from what I watched on Fastlane.

It seems to me that Vince is throwing in the towel. Bad booking all the way. Between NXT and the main roster is night and day as far as booking goes. NXT is the wrestling that most of us long to see when we turn into Monday Night Raw or Thursday Night Smackdown. The booking of Roman Reigns getting stuffed down our throats to get him over is not best idea. I saw someone that said that the fans really want to care for Roman but they just don't like the booking. I'm not a fan of bad booking in any fashion. I hate it in reality as well as entertainment.

Thinking it over, I'm going to give the divas the benefit of the doubt. I've complained and complained about the divas for years, but after thinking it over, you have to most of the blame on Vince and the "creative team." The good ole days when you had Trish Stratus, Lita, Victoria (Tara), Jazz, Chyna...the divas actually got time. Speaking of Chyna, did y'all see that twerking video? Chyna still on drugs? Anyway, I read that the divas only got 30 seconds on Raw. 30 SECONDS! How can you have employees show off their skill in 30 seconds? Especially in business like wrestling. I do see that the women get time on House Shows or "Live Events", but I'm sure they would want some time in front of the camera other than to be eye candy. I admit, I'm not the biggest Bella Twin fan in the world. I'm a fan of Paige, AJ Lee, Natayla, those who actually had a wrestling past not coming in for a "divas search." Just making a joke of the profession. Granted, search winners like  Layla has gained experience over the years, but seriously tho.

Bryan Danielson aka Daniel Bryan seems to have the Shawn Michaels mentality in that he tries to make every match the best it can be. He made Roman look great at FastLane. It was a good match. Everybody knows Reigns has a lot to improve on, but the talent is there in my opinion. Reigns needs to learn had to follow what the crowd is giving each night. He seems to have script and sticks to it, but with a live audience, you have to make tweaks here and there to make it work better. In church we call it, following the flow of the spirit. If the spirit is leading to something that's not according to the program just follow it. If the live crowd is not liking what the product is producing in the ring then the performers should have the mindset to call an audible to follow the flow of the crowd.

How great is Rusev as a heel? He's the kind of heel JR likes. If you listen to the JR podcast, JR has complained about there's no more real heels in the business. Hopefully he's satisfied with Rusev and Lana. Lana has become one of the better valets of this era. I've heard she's wants to actually work in the ring, but I've also heard because of injuries she can't. Though with this role as a manager/valet, she's doing great business.

Sting and HHH is going to be money. They sold that match so well at FastLane. I'm in agreement with a lot of people when they say that the Sting and HHH segment at FastLane was the best of the night. Sting didn't say a word and still made his point. WWE is already booking Sting better than TNA ever did. As a fan of Sting, it's cool for me to see him in a WWE environment and properly used.

Bray Wyatt's undertaker promo at FastLane was so good. Completely had me fooled. That's the kind of stuff I miss as a wrestling fan. The joy of being surprised. Bray Wyatt came out in a coffin and cut a promo from the casket. It was done so well. Can't say enough about how good that was. A lot going around how old Taker looks now. Well, you can't been the clock folks. It was bound to happen. Now he's dyed his hair and is working out. Now who should go over in that match of Bray vs Undertaker? Bray, but that's just me. Bray is the young guy, Taker has had his time. He's still a HOFer so the streak being over doesn't hurt his legacy at all in my opinion.

All in all the yes the product could be better. Not all is bad, but not all is good either. Vince is old. Triple H is going to have the book soon. It seems like Vince is on his way out the door. Vince would deny that, but you watch the product, it seems that way.

~Daniel Richerson

SMACKDOWN LIVE...MIGHT AS WELL BEEN TAPED

It's been quite a while since I've blogged on this site, but here we go.

Let me start at the Royal Rumble. Match of the Night was the World title match. I probably won't get much argument on that one. Rollins did his thing. Brock did his thing. Even Cena as much as the IWC loves to hate him, he brought it as well. The spot where Rollins did the elbow of the top rope to the announce table was nicely done. Of course it's a spot we've seen before, but it worked for the match. The sell job from Brock Lesnar after that spot was good as well. I thought they were going to let Rollins get the win for a second. I was hoping that Cena wouldn't get the W. Thank God he didn't. Brock got the win.

I'll get to the Royal Rumble "controversy" in sec, but I want to go another controversy that no one is talking about. The fact that two second generation wrestlers got dominated by two divas. That match made no sense to me. Bellas have gotten better I give them that, but in no way are they good enough to win the way they did at the royal rumble. Paige and Natayla should've put up a better fight than that, but as someone tweeted me, "WWE, where logic doesn't exist." Nikki Bella is the divas champ which I feel is only because she's John Cena's current girlfriend. Like I said, she's improved, but she's no doubt the best on the roster. AJ, Paige, Natalya, Naomi...and they chose Nikki.

Now to what everybody has been talking about. The Royal Rumble match. First let's discuss the good. Bubba Ray was in a WWE ring again. Let that sink in. DDP was a surprise entrant, and actually performed pretty well in his short stint. And that was the good. The rest of the match was poorly booked. That's what I think is the controversy. Roman Reigns winning was not the controversy in my opinion. The real controversy was how Ziggler, Dean Ambrose, and Daniel Byran was eliminated like mid carders. Who thought that work? In Philly no less...

Anyway, that's my thoughts on that, now to Smackdown Live. Smackdown was Live because Raw was snowed out. The show over all was not that good. Started off with a promo from HHH as if he was playing the part of the DX version of his character. Roman Reigns came out to a "mixed" reaction which the commentators constantly reminded us. By the way, Byron Saxton on commentary is a fail. End that yesterday. Triple H got a announcement on Raw that's gonna "shake WWE to the core" which is bound to be a bust considering how 2015 has been going so far. 2015, btw, Vince tweeted that it was going to be "the best year in the history of the WWE." Word? Anyway, the whole show was trying to sell the Casket match between Bryan and Kane. The match was a bore to me. Daniel Bryan got the win, which was the only good thing about the match to me. Hopefully Kane will never come back, unless it's a Hall of Fame bid. He's done his time. I'm sorry Glenn Jacobs, but it's over.

Also Paige vs Nikki Bella is booked for Fastlane for the Divas title. I'm hoping Paige gets the W, but I doubt that'll happen due to the booking at the Royal Rumble. I'm hoping either Paige get's the win or Velvet Sky comes in and joins the Bellas. I'm waiting for Charlotte to come up from NXT to take over the division. Charlotte is one of the best workers not just amongst the divas but of all the workers in NXT. She has "it."

Remember that I'm just another mark expressing his thoughts on the internet like a whole lot of people. I have no affiliates with any dirt sheets website or anything like that. But I love professional wrestling. I've been a fan most of my life, and I have strong opinions on the product and I share them from time to time.

~Daniel Richerson