My Take On 4.27.10: Releases, Not So Extreme Rules, More

WELCOME
Welcome back to another edition of My Take On! I have returned to discuss the recent WWE releases, the Extreme Rules PPV, and to update the overall Csonka Ratings for the year. Hopefully we’ll have fun and have a great week. Two things before we begin…

~ 411 Hiring: 411 hiring is still ongoing. We have added some new names to the staff that will be debuting over the next few weeks. I am also still accepting applications.

~ ROH I-PPV: On the ROH I-PPV matches being added into the rankings, when I get around to watching the show, I will gladly consider anything worthy of being included on the list. I don’t watch the I-PPV’s because when they air, that is during my time off, and I am being a family man during that time.

WWE RELEASES

~ Mickie James: unfortunately the release of Mickie James did not come as that much of a surprise. And no this has nothing to do with the fact that the Internet has taken to the fat jokes. Mickie’s fate was sealed when she was moved to Smackdown. At the time, it was to send a message to her to lose some weight and to become more dedicated to her job. And while I never found her weight to be out of control, WWE is a cosmetic business, and I can see where they are coming from, they pay the bills. But then James decided that she wanted to be a singer, and wanted to do it without WWE. No matter how she intended that decision, WWE looked upon it as is she was not dedicated to them, and they were not happy. The Piggy James angle was a deliberate message to her to shape up (in more ways than one) and when she didn’t, and when she was late a few times on tour, they decided that this would be enough, and she was gone. CHANCES OF GOING TO TNA: Likely very good. Like it or not, James was the main female name for WWE for the last few years, and with the light schedule, and possibility of TNA promoting her singing career, I wouldn’t be surprised.

~ Katie Lea Burchill: In my opinion, Katie Lea Burchill never really got a chance in WWE. She was never really booked as a serious threat as a wrestler, and played second fiddle to Paul for almost her entire run. She had a lot to offer in the ring, but wasn’t the typical diva mold, and was never given that chance. She reportedly had a bad reputation with the guys backstage, as she would eat with a group of people and skip out on the bill, which is a big NO-NO is all circles. CHANCES OF GOING TO TNA: While I feel she has a lot to offer, I doubt that TNA would be that interested. I would expect to see her show up at some SHIMMER tapings is the price is right.

~ Shelton Benjamin: To me, Shelton Benjamin was the BIGGEST surprise as far as the releases go. While Shelton was never going to get that main event push, due to never evolving on the mic, his hiccups when pushed and for the fact that WWE fears managers, the man should have been a solid mid to upper mid-card talent for he company. His natural athletic ability was amazing, and it is just a shame to see him go. I knew he was in trouble when he didn’t get a chance to shine in MITB this year, something I discussed with Cook a few times. While Shelton still had a ton to offer, the fact is that the releases are also about freshening up things. Shelton has been with WWE for what, the better part of a decade? To many fans, he is pigeon holed into a role as a job guy, for better or worse. CHANCES OF GOING TO TNA: I would say about 100%. Kurt Angle is a HUGE fan of the guy, and also Charlie Haas. I actually would love to see Haas and Benjamin show up in TNA, because adding them to 3C, The Machineguns, Beer Money and Generation Me would make for a lot of fun in the tag team division. VELVET HOODIES ACTIVATE!

~ Mike Knox: While not surprising, due to his recent use on WWE TV, I actually find the release of Mike Knox to be disappointing. Knox had vastly improved, and the one thing I loved about him is that he did not have the cookie cutter modern WWE look. Know was a great throwback to the day when the WWE had characters, and everyone looked different. His bruising mountain man look, combined with the angle that he was actually intelligent was fresh. He was developing into a good big man, and I generally enjoyed his outings. CHANCES OF GOING TO TNA: Not sure here. It all depends on if someone likes him or not. If he has someone in his corner, he could be a solid addition, actually, tagging with Matt Morgan could produce something interesting. I am still saddened that we have lost that magnificent beard.

~ Kung Fu Naki: Kung Fu Naki had the most understated, yet successful run of almost any WWE jobber in memory. Everyone loved him, he worked house shows with the young guys, he did commentary for various international broadcasts due to knowing many languages and accepted his position in life, while making some good money. I am only surprised he survived the cuts due to the fact that he had avoided the cut for SO MANY years. He was a solid hand to have around, but in the end, this made fiscal sense. CHANCES OF GOING TO TNA: Highly doubtful. He has lived in the US for nearly 10-years now, and I can see him finally returning home. If only we could be so lucky to have a run like Funaki did. Add into this the reports that he wanted out due to a neck injury, and it just doesn’t look like a possibility.

~ Slam Master J: Ray Gordy only kept a WWE job because he was Terry Gordy’s son, and because Michael Hayes continually went to at for him. When Henry Godwin was cut, he was almost cut because they were going to be the 2000 version of the Godwins. Michael Hayes saved him with the Jesse and Festus deal, which failed and was dropped. When he started the Slam Master J gimmick, I think that we all knew it was a short-term gimmick, and it was. CHANCES OF GOING TO TNA: I don’t see TNA being interested at all.

~ Jimmy Wang Yang: Jimmy Wang Yang was always going to be cut, no matter how hard he worked. The lack of a cruiserweight division and wellness violations made him a perfect cost cutting measure. He is talented, no doubt, but in WWE, he was expendable. CHANCES OF GOING TO TNA: Very unlikely, due to the way he left the company the first time. He no showed and signed a WWE contract and informed them after the fact.

NOT SO EXTREME RULES
And so we come to our latest PPV, WWE Extreme Rules. To tell you the truth, at heart, I do not hate gimmick PPVs. Royal Rumble, Survivor Series, Lockdown, all gimmick PPVs I tend to enjoy. But I have to say that Extreme Rules is one gimmick PPV the WWE, at least for now, had to get away from. With the WWE moving to the “PG WWE,” which consists of no blood, and the new mandate for no chair/weapon shots to the head, the PPV concept cannot be used to its fullest. Let me say one thing before I go on, I am all for them becoming safer, and eliminating the sick unprotected chair shots to the head. With all of the new research being done on concussions, it is the smart and responsible thing to do.

But with that being said, the Extreme Rules PPV really has no place in the PG WWE. Street fights without the traditional mayhem and blood don’t come off as well. Steel Cage matches without blood are turning off longtime fans. And while you can have good matches without blood, the cage has historically been a bloody house of mayhem used to end feuds. Also, with out stipulations like first blood being used like “Extreme Rules, Street Fight and Last Man Standing.” Three of your eight matches come off as way too similar. So while I understand and even appreciate what the company is doing, they would be better off not using the “Extreme Rules’ gimmick at this point and time.

As for the PPV, here are some short thoughts on the show…

* MATCH RATINGS
~ UNIFIED TAG TITLE GAUNTLET {*}: This was more of an angle to set up the Raw match, which I tend not to like. I say it for TNA and will say it here, do NOT use PPV to sell TV. I hate when they toss matches onto PPV with no build, and the short matches were not good. The finish for the first worked, but the ref CLEARLY saw Show throw the punch and had to act like he didn’t in the second match. The Hart Dynasty got the quick win and good crowd reaction (some of that attributed to Bret) but it came off well enough. Hopefully they get a run with the belts, and Miz gets moved to Smackdown, I want to see him thrive as a single so the internet will cry more. People hate his success, but I have become a fan.

~ REY vs. PUNK {***½}: These guys had a really good undercard bout, and it was good to see Punk get the win through nefarious means. The had a good match, better then WrestleMania, but not as good as their 02.12.10 match on Smackdown. It just was missing something. They work very well together, and I wish that they could feud more, but that may not be possible due to the draft (I wrote this on Sunday night). With Serena and Luke being tossed, the introduction of the new sXs member was done well and adds to Punk’s dirty hippy Jesus gimmick, and of course, Rey gets screwed and the fans will want revenge. It was good, but we know they can do better.

~ STRAP MATCH {*}: Unfortunately for these guys the crowd did not care. They had been booked poorly heading into the split, and while they did some decent stuff heading into the feud, it isn’t enough to repair years of damage. They tried, but a strap match needs to have the emotion of the crowd into it, and this did not have it.

~ WORLD TITLE MATCH {**½}: The world title match between Swagger and Orton was “good,” but that’s really about it. Don’t get me wrong, it wasn’t bad, but there was nothing memorable about it. The match felt like a mid-card PPV match, and while it technically was, it just lacked. Swagger needed the win and got it, which is good and he got it clean, which is also good. But the lack of extreme was obvious here, and it just needed some more spice to make it feel special.

~ HHH vs. SHEAMUS {**}: I get what they were trying to do here, protect HHH while making Sheamus out to be a monster. But there is one problem with this theory, HHH DOES NOT NEED PROTECTING! HHH is bullet proof, yet they took 15-minutes to “tell the story of HUNTOR THE BARBERRIER”. The angle to kick off the show was perfect, and what they should have done was run the final five minutes of what the did. HHH full of piss and vinegar, showing the never say die baby face fire, and then he hits something, his neck and am are hurt, and Sheamus DISMANTLES him and actually gets over as a mega heel. Instead they decided to “protect” HHH when he doesn’t need it, the match was slow and plotting, and Sheamus needed 15 boots to the face to finally defeat HUNTOR. They could have and should have done this better, instead, what we got was just “ok” in my opinion.

~ WOMEN’S TITLE MATCH {*}: While I am glad Beth won, this concept was something that Vince Russo would jerk it too. I will say one positive thing, they worked hard. Next.

~ JERICHO vs. EDGE {***}: Chris Jericho and Edge just seem to be under achieving at this point. I don’t know if it I slack of in ring chemistry or the restraints put on them by the WWE’s current style, but something is holding them back. They worked hard, but the stupidity of Jericho so close to winning and then returning to the ring hurts the bout, and of course, and I hate to beat a dead horse, but the lack of blood in a CAGE match can hurt it. Edge finally makes the comeback and bounces Jericho off of the cage 456 times, and nothing. The people wanted it, but they just can’t have it right now, another reason to drop this PPV concept. They got 20-minutes, and it just felt SO SLOW at times, that it hurt the flow. Finally, the other thing that hurts them is the comparisons to Angle vs. Anderson, who had the advantage of no restraints in their bout. It is an unfair comparison, but it will be made.

~ CENA vs. BATISTA {****}: These guys have developed a good chemistry and work very well together, and when you add into the equation that Cena does well in these stipulation matches, and it equals a good match. I know a lot of people hate both of these guys, and that is cool, but they went out there and waged war. They actually made you believe that they wanted to kill each other, and it worked. The crowd was into it, and I felt that they delivered. What hurt the bout a bit for me was the way Cena would sell the count, and basically leap up at 9. Add some drama son. Also, while I don’t HATE the duct tape finish like some, can we have some normal wrestling shit end a wrestling match. Pens and duct tape aren’t finishes where I come from, but hey, that’s just me. Overall they went into the main event spot and delivered.

~ SCORE: 7.0: The show was good overall, but felt slow at points and again failed to deliver in some aspects. There was some enjoyable stuff and good action, and while I feel it could have been better, I didn’t regret buying the show.