The Triple Threat 11.12.06: The 26th Edition

Topic #1 Let’s start off with TNA, since they are about to move to Primetime this week. How have things changed since the return of Vince Russo? And has he made the show better or worse in your eyes? Explain please?

David: I like TNA as a promotion but I don’t really know much about the show because I miss it every week because of work. I’m always hearing different things from Sean and Alex, one saying its good and the other saying its bad. I like to call myself the middle man here. I think TNA has a great roster but a lot of it is underutilized. Its only like this because of a one hour show. Once TNA finally gets to spread its wings with a two hour show, we are going to see some kick ass wrestling. TNA’s PPVs are good if not great. I watched Bound for Glory and I thought it was a great show, better then a lot of the last couple WWE PPVs. We had some great matches and some nice title changes. Everything on the PPV seemed to click and it had a good atmosphere. The only thing i really didn’t like about the PPV was the Sting match mainly because I thought the match in general sucked. TNA is growing and hopefully, we will get to see it have two hours so we can see what they really can do.

Alex: Well TNA is at a crossroads right now, they are on the verge of breaking out (my opinion). They have grown more than any other company in North America this year, which means they are doing many things right. With that being said, there are a handful of things that they are doing wrong. First thing that comes to mind, is that no homegrown TNA talent, besides AJ, has won the NWA title. TNA needs to showcase what makes them different, why they are an alternative, not why they look like WCW. I can see good things for the company when Joe gets the strap. Secondly, I know it just started but this trading the X-Division title back and forth, is really lame and is something that the E would do. I just don’t understand the rational. Lastly, TNA has a weird habit in that their feuds are either really good, really stale, or just thrown together are the last minute. Heading into Genesis, we have to awesome feuds (AMW vs. LAX and of course Angle Vs. Joe) and a interesting match up with Sting Vs. Abyss. But the rest of the card is going to be thrown together on the last impact before the PPV. Once again, this is something the E would do. A great PPV has 1 or 2 matches thrown in at the last second; a PPV match at least needs a build up.

Sean: I’ve always thought that TNA has the potential to compete with WWE. They have the talent to do so and have PPV’s that always seem to be solid. They really haven’t had a bad PPV for a long while. The problem is that it means nothing when your television show consistently kicks the crapper. All thanks to Vince Russo who has once again decided to book TNA. TNA was good before Russo decided to return, why, on earth did you need him back? At least they have Samoa Joe vs. Kurt Angle to lean on in bad times. The X-Division has grown stale with the same type of spot match every week. Then we have the #1 contender booking which has been rather weird. Lance Hoyt wins the stupidest match concept ever and he has a good match with Abyss, then he loses in two minutes to Truth, huh? That makes no sense. TNA doesn’t need all these gimmicky matches and Russo should focus on making the storylines better, not messing with the wrestling. I like TNA, but if their shows keep up like this I might just stop watching them period. At least LAX has the tag titles keeping the Latino nation strong. This whole Jeff Jarrett face turn is ridiculous, how does he go from being the cancer of TNA, to being this nice guy? Then Sting blames it in the NWA Title? Who writes this stuff? Then AJ Styles is the X-Division champion again for no reason and Chris Sabin has a heel turn that gets cut short. I’m happy about Joe vs. Angle, but other than that the rest of the show is awful. TNA needs help kinda like RAW.

Topic #2 I guess we can move on to WWE. What about the other one hour show ECW? How are you liking them so far? And what can we expect with less than a month remaining before their first big PPV December to Dismember?

David: I always enjoy watching ECW each week. For the past few months, we’ve seen some damn good matches and some interesting feuds. Three matches that I’ve personally enjoyed were: Holly vs. RVD, Test vs. RVD, and the most recent CM Punk vs. Knox. These matches have pulled me in every week to see what happens, which is how it should be. Of course, just like every other wrestling show, its not perfect. ECW has an interesting roster but a lot of it is not getting used. The main reason for that is because it is a one hour show. Another problem is that they are bringing in wrestlers who just don’t seem to fit in, such as Davari, Khali, Burke and Turkay. These guys just don’t fit with ECW. I rather have them bring in new guys we don’t know then guys from other brands. ECW has a lot of growth to go but as of right now I think its a pretty good one hour show.

Alex: The best product the E is producing right now. That being said, it is no where near perfect but it has the most going for it. As an old school ECW fan, it was hard for me to open up to the WWECW but I saw what they were going for and grew more appreciation for it, and being such a huge fun for Punk, I got to love that he is quickly becoming one of the new ECW “stars.” The new ECW is really starting to resemble the old ECW, a mix of stars and very talented people, and the others that don’t fit in on Raw or SmackDown (Matt Stiker, Davari & The Great Khali, Shannon Moore, etc.). They need to lose the talent that doesn’t get over, and that isn’t good, namely Test. The show has many kinks that need to be worked out, but to me it is the E’s top show right now. On a side note, it really pisses me off that Vince is pullin’ the plug on the ECW house shows. I have been to two and they were both fun, and pretty good cards. I guess they are losing money; other wise there would be no reason to cancel them.

Sean: I have to concur with both Alex and David that ECW is a very good show in its infancy. I mean CM Punk is one of their popular wrestlers, how can you go wrong with that. Anyway, they have a good mix of talent with the old ECW, new guys, and ECW transfers that for the most part fit. I agree with David that Khali has no place in wrestling as it is, but I guess if he’s going to be Davari’s manager it’s not a bad idea. Terkay and Burke would be better served on SmackDown to help the slim tag division. Some of the transfers like Hardcore Holly and Matt Striker have really made a name for themselves. Holly has that attitude for ECW, as well as he brings experience and help for the younger guys. Not to mention he’s a good talent in the ring. Matt Striker has been able to expand his teacher gimmick and he seems to be improving in the ring. I’m happy that ECW has taken if off like it has and I think once it gets two hours we will see what ECW is all about. The bad thing is that since they don’t have monthly PPV’s their storylines get stale quickly. With creative as bad as it is, it makes it difficult for them to make storylines that can last a long while. Other than that, they’ve done a good job as establishing Big Show as a dominant champion and if they could maybe add a mid-card title it would help bring some more interest to the middle of the lineup.

Topic #3 Now we move to the Independent Scene with Ring of Honor. What makes them so different from the two big companies? And does it make them better?

David: I let Alex cover this.

Alex: I was actually watching “The Era Of Honor Begins” the other day and then I popped in “Supercard Of Honor” in addition to being one of the best professional wrestling shows I have ever seen, watching that right after ROH’s first show, it really showcased their progression. This has been a great year for Ring of Honor, from the amazing CZW-ROH feud, to the shows in the UK, to the Manhattan Center debut; they have definitely come a long way from the Murphy Rec Center. There aren’t many, or any, bad things I can say about ROH. They don’t have a TV deal, so they don’t have to compromise their product. Their titles are credible. They have some of the best in the world working for them. And most of all they have never lost focus of what is most important in this business…PROFESSIONAL WRESTLING.

I wanted to add one thing: Friday at XCW, after a loss to Cheuy Martinez in a Hair Vs. Hair match, the Necro Butcher was shaved bald in the middle of the ring. So those of you going to the CZW show this weekend are in for a new looking Butcher.

Sean: I think Alex hit the nail on the head, he’s got it.

Topic #4 What WWE proclaims as the “B” show is up next. What’s so good about SmackDown anyway? Of course, if there’s anything bad, you might want to mention that in here too.

David: To me, Smackdown is the best wrestling show on TV. I have really enjoyed King Booker as the champion and he always seems to make me laugh. I also think that the Smackdown brand has a very good roster for the most part. I don’t like the fact that Batista is still at the top of the card because he has little to no wrestling ability and i think that his 15 minutes of fame has kind of fizzled out. Batista doesn’t strike me a champion any more so i don’t think he should be given the shot to become one at this point. I’m really digging Finlay and Reagel because they are not only teaching the young guys but there also having great matches. It makes Smackdown seem more like a wrestling show instead of a popularity contest. I hope Smackdown continues what its doing and stays the training grounds for the young, up and coming stars. Just get rid of a few wrestlers like the boogie man and we may have a close to perfect wrestling show.

Alex: Well I go to XCW every Friday night, plus, it’s Friday night, so I don’t watch SmackDown, but, I did see No Mercy and that was way better than anything I have seen Raw do in a while. I keep up some what with videos online, and I must say that I love the King Booker character. I wish the cruiserweight division was existent and not Matt Hardy vs. Gregory Helms, and I wish Spanky and London were given the time they deserve. Finley and Regal are two of the best wrestlers that the E has currently. The main thing I dislike about SmackDown is Batista, no talent at all. He hasn’t gotten better, his gimmick is bad at best, and I don’t understand how he remains to stay over. Actually I have to contradict myself, the fact the Eddie Guerrero’s name is STILL, one year after his death, is being used in the storylines is enough to make me not want to watch SmackDown, it’s just insulting. But hey, at least it’s not Raw.

Sean: I always look forward to Friday nights. Not only because its a night I get to relax from school or maybe go somewhere, but also SmackDown is on that night. SmackDown is the best show that WWE has on television. They have the “Champion of Champions” in King Booker, who’s gimmick is hilarious and I’m happy to see Booker on top. I really don’t care for Batista but the crowd loves him so it only helps SmackDown. I wish he wasn’t in the main event though. The mid-card is fantastic with Lashley, Finlay, Kennedy, Mysterio, Benoit, Chavo and others. They have very good wrestling matches on every week, and for the most part the storylines don’t seem to get in the way of the wrestling. I don’t like how they pulled in Eddie’s name into the Benoit vs. Chavo storyline but if the matches are good, maybe I can live with it. There is even a small semblance of a tag division brewing. I guess the Boogeyman is the only real problem with the show, other than some decisions they’ve made with guys like Tatanka and Sylvan, I’ve enjoyed SmackDown.

Topic #5 Finally, we end our wonderful segment with WWE’s flagship show, Monday Night RAW. Lately, the show has been in a decline according to the IWC. What do you think of the shows lately?

David: I’m not to happy with the RAW brand right now. It has been very boring and stale for the past several months. I think that the RAW brand needs a total roster recall. I’m sick and tired of the DX gimmick and what makes it worse is that it’s the highlight of the show most of the time. I also hate John Cena with the title and how hes still a face. Nothing on RAW strikes me as interesting and most the time I’m just sitting with Alex making fun of the show. RAW is also having problems with building stars mainly because they are NOT building them. People like Carlito and Shelton haven’t been doing anything. Once you think one of them is getting pushed somewhere, they just get pushed back down. For the flagship show RAW is really lacking.

Alex: There is really no justification for this show, if anyone saw it this past week knows what I’m talking about, it was an awful show, that didn’t flow, and served no real purpose. I guess there are few things I like about the show, such as Johnny Nitro, Shelton Benjamin, Carlito, and Mickie James. Unfortunately this show is, and will be dominated by Triple H, and as long as Cena’s merchandise sells he isn’t going anywhere. And the fact that Ric Flair and Roddy Piper are tag team champions is wrong on so many levels. Raw is without a doubt in a major slump and they don’t even look like they are trying to pull themselves out of it.

Sean: I don’t think I can refute the claims about RAW it is pretty much plain as day. When regular WWE casual fans are telling me that RAW is getting stale that’s when you have a problem. The main problem is that RAW consistently has become the same old, same old. The mid-card as talented as it is, isn’t allowed to grow. The tag division has three good teams but with the exception of Cryme Tyme don’t get any face time. I like Piper and Flair together but they need to lose the titles to one of the other teams soon. I don’t mind Cena as champion the thing is he needs someone new to fight. Kevin Federline does not constitute as a wrestler. You have a big mid-card and Cena can work both sides, why not have Shelton vs. Cena or Carlito vs. Cena. Now that DX is facing Orton and EDGE they don’t bother me as much, but I still agree that they’ve grown kinda tiresome. You can’t blame McMahon for keeping them together though, the merchandise sells like hotcakes. There are a lot of problems with RAW at the moment and they are going to have to do something drastic to change that.