The Seventh Dimension 09.29.07: Face Facts, Chase Lacks

Duh-nuh-nuh duh-nuh-nuh duh-nuh-nuh-naaah!

The common catchphrase. An enigma of civilisation. To some, catchphrases embody all that is to detest about society, with shows such as Little Britain popularising the genre of ‘catchphrase comedy’. “No, but, yeah, but”, “I am a lady”, “I’m the only gay in the village”, “Yeah I know”, “Computer says no”, etc. I can understand the concern there, that Walliams and Lucas are seemingly a one-trick pony welded together from two previous, shitter ponies. But Little Britain isn’t really a problem, because it’s also incredibly funny in places. It’s that Catherine Tate I hate. Devoid of comedic talent (though an above-average actress in dramatic roles), her “Am I bovvered?” shtick is all she has going for her, yet she repeatedly wins awards simply due to the lack of female competition. The idea that she could even be considered on the same level as French and Saunders in their prime is the only laugh I get from her.

To others (sorry, I‘ll get back on track), catchphrases and phrases are what life is all about. Where it’s at, if you will. Grab ‘em while they’re hot. There are many phrases used in wrestling, such as “beaten like a red-headed stepchild”, “whipped like a government mule”, “thrown around like yesterday’s news”, “nothing but a damn bully”, and my personal favourite, “Chris Masters might be a slight favourite for this match”. Those are the ones you hear on the shows, and get mocked mercilessly for being histrionic and hyperbolic, as well as overused. But there’s one phrase, used in fact by us here in the IWC and not on television, that has perplexed and perturbed me ever since I first heard it.

“The money’s in the chase.”

Just thinking about that sequence of words has me scratching my head like a Bulgarian orphan.

For anybody who is not familiar with this, the theory is that the most financially rewarding times in a wrestling promotion are those when the most popular wrestler is trying to win the main belt. The idea being that, eventually, the fans will want him to get the championship so much that they’ll work themselves up into a frenzy, and pay for any events that the switch could potentially transpire. A couple of good examples of this would be Sting’s feud with Hogan that ended (horrifically) at Starrcade 1997, and Stone Cold’s six month odyssey from late 1998 to early 1999. Although, these were before I was watching. The earliest one I remember, as it was at the exact time I got into it all, would be The Rock losing to Triple H at Wrestlemania 2000 and not winning the WWF title until a month later at Backlash. Certainly, the money was in the chase there and the fans were rabid when he got the pin. In fact, a title doesn’t even have to always be involved – for instance, Abyss seeking revenge against Christian Cage recently. Though two of those examples wound up climaxing dismally, the chase was good.

Another, much longer version of this would be most of our old friend Chris Benoit’s career. Yes, he had a one day reign as WCW champion, just before jumping ship. He then had two phantom WWF title reigns in 2000 where the decision was reversed both times. After that, he only had two World title matches on pay-per-view until Wrestlemania XX, when he finally won one of the two World Heavyweight Championships in the main-event. A similar thing happened with Rob Van Dam. Van Dam pinned Undertaker for the WWE title the night after Taker won it at Judgment Day 2002, when Van Dam was probably at the height of his popularity. It was reversed, and he wouldn’t get his shot until ECW: One Night Stand II – more than four years later, and the first pay-per-view he’d headlined one-on-one for WWE. As a result, the event was hugely successful and everyone loved the win. It’s a shame he cocked it up, as that seemed to vindicate WWE’s hesitation in giving him the belt. But, for that one night at the Hammerstein, Van Dam was on top, and we as fans ascended with him as a result.

Now, I don’t know more than any of the other columnists here. Far from it – with seven years experience, mostly centred around WWE, I’m a relative newb to the industry. I have great respect for each of my peers and their vast knowledge of wrestlers, matches, even companies that I had no clue existed. I want to make this clear, because they obviously don’t throw this phrase out without thinking. Csonka knows his shit, that’s for sure. And, as I’ve already shown, it‘s impossible to deny that, quite often, a long wait for redemption will result in an increasingly ecstatic reception when it finally all comes together.

However, to suggest this is always the case is lunacy.

CM Punk’s win over John Morrison for the ECW Championship this month was warmly greeted by fans in attendance, as well as most of us here in the IWC. But this match was on free television, as the result of Morrison being suspended. We need to remember that, just one week before the big W, a lot of us were irritated as Punk had just lost to Morrison at Summerslam. It was the third consecutive pay-per-view that Punk had lost at to Morrison with the title on the line. Many didn’t think Morrison should even have beaten Punk for the vacant belt (you’ll remember Benoit was scheduled to win that, but decided to kick back at home for a bit instead). However, after a few weeks (and a gimmick change), Morrison was widely accepted as our champion and we moved on. The past aside, most of us predicted Punk would win this time around, especially after beating Morrison in that ‘Fifteen Minutes of Fame’ match to even get the title opportunity.

Instead, Punk was defeated relatively clean, with no other viable contenders and no real reason for Punk to feel hard done-by after being out-wrestled for three events straight. It left a bad taste in my mouth, especially since neither of the WWE World Heavyweight Championships changed hands that night either, so Punk could really have done with that spotlight. This wasn’t “Damn, Punk should beat that nasty Morrison” heat, this was “They’ve fucked with us too long” heat. In fact, when Punk earned yet another title match two nights later, we all knew he’d be winning at Unforgiven and were pretty indifferent by this point. The feud had become lethargic, and it was a blessing in disguise that they had to pull the surprise title change on ECW due to Morrison’s reliance on bitch-tit drugs, as the live audience was delighted to witness something so monumental. The entire chase and feud was saved by Morrison’s substance abuse. If the plan had stayed the same, for Punk to win at Unforgiven, I can’t imagine the reaction would have been half as good as it was. It could have been disastrously obsolete.

The same could be said for Batista, who finally won his third World Heavyweight Championship earlier this month, after coming up short in seven previous attempts to regain the gold since losing it at Wrestlemania. It didn’t help that, during this time, two champions were injured and subsequently replaced by people who had not yet challenged them, thereby making Batista look foolish for not getting his shot even when there was no choice. I realise it was supposed to be very different – Batista vs. Khali at the Great American Bash had no title involved, until Edge injured himself and required surgery just a week before the match. But still, enough was enough, and it’s a good thing the Animal finally got his hands back on the big gold belt before he had that old ‘Lex Luger’ stigma attached to him.

The biggest problem I have with the “Money’s in the chase” argument is when people start using it as an excuse as to why a face shouldn’t be holding the belt. I’m led to believe at times that, if left to their own devices, these people would constantly book heel champions that hold the belt for years and years, with the faces only winning in order to transition it to the next heel. It’s often used to explain why Cena should lose (though even I admit he probably should have lost the belt at Unforgiven to Randy Orton), or for why someone like Matt Hardy has yet to catch a significant singles break – though I am looking forward to his imminent US Title win. You see, the Hardy/MVP feud is so multi-faceted, so layered, that it’s one of the few occasions where the ‘chase’ is as good as the eventual pay-off.

However, that’s different because Matt isn’t simply going after MVP’s title for months on-end like Batista was against three different champions. And, as we’ve already seen with CM Punk’s extended quest, as well as Samoa Joe’s inability to catch a break in the TNA main-event scene, incessantly watching ‘the chase’ without any significant recompense leaves everyone annoyed. Fucking imagine if Samoa Joe were to win the TNA title at Genesis this year, and then lose it at the next night’s tapings just so he could chase it again, or so that Sting could. We’d be furious with this cock-tease of a non-reign. At least, I would. I think I’d rather Joe didn’t win the belt ever that simply be given the belt for the sake of shutting us up. His eventual reign probably needs at least five months, I surmise.

The final issue I take with this is the idea that the most profitable times for a company are when a face is chasing a heel for the title. It’s a nice idea, but unfortunately two words can destroy that argument.

Hulk Hogan.

Again, I missed the entire Hogan boom thing, mainly because I hadn’t been born until between Wrestlemania III and Wrestlemania IV. And I’m sure somebody will email me to tell me about Hogan’s AWA days, where they refused to give him the belt while he had a licence to print money for the organisation, and as a result he defected and diverted the course of the business somewhat. In fact, perhaps he carried the bulk of his chase from AWA to WWF? But, despite these very good points, a sufficient amount is obvious enough for me to concur one thing in regards to Hogan‘s WWF career.

Well…let’s just say that Hulk Hogan was over. He carved himself a niche, no doubt about it. In fact, he saved the entire industry. He is, indisputably, the biggest star in the history of the profession, the most marketable, probably the most recognisable to non-fans. Now, just forget any idea of Hogan taking his pursuit from AWA to WWF, and consider the slate cleaned when he changed sides. Hogan’s first ‘chase’ of the WWE Championship lasted a whopping 28 days (and by that, I mean the Iron Sheik held it for a total of four weeks before Hogan took it from him). And how long was he champion for in his first reign? A fortnight? Until the next big event so he could lose it and chase it again? No. He held it for 1,474 days straight. And when he finally did lose the title, did his subjugator, Andre the Giant, become a dominant champion, putting Hogan’s efforts to shame? Nope, he vacated it within a minute, and the belt was put up for grabs in a tournament, and was finally won at Wrestlemania IV by Randy Savage…another face. Oh, and then he held it for a year before losing it back to Hogan after a very brief heel turn to set the match up. And then Hogan lost it a year later to the Ultimate Warrior in a face-v-face match, who held it for ten months before losing to Slaughter so he could transition it back to Hogan.

You see what my problem here is?

Even before Hogan, and again I’m only examining WWWF here, look at the champions. Buddy Rogers, the first champion and a heel, lost the belt 19 days after winning it. His conqueror was the ever-popular Bruno Sammartino, who beat Rogers in less than a minute and held the belt for nearly eight years. His successor was a Russian (I.e. heel), Ivan Koloff, who promptly jobbed to Pedro Morales after three weeks, and Pedro began his three-year reign. Then, he lost to the late Stan Stasiak, another heel, who held the belt for a whopping nine days before Sammartino got his hands back on it for another three-tenths of a decade. I’m pretty sure some cash would have been obtained during these fourteen years.

Long-term face champions are often the biggest commodity for a federation, and we‘re all aware of it.

To say the money is in the chase seems to me to be a very lazy and incorrect way of summing up something that’s slightly more complicated. Yes, sometimes the most successful periods are when a face is chasing a heel. However, it is not an accredited formula of certainty. It’s not a 100% success rate. In fact, it may not even be 70%. In the end, the most triumphant and enjoyable times for all involved is when the main-event comprises quality performers. That’s it. There doesn’t need to be a heel/face alliance, not necessarily at least. There does need to be a reason to care, hence building the feud for the weeks leading up to the match, but there’s no reason to believe that fans are any less likely to pay to watch a wronged face champion get retribution that they are to see a wronged face challenger do the same thing. I’d certainly rather watch a great heel challenge a great face than a decent face challenge a decent heel. It’s all subjective when it comes to the main-event, it is purely who is in the match for most people and the champion/challenger separation doesn’t make any different once the result is determined (unless it was a DQ).

WWE know this, and that’s why John Cena has had three WWE title reigns – two of which, his first reign and his current, excess-of-one-year reign, have been of obscene length – because, as tired as we might get of the character of John Cena holding the belt, Cena is quite simply more reliable and more marketable than a large minority (or maybe the majority) of WWE’s other workers. He’s milked for all he’s worth because he’s worth so much to the company, and to us fans who enjoy his ethic and professionalism, as well as the consistent eminence of most of his major matches.

Of course, a lot of people are willing to pay hard-earned cash to see Cena lose as well, so I guess the money IS in the chase in that aspect. Or whatever the opposition of a chase is. Standing still and staring into the sunset? But, in that case, it’s in multiple chases by multiple challengers, against a face character, so it’s still not the conventional sense of the expression. But then, Cena isn’t a traditional champion. At least, not in the traditional sense of the word. The word, in this case, being ‘traditional’.

I’m a bit worried about re-treading old ground in a minute, so I’ll wrap it up here. To summarise, then – yes, for storyline purposes a long chase can sometimes lead to a euphoric sensation of absolution and closure when the chase has ended. However, in today’s climate, where there are pay-per-views on a monthly basis, it’s no longer relevant to adhere to this way of thinking. Eventually, the fans are left with no reason to care about a repeated choker failing time and time again. The money can be in the chase…but only if the chase is good. Just as with anything else you can name.

Because, if ‘the chase’ is bad…it can very quickly become ‘the wait’. Or, even worse, ‘the waste’.

– Last week, I compared a moment from my life to Torrie Wilson hanging out with Tajiri during the Invasion. I had to look that far back for an example of a man or a woman falling for a weird choice of mate. At least, I thought I did…until I remembered this week that Kelly Kelly and Balls Mahoney are involved in a similar, much-more-appropriate-to-my-original-cause angle. I feel stupid for missing that, but then again it hasn’t exactly captivated me. At least Tajiri won sometimes before he was with Torrie, whereas Balls only wins because of Kelly. I suppose Tazz could say “Holy smokes, Balls is winnin’ thuh matches cuz of Kelly!” At least that would add something, ANYTHING to this. As it is, it’s just Kelly’s fat guy fetish and Balls’s arctophilia. It doesn’t help that Kelly has never shown any positive sentiment towards the Miz, either. And how is MIZ a physical threat, again? Why is this even a story? Just have them get together, the are literally no obstacles other than human hygiene. And I’m not referring to Double K’s superb arse and prestine cunt.
– Actually, she should start calling herself Double K and turn heel. Turns out she hates Balls and likes Miz instead, and have Miz team with Knox. That’s the only way this will succeed beyond a couple more weeks.

– Either Chris Jericho or Syco Sid is coming back to WWE, if that ‘Save_Us.222’ thingamee-bobkins is anybizzle to rely on. The clues suggest Jericho, but then again, it’s already been proved there are at least some red-herrings there, related to Wrestlemania 15 (before Jericho arrived). Perhaps it’s ALL a red-herring and that deep voice is the real clue. I’ll be happy either way, Jericho’s obviously a better worker and has more long-term value…but Sid is Sid! But Jericho is Jericho! Damn, I hope we get both now. ‘Sycicho’?

– Kevin Fertig (better known as ECW’s Kevin Thorn) had a child recently, and nobody’s congratulated him. Instead, most (especially Csonka, a father himself) have concentrated on the whole “how can a vampire sire an offspring?” joke. That really just goes to show how little people care about Fertig and/or parenthood. Oh well, nice for him anyway. As long as he doesn’t start cutting promos about how his new baby is becoming a vampire, and got his first taste of blood chewing on his mother’s nipples. That would suck a big ol’ cock.

– JR said this in his latest blog – “I would certainly assume that we will see Chris Benoit matches again at some point in time. “Time” will make this matter more palatable for everyone involved. There is still much more to the Benoit Family Tragedy than meets the eye or that the media has reported. A potentially contaminated crime scene is unsettling. Plus, has it ever been determined who died first, Nancy or Daniel?” This is the first sign from anyone inside WWE that 1) time will heal the wounds regarding Chris Benoit’s legacy, and 2) there is doubt he even committed the crimes. That’s quite significant, although who wants to bet JR won’t be getting that contract extension after saying this? Nope, me either. Still, though…interesting and worth mentioning.

– I hereby predict Shannon Moore will be the next Cruiserweight champion of the world. So, obviously, it will be Chavo.

– Rubbish Youtube Quote of the Week~! From ‘Cena and Randy Orton’:

– chiquitaysmith
– r u a boy,if u r than that means u are gay u can’t say a boy is hot if u r one.
[sorry i just had to get that straight]

– No offence, but you’re an idiot. I say this right now as a heterosexual twenty year-old who loves ladies – Cena and Orton are TOTALLY hot. I’d certainly rather go on a date with either of them than Mae Young or Moolah. It’s all about longevity – Cena and Orton can provide me with stability for years to come. You just KNOW that you’d get a different package from each of them, as well. Cena knows all the ways to woo someone proficiently, but Orton’s got that rough diamond charisma. Good stuff.

– Hey, you know, that’s not all…because I couldn’t resist clicking this jackass’s channel, and I found a comment from someone else on it. This may actually be funnier in a way.

– feith4efil
– dam ur mad ignonrant

– Ok, maybe not. But it always raises a smile when a complete illiterate (a 24 year-old one at that!) questions the intelligence of others. Even if his 26 year-old victim deserved it.

This is where I study non-wrestling thoughts or events from my life, and then link them to wrestling so that you have a reason to care. A bit like the Six Degrees of Separation, but worse.

Also, in future weeks I shall no longer explain what this section is, as any consistent readers will already know and I’m sure it’s fairly easy for blue-chippers to work it out. It’s hardly rocket science. Or trying to book Sonjay Dutt. Seriously, TNA…cut him loose. Allow him to soar.

The Matter: Remember last week when I shed light on a rather tasteless dream I had about a lady I know? Well, if you thought that was bad you haven’t heard a thing. This last Monday, I was at a pub, reflecting after having travelled from my home to the tavern in question, which was about sixteen miles away. This in itself is nothing to consider…until we establish that I got to my destination ON FOOT. Yes, in an attempt to burn off some calories, I decided to journey in the most time-honoured of manners. Sadly, time didn’t honour me, as it took me a whopping three hours to reach my destination. In broken shoes, as well, so I was in tremendous pain. The night was flawed on many levels in fact, though it was eventually very enjoyable despite wasting a tonne of money and misplacing my hat.
– Anyway, a friend of mine who lived in the town, one of the less filthy-minded members of my vast CO*fourpeople*UGH social circle, made a rather outlandish comment about a lady friend of his from Brighton. Regarding her apparent facial hair attributes, he said the following –
“I think her moustache is sexy. I want to come all over it and lay my balls in it until it sets and then tear it away.” These three lesbian chicks he was hanging out with wouldn’t talk to him for the rest of the night. Another friend of ours was convulsing under the table. I just sat there, pint in hand, wondering why I’d walked all that way. Plenty of fitties about, fortunately, so it worked out. Although, I didn’t get off with any of them. Probably because my idea of a chat-up line is to demean the lady in question based on her current situation. For instance, shouting “Three across – suck my cock!” at a woman doing a crossword. I’m so desperately lonely.
The Link: In regards to this account, pertaining to my friend and his somewhat unhinged intentions for his girlfriend’s Fu Manchu, this reminded me very much of Boogeyman biting Jillian Hall’s mole off her face on Smackdown! a couple of years ago, but with more blood and probably an increased fluidity in the work-rate. And, of course, the female party will receive the push at the end of it. Sigh…

Once again, little feedback this time around (though 500% more than last week). But, it‘s certainly been a case of quality over quantity. Each e-mail I’ve received has been elegantly fulfilled.

Here’s Lynx Raven Raide‘s take on events.

I am not sucking up to you when I say this: I absolutely loved your column, cause it is exactly how I feel. If I remember rightly, Larry pretty much brought up he whole depression and concussion thing not long after the story broke, but of course unless you are a reader of 411 it would be overlooked in the media scrum that was jumping on the ‘Roid Rage’ bandwagon at that time. I find WWE’s actions both typical and odd equally in their response to the brain scan and diary find. Typical, cause they were trying to cover their own ass when it didn’t need to be, but that has been stated over and over. The odd part, well depression is a serious issue that it seems every man and his dog is jumping on these days. for me, I am kinda half accepting half cynical when it comes to depression in general, cause I am just wondering if it is being used as an excuse in a lot of cases, but defiantly not in this one. I fully accept that Benoit would have been suffering from depression, and this would have been a good time for Vince and co. to put their weight behind the issue, but no, they are still taking the hard line. I guess I can understand, since with the current media scrutiny it would be seen as a sign of weakness by Vince, but they could at least acknowledge it and take steps to deal with it within their own ranks, as I doubt Benoit was the only one. Though he has now been released, it was good of them to allow Monty Brown the time to grieve, which is probably what they should have done with Benoit or insisted he take the time, cause I feel that there would have been pressure on him trying to keep a brave face all the time after the tribute show for Eddie, and that wouldn’t have helped the end situation.

Lynx Raven (god, what a cool name) makes a good point. WWE have a terrific, almost once-in-a-lifetime chance here to really help make the wrestling climate a better, healthier and happier place to work. However, they’re so eager to protect their own interests that they’ve missed the point. Instead of focusing on how a young family’s life has come to an end, probably in relation to the working conditions that have evolved since ECW came to prominence, WWE still can’t get it into their heads that this is NOT an all-out attack on WWE. WWE is not the be-all and end-all of all wrestling, or even ‘sports entertainment’. People are genuinely concerned for the wrestlers’ safety. It doesn’t help that Jerry McDevitt, WWE’s attorney, may be the single most immoral solicitor on the planet, or at least the most conniving. He’s run straight through every opening he can obtain, usually with flailing arms screaming “Look at me!”, to pin all the blame on an ever-loyal man who can’t in any way defend himself. To say Chris Benoit’s concussions are ‘speculative’ evidence is outrageous. Is it proven that they caused him to flip and commit the acts? No. But are they a solid foundation? Good grief, of COURSE they are. This was a wonderful window of possibility, but WWE promptly locked it shut with their defensive bullshit. It’s honestly contemptible.

And Chris Nowinski should be lauded for all his hard work. In getting Michael Benoit to agree to these tests, he may have just saved countless lives. His reward? His release from the WWE. Sordid.

Here’s Scotland‘s own Paul Stevenson. Here he is. Look! You’ll like what you see, take a peak.

Nice to see someone else feel the same way as I did.

As for PWI taking a vote to remove Benoit from the hall of fame?. I think it’s a disgrace. Firstly they should wait until the final verdict from the official enquiry comes through before even making such a suggestion!. He’s in there so leave him in!. I just hope enough of the people who vote on the PWI board are more interested in doing the right thing than they are in keeping their public image looking good!.

I didn’t even mention PWI or Chris Kanyon last week because they’re both so hollow in their retorts. PWI shouldn’t have even inducted Chris Benoit when he was still active, that’s just a stupid thing to do. However, to remove him would be political correctness gone mad. Should he be inducted into any Hall of Fame he isn’t in? Probably not. But you can’t take him out if you’ve been short-sighted enough to already establish him as worthy, just because he made a personal error. In the end, I hope PWI realises that their image will actually be blemished more if they get rid of him, because we fans are the only ones who give a shit about PWI, and we’re the ones calling for them to keep Benoit in. In fact, now I’m an esteemed journalist, perhaps I shall write them a little letter myself. “Dear cocks…”

Kanyon is nothing, as far as I’m concerned. “Who Biased as Kanyon?” should be his new aphorism, because he‘s assured to object to anything WWE-related come rain or shine. Sure, he knew Benoit, but his opinion was already preconceived due to his hatred of WWE. He’s still bitter that Vince McMahon is supposedly a homophobe. The fact that Kanyon enhanced neither ‘fuck’ nor ‘all’ in his career had nothing to do with his release. He was simply outcast for being a CLOSET gay. Go away, Kanyon. Go away.

Ron M speaks humbly of his credence and content:

I wanted to narrow this down to just saying that what you said in your column needed to be said. In truth that’s not enough.

It’s like a high mountain cliff with a steep and sheer dropoff. It’s inaccessible, but I can still admire it from afar.

Ron hit’s the nail on the head when he says we can’t forget what happened. I know that what was meant was that it is impossible to overlook it, but it’s deeper than that. Lessons have GOT to be learned from this. Whether you love Benoit or you hate him (and I made it clear last week that I do not harbour any kind of rancour in Chris’s regard), the fact is that he was held liable for the killings of a mother and son, and those actions supersede his career even if you CAN find it within yourself to disconnect his private life from his working life. But, the point is, Benoit hasn’t exactly come out of this unscathed. I wanted to make it clear that he has achieved the same tragic fate as his family, except arguably worse. I know I’d rather be the unfortunate, unassuming sod that was killed by a man who didn’t grasp the severity of the condition, than the man responsible who’s living in his own clandestine anguish, unconsciously picking apart at his celebrity with every successive movement he makes.

Ron also added that he was somewhat unnerved by my use of profanity last week, particularly an instance in which it was included in the same sentence as the name of his saviour, Jesus Christ. I apologise for any offence on that occasion, rest assured it was unintentional. However, I thought I’d mention that here, because we have a tenaciously religious man, one willing to stand up for what he considers wrong from others, who refuses to reproach Chris Benoit on a moral level – perhaps the most satisfying wake-up call to the mass of supercilious dunces, most of them either Atheists or at least overtly ignorant, who cheerfully proclaimed that Chris Benoit was burning in hell. Thank you, Ron.

Diane (a lady?!) also matters:

Thank you for this article. You have said what I think much better then I could have. I never even for a moment thought that Chris was evil. All the “facts” are still not in, and whatever the remaining facts are will not in any way change my opinion of Chris. I was upset at the loss of Nancy as much as for Chris, as I am a fan of both, and have been for many years.

Thanks again for saying what at least a few of us fans think.

I think there are probably many more who feel the same way, but are still apprehensive of letting others know. It is a sticky issue, after all. That said, it’s heartening to know that there are those that were willing to tough it out, without just flat-out denying that he did it (like so many Youtube users), which helped absolutely nobody and probably made things worse. Even rarer is when somebody who did initially disown Benoit admits he may have made a mistake, which takes real guts.

Damian Arredondo, like many, doesn’t even think Chris committed these crimes.

About fuckin time someone from the IWC even suggested that Chris Benoit might be innocent. Everyone in the IWC condemned him, and nobody even thought of inocent until proven guilty, and nobody wanted to listen to anything otherwise. I think he’s innocent, because a lot of people did their research, and proved that he didn’t do this.They proved that Chris didn’t send the text messages, that his neigbor could be involved, and that the police overlooked many things. And when you put together the timeline, brain damage reports, the toxicology, and the way they died, it doesn’t make sense. It looks like the investigators and WWE believe this too. In the WWE’s recent letters and responses, they never say he did this, and use the word allegedly a lot. And the DA in this case seems less confident than he did when this first happened.

And your Benoit article is the best one in all the IWC.

Did they prove he didn’t send the messages? I missed that one. I know that there was no alcohol in any of their systems which challenges the ten empty beer cans and the empty wine bottle, though perhaps they could have been consumed earlier in the week. I know somebody came up with a great way the timeline could be intertwined with a hostage/extractor theory (explaining who drank the alcohol), but the end of it would have to be the most well organised ‘panic’ to leave absolutely no evidence or raise any suspicion afterwards. Plus, in this timeline Chris Benoit still sent the texts, but as a cry for help.

All I know is, nothing has been proven one way or another. I think I’d be happier at the end of all of this if Chris was guilty, because I’ve accepted that and feel no ill-will towards him. However, if it turns out he didn‘t do it, it will be the biggest and perhaps most damning slap to the face of WWE, the media, and the IWC in the history of televised wrestling. At the very least, it would get us all thinking again.

Anyway, for now it doesn’t matter. Three young people are dead either way. Though I must say, considering the vast wealth of quality Benoit articles, it’s quite the compliment to have mine considered the “best one in all the IWC”. Especially since I hosted a link to Dunn’s MAGNIFICENT one last week.

Finally, Sousou Sousou wrote to say that Chris Benoit was loved by all and deserves respect to this day. Sousou also called Benoit a saint. I wouldn’t go THAT far, but it just goes to show that some people are simply undaunted by things that don’t affect them. Sometimes, that’s the wrong attitude to have. In this case, however, it’s the right one.

It ends here. Thanks for reading this. It makes my rigorously fatiguing life completely worth enduring.

I haven’t got a specific topic scheduled for next week, so I’ll probably either talk about whatever’s on my mind wrestling-wise at the time, or hope something happens that’s big enough for me to get several pages out of it (like I managed in my first column about Jay Lethal). Either that, or I’ll cover a few topics with about five paragraphs each or something. We’ll see how it goes, because I’m versitile like an otter, baby.

So, I shall see you next week in…The Seventh Dimension!!!~!212121

STOP right now, thank you very much, I need somebody with the human touch…