411 Fact or Fiction 01.01.09: Jericho, Angle, WrestleMania, and More!

1. Chris Jericho was the “Wrestler of the Year” for 2008.

Geoff Eubanks : FACT. We’ve actually covered this in Five-Star Conversation with respect to The Slammys. I was clearly in favor of Jericho, but a thoughtful reader named Justin suggested steadfastly that Edge was the man who really came through and shone in 2008, based most notably on his tenure with the WWET, having main-evented WrestleMania and having had a spectacular HitC match with The Undertaker. Furthermore, he downplayed Jericho’s contribution to the year in its entirety for his losing efforts at The RUMBLE, NO WAY OUT, WrestleMania, JUDGMENT DAY and NIGHT OF CHAMPIONS, and for not even having been on the card at all for BACKLASH, ONE NIGHT STAND and SUMMERSLAM. Good points all.

However, we ultimately agreed to disagree on this topic because Edge has yet to prove that he can win a world title in a clean and deserving fashion and spent the better part of latter 2008 “in hell”, while Y2J was lighting up Monday nights as the company’s #1 heel in the year’s most spectacular program against Shawn Michaels, evolving to a new level of expertise as he won, not once, but twice the World Title, the second being an unexpected victory over no less than Batista in a cage…without the aid of a cow.

Basically, it comes down to whether one prefers a strong start or a strong finish. It’s all about Jericho and I can’t wait to see where 2009 takes him.

Lawrence Watson : FACT. Far be it from me to deny it. Chris Jericho has consistently been the most entertaining WWE superstar this year. His angle with Shawn Michaels was a thing of beauty, and every promo Jericho has done since the heel turn has been gold. Jericho has been the highlight of the year for me.

Score: 1 for 1!

2. Kurt Angle was completely under-appreciated in 2008.

Geoff Eubanks : FACT. It could be argued that, in the grand scheme, anyone in TNA was under-appreciated in 2008. Since jumping to Orlando, Angle has been seen by millions fewer viewers each week. The casual fan could likely believe him to be retired, but this is a self-cast role for my Olympic Hero. Granted, it was noble, but nobility steeped in egomania, Angle steadfastly believing that his presence in the fledgling franchise would bring it to prominence such that Dixie could look eye-to-eye with Vince. Now that we’ve failed to see this occur (though certainly not as a result of poor performances by a top-notch roster), we’ve been witness to Angle adopting a humbler voice out of the ring, some suggesting his intention is to return in prodigal fashion to WWE (for which some in McMahonagement appear to be potentially contingent).

For the nonce, however, Angle’s creepy compulsion concerning the MEM mission statement as spokesperson paired with his unwavering, uncanny ability in the ring, which, despite numerous near-career-long injury/retirement scares, makes him a top draw. Yes, in the grand scheme, Angle was under-appreciated in 2008, by virtue of the relatively decreased number of fans seeing him perform, but if you’re one of those, it’s your own fault.

Lawrence Watson : FACT. Kurt Angle is one of the few things that allow me to sometimes get through a TNA broadcast. His promos and matches are always good, but he’s hampered by the promotion he works for, and the stupid storylines he’s been given. Kurt Angle himself is completely under-appreciated.

Score: 2 for 2!

3. ECW on Sci-Fi was the “Best Weekly Wrestling Show of the Year” for 2008.

Geoff Eubanks : FACT. The only other program consistently offering such solid wrestling was iMPACT!, but considering the company’s shift in TV late this year to focus on promos and backstage segments, to say nothing of the manner in which TV matches are gutted for commercial breaks, it’s impossible to sway me toward Thursdays in this regard. Yes, Raw and SmackDown! invariably rise to the occasion, but in terms of consistency, WWECW takes this prize. Funny how the show under Vince’s umbrella to which he cares the least (remember the heyday of Velocity…?) ends up being the show featuring the most solid wrestling…

Lawrence Watson : FACT. That is of the shows I watch. ECW has hardly ever had an off show. The new commentary team of Todd Grisham and Matt Striker is proving to be one of your more entertaining duos and what really makes ECW the best show this year is the fact that there isn’t enough space in the timeslot for a whole lot of “soap”-style storylines, but rather actual wrestling storylines that almost always make sense and provide entertainment. That’s what I look for, that’s what I want. I really enjoy watching ECW every Tuesday night.

Score: 3 for 3!

—SWITCH~!—

4. TNA showed no significant signs of improvement in 2008.

Lawrence Watson : FACT. A thousand times FACT! TNA is actually one of my least favorite promotions to watch. They have a lot of talent on the roster, but none of it ever seems to be used right. Vince Russo’s “Crash TV” concept has no place in today’s wrestling world, and it makes for stupid storylines, crappy gimmick matches, and a whole lot of nothing thrown at the viewer. They had a chance to step forward with Samoa Joe as champion, but they botched that too. For my money, TNA is like the Cleveland Browns of the wrestling world (You Steelers fans will understand). Just when they seem to be ready to breakthrough they muck it up. Also, TNA will continue to be intolerable with Mike Tenay and especially Don West screaming at the top of their lungs the entire time.

Geoff Eubanks: FICTION. And I say to you poppycock. Although Vince has been half-assing (literally and figuratively in some cases) his Divas for years now, it wasn’t until TNA developed and really got serious about their KnockOuts Division this year that Women’s wrestling was taken seriously, spearheaded by the incredible Awesome Kong, the advent of the MAIN EVENT MAFIA stands as one of the year’s best angles (the jury’s still out with respect to how the story will wrap up, but the repercussions stand to build a foundation upon which the company can really expand and grow) and there have also been some pretty smart and forward-thinking business moves, as well. House shows are expanding (even overseas with great success), iMPACT! is now a two-hour program and is available in HD, displaying to the fans that they can keep up with the proverbial Joneses. Prior to the holidays, iMPACT! scored its highest-rated show in the company’s history and the franchise continues to draw legendary, name talent in Booker T and Mick Foley.

Yes, it appears as if they lost Christian Cage and it’s rumored that Kurt Angle, as I mentioned above, is hungry to return to New York, booking could be more simplified and streamlined, some of the prim donnas on the roster could be told to know their roles and work house shows to potentially increase attendance (and a little promotion for such shows wouldn’t hurt, either), but, all in all, the 2009 horizon looks to be quite bright for Dixie and company.

Score: 3 for 4!

5. Judging by the current TV, the injury to Batista and the economy, WrestleMania 25 will not exceed 1-million total PPV buys this year.

Lawrence Watson : FACT. As of right now anyway. I’m not yet willing to give WWE the benefit of the doubt, and I’ll err on the side of caution. All things seem to indicate that unless some major things happen that bring the hardcore and casual “working class” fans into the fold, it just will not happen.

Geoff Eubanks: FICTION. This is the 25th anniversary of WrestleMania in 2009. One has to consider that Vince, who is decidedly NOT hurting for money, will pull out all the stops to make this year’s Grand Daddy of ‘em All a must-see spectacular. We have a LOT of time to develop rivalries and stories, to schmooze some special appearances and to tie in some once-in-a-lifetime moments worthy of the occasion to the HoF, which is rumored to see Steve Austin inducted. There are also rumors whispered of retirements for The Undertaker and Shawn Michaels, which, of course, remain to be seen.

Furthermore, one need only look back to The Great Depression to recognize that, abject poverty notwithstanding, the American public has always found the means to scrape enough cash together for entertainment, for escapism, and for the wrestling fan, escapism is synonymous with WrestleMania.

And if your decision to buy or not to buy WrestleMania hinges on the involvement of Batista, I’m sorry, friend, but you’re a pathetic example of a fan.

Score: 3 for 5!

6. In 2009, WWE will crown a new World or WWE Champion that has never held the title before.

Lawrence Watson : FACT. Right now I get this gut feeling that Christian will be coming back into the fold, and will at some point get a world title run. If not him, then someone else in the main event cusp in the company. 2008 was a really entertaining year from WWE, and I’m confident they’ll give us a new world champion whose never held the title at some point, and you can take that to the bank.

Geoff Eubanks: FICTION. I generally dislike questions of this nature because, really, who can say? If you’d have told me this time last year that Jeff Hardy wouldn’t see his first World Title victory until December, I’d have thought you were nuts, as it seemed to be at his fingertips December 2007, so who knows?

However, having a look under the WWE umbrella, it just doesn’t seem that there’s anyone on the championship horizon who will be ready in the coming calendar year to ascend to the highest place of honor, unless something goes horribly wrong or an angle gets shot gunned, although a lot can happen in a WWE year.

I see Shelton Benjamin, John Morrison and Cody Rhodes all very possibly wearing gold of this stature someday, but not this year. If you’d have asked me this question last year at this time, I’d have possibly suggested Kennedy and MVP, but it doesn’t appear as if that’s coming down the pike anytime soon. As it stands now, I don’t see Hurricane Helms ever rising above UST status, likewise for Mark Henry, Finlay and Chavo Guerrero with the WWECW title. Brian Kendrick stands no chance of holding anything but the Golden Bong award. McMahonagement seem to want to rally behind William Regal, but appear to be just as gun-shy in his regard. I can see big rallies coming in Mike Knox and Dolph Ziggler’s regard, but not such push that would see them go all the way to the top in a year. I, too, think Vladimir Kozlov’s gotten as close to a world title as he’s likely to get and would place the likelihood of wearing the WWECW title in 2009 in much greater likelihood. Too, Umaga, although a consistent performer who can insinuate himself in a main-event program with ease, to score a world title seems improbable, and were he to achieve such an accomplishment, I have a feeling it would be something akin to Kane’s 24-hour reign.

There’s an off-chance that, once Matt Hardy is revealed as his brother Jeff’s attacker, that he could be given a short-lived shot with the belt, simply as a means of antagonism, but if we see anyone rise to such prominence, my money’s on Ted DiBiase, as McMahonagement appears to be quite high on him and it’s my prediction that once his film wraps, he’s going to be gunning for Randy Orton, who could very well be the World Champion by the time he returns.

Score: 3 for 6!