Well, here we are at the end of yet another eventful week in this industry that we all love and here I am again with yet another review of what took place! Let’s get to it, shall we? (Not a remark that I recommend for a first date…sheesh, some lessons are learned the hard way!)
TEN. Camden Cross is Leveling Up!
The WWE is beginning to reveal each of their secret board members, and the latest revelation was that of the man who was bought out by Murrey: Camden Cross. Cross returned for the first time since Starrcade to great fanfare, and for good reason.
Cross arguably rejuvenated the non-PWI/HCW side of the industry and helped inspire the latest competitive fervor that we all love about it when he launched Higher Level Wrestling and then American Xcellence Wrestling before allowing Murrey to swoop in and seize on the early success of the upstart to return to head-to-head competition as an independent promoter for the first time since his experiment with TNA in 2010.
Without Cross we would likely be seeing an industry in serious peril instead of seeing a sort of rebirth. So, give the man his damn flowers!
After making his presence known on Raw, Cross joined us the very next night and was revealed as the new GM for NXT and its new show: LVL Up!
Knowing of Camden’s previous success with HLW/AXW, NXT should absolutely be something to keep our eyes on, no doubt about that! In the meantime, I think that I need to explore the remaining hidden board members the next time I offer predictions for WWE…hmmm…
NINE. Athena the SuperStar
After paying homage to her opponent last week, Angelina Love, Athena issued an open challenge to anyone “past or present” for her match coming up on Monday. I will save my predictions as to who this will be for my next article, but for now I just want to share (again) my high praise for Athena.
Star certainly didn’t enter this industry as someone who was guaranteed to be a standard bearer for her division, but now we have absolutely reached a point where there will be entire chapters written on her approach to the business. Athena was and still is a revolutionary force in Women’s wrestling. I will be sad when she hangs the boots up, but I am 100% enjoying the ride of her farewell tour!
EIGHT. Swerve the Narrative
Swerve Strickland is a man whose day in the spotlight has been a long time coming. With lost opportunities – by no fault of his own – in WWE, PWI, and HCW, Strickland has now received a hero’s welcome to AEW.
The past few weeks of vignettes offered by AEW in preparation for his arrival have been nothing short of masterful. I have been both enamored and nervously optimistic by this presentation, and I can’t wait to see what he does with his new home.
Is it finally possible that Swerve has landed in a place he can call home? I am anxiously awaiting the answer to that burning question, and as I shake my magic 8-Ball (SHIT…NOT THAT 8-BALL…PUT IT AWAY, FIDO!!)…it responds that “All Signs Point To YES”. Stay tuned!
SEVEN. Final Judgment/Drew Drama
The past month has been a hellacious rollercoaster ride for Drew McIntyre! Boy! He begins the year as the seemingly unstoppable WWE champion to dropping the title to a resurgent legend and feuding with a rookie!
Oversimplification? Perhaps, but that’s where us Mouse Brothers specialize!
Fact of the matter is this: Drew is still on a roll, even without the gold. I called that Drew would topple Lexis King after a great showing by Pillman’s son, but I had no idea that the trip down this path would be far more fun than a simple iconic match!
I LOVED the drama of the Final Judgment driving away from the scene of Drew being taken out at the end of Raw, and now you can color me intrigued about this latest partnership between Drew and Reed (though Reed’s entrance causing a distraction for Drew was briefly confusing…but I digress).
It remains CRYSTAL clear to me that Drew is marching back to the Rock, but he will first have to clear the Final Judgment and maybe even a major hiccup in a potential betrayal by Bronson.
Then AGAIN, Damian, Dominick, and King all remain as solid hurdles for Drew on a collective and individual basis. Damian’s hunger for the title should not be forgotten at all, as I have no doubt that the former champion will again find himself atop this crazy mountain.
Great stuff all around!
SIX. The Rock overshadows Big E
I have to agree with Hyatte here, Big E and Rock should have had their promo placement reversed this week. Though, I get what WWE was going for here: Big E makes a big statement victory against Gunther and then follows up with a bold promo meant to send a message to the new champion. Then, The Rock RESPONDS in his standard and cold style. Classic booking, but it seemed a little out of place, only because I don’t doubt that the Rock could have led WWE to a second place victory over PWI this week if he had been on Raw instead of finishing a night wherein WWE was unopposed.
It could be argued that Big E should have found his way to a mic to have his promo on NXT last week so that the Rock could respond when it would help WWE, but what’s done is done. The only problem here is that The Rock severely overshadows Big E.
…then again…
Big E being overshadowed is PRECISELY the point here. WWE wants us to see Big E as an underdog in every way that they can make us think this way. If they keep this up, then don’t be surprised if you see some surprising numbers in Vegas placing Big E as a seemingly-odd odds-on favorite to win at Then. Now. Forever. 2!
Despite my misgivings about how they rolled this past week out, I sincerely do think that this build is heading in the right direction. Big E v. The Rock will not be a match that you want to miss!
FIVE. Matt Riddle with the Valentine’s High
Monday marked the first time since Genesis that we had Nash, Hogan, Riddle, and Hall’s proof of life. While I may still be curious as to the fate of the missing cameraman-turned-rocketeer, I was amused by the hospital exchange between all of these recovering besties.
It had an “Odd Couple” feel, and then Riddle arrived unscathed almost as if the aura of his pot smoke last Sunday had created a Mary Jane Force Field shielding him from harm. This Leprechaun of Joy and Munchies barged into the geriatric episode of Springer to bring a bouquet…
…the…most beautiful bouquet I have ever seen…
…WAKE UP LENNY!!
ANYWAYS, after having raided the local Oregonian dispensary of all its finest green, Riddle tried to LIGHTEN up the mood for his friends, but Kevin Buzzkill nixed the idea straight away.
I suppose that Nash has been spending too much time hanging out with CM Punk…that fucking hater.
Regardless, I look forward to our visits with Hogan and the gang on a weekly basis. What will they think of next???
FOUR. Kove Tries & Cobra Kai Never Dies!
Arguably the funniest moment of the week transpired as Martin Kove became the unfortunate victim of a revenge attack by Murrey’s Misfits (noticeably devoid of one Curtis Axel) meant to scare William Zabka away from matches and gyms.
Kove getting his ass kicked wasn’t the funniest part, it was the emotional exchange between him and Zabka which made audiences everywhere forget how to breathe for a solid five minutes.
Kove has REPEATEDLY tried to remind William that he is not a Sensei, but an actor. This latest attempt at trying to insert some reality into the mix of looney shit was too much for my laugh box. I am pretty sure that I permanently burst a blood vessel in my left eye from the force of involuntary laughter which bellowed from deep within my soul.
I do apologize to Martin, but for the sake of my enjoyment, I hope he never succeeds in getting through to Mr. Lawrence (he has earned the right to be called by his name in the Karate Kid going forward). This is simply the best shit I have ever witnessed! Never change, Johnny!
THREE. Sami Presser
Sami Zayn delivered on his promise (and on my pressure-creating predictions) with a news-breaking press conference!
Yes, we heard him dodge all of the important questions, such as when he made up some bullshit in response to my questions about the whereabouts of my niece and the contingency plan the company ought to have in the likely event that Benny is deposed. However, the breaking news was that Benny himself will be present at this coming Dynamite to finally face the music.
Now, I may be a little off base, but a part of me expects Sami to pull a dementia-version of a Weekend at Bernie’s with Benny, creating some kind of a puppet out of my near-brain dead brother as “Benny” keeps Sami’s “promise”.
Well…come on…you can picture it too, can’t you? Yes, because we know how ruthless Sami has been as Benny’s proxy.
But, I do expect my brother to show up and give us a little something, but it will be painfully obvious that he shouldn’t be there, and the appearance will wind up being cut short to continue covering up the truth. This will take place as Splinter, Stevie R, and Booker D take on Darby and the Brothers of Destruction.
Regardless, the best story in AEW will continue!
SIDE NOTE: This will mark the first occasion of Booker D being in a ring with the Undertaker since December 8th, 2014 when they – formerly known as the awesome team of D & UT – lost the PWI Tag Titles to Olson and Lee!
TWO. The Trial of Doc Brown
Prime. That’s what caused the incident with Flex Fuller on the previous week’s NXT. Not the “elixir” of Christopher Lloyd, but the elixir sold by Logan Paul. Well, that’s according to completely believable, vetted, and unbiased testimony of Fuller.
Case dismissed, and we move on.
WTF?????
This bazaar “court” proceeding involving a judge and two attorneys – all of whom earned law degrees from Trump University – was so farcical that it bordered whatever it is you would call the extreme opposite of a Kangaroo Court (wait…the extreme opposite might be a just court, and that certainly doesn’t fit here!).
I laughed. I cried for the Justice System. I puked some. I laughed again and shit myself in the process. It was a whole ordeal.
WWE most definitely owns the realm of comedy in this business, and this is an area where Murrey has dominated in eras past. He just has that unique touch. Call it genius, call it lead poisoning. Whatever you call it, it’s working and working well!
ONE. MJF’s PUSH!!!
I had to change my shorts, sheets, and curtains three times typing that header. Seriously, the ending of Dynamite this week was more than sufficient to make up for the incredible injustice we saw at Genesis. Hell, if MJF really does go all the way then I am pretty certain that nothing else will ever be able to get me fully aroused again. I would have reached the ultimate climax. Nirvana. Heaven. Valhalla.
It. Will. Be. Bliss.
Forget Danielson and Styles, this is the moment we…and by “we”, I mean “I”…have been waiting for. MJF will stand atop AEW and the world of wrestling like some greek God, only better than all of them. Better than anything I could imagine. Better than you…and you know it.
This is the crowning moment not for MJF, but for professional wrestling. I am not kidding. You might as well give Mickey what he wants and shut down the entire industry once MJF becomes champion, because it will NEVER get any better than that moment.
I will happily read the eulogy of Sports Entertainment as I pen the Epitaph which will read: “It was all meant for him”.
Logan Paul may have unintentionally given us this moment when he screwed MJF over. Wardlow can be forgiven of all of his indiscretions once MJF holds the prize above his head. Danielson and Styles can go jerk together on a merry-go-round for all I care, because they will always be second tier compared to the next and greatest icon: Maxwell Jacob Friedman!
To say that the revelation that MJF was entering the match that we all thought was exclusively involving Styles and Danielson was amazing is a gross understatement. Don’t get me wrong, Danielson’s rant about his resentment towards Styles boiling over at Genesis was great, and Styles being justifiably confused whilst also angry about the betrayal made me look forward to this encounter, but MJF made all of that anticipation pale in comparison to what happens next.
I simply can’t wait for this next PPV. Just rename it “The Crowning of our King” already and let’s move on to the 1,000 years of peace with our Salt of the Earth!
LET’S FUCKING GO!!!!
I will see you all within 36 hours as I post my predictions and preview post!
World Of Wrestling: Murrey Universe 