Before we begin, I need to explain something. Last Monday, I was misunderstood. I was indeed watching the cameo sent to me by MJF, but I was NOT doing what Catherine or any of you perverts think I was doing. I have terrible skin irritation issues, and when I get excited I have to slap my thighs to redirect my attention from the urge to itch. This has to be done in rapid motion so as to have its intended effect. Now, sometimes I have to unzip my pants to get to the itchy area, and that’s what you all…walked in on.
Even so, I have decided to leave my hero off of today’s Top Ten to prevent any further confusion about what you people may say about me. This is despite the fact that we had some great advancement in the build to his impending match with Danielson. Danielson is ever confident and MJF came out of the shortened Dynamite’s Main Event with a great victory. So, this should be the top story today, but your rumors have ruined the moment for me. How dare you!
TEN. Zabka Cool Down?
In a moment of reality out of nowhere, Monday’s Raw saw the always iconically entertaining Johnny Lawrence forced to face the truth: he is crazy. Thomas Ian Griffith, who plays “Terry Silver” on “Cobra Kai” confronted “William Zabka” about his sanity and threaten to have him kicked out of both the series and WWE if he doesn’t get help soon.
Now, I initially felt my heart sink, because I truly don’t want to see Johnny forget who he is, but I have to appreciate what we are seeing here. There are layers, for sure.
Griffith may seem like he is the only other sane celebrity outside of Ralph Macchio and Martin Kove to enter into the WWE picture over the past year, but this is most definitely a swerve in the works. How can I tell? Well, we saw Griffith flash his trademark sly smirk when Lawrence was struggling to understand the threats being thrown his way.
This isn’t Griffith being normal, this is “Terry Silver” slipping through. What we are about to see is Griffith straddle both worlds – reality and fantasy – as Griffith embraces his inner Silver, destroys Johnny Lawrence, and wreaks havoc on the WWE. I, for one, am excited about what the future holds here!
NINE. Chyna v. Rousey Incoming
A dream match that I didn’t realize I wanted was officially slated for next week as Rousey’s chances at a shot for the Knockout’s Title is dependent on whether or not she can overcome the bodyguard of the champ: Chyna.
Now, this story hasn’t been terrible. In fact, I have been a fan of Sasha’s run in AEW (even if it took YEARS for us to finally see her in action). However, this little twist felt like the spark that the champ needed. It also gives Rousey just what she needs to take her last great step into being a sympathetic babyface.
The stuff leading up to now has been great, but I am pretty excited to see how Rousey does next week. I will reserve my predictions for the predictions article, but for now I will just say that I have a feeling that this is going to involve a slight swerve.
EIGHT. Dance Off!
One of the funniest segments in WWE in the past couple of months happened on NXT, and it was between the Fashion Czar of WWE, Fandango, and Flex Fuller!
This showdown of glitter and muscles gave us plenty to laugh about, but we also saw some humanity in the usually juiced-up Fuller. Fandango was attacked by Murrey’s Misfits before this thing could really get going and we saw a little regret from Flex, as he was actually having a good time.
The bigger story here, in my humble opinion, is that Flex is starting to separate from the Misfits as they continue to go off the rails. Will this lead to a complete defection? Will that lead Murrey to replace Flex with another powerhouse? Or is this yet another way of swerving us?
SEVEN. The Rise of Belair
Bianca Belair and Ember Moon tore the house down in the sleeper match of AEW’s night. While I appreciated seeing Moon, I knew from the get go that this was about Bianca all along.
Yes, the bout swerved back and forth for while, but Bianca is the star that AEW is molding for their future as they look to a time without Athena headlining the division. Will she be a champion by year’s end, though? I think so, but it ultimately depends on whether Rousey topples Sasha and experiences a dominant reign.
Let me put it this way, if Rousey or Sasha is the champion when Bianca finally gets her chance, I see Bianca winning it all, as there is a story of overcoming some kind of odds for either scenario. However, if another star rises simultaneously with Bianca, that changes everything. So far, I think the path is clear for her, but we all know how quickly things can get altered in this business!
SIX. Big E’s Raw Moments
The World Title Challenger had a BIG Raw! He started his night by winning a tag team match against the Street Profits alongside his partner, Kofi. The match was great and I felt that it was just enough for E to continue looking great heading in to Then Now Forever 2.
Then, we saw Big E close the night with an even bigger moment! Just when we thought the Rock was going to end the show with a victory over Samoa Joe, WWE swerves us by having Big E get one over on Rock, leaving him down and out!
The image of Big E towering over the world champion was a fantastic way to make this viewer a believer in Big E’s momentum, and the ratings reflect as much from the audience. Isn’t it just awesome for Big E and the bookers that his big night helped lead WWE to the second victory in the three way Monday Night dance?!
I have heard talk of each company stepping up their game as spring approaches. Someone in WWE made it a point to recently highlight that they were hitting the gas soon, and it absolutely shows!
FIVE. Doc Brown’s NXT Special
The trend of NXT outpacing Raw in the ratings week after week may have come to an end this week, but don’t let that make you think that NXT was a weak show. In fact, this was probably my favorite NXT so far.
Murrey swerved Cross the night before by telling him that Doc Brown was going to be a special GM for NXT and what we got was a fun “Back to The Future”-themed show! A dance off and a Flux Capacitor Ladder Match! Yes, there was only one bout, but I was very sports entertained!
Another critic commented that they wanted to see more movie-theme shows from WWE, and I have a hard time disagreeing. Maybe we will next get a “Karate Kid” theme? Depends on the progression of Griffith’s rise to prominence in the company, me thinks.
For now, this chapter of the Cross/Murrey rivalry is a fun version of the tried and true approach to a power struggle in a wrestling company, and I don’t want it to end any time soon!
FOUR. Swerve’s Debut Announced
For the past few months, we have been treated to these top notch vignettes of Swerve Strickland’s arrival in AEW. This tradee from HCW is about to make an incredible impact in the company and while some in PWI/HCW management are a bit irritated about the contractual tie-ups involving the trade (we will talk more about that when we can), I am stoked to see what Swerve can do in his third home this era.
I believe that Swerve will become the TV champion within a month or two of arriving, based on his presentation so far. Cody better watch out, and I mean that. Swerve’s momentum could look like tidal wave from hell once he hits the ground there, and I sincerely don’t think that the American Nightmare will be able to avoid being a casualty.
Granted, I believe that Cody dropping the title to Swerve will free him up to go after MJF once again, but that’s for a future analysis to dive into deeper. Overall, I have to say that AEW has done a stellar job so far with Swerve, and I am ready for these next 9 days to pass so I can see the final package.
THREE. “Hogan’s Shrinking!”
Comedy is fantastic in wrestling, isn’t it? My sources tell me that AEW initially rejected a recent trade offer from a rival company just so they could have this particular moment, but now that they have seen what Midget Hogan can still bring to the table, they are all in on giving him his third career revival!
Some may forget this, but Midget Hogan was once part of a trio of pot-smoking idiots (alongside Y2Bitch and Wolferine) in the UWA in the closing months of the Third Era. AEW bringing the once most-hated wrestler (don’t mention his name and “109 days” in the same sentence around Millennials or Gen-X fans), but the former “Millionaire Hogan” has seen his star rise time and again over the course of the last 26 years. Remember when he was just the guy who hid under the ring during battle royals until the very end?
Anyways, adding Midget Hogan to High Minded was a truly genius move, and seeing his interaction with Riddle on Monday was hilarious. What will they do next…other than getting damn near killed by the Bloodline?
On that note, while we are on the subject of the rivalry between High Minded and the Bloodline, it was very interesting to see Paul Heyman come out with Roman Reigns as the Bloodline exacted revenge on the pot friends. How will Lesnar factor in when he resurfaces? Stay tuned!
TWO. Ripley Jumps Ship
Big E wasn’t the only reason that WWE jumped from third place last week to first this week, because the arrival of Rhea BLOODY FUCKING Ripley changed the game entirely for WWE’s strengthening Women’s Division and catapulted WWE into ratings supremacy!
Now, I am a bit miffed about Beth Phoenix being ousted from the title picture for the time being, as I was really looking forward to her encounter with Asuka. I either completely forgot about Beth’s injury or we weren’t told until now, but it felt out of nowhere. I won’t be too critical, though, for a couple reasons: I had pie in my face the last time I critiqued something in WWE that my goldfish brain mishandled, and we are still getting a blockbuster match!
Ripley left a bloated Knockout’s Division behind and helped to create balance in Women’s Wrestling across the board. I smell a title change in the near future, which will be Rhea’s first since debuting in PWI a few years ago. That feels like a crime against her immense talent!
Either way, this was the biggest moment in WWE this week and carried them to victory alongside Big E’s big night, so kudos to Murrey Entertainment for making this happen!
ONE. Armageddon Turns On Benny
Benny first gave us what I predicted: a confession. He confessed that Megan is his daughter, but left the dementia discussion up to everyone else. Ratings follow each of us Mouse Brothers everywhere that we go, and this was no exception as Benny told the world and the Board exactly what he thought of us all.
Then, chaos ensued. Chaos is always good for the business, and this round was brought about by the Harlem Turtles crashing Benny’s party to inform him that the Board is continuing with their investigation. Wait…pause!
…am I missing something here? Couldn’t the Board have informed Benny of this themselves by means of a letter or an email? Did they need the Harlem Turtles as their telegram-people? Yes, I know that this is how we, the audience, find out big news, but I would have at least thought that Benny had been told directly by the Board and not through some of his arch rivals.
You know what, I am being needlessly critical. I’m probably just a little salty that I myself received a letter from Catherine summoning me to sit before her and the Board for a review of my supposed behavior. I have medical documentation of my condition, dammit! I can prove that I’m innocent!!
Back to Dynamite and Benny’s opening thereof, Benny was throwing a fit after being told this news by the Turtles, then Stevie R and Booker D were attacked by the Acolytes. Then, in the midst of this insanity, Armageddon emerges and betrays Benny by helping Splinter’s comrades!
This is something that I never would have predicted in my wildest dreams, considering that Armageddon has been the most loyal of Benny’s henchmen since 2002! Yet, now we have the scariest monster in AEW gunning for Benny much like how part of the reason Mickey is still hiding most of the time is his fear for FRED and the Fiend.
Benny was last seen packing his bags and ordering Sami to get everything under control, because he was not about to let his former monster get ahold of him.
This was scary and excellent to watch and I am eager to see what happens next in Armageddon’s rampage!
Well, that’s it for this installment of “Wrestling with Lenny”, keep a lookout for my predictions and preview coming soon!
World Of Wrestling: Murrey Universe 