WWE Superstars Keeps the Balance

Tune into WWE Superstars Thursday nights at 8:00pm eastern on the WGN network.

Probably the main benefit that comes out of this show is the chance to see what you typically only got on special occasions (usually three hour specials of Monday Night RAW) or during the WWE draft… mixed brand wrestling. Although that is obviously the marketed benefit, it is still quite a perk for any WWE fan and deserves some stressing.

One night you might get matchups mixed with inter-brand bouts, or you might even get an occasional Number One Contender’s match as was the case a while back between Christian and Finlay. In this respect it is kind of cool and I view it like the show for those who see pro wrestling as their past time; you’re just going to get a good, random mix of entertainment with the occasional contest that has something at stake.

I would not expect to see Super Card type matchups on this show but you’ll definitely have a Super Card player here and there in the ring with someone else (see John Cena versus Ted DiBiase Jr.).  

And aside from what the show does for the fans it also helps out those superstars that aren’t scheduled to see action quite as often as others would on Monday Night Raw, Friday Night Smackdown and ECW. So for that, WWE Superstars is pretty interesting television.

WWE Monday Night RAW & Pepsi Center Madness

Who get to crack open that big can of Pepsi Center!

Thoughts on This Year’s WWE Draft

Last night on Monday Night RAW the WWE “shook things up” as they’ve been calling it by holding a draft wherein any random wrestler can end up being drafted between the three brands of RAW, Smackdown and ECW (in order of significance of course). Even though the draft is a complete crock where you almost always see big names come back to RAW like Batista and Rey Mysterio did last year, and chump jobbers like Vladimir Koslov (ECW’s only draft pick) go to the land of extreme, it is still interesting.

I thought it was a great idea to get Jericho and Mysterio over to Smackdown now that Triple H is back on RAW because of one simple great reason; every championship contender on Smackdown now actually looks like they matchup. In fact, the only guy that doesn’t match up other than the other true superstars (Chris Jericho, Jeff Hardy, Rey Mysterio, CM Punk, Edge, and perhaps a few others) is Kane who also was drafted from RAW to Smackdown. None of those guys would be much more than transitional champions as long as Triple H were around. Plus, Kane is a bum and can be used to create some awesome “David vs. Goliath” type matches. And honestly, let’s not get started on Great Khali. He could be thrown in to stir some ratings, but no title for him. I also think that the moves make way for guys like Shelton Benjamin and R Truth.

Shelton Benjamin

Another thing I liked was the switch between the middle titles; Rey Mysterio takes his Intercontinental Title to Smackdown, and MVP takes his US Championship to RAW as he was drafted from Smackdown last night. In all truth, I think that US title is the sweetest looking belt of all the WWE and will look much better on RAW than on Smackdown. Finally, you got that chip off the big chin block Vladimir Koslov over on Sci-Fi where he can scrap it up a few matches and make others like Christian, Jack Swagger, and Finlay look good. I wouldn’t mind seeing Koslov go at it with Tommy Dreamer either.

All in all, I think it was a decent draft, and there weren’t really many head scratchers. Pretty good job WWE.

Two Hardys and a Hardass!

John Cena has considerably less tenure in the WWE yet is no stranger to championship success. Jeff Hardy, left, and Matt Hardy, right, are still newcomers to this type of limelight.

How about those three champions in the WWE! On ECW we have Matt Hardy holding the ECW Championship. This guy had been jobbing pretty hard perhaps a year, and then some, or so ago on Smackdown before MVP made his debut and they began their feud and Tag Team Championship reign. The enigmatic Jeff Hardy gained his first main title by winning the WWE Championship this past Sunday at Armageddon with his lights-out performance. And then we have the ultimate hardass… John Cena. And I don’t mean hardass in the sense that he’s a jerk. If anything, Cena is one of the prime examples of a face player… and he has the World Heavyweight Championship. I’m talking about an unbreakable good guy hardass.

Speaking of faces, all three of these guys are face characters for the WWE. I just think it’s a little different and interesting to see them all with the titles of the brand they wrestle for. For guys like the Hardys, this type of success was a long time coming. The Hardy boys were constantly subjected to drawing “Oohs” and “Ahhs” from the crowds purely on wrestling ability, and both had a history of coming up short as singles competitors whenever they weren’t tagging it up.

However, in that time that Matt Hardy began to rise on Smackdown in the time of the MVP feud, the Smackdown brand did a decent job of giving him some mic time so that the fans could get a feel for the personality of the guy who had always played second fiddle to his brother Jeff.

Similarly, Jeff began to voice himself up when he returned to the WWE on Monday Night RAW. He came out and had a plenty of title matches, held the Intercontinental Championship a few times, had big battles with the likes of Umaga, and once again, had been coming up short in championship opportunities. The only difference in his second stint has been the sense that his time would eventually come to be a brand champ.

Then we have Cena. I already did my story on “The Champ.” (See ‘John Cena… A Man to Be’). He looks like he’ll be hanging onto his belt for quite a while. But with the recent heightened frequency of titles changing hands on RAW and Smackdown, perhaps neither of the three is a lock to hold onto their belts for an extended period of time. Either way, all three reigns have the potential to be very exciting.

WWE Seems to Only Sell its Title Matches

What’s up with the WWE these days? I remember a time when almost every match and storyline was worth watching or following respectively. This was a time where Pay-Per Views didn’t have to lean on having nearly every match be a title match, and start mixing brands. Nowadays you have the RAW title holder, Smackdown title holder, ECW title holder, and whatever Womens/Divas champion all defending their belts on the same night at almost every Pay-Per View.

There are good aspects of this and bad. The bad is that it has to suggest that separate Pay-Per Views for each brand (RAW, Smackdown, ECW) were not enough to draw TV purchases. But the good is that those matches sucked besides the title matches were starting to be all that anyone really cared about. I mean, when you had one Pay-Per view that was just Smackdown feuds, the only stuff that really mattered was a U.S. Title match, the main event for the World Heavyweight Championship (now on RAW), and perhaps one pretty good grudge match like Undertaker and Great Khali. Other than that, every other match would be a bunch of filler for the most part. Stuff that the kids will enjoy.

However, now with the Supercards having mostly title matches or actually intriguing grudge matches, the Pay-Per Views really have become more purchase-worthy. But don’t put some new marketing changes past the WWE anytime soon. For any of those who have been watching lately, I’m sure you’ve noticed the blatant exposure that Monday Night Raw has been trying to create for their Intercontinental Title with their 8-man tournament for the title against William Regal.

All in all, any real wrestling fan will not let this stop them from at least keeping up with the goings-on of their beloved program. The WWE may seem to be in a rut (especially when Vince McMahon has to give away millions of his own money to fans) but in truth, nobody gets more down and dirty than Pro Wrestling at its finest, and for those of you who already watch, you know what I’m talking about!

Feud Brewing between Mysterio/Bourne Combo and Kane/Henry Duo

We’ll see what kind of "ultimatum" this Bourne has in the coming weeks on Raw and ECW.

On the latest installment of Monday Night Raw, the WWE showcased the high-flying talents of Evan Bourne and his childhood wrestling hero Rey Mysterio when the two faced off on the canvas. The two “little engines” that can went volley for volley when Mysterio finally reversed a roll up and got the three-count for the win. The two shook hands and showed that there were no hard feelings.

The same could not be said for Kane, who lost to Mysterio in the no-holds barred match at Cyber Sunday, and Mark Henry, Bourne’s ECW roster mate. Shortly after the Mysterio and Bourne match, the two oafs came down to the ring and put a hurting on both competitors. This could mean that an intriguing tag team match up will be booked between both would be tandems at Survivor Series. If that happens, it could shape up to be a very compelling match.

To witness two wrestlers under feet and five inches tall going against two 300 plus pound behemoths, one over 7 foot tall (Kane), and the other a former World’s Strongest Man Champion (Henry), in a ring is usually a good draw for ratings. It would be a classic of two “Davids” going against two “Goliaths,” and the choreography for this kind of contest has a lot of promise.

Kane is the consumate zombie-like character. To see him fall is almost always a treat.

ECW Championship on the Line at Cyber Sunday

Finlay has never been a real Super Card draw so I don’t see that changing. When the fans select Evan Bourne, the WWE will plan an exciting matchup that will elevate Evan Bourne’s status with the fans.

Evan Bourne has a chance to make even bigger waves than he already has at Cyber Sunday.

Three potential opponents have been selected for the WWE Universe to vote for to face Matt Hardy for his ECW Championship; Mark Henry, Evan Bourne, and Fit Finlay. At this point in Matt Hardy first title reign as the ECW champ I do not yet see him losing the belt. However, there will still be one benefactor in this match and his name is Evan Bourne.

Evan Bourne is a lock as Matt Hardy’s challenger at Cyber Sunday. The kid has the “little-engine-that-could” perception going for him and the fans for the most part seem to like it. Mark Henry is washed up and is mainly used for his former World’s Strongest Man status. He’s just a big oaf that looks like the monster he is when he slams someone, and also the jobber that he truly is when he gets laid out by less heavier wrestlers.

Hopefully for Bourne he can build off that. 

Look at big Mark Henry's brother!

You gotta admit. Mark Henry and his brother look a lot alike.