I'm back babydolls!

Wow, I haven't written anything since Survivor Series. I'll admit, I kind of stopped caring about the wrestling stuff for a while there. Maybe it had something to do with Skyrim. Maybe it was because the product (with the exception of a few I'll mention in due course) sucked. Maybe a little of both.

Either way, I'm back! I find the new year so exciting, the "Road To Wrestlemania" is beginning, it feels like the WWE always lifts it's programming up a notch or two in these months. Wouldn't it be great if it held to that standard for a whole year... 

And then there's the returns. Wow.. so much to talk about. Where do I even begin... 

I guess like any good return, it begins (see what i did there) with an intro. For those of you reading my page for the first time, I am the Aussie Mouthpiece. There you go, intro done. 

Returns seem like a good place to start. Well, technically one return, and one re-imagining. I'm talking about Kane and *spoiler alert.. oh just go watch RAW already* Jericho.

So Kane first of all. I am a huge fan of "new Kane". I saw some people get all upset because he started talking and cut a long promo. Here's what I think about that. Kane is a great talker. Why would you want him not to use that to further storylines, and entertain you? What, just because he puts the mask on suddenly he's a mute again? He talked before he took his mask off in the first place. He also had facial hair. My point is, having him suddenly become silent again, would be a step backwards for his character.

The one thing that I think maybe needs to change (and this is just a purely aesthetic thing) is the design on his tights.. the bright yellow part of the flames and then everything else is red... it just looks a bit silly. A bit cartoony. Make it more subtle I think, because his character is coming across as a little unstable, and very dangerous and kind of psychotic. bright yellow does not reflect this image.

However the way Kane has been used since making his return has been great. The end of this week's RAW especially. I've always loved that slightly hokey, yet really "supernatural" style stuff that they've done with both he and Undertaker in the past. I hope they keep it up, and Kane gets a really good spot on the Wrestlemania card, and not just as part of a ladder match again.

And the other return. The one everyone's been talking about since that first It Begins video. The one everyone has speculated on.. is it Shane and Stephanie.. is it Y2J... is it Undertaker.. I think i saw that "is it Skip Sheffield"... Seriously? Skip Sheffield? I mean I've read this thing about this Ryback character.. but man.. I never really got it with that guy. Looked like a meathead, sounded like a meathead... but then Batista had a fairly good run with WWE so I guess that kind of person works for them.

But back to the It Begins clips. Amazing stuff. I was hooked from the first one. Trying to play them back in slow motion to get any kind of hint about who it might be. Part of me really didn't want it to be Jericho. Because it seemed so obvious. And that if it was him, the surprise would be lessened with the live crowd chanting his name and bringing signs. 

I wanted it to be Undertaker. I think he is due for a change in character, especially to wind down his career. But in the end, I'm really glad it was Jericho. 

Here's the rub though. How many people watched his return and felt like something was a little off, or hated it? Here comes the babyface Jericho and all he does for near 10 mins or something is pander to the crowd? 

I'll admit it, I was of that mindset until about 5 minutes into it. Then I (like a few other people I've noticed) figured it out. He's not pandering, he's showing how easy it is to lead the crowd, to have them follow him. To make them sheep essentially. He had that entire place eating out of the palm of his hand for 10 mins. Brilliant. 

And there were just a couple of subtle signs that he wasn't sincere. Don't get me wrong, the initial couple of minutes was all real as far as I can tell. Jericho has got to be happy to be back and get that kind of reaction. Who wouldn't want 15000 people cheering for them? But there were a couple of times where the smile faded, and you could see the "Best in the world at what he does" Jericho face. 

I had thought that it would have been amazing if the first thing he actually said was something like "And that's how easy it is to control you people... you sheep.. you "insert big long jericho style word here".. you really think I'm here to please you??" Etc. 

But I love the way this played out. The lack of talking makes people go .. "what...?" And more importantly, will make them tune in next week to see if he says anything. 

As with most other people, I think that this is leading into a Punk/Jericho feud. Which I am more than happy with.

So those were the returns. But we've got some more returns happening in the near future I dare say. The biggest one being Undertaker of course. Which will probably happen after the Rumble, maybe at the Rumble depending on who he will be facing at mania. I really hope they don't go with HHH again. It's a totally different situation to Taker and HBK. There's really nothing more they can add to what Taker and HHH did last year. I would love to see Taker and Kane, I think with Kane's resurrection, it could make for a really interesting story, and really, a good way for Taker to go out (if that's what he's planning to do). 20-0 seems an appropriate number to retire on I think. 

But really, it's still 3 months until Wrestlemania, and they have a ton of options.

Taker vs Sheamus (they would have to turn sheamus heel though)

Taker vs Cody Rhodes (doesn't make a lot of sense though, if Cody is still IC champ)

Taker vs Ziggler (I would like to see this as Ziggler rules, but I can't figure out the story behind it other than Ziggler saying "i can beat the streak".. and we've seen that a lot)

Taker vs CM Punk .. if they decide to go down a different road with Punk of course

And then by that logic, Taker vs Jericho. That would be an amazing match.

I'll even throw out there Taker vs HBK III ... So unlikely that it would happen, but it would still be amazing.

Ok I think i'll leave it there for now, I'm going to try to get back into this writing thing a lot more regularly. So I'll be back in a few days or a week or so to write about some of the other stuff that's been happening in the last few weeks. Like Cena still not turning heel. That's going to be a long blog.

Until then, follow me @TheOZMouthpiece on twitter and if you like what you've read, leave me a comment and check out my older posts. 

Done.

The Calm before the storm No. 4

That's right, I'm back!
Yes, I've been away from the blog for a while. I'll be honest. The Muppets on RAW pissed me off, and I didn't want to write a completely negative post. And I needed a break from writing.

But Survivor Series is right around the corner, and shaping up to be something quite interesting. So let's talk about that.

However, before I get to that, seeing as how I haven't written anything for a couple of weeks, there are a couple of things I do want to talk about first.

Let's start with RAW getting Rocked.

I am SICK of the treatment of Jim Ross. WWE is all about anti-bullying, unless it's one of their own (and longest-tenured) employees apparently.
Michael Cole is boring, they have him talk about himself instead of the match that is happening in the ring, he's not entertaining as a heel, and he's certainly not at the level of Jim Ross or Joey Styles commentary wise.

As an on-screen heel character, it's a different story however. So, less Cole on commentary.

I was really appalled when Cole was brought out to replace JR what.. not even half way through RAW? That first part with JR calling the matches.. so great. So fluid. It felt good. Then Cole comes out, and just rants about himself. It made me want to fast forward.

Ok enough about Cole.

The other thing I wanted to talk about is something I just read. Matt Hardy has been kicked out of rehab and arrested.  I mean..... there's not a lot to say really is there? Well done, you moron. You get the opportunity to sort your life out paid for by a company you were no longer employed by, and you blow it? (pun intended)

Matt Hardy, you sir, are a fool. Enjoy sitting in jail. $1,000,000 bail fee... seems excessive. Maybe Jeff can scrape the cash together so the hardy boyz can make more "youtube eps".

Ok onto Survivor Series.

First off, bold prediction. Undertaker will be making an appearance. Think about it. 20 years ago, at Survivor Series 1991, 'Taker won the WWE(F) Championship for the first time. Survivor Series is when he made his debut, one year earlier. It's a special night for Undertaker. Maybe we'll see him.

Strangely the card isn't that enticing, at least on paper.

Aside from Rock/Cena vs Miz/Truth, which, honestly is only a draw because people want to see what happens between Rock and Cena.. there's the obvious draw of CM Punk, and I would also say Dolph Ziggler, wrestling twice in one night again.

I would say though that the "traditional survivor series match" doesn't seem that interesting to me. And once again, why is Daniel Bryan not at least in that match? He has a MiTB Case.. which is basically a way of saying "he's at the main event level, or thereabouts".. yet we haven't seen him wrestle on Pay Per View since Summerslam...

As far as the matches go, let's take them one by one.

Diva's championship match:
Seriously, who cares? They have had Beth/Natalya lose on RAW every time i've seen them wrestle lately. Doesn't make sense. I don't buy Kelly Kelly being able to beat Beth Phoenix. Or.. really anyone for that matter. Yes, I know it's Eve wrestling Beth, so that means that the match will be slightly better, but still... I'm not expecting anything amazing. And it's a shame, because Beth is a really good wrestler.

Beth Wins.

US Title Match: Morrison Vs Ziggler

Short but sweet for this one. Morrison is leaving (as far as we know) so he won't win. I expect Ryder to be involved somehow, or maybe it becomes a triple threat on the night.

Ziggler wins (Unless Ryder is in the match)


Traditional Survivor Series match:

Easy pick. Babyface team wins.  OR... Heel team wins with Cody Rhodes being the sole survivor.  Nothing else needs to be said really.

World Heavyweight Championship - Mark Henry vs Big Show

I am actually a fan of these matches. You don't get to see two huge human beings who actually have skill and co-ordination wrestle all that often. Sure, they aren't "5 star classics", but they're great for what they are. I would imagine this will be a fairly short match. I have a couple of ideas about the finish.. one being Henry wins, but 'Taker comes back to challenge for the title at the next two Pay Per views. Another being Henry wins by DQ because Show goes crazy.

Either way, Mark Henry wins this match.

WWE Championship match: CM Punk vs Alberto Del Rio

This is a tougher one to call. I would love to see Punk win, and I'm leaning more towards that. Maybe Cole will try to get involved in the match, as revenge for this week's RAW, but I think that's a very unlikely scenario.
Will be a good match, but as I said, I see Punk winning.

Winner: CM Punk.

Main Event: Rock/Cena vs Awesome Truth.

Now we're getting into the interesting stuff. Will Cena turn heel? That's the biggest question that is floating around I think. I would really like to see it, I think his character would benefit greatly from a change like that, and would help give Cena some more fire, doing something different after the same character for what.. 5 .. 6 years now?

How will Rock and Cena work together? Well.. there's a pretty easy answer to that.. Story-wise.. terribly. But they will both be on top of their games, and it will be really entertaining.

The almost sad thing is, as the Miz said, Awesome Truth almost feel like an afterthought. Like it could be any two opponents against Rock and Cena, because that's where the story is, not in the match itself. I agree to some extent, but I think this will be a really good match.

And, if nothing else, it'll be good to see if The Rock can still go. I'm betting he can.

As far as the finish.. I see Rock and Cena winning, because the people will want to see Rock win. But after the match, I see an altercation happening between Cena and Rock. Possibly Rock laying out Cena with a Rock Bottom, in order to set things in motion for the Wrestlemania match.

But, if they want to turn Cena heel, it would be John Cena F-Uing (or AA-ing, whatever) Rock, and leaving him in the middle of the ring, ripping off his own armbands and wristbands, and dropping them on Rock's chest, giving him the "You can't see me".. but then maybe flipping him (or the crowd) off afterwards.

Ok the last part is far-fetched I know, but how awesome would it be?

To sum up... Winners: Rock and Cena.

So that's it, Survivor Series is not far away at all, and looks like it could be quite the event. So follow me on twitter, I'll be tweeting during the Pay Per View @TheOZMouthpiece
Leave me a comment on here as well.

That's it, and that's all.

Home Schooling No. 5

It's another week, and time again for another edition of Home schooling, my weekly RAW recap, along with a few other topics about wrestling that i've had on my mind during the week.

This week I'll talk about RAW, mention a little more about Vengeance, and maybe a couple of other things.

Firstly coming off of Vengeance, there were some questions that were definitely left unanswered. Like when is it going to be "revealed" that Laurinitis is behind Nash's attacks? Or is it Laurinitis... maybe there's a higher power. Let's hope not. I don't think that needs to be re-visited.

Why did Zack Ryder lose? I saw a few people upset about that. Well.. has everyone forgotten the way things used to, and should be done? Won't it mean more if Ryder has to fight through another month of adversity and THEN win the title? I see "oh they've stopped his push" or "he was never really getting pushed". Just because he loses doesn't mean he's done being pushed. People just want a quick fix nowadays. It means more if it's long term. Think about it.

Think about the guys who were pushed way too quickly. There's one name in particular that springs to mind. Brock Lesnar. He left after not even 2 years in the WWE. Bobby Lashley is another one.
Slower builds mean more. And they seem to provide longevity.

I'm not upset Ryder lost. No-one else should be, except as a work.

I'm still amazed at how good the main event was. Especially in a broken ring. It's lucky that it was a last man standing match. I really can't think of any other type of match, except for an I Quit match that would work in a broken ring. Maybe a hardcore match, or a street fight, but a last man standing match is really just an extension of a street fight. As is an I Quit match. But, having said that, hardcore matches, street fights, they have to have a pinfall or submission.

Ok so let's move onto Raw.

I loved the opening of the show. Triple H seems like he's "back" .. as a wrestler I mean. No suit this week.  That could be a telling factor.
Laurinitis is REALLY boring. But you already know that.
Triple H did deliver quite a good promo, talking about how he thought he and Nash were cool buds forever, and that the kliq sign meant something. The best promos, interviews, whatever you want to call them, they always have something "real" about them. I'll talk more about that in the post i'm writing about great promos.

But man, I honestly did not expect Nash to come out and hit Triple H with that sledgehammer. Very surprising, very brutal looking.
And then the second attack, while Triple H was strapped to that stretcher? Anyone remember the last time something like that happened? We had a stretcher match after that between Lesnar and Big Show. Man, I'll never forget that image of Rey Mysterio being slammed into the ring post.

I could write a whole post on why John Laurinitis is one of the worst talkers in the WWE right now. Hell, Mike Adamle might have been better. Laurinitis sounds like he's reading from a script, which is a problem for a lot of the WWE at the moment, but the thing is, he's the least believable guy. Everything is so stiff, so forced, there's no expression, no feeling behind what he's saying.

He needs to become more believable. Otherwise the only way they'll get out of this Interim GM storyline is if it's revealed that John Laurinitis is actually a robot, and someone has a remote control in the back somewhere.

Also he looks like a muppet when he talks. Kind of fitting if you think about it.

Ok I got off track there. Like I said, I coudl write a whole post on him.

Back to Nash and Triple H. Oh one thing though, Laurinitis isn't all bad. When he was checking on HHH, it felt a lot more real than anything else he'd done.

Nash's expressions after he'd hit HHH were brilliant. He looks like he's a lot more comfortable now. And my god he's in good shape.

Here's the thing though. They show Nash walking backstage, that was good. But what I found a little weird, he walks past at least 4 active WWE wrestlers. Now, as far as storyline goes, Nash doesn't work there. Why wouldn't the people with jobs stand up for their boss? Sure, Nash had a sledgehammer, but DiBiase standing there with a dumb look on his face didn't really do anything good for the angle. Made it look less real if anything.

So the second attack, like I said was amazing. That felt really different again to what has been happening in recent months with storylines. I hope it's heading for a stretcher match. You really don't see those all that often, and it would mean that they could rely less on "wrestling" and use objects and what not to make a great match. And Nash and HHH have had great gimmick matches before. Hell in a Cell from Bad Blood in 2003 springs to mind.

So I've called it. Stretcher match. I'll probably be wrong.


The idea of the supershow must be to get the smackdown guys used to working live every week. Right? Why else have them on the show? We can see them every week on Smackdown.

Looks like Cena's had enough of John Laurinitis as well. I really hope we do get to see someone, Punk, Triple H, Cena, all of the above, let's hope we get to see Laurinitis get the crap beaten out of him.

Dolph will be world champion before the end of next year. And not just for one night. He is arguably the best thing going today. He and Punk are neck and neck. Here's an idea. After Wrestlemania, have Punk as champion, and have he and Ziggler get into a feud. Ziggler doesn't need to turn face, he's too good of a heel.

Santino reminds me of early 90's WWE. And.. I'm not sure it's a good thing. The Cobra, the over the top sillyness.. It's a shame that he's stuck in that character, I remember when he started, he was a great heel. Now he's essentially a job guy this week.

Mason "batista with hair" Ryan.. I don't get it.

I tell you what was good this week. CM Punk got to speak. And it wasn't just a short little thing. We got some pipebombs. Finally. It's been about 3 weeks? The guy got over with his mic work, so he should be given time to use that which got him to this point every week.

As usual though, Punk was on fire. The best part is that Punk and Laurinitis having a conversation in the ring, just shows how bad Laurinitis is, and how good Punk is. The thing that makes Punk so good, is everything feels real. Whenever he's cutting someone down, like Laurinitis this week, it feels like a shoot. Sure, we know it's more like a worked shoot, but no-one else (maybe except Cena) is doing that.

Hey Wade Barrett! I forgot he had a job. Too bad they screwed up the finish.

Michael Cole's "JR" segment was disgusting. WWE don't seem to get the difference between a heel getting heat, and people wanting to see them get beaten up, as opposed to Cole's heat, where no one wants to see him at all.
I hope the idea is that JR is going to win this challenge thing, put Cole back on Smackdown. Or maybe he's going to take some much needed time off.
More than likely someone will interfere and JR will get screwed over again.

And the last thing I want to talk about is Cena announcing the Rock as his partner for Survivor Series. The idea of not having a traditional Survivor Series match is going to take so much steam away from this angle. Same as the decision to have the focus not be on CM Punk, who started everything. Hopefully, as the guys on Chair shot reality said, it'll become a 6-man tag at the very least.

Speaking of which, just quickly, everyone should check out Chair Shot Reality on Wrestlezone.com when you finish reading this. It's a great show, they're in the middle of their 100th episode at the moment. It's awesome.

I found it kind of funny that Cena was selling the beating Miz and Truth gave him until he "realised" he could choose The Rock.

Hopefully we get some more of the same kind of stuff next week on Raw. More CM Punk getting to talk. More good wrestling. And more Nash. But, one thing, Triple H should NOT be there. Maybe an interview "via satellite". Keep the angle going, but really sell the injury. It'll make Nash look even stronger than he already does, and it will help get across the fact that Nash, who (to the WWE audience) hasn't wrestled there for what.. 8 years? (and to the rest of us, like a year or so since he left TNA), but it will help get the fact that Nash would even be a decent opponent for Triple H over.

That's about it really, I'm working on this promos blog, hopefully have that done in the next week or so. It's gonna be a long one folks. But until then, you can follow me on twitter at @TheOZMouthpiece .. let me know what you think of the blog, read some of my other posts, even leave me a comment on here. But for now, that's it and that's all!.

best served cold

Welcome to this post-vengeance edition of The Aussie Mouthpiece blog. Let's get straight into it. It's vengeance time.

Decent video package to open up talking about chaos, which was really the theme througout the night, as we would soon find out.

So we start with the Dolph Ziggler and Jack Swagger vs AirBoom for the Tag Team Titles. I think this was the right way to start, but I didn't like the idea of Ziggler having to wrestle stwo matches in a row. Could have swapped Sheamus and Christian for Ziggler and Ryder.
Anyway, onto the match. I'm not going to go through everything, no play by play results here, just in case you were wondering.
Was a really good match, good to see a few double team moves by AirBoom. Kofi hit a huge monkey flip on Dolph, which, in all fairness was made so huge by the way Dolph made it look. He is so good. Seriously. World title for Dolph. It's going to happen soon.

Speaking of Dolph, he was wearing some new ring attire. Looked kind of like a singlet, similar to Swagger's gear, but he hadn't "put the straps on". He didn't pull it up for either match, which I found a bit odd. But it looked decent.

One of the weirder points in the match was Evan Bourne knocking Swagger down, going for a pin, and then when Swagger kicked out, he didn't get up. Instead he stayed laying on the ground and Bourne tried to hit the Airbourne. It makes sense I guess, it just seemed weird. If the guy was down on the ground, hit the finisher and then go for the pin instead of essentially giving him time to recover.

The crowd didn't seem to be into the match all that much either. A few cheers, but no huge pops or anything.
Another thing, you can really notice the difference between how good Dolph is, and how only ok Swagger is. There's just something that Ziggler has that Swagger doesn't.

I liked the finish, with Kofi and Evan both hitting their finishers, but Ziggler getting pinned doesn't make sense. It should have been Swagger.
So now, it makes Ryder look weaker if he wins, because he beat someone who had been hit with two finishers just minutes earlier, and if he doesn't win, it makes him look weaker because he can't even beat a guy who's had two other finishers hit on him, only minutes earlier. It's a no-win situation.

It helps make Dolph look good though if Dolph wins.

So let's get into the US Title match

Airboom and Swagger remain at ringside, but what was interesting is that it was AirBoom interfered, throwing Ziggler back into the ring, and therefore getting ejected from ringside by the referee. it was good to see it's not just the heels that get that treatment.

So like i said earlier, Ziggler didn't show off his new attire in either match. Kinda strange. And Ryder looked like he'd dyed his hair... red? orange?.. maybe some fake tan went into his hair.

I liked the finish with the super kick. Ziggler is money. Once again though, the problem is now Ryder is the guy who couldn't beat the guy who got pinned 10 mins earlier.

I am really sick of Michael Cole. It's the wrong kind of heat. The product would be better without his constant banter, his constant jokes at the expense of JR, and also, the fact that he spent a fair bit of time talking about what was trending on twitter, rather than talking about what happened in the ring.

I get that it's about telling stories for the WWE commentators, but surely you can spend two seconds and say "he's got him in a boston crab", rather than "so and so is trending worldwide on twitter"

Beth Phoenix vs Eve (Diva's title match)

What the hell kind of "music" is that? Here's the answer. Eve's new music is only a little worse than the skills of MOST of the divas.  So it was pretty bad.

Not really a lot to say about this match, I like the running story of Beth wanting Eve to cry. I liked Eve using a triangle choke, even though her legs weren't locked half the time. And I liked that Beth won. That's really about it.

Sheamus vs Christian

Once again the crowd didn't seem to care too much about this match. Quite frankly neither did I. I really like sheamus, but Christian is really boring to me. I wish he was better. I remember hearing when he won the Title in TNA. I was just like, Really? that guy??
I really hope that was the end of this little feud, Sheamus should be in the title picture. Henry vs Sheamus was a surprisingly good match at Summerslam, I'm sure they could do it again.


Punk/HHH vs Awesome truth.

First of all, that "promo" by Miz and Truth was awful. "You know who sucks?" YOU TWO DO! Childish humor. It would have been funnier if they were trying to be dirty with it. Who really believes that's how Miz and Truth would talk to each other backstage? And if you do, you may need to have your head examined.

Good slower pace to this match, Triple H looks in good shape, Punk looks like he's having fun.
Really good match, great old school vibe.
And then of course, the "complete shocker" of Kevin Nash returning. I mean, I guess it was a shock, but it was an expected shock I guess. But even though it was not shocking, he definitely made a big impact.

The Jacknife always looks great, but man, Triple H landed awkwardly. It looked brutal. I don't think Triple H was hurt, but he certainly sold it like he was. Really good finish though, and it was the right decision to have Truth and Miz win, and definitely the right decision to have them win the way they did.


Cody Rhodes vs Randy Orton.
I really liked the promo package for this match. We even saw some blood.
The match was good, not great, but once again, the crowd wasn't interested for the most part.
Best part of the match was the TWO moonsaults by Cody Rhodes. The first one that missed looked absolutely flawless.
The match was for the most part, predictable though. Good ending, with the "baggers" getting involved, but once again.. predictable.

Big Show vs Mark Henry
Great promo package once again. These video packages make you excited for the matches. Hopefully the WWE keep it up.
The start of the match was pretty awesome, two spots in particular. Mark henry was thrown, almost hip tossed back into the ring, and also Big Show hit him with a superkick. I love seeing guys this size doing things that you wouldn't expect them to do.
The rest of the match up until the ending was decent, with one huge double clothesline to start heading towards the finish.
And then the ending. Sure, it's been done before, but that doesn't lessen the impact. Show climbed the ropes, and Henry superplex-ed him, and the ring broke.
The big difference between this and the last time it was done (in WWE at least), is that the Brock Lesnar/Big Show spot ended the show. There was still one more match to go at Vengeance.

The other thing that made this such a great finish, was Laurinitis and Teddy Long coming out, helped sell the idea that it wasn't supposed to happen, and also the way Mark Henry walked out, instead of being stretchered out. That was awesome, he is so improved this year.

John Laurinitis gets a microphone and tells us that the show will go on, but not before introducing himself to us. Why did he need to introduce himself? He didn't. We've seen him on TV. I mean we've fallen asleep after seeing him, but we've seen him. No personality at all.

John Cena vs Alberto Del Rio  - Last Man Standing (in a broken ring)

Straight away I want to watch this match, simply because the ring is broken. It means they have to do things differently,and any time things have to change, it always makes more interesting viewing. Think about it.  No irish whips, no coming off of the top rope, no shooting a guy into the turnbuckles. Even further than that, it made it harder to use the apron, the ring posts, and the ring itself.

Del rio's reaction to the broken ring was priceless. His face looked like he just smelled something really bad or something.
Cena has a new shirt, new shorts, new colour. He's wearing camo shorts, and his new shrit is black with the words "Rise above hate" on it. I guess because he's wearing black we're back to getting serious Cena. No more fruity pebbles?

The start of the match was decent, but I think the fact that it was unique was the main draw at the start. Having a broken ring adds so much to the match.

There was a really nice spot with Alberto Del Rio being thrown from the ring, through where the ropes would have been, into the guardrail. It looked like a really hard landing, fairly brutal.

Also, the whole nut shot on the ring post with Rodriguez and Del Rio was great. Yes a funny spot, but it was a nice little break from the seriousness of the match, and really of the whole night.

And the fight went backstage! I don't remember the last time I've seen that. Brings back memories of amazing matches, Kane and Shane from Survivor Series 2003.. many hardcore matches.. I always enjoyed the backstage stuff.

And this was no exception. Cena toppling over that huge equipment case, and it really looking (at least for a second) that it had landed on Del Rio. Then a slam on top of the tipped over case. And finally the interview area basically being dropped onto John Cena. To me that looked like it would be the finish.

Now some people I noticed on twitter were saying "oh Cena just keeps getting up". But, I mean it's a last man standing match, not just a regular match. It's kind of a given that people tend to take more punishment in these matches. It wasn't about Cena not selling, it was about Cena not giving up. That's kind of one of his mottos. Del Rio didn't sell things for ages either.

Like falling through a table. He got up at 8. That's 8 seconds and he's back on his feet. From falling through a table onto concrete. Any other match that's not selling. Last man Standing, it's having the guts to keep fighting.

That's what I really like about Last man Standing matches. There's a ton of "this has to be it" moments.

And we get the amazing finish of Del Rio being smashed through a table by Cena, and then Miz and Truth running in and destroying Cena. But that wasn't the finish. The Ref was distracted by Miz and Truth, and therefore not counting Del Rio. So Cena is up at the count of 9, and then Del Rio gets the title belt and blasts Cena in the head with it, and that is the finish.

Really great match, especially because they had a broken ring. To me it sets up the survivor series match really well. something like Triple H, CM Punk, Rock and Cena on one team, with Nash, Del Rio, Miz and Truth on the other.

Overall I think this was a really good Pay per view, all decent matches, and the two main events really lifted the quality.
I'll give it.... 8/10.

Ok that's about it, I'll be back with my weekly blog in a few days, but until then, tha'ts it, and that's all.

People complain about cena's work, but it was a lst man standing match. they have to build to those "he got up at 9" moments.

The Calm before the storm No. 3

Welcome to another edition of the Aussie Mouthpiece blog. This quick post is the 3rd post in my Calm before the Storm series, which I write the day before Pay per views. Or in this case, hours before Vengeance.

So I'll run down the card and give some thoughts.

I should point out this was a last minute decision to order Vengeance. I just have this feeling that something big is going to happen. And even so, seeing that Dolph Ziggler is wrestling twice, is a big enough deal for me to get it.

So the card.

Sheamus vs Christian.

I'm guessing either this or the Tag Team Titles match will open the show. I'd go with the Tag Team match, with the US title match later in the card, to give Dolph some time to catch his breath.
Anyway, Sheamus is really coming along well as a babyface, it still feels a little strange to me though.

I think that's just because I was watching when he first started, as a heel and working with Triple H. Then I stopped watching for a while, and when I start again, he's a babyface. Strange indeed.

But, Christian is obviously getting over as a heel, because he annoys the hell out of me. Should be a decent match. I'd like to see Sheamus in the title picture soon. Doesn't he have some unfinished business with Mark Henry?

I would like to see Sheamus win, but I won't mind either way.

Airboom vs Dolph Ziggler and Jack Swagger

I don't have much to say about this match. I guess it's there to try to keep the tag belts relevant, but what's going to happen? Are the newly formed "tag team".. and I use that term loosely.. are they going to drop the titles? What happens to them if they do?

I'll add into this Dolph Ziggler vs Zack Ryder (US Title match). The reason being that my predictions relate to both matches.

I like that Dolph is getting to defend his singles title. It's about time. Ryder getting a title shot is a really good thing too.
I just hope that it's not a once-off. Hopefully this all isn't a ploy by the WWE to get him to stop his youtube show.

I think we're going to see Ryder win the US title, while Ziggler and Swagger get the Tag Team Title belts. AirBoom can be built up more if they are chasing belts, rather than defending belts and barely scraping by.

Diva's title match.

At least it's not Kelly kelly. But.. did she get her re-match? Do diva's contracts not have that stipulation in them?
Ok not much to say. Beth will be great. Eve will look ok, and probably do a moonsault. But if Eve wins, it will kill the angle, kill all the momentum of Beth and Natalya, and basically cement the divas division as a joke.
Beth needs to keep the title, at least until survivor series, maybe even until Kong can return. Because really, there's no other Diva on the WWE roster, other than Natalya, that could give her a great match.

Beth has to win.

Randy Orton vs Cody Rhodes

This could steal the show. Because of Cody, and also because of the history between the two guys. They know each other well, both in terms of storylines and I would assume in real life as well.

I see Cody going over in this one. Vengeance on a whole feels like it's supposed to be building everything up, rather than solving problems and finishing feuds. So it would make sense to have Rhodes win. Build him up, make that Intercontinental title mean something.

Mark Henry vs Big Show (WHC)

I haven't watched Smackdown for the past few weeks. It's good to see Big Show back, but, let's face it. Big man vs Big man matches are never "5 star classics", but the last time these two met it was a decent match. Hopefully the same will go for this match.

Henry will win, but maybe not cleanly. Big Show might snap and get a chair and try to get revenge, something like that. Maybe someone interferes and starts an issue with Show.

Del Rio vs Cena (WWE Title)

Last man standing. These matches seem like they must be a lot harder to work out finishes for than they would have been 5 years ago. No chair shots to the head, or much of anything to the head really. Problem there is.. how do you knock someone out if you can't hit them in the head?

But, Cena has been good in these matches in the past. I think this will be a fairly good match. Will be a good test for Del Rio, and will maybe show a slightly different side of his character. Expect some interference, especially for the finish.

I think Alberto Del Rio will win. I hope Del Rio will win. Cena winning makes no sense, that would make 3 title changes in a month. Ridiculous. What does a belt mean if it's so easy to get? Where's the struggle.. the obstacles to get past?.. Del Rio has to retain the title.

CM Punk & Triple H vs Awesome Truth

I agree with whoever said it or wrote it, this has to/will be the main event. I'm seeing a fairly standard kind of a match, but the finish will be something akin to Night of Champions, but hopefully will make more sense.
I see Nash returning to at least try to cost Punk and HHH the match. I see Laurinitis making his presence felt, hopefully by nothing more than appearing at the entrance. Not by talking, that would put everyone to sleep.

I think the right thing to do is have Awesome truth get the pin, but once again definitely not clean. I'd like to see Punk and HHH win, but I think it would build Survivor Series more if they lose.

So that's about it. Will someone else interfere? Will we see Shawn Michaels, or Sean Waltman? BG James maybe? Who knows. But I think if all goes well, Vengeance could be a really decent Pay Per View.

That's about all I have to say, I'll be tweeting tomorrow during Vengeance, so if you read this and aren't following me on Twitter you can do so @TheOZMouthpiece
That's it, and that's all!

Home Schooling no.4

Welcome to another edition of Home schooling, my weekly blog about the goings on in this funny little thing we call professional wrestling. Or maybe that should be this funny massive thing. Anyway, I am The Aussie Mouthpiece, and hopefully you like what I have to say, and that's why you're here reading this.

Topics covered this week will include RAW, TNA's bound for glory (which I haven't seen, but I did read about and have some thoughts), Secrets of the Ring with Raven (all 5 volumes), and Mick Foley. I'm also in the process of writing a more specific blog about great promos, so that should also be up in the next few days.

I'm going to start with Bound for Glory. Now as I've said in the past, I haven't watched TNA for a long time. since around Destination X i'm talking about. I've been keeping up to date on what's been happening mostly through news sites, reading the results of the iMPACT shows, and then more recently today, the Bound For Glory results.

I don't have a lot to talk about, just a few things that intrigued me. Firstly, Hogan did the job. I assume you all know what I mean. I was kind of shocked when I saw that result. Hogan lost? Really? .. Wow. Maybe the 5th back surgery removed a part of his ego as well as fixing his back.

All i really have to say about Hogan losing is.. GOOD. Sting is still wrestling full time, and especially because Hogan said he wouldn't take bumps, if he had won it would have crapped all over Sting, and TNA in general.

While i'm talking about Hogan I want to mention Robert Roode not winning the title. Now, this whole Bound for Glory series was a tournament and the payoff was getting a match against the champion at Bound for glory right? Sounds kind of similar to the Royal Rumble concept, in the sense that it's pushing a new face up to the World title picture.

So why did the guy who won this *really* long tournament (only thing longer has been NXT.. week 142 i think we're up to now right?).. why did he not win? That just completely takes all the momentum out of his push. Bad decision. I read maybe they're thinking of having him win at Impact or the next ppv?.. How is that going to mean anywhere near as much as winning at TNA's "wrestlemania"? Dropping the ball.. well i guess in TNA's case it's more like.. "still not picking up the ball and it fell down a drain into the sewer".

And Hogan was talking on Radio or something saying that Roode wasn't ready? and that he isn't a main event guy or something? Before the event? Burying the guy before the pay per view? If the guy in control is saying Roode isn't ready, and you can't tell if it's a work or not.. why would that make anyone want to buy the PPV?

And then Hogan took a shot at AJ Styles because Styles stood up for Roode and TNA in general? Hogan.. just leave. You're only there for a paycheck and to boost your own ego. TNA would do better without you.

Ok onto cheery happy things, Velvet Sky won the Knockouts title. That is awesome! She was a favourite of mine when I watched, both for the obvious reasons, and also because you could see her trying (and succeeding) to improve in the ring, and you could tell she loved wrestling and wasn't there to be a model.
So congratulations to her.

I just quickly watched RAW tonight, didn't see everything, most of it bored me. Most of it felt like stuff i'd already seen.
I have a few comments about the show though.

Why did Laurinitis get so much promo time this week, when he is absolutely terrible, and yet, CM Punk, the guy who really shot to the level he's at right now because of his promo work YET AGAIN have no mic time?

Sure, his reactions to what Miz and Truth said were really good, and really funny, but the guy is known (at the moment) for saying controversial things, for his "pipebombs" .. and he doesn't get a chance to talk?? What is that??

David Otunga on WWE is a waste of time. Stiff as a board, Laurinitis is a better talker than him (yep, i said it), and more importantly, not really talented. I get the feeling he's going to be known as "the guy who sipped out of the tartan cup" ... or whatever the hell that is.

Immigration problems? And yet again Laurinitis stops a match half way through. Abusing power? Yes. Entertaining tv? No. Makes me stop watching? Yes.

At least J.R got a positive send off this time, no colon surgery spoof, or any other embarassing final moment. A match with Cena, and also getting to make Cole tap out. Problem is now we're going to have to hear Cole's whining about it.

One positive to me was Dolph Ziggler. So good on the microphone. And he's been really entertaining doing his little Ask the Heel spots on Zack Ryder's youtube show. Maybe instead of adding heel to the list of names he used this week, the show stealer.. i don't remember the other one, he should keep the gimmick going of finishing an "Ask the heel" by saying "Hashtag Heel". That would work well in this social networking era.

That's about it for RAW, other than it's getting less interesting to me. Hopefully things pick up again before Survivor Series. I really want it to be good. At this stage i'm not ordering Vengeance because again, it's another pay per view what.. 3 weeks after the last one? Space it out more WWE...


Ok onto Secrets of the Ring. For those who don't know or haven't heard of it, the Secrets of the Ring with Raven is a shoot style interview series that Ring Of Honor did I think something like 6 years ago with Raven, and I think also a few other people have done a Secrets of the Ring. I know that Jim Cornette and Al Snow have done an edition.

Anyway, I couldn't talk about everything in Raven's series (5 dvds!) even if i had 3 hours to do so. Basically each dvd covers a different part about wrestling. How to be a Babyface, Star power and Charisma, Odds and Ends (like etiquette), how to be a heel, and how to work angles. Anyone who's seen any of them I'm sure would agree with me that listening to Raven talk about this stuff is amazing. I watched all 5 dvds in one day, so we're talking nearly 10 hours of basically watching someone sit on a chair and talk.

He covers so much stuff, talks about his experiences, even gives a few demonstrations, and it's really just opened my eyes to a new way of looking at matches and what makes them good and what makes them bad.
I will probably even go back and watch them a second, third, maybe fourth time in the near future. They're that good.

I highly, highly recommend them if you can find good copies. (or illegal copies, you dirty pirates.. har har har...)

Last but most certainly not least, Mick Foley. Again wanting to talk about him came about from watching his Straight Shootin dvd, once again also from Ring of Honor. It came out I think maybe 2005, it was before the first ECW one night stand I think. I'm not entirely sure,but I do know that the last match he talks about wrestling in the WWE on this dvd is the amazing match he had at Backlash 2004 with Orton.

I'll never forget the first time I watched that match. Seeing (at the time) "pretty boy" Randy Orton bleeding, and then dropping into those tacks.. my jaw was on the floor. Also at seeing Mick still take that beating. Of course at the time I was upset that Mick didn't win, but of course now I realise he was putting Orton over to help get him over.

So I watched his shoot, he talked about Ric Flair a lot. Which was really interesting to hear parts of that, that I hadn't heard before, not having read Flair's (or Foley's) books. Mick always speaks very well, speaks from the heart, and it's always entertaining to listen to him.

I've since started reading his first book, and really liking it so far. I would imagine once i get through it (i'm not a huge book reader) I'll want to read his other two as well. But once again I definitely recommend getting the Straight Shootin with Mick Foley, and also Mick Foley's Greatest Hits and Misses, especially for the Mick/Vader match where Vader breaks Mick's nose.

While you're at it, get the straight shootin with Jim Cornette and Percy Pringle DVD. The stories are amazing and funny. Especially a gem about Undertaker.

That's about all I have to say for this week, hopefully i'll have my extra blog up in the next couple of days, so keep checking my twitter or just keep checking this page. I'm going to start doing more of them, reviewing old pay per views, talking about specific wrestlers etc. So hopefully I get some positive feedback on this first one.

Until then, don't forget you can follow me on Twitter if you're not already at @TheOZMouthpiece .. leave me a comment if you want, and for now, that's it and that's all!

Home Schooling no.3

Hello friendly blog-readers, it's time for another weekly write up on this crazy thing we love called professional wrestling.

This week, as i usually do I'll be talking about RAW. In fact, I imagine most of this blog will be about RAW, because even after just skimming through and watching the promo segments, I have a lot to say. But there are a couple of other topics i'll mention too. So let's get those out of the way first.

I recently bought the "Best of Monday Nitro" dvd. I know it's been out a while, but the local stores where I live don't exactly keep a lot of wrestling dvd's in stock. So when I saw a copy of it, I snapped it up.

WCW, and more so Monday Nitro was the first wrestling show I ever watched, and the show that got me into wrestling. Sure, I knew some of the names, who didn't? Hulk Hogan, Macho Man Randy Savage, possibly Ric Flair as well. So I was really looking forward to watching this dvd.

And I wasn't disappointed. I'm a huge fan of Sting and Kevin Nash, so to see matches with those guys in their prime, or at least at the height of their fame, was really good. Some of the contriversial moments were really great too, I mean let's be honest, Nitro was the better show for a good few years there.

Anyway, I'm not going to do a whole review on the DVD, chances are most people who wanted it have already bought it, and know that it's a great set of matches and moments. If you haven't got it, I definitely recommend it, even just to get a glimpse of what the "other side" were doing that made the WWF step their game up.


There have been a few news items that i've read this week that I wanted to mention and give a thought or two about. The main one being, Hulk Hogan (and Eric Bischoff)'s contracts expiring with TNA, and then a few days later the news that they have both re-signed.
I haven't watched TNA for a long time now, last thing I rememember was when Sting first started doing the insane gimmick. Hogan is basically the reason for me not watching. The product, as it was in WCW, is still centered around himself.. when he is in no shape to actually compete. And he's having a match with Sting at TNA's biggest pay per view?
I saw another little item that talked about Hogan saying he wouldn't take any bumps in the match against Sting. Now if that's true.. there's really not a lot to say about it, other than THIS IS WRESTLING! You're supposed to take bumps.. right? I mean, a bump is essentially being "knocked down".. i have the definition right don't i? So what? Sting won't knock Hogan down once in the entire match?

 How does Sting get Hogan in position to put the Scorpion Deathlock on and therefore win? Oh.. wait.. silly me.. it's a Hogan match.. Hogan isn't going to put Sting over is he... Of course not.. and it's totally believable that a what.. 60 year old man who's had multiple back surgeries in recent times could beat a still full-time active wrestler isn't it...

TNA, or iMPACT.. or whatever the hell it's called these days, had an opportunity to get out from under the huge shadows of Hogan and Bischoff, make the company not about one or two people anymore, and get back to what made their product interesting, and unique. But for whatever reason, they didn't. There was one tiny piece of good news... Vince Russo is no longer the head writer. Brother Love now has that job. Could be interesting.

Jeff Hardy got 10 days jail for his drug possession charges. 10 days... that will teach him. Maybe he should take a page out of his brother's book. They seem to be sharing the same story lately.

Ok enough negativity. I wanted to talk also about Cactus Jack, Mick Foley, Mankind, Dude Love. Whatever you want to call him. I watched Mick's "Hard Knocks and Cheap Pops" dvd this weekend, really enjoyable. I kinda wish the WWE would do a few more dvds like this, with the Wrestler whom the dvd is about hosting it.
But it was good, in a weird "shoot yet still kayfabe" kind of a way. I wasn't watching any wrestling in 2000/2001 really, so I haven't seen a lot of Mick Foley as the commisioner, but it appears he was really funny.
But after watching the dvd, I decided to try to find some of the infamous Death matches Cactus Jack had with Terry Funk, quite easy really..Youtube is always the answer. So I watch a couple, and man.. I mean i knew Mick was hardcore, I've seen a fair bit of his ECW matches, and of course the Hell in a Cell, and hardcore matches with the WWE (Edge vs Foley at Mania 22 is amazing), but this was on a whole different level.

If anyone hasn't watched them, go and check them out. Some of it I found a little unbelievable, one match i saw was an "exploding ring deathmatch", but it was just pyro boxes on each side of the ring, but the crazy barbed wire boards that exploded and also just that it was a barbed wire match... Mick and Terry are insane. In the best possible way.

One last thing about Mick Foley, and i'll touch more on this when i start doing my "Top 10" lists (i need some kind of catchy name gimmick first), but his promo skills are better than just about anyone i've ever seen. Especially in ECW. Go and find some if you haven't seen anything already.

---------------------------

Ok let's move on to this week's episode of RAW.


I really loved the first 20 mins of RAW. It was amazing. All four guys did a really good job making it feel real, feel improvised, and feel refreshing and different. Punk finally got to speak after two weeks of no promos, and what's more he got to ring the bell, even though he feigned not knowing how to do it (awesome touch by the way). Punk really shone through as the star in that opening segment, he was the guy who came out last, he got the biggest cheer (maybe Triple H's was bigger, but I wasn't paying attention), and he was the one guy who felt like he wasn't "delivering a promo".

Also asking Triple H if he could wear his blazer made me laugh. Punk is the man. His reaction when Triple H told him "I got a whole table full of headphones and pipebombs just waiting for you" .. was absolutely priceless. That little 30 seconds right there is why CM Punk is the man.

"Can i wear your blazer??" "You can even wear my blazer!!" Brilliant.

So then we get this familiar music hitting. Oh wait, speaking of music, there is one thing I wanted to talk about that I don't think worked, especially last night, but also in general.

People's music "hitting" before they walk out to interrupt or to say their piece. Now, i'm sure this wasn't always the case was it? I know it's been used with certain characters, Undertaker for example. But his character is meant to be "supernatural" and is supposed to have the ability to change things, like bring lights up or cause black outs.

But if everyone had walked out, and it was really Triple H on his own.. who pushed the button for Cena's music to hit? Or even HHH's? We see him come out of his office, no music, no announcers, he walked past one, maybe two people.. and then walked through the gorilla position. No one was there... yet his music hit before he came out into the arena.

It would have felt even more like "not a normal night on RAW" if HHH walked out to no music. If Cena's music didn't hit, if he just started talking. Same with Sheamus and Punk.

I guess the point of the music playing is so that fans know who is coming out. But isn't it more of a surprise when someone just starts talking? I'm sure Austin's music didn't always hit every single time he interrupted McMahon.. did it? (help me out, i didn't watch during the austin/mcmahon feud). Fans aren't dumb.. we don't need to be given a musical cue to know if we're supposed to cheer for the person who's about to interrupt or not. And we can usually work out who someone is when they start talking.

Anyway back to RAW. Vince's music hits.I'm glad we saw Vince McMahon. I hope it was more than a one off, and it turns out it was actually Vince pulling the strings. Sure it's been done before, but there's a reason Vince is one of the best heels in the history of the WWE. So anyway..  we get a roles-reversed firing, just like back in june. Triple H is fired as the COO, and ... John Laurinitis is his replacement?

Sure it fits the angle.. Laurinitis wormed his way in by getting people to cause chaos.. but really.. i've seen grass growing that has more charisma than Johnny Ace. He can't talk on a mic, everything sounds forced (probably because he's trying to remember a script), and most people aren't booing him because he's a heel, they're booing because he shouldn't be on camera and no-one wants to see him.

So the first 20 minutes was great tv. Unfortunately after that, RAW felt like a step back. Maybe it was done deliberately.. but it was the same guys just wrestling different people.. Mark Henry, Randy Orton, Christian, John Cena.. oh and one small thing, people are complaining about Cena getting another title shot... ? He was the guy that Del Rio beat, so doesn't that mean Cena gets a rematch? That's how it's been done for years right? Del Rio will win at Vengeance and move into a program with Punk.

Triple H may have been fired as COO, but he's still under contract as a wrestler apparently.. which i like. Sure, he's another guy who's been a main eventer for a while, but at least he's not been a regular on TV (as a wrestler) for a while. Also, that line.. "have you ever tried to pick up your teeth on the ground, with broken fingers?"... That was amazing.Great to see Triple H as a wrestler. His "pick up teeth with broken fingers" line was amazing.

So Jim Ross is fired again? And apparently it was an "improvised segment".. as in.. a shoot? .. I can see how it fits in with the Laurinitis in charge angle, but it seems yet again, the WWE just want to keep embarrassing JR, and they keep trying to tarnish his legacy. JR is my favourite commentator of all time. I cannot stand Michael Cole. I don't like his voice, I don't like the way he describes (or doesn't describe) what's happening in the ring, and instead tries to put himself over.

I feel bad for Jim Ross, he seems to get this poor treatment a lot. But then again, this whole story has used twitter and youtube before, maybe it's all a big work.

One last thing.. Vince McMahon was "fired" back in june because he was making rash decisions and throwing his weight around and basically not running the company the right way right? Triple H was "fired" this week because he'd lost control of the company, and there was too much chaos right?

Didn't John Laurinitis throw his weight around last night and make a lot of snap decisions? He fired JR, he interruped the main event and changed it, he threw Morrison and Christian into a match in their street clothes.. that sounds a lot like making rash decisions. This angle suddenly doesn't make sense.  Laurinitis needs to not be on TV. Bring back Austin as GM... make Teddy Long Raw GM..hell, even make Shawn Michaels GM.. I get that it works for the storyline.. but he's so bad. The only thing that will make it interesting is if Triple H gets to actually knock his teeth out. For real.

Anyway that's about all i've got to say for now.. I hope you enjoyed reading, as always, leave me a comment if you want, and also you can follow me on twitter at @TheOZMouthpiece
That's it, and That's All!