3-29-12 Impact results and thoughts

Coverage and thoughts on the March 29, 2012 episode of Impact

The show starts with Dixie Carter backstage saying that we will find out Hulk Hogan’s response about running the show tonight.

 

Bobby Roode comes to the ring with a lot of security guys. He cuts a promo on Dixie Carter, Sting & James Storm. Then Storm comes out and he promises that he will beat Roode for the World Title. He goes after Roode but security prevents him from attacking. Then Bully Ray comes out and attacks Storm from behind. Then Roode bails. Storm demands Roode get back in the ring. Then Storm tells both of them that he is willing to face Ray & Roode in a handicap match. They accept. This was a good opening segment. Roode cut a good promo as usual. Him saying that he beat Sting physically and mentally and saying that he is the reason why Sting stepped down as the guy in charge was really good.

They show Madison Rayne & Gail Kim backstage and Gail says that the past month has been hard on their friendship and she got Madison a gift. Madison opens the box and inside is a Tierra. Madison puts it on and Gail says that Madison will kick the crap out of Velvet tonight. Then they hug.

Velvet Sky vs. Madison Rayne. Velvet gets the pin. This was a solid match. Afterwards Christie asks Velvet what’s next. Velvet says that Gail never gave her a Title rematch. She says that she is coming for Gail and her Title.

Bobby Roode & Bully Ray are backstage and Ray says that they should be worried about James Storm since he took out Daniels & Kazarian last week. Ray then mentions that Roode doesn’t think he has anything to worry about. Then he says they should take care of the thorn in their side.

They show the “earlier in the day” segment where Dixie asks Hulk to run the place. She says she never trusted Eric. Hulk says that there were some good and bad moments. They go back and forth a lot and they talk about Sting stepping down and Hulk saying he isn’t sure if he wants to take charge. There’s a lot more yapping and Hulk says he will think about it. This was WAY too long and completely idiotic. There was a lot of back and forth that was really meaningless!

They show a video package recapping the Matt Morgan-Crimson storyline.

Backstage Kurt Angle says that he will give Jeff Hardy a rematch at Lockdown if Jeff beats Ken Anderson tonight.

Morgan-Crimson was next but Austin Aries comes out. He says that he has a problem and his name is Bully Ray. He mentions that James Storm beat him fast at

Victory Road

. Aries then mentions that Ray took his frustrations out on him and the other X-Division guys. Aries says that he says what’s on his mind and says that sounds like James Storm. Aries says that respects Storm and he mentions that he knows Storm wants Roode and he wants Ray. Then he says that he will team with Storm against Ray & Roode later. This was a good Austin Aries promo.

Matt Morgan vs. Crimson. The match goes to a double count out when they go at it at ringside. Afterwards they brawl through the arena and out the door. This was a decent match/brawl.

Joseph Park comes into the production truck and asks if they’ve seen Abyss. They haven’t of course and then he gives out his business card. I have no idea what their doing here.

Ken Anderson vs. Jeff Hardy. Anderson gets the pin when Kurt Angle comes in. This match was ok.

They play the new James Storm music video.  This was long and pointless.

They show Dixie Carter getting out of a limo. Then they show Eric Bischoff backstage and he is on his way to the ring.

They show Eric Young & ODB at some store talking about their wedding. Then some chick comes by and they look over a lot of stuff. ODB tells the chick to beat it. Then ODB tells Eric that they will get married in a steel cage. Eric is all ecstatic. Whatever. Goofball Eric Young doesn’t work for me.

Eric Bischoff comes to the ring and talks about how amazing he is. He talks about how he can get camera time whenever he wants (so we’ve noticed). Then he says that he wanted Dixie gone as GM. Then he says that there’s something he can’t off his to do list but he will take care of that right now. Then he calls out his son. Garrett comes out and Eric gives him one last chance to walk away from wrestling. Eric tells Garrett that he wants him to face Gunner at Lockdown but he can avoid all that by walking away. Garrett calls Eric a thick headed jackass and says that he isn’t going anywhere and that putting him in a cage with Gunner doesn’t scare him. Then Garrett says that he will be at Lockdown and will face Gunner. I wasn’t into this. This whole battle of the Bischoffs is really idiotic!

They show James Storm doing some training and talking about Beer Money. He mentions how they were a good team and then Bobby broke it up. He says that at Lockdown he will earn the right to be World Champion. This was decent video package.

They show Hulk Hogan backstage.

James Storm & X-Division Champion Austin Aries vs. Bully Ray & TNA World Champion Bobby Roode. Storm & Aries win when Storm pins Ray after Roode spits beer in Ray’s face by mistake and then Storm gives him a super kick for the 3 count. This was a good match and the best one of the show.

Hulk Hogan is backstage making his way to the ring.

Dixie Carter is in the ring and asks Hulk Hogan to come out. He comes out and the fans chant his name. Dixie says that taking over as GM is a big decision. Then she says that she wants Hogan to run Impact. Hogan thanks Dixie, Sting & the fans. Then he mentions their talk from before. Then he says that he has closed the book on this part of his life. Then Sting and the rest of the TNA roster come out and Sting says that Hogan won’t deny him, Dixie, or the fans and that the writing is on the wall. Then he asks Hulk what he’s gonna do. Hulk asks if they’re talking about a clean slate. Sting nods and Hogan says that no matter how deep the water gets he needs to know if Sting will watch his back. Sting says he will and then he asks Hogan if he will take the job and run Impact like the eye of the tiger Hulk Hogan. Then Hogan says that Impact has a new GM. Hulk then says his watcha gonna do line and they all celebrate in the ring to end the show. This makes no sense! Why would the company want Hogan in charge when he was a heal and took over the company a year and a half ago!?

This was a middle of the road show. I liked Roode’s opening promo but the Sting-Dixie-Hogan was idiotic. The bit with Dixie & Hogan was way too long and the closing segment wasn’t too good either. Storm & Aries vs. Ray & Roode was the best match and I think the highlight of the show. The Bischoff storyline continues to bore me and the Eric Young-ODB segment was typical Eric Young goofiness. Matt Morgan & Crimson was decent too. I thought they did a solid job in continuing their feud. I am also looking forward to the Motor City Machine Guns returning next week but overall I thought this week’s show was a mixed bag. It wasn’t terrible but it wasn’t great either.

3-26-12 Raw results and thoughts

Coverage and thoughts on the March 26, 2012 11 years after the Monday Night Wars and WrestleMania go home episode of Raw

The show starts with Randy Orton coming to the ring for a tag match.

Randy Orton & Sheamus vs. Kane & World Champion Daniel Bryan. Kane & Daniel win when Daniel pins Sheamus. This was solid match. Sheamus was going to Brogue Kick Daniel but then AJ cam in and the referee was distracted and then Kane choke slammed Sheamus and that allowed Daniel to get the pin.

They show the clip of The Rock giving John Cena a Rock Bottom at WrestleMania from last year.

Michael Cole is in the ring and he puts on a Team Johnny t-shirt. He says that moments ago he was named the official commentator for Team Johnny at WrestleMania. Then he introduced Johnny Ace. Ace comes out and introduces his team’s flag bearer Vickie Guerrero. She comes out with a Team Johnny flag. Then he introduces David Otunga and he comes out and poses. Booker T then announces that he will be the Team Teddy commentator. Then he gets on the mic and introduces Teddy Long. Long comes out and introduces Santino Marella. He & Hornswoggle come out.

U.S. Champion Santino Marella vs. David Otunga. Santino gets the pin. Hornswoggle came in and distracted Otunga and Santino got the pin. Then Long & Ace argue again and Long shoves him over Santino. Then Santino was going to give Ace a cobra but The Miz comes out and gave Santino the Skull Crushing Finale. Ace announces that he is the final guy on Team Johnny. This was total comedy.

They show The Rock-Cena promo from Raw the night after WrestleMania 27 where they made the match this year.

They show a video package recapping the build to the Undertaker-Triple H match. They show highlights of both guy’s career. Then they show clips from their match at WrestleMania last year. This was really well put together.

Kelly Kelly vs. Eve Torres. Kelly gets the pin. This was ok. Beth Phoenix was at ringside with Eve.

They show clips of Survivor Series when Rock & Cena teamed up.

They show CM Punk walking backstage as he heads to the ring for his match with Christian next.

Justin Roberts introduces, “The man who calls himself ‘Captain Charisma’” Christian. Christian comes out wearing a Team Johnny shirt. Then CM Punk comes out for the match.

Before the match starts Jericho is on the Tron and he says that he will beat Punk at Mania and show him for the fraud that he is. Then he says that he found out some facts about his mom. He says she’s a kind woman with no troubles. He then says that he found out that his parent’s wedding day took place after Punk’s birthday. So that makes Punk a legal version of a bastard. Another good Jericho promo.

Christian then attacks Punk and chucks him out of the ring. Then Punk pounds the crap out of Christian and gives him a GTS onto the steel stairs. Punk then locks Christian in the Anaconda Vice saying, “This is you Jericho!”  Referees come out and Punk releases the hold but then he goes right back after Christian and locks him in the Anaconda Vice again. This was really good too.

They announce that Christian might have re injured his neck from Punk’s attack. I hope that’s part of the show.

Time for Brodus Clay to call his momma. I can’t stand this gimmick!

Brodus Clay vs. Curt Hawkins. Brodus gets the pin. This was a squash. I’m getting tired of this crappy gimmick!

They show a John Cena promo from Raw last month where he said that he’s fighting for the wrestlers.

Big Show vs. WWE Tag Team Champion Primo. Big Show gets the pin. This was a squash too. Then Epico comes in and Big Show choke slams him too. Then Cody Rhodes comes out and asks if the word WrestleMania scares him since he usually loses. Then he says that after their match they will turn Big Show’s name into a verb saying that people hope they don’t Big Show. He then says he will beat Show at WrestleMania. This was good promo from Cody.

During the short match Michael Cole announced that Christian will not be on Team Johnny because of his neck. I’m not sure if this is part of the storyline but I hope it is.

The Bella Twins are backstage each wearing a team t-shirt and then Zack Ryder comes in saying Team Johnny doesn’t have him. They walk out then Eve comes in and she says that she took her frustrations out on the wrong person. She then asks him what hotel he is staying at. He says that all of Team Teddy will be in the same room. Eve says that’s too bad because she wishes they were at the same hotel. Then she says that after WrestleMania they will celebrate. This was idiotic. They’ve made Ryder look like a complete moron.

Josh Matthews interviews CM Punk. Punk says that Jericho can say what he wants about him but his family is off limits. Then he says that he is the best wrestler in the world. This was a good intense promo.

Before the next match started, Michael Cole mentions that Drew McIntyre will be replacing Christian at WrestleMania.

Great Khali vs. Mark Henry. Henry gets the pin. This was a short match thankfully.

Afterwards Ace shoves Long into the ring and is face to face with Henry. Ace gets on the apron and calls out the rest of his team. They come out and stand in front of the stage. Then Team Teddy comes out and Team Johnny gets the upper hand. Kofi Kingston then spring boards into the ring but Henry catches him and gives him the World’s Strongest Slam. Then Henry was going to do the same to Long but then Booker T came in and attacked Henry and gave him the Axe Kick. Then Long gets the mic and thanks Booker for helping him out and asks him to the final guy for his team. Booker says, “Now can you dig that sucka?” Then he does the spinnarooni. This was kinda weak.

They show clips of the John Cena-Mark Henry match from last Monday where The Rock came out and gave Henry a Rock Bottom.

Time for The Rock and John Cena to have their in ring face off.

Rock comes to the ring and does his pose. Then he gets the mic. The fans chant boots to asses and Rock smiles. Then he says that at WrestleMania 20 he was in what everyone thought was his final match. He says that everywhere he went fans asked him when he is coming back. He says a lot funny stuff throughout all this. He says he didn’t know when he was coming back till last year. He talks about WrestleMania 27 and says that when he gave Cena a Rock Bottom that was when he knew. He then mentions that the next night in this arena is where the match was set and that the fans made history that night. He says that in 6 days he finally returns (I guess we’re supposed to forget that he team with Cena even though they showed the clip). Rock says that there is only one guy that the fans wanted to see him face at WrestleMania. That man is John Cena. He then says that Mania 20 was his last while it was Cena’s first. He then mentions how far Cena’s come. Then before Rock could say more John Cena comes to the ring. He gets the usual mixed reaction. Cena acknowledges the fans’ reaction and he says that he knows that he will get booed at WrestleMania. But that’s ok because he’s used to it. Then he says that for a year he has listened to a lot of trash talk from him but he’s here with a smile on his face. Cena then says that a lot of people have trash talked him in the last 10 years. Then the fans start the dueling Cena chant. Then Cena says that you can’t look past the emotion that happens every time he comes out. Then he starts the dueling chant saying that he has heard that chant for years. He then says that he is a guy who does what his t-shirt says. He rises above and he wins and that’s what gets everyone. He says that some people might hate that but they know he will win at WrestleMania. He mentions that he’s been an active WWE member longer than Rock. He mentions how Rock was around and then left while he’s always been there good and bad. Then he says that at WrestleMania he has to win. He says that after Mania life will go on for Rock when he stars in the G.I. Joe movie while Cena will still be in WWE. Then he says that no one remembers second place and that is why he has to win. Rock says he knows how much this match means to Cena and that it means just as much to him. Then Rock says that he helped build the house Cena’s in. Then he says that the fans know that he has come back to beat Cena. He says that no one has ever said that they were at WrestleMania and beat Hulk Hogan, Steve Austin and Cena. Then he tells Cena that he doesn’t like him and that at WrestleMania he will give him the ass kicking of a life time. Then Cena tells him that it doesn’t matter what Rock thinks. He then says that on April 1 Rock will see him because he will have his hand raised standing over The Rock’s carcass and the headlines will say that he whipped Rock’s ass at WrestleMania. They have one final stare down to end the show. This was a really good closing segment.

I thought this was a good show overall and they did a decent job in the final build for WrestleMania. The Rock & John Cena had a really good back and forth promo. I’m looking forward to that match more now. The rest of the show was ok too. There weren’t any long winded promos this week and the matches were short but some of them were solid. The opening tag match was decent and the Divas match was ok for what it was. The Team Teddy-Team Johnny segment was the usual goofiness. Zack Ryder continues to be booked like a fool. I thought Cody Rhodes cut another good promo too. I also liked Jericho’s promo on the Tron and then Punk locking Christian in the Anaconda Vice. Punk’s promo later on was good too. Overall I thought this was a decent show and they did a solid job with the final hype for WrestleMania.

3-23-12 Smackdown results and thoughts

Coverage and thoughts on the March 23, 2012 episode of Smackdown

The show starts with Daniel Bryan & AJ coming to the ring for a promo. Daniels says that he can talk about himself all night but he will put AJ on the spot. He tells AJ to tell him and everyone what it’s like to be in love with the World Champion. Bryan holds the mic for AJ. She mentions that she has a match tonight and will be with her at ringside and then he cuts her off and tells her to answer the question. She says that in a word it’s Heaven. She says that Daniel caresses her and he has the softest lips and sometimes at night they spoon. Then she calls him Danny and then he takes the mic and says in her ear they discussed her not calling him that in public. Then she says that Daniel is brave, courageous, genres, and that as a vegan his body is his temple and that his mind and spirit are pure. She says above all that he makes her feel safe which is why she really enjoys cuddling. Then he says something in her ear that he wants her to say but she says that that is a little personal but he says it’s true. Then she says that he is a great lover. Then he says, “And at WrestleMania” then puts the mic to AJ’s mouth and she says that at WrestleMania he will make that big Irish brute tap out. Then he says, “And therefore” and then AJ says and therefore he will continue on his path to becoming the greatest of all time. Then Daniels says let’s hear it for AJ and better yet let’s hear it for him. He does the whole “Yes” bit.  Then his music plays and he’s about to walk out of the ring but then Sheamus’ music plays and he comes out. He asks AJ if she really that Daniel is brave and she sort of nods while Daniel says that he is. Sheamus then says that he thinks Daniel is a sniveling little coward. Then he says as far as Daniel’s lips being soft are concerned he doesn’t want to go there. Where he wants to go is WrestleMania. Sheamus then says that if he doesn’t like being called Danny and then Bryan says that his name is Daniel. Then  fans chant Danny. Then Sheamus calls him Danny Boy and asks if he can call him that and then he says that he thinks that’s a great name for him. Then the fans chant Danny Boy. Then Sheamus says if doesn’t like being called that he sure won’t like being called former World Champion. He says that at WrestleMania he will kick Daniel’s teeth down his throat. This was a good opening segment. Daniel is great in the cocky heal role and him having AJ say how great he is was good. I also liked Sheamus’ promo here. Both guys did a good job and hopefully they’ll be given enough time to have a good match at WrestleMania.

They show Mark Henry backstage with some guy that looked like Abraham Washington. Henry’s match with R-Truth is next.

R-Truth vs. Mark Henry. Henry gets the pin. This was mostly a squash. Truth got in some offense before Henry pinned him.

They announce that Yokozuna will be inducted into the Hall of Fame this year. This was a great video. I remember watching Yokozuna when he first debuted and this brought back a lot of memories!

They re show the Zack Ryder video where he was rallying the fans to get him on Team Teddy.

They show Teddy Long, Zack Ryder, Santino Marella, Kofi Kingston & Aksana watching the video in Teddy’s office Long says that that rally is off the chain but with Zack’s bit with him and Eve he’s not sure if he wants that type of distraction on his team. Ryder says that he figured Long might say no and then he has Hornswoggle come in with a team flag. Long still says no. Then Ryder has Great Khali come in dressed in Zack Ryder gear. Then Long asks if Khali is in and Khali says Ryder’s Woo woo woo phrase. Khali & Ryder are on Team Teddy and Hornswoggle will be the mascot. This was typical Teddy Long-Zack Ryder-Khali-Hornswoggle goofiness.

AJ vs. Brie Bella. AJ gets the pin. This was a decent match. AJ had Brie in an arm bar and then Nikki got on the apron and then Bryan did too. AJ was distracted for a bit and the Brie was going to hit her from behind but AJ got out of the way, Brie hit Nikki and AJ rolled up Brie for the 3 count. Afterwards Nikki gets the mic and tells Brie that she should have taken her advice. Then she says that they disagree on a lot of things and she mentions that Nikki is pulling for Team Johnny and Brie says that she is pulling for Team Teddy. Brie then does a cheerleader bit supporting Teddy Long. That was idiotic.

Vickie Guerrero comes out and introduces Jack Swagger.

Zack Ryder vs. Jack Swagger. Ryder gets the pin. This was a solid match.

The show Cody Rhodes attacking Big Show from Monday.

They show a promo from “earlier in the day” Matt Striker asks Cody Rhodes for his thoughts about Monday. Cody says that he has enjoyed showing Big Show’s WrestleMania clips and that it reminds people what Big Show does on the grandest stage of them all, he chokes. Then he says that he enjoyed punching him in the head and Show couldn’t to anything to stop him. Then he says that the biggest embarrassment is coming at WrestleMania on Aprils Fool’s day when the biggest fool in WWE loses to him. Then he says that he has a plane to catch. Good promo from Cody. The guy’s really good in his role.

Big Show vs. Kane. Show wins by DQ when Cody comes out from the crowd. Then Show chases him back through the crowd. Then Randy Orton comes in from under the ring and gives Kane an RKO.

Brodus Clay vs. Heath Slater. Brodus gets the pin. This was a squash. I can’t stand Brodus Clay’s gimmick!

They have a backstage segment with Eve Torres & Zack Ryder and she says that they’re both going to WrestleMania. Then Ryder she’s beautiful and smart. Eve asks if he just figured that out and says to forget about dinner. Then she walks off with a smirk on her face. This was idiotic. They’ve really made Ryder look like a complete moron. Eve admits that she was using him, then she kisses him and they “go to dinner” and then Ryder says that she hasn’t been returning his calls. Why is WWE doing this to Ryder? Because he got himself over with his youtube show without the assistance of “creative”?

They recap the Undertaker-Triple H-Shawn Michaels storyline and they show Monday’s promo.

Christian comes to ringside for commentary.

Great Khali vs. Dolph Ziggler. Teddy Long & Johnny Ace are at ringside. Dolph locks a sleeper on Khali and Johnny rings the bell and announces Dolph as the winner. Then Long restarts the match and says that Dolph will be counted out if he doesn’t get back in the ring. Dolph gets counted out and Teddy announces Khali as the winner. Then Santino Marella & Kofi Kingston come out and they through Dolph back in the ring and then Khali head chops him. This was typical goofiness from this storyline.

They show Miz, Daniel Bryan & AJ backstage headed for the ring and Miz gives Daniel a pep talk. I guess we’re supposed to forget that they feuded when Miz was Daniel’s pro?

WWE Champion CM Punk & Sheamus vs. World Champion Daniel Bryan & The Miz. Punk & Sheamus win when Sheamus pins Miz. This was a good match. Bryan & AJ were on the stage while Punk & Sheamus celebrated in the ring to end the show.

I thought this was a middle of the road show. I liked the opening promo with Bryan having AJ telling the fans how great he is and I thought that Sheamus cut a good promo too. The tag match at the end was good but is was the same match they had on Raw except they had Miz in Jericho’s spot. Cody Rhodes’ promo was really good too. The guys plays that role really well. The Team Teddy-Team Johnny stuff was goofy like usual and it was ok for what it was. Most of the matches weren’t too memorable this week. Overall this was a mixed bag show.

3-22-12 Impact results and thoughts

Coverage and thoughts on the March 22, 2012 episode of Impact

The show starts with a replay of the end of the Victory Road PPV where Roode laid out Sting and messed with Dixie.

They show Dixie Carter backstage as she’s making her way to the ring.

Dixie comes to the ring and she says that Bobby Roode has disrespected the fans and everyone who loves wrestling over the past 6 months. She then says that at Victory Road he disgraced TNA. She says that there is only one option left for her. But before she could say that she would fire Bobby Roode, Sting comes out and he asks her not to because that would an easy way out for Roode. He says that James Storm needs to get his revenge at Lockdown and that he, Dixie, and the fans need to get the right kind of revenge. Then he says that running the show isn’t working for him and they go to commercial. Back from commercial, Sting says that at Victory Road he & TNA came alive and he says he can’t be both a wrestler and an authority figure. He says he is going to go home and rest and will be 100% a wrestler when he returns. He says that he is stepping down as the guy running the Impact Zone. He then says that he’s got the right guy for the job. He says the guy who can be in charge full time is Hulk Hogan. I don’t get this! Last year Hogan and Bischoff took control of the company from Dixie and Sting got the company back for her. Now he wants Hogan running the show!?

Bully Ray is backstage saying that he is taking hostages out, women, children, other wrestlers, he doesn’t care. Tonight is not the night to be standing in his way. Good promo as usual from Ray.

X-Division Champion Austin Aries vs. Tony Nese vs. Zima Ion vs. Kid Kash for the Title. The match ends in a no finish when Bully Ray comes out and attacks them all. Then he gets the mic and asks the fans if they know who he is and says that he is Bully Ray. The match was good but I’m not totally sure why they had Ray come in and flatten the guys.

They show Mexican America outside the building and they see this guy from Repo Games setting their car up to be taken and then he gives them a trivia of some kind. They get the first one right but they missed the second and third. Then Anarquia talks about the tag title match and says that they will pay him for the car not to be taken. This was idiotic! I haven’t missed the Mexican America gimmick!

Knockouts Tag Team Champions Eric Young & ODB vs. Rosita & Sarita for the Titles. Young & ODB win when Young pins Rosita. This was a comedy match and it wasn’t funny. Rosita & Sarita hit on Young and then ODB gets pissed at Young and then she kisses him and throws him on top of Rosita for the pin.

They show Crimson backstage watching Matt Morgan’s Direct Auto insurance commercial and he says that Morgan was trying to launch his Hollywood career at his expense. Then he mentions that Morgan dropped the ball and lost them the tag titles. He says that he took out the trash and challenges Morgan to a match next week. Then Morgan comes and attacks Crimson. Crimson’s promo was eh but Morgan’s attacking him was good.

Dixie is backstage saying she isn’t sure what to do yet about having Hogan be in charge.

They show James Storm backstage and he is headed for the ring.

Jeff Hardy promo backstage talking about his match with Kurt Angle at

Victory Road

mentioning that Angle cheated to win. Then he challenges him to a rematch at Lockdown. Then Abyss, playing his own brother comes in and he asks if Jeff has seen him. Jeff says that he hasn’t and then “Joseph Park” gives Jeff his card. I’m not sure where they’re going with this.

They show a video package recapping the TNA careers of James Storm & Bobby Roode with comments from both guys. Really good video.

James Storm comes to the ring and he says that what Roode did to Sting & Dixie at

Victory Road

was wrong. He says that a man who hits a woman isn’t a man. Then he says that at Lockdown Bobby Roode will be in the steel cage with him and he will win the belt and right all of Roode’s wrongs. Then he calls out Roode. Roode’s music plays but some guy who is representing Roode comes out and reads a statement that says that Roode will be at home in Canada till further notice. He mentions that he won’t be seen till Lockdown since that is when he isn’t contractually obligated to be around till then. Then the guy says that 2 guys would like to face Storm. Christopher Daniels & Frankie Kazarian and the choice is Storm’s. Then he says that Roode is looking forward to beating Storm at Lockdown. Then Storm says that he will fight both of them tonight. Then he tells the guy to deliver Roode a message and he gives the guy a Super kick.  This was a mixed bag. The rep guy reading Roode’s statement was dull but Storm’s promo was good.

Kurt Angle is backstage asking why Jeff Hardy would want a rematch with him and that he never loses. Then the cameraman talks about the 5 minute challenge last week with Garrett. Then he finds Garrett and gets in his face and challenges him to last 3 minutes tonight. Garrett says that he will try his best. Kurt tells him to get ready. I wasn’t into this.

Garrett Bischoff vs. Kurt Angle in a 3 minute challenge. Gunner comes in and attacks Garrett towards the end of 3 minutes and the match gets thrown out. Then Kurt & Gunner double team Garrett and then Jeff Hardy comes out and the heals run off. This was ok.

They show a video package for the returning Motor City Machine Guns. This was good.

TNA World Tag Team Champions Magnus & Samoa Joe vs. Mexican America for the Titles. Magnus & Joe win Joe pins Anarquia. Joe makes Anarquia tap but Rosita & Sarita get on the apron and distract the referee and then this Josh Lewis guy from Repo Games comes to the ring and he carries Rosita & Sarita out. This was a decent match.

They show Hulk Hogan backstage and the cameraman asks for his thoughts on running Impact. Hogan says he doesn’t know what the guy’s talking about and that he’s there because Sting asked him to be.

The show Josh Lewis carrying Rosita & Sarita out of the building and then Mexican America come in and plead with him not to take the car. Anarquia goes to punch him but Josh avoids him and Rosita & Sarita leave with Josh. That was terrible!

They show James Storm and a few fans in bars with his new theme music playing.

James Storm vs. Christopher Daniels & Frankie Kazarian. Storm wins when he pins Daniels. Daniels made like he was going to have Kazarian go it alone and he walked to the back. Then Daniels comes back out to sneak attack Storm but Storm catches him and then rams Kazarian into the ring steps. This was a decent match. Daniels & Kazarian had more tension.

They show Sting, then Dixie Carter and then Hulk Hogan backstage as they head for the ring.

Sting’s music plays, he comes to the ring and asks Dixie to come out so they can finish what they started at the beginning of the show. Dixie’s music plays and she comes out. Sting says he has known Hulk for 20 years and that ever since he cut Eric Bischoff out of his life we have seen a different Hulk Hogan. He says that he trusts Hulk and he asks Dixie to as well. Dixie says that she trusts Sting and that if he believes in Hulk then she will too. Sting then says he knows Hulk is watching and he asks him to come out. Hulk Hogan’s music plays and he comes out and the pyro goes off. Then Sting says that Hulk made Sting and Dixie believers in him. He says that he should hear it from the fans too. They chant "Hogan" and Sting says they all believe in him and he keeps the "Hogan" chant going. This closed the show.  The segment was OK for what it was. Thankfully it was short. I still don’t get why they have Sting pleading with Hogan to take charge of Impact.

I thought that this was a middle of the road show. The Sting-Dixie-Hogan stuff wasn’t that great and it doesn’t make sense that they would want Hogan running the place after he stole the company a year and a half ago. The rest of the show had some decent matches. The X Title match was good till Bully Ray came out and it was a no finish. Ray cut good promos tonight. They’re doing a decent job building the Matt Morgan-Crimson feud. The Mexican America segments were awful. Their match with Joe & Magnus was decent. Storm vs. Daniels & Kazarian was decent too. Garrett-Angle wasn’t as bad this week but I still wasn’t into it. The Eric Young-ODB stuff was the usual goofiness we get from those 2 and the match wasn’t much. James Storm cut a good promo about Lockdown when he faces Bobby Roode for the World Title but Roode’s representative was kinda eh. Storm’s part of the promo was really good though. Overall I thought that this was a mixed bag episode this week.

3-19-12 Raw results and thoughts

Coverage and thoughts on the March 19, 2012 episode of Raw

The show starts with CM Punk coming to the ring. They re show the Chris Jericho promo from last Monday. Then Punk says that Jericho isn’t in the building tonight and that shows the kind of person that Jericho is. He says that him not being there is a gift since Jericho pissed him off. Then Punk mentions that Jericho said that Punk’s dad is an alcoholic and that it wasn’t Jericho’s story to tell. He says that isn’t what Jericho said or how he said but that he said it to the whole world. Punk mentions that he sees fans of all ages who have probably been affected some way in their lives by booze. He then says that he doesn’t want a kid to think that because of that that they get be destined for greatness. He says that if there is a monster inside he will let it out. Then he says that he won’t let his past dictate his future and that no one should let the past cloud their dreams. Punk then mentions that Jericho left out the main part and that is that Punk’s dad overcame his problem. Punk says that he is proud of his dad and also proud to be straight edge. Then he says that he is proud of all the obstacles that his dad overcame. Punk then says that you can either jump over an obstacle or you can crawl under one like Jericho. Then he says that he will go through Jericho as his obstacle to show that he is the best in the world. Then Jericho shows up on the Tron and he says that he didn’t think it would be right if he showed up tonight. Then he apologizes for bringing up Punk’s dad’s problems. Then he mentions that Punk’s sister has a substance abuse history. Jericho mentions that there is a pattern in Punk’s family. His father is an alcoholic and his sister being a substance abuser and that Punk is going to wind up drinking. Then he says that the good news is that abuse and booze can be over come but the bad news is that when Punk loses the WWE Title at WrestleMania that is something that he will never over come. Then Punk says something that gets muted out and then tells Jericho that he will beat the s**t out of him at WrestleMania. This was a good opening segment. Both guys were really good as usual.     

 Before the Big Show-Kane match Cody Rhodes comes out and they show another Big Show’s WrestleMania moments video package. Cody is standing at ringside with boxing gloves.

Big Show vs. Kane. Kane gets the pin. This was short. Cody got involved and Kane slammed Show off the ropes for the pin. Afterwards Cody comes in and kicks Show and then he gets hand cuffs and he cuffs Show to the ropes. Then he gets the gloves on and punches the crap out of Show. Big Show gets all pissed and tells Cody to run. Then after Cody bails the referees un cuff Show with hedge clippers and Show is all pissed at Cody. Good stuff here.

U.S. Champion Santino Marella vs. David Otunga. Otunga gets the pin. This was crap. Afterwards Ace gets in Teddy’s face and Long slaps him. Then he and Santino run up the ramp. Awful segment.

They show the Rock outside Philadelphia by the Rocky statue. He says that this is the city of Brotherly love and the city of ass kickers. Then he talks about the Rocky statue saying that it is the symbol of fighting spirit. He They show a clip of him at 12 posing in front of the statue. Then he says that a year later he watched the first WrestleMania and saw Hulk Hogan become an icon. Then he says that he watched Ultimate Warrior at WrestleMania 6 also become an icon. Then he mentions that Philadelphia was the first year he headlined WrestleMania (15) against Steve Austin. Then he mentions beating Hogan & Austin and now he is going to beat Cena. He says that is in 13 days but tonight he will come to the arena and get in the ring and send Cena a message in front of the world. He then says that he’s gonna get a cheese steak and shove it up Cena’s ass but it doesn’t end there. He says that the greats will thank Rock by saying bang bang and whooo. He throws in Macho Man’s “Oh Yeah” too. Then he says that he will lay the smack down and WrestleMania Rock’s dream of becoming the greatest of all time will come true. Then he says the, “Yo Adrian I did it” line and then says his if ya smell catch phrase. Great promo as usual from Rock.

Before the next match they show a video of Zack Ryder rallying the fans to try to get on team Teddy.

Zack Ryder vs. World Champion Daniel Bryan. Bryan wins by submission. This was a short match. Afterwards Bryan has AJ kiss him on the cheek.

They show pics of Cena’s car indecent from earlier today.

John Cena vs. Mark Henry. Cena gets the pin. Henry dominated most of the match and Cena made the baby face come back. Then The Rock’s music hits and he comes out and then runs to the ring and gives Mark Henry the Rock Bottom. Then he walks back up the ramp. This was good. Rock sent the message that he wants Cena at his best at WrestleMania. Then Cena points to the WrestleMania sign.

They replay the promo from 2 weeks ago with Shawn Michaels & Triple H when Shawn said that he will be the referee.

They show a clip of Kelly on this Extra show and she says that Beth Phoenix is her biggest competition. Beth & Eve showed up Beth says that Maria should be interviewing them. Then Beth challenges them to a tag match at WrestleMania. What ever.

The Miz is in the ring and says that in 1987 King Kong Bundy was in the Main Event as WrestleMania 2 (wrong Miz that was 1986) and then at WrestleMania 3 (that was 1987) Bundy was in a 6 man with 2 midgets against Hillbilly Jim. Then he mentions that at least Bundy had a match. He says that he won’t go from main eventing WrestleMania 27 to not being on WrestleMania 28. Then he says that he has issued an open challenge to show Ace that he should be on his team. Before he says his catch phrase Sheamus’ music hits and he comes out.

Sheamus vs. The Miz. Sheamus gets the pin. Sheamus dominated the whole match. Poor Miz. They show Johnny Ace & David Otunga watching on a monitor in Ace’s office.

Josh Mathews is on the stage and he introduces Randy Orton. Orton comes out and Josh asks him how he plans on beating Kane. Orton says that the question is how does the monster plan on beating him. He says that this match is happening because of their match back in July but this time Kane has no signs of humanity. Orton says that he doesn’t have an identity crises and knows exactly who he is. He says his name is Randy Orton. Then his music plays. This was thankfully a short promo.

They show a video package on some WWE talent promoting the “B.A. STAR” program.

Vickie Guerrero comes out and introduces Dolph Ziggler & Jack Swagger as the 2 newest members of team Johnny.

Kofi Kingston & R-Truth vs. Dolph Ziggler & Jack Swagger. Dolph & Swagger win when Dolph pins Truth. Truth got his foot on the rope but Vickie pushed it off. Afterwards Aksana shoves Vickie down and goes to tell the referee that Truth’s foot was on the rope but Vickie got in the ring and they had a cat fight. The guys had to pull them apart.

They show a clip from last night’s Madison Square Garden live show and they show Triple H giving Dolph Ziggler the Tombstone and pinning him like Taker.

Shawn Michaels’ music hits and he comes out and poses on the stage, pyro and all. Then he heads to the ring and poses more. Then he gets the mic and mentions the Taker-HHH match and says that everyone is talking about him being the referee. He says he made a career out of stealing the show and that he’s been at WrestleMania year after year and this will be no different. Then he says that it is cool that he holds the end of an era in the palm of his hands. Then he says that the end of an era is code for the end of Taker’s streak. He says that Taker is in the same place that he was 2 years ago. Then Undertaker’s gong hits and his music plays and he comes out. Then he gets in the ring and tells Shawn that it would be in his best interest to shut up and listen. He says that this match has to remain pure so before he and his start making plans, before he can finish Triple H’s music plays and he comes out. He does his spit the water bit and then gets in the ring. Then he says that Taker needs to stop worrying about Shawn because it’s not about him. It’s always been about Taker and Hunter and that it’s their destiny to do this. He says that there have been 24 cell matches and that they were in 19 of them. He says that it’s no a coincidence that the cell became his proving ground. He says it’s where he thrives and excels. He says that everything he has been through have been for one moment. April 1 at WrestleMania. He says that the whole world will see the end of an era, Taker’s. He says that he knows exactly what it will take. Taker mentions that HHH’s mind, body, soul, career, wife & kids and even his life and asks if he is willing to put it all n the line. Hunter says that if it means giving Taker the end that he deserves then he is and he will. They intently stare at each other and then Taker mentions that he said that Shawn is better than Hunter and he says again that he is. Then Taker’s gong and theme hit and he walks out. Shawn & Hunter stare at each other in the ring and then Hunter looks up at the ramp to end the show. This was good and much shorter than I was expecting it to be. For me that’s good.

This was a decent show overall. Punk cut a great promo at the start and Jericho’s promo on the tron was good too. I have mixed feelings about them using Punk’s family in the story line however. The Taker-HHH-Michaels segment at the end was good too and thankfully short. The matches weren’t really much this week. I thought they did a good in continuing the WrestleMania build. The Rock’s promo standing by the Rocky statue was really good and him coming out after the Cena-Henry match to Rock Bottom Henry was a good spot too. They did a good job of Rock sending Cena the message that he wants him at his neat come Mania. The GM storyline is idiotic and the matches that involved the team members were ok but nothing memorable. Miz continues to be de pushed. Sheamus pounded the crap out of him the whole match. Ryder-Bryan was ok but too short. Ryder has also been de pushed. I don’t why. He was so over with the fans. So overall I thought this week’s Raw was ok and they did a decent job continuing the build to WrestleMania.

3-16-12 Smackdown results and thoughts

Coverage and thoughts on the March 16, 2012 episode of Smackdown

The show starts with Christian returning with The Peep Show. He comes to the ring and welcomes the fans to the return of The Peep Show. He says that this will be a very exciting and interesting Peep show because on the WWE website they said that there will be a 12 man tag match at WrestleMania and mentions that it will be Team Long vs. Team Johnny. He says that this match will affect the future of WWE because the winning means that guy be GM of both Raw & Smackdown. Then he introduced Johnny Ace and his team captain David Otunga. They come to the ring and wave to the fans as they get booed. Johnny welcomes Christian back and says that he and David are honored to be on his Peep show. The Christian says that it is an honor to have Mr. Excitement and Captain Charisma in the ring together. Then he mentions that people say that his next guest has no honor and he introduces Teddy Long. Long & Aksana come to the ring. Then Christian says that once this is all said and done one of these 2 guys will have total control over both shows, which is unheard of. He says that it got to thinking that maybe he should do something unheard of too and he offers both the chance to convince him why he should be on their team at WrestleMania. He lets Long go first but he doesn’t say anything and Christian asks him he’s looking at him and rolling his eyes. He mentions that he is a former 2 time World Champion and that Teddy has to admit how good Christian is because he carried Smackdown on his back. Then he says that whichever team he will be on will be the winning team and says that this is Teddy’s chance to convince him why he should be on his team and suggests that he makes it worth Christian’s while. Then he tells Long to give him what he deserves. Long was about to say what Christian deserves but Christian cuts him off and says that he deserves one more match for the World Title. Long says that Christian got what he deserved and he respects everything that Christian had done in the ring. Then Long says that he won’t beg Christian to be on his team because when Team Teddy wins at WrestleMania any guy that wants a Title they will have to earn it. He then says that no one will get a Title match if they annoy or disrespect him. Then Ace chimes in and asks Long what he knows about respect. Then he says that he respects Christian’s talents. He tells Christian that would be an honor for him to be on Team Johnny at WrestleMania and that when his team wins, he gives Christian his word, which everyone knows is as good as gold then Christian will get a World Title match. Christian then says that he appreciates the offer and that when the opportunity comes he won’t fail unlike Teddy Long who fails at everything. He says that tonight is the night that the tides will turn because Christian is joining Team Johnny. Then Christian’s music plays and Johnny takes out a Christian t-shirt. Then Long tells Christian that since he is back then he will be in action tonight. Ace tells Long that isn’t gonna happen because Christian isn’t medically cleared due to Teddy. Johnny says that he looks after the talent.  Then Long says that since Christian can’t or won’t compete tonight than David Otunga will. Then Long introduces the newest member of Team Teddy Kofi Kingston. Then Kofi & Santino come out and the match is next. This was the typical Teddy-Johnny type segment. Christian was good with his promo but this whole feud is idiotic.

Kofi Kingston vs. David Otunga. Kofi gets the pin. Teddy Long & Johnny Ace were on commentary. Christian tripped Kofi and the referee asked what Christian was up to. Then Teddy takes his head set off and goes to tell the referee what happened and the referee kicks Christian out of ringside. Teddy and Christian argue for a bit and Christian is all pissed off as heads to the back. Then Johnny Ace leaves the announce table and he and Long argue AGAIN! While this is happening Otunga takes his belt off but before he can use Santino gets up on the apron and snatches it out of his hands. Otunga then punches Santino off the apron and then Kofi hits Otunga with Trouble in Paradise for the 3 count. This match was more of a backdrop for the Teddy-Johnny story line, but since the 2 guys in the match will each be on one of the teams I was ok with it.

They show Daniel Bryan standing outside the Divas locker room and AJ comes out in a black dress and she says that it doesn’t fit. Then Daniel tells AJ to turn around and then he says that the dress looks much better on a mannequin. Then he tells AJ that they will be the new power couple in WWE and that she needs to look the part. Then he mentions couples like Macho Man & Elizabeth and Triple H & Stephanie. He then says that he is the World Champion and he wants AJ to be a champion too. Then he tells her that she will be in a match tonight that could lead her to a match for the Divas Title if she wins. He tells her that he will be in her corner tonight and all she has to do is listen to him. AJ thanks Daniel and they kiss. Then Bryan tells AJ that her match is next and that she should get ready and will be right there waiting. This was a decent segment. Daniel Bryan is really good in role.   

AJ vs. Nikki Bella. AJ gets the pin. Daniel Bryan came out after the entrances to his theme music doing the “yes” bit and he cheered on AJ. The Bellas tried the twin magic but Bryan pointed it out to the referee. While that was happening Brie got up on the apron and pulled AJ down by the hair. Then Nikki went for a slam but AJ turned it into a roll up for the pin. This was decent.

Backstage Matt Striker interviews Cody Rhodes and mentions that Cody has been talking about Big Show’s WrestleMania losing streak. Then he asks Cody how he plans to defend the Intercontinental Title against Big Show at WrestleMania. Cody says that 364 days out of the year Big Show is a destroyer but on that 1 day, the grandest stage of them all he is a choke artist. He then mentions that Big Show hasn’t won a singles match at WrestleMania and tells Striker to watch how he will beat a giant and he walks off. Striker then mentions that Cody will face Khali next. This was good Cody promo. He’s really good in the heal role too.

Great Khali vs. Intercontinental Champion Cody Rhodes. Cody gets the pin. This was ok for a Khali match.

They show Randy Orton walking backstage and he’s headed to the ring to talk about Kane next.

Randy Orton comes to the ring and says that usually when he has a problem he doesn’t come out and talk about it. Most likely he hunts down whoever it is. Then says that for the past few weeks he feels like he is the one who is being hunted. By Kane. Orton says that they are going down a path that will lead to them destroying each other and that’s ok with him. But before that happens he needs to know why Kane chose him. Then he says that he is not John Cena and that he embraces hate and hate embraces him. Then he calls Kane out and he wants him to explain himself because when the time comes that Orton has to put him down he wants to know why he had to do it. Orton waits for a bit and then Kane’s pyro goes off. The lights were out for a bit than Kane’s red lights come on and his music plays and he comes out on the stage. Then Kane says that Orton is demanding an explanation. Kane asks if it makes Orton feel uncomfortable living in the unknown. He says that normally he would enjoy watching Orton twist in the wind and being unsure of how, when, or why Kane would strike next. But since Orton asked so politely he will clue him in because it is obvious that Orton has forgotten about what it is and Kane says that it is something that he obsesses over. The show a street fight they had back on July 22 where Orton used a Singapore cane and gave him an RKO on a steel chair. Then Michael Cole mentions that Kane shook Orton’s hand after the match, which is uncharacteristic for Kane. Kane then says that he watches that match every day to remind himself of what he has become and that is a retched, mangled retch of humanity. Then he says that the person who shook his hand is gone and has been replaced by the monster that he always should have been. Then he says that the journey is not yet complete. He says that WWE isn’t big enough for both of them. Then he says that he needs closure and that he will not become whole again till he completely decimates Orton. Then Orton tells him to come to the and see if Kane can finish what he started. Kane walks halfway down the ramp and then stops and he says that slaughtering him right now wouldn’t satisfy him. Kane says that when he ends Orton he wants it to be on the biggest stage possible. He says that he wants Orton’s demise to happen at WrestleMania. Then Kane sets his pyro off and he and Orton stare down each other. This was a decent segment. I thought both cut really slow and calculating promos about what they’ll do.

Drew McIntyre comes to the ring for his match. Before the match Teddy Long shows up on the tron and welcomes Drew back. Then he mentions that he signed a year long no cut contract last week when Johnny Ace was in charge. He says that he is excited that Drew’s back because it gives him a chance to put Drew in a match with this man. Big Show’s music plays and he comes out and Drew has the usual “what’ve I done to deserve this” look.

Big Show vs. Drew McIntyre. Big Show wins when the referee stops the match. This was a squash. Big Show pounded Drew the whole match. Then he gave him the choke slam followed by the big right hand and the referee checked on Drew and then stopped the match. I don’t get why Drew is still stuck in Jobber Ville. They show Cody Rhodes watching in his dressing room on a monitor.

Yoshi Tatsu vs. Mark Henry. Henry gets the pin. This was a squash.

Chris Jericho comes out for his match with Sheamus but before that he gets the mic. He says that before he destroys Sheamus he wants to talk about what he said about CM Punk and his dad on Raw. He says that a lot of fans want him to apologize for what he said but he won’t. Then he says that the fans think he went over the line but you can’t go over the line when you tell the truth. He says that the truth is that Punk is a fraud, mentioning that he has the tattoos to try to hide that he has alcoholic genes. He says that he has figured out Punk and that he knows Punk better than Punk knows himself. He says that Punk cried as a kid because of his dad and that every time he unleashed one of his pipe bombs that he wishes that he could say what he says to his parents and his family. The fans chant CM Punk. Then Jericho says that every time Punk comes to the ring and hears the fans chant his name hiding beyond the wall of the sarcastic anti hero he really wishes that the demons in his head would go away but they never will. Then he says that Punk wishes that he is the best in the world at what he is but he isn’t. Then Jericho says that he is the best in the world at everything that he does while Punk pretends to be. Then Jericho says that Punk wishes he was him and says that Punk is a Chris Jericho wanna be just like the fans. He says that they’re all Jeri clones who will never be what he is because he proves every night that everything that he says is true. Then he says that he will prove it tonight when he beats Sheamus, he will prove it at WrestleMania when he beats Punk and when he leaves the stadium in Miami April 1 he will prove it by walking out as the WWE Champion. Then he says that at the WrestleMania after party he will have a cocktail, take a nice big drink hold the glass up and he will make a toast not just to himself but he will toast Punk and his pathetic father. He tells the fans to go ahead for one of the last chances that they will get to chant Punk’s name. The fans chant CM Punk and Jericho chants CM Drunk and then he says, “pipe bomb.” And he drops the mic. This was a really well done Jericho promo. The guy really is awesome at what he does!

Sheamus vs. Chris Jericho. Daniel Bryan & AJ come to ringside to watch. Jericho wins by count out when Daniel Bryan goes after Sheamus on the outside. Sheamus & Jericho fought outside the ring for a bit and then Sheamus threw Jericho back in the ring. He was going to also, but he got distracted by Daniel and then Jericho knocked him from behind off the apron and then Daniel kicked Sheamus, leading to the count out. Afterwards Sheamus goes after Bryan but he & AJ run up the stage. Then Jericho poses on the turnbuckle and when he climbs down and turns around Sheamus gives him a brogue kick. Daniel watches on from the stage as Sheamus looks at him from the ring to end the show. This was a really good back and forth match and the finish made sense since both guys will be challenging for the WWE & World Titles at WrestleMania.

I thought that this was decent show overall. I wasn’t really into the Teddy Long-Johnny Ace stuff at the start of the show and the Kofi-Otunga match was ok. Jericho cut a great promo before his match and the match he had with Sheamus was really good and the finish made sense. The rest of the show was hit and miss. I thought the Orton-Kane segment was ok and did a decent job in building to their WrestleMania match. I have no idea why Drew McIntyre continues to be booked as a jobber and the match with him and Big Show was a complete squash. The Yoshi-Henry match was q squash too. Yoshi is a really talented guy. He has great matches on NXT and Superstars. They really should let him do more on Smackdown. Cody Rhodes cut a good backstage promo about how he will take care of Big Show at WrestleMania and his match with Khali was ok too. The AJ-Nikki Bella match wasn’t much but the pre match Daniel Bryan -AJ segment backstage with Daniel saying they were going to be the new power couple was good. On the whole I thought this was a decent show.

3-15-12 Impact results and thoughts

Coverage and thoughts on the March 15, 2012 episode of Impact

The show starts with Sting walking around backstage and then they show Bobby Roode backstage also.

They show a video package recapping the Sting-Roode story line.

James Storm comes to the ring and says that he has been waiting for a World Title match and a little bit of revenge ever since November 3. Then he says that Roode is selfish and that’s what’s wrong with the world today. Too many takers and wanters and not enough givers. Then he says that at Lockdown he will be all 3 because he will give Roode the ass whipping of his life, he wants the World Title and he will take it at Lockdown. Then he says that at Lockdown Roode will need all the luck that he can get. Then Bully Ray out and says that Storm is ready but Ray he isn’t sure if Storm knows where he’s at and they go back and forth and Storm tells him to come in the ring to do what they do best, beat the crap out of each other. Ray says that Storm won’t make it to Lockdown because of him. He says that he will be the guy that takes him out in 3 days. Storm challenges him again and goes out after him. Ray tells him that he has good news and bad news for Storm. The good news is he won’t face him, but the bad news is that Gunner. Gunner comes out and gets in Storm’s face and then Storm says he hopes he brought his lunch and then he attacks him. They go at it and security and agents come in to break it up. This was a good opening segment. Both Storm & Ray cut great promos as usual and the pull apart brawl with Gunner was good too.

Madison Rayne & Gail Kim argue backstage where Sting is and Sting tells Gail that she will face Mickie James and that Madison will face Velvet Sky and Madison’s match is next.

They show a Bobby Roode promo asking who Sting thinks he is booking himself in the main event of a PPV and that he will finish Sting at

Victory Road

. Good Promo. They showed a video package on Sting during this.

Velvet Sky vs. Madison Rayne. Madison gets the pin. This was a solid match.

They show Matt Morgan & Crimson backstage and Morgan puts over Crimson for his great team work with him last Thursday and Crimson says that he won after all. Then Crimson says that this isn’t about his undefeated streak, this is about regaining the tag titles. Then Morgan says that it is about winning and making money. Then Crimson says that to make money you need to win matches and he mentions that he has been undefeated for 14 months. This was a decent promo. Looks like they’re setting up Morgan vs. Crimson for Lockdown.

Crimson vs. TNA World Tag Team Champion Samoa Joe. Crimson gets the pin after Morgan gets involved. This was a good match.

They show Austin Aries backstage with a champagne bottle and glass and heads to the ring. We’ll hear from him next.

Austin Aries is in the ring and he says that it is a great day to break records. He mentions that there have been 53 X-Division title reigns held by 25 different guys. Then he mentions that he is longest reigning X-Division champion in TNA history and mentions that he broke the record of 182 days. Then he goes to the tron and has a music video with highlights of himself. Then he thanks all the X-Division guys for being good but for him being better. Then Zima Ion comes to the ring and Aries says that he never sent him an invitation. Then he says that Ion beat him at his own game. Ion says that he beat him at his game by proving that Aries isn’t as smart as he thinks he is and says that if he doesn’t hand him the Title now he then what happened to Jessie Sorensen will happen to him at Victory Road. Then Aries offers for Ion to do the toast. Ion says that Aries had a great title run but it will end this Sunday. Then he says that he’s not just f’n pretty but he is pretty f’n dangerous. Then he throws the champagne on Aries and then they go at it a bit and Aries pushes him out of the ring. This was a good segment too. Aries was good on the mic as usual and Ion was also.

They show Gunner coming out of a trailer and Abyss playing his own brother comes in and tries to ask if he’s seen him. Gunner walks off. I’m not sure where they’re going with this.

Eric Young & ODB are backstage and Young is talking about where they’ll have their wedding. They throw out a few places. Then Young decides that it will be in the ring on Impact. No surprise there! Whatever. I’m not into this bit.

Kurt Angle cuts a promo complaining about Garrett Bischoff and mentions the 5 minute beat the clock challenge. Then he says that Jeff Hardy might have his last match at

Victory Road

because Angle hates him. This was weak. Angle sounded kinda weird here I thought.

Mickie James vs. Knockouts Champion Gail Kim. Gail gets the pin after hitting Mickie with the belt. This was a decent match.

Ken Anderson talks about his teaming with AJ Styles. Then Kazarian & Daniels come by and Daniels says that their problem with AJ has nothing to do with him. Then he asks him why he picked AJ’s side when they all know how this movie will end. Daniels tells Anderson that he will find out how everything will go when he & AJ face them Sunday. Then Anderson mentions that they can find out what will happen in tonight when they have their match.

Before the next match Ken Anderson does his old mic bit.

Ken Anderson vs. Christopher Daniels. Anderson gets the pin. This was a decent match too. Kazarian came out but AJ came out to prevent him from getting involved and they brawled up the ramp.

Jeff Hardy promo backstage saying that Kurt Angle is the reason he isn’t World Champion.

Garrett Bischoff vs. Kurt Angle in a 5 minute beat the clock match. Garrett survives. This was awful. Angle beat the crap out of him and show boated most of the match. Afterwards Angle flips and locks the Ankle Lock on Garrett and then Jeff Hardy comes out and runs Kurt Angle off.

Robbie E & Rob Terry are backstage and they rag on the merchandise. Then the cameraman asks him about the open challenge at

Victory Road

and Robbie says he’s beaten everyone. No he hasn’t. This was stupid.

They run down the

Victory Road

line up.

James Storm vs. Gunner. Storm gets the pin. This was a solid match too. Afterwards Ray hints at going after Storm but he bails.

They show a Bobby Roode promo saying that Sting is trying to relive his glory days.

The contract signing is next.

They have the Sting-Bobby Roode contract signing for their match at

Victory Road

. Jeremy Borash mentions that the match will be a no holds barred one fall to a finish. Sting signs it and then Roode does. Then Roode cuts a promo talking about the day he became World Champion. He says that since that day Sting has been a pain and says he found out why Sting has a problem with him and that is because he is jealous of him. Roode then mentions 22 years ago when Sting beat Flair for his first World Title and says that Sting had it all and he wanted to be just like him. He says that now when Sting looks at Roode he sees himself in him because he has all the same traits that Sting had except that Roode is better than he was. He puts himself over and says that he is a better World Champion than Sting was. Then he talks about Sting taking the spot light from the young guys and that the business has past him by and this Sunday he will step in the ring with the World Champion. He then says that Sting wears the face paint because when he looks at himself he knows that he doesn’t have what it takes anymore and that Roode will expose for who he really is, a washed up has been who should have left the business a long time ago. Sting is getting ticked off and doesn’t speak. Roode than asks him if the truth hurts. Then Sting flips the table over, smears the face paint on himself and then smears it on Roode. Then he attacks Roode and clotheslines him over the top rope to the floor. Roode lays at the bottom of the entrance ramp with his face covered in paint and Sting poses in the ring to end the show. This was good too. Roode cut a really good heal promo and Sting going after at the end was really well done.

This week’s show was better than last week’s. The opening promo with James Storm & Bully Ray was good and the Storm-Gunner match was solid. The contract signing at the end was really well done. Roode cut a tremendous heel promo and Sting did a great job of getting irritated before he finally attacked Roode. The rest of the show wasn’t totally memorable but it wasn’t bad either. Austin Aries cut a great promo and Zima Ion coming in and throwing the champagne at him was good. Crimson & Joe had a good match and Anderson-Daniels was decent too. I wasn’t into the Garrett-Angle match. Complete waste. The Robbie E promo was dumb too. The 2 knockouts matches were also decent. The whole “Abyss playing his own brother and looking for himself” bit is weird. I have no idea where they’re going with this. Overall I thought this was a decent show.

3-12-12 Raw results and thoughts

   Coverage and thoughts on the March 12, 2012 episode of Raw

The show starts with Jerry Lawler in the ring saying that tonight will be a first because there will be the first concert-hip hop contest tonight in Cleveland. He says that both guys will get the chance to express there views in there way. Lawler says they will start with some Thuganomics. Cena’s Thugonomic music plays and he comes out in his old hip hop gear. Then Cena does his hip hop bit saying that Rock’s been legit pissed for the last few weeks and says that Rock is a G.I. Joke. Then he does a whole hip hop promo ragging on Rock saying that things are getting scary because last week they were chanting tooth fairy. Then he says a bit more. I wasn’t into this and I don’t know why they’re having this concert vs. hip hop contest. Sorry I didn’t recap everything Cena said but it was too much to keep track of. It was mostly lame hip hop trash talk on Rock. Thankfully this was short.

Then Vickie Guerrero comes out and says that daylight savings should be illegal because the whole world would be deprived of a whole hour of this man. Then Dolph Ziggler’s music hits and he comes out.

Sheamus vs. Dolph Ziggler. Sheamus gets the pin. During the match Josh Mathews interviews Daniel Bryan along with AJ who are watching in the sky box and Josh asks about telling AJ to shut up on Smackdown and Bryan asks AJ if he was rude to her. AJ says no and then Bryan says that AJ she loves him and the feeling is mutual. Then he tells Josh that the interview is over. The match was really good and the Bryan bit in the sky box was ok for what it was. Afterwards they show Bryan & AJ watching again.

They announce that on wwe.com the Board of Directors announced a 12 Man Tag Team match for WrestleMania, Team Long vs. Team Ace. The guy’s team that wins gets him control of both Raw & Smackdown. We’ll hear from Long & Ace next.

Johnny Ace comes out to a good amount of boos as he waves to the crowd. He will be doing commentary for the next match.

Santino Marella & Aksana came out for a mixed tag team match, but after David Otunga comes out Ace announces that instead of a mixed tag this will be a “handicap” match. Then Mark Henry’s music plays and he comes out.

U.S. Champion Santino Marella vs. David Otunga & Mark Henry. Otunga & Henry win when Henry gets the pin. Before the match starts Teddy Long comes to ringside and he & Ace argue AGAIN and Long shoves him AGAIN! Afterwards Henry holds Santino & Otunga trash talks him. Then Kofi Kingston comes in and Mark Henry head butts him and then gives him the World’s Strongest Slam. Then R-Truth comes out and Otunga attacks him and gives him his scary looking spine buster. Then Henry splashes Truth. Then Ace gets in the ring and announces Mark Henry as the newest member for Team Ace. They show Teddy Long & Aksana watching all worried with Otunga, Henry & Miz in the ring. This was just as idiotic as everything that has to do with this story line has been.

They show a behind the scenes video of The Miz on Psych.

They show some chick from this show Extra and they interview Alicia Fox & The Bella Twins. BORING!

They show Eve backstage and Zack Ryder comes by and says that he is confused and asks Eve if she is trying to play him. Eve says that he is playing himself and asks if wants to go to dinner after the show. Ryder is all over it and then Beth Phoenix comes in and says that she should have been the focus on Extra. Then Zack walks out and Beth says that she likes how she’s using Zack and asks if she would mind if Beth does the same. Eve says that she would mind. This was really idiotic! Ryder gets used by Eve and then after ONE kiss he’s all goofy and confused and agrees to go to dinner with her? Then Beth coming in was a waste for both her and the fans! Total crap! They’ve made Ryder look like a complete imbecile!!

Johnny Ace is on his cell phone & The Miz comes in and asks when he was going to put him in a match at WrestleMania. Then Miz brings the star of Psych in. Then Miz says that he should be on Ace’s team and Miz says that he has a match tonight and if he wins he’s on the team. Then Ace asks the Psych guy to be the ring announcer and he says that he will “Fink it up.” Then Miz asks who he will be facing and Ace says CM Punk. After Miz leaves Ace asks the Psych guy what he thinks Miz’s chances are and the guy says Miz doesn’t stand a chance. This was idiotic.

Brodus Clay will be making his return next. OH NO!

Brodus Clay vs. Jinder Mahal. Brodus gets the pin. This was a pointless squash. I really haven’t missed the Funkasauris character! Poor Jinder!

They show Shawn Michaels backstage walking to the ring for his face to face with The Undertaker next.

Shawn Michaels’ music hits and he comes out pyro and all. He gets in the ring and poses for the fans for a bit. Then he gets the mic and says that in 3 weeks Taker & HHH will be locked inside hell in a cell at WrestleMania and it will truly be the end of an era. Then he talks about telling Hunter that he was made the referee for the match. Then he says that he got some information that caught him off guard and they show the Shawn-HHH promo from last week where HHH said that he was going to end the streak. Then Shawn says that he’s walked around the locker room and no one has called him a loser, or a failure and no one has implied that he couldn’t get the job done. Then he mentions that Taker is here and asks him to come out so they can settle this. Taker’s gong hits, the lights go out, the flaming pyro goes off, his music hits and he comes to the out. He gets in the ring and circles Michaels and then Shawn says that after sharing the locker room for 20 years, despite being on opposite sides they had respect for each other and they they both did something that will stand the test of time. Then Shawn says that he thought Taker would have the guts to say whatever’s on his mind to his face. Taker asks if Shawn wants him to say if he’s a failure and a loser or that he couldn’t get the job done. Then Taker asks if Shawn is repeating his words or his words chosen for him by HHH. Taker then mentions Shawn’s insecurities and Shawn says that Taker begged for this match. He says that both he & Taker know that HHH beat Taker within an inch of his life last year. Taker then says that whatever happens at WrestleMania he will accept the outcome but he will not accept Shawn sticking his ego in this. Then he says that at Mania it will be the end of an era and that if the outcome isn’t pure there will be hell to pay. Then Shawn says that it is ironic that the guy whose career Taker ended could possibly be the guy who counts Taker’s shoulders to the mat and makes Taker a loser and that he could still possibly end the streak. Taker says that he will beat HHH and that the streak will continue and he will officially and an era but if Shawn doesn’t do the right thing then he will officially end him. Shawn pats Taker on the shoulder, walks out of the ring and his music hits as he walks up the ramp. Then HHH comes out and looks at Shawn. Then Shawn walks to the back and HHH stands on the stage and he and Taker have a stare down. HHH gives Taker the crotch chop and he walks backstage with his music playing. This was a bit long and the whole “Shawn is a failure because he couldn’t beat Taker” bit doesn’t make sense since him losing to Taker twice shouldn’t be what decides how his career was. I thought that the promos were good but this story line is getting a little stale and I gotta say I’ll be glad when this is over. Also Taker said that WrestleMania will be on April 21. Whoops.

Justin Roberts introduces the Psych guy to ring announce the next match. He says that he found his way to Raw and does the ring announcing, putting over The Miz and his appearance on Psych. Then The Miz comes out. Then the Psych guy announces CM Punk and Punk comes out. They show Chris Jericho watching backstage on a monitor.

WWE Champion CM Punk vs. The Miz. Punk wins by submission. This was a solid match. WWE once again has a guy job in their home town. I don’t why they do that. Then Jericho shows up on the tron and tells Punk to enjoy his wins while he can. Then he says that Punk is a fraud as a person. He says that he found out that Punk is straight edge because his dad is alcoholic and that he doesn’t want to end up like him but he will because booze is in his blood and that terrifies him. Then he asks if the tattoos were to erase that pain from his mind. Then he says that at WrestleMania he will leave Punk a broken man and then Punk will take a drink and continue to while Jericho will be recognized as the best in the world and that Punk’s dad will be recognized as a pathetic drunk. Punk stands in the ring for a bit and then walks up the ramp all upset. This was a good Jericho promo and Punk’s reaction was good also. I’m looking forward to this match more than the “big 2” matches by far!

They show a David Otunga Lawyer ad. That was idiotic!

Randy Orton vs. Jack Swagger. Orton gets the pin. This was a good match but the outcome was never in doubt. Afterwards Kane’s pyro goes off and the red lights go on and Orton looks around for a bit but nothing happens.

They announce that next week John Cena will face Mark Henry.

The Rock’s music hits and he comes with his guitar. He gets in the ring and gets a mic and does his finally The Rock has come back bit. He says that the fans tonight have broken a record. He says that tonight is the largest sell out in the history of WWE in Cleveland and he thanks the fans and they chant Rocky. Rocks says that he appreciates the chants but they should be chanting Cleveland and they do for a bit. Then he says that the guy who came at the start of the show wasn’t the same John Cena. Then on the tron he shows some guy and a Tellitubby and that they mad Cena. Then he says that tonight in Cleveland is about something special. Then he gets his guitar and says that tonight isn’t a rap because everyone knows Cleveland “Rocks.” Then he sings his version of Jailhouse Rock ragging on Cena. Then he sings about Cena making out with Eve but he has a wife. Then he asks if there are any grown men who are Cena fans and they mostly boo but Rock spots a couple and asks the fans if he should mess with the male Cena fans. Then he sings about those guys. Then he says that there’s a special lady watching at home that he wants this part of the song to be about. He was referring to Cena’s mom. Then he says that there is only one way to end the night and this song is for the millions of Rock’s fans. Then he does his usual kind of promo. Then he says that they’re going to sing this special song for Cleveland and they play we will rock you and Rock does a karaoke bit with his lyrics on the tron. Then he thanks the Cleveland fans does the if ya smell bit and poses to end the show. This was kind of funny. I thought that it went on a little long but Rock was good as usual.

I thought that this was a middle of the road show at best. I wasn’t into the opening hip hop bit with Cena and The Rock’s concert was funny but it was a bit too long for me. The rest of the show was hit and miss. Jericho cut a great promo on the tron. That was probably the best part of the night. The Undertaker-HHH-Michaels end of an era bit is getting really old and I’m not really feeling the buzz for it too much. The rest of the show wasn’t too memorable either. Orton & Swagger had a good match and so did Sheamus & Dolph but the winners were never in doubt. They jobbed out Miz in his home town and they made Ryder look like a total goof. Overall this was a weak show.