Barber Shop Window: Backyard Wrestling Champion

Well, I'm possibly addicted.  I recently received my fifth wrestling t-shirt and have already ordered two more.  It's these sales that are doing me in!  Like more than a couple of wrestling fans out there, my friends and I partook in the whole backyard wrestling scene.  And, of course, I was the world champion!  For those of you wondering, we used a replica of the ECW Championship as our World title, shown above with the featured t-shirt.

Anyway, a couple of months back Barbershop Window released a "Backyard Wrestling Champion" t-shirt for the low price of $12.99.  I was tempted to purchase it -- since I fit the requirements, after all -- but to be honest I didn't particularly like the color scheme (a brown t-shirt with yellow lettering) -- and the design/font was pretty plain.  When I ultimately decided to buy it, the shirt was moved to its overstock page and the price was raised to the usual $20, at which point I decided it wasn't worth it.  However, the shirt went back on sale for Cyber Monday (at about $15), so I decided to go for it then.  I still would've preferred a different color combo, but the shirt was just too damn fitting for me to pass up on!

To be honest, I didn't even follow how long the shirt took to arrive this go around.  It wasn't until I checked for the purpose of this post that I realized it took just short of a month (I ordered it on November 26, and it arrived on December 24).  However, I'll give them the benefit of the doubt and assume they made it a priority for everybody to get their shirts by Christmas, in case it was a gift (in my case, it wasn't).  However, Barbershop Window has outlined their delivery policy in a very detailed fashion, so I encourage you to give it a read:  http://barbershopwindow.com/shippingstructure.htm

Seems fair.  However, when your client base has made complaints about the ordering to arrival turnaround, two tweets every single day about not stressing out and smoking pot probably aren't very encouraging.  But, as I say every review, the shipping delays haven't discouraged me from ordering.  Like I said, I've already ordered two more.

Barbershop Window's website
Follow Barbershop Window on Twitter

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REPOST: Top Ten Cases: WWE 2011 Year-End Awards

The new year is almost upon us which means I’ll be once again doing my WWE year-end awards.  So check back on January 1^st for the survey so that your voice can be heard as well.  But before I do that, I thought it’d be fun to look back at the 2011 Year-End Awards and see how we did with some of our predictions.

SUPERSTAR OF THE YEAR

My pick: CM Punk; Your pick: CM Punk (100%)

This one was a no brainer – even more so considering that the year ended with CM Punk winning the title in the main event of a PPV.  I think most people conceived that things would have continued along that course.  Having said that, I think people from 2011 would have been disappointed with the first half of Punk’s 2012 – wrestling in a title match at WrestleMania that wasn’t even promoted as a featured bout and not main eventing a PPV until, I believe, August.

BREAKOUT STAR OF THE YEAR

My pick: Zack Ryder; Your pick: Zack Ryder & Dolph Ziggler (33% each)

This was probably the biggest heart breaker.  Again, the year ended GREAT for Zack Ryder.  He was mega over and finally captured the US title.  It seemed like he was finally accepted by the front office and that he might break through to even better things.  Now he’s in a MUCH worse place than he was a year ago today, and only in a slightly better place than he was before the revolution began (because he at least usually appears on Raw).  Dolph Ziggler, while having a great year, was overall pretty stagnant.  I’d say he’s in a slightly better spot than he was a year ago today, but not by much.

SUPERSTAR WITH THE MOST DISAPPOINTING YEAR

My pick: John Morrison; Your pick: John Morrison (50%)

This award already provides us with the luxury of hindsight, so there’s not much to add to this.

SUPERSTAR MOST POISED FOR A SUCCESSFUL 2012

My pick: Dolph Ziggler; Your pick: Dolph Ziggler & Sheamus (33% each)

I’d say, between Sheamus and Ziggler, you’d have to favor Sheamus.  He won the Royal Rumble, won the World Heavyweight Championship in record time, went on to have a lengthy reign with the gold, and always looked strong.  His only downfall was the fact that the World Heavyweight Championship was an absolute afterthought for the entire year (even more so than the prior year).  And while Dolph had a really great year, I think I might even say Daniel Bryan (another option for that category) had a more successful 2012 than he did.

MOST SHOCKING STORY OF 2011

My pick: The Summer of Punk; Your pick: Edge retires (44%)

Again, we already had hindsight here, so there’s not much to add.

BEST SHIFT IN CHARACTER

My pick: Mark Henry; Your pick: CM Punk & Mark Henry (44% each)

The irony of this particular award is that Mark Henry had a pretty forgettable 2012.  He spent much of the time either injured or jobbing to Sheamus.  And Punk ended up reverting back to his heel character halfway through this year.  So neither character really “stuck” for the entire year.

SUPERSTAR MOST NEGATIVELY IMPACTED BY SOCIAL MEDIA

My pick: Matt Hardy; Your pick: Matt Hardy (62%)

And now he’s pretty much irrelevant (and certainly NOT an “Extreme Legend”).

GREATEST STORYLINE FUMBLE

My pick: Anonymous Raw General Manager; Your pick: Anonymous Raw General Manager (55%)

Not much to add.

WILL THE WWE CHAMPIONSHIP BE REDESIGNED IN 2012?

My pick: No; Your pick: Yes (66%)

Haha, I was right!  Despite MANY logical opportunities (Punk’s heel turn, the 1,000^th Raw, Punk’s one year anniversary) and rumors of a new belt actually being created, they resisted the temptation to redesign their top championship.  Sadly.

WILL THE WWE NETWORK LAUNCH BE A SUCCESS?

My pick: Yes; Your pick: Yes (88%)

We were all wrong here.  While it still remains to be seen whether the WWE Network will be a success (I still think it has a significant upside), the implication of the question was that the network would launch in 2012.  And it did not.  So I have to say that we were all wrong on this one.

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Top Ten Cases: Best Christmas Episodes

Merry Christmas, everyone!!

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Random Tribute to the Troops Observation

With Christmas just a couple of days away, and WWE's latest Tribute to the Troops now behind us, I thought I'd briefly discuss an observation I made on Twitter earlier this week.  Frankly, I really don't like the current presentation of the show.  Don't get me wrong -- I absolutely commend all that the WWE does to honor the troops.  WWE is top notch in that regard.  My issue is purely based on the presentation of the show since they've discontinued filming the show in the Middle East (and, again, I understand why they did this).  But this year more than any other year, it's begun to feel like "just another show."  You ignore the ring apron and the red, white, and blue ropes, and the show feels identical to any typical Raw, Smackdown, or PPV.  And that's a real travesty.

On top of being a really honorable and kind thing to do, Tribute to the Troops felt like something really special.  It was unlike anything you'd see from your average WWE program.  The ring was set up in the middle of the desert, with military personnel surrounding ringside.  People were standing on tanks.  In some instances, the entrance way appeared to be nothing more than a tarp draped over an archway.  And everybody was standing out there in broad daylight (it was almost surreal seeing Undertaker, in his current Dead Man persona, wrestling out in the sun).

But this year the show was held in an ordinary sports complex with their flashy high definition screens and padded barricades.  Honestly, why not try to do the show at the Naval Station Norfolk?  I believe that's what they essentially did in 2010, when the show was held in the United States instead of Iraq or Afghanistan.

Again, I think WWE is doing an awesome thing for our military personnel.  I just think that, in this particular case, less is more.  They should go back to what made the show appear so charming and special.  This show was sorely missing that feeling.

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The End of the World: 5 Things I Wish I Had Done

Hey, just in case the conspiracy theorists are right...

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LIVE Raw thoughts (Slammy Awards Edition) - December 17, 2012

11:06 - Okay, once again.....I'm interested in the AJ turn and how that impacts her volatile relationship with Dolph and Vickie....but I'm not sold on this new dude.  Honestly, could they have picked a stranger looking person?  He looks like a reject Nation member (with the black/yellow/red/green color scheme).  I recognize they need some fresh characters and I'm not opposed to that, but wouldn't this have been a perfect opportunity to reintroduce Jack Swagger?  He's got history with Dolph and Vickie (making the conflict interesting) and he quit while AJ was GM, and she tried to get him to come back.

Anyway, strange episode tonight that failed to live up to MY expectations.  Especially with all the returns and special appearances, and coming off of a strong PPV.  Let's see how the rest of WWE Week goes.

11:05 - Still intrigued b this AJ turn and how she continues to interact with Vickie.

11:00 - Cena will likely call AJ crazy for her erratic behavior, but is Cena any better?  He should've been furious coming into tonight's show, but instead he's giving a rousing speech in favor of Flair.  Then he attacks Dolph, suddenly seemingly fuming with anger.  And now he's all jokey coming into this match.

10:57 - AJ's theme really changes significantly as it continues to play on.

10:40 - I'm guessing Rock vs. Cena wins this.  If not that, Undertaker vs. Triple H.  That's what I think people will vote for, anyway.

10:27 - For newcomer of the year, you've gotta go with Ryback.

10:24 - It's no secret that I found ADR unbearably boring as a heel.  I'm willing to give him a shot as a face.

10:20 - I'm reading a lot of comments on Twitter about how John Cena wasn't acting like a babyface by attacking Dolph Ziggler from behind.  I don't have a problem with that.  To me, that falls into the category of somebody getting what they deserve.  I'm still bothered by the fact that he left Ric Flair to his own devices in a potentially dangerous situation.

10:08 - I don't think it was necessary for Dolph to say "just like you."  An unnecessary low blow.  I think people would've put two and two together if he just used his words deliberately.

9:59 - Wouldn't the greater revenge be to let the bell ring and THEN beat up Dolph?  That way, Dolph either wins by DQ or Big Show manages to pin him.  Either way, the Money in the Bank contract is lost.

9:49 - It is remarkable how many of these Slammy Award categories have nothing to do with actual wrestling.

9:45 - I'm SHOCKED that Zack Ryder and Layla came out to Zack's music, and not Layla's.

9:32 - I don't even need to see the other nominees.  Anger management MUST win.  And might we see the return of Albert?

9:29 - At least JBL's "match of the year candidate there" comment made me laugh.

9:20 - Hustle....what?....and Respect?  Loyalty, right?  Where the hell was Cena during that whole routine?  Daniel Bryan and Kane come out for the save.  Ryback comes out for the save.  Where was Cena?

9:14 - Wow, these commercial breaks are dreadful.  And did John Cena walk into the abyss or something?  He's clearly in the arena and he just called Flair the man.....yet he didn't save him during Punk's attack, and now he's not doing anything when the Shield are SLOWLY making their way to the ring.

9:05 - IF the fans really did vote for Cena to win, Punk brings up a lot of great points as to why they're idiots.  From a kayfabe perspective, this really HAS been the worst year of Cena's career.  And Punk deserves to be Superstar of the Year solely for that awesome t-shirt.

9:02 - Really?  Even for a pandering Cena, how could he possibly think that Flair is the Superstar of the Year?

9:00 - Again....don't get what's written on the envelope if we vote for the winners.  And I'm to believe that this overwhelming negative response to John Cena ALSO voted him to win?

8:56 - So that Flair soundbyte had to be an error, right?  I can't get over that.

8:52 - Wow, was that the most anticlimatic way of introducing Ric Flair EVER?  My God.....how incredibly underwhelming.  Honestly, that was terrible.

8:43 - At this point, I'm just going to tell you who I would vote for.  I'm done voting.  Too much trouble and all the lame or obvious options are winning.  By the way, I'm intrigued by this AJ arc.  Is she a heel?  I don't know, because she still doesn't get along with Vickie.  Her character truly excelled when she straddled the line earlier this year, so let's see what she can do with this.  I just wish she had a more enjoyable foil than John Cena.  Punk, Bryan, and to a certain extent even Kane had deeper characters that allowed them to truly react to her actions.  Cena....not so much.

8:36 - I'm kinda in love with the fact that "Best Kiss" is just AJ's various kisses with the different Superstars. I'm going to either vote her and Punk (because of the kiss where she pushes him through the table) or Kane (because of the one where she jumps into his arms).  Eh, I'll go with Punk.

8:34 - More time has been devoted to explaining how to vote for the Slammy Awards than any of the matches tonight.

8:26 - Please, I'm begging you....just put a little message at the bottom of the screen telling viewers they can vote for the next category during a match.  Then have somebody come out, announce the nominees and the winner.  This whole process of going to a commercial break so that people can vote must be KILLING the live audience.

8:22 - Ah yes, my least favorite way to create a new #1 contender.....having the challenger beat the champion in a non-title match.  Hate.  It.

So this has to go to Brock, right?

8:17 - Hmmmmm, if the fans are voting for the winners of each category using WWE Active, why did Booker have a sealed envelope revealing the winner?  Well deserved, though, for Kofi.  Still digging the Brad Maddox character.

8:13 - Okay, I was finally able to vote for the first category (I went with Punk GTSing Rock, but sorta regret not voting for Kofi's awesome handstand), but don't tell me we're going to have to wait for everybody to vote in between every single announcement of nominees.  I did mark out for that Boogeyman entrance, though, and Booker's reaction was awesome.

8:05 - I'm here with my LIVE thoughts!  And it looks like Rey Mysterio added a vest to the continuously growing layers of his attire.  And somehow Sin Cara is now at ringside.

By the way, I have the WWE App and it's up to date.  I STILL can't figure out how to vote for any of the categories.  And yet they're already giving an award out after this match?  Fail.

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A Case of the.... The Vampire Diaries - Episode 4-9

It’s almost as if the writers of this show are reading my reviews, because it seems like they’ve touched upon all of my recent not-quite-complaints-more-like-observations this past episode, most notably the differing motivations and philosophies amongst the various characters coming to a head.

Continue reading "A Case of the....  The Vampire Diaries - Episode 4-9"....

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A Case of the.... The Vampire Diaries - Episode 4-8

It feels like every week I make this observation that the show comes THIS close to creating a truly tense relationship between Elena and somebody close with her – usually due to the fact that she’s (typically indirectly) responsible for the demise of those around her – but they can’t seem to pull the trigger on it.  It seemed to happen again this week, particularly in when Caroline confessed that she did not quite like what Elena the vampire is turning into.   But, again, by the end of the episode they were hugging and apologizing to each other.

Continue reading "A Case of the....  The Vampire Diaries - Episode 4-8"....

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LIVE Raw thoughts - December 10, 2012

11:03 - A fun enough ending to the show, actually.  They continue to do a great job with the Shield and thus far have avoided making the same mistakes they made with Nexus.  Most importantly, they haven't had Ryback come in and completely dominate all three members of the Shield yet.  And their seemingly random attacks, followed by flawed but believable explanations, have been a great way to keep people guessing.

10:31 - I love the fact that Cody's mustache has a chant.

10:24 - Great showing by both guys.  They've actually done a wonderful job of pushing Cesaro over the past couple of months.  And him catching Kofi ON HIS SHOULDER following that body press was mighty impressive.

10:10 - Yeah, I've always argued the benefits of the brand extension, but it hasn't truly existed in over a year now.  With the US and Intercontinental Championship feuds so closely aligned, I wish they had the foresight to just make this a four way unification ladder match at TLC.

10:03 - I have to admit, AJ stopping her rampage for a moment of silence before slapping an innocent Justin Roberts made me laugh.  I'm guessing that Vickie will now give Maddox that contract he wants, in return for his work as referee in that match.

9:58 - Gotta admit, I'm digging this Brad Maddox character.

9:56 - After all these years, how does Vickie not have a theme music?

9:50 - Don't get me wrong, I'm glad Ryder got so much offense and that it wasn't a total squash....but just imagine that Del Rio got the reactions that Ryder got.  I honestly believe that somebody like Mick Foley wouldn't have a shot in the world of becoming the legend he became if this mentality existed during the Attitude Era.

9:37 - I can't stand them, but do Alberto Del Rio and Randy Orton even have matches?  And they're hardly feuding with each other, so throwing them in a match against each other just reeks of "we got nothin'."

9:27 - That was a really fun match with a really exciting finishing sequence, but it was a lose/lose situation.  I sorta hate when they put the competitors in the various main event matches against each other, because at worst somebody looks weak, and at best you screw the fans with a non-finish.  Instead, why not put each guy in a match with somebody not on the PPV, where they could both win a competitive match?  Of course, only the guys who appear on PPV are ever made to look good, so getting a win over, say, Santino and Tensai doesn't exactly make you look impressive.

9:14 - By the way, I have the WWE App on m iPhone 4S.  There are no updates available, yet I do not have that second screen thingie they keep talking about.  Truth be told, I find the App a little tough to navigate.  I see all of these Poll results, but never find the polls themselves.  And I still can't find the nominees for the Slammy Awards.  Anybody else have issues with the WWE App?

8:58 - I love when Punk wears the championship (because he actually wears it around his waist), but Heyman holding it during promos and matches is great as well.  I love when he just holds the title up in the air while Punk speaks.  Or when he hugs it with all his might throughout the match.  Just awesome.

8:40 - Truthfully, Rhodes Scholars were probably the right team to win, but I'm glad the Usos got that push throughout the match.  I say this often, but I hope this isn't a stop/start thing.  I'd really like to see what sort of attention they get going forward.

8:32 - I'm a bit surprised that the Usos don't get more attention.  They seem to get a reaction (or have the potential for getting a greater reaction than they get), they're talented, they have an actual tag team move set, and they have the family lineage.  What are they missing?  Particularly since WWE has a history of pushing Samoan wrestlers.

8:28 - The irony, of course, is that a towel would cover far more than actual wrestling attire does.8:

8:15 - So the Slammy Awards are next week, and while I don't want to give away my own Year-End Awards, here are the categories.  And I'll include who I think should win.  Who do you think?

- Superstar of the Year - CM PUNK
- Breakout Star of the Year - AJ LEE
- Trending Now Award – (Hashtag of the Year) - No, not answering this one
- Comeback of the Year - BROCK LESNAR (has there been any other comeback?)
- Kiss of the Year - AJ JUMPS INTO KANE'S ARMS AND KISSES HIM (close second, AJ kisses Punk and pushes him through a table)
- "Tell me I did NOT just see that" – (The Most Shocking Moment of the Year) - JERRY LAWLER HAS A HEART ATTACK DURING RAW
- LOL Moment of the Year - AJ SKIPS DOWN TO THE RING DRESSED AS KANE
- Match of the Year - CM PUNK VS. DANIEL BRYAN, MONEY IN THE BANK

8:12 - I enjoyed Ziggler's opening (and a great opportunity for him, too).  I liked how he brought up the fact that Cena already won a Money in the Bank briefcase, but he cashed it in and lost.  And yet, despite that, he received countless other title shots (meanwhile, Dolph has not received any, to my knowledge, which I wish he brought up) and now he's getting a shot at HIS briefcase.  I have no interest in seeing Dolph lose to Sheamus tonight, so I was slightly turned off by the Sheamus/Big Show takeover.  But at least it reminds everybody (and HOPEFULLY former WWE writers) that the blue briefcase is for the World Heavyweight Championship.

7:57 - We're just a few minutes away from a new Raw, and a lot has happened in the past week.  Most importantly, CM Punk is out of TLC and the new main event is now Team Hell No and Ryback vs. The Shield in a TLC match, which is going to be decided by pinfall or submission.  Um....what?  Don't get me wrong, I love the new match, but why do a TLC match when there's nothing to climb up the ladder for?  The MO of the Shield is putting people through tables....why not do the obvious thing and make it a Tables Match?  That way, everybody is protected and nobody needs to suffer a pinfall loss (primarily Ryback, who is in the WWE Championship scene, and the Shield, who are just debuting)?

Further, you can seamlessly shift the Ziggler/Cena match into a TLC match (since it's essentially the same as a Ladder Match), so your featured stipulation still remains on the card.  Having a TLC match that ends in pinfall or submission -- rendering the ladder itself useless -- is just lame.

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Season's Greetings from WWE

Actually mildly funny and cute:

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A Case of the.... The Vampire Diaries - Episode 4-7

Just last review I was remarking how selective the writers have been about vampires’ super hearing (most notably, Caroline, Haley, and Tyler openly acknowledging their ploy seconds after Klaus left the house), and this week’s episode featured numerous instances of vampires blatantly using that very ability.

Continue reading "A Case of the....  The Vampire Diaries - Episode 4-7".... 

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Top Ten Cases: Hottest Women on Television (2012-2013 TV Season)

This is now my third installment of the "Hottest Women on Television" series -- and quite honestly, this might have been the toughest one yet.  My 2008 list was a bit of a cheat, as I included actresses from shows that weren't on any longer (The O.C. and That 70's Show), as well as actresses who no longer appeared on their respective series (24).  For my 2010-2011 list, I imposed a few restrictions -- such as that the woman has to be a regular actress (that is to say, in the opening credits) of a show that airs during that given season. I also set an unofficial age range.  This year, I fine tuned my rules even further by eliminating reality television shows.  Otherwise, I assure you that Angie from Survivor would've been on this list!

As you'll notice if you check out my two prior lists (links below), many of the same names appear year after year.  Although the rankings have changed (including the 2008 #10 person skyrocketing to #1 in my 2010-2011 list).  This is because my tastes may have changed.  Or I get exposed to that person more and thus find them more attractive.  I will say this, though:  Ranking #6 through #2 was extraordinarily difficult.  And I also eliminated two names that appeared in both of my prior lists, and were still eligible for this year's list.  Who were they?  Watch the video to find out!



2010-2011 Hottest Women List - 2008 Hottest Women List

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LIVE Raw thoughts - November 26, 2012

11:05 - I continue to be intrigued by this Shield/CM Punk connection.  Are they working together?  Is Punk as clueless as he claims?  Punk's acting is perfect right now -- and I'm REALLY glad that Ryback didn't get the best of the Shield (and Punk, for that matter) tonight.  They've got a formula that works right now.  Let the mystery going into TLC whether or not Ryback will win -- not whether or not Punk will retain.

11:03 - I LOVED CM Punk's cartoonish dive over the barricade to get away from Ryback.

10:52 - This whole "Respect" thing needs to stop.  Punk has found his identity as a heel, and the whole respect thing isn't helping.  The fact of the matter is that when guys like Lawler and others would be reluctant about saying they respect Punk, Punk hadn't actually done anything bad yet.  Fans are buying him as a heel now -- why remind them of the lackluster beginning of the turn?

10:49 - I love that Punk wore a Ferris Bueller t-shirt at the Chicago Thanksgiving Parade.  Yes, he almost always wears his t-shirt on TV, but he's a guy who actually has his own identity during outside appearances.  More so than most WWE mainstays.

10:31 - FINALLY!!!  Zack Ryder breaks out the Ghostbusters gear!

10:23 - That was an awesome match and I went into it with the same skepticism as I did Cena/Ziggler.  Basically, I didn't see the guy higher up the card losing, and I didn't think the guy lower on the card should be put in a position to lose.  But Antonio looked like he BELONGED.  And he didn't get pinned or walk away and take a count out loss.  He basically got knocked out and got counted out by consequence (big difference).

By the way, got a kick out of Michael Cole exclaiming, "It wouldn't be the Attitude Era without HBK!" considering that Michaels missed the vast majority of it.

And next time somebody tells you that Ric Flair could wrestle a broomstick, you remind them that Big Show can fight a steel chair!

10:07 - Why, exactly, should Sheamus be the rightful World Champion?

10:00 - Great match AND Ziggler looked great even in defeat.  The problem is, he would've looked even better in victory.  And Jesus, was that the most uncomfortable kissing you've ever seen?  Next time, focus on AJ's face.

9:46 - They did a great job of building up Ziggler's accolades, but here's the problem:  Most people STILL view him as a guy that loses against main eventers.  Don't sacrifice the great job they've done (re)building him up by feeding him to Cena.

9:36 - Annnnd shocker.  Daniel Bryan loses again.

9:27 - In addition to being a great character and awesome technical wrestler, Daniel Bryan also has amazing ring presence.  He never gives the audience a break.  He'll stop mid-action and just start yelling "NO!  NO!  NO!" which will get the fans chanting "YES!  YES!  YES!"  What a great awareness that 95% of the roster does not have.

9:18 - At first I was relieved Bryan lost, because do we REALLY need to see him lose another match?  And then he's put into a match with Rey Mysterio....

9:11 - I've made my feelings on the lazy #1 Contender storyline known.  WWE seems to be in this mindset of building up a midcarder strong and then feeding them to a main eventer, and they rarely recover (just look at Brodus).  What they SHOULD do is build a guy through the midcard, and then make him the challenger to the US or Intercontinental Championship.  This manner of having a guy beat the champion in a non-title match in order to earn a title shot, but then lose the actual title match, does neither competitor any favors.

9:04 - At least AJ keeps bringing up the point that there are no stakes in this storyline.  AJ already stepped down.  Vickie already has the power.  Why do EITHER of them care about this matter?  What does AJ stand to lose?  What does Vickie stand to gain?  This story just seems to be told in the wrong order.

9:01 - No matter how much I don't enjoy this storyline, I can't help but continue to love AJ.

8:56 - We haven't even gone through hour one and we've already seen Vickie three times.

8:50 - Aside from AJ, who seems to have sustained a pretty impressive push, all of these Diva pushes are so short term and abrupt that it's hard to get into them.  Beth and Natalya teamed together and for a few weeks were unstoppable.  Then suddenly Natalya became a legitimate jobber who would lose squash matches.  And within a few months, Beth was losing pretty frequently as well.  It seems like the Divas only exist to lose to whoever is champion or whoever is getting pushed as the challenger.  And then when the higher ups decide that they want to push somebody new, we're supposed to just accept them and forget how they were portrayed just a few weeks earlier.

8:42 - I have to admit that I'm somewhat intrigued by this notion of a faction that fights what they perceive to be injustices.  Here's the question, though:  For the time being, will they be fighting any other injustices aside from Punk's issues with Ryback and Cena?  They did set up the injustice idea with Punk's earlier confrontation with Vickie, so I did appreciate that.

8:19 - When Michael Cole mentioned Rosa being livid, I thought we were going to find out that the whole Brad Maddox thing WAS an angle after all.  And by the way, those security guards really didn't do anything to Ryback.  And that first guy suffered a nasty landing.

8:08 - I'll admit that I was worried for Titus when he didn't even get an entrance (or an in-ring introduction, for that matter), but that was a pleasantly competitive match.  I'm guessing we'll see Punk vs. Ryback in a Tables Match for the WWE Championship.  Hey, isn't it convenient that chairs and tables just so happened to be used in the closing moments of each World title match at the event before TLC?

7:53 - As an aside, I find it funny (or sad) that WWE apparently gave up on the promising Team Punk vs. Team Foley match because, after just one segment, WWE decided they were not pleased with the fan reaction to it.  Yet here we are, a month or so later, and they're still going on with this AJ/John Cena storyline.

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REPOST: Top Ten Cases: Superstars to keep your eyes on (2009)

While checking out some old editions of Top Ten Cases, I came across this list from September 2009, where I ranked the top ten Superstars that you should keep your eyes on.  The link to the entire list is below, but here are some interesting excerpts:

Of Zack Ryder, who I ranked as #10:
"This one is probably a huge stretch, but it seems like the powers that be have legitimately been behind this guy since his move to ECW. While his former partner languishes on SmackDown, Ryder has been featured prominently each and every week. He has a unique look, a catch phrase, and a few solid victories (and his big losses are to Christian and Shelton Benjamin, hardly pushovers). And much like the Miz, WWE was wise enough to steer him away from cartoonishness upon his re-introduction. By week two, he was ensuring everybody that he wasn't a joke."

Of Ted Dibiase, who I ranked as #8:
"Then again, out of all the members of Legacy, he seems to have the greatest upside. He's got a good look, he's comfortable on the mic, and his ring performance is sound. I keep reading reports that the long term plan is to turn him face, so it sounds like WWE has some plans for him. And this may seem like a contradiction based on what I said most of this passage, but I actually CAN imagine DiBiase headlining WrestleMania."

Another interesting thing to note:  Of the 10 people on my list, four got released before reaching the level of WWE or World Heavyweight Champion (including my #1 and #2 picks), while only 3 have achieved the honor of being a World Champion, now over 3 years later (my #3, #4, and #5 picks).

Anyway, here's the full list:

http://acaseoftheblog.blogspot.com/2009/09/case-of-summer-top-ten-cases-superstars.html

What are your thoughts on this trip down memory lane?

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A Case of the..... The Vampire Diaries - Episode 4-6

Alright, no more promises with me saying “this week I should be posting this at a normal time.”  Clearly, life and/or nature doesn’t want it to happen.  Thus, I thank all of my readers for their awesome patience.  And to those of you who are American, I hope you all have a great Thanksgiving.

Continue reading "A Case of the....  The Vampire Diaries - Episode 4-6"....

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LIVE Raw thoughts - November 19, 2012

11:12 - I thought the Punk celebration was great.  Particularly the run down of all the Superstars Punk had successfully defended his title against, and the various matches he's had to do it.  And the video montage was, as always, top notch.  The thing is, they should have been building it up all night.  Geez, every time Triple H returns or there's a DX reunion, we get a night full of clips.  Why not for Punk's reign?

And of course, there was no new WWE Championship!!!  But I did love the fact that Punk has every intention of holding the title another 2,000 days.

Oh, and there have been a lot of (fair) comparisons made between the new NXT guys and the old Nexus, and there's one similar thing I DO love:  The beatings look so real.  In their early days, the Nexus attacks looked so graphic and unchoreographed.  It was messy and clunky and real.  They would grab people at their legs.  They would jump on them.  They would just continue to attack.  It felt so much realer than "let me stand here while you hit and knock down my partner.  And then when you knock me down, I'll just get up and you can knock me down again" routine we constantly see.

11:07 - Where are the balloons?

10:57 - LOVE LOVE LOVE Heyman bringing up that people want the Attitude Era and ECW, but then get all upset when they do something edgy like last week.

10:55 - Love the long, competitive matches....but we've seen WAY too many of these recaps.  How many times have we seen the AJ/Cena kiss?  Three times?  And it's not as if this is a huge relationship they've been building up for months.  This has all happened in the past, like, month.  And before that, these two barely interacted on screen.

10:48 - I'm glad they didn't have Rey and Sin Cara win, using that "challengers beat champions to earn title shot" result twice in one night.  And actually, that was some fun commentary as well.  And a great example of why face Cole is so much better than heel one.  Remember how badly he tore apart the Hart Dynasty because they weren't talkative enough?

Oh, and first sighting of the WWE Championship -- and it's the same spinner one.  And no indication or hint of Punk switching it.  I guess we'll see.

10:44 - Man, we've had at least three matches that I can think of that went through a commercial break.  Impressive.

10:36 - So after months of telling CM Punk he needs to beat John Cena to earn respect -- despite being WWE Champion -- Cole and Lawler are now telling the Prime Time Players that they can't be the leaders of the tag team division without being the champions.

10:30 - Oh man, giving away Ziggler vs. Face Miz WAY too soon.

10:27 - If this was still the Attitude Era, somebody would've been taking a dump in that stall.  In all seriousness, though, great promo from Ziggler (and awesome seeing the #HEEL hoodie again) and a great response from AJ.  Overall, surprisingly positive segment.

10:23 - It strikes me as odd that we haven't been seeing clips throughout the night from Punk's title reign.

10:08 - I have to admit that I thought Sheamus would destroy Sandow with the chair in a short match.  And then I was going to complain about how Sheamus got to destroy a guy with a promising future, while Miz had to allow David F'N Otunga dominate three quarters of their match.  But this has been a surprisingly long and competitive match.

9:59 - For some reason, I find the concept of Sheamus leaving the arena with that chair, going back to his  hotel room, and then traveling with it to the next arena somewhat humorous.  Somewhat.

9:54 - You can tell tonight is a light night.  They're doing A LOT of "earlier tonight" recaps.

9:48 - I've long argued that Miz is a natural heel and shouldn't be turned face.  But they've decided to do it, and there ARE fans out there that want to cheer him.  There's no reason why this shouldn't have been a decisive, relatively easy victory for Miz.  Otunga got WAY too much offense in there.

9:36 - Do they realize how wildly dirty and inappropriate that slow motion replay looked?

9:35 - When I said the Great Khali was available to use, this wasn't what I meant.

9:27 - Fine match, but I think they should have been more explicit about ADR's DQ to get the subsequent victory strategy (like Triple H vs. Rock).  Have ADR go crazy on Orton's arm, getting DQ'd.  Then immediately thereafter, have him go for the arm bar.  It wasn't expressed enough until after the fact.  Okay, how about these two stay away from each other now?

9:06 - Well that was.....interesting.  I did actually get a kick out of Cena trying to respond to Vickie only to be pulled away by the punitive AJ so that they could suck face.  But that lasted a....um....while.  It sorta looked like Cena may have twisted his ankle on the way out, though.

9:03 - I still don't get what, from a character standpoint, Vickie benefits from this AJ/Cena scandal.

8:48 - We're seeing Orton vs. ADR AGAIN tonight.  And we just saw Brodus vs. Cesaro a few weeks ago.  And how many times have we seen 3MB vs. CoBro (and they wonder why the pre-show was so poorly viewed)?  I constantly argue that the roster isn't as light as people claim it is.  Right now they've got the following people on their roster -- not injured, as far as I can tell -- who are just doing nothing:  Alex Riley, Camacho, Christian, Curt Hawkings, Ezekiel Jackson, the Great Khali, Hunico, the Usos, Jack Swagger, JTG, Mason Ryan, Michael McGillicutty, Ted DiBiase, Trent Barretta, and Yoshi Tatsu.  Yes, a couple of those guys are sidelined with injuries, but most were not being used before that point either.  Then you have guys like Ryder, Santino, Kidd, and Gabriel who do appear on television on a semi frequent basis, but aren't being used in any meaningful way.  Not everybody is a main eventer and needs a storyline, but there's no reason why we should be seeing the same matches over and over again.

8:41 - I mean, in most cases you're not going to get a 5 star match out of the Divas (which has a lot to do with the amount of time they're given, I will admit), but is there a less technical Diva out there than Kaitlyn?  She really does seem lost out there.  She's basically the female version of Vince McMahon.  And it's baffling that they're pushing her and they've made Natalya the designated jobber of the division.

8:34 - Daniel Bryan, take note:  CM Punk gets a haircut for special occasions.

8:29 - Ugh.  Laziest way to name a #1 contender, ever.  And they CONSTANTLY do it.  They had a tournament to determine the #1 contenders for the tag team champions and people were really into it.  And in the process, they MADE at least two legitimate tag teams.  And by the way, while I do really like Wade Barrett, he really needs to work on his kick outs.  He just seems to lie there and then when it's time to kick out, he just does.  He doesn't seem like he's trying to kick out until the moment that he's supposed to.

8:15 - Glad to see Barrett with the jacket again.  Far superior to his t-shirt.  By the way, I'm really hoping Barrett doesn't get the win here.  I detest this lazy, quick manner of storytelling....having a potential challenger pin the champion in a non-title match in order to get a title match.  Why not spend a couple of months and allowing a challenger to climb up and dominate the midcard division in order to earn a title shot?

8:11 - By the way, Sheamus doesn't really have a leg to stand on regarding his Big Show loss.  Referees get knocked out all the time, and the competitors have had to act accordingly.  There wasn't a bell, so Sheamus has nobody to blame but himself.

Incidentally, it looks like we have a CM Punk celebration tonight, which is as good a time as any to debut a new championship.  It's funny, I've been looking for any conceivable reason for him to change the title since winning it.  First, it was his promise that he would.  Then, it was the beginning of THIS reign.  Then, it was WrestleMania.  Then his heel turn.  Then Night of Champions.  Tonight -- the one year celebration of his title reign -- seems as good an occasion as any of those.

8:01 - So tonight is the official one year celebration of CM Punk's title reign.  What do you think the chances are of us seeing a new championship belt?

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LIVE Survivor Series thoughts - November 18, 2012

10:44 - PUNK RETAINS!  He's going a full year!!!  And here's hoping he's just a REALLY good seller.

By the way, curious booking of John Cena.  He gets pretty decisively dominated by Ryback, and then gets pinned after being hit by Ryback's finisher a minute or two earlier.  And then he just rolls out of the ring and clumsily walks to the back, with no real reaction.  I wonder if that's going anywhere.

10:43 - Three guys from NXT in a match featuring three former Nexus members.

10:34 - Really cool visual shot of Cena locking Ryback in the STF, while Punk prepares to hit the elbow smash.

10:25 - Strange that we didn't have the in-ring introductions for the title match.

10:22 - Disappointingly  no near gear for Punk.  He's in his black and red gear tonight.  At least he's wearing the design on the shin guards again.

10:20 - I like Cena's new "10 Years Strong" gear.  A navy blue shirt with yellow writing, plus some cargo shorts.  It's a good look.  By the way, my official prediction is Punk retains, by getting a pin on Cena.

10:17 - Now, if our God is truly a good God, CM Punk will retain tonight.  I mean, they won't really end Punk's reign ONE DAY short of a full year, would they?  PLEASE....PUNK RETAIN!!!

10:12 - Wow, surprisingly ending, with Ziggler getting the clean win over Orton.  I'm guessing we'll see Orton turn heel in the coming weeks (or momentarily, against Foley) because of the fact that he blew it himself.  He had the match won, but chose to go for the kill instead of the win.

10:07 - One of the most enjoyable parts of watching a face/heel turn is seeing the performer's renewed fire as they completely change up their fighting style and crowd interaction.  I was never a giant Miz fan, but he was treated pretty crappily this past year.  I hope this face turn is a shot at him becoming a star again.  I am surprised they didn't have him survive, though.

10:01 - And there you go.  I can't stand how they CONSTANTLY have Del Rio get the best of Bryan.  Especially since the fans are SO into one, despite the way he's portrayed, and they seem indifferent to the other, even though he's pushed to the moon.

10:00 - Thrilled to see Bryan lasting this long, but with all the arm selling he's doing, I'm beginning to think we're going to see him tap to Del Rio's arm breaker.  Which sucks because I can't stand Del Rio.

9:55 - I rag on Lawler's jokes A LOT, but the "I thought he was a good bowler" line had me laughing.

9:53 - Looks like I was wrong in both regards.

9:51 - By the way, I think Otunga will be the first person eliminated.  Sadly, I think Bryan will be the first person on the face team.  Despite getting the biggest reaction of the night, thus far.

9:49 - New gear for Kofi.  I'm trying to figure out if it's a reference to anything, or just a new color scheme.

9:46 - Disappointed we're not seeing a remix of a joint Kane/Bryan theme music.  Love Bryan's new jacket, though.  He still needs a haircut, however.

9:44 - So the heel team went from Punk/Miz/ADR/Rhodes/Sandow to Ziggler/ADR/Sandow/Barrett/Otunga -- just two people survived from start to finish.  The face team went from Ryback/Orton/Kofi/Bryan/Kane to Orton/Kofi/Bryan/Kane/Miz.  They fared a bit better, I guess.

9:41 - I'm torn on the result of this match.  The earlier match saw the babyface team win, so logic may dictate that the heel team wins tonight.  However, we're also seeing all heel (hopefully) title retention, so it would be wise to make the faces look good tonight.  So I'm guessing that Orton and Miz survive on the Team Foley.

9:38 - While it would be cool to see Ziggler cash in during his entrance, remember that the Money in the Bank briefcase does NOT transform the WWE Championship into the Hardcore title.  It still has to be a real match in the ring.  Ziggler can't just pin somebody in the aisleway.

9:34 - Odd booking that didn't seem to do Sheamus too many favors.  First he "lost," then he got a DQ victory after being laid out.  Clearly we're getting set up for a Chairs Match now.

9:28 - Having this match BEFORE the elimination match hearkens back to my argument at the Money in the Bank PPV about the importance of match order.  Unless something very specific happens in this match and the elimination match that necessitates the elimination match happening second, why not have that match first?  They're eliminating the suspense of the possibility of a cash in.  It feels like they're working against themselves here by not utilizing the built in tension and suspense.

9:24 - Also worth noting:  The camouflage pattern on Big Show's boots don't even match the pattern and color scheme of the one on his singlet.  One is green based, the other brown based.

9:21 - Just noticed that Big Show now has some equally ugly camouflage boots now, as well.

9:15 - Also, I REALLY wish Big Show would ditch the camo singlet.  There's something about them that I detest.

9:10 - Well, the World Heavyweight Championship match is happening now, before the Ziggler match.  This makes me think Ziggler probably won't cash in, which is too bad.  The World Heavyweight Championship scene desperately needs some new interest and attention, and a surprise Ziggler win would've done that.  Plus, I have little interest in seeing either Sheamus or Big Show as champion.

8:58 - I have to agree with what others are saying about this AJ/Cena storyline.  Fundamentally, what's at stake?  AJ already resigned.  Vickie already gained the position.  And there's no indication that McMahon is looking to reverse that decision.  So where's the risk?  Why is Vickie even pushing the matter?  She has nothing to gain, and AJ has nothing to lose.

And further, nobody has brought up the fact that AJ did leave her hotel room in a bathroom and go into another person's room.  Even if it wasn't Cena's, whose was it?  That's a fair question, but nobody has even asked it.

8:55 - As expected, Antonio Cesaro successfully defended his United States Championship.  I suspect we may see Christian (is he injured) return to challenge him, since they're pushing this "nobody from the United States can beat him" thing so strongly.  Also, with all of these champions retaining (and God willing, Punk will too), I feel even stronger about Ziggler successfully cashing in tonight.

8:45 - Believe it or not, I really liked the babyface backstage segment (except for the fact that Daniel Bryan STILL hasn't gotten a haircut).  Everybody played their parts just right.  Kofi and Miz correctly had tension. Kane and Bryan argued, of course.  And Randy Orton just wanted nothing to do with any of them.  And then when it came time for Foley to rally the troops, Kofi (the only true traditional babyface on the team) was the first to stand by his side.  Overall, really good.

8:41 - Right person won there, and I'm glad Eve won cleanly, too.  My one complaint is that Kaitlyn needs to change her fighting style to be more power-based.  With Beth gone, Kaitlyn is probably the physically strongest Diva on the roster.  She needs to be doing more of a stronger style.

8:32 - So was that the big reveal?  That it was Aksana who attacked Kaitlyn?  Would've been more fun if we discovered it was Layla.

8:29 - A really fun match that picked up a great deal once the eliminations started.  Like I said, I hope we see more of these guys following tonight.  I hope this isn't just another start/stop push for Kidd and Gabriel.

8:25 - A great coming out party for Tyson Kidd right now.  I was never a huge follower of the guy, but it's great to see him getting some real attention here.  I thought it might happen at this year's Money in the Bank, but that appearance never really amounted to anything.  I hope he gets a shot after tonight.

8:19 - Man, has Brodus Clay's stock fallen or what?  The fact that TENSAI elimianted him was pretty telling.  And the fact that that's telling is very telling of how much Tensai's stock has fallen as well.  You follow all that?

8:15 - I may be jinxing the guy, but I've been really impressed with Sin Cara lately.  I'm also pleased we're seeing an ACTUAL match right now.  We all remember the classic Survivor Series matches fondly, but MANY of them were pretty ridiculous....with people getting eliminated off of moves that never would have beaten them before (like basic clotheslines).

8:09 - We've got a bonus elimination match pitting Mysterio/Cara/Brodus/Gabriel/Kidd against Tensai/Young/Titus/Epico/Primo.  I'm guessing we see the faces win, with Sin Cara and Rey Mytserio surviving.

8:07 - Sin Cara and Rey Mysterio debuting some pretty slick looking pink gear (a month late).  And Brodus has new, gold entrance gear.

8:03 - Not surprisingly, really awesome opening video.  I especially loved the countdown for Punk's title reign.  And I do give them credit for making this reign feel special -- they've accentuated his incredible length just the right amount.  However, the clips from early Survivor Series matches makes me really long for those elimination matches.  By the way, if the announced elimination match happens before the World Heavyweight Championship match, I think there's a good chance we'll see a Ziggler cash in.

7:54 - Well, with no Once Upon a Time tonight, I decided to bite the bullet and order Survivor Series.  I'm HOPING we'll get at least one more elimination match added during the show, which I think is at least somewhat possible since so few matches have been announced, and there are quite a few people still not booked (like Rey Mysterio and Sin Cara).  So, check back in about 5 minutes for my LIVE thoughts.  As I simultaneously write my Vampire Diaries review.

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Barber Shop Window: Ghost Jobber & Pink #HEEL

So a while back I told myself that the next time Barber Shop Window offers a special deal that involves getting a free t-shirt, I'd take the offer and buy something.  And at the beginning of October, that opportunity presented itself when they offered a free pink #HEEL t-shirt for any t-shirt purchased.  Since I was in the midst of my 31 Days in Pink challenge, this seemed to be a calling.  So, I had to decide which t-shirt to buy. My criteria was the same as last time:  I wanted to buy something that would look cool/normal to non-fans, but would be a fun wink to fans.  Ultimately, I decided to go with the Ghost Jobber t-shirt, which features the red Pac-Man ghost with "JOBBER" (in pixelated lettering) written underneath.

The actual shirts are exactly how they presented them on their website (read my prior review for details on the quality of the t-shirt and printing), and while I'll likely wear the Ghost Jobber shirt more, the pink #HEEL shirt was the one that really impressed me.  I somewhat expected the shirt to be a darker, sorta dull pink.  Instead, it was really bright -- and I mean that as a compliment.  I also thought that the "#HEEL" would be in black.  Instead, it's in a light gray....which looks really great against the pink.  Both shirts really look great.

Now, again, my only real complaint was the fact that the t-shirt took so long to arrive.  Once again, the website is completely upfront about the fact that they're a small operation and that it takes a while for them to deliver your item.  I completely understand that, hence why I don't really want to refer to this as a "complaint."  I ordered my shirt on October 8th.  On October 18th, I received an e-mail telling me that my order has been processed and that it should be sent out within the next 5 business days.  However, I didn't receive my t-shirt until November 10th, with the excuse being that Hurricane Sandy halted production.  There is no doubt in my mind that the hurricane created huge delays, however the storm devastation wasn't really until October 29th.  Granted, that's close to the end of that 5 day window, but it is still outside of it.  Sandy really shouldn't have impacted the delivery of my shirts, considering I made my order a full three weeks before the storm hit.

But, again, that's a minor complaint.  And I still got a free t-shirt out of the deal!

Frankly, these guys put out awesome designs and the t-shirts and printing are of a really good quality.  I absolutely recommend them to anybody who's interested.

Barbershop Window's website
Follow Barbershop Window on Twitter

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31 Days in Pink

I had intended on posting this at the beginning of the month, but since I lost my Internet for a week due to Sandy, everything got kinda slowed up (I'm milking that excuse for everything I'm late with in my life), so I'm just releasing this now.  As you all likely know, October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, which has become synonymous with wearing pink.  Many sports organizations have joined in on the craze, most famously the NFL and just recently the WWE.  I decided I would have fun with it as well, and so for 31 straight days I wore some article of pink.  Sometimes it was a shirt.  Other times a tie.  And on days I was feeling particularly sick of the color, just a silicon bracelet.

Of course, this was all tongue-in-cheek.  It means nothing if you don't do anything with the awareness.  As such, please be sure to visit this website.  And remember, this is important stuff for the other 11 months as well.

http://www.nbcam.org/

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LIVE Raw thoughts - November 12, 2012

11:07 - That was an enjoyable match, as it always is with Punk and Cena, and I loved the fact that Punk didn't tap to the STF.  I hate when guys turn heel and inexplicably they begin tapping immediately when they're put in a submission hold.  I do hope, though, that they're not going to start turning Punk into the type of champion that, because they don't want to end his reign, they just keep having him get pinned in situations where he won't lose the title (non-title matches, tag matches, etc.)  Just keep him strong all around and keep those losses a rare thing.

10:45 - Love Bryan's transition from hating Kane to getting jealous over him teaming with somebody else.

10:38 - By the way, I've really enjoyed WWE's handling of Veteran's Day.  Instead of going over the top with their patriotism (which I do believe is legitimate), they're instead putting the focus on some of the ways people can help Veterans when they return home.  There are struggles -- both physical and emotional -- and WWE is helping in making people aware of that.  While still doing it in a positive light.

10:34 - Wow, Miz dominated there.  Worth noting is that Santino got 6% to Ryder's 34%.  Maybe that'll show 'WWE whose theme music to play when CoBro come out.

10:31 - I say this every week....but Daniel Bryan needs to get a haircut.  The crazy beard looks a lot cooler when contrasted with a really short haircut.

10:14 - Worth noting:  Brad Maddox has AWESOME ring gear.  Love the "Punch" on his arm band and "Kick" and "Jump" on his boots.

10:10 - I do not miss Lawler's one liners.

10:06 - I worry that the stretcher might be a little overboard.  Sometimes less is more.

10:03 - Lawler saying "Uh oh, my ride's here" upon hearing the ambulance siren was actually pretty funny.  I also like the idea of an ambulance preemptively arriving on the scene because of the epic ass kicking that is about to happen.

9:52 - R-Truth was one of the Superstars in Tensai's path of destruction when he returned earlier this year.  My, how much things have changed in just a matter of months.

9:42 - If they're going to turn Miz face, this seems like a pretty risky way to do it.  I mean, getting the endorsement of somebody like Mick Foley would go further than hoping that the fans vote him in.  And even if they do vote him in, it's not as if the Miz did anything particularly heroic.  Having said that, I do commend them for not making the voting a throwaway so that Miz would win.  Ryder and Santino both have a good chance of beating him.  I'm going with Ryder, by the way.

9:35 - Loved Paul Heyman interrupting the lead into the commercial break.  Little things that interrupt the routine of the show, such as that, forces your audience to pay attention just a little more.

9:31 - Am I wrong that none of these eight guys are on the PPV yet?  And the Tag Champs are already in a match.  Why not do an elimination match with these eight?  Or add a singles wrestler to each team and make it a 10-man tag match.

9:19 - I'm sure that'll be a very polarizing segment, but truth be told I still have more of an issue with them giving the minute-by-minute rundown of Lawler's heart attack than them having a heel use it to get a rise out of the audience.  One is clearly being portrayed as part of the show with people playing characters.  The other is supposed to be real.

9:06 - I love how Punk referred to Lawler's heart attack as a "stunt."  Also, am I mistaken that JR left the announce table?  Personally, I like the idea of going back to doing what they did during Nitro.  One announce team for the first hour and a half, and a new announce team for the second (with one constant).  Why not do JR/Cole for the first half, and King/Cole for the second?  Yes, I know those aren't ideal combinations, but it keeps JR on the table.

9:02 - Punk's shin guards are back!!!

9:01 - I have to say, Lawler does look great, though.

8:53 - Like I've said last week, the emotion regarding Lawler's return is already there.  There is no need to give us a minute-by-minute recall of what happened, including uncomfortable footage of him getting CPR.  WWE has done so much right regarding this whole Lawler situation....but knowing that somebody was standing there filming while Lawler was at death's door just makes them look bad.  It's an unnecessary step to take.  Like I said, the emotion is already there -- giving such a close look at it just risks turning people off.

8:51 - Am I wrong that during that sponsored message, they were playing Eve's music but showing Kaitlyn's entrance video?

8:46 - Awesome shot of Regal's chest after Big Show's chops.  Ouch!

8:42 - So since Vickie used the backstage hug between AJ and Cena as evidence against them, within the context of this storyline the backstage camera filming them exists as something the characters are aware of (as in, it's not just for the sake of the audience).  Considering that, why are AJ and Cena blatantly flirting with each other in front of that very camera?

8:36 - Another reason why this Vickie/AJ/Cena feud isn't gelling with me is that AJ and Cena are doing such a terrible job defending themselves.  To the point that they just seem obnoxious when they tell Vickie she's wrong.  I have no doubt we'll discover there is a reasonable excuse for all of this evidence, but they're not having Cena or AJ explain that.  They just come in acting smug, and then they're all baffled and unclear when the evidence is shown.

8:32 - I constantly defend WWE for their be a STAR campaign, arguing that people playing characters and doing less than chivalrous things and then having those PEOPLE tell children that it's wrong to bully is acceptable.  But I do hate when they have babyfaces get in on the negative attacks, because it's not presented as something that's wrong.  AJ telling Vickie that her weight is "considerable" is unnecessary and sends an extremely poor message.  Especially after a month of talking about how they reach out to their female audience.

8:28 - I'm pretty surprised that Cena agreed to do this "affair" storyline considering his recent divorce and the rumors surrounding his philandering.

8:24 - Actually, I don't think that's my bias speaking.  Or it is, but it's deeper and more important than that.  The two guys that got pins -- Randy Orton and Alberto Del Rio -- are already established main eventers and, in my personal opinion, mind numbingly boring.  And the two guys that got pinned -- Dolph Ziggler and Kofi Kingston -- are guys that really need that big break, and are consistently going out there and doing and exciting things.  It's sad and disappointing.  And frustrating.

8:19 - This is probably my anti-ADR bias speaking, but why exactly did Dolph have to get pinned by Orton, only for ADR to get to pin Kofi?

8:12 - Wait, what did Teddy Long just announce?
http://www.turnbuckletees.com/shop/new/tag-team-match-tee/

8:09 - Honestly, they couldn't have found anybody BUT the team captain to get pinned by Orton?  How about Sandow?  Or Rhodes?  Did it need to be Ziggler?

8:04 - I made it back in time for Raw!  Anyway, as I noted last week, I really enjoy the new introduction they do to Raw, where a narrator takes you through what happened last week and what to expect tonight.  It adds some structure to the show.  Also, I'm positively SHOCKED that the show didn't kick off with the announcer introducing Jerry Lawler back to the announce team.  They really missed out on a big pop to kick off the show (and an emotional beginning, as well).

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A Case of the.... The Vampire Diaries - Episodes 4-4 & 4-5

I know I promised in my last review that I’d have these reviews up faster now that the CW is once again being carried by my cable provider, but the infamous Hurricane Sandy got in the way of that.  I was without television and Internet from early Tuesday morning until late Saturday night, and then from there was the task of playing catch up with all the shows I’ve missed.  Hopefully, going forward there won’t be any more delays.  But with the weather the way it has been in New Jersey lately (in the past week we’ve had a hurricane, a mini earthquake, and a Nor’easter), who the heck knows.  Nonetheless, due to my recent weather misfortunes, you’re getting two for the price of one here.  So on with this double review!

Continue reading "A Case of....  The Vampire Diaries - Episodes 4-4 & 4-5"....

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LIVE Smackdown thoughts - November 6, 2012

9:59 - I'll be honest and say I don't even know if I can judge that match fairly because I find both Superstars so dreadfully boring.  The show seemed really phoned in.  Nothing big happened, and much of the show seemed to just recap what happened on Raw.  Give people a reason to watch Smackdown and they will (for a significant time of the early brand extension years, it was the preferred brand), but if you basically tell your audience that they can miss the show....they definitely will.

9:38 - By the way, side note:  I'm disappointed that WWE canceled their ticket sale party in Bryant Park this Friday.  I totally was planning on going!  Bryant Park is awesome and it's not far from my home.  It would've been a fun time.

9:25 - Brad Maddox looks like a less mutant (and better spoken) version of Matt Hardy.

9:12 - Souvenir Elbow is a MUCH better name than the Barrett Bullhammer.  Much better.

Also, Linda lost the Senate race in Connecticut.

9:00 - A while back in WWE Magazine, William Regal indicated that there's a red robe in the works.  Considering how rarely he wrestles -- and that this is in his home country -- I'm surprised he didn't break it out tonight.  I mean, that magazine was from several months ago.

8:54 - That Booker/Teddy Long segment was odd.  I know they were building some tension between them during Eve's feigned face turn, but was there anything to that scene?  Or was it just a poorly scripted "humorous" scene?  I usually miss Smackdown.

8:42 - The Prime Time Players fall into that start/stop push category that makes it difficult to get into them.  They were being pushed pretty strong, dating back to the Kofi/R-Truth title reign, but then they were put on the backburner when Team Hell No took (aha) fire.  And then when new teams like Rhodes/Sandow and Mysterio/Sandow needed to be established, they got pushed back even further.  So, yeah, it's a bit tough to get back into them now -- especially since it's the same push and same routine.

8:31 - For the moment, this is going to be a bit sporadic (family is over).  As far as the opening goes, if they're going to devote so much time to Sheamus vs. Barrett, I wish they'd just officially feud.  Barrett hasn't had an actual feud since his return, and Sheamus desperately needs an interesting feud.  These guys have fought so many times the past two weeks that it feels like a waste, since they're not feuding.

Glad to see Kofi get another clean win.  I was actually intrigued by the Miz handshake offer.  When he stuck around the ring, I wondered if he might turn face by joining Team Foley.  I was actually a bit surprised to see Kofi hit the dropkick.

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LIVE Raw thoughts - November 5, 2012

11:08 - Still think they should've kept the Survivor Series match as it was.  I'm going to bed.

10:54 - Still wondering what the point was of removing the Miz from the Survivor Series match.

10:45 - I still miss the designs on CM Punk's shin guards.

10:29 - I was never a huge Funkasaurus fan, but this is a waste of Brodus Clay.  There's no reason why this guy can't be the modern day Rikishi.

10:24 - Methinks Brodus' losing streak is going to continue.

10:12 - Zack Ryder is falling into the category of guys that have loads of different attire designs, but for some reason always wears the same pair.  Where is the Ghostbusters design?!?!?  Also, Primo and Epico are inexplicably heels again?

10:04 - They couldn't even let Kofi hit his finisher with that distraction win?  I guess I should be happy they had him win at all.

9:59 - So who gets added to Team Foley?  R-Truth?  Brodus Clay?  Christian?  Is there any person on the roster that would make people MORE excited for the match than they were at the top of the show?

9:31 - Again, the classic Survivor Series match (which, tragically, will likely be the only elimination match on the show) just went from a main event match that the show can be built around to a midcard one that will likely be forgotten.  Sadness.

9:28 - I say this every week, but the one upside of the 3 hour Raws is that we do get longer, more competitive matches.

9:23 - For a fan, what was the point of watching last week?  The show was built around Team Foley vs. Team Punk, and that's now moot.  Two of the five guys on Team Punk are no longer on the team, and one of the five people on Team Foley isn't on the team anymore.  And the slow build for the Ziggler/Cena feud is now meaningless.  For the company itself, what was the point of even producing last week's show?  One week later, they negated practically everything they gave us.

9:07 - The Brad Maddox thing was fine and it was a different way to introduce a new character (although I hope he doesn't have the stench of "referee" for his entire character), but I detested the McMahon/Vickie stuff.  I was REALLY looking forward to Team Punk vs. Team Foley.  As a fan for almost 3 decades, I have a soft spot for the classic PPVs, perhaps most of all Survivor Series (since that's the one that drifted the furthest from its original concept).  Team Punk vs. Team Foley gave us the opportunity to see a unique match that we won't be seeing every single month.  It was a departure from the formula -- from what we see all the time.  Plus, it guaranteed an extra month of Punk as champion.  Why not give us this match at Survivor Series, where they allow Ryback to pin Punk clean, and THEN have the triple threat match a month later at the next PPV?  It just shows so much impatience.  Plus, what about the Ziggler/Cena feud they were seemingly building?  And on top of all that, not defending the WWE Championship at a major PPV would have given them a rare opportunity to shine a little extra spotlight on the World Heavyweight Championship.  Which that title desperately needs.

8:55 - Well, it has been a while since we've had a hipster referee.

8:51 - Am I mistaken, or has Wade Barrett vs. Sheamus now appeared on every single WWE televised program?

8:41 - Shocker, Daniel Bryan loses again.  This guy never seems to win when he's a face.  The thing that annoys me is that they keep having Daniel Bryan lose and they keep having Kane win.  For one, Kane doesn't need all of these victories, he's already established and he's already intimidating.  Plus, it kinda dampens the whole "you're the weak link" storyline.  Of the two, Kane is the face and Bryan is the heel.  Thus, the fans already side with Kane and thus he doesn't need to prove he's not the weak link.  Bryan, on the other hand, needs to have a reason to believe he's the leader and not the weak link.  He has no justification to believe that if he's always the one losing and Kane is always the one winning.  Give Bryan some cheap wins and Kane some unfair losses.  It gives the characters the proper motivation, and the fans are smart enough to realize that the good guy is "right" and the bad guy is "wrong."

8:39 - Wade Barrett MAY be a step up from the Miz, undecided on that.  Like the new Daniel Bryan gear, but I still think he needs to get a haircut.  Daniel Bryan's also been losing a lot lately, I hope he wins here tonight.

8:33 - I have to say, Vickie seemed to have the stronger argument there.  Cena should have done a better job of hammering home the point that they were two completely different rooms.  Cena came across as nervously making excuses, and I don't think that was the intention.

8:28 - Love that Cena finally brought up the obvious point about Vickie's past with Edge and Dolph Ziggler.

8:24 - Did Michael Cole and Jim Ross go suit shopping together or something?

8:22 - I'm not ultra sensitive about such matters, but I'm not sure it was necessary to show clips regarding Lawler's heart attack to promote his return.  Everybody knows why he was gone.  They just needed that second part, touting his return.

8:09 - It strikes me as a bit odd that WWE didn't air the entrances of two of their babyfaces (R-Truth and Sin Cara), but did air the entrances of all three heels.  I assume it's because they wanted to fire up the crowd by giving them fan favorites at the top of the show, but it still seemed odd.

8:03 - I actually kinda liked that opening, with the "Last week on Raw" and "tonight on Raw" voice over segment.  I'm not sure it's something I'll love if they do it ever week, but it's something different.  It also gives some structure to the show.  By the way, not sure how smart it is of the Miz to quit Team Punk.  I mean, this is his one opportunity to actually be in the main event again.

And is it me, or has every single 10 man tag match storyline had somebody removed from the team (and possibly joining again)?  It's a little old and really hampers the build of the match.

7:57 - Time to dust off that old timey phone booth because Raw is in the UK tonight!  It's (sorta) Halloween today in my town, so I may disappear for moments at a time throughout the night for trick or treaters.  But other than those brief moments, I'll be providing my stream of conscience for the next three hours.  I'm watching the show "live," so no spoilers.

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Back from my Sandy Silence!

Sandy tried to silence me (and did a damn good job), but I'm back!

Truth be told, I'm INCREDIBLY fortunate given the circumstances.  I only lost power a handful of times during the worst part of the storm -- for about a minute each time -- but other than that I always had power. I did, however, lose cable late Monday/early Tuesday, and was without TV and Internet until very late Saturday night.  My office was closed all week, and I didn't want to drive much due to the gas shortage, so I was basically at home for nearly an entire week with absolutely nothing to do.  It was pretty torturous (in my ivory tower).

But like I said, I was extraordinarily lucky.  I don't think anybody anticipated that this storm would be as bad as it was.  I always joke that I'm like the villain in all the natural disaster movies, telling people they're panicking and that it won't be that bad.  Well, this time it was much, much worse.  There are at least five people I know that went without power from Monday all the way to this weekend (and some still don't have power even now).  And in New Jersey at least, it's been pretty damn cold.  Some of those people spent much of the day in bed just so they could stay warm.  And businesses in my town have been closed all week.  The entire downtown area is still out of power.  Only a select few that have generators have been open.

I also know more than a couple of people that lost pretty much everything.  Areas within the shore and Hoboken got hit extremely bad, with many homes and lower level apartments getting completely flooded, destroying everything from clothing to furniture to luggage.  There are a lot of people that won't be able to go home for the foreseeable future.  And my family vacations in Long Beach Island -- and we're not even sure if the house we rent is even standing any more.  Things got that bad.

And then there's the gas situation.  Never in my life did I ever think I would experience something like this.  Praise the Lord, I haven't had to fill up my tank yet (I have about half a tank left), but in my town alone about half of the gas stations don't have power, and then about half of the ones that do have power are completely out of gas.  I'm not exaggerating when I say that there have been lines for the gas station that have exceeded one mile.  People spend upwards of three hours on line for gas.  That is absolutely crazy.  I'm hoping to hold out until next week, when hopefully things calm down a bit.

I know many of my readers come from the tri-state area, and I genuinely hope all of you are safe and that you haven't suffered any losses (materialistic or otherwise) during this ordeal.  Feel free to leave a comment to let me know you're safe, or to share your own story.

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LIVE Raw thoughts - October 29, 2012

11:07 - I was a bit off with my Team Foley prediction, but for good reason.  I was right about Ryback and Kofi.  I considered Team Hell No, but the reason I didn't pick them was because I didn't expect them to put Daniel Bryan in such an explicitly babyface role.  And I didn't pick Orton for the same reason I didn't pick ADR.  I didn't think they'd include him in a story that so clearly didn't focus on him.  Truth be told, it's a REALLY stacked main event.  Love it.

11:00 - LOVE that Punk turned and said something to ADR (I think it was "no offense") when he remarked that Survivor Series would be his one year anniversary as WWE Champion.

10:59 - I'm somewhat surprised by ADR, only because I didn't think they'd use him in a position where he's not captain.

10:58 - Love that Punk sold his injuries when Miz shook his hand.  By the way, so far I'm right about Punk's team.  Only one spot left, I guessed Ziggler.

10:56 - That is a pretty sweet looking hoodie.

10:46 - I honestly really don't know what it is, but I just find Alberto Del Rio unbearably boring.  I think I still harbor resentment towards him for getting interjecting in the awesome John Cena/CM Punk feud during the Summer of Punk.

10:38 - One thing I ALWAYS defend WWE for is the charitable and community contributions they make.  To me, it's the ultimate cynical thing to do to criticize them for patting themselves on the back for all of the things they do.  Frankly, they have every right to pat themselves on the back.  There are a lot of things WWE can do to get positive recognition, they certainly don't have to go to the lengths they have gone to this past month.  Honestly, if they reached out to a handful of women that otherwise wouldn't have been motivated to get themselves checked, then this has all been worthwhile.  The donation of $1 million is nothing to sneeze at, either.  Overall, this was a wonderfully done segment.  And I'd hate to tell you, but this segment also exemplified why John Cena is the face of the company.  Few individuals on the roster could have carried themselves the way he did.  Great job to all involved.

10:25 - A fun and entertaining match.  I'm actually a bit surprised that Rhodes Scholars won again.

10:10 - LOVE Rey's Mexican skull attire.  Looks awesome.  And hey, so much for all those stories that from now on, Mysterio/Sin Cara will be wearing the dual sided masks.

10:03 - Didn't love that segment, but I do have to admit that I loved the "Look at me you red headed ginger snap!" line, as well as the "have you ever seen a ginger snap?" retort.  Went out on a high note.

9:57 - Just rename this guy Sheamus Cena.

9:47 - Somewhat strange booking, considering that the rumor is that this is Beth's last Raw.  Why not give AJ a more decisive victory the first time around?  Instead of a fluky roll up, have her hit her flying knee.  Right now it just seems like AJ got a lucky victory, and then suffered a dirty loss.

And if AJ got fired for accusations of possibly favoring a talent, why wouldn't Vickie get in just as much trouble for blatantly treating another talent unfairly?

9:42 - While it's great to see Lawler healthy enough to return to work, I'm going to miss the improved announce teams we've seen in his absence.

9:37 - I feel like 3MB has been defeating CoBro every week since they became a team.

9:34 - If there was ever a time for Zack Ryder to wear his Ghostbusters trunks, it's the episode of Raw that falls right before Halloween.

9:26 - Why is this job interview even happening?  AJ was a Smackdown Diva before her General Manager stint.  Wouldn't logic dictate that she would return to that brand?  And even if she didn't automatically go back to that roster, why go through the humiliation and trouble of working for Vickie when she can just work for Booker?  That's why these "suffering for your job" storylines are flawed when they have two GM's.

9:09 - Why give away another potentially big Champion vs. Champion match without ANY promotion whatsoever?  I'm not saying that Kofi vs. Cesaro will catapult them to 4.0's in the ratings, but it's a waste to give that match away (the first time they've fought, I believe) with NO promotion.  I mean, they literally got the "Up Next" treatment.  What harm can come from giving people a week's notice?

9:06 - Cena's story doesn't seem to add up.  They're wearing the same clothing as the dinner (which happened before AJ was fired), and now he's saying that their conversation happened AFTER she got fired. I don't think Cena's lying, I just think it's crappy writing.

9:04 - I typically defend John Cena, but having him wear his t-shirt at what appears to be a really nice restaurant doesn't exactly endear him to the audience.

8:58 - My guess for Team Foley vs. Team Punk.  Team Foley will be Foley, Ryback, Rey Mysterio, Sin Cara, and Kofi Kingston.  Team Punk will be Punk, Miz, Dolph Ziggler, Cody Rhodes, and Damien Sandow.

8:47 - Are the Prime Time Players the first heels to wear pink since the beginning of the month?  Speaking of which, is this the last Raw where they'll be using the pink rope?  Or that Cena will wear his Rise Above Cancer shirt?

And will Daniel Bryan please get a haircut?

8:40 - Is it me, or is AJ looking pretty buff lately?

8:30 - It's not that they've necessarily even done anything wrong with Wade Barrett since his return, but it overall just seems like a disappointment.  WWE seems to run into this trap with their midcard talents -- they either put them in a series of squash matches where nobody is impressed with the victories (oh wow, you beat Yoshi Tatsu?!?!?!) or they're having them come up short against main eventers.  Instead of spontaneously transforming Brodus Clay into a jobber, why not put him in an extended feud with Wade Barrett?  Clay was over enough and had earned enough victories that a loss to Barrett would have put an impressive notch in his belt.  Instead, Barrett has just floundered aimlessly.  He's won much more than he's lost, and he always looks impressive, but without a major storyline he just comes across as an afterthought.

8:27 - Even Randy Orton's walk is boring.

8:25 - Just wanted to let you know that I still have power.

8:15 - One of the better opening segments we've seen the past several weeks.  It really is disappointing to see the ratings take such a hit, because of the past month or so the show really has centered around CM Punk (and I'm grateful that the company, shockingly, hasn't seemed to blame him for the nosedive).  And it sounds like he's finally getting over as a full fledged heel, no matter how weak the storyline was.  I absolutely love the fact that they're doing a high profile classic Survivor Series match (although I hope we see several), and Punk's facial expression when Ryback came down was priceless.  Eager to see which Superstars are picked for each team.  Oh, and this pretty much guarantees Punk makes it a full year with the title!

8:10 - It's kinda sad how CM Punk's "selling intense pain" walk is the same as Mick Foley's ACTUAL walk.

8:01 - Alright friends, I'm in the middle of this intense hurricane right now.  So I'll be providing my LIVE Raw thoughts until I lose power or my cable and/or Internet.  Hopefully I make it the entire night.

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