Tag Archives: mark henry

WWE TLC 2011: a trendsetter, a loser, & a Chicagoan walk into a bar…

  By Franny | December 19, 2011 - 8:25 pm | Wrestling, WWE
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Congratulations, Zack.

I’ll start off by saying that TLC was pretty damn good. It wasn’t anything spectacular, but it continued the recent trend of WWE putting out surprisingly good pay-per-view shows. The internet’s buzzing and gloating thinking that WWE is ‘booking for them,’ leaving John Cena off of the card and putting belts on the independent stars of yesterday. Wrong. Sources say that the million-time world champion was backstage but was not used because they are saving him for Raw so his program with Kane can start/continue. They used the opportunity to focus on other stars and remind WWE fans that Primo is still with the company.

They say the opening match is the 2nd-most important match of the night, and Zack Ryder’s title hunt came to an end to excite a hot crowd. The ‘internet sensation’ captured his first singles title and celebrated with his father, who was sitting in the front row, covered in ‘Broski’ gear, and couldn’t have looked happier if he tried. It was truly a great moment, whether you like Ryder or not. His ‘story’ is a remarkable one. (more…)

John Cena, the Rock, CM Punk, & Triple H: The road to Survivor Series & Beyond

  By Franny | September 19, 2011 - 2:51 pm | Wrestling, WWE
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Let the speculation and fantasy-booking begin.

One night after Night of Champions, and we’re already speculating about Survivor Series. Well, I am, at least. The rest of the wrestling world is probably drooling over Hell in a Cell 2011 and how that will go down, however illogical a gimmick pay-per view may be.

Last night we saw John Cena capture his hundredth WWE Championship (or something like that) and Triple H pin CM Punk after a barrage of run-ins on both participants of the match. Peter Gabriel would be proud, as we saw a return of the sledgehammer, as Kevin Nash was laid out by Triple H. It’s sad that I have to stop and think who had something to do with wrestling most recently, Peter Gabriel or a sledgehammer, but I do assume Triple H utilized the weapon more recently than “Big Time” WrestleMania 22.

Anywho, back to business. I don’t see Alberto Del Rio in a Hell in a Cell match. It would make absolutely zero sense and he’d be out of his element. I really don’t know what they’re going to do with Cena, unless they go the tag match route, but that wouldn’t make much sense either. I just don’t logically see a WWE Championship Hell in a Cell match this year.

Triple H and CM Punk WILL however do battle in the massive cage, mark my words. The point of a cage is no escape, and protection from interference, which would make perfect sense for Punk & Triple H. “Awesome Truth” and Kevin Nash can’t interfere if the match takes place in the confines of a Hell in a Cell cage. Given the number of Hell in a Cell matches that have spilled outside of the cage, though, (I mean hell, it’s an annual feature in WWE video games) I think it defeats the purpose and we’d see interference anyway. As far as booking the match, goes, it would work, though. (more…)

Night of Champions 2011: CM Punk, Triple H, John Cena, Alberto Del Rio…Fresh?

  By Franny | September 16, 2011 - 6:53 pm | Wrestling, WWE
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"Are you ready?" -CM Punk with Triple H in 2006

I haven’t been following WWE that closely in recent weeks. I probably could have capitalized on the CM Punk craze by blogging about his classic-of-tomorrow feud with John Cena. However, life happens, and blogging did not happen, so there is some catching up to be done.

Even the most casual fans had to have heard about this red-hot feud. CM Punk wins the WWE Championship at Money in the Bank 2011 at the peak of the hottest feud of the year. He then ‘leaves’ with the title, leaving WWE belt-less. Cue McMahon. John Cena wins a new championship from tournament winner Rey Mysterio, in more of ‘the same’ nonsense. That same night, CM Punk returns, with new entrance music in tow. Somewhere along the way, Triple H returns to inform Mr. McMahon that he is reliving him of his duties, and that Helmsley would be the new acting COO. McHunter books Punk vs Cena at SummerSlam, Kevin Nash returns, and Alberto Del Rio cashes in. Punk is angry, but not at Del Rio; Punk doesn’t trust Triple H or old crony Nash, which brings us to today.

At Night of Champions, CM Punk faces Triple H. If Triple H loses, he steps down from his position. Now, for me, this is a little disappointing, as I think it gives away the ending of the match. Triple H wins after interference from Kevin Nash. At least we’d have an inkling of hope or chance that Triple H would lay down for CM Punk if that stipulation wasn’t present. That aside, this match-up is fresh. Triple H hasn’t wrestled since April, so it could be hit-or-miss.  Regardless, it’s a match that should generate a decent amount of buzz, despite Triple H’s bland rambling promo work. (more…)

Raw Review: Miz/Sheamus, Cena/Nexus, Bret Hart returns…again

  By Franny | July 22, 2010 - 7:35 pm | Wrestling, WWE
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A look into the future: Raw's dysfunctional family unites against the Nexus

I really enjoyed Raw this week. Normally I can’t stand it, but it really was a solid show. I don’t know if it’s because they are beginning to build up hard for their second-biggest show of the year, SummerSlam, but whatever. It’s working.

The picture at the left is from a future Raw. I lost my picture database so future-me re-added pics to the archives. (Just go with it!)

The show started with a high-octane, pay-per-view caliber triple threat match between Randy Orton, Chris Jericho, and Edge to determine Sheamus’s opponent at SummerSlam. For free TV, it was a damn good match, and it was followed up with  a great altercation involving Nexus and the ‘odd couple’ of Edge and Jericho. Jericho called out Edge, and they were either hinting at an all-out feud or the formation of a team. I’m not really sure. Either way, they tried to out-heel eachother by claiming that they could lead Nexus.

Nexus’ music hits, and they deliver a beatdown to Edge. Jericho puts Edge in the Walls of Jericho and realizes Nexus wants him, too. Jericho takes a beatdown of his own. Another great Nexus angle that showcases the young stars. WWE is doing a fantastic job of creating seven menacing young stars, seemingly out of thin air.

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My thoughts on WWE’s first Money in the Bank pay-per-view event

  By Franny | July 21, 2010 - 5:55 pm | Wrestling, WWE
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httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JQVxcTixPoI I’ll be the first to admit being wrong about this event. Well, mostly wrong. It looked bad on paper, and I had no interest in seeing it. The Money in the Bank matches just didn’t look ‘right’ for some reason, and the championship matches had even less appeal. I mean, Randy Orton in a Money in the Bank match? Weird. I don’t approve of ‘gimmick pay-per-views’ and having three Money in the Bank matches in a single year makes a world championship opportunity mean yes. But…anyway…

First of all, the Money in the Bank matches WORKED. They turned out far better than I expected, and by the time the Smackdown match was through, I felt like I was watching WrestleMania. I had that “holy crap, this isn’t even a main event” feeling. Big Show once again showed the WWE Universe why he is hands down the best ‘big-man’ worker in the business. I give applause to WWE Creative for writing a pretty compelling match that could be one of the best of all-time. (Best of the Money in the Bank ladder matches, I mean.)

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A Hardy’s Day’s Night: Unforgiven 2008 Results

  By Franny | September 7, 2008 - 5:21 pm | Wrestling, WWE
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I half-assed this article, so I'm half-assing my image selection, too. So sue me!

A mere three hours ago, I posted a quick write-up regarding tonight’s Unforgiven show and my predictions for the card.  I did not get this pay-per-view, nor could I find a working stream in order to watch it.  Therefore, I have decided to give a quick recap of results and my thoughts on the near future of WWE programming.

Career: 6/8: .750 (more…)

Unforgiven 2008: Last-Minute Predictions

  By Franny | September 7, 2008 - 5:17 pm | Wrestling, WWE
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WWE Unforgiven 2008

It’s time, once again, for a WWE Pay-Per-View.  This month’s show is “Unforgiven.”  The card will feature five title matches and a non-title match.  Three of the matches are guaranteed to be 20 minutes long, which could be a great thing, or a terrible thing.

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OX_loyzPB8Q

For starters, here is where I stand on my predictions:

Career: 6/8: .750

Not too shabby, because even though wrestling is a scripted sport, you can’t always assume they are going to pick the most ‘logical’ choice.  Everyone gets a swerve, once in a while.

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SummerSlam 2008: Biggest Blockbuster of The Summer Exceeds All Expectations

  By Franny | August 19, 2008 - 5:06 pm | Wrestling, WWE
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As a wrestling fan of over 10 years, one would think that I would have ordered a Pay-Per-View by now.  Unfortunately, anyone who shares that belief would be incorrect.  August 2008 was no different than any other August, as I did not order WWE’s main summer event, SummerSlam.  Thanks to the magic of newsgroups, however, I was able to view this event today and bring you the results.

SummerSlam 2008

The first match on the SummerSlam 2008 card was Jeff Hardy versus Montel Vontavious Porter: two United States Championship contenders in a match at a “big four” pay-per-view event with the actual champion left off of the card.  Supposedly the original plan was to have a title match between Shelton and Kennedy, but with Kennedy becoming injured they decided to change the match to Hardy vs MVP.  Apparently a Triple Threat was out of the question.

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The Biggest Blockbuster of The Summer: SummerSlam 2008 Predictions

  By Franny | August 15, 2008 - 5:03 pm | Wrestling, WWE
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httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pI3GdppPPLQ

In August, wrestling fans know they can look forward to one thing: the 21st annual extravaganza, SummerSlam.

SummerSlam 2008 is right around the corner.

This year’s SummerSlam has a pretty stacked card, and here are my predictions.

While it’s rather unlikely to predict the exact order in which the matches will take place, it’s safe to assume that the most likely opener is Mark Henry versus Matt Hardy for the ECW championship.  Surprisingly, the world’s strongest champion has been giving us a reason to watch ECW week after week ever since winning the title from Kane.  With the addition of Tony Atlas the program the two have been working with Matt Hardy has made for great TV.  I’ve always hated Mark Henry but surprisingly I hope he retains the title.  I think that he will because Matt Hardy does not need a title in order to be over.  Mark Henry, on the other hand, does.  It’s near impossible to care about Mark Henry, unless he has a title around his waist.  It’s also way too soon for him to drop the belt.  My pick: Mark Henry. To see how Matt Hardy earned the title shot, check out the clip at the end of this post.

I think that the winner take all tag team match for the Intercontinental and Women’s titles will take place next.  This is another angle that has been truly entertaining.  I expect Beth Phoenix and Santino Marella to walk away with the win because Kofi Kingston and Mickey James have both held their respective titles for long enough and the power couple of Beth Phoenix and Santino Marella will make for more great television.  Santino is also far more entertaining than Kofi given the fact that Kofi has yet to even cut a single promo.  My pick: Beth Phoenix and Santino Marella.

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