Folded Chair Archives

No Vacancy

Over the last week or so, various reports have popped up over the net of the WWF hiring ECW workers. So far Justin Credible has been confirmed as signing a contract, and it is said that verbal agreements have been reached with Jerry Lynn and current ECW World Champion Rhino. These young men are sure to be great investments for the WWF.

So what is my problem? The WWF will soon have (if not already) the same problem that WCW had a few years back; too much talent with too little air time. WCW pushed the "brand names" such as Hollywood Hogan, Kevin Nash, Goldberg, and most any one else involved with the nWo. Their pushed came at the expense of young talent as Chris Benoit, Chris Jericho, Raven along with a list of others prompting them to eventually leave the WCW.

Right now many fans are chomping at the bit to see talent like Tazz be used in the ring, not just at WWF New York on Heat. D'lo Brown just over a year ago was receiving decent pops from crowds across the country as the WWF European Champion, now is reduced to Tiger Ali Singh's sidekick. Raven seems to be a shadow of his former self. His use in the WWF is much like the Sandman's time in WCW as Hardcore Hak.

It must be somewhat frustrating to be in this position. You are a member of the most popular wrestling promotion on the planet, but you are lucky to be seen on Jakked/Metal. I just feel that the WWF should give decent and genuine pushes to who they have before looking to add to the "WWF family".

Just my opinion, and it's right!

Random Thoughts

-WCW has made a smart investment with the hiring of Mike Modest and "The Fallen Angel" Chris Daniels. These two put on an amazing match this last week on Nitro, despite the lame ending.

-That's right, that match ended badly. WCW should have left Scott Steiner interfere after one of these young talents won the match.

-News from WWF.com is that the Road Dogg has agreed to a release. The best to Mr. Armstrong as he deals with what he needs to.

-Rumor has it that former ECW World Champion Justin Credible has signed a deal with the WWF with approval from ECW. The return of Aldo Montoya anyone? Unless Triple H is able to pull some strings, I fear that Credible will be buried faster than Raven or Tazz.

-Speaking of Tazz, there is an online petition by the fans to let the WWF know they want Tazz to get the push he deserves. If you agree, sign up here.

Just my opinion, and it's right!

Return to Greatness ???

WCW has finally found a new home. Earlier this week, Time-Warner sold the struggling promotion to Fusient Media Ventures. Eric Bischoff is a part of Fusient, and will return as the head of WCW. The full change in ownwership will not take place for about two or three months. What then?
Bischoff has stated interest in bringing new faces as well as established stars to WCW. While he wouldn't name any names, many fear Hulk Hogan could make his return in some capacity to the new WCW. It may be also possible that WCW may hire some ECW wrestlers as it now looks more and more like ECW is finished. Bringing in ECW wrestlers may also bring the loyal fans that have supported their careers.
WCW NEEDS to start laying down the law with the talent. For too long stories have come out of WCW locker rooms of politics ruining storylines and holding back young talent. WCW cannot allow this to continue. They also need to start disciplining wrestlers and other staff for poor behaviour. Recently WCW has layed off Huventud Gurrerra and Scott Hall due to their problems and/or lack of better judgement. Good, but will Bischoff continue to do so?
As for bringing fans back, there is no easy answer to that problem. Most fans are so convinced that the WWF is the only wrestling company worth their time and money, just as the WWF likes it. WCW will have to build solid and continuous storylines that not only make sense, but give fans a reason to care about or hate the performers. WCW cannot be afraid to experiment with new ideas. The nWo from a few years ago put WCW on the map, they need to find something as big without doing another nWo.
I really hope things come together for WCW. With ECW seemingly out of the picture, the WWF needs some type of solid competition to avoid the product as a whole going bland.
Just my opinion, and it's right!

Wrestling in the WWF?

I have to admit, Steve Austin is currently impressing the hell out of me. For the last week and a half, the Texas Rattlesnake has replaced his punch and kick style for armbars, suplexes, and reversals. For the first time in months I was actually glued to my TV during RAW. Steve Austin and Chris Benoit have twice in one week put the wrestling back into the World Wrestling Federation. Not since his fued with Bret Hart in the mid-90's has Austin exhibited his technical proficiancy. Since 1997(-1998?) Austin has relied basically on punches, kicks, stunners and a variety of large vehicles driven to ringside to grab the fans attention. While these actions were enough for the newer wrestling fans attracted to the WWF's new era of attitude, these stunts grew tired with long time fans and internet "smarts" rather quick. After a long wait Austin has come home. He is proving to his critics by participating in potential "match of the year" candidates with Benoit last week, and Kurt Angle this week. While it is a long way from the days of "Stunning" Steve, or even his brief time as the "Ringmaster", this is more than enough for this fan to admit to watching (and enjoying) an Austin match. Let's hope he and Triple H will have a chance to blow the roof of the arena rather than dissapoint with a punch/ kick brawl. Leave that to the Rock.

Just my opinion, and it's right!

WHY?????

• Why bring in a big name like Raven, only to squash him in nearly every match he fights?
• Why make Rikishi the big, bad heel who almost "ended Stone Cold Steve Austin's career, only so Austin could TOTALLY dominate that fued? Did Rikishi even get two hits in a match with Austin. Call him Punching Bag Phatu.
• Why is Foley's Christmas book so pricey?
• Why bring back DDP back only to place him a crappy fued with the BattleDome warriors. Did Eric Bischoff return to power at WCW?
• Why did it take so long to bring Smackdown to Canada? Props go out to The Score/ Headline Sports for doing it. Thanks guys.

Other Thoughts

• Great to see Hardcore Holly back. I hope he can regain the momentum he has building up earlier this year. If you remember he and Triple H had a hell of a match on Sunday Night Heat earlier this year.
• Speaking of Hollys, Molly Holly? It is great to see the former Miss Madness in the WWF, but Molly Holly?
• I may be the only one, but for the last few weeks I have enjoyed Nitro more than Raw. I will not say that WCW is perfect though, far from it.

WCWWF

The buzz on the internet for the last year or so has been about how Time Warner is looking to sell WCW. Rumors have come and rumors have gone as to who will buy the one-time leader of sports-entertainment. As almost any wrestling fan with a connection to the net has heard the WWF has been the latest group to sit in negotiations to buy their competition. If true what will this mean to wrestling fans?

PROS
1) WCW may finally be able to gain focus in regards to their storylines. WCW has been plauged with writers who are either trapped in the 1960's, or too wrapped up in twists and turns to remember what happened on Nitro the week before. Things currently look good now that Vince Russo has once again taken a leave of absence, and Terry Taylor is said to be writing now.
2) Ratings for Nitro, Thunder and the PPV's would certainly go up if and when a crossover storyline is done. Crossover / invasion storylines have been tried ( WWF/ECW, WWF/NWA, WCW/nWo) in the past, but a WWF/WCW crossover would blow all those away. This could be a die-hard wrestling fan's wet dream... (shudder).
3) Similar to the first point, WCW wrestlers may go from being "talent", to being full fledged "superstars". Once stories are focused, the roles of the wrestlers should be clearer and thing should cement in.

CONS
1) In order to make WCW more affordable, expect to see a lot of dead weight to be fired. They have been doing so over the last year, but cuts will likely go deeper under Vince McMahon's empire.
2) It is also possible that in time WCW may be merged with WWF, or simply vanish altogether. McMahon's only real competitor would finally be defeated and the WWF would be the only big game in town. With no alternative (fiscally speaking) to the WWF, most wrestlers that have problems with the WWF (Jarrett, Hart, Stasiak) will have no option but to take drastic pay cuts for smaller companies like ECW or the NWA to afford them, unless they are willing to go to Japan to make a living (Vader, Dr. Death).

Personally, I would rather this be a final option. To have the big two companies under one roof could cause a lot of problems behind the scenes, and the excitement of the real life battle between long time enemies has been responsible for some of the biggest events in recent wrestling history (nWo, "attitude"). While a storyline war between the two rivals would make for exciting TV, over time it will only hurt the whole industry.
Just my opinion, and it's right!

E C Dub, E C Dub...

Did anyone else watch ECW Anarchy Rulz? What a show! The commentary from Styles/ Gertner/ Cyrus sounded a lot different than usual, the event looked better lighted than usual, and the matches for the most part was quite exciting. It seemed ironic to me that ECW, once hailed for it's hardcore nature, had better matches than I have seen WWF or WCW produce in quite a while. Why is this? Survival. Paul Heyman knows that his company needs to keep changing with the ever changing tastes of todays fans. Heyman can not afford to sit around and let ECW try to carry itself on its reputation from five years ago.
Perhaps that is one reason why ECW seems to be a breath of fresh air in todays wrestling sports-entertainment environment. WCW has been a sinking ship for almost two years now. They have depended on former WWF stars to survive and now on former WWF writer, Vince Russo, who seems to change the companies direction every ten minutes.on a whim. WWF on the other hand is relying almost totally on catchphrases alone for it's existance, and it is working. The WWF is breeding a new strain of fans that will chant "Boring" during a good match. These fans would rather have the Rock come out week after week, raising his eyebrows and saying "Roody-poo" until the moment comes; and trust me it is going to happen soon: when the fans will tire of this and turn on the Rock again like he was Flex Kavana again.
I guess my point is ECW is the one who will start a good thing going. It was ECW that started the extreme movement with truely brutal matches, not the WWF. I only hope that ECW can find a good home for their product when TNN and WWF finally decide to boot Heyman's company from the airwaves . Their time in the sun is long overdue.
Just my opinion, and it's right!

We're Dyin' Up Here!

The WWF is currently enjoying a popularity that has not been seen since the mid/late 80's during the era of Hulkamania. They sell out at arenas (at least for PPV's and TV events), their programing has never seen the ratings that they pull in now, merchandise sells very well; so what's my problem with all this? My problem is that I am a wrestling fan living in Canada. I would have to say that we Canuks enjoy wrestling, from the early days of Stampede Wrestling in the west, to the success seen in Canadian stars like Bret Hart, Chris Jerhico, Edge and others. Wrestling programs are among TSN's highest rated shows. Despite all this, Canada is in a wrestling drought.
The WWF only seems to visit Toronto on a regular basis. Other major centers are lucky to see the WWF once every year or two. So if I understand, the WWF is so popular, that they can not go to centers that would likely sell out? HUH? Maybe the WWF spoiled Canada in 1997 during the Canada vs. USA storyline where nearly every city in Canada hosted at least a house show that year.
What about the others? WCW has been trying to reach Canada (or so they say) for years, but have been stongarmed out by the WWF by leasing most of the major arenas. These days I am not so sure many Canadians would turn out for WCW.
As for ECW, they are trying to get into Canada ( they were recently in Kitchener (?) Ont.), but ECW has limited funds right now.
The best, and for some the only way to see live wrestling in Canada is to support the few independant promotions that tour in their regions. I frequent Stampede Wrestling when they are in the area. It may not be Wrestlemania, but not even Wrestlmania can say that about itself. It may seem crude and raw (not RAW), but independent promotions are full of young talent and rookies full of desire to perform, and the chance to learn by performing. Who knows, the next Ric Flair or Rock may be right under your nose. Give the indies a chance, you might be suprised.
Just my opinion, and it's right!

Bizzaro Eddy

What the hell happened to Eddy Gurerro this week. It seems he woke up after SummerSlam with "Marvelous" Marc Mero's personality. It doesn't seem to make sense to me to have Eddy make such a rapid mood swing. This angle should have been a developing thing over a couple of shows, not just BANG, all of a sudden. Perhaps Latino Heat simply has Latino Heat stroke, and is simply not himself for the moment. I would have expected a sudden, unexplained charcater change from Vince Russo in the WCW (but he is a whole other topic).

Other Thoughts:
-I expect Val Venis to join the Right to Censor soon, and hopefully with a name change. Of course a year or two ago, everyone predicted that the big Valbowski would join D-X. Thankfully for him he didn't.
- Why is D-X still around?
- WCW could still be contender if they could stick to one set of storylines that make sense, instead of changing angles every two weeks. Perhaps Russo thinks all wrestling fans have Attention Deficit Disorder.
Just my opinion, and it's right!

Ups and Downs (Aug 13/00)

So far this summer there have been very few bright spots in wrestling. Off the top of my head, I can think of a few things that have really stood out. One is the "Right to Censor" angle especially since the "Goodfather" joined Steven Richards' cause. It has given Richards his big break in the WWF and has given him precious air time on Mondays and Thursdays. It has also gotten rid of the stench that was the Godfather.

The other bright spot of the summer has been a suprise, Lance Storm. When it was reported that Storm was leaving ECW for WCW, it wasn't that big of a deal. Now Storm has picked up where the Hart Foundation left off in the WWF back in 1997 with the Canada/US storyline. Perhaps Vince Russo finally wants to finish telling that story that died in Montreal in '97.

As for the rest of the summer, there have been some bright spots, but nothing that has lasted (Commish Foley, Booker T as champ for examples). The summer is not done though, and hopefully a wave of creativity will sweep wrestling.... but I won't hold my breath.
JUST MY OPINION, AND IT'S RIGHT!

Morality Ain't Easy (July 23/00)

Hogan screwed Hogan

Last weekend at WCW's Bash at the Beach PPV, wrestling fans may very well have seen the last of Hulkamania, at least with a major company. Did Hogan deserve a more dignified send off? Yes, about seven years ago. As I recall many years ago on WWF Superstars they had a retrospective on Hogan's career after he was attacked by the Earthquake. This was the time Hogan should have had the humility to hang the boots up and let the young lions then step up to the plate.
No, but Hogan returned to destroy his enemy and to also have his own ego fed. Hogan's last major WWF match had very little hoopla around it at the first King of the Ring PPV. Bret Hart's win that night overshadowed the fact that Yokozuna would be the Hulkster's final WWF opponent. Here was another opportunity for Hogan to end a still noble career.
No, he reared his balding head at WCW which resulted over time as WCW becoming wrestling's retirement home.
True, Hogan did gain WCW national attention, but Hall and Nash would have done that in time with the nWo. The longer Hogan stuck around, the worse things became backstage for all the young guys who were lucky if they even made to be a WCW mid-carder while Hogan and his buddies enjoyed a one day work week; to the point in the last year where WCW lost alot of its young promising talent to WWF and ECW. Russo finally took matters in his own hands last weekend and publically embarresed Hogan by winning a title in a meaningless match, and then verbally berating him on PPV television. Hogan has no one to blame but himself.

The Shows... They are a Changin' (July 2/00)

The big news in wrestling as of late is the announcement that WWFE can legally move their programming from the USA Network to those run by CBS/Viacom, mainly TNN. What is my opinion on the matter? The prestigious one sees it only as good for the WWF and Vinnie Mac's wallet. Not so much for moving to TNN, but for every thing else in the agreement: the option to develop a one hour drama( not necessarily to star any wrestlers, but likely will), a deal to show more XFL, creating theme park attractions at Paramount ownwed parks, and likely more deals that we don't know about. As for the move to TNN itself, it doesn't directly affect my as I live in Canada and TSN is rumoured to be unaffected by the American court desision; however I can honestly say that I will be watching RAW on the original TNN feed rather than TSN. I for one am sick of the CRTC forcing TSN to constantly edit RAW week after week. My colleague over at the Ringrust affiliate, Rant N Rave, says he will refuse to watch WWF on a hick channel. Hell, it's not like RAW viewers are going to stick around for the Statler Brothers. Any way TNN is said to be revamping it's programming for the fall. Here is an idea for TSN, instead of having two channels air the same show at the same time, why not drop RAW and attempt to pick up Smackdown, that way Canadians can finally watch the WWF's other big show. My only concern is for ECW whom TNN has cancelled after Sept. 22 this year. I hope ECW is able to find a better home for it's product and is able to make it's way to Canada once all is said and done. Any how, congrats to to the WWF and Viacom/CBS/TNN to their new partnership... hey how about a job???
Just my Opinion, and it's right!!!

Random Thoughts (June 25/00)

-As I write this, King of the Ring is mere hours away. This is the first KOR tournament in years that has me excited about the outcome. As for the other matches... let's hope they do not stink up the rest of the PPV.

-Does Kronic of WCW seem like a bad cliche of the old smash mouth style tag-teams. Like a combination between the Acolytes and the Road Warriors( minus the armor).

-Funniest moment on wrestling lately: Tank Abbott groovin' to the music of 3 Count. I almost pissed my self laughing. Maybe there is hope for Tank yet.

-Anyone else tired of the "new" Undertaker biker dude look? Why doesn't the rest of the DOA(Disciples of the Apcolypse /WWF team in '97) join him?

-How much longer before WCW finally has Big Poppa Pump Scott Steiner win the WCW world title? A lot of people would like to see it.

-Good to see Sunday Night Heat matches improving lately. Last weeks match between Hardcore Holly and HHH ruled. Holly was owning Helmsley most of the match.

-Do not underestimate the quality of the WWF's weekend programs Sunday Night Heat and WWF Jakked. These two shows feature talent that is new or is not getting a current push: Al Snow, Steve Blackman, D'lo Brown, "Super" Stevie Richards, Gangrel, etc... Check them out some weekend.

-I have heard that Japanese wrestling legend The Great Muta will be in WCW for a few months. Another great candidate to hold the WCW world title. I hope the fans will give Muta a chance to show what he can do. There is more to wrestling than saying "Roody Poo" after all.

-Why do people cheer for Too Cool Too Lame?

Just my Opinion, and it's right!!!

SELLING OUT