wrestling / Columns
411Mania’s Squared Circle News Report 11.28.09
Welcome back inside the Squared Circle! How is everyone doing this week? I’m personally feeling like I put on an extra twenty pounds thanks to the wonderful holiday known as Thanksgiving. I hope everyone had a good Thanksgiving. I did, but I usually do! There’s just something about a holiday where all that’s required to do is eat and gain weight that I just love!. Anyway, I have some good news and some bad news for you this week. The good news is, I’m here to bust out this column for you….even though I had MAYBE two hours of spare time to write this thing out thanks to my family being in town. The bad news is, this column will be extremely shorter than normal thanks to the lack of news this week (seriously….there was NOTHING) and my lack of time. It’s all good though as I’m sure I can find something to talk about!
So, there’s a HUGE college football game coming up this week for anyone who lives in the state of Oregon. The Civil War game will be played this Thursday and will feature the University of Oregon battling those lowlife Oregon State Beavers for a chance to go to the ROSE BOWL~! This is big for the state of Oregon seeing as it’s the first time the winner of the Civil War gets a guaranteed spot in the Rose Bowl! As you can tell, I’m rooting for the Ducks! I’m happy as a clam to finally see USC go down in the Pac-10 and it’s about time for the Ducks to fly over the rest of the conference! GO DUCKS~!!!
Anyways…….
LET’S GET IT ON!!!!!
Biggest News Of The Week:
Well, another Thanksgiving has passed us by and you know what that means! It means another “Survivor Series” has come and gone and I must say….overall, it was a pretty decent show. The WWE was able to push some new talent and establish some good storylines in the process. We are almost to the “Road To WrestleMania” so it’s important for the WWE to catch on fire right now and it seems like they are well on their way to doing just that……….
Traditional Survivor Series Match:
Team Miz: The Miz, Jack Swagger, Drew McIntyre, Sheamus, and Dolph Ziggler
def.
Team Morrison: John Morrison, Matt Hardy, Finlay, Shelton Benjamin, and Evan Bourne
Order of Elimination:
– Evan Bourne eliminated Dolph Ziggler
– Drew McIntyre eliminated Evan Bourne
– Sheamus eliminated Finlay
– John Morrison eliminated Jack Swagger
– The Miz eliminated Shelton Benjamin
– Drew McIntyre eliminated Matt Hardy
– Sheamus eliminated John Morrison
Sole Survivors: Sheamus, The Miz, and Drew McIntyre
Poor Jack Swagger. While it seems the WWE has soured on “The All-American, American”, the exact opposite can be said for guys like Drew McIntyre and Sheamus. The thing about McIntyre and Sheamus is this…..they have people with power backing up their pushes (HBK and HHH) and thus they will most likely be on our TV screens for ALONG time. It’s all good though considering the WWE is in desperate need of pushing new stars, and it seems like we are well on our way down that path.
Traditional Survivor Series Match:
Team Mickie: Mickie James, Gail Kim, Melina, Kelly Kelly, and Eve Torres
def.
Team McCool: Michelle McCool, Beth Phoenix, Layla, Alicia Fox, and Jillian Hall
Order of Elimination:
– Kelly Kelly eliminated Layla El
– Michelle McCool eliminated Gail Kim
– Eve Torres eliminated Jillian Hall
– Beth Phoenix eliminated Eve Torres
– Beth Phoenix eliminated Kelly Kelly
– Mickie James eliminated Beth Phoenix
– Mickie James eliminated Alicia Fox
– Melina eliminated Michelle McCool
Sole Survivors: Mickie James and Melina
YAAAAAWWNNNNN. Did anyone actually ever care about this match? I didn’t care about it when it was announced and I actually cared about it less once I sat down to watch it! NEXT~!
Traditional Survivor Series Match:
Team Kofi: Kofi Kingston, Christian, R-Truth, Mark Henry, and MVP
def.
Team Orton: Randy Orton, Ted DiBiase, Cody Rhodes, CM Punk, and William Regal
Order of Elimination:
– Randy Orton eliminated Mark Henry
– CM Punk eliminated R-Truth
– Christian eliminated Ted DiBiase
– MVP eliminated William Regal
– Cody Rhodes eliminated MVP
– Christian eliminated Cody Rhodes
– Randy Orton eliminated Christian
– Kofi Kingston eliminated CM Punk
– Kofi Kingston eliminated Randy Orton
Sole Survivor: Kofi Kingston
Wow, was I WAY off with my prediction for this one or what? In case you don’t remember, I actually picked Randy Orton to be the sole survivor of this match, little did I know that the WWE was actually going to follow through with their little mini push of Kofi Kingston. This was a fun match to watch and easily the best out of the 3 “traditional” Survivor Series matches. Let’s hope Kofi can really start to take off this next year as even I have to admit…..I like the dude.
Batista
def.
Rey Mysterio
I couldn’t have predicted this match ANY MORE correct than I did. I mentioned that Batista should get a pretty easy victory and then go “BAT SHIT CRAZY” on Rey to extend the storyline until WrestleMania. It looks like they are heading down that road as long as Mysterio’s knees can hold up. Seriously, by the time he retires….Mysterio’s knees will be worse off than Terry Funk’s. MARK MY WORDS!
World Title Match:
The Undertaker
def.
Chris Jericho
&
The Big Show
Another Survivor Series, another victory by The Undertaker. Now, expect Taker to feud with Jericho for the World Title until the WWE decides to kick off the rumored Undertaker/John Cena match for this year’s WrestleMania……
WWE Title Match:
John Cena
def.
HHH
&
Shawn Michaels
Was it just me or was anyone else expecting this match to be a little better than it actually was? When you have HHH and HBK squaring off against each other, you are almost ALWAYS guaranteed a great time. Oh well, I guess that’s the chance you take with a triple threat match. Either way, the result of this match went down exactly as I expected with Cena getting the win. It looks as though we may be getting the Cena/Undertaker “Title vs. Title” match at this year’s WrestleMania and I must say…..put those two in a steel cage match and consider me EXCITED! I’m easy to please sometimes…..
Overall, this year’s Survivor Series show wasn’t bad by any means. The company is pushing some new stars (Sheamus, Kofi, etc) while slowly moving towards the “Road to WrestleMania”. Its almost time for the WWE to turn it up and I can’t wait! BRING THE ROYAL RUMBLE ON ALREADY~!!!!!
Remember This Guy???
Man, what the heck ever happened to this guy? Remember when the WWE had the “bright” idea of breaking up The Dudley Boys and pushing them as singles competitors? Well, remember when the WWE decided to turn D’Von Dudley into a reverend? Well, remember when Reverend D’Von was “managed” by this really huge dude who went under the name of “Deacon Batsita”? Of course you don’t! Why? Because hopefully you have suppressed those memories enough to where you don’t remember any of this (LUCKY YOU!).
I really would like to meet the guy who’s bright idea it was to have someone with the look of Batista’s manage Reverend D’Von. Better yet, I’d like to meet the guy who decided that the idea was good enough to put on television (HI VINCE!)……
Well, I guess the only good thing about the whole “Deacon Batista” thing was the fact that it didn’t last all that long to begin with. Perhaps someone in the WWE “creative” offices noticed that maybe this wasn’t the best gimmick for someone like Batista. That’s probably a good thing to considering Batista is currently one of the most popular superstars on the WWE’s roster. Really dodged that bullet didn’t ya Vince???
THE DEBUT OF “DEACON BATISTA”…….
Random News Bits:
– While the WWE seems to be on another “push new stars” kick, there is one guy who the WWE seems to be souring on. That is none other than “The All-American, American” Jack Swagger! I have no idea why, but the WWE seems to think that Swagger may not have the “it” factor after all and he may end up being just another ordinary mid-card guy in no time. Another guy who the WWE seems to be souring on is Dolph Ziggler. Expect his push to be slowed as well while the WWE concentrates on building up Kofi Kingston, Drew McIntrye, Sheamus, and Ted DiBiase.
– Kip James (aka Billy Gunn for you WWE fans) is out with a weird injury. Apparently he was bitten by his dog and needed ten stitches in his hand. Being the good reporter that I’m known to be, I actually contacted Gunn’s dog and asked him why he bit everyone’s favorite “Ass Man”, and he only had the following to say…..
You know you got it bad when even your own dog hates you.
– Jim Ross’ WWE contract is set to expire in about three weeks and contrary to reports, he has yet to sign a new deal. The WWE is reportedly waiting to see how JR’s latest battle with bells palsy turns out before churning out a new deal. Once again Jim Ross gets a little bit disrespected by the WWE. Is anyone shocked? Perhaps if the WWE screws him again, Ross will return with a new “Kurt Angle” and a new “Mick Foley”……
– Davey Richards claims that he was offered a contract with the WWE recently and he turned it down. He even claimed that if he was offered another deal with the company he would turn it down AGAIN! Because that’s how he rolls bitches! You have to admire someone who can resist the temptation of the WWE. Good for you Davey!
– There’s currently a rumor going around that Shane McMahon has sold his stock in the WWE (around $50-$80 million dollars worth) so that he can buy into the UFC. However, those rumors are false considering the WWE would actually have to report the sale on it’s WWE SEC Filing Page due to the fact that Shane is an officer of the company. As I said last week, Shane joining the UFC would be a tremendous move by Dana White and company. McMahon has great connections overseas and could really help boost the UFC’s International market.
(Credit goes to The Wrestling Observer for the above news!)
Wrestling Top 10 Lists:
It’s Christmas time so let’s see how many Christmas-related top 10 lists I can pump out. I’ll be starting with the top 10 best WWE DVD’s (in my opinion!) of all-time. Why? Because a DVD is the perfect gift for a wrestling fan and these are the DVD’s that I truly think are the best you have to offer from the WWE!…..
(PS: I did NOT include any DVD’s that I have yet to see. Why? Because that would be stupid for me to rank something that I have never even seen. That will explain why something like Mr Perfect’s DVD is not ranked here, just so you know…..)
This list is in a particular order……
Honorable Mention:
Heartbreak & Triumph – The Shawn Michaels Story
RAW 15th Anniversary
The Monday Night Wars
The SummerSlam Anthology
AND NOW…..THE TOP 10!!!!
This DVD is just filled with plenty of delicious goodness from 1990’s WWE, do I really have to explain more? If you happened to be a fan of 1990’s WWE, then you MUST watch this DVD. It will help remind you of a simpler time when RAW was taped once a month and you knew the results two weeks before the show aired………
After seeing the commercial again, I actually want to watch the DVD again…….
Brian Pillman had one of the most controversial wrestling careers ever and this DVD reminds us as to how much potential Pillman had at one time. In the late 80’s and early 90’s, Pillman was widely regarded as one of the best up-and-comers in wrestling. Needless to say, he never fully reached his potential and this DVD helps explain why. I absolutely loved Pillman and I absolutely loved this DVD. Kudos to the WWE for making this treat for us……
Here’s a good tribute to Brian Pillman…….
Do I REALLY have to explain this one? It’s a DVD featuring plenty of delicious goodness courtesy of Ric Flair and The Four Horsemen. I’m pretty sure you can put two and two together and understand why this DVD is ranked here……
Here’s the Horsemen cutting one of their great promos……
Growing up a WWE fan, I was a massive fan of the Ultimate Warrior. While most people drooled all over that bum Hulk Hogan. I was a Warrior maniac~! As a youngster I could not figure out why the Warrior was never pushed as hard as Hulk Hogan and why the Warrior would disappear for a year….then return….then disappear…..then return. However, this DVD answers all those questions and more! It reminds us that the Warrior is actually not the sharpest knife in the drawer and that he’s nuttier than squirrel turds. The WWE did a great job with this DVD as it really answered a lot of questions I had as a kid.
It’s THE SELF DESTRUCTION OF THE ULTIMATE WARRIOR………
Ric Flair is one of the greatest performers in wrestling history. The man was due to get his own DVD one day and seeing as the WWE owns the entire WCW video tape library…..they made it happen! My only beef with this DVD is that there are plenty of killer matches that were left off. However, that is bound to happen when you release a DVD full of Flair matches. The man has had enough great matches to fill up 20+ DVD’s, but I highly doubt we will ever get to see them all. What a shame too!
Ric Flair addresses the STINGER!…….
If you are a regular reader of this column, then you are more than well aware of my love for “The Hitman” Bret Hart. The man is one of the best EVER to step in a WWE ring and this DVD just reminds everyone of how great he was. While Hart’s WWE career ended on a sour note, us “Hitman” fans can relive the good times of Hart’s career with this wonderful DVD. THANK YOU WWE~!
The Bret Hart story, in his own words……
Eddie Guerrero. The name alone can send chills down some people’s spines. Guerrero happens to be one of the greatest performers in wrestling history, who died way before his time. This DVD showcases some of the best moments (as well as some of the worst moments) in the life and times of Eddie. If you happen to be a Guerrero fan who hasn’t seen this DVD, go out and get it THIS INSTANT! Eddie remains one of the most popular figures in WWE history, and whenever I need a reminder as to how great he was……I just pop this DVD in.
The gravestone of the great Eddie Guerrero……..
Did you honestly think you would be able to read a “top 10 best WWE DVDs” list and NOT see the WrestleMania anthology listed on it? It’s no secret that WrestleMania is the WWE’s bread and butter PPV. Well, when the WWE announced that it was going to release every single WrestleMania ever on DVD….wrestling fans all over the world blew a massive load in unison. How could any wrestling fan NOT want a DVD set featuring every WrestleMania ever? YOU WOULD HAVE TO BE CRAZY TO NOT WANT THIS DVD~!
The WrestleMania Anthology would have nabbed the second spot on this list if it wasn’t for another “anthology” set the WWE just had to release……..
One of the greatest moments in wrestling history, EVER………….
Yes, that’s right! I ranked the Royal Rumble Anthology ahead of the WrestleMania Anthology. Now, while people can be shot for this sort of thing in a third world country, let me explain myself. You see, I LOVE the Royal Rumble. It’s easily my favorite PPV of the year by far. I have always been a sucker for battle royals, and I absolutely look forward to the Royal Rumble every year! Therefore, it should come as no surprise that I rank a collection of the WWE’s January bash as the second best WWE DVD of all-time………
It’s THE ROYAL RUMBLE!!!!!……………………….
In case you didn’t know, I use to be a massive fan of ECW back in the day. There was something about this rebel promotion from Philadelphia where wrestlers were getting thrown into barbed wire and lighting themselves on fire that I just HAD TO SEE! The thing was, I had a hard time tracking it down. Back when ECW was really on fire, the Internet was just taking off, therefore it was still extremely hard to find stuff like videos, etc. So basically, keeping track of ECW was extremely hard to do and my only sources were tape traders, Apter mags, and the lovely Intraweb.
However, none of that matters anymore seeing as Vince McMahon has bought the ECW name and changed it into a product that I have absolutely no interest in today. But it’s not like Vince totally screwed us old ECW fans though! No, he gave us the “Rise and Fall of ECW” DVD, which in my opinion is the best WWE DVD of all-time. I honestly think the WWE does a great job of telling the history of ECW (who would have thought?) and showcasing some of the promotions best matches. ECW helped usher in the “Attitude Era” in the WWE and it puts a smile on my face knowing that even the WWE can respect the memory of the “OLD” ECW.
Here’s Terry Funk vs. Sabu in a BARBED WIRE MATCH! Warning…..this can be sort of hard to watch!
YouTube! Find Of The Week!
Who didn’t love FREAKING “Camp Candy”???……..
And that’s it for me this week. Remember, don’t be a stranger to 411! Bookmark the site and visit it countless times a day. Hell, be brave and make it your homepage! Trust me, it will make you a better person……
See you next Saturday back in the Squared Circle! Until then, you can find me on Facebook! .
Also, make sure you follow me on Twitter for plenty of good sports updates, MMA news, and tons of hilarious stuff.
All of 411’s zones are also on Twitter, so make sure you check it out…..
http://www.twitter.com/411mania
http://www.twitter.com/411wrestling
http://www.twitter.com/411moviestv
http://www.twitter.com/411music
http://www.twitter.com/411games
http://www.twitter.com/411mma
http://www.twitter.com/411boxing
