The Wrasslin’ Countdown: 01.05.11: Can You Dig It?

Welcome to The Wrasslin’ Countdown, the first of the new year. The year began pretty well for me as I had one of those moments where the internet helped me find a long-lost item. Most people I know have this one moment where the internet helps them find an old trinket or person so it was cool to finally get mine. I decided to open a Facebook page to stay in touch with old friends and I (almost) instantly received a message from someone claiming to have found an old class ring from years ago. Messages were exchanged and the whole experience ended with me getting my ring back.

No truth to the rumor that I’ll re-do the Abyss-Hulk Hogan storyline with the ring.

December 29 – I didn’t pay attention to wrestling news after I turned in my column last Tuesday but I woke up Wednesday morning and immediately found myself staring at a bunch of new stories. John Cena was rumored to be hurt. There was stuff about Brock Lesnar and all of that could have been decent column fodder. It seems like it all broke the second I turned last week’s column in.

December 30 – Rob Van Dam is going to have to face a mystery opponent at Genesis? I wonder if Matt Hardy’s non-compete clause is up with the WWE? That has to be ending pretty soon. And how many times can TNA go back to the MYSTERY OPPONENT gimmick? It seems they have multiple mystery opponent matches on their PPVs each year. It’s not like it’s a bad thing but it gets kind of old. I do hope it’s Matt Hardy. I think he’d be a nice cog in TNA’s 2011.

December 31 – Even the 411mania Smackdown report called last Friday’s Smackdown a “lame duck episode.” I think the triple threat Intercontinental Bout between Dolph Ziggler, Kofi Kingston and Jack Swagger stood out as the match of the night. I do wish it happened at the Royal Rumble. I understand that the Rumble is the main thing but the WWE usually struggles with the non-Rumble part of the card. It would’ve been nice to see this get more time and be on a PPV. It was fun watching nerds fight with other nerds on Twitter over wrestling interrupt their Twilight Zone marathon.

January 1st – BOOKER T is going to be on the next Viva La Lucha PPV, which makes it an automatic buy for me. I love Booker T and seeing him in that venue should be exciting. I don’t feel Booker gets the respect he should get from the internet. Rarely do I see his name when people are discussing potential Hall of Fame inductees. From my point of view, Booker T is a must-have in the WWE HoF. I can’t see how you can hold him out and I can’t wait for the February 11th PPV.

January 2nd – It’s always interesting to see what resolutions people will try to accomplish during the new year. Apparently for David Arquette, it was to stay sober. The guy entered rehab and all of the dirt sheets were headlined by “FORMER WCW CHAMPION IN REHAB.” My mind upon seeing this is wondering if it’s Nash, Hogan or Sting. Even though he’s notorious for holding the title, I still think of actual wrestlers before Arquette.

January 3rd – So CM Punk is the new leader of NEXUS. Wade Barrett’s return to Raw seemed kind of off to me. Almost like he wasn’t originally scheduled to be there but it is what it is. At least my complaint about the chair shower looking weak is an invalid one now. I liked how CM Punk turned on Wade Barrett even if it was a little obvious. Wrestling has never been a shocking place anyways. I am interested in seeing where the WWE goes with Barrett because he’s absolute gold on the microphone. I could listen to him speak forever.

January 4th – Jim Ross constantly says he has no connection with most of the decision’s the WWE makes, so his discussion on a possible Awesome Kong name change was merely speculation. I wonder if they’d let her keep the Kong part of her name. Maybe they’d feel that her sharing that part of her name with Donkey Kong would be a detriment to her growth. Either way, I share his optimism regarding Kong’s future.

Albert del Rio was on Raw last night because they have big plans for him, and also because they are hoping to “introduce” Smackdown talents on Raw with the hope that more fans will follow over to watch Smackdown. (PWInsider)

Like many people, I laughed when I saw Alberto Del Rio’s debut vignettes. They were corny, awkward and I expected Eric Escobar Version 2.0. A few wins here and there until the powers that be realized he wasn’t clicking with the fans and was terminated. Fortunately for us, Alberto Del Rio brings awesomeness. I am more than okay with the WWE starting his path to becoming a big deal, fairly quick.

I can definitely see Del Rio finish his program with Mysterio this week (probably losing, with a post-match beatdown. Spoilers will come out so you’ll know if this is right or wrong) and then starting a little thing with Edge that culminates at Wrestlemania. I could also see them letting him win the Money in the Bank or something even though I think having a MITB at Wrestlemania is incredibly stupid if you have it as a PPV.

As for the WWE introducing Smackdown talents, that piece of news came out a few weeks ago. My stance is that it’s positive for the ‘E. The Road to Wrestlemania needs build and utilizing both main programs is just common sense.

The Big Show has landed a role in the Nickelodeon series Supah Ninjas. Supah Ninjas is about a group of High School kids who are also ninjas. A casting call went out today, for a stand in for Show, looking for a “Caucasian male 6’9′ or taller who is 400 to 475lbs.” (PWInsider)

I’m pretty sure when the WWE made that Knucklehead movie, they had stuff like this in mind for The Big Show. Like I’ve mentioned before, I enjoy Big Show’s light-hearted side and I think it’s extremely funny in the right situations. I don’t stay in touch with Nickelodeon’s current programming but this will probably expand Big Show’s fanbase depending on how his character in the show is. I just hope we aren’t bombarded with mostly unfunny promos like we were with Knucklehead.

I really hate the term “Supah” by the way.

Kevin Dunn says WWE is currently “talking to partners” about launching their own network. NBC Universal, the parent company of USA, is one of those partners. “WWE executives have spoken publicly about wanting to start a cable channel, and the relationship with NBC and Comcast may prove useful,” (The New York Times)

I don’t know how much money or who is going to partner with the WWE but I really want this to happen. If it’s half as good as the MLB Network or NBA TV, it’ll be one of my most viewed channels. Now, of course there is a difference between a sports league and the WWE as one is scripted and the other is (supposedly) legitimate. The WWE Network probably would be like those other channels without the extra analysis. I know the year 2013 was floated around late last year and I think that’s enough time to straighten out a programming schedule and all of the content problems. Despite NBC being on the wrong side of jokes most of the time, I believe the partnership they share with the WWE will be beneficial. I mean, how could it not help?

The card for the January 8th Millennium Wrestling Federation show in Melrose, MA at Memorial Hall includes Daniel Bryan and Awesome Kong’s final indie appearance.

This news, while very insignificant, really stood out to me. I actually thought it was some sort of typo considering Daniel Bryan has been back with the WWE for months and I could have sworn he already made his final independent appearance. It’s nice to see that the powers that be have so much faith in Daniel Bryan that they allow him to work this show even though it was scheduled ages ago. It would have been very easy for them to veto this appearance. The folks in Melrose are probably in for a treat from both Kong and Bryan.

Many entertainment outlets, including Variety and Entertainment Weekly have covered the return of WWE Tough Enough. EW had asked WWE s Al Snow would be returning to coach the show, since he did so on the MTV series, but the company stated that they have not made any decisions at this time. Snow has been working for TNA as an agent. (PWInsider)

I would love to see Al Snow return to the WWE in this fashion. I wasn’t a hardcore Tough Enough fan but I tuned in at times to watch on MTV. His form of tough love worked great for this show and the new incarnation would benefit in a similar way. His moments in Tough Enough aren’t as memorable as Triple H’s but they made good television. I wonder if TNA would let Al Snow leave if he asked. It makes no sense to give your competition anything (even though TNA has stated they aren’t competitive with the WWE). Tough Enough will be a fun watch and it will have an audience since it’s going to be on an hour before Raw. It won’t be the greatest program but every extra program and success just makes TNA’s climb to the top even tougher.

Snoop Dogg recently went on Twitter and pushed for fans to vote for Brodius Clay on NXT. (PWInsider)

I haven’t been paying attention to NXT4 at all because I almost never have the time to watch it on my computer. An hour isn’t that much of a hassle but it is when I’m only tuning in for Cole’s commentary. Snoop Dogg’s Tweet made me look into Brodius Clay and man, is he a hoss. I like his look and he’s Snoop approved. I don’t know the relationship between Brodius and Snoop. He was probably a former bodyguard or a friend of a friend of a friend. Either way, it’s pretty cool to see an almost-nobody get a shout-out from a celebrity.

• With twelve weeks to go, things are still up for grabs in 411mania’s Wrestler of the Week.
• 411 continues handing out awards in Part 2 of the Year End Awards.
• James Cooke takes a look back at the first Raw of 2011 in this week’s Positively Raw.

And we’ll end halftime of the column with a TWITTER PLUG.
@411mania
@411Wrestling
@411Movies/TV
@411Music
@411Games
@411MMA
@411Boxing
You can find me @steamedhams

I’m going to change this segment up a bit this week. Instead of three wrestlers that stood out last week, I am going to post the three guys I want to see more of in 2011.

3. Scott Stanford – I am a Michael Cole guy. I want Cole to be the voice of the WWE for as long as he can. My second favorite announcer would have to be Scott Stanford. I think he’d provide an upgrade over Josh Mathews (or Todd Grisham) on Smackdown and he would be a nice compliment to Matt Striker. He knows his wrestling and seems like a fan based on the videos on his website. His chemistry with Mathews on Superstars isn’t as good as his stuff with Punk but he still shines. More Stanford in 2011.

2. Desmond Wolfe – His lack of television time isn’t completely his fault. He had some mysterious illness that kept him out of action for a while. He’ll eventually come back and I hope he retains some of the momentum he had when he started his TNA career. This guy showed TNA management that he’s a pretty popular dude when they came out with their poll to determine the number one contender to their title. He didn’t have a good showing but it proved people cared. He’s got all the talent in the world and will probably be a major player for TNA when he returns.

1. David Hart Smith – I really really dig David Hart Smith for some reason. He comes off as extremely boring but he strikes me as a guy with a HUGE ceiling. I’m talking about main event level talent with DH Smith. He hasn’t had that great match in the WWE but he’s been more than able with sub-par opponents. Just a few days ago, he and William Regal had a helluva match on Superstars and it showed what Smith can do with someone on his technical level. He is 25 years old, 6’6, a member of a famous family and technically awesome. I am shocked that the WWE seems to be more behind Tyson Kidd right now than they are Smith.

Maybe I’m crazy. No one I’ve spoken to shares my optimism over Smith but if I have to pick a Superstar under the age of 26, I’m taking David Hart Smith.

If the popular ESPN program “Pardon the Interruption” taught us anything, it’s that there’s always time to get happy. This segment is dedicated to birthdays, anniversaries, departures and the like.

Happy Anniversary, Rob Van Dam’s ECW Debut! – On this day in 1996, Rob Van Dam made his debut at House Party ’96. In his first bout in the “Land of Extreme,” Van Dam went head to head with Axl Rotten. He ended up victorious and, as you can see in the video, showed off some moves he believed were new to the ECW audience. RVD was always one of those guys that everybody loved but I never got. I think he does a lot of things a superstar shouldn’t do but I can’t deny the popularity and success of RVD. He’s definitely someone I would want if I were running a promotion but I don’t know about giving him a world title.

Happy Anniversary, Monday Night Wars 2.0! – No birthdays to report for January 5th and nothing of note wrestling-wise so January 4th, 2010 will have to do. I was pretty excited for that evening and I never really cared about Bret Hart. The big prize of the evening (to me) was the debut of Hulk Hogan. You can make a case that Jeff Hardy actually had a bigger impact for TNA than the Hulkster but it was a great night for them either way.

Sadly, they couldn’t keep that momentum up and their ratings slipped. They would eventually go back to Thursday Nights. They aren’t even live anymore which is kind of a drag since spoilers take a lot out of the program. I still think it was the right move for TNA. They probably weren’t ready to go head to head but it gave them exposure and began a pretty okay year for TNA.

Hulk Hogan – TWITTER WEBSITE CONTACT

What better way to kick off the new year than by spotlighting the Immortal Hulk Hogan in this week’s “One Wrestler to Follow?”

Hulkster’s Twitter has it all. Updates on his relationship with TNA, pictures of his various back surgeries and of course, conversations between him and various Hulkamaniacs around the world. His website is also pretty nice with a link that supposedly gives you the ability to send a message to Hulk Hogan. The end of Hulkster’s 2010 was pretty shoddy with a sudden back surgery and the death of his mother. Hopefully 2011 is less stressful for the greatest wrestler ever.

I’ll be back next week with another rendition of The Wrasslin’ Countdown. Things are going to start picking up with the holidays finally over and the Road to Wrestlemania starting to gain traction. TNA also has a PPV this weekend, which you can follow here at 411wrestling.com. Thanks for the read.