The trailer for the latest WWE Films production, “Legendary,” has been released. The movie stars Academy Award nominee Patricia Clarkson, Danny Glover and John Cena.
It’s pretty funny that Cena has been cast as a former amateur wrestling champion but besides that, this movie doesn’t look terrible. It certainly has the best cast and plot of any WWE Films release so far.
Brian Alvarez and Dave Meltzer of wrestlingobserver.com spoke with Paul Heyman after Saturday’s UFC 116 event in which Brock Lesnar defeated Shane Carwin to retain his UFC Heavyweight Title. Heyman discusses that fight, as well as the rumor of him joining TNA and what it would take for him to do so.
Last night’s Raw was certainly better than the previous week’s attempt and the build towards the Money in the Bank pay-per-view was continued. Not surprisingly, the lack of a guest host also helped the show, and the lame comedy stuff was kept to a minimum.
The one thing that really hurt the show for me, as it does every week, was John Cena’s mic work. His comedy at this point is so over-the-top that even Nickelodeon viewers would be gagging at its stupidity. Him telling Wade Barrett to shove his handshake “up his Nexus” only could have been funny to those under the age of five. Compared to Wade Barrett, Cena looked like an absolute fool on the microphone.
The 7-on-1 “punishment” match that was booked for next week featuring the Nexus v. Cena had me rolling my eye. You just know SuperCena will somehow beat everyone. I don’t think even Hulk Hogan was ever booked this strong during his heyday in the WWE.
As for the rest of the show:
- I liked the two teases that the anonymous GM is Steve Austin. It’s pretty obvious that it isn’t him, but it’s a nice way to get people intrigued. I wouldn’t be shocked if next weekend the GM asked if we smelled what he was cooking.
- The show was pretty light on wrestling but the main event tag match of Chris Jericho and Edge v. Randy Orton and Evan Bourne went long and was decent. WWE is effectively mixing in all the members of Raw’s Money in the Bank ladder match to create some animosity and anticipation. Orton RKO’ing Bourne after the match was expected, as it keeps Orton as the “Stone Cold”-like character that is a face but doesn’t need to be buddies with anyone.
- Although the match itself was an afterthought, I liked the Ted DiBiase v. John Morrison bout. Maryse has been more compelling in her few appearances with DiBiase than she ever was on her own. This angle reminds me a lot of the old days and Maryse reminds me a lot of Sensational Sherri in this role.
- The Miz’s beatdown of R-Truth was effective in getting Miz over as a dangerous heel. He’s already got main event level talent and this might be the icing on the cake. It was later announced that Truth will not compete in the Money in the Bank ladder match, so I’m curious if the attack was a way to cover for a legit injury or Truth just wanted some time off. It will also be interesting to see who fills in for R-Truth in the match.
- All in all, a decent program. As I said on Twitter last night, I would give it a C+/B-. The progression was good and the show never stalled, which is probably thanks to not having a guest host. The usually lame stuff was kept to a minimum.
I’m a few days late so I’ll keep this brief. I meant to get the post up on Friday, but the long holiday weekend changed things.
I think the overall direction of TNA is improving from week to week. Thursday’s episode of TNA Impact was another example of that. The show as a whole was entertaining and there was some solid wrestling action. Compared to last week’s episode of Raw, Impact was leaps and bounds better.
- I’m interested to see where this whole thing is going with Eric Bischoff. He continually interjected himself during segments involving Sting and Abyss, and I’m curious if he’ll turn heel once again and be part of “They” that Abyss keeps referring to. At first I was certain that “They” were the group of former ECW wrestlers, but now I’m not so sure.
- D’Angelo Dinero’s promo was very good and Kurt Angle’s interaction with him made it even better. It was also announced that these two will wrestle at Victory Road next Sunday, which is a great contest. I wish they had announced this earlier to hype it more, but that’s a minor nitpick.
I really like what TNA is doing with Kurt Angle. By having him wrestle his way through the rankings, it gives it some meaning and also gives us some great matches.
- The ending of the show, with Mr. Anderson “accidentally” hitting Jeff Hardy with the chair was a nice touch, since we really haven’t been sure if Anderson’s face turn is for real. The whole thing has been done so well that if Anderson turns heel again it won’t feel like TNA is rushing the angle like they usually do.
Some links from around the web as you gear up for WWE Superstars and TNA Impact tonight.
- Wrestlespective has the latest edition of the Power Poll, of which yours truly is a participating voter, which ranks the top ten wrestlers from WWE and TNA each week. It’s a Fellabration this week as Sheamus tops the poll.
- Razor at Kick-Out Wrestling gives us the Match of the Month for June.
- If you missed it, be sure to check out Oldies Mike’s rap parody, Cena Luvanomics.
- Recently released by WWE, Bryan Danielson has finally spoken about what led to his departure in a blog post on his website. It’s an interesting read and shows what a classy guy Danielson is.
- Bret Hart has weighed in on Martha Hart’s lawsuit against WWE over the use of Owen Hart’s image and likeness. It’s a well written piece where Bret questions the motives behind the lawsuit and says Owen’s legacy should be carried on.
Photo courtesy WWE
WWE Hall of Famer Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat has been hospitalized after suffering a brain aneurysm on Wednesday, according to reports. WWE.com has announced on its website that Steamboat “was experiencing pain in his neck and shoulder, and immediately went to the hospital. According to medical officials, his condition is most likely not related to his performance on Monday night, and Ricky’s medical prognosis is good to excellent.”
The company also says this is unrelated to Steamboat’s appearance on this week’s Raw, in which he and other legends were attacked by The Nexus. WWE had previously announced that Steamboat had suffered internal injuries from Monday’s beatdown, but that was part of the storyline while this injury is real.
It is good news that Steamboat’s prognosis is good and here’s wishing him a speedy recovery.
