Last week due to some unfortunate circumstances yours truly was not able to put up the Money in the Bank preview that he wanted. This week I am back in full force to breakdown the incredible fallout for last week's pay-per view event. From what I gathered from reports and reviews online, Money in the Bank was a good PPV. It was not a knock out like Payback, but it had enough good matches and major developments to keep wrestling fans entertained for three hours. Randy Orton and Damien Sandow walked away with the WWE and World Heavyweight briefcases respectively, Rob Van Dam made his triumphant return, John Cena lasted the World's Strongest Man, Alberto Del Rio scrapped a disqualification win over Dolph Ziggler and all hell broke loose in the WWE Money in the Bank Ladder match. It was one big night for the WWE that got lots of momentum rolling towards Summerslam. While Money in the Bank had a great number of major developments, it was last Monday's Raw that hammered home the fact that this coming Summerslam should be one to watch. Personally, I only got the chance to watch the final hour and a half of the broadcast as I worked last Monday night, but what I watched was nothing short of phenomenal. That hour and half went a long way in single-handedly selling Summerslam to the majority of wrestling fans, yours truly included. If you missed last week's Raw, it is definitely worth looking for a replay of the broadcast just to experience it for yourself.
Punk vs. Lesnar, Give It To Me Now!!
Ever since Brock Lesnar hit an F5 on CM Punk, it was obvious Paul Heyman would turn on the Best in the World. Money in the Bank was the implosion of Punk and Heyman's relationship as Heyman repeatedly smashed a ladder over Punk's head, which ended up costing the Straight-Edge Superstar his chance to win the briefcase. With thirteen stitches in his head and hole in his heart, CM Punk marched his way down to the ring Monday night and demanded Paul Heyman to explain his actions. What started out as a regular promo between Paul Heyman and CM Punk quickly escalated to downright personal levels. Heyman made reference to their long standing relationship and how Punk's failures from earlier this year and his actions upon his return hurt the dastardly Heyman's feelings. To teach CM Punk a lesson, Paul called upon Brock Lesnar to rough Punk up. Those comments did not sit well with CM Punk as he warned Heyman that no matter who stands between them, Punk will destroy them all one by one starting with Brock Lesnar. The verbal exchange between Punk and Heyman was bone chilling. It has been a long time since this writer has seen this much animosity portrayed in the squared-circle and CM Punk and Paul Heyman played their parts masterfully. This exchange could have easily sold a lot people on Summerslam, but that was not all. With the call of "It's Clobberin' Time!", Heyman set forth the beast known as Brock Lesnar on Punk. The ensuing brawl was incredible. Punk and Lesnar beat the tar out of one another. Lesnar definitely had the strength advantage as he was tossing Punk around like a rag doll, but the Straight-Edge Superstar was a tenacious fellow as he kept coming back with fists flying at Lesnar. In the end, Lesnar would get the better of Punk thanks to a F5 onto the announce table, but this feud is not over by a long shot. We still have four weeks until this two collide at Summerslam, but it is going to be hard to wait. Already this feud is at a level that it could single-handedly sell Summerslam. People want to see these two fight as it is next to impossible to tell who WWE will have go over as there is a strong case for both men. Personally, I cannot wait to see more between Lesnar and Punk in the coming weeks.
Bryan's Chance to Capture WWE Championship Gold Is Here!!
Daniel Bryan may not of won the WWE Championship Money in the Bank briefcase last Sunday night, but he did manage to earn his way into the WWE Championship picture for Summerslam. After weeks of dominating Raw's heavyweight division and the hearts of the WWE Universe, Daniel Bryan was given the chance to challenge for the WWE Title from the champion himself. This past week on Raw, John Cena was given the opportunity to choose the next challenger for his WWE Championship by new Raw General Manager Brad Maddox. Throughout the night, all the wrestlers in the locker room were making their case to be the next one in line for a shot at the WWE Championship. Out of the entire locker room, Chris Jericho and Rob Van Dam made one of the most convincing cases with the wrestling clinic they put on right before Cena came out to do his promo. As a side note, make time to watch Chris Jericho vs. RVD from last week's Raw as it was absolutely incredible. After a long winded speech of John Cena teasing the audience with possible challengers, he made the announcement that he wants to fight Daniel Bryan at Summerslam. It was an announcement that had everyone in the crowd and at home screaming "Yes" at the top of their lungs. Daniel Bryan has been on one incredible roll this Summer and it would be amazing to see him end it out with the WWE Championship around his waist. That moment could easily make the crowd in the Staples Center and those watching around the world completely explode in a way very reminiscent of when Punk won the WWE Championship at Money in the Bank 2011. Hopefully WWE can make these dreams a reality once again.
Welcome to the Silverdome
Welcome to the Silverdome. A place where one man looks at the wonderful and intricate world of Professional Wrestling.
Monday, July 22, 2013
Saturday, July 13, 2013
WWE Money in the Bank 2013 Predictions
Saturdays do not seem to be my day. For the last few weeks, something bad always seems to happen on Saturday for yours truly. When I sat down to work on the preview for Money in the Bank tomorrow evening, the USB drive that I save all my blogs on started malfunctioning. For the past few hours, I have tried anything and everything to get my USB working to no avail. Just my luck, I have not backed up this USB in over a year. So I am in a predicament and not in the greatest of moods. On top of all my amazing USB problems, I just found out I cut my open earlier in the day. Only took ten hours to notice it. Sorry, I am not the most peachy at the moment. What I am trying to explain is that due to my situation there will be no preview of WWE's Money in the Bank PPV. It should be a good show so I will at least provide my predictions on the event. Hopefully I can get all my problems sorted out by next weekend so the Silverdome can get back to normal.
Wade Barrett vs. Cody Rhodes vs. Damien Sandow vs. Antonio Cesaro vs. Fandango vs. Jack Swagger vs. Dean Ambrose in the World Heavyweight Money in the Bank Ladder Match
Prediction: Wade Barrett wins
Curtis Axel (c) vs. The Miz for the Intercontinental Championship
Prediction: Curtis Axel retains
Chris Jericho vs. Ryback
Prediction: Ryback wins
Alberto Del Rio (c) vs. Dolph Ziggler for the World Heavyweight Championship
Prediction: Dolph Ziggler wins the World Heavyweight Championship
CM Punk vs. Daniel Bryan vs. Christian vs. Randy Orton vs. Sheamus vs. Rob Van Dam in the WWE Championship Money in the Bank Ladder Match
Prediction: Daniel Bryan wins
AJ Lee (c) vs. Kaitlyn for the Divas Championship
Prediction: AJ Lee retains
John Cena vs. Mark Henry for the WWE Championship
Prediction: John Cena retains
Wade Barrett vs. Cody Rhodes vs. Damien Sandow vs. Antonio Cesaro vs. Fandango vs. Jack Swagger vs. Dean Ambrose in the World Heavyweight Money in the Bank Ladder Match
Prediction: Wade Barrett wins
Curtis Axel (c) vs. The Miz for the Intercontinental Championship
Prediction: Curtis Axel retains
Chris Jericho vs. Ryback
Prediction: Ryback wins
Alberto Del Rio (c) vs. Dolph Ziggler for the World Heavyweight Championship
Prediction: Dolph Ziggler wins the World Heavyweight Championship
CM Punk vs. Daniel Bryan vs. Christian vs. Randy Orton vs. Sheamus vs. Rob Van Dam in the WWE Championship Money in the Bank Ladder Match
Prediction: Daniel Bryan wins
AJ Lee (c) vs. Kaitlyn for the Divas Championship
Prediction: AJ Lee retains
John Cena vs. Mark Henry for the WWE Championship
Prediction: John Cena retains
Tuesday, July 9, 2013
Top 5 Turns of the Past Decade
In the world
of professionally wrestling, a wrestling is either face or heel. While these classifications seem very basic
and restrictive, they are not the only things that determine a wrestler’s
character. There are plenty of other
factors that this writer can go into length about, but that is a topic for
another day. Being face or heel does not
mean a wrestler is stuck in that classification for the rest of their
career. Movement between the classifications
is a huge part of the wrestling industry.
A face or heel turn keeps the product fresh, builds excitement and
brings in viewers new and old. When one
thinks about face/heel turns, the images of Bret Hart not letting go of the
Sharpshooter on an unconscious Stone Cold, Hulk Hogan embracing Kevin Nash and
Scott Hall and Stone Cold shaking hands with Mr. McMahon comes to mind. Having only been a wrestling fan for a decade
now, this writer did not experience these legendary turns firsthand, but has
experienced some amazing turns nonetheless.
Here are this writer’s favourite turns of the past decade.
5. A Belfast
Sized Slap
Sheamus has
been criticized for his face character on many occasions. While this writer agrees with all of those
criticisms, it did start out with a whole lot of promise. After a long run as a heel, WWE Creative gave
the Great White a chance at being a fan favourite. Rather than build it for weeks and months on
end, this face turn came out of absolutely nowhere. One Smackdown during the Summer of 2011, Mark
Henry made a challenge to anybody in the locker room to fight him. Sheamus answered Henry’s challenge with a
huge slap that literally knocked the sweat off of the World’s Strongest Man. With one slap, Sheamus turned from one of the
most hated heels in the WWE to the most popular. No matter the now infuriating result, it was
one amazing turn.
4. End of
the Legacy
Animosity
between Randy Orton, Ted DiBiase and Cody Rhodes, the group known as Legacy,
had been growing for months leading up to their eventual implosion. Rhodes and DiBiase were playing some games
with Orton by giving the Viper mixed messages and costing him numerous title
shots. Eventually enough was enough for
the WWE’s Apex Predator and Randy Orton cut his ties with the two younger stars
by way of a Rope-hung DDT and RKO. Due
to all the build, seeing Randy Orton take out all his aggression on his former
protégés and in turn change from a dastardly villain to a no-nonsense anti-hero
was a sight to behold.
3. The
Return of the Old Michaels
In Shawn
Michaels’ later years in the WWE, he played the role of tweener, never being
labeled as either face or heel because it would change depending on the
storyline. Before taking on this role,
Michaels made one final heel turn that shocked the world with how sudden it was. During the spring of 2005, Shawn called upon
the iconic Hulk Hogan to team with on a few occasions. From what was shown on camera, there was no
visible animosity between these two.
Deep down in the darkest corners of the Heartbreak Kid, he grew jealous
of Hulk Hogan. Michaels’ jealously came
to a head with a thunderous Superkick to Hogan’s jaw. This one kick started a feud that saw the
return of a side of HBK that has not been seen since the early days of the
Attitude Era and it was glorious.
2. “You were
supposed to be my friend!”
Sometimes a
fresh start is all a wrestler needs to get fans interested in their character
once again. Back in 2009, Batista was
stuck in that situation. The development
of Batista’s face persona had reached a standstill. There was nowhere the Animal could take his
character as a fan-favourite and people were starting to get bored. Well at the Bragging Rights PPV, the Animal’s
fortunes changed. After losing a Fatal 4
Way match for the World Heavyweight Championship, Batista and Rey Mysterio,
Batista’s best friend, were left in the ring.
Filled with rage over Mysterio breaking a possible three count, Batista
beat the living hell out of Mysterio. Batista’s
ferocious beat down on Mysterio came to climactic end after screaming the now
iconic quote that serves as the title of this paragraph.
1. Y2J No
More
Chris
Jericho has never been a wrestler to rest on his laurels. His Y2J persona was easily one of the most
popular characters in the late 90s and early to mid 2000s. When Jericho returned in 2007, the Ayatollah
of Rock ‘n’ Rolla knew it was time for a change. That change meant the death of Y2J and
everything associated with said character.
The death of the beloved Y2J character happened on one of the final
episodes of the Highlight Reel where Jericho turned on Shawn Michaels and the
WWE Universe. By plunging Michaels’ face
right into the Jeritron 5000, Jericho changed more than his character. Jericho changed the perception of what it
means to be a heel in this modern era and set a benchmark for all wrestlers to
strive for in creating a character and setting up a feud. Monday, July 1, 2013
The Silver Report: June 23-30
Last Monday’s Raw was an odd one to say the
least. It started out with all cylinders
rolling with a great angle this writer will get to later and an exciting tag
team match. Then Raw seemed to go up and
down like a rollercoaster. It was not
consistently good or bad, just bouncing between the two extremes at a furious pace. It did a fine job in setting up some matches
for Money in the Bank, but it still was not a home run like the week
before. Just have to say that WWE has
some great storylines building this early in the summer that this writer sees
some great developments coming in the weeks ahead. Some of these possible developments will be
discussed in this edition of the Silver Report.
Hope you enjoy.
The
Rise of the American Dragon
After the phenomenal year that Daniel Bryan
had in 2012, there is no doubt that he is a bona-fide main eventer. He might not have the unrealistic build that
the WWE loves, but Daniel Bryan has something even more important- the
unanimous support of the WWE Universe.
Ever since Daniel Bryan turned face as a part of Team Hell No, the fans
have flocked to this guy. Just listen to
the huge pop Bryan gets when he explodes into his signature offensive flurry of
kicks and a running clothesline. It
seems that some people higher up in the WWE are listening because Bryan is
being seriously considered to challenge John Cena for the WWE Championship in
the near future. This Monday saw Daniel
Bryan make a huge step towards eventually challenging for the WWE Title. For the past week, Daniel Bryan and Randy
Orton have been facing off in a number of matches with both men picking up the
victory. The rubber match was set to
start Raw, but it did not turn out as expected as the match ended in double
disqualification. Not satisfied with a
no decision, these two superstars faced off in a No Disqualification Match in order
to settle the score once and for all.
Bryan and Orton put on a one incredible back-and-forth match. Personally, this writer would have loved to
see this match go just a little longer, but it still was absolutely
amazing. In the end, Daniel Bryan hooked
in the No Lock with some extra leverage from a kendo stick for the win. A well deserved win for the American Dragon
as it builds tons of momentum for Money in the Bank where he will compete in
the WWE Championship Money in the Bank Ladder match along with CM Punk, Kane,
Randy Orton, Christian, Sheamus and Rob Van Dam. Right now, Daniel Bryan is this writer’s
favourite to win Money in the Bank.
Winning the Money in the Bank briefcase would be a great way for WWE to
set up Bryan challenging for the WWE Championship. Either through having Bryan cash the
briefcase on Cena at Money in the Bank or cash it in for a match at Summerslam,
all roads lead to another Money in the Bank win for the American Dragon and
hopefully a run with the WWE Championship.
Punk
Still a Heyman Guy… For Now
One of the biggest questions following
Brock Lesnar’s attack on CM Punk last week was about Paul Heyman’s involvement
in the whole ordeal. When CM Punk
entered the ring last Monday, he got right to business by calling out his best
friend and manager, Paul Heyman. After a
little history lesson about these two’s relationship with one another, Paul
Heyman gave his answer to the Best in the World. That answer was he had no idea that Brock
Lesnar would attack CM Punk and would never do anything to jeopardize his
relationship with Punk. From those watching
both in the audience and at home, it was easy to see that Mr. Heyman was lying
through his teeth and CM Punk should just knock out the walrus there and
then. For sake of the angle, Punk made
the perfect move by accepting Heyman’s answer at this point in time. People want to see Punk get his hands on
Heyman, but to give that gratification so soon would just be
disappointing. The moment needs to be built
for a couple more weeks before WWE decides to execute on it in order to set all
gears for Punk vs. Lesnar. The more they
keep holding off Punk’s beat down on Heyman, the more anticipation will build
towards that moment, which will make an even bigger pop when Punk hits the GTS
on Heyman. Be patient, the implosion of
CM Punk and Paul Heyman’s relationship will come. It will just take some time.
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