By Rob Siebert
Editor, Fanboy Wonder

Thoughts From Raw:

- Nice to see Dean Ambrose rewarded for his work these past few weeks. He had a solid showing with the Undertaker, and then a really good match with Daniel Bryan. And now he’s set to have his first singles match on a pay per view against a star like Kofi Kingston, for the United States Title no less. He’s unquestionably the stand out member of the Shield, not only because of his work in the ring, but his stellar work on the mic.

Meanwhile, we’ve got Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns challenging Bryan and Kane for the tag belts. I had originally pictured Rollins and Ambrose getting the shot, with Reigns acting as the bodyguard/enforcer. But it’s worth it if Ambrose can get a shot as a singles star.

Speaking of which, tonight former WWE writer Seth Mates tweeted: Question for all of you: @drtompritchard & I are making a bet – will Ryback join Shield on Sunday? I say yes, he says no. What should we bet?” Doesn’t seem too far fetched does it? Also, if you’re keeping score at home, hat = heel Ryback, no hat = babyface Ryback.

- Wait, is Triple H not C.O.O. anymore? Michael Cole said the Triple H/Lesnar rivalry began “back when Triple H was C.O.O. of WWE.” When did he stop being C.O.O.? I’m so confused…

What happens to Paul Heyman after Extreme Rules? CM Punk is on break, and Brock Lesnar is probably going away for a little while. So Heyman’s got nobody left to manage unless he takes on a third wrestler, which I don’t see happening. WWE TV is damn sure going to miss Heyman. Without he and Punk, we’ve got nobody to cut those long, masterful heel promos. No offense to Ryback, but I don’t exactly see him stepping up to that plate.

Triple H did a nice job selling the cage match at Extreme Rules with his point about Lesnar’s mystique. That’s actually something the internet wrestling community has done its share of talking about since Lesnar lost to John Cena at Extreme Rules last year. Brock has had three pay per view matches since he’s been back, and has lost two of them. If he loses this one, well…we’ve kind of neutered the beast, haven’t we? Wrestlemania was one thing. But it’s time to give Brock back his status as that spine-chilling killer.

- No Dolph Ziggler at Extreme Rules? Ugh, that sucks. As I said last week, that triple threat ladder match would have been a show stealer. The “I Quit” match between Jack Swagger and Alberto Del Rio could be good, of course. But that ladder match could have been one for the ages. I suppose as long as Ziggler gets better, that’s the important thing. Lord knows after all he’s put in to get that belt, it would be a shame for his run to be cut short.

- That Natalya/A.J. Lee match was the first divas contest in a long time that I’ve had any interest in whatsoever. granted, I had to mute my TV because the Bellas were on commentary. But it was certainly nice to see Nattie get to wrestle on Raw for once. Also, a great maneuver by AJ to end the match. More please.

- I have to say, I was a fan of Fandango’s trippy rainbow-colored attire this week. The best thing about what went down with that whole dance competition between he and Chris Jericho? There was very little actual dancing. #wewantwrestling

- A fairly predictable elimination match featuring John Cena, Team Hell No and the Shield. But it was still well done. There’s always room for great drama in those types of matches, which is part of the reason why the Survivor Series pay per view has stayed alive for so long.

- Hey, did you guys hear WWE has an App? #enoughalready

- Thank you! Finally the Prime Time Players get a win on Raw! From a charisma standpoint, there are few wrestlers I enjoy watching more than Titus O’Neil.

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By Rob Siebert
Editor, Fanboy Wonder

Thoughts From Raw:

After seeing Raw this week, I’ve got several questions regarding the upcoming steel cage match between Triple H and Brock Lesnar at Extreme Rules…

1. Is there a discernible difference between an “old school” steel cage match and a regular steel cage match? I joked about this a few weeks ago. But as a long time fan it seriously makes me think of those cages with the big blue bars. Remember those?

2. So Paul Heyman and Brock Lesnar, two WWE employees, went to WWE headquarters. How is that breaking news? They buried their lead with this one. I would have promoted the destruction of Triple H’s office. Makes for better hype.

3. Was this show the first time we’ve heard the I Dream of Jeannie theme song on Raw? That is what Heyman was whistling in the elevator, right?

4. Furthermore, was this show the first time we’ve referenced Triple H’s full real name (Paul Levesque) on TV?

Thankfully, it all added up to a solid promo by the Game, which is the important thing.

- That ladder match between Dolph Ziggler, Alberto Del Rio and Jack Swagger is going to steal the show at Extreme Rules. As evidence, I cite that insane inverted superplex Del Rio gave Ziggler this week. Throw in some ladders, and everybody’s respective entourages, and you’ve got a recipe for a hell of a presentation. Incidentally, it just recently occurred to me that all three of those men have won Money in the Bank ladder matches. There’s an interesting coincidence for ya.

- Ryback vs. Kane in the main event? *snores* You know what the “Ryback rules” catchphrase reminds me of? Billy Madison. “O’Doyle rules!”

- Is Summer Rae not Fandango’s dancing partner anymore? They’d made a point to introduce her… Either way, it seems Fandango is indeed a heel again. They seemed to be pondering turning him face for a few weeks there.

- I’m not sure JBL remarking that Kaitlyn’s admirer “could be Brett Favre” was entirely PG.

- Jeez. As if it wasn’t already obvious the Shield was going to win that six-man tag, they put them against the Uso Bros and Kofi Kingston. #throwaway

- Happy to see Antonio Cesaro ditch the yodeling and get back to business. From my vantage point, he got over with his raw strength and athleticism, as opposed to a gimmick. During the show, renowned comic book artist Jill Thompson actually tweeted “That would have been a perfect moment to debut @KassiusOhno [a.k.a. Chris Hero] and start a feud between him and @AntonioCesaro.” I can’t argue that point.

And A Little Bit About Possible Returns…

- The subject of a Batista return came up in the ol’ rumor mill recently. Personally, I don’t think we’ll be seeing him in a wrestling ring any time soon. Remember, “the Animal” was just cast in Marvel’s upcoming Guardians of the Galaxy movie. I suppose he could make an appearance or two to promote it, but that won’t be until 2015. In all honesty, I could go my entire life without seeing another Batista match and be perfectly fine. Nothing personal, but he never really did it for me. The only match of his I really have any fond memories of is his Wrestlemania 22 match with the Undertaker. The sad thing about Batista is that he seemed to be hitting his stride on the mic just before he left. He was stuck in that bland babyface character for years before he actually got to show a a little charisma. He wasn’t a great heel. But he was a good one. And he was funny! Give me heel Batista, then I might change my tune a little bit…

- Speaking of the Undertaker, rumor has it WWE wants to book the Dead Man at Summerslam this year. Sounds great to me! At this point, more ‘Taker is better than no ‘Taker. At this point, Lord knows the man’s already given us more than we could have reasonably asked for.

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By Rob Siebert
Editor, Fanboy Wonder

Thoughts From Raw:

- Hey long time fans: Remember after Wrestlemania XX when the Undertaker would appear on Smackdown, and Michael Cole would hype it up as a “rare television appearance,” even though he showed up almost every week? It’s rather surreal that we’ve now reached the point where it actually is rare to see him on television, especially in a wrestling capacity. But tonight we got to see it, and indeed it was a rare treat. It’s also pretty rare that we saw the dead man lose (Daniel Bryan took the fall, but ‘Taker’s name was in the loss column nonetheless). I don’t think that’s happened for at least a few years. That’s a heck of a notch on the Shield’s belt.

- By the way, seeing the fans hold up cell phones as the Undertaker walks to the ring is no where near as cool as back in the ’90s when they held up lighters. These kids today with their newfangled phones…

- WWE.com put an article up today speculating about a fourth member being added to the Shield. Personally, I’m hoping the group stays a triad. Considering this group is supposed to be stealthy and quick-striking, I think it’s best to keep it small. Three is a nice round number. The original incarnation of the n.W.o comes to mind.

- So at this point, can we assume the Shield is going to play some kind of role in the John Cena/Ryback match at Extreme Rules? They’re essentially half the basis for the entire feud. What if we did a lumberjack match where Dean Ambrose, Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns got to beat the crap out of both of them? Come to think of it, that would probably be more entertaining than the actual match we’ll get…

- WWE made good use of Mick Foley this week. Whenever a heel needs a spare good guy to cut a “Look what you’ve become!” promo, Foley’s always a good guy to call. Incidentally, I picked up For All Mankind: The Life and Career of Mick Foley this past week. It’s a good buy, particularly if you dig wrestling documentaries like I do.

- Defeating William Regal in England was probably one of the only sure fire ways for Fandango to gain even a sliver of his heat back. The fans booed him for a solid second or two when he got the three count. That was a cool little moment when Jericho busted out a little of his Dancing With The Stars repertoire. I’m surprised it took this long to reference that. You’d think that could have been the jumping off point for the whole program.

- News broke this week about the divas getting their own reality show on E!, which might be interesting. Natalya, the Bella Twins and the Funkadactyls will star, along with two developmental divas. Though I can honestly say I have no real desire to see Brie and Nikki Bella on my television longer than necessary, a behind-the-scenes view of the business from a woman’s perspective might be interesting. “Smart” fans know that John Cena is actually dating Nikki Bella, Daniel Bryan is dating Brie (Or is it the other way around?), and Tyson Kidd dates Natalya. I’m wondering if any of these real-life relationships will make air. Lord knows Tyson Kidd needs all the screen time he can get.

- “Ziggly Puff.” Was that a Pokemon reference on Monday Night Raw? Kudos for that one AJ.

- So yeah, AJ won the diva battle royal, and is now the number one contender for the oh so prestigious Diva’s Championship. Wow, what a surprise. She’s the only diva left with any kind of presence out there, with Natalya being the one exception. The problem with WWE continuously talking about how AJ and Kaitlyn used to be good friends, is that the majority of that stuff was on C-list shows like NXT. And their relationship wasn’t exactly deep, was it? Granted, I think they’re friends in real life. But on screen they were just sort of put together as the two divas on the undercard. That doesn’t necessarily make for an entertaining angle about former friends.

- Here’s hoping Rosa Mendes is okay, as she was sent home from WWE’s European tour today. I swear, WWE can still do great things with her if they just give her the ball…

- So is “crazy” R-Truth officially a thing of the past? We’re back to that cheesy “What’s up” song? Well that sucks. You know what also sucks? Antonio Cesaro’s yodeling gimmick. But you know what sucks even more than that? Cesaro having to job to Truth.

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By Rob Siebert
Editor, Fanboy Wonder

Wow. Who’d have thought? Fandango is apparently WWE’s newest breakout star. He won his Wrestlemania match with Chris Jericho, fans were singing his entrance theme at Raw the next night, and Stone Cold Steve Austin boldly predicted on Twitter that he’ll be Intercontinental Champion within six to eight months.

Obviously this is all a very pleasant surprise, considering a lot of fans were rolling their eyes at this character at first. So what’s the secret to Fandango’s success? There’s obviously a lot that factors into it. But in the end it all comes down to one thing: Curtis Hussey.

The man behind Fandango has actually been a WWE contracted wrestler since 2008, though you wouldn’t necessarily know it unless you’ve followed the company’s farm system, and later NXT. Wrestling as Johnny Curtis, Hussey won the big competition on the show’s fourth season, and was to have wrestled alongside R-Truth for the WWE Tag Team Titles. For whatever reason, that never happened.  He eventually popped up on Smackdown, and in his first match was squashed by Mark Henry in less than a minute. He ended up back on NXT, anxiously awaiting an opportunity.

But cream always rises to the top, as they say. Hussey’s charisma, which was clearly visible at least as far back as his NXT days, likely made him a natural choice to play Fandango. When he speaks in that ludicrously throaty “Fahn-dahn-gooooo” voice, I believe it. And I believe it because he believes it. Fans were right to be skeptical about this character, because in the wrong hands it could have been terrible. But Hussey’s portrayal, combined with WWE having just the right idea about how big and bold to make things, has thus far proven to be quite effective.

So…shall we dance?

Thoughts From Raw:

- So it looks like Ryback is officially a heel. I suppose that’s as good a move as any. Obviously John Cena isn’t going to be changing his babyface tune any time soon. And as he needs some heel challengers anyway, a move to the dark side might help Ryback get some more experience under his belt, which will be good if and when he does have to take that top spot some day. That being said, that pre-tape promo was pretty long for my taste. Heck, Cena even brought that up during his promo at the end, where he really tore into Ryback. In any event, I’m interested to see what kind of match these two have at Extreme Rules. It could really go either way in terms of quality.

- That spot where Sheamus put the Big Show on his shoulders was one of the most amazing things I’ve ever seen in a wrestling ring. How is Sheamus’ spine still intact? That spot deserves to be on highlight reels for months. Come to think of it, Show spent a decent amount of time in the air this week, didn’t he? He took that second rope DDT from Randy Orton, and then got pretty high for the RKO. Show takes a decent amount of flack from fans for being slow in the ring, but never discount how well he gets around for such a huge man.

- Hey, how about that? We get more than one Undertaker match this year! That’s a hell of a treat to look forward to next week.

- So if Triple H and Brock Lesnar are going to have an “old school” cage match at Extreme Rules, does that mean we get the old school blue bars back?

- So Kofi Kingston wins the United States Title from Antonio Cesaro. Why? So he can drop it to a different midcard heel? That’s exactly what happened when he took the Intercontinental belt earlier this year, isn’t it? Kofi’s held both the US and IC title so many times (three and four respectively), there’s not really any new ground to cover, is there? So the question isn’t really about what Kofi’s going to do with the US Title, but who the next champion is going to be.

- King’s right. That title does look good on Dolph Ziggler. And yet, even with the title he’s jobbing to everyone. *sigh*

- The Prime Time Players just can’t get a win. They deserve it so much, but they just can’t get one.

 Front page image, image 1 and image 3 from wwe.com. Image 2 from allwrestlingsuperstars.com.
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By Rob Siebert
Editor, Fanboy Wonder

Between Wrestlemania and Raw we had a big week. Let’s dive in with some broad strokes about the big pay per view…

Thoughts From Wrestlemania:

- I’ll echo my old buddy Mike Bessler’s thoughts on Wrestlemania, and say the event was “fine.” If you watch the full event from start to finish, it tends to be exhausting, which it was. I think WWE made a mistake putting our three main events on one after another without any “buffers” in between. I was fading during Brock and Triple H’s fight, and then Cena and Rock turned out to be a snoozefest. Toward the end they just hit their finishes again and again. There’s not much art in that as far as I’m concerned.

- For the fifth year in a row, the Undertaker stole the show at Wrestlemania. His match with CM Punk was epic, and the only match on the card worthy of the name Wrestlemania. There’s a pretty vocal group of fans who don’t take kindly to part-timers (or in ‘Taker’s case, one-nighters) taking up so much space at the big dance. But sadly, I can count the number of full time guys capable of giving us magic like that on one hand. Heck, less than one hand. As if it wasn’t already obvious, the match solidified Punk’s status as the best worker on the full-time roster.

- Chris Jericho and Fandango turned out to be a pleasant surprise. I didn’t expect things to be so one-sided in favor of Jericho, but of course Fandango pulled out the win as expected.

- Ryback had a heck of a Wrestlemania moment. I didn’t think it was humanly possible to hold Mark Henry on one’s shoulders like that. Damn sure one for the books.

Thoughts From Raw:

- Gotta love a night after Wrestlemania crowd. I actually felt a little bad for Randy Orton and Sheamus, having to work through various non sequitor chants of “Randy Savage,” “RVD,” “JBL” and even “Michael Cole!” This show also marked the first time I’ve ever heard a crowd hum a wrestler’s instrumental entrance theme. That’s an interesting little distinction for Fandango.

- Well how about that? Dolph Ziggler cashes in and wins the World Heavyweight Title, perhaps one night later than he should have. Given how Ziggler performs, I think you’d be hard pressed to find someone who thinks he doesn’t deserve it. Did you hear that crowd pop when Ziggler’s music hit? Looks like we can look forward to a Dolph Ziggler/Alberto Del Rio match at Extreme Rules.

- Ryback attacks Cena? Well that’s…unexpected.

- My years as a wrestling fan have prevented me from seeing the Undertaker and Kane together without hearing “Rollin’” by Limp Bizkit in my head.

- I’m terrified Seth Rollins is going to break his neck one day when he dives over that guard rail.

- Not at all surprised to see Miz take the title at Mania, only to drop it back to Wade Barrett on Raw. Miz made his babyface turn work, and he deserved a Wrestlemania win. And heck, this is exactly what they did with Cody Rhodes and the Big Show last year. They just sped up the process this year.

- I wasn’t expecting to be impressed by Big E. Langston. But he seems to have a lot of explosive power, and he seems to move around pretty well. Maybe we’re in luck and he’s not our typical boring, sluggish big man.

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By Rob Siebert
Editor, Fanboy Wonder

- I wish it hadn’t taken this long for the Undertaker/CM Punk rivalry to reach the intensity level we saw this week. Up to this point, Punk had basically just been tossing the urn around. But having Punk use some of ‘Taker’s trademark stuff against him, and then actually dumping the ashes on him made for a heck of a segment. It hits a little close to home if you’re a long time wrestling fan, but that’s what it was designed to do.

I think if people remember that Paul Bearer was just a character that William Moody played on a TV show, it makes it a bit easier to digest. That was the problem I had with the build up to that Randy Orton/Rey Mysterio match several years ago, when they wrapped Eddie Guerrero’s death into the whole thing. Granted, Eddie always played a character too. But the line between Eddie the character and Eddie the man was pretty blurred at times. So when Randy said that horrendous line about how “Eddie’s down there in hell,” it was that much more offensive.

- When John Cena called Rock “the greatest WWE Champion of all time,” I literally dropped an F-bomb. Are you kidding me? Great star? Obviously. Great champion? No. Hey, I was watching back then, ya’ll. I know. That being said, it was nice to see Cena get a little angry toward the end there.

- While I’m sure the match itself will be interesting, the build up for Rock/Cena II has been fairly lackluster from where I’m sitting. Rock was gone for two consecutive weeks, so we missed some opportunities for added depth there. Okay, so Cena wants redemption, and the Rock is confident because he beat Cena last year. Got it. They fleshed things out a little bit in this episode, but things still feel a little shallow. Remember folks, this is the main event of Wrestlemania we’re talking about…

- I actually think the best developed Wrestlemania angle this year has been Triple H/Brock Lesnar. They’ve got some nice history between them, and with Paul Heyman’s help they’ve done a nice job making it personal. Involving the likes of Vince, Stephanie and Shawn Michaels has raised the emotional stakes, and has set the stage for a great collision at the pay per view.

Shawn Michaels always delivers when they bring him back. I still remember his post Summerslam promo on Triple H and Brock Lesnar fondly. He didn’t have a heck of a lot to dive into tonight, but adding him to the Wrestlemania match adds a little extra dimension to it.

- Looks like Stephanie McMahon will be the one to induct Trish Stratus into the Hall of Fame. I would have preferred Lita, myself. But Steph and Trish had a heck of a match back at No Way Out in November 2001. It was one of the most hard hitting and exciting ladies matches I’ve ever seen on WWE TV.

- So wait, The Miz and Wade Barrett are relegated to the pre-show, but the eight person tag match with the Bella Twins gets on the show? Well THAT’s BS.

- So who wrote King’s “999 megabytes, ’cause they haven’t had a gig yet” line?

- I think Alberto Del Rio’s Jumanji reference was lost on the audience because of his accent. Nice one, though. You’ve got to believe that at some point, Ricardo Rodriguez is going to pull a Paul Bearer from Summerslam ’96, and turn on Del Rio. It’s really just a matter of time, isn’t it? Could it be this Sunday?

- Haven’t seen a Tarantula on Raw in quite some time! My hats off to Daniel Bryan for that one. Heck of an impact on that double cross body block too. Bryan and Dolph Ziggler usually put on a solid show at the very least.

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By Rob Siebert
Editor, Fanboy Wonder

Thoughts From Raw:

- I’m happy to see that after months of speculation, the CM Punk/Undertaker match at Wrestlemania is finally in stone. I’m interested to see how they build this up over the next month, specifically in terms of Punk’s promos. Over the last three years, each of ‘Taker’s Wrestlemania matches has been built off the previous one. The story kept rolling and rolling until it finally ended with the Undertaker, Shawn Michaels and Triple H leaving the arena together last year. This year we have to start fresh. But f anybody can make an interesting opponent for ‘Taker, Punk can. I’m curious to see how involved Paul Heyman will be here, if at all.

- On a related note, can we get rid of Undertaker’s spikey robe? It worked well as a Wrestlemania outfit, but I’m not digging it for every show. I also found it amusing that the graphics team had to Photoshop ‘Taker’s hair off the fatal four-way match graphic. I think now that his long hair is gone, the days of him wearing the classic wide-brimmed hat are officially over.

- The promo with John Cena and the Rock was surprisingly meaty. It wasn’t the same jokey trash talk we saw last year. The redemption angle is something different, which is good. But I’m wondering how they’re going to keep that interesting. They can’t just keep talking about Cena losing last year. Though it is nice to hear a Cena promo that doesn’t sound like a press release, or God forbid, a rant about  Taylor Swift and Nicki Minaj.

- Triple H’s promo on Brock Lesnar was also really good. One of his best in recent memory, in fact. The close up on his face at the end was perfect. Like Rock and Cena, Hunter and Brock have to find something to talk about until we get to Wrestlemania. Thankfully for them, they can bring Vince, Stephanie and Heyman in to expand the story.

Incidentally, last week I tweeted the following: Now that @TripleH and @StephMcMahon are on Twitter, there’s only one person missing…Vince himself. #nevergonnahappen.” Now, @VinceMcMahon is on Twitter. At least that’s supposedly him. That’s right folks, I totally did that. Like, totally. Not that it matters. I’m convinced Vince McMahon will never tweet on a regular basis. He’s just not that kind of guy. But I’d love to be proven wrong.

-  They should do Old School Raw every year, preferably in either late spring or the middle of fall when we’re between the bigger pay per views. Granted, we’ll have to try and bring in bigger names than most of the guys we saw on this episode. But it’s a fun gimmick show.

- The New Age Outlaws looked great out there. I only wish the damn kids n the audience knew who they were. Their music hit, and the crowd hardly gave them anything. I guess they’ve got to be in the right town. Also, somebody apparently forgot to tell the sound guy that their music stays on when Road Dogg is talking during their entrance. Do your homework, folks!

- So it looks like we’re going to get the Shield against Sheamus, Randy Orton and the Big Show at Wrestlemania, and the big question will be how Show will co-exist with the babyfaces. I guess we can officially write off the Sheamus/Wade Barrett thing as something that was done to promote Dead Man Down. It kind of sucks to have three stars of their magnitude shoved into a six-man, but we’ve got to have the Shield on the show in some form, right? By the way, whenever they air one of those handheld camera promos, the Shield ends it by putting the cam down and walking away. All I can think about after those promos is how somebody has to pick that cam up after they’re done. From an in-story perspective, who does it? Do they walk back over and pick it up? Is it some stagehand guy? It must be weird…

- Yeesh, Kofi Kingston dodged a bullet this week. He almost had to job to Fandango! Johnny Curtis really needs to surprise people with his portrayal of this character. We’ve got a lot of good midcard heels these days (Cody Rhodes, Antonio Cesaro, Damien Sandow, Wade Barrett). He needs to make the character stand out or he’s going to be left out in the cold. Still, at least the character gives Johnny a chance to be flamboyant, which he’s good at.

Is this stuff with Team Hell No and the Prime Time Players leading up to something at Wrestlemania? If so, that’s fantastic! It’s more likely though, that we’ll get some kind of four-way tag match, possibly featuring those two teams, Team Rhodes Scholars and Tensai & Brodus Clay. It seems like if they were going to pull the trigger on a Kane/Daniel Bryan match, they’d have done it by now. It likely would have been forgotten among all the big matches anyway. No offense, guys.

- So we’re calling Tensai “Sweet T” now, huh? You know what? I’ll take it. It’s better than what he was doing before.

- It looks like Ryback and Mark Henry might be working together at the big dance. If we’re not going to do Ryback and the Big Show, then putting him with Mark Henry is a good move. It puts a nice spotlight on both men in a “battle of the monsters” kind of way.

- So between the three matches that have been announced, along with the Triple H/Brock Lesnar match, the six man tag, and what might will likely be Ryback/Mark Henry, Wrestlemania is starting to really take shape. Considering the card usually has between eight and 10 matches (not counting the pre-show), the show is more than half full already. And we’ve still got to find room for other marquee stars like Team Hell No, the Miz and Dolph Ziggler…

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By Rob Siebert
Editor, Fanboy Wonder

The fact that this image on the left even exists makes me pretty uncomfortable. Throw in everything else that’s happened and it’s enough to make me nauseous.

If you haven’t heard by now, the immigration angle that Zeb Colter and Jack Swagger are doing caught the attention of right-wing pundit Glenn Beck, who slammed WWE on his radio show for allegedly smearing the Tea Party, and went on to call wrestling fans “stupid.” In response, WWE invited Beck to this week’s Raw in Dallas (he declined). They also posted a YouTube video of Colter and Swagger breaking the fourth wall and explaining to Beck that it’s topical entertainment, they’re playing characters, etc.

This whole situation with Glenn Beck comes off like a very obvious and very desperate grab for publicity on WWE’s part. Even a lot of right wingers will tell you Glenn Beck is essentially a cartoon character, who grabbed a huge chuck of his mainstream attention by acting downright bizarre on his old Fox News show. More than anything else, WWE seems to be celebrating the fact that someone with Beck’s fame acknowledged them, which is more sad than anything else. WWE doen’t need someone like Glenn Beck to pull in viewers for Wrestlemania season. Come on guys, let’s do it the right way…

Thoughts From Raw:

- After this week’s show, it’s obvious WWE isn’t going to be pulling Jack Swagger from TV after his February 19 arrest for DUI, marijuana possession and speeding. Obviously that’s extremely bad publicity, and something that could have potentially derailed the biggest push of Swagger’s career. There’s been a lot of speculation that all the mainstream attention Swagger’s angle with Zeb Colter has gotten is what saved him. Though I obviously have no firsthand insight, I wouldn’t doubt that at all.

- A pretty strong segment between Swagger, Colter, and Alberto Del Rio. All parties injected a decent amount of tension into the match at Wrestlemania. Del Rio’s line about all Americans being descendants of immigrants was an important note to hit, and he nailed it.

- Smart move by WWE giving John Cena and CM Punk a solid half hour. Those two guys have developed some awesome chemistry over the past year and a half, and had the crowd right where they wanted them this week. Hell of a match. And now we officially have Cena vs. Rock II at Wrestlemania.

- I was pretty disappointed we didn’t get to see the Undertaker this week, especially after he had a match at a WWE live event this past weekend. That being said, it’s fairly obvious he’s facing Punk at Wrestlemania. If his warm up match at a live event wasn’t indication enough, WWE played the footage from said event before the Punk/Cena match to plant the seed. He’s coming, folks. We’ve just got to be patient. Remember, there’s still plenty of time.

- By the way, did CM Punk steal that “I am God” line from Ric Flair? I seem to recall him saying something similar to Jay Lethal on TNA TV awhile back.

- I’m not sure Vince meant to say “Ultimate Fighter”…

- Quite a surprise to kick off Raw with what was essentially a mini street fight between Triple H and Brock Lesnar. And WOW! Lesnar got a heck of a lot of color. He allegedly had to get 18 staples to close the wound. This reminds me of when I talked about this during Lesnar’s feud with Cena last year. In the PG era, a little blood goes a long way in adding a different level of intensity and brutality to a feud.

- I don’t think Sheamus is being a STAR these days. He’s bullying Wade Barrett! You’re not bein’ a company man, fella!

- Donald Trump in the Hall of Fame? I suppose it was inevitable. But yeesh, do we have to give this guy even more publicity? Last I heard, he was suing Bill Maher over a joke. Oddly enough, the one moment that’s stuck out to me about Trump’s big appearance at Wrestlemania 23 was his God awful attempt at taking a Stone Cold Stunner.

- Ugh. Well that’s one way to kill off a talented tag team. Can the Prime Time Players rebound from jobbing to Team Hell no in a silly gimmick match? One would hope so…

- At this point, I’m convinced the Great Khali is employed solely to serve as a heavy object for guys like Mark Henry to body slam. Was there nothing else for Henry to do in the middle of Wrestlemania season?

Front page image from bleacherreport.com. Image 1 from about.com. Images 2, 3 and 4 from WWE.com.
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By Rob Siebert
Editor, Fanboy Wonder

Thoughts From Raw:

- Oh for the love of God…FINALLY! The spinner belt is gone, and we have a WWE Championship belt that doesn’t look like a toy. Cena pulled that belt out eight years ago, and I’ve been ready to see it gone for more than seven. Yes, I understand that the spinner belt sold toys. But it got to the point where even WWE.com writers were pleading to have it changed. The wrestlers on television were calling it ugly. Even Cena himself was publicly wondering why they hadn’t done away with it yet. I’m sure a lot of fans will find faults with it. But almost anything was an improvement at this point. The plate looks as if it’s carved out of stone, which I really dig. I also appreciated the Rock’s words on how the first time you see the title, it should inspire you. Very, very true.

- I don’t have a good feeling about Jack Swagger’s win at Elimination Chamber. He sounded a little bit better on the mic this week, but he’s still extremely awkward. Considering Zeb Colter has only been talking for him for a week, it seems much too soon to send him back into the World Title picture. I understand Swagger’s new “Real American” persona makes him a natural fit for Del Rio. But why not give him more than a week to develop that persona? Why not avoid once again giving Swagger more than he’s ready for?

Remember a few months ago when rumor surfaced that Swagger had requested his release? I’m wondering if this huge push was WWE’s way of getting him to stay. I have nothing concrete to base that allegation on. But when you look at how they’ve been trying to make him a main eventer for years now, it doesn’t seem far fetched, does it?

Incidentally, did Colter forget he and Swagger have new music? After his big promo, their music hit and he was looking up the ramp, seemingly expecting Daniel Bryan to be there. THEN Bryan’s music hit, and he showed up as planned. Then again, maybe the sound guy fouled up.

- Chris Jericho’s comparison of the Shield to the n.W.o. might have gotten some chuckles from longtime fans. But as the weeks go by, Dean Ambrose, Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns are indeed proving to be one of the most memorable groups WWE has seen in quite some time. They’ve definitely got the Nexus beat. From a packaging standpoint, they’ve got unique ring attire and an entrance that’s different from everybody else’s. Ambrose’s promos also have just the right amount of instability in them to make fans believe the Shield thinks they’re doing the right thing. They don’t quite have that cool factor the n.W.o., or a lot of history’s other great factions had, at least not yet. But they’re definitely the most interesting group to pop up on Raw in several years.

- Remember back when Candice Michelle was considered too sexy for Smackdown (which was still on the CW at the time), and had to be moved from Smackdown to Raw? Sometimes I wonder if Rosa Mendes is having the same problem with WWE’s PG product. Still, at least she’s been getting some time on Raw lately. Even if she’s had to job to Brodus Clay’s dancers to get there.

- I’m pretty sure if Sin Cara’s magic mood lighting had been on, he’d have won that match with Mark Henry. Uh oh, look out! Here comes the Great Khali for the slowest run in ever! Please tell me we’re not putting those two together at Wrestlemania. That’s a colossal waste of Henry’s heat.

- I can’t look at Big E. Langston without thinking of Jericho’s man boobs line from a few weeks ago. Just don’t tell him I said that…

- Did CM Punk actually say Cena “can’t win the big one?” He’s won almost all the big ones in the last 10 years!!!!

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By Rob Siebert
Editor, Fanboy Wonder

Thoughts From Raw:

- Not much to report from this week’s show, really. In the main event spot was, literally, the Rock telling a story about a crackhead. That either speaks to how entertaining the Rock is, or how few ideas the creative team had this week. His promo was essentially the equivalent of John Cena’s pre-Royal Rumble one a few weeks ago, only it’s the Rock, so it was actually mildly entertaining.

- The Paul Heyman promo served its purpose, in that it deepened his on-screen relationship with CM Punk, and built toward Elimination Chamber. I was surprised to hear Heyman reference ECW, which actually got him some cheers from the older fans. I also enjoyed Lawler’s line: “Paul Heyman just tried to upstage the Pope!”

- Incidentally, I believe CM Punk is the first WWE star in history to refer to the Pope as a Nazi. That’s just a guess, though. Naked Mideon might have done it some time in 2000…

- Was that a diving headbutt we saw Daniel Bryan give to Chris Jericho? Well that’s…awkward. I mean, you’d think that move would have been banned in this post-Benoit era. Speaking of Jericho, he’s getting a nice chance to spend time with WWE’s heavy hitters. First Dolph Ziggler, then CM Punk, now Bryan. That’s a big win for the fans more than anybody.

- Really interesting to see Zebekiah Coulter, a.k.a. Dutch Mantell on a WWE broadcast again. He gave us a really solid promo on behalf of a very aggressive Jack Swagger. So long as Mantell can do the talking, Swagger’s career may be on the upswing. Though I’m not sure how wise it is to put him in the Elimination Chamber match, as somebody will have to pin him.

- How about that repeated airplane spin on the guard rail by Antonio Cesaro? I don’t think I’ve ever seen that done before. Betcha Miz had a headache after that one…

- I always find it extremely far fetched that the Big Show can sneak attack somebody. The guy’s over 7 feet tall. His stealth skills can’t be THAT good. But hey, Alex Riley made it to TV again! With Yoshi Tatsu no less!

- It’s such a travesty of justice that Natalya, the best female wrestler WWE has right now, is paired with a novelty act like the Great Khali. Hornswoggle being with him? Not a travesty. Natalya? MAJOR travesty.

And to Go Off Topic For a Moment…

- Hulk Hogan apparently had a case of diarrhea of the mouth during a recent interview with The Daily Star, in which he made the following plea to TNA President Dixie Carter: “It’s either hold ’em or fold ’em. You’re either in the wrestling business or not. Is Dixie Carter really in the wrestling business, or this is just a hobby? You either make the move or you don’t. You’re at that point now. It’s the same place we were with WCW – you either run with the big dogs or be a little dog and stay on the porch. The destiny of this company is in her hands. It can stay TNA, a powerful little company, or she can make the decision to move on to greatness.”

On the surface this is a nice sentiment, I suppose. But because this is Hulk Hogan talking, the entire meaning of the statement changes. He’s obviously pushing for Dixie to make TNA more competitive with WWE, which by the way, worked out SO well the first time. I believe Hulk Hogan cares about TNA. But let’s be honest, he cares more about Hulk Hogan. The character, the brand, the Hulk Hogan business, etc. So the above statement isn’t really about what’s best for TNA, is it? It’s about Hogan, and just how much milk he can get from this cash cow. That’s a real shame. Because even though TNA looks a little better these days, it’s still not what it was before Hogan came aboard. Just my opinion.

- WWE images from WWE.com. Hogan/Carter image from sun.co.uk.
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