Thoughts From Ringside…

The Rumor Mill…

There are times when there is just too much is happening in the wrestling world for me to focus on one thought to bring to the table. As I look at where we are on the Road to WrestleMania, and after what took place at TNA’s Lockdown PPV, THIS is one of those times.

We have to talk about the rumor mill.

I love wrestling dirt-sheets/websites/radio/video blogs. I’ve been watching and reading them since 1997, and now I get the chance to contribute to TWO wrestling websites, which I love. They’ve always provided an avenue for fans to digest as many news stories, interviews, opinions, and rumors as they can, siding more with one show or site rather than the other (be it that they prefer the writing or content). It’s built the Internet Wrestling Community into what it is today, and I’m very proud to be a part of that.

That being said, I want to address certain news stories and rumors that have been floating around for a couple of weeks.

Devon says “no way” to every partnering up with Bully Ray again:
Did anyone buy this for one second when it broke, or was everyone else just as assured as I was that Bully Ray would be turning heel and joining Aces & 8’s that night? It was literally an, “Ok, this IS happening tonight”  in my brain once I read this story. Fool me once, shame on you…blah, blah, blah. Devon already pulled this angle back when his contract with TNA expired. I’m happy that the heel turn and “swerve” happened (and I know just about EVERYONE was wanting it to happen) but Devon should have never said anything and it would have been more of a surprise…at least to me, because I wasn’t buying his “never gonna happen” rap. It did get me more excited to see HOW the turn was going to happen…so maybe I did like Devon ruining it before hand…hmmm…

Vince is unsure of everything right now and wanting more creative options:
WWE Creative is hiring more writers right now. To replace any of the old writers? Likely not, as it’s rumored that Vince has NO idea of what HE even wants going down creatively and just wants more options to choose from. So the answer is to clutter up the offices with more half-witted writers…mixing and matching story lines up? Let’s look at the mess we already have…

We’ve seen the Intercontinental Champion Wade Barrett feud with Bo Dallas (who has disappeared), Sheamus, Miz, AND Chris Jericho in recent weeks…and we’re on the Road to WrestleMania. So this begs the question…WHO THE HELL IS HE GOING TO BE FACING COME APRIL 7^th?  Why should we care about this title or Barrett when you keep pulling him out of one story line and throwing him into another. Same goes for United States Champion Antonio Cesaro. He’s just jobbing right now to guys like Alberto Del Rio, Jack Swagger, Randy Orton, and Ryback. Why? What happened to his feud with the Miz? Now they’re saying maybe he’ll face R-Truth during the ‘Mania pre-show? Random to say the least. And why is the Miz going for the IC title again after a confusing last match against the US champion? What is the deal?

Chris Jericho, who is only around “full time” until ‘Mania, hasn’t been utilized in a any kind of way to set up a match at “the big dance.”  Team Rhodes Scholars (who should be the Tag Team Champions IMO) broke up, had a “one time only” reunion (at least 4 times), and is NOW back together for good. What is happening? Are they rumored to be getting a title shot at ‘Mania at least? NO. The rumor is the WWE wants Dolph Ziggler and Big E Langston to start feuding with Team Hell No and face them at ‘Mania. Wha…DOES ANYONE HAVE ANY IDEA WHAT’S GOING ON RIGHT NOW?

So much wasted creativity and story line progression has gone down since the Royal Rumble. It’s hard to keep everything straight as it is, and now Vince wants MORE options to throw in the mix. Sweet mother of mercy…I’m starting to miss angles like the “WCW/ECW Invasion” with story lines like these. Ugh.

There is talk of the WWE trying to regain a lot of its former Divas: Seriously? If you’re going to continue to bury the girls that you have now, why waste money on trying to bring in former, lack-luster talent? To get the Divas Division back to it’s pretty irrelevant status from it’s ZERO irrelevant status? If you aren’t getting Lita, Stratus, or Victoria back…what’s the point? It’ll just be pretty faces in ribbons and laces yet again, with competition that is less entertaining to me than watching paint dry. WASTE.

Fandango: I’m not going to say much about this…but I hope the rumors of him not wrestling yet is because they’re thinking about scrapping the gimmick altogether. PLEASE do. It is SO terrible. WWE Creative is setting up Johnny Curtis to fail BIG time with this stupid gimmick. The voice, the dancing, the shatty promos…EVERYTHING about his character is setting this guy up for failure. Laughable. It’s all so laughable. #WASTEdango indeed.

The WWE Network: Rumors are still running wild (no pun intended) about what will be on the network, when will it launch, what will be the price of subscription, etc., etc. I’ve heard about this thing for a few years now, and I’ve seen VERY little that makes me excited about it. If they water the network down with crappy programming, like they have on their Youtube channel at the moment, it will DEFINITELY not be worth the subscription charge. Netflix already shows some of the WWE’s DVD programming, so the network should build off of that, showing the footage from the DVDs that isn’t shown on Amazon Prime, Hulu, or Netflix. If they want to get the hardcore fans excited about this network, they have to start giving out some details about content, because it’s only going to be the hardcore fans that pay for this thing in the first place.

Want to hear more of my thoughts? Follow me on Twitter @DougOMac and tune in to RSM Weekly tonight and EVERY Thursday night LIVE at 7pm EST!

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