Smackdown Live Results August 9, 2016

We start the show with a backstage interview for Randy Orton, interrupted by Alberto Del Rio because they will be fighting tonight.

Bray Wyatt comes out with Erick Rowan to a sea of fireflies. Bray talks about last week’s match with Dolph Ziggler. He states that even in defeat, he is a GOD. In a very good promo saying it is now Bray Wyatt against the whole world. Dean Ambrose music hits and cuts off Bray. Telling him he is now a big baby trying to play the victim. Dolph Ziggler walks out to interrupt both of them and flies into the ring attacking Rowan. Dean jumps into the ring as well helping out Dolph. All 4 men go at it for a little bit, culminating with Ziggler trying to superkick Bray and instead Bray shoves Dean in the way! Bray hits Ziggler with a sister abigail to end the opening segment. Once again Bray saves the opening segment with his wittiness this time.

When we get back from commercial they show Dean and Dolph backstage arguing about the confusion. Shane McMahon and Daniel Bryan stop them from fighting and introduce to the audience tonight’s tag match, Dolph and Dean against Bray and Erick Rowan.

American Alpha vs Two Local Jobbers

American Alpha comes out to fight against two local jobbers. The Ascension, Hype Bros, and Vaudevillains all come out to the ring to watch the match. The match is very quick with Jason Jordan and Chad Gable hitting their normal moves. After the match all tag teams get in the ring fighting, American Alpha cleans house eventually hitting suplexes standing in the ring alone. Another quick match from American Alpha. Not a big enough sample size yet but they will get their spot sooner or later.
Winners – American Alpha

Apollo Crews highlight video plays hyping up his match with The Miz ,who is backstage with Renee Young. All he does is talk about Maryse, laying on a table with her. This segment was weird and just showcased Miz and Maryse’s love.

Eva Marie debut

Eva Marie has a wardrobe malfunction, which definitely looks fake. Becky Lynch gets interviewed in the ring and explains her frustration. Becky calls out any women who will fight her to come out now! Alexa Bliss answers the call! Commercial. Alexa is in control after the  break. Alexa pins Becky multiple times getting 1 counts. Becky fights back, a series of clotheslines. Eva Marie’s music hits distracting Becky, Alexa takes full advantage hitting a sparkle splash off the top rope. 1….2….3!! Alexa Bliss wins her debut!!! Eva Marie is interviewed at the entrance of the aisle. Eva says she tried to fix her wardrobe as fast as she could and she will be back next week debuting. I am concerned that they are doing absolutely nothing to change the crowd reaction to Eva Marie. Her entrance is unnecessary  and I hope she is getting better in the ring but doesn’t look like we will see anytime soon! Alexa Bliss has the move of the night with a 180 sparkle splash.
Winner – Alexa Bliss

Randy Orton vs Alberto Del Rio

They lock up several times. Del Rio gets the advantage to start, then Randy hits multiple uppercuts whipping him into the corner. Followed by a big clothesline knocking down Del Rio. Randy then hits a catapult on Alberto to a near fall. Del Rio hits Randy with some punches. Del Rio tries to attack Randy and ends up on the outside apron, getting pulled back off the ropes onto the outside. Commercial.  Randy stomping out all limbs of Del Rio to a 2count. A scramble leads Del Rio to hit a backstabber throwing Randy shoulder first into the corner. They end up outside with Alberto working on his left arm. Jumping off the top rope hitting a right hand knocking Randy down, 1….2…kickout! Randy comes back with a standing dropkick, setting up Alberto on the top rope. Out of nowhere Del Rio hits his arm submission hanging off the ropes! Back to the top rope randy slips Del Rio’s foot off hitting him in the baby maker! A big duplex off the second rope. Both wrestlers trade fists and kicks. Randy hits his patented double clothesline into a body slam off the ropes. Countering each other’s moves ending up with a ddt. off the apron ropes! Randy looking for the RKO but Del Rio slips out of the ring. Randy clotheslines him over the barricade and takes the announce table apart! Del Rio grabs a chair and smacks Randy in the back! Mike Chioda rings the bell as a disqualification! Del Rio talks trash to the crowd and rolls Randy into the ring…….RKO Outta Nowhere!!!! A longer match then I wanted it to be, another match just to warm up Randy Orton. No exciting moves or spots in this one.
Winner – Randy Orton

Backstage segment showing Heath Slater and Rhyno. Heath tries to get Rhyno to throw the match but he refuses.

Heath Slater vs Rhyno

Rhyno muscling Slater to open the match. Slater fights back with a series of moves getting a 2 count. Rhyno eventually hits a gore! 1…2…3! This match was bland as hell and a waste of a segment. Shane McMahon and Daniel Bryan were about to give a contract to Heath but he interrupted them before they could offer it to him. He explodes and leaves telling them they don’t deserve him. A quick match that I was hoping Heath actually won. I think he is a good character and decent wrestler but he gets more television time then he needs.
Winner – Rhyno

Carmella vs Natalya

Carmella is aggressive coming out and Natalya puts a stop to it with back to back suplexes. Stomping her out in the corner. Mattie holds her with an arm stretch, talking to the ref gets schoolboy by Carmella to a near fall. A well executed abdominal stretch leading into a discus clothesline from Natalya to a near fall. Natalya goes for a sharpshooter but it is stopped by Carmella. Carmella and Natalya end up on the ground and Carmella applies a choke with her legs cranking it tighter…..and Natalya to much surprise taps out!! Carmella had zero offense in this match and her character is sinking fast in my view.
Winner – Carmella

They hype the John Cena, AJ Styles match. Baron Corbin beats up Kalisto backstage and yells at him that he cost him the intercontinental championship.

Dolph Ziggler and Dean Ambrose vs Bray Wyatt and Erick Rowan

Bray and Rowan immediately attack their opponents. Dean starts off against Bray, Ziggler tags himself in quickly. Bray a violent thrusting throat punch to Ziggler. Ziggler fights Bray off and gets clotheslined by Rowan illegally. Commercial. Back from the break Dolph and Bray trade punches, a missing back sexton leads to both men on the ground and a hot tag to Dean. Dean clotheslines and does his running bulldog. Dean clocks Rowan on the apron, leaping over into him. Bray takes control of Dean and tags in Rowan. Rowan aggressively hits Dean with big moves and a slap. Tag to Bray, a big bookend onto Deans back! Bray and Dean bounce off the ropes with Dean hitting a swinging neck breaker. Dean and Bray both makes tags. Ziegler takes control hitting big clotheslines followed by a few near falls. Ziegler is full of enegy again hitting a ddt. Rowan catches a superkick and reverses it with a nice spin kick clocking Rowan.Near fall Ziggler hits a zig zag..1……2..Bray Wyatt breaks it up and all 4 men go at it! Bray ends up outside the ring and a botched ugly suicide dive by Dean. Superkick by Ziggler on Rowan! 1…..2….3! Right after the match Dean Ambrose hits Dolph Ziggler with a dirty deeds!!
Winners – Dean Ambrose and Dolph Ziggler

Another bad week of wrestling for RAW and Smackdown. This new era is not doing much to gain viewership. SummerSlam better be a great show otherwise I am going to complain online! Not too much to report on in the wrestling world. There were no big moves or impressive matches to entertain us with. Short segments, no storytelling. The writers for WWE seem to be on vacation.

WWE Raw Review: 8.8.2016

OPENER

This week’s RAW opens with two extremely important bombshells, firstly that Mick Foley has invited Smackdown GM Daniel Bryan to Monday Night Raw, secondly (and most importantly) PUFF DADDY IS HERE! OMG GUYS HE’S HERE… Does anyone care about this? Anyway onto the actually good stuff we get the best tag team in the company right now Enzo and Cass to open the show to a large ovation as usual. Enzo reminds us that he was spitting some game to Sasha Banks and to quote my boy, “there was so much chemistry the ring was a science fair”. Enzo proceeds to slam Chris Jericho, and in response Y2J and his new partner Kevin Owens come out to confront the realest guys in the room. What follows is some back and forth in which Cass calls Owens and Jericho a gay couple whereas Owens compares Enzo to Sami Zayn as they are both dead weight. The segment ends leading into Jericho vs Enzo

JERICHO VS ENZO

Both men are able to work holds in the earlier minutes of the matchup, Enzo goes for a frankly clumsy hurricanrana following up with what I assume was a correction for his botch of a move. Kevin Owens takes a cheap shot at Enzo when he is down near his corner. Jericho is an able to control most of the mid-match until Enzo gets some offense back after a middle rope jumping DDT which allows him to gain control over Y2J, however at the end Jericho is able to get the win through disqualification after Big Cass hits Jericho with a big boot after KO gets involved. After the match, Cass challenges JeriKO to a match at Summerslam.

• Backstage Mick Foley is speaking to Stephanie McMahon on the phone when Sasha Banks to speak to the GM and ask that her match at Summerslam be a handicap so she can keep her eye on Dana. Foley decides that if Sasha beats Dana tonight he will ban Dana from ringside but if she loses it will be a handicap.

BRAUN STROWMAN vs JOBBY MCJOBBER III

The Jobber decides that he has made a mistake and decides to leave but is ambushed by the mountain of a man that is Braun Strowman. Braun then puts the match to rest with the reverse chokeslam which still looks as bad as it ever did, he’ll probably end up injuring someone with that thing eventually.

• Puff Daddy and Foley catch up backstage but are interrupted by the New Day (minus Big E) and Woods congratulates Puff on his role with the WWE 2K17 soundtrack. Puff then asks about E’s nuts. Okay then…

DARREN YOUNG vs TITUS O’NEIL

The commentary team played up the event of last week in which Titus O’Neil cheated to win against Darren Young. This match was the same as last week except much shorter, slow and clumsy attacks from Titus being the focal point for the matchup. Darren quickly steals the win as he pulls the tights, however, in the replay, it is noted that Bob Backlund did not see. I am not interested in this feud at all despite being somewhat entertained by Darren Young leading up to Battleground. I just cannot enjoy Titus O’Neil at all.

SETH ON THE MIC

Seth Rollins comes out and immediately trash talks Finn Balor claiming that he is a second rate version of himself. Even calling him the Jared Leto to his Heath Ledger (burn). Rollins criticises Finn for not even using his real name, (sounds like the pot calling the kettle Tyler Black to me), Seth points out that Balor means Demon King and for a second Seth’s face gets very serious. Rollins delivers a heated promo stating that he has earned everything he has. I like this Seth, he’s not a delusional coward, he’s good and he loves to talk about it.

• They promote the Scooby Doo DVD. Byron is literally holding a copy. Why do I watch wrestling?

CESARO vs SHEAMUS

In a repeat of last week’s match, Cesaro and Sheamus got at it once again. After last week the two continued to brawl meaning that security was necessary to break the pair up, so despite the clean win from Cesaro, this felt like a reasonable rematch. Cesaro and Sheamus go back and forth but the story that the two are trying to portray is that Sheamus is incapable of putting Cesaro away, as he hit the high cross, backbreaker and white noise without getting a pinfall. In the end, Cesaro is able to pick up the win with a roll up meaning he is 2 for 2 in wins against Sheamus which is sure to infuriate him. As always this match was technically sound and exciting. Cesaro really is a master of his craft (not to forget about Sheamus who is also very good).

• We get a great video package for Lesnar vs Orton. We see the history between the two and the parallels between the two in their careers, including their developmental, debut date and their record-setting title wins. Seeing Brock just not give a fuck about Randy Orton is brilliant.

THE DUDLEYZ vs NEVILLE & SIN CARA

This was a solid match but due to the lack of exposure and the lack of focus on all 4 of the men it seemed very forgettable. My main gripe is that in both shoot and kayfabe they decided to split the LuchaDragons so that they could focus on their single careers rather than as a tag team, yet they just decide to put Sin Cara in a random tag match. The team of Neville and Sin Cara wins the match after a Red Arrow from the Man who gravity forgot. At the end, they teased some tension between Bubba Ray and D-Von. Are we getting a Bully Ray run? What about Reverend D-Von? Who will be his Deacon Batista this time?

RUSEV & LANA HONEYMOON

Rusev and Lana come out to the ring looking like the perfect couple (Lana looked insane). We get a powerpoint presentation of the happy couple’s wedding day pictures to weirdly idyllic music. As we fade out of the presentation all you can hear are chants of boring. Even before watching this, I just knew that this would be interrupted either by Roman Reigns or Cesaro, and I think most people did, to be honest. Well, we were right as Roman Reigns interrupted the wedding vows to confront the duo. Reigns and Rusev eventually brawl leading to a cake spot with Lana. Why isn’t Reigns a heel? He comes across a dick here and if he was meant to then it would be so much more enjoyable.

• More adventures backstage with Foley. Rusev complains to the GM about wanting revenge so Mick sets up Roman vs Rusev at Summerslam.

SASHA BANKS vs DANA BROOKE

I am sick and tired of not only seeing Sasha fight Dana, but I am sick of anyone fighting Dana. All she is used as is a stand-in for Charlotte and a bad one at that. She is sloppy in ring and was clearly called up too early. No one should be used like she is but if it was Emma or even Summer Rae we would be getting good matches out of it. The match was bad, just before Sasha picks up the win Charlotte accidentally slaps Dana but as it was in front of the ref shouldn’t it have been a DQ? Anyway, Sasha wins.

• We get an unusual video package from Finn Balor. Finn goes over the myths of his homeland, Ireland I order to explain the source of power he draws from when he becomes the demon. Now you can call me a mark for Finn Balor (and you’d be right) but I really liked this as it felt fresh and I am down for any teasing of the demon character.
• We are joined by Gallows and Anderson who play the role of Doctors who give a PSA about the danger of ringpostitis and make a lot of testicle jokes.

KOFI KINGSTON vs LUKE GALLOWS

This match was quite short, but not in the right way. This was not effective in making Gallows and Anderson look as dominating as they should be if there are any plans in making the Club anything like the Bullet Club. Gallows dominated early on but Kofi was able to use his high flying ability to gain the upper hand but after distraction from Karl Anderson, Gallows is able to get the win. The Club try to give Kofi some of the Big E treatment but he is saved by Woods. I’m not saying he needed to get his balls popped but the Club should have beat down Kofi in some way.

• Some shit happened with Scooby Doo. I’m trying to move past it.

MEETING OF THE GMs

Foley brings out Daniel Bryan and after some back and forth compliments, Mick decides to apologise for what Lesnar did on Smackdown last week. Foley brings up the footage from Talking Smack of Daniel Bryan, well, talking smack about the Universal title. Out comes Rusev to declare that there is no need for a champion as we have him, he then sucks up to Mick and threatens Rusev. Out comes Cesaro who claims that he was given a shot at some point and he wants that title shot now. Mick, still trying to make Raw the best show it can be accepts.

CESARO vs RUSEV (US CHAMPIONSHIP)

Let’s be honest, we already know that this RAW has been less than stellar. However, if they have been successful at anything it is making Cesaro look like a championship level contender. His match with Sheamus proved that he is now beyond the mid-card and the fact that he took Rusev to a great match on the same night shows that he really is a machine. Don’t forget about Rusev though, the guy is a to notch heel and along with Lana he even managed to get Roman cheered, that’s mind boggling. This match was the best of the night in my opinion, as not only did it have the best in ring work but it also combined 3 storylines. Cesaro vs Sheamus, Cesaro vs Rusev and Rusev vs Reigns. Thanks to a Sheamus run in Rusev is able to retain the US title. I wouldn’t be surprised if either Cesaro, Sheamus or more likely both got thrown into the US title match at  Summerslam.

FINAL NOTES & SCORE

• Tonight’s MVP: Cesaro
• Match of the Night: Rusev vs Cesaro
• Moment of the Night: Finn’s video package
• I don’t care, guys, I still like Lesnar
• Rusev is my dream man
• Seth Rollins aka Tyler Black aka Colby Lopez throwing shade at Finn for multiple names.

This Raw wasn’t great, to be honest. Not everything sucked as the start was entertaining, Finn and Seth delivered got promos and Cesaro’s matches were great but everything else sucked hard. Most of the matches were poor and we got a lot of cringe segments. This week’s RAW gets a 5/10 (this score would be a lot lower without Cesaro).

Breaking News: Big Show vs Shaq Confirmed For WrestleMania 33

Is it true? The Two Biggest Sport-Athletes will go face to face at WrestleMania 33 in Orlando, Florida? Reports out of complex.com View Here!! Confirmed in an interview, with the Big Show, out of the Shanghai Daily, that we WILL see this dream match! Big Show is quoted in the article stating “We’ll have one heck of a match and we’ll see what’s up. We’ll give the fans a treat.” This was teased at WrestleMania 32  in Dallas, TX with Shaq entering the memorial ‘Andre The Giant‘ battle royal. Shaq and Big Show stood toe to toe in an epic sports moment!

If you are a fan of all sports, the biggest guys, the biggest athletes, are now front and center as a tremendous specimen of nature. Big Show being the “Giant” wrestling entertainer for the past 20+ years. Alongside Shaquille O’Neal coming out of LSU to dominate the NBA with his quickness and agility. Both men standing over 7′ feet tall with a unique body catching the attention of any viewer. This Match has me extremely excited considering I will be at WrestleMania 33!

WrestleMania is a show, and yes this might be a waste of time to a few internet trolls but if you’re a fan of basketball, and a fan of wrestling, like I am, this is a question everybody has asked themselves. If these two ever crossed paths, who would win? WWE you’re the real MVP today! My Money is on Shaquille O’Neil! See You In Orlando! Who do you think will win this epic confrontation? Let me know in a comment below or on twitter @MAK10GATOR !

WWE 2k17: What We Know So Far

If you’re a gamer and especially a wrestling fan, to say these games have been a rollercoaster is an understatement. One year it’s amazing and then the next year the game sucks. I feel every time I enjoy the game, nobody else does, and vice-versa. This year’s game will be on close watch after last year’s game didn’t do so well. I enjoyed it, but a lot of complaints came from the new button system and the length of career mode. The folks at 2K have ramped up on the pre-order editions, releasing an NXT version, which is honestly one of the best bonuses I have seen in a while. If you only pre-order the game, you will receive, one of my favorites, Bill Goldberg as a playable character. BUT if you pre-order the NXT edition this what you get………

NXT Edition Pre-Order
*NXT Enhancement Pack
*Exclusive Canvas2Canvas lithograph autographed by NXT Superstar Shinsuke Nakamura
*Exclusive eight-inch “Demon” Finn Balor collectible figurine
*One Exclusive Topps NXT TakeOver: London Mat Relics card – Includes a piece of authentic ring canvas from the event
*Goldberg Pre-order Pack

If you have been buying games for years like I have, this is definitely worth the extra money compared to other games! Pre-Order fast because they are selling out!

As far as the roster goes, ign.com will be releasing these type of easter egg, cryptic photos to announce the roster!

If you look closely you can try to figure out exactly who the names will be. Below is a list of the names confirmed so far in this year’s game:

Brock Lesnar
Sasha Banks
Shinsuke Nakamura
Nia Jax
Apollo Crews
Brie Bella
Nikki Bella
Jimmy Uso
Jey Uso
Goldberg (Pre-Order)
Ultimate Warrior
Shane McMahon
Stephanie McMahon
Vince McMahon
R-Truth
Heath Slater
Brian Pillman
Booker T
Aiden English
Simon Gotch
Larry Zbysko
Konnor
Viktor
Epico 
Primo
John Cena
Jim Neidhart

Now of course since Finn Balor has a statue, he is more than likely in the game, along with your obvious top superstars. Over time ign.com will slowly reveal the roster up until the release date of October 11, 2016. It is very possible the roster can contain over 100+ superstars with some names like Bayley sure to make the cut. Not many details have been revealed about the gameplay or game modes, but with the high-demand and wrestling recently trying to maximize the audience, I don’t see how they can put out a crappy game this year. I will be in-line getting the game when it comes out, praying that this year’s game, does the real true wrestling fans justice!

Diamond Comic Distributors Good Or Bad For Future Of The Comic Book Industry?

In the 21st century there many companies and industries are still stuck on business models and practices from decades ago that do not make sense in today’s market. The music and film industry have learned the hard way that you can’t beat the internet, you have to work with it. After making ridiculous profits for decades, they now find themselves dying and struggling to keep with the times.

With that said, I asked the same question of an industry I love comic books.

Is Diamond Comic Distributors good or bad for the future of the comic book industry?

That’s a question I had never really thought much about until having a great 2 hour Skype chat with indie creator  James Schumacher ( creator of the indie horror comic Inheritance. Stay tuned to Skatronixxx for news about it later this month) last week. So I thought I’d do some research and see what I’d find.

First of all Diamond Comic Distributors is essentially the only way to get your comics into brick and mortar comic book speciality stores. You might be thinking that statement can’t be right, surely there has to be some competition. No. In fact, Diamond has exclusive distribution deals with comic publishers Marvel, DC, Image, IDW and Dark Horse.

That accounts for more than 75% of the market, and they are the top 5 publishers regarding sales. Now whether you think it’s right or not, that is clearly a monopoly. If you’re a comic book retailer, you are forced to have an account with Diamond because they have control of the most popular titles your customers want.

If you remember In 1998  the first time, the US government was investigating Bill Gates, the former Chairman and Co-Creator of Microsoft for Manopaniolization and engaging in abusive practices it was big news and a serious issue at the time. The only one who can step in and say hey you’re creating a monopoly were going to investigate you is the government.

I get that the comic book industry is not even a concern to the US government and that the tech industry has a bigger effect on the economy, but the comic book industry is a billion dollar industry and it affects the lives of people. Are there more pressing issues at the moment? Absolutely, but isn’t breaking the law or the likely hood that it has been broken worth being looked into? At the end of the day, it affects the arts, creatives, and small business owners, which economies desperately need right now.

The next question that arises is, was it unfair of diamond to secure over 75% of the market with exclusive distribution contracts? Yes and no. On the one hand, Diamond came into the game in the early 80’s as a start-up that was the competition to marvels recently bought distributor Heros World in the early 90’s. At the time comic shops had to have two accounts which became confusing due to the different policies and discounts of each company. Once Diamond landed the exclusive contracts with DC, Image and Dark Horse, Marvel realised there was no point haveing their distribution company and would eventually sign an exclusive deal with Diamond. In a capitalistic market, you can’t blame them (even though it’s a prick move) for going from startup to full-fledged powerhouse in the industry.

On the other hand your the king of the mountain, you have no reason to change when there is no threat. I’m going to use the pro wrestling industry as an example. When WWE Chairman Vince Mcmahon bought the WCW and ECW in the early 2000’s his mainstream competition was eliminated. Only a few years prior there was an explosive era in wrestling (referred to as the Attitude Era in WWE) WWE and WCW were in a rating war. Each week the promotions would try to top each other which made for some of the best entertainment and storylines in pro wrestling history. Once Vince bought out WCW, the excitement and creativity slowly began to die and after only a couple years it was a joke. They resorted to competing with themselves by having a draft for wrestlers to join one of there two tv shows Raw and Smackdown. They then went to PG for their content which also hurt, and they were never the same. With no legitimate competition and no other perspective to the industry to challenge him, Vince, effectively damaged his own business.

Competition is always good, for industries, right? Is it okay for comic book distribution? It’s complicated. With the profit margins so tight for everyone involved the addition of competition, in this case, might raise the already inflated prices of comic books. Printing a comic is not cheap, and is what eats the majority of your profits. I have heard of some mainstream creators on Twitter say that single issues aren’t viable anymore and that we should just produce trades. This idea makes sense to me; it would reduce costs and save space for purchasers, but the single issues especially the variant covers would be missed, though.

I’m not sure how accurate the numbers are regarding 2016, but these were from a few years ago and should give you an idea how the profit of the comic is divided between the retailer, diamond and the creator.

 So the average comic is about $3.99. About $1.59 goes to the creator; $1.99 goes to the retailer, and the remainder goes to Diamond. Keep in mind especially for indie creators that diamond does not pay you in advance. So you have to have the money either saved up or borrowed to pay for your print run. Once the creator gets paid (30 days later) the majority of the profit made off the comic goes to recovering your printing cost leaving little to pay yourself and any of your team that you may owe money. Retailers also have the risk of ordering too much of a particular book and are stuck sitting on product that isn’t moving, as diamond rarely accepts over order returns, which can hurt the retailer’s profits a lot. Diamond makes a profit with no risk to the company at all.

There have been mixed reports on the customer service quality of Diamond, as is the case with every companies customer service. There are always good, and bad experiences told in person, and online, deciphering which are accurate and which are exaggerated or flat out wrong is tough. I have read and heard from retailers books being delivered in a horrible condition to stores. Diamond states on their site that their comics will be delivered in “mint condition.” I’m sure now and then that’s unavoidable, but the health of comics is important the retailer and the customer. It’s hard to sell a comic with bent corners or edges; it also makes the rest of the rack look bad. Collectors are also particular about the condition of comics for grading and resale purposes.

If you’re fortunate enough to get your comic into one of the top 5 publishers, the Diamond process is a little easier with publishing staff taking care of things or guiding you through the process. If you are an indie creator, it’s a challenge to get a deal with Diamond. You have already either pitched to an indie publisher or have created your publishing company and now you’re looking to test the direct market and play alongside the big dogs. You now have to convince a team at Diamond that your book is going to be worth them putting you in there all extensive Previews catalogue. If they like, you then have to sell your comic to them at a 60% discount off the cover price, and you are usually responsible for shipping costs from their distribution centre.

The sales statistics provided on Diamonds website I’m not inclined to trust 100% again they are the only player in the game, and I wasn’t impressed with the old look of their site. I also noticed the lack of conversation about whether Diamond is good or not by both indie and mainstream creators. I assume talking about this issue could hurt your relationship with the only major distributor available. So I understand wanting to be silent or biting your tongue. It’s a tough game and creators and employees in the industry all have responsibilities and loved ones to look after. It’s still somewhat surprising; not much is being said, and It undoubtedly affects everyone.

So is Diamond right for the future of the comic book industry? I don’t personally think it is. I also don’t know what the solution is. Thanks to Kickstarter it’s shown the industry you don’t need Diamond to reach a broad audience. Some Kickstarter campaigns have outsold Marvel and DC titles by 10’s and even 100’s of thousands. So perhaps the future is crowd funding and the direct market will eventually implode over time?

I’m no expert on this issue; I just thought it’s worth talking about. With all the information available in the information age, we have so much that it’s nearly impossible to decipher what’s legitimate and what’s not. There always seems to be substantial information to prove any viewpoint. It used to be you just had to check the date of the study or statistics, not so much these days; there is no regulation what so ever on the internet regarding the accuracy of posted information.

I don’t see there being a simple solution to this problem. The fact that it’s not a big issue in the industry today is quite disturbing. I get the mentality that it’s been this way for years, and it’s worked for the past few decades. Like the music and film industry though is Diamond going to have a rude awakening when sales start to dwindle and comics released outside of the direct market start to be more viable and frankly the better option for quality? Something needs to change, but determining that requires the veterans of the industry to come together and discuss that.

Questions? Opinions? Post in the comments below.

 

Lilian Garcia Leaves WWE

After 15 years, Lilian Garcia will no longer be our voice in WWE. In a lengthy post on Instagram August 1, 2016 Lilian Garcia announced she will no longer be working with the WWE. (view here) The main reason is because her father has been battling two different types of cancer. Lilian describes in the post that her father needs her and traveling every week with WWE, just isn’t a good idea at the moment. She has been the main voice on Monday Night RAW and Smackdown.

Personally I think this should be bigger news than people are making it out to be. Lilian has been a part of every big match in recent memory. It has been really different to hear announcers other than Lilian Garcia or Howard Finkel for me. I mention this because they actually did have a match, evening gown against tuxedo match! Look it up! How could we forget her backstage interviews with The Rock, that made everyone laugh and feel awkward? I was at WrestleMania 31 and when Paul Heyman took the mic from Lilian, to announce Brock Lesnar, of course it was awesome, but it got me thinking. Have we really appreciated the lovely voice of Lilian Garcia?

There has been numerous occasions where Lilian has been embarrassed or made fun of right in front of our faces on television. She always hangs in there and takes it, and for that she should be rewarded. I mean, being involved in a love storyline with Viscera should immediately give you a salary raise! Wrestlers have disrespected her and in some cases even injured her. Lilian always smiles and rubs it off, coming back every night introducing the matches in a professional matter.

We catch some sneak peeks of her life on Total Divas but, it leaves you wanting more. Such a nice person filled with love and compassion for the business, flying way under the radar. She has recorded albums and even sang National Anthem’s at the most prestigious arenas, such as Madison Square Garden! It is unfortunate as to why she needs to depart WWE right now, but her life may be just beginning. Clearly having a talented voice and sense for song writing. Lilian Garcia is a Hall of Famer in my view and I wish her an even better life after WWE. Lilian Garcia you will truly be missed! P.S. We all hope your Dad kicks Cancer’s ASS!

Smackdown Live Results/Recap August 2nd, 2016

In the second week of the “new era” in wrestling, Monday Night Raw failed. Smackdown does not have to do much to top them this week. Shane McMahon has a lob pitch right down the middle, all he needs to do is make contact. Let’s see how the night goes……

The show starts with Shane McMahon and Daniel Bryan reliving Randy Orton’s RKO from last night with a huge group of security guards waiting. The Miz interrupts them, followed by Dean Ambrose. Daniel Bryan announces there will be a triple threat match for the new number 1 contender for the Intercontinental Championship featuring Baron Corbin, Kalisto, and Apollo Creed. Yes he said Apollo Creed. Dean Ambrose music hits and now the show starts from Nashville, Tennessee. Dean Ambrose says he is not a one hit wonder and is going to be the champ for a long time. He invites his opponent Dolph Ziggler to the ring for a friendly confrontation. Dolph Ziggler is way better than Dean in this promo, talking about how he started as a male cheerleader. Pretty boring trash talk back and forth with Dean ending it with “your not as a good as you say you are.” Dean bumps Ziggler and leaves the ring. The screen goes black with Bray Wyatt’s vignette, appearing in the ring hitting Ziggler with sister abigail! The crowd goes nuts as Bray challenges Dolph to a match tonight, winner taking the number 1 contender spot at SummerSlam!! The crowd erupts with a YES! Chant!!! (Bray Wyatt saved the start of the show)

Number 1 Contender Intercontinental Championship

Baron Corbin vs Kalisto vs Apollo Crews

The Miz is on commentary. YAWN* Corbin is in control early being the bigger man. Kalisto and Crews double team him knocking him to the outside. Kalisto hits a dive to the outside followed by a commercial. We return with Corbin standing and both men on the ground in the ring. Kalisto jumps off Apollo’s back and hits Corbin with a hurricanrana. Crews samoan drops Kalisto for a near fall. Corbin catches Kalisto off the top rope and gets drop kicked by Apollo to the outside. Schoolboy by Crews 1…..2…..3..! Apollo Crews is your new Number 1 contender!! All 3 men fight after the match with Miz interfering hitting his Skull Crushing Finale!! But Baron Corbin destroys all 3 men and leaves them on the floor as he stands above them.

Winner – Apollo Crews

Becky Lynch vs Eva Marie

Eva Marie enters second to a barrage of boos. Her entrance is so weird with that voiceover. Eva Marie appears to have a leg injury and the match is cancelled? Very sketchy situation? Can’t tell if it is real or fake? Cut to Carmella being interviewed by Renee Young, interrupted by Natalya arguing about absolutely nothing. Waste of a segment.

Vaudevillains vs American Alpha

The debut of Jason Jordan and Chad Gable! I am excited for this tag team match. Gable against Simon Gotch to start. All technical wrestling to start off with Gable impressively trading reversals. Tag to Jordan who hits a dropkick. Multiple tags to each member as Gable flies off the top rope hitting a double clothesline. The Vaudevillains take advantage of a window with double team moves. Gable fights back tagging Jordan with a hot tag. Jordan hits a variety of suplexes on both member. Spearing Aiden English into the corner, tagging Gable back in, hitting their finisher for the win! Decent match, unfortunately very quick following the Eva Marie episode.

Winner – American Alpha

AJ Styles comes out and wants John Cena. Cena’s music hits. Styles says he has a message for Cena, with the crowd barely chanting “Soccer Mom Hair.” AJ says he wants John Cena out of the WWE. AJ Styles makes fun of Tennessee. Then goes onto to hate on Cena’s fans starting with “idiot , delusional kids.” Then he makes fun of the parents who raise Cena fans. John responds saying the fans make up their own minds. “Let’s Go Cena, Cena Sucks!” chants begin. AJ asks John why he is still here? They trade disses, and Cena finally answers the question with I’m here out of love. He defends the kids and their parents with how he is in love with the WWE Universe. Cena pours his heart out in a long-winded segment defending his love for the company. AJ Styles challenges him to a match at SummerSlam. I feel like John Cena says the same thing in every promo about his hustle, loyalty and respect. Same exact in-ring promo segment from Cena we have always seen.

Fandango vs Randy Orton

Security is surrounding the ring in case Brock Lesnar retaliates. Randy is in control with the crowd chanting RKO! A dropkick by Fandango into a headlock while Tyler Breeze looks on. A series of clotheslines , a bodyslam and a second rope ddt knocks out Fandango. Brock Lesnar is shown by the barricade, he hops over the railing and F5’s Randy Orton. Suplex City chants erupt with Shane McMahon racing down the aisle telling Brock to leave. Security escorts him out of the arena. Very quick spot, felt like they could have definitely milked it a little more.

Heath Slater is shown in Daniel Bryan’s office begging for a contract. Daniel says he can have a match next week. His opponent is……Slater gets gored by Rhyno. Rhyno will be his opponent next week in a contract match.

Carmella enters rhyming on the microphone walking down the aisle. Natalya comes down the ramp and clotheslines Carmella. Putting her into the sharpshooter outside the apron. Carmella screams tapping out.

Bray Wyatt vs Dolph Ziggler

Ziggler starts face with a dropkick and a fame-asser to a two count. Bray rolls out and clotheslines a chasing Dolph. Back into the ring they go. Ziggler tries a schoolboy and lands on Bray’s ankle. He is definitely hurt, as they cut to commercial break. Come back from commercial and we see a superplex by Bray Wyatt. Spider walk into a 2 count near fall. Headlock for a couple of minutes by Bray. Ziggler finally fights back with a pair of clotheslines, followed by a stinger splash neckbreaker to a 2 count. Super kick caught into a suplex toss followed by a back senton by the new face of fear. Wyatt unties the turnbuckle wasting time, backing up right into a zig zag by Dolph. 1…….2…..kickout! Ziggler finishes the turnbuckle off and exposes it, sister abigail teased, Ziggler fights it off, Bray Wyatt bookends Dolph to a very close 2 count. Forearms and right hands by Bray knocking Ziggler down. Tossing him into the exposed turnbuckle missing it by an inch. Bray goes for the corner and gets tossed into the steel by Dolph! SuperKick!! 1….2…..3…!! Dolph Ziggler is still your number 1 contender going into SummerSlam. Dolph taunts Dean as Erick Rowan interferes and slams Ziggler down. Dean tries to help but gets tossed out by Rowan. Bray gets up and hits a long sister abigail!

Winner – Dolph Ziggler

On the second week, of the new era, WWE has lacked performance on both shows. RAW wasn’t entertaining at all with matches, nobody really cared about it except Seth Rollins vs Sami Zayn. Smackdown was extremely weird and unorganized. Daniel Bryan stuttered and messed up a whole bunch. The Eva Marie injury kind of seemed like a work but we will find out more during the week I guess. The segments were very quick and the matches didn’t perform well until the Main Event. Brock interfering was cool, but again it was over in the blink of an eye. As a fan who waits all week sometimes to watch wrestling, this week felt like they winged it on the spot for both shows. Overall the storytelling wasn’t there and I was not impressed at all with the shows this week. Sorry WWE!

WWE Raw Review: 1.8.2016

OPENER

So after last week’s Raw, this Monday had a lot to live up to. The New Era had got off to a great start with fresh new matchups and surprising swerves, could this week live up to the hype? I was sceptical.

The show opens with the arrival of the new Women’s Champion Sasha Banks, already a great start as the women starting off the show is a great way to shake things up. The audience in attendance at Atlanta was welcoming to The Boss as they all celebrated with her. However, there was one person in particular who was less than pleased, the former Women’s Champion Charlotte. The current and former champs argue in the squared circle about the results of last week’s match as well as addressing the upcoming rematch at Summerslam. Unexpectedly it is Chris Jericho who interrupts the two, Y2J lends his support for Charlotte (after some great heel work telling the crowd to be “Quiet”). The pair of Jericho and Charlotte berate Sasha by calling her “selfish” and a “brat”, this prompts the certified G himself Enzo Amore to come to support/flirt with the “Bauce” (sorry Mikaze I officially ship Sashzo now). Our GM Mick Foley comes out to set up a mixed tag team match between the two pairs (and to plug his new show, ugh).

CHARLOTTE & JERICHO vs SASHA & ENZO

Kevin Owens joins the commentary table and the weirdest thing happens, for once there is more than once good commentator on the desk as Graves and Owens make a great pair. For the first portion of the match, the face team of Banks and Amore dominated the heels as they hit them with fast past action and lots of high flying moves (Enzo does love that top rope crossbody). However, this did not last long as the heels are able to gain momentum and eventually the win as Charlotte’s crony Dana Brooke got involved and distracted Banks. The match was good if not a bit formulaic and predictable, with another Dana Brooke interruption. Unsurprisingly the men and the women in the matchup did not touch aside from one slap by Banks onto Jericho, and this match was obviously used to further/create two separate feuds, the women’s title picture and Jericho taking on Enzo and Cass.

• After the match, Jericho attacked Enzo before being chased off by Cass

STROWMAN vs JOBBY MCJOBBER

Another week another squash match in favour of the baby-faced giant Braun Strowman. If you saw last week’s Raw then you would know how this match turned out, if you didn’t then just imagine a really bad reverse chokeslam.

• Backstage Stephanie McMahon and Mick Foley are getting on well when they have to tell Mark Henry that his time in the limelight is over and he should be taking a mentor role the former strongman believes he still has some left in the tank and makes his case to Foley. Mick, being one for second chances, gives him that opportunity tonight in a US title shot.
• The Golden Truth try to be relevant with Pokemon GO. Yawn.

THE SHINING STARS vs THE GOLDEN TRUTH

After last week’s interruption from the Golden Truth in their match with Enzo and Cass, the Shining Stars are looking for revenge as they take on the Golden Truth, at least one of the Golden Truth as R-Truth is too concerned with Pokemon GO. Truth’s obsession with Pokemon costs Goldust the match. Honestly, I’d rather forget this whole ordeal.

ADVENTURE TIME WITH FINN & SETH

We get the first confrontation between the two contenders for the WWE Universal Championship, Seth Rollins, and Finn Balor, this occurs when Finn makes his way out to ringside to be interviewed by Michael Cole. The announcer does not last long however as the Man journeys down to the ring. We get some back and forth between the two as they list their accomplishments including Seth’s many firsts and Finn’s travels all over the world. It turns violent as most things do in the WWE when Rollins tries to surprise Balor with a sneak attack but the Demon is able to counter driving him back. This segment is passable considering Finn can be quite stale on the mic as a face. I am still insanely hyped for this match as Rollins and Balor are my 2 favourites in the world right now and whoever wins I will be thrilled.

RUSEV vs MARK HENRY (US CHAMPIONSHIP)

There is a big focus on the marriage of Rusev (Lucky bastard) and Lana who comes out in a wedding dress, it seems that this will be heavily featured on the next season of Total Divas. Henry comes out in American gear ready to reclaim the title for the good ole United States. The World’s Strongest Man gets in more offense than I would have expected but as we all expected he is not able to win the matchup leading to yet another Rusev rant about Eastern Europe being superior to the western world, with some extra controversy due to the Russia Olympic scandal. So who comes out to stop Rusev? It’s Roman Reigns! WAIT, WHAT? Roman in the US title picture?! This cannot be happening, Roman has finally been pushed down the card, and they seem to be committed to giving him time away from the spotlight. Reigns comes down to the ring and after a stare down with the Bulgarian Brute, they begin a surprisingly even brawl which ends with a victorious Roman.

TITUS O’NEIL vs DARREN YOUNG

Forget the SHIELD triple threat, this is the true match we have all been waiting for, player vs player in a clash of former tag team champions. This match was created after Titus insulted the Make Darren Young Great Again campaign when he questioned when Young was great in the first place (someone has been listening to what we have been saying). In the match, it seems that Titus has the slight edge as he is able to use his size and strength advantage to counter Darren’s mat wrestling tactic. However, in the end, Titus resorts to cheating to pick up the win when out of frustration he grabs the tights to gain the pinfall victory over his former partner.

• More of the backstage friendship between Foley and Steph when Sheamus arrives and demands to know why he didn’t get a title shot like Henry. He is not the only one who is confused however as Cesaro joins them to complain about the exact same thing. Mick sets up a match in which the winner will get a future championship match.
• Bob Backlund screams at Titus backstage for cheating and when O’Neil is about to lose his cool Darren Young attacks him both for revenge and to protect his mentor. It seems that this is an undercard feud that will get a lot of attention.

NIA JAX vs MRS MCJOBBER

This is another typical squash match as we saw with Braun earlier on in the night. Not much to say about the result but I have to say that Nia Jax is still looking very green in the ring. She clearly needed more time in NXT despite the massive improvements she did make. Jax has a lot of potential to be a star but the experience and skill are just not there yet.

• In an interview with Tom Phillips (who was definitely crouching), Sami Zayn promised to beat Rollins tonight.
• The New Day will be facing The Club tonight but with the stipulation, they picked fruit from a sack and the member with the odd fruit out will be sitting out of the match, which turned out to be Xavier.

THE CLUB vs THE NEW DAY           

This was a weird match, the Club, who are just being announced as Gallows and Anderson now, controlled throughout, as they were easily able to isolate Big E from his partner Kofi Kingston, but one cocky too sweet ended up being their undoing as Big E was able to get a roll up win. The weirdness about the match stems from the focus that a win for The Club would put them directly in the title picture, instead, it seems they are intent on having them ambush their way to the title as even after Xavier Woods came to support his team the New Day were left decimated.

CESARO vs SHEAMUS

Nothing to say about this really, it was a good clean match between two big and strong guys. The Swiss Superman and the Celtic Warrior put on a solid match as Sheamus worked the heat while Cesaro continues to astonish with his in ring ability (I’ll never get tired of that springboard uppercut), in the end, a surprise gotch neutraliser is able to allow Cesaro to pick up the win.

• After coming back from break we see that Cesaro and Sheamus have had to have been separated by security, and Heath Slater and a returning Jinder Mahal take advantage of this by storming the ring demanding to be signed to Raw. Foley comes down but reveals there will be a match between the two for a contract.

JINDER MAHAL vs HEATH SLATER

1, 2, 3 Jinder Mahal wins. That’s all you need to know.

• Backstage Jericho goes off on Enzo and Cass and reveals that they should be scared of him as he does have someone to watch his back when asked who he clearly makes up a name until Kevin Owens shows up and declares he will support the Ayatollah of rock n rolla. Man I love heel Jericho

SETH ROLLINS vs SAMI ZAYN

As anyone could have predicted Zayn and Rollins are able to put on a great match, I’m pretty sure at this point these two guys could put on a good match with anyone in their sleep. This match had plenty of great spots including the close falls with the blue thunder bomb and the Michinoku driver from Sami Zayn. In the end, Rollins is able to avoid the helluva kick and hit the pedigree to pick up the win. I have to commend WWE on their treatment of Seth since he returned. He may not be the face that a lot of us wanted but the cowardly heel character has been erased, pinning Roman and now Sami Zayn clean.

THE BEAST RETURNS

All night the teasing has been leading up to the return of the Conqueror Brock Lesnar, who returns for the first time since UFC 200. Brock returned with the advocate Paul Heyman who praised the Beasts triumphs and called out the Viper Randy Orton ahead of their match at Summerslam. Paul completely refutes that there is any possibility that Orton can win at Summerslam, claiming that the Randy being one RKO away from a victory is a myth when concerned with Lesnar. Coincidentally while saying this we see a very shocked Brock Lesnar ambushed by Orton with an RKO from literally outta nowhere. The show ends with Randy escaping through the crowd being chased by security and screamed at by Stephanie McMahon. Some are claiming that this has damaged the brand split but I was a huge fan of this. All the little things were so great such as no theme music for Orton, the security chasing him into the ramp and the surprise of Lesnar who actually acknowledged the change in crowd reaction when Randy turned up.

FINAL NOTES & SCORE

• Tonight’s MVP: Seth Rollins
• Match of the Night: Rollins vs Zayn
• Moment of the Night: Orton’s escape into the crowd
• Sashzo 4 lyfe
• It seems that they intend to completely ignore UFC 200 after the PED scandal.
• Randy Orton is snek

This show definitely had a lot to live up to after last week and did it succeed? No definitely not. But was it a bad show? No definitely not. Despite a lot of short/squash matches this show had a good start and a great ending. This week gets a 7/10 from me.

Top 5 Feuds For Sasha Banks

In a new era, we have a new Women’s Champion and her name is Sasha Banks! Sasha has been through a lot facing injury after injury, finally making it to the top and achieving gold. At SummerSlam she will defend her title one more time against her rival Charlotte. Anything can happen as we have seen from the WWE, but this seems to be the match that will put their feud to a rest for a while. Charlotte has recently been rumored, to have asked for some time off after breaking Nikki Bella’s longest reign as Women’s Champion. Charlotte and Sasha’s matches in NXT were absolutely amazing, but it seems their more recent feud on RAW the past couple of months has been sub par. I still think WWE is holding them back from letting loose and giving matches everybody deserves. I’m not saying Sasha is guaranteed to win at SummerSlam, but it would be very odd if Charlotte does win it back, based on the recent push with Sasha. So on that note, below are some feuds I believe would be great for Sasha right off the bat after SummerSlam.

Eva Marie

Yes I said it, everybody relax. I know she is with Smackdown but unless they have another women’s title this could definitely be entertaining. Bare with me here and just listen. Eva Marie has been getting better in the ring and she can be exactly who they want her to be, but the way they keep presenting her is killing her off. She interfered on Monday Night RAW a couple of months ago and the other girls in the ring wanted nothing to do with her. To an idle viewer, they are going to go with whatever is the trending theme for a wrestler, and when you see all the other women’s wrestlers being stand offish to her, of course they are going to feel the same way. Even on the show Total Divas, they all talk smack about her and it is not helping. Then her entrance the other night on RAW was just weird as hell. There is a voiceover claiming all these accolades for Eva, when she hasn’t done much, yet. Again she gets booed for no reason. Feuding with Sasha could change the audiences whole view of her. They have a couple good matches with them shaking hands at the end and the whole landscape changes. Sasha would be a huge baby face with Eva being the obvious heel, and you have your classic good girl versus bad girl for the audience. I think we need to give Eva a little bit more of a chance because as we have seen before, there will be a day when Eva is a fan favorite, I just hope she doesn’t have to do a backflip through a table to get the crowd on her side. Right away it will create a storyline where Eva can get her feet wet, and they can always come back to even if it isn’t for the title. Why do we not like Eva Marie?

Nikki Bella

I am not sure as to when she will be back, but Nikki should definitely be put into the title picture right away. In the past 2 years there has been only 2 title holders really, Nikki and Charlotte. I am a fan of the long title reigns because it creates legitimacy and eventually every 2 count has you holding your breath as to who will beat the champ. Nikki was solidified as the best female wrestler in the company. If it wasn’t for her neck injury who knows how long she could have been the champ. Her move repertoire has greatly increased and she will always be cheered for regardless, of where the writers put her. Nikki against Sasha feuding would be like old school against new school in a way. The veteran against the new era would be as exciting as ever. Nikki maybe brings back her sister to help her along the way forcing Sasha to find some backup again. WWE needs to get back to building characters and more in-depth storylines. A feud that would have the WWE Universe split and wanting more and more of the BOSS versus the Total Diva.

Paige

Where the hell has Paige been? Stirring up instagram controversy with her boyfriend Alberto Del Rio is all I can think of. Paige clearly is a fantastic well-rounded wrestler who has been doing it all her life. We haven’t seen Paige at the top of the ladder which makes me scratch my head. She was supposed to be at the start of the women’s revolution and then all the groups they formed turned on each other? (good job writers) Paige was the first NXT Women’s Champion and had a very good start to her career, beating AJ Lee her first night on RAW for the Divas Championship. In the storylines she has been a part of, they spend a lot of time building it up, followed by the rug being pulled out from under her. Paige attacking Sasha after the match at SummerSlam would once again split the WWE Universe making for great television. Paige can take the route of “I was here first” and Sasha saying she is the future, not Paige. An opportunity to finally introduce some stipulation to women’s matches, maybe doing a 2 out of 3 falls match. Also a falls count anywhere match, where they could use every inch of the arena. (doesn’t need to be hardcore) I want Paige to come back real soon, she is too talented and entertaining to be kept out of the main picture.

Nia Jax

Yes. I am a big fan of Nia Jax because clearly there has not been a women of her uniqueness in the WWE, almost ever. Nia Jax has been dominating women left and right and should be right behind Charlotte to fight for the belt after SummerSlam or shortly down the road. If you have gone to any house shows or NXT events, Nia Jax is pretty hilarious in-between takes and matches interacting with the crowd. Nia fought Bayley for the NXT Women’s Championship at TakeOver London. The only thing I remember Bayley doing, was giving Nia sleeper holds and chokes, eventually leading to a tap out. Yes Nia is bigger than the other women but she is athletic and does not need to be restricted to, looking like Yokozuna from back in the day. If her and Sasha cross paths, it could easily lead to Nia destroying her for the belt and Sasha climbing back to the top as an underdog once again. Big against small always works people. The newcomer who has demolished no name jobbers her first two matches on RAW and that will continue for some more weeks to come. Nia Jax becoming champ would do wonders for the company and women around the world everywhere. I am a fan, and always will be of hers, now it’s time for her to show the world who Nia Jax really is!

Bayley

Oh My God! Yes, I want to see this. If we learned anything for their matches at NXT, this will blow the roof off of any building! I wanted Bayley to turn on Sasha after their tag match at BattleGround but, we will have to wait for that I guess. Bayley and Sasha clearly are best buddies which has that Triple H, Shawn Michaels feel to it. Shawn and Hunter have said in multiple interviews, when it’s your friend you have a match with, you tend to hit a little harder and move a little faster. It was a nice moment seeing them tag together, all good things must come to an end. Since Bayley was not drafted, this feud will probably be far down the road, having WWE keep Bayley in NXT for the next wave of women to join the main rosters. Bayley and Sasha would showcase that sometimes you don’t need a storyline, it’s all about good wrestling. Match of the Year winners, and Match of The Year runner-up in the same category. That’s how impressive they have been together. Could you imagine their entrances if this were to go down at WrestleMania!? Not much else needs to be said other than we will have to be very patient for this one, and it will be well worth the wait! Hug Life against Boss Life!

These are all my personal opinions and the routes I would go for your entertainment pleasure. Sasha holds the torch now and we will just have to wait and see where her next rivalry comes from!  Agree or Disagree let me know in a comment or on twitter @MAK10GATOR !!

WWE: Booker T Retires Spinnaroonie!

Here is the tweet sent out by Booker T last night:

Mr. Spinnaroonie has announced, that as of July 30, 2016, his vintage spinnaroonie move is retired! Booker T Huffman, a Hall Of Fame, 5x, 5x, 5x, 5x, 5x World Heavyweight Champion! Where to start? Between TNA, WCW, WWE, Booker has won over 30 championships! Booker T has been one of the most entertaining, in-ring performers of this, or any other generation.  Multiple times we have watched him end his ring performance with his patented spinaroonie! If you were a kid growing up watching this, you definitely tried it, I know I did. My favorite feud involving Booker T, was the grocery store @$$ whooping he took from Stone Cold Steve Austin! A moment I will never forget and you can definitely watch again on the WWE Network. Booker also entertained us with his creative King Booker gimmick, after winning the King of the Ring back in 2006, even taking out Jerry Lawler to prove he is the real king! One of the few true wrestlers who, you can tell has an amazing passion for the industry.

In a backstage incident in 2006, Booker got into it with Batista at a photo shoot which left both men bloodied and bruised. I mention this, because that is one of the few rare times, a negative thing about Booker was ever even reported. The man has a very positive influence on everyone around him. In multiple interviews Booker T explains that if it wasn’t for Sid Vicious, the path to professional wrestling could have taken a much different path. Booker credits Sid, for letting him stay in his apartment, after getting him and his brother (Stevie Ray) into WCW. Also mentioning how Sid really got behind them, believing they had something to offer the wrestling world. We all have the privilege now, of hearing Booker’s insight on the RAW pre-show and his amazing laugh! Once again being entertaining and fun to watch. There is so much to say about his career, it would take all day to acknowledge his accolades. If you don’t know, check him out on the WWE Network. Booker T is a legend and will forever be remembered as one of the greatest wrestlers of all time. Can You Dig It?! Suckaaaaaaa!