Prophet

I disagree with this some. I think as it played out, they switched roles a little. Rock started as the heel, with Cena playing up the stand up good guy that he should be. And when the Miz attacked Rock, and Cena watched from the sidelines, Rocky shifted, lost that heel edge, and turned it into a face comeback. Which was to be expected. Cena, however, flashed a small sign of heelishness. He hit the FAA (or whatever initials it goes by now), and did the deliberate hand wave. Obvious one upsmanship. And when he looked to the camera, and adjusted his arm band, he smirked a ****y grin. It wasn't full blown heel, but a hint of heelish. I'm not saying he's going to turn, or even should turn, because money talks, but if Cena and Rock come to blows ... I think that was the seed to ensure that John is the heel in that match, a la Michaels/Hogan. I think it's simply a safety net, to ensure that if that moment comes to pass, they have something to point to. Or maybe I simply saw it differently than others.

Wow ... I wish I was a fly on the wall for that talk. "Hey Sheamus, we're gonna make you KotR, and you're gonna get a shiny crown, and a big stick, and a flowy green cape to come to the ring with, so you can job out to Mark frakkin' Henry!"

I dunno if I'd call Miz a transitional champion at this point. Also not sure I believe he's gonna lose at `mania. More importantly, for a moment, I honestly believed Morrison might pull it out. When he thumped against the pod, and clutched his knee, I saw a moment where Punk eliminated Cena, only to turn around into Morrison doing something bizarre off the chamber, and picking up the upset victory. A good match, but Morrison made it something special.

And the guy who was gonna be his enforcer during that feud was also released. Black Pain aka Big Pappi Sanchez. Shame, really ... I thought the idea could've become something. Maybe not the most memorable feud in all of wrestling, but something decent.

I loved how they tried to censor him, and just realized it was a futile effort.

Wasn't his old WCW entrance like that? Dark with the lightning strobe effect? So it looked all dark and stormy?

I have to admit, when Edge purposely went out of his way to hit the Unprettier/Killswitch/whatever name it gets upon Christian's return, I got a little giddy at the prospect of those two headlining Mania. Rumble's usually do a touch of foreshadowing during the early part of the show, and I thought that was the moment. Also say that I'm in the boat with most, that I'm glad to see a fresh face on the marquee. Roberto Del Rio (so named by the Miz) was kind of a surprise, since I figured Orton would get the nod, being the "established" name. So I'm rather happy to see a shake up in the order of things. And while I loved JoMo spider walking, and Chavo's tribute, my biggest question coming into tonight is how in the blue hell can William Regal be standing? He should have a 17" neck, and a concave chest. That was brutal!

I think the thing we all learned from this Rumble is that the `E needs to do what they did with Perfect a few years back, and bring back the big man. The fact that Rey Mysterio got booed for hitting him with a 619 is insane. lol Overall, I thought the Rumble match was pretty good. Not stellar, but definitely not bland. My biggest issue was the two championship losers being in. Maybe it's just me, but that whole concept of losing your shot at the gold, just to get a second chance at it, and not in a sneaky conspiracy way, just seems awkward.

I like the idea of Barrett winning, but when it comes to Wrestlemania, it's rare they venture outside of that small window comfort zone. Which leads me to think that it's gonna be Cena, or Hunter. I think, if it were my Rumble, though, and all parties were healthy to perform for it, what I'd do is have Cena and Kane and Kofi and Sheamus in the ring. #38 counts down, and HHH's music starts pumping, and people lose their ever loving minds. Hunter eliminates Kofi, drops Cena and Kane, and focuses on the King of the Ring. They battle, while Cena and Kane face off, and out comes number #39 ... let's say ... Darren Young. Young comes in, gets walloped (official term for the kind of beating he'd sustained), and eliminated. Then it turns to #40 ... and here comes Christian! The crowd goes crazy, Captain Charisma rushes to the ring, and with HHH and Sheamus focused on each other, Christian dumps them both, before turning towards Cena and Kane. Big battle between the three, and eventually Cena and Christian eliminate Kane. Kane goes nuclear, re-enters the ring, does his chokeslam thing on both guys, before stomping away, thus leaving a level playing field. A couple more back and forths, with false eliminations, until finally, Christian outsmarts Cena, causing him to slip over the top rope, and leading us towards E vs. C for the world title! Will it happen? No chance, but darn it, that's how I'd do it! lol

FCW champion Mason Ryan (who used to be a UK Gladiator).

Yeah, when he was holding the Miz at bay. They pushed in on Orton in the ring, and he dropped his head a little, and clenched his teeth, and let out this hiss ... it was really surreal. I'm waiting for that point when he starts flickering his tongue during promos. lol

Ya know, I hadn't even considered that. Can even see a tie with Slater and Gabriel that weaves into that thought. I will say, the shots Husky took made me cringe. Like when you get a chill down your spine, and you do that little shoulder shutter. The one other thing I wanted to touch on, I don't know if Cena ad-libbed it, getting some semblance of freedom for being the guy, or if it was scripted for him, but I have to admit, I enjoyed the Carlinism. Little sad he fumbled it, but thought it a nice touch.

I dug the Punk on the tron thing, because it came off somewhat Castro-ish. The new leader above his subjects, ridiculing their stupidity. Maybe I misinterpreted, but that's how it came off to me. More symbolic than anything. What freaked me out was Orton hissing. I get it, he's the viper, and he "coils" and "strikes" and whatnot, but he's legitimately hissing now ... that's weird. lol

Seahawks vs. Chiefs ... Superbowl Legen ... wait for it ... dary!

I can't complain about celebrations, since I used to cheer Strahan's sack dance. If anyone should be fined, though ... it's Newman. He's right there, Jackson isn't down ... pop him. Knock him out of bounds, hit the ball, do something! And Favre's still doubtful for tonight. Looks like the G-Men are gonna be teeing off on Tavaris ... wait ... this just in ... apparently the game is being postponed, because Detroit has been abducted by aliens ... darn you, Goodell!

You know it's a conspiracy, right? The NFL, so worried that Favre's shoulder might make him miss the game, conjured up a weather machine, trapping the New York Giants in Kansas City, and collapsing the roof of the Metrodome, to give Brett more time to heal! It's madness! On the upside, someone leaked pictures of the Commish in his super-villain outfit, for when he uses said weather machine, and it's a little thunder cloud in a helmet. Adorable! I'm miffed, to be honest, since I was gonna get a shot to see that game, and being a Giants fan in Florida, it's not an option afforded to me often. Stupid weather ruining my prime viewing habits. Darn you! *shakes fist!*

Unless you count G-Rilla, who I think is the most known commodity outside of the WWE circle competing in season 4. Guessing Matthew's inside jokes will be aimed squarely at Byron Saxon too. lol

Tournament schmernament ... Lawler for champ! lol

I think they left wiggle room. Technically speaking ... Cena still has a job. There's an article summarizing the main event on WWE.com, which I went to, to see if the entire page was a memorial to the passing of Cena's career. I saw the article, which had a title with a question mark, so I clicked, and in the first paragraph, it says (and I quote!) "Despite the threat of termination, Cena, acting as special guest referee, refused to compromise his integrity in order to keep his job. Instead, he called the WWE Title Match straight down the middle, allowing champion Randy Orton to retain – and possibly ending his own career in the process" and it dawned on me. Barrett said if he lost, he'd fire Cena on the spot. Since he was run off with the Nexus post match, he technically never did. So essentially everything that happened post match was unnecessary, on top of being lame. lol

I'm saddened that one of my biggest highlights was seeing Tyler Reks become something of a force. I mean, while there were some moments, the overall event was passable, at best. And the ending was horrific. So many possibilities, and that's what they went with? And for reasons I can't explain, that hug with Cole is irritating me. lol

<blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="Slagaholic" data-cite="Slagaholic" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="25169" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>Would his finisher be a wrist lock?</div></blockquote><p> </p><p> Obviously he'd come to the ring in a cowboy hat and poncho, and finish opponents with "Wristful of Dollars". <img alt=":p" data-src="//content.invisioncic.com/g322608/emoticons/tongue.png.ceb643b2956793497cef30b0e944be28.png" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" /></p>

From the WWE website ... They killed the Dudebusters!

<blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="Slagaholic" data-cite="Slagaholic" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="25169" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>There's no wellness policy in Hollywood baby!</div></blockquote><p> </p><p> Think that's less a wellness issue, and more a "there's a live alien living under the skin of my shoulders" issue. Seriously, those things look ready to burst. lol</p>

I think it depends on what criteria you're using. The three names that most people seem to circle around are Hogan, Flair, and Austin. And depending on the list, all three can be the number one of the group. The differences is in which way they'd outrank the others, in my opinion. With Flair, he's the standard. When it comes to success, no matter where he's gone, or who he's faced, or what have you, inside the ring, Flair has been, pardon the pun, the man. And at a time when most people only knew the local guys who were busting their humps at the county fair down the road, almost everyone knew the name of Flair. Then there's Hogan. Hogan doesn't have as many accolades, per say, but where Hogan leads is that he's the icon. He was the face of the world of wrestling when it became a world of wrestling. Hogan made wrestling mainstream, and that alone is enough for him to be appreciated as the greatest of all time. Austin's different. Austin was the beneficiary. By the time the Ringmaster became Stone Cold, wrestling was in a boom, and he became the focal point. He capitalized on opportunity. He fits in a nice little niche between Flair and Hogan, depending on which way you're listing ... however, Austin gets a nod because he's something of a Renaissance man. Austin helped create a new direction, which helped wrestling thrive. I believe financially Austin edges Hogan, although I could be wrong on that. Either way, it's fairly close, and it's because of his influence on wrestling at the time, and even to some extent, now. And I say all of that based on perception of what I grew up with, but if it was my personal list, Savage would be at the top. He may not top any of those three in any of those categories, but when I watched Savage wrestle, I always felt like I saw something special. Even when it was a devenomed snake sucking on his bicep. lol

I love the story that the Brain told about Andre on the Warrior DVD. When Warrior would go full boar into Andre with the clothesline, so Andre could tie himself in the ropes. And Andre kept telling him to take it easy, but Warrior wouldn't listen, until one night, when the Giant was sick of it. So when Warrior came rushing in at 100 miles an hour, Andre held out his fist, and dropped Warrior like a sack. Such a gentle, patient man that you'd never want to be on the wrong side of. lol As for the list, my guess is the order is more how or when they were decided on. The group sat, said they were discussing the list, Hunter says Shawn's gotta be on, and everyone agrees. Someone else suggest Flair, and some agree, and some say "well, he's in TNA" so it's held off. Or a scenario that makes more sense when it pertains to people who live within the business. When the DVD itself comes out, I'd bet dollars to donuts (mmm ... donuts ... *drools*) that #1 is gonna belong to Stone Cold. Somehow he seems to always top these GOAT lists anymore. At least when it pertains to the WWE.