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Rebecca Cerese

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REBECCA'S RANTS

Hey All! Well, another PPV has come and gone, and as good as it looked on paper, No Way Out left me somewhat confused and saddened. Raw saw the WWF heading full steam into their crown jewel Wrestlemania, as we tried to adjust to a WWF without Mick Foley in it...and I'll tell you, it kinda sucks...

First, onto the PPV...

I want to say first and foremost that I thought the wrestling at the PPV was top notched, with the high spots for me being the six man tag match between the Radicals and Too Cool, as well as the Hardys vs. Christian and Edge. I was also extremely impressed with the Jericho/Angle match as I felt these two had very good chemistry in the ring together. The rest of the matches, excluding Viscera vs. Mark Henry in the what the hell is this match doing on a PPV contest, and Tazz vs Bossman were all solid, with the Hell in A Cell being heads above the rest...but what the hell was up with endings.

As good as the wrestling was...that's how screwed up the booking was. I understand why the WWF did certain things, but I can't say I agree with them or like them very much...so lets take a look match by match and see what I am talking about.

I thought Jericho vs. Angle was a hot opener. With not much back story, this still came off as a very heated and competitive contest, and like I said, I felt Angle and Jericho had very good chemistry together in the ring. Thankfully the WWF did not have Chyna turn on Jericho as we are just now finally getting used to them together. Of course, her getting bumped directly affected the match, but it was Kurt Angle's perfect heel tactics that solidified the victory. A while back I wrote a column about heels, and I wondered aloud if Angle had what it takes to make it as a top heel...well I have my answer, and I think its YES. This guy plays a heel to perfection...he goes on and on about integrity but then he'll use the belt to knock Jericho unconscious. I think that giving him the two belts was a good idea. What better way to make us hate him even more, he defeats Jericho using underhanded tactics, and then he gloats and gloats some more over his victory. I know I was cheering when Jericho and Chyna locked him in the trunk, after hearing him hum "We are the Champions" all night. I loved the way he came out on RAW wearing the two belts, that was just classic. He issues an open challenge, and then when he realizes he can't defeat Rikishi, he books out of the ring, and is counted out. He is a great heel, and I hope that he and Jericho have a rematch at Wrestlemania, where Jericho can take back what rightfully belongs to him, the IC belt. Even though, the WWF has suddenly thrown him into this rivalry with the Radicals, so I don't know where they are going to go from here, but anything that keeps the Radicals on my TV is fine with me...

Side Note: The Chyna /Jericho pairing has finally grown on me. He seems a little more comfortable having her around now, and she knows how to play her part to perfection. I loved how she got involved in the Jericho's match. First a viscous shot from Malenko, then a wicked suplex by Saturn. She got her revenge in the end though. God I never get sick of her handing out the low blow. I am really interested to see where this is going.

Next up was one of my favorite matches of the night, the Dudleys vs. the New Age Outlaws. I knew as soon as I saw Billy Gunn nursing that shoulder injury that we were going to have new champs. As much as I dislike Mr. Ass, I gotta give kudos to him for coming out and working the match, even though it was apparent he didn't have the use of one of his arms. Still, he went out there, and worked a pretty respectable if not short match. But the end result is all that matters, and indeed we have NEW CHAMPS. Even though I knew it was coming, I was ecstatic. I think the Dudleys look really great wearing the gold, and that they are very deserving champions. There was a reason they were 8 time ECW tag team champions...they are excellent tag team wrestlers...and they make themselves and their opponents look great in the ring. And although neither Mr. Ass nor Road Dogg went through a table, it was great to see Road Dogg get dropped by the awesome 3D, my favorite end move of all time. So, onward from here, I still think somehow it will be the Hardys facing the Dudleys at Wrestlemania in a highly anticipated rematch from the Royal Rumble...I am still hoping for a triple threat match with the Hardys, the Dudleys and Edge and Christian, but I am more dubious about that happening at this point...I wonder if Edge and Christian will even make it till Wrestlemania as a team?

Next up was Viscera vs. Mark Henry...technical difficulties saved this...I mean ruined this matchup as I had to rely on JR and King's play by play for this one. Fortunately, the production team had things well in hand for the next match up...

For the #1 contendership for the Tag Team titles....Edge and Christian (still no team name) vs. the Hardys, with the return of Terri, and oh yeah, the Acolytes at ringside. Needless to say I was highly anticipating this match, because well, because I love these two teams...and once again, despite what some people say they did not disappoint. No this wasn't that ladder match, but it was still a damn solid contest, and the fact that supposedly a boring chant broke out during this match just makes me sick. Personally, I thought the crowd in Hartford sucked, only getting up for the last two matches of the night, and occasionally popping for the high spots...if they were chanting boring, they should have been chanting it to themselves. I want to see any one of those in attendance go out there and do what the Hardys or Edge and Christian do...They can't plain and simple. What people have to realize is that these four are men, they are human beings, and no matter what, they go out there and give it everything they have that night. That being said, I thought the match came together very well. It started off at a slower pace, and then build up to an exciting crescendo filled with high spots and near falls. Jeff Hardy was in full suicide mode as he seemed to land a little awkwardly after a few moves...BE CAREFUL JEFF. Throw in Terri turning on her boys, and you have a pretty interesting ending to a really solid match. So while Christian and Edge take off to celebrate and cut an ominous promo, the Hardys get their asses kicked further by the Acolytes. I was really glad to see Jeff still standing after that botched dominator by Farooq...Hey note to Farooq: if you don't have someone balanced correctly you should not drop them roughly on their neck asshole!

So my next question is...was that a little bit of heelishness emanating from Edge during that promo...I think so...how does this bode for Edge and Christian as a team. I don't think very well. Now throw in Terri interfering in their matches, and I think there will be a split soon. Which I wouldn't mind so much as long as Christian doesn't become the forgotten one!! The deal is always made over Edge, but I think that Christian works twice as hard in their matches, takes twice the amount of bumps, and gets less than half the glory. I swear sometimes I think I am destined to love the underdog.

I think the Tazz match or whatever that was came next...I get that the WWF are trying to make him look tough, he's the "never quit" guy, but there has got to be a better way to do this than putting him against Bossman. I know Bossman has a fairly decent sized contract so we are forced to see him, but I strongly disagree with pitting him against Tazz. Now, as my friend Lewis (remember, the huge Tazz mark) pointed out to me, he thinks that a Tazz/Prince Albert feud would be a good thing for both men. He even compared it to the days of the Taz vs. Bam Bam Bigelow wars in the ECW. I have to agree with him on this one...I've always been impressed with Albert, but the guy needs something to get over, and sticking him with the Heat killer Bossman is not the way to do it. If you get him and Tazz into an all out crazy war, maybe both could be elevated in the process. One thing I know for sure, Bossman needs to be subtracted from this equation quick, before he takes Tazz down the bottomless hole of no heat with him.

My Big Red Machine took on X-Puke next in a killer contest. Both men fought their asses off. Kane looked great the entire match, until the seriously lame ending which saw my worst fear come true, when X-Puke picked up the victory over Kane. Sharon called it, but I didn't want to believe it would happen. I even emailed her and asked her how she could pick that little punk X-Pac over Kane...and she told me as much as it pained her to say, Kane was going down...and unfortunately she was right. Although I hated the lame-ass ending this was by far the best match I had seen these two fight, and I was very into it. Of course the highlight for me was seeing Tombstone Tori get another Tombstone...man, I never get sick of that sight. Plus kudos to Paul Bearer for getting in on the action and getting in a few shots in on X-Puke. I guess they are building up yet another match up between these two at Wrestlemania to finally end this feud once and for all. But still I hated the end to this match, I mean Kane is kicking ass the entire match, and then one move later, he's pinned under that stairs and its over...shitty ending to say the least. So here is my hope, and I know you've heard it before, but here it goes again. I WANT THEIR LAST MATCH TO BE A BLOOD BATH. I WANT X-PUKE WEARING THE CRIMSON MASK. I WANT HIM BUSTED OPEN WORSE THAN HHH WAS AT THE RUMBLE. AND FINALLY I WANT HIM PUTTING OVER KANE CLEANLY...THE END. Pheww...I feel a lot better now.

Ok, onto my favorite WRESTLING match of the night...Too Cool vs. the Radicals...I don't know about the rest of you but I love those Radicals. They are just super exciting to watch in the ring. I knew this would be a great contest, and it was...it was really cool seeing the old school style make a much welcomed return to the WWF. Special notice has got to go out to Malenko who was just in a zone that night. He was perfect. I loved the way he would sneak in and clip Rikishi's leg and then slip out of the ring. He looked great out there, and in my mind stood out the most in the match. So my big problem with this match...why not let the Radicals get over. I mean you had the perfect set up...Rikishi is injured which would explain why he wasn't able to save the day...and hell is Scotty too Hotty or Brian Christopher to good to lay down for someone, I think not. The psychology of the match was setting up a Radicals win, but then something fell apart. In the end it was such a good match that it might not be important who won, but just that everyone looked impressive, but I still think the Radicals should have taken it. Still, I loved the fast paced action, and watching Malenko work his magic was a thing of beauty...no suplex from Benoit, but still not much to complain about here.

So the crowd finally goes apeshit, I wonder why, the Rock has entered the arena. The Rock is so ridiculously over it's not funny, which is fine. I have a lot of respect for him as a person, and as a performer, I just can't get into him like everyone else. Now, the Big Show, I just think he flat out sucks...I used to like him, but then I realized that he couldn't work a match if his life depended on it...that being said I thought this match was going to absolutely suck...plethora of backstory or not. But it did not suck. In fact I thought it was quite entertaining, plus it had the giant swerve ending which nobody saw coming. I thought if anyone is a lock as a winner it would be the Rock, but no the WWF confuses us once again. First, they give us the return of Shane McMahon. Man, I was so excited to see Shane!! Then he whacks the Rock with the chair mid-people's elbow, and I am loving it even more...then I realize...wait, he's aligning himself with the Big Slow...what the hell is up with that...So I eagerly await his explanation on RAW, and what do we get...he was picking his spot, and he wanted to align himself with a champion? I was like Shane, have you clearly looked at who you are aligning yourself with...yeah he may be 7 feet tall, yeah he may be 500 lbs (whatever), and he may have been a champion, but he also ABSOLUTELY SUCKS. Still I am glad Shane has returned to TV, as I missed him, and seeing him give Rock the clothesline makes me wish that he will also return to some in ring action as well. And although I know our esteemed leader CRZ strongly disagrees with me on this note, I love to see Shane in the ring, because he always brings excitement, enthusiasm, and yeah a little craziness with him... Welcome back Shane!

Ok, now onto the Main Event...I say wiping a tear from my eye...

Now, I am not really going to talk about the match except to say it was a real nail biter to say the least. I think I spent a good part of it hiding my eyes in my friend Jesse's shoulder, peaking out through my hair. All in all it was a tremendous contest...that being said...

I've been trying to think back to when I started to love Mick Foley, and I find it impossible to pin point the exact moment. After he lost this match, I started to think about him and his career, and how exactly he has touched the lives of all his fans. I think what separates Foley from most of the other wrestler "Superstars" is his humanity. Even behind the façade of Cactus or Dude or Mankind, Mick Foley is still clearly evident. When I look at him, I see a man, who had a dream, and when he realized he didn't fit into the world where his dream existed, he created a new spot just for himself. He wanted to be a wrestler, he wanted to entertain, he wanted the roar of the crowd chanting his name, so he went out and made his dream come true. No he couldn't do the high flying moves, no he couldn't do the power moves, but what he could do is make a match damn exciting as hell by telling a story...and of course the man could take some tremendous bumps. Oh yeah, did I mention the man can cut one killer promo...he has had many classics over the years, but I would have to say the one he cut on Smackdown preceding No Way Out was the best I have ever heard. It sent chills up my spine. Mick does it without catchphrases, and without repetition, yet they are always witty or thought provoking or goddamn hilarious. Yeah, the Rock is great, Jericho is great, but Foley is the King. I still say that my favorite Raw moment of all time was when Mick Foley won the WWF Championship for the first time...I can still watch it today, and have tears well up in my eyes. I think the main reason that this moment is so special is because it was obvious on Mick Foley's face just how much holding that belt meant to him. In a time where belts have lost their meaning, to Mrs. Foleys baby boy, winning the belt meant the world, and it was obvious when he dedicated the belt to his children.

I was lucky enough to meet Mick during a book signing, and I told him how much I appreciated all he had done to entertain us. I also told him about my favorite RAW moment...he asked me if it made me cry, I told him it did. I am very glad I was able to tell him how much his career has meant to me as a fan.

All in all, as much as I hated seeing him lose, I was glad he went out in the match that made him famous. I am even more thankful that he didn't get hurt, which was my greatest concern...I really hoped that he would be going to Wrestlemania but that is not the case, and I will have to live with that. But still for all he has given to wrestling, I thought he deserved to go to the Big Show as the champ, but obviously those at the WWF thought differently than me...I guess I am just sad to see him go at all.

So here's to you Mick:

Husband, father, wrestler, performer, comedian, bump machine, best selling author, Champion...Legend.

I hope you enjoy the time with your family...you earned it...

Rebecca Cerese
[slash] wrestling

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