Great news on the multimedia front! I'm FINISHED with Pure Dynamite, the biography of the Dynamite Kid! I finished that bad boy in a mere 2 days! I'll have a review for y'all on Wednesday.
Secondly, I've downloaded nearly all of the NES wrestling games, and I should be reviewing those soon. Some games have surprised me on some gameplay, while others have just made me shake my head. It shall be fun to review this stuff!
Anyway, on to the PDC.
Next match was William Regal versus Edge. OK bout for the titles, but as with a lot of Regal matches lately, a clash of styles occurred. Just no overall energy for the match. Regal is the new IC champ, as it's likely that we'll see Edge pushed down further on the card, OR reform Edge & Christian to strengthen the tag division. That sounds reasonable with Hall, Nash, and Hogan, among others, clogging up the singles ranks. At least that's what it seems, since Christian isn't doing much, either, although he's a champion in singles.
The next match was Trish Stratus versus Jazz. Oh boy, this one put me in tears! Somehow, Jackie got a special women's referee license, which didn't really add much to the match. Well, it did somewhat, as there was an ackward moment between Jazz and Jackie. Although I'm upset that this match was the only one that kept me from having a perfect night on predictions, it did make sense to keep Trish the champion. Jazz just isn't being recognized as a threat in the women's division.
Ric Flair vs. Vince McMahon was somewhat of a letdown. I compare Vince McMahon's performance to Hulk Hogan's at Halloween Havoc 1998, where Hogan didn't allow Warrior to get in any offense (not that the Warrior, then, had any). Vince had way too much control in the match, especially against a guy of such excellence as Ric Flair. Street Fight rules added nothing to the match. At least Flair won, although the match won't mean anything now that the long term direction of the company has changed (delayed split promotions).
Next, it was The Rock versus Chris Jericho. What a letdown of a World Title match. The Rock was throwing WAY too many righthands. More than usual, and that's bad because the Rock was doing better wrestling lately. The match was sadly overbooked, too, as Lance Storm and Christian tried to interfere, outside table spots were done, and repetitive false finishes occurred. At least Jericho won to offset many predictions, as it's very likely that Jericho and the Rock will do it one more time at No Way Out 2002 because Jericho used the ropes to win. Plus, Rocky grabbed the ropes on the one count.
The Royal Rumble.... Well, the WWF dropped the ball tonight. They left an incredible hole, wide open, when Maven was truly not eliminated. The Undertaker tossed him over the ropes, HOWEVER, the Undertaker was eliminated by Maven earlier. By the way, major props to the Undertaker for putting over Maven at a major event. Nasty chairshot taken by Maven, too.
Therefore, Maven was still in the Rumble. The only way, I guess, that he wasn't still legal was if he was unable to perform after the Undertaker's beating. Still, it was NEVER explained by the WWF, therefore, it ruined the Rumble. Other than the top of the card guys, nobody did well in the Rumble. Nobody had a nice lengthy run, like Kane did last year. Booker T, at #30, meant nothing because he was quickly eliminated.
What I didn't get was how if you're building up Triple H versus Steve Austin, why was Stone Cold eliminated before everyone?!? In fact, why was the Undertaker eliminated earlier when he was feuding with Austin and Triple H, too? Absolutely pathetic management and booking by the WWF.
One positive of the Rumble, aside from Triple H winning. Mr. Perfect, Curt Hennig made a GREAT return. The crowd was very much behind him, and was actually somewhat disappointed when Hennig was eliminated! Fuck the one night deal, see what you can do to get Hennig signed for a full time deal. Why let the WWA or the XWF get a good thing? Of course, Hennig would get lost in the fold with dinosaurs like Hall, Hogan, or Nash coming on in.
LAST WORD: Eh, somewhat disappointing Royal Rumble. I don't get the booking of the big Battle Royal, and the undercard wasn't too strong. Jericho vs. the Rock wasn't the strongest feature match before the Rumble, and Vince vs. Flair was lousy. I'll give this show a
AOL Instant Messenger: BookerTito - It's recommended that you send your questions or feedback as your first message so that it could be answered, instead of saying "hi", "hey", "what's up" or whatever else. Just get to the point, please, to make it easier since I get drilled with messages.
WRESTLEPALOOZA.com - Audio Show, Columns, News, and more!
KOLTERSHOCK!!! - A site that you shouldn't view with small children present!
X-Entertainment.com - One of the most entertaining pages on the net!
@That's all for today. I'll be back, tomorrow, with a FULL RAW review, which I hope builds new storylines to refresh the WWF in dire need of a makeover. Until then, why not chill?
Take Care, and Thanks for Reading.