Now that I've finally read all of the feedback concerning the "RAW is BAD Tito" column... I saw feedback split in 3 ways. First, many readers said "amen brother", and said that the Bad Tito edition of the PDC was much needed and harsh criticism for RAW. Secondly, many agreed that I was correct on my points, but looked sort of immature with my cursing and nasty comments. Finally, we had the feedback in total disagreement with me. Many of those pointed out that the PDC is too anti-Stephanie lately.
True.... the only reason I do rip her is because of the large amount of television time she takes up, despite being a non-wrestler, and for the angles she's involved in, such as fighting over hand lotion and a dog to hype up Wrestlemania. That's my argument lately, and IN MY OPINION, it's a very valid one. Other Stephanie comments include what her true position within the WWF is, such as the "head writer". Those comments come from nearly all of the insider newsletters saying so, and they get their info from their WWF sources who enjoy barking out insider WWF info over cell phones as they happen backstage at WWF events. Secondly, she is on the writing team, right? That's a proven fact beforehand. So if she's there, then why does she have a lot of time on television? She must be the most powerful writer, too, because Vince McMahon agrees with every decision regarding her character. That being said, she's the head writer of the WWF.
Anyway, let's discuss the cursing in the PDC. Looking at the old BAD TITO Archives, you'll find out that the Bad Tito columns had a lot of cursing in them. I originally created the column as sort of a comedy column, with yours truly just cursing like a truck driver about wrestling. With that being said, several readers said it was one of my more funnier columns, ever. HOWEVER, a lot of people don't like to see many cursewords in a column, especially one that I USUALLY keep clean. Sure, I let an occasional word slip by, but in the Bad Tito columns, I strive to curse in every sentence or at least once in every paragraph.
But if you didn't like the cursing, then I apologize. I will note, however, that I take full responsibility for my columns, and I am fully aware of what I write on a daily basis. I wanted to curse because I wanted to get the point across that the WWF was poorly hyping Wrestlemania. I felt the need to do so, but if I came across as a total douchebag, again, I apologize.
But I back what I write. On to the PDC.
Smackdown opened up with clips of poor Lucy HHH getting run over by the limo. Come on, don't give me a reason to curse!
We start off Smackdown with a match... Rob Van Dam versus Kurt Angle. FINGER OF SHAME goes to Michael Cole and Jerry Lawler for basically ignoring the match on hand and hyping other stuff. That's a major problem with the WWF anymore. Maybe if the announcers talked more about the match on hand, then maybe the crowds could be louder for a certain wrestler? A wrestler can't tell his or her story when an announcer ignores them completely. Match was decent, but not the best one between the two. I'm hoping that the RVD loss to Angle was done to have RVD win the IC title this Sunday. Regal has been IC champ long enough.
I still don't get why the WWF board didn't vote against Vince McMahon because of his attempt to KILL the WWF by bringing in the New World Order. Makes no sense to me.
Our next bout was Billy Gunn vs. Bradshaw vs. Bubba Ray Dudley vs. Jeff Hardy. Eh, typical Smackdown match for me here. It's funny how when the WWF creates a bad tag team feud, the way they try to make it up is to rig a 4 way match at a Pay Per View. Why not just rid yourself of Billy/Chuck and the APA, create a team from OVW, and push the Dudleys, Hardys, and Booker T/Test, and while we're at it, reunite Edge & Christian. Anything is better than having Chuck and Billy as the champions, and the APA as the #1 contenders. Obviously, someone realized that because APA vs. Chuck/Billy isn't at Wrestlemania, but APA vs. Chuck/Billy vs. Dudleys vs. Hardys is.
Backstage, Lita and Trish brawl from RAW's actions. Let me say this again: Jazz vs. Trish vs. Lita COULD be a good match, for a change, in the Women's match. They key word is "could", as each wrestler has a few elements missing to make the match bad. Trish is probably the best actor of the bunch and best seller, Lita is great on charisma and flashy moves, while Jazz is probably the best ring technician out of the bunch (although not that great). We'll see at Wrestlemania....
Next, we have Al Snow vs. Big Show. Al Snow was quite entertaining in this match. They did the old bowling ball to the nuts trick, which I actually saw in one of the Best of Backyard Wrestling videos lately, too. Poor Big Show just stood in the middle of the ring, while Al Snow attacked or sold whatever Big Show hit him with. 24/7 rules prevailed in this match, as Maven took advantage of an opportunity and won back his Hardcore title after some interference by Goldust. Man, why couldn't they have done this a week ago? Booking on the fly hurts everyone. Maybe at the show, Al Snow will challenge his pupil to a hardcore match.
You know what? Hulk Hogan is quite funny with his WWF promos. I was laughing at the many times he had us watching the big boot/legdrop combo. Rocky would come out, and confront Hogan. My hope is that their match somehow exceeds expectations of most wrestling fans at Wrestlemania.
Next match was Booker T/Test vs. Tajiri/Edge in the fight over Japanese Shampoo. Why not make it a shampoo bottle on a pole match? SMELL THE RATINGS! This match was WAY too short to make anything out of it. Tajiri looked pretty good for the time he was in. No title defense for him at Wrestlemania?
On camera, I can see a big improvement over the Scott Hall now than with the one a few years ago in WCW. He seems a little more focused now than then. I'm guessing that he could surprise some people at Wrestlemania. Seriously. When Hall was at his best as Razor Ramon in the mid 1990's, his matches were pretty good. I should know, for I have the WWF Razor Ramon video, full of his matches. I'm guessing that he wouldn't go out to embarrass himself at Wrestlemania of all places. I hope so, at least. He did a good promo against Austin, and was later ambushed afterwards.
Vince McMahon arranged for a David Flair vs. Undertaker match to occur. The 'Taker pounded David to the ground, only for Slick Ric to attack with a chair. Again, it's the best Undertaker feud in years, and this match just added to the heat. Hell, for the past month, have I even said one bad thing about the Undertaker? Nope. That has to be a record!
Triple H would make his way to the ring. Decent promo by the game, and then Chris Jericho and Tons of Stephanie came out for a war of words. It would lead to a Jericho-Triple H brawl, which eventually led to Jericho giving the WALLS of JERICHO to Triple H on the announcer table, just like he did after Triple H tour his quad a little over a year ago. Good psychology there, as I question why this kind of booking was used NOW instead of WEEKS ago. Instead, we witnessed arguments over hand lotion and who would own the family dog. See what I mean?!? Stephanie popped out of her outfit during the attempted pedigree on the announcers' table. Man, popping out twice and showing ass once in one month is very strange. Maybe if she wouldn't dress in slutty outfits to get extra attention for those who haven't been suckered into her horrible attitude, then maybe the WWF censors wouldn't have to be ready at all times. Someone did send me the footage of where they popped out originally, as Smackdown featured a different angle. Man, those tig ol' bitties just come out for some fresh air! And no, I will NOT send this to anyone who asks.
LAST WORD: A MUCH better show than RAW in terms of Wrestlemania hype, but does the WWF have to wait until the final television show before Wrestlemania to give the fans a reason to spend $40 for the Pay Per View? I thought the Jericho-Triple H feud was handled the best tonight, whereas other nights have been a joke. Hogan versus Rock is hot, Austin vs. Hall is good, Flair vs. Undertaker is nice, while the rest is just gravy. I'll give this show a
Secondly, there are some tensions between some of the wrestlers. Apparently, the African American basketball player isn't really liked, as she's cocky or too much of a showboat. Eh, give her time. She just needs to learn the business, and once she does, she'll possibly win it for the Women's side. The men's side is continually competitive, and it will even be more so since 2 guys were cut.
Speaking of that, I agree with one of the cuts, but not the other. I thought Robert was a worthy cut, for he's badly out of shape to become a wrestler. Many wrestlers in the WWF are his weight, but he's not fast, agile, or conditioned like them. He seemed to be giving up on every exercise done. I didn't like the Aaron cut. Because he blacked out one day, he was out of the competition. They should have given him a chance, since he was good in the ring. Oh well. Now, Aaron can go back to his bossy girlfriend, where he can be whipped and controlled for the rest of his life.
LAST WORD: I see either Jake or Matthew winning it all right now, and I'm very unsure on who will win it for the Women's side. It's hard to judge who is better than who, though, as Tough Enough is only a half an hour long. The shorter time causes less in-ring action to occur, or at least to see everyone's faults.
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.
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@That's all for today. I'll try hard to get a Wrestlemania column up Sunday, with a rundown of my top 17 Wrestlemanias, which is tradition, and my predictions for this year's show. Until then, just chill.......
Take Care, and Thanks for Reading.