Condo On The Moon Podcast #59

We get more controversial than these two did on Thursday. Which isn't saying much. We get into all the rest of the week's news in pro wrestling. So sit back and enjoy an hour plus that will include not Chris Jericho butt kissing we guarantee you 100%.



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Condo On Moon Podcast #57: Podcast Isn't Jericho

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Chris Jericho is no Stone Cold as a podcaster. That is one of a number of topics as we go 60 minutes talking the week that was in pro wrestling.



If you are unable to listen or download here please head over to Podomatic and do it there.

Raw: Talking Points April 7th

Well 8 days removed from Wrestlemania and it feels like weeks removed after last night’s Raw. Heck half the roster was missing for WWE Day in Austin. Daniel Bryan, Dolph Ziggler, Dean Ambrose were among many fan favorites that did not show up in Austin. WWE does have a European tour ahead this week that might explain why so many were missing. Those who did show up put on a show in Austin. It featured confirmation that the main event for Extreme Rules will be Randy Orton vs. Seth Rollins first title defense as Champion.

So here are some of talking points coming out of Raw in Austin.

1. Miz vs. Mizdow….Really?: Why on earth was this match happening in Austin as the match right before the main event? It turned out to be more of a story development with The Miz getting the win and now likely leaves Mizdow to chase a re-match. This however makes little sense, as this was a match that should be on a special event not something thrown into Raw. WWE did a great job of building this feud and now like the Seahawks seem to have screwed up on the goal line with an easy touchdown there for the taking. I was fine with not having Mizdow win the battle royal but this is just pure insanity. I suppose the Mizdow win is still the big pay off but it really has had a lot of the air come out of the balloon in my view.

2. NXT Call-Ups Remain Strong: There was good follow-up for both Neville and the Lucha Dragons in week two on the main roster. Neville gets a match with the New WWE Champion Seth Rollins. He had a heck of a match with Seth and it really did a lot for his stock despite taking the loss on the night. The Lucha’s were able to pick up a win in tag team action, remained over with the crowd, and perhaps most importantly botch free in victory. Seems there has been at least a short-term plan for both of these call-ups. Neville heading back to the U.K next week is a huge chance to cement him as a new star. It will be interesting to see what they with this opportunity.

3. John Cena Open Challenge Continues: His interview with Chris Jericho after Raw sucked. This new angle of having an open challenge for his newly won U.S Title doesn’t. I like the idea of Cena working with almost anyone potentially on the roster. If the pay off is done right and we get a new star capturing the U.S Belt (Sorry Vince Title) it will be great for that guy and for this title. Down the line, a Sami Zayn or a Finn Balor winning over Cena would be a huge launching pad on to the main roster. This likely doesn’t happen for a while though. Unfortunately, for Rusev this makes his gaining back his U.S title unlikely. I will never like John Cena but this is the most effective use of him and he deserves credit for taking this spot lower on the card to highlight others through this gimmick of the open challenge. Many have pointed out how it mimics Cena’s debut answering Kurt Angle’s challenge. A full circle moment for John Cena that makes him comes off in a positive light.

4. Cole remains off T.V: Rumors had Michael Cole returning with Booker T and JBL thankfully this didn’t happen. Byron Saxton was terrible yet again and I still maintain Cole being out is WWE trying to convince fans by his absence he is good at his job. Regardless of if that is correct or not Cole being off T.V had to happen, given that Brock Lesnar destroyed him a week earlier. Devaluing Lesnar is the last thing you want to do if you’re the WWE at this point.

5. Jericho is no Austin: The debut of Chris Jericho doing a live podcast was what I have come to expect from Jericho. I can’t stand his company butt kissing interviews and his attitude. Steve Austin gave the feeling of representing the average fan. Jericho represents himself and the WWE. His interview with John Cena might have been entertaining if you are a Cena fan. If you were someone looking for something of substance this was not for you. Jericho as much as he pretends to be a rebel is nothing more than a WWE puppet. Austin isn’t that and never will be that which is why fans respect him. Jericho has become a joke and his last run with the company on television in my opinion was by far his worst. I no longer consider myself a Jericholic. Chris isn’t the same guy or he is showing us who he always was through his podcast and to me he has just become a douchbag WWE apologist. We already have lots of those no need to have another. This is a blow for the WWE Network that had a cool draw with the Austin Podcast. Jericho’s version does nothing to make me want to buy the network let alone seek out these cotton candy interviews moving forward. If I am guessing, his next guest will likely be Stephanie and butt kissing will be just awful.

Oh, by the way Randy Orton is facing Seth at Extreme Rules, which we already knew before Raw. This show was a total placeholder and largely a waste of most of your 3 hours.

5 Talking Points Coming Out of WWE Raw

Last night's WWE Monday Night Raw had alot of gaining interest with the events coming out of the WWE TLC PPV. The road to the Royal Rumble began last night with special guest general manager Chris Jericho. Brock Lesnar made an impactful return to the WWE and John Cena took on Seth Rollins in a Steel Cage Match. Here's the five things I took away from last night's Monday Night Raw.

1.) Fox News Announce Team 

You ask the regular wrestling fan, Who got you hooked into professional wrestling? My answer is always Jim Ross, I started falling in love with wrestling/sports-entertainment because the story telling aspect from the ring and also on the commentary. I know that Michael Cole, JBL and Jerry Lawler is trying their best to put on a entertaining performance every single week and it's alot to cover with the bevy amount of programming the WWE producer, but last night was another reoccurance of the JBL show where he talks over everybody and it's the constant back and forth barbing between him and Cole and then again Jerry tries his 1990's one liners which are outdated and once again you sit three hours of Raw and once again you don't get anything from the announce because they don't give you a reason to care about the stuff that goes on WWE programming. I go out of my way to find the positives in wrestling and now with being a wrestling analyst I'm more paying attention to what's in the ring and I decided to mute the commentary. Unless it's a in-ring promo I mute Raw because I don't know anybody that would want to listen to Bill O'Reilly, Mitt Romney and Wolf Blitzer for three hours I just throw my hands up in the air. I can be enjoying the show for what it is, but listening to announce team is like listening to a three hour news radio show and I honestly think it's the commentary team that drags these shows down.

2.) Roman Reigns Short and Sweet 

Coming out of WWE TLC, I was really feeling that Roman Reigns was going to be treated like Batista and I'm glad that Reigns got the pop he got last night. Roman Reigns came down during a in-ring promo with Fandango and spear Fandango and then Big Show came out and what made Reigns stand out to me last night, was that Reigns was short and sweet to his point he warn Show "Don't come down here unless you want to get punch in the face" What happens? Show comes down to the ring and Reigns gives him the superman punch. I think we'll see Roman Reigns vs. Big Show program heading towards the Royal Rumble and WWE Fast Lane. WWE will throw as many "Big" performers towards Reigns direction to prepare him for Brock Lesnar. To avoid the same thing that happen with Batista last year, try to go out of your way to convince the fans that they're multiple people that can really win the Royal Rumble match and try to not make it so freaking obvious. Also what will help Reigns is that while he's trying to get his character down, have him cut as short of promos as he can possibly can plus keeping the bad ass persona. I liked what I've seen from Roman Reigns last night and we found out that Reigns will be in a match on SmackDown tonight we'll see what happens on Super SmackDown Live!

3.) Raw Is Jericho! 

I enjoyed seeing Chris Jericho on Raw last night. I don't know why you need 23 minutes to set the hook for the two main events of the show, but the promo wasn't that bad until John Cena came out. Rollins may have a good point when he called Cena a coward especially with his "white meat" baby face persona and then he goes out there and question Rollins man hood and acts so tough when tells Rollins oh go to the corner let the big boys talk. WOW YOU'RE TOUGH BRO I'M SUPPOSED TO BE SCARED OF YOU LOL. I enjoyed the interaction Jericho had with Rusev and Lana because he was trying to point out the characteristics that we don't know about Rusev and Lana even though he was treating Lana like Stephanie McMahon. I kinda wish we do see a Ryback/Rusev program that intrugies me alot. I don't get how everybody was moaning about the bevy of stipulations in the Jericho/Heyman match and i'm sitting back during the show and i'm like why are making a big freaking deal over a stipulation when the match is barely even going to happen. Overall with the nice 70's rock references and old school Jericho promos I enjoyed seeing Jericho. I'm not sure if they're are going to do another Jericho/Fandango program, but hopefully Jericho is effective the next time he comes back to the WWE.

4.) The Beast is Here!

Well it was nice to see the WWE Champion brace us with his presence last night. I'm a fan of Brock Lesnar don't get me wrong, but he hasn't done jack crap for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship. I never wanted him to be the champion and if anything I wanted him to have a Rock esque title reign, but that's not where we are right now. I don't understand why we need Brock to become champion just because he defeated The Undertaker at WrestleMania. Brock could have done the same thing with Cena and take him out and then at the Royal Rumble this year he would could have won the championship and then lose it to Reigns at WrestleMania 31. I liked the Brock interaction with Jerich it was short and sweet it was kind of predictable with the time slot of that match between Jericho/Heyman since it was during the half time of the Saints/Bears game. Brock also came out later that night and laid out John Cena during his Steel Cage Match with Seth Rollins and made a major statement heading towards their final battle at the Royal Rumble. Brock Lesnar will be back on Raw on December 29th in Washington D.C. It is what it is we'll see Lesnar one week and he won't be there the next week and I would be surprise if he shows up on any of the Raws toward WWE Fast Lane. Regardless it was nice to finally see Brock Lesnar and hopefully this expermient project comes to a end.

5.) Steel Cage Match

I personally enjoyed the Cage match between Rollins and Cena more than I enjoyed the Tables Match at WWE TLC. I find it interesting how Joey Mercury always finds a way to make himself busted open. I thought it was cool seeing Rollins winning the match after being made to look like a complete and other joke earlier in the show. The handshake between Rollins & Heyman was sure interesting maybe some foreshadowing just in case Brock doesn't head into WrestleMania as WWE World Heavyweight Champion. 25 minutes was the estimated time for this steel cage match and despite Cena's lack of in-ring skills these gimmicks matches does provide the outlet for Cena to hide his weaknesses. Overall good match I thought Rollins is gaining a lot of this as a heel due to Lesnar interference, but I think the WWE made the right choice with Rollins winning last night.

Overall I thought WWE Monday Night Raw was okay it wasn't earth shattering. We got a couple things confirmed for the Royal Rumble which I like. I like that they did hit everything they needed to hit with the fallout of the pay-per-view. I felt really bad for The New Day that Detroit was pretty bogus and for fans to say they want new characters and this and that and when somebody tries to do something different they shit all over it. I thought the commentary drag the show down for me. I always like Kane and now I like him more since he not only choke slammed the Bunny and Adam Rose he also tombstone The Bunny. I gave this Raw a C+ and I think that's fair we won't have balls to wall Raw's heading to the Royal Rumble especially since there's 5 weeks left, but we'll see what happens next. What's your thought's on last night's Monday Night Raw?

Follow Me on Twitter @JoshLopezCSR and my radio show @PWEShow

We're live with the Pro Wrestling Experience tomorrow from 10am-1pm CT on Chicagolandsportsradio.com talking about WWE TLC, NXT R Evolution, RAW + Royal Rumble. We'll take your phone calls 1-312-564-7375

5 Things To Expect on WWE Monday Night Raw

Coming off the heels of last night's WWE TLC PPV on the WWE Network, WWE heads to Detroit, Michigan as the road to the Royal Rumble begins tonight. We have a new Intercontinental Champion, John Cena is still the number one contender to the WWE World Heavyweight Championship, Dean Ambrose looks to rebound from Bray Wyatt, Miz & Mizdow are still WWE Tag Team Champions and "The Powerhouse" Roman Reigns is back. Tonight show is going to be very interesting than your usual PPV fallout show. Chris Jericho will be the special guest general manager for Raw tonight and WWE World Heavyweight Champion "The Beast" Brock Lesnar makes his return to WWE for the first time since Night of Champions. It's going to be fun a night and here's five things to look forward to on tonight's Monday Night Raw.

1.) Chris Jericho as Raw General Manager 

"Would you please SHUT THE HELL UP?!" Sorry I had to do that, tonight former WWE Champion and WWE Legend Chris Jericho comes back to the WWE to serve as special guest general manager for Monday Night Raw. It's always nice to Jericho on WWE programming, I wonder what he has instore for tonights show. Maybe Jericho sets up series of Royal Rumble Qualifying Matches I think that would be a great idea since were 6 weeks away from the Royal Rumble PPV. I think we may see Jericho start the show, but here's the thing I think we may see Seth Rollins come out and complain about losing to John Cena and maybe Rollins challenges Jericho to a match. I know it's out there, but I wouldn't be suprised if we saw Rollins vs. Jericho and then after the match Rollins + J&J Security attack Jericho and try to do the triple powerbomb and cue in Randy Orton's music, Orton returns and we start the Rollins/Orton program.

2.) Brock Lesnar vs. John Cena III

 After a very chaotic Tables Match at TLC, John Cena will officially head towards the Royal Rumble to take on the Beast Brock Lesnar for his WWE World Heavyweight Championship. I'm sure we'll hear a in-ring promo from Cena tonight and who knows maybe Cena will take on The Big Show again tonight and then after the match Brock Lesnar comes out and gives Big Show a F5 as a message to Cena. Or we can see Brock and Paul Heyman come out to the ring and have a face to face in-ring promo to sell the PPV which I don't think it's a bad thing. Especially when it comes to aftermath of PPV's you have to sell your audience as to why we have to wait six weeks for this next event. Either options works well for me and I'm actually looking forward the final battle between Brock and John Cena. I saw John Cena vs. Brock Lesnar at Extreme Rules 2012 live in person and I've loved all the other matches they partcipated in since that match, so this Royal Rumble match will be very intruging to yours truly because I'm not sure if Brock will be heading towards WrestleMania 31 as WWE World Heavyweight Champion

3.) Ambrose/Wyatt Fallout 

I loved the TLC match between Ambrose and Wyatt last night, but the finish to that match left me scratching my head because I don't know where these two guys go next. That's the big million dollar question we as fans have to pay attention to aside from the part timers because you know everbody says that the WWE only focuses on John Cena, but Dean Ambrose just main evented two out of the last three PPV's and WWE has also took their time to build stars like Ryback, Seth Rollins, Dolph Ziggler, Erick Rowan, Luke Harper and Bray Wyatt. You ask yourself out of all the part timers that we'll see at WrestleMania this year where do these guys fit into the card? I think Ambrose will come out with a full head of steam and anger and will take on Luke Harper on Raw tonight. If they want to continue this feud we can see maybe a Last Man Standing Match between Wyatt and Ambrose at the Royal Rumble. I think out of everything that came out of last night's TLC PPV this Wyatt/Ambrose feud is the only feud I still had questions about. We'll see what happens tonight.

4.) TLC Mid-Card Fallout + Royal Rumble Build 

I mention earlier in this piece that I would like to see a series of Royal Rumble Qualifying Matches. As far as the WWE Divas Championship feud between AJ Lee and Nikki Bella is concern, I think that we'll see AJ Lee vs. Brie Bella again due to the hair spraying incident that occured last night. As far as Dolph Ziggler/Luke Harper is concern I think both men will be in the Royal Rumble match. I see a rematch coming between Miz & Mizdow vs. The Usos at the Royal Rumble usually at the Royal Rumble the WWE always wants at least one Tag Team Title match on the show and with a rowdy Philadelphia crowd I think that would be a great opportunity to debut The Ascension that night. I think Rusev and Swagger will be in the Rumble match as well, we may see this match happen tonight in case they got nothing for Rusev tonight. Ryback/Kane enter them into the Rumble Match along with Big Show and Erick Rowan. We may see The New Day vs. Gold & Stardust again tonight on Raw. I'm always concern for mid-card guys during this time of the year, but I'll keep hope that some of these guys do get spotlight on the road to WrestleMania.

5.) Roman Reigns Return

"The Powerhouse" Roman Reigns is back. Here's the thing I'm a Reigns fan and coming out of the CM Punk Podcast and this Superstar of the Year fiasco, I really feel that this guy is going to be treated just like Batista last year and it's pisses me off to be honest with you. Reigns is a young guy he's not in the position Batista was in last year, but here's the thing whether you or I agree that Reigns deserves to be in the main event of WrestleMania is subjective. I want to hear from Reigns tonight and he needs to hit the ball out of the ballpark tonight because his promo last night at WWE TLC was absolutely attrocious. Do we see Roman Reigns vs. Big Show on the road to WrestleMania since the WWE is prepairing Reings for Brock Lesnar? I think we may see Roman Reigns vs. Kane again tonight and it is what it is there's nothing we can do about it, Daniel Bryan is not here and we're on the road to beginning of the Roman Empire. Believe That!

That's 5 things to expect on tonight's WWE Monday Night Raw. Tell me what you think? What would you guys like to see happen on Raw tonight? Follow me on Twitter @JoshLopezCSR for live coverage of Raw and check out my radio show "The Pro Wrestling Experience" every Wednesday from 10am-1pm CT on Chicagolandsportsradio.com

Ball Is In WWE's Court On Punk Situation

The ball is clearly in the WWE’s court in terms of the C.M Punk comments made on the Art of Wrestling Podcast. WWE really finds the company in a position having advertised Vince McMahon in a no holds barred interview with Stone Cold Steve Austin on the network.

It really leaves the WWE in a difficult spot and a real no win situation. If they address the Punk situation, they are opening a Pandora’s Box that they want no part of that could damage the company in many ways. Most of all the issues Punk expressed on the medical issues in his time with the company. 

However if they fail to address the situation it will be seen as ducking the topic and adds validity to all of Punk’s claims. Therefore, the WWE has painted itself into a corner with this one to a great extent.

The most likely out come is the topic will be addressed and Vince McMahon will make a very corporate and generic statement. This seems the most likely outcome as the WWE was quick to release a very corporate statement in response to a Yahoo Sports article on the subject.

Punk is scheduled to appear on the Art of Wrestling again to be made to the public on Thursday. It is scheduled to be fan questions for Punk but you have to assume if the WWE comments on this story tonight, Punk will have some kind of reaction to it.

Some have already been sucked into this story by being talked about in the interview and have made responses to it. Ryback made some comments via twitter and suggested Punk’s claims of a confrontation between the two were false. He also made a bold claim that the truth would eventually come out and even alluded to slander on the part of Punk about himself. Call me crazy but given the steroid allegations Punk made I don’t see Ryback wanting to get in a legal battle in which his use or non-use of steroids would be in question. The WWE themselves would want no part of Ryback being involved in such a matter and it would be career suicide to some degree if Ryback got involved in litigation on this matter.

Chris Jericho defended himself saying that while he did want to have Punk on his pod cast Talk is Jericho all of those requests were prior to Punk leaving the company. He claims that Punk declined to appear and even they had a date booked in the December prior to him leaving that Punk backed out of according to Jericho. He says he did text Punk since leaving the company but never once brought up why Punk left the WWE or made any requests as relates to his podcast. He claims that he still considers Punk a friend even though they have not spoken since he left the company and is glad he was able to get stuff of his chest about him leaving the company.

Road Dogg as we mentioned on the podcast we at Condo on the Moon did on this C.M Punk topic engaged with fans about the Punk interview. A few other WWE Superstars made mention of the interview through social media but nothing of any great significance.

The question of A.J Lee’s future, how she will be dealt with in the fallout of all this is another topic to wonder about. Her desire to remain in the company through all of this really must make for a difficult situation for all. Punk’s firing on their wedding day has to have had a negative impact on her as well one could only conclude logically. This may have nothing to do with anything but Nikki Bella’s promo on Smackdown was edited and who knows if that had anything to do with Punk situation. A.J‘s line about talent being sexual transmitted in reference to Bella’s was not. It seemed a direct shot at their off-screen relationships with two of the company’s top stars.

All in all with a WWE Network that is struggling and a road to Wrestlemania that seems has uncertain as it was last year the WWE really didn’t need all of this to deal with.

What remains the biggest question is if this story will remain inside the wrestling bubble or if others outside of it will notice it. Punk may have no desire to push the story on his end but he does have that option and it could make the WWE look very bad if chose to do so.

It is far more likely Punk just looks to move on with other projects and leave his wrestling career and life in the past for the time being. He has signed on to write comics for Marvel and has the ability to work on or do any projects he desires. This seemed much more like an act of closure for Punk and something he wanted to offer to his true fans.

Punk opened a story on Pro Wrestling Tee’s on Monday and traffic for the site seemed to be in high volume. The other issue for the WWE will be how there audience reacts to all of this. Who have been chanting Punk’s name off and on for the entire year since he left. WWE has been accused of taking signs from fans involving Punk and doing their best to control their audiences without complete success at times.

Safe to say Punk Chants will make a return and he is likely not to make one perhaps ever in the WWE. This is becoming a messy divorce like situation with WWE the ones with everything to lose and Punk with very little to lose in the matter.

Fans that tune into the Stone Cold Podcast tonight expecting a grand response to this matter from Vince McMahon likely will be disappointed. It certainly will create a new interest for it though that likely wasn’t as strong as it is now.

It is pretty clear the WWE’s behind the scenes story has become far more interesting than the product they are producing in the ring of late. The issue is they have no real way that I can see to turn this behind the scenes story into a success on screen at this point.

Punk clearly changed public perception among wrestling fans on his departure from the company now that he has told his side of the story. The WWE seems fairly handcuffed and limited in how they can respond to this matter. Yet if they bury their heads in the sand and hope it goes away that is likely not going to work either.

It is your move Vince McMahon.

For what to expect from Raw. Check out Josh Lopez's preview of Monday Night Raw. For all the latest on WWE and Wrestling in general follow us on @condoonthemoon to stay update on the latest from us.

Condo on the Moon Podcast 33: RKO'S Dropping On Everyone.

Chris Walder and I kick around what has been going on in the world of wrestling this week. We talk Hell in the Cell build for WWE. Randy Orton going viral and RKO anything that moves. We get talking about booking of the mid-card in WWE. TNA's latest rumor to save their company that still doesn't have a T.V deal. All this and a lot more on the weekly podcast. We get it done inside of the 60 minute time limit this week.



So another week in the books follow the site on Twitter @Condoonthemoon and follow @Waldersports for more of Chris Walder.

If you can't access the podcast here or would like to get it on I-Tunes head over to Podomatic here.

We brought back Hangin on the Moon last night.  So if you want more wrestling in your world go check that out as well or tune in live on Thursdays.

10 Canadians We're Thankful For

It is Canadian Thanksgiving so instead of our normal Raw preview I share with all of you my 10 wrestlers that I am thankful for in pro wrestling that are from my country of Canada. There have been many great Canadian's over the years in wrestling. We are keeping this list light and fun so you will not be seeing any Canadian Cripplers on this list. What you will see is a group of talented people that share the same flag and homeland and have had a major impact on wrestling as a whole.

Honorable mention goes out to Canadian Football League that allowed some wrestlers to stay employed in football for years and earn a living. While showing others that football was not their calling like Roman Reigns and The Rock. Many other names like Brian Pillman, Lex Luger and countless others have called the CFL home before hitting a squared circle.

So here is my list of great Canadians to be thankful for and it is only based on my personal opinion and nothing else. Not ranking on ability or looks although you have to admit Trish Stratus does look good in red and white. So with that said here we go with the list.


1. Kevin Steen
2. Trish Stratus
3. Owen Hart
4. Sami Zayn
5. Chris Jericho
6. Edge
7. Bret Hart
8. Tyler Breeze
9. Tyson Kidd
10. Christian

I am sure many will debate the order and it is not based on accomplishments. I just wanted a mix of the past present and future. I am not a huge Bret Hart fan to be honest. I also don't like hockey so Canadians might not all fit your stereotypes to the letter. Who is your top 5 Canadians in wrestling let us know @Condoonthemoon. Send them to us and give us a follow there.

To all my fellow Canadians enjoy the holiday and if your having turkey it will make a boring episode of Raw easier to fall asleep too. 

Chris Jericho Not The Same Old Y2J

Chris Jericho had one mission when he returned to the WWE and like it or not he failed at it in a major way. That mission was to get over Bray Wyatt and instead the leader of the Wyatt clan is in a worse place from where he started. Now he too has to take part of the blame for this program failing after all it takes two to tango right Fandango. Where is he these days?  Another guy that worked with Jericho and that feud worked and Jericho took the debuting star and gave him a major launching pad. I blame Jericho for nothing that happened after he left. Still at the end of this run, it was by far, the least entertaining and worst run in the WWE for Chris Jericho.

Why it was is probably a number of reasons that we can point to as explanations. Jericho is getting older and that may seem odd to say in a sport that has dinosaurs like Ric Flair, Hulk Hogan and Jerry Lawler all pressing their luck jumping in rings in their 50’s and beyond. Jericho has a style that relies on speed and motion so it isn’t exactly easy to keep that going for as long. Jericho did jump off the top of a cage that he is bragging about at his age. While I applaud the effort, I think that was nothing more than fool hardy as opposed something to be praised or encouraged for me.  Matt Hardy speaking of daredevils just turned 40 and we saw Christian doing a half-hearted version of the Peep Show on Sunday. Edge was forced to retire while the Dudley Boys and Jeff Hardy are on that sinking ship that is TNA Wrestling. Well technically so is Matt although Ring of Honor claims he is coming back there. That might be a swerve but that is a different matter for another day.

Those six that I mentioned took the most chances perhaps of anyone in the attitude era. They all are suffering for it now to varying degrees. Edge can never wrestle again and Christian is partner likely never should as well. It makes you wonder where some of these guys doing high spots on the independents will be at 40. It is not easy and that was a bit of a sidetrack from the point that the style of Y2J while he can still perform it has to take a bigger toll on him.

In addition, his once vanity project, or so it seemed, in his rock band Fozzy has become a legitimate success now. The new album is doing very well and it might just be time for Chris Jericho to turn off the light bright jacket and call it a day.

I can’t exactly explain it but Chris Jericho just did not feel the same, but for a brief moment in this comeback where he took some nostalgic shots at Stephanie and Triple H. Aside from that, it was nothing that in the end compelled me to be interested in him. Perhaps the fact it was made very clear both why he was here and when he would be leaving likely did not help.

Still another superstar roughly in the same age bracket slightly younger I think Rob Van Damn leaves much of the same feelings for me. At one time, he was won of the most innovative high tempo exciting acts in wrestling. These days he is jobbing out on a nightly basis looking like, he is a step or a step and half slow. Blame it on 4:20 if you care too, but it is more about his birth certificate and abuse his body has endured that any time on a clock or green stuff in a joint.

Jericho also like Stone Cold, Jim Ross and others has found success podcasting over on PodcastOne. I felt the times he interviewed wrestlers while back with exception to the ones that were not active in the company were not as good. Take his interview with Triple H, which isn’t the easiest guy to book to sit down and talk unless you’re Michael Cole in a kayfabe setting each week. The interview was fine but it has no real edge to it and seemed a very raw-raw pro WWE interview and a pro Triple H interview. Another was with three of the Total Divas and two being terrible wrestlers in Cameron and Eva Marie. It rather turned my stomach as Jericho gave these women this platform to try to garner sympathy. They suck and can’t wrestle while Jericho once claimed to be "The Man of 1004 Holds," these two ding-dongs would be lucky to know and be able to execute ten combined. It was shameful to have Jericho associated with that mess. Not to mention Brie Bella who has proven to have the acting skills of someone that can’t act. Contrast that with his interviews with Batista and the Hardy’s just last week it is night and day.

What this is all leading to is I am not excited nor need to see Chris Jericho comeback again. Each return seems to be less and less significant.

There is no doubt one day Chris Jericho will be in the WWE Hall of Fame and rightfully so. I just do not care to see too much more of what we saw from Jericho in this latest run. Reality is Jericho does not need to come back in the same way a C.M Punk does not need to do so. The simple fact is Jericho likes to comeback on his terms to do what he wants and than go back to doing the other things he enjoys.

I as a Jericholic from back in the day, saying that it is time to hang it up and go be a rock star full time. You have more than proven your legacy and I personally don’t want to see it slide into an abyss of irrelevance.

Jericho after teasing a retirement promised to be back and even sooner than we think. All the injuries mounting that could be a very true statement. Fozzy is touring though so likely not in cards short term.

Jericho can still go in the ring, but you see the signals that time is catching up with him. That clock that always was counting down is now father time slowly pointing his way to the exit. Jericho has nothing left to prove and if he couldn’t get over Bray Wyatt perhaps anything left to do in the WWE and in wrestling overall.

Never EVER Again could be coming soon for Chris Jericho getting in a WWE ring. If it is not it should be.

As one Canadian we think might be coming to near the end of is time another is just getting started as announcer with former member of The Score Arda Ocal being transferred into Kyle Edwards to be taking a job in the WWE.  Congrats to him on making his dream come through. Chris Jericho has made both his childhood dreams come true as he has been a wrestling world champion and a rock star. The odds on anyone Canadian or otherwise doing that have to be staggering.

That is why I would rather see him go out on the top of his wrestling game.

Raw Notebook: Another Lost Oppurtunity To Entertain

Another week and another Raw that was not worth a damn would pretty much be my reaction to last night. An opening segment that again was just awful from the start as Chris Jericho hosted a "Highlight Reel," that just never seemed to end. Not just that but it at the end of the day made very little sense with Triple H threatening to call off John Cena and Brock Lesnar’s re-match. Cena countering with the fact he would sue and a bunch of other guys making their claims to be the champion. All of this took close to 18 minutes as well when it probably should have taken more like 8-10.

The amount of cheesy and uncreative plugs for the network within this segment I could do with out as well. Not to mention the Canadian version of the network is 11.99 and as of yet not offered in my area and if it was the Canadian version blows with next to no archived footage at all. In the end these 9.99 jokes and constant references have gone back to being annoying. This marks the week that initial subscribers would be renewing had they signed up on the original week the network launched. Raw offered little for them to be optimistic about the product in the next 6 months.

I will say all of the marketing we see now for the WWE Network is much closer to what I had thought we would have seen from the launch. Maybe had it been at the time I would be less critical of it as annoying as it might be it made sense for a new product. It really feels like the WWE launched this thing and fell asleep for 6 months thinking this network was going to sell itself with little needed on their behalf. Which is so unlike the WWE that over promotes everything yet they under promoted perhaps the most important product they have created in the last 20 years makes no sense at all.

Once again, we seem to have a great divide on the whole Nikki Bella and Brie Bella storyline. I again thought on a show that lacked anything good Nikki Bella was the exception to the rule. Were the Growing up Bella segments just nonsense in general? Sure they were, but Nikki never the less sold them like a champ. It all had a very 90210 feel to it and I could easily see the Bella’s as characters on that show.

It would lead to an in-ring segment in which Nikki would be named the number one contender to the Diva’s Title which makes sense seeing as she helped Steph win. It would lead to the Bella’s yelling at each other, than A.J Lee came out, and this segment rather changed focus for me. A.J pointed out to Stephanie that she was due a re-match thanks to her contract and much like John Cena claimed earlier about his title match. Which is really lacking creativity on part of WWE, but never the less A.J claimed to be the rightful number one contender. Paige would come out into this mess as well and honestly add little to things. Nikki would demand her sister quit the WWE and she refused instead pushing Nikki into Paige and taking off. Leaving A.J to pick up the Diva's Title and skips around right into Stephanie and they have a stare down and Stephanie demand’s A.J give her the belt, which she did. Therefore, it appears the WWE is slowly giving up on the women and combining these stories for one match at Night of Champions. Perhaps the most interesting thing was the teasing of an A.J and Stephanie feud and this has not been the first time. Briefly, the two got involved in A.J’s time as General Manager of Raw that lead to nothing. Maybe the dream match is alive for Wrestlemania with A.J Lee vs. Stephanie and this is the start? I need something to be optimistic about after this terrible show.

Speaking of terrible shows we had a match filled with people on Total Diva’s that was a total train wreck so we have those to look forward to as season three of Total Diva’s debuts on E this coming Sunday. I honestly use to follow the show, but I really am not sure if I will bother this season. Rosa Mendez has been added to the cast and I could care less.

There was for the second week in a row not a match on this show that mattered in the slightest. In that, finding mix between being entertaining and actual wrestling they have went far too heavy on the entertainment side and this is even by the WWE’s standards that slant that way. This was the last Raw prior to Monday Night Football returning next week and maybe that has something to do with promoting they have invited the first openly gay NFL player to Raw next week in Michael Sam. Stephanie  has even written a public letter to Sam inviting him to attend.  I would suggest the WWE try promoting their first openly gay wrestler Darren Young instead that might be an idea. Maybe that is where this bizarre angle is supposed to go. If I am Sam’s agent, I tell him to stay miles and miles from this, if you ever want a chance to play in the NFL in your life. I do not think the league would be happy about a player that is used as a sideshow to make the league look bad on WWE programming. Call it a hunch on my part.

The Miz and his train wreck Hollywood gimmick gets more ridiculous by the week. Rusev and Mark Henry feud is back on track. While Swagger gets Zeb back and appears to be going down the ladder in a feud with Bo Dallas. We are supposed to care in a feud with USO’s and Stardust and Goldust as heels, but I really do not. Adam Rose and Zack Ryder both with matches on the card and there was not two moon’s in the sky. In the Rose match, the Bunny of all people taking out Heath Slater at ringside causing the distraction to have Titus O’Neil be pinned highlighted it. The main event of the show was a drawn out long and quite dull 6-man tag match. All of the folks from the opening segment with Jericho, Reigns and Cena facing the Authority team of Orton Rollins and Kane. It was to long and ultimately boring and to boot made no sense to the storyline they were telling. John Cena was trying to save his title opportunity by proving to Triple H that he is ready for Lesnar tags in Roman Reigns to finish the match. I say, bravo, to yet another awful conclusion to the second week of horrible Raw programming in a row.

I blame myself as much as I do the WWE for expecting them to have a compelling program on a night that they expect numbers to be down because of the Labour Day Weekend holiday. Still, Raw is on quite the pathetic roll when it should be trying to peak with all the concerns with the network. Raw was once again awful.

 

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Summerslam: Wyatt vs Jericho

On the night Chris Jericho found a way to hide yet another return to the WWE collectively we were all overjoyed at the prospect of who he was back to face. Bray Wyatt was that man and it seemed like a no-brainer can’t miss feud. It has not lived up to our collective imaginations and hopes for this feud. In fact, can we go as far as to say it has been bad?  The two will get a chance to make us change are minds at Summerslam where it does not take a rocket scientist to come to conclusion that Bray will win this one.

Jericho got a win from out of nowhere at Battleground taking out Bray with his “Code-Breaker” for the victory. In the build to Summerslam Jericho has won matches against Harper and Rowan to ban them from ringside leaving this a straight up one on one contest.

So where has this feud not clicked when it was widely thought of to be on paper a homerun. After all, you have two of the best talkers in wrestling trading verbal smack on each other. Yet this has just not hit on any level. Bray’s talk of Jericho not being able to save us all and not even being able to save himself has just not struck a chord with anyone. Wyatt in his latest promo suggests that Jericho has always been trying to be a hero and live up to his father who was if you didn’t know a pro athlete in the NHL with Rangers and Kings. Jericho has not seemed to have the comebacks we have come to expect from him. His line about following the buzzards and shoving them down Wyatt’s throat to leave him speechless after Summerslam was somewhat blah by his high standards.

In the ring, these two just do not seem to mesh at all for some reason. Which is even more mind boggling when you consider some of the people in Jericho’s history he has got great matches out of. The one that springs most to mind his match with Bill Goldberg. It was easily the best match in his career in WWE and Jericho was the guy that got it from him. Jericho also was able in more recently to make Fandango look like a million bucks at Wrestlemania in his debut. What the WWE did with that is unfortunate but the night after that Wrestlemania Fandango was a star.

Coming after a program with John Cena that did in some ways raise the level of Bray Wyatt, this seemed to be the perfect follow up for him. Facing a guy that unlike Cena would be more than willing to put him over and make him look good in doing so. Least that was the plan it seemed. Not saying that is not the goal of Jericho, it most certainly is. In fact, Jericho claims there were only two feuds that interested him for Wrestlemania 30 and that was against Daniel Bryan or Bray Wyatt. They both had their dance partners lined up so Jericho took a pass on this past Wrestlemania in New Orleans.

I think it goes back to something I talked about a few weeks ago on the Condo on the Moon Podcast. I am starting to question how good Bray actually is in the ring at this point. If you look at his history on the main roster in this gimmick, he has had more misses than hits in his individual matches in my view. Some of that not of his doing like his debut against Kane in that Ring of fire match. It was a dreadful match if you think back on it. His matches with Cena were not that great with the exception of the blow off to the Cena feud with the last man standing match.

His promos even do not seem as special as they once did, though I would argue he still is an amazing talent in that regard. He has the best entrance in wrestling today with creepy music and lantern now added with the audience participation of all the phone lights in the air. It makes for a breath-taking scene every time he comes to the ring.

Kevin Steen in his interview with WWE.com that we linked to the story of his signing talked about wanting to work with Bray or against him in the future. Ironically, I said months ago when rumours first surfaced that Steen might be coming that working as part of the Wyatt’s might be the perfect role for him. It seems Kevin agrees with me. Make no mistake about the fact the success Bray Wyatt has had plays some role in the WWE considering a guy like Steen. Wyatt is never going be on the cover of "Muscle and Fitness," and I think it is safe to say neither will Kevin Steen. Still they don’t need to be and the fact they look different and have a different body type I view as an asset as long as it does not affect their work in the ring. I will say this right now without hesitation that Steen can work circles around Wyatt right now. Once he nails down a move set that the WWE can live with... he will be fine. Bray in-ring has not been as good as you might hope. He has a great finisher, a cool spider walk, and a great presence, but that is about it. He moves reasonably quickly for his size but I think lacks stamina to do it for long stretches.

Back to the Canadian that Bray is currently dealing with in Jericho and their up coming match at Summerslam. I really feel Bray needs to hit a home run in this match. If he fails to do so, no one is going to be blaming Jericho with his great history at being able to pull good matches out of almost anyone. He even had some decent matches with Kane if you can believe that. Do not believe me go spend $9.99 on the WWE Network and you will find evidence of this fact. Much like the pressure was on Bray Wyatt to deliver at Wrestlemania it is on him once again at Summerslam. You can debate how actually successful he was at Wrestlemania. The lucky thing for him is between the Daniel Bryan matches and the ending of the most famous streak in wrestling it kind of slipped under the radar that his match was not the best with John Cena.

Therefore, those buzzards had better lead to a good match for Wyatt or I am not sure how interested anyone will be in seeing him in a third match with Jericho, which is almost certainly the plan. Maybe the answer is Bray has to wrestle in brawling type stipulation matches not unlike what Mick Foley did to get over. The thing is can you have those kind of matches as often as Foley did in the modern PG WWE?  Another question when you look at Mick Foley these days would you want to do that even if you could? Foley is a man that smiles on the outside but has to live in constant pain. People who have had encounters with him always talk about how slow he moves around these days. This is what happens, when your career consists of about 1000 car crashes that masqueraded as wrestling matches.

In any case, Bray still can talk and that has a way of hiding many problems for the average fan. Something that Roman Reigns currently does not have in his back pocket. Nevertheless, Reigns seems to be improving in the ring slightly and his work on the microphone while not to the level of a great talker is improving. 

Finally, maybe it is just me but this latest Chris Jericho run does not have me excited either. Could it be possible that we have reached the point that Jericho is becoming just another part-timer that really does not need to be here anymore? That is probably to harsh, but Jericho is not getting any younger and just has not been the same this time around. His best interaction in this run in my opinion was when he came out and confronted Triple H and Stephanie as nod to the feud he use to have verbally with Stephanie in the “Attitude Era” which was great stuff. Unfortunately, not all of which is up on the network currently as of yet as $9.99 doesn’t get you what it use too. In any case, I do not want to be right about this, as Jericho has always been a favourite of mine even prior to coming to the WWE in 1999.

So maybe both guys have something to prove on Sunday!


 

Condo on the Moon is on Twitter and Facebook and check out our weekly podcasts Every Friday! 

If you have questions/comments for our NEW Weekly Google+ Show Live Thursday's 7:30 pm EST use hashtag #AskMachoMoon. You can find us now at Condoonthemoon.com. 

We Always See You John, That Is The Problem

How ironic would it be if they guy that for 12 years always saying things like he was the guy that was here every week, loses to a guy that hardly ever is here in Brock Lesnar. The guy that claims to love the WWE, rumours have it that he may follow the path of the guy he has been critical of in the “The Rock” and go into movies? Maybe at the core of the problem with John Cena is that most people don’t really believe him.

He gave a passionate promo on his upcoming match with Brock Lesnar and it was not the typical Cena bullshit promo. He really seemed like he meant it and was trying to speak from his heart. Even in that your kind of wondering if he was putting on a show or not.

It is hard for John Cena not to be the corporate kiss butt character he has become. It is hard to deny all the good he has done for children through Make-a-Wish. Not like the WWE ever will let us forget the fact he does it. There is something that just isn’t genuine about this man. C.M Punk regardless of how you may feel about him is genuine and that shines through. Also, in a different and more positive light so in Daniel Bryan.

Cena in this movie he is currently filming is playing the role of a villain. Hold the phone, your telling me John Cena can be a bad guy in a movie and this is ok? Really, well how can this be, if he is not allowed to do the same thing in his role as wrestler? It makes you wonder if John Cena is the one that doesn’t want to change his stripes or if it is in fact the WWE.

John Cena last we checked is able to hear like a normal human being. He has to have heard the boos getting louder and louder over the years. Yet there he stands still being the same old “Hustle Loyalty and Respect” John Cena we have come to not respect but despise.

He comes back from injuries in a way that calls to question how this is humanly possible without some help of some kind. Hulk Hogan has a credo as well of training, saying your prayers and taking you vitamins. This all became pretty laughable when it became public knowledge of his steroid use. The WWE these days has a “Wellness Policy” and it suggests that talent are tested and monitored for drug use. They have suspended top star like Randy Orton a couple of times. Under the policy if Orton were to get a third strike he would be gone from the WWE. Safe to say we don’t expect that third strike to ever come. Nor would I expect a strike to ever be beside the name of John Cena.

Brock Lesnar may not be a people person and he is his own genetic freak. At least we know at some point that he has been tested in his time in the UFC. Is this to suggest that Brock is clean and never took a steroid? No, but at least he has a record of passing some tests.

The truth is I could careless if Cena took anything or he didn’t. I just point out the lengths he is willing to go too in order to be in the WWE spotlight. Is that because he is the ultimate company man that we all see him as being? Maybe, but it is just as easy to believe it his insecurity of losing his spot on top of the mountain.

Being on the verge of this match the majority of people expect Cena to lose and taking it a step beyond people expect Lesnar to carry the belt to Wrestlemania. This in order to turn over the title to the guy that is widely considered the WWE’s successor to Cena’s throne Roman Reigns.

Does anyone else find it convenient that all of the sudden Cena is skipping Monday night’s at work on Raw to do a movie? In addition these rumours that he plans on doing more of this going forward and working in movies. Aside from this making him the biggest hypocrite on the planet given his statements both in and out of character (if that even exists anymore with him) that he said about Dwayne Johnson.

John Cena is becoming what he claims to hate in The Rock. How long before John Cena is mailing it in via satellite like Rocky? I guess I am starting to wonder if John Cena has had enough of the WWE and doing all this with a growing number of people not really wanting him around. He claims a reaction is a reaction and it doesn’t matter but in all honesty is this true. When Brock returned and Cena wasn’t on the show did anyone really miss him? Sure the kids did, but beyond that I am pretty sure we all survived.

The WWE is building and growing and getting ready for life without John Cena and you would have to be blind not to see it. Roman Reigns is the guy that they worry about these days. So I wonder if this guy that has always claimed to love the WWE walks away from it and doesn’t give it another thought. If C.M Punk can afford to never comeback to the company safe to say John Cena could pretty much sit home on his butt and never work another day in his life.

In the end will John Cena expose himself for being the guy with think he really is behind all of the plastic that goes with being that corporate face of the company? John Cena living in the Barbie dream house in his role as Ken with Nikki Bella as his Barbie doll seems to make a lot of sense.

The man who made the catchphrase “The Champ is here” is going to be part of launching a time period where the champion who will not be him will likely not be. This might not be as big a deal as we think and if done correctly might actually make the WWE Title mean more. In things like boxing and UFC you see a title defended like maybe twice in a calendar year or sometimes 3 times as Ronda Rousey is on pace to do in the UFC.

Maybe being there every week doesn’t really matter. Maybe being their every week is more about feeding an ego than drawing ratings. Can we all not agree the best thing for everyone might be for John Cena to take a break and give us a break from him?

If he still wants to do this for longer it would certainly help him both as a character and physically. As much as WWE tries to sell us on this idea that John Cena is Superman he really isn’t. Even though he has a tough time coming off like it he is in fact a human being. John has been riding a rough ride for anyone for 12 straight years going at a high rate of speed.

Maybe, just maybe, both John Cena and the Championship he has held 15 times don’t need to be in our face on a weekly basis. Perhaps this theory on both accounts is about to be put to the test.

There is a growing group of talented guys that would benefit in the long term without Cena being around. This comes at a time when Hulk Hogan the ultimate guy who never goes away is talking about getting into shape for one last match which he wants to have with Cena.

I have the perfect stipulation for this match let’s have it a loser goes away forever match and they both can lose. The idea of such a contest is just so laughable to me that Hogan and Cena in a ring would interest anyone. Perhaps I am wrong as a ton of people seem dead set on seeing a guy in his mid-fifties wearing face paint and t-shirt wrestle a match in the WWE.

Wrestling as much as people try to turn it into "Neverland" where no one every gets old. This isn’t a Disney movie or the latest WWE Video Game. The signs have been clear for years that the WWE audience wants change and they are tired of not just Cena but others from the past. Randy Orton, Big Show and Kane are all felt of in much the same light. We have seen them all for far to long and want something different.

The master of the craft of knowing when to come and go is Chris Jericho. He has been smart enough never to over stay his welcome in the WWE and that is why fans still love him. Even he is started to reach that point of we have seen it all from him. At least he gets the concept of being over exposed. I am not sure the WWE or John Cena has any concept of what that is.

Go try and be a movie star John Cena. Why heck, go play with all your expensive cars. The shocking thing is to both you and the WWE is that the company will still survive and maybe even have a better chance to thrive without you.

If I have to see John Cena popping up for as many years as I have Hulk Hogan I am not sure I can survive such a thing. As much as I despise Hogan, for a variety of reasons, it is almost wrong to compare Cena to him. Hogan like it or not made wrestling to a point. John Cena has failed to maintain wrestling to the levels it was at when he was handed the ball.

We ALWAYS can see you John Cena and that is the problem.

 

Condo on the Moon is on Twitter and Facebook and check out our weekly podcasts Every Friday! 

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Details On Jericho's Return To WWE

Some follow up on Chris Jericho’s return to the WWE it looks like he is here until late September. He says he will be working 10-12 dates per month and will be on the upcoming tour in Australia. He says the he wanted to work with either Daniel Bryan or Bray Wyatt at Wrestlemania but seeing as they were involved in programs that they had. It seems Fozzy had an opening in their schedule. It also makes sense for Jericho as Fozzy is about to release an album.

This info came from his most recent podcast on Podcast one that obviously will continue during his run in the WWE which likely will draw him even more attention to it with him now being on the inside in the WWE. Something that both Jim Ross and Steve Austin’s podcasts will not have. Not to say either is not able to know what is going on in the world of WWE but Jericho will be on the front lines. Jericho did not make any mention on anything about his podcast and how that impacted on his returning to the company. Obviously the WWE was cool with it as it continues on post his return.

The Australian tour might explain the strange day it was for WWE Diva Emma that was fired and hours later un-fired by the WWE. That is speculation on my behalf but seems like a viable reason as to why the WWE had such a quick change of heart. Emma was arrested for a shoplifting incident in which the item in question was a 21 dollar I-Pad case and happened at a Hartford area Wal-Mart on Monday. Between the Ropes had the details on the un-firing of Emma. One other thing that seems to have helped her stay employed was the fact Cameron and Jack Swagger were not fired for larger offences in terms of being charged with DUI’s with in the last couple years.

In any case it has been an eventful week in the WWE with returns of Jericho, The Miz and A.J Lee and this on going Emma saga that honestly seems to be one of the most overblown things I have seen in a long time. How on earth someone is being arrested over something worth 20 dollars that bought of items according to reports is beyond me. Emma was having her struggles as it was and I think the initial reaction was more the WWE had a reason to get rid of her but than came to the realization they were heading to Australia. Who knows if will ever get to the bottom of all of this nonsense. Emma is a free and employed woman last we checked.




Condo on the Moon is on Twitter and Facebook and check out our weekly podcasts Every Friday! You can find us now at Condoonthemoon.com

Raw Notebook: Best Raw In Recent Memory

It didn’t start out as a Raw to remember, but by the end of the night it might have been one of the best Raw’s in the past 5 years. I wanted a night of sleep to consider it and not just scream out this is the best Raw ever, when I know it would be just said in excitement. It really was a good show and one of the best in a long time. That has little to do with the opening segment in which John Cena tried to play babyface to The Authority with Stephanie and Triple H. It was revealed as part of the segment that Cena will appear on the cover of WWE 2k15. Rather than give a whole rundown of the show I will speak more to some general themes that made it great.

Surprise Returns:

This show featured three big returns and two of them came within the same segment of Raw. The other was the new wife of one C.M Punk the lovely and talented A.J Lee. I went into great detail about her return last night and what it all means which is up on site for you to check out if you missed it.

The WWE promised a returning Champion that was a social media star and basically a global icon. The word on the street was The Miz was in waiting to return and the description fit him well. He would come out to basically crickets and this looked like a case of the WWE over hyping something and failing to deliver. Some had speculated close to Raw hitting the air it would be Chris Jericho returning, so when the Miz showed up it was underwhelming to say the least. Yet Chris Jericho would come out and interrupt the Miz’s horrible promo on how he was this big star that he clearly isn’t. Jericho before saying a word would eventually hit a code breaker on Miz and lay him out and start a promo of his own. That alone seemed like a fantastic segment for Raw. Jericho would be cut off by the famous noise that means the Wyatt’s are coming and the lights went out which is the name of the new Fozzy track ironically and Wyatt’s were all in the ring when the lights came back on. They attacked Jericho and laid him out. It was perhaps one of the best segments of Raw in quite some time and really had a feel of the much beloved attitude era.

It was brilliant and had twitter exploding through out it. A.J Lee did return later and interrupt Paige as the two flipped roles with A.J as the baby face and Paige as the heel and A.J would skip away as your new Diva’s Champion. That might have been the most significant women’s match in some time. It was very short but what it lacked in length and over skill it made up for in shock value.

More Character Development beyond the Main Event Angles:

We saw a few examples of some honest to good story building for guys that are not in the top angles. Fandango and Dolph Ziggler have been paired together as Summer Rae came out and laid a lip lock on Dolph in the middle of his match with Fandango. He seemed to like it and when all was said and done he had a win over Fandango and Summer Rae’s gum in his mouth.

Naomi and Cameron’s break-up is now on as the two were booked in a handicap match against Nikki Bella as she was put in there by Stephanie McMahon as a form of punishment for her sister Bri’s appearance on Money in the Bank and insulting her.

Bo Dallas came out and cut a promo complete with Tebowing and asking for the Crowd to be silent for injured superstars Daniel Bryan and Wade Barrett as a way to honor them.

Damien Sandow was in the Role of Vince McMahon. This led to Stephanie coming on screen furious with him and booking him in a match with Khali he ended him with one chop. You may see this as a poor Sandow moment and it might be but the fact Stephanie was involved might actually be something that will advance his storyline of goofy gimmicks.

A Wild Final Segment:

The Main Event was booked as Cena and Reigns vs. Orton and Kane. Cena would get laid out while Reigns and Orton ended up brawling to the back. Kane would lay out Cena and Seth Rollins would come from the back with briefcase in hand ready to cash in on Cena. This was all being directed by Triple H who was at ringside for the match. Before the cash in could go down Ambrose came storming in and he and Rollins would brawl out into the crowd. Triple H upset his plan had backfired order Kane to get a chair and as he waited poised to lay out Cena, Roman Reigns would return and spear Kane saving Cena. Talk about a role reversal their not often Batman saves Superman’s butt. After that, he would lock eyes with Triple H who had made his way up to the apron. This will be in the package when Reigns and Triple H meet at Summerslam which is almost a lock at this point.

All in all it was a show that still had its low moments like Adam Rose and Santino doing a terrible obvious ad segment for Twisted Ice Tea. It still was a vast improvement from what Raw has been giving up definitely since Wrestlemania and honestly maybe even beyond that. The elements I focused on are a big reason why that was the case.

Some notes from my colleges at Between the Ropes:

Emma was arrested

Cesaro injured his eye (Cesaro laid a vicious beat down on Kofi Kingston that I failed to mention on Raw)

Wade Barrett is out and requires Surgery on his shoulder.  




Condo on the Moon is on Twitter and Facebook and check out our weekly podcasts Every Friday! You can find us now at Condoonthemoon.com

Choosing The New WWE World Champion Is Not As Easy As It Seems

The biggest issue facing the WWE is who to make Champion with Daniel Bryan out of the mix. The fans point to names like Cesaro, Bray Wyatt or members of The Shield. The trouble in that is would any of those suggestions avoid being labelled as transitional Champion. It is one of the worst things to be tagged with for a wrestler still making his way up the ladder.

It isn’t a death blow as someone like Chris Jericho proved as some would label his first reign as Undisputed Champion as a “Transitional Reign” to get the belts to the returning Triple H at Wrestlemania. Jericho became the third character in a story of Triple H and Stephanie breaking apart and her trying to deny him winning the title. So much so that she would pair with a former hated rival in Chris Jericho. Sometimes it is all in how you sell it as Jericho just focuses on two points about that title reign. One the fact he beat Stone Cold Steve Austin and The Rock in the same night. Two he was the first ever Undisputed World Wrestling Federation Champion. Well at least with two belts as Randy Savage winning the tournament in Wrestlemania 4 was referenced as the “Undisputed Champion” as well. 

Many feel the WWE will go a safe route and put the belt on John Cena or Randy Orton and wait it out for Bryan to return. There seems to be a lot of speculation on when exactly that will be. It may or should have an impact on who wins this match coming up at “Money in the Bank” in the Ladder Match.

What also seems up in the air as we debated in the Podcast this week is if we will have an actual “Money in the Bank” match for the briefcase. I maintain it is a mistake to have one. I say delay it till Battleground or Summerslam. If not how about you just give the case to Seth Rollins as some form of motivation for why he has aligned with “The Authority” and “|Evolution” as a logical step in that story. If Reigns was planned to win the case in the first place you could have a match for the case at “Battleground” and the case ends up where it was suppose to go. The other name was Cesaro linked to possibly winning the case but that would not be as easy a transition of ownership of the case.

In any case the WWE has a ton of ground to cover with only two weeks to the Money in the Bank event. This is a card that is pretty much unknown at this point to a large degree. It has really been a mess for a variety of reasons since Wrestlemania as things have not gone as planned in a number of cases for a number of various reasons. All with the backdrop on the WWE Stock going into a freefall give this sense the WWE is struggling to some degree. Perhaps, they are in fact facing in short term at the moment for a variety of reasons.  Daniel Bryan’s injury clearly was not in the cards for what the WWE had planned to do and direction they were going. In the end will never know what that title reign was suppose to be or planned to be long term.

While the WWE can afford to enter an event like Money in the Bank a little disorganized they can not for Summerslam. Last year the WWE’S second biggest event in their view, was summarized by Vince McMahon as a “Swing and a miss,” which was a show headlined by Daniel Bryan and John Cena. Many have speculated that this card will be headlined by Brock Lesnar in the WWE Title Match. If this is true and Bryan isn’t ready does that score as a point in favour of putting the belt on Cesaro to get the Brock vs. Cesaro match that many have said is a matter of when not if it happens.

Lesnar is scheduled on the next PPV as well so in theory Brock winning the title is not out of the question. If he did though not sure how great it will be as he likely would drop the belt the next month based on his lack of appearances based on his contract. If they were cool with having a WWE Champion not around and not on house shows for a time than they would have just left the Championship on Bryan.

In the WWE’s view the belief is, the championship and the champion are legitimate draws for not just Raw and Pay-Per-Views, but live events.

This is a big time of transition for the company and how they handle any rising talents is very important it is highly unlikely winning the title in two weeks will make anyone’s career at this point but if handled wrong it could really break somebody’s career as a main event star. Ask Jack Swagger what can happen to you if you get the title to soon. Fans were not ready for Swagger as a champion and you can argue he has suffered from that misread ever since.

So if the WWE World Championship does end up in the hands of John Cena or Randy Orton we all may hate it but it could be good in a couple ways. It would likely be an admission or least a strong hope that Bryan will be back sooner than later. It also would protect some rising stars from getting labelled with the tag of being a “Transitional Champion,” WWE needs to protect any stars they have at this point.

Short term pain for long term gain might be the answer for Money in the Bank at the end of the day.

Condo on the Moon is on Twitter and Facebook and check out our weekly podcasts Every Friday! You can find us now at Condoonthemoon.com

I Love Me Some Wrestling Podcasts

I love wrestling podcasts and enjoy a great many people doing them out there. Each podcast is its own unique little world but all have common bond of wrestling. Anyone that is going out of their way to produce a podcast has to at the very least be a fan of the business on some level. There is nothing more fun than stories about this wacky world of professional wrestling. I could spend hours on end listening to stories about this world that is both interesting and has an intrigue of what goes on behind the scenes in this crazy world. From serious stories that relate to real life to the craziest funny stories that just seem too funny to be true. It all is entertaining in its own way.

So I will run through some of my favourites that I do my best to listen too on a weekly basis. I think the original king of the wrestling podcast world is Colt Cabana. His Art of Wrestling show is for me the place where it all begins for wrestling podcasts. Colt has been doing his podcast since I believe somewhere around 2010 or 2011 long before podcasting was the rage it is today. He has interviewed everyone from wrestling legends from the past to guys that work on the independent scene that I knew very little about.

If you are one of the few that has not heard the Art of Wrestling it is an hour of Colt talking with his guest with the listeners getting to be a fly on the wall. It is based on wrestling and stories but sometimes dives into real life stuff both funny and serious. Colt makes an effort to steer away from the negative aspects of the wrestling business aside from the struggle that wrestlers go through. At the end of an episode of Art of Wrestling you will feel you have got to know someone better that you already knew or got to know someone you never knew and get to know someone you might not have ever known or heard of.

Perhaps the most popular podcast that has burst on the scene is Stone Cold Steve Austin’s show on Podcast One. It has led to a couple other WWE personalities getting involved with Podcast One in Chris Jericho and Jim Ross. Austin obviously can right his own ticket and booking whoever he wants on his show likely isn’t too difficult. Still Austin is an entertaining guy and if you are an Austin fan he is giving you everything you love about Stone Cold in his podcasts. He can be just as entertaining complaining about driving etiquette in L.A as he is at interviewing his guests.

What is great with Austin is while he can book pretty much his choice of wrestling talents he has not just stuck to the WWE world or just the Attitude Era wrestlers that he was a part of.  Austin has had great podcasts talking with MMA fighters and with guys like Kevin Steen who wrestles in ROH. Even a nice tip of his hat to the aforementioned Colt Cabana as they both appeared on each others podcasts about 6 months ago. Even having fans on episodes taking calls has been something Austin has done most recently. The one thing that has become some what of a cult hit with people is Austin reading the ad copy for the sponsors on his podcast. It is something to be experienced rather than explained. He claims to bring a can of “Audio Whoop Ass” to every podcast and does his show for the “Working Man” but what he does is just give you everything you love about Stone Cold. He has taken this venture seriously and has improved a lot as an interviewer which is something that prior to this was not likely in his wheelhouse. What? What he was use too. What? Oh hell you get the idea.

I do also enjoy Chris Jericho and J.R’s podcasts that have started more recently. They are both entertaining guys and also seem to fit in very easily to this podcasting format. I am sure like Austin they will grow a comfort level and get better and better at it. Ross really already is fit like a glove for this type of thing. Jericho has done a variety of various things in entertainment and his natural humour comes shining through in something like this.

Before there was podcasts there was Radio and Live Audio Wrestling is a show that has lasted for over 15 years in one form or another on the airwaves in Canada. The days of just two hours of The Law on Radio late on a Sunday night are in the past. They still do that show currently on TSN 1050 in Toronto at 11-1 or if actual “Real” sports gets in the way 12-2am on Sundays.

However as part of The Fight network they have expanded to include a laundry list of podcasts that are just excellent wrestling content. Let’s see we have Review-a-Raw and Review-an-Impact which is pretty self explanatory. John Pollock and Wai Ting recap the goings on of a Raw Episode or Impact episode. Well they do but it also has a ton of side talk about a great many things including MMA to the hate of some but not myself. In fact I credit The Law for turning me around and making me a fan of MMA. It also is some just hilarious stuff that has nothing to do with wrestling at all.

John and Wai have a unique way of making a connection with their audience that allows me to feel like they are friends of mine even though I have never met either. I feel I have got to know them through all of the crazy stories that have nothing to do with wrestling. But they do eventual get to giving you a detailed rundown of Raw or Impact with great thoughts from both a business and fan prospective on the shows.  Than at the end they take feedback from fans via their law message board in which you hear what the audience has to say if they are able to write it in plan English which sometimes is a struggle for some.

Review-A-Wai is a show where the two review old mostly wrestling based shows be it PPVS or old episodes of Raw. But they have more than a few times stepped out of the box reviewing documentaries and all kinds of things you would never expect. It is by far the most fun show they produce on a weekly basis and really is an enjoyable history lesson or trip down memory lane depending on how old you are.

What’s NXT is the newest Law Podcast that features Law Host Jason Agnew and newest member of Law Family Braden Harrington. It is like Review-a- Raw and Impact a review of WWE NXT but. Like the Pollock and Ting shows though it dives into the personal lives of the co-hosts as well. It gets a lot more out there than the chatter between Wai and John but is amusing and entertaining in its own way. The format is pretty much the same with a recap of the show and some thoughts on the product and upcoming talents in the WWE Developmental Show. Also they have feedback on both NXT and their podcast which can be somewhat entertaining given Jason’s lack of patience for stupidity if it is reflected in the feedback. This is a much kinder and gentler version of the Agnew that we get in comparison to The Law.

What show has become my favourite though in the Bauer and Pollack show which they jokingly call the King and the Fish. This however is perhaps the least joking show of the lot with a lot of hard news on the wrestling industry and mixed martial arts. Court Bauer is a former member of the WWE creative team, he ran his own promotion called MLW and now hosts his own Podcast with former WCW Talent Konan and a wacky character known as MSL. Will get to that podcast in a minute. But Pollock and Bauer is a real good education for people that want to understand the business side of this sport. Bauer also currently is working with ROH Wrestling in some former of advisory role that he has never truly defined.

There are fun moments but for the most part this is hard hitting analysis of the world of wrestling in all promotions not just the WWE and TNA. It is really interesting to hear things from the insider prospective the Bauer brings to this program. It is something that I honestly can’t miss on a week to week basis. When the show went a brief hiatus I was concerned it may not return with Bauer’s new role in Ring of Honour but it has. In fact I respect Court some much he is one of the people I reached out too when starting this blog back up. I got his opinion on it and if I was wasting my time here by writing this blog. His feedback was fairly positive so that meant a lot for me to get inspired to keep this idea going.

MLW Radio the podcast the Bauer is a part of is without a doubt the most off the wall podcast I have listened too. It is mix of the strange and bizarre with a lot of pop culture to pro wrestling all mixed with some humour that may not be for everyone. It is however just a crazy fun laid back show that offers some great stories from the past from K-Dawg and Bauer. MLS is a somewhat strange guy that has also worked in the business. I can’t really explain him he has to be experienced.

The show has its own language to some extent with phrases and expressions that you will come to understand as you listen over time. They shoot the breeze about wrestling and a variety of pop culture based things and on some episodes have a guest that joins in and becomes part of the mix. It is somewhat like an interview but more like having a fourth person in the mix that becomes the focus on the conversation. At the end of MLW episode you likely have laughed and maybe even learned a thing or two about the wrestling business.

MLW like The Law has other shows but some of them are part of a VIP package that you have to pay 15 dollars/year to listen too. The other free show they have is with Jim Cornette who has been a fixture in the wrestling business for decades. I started off listening to this as well but fell off after I just had my fill of Jim Cornette. If you love Jim you get a ton of him on this podcast. I like Jim but at times get burned out on him and can only take so much. What had me jump off that train was his bashing of Kevin Steen who I really like as a performer. Kevin and Jim have had their very public differences about Jim’s time in ROH. I just had heard enough and stopped listening after that. Cornette has the people he likes and people he does not and that is painfully obvious in anything he does.  I can only take so much.

Between the Ropes is also like The Law a hub for a lot of great wrestling content. Brain Fritz and his crew do some excellent work with interviews and podcasts that are entertaining and informative stuff. Lots of news mixed with opinions done in a very professional way.  A weekly podcast summing up Raw and live google hangout show is provided on a weekly basis with some great interviews with people in the business on a regular basis.

If your into the Google + Hangouts Straight Shoot with Aubrey Sitterson is also world a look. He actually took a suggestion I had for a game I had called Push, Re-Package and Fire and has really run with it. He has a really great guest list of people that act as his co-host for re-caps of Raw and Preview and Reviews of PPVs.

Last but not least are Mike and Maria in Wonderland which is a podcast with former WWE Diva Maria and her soon to be husband and ROH Wrestler Mike Bennett. This show is my guilty pleasure wrestling podcast. It isn’t all about wrestling and goes into other areas of life like politics and pop culture. What it reminds me of is the old reality show newlyweds with Jessica Simpson and Nick whatever his name was.

Not saying that Maria comes off like Jessica in fact she is a pretty smart cookie and nothing like the somewhat ditsy lovable character. Mike Bennett was/is a guy that a lot of people disliked in wrestling. I am not sure why exactly. I have never had that opinion but listening to him on this podcast would change some minds I think. He comes off as a pretty cool guy and very genuine. He is not afraid to express his opinions on any topic from gun control in the U.S to the pro wrestling business.

It is not for everyone as I found out when I professed my love for it but for me it is a great fun hour to 90 minutes that flies by with lots of laughs and the zany out of control nature the show has a tendency to do. This show does not work with much of a format but if it did likely wouldn’t be as fun as it is.

So that about covers the gambit of what I am listening to on a regular basis. Not a pod cast but if you don’t watch Kevin Steen’s Weekend Escapades or Colt Cabana’s World’s Worst Promo with Marty DeRosa you’re also missing some things that are pretty amusing.




Who needs the WWE Network I got podcasts for days up here in Canada.

There is a sea of wrestling podcasts and I am thinking about jumping into that ocean with one of my own in the not to distant future. I hope it can be as entertaining and fun as the ones I enjoy on this list. The Internet Wrestling Channel Podcast is coming soon. Get it IWC which is a term that I think needs to be put in the trash.