Randy Orton Has Gone Viral RKOing The World

Randy Orton is not the most social person in the world he has proven that over the years. He is the biggest thing on Social Media at the moment at he is RKOing more people and stuff than we had ice bucket challenges last month. Maybe not to that level but Orton is everywhere. Here is a compliation of his greatest hits so to speak.

Post by Flap Jack.

Wrestling wise Orton just signed a more veteran friendly part-timer style contract that allows him to be off most house shows and work a limited schedule. Orton is far more over right now than when he actually was the WWE World Heavyweight Champion in a less than memorable run at the end of 2013 until Wrestlemania 30. Orton is set to Face John Cena in what seems like the 2000th high profile match between the two and is not even their first encounter in the Hell in the Cell. But Randy is the Internet Champion of the moment. Zack Ryder is hiding under his bed clutching his self made Internet Title for fear Orton doesn't steal it.

The Raw Notebook: June 9th, 2014

 The Raw Notebook is back after a Raw that love it or hate it you have to call it a significant Raw. First and foremost the obvious reason for that Daniel Bryan being officially stripped of the title. Outside of the storylines of WWE it is sad that Bryan is legitimately unable to compete and build off the great momentum he had coming off his wins at Wrestlemania 30. The question now becomes how he will be treated when he is ready to return to action.

The Future of the WWE Title:

So now the Money in the Bank match becomes for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship. This will feature seven superstars four of which have already been established at this point. Del Rio won the first qualifying match over Ziggler so he is in. Randy Orton was appointed to the match by the authority. While Sheamus got in defeating Bad News Barrett and Cesaro getting a win as well to get in as well. With only three spots left some people are going to be left out clearly. John Cena, Roman Reigns, Dean Ambrose, Seth Rollins and Bray Wyatt. That is five names that you clearly could see in the mix for the world title and only 3 will get into the match.

I would think we get a match with either Seth Rollins against Dean Ambrose or a match between Bray Wyatt and Roman Reigns. Leaving the remaining three not involved in one of these match suggestions in the match for the Title. For what it is worth Reigns is working a house show here in my hometown of Hamilton against Bray Wyatt. It would make sense for Triple H and Rollins to screw Reigns out of a shot at the title. This was keeping the build alive to Triple H against Reigns at Summerslam. This has been the rumored match for sometime now.

The Shield Divided Are Standing Tall: 

As for the Shield divided I thought it came off pretty well. It was a great promo and explanation from Seth Rollins. Dean Ambrose also did a good promo talking about what he would like to do Seth Rollins. The little things that Ambrose does with reactions and movements are just brilliant. Reigns cut a decent promo as well for him and in terms of the storyline I am happy with where we are at.

The Shield having Cena make the save and tag with them is just the latest attempt to have John Cena tied to the most over baby faces not named John Cena. He is the Hulk Hogan of modern wrestling always trying to tie him to the hottest act that is getting over more than him. Hogan did this with so many guys most famously the “Macho Man” Randy Savage. Randy was one of the few guys that did not crumble and fall off with Hogan casting his shadow over him.

Some Minor Segments: 

The segment with Summer Rae and Layla was clearly not a “PG moment,” and was a little nod to fans still hanging around from the attitude era. It was fairly obvious to anyone that is over a certain age what they were going for there.

Paige continues to be booked terrible as she was over shadowed by Alicia Fox in her segment/match once again. It makes me wonder why they didn’t just put the belt on Alicia as Paige is getting nothing out of this run as Diva’s champion.

The silly gimmicks for Damien Sandow are getting over with me. He also got a reaction with a chant from fans as he was tagged with Fandango.  It may not be good for his long term future but I am enjoying him. I also give the guy a lot of credit for him giving his 100% with all of these silly gimmicks.

Other notes not of much note:

Zack Ryder bought new gear to get squashed with Rusev as WWE teases an Obama vs. Putin match or maybe not.  Ryback and Axel beat down Goldust and R-Truth as looks like Cody is setting up to be a heel again by picking terrible partners for Goldust. Eventually will get a Cody and Goldust match and this will be worth it.

Overall, I thought the show was decent and did a fairly good job continuing the angle with The Shield from last week. Perhaps they are slowly getting some momentum back as they head towards the summer and Summerslam in August. Daniel Bryan’s short term future decided allows the WWE to move forward instead of standing in place.It sucks for him but you honestly have to move forward if your WWE if you are not willing to have an interim WWE World Champion.

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Who is the Bunny?

Forget who framed Roger Rabbit? Actually who did frame him? Never mind more importantly the internet is all a buzz, amused, slightly interested on who is the Bunny with Adam Rose. What sparked this was Dolph Ziggler making claims on Twitter that Zack Ryder was in fact the Bunny. A photo of him with the bunny as well. Oh and the bunny has his own Twitter Account not endorsed by WWE or verfied by Twitter but who cares @WWE_Bunny is awesome give him a follow.

So who is this guy and could we possibly turn this into an angle. It would make sense that someone pretending to be one of Adam Rose's "rosebuds" would attack him and likely suspect is the Bunny. He does have an evil face if you get a close look at him

So are we ready to roll with this list of suspects?

# 5 Maria Kanellis: She was a playboy bunny and also dressed up like a bunny. She has a contract with ROH so couldn't show her face on WWE T.V. It all makes perfect sense. Not really at all we just wanted an excuse to show you this picture of Maria as a Bunny as a cheap stunt to get a couple more hits. So here you go!

#4 Kurt Hawkins: Why not he kinda looks like Zack or he use to when they tagged it would make for the honest mistake of people thinking it was Ryder right? Will consider him a suspect at this point.

#3 Joey Mercury: As most know Joey works behind the scenes in WWE as a booking agent/producer for matches. I can't remember where I heard this and it could be all in my head, but I remember hearing he was a hell of a break dancer. Also someone on Twitter pointed out they believe that the person in bunny outfit is bald. Another check in the column for the former member of Straight Edge Society.

 #2 Zack Ryder: He denies it, but as Dolph Ziggler tweeted that is just what the guy who is the bunny would say. If it is him I guess I am happy for him? If this is an angle I suggested came to pass, a Ryder heeling on Rose could work and get over maybe. They have done far worse with both.

#1 Dolph Ziggler: Wait a second he had that picture with the bunny. Can't be him. Photoshopped and this is all a cleaver plot by Ziggler to point the finger elsewhere that HE in fact is the WWE BUNNY!

You want to know the most sad thing of all? I think the Bunny is more over than Rose himself. I think this would make for a good mid-card comedy angle if they really tried to have a who is the bunny angle. Perfect kind of light silly comedy that would work for most ages from young to old. Heck if the Simpson can get a cliffhanger out of who shot Mr. Burns and South Park one on who is Eric Cartman's father....why not this.

I am not a Lemon or a Rosebud....I am a bunny loving fool! 

The Debut Of "The 10 Count"

Topic: 10 Things that will happen before Wrestlemania 31:

#10- Zack Ryder will be fired: His last resort will fail and he will no longer be part of the WWE. This roster is getting full of competition with so many stars on the rise. Zack Ryder had brief self made run that never really was suppose to happen without that he likely would have been fired long before now.

#9- Sami Zayn will be on the Main Roster: Why it hasn’t happened already is a good question but there is no way he remains in NXT for another year. It will not happen, this guy is just too talented and Triple H already sees it with having him in a match with Csearo as the first match to launch NXT on the network.

#8- U.S and I.C Titles will be Unified: Both these titles mean so little combining them and keeping the I-C Title will allow a chance to rehabilitate these dead championships. It is the only way to save them you need to kill one to make it happen. The U.S title is an old WCW belt and will be the one the bites the bullet.

#7- John Cena will NOT hold The WWE World Championship: First reason is he really doesn’t need it at this point. The second might be that do we really want to see John Cena replace Ric Flair as the mas with the most times as champion in wrestling history? Triple H’s idol is Ric Flair or at least one of them. If the Game himself didn’t break 16 times safe bet he is in no hurry to see Cena do this. In addition with all the new stars you could see battle for the belt that need it really makes no sense for Cena to have it.

#6- Paul Heyman will turn on Cesaro: We all know Paul Heyman guys never last other than one guy and that is Brock Lesnar the one in 21-1. So at some point expect Paul to turn his back on Cesaro leading to a Lesnar vs. Cesaro match at one of the major PPV’s (Sorry Special Events...WWE is killing term Pay-Per-View)  this year. It makes perfect sense and would be a great match to show off Cesaro’s freakish strength.

#5 Roman Reigns will be Mr. Money In the Bank: Everyone says he is the next big star and it is hard to debate he has all the tools to be. Getting the briefcase would be a great way to break him off into singles and maybe will be the ultimate reason for The Shield to finally break apart. It makes sense and so does the idea of Roman Reigns being a World Champion sometime within the next 18 months.

#4 Adam Cole will be signed by the WWE: If there is one guy out on the independent scene that I am going to bet on making it to the WWE it is this guy. I could see other guys like Kevin Steen, Mike Bennett also being in the WWE system. The safest bet is Adam Cole as he has a style of wrestling that already looks like a WWE wrestler to some extent. His run with the ROH title has been tremendous and like many other former ROH Champions he will make his way to the WWE this year.

#3 WWE Commentary Will Change For Raw and Smackdown: They are working to hard at developing broadcasters to not shake things up on commentary on Raw and Smackdown. It may not be change for the better depending on who they decide to run with but the King, Cole and JBL show is getting old fast. J.R is not walking back through that door it would seem so WWE needs another answer.

#2 Batista will not finish his WWE Contract: His return has been horrible and he will have options to do movies and other things so I don’t think he makes it to Wrestlemania 31. He really doesn’t need to be bothered with WWE and his in ring skills are not at level they were 4 years ago. Bye Bye Batista we never wanted you back to begin with.

#1 Rey Mysterio Will Be Done with WWE:  When you can't even get your baby face pop that you have had for decades and your body is breaking down it is time to go. Rey’s contract is set to expire in the summer and I do not think the WWE will offer him another one. Well, at Least not as an in ring competitor. As mentioned this roster is getting pretty full and Rey will be one of the first to realize the youth movement is underway in the WWE.

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Wrestlemania Thoughts: Change, Dreams and Respect

We clearly are at a point in wrestling where it feels like a transition is about on the verge of taking place. I touched on this on the IWC Podcast when talking with Jimmy Korderas. I think fans are ready for a changing of the guard, some out with the old and in with the new. As much as people love Daniel Bryan, the so called "Yes Movement" is more a movement for change. In a world that changes so fast wrestling has not in terms of the people that have been at the top of the food chain.

Wrestling is always thought to be a microcosm of society, or in simpler terms a reflection of it. Well when you look at pop culture today it doesn’t take a lot to be famous. People more than ever do not have to count on the tradition means of determining that fame either. Social media has a stronger and more powerful voice that weakens what traditional forms of media have had compared to the past.

You can truly get yourself noticed just on the internet and through all these various forms of social media. Zack Ryder a few years back proved how someone can take this and truly turn it into something real and tangible.  The problem was by the time he got to where he wanted to be he wasn’t ready for it and the fact he kind of forced his way in wasn’t going to leave much margin for error.

Daniel Bryan in a much more slow and methodical way has risen to the top of the largest wrestling company in the world. He always had the talent to back up the growing and growing base of fans that pushed for his success. Zack Ryder got a fan base that pushed for him but they had bought into the hype that lacked any real substance.

The level of competition to make it to the WWE and have a shot may never be greater than it is right now. You have 75-100 guys and gals at a performance center that are chomping at the bit to be one the WWE Main roster. You have already on that roster, guys like Dean Ambrose, Roman Reigns, Bray Wyatt, Seth Rollins, Cesaro and many others just waiting and hoping to get that ball to run with it.

 You have a group of established talent that does not wish to lose their spot or get pushed aside. The truth is very view guys are like CM Punk in the sense of having the courage or guts to just walk away. It is easy to be out of sight and out of mind in the wrestling business. Look at where Dolph Ziggler was a year ago compared to where he is now. He never left the company but he has been placed in such a poor position that he really has become an after thought. Sometimes you are given a moment and what happens in that moment can make or break your career. Punk took his moment and ran with it to the point that he doesn’t need to be concerned about certain things. He picked the right times to be aggressive in his desire to get to the top and once he got there made his career for life to some extent. Ziggler due to an unfortunate injury watched his moment pass him by while being able to do nothing about it. Who is to say he ever gets another one.

Outside of the WWE you have many talented and great performers like Kevin Steen, Adam Cole, and Mike Bennett all knocking on the door of being already established to make that next leap to the WWE. You have guys like A.J Styles, Chris Hero, Samoa Joe, Chris Daniels and others that once were the same and never walked through that door to be on WWE.

These are just names most wrestling fans have heard of there are hundreds if not thousands more working on little independent companies all with the same dream of one day being that big star on the biggest stage of a Wrestlemania. WWE is the ballgame now and TNA is more of an after thought, while ROH has become in a sense the WWE’s main minor league system outside of their own to draw from.

The truth is the odds to make the NBA, NFL, MLB or NHL all are better than they are to be a professional wrestler on the highest level. The odds to be a champion on that level are greater as well.

The drive and determination it takes just to have a shot in the WWE let alone Main Event a Wrestlemania are staggeringly long. It is easy for us to sit back and say that this person sucks or that guy is full of himself. This other guy is washed up and should just quit and move on.

Very few people have the courage and are willing to make the sacrifices it takes to achieve their dreams. Even fewer actually get the breaks, luck and good fortune it takes to make those dreams a reality. If it was easy everyone would do it but it isn’t easy at all. You put your body through a meat grinder all for hoping it holds up and allows you to be healthy at that time you need it to be when your break comes your way.

I at the end of the day respect professional wrestlers for having the guts to do what they do and reach for their dreams. Wrestlemania is where a lot of those dreams begin as small children. The ones that actually take that childhood dream and run with it deserve respect no matter how far they get. For every guy that succeeds there are hundreds more like thousands that don’t.

Triple H talked about a reality era while as they say over in the UFC this is as real as it gets. The odds are long and road can be longer. This makes for a tremendous story that is far from fake when anyone reaches that magical moment like Daniel Bryan is likely to do on Sunday.

IWC Podcast Episode 4 The Rocky Road to Wrestlemania

We are back for another week with the normal cast of character myself and Chris Walder. We talk about the build or lack of build to Wrestlemania 30. Some thoughts on that as well as some thoughts on what ROH is doing right that TNA and WWE are not. Also some pretty cool booking ideas that I spitball for Mania and beyond.




Thanks for listening and please spread the word about the IWC podcast and the Condo on the Moon Blog.

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Wrestlemania Is Suppose To Be A Privilege Not A Right

I have some serious concerns with what the WWE has done with Wrestlemania and the card this year. What the hell happened to "Ruthless Aggression" and the idea of being on the biggest show of the year being a privilege and not some entitlement by simply being on the roster? Between the Andre The Giant Battle Royal and the Diva’s Invitational, I am left to think if you are not on this Wrestlemania card you should just quit now or accept you are never going to be on T.V again.

Yes wrestling is not a true sport and it doesn’t have playoffs or keep track of your win/lose record over a time period, but Wrestlemania is billed as the showcase of the immortals. Sorry to break the news that Zack Ryder, Rosa Mendez and a list of other jobber level talents are not immortals. They have no business at all being on the biggest show of the year.

The logic as to why they are is it allows people to get Wrestlemania Payoffs as a reward for the year of service. Which by the way has yet to be explained how those will work and likely is a reason that Zack Ryder is in Wrestlemania and C.M Punk is not? That issue aside Wrestlemania is suppose to be a show that you earn the right to be a part of. The plot line of Total Divas that saw the Bellas match get bumped showed how crushing it can be for a performer to be left off the show. You can debate if that was a real or scripted moment but it did drive home the fact that Wrestlemania is special and unlike all the other PPVS in a year.

The WWE has become PG and geared at kids and this idea of everyone getting on Wrestlemania is like every kid getting a trophy in a sports league. What kind of a world have we become honestly? This is a professional business and it isn’t about making everyone feel all warm and fuzzy, it is about putting on the best show possible regardless of the number of people that takes. If I get to see HHH and Daniel Bryan wrestle 10 more minutes and am not able to see a battle royal that means nothing I am all for that. If Bray Wyatt gets 5 more minutes with John Cena and the Divas Title match has to go on the pre-show that is the way it goes.

When exactly was the point the WWE lost it’s grapefruits about booking Wrestlemania 30 the way it should be? If you book it like this is there any motivation for talent to strive to make it to that next level? Just by giving them some manufactured meaningless moment is that suppose to be some carrot to drive them to want to be in bigger more meaningful matches?

Just because you do bust your ass is no guarantee of anything and history shows that. C.M Punk has never made it to the main event. He has surly earned it through his work over the years but he has been upstaged by former stars and even The Miz taking that spot from him. Aside from Daniel Bryan who initially was not going to be in the main event the guys that have had the best year in the WWE you can argue have been The Shield. Their reward for that is another 6 man tag match with lesser stars than the year prior. Big Show, Randy Orton and Sheamus are a step above a match with Kane and New Age Outlaws that have not been in a mania in like over a decade.

Is the Undertaker in a match with someone who is a regular on the roster that can benefit from challenging the streak….5 out of the last 6 years the answer has been no. Granted it has produced classic matches and the Undertaker at the end of the day has to sign off on his opponent but still can we not find someone worthy on this roster of that honor?

Wrestlemania is a brand that has been established for having the very best compete in matches that are meant to have a chance to stand the test of time. The more that concept is watered down the more the brand of Wrestlemania suffers for it. Maybe not next year or the year after but if you continue down this path eventually it stops being the showcase of the immortals, it stops being different from every other WWE PPV and in the end it stops being special.

This is the one show a year that draws even some of the most casual and past fans of the product to it. If your goal is to win those people back shouldn’t you be giving them the very best of what you have to offer? Isn’t that the point of a show like this?

Wrestlemania is starting to lose its magic and just like the age of the Undertaker the warts are starting to show through. Wrestlemania has now reached the number 30 and if it is to keep on rolling to 50 and higher numbers this can’t be the type of attitude that is going to take it there. At some point these new young stars need to take ownership of this event and make it into what it is suppose to be which is not a right but a privilege to be a part of. Signing a contract to be in the WWE should not be a ticket to being on the biggest show of the year. It should be an opportunity to earn the right to be on it.

Hell the Scooby Doo Movie that just came out was harder to be a part of than Wrestlemania. Making the WWE Video Game was harder too. According to the Bauer and Pollock show no less than 63 performers are booked for this Wrestlemania. That is insane and not necessary in any way shape or form. NXT Arrival was harder for the NXT Roster to get on than it was to be on Wrestlemania how screwed up is that logic?

If you want to call wrestling a sport it would never work like that. If you want to call it entertainment how many people are left out of movies and T.V shows on casting calls?

Wrestling is all about establishing some sense of credibility with its audience. Things like this make it hard to take any of this seriously in the slightest. The reason we love the C.M Punk’s and Daniel Bryan’s of this world is their long struggles to make it to this big stage but not just because they made it to the WWE. Once they got there they didn’t stop earning it, they progressed and became two of the biggest stars in the company.

Being handed things like appearances in Wrestlemania for whatever people say it does for moral of the roster is over shadowed by the damage it does to the credibility of the card and the special nature that Wrestlemania has come to represent. Kids that dream of getting into this business dream of being on this show and one day being in its main event. The boyhood dream of Shawn Micheals is as real as wrestling can get. Now you are starting to spit on what that represents by allowing talent that isn’t even good enough to be on Raw be allowed to be a part of the biggest show of the year.

It is just NOT what is BEST FOR BUSINESS in a REAL and significant way.