Superstars Reax - 6/5/15, WWEPC fantasy camp?, more on Monday Night War DVD, Interviews with Lawler/Justin Roberts, former Knockout retiring, Smackdown audience, more names at WWE tryout, a WWE cruise?, and Questions on Kane turning, WWE vs. AJ, Brock in Japan, Cena "not putting talent over," and older announcers on the Network

Superstars:
Nice opening match so far. I always enjoy the contrast of the power of The Ascension with the agility and technique of the Lucha Dragons.

One fun thing about Superstars is the talents get to show more of what they can do in the ring.

Really enjoyable ending. The Lucha Dragons are really good athletes, and The Ascension are better when they're not just supposed to be big guys squashing their opponents.

Nice second match. I've missed Rowan and Harper as a team. It was worth trying them out as singles stars, but I think this works better for them for now.

Everything else from yesterday is after the break.
WWE is looking into putting together "fantasy camps" for the Performance Center. I think that's a pretty cool idea as long as it doesn't negatively affect the primary purpose of the facility. I imagine it will just be a couple of days out of the year.

WWE will release a DVD on the Monday Night War series, featuring post-episode discussions from Triple H and Sting. Hopefully Sting will provide some balance to the series.

The Miami Herald talked to Jerry Lawler about his new DVD. I hope fans who only know him as the commentator check out the stuff from Memphis.

Former TNA Knockout Traci Brooks is working a farewell appearance at House of Hardcore. Another part of the old TNA is hanging the boots up. I think it some ways it will be the end of an era when the company goes under. It's not as prominent as it was years ago, but I think it still holds an important place in wrestling history. And the product is still mostly good! It's just been pretty much cast aside by so many fans. I don't know if there's any getting that momentum back.

Smackdown's audience dipped a good amount to 2.35 million, but was the most-watched show on cable Thursday night. I think that second note is more important because it puts the number in context.

More names have been confirmed as having been part of WWE's most recent tryout:
- Andrea, trained by Team 3D. She looks like a completely different wrestler from when she had a brief stint in TNA as Rosie Lottalove. It looks like she's totally turned things around and could make a positive mark on the industry. Definitely worth a look by WWE, TNA, GFW, etc..
- Athena, who is young with experience. A good combination.
- Johnny Gargano, who's gotten a lot of buzz for his work in EVOLVE. HHH has his eyes on the indie scene in making NXT a destination.
- Former MMA fighter Matt Riddle. Of course they'd love another Brock Lesnar.
- Chuck Taylor, of CHIKARA. Another guy who's impressed fans online. The reputation of some of these names is quite impressive.

If WWE even signs some of these names trying out, fans will be excited. Just because they don't right now doesn't mean they won't later. The future of WWE could be really bright with all this talent being evaluated.

Justin Roberts is doing a tell-all book on his time in WWE:
- I think he's really got a point about there being a disconnect between the front office and the fans. There are people who spend so much time crunching numbers that they don't actually listen to the crowd.

- WWE definitely wants to be Disney more than they want to be Vince, Sr.'s wrestling promotion.

- I completely agree about not ignoring the present.

- It's important to note NXT is going to differ than Raw and Smackdown because it's for a different audience. I don't expect the main shows to be like longer versions of NXT when HHH takes over.

- If NXT is a big success and that carries over to the main roster once HHH succeeds Vince, I'm fine with HHH taking the credit.

- That's one thing I hate about TNA potentially going under. Right now, there's no one to challenge Vince's hold on the wrestling industry. 

WWE is asking fans on its mailing list what they think of a wrestling-themed cruise. That's definitely an interesting idea! I don't know how it would work out, but maybe there's enough interest for them to go that route.

For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. I was pretty sure we were in for Rollins vs. Kane before Elimination Chamber was added to things and WWE went with Rollins vs. Ambrose to appeal to hardcore fans. It's still possible it happens before we presumably get Rollins vs. Lesnar. I think we definitely got a better match out of Rollins vs. Ambrose, although I think beating Kane will add to Rollins' credibility. As for what Kane does after facing Rollins, maybe he'll face Owens or someone so we don't have to get Kane vs. Show again...

2. I wouldn't be that surprised! I really hope we're not in for another 100 days of Nikki as champion just to spite AJ. If her holding the title that long is a setup for being dethroned by Charlotte, that's one thing. But dragging it out just to stick it out to a former employee is really petty.

3. I'd say there's roughly a 100% chance of that happening.

4. There's been kind of an alternate history written of Cena burying talent left and right when it's usually less straightforward than that. Cena's the top babyface, so it makes sense he'll eventually beat the monsters put in front of him. But it usually takes him several PPVs to put them away, and I think they've been making things less one-sided these past few years. Rusev made Cena pass out at Fastlane for God's sake. And it's important to note he's not the one who makes the call on going over.

5. If that would get older fans to buy the Network, it's a great idea! Otherwise, a lot of newer fans are going to have no idea who those people are and won't really care.

More wrestling tomorrow.