Jim Ross, Gene Okerlund, and Tony Schiavone remembered Bobby Heenan on Ross' latest podcast.
UFC's Cris Cyborg challenged Ronda Rousey to a match in WWE. That'd be big for WWE, but I'm getting a little leery of MMA names using wrestling to prop up their fighting careers.
Tamina being part of the contendership match on Smackdown was somewhat of a last-minute decision. I think the match benefited from having her involved instead of just the three faces, as talented as everyone else involved is.
Tuesday's Smackdown taping was notably poorly attended. It didn't take long for the B-show mentality to kick back in!
Jinder Mahal's promo on Tuesday got some backlash for its race-related content. Fans should have chanted something related to Vince/Creative if they wanted to bury the segment. Instead, they might have inadvertently sent the message Jinder was getting to them as a heel. This kind of situation is when you do the wave, etc. - the rebellion might actually mean something then.
Emma missed Raw because she spent time with her family in Australia after WWE toured there. That presumably moved Bayley into the mix at No Mercy. I would have liked for Mickie or Dana to get the spot given their issues with Emma. They could have saved Bayley for the week after.
ROH will have a "Sea of Honor" tournament as part of Chris Jericho's cruise, which will take place from October 27 through October 31. Lance Storm, Don Callis, Konnan, Disco Inferno, and Shane Helms will also be part of the event. That's all a pretty cool idea. I love the ingenuity.
Terry Funk discussed his many retirements with Jerry Lawler, saying he always intends to be done with the business, but doesn't want to turn down people asking for one "last" booking. Hey, if he's still healthy enough and still loves doing it, more power to him!
Donovan Dijak got some pretty funny fan mail. I can only imagine some of the things wrestlers are sent.
Ric Flair discussed his history of alcohol abuse with People magazine. That's got to be tough to deal with. I hope he's able to put down the bottle.
Smackdown drew 2.51 million viewers on Tuesday, which is a shame after that big angle to close the previous week's show.
WWE is seeking fan feedback for the following options for a premium tier of WWE Network:
- Live events/house shows. I assume it would mean the occasional Beast in the East kind of event.
- Local tournaments, as we saw with the UK. There were plans for similar events in Latin America and Asia. This is definitely something they could put on that tier given the costs involved.
- Reality shows. Self-explanatory. They've pitched this kind of thing since the Network launched.
- Licensing other wrestling promotions, with current and archived content. Specifically mentioned were Impact, ROH, NJPW, ICW, and PROGRESS. I'd think EVOLVE would be a possibility, too. ROH would be interested. I don't know about Impact or NJPW. It would be big for all involved, and an interesting situation for WWE to air independent content.
- "Director's Cut" versions of content on the regular Network tier.
- Live audio. Podcasts, call-in shows, etc. Trolls would have a field day with that, for better or worse. Also music playlists. They might as well do that, since fans do it themselves on YouTube.
- An ECW reboot and/or TV-14 in-ring show. That could be really big considering how many fans claim to want that kind of thing. It's an idea worth exploring.
- Scripted wrestling-related comedies and/or dramas. That could also be fun if the right people are doing it. Given the success of GLOW, there could be legs to the idea.
- Downloading content to watch offline.
- Being able to comment live on Facebook while watching.
- Alternative commentary, potentially from Steve Austin and Jerry Lawler. That would be really interesting.
- Alternative camera angles, potentially including a drone, a GoPro, and from Gorilla position.
- Listening in on WWE executive conference calls. That would be really big. Wow.
- Voting on the Hall of Fame and Slammys. I'm interested in how that would turn out. I assume it would be from a list of options under consideration. Otherwise they'd get thousands of votes for Chris Benoit and Hitler.
-- This premium version of the Network would potentially be up to $20 a month. With that much content, I don't think that's an unreasonable amount to ask. Those are some really big ideas, and some would be very costly. I applaud the bold efforts, though.
For my take on yesterday's PWInsider.com questions:
1. In some ways it's like they're two separate continuities, like Marvel having the Ultimate Universe. I do think it could alter fans' perceptions of wrestlers by getting a look at what they're like outside of WWE, in a way that either helps or hurts depending on how they come across on "Total Divas."
2. I think their respective issues were more with previous management teams, and they were willing to come back with Jarrett back in the company, as Bruce at least is in a position to make some changes there.
3. It's pretty bad when you come across as unlikeable in your own book! Most talents use the opportunity to paint themselves in the best possible light, because of course it was everyone else's fault they didn't get pushed, etc.
4. Vince is probably going to hang on to control as long as he's physically able to do the job. Most fans will be sad to see him go, but there are definitely people who do wish something terrible would happen to him because they care that much about the wrestling business and think Vince is ruining it. I'd much rather him continue to pass the torch than a forced exodus through tragedy. There's no need for wishing that level of cruelty in regard to pro wrestling of all things.
5. If Taker's not coming back, he's just a broken-down 52-year-old man who's not wrestling anymore, in which case I'm fine with Cena throwing him under a bus, because there's no need to worry about Taker "looking strong" or whatever. If he does come back for WM34, Cena either beats an AARP member or loses to someone just holding it together for one last match. Neither really does anyone any favors. Most of Taker's aura is pretty much gone after WM33. Taker vs. Cena would be big, but not as big as it would have been years previously.
More wrestling tomorrow.
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