Lucha Underground

TNA is still arguably the closest wrestling competition the WWE has, but there are these other feds popping up that are picking up stars and might one day make some noise. Lucha Underground is one of those. It started just last year.

It is something different. It has that lucha twist to it. But it does not showcase only Latino wrestlers. It does have some former WWE guys, including Alberto Del Rio (Alberto El Patron) and John Morrison (Johnny Mundo). El Patron is a guy I can imagine being pushed as the top star of that company. He is no spring chicken, but this is not a guy that needs to be groomed to be a star, like Roman Reigns in the WWE. He is a good in-ring performer, he can talk, and he has charisma. With more freedom in Lucha Underground and a target audience that will be drawn to him and his story, he should be great. As for Johnny Mundo, he is obviously amazing in the ring and can help appeal to an even wider audience.

As far as women's wrestling goes, they do not really have a women's division. That does not stop them from having some women on the roster and utilizing them. They have Karlee Perez, who was Maxine in WWE. I liked her. But the true star for their women is Sexy Star, a Mexican talent. Lucha Underground actually has their women wrestle the men. I think that is a great idea. They are not in a position to just feature women's wrestling like TNA does. And they do not need to build top stars at the expense of people they do not want to be top stars like the WWE does. One day? Maybe. Right now? Just make do with what you have. And they are doing that. They have valets and they have women wrestling the men, which I previously mentioned. Although Sexy Star is not the only one that does that, I feel she would be the best choice to really feature as a top star. They have Ivelisse Velez, who was in the WWE briefly, but Sexy Star has been around longer and has had more success.

It seems the promotion does not want to keep their women's division that small. There were reports as recently as last month that Torrie Wilson and Victoria were in talks to join the company. Jim Ross even brought this up. Let's say these two women were to join Lucha Underground. I mentioned that Alberto Del Rio is not a young guy right now. Both Torrie Wilson and Victoria are older than him. Torrie Wilson will turn 40 this year and Victoria turned 44 last month. And yet, signing either one would be great. They have been around mainstream wrestling in the United States longer than any of the other women already on the roster. Torrie Wilson is still beautiful and can be a great manager/valet. I can imagine Victoria being useful in how the company utilizes female wrestlers. She can mix it up with the men.

Can Lucha Underground ever be real competition for the WWE? Or is it just an alternative? Some people might say that it will only appeal to a Latino audience. Keep in mind that it is also pro wrestling and features some mainstream names and good action. That would make it a draw even to wrestling fans. This promotion is not just trying to aim at one demographic. They still have a lot of growing to do, but they can be an exciting promotion that does one day makes some noise. If nothing else, I can buy them eventually taking TNA's spot as the WWE's closest competition.

The Awesome Rebirth?

After taking out R-Truth last week, Miz follows up with taking out John Morrison this week. I already talked about Morrison, so this is going to be about Miz this time around.

They are selling this idea that Miz is taking out people who have held him back. The next man on his list will obviously be Alex Riley, who was shown backstage with John Morrison this week. Riley was Miz's sidekick for a few months. Back earlier this year, they had mistakes by Riley be the reason for Miz failing to regain the WWE title. This led to problems in the team, and Riley eventually turning face. Riley looked very impressive against Miz in some of their matches. I'm talking "Kofi Kingston Beating Randy Orton" impressive here. Remember where that one went? Absolutely nowhere for Kofi. He remained in the midcard. Following looking so good, the WWE also demoted Riley back down as well. Up to this point, he has done nothing too interesting. He now finds himself possibly once again in the path of his former mentor.

I like that Alex Riley is going to get used again. Some people can say that R-Truth turning face was meant to replace John Morrison, but you could have easily have just promoted Riley back up again and left Awesome Truth as a heel tag team. You can also have Mason Ryan who can be pushed even more as a face, if need be. Send over DiBiase from Smackdown to Raw more often. The WWE seems eager to get him over. Before I get too lost from what I'm talking about, let me pull it back in to Riley. If it had to take Awesome Truth splitting up and John Morrison leaving for Alex Riley to get used again, I can live with that. Point is, he will still be getting a chance to go out there. Obviously, when R-Truth returns, the WWE will pretty much have to have him feud with Miz. That will most likely make Riley's push just filler. Nevertheless, I hope it does not end up being Miz killing Riley on the stage next week in the same way he took out Morrison and R-Truth. Make it a real feud. Take it to TLC. That is what I am expecting. I doubt the WWE will push Miz against Big Show right now. Big Show was one of Miz's former partners, as well.

Miz seems to be getting a new character. He still thinks he's awesome, but his promo on Raw had less of that cockiness and energy to it. This Miz is colder. I like it. Do I think the regular fans will? No. That is why his actions will have to speak louder than his words. Having him be violent like this is good. Depending on how the WWE works this, Miz can be bringing something interesting in the midcard in the coming weeks.

The End Of John Morrison In The WWE?

Off of just the segment involving John Morrison and Miz, there are two things I would like to talk about. Since I will probably want to spend some time on both, I will split it up. Right now, John Morrison.

The Miz attacked Morrison from behind and took out his knee before their match officially started on Raw last night. Morrison went on with the match anyway, showing some guts. He looked impressive in holding his own for a while, but got taken out again on the stage. Medics then stretchered him out.

There was talk for a long time that John Morrison would not be staying in the WWE. When they gave him that win against Dolph Ziggler and looked to be pushing him again, it looked like things might have been settled or that the WWE was at least trying a little more to convince John Morrison not to leave. I guess it was not enough. John Morrison definitely looks like he has been written off. Looks like WWE may have lost him.

John Morrison is not the kind of guy the WWE would want to lose. Even if Rey Mysterio, Christian, Triple H, and whoever else were not out with injuries right now, or suspended because of the wellness policy, you still had dwindling star power, which was definitely being felt in ratings and other such indicators. Regardless of whether or not you even have a ton of talent or not, John Morrison is a unique performer. He can pull off a lot of crazy spots. Mistakes may happen now and then, but I feel it is a waste to even bring that statement up. Morrison was a solid worker in that respect. Some people may criticize his charisma and mic skills, but if you give this guy the room to do his own character his way, he can do fine. He definitely has the look too.

Judging by the fact that the WWE did not just terminate his contract and toss him out like garbage, they did not want to lose him. Did they do enough to try to keep him? Obviously, I do not work for the WWE and I am not going to be refreshing my favorite wrestling news site every 5 minutes for a report on the situation. I wouldn't blindly believe it anyway. Unless John Morrison himself cares to shed some light on what was going on with negotiations, I can only talk about what I can see myself. What did I see? A losing streak angle. You can make a lot of false promises and BS to your workers backstage, in the end, if their issue is how they are being pushed, not money or other such incentives, people can see for themselves whether or not the workers have a legitimate gripe. Again, a losing streak angle? Most of them lead to something good at the end, and Morrison's almost did, but I don't think they really did enough to convince this guy to stay. It looked like he would still be pushed around all over the place. Considering his potential, he deserved a push a lot more than some of the other guys.

The WWE made another dumb move. Not only would pushing Morrison better in his final weeks have been a good way to convince him to stay, it might have made for some good matches. In that way, even if Morrison still refused to stay, at least you got your money's worth out of him, or tried to. They just sent him out there in a lot of regular matches. He looked impressive here and there, but none of the really amazing spots you could usually expect from him when put in that kind of situation. When they announced what kind of match Miz vs. Morrison was going to be, I expected a spot that would work to write Morrison off, but I was also looking forward to Morrison being allowed to show some of that amazing ability of his that can really get fans interested. Nope. He showed heart in the story of the match, but no really cool spots from him. I can understand if the WWE does not want to treat Morrison as something too impressive, just to make fans even more eager to watch TNA, should he pop up there anytime soon, but was it really worth passing up an opportunity to make their own product look good? If this was their mentality, they might as well had released Morrison already, just sit him out until the contract expired, or have him end his run jobbing on Superstars. I understand that their decision was more for Miz's benefit than Morrison's, and I will get to that next time, but just in terms of using your workers properly to deliver exciting moments that can really draw the fans in, they could have done a lot better with Morrison in his final weeks.

To be fair, maybe the WWE never had a chance to really keep Morrison. Earlier this year, when I talked about the likely possibility that Melina would soon be released, the top reason I gave as to why the WWE may think twice about releasing her was her relationship with John Morrison. I am not going to talk about whether or not Melina has Morrison on a short leash, but the WWE did not seem to be giving Morrison any other great reasons to stay. If they had, he would still be there. Had Melina still been in the WWE today, maybe she would have convinced him to stay and continue to be stuck in the midcard. She was passionate about being in the WWE and did not want to leave. With no Melina and the WWE not providing any signs that great things are really to come, I could understand why Morrison might not want to continue there.

If some kind of other deal has been worked out and Morrison is just taking a short time off, that would be good for the WWE. If not, the WWE may have lost another good worker to TNA.

Morrison Continues Against Ziggler

Following John Morrison's losing streak being snapped against Dolph Ziggler last week, John Morrison was once again involved in Ziggler matters this week. He tossed Ziggler back to Mason Ryan after Ziggler had lost that match by DQ.

Love that. The WWE is following through with John Morrison, and in the same direction that would make most sense after he beat the United States Champion. Will this whole storyline go in the same way as the one Sheamus got earlier this year? Remember that losing streak? Sheamus ended up winning the same title. Titles are not everything, but putting a title on Morrison right now might make it easier to keep good attention on him. Having him enter a feud with Alberto Del Rio or something with Miz & R-Truth may be worth more, but I'm sure Morrison fans would rather want a title now. Considering that Ziggler has held the title for a while and looks to be entering his own losing streak, he may be dropping that soon.

There is, however, a dark cloud. Woo Woo Woo, You Know It! Sorry, I just don't like that guy. Not that my opinion matters. As far as my analysis goes, he has still earned his overness and has been mistreated by the WWE. Having him beat Ziggler for the title might be a great moment. The fact that they a had a brief segment with him to mention his petition for another title shot pretty much shows that he is not out of the picture completely.

Three-way feud coming up? Ziggler vs. Morrison vs. Ryder? I didn't mention Mason Ryan being put back into the title hunt, but I really do not want to see it. He looks like a waste of time. Why waste time on filler when two over faces are there with more potential? Besides, you will have 3 faces going after one heel Champion. Not unheard of, but aren't there other heels you can add in? How about Jack Swagger himself? That would help push the split in that little team. And Brodus Clay? He's coming any week now. Six-pack match for the United States Championship. How about you hang it high enough that you might need a ladder to get it? Sounds like a good match for TLC. Still, I would rather it just stay with Ziggler vs. Morrison vs. Ryder.

John Morrison's 2011 Losing Streak Ends

As I said last week, you can usually expect things to be a little messy around this time of year. I don't mind leaving a little room for that and not being too hard on the WWE. Nevertheless, this Raw once again looked like an inconsistent mess. The direction the WWE seems to be going for several storylines seems very shaky.

With so much I could talk about, I decided to bring up John Morrison's losing streak coming to an end through his victory over Dolph Ziggler. He had been losing for months, which led many to speculate on him possibly being punished, on his way out of the company, and even potentially being the one jobbing to Brodus Clay tonight. I'm glad the losing streak is finally over. Wasn't very entertaining. The commentators were putting over that losing streak, and even though he did go over the United States Champion, I still feel more could have been done to develop this first victory to be worth more. The match was good, but I have definitely seen Morrison in better, without even bringing in his fancy stunts.

One thing I could not believe, they actually teased Dolph Ziggler possibly having a losing streak now? He lost to Zack Ryder last week. So what if he loses to John Morrison this week? There have been a lot worse than that. This can all be leading to the split of Ziggler from Vickie Guerrero and Jack Swagger, who won his match on Raw.

I have to bring up that inconsistency with who Ziggler is feuding with. Riley, Ryder, Ryan. It seems like the WWE is still building back up for a rematch with Zack Ryder again, but the development in that direction could have been better. Ryder was in the main event tonight, teaming with Cena to face Miz & R-Truth. A good enough feud is not really developing between Ziggler and Ryder in terms of a storyline. It's all Internet, isn't it? Having Morrison beat Ziggler tonight just makes things even more complicated. If you wanted to end Morrison's losing streak, there definitely were other options. If they wanted him to go over someone with some credibility, not an absolute jobber, have him be the one beating Swagger tonight. Have Ziggler beat Santino. Or have Morrison enter a feud with Otunga and beat him on Raw. The way things are working out, they might as well have Morrison feud with Ziggler over the title too. What else does Morrison have to do? Seems rushed and not built well at all. It almost looks like the WWE is more concerned with what may be coming up after the title feud, not developing a good title feud itself. If they fail to develop a good rivalry between Ziggler and Swagger over this, a good midcard title reign for Ryder, or John Morrison entering a good midcard feud after his losing streak was broken, this lack of clear focus would not have been worth it.

John Morrison Jobs And Jobs

John Morrison did not have any real focus on him last week. It was not surprising that he lost at Night of Champions. His loss to Alberto Del Rio this week was somewhat surprising, and sad. It was a squash.

Del Rio had just lost the WWE title to Cena the night before. I can understand wanting to make him look strong right after, especially since he is getting a rematch, but you needed to squash John Morrison? This is supposed to be entertaining to the general fans? Of course not. But it does sell that Alberto Del Rio is still dangerous and angry. Morrison was just the tool used to convey that point.

People can say that Morrison is being punished for his relationship with Melina right now. I wouldn't say that is entirely it. Morrison did get a very impressive win against R-Truth on Raw a few weeks ago, and that was after Melina was released. This was also before R-Truth and Miz officially got this storyline they now have. Why bring that up? Some people might have thought that Morrison would be the one getting a good push after that win, but the WWE are now pushing R-Truth better. Moreover, things may look depressing for Morrison now, but it will have to end sooner or later.

Does Morrison deserve heat for his relationship with Melina? Whether it come backstage or from fans? I don't think so. Many of Melina's issues in the WWE in the last few months revolved around the WWE mistreating the diva division for the benefit of Trish Stratus and recreating a Trish Stratus. Melina, being a credible jobber, was released because she was no longer needed anyway. Morrison is supposed to be blamed for siding with his girl? Even now, you need good, exciting performances to draw people to as much of your show as possible. Having John Morrison not do his fancy stunts as much does not help that. Is the WWE hurting John Morrison or their own product? Alberto Del Rio squashing him may register for those fans who never change the channel and sat through the match, but what about those fans who are not into that kind of thing? John Morrison is worth more to the WWE than Melina, I will admit that, but if you do not use him correctly, he's nothing.

The Amazing Return Of John Morrison

After weeks on the shelf due to injury, John Morrison made his epic return to Raw. He was shown backstage when Austin put him in a match against R-Truth. Later on, when the match came around, it was revealed that R-Truth took Morrison out backstage. He then went there and took a few more shots. Epic. Really? No, not really.

Obviously, Morrison was not ready to come back for real just yet. Was bringing him back like they did even necessary then? Well, it makes some kind of use of him. It is better than randomly being seen backstage, playing with your cellphone. It adds a little more to the story between R-Truth and John Morrison. Do not for a second think that R-Truth will win the WWE title, continue on in the main event, and never have to face John Morrison again. When R-Truth gets his depush, just like Miz did, just like Kane did over on Smackdown a few months ago, just like diva credible jobbers, Truth will be doing something back in the midcard. Why not finish that feud with John Morrison? Wait a minute. Did I just say that this is the same thing that happens to the divas? They get PPV matches and elaborate feuds with their former sidekicks, go on to win tag title within months of losing a major title, or have a feud that is literally months in the making? No. This is not the norm for these credible jobbers. R-Truth be blessed he was born a man.

Let me talk about the divas. What did they do on Raw? What did former Champions like Eve, Natalya, Beth Phoenix, Melina, and Gail Kim do? Eve, instead of getting some kind of proper finish to her feud with Brie Bella, got some mic time! So much better! Yeah, especially when she announced that the face divas were going to be Rockettes. This is the diva division the WWE wants? One thing is for sure, with the lack of a centerpiece in place, proper credible jobbers to put the centerpiece over, and any interesting storylines, this is the diva division they must live with. And what happened to Kharma is no excuse. You still have many women on Raw to use, and better than they did tonight. Tonight was just pathetic. John Morrison looked more impressive just standing backstage with Austin than that diva segment looked. Cold shoulder, injury, heat with Melina, whatever issue people may want to bring up with Morrison or not, this guy is still easily in a better position than pretty much every diva on the roster.

R-Truth Elevated Further

Had John Morrison not gotten hurt, what would R-Truth going over him have really have done for Truth? They are both on pretty much the same level. But R-Truth instead got to look good against Rey Mysterio. Rey Mysterio! R-Truth has been booked to get rubs from main-eventers before, but this current booking is a good sign that his heel push really is being elevated.

And then he is in a tag match that also features WWE Champion John Cena? Main event. Very impressive again. And I like this. Fresh pushes. Then again, do not get too excited for R-Truth. Only a matter of time before he ends up like Miz. What about Miz? Topic for another time. Until then, I would rather see Truth pushed than Punk right now. It can work well with Morrison's eventual return.

Morrison Is Feuding With Cena & Miz?

With John Cena moving to Smackdown from Raw and to Raw from Smackdown, with Miz holding the WWE Championship and doing his thing in his promo, and with both Cena and Miz as part of Raw's main event, it might be easy for some to forget that there are supposed to be 3 men in this feud.

If the flopping around last week was not bad enough, the Raw before the PPV does not even feature proper build for John Morrison in this match. When R-Truth first got placed into the title match, I was interested to see how they would build him as a main-eventer. That got screwed over. John Morrison takes his spot, but he isn't even getting built into a main-eventer himself. All he did on Raw was attack R-Truth after his promo, which probably lasted even longer than Taker's usual entrance. Almost? Instead of getting built to be on the same level as Cena or Miz, Morrison stays at the same level as R-Truth. Together, both are gaining no new ground.

I would be very surprised if Morrison does win the title. I didn't really have hopes for either him or R-Truth winning the title, but I was hoping for a better build for them in the feud to take them to a new level. So why is Morrison in the match? The lack of build for him makes it even more clear to me that he is mainly there to do his fancy spots to help make the match possibly match of the night, if not at least better than TNA's triple-threat cage match for the TNA World title this month. You can say he might also be there to job, but R-Truth could have easily have done that, or any other guy. Morrison is there for his unique abilities.

In the end, there are not three men in this feud. There are three men in the match. This whole feud is still Miz and Cena. It is the extension from Wrestlemania. Just like the mediocre build for John Morrison when he faced Miz earlier this year, this match will be just another chapter in the story of John Morrison coming close to becoming World Champion after showing he can perform more than adequately in the ring. If he should win the belt inside that cage, it still leaves me wondering why the poor build. His character will still look like a midcarder (or upper midcarder), but he will be holding the WWE Championship instead of Cena, who is still on Raw.

R-Truth Out, Morrison In

R-Truth and John Cena were the two contenders to face Miz for the WWE Championship. That was last week. This week? John Morrison defeats R-Truth for the spot in Raw's main event, which will be a cage match.

Do politicians flip flop as often as this? If changing contenders was not bad enough, R-Truth seems to be going heel. He has been face ever since he returned to the WWE, so a heel turn may be refreshing in some sense. Then again, he was getting a main-event push. He was hanging with John Cena this week. No offense to John Morrison, who I have said many times deserves a better chance, but I was actually looking forward to seeing them try to build R-Truth into a main-eventer. Instead, Sin Cara gets a rub from Cena and The Miz tonight. Sin Cara should be proving his worth in the midcard. Knowing the WWE, it is only a matter of time before he ends up like a Sheamus anyway. Push him hard at first, then turn him into a mediocrity for at least a little while after.

This is once again another chance for Morrison to look good. It was only a few months ago when he faced The Miz for the WWE title. A few months before that, he faced Miz and Daniel Bryan for the U.S. title. Now he finds himself in another triple threat. Given his style and abilities, a steel cage match can make for some great spots, which was surely one of the ideas of wanting him in this match. Will he win the title or just be used as the guy who steals the show, yet comes up short at the end? Let's see how WWE builds it.

Speaking of build, the WWE is doing a poor job hyping Extreme Rules. You usually get lazy booking in between Wrestlemania and Backlash/Extreme Rules. A lot of rematches and easy reworking of feuds already going on. Raw's WWE title match is basically Cena's rematch against Miz, but with another guy added in. Smackdown's title match was supposed to be Edge vs. Del Rio, which would have been another Wrestlemania rematch, but Edge has now been replaced with Christian. No surprise there. Christian was already an element in the feud even before Wrestlemania. Even before Del Rio won the Royal Rumble, he was the one who injured Christian. Since Christian was already a part of Del Rio's feud with Edge, the switch has been a simple reworking of the feud. What other feuds has the WWE really been working on? Most are either continuations of Wrestlemania feuds or stupid, like Eve vs. Brie. Unless the WWE can really turn it around on Smackdown this week and the build before the PPV next week, I don't think they should be expecting gigantic buys.

Corre Down And Melina/Morrison/Trish

If anything was really going to go wrong with The Corre, I had a feeling it would come from the WWE's booking of them. They were looking very good last time I talked about them. Three out of four members had gold. They were actually looking strong against Kane and Big Show, two big guys in terms of both size and credibility. What happened?

Last week, heading into Wrestlemania, Corre seemed to lose all its momentum. That is not necessarily a bad thing. It seemed like they would have won at Wrestlemania. Wrestlemania weekend, Corre "destroys" Kozlov, who was in the tag match. Faces suddenly are in trouble. This wasn't a good sign for Corre. Kofi Kingston replaces Kozlov. I have nothing against Kofi Kingston. If he was even there for a crucial or entertaining reason, I would even be more glad that he did make it in. But what happened? The 8-man tag comes off looking like some kind of diva match. To be fair, I am talking about in terms of time. Corre loses. Faces don't look too amazing. Match not that entertaining or worthy of a Wrestlemania. The fans go home happy in that the faces win. Is that still all it takes to make everyone happy?

Next night, Corre crashes The Rock and Cena's intimate moment in the ring. I enjoyed seeing them come out. I was hoping something exciting was going to happen. The Corre gets knocked around to help the two faces look good. Pathetic.

On Smackdown, a little bit of retribution. It was a Wrestlemania rematch, with more time to work. Corre still loses.

Is there some kind of rule that someone has to have a losing streak going to look pathetic at any given time? Sheamus had his turn, and it ended with a U.S. title run. Now it is time for Corre to "pay their dues" for a while? Fine. All hope is not lost yet anyway. Let's see how the feuds break up now over the tag titles and IC title. I may talk too much about these guys, but this concept has potential. It raised interest last year with total rookies. It didn't take the return of The Rock or Austin to make it work. If the WWE did not realize at least some of this themselves, why would they do another version of what is basically still Nexus on Smackdown? I am going to wait and have hope. Then again, that didn't work out back when I used to talk about the divas every day.

Speaking of divas, there seems to be some issues revolving concerning Melina, John Morrison, and Trish Stratus. Morrison and Melina have an obvious relationship. Trish and Morrison tagged together at Wrestlemania and have been on the same side against Dolph Ziggler and Vickie Guerrero. Trish said in an interview that she feels snubbed by how Morrison was treating at time when they worked together. All the details from all sides are not completely out, but it seems Melina is unhappy about Trish Stratus getting featured at Wrestlemania, while herself and the other divas get nothing. After just saying the other day that I find the recent booking of the diva division, especially on Raw, annoying, I would be a hypocrite if I did not take the side that reports are claiming Melina represents. Who gets the diva spotlight at Wrestlemania this year? Snooki? Trish Stratus gets the hype leading up to the event? None of the other divas get a match or are featured properly at the PPV or in the weeks prior to build it. Last year? Vickie Guerrero? In a large diva tag match? Divas either stand around or play dead on the outside while Vickie Guerrero gets her moment. Year before that? This is my favorite one. 25 divas in one ring. Who wins? Santino Marella! If these were isolated incidents sprinkled between Wrestlemanias that are regularly good for the women that carry the division week after week, I would not complain. But it has been at least three years in a row now. Is some beauty pageant winner on Tough Enough right now going to get her Wrestlemania moment next year? Is that what the division is going to be about?

But it is different? It's Trish! So that makes it okay to treat the women working there regularly like crap? Especially the ones who were hired for actual wrestling ability, which Trish was not? The woman who is arguably the most over on the current roster didn't get screwed over. Vickie was used! She may not be getting cheered, but her reaction is real and loud. What is Trish actually doing for the WWE? Entertaining? Giving meaningful rubs to future stars? My absolute favorite wrestlers were never either The Rock or Steve Austin, but they are bringing it for the WWE. Ratings went up majorly the week after The Rock first returned. Ratings spiked again when they advertised Austin. When they advertised Snooki's appearance and Trish taking on Vickie, ratings fell back down. Admittedly, Austin is a tough act to follow. You can see the numbers here. What about live reactions? You could tell the crowd is usually high for Rock and Austin when they actually show up. Last Monday was the first time in weeks Trish actually got a good reaction, but I already mentioned that that Atlanta crowd was hot. Let me honestly speak for myself. I may not have ever been a die-hard fan of any of these three, but when either The Rock or Austin's theme hits, it gets me pumped. I know something is going to happen. With Trish, nope. Just seeing those two guys walk down the aisle and into the ring, I see the enthusiasm and character that they are about. With Trish, I don't. These men on the mic? Great. Awesome. No adjective comes to mind to give them justice. With Trish? Yes, she has not gotten the mic or time to speak that much, but I would rather watch Vickie talk anyway. I enjoy the heat she gets. And when the words stop? Austin stunners and pours beer everywhere. The Rock layeths the smacketh down. Trish has attacked LayCool and all that, but it was nowhere near as exciting as watching Austin or The Rock do their things.

I mentioned giving rubs. Do I really need to mention who The Rock is putting over greatly just by talking about him? John Cena. The Rock will not take away the heat Cena does get, but he will definitely help Cena look even more like one of the greatest of all time, no matter who wins that Wrestlemania match next year. Cena has already proven that he can stand firm against The Rock in a war of words. The Miz and Alex Riley have also slightly benefited from being involved in this mix. Aside from actually putting over Tough Enough on Raw, the WWE is also using Austin to give rubs to Miz and his sidekick. He's giving CM Punk some attention on Twitter. He buried the diva division, but I was just saying how the WWE is doing that themselves to feature Trish Stratus. Which divas are Trish Stratus actually putting over? Her interactions with LayCool did not seem as strong to me as what was going on with the men I just mentioned. Are LayCool even there to get a rub from Trish? Vickie seems to be doing more for Trish than Trish is doing for any of these divas. Trish doesn't have the toughness of an Austin or Rock, so her getting attacked by McCool won't do much but create a standard diva moment. The fact that hype for both McCool and the current Trish was so mediocre does not help.

Then there was Morrison. So many questions and directions to go here. First of all, it is already obvious that the WWE failed to treat Trish in a way that would actually give LayCool a proper rub, so what really would she have done for John Morrison? Help John Morrison look like he's on Trish's level? Ummm...what do I even say to that? John Morrison is very capable. His matches from a few months ago prove that he can do things that very few WWE superstars, if any, have ever done. He can awe. The character he had back in ECW proves that he can be entertaining in that respect as well. He simply needs the WWE hyping him and pushing him properly. Any rub from Trish Stratus would be meaningless if he jobs to Sheamus and Alex Riley for the rest of the year. Trust me, the WWE would have found some reason to do that to him. Honestly, it seems more likely that Morrison would have done more for Trish than Trish could have done for Morrison, especially when you realize that Trish is the one the WWE consistently pushes as the greatest diva, even though she's retired, and Morrison has been built up to be knocked down on numerous occasions already. Won't change, whether this mess happened or not.

Was Morrison wrong to do what he did? Obviously, I don't know exactly what Trish wanted to do. I don't know exactly how much of a role Melina played. How would people view Morrison if he showed more loyalty to Trish/WWE than Melina? I'm not going to answer that one. Just think about it. Was he wrong to "snub" her? How many times can you play nice and still put up with the same old thing? Let me repeat what I already said. Three Wrestlemanias in a row, people who do not deserve the payoff for the hard work of the women who are carrying the division and trying to get the job done get the spotlight at Wrestlemania. Week after week, Gail Kim, Melina, Natalya, and other women get nothing, while Vickie, Trish, and LayCool get the most of the diva attention on Raw. Doesn't this all seem familiar to when they kicked Mickie James to the curb in 2008 so they could try pushing Candince Michelle and BunnyMania for Wrestlemania? Yeah, now it is even more clear how the WWE viewed Mickie. And who is listening? What is changing? I asked whether these women don't want better for themselves. What does loyalty to this crap get you? A job in TNA? Morrison may have been showing more loyalty to Melina than the whole diva division, according to reports, but this is a start. Morrison the pushover seemed to have stood against something here. Do you think it is easy to snub a woman with heavy WWE backing like Trish Stratus? Batista can get away with humiliating Mickie James because the WWE was more loyal to him than he obviously was to them or they themselves were to Mickie. I am siding with Morrison on this one.

Morrison Going Anywhere?

The peak was when Morrison had his title shot against Miz a few weeks ago. Ever since then, he has been regressing back to the womb. Figure of speech. He beat Sheamus to earn the shot. Week after his match with Miz, he beats Sheamus again.

Tonight? I have to give the WWE credit. They gave him a little hype video during his entrance. After, they even had him go over Daniel Bryan in a non-title match. Daniel Bryan rarely loses. The last time he did lose on Raw was against Alberto Del Rio, who is in the midst of his own monster push due to Smackdown needing new stars. In any case, Morrison looked good again tonight. But Daniel Bryan and John Morrison had met before. Morrison got a shot at the U.S. title a few months ago, before his feud with Sheamus. Match with U.S. Champion, go over Sheamus, title match against Miz, go over Sheamus, go over U.S. Champion. Yes, Miz was also involved in that U.S. title match. But it is still just funny how Morrison's push seems to be going backward a bit. Next week, Chris Jericho will probably return so Morrison can go over him again.

Is Morrison really going anywhere? I compared him to Kofi Kingston before. Where is Kofi now? Back as king of the midcard on Smackdown. What can WWE do for Morrison? If not a Royal Rumble win, give him a great showing. Final four? Moreover, give him a REAL feud with Daniel Bryan. It would be unfair to say Morrison did not at least earn a title shot. Develop that into a feud. That would help both men. Even include the Bellas are their slutty antics. It's all PG fun!

Morrison Starts The New Year Coming Close

John Morrison earned a title shot at a PPV, in a ladder match, and against a former World Champion. WWE decides to have him use that shot on Raw. Falls did count anywhere. That did allow for interference from Riley for Morrison to overcome and look good. Needless to say, it also allowed for Morrison to do some crazy spots. Having him come close in beating Miz also makes him look good. Of course, having Miz overcome him also makes the WWE Champion look good himself.

Then you have Randy Orton back in the title picture to face Miz. Orton won a cage match to face Miz at the Royal Rumble. Morrison? Most likely being in the Rumble match to make sure it is as "star studded" as they hype every year. I doubt those rumors about a 4-way match, and even Lawler winning the title.

Was Morrison's push treated poorly by the WWE? I said before that he came close and looked impressive for various reasons. This can be a good build for an eventual World title run in the future. Thing is, John Morrison has already had a good build for such a run. I will not even bring up his ECW title run. No need to get into the debate about whether that was an actual World title or not. This match tonight was not Morrison's first title shot at one of the two current World titles. He was booked in an Elimination Chamber match and lasted to the final three last year. The last title he held was the Intercontinental Championship. Who did he beat? Former World Champion, Rey Mysterio. I already mentioned how he has beaten Sheamus. He has beaten CM Punk and Chris Jericho. He is over and can still go further. The WWE definitely could have done him better, and also in a way that would not have hurt Miz much.

How would I have booked it? Have Morrison win the title tonight and lose it back to Miz at the Royal Rumble. Remember Edge's first reign? Morrison gets the credibility of winning the title and moves up in the card a bit. WWE needs fresh faces. Miz gets the title back and can lose it at Wrestlemania to an even bigger face than Morrison. Miz looks like a strong heel, if done correctly. How would I book Morrison now? Give him an impressive Rumble performance. What more can you do? I'm not saying he has to win. If the WWE wants to save that on a surprise return, fine. Whatever happens, this should be Morrison's year.

King Sheamus

WWE really working on keeping Sheamus fresh. Triple H will be back, but seriously? Sheamus? He has been WWE Champion twice already. I am sure the WWE could have found some other way to keep Sheamus strong.

Morrison? Would have been nice if he won, but WWE seems to like heels winning King of the Ring. I would have liked Alberto Del Rio to win it, but WWE insists on still pushing that feud with Rey Mysterio. If that was not there, I would say it was a mistake not to give this man the credibility to be a top heel of Smackdown. Besides, he's entertaining.

I can go through the other names in the tournament, but those I already mentioned are the top ones I feel were worthy. I guess Sheamus was still on the list. In other news, this Morrison/Sheamus thing continues to remind me of Kofi/Orton.

I See Kofi Kingston

When I look at John Morrison on Raw right now, I see Kofi Kingston back one year ago. I am not making any statement based on looks or anything like that. I am talking about how the WWE is pushing them.

One year ago, Kofi Kingston had this huge break in which he feuded with Randy Orton, who had just come off losing the WWE Championship to John Cena. This feud did more for Kofi Kingston than it did for Randy Orton. Orton was an established main-eventer. Kofi Kingston was a midcarder. He had beaten guys like Chris Jericho, but he had never gotten anything like that feud with Orton. It definitely showed a new, focused side of Kofi. If the WWE had continued pushing him up, I believe Kofi Kingston winning a World title earlier this year would have been a credible event.

Right now, John Morrison is getting this storyline with Sheamus. It is true that the main focus so far seems to be this comedy bit between Sheamus and Santino, but that seems to be just a creative way to transition it to Morrison and Sheamus in the coming weeks. Many may remember when we saw a new, focused Morrison months ago as he warmed up for a match against Sheamus on Raw. He even pushed Sheamus, who was still WWE Champion at the time, to a great limit. However, that was only one match. Since then, the WWE has tried to push Morrison steadily to some degree. He has beaten Chris Jericho, among other men who have been World Champion. And now he has this storyline developing with Sheamus? It seems very much like Kofi/Orton 2009 to me. Sheamus is not as established as a main-eventer as Randy Orton was one year ago, but that is a sign of the state the WWE is in now. Aside from Sheamus, how many other main-event heels on Raw have been WWE Champion before to be able to give a midcarder a rub? If you can name one, you can name more than I can. Miz and Barrett have never held a major title yet and both are in the process of being built up to look like credible threats before they get that title reign. Point is, this push is more for the elevation of Morrison than the elevation of Sheamus. What can beating up Santino really do for Sheamus? Or getting a win over Morrison? The comedy bit will help the only aspect of Sheamus that seems to keep him as over as he is.

I am not complaining about the WWE pushing John Morrison now or Kofi Kingston last year. I think they deserve it. I am only explaining what is going on. Now I am going to complain. After all the WWE did with Kofi Kingston, where is he now? Smackdown? But that is not necessarily a bad thing. He won the midcard title there. That is the bad thing. All that momentum just started to go back down from there. He had held the midcard titles before. His push against Orton ended up having more entertainment and excitement worth than long-term worth for Kofi Kingston. Many can say that his further depush since then is due to other faces dropping due to injury or release. WWE needs a credible midcard face jobber, so they call on Kofi.


The question may not be how far Morrison will go with this push. What will eventually screw him out of the push? That is the question. Do these pushes really do something for these guys' overness? Both Kofi and Morrison were popular guys before their respective rubs from main-eventers. I did say that it showcased new sides of them. In the end, it does not matter how over they do get. It does not even matter how much effort they do put in or how loyal they are. That does not decide how far they will go. That is part of the reason Matt Hardy wanted out.

Daniel Bryan Vs. Miz Vs. John Morrison

With no time left, the WWE did a rushed job to create a triple-threat feud on Raw this week, which then sets up the U.S. Championship match for Hell in a Cell. Daniel Bryan will defend against both Miz, the former Champion, and John Morrison, the face on the rise on Raw.

Why is John Morrison in this match again? I understand that Morrison and Miz used to be tag champs and feuded after that, but it had been months since they really went at each other. Daniel Bryan was the guy who really had issues with Miz right now. Morrison was in limbo. WWE obviously wanted to push him, but they had no legitimate plan or free, worthy opponent for him. If they wanted to do a submissions match, it could have easily have been just between Miz and Bryan. In any case, Daniel Bryan brings in Morrison to be his partner in the recent Raw match, the heels win, and the face team falls apart as both have issues with Miz that they want no one to get in the middle of, supposedly.

I am not complaining about Morrison finally finding himself in a match like this, just finding the development of it all funny. In this particular type of match, action can potentially spill anywhere. If you remember Morrison's match with Sheamus, that can be a very good thing for John Morrison.

Do I think John Morrison will win? Why end Daniel Bryan's reign so soon? That may make it even more poor than R-Truth U.S. Championship reign a few months ago. However, there are two good options for Morrison. Either he walks out with the title or walks out with a feud with Miz over that empty briefcase every World Champion fears so much. They could choose to have Miz cash it in on Sunday, dashing that plan to hell. What would be left for Morrison then? Heel turn followed by feud with Daniel Bryan? I would rather see Daniel Bryan feud with his old friends in Nexus. Something better really develop from this match on Sunday. They cannot push Morrison around randomly without a focus.

Am I talking too much about Morrison? Would you rather I talk about Barrett? Believe it or not, I am not a huge Morrison fan. I just think he would be a fresh option to push that fans can actually enjoy. Let me talk about the other two men in this match. I still am waiting for Daniel Bryan to do something to actually entertain me and earn the rating so many people give him. The most entertaining thing about this guy is the joke of a theme they gave him and Michael Cole's hate for him. Do I have to wait until Daniel Bryan turns heel to find him truly entertaining? I am not going to mark out because the guy reminds me of Chris Benoit. Being a good wrestler is one thing, especially when so many around you have mediocre talent, but a guy like CM Punk is someone I can respect as a good wrestler who also entertains, both in and out of the ring. This does not mean I want Daniel Bryan to lose the title. If he did, I would not care so much. And Miz? Miz really does not need to hold the midcard title and briefcase at the same time to seem credible before he officially rises into the main event. This guy has the character for it. He has the demeanor in the ring. The fact that he has a lackey even helps the facade more. I can buy that he is something of a heel leader. He holds victories over Cena, and not that fake stuff of calling Cena out and Cena not showing up. He may not be a Kurt Angle or Chris Benoit, but he can put on a believable performance with top guys. The WWE does not need to hold the midcard down by keeping the title near him anymore.

Where Is Morrison Going?

John Morrison put on one of the most exciting performances on Raw from someone not names "Randy Orton" I have seen in a while. He lost a match to Sheamus. Had he won that match, he would have been inserted into Raw's main event this Sunday at Night of Champions. It was a Falls Count Anywhere match. That gave the two men a lot of freedom. I would even say it was the kind of match I would not expect in the PG era. Screw blood, you can still have a somewhat violent match without it. In the end, it was Chris Jericho who screwed Morrison out of the match. The ending was the only point that was weak. After all that was going on, it should have taken something more to put Morrison away. He was on fire.

Even his segment before the match was more entertaining than some of the matches tonight. I figured it was going to be a basic warm-up segment to advertise the match was next. Wow. I was not expecting that bit. I knew about Morrison's unique training and all that, but never expected to see it like that.

But where is Morrison going? He beat Chris Jericho and was getting the better of Sheamus. They have been investing in him. The fact that he can do his own share in making himself look good, unlike certain people, would make me classify him as a good investment. Have him feud in the midcard? He's been there too long already. However, if he is feuding over Miz's Money in the Bank, you may have a good feud for both. The main event is already stacked. There may not be room to have Morrison feud for the title now. He may end up just being used primarily as fodder now, although still getting such a feud will build him up well for the future. Whatever happens, I cannot imagine the WWE dropping the ball here. It would be too stupid.