Wellity, wellity, wellity, after a week getting ready for a major move across-province, I'm finally ready to sit down and get back to this somewhat regularly; again still looking for writers to help out; details in the forum. This week though I decided not to just give Summerslam results and then Raw and SD results later on, I decided to put it all off and give a big-picture view of this week in wrestling. Before I go into all that though, I have to address the news of the last day or two -- Kurt Angle's release.

Kurt Angle, in his relatively short WWE career of about 5 years or so, has indeed been impressive, winning all kinds of gold and accomplishing in a short time what it takes many ham-n-eggers a career to accomplish ... and then some. He made a remarkable transition from amateur standout and Olympic champion to sports entertainment icon, being strong both on the microphone and in the ring, incorporating both solid mat work with intelligent use of aerial tactics and ... well ... shortcuts. His intensity and perfectionism is unparallelled except by other greats, and his charisma isn't necessarily immediately obvious -- I wasn't a Kurt Angle fan at the start, nor for several years. But in his feud with Shawn Michaels twelve months ago, he grew on me.

But the side of Kurt Angle which we didn't see, and which has become all too public in recent months, is much darker. While we all know he wrestled through a neck injury several years ago, and opted for a less-invasive but also less-successful surgery on that injury in order to come back more quickly to the ring, perhaps lesser-known until recently is the damage his commitment to his career has caused; a little-talked-about but pretty-much-accepted reliance on painkillers, a host of other injuries, and a very troubled marriage. It is to deal with these issues that Kurt Angle and WWE agreed on his early release from his WWE contract.

While Ari and I will miss watching Kurt in the ring, as one of the best entertainers WWE has and one they shouldn't lose lightly, I have to applaud his straightening out of priorities. While I love to see the man in the ring, it is not worth it knowing that this is a father who may never be able to get down on the floor and play with his children without suffering pain; someone who may have to accept his Hall of Fame plaque from a wheelchair. As a reasonably young man with many years ahead of him (both personally, and hopefully professionally), this time is key, and I personally wish Kurt all the best in how he uses it. It's been a tremendous five years, Kurt, and you've had a career many others more experienced than you would kill for; now do what will make you a true Superstar, and take care of yourself, your wife, and your little girl. That will make you a true champion.

Now on to lighter stuff ... well, not quite. Let's address the elephant in the room before moving on to the lighter stuff. Vickie Guerrero. I've gone back and forth over the two days since Smackdown was on TV, and after reading a bunch of harsh criticism of this 'sell-out'. And what I've come to is this. While it often becomes easy into kidding ourselves that we know our heroes who we see on TV every day, the fact is, we don't. As much as it may have felt like it, we did not know Eddie personally; she did. She's the one who deals with his absence every day in her daughter's lives, in her life, and who deals with whatever other fallout his death has left her. I think we all know Eddie would want to be remembered, and not forgotten, by the WWE. This business was his life. Whether we agree with it or not, it falls to Vickie Guerrero and his closest friends like Chavo and Rey to decide how he should be remembered. And let's not forget; Eddie got involved in some tasteless storylines himself. His cheating on Chyna ... his sometimes-stereotyped portrayal of a slimey, dishonest Latino ... and let's not forget battling with his best friend Rey over Rey's real-life son, a seven year old boy they both loved in real life. Remember; "I'm your Papi" wasn't just a cute t-shirt.

Of course, if Eddie wouldn't want to be remembered this way, then Vickie and those who love him most shouldn't be doing this. But he was someone who'd often step over many lines, in my opinion, to get a reaction, and to be entertaining. How does traumatizing some seven-year-old boy with an adoption angle somehow measure up as less offensive than working an angle around a dead man who loved the spotlight and in some way or another, let's face it, would probably still want to be in it? Now maybe he wouldn't want it to seem that his death tore all these people up who he cares about; but remember, Vickie cost HIM a match once too, and he's feuded with all his closest friends at one time or another. I think we can question Vickie's judgement, and the judgement of the WWE, and say that we'd do things differently ... but that isn't our decision, really, is it? We watch an offensive sport. That's what it comes down to. We accept that and adjust our 'outraged' metres accordingly, or we turn it off if it finally crosses our threshhold. If we don't ... only we are to blame, not Vickie Guerrero, or -- looking back -- Mohammed Hassan or Katie Vick or Sgt. Slaughter or any other offensive character or storyline the WWE's come up with.

Having said that, a lot of fun stuff's been going on on WWE. Summerslam was a very watchable show. Taking aside the angle around which it was revolved, Chavo and Rey's match was fantastic, and even Big Show and Sabu did well. Yes, I was surprised by Orton losing to Hogan, but I suppose no one should be surprised at a Hogan win anymore. Don't worry, Randy, that loss won't hurt you. Even the great Shawn Michaels has had his turn jobbing to Hogan and his Hulkamaniacs. It was an honour you were his opponent on the card. Flair and Foley was an even bigger bloodbath than I thought, and I think these two should consider going the way of Angle, given their ages and physical conditioning, before they too end up killing themselves in the ring. Foley did so awhile back, on just those grounds, and I think, with his 'firing' and Melina's turn on him on Raw this week, he's about to again. Flair on the other hand ... he and WWE need to slow his schedule up a bit. I think it was over at PW Insider that this was mentioned, but I have to agree: he wrestled, at 56 years old, a brutal, gruelling match with Foley, and then was on the card to fight Randy Orton the next night? Give the guy a break now! It makes much more sense, at his age, to book Flair as an adviser/manager, or in a Hogan-type capacity of occasional appearances.

I'm also seeing a glimmer of hope for the women's division, with Lita having won the title two weeks ago and Victoria and Trish having a match this past week -- hopefully Lita doesn't just make that women's title as worthless as the tag title though, and actually defends it at some point instead of pulling a Spirit Squad and simply holding it while running interference for her man. And speaking of her man ... Edge is gold, okay folks? A great opening promo on Raw ... a good match with Jeff Hardy (which, given the ring rust Hardy could have had, was far from a given) ... and a brutal fight with John Cena in which he takes a river bump. Finally getting rid of Cena's belt shows WWE might actually have the confidence in him to give him a bit of a run. I'm going to the Unforgiven pay-per-view in three weeks in Toronto, and I hope to see Edge keep the belt ... although Cena lost in his hometown, it might be the Rated R Superstar's turn to cough it up in his. We'll have to see.

But the interesting thing is the fact Edge DID keep the belt. Well ... I mean I'm not 100% surprised, the signs Cena was going to win were overwhelming to the point of being a near-obvious red herring. To the extent I thought Cena had it locked, it was due to WWE's penchant of going with the obvious. What does surprise me, though, is that both Edge and King Booker kept their belts. I didn't figure this would be a night where faces reigned supreme, but I figured at least ONE of the heel champs would lose their strap. That said, after his performance at Summerslam and at some recent Smackdown and ECW cards, I'm not quite sure Batista deserves the title right now, while Booker T has done the grunt work and made himself one of the most watchable guys on Friday nights. Ditto Edge for Mondays.

Now if only the McMahons realized their feud with DX has run its course ... especially when they're regurgitating old ideas, and things that were posted on WWE.com weeks ago (the DX spraypainting of WWE headquarters). In the McMahons, Michaels and Triple H, you have (whether you want to admit it or not) four of the most potentially-entertaining people in the company; that most of us are tired of this storyline, and that WWE creative can't come up with anything new for them, is sad. Let DX quietly get involved in individual feuds now, the nostalgia trip is over and it was a fun ride, but H and Michaels are too good individually to be trapped into this, a ship which has obviously run aground.

Having said all that -- WWE has taken at least a few refreshing steps in the right direction. Just as I was getting frustrated, it's shown some signs of promise over this summer, and made me want to keep watching -- no mean feat when I have so little time and have had to make some careful choices of just what occupies it. It's now just time for a few more.

Well, now that we've put "In This Very Ring" on hiatus a little while, I have a bit more time to devote to bloggin' it up here. And what a time to get back in the game, with Summerslam right around the corner. There hasn't been a PPV in awhile with such controversy going into it, with Hulk Hogan's dubious knee injury and subsequent appearance on Monday night, Khali and Undertaker's mysteriously-rescheduled "Last Man Standing" match, the "Eddie Guerrero Memorial" match between his best friend Rey Mysterio and his nephew Chavo Guerrero ... all looking to make for a hot pay-per-view. So without further ado, let's take a look at the lineup, and its implications.

WWE CHAMPION EDGE VS. JOHN CENA

On the one hand as I sit and write this, my common sense tells me John Cena's going to regain the strap. Edge continues to carry around Cena's stylized title belt, has not been feature prominently on Raw until the past week (and was not featured at all on the Summerslam poster, while Cena was front-and-centre), and the PPV is on Cena's stomping grounds in Boston. If this is the case, look for new women's champ Lita's attempted interference on behalf of her man Edge to backfire, costing him the title and setting the stage for their inevitable breakup now that she's got a title in her own right. Having said that, John Cena's win almost looks too obvious, and has a tinge of the 'red herring' to it. If that is the case, look for more dominance from the Rated-R couple, and hopefully for Edge to turn that damn belt in finally for a real piece of hardware. Or at least remove the spinning aspect.

WORLD HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPION KING BOOKER VS. BATISTA

This is actually tougher to predict, to me, than a lot of people out on the internet seem to think. A lot of people are getting on the 'Booker will win' bandwagon because this feud is relatively new, and yet they've been teasing it all summer, what with the legit backstage fight the two B's got into a few months back and all. And I can see that logic; this is their first match and it's rare, in an all-out feud, to hand the first match to the face (Batista). Having said that, with such a dirth of talent at the top of Smackdown, and with Rey Mysterio about to go on hiatus (as well as Chavo Guerrero it sounds like), the temptation would be there to put the belt on SD's most proven commodity at the moment -- Batista. Especially if Edge (as heel champ) retains the Raw belt. So I'm going to actually lean towards Batista, since that tends to fit the current WWE mindset to do what's expedient and not necessarily best for longterm plans -- and hopefully they will find some way to extend this feud (a la Randy Orton and Undertaker).

DEGENERATION X VS. VINCE AND SHANE MCMAHON

I think DX is going to win this one because I believe this is the blowoff match of this feud. While I don't think DX is going to 'break up' in the sense of one of the guys turning on the other (though I suppose there's a slight chance Triple H could reveal his true McColours and turn on HBK, now that I'm writing this), I think they will slowly go their own ways from here, with Trips probably wanting to get back into the title hunt (and/or spend some more time with baby Gamette) and Shawn having been rumoured for awhile to want to cut back his schedule. Meanwhile though, I look for Stephanie McMom to actually figure into this match in one way or another, either siding with her family or with her real-life husband and his buddy. This storyline has been rife with Trips-and-Steph in-jokes, and with the McMahons talking about all the 'resources' they can bring to bear on this match, I think Steph will be in their corner. Whether she will still be there by the end of the night is what will be interesting.

HULK HOGAN VS. RANDY ORTON

Given Hogan's age and ostensible current status of being injured, and the limited 'big man' move set of both men, don't look for a tremendous match here. But Hogan and Randy do what they do very well, but tend to only be as good as their opponents ... if the ring can hold their egos, it probably won't be able to hold their fast-paced, intense, hardcore, catch-as-catch-can wrestling style. Um ... seriously though, expect Hogan to win given his miraculous recovery (at least enough to participate in this match); if Randy DOES win (as he should, being the younger guy on the full-time roster), expect it to be dirty, to protect the mystique of Hogan while still giving the current star the duke.

MICK FOLEY VS. RIC FLAIR ("I QUIT" MATCH)

I'm actually really intrigued by this match, probably more than I should be considering the age of both competitors. There are two factors here which make this match interesting: the first is that I can't legitimately picture either Mick or Ric saying 'I quit'. Whatever else has been a part of their respective personae over the years, they've both been pegged as tenacious, determined competitors, and so I hope, whichever way WWE goes with this, they have it be a hard-fought, 3- or 4-star match (albeit perhaps not a pretty one) so that there is no shame in being the one to submit. The other factor is the fact that both are willing to do anything to their bodies, even at their current ages and health levels; expect a bloodbath, and hopefully a hard-fought win. As to who will get that win ... again, a tough one to predict.

REY MYSTERIO VS. CHAVO GUERRERO

I don't even, knowing what I know now, understand why they're having this match. While it's an intriguing feud when one gets past the exploitation of Eddie Guerrero's memory, the fact is that Rey's going on hiatus for knee surgery and Chavo is going back into retirement after this match, provided the current internet rumour mill isn't completely inaccurate. While I actually thought this longterm feud might be worth using Eddie's name for -- two of the guys closest to him in the business, his widow's approval (and even involvement), etc. -- if it's only for a one-off match, it kind of makes me wonder. And it makes the potential winner in doubt too. I was going to predict Chavo, with Vicki turning on Rey to help him, because giving the heel the duke in the first match is a typically good move to prolong a feud. What I will say now is, if that happens, expect the two to stick around awhile and see the feud to Rey's victory. If Rey wins, expect this to be the blow-off match as the two disappear.

ECW WORLD CHAMPION BIG SHOW VS. SABU

Perhaps Vince is listening to us -- either way this is a chance to put the title on Sabu, a beloved ECW original. While Big Show has impressed me, anyway, as a somewhat-longterm, credible heel champion where I thought he would just be transitional, defending the title at every TV taping and even having had some surprisingly good matches (eg his hard-fought victory over Ric Flair), the fact is that true ECW fans will not be satisfied until the belt is back around the waist of an original Extremist -- in this case Sabu. Look for this to build up to a possible RVD heel turn (perhaps siding with Paul Heyman, saying he knows that the sadistically-paternal Paul did what he did for his own good) and Sabu-RVD feud ... which could have some good chances to increase ECW's Sci Fi channel ratings and perhaps get the show renewed after a summer in the doldrums.

So there you have it -- WWE's had a very odd summer with some real high- and low-lights. This pay-per-view has some real potential to go out with a bang, and to set the stage for some great stuff in the months ahead to Wrestlemania (perhaps Edge dropping the belt to Triple H, and the long-awaited Triple H-Randy Orton Wrestlemania Match? or, if Cena wins, Cena dropping the belt to Orton, with the same result? ... go figure, the possibilities of Triple H going into WM as the face challenger, as opposed to heel champ, get better every day; maybe he's just tired of jobbing at the Granddaddy of them all). I just hope WWE doesn't drop the ball on all the intriguing storylines this could lead to.

Hey all,

Well as you can see it's been a busy month, judging by my lack of posting. I am currently working fulltime as well as taking a summer school course, as well as having recently had a death in the family (therefore have been travelilng a fair bit) and being in the process of a move. It's all we can do right now to keep up the ITVR radio show. So from now until I would say labour day weekend, please, loyal readers, tune in to ITVR for our witty and awesome commentary, and we'll be "back and badder'n ever" in September.

I will try to check in from time to time, eg if there's any big wrestling news, or after Summerslam or what have you -- but in the meantime quite frankly we've got more important things going on than the dreck WWE tries to pass off as entertainment. We still watch because we're fans, and we will always keep track and do our show, etc. -- this is just one extra ball it's hard to keep in the air right now. Meanwhile though, as I said we're still airing "In This Very Ring", and I'll still stick my nose in on the Message Board from time to time, as well as announcing any ITVR upcomnig guests here, and posting when I can. I'm just making no promises of regularity till September, when my co-host Ari will begin posting here too and we'll hopefully have arranged some other contributors for the site to take some of the load off.

Meanwhile, thank you and take care. Thank you for your ongoing support and we hope to get even more readers and ilsteners in the weeks ahead. Tell your friends. Tell your friends' friends. Tell your ... you get the idea. Meanwhile, we shall see you as always this Wednesday ... IN THIS VERY RING! Peace.

Cheers,

Sarah

On ITVR tomorrow night we'll be interviewing the First Lady of Pro Wrestling, Missy Hyatt, the original 'diva' as we understand that word to mean today; manager, commentator, sometime-wrestler, and recently online ... temptress, shall we say. Be sure to tune in to chat with this intriguing lady tomorrow night at 10 pm on fantalklive.com (hit the 'listen live' button at the top of the main screen), or listen to the archives later in the week at the link next to the ITVR logo at the bottom of the main page. Can't wait to meet you here ... IN THIS VERY RING!

Well there isn't a whole lot to report this week in terms of wrestilng, unless I were to just spout off results. Neither TNA Impact, Smackdown or Raw were particularly spectacular, nor did they suck. How ECW fares without RVD and with Big Show at the helm tonight remains to be seen -- but I have to admit I'm one of the few fans who has warmed to this idea of Big Show as ECW champion. Mainly because of how they're playing it.

If they played him as a legitimate champion who fit into the ECW mold and legitimately beat Rob Van Dam, then that would be wrong, because he's not. And not, as many people claim, because he's a WWE guy. Face it people -- the folks who made ECW what it was in its heyday are older, more beat up, and in many cases careening along to retirement with certainty. We all knew that ECW would have to be something new, and incorporate some new talent, in order to be a valid 'third brand' and succeed. Having said that, I agree that if they're going to have RVD beaten cleanly for the ECW title by a WWE guy, it should be one who's proven himself in hardcore situations -- for example have Edge win both titles. And if you're looking to un-unify the belts, then certainly MIck Foley could carry the belt for at least a few weeks/a month until RVD returns, or WWE decides who else to invest in as a longterm champion.

Meanwhile, Big Show can play the Hulk Hogan figure from the NWO era, the guy whose title win is wildly reviled, even as the brand he represents is highly 'cool' and popular. Paul Heyman's turn adds to the 'sell-out' feeling, and the emotions invested in that turn, whether the heat was "Good" or "Bad" heat, was still heat. The fans still reacted viscerally to the turn. While I questioned this turn at first, feeling the heel promoter gig has been overplayed with Eric Bischoff and now Vince McMahon, Heyman's playing it well, and having him cross over to the 'dark side' of Sports Entertainment is high drama the likes of which WWE hasn't seen in awhile.

Speaking of high drama, one of my favourite little storylines going on these days is Viscera-Charlie Haas-Lillian Garcia. Two lower-midcarders who could use a push are being given one, in what is actually an entertaining angle. I'm impressed! Drama seems to be the word of the day in WWE, which is a refreshign switch; even on Smackdown, Batista's return was energy-laden, and properly hyped, given it was the return of a former world champion. The only person I truly feel bad for with Big Dave's return? Rey Mysterio. Kiss that belt goodbye, Rey -- and most inauspiciously? He's going to lose it to Mark Henry. Oh well, look at the bright side Rey -- Mark'll only hold it a matter of days before dropping it to The Animal. You at least had a three- or four-month run with it. Maybe this can put your first title reign out of its misery, and you can come back stronger eventually with a second reign. I hope. Or maybe WWE will just continue to misuse you ... *sigh* ...

I'm liking how things are going over at TNA as well -- whatever other people say about thrown-together tag teams (and I tend to agree, given how WWE does them), I'm liking the Daniels-Styles team. I don't like the gimmicky amazon they have with them, but you can't have it all right? I really feel these two might have found their niche, as long as they continue teaming longterm. What's really easy to forget with 'makeshift' tag teams when two singles guys are thrown together, is they might actually *stay* together! Look at the James Gang, two former singles guys teaming up. Just because WWE too frequently makes short-term tag teams to fill the championship spot and can't be bothered to invest in the tag team division's longterm prospects, TNA is treating the division much better. And Daniels and Styles are in a big transitional phase right now, where they CAN'T dominate the X Division anymore -- it wouldn't be fair to the other competitors -- but to inject them into the already-full world title picture also wouldn't be fair, not to them getting lost in the shuffle, or to the Samoa Joes and Christians and others who are just really getting the recognition their due.

Which I suppose suggests this is a transitional tag team until the glut in the heayvweight division lightens up -- but that might be years away. In the meantime, Daniels and Styles can build some solid team cred, and have some gold around their waists. Nice work, in my opinion. Also good that Jim Cornette took a lower profile this week; nice that he "Threw the chessboard up in the air" so to speak, gave us some new angles/feuds/stories; but he can't just keep shaping everything, ultimately stories need to have legs on their own, and ultimately this one does. TNA is also starting to address my biggest concern where they're concerned -- trying to find the balance between enough storyilne to create that 'must-see' sense for next week, while not succumbing to the WWE soap opera theatrics when obviously wrestling is what they do best. I can't wait for Christian's pending heel turn, Samoa Joe to become #1 contender to the world title (as long as this isn't 'too much, too soon', peaking too early ... but only time will tell that, this is the path they've chosen, they're playing their trump card, hopefully it works), Team Canada's broken up ... lots of intriguing story while still being very wrestling-based.

NIce work all 'round this week, while the story's been wrestling and not the scandals and other pecadilloes of the wrestlers -- I'm pretty impressed, let's just hope it's kept up (especially ECW, where the next few weeks without RVD are critical to their success).

Hey folks -- again, hate to say "Listen to ITVR" on Fantalklive to hear my opinions this week -- I feel like a broken record already! -- but it's been a nutty one as I've started summer school, am working fulltime and what have you. And certainly on such a busy week, where world champ Rob Van Dam wa arrested along with Sabu -- two top ECW guys -- and rumours abound that Kurt Angle is suspended, not simply 'taking time off', and so on ... but we touch on all that and more on this week's ITVR, aired yesterday.

To hear my insights on the week that was, check out fantalklive.com in the next couple of days, go to the bottom of the page and click the "Listen Now" link for yesterday's show (if we don't announce Heath McCoy is our guest, it's not the newest show, try back in the next day or two).

And hey keep tuning in ilve on Wednesday nights, 10 pm eastern, by going to fantalklive.com and cilcking the big red 'listen live' button at the top of the main page. Next week we have the first 'lady' of wrestling, Missy Hyatt on the show, and are working on booking several interesting guests in the coming weeks and months. So stay tuned in, turned on, and I will do my best to keep up with posting here ... I will try to post my Smackdown and Impact! feedback over the weekend, and my Raw feedback Tuesday, but if I don't, hey! You know where to find me. Be sure to walk that aisle and meet me there ... IN THIS VERY RING!

Well well well ... I've been way too busy for my own good of late, but I'm back and badder than ever, as the song goes. :D Either way, there's a lot to talk about in the wrestling world, way too much to devote time too here as usual, so please do tune in to ITVR this week for our take on the news of the last couple weeks; I will do my best to maintain this from here out instead of just saying 'listen to the show', but the last couple of weeks I just started a new job, graduated from university, am in the midst of a move, and have been traveling more than anyone should ever have to.

Speaking of ITVR though, there won't be a guest this week to allow us time to talk about all the major news of this week; the DX reunion, the travesty that was Edge not winning the WWE belt, yet my (surprising) excitement at the possibility of John Cena winning the belt tonight (I agree with Dave Meltzer over at PW Insider that PPVs, especially when they just went up in price, should not be used to promote free shows; but given the predictability of Raw in recent weeks, the possibiilty -- and in fact the high likelihood -- of a title change on free TV even supercedes the fact it'll be John Cena winning it; especially if Edge beats him for it at Summerslam -- as long as it's not a trend, I'm okay with this).

So yeah, there won't be a guest. HOWEVER, please tune in to our archives (instructions on how to do so in the forum) to listen to last week's interview with Julie Hart (proof I have been busy -- such a high profile interview, if I'd had time I'd have taken it to promote it right here on our blog!). But it was a really interesting interview, Mrs. Hart has a lot of great projects coming down the pike, and I'm excited to see just where she goes with everything. So take a listen, and check out her site at http://www.juliehart.ca -- decent site!

Meanwhile, tune in Wednesday live at 10 pm Eastern over at wrestilngradionetwork.com or fantalklive.com (remember: LISTEN LIVE at the top of the page, not the archive shows at the bottom) to hear our take on the last crazy couple of weeks in wrestling. Be sure to walk down that aisle and meet us right here ... in this very ring!

Whoo guys -- way too much going on in my head about last night, and with Raw an hour away those thoughts are just going to be added to. So I'm going to do something I haven't done in a couple weeks now -- I'm going to defer my ECW/Raw reax to "In This Very Ring" on Wednesday. So tune in there (check out the forum to see how), and consider it your post-PPV/post-Raw audio blog. I've been typing for 45 minutes, said half of what I wanted to say, and my hands hurt. So I just deleted it and consider this the plug for this week's show. C'mon check it out. Till then, be well!

Well, this was where I was going to summarize my thoughts and feelings on last night's Raw, but really there isn't much to comment on. Lillian Garcia and Beth Phoenix were both accidentally injured last night, and we hope of course for their rapid recovery; Triple H's feud with Vince McMahon continues, but with Shawn Michaels on the DL a DX reunion seems to be on hold for now. And One Night Stand continues to be built towards beautifully, although Kurt Angle is an unexpected advocate of ECW. Him and Randy Orton fighting at ONS makes no sense from a 'nostalgia for ECW' point of view, but perhaps for ECW to continue to thrive it needs new blood and new direction. Ari and I will be discussing that on 'In This Very Ring' tomorrow night (check the forum for listening details), so I won't make what promises to be an already-long entry even longer, but that's definitely something I've got mixed feelings on: potentially a great idea, and a necessary one, but dangerous given everything WWE seems to touch these days turns to shit.

Which all -- the ITVR pitch and the mention of WWE's frequent mismanagement -- brings us to our guest on the radio show tomorrow: James Gutman! He was a longtime contributor to the Pro Wrestling torch at http://www.pwtorch.com, and recently struck out on his own with his own website, http://www.worldwrestlinginsanity.com. He is also a new author of a book, "World Wrestling Insanity" by ECW press. Now this was one of the best wrestling books I've read in a long time -- probably since Edge's autobio, which was the best since Mick's. It's actually a very insightful look at what WWE's done wrong, and the excuses it makes for them.

The excuses are what the book starts out with. Things like "It's the economy, stupid", "Wrestling is a cyclical business", and "We have to put out so much TV, of course we're going to have some misses" are deftly done away with ("But Linda McMahon says wrestling fans come out anyway, bad economy or not; which is the truth?", "Wrestling is cyclical financially speaking yes, but we're also talking creatively and athletically, which it should always be at least passable/somewhat good", and "No one asked you to write 6 hours of TV a week, cut back if you can't keep it up." He also touches on the increased on-screen role of the McMahon family -- owners of the WWE -- at and since the turn of the century, culminating in McMahon heiress Stephanie marrying an actual successful wrestler, Paul Levesque (aka Triple H). It examines his selfishness and makes a compelling case that he actually does bury other wrestlers, and is not just out for 'the business' as he pleads to anyone who will listen. Looking at his track record feud-by-feud since his marriage to the Billion Dollar Princess, Trips has made others look bad.

And why does this make HIM selfish? JG's hypothesis goes something like this: Triple H undisputably has a good head for the industry. He is not stupid, even his detractors give him that. Given wrestling feuds are meant to have everyone coming out looking at least strong -- weak roster = weak fed, everyone needs to look as good as possible, and as legitimate a threat as possible, or why do we waste time with a feud? -- Triple H either has to be consciously deciding to make his foes look poor, or is truly dumb towards the business. Take your pick. Triple H's record since the writing of the book has been at least more mixed -- losing cleanly several times to Batista, taking some time off and playin' at the midcard, before jobbing clean to John Cena, whereas he still humbled John Cena and made him look horrible in their pre-Wrestlemania interviews and managed to crush him and Edge at Backlash, rising triumphant despite having lost their triple threat match -- but the evidence pre-Batista is hard to argue with.

Gutman has a soft spot in his heart for other ills in the WWE -- looking at wrestling's self-policing nature, where 'the boys' take care of things, and hazing, legit shoot fights, and 'wrestlers court' are the tools of keeping employees in line. However, it's much more sinister than 'boys will be boys': Gutman suggests WWE allows such reputation-damaging behaviour to persist because while the guys are so focused on knowing their role in the pecking order, shaking hands with everyone in the back, yadda yadda yadda, they'll ignore more 'grown up' issues like say, health insurance or possible unionization like exists in other professional sports and entertainment fields. Which indicates a bigger problem in terms of talent relations and their focus, which Gutman cites as a problem John"ny Ace" Laurenaitis, director of talent relations who focuses more on regulating dress codes and forbidding 6-foot-plus, 200-plus-pound athletes from riding in anything but coach class, even if they pay for it themselves. Creative ideas such as Kane's ever-changing character, "Tough Enough" and "Diva Search" reality shows and more are also not exempt from Gutman's wrath.

All in all a very intelligent, perceptive read, with a point-of-view is fresh and new and something I hadn't necessarily heard before -- or at least not laid out in such detail citing such evidence. Gutman knows his stuff. There are only two weaknesses with the book, and those aren't so much weaknesses as limitations I shouldn't be so picky about. The first is the lack of focus on anything but WWE, but that's expected: the book is called "World Wrestling Insanity", and Gutman paints it as a book about the WWE. I would love to see his take on other feds, but I understand that being another book.

The other is the limited number of suggestions for WWE to 'stop the insanity', as it were. But again, that's not to say he offered nothing: a very good suggestion includes Vince no longer surrounding himself strictly with 'yes men', such as Johnny Ace (who agrees with his love for larger wrestlers at the expense of talent, having imposed -- albeit temporarily -- a 6'4" height minimum on WWE hiring practices after being hired a few years ago), but honest, perceptive employees who tend to get shit-canned. And there are certainly some implied ideas -- such as less screen time for Triple H and his in-laws, and more consistency in storylines (unlike poor Kane, whose character and his history has been twisted so badly WWE felt the need to put out a biography of the character to set the record straight). But I think Gutman could go further -- otherwise he risks simply being one of the fans he complains about who disapprove without offering productive suggestions. Nonetheless, if nothing else, Gutman takes the brave step (at least during an industry downturn) of admitting he loves wrestling, wants it to succeed, and pointing out the areas he thinks could be improved. This is more than the people who own and run the industry, really -- the McMahons and co. -- have done since buying out WCW 6 years ago.