From the Desk of Mr. V #85
September 2, 2010
By: Anthony J. Valvo of Wrestleview.com
Introduction
(To the student)
“Thought flows in terms of stories — stories about events, stories about people, and stories about intentions and achievements. The best teachers are the best storytellers. We learn in the form of stories.” – Frank Smith
Welcome back to school to all the students that are attending their learning institutions. From Mr. V, I say good luck, study hard, and believe. Choose your goals wisely. If the student picks the goal, go 100% at it. Don’t settle for anything lower than what you want to achieve. When you attain that goal, never lose ground. True success is a rewarding experience.
Sorry for that introduction, I am just that excited to go back to the schools and teach once more.
So with that thought, welcome to the latest edition of “From the Desk of Mr. V”. I am Anthony “Mr. V” Valvo, your WrestleView resident teacher with the same material as last time, but different names, matches, and articles.
So sit back and grab some iced coffee. Relax as you read the 85th Installment of “From the Desk of Mr. V”.
Quote of the Week
“To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson
Just remember to be yourself. Everyone must be their own individual. If not, you will be some schmuck listening to the same music as everyone else or watching shows like “The Jersey Shore” or anything on the CW. Really, who comes up with those shows.
Teacher’s Lecture
1) The 2010 WrestleView.com Student’s Choice Awards Ballot is up on WrestleView.com!
My thoughts: Well, after weeks of planning this article I finally have the information from the staff and the ballot completed. Students, you have the easiest part. You get to read all of it! If you like it, please vote. This is the perfect opportunity to voice your opinion on what was the best and worst in professional wrestling so far.
Thanks to Adam Martin for posting a top story graphic for the Mid-Year Awards. Adam even took part of the article, as well as the brightest columnists ever in professional wrestling. Men like Jose Marrero, Matt O’Brien, Josh Boutwell, Doug Lackey, and David Stephens. It truly is an all-star cast that got to provide their choices. Our duties were difficult, yours is quite simple.
To check out the 2010 Mid-Year Awards from the WrestleView Staff, click the link below.
http://www.wrestleview.com/viewnews.php?id=1283193361
To look at the ballot and cast your vote, click the link below.
http://www.wrestleview.com/viewnews.php?id=1283281221
I will give all of you some time to provide your choices. I am not lying, but as I am typing this I have received over 20 ballots and I hope to continue to stay busy with this project.
Voting ends on September 6, 2010. I will tally the votes and provide the readers’ (or students’) and calculate the votes. You have four more days to complete this ballot. Have fun and to those that already made their picks, I thank you.
2) All WWE Championships will be Unified?
My thoughts: I will admit, outside of some tragedies there really was not much to talk about. Until WrestleView posted a couple of tidbits that really interested me. The first one was from the Figure Four Weekly Newsletter stating that the WWE will slowly start unifying all their championships. The goal is to have a World Champion, a Tag Team Champion, and Intercontinental Champion, and a Women’s Champion.
I must admit, I like the concept.
I think if you are a World Champion, there should be only ONE World Champion, no matter if your company is split into two brands. The main even roster in the WWE is slowly on the decline. Wrestlers (and no I won’t call them “entertainers”) that performed five years ago are getting old quickly and their bodies are wearing down. And even though I am a fan of Sheamus, Wade Barrett, Jack Swagger, and Kofi Kingston, they are not sticking in the main event picture (even though Swagger and Sheamus have been World Champions this year). Also, Jericho’s contract is about to expire, Edge’s quickness is all but gone, and Mysterio is an injury away from retirement. HHH may retire soon, and the likes of Shawn Michaels and Batista have already done so. Kane and The Undertaker are both in their 40s, and even though they are in the midst of a great feud this is just short-term. To force the young guys right into the main event picture almost immediately may not be good for their careers.
I am not saying the young wrestlers now have no chance, but the main even roster should be about proven superstars, not young up-and-comers that win a World Title in less than a year. Again, I am a fan of Sheamus, but this guy should have been the Intercontinental Champion before holding the Spinner Belt. Swagger would have benefited more with the United States Championship before his lackluster run as a World Champion. I don’t blame the wrestlers for this, but the writing teams or even the higher-ups that are making the younger guys “too good, too soon”.
I think with one World Championship, it will involve longer stories and bigger rivalries. The writers can just sit back, run quality programs, and build a lot more wrestlers than with the two World Title format. It worked for the WWE on many occasions, so I think it is time to go a little “old-school” and have only ONE World Champion, the man that WWE Headquarters can say “THIS is the guy that will be the face of the company”. I am not saying Cena by the way, but love or hate him he will be in the Main Event picture for the next 5-7 years. Also, I can consider Randy Orton, The Miz, and CM Punk as bonafide Main Event guys right now. Other top mid-card guys are a year or two away, so give them good programs and let them ease to the main title picture.
Now let me get brief on the other ones.
The Tag Team Championships was a good idea when they announced it because there is less focus on those titles now. Perhaps with less singles titles to compete for, we may see stronger tag teams in the near future. I can hope, can I?
The Women’s Championship Unification was needed as well. I am sorry, but that division has gone down since I started watching wrestling again in 2005-2006 (I took a close to three year hiatus because of school, I will be honest). When they introduced The Divas Championship in 2008, that was not a bright move. With only about 10 or so divas, I think having all of them compete for one belt is a much better idea.
I would hold back on unifying the Intercontinental and United States Championships, however unifying them would not be such a bad idea. I think once the World Title is unified that means we will have a lot more emphasis on the mid-card. I remember the days in which an Intercontinental Run is one step away to a World Title feud. Now when someone wins a 2nd-Tier Belt, they hit a roadblock and when the title was lost they went into a funk. It happened to many superstars such as John Morrison, Kofi Kingston, Shelton Benjamin, and even Drew McIntyre. I think the only one to benefit from a secondary championship run right now is The Miz. The Miz is using the US Championship and the Money in the Bank case to elevate him to the top, and rightfully so.
The other reason to hold back on making the secondary titles into one belt is because of the brands. I think Smackdown and Raw should have a middle-tier champion to wrestle exclusively on their shows. Though it may be a prop, it is a prop that many wrestling fans think is a novelty to a performer.
However if they unify the Intercontinental and United States Championship, I think it would be the perfect time to bring back the Cruiserweight Championship. Look at all the wrestlers that are so athletically gifted on Monday Night Raw that are under 220 lbs. The roster is amazing! Plus, it gives the lightweights something to fight for. The WWE could even defend it weekly on WWE Superstars, why not? The ratings for that show are suffering; maybe a Cruiserweight title bout would be something needed for that show to survive. We already see solid matches that feature two non-heavyweights (Primo vs. Tatsu come to mind), and the division could be easily constructed. It gives the smaller wrestlers an attainable goal.
So to conclude, I say it would be good to unify all the championships as reportedly planned by the WWE. However, if they do that, perhaps the lighter mid-cards go for the Cruiserweight Championship. It would be impressive to see guys like Evan Bourne, Tyson Kidd, Zack Ryder, Justin Gabriel, Kaval, and Daniel Bryan compete in the division. It may be the strongest division they could organize and it won’t take much to accomplish a solid cruiserweight roster. If anyone from the WWE is reading this, please take this idea. I will not copyright it.
3) Kaval is the WINNER of NXT Season 2…and the aftermath.
My thoughts: I originally was upset because I was not correct in my preview of Season 2 picks. I had 6 out of 8 correct, so that pretty impressive (switch up Kaval and Alex Riley and I would be been perfect), but no one is perfect in the world. Anyone that says they are perfect is fools.
So, Kaval was the NXT Winner. I can’t say I am surprised, as the top four on NXT could have went anywhere. But I thought Riley still should have won because he was the best talker and one of the better wrestlers on that NXT roster. I had a feeling that there would be a faction that had the rookies, but what I am surprised about was the fact that it involved seven of them, excluding Kaval.
I smelled something fishy when all the NXT Rookies picked outside of Kaval (except for Lucky Cannon, who was marking out for himself I guess). Then Riley gets eliminated. Put two and two together, and I thought Kaval was going to be attacked. What confused me was that Alex Riley did some power move on Percy Watson. That I found funny.
The aftermath with this new “Genesis” (I will call it Genesis until McGillicutty says something else) attacking Kaval I thought sent a message, but I did not like it. What else was there to do really? To me, it was a really sloppy finish to what I thought was a pretty good season of NXT. Do I like Genesis? I do, I think they have more depth than Nexus right now, well that and numbers. Honestly, I run down both factions and would take Season 2’s group of vigilantes than the first season. What interest this columnist is where will they go? Who will they feud with? On Smackdown, the roster is set with stories and rivalries. Raw is too crowded. Do they split up and have 4 of them on Smackdown and 3 on Raw? That would be foolish. Right now, I guess I need some time to think about that.
To Kaval, I congratulate you for winning NXT. I hope all the best for you because he was the best wrestler, but he needed to talk better. That can be in place over time.
What does Kaval do now? What champion will he pick to wrestle in a PPV? I say Kaval will help his friend Daniel Bryan right now. Then the moment Daniel Bryan defeats The Miz for the United States Championship, we will have a Kaval vs. Daniel Bryan match for the United States Championship. It could happen, and I may shell out the money to see it. Hopefully, Nexus or Genesis would not run in, because then that would not be cool.
4) NXT Season 3 Preview.
I won’t waste much time on previewing this season the way I did with Season 2, because there was just good talents on paper to compile a lengthy review. So for this season I will keep it brief in my lecture. I won’t grade at all, but I will try and provide some information that I did collect from these six divas.
ROOKIE #1 – Naomi (Pro is Kelly Kelly)
Overview: Naomi wrestles in FCW as Naomi Knight and is the promotion’s Divas Champion. Based on what I saw in some of her matches, she is ok. She was awful when she debuted, but really came along in mere months. She is the darkhorse in this competition.
The Pairing: I think the pairing with Kelly Kelly is pretty good. Naomi was a heel at times in FCW, so I don’t know if the scripted pairing could work.
ROOKIE #2 – Maxine (Pro is Alicia Fox)
Overview: In FCW, she was known as Liviana. All I saw from her was that she took a lot of bumps and when she was in control, she did an average job. Her gimmick as one that likes good taste is exactly her gimmick in FCW.
Pairing: Although David Stephens is fuming at this “pro”, I don’t see a problem with this. Fox and Maxine could mesh well as a pro/rookie pairing. However, I don’t expect much from Maxine.
ROOKIE #3 – Aksana (Pro is Goldust)
Overview: I will admit, I never saw her wrestle. Not one time. All I remember was that she was kidnapped from Eli Cottonwood and she was the “Tony Atlas” on the Abraham Washington Show in FCW.
Pairing: It will be bizarre and it is nice to see Goldust on TV. Aksana may be the most beautiful diva on this rookie roster, but I don’t expect much from her. Not one bit.
ROOKIE #4 – Jamie (Pros are the Bella Twins)
Overview – Don’t let her looks fool you, she has an incredible physique. He is not terrible in the ring either, but has her moments. I have not seen a whole lot on Jamie, but I think at best she can survive a round or two.
Pairing: I don’t like this one bit. Honestly, I think the worst divas in the WWE are the Bellas. I hope Jamie does not learn from them one bit.
ROOKIE #5 – AJ (Pro is Primo)
Overview – This will be your “Internet Darling” on this season’s NXT. She probably is the most polished diva that the WWE has right now, and I think she will do fine. I may be far-fetched, but she may be on par with Melina (if Melina gets injured again, AJ will replace her instantly). The interesting fact here is that she is currently dating TNA’s Jay Lethal. She is also known as “Miss April” and is currently the Queen of FCW (she defeated Serena for that title).
Pairing: Primo won’t have to teacher her much. If anything, Primo may tick off AJ if he flirts with her too much. To be truthful, I think this is a great pairing. If AJ is successful, it could help Primo out as well.
ROOKIE #6 – Aloisia (Pro is Vickie Guerrero)
Overview – Who is this woman? I have honestly no idea who she is. But she is 6’9″ and if she is any bit of athletic, I feel bad for the competition. If she can’t move in the ring, again I feel bad for the competition. She is tall and apparently powerful.
Pairing: If Vickie upsets this woman, I feel bad for Vickie. Honestly, power and power may work well. And in the future who know? This could be Vickie’s bodyguard. But seriously, why is Vickie a pro?
Mr. V’s brief prediction on NXT’s Season Three Winner
6) Aksana – I don’t think Goldust can even help her out.
5) Maxine – She may be good, but I don’t see much in her to make it far.
4) Jamie – I think her appearance will help her go far, but let’s see what she can do in the ring.
3) Aloisia – If she is athletic, she will be #1. If not, she will be #5. So I went with the middle.
2) Naomi – If Naomi continues to improve, she will make the season interesting.
1) AJ – She may be the smallest, but I think the votes will be hers. She fits well with the WWE fans.
So, my prediction right now is going to be AJ. Let’s hope I win this prediction.
Detentions
Wow! I am already well ahead in my word limit that I give myself. So this week, there will be NO DETENTIONS because I just am in a good mood this week.
Mr. V’s Weekly Honor Roll for the week of August 23 – August 1, 2010
8/23 – Graded WWE Monday Night Raw Matches
8/24 – Graded WWE NXT Matches
8/25 – Column Writing. After that, I watched ROH on YouTube and recap the show.
8/26 – Graded WWE Superstars and TNA Impact Matches.
8/27 – Graded Smackdown Matches
8/28 – OFF DAY
8/29 – OFF DAY
Once again, the column is going to be a long one and I still want to pass out my Gold Stars. So no explanation on why the matches made my honor roll.
Distinguished Honors – Cody Rhodes vs. MVP, WWE NXT, August 24.
How it ended – In a very long contest that featured non-NXT rookies, Cody Rhodes hit the Cross Rhodes on MVP to end this match. Still, it was a very good match by both wrestlers.
Grade: B+ (leaned toward a B.)
High Honors – The Miz vs. John Cena, WWE Monday Night Raw, August 23.
How it ended – When The Miz was out of the ring, Daniel Bryan charged and took a shot at Miz. The referee spotted this and awarded The Miz the victory by disqualification. John Cena did not mind this, as he smiled at the loss.
Grade: B (leaned toward a B-.)
Honors – Kofi Kingston vs. Dolph Ziggler, WWE Friday Night Smackdown, August 27.
How it ended – Both wrestlers were out of the ring and when the referee counted to ten, Kofi Kingston was in the ring and Dolph Ziggler was pulled away by Vickie Guerrero. The stipulation was if Kingston won by DQ he would win Ziggler’s Intercontinental Championship. Since Kingston won by countout, Ziggler retained the championship.
Grade: B (leaned toward a B-.)
Mr. V’s Grade Book for the past week
A+, A, or A-: None to Report.
B+: Cody Rhodes vs. MVP (NXT).
B: The Miz vs. John Cena (RAW) and Kofi Kingston vs. Dolph Ziggler (Smackdown).
B-: Kevin Steen vs. Jerry Lynn (ROH); Drew McIntyre vs. Chris Masters (Superstars); and Kane vs. Rey Mysterio (Smackdown).
C+: Ernesto Osiris, Necro Butcher, Shawn Daivari, and Erick Stevens vs. Rasche Brown, Jon Davis, Kory Chavis, and Grizzly Redwood (ROH); Chris Jericho vs. The Great Khali (RAW); William Regal vs. Goldust (Superstars); Alex Shelley and Chris Sabin vs. Max Buck and Jeremy Buck (TNA); and Mr. Anderson, Kurt Angle, D’Angelo Dinero, and Jeff Hardy vs. AJ Styles, Kazarian, Matt Morgan, and Doug Williams (TNA).
C: Edge vs. R-Truth (RAW); Melina vs. Jillian (RAW); Randy Orton vs. Ted DiBiase, Jr. vs. John Morrison; and Trent Barreta and Caylen Croft vs. Curt Hawkins and Vance Archer (Superstars).
C-: Jay Briscoe and Mark Briscoe vs. Alex Anthony and Bobby Shields (ROH); Santino Marella and Vladimir Kozlov vs. Jimmy Uso and Jey Uso (RAW); and Jack Swagger vs. MVP (Smackdown).
D+, D, or D-: Samoa Joe vs. Orlando Jordan (TNA); Kevin Nash vs. Jeff Jarrett (TNA); Robert Roode and James Storm vs. Little Guido and Tony Luke (TNA); CM Punk vs. JTG (Smackdown); The Big Show vs. Luke Gallows (Smackdown); and Alberto Del Rio vs. Carlos Sanchez (aka Alex Koslov) (Smackdown).
F or INC: Sheamus vs. Zack Ryder (RAW).
Current Predictions from the Faculty Standings
2010-2011 Season (As of WWE’s SummerSlam 2010)
1) David Stephens (That’s a Wrap and RAW Recapper)………….60-34 (3-2)
2) Josh Boutwell (Viva La Raza and TNA Recapper)……………….60-34 (3-2)
3) Jose Marrero (Wrestling Rumblings)……………………………………58-36 (1-4)
4) Students of the Week (The Best from Prev. PPV)………………58-36 (4-1)*
5) Matt O’Brien (Notes From The Nosebleeds)…………………………55-39 (2-3)
6) Anthony Valvo (From the Desk of Mr. V/ROH Recaps)……….55-39 (3-2)
7) Daniel Browne (For Queen and Country)……………………………..54-40 (1-4)
8) WrestleView Students (The Loyal Readers)………………………..54-40 (3-2)**
9) Doug Lackey (Reality From Ringside)…………………………………..52-42 (1-4)
10) Mike Tedesco (Smackdown and NXT Recapper)…………………44-35 (2-3)
11) Jeff Springer (WWE Superstars Recapper)……………………………42-33 (4-1)
12) Sean Hurley (The Sharpshooter)………………………………………..28-32 (NR)
13) Joe Baiamonte (Baiamonte’s Casa/2009 WV Champ)………24-20 (NR)
The next PPV will be TNA’s No Surrender. Out of all the WV Students based on picks from SummerSlam, Michael Phillips returned to be the Student of the Week because of his perfect 5-0 SummerSlam predictions record.
Mr. V’s Gold Star Segment
New Sponsor Time!! This segment is by ColtMerch.com! Since he was kind enough to sit down and answer questions when Dave and I interviewed him on “The Teacher’s Lounge”. I am happy to support him and I actually purchased items. The shipping is fast and the products are great. If you are a fan of ROH or Colt Cabana, check out his products.
I saved enough in my column for the Gold Stars. There will be a few this week, but still worth it.
To all the readers that already voted for the 2010 Mid-Year Awards – Already off to a strong start. I am looking forward to more ballots being stuffed in the next few days.
David Stephens, Josh Boutwell, and Mike Tedesco – These guys have to do a recap for two hour shows weekly. Believe me, it is a TON of work! Remember, David covers Raw, Josh covers Impact, and Mike covers Smackdown.
“Genesis” – I already have the faction’s theme right here. I will admit that I did not come up with this entirely on my own, but the band Genesis MUST be the song for this faction.
Kaval – The winner of NXT Season Two. His journey was long, but now he will be wrestling in the WWE for a long time. Good Luck.
Adam Martin – For providing fantastic top story graphics. He did one for the WV Mid-Year Awards and the Interview with Colt Cabana.
Claudio Castagnoli – For staying “Very European”. I raise my cup of Starbucks Iced Coffee in your honor.
Kane – He earns one for being a part of his best feud yet.
Los Angeles Dodgers – For finally unloading on Manny Ramirez. Chicago, he is your problem now.
Curry Man – For staying Hot and Spicy.
Man vs. Food and Adam Richman – He keeps me entertained while I watch him on “Man vs. Food”. This show is television’s most underrated show. Plus, how many people wish to have this guy’s job? Ok, now all of you can put your hands down.
CM Punk – His promo on Raw was one of the best promos I have seen in recent memory. He was perfect out there.
Alberto Del Rio – He is a natural with this gimmick. Not only does he have a fantastic kitchen, but his car collection is something even Jay Leno dreams of.
Daniel Munoz – He sent an e-mail to me about the Smackdown Jobber was none other than independent wrestler Alex Kozlov. I can’t believe I forgot that when I subbed the Smackdown recap.
Finally, I sadly present two Bright (aka RIP) Gold Stars up in the sky to two professional wrestlers we lost this past week. It is sad because it seems like a weekly occurrence.
Luna Vachon – I remember following her career since her days in the early 1990s. It is a shame that she was gone way too soon at the age of 48. She was very unique in her appearance and in the ring. I respected that she was very different from other women wrestlers, but it was a shame during her time in the WWF/E she did not win one single championship. RIP Luna, you were a champion in my eyes.
JC Bailey – The CZW wrestler passed away earlier this week at the age of 27. I may not have known him too much, but a wrestler who dies at this age is simply devastating. RIP JC.
That is all. If you have a suggestion please let me know by e-mailing me to mistervwv@hotmail.com.
Homework Assignment
1) See Above at The Teacher’s Lecture. The 2010 Mid-Year Awards Ballot is up on WrestleView. Just send me your picks and I will count them out. Assignment is due September 9, 2010.
2) Please vote for my friend’s cause at http://www.refresheverything.com/mdcamp. My friend’s name is James Lacerenza and he is attempting to go for $50,000 once more to write off some MD Camp expenses. This is a very noble cause and no one has to pay (except for Pepsi if James does win). Last month he came a bit short in 17th, but should be able to win it this month with your help. So, please help a fellow student out. Vote for James this month (you can vote once every day)!
Dismissal
Well, that does it for me this week. I thank you all for reading and I hope you enjoyed this column as much as I typed it out. If you want to get a hold of me during the week, please e-mail me at mistervwv@hotmail.com, teacherslounge@hotmail.com, or by leaving me a message on Facebook. I do get a lot of e-mails and may not reply in a timely fashion, but I will do my best to give you a quicker reply.
Now, students you are allowed to leave the classroom. Please push in your chairs, line up straight, and exit to the closest door around you. Until next week, you are all……DISMISSED!!!!
Look for Mr. V on Facebook under Anthony J. Valvo in the Pittsburgh Network
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THE TEACHER’S LOUNGE IS NOW AIRING ON SATURDAYS!
Previous Guest: ROH Professional Wrestler Colt Cabana!
Already on the archives we interviewed Jose Marrero (Wrestling Rumblings), Matt O’Brien (Notes from the Nosebleeds), Crystal Mai from Diva-Dirt.com, and The YouTube Sensation who had choice words to CM Punk, and ROH Wrestler Colt Cabana! For $4.99, you get all of this along with many other hours of content.
David Stephens (That’s A Wrap and Raw recapper) and I have a weekly Internet show only on the WrestleView Radio Network. It does cost a bit of money, but we will do our best to make it worth it. If you want to be a part of the Lounge for our “E-mails” section, you may drop us a line at teacherslounge@hotmail.com.
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