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Bullet points are my friend.

Chairshots
2-19-02

No Way Out Thoughts
Well the big event has come and gone. Hall, Hogan and Nash all made their NWO return to the WWF. For wrestling fans, it was hard not to get a little excited about seeing the old guys again. Their promos in the ring and backstage were the most entertaining aspects of the show (sad, yet true). A lot of NWO fans might have been disappointed that the NWO didn't do anything too wild on Sunday, but it really wasn't needed. On a night when "hey, yo" was enough to make the fans scream, why shoot your wad? Wisely, they blew their wad on Monday, when the ratings matter. The other star of the night was The Rock, who continues to cut the best promos

Kurt Angle pulled off an upset over Triple H to earn the title shot at WrestleMania. As soon as the match was over, I figured either Jericho would lose the belt to Austin or Angle would have a rematch on Raw. We know that the latter was true, showing that the WWF thumbs its nose at all of you fools stupid enough to pay and see the match on pay-per-view.

Jericho retained the belt due to NWO interference. Can't say it surprised me as I pretty much figured the show would end with Austin or Rock knocked out with NWO spraypainted on their back. I'm happy Jericho goes to WrestleMania as the champ but I could have done without the NWO interference and the plethora of ref bumps.

The rest of the card was crap: matches and feuds thrown together with little or no backstory to them. Chuck and Buck.... err Billy, lost the title shot at WrestleMania to the APA which makes me wonder why they got such a push in the weeks leading up to No Way Out. Rob Van Dam cleanly beat Goldust, so I guess we may never find out what the beef was between the two of them (unless there was actual "beef" between the two of them). Rock beat Undertaker (you didn't really think he was going to lose 2 pay per views in a row, did you?) in a way overbooked match that didn't need to be. Total thumbs-in-the-middle show that would have been thumbs down if not for the novelty of the NWO.

Raw Thoughts
24 hours later on Raw the NWO were back but this time they upped the ante. With less than four weeks to go to WrestleMania, the NWO needed to do something to back up the claims that they would destroy the WWF. I think beating the crap out of the Rock and then hitting his ambulance with a semi was the right balance of subtlety and panache. Raw, like No Way Out, had its ups and downs. The NWO was good, but nothing we haven't seen with the NWO before. The Rock and Steve Austin were both on their game last night so it shows that the WWF is trying to build hot feuds with the NWO members just four weeks before WrestleMania. Even Hulk Hogan cut a good promo last night. Never thought I'd have to type that again.

But also like No Way Out, the rest of the card was the same old same old. Lackluster undercard populated by guys with no heat or fan reaction. All in all Raw was better than it has been, but only because there are new faces involved, not because the writers are really trying.

Ross Report
Jim Ross made his weekly Ross Report on WWF.com last Friday. Here are the highlights:

Taka Michinoku can return to the ring in four to six weeks, according to his doctor. Taka has been out for several months while recovering from shoulder surgery.

Big Show has been "ordered" to sit out for two weeks to allow his injured knee a chance to heal.

Ross lists Chris Benoit's possible return date as early April.

Hardcore Holly is expected to return in early March.

Rhyno is due back this summer once he recovers from neck surgery.

Mike Awesome is expected to return in April. He's been out since tearing an ACL.

Kanyon is scheduled to return in late March or early April. He has also been out since tearing an ACL.

The Hardys, Lita, Mighty Molly, and Jackie will appear on NBC's "Fear Factor" on Feb. 25, one hour before Raw. (Not last Monday night, as I foolishly reported earlier.)

Triple H is scheduled to appear on NBC's "Late Night with Conan O'Brien" on Mar. 13 to hype WrestleMania.

Shawn Michaels, Jim Cornette, Fabulous Moolah, Mae Young, and Brother Love are among the veterans scheduled to appear at the "WWF Fan Axxess" convention, which is held in conjunction with WrestleMania. (Can I just state how much it bothers me that Shawn Michaels is included in with this group of old-timers?)

Ross said he would like to see Goldust "get a little more aggressive in his matches." (Dry hump)

Put over Lance Storm and predicted that he will have "a great 2002" ('cause it couldn't be worse than his 2001.)

Ross says William Regal "might be destined" to work in the broadcast booth.

Stacy KE!iblE!r on Howard StE!rn
Stacy Keibler's appearance on The Howard Stern Show will air on the E! Network on Wednesday night at 11 p.m. (Check your local listings.)

Vince Speaks!
Vince McMahon was a guest on the Opie and Andy show last week. He made a few interesting comments about the return of Hulk Hogan and Stephanie's breasts. Here are the highlights:

First Question was if he really was bringing Hulk Hogan back and why (this was before Sunday). He said he couldn't even explain it to himself, let alone to them. The hosts warned Vince not to let Hulk Hogan try the leg drop because he might get a broken hip and they suggested he wrestle Mae Young at WrestleMania. Vince chuckled but claimed that Hogan is in great shape and perhaps the best shape of his life and that we're going to see a different Hogan.

They then quickly moved to Stephanie's dress from Raw and how could he openly look down her dress. He laughed and said he couldn't help it. The hosts then pointed out that there are websites that have still pictures from when Triple H pushed her down and the stills show Stephanie's nips. Vince responded by saying "oh my" and claimed not to be aware of it.

They asked Vince how he felt about the "WHAT?" chants. He said he thought it was fun but every now and then it bothers you. It can throw off your timing and make you alter your delivery.

They asked about Shawn Michaels and whether he would be back. Vince didn't hesitate at all and strongly said, "Sure he will." The thing was he wasn't sure how but that he knows he's itching to come back.

They asked about Shane McMahon. Vince said he's on hiatus and is doing the corporate thing now.

They asked about Goldberg (again). Vince said Goldberg is content to stay home and collect money, which he said most people would do. He didn't foresee him coming in before the contract was up but that he also didn't think he'd work with Hogan again so you never know.

Ratings
The final Smackdown rating from last week came in at a 3.9, which is down a bit from 4.0 the previous week.

Rock Speaks!
The Rock was a guest on WWF Byte this last Friday. Here is the recap:

On The Scorpion King: All of the shooting has wrapped up. They had some final footage to shoot. Rock thinks that the people will be thoroughly entertained by the film. The target date for the opening is April 18th. In regards to pressure about the movie, he commented that he has been in pressure positions for years now. He doesn't feel pressure but rather excited for the debut of the film. He is prepared to entertain the fans, like when going to the ring. Rock feels that the experience of working on the film has helped him in the WWF. From a performance standpoint, he feels that he is trying different things every time he goes out there. This applies to both promos and the action sequences. He used the limousine angle with the Undertaker as an example of trying something new to help move the fans' emotions.

On the NWO coming to the WWF: Rock is really excited about them showing up in the WWF. It will be a great change. Especially when they have 4 hours of TV to do a week, change is needed. Here come 3 new opponents for him to mix it up with. He used to watch these guys in the WWF when he was in college. He talked about speaking with Vince McMahon about a Rock/Hogan program (so now we know).

On the WWF Desire tribute video: Before the video aired, he was told that there would be a portion of the video which he would find moving. When they showed that transition piece from his grandfather to his father to him in the video, he was really moved. It showed how wrestling is this treadmill that keeps going and going. It was so nice to sit back and watch the history of the company. It was amazing to sit among his peers and watch the transition through his family. His mom and dad were really moved by the piece.

On the WrestleMania main event: Rock does not regret that he will not be in the main event. He has a feeling about what he will be doing at the show. Without giving it away, he thinks that it will be one of the biggest matches in the history of the WWF.

On his movie career affecting his wrestling schedule: It is inevitable. It is just a matter of trying to balance the two for as long as he can. He has been flying around a lot recently during this recent movie shoot.

On Hall and Nash: Rock is looking forward to working with them. It was like when the WWF acquired WCW, Rock was looking forward to working with the guys coming over. It should be interesting. As far as Hall and Nash in the locker room, everyone has heard the stories about them. However, this WWF locker room is a lot different than the one they were in before. There are guys in the back who will be quick to put a "foot up in your a$$" if guys get out of line.

On interaction with the announcers: Rock considers it to be very important. He gets creative feedback from these guys. He loves to interact with the announcers, the fans and the cameraman. He always does it in a way where it's funny but you will never see him laughing.

Triple H Speaks!
WWF.com posted a new interview with Triple H yesterday. Here are yet more bullet points.

On the critics that say he's slower in the ring since his return: "You know, honestly I think people look for things when you get hurt, I don't feel any more sluggish in the ring. I don't think, watching myself, I look any more sluggish in the ring. Whether people think that or not, that's their own opinion. Certainly I'm going to have to move a little bit differently in the ring. I tore my quad off. But I figure I'm just about where I want to be. In another few more weeks or another month, I'll be right where I want to be, I think."

On the NWO: "The NWO is a strong force. Do I think they're a poison? No. I think that a lot of things in our business get blown out of proportion as times goes on. I think that they'll be good for business in the long run. I think there's three more big-name guys for us to dance with."

On the backstage politics of the NWO: "I think those guys will prove themselves. I think that they will make their own way. I think that one of the things about the locker room here is that guys will be leery of them because of past reputations. But then it's up to them to make their own way and to prove to the guys how they want to be treated, how they'll treat the guys, and how they'll do business. And if they do all those things right, then nobody's going to have a problem with them, and nobody will be in an awkward position. But friendship aside, business is business. I can be friends with somebody and separate business and friendship. Business is business and I won't let it affect that."

On the mid-card wrestlers complaining: "I'm concerned about it, but I'm not overly concerned about it. I want the guys to understand that this is not WCW. There is no, 'These are the guys, and nobody else gets a shot.' You make your own way here. The one thing that guys need to realize - as everybody else does - is that being in someplace a long time doesn't mean you deserve anything. One of the things that kills me about the guys who write the so-called dirt, and all that stuff, is when they put out, 'That guy has been there a long time. He deserves a push.' You know how you get a push in this business? Going out every night and performing so good that they have no choice but to use you. It's not a thing of you just hanging around and biding your time, and sooner or later you get a push."

I'm done recapping interviews. Catch you all on Friday.

Michael Goodson