Red Sox Off-Season: Rings Again or Gas For Another Fire Sale?

Image Credit: boston.cbslocal.com

By: Kai Jones

Edited by: Dana P. (E.I.C.) 

They say if you love it, then you should let it go. If it comes back then it’s meant to be. When the Boston Red Sox traded away their top 10 prospect in 2005, we're not sure if they thought he would ever play for them again. However, the Red Sox got Hanley Ramirez back on Tuesday. Maybe Ramirez's love for the organization came back easily, considering the 4-year-$88 million dollar contract. The Sox also added champion and former World Series MVP Pablo Sandoval for a 5 year deal worth $95 million, with the fifth year being a club option. The Sox are also fishing for a solid pitcher, as they are offering their former ace Jon Lester a nice sized contract as well. 

Is this like the 2011 debacle where the Sox acquired a lot of big names and had a fire sell the next year? Are the Red Sox a wolf or a mere overhyped sheep?

We really can’t say right now because we still don’t know their rotation or lineup. The Red Sox right now have a lot of talent, and adding Sandoval adds more championship experience to a team that just won a World Series title in 2013, under their current manager John Farrell. For all the fans that may be worried about another fire sale, they must look at the facts. While Terry Francona was also a World Series winning manager, he needed a fresh start away from the organization, which is why the 2011 team did not work. Bobby Valentine was also a great manager in his own respect, but the chemistry was off with that team. John Farrell is a player’s manager and is close to his team. So while this team did not play well last season, the team definitely has plenty of talent. With these additions why wouldn’t they be a big favorite to win it all? The Red Sox have former World Series MVP David Ortiz still, 2-time and reigning Home Run Derby winner Yoenis Céspedes, and former MVP Dustin Pedroia. Adding Lester can only help their rotation, which is key to winning a World Series.

It’s way too early to make a World Series prediction, but on paper you have to agree that the Red Sox have made the biggest splash this off-season.

2014: A Year Of Hip Hop Emotions

Image Credit: XXLMag.com

by: Ashe Samuels

This week we are here to look upon the landscape of hip hop in 2014.  I will preface the following with a brief explanation of my tastes in hip hop. As someone who grew up in NJ (I started listening in 1996 when I was 12) I have a strong affinity for boom bap. I am real big on shit having lyrics, not just a beat and some dude who's stuck on the same thought. I am a huge battle rap fan. I tend to be a snob when it comes to hip hop but fuck it I...love....this....shit. This causes an emotional roller coaster especially because the last two years, it seems as if it is thriving while being killed.  Ill let you think about that. With all that said, I'm going to let you see what my emotions on the music. and everything around it.

Run the Jewels makes me happy as hell. In the past two years, Killer Mike and El-P have served up a one two combo of fuckin haymakers with RTJ 1&2. Dope beats, ridiculous bars, and some of the most tripped out production you've ever heard out of New York, playing these back to back gets me high as fuck without touchin a thing.

Lyricism as a whole resurgance is also a truely beautiful occurance. Eminem and Shady Records decided to make November their bitch. The cypher had everyone talking who was had the best verse, besides Em.  2013 started the whole occurance where Em seemingly decided bar out on the world. The MMLP2 was hit or miss but when he did decide to just go in, (asshole and Rap God most notably) it was like watching an old grandmaster go all ninja on a class full of students half his age, and win. The cypher was a 6 minute quasi-freestyle that was everything in Em we could've asked for. Royce, Ortiz, Crooked, Budden and Yelawolf all had great verses, with Royce and Ortiz battling for a close second. The new material on the album was full of play that back worthy cuts. It's an album full of great bars, quality production and the strongest roster in the game. Even Big Sean was good in his guest spot on Detroit vs. Everybody, and I really, really don't like Big Sean. 

Image Credit: AllHipHop.com

The year started out strong with a quality release for Pusha T, and two a heavyweight release from Freddie Gibbs and Madlib. Gangsta Gibbs is a monster and Madlib is an underground legend on the boards. Pinata is backpack gangsta rap at its finest. Evidence and Alchemist decided to remind hip hop heads why they fucked with them in the first place on Lord Steppington, with the two sharing both the mic and the boards. Atmosphere did the same on Southsiders. Pharoah Monch dropped PTSD which was the deepest album of the year. TDE continued to release dope artists with Ab Souls first major release, which we'll touch on later. Then there was Onyx and #Wakedafucup, but more on that later too. Big Krit dropped Cadillatca, which can only be described as trill soul. Skyzoo and Torae gave us Barrel Bros. A modern age Duck Down style NY classic. The Roots proved why they transcend all genres while still keeping it hip hop "And Then They Shoot Your Cousin." Mixtapes gave us the beast that is King Los dropping his first post Bad Boy effort which showed why he didn't work with Diddy. He is not a single factory, King Los is a fucking MC in every sense. Zero Gravity II has some of the sickest bars on anything released this year. Jon Connor showed why he earned his Aftermath contract on his Kanye West inspired tape. Connor used classic Kanye tracks to create current interpretations. De La came back. We got a taste of Glass House with Slaughterhouse laying out the House rules. Grafh paid tribute to classic hip hop and showed a return to form on 88 Crack Era. It was actually a good year for releases that had content which brought a smile to my jaded, cynical face.

In southern New Jersey and Philadelphia there is a classic hip hop station, it is perhaps the greatest modern format on terrestrial radio. Nothing past around 05 and you can usually get about 7 or 8 quality cuts in a row. Pro Era are a group of rappers who weren't even fetuses when Illmatic dropped, yet make classic NY hip hop. Onyx teamed with a group of European producers who go by Snowgoons to make a boom bap banger of an album. Fredro Starr and Keith Murray made headlines with their battle that was cancelled due to the fuckery of the promoter. De La Soul dropped a mixtape, and Q Tip and Busta gave Midnight Marauders a tribute. DJ Premier decided to mark his territory this year. Ill Bill paid homage on a World Premier complete with a Primo boom bap monster. Prhyme is hip hops version of when Rage Against the Machine grabbed Cornell and formed Audioslave. He also is saying an album with Loaded Lux is in the works. The Lox brought the Trinity to the masses.  

Battle rap getting into mainstream hip hop makes me filled with glee no musical. Was Total Slaughter lacking in execution?  Yes, but who gives a shit. Raps biggest label gave you a battle rap reality show and national ppv. That is a win. As is Loaded Lux doin records with Styles and Cam, Tsu Surf with Joe Budden, !Mayday¡ (Featuring GT Vet and Freestyle champ Wrekonize) with Murs, so on and so forth. The guy who created Holo Tupac bought in and now we have Dizaster vs Cassidy. Joe Budden got roasted by Hollow. Ab Soul ended his LP with a battle vs Daylyt.

2014 brought us Run the Jewels, some great albums, the return of lyricism and legends, and the mixing of mainstream rappers into battle rap. However, it seems it also tried to die a tragic public death on a massive scale. Part two to come, 2014 The Tragic Suicide Note of Hip Hop.

Survivor Series Gives Us Sting and Daniel Bryan, Takes Away Our Power Couple.

Image Credit: wwe.com

Ziggler pins Rollins Sunday night and starts a new era for the WWE Universe. Hunter and Stephanie return to Raw to say their goodbyes before a disappointed Vince takes the duo away from the arena to let the bearded one do his thing. What a waste. I'm starting to believe that they're right, The Authority makes WWE thrive. It's only been one episode and we already need them back. 

If they were desperate enough to bring Sting back, you'd think we'd get him for more than five minutes and a video promo on Raw. Thank God for Daniel Bryan. He came out to interrupt Hunter and start a fifteen minute YES chant. Somewhere in there he managed to get some work done and schedule the matches. Too bad we've already seen all these matches the night before. Ryback defeats Mark Henry. The Miz retains the Tag Team Titles. Tyson Kidd defeats Adam Rose. Brie pins AJ(minus the lesbian kiss). Cena and Ziggler defeat Rollins and the Goons. 

My favorite match of the night was Ambrose vs Luke Harper. A solid match ending in a disqualification by Harper and the Lunatic taking the win. Ambrose, prepping for his TLC match, reaches for tables and ladders which leds to a beat down by Bray Wyatt. I cannot wait for these madmen to face off again next month. 

Despite all that happened in the last couple days, wrestling's been a bit of a snooze-fest. Larry the Cable Guy was a big fat flop. They should have let him in the ring. At least it would give us something to talk about. We barely get Sting. Bryan Daniels isn't even wrestling. How can I forget about the anonymous GM emails!? I don't even want to watch next week. 

-Loveblump

Eminem Celebrates 15 Years of Hip Hop With Shady XV, In Stores TODAY!

Image Credit: ShadyRecords.com

by: Dana P. (E.I.C.)

Today feels so SHADY for some reason. That's because Eminem has dropped a double album titled 'Shady XV,' which is available in stores and on iTunes now. The release hype for this album was absolutely genius. As you've already heard here; Em, Slaughterhouse and Yelawolf dropped a HUGE CXVPHER to start up the anticipation. It didn't take much time for yet ANOTHER drop to come out. Shady Records released a mixtape which consists of 66 unreleased tracks.

While Eminem seems to be MIA, Shady Records supergroup Slaughterhouse is out promoting the album, as they are featured on it. Today in New York City, all 4 members of the group will be at Mikey Likes It Ice Cream. They will be serving up a new flavor of ice cream STRAIGHT from Michigan called SHADYVX. If you can't make it out today to meet House Gang, Slaughterhouse is scheduled to sign autographs of the new album at the DTLR Store (Livingston Mall) in New Jersey. We were unable to make it out to todays event, but not to worry. We got you covered! You can be sure to catch HHSS in the house tomorrow as we will be covering the event.

It's so great to see that REAL hip hop music is still alive. Listening to Shady XV along with the Shady Classics mixtape is sure to be very refreshing to all you hip hop heads out there!

The MLB Offseason: The Second Most Exciting Part of the Baseball Year.

By: Kai Jones

Edited by: Dana P. (E.I.C.)

It’s an exciting time in Major League Baseball, as we are in the heart of free agency. Some of the biggest baseball clubs are looking for players to fill their opening day roster, and maybe even be a leader in the push for a World Series.

One of the major prizes, Giancarlo Stanton, in this free agent market has been resigned. Stanton inked a huge 13 years, $325 million dollar deal from the ever criticized Miami Marlins. The deal comes with an opt out after 6 years and $107 million dollars of the deal; but not many players are walking away from 7 years and $218 million dollars, so Stanton is probably a Marlin until they don’t want him to be. Some speculate that it'll be soon, as the Marlins are known to do this, example; (Jose Reyes, Heath Bell, Mark Buehrle, Miguel Cabrera, and the embarrassing list goes on.) However, Stanton wasn’t the only major transaction in the NL East.

The Braves moved big name Jason Heyward to the Cardinals. Heyward’s contract was due to expire, and with the Upton Brothers massive deals, Atlanta wasn’t sure how they were going to pay Heyward. In exchange, the Braves got two promising prospects that could be front-end starters one day in Shelby Miller and Tyrell Jenkins. While these two young stars have been moved, there is and was good talent out there.

Russell Martin inked a $82 million dollar deal with the Toronto Blue Jays. Billy Butler has departed to the team he (and the Kansas City Royals) beat in the Wild Card round, the Oakland Athletics. Speaking off championship, the former World Series MVP Pablo Sandoval is available. He is amongst the massive amount of talent that is available along with Jon Lester, David Robertson, & Nelson Cruz.

Besides the Detroit Tigers who signed DH Victor Martinez to a 4-year/ 68 million dollar deal, the bigger clubs seem to be  quiet on lately. The Red Sox have been active as they offered Lester and Sandoval contracts, but no word on either signing. The New York Yankees and Mets have been pretty quiet other than a few minor signings, similar to the LA and Chicago teams. The Yankees most surprisingly as they have let David Robertson test the market.

Will New York and Chicago be left out of the playoffs again? Thus far the off season has been interesting, but we will see once more names sign and then it really gets crazy as players are like dominoes. Once one falls, they all fall. Who will be the one to start the domino effect? Sandoval, Lester, or Robertson? It will be interesting to watch going forward.

TGIF: Destination Dixie Land, Matt Really Hated Raw, Bad News In January, and More

T.G.I.F. with Matt Dawgs: #279

Good day to you all and welcome to We Want Insanity. I am your host for today, Matt Dawgs and this is my column. Today is the end of the work week and the time to look back at all the goings-on over the past seven days as I wrap it up with a bow and spout it out bit by bit. Buckle up. As previously noted, you can catch my OTHER COLUMN which is the “ WWE NETWORK PPV OF THE WEEK ” where I and 3 friends discussed an old WWE/WCW/ECW PPV from the archives. Join us on SUNDAY as we review WWE "Survivor Series 1987" and check it out to see if it is worth watching. Also check out this week’s “ THE QUESTION ” where James Guttman, James Bullock (why do we have two James writing for the site? We need to change his name to Miguel or something) and myself answer a random question each week. This week’s “Question”, what is professional wrestling’s WORST theme song?

MATT NOTE: Last weekend the North East independent world had a huge weekend with Tommy Dreamer’s “House of Hardcore” selling out the ECW arena on a stacked show, Jersey All Pro Wrestling returning for the first time in over a year and some other independent shows in New Jersey and Long Island doing excellent live attendance for their shows. With that being said, a story that is sucking the life out of all of those involved a small time New Jersey Independent promoter by the name of Mike Morgan. Morgan runs Ace Pro Wrestling out of Union City. That promotion is best known for honing some of the best talent in the North East indies and being a place where a lot of people called their “home fed” including Jay Lethal (who was the school’s trainer and longtime World Champion) and current WWE Divas Champion A.J. Lee (who did most of her training there and even visited it for a WWE.com feature a few years back). Anyway, on Friday November 14^th, Mike Morgan’s oldest son Mike Jr. (20 years old) was walking home from taking his younger siblings, brother Adrian (11 years old) and sister Mileen (15 years old) to the movies to see “Dumb and Dumber To”. Upon walking home, a red Nissan Rogue jumped the curb and struck Mike Jr. and Adrian while narrowly missing Mileen. The car then fled the scene leaving behind a headlight and part of the fender. 11-yr old Adrian was IMPALED ON A FENCE and is in critical condition. 20-yr old Mike is also in critical condition and had to have his right leg amputated in addition to undergoing brain surgery to stop the bleeding. It is a tough situation and Morgan Sr. was the LAST PROMOTER I worked for in my wrestling career. He is an absolute wonderful person with a huge heart who tried to help as many lost causes as he could with professional wrestling. So if you can spare, please help DONATE to a “Go Fund Me” that has been set up to help pay for his son’s mounting medical costs as both kids are not out of the woods yet and will require additional surgeries as well as an extended hospital stay. Late Wednesday evening, the suspects ARE IN CUSTODY.

BONUS MATT NOTE: Happy Thanksgiving to all. There will be NO COLUMN next week. So enjoy the holiday and eat a lot of food. See you in December with both T.G.I.F. and my WWE Network PPV of the Week as since Sunday is Survivor Series, there will be no PPV review either.

WWE NEWS AND NOTES:

- It has been a LONG TIME since I went on a rant like this so sit back and enjoy the ride because this is going to be fun for those of you who call me a WWE apologizer. Yes Chucky, I am looking at you.

- I honestly don’t even know where to start. So many MIND BLOWINGLY STUPID things took place during RAW this week in what was supposed to be the “Go Home” show for Survivor Series yet really only focused on the main event of Survivor Series while everything else was secondary.

- The show opened with a marathon of a promo by Triple H and Stephanie with the rest of Team Authority where he legit spoke for 16 minutes and didn’t say one single solitary word that was noteworthy other than setting up Luke Harper vs. Dolph Ziggler. I get it. The show is 3 hours and it isn’t WWE’s choice. But honestly, do not let people ramble on and on and on and on without anything to say. Also....would someone in creative PLEASE come up with a new outline for the show? The drawn out promo to start the show is played out. We need a breath of fresh air to help break the monotony. It wasn’t until HHH and Steph rambled for 15 minutes that Ryback came out to tell them that he isn’t on Team Cena or Team Authority. He is on his own team. That was after Stephanie showed Ryback clips of John Cena burying him verbally when they feuded in 2012 including mocking Ryback at the time.

- By the way, for the sake of continuity, would it have been so hard to have Mark Henry and Rusev standing on OPPOSITE sides of the ring instead as close to each other as they were sanding considering they were just feuding not too long ago doing the Russia vs. USA thing?

- Luke Harper DEFEATED Dolph Ziggler to capture the Intercontinental Title. This is a significant moment because it means that either Ziggler is set to get a major push finally or....Harper is going to be buried now because the IC Champ has been nothing but jobber fodder for several years now. Either way, while a good, stiff match between two good workers, this is significant because Ziggler is on Team Cena and before the match officially got underway he was laid out by Seth Rollins, Jamie Noble and Joey Mercury yet conspicuous by his absence was Ziggler’s team captain this Sunday, John Cena. Weird.

- By the way, I really like how they have repackaged both Luke Harper and Eric Rowan after breaking them away from Bray Wyatt without repackaging them at all. They are exactly the same. WTF?

- Grumpy Cat, or as Cole called him, “Grumpy THE Cat”. I refuse to put this over with words. I am not. That will be the LAST I mention of him in this column so if you liked a skit involving him on the show that took place, please refrain from mentioning it because I will not put it over. It’s DUMB.

- I am completely lost by the Adam Rose/Bunny angle. WHO THE F*CK IS THE HEEL AND WHO THE F*CK IS THE BABYFACE?!?!?!?!!? Why am I supposed to care again? What is going on? PS – I was thisclose to turning off the TV as soon as Rose lost and then confronted the Bunny who started to HUMP ADAM ROSE . I am not making this up. The Bunny was humping Adam Rose from behind and the announcers acknowledged it as such in a “comedic” way. I quote comedic because it was not funny in any way, shape or form and not for nothing, it was NOT very PG rated. So stupid and almost ruined you readers from getting my complete RAW thoughts this week.

- So after opening the show with a long, drawn out promo to open the show, WWE decided that it would be best to add a Bray Wyatt in-ring promo to close the first hour of RAW. And you KNOW how I have felt about Bray Wyatt’s promos lately. Same old sh*t. Thank god Dean Ambrose appeared on the Titan Tron and legitimately began complaining about Bray’s promos being long and nonsensical. Looks like Dean has been reading T.G.I.F. with Matt Dawgs huh??? He then appears FROM BEHIND Bray and attacks as the Titan Tron was a pre-taped promo. Cool angle but again, way too long.

- The second hour opens with Ryback coming out to eat some more. His opponent was Cesaro. My first though harkened back to “Who the f*ck did Cesaro piss off backstage?” Like, I now NEED to know because his burial has been so bad of late. Do you remember when Cesaro won the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal and then became a Paul Heyman guy the following evening and everyone thought he was going to get a legit main event run? HAHA!!! Good times. Anyway, after a few minutes of back and forth action I felt relieved. Cesaro was not getting squashed. This was great......until I realized that Ryback was getting such a big push of late. He is being protected as a main event guy. Both the top heels and top babyfaces are feuding over him. So if that is the case and that is where the booking is taking you, to building Ryback, WHY THE F*CK WOULD YOU BOOK HIM IN A 14 MINUTE COMPETITIVE MATCH VS. A GUY YOU HAVE MADE LOOK LIKE A FOOL AS OF LATE ?!?!?!?!?!?! I do not get it. Ryback looked slow and tired after 4 minutes. Cesaro absolutely should not have been doing multiple power moves on him. Just terrible booking of Ryback.

- Lana and Rusev are a great act. I really hope WWE stops with the minor stifling of their growth like they had the past few weeks with Stephanie McMahon talking down to them and making them look inferior to them. Vince McMahon, despite being the Mr. McMahon character and the boss NEVER made his main event talents look like fools. Never would he have talked down to Steve Austin, The Rock, The Undertaker, Kane, Mankind, Triple H, etc and if the small chance that he did, NEVER in a million years would they just stand there and take it. I HATE when Steph does that to people. Anyway, Lana discussed Kim Kardashian and then teased a topless photo that she had. The crowd popped and she showed a topless photo of Vladimir Putin. SOLID F*CKING GOLD!!!!! The angle was getting heat and then WWE sucked it out of the building by sending out Heath Slater. Sigh. SQUASH CITY .

- Then, in what is yet another insanely INSANE SEGMENT , Big Show came out for his match and Stephanie McMahon interrupted him. She noted that she wanted him to quit Team Cena and in exchange she would name him as the first inductee to the 2015 WWE Hall of Fame. Big Show put the mic down and began whispered to her but was interrupted by Sheamus. Before the interruption I would like to point out that it was not that long ago when Stephanie and Triple H threatened to fire Show and made his life miserable. Now they want him in the Hall of Fame. For arguments sake, I will let this slide by saying that they were doing whatever they could as heels to keep their power by keeping Show off Team Cena. That is fine. But then you look at the other side of the coin and SHOW WAS ACTUALLY CONSIDERING THIS!!!! The Big Show, who HATED Stephanie and HHH and was crying when they fired him and he had to beg to come back and turn on Daniel Bryan in order to do so CONSIDERED TRUSTING STEPHANIE MCMAHON!!!! So Sheamus comes out and Stephanie threatens him with deportation. Yes. DEPORTATION. WTF??? Stephanie books Big Show vs. Sheamus IN A MATCH . But before it could get anywhere, Rusev and Mark Henry run out and destroy both men including “injuring” Sheamus and thus taking him out of the Survivor Series main event.

- Sheamus is undergoing surgery hence why he was written out. It is not major surgery and he isn't expected to miss significant time.

- The above angle is SUPER NOTEWORTHY because unless WWE is planning on turning John Cena HEEL on Sunday at Survivor Series in the swerve of all swerves, WHY IN THE WORLD DID CENA NOT COME OUT AGAIN AND HELP HIS TEAMMATES FROM GETTING A BEATING?!?!?!?! He is in the building because they showed him being interviewed by Renee Young and again watching Ryback’s match on a monitor. Where was he during this???

- Brie Bella dressed up as A.J. (cause Nikki wanted to prep for her match with A.J. on Sunday) DEFEATED Nikki due to an A.J. distraction. I have heard constant rumors that A.J. is done with WWE after Sunday at Survivor Series so this could be her exit storyline after losing to Nikki at the PPV. This fire was further fueled as A.J. apparently created an EBAY account toward the end of October and has been periodically auctioning old ring gear on the site. After the match, A.J. laid out BOTH Bellas. Please note I have NO CONFIRMATION that A.J. is in fact leaving. It is just rumor and innuendo at this point.

- By the way, it has almost been 30 days meaning that Brie Bella is going to no longer be Nikki’s assistant soon. What a waste of an angle!!!!! They did nothing for this angle at all.

- FANDANGO ON SUNDAY?!?!?! Nice, I thought he was dead.

- It’s a “ NEW DAY ” for Big E. Langston. This is a complete 180 from when this angle debuted in July. Whatever though, it is something new and fresh on our televisions.

- Cena confronted Ryback backstage and asked him to join the team. Ryback reiterated that he is Team Ryback. Cena then decided to insult him further as if that is a good way to get him to join. SMH. He did have a good line though with the insult saying “For a guy who is always wanted to be fed more, it’s odd that he finally gets to the big table and suddenly isn’t hungry.”

- Next week’s RAW host is Larry the Cable Guy. I am so glad it is 2005 again!!! Honestly, WWE is doing this because he is starring in a sequel to the 1996 “Jingle All The Way” film which Santino Marrella has a role in.

- The Miz & Mizdow & Goldust & Stardust vs. The Usos & Los Matadores. WWE FUN FACT: I read my column from exactly a year ago last week and going into LAST YEAR’S SURVIVOR SERIES, do you know who was feuding? If you guessed Cody Rhodes & Goldust vs. The Usos you WIN!!! They have been feuding for ONE YEAR!!! WTF?!?!?! Anyway, MAJOR PROPS to Miz who busted out Heel 101 school stuff during this match. The crowd was going apesh*t for Mizdown wanting him in the match. When Miz made the tag to him, the crowd erupted like Hogan slammed Andre. As soon as Mizdow got in the ring, Miz blind tagged himself back in. AMAZING!!!!!

- With about 20 minutes remaining in the show, the Authority came out for the contract signing to the main event of Survivor Series. 20 MINUTES LEFT. Lots of talking here by HHH and Steph. Cena came out with no teammates since they were all taken out and he did nothing all show to help them from being beaten down. So obviously he has no partners. Not only did he have no partners come out but instead of being combative and anti-authority (no pun intended) when confronting HHH and Steph, He.......Cracked......Jokes.

HE CRACKED JOKES.

HE CRACKED JOKES!!!!!!

- John Cena, with a chance to end the Authority’s reign on Sunday and with no teammates to stand beside him since they were all injured while he just watched from a monitor backstage instead of helping, found this situation to be funny enough that he could crack jokes that weren’t funny about it. I AM COMPLETELY AT A LOSS FOR WORDS AT THIS. No one, not Cena, not Vince McMahon, not Triple H, not Stephanie, not Michael Hayes, not Arn Anderson, not Dean Malenko, not Michael Cole, not JBL, not Big Show, not Sheamus, not Luke Harper, not anyone in the building who saw the script before the show went on the air realized how f*cking stupid this was?? No one? All the great wrestling minds that work for this company and no one spoke up? Anyway, Cena gets slapped and he decides he wants to fight everyone on the Authority right now, by himself. Dolph Ziggler comes out to help even though Cena didn’t do the same for him. Then Big Show comes out even though Cena didn’t do the same for him. No Sheamus though because he was taken out of the main event in exchange for....ERIC ROWAN. Yes, Eric Rowan who has been playing the role of Lenny Small from “Of Mice and Men” on television for the past few weeks is now in the main event picture. WHAT. THE. F*CK?!?!?! Then Cesaro came out to even the score but he sided with the Authority. That was a tease apparently because now the Authority for some unknown reason had 6 guys instead of 5. Um....dumb. But Ryback came out and officially joined Team Cena. Cena LAID OUT HHH to end the show by putting him through a table. To reiterate my comment from a few weeks ago, no idea why Triple H didn’t sign up for his own team since he wants the best possible team he can get in order to win. Once again, stupid booking. Such an awful show and minus the main event build, the rest of the card for Survivor Series was an afterthought.

- See more at: http://www.wewantinsanity.com/am2/publish/Dawgs/T_G_I_F_with_Matt_Dawgs_112114.shtml#sthash.7hSEF6bt.dpuf

Why LaGarrette Blount's Release Should Bother You As A Football Fan And A Person

Image Credit: deadspin.com

by: Josh Henderson

Twitter: @verybadwrong

In late August, Pittsburgh Steelers' running back Lagarrette Blount was arrested with teammate LeVeon Bell for marijuana possession. Sports media, fantasy football players, and fans speculated what his arrest's impact would be on the Steelers' season. In the middle of November, we got our answer when Blount was released by the Steelers.

The Steelers have been owned by the Rooneys since, well, forever, and the Rooneys are often cited as exemplifying how teams should be run. Steelers' fans love to say, "Well, the Rooneys would never tolerate that behavior." They do, though. They have. Just not when bad behavior is directed internally.

Regardless of your personal beliefs of how marijuana should be treated legally, it's illegal in Pennsylvania, federally, and in the NFL. LaGarrette Blount broke this law. The Steelers knew and accepted this. After his arrest, head coach Mike Tomlin said "everything was on the table" as far as disciplining Blount. That table turned out to be bare. Later, he said they would deal any punishment internally: NFL speak for "We'll do nothing. Let Godell be the bad guy."

The Steelers did grow tired of Blount, though. Why? Because he questioned his role in the offense. Because he had no carries and dressed to leave their game against the Titans early. Oh, and because he still has a suspension pending from the NFL stemming from his arrest. But that's not the Steelers' problem anymore. They cut him because he disrespected the Steelers, after doing nothing when he broke the law. That's how the NFL works. Remember the code from A Few Good Men? Unit, Code, God, Country? In the NFL, it's team, league, production, contract.

Good luck, LaGarrette, you're on your own now. Oh, and thanks for the early season production.

Contract Signing and Grumpy Cat; Monday Night Raw Recap

Image Credit: wwe.com

Heading into Survivor Series, "Team Cena" has The Authority on their toes. The fate of WWE lies in their hands after all. Stephanie tries every trick in the book to change Ryback's mind. He declares he is only playing for one team and that's Team Ryback. Threats of deportation couldn't sway Shemus. Bribes of Hall of Fame induction did nothing to persuade Big Show to switch teams. Ziggler comes out looking better than ever for his match against Luke Harper. The match doesn't even start before it's interfered by The Goons. Rollins has a lot to say on commentary. Harper defeats Ziggler by pin fall for the Intercontinental Championship. Mark Henry took Shemus out with a World's Strongest Slam. Big Show and Ziggler are both injured. The Authority wants to wear out Team Cena so there is nothing left of them. There's very little Cena can do but pray to take The Authority out of power. 

A confrontation between Ambrose and Wyatt gave us a taste of what we're in for Sunday night. Despite what Bray has to say about The Lunatic, he does not need saving. Dean Ambrose, "the most dangerous man in the world," because he can't love? Give me a break. He's dangerous because he's smart. I don't know which one of us is more excited that he finally gets his hands on Wyatt. 

As I predicted, Grumpy Cat was the best part of Raw. By far the best celebrity guest this year (besides Foley). Miz was great. That kiss good-bye made my heart skip a beat. Even Erick Rowan wants the cat! She is too cute. Next week Larry the Cable Guy graces our television screens with his presence. Why aren't the guests wrestling anymore? When Snooki came on she looked great in the ring. Bring her back! These celebrities are getting away with doing nothing and it sucks for the fans. 

Hunter makes a very valid point during the contract signing. The future of his family depends on this company. They have more to lose than anyone else. They are going to make sure they win this match. Cena searches the crowd for a new team. He promises the King and Queen will watch their team fall. Team Cena gets a few new members Erick Rowan, Cesaro, and Ryback and sends Hunter through a table to close the show.

-Loveblump

BET’s ’106 & Park’ To End An Era As A Live Television Program & Transition To A Digital Platform

Image Credit: BET Networks

Its seems as though the era of music countdowns on television is slowly coming to an end as BET's 106 & Park Live announced that the program would be turning its lights out on December 19. After an impressive 14 year run, the countdown has undergo changes in everything from hosts to studios, but continued to win over the hearts of its viewers all over. In a statement released on November 14, BET's President of Music Programming and Specials, Stephen Hill, recapped on some of the countdown's most memorable moments since it's air date in September 2000 with it's original host AJ Calloway and Marie Antoinette Wright (Free) to date with Bow Wow and Keshia Chanté.

"AJ accepting Janet Jackson’s challenge to…dance. Bow Wow laying that kiss on Tyra Banks(or was it the other way around?). Free crawling around the set LIKE Catwoman WITH Catwoman Halle Berry. Julissa’s taking over Halloween as “Wonder Woman.” Keshia brilliantly bonding with First Lady Michelle Obama. Paigion flying around the world with Rihanna on a 777. Rocsi salsa dancing with Victor Cruz and putting him to shame. Shorty and Ms. Mykie’s killer rap, “The History of Justin Timberlake,” visably thrilling JT himself.Terrence beatboxing while Jamie Foxx rhymed. Tigger making Tom Cruise do the of-the-moment “motorcycle dance.'"

 

"We all have our favorite moments from the show that has put youth culture on television daily since the first year of this century. We have pride in being involved with the show that has welcomed almost every movie star, music superstar and fresh-faced talent you can name (you can even throw in a first lady). We’ve all laughed with and been entertained by the young men and women hosts that have charmed us at 6 p.m. (and more recently 5 p.m.) each weekday."

Shortly after serenading viewers with the sweet memories of 106 & Park Live , he soon shed light on how the show will transition to a digital platform - since that's were a majority of the show's audience lives when interacting with musical content now in days.

"It’s been a great 14-year run as America’s top music/variety show on cable. And now that very valuable brand is going to take its talents to the digital realm. The interactive brand you helped build, 106 & Park, is alive and well…and it’s moving to the space in which our audience NOW interacts with music the most: online. It’ll be very exciting to connect with the millions of people that are already engaged with 106 & Park and other BET digital and social media entities and bring content that will further evolve the 106 & Park brand — and enhance the overall BET Networks brand. As we transition to the digital space, we look to continue 106 & Park’s role as both a leader of and a mirror to youth culture. We’ll have more information to share about how that is to roll out very soon."

According to the statement, December 19 won't necessarily be the last time you can check 106 & Park out on the air. In addition to the digital show, the countdown will still air for it's legendary specials like the New Year's Eve show 106 & Party and the BET Awards' red carpet show Live, Red and Ready. But going forward, the livest audience will just have to turn up for the show on the weekdays from their computer/smartphone screens.

Check out the full statement released by BET here.

— Brittany C. Jackson

@_exclusivelyB

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW: The 1994 Stanley Cup Championship New York Rangers.

Image Credit: NYDailyNew.com

by: Dana P. (E.I.C.)

We are back with yet another EXCLUSIVE interview! We'd first like to thank the very AMAZING staff at MAB Celebrity for letting us be apart of this event. If you love sports, you should definitely check out some of their upcoming shows. We have been attending various MAB shows throughout the years, and we were absolutely honored to have been apart of this historic event!

MAB-Celebrity does public signings throughout the United States, but not to worry. Don't live in the area and need something signed? MAB also does private signings. Check them out here for a list of upcoming private and public signings.

On October 25th, we arrived early and got to meet and greet with some of the 1994 Stanley Cup Championship winners, the New York Rangers.

We also met none other then "The Nature Boy" himself, Ric Flair! Woooooo! Although we were unable to interview Flair, it was great to meet such a humble down to earth guy, who seemed to be in very good spirits and happy to be there. Hulk Hogan also appeared at That 90's Show, however we were also unable to obtain and interview with him. Hogan was in great spirits and seemed very happy to be there.

Please check out our interview below. Jay Wells, Steve Larmer, Joe Kucor and Stephane Matteau, (better known as the Ranger who scored the game winning goal in the 1994 cup) discuss the current state of the Rangers, Madison Square Garden, Anthony Duclair, Gary Bettman and the two lockouts, as well as what it was like winning the 1994 cup and a lot more.

The Social Commentary of Battle Rap

Image Credit: zimbio.com

by: Ashe Samuels

Dearly Beloved,

Welcome again to my column now to be titled, "Seasoning for the Unseasoned." Today we are gathered to speak about the social commentary that is a foundation of hip hop and also becoming one in battle rap, as well.

Hip hop has been speaking on class warfare for decades, the haves vs the have not so to speak. Battling is no different. A few weeks ago, URL released two major battles; Tsu Surf vs. Hitman Hollow, and the young Canadian Charron vs. Shotgun Suge. In Hitman vs. Surf, Surf began to go in about Hitmans upbringing. Surf, from Newark, used his third round to talk about how Hitman, though he comes with Blood affiliation, is from a two parent household and is a college athlete. He used wordplay to illustrate that he was more street due to not having parents and having to fend for himself. It was arguably the best round from Surf in quite some time. Dizaster, who is one of the most highly regarded in the world, has been dissed many times for not only having rich parents but also living with him till his late twenties. Pat Stay even claimed that anyone could be Diz due to him not needing to have a job, therefore being able to dedicate himself to battling while everyone else had to balance work and battling. Canada's Kaliente was often dissed due to being homeless, but used that struggle to hit hard against Tycoon Tax. While you wont hear all the so rich and I have nicer shit bars you do from modern hip hop, there will always be the "I'm harder because i came up harder" aspect to battling. Those are just some recent examples.

Race relations have always been a hot topic in hip hop, and battling is no exception. Murda Mook ended his battle against Iron Solomon with a Trayvon Martin angle complete with a hoodie. Shotgun Suge began his battle against Charron by saying "this ain't a battle this is justice for Mike Brown." Charron, a white Canadian MC who won 106 and Parks Freestyle Friday but was excluded  from the 2013 Cyphers for being too white and Canadian, used his whiteness to his advantage to win over an oftentimes hostile NYC crowd. From a fantastic Columbine name flip (this is Columbine a white kid taking a shotgun to school), to his final round rebuttal about being a skinny white kid in hip hop and the problems it caused (what you know about shaking Norbes hand and he mistakes you for the camera man). Oftentimes the "you lost to a white boy" card gets played, such as the first time Diz battled Arsonal and the reverse happens at times, such as when Aye Verb confusingly called King of the Dot fans racist. I say confusing in that particular case as the battle took place in LA, in front of a mostly black and Latino crowd. Dizaster, of Lebenese decent, used 90% Asian bars, though hilarious ones against veteran A-Class. Cadalack Ron gets uncomfortably racist at times, though what does one expect from a guy who may or may not have shot dope, mid battle, on camera? If you are white and battle in URL, you being white will probably be half your opponents material, and you being white will be half of yours. That is where some of the beauty lies, almost a racial dialogue through dissing.

Image Credit: goodfellamedia.com

With the rise of Young Thug and the Wayne kissin Baby fiasco, homosexual culture has been on the rise in hip hop. Battle rap is the same, but different. Pat Stay battled Rone in a compliment battle, where two battlers literally compliment each other instead of saying awful shit to each other. The lead up was quite, well, gay. They acted really gay towards each other. The battle had many twings of that as well. No Shame is a transgender battler who has had great showings in AHAT and BOTZ, and has shown herself to be far more than a gimmick earning the respect of her peers. Then, there is Daylyt, battle raps Andy Kaufman. In the leadup to his battle with Pat Stay, they have begun to basically send weird prison love blogs to each other. Its basically battle raps version of gay chicken at this point. Day has also said things like he'd fuck Diddy, possibly to get put on, possibly just because. He warned Aye Verb before their battle that he would try to make out with him onstage. He battled fellow Krack City member Cali Smoov at a non battle event with over a million streaming viewers. He also put out a Young Thug diss called "Choppers" and "Pink Skirts," in which he rapped in a short pink dress and twerked with an AK-47. The weird part is that Day is a heterosexual man with a kid, who is doing this to troll battle raps homophobia and the outlandishly gay movement in hip hop at the same damn time.

Though many claim it to be overly mysoginistic, battle rapvis far from pro domestic violence. Bonnie Godiva brought out Uno Lavoz ex girlfriend on stage in her third round to basically put him on trial for rape. Sketch Menace also called out Uno on the allegations. Hollow the Don flipped out on Joe Budden for supposedly hitting women, stopping in the middle of his round. Hollohan has been called out for his alleged mistreatment of women in many battles. A lot of battlers get away with a lot of things, but no one gets daps for actually hitting a chick.

As I said before, battling has something for everyone. Super lyrical aggressive rhymes? Turn to battle rap. You want thought provoking bars with incredible replay value? Battle rap. You want some social commentary on the side? Yup. Battle rap has that too.

Monday Night Raw Recap: LIVE from Liverpool England!

Image Credit: wwe.com

Live from Liverpool, England! It's like they didn't know what to do with this show so they broke down Survivor Series into seperate matches. The stories sucked as much as the wrestling. I know acting isn't a prority in the WWE Universe but it's was unbelieveable bad last night for some reason. Honestly, I'm more excited about Grumpy Cat next Monday than anything else. I wonder what they'll have him do...

There wasn't much I enjoyed about Raw this week. I did like when Nikki bugged out after Brie lost. She went ape-shit and laid AJ out with a Rack Attack. I would be scared if I was Brie. She may only have a few more days as personal assistant but Nikki is just getting starting. 

Its all about what the Authority wants and they want to win! With a captain like Seth Rollins leading a team of giants, Kane, Rusev, and Mark Henry, The Authority seems unbeatable. Cena better start praying for a miracle. Even with Big Show and Sheamus joining Team Cena, I don't seeing it ending well for them. If tonight's main event is any indication of what will happen in 2 weeks, Good Luck Cena. 

Does anyone know what happened in those last five minutes? Ryback quit Team Authority but did he join Team Cena? Luke Harper delivered a half dead Ziggler to Stephanie's feet. Does that mean he's part of the team now? Is Ziggler out for good? This is supposed to leave you wanting more, biting your nails til next Monday. I just feel jipped. 

-Loveblump 

From Great to Disgrace: The Alex Rodriguez Case

Image Credit: USAToday.com

By: Kai Jones

Edited by: Dana P. (E.I.C.)

Has there ever been a more polarizing figure in baseball than Alex Rodriguez? If so, Rodriguez is in the top 5 along with Barry Bonds, Pete Rose, Mark McGwire, and Sammy Sosa. However, Rodriguez may be the most talented player out of those five. Not comparing and contrasting these players, but one thing they all have in common is, they all are looked at as liars by the media. What sets Alex Rodriguez apart from the others is that he's played under a microscope in the pressure cooker, New York City. Not to mention it's THE most popular team in the MLB, the New York Yankees. Since he  arrived to New York, he has seen some of his best and worst career moments. His worst obviously would be the steroid scandals.

Rodriguez came to New York already a polarizing figure because he was looked at as overpaid, despite being the AL MVP before he came to the Yankees. He produced in his first year with his new team, and was a big contributor in their playoff run to the seventh game of the 2004 ALCS. This was also the series where he knocked the ball away from Carlos Arroyo, which kept Jeter at first base and took the team to 2 outs in the eighth inning of a close game that could've decided the series. While Rodriguez won 2 more AL MVPs, he received criticism from the media for being a bad fielder (although he converted from a short stop to third baseman specifically for the Yankees), for struggling in the postseason, and for the way he opted out of his contract. Even worse, in 2007 came the opening of Pandora’s box: famous steroid user Jose Canseco accused Rodriguez of being a steroid user as well.

Image Credit: AtlantaBlackStar.com

Baseball was at it’s highest in popularity from the 1990’s to the early 2000’s because offense was it’s peak. The reason? MLB wasn’t trying to stop the steroids because they did not believe they had a problem. Jose Canseco’s first book: "Juiced: Wild Times, Rampant ‘Roids, Smash Hits & How Baseball Got Popular" brought heat towards some of the game’s best players. This caused investigations from the MLB in 2003, which then caused US Congress to investigate. After the MLB investigation, they found that they had a problem and mandated testing. In 2006, former Senator George Mitchell started investigating steroid usage in the MLB. This 21-month investigation became known as the infamous Mitchell Report. This was the beginning of Rodriguez’s unraveling. 

Since steroids became a popular subject to the baseball media, Rodriguez constantly denied steroid use. In 2007, Canseco promised his book would unmask Rodriguez as a hypocrite. In 2009, Sports Illustrated attained Rodriguez’s test results from the MLB’s investigation in 2003, which was supposed to be anomyous and destroyed, but was gathered for the Mitchell Report two years. Rodriguez then tested positive in 2003, one of his 3 MVP years. After this article was released, Rodriguez started doing damage control and went on ESPN admitting to steroid use in 2001-2003, but he claimed to be clean since he came to New York. Through this criticism, Rodriguez went on to have his best postseason as a Yankee in which he won the World Series MVP, and of course the first championship of his career. In 2010, Rodriguez came under fire for being a patient of Anthony Galea, a doctor who illegally brought mislabeled drugs including HGH (a banned MLB substance) to America. Galea later cleared Rodriguez’s name by claiming he only prescribed anti-inflammatory medicine to Rodriguez. Rodriguez dodged that bullet, but he couldn't dodge the biggest bullet of his career, the Biogenesis baseball scandal.

Image Credit: SportsGrid.com

The Biogenesis of America was an anti-aging clinic in Florida. In 2013, the now-nonexistent clinic named several players that it was connected to, and allegedly sold PED’s to Rodriguez. The MLB went on the offense and pressured the owner, Bosch, to release all the players involved in the clinic. Some speculate that the MLB just wanted to finally get Alex Rodriguez, and I somewhat agree. Rodriguez was the one guy who besides media persecution, had eluded punishment in spite of being an admitted steroid user. Rodriguez was still a big name, highly paid player, while legends like Clemens and Bonds have undergone high criticism and legal problems because of their usage. They finally officially got Rodriguez late 2013. Rodriguez was suspended for all of the 2014 season (after appealing from August until the 2013 season was over). Now the situation could get worse as Rodriguez’s cousin and personal assistant are in deep trouble. Yuri Sacart, (Rodriguez’s cousin) is facing federal steroid distributing charges. In addition to that, Sacart is in the hospital after having open-heart surgery. Even worse, Sacart’s wife is threatening to expose every secret the family knows about Alex Rodriguez. The big issue for Rodriguez is the MLB has a policy against distributing steroids, and if Rodriguez is found to have helped his cousin, he could face another penalty from the MLB. With Rodriguez being owed so much money from the Yankees mixed with the combination of the Yankees being embarrassed by Rodriguez, means he will have no help from his team.

This whole situation is muggy and continues to take turns. Not even the writers from The Young And The Restless could have thought about this plot. Will Rodriguez be able to sustain further stains on his soiled name? Can he elude the MLB’s pursuit? Will he be able to collect the 60 million plus that the Yankees owe him? While all these questions are unknown, one thing I am almost sure of is that Rodriguez, one of the biggest offensive weapons in MLB history, will have a heck of a time getting into the Hall Of Fame when this is all over. It really is sad that one of the best players in MLB history has such a stained name and probably will miss being enshrined into the hallowed hall.

EXCLUSIVE VIDEO: ITS HERE! Eminem, Slaughterhouse, & YelaWolf Present #‎SHADYXV #‎CXVPHER

Image Credit: ShadyRecords.com

by: Dana P. (E.I.C.)

Oh its FINALLY here! Shady Records has dropped the CXVPHER leading up to Shady XV, which will feature Slaughterhouse, 50 Cent, Yelawolf, and many more! You NEED to check this out, as Crooked I, Joe Budden, Joell Ortiz, Yelawolf, Royce da 5'9 and Marshall Mathers himself, none other then Eminem, battle it out in each of their hometowns.

EXCLUSIVE VIDEO: Joe Budden Takes Over SOBs New York City For The Album Release of EP 'Some Love Lost.'

Image Credit: XXLMag.com

by: Dana P. (E.I.C.)

Joe Budden put on one of the most authentic performances at SOBs this past Tuesday night, as everyone in the house came out to celebrate the release of his new EP titled, 'Some Love Lost.' The infamous SOB's in New York City, is also known as the venue where "legends are made." Emilio Rojas opened up the show, followed by R&B sensation EManny. Felicia Temple joined Emanny on the stage, and both brought up two lucky fans from the crowd for an intense little "lapdance session!" 

Joey hit the stage performing for nearly an hour, as he started off with a few tracks off Some Love Lost, leading into classics as far back to Halfway House, Mood Muzik, and No Love Lost. While Joe refers to himself as "washed," we think he has hit legendary status by far and he is JUST getting started!

Joe took over The Angie Martinez Show on Power 105 this past Wednesday, and revealed this EP was just a warmup before he releases his new ALBUM! No date has been set. We will also soon see him alongside his fellow Slaughterhouse brothers, Yelawolf, and the founder of Shady Records himself, Eminem on the 15th anniversary album Shady XV which will be introduced with a cypher, titled "CXVPHER."

As we patiently wait for more to come from Joey, check out this video below! We got up close and personal for this full on therapy session from The Mood God!

GZA's 'Liquid Swords' 18 Years Later

Image Credit: www.hiphopdx.com

By: Kai Jones

On this day, November 7^th, 19 years ago GZA The Genius dropped Liquid Swords: what some say is the greatest hip-hop album ever. This is considered in the top 2 Wu-Tang Clan members’ solo album, along with Only Built 4 Cuban Linx…While the greatest hip-hop album ever is debatable, if you were to canonize a group of hip-hop albums, I do not know how you could leave this album out. 

Liquid Swords is not necessarily a commercial success as no single reached the Top 40 on the Billboard Top 100 and the album never reached number 1 on the Billboard 200 nor the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums. While it wasn’t necessarily a big commercial success, it was critically acclaimed. While Liquid Swords isn’t the greatest album commercially, it is significant because of the lyrics, music, and how well the album is put together.

Liquid Swords is one of the most creative and aptly named album titles in hip-hop history. When you listen GZA his flow is like the water of Niagara Falls flowing through, but it’s sharp like a samurai sword. The greatness about this album is that everything comes together perfectly. From GZA writing perfect dark street poetry, to every Wu-Tang Clan member having a fitting feature, to RZA showing his production prowess. While the album featured all 10 members of the Wu-Tang Clan, it seemed as though all the members stepped into GZA’s world and GZA shined on all of them. While RZA has always been a great producer, this may have been his finest of any solo project production. And of course GZA The Genius gave us some of the best imagery and lyrics on an album that we have ever heard, and also it showed that his lyrical expertise is the finest of all the Wu-Tang Clan members.

GZA was a large part of the amazing run Wu-Tang Clan and the members had from 1993-1997, which in my mind cemented them as the greatest rap group to ever touch a microphone.

Wu-Tang Forever!

TGIF: The Insanity of Rusev-Sheamus, No One Hit On Shelton's Momma, and More

T.G.I.F. with Matt Dawgs: #277

Good day to you all and welcome to We Want Insanity. I am your host for today, Matt Dawgs and this is my column. Today is the end of the work week and the time to look back at all the goings-on over the past seven days as I wrap it up with a bow and spout it out bit by bit. Buckle up. As previously noted, you can catch my OTHER COLUMN which is the “ WWE NETWORK PPV OF THE WEEK ” where I and 3 friends discussed an old WWE/WCW/ECW PPV from the archives. Join us on SUNDAY as we review WCW “Great American Bash 1989” and check it out to see if it is worth watching. Also check out this week’s “ THE QUESTION ” where James Guttman, James Bullock (why do we have two James writing for the site? We need to change his name to Tinashe or something) and myself answer a random question each week. This week’s “Question”, what is TV’s best theme song?

WWE NEWS AND NOTES:

- RAW = TRAIN. WRECK. Oh my god was RAW this week all over the f*cking place. Just complete lack of logic in almost every turn. Don’t believe me? Well let me break it down for you......

- Last week on RAW, the show was the start of the big Survivor Series angle involving Team Cena vs. Team Authority. Smackdown and the website all week were discussing the fact that John Cena would choose his team on RAW on Monday. I believe even the teaser WWE does on the site made note of that on Sunday. Then comes RAW on Monday and.....JOHN CENA ISN’T EVEN ON THE SHOW. WTF?!?!?! But that is just the start of the insanity.

- The show opened with a pleasant but surprisingly unannounced surprise. After a YEAR absence from television, Vince McMahon made his TRIMUPHANT RETURN to WWE television alongside his daughter and son-in-law HHH to open the show. Vince plugged the WWE Network as expected but surprisingly didn’t bother to mention the UK getting the Network as Monday was launch day there (more on this below). He then threw a curve ball out of left field that can be described as two ways. One way to describe it would be complete and utter desperation in order to get new subscribers to the Network. The second way to describe it would be Vince’s attempt to get a hot angle going and ideally the same angle that was talked about a full year ago which would pit Triple H vs. Vince’s proxy at Wrestlemania for complete control of the company. My guess is that it is a little bit of both. Vince announced that if the Authority’s team loses at Survivor Series then the Authority will NO LONGER BE IN CONTROL OF WWE. Now this is just my guess but I believe that this will lead to the tease we saw a few weeks ago with Triple H vs. The Rock at Wrestlemania as the original plan last year was for Triple H vs. “Stone Cold” Steve Austin (Vince’s 1st choice) or Triple H vs. The Rock (Vince’s 2nd choice) but both men fell through and then the Daniel Bryan phenomenon took over to they decided to scrap the idea altogether. So I think that is where we are going with this.

- Dean Ambrose and Cesaro FOUGHT AGAIN. I enjoy their matches but as noted in the last two columns, it is the same formula for RAW week in and week out. Cesaro got bloodied, not sure how and he required 5 staples to close the cut on his head on Monday. During the commercial break in his match with Dean Ambrose, WWE medical personnel were able to temporarily close the cut so he could continue the match and then put the staples in when he got backstage following the match. More Bray Wyatt magic stuff. I am not into him anymore. They did a fantastic job of killing his momentum DEAD if that was their intention.

- Remember when Cesaro won the Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal at Wrestlemania, it was treated like a big deal, he won this huge trophy and then was made a Paul Heyman guy and he got pushed to the moon? LOL. Good times.

- Should I start saying POOR MIZ? Seems that was as his matches have somehow now become a backdrop for Damien Mizdown to be showcased.

- So here is where more complete f*cking insanity comes around. The entire first hour in another desperate attempt to get more subscribers to the Network, WWE hyped that Sheamus would defend the US title vs. Rusev following RAW LIVE, exclusively on the Network. So instead of video packages to hype the match or promos from both men backstage or even in the ring hyping it, following the Miz vs. Jimmy Uso match we had SHEAMUS IN ACTION VS. TYSON KIDD!!!!! Not only that, but Sheamus F*CKING LOSES?!?!?!?!?! WHAT?????? Who in the hell was the genius who decided to have Sheamus lose a match before his “big” title defense live on the Network??? Why was this booked? And before you say that it was done to get over the Kidd/Nattie angle or that Sheamus vs. Rusev was booked last minute after the show was written, all you had to do was substitute Sheamus with R-Truth or Big E. Langston or anyone else and done the exact same match. Sheamus didn’t need to be sacrificed for it. SMH. And if for some unknown reason you decide that you NEED to have Sheamus wrestle on RAW, then have him win cleanly. That is the smartest form of booking. Oh...you needed Kidd to win? Then book him vs. someone who can afford a loss, especially since he won via countout. And on top of all that....if you needed Kidd to win then why the f*ck did Sheamus lay him out with the Brogue Kick after the match? I feel like I am in bizzaro world with this match. Mind Blowingly Dumb Booking.

- Dolph Ziggler continues his ride on the jobber train with a lame DQ win over Seth Rollins. Um...not for nothing but before the match was announced, the entire Authority came out to confront Ziggler and to try and CONVINCE HIM to join Team Authority. Triple H then proceeded to sing all sorts of praises for Ziggler. This would be an extremely useful angle and believable if DOLPH ZIGGLER EVER WON A F*CKING MATCH. This is the same Ziggler who legit just got over an 8 television match losing streak. Why are we supposed to believe he is such an asset when you book him to be a jobber with a belt? If I were Triple H, I would be encouraging Ziggler to be on Cena’s team. He is an easy elimination if you go by his television performances!!!

- By the way, 100% chance that HHH was speaking in code when he said that “something always gets in the way” of Ziggler every time he starts to rise to the top. I am sure that was a shoot disguised as a worked comment.

- The MATCH ITSELF wasn’t the type of quality you’d expect from them but Orton running in and laying out Rollins with an RKO OUTTANOWHERE was awesome and becoming a running gag. I like it. Although it is doing nothing but position Orton as a full-fledged face. It also didn’t help HHH’s argument from before the match since Rollins essentially destroyed him before curb stomping him into oblivion until the run in. BTW, Orton’s run in causes the DQ thus Ziggler loses again. Just saying.

- BTW, Orton is not scheduled for any future RAW’s between now and Survivor Series hence the show closing angle and he was actually removed by WWE from Survivor Series local ads over the weekend which is extremely odd since this RAW focused on him and Rollins competing over control of Team Authority at the PPV and more so because the PPV is IN ST. LOUIS, HIS HOMETOWN!!!!!!

- Two weeks in a row where Orton cuts a fiery promo breaking away from his slow, monotone promos. Last week I complained, this week it is growing on me.

- Who was the PROMO WITH THE EYES about? I assumed the Ascension but I am hearing others speculate Luke Harper. Anyone know? Guesses?

- More Insanity, YAY!!!! Last week Ryback randomly was a babyface and crushed his opponent to the crowd’s delight. How does WWE follow that up? By having Ryback have a back and forth COMPETITIVE MATCH with perennial jobber Titus O’Neal!!!!

- PS – I honestly think WWE is going to try and make us forget about the last year when Ryback was a mid-card/opening card heel/jobber and pretend he is a main event talent again. He is likely going to be Team Cena at Survivor Series.

- Insanity Segment Alert: What in the blue hell was up with Big Show’s teary eyed promo about wanting his friend Mark Henry back? That was incredibly lame and a bit homosexual. He misses his friend. What?

- And as you can see, creative is in panic mode doing things the completely rushed way because they don’t know where they are going with angles. BIG SHOW VS. MARK HENRY on RAW rather than at Survivor Series? Weird. Then end it in a DQ? Worse than weird.

- So that Erik Rowan SEGMENT huh?

- Definitely not enough Brie/Nikki skits with Brie being her assistant. I am thoroughly disappointed as WWE is failing to capitalize on a bunch of potentially entertaining skits.

- Wait... “ A NEW DAY IS COMING”???? Xavier Woods??? Is WWE finally going to debut Woods/Big E/Kofi as a trio? This angle started IN JULY!!!!!

- And WWE is going to call them “The New Day” instead of those lame names I heard about a few months back liek "Speed Force" or "Athletic Friends". Good.

- Zack Ryder tweeted to John Cena that he is ready if Cena needs him to be on his team at Survivor Series. WWE actually showed the tweet on RAW. WWE is oblivious to the fact that Ryder 100% did that on his own to troll the internet and WWE fell for it likely thinking that Ryder did it in storyline per the creative team’s wishes. Anyway, Ryder was on Raw and he GOT KILLED by Rusev. You know, the same Rusev who is getting a US title match LIVE on the Network following RAW. SMH.

- Mark this down, save this column. If Rusev is on Team Authority at the PPV and Team Authority is booked to lose, then I GUARAN-F*CKING-TEE that Rusev gets eliminated by DQ. If they win, Rusev will be a survivor.

- MORE INSANITY!!! Los Matadores DEFEATED the WWE Tag Team Champions in a non-title match on RAW. How are Los Matadores rewarded for their big win? They are rewarded by The Usos getting a tag team title match on Smackdown tonight in a steel cage!!!!! Read that sentence again because you might be confused by what I wrote. THE F*CKING USOS are getting a title shot tonight even though Los Matadores PINNED the champs cleanly.

- And finally, for the 186 consecutive WWE show in a row, a combination of John Cena/Dean Ambrose/Randy Orton/Kane/Seth Rollins main events a show. At least we FINALLY GOT A CLEAN FINISH in the main event rather than a DQ. It was a solid match and Orton seemed motivated even though he has made it clear backstage that he doesn’t want to be a babyface. Rollins with the clean victory using a backslide? Someone was watching Flair vs. Steamboat matches on the Network this week.

- The POST MATCH ANGLE was good stuff. Orton nailing HHH with a forearm was good and I assume that even though he is supposed to be on Team Authority, he is now a babyface since he was laid out by Rollins, Kane, Mercury, Noble and a hesitant HHH who only joined in at Stephanie’s request. The running angle is that Orton is “injured” and he is not expected to be at Survivor Series.

-Matt Dawgs  
        

Questions, Corrections, Comments, Feedback or Ideas: Dawgs@wewantinsanity.com 

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