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THE WRESTLING MENU #272 Welcome one and all to the 272nd edition of The Wrestling Menu, the column that is sure to satisfy your taste buds when it comes to discussing all things wrestling. I haven’t had time to scratch myself of late and only just managed to get this column up in time for my return to Wednesday mornings, so there is not much time for chatter today and it’s immediately on with the show….. APPETIZERS - Feedback If you have yet to read my previous column which was posted on June-6, you may still do so by clicking on the following link: http://www.lordsofpain.net/news/2008/articles/1212735752.php In retrospect, I suppose I shouldn’t have been surprised with the amount of feedback that I received for that last column of mine. But alas, I indeed was as the emails piled in by the bucket-load. Funnily enough, the topic I went out of my way to specifically ask for feedback on was the one in which I received the least amount for. That being the topic in regards to wrestlers going absent without explanation. I specifically mentioned the Jeff Hardy example here and was curious if any parents had to answer to inquisitive children who wanted to know where their favorite multi-colored wrestler was. Well, I got a fair bit of general feedback on the subject which was mostly agreeing with my conclusion that wrestling promotions should explain such absences on-air, even if the reasons given are not true in real life. But I also got about 5 or 6 specific pieces of feedback from parents, which was what I was after. A little surprisingly, the answer to my question was split more down the middle than I thought it would be, with half the responses using the situation to be honest and talk about substance abuse with their children, while the other half came up with some other reason so as not to bring down their children’s hero. I don’t think there is a correct or incorrect response for the above predicament. A number of factors come into play here such as the age & character of the child. One day when I am a parent, I will maybe be able to answer my own question. But hopefully by then, WWE will begin explaining the absences of wrestlers in one way or another, which I suppose was the main point of the topic. Moving on to my ‘One Night Stand’ review, I was very surprised to see my review get such mixed feedback. It appears that the all-gimmicked event may very much have drawn a line in the sand with regards to fans & non-fans. Some readers felt my ratings were about right or even too kind, while others (I would say the majority actually) thought I was way too harsh on the show as a whole. The amazing thing is that the match rating which drew the most negative response was my failing of the Women’s “I Quit” match between Beth Phoenix & Melina. I am so accustomed to getting readers questioning me as to how I could pass a boring women’s match that I was a little shocked when the exact opposite occurred here. Personally, I am happy that many WWE viewers liked the bout, but I still stand by my rating for the reasons I gave in my last column. Finally, in a topic that alternately took some people by surprise, I basically named Vickie Guerrero as WWE’s #1 heel at present due to the weekly volume (both amount & noise) of the heel heat she gains from the live crowd in attendance. I had the whole kit & caboodle with regards to opinions on this from “You’re crazy Davey” to “Initially I thought you were crazy but when I thought about it you are right”. The more amazing fact that came about through feedback was the amount of reasons given for why Vickie generates so much heel heat. Dare I say it, but the reasons are so wide & expansive that Vickie is almost breaking new ground. I know that comment sounds even more over-the top, but if you were to read through all my feedback you would know what I mean. Whether it be for being involved against arguably WWE’s #1 face (The Undertaker), being involved with arguably WWE’s #1 heel (Edge), her ordinary microphone skills, the reason as to why she has a job with WWE, etc, etc, etc… Trust me, I could make a list and it almost runs into double figures! So no matter what you think of Vickie as a person or character, WWE have indeed almost hit accidental gold here and by the look of her role each & every Friday on SmackDown, it is clear they realize it and are going to milk it for all that it’s worth while they can. WWE DRAFT PREDICTIONS The draft is fast approaching for WWE and it may have more significance this year than any other due to the current low television ratings that the company is experiencing. Will this mean that big names will be on the move…??? It’s definitely possible, but I’ve given up on thinking that Triple H & Shawn Michaels will move to SmackDown and Rey Mysterio will move to Raw! WWE are doing an excellent job so far of keeping the movements between brands quiet, although a cynic would suggest it is because they are yet to know who will be moving themselves! Another factor which is most likely still being decided on is how many movements there will be. In the draft proper last year, the 2 larger brands gained 4 new wrestlers each, while ECW gained 2. But it must be noted that 6 more wrestlers went to Raw and SmackDown each in the Supplemental Draft, while ECW gained a further 3. For the sake of this column, I am going to find some sort of middle ground and grant Raw & SmackDown 8 new wrestlers each, while ECW will gain 5. I actually think this is about the correct amount of movements to be honest as it is not over the top, while still meaning that all 3 brands will significantly change afterwards. As for whether all draft moves occur on the night or in 2 separate drafts, I would actually prefer only singles wrestlers to move on the 3 hour Raw episode, then females can switch brands on ECW, while SmackDown can be the turn of the tag-teams. I know that lessens the randomness aspect of the draft, but it would balance out nicely if that was to occur. ENTREE – ECW Drafts… CHUCK PALUMBO: While I am certain there are many readers thinking this is a nothing move, I am not so certain. Those of you who have been watching SmackDown over the past month or so will know that Palumbo is bringing a much rougher & tougher style to the ring of late and it has arguably made him look significantly better wrestling-wise. His heel character has been decent of late and a rather prominent stint on the ECW roster could allow WWE to work out whether or not he has any upper midcard potential in the future a’la other late bloomers such as JBL. LANCE CADE: For pretty much similar reasons as to Palumbo, Cade is now a singles heel wrestler reportedly about to be pushed to some extent. He will obviously be looking to make a name for himself while showing what he has got in the ring and on the microphone. ECW is the best place for that to occur in my opinion and Cade could in fact be fighting with Palumbo for the higher heel spot on the card. Nothing wrong with a bit of friendly competition to be used as motivation! DEUCE & DOMINO: My tag-team of 2007 appears to be stalling when it comes to moving up the card on SmackDown. They could be refreshed on the ECW brand and I could actually see a face turn playing part in that new lease of life. Morrison & The Miz against these 2 would make a pretty handy feud for mine. I think these 2 have too much potential to just let fall by the wayside as other teams have over the past 2-3 years. Further down the track, they could be split and give a singles career a go. CHERRY: Her time in the ring has not really impressed me of late and she may be more worthwhile away from either of WWE’s 2 Women’s Title’s on ECW. She will still have Layla El to feud against on occasions and I wouldn’t think some sort of reuniting with Deuce & Domino on another brand would not necessarily hurt her advancement in WWE. MAIN – Raw Drafts… CHAVO GUERRERO: I do not know whether I am for this move or against it. I think Chavo has been terribly overused of late and simply don’t believe he has what it takes to become anything more than a solid midcarder. One part of me wants him to stay away from either of WWE’s big 2 brands, but the other part of me believes he will be fairly quickly banished on any brand that isn’t ECW. Rumors have suggested he may be in line for a brand switch and some kind of initial push. I’m personally hoping it will be on Raw as I doubt HHH, HBK, Cena, Orton, etc… would allow him to get anywhere near the WWE Championship there. BAM NEELY: It is simply too early for this rookie who has hardly wrestled on WWE programming to be split from Chavo as his bodyguard. He therefore moves with Chavo by default. BATISTA: I am hesitant to make this move since Batista was on Raw not long that ago and has already feuded with many superstars who are currently there. But there are still some fresh feuds left when you think about it as after his feud with HBK ends, Jericho, Cena & Orton match-ups can still be explored. And you can’t help but get the feeling that WWE are going to try everything to get Raw’s ratings back up and The Animal could just be the man to assist in doing so. FINLAY: Finlay has been on SmackDown since his return to the ring a few years back, so a change is very much overdue for the Irishman. His solid in-ring skills will actually suit Raw to some extent as there is no great fear of needing to do re-shoots, while his current face character has been leaning more and more to comedy spots of late, which will also suit Raw if the next move is also made. HORNSWOGGLE: I would love for WWE to spread out the drafting of Finlay & Hornswoggle on the night so as to tease that the father & son combination will be broken up. That would make for some great entertainment during the 3 hour show in my opinion. But medium to long term, these 2 are solid fan favorites at present and could lend a hand in restoring Raw’s ratings to at least what they were last year. JESSE & FESTUS: Similarly to Finlay & Hornswoggle, the comedic aspect of Jesse & Festus should work well on Raw and I actually think that some of the main-eventers would get a kick out of playing off of Festus in a strange kind of way. It has been a little strange that these 2 are yet to taste tag-team gold on SmackDown, so it may be more appropriate if they were to take a stab at the weaker division over on Raw. NATALYA NEIDHART: I have Natalya moving for more than 1 reason. The first one is because I am swapping her with another heel female that I believe needs to switch brands. The second reason is because I would love for a 2nd generation rookie stable to form soon & Raw appears to be the place for that. And finally, the move would be a testament to how fast Natalya has established herself as an in-ring force over on SmackDown. Her wrestling skills seem more than solid already and I think she would be just fine taking it up to the likes of Mickie James & Melina. DESSERT – SmackDown Drafts… KELLY KELLY: While her advancement inside of the squared circle hasn’t exactly been at lightning pace, Kelly has been steadily improving her wrestling skills and deserves a promotion of sorts. Throwing her into the live atmosphere of Raw may be too risky a step though so I see a switch to SmackDown being the best for all involved here. Who knows… Come the end of this year, she could even be a contender for the new Women’s Title on the Friday night brand! ELIJAH BURKE: Burke has been treading water for approximately 9 months now and Shelton Benjamin’s move to ECW has only demoted this decent talent. It’s do or die for Burke and a move is badly needed at this stage of his development. He would simply get lost in the shuffle on the deep Raw roster, so a move to SmackDown would best show WWE whether or not he is worth persisting with in the future. Given some kind of push and a character adjustment, I am quietly confident Burke can get the job done. MIKE KNOX:To be honest, I am unsure how much longer Mike Knox will remain with WWE, so the company may as well get some use out of him while they can. This would best be achieved by having him switch brands and put over other wrestlers both large and small. JEFF HARDY: I think moving Jeff to SmackDown helps everyone. While he was indeed making inroads over on Raw before his suspension, the depth of the Monday night roster (especially on the face side) is still so large that it suggests that any breakthrough that Jeff makes will be difficult and ultimately brief. Moving Jeff to Friday nights gives him a much better chance of entrenching himself as a genuine main-eventer. Meanwhile, some of the potential match-ups look intriguing with Edge, MVP, Rey Mysterio & his brother Matt all certain to play a large role. UMAGA: I really hope WWE don’t go for one of those ‘trick the internet fans’ swerve here. There is a reason why most people expect Umaga to move to SmackDown. That’s because it is a no-brainer. No further explanations are required here! CRYME TYME: Finlay, Hornswoggle, Jesse & Festus should all provide enough comic relief on Raw. And with Cryme Tyme really only treading water on Monday nights (despite the fact that they have only recently returned to television), I see no reason why a move to SmackDown isn’t worth a shot to refresh them. Maybe they could get involved with Foley in some kind of way. I dunno, but a breath of fresh air couldn’t hurt. BETH PHOENIX: This may seem like a strange switch to make, but Beth’s recent inability to regain the Women’s Title from Mickie James has been a little bewildering. It not only tends to suggest that a move may be in store for her, but it actually makes it more logical & beneficial. More importantly though, her appearance on the SmackDown roster goes a long way in giving the alternate title for females greater credibility due to her skill and character. Ok, I am certain that many people will initially believe that my above moves would not be significant enough to shake up WWE, but I don’t personally feel the brand switching alone will assist WWE all that much in isolation anyway. It is the booking which is to follow that is integral. I am certain you will want to share your own draft predictions with me, but if I may ask a little favor and that’s not to send me your full list. Due to time constraints with yours truly, I would much prefer if you were to only email me 1 or 2 moves which you feel strongest on. Otherwise, there is simply no way I will be able to get through all emails within the next week. My e-mail address is DaveyBoy123@bigpond.com, but if you are an LOP Forums member, it would be much appreciated if you could leave feedback on my thread at http://www.lopforums.com/showthread.php?t=159 Next Wednesday in 'The Wrestling Menu', I will hopefully be back with my predictions for the newly named ‘Night of Champions’ pay-per-view. I have a few ideas on how to fill out the rest of the column, but am yet to make a final decision on which topics I will write about. Whatever comes your way, my column will be posted at the same Wednesday time on the same WL channel next week. Until then, this is DaveyBoy signing off & asking you to remember that dinner is best served in 3 courses. And remember that DaveyBoy's Album Reviews can be viewed at: http://www.sputnikmusic.com/user_reviews.php?memberid=268913

[22] - A Series of Unfortunate Events (The Booker T Story) Welcome back my Fruity Followers! You didn't think I was a one hit wonder did you? Well... reserve that answer until the end of the column as I can't promise to churn out flawless pieces of literature every time out. I'm SkittleZ and this is the latest heart pounding rendition of Taste My Rainbow. The only column that pays for advertising on gay porn sites. Life is good for the time being though I don't expect it to last much longer with my luck. This column marks the debut of Skittlez' Riddles on the Main Page! Chances are you probably have no idea what I'm talking about. Just give it time, people. You will fall in love with it.... or else. But enough bickering already. I haven't gotten laid in nearly three months and therefore I'm feeling a little tense so lets get this show on the road. Last night, I watched Monday Night RAW for the first time since April. It wasn't a bad show by any means. I really enjoyed the opening segment between Triple H and Cena where The Game pointed out Cena's limited move set and younger fan base. Not because I despise Cena or anything. I honestly believe that bringing these sore spots to the forefront will help shut up haters from spewing the same bullshit complaints they fork out every week. Exposing these issues may also bring more sympathizers to Cena's aid which most definitely strengthens his good guy persona. Speaking of Cena, he put on a solid Street Fight with Umaga following his and Hunter's promo. Yes.... the Samoan Bulldozer loses another match. What a surprise. Jeff Hardy was kept relatively strong while Triple H and Y2J put on an entertaining main event bout. The Nature Boy's surprise appearance was hands down the highlight of the night. Million Dollar Mania ran pretty smoothly and didn't turn into the disaster that I'd been anticipating. At least we know that this isn't some silly rigged contest the WWE is using to garner better ratings. Though I'm sure they would never pull a stunt like that.... *cough Cyber Sunday cough*. I'm not even going to lie... me and my sister registered for the sweepstakes on WWE.com and waited anxiously on my Dad's couch like a pair of foolish bums. Most websites have reported that the contest has done little to sway the slumping ratings and I can't help but wonder how long the company can drag this on before the WWE bank account is tapped dry. The show also reminded us just how colorful the Chairman can be on a live microphone. If I had to make a prediction right now, my guess would be that next week's three hour RAW will spell the end of this interactive contest. Ha! Who's laughing now? Two or three months ago, I created a poll in the LOP Forums in which I begged the question should the WWE carry through with a second generation stable without the cocky and arrogant Teddy Hart. The majority informed me that my question was out of date and went on to say how I should've spoken up a year ago on the topic. Well you want to watch the storyline progression between Ted Dibiase Jr and the World Tag Team Champions and tell me the same thing? DH Smith is likely to get the nod as Dibiase's partner at Night of Champions but I could care less to be honest. Cody Rhode's recent behavior has me intrigued as a heel turn could be on the horizon. And believe me... I'll support that move all day (as will most individuals). How Hardcore Holly hasn't been fired yet is beyond me. Ditch this loser, Cody, and go fraternize with the enemies! Mr. Kennedy's face turn has caught me off guard a tad. I was kind of expecting the WWE to hold off on it until after WrestleMania 25. The thought of an extended HHH/Kennedy program waged over the WWE Championship simply seemed too tempting to ignore. Not to say it still can't happen down the road. I just pictured it taking place some time this year while The Game was still champion. Matching him up with Paul Burchill is a good way to test the waters and find out what sort of response Kennedy generates under the new circumstances. I would label it a success up to this point. The question is where does Kennedy go from here? Will he struggle to escape the midcard level? Its happened many times before. However, this face turn leads me to believe that the company is FINALLY ready to push Kennedy into super stardom. The build may take time to play out but it's all about the payoff in the end. Will Kennedy get over massively as a good guy? Can the WWE count on him to represent them well? Does Kennedy have significant drawing power? My vote is yes. To the casual fan, Booker Huffman comes off as a rather successful wrestler. The guy has accumulated upwards of 30 championships during his professional career (with most of those coming before joining WWE). Booker has enjoyed some good fortune over the years. Harlem Heat is widely regarded as one of the all time great tag teams. And despite the situation turning sour in WCW's dying days, he was still able to make the most of it by claiming four World Heavyweight Title reigns before the company officially went under. The unlikely duo of Booker and Goldust were tremendously entertaining and, at their peak, nearly reached the level of the Rock N Sock Connection. And no matter what anyone says, Booker worked the "King" gimmick to perfection up until he was released from his contract. Feel all the upbeat nostalgia emitting from Booker's legacy? Well brace yourself because we're about to take a drip down Negative Lane. Although Booker has benefited in some ways from the wrestling business, he's been met with setbacks more often that not. Through flashes of brilliance, Booker's stint with the WWE has been plagued by lame storylines and questionable booking. Sadly, Huffman has done nothing to deserve such cruel punishment. He is and has always been a team player; thinking what's best for the business first and foremost. Perhaps Booker was just an unfortunate casualty of the politic-riddled world known as the WWE. Whatever the case may be, let us reminisce on a few events Booker wishes he could erase from his tortured mind. InVasion of the Unemployed: This dud of a storyline came about after the WWE went into panic mode once Benoit and Triple H both suffered severe injuries in mid-2001. WWE versus WCW and ECW on WWE television? Hmmmm.... I wonder how that one will unfold. The bulk of the Alliance was regularly thrashed throughout the angle and Booker T sat near the top of that list. He initially came in with good steam as the reigning World Heavyweight Champion and Shane's right hand man. Unfortunately for Booker, it was all down hill from there. Not only did Booker drop his title to The Rock at SummerSlam and fail to win it back at Unforgiven, but he also fell to the Undertaker in a pivotal big time match and his team ultimately lost the war at Survivor Series. Certainly not a good start to his WWE tenure but things would take a turn for the better..... or maybe not. Working as the Devil's Henchman: The Alliance might have been deceased but Booker returned within a few short weeks alongside Vince and Big Bossman. With McMahon's never ending plots to trounce the Texas Rattlesnake, it was inevitable that Booker would target Stone Cold eventually. The opportunity presented itself at Vengeance when Austin was battling Jericho for the Undisputed Title and the referee was knocked unconscious. Like the bitch that he is, Booker ran in and clocked Austin with the title belt. The Rattlesnake had been screwed over for the umpteenth time and all was right in heel land. Who knew an innocent trip to the grocery store could go so wrong? Screw milk and bread.... Booker was ambushed by Austin and thoroughly dowsed with various food items. Not a great way to spend your Monday evening. The Mystique of a Japanese Shampoo Endorsement: It's no secret that the Japanese have some freaky ass fetishes. I just never knew they were so fascinated with Canadian hair and dreadlocks. Wrestling fans endure shitty storylines on a consistent basis but this one is up there in terms of sheer stupidity. And showcasing this dud at WrestleMania didn't do Booker and Edge any favors. Edge's singles run had just taken off and Booker was in a rut during the first few months of 2002. This didn't exactly help matters. A bad storyline usually leads to a bad match and there was no exception here. Several weeks of international negotiations resulted in seven minutes of uneventful action. When the babyface is competing in his hometown and the crowd could give two shits, that should be an indication. Not Seeing Things in Black and White: Okay, we're going to bring back the Clique and stick them in the Hogan-less nWo. Shawn Michaels? Check. Kevin Nash? Check. X-Pac? Sucks. Oh... I mean check. Scott Hall? Check. Booker T? Check.... hey wait a minute! Booker must've been open for storyline ideas and someone on the Creative Team suggested this as a lame joke. Now I realize that the nWo's return was hampered by injuries but bringing Booker into the stable was the wrong way to go about it. The only positive aspect worth mentioning is that the WWE soon caught on to the flop and kicked Booker out of the faction immediately via some Sweet Chin Music. Hard to put the blame entirely on Booker, though. The WWE's attempt to resurrect the nWo turned out to be a disaster for various reasons and Booker is often brought up in that conversation. When Push Comes to Shove: Step off black man. You ain't on my level. Triple H obviously didn't learn enough from the Katie Vick debacle as he pulled out the race card less than five months later. You know those instances you hear about The Game holding down deserving talent to benefit himself? Well this is one of them. Hot off of some great tag team work with Goldust and receiving huge pops from the crowd, the WWE had no other choice but to propel Booker T into the World Title picture. Apparently, it was way too early into Triple H's title reign for him to give up his precious championship; especially to a slouch like Booker T. Instead of putting over the face in a losing effort, H accused Booker of being a thug with criminal tendencies who had no shot on Earth of dethroning The Game. Booker T lost CLEANLY and quickly tumbled down the food chain after 'Mania. Leaving for the Lower Levels: The plan is to trade you and the Dudleys to SmackDown in exchange for the man who butchered your career about a year ago. In all honesty, not the worst move for Booker T. Things had become stale for him and the upside was minimal. But when it comes down to it, Booker was still being removed from the flagship program. Now building up Booker T upon his arrival would have been ideal but WWE had other plans. First things first.... Booker had jobbing duties to attend to. Undertaker had been on vacation since WrestleMania XX and needed to down a suitable opponent to make up for his absence. If you haven't figured it out, Booker T was indeed the chosen one. Booker would trade the United States Championship back and forth with Cena for the next several months but it was a significant setback considering where he once was on RAW. Time to Clean your Gutters, Slut: Apparently, Kurt Angle likes to dominate in the ring AND in the bedroom. Just ask Sharmell. Angle basically dry humped her all over a couch backstage in 2005. Another storyline blunder... notice a pattern, anyone? Hell, give me a spot on the Creative Team. On a bad day I could pull better shit out of my ass than this. I get the part about suspending your disbelief. The problem I have is when the angle simply becomes unrealistic. One of the brand's top stars is running around stalking Sharmell backstage in an arena full of wrestlers and agents and I'm suppose to be remotely interested? No sir... not working for me. Fortunately, these two were able to salvage the program by putting on a pretty solid match. The bad news is that Booker T took this impressive win and downgraded into a midcard feud with Christian. Mingling with a Murderer: Am I reaching a bit? Perhaps. This is a feeble attempt to stretch this column out however so cut me some fucking slack. In retrospect, Booker and Benoit's best of seven series was decent. Booker's injury following match five ended the potential of the series turning into anything special. Orton was selected to stand in as a replacement and although Benoit was able to win matches five and six, he dropped the decisive game seven to ultimately crown Booker the undisputed U.S. Champion. Only for Benoit to regain the championship a few weeks later at No Way Out. Why go through the whole grueling multi game format to book one guy strongly over the other if you're just going to turn around right afterwards and flip flop the title? Some 'genius' up in Connecticut needs a good ass kicking for that decision. Backing Down to the Beastly Boogeyman: Oh, you're gonna honor that contract. We have you booked to job to a Tough Enough reject with a cheesy gimmick at the Grandaddy at Them All. The Boogeyman was apparently brought in as the second coming of the Undertaker judging on the massive push he received upon his WWE debut. Forget getting his feet wet... the WWE thought it would be best for Boogeyman to slaughter the big fish right from the get go. JBL was the first victim... poor guy lost to Boogeyman in less than four minutes on a major pay per view. Bradshaw was obviously roughing up rookies backstage to deserve this sort of treatment. Booker T was next on the hit list. After ducking Boogeyman repeatedly for weeks, Booker finally had to face his fears come WrestleMania and went down in flames after running around the ring like a prepubescent girl at a slumber party. Seriously, it was that bad. The inconsistency of Booker's career would continue though as he would go on to win the 2006 King of the Ring. Go figure. Mess with an Animal and Prepare to Get Bitten: Do you believe in karma? I bet Booker T doesn't whatsoever. Just look at his scuffle with Batista at the SummerSlam photo shoot back in 2006. So apparently, big Dave was getting a bit full of himself and let it be known that he was undoubtedly the number one guy on SmackDown. The two exchanged words. Some fists were thrown. Booker beat his ass for a little while. The two were pulled apart and in the midst of all the chaos, Batista landed a sucker punch on an unsuspecting Booker T. Alright... wrestlers have big egos. But wouldn't you agree that Batista was mostly responsible for the ensuing fight? Absolutely! Strangely enough, the little brawl did practically nothing to alter future bookings. Because three months later, it was big Dave who was walking away with the World Title around his waist. Did Booker mug somebody? I call foul. All Hail the Agony of April: 2007 was the Year of the Injury and Booker found that out soon enough. Booker messed up his knee during a match at the SmackDown tapings and the injury required some minor surgery. He was sidelined for two months and this really threw out all the momentum King Booker had gathered since taking on the new gimmick eleven months earlier. He had ditched Regal and Finlay yet remained extremely popular with the fans despite portraying a pesky heel. Although Booker had failed to obtain the MITB briefcase at WrestleMania, he was definitely still included in the World Title picture on SmackDown. A promising program with Matt was disbanded and Booker would not return until mid-July when he was traded back to RAW in the Draft Lottery. Succumbing to the Game: Jesus... you would think one time was enough. I guess Triple H really takes this career sabotaging seriously. As soon as Booker was brought back to RAW and it was revealed that Triple H would be returning from a torn quad in less than two months, you had to know this was coming. Over that time period, King Booker was given significant mic time and informed anyone who would listen that he was the true 'King of Kings'. Well, I can assure you Mr. Helmsley would have none of that business going on under his nose. For some reason, it never once crossed my mind that this epic showdown could turn into a squash. And when it comes to Hunter, I should know better. Booker's credibility was given another fierce slap in the face at SummerSlam. Not only was it the first time they met face to face during their feud (WWE wanted to save The Game's return for pay per view to increase buy rates), but Booker was slated to survive all of about seven minutes against the new-and-improved Triple H. Pure blasphemy. A Signature Steroid Scandal: Booker T was one of many WWE superstars whose names popped up on a customers list from a pharmaceutical company in Albany, New York. He would claim on numerous occasions in reports and interviews that he never digested or injected any type of illegal substances but the damage had been done. Consequently, Booker was suspended for 30-60 days. After stewing at home for a few weeks, Booker apparently went looking for work elsewhere and called up TNA management. While he was always seen as a great worker and overall nice guy, I'm sure (whether he was guilty or innocent) Booker took his suspension as a personal insult and made him question the WWE's loyalty. Whether it was out of anger or even mere curiosity, Booker T signed with Total Nonstop Wrestling after he was released in October of 2007. All these factors have definitely cast a dark shadow over Booker's WWE career. Being the optimist that I am however, I've compiled a list of reasons which I believe led to Booker leaving the company. We joined forces for a very brief time some odd years ago. Our group consisted of a monster, a real fighter, a stunt man, an ex-bodyguard and possibly others. Did we fight for justice or revenge? I'd say both. I could have sworn we've all fought side by side before. A good leader never abandons his allies during combat. _________________________________________________________________________________________ Think you know the answer? Give it some thought and guess away. If you answer incorrectly, I'll laugh and poke fun at your severe lack of intelligence. Get it right however and earn the right to... oh who am I kidding? You'll win nothing and like it! NO ONE will solve my masterful riddle. I will reveal the answer in my next column. If you're a fan of the ever popular FACT or FICTION series here on the Main Page, I have some tremendous news. Fellow columnist, Sheepster, is now in charge and will be orchestrating every column from here on out. From what I've heard, FACT or FICTION has always been a big hit with wrestling fans. But due to the busy schedule life throws at us, the column has struggled to make consistent appearances and we have not seen a new edition since last November. I only know this because I took part in a brand new FACT or FICTION which should be out before the weekend. I had a ton of fun participating in the column and I hope it turns out okay or I'll be forced to claim identity fraud. Nonetheless, I know Sheeps will do a fantastic job keeping FACT or FICTION up and running for as long as possible. If not, you know exactly who to blame. So last night the Los Angeles Lakers avoided elimination albeit narrowly. Its gotten to the point where the Lakers must know that the Celtics are the superior team. L.A.'s overall defense has been pitiful throughout the series but especially over the last two games. Did you see that historic Boston comeback in Game Four?!? If you follow sports, there's no way you haven't. I'm rooting for the Celtics so I loved it of course. And as far as Game Five is concerned, the Lakers simply made fewer mistakes down the stretch than Boston. Los Angeles jumped out to an early nineteen point lead but allowed the Celtics to catch up by halftime. Then in the third quarter, Kobe Bryant & Co. stretched it out to a fourteen point lead only to.... yes you guessed it.... blow their wads early. The Lakers stole Game Five in my opinion and I fully expect it to be their last happy moment of the season. Boston will take care of business come Game Six and win the franchise's first NBA Title in over twenty years. Bored as fuck? Check out some of these from the Columns Forum.... but only if you're desperate. >>> Watch out, folks. JetSetPoker is back at it again. Shuffle Up and Deal, V. 13: Are you Tough Enough? >>> Uncle Joe's final column ever. Or so he says. Nonetheless, give it a read. The Cheeseburger Column >>> This foreigner will get a laugh out of you one way or another so go view his latest offering. Inside the Mind 4.5: JBL's 10 Commandments Alright, I'm calling it a night. My mind is fatigued and I have no more words of wisdom to share with you morons. I'd like to give a quick shout out to Pnk and congratulate her on the promotion. A female columnist.... (sigh). What is the I.W.C. coming to? Anyways, I'm still on vacation in Connecticut but should be heading back to Chicago before the Fourth of July. The travel shouldn't interfere with the posting of my next column however. Give it 10-14 days and I'll be back with some new shit. But first tell me what you though of this little number here. Was it award winning material or just plain nauseating? Hit me up at Skittlez601028@aim.com and vent your frustrations in my email inbox. Thanks for stopping by and Tasting My Rainbow. Beware of mooching family members and I'll catch you next time around. Later homies.