From the Desk of Mr. V #73
June 10, 2010
By: Anthony J. Valvo of Wrestleview.com
But wait? Where is Mr. V #72? Don’t worry, Mr. V #72 was actually the NXT Season 1 Review and Season Two Preview. I was actually honored to have this as a top story on WrestleView, as it took a couple days. But with no ROH recap and a very slow week, I thought WrestleView and my readers deserved my A-Game after what I thought a few weeks of my column being average at best.
To see Mr. V #72, click right here. I warn you it will be a long one, so you may want to grab a Red Bull or a cup of coffee. No 5-Hour Energy though, as that guy deserves a punch in the face. Now with that, it is on to the introduction
Also, this is summer vacation and I am in a relaxed state of mind. If you are new students or students that have stuck with me since #1 you can send your thoughts for gold stars, detentions, rules, good ideas/bad ideas, and more by simply e-mailing me mistervwv@hotmail.com.
Introductions (By: Rocky Dominguez and Rick Jackson)
Ladies and gentlemen take your seats and put away your textbooks as summer heats up and the wrestling summer session begins brought to you by the coolest teacher with the hottest column today Anthony J. Valvo!!!! – Rocky Dominguez
Hailing for the “City of Steel” Pittsburgh, Penn. and here to bring us the final word on all things professional wrestling. He is the professor of power, the dean of extreme, the duke of detention, the one, the only Anthony “Mister V” Valvo. – Rick Jackson
Welcome once again class to “From the Desk of Mr. V”. I am your resident teacher of WrestleView and I (and my students this week) will provide you with the good and bad of pro wrestling. Inside today will be a lecture on a few buzz worthy wrestling stories, detentions, Honor Rolls, and of course some Gold Stars (still sponsored by JR’s Family Bar-B-Q). Also each week I will keep the predictions standings up on my column to keep all of my readers (past and present) informed on the standings. So students have a seat and grab a beverage of your choosing. School is in session for the 73rd time and I am your teacher.
Quote of the Week
I was going to go with Titus O’Neil’s infamous “If you want to win…make it a win”. Seriously, if that was advice from his former Florida Gators coach Steve Spurrier I think someone should be re-evaluated.
But on a serious note last weekend the sporting world lost more than a coach, but a true legend. A last of a dying breed when it comes to the best coaches in the world, he coached the UCLA Bruins to TEN College Basketball Championships! Well, last weekend after 99 years of life John Wooden passed away due to natural causes. He was an inspiration to his players, young coaches, and honestly more people than he would ever know. Also worth noting was that he was an excellent basketball player at Purdue (even won THEM a national championship as a player), he never had a losing record as a coach, and served in the United States Navy during World War II. Keep in mind he never had to trash talk, cheat, or yell and scream at his players to get their attention. He won his games, his titles the right way.
Though The Pyramid of Success was one of his creations, I prefer to read over his Seven Point Creed as something to be inspired. Please take a moment to read the Creed.
Be true to yourself.
Make each day your masterpiece.
Help others.
Drink deeply from good books, especially the Bible.
Make friendship a fine art.
Build a shelter against a rainy day.
Pray for guidance and give thanks for your blessings every day.
Classroom Rules (by the students of WrestleView)
The students did not provide me with a classroom rule, so there will be no rules added to the 100 that were created last year. If any readers would like to suggest a rule please e-mail me at mistervwv@hotmail.com.
Teacher’s Lecture
WARNING: NOT Wrestling Related. So if you want to skip over this you can.
1) World Cup Football/Soccer Tournament Quick Predictions!
I am not going to tell everyone here that I am a huge soccer fan, but I am a big fan of World Cup (this year hosted in South Africa) and do expect to catch bits and pieces of every game played by every country that is represented. I got hooked watching the World Cup when the USA hosted it in 1994 (won by Brazil to my recollection) and I do my best to watch them all since. To me, this is second only to the Olympics as a Worldwide tournament where we will have a World Winner!
I know this is not wrestling and I am sorry for this bit, class. To my readers from Europe, I hope you enjoy my predictions. To readers from outside that continent, my apologies. Just skip down to when I do discuss wrestling.
All I will do is post my picks for the World Cup Standings and Tournament. I hope you enjoy my take on the winners. Keep in mind that I have predicted the last three champions correctly and hope to do it again.
First Round
Group A: France and Uruguay advance, while Mexico and South Africa will be eliminated.
Group B: Argentina and Nigeria advance, while South Korea and Greece will be eliminated.
Group C: England and USA advance, while Slovenia and Algeria will be eliminated.
Group D: Germany and Ghana advance, while Australia and Serbia will be eliminated.
Group E: Netherlands and Cameroon advance, while Denmark and Japan are eliminated.
Group F: Italy and Slovakia advance, while Paraguay and New Zealand are eliminated.
Group G: Brazil and Portugal advance, while Ivory Coast and North Korea are eliminated.
Group H: Spain and Chile advance, while Switzerland and Honduras are eliminated.
Second Round
Nigeria over France (upset special); England over Ghana; Netherlands over Slovakia; Brazil over Chile; Argentina over Uruguay; USA over Germany (because I have to do it); Italy over Cameroon; Spain over Portugal.
Quarterfinals
England over Nigeria; Brazil over Netherlands; Argentina over USA; Spain over Italy.
Semifinals
England over Brazil and Spain over Argentina
Finals
Spain defeats England and wins their FIRST EVER World Cup! In the third place contest, Argentina over Brazil.
There you go, my quick picks for the 2010 World Cup. Even if you are not a football (soccer) fan I am sure one can enjoy this beautiful game. Remember, my picks are for fun so don’t bet your dollars and euros on what I chose. Spain has had really bad tournaments, but I think this year this team can pull it off and finally win that coveted trophy.
Detentions
Even though school is out for the summer my class is always in session. Sadly, some talents, other people, or even objects fail to meet the grade. Here is my current list of detentions.
Whoever wrote that Zack Ryder was going to be attacked by Alicia Fox – Ashton Kutcher was not a bad guest host, but mainly this goes to Fox for not even hitting her scissors kick on target.
To some of these people voting on that “Viewer’s Choice” RAW – I voted for the right things. I mean, seriously a Dance-Off? The tag team of Hornswoggle and Great Khali? Kane as Sheamus’ opponent? If ( and I do mean “if”) this was legit then I don’t want to hear anyone tell me that WWE stinks because that is what the fans wanted and sadly, if it is true the WWE accepted it.
Drew McIntyre – Who put him in the doghouse? (no “wife jokes”) Seriously who did he tick off to job to Matt Hardy?
NXT Challenges – From the Beer Keg competition to the Obstacle Course, that should be a good reason why the NXT rookies when apecrap on Raw last Monday.
TNA’s booking of AJ Styles – I hope they are going to do something better for him, because this guy is too talented and does not belong in this situation.
TNA’s decision to air Daffney’s injuries – I think this was very distasteful. Daffney could have seriously been injured and luckily she came out ok here. This Rosey Lottalove character has a lot of work to do.
Karen Angle – I heard from a friend that she snapped at an LA Fitness associate because her son was in “time out”. Her son in the kids playroom decided to be like his dad and do wrestling holds and was being a nuisance. Karen, be lucky that it was this “time out” because when I was young and misbehaved it was the palm of someone’s hand.
Pro Wrestling Torch – For stating that Jeff Hardy’s charges were mainly dropped, only to find out that the charges were in fact not dropped. Whoops! Anyways, I am also giving them detention because of the pop-ups. I have a fast computer and it took me over a minute to look up the information.
That is it with detentions this week. Please send me your suggestions at mistervwv@hotmail.com.
Mr. V’s Weekly Honor Roll for May 31 – June 6, 2010
5/31 – Graded WWE Monday Night Raw Matches
6/01 – Graded WWE NXT Matches
6/02 – Column Writing. After that, I watched ROH on YouTube and recap the show.
6/03 – Graded WWE Superstars and TNA Impact Matches.
6/04 – Graded Smackdown Matches
6/05 – OFF DAY
6/06 – It will now be an OFF DAY until I finally get an FCW link.
**Side Note: ROH on HDNet did not have a show this past week (5/31). I will grade their matches next week**
Distinguished Honors – John Cena and Evan Bourne vs. Sheamus and Edge, Monday Night Raw, May 31.
Thoughts: The May 31st edition of Raw was overall was going average, until this match. John Cena deserves some credit for naming Evan Bourne his tag team opponent. You can tell that Bourne was very excited to go out there on the main event scene. Bourne did not let everyone done, as he started off very strong by going after Edge. The crowd really set the tone to this match as well, and I think that was terrific. The flow to this tag team match was amazing; it was one of those contests in which everything was pretty even. When Edge and Sheamus controlled the contest, it was mainly hold them down and pummel them. That is what I like what watching heels wrestle, they can’t be flashy and those two did a tremendous job. The finish was unpredictable, as John Cena hit the FU (easier to type) on Sheamus and then shoved Edge shoulder first to the post. Did Cena pin Sheamus? No, he gave them what the crowd wanted and tagged Evan Bourne. Bourne ended this terrific match by hitting the Shooting Star Press on Sheamus for the pinfall victory. Overall, this was one of the best tag team matches of 2010 (if not the best). That is not bad since I have not enjoyed the tag team work recently for the WWE.
Finish: Evan Bourne hit the Shooting Star Press (or Air Bourne) on Sheamus and won the match by pinfall.
Grade: A- (the first “A” grade in a long time).
High Honors – Jack Swagger vs. MVP, Friday Night Smackdown, June 4.
Thoughts: I was really impressed with the story between these two. It seemed like months ago they were feuding in the mid-card level on Raw, but they worked a great opening program wrestling wise last Friday. I was real impressed with the back and forth work, something I have not really said about MVP in a while. MVP had a very good showing, he was strong with his punches and kicks. This was MVP’s best performance in months, and I thought his stock will go up after this contest. Swagger’s disciplines in the ring are that of a in-ring veteran, not someone who is of young age. Swagger grounded well, was crisp with his amateur wrestling skills, and was very much in control when he delivered the offense. The ending was a bit rushed, but I won’t complain since Swagger won mainly because he addressed the injured should of MVP. Overall, it had good flow, good delivery, and both men really worked tremendously for the opening match on Smackdown.
Finish: After addressing MVP’s shoulder throughout the contest (since Swagger earlier in the match drilled it to the post), Swagger was able to defeat MVP with a simple roll-up. Finally, the World Champion gets a satisfying victory.
Grade: B+. (leaned to a B).
Honors – Kofi Kingston vs. Drew McIntyre, Friday Night Smackdown, June 4.
Thoughts – At the start of this contest, I wrote in my notes that it was good so far, as Kingston controlled McIntyre a good bit without doing the high flying moves. I was actually impressed with McIntyre’s work in the ring, as he used ground work and worked the back and abdominal area (Kofi’s more of a flying-based so Drew did well at first to keep Kingston down). The one thing McIntyre did not do well was clotheslines, I am glad to see that he did a better job on that as well. Kingston was ok overall here, but I have seen better work from him (his feud with Orton comes to mind). Overall, it was a good match and Kingston retained the title. However, based on Kingston’s performance he will need to improve or the Intercontinental Championship will be the peak of his career.
Finish: After being distracted by Matt Hardy (who was sitting in the front row because he was suspended), Kofi Kingston got control of the finish quickly and hit the S.O.S. and pinned him for the victory. After the match, Matt Hardy got away from the security and hit a Twist of Fate on McIntyre for good measure.
Grade: B.
Mr. V’s Grade book for the Week of May 31 – June 6, 2010
A+, A, or A-: John Cena and Evan Bourne vs. Edge and Sheamus (RAW).
B+: Jack Swagger vs. MVP (Smackdown).
B: Kofi Kingston vs. Drew McIntyre (Smackdown).
B-: Dolph Ziggler and Chavo Guerrero vs. Christian (Superstars); and 16-Man Battle Royal won by Rey Mysterio (Smackdown).
C+: R-Truth vs. Chris Jericho (RAW); Wade Barrett vs. Justin Gabriel (NXT); Gail Kim vs. Jillian Hall (Superstars); Jay Lethal vs. AJ Styles vs. Kazarian (Impact); Jeff Hardy vs. James Storm (Impact); Robert Roode vs. Mr. Anderson (Impact); and Rob Van Dam vs. Matt Morgan vs. Sting vs. Samoa Joe (Impact).
C: Daniel Bryan vs. The Miz (RAW) and Wade Barrett vs. David Otunga vs. Justin Gabriel (NXT).
C-: Santino Marella and Eve Torres vs. William Regal and Maryse (RAW); Mark Henry vs. Primo (Superstars); Michelle McCool vs. Tiffany (Superstars); and Kelly Kelly vs. Rosa Mendes (Smackdown).
D+, D, or D-: Roxxi vs. Rosey Lottalove (Impact) and Rob Terry and Abyss vs. Orlando Jordan/Desmond Wolfe (Impact);
F or INC: None to Report.
The Gold Star Segment (Brought to you by: JR’s Online Bar-B-Q!)
Gold Stars are plenty again on my first official week of summer vacation, so let’s begin on who earned their star this week.
Rocky Dominguez and Rick Jackson – Thank you for the wonderful introductions.
Evan Bourne – He started off the May 31st RAW strong when he was fighting with Edge, and in the end got a HUGE victory when he teamed with John Cena. May 31st was truly a memorable day for Bourne.
Vince McMahon – He earns one for making a triumphant return inside a WWE ring on May 31st.
The Usos and Tamina – With this faction and impressive tag team coming up from FCW, I think the WWE may have listened to their audience. We may finally get to see some good, crisp, tag team wrestling.
John Cena – I am going to give him one because he looks like he is helping new guys get over. That and did you see the beating he took from the NXT Rookies on June 7th?
The NXT Rookies from Season One – Looks like they will be on WWE programming a bit long than we thought. They helped make this ending to RAW one of the best ones the last twelve months.
John Morrison – It is great to see him back in the wrestling ring. I hope that his ankle is feeling better.
Matt Striker – For reminding us that he was a part of the Kerwin White and Nick Nemeth storyline. A clip from Heat years ago (remember, they were all part of a team I guess)…
Dolph Ziggler – He is finally getting his push, too bad Vickie Guerrero is “courgaring” him.
Jillian Hall – I am giving her a gold star tonight because of her work from the June 3rd edition of Superstars. I can’t believe I am saying this, but she really carried Gail Kim.
Mark Henry – He earned one for ditching the Kool Aid attire.
Vladimir Kozlov – For this…
Look, I know I gave the fans who voted for this detention, but credit Kozlov for this performance that I would want to see on Dancing with the Stars. As fellow columnist Doug Lackey would say…HAIL KOZLOV!!
Jay Lethal – This guy persevered through this Macho Man wannabe gimmick and now may be an established star-in-the-making. They need to do right with him.
Kurt Angle’s quest – I actually do like this storyline. This helps him decide what he wants to really do outside of the storylines I think. If he wants to focus on wrestling, he can take out the top 10 one-by-one. If he wants to do movies or promote his food, then he can take some time off. Either or, I think he is in a good position.
Ken Anderson – This face work is doing him good right now. He has fans chanting (but anything really does with that crowd) and he just showed to the TNA brass that he can go from heel to face in a blink of an eye.
Kane – This gold star was requested by a ton of the readers. I can’t deny it, as he cut a tremendous promo at the start of Smackdown last Friday. So much to say that it was the best promo of Kane’s…ever!
The card on Friday Night Smackdown – I thought the programs, stories, and in-ring work was pretty good. Even the Divas’ match had its moments.
MVP – He was struggling a good bit on Raw and it was obvious. However, after what he did against Jack Swagger I would not be surprised if there is a push coming his way.
Rey Mysterio – Though he was the one that broke Undertaker’s Orbital Bone, he will be the fourth man in the Fatal 4-Way match on the 20th.
Kofi Kingston – He retained his Intercontinental Title by defeating Drew McIntyre.
Teddy Long – His work on Smackdown has been nothing short of superb.
Colt Cabana – Mike Tedesco’s favorite ROH wrestler posted this “tweet” on Twitter after the NXT Rookies from season one attacked John Cena: “SPOILER: Me, Kizarny, Ryan Bradock, Gavin Spears & Manu will all be on RAW next week beating up the NXTers”. Too hilarious.
If you have any suggestions that deserve of a Gold Star please e-mail me at mistervwv@hotmail.com.
Good Ideas and Bad Ideas (by the WrestleView Students)
(From Robert Downing)
Good Idea: Having the first season NXT Rookies come out and destroy the ring and everything/everyone at ringside. (except Cole who ran off)
Bad Idea: Having it seem like no one in the back cared that these rookies are doing this to the ring.
This Week’s Homework Assignment
(Due Next Week)
I watched NXT and we can all agree that the rookies names are pretty name. Percy Watson? Lucky Cannon? Husky Harris? Well, at first the wrestlers may complain for just that second until they realize two things.
1) I made it into a professional wrestling organization
2) My name could be a lot worse. It could be Red Rooster, Tugboat, or The Shockmaster.
So class, this assignment will be simple and subjective. There is no right or wrong answer. This can be current or past wrestler. So, here is the assignment
1) Please provide me with the wrestling name (has to be real) that you thought was the worst name for a professional wrestler. You can give me up to three. Answers will be posted next week.
Please also vote for James Lacerenza in order for him to earn a grant via the Pepsi Refresh Project.
2) My friend James Lacerenza made a huge comeback for the “Pepsi Refresh Project” and thanks to your votes, he cracked the top 100 and is now in the running still for a $50,000 grant to send children who suffer from muscular dystrophy to a local camp in Spring Valley, NY. This is truly a great cause and all you have to do is just spend a moment of your time and vote. Consider this a homework assignment. Gold Stars to those who vote.
The site is http://www.refresheverything.com/mdcamp. It does not cost money to vote so vote everyday from now until June 30th. Thank you in advance.
Dismissal
Well, that does it for me this week. I thank you all for reading and I hope you enjoyed this column as much as I typed it out. If you want to get a hold of me during the week, please e-mail me at mistervwv@hotmail.com or by leaving me a message on Facebook. I do get a lot of e-mails and may not reply in a timely fashion, but I will do my best to give you a quicker reply.
Now, students you are allowed to leave the classroom. Please push in your chairs, line up straight, and exit to the closest door around you. Until my latest ROH recap, you are all……DISMISSED!!!!
Look for Mr. V on Facebook under Anthony J. Valvo in the Pittsburgh Network
If you enjoy Mr. V’s WrestleView columns, then take a look at my work on my other site Examiner.com
I will be adding a feature on that website starting in May! I just don’t know what to call my column on there yet.
http://www.examiner.com/x-26526-Pittsburgh-Pro-Wrestling-Examiner
THE TEACHER’S LOUNGE IS NOW PLAYING ON SATURDAYS!!
Future Guest: Sean Hurley from WrestleView.com
Already on the archives we interviewed Jose Marrero (Wrestling Rumblings), Matt O’Brien (Notes from the Nosebleeds), Crystal Mai from Diva-Dirt.com, and The YouTube Sensation who had choice words to CM Punk.
David Stephens (That’s A Wrap and Raw recapper) and I have a weekly Internet show only on the WrestleView Radio Network. It does cost a bit of money, but we will do our best to make it worth it. If you want to be a part of the Lounge for our “E-mails” section, you may drop us a line at teacherslounge@hotmail.com.