From the Desk of Mr. V #75

From the Desk of Mr. V #75
June 24, 2010
Written by: Anthony J. Valvo of WrestleView.com

Introduction

It was pretty funny. I asked people on Facebook to give me an introduction and am very honored to see that four of my readers (including a columnist on WrestleView). Read each introduction and Gold Stars for all of you this week!

Ladies and Gentlemen step out of the swimming pool into the cool and join WrestleViews’ resident teacher Anthony J. Valvo as he takes you on another hot journey though the world of professional wrestling strap yourselves in for another exciting edition of From the Desk with Mr. V!!!!!! – Rocky Dominguez (Thank you Rocky for your weekly contribution.)

Ladies and Gentlemen, can I have your attention please? From the mean streets of Pittsburgh to your computer monitor…the man with the power to put your ass in detention. You know him and you love him. Anthony “Da Vee” Valvo! – Rick Jackson (Thanks Rick for the great introduction and your support.)

Hello my fellow students, even though you are on summer vacation your teacher Mr.V teaches year round with no days off – Marc Ahm Sandlin (Thank you Marc for the nice introduction. Glad to see you participate this week.)

And finally, an introduction to one of the most respected columnists in profession wrestling, “The Gold Standard” Jose Marrero

Readers of WrestleView take it from the man who has been dubbed WrestleView.com’s “Gold Standard”, a man who has seen much and done even more in this crazy wacky world of wrestling media there are few that play “columnist” and get it right. This guy I am about to introduce, he does more than just gets it right as his stuff is always A+. A knowledgeable individual who is not only a teacher but a student of the game as well. Although I tease him relentlessly at times there may not be a more likeable person or harder worker on this website. He pushes me to churn out material at times where I may just want to coast. It is with great pleasure I introduce to you my friend, colleague, and your teacher Anthony “Mr. V.” Valvo (OK when do I get paid for this). (Check out “Wrestling Rumblings” every Friday with a true professor in pro wrestling, Jose Marrero.)

Quote of the Week

“Always vote for principle, though you may vote alone, and you may cherish the sweetest reflection that your vote is never lost.” – John Quincy Adams

I made this my quote of the week because I ask all my readers to vote for my friend James Lacerenza. He has been a loyal reader of my column for months now and is attempting to win a grant from Pepsi. He 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. I would like to thank anyone who voted for him. Currently he is 44th and I think he needs to crack the top 10, I believe, to get the grant. Best of Luck, James.

Teacher’s Lecture

I wish I can type a lot of wrestling material here this week, but I just can’t. There really was not going on since the last time I typed a column. But I shall do my best.

1) Bryan Danielson is in High Demand

Thoughts: Ever since Danielson was released from the WWE, he has accepted bookings from various independent promotions such as Chikara, Rampage Pro Wrestling, Millennium Wrestling Federation (John Cena Sr.’s promotion), and a few others.

Now on the Teacher’s Lounge last week, I said that the Danielson firing was a “65% chance work” and I will have to stand by that. However, I believe now that this was legitimate that Daniel Bryan got fired one way or another.

Does that mean he is gone forever from the WWE? Of course not! Danielson was a focal point in NXT and carried that momentum with him in the first NXT angle. He was fired for being too intense in that, but I actually liked Danielson in that role. See, Danielson had the most to be upset about. He lost almost every match, had a “pro” that would not help him at all and even had Michael Cole making jokes at his expense. So what does Danielson do in storyline? He snaps. I think we all had that happen to us, but we would not dare to snap the way Danielson did on June 7th.

The WWE may have dropped the ball on this release. A few wrestlers from the WWE and other wrestlers made a stand for Danielson. Guys like Shawn Michaels and John Cena are upset about the release, and that is saying a whole lot since both are big players in the WWE, though Michaels has retired.

So, will I entirely retract my “Danielson is a work” comments? I am not going to do that. I still think that Danielson will sign back with the WWE because to me it just smells like a work still. WWE did a poll on if it was right to fire Danielson and there is a petition to bring him back. Heck, even PETA voiced their opinion on this matter (I laughed a good bit at that). It is a 65% work like I said before? Probably not, but I will still say it is over 50% because sometime this year Danielson will be back and may attack the NXT guys.

2) The Connecticut “Suejob”?

I was going to say screwjob, but suejob sounded much better. Owen Hart’s widow Martha has filed another lawsuit on the WWE (including Connecticut Senate nominee Linda McMahon).

This was the second paragraph that I read in this article that was actually on the main page for Yahoo!

“Martha Hart said she learned two months ago that McMahon, who stepped down as WWE chief executive in the fall to run for Senate, and her husband, Vince, the current chairman, for years have used the image of her late husband, Owen Hart, in at least 37 videos and other materials without her knowledge and permission, and despite her objections to his likeness being associated with the pro-wrestling company”. (Yahoo)

Initial Thoughts: First off, I said this many times one of my favorite wrestlers of all time was Owen Hart. Out of all the members of the Hart family, I thought Owen Hart was the best all-around and overall a great human being. What happened back in 1999 was tragic, but it was an accident. I watched the Pay-Per-View when Jim Ross announced Owen’s death and I still remember how he said it to this day. The WWE settled the lawsuit by giving Owen’s widow and family $18 million dollars.

I can’t say I understand all this because I don’t. However, people remembered Owen as a kind human being who happened to be one of the best professional wrestlers in the 90s. When the lawsuit was settled, I thought that was the end of it. Eleven years later, we have to hear about this and read about this over again.

I had about four different paragraphs to type after this and I can honestly state that I deleted them all. I wanted to get upset at politics, Martha, WWE, or somebody. However, I am going to stay entirely neutral to this because after reading the court documents I think there might actually be a case here.

Is it political? Is it vengeance? Or does Martha want more money? Those questions may never be answered. If I went on to answer these, I would be biased towards one direction. Honestly, I want to read a bit more out of this lawsuit and I may comment on it all later.

I am sorry, but I can see this going both ways here once I read the court documents.

Detentions

The French World Cup Soccer (Football) team – The way you left South Africa was deserved. Everyone associated with that team should be ashamed of themselves for going out after the first round. Plus all the controversy surrounding this team is nothing short of despicable. In the end, they surrendered to South Africa (a team that was ranked a LOT lower than France). France, stay “classy”. I hope they don’t make it in 2014.

Dixie Carter – For her useless status updates on Facebook and her messages on Twitter. Someone has to tell her that actions speak louder than words.

Mr. V – I am still giving myself detention because I waited until the last minute to get my Praxis prep course done. However, I have only 8 lessons to go.

That is it actually. I don’t really have any detentions outside of that. Besides, it is summer so the detentions are going to be very light unless YOU, the reader, suggest some detentions. Please send your nominees to mistervwv@hotmail.com. If I get them before the taping of The Teacher’s Lounge, I will announce them on the air.

Mr. V’s Honor Roll for June 14 – June 20, 2010

The past week, I graded the following matches on dates that the shows aired:

6/14 – Graded WWE Monday Night Raw Matches
6/15 – Graded WWE NXT Matches
6/16 – Column Writing. After that, I watched ROH on YouTube and recap the show.
6/17 – Graded WWE Superstars and TNA Impact Matches.
6/18 – Graded Smackdown Matches
6/19 – OFF DAY
6/20 – OFF DAY

I actually have given up on recapping FCW since they are rarely updated anymore.

Distinguished Honors – Alex Riley vs. Kaval, WWE NXT, June 15.

Grade: B.

Reason: I enjoyed this match. It told a good story between two rookies trying to prove their ground in the WWE. I was very impressed with Kaval’s kicks and the way he positioned himself throughout the ring. Kaval’s leg strikes were swift and perfect. Alex Riley looked to be in loads of pain after each kick. Riley used his strength and his awareness to wear down Kaval. Overall, this match was very well paced. Kaval made a strong case to be in the WWE, but Riley showed some good potential and both came out winners here.

The Actual Winner: Alex Riley hit the TKO (which he calls in FCW “Hit the Showers”) and pinned Kaval after a failed Warrior’s Way.

High Honors – Randy Orton and John Cena vs. Edge and Sheamus, Monday Night Raw, April 14.

Grade: B

Reason: Was this a good tune-up for the Fatal 4-Way Main Event? Absolutely! Sheamus stood out very well in this match. Cena’s offense was pretty good overall, but once again Cena took a tremendous beating at the hands of Edge and Sheamus. Orton’s emotions were pretty good and he was great with his in-ring psychology. If there was one wrestler in this tag match that was uninspiring it was Edge. I still believe that his Achilles’ is bothering him. Overall, I suggest my readers to watch the main event not because of the NXT Invasion on Bret Hart, but watch the match before that. It was quite entertaining and it told a great story in the ring.

Honors – Kofi Kingston vs. Trent Barreta, WWE Superstars, June 17.

Grade: B-

Reason: Let’s face it, this was a bad week when it comes to actual wrestling. Usually Smackdown hits it out of the park, but they did not. Impact was subpar and ROH had mainly squashes. So I decided to go with the upset here and give Kofi Kingston and Trent Barreta (a guy who I am very high on) the honors this week. The start of this was great, as Kingston actually showed that he can hold an opponent down. Barreta was very spot on with many moves and at times looked like he could have pulled the upset victory over the Intercontinental Champion. Barreta looked great when in control. The pace could have been a bit quicker, but I won’t complain as I thought this was a good test for both superstars. Overall, I thought this was a test for Barreta and Kingston, and they passed with flying colors.

Mr. V’s Grade Book

A+, A, or A-: None to report.

B+: None to report.

B: Randy Orton and John Cena vs. Edge and Sheamus (RAW) and Alex Riley vs. Kaval (NXT);

B-: Steve Corino vs. Colt Cabana (ROH); Kofi Kingston and Michael McGillicutty vs. Mark Henry and Lucky Cannon (NXT); and Kofi Kingston vs. Trent Barreta (Superstars);

C+: Evan Bourne vs. Chris Jericho (RAW).

C: The Miz vs. R-Truth vs. John Morrison vs. Zack Ryder (RAW); Primo vs. Yoshi Tatsu (Superstars); Jey Uso and Jimmy Uso vs. Mark Henry and Goldust (Superstars); Douglas Williams vs. Max Buck (TNA); Robert Roode and James Storm vs. Brother Ray and Brother Devon (TNA); Vance Archer and Curt Hawkins vs. MVP and Christian (Smackdown); Dolph Ziggler vs. Chris Masters (Smackdown); and Rey Mysterio and Big Show vs. CM Punk and Jack Swagger (Smackdown).

C-: Christopher Daniels vs. Bobby Shields (ROH); Eve Torres and Gail Kim vs. Alicia Fox and Maryse (RAW); Big Show and Mark Feuerstein vs. Ted DiBiase, Jr. and Virgil (RAW); Jesse Neal and Shannon Moore vs. Kevin Nash and Eric Young (TNA); Samoa Joe vs. Hernandez (TNA); Lacey Von Erich vs. Angelina Love (TNA); and Jay Lethal vs. Desmond Wolfe (TNA);

D+, D, or D-: Jay Briscoe and Mark Briscoe vs. Sid Reeves and Bob Evans (ROH); Santino Marella vs. William Regal (RAW); Abyss vs. Mr. Anderson vs. Jeff Hardy (TNA); JTG vs. Chavo Guerrero (Smackdown); and Kelly Kelly vs. Layla (Smackdown)

F or INC: Drew McIntyre vs. Teddy Long (Smackdown).

BONUS!! Predictions from the Faculty Standings

2010-2011 Season (As of WWE’s Fatal 4-Way)

1) David Stephens (That’s a Wrap and RAW Recapper)………….46-28 (2-3)
2) Josh Boutwell (Viva La Raza and TNA Recapper)……………….45-29 (2-3)
3) Jose Marrero (Wrestling Rumblings)……………………………………45-29 (2-3)
4) Students of the Week (The Best from Prev. PPV)………………43-31 (1-4)*
5) Daniel Browne (For Queen and Country)……………………………..42-32 (2-3)
6) Matt O’Brien (Notes From The Nosebleeds)…………………………41-33 (1-4)
7) WrestleView Students (The Loyal Readers)………………………..41-33 (2-3)
8) Anthony Valvo (From the Desk of Mr. V/ROH Recaps)……….41-33 (3-2)
9) Mike Tedesco (Smackdown and NXT Recapper)…………………39-28 (2-3)
10) Doug Lackey (Reality From Ringside)………………………………….39-35 (3-2)
11) Jeff Springer (WWE Superstars Recapper)……………………………31-23 (1-4)
12) Sean Hurley (The Sharpshooter)………………………………………..28-32 (0-0)
13) Joe Baiamonte (Baiamonte’s Casa/2009 WV Champ)………24-20 (0-0)

The only student of the week for TNA’s Victory Road will be Bond7 (that is how I know him as). He went 4-1 on the Fatal 4-Way PPV, with his only loss was when he predicted Maryse (in which Alicia Fox won that match).

The student of the week for the Fatal 4-Way, Brian Czygan, did not retain. He went 1-4

Among the Faculty, Doug Lackey and Anthony Valvo got the best record for this PPV. Both went 3-2 this PPV.

Overall, we had 21 “WV Students” outside the Students of the Week. They averaged a win total of 2.2. Since I estimate the predictions for the students, the students will have a record of 2-3.

Past Students of the Week: Evan O’Brien, TJ Patton, Ricky Langston, Craig Alan Cope, Paul Lyons, SUPERSTARZZ, Jeremy Samples, Josh Logan, Eric Marin, David Sumroy, Crystal Mai, Michael Phillips, Sean Martin, Sam Newstone, and Brian Czygan.

The Gold Star Segment (Presented by: JR’s Bar-B-Q Sauce)

As we all know now, The United States and England are two of Mr. V favorite countries. Many of my readers come from these two great locations in the world and both countries survived the first round of the FIFA WORLD CUP! Also, to my United States readers Independence Day is coming up. So the US have two good reasons to BBQ. But wait? What could I make for this glorious occasion? What are some easy recipes that I can cook up? Well, I have no fear on that happening thanks to Jim Ross’ Cookbook! For $19.88 (and for the U.S. Free Shipping) you can get some of JR’s best cooking delicacies AND get it signed personally by Mr. Ross! It’s a great product so pick a book up for you or your loved one today!

Alright, let’s start passing out these Gold Stars already…

Doug Lackey – He earned one for scoring the best among the Faculty of WrestleView with a 3-2 record for the WWE Fatal 4-Way PPV.

Bond7 – He earned one for scoring the highest among the WrestleView Students and will be the next Student of the Week come Victory Road.

Brian Czygan – Thank you for being a part of the predictions this past weekend. I hope you enjoyed it.

David Stephens – Not only does he have to put up with me each week on the Teacher’s Lounge, but he is still the Dean of WrestleView after his challengers could not overthrow him.

To all the students that completed their homework – Due to my studying, I won’t be able to add all your opinions this week in my Homework Analysis. I may do a bonus feature and title it “Mr. V #75b”. If I don’t have the time, I will definitely go over this next week.

Jose Marrero – Thank you for the wonderful introduction. You are a good man for that, Jose.

Rey Mysterio – He earned the World Heavyweight Championship last Sunday. Personally I was hoping for Jack Swagger or CM Punk, but if it makes his fans happy then good for him. I just hope he did not use politics to win it.

Alicia Fox – She is the NEW Diva’s Championship. Only one of my readers predicted this would happen and I will admit I did not even think Fox would win it. But she gets the star for winning her first WWE Title.

Sheamus – He won the WWE World Championship for the second time! I know many will frown upon this, but I for one am happy to see him with the title. He has improved in the ring and looks very unique compared to the wrestlers that we see each week.

Evan Bourne vs. Chris Jericho from the Fatal 4-Way – I was told by Josh Boutwell and others that this better get a gold star. After watching just a three minute highlight package of this, I am a believer.

The fan that held a sign that said “I’m with Dragon” on Monday Night Raw – I am with you too, buddy.

Bryan Danielson – I think he earns one for finding working almost instantly after he was let go by the WWE. I know I said there is a 65% chance of Danielson coming back to the WWE, but now that is down to about 40%.

NXT Season One graduates – I like what the creative team did with these guys. They add a new element in the WWE that I am interested in seeing in the coming weeks.

World Cup 2nd Round teams – Argentina, South Korea, Uruguay, Mexico, United States, and England have all made it past the group stage.

Claudio Castagnoli and Chris Hero – The retained the ROH World Tag Team Championship this past weekend and deserve these stars. I should also give one to Castagnoli for staying “Very European”.

Tyler Black – He is still the ROH World Champion after defeating Davey Richards last weekend.

Jay Lethal – If anyone in TNA deserves a Gold Star this week it is Lethal. His spot on impression of Ric Flair was superb last Thursday.

Wade Keller – I know he never reads my column, but I am giving him one anyway for this column that David Stephens presented to me. It is about how to handle yourself in an interview if you are employed in the WWE. It is on PWTorch.com and I would send the link, but it has too many pop-ups. Thank goodness WrestleView does not have pop-ups.

Man vs. Food – This is an outstanding show. I encourage all my readers to watch this glorious show.

Good Ideas, Bad Ideas

I don’t believe I got any good ideas and bad ideas today, so I will not post anything on here this week. If you have a good idea/bad idea send them to mistervwv@hotmail.com.

Mr. V’s Homework Analysis

Once again, I honestly don’t have much time to go over the homework this week and I apologize. This week however I may add a feature based on the homework that was assigned. Stay tuned for that analysis.

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 when I get my test prep work done.

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.

To sign up, click here.

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