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I just finished the August 1st Smackdown and it was one of the best episodes I can remember in a long time, start to finish. The biggest thing holding it back from even being considered the best though are the commercial breaks. Ad time is serious money, I get that. But two commercial breaks by 8:15 during the opening match? The live feed sporadically being there during the breaks isn't doing much to help either. Is there any viable option to help solve this problem or is that going to be the main selling point of PPVs the Network going forward?
There isn't going to be any change in the future, as long as the top revenue maker for the company is their TV rights fees. If USA Network is paying for the show, they have to make their money back via advertising rights. It's the nature of the beast. I don't see WWE ever selling a "commercial free" version of Raw or Smackdown on the Network, because it would be using the #3 moneymaker to cannibalize the #1 moneymaker. That's just not good business.
Maybe I missed something but what ever happened to LA 3:16 or whatever it was when WWE Raw was in Los Angeles and they were selling these shirts at the show with stories that Steve Austin would make an appearance but didn't?
They are selling shirts that read NYC 3:16 and Sacramento 3:16, etc. as a way to move localized merchandise in those markets at live events. It was never meant to be a tease for a Steve Austin return.
So who wrote Bobby Lashley's promo he did on Impact this week? He talked about how new people were coming in and getting title shots without earning them and skipping the pecking order, but his first match in TNA was a title shot. Did no one see how hypocritical this promo came off to those of us that have an actual memory of things?
The new creative team is not going to pay attention to the old creative team. That's been pretty obvious thus far. Plus, Lashley is a heel, so he should be saying things that like - he's not supposed to be an upstanding citizen - he's a pro wrestling villain!
After an intense match either from Raw, Smackdown or a scheduled pay per view event do the wrestlers take the time to cool down? To decompress as it were.
No, they go and run a marathon. Every week. Every time.
What happened to Stephanie McMahon's memoir? It seemed like it was a big story that got pushed and then it just disappeared. And was it really going to be called Lady Balls?
My guess is that someone in the company wasn't happy with the final product and the book won't be seen for a long time, if ever. That was indeed going to be the title.
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