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CALDWELL'S TAKE
WEEKEND REPORT: WWE Smackdown delivers a sickening feeling Nov 25, 2007 - 11:25:37 PM
James Caldwell reports on various news from around wrestling during the weekend.
Updated Sunday, November 25
I usually don't put off watching Smackdown until Sunday night, as I usually watch it on the DVR on Saturdays, but I was dreading this week's show after reading Greg Parks' review on Friday night. Reading about the opening segment made me shake my head. Then, actually watching the opening segment made me sick to my stomach.
Now, granted I've had a bit too much to eat this weekend on Thanksgiving weekend, so that's a contributor, but after watching the opening segment, I feel completely sick. How WWE can reasonably place the widow of Eddie Guerrero and mother of young daughters in a heel GM role while having a love "affair" with Edge is beyond me. Yes, it's a storyline, but there are certain boundaries you don't cross with the creative license.
Now, I'm trying not to jump to conclusions, as I have to let my stomach settle before I watch the rest of the show, and I want to give WWE a chance to turn this into something not as offensive as I see this becoming, but I didn't think WWE could take the "ghost of Eddie Guerrero" storyline any further than in the months following his death with the Rey vs. Chavo storyline.
Yes, in real-life, widows move along and re-marry to move on with their lives, but this isn't a normal post-mortem romance that's being treated with care, caution, and respect for everyone involved. It's Vickie being put in a position to be jeered by fans with the "Lita treatment" that essentially led to Lita's departure from the company. Even if Edge turns out to be the biggest heel in the company and Vickie becomes the top heel of all-time in the GM role, I don't see how there's any justification for using Vickie in this role. I just don't.
Updated Saturday, November 24
Something must have been in the turkey. That's the only explanation that I can come up with for Hulk Hogan's wife, Linda, reportedly filing for divorce on Thanksgiving week. I mean, we all have family problems this week. An aunt marries an Aggie. Everyone runs through the stuffing the first time through. I believe the Griswolds accurately documented the family strife during the Christmas season. So, what in the name of Thanksgiving is going on in the Bollea household?
Well, the Hogan family doesn't exactly live by a similar standard to the rest of American families. "Hogan Knows Best" has captured that. I mean, this is a family with a full farm in their suburban backyard.
Hogan is also one of the all-time best workers to ever set foot in the wrestling business. In the ring. In the media. In the locker room. In the front office. Doesn't matter what form of negotiation - separating wrestling fans from their money or creating a great babyface turn on VH-1 this past season - Hogan is a master work. Suddenly, Hogan is playing the media like he didn't know Linda had filed for divorce to reinforce his babyface push.
If it's true that Hulk didn't know, then I sincerely feel bad for him that this devastating news would break without knowledge. If it's part of another Hogan p.r. move to shift the heat in the ongoing fall-out from his son's fatal car crash, then it's another classic Hogan move.
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