A Dirty Finish?

For the first time since 1990, the city of Cincinnati will have somebody to cheer for in a world championship competition. It is not the Bengals nor the Reds, but a hometown wrestler who is currently tearing it up in World Wrestling Entertainment. That wrestler is Dean Ambrose and this Sunday at the Elimination Chamber pay-per-view, he will battle the reigning and defending WWE World Heavyweight Champion, Seth Rollins, for the title.

This match should be a great contest as Rollins and Ambrose are always money when competing in the ring against each other. Just take a look at their matches from their rivalry last year and you will see why expectations for this WWE World Heavyweight Championship bout are pretty high. They often stole the show last summer and could do it again on Sunday despite the presence of two elimination chamber matches. The action in the ring should be great, but the finish to the match is what will definately be most intriguing.

If you have not been watching any WWE programming the past few weeks, allow me to fill you in on the factors that could and probably will play a role in the outcome of the match. On one hand you have the Authority, a faction composed of Stephanie McMahon, Triple H, Jamie Noble, Joey Mercury, Kane, and Seth Rollins. Odds are that they will be involved in the match to help their golden boy, Rollins, retain his title. They are heels (which is wrestling lingo for bad guys) and will therefore be a formidable obstacle for Ambrose and his quest for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship.

On the other hand, you have Roman Reigns who is the most interesting factor of the match. Over the past few weeks, WWE has been playing up the friendship between Ambrose and Reigns that dates back to their days in the Shield. This past Monday night on Raw, Ambrose and Reigns teamed up to take on Rollins and Kane in a tag team match and at the end of the show, Reigns came to the ring and took out the Authority to make sure that they did not rip up the contract for the title match at Elimination Chamber so that Ambrose could sign it. Reigns and Ambrose appear to be on the same page, but I have a hunch that will all change on Sunday.

When Reigns came to the ring, took out the Authority, and grabbed the title match contract on Monday Night Raw, I was expecting him to sign it and perhaps make the match a triple threat. However, that did not happen as Ambrose later made his way to the ring and the two of them proceeded to fight the Authority before Reigns let Ambrose sign the contract. Perhaps WWE is teasing us about not only a future triple threat match between all three former members of the Shield but also a feud between Ambrose and Reigns.

That is why, as much as it pains me to say it, I do not believe that Ambrose will walk out of Elimination Chamber with the belt. I think that Reigns will somehow cost Ambrose the title. I could see it being accidental as Reigns was being built to be the next top guy of the company, and WWE will most likely will be keeping him as a face (which is wrestling lingo for good guy). Although, WWE could also throw a curveball our way and have Reigns purposefully cost Ambrose the match and turn him heel which would add some much needed depth to his character. A third option would have Reigns cost Ambrose the title on accident then have Ambrose give Reigns a beatdown after the match which would make Ambrose a heel.

If i had to pick any of these options, I would go with Reigns turning heel as I think he could thrive as a bad guy. Insulting fans is much easier than kissing their butts, and Reigns could just unleash the anger on the WWE Universe that has been building up in him ever since his Royal Rumble victory in which he was nearly booed out of the building. Ambrose however needs to stay a face as he is already way over with the crowd and his character is currently hotter than ever.

So what will happen on Sunday as Ambrose and Rollins clash in the ring? Will Reigns cost Ambrose the match? Will Ambrose win the title? Tune into Elimination Chamber on Sunday to find out, and keep an eye out for my Elimination Chamber 2015 Thoughts video to see what I think of the event.

Help Get Me to the 2015 MLB All-Star Game!

Help me get to the 2015 MLB All-Star Game! Click this link, check out my profile, and give me a 5 star rating! If I manage to get to the game, I will vlog about it and share my experience with you guys! Thank you!

Bobblehead Page Update

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— Cincy Fan Zone (@CincyFanZone) May 22, 2015

Joe Oliver Bobblehead Unboxing

Ryan of Cincy Fan Zone unboxes a 2015 Cincinnati Reds Hall of Fame and Museum Joe Oliver bobblehead.

Wrestlemania: The Complete Anthology Volume III Review

Wrestlemania is the biggest wrestling event of all time. It features high profile matches, celebrity involvement, and showcases World Wrestling Entertainment’s product on a global stage. An event this big only happens once a year, but that does not mean you only have to watch it once every 365 days. WWE has released every Wrestlemania on some sort of home video format whether it be on VHS, DVD, or Blu-ray. Over the course of the next few weeks, I will review the different home video editions of Wrestlemania that I own.

In this post, I will take a look at Wrestlemania: The Complete Anthology Volume III. On the anthology’s third installment are Wrestlemanias 11-15 on five separate DVDs. The unique thing about this volume is that it is the only volume of the four volume set that has no double sided discs. WWE was able to fit each Wrestlemania onto one disc, which means that you will not have to flip the disc in order to continue watching. For couch potatoes, this is the volume you want to get. The edits are the same as the first two volumes except for the blurring of the WWF scratch logo, which is not really noticeable until Wrestlemania 15.

The packaging for Volume III mirrors that of the first two volumes except for the pictures on the inside. Since Volume III contains Wrestlemanias 11-15, all the pictures are of iconic moments from those Wrestlemanias and if you are a fan of the “Attitude Era,” then you will definitely enjoy looking at these pictures.

A program is also packaged with this volume that contains every segment and match from Wrestlemanias 11-15 as well as another faceoff from an epic Wrestlemania moment. In my opinion, WWE could have gone with a number of options here for the faceoff picture as Volume III contains a lot of great Wrestlemania moments to choose from, but you cannot really argue with the choice that WWE ultimately made. They chose to feature the main event from Wrestlemania 12 as the faceoff picture, which really makes a lot of sense.

The Wrestlemanias in this volume are all generally good and fun to watch. Wrestlemania 11 featured a pretty good WWE Championship match between Shawn Michaels and Diesel, Wrestlemania 12 has the very entertaining Hollywood Back Lot Brawl and the 60 minute WWE Championship Iron Man masterpiece, Wrestlemania 13 features the epic submission match between “Stone Cold” Steve Austin and Bret “Hit Man” Hart, Wrestlemania 14 has an all-around solid card headlined by the WWE Championship match between Austin and Shawn Michaels, and Wrestlemania 15 has the first epic Wrestlemania match between the Rock and Austin.

If you are a wrestling fan who grew up during or loved the “Attitude Era,” then Wrestlemania: The Complete Anthology Volume III is a necessity for your collection. It features some of my personal favorite Wrestlemanias, and you really get to watch WWE evolve as it sheds the last remaining aspects that characterized it during the late 1980’s and early 1990’s while it embraces the edgier content that put WWE back on top of the wrestling world.

Payback 2015 Thoughts

Ryan of Cincy Fan Zone shares his thoughts on WWE Payback 2015.

Wrestlemania: The Complete Anthology Volume II Review

Wrestlemania is the biggest wrestling event of all time. It features high profile matches, celebrity involvement, and showcases World Wrestling Entertainment’s product on a global stage. An event this big only happens once a year, but that does not mean you only have to watch it once every 365 days. WWE has released every Wrestlemania on some sort of home video format whether it be on VHS, DVD, or Blu-ray. Over the course of the next few weeks, I will review the different home video editions of Wrestlemania that I own.

In this post, I will be reviewing Wrestlemania: The Complete Anthology Volume II. On this volume, you will find Wrestlemanias 6-10 on five separate DVDs. Wrestlemania 6 and Wrestlemania 7 are too long to be stored on a single DVD, so they were put on double sided DVDs meaning you will have to flip them once the first side has finished in order to continue watching.

Just like the events in Volume I, the Wrestlemanias in Volume II are also edited, as things such as musical changes and the muting of the letter “F” in WWF are noticeable. As I said before though, I really do not think it is a big deal and if you watch wrestling for the matches, then you will be entertained despite the edits.

The packaging of Volume II is pretty much the same as Volume I with the only difference being the pictures. Since Volume II contains Wrestlemanias 6-10, the pictures on the inside cover of the case of Volume II feature pictures from iconic moments from those Wrestlemanias.

Also packaged with this volume is another program, which lists all the matches and segments, contained on Volume II. The legendary faceoff for this set is of the main event of Wrestlemania 6 as it features the Ultimate Warrior and Hulk Hogan.

In conclusion, Volume II is a nice addition to have in your wrestling collection if you do not own Wrestlemanias 6-10 on VHS. The packaging looks great, the edits are really not a big deal and do not take away from the viewing experience, and you get a great look at the industry as the cartoony, over-the-top gimmick era of the 1980’s and early 1990’s came to a close. You also have some great Wrestlemania moments such as the Ultimate Challenge Title for Title bout at Wrestlemania 6, the fantastic “retirement” match between the Ultimate Warrior and the “Macho Man” Randy Savage at Wrestlemania 7, the excellent in ring story that was told during the WWE Intercontinental Championship match between Bret “Hit Man” Hart and “Rowdy” Roddy Piper at Wrestlemania 8, the impromptu WWE Championship match at Wrestlemania 9 between Hulk Hogan and Yokozuna, and the WWE Intercontinental Championship ladder match as well as the Hart vs. Hart match at Wrestlemania 10.

Despite this generally being considered a lackluster period for the WWE, there were still some exciting Wrestlemania moments that occurred that can only be seen on Wrestlemania: The Complete Anthology Volume II.

Updated Photo Page

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— Cincy Fan Zone (@CincyFanZone) May 14, 2015

Photo Page Update

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— Cincy Fan Zone (@CincyFanZone) May 12, 2015

Nasty Boys Bobblehead Unboxing

Ryan of Cincy Fan Zone unboxes a 2015 Cincinnati Reds SGA Nasty Boys bobblehead.

Wrestlemania: The Complete Anthology Volume I Review

Wrestlemania is the biggest wrestling event of all time. It features high profile matches, celebrity involvement, and showcases World Wrestling Entertainment’s product on a global stage. An event this big only happens once a year, but that does not mean you only have to watch it once every 365 days. WWE has released every Wrestlemania on some sort of home video format whether it be on VHS, DVD, or Blu-ray. Over the course of the next few weeks, I will review the different home video editions of Wrestlemania that I own.

First up is Wrestlemania: The Complete Anthology Volume I. This contains the first five Wrestlemania events on five separate DVDs. On the discs are the events with a few minor edits. Things such as changes in music and the muting of the letter “F” in WWF are noticeable but are not really a big deal. Personally, I do not care about the edits as I am more interested in the in ring action as opposed to what music is playing when the wrestlers make their entrances. Also, due to the lengths of Wrestlemania 4 and Wrestlemania 5, those events have been put on double sided discs meaning that you will have to flip the disc over once the first side has finished playing in order to continue watching.

The packaging of the DVD set is very nice and includes some great pictures that display a few of the highlights from each of the different Wrestlemanias.

Another nice touch to this set is the inclusion of a program, which lists every match and segment for each Wrestlemania as well as a picture from an iconic faceoff from the era. With Volume I containing the critically acclaimed Wrestlemania 3, the faceoff on the program is obviously of Hulk Hogan and Andre the Giant as they main evented the first true big Wrestlemania.

Overall, Wrestlemania: The Complete Anthology Volume I is a great set that includes some good Wresltemanias. Wrestlemania 1 is the event that started it all and really cemented WWE as the top promotion in professional wrestling, Wrestlemania 2 is the only Wrestlemania in history to have taken place from three different locations, Wrestlemania 3 featured Hogan vs. Andre as well as the show-stealing bout between Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat and “Macho Man” Randy Savage for the WWE Intercontinental Championship, Wrestlemania 4 featured a tournament to crown a new WWE Champion, and Wrestlemania 5 was headlined by the explosion of the Mega Powers.

If you do not already have these Wrestlemanias on VHS, then I recommend you pick up Wrestlemania: The Complete Anthology Volume I. You can usually find it online and since it has been out for about ten years, the prices are generally pretty low. It is a great collection of the only Wrestlemania events to take place during the 1980’s, and it is also a nice little piece of wrestling history that allows you to see how the showcase of immortals really evolved from its humble roots in Madison Square Garden.

Who Dey Draft 2015

The National Football League draft is the one event of the year in which every NFL team believes that they are picking the next big football superstar to join their team. Whether it be a quarterback, a running back, or even a lineman, the bottom line is that hope springs eternal during the draft as former collegiate standouts realize their derams of playing in the NFL while coaches believe that their newest batch of players will be the piece that their team needs to bring home the Lombardi trophy. With the 2015 NFL Draft in the books, I thought I would take a look at the players that the Cincinnati Bengals drafted and discuss their possible role on the team in this post.

The first player chosen by the Bengals was an offensive tackle out of Texas A&M named Cedric Ogbuehi. Their second pick of the draft was Jake Fisher of the University of Oregon, also an offensive tackle. With 2015 being the last contract seasons for current offensive linemen Andrew Whitworth and Andre Smith, I believe that the Bengals drafted Ogbuehi and Fisher to potentially take Whitworth’s and Smith’s place. Whitworth will be entering his tenth season in the league so time is not exactly on his side, and Smith gets hurt quite a bit and based on what I remember, he also made the Bengals shell out some big time cash when they resigned him. With star wide receiver A.J. Green entering the final year of his contract as well, I believe the Bengals plan to part ways with Whitworth and Smith and use Ogbuehi and Fisher as their replacements in order to use the money that they are saving to resign Green.

The Bengals also drafted two tight ends this year as they selected Tyler Kroft out of Rutgers with their first pick in the third round and C.J. Uzomah out of Auburn in the fifth round. After saying goodbye to the seemingly aloof and frustrating to watch Jermaine Gresham, the Bengals only remaining tight ends on the team were Tyler Eifert and Ryan Hewitt. Eifert is going to be the starter this year and Hewitt split time last season as both a tight end and a full back. I think the Bengals might make Hewitt a permanent full back and use either Uzomah or Kroft as a second tight end.

Their second pick in the third round was Paul Dawson, a linebacker out of Texas Christian University. The Bengals defense was not very good last season, and the absence of Vontaze Burfict due to injury last year was a big reason why. He plays with reckless abandon, which is both good and bad as he makes a lot of great plays but also hurts himself a lot. With Burfict still recovering from surgery, the Bengals probably drafted Dawson in case Burfict is not ready for the season or hurts himself again.

Veteran cornerback Terrence Newman signed with the Minnesota Vikings in the offseason, meaning Dre Kirkpatrick will finally take over as the starter. As a result, the Bengals drafted Josh Shaw with their first pick in the fourth round. Shaw is a cornerback out of the University of Southern California and will probably be used as a backup cornerback or perhaps even a gunner on special teams much like Darqueze Dennard was last year.

The Bengals used their second pick in the fourth round to draft Marcus Hardison out of Arizona State in order to help bolster their defensive line. With the pass rush being almost nonexistent last season, this team is in desperate need of a player to help the defense put some pressure on the quarterback. Hardison could be that guy, and with Pro Football Focus ranking fan favorite and veteran Bengal Domata Peko as the worst defensive tackle in the NFL last year, it would not be surprising to see Hardison take Peko’s spot.

Derron Smith was drafted by the team in the sixth round. He is a free safety out of Fresno State. He could possibly take the place of George Iloka or Reggie Nelson after the 2015 season should the Bengals not be able to resign them.

Last but not least is Mario Alford, a wide receiver out of the University of West Virginia. With this season being the last on the contracts of A.J. Green, Marvin Jones, Mo Sanu and a few other receivers, Alford was probably selected to take the spot of a receiver who does not return to the team.

Overall, I think the picks of the Bengals make a lot of sense and should be beneficial to the team. They appear to be addressing some of the areas on the team that need to be strengthened and hopefully the newest batch of Bengals will be able to do just that. It will be interesting to see where they fit in with the team as the Bengals look to finally capture that elusive Super Bowl championship.

Who Dey!

Cincinnati Reds 1990 Replica World Series Ring Unboxing

Ryan of Cincy Fan Zone unboxes the 2015 SGA Cincinnati Reds 1990 replica World Series ring.

Photo Page Update

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— Cincy Fan Zone (@CincyFanZone) May 2, 2015