AEW All Out 2020 Thoughts

Ryan of Cincy Fan Zone shares his thoughts on AEW All Out 2020. 

AEW Double or Nothing 2020 Thoughts

Ryan of Cincy Fan Zone shares his thoughts on AEW Double or Nothing 2020. 

AEW Revolution 2020 Thoughts

Ryan of Cincy Fan Zone shares his thoughts on AEW Revolution 2020.

AEW Full Gear 2019 Thoughts

Ryan of Cincy Fan Zone shares his thoughts on AEW Full Gear 2019. 

AEW All Out 2019 Thoughts

Ryan of Cincy Fan Zone shares his thoughts on AEW All Out 2019.

Shots Fired

All Elite Wrestling recently announced that it will air a two hour television show every Wednesday on TNT. While not the start of a new Monday Night War, it is definitely the beginning of a new battle for wrestling viewership. 

World Wrestling Entertainment has long dominated the wrestling indusrtry ever since World Championship Wrestling closed its doors in 2001. Total Nonstop

Action Wrestling was once seen as a potential competitor but has since fallen into near obscurity and airs on Twitch. Ring of Honor is on television via syndication, and New Japan Pro Wrestling is on tape delay on Axs TV. What has truly halted these promotions from becoming legitimate WWE competitors is exposure. That is what separates AEW from the rest of the pack.

The promotion made headlines with its signings and first ever pay-per-view, and has seemingly shaken the wrestling industry to its core with it newly announced television deal. Starting on October 2, 2019, AEW will air love on TNT from 8-10pm from the Capital One Arena in Washington D.C. This is massive. AEW's roster depth, which features stats such as the Young Bucks, Cody, Kenny Omega, Chris Jericho, and Jon Moxley, was already considered to be a massive strength of the new Wrestling promotion. A live weekly television deal on a nationally broadcasted cable network will only bolster its popularity and attract more fans.

For the first time since 2001, WWE has real competition and that is fantastic for wrestling fans. Competition brings out the best in people. The Monday Night Wars featured the highest ratings for wrestling television shows in history. With AEW set to make its television debut in October, WWE will be forced to step up their game. A few shots have been fired by AEW in this new wrestling television war. Let's see how WWE responds.

Double or Nothing 2019 Thoughts

Ryan of Cincy Fan Zone shares his thoughts on AEW Double or Nothing 2019.

All Elite Wrestling Shirt Unboxing

Ryan of Cincy Fan Zone unboxes an All Elite Wrestling shirt. 

Royal Rumble 2018 Thoughts

Ryan of Cincy Fan Zone shares his thoughts on the 2018 WWE Royal Rumble event.

The Grand Slam Champ

SummerSlam 2017 saw numerous titles change hands. One of those titles was the Raw Tag Team Championship. The team of Dean Ambrose and Seth Rollins defeated Cesaro and Sheamus and were crowned as the new kings of the tag team division. For Seth Rollins, the win marked the second time he was part of a tag team championship team as he previously held the belts with Roman Reigns. For Ambrose, this is the first time he has held tag team championship gold, and it also granted him access to a very exclusive club in WWE: the grand slam champion’s club.

In WWE, a grand slam champion is a wrestler who has won the tag team championships, two secondary titles, and the world title. It is a very short list that is filled with some of the most elite wrestlers in history. Shawn Michaels, Triple H, Jeff Hardy, Kurt Angle, Eddie Guerrero, Daniel Bryan, and Chris Jericho are some of the wrestlers who have accomplished the feat. While these wrestlers are current and future hall of famers, not every legend and big name wrestler can call themselves a grand slam champ. As of the writing of this post, there have only been 16 grand slam champions, and guys The Rock, Stone Cold Steve Austin, Hulk Hogan, Randy Orton, and John Cena are not on that list of grand slam champions.

As I said earlier, a grand slam champion must win two secondary titles, the tag team titles and the world title. Dean Ambrose has won the United States Championship, the Intercontinental Championship, the Raw Tag Team Championship, and the WWE World Heavyweight Championship. The last jewel in his grand slam crown was the Raw Tag Team championship which he won at SummerSlam. The win not only made him the 16^th grand slam champion, but it also made him the youngest grand slam champion in history. Congrats to Dean Amrbose on the accomplishment!

WWE Payback 2017 Thoughts

Ryan of Cincy Fan Zone shares his thoughts on WWE Payback 2017.

My Thoughts on the Superstar Shakeup

The night after Wrestlemania 33, Vince McMahon announced that WWE will undergo a “superstar shakeup.” Wrestlers would be switching brands and another chapter of the “new era” would be written. The following week, the shakeup happened and while some big name wrestlers did switch shows, a lot of the superstars that were swapped had little to no direction or momentum.

The Shining Stars are a prime example of this. They were the perennial jobbers of the Raw tag team division. Nobody cared about them. They were then drafted to Smackdown, underwent a name change, and proceeded to defeat American Alpha. While the victory was shocking, it also made American Alpha look weak as they lost to one of the worst teams from Raw.

Another example of swapped wrestlers with little momentum is Kalisto. The former member of the Lucha Dragons was involved in a meaningless feud with Dolph Ziggler before vanishing. He then reappeared as a member of the Raw roster and was most recently dumped in the trash by Braun Strowman. While being on Raw will finally allow him to join the cruiserweight division, the fact that he floundered on Smackdown for so long diminishes his value to the weight class.

Popular wrestlers who switched brands include Dean Ambrose, Kevin Owens, the Miz, Bray Wyatt, Charlotte, and Alexa Bliss among others. It is refreshing to see big name superstars switch shows, but when you compare who is on the Raw roster with who is on the Smackdown roster, Raw easily has the better batch of wrestlers. For example, Ambrose and Miz are joining a roster that already features guys like Brock Lesnar, Roman Reigns, Seth Rollins, FInn Balor, and Chris Jericho. Raw is loaded. Smackdown is not. Yes, the blue brand has A.J. Styles, Shinske Nakamura, and Randy Orton, but the roster as a whole does not even come close to the amount of star power that Raw has.

In conclusion, I think that the shakeup was underwhelming. A majority of the wrestlers that swapped brands were not utilized much to begin with, and Raw clearly has the better roster in terms of popularity. Smackdown appears to be in complete rebuild mode after their roster was essentially raided. Raw has been presented as the flagship show ever since the brand extension. The superstar shakeup just made it more apparent.

Wrestlemania 33 Thoughts

Ryan of Cincy Fan Zone shares his thoughts on Wrestlemania 33.

WWE Fastlane 2017 Thoughts

Ryan of Cincy Fan Zone shares his thoughts on WWE Fastlane 2017.

Royal Rumble 2017 Thoughts

Ryan of Cincy Fan Zone shares his thoughts on the 2017 WWE Royal Rumble event.

Who Will The Phenom Face?

The road to Wrestlemania is officially underway. Over the last few weeks, various wrestlers have announced their participation in the Royal Rumble match. Wrestlers such as Goldberg, Brock Lesnar, Chris Jericho, the Miz, the Undertaker, and Dean Ambrose have all said that they will be participating in the bout. The winner will earn a main event title shot at Wrestlemania, and I believe that the Undertaker is the current odds on favorite to emerge victorious. Should the Undertaker indeed win the Royal Rumble match, who will he face? Allow me to explain.

There are currently two world champions in WWE. Raw is home to reigning WWE Universal Champion Kevin Owens, and SmackDown has WWE World Heavyweight Champion A.J. Styles. Owens is in the midst of a feud with Roman Reigns and appears to have a showdown with Chris Jericho on the horizon. Styles is currently set to defend his title against John Cena at the Royal Rumble in what should be another fantastic bout between the two top wrestlers of the blue brand. I think Cena will defeat Styles and win his record-tying 16^th world title. This will set up the much-anticipated Wrestlemania showdown with the Undertaker.

A Wrestlemania match between “the face that runs the place” and “the phenom” is a Wrestlemania dream match that has yet to come to fruition. The two were engaged in a rivalry during Cena’s early days on the roster in 2003, and they almost faced off at Wrestlemania 23 in 2007. The Undertaker had won the Royal Rumble match that year and Cena was the reigning WWE Champion. It was teased that “the dead man” was going to face Cena, but he ultimately challenged Batista for the World Heavyweight Championship instead.

I think it would be very fitting if Cena and the Undertaker clashed at the “Showcase of the Immortals.” The Undertaker has been a WWE cornerstone for nearly three decades, and Cena has been the most well-known wrestler on the roster for about 15 years. A bout between two of WWE’s greatest wrestlers would definitely sell out Wrestlemania 33, and WWE needs to capitalize on this opportunity. The Undertaker only has a few matches left in him, and Cena is transitioning from a full time wrestler to a part time wrestler/actor. The window is closing fast for this match, and I think that this is the year WWE pulls the trigger on a Wrestlemania matchup between Cena and the Undertaker.

WWE Roadblock 2016 Thoughts

Ryan of Cincy Fan Zone shares his thoughts on WWE Roadblock 2016.

Survivor Series 2016 Thoughts

Ryan of Cincy Fan Zone shares his thoughts on WWE Survivor Series 2016.

WWE Hell in a Cell 2016 Thoughts

Ryan of Cincy Fan Zone shares his thoughts on WWE Hell in a Cell 2016.

The Gift of Jericho

WWE Raw can feel like a chore to watch sometimes. It may be the third hour of programming or the lack of character development that wrestlers such as the cruiserweights have, but sitting through Raw every Monday night can be a tough thing to do. The brand split has changed the dynamic of WWE by making SmackDown the premier WWE show as its programming is very well done and is a joy to watch every Tuesday. Despite the blue brand overcoming Raw in terms of quality, Raw has something that SmackDown does not: the gift of Jericho.

Chris Jericho has been the best part of Monday Night Raw ever since the draft, and he seemingly gets better each and every week. Even though he is a veteran on the roster and one of the last active wrestlers from the Attitude Era, Jericho has never been more entertaining than he is right now, and that’s saying something. From an in ring perspective, Jericho has been and still is one of the greatest wrestlers of all time. He usually delivers with solid action and a great performance no matter who his opponent is. However, his work on the microphone is what is really making him standout from the rest of the pack of the red brand.

Ever since his feud with Dean Ambrose resulted in Jericho replacing his light up jacket with a vest and scarf, Jericho has been adding layers to his character that make him one of the most interesting and entertaining wrestlers in WWE. His ability to turn the phrase “stupid idiot” and the word “it” into part of his gimmick is on par with Stone Cold Steve Austin turning the word “what” into an arena chant that is still said by wrestling crowds today. His latest additions to his arsenal of catch phrases in “you just made the list” and “quiet” have caught in with the WWE Universe rather quickly, and I’m sure it will only be a matter of time before WWE capitalizes on this by releasing merchandise featuring Y2J’s popular sayings.

Another great aspect of Jericho’s character is his “best friend” Kevin Owens. Like Jericho, Owens is a great in ring performer and is excellent on the microphone and when paired with Jericho, a segment that would otherwise seem like boring filler becomes instantly entertaining. WWE refers to them as Jeri-KO, but Jericho calls themselves Team Chris and Kevin and Owens says Team Kevin and Chris. It’s little details like this that display the great chemistry Owens and Jericho have with each other. Owens will often tell Jericho to put somebody on the list which Jericho does, and Jericho refers to himself and Owens as the WWE Universal Champion by constantly using the pronoun “we” when discussing the title despite the fact that Owens is the actual champ. This “friendship” with Owens is another great element of Jericho’s character that both gives him somebody to play off of while planting the seeds for a future rivalry.

In conclusion, it is plain to see why Jericho is the best part of Monday Night Raw. Despite being one of the oldest wrestlers on the roster, he can still perform in the ring like he did when he first burst on the scene. He continues to prove why he is regarded as one of the best talkers in the industry, and his ability to play off Kevin Owens is fantastic. However, words cannot do Jericho justice and to truly see how entertaining Y2J is, tune into Monday Night Raw so that you can drink in the gift of Jericho.