by Rick Scaia
Exclusive to OnlineOnslaught.com

• Triple H has once again gone under the knife in Birmingham, AL...  luckily, this time, the ensuing rehab isn't going to take 8 months.
   
  HHH was diagnosed a few weeks back with bone chips in his elbow, and it was causing him some minor discomfort.  He worked through it, but the problem began to intensify.  Surgery to remove the chips became a necessity.
   
  If no other damage was found during yesterday's surgery, then HHH will definitely be back in the ring in time for July's Vengeance PPV.  And in a WWE.com interview, HHH said that regardless of whether he can work or not, he'll be back on TV immediately, starting next week, and will also be making his house show bookings.
   
  The apparently minor nature of the injury and resulting quick recovery time is certainly a welcome element...  though with the Fed in the shape it's in, even these minor inconveniences seem to take on added importance.  That it happened to HHH -- who is only about a year removed from a very serious leg injury -- makes the news that much more distressing.
   
  But still, in the end, this shouldn't be a big deal, no matter the circumstances.  HHH will be back on TV in a week, and he'll be wrestling by mid-July.
   
  
• Monday's RAW was -- as I hope I successfully indicated in my teaser blurb for yesterday's CRZ RAW Recap -- one that sort of polarized me.
   
  On one hand, I think some of the in-ring action was presented poorly and given short shrift.  But on the other, a lot of the backstage stuff really cracked my ass up.
   
  In the end, I think I've decided to be entertained by Monday's show, and limit my criticisms not so much to the content of the show, but to the time management displayed.
   
  Case in point:  both Vince's opening diatribe and Paul Heyman's mid-show promo droned on and on with little new or useful advancement of storylines.  In Vince's case, he just took 10 minutes to see how often he could use the phrase "ruthless aggression."  Heyman's catchphrase was simply "Brock Lesnar."  In either case, you could have easily condensed both segments, cuz fan's ain't stupid.  We'll get the point.
   
  And who in the blue hell got ANYTHING out of the Vince/Jackie bit (other than concrete knowledge that Jackie's got some work to do as an actress)?  Give that minute or 2 to Raven or Tommy Dreamer to build up the true depth of their rivalry and the importance of the loser-leave-RAW match, I say!  It's as simple as giving Raven a dark corner to brood in, as he says, "Dreamer, for 2 years, I beat you every time we fought.  Then, the last match we ever had, you finally pinned me.  I haven't forgotten that.  And I haven't forgotten how to beat you, either."  Or words to that effect.  Those two tried to have a nice little match, but the Fed gave fans absolutely no reason to care.  Since we also don't care about Creepy Vince, you could have killed two birds with one stone by just slightly adjusting where you invested your time.
   
  It was also really sad that Bubba and Eddie only got about 90 seconds to work a match.  Those guys could do so much more...
   
  But in the end, it's backstage stuff like CrocDust and in-ring stuff like the best match involving the Big Show in recent memory and the RVD/Lesnar main event that was a quantum leap better than last night's PPV match between the two that made the show plenty worthwhile.  I swear, between the skit at the PPV and the Crocodile Hunter thing on RAW, Goldust is rapidly becoming the go-to guy for comedic performances.  Which is doubly good, because it means that maybe then they won't be as tempted to do cutesy things with Booker (who should be playing it more straight if he's gonna keep on getting more and more over as a top level babyface).
   
  I already referenced CRZ's Recap for those who want a more detailed run-down of what happened.  Lee Filas has also got a Squared Circle Jerk ready for you, if you missed it.  Check 'em out.
   
  
• RAW's rating came in at at 3.7.  Despite being a post-PPV edition of the show, RAW actually dropped a few tenths from the previous week, which is not a good sign, no matter how you spin it.
   
  Either fans were not at all interested in the King of the Ring line-up, and thus didn't care to tune in to get results, or fans who cared enough to read up on who won on the internet didn't like the results they saw, and were not inspired to tune in.  Like I said, not good no matter what...
   
  With Austin gone, Flair getting the night off on Monday, and just about every other top level star on the SD! roster, this week's RAW definitely had a genuine feel of "trying to build new stars."  But that process takes time.  I hope ratings stay steady enough that the Fed doesn't totally give up on these projects.
   
  
• By the way, just in case you managed to miss them (and didn't do so on purpose), spoilers for SmackDown!, Velocity, and Heat are all available right here.
   
  
• The "Divas Undressed" special, scheduled for last night on TNN, was yanked at the last second.  Well, not last second, but at some point on Tuesday afternoon.  The show will now air Saturday night at midnight (following the Velocity/Confidential block) on TNN.
   
  The circulated reason for the pre-emption is that the show was deemed "too hot" for primetime.  I hate to be a cynic, but given the very-PG nature of the UPN Divas special a few months ago, I want to say I find that hard to believe.  Unless Lawler was really "on" with his innuendo, or something like that.
   
  
• Chris Jericho's online commentary (mentioned in Monday's OO) is certainly stirring up a lot of discussion.  Here on OO, Kyle Maxwell has even dedicated an entire edition of The Smarkies to Jericho and his tirade.
   
  I mention it, however, not to plug other columns here, but to make sure that I present another side to the story.  My exact quote on Monday was, "And I don't think he's just trying to be a heel."  Well, a lot of you apparently disagree, and think that's PRECISELY what Jericho is doing.
   
  Nobody can have any evidence either way, and I'm sure that outside of Jericho himself (and maybe a few confidants), nobody knows what's really going on here with 100% certainty.  Myself, I would tend to think that even if Jericho's hyperbole in his rant is just part of him trying to run an internet angle, there's enough of a kernel of truth in what he said to still lend weight to his commentary.  Because even I, as one of the smarks in the crosshairs, recognize the occasional silliness of the deadly serious and self-important way we all dissect a business in which we've never worked a day.
   
  Work or shoot, it doesn't really matter....  Jericho's got people talking, and talking about him.  When people got nothing better to do than to talk about you and what you've written, that means you win.
   
  
• The Rey Misterio Jr. video has got people talking...  for one thing, it confirms that Rey's coming back WITH his mask.  Don't know what the significance of that is.  Maybe it was just deemed a cooler "look" for Rey?  Or maybe it's supposed to signify that Rey's gonna go back to his ass-busting innovative form of 1996?
   
  Also of note:  the video aired on Heat and RAW, which would seem to suggest Rey's gonna be a RAW brand performer.  That goes against the conventional wisdom that he'd land with the rest of the Cruisers on SD...  but it does lead to the mouth-watering possibility of a match against Rob Van Dam.  We'll see, though; maybe the video will also air on SD!, and we'll find ourselves in sort of a "bidding war" for his services.
   
  
• Over the last month, Confidential has pretty well established itself as the most-watched WWE TV show over the weekend, knocking Heat from that perch (though with a replay, Heat may actually still have a claim to that title, I don't know).
   
  Heat and Velocity usually settle in right around, or slightly under a 1.0.  Confidential has been scoring around 1.2 as of late.  I shudder to think what the braintrust at Titan Towers is contemplating when they see their "reality" TV shows out-drawing the regular wrestling shows....
   
  
• The business wire has picked up on WWE's fiscal fourth quarter financials, which saw the company post a profit of about $16 million (or 22 cents per share).  The profit in the 4th quarter for FY2002 contrasts with a loss of $20.4 million in the same quarter for FY2001 (a loss due mostly to the failure of the XFL).
   
  Live event revenue drove the profits, as the overseas tours especially helped increase event revenues by 6 percent over the previous year.  Ad revenues and PPV purchases were essentially unchanged.  
   
  In a conference call with investors, timed to coincide with the release of these financials, Linda McMahon didn't add much of substance.  About the only bit of new info is that WWE will be running a show in Mexico City this fall, as part of the ever-expanding international operations.
   
  
• Speaking of international operations, not all the overseas news is good news.  The World Wrestling Allstars tour, scheduled for Europe later this summer, has apparently been cancelled.  Already, the tour had been rescheduled so as not to overlap at all with the WWE's very successful tour... but even with a few months of breathing room, fans in Europe weren't responding to the WWA product.  Ticket sales were sluggish, and the show have been called off.
  
  
• It's Wednesday, so don't forget tonight's 2nd edition of NWA-TNA on PPV.  With such wildly diverging opinions about last week's debut, you just might have to check the show out for yourself, to find out what's really going on.
   
  Tonight, Scott Hall and Jeff Jarrett face off in the main event.  Also Brian Christopher and K-Krush will battle in a match with NASCAR implications!  Yee haw!  Plus, new NWA Champ Ken Shamrock gets interviewed.
   
  Of course, we'll have CRZ's recap right here tomorrow, to keep those of you who don't see the show up to speed.
  
  
• Lastly today is just a ringing endorsement for the Cherry Valence.  If you see that they're coming to your town for a rock show, go out and see them.  My ass was scheduled for a good blowing-out, and they provided it last night.  I think your results will be similar.  [Note:  and if you decide to buy something of theirs, make sure it's the older CD and not the new vinyl.  No matter how cool you think owning vinyl is.  Just trust me.]
   
  Conversely, if you see that The National Drink are playing somewhere near you, I'd suggest you check and make sure they've solved all technical difficulties and have no plans to randomly suck for no apparent reason before you fork over any money.  But that's a whole other story, now isn't it?
   
  See you folks again onl Friday, with another full page of news and opinion.  Till then...

E-MAIL RICK SCAIA
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Rick Scaia is a wrestling fan from Dayton, OH.  He's been doing this since 1995, but enjoyed it best when the suckers from SportsLine were actually PAYING him to be a fan.

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