theFRANCHISE

That was a smart way to handle Bret Hart in the match; have him come in and do a few moves, then eliminate him via DQ. That way, he looks like a capable threat on Team WWE while also keeping him safe by having him take no bumps. They recognize his limited mobility, thankfully.

If pay-per-views traditionally end around 10:40-10:45pm, then they'll need to blow through the rest of this match since there's way too many guys and necessary eliminations involved. There's really no time to put on a "good" match in the traditional sense with that many guys involved.

Yeah, Daniel Bryan replacing The Miz? That's crap. The fact that Michael Cole is bringing up the possibility that Bryan could be a plant for Nexus on the team means that possibility is ruled out automatically.

Cena wearing a new variation of his current gear in Lakers-purple-and-gold in Hollywood? No Titantron video for his entrance, just a still image of the Laker-ized logo? Hmmmmm... I could be reading too much into it, but maybe that signifies new entrance music (which he said he recorded recently) and a new TItantron...which would go well with a change in character!

The 'Taker-Kane scenario was predictable, but I have to admit, their little exchange in the ring was pretty well-done. Good acting by all three men involved.

This match between Kane and Mysterio is a surprisingly good match!

That promo was, indeed, Rock-esque on the part of The Miz, even going so far as to copy his pose when he did his go-home line and admonishing the crowd for attempting to sing-a-long with his catchphrase. The man is a STAR!

The fact that the finish to the tag team main event is still being kept under wraps is a good sign that a heel turn of some sort will happen! Still holding out hope for Cena!...Also no word on whether Triple H is backstage, so he may be ruled out, but you never know...

I'm pleasantly surprised they devoted this much time to a Divas match and an in-ring Divas segment that was actually entertaining for both the mic work and the wrestling. That speaks not only to the collective talents of the four women involved, but also perhaps a shift in WWE's creative approach to the Divas division...maybe...?

Looks like they'll probably end up unifying the Women's titles with this little bit with Lay-Cool and Melina.

I'm not sure Melina's outfit is quite PG-appropriate, given how the entire thing is pretty much flesh-toned and happens to have crosses in certain, uh, spots.

Though I can still see Daniel Bryan playing a part in the match, I don't see him as being part of the big swerve. He's barely a blip on anyone's radar and I doubt he'd get a huge reaction from the crowd. Only the indie fans and the IWC would recognize and remember him.

Another scenario I've heard thrown out there is The Miz filling in as the 7th member of Team WWE, only to turn on his team and reveal himself as the mastermind behind Nexus all along; it would offer a kayfabe explanation for Daniel Bryan's release, as well as explain the identity of the limo driver who took off with Bret Hart in the backseat after his attack, serving as a recall of their short-lived feud over the U.S. Title. It would certainly work within the confines of the storyline, but I wouldn't be satisfied with that resolution as it'd be too safe. Miz is already over with the crowd as a heel and he wouldn't provide as big of a swerve as a Cena or HHH heel turn.

The more I think about how viable a Cena heel turn could be, the more I wonder if fans would really turn against Cena just for turning heel. Sure, there'll be the fans who react the way the writers want them to react -- but I also feel as if there'll be a vocal enough fanbase that will love the Cena heel turn (like I would) and would cheer him if he plays the role well. It's similar to Triple H in the early 2000s, when he would draw your usual heel heat but the fans were dying to cheer for him because he played the heel so well. If Cena can be as good of a heel as he was when he feuded with Brock Lesnar and The Undertaker, then he can make a great tweener.

That just tells me that they'll continue to underutilize the homegrown TNA talent just to make room for the ECW guys. I can smell a gradual defection to WWE and ROH very soon...

The placement of the Kane-Mysterio match will indirectly determine how big the tag match's finish will be. Traditionally, the last match of any card should have the most dramatic moment of the night. Using that logic, Kane-Mysterio will come on before the tag match IF any of the discussed heel turns are to happen (or anything bigger). Conversely, if the tag match comes on before Kane-Mysterio, then that means the Undertaker's return is the big shocker of the night and the tag match will have a lackluster finish (in our eyes, anyway).

As anxious as I am to see where they're going with the main event's big finish, I'm not really all that excited for the PPV. I'll probably still watch since wrestling is wrestling, but I'm disappointed in the overall build.

And you won't here...you'll have to take it to PM.

As cool as the HHH scenario would be, I'd still love to see a Cena heel turn above all else. I know I shouldn't hold my breath for it, but then again, it has been reported that a heel turn would be one of three possible scenarios for the finish -- and the finish is allegedly supposed to be something big to continue the angle, so that would rule out a clean finish of any sort.

I'd certainly buy into it. Kane and Undertaker's gimmicks already require a suspension of disbelief, so having a mask be the trigger for Kane's split personality wouldn't be that large of a stretch.

Though Jericho is much more effective as a heel, part of me is hoping for a dual turn by having Y2J turn face while Cena turns heel. If anyone can make an average worker look good in the ring, it's Jericho. Cena will need all the help he can get in selling the audience on the heel turn, even though it's been anticipated for quite some time now.

Although Cena's heel turn may cost WWE some younger fans and profits initially, it's necessary for the long-term survival of the company. Again, the ratings boost just from the shock value would be enough to justify it. Though the family-friendly sponsors might be turned off by it, there will still be sponsors nevertheless. WWE doesn't need to make a full shift back towards an adult-oriented product, but they have to recognize that the 5-year-olds they catered to are now 7 years old, and every year in a young child's development is a huge difference from the year before. Kids do, indeed, grow up fast and they'll be bored of Cena's Superman gimmick soon enough -- the adults have certainly grown tired of it already.

Well, rumors are running rampant with conflicting reports that Eric Bischoff and Hulk Hogan are leaving TNA. This stems from a situation where Eric Bischoff's official Twitter feed posted a link to Hulk Hogan's recently-opened Twitter feed -- which actually turned out to be a Hogan imposter. Bubba The Love Sponge even confirmed the authenticity of Hogan's page at first, which leads me to believe that these two either never bothered to verify the accuracy of this info. The imposter account admitted that it was all a fraud, but it makes me wonder...is there really any consideration of getting rid of Hogan and Bischoff? I really hope so...

Vince already recognizes that the fans are internet-saavy and read the dirt sheets, and he's acknowledged it lately on programming. Therefore, he should also recognize that his audience isn't stupid and a large portion of the audience watches wrestling in other promotions. Building off of their past is the easiest way to get talent over, even if there's a name change. Don't treat the fans like they're stupid and act like we don't know who these guys are.

And WWE continues its youth movement. I think this is great. Even if Black doesn't pan out, at least he's another fresh face who might emerge and become another big star. They have to keep reloading and revamping the roster because the stars from the Attitude Era are all but gone. The company looks radically different now than 5 years ago, so it's important for them to continue looking to the future rather than resting on their laurels.