The WWE went too far on Smackdown!!!

[Brad Russ]

You know, Iv'e defended alot of controversial things that the WWE has done in the past, but I must say, what I heard this Friday on Smackdown, even I was shocked by, and cannot defend. I'm referring of course to what Randy Orton said to Rey Mysterio about Eddie Guerrero being in hell. To make a story about necrophilia, or some other perversion pertaining to this life is one thing, but to make a comment like that about a beloved man, who was loved by millions, is totally crossing the line in my view. I mean, didn't they think about Eddie Guerrero's family, and small children, and how a comment like that might affect them?? I don't know for sure where Eddie is, that's between him and God, but for anyone to make a comment like that about where someone is spending their eternity, is just plain sick in my view!! What do you all think?? Did the WWE go too far??

[Chad Michael Murray]

I don't think the WWE went too far, for a few reasons.

Firstly, I've considered Eddie's family before I formed an opinion. With all of the tribute-related things done for him by WWE, including mentions of him, the tribute show, the t-shirt, the forward in his bio by Vince McMahon, etc. I have a feeling WWE has been actively involved with Eddie's family during all of this. So, bearing that in mind, I'm sure that they've been in communication with Eddie's wife to see if something like this was okay, and whether or not she approved of it.

So, with all of that taken care of, I think it's a great thing to do from a storyline point of view. Rey Mysterio dedicates everything under the sun to Eddie Guerrero now, and having Randy Orton come and put something like that in jeopardy was the perfect thing to set up a match between them at No Way Out.

[Ireneparalegal]

i too believe that WWE must have discussed it first with the family, HOWEVER, I sure as heck wouldn't want to have been the one to bring that idea to the family. Can you imagine how that conversation must have went down???? "Mrs. Guerrero, we are wanting to continue the battle with Rey and want to mention that Eddie is in hell. Is that alright with you?" To me that is outrageous. To mock the dead is way too far. If the family ok'd this, and it sounds like they did, I am appalled they did.

[Chelsea]

Konnan (you remember Konnan) was on Dave Meltzer's radio show the other night, and let this out...Randy Orton is Rey Mysterio's best friend on Smackdown after the Mexicools, and that he probably doesn't want to do the Eddie angle but also doesn't want [his career] to be buried.

Bryan Alvarez of the Observer says that a lot of guys backstage are upset that Randy went through with it.

[Brad Russ]

Originally Posted by Seth

Konnan (you remember Konnan) was on Dave Meltzer's radio show the other night, and let this out...Randy Orton is Rey Mysterio's best friend on Smackdown after the Mexicools, and that he probably doesn't want to do the Eddie angle but also doesn't want [his career] to be buried.

Bryan Alvarez of the Observer says that a lot of guys backstage are upset that Randy went through with it.

I can understand them being upset. I'd be interested to know who the heck came up with this storyline, and what his thought process behind it was? I mean, inserting the death of a guy who was loved by so many into some stupid wrestling storyline, has got to be the most absurd thing Iv'e ever heard in my life. It just makes absolutely no sense whatsoever. Had they done this with Owen Hart, they would have never heard the end of it!! It just baffles me, it really does.

[Chad Michael Murray]

That's interesting now, knowing Randy didn't want to go through with it. I think it's kinda crappy though how so many guys backstage are upset at him for going through with it. I mean...he's still at a fairly early stage in his career; I'm sure he doesn't have the same power as somebody like HBK, Undertaker or especially Triple H where they can basically call the shots and have things go their way. If they were dead set for Randy to say this, then he really had no choice.

[Brad Russ]

Originally Posted by Chad Michael Murray

That's interesting now, knowing Randy didn't want to go through with it. I think it's kinda crappy though how so many guys backstage are upset at him for going through with it. I mean...he's still at a fairly early stage in his career; I'm sure he doesn't have the same power as somebody like HBK, Undertaker or especially Triple H where they can basically call the shots and have things go their way. If they were dead set for Randy to say this, then he really had no choice.

Yeah, that's a pretty crappy situation for a guy to be put into, and it's totally unprofessional on the WWE's part. I think I'll be writing WWE.com a long stern email tonight. I'm sure they've gotten plenty of those over the last few days.

[Chain Gang Member]

Originally Posted by Chad Michael Murray

That's interesting now, knowing Randy didn't want to go through with it. I think it's kinda crappy though how so many guys backstage are upset at him for going through with it. I mean...he's still at a fairly early stage in his career; I'm sure he doesn't have the same power as somebody like HBK, Undertaker or especially Triple H where they can basically call the shots and have things go their way. If they were dead set for Randy to say this, then he really had no choice.

I knew Randy didn't wanna go through with it because I believe he has a lot of respect for Eddie

[Chad Michael Murray]

For those who are interested, here is Mick Foley's latest blog which deals with this issue:

I know I promised to share some thoughts on Ric Flair this week, but I honestly feel that I need to address a subject that is more urgent. Like a lot of you, I had some strong feelings about last Friday’s “Eddie’s in Hell” episode of SmackDown, Apparently, some of my fellow WWE performers feel like I have a certain amount of “juice” in the company, and I feel like my thoughts will probably echo, to some degree, what is on their minds.

To a large degree, I am enjoying writing “Foley is Blog.” I hope you’ve enjoyed it as well. But, in a certain sense, I regret trying to manufacture controversy in order to get people interested in my web log. To be honest with you, the Flair piece was going to be a classic case of bait and switch, as I would bait the reader with the prospect for juicy Foley rebuttal to Flair’s criticisms of me and then switch to a largely complimentary analysis of Ric’s recent in-ring performance. So, for those of you who are interested in such an article, I will try to deliver it next week.

I also wonder if my following concerns might be more appropriately expressed in a personal phone call to Vince McMahon.

Before last Friday Night’s SmackDown, the Rey Mysterio/Eddie Guerrero stuff made me feel a little … weird. And not “weird in a good way,” either. More like weird in an uncomfortable way. Weird in an “I’m not sure this should really be on a wrestling show” way.

I know there has been a lot of talk since Eddie’s death about what Eddie would have wanted. I really don’t know. I didn’t truly know Eddie well enough to make that call. I had known Eddie for more than 10 years, though. I considered him a friend, and deep down, like most people who knew him, I genuinely liked him a lot. I can’t say with any certainty whether Eddie would have wanted his memory to be such a large part of the current SmackDown product.

I was truly blessed to have been Eddie’s roommate on the December 2004 SmackDown tour of Iraq. It had been quite a while since I’d had a roommate in WWE. Sure, I’ve been a notorious cheapskate on the road for many years — and many of the legendary tales of my thriftiness are not altogether undeserved. I will confess to sleeping on the cot at the Red Roof while representing the WWE as world champion, and I am the proud initiator of “Foley’s Four Hour Doctrine,” which settles the hotel vs. airport debate at a strict four hour limit. More than four hours before a wake up call for an early flight: hotel. Less than four hours: airport. You can read a book, listen to music, watch a DVD, (although I never owned a DVD player when traveling), and catch a nap. Just don’t waste hard-earned money on such a short hotel stay.

I’ve mellowed over the years. Father Time seemed to release the vice-like grip I’d had on my wallet for so many years. I traveled less, learned to love the tranquility of solitary, 200-mile drives, and learned that sleep was far more fruitful when not accompanied by drunken voices, loud sex, police sirens and the occasional gunshot. So, over the years, I grew out of the habit of rooming with anyone — to the point where I actually feared the potential of such an occurrence.

Such an occurrence was inevitable in Iraq. I shudder to think of the sounds that would come out of Big Show’s body. I shuddered as well at the prospect of the words that would come out of JBL’s mouth. Fortunately, I got Eddie. I may not have known Eddie as well as I might have, but I remember breathing a sigh of relief when “Foley and Guererro” was announced. For Eddie Guerrero was respected and admired not only for his incredible in-ring abilities, but also for his kindness, soft-spoken demeanor and deep faith.

We stayed up late the first night talking not only of wrestling, but of God and family as well. Actually, I’m not sure we talked about wrestling at all.
So often in life, we fail to tell people who are important to us just how we feel about them until it’s too late. Upon hearing of Eddie’s death, my sole source of comfort (other than firmly believing that Eddie Guerrero is in a better place) was that I had not been a victim of that failure. I had been able to tell Eddie how much I had enjoyed spending time with him and getting to know him better.

No, I didn’t know Eddie as well as some. And, as I mentioned earlier, I’m not an expert on what Eddie would have wanted. But, I have to believe that what Eddie would have wanted — and what we gave him last Friday on SmackDown — are two very different things.

I do not believe that Eddie’s wife appreciated the “Eddie’s in Hell” declaration. She just lost her husband. Mourning his loss is difficult enough.

I do not believe that Randy Orton needs this type of cheap heat to be effective. No one knows better than I that Randy is an incredible talent. He can wrestle, he can talk, and he exudes an extreme brand of cockiness in the ring that makes him a natural bad guy. He doesn’t need this.

I’m not against having Eddie’s memory as an enduring legacy of SmackDown. I was touched by Batista’s recent heartfelt words, and I don’t doubt for a moment that Rey Mysterio feels genuinely motivated by his late mentor’s spirit. And as I’ve told Chavo on a few different occasions, I considered the frog splash a tribute to Eddie on the night of his death to be one WWE’s truly great moments.

But the recent SmackDown episode did not honor his legacy, it exploited his death. I hope it will end, and the sooner the better. For by exploiting his death we achieve what I thought wouldn’t be possible: We cheapen his life.

credit : wwe.com and mick foley

[Brad Russ]

Originally Posted by Chad Michael Murray

For those who are interested, here is Mick Foley's latest blog which deals with this issue:

I know I promised to share some thoughts on Ric Flair this week, but I honestly feel that I need to address a subject that is more urgent. Like a lot of you, I had some strong feelings about last Friday’s “Eddie’s in Hell” episode of SmackDown, Apparently, some of my fellow WWE performers feel like I have a certain amount of “juice” in the company, and I feel like my thoughts will probably echo, to some degree, what is on their minds.

To a large degree, I am enjoying writing “Foley is Blog.” I hope you’ve enjoyed it as well. But, in a certain sense, I regret trying to manufacture controversy in order to get people interested in my web log. To be honest with you, the Flair piece was going to be a classic case of bait and switch, as I would bait the reader with the prospect for juicy Foley rebuttal to Flair’s criticisms of me and then switch to a largely complimentary analysis of Ric’s recent in-ring performance. So, for those of you who are interested in such an article, I will try to deliver it next week.

I also wonder if my following concerns might be more appropriately expressed in a personal phone call to Vince McMahon.

Before last Friday Night’s SmackDown, the Rey Mysterio/Eddie Guerrero stuff made me feel a little … weird. And not “weird in a good way,” either. More like weird in an uncomfortable way. Weird in an “I’m not sure this should really be on a wrestling show” way.

I know there has been a lot of talk since Eddie’s death about what Eddie would have wanted. I really don’t know. I didn’t truly know Eddie well enough to make that call. I had known Eddie for more than 10 years, though. I considered him a friend, and deep down, like most people who knew him, I genuinely liked him a lot. I can’t say with any certainty whether Eddie would have wanted his memory to be such a large part of the current SmackDown product.

I was truly blessed to have been Eddie’s roommate on the December 2004 SmackDown tour of Iraq. It had been quite a while since I’d had a roommate in WWE. Sure, I’ve been a notorious cheapskate on the road for many years — and many of the legendary tales of my thriftiness are not altogether undeserved. I will confess to sleeping on the cot at the Red Roof while representing the WWE as world champion, and I am the proud initiator of “Foley’s Four Hour Doctrine,” which settles the hotel vs. airport debate at a strict four hour limit. More than four hours before a wake up call for an early flight: hotel. Less than four hours: airport. You can read a book, listen to music, watch a DVD, (although I never owned a DVD player when traveling), and catch a nap. Just don’t waste hard-earned money on such a short hotel stay.

I’ve mellowed over the years. Father Time seemed to release the vice-like grip I’d had on my wallet for so many years. I traveled less, learned to love the tranquility of solitary, 200-mile drives, and learned that sleep was far more fruitful when not accompanied by drunken voices, loud sex, police sirens and the occasional gunshot. So, over the years, I grew out of the habit of rooming with anyone — to the point where I actually feared the potential of such an occurrence.

Such an occurrence was inevitable in Iraq. I shudder to think of the sounds that would come out of Big Show’s body. I shuddered as well at the prospect of the words that would come out of JBL’s mouth. Fortunately, I got Eddie. I may not have known Eddie as well as I might have, but I remember breathing a sigh of relief when “Foley and Guererro” was announced. For Eddie Guerrero was respected and admired not only for his incredible in-ring abilities, but also for his kindness, soft-spoken demeanor and deep faith.

We stayed up late the first night talking not only of wrestling, but of God and family as well. Actually, I’m not sure we talked about wrestling at all.
So often in life, we fail to tell people who are important to us just how we feel about them until it’s too late. Upon hearing of Eddie’s death, my sole source of comfort (other than firmly believing that Eddie Guerrero is in a better place) was that I had not been a victim of that failure. I had been able to tell Eddie how much I had enjoyed spending time with him and getting to know him better.

No, I didn’t know Eddie as well as some. And, as I mentioned earlier, I’m not an expert on what Eddie would have wanted. But, I have to believe that what Eddie would have wanted — and what we gave him last Friday on SmackDown — are two very different things.

I do not believe that Eddie’s wife appreciated the “Eddie’s in Hell” declaration. She just lost her husband. Mourning his loss is difficult enough.

I do not believe that Randy Orton needs this type of cheap heat to be effective. No one knows better than I that Randy is an incredible talent. He can wrestle, he can talk, and he exudes an extreme brand of cockiness in the ring that makes him a natural bad guy. He doesn’t need this.

I’m not against having Eddie’s memory as an enduring legacy of SmackDown. I was touched by Batista’s recent heartfelt words, and I don’t doubt for a moment that Rey Mysterio feels genuinely motivated by his late mentor’s spirit. And as I’ve told Chavo on a few different occasions, I considered the frog splash a tribute to Eddie on the night of his death to be one WWE’s truly great moments.

But the recent SmackDown episode did not honor his legacy, it exploited his death. I hope it will end, and the sooner the better. For by exploiting his death we achieve what I thought wouldn’t be possible: We cheapen his life.

credit : wwe.com and mick foley

No wonder this guy is my all time favorite wrestler!! I agree with him 150 percent, and his words are exactly what I feel regarding the Eddie Guerrero situation. Way to go Mick!! You are the man!!!

[Johnny S]

I really don't like them using Eddie's death for storyline purposes either. But, what's new? WWE's creative writers haven't had a good idea for about 5 years. IMO since the Attitude Era WWE has been on a constant decline. Recently it has been better (While they had the belt off Cena), but no where near as good as it was about 7 or 8 years back.

[Ireneparalegal]

We cheapen his life - That statement says it all!!!!!

[moeee]

I'm not surprised what Vince is doing. Do you guys remember the Katie Vick scene? That was terrible too.