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They canceled the taping because the theme of the episode was the funeral for the Mr. McMahon character after he was blown up in a limo. Given where they were with storylines, they had no choice but to cancel everything and instead do a Benoit tribute episode with older tapes. Had they known when they went on the air what happened, they certainly would not have done that. I've always heard they found out what was suspected halfway through the episode as one person who worked the production has told me that during a break Vince McMahon came out and told the announcers what was suspected and not to bring up Benoit's family going forward. That's why in the start of that episode, JBL discusses what a family man Benoit was and then later on, nothing is said in that regard.
Are WWE, TNA and ROH planning any events to raise funds for the Red Cross to help the tornado victims of Oklahoma City?
ROH immediately put up a story and a link asking fans to donate to the Red Cross. Jim Ross has noted that he's spoken to WWE about doing something. TNA has not, as I write this, officially stated anything, but I would assume they would do so.
Just had a question about HHH's concussion angle. Due to how they're trying to prevent concussions and all the negative press not to mention the people that have been personally affected by it, due you feel the angle was in poor taste and an insult to those affected or do you see it as WWE using it positively as a platform to highlight the dangers?
I think WWE is doing the angle to create a storyline where Triple H makes the miraculous comeback to the ring. I don't have any issue with that. I can see why some people would find it to be exploitative but I see it more as them trying to do a Rocky Balboa story more than anything else. You need your super-heroes to overcome obstacles. This allows one for HHH to overcome and to put more time between he and Brock Lesnar before their inevitable next showdown.
In your opinion how is the Aces and Eights experiment going so far? Some think its at a crossroads. Its gone as far as it can. A fear that it might become stale. Same old. Same old. What advice would you give to make Aces & Eights more exciting, more compelling? To not become another flash in the pan.
I think they took way too long to reveal Bully Ray and then they haven't really allowed him to go all over heel to draw some legitimate heat and money for the company. It's pretty much stuck at one plateau at the moment, especially if the end game is Hulk Hogan beating Bully for the title.
Which storylines do/did you like more, The Shield or Aces & 8's & Austin/McMahon or WCW/nWo?
Different eras. I personally enjoy The Shield storyline more than the TNA storyline because you can make a case that the Shield were made into stars while Aces & Eights has not done that for anyone except Bully. Austin vs. McMahon was far better than WCW vs. the NWO because the latter fell apart and the NWO was far too strong for too long and WCW never got to get any of their momentum back. There was a point where it made sense for the Four Horsemen to be the champions to defend WCW and in the end, they got wiped out as well. When that happened, the storyline sort of fell apart. After the Sting-Hogan debacle at Starrcade, the air slowly left the balloon and never returned. Austin vs. McMahon was the greatest storyline in WWE history. There's no comparison in my mind.
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