Christmas Wish List: Team Rhodes Scholars

Team Rhodes Scholars
WWE Raw
Photo courtesy: WWE.com

By Kevin Hunsperger
@kevinhunsperger & @my123cents on Twitter

I'll admit when Damien Sandow and Cody Rhodes first started teaming up, I wasn't impressed.  I was afraid they were just another flash in the pan team paired together because they're two singles stars with nothing better to do.  It reminded me of the way Cody was thrown together with Drew McIntyre, only to split a few months later.

But lately, Team Rhodes Scholars has grown on me.  The only real complaint is the way the WWE insists on adding the word "team" in front of tag team names.  Imagine Team Hart Foundation or Team Demolition or Team Bushwhackers.  It doesn't sound right.

Anyway, on the 12/10/12 episode of Raw, Cody Rhodes returned after being seriously injured early in November, and Team Rhodes Scholars defeated the Usos (who really impressed me too by the way), The Prime Time Players, and The Colons.  By winning the four way elimination match, Sandow and Rhodes now face Sin Cara and Rey Mysterio at TLC for the right to face the champions, Team Hell No at a later date.

I have no doubt this match Sunday will be a good one.  These four guys know how to do it in the ring, and even with the weakness Sin Cara brings to the mix, I think the other three will help carry him into an excellent tag team contest.

Courtesy: WWE.com

So my wish for Team Rhodes Scholars is to win the match against Rey-Sin (I don't know if that works or not) and go on to face Daniel Bryan and Kane again.  I do think in the not so distant future, the duo of Sandow and Rhodes will be the tag team champions.  I love the fact that the WWE has been working to rebuild the tag team ranks.  Sure there are things I could nit pick and be critical of, but I'm going to keep this positive.  Team Rhodes Scholars continues to prove themselves in the ring and on the mic and I look forward to seeing more of this tandem in the months ahead.  I'm also curious to see where the mustache is going for Cody.

Nick: The Elf on the Shelf

Nick makes his return in 2012

By Kevin Hunsperger
@kevinhunsperger on Twitter

If you're a regular here, you've figured out by now this is not going to be a wrestling related post.  Standby, the wrestling isn't going anywhere, I'm just expanding my horizons with this blog and phasing out my old one.

I have a lot of female friends who blog.  Many of them call themselves "Mommy Bloggers" and they talk about a variety of things.  This is more of a "Daddy Blog" today, but I'm entering uncharted waters, as Elf on the Shelf is something I've only seen the moms blog about.

But I love Christmas and the tradition of Elf on the Shelf.  In 2007 we received our elf as a gift from St. Nicholas.  We celebrate that holiday each December 5 by hanging stockings.  St. Nick comes overnight and fills the socks with candy, toys, and a Christmas ornament for each of my three kids.  When we received the Elf on the Shelf book and doll five years ago, my children quickly named him "Nick", which seemed appropriate since St. Nick delivered him.

For those who don't know, each night the elf appears somewhere in your home and leaves at night to report back to Santa how the children are behaving.  When the kids wake up in the morning, the elf is in a new spot somewhere in the house.  The first few years, Nick was pretty tame around here.  But over the last couple of years, he's been getting into some trouble.  My daughter rushes out of bed each morning to find Nick and what kind of hijinks he's up to.  So here are a few of the more fun pics from last few years.  I'll update them this season as more are taken.  Enjoy.

Got milk?

Party animal

Making angels

Hey, baby.

Nick on safari, kinda

Cereal killer

Roasting marshmallows

Teepeeing the tree

Christmas Wish List: Jake "The Snake" Roberts

We met Jake the Snake a WrestleReunion 2012
Courtesy: My 1-2-3 Cents

By Kevin Hunsperger
@kevinhunsperger & @my123cents

The intent of my Christmas Wish blogs is to highlight the things I hope for wrestlers in the coming months.  Some of them are written to fit into current storylines, but they are all sincere.  Today's submission is a more serious one.

As many fans know Jake "The Snake" Roberts has struggled with addiction for years.  It's been documented through storylines during his days in the WWE as well as in the film Beyond the Mat.  Recently, former WCW champion "Diamond" Dallas Page has come to Jake's aid, trying to help the ring legend stay sober.  It's part of a project called Accountability Crib.  I don't know a whole lot about it, but I truly hope that it works out for the best for Jake the Snake.

DDP & Jake the Snake
Accountability Crib
Photo Courtesy: Steve Yu

That's really my wish for Jake, and anyone else who is struggling with addiction.  I used to be of the mindset that it was the problem of the addict.  That they didn't want to get better.  However, I don't place all the blame there.  I know that people who are addicted have a real illness.  I understand that in some cases, people who develop a disease like cancer or diabetes, can take steps to prevent the illness, it's the same sort of thing with addiction.  But when critics make fun of or solely blame the addict for being stupid and not quitting the destructive behavior, it annoys me.

I don't know if Jake will stay sober this time, but I applaud him for trying again and putting his struggles out there for all to see.  I also want to commend DDP for helping a fellow wrestler who has been in need for so many years.  This may perhaps be springboard for something much bigger.

Get well Jake.  This is one fan who hasn't abandoned hope and thinks you have the strength to put your personal demons to rest once and for all.

Christmas Wish List: CM Punk

CM Punk undergoes surgery
Photo courtesy: WWE

By Kevin Hunsperger
@kevinhunsperger & @my123cents on Twitter

This is an easy one.  Most of you already know by now, WWE Champion CM Punk underwent knee surgery early this week, forcing him out of his upcoming title defense against Ryback at TLC.  It sounds like things went well with the surgery and Punk is expected to make a full recovery.  No word on how long that might take though.

So my wish for Punk this season is for a full and speedy recovery.  After surpassing John Cena as the longest title reign in the modern era of WWE programming I would hate to see him lose the title due to an injury.  I'm also actually looking forward to him defending the gold against The Rock at the Royal Rumble.  I hope he gets some much needed rest and recovers well and is able to go full steam ahead in the new year, including a defense at Wrestlemania.

Christmas Wish List: Brad Maddox

Brad Maddox
Photo courtesy: WWE

By Kevin Hunsperger
@kevinhunsperger & @my123cents on Twitter

I'm going to go on record and say I enjoy the Brad Maddox character.  That may not be a popular opinion, I haven't done a whole lot of web surfing on him, so I don't know (or care) what the IWC thinks of him.

I'll admit I can't even begin to predict what exactly the WWE has planned for him, but I hope they continue to use him on TV and work something out with him.  When I first saw him as a referee, I figured there were plans for him.  He didn't look like a typical ref.  Right now he's looking more like "Dangerous" Danny Davis in his wrestling endeavors, but at least he's getting some TV time.  I've talked before about the need for new blood on the WWE roster and with the Shield and Brad Maddox and others introduced this year, I fell like we're finally getting it.

So for Brad my Christmas wish is simple.  A permanent spot on the roster and a chance to grow and develop in the new year.

Christmas Wish List: Veronica

Veronica & Mr. Touchdown
Chikara Pro: Under the Hood
Photo by: Larry Powell (@Luckyrock009)

By Kevin Hunsperger
@kevinhunsperger & @my123cents on Twitter

Chikara's season finale "Under the Hood" is in the books and I must say I really enjoyed the show.  I wasn't able to see the main event, but congrats to Eddie Kingston on retaining the Grand Championship.  Something else of note on the show was the crowning of Veronica Ticklefeather as Homecoming Queen.

The majorette turned cheerleader had been campaigning for the honor with her boyfriend Mr. Touchdown.  The two are wrestling's true power couple in my opinion.  After Mr. Touchdown's hard fought Young Lions Cup defense against ACH, it was announced that Veronica was in fact the queen. But to the surprise of Mark Angelosetti, he was not the king.  You'd expect the football star and his cheerleader girlfriend to win the honors, but instead the Mysterious and Handsome Stranger was announced as homecoming king.

Just when it looked like Veronica and the Stranger were going to lock lips, the Stranger dumped a bucket of slop Veronica's head, then unmasked himself as Archibald Peck, a former love interest to Veronica.  The fans cheered with excitement as Archie made the reveal and was eventually escorted from the ring. He technically is banned from Chikara after losing a "Loser Leaves Town" match earlier in the year.

So my wish for Veronica is to continue her reign as queen and to figure out who she wants to be with.  She seems confused again as she seemed prior to the summer of love angle.  I've mentioned it before, I'm not a big fan of wrestling love angles (see the current mess with AJ-John Cena-Vickie Guerrero).  There's something compelling about this storyline to me. Maybe because Chikara isn't on every week rehashing the same stuff.  Maybe it's because I like the characters better.  I don't know the reason, but

I'll tell you I'm looking forward to the season premiere in 2013 and I really hope I'm able to catch another show in person.  The experiences earlier this year in Chicago Ridge and Lafayette were great.

Christmas Wish List: Dolph Ziggler

Photo courtesy: WWE
Reworked on Christmasfy

By Kevin Hunsperger
@kevinhunsperger & @my123cents on Twitter

It's December 1, so I'm breaking out the "Christmas Wish List" blogs again.  I'm starting off with Dolph Ziggler, who I had picked as one of 2012's break out stars in last year's year ender blog.  I still stand by that thought.

Dolph had a good year.  Despite coming up short against CM Punk at the Royal Rumble, Ziggler rebounded well by winning the Money in the Bank match to earn a shot at the World's Heavyweight champion.  To date, Ziggler still hasn't cashed in, and after a few months of ups and downs with Chris Jericho and Randy Orton, it looks like Ziggler is back on the upswing.

He was the sole survivor for his team at Survivor Series and even though I had Team Foley picked to win the event, I'm glad to see they went with Ziggler.  No doubt he's proven himself time and time again, not only looking good in the ring, but making any opponent look like a million bucks too.  Sometimes I think that's become a hindrance to him, but ultimately I believe it'll pay off.

I'm not sure where they're going right now with him and John Cena in his AJ-Vickie Guerrero affair angle, but I certainly hope it wraps up soon and we see Ziggler cash in his briefcase and win.  I don't see it happening with Big Show as the champion, but I wouldn't be surprised to see him take advantage of Sheamus, should he win the title back at TLC later this month.

Personally though, my Christmas wish for Dolph Ziggler is this:  Keep the briefcase until Wrestlemania.  Cash it in and win the world title.  Have your Wrestlemania moment.  Honestly, I have felt that in recent years there hasn't been that big moment, and I don't know if Dolph cashing in and winning the title would qualify, but I do believe it would give him another boost in his quest for domination in the squared circle.  Bottom line, Dolph is one of the best on the roster right now and I think he's more than proven he deserves a run with the gold.