Franchise

I didn't watch this at all last season and I'm mad I didn't. After watching the 1st two episodes I'm hooked.

SmackDown! Writer’s Meeting

March 30, 2004

2:00 pm

Stephanie McMahon, Dave Lagana, Bruce Prichard, & Paul Heyman, who was there as a consultant, were backstage at the SmackDown! taping to discuss future plans for the show.

Stephanie – Well to open things up lets talk about Eddie Guerrero. With Brock Lesnar gone and Kurt Angle not wrestling we have a gap that needs to be filled. Who makes the best contender for the WWE Championship.

Prichard - In my mind I truly believe that Bradshaw is the man most deserving of the push. With his new character he reminds me a lot of the Million Dollar Man. We can do vignettes on his success in Wall Street and really get him to draw a lot of heat.

Lagana – He isn’t ready for that large of a push yet. His character needs more time to develop. The choice has to be the Big Show. Show is the only true main event heel we have left.

Heyman – Didn’t Big Show just recently ask for time off? And plus, he’s too hurt to put on decent title matches even with Eddie. I say that Booker T is the man for the job. We can use his “SmackDown is the minor leagues” attitude to create a super heel.

Stephanie – All three of you have strong arguments. I think we’ll choose the right man. How about Kurt Angle? Do you guys like him as the GM?

Lagana – The way I see it is he’s not perfect for the role but with his neck in the shape it is this is the only way we can use him.

Prichard – There needs to be a twist in this. I think we should have some wrestler injure Angle and put him in a wheel chair. This will allow him to play the bitter GM who lashes out against the wrestlers.

Heyman – I have to agree with Bruce. People are used to Kurt playing a comical character. This will be a good change and also an opportunity to bring in a talent from OVW as his bodyguard.

Stephanie – Excellent thinking Paul. Travis Tomko and Horshu have each progressed nicely and either could make the perfect bodyguard. Another debuting talent is Vince's creation, Mordecai. His character has great potential.

Prichard – He will be great. We just need run some promos hyping him up and the fans will be fascinated.

Heyman – Mordecai is perfect for a feud with the Undertaker.

Lagana – True, but we shouldn’t rush that. It should be a slow methodical process much like the feud Taker just had with Kane.

Stephanie – Okay the last topic for today is Teddy Long. He needs to be managing someone and now.

Heyman – Why not have him manage Charlie Haas. Charlie is a great talent but he doesn’t have much character and Teddy could represent him excellently.

Prichard – I don’t see the need to give Haas a manager. He could be pushed similarly to Shelton his ex-partner. We give him a few lucky wins and he’s over instantly. Long should be paired with Mark Jindrak. Mark has a great look and could get it done in the ring but I don’t see him getting over on his own.

Stephanie – Actually Dave and I have found what we feel is the perfect gimmick for Mark Jindrak. Until we decide on who Teddy Long will manage I have a way to use him on TV. And speaking of managers, Paul, how would you like to be a manager again?

Heyman – I would love to be a manager again Stephanie.

Stephanie – I’ll tell you what I have in mind later. Well boys we accomplished what we needed to but there is more business to attend to. Let’s make sure we bring SmackDown back to greatness.

That concluded the meeting. Although multiple topics were discussed there was still much the was needed to be done in order to rebuild the ailing SmackDown!

General Manager – Eric Bischoff

Main Event

Chris Benoit – F

Shawn Michaels – F

The Rock – F (Leave of Absence)

Triple H – H

Upper Midcard

Chris Jericho – F

Christian – H

Kane - H

Mick Foley – F

Randy Orton – H

Ric Flair – H

Midcard

A-Train - H

Batista – H

Lita - F

Matt Hardy – F

Molly - H

Rhyno - F

Scott Steiner – H (Injured)

Shelton Benjamin – F

Tajiri – F

Test – H (Injured)

The Hurricane - F

Trish Stratus - H

Val Venis – F

Lower Midcard

Chuck Palumbo - H

Eugene – F

Gail Kim - H

Garrison Cade – H

Mark Henry – H (Injured)

Maven – F

Nidia - F

Rosey – F

Rob Conway – H

Rodney Mack – H (Injured)

Steven Richards - T

Sylvan Grenier – H

Victoria – F

Others

Al Snow - T

Johnny Nitro – H

Stacy Keibler - F

The Coach - H

William Regal - T

Title Holders

World Heavyweight Champion – Chris Benoit

Intercontinental Champion – Randy Orton

Women’s Champion – Victoria

World Tag Team Champions – Ric Flair & Batista

General Manager – Kurt Angle

Main Event

Big Show - H

Eddie Guerrero – F

The Undertaker – F

Upper Midcard

Booker T – H

John Bradshaw Layfield – H

John Cena - F

Rob Van Dam – F

Midcard

Billy Gunn – F

Billy Kidman - F

Bubba Ray Dudley – F

Charlie Haas – H

Chavo Guerrero – H

D-Von Dudley – F

Hardcore Holly – F

Rene Dupree – H

Rey Mysterio – F

Rico – F

Rikishi – F

Ultimo Dragon – F (Leave of Absence)

Lower Midcard

Danny Basham – H

Doug Basham – H

Funaki – F

Jamie Noble - H

Johnny ‘The Bull’ Stamboli - H

Mark Jindrak – H

Nunzio – H

Orlando Jordan – F

Scotty 2 Hotty – F

Shannon Moore – F

Spike Dudley – F

Openers

Akio – H

Paul London – F

Sakoda – H

Others

Chavo Classic - H

Dawn Marie – H

Miss Jackie - F

Paul Bearer - F

Paul Heyman – H

Sable - T

Theodore Long - H

Torrie Wilson – F

Title Holders

WWE Heavyweight Champion – Eddie Guerrero

United States Champion – John Cena

Cruiserweight Champion – Chavo Guerrero

WWE Tag Team Champions – Rikishi & Scotty 2 Hotty

Yes & Yes. It begins on April 1, 2004 to be exact.

Rosters up Tuesday.

RAW, Smackdown, Seinfeld, BDSSP, & I, Max

The Backstory

Wrestlemania XX on March 14, 2004 was considered by many to be the greatest event in WWE history. It was stamped with the motto, “Where it All Begins Again”. It marked the climax of Vincent Kennedy McMahon’s 20 year saga of sports entertainment and couldn’t have taken place on a grander stage than Madison Square Garden. However, not all was well as it appeared to be. Wrestlemania marked the last time that Bill Goldberg and Brock Lesnar would ever wrestle in the WWE. They both left to pursue other interests and were soon followed by “Stone Cold” Steve Austin. The man who was the biggest moneymaker in the company. Three giant names were lost and it only got worse. Kurt Angle’s neck was deteriorating at a tremendous rate and he needed to stop wrestling immediately (for the time being). There was also The Rock who made a brief comeback before going on yet another extended leave of absence to be a star in Hollywood. And the Undertaker was back as the dead man but only in a part-time role due to his injuries. The date March 14, 2004 will be remembered as the biggest night in WWE history for it's share of good and bad reasons. With a hevily damaged roster Mr. McMahon found himself in a dilemma he had not faced before. So he decided to shuffle the rosters a bit and even things out on RAW and SmackDown!. Now he finds himself in an interesting situation. Will he go to his already established names like Triple H and The Undertaker or will he be making new stars out of his fresh young talent in order to save the company? WCW had the exact same problem and chose to go with their established stars. We all know how that worked out. Wrestlemania XX ended with a shot Chris Benoit and Eddie Guerrero celebrating as champions of their respective brands. So perhaps there will be a rebirth of the “new generation”? The talent is definitely there, it's just up to them to use it. We will just have to wait and see what happens with WWE in the coming time and if the statement, "Where it All Begins Again" holds true. This is The Never-Ending Story of World Wrestling Entertainment.

Just seeing my favorite diary ever brought back makes my day. Thank you TGC.

Great to see this back. Hoping that it goes on and on.

Alright, after speaking with two out of three of you, we're moving on, its not the same without TGC.

Ray, get ahold of me as soon as you can, I need a list of 35 workers from you

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Well, it was fun while it lasted.