Ric Flair's umpteenth return to the ring just brings a smile to my face. It's just friendly reminder as to how we haven't seen the last of Shawn Michaels.

The words pro wrestling and retirement go together like the words Ray Lewis and Innocent. I had to.

I read somewhere that the first fan who entered the Impact Zone received a WWE Hall of Fame ring. However he/she had to defend his/her ring against the rest of the members of the Impact Zone in a battle royal extravaganza.

But then the winner of said battle royal had their ring taken by Hulk Hogan, and Mike Tenay informed them that we'd find out who Hogan would award the ring to the following week on Impact...Even though a clear cut winner had already been determined with the stipulations previously explained. All in a day's work.

I just hope Shawn Michaels, who is my favorite wrestler of all time, doesn't do what Flair is doing now. During HBK's farewell speech, I believe him saying that he is going to keep his promise to The Undertaker was a subtle shot at Ric Flair, rightfully so. Ric Flair still wrestling diminishes HBK's role as "the man who retired Ric Flair". When Flair first came to TNA, I was alright with it because I thought he would be manager type but not an active wrestler. It is sad to see Ric Flair bleeding every week. At least when WWE had blood, they saved it for the main events on PPV's and maybe every now and then on RAW or Smackdown but not every week on TV.

Wow! I just voted - and I never thought I'd be in the majority!

Now, if they can leave Wolfe's charactor alone so it makes sense...

Couldn't disagree with you more, Kev. Where you saw sad, I saw beautiful. It's amazing that Flair can still give us, the fans, quality main event matches at age 61. Flair's retirement should be up to Flair, not Vince McMahon. Keep up the good work, Flair. WOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

RESPONSE FROM KE: Quality main event matches? Really?

I like Kevin Eck's review of RAW and iMPACT shows because what he is saying really hits the point. Wade Keller and James Caldwell are sort of biased reviewers.

"By the way, is TNA ever going to tell us who kidnapped Joe, or are we supposed to pretend it never happened? …"

Based on what Hogan and Bischoff said right before his return, I guess one or both of them had something to do with it. I'd like to know what happened to him while he was gone and why they did it. If I were to guess, I would say that Bischoff wanted him to regain his old intensity and thought he needed a fire lit under him (Bischoff was seen chewing Joe out the night of his kidnapping, right before he went to the ring and lost to Orlando Jordan), but I'd like to know for sure.

"On a side note, did RVD call Hogan “Hulky?” …"

Yeah, more than once. I wonder how Hogan feels about it. I kind of hope it catches on and we get "HULKY! HULKY! HULKY!" chants in the near future.

"The highlight was the verbal and physical exchange between “The Pope” D’Angelo Dinero and Mr. Anderson. Both of these guys have really come into their own, especially Anderson. He is doing an excellent job of portraying a thoroughly unlikable heel with no redeeming qualities. Sticking his thumb in Dinero’s injured eye was a great heat-getter. …"

Absolutely. Watching and listening to those two guys almost makes up for all the crap TNA has made us sit through.

I wish they wouldnt have The Pope, who is over with the fans, take a beat down every week. At some point he has to be allowed to "win" a confrontation or he will become irrelavent.

Kev, I couldn't agree more with your analysis of Flair. Having been a fan of "The Nature Boy" forever, it made me sad to see him in the ring back in WWE when he was fighting the hardcore bouts against Mick Foley and the blood-letting against Big Show when Show was ECW champ. But after that 'retirement' weekend, where, I'm sure like you and many others, cried like it was a family members' funeral, I feel cheated. I feel he may end up being a casualty in the ring if he keeps it up........

You know Kevin, seeing Ric Flair covered in blood that way was the closest I've come to crying at how far a man has fallen as I've come in a long time. The only word for it is the only word you needed to say:sad...

Turns out Joe wasn't kidnapped -- he was just "Lost in Cleveland."

RESPONSE FROM KE: Nice.

Ric Flair was sent off at WM24, but you can tell, even watching the video at the end, that he hesitates (:30-:50) as he says it's the final match of in that ring. He was basically forced from the WWE and they are stupid not to find a place for him as great as he is. That's right, is, not was. He isn't a quality enough wrestler but he could have brought a lot to the WWE and he was willing to do so. If anyone in this business has the right to wrestle until he's 100 years old, it's Flair. Let him go out on his own terms, whatever they may be.

Wrestling isnt the same anymore. WWE has young guys on their roster but no talent in any of them. TNA has young stars but dont push them, theyd rather give push to old giezers such as Ric Flair and Hogan. Whats up with Batista? Is he hurt again? WWE has no top notch heel and too many goodie goodie guys. Makes it unwatchable. TNA was good before Flair, Hogan and Bischoff.

When I first saw "The Wrestler," I thought of it as a touching story of a man re-discovering the thing he loved most in life--wrestling. Now, thanks to Ric Flair, I see that movie not as a feel-good story, but as a tragedy of a man who just didn't know when to walk away.

Ok I just don't get it..I see the rating for both programs and just think to myself that TNA is just a better program.It's still a little messy in spots,but the upside is we see good to great matches on free TV.Kev,I'm with you on the Flair wrestling thing...wish he'd just do the JJ Dillon mgr thing..but he still outworks 90 percent of all talent on earth.I like that TNA is pushing new stars..do you think the Pope or Desmond or even Big Rob would get this kind of push in Vince Land?RVD gives them a "Big Time" champ.Love the new rating system with fan voting,it gives the impression that WE have some control over booking and programs.The only real thing I can't figure out is how badly Joe is being used..give him a gimmick and let him run..he is so over with the TNA crowd.The one really good thing is that all of Hogan's croonies have been shown the door..ie The Nasty Boys and prob BTLS.I truely hope that TNA and Spike TV will work together and push this show harder..I know that UFC is thier true focus,but this is a great product....Just one mans thought.As always thank you Kevin and God Bless. Phil 4:13

I like the backstage documentary-style segments that TNA has started doing, like the ones Monday with Abyss, Team 3D and Flair. They look completely different than anything on WWE shows. The news ticker that runs across the screen periodically also is a nice touch.

I have to agree with you Kevin on this and really hope TNA keep this up. It definitely adds a unique touch for interviews.

The WWE sendoff wasn't the first retirement for Ric Flair, and it may very well not be the last. Bleeding is just part of Flair's repertoire, just like climbing the ropes only to get thrown or flopping to the ground after taking a heavy beating. It's just part of his style. I don't see the clamor of Flair losing "dignity" here. He's trying to put a lesser known wrestler over with his name recognition. That's a good thing.

The people who want Flair to retire seem to want it so the WWE retirement is "respected". Flair made it known to WWE that he still wanted to be a part of wrestling even if retired, and he was clearly so out of money that he needed the work. Why should he respect the forced retirement of a company that wouldn't even give him so much as a managerial role?

RESPONSE FROM KE: Flair had a job with WWE for life if he wanted it as an ambassador for the company. He wanted to do outside projects that WWE had to OK and apparently they didn't allow him to do certain things, so he felt it was in his best interests to leave. And yes, I think he wanted to continue to wrestle, but if that was the case, he should not have allowed WWE to give him the sendoff they did. Everyone who shed a tear for Flair retiring and/or paid money for WrestleMania largely because they wanted to see Flair's last match have been played for suckers.

Really do agree with your point about Flair. For me the manager role with AJ really worked, I think they've got real chemistry and it gives AJ credibility from a wider audience. Flair is still the best in the business on the mic and I love seeing him each week, he just does not need to fight.

On Morgan, this guy is great and even though he should be in a main event there is not enough room up there at the moment so I like the fact he's eeking out his own angle lower down the pecking order and it does mean he can walk over people and put himself over as a bully

The falls-count-anywhere match that saw Styles and Sting defeat Hardy and Jeff Jarrett was OK but it only went about seven minutes. I was surprised that Hardy didn’t follow through and take the big bump off the ladder onto Styles.

Ah ha, so THAT'S why TNA only scored a 0.5 in the ratings! Wrestling fans love to watch wrestlers risk their careers (pronounced "lives") as often as possible, typically 2-3 times per match. If it's only once or zero, then what's the point of the match? I hope Hardy, Jarrett, Sting, and AJ were at least covered in blood at the end of 7 minutes to make up for the fact that no one reenacted an action movie stunt. Then, the fans in attendance would at least know where to look, right?

E-C-W! E-C-W! E-C-W! E-C-W!

I'm surprised by the ratings because overall I thought it was another strong Impact. And I really liked the backstage interviews - very candid and realistic.

Despite being a long-time fan of WWE, rarely drifting from the product to view anything else, I find TNA's offering to be fresh and exciting, and I really hope it takes off. I DVR both programs, but lately, I've been watching TNA first.

Flair just looked 9 million years old on this show between how he was presented in the documentary interview and the match with Abyss. He needs to solely cut promos as a manger and maybe wrestle on PPV once or twice a year. Spilling a bucket of blood and losing to the annoying Mankind knockoff that nobody cares about is not a good role for Flair right now.

Seems to me that one of these headlines down the road will read, "Legendary Wrestler Ric Flair dies in ring". This just cannot be good for a 61 year old man.

I myself turn the channel when it's Flairs' turn to get in the ring. I don't mind watching his promos - but when it's time to wrestle - I'm not interested in seeing a once all time great, bleed all over the place just to get ratings on a show that was doing good before the Hogan takeover. Ric has been a hero of mine since the 80's. I bought the Wrestlemanina DVD with his last match & have yet to watch that match. i did see his hall of fame induction & it was a great moment in wrestling for me. No one but Ric knows why he chose to get back in the game ($$), but i would have stayed behind & let the new talent start to shine. Right now, there really is no "next big star" in either company.... BTW Go Madison Rayne, Woo-ho!! ;-)

The Video of Rick Flair retiring from the ring was classy and very professsional. I am now 53 years old and have seen Mr. Flair wrestle for years. He is a cleass act and I believe TNT is just using him and Hogin.

I agree on the Flair blood stuff. I was at this show when they taped it and they didn't show the a couple of fans in the front having to leave because Flair apparantly bled on them when he and Abyss were fighting. Plus, if you thought Flair looked bad in HD, seeing him live at this stage in his career is even worse. TNA's big catchphrase was "Cross the Line," they need to draw the line when it comes to Flair bleeding on a weekly basis.

I've become a big fan of D'Angelo Dinero and if this is the start of a program between he and Anderson, I'm all for it. You got two guys with a lot of skill on the mic and who are pretty good workers in the ring. WWE really dropped the ball letting him go.

Again: TNA, is vibrant, growing promotion.
Very few things in Life (never-mind Business), happen overnight.

Yet, again: "The Nature Boy" Ric Flair,
for year-after-year, has given his blood, sweat, and tears, for his many, many,
ticketing buying fans, and for his loved-ones. Ric, knows far-better than
You and I, that this is NOT 1980. Over, and over, his done the "right" thing for The business. Ask some of the young talent, that his worked with.

I agree with Roddy Piper: He's a BORN
Motivational Speaker, Mentor, Wrestling-school owner, Wrestling "manager",
any number of roles.

Still, we can't be angry at Ric nor his employer, for enabling Ric to do, what's he's done for over 30-years: PERFORM.
Yet, we can ask, to stop the "color".
Ric, and his fans, deserve better.

I'm praying that Impact will start one Monday night without someone cutting a promo. It seems that every single week, at the top of the show, we ALWAYS have someone (usually Hogan) coming out and talking for ten minutes about how good they are and how awesome TNA is now that things have "changed". I would love it if they could just maybe start the wrestling program with, oh I don't know, a wrestling match maybe? I know WWE is guilty of this too, but at least they sometimes actually have wrestling matches to open to the show. It's just boring. I watch all my wrestling on YouTube every week, so if next week's Impact starts with anything other than a wrestling match, I'm skipping it.

And as for Ric Flair completely disgracing the amazing send off WWE gave him two years ago...well it is just really, really sad. It doesn't even make me angry any more. It's just so sad to see now. No one in the history of the business has ever had a send off like Flair had. And the night after WrestleMania 24 on Raw will be forever remembered as having one of the best closing segments of all time. And I know that Flair just missed the business so much and he just couldn't live without competing, which is fair enough, but it's getting beyond ridiculous now. It's not like he's even putting on quality matches. And the fact that TNA keeps using the Hall of Fame rings that are from their rival company is just weird too. It's the WWE Hall of Fame, not the Wrestling Hall of Fame. So why would TNA make those rings props and have them featured so heavily on the show if they're from a company that they are supposed to be competing with? Backward is not the right word.

It is sad that Flair doesn't know when to say when. It's all about Flair trying to get all the ring time possible while he still can. It's not to put over new talent. He can try to put over all the new guys he wants but beating up a 61 year old man even if he used to be great 20 years ago isn't a great accomplishment. He put over Hogan on TNA and in Australia and Hogan doesn't need to be "put over" any more than he already is.

It would have been better if he would have just built up younger guys with his promos but even that is too far gone now. His credibility is gone. When he does have his last match no one will give him the credit he should have for an outstanding career. I can't imagine TNA will give him a better send off than WWE did.

I felt bad for Flair out there, but saying he did all that for "nothing" is silly at best. TNA got hurt in the ratings this week, but that was because of the heavily hyped 3 hour WWE Draft. Ratings on Thursday will show that Flair certainly didn't do it for "nothing"...

Plus it's Flair's career and he can still go for a decent amount in the ring. As for the blood? Yeah it wasn't needed, but Flair was still busted from his match the weekend before and since this was taped only two days after Lockdown, he was reopened as a result.

Ric Flair - Enhancement Talent aka Jobber to the Stars

Pathetic legacy to leave. Absolutely pathetic.

Don't know if it matters. Steve Austin was talking about TNA on his Twitter account and said some good things about Ric Flair but wanted to change the channel on Hoga when he came out. I guess Steve Austin understands why Ric Flair is back in wrestling. Good for Austin to get out and take advantage of movie opprtunities.

Matthew - you only got The Wrestler after Monday? There won't be a sequel because he died in the ring, then again, it was about pro wrestling so maybe not. The banners were annoying to me. I was surprised that Madison Rayne got a clean pin and also happy about that, 3 way matches can be such a mess but this one wasn't. Velvet Sky was looking so great and then they sent her back stage, knew it had to happen but as Ron Simmons would say, "D*MN." Hated the Flair thing also and have loved him since Jack Brisco put him over by jobbing in the mid 70's in Tampa. Hogan didn't need to enforce the ring thing but then - it's Hogan so he had to because it's always all about him. As for the ratings, WWE was on at 8pm and it was the Draft Show and the matches were decent so the flipping wasn't going to happen as much.

I think it is amazing that people don't seem to understand that ric flair is an adult and can do whatever he wants.
Ric Flair has bills to pay just like everyone else. If you don't like ric flair in the ring first I say get over it and second don't watch. Yes, many fans of his are upset that he is back in the ring but don't pretend to speak for everyone. I have always been and will always be a fan of ric flair and nothing is going to change because of his comeback in TNA. Third to discuss ratings with TNA in regard to Ric Flair is misleading. TNA has had trouble in this area from the start, it should be noted that Sting, Kurt Angle, Hulk Hogan, Kevin Nash, Roddy Piper, RVD and Jeff Hardy among others have all appeared in TNA and they have had difficulty with ratings and becoming mainstream. Lastly, Ric Flair never wanted to retire, he said throughout the angle leading up to wrestlemania. He was forced out. The angle was botched from the start and the only time it received any sort of attention was around wrestlemania, so please stop this ric flair is screwing the WWE. Ric Flair helped make the WWE money. If you have a problem with the send off and the ceremony take it up with McMahon. And to say he was allowed to have a ceremony is ridiculous. He is considered by many as the greatest ever and certainly one of the biggest names of all time, there will never be another ric flair. For all the HBK fans for which I am one. If he comes back and wrestles again I hope to see the same sort of reaction that Ric Flair has received because he will have lied to you as he said he was retiring. I dont want to hear about age or anything else, I watched him lose to the undertaker and it is my impression that was his last match, so hold him to that same standard as you do ric flair or you will be just a hypocrit.

Royal One, are you Ric Flair? Come on be honest, thats you right Ric? Only you would write that.

And as far as Flair putting over a lesser known wrestler with his name recognition. How is beating a senior citezen gonna put someone over?

JJ, as much as I appreciate being
confused with a Pro Wrestling LEGEND,
I'm not Ric.

Texas Stadium 1980 something, Flair
drops the strap to a semi-coherent
Kerry Von Erich.

"Put someone over", JJ, I didn't mean just
last night.

I don't really care if WWE gave Flair a great send off, only to have him come back and wrestle again. That's his business and not mine. However, seeing a 61 yr old man bleed the way he does every week is pretty sad, whether it's Flair or some other 61 yr old.

Ric Flair looks like an old bald eagle now I mean TNA can do better... 60 yr old greatgrandfathers fighting cmon Total Nonstop Atrocity get with it

What's happened with Flair is a complete disgrace to Flair, the industry, to TNA, and everyone involved with TNA.

Forget Flair in the ring, I can't believe people see him as a mouthpiece anymore. When he talks it seems like his teeth are ready to fall out, it's downright disturbing.

Brian Knobbs kidnapped Samoa Joe. You can see him clearly running at the end (he is the hugely overweight one) of the video if you look slowly at it. But now they've been let go, I doubt the angle will continue. Although the Nasty Boys still say they are in TNA.

Hey man! I've been reading ur blog since a long tym! Nice wrk u got dere. 1st or mayb 2nd thing i check's ur blog. N abt i hbk man! I jst read on 24wrestling dat hogan wen askd who ws next on tna made de dx sign. N dixie sed on twitr she's sik ov him revealing deir cmpny secrts. C, i ws cheking diva pics. Cud nt find eve so slctd shw al divas. Ws Lookin 4 her wen i saw dis. I dunno 4 sure though cuz it ws nt in de main articles

I will never get tired of watching the greatest wrestler in history go to the ring but I agree that there is a better way to represent ones self. I think there are not enough wrestlers out there willing to bleed for the business...other than Triple H I cant remember a match when I have seem someone bleed to bring that really strong sense of realism. How about that match between The Game and The Natureboy at Taboo Tuesday talk about a bloodbath. I was glued to that match because of the blood. Oh yah will we ever see another Hell in The Cell match at Wrestlemania?....maybe at Takers last hooorah u think?