As we all know at this point, WWE is more of an entertainment show rather than a variety show. The debate between what is entertaining and what is not has gone back and forth for many years. Vince McMahon is trying his best to find Americas pulse in the hope that he will draw in more viewers by showcasing the hottest and most popular actors, comedians, singers, businessmen, and legends of the industry. Though a few of his choices for guest hosts have been questionable, the majority of them are involved in projects that they are more than happy to plug and shill on national television. Who would have known that Flavor Flav was starring in a twilight zone meets tales from the crypt television series called Nite Tales? Or how would anyone outside of the loop had heard about Kyle Busch and Joey Logano racing in Raw and Smackdown branded racing cars? This was the perfect way for Vince to not only draw in foreign eyes to WWE, but he also allowed the celebrities to have a purpose for coming on the show. Even if they were only on for a couple minutes to tell a bad joke with Santino Marella, the attention was drawn to them. The promos and the constant reminders from the commentators also helped reinforce the project or foundation being talked about. That idea, the general concept of the guest host, is my favorite part about it.

The rest, well, not so much.

I do not know who to blame for some of the writing done for the guest hosts, but a lot of it was terrible. Whether it is corny writing, random appearances by wrestlers, or cliché` behavior that bored the fans, there was always something off about every guest host. Personally, I think it is because the writers are having a hard time constantly changing the format of the show to suit the needs of the host. Their abilities are so various and different from that of the traditional wrestlers that it is almost impossible to get creative with them. Instead the writers have to resort to following a safe template that could work for any guest host, but does not separate them from WWE [superstars]. I always found that the best work came from the guest hosts who were actors or were involved in television to some degree. Naturally WWE and acting go hand in hand, and having actors as guest hosts fits the formula. On the other hand, the way someone is acting can sometimes be a little hammy and out of place within the span of a two hour variety show. So even when the writers have the strength of an actor by their side mistakes can still be made on the dialogue and the delivery of a joke or a serious message. When one thinks WWE, the matches also come to mind. On more than one occasion WWE has allowed their guest hosts to be involved in matches and/or take heavy bumps to or from one of the wrestlers. Seth Green, Cedric the Entertainer, Jeremy Piven, Jon Heder, and recently Will Forte and Wayne Brady have done their best to entertain the fans by getting into the ring. While commendable, it takes a lot of time and training to take a bump a certain way or sell a move to the point that the fans believe it to be real. WCW was known for putting celebrities into the ring LONG before WWE ever had. Jay Leno, Dennis Rodman, David Arquette, and so on and so forth. And again, it is commendable for the celebrities to put their bodies on the line for us, but is it entertaining? To many people it is not. For me, it is a matter of safety and health concern. I get that the wrestlers are professionals who know how to keep the celebrity safe from harm, but accidents (or botches to some) are made all the time. And I would hate to hear that a celebrity was seriously injured because of something that occurred on WWE television due to the fault of a WWE wrestler. It is bad press, bad publicity, and an overall negative experience for everyone, especially Vince.

So am I glad that the guest hosts are starting to wind down a bit? A little bit, yes. I like that they no longer have control over the matches because lets face it, nobody actually believed that they had any real control to begin with. They would just say what management wanted to hear. Now that they no longer have to force other peoples words out, the guests can have a lot more fun and spend more time promoting their product. Again, that is the whole reason they are here. It does not matter how big a fan they are. They are all people with business minds who need to get their names out in the open in order to stay alive in an environment that chews up and spits out celebrities on a daily basis. It is cruel, but it is also the truth. There are always exceptions to this rule of course, and I think Buzz Aldrin is one of them. Aldrin has earned his spot as one of the most famous men in American history, and his presence on Raw tonight is shocking to me. He was the second man to ever walk on the moon! You know, that glowing circle in the night sky. The fact that he would be a part of a WWE program is amazing to me. Last year he was given the Congressional Gold Medal, one of the biggest awards in the United States, and now he is going to be on WWE Raw. It is fascinating. Then I saw a commercial where Mark Henry smacked Buzz (well his stunt double I hope!) in the back with a chair. Talk about your mixed messages. So what the heck is Buzz Aldrin going to do on Raw? Comedy bits? Part of me prays that is not true, but knowing WWE and Vinces mind, something like that will happen. And who knows how physical Aldrin will get. Though to be fair, he was pretty funny on 30 Rock. But comparing the writers of 30 Rock with the writers of WWE is like comparing apples to cooked shoes.

Alright, main points of discussion!

- The guest hosts are winding down. I think this is a good thing in the long run.

- While the general concept is awesome, the execution itself is not. At least they tried.

- Celebrities and wrestling have a long history together. I just hope that history does not involve them actually wrestling.

-It is all about the writing. If you can write any character into a WWE show without having the fans hate it, you are the greatest writer who ever lived. Bar none.

-Buzz Aldrin is going to be interesting to watch. He is just so different from the others. Please do not hurt yourself, Mr. Aldrin!

My Final Statement: Guest hosts are a dime a dozen now. The idea has gotten stale, and I think Vince knows that by now. He has to come up with something new in order to keep us on our toes. But before that occurs, I would love to see Betty White host Raw. She IS a hot, and hilarious, commodity after all.

And that wraps it up for The Silver Lining this week. If you have any ideas for what my next Silver Lining should be, or if you just want me to tap and snap, e-mail me at tagibbs4@yahoo.com
And remember, every ring bound to have a Silver Lining.