The Official Monday Night RAW Thread

[Sasori]

Anyone else think Becky's turned into "Superstar Becky Graham"? My initial reaction is that she's getting cringier and cringier, but then I realized I love this Becky. However, this would have been perfect for her jokey face character who made lots of puns. After she morphed into the new Stone Cold, this stuff doesn't fit. One week, she's throwing Paramedics out of the ambulance and driving herself to the hospital, the next she's dressed like Big Bird had a baby with Elton John.

Didn't enjoy the match between Kairi and Shayna. They had a much better one in the finals of the Mae Young Classic. Just felt like they were going through the motions.

[BigAl]

I liked Brock telling Drew to "get the belt!" when they were on the ramp. Great opening segment from all involved.

[3puppies]

It's hard to believe, after that promo, that people used to derisively call him "Blandy" Orton. Everyone in the building who had ever watched wrestiling knew Beth was gonna take an RKO. But having Beth slap Randy first, and then she kicked him - giving him justification for his reaction - was brilliant. As virm said, give the heel a reason, and the story will be compelling.

[mth]

Fans cheering Randy during his promo, chanting RKO in anticipation, and then shots of the smiling clapping crowd after he hit it. At least they're invested even if it's ass backwards in this instance. This feud/match is probably going to be far and away the hottest thing going into Mania.

[Nash Diesel]

Fans cheering Randy during his promo, chanting RKO in anticipation, and then shots of the smiling clapping crowd after he hit it. At least they're invested even if it's ass backwards in this instance. This feud/match is probably going to be far and away the hottest thing going into Mania.

It was weird but fans like that have been around forever. The only problem I take with this kind of stuff is when it's someone who's actually a well liked babyface. I could see it if she was a heel or a wrestler people didn't care for back in the day. It says a lot about the men cheering it but that's for another thread lol.

100% agree so far this is looking like the hottest feud going into Mania. I was never really a fan of Edge, but I respect his work and he did very very well in the Rumble to show he could still hang after all these years.

[Matthew]

people say that shit about the fans, but even in flair's heel heyday in the 80s, it's hard to find him not getting cheered doing anything.

[Nash Diesel]

Anyone else think Becky's turned into "Superstar Becky Graham"? My initial reaction is that she's getting cringier and cringier, but then I realized I love this Becky. However, this would have been perfect for her jokey face character who made lots of puns. After she morphed into the new Stone Cold, this stuff doesn't fit. One week, she's throwing Paramedics out of the ambulance and driving herself to the hospital, the next she's dressed like Big Bird had a baby with Elton John.

Didn't enjoy the match between Kairi and Shayna. They had a much better one in the finals of the Mae Young Classic. Just felt like they were going through the motions.

Becky is really embracing how Conor McGregor handles himself so if you're familiar with him you know where she's pulling a lot of this stuff from. Especially this week coming out with the big coat and glasses. I dig it but I can see how it's probably going to rub people the wrong way.

For some reason a lot of fans over the last 25 years have cautiously accepted a confident borderline cocky babyface but are more quick to cheer a heel doing the exact same shit. I could see them avoiding a heel turn and booking her like Cena to be honest. And fans don't boo Cena because of his character so to speak it was more about how hard he was pushed and booked over other talent. So I think her 50/50 response would just be people who aren't fans of that attitude as opposed to her overall booking and character work.

[Nash Diesel]

people say that shit about the fans, but even in flair's heel heyday in the 80s, it's hard to find him not getting cheered doing anything.

Oh yeah. I remember being like 7-8 years old I was at a house show, probably my first or second show. During The Rockers v. Orient Express this guy I'll never forget was so pissed off that The Rockers kept double teaming their opponents. Then they had Tito Santana v. Akeem and the same guy was booing Tito and I was like, fuck this guy. Well, at that age I was probably like, fuck this dude.

[Nash Diesel]

Wow, that big-ass spider looked fucking dumb.

Am I the only one who thought at first he was just fucking around and the real beast was still in there? I did. Then it me, nope, this is the reveal lol.

[Mazer]

. I could see them avoiding a heel turn and booking her like Cena to be honest. And fans don't boo Cena because of his character so to speak it was more about how hard he was pushed and booked over other talent. So I think her 50/50 response would just be people who aren't fans of that attitude as opposed to her overall booking and character work.

This is my prediction as well. WWE going to make SuperBecky.


I do applaud her for going in a different direction. As compelling as her rise was, I felt like the SCSA lite phase was getting a little forced. Something like this, while it could be somewhat polarizing, allows her to go to different places.

[Nash Diesel]

This is my prediction as well. WWE going to make SuperBecky.


I do applaud her for going in a different direction. As compelling as her rise was, I felt like the SCSA lite phase was getting a little forced. Something like this, while it could be somewhat polarizing, allows her to go to different places.

I mean, we have to think she's got some mileage left in her as a babyface but we all know how many fans get with babyfaces. It's like something happens around the 6th month of them being a top player where all the sudden it's like FUCK THEM!

I give Drew until May and Roman even less before our 2 World champions are shit on massively by the neckbeards who create Instagram pages with nothing but pics of Finn Balor's abs. Not to say that some don't have a gripe. Shit I hated the booking of Super Cena lol.

But I have noticed more often than not that people just hate success unless it's their own when it comes to "celebrities". Whether you're an actor, athlete, musician, if you reach a level that the normal man can't just log in and achieve, the love on the way up will dissipate quickly.

[Mazer]

I agree with you on the cycle of resentment and occasional schadenfreude.


There's an element of both those in some fan reactions. I think there's also a systemic issue with WWE booking faces. Becky was compelling, not because of her catch-phrases, but because people wanted to see her hard work pay-off. We were surprised when she went over Charlotte the first time. When reward and surprise and give way to expectancy, its that SuperCena booking that drives me away. I 've never booed John Cena, the person. I have booed John Cena, the storyline.

I love how Drew has been built. But if he beats Brock, and then goes 9 months and I never think there's a chance he'll lose, I'll be bored. The classic literary hero paradigms hold for a reason. The WWE often expects us to think that the face champ is in peril, just because they tell us they are. I'm not advocating Vince Russo title changes, but more imminent threat and unpredictability for faces would be good.

[Nash Diesel]

I agree with you on the cycle of resentment and occasional schadenfreude.


There's an element of both those in some fan reactions. I think there's also a systemic issue with WWE booking faces. Becky was compelling, not because of her catch-phrases, but because people wanted to see her hard work pay-off. We were surprised when she went over Charlotte the first time. When reward and surprise and give way to expectancy, its that SuperCena booking that drives me away. I 've never booed John Cena, the person. I have booed John Cena, the storyline.

I love how Drew has been built. But if he beats Brock, and then goes 9 months and I never think there's a chance he'll lose, I'll be bored. The classic literary hero paradigms hold for a reason. The WWE often expects us to think that the face champ is in peril, just because they tell us they are. I'm not advocating Vince Russo title changes, but more imminent threat and unpredictability for faces would be good.

I see it in other forms of entertainment where that's movies, sports, music. Success=resentment. If Drew goes 9 months looking like a strong champion, in this day and age that's frowned upon. Growing up, Hogan, Savage, Warrior, they'd go a year or 2 looking strong as champion and 90% of the audience was still loving it. Even if a dominant champion gets pushed to the limit you'll have people still want to see that person lose simply based on the fact they've won more matches than lost. It's very strange. It's one thing to hate a storyline or angle but when you start hearing shit like "Becky needs to lose because she's been so dominant" that doesn't make sense to me. If she NEEDS to lose, let's have it make sense and be beneficial not just have her lose because "you" as a fan can't relate to people who win all the time lol.

[Mazer]

I see it in other forms of entertainment where that's movies, sports, music. Success=resentment. If Drew goes 9 months looking like a strong champion, in this day and age that's frowned upon. Growing up, Hogan, Savage, Warrior, they'd go a year or 2 looking strong as champion and 90% of the audience was still loving it. Even if a dominant champion gets pushed to the limit you'll have people still want to see that person lose simply based on the fact they've won more matches than lost. It's very strange. It's one thing to hate a storyline or angle but when you start hearing shit like "Becky needs to lose because she's been so dominant" that doesn't make sense to me. If she NEEDS to lose, let's have it make sense and be beneficial not just have her lose because "you" as a fan can't relate to people who win all the time lol.

Its less about dominance and more about storyline/tension to me. "needs to lose because she's been too dominant" is not a nuanced look. I think we're on the same page thats its not a stand-alone valid criticism. And certainly not confined to wrestling.


but as far as wrestling....

I think part of the problem, and in fairness to writers-the difficulty, is the fundamental shifts in how we consume wrestling. In a pre-raw era, 9 months of Hogan dominance meant you saw him on a few matches on Superstars a month (not every week), and maybe a Saturday Night's main event or two, and the 2 to 3 PPVs.

Compare that to a multiple segments a week, a PPV a month, etc. Consuming that much without much dramatic tension is tough. An action based TV show, that over the course of a full season doesn't set up significant setbacks or challenging situations gets too predictable.

There is certainly a segment of the fans that goes counter to the "mainstream". Agreed. But I think that there's a bigger segment that just wants more compelling storylines and unpredictability than the SuperCena era. And hell, some kids (and adults) love that wish projection of the hero "always" overcomes.

I , personally, prefer more of the Rock and Austin style bookings to that.

[Sasori]

Becky is really embracing how Conor McGregor handles himself so if you're familiar with him you know where she's pulling a lot of this stuff from. Especially this week coming out with the big coat and glasses. I dig it but I can see how it's probably going to rub people the wrong way.

For some reason a lot of fans over the last 25 years have cautiously accepted a confident borderline cocky babyface but are more quick to cheer a heel doing the exact same shit. I could see them avoiding a heel turn and booking her like Cena to be honest. And fans don't boo Cena because of his character so to speak it was more about how hard he was pushed and booked over other talent. So I think her 50/50 response would just be people who aren't fans of that attitude as opposed to her overall booking and character work.

I keep forgetting about the Conor influence. People have brought that up before, but I don't follow MMA, so it seems random to me. I'd much prefer if Becky continued down this road and ditched the Stone Cold stuff, but I don't know if Vince can help himself.

[Psycho666Soldier]

I think the money is definitely in Becky holding on to the more recent attitude while not completely foregoing the Stone Cold badass persona. Like have her live in the new persona, but be able to turn on the badass whenever appropriate.

[Nash Diesel]

Its less about dominance and more about storyline/tension to me. "needs to lose because she's been too dominant" is not a nuanced look. I think we're on the same page thats its not a stand-alone valid criticism. And certainly not confined to wrestling.


but as far as wrestling....

I think part of the problem, and in fairness to writers-the difficulty, is the fundamental shifts in how we consume wrestling. In a pre-raw era, 9 months of Hogan dominance meant you saw him on a few matches on Superstars a month (not every week), and maybe a Saturday Night's main event or two, and the 2 to 3 PPVs.

Compare that to a multiple segments a week, a PPV a month, etc. Consuming that much without much dramatic tension is tough. An action based TV show, that over the course of a full season doesn't set up significant setbacks or challenging situations gets too predictable.

There is certainly a segment of the fans that goes counter to the "mainstream". Agreed. But I think that there's a bigger segment that just wants more compelling storylines and unpredictability than the SuperCena era. And hell, some kids (and adults) love that wish projection of the hero "always" overcomes.

I , personally, prefer more of the Rock and Austin style bookings to that.

I mean, a lot of people talk about the difference in schedule and stuff but Austin, Rock, those guys were on tv every week, sometimes 3-4 times a week when you factor in Raw, a ppv, Heat, Smackdown, replaying segments on the smaller shows like JAKKED or whatever the fuck.

You can get burnt out but I think if it's actually good shit, then you're going to, more often than not, have a reason to tune in and watch. Today it's different not so much because of viewing habits but because of the overall product. If it was as good as it was back in different parts of the 80's and 90's then there wouldn't be an issue imo. And I don't mean copy what they were doing I just mean it being good in general. Rap music was good in the 90's, not because it sounded like the 80's, just that it was good. Same with wrestling.

Like you said, they want more compelling storylines and unpredictability but when it comes to unpredictability in terms of wins and losses in pro wrestling....it's a touchy subject. Especially WWE where over time they've conditioned the audience with that 50/50 booking. In a way SuperCena was a good thing because it helped elevate and give credibility to talent that worked with or against him. Just like Hogan in the 80's where Brutus went from casual midcarder to top tier midcard simply by teaming up with Hulk in a cage lol.

[punkypower]

Edit: SO sorry, guys. I thought I posted this in News & Notes. I wanted to delete, but couldn't find an option..Sorry again for wrong thread!!

Scott Steiner collapsed backstage and was rushed to the hospital during a TNA taping

https://www.prowrestlingsheet.com/sc.../#.XmNYjVNMGdM

[Horatio]

MONDAY MARCH 9

EDGE RETURNS again
REY MYSTERIO vs ANGEL GARZA
DREW MCINTYRE!

And The Undertaker is rumored to appear

[Mazer]

I mean, a lot of people talk about the difference in schedule and stuff but Austin, Rock, those guys were on tv every week, sometimes 3-4 times a week when you factor in Raw, a ppv, Heat, Smackdown, replaying segments on the smaller shows like JAKKED or whatever the fuck.

You can get burnt out but I think if it's actually good shit, then you're going to, more often than not, have a reason to tune in and watch. Today it's different not so much because of viewing habits but because of the overall product. If it was as good as it was back in different parts of the 80's and 90's then there wouldn't be an issue imo. And I don't mean copy what they were doing I just mean it being good in general. Rap music was good in the 90's, not because it sounded like the 80's, just that it was good. Same with wrestling.

Like you said, they want more compelling storylines and unpredictability but when it comes to unpredictability in terms of wins and losses in pro wrestling....it's a touchy subject. Especially WWE where over time they've conditioned the audience with that 50/50 booking. In a way SuperCena was a good thing because it helped elevate and give credibility to talent that worked with or against him. Just like Hogan in the 80's where Brutus went from casual midcarder to top tier midcard simply by teaming up with Hulk in a cage lol.

Agreed-Most important is quality. The expectancy/compelling nature is part of it. I'm not arguing against ANY dominance. I was a fan of Asuka's streak. There's a chance that Becky's somewhat evolved character (as I'm reading it).

By and large, I'd like to live somewhere between 50/50 and Super-Cena booking. In any event, make the obstacles and risk feel significant.

[Horatio]

Becky Lynch is so sexy I just want to open the Sexy thread and vote for her again

Rey nice with the claymore kick and he totally squashed Garza's face with that slipnslide splash.

Rhea has got to plow through Charlotte at WM.
Tonight's segment should have included a wardrobe malfunction. Meh, maybe next week...

[rom7878]

Half of charlotte’s hooch is hanging out

[Horatio]

*wikipedias 'hooch'*

[Mazer]

Good hell, you're multiplying.

[VHS]

Just clicked onto RAW and I see Bobby "No Reaction" Lashley squashing Ryder. WWE fucking blows.

[Horatio]

I am guessing McIntyre vs Lashley if McIntyre beats Lesnar.

"We want Lana" chants are promising.

[rom7878]

Guess lesnar runs in the drew match

[rom7878]

I could see lashey being Drew’s first match after WM

[Horatio]

I can see Drew McIntyre haulting Black's rise to the top.

[rom7878]

Liv does a trish move

[Horatio]

Love these women.
I wonder when the riot squad triple threat happens?

AJ Styles is hardly a credible challenger to Big Daddy Deadman.

[rom7878]

Awesome promo by AJ

[Tim]

AJ/Taker is easily the best feud/rivalry Taker has had since Punk.

[G-Fresh]

That vape girl should do porn.

[rom7878]

They should of did this on the last segment

[lotjx]

AJ bringing the heat.

[Horatio]

I wish they would do Taker/Rollins instead of Taker/Styles...

[Bagel]

They should have AJ and Taker action figures sit in for the contract signing

[Horatio]

Tonight would have benefitted from some sort of plot twist or revelation.

[Beer-Belly]

I wish they would do Taker/Rollins instead of Taker/Styles...

Probably because they're going to do McIntyre/Rollins over the spring and into the summer. That's my guess.

[VHS]

AJ's promo would have been cool if... they weren't doing the same thing across the street w/ the Orton/Edge feud. Seriously, WWE's bag of ideas is way empty now.

[BGMaverick]

If Taker goes off on Wendy next week, in retaliation of Styles going after his wife, we'll have something spicy. I guess it remains to be seen if Taker/Styles will be a one-on-one match but it's shaping up to be that. It's also one of the last tests available for Taker in terms of being able to have a competent singles match on a big stage. Hard to spot many lies from Styles in his promo in regards to Taker. If it's one-on-one, that's not exciting based on the alternatives and it certainly speaks to a growing concern that they don't know what the hell to do with Aleister Black...especially when there's plenty of options sitting right in front of them.

I'm envisioning Rowan's push was totally aligned with the idea of having a reveal for what was in the cage. It would culminate and be big. Things got wonky of more because they couldn't get what they were ultimately looking for or it didn't make sense like they were originally hoping. His push kind of stopped when that idea got stalled in the developmental stage. Then they just came up with a silly animatronic spider and hoped that would work, but then subsequently killed his push once they realized they had nothing. That's about the only thing that makes sense otherwise it was a massive waste of time.

I see Edge was channeling his inner Jake Hager with that choke on MVP. Feels like it's not as visually imposing in some ways with Edge not having the size and leverage but he sold it with his eyes. All that said, this felt kinda flat for seeing Edge return after the brutal beatdown from Orton and Orton taking out Edge's wife.

I'm extremely underwhelmed with what's happening with Owens and Rollins. It's played out and not really exciting.

[Sinner]

I'd like to see an Aleister Black/Viking Raiders stable, but I also want to see Undertaker/Kane/Aleister vs The OC.

Or Black and Owens going for the tag belts if Rollins/Murphy get them back

He's got options

[JP]

Whoever took the decision that what Drew McIntyre needed to push him to the next level was *checks notes* animal cruelty, probably shouldn't be allowed anywhere near the show ever again.

[Murphy]

Ha, I haven't seen Raw. What was said with Drew then?

It's ok, just seen a tweet from Bryan Alvarez.

As you were.

[Mazer]

Whoever took the decision that what Drew McIntyre needed to push him to the next level was *checks notes* animal cruelty, probably shouldn't be allowed anywhere near the show ever again.

i don't know, but given how bad the spider was-I think he broke kayfabe harder than he broke the cage.

I think most people took it less as animal cruelty, and more as ending a stupid angle.

[JP]

In kayfabe, they framed a man performing animal cruelty as a reason to cheer him. That's the issue here. It's like watching a dark thriller and the filmmakers expecting you to like the murderer rapist because he's a murderer rapist.

[Mazer]

In kayfabe, they framed a man performing animal cruelty as a reason to cheer him. That's the issue here. It's like watching a dark thriller and the filmmakers expecting you to like the murderer rapist because he's a murderer rapist.

I see it differently. That's where I was at with "broke" kayfabe.

Wrestling fans are accustomed to non-believable ways to end angles, and we are asked to accept a storyline that breaks itself. Like when Santino showed up right after Santina exited stage left, and said "she had a good run". I don't think we were expected to believe that Santina was a separate person the whole time.

Obviously, this can be viewed different as he "killed a helpless animal". I just don't see it as that. They even kept it covered, after we saw the "spider" last week.

The spider looked stupid. The red spray was stupid. My view is that the fans were not asked to cheer him squashing a spider (although in fairness-many people probably would). I'd say that was Drew getting a fan reaction for ending a stupid angle.


If someone does say it stayed in kayfabe (and certainly Rowan sold it that way), I'd still not have it quite there. In that world, I'd go more with the tropes of sci-fi, and say he killed a mutant monster that could spray red blood.

[JP]

I'd go with that if they'd have given the angle more care and attention, building up the creature over a few months after its reveal. As it was, to kids especially, it could have been construed as just a big spider.

All in all, it sucked from beginning to end in every possible way you could imagine. After Rowan genuinely hitting the upper mid card following his partnership with Bryan, it's been such a shame to see.

[Caito]

Example.....

Terri Runnels murdering Moppy

[JP]

Example.....

Terri Runnels murdering Moppy

Moppy wasn't presented as anything but the lunacy of Saturn's mind. The spider was presented as real. A much better example to compare this to is Earthquake "killing" Jake Robert's snake.

[Murphy]

Big bad 'quake was a big bad heel though, so at least it made more sense.

[mth]

I always suspected that they didn't know what they were going to have in the cage and were just treading water with the weekly squashes until they figured it out. Then i read that Rowan himself wanted it to be a bunny or guinea pig to contrast a cute little critter with his gruff metal persona but Vince didn't get it and decided on the silly spider. Soon as they revealed the spider my immediate thought was "Someone's going to kill it" but I didn't expect it to be as soon as the next week. I also expected there to be goo. There was no goo. I wonder if maybe they'll reveal the cage was empty next week...?

[Badger]

“Vince didn’t get it”

*sighs at Vince if true*

[Caito]

Moppy wasn't presented as anything but the lunacy of Saturn's mind. The spider was presented as real. A much better example to compare this to is Earthquake "killing" Jake Robert's snake.

I miss Perry Saturn.

[BGMaverick]

In case anyone was curious, Ricochet was on Main Event this week.

[mth]

Saturn was great. Love how Moppy was supposedly a punishment gimmick but it only got him more over/popular. Those things seem to backfire quite often.

[Caito]

Jericho/Saturn for the dress and how Saturn was in the weeks after it was tremendous.

[mth]

I wish i had seen that stuff, I probably would have dug from what I've heard about it. Probably much better than when Vito wore a dress...

The Sexual Chocolate stuff with Mae was allegedly trying to get Mark Henry to quit but all it did was show what a charming charismatic teddy bear of a man he is.

[Caito]

It’s all on the Network my friend.


it’s fun cuz it goes from Saturn begrudgingly wearing it cuz he agreed to the stop, to him enjoying it a bit, and then it becoming a part of his outfit, which morphed into more of that alternative, late 90’s Hot Topic style.

[The Rosk]

Whoever took the decision that what Drew McIntyre needed to push him to the next level was *checks notes* animal cruelty, probably shouldn't be allowed anywhere near the show ever again.

[Mazer]

Eh, I've seen Hornswoggle run through a tunnel like Road Runner, the Undertaker control lightning, Bray Wyatt drag Daniel Bryan through a ring to who knows where (but apparently not just an awkward moment where they crawl out of the ring sheepishly), and Santina interact with Santino. I just think we can draw the "presented as real" line too far.

The one thing I do feel more strongly on the fan cheering reaction probably had very little to do with a spider killing, and more to do with killing the dumb angle.

Completely agree with the takes on Rowan. After a promising run with Bryan, this was about as dumb a direction as you could go. He should be an upper mid card enforcer who is a legit upset threat to top guys.

Time for repackaging number 6,




Also, Saturn was gold.

[BGMaverick]

Eh, I've seen Hornswoggle run through a tunnel like Road Runner, the Undertaker control lightning, Bray Wyatt drag Daniel Bryan through a ring to who knows where (but apparently not just an awkward moment where they crawl out of the ring sheepishly), and Santina interact with Santino. I just think we can draw the "presented as real" line too far.

The one thing I do feel more strongly on the fan cheering reaction probably had very little to do with a spider killing, and more to do with killing the dumb angle.

Completely agree with the takes on Rowan. After a promising run with Bryan, this was about as dumb a direction as you could go. He should be an upper mid card enforcer who is a legit upset threat to top guys.

Time for repackaging number 6,

That's exactly what I took away from McIntyre's actions. McIntyre has been comical in some aspects and ribbing on the square with very minor things along the way but that can ingratiate himself with the audience and that's what I took the act as. Everyone realizes the reveal was stupid, so he got to do what most wanted to do: get rid of it.

I wasn't surprised with the fact that they kept trying again with Rowan because that felt like that was sticking to the plan with him because he'd get hurt in the tag team with Harper and they only had one instance where they felt like they wanted to do something with Harper. If Rowan was out, they weren't interested so they valued him more. Your breakdown for Rowan's place is precisely where he needs to be in the pecking order. What is interesting to me is that that exactly where Corbin has always needed to be but I'm curious as to why they (or more specifically, Vince) went super aggressive with him. Was it better verbals, very easy to work with in the ring, more punchable of a face in the eyes of the audience?

[Mazer]

However......

If R-truth, with his stated fear of spiders, had been in the Mcintyre role I would read it completely differently.


I don't know with Corbin.
Corbin also bragged a lot about his football background coming in. We know how anyone with any NFL background has a bonus point of two. TBH, I thought Lone Wolf McCorbin was boring as hell. I also thought he was a "let me fast forward" guy as a constable. But I've come around a bit. he's improved as the whiny heel. his matches aren't terrible. He's effective as someone you want to see get beat.

I'm not sure I see him as someone who is a compelling main event talent.


But not as down as I once was.

[mth]

Corbin's solid just overpushed. Good talker, good heel, decent enough in the ring. I like the guy I'm just not interested in his shit 'cuz they've overexposed him and put him higher in the pecking order than he should be. They've effectively turned me off to a dude I'd otherwise probably be pretty into if they'd cooled their jets with him.

[Mazer]

This is the fifth time today I've thought to myself how much you would have enjoyed Moppy Perry Saturn.

[mth]

You're saying that like I didn't see Moppy Perry Saturn...?

[Mazer]

I guess you just don't bring it up like you do Boogeyman or Golddust. HOW DOES HE KNOW YOUR LOVE IF YOU DON'T SHARE IT.

[mth]

PLEASE FORGIVE ME PERRY BERRY!

[Mazer]

He can't stay mad.

[VHS]

In kayfabe, they framed a man performing animal cruelty as a reason to cheer him. That's the issue here. It's like watching a dark thriller and the filmmakers expecting you to like the murderer rapist because he's a murderer rapist.

They had him smash a bag w/ an obviously inanimate object. An inanimate object we knew was an inanimate object, an inanimate object they knew we knew was an inanimate object. Nobody cared because all parties knew it was whack.

[Beer-Belly]

We're supposed to think the spider was real, though. Regardless, it was a tone deaf way to write off a shitty storyline that they didn't bother to plan out. They do that all the time.

"Have Rowan carry around a mysterious cage to make his character more intriguing."

"Interesting idea. We'll need a payoff, though, so what's in the cage?"

"FUCK YOU, YOU PIECE OF SHIT! I WILL PERSONALLY ARRANGE AND PAY FOR A PROCEDURE INVOLVING THE REMOVAL OF YOUR TESTICLES IF YOU EVER EVEN THINK ABOUT PLANNING AHEAD!"

[Spudz Mackenzie]

I thought it was going to be Alexa Bliss in Rowan's cage.

She's small enough.

[Nash Diesel]

It was a pretty good Raw overall imo. Women's tag-teams showcased (rare), the Black v. Rollins turning into the 8-man. I thought AJ Styles' promo was good.

Let's be real here people, all jokes aside, that Rowan shit was dumb and that "spider" had it coming after what he did to that jobber in Des Moines.

Becky had a solid promo. I wish we had more out of the Orton/Edge segment. MVP was a strange part of it and sold that RKO on the chair like shit but that's ok, he's cannon fodder.

Just an overall good show that was paced well.

[Tim]

I used to think anyone could do the Cutter/RKO and then Edge proved me wrong.

[Nash Diesel]

I used to think anyone could do the Cutter/RKO and then Edge proved me wrong.

The one he planted on Orton looked good. MVP putting his hands up the way he did made it look stupid.

[Badger]

The one he planted on Orton looked good. MVP putting his hands up the way he did made it look stupid.

Yeah that was terrible. Not quite, bit nearly Linda wimping out of the Stunner bad.

[Mazer]

MVP was worse, but the Orton one looked poor to me as well.


Let's all appreciate how smooth Orton pulls off the rko.

[BGMaverick]

MVP was worse, but the Orton one looked poor to me as well.


Let's all appreciate how smooth Orton pulls off the rko.

I agree 100 percent to all of this.

[Caito]

The one to Orton looked like it was performed by someone who rarely ever does one.

Which is what happened.

[Mazer]

Its also a little jarring, because all of our mental paradigms are base of Randy Orton. We all mentally see it being especially quick and explosive.


Randy is smooth in a way that most cans of jif can only dream of.

[mth]

For what it's worth, they didn't include the one to MVP on the youtube highlight clip.

[Fanny Batter]

I love how they're still advertising a contract signing for Wrestlemania for tonight's show. Interested to see if they continue to build to a card that won't exist with any level of immediacy.

[BGMaverick]

I love how they're still advertising a contract signing for Wrestlemania for tonight's show. Interested to see if they continue to build to a card that won't exist with any level of immediacy.

For better or worse, the fact that they're still advertising seems to suggest they're working on plans to suggest that the show will still happen in some fashion on that date.

[Sasori]

By not having the matches, it stops any storyline progression, so they kind of have to do them one way or another. I'm fine holding them at the PC.

[Tim]

Watching them at the PC feels like I’m watching a rehearsal.

[anthonyd46]

Watching them at the PC feels like I’m watching a rehearsal.

The RAW in the WWE Stamford Studios was the last time I remember anything like this.

[JP]

My God, Edge is incredible.

[Fanny Batter]

Can they get rid of live promos when the crowd comes back? So much more impactful without the chants and background noise. Cena last week, Edge here. Admittedly two of the best to ever do it, but awesome.

[Tainted Eclipse]

the opening segment on friday was AWFUL because they did it exactly the way they would do it in front of the crowd. the cena/bray promo and this edge promo were very different from how they'd be done in front of a crowd, and were great. both were more effective in building anticipation for the match they were promoting than any one promo segment has been in ages.

[Tainted Eclipse]

royal rumble replay? well, at least its a match worth watching again.

[BGMaverick]

royal rumble replay? well, at least its a match worth watching again.

It's smart because you're possibly exposing a new audience to what you've got going on with one of your biggest upcoming matches, and you're filling a lot of time.

[Donald]

My God, Edge is incredible.

You're incredible

[Horatio]

As good as everyone in this match was, Lesnar totally stole the show.

[rom7878]

Keith lee vs lesnar WM 37

[Donald]

I feel like if Jinder Mahal had made his return during this match, he would have won.

[Horatio]

I feel like if Jinder Mahal had made his return during this match, he would have won.

You feelin yoself?

[Horatio]

I love a no-nonsense Undertaker.

[JuveLeo]

Lol, i almost thought that was real lol. Like he was pissed off about something hahah

[Horatio]

Cool camerawork for Styles/Taker. It's like a Children of the Corn feud...