Category: RAW Bytes

The Double Or Nothing write-up is due tomorrow… but it won’t be up at the stroke of midnight. But, rather, it’ll be the “main event” upload in a trifecta of uploads that will also include a belated game review as well as a something else.

I have some disturbing news for FOX: I DVR WWE programming. More often than not, I don’t watch the stuff, but I do DVR it. So that theory about your new show being DVR-proof… well, actually, that’s been shat out the window ages ago.

So in light of Kurt Angle taking on Samoa Joe for the final time, I decided to fire up the DVR and recording this week’s episode of RAW, so that I can sample that match. I didn’t watch the whole episode of course (perish the thought), but as per usual, I will offer five points of interest that came to mind when watching some (but not all) of this episode.

Continue reading “RAW (March 25th, 2019) – Joe Got His Headbutt Back”

So, first off, hope everyone has had a wonderful Easter weekend or Passover weekend or just plain ol’ long weekend if you have any of those.

Since I had (well, have) a long weekend off, that meant I was home to watch Raw for the first time in what seemed like forever. While I originally had other plans, said plans were cancelled at the last minute and I found myself with plenty of spare time to spare. So I started tuning in to RAW about an hour in, which meant I missed the opening segment with Cold Ronda, the Queen of Ear Rape, Jason Jordan’s Dad, and Gonad the Barbarian… and when I say missed, I really meant “dodged a bullet.”

Fortunately, the rest of the show fared better… which isn’t really saying much. In any event, here are about five-ish notable points about my Raw viewing experience in no particular order.

Continue reading “RAW (April 2nd, 2018) – Easter Monday Means Two-Thirds Of RAW For Me”

I only had two twits on my little seen Twitter thing that I almost considered ditching because it’s pretty pointless… but since I use it as a quick scribblepad more than anything, it allows for quick thoughts that would otherwise be a waste of space on the blog, which I try (and fail) to keep to worthwhile material.

In any event, one Twit referred to a WWE.com exclusive interview where Stone Cold Steve Austin, after having given Vince and Shane McMahon Stunners on TV, ripped into one of the interviewers for only having one question. It was Austin in classic form; perhaps a little more rapsy due to age, but still a compelling promo if there ever was one.

Favorite line of the bit? “My name is Stone Cold Steve Austin and I actually drew money.”

The other twit that I wrote was sitting down to watch the show and then turning off the TV when Stephanie McMahon showed up on screen… because nothing gives me a headache more than another long-ass promo from the Queen of Ear Rape.

However, skipping that bit, I was able to watch the show. Not all of it, but some of it. And I can decipher five points from that show.

Continue reading “RAW (Jan. 22nd, 2018) – 25 Years Of RAW”

So it’s been announced on RAW that Roman Reigns will be defending his WWE World Heavyweight Championship thing against twenty-nine other men in the 30-man Royal Rumble match at the upcoming PPV. This would make it the first time since 1992 that a Rumble has been for the WWE championship itself, as well as the first time since 1990 that a WWE World champion has participated in the Rumble. However, this is the first time in which the reigning WWE World champion is actually DEFENDING the title in the Rumble match itself.

You know what? I don’t know about anybody else, but I actually like this idea. I always felt that if they really wanted to do something really different with the Rumble, they should have the champion defend his title in the Rumble match itself. A title shot at Wrestlemania is all well and good, but means nothing when the match itself could potentially play second-fiddle to whatever bullshit old-timer match they have going on. Remember, we’ve had Rumble winners get title shots at Wrestlemania in the OPENING MATCH, making the prize about as worthwhile as winning Tough Enough.

A Rumble match where the champion is defending, on the other hand? That sound interesting. And who knows? Maybe Roman might triumph, maybe someone else will get the win. But one thing’s for sure. It’ll be a fun ride. And thus, I approve of this.

I may have jinxed the whole thing, haven’t I?

Gathered up some notes on last night’s episode of RAW; the first I’ve seen in ages and apparently for good reason.

– So Brock Lesnar and Undertaker (scheduled to meet at Summerslam… joy.) had something of a little fight that lasted two segments and involved the great majority of the roster holding both these guys back. I suppose I’m supposed to praise as an awesome segment like everybody else is, but honestly, this would’ve been a more “awesome” segment if it didn’t involve two part-timers. It’s really sad that out of all the ideas WWE could have went to try and drum up interest in their product, they have to do THIS match… over a year and a half after it meant anything. But more than anything, all this did was have me ask myself, “Why bother with this match?”

– Poor Rusev. You know you’ve fallen off the totem poll when not one, but both your partners ditch you for greener pastures.That, and going from the luscious Lana to Fandango’s sloppy seconds… meh. On the bright side, I kinda dug the flip into the RKO finish. That was a cool spot.

– On the not-so-bright-side, it looks like they’re starting to build towards a Seth Rollins vs. John Cena main event match for Summerslam. I suppose it was fun while it lasted, but then again, considering how much of a pansy Rollins has been depicted as thus far, I guess it would make sense to go back to the well, however stale it might be… as long as it means Sheamus cashing in and winning, which might not be the worst possible thing they could do here.

– So Miz is being written off due to being knocked out by Big Show, huh? Poor fella must have a glass jaw or something… I’ve got nothing. But Big Show being missing since the Attitude Era? Surely, you jest. I’m thinking he’s been missing since the Dungeon of Doom.

– The match between Charlotte and Brie Bella (who lost, by the way) as well the later tag-team match between Paige/Becky Lynch and Naomi/Sasha Banks (who won, by the way) was almost vaguely interesting and could almost be watchable… if not for the constant references to Stephanie The Shrieking Harpy “saving” the Divas division. If we can phase her out of this story (or probably out of television in general) I’d probably enjoy it more. It’s really unfortunate that we have the first vaguely interesting direction in this Divas division and it’s hampered by constant praise to someone who didn’t deserve it. Look, it’s bad enough enduring the Bellas as the focal point based solely on their starring roles in a popular yet mediocre reality show, but at least THAT makes sense within the context of the story. This was Stephanie interjecting herself in something that was getting traction and by doing so, she risks curtailing the whole damn thing again into something that people will lose interest in.

– And speaking on interjecting themselves in stuff, the amount of segments featuring the Authority is overwhelmingly ridiculous. HHH as a mouthpiece is insomnia-curing. Stephanie in any role where she needs to appear on camera and spout exposition… I’m sorry, but no matter how much anyone tries to convince me otherwise, Stephanie is simply NOT a good character, in any way, shape, or form. She’s an automatic channel changer for me. She’s irritating as a villain, she’s an absolute fake as a protagonist, she’s not the kind of person I’d like featured on a regular basis if I want to try and be invested in a story because her mere presence TAKES AWAY from the tale they weave rather than augment it. The only time she was seemingly tolerable was when she was on Smackdown back in 2002-2003. And it confounds me that she somehow got WORSE over the years.

And then people wonder why I don’t watch RAW anymore.