Tonight on RAW: the sorting-outen-ing of RAW's main event scene begins... last week, Triple H ran in to help Kevin Owens beat Seth Rollins
for the new RAW Universal Title, and in so doing, got some cheers, and also seemed to piss off Stephanie...
WWE has longed wished to do Rollins vs. HHH, but the belief was that it would set up Rollins' face turn... fan reaction, and the prickly heat
between HHH and Steph, seem to indicate WWE is playing it closer to the vest... at least for now...
Regardless, it is clear that they are peeling Rollins away from the WWEU Title picture for the short term, to do a feud with HHH.... the reason why
HHH is suddenly on TV again is because WWE decided to use one of Lesnar's rare bookings for a house show in Chicago, instead of for the Clash PPV
(it saves WWE money), although they had originally intended on Lesnar's Stunt Casting at the PPV.... so when Lesnar was shifted to draw a big
house in Chicago, HHH stepped in to fill the void...
And then, you have the new WWEU Champion, Kevin Owens, who got a monster babyface pop last week, despite being on of RAW's most consistently
bankable heels for over a year.... a short term storyline to establish the new champ would obviously be Owens vs. his "best friend" Chris Jericho...
the only question would be, who is the fan favorite in that scenario? Storywise, it's so much easier for Jericho to get jealous of Owens'
success, and play the villain... but the thing is, Jericho has had such an amazing renaissance year that he's built up a ton of goodwill with
fans by being such a great bad guy himself, so I think fans would genuinely get behind him seeking one last at the big gold, too... not only is it
fuzzy as to how the heel/face alignment WILL work, I'm also torn and have no clear-cut preference: I think it'll be great either way (and
maybe, whatever long term ideas WWE has for HHH/Steph throwing their weight around will dictate which way Owens goes in the short term)...
WWE could also be working on Owens vs. Reigns (Jericho would be a one and done, as he's getting ready to start focusing on Fozzy again), with
WWE's promotional materials for tonight completely glossing over any Reigns vs. Rusev US Title feud, and speculating about what he might want to
do next after his OWN involvement in the WWEU Title situation last week... Reigns was also attacked by HHH, which allowed Rollins to pin him (before
HHH attacked Rollins, too), so you could slow roll everything, and tease a partnership of convenience between Rollins and Reigns, before the Authority
tip their hand (at which point, the best play would be for the Authority to reveal they've picked Reigns, with Rollins as a 100% for-real
babyface; that would give us a Reigns/Rollins feud to close out 2016, with Rollins finally getting to face HHH on the Road to WM33, and Reigns have
the juice to challenge again for the WWEU Title as a heel)...
Or, they could just be skipping over Reigns/Rusev, because Rusev and Lana are still in Eastern Europe, honeymooning after re-doing their vows in
Bulgaria over the weekend... in which case, they'll just pick up where they left off with Rusev/Reigns when Rusev returns (with his "injured"
ribs healed)... if Reigns is stepping into the main event scene again, Rusev will get a hard reset when he returns, including a new challenger to his
title...
The New Day are still the tag champs, and Gallows & Anderson are still the #1 Contenders, so they remain on course for a tag title rematch at the
Clash PPV.... while Charlotte is using all manner of rhetoric to deny Bayley a shot at the Women's Title, it's equally apparent that
we'll be getting Charlotte vs. Bayley at the Clash, too... for the second week in a row, Bayley pinned Charlotte's surrogate, Dana Brooke,
so sooner or later, Bayley will get her hands on the champ...
Sheamus and Cesaro are 2 matches into a potential 7-match series... problem is, Sheamus is already up 2-0, and now, Cesaro is "injured"... WWE says
Match 3 is scheduled for tonight, and given the way they oversold the injury angle all week, it sure feels like Sheamus goes 3-0 (perhaps even by
forfeit or referee stoppage, or something cheap like that)... and then, the Swiss Superman really will have to show up the next 3 Mondays to force
that 7th and final match at the Clash...
The rest: Titus O'Neil is finally, 100% fer-sure a heel, whatever that means.... Braun Strowman will continue to ensure the audience's
urinal tract health is top shelf, by providing ample opportunity to go and pee... and with all the shuffling due to Balor's injury, we're
now in a weird position in which Zayn, Cass, and Enzo all had to play big parts in the crowning of the new WWEU Champ, but as a result, are all now
floating aimlessly without personal issues of their own, which will not stand, considering how hot all three are at the moment...
That is all. End communication.
The flOOr is yours, OO Nation. Don't wait till after 11pm to post, either. Pre-show previewing and prognosticating is certainly welcome.
So discuss, debate, and rate!
If we keep using that WWEU acrothingee, will Kevin Owens suddenly renounce his French-Canadian heritage & demand a Brexit for even MORE heel heat?
With Owens as the new champ (and whatever fallout/hilarity occurs with Jericho) and Triple H screwing over Rollins, I gotta say this is the most I've been looking forward to tuning into RAW in awhile.
If I must sink the ship in order to get the Captain, then so be it. Captain The Rick, you Sir are no doctor and no one is fizzing their whizz for
BLARGH! Sweatstain's stomperoonis. I like the old school throwback vibe of a good ol' Jabroni smashing and the local yokels they've
paraded out there to get professionally stool pushed on national tv has been a delight. When a Neville or somesuch other shortling eventually gets the
1-2-3, kid I promise you'll razor your ramon something something...just trailed off...
Until that happens, Janners-My-Sweet, we've still got Big Pissbreak jobbersmashes to deal with. Let's hope they find the right guy at the
right time, instead of the usual "let it go on wayyyy too long". 
And we are LIVE with RAM is BALLOONS.
God these new theme songs for the shows suck. I never thought I'd describe something as being "like Nickelback without the heart" but that's the new Raw theme to a T.
KO in fancy dress attire looks like the manager of the finest all you can eat afternoon seafood buffet/topless dancing bar in all of Kissimmee.
Maaaaybe, just maaaaaybe I like seeing big dudes take lil' dudes to #town.
Also, excellent interaction betwixt Mick y Stef (No H) at the opening of the show. They actually referenced their shared WWE history from the
long long ago. 
Also, Owens is officially a heel.
Anybody else getting the vibe that perhaps The Architect has been givin' the ol' support beam to the Billion Dollar Princess? Kayfabe wise,
of course.
Edit: Seriously, dressed up KO looks like he's ready to get into a shouting match with Jon Taffer.
[Edited on 9/6/2016 by CM Crunk]
quote:
Originally posted by CM Crunk
KO in fancy dress attire looks like the manager of the finest all you can eat afternoon seafood buffet/topless dancing bar in all of Kissimmee.
And this is why the end of RAM sucked last week. Welcome to McMahon's Payton Place. FUCK ME.
quote:
Originally posted by janerd75
quote:
Originally posted by CM Crunk
KO in fancy dress attire looks like the manager of the finest all you can eat afternoon seafood buffet/topless dancing bar in all of Kissimmee.
Quoted for freakish accuracy. Also, it's RAM you boob!
Not with the undersized support beams the Architect's been using.
quote:
Originally posted by merc
And this is why the end of RAM sucked last week. Welcome to McMahon's Payton Place. FUCK ME.
Yeah...sucks that they are using Steph to get Rollins over as a face.
That bit with Steph, Mick, and JeriKO was horrible.
Seriously, bitching about that opening is a sign you need a break from WWE.
"Speaking of bad news.... wait, we don't have Barrett anymore, do we?"
First Finn, now Sasha. Gaaaaaaaaaaaaad
IT!
Also, why did they just give us Bayley/Charlotte?
ETA: BO-LIEVE the crowd is fucking dead. Couldn't have put him with Husky, huh?
[Edited on 9-6-2016 by janerd75]
I missed it. How long is she out for? 
EDIT: for future use, Becky's reaction to Paige giving it all up for a guy.
[Edited on 9/6/2016 by Paddlefoot]
quote:
Originally posted by Paddlefoot
I missed it. How long is she out for?
Having only seen it as of tonight, whenever they put up the Backlash name my initial response is "what the hell is a Back ash?"
Cesaro going with the Simeon from GTA V look tonight. These best of 7's take it out of even the most sartorially savvy strongmen.
Gonna be great when he comes out next week all covered in Tuck tape.
quote:
Originally posted by Paddlefoot
Gonna be great when he comes out next week all covered in Tuck tape.
Horrible segment there for Club and New Day.
Never have I been happier to see black on black violence. Another fine Kevin "Jerry Heller" Dunn production. Oh my stars and garters was that
awful.
Jericho calling Owens the "longest reigning Universal Champion" is good stuff.
Bo gets a squash?!?
PR is better than NJ?
Clear the McMahon sheet and not so bad...but that ran 20 minutes...
The Club has been the odd man out of the Indy darlings the WWE has signed recently. They have a great finishing move, but seem lacking on the mic, and
near boring levels in the ring. Shows the advantage of going to NXT.
Makes AJ going from NJPW to main event WWE star that much more shocking.
quote:
Originally posted by lz4005
quote:
Originally posted by Paddlefoot
Gonna be great when he comes out next week all covered in Tuck tape.
Tuck tape is what I have under my g-string when I dress like a sexy lady.
Nia and Blown Headgasket will make fine thick boned children. Why did that person I literally can't recall the name of step to Ms. Jax like that?
If Nia was hongry enough and so desired there would be nothing left but neckbone, fake nails, and weave.
BLOWWWWWWNNNNNN!
ETA: Gifs. So pretty. Would you gif me? I'd gif me so hard...:
[Edited on 9-6-2016 by janerd75]
So either this is finally a step up from Brood Stiltman squashing jobbers to an actual feud, or Sin Cara's been busted down to jobber status.
the return of CRAZY ALICIA FOX!!!
And BRAAAAAAAARRRRGGGGH SQUASHMAN finally gets some "quality opposition". The jobbergasm is over, J-Nerds. My condolences to you & your family.
Dunno what The Rick is talking aboot. That was another fine Bruise Slowjam production.
ETA: He should have pi�ata'd Sin Cara's head Red Viper style. Muh dreamz is shattered...
[Edited on 9-6-2016 by janerd75]
Brawny Stronkman: *Assaults Sin Cara outside the ring* "GET OUT OF MY RING!
I did enjoy Borg Shermanhemsley running Sin Cara down after the fact. SPOOKY BIG MAN RUN FAST GO BOOM!
quote:
Originally posted by janerd75
ETA: Gifs. So pretty. Would you gif me? I'd gif me so hard...:
#Paddleblessed #dicksoutforalbertatruckstopbeav
Moohlah?!? MOOLAH?!?!?!
Also, this does not sound good. Edge-esque.
ETA: I am such a fucking Sasha mark. A Sa'mark if yew wheel, daddeh. WHEW!
[Edited on 9-6-2016 by janerd75]
Hooray! Dana Brooke for the save. Sasha had me convinced things were craptastic, but that pretty much told me otherwise. It's kind of depressing that it's gotten so easy for someone to come out and deliver a promo that could easily lead into "a part of my body is now insanely bad, so I'm outta here before I die" ending and it's hard to tell if it's going to be true or not.
I think Sasha just let us know that we are a bunch of puppets.
So close to a Roman free RAW.
Thank God Booman gets a shot.
[Edited on 9-6-2016 by TonyTH]
Roman comes down to attack Owens after he's been through a match because he's pissed another man beat him up last week.
Owens friend comes down to defend him because he's just been through a match and isn't really in peak condition to be fending off Reigns.
Owens is portrayed as the heel in this confrontation by the commentary team.
Wat?
[Edited on 9-6-2016 by The Hitcher]
quote:
Originally posted by bigfatgoalie
So close to a Roman free RAW.
If nothing else, got to see a couple of workers from Harley Race's World League Wrestling on Raw tonight: Bo's opponent was "Kickin'"
Kyle Roberts and Nia's victim was Miss Monica Passeri(legit from Italy).
I figure Roman probably gets jumped by Rusev next week (when he'll be back from his Bulgarian wedding), costing the Big Dog the match and keeping
it Seth/Owens to start. I do expect Seth and Roman to get uncomfortably tag-teamed together at some point, probably right before the Clash against
JeriKO.
I dunno. This episode was okay, but had a lot of dead spots. Sasha's speech was too long (and, honestly, she's a better heel, so I hope she
turns on Bayley for trying to get in on her rematch). The New Day feud is dragging. I just fast forward through all the Titus/Darren segments. The
fans were NOT buying into that Bo squash (and really, his new finisher is CrossRhodes? Really? I know he needed a better finish, but c'mon).
Seth/Jericho and KO/Zayn were, of course, really good, although I felt like Seth and Jericho had chemistry issues. Maybe because Seth hasn't
worked babyface in years, the timing was just funky sometimes.
I actually enjoy the sort of weird Steph/Mick relationship and how it isn't all cut and dry. It helps that Mick can perform that sort of nuance
well.
Longest reigning Universal Champion is fantastic. So is It!
Owens vs Rollins was going to be a craptastic match. Roman's likely insertion into the match will save it. Why can't he be the first real
feud for Braun and put him over as a legit tough guy? No I don't want to see that but I like it when two things I don't like / care about
get paired so I don't have to pay attention.
Gee I guess now we get Cesaro overcoming insurmountable odds to come back and win the best of 7 series.
Has Dana Brooke done porn?
[Edited on 9-6-2016 by williamssl]
Naw. Just a butt selfie.
EXCLUSIVE: Dana Brooke nude leaks... #HappyHolidays #Raw #BestForBusiness #NXT pic.twitter.com/JkGgi9A5uj
— WWEPPorn� (@WWEPPorn) December 29, 2015
Now granted I left halfway through RAM for some call of booty, but my biggest takeaway from that episode is that Jack Gallagher and Tozawa are gonna be in the cruiserweight division and that's aok.
Just wish they didn't use Sin Cara to remind us about exactly how they've always treated cruiserweights: As cannon fodder.
That Dana ass pic... good goddamn. Her face may look like it's 50% latex and plastic, but that booty ain't booty.
What in the everloving fuck was that?!
How did they go from being a solid show last week to this week being one of the worst Raws that I've seen in the past 20 years? Aside from
Rollins/Jericho, there was practically zero redeeming qualities, not to mention that godawful Old Day segment, which at this moment right now is the
most painful wrestling-related segment that I've seen all year. Not even Owens/Zayn could help this, and having Reigns standing tall over both of
them at the end was basically the cherry on the shit sundae. If last week showed us why we love wrestling, this week basically did the complete
opposite and gave us a product that non-fans will look at and go, "Why the hell do you watch this?"
A friend of mine was at the show and it got even worse after the show ended. Chris Jericho and Kevin Owens attacked Roman Reigns. Seth Rollins hit the
ring to make the save for Reigns as Jericho and Owens retreated. After the save, Reigns speared Rollins and celebrated to end the show.
They were telling me that while they were walking with their husband to the parking garage that a majority of the fans along the way were basically
saying how Clash of Champions is basically Raw's last shot at making them not just stick to Smackdown.
The backstage segment with Foley and Steph went way too long. They did get things back on track with the Owens and Rollins interaction in the ring. Aside from Owens and Jericho's banter, the show went downhill fast. The New Day/Club segment may have been the worst thing we have seen on a wrestling show in recent memory. The thought that you can just roll the New Day out there and give them a microphone and expect that everything they do will go over like gangbusters, is very short sighted on the WWE's part. Also, what a slow castration of the Club. Those guys were ass kickers in New Japan and now they have been reduced to participating in ridiculous, childish skits. Don't get it one bit. And to top everything off, we get that shit sandwich of an ending. Who knew that the injury of Finn Balor, would result in the resurrection of the Roman push? The just don't get that unless something drastic is done with Reigns character, the boofest will never end!
quote:
Originally posted by Columbo
Now granted I left halfway through RAM for some call of booty, but my biggest takeaway from that episode is that Jack Gallagher and Tozawa are gonna be in the cruiserweight division and that's aok.
Gonna have to put up with the return of Roman to the main event scene for most of the month because Rusev won't be around for another three weeks
to fuck him up. He and Lana are going to be on vacation almost until October.
As for putting faith in SD I think the Bo Dallas push kind of means that SD will be as fucked up as RAW is. If getting drunk, belligerent, thrown off
an airplane, and arrested for it means a push afterwards for Bo then there's certainly a chance that Eva Marie could become the first SD
women's champ as "punishment" for her prescription drug fuck up. Maybe because Paige's last name isn't Rotunda and she might not be
someone Vince wants to fuck it explains why she's apparently the only person along with Titus to actually get in trouble this year with this
goofy company.
Speaking of Rusev, it's funny when you think about how guys are paid... base salary/Downside, and then a cut of or bonuses for PPV, and the
various shows they perform on... So that 3 week honeymoon gets to be crazy expensive when you work out how much money they are leaving on the table
while off. He'd still get his downside probably, but the rest probably adds up to a nice chunk of change.
I mean worth it, but man that's gotta be a pain in the ass to work out how much a day off is going to cost you every time you want to take the
family to Disneyland for an extended weekend or something.
Given the photos of that house they bought in Memphis last year neither Rusev or Lana are hurting for money. With two WWE salaries, plus her outside
modelling activities, they're probably doing really well. I imagine that these days WWE's got the contractor relationship running as
smoothly as it can get. If US tax laws are anything like Canadian ones the performers can literally claim almost every expense on the road and their
health insurance as deductions, which probably gets them breaking even or even getting refunds at the end of the year. Given WWE's size and
general corporate efficiency they probably arrange everything down to the lowest level, from rental cars to flight arrangements to hotel bookings,
where the performers don't have to make these arrangements for themselves. They merely have to pay for them and then send the paperwork on in to
head office or to their own accountants.
From the outside it looks like a pretty sweet deal. Arrive in town, hit the hotel or arena gym to get buff before the show, do their match, then
lather-rinse-repeat for the next event. Anyone who can keep their head straight and not get distracted by drinking too much/drugs/ring rats/etc. can
make a killing in this business if they keep in line with what the company wants from them. I imagine by now it's such a smooth running machine
that a performer would have to be a real retard to fuck up their end of the deal. It's not like the old days anymore where anyone not named Hogan
was basically given a paycheque and left to figure the rest of it out on their own.
So...what do they do with Bayley now?
quote:
Originally posted by CM Crunk
KO in fancy dress attire looks like the manager of the finest all you can eat afternoon seafood buffet/topless dancing bar in all of Kissimmee.