Raw (Sept 13th)

[IANdrewDiceClay]

They should have replaced those microphones with laptops and had them type their argument in via messages. I'm sure Neil or Woyzeck would have kindly moderated such a discussion. Or at least get them in the Chat to talk about Traci's First Anal and Wigan Fatty Fuck. It raised to a whole new level this week. Some jump from Super Shedder and "lol Nash's knees" to Bodybuilders are always pushed, you have to get over, REAL NAMEZ!~ and the countless other shit they probably got from reading Power Slam. Reminded me of the Nash vs Goldberg feud over Scott Hall's contract when Nash said "we gave you Barry Bloom, and because of us you got a new house" in the middle of an interview, as everyone wondered what was going on. It seems to me, someone doesnt like CM Punk. Yes he's in the main event position, but it looks clear as day he's only in the main event position to be exposed as not being able to carry it. He's WELL out of his depth with Triple H. Fair enough, if he's in there with a Jeff Hardy, a Rey Mysterio or a Vince McMahon (who's whole style is to react and sell the impact and not to outwit) he's pretty good. Against Triple H, he's fucked. Triple H just keeps on burying him in the most hilarious way possible because he can. In WCW or TNA, you get buried in a comical sense where you look stupid. If WWE wants you buried, they just expose you in the most thought out way possible and put you in the ring with someone who is worlds apart from you on the microphone.

 

Bret was terrible this week. He has Gene Okerlund cheeks now, and the biggest glasses you'll ever see (apart from Bruce's). Alberto was going through the motions. John Cena wasnt funny in the slightest, and actually more annoying that usual this week. Orton and Rhodes was decent though. I think I'm done with WWE now ...

[d-d-d-dAz]

I don't know whether they are deliberately trying to bury Punk (it'd be a very self-defeating method of 'cutting-your-nose-off-to-spite-your-face' to push him so much as to expose him, and then use his own smarmy 'insider-ness' to undermine him), but he certainly loses a step against Triple H.

 

Punk did look out of his depth when HHH turned it on towards the end of that segment.

 

I'm more inclined that idiocy has bowled them down a creative cul-de-sac; Punk just seems whiney without justification (it was ridiculous to have him infer he was held back only for Triple H to be the one to list his achievements) and needlessly malicious about a man's wife (who, had it been revealed she'd set up the Nash attack it may have been justified, hasn't really done anything) who people are probably inclined to see him have his arse kicked. At this rate, I think a Punk heel turn is the only logistical way out of this feud.

 

On the segment, though, I thought they brought it around and the end made it worthwhile. They do need to move away from the 'internet' as a driver of stories. It's shit.

[King Pitcos]

IMO not even Cm punk could save it.

CM Punk couldn't save a penalty from my nan, and she's been dead fifteen years. His character is just someone who makes references and complaints that earn him points with the worst kind of wrestling fan. It was a novelty three months ago when people thought he might be leaving and he was facing poster boy Cena. Now it just comes off as hollow pandering and does fuck all to build up a match.

[IANdrewDiceClay]

On the segment, though, I thought they brought it around and the end made it worthwhile.

I see what your saying, and a lot of people have said what your saying, so I might be on my own here, but I thought Punk attacking him at the end was to give Triple H justification to get revenge on him this Sunday. Triple H has verbally smashed him into a million pieces and I thought Punk blindsiding him seemed to be a way to say "well, CM Punk got the upper hand, now Triple H needs to get his revenge". Sort of giving Punk a bone after the terrible promos he's been doing for weeks, to create the perception that CM Punk has got the better of HHH before the innevitable/pedigree/sledgehammer/Nash finish.

[PepperPlunge]

Really not a fan of that promo. It grinds my gears when people say things like 'even CM Punk couldn't save that one' when it's CM Punk's fault that it's rubbish. Talk of what happened at fucking Survivor Series 2006 and other shit from the last 6 years doesn't sell PPVs. A good promo on the current feud sells PPVs. I know it was supposed to be reinforcing Punk's point but it basically just ended up being the basis of Punk's promo. Very few people will give a toss about hearing about bodybuilders main eventing instead of smaller guys. Triple H put him in his place and then you ended up with the two of them asking each other questions of whether they admit/deny it to no answer. It's all over the place.

 

The thing that made Punk's first shoot promo work is that it established Punk being against the 'WWE machine' with carefully selected insider comments and then going back to the main point of winning the WWE title at Money In The Bank. He said how he wondered what the WWE would be like once Vince McMahon's dead. He didn't die, but we were left wondering what the WWE would be like when Triple H took over. He mentioned John Laurinaitis and he soon became an on-screen character. What he was saying was perfectly within the boundaries but it was a shock because of how tame the product had become. Rather than waffling, he'd go back to selling the PPV by saying how he'd beat Cena and walk out of Chicago WWE champion. Here Triple H got things back on track with only a couple of minutes left.

 

Saying real names is shit. I can't imagine too many people went 'holy shit!' when Punk called Triple H Paul Levesque. The whole thing lacks direction. I know they're going for the 'reality' era but it's not working. I know they're playing Punk as more of the heel than Triple H but both are aligned as faces. They're going for the grey area but the execution's rubbish. Also playing the grey area with kids is a bad idea. Kids want to see a definite good guy and a definite bad guy. John Cena is 100% undoubtedly the good guy. I don't think kids want to be weighing up the pros and cons of each person's argument. Either change the main target demographic or change the reality era. I like the idea of the reality era but it's bad for business how they're going about it and it's badly executed.

 

On a separate note, Triple H taking over from Vince should have led to some real change. I'd have liked to have seen a bit of an overhaul of the format of the shows but I can understand why they don't do it; kids are familiar with the current format and change could alienate them. WWE PPV numbers and ratings are down but they're certainly not in dire straits. Maybe Punk should have been using that as the basis for his promo. I can't remember whether Triple H promised change but I imagine he did. If so, he could say like 'what happened to this so-called change? I thought the very foundations of WWE were supposed to be shaken with your arrival? Other than your first week in charge, you've not done a whole lot have you? This is why I'm here and this is why this crowd is behind me - because I force change. What I say on this microphone, these pipe bombs, they're change and one small step at a time we, the WWE Universe and I, are going to change the WWE. I won't stop until there is change. And at Night Of Champions, I'm going to make sure that change happens when I beat you, not the businessman, you Triple H in the middle of this ring and relieve you of your duties as COO.'

 

On a plus side, I'm glad to hear Punk not mentioning Steph on Raw. I think it's a subtle heel thing he's doing though - he's definitely coming across as a gobby shit. I think there are people who do like him saying it but the majority think he's being a dick. You still get a split audience which is what they're going for I guess.

[d-d-d-dAz]

So, does anyone think they'll put this out to pasture on Sunday then...?

 

It's certainly a possibility given the nature of the story these past few weeks, though i'm not sure HHH/Nash is a desirable way of moving forward. It'll be a pretty big indictment of the writing, performance and management of one of their biggest stories in years if they were to sweep it under the carpet with a sledgehammer finish and take Punk off the tube for a few weeks, mind.

 

If they want to retreat, and regroup, they could perhaps do worst than a four way taskforce of HHH/Nash/Laurinitis/Steph costing Punk the match and then taking Punk out of the way for a while. Let the foursome run roughshod over the company for a while, before bringing Punk back in a blaze of glory, with a chance to set the feud back on the right foot.

[IANdrewDiceClay]

Nash and Triple H might have a dream of main eventing Madison Square Garden together. Triple H has worked with Scott Hall (96), X-Pac (99) and Shawn Michaels (2002) at the Garden. I dont think Kev and HHH have wrestled in MSG before. Triple H vs Nash HAS to be an eventual feud. Dont know how they will get there though. And I imagine Triple H's style is far more suited to Nash to CM Punk's. Triple H vs Kevin Nash at MSG for Survivor Series doesnt seem out of the question.

[The Total Package]

"Quite frankly" this show sucked.

 

I had more fun laughing at shit in the chat, Like Bret Hart mutating, into what nobody knows, dont think I'll be in a converstation again where Bret and Girls getting done in their butts are being discussed at the same time lol.

 

I couldnt sleep last night, so thought might as well watch RAW, first time Ive watched a full episode in ages, BS Punk wow wtf happened to this guy? Talk about falling from grace, that og shoot seems ages ago and a different person, I just wanted TripleH to punch him, such a whiney fucker, he actually called Nash a ratings killer? BS Punk the guy that couldnt even draw a 3.0 callling someone that helped cause a boom a ratings killer? LOL sure.

 

BS Punk needs some new material, these insider jokes have gone on for long enough, is that really going to be his only hook? calling people their real names, he has lost a ton of momentum, wouldnt be surprised if TripleH just buries him on Sunday, it will be the first burial by H that I would be ok with tbh, if what I saw last night is what the future holds for BS Punk then he is better off going back down the ladder.

 

He talks about change, but does nothing to back it up, you know what, I think Edges 2006 (or was it 2007?) run was far more entertaining than BS Punk, and Edge actually helped the ratings live sex and all that, and he did it without using real names or insider crap jokes.

 

Also I fail to see what was "super" about RAW, maybe its because Im not a normal weekly viewer anymore, but guys like Sheamus and Orton etc are like RAW stars to me, as in they have been on that brand so long in the past, it makes no difference to me, it was just a normal RAW, SD! must be total wank if its like RAW but even less, someone was saying in chat how SD! only drawed 1,500 recently its amazing they get that, why even go to SD! Live when you can see everybody on RAW.

 

Anyway Im sure if TripleH ends BS Punk the IWC will explode, yet as HHH mentioned he has had quite a few chances at the top and failed to stay there, so I cant realy blame WWE on this, if they go that direction, The Rock will be back soon anyway and everyone will forget about Punk.

[PepperPlunge]

I can't imagine it'd be hard to get to that feud. Triple H just punched Nash and fired him.

 

I'm probably being naive but I'm hoping they've got something up their sleeves with Laurinaitis.

 

And Total Package, you're right - Raw guys should be on SmackDown! It's making fuck all difference to Raw or to SmackDown having SmackDown guys on Raw. It would make a difference having Raw guys on SmackDown but as long as the SmackDown guys get enough exposure and it's not just an extension of Raw. SmackDown means so little. Orton and Sheamus seem a pretty big deal but they've been on Raw for so long and having them on Raw again it doesn't feel 'super' at all. Mark Henry's been alright but I don't know how much of a draw to watching the show he is. They seriously need to build their undercard.

[IANdrewDiceClay]

I can't imagine it'd be hard to get to that feud. Triple H just punched Nash and fired him.

I meant as far as this Sunday. Whether Nash costs HHH to COO position or Nash helps Triple H and he gets pissed off about Nash sticking his nose in or if Nash just attacks him after the match or whatever. I cant see Triple H losing the COO spot yet, but then again I find it hard to imagine Triple H winning with Nash knocking about. Should be interesting. With such a terrible build, I'm still very interested in the actual match to see the result.

 

Am I right in thinking if Triple H loses the COO position, Johnny Ace will be the head man?

[The Cum Doctor]

So, does anyone think they'll put this out to pasture on Sunday then...?

 

Nope. I think they're going to use Miz and Truth to lengthen the HHH/Punk fued. I think Nash and Punk will get their differences out of the way after that and go after Triple H together in time for Survivor Series for an elimination match.

[PepperPlunge]

I meant as far as this Sunday. Whether Nash costs HHH to COO position or Nash helps Triple H and he gets pissed off about Nash sticking his nose in or if Nash just attacks him after the match or whatever. I cant see Triple H losing the COO spot yet, but then again I find it hard to imagine Triple H winning with Nash knocking about. Should be interesting. With such a terrible build, I'm still very interested in the actual match to see the result.

 

Am I right in thinking if Triple H loses the COO position, Johnny Ace will be the head man?

 

Nash interference would seem predictable but it's probably the way they'll go.

 

They don't seem to have too much confidence in Johnny Ace though. I found it a bit odd that after Cena said about the Hart/Del Rio WWE title match, Ace just flat out ignored it and made a tag match. I thought he'd say like 'that's not going to happen. You don't call the shots around here, John' to get a boo before making the tag match.

 

EDIT: Actually, it'd make perfect sense for Laurinaitis to cost Triple H the match somehow. He could cause the distraction for Nash to attack him. The only thing is they have Hell In A Cell next. I suppose they'd have to do Del Rio vs. Cena in the cell if Nash was to begin a feud with Triple H. If Del Rio were to win by DQ it'd make sense as then Cena can say about how at Hell In A Cell Del Rio won't be able to get away with doing that to retain his title as it's no DQ. Where does that leave Punk though?

[insert_name_here]

Am I right in thinking if Triple H loses the COO position, Johnny Ace will be the head man?

I really hope so cos since his return to our screens Johnny Ace has been nothing short of excellent. I wonder if he could still go if he got put in a match

[Joey Joe Joe Jr]

the final segment went in circles for a bit by the end of it was fantastic i thought, especially trips' little rampage which is nice to see after playing the straight man to punk's barbs for weeks on end (he did it well on the super sd a week or two back). it felt like they had to stretch 3 mins of really good material into a 10 minute segment. the cutting of the mike adds another question to keeping me tuned in too. i think them being in the zany canada crowd helped them a lot rather than being somwhere else where the crowd might now have reacted as much with all the insider stuff going over their heads.

 

 

tbh im just enjoying raw for the moment after last year which apart from a few weeks of good nexus stuff before it went to pot, the show was basically the same every week with a revolving d-list celebrity plugging their new film or charity.

[Baz Windham]

if they were to sweep it under the carpet with a sledgehammer finish

 

They can't do that, 'Phil' ruined my suspension of disbelief of that one with his 'lol sledgehammer isn't real' reference last week

 

I'm not sure how much of the last (and indeed other ones) promo was scripted but it just seemed random point after random point, mainly from Punk that had nothing really to do with why they were fighting and what had happened to lead them to fighting which in a wrestling storyline is a bad start. It seemed to me Punk was just saying stuff that HHH didn't really know how to respond to so he just kept repeating himself until he went fuck it and sold the match in the most basic of basic ways that had nothing to do with the last 15 minutes of random grievances. Strange.

 

There has been a real lack of focus in this storyline which is a shame because there's elements and moments where I think 'Ooh this is getting good' but then it's hard to wade through the other distracting points being bought up and random stuff happening to really enjoy it. One big example is the 'Punk wants change' aspect, great that sounds great, what change do you want exactly? Just so as a viewer I know whether I want to sympathise with you or not. Ice Cream bars? yeah anything else? Oh...

 

And that's the problem I don't really know what Punk wants, he keeps saying it could be better but doesn't back it up with anything and just seems to say different random grievances that Internet folk have each week.

 

We'll see what happens at NOC and the direction it's going in then, i'll personally be hoping for Punk to turn heel so maybe we start seeing some of this change business that hasn't been verbally put across in action.

 

On the plus side I'm quite into some of the other stuff going on like AirBoom as a team (Kofi's hasn't missed a beat just lately), Miz/Truth, Henry and his hall of pain, Sheamus as a face and even the Vickie story is quite good as it sort of reminds me of Martel/Michaels in 1992. I hope Vickie pretends to faint at NOC.