Monday, December 26, 2011

Raw is Boxing Day 12-26-11

Happy Boxing Day to you and yours. My wife made my grandmother's recipe of macaroni and cheese tonight, so I am a very happy man. I am also coming off my post-Christmas holiday. I spent today watching the King of the Deathmatch Tournament from IWA-MidSouth II from 2011. I will simply say that I have never called anything garbage wrestling, but that was it. There were some good names there like MASADA & BJ Whitmer, but it was pretty awful. They had the stereo-typical "gay" character who set wrestling back 20 years. The announcer did nothing but imitate Joey Styles and even used insider terms. And they had no idea of the progression of matches. Every match was so hardcore, by the time you got to the main event, there was no "Holy s***, this is the main event" moment. Sometimes, you watch a promotion and think, "Hm, I'd like to see them again." This was so bad, I don't think I'll be getting this year's KOTDM Tournament.
But enough of a retread. They opened up in Chicago (in CM Punk's hometown) with CM Punk's music. Out came Johnny Ace dressed in CM Punk's outfit. He tried to make a guantlet match featuring CM Punk. Then Punk tried to get Ace to accept a match with him. Groan... Punk was just missing something. Really can't put my finger on it.
Booker T is wrestling Cody Rhodes. Again. I ended up not seeing TLC, but wasn't I just supposed to pay money for this? It just seems like we're getting the same matches over and over and over again. They are not squash matches if the loser looks like they have a chance of winning. The WWE product is so repetitive that there's no newness to their matches. Booker T won. As glad as I am to see him win, why did we have to watch that?
Zack Ryder is thanking John Cena. All along Zack Ryder had it in himself.
Kelly Kelly and Big Show are hawking an app of some kind. Then Scotty Armstrong tells Big Show that Johnny Ace needs him now!
So Big Show punched David Otunga on Smackdown. Then Show said he could beat Otunga with one hand tied behind his back. I guess they are watching old nWo footage. Now Dolph and Swagger are arguing. It was pretty fun until the Planet of the Apes comment. That just sounded so 10-year-old on the playground. Ugh, just soooooooo bad.
Eve an Zack Ryder come out to the ring. They seemed to get pretty decent crowd reactions. Then there was Tyson Kidd and Nattie Neidhart. It was actually not too bad of a match. I think the referee fell out of the ring as he was making the 3rd count. How botchariffic.
Cena came out and cut a really forced promo praising the city of Chicago. He called out Kane and got The Miz. Miz wanted Cena. Cena accepted. A few minutes into the match, Miz couldn't handle that people weren't chanting for him. So he cuts a promo on Chicago and gets counted out. Are you f***ing kidding me? As he's done, we get the R-Truth return. I really liked his return.
We were saved from the retro nWo match by Big Show. It was short and painless. Mark Henry came out. Daniel Bryan came out. Then it was just Big Show and David Otunga in the ring. He channeled The Giant of old and did a chokeslam like he'd just joined the nWo all over again.
Then Alberto Del Rio came out in a wheelchair. He told us all that he had a torn groin. Then the fans laughed. Classy. Then the Bellas got to fight over who could throw a party to help him recover. Awful.
Swagger jobbed first. Then he attacked Punk to wear him down for Ziggler. I liked Punk and Ziggler's work. Ace stopped the match, distracted Punk and then Ziggler pinned Punk. What a good opportunity for Ziggler. No hate over getting to watch those two. Just that I watched this match not too long ago.
AAA's El Zorro  Kane is walking to the ring. He starts explaining and Cena's music hit. Kane cut a very nice promo explaining why he attacked Cena. He wanted Cena to give in to the hate. I thought Kane delivered his lines very well. I just felt like I was watching Empire Strikes Back.
Overall, I'd have to say this was an awful Raw. There was nothing that got my attention for this show. The most exciting thing was R-Truth's return. Remember yesterday when the Mavericks stunk up their home court? Let's say the fans start booing Dirk. Does he get on the mic and ask how dare they boo him? That's what we got with the Miz. It was uninspired, outright insulting and nothing worth seeing.
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Monday, December 19, 2011

Raw is Before Christmas 12-19-11

I remember Wrestlemania XX. That was the night that Chris Benoit won the title in the main event and then was greeted by Eddie Guerrero who had defended the other title that night. Very few times in my wrestling watching experience have I ever teared up not involving a death. That moment was one. Those of us in the IWC felt like we all had a moment. OUR two darlings were champs.
Last night was another one of those nights. Our two indy darlings-CM Punk and Daniel Bryan-finished the night as champions of both brands. Now I’m not in some disillusioned world where I think WWE is going to magically turn into Ring of Honor. I’d just be happy to have some exciting, risky booking that means something. Punk and Bryan are people that we can care about. With the right booking, we can see them remain good champions.
We opened it up with a drum roll and Punk introducing himself. Punk got a really good reaction. Then they introduced Zack Ryder who got such a good reaction. And then they introduced Daniel Bryan who got another huge reaction. Punk, Bryan and Ryder all began in the ring to start the show. Daniel Bryan had a lot of fire. They were interrupted by Miz, Ziggler & Del Rio. This segment would have been perfect had it not been for Michael Cole's sheepish bleating he calls announcing. And the Johnny Ace came out to kill the segment. Actually, considering he has no voice, it was a pretty good segment.
I saw Richard Lewis do comedy live once. It was every bit as awesome as I thought it could be.
We were treated to Randy Orton vs. Wade Barrett, which I'm glad I didn't pay $44.95 for. Randy Orton is a 9-time World's Champion. It amazes me how little titles mean in the WWE. Wade Barrett put Orton through a table. Had no idea of what happened. I thought the work was very solid.
Then Alicia Fox was wearing one of Mario's fur hats or something. Then she pinned Beth Phoenix in record time. Then she wanted me to have a Foxy holiday. I really want to have a Foxy holiday. I will now ask my wife.
Excuse me. I need to get up and get some ice for my jaw. Out comes Sheamus wearing the next t-shirt I will buy once Johnny Ace is off tv. And now we have Jinder Mahal? Sheamus killed him. That is as it should be.
John Cena came out to the ring and talked to his confidant The Cameraman. He is again Shiny Happy Cena. That's normal for anybody who Kane attacks. (<-sarcasm font) Mark Henry interrupted him and had some nice focus. Then Kane came out in El Zorro's mask. He destroys Cena. Him not being Super Cena is good for long-run Cena. Cena had some good facials. Well-done.
We got Primo & Epico vs. the Usos. Do we have a tag team division? It was a well-crafted tag match. I could really get behind this feud.
Then Cody Rhodes cuts a pretty decent promo and was interrupted by Santino. He then beat Santino. Santino does a lot of things right. He is very good at selling and getting himself over in his role.
They showed a recap of Tribute for the Troops which they used as an excuse to pimp out their PPV. That was when I stopped watching last week.
The Bellas are again backstage with Johnny Ace. The Vicki tried to schedule a rematch and ended up getting kissed by Hornswoggle. Cute. Then we had an interview with Zack Ryder's... dad? Big Show gave a very honest, in-depth interview.
This was such an awesome moment. Daniel Bryan and CM Punk both came out of the crowd. For the first time since Summerslam, I actually feel like the WWE is giving me what I want. This is quite possibly the best match on Raw this year.
A good Raw, except for one glaring minus-Michael Cole. If WWE actually spent their time listening to their fans on Twitter, rather than shoving it down our throats, they would know how much he hurts their product. I'm definitely not deceiving myself that this will be permanent, but this has been a great Christmas present.
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Monday, December 12, 2011

My Wrestling Christmas List

John Laryngitis-an off-screen role (ONLY)
John Cena-intensity
Alberto Del Rio-a promo that does not use the word “destiny”
WWE Creative Team-creativity
Divas-real women wrestlers and more than two minutes for matches (must be both; don’t do one or the other)
Dolph Ziggler-a main event push
Goldust-likability on Twitter
Jack Swagger-a role where he never has to talk and where he is pushed like a monster
Rey Jr.-new knees
Sin Cara-a new guy behind the mask
Hunico-a gimmick not currently being used by Impact's Hernandez
Jim Ross-never to be humiliated in Oklahoma on TV again
Kevin Nash-relevance
Mick Foley-see Kevin Nash
Hogan & Bischoff-a repeat of Bash at the Beach where he's given his walking papers
Impact-stop pushing the old guys at the expense of the new generation & a product that I consider watchable
All Night Xpress-a tag title run
Kyle O’Reilly, Tommaso Ciampa, Caprice Coleman, El Generico, Grizzly Redwood, Willie Mack-pushes to the moon
Matt Palmer, ACH, Athena-a chance on a national stage
Gregory Iron-a shot in the WWE; there are so many stories to be told there; unlike Eugene, you could have a bonifide handicap wrestler that the WWE fans would genuinely go for
Ring of Honor-a show in Dallas… please
Sara Del Rey, Cherry Bomb, Eric Ryan, Rickey Shane Page, Façade, Marion Fontaine, Tim Donst, Johnny Gargano, Aeroform, Portia Perez, Mad Man Pondo, Sugar Dunkerton-a match in the Dallas area

Monday, December 5, 2011

Raw Is Making Me Yearn For Dragon Gate 12-5-11

Sources are now saying WWE is working on their network and is planning on launching it the day of Wrestlemania. So if you think Twitter, has been pushed down our throats, get ready. You have seen nothing yet.
Last night, I got to finish my first Dragon Gate USA match and had my life irrevocably changed. Something tells me things are going to seem worse because I have watched a match that will now be in my top 20 of all time. I also had the chance to see a really fun MPX show this weekend, so I’m still reeling off that. Maybe tonight I will watch wrestling as a diversion, which is exactly what it should be. If it’s painful, I may find myself going on Twitter and mocking it with my “tweeps.” Sometimes that makes it more entertaining than the show itself. I guess it’s because I do love wrestling so much that I want WWE to succeed and be good.
Sorry for my rant. Here is Monday Night Raw.
We start off with John Cena. The crowd is pretty mixed for him. Cena cut a pretty decent promo. And then we had Alberto Del Rio interrupt him. And then Cena went into 10-year-old-kid at the playground mode. Alberto Del Rio have footage of why he deserved a title shot. Then Vickie Guerrero interrupted the promo. Dolph Ziggler is in the main event mix? Cena tried to have a certain edge in his promo. It just sounded like a 10-year-old trying to cuss. Then the Miz came out. I hate to say this, but Miz' swagger showed that the other three were not on his level. I liked the edgier direction they took this promo. Then Johnny Ace took the mic and could barely remember his lines. Then Ace set up Miz-Randy Orton.
Randy Orton vs. Miz was a pretty decent match. It had a good intensity. Wade Barrett came out and distracted Orton when Miz slithered back into the ring to get the win by countout. Made Miz look good without Orton losing. I'm liking Orton's work, which is a compliment since I don't really like him. I'm also liking the Orton-Barrett feud.
Zack Ryder is talking to Johnny Ace about how great the WWE Network looks. I guess a human being wasn't available.  Then John Cena shows up shilling some merchandise. Johnny Ace makes a match. Zack Ryder vs. John Cena. Ryder gets a US title shot if he wins. Cena gets into the title match if he wins. Interesting.
David Otunga tells Kevin Nash he will face HHH in a ladder match with a sledgehammer. I think Viscera would have a better ladder match than Kevin Nash. And now Kevin Nash gets to destroy some upstart's career.
We got Del Rio vs. Daniel Bryan. It wasn't much of a match. Bryan was still coming off his rib injury so he was out to do the glorified job. I don't think he lost too much.
We got Eve & Kelly Kelly vs. Beth Phoenix & Nattie. It is nice to know we haven't seen that match before (<-sarcasm font). My wife heckled their work. That's bad.
Then we got John Cena vs. Zack Ryder. I'm intrigued to see where this will go. John Cena beat him without killing him too badly. So the WWE is going to work on building John Cena by having him beat the most popular wrestler in the company.
John Cena had a lot of fire for his backstage promo with Johnny Ace. He gave up his title shot for Zack Ryder to get another chance. That is a good step in rebuilding John Cena.
Zack Ryder got Mark Henry. Ouch. Ryder sold like Shawn Michaels. Then John Cena comes out and does an Attitude Adjustment and has Ryder cover Henry. Strange. Ryder beat Henry but was not put over.
Nash walked down to the ring in record time. He killed Santino.
For the main event, I got Dolph Ziggler-Sheamus. Ryder interfered and Sheamus ended up getting the win. In some ways I think Dolph Ziggler is this generation's Mr. Perfect. And that is NOT a name I use lightly.
Then there was a contract signing. CM Punk came out and cut some major promos. Miz has so much fire. The fans are rejecting Alberto Del Rio. Then there was some major battling that went on.
All in all... Pretty decent Raw. I like the edgy inside stuff. They seemed to be focused.
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Monday, November 28, 2011

Raw is Getting Me Through Caffeine Withdrawal 11-28-11

So last week's Raw took some pretty big steps. I know. I was going through caffeine withdrawal a few weeks ago and decided it was time to go off of it again. Not sure why I did that. Even with everything, there is still a little bit of anticipation tonight. Piper's Pit. John Morrison's Future Endeavored Tour ends tonight. Punk-Del Rio.
I liked the build-up to the title match. Cole & Lawler made it sound important.
They introduced a skinny guy named Rowdy Roddy Piper. Piper is one of my top 5 all-time favorites (Double-A, Taker, Terry Funk, Piper & Sting). Piper brought something we haven't seen in months. Fire and intensity. It took me a while to figure out what was going on with this promo or why it was happening. I think Piper was trying to get the people to cheer him. Cena continued being happy, smiley Cena. So Piper slapped him. Cena stopped smiling and walked off. Did we find some intensity?
Miz was supposed to fight Morrison. Miz attacked John Morrison with a lead pipe. Welcome to the last stop of the Future Endeavored Tour. Morrison got in some offense and had lots of heart. I was actually surprised this match was as good as it was. He wasn't even pinned. The referee called the fight.
Psycho Miz cut a nice promo. He had good intensity and fire. He's the one guy who does well with scripted material. The only problem was that I think he sounded just like Cody Rhodes.
The Bellas wrestled Kelly Kelly and Alicia Fox, the new love of my life. By the time I was done typing this sentence, Alicia pinned a Bella for... why? Beth and Nattie did a run-through that didn't involve interfering in the match.
We got a Sheamus package. I love the video packages they do. This needs to happen more. Broadus Clay has to hold off ANOTHER week? Then Punk delivers a killer segment. Loved the Jennifer Hudson reference. Now Punk can't get intentionally disqualified? Does this make ANY sense?
Wade Barrett walks down to the ring nicely dressed. We get Randy Orton vs. Dolph Ziggler. I'm expecting a lot out of this. This was a really good match. The crowd was really into this. Ziggler won through a little help from Wade Barrett.
Michael Cole introduced Daniel Bryan. Michael Cole was awful during this promo. Daniel Bryan spoke with a lot of passion and fire. This would have been a great segment with Josh Matthews instead of Cole.
We got Swagger (without an entrance) versus Zack Ryder. It was a nice short match. Swagger needs to go to Ring of Honor and feud with Homicide. Or Eddie Edwards. Right now I'd take just about anybody. Ryder won.
The Kane promos are awesome.
Mick Foley is now destroying every happy memory I've ever had of him. Then Punk says "ass."
The main event was really good. Lots of near-falls. They were going to do the "heel pretends to be hit by a chair" and Punk fell down first.
Tonight's Raw was pretty good. Everything seemed to be a little more serious. There was some good passion and fire here. Please tell me we are going to make John Cena not hated again. I could do without "St. Mick," but Super Dave was only featured in one scene.
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Monday, November 21, 2011

Twitter Presents... Monday Night Raw

Last night was Survivor Series and I don't think I felt the hate that others did. I thought the first hour was pretty good (sans Super Dave reminding us this was his 10-year anniversary with the company). I was surprised with the 10-man tag match. I thought Orton was winning all along and instead, Rhodes and Barrett were made to look strong. I hated the way that Sheamus was eliminated. And I really hated the way Sin Cara was eliminated. He is getting a push and a build that any wrestler would KILL for. And he does nothing but piss on it with his attitude, ego, wellness violations and an in-ring style that makes Mason Ryan look like Ric Flair. I know accidents happen, but you really should be able to not mess up as much as he does. Right now, he's not ready from an in-ring standpoint for the wrestling fundraiser at the VFW, much less the national stage of the WWE.
Sorry for my Sin Cara tangent. I know I was able to go grocery shopping, rotate my tires and read "Of Mice and Men" in the time it took Big Show to get to the top rope and do a Savage elbow. But it was am incredible moment. I dare say that was the "Holy s***" moment of the year from WWE. And of course, the CM Punk moment with Howard Finkel announcing him as new champion was indescribable. I also thought Miz and Truth didn't look weak against Cena & Rock. Rock has never minded trying to make a new star. There were some moments I could have lived without, mostly involving Super Dave Osborne, David Otunga and Matista, the Walking Wellness Violation.
Raw opened as it should have. CM Punk, The Champ, walking to the ring. Punk is just money on the mic. Then Super Dave Osborne killed the atmosphere. CM Punk went off on him. Punk can draw a good segment even out of Super Dave. The fans do not want Super Dave on tv.
They showed footage of The Rock cutting a promo and the crowd chanting "We Want Ryder." Wow. They introduced Zack Ryder and the crowd chanted like he was Stone Cold in 1997. As Ricardo Rodriguez came out to the ring, Zack Ryder grabbed the mic and said "Woo woo woo. You know it." I'm not sure how I feel about this. Two of my favorite personalities going after each other. It was a quick match. Alberto Del Rio destroyed him. I get what the WWE was trying to do here. Getting heel heat on ADR by him beating Ryder. But instead of heat, it just killed the crowd.
Then came out my Team Pasty White idol, Sheamus. He got Jack Swagger. Their match was pretty good. They are both two very good athletes, so if they feud, the matches should be really good. Jack Swagger just makes me mad. And it has nothing to do with the person. I think that if he were in Ring of Honor, he'd be champ. He looks so uncomfortable being a character.
Kevin Nash cut a promo. Nobody cares about Kevin Nash. Kevin Nash doesn't induce heel heat. He doesn't induce any heat. The only thing worse than a hated wrestler is a wrestler people don't care about. That's exactly what Nash is.
Cody Rhodes squashed Santino Marella. Even Michael Cole said, "Thanks for coming, Santino." The commentary was a lot better tonight. Cody Rhodes threw a glass of water at his half-brother's former tag team partner. I like that they're planning on using Booker T to create talent.
Dolph really is the unsung hero of the WWE. It was really probably the biggest match on Raw this year. I feel bad that I couldn't write more detail, but it was great.
Good video package for Kane.
Big Show cut a really decent promo. Very short.
Divas are now being forced to pimp video games. Poor things. Beth looked very boobalicious in that outfit. Sorry, you put that out there, I'm going to look. Sorry, Alicia & AJ.
We then got Wade Barrett squashing Kofi Kingston. Then Randy Orton came out. Kofi Kingston looks lower than Curt Hawkins after this match. But Kofi ended up getting some offense at him.
John Cena talked or something. Then Miz and R-Truth came out. They sounded well. Cena sounded like a 10-year-old trying to rile up the other kids on the playground. He tried to stir up crap between Miz and Truth.
For an hour and a half, this was a really good Raw. And then Cena happened and Awesome Truth were dissolved because... ? I think the ending alone makes it a bad Raw.
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Tuesday, November 15, 2011

Raw Is Too Long 11-14-11

Tonight was a 3-hour Raw with The Rock or something.
It began with the Michael Cole challenge. There was a really awful arm wrestling. Then we got to see JR dance. Is there anything they won't do to him? At this point, Jim Ross needs to tell the WWE to go f*** themselves. Then the final thing was a weighing contest. Then we are saved by CM Punk who rips into Michael Cole. Finally we have the sanest man in wrestling. Johnny Ace makes a match and Eddie Kingston dies inside. CM Punk is RP McMurphy in the insane asylum.
Mick Foley came out of a limo.
We had a pretty decent tag match. Cody Rhodes and Hunico versus Sin Cara and Kofi Kingston. It was a good solid match. The funniest part was that she had to leave the room because she was on the phone and she got distracted because she likes Sin Cara.
The Rock arrived. My wife's heart fluttered.
Santino pimped the WWE new video game with Zack Ryder.
Vickie Guerrero walked out. Dolph Ziggler would be the new member of Team Barrett.
The Walking Wellness Violation Mason Ryan took on Dolph Ziggler. Vickie interfered and Dolph was dq'd. As Vickie and Dolph ran, John Morrison threw him back in the ring for some roid rage.
Mick Foley got to do the "Woo woo woo, you know it" thing with Zack Ryder. Then he walked out before the adoring crowd. Foley wants people to cheer John Cena. Then Foley invites John Cena to the ring. They went back to This is Your Life? Foley is one of my favorite all time on the mic. (Punk, Funk, Heyman, Dusty, Flair) Why did they have to have to do something so unoriginal? It was fun seeing Bull Buchanan. Then they brought out John Cena, Sr. I will never complain about Bob Orton Sr. after seeing that travesty.
We got Jack Swagger getting mugged by Sheamus. It wasn't that bad of a match. Swagger now is my cue to play Civilization IV.
The Bellas would rather have Alberto Del Rio than Zack Ryder.
There was a video package of Kelly Kelly's photo shoot. Due to me not being 12, I could care less.
Kelly Kelly pinned Nattie Neidhart in record time. Alicia Fox looked really hot in her dress. But don't worry, AJ, you're still the center of my Divas universe.
Super Dave and ADR argue about something. Matt Striker is standing by with R-Truth and Miz. I think Miz was just wearing random outfits that didn't matter whether they matched or not.
As Punk was walking out to the ring, ADR attacked him. Ugh, why is Punk walking around by himself?
Alberto Del Rio walks out and I just gotta say Ricardo Rodriguez is one of my favorite things on WWE TV. We had ADR/Henry vs. Big Show/Punk. Punk apparently had some spinach or something. He came out and wanted ADR. This made me intrigued with this match for the first time ever. I thought they had some pretty decent things going on in this match. Big Show-Henry was no Chikara action, but I am looking forward to this match. ADR won and then put Punk in the arm breaker. Big Show came to his rescue. Decent build-up.
Santino Marella came out and cut a cute promo. Then Kevin Nash came out; everybody died inside except Jim Cornette. At least it wasn't a big name he destroyed.
Michael Cole was doing the video game hard sell and my wife the nurse pointed out he wasn't even wearing his sling right.
Looks like they're serious about Wade Barrett again. It was a decent match, but it was SO predictable.
Then The Rock came out and rambled. Fortunately for us, with The Rock, it never seems like rambling. Then Miz and Truth came out and held their own against The Rock, and then John Cena came out. They forgot the TV-PG part for a minute. It was just ok for me.
I didn't entirely hate this Raw. The first segment made me want to close my eyes and dream of Chikara. But it went better as time went on. I'm thinking "thumbs in the middle."
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Monday, November 7, 2011

Raw Is During the Eagles 11-7-11

This is probably one of the most tiring weekends of my life. And not only that, Raw is during an Eagles game. We are coming to you delayed from Liverpool. For those of you who don't mind me going into my life, I am a Liverpool FC fan. (YNWA)
We open up Raw with a really great exchange between Cena and Miz/Truth. Once fisticuffs started flying, Zack Ryder came out to his rescue.
We had Dolph Ziggler take on John Morrison as he continued his Future Endeavored Tour. Vickie looked really nice in her outfit. This was a pretty decent match. My wife was not happy over Morrison wearing a shirt. She also did not like the match. It went on too long and they weren't really doing anything (according to her). What I thought was awesome was the crowd cheering for Ziggler. Morrison should have walked out with a Suarez jersey. Morrison snapped his losing streak. I was pleased with the match. It looked like they put some effort into it.
Then came the Walking Wellness Violation Mason Ryan against JTG. I'm still more shocked JTG's on Raw. It was a squash match. Even though I don't like the guy they're pushing, I gotta give them credit. They're trying to make a star. The crowd had no reaction to him whatsoever.
We got a gratuitous "Wrestlemania Will Be Big" package. Then the Bellas supported Zack Ryder. I thought we were supposed to cheer him.
Then we got Alberto Del Rio vs. Kofi Kingston. These titles are so meaningless. I hate that it was the at the tag champ's expense, but they made ADR look strong.
Then Punk came out. And ADR delivered the most scripted promo I've ever heard. He called ADR one-dimensional. About freakin' time. And CM Punk wants the belt and to make the title interesting again. (Wow, did he really just say that?) I think the first hour was pretty good overall. The WWE "Creative" Team needs to come up with something else for Del Rio to say other than "This is my destiny."
Then we watch the Muppets recap. Then we get the ridiculously stale Jack Swagger rematching against Santino Marella. Swagger won. Yawn.
Kelly Kelly is on the cover of Maxim. We all die a little on the inside. Please watchSHIMMER. They have real women's wrestling. This segment was so awful. Kelly Kelly should never be given a microphone again.
Then we got Super Dave Osborne introducing Kevin Nash. Nash, for everything that's wrong with him being an active part of the WWE product in 2011, is great on the mic. I still haven't figured out where this is going.
Super Dave and David Otunga are courting or something. Then Otunga makes fun of Punk, Punk goes after him and then ADR attacks him.
Then we got the Cena/Ryder-Awesome Truth main events. I want to be mad for yet ANOTHER Raw with Cena as the main event. But can I be mad that we Zack Ryder in the main event? They turned this into a good match. Miz pinned John Cena. Yeah, I just typed that.
I will give this show credit. The first hour was very solid and I thought the main event did a great job of building Awesome Truth and Zack Ryder. Yeaaaaaa!!!!!!!!
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Monday, October 31, 2011

Raw Is Halloween 10-31-11

I may have no idea what is going on tonight during Raw. I had a hard time sleeping on Friday night and had one last hurrah for my about-to-be brother-in-law as we celebrated his bachelor party. We started out at a Dallas Stars game and then ended up somewhere at a Dick's Last Resort in downtown Dallas. There was a fan at the Dallas Stars game dressed as John Cena. He was booed every time he walked past a group of adults.
I am running on a lot of sleep deprivation. And random brats are going to be knocking on my door asking for free candy. If Raw gets really bad tonight, I may find myself plugging in Night of the Living Dead and blogging on that instead.
The Rock was there in a pre-recorded statement. Yawn... I hate to say this, but it was a pretty good pre-recorded promo. I'm sure the crowd must have been happy to pay to watch a pre-recorded statement.
Our first match was Punk and Henry. Johnny Ace came out and reminded us of who he was I guess... to see if fans would tune out earlier. Alberto del Rio sent in the Mexican Paul Bearer (Ricardo Rodriguez) to interfere and keep Punk from winning. My wife compared to Alberto del Rio to a Mexican Superman. I think she was on to something. Punk sent Rodriguez back into the ring and he got attacked by Henry. Are we building up Del Rio-Henry?
We get the Muppets on Monday Night Raw. I just wrote that. Then we get the Human Muppet Vickie Guerrero. I gotta admit I loved Vickie and Miss Piggy. Santino came out to their rescue. The highlight was Kermit calling Vickie his mother. The other highlight was Santino was calling him John Laryngitis. Then Kelly Kelly came out and made out with Kermit. It even made my wife laugh.
There was a Divas costume battle royal. Alicia Fox won the costume contest for me. Eve won the match.
Then we had a skit with Bunsen and Beaker where Christian bullied him. (Remember, Christian. Nobody likes a bully.) Then my Halloween costume Sheamus came to his rescue. They are related. Cute.
We had AirBoom take on Cody Rhodes and Wade Barrett which made no sense. Cody Rhodes got a nice crowd reaction. They won for absolutely no reason. Then Christian comes in which calls on the mobilization of Team Pasty White.
Then Statler and Waldorf did the "What?" stuff. Cute. I'll just skip over the Johnny Ace segment. It looked like Weekend at Bernie's with Punk trying to carry the deadweight.
We got Big Show versus Alberto del Rio. The crowd had no reaction whatsoever, but it was a nice dramatic match. It made sense for Show-ADR. The crowd was dead and couldn't care less. Big Show won like he hadn't pinned the champ. I've been trying to look at this positively, but this has been a pretty awful first hour.
Punk comes out and sits in the ring and puts him in the Anaconda Vice until he agreed to a match at Survivor Series. Then we had Fozzie and Gonzo. Swagger and Ziggler twisted Gonzo. Swagger really has no presence.
Then it was time for the Swagger-Santino match. The work was fine. I'm tiring of Swagger. Beaker gave Santino a blue liquid he spit on Swagger. He pinned him.
Zack Ryder had Dolph Ziggler. I think the match was well-booked. I was just so turned off by this whole night. Ryder won.
We had no HHH tonight which was an improvement to me. I fast forwarded Michael Cole just because I refuse to watch a human being get treated that way.
Miz and Cena were the main event. It was a pretty decent match. Cena won.
Well, Raw was pretty awful tonight. I enjoyed a lot of the Muppet segments. While we had no HHH, it was riddled with nothing but the same tired cliches. I can name 3 people almost immediately who need off the tv NOW. Not a lot of hope after this week's episode.
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Monday, October 24, 2011

Raw Is After Vengeance 10-24-11


Vengeance is in the books. Off the top of my head, it was a really good pay-per-view. If I had spent my money (I saw it in a bar where I do a pre-game show, so I was not charged for it.), I would have been pleased with the purchase. The worst part of the night was our service, but that is not typical, so you take it as it comes. Vengeance had some really good matches. Cena-ADR was a total (good) brawl. Henry-Show was a pretty good match (Even though the ring collapsing will never touch Taz-Bam Bam Bigelow in ECW). Sheamus-Christian, Orton-Rhodes, were pretty good matches for the hype behind them. Even Eve-Beth wasn't painful.
So coming next is Survivor Series. Now begins the build-up. They begin to recap the PPV. The ring collapsing was of course the first thing mentioned. And the second was Kevin Nash. Eve Torres had more people talking than Kevin Nash. HHH comes out to the ring likes it's still 2004 and gets to be the center of attention. Why not? The ring collapsed back then, too. HHH does the same promo he's done since '04. He calls out Kevin Nash and is interrupted by the only guy I want to see less, Super Dave Osborne. HHH follows Super Dave up to the ramp and is attacked by Kevin Nash holding a sledgehammer. They did a nice job of selling the sledgehammer. If you get hit with one, your only television appearances for the next two weeks should be in a hospital bed.
No matter how bad Raw is, it can be as bad as the Adam Sandler in drag movie.
Cole and Lawler sold the sledgehammer hit very well. They are trying to make these mean something again.
Our first match is Orton & Sheamus vs. Christian & Rhodes. Sheamus is really catapulting upwards. I think he might replace Kofi as my favorite wrestler in the WWE. These four know each other well in the ring and worked very well together. Sheamus got the pin and looks like he gets Mark Henry next. Good bout for the first match.
Backstage, Super Dave is talking to Stephanie. This is how bad it is. I would rather see Stephanie on tv than Johnny Ace. John Cena sees Otunga and makes a Carlton Fresh Prince joke. If it didn't sound scripted, I would forgive him for at least one poop joke.
Santino got squashed by Dolph Ziggler. After Jack Swagger put him in the Ankle Lock Submission, the Walking Wellness Violation Mason Ryan comes out to his rescue. In case you were curious about what roid rage looks like, go back and watch this segment.
After the commercial break, we have the younger Gomez Addams in the ring introducing Alberto Del Rio. Alberto Del Rio will be champ for a long time. Then CM Punk's music hits. Then Super Dave interfered. Punk went over his mic skills. Then he mocked Ace's "majestic voice" and asked him if he needed a new skateboard. Punk wants a title shot. All he had to do is say is he respected Ace.
"I respect you, Funk-man."
-CM Punk in a deep Brian Pillman-like voice making reference to this
Punk said that he respected Ace for doing more with less. Ace doesn't want Punk as champion. 1997 called. They wanted their angle back.
We got Nattie-Alicia Fox. Alicia actually beat Nattie. That was unpredictable.
The John Morrison Future Endeavored Tour continued against Wade Barrett. John Morrison will have a nice career in AAA. It was just kind of a formality. I have no emotional investment in any more of Morrison's matches. I'm just biding time until the next match. At least the Divas match had a surprise.
Does Vince believe Jim Ross deserves ANY dignity? Michael Cole will quit if he loses the announcer's challenge. Well, I guess we know who'll win it.
Miz & Truth attacked Zack Ryder and then cut a really good promo. After the commercial, we find out it'll be a handicap match. I still have Walking Dead on DVR that needs to be watched. Hell, I'd rather watch Dirty Soap with my wife than this main event. I paid no attention to this match because the WWE Creative Team didn't either.
You want good wrestling? Go here if you're in the Dallas/Fort Worth area. Go here to get a good cross-section of indy wrestling no matter where you are. And no matter who you are or where you are, go here. Cause you're not getting it here with the WWE.
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Monday, October 17, 2011

Raw Es Mexicano 10-17-11


Ésta noche, estamos en México D.F. para Raw. Pues, voy a blogear totalmente en español para celebrar.
According to my professors, I couldn't write good in Spanish so I better quit while I'm ahead. (And yes, my grammatical error is there completely for irony.) All I said was tonight, we are in Mexico City for Raw. So, I'm going to blog totally in Spanish to celebrate. (Or something equivalent to that)
Last week, we suffered through one of the worst Raws since Katie Vick. If I were personally not committed to do the Raw blog, I would have switched to Fox and watched House or something. I still have faith that somehow they will turn this around.
We start off the night with Super Dave Osborne in the ring. He is so awful on the mic. The wrong Dynamic Dude is speaking. (Shane Douglas, where are you?) He brings back Jim Ross. I haven't seen a more emotionless hug since Hollywood Hogan hugged "in-the-rafters" Sting. He makes a match. Cole/Del Rio vs. Ross/Cena. At least we know who'll win.
Randy Orton comes out. The crowd acted like it was Juanes. In accordance with the art of Lucha Libre, we get a 6-man tag. Orton/John Morrison/Sheamus versus Christian/Cody Rhodes/Mark Henry. The crowd hung off of every move Randy Orton made. Orton & Rhodes were not long for this match as they got to go to the back and fight. It was a nice match. I really feel that Henry is coming into his own as a top guy. The John Morrison Future Endeavors tour continued as he was probably killed by Mark Henry.
No matter what happens here, it could be worse. I could be seeing that awful movie In Time.
We got some more time with Broadus Clay. He isn't a bad speaker. After the Bellas hung on Johnny Ace, they can only go up. Eve is making her way to the ring. I will take this opportunity to pee. It took longer than I intended. I have no idea what happened.
After the commercial, we got CM Punk and then Awesome Truth came out. They cut a promo on Punk and he just stood there and smiled. This was a decent match. My satellite went out so I have no idea what happened. Punk got a roll-up and won.
We had Jack Swagger escorted by Dolph and Vickie. She looked really nice in her traditional Mexican dress. And yes, she said "Excuse me" in Spanish. They really got the crowd going. They were very good with them. Then we were saved by my daughter's favorite wrestler, Zack Ryder. My daughter doesn't know any wrestlers. She just says, "Woo woo woo." Zack Ryder get a pin in record time. After they start a beatdown on Ryder, he is saved by Matista.
Ziggler did a good job carrying the Walking Wellness Violation. Matista got disqualified for... I have no idea.
Then JR and John Cena had a little back and forth and then Cole heeled the crowd.
The main event turned out to be an ok match. For it to be a good match, I have to believe Cena can lose.
This was not as bad as last week's Raw. We are still stuck with Super Dave Osborne, but the crowd was hot and made the wrestlers seem important. There is plenty that can be improved, but for tonight, I'll rest on not hating it.
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Monday, October 10, 2011

Raw Is Vacant 10-10-2011


Well, words escaped the end of last week's Raw. That was one of the most surreal Raws I ever saw. Now it's time to see how the WWE follows it up. The announcer's seats are empty. We get a nice perspective of the back area. And we get to start with Triple H. Surprise. And after HHH's entrance, there's only 15 minutes left of Raw, so no worries there. The superstars are outside and waiting for HHH to step down. Then he panders worse than Hogan's cup to the ear thing. And just when you thought it couldn't get any worse, the Confederate Warrior himself John Cena comes to the ring. We get serious John Cena. He didn't sound so scripted. And then comes out my Pasty White Hero, Sheamus. He's still with HHH. Then Punk comes out. He's still with HHH. He makes a match. Cena vs. Sheamus with Punk on commentary and HHH as ref.
Commercial break. I have been without caffeine for 2 days. Any more Red Robin commercials, I will need to be held down.
After the commercial Vince McMahon comes out. Everyone's heart sunk. Vince likes watching Raw at home. Board of Directors met about this situation. HHH is no longer running Raw. The new person running Raw is Super Dave Osborne. If I was not doing this review, I would be watching 2 Broke Girls on DVR.
Brian Wilson is on my tv. All of a sudden, Super Dave Osborne isn't so bad.
Now all the wrestlers are coming back in. John Morrison tells Johnny Ace he sucks. Then he continues his burial tour against Christian. My wife notices Morrison has shaved his face. She acted like I did when Nelson Cruz hit his grand slam. Morrison was squashed. Then Ziggler, Swagger & Rhodes take out Morrison.
Then HHH threatens Super Dave.
Then Randy Orton and Mark Henry had a match. Cody Rhodes interferes. DQ. Mark Henry beats him up a few times. Randy Orton is ridiculously stale.
We had Kelly Kelly & Eve vs. Rosa & Tamina. We've still got psycho angry Kelly. Eve pins Tamina. Poor Tamina. Super Dave asks JR to come into the ring. Really? At this point in his career, what are you going to do to JR they haven't already done? Super Dave is so awful on the mic. He just sounds like he's reciting a script. He fired JR.
We get Matista & AirBoom vs. Swagger, Ziggler & Otunga. This is the best match of the night so far by default. The highlight was the powerbomb Jack Swagger did on Evan Bourne. I have nothing against Matista/Mason Ryan. He just looks like he couldn't pass a piss test.
John Cena's movie looks awful. And I like Ethan Embry.
Punk and Del Rio were fighting until Super Dave stopped it and reinstated Awesome Truth. I stopped caring during this match. I was impressed by what I saw from ADR. The work in this match was really good. I just felt like I was watching House-no show is ever new; I just watch out of habit. Miz/Truth were disqualified and then HHH came to Punk's rescue.
This is without a doubt the worst Raw I have seen in a long time. This is just as bad as Katie Vick era or the night the nWo started demolishing the Nitro set. The first 15 minutes were brilliant and then it was just like a fart in church from there. They most likely killed drawing in Oklahoma and I would be surprised to see their ratings higher than 2.5. Not saying all hope is lost. But something needs to change.
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Monday, October 3, 2011

Raw Is Chaos 10-3-11


I would like to begin this by wishing Mother Ruff a very happy [age deleted]th birthday. The Rangers are giving us heart attacks. The Cowboys embarrass themselves against the Lions. And as happy as that makes me, the Eagles can't win either. I missed last night's Hell in a Cell. Due to a HUGE weekend, it was just too much to go out on a Sunday night. From what I hear, there was a  lot of chaos and a lot of questions to have to answer.
It seems like tonight's Raw has some major buzz. Randy Orton comes out first and kills my buzz. Drew McIntyre is already in the ring and gets no entrance theme. Thanks for spoiling the end of the first match, WWE. This was a little more than a squash. McIntyre got his share of offense in. The crowd seemed to be really into Randy Orton. But does he make you tune into the show? I can think of 1.98 reasons why he doesn't. Orton pinned him in what was a decent opener. Kudos to McIntyre for making him look good. Then he attacks McIntyre after the match. Why is he a face?
Mark Henry came out and they fought each other. Security kept on trying to hold them back and they kept on attacking each other. A great visual.
We had a Mark Henry video package. Then John Morrison continued his "About to Be Future Endeavored" tour against Mark Henry. Morrison got some offense before Mark Henry kicked out of Morrison's finisher. Mark Henry grabbed the mic. He is done with Randy Orton. He wants Big Show.
Super Dave Osborne is giving the heels a pep talk. All 6 are going to the ring. (At this point, my wife fell asleep, for those of you curious.)
Alberto del Rio speaks. As much as I loathe that it's Otunga getting the ball, I like that they are finding a common theme among everything that is happening. Each rep got to cut their promo about how they are being wronged. And then Vickie grabbed the mic. You would have thought she was Michelle Bachman at an Atheist's convention. And then HHH came out and told them they weren't men or something. I like the thought and concept; the execution is not doing it for me.
We got Eve & Kelly fighting Beth & Nattie. Kelly & Eve gave Beth & Nattie a beatdown. I don't think this was a match. I saw some fire from Kelly. I liked it.
Super Dave Osborne apologized to HHH. He called for a vote of "no confidence."
Rock is on my tv. My wife woke up. Jinder Mahal started speaking a foreign language. That must mean we're supposed to boo him. Marella grabbed the mic and started mocking Mahal's language. Classy. Santino squashed Mahal. Mahal must be opening for Morrison on his "About to Be Future Endeavored" tour.
Broadus Clay footage. He's like a walking zip code.
The footage of the beatdown was unreal. All the wrestlers were out there, heels and faces alike. There are so many questions to be answered here. Miz and Truth apologized (ish).
Then there was the 12-man match. We had "Never Pissed in a Cup" Mason Ryan. Sheamus got in some good offense. Cody Rhodes had some good moments and looked good. This was pretty good for a cluster. Kofi did the face in peril very well. The crowd loved it. Even my wife who happened to wake up again noticed Evan Bourne come in and go to town. This crowd was so wild all night. They did the spot where everybody did their finishers. Then Sheamus got the pin. I thought the match would be a lot worse than it was. It was given the time it needed.
All the wrestlers came out and stood ringside. So everybody stands ringside while HHH gets the center of attention. This is so ridiculous. He needs to take himself off tv. And out of all the superstars, the one who gets the mic... Wade Barrett? Then Mike Chioda gets a mic? Me like. Then Beth gets a mic. "We're girls." Really? Then Lawler gets in the ring with HHH. Everything is out of control, but it's not HHH's fault. There's a puppeteer behind the scenes. Who is it? Everybody votes no confidence, including Lawler, who did it kind of reluctantly. Then, one by one, factions walked out, the last being JR. What a surreal Raw.
This has to be the most surreal Raw I have seen since ECW and WCW joined forces and the best Raw since CM Punk cut "The Promo." So many questions abound.
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Tuesday, September 27, 2011

Raw Is Dedicated to Mr. Peppermint 9-26-11


For those of you who have no idea who Mr. Peppermint is, click here. His show, Peppermint Palace, was on every Saturday morning on ABC at 6 (or 5, I don't remember). His show meant Saturday morning cartoons were going to start. And that was back when you didn't have Nick Jr. or Cartoon Network. This was the highlight of your week. So a moment of silence and respect to Mr. Peppermint.
We have some questions from last week's Raw. What will come of "on-fire" Alberto del Rio? What of Miz and Truth being fired? What injury will Tony Romo suffer? What indy promotion do I want to get next and do a review on? (I'm thinking Chikara.)
We start off with Triple H. I look at upcoming Chikara and AAW shows. My AIW show is on its way. Triple H was interrupted by Vickie Guerrero. And yet, people still booed her. Ziggler sounded really good. Ziggler and Triple H played off each other really well. Then Cody Rhodes interrupted. And then Christian interrupted. Christian gets lots of matches. Ziggler fights Zack Ryder. Cody Rhodes gets a Battle Royal.
This was a pretty good fast Battle Royal. Cody Rhodes retained.
After the break, Super Dave Osborne is talking to "Not-so-Super" David Otunga. Apparently, he is still a lawyer even if he's not practicing. Oh, the stupid... It burns.
We got a tag match. Nattie/Beth vs. Eve/Kelly. We got a Kelly Kelly video package. We need more of these. The crowd actually seemed to care about this match. Beth pinned the champion. Hopefully we get Beth winning more. Her and Nattie are a really good duo.
Mark Henry took apart Great Khali. It was an awesome image and added credibility to his tear of destruction.
John Cena cut a promo. Kansas City thought he was the Chiefs because there were some cheers, but a lot more boos. Then Del Rio came out ringside. Del Rio was doing commentary with his wrestling tights on. Then Punk came out with his announcer's jacket. This match ended in a DQ. This was the best way to do this. Christian didn't lose.
We got Zack Ryder vs. Dolph Ziggler. We got to plug Hugh Jackman's film. Ziggler looked really good in this match. Due to some outside interference by Jack Swagger, we got a tainted Ziggler victory. Air Boom came to Ryder's rescue.
Teddy Long made a match: AirBoom/Ryder vs. Swagger/Ziggler in a handicap match. This was a fun match. The crowd was really into it. Vickie went out and found a soon-to-be-suspended Mason Ryan, affectionately known as "Matista." He's a heel still. As soon as Mason Ryan was tagged it, he was a heel no more. He took out Team Vickie. Why did he do that? Interesting question.
Not-so-Super David Otunga is talking to the boys in the locker room. He's creating a lawsuit. I like this. It's creating an interesting storyline.
Our main event was ADR vs. CM Punk. This was a really decent match. Punk won. Then the cage lowered. Punk and Cena destroyed Ricardo Rodriguez and then ADR destroyed the other two with a chair.
This was a pretty good Raw, but then again, I DVR'd it so I didn't have to sit through the stuff I didn't want to see. But a lot of questions are raised. And I'm really digging the build-up for Hell in a Cell.
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Monday, September 19, 2011

Raw is Wolverine 9-19-11


I'm gonna be honest. My expectations for tonight's Raw are pretty low. Like, "The Mullets" on UPN low. Tonight is going to be a two-hour-plus commercial for Hugh Jackman's new movie, which looks entirely craptacular. Like Mars Needs Mom competition for the worst box office of the year. There are some questions that need to be answered. Like, how come now that I've lost weight, my belt breaks? What is it about Nicole on Las Vegas Jailhouse that just makes you want to break the law in Vegas? How do I get my wife to let me buy a Homicide or Kenny King t-shirt? Too bad none of these questions have to deal with Raw.
I do have some questions on Raw. Why did Miz and R-Truth attack Trips and Punk last night? How will Del Rio react to losing his belt to Super Cena? Who else wants to work for Vickie Guerrero?
We begin with Punk. There is a conspiracy. Trips' music hits prompting "I wasn't finished" from CM Punk. Triple-H-Punk reminds me a lot of Sgt. Slaughter-DX. Trips and Punk are then interrupted by Super Dave, who is a stooge. By the end of the night, Leslie Nielsen will uncover who is responsible.
There was an 8-man match where everybody got to do their moves. Sheamus killed David Otunga. Otunga is lower than, well, everything.
HHH tells ADR that he will need to pray.
We get ADR vs. Morrison. This would make a really good feud. ADR was mad. He made Morrison tap out in record time. Today's lesson: Be nice to Trish Stratus.
Hugh Jackman came out to the crowd and did really well with the live crowd. As he was pimping out his film, he was interrupted by Vickie Guerrero. Dolph refused to shake his hand. It was a fun segment. Ryder>Wolverine. The crowd chants "We want Ryder."
We got Sin Cara (probably the botcher) versus Cody Rhodes. The other Sin Cara comes out. They fight for a while. It wasn't a match. At least Cody Rhodes got to come out.
Then Miz and Truth apologized to Triple-H, the WWE Universe and even the Little Jimmies. They get Punk & Cena in the ring.
Mark Henry proved all the nay-sayers wrong. Jim Ross was one of them so he asks him to apologize. Ross does and channels his inner Clair Huxtable and tell him he hates "asskissers" and then attacks JR. The King comes to his rescue and then gets put through a table.
Eve and Kelly Kelly took on Beth & Nattie. Eve pinned Nattie Neidhart. It was pretty awful.
Hugh Jackman chose Zack Ryder to face Dolph Ziggler. The crowd was so ridiculously hot for Ryder. This was the right way to use a celebrity. Jackman looked like he legitimately had fun. Ryder pulled off the upset win and the crowd received exactly what they wanted. Imagine that, WWE. Give the people what they want and they will cheer.
We got a video package on Jack Swagger. We needed one of those. I need to remember why I care about him.
This was a pretty good main event. Cena/Punk vs. Awesome Truth. There was good drama, the 4 of them clicked pretty well together. At the end of the match, Triple H fired Miz and R-Truth. Chaos ensued in the back which lead to an all-out brawl.
It was a really good finish to a Raw that was somewhere between average and good. Maybe a Mike Sanders Raw ("Above Average"). I thought Hugh Jackman added to the product. There is still a mystery and intrigue to Raw. No passes given. I enjoyed myself tonight.
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