Spike over Regal in 3 seconds... ain't that a BITCH?!
(edited by EastCoastAvenger on 8.4.02 2152)
"I hate motherfuckers claimin' that they foldin bank
But steady talkin shit in the holding tank
First you wanna step to me
Now your ass screamin for the deputy
They send you to Charlie-Baker-Denver row
Now they runnin up in ya slow
You're gone, used to be the Don Juan
Now your name is just 'Twan
Switch it, snap it, rollin your eyes and neck
You better run a check..."
--From "Check Yo' Self"
by Ice Cube
Goddamn, they better give him the mask back. You don't start the damn feud by unmasking him. You use that to add fuel to the fire 3-6 months in at the earliest.
Spike winning was awesome. So is Bubba Ray. I hope D-Von is that succesful, though I don't watch Smackdown.
Originally posted by JaguarGoddamn, they better give him the mask back. You don't start the damn feud by unmasking him. You use that to add fuel to the fire 3-6 months in at the earliest.
START the fued? Hell, those guys have been fueding for 2 years. but I don't think the mask will be leaving anytime soon... Kane mentioned his scarred face again- no way the fed could keep make-up on him every time he appeared (and through matches).
Again, a well-booked Raw. It is nice to see the matches and skits have some sort of purpose. I may not agree with every storline but Raw has become fun to watch once again.
You're in a desert, walking along in the sand when all of a sudden you look down and see a tortoise. It's crawling towards you. You reach down and flip the tortoise over on its back. The tortoise lays on its back, its belly baking in the hot sun, beating its legs trying to turn itself over. But it can't. Not without your help. But you're not helping.
I think this is the first RAW in a while where I could rewind my tape and watch the whole thing over again. RVD/Undertaker was just an awesome match. Same goes for Austin/Hall. Spike's 3 second win over Regal was awesome on so many levels. Even the opening promo was well done. Kudos to whoever was responsible for pening this RAW, and also to the performers for going out and putting on a hell of a show. This split just might work afterall.
The Molly/Trish match was sweet validation for those of us who have been carrying the "No, Molly is really good! Honest! REALLY!" torch all through her term as women's division jobber. And it feels so good....
I'm not thrilled at the prospect of a further Kane/X-Pac feud, but I think unmasking Kane was the right step here. It makes the attack something more than nWo Beatdown #4839. As long as they don't plan to drag the feud out the way they did back in 1999.
Good Raw overall, though, with only one notable dead spot -- Perfect/Big Show was a waste of time. Still, things are moving along nicely, aren't they?
Undertaker/RVD - That was just a damn entertaining match. Taker looked like a badass, RVD just wouldn't go down, Eddy played his part perfectly (gotta love the playing possum after that belt shot!), and Taker's facial expressions were priceless, and probably did more to convey the match to the TV audience than the commentary did. I bet you could watch it with the sound off and understand the story perfectly, and -that's- good wrestlin'
Molly/Trish - Molly's new look/attitude is really revitalizing her. She looked great in the ring, looks damn hot with her new look, and the whole evil "pure and wholesome" bit could go a long way, I think. Trish held up her end just fine, too, and Jazz's beltshot was pretty wicked. So was that shiner. Ouch.
Lesnar/Heyman - Great, great interview from Paul, and the battle with the Hardy's was fun. Handicap match, anyone? The Animal nickname does seem to suit Lesnar, with his freaky facial tics and growling.
Kane - "Freaks kick ass!" I can dig it I hope the mask isn't gone -yet-, but I think it's not gonna last much longer, sadly. I'll probably still like him, though. What happened to the new music, though?
Bubba/Booker - Solid, entertaining and Bubba mixes humor with hardcore very well.
Spike/Regal - Hopefully, Regal will finally just decide to leave the knucks at home after this. Spike won't last long (I think Regal's gonna get EVIL on his ass at Backlash), but it was a cute moment. Plus, the reconciliation with Bubba was well-handled. And I got to see Tommy Dreamer on RAW! Yay
Low Points -
Austin/Hall - I dunno, Austin just didn't seem to...have it tonight. The chemistry with him and Flair is great, but his interview at the beginning was TOO LONG and his match with Hall was sub-par. Austin's a guy who can do wonderful things with another great wrestler, but just doesn't seem to carry people the way HBK, Flair, Angle, etc. seem to be able to. Just my own damn opinion. I still generally enjoy him, but not much tonight.
Big Show/Perfect - *yawn* Next.
I think that was most of the show, what I can remember anyway. Best RAW in weeks and weeks, very enjoyable, with only one or two dead spots.
"All I ever asked for in life is an unfair advantage." Microchip, Punisher Annual #2
Yes, excellent Raw. The show had a theme to it tonight with the 1 number contender matches and starting new fueds which has been the main theme since last week and hope it continues in the future. Anyone else notich how sick, the Brock Lesner chair shot sounded. Man, who is this guy, Maven?
I have to say, the women's division is now the premiere division on Raw. It has a good load of talent and they starting to get the writers to do more. I will say, the hardcore division needs to be a little more ECW which is not hard to do since Raw has a ton of those guys and one gal. So far, the show is doing well and is entertianing. I wish I could say about Smackdown when Rock leaves for two monthes.
-Scary as it may be, UT provided a template for how to win a match while helping the other guy get over while losing none of your own heat. Hell of a good Raw match that does a lot for RVD's credibility.
-Holy Christ did Molly get hot as hell when I wasn't looking! Nice match too, even seemed to silence the puppies chants after a point.
-Was Hall drunk tonight? He sure seemed pretty damn sloppy and confused. That match was sure not doing anything for me.
-Brock Lesnar could kill a lion with his bare hands. Or at least that's the sense I get watching him. This guy's a freaking monster, and I find myself marking for him the way I marked for early Goldberg. I just want to watch him hurt people. Any people.
-I think, and I have said this for a couple of years now, that if they leave the Dudleyz split up that Buh Buh will get over big as a face.
(edited by spf2119 on 8.4.02 2232)
"You used it to shove your miserable daughter down our throats week in and week out...not anymore!" - Ric Flair gives me hope, Raw 3/18/02
"I thought it was cool how HHH just tossed Jericho out of the ring and made him vanish, possibly into another dimension, at the end of the match." - Dr. Unlikely says the funniest thing I've ever read on Wienerville.
twoelitistsnobs, filling all your bitter pop culture reviewing needs
I'll second that thought: Austin was off tonight. I was just begging Undertaker to chokeslam him, and was a little disappointed when Austin got the better of UT at the end of that promo. Ah well. Austin's bluring the lines between face/heel again. Interesting. So's UT, but that's just cause I'm a mark for him.
RVD/Eddy! Yay!
-Jag
A very good Raw in my opinion, and I wouldn't mind seeing more of that. Hey! I went through another show without Angle or the Rock, and I still liked it! WOOO! Keep me updated on Smackdown, though Z.
"And there ain't a damn thing you can do about it, Cue Ball!"
Two weeks in a row for good Undertaker sound bytes.
Eddie Guerrero tonight was hilarious. The sneak attack and then acting like he was hurt again was PRICELESS. Vintage heel stuff.
I thought X-Pac was going to fly clear out of the ring when he sold the Stunner. As it was, I think he jumped about 8 feet.
I didn't even recognize Molly at first. Just seeing the new hair colour got me to watch the match and it ruled. I always liked her, but OMG did she look great tonight.
1) The Undertaker has been golden the last while as a heel, ans has been doing a great job. For th efirst time in a long while, I enjoy watching his matches. WHich leads me to....
2) Undertaker vs RVD. Excellent on so many levels. They missed a coupl eof spots yeah, but the rest clicked nice. Not only this, but they managed to shape up one of the Backlash main events and a sweet RVD Eddy fued. Speaking of Eddy, the kids in the developmental leagues need to stat watching tapes of Eddy on how to play the role of "dick head heel".
3) Bubba Ray Dudley. I mentioned in my first post that I like his run as a face so far, and I stand by it. His "play the funky music for the white dude" line was gold. Not only this, but Booker T didn't lose any heat with the loss, because he wasn't involved in the desision.
4) Molly Holly. She is now offically the HOTTEST WOMAN IN THE WWF. No contest, bar none. I love the hair. 10/10.
5) Brock Lesner/Heyman. Lesner = the bomb.
6) Molly Holly. =)
"The ability to think does not make one intelligent".
Mostly good show. I can't say I'm a fan of copying the exact McMahon-Austin angle from 1998 with Ric Flair in 2002. Can't we at least wait a few months before tension comes up between an owner and Austin? Also, his match with Hall was really quite off. Almost all of the spots looked awkward and it didn't look like they were cooperating. I'm not sure who's fault it was, but it looked bad.
"Don't eat crackers in the bed of your future, or you might get scratchy" - The Tick
The thing about Austin/Flair is that Flair doesn't hate Austin. McMahon did. Austin just treats Flair like shit because he's an asshole. I thought that if even Triple H and the Rock could open up and admit to admiring Flair/Hogan, Austin would too, but I was wrong.
Like everyone said, Molly got even hotter. Before she just looked cute and innocent but now...
Undertaker is the man. I still loved him when he was face American Badass, but as a heel he is just so much better at this point. RVD looked great, and Taker must like him because I don't remember the last time an "unestablished" non-main eventer gave him so much trouble cleanly. Eddy Guerrero of course is great to see, and is looking better than ever.
I ususally don't mind the opening promos, but tonight's really seemed to go on forever.
Where was Triple H? I guess it was just pointless to have him on if he's feuding with a Smackdown guy.
I hope Kane somehow gets his mask back. The plastic surgery idea is lame and stupid, and I don't see how they could make him looked scarred very convincingly. I bet Bradshaw steals it back for him or something.
I was surprised to see Nash, and I think it is stupid how they wrote him off. Forst of all, if they can simply be "suspended indefinitely," why are they a poison? Second, Nash threatening to sue Flair just crosses the line between "wrestl8ing" reality and "real" reality. The WWF needs to pick one of these realms and stick to it, they can't just jump back and forth to whichever is the easy way out.
It is impossible to win faster than Spike did tonight. I wish the announcers had pointed that out.
I never had any doubts that Bubba Ray could be a singles star. He was, afterall, the star of the Dudleyz as a team. I don't see D-von matching his success (so far) though, and that is why I think they should have stayed together.
I love Paul Heyman. If he becomes a manager (excuse me, "agent"), I will ignore him not being a color commentator again. Lesnar looks great too.
I said this in the other thread, but Xplosion is a ton more effective at advancing storylines. In addition to showcase (squash) matches, there are highlight packages, promos, and clips from the PPV. Unfortunately, not everyone has it.