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11:05 - Really weak ending to Raw, mostly because the audience wouldn't seem to react the way WWE anticipated (or at least wanted). Along with that, it doesn't seem like Kane has quite grown comfortable in his new character. The odd speech pattern was something we weren't used to, which took away from the words he was trying to say. I still think they should have shown us one more 1/2/12 promo, just after the "WWE" logo appeared to end the show.
10:57 - So how long will Kane (the performer) continue to wear that outer mask before he gets tired of trying to take it off without removing the inner mask?
10:50 - Looks like I was right with my second prediction. So how do we end the show? With a Kane promo? With a super promo for 1/2/12? Let's see... Just odd to NOT end the show on Punk in Chicago.
10:34 - Alternative prediction: They surprise us and only go two matches, with Ziggler eking out the victory. My one issue with Henry being in there is that while they've allowed Superstars from both rosters to appear on each show, they've done a fairly good job of keeping the matches brand specific. Now we'd have a Smackdown guy challenging for Raw's top title.
10:32 - Prediction (obvious): Punk beats Swagger with little difficulty. He beats Ziggler after a highly competitive, semi-long match. He then loses to Henry due to outside factors (perhaps Johnny Ace interferes, while attempting to look innocent).
10:15 - If there's one Superstar who should only be used sparingly, I think it's the Big Show. People ride John Cena for being stale, but there's really nothing about Big Show that excites me. He'd be a great Special Attraction act. Making matters worse is that they seem to shift between him being a monster, a stand up comic, and an emotional mess on a weekly basis.
10:04 - I'm still not sold on Truth being a face. The dude was so incredibly awesome as a crazy heel. I always found him to be a bit stale as a face. Let's see how it pans out.
9:57 - To be honest, I'm a little surprised Cena doesn't get more respect in Chicago. Actually, I could see Cena slowly making his way back into the hardcore fans' hearts by becoming a respected, hard working wrestler.
9:53 - Cole, it's "Cenation" not "Cena Nation."
9:45 - What are the chances that Cole or Lawler even mention the Hart Dynasty during this match?
9:42 - Fun little story about Zack Ryder: For Christmas last year, he received that flip cam. Now one year later, that flip cam directly brought him to the most success he's ever experienced. Bravo to you, Zack.
9:21 - I have to agree with what many others are saying -- there's definitely at least one more "It Begins" promo coming tonight. Otherwise, why show one so early?
9:14 - So did that video answer any questions for anybody? The only think I kept wondering to myself was, "Why is Cody Rhodes in the background?"
9:03 - "This crowd has been booing him so loudly that he couldn't hear himself suck" - Lawler of Johnny Ace. Great line.
Anyway, how about a quick pre-Raw discussion? Last week's show was universally regarded as a refreshing, rejuvenated episode. Yet, discouragingly, it not only did poorly in ratings, but it actually lost viewers as the show went on. What does this mean?
Personally, I wish wrestling fans steered clear of ratings reports altogether. First and foremost, people tend to only view ratings when it fits their argument. When the ratings are high and a Superstar they like is being showcased, it means that the person should stay on top. When the ratings are down and somebody they don't like is being highlighted, it means viewers are uninterested in the character. But when ratings are down and somebody they like is the star of the show, there are a million excuses that oddly don't apply to the other two scenarios.
Secondly, it's a truly archaic metric. For all we complain about the abundance of Twitter references, I honestly believe it's a far more valuable and accurate representation of your viewing audience. Consider this: If 10% of the wrestling audience is on the Internet, and Twitter is one of the top 10 visited sites on the Internet, that number is likely far more accurate than the LESS THAN 0.05% of viewers that Nielsen represents. When Michael Cole says "anal bleeding" once, offhandedly, and it's trending on Twitter, it DOES mean people are watching. Yes, advertisers care about Nielsen ratings, but I honestly don't know if that will still be true (or not as true) in 5 years.
The good news is that the show is in Chicago, which means the crowd should be electric and CM Punk should be at his best. Along with that, it's the last week before 1/2/12, so we're sure to see an awesome cryptic clip. Let's hope for Jericho!
1 comment:
I really hope it's Jericho next week. I'm not positive though. I really feel like it has to be either Jericho, Undertaker, or some insanely shocking person we'd never have suspected (whether because we thought they were employed by TNA or something weird like Surprise, Edge didn't really retire!). And I sincerely doubt it's an insanely shocking person we didn't suspect. If it's someone other than those guys, this is a tremendous disappointment. For me, it'd be a big disappointment if it's Taker, since we get a Taker return every year around this time, but I acknowledge that he would at least be acceptable.
Someone pointed out to me that the whole "The End Begins" could fit the Undertaker, especially if there's any thought to this being his final Wrestlemania (I had heard it wasn't, but on the other hand he's around less and less every year). Plus the general creepiness of the video fits the Undertaker pretty well. On the other hand, the entire concept of the videos doesn't fit him at all. Unlike past return videos, where they were clearly WWE produced videos to signal his return, this is supposed to be a mysterious viral video thing where the person behind the videos is apparently hacking into the broadcast. Does that seriously sound at all like the Undertaker? That fits Jericho much better (what with the computer code he's had as part of his gimmick for awhile). Someone also pointed out a few hints in the videos. The latest one made reference to "reclaiming what is his" and focused on a globe...Jericho's been riding Punk for awhile now about stealing his stuff, including "Best in the World". And the second to last video had a maple leaf appear on the ground. If it was anyone but WWE I'd practically guarantee you it was Jericho, too many hints directly toward that. Because it's WWE, who knows? They often suck at continuity and being subtle, and how many storylines did they start and suddenly stop this past year alone? So it wouldn't shock me if they had Jericho in mind, then something fell through, and they just decided to keep going and bring back Undertaker early.
It also doesn't explain the girl. I know the theory with Jericho is that the girl is supposed to represent Punk, she seems to be copying off the boy at one point, harassing him, and the notebook has the name crossed out on it (which makes me think of the whole "Stealing my stuff" thing), but the 4th video seemed to pretty clearly imply the girl is supposed to herald his arrival, implying she's the "sign of his coming". On the other hand, not one of the possibilities (except the very silly Edge and Lita possibility which would be an enormous stretch) has a female tied to them. Undertaker has Michelle but that's totally off camera, was never on TV, and the Undertaker character really doesn't need a female valet.
My gut is Jericho. The evidence seems to fit him too strongly, with the maple leaf being the dead giveaway to me. And frankly, I don't buy Jericho's stuff on Twitter. I actually mean this as a compliment, but when it comes to wrestling Jericho's a big liar. But WWE has disappointed me before.
If it's Vince McMahon, I'm quitting.
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