LIVE Raw thoughts - November 5, 2012

11:08 - Still think they should've kept the Survivor Series match as it was.  I'm going to bed.

10:54 - Still wondering what the point was of removing the Miz from the Survivor Series match.

10:45 - I still miss the designs on CM Punk's shin guards.

10:29 - I was never a huge Funkasaurus fan, but this is a waste of Brodus Clay.  There's no reason why this guy can't be the modern day Rikishi.

10:24 - Methinks Brodus' losing streak is going to continue.

10:12 - Zack Ryder is falling into the category of guys that have loads of different attire designs, but for some reason always wears the same pair.  Where is the Ghostbusters design?!?!?  Also, Primo and Epico are inexplicably heels again?

10:04 - They couldn't even let Kofi hit his finisher with that distraction win?  I guess I should be happy they had him win at all.

9:59 - So who gets added to Team Foley?  R-Truth?  Brodus Clay?  Christian?  Is there any person on the roster that would make people MORE excited for the match than they were at the top of the show?

9:31 - Again, the classic Survivor Series match (which, tragically, will likely be the only elimination match on the show) just went from a main event match that the show can be built around to a midcard one that will likely be forgotten.  Sadness.

9:28 - I say this every week, but the one upside of the 3 hour Raws is that we do get longer, more competitive matches.

9:23 - For a fan, what was the point of watching last week?  The show was built around Team Foley vs. Team Punk, and that's now moot.  Two of the five guys on Team Punk are no longer on the team, and one of the five people on Team Foley isn't on the team anymore.  And the slow build for the Ziggler/Cena feud is now meaningless.  For the company itself, what was the point of even producing last week's show?  One week later, they negated practically everything they gave us.

9:07 - The Brad Maddox thing was fine and it was a different way to introduce a new character (although I hope he doesn't have the stench of "referee" for his entire character), but I detested the McMahon/Vickie stuff.  I was REALLY looking forward to Team Punk vs. Team Foley.  As a fan for almost 3 decades, I have a soft spot for the classic PPVs, perhaps most of all Survivor Series (since that's the one that drifted the furthest from its original concept).  Team Punk vs. Team Foley gave us the opportunity to see a unique match that we won't be seeing every single month.  It was a departure from the formula -- from what we see all the time.  Plus, it guaranteed an extra month of Punk as champion.  Why not give us this match at Survivor Series, where they allow Ryback to pin Punk clean, and THEN have the triple threat match a month later at the next PPV?  It just shows so much impatience.  Plus, what about the Ziggler/Cena feud they were seemingly building?  And on top of all that, not defending the WWE Championship at a major PPV would have given them a rare opportunity to shine a little extra spotlight on the World Heavyweight Championship.  Which that title desperately needs.

8:55 - Well, it has been a while since we've had a hipster referee.

8:51 - Am I mistaken, or has Wade Barrett vs. Sheamus now appeared on every single WWE televised program?

8:41 - Shocker, Daniel Bryan loses again.  This guy never seems to win when he's a face.  The thing that annoys me is that they keep having Daniel Bryan lose and they keep having Kane win.  For one, Kane doesn't need all of these victories, he's already established and he's already intimidating.  Plus, it kinda dampens the whole "you're the weak link" storyline.  Of the two, Kane is the face and Bryan is the heel.  Thus, the fans already side with Kane and thus he doesn't need to prove he's not the weak link.  Bryan, on the other hand, needs to have a reason to believe he's the leader and not the weak link.  He has no justification to believe that if he's always the one losing and Kane is always the one winning.  Give Bryan some cheap wins and Kane some unfair losses.  It gives the characters the proper motivation, and the fans are smart enough to realize that the good guy is "right" and the bad guy is "wrong."

8:39 - Wade Barrett MAY be a step up from the Miz, undecided on that.  Like the new Daniel Bryan gear, but I still think he needs to get a haircut.  Daniel Bryan's also been losing a lot lately, I hope he wins here tonight.

8:33 - I have to say, Vickie seemed to have the stronger argument there.  Cena should have done a better job of hammering home the point that they were two completely different rooms.  Cena came across as nervously making excuses, and I don't think that was the intention.

8:28 - Love that Cena finally brought up the obvious point about Vickie's past with Edge and Dolph Ziggler.

8:24 - Did Michael Cole and Jim Ross go suit shopping together or something?

8:22 - I'm not ultra sensitive about such matters, but I'm not sure it was necessary to show clips regarding Lawler's heart attack to promote his return.  Everybody knows why he was gone.  They just needed that second part, touting his return.

8:09 - It strikes me as a bit odd that WWE didn't air the entrances of two of their babyfaces (R-Truth and Sin Cara), but did air the entrances of all three heels.  I assume it's because they wanted to fire up the crowd by giving them fan favorites at the top of the show, but it still seemed odd.

8:03 - I actually kinda liked that opening, with the "Last week on Raw" and "tonight on Raw" voice over segment.  I'm not sure it's something I'll love if they do it ever week, but it's something different.  It also gives some structure to the show.  By the way, not sure how smart it is of the Miz to quit Team Punk.  I mean, this is his one opportunity to actually be in the main event again.

And is it me, or has every single 10 man tag match storyline had somebody removed from the team (and possibly joining again)?  It's a little old and really hampers the build of the match.

7:57 - Time to dust off that old timey phone booth because Raw is in the UK tonight!  It's (sorta) Halloween today in my town, so I may disappear for moments at a time throughout the night for trick or treaters.  But other than those brief moments, I'll be providing my stream of conscience for the next three hours.  I'm watching the show "live," so no spoilers.