LIVE Raw thoughts - March 25, 2013

11:20 - An overall poor way to end an otherwise pretty good show.  The segment ran WAY too long and seemed poorly organized.  The questions were too long and too similar.  And just when it seemed like Cena found an edge, he got physically bested by the Rock.  Just like he did throughout the build for their prior WrestleMania match.  And just like he did AT their WrestleMania match.  If they're not going to turn Cena heel -- and I don't think they will -- stop building up the possibility that he'll have to cheat to win.  Instead, give him an edge and make him a bit of a bad ass face.  This just made him look like a chump. In front of an audience that already feels that way.

11:03 - Well the last thing John Cena needs is to walk into arena after arena throughout the country and be greed with disdain.

11:00 - I assume they'll be doing a similar Hall of Fame panel for the Alberto Del Rio vs. Jack Swagger match next week.

10:54 - I say it every week (well, every week that he appears)....but I honestly believe Rock would seem fresher and less repetitive if he didn't wear the same exact workout gear every single time he's on WWE television.  Change it up a bit!

10:47 - Well that changes everything!  If I had known the panel included people from THIS YEAR'S class, I definitely would've said Foley.

10:42 - Fun fact:  Last time AJ and Kaitlyn fought, AJ won in literally 30 seconds.  Don't believe me?  Check it out yourself:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bvF0FnMWxRE

Yes, YET AGAIN they did a "champion loses a non title match to build a new challenger" instead of, ya' know, simultaneously building up a strong champion and a strong challenger.  But whatever.  At least they're doing the match.  And AJ better win!

10:32 - Wait....they're doing AJ vs. Kaitlyn TONIGHT?  I know I sang the praises of Undertaker and Punk going at it before Mania, but not EVERYBODY has to have a physical confrontation before their WrestleMania match (assuming that's where this is going).  Tonight alone we've seen Fandango and Jericho go at it (necessary), the Shield and Big Show/Sheamus/Orton go at it (unnecessary), Barrett and Miz have an entire MATCH (unnecessary to the extent they took it), and now this?  Why not just let AJ squash Natalya (everybody does anyway) and then demand a title shot?

10:20 - They're definitely building up this Tensai/Brodus/Cameron/Naomi vs. Cody/Damien/Nikki/Brie feud...but I'd be shocked if that actually makes the WrestleMania card.

10:05 - Interested in seeing who's on the panel.  We know Lawler and I've heard Bret Hart (and Flair was supposed to).  That's two people (all are Hall of Famers).  My guess for the other three would be Arn Anderson, Ricky Steamboat, and Dusty Rhodes.  I'd love Jim Ross to be there, but if he was, I'd assume he'd be the moderator.

9:59 - Hey Ryder....your black and red trunks do not go with your black and purple boots.

9:49 - You know how I feel about champions losing clean in non title matches in order to create a new challenger, but my bigger issue with the match was that -- believe it or not -- it was TOO good.  I mean, that was a back and forth match with a lot of false finishes.  I assume they're fighting at Mania....don't give away too much before the big match.

But hey, it looks like they might be doing AJ vs. Kaitlyn at WrestleMania.  Which means all (or much) will be forgiven.

9:32 - This is why there is so much animosity built up towards Triple H.  Did Triple H kicking Wade Barrett in the junk do ANYTHING to help build Triple H/Lesnar?  Did it do anything to make people want to see that match more?  On the other hand, did it do anything to hurt Wade Barrett (aside from the obvious way)? I think it may have.  The rewards did not, in any way, outweigh the risks here.

9:24 - I know I've been complaining about guys like the Usos and Cesaro suffering needless losses, but I guess the fact remains that if they're not going to be competing at WrestleMania it makes sense for those who will be to look strong.  And with that in mind, why job out Dolph Ziggler at the beginning of the show?  Would't the confrontation between Ziggler/Langston and Team Hell No be a little stronger had Ziggler won a match earlier in the show?  If Ziggler loses the match and then Langston attacks the champs aftewards, they're still not the champions.  So that visual/message doesn't do much to make the team a threat.  The better message would have been that with Langston, Dolph can't be beat.

9:03 - I was ABOUT to write "I'll take what I can get" in regards to Cesaro getting a count out victory, but then they had to have Del Rio run in JUST to make Cesaro tap post-match.  I'm guessing we'll see a cluster, mutli-person match for the US title in the WrestleMania preshow.  Sigh.

8:58 - Loved Antonio giving the "time" signal as ADR and Rodriguez limped to the ring.  And the Champion vs. Champion graphic is pretty cool, too.

8:56 - Cesaro has fallen into that really frustrating and confusing trap WWE sets up.  He went from getting big, clean wins and getting REALLY protected in losses....to suddenly never winning at all.  I mean, how crazy is this?  He lost, clean, to the Miz in order to build a match for Wade Barrett.  That's right....the US Champion lost clean in an attempt to build the story for the Intercontinental Championship.

8:52 - Ya' know, at first I thought fans were being snarky when they said Cena was blaming his divorce on his loss to Rock....but I guess I wasn't paying close enough attention to that video.  Indeed, WWE quite explicitly states that Cena's divorce was due to his loss to the Rock.

8:47 - WWE's bipolar treatment of the Usos makes it impossible to ever get behind them.  When WWE wants to act like they have a tag team division, they typically treat the Usos pretty well (they've performed strongly during elimination and turmoil matches, for example).  But then they'll randomly lose handicapped matches against Mark Henry or the Big Show.

8:30 - Greatttt.  After two weeks of finally giving Dolph Ziggler some wins (although they were usually cheap), it looks like Dolph is back to his losing ways.  Totally unnecessary loss.

8:21 - I'll admit that the Fandango/Jericho brawl did make me somewhat interested in their feud (and the crowd exploded) but I'm still so incredibly baffled as to why this is happening during WrestleMania, when some far bigger and more established characters are doing nothing.  Like, a Cody vs. Jericho match is fresh. So is Cody vs. Miz.  So strange.

And I've been riding on Fandango for him getting a WrestleMania match, but the fact that Big E. Langston has one as well is equally strange.

8:11 - Fine enough opening and I thought it was a really good idea for the Undertaker to appear and get physical with Punk.  So often, these WrestleMania feuds are being built up to avoid physicality.  And a lot of the times, it's the right decision.  But sometimes there's just too much talking and you need to see them get physical.  That was the case with Punk and Undertaker.  Having them go at it definitely built the tension and excitement, in my view.

7:30 - Alright, so we're about a half hour away from Raw -- the second to last episode before WrestleMania.  And so far, A LOT of people are still without matches.  I'm fairly certain we're going to see Wade Barrett vs. the Miz for the Intercontinental Championship and the Chris Jericho vs. Fandango match that nobody asked to see, but what about Cody Rhodes, Antonio Cesaro, Kofi Kingston, and a handful of others?  I'm STILL baffled that Fandango -- who's an NXT rookie who hasn't even had a match under this character -- is going to be getting a match and the names above are not.  I just don't get it.

And to those that argue that part timers like the Rock and Triple H and the like returning isn't costing anybody their spot, let's look at Dolph Ziggler.  It cannot possibly be a coincidence that in December he got a win over John Cena in the final match of that month's PPV.  And then in January, HE was the person who got the "Royal Rumble" storyline, having to enter #1 and having to last the entire match.  However, when it came time for an ACTUAL WrestleMania build, the creative team seemingly couldn't be bothered with him. I refuse to believe if the Rock wasn't taking up the main event spot -- and Brock Lesnar and Triple H weren't taking a special attraction spot -- that Dolph Ziggler's position wouldn't have been better.  And probably by a large margin.

In that regard, WrestleMania is quickly becoming Survivor.  Survivor used to occasionally bring back former popular cast members.  And slowly but surely, the producers began to realize that the best ratings and drama came from those characters.  And now, for the past several seasons, there has always been at least one returning favorite.  And for better or worse, it has really impacted the dynamic of the game (the returning favorites almost always last until the end).  The same is happening with WrestleMania.  Yes, there's an upside to having former Superstars appear -- particularly for the company -- but there's an increasingly noticeable downside as well.

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[a case of the blog] Harlem Shake!

Some friends of mine at work decided to put together one of these videos, and I'm really glad with how it came out!  In fact, it MAY lead to the firm deciding to have each office put their own video together so that we can have a "Shake-off."  Let's see.  They still doing this at WrestleMania?

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A Case of the.... The Vampire Diaries - Episode 4-16

So I was browsing YouTube to rewatch the Caroline/Elena fight (because, well, c’mon….) and I decided to read some of the comments people had left.  Now, I swore off the comments section of IMDB a couple of years ago, at least in the midst of any given television season.  At first, it was because people would maliciously post spoilers right in the subject line and I, for the most part, I avoid spoilers like the plague.  But the other reason is because the comments are almost always unanimously negative.  Sometimes it’s justified, but many times it just dampened my enjoyment of these shows.  And for that matter, with The Vampire Diaries, I don’t read any reviews because I don’t want my opinion to be swayed for my own column.  So these YouTube comments were the first time I really got a consensus of the episode (and in some cases, the season as a whole).

Continue reading "A Case of the....  The Vampire Diaries - Episode 4-16"....

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LIVE Raw thoughts - March 18, 2013

11:16 - A bit underwhelming, no?  And based on the fact that the audience had NO reaction whatsoever, I don't think I'm alone.  The No Holds Barred stipulation, in itself, doesn't hold much luster.  I mean, we seen that sort of match countless times a year.  And the added stipulation that Triple H's career on the line is a little lame, too.  The guy wrestles, what, two matches a year at this point?  Actually, in the past two years, I figure he's wrestled a total 5 matches (Undertaker twice, Kevin Nash, CM Punk, and Brock Lesnar).  Him losing his career doesn't mean a whole lot.

And the very least, I commend them for actually beginning to put together their undercard.  But can they PLEASE give Kofi Kingston and Cody Rhodes matches already?

11:13 - Brock Lesnar is SO furious about Triple H beating up Heyman that he wouldn't even come out and save him?

11:11 - Triple H throwing Paul Heyman down onto a table and tearing his shirt off is an incredibly uncomfortable visual.

10:53 - I'm thrilled that the Intercontinental Championship was so heavily hyped for the past two weeks and essentially got the main event slot of Raw, but where do we go from here?  Miz vs. Barrett?  Fine, let's move forward with that (even though, less than a month ago, he was feuding for the U.S. title).

Personally, I would have gone with Cesaro vs. Miz for the U.S. title, and then done a multi-person ladder match for the Intercontinental Championship -- including Barrett, Rhodes, Kofi, Truth, Sandow, and Jericho (if he had nothing better to do).

10:21 - I'm happy that Ziggler and Team Hell No FINALLY have a match for WrestleMania -- even though it's not the ideal match for any of them -- but I can't help but be a bit irked that Big E Langston has a match and guys like Kofi, Cody, and even Cesaro and Barrett don't.

10:13 - Wow....this has to be the first time in two or three months that Kofi's had a televised entrance.  And just like the issue we had last week with Dolph Ziggler and Daniel Bryan, Ziggler AGAIN is up against somebody who really can't sacrifice a loss either.

9:52 - I didn't expect the Booker T induction, but that doesn't mean it isn't deserved.  Good for you, Booker T!

9:39 - Loved that it was a semi-long, competitive match and that Cody didn't look like a chump, but I still can't get into this ADR/Swagger feud.  The biggest reason is that everybody that Del Rio beats, I'd rather see in the position that Swagger is in.  I'd DEFINITELY be more into ADR vs. Ziggler or ADR vs. Rhodes. It just bothers me even more that these other guys don't even seem to be getting any real attention whatsoever.

9:26 - A little extra flair to Del Rio's theme, huh?

9:15 - This Team Hell No vs. AJ/Dolph Ziggler thing is out of nowhere and somewhat stupid, but at least they're doing SOMETHING with each of these characters (all of whom I like).  But for the life of me, I don't understand why they're not going to do AJ Lee vs. Kaitlyn.

Also, are they honestly going to do a Fandango feud for WrestleMania?  When they JUST came up with something for Ziggler?  And there's still no sign of any storyline for Cody Rhodes, Kofi Kingston, Damien Sandow, Antonio Cesaro, and loads of other guys more deserving than Fandango.

9:05 - Fun segment with Punk.  Like last week, he managed to take things far enough that it was uncomfortable, but not so far that it was downright distasteful.

8:54 - I'm about an hour late for work because it snowed -- AGAIN -- by me tonight and the road conditions were AWFUL.  It took me nearly two hours to get home, and since I wasn't driving during rush hour, that's about 3 hours longer than it should have taken.

So what did I miss?  It seems that Mark Henry vs. Ryback is officially on, which is a better choice than the six man match anyway.  I'm glad they didn't wait too long to make the switch.  WrestleMania is 20 days away and it STILL feels like half of the matches are going to be a mystery.

By the way, the fact that we're still getting snow on a semi-regular basis at this point in the season makes me somewhat nervous about what the weather will be like for WrestleMania.

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LIVE Raw thoughts - March 11, 2013

11:16 - For the first time tonight I'm going to say this:  The WRONG guy won.  Not only can Kane more than survive a loss to CM Punk....it's incredibly important right now for CM Punk to seem strong.

And for those of you keeping score, NONE of the guys who I wanted a storyline set up for got one.  Still a lot of directionless people.  And it's not as if 100% of the show is being devoted to the guys who already have storylines.  It just seems like a lot of wasted time.

11:03 - To people bothered by the fact that Punk interrupted the Paul Bearer tribute....and to people who WILL be upset by the fact that Punk will almost certainly use the urn as a weapon, you gotta keep things in perspective.  Do you ever recall them devoting so much time paying tribute to an individual who wasn't on their active roster?  They have been showing clips the entire night.  The announcers have frequently been telling touching stories about him.  Overall, there's been a lot more respect than disrespect here.

10:57 - I hope this Ryback/Mark Henry SD match is a tease that gets broken up.  I mean, seriously, show some restraint and build up a match that people will want to see at WrestleMania.

And what do you think?  Does Raw end with Punk winning and staring down Undertaker, or with Undertaker and Kane paying tribute to Paul Bearer?

10:51 - How utterly convenient that there was a camera on David Otunga and Kane as they called Halle Berry.

10:49 - So the guy challenging for the World Heavyweight Championship lost the crowd, and the guy who probably won't even make the card won them back.  That's about right.

10:46 - Zeb is usually a pretty great and eloquent speaker, but he seems REALLY off tonight.

10:40 - I'm sorry, I just cannot get into this Jack Swagger/Alberto Del Rio feud.  I don't know if it's because people I like far more have been sacrifice and overlooked in order to make this feud happen.  I don't know if it's that Jack Swagger was treated like a loser for the better part of a year and now we're suddenly supposed to buy him as this severe threat.  I don't know if it's because Alberto Del Rio, as a heel, bored me for two years or so.  But I just can't get into it.

10:27 - Brad Maddox is actually the one new character I've really enjoyed....and I know this was deliberately supposed to be bad....but why?  He was doing fine with the character he was already playing, why turn him into this baffling moron who suddenly can't speak and doesn't know people's names?  And I hope at least either Miz or Jericho will end up feuding with Barrett for the Intercontinental title at WrestleMania.  Again....stop with these mini feuds when they should be focusing on actual feuds for the biggest show of the year.

10:20 - Hey, Jericho stole my joke!

10:17 - Budget cuts at the Highlight Reel?

10:11 - Much like ADR/Cesaro, the right team won....but I wish they would do something to clue us in as to what Sandow and Rhodes will be doing at WrestleMania.  Surely they can't leave EVERYONE off the card.  And Chris Jericho IS here tonight?  Then why haven't they done anything to build up to the (highly speculative) Jericho/Ziggler match?  And are Miz and Barrett going to feud?  If so, great....build it.  If not, why waste our time with another mini feud?

9:50 - I still don't quite get how the Undertaker setting Paul Bearer on fire turned him into a red headed Southerner.

9:44 - Once again, the right person won....but was Antonio Cesaro the right person to put in that situation?  For the most part, they've done a great job of making Cesaro look legitimate and strong.  Yet in the past month or so they've randomly put him in situations to lose clean to guys like Ryback and ADR.  Why?

And still, we have no clue what Cesaro is going to for WrestleMania.

9:29 - I'm sure this is totally a coincidence, but I like how Mark Henry is in black and red, and Ryback is in red and black.  Made for a fun visual.

By the way, before Raw I named a list of people who are directionless going into Mania.  Of those people, we've since seen Kane, Daniel Bryan, Dolph Ziggler, Cody Rhodes, Damien Sandow, and Kofi Kingston, and nothing has happened to give us any indication of what they'll be doing for the big show.

9:20 - Am I sensing a Chris Jericho-esque face turn for Cody Rhodes?  The Cody-Kaitlyn storyline seems very similar to the Jericho-Trish one.

And by the way, there ARE plenty of talented Divas on the roster -- Natalya, Alicia Fox, Tamini, AJ Lee -- but they're just opting not to use them.

9:14 - Poor Kofi.  There's nobody else that they could have fed to Mark Henry?  Tensai?  Brodus?  An Uso?  What has Kofi Kingston done to get such negative treatment since January?

9:10 - I'm glad they had Brock just accept the challenge instead of extending it out for weeks.  I feel like they've done that with every Brock Lesnar match thus far.  By the way, what were the exact terms of his contract?  Because I"m guessing he won't wrestle before Mania (nor should he at this point), which means WrestleMania will be his third match in a year.  Was he really paid THAT much for three matches?  And if so, it seems strange that they used two of those matches for one guy.  Who is essentially retired.

By the way, I'm not complaining, but it's a bit odd how they're maintaining the continuity that Paul Bearer is Kane's father.  I'm fine with it....it's just weird how they switch between establishing that Paul Bearer is a character played by William Moody, and that he's a "real" person within this universe they created.

9:01 - I don't know what it is exactly, but once Cody Rhodes started wearing that mask, I became a pretty big fan of his.  He's got a great upside and he's played a number of characters really well.  He's got a great look too.  Why aren't they finding something for him to do?

8:59 - Who else remembers how stupid the Undertaker's hair looked during his return at WresleMania XX? It really hurt the impact of what should have been a huge moment (and it still was, don't get me wrong).  Plus, it also didn't help that he was essentially in the same gear as his American Bad Ass character....just with a hat and slightly longer hair.  I still contend that he didn't truly feel like the Deadman until he brought back the tights.

8:50 - This may sound silly, but I honestly think Tensai would have had a better chance of succeeding if THIS was his attire when he returned.  No, not the warm up pants and silly hat....but the singlet or the shirt and pants.  I really think the shiny red trunks just made him look pale and fat.

8:42 - While I HATE HATE HATE HATE seeing Daniel Bryan lose (especially in a semi-clean fashion), to be honest I think Dolph needed that victory more.  And it was a great match.  Unfortunately, nothing was really done to make it clear what either of them will be doing for WrestleMania.

8:29 - And once again, Dolph Ziggler doesn't even get a televised entrance.  So much for the next Edge and Lita.  I had such high hopes for this Dolph Ziggler/AJ Lee pairing.  And the failure has been no fault of the performers.

8:23 - That could have gone A LOT worse.  And it's an effective enough way to build for the six-man WrestleMania match.  Although I do have to laugh at the fact that they spent the better part of the year trying to make Big Show as hated as possible, and then they're going to just up and turn him face.  Oh, and the Punk backstage segment was hilarious.

By the way, we now have Dolph vs. Daniel Bryan.  Two guys who really don't need to be losing any more than they already do.  And there's likely no chance that they're going to be involved in the same storyline at Mania.  So, basically, this match serves no purpose other than to hurt one of them even more.

Which also begs the question:  What's up with these little mini-feuds that aren't going anywhere but distracting the writers from coming up with an actual WrestleMania storyline?  Stuff like Wade Barrett vs. Sheamus and Dolph Ziggler vs. Daniel Bryan (and Rhodes Scholars vs. NAO).  Focus on the big show right now.

8:15 - Loved that they had Kane come out in support of Paul Bearer.  If Punk hadn't interrupted, I wondered if Kane might come out as well.  By the way, I'm skeptical of this Big Show/Rollins match.  They've done an AWESOME job of making the Shield look tough -- which says something since they've been in there with guys like Cena, Sheamus, Orton, and Ryback -- but dealing with the Big Show isn't exactly the best way to maintain that aura.  Sending one of the smaller guys in there is even more potentially damaging.  Not a great idea.

8:10 - C'mon, you HAD to know CM Punk was coming out.  It just seemed TOO sweet and sentimental.  And truth be told, for all the things Punk could have said and done, his promo was actually pretty damn tame.  And that was smart.  Honestly, I didn't really have a problem with it.  Punk didn't do anything unforgivably disrespectful, and Undertaker did pay a nice tribute to Paul Bearer.

7:30 - We're now less than a month away from WrestleMania, and it honestly doesn't really feel like WrestleMania season.  A big reason for me is that 90% of the roster has absolutely no direction whatsoever.  Right now, we only have three confirmed matches (John Cena vs. Rock, Alberto Del Rio vs. Jack Swagger, and CM Punk vs. the Undertaker) and three presumed matches (Triple H vs. Brock Lesnar, Ryback vs. Mark Henry, and the Shield vs. Sheamus/Randy Orton/Big Show).  That's six matches -- and granted, WrestleMania only usually has about eight or so matches -- but it just feels like so many people are directionless.

For example, the following people don't have even the faintest storyline going into WrestleMania:  Tag Team Champions Daniel Bryan and Kane, Intercontinental Champion Wade Barrett, United States Champion Antonio Cesaro, Divas Champion Kaitlyn, Money in the Bank winner Dolph Ziggler, Chris Jericho, Kofi Kingston, the Miz, Rey Mysterio, Sin Cara, Cody Rhodes, Damien Sandow, and AJ Lee.  And that's just limiting the list to people who I believe can make a legitimate claim for being included on the card.

And part of it seems like either incompetence or arrogance.  Is there any reason why Kaitlyn and AJ Lee haven't been set up for a match.  You have the Divas Champion and the most over female on the roster.  They're former best friends, and one is a face and one is a heel.  The story is written for them.  But instead they're kinda sorta building a Layla heel turn that nobody cares to see (in most appearances, she just jobs to Tamina....who ALSO isn't being built up as the challenger).

And Jericho's limited schedule makes it somewhat understandable as to why nothing has been built yet for him.  But how about Dolph Ziggler?  Is there any reason why he gets no mic time and only appears to lose clean to build somebody else's WrestleMania storyline?  Dolph and AJ Lee could have been the next Edge and Lita (especially with each holding a title), but instead it seems like a conscious effort has been made to kill their momentum.

I REALLY hope that a significant step is taken forward tonight, with most of the people on the above list getting some sort of story heading into the biggest show of the year.  But instead we seem to be getting a pointless New Age Outlaws match.

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Rest In Peace, Paul Bearer

http://www.wwe.com/inside/paul-bearer-passes-26096670

WWE has just announced that legendary manager Paul Bearer passed away earlier tonight.  Every long-time wrestling fan has memories of Paul Bearer.  His cartoonish mannerisms and high pitched voice are instantly recognizable.  This is an unfortunate day for wrestling fans -- and a truly devastating one for his family and friends.  The wrestling world lost a legend and a passionate performer.

For those of you who don't remember (or were never aware), last July I had a bit of a one way Twitter feud with Paul Bearer (READ ALL ABOUT IT HERE).  Quite honestly, I still don't know what the hell was wrong with Bearer that day, or why he blocked me, but I came to hear from other users that he was quite rude and disrespectful to them as well.  I won't pretend to understand or defend his actions, but after reading the news of Bearer's death I took it upon myself to check his Twitter page (as somebody used his Twitter handle while offering condolences), and I realized for the first time that I was now able to view his page.  Which means, in my head, that Bearer had unblocked me prior to his death.  Which, as far as I'm concerned, means that I should hold no ill will towards him.

Paul Bearer, you were an absolutely legendary performer (I was pretty shocked when Scott Keith indicated that he didn't think he was Hall of Fame worthy) and you absolutely played a crucial part in getting over perhaps the greatest gimmick in wrestling history.  Your contributions to this unusual form of entertainment we all enjoy are immeasurable.  I wish you peace and happiness in the afterlife.

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LIVE Old School Raw thoughts - March 4, 2013

11:02 - Wow....pretty shocked -- happily, though -- to see CM Punk win that clean.  And surprised we didn't see any build for the assumed Shield six man match.  But at least this show is FINALLY taking shape.

10:49 - Interesting that Sheamus -- and not Orton -- is getting the last entrance treatment.  By the way, did ANY Superstar whip out their old school attire?  I don't think so....

10:44 - Gotta love CM Punk yelling "What are you gonna do about it, woman?" as he walked down the aisle.  By the way, sorta loved that Mark Henry was the sole heel present at the Mae Young birthday celebration.

10:34 - Gotta love the fact that the creative team managed to find ways to make the New Age Outlaws, the Honky Tonk Man, the Million Dollar Man, and Ric Flair look good.....but Dolph Ziggler had to tap out clean to the Miz.

10:31 - While sacrificing Primo & Epico won't exactly bankrupt the company, it is a bit distressing that aside from the Jack Swagger segment, the Old School guys have gotten the upper hand in every single confrontation.

10:21 - Any chance we'll find out what Wade Barrett is doing for WrestleMania?  Another directionless guy.

10:15 - So I'm guessing the Shield helps CM Punk win the shot against the Undertaker, leading to Sheamus/Orton/Big Show vs. Shield at WrestleMania.

10:13 - WWE is a special company.  Not everybody can pull off a taped Social Media episode.

10:05 - So Triple H was happy that a near 70 year old had his hip broken by an MMA champion because it gave him an excuse to get back into the ring?  Hey, that's heroic.

10:01 - Let's see if Triple H remedied that ass sweat problem from last week.

9:51 - Considering how quickly they lost interest in Brodus Clay -- despite him getting a great reaction from the audience -- I'm surprised they're giving Fandango essentially the same character.

9:45 - Please, for the love of all that is good and holy, tell me that Kofi Kingston won't be losing to Fandango.

9:36 - Daniel Bryan stealing the $100 was brilliant.  I just really want to know what's going on with him for WrestleMania.  Teaming with Kane against the Shield?  Fighting Kane?  Give him something and start building it.

9:31 - Wait, does Daniel Bryan have Million Dollar Man's haircut?!?!

9:26 - Doesn't look like I'm right about Kane coming out in his old school attire (which is a big disappointment).  Also, while Daniel Bryan's beard is awesome....his hair is dreadful.

9:25 - Shouldn't Cody Rhodes care that his dad was attacked?

9:23 - So let me get this straight....Hacksaw Jim Duggan brings a 2x4 to the ring....and then gets upset when Jack Swagger holds it?

9:16 - That was a great promo and both Cena and Rock did a fantastic job.  I stand firm in my belief, though, that Rock should turn heel (even as early as tonight) to give the build for this match something different than the build we saw last year (and the prior year too, for that matter).  Yes, it would tarnish Cena's victory a bit (since the good guy is expected to beat the bad guy), but it would at least give us a different story.  Plus it's been exactly a decade since we last saw Rock as a heel -- it would be a huge breath of fresh air.

8:57 - I'm really disappointed in Rock.  If there was EVER a time for him to break out the sunglasses, overly extravagant shirts, and dress pants....it's Old School Raw.

8:51 - It still depresses me immensely that Jack Swagger (who I never really bought into) is getting this super strong push for the World Heavyweight Championship at WrestleMania, while Dolph Ziggler flounders completely (while also losing pretty consistently).  On top of that, it seems to be damaging the super hot act they had with AJ Lee.  She went from being a central part of Raw to randomly not appearing on either show for weeks at a time.

8:40 - What, Flair doesn't even tuck his shirt in anymore?

8:37 - Feels like so long ago that Zack Ryder defeated Mark Henry (with some Cena help) to earn a shot at the U.S. title.

8:32 - Love the Zack Ryder "Push Me" trunks.

8:31 - I was just about to complain about how we STILL don't know what's going to happen with Ryback or Antonio Cesaro for WrestleMania, but I'm pretty thrilled to see that it seems like they might be building the Ryback/Mark Henry match I proposed last week.  Like I said, it can be this generation's British Bulldog vs. Mark Henry.

8:24 - Is Cesaro supposed to be in old school attire?  I notice he's wearing plain blue trunks and no tape around his legs.

8:20 - Ugh, please don't tell me Antonio Cesaro is getting added to the list of people who ditch their unique entrance attire for their WWE Authentic t-shirt.

8:12 - Evidently every main eventer and upper midcarder who the company never bothered to plan out a storyline for wants to face the Undertaker.

8:06 - Last Old School Raw we had Mark Henry come out as Sexual Chocolate.  This year, do you think we'll see another current Superstar come out under his or her old persona?  My guess:  Kane in his original red costume and full mask, or Chris Jericho in the long tights and shiny shirt.

8:04 - Am I the only one who significantly prefers Lawler's old school attire?  I mean, there's the obvious point that Lawler is a senior citizen wearing graphic t-shirts....but for whatever reason, it really bothers me that he carries his crown now instead of wearing it.

8:01 - Right off the back, I loved the altered "Then.  Now.  Forever" graphic at the beginning of the show.  And kicking things off big, with the Undertaker right away.

7:59 - Excited for this special addition show.  Think it'll live up to expectations?

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