LIVE Raw thoughts - May 26, 2014

11:11 - Fine enough show.  Didn't necessarily make me look more forward to Payback, but since I have the Network I will probably watch it.  No problem with Evolution standing tall since Shield has been so dominant in this feud.

11:01 - I really miss those skull face masks the Shield started wearing during their entrance following WrestleMania.  Those were bad ass.

10:55 - Alberto Del Rio is Raw fodder for a Cesaro PPV match.  I guess not everything is bad.

10:42 - If any two titles needed to be unified, it's the Intercontinental and United States championships.  I really hope this happens by Night of Champions.

10:30 - With Miz filming a movie, I guess Hornswoggle has officially taken his spot as the go-to pre-show match guy.

In more interesting news -- I just did a home experiment and discovered that if you're applying both to the same side of the bread, the peanut butter should always go on before the jelly.

10:22 - This act was better when Chris Jericho did it in WCW.

10:10 - Glad to see Bryan holding onto the championship.  But they do realize that most of the fans aren't particularly fond of the Bellas, right?  Sure, Brie is the more likable of the two, but surely creating a situation where Bryan might have to relinquish the championship he worked so hard to earn (the fans fought so hard to see) in order to save her job won't win her any new fans.

10:02 - Wow, he actually is here.  I figured they were lying.  By the way, also not sure how I feel about the fact that the Authority feud with Bryan has been transferred from Triple H to Stephanie.

9:50 - One of my least favorite trends of the current WWE era (alongside having a champion lose a non-title match to create a new challenger) is having the SAME EXACT match for weeks when a new Superstar debuts.  Considering the amount of people on the roster -- and the amount of people they're willing to job out -- they couldn't have given Bo Dallas a new opponent?

9:30 - Still love that hooded, long Goldust vest.

9:09 - That didn't make Cena look all too heroic.  He waited an AWFUL long time to come to Lawler's aid.

9:05 - I'm a total sucker for those moments when the heel color commentator does something to stick up for the defenseless face announcer.  Lawler punching Tazz when he got in JR's face was one of the most memorable announcer moments of this era.  JBL's moment just then was great as well.

8:59 - So far, Payback seems to have more Extreme Rules matches than Extreme Rules did.

8:48 - I get it.  Midgets get a reaction.  But has ANY feud been drawn out longer than this 3MB/Los Matadores one?

8:44 - Surprisingly fun segment between Evolution and the Brotherhood.

8:38 - Is there ANY reason to like Eva Marie (and to a lesser extent, Nikki Bella) other than the fact that she's being booked against heels instead of faces now?

8:23 - Considering how often WWE still says "Pay Per View" -- and the fact that it pops up all over the place on their website -- can cynical wrestling fans PLEASE stop with their sassy "special" comments now?  Please?

8:13 - I actually like Brad Maddox as a TV character (reminds me a bit of Eric Bischoff) but his role is beyond useless now that the brand extension is over and the Authority exists.  Vickie Guerrero, as a GM, should be removed as well.  Pair her up with someone who is floundering a bit.

7:17 - I know, I know, it's been, like, forever since I've updated the blog.  Things have been pretty active and busy for me this past month, and I'll explain everything this week.  Don't worry, the blog isn't going anywhere and my usual [a case of the summer] activities will be happening.

Anyway, we have a fair amount going on over in WWE land.  I won't discuss the stock stuff in detail, but I will discuss the Daniel Bryan injury and what this means for the WWE Championship.  My hope is that Steph and Triple H will attempt to strip Bryan of the WWE World Heavyweight Championship but Vince McMahon will make a surprise return and will stop them from doing so.  I know, nobody wants another rehash of McMahon vs. McMahon, but this (a) gives them that ratings boost they need, and (b) keeps the championship on Bryan while he's out on injury.

If they do strip him of the title, what's the best way to go and who's the best person to hand the title to?  I don't like the idea of transforming the Money in the Bank Ladder Match into a title match, because, for one, the MITB stipulation is a great "reset" button for WWE and really does a great job of building interest in the title situation over the summer.  And secondly, it's just a standard ladder match then, not a Money in the Bank one.  I DEFINITELY wouldn't go with a battle royal, either.  I think a 16 person tournament is the best way to go:

1) John Cena
2) Bray Wyatt
3) Triple H
4) Batista
5) Randy Orton
6) Seth Rollins
7) Dean Ambrose
8) Roman Reigns
9) Sheamus
10) Alberto Del Rio
11) Dolph Ziggler
12) Kane
13) Bad News Barrett
14) Rusev
15) Big E
16) RVD

Of course, some of those names can be swapped out with people of equitable status.  Of those names, I would NOT go with Orton, since he just had the title for forever.  It would be a waste to kickstart somebody's first title reign (like anyone from Shield or Wyatt) because they may just be a placeholder for Daniel Bryan.  Batista, in my view, could work....but he's apparently leaving again in a bit.  So, unfortunately, Triple H or John Cena MAY be the best way to go.  Sorry, folks.

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LIVE Extreme Rules thoughts - May 4, 2014

10:44 - A fun match that picked up in the latter half.  The post-match stuff almost seems to imply that this feud is continuing, which is a bit surprising.  Wasn't match of the night (that goes to Shield/Evolution) but I'm glad it went on last.  Let's hope that's the trend for Bryan's reign.

10:37 - Zack Ryder couldn't change a tire.  Daniel Bryan knows how to work a friggin forklift.

10:20 - I wonder what the thought process was when Bryan decided he was going to wear the World Heavyweight Championship and hold the WWE Championship.

10:05 - By the way, I love how they came up with new, wittier names for the midget announcers halfway through the WeeLC match.

9:57 - Well, I'll be having nightmares forever.

Also, not an enjoyable match.

9:27 - Nice, they ARE going to let Bryan/Kane close the show.  By the way, I'm surprised that two of the three highlighted matches will be over by the final hour.  What does that leave?  Bryan/Kane and the Divas match?

9:23 - Incredibly fun match!  I'm surprised by the result, as well as the person who ate the pin (whatever happened to these reports that Batista didn't come back to job to everyone?)  But really, really fun.

9:20 - I really do love watching the Shield lately.  And WWE has done a phenomenal job of highlighting each one in their own way.  Yes, there seems to be a bigger end game for Roman Reigns, but it's certainly not "Roman Reigns and two other guys" now.

9:01 - I'm disappointed that the Shield has already ditched those awesome skull masks that they wore during their entrance following WrestleMania.  Those were cool!

8:58 - Surprised to see this match so early in the show.  Perhaps that means that Daniel Bryan will close the show?  I'm guessing it's either him or Cena.  Also, new red gear for Batista.  I'm guessing he'll be the only one not in black in this match.

8:52 - Pretty remarkable how Curtis Axel and Big E both got Intercontinental title reigns as a culmination of what was to be a big push....only for them to do absolutely nothing as champion.  Here's hoping that Barrett has more luck than they did.

8:40 - I'm surprised they haven't replaced "God Saves the Queen" with "I'm afraid I've got bad news" prior to his theme music playing.

8:37 - Fun fact:  Through my firm, I'm actually volunteering at the Special Olympics next month.  I wonder if I'll see any WWE Superstars.

8:29 - There's still something about these characters that I just can't get into.

8:17 - Awkward when your announcers don't even remember that it's an elimination match.

8:06 - New black and red gear for Swagger, replacing the black and yellow color scheme he had been sporting for the past few months.

8:04 - Is it sad that I'm just happy that the Daniel Bryan match was even included in the opening video?

7:53 - Wow....that was actually A LOT more extreme than I anticipated.  Respect to all involved.

7:37 - Well, since I have the WWE Network and I can watch all of the PPV's for "free," I thought I'd do my LIVE thoughts of Extreme Rules (A PPV I never would have purchased for $40).  First observation for today:  Los Matadores have completed their transformation into the El Matador.

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