Guest bcu1979 Report post Posted November 30, 2002 Lots of depressing ratings notes from the last two RAW's in this week's Observer. The Shawn Michaels v. RVD "dream match" was a huge flop. It was the LEAST viewed segment on the entire show, doing only a 3.23 rating. It was the lowest rated Raw main event in nearly four years, beating out the 4 way RVD/Jericho/Show/Jeff Hardy match from a few months ago from the HLA show. Test and Steven Richards lost 60,000 viewers. Trish v. Victoria added 130,000 viewers. The Dudley/Jerichristian angle climax aded 170,00 viewers and was the high point of the show. The rating then collapsed as the tag match with Regal/Storm v. Hardy/Hurricane lost half a million viewers, which was 10% of the audience. Kane v/ Batista lost another 12,000 viewers, but that may have been a typo since Meltzer's comments made it sound a lot worse. Maybe 120,000 viewers? And before anyone tries to blame the towel angle as the sole reason for the poor rating for the main event, the actual RVD/Shawn Michaels match LOST another 40,000 viewers. And in more depressing news, the overrun with Triple H destroying RVD and Shawn Michaels added 460,000 viewers. Meltzer says that is the audience that likely tunes out halfway through the show and comes back for the ending, along with a little bit of the CSI audience. RAW after Survivor Series: Even though the rating was an improvement, the audience turnout was even worse. The show did a 3.69 rating overall , but the first segment did a 3.61. The main event of RVD/Jericho/Booker w/ Triple H and Steiner both being pushed as interfering only did a 3.54. The match did gain almost half a million viewers but the turnout at that point had been huge. The Stacy Kiebler/Steven Richards skit gained half a million viewers. The Storm/Regal tag match lost 200,000 viewers. Steiner's debut and his interview with Jericho was the high point of the show and added a half million viewers. The Al Snow/Nowinski match lost 750,000 viewers. (13% of the audience) The Flair/Kane/Batista segment lost another 690,000 viewers. (14% of the audience) Over that 30 minutes, one out of four people watching the show, turned it off. (My own opinion. I don't think anyone on the RAW show can be called a "draw" at this point. There's no one who has segments that consistently increase ratings anymore. And Shawn Michaels is a complete flop as champion. I don't care what else was on that show. Bad matches and naked Canadians or not, if Michaels was a draw people would have been interested in his first tv match in years. The fact that even the big match itself lost viewers says it all about Michael's supposed drawing power.) Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest bob_barron Report post Posted November 30, 2002 Damn that Jeff Hardy, Hurricane and Tommy Dreamer for making fans not want to see the Commonwealth Connection in action. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Angle-plex Report post Posted November 30, 2002 I'm pretty sure every knew that RVD wasn't going to win, and that Triple H would somehow be involved. However, I think most people are sick of seeing RVD getting screwed out of winning the title, myself included. Still, it LOST 40,000 viewers! That means RAW is doing something seriously wrong. So either: 1) RVD gets pops, but doesn't = Ratings 2) People knew RVD wasn't going to win, so they didn't watch 3) HBK is a flop champion Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Banky Report post Posted November 30, 2002 Doesn't this mean they should push Jericho harder? *holds breath* Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest chirs3 Report post Posted November 30, 2002 Naked Jericho > God Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
B. Brian Brunzell 0 Report post Posted November 30, 2002 Whoa, whoa, whoa, HBK isn't drawing as champ? Get right out of town! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Eagan469 Report post Posted November 30, 2002 Thing is, the kids don't remember Shawn Michaels much, if at all. The novelty is great for us, but for the average wrestling viewer, they don't give a shit about his comeback. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest HartFan86 Report post Posted November 30, 2002 Can you believe it? HBK draws just like 96. Think it's time for the Montreal treatment to HBK. I somehow doubt 450,000 people called their friends to tell them HHH was on TV and to go and turn it on...so I wouldn't worry about that. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest buffybeast Report post Posted November 30, 2002 Can you believe it? HBK draws just like 96. Think it's time for the Montreal treatment to HBK. Eerily similar, isn't it? BTW, when is Shawn's current contract up, anyway? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest HartFan86 Report post Posted November 30, 2002 I think it would be intresting if HHH cut a 20 promo on Raw this week and see the ratings after that. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Mulatto Heat Report post Posted November 30, 2002 This should be posted in other message boards (as well as e-mailed to particular columnists) just for the comments the apologists will make. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest BoboBrazil Report post Posted November 30, 2002 This proves that Storm, Regal, Test, and Kane are ratings death. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest TheZsaszHorsemen Report post Posted November 30, 2002 Vince: People are sick of seeing their favorites get screwed out of the title. Go figure, huh? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest bob_barron Report post Posted November 30, 2002 This proves that Storm, Regal, Test, and Kane are ratings death. It proves that fans remember when Jeff Hardy unjustly beat Regal via two fast counts and are afraid of the same thing happening again and thus decide not to watch Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Respect The 'Taker Report post Posted November 30, 2002 Vince: "I KNEW THE RATINGS WOULD FLOP WITHOUT HUNTER ON THE SHOW!" Illusion Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Anglesault Report post Posted November 30, 2002 YES YES YES YES YES! Test is a ratings killer! Fire him! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Celtic Jobber Report post Posted November 30, 2002 Regal and Storm are pretty much the only reason I watch RAW these days. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest bob_barron Report post Posted November 30, 2002 Same here Celtic Jobber. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Angle-plex Report post Posted November 30, 2002 Test and Steven Richards lost 60,000 viewers. Seriously; What did they expect? The fans aren't exactly demanding a Test vs Richards match. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Dangerous A Report post Posted November 30, 2002 I'm pretty sure every knew that RVD wasn't going to win, and that Triple H would somehow be involved. However, I think most people are sick of seeing RVD getting screwed out of winning the title, myself included. Still, it LOST 40,000 viewers! That means RAW is doing something seriously wrong. So either: 1) RVD gets pops, but doesn't = Ratings 2) People knew RVD wasn't going to win, so they didn't watch 3) HBK is a flop champion It's a combo of all three things, Angle-plex. 1) RVD=big pops, but not ratings. This is to be blamed on Vince McMahon for not giving the proper push and turning RVD into a money player when he had the chance last summer during the Invasion and again at the beggining of the year before Mania. 2)People knew RVD wasn't going to win. This isn't just the smarks, marks are now conditioned that RVD is just a flashy wrestler with no chance of beating the upper echelon, so why waste time watching when we know the outcome. 3) HBK is a flop champion. As much of and HBK mark that I am, I admit he was not my choice for champion. Most of the fans now do not know, remember, or care what HBK did back in the day. So why should they put an emotional investment in him now? Cause he's old? Cause he's a so called Legend? Just like with Hogan, fans popped for the title switch, but in the end they do not want to see a nostalgia act on top. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest HartFan86 Report post Posted November 30, 2002 1) RVD=big pops, but not ratings. This is to be blamed on Vince McMahon for not giving the proper push and turning RVD into a money player when he had the chance last summer during the Invasion and again at the beggining of the year before Mania. Finally someone said it. No Mercy was WAY too late for RVD to become something. If RVD was in the main event at InVasion, he'd be A LOT different than now. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Anglesault Report post Posted November 30, 2002 Test and Steven Richards lost 60,000 viewers. Seriously; What did they expect? The fans aren't exactly demanding a Test vs Richards match. They aren't demanding Test TV time either, but by gooly, they're getting it! I still don't understand how they can push the most uncharasmatic, devoid of mic skills, unover, terrible worker on the show but not Dreamer or Rico. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Respect The 'Taker Report post Posted November 30, 2002 That Hart Foundation formation angle photo (!) you got there HartFan has brought back about 60 kinds of memories. The wrestling may have sucked at times, but '97 was THE time to be a wrestling fan. Illusion Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Army Eye Report post Posted November 30, 2002 All I know is this looks real bad for Michaels. His first match on Raw, in about five years, his first world title defense since winning at Survivor Series, etc. and the rating sucked. I hope they're not surprised though, because they tried the same nostalgia thing with Hogan and that failed too. Big pops doesn't necessarily = draw as champion Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest deadbeater Report post Posted November 30, 2002 On the bright Side, the Victoria/Trish match was bringing them in, while T&A didn't. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Angle-plex Report post Posted November 30, 2002 Test and Steven Richards lost 60,000 viewers. Seriously; What did they expect? The fans aren't exactly demanding a Test vs Richards match. They aren't demanding Test TV time either, but by gooly, they're getting it! I still don't understand how they can push the most uncharasmatic, devoid of mic skills, unover, terrible worker on the show but not Dreamer or Rico. Dreamer and Rico aren't friends with Shane McMahon. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Banky Report post Posted November 30, 2002 Simply put, they need to kill this whole brand extension shit. Then we'd get quality on both shows Angle, Jericho, Guerrero, Benoit, Van Dam, ect...and cut out the guys who are obviously tanking Test, Regal, Kane, and such. The RAW roster CANNOT draw on their own, they simply don't have the credible stars on the show. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest buffybeast Report post Posted November 30, 2002 On the bright Side, the Victoria/Trish match was bringing them in, while T&A didn't. This fact will be overlooked, I'm sure. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest LaParkaMarka Report post Posted November 30, 2002 Test and Steven Richards lost 60,000 viewers. Seriously; What did they expect? The fans aren't exactly demanding a Test vs Richards match. They aren't demanding Test TV time either, but by gooly, they're getting it! I still don't understand how they can push the most uncharasmatic, devoid of mic skills, unover, terrible worker on the show but not Dreamer or Rico. Dreamer and Rico aren't friends with Shane McMahon. Plus Dreamer and Rico are old and somewhat small. Test is a big young hoss. It makes perfect sense that Vince would push the hell out of him in bad times. Why else would they have signed Nathan Jones? Rico and Dreamer rock, but the only place they would get any kind of push would be Smackdown or TNA. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest bps "The Truth" 21 Report post Posted November 30, 2002 Well, I'm dissapointed but not surprised. RVD had no chance of winning the title from him on free TV...and even if he did I doubt people would care at this point. The RVD ship sailed almost a year ago. HBK never drew when he was good, and the match was boring and followed a bad show. The bottom line is...there obviously is not enough support for HHH. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
