OAO RAW Discussion for 7/23

[Nate]

Raw was pretty good tonight, major step up from the last couple weeks

[Hawk 34]

Any plan with Orton for WM should be taken with a grain of salt given his history.

[cabbageboy]

There's no way Orton will last until WM with the title. Just give him until Survivor Series and job him to The Game.

 

Allow me to address that RVD/Austin point. I am a huge Van Dam fan, maybe the biggest RVD fan on the board. But no, I'd never claim he would be as big as Austin since his act is a bit too subversive to be truly mainstream. A guy making pot references and doing eccentric aerial moves may not necessarily appeal to everyone, whereas Austin seemed more like a drunken redneck brawler and is easier to identify with.

 

That said, even watered down he was still the most popular guy in WWE in the 2001-02 period. So while RVD might not have caused a massive upswing in business (and at that time no one could) he definitely could have been a top draw had WWE not buried him.

[Chalmation]

I still find the concept of RVD being a legend quite a laugh.

 

my case for RVD's legend status

[slimm44]

Orton will win the belt,then Trple H will win from him

 

 

2004 all over again. Anyone else noticed the same thing happens after a new challenger is announced, Cena always gets lad out with the #1 contender hovering over him: Umaga, Michaels (albeit, 6 days away from WM), Khali, Lashley and now Orton.

[slimm44]

Any plan with Orton for WM should be taken with a grain of salt given his history.

 

and the fact that the past long-term plans: Kennedy cashing in MITB at wrestlemania 24, the Heavyweight Championship/Smackdown Curse, and multiple injuries to certain superstars as they are about to get pushed, have all gone awry.

[Boxer]

IS it just me, or do I see them further erasing Benoit from history when 3 years later Orton wins a belt at Summerslam, but it'll be THIS ONE they will mention forever. I guess that victory in 2004 will be a lost cause.

[The Niggardly King]

Orton is really awesome right now. Whoever had the idea to give him even more of an edge with this cold asshole character... they need a bonus.

 

I mean, he's even better on the mic now and isn't repeating everything.

[Guest droptoehold]

great to see after cena win the handicap match and orton lay him out

coachman set up a title match hat is supposed to main event one of the

main ppv's and cena gets the pin. as someone in the crowd it doesn't

build the summer slam match much

[LJSexay]

Hahaha, Kennedy could have been an upper card face on Smackdown right now. BWAHAHA

 

=/ rub it in good now, this is soo ridiculous.. I just don't understand anything they do anymore.

[AntiLeaf33]

I'm really starting to dig Orton's character again. Sure, I'm not a fan of his 15 minute sleeper hold he applies in every goddamn match, but he is starting to grow on me again. Maybe it has something to do with the Legend Killer actually killing Legends as opposed to be being jobbed out at every chance

[CanadianGuitarist]

I worked nights last night and didn't see any of Raw - Can I get a rundown?

 

In particular:

 

- One of the Hardy's botched a spot, but made up for it later on by beating the shit out of Umaga with a chair?

- JR got really sombre about something?

- How is Orton the #1 Contender?

- Jerome?

- What's the story on HHH?

- Nothing for Lashley?

- Kennedy loses again?

[Spaceman Spiff]

- One of the Hardy's botched a spot, but made up for it later on by beating the shit out of Umaga with a chair?

Jeff tried that move where he runs up the turnbuckles & flips off at his opponent (Whisper in the Wind?), but instead paused for a second at the top & fell back on his head. He later ran in on the ME as the heels were setting up Umaga's BUTT splash on Candice, and attacked Umaga w/ a chair.

- JR got really sombre about something?

No clue. Maybe it was Oklahoma being stripped of a bunch of wins from 2005.

- How is Orton the #1 Contender?

'Cuz Stone Cold Coachman said so.

- Jerome?

That's what King Booker is calling that peasant Jerry Lawler.

- What's the story on HHH?

He's unfortunately coming back. And he's got bionic quads, or something.

- Nothing for Lashley?

He's gonna fuck up Carlito. Carlito was talking to Regal backstage, took a bite of an apple, and spit it out w/out looking, right onto Lashley. They then proceeded to ringside to discuss their differences, and how things can be settled amicably.

- Kennedy loses again?

Count out..........................................count out.

[Black Lushus]

Orton "concussed" Dusty Rhodes, so JR was acting like it was the most tragic thing he had ever seen all night.

[2GOLD]

Orton "concussed" Dusty Rhodes, so JR was acting like it was the most tragic thing he had ever seen all night.

 

Even though a butterfly could have made more serious contact with the side of Dusty's head.

[AntiLeaf33]

You know, every time I see a big, impact spot like that, I am always impressed how the WWE's production staff always change camera angles at the moment of impact so that you won't really notice the miss.

 

Also, from what I saw of RAW last night, it looked like they had a lower angle camera they were using a nice bit. Gotta say that I was a fan of it. It made you feel closer to the ring without having a camera man ringside/on the apron.

[Perfection]

I'm really starting to dig Orton's character again. Sure, I'm not a fan of his 15 minute sleeper hold he applies in every goddamn match, but he is starting to grow on me again. Maybe it has something to do with the Legend Killer actually killing Legends as opposed to be being jobbed out at every chance

 

I must be one of the very few that don't mind his headlock spots because he actually tries to make it look like hes doing some damage instead of just sitting there with it like everyone else. I think Orton, for a long while now, has caught a bad rap on the internet in general as far as his wrestling and promo's go. He plays the role of the heel almost perfectly and his in ring work is strong, with an old school type feel to it imho.

 

If he would just keep his attitude and behavior out of the ring in check, he has it made.

[The Tino Standard]

They better work really, really hard to get Orton over as a heel if they don't want another bizarro crowd situation at SummerSlam. Crowd was up on its feet last night in anticipation of the RKO, and his pinfall got a pretty good pop. I think people were even chanting for Orton after he punted Dusty Rhodes' head.

 

Orton's character and ring work right now are highly entertaining, and I think he's a great foil for Cena. It's just a shame he is, by all accounts, such an immature, undeserving prick outside the ring.

[DrVenkman PhD]

I still find the concept of RVD being a legend quite a laugh.

 

He was in the Legends of Wrestling game series! It gets no more Legendary than that.

[haVoc]

Ross calling Lashley one of the greatest ever was far more offensive.

[MillenniumMan831]

Sandman looked sedated clomping down the steps for his entrance. And what's w/ him packing no beers? Sponsors get pissed?

 

And the opening King Booker/Jerome segment was definitely the funniest WWE shtick I've seen in a long while . . . Should the Sacramento Kings have their name, no, Should Jerry Lawler be king, no, should HHH be King of Kings . . . AWWW HHEELLLLL NNAAWWWWWWW!!!!!!

[RedJed]

They better work really, really hard to get Orton over as a heel if they don't want another bizarro crowd situation at SummerSlam. Crowd was up on its feet last night in anticipation of the RKO, and his pinfall got a pretty good pop. I think people were even chanting for Orton after he punted Dusty Rhodes' head.

 

Orton's character and ring work right now are highly entertaining, and I think he's a great foil for Cena. It's just a shame he is, by all accounts, such an immature, undeserving prick outside the ring.

 

I have to agree - for all of the BS the guy has pulled backstage this year, he's really stepping his game up right now, both in ring and on the mic. I also fear the crowd turning on Cena bad at SummerSlam and going with Orton. When Orton was named the number one contender last night, I saw many a person in the crowd literally going apeshit upon hearing the news.

[Hunter's Torn Quad]

And what's w/ him packing no beers? Sponsors get pissed?

Network complaints about beer getting too close to kids.

 

The Raw rating was low for the third straight week. Monday's show did a 3.4 rating, and the 18-49 and 18-34 numbers were the lowest since Raw moved back to USA in October of 2005. A distinct pattern is starting to emerge.

 

F4W

 

 

[USC Wuz Robbed!]

Guess they have found that minimum core fanbase rating (3.4 has been the rating for the past few weeks, hasn't it?)

[RedJed]

Guess they have found that minimum core fanbase rating (3.4 has been the rating for the past few weeks, hasn't it?)

 

Hard to say if thats the "minimum core fanbase" - that number could very well always keep dropping ever so slightly whenever. Seems like the company may have lost a chunk of fans from the Benoit situation, perhaps. Or they have been less than impressed with the product since they dropped the Vince angle (which I am one of those people, actually). The singular thing that has caught my attention on Raw was the Orton/Rhodes angle and thats about it.

[Hunter's Torn Quad]

Raw had consistently been in the 3.7 range for almost three months and that was considered the 'core level'. I think the Benoit situation has definitely played a part in the slip in the ratings, because the rating started to slide as soon as the speculation and news really started to come out. What's strange is that Smackdown has stayed near to the same level this whole time and hasn't seemed to be affected by the Benoit deal at all. For whatever reason, Raw has taken a big hit while Smackdown is just fine.

 

Where it goes from here depends on if viewer turnout is temporary, and people are just not into Raw right now, or if it's permanent, and people have been turned off of Raw completely and aren't coming back. The three things to look for now are any rise that comes as the Summerslam hype builds, a ratings bump in the Raw the day after Summerslam, and if the ratings spike for Triple H's return.

[USC Wuz Robbed!]

As "smarks" do we want the ratings to fall further when HHH returns or rise?

[Hunter's Torn Quad]

As "smarks" do we want the ratings to fall further when HHH returns or rise?

It won't matter if the ratings fall or stay the same if Hunter returns; he's 'made' so is immune to any kind criticism when it comes to any negative effect he might have on the ratings. That said, if he doesn't bump the ratings, or only does so for a short time, then it'll be fun to see what does get blamed instead.

[RedJed]

IIRC, the SummerSlam build most years HAS seen a decent increase in ratings for Raw, as well. The next four weeks will sure be telling.....

[USC Wuz Robbed!]

It would seem they have quite the bulletproof excuse in the Benoit tragedy. I wonder if WWE would be complacent and just push whatever or if they would still panic, if the rating drops.