Skip to main content

Post-Wrestlemania/Hall of Fame RAW Open Thread of Doom

Another Wrestlemania is in the books.

It was a little underwhelming in some ways, I expected more from Punk-Jericho and they certainly had the time. I blame Jericho more than Punk, I haven't been blown away by him since his return.

I'm very disappointed for Daniel Bryan but I'm curious to see how he responds and what the next two months hold for him. After all wrestling, like life, is 20% of what happens and 80% of how you respond.

As for the End of an Era...I'm closer to Scott than I am to the detractors. I really liked the match and it featured the best near fall I've seen in a long time when 'Taker kicked out of the superkick/pedigree combo. And the ending was very Shakespeare-esque with the three old dogs standing and wondering where they go from here.

And the Rock won. How does Cena bounce back from back-to-back Wrestlemania jobs.

We shall see.

Enjoy the show, come out swinging but always keep it clean.

Comments

  1. I don't blame Jericho or Punk. I blame whoever decided they should spend 10 minutes getting over the stupid DQ stipulation that never even played into the finish.

    The last 10 minutes of Jericho/Punk was awesome. They didn't need Jericho bringing up the stupid family stuff for a DQ stipulation that was added 10 seconds before the match and was meaningless. Just go wrestle.

    If youre going to do the stupid DQ thing, it HAS to play into the finish somehow. And it didn't.

    Frankly, that annoyed me more than Daniel Bryan because Bryan's going to be a heat magnet in his current role with AJ no matter what happens. And the WWE probably saved Sheamus from getting booed out the building.

    ReplyDelete
  2. I thought Jericho was the right guy for the position he and Punk were in. History will show either Rock/Cena or HITC to be the Hogan/Andre of this show, but Punk/Jericho is definitely in the conversation with Savage/Steamboat as far as combining work, sport and spectacle, in my eyes.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Caught up on WM today, thought Taker/HHH was great. Jericho/Punk already seems like it's going to be one of the more underrated WM classics. Rock/Cena felt boring to me. Couldn't get into until the end, and even the crowd wasn't as good as I was expecting. 

    I'll give Raw a chance tonight, but if Brock doesn't show up or if Cena is still "all shucks, I'll get him next time!" I think I'm gonna take a break from Raw.

    ReplyDelete
  4. If they change Cena's character (doesn't have to be a full turn, but SuperHappyCena needs to die), I'll be happy with Raw tonight.

    I feel like that's the direction they're going (or maybe Im just being hopeful) because it seemed like Cena was really laying the "aww shucks" stuff on heavy pre-match last night. And he even had that some look going during the People's Elbow before he lost.

     PS-A match can't be underrated and a classic. It can be one or the other. Punk/Jericho will be underrated. It was not a classic.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Sure it can. One of those matches that never gets brought up in regular conversation as a classic, but is commonly loved by people "in the know". In movie terms, it'd be a "cult classic".

    ReplyDelete
  6. Hopefully there will be no part of RAW that involves a "mutual respect" handshake between the Rock and John Cena.

    ReplyDelete
  7. ...either way, see you next week.

    ReplyDelete
  8. I think you mean 'aw shucks'.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Would much rather see Simmons' or Yokozuna's induction rather than Tyson.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Yeah, no idea where all shucks came from.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Rock seemed to bounce back from back-to-back-to-back WM jobs just fine. Don't see why it would be such a big deal for Cena.

    ReplyDelete
  12. That Horsemen music is so bad ass. Definitely in the top 5.

    ReplyDelete
  13. I understand why they put The Rock over, but Cena beating him would have gone a long way towards cementing him as one of the 'elite' in WWE. Either way, the loss won't kill him, but what will, as several have mentioned already, is returning to the happy-go-lucky demeanor, telling lame jokes in that border of New Hampshire accent.

    ReplyDelete
  14. Pretty funny to see them cutting to Mick Foley when DX is talking about Tyson biting Holyfield's ear off.

    ReplyDelete
  15. Rumor mill for Raw: Cena is "nowhere to be found", Del Rio is coming back, and Lord Tensai debuts.

    ReplyDelete
  16. I'm guessing Tensai attacks Cena, starting off another boring round of Super Cena vs generic big guy.

    ReplyDelete
  17. Very excited to see what they do tonight, hopefully something exciting happens with Bryan.They just advertised the Rock opening the show, so it will be fun to see how they start the booking for the rematch.

    ReplyDelete
  18. I'm just curious as to what look they're going for with him. I'm guessing some kind of facepaint, either Kabuki style or Umaga/Hakushi style. I think he's gonna be good this time around, supposedly his workrate went through the roof this whole time he's been working Japan.

    ReplyDelete
  19. I think this speech is gonna be cut down a lot but from the transcript I read of the full version, it sounds really funny.  He tells stories about Rhyno and Tommy Dreamer and others, just sounding like a lot of fun.

    ReplyDelete
  20. Not to fear, they didn't let any of the funny or entertaining actually air...

    ReplyDelete
  21. THE PEOPLE POWER ERA STARTS TONIGHT BAH GAWD HOSS.

    ReplyDelete
  22. The part about his mom was sweet at least.

    ReplyDelete
  23. Nice close up on someone wearing an El Generico shirt in the crowd.

    ReplyDelete
  24. Man, I really wish it sounded like that last night. That open air just sucked the loudness out of the stadium, and that ovation was just awesome tonight.

    ReplyDelete
  25. True, I also loved his jab Christian "Of course he's the best husband ever, just look at his wife!"

    ReplyDelete
  26. This wouldn't be the first time the "DQ means Title loss" didn't play into the finish. It didn't factor into Rock/Benoit (outside of the reversed title change) or Triple H/Orton.

    ReplyDelete
  27. And here comes the Rock/Cena wankfest...

    ReplyDelete
  28. .....aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaand like THAT, the Rock pissed me off with the "mutual respect" shit.

    ReplyDelete
  29. They bleeped "Jesus H. Christ"? Seriously?

    ReplyDelete
  30. Holy shit, YES! is gonna be the new WHAT?

    ReplyDelete
  31. Holy shit, THUNDEROUS "Yes" chant.

    ReplyDelete
  32. I'd love to see them go to South Africa and do a show in the stadium where they had the World Cup. I guess it was designed to keep the crowd noise inward, because it is in a residential area. Of course the fans would probably ruin it by bringing those fucking vuvuzealas.

    ReplyDelete
  33. That's gotta be uncomfortable for the monkey...

    ReplyDelete
  34. Rock/Undertaker?

    ReplyDelete
  35. Yes! Yes! Yes! Is over and probably trending.

    And Rock will be champion again? Holy shit.

    ReplyDelete
  36. So, Punk/Rock? Or do they transition to a heel champion? Or back to Cena?

    ReplyDelete
  37. Is it possible...did they accidentally get D-Bry MORE over with that debacle last night? 

    ReplyDelete
  38. If "Yes" replaces "What" as the go-to chant...

    ReplyDelete
  39. I was thinking if the rock does have a monkey, it's probably got the cleanest ass in all of Miami.

    ReplyDelete
  40. Miami might singlehandedly push Daniel Bryan to the top of Mount Perpetually Over.

    ReplyDelete
  41. Miami was clearly jazzed to see Daniel Bryan last night and let it be known during Wrestlemania that they were not happy at all about how he was jobbed out.  Good for them for continuing tonight with the awesome "YES!" chants.

    ReplyDelete
  42. I would LOVE Punk/Rock (obviously). But even though Punk's clearly supplanted Orton as the number two face, something just tells me they don't have enough faith in Punk to program him with Rock. It's like I have an inferiority complex FOR Punk. I'll believe it when I see it.

    ReplyDelete
  43. I think this might lead to a face turn for Swagger or Ziggler.

    ReplyDelete
  44.  Let's hope WWE got the message.

    ReplyDelete
  45. Yeah. That monkey's pretty spoiled.

    ReplyDelete
  46. Did they supplant an MSG crowd in Mania tonight? I have a feeling the overly smark crowd is just going to make this night feel epic.

    And the face pop for Ziggs, awesome. Too soon for a break, though.

    ReplyDelete
  47. How on earth is Ziggler still stuck in the mid-card?

    ReplyDelete
  48. Just like New York did with Zack Ryder? It might end up hurting Bryan in the long run.

    ReplyDelete
  49. "Liked" equally for the sentiment and for using an Eric Szulzcewski catchphrase.

    ReplyDelete
  50. I think it was just a hook to distract the fans that he was leaving. 

    ReplyDelete
  51. The lack of a credible finisher would be the only thing I see holding him back.

    ReplyDelete
  52. If I had Rock's money, a monkey butler would be first on my list. First thing I'd do is teach it to roll blunts.

    ReplyDelete
  53. Never stopped Jericho

    ReplyDelete
  54. And I still think that WWE missed a golden opportunity to turn Swagger into Kurt Angle 2.0.

    ReplyDelete
  55. Ziggler could make anyone look like a killer with his selling. He folded up like three different ways when he hit that turnbuckle. And he just took the kind of bump Foley would shy away from off of that Brodus headbutt.

    ReplyDelete
  56. They're chanting for the Funkasaurus...Miami is cracked out

    Whatever that move was supposed to be for Ziggler looked fucking painful...

    ReplyDelete
  57. The Liontamer was awesome, but WWE neutered it by making it a standard boston crab.

    ReplyDelete
  58. That flapjack/Famasser combo would be a sick tag finisher. And Funk and Santino are too perfect for each other.

    ReplyDelete
  59. It's amazing how a red hot crowd can elevate any show.

    ReplyDelete
  60. If they give Sheamus a mic, this crowd might kill him. Maybe better off giving him a quick squash and get out of dodge. 

    ReplyDelete
  61. Well, I think they sort of had to since almost all of their main eventers for the last fifteen years have been wrestling with broken necks.

    ReplyDelete
  62. I think the answer to that question may lie n the fans reaction to World Champion Sheamus.

    ReplyDelete
  63. Right? Poor Sheamus, he accidentally turned heel and doesn't even know it yet.

    ReplyDelete
  64. Was it an accident? Perish the thought, but maybe WWE knows what they're doing...

    ReplyDelete
  65. In fairness to Jericho, the Walls is credible in the sense that the crowd pops for it as a legitimate finisher. Even though they have no reason to, as I can't remember the last time someone tapped to it.

    ReplyDelete
  66. They should have gotten Sonny Onoo to manage Tensai.

    ReplyDelete
  67. I'm really looking forward to Tensai, I always thought A-Train was an incredible big man that never got the credit he deserved because he was saddled with such a bad gimmick. 

    ReplyDelete
  68. Countdown to the "Albert" chants... 3... 2... 1...

    ReplyDelete
  69. Wow, I love this already

    ReplyDelete
  70. KWAAAANG!

    Weird that they're actually clearly referencing that this is Albert, or at least not trying to hide it.

    ReplyDelete
  71. Did I accidentally fall through a time warp and end up back in the 90s? Because I swear I just saw some Kwang/Hakushi hybrid.

    ReplyDelete
  72. Prince Albert finally shaved his back!

    ReplyDelete
  73. They couldn't have predicted that the fans would utterly shit on it, they couldn't have known that YES! would be chanted for the entire first hour of the PPV as a response.

    ReplyDelete
  74. Reminds me of the old joke, "What is the sound of 300 pounds of shit hitting the fan?"

    ReplyDelete
  75. I was almost expecting a 'Hip Hop Hippo' or 'Shave Your Back' chant from this crowd.

    And there's the Yes chant again, awesome.

    ReplyDelete
  76. The crowd clearly helps make this match better.

    ReplyDelete
  77. This crowd is awesome.

    ReplyDelete
  78. TheRealCitizenSnipsApril 2, 2012 at 7:46 PM

    "How does Cena bounce back from back-to-back Wrestlemania jobs"

    Wait a minute, did you just ask how John Cena could possibly OVERCOME THE ODDS?

    ReplyDelete
  79. I'm loving his new Strong Style offense but he should have come up with something better to finish with than that same sitout chokeslam he was using in 99.

    ReplyDelete
  80. I like the new character...it's just so weird having a ninja character with face piercings...

    ReplyDelete
  81. I'm kinda 'meh' on the claw.  He should have used Terry Gordy's old Oriental Spike.  But he gets points for the mist.  Different colors would rule.

    ReplyDelete
  82. That bump was insane.

    ReplyDelete
  83. Yeah. Just a straight up Vader style powerbomb would have been awesome.

    ReplyDelete
  84. Nice "Albert" chant. This crowd is jacked up. Hell, they even had a "Lets go Riley" chant at one point. He moved slower than I remembered but not a bad debut I guess. Seemed rusty but it was effective overall.

    ReplyDelete
  85. Who knew that squashing a guy to win the World Title would be such a bad career move.

    ReplyDelete
  86. Wonder who Riley pissed off...

    ReplyDelete
  87. The crowd was chanting for Daniel Bryan during the debut for the big new "hoss." They'll either push Bryan to the moon or give him a pink slip, I'm still not really sure which.

    ReplyDelete
  88. Kinda surprised that the crowd shitted on that. It might take some time to wash the Albert stink off of him.

    ReplyDelete
  89. Dolph Ziggler is awesome. 

    Bad night to re-introduce A-Train, but they couldn't have known the crowd would be so smarky.

    I love The Rock. That is all.

    ReplyDelete
  90. I'm just having a hard time remembering when one of these Japanese stereotype characters got over...

    ReplyDelete
  91. Agreed, he should have a new finisher, but then I suppose you could ask how many people actually remember him from his previous WWE stint.

    ReplyDelete
  92. OH MY GOD...the crowd booed a picture of Sheamus...

    This is going to be fucking evil...

    ReplyDelete
  93. I'd venture to guess that Sheamus himself knew that.

    ReplyDelete
  94.  They've probably already edited the booking sheet.  I doubt he shows,

    ReplyDelete
  95. Good point there was...um...I dunno Glacier? lol

    ReplyDelete
  96. Good point there was...um...I dunno Glacier? lol

    ReplyDelete
  97. Has Miami always been this smarkish, or is this a new development?  

    ReplyDelete
  98. Champion coming out first: that is bad. The fact that since Henry has been jobbing so much lately, Punk will probably beat him clean and look like a giant slayer: that is good.

    ReplyDelete
  99. "It's clobberin' time!" They should put this crowd on the payroll and fly them everywhere.

    ReplyDelete
  100. Not before having him go out and choke Justin Roberts by the tie again.

    ReplyDelete
  101. Tajiri, maybe, but the rules are different when you actually are Japanese. Before that, definitely Yokozuna anyway.

    ReplyDelete
  102. "You don't just walk up to your boss and call him a tool box!"

    No shit, because no one has ever called anyone a "tool box", ever.

    ReplyDelete
  103.  Very surprsing.  They are usually pretty quiet down there.  Other parts of Florida are pretty hardcore though--lots of old school ECW fans.  I wonder if hardcore fans made the trip from afar.

    ReplyDelete
  104. It's not really a true Miami crowd. A lot of people who go to WM from all over also go the next night's Raw. And people who make that kind of commitment are huge wrestling fans.

    ReplyDelete
  105. This is the greatest crowd ever.

    ReplyDelete
  106. I hope Punk sells this back for weeks, just to compete against himself for Best in the World.

    ReplyDelete
  107. Funaki was insanely over on that one Smackdown in Tokyo.

    ReplyDelete
  108. Mark Henry puts the best badmouth ever on his opponents.

    ReplyDelete
  109. If Sheamus values his future reign, he'd no-show tonight. Miami is Daniel Bryan country.

    ReplyDelete
  110. I would pay money just to listen to Mark Henry scream at scared white boys. ALL WILL SUFFER!

    ReplyDelete
  111. I have a newfound respect for Miami...I always associated them with the fashionably late heat fans, but this crowd rules.  Who knew they worshipped Daniel Bryan like this?

    ReplyDelete
  112. The Chicago crowd can cover the West, Southwest and Mid-West. Miami's can cover the North and Southeast.

    ReplyDelete
  113. Okay...the "Yes!" thing has officially become annoying. Are we sure they're in Miami and not Orlando? Because this sure seems a lot like an Impact Zone crowd...

    ReplyDelete
  114. They chant YES! for punches now?

    Holy fuck @ this crowd.

    Even Cole had to address it!

    ReplyDelete
  115. This might be the greatest smark crowd ever. Being a smark, this pleases me.

    ReplyDelete
  116. It's supposed to be annoying.  The crowd is pissed off at Vince.

    ReplyDelete
  117.  Man this place is gonna EXPLODE if Bryan appears

    ReplyDelete
  118. In my dream WWE, the World title would cease to exist, and matches like this Punk/Henry match would be the main event of Raw once or twice a month.  And 5 PPVs.

    ReplyDelete
  119. I have never seen the crowd at an Impact taping give even 1/10th this much of a shit.

    ReplyDelete
  120. They should've just taken their medicine and gotten it over with.  The hate is only going to get more intense the longer it festers.

    It's going to be a real challenge for Bryan to maintain his heel heat now.

    ReplyDelete
  121. Now a "NO!" chant ... this crowd is KILLING me.

    ReplyDelete
  122. If he no-shows he should blame it on sunburn.

    ReplyDelete
  123. I call people tool boxes. It gets a pop.

    ReplyDelete
  124. Henry's trash talk is incredible. I could totally go for an extended program between these two. If 2012 me could tell 1999 me that "Sexual Chocolate" would be one of my 10 current favorite wrestlers...time and space might've collapsed in on themselves.

    ReplyDelete
  125. If I'm Vince (and I'm not) the main event becomes D-Bry cases in his return match cause and beating Sheamus in 14 seconds to watch the crowd explode. Why the fuck not?

    ReplyDelete
  126. I'm totally ok with Yes! being the new What? 

    ReplyDelete
  127. Maybe Vince really is thinking two moves ahead of everyone, and the plan was to launch Daniel Bryan as a megaface all along?

    ReplyDelete
  128. I don't know if Miami has always been a hot crowd, but I'd assume it is is because most of the crowd is the same crowd that was at Mania. 

    ReplyDelete
  129. Really liking this match. Has Henry been watching old Vader matches?

    ReplyDelete
  130. So in the span of a day we got a replacement not just for WHAT?, but also BOO/YAY.

    ReplyDelete
  131. I think if they want to keep Bryan a heel, they better not bring him out tonight.

    ReplyDelete
  132. My wife called me a "nose box" the other day in the middle of an argument. It ended the argument pretty quickly, because I had to bust out laughing & ask what the fuck a "nose box" is.

    ReplyDelete
  133.  The match is pretty damn good too.

    ReplyDelete
  134. The crowd loves this match so much they're chanting for Daniel Bryan. They should make him Honorary Florida Heavyweight Champion.

    ReplyDelete
  135. This crowd is MSG-status right now.

    ReplyDelete
  136. Also they are chanting "No!" for Henry's big moves this crowd is amazing!

    ReplyDelete
  137. Never attribute to genius that which can be just as easily explained by stupidity. 

    ReplyDelete
  138. YES YES YES! This crowd will explode if Bryan is out tonight. 

    ReplyDelete
  139. Clearly the thing to do is to make "YES!' spread like wildfire. Everyone buy tickets to your nearest wrestling event and chant it constantly.

    ReplyDelete
  140. Mark Henry's improvement in the last year has been remarkable, no pun intended.

    ReplyDelete
  141. Punk/Henry have great chemistry together, I would buy this as full-time program.

    ReplyDelete
  142. This match could be **** if they have a finish.... And just as I type that it's a count-out.

    ReplyDelete
  143. I love that finish. Keeps both strong for a match in the future. Great match.

    ReplyDelete
  144. And here people were saying the Mark Henry push was over. 

    ReplyDelete
  145. "We Want Lesnar" chant barely got going before Johnny Charisma came out...

    ReplyDelete
  146.  Oh WTF.  Who booked that shit? A countout?  Henry has been BURIED against inferior talent for weeks and now instantly becomes a Mega MONSTER heel against the champ? 

    ReplyDelete
  147. I think I'm going to get my weeks-long back-selling wish. Please tell me this means a rematch at Extreme Rules?

    ReplyDelete
  148. He said natural disaster! Brock! Brock! Brock!

    ReplyDelete
  149. Damn, Henry was awesome in that match.

    ReplyDelete
  150. Holy shit, El Matador sounds Canadian all of a sudden.

    ReplyDelete
  151. Natural Disaster? He's going to wrestle Typhoon?

    ReplyDelete
  152. Oh no, he's not going there.
     

    ReplyDelete
  153. The only person so far that could get this crowd to shut up and listen was, of course, Jericho.


    Holy shit this is TREMENDOUS character stuff.

    ReplyDelete
  154. Holy crap...Jericho is freaking AWESOME right now.

    ReplyDelete
  155. He is!!!


    Fucking AWESOME!

    ReplyDelete
  156. Wow, I have never seen CM Punk get absolutely destroyed like he has tonight...it will be interesting where this goes...

    ReplyDelete
  157. ... why didn't this happen a week before Wrestlemania?

    ReplyDelete
  158. LOL

    I like that Jericho accidentally broke the gimmicked bottle before he actually hit Punk's head. 

    ReplyDelete
  159. Raven did the same thing to Punk in 03 and got a face pop for it.

    ReplyDelete
  160. Wow 2 botch-a-manias in a row for Jericho. Slipping and then the bottle breaking before it hit Punk.

    ReplyDelete
  161. Didn't Raven & Punk have a feud in ROH where Raven was trying to get Punk to break his straight edge ways?

    ReplyDelete
  162. Holy SHIT. This Punk-Jericho feud just got turned up to 11. Had no idea how they were going to justify a rematch after Punk's clean win last night...this works. Can't wait for the no DQ carnage.

    ReplyDelete
  163. Punk has a natural disaster in his horizon.

    Say... a browser refresh?

    (too easy to make the Earthquake/Typhoon jokes)

    ReplyDelete
  164. LOL at Jericho Vadering in the liquid (for anyone who remember that).

    ReplyDelete
  165. I gotta say, Raw's been great so far. I was expecting a shit show.

    ReplyDelete
  166. Man, this has been an awesome episode. The only thing that can kill it are the Divas.

    ReplyDelete
  167. Next month: CM Punk versus the WM Opening Match Booking

    ReplyDelete
  168. Alcohol Bottle on a Pole match at Extreme Rules?

    ReplyDelete
  169. Yeah everything's been really great, hell even goddamn Santino was entertaining tonight. 

    ReplyDelete
  170.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0et4dsH5ruU#t=2m48s

    ReplyDelete
  171. Oh boy, here we go...


    This is going to be evil...hopefully Sheamus makes it out of there alive. 

    ReplyDelete
  172. Sheamus is about to get killed.

    ReplyDelete
  173. If they really wanted to teach Vince a lesson, they would've no-showed. Imagine a half empty arena the night after WrestleMania???

    ReplyDelete
  174. Notice how they weren't giving Jericho any snarky chants. Straight old school boos.

    ReplyDelete
  175. RAW has been great tonight. Also, this crowd is just ape shit. Seems like a fun show to be at.

    ReplyDelete
  176. Crowd is epic.. Check the heat on sheamus!

    ReplyDelete
  177. BAHAHAHAHThey just booed Sheamus out of the building

    ReplyDelete
  178. Yikes. That was pretty brutal. Most of that crowd looks like they just smelled a fart.

    ReplyDelete
  179. Hey Sheamus, you're not the smiling babyface. Stop it.

    ReplyDelete
  180. OH MY GOD ALBERTO DEL RIO IS BACK THIS NIGHT IS AWESOME!

    ReplyDelete
  181. Ha!  Good call, although knowing this crowd, ADR might be a face tonight.

    ReplyDelete
  182. Ps blog is blowing up

    ReplyDelete
  183. Thank god they got Del Rio out there fast. 

    ReplyDelete
  184. RICARDO! The night does get better!

    ReplyDelete
  185. Fortunately ADR will (hopefully) take some of the heat off of Sheamus..

    ReplyDelete
  186. LOL at the sign - "Don't blink or you'll miss a D-Bry match".

    ReplyDelete
  187. LOLOLOLOL

    A "Ci" chant!!!  hahahahahahaha

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment