Checked the Raw highlights on wreddit as I usually do. It's probably not a good thing that the top clips there right now are people making fun of Karrion Kross' new gear and Logan Paul being booed out of the building.

Aug 24, 2021 5:49:06 GMT nazzer said:

Was there any context given to explain Kross' helmet and bondage gear?

Nope.  I think this was all Vince's idea to make Kross look even more of an ass than ever.

Wouldn't be surprised if he goes and cuts Scarlett out of spite.

Well, Kevin Kross is dead. Couldn't have happened to a nicer cunt.

I thought it was a solid post-PPV edition of RAW.

Started it off hot with MVP and Bobby Lashley explaining their actions from last night. MVP for my money is the best manager in Pro Wrestling right now because he comes across as convincing and he actually raises the profile of his talent. I was also happy with the Damian Priest/Bobby Lashley tease. I know some fans like to pretend that the World and US should be treated as church and state and kept completely seperate but in this case I don't mind it simply being a part of Priest's CV and they push him quickly into a main event program. He's one of those talents you're not going to have a 5 year plan for, so strike while he's fresh and get him into the championship conversation.

Priest reminds me of Elias where I didn't really care for him all that much on the ROH roster but he actually meshes well on Raw. I thought the Lashley & Sheamus/Priest & McIntyre match was a solid main event tag match till the finish where they had Lashley abandon Sheamus. Obviously that sets up next week's match between Sheamus/Lashley but it was a flat way to end what had been a solid opener and Sheamus/Lashley doesn't have a ton of momentum behind it. I just don't think that should have been the take-away, we'll see in the coming weeks but I thought this would have been the moment to get behind the Damien Priest bandwagon.

Karion Kross is one of the most interesting Pro Wrestlers of the moment from the stand-point that he's the current barometre of the WWE's new direction. It seems like they've completely white-washed his run in NXT and taken away the smoke and mirrors of the act and the fans don't know what to make of it. As far as the Shao Khan gear, I think that was just a way to give him a more striking look, otherwise he just looks like a bland WWE guy. Right now, the WWE could replace him with LA Knight and they could probably get a better return on investment as far as what they want from the main roster. I'm curious to see how this pans out because either he'll get through this initial period or he'll become the most high profile victim of the Nick Khan era.

Just to show how out of touch I am with the IWC, I actually enjoyed the Logan Paul segment. It made sense since this is exactly the type of celebrity John Morrison would associate with, I mean 15 years ago it was K-Fed. Second, Logan got a great response and I liked how he played to it. He registered it, but didn't just go complete carny and it worked in terms of creating a rift between Miz/Morrison.

I liked that Woods kept his Scott Hall circa 1998, that was some good looking gear. More of a story-driven match than anything with Morrison's wacky attempts at interference back-firing but I liked how at the end Miz' attack was really intense and gave the feud a more serious feel. I think these two are capable of putting together really good matches together and it's time to go into a new direction. As bad as some of their segments have been, Morrison has shown he still has it in the ring and I think they can really hold down their own on the show.

I'm glad they're breaking up Piper Niven and Eva Marie, but not too fond of Piper going by Doudrop. It's the Shorty G situation where it just sounds too ridiculous and doesn't have the same timeless quality her other name has. Maybe they weren't fond because what do you think of when you hear Piper and the WWE? Niven also sounds foreign for a WWE show and I don't think the foreigners appeal as strongly as home grown talent. I feel like she's someone you'd have to give a gimmick name to, unfortunately Viper is also taken.

I presume this Mansoor angle they're running with Ali is just a way to build Mansoor up and give him a marquee match at Crown Jewel. I like both guys and I think it's perfectly fine mid-card stuff with Ali trying to corrupt Mansoor while Mansoor is just a clean babyface. The Jinder/Mansoor deal was just a win/win with Jinder getting his heat back with a vicious attack while Ali got to prove his point. Have to say, Jinder has a great kick on him, he busted it out at SummerSlam against Drew and it looked deadly there as well.

Then Charlotte delivered a canned celebatory promo. It was fine and exactly what you'd expect from her and her conceited character. Have to admit I was relieved to see Alexa Bliss out there. As much as I like Rhea, Alexa-Charlotte is something different. What will be really interesting to see is how they book the feud. Against Eva, they could get away with shlock since it was a second match on the card type of deal, a short breather match. This is going to be marquee so they're going to have to tone certain elements down and really raise their game.

Looks like they're going to have Rhea/Nikki team for awhile and have Shayna and Nia enter a feud. I thought this was largely a showcase of the babyfaces, while Nia spent more time shaking her ass which I'm sure System was all about.

My feeling watching the RK-Bro segment is that Riddle is going to be a main eventer. This is clearly going to end with Riddle taking on Orton in a high profile Wrestlemania match but for the time being the WWE is clearly high on the group. I presume they'll continue their feud with AJ & Omos and have a proper match to cap it off at Extreme Rules, but the signs appear to be good and I like the little touches. Riddle's pronounciation of Randy cracks me up, it takes me back to My Name Is Earl and Randy being all about RK-Bro now is a fun direction for his character. I'm bias because AJ is one of the best I've seen, but I thought the show really ended on a high with both guys delivering another good match. The two just blend well together and I thought the match ticked all the boxes. In the end, Randy takes Omos out of the equation by attacking him with the scooter he was gifted and Riddle was able to hit the Bro Derrick for the win.

I’d let Nia Jax dress me in bondage gear any day.

So next week we've got...

Sheamus vs. Bobby Lashley - The All Mighty is going to win, but not before Sheamus gets some licks in. If memory serves, these two had a fiery match earlier in the year, arguably the best of the All Mighty's reign and I expect more of the same. I also suspect Priest and McIntyre will make their presence known.

John Morrison vs. The Miz - Morrison has the edge but The Miz is one of the smartest in-ring competitors in WWE history. Surely he has a trick in store for America's Most Wanted?

Doudrop vs. Eva Marie - Doudrop is feeling liberated but she's playing with fire trying to take on Eva-lution. Eva curries a lot of favour backstage I'm worried about Doudrop's future on Monday Night Raw.

Speaking of man servants, I can't believe I forgot about one of the superstars of 2021, Reggie! Another fun segment with Truth and Tozawa, I wonder if that Ralphus looking dude thought Reggie was stealing the van? The way he bolted onto the road makes me think he wasn't in on the segment.

Suspenders guy really wanted some ice cream.

Guess he'll have to go All Elite as well.

Aug 24, 2021 10:42:12 GMT Big Pete said:

I'm curious to see how this pans out because either he'll get through this initial period or he'll become the most high profile victim of the Nick Khan era.

I'm afraid I'm out of the loop on this one.

Is Nick Khan running the WWE now? Has he replaced Vince McMahon?

Aug 24, 2021 12:35:09 GMT Emperor said:

Aug 24, 2021 10:42:12 GMT Big Pete said:

I'm curious to see how this pans out because either he'll get through this initial period or he'll become the most high profile victim of the Nick Khan era.

I'm afraid I'm out of the loop on this one.

Is Nick Khan running the WWE now? Has he replaced Vince McMahon?

No, but he was recently promoted to the Board of Directors and is the CFO and President of the company. The company is clearly taking a new direction and is far more cut-throat with it's talent than in years past where they were willing to hoard talent just in case.

Vince is still the Chairman, so he's still ultimately in charge. However Khan is having a huge influence.

These business terms confuse me. Apparently Chairman is a higher position than President? Alrighty then. So Vince is the CEO and Khan is the CFO.

Khan is brought in to maximize the value of WWE to potential buyers. CFOs are basically the people who manage the overall finances of a company. Khan is known in the business industry as the butcher as he comes in and people are cut ruthlessly. He is also the go to guy to streamline a company to get the most cash from it in a sale.

I'm not a business major, but Kahn is the CRO which is a different role. His job is to manage everything that generates revenue, while the CFO manages the finances of the company. They track cash flow and determine where money should be spent etc.

So for instance Kahn is responsible for licensing so if they want to broker a deal with advertisers he's overseeing that process. Whereas the CFO Kristina Salen is keeping track of the financials of the company and is constantly looking at ways to grow the company without sending them broke.

Do I have that right the suits of Pdubya?

Aug 24, 2021 12:54:26 GMT Emperor said:

These business terms confuse me. Apparently Chairman is a higher position than President? Alrighty then. So Vince is the CEO and Khan is the CFO.

Yeah the president will still answer to a board of directors of which Vince is the chair. You can find all the members here www.wsj.com/market-data/quotes/WWE/company-people (I was interested that the guy that produced 30 for 30 Connor as hell is a director for random trivia)

Also Vince retained the CEO title it looks like while Khan is Chief Revenue Officer.

Aug 24, 2021 0:01:10 GMT kingoftheworld said:

Aug 23, 2021 23:52:14 GMT Blindy said:

Also think we get the Dou-Drop of a name and maybe Piper Niven full-fledged face. She gave Eva Marie the absolute condescending look and laugh at SS. Maybe Eva finds a new bodyguard of some sort but if they set it up, Eva is gonna get rag-dolled by Niven down the road...if not tonight. 

I actually thought they’d have Raquel drop the NXT title last night and have Eva debut her as the next goon to go against Alexa (and Doudrop/Piper) similar to how monster type characters were brought in for Undertaker. It would also keep Eva where she’s best suited - on the outside as a heat magnet and can get by in tag matches.


And I can’t believe anyone can seriously call Charlotte a boring wrestler. Her booking is boring, yes. But she is phenomenal in the ring and I feel she single-handedly turned the triple threat match around.

Bayley completely changed her persona. Becky did the same thing. Charlotte has been the same since day 1. You could be the greatest wrestler in the world but, if I'm not emotionally invested in anything you do, it doesn't matter much.

Charlotte doesn’t need to majorly change her character. It’s like expecting some like Cena, Hardy, Rey, Orton etc to have a complete 180 on their character. However I get that not all parts of the show appeal to everyone, there is a good enough variety for everyone.

This might be the rare instance that I skip RAW next week willingly. Nothing for next week's show interests me.

This is great crowd support for Damien Priest at tonight’s show. I hope they can keep this momentum going for him. Superficial, but I think he’ll have to get his teeth fixed… maybe veneers if he is going to be a poster boy in the future.

Aug 31, 2021 0:56:35 GMT surrender said:

This is great crowd support for Damien Priest at tonight’s show. I hope they can keep this momentum going for him. Superficial, but I think he’ll have to get his teeth fixed… maybe veneers if he is going to be a poster boy in the future.

WWE get behind him based on that and him pinning Drew instead of Sheamus.

Anybody have an idea on why the hell Asuka hasn't been on RAW for the last two months?

Debuted with one of the best entrances ever then get downgraded to this.

Aug 31, 2021 1:40:22 GMT X-zero said:

Debuted with one of the best entrances ever then get downgraded to this.

He's gonna get thrown into the junk, along with all the other LOD/Demolition knockoffs (Ascension, Mace, T-Bar).

Aug 31, 2021 1:28:48 GMT CM Punk'd said:

Anybody have an idea on why the hell Asuka hasn't been on RAW for the last two months?

Creative has nothing for her.  Think they are waiting to bring up Io to bring her back to TV.

I had every intention of watching Raw tonight… then a big brown bat swooped through my living room. After thoroughly terrifying the wife and daughter he wore out and hid and I spent an hour before finding him in the shower curtain.

First bat in the new (very old) house. Sealed up a few holes and hope I got the entry point, just in time to see Xavier Woods to do his weekly job.

So... that Nia/Charlotte match.

That was a shoot for a little bit, right?

Aug 31, 2021 2:51:43 GMT KITN said:

So... that Nia/Charlotte match.

That was a shoot for a little bit, right?

Yup. Everything Nia does is a shoot I feel, she's unsafe and Charlotte gets triggered at the slightest mistake so it was bound to happen. Two egomaniacs clashing at it.


wrestlingnews.co/wwe-news/nia-jax-and-charlotte-flair-apparently-started-shooting-on-each-other-during-wwe-raw-match/

Aug 31, 2021 2:51:43 GMT KITN said:

So... that Nia/Charlotte match.

That was a shoot for a little bit, right?

Why they continue to put those two in the ring together is beyond me - every one of their matches is a complete disaster. Nia is always terrible (only Asuka can make her remotely passable), but Charlotte now has a laundry list of super unprofessional moments when she either starts taking liberties with, or sandbags, her opponent when things aren't going her way. 

Aug 31, 2021 2:59:01 GMT @admin said:

Aug 31, 2021 2:51:43 GMT KITN said:

So... that Nia/Charlotte match.

That was a shoot for a little bit, right?

Why they continue to put those two in the ring together is beyond me - every one of their matches is a complete disaster. Nia is always terrible (only Asuka can make her remotely passable), but Charlotte now has a laundry list of super unprofessional moments when she either starts taking liberties with, or sandbags, her opponent when things aren't going her way. 

It is one of those things Pritchard and Vince probably know it as "Let the two lioness go after one another", you notice neither try this shit on Baszler or Asuka :lol: I think Charlotte did hit Shayna in the head months ago and nearly concussed her, Baszler held that in real well because she's snap Charlotte's arm in half if she wanted to. Nia is an absolute clown though, she's hurt so many women. Kairi, Bayley, Charlotte previously, Becky, Sasha, it gets to a point where it is ridiculous and she is kept because she's related to The Rock. They have a better talent who can be catered to the plus size women in Doudrop/Niven honestly. 

Charlotte is Randy Orton like with the triggered attitude though. One thing goes wrong or someone doesn't sell properly to her and she will roll her eyes and do shit like kick out of a less than 1 count or not even cover someone or look at them after pinning them. Just selfish shit, petty shit. 

The eyes was a def shoot move. That was one of the ways the ECW guys showed us how to end a fight instantly if things turned South. Ditto for the straight arm chokes. A lot of really stiff shit too from Flair mixed in. Curious to see what happens. They push Flair at all she walks. And for some reason they will never punish Jax.

If they want to push bigger women, Niven is def who to push. Far better worker, and far better personality.

Well, that was a train wreck.

Jax basically drops Charlotte on her head twice and starts throwing potatoes. How this bitch keeps a job is beyond me.. oh, wait. Dwayne.

I wouldn't fight that beast, I would just run around and get he so gassed till she looks like Yokozuna being forced to run Currahee.

Hahahaha I'm on the road this week and was in my hotel flipping through channels, and came across Raw. I was like "well nothing else is on I'll give this a chance. It's been a while."

I turned it on as Nia/Charlotte was starting. I couldn't have timed it better.

What a shit show the WWE is.