Hello everyone, and welcome to News and Analysis. No, you didn’t click on an old link, and I know you may be confused over why is this section updated at this time, but here’s the deal… There’s simply way too much things to get to over the course of one week. With No Way Out and WrestleMania coming soon, we’ve decided that there will be an extra report during the week, so more can be covered on here! This will probably be happening often from now on, but if there isn’t anything significant going on, there will be only one weekend update. Expect the weekly update to deal with RAW storylines and news, and the weekend one to deal with SmackDown! storylines, analysis, and of course, other news. Well, now that we have this out of the way…
Tick Tack… Tick Tack… Tick Tack… Not much time is left for RAW General Manager Eric Bischoff. The Bisch tried to “save his career” as WWE put it on RAW by promising that he will sign, steal, and deliver Stone Cold Steve Austin. In what was “a trip to Texas” to get the Rattlesnake back to RAW, Bischoff of course never even got to talking with Austin, as WWE’s teases of Austin showing up before No Way Out continue. Chris Jericho faced Scott Steiner in a #1 Contendership match for the World Heavyweight Championship, and in his best match since coming to WWE, Steiner won. Jazz continued to take care of everyone who’s after the Women’s Championship, as Molly Holly was next in a storyline which should end with Jazz vs. Victoria somewhere down the road. Elsewhere on the show, with Bischoff away, Chief Morley was in control on RAW, so the Dudley Boyz faced 3 Minute Warning. Triple H told us more about evolution and how it relates to his heel group, D’Lo Brown defeated Maven, Test and Stacy showed up, and RVD faced Kane. Speaking of that, we can’t forget that Jeff Hardy ended up taking both Kane and RVD’s finisher, and to top it off, HBK left a little signature on Jeff too. Wow, must have been an eventful night, because I forgot to mention the “breakup” of the one Booker T and Goldust. Oh yeah, RAW went Spanish in its first 3 minutes too. Señor Bischoff, Señor Bischoff!
RAW’s rating is in and the news is not good at all. Last week, WWE RAW drew a 4.1 rating, which was a rather high score, as the show had not done a rating above 4.0 since the summer of 2002. Well, this week’s rating came in at 3.5, off of hours 3.3 and 3.6. This is a 15% drop in ratings, and something to consider. RAW had a 5.2 share for those interested.
The return of Steve Austin continues to be the most-talked about story where the RAW brand goes. Eric Bischoff tried to sign Austin this past Monday, but it ended being just another tease by WWE. Their usage of cheap ways to get people to watch and then disappoint continued, and I got to tell you, plenty of people weren’t happy about it. I think that Austin is definitely coming back at No Way Out and WWE will keep it that way so they can make the big bucks off the PPV appearance. However, I also believe that if Austin was to return sooner, it will happen next week on RAW, live from the Staples Center in Los Angeles, CA. (Yours truly will be in attendance! I’ll have notes for you next week!) That’s also when Bischoff’s 30-day warranty expires, and Vince McMahon was present on RAW this past week to remind Chief Morley and Bischoff that. There’s a lot of ways WWE can go and a lot of storylines they can create this Monday night, and all of them include Shane McMahon, Eric Bischoff, and Steve Austin in one way or another. Of course, it’s Vince McMahon’s ultimate decision, but whatever he decides, I think it’ll definitely be something WWE will go ahead with, probably going into No Way Out or WrestleMania. I won’t even try to guess, and I’ll just tell you to watch out for this one! Something just has to happen next week on RAW, and it’s got to be big.
Triple H’s heel group continued to leave its mark all over RAW. On Monday night, Triple H cut a promo (rather long one), explaining the process of evolution and how exactly it connects to wrestling and his group. From Ric Flair, to the present-day Ric Flair — Triple H himself — to the future, Randy Orton and Dave Batista. It was a nice promo I thought, as WWE continues to seriously build on the storyline involving the new updated version of the Four Horsemen. It looks like we still don’t have a name for the stable. Some are already calling it “Evolution” but it’s not at all sure if WWE will choose such a name. It’s kind of goofy in my opinion. The important thing to note is that Batista and Orton got a little rub from Triple H, though verbal, as The Game did try and put them over. Triple H, however, spent a good amount of time hyping himself, so I wouldn’t be surprised if he gets even more heat from Internet readers over this. Look forward for WWE to continue and build more and more on the heelish group.
One problem that Triple H’s stable is having is injuries, and that’s where the news part of this report comes in for the first time. Triple H was scheduled to meet Brock Lesnar for the second time ever in the huge Madison Square Garden WWE was doing this past weekend, but due to an injury, The Game wasn’t able to wrestle. He will be out of action for three weeks, and is currently expected to return at No Way Out, or still have some impact in the ring the week before the PPV. Triple H’s injury is actually his old thigh one, as his thigh has a huge bruise on it, and the previous problems have been reaggrivated. Definitely not good news, but we wish him a speedy recovery. Another problem for the stable is Randy Orton. Orton is still not 100% cleared to wrestle, and the latest update on him was that he will be making an in-ring return either in late February or early March. With all that said, Batista and Ric Flair are the only two men who are 100% healthy at the moment, with Batista being the only one who can carry a program with anyone. Therefore, expect more “beat-up” type of segments to happen, or more “Nature Boy” traits to be found in Triple H, as it’s always a good way to keep him out of action. As far as Batista and Orton go, they’ll be the ones to take care of the work load. Again, the only factor here is time. Stay tuned.
Well, speaking of the RAW Heavyweight Champion, he’s set to defend his belt at No Way Out and now his opponent has been revealed, as Scott Steiner won the #1 Contenders match against Chris Jericho on RAW. Steiner hasn’t been at all impressive in the ring ever since his debut to WWE, but I felt that Monday night, Steiner was a changed man. I’m not saying that he’s the hottest thing around, but I felt that whatever he could do to improve, he did it. A lot of credit should be given to Chris Jericho. Jericho managed to carry Big Poppa Pump through a solid match and took some very good bumps, especially the finisher. Steiner is not an easy guy to work with, and with Triple H injured, it’ll be really interesting to see what the second showdown between these two will be like at No Way Out. Hopefully, not as ugly. As far as predicting a winner goes, that will be a toughie, and I think it will end up being a last minute decision.
Not only did Chris Jericho have to fight Scott Steiner on Monday night, but he also continued his storylines with Test/Stacy Keibler, and Shawn Michaels, though HBK was busy elsewhere. It looks like we’re set for a Chris Jericho vs. Test match at No Way Out, and many feel that Test is not doing well as a face. I think he’s not the best guy on the mic ever, but physically, Test is doing a great job. The beating he gave Christian on RAW looked pretty well (and I won’t be surprised if he did beat him up bad). Anyway, being the second biggest heel on RAW, Chris Jericho is busy with a lot of people. The long-term storyline Y2J has been in involved the Heart Break Kid, Shawn Michaels and for all that it’s worth, these two are headed to an on-one-on battle at WrestleMania XIX. WWE has done the right thing and given what could be HBK’s last match (which I doubt) a solid buildup, with background present, and constant refreshment of the storyline itself. All these things spell success really. Until then though, Test will fill in. Bringing Test to the mix is a good move in my book, because not only does it allow HBK to sit back and relax at No Way Out, but it also lets WWE use both Jericho and Test on the PPV card.
Seeing as Y2J had other worries on his head on Monday night, Shawn Michaels decided that he will try and give young Jeff Hardy a piece of advice. WWE is obviously trying to do some kind of a real-life mix to Jeff’s character, as probably most of you know that he’s been in the doghouse as of lately. Jeff has been late to shows on many occasions and was even suspended from house shows by WWE. Anyway, Jeff’s new heel character is portraying a confused guy who’s at a point at his life where he’s not sure what to do with himself and his career. In real life, Hardy is trying to decide between wrestling and his other passion — rock music, and it seems to be getting to his head a lot. I don’t know if WWE flat out made a storyline based on that, but you saw the result. I’m guessing that Jeff Hardy is either in for a huge push, or he’s simply being thought a lesson and it won’t be long before WWE and Hardy apart. Stay tuned on that one as well!
The Dudley Boyz continue their quest to once again gain the World Tag Team Titles. The Dudleyz were once again screwed on RAW thanks to Chief Morley in a way, this time through Rico who was the special guest referee of their match against 3 Minute Warning. Not much to say here, but give the WWE credit for keeping the tag division alive on RAW. I think that the Dudleyz are way over with the crowd, and WWE can use that to prolong them winning the belts, as it’ll only bring interest to the plate. Lance Storm and William Regal could be used better, but I think WWE is headed in the right direction there as well. Chief Morley’s involvement has also been a nice addition to this storyline, but sooner or later, expect the Dudleyz to prevail and capture the belts.
Speaking of tag teams, Booker T and Goldust are no more. WWE has finally decided to separate these two, and hopefully it’s all for the better, as many in the industry felt that the tag team division kept Booker T away from the push he deserved. I highly doubt that with what’s happening right now, WWE will be able to just put Booker T in main-event status, and with the lack of heels on RAW, it might not be the best timing for that move. Anyway, let’s hope that the Book gets his shot at glory soon, because he certainly deserves it and has proven that in the past. As far as Goldust goes, from the angle they did on RAW, I would tend to guess that he’ll be taken off TV for a while. I think two possibilities WWE will choose from is 1) Turning Goldust heel, or 2) Reintroducing him as Dustin Rhodes, and then working from there. We’ll see what they’re thinking, but I must say here that it was truly enjoyable to watch Booker T and Goldust’s promos over the past several months. In a time when RAW was a horrible show, these two brought some entertainment to the plate and deserve a hand.
Jazz continued destroying all women’s competitors besides WWE Women’s Champion Victoria. Molly Holly was her second victim, after assaulting Trish Stratus last week. Nothing much to say here, besides the fact that for the second week straight WWE offered a nice women’s match in Molly vs. Victoria, and that the divas have picked it up big time. Jazz’s return should help and her storyline with Victoria will probably either end at WrestleMania or maybe even on RAW beforehand. It’s expected that Jazz will win the Women’s Championship back soon though. Also, if you missed it last week or on the headlines board, Victoria has a serious knee injury (she’s been supporting a knee brace as of lately) but she wants to stick around at least until WrestleMania and then have a surgery. I’ll keep you updated.
Now that I am done with all the storyline analysis from RAW, I would usually give you the latest news from the world of pro wrestling. The truth is that ever since the last update on Sunday, there really hasn’t been anything big happening. Anyway, here are some stories, which I’ll shorten…
First, WWE is really trying to make the best out of their complex/restaurant in Times Square, in New York City. The World will see a WWE Superstar(s) either make a guest appearance or host a party for each day of February. It’s believed that WWE is doing this due to the poor organization they have recently shown with RAW X and Tough Enough III season finale, which were both held at The World. Scott Steiner hosted Heat this past Sunday, so that tells you something. WWE has been trying to hype up The World as much as they can lately, but organization has lacked. Hopefully, this will work.
Nova has signed with WWE and is expected to debut in the spring. However, we should see him on Velocity soon. Nova is a great athlete and will no doubt make a great addition to the SmackDown! brand where the cruiserweights are. Look out for Nova!
Many people have been stating as of lately that the first Tough Enough III competitor (excluding Matt and John of course) to make it to WWE will be Jonah. Jonah has been quite popular as of lately and has already started working the indy circuit, mostly with Jersey All Pro Wrestling. He even toured England. Jonah’s potential and most importantly his persona could definitely help him get a contract, so sooner or later, it’s expected that Jonah and WWE will sign.
And that will do it folks. I hope you enjoyed this edition of the News and Analysis report. Make sure to check back this weekend for a new report with thoughts on the SmackDown! brand storylines, and whatever news pops up from here on. Well, once again, thanks for reading, and hope you had fun.
My Two Cents
Doesn’t Triple H look like a witch with that long hair and the sunglasses? And can his look be more DX than that?
Was getting Goldust electrocuted what Batista and Orton were sent to do?
Who was Tommy Dreamer supposed to face?
If you were Eric Bischoff and you were trying to save your career, would you be running around Texas trying to find Steve Austin, or would you be on the phone talking to Goldberg?
When you have a guy yelling “Señor Bischoff! Señor Bischoff!” to kick off RAW, doesn’t it tell you something about what the show will be like?
From my good friend Jrock: Does Jeff Hardy realize that you don’t need to put money into the Jukebox to play some Sweet Chin Music?
Thanks for reading! Feedback is appreciated! See ya.
