RVAbrendan

Wow - Ambrose and Rollins did some amazing work. Hell,everyone in that MITB ladder match left it all out in the ring, even RVD. Deep down, I figured that Rollins would win, but I was waiting for a Bray/Dolph surprise. Can't wait for more Ambrose moving forward! I actually managed to watch some of Paige's match - not too bad. Sucks about that blown suplex spot. Big E v Rusev was one of my favorites of the night. I love me some Rusev. Felt bad for E, though... crowd just didn't care. Add to that the weird preacher-thing he's going for... dude is burying himself. Great match, though. Have Rusev take the US title and roll with the anti-American bit. Adam Rose, SMH. I wanted to like this guy... but I've seen nothing in the ring that's impressed me. I love Sandow. He gives 110% to whatever dumb gimmick they toss him. I thought he was going to go over on Rose for a minute... "the elbow is coming! the elbow is coming!". I hope he gets his due. Rybaxel - yawn. Cody has upped his speed from what it looks like. Crowd still doesn't know how to react to Stardust. It's just uncomfortable enough to keep you watching. Title match, UGH. I hope that Cena is a transitional belt-holder. Rumors are that him and Brock Lesnar will have a rematch, which I have mixed feelings about. One one hand, I hope if that happens, Brock crushes Super Cena and takes the straps. But on the other hand, Brock never wrestles. Perhaps giving the World Championship belts to a part-timer would put more emphasis on the other belts?

Yep, haha. Kane isn't even a threat...he never wins clean matches anymore.

I was rollin as well after that BNB/Redskins jab... perfect delivery! And boy, what a match. The way Ziggler sells moves and stays fatigued for the whole match for continuity (ahem...Cena) reminds me of the old school guys. The crowd loved it too. Still, his character to me is BA Billy Gunn 2.0 - same tights, boots, hair, finisher... Frustrates me when he hits the Famasser and NEVER gets the 3 count. Dude needs a new move! Also, loving this Rusev angle...but that Big E promo was so uncomfortable (but not as uncomfortable as watching Cody Rhodes lisp his way through a song).

Just finished watching RAW - I absolutely loved the Reigns/Rusev showdown. It was done perfectly, and gives Rusev a little more legitimacy. Poor Ziggler - I thought he had the match after the Famasser. Wish that dude would get a bigger push. Curious to see what Authority does next week. Who's to say they won't reverse the Reigns win...

Cole reminds me a lot of Larry Michael. The King is just awful now - used to love him when he did the Heenan thing. I officially checked out when he said this on Raw a few weeks back "That clip was so good, I need a sip of my Diet Mountain Dew!". *shudders* JBL is the best of the bunch by far, but needs at least an equal counterpart playing the face announcer. Cole is just magoo.

I fully agree with everything here, except Sandow. Dude is doing every dumb **** skit that Vince dreams up...and does it well! Love me some Sandow!!

Oh yeah, I forgot about that angle!! I was so pissed when it was Hornswaggle...I mean, seriously? On another note, I can't stand the El torito / Hornswaggle fued. I know these guys are willingly wrestling and are collecting a paycheck...but I still feel weird watching them. "LOL Look it's little people wrestling, how adorable!!". Found a new bathroom break match instead of "divas" matches...

Is Ken Kennedy still with TNA? I loved him in WWE...was upset to see him go...

ding ding ding. Ahem...Vince McMahon. After all, he is the one who conceptualized and executed Mae Young giving birth to a hand...

I remember some pretty awful angles as well. Perhaps it's just the nostalgia factor that gives me a favorable memory of the attitude era (or the 1% vs. the 99% w/ Vince/Austin)... I just feel like we have these huge dudes beating the hell out of eachother... then saying 'heck' and 'butt' - totally downplays what suspended realism is left. I think WWE should play up the 'Paul Heyman guy' angle and have him eventually have his own squad of 5-7 guys who tender to his bidding. Have Heyman play a bigger role in screwjobs, schemes, etc.

I know this isn't their demographic nowadays, but if WWE went back to TV-MA and upped the 'violence' (think Mick Foley, ECW), sexuality, and over-the-top arcs, it would benefit them greatly.

Sandow is wasted talent. So is Ziggler. I honestly think Ziggler is one of the most complete packages the WWE has right now in terms of talent and mic skills. The dude is one of the BEST at selling and taking bumps. He's not being put over though, I think, because he isn't a mammoth of a person (AKA Batista).

Half of the live show is recapping of previous weeks, and even previous segments in the same show. Seems like a waste of time to me, when they could be doing more with the US title, etc...

I was having a discussion about the ACA with my girlfriend, who is a R.N. at MCV here in Richmond. We both agree that it's a good thing for previously uninsured Americans to have more affordable access to health insurance... and while the ACA isn't perfect at this point, it's a step in the right direction. That being said, she has heard a lot of negative feedback from doctors, mainly having to do with the exponential increase in insurance paperwork, basically bottlenecking the service. Her argument is that with all these new citizens with health insurance hitting the market at once, there is a shortage of doctors to properly care for those in need. Tl:dr - Will the sudden rise of insured Americans negatively impact the quality of care given? To me, I have to say yes, at least temporarily until the supply is able to meet the demand. Any thoughts on this?

Heyman seems to think Punk is pretty much done-zo. My buddy Matt had his question read on Tuesdays Podcast - he marked out so hard, it was hilarious haha. Love his podcast.

They should team Del Rio with a female and they need to play up the 1%, rich as hell card. Without his $$$, the Del Rio character is dead in the water. I've heard he's leaving WWE anyway.

That's a good point. Until the cheaper PPVs came around (In Your House), it was the Rumble, Mania, KOTR, Summerslam, Survivor Series. I'm sure I'm missing one... but 5 or 6 PPVs a year meant less title changes. I also feel like before the internet and abundance of media, it was easier and sensible to write longer storylines. But hey, I guess the business changes. To the second point, I agree... but who says it has to be the main event? Let's be honest, 95% of the time, belts don't change hands on Raw or Smackdown so no need to bill it as a main event.

I agree ^ I also dislike how often certain superstars hold titles. I remember when I watched in the 90s, certain guys could boast that they were a "3 time Intercontinental Champion" or a "4-time World Wrestling Federation Champion". Fast foward to Cena, and he's what... 13 or 14 time champion? At this point, does it even matteR?

Everybody, even when working a show, mentions this about the US Title. The announcers, other superstars, etc. Why aren't the writers changing this? I think most WWE fans remember, or at least know about, the Shawn Michaels / Razor Ramon ladder match - it was the first one ever I believe. Guess what - it was for the IC title! I think the problem lies in upper-mid-card guys getting the IC title push, but then wanting to step it up to the world title. Nobody wants to linger below. It's a vicious cycle of sorts.

I'd guess because she is 1) old 2) the structure for ACA is in place, has launched, and is off and running. Maybe she felt like her 'job here is done'.

When I was in Hawaii a few months back, many Japanese folks were wearing medical facemasks.

I feel like that is not in the best interests of the NK dictatorship... why would you show your people television shows that take place in other countries that look 100x better than your homeland?

Taker/Lesnar – what a rollercoaster. My buddy and mine’s mouths were open in shock for about a minute. Hearing now that he had a concussion makes sense though, something just looked off with Taker. Did he sustain the concussion during the match, or was this a prior injury? Did anybody else catch the 8-man tag match in the pre-show? Not a bad match. Usos retained… but I still find it weird that this wasn’t in the main event (and no IC or US championship matches? Do these belts even matter anymore?). I was thinking, maybe the newer generation just doesn’t care much about belts, but more about individual storylines. Bryan match was great, although I bet Orton hurt his back on that RKO on top of the monitor. Cena/Wyatt was meh… Why not put over Wyatt? Perhaps they will keep playing on Cena ‘snapping’ as a result of Wyatt getting in his head? I dunno, it just seems forced to me. Cena is still very popular with the young kids but has lost everyone else. And Motha****in Cesaro – love that dude. The scoop slam on Big Show was totally reminiscent of WM3. I was very surprised to see Big Show lose that match, but am totally glad Cesaro pulled it off. One of my favorites to watch in the ring!