There was some interesting feedback concerning my reply to the Aaron Williams WWF RAW Magazine article from Saturday/Sunday's Phat Daily Column, which you can read by Clicking Here. The article didn't make me angry, as it mainly just made me chuckle at how seriously the WWF is taking internet criticism from anyone who writes their opinions for FREE, and only account for under 10%, if that, of the wrestling fans. But hey, if that's what RAW Magazine wants to do, then more freedom to them whenever they publicize the internet for making the WWF mad at times.
Thanks to work, the "special project" has been somewhat stalled, although I do have a nice chunk of it finished. In the opening stages of it, I have realized that I'm in WAY over my head by attempting it, but I feel that I can gradually finish it someday for everyone to hopefully enjoy. I might preview it for some special Christmas PDC's, but I don't know yet. I don't know if the parts I want to use will be suited enough for a column or not.
Oh, and to get off on a tangent... Isn't it just sad to see how pitiful Major League Baseball has become? After BARELY losing the World Series, the New York Yankees are able to spend millions on free agents, such as Jason Giambi, and NOT worry about money problems. Instead of suffering through rebuilding years, the Yanks can buy whatever talent they choose to stay right in it. Can other teams do that? Of course not, which makes baseball the most pathetic sport around, in terms of how the league is run. Take a look at my Pittsburgh Pirates... They can't afford having top talent on their team because of how the league is set up, so they trade off their BEST pitcher, Todd Ritchie, and they are in talks of trading their BEST player, Brian Giles. That's just flat out garbage, and I can't stand seeing nothing done about it, year in and year out.
Sorry, I just had to get that baseball opinion off my chest, as I've been bitching about it all week to friends, co-workers, or whoever wants to listen. For today's column, we will review TWO things. First, we'll take a look back at Shawn Michael's Excess appearance, and then, we'll review RAW, which most people want to see when reading the PDC. That simple, so on to the PDC!
Anyway, Shawn Michaels seemed to be in good spirits for the show, as a possible attempt to resurface himself in the WWF one day. The show is taped, so I don't know how edited it was, but Shawn appeared to be appreciative of the WWF and seemed happy in his role as a family man. Very good for him.
I thought the presented questions, though, were NOT sent in by fans, but simply made up by the WWF. Each question had the same writing style as the next, or at least seemed that way. But the questions were too "fanboy" as they say, meaning that they were too general and yet bias questions for Shawn to easily answer. None of them ever challenged him on controversial subjects. I guess Excess isn't that kind of show.
The interview was OK, as it was somewhat cool to see HBK on television again, but I could have missed it and my life would be no different or at least in my views as a wrestling fan. It was funny how the "fanboy" questions asked about the Clique, and Shawn used a little irony about how the WWF wouldn't be able to control the members of the Clique, if it was reformed. It was quite funny, too, when Shawn praised Bret Hart in one segment, and then let a little dig in by saying that the Iron Man match was his favorite because he won..... over Bret Hart.
Eh, whatever. Get HBK to do some WWF NY appearances, or have him on Heat soon.
Opening match... WOW, a match to start the show!!! Well, I wouldn't call it a match. I'd call it Jeff Hardy acting like a punching bag for the Undertaker. Oh, he's sooooo hardcore! Horrible, horrible opener, and the Undertaker isn't getting much heel heat, either. It's getting so bad that the Undertaker has to attack Lita in hopes of getting some heat. How pathetic is that? Very. He's your 11 year veteran....
Oh boy, I spoke too soon. Vince McMahon came out, and took the next 20 minutes for an interview. Jesus Christ, doesn't the WWF get it yet? It appears that the remaining WWF fans are burned out on McMahons, and anything Vince tries does NOT bring interest anymore. Sad thing is that Vince tried to relive some 1998 Austin vs. McMahon heat by having a confrontation with Austin in the ring. The crowds always appear to be into Austin, but I think they just enjoy shouting "WHAT?!?" in a live audience instead. Even better, we get another high-speed chase between Booker T and Austin.
And it gets worse.... Next match was Scotty 2 Hotty/Albert vs. the Dudleys. *Yawn* Scotty 2 Hotty didn't appear to have much face cheers this week, but hey, with the bad opening match and Vince interview, why even bother to cheer at all this week? Dudleys eventually won in a short match for a tag bout. Scotty and Albert need to work on better team chemistry, and they COULD be a successful team, in my opinion.
As for the death of Russ Haas, as mentioned on RAW by Ross and Lawler. Let me be honest here. I've never seen him wrestle, nor do I even know what he looks like. The only way I even know his name is from the Ross Report, which told me about his health problems in recent times. I can't say that I'm in remorse because he passed away, nor can I make a dedication, tribute, or statement about him. All I can say is that for any family who has lost someone lately that my best wishes are with you, and that I hope for the best for Russ Haas's loved ones.
Next match was Tazz vs. Christian. Holy cow, was this incredibly short! Yes folks, the European title was held over from all of the title unifications and recent dissolving of titles by the WWF. With that being said, Christian quickly finished off Tazz, in a match that you would have missed if you blinked. Christain won cheaply, and Tazz choked Christian out after the match, to you know, get his heat back. Whatever. I simply hate this method of building feuds, which hurts credibility of one or both wrestlers in the long run.
As for Steve Austin vs. Booker T in a church, of all places... Oh man, the WWF writers are pushing for way too much comedy lately. Booker T was hilarious in these segments, as he tried to cheat at Bingo and did some insane confessions. I laughed, out loud, at the segments, and having two wrestlers screw around in a church does NOT bother me at all. However, you just know that many religious organizations will be outraged about this, and they could dangerously join the fight against the WWF.
But hey, at least the WWF FINALLY crossed the religious line. In the past, the WWF used parts of racism, sex, stereotypes, and domestic to fuel added heat to storylines, but never religion. Oooooh nooo. I guess the WWF brainstormed on what cheap heat they've already done, over and over again, and figured that they didn't do anything on religion. Keep an eye out, because I have a feeling that many churches received phone calls about what occurred on RAW.
Rock vs. Lance Storm was next. Decent little match, although none of the fans respond to Storm because of getting embarrassed by Kane and the Big Show. Storm would actually get the win over the Rock via count out, as the Rock is willing to lose to anybody. However, why risk one of the company's biggest stars when the Big Show or Kane could have put Storm over? What are Kane and the Big Show good for anymore? Did you hear how silent the crowd was when Test screwed over the Rock?
By the way, I'm really into the Rock lately. He appears to put more energy into his matches lately, and he's improving with the several moves he knows. I would take this Rock over the Rock before Wrestlemania 17, any day of the week!
Next up, we have a Chris Jericho interview..... just like the previous next shows. Ric Flair would again make his way down to the ring, and announce that he'd be the special referee for the Jericho vs. RVD match later on.
Test/Kurt Angle vs. Rikishi/Edge was next.... Why the hell is Test tagging up with Kurt Angle? That makes no sense, other than the feud Test had with Edge months ago. Hey, whenever it's Test, always throw logic out the window, like why he continually gets a push despite uncaring fans. Match was too short and bad, and the frustrated crowd didn't care much to see the Rock come down and attack Test.
And Oh Joy, we get to see the Rock vs. Test on Smackdown. Hopefully, this is the LAST of the Main Event rub for Test, for he should be shoved down to the midcard, forever. Stupid Shane McMahon's friend. Test tried to get "heel heat" by attacking Michael Cole. Oh noooo! He's a bad, bad man! Bad meaning horrible in this case.
But I'd rather see Test bullcrap before seeing Billy Gunn/Chuck Palumbo on RAW. That shitty tag team, not even making progress on Heat, took on Tajiri and the Big Show and won!?! Gunn sucked as always, and Chuck Palumbo proved that he worked better in a WCW ring. I really hate these mini-hard-ons that the WWF gets for Billy Gunn every once in a while. This match scored zero crowd reaction, with the exception of some stuff Tajiri did because he's actually somewhat over. Get Palumbo and Gunn back on Heat, where they belong.
The Main Event was Chris Jericho vs. Rob Van Dam. It was good overall, but the crowd was so out of it because of the previous crappy wrestling matches they've seen all night. The ending was good for the storylines, though, as Ric Flair whipped out the Figure 4 leglock on Vince McMahon, and RVD did the same against Chris Jericho.
RAW Phat Stats
Matches: 7
Clean Wins: 5
Screwjobs: 0
Disqualifications: 1
No Contests: 1
LAST WORD: Oh man, what a horrible wrestling show! But yet the sports entertainment of it was decent.... The matches, though, were just awful, the same with why they were booked.
AOL Instant Messenger: BookerTito - It's recommended that you send your questions or feedback as your first message so that it could be answered, instead of saying "hi", "hey", "what's up" or whatever else. Just get to the point, please, to make it easier since I get drilled with messages.
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@That's all for today. My gosh, the WWF can really put on some stinkers from time to time. I really hope to be back tomorrow, although I'll be working a long shift and I might need sleep for that one. If anything, I'll be back for Smackdown, at least. Just chill......
Take Care, and Thanks for Reading daily.