Raw is Jericho, SuperSmackDown, Tribute to the Troops and more

Image Credit: wwe.com

What a start to WWE week! Following TLC, Monday Night Raw opened to this week's GM, Y2J, announcing the night's 2 HUGE main events. A fan picked street fight with none other than Jericho, himself, and big mouthed Paul Heyman. Followed by rematch of Cena vs Rollins in a steel cage. The street fight couldn't even start before Brock Lesnar laid Jericho out with an F-5. No one expected any physical activity from Heyman. He may have put on some ring gear but that wasn't fooling anyone. I guess Brock feels the need to make up for lost time because he comes out during the steel cage match to remind Cena what he's in for at the Royal Rumble. Rollins hit Cena with a Curb Stomp and exits the cage.

USA Network switched up our regular schedules with a SuperSmackDown Live on Tuesday night. Raw gave us a taste of Roman Reigns but SmackDown showed Fandango what Reigns was really capable of doing. Rowan flies off the top to win the 6 man tag. The Ascension's vignette left me so confused. Did The Road Warriors find the fountain of youth? I don't know who has an easier job, Nikki or Kane. Ziggler nails a Zig-Zag for the win. That's what Rollins gets for talking too much. 

The 12th annual Tribute to the Troops airs tonight at 8pm. Promised to be the most patriotic and heart-warming show of the holiday season, WWE brings together the best of sports entertainment and pop culture. The Tribute will chronicle the Superstar's 2 day trip to Fort Benning, a performance by multi-platinum recording artists, Florida Georgia Line, special messages from a long list of celebrities, and I'm sure a few mediocre matches for good measure. 

-Loveblump

TGIF with Matt Dawgs: Jabronidust, Cena's Backhanded Compliment, Total Stopped Action,and More

Image Credit: wwe.com

WWE NEWS AND NOTES:

- Raw has been AWFUL of late. Honestly, I am so sick and tired of the same sh*t week in and week out. It is driving me insane. Every week it is the Authority/Rollins/Orton/Kane vs. Ambrose/Cena. It has become so redundant with the week in and week out in some way, shape or form. UGH. The only saving grace is the fact that Dean Ambrose is getting over like gangbusters and I hope that the powers that be realize this and continue to push him even after Roman Reigns comes back. They have a major star with Ambrose and I am praying that they do not cut off their nose to spit their face with him.
- Ambrose’s promo skills are so unique and entertaining. From channeling Rowdy Roddy Piper and Randy Savage, he brings something different that only Bray Wyatt brings. It is refreshing to hear the difference in their promos than everyone else on the roster. Maybe that is why they stand out from everyone else and have broken out of the pack.
- I know I sound like a broken record but what exactly is the point again of sacrificing the tag team champions to Dean Ambrose and John Cena? Goldust and Stardust were made to look like COMPLETE JABRONIES the way they lost when in fact if you didn’t want Cena and Ambrose to lose, you could have went in a hundred different directions. Having The Authority come out and distract them? Have the Usos get the win? Have Cena cost Ambrose the win and Ambrose gets pinned or vice versa? Have Cena and Ambrose get into a fight (which in fact would have played into Stephanie and HHH’s bet), or the best suggestion, NOT BOOK THEM VS. THE TAG CHAMPS TO BEGIN WITH!!!!!!
- Sigh. So A.J. last week said that she doesn’t have any friends and none of the other divas like her but she is OK with that. So she teams with Layla this week because she dislikes Layla the least vs. Paige and Alicia Fox. BTW, what happened to Fox’s crazy gimmick from a few months ago? I digress. Anyway, Layla bails on A.J. when she goes to make a tag leaving her to fend for herself. She then wins in a handicap match anyway. What was the point of doing the ANGLE then if it wasn’t going to result in the finish?
- A.J. and a partner of her choosing vs. Paige and Alicia Fox is happening next Monday on RAW. Why? She already beat them in a handicap match? I am only ok with this if it leads to someone debuting or returning like Tamina Snuka.
- Just how far does WWE go to protect John Cena? When Randy Orton was asking HHH/Steph for his match vs. the loser of the main event of RAW, WWE scripted Orton, HHH and Stephanie to make sure that none of them used the term “loser” and instead Orton said, “The Other Guy”. Read that again. Orton specifically said that whoever wins between Cena and Ambrose tonight, he wanted “the other guy”. On Smackdown, the match was promoted as the main event of the show (it isn’t). This is the 9^th time that Cena vs. Orton has taken place on a WWE PPV in a singles match and their 2^nd Hell in a Cell match as Orton won the first in 2009.
- So now both Luke Harper and Eric Rowan ARE FREE from Bray Wyatt. I am ok with this. I just hope they don’t get too greatly repackaged.
- Orton and Ziggler was the lone, in-ring bright spot of RAW. It was a very good match with an excellent finish. That RKO was INCREDIBLE.
- If you haven’t caught it yet, they have constantly been teasing for weeks now that Orton is going to turn face on Rollins and the Authority.
- Rollins vs. Swagger WAS OK. Swagger is stuck in such a rut now. He was gaining steam during his feud with Rusev but once it ended, he has been going nowhere.
- Lana is AWESOME. Not just hot as she is, but she is great in her role. I am worried that when the inevitable break up on television occurs, she is going to be stuck doing nothing of importance since she isn’t a good wrestler.

- See more here. http://www.wewantinsanity.com/am2/publish/Dawgs/T_G_I_F_with_Matt_Dawgs_101714.shtml#sthash.rQg9RQoF.dpuf

TGIF with Matt Dawgs: The Lunatic Rattlesnake, Ziggler Loses The IC Title To An Airline, CM-TNA-LOL, The Rock vs. wHHHo? at Mania and More

Image Credit: wwe.com

WWE NEWS AND NOTES:

- FINALLY.... THE ROCK RETURNS TO MONDAY NIGHT RAW. And that was virtually the only thing of note that took place on Monday because otherwise WWE has been a complete and utter rut lately with their writing as of late. God awful.

- Before anyone starts in, in NO WAY was that a burial of Rusev. Rusev was sucker punched and tossed from the ring. He was not hit with Rock’s finisher or a “People’s Elbow”. He landed on his feet and was held back by Lana. He was put over in the promo by Rock and looked strong and got some rub. It was a good segment.

- I have legit lost count of how many consecutive weeks/shows that we have gotten a main event involving some combination of Ambrose/Cena vs. Orton/Rollins/Kane. It has to be every single show for the past 3 months now no?

- If not, it is at least almost as many times as we have seen some sort of match involving the Usos vs. The Dust Brothers. I felt like it was groundhog day during the first half hour of RAW since it was the same stuff we have seen week in and week out on both RAW and Smackdown.

- I AM A LEMON and so are the fans in Brooklyn as Adam Rose got ZERO REACTION when he and his gang danced to the ring with Kathy Lee Gifford and Hoda Kotb. Speaking of, that had to be the worst segment in RAW history right? It was at least on par with Katie Vick. I almost wished breast cancer on them for putting me through that.

- SIDE NOTE: Thea Trinidad was back as a Rosebud as was Mandy Leon from Ring of Honor. They both need to be hired full time. Damien Darling best known for being WWE Hall of Famer’s Sunny’s ex-boyfriend who she has went to jail over numerous times was also a Rosebud.

- Intrigued by where they are going with Harper and Rowan. These vignettes are excellent.

- I STILL BO-LIEVE!!!! Although that finish had me cringing as the timing was way off. LOL. Poor Mark Henry had to stand around like a dope while the referee was slow counting. Henry needs to be a top level heel already. He is better off in that role so they need to hurry with the turn.

Image Credit: wwe.com

- Dean Ambrose as “Stone Cold” Steve Austin v2.0 is catching on. The fans get it and are into it. And before you get on WWE writing for having Ambrose not get the better of everyone week in and week out, neither did Austin before he became World Champion. When he just started to catch fire as a babyface after Mania 13, he was a tweener still and got his ass handed to him a bunch of times by people like Bret Hart and the Undertaker from week to week including being left lying in the ring.

- Of course the polar opposite of Dean Ambrose is Brie Bella who is supposed to be the hot babyface that fans wouldn’t piss on if she was on fire. They totally do not give two sh*ts about her. They do dig the “YES” chants though.

- I enjoy the fact that they are at least covering all bases when it comes to the Natalya/Tyson Kidd angle since it is spanning NXT, RAW, Smackdown and Total Divas.

- So let’s get this clear for a second. WWE hypes last week that Roman Reigns will talk on RAW. Then, even though Roman Reigns was in NY earlier in the day at an autograph signing and even though he was backstage at RAW, they do a “taped” segment with him? What is even better is that he was told late last week that it would be an in person, in the ring interview and he said so earlier in the day when doing media interviews hyping RAW. So no one told him. Plus, like I said for weeks now, maybe even months, ....

- See more on the Matt Dawgs column of WeWantInsanity.com at: http://www.wewantinsanity.com/am2/publish/Dawgs/T_G_I_F_with_Matt_Dawgs_101014.shtml

Know your role! The Rock returns. Monday Night Raw Recap

Image Credit: www.wwe.com

John Cena and my favorite lunatic, Dean Ambrose, were supposed to have a 3 on 2 handicap match as the main event this evening. Ambrose deciding he'd rather go grab a hot dog at Nathan's. Good choice. Cena is so obsessed with Rollins, let him take care of that. 

I can't believe they made Big Show apologize on Smackdown. With all the disrespectful things Lana gets away with saying about America, you'd think that Soviet streetwalker would get sent to "sensitivity training." This really irks me. Rusev isn't even Russian! 

A lot of things bothered me about Raw tonight. Who let Tyson Kidd back in the ring? He's lucky he's married to a Hart. I don't even want to get into the Kathy Lee and Hoda bit. WWE heard us all bitching about that and sent us THE ROCK! After a little flirting with Lana, The Rock interrupts Rusev to send him to the Smackdown Hotel. 

I'll be dreaming of a mustard covered Orton tonight. Thank you, Ambrose. A boring 3 on 1 beat down turned into my greatest fantasy. Condiment covered beef cakes. Hunter announces Cena vs Ambrose, winner takes on Rollins inside the steel structure at Hell in the Cell. Can't wait! 

-Loveblump