WWE RAW Workrate Report 6/14/04
What Worked
TKG: Can we send Jim Ross to Israel? Yasser, A.S. we need to bring this to closure.
TKG: Wow that crowd was hot. that show was a shitty thing to do to a hot crowd. But hot crowd always works.
PAS: I can't really complain about 35 minute Beniot matches, but this was kind of formless. Way too much Flair who doesn't have enough stuff to fill 25 minutes of a 35 minute match. Batista is the best worker on the heel team and didn't work the night before and shouldn't have gone out so early. I always enjoy Flair and Beniot smacking the shit out of each other.
TKG: Match didn't need to be that long really. And fuck did we really need that much junk filler if we're going to run a long match.
PAS: Regal's facial expressions fucking ruled
TKG: The clique gets written up alot as being a genius at backstage maneuvering. But honestly there are more idiot marks in the business than in the stands. Nothing genius about it. You get the impression Helmsley's speech was transcribed directly from backstage meetings. Vince, I am a big fan of yours, can I get an autographed picture with you for my family...that Vader guy he hurt my face...why isn't Yoko going over him at house shows. OOh Bruce Pritchard you're my friend, you know my boy Da Bad Guy, he shouldn't have to job to Dean Douglas, oh and Bruce can you autograph my T-Shirt from LOVE. Bunch of mark suckers.
What Didn't Work
PAS: 1:45 of the show without fucking matches, a pregnancy angle, long meaningless promos, dammit is Russo in Micheals prayer group? At least we might get to see some Palumbo matches.
TKG: Hey you forgot to mention the mixed tag and the Nitro Girls match. Although at least Russo would have just had them fight in the shower instead of work southern tag. A heel has the womens champion belt. Why have the heels go over here? Why is Miss Texas on Smackdown? Oh yeah, Schenider also forgets to mention Benoit covering up in the main....Russo must be writting this.
PAS: Goddam there are 400 guys with tribal tattoos in OVW, they bring in and push the one guy who can't even execute a bodyslam. At least they didn't have Nitro work matches, just stand next to Woman and look tall. Where is Nate Jones, or Matt Morgan or Test or Heidenrich? Shit just bring in Chuck Zito, OZ is over he could use the money.
TKG: From 11/3/03 "When I first read in the sheets about how Neil Labute was gonna be ghostwritting for RAW, I wasn’t that stoked. I’ve never understood why all the critics cum over themselves over Labute’s writting. I’ve spent time with Mormons and his writing comes across as just really predictable to me. After the first scene you can pretty much guess everything that’s gonna happen next. So Heyman tells Christian and Jericho that whichever one of them can get one of the RAW face women pregnant (putting her out of commission) gets a shot at the Smackdown Title. Christian eventually knocks Lita up and then laughs in her face as he leaves for Smackdown. Jericho is ostracized and feels guilty for the whole thing slowly turning him semi-face, as he pledges that he will raise Lita’s child as his own. Jericho starts referring to Lita’s child as his son. Lita then drowns the kid. Jericho breaks down. The woman, who can never make it into the kingdom of Heaven, Lita ends up seconding and manipulating Jericho as he’s a broken man. It’s all so shitty and predictable. But watching tonight’s show I realized that despite its obviousness, at least its long term booking. I’ll give WWE credit for at least doing long term booking again. " Looks like they fired Labute and hired Joe Ezterhas' even less talented cousin Frank.
PAS: It is going to turn out that both Matt and Lita are the illegitimate children of Jimmy Valiant, and the baby is going to get born funny. Then the baby can disappear for 9 months and come back full grown as a Eugene tag partner. If you are going to do shitty Another World writing go all the way.