OO Column: Online Onslaught by Rick Scaia (Pro Wrestling News, Analysis, and Commentary... WWE, WWF, WCW, ECW, The Rock, Brock Lesnar, Triple H, Rob Van Dam, Hulk Hogan, Undertaker, Trish Stratus, Lita, Stacy Keibler, Divas, RAW, SmackDown, WrestleMania

OO RAW RECAP
This is How 2014 Ends, Not with a Bang, but a Thud
December 29, 2014

by Rick Scaia
Exclusive to OOWrestling.com

It's been a week since my relocation (for all the wrong reasons) to Texas, and two things are becoming abundantly clear: (1) my brother's cable system sucks and lacks at least a half-dozen of my go-to channels that are part of my package back at home, and (2) a lack of any friends or social life means I'm spending a shit ton more time sitting in front of a TV than I'm used to.

The combination of more time wasted on the couch and less shit worth watching available on this cable system has already resulted in more wearing out Netflix. Over the weekend, I went on a binge of Christmas themed movies, to try to make up for there being no Christmas for me this year.

Somehow, I managed to make it to this point in my life without ever seeing "Scrooged" or "Bad Santa," both of which I knew are highly regarded by people who I regard highly. "Scrooged" was maybe a bit underwhelming, but I definitely enjoyed "Bad Santa."

But for the purposes of this PreRamble here on a wrestling website, I definitely must report that I watched "I Am Santa Claus," Mick Foley's documentary about the Professional Santa Impersonators subculture. I would never, in a million years, have expected there to be a whole movie's worth of material in guys who dress up as Santa, but I'd have been wrong.

In addition to servingup his own unconditional love of all things Christmas, Mick did a great job weaving in the Human Element of the various Santas, including some with decidedly non-Santa private lives the other 11 months of the year. Cognitive Dissonance, they name is Orgy Santa! Honest: a Santa who is part of a swingers' club and is a group sex enthusiast.

Anyway, I think it's well worth a watch if you've got the Netflix. OO recommends!

And now, OO gets down to business. Here's what just happened on RAW:

Opening Video Package: rather than rehashing current storylines, the introductory package brings everybody up to speed on the untimely retirement of Edge, due to serious neck injury, back in 2011. He and Christian are our guest GMs for tonight.

EDGE AND CHRISTIAN'S ZERO SECOND POSE

Edge gets a huge over-the-top introduction from some ring announcer who is not Lilian Garcia (I mean REALLY over-the-top, like somebody doing a parody of Justin Roberts), and then comes out with full music and pyro (and wearing a Sami Zayn t-shirt). Christian just sort of tags along, acting a bit miffed that he's just the sidekick, playing second fiddle to Edge. But just a bit.

When they get to the ring, Christian gets all dictatorial, declaring that tonight he's gonna host a very special edition of the Peep Show... only to have Edge suggest it should be The Cutting Edge. They finally showcase the teamwork that brought them 7 tag titles, and agree to a "Cutting Edge Peep Show."

The guest will be Seth Rollins. Boo! Oh, so the fans don't like that guy... so Edge will fix it by declaring Seth Rollins will also be in action against Roman Reigns. Yay!

Christian follows up by making a Rusev vs. Ziggler, champion vs. chapmion match (presumably non-title). Also, Daniel Bryan will be here later with a Major Announcement.

And finally, for the Benefit of Those With Flash Photography, the duo want to deliver a Five Second Pose...

Except that they are interrupted by Brock Lesnar and Paul Heyman. Heyman gets a mic, and immediately says that Edge and Christian have made a terrible mistake by showing up in the ring, tonight. One had a career ending neck injury, and the other has been concussed so many times that he should just retire, and now they're standing face to face with the Beast Incarnate.

There is a threat hanging in the air for a moment, until Heyman says he and his client have no desire to cripple two men who are already retired. His client can't wait to violate a virgin neck, ideally the one belonging to #1 Contender, John Cena.

As if on cue, here's Cena. After a staredown, Cena says Lesnar can relax, cuz Cena isn't here to fight, because he doesn't want to give Lesnar an excuse for why he's gonna lose at the Rumble. He wants Lesnar at 100%. After revealing his New Year's Resolution (to win the WWE Title), he says the same logic does NOT apply to Heyman, and Cena goes to F-U Heyman.

Lesnar intervenes to break it up, but instead of continuing the fight, he backs off and scurries up the ramp. Huh... unlike 2 weeks ago, that is not exactly a thrilling use of Lesnar during one of his inexcusably rare appearances. I can only assume he'll be back later on to do something worthwhile...

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DOLPH ZIGGLER vs. RUSEV (w/ Lana) (Non-Title)

Lilian actually is here, doing the ring announcing, afterall. So maybe that wasn't some new ring announcer channeling Justin Roberts... maybe it was a tape of Justin Roberts. Using a tape of a dearly departed announcer? Who does Edge think he is? Derek Jeter?

Bell rings, and Dolph tries a little bit of flash and speed, and it immediately lands him on the short end of the stick. Rusev's size and power dominate the opening 2-3 minutes.

A hope spot has Ziggler hit his big implant DDT, getting a near fall. But Ziggler's taken a beating and can't follow up. Rusev is able to roll out of the ring, and with a break in the action, we break for...

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Back, and Rusev is working a chinlock. Foreshadowing the return of Randall Orton much? Ziggler fights out, and gets another hope spot, capped off with a Fameasser for another near fall. But again, Ziggler doesn't have enough in the tank to follow up, so Rusev goes back on the offensive for a bit.

When Rusev misses an avalanche splash, Ziggler catches him with a superkick for another near fall. But again, there's no immediately follow up. Instead, both men are down and the ref has to apply a double count.

Both men get up at 7, and start trading punches. Rusev gets the better of it, and backs Ziggler into a corner, where he stomps a mudhole and walks it dry. The ref, meantime, is applying a count... and Rusev does not heed it, and continues stomping on Ziggler.

Your Winner: Dolph Ziggler, via disqualification, in about 10 minutes. Nothing special, just another Ziggler gets-his-ass-kicked-like-no-other bumpathon... which is just fine and dandy. The cheap ending, however, kind of underscored the throwaway nature of the match. Bleh.

After the Match: Rusev continued the beatdown, and eventually locked Ziggler in the Camel Clutch. Ryback came to the rescue, and ran off Rusev.

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RYBACK GETS REAL

Ryback's still in the ring, and says he wants to share a little bit about his past, because his love of wrestling and his desire to make it to WWE are unparallelled, and they go back longer than the fans know.

He talks about going to his first WWE event, and how he got picked to be the guest bell ringer. He was hooked. He wanted to become a wrestler, and in 2004, he almost made it... he was one of the semi-finalists of the $1,000,000 Tough Enough, as "The Silverback" Ryan Reeves. But then, when he was eliminated, he went into deep depression, thinking he'd blown it.

But a second chance presented itself, and he got resigned, and was a part of the first season of NXT (as Skip Sheffield), which led to debuting on the main roster as part of the Nexus.

But then, another career threatening setback, when he broke his ankle in three places at a house show in Hawaii. But he got put back together, and made his glorious return back in October, and now he's gonna make the most of it. Uhhh, so I guess that whole two years of turning heel and being in a jobber tag team with Curtis Axel never happened? Just serious injury, and victorious pre-Survivor Series return? Hokay.

Anyway, he wraps up by saying that now we know how Ryback got here, and why he considers his opportunity to win the US Title so important. To him, it's not a USA vs. Russia thing, it's a "One big guy kicking another big guy's ass thing." Yep yep yep, that's a punchline!

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NIKKI BELLA (w/ Brie) vs. NATALYA (w/ Tyson Kidd) (Non-Title)

Out of the gate, Nattie tosses Nikki out of the ring, and Kidd catches her... Nattie is not happy, and as a result of the distraction, Nikki hits the Rack Attack.

Your Winner: Nikki Bella, via pinfall, in 45 seconds. Yes, it was one spot, then the finish. That was it. Match was nothing, but storyline accomplished. Kidd costs Nattie a big chance to get into the Women's Title picture...

Backstage: Miz and Sandow are chatting when Naomi walks up, all smiles. She says she wants to talk to Miz, alone. So she shoos Sandow away. Stupidly, she has no problem with the camera 18 inches away from her face and the millions of people watching at home. Dumb duh-duh-duh-dumb. Long story short, she called Miz's producer friend, and now she's got a big record deal, or something, and she's really grateful for all Miz's help. She even wishes Miz good luck in his upcoming tag title defense, against her husband and brother-in-law.

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MIZ & DAMIEN SANDOW vs. THE USOS

Full boxing-style ring intros, mostly because it's a title match, but also partly because it's a chance to draw attention to the huge boos for Miz and huge cheers for Sandow.

Bell rings, and Miz starts, because he does not want to let us get Mizdow. And Jimmy starts, because he's not happy at all about Miz sleazing on his wife. A little bit of back and forth, but then the Usos take control, so that we can all enjoy Sandow mirroring Miz's beating.

The highlight is a huge delayed double atomic drop, which Sandow mirrors by propping himself up in the turnbuckle and then dropping down. When the Usos chuck Miz out of the ring, Sandow also ejects himself.

But the Usos waste their time watching Sandow's antics, so when Jimmy finally decides to go over and pull Miz back into the ring, Miz clotheslines his neck over the top rope. And now the heel beatdown is on. So we break for...

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Back, and we return just in time to see Jimmy kick Miz off (he was attempting a Figure Four), and make the hot tag to Jey. He goes to town on Miz. Enzuigiri. Uso Crazy Dive. Superkick. But after one near fall, Miz fights back, and finally does get the Figure Four cinched in.

Jey has to get to the ropes for a break, and he does. When Miz tries to recinch the hold, Jey counters into a single leg crab... and finally, Sandow has had enough, and quits joking around to make the save.

Pier Four Brawl is short-lived, as the Usos dispatch Sandow, and focus on Miz. Jimmy is now legal, and goes for the Superfly Splash... but Miz gets the knees up. Miz follows up with the Skull Crushing Finale...

But Jimmy kicks out at 2 and 9/10ths. Miz throws a mini-tantrum, and that loss of focus means that he completely misses a blind tag. Jey is now legal, and catches Miz off guard with a superkick. Then stereo superkicks from both Usos. Then a successful Superfly Splash from Jey... and that's it.

Your Winners and NEW Tag Team Champions: the Uso Brothers, via pinfall, in 12 minutes. Solid match, and a surprising title change always adds a little extra zazz. But to paraphrase an old OOster: Needs More Sandow!

After the Match: Jerry Lawler got up in the ring to conduct an interview with the new champs. As you might expect, they're quite happy. Other than conveying that notion, nothing was accomplished by this denoument.

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HE'S GOT SOME BAD NEWS FOR YA

We return to find Cesaro in the ring, slouched in a corner. Looks like he wants to have a little chat, not unlike Ryback.

You see, he's a little bit pissed. 2014 was shaping up as his year. He won the Andre the Giant Battle Royale, and then the WWE "decision makers" yanked the carpet out from under him, claiming that he "doesn't connect."

But Cesaro doesn't care about connecting, because he DELIVERS. Nobody in the entire company can deliver the way he does, and he's sick and tired of all the games and politics. Screw the music, screw the pyro, and screw the fans... he's here to fight, and nobody does it as well as him.

Is there anybody back there who wants to try to prove him wrong?

Sure enough, there is: it's Bad News Barrett. He says he may not care about connecting with the fans, but he has some bad news for Cesaro: his elbow is gonna connect with his shiny little skull.

BAD NEWS BARRETT vs. CESARO

And just like that, it appears Barrett's a babyface (that kind of screws up my notion that he'd come back for a kickass feud against Ziggler, for the IC Title that Barrett had to forfeit due to injury)... fans aren't totally sure what to make of it, but they are nominally behind Wade. Still, mostly, the two are playing to silence.

Back and forth brawling -- very stiff stuff -- with a big pop finally coming when Cesaro hits the Giant Swing. He only does 5 revolutions, though, to spite the fans. Then he locks in a half crab. Barrett gets a rope break, and Cesaro ends up putting more effort into arguing with the ref than following up.

Flash Bullhammer Elbow, and that's all she wrote.

Your Winner: Wade Barrett, via pinfall, in 4 minutes. Well, I was thinking this was set up to be a reboot for Cesaro, playing off of the universal sense that Vince's idiotic brass ring comments on Stone Cold's podcast means he's out of touch with what the fans want... but instead, Cesaro's comments are swept under the rug, and the takeaway here is that Barrett's back, and in impressive fashion. And as a babyface.

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JACK SWAGGER vs. LUKE HARPER

We're all adults here, but WWE is gonna pretend this is something it isn't.

Despite a grand total of zero ambiguity about who will get the better of it, WWE stretches this out. In fact, after 4 minutes, we even break for...

[ads]

Back, and there's another 3 or 4 minutes before inevitability sets in.

Your Winner: Luke Harper, via pinfall, in 10 minutes. Pyro sometimes uses the phrase "extendo-squash" to describe a foregone conclusion that lasts 5 minutes. But this takes things to a whole other level, for reasons that I can only assume have something to do with many important guys working a house show in Richmond at the same time RAW is happening in Washington. I honestly can't fathom any other reason to book these guys to go thrice as long as they should have. And I'm not the only one. The live fans weren't buying it, either.

Backstage: Edge and John Cena are trading "Hey, do you remember whens" from their lengthy feud... Hey, do y ou remember when you cashed in MitB and stole my WWE Title? Hey, do you remember when I F-U'd you off a ladder? And so on, played for laughs. But then Cena gets all serious when he says that most of all, he remembers when he was just getting established as a top guy, and Edge helped him take his game to another level. Cena thanks Edge for everything he did to make Cena the star he is today, and even gave him a big hug. Awwwww....

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ROMAN REIGNS vs. SETH ROLLINS (w/ the New Stooges)

Big Show is sitting in on guest commentary, and makes sure we remember that he has no regrets over what he did at Survivor Series, and is all in on Rollins as the Future of WWE.

Reigns uses his size and strength to dominate Rollins, so Rollins decides to powder out of the ring a few times. But Reigns just keeps piling on, even busting out some heelish antics, including toying with Rollins and isolating on a body part (Rollins' left shoulder).

But on one of Rollins' sojourns out of the ring, Reigns follows, and they do the standard cat-and-mouse role reversal spot. Just like that, Rollins takes over. Rollins keeps it simple and methodical, building up to.... A CHINLOCK. More foreshadowing?!?!?!

Reigns fights out of the rest hold, and looks like he's about to take over... but a distraction from Jamie and Joey allows Rollins to hit a baseball slide and resume control. ON that note, we break for...

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Back, and Rollins has things well in hand. Reigns tries to fire up, and Rollins just takes him down with a chopblock, and keeps him down. Back to the chinlock. I sense something, a presence I haven't felt since...

Reigns finally breaks up the monotony by catching Rollins coming off the ropes with a tilt-a-whirl slam. He can't follow up, so the ref starts applying a double count.

Both men up at 6, and they trade punches. Rollins initially gets the upper hand, but Reigns ducks a clothesline, and then rebounds with one of his own. Rollins snuffs out the rally with his crazy flip out enzuigiri, and then gets a near fall off a low superkick.

Rollins sets up for the curb stomp, but Reign dodges it. Rollins leapfrogs a spear attempt, but ends up eating the Superman Punch. And then, as Reigns lines up for a final Spear, Big Show gets up and yanks Reigns out of the ring, flings him over the announce table, and then dumps the table onto him.

The heels retreat as trainers swarm to tend to Reigns.

Your Winner: Roman Reigns, via DQ, in about 12 minutes. About as slow and bland a match as I can remember Rollins having in recent months. Not really objectionable... but aggressively forgettable. Even the ending seemed awfully cheap and uninspired. I honestly figured the 2-on-1 was the set-up for Orton's "surprise" return to resume his feud with Rollins (he appeared on all this past weekend's house shows), but nope... instead, just the lame DQ and that's it, and presumably this means Rollins with E&C is gonna be our Main Event Promo, and they're saing Orton for that. Probably not the way I'd have done it, but whatever...

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Backstage: Seth Rollins is talking to J&J, and declares that things are going his way, so later on, when he appears on the Cutting Edge Peep Show, he's gonna propose a New Year's Toast, and he's so confident, that he wants John Cena to be there to witness it in person.

Next Week: the first RAW of 2015 will include an Ambulance Match pitting Dean Ambrose against Bray Wyatt. After that announcement, there's a freeze frame and we cut to Wyatt, sitting in an ambulance for a pretape. He basically suggests that this is how their feud is going to end, and then closes by saying "I have his soul" over and over again, before closing the ambulance's doors. [Note: Bray and Ambrose are two of the guys wrestling in Richmond tonight, so that's pretty much the only way they'll be able to hype next week's match]

Elsewhere Backstage: Daniel Bryan has shown up, and is shaking hands and hugging various babyfaces. His big announcement is next, and the announcers are treating it in a very ominous fashion, even drawing comparisons between Bryan and tonight's guest co-host, Edge, who had to make a major announcement of his own shortly after WrestleMania 27. Man, I sure hope that's a red herring, and not actual foreshadowing.

[ads; included in this set of local ads is one for RAW coming to Dallas on January 19, which will be an Old School show with Hogan, Michaels, Hall, Nash, and others... maybe I'll try to make some lemonade out of the lemons I've been handed, and attend that one in person?]

WHEW! WHEW! WHEW!

Daniel Bryan gets a huge reaction as he YESses his way to the ring. Cole & the Gang continue to act as if it's inevitable that Bryan is here to retire.

Once the fans simmer down, Bryan thanks the fans for being the only ones who believed in him, and for making it possible for him to headline WrestleMania, winning the WWE Title in the process.

That was the same week he got married, and it was the best week of his life. But ever since then, it's all been downhill. His dad died, and he suffered an injury, one that the doctors couldn't fix. One they couldn't even accurately diagnose.

It's been 7 months of hellish uncertainty, 7 months of watching WWE and being happy about things like the Authority being ousted, but sad that he wasn't able to be a part of it. And now, he's come to a point where he's got a huge decision to make.

And he's thought long and hard about it, and figures the least he can do is reveal his decision right here, in front of the fans who made his whole career possible.

Bottom line, "So, is my career over?" Pregnant pause. NO! NO! NO!

YES!

Bryan says he's not gonna let things end like that, and will he be in the 2015 Royal Rumble? YES! YES! YES! THAT is the announcement he came here to make... he wants to get back to where he was last April, and that road starts by winning the Rumble.

Alright! I had a feeling, but WWE sure did everything they could to make sure we all had a sinking feeling in our stomachs before the final reveal.

Backstage: Edge and Christian are also happy to hear Bryan's announcement, and bust out the kazoos for a bit of "Flight of the Valkyries." But then Miz and Sandow storm in, demanding a rematch right now. After some hilarity, including jokes about Miz's halitosis and Edge busting out his own "stunt double" (actually a ventriloquist dummy), Edge says if Miz is all worked up and wants a match, he can have it.

But it's not a tag title match, and it's not against the Usos. But it is next. Uh oh, I have a bad feeling about this...

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This Friday: E&C are in control of SmackDown this week, too. And there will be another Cutting Edge Peep Show, with Ambrose and Wyatt as guests.

THE ASCENSION vs. MIZ & DAMIEN SANDOW

Yep, I knew it. Konnor and Viktor, with their LOD Makeover, are here to make their main roster debut after dominating the NXT tag ranks for the past year.

For the first time ever, Miz decides to let Sandow start the match. And, in fact, he decides to retreat to the floor about 90 seconds into the thrashing, leaving Sandow to take the Fall of Man high/low finisher.

Your Winners: the Ascesnion, via pinfall, in 2 minutes. Crowd seemed to know who they were, with a substantial "EN EX TEE" chant, but only time will tell if they have traction with the makeover and switch to babyface status.

Backstage: Renee Young catches up to Seth Rollins and the Stooges... she just wants to make sure Rollins really meant it when he invited Cena to come out for tonight's Main Event Promo. Rollins confirms that this is, indeed, the case, and he can't wait.

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THE CUTTING EDGE PEEP SHOW

Edge and Christian are already in the ring, and Edge says he smells something. Christian says yeah, it REEKS......... of Awesomeness!

The crowd barely accomodates them with a half-hearted pop, because, well, that's not exactly true, and we all know it. But it's not their fault, so why take it out on them?

Then they get right down to business, introducing their guest, a man who goes by many names (including General Zod, Jr. and The Walking Pile of Suck)... Seth Rollins.

Rollins and the Stooges come on down. Mercury is carrying a bottle of champagne, and NOble has the glasses.

Rollins starts off in suspiciously friendly fashion, calling E&C his heroes because of all their great matches and paving the way for his own career. E&C feel the same way, saying that Rollins is coming off a bit phoney and condesceding.

Rollins insists he's totally being honest, but while trying to convey his respect for E&C's accomplishments, he somehow manages to twist it into a discussion of his OWN accomplishments, and how he had the best 2014 of anyone on the whole roster.

E&C disagree, and start rattling off the names of people who had better years. After starting with names like Cena and Bryan, they get more and more absurd before ending with the Doctor of Style, Slick.

Rollins laughs it off, and veers off into a discussion about how, no matter how good 2014 was, he can't wait for 2015, and it's on to even bigger and better things in the new year.

Before the toast, Rollins just wants to invite one more guest to the ring. His new friend, who has helped him stay sane in the aftermath of the Survivor Series... the Big Show. Show comes out, and they two have a quick hug, as they both promise that 2015 is gonna be their year.

Then, it's time for John Cena to come on down and witness Seth's big toast, in person.

But there's no Cena.

Rollins calls for Cena a second time. Then a third. But no Cena.

So Rollins says he's got just the thing to force Cena's hand.

He swings the MitB Briefcase into Christian's ribs, and then advances on Edge, until Edge backs into Big Show. At Rollins' command, Show grabs Edge by the neck and pushes him down to the mat, with his head on the briefcase.

Rollins steps back, threatening to hit the curb stomp on Edge's SURGICALLY REPAIRED~! neck... and finally, here's Cena to the rescue.

But Rollins tells him to stand his ground at ringside, and not another step, otherwise he'll paralyze Edge for life.

Cena is conflicted, taking a step towards the ring, then stepping back when Rollins threatens to do it... and it goes back and forth for damned near 5 convoluted, ham handed, contrived minutes of over-wrought writer-y nonsense. Just terrible drivel that in no way resembled an actual real human interaction.

But the much shorter, less eyeball-roll-inducing version is: Seth Rollins wants Cena to bring back the Authority, and if he doesn't, Edge is getting pulverized, and it's gonna be on Cena's head.

Cena gives in, and says he hereby re-installs the Authority. Rollins says that's great, but there's just one more thing....

He's gonna kill Edge, anyway, just for fun. He steps back to set up the curb stomp, but Cena's able to jump in and tackle him at the last second. Edge rolls to safety, but Cena falls prey to the numbers game. Show drops him with the WMD, and then Rollins hits a huge Curb Stomp (Cena sold it great).

Then, the foursome head up to the stage, where they are joined by Brock Lesnar and Paul Heyman, because as of 2 weeks ago, Rollins is apparently a Associate Heyman Guy. They just stand there looking proud of themselves for a bit, and then Motorhead fires up...

Triple H and Stephanie come on out to join them. The champagne starts flowing, and the last show of 2014 ends the same way it started: with the Authority in power.

And so ends the show. And it really wasn't much of a good one... pretty much zero worthwhile in-ring action, and the big finish was one where the bad guys won which is always a downer. To say nothing about how poorly crafted it was (in terms of being over-written to the point of complete unbelievability). I mean it: it's not a bad idea if you're dead set on bringing the Authority back, but somebody sat down and turned this potentially compelling moment of Cena giving back for "all the things" Edge did for him (referenced in the earlier skit) into laughable dreck.

It was like the end of "Star Trek Into Darkness," where those asshat hacks Orci and the Other One hand-crafted dialogue that resulted in a significant percentage of the audience groaning or laughing at a moment that was allegedly highly dramatic and gravitas-laden. I mean, you almost HAD to laugh, because the only other option is to get furiously angry at how terrible the spectacle of Redoing Star Trek II was. Laughing it off is lots better for your long term mental health.

So with that in mind, I won't dwell on it. It was bad, and I point my finger and giggle in the general direction of anyone who thought that was a valid and well constructed bit of human drama. But I'll just remind myself that nobody will ever require me to watch it again, and all I have to do is remember that the Authority are back, and forget exactly how it happened.

In the final analysis, Daniel Bryan's joyous announcement isn't nearly enough to offset the rest of the show that peaked at "forgettable." Honestly, why waste one of Lesnar's appearances on THAT? He said nothing and did nothing except walk away from a fight. It's the total opposite of the delightfully impactful appearance WWE got out of him two weeks ago. When Brock Lesnar is there, and you barely notice, that's a failure on WWE's part. Big time.

I think the highest I can go for grading this show is a D-plus... and that's even with a small bonus for one unexpected extra week of No Orton.

Hopefully things will bounce back next week for the now traditional New Years Free Per View edition of RAW. I'll see you all then!

SMACKDOWN RECAP: Bonding Exercises

RAW RECAP: The New Guy Blows It

PPV RECAP: WWE Night of Champions 2012

SMACKDOWN RECAP: 18 Seconds? NO! NO! NO!

RAW RECAP: The Show Must Go On

SMACKDOWN RECAP: The Boot Gets the Boot

RAW RECAP: Heyman Lands an Expansion Franchise

SMACKDOWN RECAP: Losing is the new Winning

RAW RECAP: Say My Name

SMACKDOWN RECAP: Deja Vu All Over Again

RAW RECAP: Dignity Before Gold?

PPV RECAP: SummerSlam 2012

SMACKDOWN RECAP: Backfired!

RAW RECAP: Bigger IS Better

SMACKDOWN RECAP: Hitting with Two Strikes

RAW RECAP: Heel, or Tweener?

SMACKDOWN RECAP: Destiny Do-Over

RAW RECAP: CM Punk is Not a Fan of Dwayne

SMACKDOWN RECAP: The Returnening

RAW RECAP: Countdown to 1000

PPV RECAP: WWE Money in the Bank 2012

SMACKDOWN RECAP: Friday Night ZackDown

RAW RECAP: Closure's a Bitch

SMACKDOWN RECAP: In-BRO-pendence Day

RAW RECAP: Crazy Gets What Crazy Wants

SMACKDOWN RECAP: Five Surprising MitB Deposits

RAW RECAP: Weeeellll, It's a Big MitB

SMACKDOWN RECAP: #striketwo

RAW RECAP: Johnny B. Gone

PPV RECAP: WWE No Way Out 2012

RAW RECAP: Crazy Go Nuts

SMACKDOWN RECAP: You're Welcome

RAW RECAP: Be a Star, My Ass

SMACKDOWN RECAP: Needs More Kane?

RAW RECAP: You Can't See Him

SMACKDOWN RECAP: Lady Power

RAW RECAP: Big Johnny Still in Charge

PPV RECAP: WWE Over the Limit 2012

SMACKDOWN RECAP: One Gullible Fella

RAW RECAP: Anvil, or Red Herring?

SMACKDOWN RECAP: Everybody Hates Berto

RAW RECAP: Look Who's Back

SMACKDOWN RECAP: Care to go Best of Five?

RAW RECAP: An Ace Up His Sleeve

PPV RECAP: WWE Extreme Rules 2012

SMACKDOWN RECAP: Sh-Sh-Sheamus and the nOObs

RAW RECAP: Edge, the Motivational Speaker?

SMACKDOWN RECAP: AJ is Angry, Jilted

RAW RECAP: Maybe Cena DOES Suck?

SMACKDOWN RECAP: No! No! No!

RAW RECAP: Brock's a Jerk

SMACKDOWN RECAP: Back with a Bang

RAW RECAP: Yes! Yes! Yes!

PPV RECAP: WWE WrestleMania 28

E-MAIL RICK SCAIA
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Rick Scaia is a wrestling fan from Dayton, OH. He's been doing this since 1995, but enjoyed it best when the suckers from SportsLine were actually PAYING him to be a fan.