CM Punk, Daniel Bryan, Zack Ryder and Michael Cole all downplayed after bad Raw rating

by Keith Harris on Dec 28, 2011 7:18 AM EST in WWE

Daniel Bryan and Zack Ryder can kiss their main event push goodbye, maybe even CM Punk too for the time being.

Last week's Raw drew a disappointing 2.92 rating. That alone would have Vince McMahon second guessing his decision to give prominent pushes to the small but talented babyface trio of CM Punk, Daniel Bryan and Zack Ryder. But their main event against Alberto Del Rio, The Miz and Dolph Ziggler, though critically acclaimed, was a ratings disaster, as it drew a measly 2.67, well below the show's average and was probably the worst rating for a Raw main event (excluding shows that fall on American national holidays) in about fourteen years. Well, that meant corrective action was guaranteed, even though the poor rating can be largely blamed on particularly tough competition from a major NFL game. Our own Sergio Hernandez saw this coming for a "set up to fail" Daniel Bryan, but even he may be surprised that Punk has been caught in the crossfires and punished too.

On his free podcast yesterday, Dave Meltzer confirmed that the booking of last night's Raw, which saw Punk relegated to jobbing to Ziggler in his home town of Chicago in the second leg of a Gauntlet match that didn't even close the show, Bryan's lone appearance being a blink and you miss it distraction spot, and Ryder placed back in a comedy geek role where he's got the hots for a reluctant Eve Torres, was indeed a ratings (over)reaction. As is usually the case when pushing new stars on top backfires, the main beneficiaries were the well established veteran hands, particularly John Cena, who starred in the segments at the end of both the first and second hours of Raw.

However, it wasn't all bad news for the hardcore fans that crave new acts to be featured and would hate for Raw to become solely the John Cena show. Michael Cole, whose unique heel play by play announcing role in the last year has undercut WWE's (halfhearted) attempts to get Daniel Bryan and other new babyfaces over, was told to tone his heel schtick down. Vince McMahon may have finally realised that Cole burying every babyface in sight is completely counterproductive and is helping to contribute to their difficulty in creating new headliners and getting people to buy their monthly pay-per-views. At least that is a step in the right direction, even if strangling off the pushes of Punk, Bryan and Ryder too soon is not.

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I would believe that..

except the other veteran that would be a major beneficiary was no where to be found on the show. Of course, that’s Randy Orton. It seems like people are seeing the results & making up reasoning for things being the way they are. However, I am hope that CeNation’s ratings bomb even further.

by Rawuncutnxrated on Dec 28, 2011 7:37 AM EST reply actions

I think a toned down Michael Cole will help things out a lot more than almost any other single change on Raw

When you have trash segments in the middle of a Raw episode, and you’ll always have some trash in any wrestling show, you don’t need a guy like Cole giving you more reasons to want to change the channel.

by hfl2013 on Dec 28, 2011 8:33 AM EST reply actions 1 recs

I don't really see things as those three being punished

CM Punk, we knew Ziggler was going to be pushed into the main event scene. Having him pin Punk- not clean, mind you- is a decent way to do it.

Daniel Bryan, he’s a Smackdown guy and their champion. He shouldn’t be on RAW, anyway. That aside, I didn’t think his role was too bad. I think it could have been done in a more “dignified” manner, but showing up to distract/taunt Mark Henry was fine by me.

Zack Ryder, they’ve had that Eve Torres storyline thing for a few weeks now. It’s kind of goofy, but it’s progression and continuity.

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by Brooklyn Dodgers Mets Fan on Dec 28, 2011 10:04 AM EST reply actions 1 recs

Zack Ryder and Eve

I just saw Eve’s secret santa video. Some funny stuff there and putting the 2 together would help Ryder out while he develops his character on screen some more.

by hfl2013 on Dec 28, 2011 10:22 AM EST up reply actions

Zack Ryder is his own creative

I think this started on Z: True Long Island Story

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by WVPiratesfan on Dec 28, 2011 10:28 AM EST up reply actions

The numbers.. food for thought.

I wonder if ROH is starting to catch on & that’s why WWe is losing viewers. Clearly its nothing that can be out right proven.. but if you only have a certain amount of time per week to invest in entertainment, maybe they found an alternative to WWe. It sounds like TnA is getting better recently as well. They are not head to head at the same time.. I understand that.. but how many hours a week are you going to sit in front of the tv watching wrestling? How many will your g/f or spouse, allow you? Let’s say you have to spend some time on a date night.. maybe you shift it to Monday nights now & leave open the ROH time to watch them? Just food for thought.

by Rawuncutnxrated on Dec 28, 2011 10:56 AM EST reply actions

ROH isn't even on the radar of the typical WWE fan.

Those companies cater to largely different fanbases.

by Razztopia on Dec 28, 2011 3:06 PM EST up reply actions

ROH fans have more respect for WWE than you think, why do you think we complain about the WWE so much? We watch everything but get WWE is the big time.

by MVP Raiders on Dec 29, 2011 9:46 AM EST via Android app up reply actions

Ah, but if you walk into a WWE show

and ask the typical fans there about ROH, the response will be “What’s that?” nine times out of ten.

by Razztopia on Dec 31, 2011 5:22 AM EST up reply actions

Interesting thought

I can see what you are saying. I primarily only watch Raw for time reasons. I watch whatever Smackdown segments sound interesting on WWE.com. If another promotion really intrigued me, I may consider swapping my ‘wrestling time’ to that show.

by Manolo Has Pizzazz on Dec 28, 2011 7:09 PM EST up reply actions

The reason why Raw’s ratings are bad is because none of the characters are interesting as they are one dimensional. Watching Raw is like watching Dexter – nothing ever changes and the show is too rigid on a formula; the critics are screaming for a change or a creative shake up to come from both shows.

At this point, I’m interested in seeing Punk go to Smackdown. And then make Cena play a prominent role in Raw. But here’s a catcher: spend the next year developing Cena’s character while building other characters using Cena. We’ve seen this happen with Cena/Punk.

I would LOVE a Miz/Cena feud where the Miz’s character can be further developed along with Cena’s. I want to see Miz’s character to be implemented a lot like the Joker’s character from DC Comics: physically scrawny and not-so-seriously taken physically but a genius and a mastermind. And the Miz is Cena’s (batman) thorn on his side.

by Sir Ingenious on Dec 28, 2011 11:12 AM EST via mobile reply actions

Wow, just realized that I would love to see the Miz spend 3 months just trolling Cena in a million possible ways. This version of the Miz is the one that I would like to see. And to see bad things happen to Cena as things get worse and bumpy for him for a while, essentially building Cena and Miz’s characters.

by Sir Ingenious on Dec 28, 2011 11:26 AM EST via mobile up reply actions

The characters

They’re starting to get there with their development, but it takes time. Guys like Ziggler and Rhodes have been doing their thing for a while now but are only now really getting over with everyone as heels. Sure, they’ve developed their characters more and more over time, but the quality of their matches have always been great and they’ve always been damn good heels. But in wrestling, it takes everyone time to properly get over as faces or heels. The WWE just needs to stay committed to a lot of these guys like Ziggler and Rhodes and not try to push them to the Main Event too soon or cut bait at the first sign of trouble.

I think they’ve got a good group of guys who could really establish themselves over the next year or so as long as they don’t get in trouble outside of the ring or get caught in backstage politics. Guys like Sheamus, Wade Barrett, and Zack Ryder just need to stay on their current path and the WWE will actually have a good midcard again with some main event potential with those guys. And this isn’t even talking about the established elsewhere guys like Del Rio, Daniel Bryan, and maybe even guys like Rollins/Black, Castagnoli/Cesaro, and Moxley/Ambrose.

by hfl2013 on Dec 28, 2011 11:48 AM EST up reply actions

It’s not just about pushing “new, young guys” but it’s all about developing characters. Why not also focus on developing the characters that you also already have like WWE did with Mark Henry?

To me, characters is the biggest reason why I watch wrestling, even surpassing the wrestling or the story. The reason to see wrestling is to see characters interact and develop in various interesting ways. Not saying to completely ignore the wrestling or the story aspect in wrestling but it’s all about the characters. This is why I don’t like Ziggler as much as others do, for example. He’s interesting in the ring but not very interesting character-wise.

by Sir Ingenious on Dec 28, 2011 12:11 PM EST via mobile up reply actions

The new, young guys

don’t necessarily have to be that young, but you’re not going to be able to go far with a company full of Mark Henrys. I’m not talking about his gimmick, wrestling style or anything like that, but he’s 40 right now and just likely doesn’t have many healthy years left in him. You can push a couple of those guys every now and then and Mark Henry is a perfect example of how that can work when done right, but you can’t rely on a lot of guys like that jumping from midcard to main event after all these years. Then you’re just screwed again when they are all hurt or retire shortly after they get established as main event guys.

With guys like Ziggler and Rhodes, those are guys you can probably count on to be there 10 years from now. Can you say that about a guy like Mark Henry, or even someone like Christian.

by hfl2013 on Dec 28, 2011 12:44 PM EST up reply actions

If it is true that Vince is so (irrationally) sensitive to short-term ratings then the WWE will never get any better. It will just result in a bigger emphasis on John Cena, which I didn’t think was possible considering how many PPV’s he main-evented this year. I am kind of dreading once again the possibility that Punk drops the title to Cena at Elimination Chamber. Ugh.

by Kanenite on Dec 28, 2011 11:44 AM EST reply actions

dude

that crazy old man took the belt (and all the momentum left) off adr just to put it on cena because he wanted that week raw ratings to be higher

what else do you need to believe he is irrationally sensitive to short.term ratings? lol

by chaggo on Dec 28, 2011 1:34 PM EST up reply actions

WWE always uses MNF as an excuse for their ratings being shit but maybe if the show was booked right, there wouldn’t be a problem. I’m a Punk fan but having him in 3 different matches with the big anti climax being pitting him in a match with one of the worst fucking people NO ONE CARES ABOUT except idiots then of course you’re going to have a bad rating. Not only that but it wasn’t even the last match. WWE had the Kane/Cena segment be the last vision for people see on the last Raw of 2011. This is what happens when you put to much push behind someone like Cena who has been losing the audience for years. Only little kids and stupid fucking parents who can’t be a role model themselves who depend on the WWE to do so along with dumb bitches who think he’s so hot care about anything that’s relevant he does. The segment could’ve been done in the beginning of the show….why? Although it’s nice to see masked Kane, it still doesn’t justify not booking your WWE champion as the actual main event. Then have Mr Douchebag who has a hard time talking on the mic that sounds like he gets balls caught in his throat be a part of the show on a weekly basis is just ridiculous. People who think Cole is a heel commentator is just downright ignorant. He contradicts himself every week. Are you all that that easy to entertain like all the other sheeple?

you're own stupidity will lead you to your own downfall

by congestedthoughts on Dec 28, 2011 1:46 PM EST reply actions

The comment about stupid parents relying on WWE to be role models for their kids because of their own inability to do so is one of the most absurd things I’ve ever read.

by Chris Cutrer on Dec 28, 2011 5:58 PM EST via iPhone app up reply actions

Sounds pretty accurate how else do you explain a parent thinking Cena is a role model. The guy is a classic bully with fat jokes and gay jokes.

by MVP Raiders on Dec 29, 2011 9:58 AM EST via Android app up reply actions

If you want to know what Vince really thinks just listen to Cole, Vince is bi-polar.

by MVP Raiders on Dec 29, 2011 9:55 AM EST via Android app up reply actions

Eh, there are better things to do around the holidays

than watching the WWE. Yeah, if the storylines were hotter, there would be more viewers. But doesn’t this happen every year?

It’s not like people are tuning in to see CM Punk, WWE Champion, but it’s not like him being champion is going to cause a whole bunch of folks to change the channel. I doubt that anyone currently in the WWE really moves the needle that much. It’s all about the brand.

by Razztopia on Dec 28, 2011 3:09 PM EST reply actions

For those that have a vicious hatred of Michael Cole

Michael Cole, whose unique heel play by play announcing role in the last year has undercut WWE’s (halfhearted) attempts to get Daniel Bryan and other new babyfaces over, was told to tone his heel schtick down.

I always felt the anger against Cole was misplaced. It’s not like Cole was a loose cannon on the mic. He was most likely doing as he was told. I understand the hatred for being a bad announcer, but I never understood the hatred against him for burying the wrestlers.

by Manolo Has Pizzazz on Dec 28, 2011 6:59 PM EST reply actions

For some reason people don’t get Cole is a character Vince is in his ear telling him what to say. Be mad at Vince.

by MVP Raiders on Dec 29, 2011 9:52 AM EST via Android app up reply actions

This is very true. When I say I’m sick of Michael Cole, I mean the character, not the real-life person. I know very little about him. I was actually a fan of his during his straight-laced days before he started parroting Vince. I’m probably one of the few; I remember when I was still in college, people online really hated him for some reason.

Though there was that time, like, a year ago when he made a homophobic remark on Twitter that would make some people not like him as a person.

by Dedywre on Dec 29, 2011 3:02 PM EST up reply actions