Vince Russo posted the following letter to vince McMahon addressing the booking of last night’s Raw
Dear Vince,
Over the past three weeks, I have commended WWE Creative (or, whoever is actually calling the shots) on what I thought were positive steps in the right direction in the overall improvement of the show. One adjustment that really seemed to stand out was the threading of the main event story line from the opening segment, through the middle of the show, to the grand finale. In the weeks leading up to the past three shows, it just seemed as if the stage was being set in the first segment, and nothing happened for the duration of the show until we reached segment #16 — the final segment. With that adjustment alone, it has kept the majority of the audience more invested in the entire show. Kudos all around.
In conjunction with that, I also felt that much more effort was being put into the shows. There seemed to be more storylines and character development over the past three episodes leading up to last night. Again, having been a writer for you for almost five years, I don’t judge anybody on their “ideas”. Everything is subjective. What I look at is the overall effort. Was the show’s format stained by the creative team’s absolute blood, sweat and tears when the final period was struck on the keyboard? That’s all that means anything to me — the passion of being the best you can be, and the pride of turning out the best product that you are capable of.
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Unfortunately, last night I felt steps were taken backwards. And again, Vince, it’s not a creative slight at all, but one rather based on heart and soul. Out of the 16 segments on last night’s show, I’ll give you seven that I think it’s fair to say the majority of the audience actually cared about:
Opening Segment (Vince lays out Survivor Series Stipulation)
Authority/Dolph Ziggler in-ring
The Sandow Show
Ziggler v. Rollins (2 segments)
Rollins. v. Orton (2 segments)
Now, even though I don’t believe in any match going more than one segment (that’s just my opinion), I would consider these seven segments in the POSITIVE COLUMN.
Now let’s look at the remaining nine segments of the show:
Ambrose vs. Cesaro
This is the THIRD time these two have met in the last EIGHT days, with no angle between them. Also, we’re two weeks in following HIAC, and nothing has happened between Wyatt and Ambrose. I don’t think you have the luxury of time on your side at this point. I think you need to hit, and hit HARD, every single week.
Question: Why would you put one of the hottest stars/angles on the show (Ambrose–Wyatt angle) on as the first match? Makes no sense. What if I’m just watching the show because I’m an Ambrose fan, or a Bray Wyatt fan? Am I turning the show off at 9:20? I would have milked Ambrose, and his story with Bray, until at least the midway point of the show to keep the audience invested in a second angle.
SHEAMUS vs. TYSON KID
Find it hard to believe many cared about this match. For starters, match went on for too long. Add to that, nobody is invested in Tyson Kidd at this point, and still weren’t after the bell. Even though Tyson won the match via DQ, victory didn’t advance him, or his character.
Being that you were going to pay off the Rusev/Sheamus angle on the WWE Network immediately following RAW, it may have been much more beneficial to build up their angle throughout the course of the show, rather than to put them both in throw-away matches that advanced absolutely nothing.
RUSEV vs. ZACH RYDER
See above.
TITUS O’NEIL vs. RYBACK
The outcome of this match was so predictable before it even started, that there was ZERO reason to watch the match. If the audience knows the finish of a match before the bell even rings, then there is no reason for them to invest . . . or, waste . . .a second of their time watching.
NIKKI BELLA vs. EMMA
See above.
SHOW vs. MARK HENRY
Not enough heat was built into this match going in, thus, lack of interest at this point. Mark Henry feeling that his best friend didn’t tag him into a match at the opportune time is not enough reasons to send two countries to war. The announcers even mentioned that at one point in the match.
FERNANDO vs. STARDUST
Really?
When you break it all down you can see the inconsistencies as clear as the Colorado sky. Seven segments worth seeing, nine others . . . not so much. Vince, I think you would agree that every segment needs to be must-see tv — EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THEM. There’s no reason that anything on this show should be a “throw away”. If creative is coming up with more than half of a show that isn’t compelling to anyone, than perhaps they shouldn’t be there. With the talent roster at their fingertips, there is just no excuse to not produce SIXTEEN segments of must-see television.
Everything above is just based on my opinion, but remember, my opinion is based on experience that you so graciously handed down to me.
Hope some of this helps.
Peace,
Vince
