Line #61 Wrestling/WWERAW


1	[[quoteright:250:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/wweraw2019_3.png]]
2	[[caption-width-right:250:''Reach out and we take it\
3	'Bout to emerge, we on the verge and it feels like greatness!'']]
4
5	->''"You are watching the longest-running weekly episodic television show in history! This is Monday Night Raw!"''
6	-->-- '''Wrestling/MichaelCole'''
7
8	''WWE Raw'' (full title: ''WWE Monday Night Raw'') is a ProfessionalWrestling TV series that showcases the superstars of Wrestling/{{WWE}}. Airing new episodes year-round (for the most part) since its debut in 1993 - with over 1,200 episodes (and counting) under its belt so far - ''Raw'' is the [[LongRunners longest running series in the company's history, and the longest running American nationally-televised wrestling show,]][[note]]Worldwide, Wrestling/NewJapanProWrestling's ''World Pro-Wrestling'' has been running since 1973, and its predecessor program began broadcast in 1969[[/note]] with other longer-running shows such as ''WCW Worldwide'' having been regional-only for parts or all of their runs (the Portland territory's show ran locally for 38 years).
9
10	It originally aired on the Creator/USANetwork, [[ChannelHop switched]] to The National Network (TNN) [[note]]which later rebranded to Creator/SpikeTV, and is now known as Creator/ParamountNetwork[[/note]] in 2000, and went back to USA in 2005, with its first night back on the Network dubbed the "WWE Homecoming" (which isn't far off, considering that the 'E has since formed a trusty partnership with USA's parent company, Creator/{{NBC}}[==]Creator/{{Universal}}).
11
12	During [[TheNineties the '90s]], ''Raw'' had fierce competition in the form of ''Wrestling/WCWMondayNitro'', which led to the legendary period known as the Wrestling/MondayNightWars, a source of the industry's biggest success (and some of its most famous [[TakeThat take thats]]). Because ''Raw'' was generally pre-taped in its early years, Wrestling/{{WCW}}'s Wrestling/EricBischoff would often spoil the results of the program on ''Nitro'', which was aired live every week. It also helped that WCW had a hot faction in the form of the Wrestling/NewWorldOrder. For 84 consecutive weeks, ''Nitro'' beat ''Raw'' in UsefulNotes/{{ratings}}, and WCW nearly sent WWE into bankruptcy during this period.
13
14	In reflection of the company's shift into the DarkerAndEdgier Wrestling/AttitudeEra, the show was re-christened ''Raw is War''--appropriate, considering the series was at war with ''Nitro''. In a TakeThat gone [[EpicFail horribly]], ''[[EpicFail horribly]]'' [[GoneHorriblyWrong wrong]] for WCW, the January 4, 1999 episode of ''Nitro'' featured Wrestling/TonySchiavone spoiling the results of that same night's (pre-taped) episode of ''Raw'' by saying Wrestling/MickFoley (who wrestled for a time in WCW under the name Cactus Jack) would win the WWE Championship, [[SarcasmMode sarcastically following up]] with "That's gonna put some butts in the seats." The jab backfired as over a half-million viewers switched the channel to ''Raw'' to see Foley win the title. It also didn't help that ''Nitro'' provided those who stuck by ''Nitro'' with a WCW Championship match that infamously ended in under a minute with the {{Fingerpoke of Doom}}. Following that night, people would bring signs to WWE events that read "Foley put my ass in this seat!" This marked the beginning of the tides turning between the two programs, with ''Raw'' always beating ''Nitro'' in the ratings from that point on, and when ''Raw'' permanently switched to a live format starting in September 1999 (thanks to healthy pay-per-view buyrates and what was once ''Raw''[='=]s Tuesday taping day being taken over by WWE's new show, ''[[Wrestling/WWESmackDown SmackDown!]]''), ''Nitro'' had no more spoilers of the competition to fall back on.
15
16	In September 2001 (a few months after WWE bought out WCW), ''Raw is War'' was renamed to simply ''Raw'' in light of the 9/11 attacks--with ''Raw'' back to a convenient short name--although a few years later the name would be reverted to ''Monday Night Raw''. [[note]]It should be noted that starting in 1997, the second hour of ''Raw'' was called ''War Zone''; this was--and still is--done for reasons relating to measuring television ratings. When the ''Raw is War'' name was dropped, the second hour became ''Raw Zone''.[[/note]]
17
18	With the brand extension of 2002, WWE was split into two brands: the ''Raw'' brand and the ''[=SmackDown!=]'' brand (a third brand, ''Wrestling/{{ECW}}'', was around from mid-2006 to early 2010). During this period, ''Raw'' developed a reputation for housing established veterans and high-level main eventers.
19
20	From 2009 to late 2010, [[ExecutiveMeddling thanks to a mandate by network overlords NBC-Universal]], ''Raw'' was given a special "guest host" gimmick where a celebrity / group of celebrities of varying levels of fame hosted an episode each week, and — up until the appointment of a General Manager — they were also allowed to book matches, having been given "unlimited power" by Wrestling/VinceMcMahon. While quite a few were [[Horrible/ProfessionalWrestling undoubtedly stinkers]] (Creator/DennisMiller, Music/ZZTop), there were some gems as well (Creator/SethGreen, Creator/BobBarker, Creator/WilliamShatner, Creator/MikeTyson), and it was thanks to this gimmick that Wrestling/BretHart returned to ''Raw'' for the first time since the Wrestling/MontrealScrewjob. The guest host gimmick eventually started losing steam after Bret Hart was named Raw's General Manager (a role he served for a couple of months before being "taken out" by Wrestling/TheNexus); eventually, guest hosts were called "guest stars" to reflect their loss of booking power, and showed up mainly to shill their latest stuff. By the end of 2010, the "guest stars" gimmick was dropped almost entirely.
21
22	On July 23, 2012, ''Raw'' aired its [[MilestoneCelebration 1000th episode]], and with it switched from a two-hour format to a three-hour format.
23
24	''Raw'' will leave the USA Network in January 2025 and become a streaming program on Creator/{{Netflix}}.
25
26	As of April 15, 2024, here is the list of people who perform on ''Raw''. Adam Pearce runs the show as the General Manager. Wrestling/MichaelCole and Pat [=McAfee=] are the commentary team, with Byron Saxton, Cathy Kelley and Jackie Redmond handling backstage interviews, and Samantha Irvin as the ring announcer.
27
28	[[folder: List of Superstars]]
29	!Male
30	* Wrestling/{{Andrade\|Cien Almas}}
31	* Apollo Crews
32	* Wrestling/BraunStrowman (inactive)
33	* Bronson Reed
34	* Wrestling/CMPunk (inactive)
35	* Dexter Lumis
36	* Wrestling/DrewMcIntyre
37	* [[Wrestling/TheUsos Jey Uso]]
38	* Odyssey Jones
39	* [[Wrestling/TrevorMann Ricochet]]
40	* Wrestling/SamiZayn (Intercontinental Champion)
41	* [[Wrestling/SethRollins Seth "Freakin'" Rollins]]
42	* Wrestling/{{Sheamus}}
43	* Wrestling/ShinsukeNakamura
44
45	!Female
46	* Wrestling/BeckyLynch
47	* Wrestling/LivMorgan
48	* Wrestling/NiaJax
49	* Wrestling/NikkiCross
50	* Raquel Rodriguez (inactive)
51	* Wrestling/SonyaDeville (inactive)
52	* Wrestling/TrishStratus
53
54	!Tag Teams and Stables
55	* Alpha Academy (Wrestling/ChadGable, Otis and Wrestling/AkiraTozawa; with Maxxine Dupri)
56	* Awesome Truth (Wrestling/TheMiz & [[Wrestling/RonKillings R-Truth]] [World Tag Team Champions])
57	* Wrestling/CandiceLeRae & Indi Hartwell
58	* Chelsea Green & Piper Niven
59	* Diamond Mine (Julius Creed, Brutus Creed and Ivy Nile)
60	* DIY (Wrestling/JohnnyGargano & Wrestling/TommasoCiampa)
61	* Imperium ([[Wrestling/{{WALTER}} Gunther]], Ludwig Kaiser and Giovanni Vinci)
62	* Wrestling/TheJudgmentDay ([[Wrestling/FergalDevitt Finn Bálor]] , Damian Priest [World Heavyweight Champion], Wrestling/RheaRipley [inactive], Wrestling/DominikMysterio, and JD [=McDonagh=])
63	* Katana Chance & Kayden Carter
64	* Wrestling/{{Natalya\|Neidhart}} & Tegan Nox
65	* Wrestling/TheNewDay (Wrestling/KofiKingston & Wrestling/XavierWoods)
66	* Wrestling/ShaynaBaszler & Zoey Stark
67	* The Viking Raiders (Erik [inactive] and Ivar; with [[Wrestling/TheRiottSquad Valhalla]])
68	[[/folder]]
69
70	Currently, five championships are defended on ''Raw'':
71	* '''[[https://www.wwe.com/classics/titlehistory/world-heavyweight-championship World Heavyweight Champion]]: [[Wrestling/TheJudgmentDay Damian Priest]]''' since April 7, 2024
72	* '''[[http://www.wwe.com/classics/titlehistory/intercontinental Intercontinental Champion]]: Wrestling/SamiZayn''' since April 6, 2024
73	* '''[[https://www.wwe.com/titlehistory/raw-tag-team-championship World Tag Team Champions]]: Awesome Truth (Wrestling/TheMiz & [[Wrestling/RonKillings R-Truth]])''' since April 6, 2024
74	* '''[[http://www.wwe.com/classics/titlehistory/smackdown-womens-championship Women's World Champion]]: Wrestling/BeckyLynch''' since April 22, 2024
75	* '''[[https://www.wwe.com/classics/titlehistory/wwe-womens-tag-team-championship WWE Women's Tag Team Champions]]: The Kabuki Warriors ([[Wrestling/KanakoUrai Asuka]] and Kairi Sane)''' since January 26, 2024[[note]]The WWE Women's Tag Team Championship is the only title not exclusive to ''Raw'', as the titles are defended across all three WWE brands.[[/note]]
76	----
77	!! "RAW IS WAR IS A TROPE IN YOUR SIDE!":
78	* AbortedArc:
79	** The Anonymous Raw GM storyline. In June 2010, Vince [=McMahon=] appointed a new Raw General Manager "who [preferred] to stay anonymous" and thus relayed all his orders through a laptop computer seated next to the announcer table. Despite some teasing hints that went nowhere, some mildly heelish decisions and a couple of feuds (including one where Edge actually beat up the laptop), his identity was never revealed and the whole thing was quietly swept under the rug in October 2011 when Triple H took over. It was eventually resolved in July 2012 when Hornswoggle was revealed as the GM.
80	** A far worse example would be the "GM-less" era; after Eric Bischoff was fired from the position in December 05, the central story Raw was who would replace him. Wrestling/ShaneMcMahon, Wrestling/DustyRhodes, and various other big names were teased, along with a running gag of the most unlikely people approaching Vince and asking for the job only to be blown off. After about a month or two, the whole thing was dropped, with one glaring problem; ''there was still no general manager''. The position would not be filled until June of 07, a year and a half later, and would receive no mention up until that point. That is, until the July 9, 2012 episode of ''Raw'' when the mystery Raw GM was finally revealed (more on that later).
81	* ArmorPiercingQuestion: On the September 3rd, 2018 edition, Wrestling/ShawnMichaels claims during an in-ring segment that he stayed retired after his second Wrestling/{{Wrestlemania}} loss to Wrestling/TheUndertaker out of respect for the latter, the fans, and the business. Taker doesn't buy it and asks him "Was it respect or was it fear?", leaving Michaels silent.
82	* BadBoss: Whoever is in charge of the show tends to be one of these (i.e. Vince [=McMahon=], Wrestling/EricBischoff, Wrestling/JohnLaurinaitis, Wrestling/VickieGuerrero), as opposed to Smackdown's typically more benevolent GM's.
83	* {{Bowdlerise}}: The Creator/{{Hulu}} Plus version of ''Raw'' has several matches and segments cut out. Those matches usually feature either mid-carders, {{jobber}}s, or women.
84	* BroadcastLive: Since September 1999.
85	* ButtMonkey: Vince [=McMahon=], during the later half of 2012.
86	* CanonDiscontinuity:
87	** The promos for the March 4, 2013 show, billed as "Old School Raw," started with a scene from the beginning of the very first episode before jumping ahead to Wrestling/TheNewAgeOutlaws, Wrestling/StoneColdSteveAustin, [[Wrestling/DwayneJohnson The Rock]] and the Wrestling/AttitudeEra in general, as if [[Wrestling/WWENewGenerationEra nothing had happened]] during the ''four years'' in-between.
88	** The week after Wrestling/TheAuthority lost their power after Wrestling/SurvivorSeries 2014, the Anonymous General Manager made a reappearance. With no on-air explanation given to the fact that Hornwoggle had been revealed as him two years prior, and the only vague mention to it being [[http://www.wwe.com/shows/raw/2014-12-01/wwe-raw-results-26876493 a WWE.com article.]]
89	** For obvious reasons, the 2007 Wrestling/ChrisBenoit tribute show has not been acknowledged by WWE since its initial airing. Notably, it is the only episode of Raw missing from the WWE Network, where an alternate recap show that aired internationally the week of the murders is on there instead.
90	* CueTheFlyingPigs:
91	** When Wrestling/EricBischoff first appeared on the show. And Vince ''hugged'' him.
92	** When Wrestling/BretHart appeared in 2010 after the Wrestling/MontrealScrewjob he said that he guessed hell just froze over.
93	* DarkerAndEdgier: The Raws broadcast during the Attitude Era compared to earlier episodes; the darkness started seeping in around 1995-96.
94	* DemotedToExtra: Since the early 2010s, full-time mid-carders such as Wrestling/WadeBarrett, Wrestling/TheMiz, Wrestling/KofiKingston, Wrestling/CodyRhodes, and [[Wrestling/MattCardona Zack Ryder]] as well as the [[Characters/WWEDivas Divas]] have been demoted storyline-wise in order to make room for part-time (but very marketable) talent such as [[Wrestling/DwayneJohnson The Rock]] and Wrestling/BrockLesnar (usually in the weeks heading into ''Wrestling/WrestleMania'' and ''Wrestling/SummerSlam'') in an effort to give ''Raw'' a boost in the ratings.
95	* DownerEnding: The last episode of 2014 ended with Wrestling/JohnCena forced to reinstate Wrestling/TheAuthority, turning his team's prior ''Wrestling/SurvivorSeries'' victory into a ShaggyDogStory.
96	** These are common right before a pay-per-view, with the top face getting a beatdown from their heel opponent(s) as the announcers question what kind of condition the face will be in for their big upcoming fight.
97	* EarlyInstallmentWeirdness: The first several years of ''RAW'' were taped; it switched to its current live format in September 1999 during the Wrestling/MondayNightWars in response to ''Wrestling/WCWMondayNitro''.
98	* EnemyMine: The 2010 rise of Wrestling/TheNexus PowerStable on ''Raw'' saw the [[RivalsTeamUp teaming up of former rivals]] Wrestling/JohnCena, Wrestling/{{Edge\|Wrestler}}, and Wrestling/ChrisJericho after each getting ambushed by the Nexus.
99	* FromNobodyToNightmare: The NXT season one rookies were just some wet-behind-the-ears, fresh-out-of-training nobodies -- maybe something someday, but for now not worth much. Then they banded together to form The Nexus, and completely tore apart ''Raw''. For a few months after that, they were "the biggest threat WWE has ever faced" -- bigger than The Alliance, bigger than the [=NWO=], bigger than the [=McMahon-Helmsley Regime=], you name it. Ironically, their undoing came when [[Wrestling/BryanDanielson Daniel Bryan]], the only rookie who actually had a good amount of experience before coming on NXT, and who had been expelled from the group for showing remorse, joined the WWE wrestlers in the fight against The Nexus.
100	* GenderEqualEnsemble: This has recently become this to an extent as there are generally two or more women's matches on each episode.
101	* HeadSmashesScreen: On the July 1, 2019 edition, the Falls Count Anywhere match between Wrestling/BobbyLashley and Wrestling/BraunStrowman ended with the two of them crashing head-first through the LED Wall, leading to a no-contest.
102	* HeWhoMustNotBeSeen: An anonymous general manager who only communicates to whomever's in the arena via e-mails sent to Wrestling/MichaelCole. On the July 9, 2012 episode of ''Raw'', his identity was revealed to be Hornswoggle.
103	* IAlwaysWantedToSayThat: In the Dec 6, 2010 edition, circumstances had led to Wrestling/CMPunk subbing for Wrestling/MichaelCole in reading the e-mail from the Raw General Manager, a role that Punk played up for all its worth.
104	--> '''CM Punk:''' I've always really wanted to do this. [[BorrowedCatchphrase I HAVE RECEIVED AN EMAIL]]!
105	* JobberEntrance: This was the standard in the mid-nineties when ''Raw'' was only an hour long, which made sense because there was only so little time to do the matches. Ironic though, ever since ''Raw'' went to three hours beginning with the 1000th episode on July 23, 2012, many wrestlers (even some high carders) have had their entrances cut out in order to make room for more commercials, in-ring promos, backstage segments, recaps, and social media segments. Only John Cena and CM Punk seemed to be immune from this since they're the top two full-time Superstars on the show. Other Superstars who are spared from a jobber entrance are The Rock, Triple H, Brock Lesnar, and The Undertaker. Note that the last four are all part-timers.
106	* LawOfChromaticSuperiority: Called "The Red Brand" by both the IWC and the WWE staff themselves, where the Superstars performing on the brand are called "Team Red".
107	* LighterAndSofter: Since it went from being TV-14 to TV-PG.
108	* LongRunners: As Michael Cole constantly brags, the show has been running since January 11, 1993, and barring occasional postponements (most notably for the Westminster Dog Show), has been airing weekly ever since. As of October 12, 2020, the show has aired 1,430 episodes, with no end in sight.
109	* MuppetCameo: Yes, Franchise/TheMuppets did show up on ''Raw'' during the HalloweenEpisode. Notable highlights include Wrestling/{{Sheamus}} meeting up with Beaker and JustForFun/StatlerAndWaldorf snarking on the main event as only they could. They later guest-hosted again, with a memorable bit involving Daniel Bryan running into his cousin, a muppet goat. The Muppet episodes do very well in the ratings -- because even wrestling fans love the Muppets -- and they later guest-hosted again in March 2014 as a promotion for ''Muppets Most Wanted''.
110	* NoThemeTune: The opening credits (and with them the show's theme tune) were seemingly dropped in late-2012 in favor of an opening recap, though it was reinstated in the second to last ''Raw'' before the Money in the Bank 2013 pay per view.
111	* PoliticianGuestStar: One 2008 episode featured campaign speeches from UsefulNotes/BarackObama, Hillary Clinton, and John [=McCain=]. Later in that same show, Obama and Clinton impersonators went head-to-head in an alleged wrestling match.
112	* PreviouslyOn: You'd be surprised how easy and addictive following WWE is... when you only watch the [=PPVs=]. Those video recap packages make all the ''Raw'' segments look Emmy-worthy.[[note]]Then you realize almost nothing of note happens on [=PPVs=] that aren't the big 4, either, and just cut back to the Big 4...[[/note]]
113	* ProductPlacement: Frequent -- see the trope page for some specific examples.
114	* PunkInTheTrunk: In October 2002, Wrestling/{{Kane}} and Wrestling/TripleH were in a feud; and at the end of the episode Kane tossed Triple H into a car's trunk and drove off - but then we saw the car trunk pop open just as they were going to black! Oops. Dealt with at the top of the next episode:
115	-->'''Triple H:''' I've got a special guest gonna come out here later - but before we come to that, I'd like to give a little personal message to Kane. Kane, this is just advice, but next time you try to accost somebody by sticking them into the trunk of a car, you should try to make sure that the trunk does not have one of those child safety latches on the roof - I mean, you can just pull it and jump OUT of the trunk before the person even drives off. Just a bit of advice.
116	* PushPolling: Back when [=WWERaw=] did fan polls, many of the options were so heavily pushed so as to not ruin stories. The best example, however, was when the audience was given the choice of three different match stipulations: [[DistinctionWithoutADifference Extreme Rules, Falls Count Anywhere, and No Disqualification]].
117	* {{Retraux}}: The ''Monday Night Raw'' "Old School" specials in 2010 and 2013.
118	* StrictlyFormula: For a three-hour program, it's remarkable how little happens on any episode of ''Raw''. Expect that, if a wrestler does something unexpected, like unveiling a new move, and it goes over well, it'll become a staple and get used in every match after that, removing the novelty.
119	-->'''''[[http://www.wrestlecrap.com/inductions/induction-holyfieldhardy/ WrestleCrap]]''''': We talk today about how formulaic ''Raw'' is, and trust me, I am on that bandwagon. Looking back, though, ''Superstars'' was arguably more cookie cutter – you had an “Event Center” with whatever random Ken doll look alike they had at the time (Sean Mooney, Craig [=DeGeorge=], etc.) and a talk show segment (Piper’s Pit, Brother Love, Flower Shop) wherein angles took place. Throw in Lord Alfred shilling at the end for Mr. Freeze Freeze Pops, and every week it was basically the same.
120	* TearUpTheContract: Wrestling/CMPunk tore up his contract with Wrestling/{{WWE}} at the end of the July 11, 2011 edition. [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FouccjzEEPU The segment]], fresh off the events of the June 27th, 2011 edition of ''Raw'', where Punk declared his intentions of [[ScrewThisImOuttaHere letting his contract expire and get out of the company]] holding the WWE title, began with Wrestling/VinceMcMahon wanting to renew the contract, giving him the things he demanded until the whole ordeal devolved into name-calling and rage on both sides. Then Wrestling/JohnCena came to put Punk in his place, and Punk [[TheReasonYouSuckSpeech/CMPunk dressed him all over the place]], even going as so far as to tell Cena that [[YouAreWhatYouHate he wasn't the underdog anymore]], he was an empire [[BullyingADragon "like the New York Yankees"]]. Cue the usually calm John [[BerserkButton furious at the comparison]] punching Punk, and Punk getting out of the ring and shredding the unsigned contract.
121	* ThematicThemeTune: Previously used with "The Night" by CFO$ (under their original name of Kromestatik). Also seen in the past with Jim Johnston productions such as "Thorn in Your Eye", "All Together Now" and Union Underground's "Across the Nation".
122	* VerySpecialEpisode: The salute episodes for Wrestling/OwenHart ("RAW is Owen" on May 24, 1999) and Wrestling/EddieGuerrero ("RAW is Eddie" on November 14, 2005). But viciously subverted when they tried to do one for Wrestling/ChrisBenoit on June 25, 2007, and they began to find out what really happened ''during the show''. Which is probably why similar shows haven't been done since.
123	* WelcomeTitles: Some of the {{title sequence}}s have Steve Austin walking through a disused factory on fire in which the supporting cast is fighting each other.
124	* WhamEpisode: CM Punk's pipebomb, the ''Raws'' after Survivor Series 2012 that chronicled the rise of Wrestling/TheShield, and the ''Raws'' leading to [=WrestleMania=] XXX that chronicled the rise of [=BryanMania=] are some recent examples.

Context Wrestling / WWERAW