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JR's Blog: RAW Blog..San Antonio Raw Thoughts from JR's La-Z-Boy..JR's Beef Jerky hits new level..WWEShop.com Biz Booming!

Posted: Aug 8th 2012 By: CMBurnham

With a busy week ahead of me, I thought I'd better hammer out a blog with some Monday Night Raw observations/opinion and some random thoughts. Here it is...

I enjoyed Monday Night Raw from San Antonio as the live crowd helped make it a better show. The crowd was hot, or so they sounded, and WWE had them mic'ed well. (This is a common complaint that I have with UFC...I wish that they would mic their live crowds better.)

It's no mystery nor does it take a wrestling savant to realize that any three hour, live television broadcast has its challenges in our short attention span world. I thought the first hour particularly zoomed by Monday night.

On my personal list of Raw favorites from San Antonio:

AJ Lee's continued development as the Raw GM which I feel is a good role for the talented, young woman. She adds a different dynamic to the role made famous by Mr. McMahon who was the hand's down best at it.

@WWEDanielBryan...arguably WWE's most interesting star at the moment and who seems to NEVER have a bad match with anyone. Back in the day, Bryan would have been a great candidate to have been the traveling, NWA Champion because of his skill level and believable personality. However, egocentric NWA promoters and power brokers would have bemoaned Daniel's lack of size and found other lame excuses to exclude him from the process.

@CMPunk vs. Rey Mysterio...excellent chemistry and a match/rivalry that I could see much more of in the future. The more time these two have the better.

Wade Barrett vignette...I loved it. Extremely well produced. "Barrett Barrage" might take some getting used to but the vignette itself featuring a man who has yet to remotely approach his potential was a hit.

Big Show's right hand...has it's own zip code and is more meaningful now than it ever has been. The repackaging of the World's Largest Athlete has been successful thus far. He's much more effective, in my view, as a villain than as a fan favorite.

AW's mic work is largely entertaining and is uniquely presented. I look at it as a sign that a 'manager' is at least getting a shot and that tag teams are getting some exposure on WWE's flagship program. For some critics, that won't be enough but I consider it a start and an improvement from over just a few weeks ago. Yes, it's a work in progress as it the entire tag team scene but I, for one, am willing to watch it evolve. These are classic examples where every team needs to truly maximize their minutes. AW is out there working without a net of which he has to remain constantly aware. But...the man can talk.

Really enjoyed the HHH/Lesnar business with @ShawnMichaels and @HeymanHustle adding greatly to the process. The segment left me wanting more which I perceive as a good thing. I was thinking that it would be a potentially long night for Shawn in his hometown, I speak from experience, but I was wrong. I was looking for the 'heater' and got an off speed pitch. Now I have even more to look forward to regarding this high profile matter heading into Summerslam.

Lesnar telling HBK that "I'll see you before Summerslam" is a major declaration.

I wish I had been in San Antonio for the HBK Appreciation Night portion of the evening that was held after RAW went off the air. I'm a major HBK fan for many reasons and not all of them have to do with wrestling. I am grateful that I was a small part of the process that helped facilitate Shawn's WWE return after four years off.

I was working for Bill Watts' Mid South Wrestling when Shawn had his first match there and remember him being taken under the wing of the Rock 'n Roll Express, Ricky Morton and Robert Gibson.

I don't know if Shawn Michaels is hand's down the very BEST of all time, it's an overly subjective topic, but I can make a valid argument that no one that I've ever seen with my own eyes has been BETTER.

@HEELZiggler and @IAmJericho is a match made in grappling heaven. I hope that they compete at Summerslam and if they do their bout will be tough to follow. I thought Jericho was money at the announce table.

The three hour Raw broadcasts certainly provides an opportunity for the occasional guest broadcaster IE Jericho Monday night. For some talents that's a blessing and for others, I know of what I speak, it's the kiss of death.

Punk's closing promo to King was entertaining and provocative. I hope that Punk gets back to more of his eye opening, shocking verbalizing style in the week's to come.

Enjoying Damien Sandow's TV growth. The more aggressive and physical he is the better for me. Sandow's promos are delivered organically and professionally.

I've updated the Q&A Section of the site. Submit questions there and see what others are asking.

As always, I invite you to visit http://www.wweshop.com and go to the JR page to see our complete line of products and the offers that await. Hope that you will consider JR's for your Summerslam gatherings. We sincerely appreciate everyone's support of our family's endeavors.

As I pointed out recently, JR's Beef Jerky, five flavors all 97% Fat Free, has really been selling well. We're not the biggest dog in the Jerky hunt by far but I will put our product up against any of the big boys. There's is mass produced and our's is custom made.

We exceeded over half a million Twitter followers a few days ago @JRsBBQ. Thanks to all our followers.

Looking forward to working with @THQ and @WWEGAMES during Summerslam weekend plus seeing many old friends. I don't expect to be a part of the PPV other than being a very interested fan. My lovely wife and our cash love visiting LA.

No one is more happy that football season is essentially upon us. My Oklahoma Sooners are pre season ranked number 4, which I think is too high, especially considering all the unanswered questions and recent rash of serious injuries that they have incurred. With my manageable WWE schedule, I'm planning on traveling to every OU away game and of course will attend all games here in Norman. For those who may be thinking about asking, I have no extra tickets for the OU-Notre Dame game OR the OU-Texas game. Sorry but my 6 are spoken for.

No new news on getting JR's products into grocery stores at this time. We're working on some possibilities but there are no guarantees.

Heading to Orlando this week to tape three more NXT broadcasts Thursday night at Full Sail University. This is one of my favorite assignments in WWE. I sort of feel like a coach and am blessed to be able to help so many young, deserving kids. Tickets for the NXT tapings are on sale daily this week from 4-7 pm at the Full Sail Box office.

Thanks for stopping by and don't forget to #SauceIt! Http://www.wweshop.com

Booner Sooner!

J.R.