Official WWE RAW Dec.22,2003 Forum
 

THE BEST OF RAW 2003
Dec. 22, 2003
What a year it was for RAW! Relive the action, excitement, and many of the highlights from 2003 next Monday when WWE presents the Best of RAW 2003 on Spike TV. 2003 saw new eras begin on RAW as Goldberg made his WWE debut and young guns such as Randy Orton made their mark for the first time. It also saw the end of other eras as WWE said goodbye to Stone Cold Steve Austin and, more recently, Mick Foley.

Catch all of the excitement one more time during the Best of RAW 2003 at 9/8 CT on Spike TV!

Note: RAW will return live from San Antonio on Dec. 29 at 9/8 CT on Spike TV!

posted on wwe.com

Are they having the top matches on tonight? And dont they usely wait until the week of new years?

is there any actual matches tonight?

lol @ replyin to your own thread...twice

it is probably the same as they did last year with that whole WWE year in thing they did. So theyll probably show matches.

hmm why don't u wait until RAW actually starts... IN TWO HOURS!!!

:'( Why Do I Have To Wait Two Weeks? :'(

MMmmm Packers vs Raiders tonight! Perfect timing for the Raw review show thing. I'll probably flip over to Raw during commercials though.

your on a 2 week delay??? that would blow

Yeah, i live in new zealand

translation*

i have problems reading because im a ****ing retarded dick that can never post a decent none insulting post.

oh and if hes not going to read this than he shouldnt have a problem with it.

Now now, it's Christmas.

Tonight is the review show... but we still have one Raw on the way after tonight.

Hopefully it'll be good... I'd imagine they'd try to make it that way being the last Raw of 2003. Tonight should be interesting though, it'll be cool to look back at the year.

Hmm, I guess this will be me recapping a recap....or something. The first time in a while I bother to sit down and actually recap the show and it's a damn year end review.

We start off in an empty arena. Man, those attendance figures are getting scarier and scarier. Our hosts are Coach and Jerry Lawler and they start arguing off the bat.

Coach starts off by talking about WrestleMania 19. The first match they're going to look at is Chris Jericho vs. Shawn Michaels. I'm not gonna bother recapping the actual match seeing as they're just going to edit it for time purposes. And you should already have the match on tape. And if you don't, SHAME ON YOU! BUY THE DVD! :rant: Anyway, one of the thoughts I had on this match was how in the hell could you book HBK over Jericho in a big match situation like this? This was the perfect opportunity to turn Jericho into a legit major player and not an inept idiot. And the cheap return job Michaels did later in the summer was a joke as well. Anyhow, wrong finish aside, I recall giving this one ****, an easy classic. But as if you expected anything less.

I'm waiting for Rock vs Goldberg simply for The Rock.

"Aw you're in TROUBLE NOW!"

<font color=8307ff><b>It's just a recap show, why is there a thread for it.</font></b>

Back from the break, it is now part of the show where I remind you that this recap is being brought to you by Pepsi, the choice of slutty looking pop celebrities and Ray Charles. Never thought I'd associate those two with anything.

We take a look back at when Molly and Gail assault Lita with her own autobiography. Well....it happened in 2003....and stuff....

Lawler orgasms over a Triple H picture in the WWE Unscripted Book and they pimp the HHH vs. HBK match for next week. Next match they look at is Trish Stratus vs. Victoria in a Chicago Street Fight. Well....it happened in 2003....and stuff.... Again, no recapping of the match as it's being chopped up more times than fish in a sushi bar. It's nice to see how the ladies have progressed in terms of workrate and I gotta believe that 2003 was the year that they earned the respect of the fans. Although my friend is busy wolf-calling throughout this match so perhaps I'm wrong. That aside, I'd say Victoria and Trish were neck and neck as the diva of the year as I'm struggling not to rush and choke my friend for orgasming over these ladies' breasts. This is why I like watching this stuff alone. My friends are controlled by their hormones 98% of the time. Anyway, Victoria gets the win on the outside. This happened in February on a Raw so I can't remember what I gave it but I'd say it was worth a good **.

Next up, it's a look back at the travesty that was the Raw Tenth Anniversary Show. I'd rather forget that. Stacy joins the hosts to pimp BOD spray which is basically COLOGNE. She chooses King over Coach which makes me question her taste in men even more. I mean, first David Flair, then Test, then Scott....Next thing we'll know she's crawling back to Vince.

Next match they look at is Rob Van Dam vs. Christian in a ladder match for the Intercontinental Title. This happened sometime after Unforgiven and it was a doozy. It was never exploited as great and they never bothered to push RVD and Christian any higher after it. Christian went on to bet money over getting laid and RVD would drop the belt twice in two meaningless jobs (Jericho and Randy Orton). Nonetheless, it was an amazing match and it was a great example of what these guys can do when given the ball. It was worth a good ***1/2

<font color=8307ff><b>I have to tape it because my dad is watching TV right now... :(</font></b>

Lol, beat him up for the remote

Usally I hate the way they end ladder matches but that one was good.

Oh great, they are going to show the Austin-Bischoff Triatholon thing. That was one of the worst moments of 2003. WTF

Another 2003 moment when Rock looked to leave the WWE after WrestleMania 19. Wasn't too far off from the truth though. Anyhow, Goldberg makes his debut by interrupting him and you know what happens after that.

Match time, as it's Goldberg vs. The Rock from Backlash. This somewhat dampered the debut and credibility of Goldberg as it went on too long and there wasn't much of wrestling and it did nothing to put Goldberg over majorly. I can only fault the person who thought it was a great idea to let this go more than 5 minutes. It was somewhat cool though to see them go at it but when I discuss what happened in the year with my pals we don't even mention this match as it was kind of forgettable. Not to mention the crowd pretty much turns on Goldberg. Anyhow, 3 spears and a Jackhammer later, and Goldberg solidified his presence for the rest of 2003. I remember giving this * but I forget why.

I still think Jericho/Michaels was the best RAW match of the year. So, is SD doing their best of show next week?

Jericho and Trish kissing. AWWW. :lol:

Well thank god I didn't see a second of that PPV

Before we leave from the break, we get a quick look at THE KISS OF THE YEAR between Chris Jericho and Trish Stratus from November. I can't wait to see where they're going to take us with those two in the new year.

Wasn't it the ONLY kiss of the year? :lol:

God, I hate this Final Fantasy commercial. That song just gets on my nerves

Er...um....uhhhhh....I....it...........HEY, LOOK OVER THERE!!!!

OH boy here we go

Gee, the irony that Eric wanted Austin back on RAW. That certainly bit him in the ass.

Back from the break, it's a look at the INCREDIBLE DRAMA that was the build-up to the return of Stone Cold Steve Austin. Man, did that piss off a lot of people....until he actually did show up. I remember my friend still insisting that he wasn't going to show up even when Bischoff was in the ring pleading for a peaceful solution. Boy he had egg on his face when Austin came out. And it wasn't like his return changed anything. He basically got his way by being the dominant superman that he used to be under the same character and not having to put anyone over. Yeah, he jobbed to the Rock a month later but it's the friggin' Rock. Bischoff vs. Austin at No Way Out is shown next. It'd appropriate to show the full match here as it was a total humiliating squash that served to only egohump Austin and Vince McMahon. No stars for this one as you'd expect. Austin wins, loses to the Rock at WM in his last match of the year, gets fired by Eric, returns as co-GM, and is forced to leave that role at Survivor Series. In the middle, he squashed a couple of more actual wrestlers and drank some beers and delivered some Stunners. Yup, big difference he made.

I concur.

-edit- wrong show. lol

It's the Shane/Kane feud. [sarcasm]YEAH[/sarcasm]

Ok, about RAW next week, it looks like Foley will be back next week since the Michaels/HHH match is still going to go on, so what's going to happen?

2003 moment time and it's a major one: THE UNMASKING OF KANE!!! He looked pretty silly the first time he took it off though. I remember being totally pissed and upset at the decision to remove it because he could have still been a monster WITH it. Well, even if it did kill his character he got a whole new one that revamped the Big Red Machine that was getting some good numbers. His heat fizzled a bit with his feud with Shane McMahon as Shane was booked to be the only guy that could hurt the "monster". Nepotism rules, baby!!! Anyhow, Kane tombstones Shane's mom, Shane is all pissy and a bunch of odd and violent attack segments fill three months. We're shown the Ambulance Match from Survivor Series although I don't know why considering their Last Man Standing match at Unforgiven was better but that's not saying much. It was supposedly the last encounter these two would have as Kane would pick up the win and go on to challenge for the World Heavyweight Title at the next PPV. This was pretty violent but silly at many points in the match. Call this one about *.

I agree MAG. The Unforgiven match was much better.

LoL.. where do they come up with this shit?

"The world championship testicles just got smashed"

It's JR, what do you expect? I think they should mention that 2003 was also the year that JR didn't just fall off his rocker, he fell off the whole damn porch.

:lol: at Rock and Cane

That was a great segment between rock and Hurricane.

So sad, the losses this year. They'll be missed

2003 moment time, and it's another doozy. Hurricane and The Rock in The Rock's dressing room and hilarity ensues. Ah, the great promos between Hurricane and The Rock. Oh, those were classic. WHY DIDN'T I TAPE THOSE?!?!?!?

A look back at those we lost over the year. Thoughts and prayers go out to the friends and family of them. Rest in peace.

MAG, you could probably download it off of Kazaa

:cry: :cry: :cry: That was a great tribute.

The real sad part is most of those deaths were truly unexpected.

The really sad part is that's not the full list to the best of my ability.

I have the Rock / Hurricane interview they just showed... and I got it from Kazaa. I couldn't find the first one though.

That last segment was pretty touching. Fitting music for it too and I'm not just saying that cause I'm a big fan of Evanescence.

I think the saddest thing about it was how some of them went when it comes to drugs and everything. These people seem larger than life and all of a sudden something so stupid takes them away from us.

Great promo between HHH and Flair.

Nice tribute.

I'm glad they finally acknlowledged Crash. Very nice.

R.I.P.

Took long enough though, but yeah at least they did.

RIP to them all.

I wonder if Flair and HHH get along in real life?

Kenny, which one was the first one?

Damn, it seems like each segment they've shown, JR is having a freakin orgasm :lol:

Well, the one we saw tonight was where Hurricane hid in Rock's locker room the week AFTER the battle royal.

The week before, was the one where Hurricane interupted Rock singing a song and they got into it. Rock said something about Hurricane being Hamburgler. That the Hurricane isn't a real hero.

Hurricane says that he could take the Scorpion King, Rock gets upset.

My FAVORITE part...

Hurricane begins to talk about how Brendan Fraiser did it. Rock gets upset and says it was special affects for the movie.

I want that one so bad but I can't find it.

I have both, of the Rock-Cane segments on tape. The first one was way better. The Rock called Hurricane The Hamburglar.

Oh, right. I forgot that one.

Hey what the f*ck? They were supposed to show the post-match Flair tribute.

Hmm, I guess they're saving that Flair tribute till the end

YES! The Rock in concert!!!

Another moment: Ric Flair talks down HHH during the time when it looked like Flair was about to break away from HHH. Ric Flair vs. HHH is shown next from a Raw some time after Judgment Day. In fact, I think it was the Raw right after Judgment Day. They had a good angle with this one by the way. Flair doesn't need to be playing second banana to a washed-up cripple in a cheap rip-off stable. Anyhow, it looked like Flair would become 17 time World Champion, WHOOO, but get real, it was a HHH match in 2003 and why should a lowly jobber like Ric Flair get the better of a god like HHH? The Almighty Finisher of Death finishes off Flair and HHH retains the title. Flair would later go on to 'swerve' us (I use 'swerve' loosely cause you could see it a mile away) by turning on Shawn Michaels and showing his allegiance to Evolution as Randy Orton would make his return from injury. Flair would also feud with Shawn Michaels resulting in a match at Bad Blood and HHH would face Kevin Nash in a Hell in a Cell match at the same PPV. Both Evolution members would be successful in their efforts and the stable would be a major force ready to dominate the top throughout the rest of 2003 resulting in the entire stable holding gold by the end of the year.

A look back at The Rock Concert 1 as he talks down Sacremento. More goodness from the Great One, quick breaths of fresh air that he always provided during his short tenure in 2003.

The way everyone says Rock - Cane reminds me of the way The Rock used to make fun of Kane.

**Puts hand up to throat**
My name is Kane... and I am a Roody Poo... Candy Ass.

My favorite...

"And all the little kids would come up to your house and ask you to come play kick ball with them... and you'd go and say...

'Well uhhh... I'd like to come out and play with you but the rage and the fire is consuming my soul"


Just the way he did it was great.

I'm watching Monday Night Football, but I thought I'd check the thread to see what they were recapping. I'm very happy to hear that they finally mentioned Crash. Were they showing clips and stuff or was it just pictures of those that passed away?

Packers up 31-7 at halftime btw... woo hoo!

Yep...good times...good times

Vid clips and pics ketchup

:nono: at that Bischoff segment

Cool, thanks.

Agreed. That was just not right

Clips of Stu, Crash, Ms. Elizibeth, Perfect, Hawk and Blassie

nevermind

Ha I edited it before you posted :)

Very sneaky

I ran like a rabbit to tape that tribute segment. I caught it at the Crash part.

This match is probably gonna take the rest of the show

2003 Moment Time: Bad Blood as we're shown more goodness from the Bischoff/Austin feud that looked like it was only intended to have Vince show Eric who was the man and bury his reputation. Bleh, stupid pie-eating crap from the Triathalon, you should know what happens there and if not I want to shake your hand. I can totally see why that was so much better than Ivory vs. Jazz.

We're shown the dramatic 10 man tag team match from Survivor Series that pitted Stone Cold Steve Austin's team (Rob Van Dam, Booker T, Shawn Michaels, and The Dudley Boys) against Eric Bischoff's team (Mark Henry, Christian, Chris Jericho, Randy Orton, and Scott Steiner). This would be the match that ended Austin's reign as co-GM as Shawn Michaels was the last man eliminated by Randy Orton (via help from Batista). Shawn Michaels would go on to beat Batista at Armageddon the next month in a nothing feud and Orton would win the IC Title at the same PPV from RVD. It was a dramatic moment and a fun match to boot and a great display of booking. I think I gave this one ***1/2 and looking at these bits and pieces I'd say I remembered correctly.

I wonder why they used the album version of My Immortal though.. the new version is a lot more emotional. Regaurdless it's hard to believe that many went in one year. It makes it kinda scary to get into a new year.

I've never heard the newer version before. I'll have to get it off Kazza. Is there a big difference that I can tell between the two versions?

Hmm, looks like they won't show the Flair tribute at this rate

It's probably just a more stripped down version of the song I'm thinking.

You can listen to it at Evanescence.com. It's the same thing but at the end instead of a piano solo the band kicks in... it made a big impact at concerts cause it was unexpect. I think it makes the song better by a few points though.

You can download the video off of Evanescence.com as well. Amy Lee never looked so good.

There's a heavy guitar riff towards the end of the song in the new version. Not that much different but you should get it to judge for yourself.

She always looks good :drool:

Nah, it's the original version off the album.

I give Shawn Michaels "most bladed wrestler" of the year

After actually seeing this match HBK deserves to get the title next week.

Orton Rules, just had to get that in before the show ends. :y: :y:

That would be nice.

And yes, Orton does indeed rule.

Because this is last, are they calling it the best match of the year?

I don't know. Performance of the year by HBK.. okay. Match of the year... nope.

I don't see how considering they put Shawn Michaels and Chris Jericho as the first match.

So I guess they are definitely not showing the Flair thing.

yeah the new version with the band is better :y:

Well, at the most they'll show an edited version cause it's like 10 mins. right?