Two More BAHGAWD FRUITY, FRUITY Years
 

From JR's site via PWInsider:

A new, two year contract has been signed between Jim Ross and World Wrestling Entertainment. Ross, a 34 year veteran of pro wrestling/sports entertainment, is a member of the WWE Hall of Fame and has been with the company since debuting at Wrestlemania 9 in 1993. Ross and his fellow WWE Hall of Fame partner, Jerry “the King” Lawler, comprise the broadcast team on the WWE’s longest running, flagship broadcast, “Monday Night Raw” which airs live on the USA Cable Network every Monday night at 9/8 central time and globally in over 100 countries. No other details on the terms of the contract have been released.

Good, no one else can come close to JR.

Good JR is the voice of the WWE and it wouldnt be the same without him.

:y:

Looks like two more years of me supplying my own commentary to RAW...either that or hitting the mute button. Don't know why, but I just can't stand JR's commentary anymore. Haven't for the longest time, but for some reason, some people still blow their load the second someone hears his voice. I don't get it.

He was THE commentator back in the Attitude era, but now JR is just an earsore.

Ross signing on for another 2 years = Hogan signing on for another 2 years.

JR is nowhere near as good as he used to be, but I can't think of anyone else that could do a better job on Raw.

JR's emotion is still great to have to add to moments that wouldn't seem as important if Michael Cole was announcing, but JR is not anything near what he used to be.

Someone will have to grow into it. JR can't do this forever. It's backwards thinking to keep him in the spot under these circumstances, and the fact that Lawler has buried pretty much anyone remotely viable only worsens it.

You have it exactly right. JR is not going to be able to do it forever, although his commentary has gotten so robotic you can record a selection of his announcing and just play it over and over again to the same effect.

Right now, I can think of two play-by-play guys in the WWE that are better: Joey Styles and Josh Mathews. Both guys go deeper than JR with their commentary. Styles sounds very monotonous, but if they let him call matches as he felt like, he'd be the best guy in the WWE by far. When he first got on to RAW, his commentary was a refreshing change. Both guys are just too "smarky" for the WWE's tastes.

I was glad when I heard JR suggest that he thinks Joey Styles & Jonathan Coachman should call the Royal Rumble Match. Of course, the guys calling it are going to be almost the exact opposite of who JR suggested. I'm willing to bet that the commentators of the match will be Jim Ross, Tazz and Michael Cole.

They're not just too smarky, they're too "not JR."

Tradition and tenure are more important than quality, and someone who is well liked will be pushed over someone who is good.

I'd listen to Ross commentate for the next ten years in exchange for a promise of never, EVER seeing Hogan again.

I wouldn't

I'd rather Hulk Hogan rant about his brothers and dudes for 3 hours straight before seeing that fat cocksucker Jim Ross commentate another day

Actually, I think Todd Grisham was someone that Vince was really impressed with when he took over doing that Styles "worked-shoot speech" angle think. Grisham would be the first choice Vince would go to if JR were to ever leave (which I think he's going to do it until he dies or something). Plus, I don't think the King ever tried to bury him like he did with EVERY SINGLE OTHER ANNOUNCER THAT HAS EVER DONE RAW!! I wouldn't mind seeing Grisham have a few try outs if JR couldn't be able to make it a few days to see how he does doing an entire show.

All I know is Jeff Hardy STILL WILL NOT die.

I can cope with JR for another two years, but they REALLY need to freshen him up with a new announce partner. Fuck it, the same can be said for Lawler. Together they're lazy and comfortable, like an old married couple when the spark has been lost. Seperate them and maybe they can find what brought them to the dance in the firstplace, into the unknown... remember how rejuvenated JR was when Paul Heyman first showed up on commentary... and it wasn't JUST that JR was on form, he had to change to accommodate a whole different dynamic at the announce table. He had to evolve. Then, Lawler returned and he slipped back into the old dynamic again.

I'd go as far as to say that (other than miscalling moves and names more often than ever) JR and Lawler haven't LOST their announcing spark... they just don't have it TOGETHER anymore, mainly because it's stale and has been done to death for over a decade. Seperate them, and they may well shine again with new partners. Why not send Lawler to "Extremely Crappy Wrestling" and have him turn full-on heel, despising the product and the fact he had to switch brands. (Although that would only serve to reunite him with Styles which, whilst not terrible, was hardly a match made in heaven either).

Hows abouts a JR/Michael Hayes team? JR and Piper? Even JR and Tazz would be somewhat fresh.

There are plenty of people who can call colour, to boot.

I'd agree with this. There were rumours that Jerry Lawler was wanted for ECW by Dusty Rhodes, but JR and King had a bitch-fit. That move should definitely happen. Move Tazz to SmackDown! to replace Jonathan Coachman, who can just play his assistant character.

Also, did anyone hear about the story of JR punching Big Dick Johnson in the balls, or something?