On Monday’s RAW, WWE began a major storyline featuring the NXT season 1 Rookies.

The angle began when Wade Barrett appeared on the ramp during the show’s main event between John Cena and CM Punk.

As Barrett made his way to the ring, his fellow Season 1 Rookies – Daniel Bryan, David Otunga, Skip Sheffield, Michael Tarver, Darren Young, Heath Slater, Justin Gabriel – all appeared from the crowd and surrounded the ring. Each of them wore a black armband with a yellow “N” on them.

The Rookies proceeded to destroy everything in sight – including John Cena, the Straight Edge Society, the WWE announcers and ringside crew members, the announcer’s table and the ring. According to live reports sent in from fans who were at the show in Miami, the crowd was very into the angle and the NXT crew had a ton of heat. Many compared the invasion to the early nWo back in WCW in the late 1990s.

After the NXT Season 1 rookies returned backstage, they received a lot of praise for WWE management for the way the angle played out. According to f4wonline.com, Vince McMahon, Stephanie McMahon and Michael Hayes are really liking the recent NXT angles the Michael Cole vs. Daniel Bryan feud, the NXT Season Finale episode and last night’s invasion.

The fact that Michael Cole was the only WWE crew member to escape the NXT beatdown could be a sign that he’s part of the storyline, as there has been talk of moving turning Cole heel.

Expect tonight’s WWE NXT Season 2 premiere to feature fallout from last night’s angle. There’s also been talk of Season 1’s rookies being featured regularly on Season 2.

Read More: Wrestlers Comment On The NXT Invasion Angle From RAW

– Kelly Kelly noted on Twitter that her family was sitting front row at last night’s RAW in Miami and will be at tonight’s SmackDown in Tampa Bay. Kelly is from the area.

– Steve Austin, Kaval and Kofi Kingston took to Twitter after last night’s RAW to comment on the NXT invasion angle. Here’s what they wrote:

Kaval: “After what I just saw, I think Cena may need a little help handling NXT1….”

Kofi Kingston: “Looks like season 1 NXT rookies are trying to make a statement…”

Steve Austin: “well that was interesting.. that RAW ending reminds me of one time when we were filming The Condemned in Australia..on my day off i went swimming in the ocean…and was attacked by 23 great white sharks…the story gets very bloody and gory so i will not tweet the details..but i actually missed…one day of filming because i had to sew an arm and one of my hands back on..and i needed a day of rest so i could heal up 100%…anyhoo..we finished filming the Condemned and i still cant believe i didnt get an Oscar nomination for my turn as Jack Conrad..i was robbed.”

– In related news, “NXT Rookies” was a worldwide trending topic on Twitter last night.

Pre-RAW Dark Match:

– The Dudebusters came out and cut a promo but ended up arguing about who was better and got in a fight. Chris Masters came down and cleaned house.  Chris Masters defeated Trent Baretta with the Masterlock in a quick match and the Dudebusters made up on the way back to the back.

WWE Superstars Tapings

– Gail Kim vs. Alicia Fox

– Zack Ryder & Primo vs. Goldust & Yoshi Tatsu

After RAW

– After RAW went off the air following the brutal attack by the NXT Rookies, the WWE crew attended to Justin Roberts, Jerry Lawler, Matt Striker and everyone else who was laid out. Based on emails we’ve received from fans who were at the show, the vibe was that this angle had a major impact – as the entire crowd was buzzing on the way out and more people stuck around than usual.

New Orleans’ Nola.com has an article looking at the various movies shooting in the city, including several movies WWE Studios projects.

Aside from the Triple H comedy movie “Chaperones” starring Triple H, WWE also has several other New Orleans-based movies in development:

• “Legendary.” Last fall, the fledgling WWE Studios came to town to shoot six films back-to-back-to-back in New Orleans in a novel strategy to reduce costs. On Sept. 10, Samuel Goldwyn — which specializes in limited releases of indie films — is expected to release the first one. “Legendary” (working title: “Brother’s Keeper”), stars Patricia Clarkson, Danny Glover and pro wrestler John Cena, in a dramatic comedy about a bookish teen who joins the school wrestling team in a bid to reunite his fractured family.
• “Knucklehead.” The second in the WWE Studios slate, which wrapped in New Orleans in November, will also be handled by Samuel Goldwyn. It’s an action comedy starring Mark Feuerstein, Melora Hardin and pro-wrestler Paul “Big Show” Wight, in a story about a  down-on-his-luck fight promoter who finds a potential meal ticket in an enormous handyman for a local orphanage. Expect it later in the fall.
• “That’s What I Am” WWE Studios again, with a “Wonder Years”-style dramatic comedy that shot this spring in Jefferson under the working titles “Big Red” and “Big Ginger.” . It stars Ed Harris and Randy Orton in a drama about a middle-school kid and the invaluable life lessons he learns from a special teacher. No release date or distribution deal has been announced.

WWE issued a press release on Monday announcing that actor Phillip Larue (“Superbad”) and child actress Ariel Winter (“Modern Family”) have joined the cast of the new WWE Studios comedy, “The Chaperone,” which has Triple H in the lead role.

Triple H, who also stars in WWE’s “Inside Out,” plays Ray Bradstone, a skilled getaway driver for a team of bank robbers. Recently, however, Ray has been looking to leave the world of crime in order to become a good father for his daughter Sally (“Modern Family”‘s Ariel Winter) and make amends with his wife.

Struggling to find honest work, Ray reluctantly accepts a final gig with his old bank-robbing crew, led by Phillip Larue (Kevin Corrigan, “Superbad”). At the last moment, Ray backs out of the heist to serve as a chaperone for his daughter’s school field trip. Without Ray as part of the crime team, the robbery goes awry, and Phillip seeks vengeance against Ray, his daughter and an school bus full of children on route to the Museum of Natural History in New Orleans for a class trip.

“Ray must deal with Larue, while supervising Sally’s class on what becomes one of the craziest school trips ever.”

Stephen Herek (“Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure”) directs the film, which began principal photography this week in New Orleans, Louisiana.

WWE issued the following press release this morning:

Hill Named Senior Vice President, Marketing

STAMFORD, Conn., Jun 07, 2010 — World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. announced that Eddie Hill will assume the role of Senior Vice President, Marketing, effective June 7, 2010. Hill will be responsible for providing strategic direction around WWE’s branding and promotions, television tune-in, pay-per-view events, network affiliate marketing, WWE Studios and market research. He will report directly to Michelle D. Wilson, Executive Vice President, Marketing.

Hill brings 18 years of experience as a marketing executive within the financial, sports and entertainment industries. He comes to WWE from American Express after he spent the last two years as Vice President/Head of U.S. Advertising & Global Agency Management and spearheaded the Are You A Cardmember? and Don’t Take Chances – Take Charge campaigns.

Prior to American Express, Hill was the Vice President of Marketing for Nickelodeon and Nick Movies. He has also held positions at ESPN and the Walt Disney Company.

“We are thrilled to have Eddie join WWE, bringing with him a great breadth and depth of valuable experience in the sports and entertainment industries,” said Michelle D. Wilson. “With Eddie’s skill set, we will continue to strategically market and grow the WWE brand across all of our global platforms.”

Hill received his B.S. in Business Administration degree from Georgetown University and his Masters of Business Administration from the Anderson Graduate School of Management at the University of California, Los Angeles.

WWE Hall of Famer Jim Ross has updated his blog, which you can read in its entirety at JRsBarBQ.com. Here are some highlights of what JR said about:

Returning To WWE: “Got my travel handled for the Fatal Four Way in the Nassau Coliseum coming up later this month. Looking forward to hanging in the back and helping where I can at my first WWE PPV where I will be in the locker room area since September of last year. I wonder if I can get my pal Taz to spring for dinner the night before the event, if he’s in town.”

Brock Lesnar’s Fight On 7/3: “I will be in Vegas on July 3 to see the Brock Lesnar vs. Shane Carwin Heavyweight Title fight which has many close to Lesnar concerned and rightfully so. Carwin has allowed no one to survive outside the first round as best I know off the top of my head in compiling an undefeated record. Lesnar is still my pick to win this one but any thing can and likely will happen in this battle of big, strong, badass fighters. ”

NXT Season 2: “I’m curious to see if there are any significant tweaks on NXT this Tuesday night for the premier of season two. I’ve mentioned this before but being a fan of reality shows I would like to see the contestants interact in a non arena type setting more frequently. Will Michael Cole select another NXT rooked to haze or has that specific ship sailed?”

Shoot Interviews: “Pet Peeve of the Day….I find myself disliking the term ‘Shoot Interview’ and I can’t really explain why except that it denotes to me a ‘dirt fest’ from disgruntled individuals ready to embellish negative stories for a pay day. With that said, watching a compelling interview on DVD with a wrestler who has an interesting story to tell in more of a documentary form really interests me. Am I splitting hairs on this one. It is simply a matter of semantics?”