RAW this week: The Good & The Bad

[danquinn]

HHH/Undertaker- Same as last week, HHH talked for too long though, but at least we know why Undertaker wanted the rematch, which gives the match a bit more credibility, but not enough in my books to warrant Taker/HHH III.

Bryan/Big Show- Bryan is a great wrestler, Big Show is entertaining with the right opponent, but together it's become very stale now. There will never be a clean finish between these two and the whole AJ storyline is terrible, but Bryan's development as a heel is still going strong so it's not all bad.

Divas Match- Same old shit, see my Smackdown version of this.

Cena wasn't even live and I was still sick of him...STOP SPENDING 10 MINUTES ON A CENA PROMO AND ADD MINUTES TO MATCHES BETWEEN PEOPLE THAT DESERVE MORE TIME!

Sheamus/Otunga- Squash match, Otunga is God awful and Sheamus is the Royal Rumble winner FFS, give him something more important to do than squash minor opponents.

CM Punk/Jericho- What amazed me about this was that for Jericho, this promo was average by his standards and it was still awesome, he got great heat and I don't even think he was trying that hard. Punk coming out and not saying a word was a masterstroke, and Jericho's whining afterwards worked well with the segment. These two could easily have one of the best feuds in years.

Khali/Orton/Rhodes/Barrett- With anyone other than Khali, and a longer amount of time, and this could have been a decent match. The only thing I liked about it was Randy Orton's RKO on Khali and the times that Khali wasn't in the ring.

Six Pack Challenge- I thought this was a pretty good match, high pace, a good amount of time set aside for it, Kofi's high spots were awesome, R-Truth was great until Miz botched his catch, Ziggler looked strong until he got pinned and the Jericho/Punk finish was brilliant. It made Punk look strong, whilst giving Jericho added heat as a heel. Jericho mocking Punk in the ring at the end was also a great way to end the show...


... but nope, it didn't end there.

We were subject to an awful Kane/Eve backstage segment, which barely deserves a mention because of how bad it was. It's a sad fact that Kane's character just isn't that interesting anymore, even with his mask.

Thoughts on the show guys?

[Jules]

Feb 8, 2012 17:54:00 GMT -4 danquinn said:

HHH/Undertaker- Same as last week, HHH talked for too long though, but at least we know why Undertaker wanted the rematch, which gives the match a bit more credibility, but not enough in my books to warrant Taker/HHH III.

Bryan/Big Show- Bryan is a great wrestler, Big Show is entertaining with the right opponent, but together it's become very stale now. There will never be a clean finish between these two and the whole AJ storyline is terrible, but Bryan's development as a heel is still going strong so it's not all bad.

Divas Match- Same old shit, see my Smackdown version of this.

Cena wasn't even live and I was still sick of him...STOP SPENDING 10 MINUTES ON A CENA PROMO AND ADD MINUTES TO MATCHES BETWEEN PEOPLE THAT DESERVE MORE TIME!

Sheamus/Otunga- Squash match, Otunga is God awful and Sheamus is the Royal Rumble winner FFS, give him something more important to do than squash minor opponents.

CM Punk/Jericho- What amazed me about this was that for Jericho, this promo was average by his standards and it was still awesome, he got great heat and I don't even think he was trying that hard. Punk coming out and not saying a word was a masterstroke, and Jericho's whining afterwards worked well with the segment. These two could easily have one of the best feuds in years.

Khali/Orton/Rhodes/Barrett- With anyone other than Khali, and a longer amount of time, and this could have been a decent match. The only thing I liked about it was Randy Orton's RKO on Khali and the times that Khali wasn't in the ring.

Six Pack Challenge- I thought this was a pretty good match, high pace, a good amount of time set aside for it, Kofi's high spots were awesome, R-Truth was great until Miz botched his catch, Ziggler looked strong until he got pinned and the Jericho/Punk finish was brilliant. It made Punk look strong, whilst giving Jericho added heat as a heel. Jericho mocking Punk in the ring at the end was also a great way to end the show...


... but nope, it didn't end there.

We were subject to an awful Kane/Eve backstage segment, which barely deserves a mention because of how bad it was. It's a sad fact that Kane's character just isn't that interesting anymore, even with his mask.

Thoughts on the show guys?

I watched it earlier today. I enjoyed it, didn't think it was as good as last week's show. Also, I thought PWTorch were a bit harsh in their assessment. I'll make a few comments on things I think merit, or as a response to what you've said Dan.

1. I thought the opening segment was okay. I sort of agree with Dan about this match being unnecessary: I don't think Taker should lose the streak purely out of respect for what this guy has achieved (nice that those videos reminded us of just how awesome Taker was), I don't think it should be blown to put some midcard talent over and if its not Trips is not going over Taker at WM there is no point.

2. It was good to see 'Big Johnny' on the show, and apart from one line botch his bits with HHH were good. I am glad they've kept him around because he has got better in the role, and will always be better than Trips as a GM.

3. Agree with Dan about the Punk/Jericho stand-off. This was a smart move, and I like how they teased at a trade off in the main event before the finish.

4. Don't know why Khali went over Rhodes; don't know why Khali is in the EC, I'd rather see Beth Phoenix in it.

5. I disagree with Dan about the Cena promo. I thought it was fair game considering they've been doing a similar thing with Dwayne. More WWE plugs of Twitter afterwards, but I'm glad Cole hyped the exchanges between Cena/Dwayne and especially the the tweet from Cena saying he will not lose. WWE needs to start selling this match as one that both men HAVE to win and not just as some showbiz event. When Rock does appear on RAW again I'm really hoping the promos do become about the match and not this showbiz bollocks about who has more Twitter follows, or sells more t-shirts. This match, if it is be in any way meaningful, needs to be sold as a credible wrestling match. Dwayne can go back to being a Hollywood whore all he wants after WM, but make it all about the wrestling until then.

6. I thought the Main event was solid, some good spots for a TV show and the finish was well done.

Overall, I thought it was a solid if not spectacular show. A little bit too segment heavy, and the wrestling we did see wasn't as good as last weeks, but I was fairly entertained.

[danquinn]

I probably should have been more specific about the Cena thing...I feel the same way about the extended Rock promos, and The Rock is by far my all time favourite wrestler. But I definitely agree the promos should focus more on the match itself, but I'm sure they'll hype that up closer to the time so they don't become stale by Wrestlemania. I don't even hate Cena, because the guy does a hell of a lot for charity and is one of the most loyal WWE superstars ever, I'm just sick of Super Cena, all I want is a bit more depth to his character, I like the way he's been recently with Kane. He just needs more human characteristics really, then I probably wont hate seeing him on TV as much lol