Official Raw/Smackdown Aftermath, Ratings and Review Thread

[Rich the UK WWE Fan 2k14]

I recorded RAW and watched it last night, not a bad show, apart from the fact I wanted to reach into the screen and punch Michael Cole in the fucking face because he was banging on about the Network every 30 seconds, which won't be available outside North America till "late 2014" according to the FAQ on WWE.com.

 

[The Eighties]

The crowd were hot as lava tonight for a strong show that didn't have the ending I was personally hoping for, but that's neither here nor there.

I have mixed feelings on starting off with Heyman coming out to Punk's music and then cutting a promo. Don't get me wrong, the promo was great and I thought the way it segued into Brock vs Taker was masterfully done and gave some motivation for Heyman in the feud. On the other hand I think a heel like Orton could have gotten some great heat if he'd come out and mocked Punk, although it seems WWE or perhaps more so Vince don't want to go that route as Heyman didn't heel on him at all.

I always enjoy Brock doing a spot of beasting but this is the 3rd time in a short space of time that he's beaten Mark Henry up in the same fashion, they need someone fresh for him to whoop.

I was pleased to see The Usos win the tag titles and I was glad that the crowd were pretty much behind them for the most part and really gave them a nice pop for the win.

The stuff with the Real Americans and Big E was ok although it didn't do much for Big E. In my view they should wait until after Mania to split Cesaro and Swagger but I think it will happen earlier and tie-in to Big E and the IC title.

The Shield vs The Wyatt's rematch was fantastic and quite easily the match of the night, but aside from the action I thought it was a great piece of storytelling within The Shield dynamic that Roillins finally had enough of Ambrose and Reigns bickering, I think WWE are taking a smart approach to this impending split as opposed to the standard route of having one go face and leave or one turn on the other two, it's more layered.

The Bryan and Triple H promo segment was nasty and damn the crowd heat was melting the place, as was Steph in that outfit! I guess they are doing their jobs well as Triple H is such a smug asshole I wanted Bryan to headbutt him right on that big snotter of his and then kick his face in, and even though I abhor violence against women Steph built up enough disdain to warrant a slap, maybe Brie can do it at some point now we are in the PG era.

There was a real edge to the segment as the crowd really brought the hate to a point where Steph was actually drowned out in parts. The one issue I had with it is that Triple H is so smug and crafty with the shoot stuff, I'm not sure Bryan has the ego or the spite required to fire back with really cutting comments, it's clear why this angle was designed for Punk, this is his element and indeed Triple H's.

The funny thing to me is that the whole thing was about setting up Bryan vs Triple H and the crowd supported Bryan strongly, but they quite clearly responded "NO!" in unison to Bryan vs Triple H, I just don't think it's the match people want as the response last week was fairly muted as well.

There was some filler here and then Dolph got to win a match due to coming to the ring with the star of a TV show and some videogame movie, I wouldn't be at all surprised if he returns the job to Bertie on Smackdown.

Cena's promo was decent, he played with the crowd well as usual even if he did look a tad frustrated with them at one point. Bray's promo was fantastic despite some stupid chanting, and Cena sold concern over the weird swamp preacher's words.

The random Rusev segment was bizarre and did him no favours, this wasn't the night for it. I can only guess something was up with the shows plans as they ran well over time and this seemed unplanned as if it was used to buy time.

Bryan vs Batista reminded me of an old Ric Flair vs Sid match I saw where Flair didn't so much work with Sid as he did work around him, Batista's tank looks on empty.

Orton sat at ringside as an afterthought, the crowd were exhausted and awaiting, hoping for the home town hero, but he never came, and while the ending with everyone ganging up on Bryan and things finally getting physical with him and Triple H served it's purpose as the evil hubby and wife stood over the underdog, I can't help but feel the title match and Bryan vs Triple H are angles that are swimming up stream right now.

 

[WarroBODFan]

I enjoyed that show a lot, and I have to applaud the Chicago crowd big time for not ruining it for the other superstars not named CM Punk. They could so easily have ruined the moment for the Uso's and their first tag team title win just as one example, but the crowd loved it! Makes up for the crappy crowd at the last Raw.

 

[The Fabulous Rougeau's]

WWE did a great job of structuring the show in a fashion to help take the edge off of the crowd once it became clear Punk wasn't going to be there. They stacked the first hour with things the fans either like or respect with Heyman/Brock, Uso's winning the tag titles/Cesaro and the Wyatt's v Shield. The fans had so much thrown there way that it helped settle them in and while it was never going to get rid of the Punk chants, they successfully kept the show from turning.

 

[Mitch Henessey]

Opening the show with CM Punk's music killed any chances of Punk showing up. There's no point in wasting you're one shot on a thunderous reaction for a returning Punk with a fake out. Just look at the segment with Triple H, Stephanie, and Bryan. The crowd showed no mercy in booing and heckling Triple H and Stephanie (especially Stephanie) without using Cult Of Personality for an entrance.

Heyman's promo was superb. He tempted the audience with a shoot promo with some inside info for Punk (mimicking Punk's Indian style in the ring was a nice touch), but Heyman turned the tables on the Chicago crowd in a split second, blaming everyone in the arena for Punk's absence.

The promo worked on so many levels. WWE fought the smarky revolution early to kill off any chances for big pops with Heyman and Lesnar, and Heyman quickly dropping his role as a cheerleader and hype man for Punk was a necessary move. And Heyman made a smooth transition to kill the Punk craze temporarily, giving Heyman a chance to hype Lesnar VS Undertaker.

Triple H and Stephanie showed off some their best work on the mic during The Authority era. They didn't shy away from the hostile crowd's chants (Triple H condemning the crowd and Bryan for whining about being buried and held down), and Stephanie's defiance really touched a nerve with everyone. For the first time in a long time (going back to the night after the Summerslam), Triple H and Stephanie played the role of real heels, and not two smug authority figures, who feel the need to outsmart everyone without any accountability.

Bray VS Cena feels strange, and not in a good way. I'm still having a tough time buying into Bray as legitimate threat to Cena at Wrestlemania, injured leg or no injured leg. Cena could roll down the ramp at Wrestlemania in a wheelchair with a full body cast on, and nothing would change any serious doubts about Bray's chances of winning for me.

Another top notch promo from Bray last night, and I get the whole point of an aging Cena struggling to hold on to his spot as the top man, with a pack of young lions waiting in a long line behind him. Still, if we're talking about Wrestlemania and John Cena, Bray Wyatt is not Shawn Michaels, Triple H, or The Rock. Hell, Miz went into Wrestlemania 27 as the WWE Champion, and I had a lot of trouble buying into him as a threat to Cena.

The Shield split is coming. Although, Rollins' walk out surprised me. With the way things are going, Dean Ambrose was the obvious choice to turn his back on The Shield, because Rollins' is the peacemaker between Regins and Ambrose.

Smart move on WWE's part with Aaron Paul and Need For Speed. Ziggler is an easy fan favorite for a smarky crowd, so in a lot of ways, Ziggler played the role of a shield/distraction for Paul to save him from a hostile reaction. On the other hand, Del Rio's post WHC slide continues.

I'm still having trouble warming up to the introduction of Rusev, but I can blame my lack of NXT on that.

I only stuck around for a few scones on the Divas match. Took one glimpse of a Bella Twin (couldn't tell if it was Nikki or Brie), and I started flipping through the channels again.

I'm looking forward to Cesaro and Swagger at Wrestlemania. It'll be interesting to see if Zeb sides with Swagger, or if he deices to abandon both men during the conflict, because with Cesaro as a face, I can't picture a paring with Zeb working out.

As far as Big. E goes, I thought about the possibility of WWE using the Lesnar attacks on Henry as a catalyst for Big. E VS Henry at Wrestlemania. Henry could turn on Big. E with some "Where were you?" finger pointing during the Lesnar attacks, and Big. E can have his moment with a win over Henry at Wrestlemania.

The Usos win over The NAO for the titles shocked the hell out of me, because I was sure WWE wanted to save the moment of The Usos first title win for Wrestlemania. Still, it's a good move, and it's long overdue. The NAO have a short shelf life, so they can't rely on nostalgia for a lengthy and sustained run as champs.

The Batista/Bryan match wasn't anything special, but after all the chaos at the end, you can say there's still some hope for Bryan in the WWE WHC. Triple H refused Bryan's challenge again, and I'm not sold on WWE allowing a heel VS heel match up for the world title at Wrestlemania. Bryan is the saving grace for that match, and it's as simple as that.

The Chicago crowd maintained a rowdy atmosphere with heckling ("asshole" chants) and CM Punk chants, but WWE persevered in the end. With Heyman's opening promo, Triple H and Stephanie's in-ring segment with Bryan, and the melee at the end, WWE delivered a swift kick in the nuts to the Chicago crowd.

The fans didn't hijack anything, and truth be told, the CM Punk chants hit an annoying point after 9:00, because you had to know he wasn't going to show up. The crowd popped for The Usos win, they booed all the heels (Heyman, Lesnar, Triple H, Batista, Stephanie, etc.), and we saw another hot crowd for Daniel Bryan. Yeah, WWE walked into a furnace filled with disgruntled smarks, but in the grand scheme of things, I'll remember last night's Raw as another "business as usual" show.

 

[ASKane]

Well that Raw sucked. In order not to spam here are my reasons why

1. Hogan joined the growing list of legends to kiss Cena's ass

2. LL Cool J and Chris O'Donell joined the growing list of celebrities to kiss Cena's ass

3. Cena did everything possible to make Bray not seem a credible opponent even going as far as to call him a hobo

4. Cena v Rowen. When you put the worst wrestler in the Wyatt family against one of the worst wrestlers in the company, what do you expect is going to happen? That's right a bad match

5. Bray v Cena was announced for Mania when a third match with the Shield would be a far more entertaining a productive use of Bray Wyatt's time

6. RybAxel get a match against the tag champions and Dolph Ziggler doesn't even appear

7. The intercontinental champion is being used purely as the third wheel in the Real American break up instead of getting a feud of his own

8. Heyman kisses Cena's ass by comparing him to legends such as Savage, Hogan and Austin

9. AJ gets pinned 24 hours before defending her title against a different opponent. It would have been ok for Natalya to pin AJ but having Nikki win then lift the title is just stupid

10. Occupy Raw took far longer than it should have and looking back was a waste of about 25 minutes of time that could have seen guys like Ziggler, Barrett, Miz, Kofi, Sandow, Ambrose and Cesaro wrestle

11. Damien Sandow's only appearance on Raw in a few weeks is to show up to a match he apparently had been scheduled to appear in and then not have once the ring is cleared

12. WWE implied that they only had 2 security guards in the entire building as they were the only ones who showed up to clear the ring

13. Street Fight = Falls Count Anywhere

14. Sheamus v Christian round 1000

15. More advertising of the WWE network by Michael Cole. If I ever saw him I imagine the first thing he would say to me would be about the app or network and my response would be a punch to the face

16. GM of Raw only appears for less than a minute on Raw

17. Rusev promo number 15(just a guess but 8 Raws and 7 SDs is probably not that far off what it is)

18. Break within the first 2 minutes of a Main Event match when 1 guy already had his entrance during the ad break. WWE need more guys to have their entrances during ad breaks to have more time for wrestling.

19. WWE thinks the best way to prove Batista deserves to be in the main event is to have him repeatedly lose. Batista has only won the Rumble, 1 match against Del Rio and 1 against Ziggler in the 2 months since he returned as a full time wrestler

20. The announcing on the show was terrible as always because in most matches they barely talked about the actual wrestling and were more focused on what is going to happen at Mania or just bickering with each other about anything except the action in the ring.

Worst Raw of the Year as I only had 1 segment I liked and that was yet again the Shield putting on the match of the night. That's my opinion whats yours

 

[The Eighties]

I missed the first 15 minutes of Ra\w as I didn't realize it started early. I tuned in just in time to see Cena pin Rowan and then celebrate with Hogan which I thought was fun.

Triple H and Steph coming out in full smug mode to set up the apology by Bryan for later was short and effective.

The Usos had a match against Rybaxel that was ok, but I wish the Outlaws weren't still lingering around the tag title scene, the little nostalgia run was fun but I'd prefer The Usos get fresh challengers now.

Big E vs Swagger was irrelevant and pretty much just used to further tensions between Swagger and Cesaro.

The Undertaker segment was ok, I thought Heyman's promo was a great presentation of the streak and it's Legacy. I thought Taker was supposed to make some announcement but he just did a quick rest in peace line to end the segment.

The Divas tag match was ok but I hated the way it ended with Cena's Bella holding the title most likely foreshadowing her winning it at Mania, I mean they both are irritating but Brie is more bearable and a slightly better worker if one of then has to win it.

I liked The Shield's interaction with Kane, their cocky defiance made me feel like it might have been the start of a group face turn with the split being held off.

The Shield vs The Rhodes was match of the night, just excellent tag team wrestling from the two best teams on the roster. The Shield picking up the clean win with no signs of friction is hopefully an indication that the split is being held off for now.

The Occupy Raw segment was amazing and really well conducted by Bryan, he did a great job working the chaos and Triple H and Steph sold it the way it needed to be sold. I think the segment had to run long in order to have the effect of finally cracking Triple H and Steph's smug veneer.

As heels Triple H and Steph finally gave some pay-off from this Authority angle, by the end Steph's voice was cracking as she shrieked at Bryan and Triple H giving into his demands and yelling at Bryan as security hauled him off was fantastic. This was the perfect way to finally lock in the Bryan vs Triple H match by the face one-upping the heels, and when Bryan stopped Hunter to add one more demand the place went nuts The stage is now set for that full pay-off at Mania.

The Memphis crowd lost none of their steam and got right into the Sheamus vs Christian match, these two guys busted their asses and Christian lost for the 4th time in succession, that needs to be the end of the rivalry.

I loved Bray's promo on Cena, especially the line where he asked him if he saw his future when he looked at Hogan, he then accepted the match with Cena at Mania, so another one is set in stone.

The Rusev segments are not getting great responses but personally as a fan who grew up on old monster heels I like them. I think he's the ideal guy to win the Andre Memorial Battle Royale.

The main event was a solid tag match that I expected to feature some sort of confrontation between Orton and Batista, but even the brief miscommunication between the two didn't lead anywhere.

I thought this was the kind of show where the heels could get the finish, whether it was Triple H returning for a sneak attack or Batista pinning show and Batista bombing Bryan, but this show was on a 'please the fans' mode setting and Bryan hitting Batista with his finisher before nailing Orton as well and pinning him cemented a great night for the bearded hero, who ended Raw on his own leading the YES! chants.

 

[The Eighties]

This was a well booked show, especially the way the main event angle played out across the 3 hours.

The opening promo between the former Evolution members was solid, Orton and Batista essentially threw things at each other that many fans have been saying about them since January. The whole thing built logical friction between all 3 men and gave the reasoning for Triple H to add the extra stip to his match with Bryan after losing his cool with both.

The Usos vs The Real Americans was a good match with a killer finish. I'd personally be happy to see a straight up rematch between these two teams for the titles at Mania.

The Cena/Bray promo segment saw both men deliver, I liked Cena's approach to this whole legacy angle, he's never been concerned with fans hating him, but he's concerned that fans will buy into the claims he is a phony, I thought it was a smart way to go and Cena's delivery was earnest. Between these promos and the video package they showed later on I became slightly more sold on this feud.

Bryan vs Orton in a No DQ match produced the usual top quality action we get from this combination, I thought Orton in particular was really on tonight. Batista running in and giving Orton a receipt for the earlier RKO leading to Bryan pinning Orton yet again, keeps the revolving issues going between the 4 men circling the WWE title.

The segment with Kane, Lawler and The Shield was reasonably well done and I like that they are keeping the trio together for the time being. Now we just need Kane to unveil their replacements and get the Mania 6 man tag made.

The 8 man tag designed to promote the participants for the Andre the Giant Battle Royal seemed to be enjoyed by the live crowd, and I thought it produced a fairly fun match that had a lot of talk on commentary about Ziggler getting back on track, which personally pleases me.

Bray vs Kofi was pretty much a squash with Bray delivering plenty of hefty looking offense.

I thought the final segment was great heel booking, Triple H's respect promo was ok but at first I thought he was regressing back to this non committal stuff he'd been doing, especially coupled with the opening segment where he almost played face. However once Steph brought the "cops" I knew it was on and Triple H pretty much Dusty'd Bryan as a one man version of the 4 Horsemen.

It went on a bit long but was brutal and raw, the crowd getting louder and louder as the beating continued and Bryan tried bravely to fight back. As viscous as Triple H was Steph was much scarier, screeching encouragement to her husband like a demented harpy having an orgasm.

The smug power couple standing over the fallen Bryan elicited a lot of heat from the crowd and this was the ideal segment to build off last weeks Occupy Raw greatness as feuds need to ebb and flow.

 

[WarroBODFan]

I don't want to call it a FULL face turn as we don't really know what the future holds for them and what their program is for WM30, but I marked the hell out during the Kane/Lawler/Shield segment when The Shield turned on Corporate Kane. Few months ago, I was ready for the split, and excited to see how they'd do as singles competitors. Now, I'm fully sold on keeping the trio together and extracting as much as possible out of them.

 

[Jack-Hammer]

This was a well booked show, especially the way the main event angle played out across the 3 hours.

The opening promo between the former Evolution members was solid, Orton and Batista essentially threw things at each other that many fans have been saying about them since January. The whole thing built logical friction between all 3 men and gave the reasoning for Triple H to add the extra stip to his match with Bryan after losing his cool with both.

The Usos vs The Real Americans was a good match with a killer finish. I'd personally be happy to see a straight up rematch between these two teams for the titles at Mania.

The Cena/Bray promo segment saw both men deliver, I liked Cena's approach to this whole legacy angle, he's never been concerned with fans hating him, but he's concerned that fans will buy into the claims he is a phony, I thought it was a smart way to go and Cena's delivery was earnest. Between these promos and the video package they showed later on I became slightly more sold on this feud.

Bryan vs Orton in a No DQ match produced the usual top quality action we get from this combination, I thought Orton in particular was really on tonight. Batista running in and giving Orton a receipt for the earlier RKO leading to Bryan pinning Orton yet again, keeps the revolving issues going between the 4 men circling the WWE title.

The segment with Kane, Lawler and The Shield was reasonably well done and I like that they are keeping the trio together for the time being. Now we just need Kane to unveil their replacements and get the Mania 6 man tag made.

The 8 man tag designed to promote the participants for the Andre the Giant Battle Royal seemed to be enjoyed by the live crowd, and I thought it produced a fairly fun match that had a lot of talk on commentary about Ziggler getting back on track, which personally pleases me.

Bray vs Kofi was pretty much a squash with Bray delivering plenty of hefty looking offense.

I thought the final segment was great heel booking, Triple H's respect promo was ok but at first I thought he was regressing back to this non committal stuff he'd been doing, especially coupled with the opening segment where he almost played face. However once Steph brought the "cops" I knew it was on and Triple H pretty much Dusty'd Bryan as a one man version of the 4 Horsemen.

It went on a bit long but was brutal and raw, the crowd getting louder and louder as the beating continued and Bryan tried bravely to fight back. As viscous as Triple H was Steph was much scarier, screeching encouragement to her husband like a demented harpy having an orgasm.

The smug power couple standing over the fallen Bryan elicited a lot of heat from the crowd and this was the ideal segment to build off last weeks Occupy Raw greatness as feuds need to ebb and flow.

I agree with all this. I thought the show was well booked from top to bottom last night. There was a little bit of filler here and there, but most of what happened had a genuine purpose. Lots of good storytelling going on last night, especially for Bryan vs. Triple H. The beating was excellent, Triple H looked downright vicious, much more so than we've seen in quite a while. They built some major league heat for both Trips and Stephanie. Bryan's little dig about Stephanie hitting "like a girl" is a nice insult to her character. Bryan was very sympathetic here and the fans popped for the brief bouts of offense he was able to get in, but there's ultimately very little you can do with your hands cuffed behind your back.

Last night's wrestling content may not have been as strong overall as we've seen in recent weeks, but there were still some good matches. Last night, however, was all about storytelling. I'm intrigued to see where they go with The Shield, John Cena admitting that he's "afraid of Bray Wyatt" went a long way in making Wyatt stand out from being just someone else looking to take out Cena, The Real Americans scoring a big win might put them in a tag title match for WrestleMania, Paul Heyman continues to shine in his current role & the video package last night was extremely well done, and I'm more interested then ever in Bryan vs. Triple H. Lots of good stuff last night.

 

[JoeyJoeJoe]

I thought the Bryan/Trips stuff was fantastic, and it's easily the most exciting feud going on right now. Adding the extra stipulation that if Triple H wins the match, he'll be in the main event makes sense to me; He's easily the most hated heel in the WWE right now -- Batista and Randy Orton are way behind him in terms of the response they get. It also adds a lot of what if scenarios to WrestleMania, including the possibility that the main event somehow turns into a Fatal Four match. It's just sad that the actual World Champion, and the Royal Rumble winner are on the outside of this feud, looking in.

On the flip side, if it weren't for Paul Heyman, I couldn't care less about Undertaker and Brock Lesnar. I think it was Madden who said a couple of weeks ago that these guys are phoning it in on the set up to the match, and that's never been more evident in the past two raws. Undertaker has a special announcement? No, not really. It's just a ploy to get Heyman back out onstage delivering another great promo so that Undertaker really doesn't have to work to sell the angle. Dismantling your opponent in one segment and then never having any kind of retribution except Heyman coming out and making threats does not a compelling match make. The match isn't Undertaker Vs. Heyman.

 

[gbast]

The final segment was well put together and logical, but I felt a lot of the potential power was lost because they've done so many Bryan beatdown segments in the last six months. Hell right after Summerslam they had a straight string of SEVEN shows that ended with Bryan laid out.

So it's a very "been there done that" feeling. Even if the segment was good, it's not anything I haven't seen before outside of being more brutal.

 

[@smarkmouth]

The final segment was well put together and logical, but I felt a lot of the potential power was lost because they've done so many Bryan beatdown segments in the last six months. Hell right after Summerslam they had a straight string of SEVEN shows that ended with Bryan laid out.

So it's a very "been there done that" feeling. Even if the segment was good, it's not anything I haven't seen before outside of being more brutal.

I have mixed feelings about what you say. I agree that perhaps the segment could have had more impact were it not something we've seen often since August. Two counterpoints, though.

Those beatdowns have only served to get Daniel Bryan even more over than he was. Whether or not that was by design is in question, but the crowd has been hot for DB getting his hands on HHH and/or the championship for months, in no small part due to these attacks.

Secondly, this was Triple H getting his hands dirty. Not Big Show, not The Shield, not Orton. This wasn't even H's with a heat-of-the-moment attack. This was a deliberate, continuous attack from The Game, not the COO having others do his dirty work.

Were it not Wrestlemania, where it would be purchased anyway, then I'd say that Triple H and Daniel Bryan sold this PPV last night. Bravo!

 

[LBGetBack]

Well, that was quite the beating. Definitely very effective. I thought HHH was doing his play both sides crap again, so I was really glad to see him go full vicious heel out there.

And Stephanie? She was damn near getting off on that beating. LOL. With the way she's basically untouchable, she might end up being the biggest and best heel they've had in a LONG time. Maybe since Vince himself. She can't get beat up because she's a female, nobody can do anything about anything she does because she's in power, and she's completely hellbent on being the biggest bitch imaginable. And she's good at it. Heat magnet! Keep going with it!

Really enjoying the Bryan-HHH stuff.

And Heyman did a great job. I mean, Brock and Taker aren't even there and Paul is so good that he can stir the feud himself.

 

[WarroBODFan]

The ending has certainly had the desired effect. Borderline uncomfortable to watch, but not to the point where someone could have a legitimate gripe about crossing that PG line.

I have to hand it to both Stephanie and HHH. They've really taken their heel personas to the level required to make this a Wrestlemania 30 worthy feud, and it's certainly there now. Not that it wasn't before, but I'm damn near more excited about DB v HHH than I am about the possibility of DB in the main event. Going more specifically to what happened on last night's Raw, that evil, calculated setup has taken it up a notch. Do I still think Daniel Bryan will win? Yes. Do I think they'll put on one hell of a vicious, vindictive match that will make us mark the hell out? Yes. That last question, I was unsure about until last night.

 

[The Eighties]

I wasn't a big fan of tonight's show, I didn't really dig the promos for the main event angle, especially the long winded Triple H promo, and I wasn't really into the celebrity stuff or the goofy final segment.

In the first half of the show the only thing I really liked was the Fatal 4 Way to determine a #1 contender to face Big E for the IC title on Main Event. Ziggler, Del Rio, Sheamus and Christian put their all into the match and Christian winning with a sneaky pin on Dolph worked well enough, he's the ideal veteran heel to work with Big E.

I really enjoyed the Cena vs Harper match, not only was it very good but Cena selling the idea that Bray has gotten in his head was great and the way it ended with him tied in the ropes, wearing the sheep mask as Bray acted creepy behind him was a really effective image.

The booking of The Shield also continued to be excellent as they took care of business on Raw by getting even with the teams that attacked them on SD (bar the mighty 3MB). I like how they haven't changed their attitude or MO just because they are faces now, they destroyed Rybaxel, then Rollins & Ambrose had a fantastic match with the Real Americans before the trio put Cesaro through a table, great stuff.

 

[TWJC: The Beginning]

Really enjoyed Raw. Lots of big names and angles mixed with great in ring action.

The fatal fourway, Cena/Wyatt and tag match stick out the most. Cena/Wyatts was a great angle. The Triple H promo was very good. Schwartzenegger and Hogan in the same ring? Just a wide variety of appeal on the show tonight.

I liked the ending segment. Solid show overall.

 

[Jack-Hammer]

I was a little letdown by the show in some ways. The stuff with "Scooby-Doo" and Schwarzenegger felt like some of the crappy guest host/star segments that they were doing in 2010. They served no real purpose that I could see, other than the possibility of having people tune in to see what they'd do just for the novelty of it. The stuff with the Divas and the Big Show vs. Titus O'Neil match was pure, 100% filler. To me, that stuff simply didn't come off like it belonged on an episode of Raw 2 weeks before WrestleMania.

There were three really good matches on last night's show. The fourway #1 contender's match was a lot of fun and packed a lot of energy. I like WWE's formula for these matches in that they're almost always able to find the right balance; they keep the match energetic while not letting it descend into mindless chaos. All four guys looked really good and had a chance to shine. Sheamus looked like a beast hoisting Del Rio off the canvas the way he did; it's not an easy thing to do, especially when you take into account that Del Rio's about 6'4" or 6'5" and about 240 pounds or so. Ziggler nailing the Zig Zag while Sheamus had him up was a great spot and Christian's timing was spot on. The crowd was white hot for it too, so that helped as well. I thought it was a fun 3.5 star match.

Cena vs. Harper was more along the lines of what I was hoping for this past Friday. Harper continues to be a very pleasant surprise in the ring as he consistently has strong matches as a singles guy. I thought they also did a great job of telling a story with Cena's mind being cluttered and his attention being skewed due to Wyatt getting in his head. It was a New York crowd, so I wasn't surprised they were pretty anti-Cena. I was a little surprised to hear such strong "Let's Go Harper!" chants. The ending with Cena being tied up in the ropes wearing Rowan's sheep mask was a nice touch, better than going with a traditional beatdown in this case. We've already seen Cena get that, so this fits in well with the head games Bray Wyatt's been playing. I thought it was another 3.5 star match, it might be ranked a little too high, but I sometimes give matches a little extra boost if they exceed expectations.

The Shield vs. The Real Americans was a strong tag team showing and, again, the crowd was really hot for it. WWE may be highest on Roman Reigns but, personally, Seth Rollins is the guy that's been emerging as the real find in my eyes over the course of the past several weeks. He's loaded with energy, intensity, passion and he's flat out great inside the ring. Of course, all three guys have been great, but Rollins has elevated himself in my eyes the last little while. While I'm fine with a clean win, I kinda would've preferred Kane & The Outlaws interfere so as to help protect The Real Americans. After all, along with Rybaxel, they're #1 contenders for the tag titles. I know they won't win and their match will probably result in them breaking up, but still. I thought the match was about 3.25 stars, maybe 3.5 as well.

The main promo segments were well done, in my eyes. The opening was a bit of a mess but considering the storyline behind it, I thought it worked. It's great that Daniel Bryan's gotten so much attention in things, but I do think that the tension with Orton, Batista and The Authority needed a little beefing up. Triple H's sit down interview with Michael Cole was well done, and I like it more when Triple H is in "Game Mode" at this particular time. I like him as the condescending, arrogant executive, but this is more the Triple H of old that we've seen the past few weeks. Heading into WrestleMania, that's the way it should be. The confrontation with Taker & Lesnar did its job. I think it was pretty obvious what was gonna happen, but that's not necessarily a bad thing in this case. To me, Taker looks to be in better shape than he was at this time last year. I think that MAYBE Paul Bearer's death last year may have contributed to that to some degree as well. He & Taker were friends since Taker was first breaking into the business He seemed a little pale and pudgier last year, but it looks like he's been hitting the gym more. Since he looks healthier, it makes me feel a little more at ease with his match against Lesnar.

Last night's show had a good amount of filler and Daniel Bryan not being on the show many have hurt it in some people's eyes. At the same time, it has me all the more anxious to see what he does for the go home show next week. I thought last night's show, overall, was about a B-.

 

[MCMG]

I thought this was a great Raw. For some reason, I thought this was going to be a letdown but I enjoyed it. There were some great matches: the fatal 4 way; Cena/Harper and The Shield vs The Real Americans. I thought these matches helped to show Ziggler, Harper and Rollins in a good light.

Lesnar/Taker was formulaic but I enjoyed it. Those two in a ring is magical and, no matter what, Taker's presence works. The ending to the Cena match was awesome and it for all the Cena underdog storylines, this is one of my favourites. The Orton/Batista/Steph segment was pretty strong and it was good to have Batista shine a little more. They also got a couple of celebrities in the ring which is always a good thing.

The interview with Triple H was fantastic. He is such an incredible heel and, even without Bryan, I'm excited for the match.

This Raw ticked all the boxes. They hyped up all the main matches as well as finalising the card. There were also some good matches that made younger superstars look great which isn't always a given at Wrestlemania season.

 

[The Fabulous Rougeau's]

Overall a good show. I just about jumped out of my chair when I saw the shirt Brock was wearing. The Mania card is starting to fill out with the additions of the Diva's and 6 man tag match.

Really looking forward to next weeks show and the Orton/Batista match. Now that were guaranteed at least a 3rd participant in the WWE World Title match I like the decision of showing Orton/Batista on Raw. Also looking forward to see what happens between Brock and Taker. Taker has gotten the upper hand during the entire build. I would expect Brock to come out on top on the go home show. It will be interesting to see how physical they let Brock get with Taker on Raw.

 

[closet_fan]

I liked everything about the show except the beginning. It seems everything Batista touches or does turns to shit. The guy is talking on a mic that doesn't work, Steph has to tell him "Dude, shut up. You're talking on a mic that doesn't work." Then the skit just went downhill. It's like Dave couldn't get back on track again.

His return couldn't have been more of a disaster so far.

 

[TWJC: The Beginning]

I liked everything about the show except the beginning. It seems everything Batista touches or does turns to shit. The guy is talking on a mic that doesn't work, Steph has to tell him "Dude, shut up. You're talking on a mic that doesn't work." Then the skit just went downhill. It's like Dave couldn't get back on track again.

His return couldn't have been more of a disaster so far.

That's why I liked it. In this "reality" era. Everyone knows Dave is trash. The fans know, Steph knows, Dave probably even knows. Him looking like a huge tool just made it even better lol.

I'd like to see Dave act even more douchy if that's possible. Put him in an affliction shirt maybe iunno.

 

[blueskyy]

It was a good raw for me, no point rehashing what's good and what's not as I share the general consensus of the few comments before me -- if it's good, it's good. The problem with me is I usually come here to rant, or listen to people rant, or at least that's what I used to do. When the programming is up on par for me, I tend to be real quiet.

 

[TWJC: The Beginning]

Good Raw even though I only caught the last hour and a half. Cena coming out with the sheep head was cool. The angle at the end was cool. HHH trying to get Batista and Orton to soften each other up. Daniel Bryan closing on top.

From what I saw the in ring quality wasn't as good as last week but you want your guys taking it easy to not get hurt. Good go home show.

 

[The Eighties]

I was tired last night so I wasn't as focused on Raw as usual, and as far as matches go the only one that stood out was the 8 man tag that promoted the pre-show Tag title match for Mania, although the short Reigns/Kane match was better than I expected.

Since it's so fuzzy I'm just gonna stick to the stuff that they did as the final promotional push for this Sunday's Mania matches.

The Taker/Lesnar build has been the dullest streak match build since Mania 22 in my view, despite JBL yelling and selling on the mic Lesnar getting in a cheap shot and one F5 didn't do anything to elevate any belief that Lesnar is a threat to the streak, this rivalry needed Brock to give Taker a beating like Triple H gave Bryan,

The Piper's Pit segment did it's job pretty well, it got the main guys from the Andre Battle Royal their time and it's always fun to see Hot Rod, especially on the exact day 29 years on from Mania 1.

I liked the promo from The Shield, the slight shift to badass faces is working for them and as I said Kane vs Reigns was ok. I think the match-up is a weak use of them at Mania but they'll mine what they can from it.

AJ vs Naomi was ok and it laid out the story that AJ is trapped at Mania well enough, it's just a shame that the Divas get such a clusterfuck of a match for the biggest stage of them all.

The final push for Cena/Wyatt was probably the strongest thing on the show, Bray and Cena both cut good promos and the angle with Cena appearing behind the Wyatt's in the sheep mask was really well done.

The main event stuff was simple but worked well enough. The way Triple H and Steph played up to their (probably well deserved) reputations was great as they stood there oozing smugness and superiority, the video package was a nice touch. Batista and Orton have done their best to seem relevant in this but Batista's jabs at Triple H and Steph just feel like the left over remnants of what might have been if Punk had stayed. Thar's the onbe thing the angle has missed, a promo from a face that shreds Triple H and Steph the way they do to others.

The No DQ match between Orton and Batista to close things out served as a nice strategic move from The Authority and Trips and Steph hammed it up on commentary. The roof came off when Bryan attacked Trips and he sold it brilliantly, it was a great tease of the pay-off that should come at Mania in their match and felt every bit the mark out moment many have wanted since Summerslam.

I thought it was good that Bryan came through the crowd without music, I just wish he'd been in street clothes instead of his full wrestling gear, minor gripe I know but if they are pushing for the reality era then little things make the difference.

The final image of Bryan standing on the turnbuckle leading thre YES! chants as Trips & Steph scrambled up the ramp with shock on their faces, while Cole laid out what Bryan has to do one last time, was pretty much the perfect ending to the go home show.