Raw: 8/29/11
Opening Segment
This opening segment featured some good tension and there was a little bit of comedy here, because CM Punk’s dry heave act was hilarious. Punk continued to push Triple H’s buttons, as he took shots at his marriage to Stephanie and his friendship with Kevin Nash, and Nash questioned HHH’s manhood. It was an uncomfortable situation for the COO, because HHH probably wanted to knock CM Punk’s lights out, but HHH isn’t a full-time wrestler anymore. He’s the man with the authority and he wears a suit. He has to be the bigger man, and he must remain a professional. I enjoyed this segment, and this was a nice way to kick off the show. Also, hearing the old NWO theme on a televised wrestling show brought back some good memories for me. The NWO was a huge part of my childhood, and I’ve always loved this theme. Punk VS Nash could have some potential, because there has been a nice build between these two. Both men despise each other, and Nash caused Punk to lose his WWE Championship, so Punk does have a reason for wanting revenge.
HHH’s big announcement of the ending of the brand split did feel surprising, and this announcement can bring some major changes to WWE. The possibilities for different rivalries could be endless, and it’ll be interesting to see how this affects the championships.
Randy Orton VS Dolph Ziggler
Excellent match. There was some pretty good back and forth action throughout this entire match, and this match did have a nice flow. Ziggler was able to hold his own against the World Heavyweight Champion, and Dolph did look pretty good here. Vickie’s presence was felt in this match, as she distracted the referee, but her brief moment of interference didn’t drag this match down at all, and this was a nice way to kick off another big change in the HHH era.
Match Rating- 8/10
John Cena
Cena wanted a piece of Alberto Del Rio, but the champ didn’t bite here. Mark Henry and Christian decided to interrupt, and their presence made this segment a whole lot more interesting. Christian sounded like a hypocrite, as he called Cena out on his complaining, and Cena provided some laughs, as he made fun of Mark Henry’s bad breath and Christian’s tan. This was a nice little segment, and there was some solid mic work from all three men.
CM Punk VS The Miz
This match did have a steady pace, and there was some decent back and forth action here. R-Truth’s interference ended this one, and Kevin Nash came down to confront Punk. Punk tried to fight off all three men, but the numbers game eventually caught up with him. Nash drilled Punk with another power bomb, and the rivalry between these two men continues to heat up, because Punk will want some sort of physical revenge soon enough, and he could have his chance at the pay per view.
Match Rating- 7/10
Sin Cara VS Jack Swagger
There wasn’t too much focus on the match here, and this was pretty short. The Dolph/Vickie saga overshadowed what was going on in the ring, and this was just another way to further the storyline between these two.
Kofi Kingston & Evan Bourne VS David Otunga & Michael McGillicutty- WWE Tag Team Championships
This match was very short, and the new champs took care of Otunga and McGillicutty pretty quickly. There wasn’t anything special about this match, and this was very forgettable. Otunga and McGillicutty confronted Lawler after the match. They’re tired of Lawler trashing them on commentary, but I just don’t care about these two. Their reign (if you can even call it that) as Tag Team Champions wasn’t memorable at all, and when it comes to personality, these two can be very boring and bland. Otunga and McGillicutty VS Lawler might go somewhere, but I have no interest in this potential storyline.
Kelly Kelly/With Eve VS Brie Bella/With Niki Bella
Another short and forgettable match here. For the most part, this contest was pretty underwhelming, and I just couldn’t get into this. Also, there were a lot of outside distractions here. They cut to some footage of Natalya and Beth Phoenix backstage, and they’re still not happy about their positions in the Diva’s division. Eve tried to save Kelly from Brie’s baseball slide, but she caught some of the impact, and Niki won the match, as The Bellas pulled the Twin Magic trick. There was a lot of outside stuff going on here, and I just couldn’t focus on the action in the ring.
John Cena & Sheamus VS Mark Henry & Christian
Pretty decent main event here. This match started out kind of slow, but the action and the pace picked up towards the end, and Cena continues to build a good amount of momentum, as he heads into Night Of Champions. Also, I still can't believe Sheamus' popularity. I've been a fan of his from the start, and he did receive a nice reaction from the crowd on this show. Sheamus was one of the most hated heels in WWE last year, and his face turn has been unbelievable.
Match Rating- 6/10
Overall Show Rating 6/10: The announcement of Triple H VS CM Punk at Night Of Champions shocked me. I thought this match might take place at Wrestlemania, and I didn’t think The Game would step back in the ring so soon. I am looking forward to this match, and more information about the mysterious text message should be revealed , because I think this match will feature some outside interference, and Nash could be the man who causes a disruption here. Also, there was some tension between John Laurinaitis and HHH tonight. HHH had to remind Laurinaitis who the boss was. HHH had to let him know who was in charge. It was an uneasy moment as HHH and Laurinaitis exchanged a stare down backstage, and I could really feel the tension between these two. As far as the show goes, I thought this was a solid episode of Raw. The opening segment was pretty good, and the Ziggler/Orton match kept the momentum going, the main event was enjoyable, and the announcement of CM Punk VS HHH at Night Of Champions provided a good shock to close out the show.