LSN's Raw Hits and Misses for 3/13/2012
Raw Hits:
John Cena's rap: First off, I enjoyed the old throwback with Cena's old music and former look. When Cena was the Dr. of Thuganomics, he either came out dressed in the jersey of the city's player he was appearing in, or in their rival's jersey when he was a heel. So nostalgia is part of what made this a hit for me.
What I loved the most is that Cena continues to be self-deprecating, which leaves Rock with no ammunition against him. Tonight was no different. Further, despite taking several "non-PG" digs at Rock, Cena continued to focus on the importance of the
match between he and Rock. In between Tooth Fairy's and Cleveland Steamers, Cena placed top priority on the importance of winning the match in the context of the rap. This was a nice breather from the intense segments from the past few weeks between Cena and Rock, and it was smart to keep them apart for a week, as I imagine they'll go into overdrive in the next two weeks leading up to Wrestlemania.
Dolph Ziggler vs Sheamus: I liked the skybox approach they took with Wade Barrett when he was feuding with Randy Orton, and I liked it here as well with Daniel Bryan and AJ. As for Sheamus, he continues to plow through the upper mid-card of Raw and Smackdown, but tonight, in a far more competitive and longer match then usual. Was the outcome ever in doubt? No. But Ziggler unsurprisingly shined in the 12 minutes the two were given, and Sheamus continues to build momentum on the way to his title match at Wrestlemania. It's a simple story of the man who won the Rumble wants the title, and is being built up as the easy favorite. It almost makes me wonder if they'll swerve us and have Bryan retain, but that's doubtful with the momentum they've put behind Sheamus. A solid match and another good win for Sheamus over a credible opponent.
***
HBK and The Undertaker: As I mentioned earlier, I feel it was a good idea for Cena and Rock to get a breather of sorts, allowing other feuds to get some shine. Though the Jericho promo may be the most memorable moment from tonight's show, this was easily the best overall segment on the show. Shawn was fantastic in his tweener role, provoking the Undertaker. Last week, he planted seeds of dissension that he would screw HHH, and planted those same seeds with regards to Undertaker as well. I was unsure about inserting HBK into the match, as I felt Hell In a Cell was big enough, but HBK is the true wild card here that makes this match close to a toss-up. I still fully believe Undertaker will win, but the build is doing it's damndest to plant those seeds of doubt. Having HHH come out and exchange glances with Undertaker before crotch chopping him played on a possible alliance even further. Great segment.
James Roday: He's my favorite actor, and was genuinely funny both in his backstage interactions with Miz and Ace and his in-ring announcing. For those who watch the show, the wrestling lingo that's thrown around sometimes on
Psych indicates that he has a genuine passion for the wrestling product as well. He wasn't overexposed, and truly seemed to enjoy himself. Further, his involvement with Miz seems to indicate that Miz has a true storyline going forward, and isn't simply being squashed week in and week out like a common jobber. Pure entertainment from Roday, even though he missed his cue terribly in announcing Punk as the winner of the match between he and Miz.
Chris Jericho promo: Am I a fan of incorporating real life issues into storylines? No. But this worked on so many levels. For the average viewer, here's all the ammunition you need to truly want to see Chris Jericho get his ass kicked at Wrestlemania. That's perfect storytelling. The manipulative, shameless heel crosses the line, and suddenly the babyface champion who has never come across as terribly sympathetic looks incredibly so. The lack of a rebuttal from Punk was the appropriate response as well, as he sold Jericho's promo on his dad and his alcoholism as a kick to the nuts. Perfect execution here by both Jericho and Punk, and this feud has truly been taken to that "next level."
Randy Orton vs Jack Swagger: Another match in which the outcome was never in doubt, but it was a much more competitive affair then I expected. Orton and Swagger both sold great for the other, and I was surprised Swagger got so much offense in. Of course, he means so little that there was no chance of him winning then match, but he's enhanced by looking strong against Orton. The post-match pyro and red lights were predictable as some Kane presence was predictable. Personally, I'd prefer mind games later, with an explanation as to why this feud is happening first. But that doesn't diminish a solid outing from Orton and Swagger.
**1/4.
Hype for Christian's return: Although this is obviously a vehicle to hype the 6 on 6 tag match to determine the fate of the GM's, it presented Christian as important, which is something WWE was failing utterly in doing before his injury. Simple and effective.
Raw Misses:
"Rock" concert: If you see my signature below, you know there's an inherent bias here. To be honest, I found Rock to be entertaining, enjoyable, and laugh out loud funny. And this was also a waste of 20 minutes. It was nothing more then the Rock recycling the same insultsfrom the past- Ones that Cena has already called him out on- in song form. It did nothing to hype Wrestlemania, as there was nary a mention of Rock's desire to
beat Cena at Wrestlemania. I don't mind the breather before they go into the hard sell the next two weeks, but something of substance from Rock would have been nice. There wasn't any of that to find here.
Zack Ryder and Eve: Eve's enhanced look aside, this program, wherever it's headed, is a total mess. Ryder was one of the hottest commodities in the company just a few short months ago, and he looks like nothing more then a complete tool to get over Eve's heel persona. He's apparently forgotten about the US title, and Kane brutally attacking him 15 times. I'm not a huge Ryder fan, but there's no denying his popularity, and WWE is dropping the ball in a major way with regards to his character, in a way he'll likely never recover from.
Brodus Clay returns: I thought they'ld hold off from bringing him back until after Wrestlemania, but they brought him back tonight for what? To show that he could squash another lower-card heel? It's already been established he's capable of doing that, so this felt like nothing more then filler. There's always the possibility he'll factor into the Laurinitis/Long feud due to Laurinitis delaying his debut and then pulling him off the show for a month, but if not, this was a waste of ten minutes, nine minutes of dancing, that should have been otherwise used for hyping Wrestlemania.
The battle of the GM's: First off, we have the new US champion getting squashed. Yes, I realize Santino is portrayed as a comedy character, but he's also the captain of Teddy Long's team, where he's, you know, fighting for his job? The match and aftermath did a nice job of re-asserting Henry as a dominant heel, and making it seem as if the odds are stacked against Long and his team. Unless this is an elimination match, making this a 12 man tag match is a mistake, as the GM's will completely overshadow the wrestlers as they've already done at every turn. I'd much rather have seen both GM's pick a representative to fight for them, freeing up some of the other talent to flesh out a very weak undercard.
Final Thoughts:
This was a very good show, with a nice couple of twists introduced. The Jericho/Punk feud has progressed from two men fighting over "Best in the World" into something personal, but in a positive way. Part of being the best is being able to find weaknesses in an opponent, and exploit them, and Jericho did that masterfully tonight, and Punk sold it like a pro. The HHH/Undertaker match continues to benefit from the presence of HBK, who prevents a true sense of suspense and doubt through his role as guest referee, and the seeds planted that he could turn on one or the other. Cena and Rock got a nice breather before they go into "hard sell" mode the next two weeks. And while the outcomes were predictable, we were given two highly competitive, well-wrestled matches with Sheamus/Ziggler and Orton/Swagger. James Roday was entertaining and didn't get in the way, and he re-inforced that there's a definite storyline in play for Miz, despite another squash. The battle of the GM's is a mess, Rock's concert was entertaining but did nothing in terms of plugging Wrestlemania, and the timing of bringing Brodus back is questionable. But the negatives are minor compared to the positives, as most of the Wrestlemania feuds are being pushed along nicely. I'll go with a
B+ for this show.
