WWE Friday Night Smackdown 3/4/11
March 4th, 2011
Quicken Loans Arena, Cleveland, Ohio
Attendance: ???
March 4th, 2011
Quicken Loans Arena, Cleveland, Ohio
Attendance: ???
Tonight we've got the Undertaker's big return to Smackdown after many months, as well as the contract signing for Edge and Alberto Del Rio's title match at Wrestlemania. Looks like a decent show on paper, so let's get to it.
We recap the events from last week with Vickie being fired before the show begins.
Your hosts are Michael Cole, Josh Matthews, and Booker T
We open the show with the World Heavyweight champion Edge making his way to the ring. His left arm is wrapped up, selling the armbar submission finisher that Del Rio used on him last week. He grabs a mic and says that he wants Alberto Del Rio to look in his eyes and see what it takes to main event Wrestlemania. He says his going-away party to Vickie last week was interrupted unjustly by Del Rio, but before he can get very far Drew McIntyre hits the ring suddenly, but Edge just tosses him over the top rope. This brings out Teddy Long who sets up a non-title match between Edge and McIntyre...right now! After a commercial break, actually.
Edge vs. Drew McIntyre
Drew is still pissed at Edge for getting Kelly Kelly fired weeks back and is even more pissed now after the loss to Edge and Kelly last week that got Vickie fired. Edge starts off hot with big kicks and forearms into the corner on Drew. Edge misses a shoulderblock attempt and Drew goes right to work on Edge's injured arm, wrenching it between the ropes and kicking it repeatedly. He slams Edge's arm over the ring apron and then slaps on a traditional armbar. Drew gives him a big boot that sends Edge to the floor outside and the ref starts the count. Drew follows him out of the ring and smashes his arm into the announcer's table, shouting "I'm going to end his career!" as he does it. Back in the ring Drew rips the bandages off of Edge's arm and goes to work again with the armbar, wrenching away on Edge'shoulder. He breaks free but Drew elbows him out of the ring. McIntyre comes out to follow up, but Edge gives him a back body drop on the floor! Back inside Edge comes off the top with a big cross-body. 1-2--NOO! Drew kicks out. Edge hits the spear suddenly, but he lifts Drew's shoulder up at the two count, apparently wanting to inflict more damage on McIntyre. Cole flips out as Edge slaps on the sharpshooter, and Drew taps out at 5:20. This was damn good for a 5 minute match, with McIntyre focusing on Edge's injured arm the whole match only for Edge to comeback with a few big moves win with a unique variation on the sharpshooter. Pretty damn good for a five minute match. **¾
After a commercial break Rey Mysterio's music hits...but out comes Cody Rhodes in a Mysterio mask, doing Rey's signature pyro stance. I've been a big critic of Cody in the past, but this feud with Rey so far has been excellent thanks to Cody's promo work and it has the potential to finally launch the kid into main event status if they end up having a great match at 'Mania, which I'm sure they will. Cody grabsa mic in the ring and has his creepy clear facemask on, crying angrily into the microphone "DON'T LOOK AT ME!" to the crowd. He talks to the crowd about the disappointment they felt when they saw Cody instead of Rey, and how that's the way they're going to feel when Cody destroys Rey. Cody challenges Rey to a match at Wrestlemania, and he makes a vow to remove Mysterio's mask and expose his face on the grandest stage of them all. EXCELLENT promo here with plenty of heat. I went from not caring for Cody to being a mark for the guy in a matter of weeks. Whoever is writing/booking this program is awesome.
Backstage we see the Corre confronting Kane, reminding him of their help way back in October at the Buried Alive match against his brother, saying they'll be glad to help Kane beat the Big Show tonight. Will Kane accept their help?
WWE Tag Team Title Match
Justin Gabriel/Heath Slater (C) vs. Santino Marella/Vladimir Kozlov
So Koztino finally invoked their rematch clause, and here we are. I've given up hope on the tag division ever becoming good again, so lets just go with it. Gabriel and Santino start with each man teasing strikes before locking up. Santino bodyslams Gabriel and then gives him an armdrag and tags Kozlov in. He throws Gabriel to the floor and both members of the Corre take a breather as we cut to a quick commercial break. When we return Kozlov is working a headlock on Slater in the ring. Wade Barrett sneaks in a cheap shot on Koz while the ref is distracted, and Gabriel tags in, choking Koz in the Corre's corner with the heel of his boot. Gabriel tries for a snapmare but Kozlov totally botches it and he just kind of rolls to his side instead. Communication problems between the two men in the ring perhaps? Gabriel slaps on a headlock but Kozlov counters with a backdrop suplex. Koz gets the hot tag to Santino, who cleans house with his unique offense, getting a two count with a diving headbutt on Slater. Koz gets tossed outside and Marella hits an STO on Slater and then calls for the Cobra. Barrett distracts him though and Slater pins Santino with a reverse DDT at 4:07. Not awful actually, decent formula stuff until the finish and Santino continues to be scary over. *½
After the match Josh Matthews announces that Christian will make his big return to Smackdown next week! Being a huge Christian mark, this is nothing but good news for me and hopefully they involve him in Wrestlemania if he's cleared to wrestle by then. They recap Christian's return at the Elimination Chamber helping out Edge. Oh god PLEASE BOOK THE FUCKING EDGE/CHRISTIAN PROGRAM BEFORE THEY'RE BOTH TOO OLD!
When we return we get a full recap of Triple H's promo on the Undertaker from Raw this week. Show highlights guys, not the ENTIRE promo, you're just wasting time.
The gong rings and the lights go out and it's Undertaker time baby. He comes out to Johnny Cash's "Ain't No Grave", which is apparently his new theme music and is fucking awesome. Quite the epic entrance for Undertaker. He grabs a mic and says that he finds it mystifying that the Triple H doesn't know when to leave well alone. Undertaker puts Triple H over as one of the greatest champions ever, but he says that some things can't be beat and his streak is one of them. He tells Triple H he'll Rest in Peace, and that does it. Good promo from 'Taker to continue the hype for the Triple H/Undertaker meeting at Wrestlemania, made even better by the inclusion of the bone-chilling Johnny Cash song.
After a commercial break we return to have Cole and Matthews put over the WWE signing Mistico. They even acknowledge his old name being Mistico and introduce his new name, Sin Cara. With the way they are hyping up this signing, you can expect a big debut and push for the guy, and I cannot wait to see it.
Beth Phoenix/Rosa Mendes vs. Michelle McCool/Layla
I'd rather just see Beth and Michelle go at it, but whatever. They're still teasing a LayCool break-up, which could be decent as the crowd loves to hate Michelle. Beth and Michelle start us off with a big waistlock as Beth overpowers Michelle and then quickly tags Rosa Mendes in. Layla tags in and Rosa gives her the dreaded hair-pull. Rosa looks totally lost out there as McCool tags back in and goes to work on her. McCool hits her knee against the ropes which I guess hurtsher and both Layla and Beth tag in. Beth dominates and hits a big powerslam, but Michelle breaks the pin up. McCool hits Beth with a loaded boot and Layla gets the pin at 2:20. Just an awful mess of a match. I feel bad for Beth, I hope she gets something to do when Kong eventually debuts. DUD
Big Show vs. Kane
Big Show has been feuding with The Corre for weeks, so no doubt they'll get involved in this match tonight against Kane. Lockup to start and both men trade big forearms and a double-clothesline. Suddenly the Corre comes down to the ring, led by Wade Barrett who slides a steel chair into the ring to Kane, who then uses it on Show for the DQ at 1:14. After the match Kane takes out the Corre members as well with the chair. Nothing match but it served it's purpose to continue to build the Corre/Big Show program for 'Mania, which I guess Kane is involved in now. DUD
After a quick commercial break we return and recap HBK's comments on the HHH/Taker match at Wrestlemania.
Jack Swagger vs. JTG
Before the match starts Cole comes into the ring with Swagger, as Jack is his special trainer for his match against Jerry Lawler at Wrestlemania. Cole gets great heat here, so hopefully some of it will rub off on Swgger. After a quick commercial we start off with Swagger maintaining a waistlock on JTG. Big belly-to-belly suplex from Swagger while Cole is just flipping out sucking off Swagger and Matthews and Booker both have a look on their faces like "When the fuck will this guy shut up?". Swagger hits a pair of Swagger bombs and then applies the ankle lock and JTG taps out at 1:07. Just a squash to remind everyone that Swagger is a force to be reckoned with, though JTG might not exactly be the most credible opponent to squash. DUD
After a recap of the Rock's response to Cena on Raw this week we cut to Edge walking backstage on his way to the ring for the contract signing. He comes across a man who has a large picture of Alberto Del Rio with some painting supplies. Edge grabs a brush and draws a huge handlebar mustache and a unibrow on Del Rio's face as we cut to commercial.
When we return it's time for the official contract signing for the World Heavyweight Title match at Wrestlemania between Edge and Alberto Del Rio. Del Rio has Ricardo Rodriguez sing the Mexican National Anthem, but Edge interrupts of course. Both men sit down in the ring at the table while the crowd begins a "USA!" chant, which is rather hilarious since neither Edge or Del Rio are American. Shouldn't they be chanting "CAN-A-DA!"? Both men talk about their destiny at Wrestlemania. Of course like all contract signings though both men eventually begin fighting. Del Rio looks to destroy Edge's arm with a steel chair, but suddenly Christian runs out and makes the save! Christian lays out Del Rio before refs have to take him off of Del Rio, who's bloodied by Christian. We close the show with Christian's arm around Edge's shoulder as Del Rio takes off with Ricardo. Oh lord please throw Christian into the 'Mania match.
Bottom Line: From a wrestling perspective, after the first match everything on this show is crap. The first match was good for a 5 minute match though, and the rest of the show was all about building up to Wrestlemania, which we saw at pretty much every corner. By principle alone based on the wrestling quality I can't rightfully give this show the thumbs up, but it's not bad either, so we'll go with a thumbs square in the middle.
Rating: 5/10
REMEMBER! You can find ALL of my reviews and match ratings at my blog:
X's Wrestling Review
Rating: 5/10
REMEMBER! You can find ALL of my reviews and match ratings at my blog:
X's Wrestling Review
HBKnY2J4eva
Dark Match Jobber
I really believe that within the coming weeks of WM27, Raw is not going to be feautring many matches. Thats why they call it the "Road to Wrestlemania"..they're building everything up to Wrestlemania. They've always done this when WM gets closer and closer. I have a feeling Raw is going to be filled up with more promos and less matches until WM..
WWE RAW 3/7/11
March 7th, 2011
American Airlines Center, Dallas, Texas
Attendance: ???
March 7th, 2011
American Airlines Center, Dallas, Texas
Attendance: ???
We're continuing down the road to Wrestlemania 27 tonight as none other than the Rattlesnake himself, Stone Cold Steve Austin will be in the house tonight to help promote the upcoming return of Tough Enough. How will John Cena react to The Rock's pre-taped response last week? What happens to Alex Riley and The Miz tonight? These questions and more should (hopefully) be answered tonight, so let's get to it!
Your hosts are Michael Cole and Josh Matthews
We open the show with the Undertaker's new music (Johnny Cash's "Ain't No Grave") hitting and the Deadman himself walking out to the ring. Seriously, why do we even have the brand split anymore when you can just show up on any show you feel like for any reason ever? Anyways, 'Taker grabs a mic and says there can only be one "Last Outlaw". He says the word on the street is that Triple H is the ony guy who has what it takes to end the streak. He reminds everyone what happened to the last man who tried to end the streak and we get a nifty little video package of Undertaker destroying HBK at the last two 'Manias. 'Taker then announces that the Triple H-Undertaker match at 'Mania will be a NO HOLDS BARRED match! That should make things more interesting.
After the promo we cut backstage to where Randy Orton is trying to fight off the members of Nexus, eventually being beaten down and allowing CM Punk to slap him around a bit and then give him the GTS right there backstage. That's weird to see that move out of the ring. Nexus begins dragging Orton to the ring as we cut to commercial.
When we return Nexus is beating down Orton in the ring. Eventually some referees come out to break it up, but David Otunga gets back in the ring and wants his match with Randy Orton to take place right now...leading us into our first match of the night.
Randy Orton vs. David Otunga
Orton is in bad shape to start as Otunga lays in shots on him in the corner. Big Randy chant starts up as Otunga hits an elbow drop for a quick two count. Scoop slam gets Otunga another near fall. Big spinebuster from Otunga, but again Orton kicks out at two. Otunga goes to pick Orton up, but out of nowhere Orton hits the RKO and gets the pin at 1:59. After the match Mason Ryan comes out and takes Orton out with a big boot, but then gets punted by Randy anyways. I'm struggling to understand the logic in making your heel faction look like shit each week leading up to 'Mania. If the Nexus never wins a damn match why the hell should we care about the match come Wrestlemania? It's like they're booking in bizarro world or something. As for the match itself, I've seen worse quickies. ½*
When we return from the commercial break we get a graphic of something The Miz posted on Twitter earlier in the day, saying he's boycotting Raw for not getting the attention he deserves tonight. Kay.
Suddenly...Christian's music hits? What the heck? That's random. Apparently he's facing Alberto Del Rio? Who is accompanied to the ring by Brodus Clay? What the hell is going on right now? I'm baffled. Del Rio cuts his usual condescending promo and says he and Christian are going to fight...but not tonight. Tonight instead he has to wrestle Brodus Clay. Sure, why not.
Christian vs. Brodus Clay
Quick lock-up to start and Brodus overpowers Christian. Christian hits him with a right hand but Clay comes back with a big shoulder-block and a few elbow drops while Michael Cole yaps away, switching back and forth from heel to PBP man and completely draining all interest out of this match because of it. Huge overhead belly-to-belly from Brodus. He tries for a splash but Christian evades and hits a pair of missile dropkicks off the top, but can only get a one count. Clay goes for a running powerslam but Christian escapes and then hits a big tornado DDT off the top and that's enough to put Clay away at 2:42. After the match Del Rio attacks Christian. Pretty energetic for such a short little match, Clay looked decent and (thank God) Christian still went over. *
Before we return from the break we get an awesome little hype promo for Mistico, or as he wll be known now, Sin Cara. Epic promo stuff that pretty much guarantees he's going to be a huge deal when he debuts in the WWE. Can't wait.
The latest inductee to the WWE Hall of Fame is announced, and it's Sunny. Man has there EVER been a hotter valet in wrestling history? I don't think so. Too bad they spent the next decade trying to copy her success with brainless bimbos who didn't care about the business. Glad she's being inducted though.
WWE Diva's Title Match
Eve (C) vs. Nikki Bella
The Bellas did the old twin-switcheroo in a battle royal last week, so one of them gets to face Eve tonight for the Diva's title. Clearly this is a match for the ages. Gail Kim is with Eve at ringside for no discernible reason. So I guess Nikki gets the match. This Bellas heel turn has gone over like a fart in a library. Lockup/hair-pulling to start. Eve dominates with some weak forearms and hair-tosses while Cole yaps away about his feud with Lawler. Even the announcers don't give a shit about this match and how can you blame them? More hair-pulling. Suddenly Cole gets on a mic and starts saying "Can we PLEASE get this over with?", saying what every single person watching this match is thinking. Bravo Cole. Hair-Pulling Fest 2011 continues in the ring while the crowd gives Cole some nice heat. Eve hits a nice little kick on Nikki and then Brie tries to do the twin switch, but the ref catches her. Eve hits a twisting neckbreaker and gets the win at 3:07. This was absolutely terrible in every way. Literally 99% of this match was hair-pulling. This shit makes me long for the days of Bertha Faye. DUD
After a quick commercial break we return with a promo hyping Snooki from Jersey Shore being at Raw next week. Whoever thought this was a good idea needs to be fired, immediately.
Michael Cole gets in the ring and says he's going to announce the special guest ref for his match with The King at Wrestlemania, which he claims is going to be the main event. Wow I really hope not. Cole drops a bunch of hints that it's going to be Austin, but he's just messing with them and instead introduces...JBL?! Well hey, that works. I pray this perhaps means a return to the commentary table for JBL? He was gold. JBL comes out with the traditional limo entrance and gets in the ring and cuts a promo, shitting on Texas and getting great heat. This is excellent stuff from JBL as he's getting more heat with this promo than 90% of the WWE roster has been able to garner in months.
Suddenly we hear the infamous sound of shattering glass, and AUSTIN IS IN THE BUILDING! As someone who idolized this man as God growing up in the 90s, I can't help but revert to a childhood mark everytime he shows up. JBL gets in his face in the ring as Cole hides behind him and Austin gives him the stunner! Huge pop for the stunner as Austin gets a few of his traditional beers thrown in and does the old-fashioned Austin beer-drinking corner celebration. Austin grabs the contract that JBL was going to sign and signs it himself as Cole cries like a little girl. Awesome, so Austin is the special guest ref at Wrestlemania, perhaps we'll get an Austin-Rock confrontation? Hey, a guy can dream. Austin dumps two full beers on Michael Cole and wishes him luck, and the crowd loves it. Cole played that whole segment perfectly. Austin grabs another couple of beers and offers a toast to JBL, but OF COURSE he just gives him another stunner, which JBL sells like he was The Rock in mid 1999, flopping allover the place as Cole throws a hissy fit on stage with Jack Swagger.
When we return from the commercial break Jack Swagger tries to calm Michael Cole down and threatens to break Austin's ankle. Yeah, good luck with that Swaggy. Afterwards Jerry Lawler's music hits and he comes out to take Cole's place at the commentary table.
Daniel Bryan vs. Sheamus
Last week Sheamus and Bryan got in each other's face backstage, so that sets this up and what I'm assuming will be a feud for Wrestlemania for both men. Quick lock-up to start and Sheamus overpowers Bryan. Bryan hits a big dropkick and then dropkicks Sheamus again right off of the ring apron. Sheamus appears to have injured his ankle during the fall, and he gets counted out at 1:12. Well that makes sense as it sets up a rematch down the line. After the match Sheamus gets on the mic and promises to become the new US Champion next week, going so far as to promise to quit if he loses. It was still better than the Diva's match atleast. ¼*
CM Punk vs. R-Truth
We return from the commercial break to see Punk in the ring, ready for action. R-Truth gets a quick roll-up to start and then takes Punk down with a drop toehold. He tries for his suplex-stunner combo but Punk evades and shoves him shoulder-first into all four steel posts. Punk quickly goes for the GTS, but Truth evades and hits a big leg lariat for a quick two count. Punk hits a big side-slam and then starts laying in shots on Truth's shoulder. He locks in the Anaconda Vice and Truth has no choice but to submit at 2:31. Just the kind of wins Punk needs to build up to 'Mania. Short contest, but quite spirited while it lasted. *¼
After the match we get another short pre-taped interview with Shawn Michaels about the big Triple H/Undertaker match. Shouldn't he be like...caring about his Hall of Fame induction? After the promo Vickie Guerrero of all people makes her way down to the ring as we cut to commercial.
When we return Vickie is in the ring with the mic. She introduces Raw's newest acquisition...Dolph Ziggler! Well right on, hopefully this means big things for Dolph's future as he proved himself able to hang in the main event with Edge back at the Rumble. This leads us right into our next match...
Dolph Ziggler vs. John Morrison
Now here we go, this is more like it! PLEASE give these guys more than five minutes? Pretty please? Collar and elbow lock-up to start, and Ziggler tries working a side headlock. Morrison goes for a leapfrog but Ziggler sees it coming and dropkicks him out of the ring as we take a commercial break. When we return Ziggler has a chinlock on Morrison on the mat, grinding him down. Morrison counters with a hip-toss and then evades a big flying forearm from Ziggler in the corner. Clothesline and then a leg lariat from Morrison who's getting fired up now. He hits a jumping neckbreaker and goes for the pin, but Ziggler gets his foot on the bottom rope at 2. Ziggler pokes Morrison in te eye and suddenly out of nowhere hits the Zig-Zag for the clean pin on Morrison at 2:21. Decent for the very short time it got and this is an impressive RAW debut for Ziggler, but I question jobbing out Morrison here. If anyone should be getting the big main event push, Morrison should be first in line. *¼
After the match we get an e-mail from the anonymous GM which says that he did hire Ziggler to Raw, but not Vickie. She can win her job next week though if she wins a match against...Trish Stratus! Security escorts her out of the arena afterwards.
We get another replay of highlights of The Rock's promo to Cena last week, setting us up for Cena's latest response, which I assume will be closing out the show tonight.
Cena's music hits and he gets his usual mixed reaction. He grabs a mic and says he kind of likes it when The Rock bags on him, even mocking The Rock's Cena impression. Cena says the Rock got very angry at him though for addressing him in a rap, so Cena will address him in hip-hop instead tonight. It's Cena rap time again and as usual it's fairly entertaining stuff, if not quite up to the par of Cena's rap from two weeks ago. Still, it's great to see John cut back and just have fun with a promo for once. Cena offers to give the Rock a pearl necklace, which most of the fans don't seem to understand but cracks me up. Cena pulls out the new Rock "I Bring It" shirt, only with the words "Via Satellite" underneath the words "Bring It". Nice touch. And just as Cena finishes his promo, out of nowhere The Miz attacks him from behind with the WWE title! He grabs the mic and says that both Cena and The Rock has disrespected him for the last time and he calls out The Rock. He rips off a few of Rock's catchphrases and even gives Cena a bastardized version of the People's Elbow. We go off the air with The Miz raising the WWE title proudly over a fallen John Cena.
Bottom Line: Not a bad show tonight, but at the same time it wasn't a great one either. Again there was almost no wrestling to speak of tonight, which I never am a fan of, but they pushed most of the major programs for Wrestlemania and the whole Austin/JBL/Cole segment was great stuff. Cena's closing promo was good as well, so I really can't bag on this show much. I'll give the show the same grade I did last week, a Thumbs in the Middle.
Score: 5.5/10
REMEMBER! You can find ALL of my reviews and match ratings at my blog:
X's Wrestling Review
Score: 5.5/10
REMEMBER! You can find ALL of my reviews and match ratings at my blog:
X's Wrestling Review
sjdigitall
Pre-Show Stalwart
Miz really brought it tonite. That was a great promo! All it needs now is some back and forth between Miz and Rock and it will build up really nicely for Wrestlemania.
The Cena promo was ok. I like how they are building on the fact that the Rock was via satellite. As for Miz showing up, not so great. The dude is just mediocre. I have felt for a while he is just a knock off of Jericho, but tonight he just blatantly ripped off the Rock. Also, if they need to bring in the Rock for the Miz to beat so he can get over, than it shows how much he doesn't have what it takes to be champ.
swamprat37
Dark Match Winner
Never thought I'd say this but "Thank you Miz!"
My god that Cena promo was just horrible, a pre-taped Rock had a better crowd reaction the week before. The Miz showing up and spoiling Cena's fun saved that segment.
Problem was the crowd was already dead, no real response from the attack, no real response from mocking The Rock.
From the reaction of the crowd he still is "Mr.Irrelevant"
My god that Cena promo was just horrible, a pre-taped Rock had a better crowd reaction the week before. The Miz showing up and spoiling Cena's fun saved that segment.
Problem was the crowd was already dead, no real response from the attack, no real response from mocking The Rock.
From the reaction of the crowd he still is "Mr.Irrelevant"
Thank you I totally agree, I hate the miz but thank god he shut cena up. The promo was just bad and the crowd was dead. I didn't care for the miz mocking the rock because it seemed like he was trying too hard and the crowd still seemed dead. Props for shutting cena up though 
Yesiamaduck
Pre-Show Stalwart
Undertaker speaks on HHH: It was a good promo and an above average showing from Undertaker who reveals the match is no holds barred, still though it has to be noted that the entrance and music doesn't mix, if they are going to go with this last outlaw thing they need to change the titantron and pyro.
Randy Orton Vs David Otunga: After a fairly decent beat down the new nexus drag Orton out for his match with Otunga... predictably Otunga looses and suffers the punt to FCW. It's a shame that the match wasn't Mason Ryan Vs Randy Orton where the only guy other then Punk getting a push could of secured his place in Wrestlemania 1/4 *
Christian Vs Brodus Clay
Originally billed at Christian Vs Alberto Del Rio, this match was about as good as I expected it to be, I see Clay as a potential monster heel in the future & I'm glad he avoided a squash here and I'm also glad that Christian got put over. But the match it's self? Didn't really work for me but added some heat to the Del Rio/ Christian feud 3/4 *
The WWE then show 2 quality video packages 1 for Mistico which was done brilliantly and the other for Sunny who has been announced as the latest hall of famer, both get my bonk on
WWE Diva's Title Match: Brie Bella Vs Eve
Nothing good happened, blatant protected ring post shots, tossed at the hair... failed Twin Magic, the only thing of note was Cole interrupting the match half way threw and yelling 'Get it over and done with' and whilst it was kind of entertaining to watch it also put down the 'prestige' of the divas title a fair bit. DUD
Michael Cole, JBL & Austin
All I can say is this was done well, the whole way the teased an Austin Wrestlemania appearance only to give us one was done well, overlong? Perhaps but the were some brilliant moments here and Austin looked genuinely happy to be there, the is no denying that Austins heart is still in the WWE.
Daniel Bryan Vs Sheamus
So here we go, the Unburied alive match where Daniel Bryan came out the victor. It was a pointless match, the stuff before the count out ending *near the start of the match* was all very solid and it has given us a reason to watch Raw *Daniel Bryan Vs Sheamus US Title or Quit match* which could be a great match.... I sort of hope this does set up a wrestlemania match though. 1/4*
CM Punk Vs R-Truth
Starting to feel R-Truths days in the WWE might be numbered, squashed on raw after 2 weeks on Superstars. The only plus side on this is that Mason Ryan showed some psychology by choosing to execute a shoulder breaker on R-Truth. DUD
Dolph Ziggler Vs John Morrison
Kind of annoyed that Morrison did the job, but I can see these 2 having a good upper mid card feud and they need each other in order to be pushed into the main event. The match was nothing special though I'm sure it would of been way more enjoyable if an Ad Break wasn't hastily placed in between the 2. *
Cenas promo was incredibly average with a couple of decent lines, Miz cut a really strong heel promo though and made himself relevant again by aping The Rock and hitting the peoples elbow on The Miz.
Overall: Low on wrestling but built on both Wrestlemania and next weeks Raw excellently and in an entertaining manner. I wouldn't say go out of your way to see this show but it was a massive step up from last weeks even if the wrestling content was as poor. Either way we have been promised a raw to watch next week with Trish Stratus in the ring and the Us Title match & also Wrestlemania has been built on really well, something I felt was attempted last week but feel short of. 6.5/10
Randy Orton Vs David Otunga: After a fairly decent beat down the new nexus drag Orton out for his match with Otunga... predictably Otunga looses and suffers the punt to FCW. It's a shame that the match wasn't Mason Ryan Vs Randy Orton where the only guy other then Punk getting a push could of secured his place in Wrestlemania 1/4 *
Christian Vs Brodus Clay
Originally billed at Christian Vs Alberto Del Rio, this match was about as good as I expected it to be, I see Clay as a potential monster heel in the future & I'm glad he avoided a squash here and I'm also glad that Christian got put over. But the match it's self? Didn't really work for me but added some heat to the Del Rio/ Christian feud 3/4 *
The WWE then show 2 quality video packages 1 for Mistico which was done brilliantly and the other for Sunny who has been announced as the latest hall of famer, both get my bonk on
WWE Diva's Title Match: Brie Bella Vs Eve
Nothing good happened, blatant protected ring post shots, tossed at the hair... failed Twin Magic, the only thing of note was Cole interrupting the match half way threw and yelling 'Get it over and done with' and whilst it was kind of entertaining to watch it also put down the 'prestige' of the divas title a fair bit. DUD
Michael Cole, JBL & Austin
All I can say is this was done well, the whole way the teased an Austin Wrestlemania appearance only to give us one was done well, overlong? Perhaps but the were some brilliant moments here and Austin looked genuinely happy to be there, the is no denying that Austins heart is still in the WWE.
Daniel Bryan Vs Sheamus
So here we go, the Unburied alive match where Daniel Bryan came out the victor. It was a pointless match, the stuff before the count out ending *near the start of the match* was all very solid and it has given us a reason to watch Raw *Daniel Bryan Vs Sheamus US Title or Quit match* which could be a great match.... I sort of hope this does set up a wrestlemania match though. 1/4*
CM Punk Vs R-Truth
Starting to feel R-Truths days in the WWE might be numbered, squashed on raw after 2 weeks on Superstars. The only plus side on this is that Mason Ryan showed some psychology by choosing to execute a shoulder breaker on R-Truth. DUD
Dolph Ziggler Vs John Morrison
Kind of annoyed that Morrison did the job, but I can see these 2 having a good upper mid card feud and they need each other in order to be pushed into the main event. The match was nothing special though I'm sure it would of been way more enjoyable if an Ad Break wasn't hastily placed in between the 2. *
Cenas promo was incredibly average with a couple of decent lines, Miz cut a really strong heel promo though and made himself relevant again by aping The Rock and hitting the peoples elbow on The Miz.
Overall: Low on wrestling but built on both Wrestlemania and next weeks Raw excellently and in an entertaining manner. I wouldn't say go out of your way to see this show but it was a massive step up from last weeks even if the wrestling content was as poor. Either way we have been promised a raw to watch next week with Trish Stratus in the ring and the Us Title match & also Wrestlemania has been built on really well, something I felt was attempted last week but feel short of. 6.5/10
Jack-Hammer
YOU WILL RESPECT MY AUTHORITAH!!!!
WWE Monday Night Raw - March 7, 2011
The Undertaker - Strong promo and great delivery from The Dead Man. I especially liked how he touched on little things like people wondering if Father Time and all the injuries have finally caught up to him. After all, there's probably at least one thread a month in the WZ Forums that asks those same questions. The No Holds Barred element to his match against Trips will keep things interesting and opens up a lot of possibilities and ways to cover for Taker's rotator cuff problems. Taker stating that if The Streak is broken he "dies" seemed appopriate because The Streak is really what keeps Taker going. He's beyond winning titles and all that now so the end of The Streak signaling the end of his career makes logical sense. Thumbs Up
Nexus & Randy Orton - Good beatdown segment backstage with the three remaining Nexus members beating up Orton. Some nice physical stuff with Punk ramming the back of Orton's head against the door several times. I like how the feud between them has progressed, the facial expressions and body language of Punk & Orton are great and I think give the impression of just a physical feud between two guys that don't like each other. Thumbs Up
Randy Orton vs. David Otunga - I was hoping that this would last a little longer but it told a decent story even if the match was on the short side. Orton was suffering the effects of the beatdown and took a lot of shots from Otunga, including Otunga's finisher. Orton hits the RKO out of nowhere, expectedly, and gets the win at the 2 minute mark. Orton takes out Mason Ryan with an RKO when he gets into the ring and hits Otunga with the punt. Nice little match and segment with Orton looking strong coming back from the beatdown to win his match against Otunga. 1/2*
Christian vs. Brodus Clay - I was surprised to see Christian come out tonight, it was great seeing him and it looked as though it was going to be him against Alberto Del Rio. Instead, Del Rio substituted Brodus Clay for the match. Short match but I thought it was pretty good while it lasted. Clay is a big guy but he's also pretty well coordinated and fast. He's gotta nice physical style inside the ring and had a good showing against Christian. Christian looked a little rusty in there to me, not quite as crisp as usual but still had a solid showing. Christian gets the win with the Tornado DDT around the 3 minute mark only for Del Rio to attack him. Christian mounts a comeback only for Del Rio to put him in the armbar submission. I'd love to see Christian find his way into the WHC match at Mania. It might not happen, but here's hoping. *1/4
Sunny - The newest member of the WWE Hall of Fame is Sunny. I loved Sunny when I was watching WWF in my teens. She was gorgeous and was completely different from the way any woman in wrestling had been portrayed. She was doing a lot of what Angelina Love & Velvet Sky are doing now, only Sunny was doing it when Angelina & Velvet were giving quickie handjobs to guys for cigarette money in high school. It'll be fun to see her again. Thumbs Up
Eve Torres vs. Brie Bella - The crowd, which had been pretty hot all night, couldn't have cared less for this match. Eve should just be future endeavoured, she just can't get over period. The entire time she's been in the WWE, she's gotten virtually no audience response. The energy for this match just wasn't there and it just seems like the Divas are just treading water until Awesome Kong arrives. Eve does get the win a little past the 3 minute mark to retain. 1/4*
Michael Cole, JBL & Stone Colde Steve Austin - This really started out in the middle of the Diva match. Michael Cole getting up and doing his thing while the match was going on was great. Cole comes across like such a shithead that it feels quite natural. His heel persona has gotten to the point where he's interrupted a WWE title match and basically called it irrelevant. Cole gets in the ring and does his thing for a bit, putting himself over and gets the crowd whipped up by making them think that Austin will be coming out. Great stuff. JBL showing up was a real surprise and he was just plain great on the mic tonight. He looks slimmer since the last time I saw him and is probably healthier now than he's been in years. Austin's music hits and he comes out. Lots of energy after Austin comes out. He eventually hits JBL with a Stone Cold Stunner before signing the contract JBL was going to sign to be the special ref in Michael Cole's match against Jerry Lawler. Pouring beer all over Cole was a nice touch as was Stunning JBL again. Pretty standard stuff with Stone Cold but still lots of fun and just a lot of energy. Really fun segment. Thumbs Up
Daniel Bryan vs. Sheamus - I was very disappointed here. The match lasted a little over a minute until Sheamus injured his ankle and was counted out. However, Sheamus got on the mic and challenged Bryan to a match next week for the United States Championship. If Sheamus loses, he'll "quit". Sheamus might be heading to SmackDown! in the near future. I will say that at least they've given a little hype to next week's match and it should ge a good one. N/A
CM Punk vs. R-Truth - Decent match while it lasted. Another short match with Punk showing a more aggressive side of himself. He spent a good portion of the match working over Truth's left shoulder with Truth getting in some offense here and there. Punk gets the win at the 2.5 minute mark with the Anaconda Vice. Decent little showcase match for Punk. *
John Morrison vs. Dolph Ziggler - Initially, Vickie Guerrero comes out before the match to some great heat and introduces Dolph Ziggler before heading to do some commentary. Pretty good 5.5 minute match from Ziggler & JoMo. Ziggler had a strong debut by going over Morrison though I have to admit I'm not all that wild about jobbing JoMo out. This seemed more like a job for R-Truth rather than JoMo. Ziggler hits the Zig Zag and scores the win. Good debut win for Ziggler on Raw. After the match, the Raw GM chimes in and says that Dolph has a job on Raw but Vickie doesn't. She has to win her match against Trish Stratus next week if she wants a job. Thank the Lord it's not Snooki. I felt my ass clench when the Raw GM announced Vickie would have a match as I thought it'd be Snooki.*3/4
John Cena & The Miz - I thought Cena was kinda lame on the mic tonight. Sure he said a few swear words here and there but the crowd wasn't really buying into it. We know we're not gonna see a match between Cena & Rock at WrestleMania so this little verbal war of words they've got going is starting to get old now. It's just lost its shine and it's time to put the focus back on the match. Miz showing up and jumping Cena from behind was a great touch. I'd kinda forgotten about Miz tonight, which was probably made possible by a lot going on on Raw and the fact that the commentators didn't talk about him except for that one brief mention of his boycott of Raw. Miz gave a great, intense promo tonight and I think it put him back at the forefront of his own feud for WrestleMania. Laying Cena out at the end with the Skull Crushing Finale before finishing his catchphrase was a nice touch. Cena was pretty lame as I said, but Miz getting the best of Cena for the 3rd week in a row while putting himself over at the expense of The Rock by mocking some of his signature catchphrases and even doing the People's Elbow on Cena worked well for me. Thumbs Up
Overall Show - Raw was a significantly stronger show this week than last week. There just seemed to be a lot of energy for this show tonight and it didn't focus as much on The Rock & John Cena situation as recent episodes have. Taker delivered a strong promo and making the match No Holds Barred will be a good way to protect him in his match against Triple H. The segment featuring Austin, JBL & Michael Cole was a lot of fun. It was good to see JBL and even though the segment was an Austin basic, it was still just good old fashioned fun. Wrestling content was still pretty weak on Raw this week, but it was much better than last week and hopefully we'll see a big improvement next week. Still, the Ziggler vs. JoMo match was decent and easily the match of the night. The stuff with Cena just didn't do it for me and it's time to leave this verbal war between Cena & The Rock behind. It's really losing its luster so they should put it on the backburner for a few weeks. I'd say Rock be on the last Raw before WrestleMania so just hype it a little the week before that and it should be good to go. The Miz did a good job tonight and delivered an intense promo. He comes across more as an opportunistic heel picking his spots against Cena right now, which works fine for me. All in all, a pretty good show that could have been great with stronger wrestling content.
Grade: B-
The Undertaker - Strong promo and great delivery from The Dead Man. I especially liked how he touched on little things like people wondering if Father Time and all the injuries have finally caught up to him. After all, there's probably at least one thread a month in the WZ Forums that asks those same questions. The No Holds Barred element to his match against Trips will keep things interesting and opens up a lot of possibilities and ways to cover for Taker's rotator cuff problems. Taker stating that if The Streak is broken he "dies" seemed appopriate because The Streak is really what keeps Taker going. He's beyond winning titles and all that now so the end of The Streak signaling the end of his career makes logical sense. Thumbs Up
Nexus & Randy Orton - Good beatdown segment backstage with the three remaining Nexus members beating up Orton. Some nice physical stuff with Punk ramming the back of Orton's head against the door several times. I like how the feud between them has progressed, the facial expressions and body language of Punk & Orton are great and I think give the impression of just a physical feud between two guys that don't like each other. Thumbs Up
Randy Orton vs. David Otunga - I was hoping that this would last a little longer but it told a decent story even if the match was on the short side. Orton was suffering the effects of the beatdown and took a lot of shots from Otunga, including Otunga's finisher. Orton hits the RKO out of nowhere, expectedly, and gets the win at the 2 minute mark. Orton takes out Mason Ryan with an RKO when he gets into the ring and hits Otunga with the punt. Nice little match and segment with Orton looking strong coming back from the beatdown to win his match against Otunga. 1/2*
Christian vs. Brodus Clay - I was surprised to see Christian come out tonight, it was great seeing him and it looked as though it was going to be him against Alberto Del Rio. Instead, Del Rio substituted Brodus Clay for the match. Short match but I thought it was pretty good while it lasted. Clay is a big guy but he's also pretty well coordinated and fast. He's gotta nice physical style inside the ring and had a good showing against Christian. Christian looked a little rusty in there to me, not quite as crisp as usual but still had a solid showing. Christian gets the win with the Tornado DDT around the 3 minute mark only for Del Rio to attack him. Christian mounts a comeback only for Del Rio to put him in the armbar submission. I'd love to see Christian find his way into the WHC match at Mania. It might not happen, but here's hoping. *1/4
Sunny - The newest member of the WWE Hall of Fame is Sunny. I loved Sunny when I was watching WWF in my teens. She was gorgeous and was completely different from the way any woman in wrestling had been portrayed. She was doing a lot of what Angelina Love & Velvet Sky are doing now, only Sunny was doing it when Angelina & Velvet were giving quickie handjobs to guys for cigarette money in high school. It'll be fun to see her again. Thumbs Up
Eve Torres vs. Brie Bella - The crowd, which had been pretty hot all night, couldn't have cared less for this match. Eve should just be future endeavoured, she just can't get over period. The entire time she's been in the WWE, she's gotten virtually no audience response. The energy for this match just wasn't there and it just seems like the Divas are just treading water until Awesome Kong arrives. Eve does get the win a little past the 3 minute mark to retain. 1/4*
Michael Cole, JBL & Stone Colde Steve Austin - This really started out in the middle of the Diva match. Michael Cole getting up and doing his thing while the match was going on was great. Cole comes across like such a shithead that it feels quite natural. His heel persona has gotten to the point where he's interrupted a WWE title match and basically called it irrelevant. Cole gets in the ring and does his thing for a bit, putting himself over and gets the crowd whipped up by making them think that Austin will be coming out. Great stuff. JBL showing up was a real surprise and he was just plain great on the mic tonight. He looks slimmer since the last time I saw him and is probably healthier now than he's been in years. Austin's music hits and he comes out. Lots of energy after Austin comes out. He eventually hits JBL with a Stone Cold Stunner before signing the contract JBL was going to sign to be the special ref in Michael Cole's match against Jerry Lawler. Pouring beer all over Cole was a nice touch as was Stunning JBL again. Pretty standard stuff with Stone Cold but still lots of fun and just a lot of energy. Really fun segment. Thumbs Up
Daniel Bryan vs. Sheamus - I was very disappointed here. The match lasted a little over a minute until Sheamus injured his ankle and was counted out. However, Sheamus got on the mic and challenged Bryan to a match next week for the United States Championship. If Sheamus loses, he'll "quit". Sheamus might be heading to SmackDown! in the near future. I will say that at least they've given a little hype to next week's match and it should ge a good one. N/A
CM Punk vs. R-Truth - Decent match while it lasted. Another short match with Punk showing a more aggressive side of himself. He spent a good portion of the match working over Truth's left shoulder with Truth getting in some offense here and there. Punk gets the win at the 2.5 minute mark with the Anaconda Vice. Decent little showcase match for Punk. *
John Morrison vs. Dolph Ziggler - Initially, Vickie Guerrero comes out before the match to some great heat and introduces Dolph Ziggler before heading to do some commentary. Pretty good 5.5 minute match from Ziggler & JoMo. Ziggler had a strong debut by going over Morrison though I have to admit I'm not all that wild about jobbing JoMo out. This seemed more like a job for R-Truth rather than JoMo. Ziggler hits the Zig Zag and scores the win. Good debut win for Ziggler on Raw. After the match, the Raw GM chimes in and says that Dolph has a job on Raw but Vickie doesn't. She has to win her match against Trish Stratus next week if she wants a job. Thank the Lord it's not Snooki. I felt my ass clench when the Raw GM announced Vickie would have a match as I thought it'd be Snooki.*3/4
John Cena & The Miz - I thought Cena was kinda lame on the mic tonight. Sure he said a few swear words here and there but the crowd wasn't really buying into it. We know we're not gonna see a match between Cena & Rock at WrestleMania so this little verbal war of words they've got going is starting to get old now. It's just lost its shine and it's time to put the focus back on the match. Miz showing up and jumping Cena from behind was a great touch. I'd kinda forgotten about Miz tonight, which was probably made possible by a lot going on on Raw and the fact that the commentators didn't talk about him except for that one brief mention of his boycott of Raw. Miz gave a great, intense promo tonight and I think it put him back at the forefront of his own feud for WrestleMania. Laying Cena out at the end with the Skull Crushing Finale before finishing his catchphrase was a nice touch. Cena was pretty lame as I said, but Miz getting the best of Cena for the 3rd week in a row while putting himself over at the expense of The Rock by mocking some of his signature catchphrases and even doing the People's Elbow on Cena worked well for me. Thumbs Up
Overall Show - Raw was a significantly stronger show this week than last week. There just seemed to be a lot of energy for this show tonight and it didn't focus as much on The Rock & John Cena situation as recent episodes have. Taker delivered a strong promo and making the match No Holds Barred will be a good way to protect him in his match against Triple H. The segment featuring Austin, JBL & Michael Cole was a lot of fun. It was good to see JBL and even though the segment was an Austin basic, it was still just good old fashioned fun. Wrestling content was still pretty weak on Raw this week, but it was much better than last week and hopefully we'll see a big improvement next week. Still, the Ziggler vs. JoMo match was decent and easily the match of the night. The stuff with Cena just didn't do it for me and it's time to leave this verbal war between Cena & The Rock behind. It's really losing its luster so they should put it on the backburner for a few weeks. I'd say Rock be on the last Raw before WrestleMania so just hype it a little the week before that and it should be good to go. The Miz did a good job tonight and delivered an intense promo. He comes across more as an opportunistic heel picking his spots against Cena right now, which works fine for me. All in all, a pretty good show that could have been great with stronger wrestling content.
Grade: B-
cena promo was so bad. said he'd give rock a pearl necklace? that is very homo. cena spends most of his promos screaming and yelling then he does this monotone rap. the t shirt was cleaver, but any homo erotic lyrics make cena look stupid. he should stick to the bullet points: rock isn't on raw, rock makes bad movies. with the use of props so far cena has told rock to blow him and that he wants to blow a load him. think they put the handcuffs on rock cause he could say no one sees your movies but that would be a diss to wwe films.
the Raws so far after Elimination chamber have been awful. no matches just WM teases. there would be more time for actual wresting if they weren't recapping what happened last week 10 times during the show.
but I'm excited to see Sin Cara, thought the training vid was a video game at first. that spinning headscissor arm bar looks awesome
the Raws so far after Elimination chamber have been awful. no matches just WM teases. there would be more time for actual wresting if they weren't recapping what happened last week 10 times during the show.
but I'm excited to see Sin Cara, thought the training vid was a video game at first. that spinning headscissor arm bar looks awesome
Being a "full time lurker" I thought I would jump in and say a few things.
I know that everyone is upset with the lack of wrestling lately on Raw, BUT this is something that we should have known was going to happen as this year it seems as we are trying to build Wrestlemania as quickly as possible over the course of the time from EC to Mania. There just wasn't enough build in alot of the fueds before EC, so now WWE is trying to build as much as possible as quickly as possible.
With that said, I thought last nights Raw was pretty decent. The ending, however, until Miz showed up was so anti-climatic that it is pathetic. All night long they built up the "John Cena Knock Out Punch" for what?!? Another rap that wasn't nearly as good as the first that was full of ridiculous jokes that were not even funny. I understand that WWE is trying to "put Cena over Rock" through promos, but get real! That whole promo was just plain lame.
Good to see Miz at the end though. Heck, I would take the promo he cut over Cena's anyday.
I know that everyone is upset with the lack of wrestling lately on Raw, BUT this is something that we should have known was going to happen as this year it seems as we are trying to build Wrestlemania as quickly as possible over the course of the time from EC to Mania. There just wasn't enough build in alot of the fueds before EC, so now WWE is trying to build as much as possible as quickly as possible.
With that said, I thought last nights Raw was pretty decent. The ending, however, until Miz showed up was so anti-climatic that it is pathetic. All night long they built up the "John Cena Knock Out Punch" for what?!? Another rap that wasn't nearly as good as the first that was full of ridiculous jokes that were not even funny. I understand that WWE is trying to "put Cena over Rock" through promos, but get real! That whole promo was just plain lame.
Good to see Miz at the end though. Heck, I would take the promo he cut over Cena's anyday.
I just don't understand where this company's priorities are.
It seems like it's 'all style, no sustance'.
Rather than promoting the in-ring talent they do have, they waste their time with nonsense like bringing in that pig from Jersey!
What wrestling fan wants to see that? There's a reason I don't watch that garbage, why force it on me for a show I do like?
They make sure we get 20 minute promos every week for a 'Wrestlemania 17 Rewind' match that I couldn't care less about, and the Rock and Cena back-and-forth to nowhere, while Daniel Bryan, Sheamus, Ziggler and Morrison get about 10 minutes combined!
Plus we get the 20-minute Tough Enough commercial during the show!
Don't get me wrong, it was nice to see Austin back and he looked excited and happy to be there. Also nice of JBL to do the job rather than destroying actual working talent like the son-in-law does.
But I know why he's here, I know there won't be a payoff, and I know why Trish Stratus will be there next week and likely Booker T the following week. To give me another commercial during the show I'm watching!
And how about the complete failures in logic?
When did Del Rio reveal himself as RAW GM, about to set-up matches as he sees fit?
Or since when does losing for 2 months earn Sheamus a US Title Match?
If that's the case, should R-Truth be in line ahead of him?
The current creative team is doing a terrible job on all levels.
It seems like it's 'all style, no sustance'.
Rather than promoting the in-ring talent they do have, they waste their time with nonsense like bringing in that pig from Jersey!
What wrestling fan wants to see that? There's a reason I don't watch that garbage, why force it on me for a show I do like?
They make sure we get 20 minute promos every week for a 'Wrestlemania 17 Rewind' match that I couldn't care less about, and the Rock and Cena back-and-forth to nowhere, while Daniel Bryan, Sheamus, Ziggler and Morrison get about 10 minutes combined!
Plus we get the 20-minute Tough Enough commercial during the show!
Don't get me wrong, it was nice to see Austin back and he looked excited and happy to be there. Also nice of JBL to do the job rather than destroying actual working talent like the son-in-law does.
But I know why he's here, I know there won't be a payoff, and I know why Trish Stratus will be there next week and likely Booker T the following week. To give me another commercial during the show I'm watching!
And how about the complete failures in logic?
When did Del Rio reveal himself as RAW GM, about to set-up matches as he sees fit?
Or since when does losing for 2 months earn Sheamus a US Title Match?
If that's the case, should R-Truth be in line ahead of him?
The current creative team is doing a terrible job on all levels.
The Eighties
Forward Thinking Nostalgist
Another Raw full of dull promos for matches I don't give a shit about, in the 20+ years I've followed the WWE I've never been less interested in a Wrestlemania and in truth I wish it was over so we can go back to the regular Raw's from December and January.
The best segment was the Austin/Cole/JBL one and none of them are wrestlers, and they were promoting a match between a pensioner and a weasly little commentator, it went on too long but was at least entertaining.
This Taker/Triple H angle is such a rushed snoozer it's uncanny, the best thing about it so far are the vids of HBK talking about the two of them, the fact they are ignoring the WM17 match they had is laughable.
I'm glad to see Dolph get his chance on Raw but I wish they'd handled his arrival with more style, it was all very basic and then to see JoMo jobbed out when the two could have wrestled at Mania is very irritating.
I can't recall much else from the show except Cena's horrid promo, Miz mugging for the camera and the punt hopefully meaning we have seen the last of Otunga for a while.
The best segment was the Austin/Cole/JBL one and none of them are wrestlers, and they were promoting a match between a pensioner and a weasly little commentator, it went on too long but was at least entertaining.
This Taker/Triple H angle is such a rushed snoozer it's uncanny, the best thing about it so far are the vids of HBK talking about the two of them, the fact they are ignoring the WM17 match they had is laughable.
I'm glad to see Dolph get his chance on Raw but I wish they'd handled his arrival with more style, it was all very basic and then to see JoMo jobbed out when the two could have wrestled at Mania is very irritating.
I can't recall much else from the show except Cena's horrid promo, Miz mugging for the camera and the punt hopefully meaning we have seen the last of Otunga for a while.
Long Island Iced WXYZ
Take care, spike your hair.
We have to suffer through Austin as a guest referee for the umpteenth time?
Why the hell didn't they let JBL do it? I was so happy to se him return and then they do this.
And poor Sheamus, WWE Champion to feuding for the US Title. Crazy, what did he do?
And The Miz, was AWESOME!
Why the hell didn't they let JBL do it? I was so happy to se him return and then they do this.
And poor Sheamus, WWE Champion to feuding for the US Title. Crazy, what did he do?
And The Miz, was AWESOME!
Its funny I have heard some asking WHY would Austin want to be the Ref....I dont understand...it makes no sence.
As Bobby Heenan once said in Kayfabe " Mean Gene these humanoids have a memory of seconds"
Its refresher course time:
Austin on and off camera is Best buddys with ole JR.
Cole berates JR all the time when he is mentioned
When JR showed up to call the match a while back Cole gave him crap the whole time
Cole took JR's job
Cole has stated how he IS the voice and the oly voice that has EVER mattered.
Do you see why Austin would now want to be the ref and why he hates cole in character.
who knows what will happen at WM but it could be intresting.
Raw in its self was very entertaining in my book even with Sheamus "hurting his ankle" and going for the ole win or quit thing. Personally I think he will win. As they are advertizing in a few weeks at MSG Trips and Sheamus.
As Bobby Heenan once said in Kayfabe " Mean Gene these humanoids have a memory of seconds"
Its refresher course time:
Austin on and off camera is Best buddys with ole JR.
Cole berates JR all the time when he is mentioned
When JR showed up to call the match a while back Cole gave him crap the whole time
Cole took JR's job
Cole has stated how he IS the voice and the oly voice that has EVER mattered.
Do you see why Austin would now want to be the ref and why he hates cole in character.
who knows what will happen at WM but it could be intresting.
Raw in its self was very entertaining in my book even with Sheamus "hurting his ankle" and going for the ole win or quit thing. Personally I think he will win. As they are advertizing in a few weeks at MSG Trips and Sheamus.
WWE Friday Night Smackdown 3/11/11
March 11th, 2011
Toyota Center, Houston, Texas
Attendance: ???
March 11th, 2011
Toyota Center, Houston, Texas
Attendance: ???
Your hosts are Michael Cole, Josh Matthews, and Booker T
We open the show with Edge coming out to the ring while we get a video recap of Del Rio's beatdown of Edge last week until Christian made the save. Edge grabs a mic and hypothetically asks if Del Rio thinks a little blood will stop him from winning at Wrestlemania. Before he can get very far Del Rio's music hits and he comes out with Brodus Clay. So I guess Clay is officially the heel muscle for Del Rio, and I'm cool with that as Clay cut a great heel promo on the season 4 NXT finale and this is just the kind of role he should be used in. Del Rio and Clay put the beatdown on Edge, and then of course Christian's music hits to a very nice pop and he cleans Del Rio's clock before getting beaten down by Clay. Teddy Long comes out among all this ruckus and books a tag team match tonight between the four, which is the first reunion of the famous Edge and Christian tag team in 10 years. Yeah, as an E&C mark, color me excited.
Kane vs. Wade Barrett
Before the match starts Barrett comes out with a mic and tells Kane that he's made some monumental mistakes in not going along with The Corre's plan. The match starts and they brawl for a bit until the Corre make the run-in and beatdown Kane for the DQ at 0:42. N/A, I don't rate matches less than a minute long. Big Show makes the save for Kane after the match as we cut to commercial. No rating. When we return it's been turned into a tag team match....
Big Show/Kane vs. Wade Barrett/Heath Slater
So this is a tag match now. Why not. Big Show lays some big open palm slaps on Barrett in the corner to start this match. He toys with him a bit and then tries for the chokeslam, but Barrett evades and hits a pair of big boots that takes Show down to the mat. Heath Slater tags in now and gets a quick two count. He tries for a sleeper but Show eventually gets the lukewarm tag to Kane who cleans house. Kane knocks Barett off the apron and signals for the chokeslam on Slater, but Justin Gabriel of the Corre slides into the ring and we have ANOTHER DQ at 3:21. After the match Big Show cleans house with a chair. This was just weird, if you wanted the DQ finish why not just leave it in the first match, why did we have to get another short nothing match for another DQ? We get it, Barrett relies on his lackies, sheesh. ¼*
After a quick commercial break Michael Cole starts plugging a special interview with John Cena later tonight, but first Booker T wants us to watch the entire Cole/JBL/Austin segment from RAW earlier this week. I hate these extended re-viewings of what happens on RAW, it's wasted time that could be better spent used on the midcard.
Cody Rhodes vs. JTG
Cody comes out in a suit and tie with his creepy Patrick Bateman mask as JTG doesn't even get an entrance these days. I smell a delicious slice of squash. Rhodes is all over JTG to start, looking psychotic while Booker T makes a Dick Murdoch reference that makes me respect him more as a commentator. Rhodes quickly hits the Cross Rhodes for the win at 0:52. Rhodes worked this squash perfectly, screaming at the fans and trying to cover his face to put over how deranged he is. I love where this character is going, even if Rhodes himself is just average as a worker. ¼*
When we return from another quick commercial break, John Cena comes out for his interview with Michael Cole in the ring. Always nice to see Cena on Smackdown. We recap the Miz attacking Cena on Raw, and before Cole can say another word Cena just snatches the mic from him. He says that the Miz has made the biggest mistake of his career when he attacked him on RAW. He threatens to break Miz's face (seriously), and that's it I guess. But before he can leave the ring Cole gets back on the mic and starts poking fun at Cena, telling him The Miz shut him up on Raw. Cena is pissed now, but Jack Swagger hits the ring to protect Cole. Swagger beats Cena down at first, but eventually Cena comes back and tries for the Attitude Adjustment on Cole, but Swagger sacrifices himself and takes the move instead. Something tells me this whole Cole heel character is a test to see if he can take over the evil promoter role that Mr. McMahon worked with such sucess after Vince dies.
Layla vs. Kaitlyn
Kaitlyn was the winner of NXT Season 3 and they kept her around for a few weeks before sending her back to Florida. I guess she's back now though. She gets a nice pop as this is her hometown and she is rather hot, so the dots all connect doncha know? Lockup to start here with Kaitlyn overpowering Layla at first, slamming her into the mat. Kaitlyn gets involved with McCool at ringside and this distracts her long enough for Layla to hit a big neckbreaker for the pin at 0:56. We're over an hour into this show and not a single match has hit the one minute mark. That is very, very bad. ¼*
Rey Mysterio vs. Drew McIntyre
Here we go, now this is more like it. This is Rey's first match since the Dusty/Cody beatdown while Drew has just been doing nothing since looking pretty awesome at the Elimination Chamber PPV. McIntyre hits a huge boot as the bell rings and then starts laying in shots on Mysterio on the mat. He hits a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker and tries for the cover but Rey kicks out at two. Drew is very aggressive here, but Rey is too quick for him. He tries for the 619 but Drew slides out of the ring, only for Mysterio to come out after him and give him a drop toe hold into the apron! Drew slams Rey's back into the steel post and then gives him a side-slam on the ring apron. Wow that's pretty creative. After a quick commercial break we return to see McIntyre applying a modified version of the Mexican surfboard on Mysterio. Rey counters into a pin for a quick two, but Drew just slams him into the corner turnbuckle. McIntyre gets knocked off the top rope and Rey hits the seated senton and tries to follow it up with a springboard cross-body but Drew moves out of the way. McIntyre rolls him up for a quick two, then misses a spear attempt and eats a kick to the face, followed by the 619 and a big splash off the top rope which is enough to finish Drew off at 2:27. Finally a match actually lasts more than a few seconds, I'm shocked! This was about as good of a two and a half minute match as you could possibly have. **
After the match Cody Rhodes comes out and reminds Rey that he's still waiting for an answer to his Wrestlemania challenge. Rey is pissed about Cody pulling his mask off last week, and accepts Rhodes' challenge. Keep your eye on that match come Wrestlemania time, it might just be a show-stealer.
After another quick commercial break we return to Triple H's music playing and The Game making his way to the ring. He grabs a mic and shows us a video package of the Game basically being the most intense man in the history of the WWE. Nice counter-promo to the Undertaker's from last week. Triple H puts over the two classic HBK/Undertaker matches at the previous two Wrestlemania's, and he laments over how his best friend and mentor couldn't get the job done. He blames emotion for HBK's losses and says that won't be a problem for him at Wrestlemania, and he promises to beat the Undertaker. Pretty good promo here actually as Triple H gave us a good enough reason to think he could beat 'Taker because he is so cold and calculated while HBK was so emotional. He thanks Undertaker for making the match No Holds Barred and then exits.
Backstage Matt Striker gets a few words with Christian about teaming up with Edge tonight for the first time in a decade. He cuts a good promo on Del Rio and we take a commercial break.
Edge/Christian vs. Alberto Del Rio/Brodus Clay
I have been longing for an Edge/Christian program for so long now that I never thought it would actually happen, but here it is, finally, we're seeing Edge and Christian as partners once again! Now we just need to get started on laying the seeds for a feud between the two over the World title this Summer, and I could die a happy peep. Christian and Brodus start us off, exchanging big lefts and rights. Clay tries a shoulderblock but Christian is too quick for him. Christian goes for a tornado DDT (the move he beat Clay with on RAW a few days earlier) but Del Rio distracts him, letting Clay counter with a big suplex. Del Rio tosses Christian into the barricade outside the ring and Edge chases after him briefly to no avail. Back in the ring Clay hits an elbow for a quick two count. He slams Christian and then tags in Del Rio. Del Rio gets a quick two count and then starts laying in closed-fists until the ref makes him stop. He goes after the injured arm of Christian, applying a tight armbar as a big "Let's Go Christian!" chant starts up. Del Rio exposes Christian's injured arm and starts working it over now, but Christian comes back with a big flying back elbow off the second rope. Christian gets the hot tag to Edge and Brodus tags in as well, grabbing Edge and giving him a bodyslam for a quick two count. Del Rio is yelling at Clay now, but Edge starts making the comeback, knocking Del Rio off the apron and then attempts the spear, but Clay just gives him a clothesline. Christian knocks Del Rio out of the ring and then hits a tornado DDT on Clay, which Edge follows up with a big elbow drop off the top rope for the pin at 5:48! This was pure flat-out fun to see Edge and Christian together again, even if only for a few minutes. Hopefully this leads to more interaction down the line, because the WWE would be fools not to realize the money-making potential in a new Edge and Christian program as either allies or foes in 2011. **½
We fade out of the show with Edge and Christian celebrating in the ring as a dismayed Alberto Del Rio looks on from the entrance ramp.
Bottom Line: Apart from the awesomeness of seeing Edge and Christian together again, this was a pretty bad show. Almost no wrestling to speak of until the main event, and way too much time spent recapping events that took place on Raw yet AGAIN. Still, there was some nice micwork from Cena and Triple H tonight and the main event was fun for nostalgic reasons, so I can't be too harsh on this show. We'll go with the old reliable Thumbs in the Middle.
Score: 5/10
REMEMBER! You can find ALL of my reviews and match ratings at my blog:
X's Wrestling Review
Score: 5/10
REMEMBER! You can find ALL of my reviews and match ratings at my blog:
X's Wrestling Review
WWE RAW 3/14/11
March 14th, 2011
Scottrade Center, St. Louis, Missouri
Attendance: 21,000+/-?
March 14th, 2011
Scottrade Center, St. Louis, Missouri
Attendance: 21,000+/-?
We open the show with The Rock talking on a cell phone from some undisclosed location, apparently to the President about John Cena’s promo last week. Before he can get much further Cena’s music hits and The Rock teases a confrontation with him, but instead what we get is an eight year old boy dressed up in Cena gear. Crowd gets a kick out of that. Kid even kicks his own little mini-Cena freestyle. The Rock sits him down and has a talk with him about Cena’s success after he left and congratulates him on the 2-5 year olds demographic he’s conquered before asking him why he’ll never be as good as The Rock, to which the kid replies “because I’m not that talented”. Eventually the mini-Cena starts crying while The Rock takes shot at Cena’s movies. The kid blows his nose on a Cena shirt (which The Rock then spits on) and then The Rock pulls out a box of Fruity Pebbles cereal for the kid. Finally the kid leaves and The Rock addresses The Miz with his serious face. We even get some moody background music while The Rock cuts a promo on The Miz, with Rocky promising to deliver the single biggest ass-whooping of a lifetime on both Miz and Cena. He does the “If you smell” bit and that wraps it up.
Your hosts are Michael Cole, Jerry Lawler, and Josh Matthews
We open with a shot backstage of Trish Stratus and Snooki from the Jersey Shore TV show fiddling around with their cell phones. Back at ringside we hear Michael Cole’s voice as he’s got his own announcer’s table setup next to the usual one with a big plastic box around him, like on the Pope mobile. That is fucking brilliant. Cole is finally going to go full heel here it seems, thankfully. He calls the box the “Cole Mine”.
The Miz’s music hits and he makes his way down to the ring as Michael Cole talks him up like a seventh grader with a crush. The Miz grabs a mic and accuses The Rock of being a has-been. Big “You suck!” chant starts up, been awhile since I’ve seen this kind of heat for a main event heel. The Miz promises to make The Rock scream and cry like a little girl inside the ring, and then claims to “own” John Cena. Miz finishes up, telling us he’s awesome, etc, until the lights flicker and we have an e-mail from the anonymous general manager. Cole comes out of his box to read it, but Jerry cuts him off and does it himself. The e-mail says that tonight John Cena will face Alberto Del Rio, while The Miz will face The Great Khali. Damnit I was hoping Khali had gotten into another Indian gun fight in a nightclub, rats.
The Miz vs. The Great Khali
So this should be bizarre. Khali quickly overpowers Miz, striking him several times with big chops. He puts The Miz in that weird head-crushing submission of his until the fired Alex Riley hops in the ring and attacks Khali for the DQ at 1:11. Riley gets slammed by Khali after the match and The Miz starts attacking Khali with a steel chair. He actually takes Khali down to the mat, beating the hell out of him with that steel chair maniacally and giving him a DDT. That should help Miz’s credibility a bit. Match itself was, obviously, nothing. ¼*
After the match Cole claims that tonight he’s going to expose Jerry Lawler’s past with a shocking guest tonight. That doesn’t help, it could be any female from the Memphis area over the last 30 years that he’s boned/screwed/married/divorced/raped/molested/whatever. We also get an announcement for a Randy Orton vs. Mason Ryan match tonight, because you know that was one the world was just dying to see.
Triple H video package.
Backstage John Morrison is talking to Snooki until Vickie Guerrero and Dolph Ziggler come up to bust their bubble. Vickie claims she doesn’t care that Snooki was on the cover of Rolling Stone (which is something I’m just finding out about now and have begun weeping silently inside) because she was offered the cover of Playboy. Snooki makes a fat joke, then SLAPS THE SHIT out of Vickie. No, seriously, she REALLY stiffed Vickie there and I definitely laughed.
WWE US Title Match
Daniel Bryan © vs. Sheamus
These two got into it backstage a few weeks back so it appears this will be the program both men will work for Wrestlemania. Apparently Sheamus was on the cover of Muscle & Fitness magazine this week, riveting. Sheamus said last week that if he doesn’t win the title tonight, he’s going to quit the WWE, and Justin Roberts announces the stipulation to make it official. Bryan comes out with Gail Kim, looking mighty fine as always. Big takedown from Sheamus to start. Shoulderblock gets him a quick one count. Bryan flips out of an irish whip and tries for an armbar, but Sheamus goes outside for a breather. No luck though as Bryan follows him out immediately with the tope suicida to the floor! Back inside he hits a missile dropkick for another two count. Quick commercial break and when we return Sheamus has Bryan in a reverse chinlock. Sheamus hangs Bryan up in the ropes and starts laying in big forearms to the chest. He hits him with a knee-lift and gets a two count. Bryan reverses a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker for a near fall and then back-body drops Sheamus out of the ring to the floor, where Sheamus hits his ankle, the same one that was injured last week and caused him to be counted out. Sheamus tries for the big boot but Bryan evades and then locks on the La Belle lock! Sheamus just barely gets a ropebreak. Sheamus tries for a powerbomb but Bryan conuters into a sunset flip, 1-2---NOO! Sheamus kicks out. They begin trading forearms now, with Bryan laying in precision kicks to Sheamus’ chest and head. Bryan tries for another missile dropkick but Sheamus gives him the huge big boot in mid-air! That’s enough for the pin and Sheamus is your new United States champion at 5:47 (shown). This was just awesome, Bryan can have a good match with anyone and his fast paced offense played off of Sheamus’ power perfectly. Excellent television match. ***¼
After the match Cole gets on the mic and once again says he’s going to expose The King tonight, live, and next. After a quick commercial break we return to Cole in the ring now with a mic, guaranteeing that Stone Cold will have a “minimal effect” on his match with The King at Wrestlemania. Cole brings out none other than the biological son of Jerry Lawler….BRIAN CHRISTOPHER! OH MY LORD! Grandmaster Sexay as you may have known him is back, and holy shit he looks awful. He has grey hair? He does the old Too Cool dance down the ramp but this audience clearly has no idea what they’re seeing. Well fuck you, I’m marking out for that little dance. Never in my life did I think I would mark out for Brian flippin’ Christopher. This is such an awesome addition to the feud though from the WWE, because those two have a ton of history together (obviously). Cole asks Christopher why he was never billed as “Brian Lawler”, to which Brian responds by saying he never felt like he had a father growing up. Brian says Jerry never even wanted a child, and that he was neglected. This is some crazy stuff because you have to imagine a lot of the things Brian is saying he probably actually felt at one point in time. King grabs a mic finally and says to Brian that he’s a bigger screw-up than Charlie Sheen! Which, honestly, is actually true to real-life considering Brian’s many troubles with the law and drugs. Brian asks him how it feels to know that he competed at Wrestlemania before Jerry did. He gets in his dad’s face and even pushes him, trying to instigate a fight. Brian says he never used the Lawler name because he’s ashamed of Jerry. Cole calls King a pathetic coward, loser, etc and suddenly we hear BOOMER SOONER! FUCK YEAR! Jim Ross is in the building! HUGE pop for JR, as always. JR tries to reason with Cole, but Cole just tells him to go away. He says this is “his” show now and “he’s” the voice of the WWE now, not Jim Ross. Tons of boos for that of course. JR says the “voices” of the WWE are those of the fans, not him. JR says King has been carrying Cole like a kangaroo in it’s pouch. He calls Cole a “rat bastard” and gets another big pop. Awesome stuff here. Cole insults him and JR takes off his hat and his jacket. Oh shit, it’s FIGHTIN’ TIME for JR! Cole takes his jacket off as well and it appears we’re going to have a fight as a huge “JR!” chant starts up. Suddenly Jack Swagger jumps The King at the commentary table. Swagger gets in the ring beats down JR to a ton of heat, giving him the ankle lock. This isn’t right, it’s Oklahoman on Oklahoman violence! King tries to make the save but Swagger just gives him the ankle lock as well. Cole then gives JR the ankle lock! You can here JR scream “God almighty!” and Cole and Swagger might need security on their way out because of the nuclear heat they’re getting at this point. This was an incredibly entertaining segment that added a ton of heat to the already blazing hot Jerry Lawler-Michael Cole feud.
Randy Orton vs. Mason Ryan
Oh boy, this has been a great show so far but this match doesn’t exactly scream “mat classic” on paper. Ryan has actually been billed as “Batista 2” in the Mexican press, I’m not making that up. His resemblance to Dave is pretty uncanny, and it’s literally the only reason he’s not still in Florida, learning how to actually work. Lockup to start us off and Orton starts laying in right hands in the corner. Ryan hits a big boot and then a huge backbreaker for a quick two count. Ryan gets a chance to look impressive here, giving Orton several backbreakers, displaying his strength. He works a flippin’ bear hug of all things, something I haven’t seen in a WWE match not involving Mark Henry in a long time. Orton hits a big clothesline but then gets side-slammed for a very close two count. Ryan tries for another sideslam, but Orton counters with the RKO and that’s enough to put Batista 2 away at 2:59. After the match Orton and Punk face off on the ramp, but Orton hits the punt kick on Mason Ryan instead! Both Orton and Punk face off in the “viper position” in the ring until Punk slithers out. Not nearly as bad as I thought it would be, Mason looked impressive before Orton hit the RKO out of nowhere, so both men come out of it looking decent and it did it’s job of continuing the Punk-Orton feud. *½
After a quick commercial break we get our latest Hall of Fame induction, this one into the “celebrity wing”, being none other than…Drew Carey? Huh? I’m actually a Drew Carey fan, I used to love his show when it was still on and his performance in the 2001 Royal Rumble was pretty memorable and funny. Wow it’s weird seeing the highlights of that Rumble with the old hall of fame old-school voice-over job and everything, I remember watching that PPV live with some friends like it was yesterday. As for his Hall of Fame induction…eh. I mean, if William Perry is in there, sure, why not Drew. No big deal I guess.
Backstage we see Snooki and Trish walking when Zach Ryder confronts Snooki! Yes! /wooo/ has just exploded I’m sure. Snooki apparently approves of Ryder’s abs. Give that man a title push!
After a quick commercial break Justin Roberts introduces Snooki, who gets a strange reaction of indifference, love, and hate all at the same time. She almost looks attractive for a second, and then I whip myself out of that devilish trance like Nelson Van Alden abusing himself in Boardwalk Empire. Crowd actually reacts pretty nicely at first to Snooki, though you can hear some boos. Snooki is here to see Trish Stratus shut Vickie Guerrero’s mouth apparently, and out comes Vickie.
No DQ Match
Trish Stratus vs. Vickie Guerrero
So this is for Vickie’s “career” on Monday Night Raw, and was set up last week I think. Honestly I forgot all about this, but hey, I’m down for some Stratusfaction. Vickie accuses Snooki of stealing her spotlight. Vickie accuses Snooki of stealing her cover pose for Rolling Stone, and we get a humorously photoshopped picture of Vickie on the cover of Rolling Stone. Trish still looks great. Vickie wants to warm up first but Trish is having none of that and just rolls her up for a quick one count. You know I’d like to see Trish actually work a match with a capable opponent again if she’s down for it, she really improved over the years. Trish chases Vickie around the ring for a bit and Vickie tries to fight her with her shoe like it’s a sword. Pure comedy stuff here and there’s nothing wrong with that. Trish spanks her with the shoe and suddenly Dolph Ziggler hits the ring. Just as he does though, here comes John Morrison! Oh please tell me this is leading to Ziggler vs. Morrison at ‘Mania. LayCool run in all of a sudden and lay out Trish and Vickie gets the cheap pin at 2:28. Wrestling-wise, this was DUD city but it was actually amusing in it’s own way, so I won’t be too harsh. ¼*
After the match LayCool and Vickie celebrate in the ring until McCool wants to confront Snooki. We actually get a damn “Snooki” chant, and for a moment I’m actually ashamed to be a wrestling fan. A brief one, albeit. McCool shoves Snooki but Snooki gets in her face and then gives a Lou Thesz press to Layla in the ring while Trish takes it to McCool! Look at that! Snooki actually performed more wrestling moves here than her co-star Angelina did on TNA iMPACT! last week. Vickie grabs a mic and challenges Morrison, Trish…and Snooki to a six-man match at Wrestlemania against LayCool and Dolph Ziggler. Snooki wrestling at ‘Mania? I cannot imagine the reaction she’s going to get there. This is actually pretty smart from a publicity standpoint as Jersey Shore, trash or not, is the number one TV show in the country right now, so her wrestling a match at Wrestlemania should give the WWE tons of media coverage in the coming weeks. I really, REALLY wish that Ziggler and Morrison could just have their own singles match, but alas, I guess they didn’t want to put more effort into it. Oh well.
John Cena vs. Alberto Del Rio
Del Rio is accompanied by his former NXT rookie Brodus Clay, who has become Del Rio’s muscle over the last week. We’re already past two hours at this point so I don’t expect this to go very long. Lock-up to start things off and Del Rio tries to work a side-headlock. We cut to a quick commercial while Michael Cole tells us that apparently The Rock is in St. Louis tonight. When we return Del Rio hits Cena with a big dropkick for a quick two count. Cena counters a headlock with a backdrop suplex and both men are slow to get to their feet, only to both clothesline eachother. Cena starts getting fired up though and hits a few sideslams before giving him the Five Knuckle Shuffle. He goes for the Attitude Adjustment but Clay comes in the ring and attacks Cena for the DQ at 3:56 (shown). Not much of a main event obviously, but it didn’t really need to be given how little time was left. ½*
After the match the beatdown continues when suddenly The Rock’s music hits! The arena explodes…and it’s The Miz, with a baldcap on and a Rock T-shirt! Oh that was quite the bait and switch and the crowd totally bought that. Miz gets in the ring and helps the beatdown by giving Cena a Rock Bottom. That’s two weeks in a row now The Miz has stolen one of The Rock’s finishers, so you’ve got to expect retribution at some point. Del Rio hits a big enziguri on Cena as well. Miz takes the beatdown all the way up the ramp but Cena fights back and tries for the Attitude Adjustment only to be given a DDT on the stage. He throws Cena into the big WWE logo stagepiece as well. We close out the show two weeks in a row now with The Miz standing tall above a wounded John Cena.
Bottom Line: This show was fantastic, simply put. From a wrestling standpoint we had an excellent US title match for television, and from an angle standpoint all of the major feuds were progressed in some way and had time given to them. Throw in the cameos of Jim Ross and Brian Christopher alongside another great Rock promo and this was a perfect hype show for Wrestlemania. Really not a wasted moment to be found on this entire broadcast, one of the best RAW’s of the year so far I’d say, though not quite on par as the 2/14 edition where The Rock initially returned. Still, great show and an easy Thumbs Up.
Score: 9/10
Remember! You can find all of my reviews and ratings at my website HERE!Score: 9/10
The Cole segment went on way to long, and no one seemed to know Lawler's son. The Rock promo was really good. The Miz continues to underwhelm. I have always found him to be a rip off of Jericho, and his "Really!?" sounds a lot like "What!?", but tonight he went next level. I know he was a Rock fan, but him coming in as him was stupid, as we already saw something similar in the Rock's promo. Than, he has apparently taken a liking to the Scot drop as he used it three times. They are having to do a lot to make him look like an actual contender. We get to see him beat down Cena again, and I am still not buying. They tried to show the fans in shock as the Miz beat up Cena and all you saw were people who did not look entertained. The Snooki thing was also upsetting. I know celebrities got to WM, but shouldn't wrestle. Sheamus and Daniel Bryan was actually a good match and hopefully will put more focus on the US title. I hope Sheamus doesn't try to make it the "Ireland" title because it has been done.
swamprat37
Dark Match Winner
One of the worst RAW(s) this year.
Besides another good (taped) promo from The Rock and a title change it was a snorefest.
The Sheamus title win was the best thing that happened tonight, but good god it was all downhill from there.
I didn't even think BC was even alive, and judging by the crowd's reaction they cared about him about as much as i did. Him being called a bigger screw-up than Charlie Sheen was a good one tho.
Good to see JR again, at least until he took his hat off and you just knew he was going to get taken out.
Bad enough we have to see Vicki wrestling in those tights, but to have her go over Trish? Even worse involving that idiot midget from Jersey shore.
Then to top it all off,after an unimpressive match, The Miz impersonates The Rock, and beats the crap out of Cena, and the crowd..couldn't care less. He got virtually no reaction, Michael Cole got a better crowd reaction.
Overall just a horrible show. (imo of course)
Besides another good (taped) promo from The Rock and a title change it was a snorefest.
The Sheamus title win was the best thing that happened tonight, but good god it was all downhill from there.
I didn't even think BC was even alive, and judging by the crowd's reaction they cared about him about as much as i did. Him being called a bigger screw-up than Charlie Sheen was a good one tho.
Good to see JR again, at least until he took his hat off and you just knew he was going to get taken out.
Bad enough we have to see Vicki wrestling in those tights, but to have her go over Trish? Even worse involving that idiot midget from Jersey shore.
Then to top it all off,after an unimpressive match, The Miz impersonates The Rock, and beats the crap out of Cena, and the crowd..couldn't care less. He got virtually no reaction, Michael Cole got a better crowd reaction.
Overall just a horrible show. (imo of course)
Nate DaMac
Fuck erbody but me
Are you fucking kidding me? This was an awesome show top to bottom.
I hated Rock's promo, but I just don't think Rock is as good as Cena when it comes to the shit talking. Rock just pokes fun at stupid shit while Cena obliterates with facts.
Miz owned the night. His Rock impersonation was killer and the brutal beatdown he put on Cena to end the show was simply awesome.
The Cole/Brian Christopher/Lawler/JR segment was fantastic. Real emotion at a wrestling show? Putting incredible heat on Cole to make the payoff at Mania that much sweeter? How dare they!!!
Snookie didn't suck. She was one of the better guests since this whole thing started.
Just do us all a favor, know what you're talking about before you just decide to regurgitate this horseshit opinion.
WWEIsLife2
Championship Contender
I thought RAW overall was a good show tonight from St Louis.
The Miz did get reactions,he got them all night long
The Rock's promo was pretty funny and I can't wait for him to show up before Mania
The Micheal Cole/King/JR/Brian Christopher segment was really well done and will make Cole going down at Mania that much better.
Snooki did pretty well for herself and at first I wasn't sure how she would do but she did alright. Should be interesting to see what she does in the 6-person Tag at Wrestlemania.
So I enjoyed it and can't wait to see what happens Next Week.
The Miz did get reactions,he got them all night long
The Rock's promo was pretty funny and I can't wait for him to show up before Mania
The Micheal Cole/King/JR/Brian Christopher segment was really well done and will make Cole going down at Mania that much better.
Snooki did pretty well for herself and at first I wasn't sure how she would do but she did alright. Should be interesting to see what she does in the 6-person Tag at Wrestlemania.
So I enjoyed it and can't wait to see what happens Next Week.
Jack-Hammer
YOU WILL RESPECT MY AUTHORITAH!!!!
WWE Monday Night Raw - March 14, 2011
Opening Segment - I thought this was great and came across as genuinely funny in some spots. I'm glad to see that they just didn't go the same route they've been going with this war of words between Cena & The Rock. Having a kid dressed as Cena and doing all the rap stuff worked just fine and I thought it was just overall a much more original put down from The Rock than merely doing a typical promo. I'm also glad to see The Rock finally address The Miz and to see the promo take on a much more serious tone. All in all, just a fun segment that didn't eat up a large amount of time. Thumbs Up
The Miz - Very strong promo work from The Miz tonight in front of a hot St. Louis crowd. The Miz continues to be very confident in his role and the man's got talent. He deserves to be in the spot he's got. It's a good thing that the WWE has been pushing Miz further and further into the forefront of this situation it looked like he might wind up being all but forgotten. It should be quite interesting to see The Miz, Rock & Cena all in the ring together. Thumbs Up
The Miz vs. The Great Khali - There really wasn't much to this match as it didn't get a chance to really get started. Khali was doing his usual thing and Alex Riley interfered and provided a slight distraction. The Miz using the steel chair the way he did on Khali was very well done and it made Miz look much more aggressive than he's usually portrayed. He was really hitting Khali pretty hard, so hard that part of the chair broke off. Khali was actually cut open a little on his lower back and I was sort of surprised to see the camera zoom in on that. There was talk that the WWE was going to add more PG-13 content to its programming and the increased use of curse words and not shying away from blood seems to indicate that. Can't really rate this match as a match but it was a great showing for The Miz. N/A
Snooki & Vickie Guerrero - I dreaded this all night, I honestly did. I didn't know what they were gonna do with Snooki but I liked this little exchange with Vickie. It didn't eat up a lot of time and Vickie continues to shine in her role. Snooki slaps the piss outta Vickie, which I wasn't expecting because I thought she might wind up helping Vickie win her match later on. Short, effective and painless. What a relief it was. Thumbs Up
Daniel Bryan vs. Sheamus - Great physical match between Bryan & Sheamus. A great mesh of styles with both wrestlers looking great from bell to bell. When it was announced that Sheamus would "quit" the WWE rather than just Raw, well it did give away the ending of the match. At any rate, this is easily the best television match that we've seen on either WWE or TNA television for the past several weeks. The match ends with Sheamus catching Bryan with the Brogue Kick as Bryan leaps off the top rope. It looked great. Sheamus gets the win at the 9 minute mark to become the new WWE United States Champion. I'm hoping that this is just a sampler of what we get from them come WrestleMania. ***1/4
Michael Cole Segment - I liked this segment overall, thought it was highly entertaining, but it ran just a bit too long. Seeing Bryan Christopher come out was a surprise and he looks terrible. That bleach blonde hair makes him look older than his father. The stuff with him & Lawler was a little awkward and the crowd wasn't entirely sure how to take it but it did it's job of putting even more heat on Michael Cole. I marked out when Jim Ross started walking down the ramp. The man's hardly on television anymore but he's every bit as over with the audience as he's ever been. There was a good exchange with him & Cole on the mic and Michael Cole continues to look like a true, honest to God asshole week in and week out. Swagger making his presence felt was a nice addition as was his & Cole's beatdown of Lawler & JR. Overall, a very entertaining segment that just heaped heat on Michael Cole. It ran a little long and the stuff with Brian Christopher was kinda iffy but Jim Ross' surprise appearance really helped things. Thumbs Up
Randy Orton vs. Mason Ryan - For a 3 minute match, this wasn't bad at all. Ryan definitely looked better here than he did in his match against R-Truth several weeks back and got in a good amount of offense on Orton. There were a few times that Ryan did seem a "little lost" I guess. Orton eventually hits the RKO out of nowhere to win the match. The staredown with Punk at the top of the ramp was a nice touch. Orton punted Ryan so he's out and the on the mat staredown between Punk & Orton was awesome. Orton's facial expressions, his body language and intensity were spot on. Decent showing for Ryan as he did show signs of improvement and a hot crowd for the hometown boy in Randy Orton. **
Drew Carey - This is really the one thing about the show thus far I haven't particularly cared for. We all piss and moan about the "Celebrity Wing" of the WWE Hall of Fame and this will be no different. I get it. This will probably get the WWE mainstream media attention and that's all well and good but that doesn't mean I like it. Thumbs Down
Trish Stratus vs. Vickie Guerrero - Nobody was expecting a match here but Vickie was pretty funny overall. Trish Stratus still looks great though I prefer her as a blonde personally. LayCool comes to interfere as Morrison & Ziggler get into it on the outside. Michelle McCool nails Trish with the kick and they dogpile her for Vickie to get the win. At any rate, this was basically just an excuse to get Snooki involved. I have to admit that the way she was used here wasn't bad. She actually performed a good looking Thesz Press on Layla and the crowd was very much into it by this time. She was getting booed when she first came out but I think it goes to show how good LayCool and Vickie Guerrero have been as heels. Vickie challenges the faces afterward to a mixed person tag match at WM between LayCool & Dolph Ziggler vs. John Morrison, Trish Stratus & Snooki. I was a little surprised by that and I'm not really sure how to take it. I'd soooooo much prefer a match between Morrison & Ziggler one on one, so we'll just have to see how this rolls out. N/A
Alberto Del Rio vs. John Cena - Pretty solid main event match I thought with Del Rio holding his own against John Cena. This is the first time they've met and Del Rio was booked strongly here against Cena. Both of them hit some of their signature spots and moves. Around the 7.5 minute mark, Brodus Clay interferes in the match even though Del Rio wasn't really in any serious trouble. We've seen people get out of the AA lots of times. **1/4
Cena Beatdown - The Rock's music suddenly hit and the crowd really ate it up. The Miz came out in a bald cap and mimicked some of The Rock's mannerisms as he made his way to the ring. He aided Clay & Del Rio in beating Cena down for a bit before taking over himself. Miz proceeds to beat Cena down from the ringside area all the way up the ramp. Great aggression shown by The Miz, expecially with the Skull Crushing Finale onto the large WWE emblem up on the ramp to close it out. The only thing that would've made this better would've been Cena bleeding. Thumbs Up
Overall Show - Raw was a fantastic show tonight and just overall much better than we've seen in several weeks in my view. There was so much packed into the show but everything that took place did get time to be shown as being relevant to the show and WrestleMania. The Rock & The Miz both delivered strong promos this week and the segment with Michael Cole, Jerry Lawler & Jim Ross was quite entertaining. My only real complaint was that it ran a bit long. Wrestling content on the show this week was much stronger than it's been these past few weeks due mostly to the US title match between Sheamus & Daniel Bryan. Orton & Mason Ryan had a solid 3 minute match with Ryan getting a decent amount of offense. Del Rio vs. Cena was a solid match for what it was. Snooki did a good job with what they did with her tonight though I'm not all that crazy about her having a match at WrestleMania. If they keep her overall invovlement in the match in a similar way to how they used her on Raw tonight, it should be fine. There was a lot of energy on Raw tonight and more great build toward WrestleMania.
Grade: A-
Opening Segment - I thought this was great and came across as genuinely funny in some spots. I'm glad to see that they just didn't go the same route they've been going with this war of words between Cena & The Rock. Having a kid dressed as Cena and doing all the rap stuff worked just fine and I thought it was just overall a much more original put down from The Rock than merely doing a typical promo. I'm also glad to see The Rock finally address The Miz and to see the promo take on a much more serious tone. All in all, just a fun segment that didn't eat up a large amount of time. Thumbs Up
The Miz - Very strong promo work from The Miz tonight in front of a hot St. Louis crowd. The Miz continues to be very confident in his role and the man's got talent. He deserves to be in the spot he's got. It's a good thing that the WWE has been pushing Miz further and further into the forefront of this situation it looked like he might wind up being all but forgotten. It should be quite interesting to see The Miz, Rock & Cena all in the ring together. Thumbs Up
The Miz vs. The Great Khali - There really wasn't much to this match as it didn't get a chance to really get started. Khali was doing his usual thing and Alex Riley interfered and provided a slight distraction. The Miz using the steel chair the way he did on Khali was very well done and it made Miz look much more aggressive than he's usually portrayed. He was really hitting Khali pretty hard, so hard that part of the chair broke off. Khali was actually cut open a little on his lower back and I was sort of surprised to see the camera zoom in on that. There was talk that the WWE was going to add more PG-13 content to its programming and the increased use of curse words and not shying away from blood seems to indicate that. Can't really rate this match as a match but it was a great showing for The Miz. N/A
Snooki & Vickie Guerrero - I dreaded this all night, I honestly did. I didn't know what they were gonna do with Snooki but I liked this little exchange with Vickie. It didn't eat up a lot of time and Vickie continues to shine in her role. Snooki slaps the piss outta Vickie, which I wasn't expecting because I thought she might wind up helping Vickie win her match later on. Short, effective and painless. What a relief it was. Thumbs Up
Daniel Bryan vs. Sheamus - Great physical match between Bryan & Sheamus. A great mesh of styles with both wrestlers looking great from bell to bell. When it was announced that Sheamus would "quit" the WWE rather than just Raw, well it did give away the ending of the match. At any rate, this is easily the best television match that we've seen on either WWE or TNA television for the past several weeks. The match ends with Sheamus catching Bryan with the Brogue Kick as Bryan leaps off the top rope. It looked great. Sheamus gets the win at the 9 minute mark to become the new WWE United States Champion. I'm hoping that this is just a sampler of what we get from them come WrestleMania. ***1/4
Michael Cole Segment - I liked this segment overall, thought it was highly entertaining, but it ran just a bit too long. Seeing Bryan Christopher come out was a surprise and he looks terrible. That bleach blonde hair makes him look older than his father. The stuff with him & Lawler was a little awkward and the crowd wasn't entirely sure how to take it but it did it's job of putting even more heat on Michael Cole. I marked out when Jim Ross started walking down the ramp. The man's hardly on television anymore but he's every bit as over with the audience as he's ever been. There was a good exchange with him & Cole on the mic and Michael Cole continues to look like a true, honest to God asshole week in and week out. Swagger making his presence felt was a nice addition as was his & Cole's beatdown of Lawler & JR. Overall, a very entertaining segment that just heaped heat on Michael Cole. It ran a little long and the stuff with Brian Christopher was kinda iffy but Jim Ross' surprise appearance really helped things. Thumbs Up
Randy Orton vs. Mason Ryan - For a 3 minute match, this wasn't bad at all. Ryan definitely looked better here than he did in his match against R-Truth several weeks back and got in a good amount of offense on Orton. There were a few times that Ryan did seem a "little lost" I guess. Orton eventually hits the RKO out of nowhere to win the match. The staredown with Punk at the top of the ramp was a nice touch. Orton punted Ryan so he's out and the on the mat staredown between Punk & Orton was awesome. Orton's facial expressions, his body language and intensity were spot on. Decent showing for Ryan as he did show signs of improvement and a hot crowd for the hometown boy in Randy Orton. **
Drew Carey - This is really the one thing about the show thus far I haven't particularly cared for. We all piss and moan about the "Celebrity Wing" of the WWE Hall of Fame and this will be no different. I get it. This will probably get the WWE mainstream media attention and that's all well and good but that doesn't mean I like it. Thumbs Down
Trish Stratus vs. Vickie Guerrero - Nobody was expecting a match here but Vickie was pretty funny overall. Trish Stratus still looks great though I prefer her as a blonde personally. LayCool comes to interfere as Morrison & Ziggler get into it on the outside. Michelle McCool nails Trish with the kick and they dogpile her for Vickie to get the win. At any rate, this was basically just an excuse to get Snooki involved. I have to admit that the way she was used here wasn't bad. She actually performed a good looking Thesz Press on Layla and the crowd was very much into it by this time. She was getting booed when she first came out but I think it goes to show how good LayCool and Vickie Guerrero have been as heels. Vickie challenges the faces afterward to a mixed person tag match at WM between LayCool & Dolph Ziggler vs. John Morrison, Trish Stratus & Snooki. I was a little surprised by that and I'm not really sure how to take it. I'd soooooo much prefer a match between Morrison & Ziggler one on one, so we'll just have to see how this rolls out. N/A
Alberto Del Rio vs. John Cena - Pretty solid main event match I thought with Del Rio holding his own against John Cena. This is the first time they've met and Del Rio was booked strongly here against Cena. Both of them hit some of their signature spots and moves. Around the 7.5 minute mark, Brodus Clay interferes in the match even though Del Rio wasn't really in any serious trouble. We've seen people get out of the AA lots of times. **1/4
Cena Beatdown - The Rock's music suddenly hit and the crowd really ate it up. The Miz came out in a bald cap and mimicked some of The Rock's mannerisms as he made his way to the ring. He aided Clay & Del Rio in beating Cena down for a bit before taking over himself. Miz proceeds to beat Cena down from the ringside area all the way up the ramp. Great aggression shown by The Miz, expecially with the Skull Crushing Finale onto the large WWE emblem up on the ramp to close it out. The only thing that would've made this better would've been Cena bleeding. Thumbs Up
Overall Show - Raw was a fantastic show tonight and just overall much better than we've seen in several weeks in my view. There was so much packed into the show but everything that took place did get time to be shown as being relevant to the show and WrestleMania. The Rock & The Miz both delivered strong promos this week and the segment with Michael Cole, Jerry Lawler & Jim Ross was quite entertaining. My only real complaint was that it ran a bit long. Wrestling content on the show this week was much stronger than it's been these past few weeks due mostly to the US title match between Sheamus & Daniel Bryan. Orton & Mason Ryan had a solid 3 minute match with Ryan getting a decent amount of offense. Del Rio vs. Cena was a solid match for what it was. Snooki did a good job with what they did with her tonight though I'm not all that crazy about her having a match at WrestleMania. If they keep her overall invovlement in the match in a similar way to how they used her on Raw tonight, it should be fine. There was a lot of energy on Raw tonight and more great build toward WrestleMania.
Grade: A-
-The rock opening, decent promo, really amusing, cant wait for the rock to get into the ring with john cena and the miz.
-sheamus is the new US champ, they had a really good match, infact (personally) one of the best match ups we have seen in a while.
-really wish stone cold would have shown and dropped cole and swagger, but oh well, JR finally returned on live tv, unfortunetly he got wasted by cole and swagger, really though lawler was going to beat on the 2 of them (guess we are waiting till WM 27). as for brian lawler, well, just another cheap shot by cole.
-randy gets a, well, another unbelivable win, this time against mason ryan, kinda upsetting, i was hoping that mason would be in cm punks corner so that randys win would be that much better.
-trish vs vickie,michelle got owned by snooki, then layla was getting worked over by snooki, dolph got beat by john morrison, trish stratus unloaded on michelle mccool. vickie is sadly back, however we got ourselves another awesome match for WM27!! trish, snooki, and john morrison vs team laycool and dolph ziggler.
-another promo with shawn michaels this time regarding the undertaker and wrestling him at wrestle mania.
-taker and triple hhh both didnt make a tv appearance. though triple hhh was part of the dark match.
-john cena was getting beat then brodus interupted, miz comes out impersonating rock and the 3 wipe the floor with cena.
alright show, maybe miz will win at WM27
, at least we got another good match. still waiting for the deadman to wrestle someone and still waiting for triple hhh to wrestle someone but oh well.
-sheamus is the new US champ, they had a really good match, infact (personally) one of the best match ups we have seen in a while.
-really wish stone cold would have shown and dropped cole and swagger, but oh well, JR finally returned on live tv, unfortunetly he got wasted by cole and swagger, really though lawler was going to beat on the 2 of them (guess we are waiting till WM 27). as for brian lawler, well, just another cheap shot by cole.
-randy gets a, well, another unbelivable win, this time against mason ryan, kinda upsetting, i was hoping that mason would be in cm punks corner so that randys win would be that much better.
-trish vs vickie,michelle got owned by snooki, then layla was getting worked over by snooki, dolph got beat by john morrison, trish stratus unloaded on michelle mccool. vickie is sadly back, however we got ourselves another awesome match for WM27!! trish, snooki, and john morrison vs team laycool and dolph ziggler.
-another promo with shawn michaels this time regarding the undertaker and wrestling him at wrestle mania.
-taker and triple hhh both didnt make a tv appearance. though triple hhh was part of the dark match.
-john cena was getting beat then brodus interupted, miz comes out impersonating rock and the 3 wipe the floor with cena.
alright show, maybe miz will win at WM27
, at least we got another good match. still waiting for the deadman to wrestle someone and still waiting for triple hhh to wrestle someone but oh well.swamprat37
Dark Match Winner
it's called an opinion for a reason, I can consider your opinion to be just as much "regurgitated horseshit" as easily as you can. I didnt enjoy the show. If you did good for you. That's the beauty of differing opinions.
I don't like Snookie she's a waste of oxygen, I haven't been fond of this guest host bullshit since..well ever. Add that to my hatred of the reality tv crap and Snookie sucks more ass than Michael Jackson did when he visited the boys home. I thought the entire Cole segment, no matter how good Cole was at stirring up the crowd, went on to long but he at least got the crowd going. An announcer doesnt need the "incredible heat", The Miz does and the whole time he was beating down Cena the crowd didnt care.
As for Christopher?
who cares!? He was nothing when he was in WWE he's less than that now.
I will add that I'm glad Vicky is back, the way the crowd hates her is like nothing I've seen in a long time.
HIGHLIGHTS
Opening promo The Rock
Miz's followup promo
Seeing Trish in the ring again
JR/Cole segment
Daniel Bryan v Sheamus