Official Raw/Smackdown Aftermath, Ratings and Review Thread

[The Eighties]

I liked Alex Riley's commentary on Smackdown, I wouldn't mind him getting a regular run on the show while JBL sticks to Raw.

I thought Del Rio's mic work on the show was some of his best and I'm curious about the route they are going with Vickie, she seems to be playing it down the middle.

Big E had a decent match with Sin Cara, not something that's always easy.

Punk vs Fandango was good, you can see Fandango gets it and the Superplex into the Anaconda Vice finish was cool.

Layla's heel turn was oddly executed and I was even more surprised at her leaving with AJ, I figured this would be a separate feud for Kaitlyn and Layla while AJ moves onto a new challenger, plus I'm not sure what AJ pairing up with Layla can possibly offer the already extremely over crazy minx

The triple threat main event was very entertaining, Orton in particular was feeling it and RVD looked the slickest he's been so far with his signature spots. Orton countering Rolling Thunder into a snap Powerslam was a thing of beauty, amazing timing, and RVD sold the RKO like he was spiked into the mat.

Big win for Christian despite being the least over, I imagine he'll have a good match with Del Rio and put him over.

 

[LSN80]

Raw Hits and Misses for 7/29/13​

Raw Hits:​

Opening Segment: This was really well done between Bryan and Vince McMahon. Vince played on Bryan's insecurities, including trying to establish alterior motives as to why Cena picked Bryan as his opponent. Many of Vince's comments seem to be hinting towards something else, which is the dawn of 'his champion', in the form of Randy Orton. They've been smart to keep Orton away from this feud and off of Raw altogether, so it doesn't make it apparent that he may cash-in following the match. Orton would surely fit the mold of Vince's champion, which Bryan and Cena don't. That is, of course, if one can forget that Orton kicked the entire McMahon family in the heads in 2009. Still, a strong back-and-forth between Vince and Bryan, with DB firmly establishing himself as a man of the people.

The Shield vs. The Usos and Mark Henry: After the strong match between The Usos and Reigns/Rollins at MITB on the pre-show, Mark Henry and Dean Ambrose were nice additions to the match to make it a six-man tag. Despite the losses, the Usos are gaining momentum as a team, and Henry got his heat back by destroying the Shield following the match. It was nice to hear Jerry Lawler label Henry as a "sore loser", as too often, faces are given passes for things such as this, simply because they're faces. Henry isn't a traditional face, and it was nice to see Lawler call him out on it. **1/2.

Daniel Bryan/John Cena backstage: It seems we finally have an actual issue between the two. Cena didn't exactly deny Bryan's allegations that Vince was telling him the truth that Cena viewed Bryan as beneath him, either, so it should be interesting to see how this plays out in the two Raws prior to Summerslam.

Christian vs. Alberto Del Rio: Another week, another non-title loss for Del Rio. Yes, he's beaten Sheamus and RVD when he's targeted body parts and's been ruthless, but without adding these intangibles, he simply doesn't win. If the idea is to have Christian challenge Del Rio at Summerslam, it softens the blow, but Del Rio simply loses too much.

That being said, this was a good match. The two men worked a fast-paced style for almost 15 minutes and countered the other nicely time and again. Christian sells as well as anyone in the business, and his selling of the arm throughout the match is a prime example of this, and he avoided the cross-arm breaker at all costs. Cole and Lawler did a nice job of selling Christian's arm/shoulder injury as well. The ending sequence was excellent, with Christian ducking the step-up Enzeguri, Del Rio avoiding the Killswitch, hooking the cross-armbreaker, only for Christian to roll through for the victory. This was better as well then Christian beating Del Rio clean with his finisher. Good match. ***

Cody Rhodes vs. Wade Barrett: The best way to get someone over? Have them win matches. Since Money In The Bank, Cody has been doing exactly that, and he's starting to gain a semblance of importance. Not much with it being a five minute match, but it did the trick. Rhodes looked good, and he continues to gain momentum by winning. The ending was sweet with Cody reversing Barrett's Pumphandle Slam into CrossRhodes, and the aftermath with Sandow was fine as well. I look forward to the likely Sandow/Rhodes match at Summerslam. **.

Kane vs. Daniel Bryan: Is it just me, or was this the ending here the same as the end to their Summerslam match last year? Having their "blow-off match" on TV was far preferable then wasting it on PPV, although this was a good match. Bryan continues to show more fight and aggressiveness by the week, which is almost a nod to Vince's comments that Bryan lacks ruthless aggression. The match ended when Kane went for several chokeslams, the first escaped by Bryan with kicks, the second by Bryan rolling him up. Kane's chokeslam of Bryan after the match came across as a less a heel turn, rather, simply remembering Brad Maddox's words questioning him still being a monster. **3/4.

The Wyatt's attack Kane: For a group seemingly attempting to recruit Kane, they have an awfully funny way of doing so. Still, this is an intriguing angle, and now that Team Hell No is done, I like the idea of a brainwashed Kane serving as Bray Wyatt's enforcer. They're still in the early stages of developing the characters and finding a feel for where they're going with them, so the slow build here is fine. I liked Bray's promo playing off Kane's previous claims of being the "Devil's Favorite Demon", and 'being careful whom he makes such claims around'.

CM Punk attacks Curtis Axel: While I wish Punk would have been more ruthless and used Axel as a proxy for Heyman/Lesnar, I understand the need to protect Axel as well. Having Punk get his hands on Heyman ever so briefly only for Heyman to slip away will make when Punk gets his hands on Heyman all-the-more satisfying. This was obviously a step back from the previous two weeks of promos, but it did a fair job of moving the feud along.

John Cena vs. Ryback: An excellent tables match, with both men showing strong brutality. Ryback looked ruthless and remorseless, which is how he should have been booked all along. At the end of the day, Ryback got in alot of offense on the WWE Champion and pushed him to the limit, and main-evented yet another Raw. Even if his role is to suffer as a buffer heel between the mid-card and main event, he's best served doing so in the role he showed here. The multiple counters and near-misses with the tables were very good, and the finish into the table in the ring was an innovative one. Both men looked strong, and Ryback was even possibly elevated because of his ruthlessness and strong showing here against Cena. ***1/4.

Overall Show: This is a thumbs very slightly up show for me. It's tough when a show is pre-recorded, as it doesn't capture the "anything can happen" vibe that a live show gives off. Still, there were several good matches on the show, including Christian/Del Rio, Kane/Bryan, and Cena/Ryback. The small interaction between Punk and Heyman was good, with Punk almost getting his hands on Heyman. That match, along with Bryan/Cena, are easy selling points for the show already. Vince did a nice job of feeding into Bryan's paranoia, the Shield/Mark Henry issue continues in a nice fashion, and the Rhodes/Sandow feud continues to move along well. Outside of that, the rest of the show was bad. Both Divas matches were poor, with Natalya/Brie Bella being a downright embarrassment. Fandango and RVD was a waste of time, with RVD just showing off, and Fandango walking away, again. This wasn't a terrible show, but there were no "can't miss" segments or "must see" matches. Hopefully, with Raw being live again next week, they'll get back on track with the string of solid shows they've had recently. C+.

Raw Misses:​

Rob Van Dam vs. Fandango: Who benefits, exactly, from all the count-out victories against Fandango? Certainly not Van Dam, who dominated the match and gave Fandango virtually no offense whatsoever, and got a count-out victory for his efforts. It's not protecting Fandango, it makes him seem like he's admitting he can't win a match, so he simply walks away. The occasional count-out, when done properly, can be a good thing. But in a four minute match? It does nothing for RVD, and makes Fandango look like someone who believes he can't win. And he's certainly not getting his heat back by taking the mic at the top of the entrance ramp and pronouncing his name. His booking is a total mess right now. *1/4.

AJ vs. Kaitlyn: Nowhere near the quality of their previous encounters at Payback and Money In The Bank, and the fans let them know it by their utter silence during the match. Neither woman's offense was crisp, and for a 5 minute match, they relied far too much on rest-holds and armbars. AJ's flipping out in the ring following losses has gotten old as well, and while it set the stage for Langston vs. Ziggler, it's become far too over the top and too frequent. Not a good match. 1/2*.

Dolph Ziggler vs. Big E. Langston: I hope they have a rematch scheduled for Summerslam, because this was weak. What makes it even worse is the fact that it was 2 non-finishes in 3 matches, with the match in-between being a Divas match. Langston still looks very green in the ring and Dolph isn't the guy to carry him to a good match, although hopefully they can have a better one given more time. There was very little energy to this match, and the ending was obvious given the impromptu nature of the match combined with Ziggler's promo on AJ prior to the match. The Zig-Zag to Langston following the match seemed to indicate that the program will continue, which hopefully will culminate at Summerslam and allow both men to be elevated. They're floundering somewhat right now. *1/2.

Natalya vs. Brie Bella: Even before Nikki came out to make the duck call and distract Natalya, this was awful. I get that it's a promotional tool for what likely will be a semi-scripted rivalry on the Total Divas show, but this is the best they can come up with? Filler is fine, but this is filler used to embarrass, which was pathetic. 1/4*.

 

[blueskyy]

A very good Smackdown last week. The triple threat main event (last match) was surprising good, you have to watch it to believe it.

Alberto Del Rio was meant to be a heel. This is where he belongs. Don't fight it, embrace it, Del Rio! He failed miserably at being a face even after weeks and months of trying.

Big E. Langston proved to be a much better performer than Ryback would even be (Ryback sucks, he had has chances, now please stop pushing him).

Not a big fan of Punk's nor Fandango's, but they had a good match.

 

[LSN80]

Raw Hits and Misses 8/15/13​

Raw Hits:​

Opening Segment: I'm of two minds about this. I hate that the build for the WWE Championship match at Summerslam involves attempts to give Bryan a corporate makeover. The video of him "selling out" by changing his vegan lifestyle and going to the barber was bad, but I liked how he tied it in as to how no matter what he did, he wasn't going to be what the company wanted as a champion.

The strongest part of the segment was the exchange between Vince and Bryan. Bryan's self-deprecation then depiction of himself as the opposite of Cena was well-stated, and it brought the issue somewhat back to between Bryan and Cena rather then leaning more towards Bryan and the McMahon's. Bryan made a strong statement both on the mic and in his attack on Wade Barrett that he was going to become WWE Champion his own way rather then by becoming a "corporate champion", and Vince was, as usual, fine as a disingenuous heel. A mostly strong segment.

Alberto Del Rio destroys Ricardo Rodriguez: Did Ricardo violate the Wellness Policy for a second time? This was a brutal beatdown by Del Rio resulting from his failed interference in Del Rio's loss to RVD. I would much rather Del Rio have picked up the victory despite failed interference from Rodriguez, then have Del Rio destroy Ricardo for his failings. However, this was an effective beating that made Del Rio look absolutely ruthless. He still can't win non-title matches, but he looks like a vicious heel and garnered fantastic heat for destroying Rodriguez. The spot where he smashed Ricardo between the steps looked absolutely vicious.

Curtis Axel vs. Cm Punk: This wasn't 'awesome' as the crowd was chanting, but it was very good. I'm not a huge fan of making the IC Champ fodder for another feud, but it's not as if Axel has really enhanced the title since winning it anyways. Further, Axel hung well with Punk and got in enough offense that he looked pretty credible before Punk abandoned the match to go after Heyman. Again, I dislike him being the patsy and taking the GTS simply to eliminate him from the equation, but he's easily the weakest character here and it made Punk look unstoppable for a time and on a mission. **1/2.

The Wyatt Family vs. Tons of Funk: Simple enhancement match to get over The Wyatt family's aggressiveness, and set-up the post match angle with Kane. Kane's promo was very good, discussing how he and Wyatt do similar things, but for different reasons. Wyatt to send a message, Kane for his own amusement. I presume this will set up another Summerslam match of some kind, although I'm not a fan of the announced 'Ring of Fire' match made for Summerslam between Wyatt and Kane, which sounds like an Inferno Match.

Brock Lesnar and CM Punk brawl:The story that they're telling here is a great one. Punk is so obsessed with getting to Heyman and gaining revenge that he loses focus, and it costs him against a Brock Lesnar, rightfully so. Punk actually had the upper hand and was really taking it to Lesnar before he turned his attention to Heyman, and took an F-5 and several chair shots as a result for it. Good stuff that just furthers an excellent build towards their Summerslam match.

Punk vs. Heyman next week: Yes, this will likely play out in predictable fashion with the cowardly heel who has virtually no chance to win using a loophole to do so such as a No-DQ match, but I like Heyman laying down the challenge to Punk, who's been trying to get his hands on Heyman for weeks, with no success. He likely won't here either, but it's a good hook for next week and the build for the Punk/Lesnar match has been near-flawless, so I have faith they'll make this work.

John Cena and Randy Orton promo: Cena was intense and straight-forward and 100% focused on defending his title against Daniel Bryan at Summerslam, and Orton's presence was a good one. He's been held off Raw for a few weeks in a smart move, likely to not put an over-emphasis on the MITB briefcase, but his return was a nice reminder that he remains the wild-card in the WWE Championship picture. Cena remains great at working the crowd and instead of being flustered by them, he acknowledged their chants and dismissed the idea that he can't wrestle with proof: He's an 11-time WWE Champion.

Some people may not like Cena's comments about Bryan being most comfortable in a gymnasium and Cena verifying that he would never wrestle anywhere but WWE, but it's a strong endorsement for the company that he just so happens to be the top champion of. The Shield's interruption was fine, if not convenient, and Bryan's run-in set-up the main event nicely.

Christian vs. Heath Slater: A hit for the spear alone, as it was perhaps the best one Christian has ever hit. I dislike the fact that we didn't see interaction between Christian and Del Rio after Del Rio attacked him Friday night, but this was fine. It continues Christian's hot streak with an enhancement victory over Slater, and hopefully they'll devote more time to the actual Christian/Del Rio feud on Smackdown. N/A

Kofi Kingston vs. Fandango: I was tempted to give Summer Rae a separate hit simply for her dress, but it works just as well here within here. This was a fine return for Kofi with Fandango actually sticking out a match instead of taking yet another count-out. The ending sequence where Kofi committed to Trouble In Paradise despite missing twice only to connect a third one was an excellent one, and Fandango, while he's now entrenched as a jobber, sells well and looks good on and creates enough sustainable offense to keep some credibility. **

The Shield vs. Randy Orton, John Cena, and Daniel Bryan: While a short match, they packed a lot of action into the 6 minutes alotted, with Daniel Bryan once again looking like a star by working virtually the entire match without being able to make a tag, and getting Rollins in the LaBell Lock to the point where the Shield were forced to attack to avoid the clean loss. **3/4.

As for the aftermath, there was a nice tease of Orton assisting Bryan and Cena in initially clearing the ring of the Shield, only to RKO both to tease the cashing in of the MITB briefcase. Orton looked both smart and heelish by walking away as the Shield destroyed both Cena and Bryan. It leaves a lot of possibilities available for Summerslam, including that the Shield could interfere in an Orton cash-in, like they did tonight.

Raw Misses:​

Overall Show: For the second straight week, the show was hit-or-miss. This is personified in the build to the Cena/Bryan match, with the sub-story of the corporate makeover attempts by the McMahon's on Bryan, but with Bryan and Cena's focus on each other. Orton remains a nice wildcard in the mixture. As for the rest of the show, there were some decent-to-good matches, but overall, it was quantity(10 matches) over quality. The Punk/Lesnar build continues to be outstanding, and there's intrigue in the Wyatt/Kane feud as well. Del Rio had a mixed bag night, as he lost another non-title match, but gained significant heat by absolutely destroying Ricardo after the match. It's a shame there's no heat right now on the Del Rio/Christian match, however. Rhodes and Sandow had an off-night in the clumsy nature of the booking and the mic work, and Ziggler just doesn't seem to be clicking as a top babyface right now. Kofi's return was a good one, and for the most part, the focus was on building towards Summerslam. The way they went about it, however, was very hit-or-miss. An average show. C.

Rob Van Dam vs. Alberto Del Rio: Another non-title match, another loss for Alberto Del Rio. I get that the idea was to put the blame on the 'rusty' Ricardo Rodriguez for trying to interfere, but Del Rio simply shouldn't be losing so many non-title matches as champion. Could you imagine John Cena losing this much as WWE Champion? RVD gets his win back,and Del Rio? He looks like a weak champion once again as he loses another short match. *1/2.

Cody Rhodes and Damien Sandow: I like that they're setting a up(hopefully) a match between the two at Summerslam, but the feud is floundering right now as creative seems to have nothing new for the two to push as an issue. Cody also comes off as hypocritical when he said Friday that he would have done the same as Sandow, he just didn't like how he did it, then presented his issue as Sandow stabbing him in the back once again. They still have time, and the feud has the opportunity to elevate both men, but the soaked briefcase with the wet contract was a poor job of attempting to build this feud. They're stuck in neutral right now.

Ryback vs. Mark Henry:What in the world was this? At first, I thought it was a set-up for an angle with the Shield attacking Henry following Ryback walking out, but the ruthlessness we previously saw the past few weeks from Ryback completely disapeared as he walked out on the match.....and that was it. There was no semblance or reason to this match or Ryback simply walking out, especially without it leading to a bigger angle following. 1/4*

Kaitlyn vs. Layla: Layla's explanation for her turn on Kaitlyn and siding with AJ was poor, but somehow, this match was worse. Kaitlyn looked absolutely awful when on offense, and Layla looked to be off on her spots as well. AJ coming out to distract Kaitlyn was fine as follow-up given Layla's turn on Smackdown, but this was simply an awful match that was thankfully short. N/R

The Usos vs. We The People: One step forward, two back for the tag team division. The Usos seemed to be the only team other then the Shield to be relevant whatsoever within the tag division, and they lose to a team that seemingly hasn't won since they joined forces. Baffling booking, although every time Cesaro hits the Neutralizer is impressive. *1/4.

Big E. Langston vs. Dolph Ziggler: Creative seems to have lost some direction with regards to Ziggler, and it was a poor decision to give the match a conclusive ending when this feud seems destined to continue. Perhaps we'll get a mixed tag with AJ/Ziggler and Langston/AJ at Summerslam, but the last thing I'd want at this point is to be teaming with Kaitlyn. As JBL correctly pointed out, everything Kaitlyn is involved in right now isn't going her way, anf the brawl between the women took the focus completely off the match between the men. I appreciate the story they're trying to tell with her, but using Ziggler, who's much higher on the pecking order to do so, is a mistake. *1/2.

 

[The Eighties]

Nothing really stood out to me match-wise this week but I thought it was a Raw that did a good job with continuing the strong Summerslam build.

While the makeover stuff involving the McMahons was neither here nor there for me, I thought Bryan and Cena both delivered with their promos tonight, highlighting their differences and standing by what they believe as far as the pro wrestling business goes, the key was both came across as honest.

The set up of the main event was a bit clumsy but it's pro wrestling, sometimes you just have to go with it as a means to an end.

I am glad to see Cody and Sandow getting their chance to shine and that they are booked to face each other at Summerslam, but I have to agree with Lucic, the feud is running on empty already and Cody's logic as the face in this scenario is really faulty.

Del Rio turning on Ricardo the way he did surprised me, I guess they want to remove the popular part of his act to give him full heel focus, and the ferocity of the beatdown certainly garnered Bertie some extra heat.

I was disappointed to see Kofi back in such a run of the mill fashion, slapping hands and smiling like Ryback hadn't took him out for two months. I wanted to see Kofi come back and go after Ryback with a fire lit under him, show a different side to his personality like he did against Orton a few years ago.

Speaking of Ryback, having a big ruthless monster run away from anyone makes zero sense to me, but then a lot of the recent booking regarding Ryback has been weird. I'm also guessing the lack of involvement between Henry and The Shield means that angle is dead.

The backstage segment with Steph and Triple H was poorly acted but interesting, we didn't see Vince upset her so is she playing them off against each other? Is Triple H protesting too much in defense of Bryan? Food for thought at least.

I didn't mind The Real Americans beating The Usos as the result went the other way last time, and I figure these two teams need to trade wins as there aren't many other teams to beat.

Kaitlyn vs Layla was awful, I'm a big supporter of the Divas division being given a proper spotlight as opposed to crap with the Bellas, but it desperately needs a new babyface.

I'm glad they haven't waited any longer set Bray Wyatt vs Kane for Summerslam, the promo from Kane laid the stage nicely and I think the gimmick is in place to protect the new guy WWE are high on.

Punk vs Axel was the best match of the night but the very loud support for Punk got carried away with the "This is awesome!" chant. The main thing that pleased me was that Axel didn't get treat as a jobber in the way Cesaro and Barrett did during their mid card title runs earlier this year.

The post match action between Punk and Brock was great, not only from a physical standpoint but with the story that was told within the fight, Punk's obsession with getting to Heyman leading to another brutal beating at the hands of Lesnar. The backstage promos from Brock and Heyman afterwards were on point.

I like Dolph vs Big E in the ring but I don't like the way this feud is being handled, and now I fear we are gonna get a mixed tag at Summerslam with Dolph getting lumbered with Kaitlyn as a partner. I think the big stumbling block here is WWE want to turn Big E face, so the natural route for his feud with Dolph no longer works.

The Main Event was pretty short and really just another showcase for Bryan, however I LOVED the ending, so much in play from Orton taking out Bryan, to him and Cena clearing off The Shield, to Orton then RKO'ing Cena but The Shield coming back to prevent him cashing in which was very interesting, to Orton then leaving Cena and Bryan to be beaten up again by The Shield.

The final image of Bryan laid out with The Shield standing over him, Cena on the floor and Orton staring back at the ring taking it all in was very intriguing, considering the two men actually in the title match at Summerslam were left prone by three guys not even in the angle or on the card.

 

[TheCrusher]

I was at the show. Think the summary given here was pretty good.

A few odds and ends. Wade Barrett as the barber was strange, and he got absolutely no reaction from the crowd. The movie promos during commercials did better.

After Raw went off the air, Kane's pyro hit and he came running in, followed not long after by Mark Henry. Usual ending. All four faces hit a finisher or signature move and kids went home happy.

Had a nice incident at Taco Bell afterward. Dolph had tossed his shirt into the crowd. A cute little 14-year-old girl caught it. I turned to the guy next to me, and said "Bet she sniffs it." She did, offered it to her bestie, who also sniffed it. Then she offered it to her dad and he looked at her like she'd gone insane. The girl walked into Taco Bell wearing the shirt afterwards and my kids and I talked to her for ten minutes. She said she was proud of herself for not crying, because he's her absolute favorite. It's fun for a sometimes cynical old man to get to see how much wrestling can still mean to kids

 

[The Eighties]

Randy Orton has had some of the best matches of his career over the last three months, and the match with RVD that kicked off Smackdown added another to the list.

I thought the Miz TV segment was poor, it felt like they were rushed and no one said anything that really stood out as interesting or added to the angle.

Kofi vs Fandango was a good match, probably a bit better than their one on Raw. Kofi looks all fired up and was hitting his athletic spots crisply.

Daniel Bryan vs Wade Barrett was better than the squash from a few weeks ago, I liked that Barrett brought the shaver out with him to try and get some payback for what happened on Raw.

The Brock Lesnar interview vignette was awesome, it'll be interesting to hear Punk's response to direct comments from Brock making it personal between them, not just Punk and Heyman.

Kane vs 3MB served it's purpose and got Kane in the ring so Bray Wyatt could pop up on the screen and cut a money promo post-match.

I love the new Sandowized MITB briefcase!

Christian vs Del Rio was a good main event that went about 15 minutes, but it's odd to me to have your WHC match for your upcoming PPV on free TV just over a week beforehand, and have a clean finish.

Sandows cash-in attempt being foiled by Cody made for a good end to the show and I think made their feud seem more important given it's placement.

 

[blueskyy]

This week's Smackdown was awesome! Two great matches -- Randy vs RVD, and Christian vs Alberto Del Rio. Even the Brock Lesnar promo was great. Amazing!

 

[The Eighties]

I thought this was a pretty decent go home Raw that featured two hot segments for the two main events at Summerslam.

The opening match between Barrett and Bryan was ok but mainly just a means to a later segment with Vince and the special ref Maddox.

The battle of the MITB winners was actually a rematch from SD a couple of weeks ago. Orton was on point yet again and the match was a good, competitive one. Cody on commentary trying to establish why he is the face in his feud with Sandow was a bit muddled though, as the questions and POV's of the 3 commentators seemed to rehash things and muddy the waters further as opposed to bringing Cody's motives into clearer focus.

The Shield then cut a fantastic promo, Ambrose line about the ghost of Andre The Giant was classic and I loved Reigns calmness "We wont beg, but we will ask nicely" as relates to him and Rollins wanting some challengers for Summerslam.

The mixed tag match that came next was a mess. I figured it was going to be used to give Big E and AJ a win going into their match against Dolph and Kaitlyn at Summerslam, but instead Nattie taps AJ and Khali flattens Big E, not to mention either AJ forgot to tap out or the ref didn't realize what the finish was.

The Vince/Maddox/Triple H segment was poor, Triple H placing himself as the ref in the Cena vs Bryan match just feels like a redo of Summerslam 2011 and I really don't think Cena and Bryan needed anything added, between Cena being the man and Bryan being so popular AND Randy Orton lurking with the briefcase, the match had more than enough drama, and shoving Haitch in seems a case of forcing the McMahon angle into things.

The Kane and Bray Wyatt segment was simple but effective and I am always a fan of that type of booking.

Del Rio vs Kofi was a solid match, I like the aggression of Del Rio and it was a good clean win for him heading into the PPV.

The Christian video package brought back some fun memories.

I enjoyed the Usos vs The Real Americans, I like that Cesaro and Swagger are trying out some actual team moves. No huge surprise in the Usos winning as I expect they'll have another shot at The Shield in the near future.

The Cena and Bryan promo on Miz TV was very good and I think it will get raved about, however I didn't love it. I think Bryan's point about Cena is supposed to be that Cena isn't in the business because he loves wrestling, not that he can't wrestle, but it didn't really come over that way, and even if it had it makes no sense as Cena works his ass off for wrestling.

Cena's response had great raw emotion in it but I thought he went on a bit long and should have left the Make a wish stuff out of it. Triple H looked pretty pleased when he came out, he could hardly hide his grin, not sure if that meant anything or if he just liked what he'd heard. Orton coming out to loom furthered what I think may turn out to be a red herring.

The Battle Royale was a clusterfuck bar the neat sequence with Kofi and The Real Americans. The Big Show's return was sold well by Rollins and Ambrose, while Reigns just smirked, I dig Reigns. Personally I hope this becomes a 6 man tag instead of Ambrose and RVD being stuck on the pre-show.

The final segment was excellent, Heyman's mic work as usual was stellar and Brock did some quality beastly smirking. Punk getting the drop on them was what I expected but it was well executed, and Axel playing blocker so Heyman could get away worked as they should prevent Punk getting to Heyman for as long as possible.

The image of Punk on the ramp staring at Lesnar as the crowd chanted his name was a great way to go off air, and great credit to Brock, everyone just sees the wrecker of bodies but he can sell, his glazed over and winded selling looked great.

I really think WWE's booking of the Raw's leading to Summerslam has been some of their best in years.

 

[LoudClearVoice]

I thought overall, it was a great RAW, and a solid send-off into Summer Slam. As others have mentioned, this has been one of the best builds for a Summer Slam in awhile.

I'm curious to see where they go with the two main event storylines: The McMahon power struggle/Cena Bryan and Punk vs. Lesnar. These are great storylines and I hope they can build them into Wrestlemania XXX.

I have to say, that promo with Cena and Bryan, was one of my favorite promos in a long time and one of Cena's best recent promos. Even watching at home, I could feel the emotion from both guys. Both men really sold their part of the feud. I liked how Cena pointed out that the shirt wasn't just a shirt and what it meant and why they do what they do and I liked when Bryan got right in Cena's face and said all I want is to hold the title 1 time.

 

[George Steele's Barber]

Dear Kofi Kingston,

I loved battle royals as a kid. It was awesome to see that many guys fighting at once. There would be one big man that 7 guys would try to eliminate but get thrown away, some little guys would last way longer than expected, and the winner would always find a way to out smart the others. As I grew older I would get so excited about any announced battle royal but would end up getting disappointed as it would always turn in to something I've seen before. Each battle royal would end up being the same thing and I'd leave sad that something I loved so much had died inside of me.

But that's where you come in Kofi, you have made battle royals special to me again. They may call you a spot monkey or say you lack mic skills, but I don't care. You are gifted. Your creativity and athleticism allows you to do things that make me excited. You have awoken something in me that I thought was dead and buried (much like your singles career for now).

Regards,
George Steele's Barber

First Raw I've seen all the way through (other than the stuff I fast forwarded through) and it was great. I was so entertained and interested in what is going to happen this Sunday. They should just cancel NXT, Main Event, Saturday Morning Slam, and Smackdown in order to avoid f'ing up what they accomplished last night. Hell cancel this week's Impact, god knows that clusterfuck is going to somehow ruin what an enjoyable Raw from last night.

Other than whatever Fandango and Truth were trying to do there was so much good. Cena, Bryan, Heyman, and Punk's promos will be talked to death but I even enjoyed Lesnar's taped promo, Vince's segment, and Christian's work as well. I like the backstage cunt offs going on with the Bella's and Nattie. The Shield did so well. Who write's their stuff? It never feels bland. And everyone should take note that Dean Ambrose had to name the most dominant wrestler ever and he name Andre, remember that when you vote in the WZ tournament next year.

The wrestling wasn't bad either. I've already mentioned Kofi but there was also a good tag match with Real Americans and the Uso's. Orton and Sandow put on a nice show. The mix tag was quick enough. The ending with RVD and Henry was unpredictable. It was nice seeing two faces at the end knowing that a heel had no business in that spot. The fist bump show of respect was kind of cool coming from someone who has been as emotionless as Henry for the past couple years. But why are we supposed to like Big Show again?

And most importantly in all of this, I have no idea what to expect from Bray Wyatt and Kane. I just hope they find a way to get Kofi in the mix so he can hit some kind of bizarre fire spot.

Last night's Raw get a 14Q, 89H, 3LS4G, Q9erZeffer.

 

[The Eighties]

The Shield did so well. Who write's their stuff? It never feels bland. And everyone should take note that Dean Ambrose had to name the most dominant wrestler ever and he name Andre, remember that when you vote in the WZ tournament next year.

I love it when young wrestlers acknowledge the legends, especially in context the way Ambrose did, given that Andre was king of the Battle Royale. Never lost one did he?

 

[Fire Marshall Bill]

Dear Kofi Kingston,

I loved battle royals as a kid. It was awesome to see that many guys fighting at once. There would be one big man that 7 guys would try to eliminate but get thrown away, some little guys would last way longer than expected, and the winner would always find a way to out smart the others. As I grew older I would get so excited about any announced battle royal but would end up getting disappointed as it would always turn in to something I've seen before. Each battle royal would end up being the same thing and I'd leave sad that something I loved so much had died inside of me.

But that's where you come in Kofi, you have made battle royals special to me again. They may call you a spot monkey or say you lack mic skills, but I don't care. You are gifted. Your creativity and athleticism allows you to do things that make me excited. You have awoken something in me that I thought was dead and buried (much like your singles career for now).

Regards,
George Steele's Barber

This same paragraph could also be written about John Morrison. His Royal Rumble save is still one of the coolest saves ever.

 

[The Eighties]

I thought Smackdown was a good go home show for Summerslam.

Bray Wyatt's promo to open the show was money, I hope the match is halfway decent.

Sandow vs Christian was a strong outing for Sandow even with the loss.

I found the RVD, Big Show and Henry promo pretty amusing, there was something very 80's about it.

The Divas tag was solid enough, would have liked a bit more AJ vs Nattie in there.

Not sure where this Ryback bully stuff is going.

The Shield vs RVD/Show/Henry was good, Ambrose selling for Show at the end was fantastic, as was Rollins taking out Henry.

Zack Ryder got more offense in than I thought he would against Curtis Axel, and the post match promo from Heyman was short and on point.

The main event between Bryan and Barrett was very good even with all the overbooking, Vince, Maddox, Triple H and then finally Orton basically covered all the players bar Cena in the title match for this Sunday, and Cena didn't need to be there as he's the one cast iron certainty going into this match, he wont be changing.

On a side note, I wonder if Vince was wearing that jacket as a bet.

 

[blueskyy]

Sandow has never had a good match with anyone (deliberate jobbers aside), but look at his match with Christian this week... When you're faced with a good competitor, even losing a match makes you look good because the "competitor" brought out the best in you. To the Christian haters, learn something here. The belt is only prestigious when held by a worthy opponent. If the opponent sucks, the belt is nothing more than a worthless piece of junk metal.

 

[Mustang Sally]

The Shield vs RVD/Show/Henry was good, Ambrose selling for Show at the end was fantastic, as was Rollins taking out Henry.

Rollins' flying, rolling leap over the top rope was amazing. It looked as if he was going to miss his target, but Henry did a nice job saving the spot. I just hope the mats outside the ring are nice and soft because Rollins took a nice flop.

The match itself seemed a prelude to the end of Shield as an independent force. It might be that the prediction of many on this forum that Rollins and Reigns remain a tag team while Ambrose starts a singles push could be coming to pass. When these guys begin entering the ring by coming down the runway rather than going through the crowd, then we'll know for sure.

But a 6-man match with these performers used to qualify strictly as a PPV affair, yet we saw this one on Smackdown. The three old guys take the measure of the three young ones. Wouldn't have happened a few months ago. Good stuff.

Not sure where this Ryback bully stuff is going.

But didn't the guy he went after look like John Cena's younger, weaker brother? Surely WWE management realized it when they cast him as the patsy, no?

 

[The Eighties]

Quality Raw off the back of a great Summerslam.

I loved Cena's promo to kick things off, it was simple and to the point, he put Bryan over for a second time, made no excuses and then passed the mic. I thought when he said he was going to get surgery and would be gone 4-6 months that the cheering was a bit classless, sure booing him in fun as part of the show, but you can see he is genuinely hurt and yet gave it his all to deliver at Summerslam and make the crowd's favourite an even bigger star, I dunno maybe that was just me.

The Bryan and Steph promo was very good, Steph is much more comfortable acting as a disingenuous heel than she is trying to play nice, I knew she'd be going into villaness mode when she strutted out in the leather skirt and high heels, I like it! Bryan is getting more and more comfortable on the stick and I thought his retorts to her came off well.

First match on deck was Cody vs Sandow in another good outing for these two, but the crowd chanting the announcers names was unfortunate. Cody gets the win and I think they'll have match 3 for the briefcase at NOC.

Paul Heyman's promo was, as usual, gold. The line about being more of a father to Punk than the guy in Chicago who sired him, followed by him offering the olive branch for the Prodigal Son to return home if he apologized, was just Heyman at his best.

The Divas tag match was short but I like Naomi, I hope she gets into the title mix soon.

Ziggler speaking out against Triple H saw him put in a handicap match with The Shield. This was fun stuff, Ziggler fought valiantly before getting speared out the air by Roman Reigns. This was the first example of the night of The Shield working as Triple H's hired mercenaries, it was also a much better angle for Dolph to be in than another go around with Bertie.

Del Rio vs Sin Cara was up next and lasted about a minute as Cara got a boo boo and called for the match to be stopped, Del Rio looked pissed. He cut a promo similar to the one at Summerslam about being Mexico's hero, I was surprised when he was interrupted by Ricardo but I expected Ricardo to say his new guy was Rey Mysterio, only for it to be RVD, kind of an odd pairing but hey ho!

Prime Time Players vs The Real Americans was a decent match with Darren Young hitting a series of big moves before pinning Cesaro. The commentary really was putting over the tag division so it looks like it's set to get more focus.

I think it might have been around here that Ryback did his latest bully scene, this time with some rookie in a shower that had a creepy prison rape vibe about it.

The Shield were back out again for their second handicap match of the night, this time all 3 were allowed in at once against the Big Show who was also being punished for speaking his mind on Triple H's actions. The Shield struggled even with the numbers advantage, as they should against a real live Giant! In the end they chop him down though and beat him with the triple powerbomb which looked great.

Punk came out next and he was fired up, he had the crowd going and got into it with some guy in the crowd, probably a plant but Punk was just in a rage. He asked Heyman to come out for an apology and then said sorry for taking his eyes off Brock Lesnar and for not ripping off Heyman's arm, Punk's raw emotion just poured through the promo and Heyman went on the offensive and told Axel to go tape up to fight Punk.

The brawl between Punk and Axel was great, just a good old fight that Punk eventually got the better of despite selling the affects of the match with Brock, beating Axel down with a chair before repeatedly smashing him into the steps and using them for a modified GTS. The crowd chanted Punk's name as he stared a hole in Heyman who had that look that suggests he's scheming his next move, great stuff.

Bray Wyatt vs R Truth was short and not all that good. I think The Wyatt's might benefit from some 6 man tags.

The Usos vs 3MB got the most surprising dueling chant of all time and once again the commentary pushed the tag division hard.

The Matadors vignette was really goofy.

The Miz vs Barrett was merely a means to set up Fandango attacking Miz to further their angle that started at Summerslam. The crowd chanted for Barrett and cheered Fandango leg dropping him, this face gig just isn't working even though I think he makes a good host/presenter/commentator as a face.

The Coronation segment worked really well. Triple H's promo was a bit repetitive but I liked how he acknowledged his hatred and history with Orton and rationalized his actions. Orton coming out and shaking hands with Vince and HHH before hugging Steph with a big evil grin was gold, it was simple but effective. His promo was short but did it's job.

Then they subverted traditional booking where you expect Bryan to crash the party and instead Triple H knows he's in the building and calls him out to say his piece. The Shield are standing guard for the McMahons and Orton and Bryan fights them valiantly before succumbing to a spear, but before they can powerbomb him Triple H stops them and goads Bryan to crawl into the ring. This was gold, Triple H came off like the biggest asshole alive as he taunted Bryan..

The RKO to Bryan followed by Orton, Triple H, Vince and Steph standing over him raising each others arms just set up a potentially great new heel stable and made Bryan an even bigger face, Lawlers "This is a black day for the WWE" was a great line as the show went off air.

 

[TWJC: The Beginning]

The HHH taunting at the end was great and Daniel Bryan's desperation and selling made me actually feel for him. Maybe it's because I've followed him since 2003 when he was a wee dragon, but I felt genuinely upset for a bit. It's a great angle and I'm excited about the future.


The rest of the show was great, I didn't get to catch the first hour. Punk's segment was emotional and really well done. I'm thinking Heyman brings in another wrestler because Axel isn't a believable threat to Punk. My hope is Chris Hero because of their history, but that's more me being a fan than anything else. Although it could work if Hero is booked as his equal right away and they could even touch on how they've known each other for 15 years.

I really like how things are being set up. Should be a fun Fall leading into Survivor Series.

 

[Jack-Hammer]

The HHH taunting at the end was great and Daniel Bryan's desperation and selling made me actually feel for him. Maybe it's because I've followed him since 2003 when he was a wee dragon, but I felt genuinely upset for a bit. It's a great angle and I'm excited about the future.

I agree. Everyone loves a great underdog story and Bryan as a scrappy underdog is believable. With the condescending way Triple H was speaking about him, it lit a bit of a fire in me as well. Instinctively, it irks me to see someone talk down to other people and even though I know it was all just part of an angle, that spark was still there. For instance, Triple H going on about Bryan's "little career" definitely felt like he was saying "Everyone in this ring is better than you so just accept it, because there's nothing you can do about it." I'm sure some would have preferred for Bryan to come out last night and plow through anyone out there as if he'd suddenly transformed into The Terminator. However, much of the time, those are the same kind of fans that feel EVERY wrestler is supposed to be a human juggernaut. Earlier in the night, The Shield all took out Big Show and he's been booked as being, generally speaking, the biggest & baddest heavy on the roster that hardly anybody can handle for the past couple of years.

The rest of the show was great, I didn't get to catch the first hour. Punk's segment was emotional and really well done. I'm thinking Heyman brings in another wrestler because Axel isn't a believable threat to Punk. My hope is Chris Hero because of their history, but that's more me being a fan than anything else. Although it could work if Hero is booked as his equal right away and they could even touch on how they've known each other for 15 years.

The first segment set the tone for you knew had to be an angle to set up the final segment of the show. Cena announced he was taking off for 4-6 months and gave everyone a very good view of the big ball of fluid in his left elbow. Honestly, the word "softball sized" and the general shape seems to be pretty accurate and was caused by a torn triceps muscle. He put over Daniel Bryan really well and said that he wasn't using his injury as an excuse, simply said he got beaten by the "better man". Cena introduced Bryan and Bryan came out to a massive pop. Stephanie came out and did a really good job, the best we've seen in a while in my opinion. I was expecting a "good for business" argument from her and that's what she gave. It was also done with the same condescending manner that Trips would later use and went so far to say that while Bryan wasn't "an A", he was a "solid B+", which is maybe the biggest insult you could give to someone with Bryan's devotion to wrestling. She also said that he has "a place" here, insinuating that Bryan just isn't main event material. Bryan's response was well delivered and passionate without going too far over the top, which was the right call in my eyes for this particular show. Telling Steph that he didn't care if they fired her as he'd simply go back to wrestling in armories and various other places and the live crowd was hanging on his every word. Bryan slapped the mic out of her hand eventually, which drew a big pop and led to Stephanie having security escort him out of the building. Again, she did it in a way that made it seem as though Bryan wasn't a threat to her or the various plans of the McMahons. In the coming weeks, especially after what happened to close the show, I think we'll see a much more aggressive side of Bryan as he mounts an offense against the McMahons.

Punk's promo segment & the brawl with Axel was very well done. Punk is doing some of the best mic work of his career as of late. His rant towards the fan at ringside might not exactly be Be A Star material but, frankly, Punk was "pissed off" so people are gonna snap sometimes. It fit in with his mood. I dunno if it was maybe a fan who was a "plant", maybe someone Punk knows personally, but he gave him the business off & on through the promo.

All in all, wrestling content on the show was pretty solid. Nothing spectacular but some solid action. Rhodes vs. Sandow was better last night than at the ppv.

The PTPs look to be babyface now and they actually got a pretty good response, especially Darren Young. This was Young's first time on television since coming out and I felt a little bit of trepidation because I was expecting some asshole fans to start a "fairy" chant or something. With The Shield now aligned with the McMahons, at least that's how it's looking, building up a couple of strong babyface tag teams can't hurt. Their match against Swagger & Cesaro was also pretty good as well. From the crowd response to Young playing up to the crowd, he seemed to be more energetic, downright recharged maybe.

The Shield handicap matches were well done. Both Ziggler & Big Show lost the matches but they still looked formidable all the same. Show confirming earlier in the night that he & Henry will be teaming up is interesting. Both are pretty over right now and it's been a while since there's been a big, powerhouse tag team on the roster.

Bray Wyatt's character continues to be a lot of fun in my eyes. Everything from the look to the mannerisms to how he works in the ring just meshes.

The Usos tag match against 3MB was surprisingly pretty decent. You knew how it was going to end, but it was still a pretty good effort as was Miz vs. Barrett before Fandango interfered.

It looks as though RVD is going to be Del Rio's next opponent with Ricardo now "representing" RVD. It's definitely an unexpected, unusual pairing but I've seen stranger things work out. RVD could use a mouthpiece, that's for sure, and Ricardo's connection to Del Rio gives him a unique role in this feud. I'm not massively excited, as I'm sure some people are, as I don't see RVD winning the title. If various reports are true, his deal is set up in such a way that he's taking a hiatus after 90 days. However, they can still deliver a great match or matches.

All in all, solid wrestling, good storytelling and some interesting developments for the show going forward. With Sheamus & Cena both out for the rest of this year, WWE certainly looks to be putting effort behind Bryan & Punk as the top babyfaces.

 

[hbkhhh44]

I hated the end. Reminded me of the McMahon helmsley era. Triple h screws someone and has his hands raised in the air to a completely unresponsive crowd. Hopefully it wont be as often as said era

 

[XXJJ]

I loved the ending segment. Its been a while that they had a heel power stable running things. I know its not really an original idea, but were at the point in pro wrestling that pretty much everything has been done before. Its a new angle that they needed with Cena going away.

Its great for Daniel Bryan, fans will get behind him even more because they know he is getting screwed. He will end up being WWE's top babyface. Hopefully, they do it right because this can be a very entertaining angle.

Also, I like that Shield might become a part of the Orton/Mcmahon stable. They really haven't been doing much lately. It might breath some life back into their characters.

 

[The Architect of Anarchy]

The 8/23 edition of Smackdown was all set to unveil new feuds, and fallout from SummerSlam.

Randy Orton and Daniel Bryan segment
It started off with Randy doing a promo about not needing HHH's help to win the title and asking the audience to be by his side. I thought this was Orton's best in a long time. Obviously, being a face brang this mic skills down a lot and his promo's would be very limited. Now, he spoke with a motive and spoke in full flow in confidence, something was emanating from him that felt refreshing and refined. This was not the Orton of old.
Next, came out Daniel Bryan after getting a dose of humiliation from HHH on Raw, who was looking to announce the match of him Vs Orton was set for Night of Champions. It's great to see a main event where Cena's out of the picture and it's time that others got there time in the spotlight. Daniel counters with points on how Orton was spoon fed his opportunities because of family legacy, while Bryan had to work his way to the top.
The promo was very heated between the pair and a good opening to Smackdown. It wasn't anything spectacular or mind blowing but it did get it's message across.

Grade: B+

Rhodes vs Curtis Axel

I thought having Cody as a face now, it opens new doors for him to face others on the roster he wasn't able to face as a heel. The match was good, with Cody adopting more high flying moves, as of late.

Grade: ***

Heyman Promo
He was perfect as ever in building Axel up as a rising start and great IC Champion. The guy still doesn't have the it-factor, that is cruical in elevating a guy like Axel into superstardom. I don't know whether creative are going to make Punk feud with Axel. If this did happen, it would be abit awkward with Punk feuding against the IC Champion after facing mammoth wrestlers like the Rock, Cena, Undertaker, Chris Jericho and Brock Lesnar.

Grade: A

Daniel Bryan vs Wade Barrett inside the steel cage

This match was very surprising, considering they put it on Smackdown. It was a great match, I'm not sure if it was worth being on a PPV, as written on the spoilers sheet of WrestleZone. Bryan hit a lot of moves high on the cage, took a lot of bumps while climbing the cage and Wade was allowed his share of dominance. I think with Bryan and Orton making their presence on Smackdown has dramatically improved the quality of programming from the usual dish it serves out. HHH has decided to put the spotlight on the WWE Championship picture for smackdown, but I think WHC also needs some due time. If the WHC doesn't get IT'S spotlight on IT's SHOW, it will lose it's prestige.

Grade:****

Smackdown grade: A

 

[The Eighties]

The Bryan vs Barrett Cage match on SD is excellent and it looks like that Boma Ye finisher is here to stay. These run of matches with Bryan are certainly a boost for Wade.

Orton's opening promo was arguably his best in years, his voice actually altered multiple times as opposed to staying on one tone for the whole promo. Bryan's response is further evidence of his confidence growing on the stick.

Heyman's promo about Punk becoming a loser was gold, Axel's part....not so much, but he basks in the glow of Heyman's dastardly overness enough to skate by.

Rollins & Reigns promo on Show and Henry after the big men had beaten 3MB was quality, Rollins took up most of the slack with Ambrose not there.

Del Rio vs Christian is excellent, Dolph vs Big E is fun, Cesaro makes Darren Young look a star and Axel vs Cody is solid. All round a good SD.

 

[Jack-Hammer]

I thought last night's Raw was a strong show all in all. Generally speaking, the only portions of the show that didn't do much for me was all the Cody/Sandow/Miz/Fandango stuff going on and Natalya vs. Brie Bella.

Raw's opening last night, while maybe a bit too long, I enjoyed overall. Bryan seemed a little repetitive with some of what he said, but the passion is still there and Triple H constantly talking down to him the way he does works for me. The live crowds continue to hang on Bryan's every word and constantly mocking Orton as "pretty" also generates a good response.

Punk vs. Axel was a well wrestled 3 star match in my opinion, though I'm not all that crazy about Axel jobbing clean to Punk. One of the negatives, in my eyes anyhow, is that WWE jobs out mid-card champions to the main event guys cleanly too often when they have them feud. The ending simply would have fit in much better, to me, if Heyman would have interfered at some point in the match when things were looking even. It still would have given people what they wanted, to see Punk gets his hands on him, but it could be played up with Heyman being so distraught that he reacted instinctively rather than with his usual deviousness. The post match stuff was really well done though. Heyman has been gold since his return to WWE, I have to admit, and he really went to town on Punk with that kendo stick. As far as the "boring" chant, fuck the Phoenix crowd. It's not Punk or Heyman's fault they're too stupid to see a good story playing out right in front of them.

AJ's "shoot" promo on the cast of Total Divas was really well done. While I've enjoyed AJ's "crazy chick" gimmick, it's nice to see her take a more serious approach to this. I think people sometimes forget that AJ can cut great promos because of the "crazy chick" stuff. Even though AJ's a heel, there was a whole LOT of truth in what she said. I know the other Divas had to play it off as if AJ was being dull or jealous or whatever, but nobody's buying into it I'm afraid. Aside from Natalya & Naomi, none of the other Divas out there have anything to offer AJ as far as a match goes. The Bellas are only there because they've screwed their way to the top of the WWE and their "we're mean spirited, hot twins" bit is extremely stale. Natalya is good in the ring but she's not particularly charismatic. Naomi could be interesting if she ditched the Funkadactyl thing. With her athleticism, she reminds me if a female Kofi Kingston in some ways.

Del Rio vs. RVD was a solid 2.5 star match. It could have been better but this was one of those incidents where it's too predictable. I'm also not all that wild about the WHC losing so many non-title matches clean. When it was announced that RVD would be #1 contender, you knew he was going to win. Hopefully, they can step it up come NOC.

Orton vs. Christian was a very good 3.25 star outing. I've seen better matches from them, but I honestly can't recall if I've ever seen them have a bad match and this match was strong no matter how you slice it. Christian is someone that is a lot like Chris Jericho in which he brings a ton of quality to his matches, can lose and still come out smelling like a rose. This was Orton's first match since turning heel and, to me, he looks refreshed. Maybe it's just a trick of perception, but Orton seems to be much more in his element when he's not trying to play up to the crowd. The "thumb to the eye" was a nice little touch in setting up the RKO. It's a subtle bit of cheating and subtlety is nice sometimes.

Bryan vandalizing Orton's Escalade was something I was expecting and I like that they stayed true to his character. Rather than have him demolish the thing, Bryan spray painted "Yes!" all over it. Part of me would have liked to have seen him demolish it the way Kofi Kingston demolished the stock car with Orton on it several years back but this worked nicely too.

I saw this video promo from Bray Wyatt on WWE.com late last week and Wyatt continues to excel in this role. The guy gives off a genuinely creepy vibe, especially when he sings nursery rhymes or parts of Christian hymns, like he did last night.

Triple H's reaction and order for the locker room to be brought out on stage to watch what happens to Bryan and threatening to fire them if they interfered kept the whole angle going. Big Show, Ziggler & Miz sold their frustrations well when being asked about how they felt by Renee Young. The expressions on Show & Ziggler's faces, along with Triple H's when they all would eventually come out, told a great story in setting up Bryan eventually gaining some allies.

Bryan vs. Rollins was a killer match, 3.75 stars at least from my perspective. Tons of athleticism, great storytelling and the live crowd was just relishing everything Bryan did. The top rope spot with Bryan's German suplex throw looked sick and Rollins sold the crap out of Bryan's offense throughout the match. For instance, earlier in the match, Bryan nailed a suicide dive through the ropes on Rollins and the way Rollins slammed into the announce table and flipped over it made it look like he'd been hit by a truck. Bryan eventually gets the win around the 13 minute mark after Rollins gets DQ due to Ambrose hitting the ring & breaking up the Yes! Lock. Both Ambrose & Reigns are disqualified seconds into their matches with Bryan as Bryan successfully puts them both in the Yes! Lock as well. So Bryan does win without The Shield having to really lose anything.

The post match beatdown kept the storyline going and while I'm sure some dirtsheet writers don't like the idea of Bryan not getting any help, I'm glad they're making us wait for it. We know that something is going to give in which Bryan gets help from, at least, Big Show & Dolph Ziggler before long; but I've got no problem with them building it up. It makes perfect sense and establishes Triple H as a tyrannical corporate executive in a different way than Vince. Vince is sometimes too over the top and, while entertaining, can be more comical than serious.

One thing wrangles me though and that's what happened to Big Show's "iron clad contract". Remember back when Show could do or say anything and still get paid even if he was fired? I suppose they could still go that route if they wanted to with Triple H merely "calling his bluff" to quit. They could always take up the position of Triple H being someone that's ruthless enough, or maybe enough of an asshole, to be willing to allow WWE to keep paying Show just so that his will is enforced. Big Show is a babyface now and babyfaces don't hide behind an "iron clad contract" so, as I said, they could also go the route of Triple H calling his bluff by stating that he knows Show too well. He knows how much he loves the business, knows how much he loves what he does, etc., maybe even giving him a chance to "get fired" by giving Show a free shot at him, etc.

All in all, a good B+ show with pretty strong hype overall for Night of Champions, some strong wrestling action overall, strong promo segments and sensible storyline progression.

 

[The Fabulous Rougeau's]

Overall I found the show to be average. The highlights of the night were AJ and Orton/Bryan/Trips. AJ probably delivered the best promo of the year and the best one since Punk's pipebomb. She was clear and concise, made strong points and delivered it all with great timing. She was even able to overcome the Bella's terrible ploy of trying to upstage her by talking over her. All that was missing was her sitting indian style, wearing a Austin t-shirt and talking about the be a star program. While I wasn't a huge fan of the opening segment, Bryan spray painting Orton's truck was a great touch and a good nod to the past. Bryan's match with the Shield was good and Trips and Orton looked strong at the end. Especially Trips, the way he belittled the rest of the locker room really hammered home the point that he's the man which is exactly what should be done. Much like Vince in 98. Another added treat was Christian's promo when he brought up the McMahon-Hemsley faction. It's always great when past events become relevant again and are brought up. Well done Christian.