Monday was the night wrestling fans have been waiting for since 2001. For the first time since then, the WWE would have a wrestling promotion going head to head with them on a weekly basis. However, with Wrestlemania just weeks away, the WWE's focus was purely on that event, without even a wasted breath going towards their new "competition". With an unfull card and a spot open in the Money in the Bank match, there was business to be attended to, and business was exactly what we got from most of the show. Throw in some magic to replace the usual lame comedy sketches and you have a pretty solid show. Let's examine it piece by piece.
Raw opened with the story that's been the talk of the wrestling world. Though it takes him 5 minutes to get to the ring, when Undertaker comes to Raw with a microphone, you listen. Shawn comes out after Rest In and doesnt' let Taker finish his catchphrase. At first, I wasn't sure it was a good idea to repeat this match as it might be too good to repeat. However, the promo work and the constant upping of the stakes has got me arguably more excited this year than I was last year. The promos on this night were absolutely fantastic. Shawn's talk of having an epiphany and realizing that the Undertaker has fear in his heart and that fear has driven his actions was gold. It's usually Undertaker intimidating his opponents but Shawn's diction and the confidence on his face tell another story. I legitimately think he might end the streak this year. I really loved the imagery painted by the two men of the dark cloud that Undertaker claims has been over Shawn the past year and Shawn claims will be over Taker once Wrestlemania is over. These men will undoubtedly steal the show, and with the added stipulation of no countout, no disqualification, the fans will get a more up close and personal view of the match as these men will take it to the outside for a little and hopefully pull off some spots that will adorn the highlight reel for years to come. If this was the only good match on the Wrestlemania card, i'd still want to see the show. Luckily enough though, there's a loaded card that is only getting better.
It's hard to top a segment like that, so why try? The segment that followed was a 6 Diva tag match, which is quite honestly the laziest booking on the entire show. It's pretty obvious that the Raw Divas won't be performing at Wrestlemania as I predicted the Smackdown Divas will get the match, but I think they deserve an actual story. It looks as though a new #1 contender is emerging though, as for the second week in a row, Eve Torres picked up the victory. I am actually quite excited about this as I've been really high on Eve lately. She's beautiful, she's smart (graduated from USC with honors), she has a martial arts background, she's athletic, and you can tell she's working very hard on her skills in the ring. At the speed she's progressing, she very well could become one of the better Divas I've seen in my lifetime. Yes, I believe in her that much. That armbar finisher from the top rope was pretty cool looking, and she seems to add new moves to her arsenal on a weekly basis. Her opposition, Maryse, is someone who's in ring work I have criticized, so having a better competitor get the best of her would certainly delight my fancy. We'll see if the WWE actually has faith in Eve or if she's just another face to rise and then fall at the hands of the Fiesty French Canadian.
After that was the first appearance of the guest host, Mindfreak Criss Angel. What I liked about the segment was that it was short and got Hornswoggle and Jillian out of the way in short order without being too annoying. I actually thought the trick Angel did pulling the string from his mouth through his eye was creepy but sort of oddly impressive. The other trick was taking away Jillian's voice, so regardless of whether it was a really fake trick, I think we can all be thankful for that!
Finally, we are back to segments that effect Wrestlemania, as ShoMiz make their way to the ring. If there is one thing I am absolutely loving about The Miz (other than his impressive presence on the mic to begin with), it is his promos that work on the basic level, but also hit on things that internet wrestling fans talk about or complain about. This time, he referred to the "embarassment" of having to face John Morrison and R-Truth since they aren't a real tag team, and would rather face the Bushwackers who are. This was a direct shot at the internet community who degrade WWE's tag team division for "thrown together" teams. Although ShoMiz could be argued as actually being one of those teams, the point holds that Miz's shot is funny in that it is said directly to the internet geeks. What was weird about this segment was that it was supposed to lead to a "Wrestlemania preview" match which would have essentially been the same match you have to pay for in 3 weeks. Luckily, we didn't get much of a preview and Truth and Wisdom (catchy ain't it?....I made it up!) basically just showed off that they can work together and do moves in tandem. Although some think this is just a "thrown together" team, I think they actually could be really good together as they can both move really well and have crazy athleticism. They could perform like the Rockers on crack. The one knock I have so far is that they haven't played up the fact that Miz and Morrison will face each other indirectly at Wrestlemania. I think this element needs to be discussed and I expect it to be in the coming weeks.
We then get a Cena interview and it is the calm, unfunny Cena. Basically all he says is that he has to find a way to beat Batista who has his number and he's counting on Batista getting involved in his match tonight. A very somber tone, but I think it works for the scenario he's in. That match will probably main event the entire card and I think it can be epic. More on the matchup later though. A quick side note though, Josh Matthews is terrible as an interviewer but excellent at calling a match and bantering with another announcer. I think he should stick to that and WWE should find someone who is fit to be an announcer, be it an attractive female, a good like coachman, or a "professional" like Gene Okerland used to be. Let Matthews focus on what he's good at, because I truly believe he's got a bright future behind a headset, not a backstage mic.
Before the next commercial, we find out that Evan Bourne will face William Regal for the last spot in Money in the Bank. Bourne is thankful and Regal is serious as usual. He is coaxed into participating in Angel's next trick and Angel successfully figures out what number Regal wrote down. I'm not sure if this stuff is legit or planned, but if it is legit, it's pretty impressive. What isn't impressive is the beefed up "cornfed meathead" actually like a goon who is seeing his first magic show. This guy is about on par with Abyss in TNA and getting closer to Eugene levels of stupidity. Although maybe a dumb redneck character is a way for him to get over, I don't know.
After their little backstage encounter, Bourne and Regal would not get the hour one main event. That honor went to Randy Orton and Legacy. This match got a lot of time, and I got to see the match I predicted would be done at Wrestlemania. Of course, it wouldn't make sense to do it now, as it got a good almost 15 minutes on Raw. You know it's a long Raw match when it gets TWO commercial breaks! I do not say all that as a negative though, as the three men worked hard and the match was actually pretty solid. It ended in a way that hasn't happened yet.......Legacy winning! What was more interesting was after the match, Rhodes hit Orton with his finisher (which is sick looking by the way) just to cap it off. It's clear the WWE is letting the fans dictate this one, as early on, Orton was trying so hard to get over as a heel in this feud, but for some reason, peiople haven't bought it. It's weird though, because are Legacy good enough heels to pull this feud off? I'm not so sure, and I'm not sure why anyone would have sympathy for Orton in this. I guess I just don't get the WWE audience sometimes. With that said, I also have no diea where this feud goes from here and how it will play out for wrestlemania. I mean, you have to have Orton on the card, and I figured it would be with Legacy, but where can you honestly go from here? I think the interesting part of this feud is the fact that it's basically done and I don't have a clue how it will move forward. That very fact makes it somehow intriguing.
A quick little interview with Batista is next where Big Dave promises not to get involved with Cena's match but says to wish John good luck as it seems he needs the confidence boost. I like that Batista has the upper hand, but if it goes too far, it can come off as another "Cena overcoming the odds" story, when really it should be a clash of the titans type thing at Wrestlemania. I hope they don't make Cena too much of an underdog as it's hard to believe a jacked up man like Cena as the lovable loser.
Of course, there was still plenty of time on the broadcast before Cena's match, so next, it was time to play The Game. Triple H is out to address the actions of Sheamus and he actually says he kind of respects what Sheamus did since Trips basically took away from him all that he had. Sheamus comes out and says he's going to make a statement at Wrestlemania if Triple H has the guts. Um, you just challenged a man who has taken on basically everyone and you think he's going to be afraid of a rookie? It sounds ridiculous, but it's perfect for Sheamus' character who needs to be a bit delusional with how good he actually is. What I really liked though was how Hunter talked about being like Sheamus when he was young, challenging a top guy and getting killed. After that, he had to scratch and claw to get back to the top and become that guy. After the whole explanation, Triple H now asks if Sheamus has the guts, and he backs away and then tries to attack, but HHH counters and makes Sheamus retreat to the back. I love how this was booked, as Triple H should have the edge being the veteran and knowing all the tricks, and the young guy has to learn quickly to even compete. It's perfect and I expect Hunter to get a good match out of Sheamus. I'm not sure who will win, but it wont' be a squash like Hunter got from the Warrior years ago. The WWE is putting a lot of stock in Sheamus, but I have to wonder, after having matching with the top 3 wrestlers on Raw, what do you do with him moving forward? I hope for his sake that his career doesn't halt because of lack of new competition.
An intense segment was followed by a little comedy and magic. Santino always manages to get a couple of funny lines in, and he was also able to participate in another magic trick where Angel had to crush cups with one concealing a very sharp knife. Of course, he does it with ease. I think I need to see Criss Angel live to know if this stuff is remotely legit or if being on TV allows for him to know the answers beforehand, making him utterly full of crap, sans the string in the eye trick.
We finally get the Bourne/Regal match which, as per Raw qualifiers, was short and included the finisher from the smaller Bourne. As much as I love seeing Bourne's shooting star press, which is absolutely beautiful every single time, it was ridiculous for him to be able to hit it so quick on Regal. Regal is such a great character, but unfortunately, he has very little credibility left as he loses quite a bit these days. Also, how do you explain Bourne hitting the move and Regal's meathead rookie not helping him out. He was out there with him, and heels preach "win by any means necessary". You would think that tactic would have been used, but it was not, and Bourne got way too easy a victory. On the bright side, Evan Bourne is in Money in the Bank, and although I give him very little chance of winning, you can expect some big spots from the man who was "Bourne to fly".
Before the main event, a Vince/Bret video package is shown hyping their contract signing overseen by next week's host, Stone Cold Steve Austin! Definitely a good idea as there's a lot of hatred in one ring. Should be fun. I know that was the first video package I've mentioned, but it wasn't the first one shown. There are quite a few, hyping the big Wrestlemani matches, but they appear basically every week with subtle updates added to keep people up to date. While these videos are great for keeping the events of the feuds fresh in people's minds and for hyping the big show, they are a little repetitive and certainly not worth me describing them every week. I think this paragraph explaning why I dont' need to do it should be enough!
The main event finally came..........but not really. Criss Angel did a great job at revving up the crowd for it and really, he has a great stage presence, but Vince comes out, makes fun of Bret and his leg, and switches the match to a handicap gauntlet match, which basically saw a few wrestlers hit finishers on Cena before McMahon tried and failed to pin him. The first "hired gun" was Koslov, who just turned face on ECW, but sort of acted heel in that he didn't disobey McMahon. Then, Vince's "chosen one" Drew McIntye got his shots, then Swagger gets some time with Cena. Mark Henry is next, begrudgingly hit the World's Strongest Slam but refused to hit Cena with the ring bell, keeping him face. I thought that was actually played out well and I was impressed by Henry's acting. Who knew he could be believable? This did foil the plan, and brought out, surprise surprise, Dave Batista. He takes Henry out, but Kofi Kingston tries to save his friend Cena. I like that Kofi is now viewed as Cena's friend, but how does that help him with Wrestlemania. I could have sworn he'd be in Money in the Bank, but now I have no clue how he'll get on the card. He needs to get on as he's been pushed and deserves a spot, but where? Perhaps somehow he gets interwoven in the Legacy story again, or my other suggestion is to have him challenge Drew McIntyre for the IC belt as Drew isn't on the card yet either. I guess we will see as time goes on. As for Batista, he fights off Kingston easily and gets the best of Cena again, hitting the Batista Bomb to give Mr. McMahon the win. McMahon walks off mocking Hart again with the limp and Batista stands over Cena in the ring. I love how Batista gets the lights dimmed and a spotlight on him whenever he wants now and it was a cool way to end the show. At some point, Cena needs to look credible though, because again, having him be a complete underdog is not the way to go. Of course, I like that Batista looks dominant and I love his new heel persona. This is the most entertaining he's EVER been. As for Hart and McMahon, next week's segment should be huge, but this match served to show Bret that Vince has power and can pull a lot of strings. He's the boss, so DUH!
Overall, a very solid show top to bottom. I could argue that there was positive to be found in every segment, and most of the segments not including the guest host directed impacted Wrestlemania. That is how a show this time of year should be, and I really believe that with the build, this Wrestlemania is shaping up to be one of the best in years. Right now, WWE has tunnel vision for that event, which will undoubtedly blow the roof off of the University of Phoenix Stadium. That is a good thing, because focusing on the "war" that only exists in the mind of the underdog company's diluted mind would be more of a waste of time than watching Dane Cook do comedy. Without paying attention to the "other guys", WWE put on a great show, and it should only get better next week with Stone Cold Steve Austin hosting! Couple that with Wrestlemania rematches from years past and a contract signing for Vince and Bret, and you already know that next week is shaping up to be a Stunner of a show. And that's the bottom line, because the Mouth of the South Shore said so! (I know that was a really corny ending, but I had to do it!)
Written by:
