Looking At A "well That Was Certainly A Lot Better Than Last Week's Debacle" Raw

[Black Widow]

I enjoyed last night's Raw from London. In addition to the crowd providing a lot of energy for the broadcast, WWE creative actually put some time into booking a fun show where things made sense. The work was also very good on the whole, making for an enjoyable evening of wrestling. After last week's bomb, they needed to come back strongly and for the most part, they did.

The Angles:

• Until last night, I hated the Shawn Michaels-Batista angle because they were selling it on an ambiguous, at best, premise. Last night they made it clear that Batista is pretty out of his mind with his reasoning and I can now appreciate the scenario. Michaels did a great job with his promo and I liked that they are turning Chris Jericho into a snarky heel. He really hasn't gotten over the way that they had hoped as a babyface so this move makes perfect sense.
  
  
• I loved that they are bringing back the King Of The Ring. It's also a great idea to use the three hour special next week as it's platform since it will make the show meaningful. The last three hour Raw had nothing extra to it and it was just a Raw with one more hour. This will be a show with purpose.
  
  
• I am still trying to figure out why, other than Raw being in his native country, Willie Regal had a match with the champ. I don't see how it makes Randy Orton look strong when he had to struggle so much to beat a heel GM.

The Matches:

• The Number One Contender's bout was a short, solid match. I didn't love that London and Kendrick beat the champs first, had it ignored last week and are now out in the cold, but on a broadcast where the company was pushing their new children's magazine, I am probably expecting too much where creative is concerned. Seriously, at least they acknowledged what happened a few weeks ago and while I would have done it differently, they did tie up the loose ends.
  
  
• I loved that Mickie James FINALLY got a win over Beth Phoenix. For one, she deserved it. For two, it made the Women's title picture a lot more interesting than it was when Beth was just destroying everyone. That gets old in a hurry. The match was short, which was kind of odd considering how dominant Phoenix had been and also that it was a title change.
  
  
• Wow, JTG beat Trevor Murdoch pretty easily. Lance Cade acted like he is still on his partner's side, which means a turn is coming. And, who is the brain surgeon who didn't check the local currency before feeding a babyface a line about the Euro?
  
  
• You can look at Willie Regal vs. Randy Orton one of two ways. You can either say "That was a pretty solid match" or you can ponder "How is a guy who never wrestles able to beat the crap out of the champion that way". So, the work was fine. As I said above, I just have to question having a guy who hardly wrestles look so strong against the champ. I also have to wonder why Regal wouldn't make his match for the title. Vince Russo sure would have!
  
  
• Umaga and Chris Jericho had a good match, the best of the night easily. It was a good back and forth bout where Jericho took Umaga's best but got the win and kept his title. The only negative to it was that Umaga, once again, lost. Sure, Jericho cheated and is probably on his way to a much-needed heel turn, but wouldn't it be nice to see Umaga get a big win every now and then? It's amazing how over he stays despite the fact that he does so many jobs.
  
  
• Paul Burchill vs. Hacksaw Duggan was exactly what it should have been, a squash. There is no way Duggan, at this point in his career, should get heat on any pushed guy at this point.
  
  
• Honestly, the main event didn't do a lot for me. JBL looks slow and old when he's not doing a crazy brawl. In a regular match he has been very plodding and he was again last night. Also, he and HHH facing off didn't do much to excite me for their match at Backlash. Randy Orton leading to the DQ was predictable but JBL standing with the belt at the end of the show doesn't bode for a good buyrate from where I stand.

What To Make Sure And Watch If You DVR'd The Show:

• There was nothing bad on it. If you have the time, this is one you can watch all of.

Rhetorical And Unanswered Questions:

• When you heard a pop for Willie Regal, didn't you know that Raw had to be coming from The UK?
  
  
• Doesn't JBL realize that only the UK fans, not those who were watching back in the US, knew who Gordon Brown was?
  
  
• Uh, what would make JBL think that after insulting Willie he would then give him the night off?
  
  
• When Shawn Michaels started his promo, did you also hope that creative finally got it and realized that they needed to accept that they had to smarten up the angle?
  
  
• Uh, how can Batista talk about how Shawn held people down when he wasn't even in the business when all that was going on?
  
  
• When Jericho said we would never hear Ric Flair's music again because of Michaels, did he forget that he just played it himself so someone else could do the same thing?
  
  
• And wow did Jericho really, after 10 years, bring up Bret Hart?
  
  
• Who didn't see Michaels nailing Jericho with the superkick, other than maybe Y2J himself?
  
  
• Did Jerry Lawler have to remind us that London and Kendrick had a win over the tag champs because, well, no one mentioned it last week when they should have?
  
  
• Given the events that led to the WWE Title match at Backlash, what should stop London and Kendrick from coming out next week and demanding a spot in the tag title match at Backlash?
  
  
• What is with the London fans chanting "What" anyway?
  
  
• Are they stuck in a time warp?
  
  
• Given the way they pushed their new kids magazine, don't you hope that everyone in the company never makes the mistake of saying "We don't market to kids" again?
  
  
• When Mickie James was getting killed, didn't you hope that it would finally mean a win for her instead of a squashing?
  
  
• Boy, does promoting Barack Obama vs. Hillary Clinton for next week have "train wreck" written all over it or what?
  
  
• If Maria and Trashley were the only people celebrating your title win, would it take the luster off of it for you?
  
  
• And if that didn't, wouldn't having to make a man of Todd Grisham with a big kiss definitely get the job done?
  
  
• Wasn't it pretty obvious that Willie was going to make Chris Jericho the guest ref for the Batista-Michaels match?
  
  
• Did anyone else find it odd that Mick Foley's new movie opens in theaters in New York and "On Demand" everywhere else?
  
  
• Does anything quite spell "bomb" more than that?
  
  
• How funny was it to hear the English fans boo the Euro?
  
  
• How can WWE creative be in the country and not know what the currency is, especially since you would have thought one of them would have spent some actual money there or at least had dollars converted?
  
  
• If you were Trevor Murdoch, when Cade was reassuring you wouldn't you have said, "Dude, what did you do to your hair, did you go to Jericho's barber"?
  
  
• Don't you wish that Randy Orton's promos were as good as his facials?
  
  
• Where did Regal get a robe anyway?
  
  
• Isn't it surreal that Hacksaw Duggan is still on Raw, rather than collecting Social Security?
  
  
• Can you really blame Burchill for attacking Duggan at the start of the match?
  
  
• And when Lawler said it was a cheap shot, does he really expect us to believe he never did the same thing in his career?
  
  
• How great was HHH in telling Todd Grisham what an idiot he was to ask H what he was going to do in his match with JBL?
  
  
• Did the main event make you more or less likely to part with 40 bucks in two weeks?
  
  
• And, as a wrestler, doesn't JBL make for a good promo at this point in his career?
  
  
• Did you hear at least some of the the fans actually calling for John Cena?
  
  
• And, why didn't the announcers mention him or why he wasn't there while the crowd was calling his name?
  
  
• Speaking of Cena, did you see the goof who held up the sign saying he bought his ticket when he thought Cena was injured?
  
  
• Shouldn't people who make light of serious injuries be forcibly neutered?

PWInsider.com

[JohnCenaFan28]

Thanks for the interesting read... even I knew the Euro was not their currency lol...

[Ill Will]

ugh, here we go again. Who is this shithead that writes columns at PWInsider?

Until last night, I hated the Shawn Michaels-Batista angle because they were selling it on an ambiguous, at best, premise. Last night they made it clear that Batista is pretty out of his mind with his reasoning and I can now appreciate the scenario.

I really don't see how anything has been clarified since last week. The angle, and Batista's heel turn, is just as clear as it was last week. Maybe this writer's just a dumbass.

Yeah, I'm gonna go with that.

I am still trying to figure out why, other than Raw being in his native country, Willie Regal had a match with the champ. I don't see how it makes Randy Orton look strong when he had to struggle so much to beat a heel GM.

...there's really nothing else to figure out. Regal always gets put in high profile matches when WWE goes to the UK, and Orton really didn't have any else to do (which is pretty sad considering he's the champ). Also, Regal is a tweener at best, not a heel.

I loved that Mickie James FINALLY got a win over Beth Phoenix. For one, she deserved it. For two, it made the Women's title picture a lot more interesting than it was when Beth was just destroying everyone. That gets old in a hurry. The match was short, which was kind of odd considering how dominant Phoenix had been and also that it was a title change.

I've got to think Beth Phoenix is getting suspended or something. Why else would she randomly drop the title like that? There was no real feud or build up or anything. Mickie hasn't even been on RAW regularly in the last few months, and all of a sudden she's the women's champ? I definitely think Mickie makes a better champ than Beth, but the way it was done was kind of illogical.

Wow, JTG beat Trevor Murdoch pretty easily. Lance Cade acted like he is still on his partner's side, which means a turn is coming. And, who is the brain surgeon who didn't check the local currency before feeding a babyface a line about the Euro?

...and who is the brain surgeon who doesn't realize that the Euro reference was an attempt at this thing called comedy?

You can look at Willie Regal vs. Randy Orton one of two ways. You can either say "That was a pretty solid match" or you can ponder "How is a guy who never wrestles able to beat the crap out of the champion that way". So, the work was fine. As I said above, I just have to question having a guy who hardly wrestles look so strong against the champ. I also have to wonder why Regal wouldn't make his match for the title. Vince Russo sure would have!

For some reason, this inane columnist seems to have an obsession with Vince Russo and comparing Regal to him. lol, how would the match being for the title have made any sense? If they were to take it that far, why not just have Regal challenge for the title every week since he (kayfabe wise) has the power to book himself in matches? Really poor reasoning.

Regal is and has always been one of the best technical/mat wrestlers in WWE. Expecting anything less than a good match from him is stupid. Seriously, who would think Regal would be made to look weak when the show is in the UK?

The only negative to it was that Umaga, once again, lost. Sure, Jericho cheated and is probably on his way to a much-needed heel turn, but wouldn't it be nice to see Umaga get a big win every now and then?

Winning every now and then? Yes. Winning a random title match with no feud or build up attached to it? No.

When you heard a pop for Willie Regal, didn't you know that Raw had to be coming from The UK?

Um, no. I knew RAW had to be coming from the UK because I was paying attention to where it was coming from. He also happened to be challenging the top heel in the company.

Doesn't JBL realize that only the UK fans, not those who were watching back in the US, knew who Gordon Brown was?

This columnist continues to set the bar lower and lower with every stupid comment he makes. Have you never heard of or witnessed heels using references to local events and people in order to get heat from the crowd? With the goal of making JBL appear as a heel, what's more affective to the TV audience: knowing why the crowd is upset, or just generally hearing the crowd boo the shit out of JBL all match long?

Uh, what would make JBL think that after insulting Willie he would then give him the night off?

This columnist needs someone to explain to him the concept of the heel persona in pro wrestling. He doesn't seem to understand it.

Uh, how can Batista talk about how Shawn held people down when he wasn't even in the business when all that was going on?

Why the fuck would it matter if Batista wasn't in the business? Seriously, give me one reason why that makes a difference...

When Shawn Michaels started his promo, did you also hope that creative finally got it and realized that they needed to accept that they had to smarten up the angle?

When Jericho said we would never hear Ric Flair's music again because of Michaels, did he forget that he just played it himself so someone else could do the same thing?

Oh. My. God.

Did Jerry Lawler have to remind us that London and Kendrick had a win over the tag champs because, well, no one mentioned it last week when they should have?


Given the events that led to the WWE Title match at Backlash, what should stop London and Kendrick from coming out next week and demanding a spot in the tag title match at Backlash?

Does this guy have a crush on Spanky or something? Half of this editorial is about how L&K beat the champs a couple weeks ago. WE HEARD YOU THE FIRST 100 TIMES YOU SAID IT.

And come on, it's the RAW tag division. I don't think anyone else is paying this much attention to it.

What is with the London fans chanting "What" anyway?


Are they stuck in a time warp?

???

I still here that chant all the time.

Wasn't it pretty obvious that Willie was going to make Chris Jericho the guest ref for the Batista-Michaels match?

Obvious? Maybe for the 5 seconds before it was announced.

How funny was it to hear the English fans boo the Euro?


How can WWE creative be in the country and not know what the currency is, especially since you would have thought one of them would have spent some actual money there or at least had dollars converted?

Where did Regal get a robe anyway?

Regal has worn a robe when he comes to the ring for as long as I can remember.

Seriously, worst column ever.

And when Lawler said it was a cheap shot, does he really expect us to believe he never did the same thing in his career?

Simple answer: no. The majority of us wrestling fans, while watching RAW, don't analyze every claim that comes of out Jerry Lawler mouth. If I wanted to, I could make a post just as long as this one solely about illogical things Lawler said on RAW, but that would be immensely stupid and time-wasting.

Did you hear at least some of the the fans actually calling for John Cena?


And, why didn't the announcers mention him or why he wasn't there while the crowd was calling his name?

...so right in the middle of the climax of the main event, you expected JR to break character and start explaining that Cena was filming in the United States, and that because of the implausibility of him getting on a plane for a 5 hour flight, make a 2 hour appearance, then make another 5 hour flight back, he couldn't be at RAW tonight? Seriously, is that the explanation you were expecting JR to give to the TV audience?

Idiot.

[Black Widow]

ugh, here we go again. Who is this shithead that writes columns at PWInsider?


I've got to think Beth Phoenix is getting suspended or something. Why else would she randomly drop the title like that? There was no real feud or build up or anything. Mickie hasn't even been on RAW regularly in the last few months, and all of a sudden she's the women's champ? I definitely think Mickie makes a better champ than Beth, but the way it was done was kind of illogical.

Dave Scherer writes them..


Mickie & Beth were feuding before the whole maria playboy thing took over.. maybe it was continuing from were they left off..

[Ill Will]

Dave Scherer writes them..

Thanks. I'll make sure to start blacklisting him around the IWC. I seriously hate this guy's column.

Mickie & Beth were feuding before the whole maria playboy thing took over.. maybe it was continuing from were they left off..

...yes, the whole storyline where Mickie got upset over the fact that she couldn't beat Beth--yeah, I remember it...and that was SEVERAL MONTHS AGO. To just suddenly have a match between the two of them in which Mickie wins the title seems very random.

There was no hot feud. There was no build up. The match was not even announced or advertised last week, yet there was a title change? How often does that happen in WWE? That's my point.