March 31, 1996! Eleven years from the date of the first WrestleMania, it’s time for the twelfth edition of the greatest spectacle in sports entertainment! Tonight, Shawn Michaels takes on Bret “Hitman” Hart in a 60-Minute Iron Man Match for the World Wrestling Federation Championship! Whichever man can score the most falls in the span of one hour will be the winner! Let’s go!
April 2, 1995! Are you ready for WrestleMania XI? Tonight we witness the showdown between Shawn Michaels and Diesel for the WWF Championship, and NFL great Lawrence Taylor steps into the squared circle with The Beast From The East, Bam Bam Bigelow! Let’s get to it!
It’s finally here! March 20, 1994! Tonight, the Superstars of the World Wrestling Federation celebrate a decade of the grandest stage of them all, WrestleMania! Bret and Owen Hart face off, and then Bret goes on to face the winner of the WWF Championship match between Yokozuna and Lex Luger later on tonight! Plus, the Macho Man faces Crush in a falls count anywhere match! And for the first time, the Intercontinental Championship is defended in a ladder match as Shawn Michaels faces Razor Ramon to prove who is the true Champion! All this, and much, much more! Let’s go!
Dolph Ziggler set to take on John Cena
2K Games has released the entire WWE 2K14 roster as of today. The full roster is below.
What’s this? WWE made another video game? Does it look like the last one? Well.. yeah, probably. You know, slight tweaks and the shizz, but it’s bascially the same thing. However, instead of arenas from the ‘Attitude Era’, WWE 2K14 is based around WrestleMania, as 2014 will celebrate WrestleMania 30, with 29 WrestleMania arenas that apparently look ‘exactly’ like their real-life counterpart.
Does that mean when Triple H comes out in the WrestleMania 21 arena, Lemmy will forget the words to his theme music?
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L25OLvFonj8[/youtube]
I mean.. at least he somewhat remembered the words four years earlier at WrestleMania X-Seven..
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z_0pTuYCJD0[/youtube]
Tonight! I will once again attempt to cover tonight’s WWE RAW broadcast in real time for you, the BWF faithful.
This is the last RAW before Wrestle-Mania this weekend, and WWE’s last chance to sell us on the Big Show. (Not the one in the six-man, although technically…) No, I mean the ENTIRE EVENT! Will they convince us to shell out $60-70 bucks in our respective areas this year?
Personally, I doubt it.
From WWE.com; “The Undertaker, Brock Lesnar, WWE Champion The Rock, John Cena, Triple H and CM Punk will all be at tonight’s Raw in Washington. What will unfold with Wrestle-Mania just days away?”
We’re getting a rundown of what to expect at Mania and what to look forward to tonight. Shawn Michaels will be here tonight for Triple H. John Cena responds to the Rock’s shot last week. Punk, Taker, Lesnar and… more stuff.
Cena’s out first and this is NOT a Cena crowd, here in DC. Jerry Lawler doesn’t even bother selling it as a “mixed” reaction. Lawler has Michael Cole and JBL with him at ringside.
“I stand in the middle of a house divided.” – John Cena
Rytman Remark: No you don’t John. They hate you.
John refers to everyone here tonight as “Cena-crats” and “Rock-publicans.” He gives Rock credit for conquering everything in his path and even goes so far as to call him the greatest WWE champion of all time. He talks about the pain of his loss last year and how the Rock will lose his custom-made WWE title in his first defense (of that specific belt.) He will happily keep the new belt just so the Rock will have to live with knowing every time someone brings up WWE, he’ll have to live with knowing someone else is defending that belt every night.
Cole asks us who we think will win Rock/Cena 2 and invites us all to “Tout” about it on line. He talks Jerry into posting a “Tout” about who he thinks will win Rock/Cena 2. Lawler goes with history and chooses Rock.
3MB is in the ring as Randy Orton, Sheamus, and the Big Show make their entrances. We get a look at last week’s Smackdown where they were able to fight off an attack by the Shield.
RANDY ORTON/SHEAMUS/BIG SHOW VS. 3MB (HEATH SLATER/JINDER MAHAL/DREW MCINTYRE)
Match starts with the faces bouncing around Slater. McIntyre tags in and takes over with a missile drop-kick. Sheamus gets triple-teamed for a few moments but the match ends just the way you expected. RKO, Brogue-Kick, and Big K.O. on Mahal for the three-count.
After the match, the Shield comes out, cutting a promo from the crowd. The Shield congratulates our three heroes on their huge win, and convincing themselves they’re a team. But the Shield knows the truth; they are phonies and at Mania, everyone will believe in the Shield.
We come back to the announcement of Zeb Coulter getting in the ring tonight against World Heavyweight Champion Alberto Del Rio. We go to Zeb Coulter and Jack Swagger cutting a promo in front of our Nation’s Capital. Our country is broken because we all are weak. If we don’t like Swagger as World Heavyweight Champion, then we don’t deserve to be Americans.
Current WHC Alberto Del Rio responds in an interview segment. One of the great things about America is freedom of speech, and if Del Rio doesn’t like what Zeb says, he can do something about it. He will tonight, in the ring.
WWE TAG TEAM CHAMPION DANIEL BRYAN (W/KANE) VS. DOLPH ZIGGLER (W/AJ & BIG E.)
This is a fast-paced back/forth with Ziggler on the defensive. AJ skips around Kane, setting him up for a charge from Big E. Bryan takes the E down with a flying kick to the head and Ziggler gets the three-count on Bryan w/a handfull of tights. Big E. nails Bryan and Kane tries to make the save. Big E. powers out of the choke-slam and lays out Kane with his drop across the shoulder.
Back from break, we get a look back at last August when Brock Lesnar took out Shawn Michaels.
Mr. Wrestle-Mania, HOFamer, and the Heart-Break Kid, SHAWN MICHAELS is here. He hits the ring as we get a look back at the Lesnar/Triple H feud of last year, with Lesnar breaking Trip’s arm in April, and winning their match at Summer-Slam.
“You didn’t think we’d have Wrestle-Mania without MR. Wrestle-Mania did you?” – Shawn Michaels
Shawn is out here to talk about Mania. He runs down the card, bringing our attention to one particular match, because he and his arm are part of the history in that match. Triple H comes out to reassure Shawn he knows what he’s doing, and he understands that Shawn was in the same spot Trips was in when Shawn retired. Shawn says their perdicaments couldn’t be more different. When Shawn lost his career-match, his opponent was just as heartbroken as him, because they had respect for each other. Brock Lesnar respects nothing. Triple H asks Shawn if he’s trying to talk him out of it. Shawn tells him he’d better kick Lesnar’s ass. Shawn will be in Triple H’s corner to make sure he does. They get ready to give the crowd the “suck it,” chant, when Lesnar comes out w/Heyman. Heyman lays it on the line. Triple H had better get used to dissapointment. At Mania, he will disapoint the fans, his best friend, his father-in-law, the board of directors and his wife…
“…But she’s probably used to that.” – Paul Heyman
Shawn and Hunter make the mistake of fighting from emotion, and that’s why Shawn had to retire, and that’s why Triple H will lose at Mania.
WWE INTERCONTINENTAL CHAMPION WADE BARRETT VS. ZACK RYDER
Miz joins the announce team at ringside. Ryder starts off strong, but Barrett takes control and beats him down. On the outside, Barrett jaw-jacks w/Miz, giving Ryder an opening. Ryder hits the “brosky-boot” for two, but Barrett takes over and ends this with the Bell-Hammer Elbow.
Rytman Remark: Announce team spent the whole match trying to hard sell Miz as a threat to Barrett. Came off pretty desperate. Maybe Barrett might retain.
Backstage: RAW Managing Supervisor Vicki Gurerro and her assistant Brad Maddox are talking when Santino Morella walks in, telling them Vince McMahon is here tonight and he’s P-O’d about them. “Bricki” get freaked, until Santino reveals it was just an “April Fools” joke. Vicki orders Santino into the ring, as Maddox says we’ll see who the fool is.
SANTINO MORELLA VS. MARK HENRY AND DO I EVEN HAVE TO BOTHER TYPING ANYTHING?
We get a look at last week’s Smackdown when Henry attacked Ryback during their weight-lifting challenge. Cole tells us this did not violate their “no-contact” clause because Henry never touched Ryback, he just tried to shove a set of weights into his throat.
Rytman Remark: Are you fucking kidding me?
Mark grabs Santino. Santino threatens to bring out the Cobr-World’s Strongest Slam, three-count.
“FEED ME MORE!”
Ryback is out and in the ring. Henry reminds him of the no-contact clause, and walks off with a smile. Ryback responds by picking up Santino AND RAMMING HIM INTO HENRY. He checks if Santino is okay, THEN HOISTS HIM UP AND GORILLA PRESS-SLAMS HIM ON TO HENRY. BECAUSE THIS IS WHAT THE “GOOD GUY” DOES!
We go to break with Jack Swagger giving Zeb a pep-talk before his match with Del Rio
We come back to Matt Striker asking C.M. Punk if he’s disrespecting Paul Bearer’s memory…
“A better question is DO I GIVE A DAMN?” – C.M. Punk
Rytman Remark: I’ve been asking myself the same question.
Punk actually shocks me for a second with a remark about Paul Bearer’s streak of waking up every morning, which has been broken. He warns Taker that if he loses his temper, Punk will win by DQ. If he takes his eyes off the prise, he just might get choked out. If he loses focus, he just might be down one second too long. Punk makes it clear all he wants is to win, and he will spit in faces and walk on graves to do it, so that whenever anyone thinks of Wrestle-Mania, the grandest stage of all, they will think of C.M. Punk.
WORLD HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPION ALBERTO DEL RIO VS. ZEB COULTER
Before the break, we saw Swagger breaking the ankle of Ricardo Rodriguez, making this personal. Ricardo intros ADR and Del Rio sends him to the back to be safe. Just as the match is starting, Ricardo comes back out, refusing to leave. Zeb hangs back, close to the ropes as Swagger stalks Ricardo. Ricardo raises a crutch, but Zeb swipes it. Swagger goes after the bad ankle, Del Rio kicks him down and saves Ricardo. Zeb wails on Del Rio with the Crutch when Del Rio rolls back in. Ref calls for the DQ as Swagger and Zeb beat down ADR with Ricardo’s crutches. Ricardo tries to get involved but Swagger swats him down.
Back from break, IF YOU SMELLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL……
The Rock is out to make his big speech to the DC crowd. Rock’s new movie, G.I. JOE: RETALLIATION is no.1 in the wold this week. We’re reminded to “Tout” our opinions on who will win at Mania.
Rock’s connection with the people is the only reason he’s standing in the middle of the ring right now. This Sunday isn’t about redemption, it’s about the will of the people, specifically the will of the people to see John Cena get curb-stomped. The will of the people can change the world, and maybe if the people will it, the Rock would have to live in this town, in the big white house up the road, and maybe…
“We go from President Barack to President Rock!” – The Rock
Rytman Remark: If that happens, I’m surrendering to China.
The Rock makes it very clear that the only way Cena will get the Rock’s title, is if the Rock rolls it up into a ball, lights it on fire, and shoves it up Cena’s candy ass.
Back from break, we get another look at Fandango attacking Jericho last week.
BREAK THE WALLS DOWN!
U.S. CHAMPION ANTONIO CESARO VS. CHRIS JERICHO
Seriously, you can tell they’re just going throught the motions until Fandango comes out. It’s a basic back and forth with Jericho taking over with a hurra-con-rana off the top rope. Cue Fandango and partner comming out. The match comes to a dead stop as we go to break.
Apparently, during the break, Fandango actually gave Jericho a “two” with a score-card. Cesaro takes conrtol and spends a lot of time working the neck. Cesaro dominates Jericho with brute force, but Jericho’s agility turns the tide. Fandango walks to the ring, giving Jericho a “three.” Cesaro counters Jericho into the gut wrench, but Jericho comes back with high flying offense and takes out Fandango with a flying kick. Jericho wins this with the “Walls Of Jericho” but Fandango attacks from behind. He finishes Jericho off with the flying leg drop and gives us all the proper pronounciation of his name.
“FAHN-DAHN-GOH!” – Fandango
Jericho is left laying as Fandango and partner dance off.
Up next is OUR MAIN EVENT…
A promo…
From THE UNDERTAKER!
We come back to Touts.
Rytman Remark: That’s pretty much all I have to say about it.
The Funkadactyls are out w/Brodus and “Sweet T” for a Divas tag team match. They do the entrance and go to break.
Rytman Remark: You couldn’t just finish the commercials then start the match?
THE FUNKADACTYLS (w/BRODUS/TENSAI) VS. THE BELLA TWINS SISTERS (w/TEAM RHODES SCHOLLARS)
And yes, we will get an eight-person mixed tag at Mania, Brodus, Sweet T, and the Funkadactyls vs. Team Rhodes Schollars and the Bellas.
Naomi is the star of this match, carrying the workrate and spending most of it getting double-teamed. The match is not as bad as it should be, but the Bellas are showing the ring rust. The match consists of botched-spots and really should’ve been booked quicker. Cameron tags in and comes off as the most capable of the girls. The Bellas take it with a reversed roll-up as we go to break.
The Undertaker is out. Punk’s WWE title reign lasted over 400 days, but the pain he’s facing will last for eternity. Taker realizes the streak may come to an end, but Punk won’t live to talk about it. Suddenly, a group of torch-bearing, chanting druids enter. Taker looks on in confusion.
OH YES!!!
PAUL HEYMAN STANDS ON TOP OF THE STAGE DRESSED AS PAUL BEARER!
An enraged Undertaker goes after Heyman, then stops, realizing he’s been lead into a trap. Taker unloads on the druids, but gets taken down from behind by the one he was looking for, C.M. Punk. Punk beats down the Taker. Taker reaches for the urn, but Punk has it, and uses it to beat the deadman down.
Punk stands over the Taker, holding the urn. He opens the urn… and pours the ashes inside all over the Taker. He lets them spill through his fingers and throws them in Takers face. RAW ends with C.M. Punk mocking the Undertakers classic pose, as the Taker lies beaten on the ramp.
Rytman Remarks: Wow, I mean wow. I was going to say this RAW was another auto-pilot show coasting into Mania until the end.
Now look, I know those weren’t Paul Bearer’s actual ashes. I know it was part of the act. It’s just… I think it was too much. It just took me somewhere really uncomfortable.
To be fair, they HAD to do something to get this show some momentum, but still, it just seems desperate.
I really do hope it pays off.
The below show can be found here.
We began the night with Sammy Geodollno offering her services to Mercedes Martinez. Nice, cute, short, character-driven.
Kalamity vs. Leva Bates
I am looking forward to this match. Kalamity has a good look and ring presence, even though she’s somewhat lacking in height. And to me, Leva reminds a lot in-ring wise of Shawn Michaels. By appealing to the geek in all of us, she has carved herself a really nice demand. Leva was rocking the Jigsaw outfit of Saw fame. It’s not exactly my favorite outfit of her’s, but I love her variety. We had a handshake to start the match. I’m going to compare old WSU to new WSU a lot. You can already tell an improvement in the crowd. They are alive. I really like Kalamity’s hard-hitting style. Her elbows look like they kill you. And Leva bumps like “H-She-K.” (I’m coining that term right now.) Leva’s chops have the perfect combination of cute and devastating. It had really strong wrestling and great back and forth. It was the perfect match for the opener. We had a nice show of sportsmanship. I know it’s ironic that the company is called Womens Superstars Uncensored, but I would let my daughter watch this match.
Brittney Savage vs. Tina San Antonio
I am intrigued by this match, as these were two stars created by the old WSU. What will happen in this new era? Where will they go? Tina is now a heel and if I may say, a rather good one. And even though I think Savage is a better heel, she is over with the crowd and they accept her as a face. San Antonio’s ring style in this match was slow and methodical. There was a nice exchange with the roll-ups. It was good old-school wrestling. You had the heel giving out punishment with the face taking it. I really liked the story of the finish. It opens them up for a good feud. After this match, Tina is a force to be reckoned with.
Addy Starr vs. Jessie Brooks
I like Addy’s cute, quirky look. I’m not too familiar with Brooks if I have seen her at all. She looks focused, no-nonsense. So far, 3 matches, 1 heel. Brooks is a very capable wrestler but comes off a little bland. Maybe being in a Sammy G skit would have worked better for her. Starr has a nice, unique ring style. One cannot deny Brooks’ in-ring ability as we got a cattle mutilation. I really liked the exchange when Addy had Brooks in the guillotine choke. Funny I should mention Sammy G because she came down to ringside. I really liked Jessie in this match. The crowd just needs a reason to care about her. The crowd loved Addy and even an incognito Sugar Dunkerton congratulated her after the match.
Mercedes Martinez vs. LuFisto
Yes, I just wrote that. Mercedes Martinez in the ring against LuFisto. Two pioneers in this generation’s era of great women’s wrestling going at it. It didn’t start in the ring. This match started off so intensly. Why? What is the heat between them? The play-by-play guy filled us in as the match began, but why couldn’t he tell me why they hated each other as they were entering? Also, this was the first time they had ever met on American soil. Why was this not more prominent in the card or build-up? LuFisto’s kicks look like they will make your head roll. Every move she does looks like she’s going to kill you. And Mercedes is Mercedes. She’s an icon of her era. Were it not for that pesky Sara del Rey, she’d be hands-down, the best of her era. This was LuFisto’s showcase, plain and simple. If you are not a fan of LuFisto or women’s wrestling in general, you need to watch this match. I try not to use this word too much, but I’d dare call this match epic. My only complaint is that the play-by-play guy started talking about how these two might go the distance. And then he updated us they were at the 21-minute mark. I knew it was going the 30-minute draw and the rest of the match became a chore. The drama was still good enough to fool me into thinking it might end. The ladies got a standing ovation and a “That was awesome chant.” Myself, I would have been chanting “Match of the Year.”
Niya vs. Saturyne
This is an interesting match-up. There is the veteran getting one more chance story with Niya. Plus, you have the up-and-coming hot rookie with Saturyne. I would have liked to seen more of an emphasis from commentary placed on this actual match. Saturyne is quite exciting to watch in the ring. It was hard to concentrate on the in-ring action, but this was a nice short match. The crowd needed something to come down from after that LuFisto-Martinez match.
After the match, Jennifer Cruz ran in and started taking out Niya. Jana came out to Niya’s rescue. Then Jennifer took the mic and cut a nice promo, dropping a Spanish p-bomb.
Kimber Lee & Annie Social vs. Allysin Kay & Sassy Stephanie
This is where it gets hard for me to be partial as I’m a total mark for the Midwest Militia. Kay is my very favorite in-ring worker, and I have this weird schoolboy crush on Stephanie. Stephie was wearing her t-shirt from Gimick$ whom I strongly recommend for your wrestling t-shirt needs. I don’t see Lee’s and Social’s chemistry on paper. Lee is a great “girl next door” and Social is a great counter-culture heel. This was good classic tag team wrestling. Militia killed Social with the face in peril. If there are young upstarts wanting to know how to do “face in peril” from a heel’s perspective, watch this match. Kay & Stephie put on a clinic. I was ok with the non-finish. Allysin’s kick to the stumbling Kimber Lee was so wrong. It was so simple and subtle, yet so enraging.
Nikki Adams vs. Marti Belle
I should probably know her better, but I don’t think I’ve seen a Nikki Adams match before. And Marti Belle, in my opinion, has got to be the perfect combination of beauty and wrestling ability. I really didn’t get the build-up here. Who is Nikki Adams? Why does she have that title shot? Nikki had good crowd engagement. Marti as champ has a certain swagger about her. She now looks like a top name. The commentary started off really strong here. There are going to be some people watching WSU for the first time. They put over the Spirit championship and what it means to the former champ Jana who was doing the commentary. Adams worked a very strong heel style and Marti bumped like crazy for her. Watching Adams reminds me of watching an 80’s old school heel, like how every inch of that thing is a weapon for her. I thought this was a good match to add credibility to Adams. Plus we had the build-up with Ezavel Sueña.
Lexxus vs. Alicia vs. Jessicka Havok
This is Lexxus’ big chance as a main eventer. Alicia is the icon of WSU so I can see how she figured prominently in this match. And then there’s Jessicka freakin’ Havok. She is the best female wrestler not currently signed to the big two, and arguably the best wrestler, male or female, not currently signed to the big two. The commentary helped put this match in perspective nicely. There were some pretty cool spots. It just didn’t quite click for me like I thought it should. I wonder if it’s that I knew there was no way Havok was losing here. But they made Lexxus look like she belonged in the top spot. And Alicia served to take the pin so they can do Lexxus-Havok in the future. Lexxus-Havok is not done, and I think there was enough here to establish Lexxus as a credible contender.
We ended with Sammy G offering her services to Jessie Brooks, which I think is great.
All in all… I followed the company before the new ownership and am somewhat of a WSU mark so this was quite interesting for me.
1. There was SUCH an emphasis on the wrestling in this show. There wasn’t as much “garbage” and insultingly bad gimmicks. Wrestling mattered here.
2. Production values were so much better than the old WSU. I could hear the announcers. It just looked night and day with the difference.
3. I’d like to hear some consistency in the commentary. I’d like to hear a permanent person in color commentary, like a lady who’s given everything for the industry, like an Amy Lee or Cindy Rogers. Alicia’s a company icon; maybe she’d fit well in the role.
If you have never seen women’s wrestling, this is a really good DVD to start off with. LuFisto-Martinez is worth seeing for any wrestling fan. Kay/Stephie was a tag wrestling clinic. And something stands out to me about Saturyne. I feel like we are on the cusp of something very special with her. Most everything seemed to click.
To get this show, click here.
Last week was perhaps one of the greatest Raws in history. How do you follow it up? I’m very concerned because I believe that the WWE is really good at having a good episode. But a streak of good episodes is something all together different.
We begin with a promo about the Three Stooges. Johnny Ace comes out with his lackey David Otunga. He said that David Otunga is not here to entertain us. I was so relieved because if he were supposed to entertain us, he’s doing a very bad job. Johnny Ace plays a video package and then introduces Brock Lesnar. I’m a little disappointed they’re letting him speak yet, but ok. Brock doesn’t need Paul Heyman this time. He cut the best promos in the UFC (aside from Chael Sonnen). He was the man you loved to hate and was so good being that villain. Cena slapped Brock and then Brock did the takedown. They brought out ALL the wrestlers. It took the entire roster to separate both men. And Brock bloodied John Cena’s mouth.
Johnny Ace is humiliating Teddy Long. Please. That man once managed Jim Powers in WCW. He is beyond humiliation. Now Eve wants her some Ace Crusher and he isn’t having it.
We had a nice match that happened way too early. This crowd was not last week’s crowd but the match was pretty decent. Santino did the face in peril to perfection. And the match was really well put together. Dolph bumped like Shawn Michaels in 1994. Funkasaurus got the pin.
Santino is looking for the Three Stooges. Why not?
R-Truth is taking on Cody Rhodes. So apparently he’s doing the Brian Pillman “wear a dress until he wins” thing.
Sean Hayes was on Raw. That was surreal.
Yoshi Tatsu got killed by Lord Tensai. At least they aren’t trying to pretend A-Train never existed. Then he did the claw on Yoshi again. It seems they are focused.
They continued the CM Punk-Jericho feud. Punk cut a promo. It wasn’t up to the caliber of the usual Punk promo. But it was real and emotional. Then Jericho appeared on the screen. Then Punk lit up. It was a thing of beauty. There was genuine fire. And then they killed any possible emotion by bringing out Mark Henry. Punk got dq’ed, mostly on purpose. Then Mark Henry did the beatdown followed by Punk getting a beer-bath.
Zack Ryder got squashed by Alberto del Rio. I do have to say that Ryder did a really great job of bumping for him.
They did a really cute segment with Will Sasso (Curly) doing Hulk Hogan. Then Kane came out squashed him.
Brock did an interview. He has always been a great villain wherever he’s gone.
David Otunga was in a main event (which made me cry a little, to be honest). They just really need to stop pushing guys this big. Lesnar came in and gave Cena a low blow. Then he had the most sadistic smile ever. EVER.
This was another pretty good Raw. The wrestling wasn’t that great, but the angles were pretty good. They look focused. I want to see Extreme Rules more than I wanted to see Wrestlemania.
Well, I’d like to write some introduction but for some reason I got home late and it just didn’t quite happen. So I will get right in to Raw.
CM Punk opened it up talking about his dad being an alcoholic and how his dad had worked really hard to overcome and recover. Chris Jericho appeared on the screen and apologized for bringing up Punk’s father. Now his sister on the other hand… Punk fed off him and they had a really strong build-up.
Big Show and Kane had a match or something. It was a back drop for Cody Rhodes to build up his and Big Show’s match. As the ambush happened, Cody handcuffed Big Show and went after him. Really strong build-up.
They continued the build-up of Teddy Long-Johnny Ace by David Otunga facing Santino Marella. They started with a posedown. I gotta admit I popped for the Santino posedown.
Rock talked a long time.
Daniel Bryan squashed Zack Ryder.
John Cena took quite the beating at the hands of Mark Henry. But he won and The Rock did his move on Henry.
Miz cuts a great promo. He puts out an open challenge and gets Sheamus. I really like how they are pointing out the way they’re not putting over Miz’ lack of Wrestlemania match.
I still think that Randy Orton and Kane seem last-minute, but I like that they’re giving it meaning.
We go from anti-bullying to Vickie Guerrero getting booed out of the building for having an annoying voice.
We get Swagger and Ziggler vs. Truth & Kofi. It was pretty good build-up. Though I believe all 4 of those should have singles runs, I’m happy they have spots and places. Though I hate Swagger’s character, the guy is a natural athlete and would kill in a world like Ring of Honor or Japan.
Then we had the 3-way confrontation. Shawn Michaels was the first. Then out came the Undertaker. Then out came HHH. They had a nice exchange, but it just wasn’t quite there.
Tonight’s Raw was pretty decent. You had a lot of really good buildup and it made me want to see Wrestlemania a bit more.
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Yes, we have finally made it to the 21st century with an HD DirecTV receiver. I have no doubt my world will be forever changed, at least wrestling wise.
We open up the night with Shawn Michaels. I’m torn on this one. I don’t mind Shawn on my tv, but on the other hand, can we let the guy retire? The crowd responded well to him and made him seem important. He asks for Triple H to come to the ring. Shawn went for way too long. What Triple H has perfected very well over the past few years is the art of the focused glare. He does that glare better than most guys cut promos. Then HBK let everybody know he was going to be the guest referee. Here’s to a 5-minute entrance at Wrestlemania.
Santino was supposed to fight Jack Swagger. Swagger looked like a 9-year-old who needs a haircut. This wasn’t a match so much as a backdrop for the Teddy Long-Johnny Ace feud. However, Santino pinned Jack Swagger and won the belt. Best I can figure out, Swagger has failed a wellness test. Then Teddy Long had security escort Johnny Ace and his crew out. I believe this is like Vic Mackey suspending Det. McNulty on The Wire. (If you got that reference, you are my favorite person.)
Rock talked a lot. My wife was happy. Kelly Kelly was nominated for Best Butt-Kicker. And? Eve beat Alicia Fox.
Eve then tried to kiss Zack Ryder. They are booking Zack Ryder to look stupider than 1990 Sting.
John Cena did a very solid promo, but it just went too long and sounded way too scripted.
CM Punk & Sheamus took on Jericho & Bryan. The match was really good. I don’t like the fact the main events laid hands on each other before Wrestlemania. But let’s be honest. Punk and Jericho aren’t going to have the same exact match at Wrestlemania. I liked the finish and the match had nice build-up.
Rock rambled about Paul Revere.
Miz was supposed to fight Big Show. I really like how Big Show has evolved as a worker since his days of The Giant in WCW. Cody Rhodes showed footage of WM 18. #$^%@$#$@ That was the last WWE PPV I ever bought.
Rock rambled more.
R-Truth came out while talking to Little Jimmy. Kane came out and killed him. I guess Randy Orton is going to fight Kane at Wrestlemania.
John Cena came out and cut another scripted promo. And then Rock came out. The two had a very nice interaction.
So this ended up being a decent Raw. I liked the Punk-Sheamus/Bryan-Jericho segment match and the Cena-Rock stuff was good. If you watched it, you don’t feel your time was wasted. If you don’t, you probably didn’t miss anything.