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Torch Feedback
WWE Raw Reax #2: "When Triple H flashed the four fingers for the Horsemen, I actually stood up from my chair."
Mar 31, 2008 - 11:18:19 PM


Dan Kuester (10.0): This show rates a 10 with me just because of the Ric Flair ceremony. I am like many long time fans and I have not had an easy time coming to grips with the end of the Ric Flair era. I know that many wrestling fans quit watching the product when WCW went out of business, I watch WWE every once in a while and had they handled this as badly as I feared they would I might have just been done with wrestling. I doubt I ever watch every week again the way I once did but when WWE presents things this well and treats the greatest wrestler ever with the respect he deserves it makes you feel good about the company. Certainly there have been enough times when people say, "You like to watch that" and I don't always have a great answer for them. These last three shows (four if you count the Hall of Fame) centered around Ric Flair were simply first class all the way. I am not ashamed to admit I was pretty emotional watching the three part weekend (HOF, Wrestlemania, Raw) with just a great tribute to Ric Flair. It's as if they realized they had some long time fans watching and they did a good job building the strong heel champion, had what I thought was a really good short match with Punk and Jericho and a strong Orton/Hardy match. Really great show. Kudos to WWE.

Dave Voigt of Toronto, Ont. (10.0): Best match/Worst match: Irrelevant. I was worried they were going to do something tastless with HBK's odd comments at the beginning of the show, but this show was all about Flair the rest was just filler. That was pure class all the way, no McMahons, just the boys in the back. The ony man in the history of the business to deserve that kind of send off, I really hope he doesn't come back, because I will remember this Raw very fondly, and a Mick Foleyesque return in 18 months or so would just ruin it. Thanks Naitch, you will be missed.

Jamie Golliver of Athens, Ala. (10.0): Best Match: Ric Flair Farewell Address and Tribute. Worst Match: N/A. I enjoyed the first part of Raw, especially the surprising challenge of first JBL and then Matt Hardy toward Randy Orton. The crowd enthusiasm made the return of Cryme Tyme and the win by Kendrick & London fun as well. Santino Marella is gold no matter what they have him doing. I flipped channels back and forth until it was time for Ric Flair to address the crowd. Seeing the look on his face as he made his way to the ring conveyed that he is at peace with his in-ring career being over. It was great as Ric Flair spoke while the crowd honored him with chants and cheers. When Triple H's music hit, I thought this oughta be good. Boy, was I surprised at how good it ended up being. When Triple H flashed the four fingers for the Horsemen, I actually stood up from my chair. It was an adrenaline rush hearing the old Horsemen music and seeing Dillon, Windham, Blanchard, and AA walk to the ring. As the legends and current WWE wrestlers were announced, I was holding out hope that Roddy Piper's bagpipe music would hit. Not a big deal, but I thought the Hot Rod might make an appearance. When Ric's family was announced and they showed him breaking down, it was hard not to well up myself. My favorite part was when the various WWE wrestlers, referees, and agents came down the ramp and chanted "Thank you, Ric!" How cool was it to see a smiling Edge standing alongside a cheering JBL while Randy Orton wiped away a tear? The crowd response was the loudest and most exciting I have heard in a long time. I am 35 years old and have admittedly been lukewarm toward and disappointed with WWE the past several years. But not tonight. For tonight, I found myself not wanting Raw to end because I was thoroughly enjoying the well-deserved and respectable sendoff being given to the "Nature Boy." The wrestler I cheered against as a child and cheered for as an adult was in the spotlight once again and I wanted to continue to be a part of that for as long as possible. Tonight, Ric Flair "walked that aisle and styled and profiled" one last time. This show garners a perfect 10.0 from me based on that historical segment alone. As the best wrestler to ever live exclaimed on more than one occasion: "WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"

We welcome your 1-10 score and comments on this show for a "Raw Reax" feature in the Torch Feedback section of PWTorch.com. Just to add a twist to this feature, include not just your hometown, but also your occupation (mechanic, lawyer, stay-at-home-dad, college student, etc.) so readers get a flavor for what everyone does as "day jobs." To contribute your thoughts on Raw, click here.


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MORE "Torch Feedback" ARTICLES
WWE PPV Price Increase Reax #1: Outrage expressed over WWE's latest PPV price raise - could the backlash cause WWE to second-guess decision?
TNA Impact Reax #3: "The build for the PPV matches somehow featured Hulk Hogan despite him yet to show up on TV"
TNA Impact Reax #2: "I'm tired of non-stop talking. This isn't a Broadway play; it's professional wrestling and the best stories are told in the ring"
Thursday Night TV Reax #1: "I feel anything TNA does right is inevitably drowned out by what they fail at"
ECW TV Reax #1: "William Regal has stepped up big time since coming to ECW and he deserves a World Title run"
WWE Raw Reax #2: "The major flaw of this show was the real lack of hype for Survivor Series"
WWE Raw Reax #1: "The main event commentary was hilarious with Triple H and HBK making fun of Vince, but DX has run its course..."
WWE Smackdown Reax #1: "Batista plays the perfect bully and Rey plays the perfect hero; this is a chance to make Batista the lead heel on Smackdown"
TNA Impact Reax #2: "Hogan, as great as he was, is 15 years beyond his prime and he signed with a company touting their so-called youth movement"
WWE Superstars Reax #1: "It's time for Cryme Tyme or The Hart Dynasty to go after that tag team championship, and please stop feuding"
TNA Impact Reax #1: "The episode-long Hogan build-up made me think that I shouldn't care about anything else on the show"
TORCH READER ALERT: Did you watch TNA Impact featuring Hulk Hogan? Send your feedback on the show
ECW TV Reax #1: "William Regal is as good as it gets whether he's portraying comedy, disgust, pompousness, or pure insanity!"
WWE Raw Reax #3: "Does Randy Orton's car now qualify WWE to get a Cash for Clunkers rebate?"
WWE Raw Reax #2: "Just like TNA, we have the same problem of a three-way title match where the two opponents didn't earn a title shot"
WWE Raw Reax #1: "Finally, a noteworthy episode of Raw with actual storyline progression – a rare treat!"
WWE Bragging Rights PPV Reax #3: "Obviously the Big Show doesn't care about brand supremacy any more than I do"
WWE Bragging Rights PPV Reax #2: "The image of Orton hunched over a control panel with an evil glare on his face and his finger on the big red button was priceless"
WWE Bragging Rights PPV Reax #1: "The show wasn't really bad, just didn't seem important. It didn't feel like a special show..."
WWE Smackdown Reax #1: "The opening promo was good to introduce the Smackdown 7 ... only to kill momentum by having the entire non-captain group switched"

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UPCOMING EVENTS LISTING

Articles Grouped by Category
Torch Today
TORCH MONTHLY AWARDS: List of the 2009 Torch Monthly Award winners through October
TORCH MONTHLY AWARD VOTING: Results for Best/Worst in pro wrestling for October
TORCH MONTHLY AWARD VOTING: Polls OPEN for best/worst in pro wrestling from the month of October (Part 2 of 2)
WWE News
WWE News: "Target" of Chris Jericho's drunken slur turns the incident into a joke (w/VIDEO)
WWE News: Raw guest host wins NASCAR race in WWE vehicle; WWE receives plenty of publicity during race coverage
TORCH TALK DAILY with Eric Bischoff: The first of a series of questions pushing for answers on Bret Hart's lackluster run in WCW - "Montreal was a life-threatening wound"
TNA News
TNA News: Ratings are in for Thursday's Impact - did TNA retain the audience from last week's Hulk Hogan Impact?
TNA News: Next week's TNA Impact - Sting reappearing to talk Hulk Hogan, A.J. Styles vs. Samoa Joe
TNA News: Watch TNA president Dixie Carter's "Love it or Leave It" speech to the roster from Impact (w/VIDEO)
ROH News
ROH News: Jim Cornette officially begins as ROH executive producer at today's ROH TV tapings (w/VIDEO)
ROH News: Ring of Honor receives positive press for ROH TV taping this weekend
ROH News: ROH TV episodes now available on DirecTV's Video-On-Demand service
Other News
Hogan News: Can Hulk Hogan wrestle again? Hogan needs help walking during TV interview (w/VIDEO)
DGUSA News: Gabe Sapolsky predicts the wrestling industry will die without new TV wrestling stars
Hogan News: Hulk Hogan cracks the Top 15 of a Best-sellers List
PPV Reports
RADICAN'S DGUSA "Untouchable" PPV review - Doi vs. Danielson, Shingo vs. Richards
10/25 WWE Bragging Rights Results: KELLER'S detailed match-by-match PPV report - Cena vs. Orton Iron Man match
CALDWELL'S WWE BRAGGING RIGHTS PPV REPORT 10/25: Ongoing "virtual time" coverage of Cena vs. Orton, Team Raw vs. Team Smackdown
TV Reports
WWE SMACKDOWN ROUNDTABLE REVIEWS 11/6: Donofrio, Mezzera, Parks rate and review
WWE SUPERSTARS ROUNDTABLE REVIEWS 11/5: Caldwell, Donofrio, Parks rate and review
PARKS' WWE SMACKDOWN REPORT 11/6: Ongoing "virtual time" coverage of the show, including Batista vs. Hardy
Arena Reports
11/6 WWE in Brussels: Undertaker vs. Punk casket match, Christian vs. William Regal, Cryme Tyme vs. Hart Dynasty, of course
11/4 WWE in Dublin, Ireland: John Cena vs. Jack Swagger WWE Title match, DX vs. Legacy, Randy Orton vs. Kofi Kingston
10/30 Dragon Gate in Germany: Young Bucks, CIMA vs. Mike Quackenbush, El Generico
MMA / UFC Coverage
Strikeforce News: Fedor vs. Rogers Fight Results - Exciting fight lives up to expectations live on CBS
FEDOR VS. BRETT ROGERS - Keller's detailed report, analysis, star ratings of CBS live MMA fight card (redirect)
FEDOR vs. BRETT ROGERS on CBS Saturday Night - Torch Team Coverage (redirect)
KELLER'S TAKE
KELLER BLOG: WrestleMania goes up to $55, all other PPVs $45 - let the pirate feed frenzy begin
KELLER BLOG: Dixie Carter asks wrestlers to step it up, but what does that mean? Shouldn't their goal to be winning matches and nothing else?
KELLER FLASHBACK: Review of Hulk Hogan's first autobiography - Hogan's political maneuvers evident in who he protects and buries
MITCHELL'S TAKE
MOJO MITCHELL'S RAW 11/2: Stream of My Fourth Grade Hero and The Mid-Card Kicks Main Event Ass
MITCHELL FLASHBACK #4: In 1993, after Hogan first left the WWF, he had a lot of career choices
MITCHELL FLASHBACK #3: Hogan's autobiography review - insight into his world
MCNEILL'S TAKE
McNEILL BLOG: The Big Questions About Hulk Hogan in TNA
Fight For Your Right to Bragging: McNEILL Previews WWE Bragging Rights!
Glory, Glory, Hallelujah! McNEILL Previews TNA Bound for Glory 2009
CALDWELL'S TAKE
CALDWELL'S BLOG: Vince McMahon is officially delusional, plus Vince's hidden message to Stephanie McMahon
CALDWELL'S TUESDAY CHAT w/GREG PARKS: Raw & Smackdown discussion - Orton-Kofi build-up compared to Rey-Batista, DX dissension, Sheamus stands out
CALDWELL FLASHBACK: TNA Year-End Review 2005 - Must-read flashback to when TNA became a choice for wrestlers in an era very, very similar to 2009
RADICAN'S TAKE
RADICAN: Daddy's little girl V 2.0 debuts on Impact
RADICAN: Wolfe-Angle follow up displays typical warning signs of danger from creative standpoint
RADICAN: TNA finally straps a rocket on the right ass
The Specialists
11/7 WWE Smackdown Hits & Misses: Mysterio vs. Knox, Punk vs. Truth, Batista vs. Hardy
PARKS BLOG: Chris Jericho should know better
UNDER THE MICROSCOPE - TNA Impact 11/5: TNA = The Office, What Vince Russo was thinking during Dixie Carter's speech, Desmond Wolfe and Duran Duran, Highlander spotting, Numbers - Titleholders since 1990
Guest Editorials
GUEST EDITORIAL: Disgruntled TNA fan says he's done with the promotion after today's Impact taping (Contains SPOILERS)
GUEST EDITORIAL: The ultimate irony - Hulk Hogan appears on TNA Impact and pre-taped TV sitcom promoting WWE on the same night
GUEST BOOK REVIEW: Hulk Hogan provides strong defense of his public image in new autobiography
Torch Feedback
WWE PPV Price Increase Reax #1: Outrage expressed over WWE's latest PPV price raise - could the backlash cause WWE to second-guess decision?
TNA Impact Reax #3: "The build for the PPV matches somehow featured Hulk Hogan despite him yet to show up on TV"
TNA Impact Reax #2: "I'm tired of non-stop talking. This isn't a Broadway play; it's professional wrestling and the best stories are told in the ring"
Ask the Editor
Ask the Editor: Wouldn't incorporating MMA-style holds into pro wrestling matches just be trying to be something it's not?
ASK THE EDITOR: Have the Michaels-Batista promos crossed a line with use of insider terms, references to "jobs"?
ASK THE EDITOR: Why do wrestlers in WWE refer to wrestling as "the business" and not "the sport"?
DVDs - VGames - Books
VIDEO GAME REVIEW - Smackdown vs. Raw 2010: WWE's latest video game called best since the No Mercy measuring stick
RADICAN'S ROH DVD REVIEW SERIES: 7/24 DBD VII: N1 - Hero & Richards vs. Storm & Steen
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Torch Flashbacks
TORCH TALK FLASHBACK with Hulk Hogan: Hogan talks to PWTorch editor Wade Keller about Eric Bischoff, the demise of WCW
TORCH TALK FLASHBACK with Hulk Hogan: Hogan talks to PWTorch editor Wade Keller about his relationship with Ric Flair
TORCH TALK FLASHBACK with Hulk Hogan: Hogan talks to PWTorch editor Wade Keller about his relationship with Vince Russo
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Torch Trivia
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TORCH TRIVIA 2/25: What said this quote about WWE's mid-1990s drug testing policy?
Torch Instant Polls
INSTANT POLL: How will WWE's price raise to $4.95 per PPV affect you?
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PWTorch Free Podcast
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Annual Obituaries
SPECIALIST: List of Deceased Wrestlers for 1999 - Muchnick, Rick Rude, Owen Hart, Renegade...
SPECIALIST: List of Deceased Wrestlers for 2000 - Solie, Albright, Duncum, Tsuruta, Blue Demon, Al Costello
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