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6/1 WWE Raw Reax

Terrie Neilson of Las Vegas, Nev. (8.0): Best: Kofi vs. MVP; Edge-Jeff video trailer. Worst: "Vickie vs. Santino." Where has this show been? The past few weeks, Raw was faltering with its build-up to the PPV. This week, the show found something that resembled a groove. Having Randy Orton start the show right off with a promo in a cage was good to get the viewers up to speed on where things stood with that match. Batista's quick squash win quickly took away from the importance of the "caged in" element, though, as outsider Orton interfered and caused distractions without getting in the cage itself. Big Show draws Chavo's name out of a bag as Cena's random tag partner; how do we know the bag wasn't only loaded with Chavo's or other heels' names? Maryse gets her win back against Kelly, and Beth's fairly long losing streak is over without fanfare. And what's the point of Rosa hanging around now? She's becoming the same kind of furniture that Tony Atlas is becoming for Mark Henry: an invisible wall. William Regal and Matt Hardy are now officially The Keystone Kops for Vickie Guerrero. It's a really big step down for Matt, but then this will have to do until his hand heals. Anyone notice he keeps getting a new cast each week? Vickie snorting with laughter and being treated as being pig-like is rude. I know three people in my circle of friends who snort with their laughing, and they are far from "swine-like." For all purposes, Miz has lost now to Cena; how does he get his heat back from this burial tonight? Claim he lost to Chavo (the one who pinned him) and not Cena? Lame, but I see it coming. I was enjoying his roll. MVP and Kofi had a nice little interview to illustrate both their face demeanors and their competitive drives. The match was at least good. I'm hoping that Cole and Lawler saying that MVP was "passing the torch" to Kofi means that MVP's lying in wait for main event status is over. Attention was paid to MVP getting in Orton's face again, both in the interview and in the match. Kennedy's loss (made apparent by the complete lack of mention of him) is MVP's gain; I'm really wanting MVP to take the ball and run with it. The Edge-Hardy extended movie trailer-style was very well made. I see this one being the one shown at the PPV. The Raw side of Extreme Rules looks like Santina wins the hog pen match, Cena will also win against Show with a variation on "the patented STF" or by some other submission move that's being privately added to his repertoire. The parking lot brawl itself cuts it way too close on whether Flair violated his promise not to wrestle again. For those who have played the SVR video games, the Parking Lot Brawl is a type of match to choose from, thus let the debate on Flair rage on. Once the brawl made it to the cage, Batista was made to look completely stupid. He made no attempt to climb the cage while trying to look menacing. Randy (albeit badly) punted Flair and Batista went ballistic. Still didn't climb the cage or try to rip the door off. I don't see Batista winning Sunday night, but another door has opened (MVP) for Batista to turn. Still doesn't give me a lot of comfort in knowing that Extreme Rules will be a good PPV.

6/4 WWE Superstars Reax

Terrie Neilson of Las Vegas, Nev. (8.0): Best: Jericho/Ziggler vs. Truth/Hardy. Worst: Goldust/Horny vs. Kendrick/Noble. It was the last chance for Superstars to help or hurt a brand going into the PPV, and two out of three got help. The brand that didn't get the help was the one that needed it the most, Raw. The match that represented Raw - Goldust/Hornswoggle vs. Kendrick/Noble - barely helped its own storyline much less Extreme Rules. It was a fun little match, but I swear I heard boos for both Horny and Goldy. The whole storyline of Kendrick scraping the bottom of the barrel for tag partners can only go so far. And Jamie Noble deserves better than being used intermittently (unless he's still testing the waters after the match with Knox). Dreamer-Smith had a "damned if you do damned if you don't" finish with Smith winning that I wasn't too keen about. Dreamer needed all the credibility he could get for Sunday. The Hart Dynasty is still in its infant stages so a loss here could be easily gotten back, especially against someone who's only now strong enough to be considered credible. If it's true that a U.S. Title four-way has been booked for the PPV, why not do something with that instead? Cena-Show got a video and Orton-Batista got a commercial; can you say "cruise control" on the build-up? The main event had a hot crowd and good wrestling going for it. Jeff needed the win more in terms of hierarchy, but Ziggler didn't suffer for it. It wasn't as if he was facing Khali here. Jericho's team took the loss but he got his heat before the match, so it balanced out for him. And Truth got to hang with the "in-crowd." Flaky start to the show, but good finish.

6/4 TNA Impact Reax

Terrie Neilson of Las Vegas, Nev. (6.0): Best: Jarrett-Young promo; Kiyoshi/Bashir vs. Daniels/Suicide. Worst: Shane promo; Daffney vs. Taylor. This show was all over the place, literally. There were promos and interviews in various locales. There were people who change or have changed their names for no apparent TV reason (other than trademark issues). There are four guys who worry more about what's under a mask than the gold around his waist. But, then again, TNA treats the five of them as a side note for the upcoming PPV despite the major-level title match they will be in. The national budget crunch has made its way to TNA, sort of. If Mick cites budget tightness as a reason to not keep Kip, then what budget was handling the million-dollar contract Matt Morgan was expecting? And why would he expect status quo when there was a change in MEM management? Storm put his newfound scratch to use, adding a banner flag and "shorthorns" to the Boozer Cruiser. Sweet, but no more pimping of the ride, Cowboy. Deaner working out with ODB seemed to be treated more seriously (for a comedy bit) than Jesse Neal's story and debut match. Which disappointed Rhino more: the storyline loss or the fact that he's being blown off again? Joe beat Kevin in really lame fashion to completely kill the mystique of the Lethal Lockdown match. If this is accepted by TNA as Joe "taking Kevin out," then Russo really does need to be fired! Eric Young went to the "Jarrett's Kids" well for his promo, but unlike the other times that's been scripted, Young isn't targeting the children for harm; he's going after the father for straight guilt. The too-busy "father/father figure" tack worked here. I wish I could say I enjoyed this show, but this was one of those episodes I had trouble keeping attention to. Sorry, EY, though it's not your fault.

We welcome your 0-10 score and comments on these shows for a "TV 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, Superstars, or Impact, click here.

Send feedback on this article to pwtorch@gmail.com and we'll regularly publish reader feedback in the "Torch Feedback" category on the Main Listing.

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