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WWE Raw Reax #1: "I find it ironic the flagship had to be bailed out by Smackdown and ECW" Jun 30, 2009 - 1:55:26 AM
M. Javor of Chicago, Ill. (5.0): Favorite match: Mark Henry vs. Randy Orton. Least favorite match: Big Show vs. Kofi Kingston. Good for Mark Henry. After all he's been through during his WWE tenure, it made me smile to see him get one of those moments tonight. It's a testament to Randy Orton's character and weekly performances that the Henry segment could have gotten over as much as it did with the live crowd. And it wouldn't surprise me if Henry didn't even appear on Raw next week with the way things are being booked lately. I don't think that these shows would be any better or worse if they were completely improvised. Some might argue that they essentially are. I find it ironic that the flagship had to be bailed out by Smackdown and ECW tonight and depressing that they needed another draft (less than 3 months later!) in order to do it. Were Dave Batista and Ted DiBiase, Sr. the "celebrities" that Trump had in mind when he implemented the guest host stip? Even Vince himself can't make sense out of this undisciplined, but fascinating, mess of a weekly-episodic-sports-drama, or whatever they want to call it these days.
Jon Gargis of Cartersville, Ga. (3.0): Best match: Divas Fatal Four-Way. Worst match: Triple H and Cena's victories. Tonight's show had some creative booking, but not necessarily great booking, and sometimes terrible booking. I'd rather see a superstar venture over to another brand after crossing paths with a superstar from that brand and starting a feud, as announcing a trade two months after the company's annual draft just seems like poor planning. As far as the trades go, Swagger has earned his spot on Raw and Bourne has the talent for the "A" show, but I don't see Henry panning out even if he were to turn face. Speaking of faces, both Triple H and John Cena are in the title hunt, and I smell a Triple Threat Match at Night of Champions since it's slightly fresher than Orton-Trips and Orton-Cena. But Cena-Miz should've had a different ending from their match last night (even if Cena still won tonight), and Triple H-MVP should have gone on longer to give MVP credibility. MVP in the title hunt (and by extension, a potential MVP-Cena match next week) would have been fresh. But when there are more than a dozen PPV main events a year, fresher match-ups like MVP-Orton or MVP-Cena seemingly need to be saved for the bigger events. Miz needs his heat back and fast. Edge and Jericho bring prestige to the tag titles, but they're going to need credible and charismatic opponents - the Colons seem to be at least slightly lacking in both categories. The Divas match was my pick tonight because it went longer than the typical Raw Diva matches as of late, and seemed to have a decent direction with Mickie-Maryse on the horizon. I don't think Cole and Lawler played up Beth Phoenix attacking her "protege" Rosa enough, even though the matches are every person for themselves. Will there be any follow-up to Maryse's admiration of Kelly Kelly? Where do Big Show and Kofi Kingston go from here? And where was Santino? After watching tonight's Raw, maybe the writers have mucked up Raw so viewers will watch the other three shows.
We welcome your 0-10 score and comments on this show for a "WWE 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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