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John of Cocoa Beach, Fla., Writer. Best Match: Kofi vs. Jericho. Worst Match: NASCAR in Buffalo? Maybe WWE is going to start elevating some people. We can only hope last night was the beginning of a real push for Kofi Kingston, Evan Bourne, and Jack Swagger. Kind of curious as to why in a recession Vince McMahon would let a race car get demolished on television. Does this car now qualify WWE to get a Cash for Clunkers rebate? At least in the Halloween spirit, Kofi used orange paint. Thankfully no DX green. Looks like a build to a triple threat match for the U.S. Title between the Miz, Jack Swagger, and Evan Bourne. And throw Eve into the picture as she gets caught in the middle whether to romance the Miz or Jack Swagger. Maybe you turn Swagger face as he's the athlete trying to win over the beautiful woman who's dating an obnoxious jerk. I noticed how recently instead of full-fledged drafts, WWE is using "contracts expiring" and trades to move wrestlers and Divas. First, the now heel-turned Batista (we can only hope this a true turn, unlike his issue with Shawn Michaels after he retired Ric Flair) from Raw to Smackdown, and now Sheamus from ECW to Raw. Kind of disappointed neither Goldust nor Shelton Benjamin were included to continue their ECW feuds. So Shelton will now go heel again after teasing a face turn on ECW? If you're also trading talents, why not announcers? Matt Striker would be a breath of fresh air on Raw. Hate to sound like R-Truth, but, "What's Up?" with the clause that allows a Raw star (Big Show) to get a World Title match against the Smackdown champion (Undertaker). Why even have a brand split anymore? Chris Jericho was right on the money saying that there isn't enough ready talent for a full-brand split. He has by far been my WWE Superstar of the year. In one week, Jericho has appeared on all three brands and a pay-per-view. Not to mention being the soundtrack on how to cut a heel promo. Still mystified why WWE had NASCAR guys in Buffalo and last week Snoop Dogg in Jacksonville. It's great, though, we may see the end of the DX-Cena-Orton-Legacy Monopoly on Raw. Have new hopes with some new blood being pushed as well as the tag team of Mark Henry and MVP. It was good to see Jamie Noble briefly. After last night's NFL game, maybe WWE can get Jim Zorn to host Raw one night. Looks like he may be available soon.
Paul Lucas of Tallassee, Ala. (3.0): Best match: Chris Jericho vs. Kofi Kingston. Worst Match: Melina/Santino vs. Chavo/Jillian. When you consider the bright spots of this edition of WWE Raw, a rating of 3.0 may seem harsh. The Big Show/Jericho interaction was good as was the follow-up match with Kofi Kingston and it was nice to see the latter positioned for a welcome push, even though it took a random act of vandalism to take him there. Not exactly PG and certainly not fresh, but Kofi showed enough fire to make the segment passable. However, despite the positives, this felt like yet another Raw retread. I, a loyal viewer of WWE programming for 23 years, found myself once again switching off before the main event and getting an early night, something that has become a frequent occurrence. So what was wrong with Raw? The most glaring problem remains the lack of fresh talent in the main event picture. I don't care to watch Big Show vs. Triple H in the main event of Raw in 2009 - that was the main event of the first Raw of 2000, yes, nearly a decade ago. I also don't care for either of the Survivor Series main events, which again have the 'been there, done that' flavor to them - so that's another $40 saved this month. As for Cena mocking Rhodes and DiBiase, well that just cut too close to the bone and was indicative of all that is wrong with this company. It's not just the main event scene, though. Why wasn't The Miz allowed to capitalize on being the only Raw roster member to win at Bragging Rights? Why is Jack Swagger, who has all the talent and charisma in the world, now apparently feuding with a fellow-heel over a diva who has not even established herself on Raw yet? Notice I haven't even commented on Evan Bourne in this segment, who has become a complete after-thought. Then we have Sheamus debuting on Raw despite being in the middle of a program with Shelton Benjamin on ECW. I understand he is a management (Triple H) favorite, but is it necessary to take all the talent from ECW as soon as they show potential rather than wait for the next draft? Unfortunately, I see little more for him than being lost in the shuffle just like Swagger and Bourne before him. And as for Hornswoggle - just why? I get that he's popular with the kids, but does he have to be in a segment every week? And didn't his program with Chavo end a month ago? In my opinion, this is the worst rut WWE has been stuck in since I started watching its programming and no matter what Triple H might say about young talent needing to prove themselves, the time has come to give them a real opportunity to succeed before the tedium turns even the most loyal fans off for good.
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