-- 2/8 WWE Raw Reax

Bryan Kirckof of Toms River, N.J. (8.0): Best: Not hating Cena for once. Worst: Maryse cutting promos in a language most of the audience doesn't understand. Raw was really good tonight. It got off to a good start with Sheamus and Christian putting on a solid match with a finish making the Irish warrior look good for a change. Yeah, it was a bit disheartening to watch Christian lose cleanly, but it was refreshing to see the wrestler holding the company's biggest title finally booked to win a clean match against a formidable opponent. For three weeks now, WWE has handled their guest hosts very well. They are not the center of the program anymore but more like secondary characters that will pop in sporadically. If the guest host gimmick continues, this is the way it should be handled and it's good to see that the writers have picked up on this. The women's match was short, as always, which I didn't mind, but Maryse constantly speaking in French is becoming grating. I don't like having to scour the Internet to find out what exactly she said. The tag title match was good and it felt just a notch or two below a good PPV bout, which is exactly what we should see in televised matches. HBK continues to be the most interesting character on the show, as his descent into madness has been handled very well. While I don't think that a straight-up Taker vs. HBK re-match could top the epic they staged last year, I'm very enticed by the idea of a potential HBK vs. Taker vs. Triple H triple threat showdown for the WWE Title, assuming Trips wins and Taker loses at Elimination Chamber. ... Rhodes vs. Orton was interesting and, for once, Legacy actually seems relevant, as their break-up storyline has been the only interesting angle they've been given in a long time. I was disappointed there was no Cena vs. DiBiase main event, but the promo Cena and McMahon cut afterward completely made up for the lack of wrestling. For once, I didn't hate Cena. Letting someone else hold the strap for a while and pitting him up against the biggest villain in all of WWE, Vince McMahon, has done wonders for his character. For once, I feel compelled to not only listen to him, but root for him as well. My only complaint about the segment was that I would have much rather heard the WM26 challenge come from Bret's mouth because the roof of the building would have probably blown off the place. Also, Hart destroying things at the end was a bit much as Raw could have simply ended with him in the ring and McMahon getting out of dodge. Raw has stepped up its game lately as the writing has been tightened up considerably. It's funny because just a month ago, I had written off WWE for constantly insulting my intelligence and was all for the new dawn TNA had promised. Funny what a difference a month makes. Today TNA seems to be treading water and relatively directionless. WWE, on the other hand, is shaping up and seems poised to deliver the best WrestleMania it has produced in some time. While they will probably never return to the glory days of the '90s, which sparked my ongoing interest in pro wrestling, and their in-ring product has been watered down, I can say with some degree of certainty that their product is superior to what TNA is offering at the moment. Unlike in TNA, I don't feel like the booking is done mere minutes before the show begins.

John of Cocoa Beach, Fla., writer. (5.5): Best Match: none. Worst Match: Triple-threat tag. Last night, I thought Raw took a couple steps forward and a couple back from last week's show. I noted how the booking favored Raw. ECW champ Christian made a surprise appearance and, not surprisingly, he was defeated by Sheamus. In the triple-threat tag title match, the Smackdown tag of C.M. Punk and Luke Gallows was the first team to be eliminated. I'm hoping Show's ripping of Chris Jericho isn't a start of a face turn by Jericho or Show. Who thought of that name, ShowMiz? For the 47th time, Shawn Michaels has lost his smile. We're going to see possibly a heel turn by HBK or at least the break-up of DX. Does Shawn attack someone on Smackdown (R-Truth or John Morrison?) to get into the Elimination Chamber match so he can confront the Undertaker? What becomes of their pet Hornswoggle? Is he adopted by Michael Cole? What will happen to all those glowsticks? Carl Edwards was a good host. At least he was involved in some match-making like having all six of the Raw Elimination Chambers participants fight. Is Orton the one going face? It's not looking like it will be Ted DiBiase and/or Cody Rhodes. ... I wasn't too crazy at first about Bret Hart wrestling, but maybe I can see him in a limited role. I just want to remember Bret in his glory days, like Emmitt Smith as a Dallas Cowboy, not an Arizona Cardinal. That's what I fear with a Bret Hart vs. Vince McMahon match. We've also seen the seeds for the John Cena-Batista match planted. I guess Batista's turn wasn't about Rey Mysterio costing him the World Title on the blue brand? No, the Animal was a good guy as said by John Cena who got brainwashed by Vince's money. Selective re-writing by the booking team. And here's betting we will see Cena show up on Smackdown this week and more Batista on Mondays. WWE should just post a disclaimer along the lines that the brand split is suspended until after WrestleMania.

John's Ted DiBiase blog: We now have our first Hall of Fame Class of 2010 member, the father of Ted DiBiase, who's announcement got a big pop from the wrestling fans in Louisiana, where Ted Senior made Mid-South wrestling a top brand in the final days of the territories. Who can forget his matches with Hacksaw Duggan, and his tag team with the late Dr. Death Steve Williams? DiBiase still retained and showed all his superior skills in the ring after becoming the Million Dollar Man and who can forget the games he played with select fans cheating them out of money. DiBiase was the most hated heel during his time, and unlike other red-hot heels at their times like Roddy Piper and Randy Savage, DiBiase was never turned face, and was probably the best wrestler who never got, and should have had a true run with the WWF title. Thanks a lot, Hulkster!

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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