-- 3/1 WWE Raw Reax

Trent C. of Cameron, W.Va., Tech Support Rep: I can't even think of a number to rate this...show? I honestly can't say the last time I've watched any professional wrestling event, live or on TV, and forgot what the main event was. There are just a few points I want to hit on here before moving on. (1) I know the guest host concept is supposed to bring the identity of the guest to the show and to bring a little different character to it, but when you devote more to "sugar highs" with Cheech and Chong and less than three minutes or so to MITB qualifiers, something is wrong. (2) I had more fun playing the song "Little Miss Can't be Wrong" by the Spin Doctors than listening to Batista talk about the "Cena and I are the same...but different" speech he rolled out something like three years ago. I still think that Batista is a walking liability with a bicep that I'm convinced is now held on (if not replaced) by bungee straps and the personality of a leaf. (3) Can anybody with a straight face say that Raw is the top show in the company anymore? That is all...

Sonny of Chicago, Ill., route sales specialist (1.5): Best Segment: Batista-Cena. Worst Segment: all of celebrity host segments and Vince-Bret. MVP of Raw: Batista with a classic, almost Attitude era promo. His heel portrayal might be the best in wrestling today (WWE or TNA). Okay, on the horizon of what could possibly be the best night in wrestling in years, WWE and TNA delivered subpar shows in my opinion. It almost feels like they don't know what kind of opportunity they have on their hands. Raw tonight started off okay, but not as strong as I was expecting. However, they succeeded in garnering interest in the HBK-Taker match at Mania. Now I know that I am not the only one to say this, but the celebrity host segments take so much away from the storylines, that I feel like changing channels every time I see the celeb hosts on. If WWE wasn't committed to PG programming, I could see why they would bring in Cheech and Chong. But they are, so there was absolutely no point in them being on the show. Those segments took so much away from the one good part of the show - Batista-Cena - that the whole show felt like the writers just didn't care. Say what you will about TNA, but I wasn't forced to see a talking chicken or a pillow match that was so stupid. (Of course, there was Jeff Jarrett in a hairnet.) You expect me to believe that Gail Kim couldn't get a pin because she was hit with a pillow? Just pathetic writing/booking. Last week's Impact was mostly promos and not enough wrestling. This week's Raw had less wrestling. Both shows need to step up. One last point - what was Sheamus's motivation for attacking Triple H? That angle could have been set up a lot better.

Brian French of Virginia Beach, Va. (4.0): Best: Batista-Cena segment. Worst: whatever questionable food choice and the person who made the decision to bring in Cheech and Chong to guest host this week. This was the Rob Deer of Raws: everything was a Home Run or a wildly-flailing strikeout with almost nothing in between. There was too much talking, but all that talking did produce two of the best segments in some time with Hunter-HBK and Batista-Cena. In particular, Batista has his character as dialed in as anyone in years, and has done the seemingly impossible: he's made C.M. Punk and Chris Jericho look like second-rate heels. He plays a resolutely hateable bad guy with no reason for even the contrarians to cheer him, and the absolute perfect foil for Cena. The whole "jealous of Cena's mainstream popularity" angle could be hammy and unbelievable, instead, it somehow has made this a more compelling matchup than Jericho-Edge and Hart-McMahon, the latter of which has been an epic disappointment with poor execution and shockingly little heat, given how much people have fantasy-booked this moment for so long. The two MITB qualifying matches took a combined 13 seconds, I believe. At least they let Swagger win. I was convinced he'd either lose to Santino or he would stupidly accept an impromptu challenge from Hornswoggle or Jerry Lawler, which he'd then lose. The DX kinda-breakup was sloppily laid out (why is HBK rattled by Taker now - he's getting what he wants?), and Sheamus's post-match attack of Triple H felt very tacked-on and rushed. While on the topic of breakups, Legacy's has been so hopelessly muddied that I kind of hope Orton kills DiBiase and Rhodes next week and they move on. They're trying to spin the aborted DiBiase turn as an Orton turn, but there's no good reason Orton should be a face here. ... Finally, WWE picked the lamest possible substitute for pot and the lamest, most hackneyed possible reaction to it that they could. And you've got to imagine General Mills must love how one of their products was equated to weed the entire night. Even if they weren't phoning it in, it would have been sub-par. If this is the best WWE can do, then here's hoping the guest host concept is about to go up in smoke.

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.

[Torch art credit Grant Gould (c) PWTorch.com]

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