-- 3/8 WWE Raw Reax

Ken of Sunnyvale, Calif. (7.5): Best: Bret-Vince-Steve Austin segment. Worst: Batista vs. Kofi. This is the first WWE show I've watched in its entirety since the 15th Anniversary Raw in 2007. I haven't missed much apparently. I've enjoyed the Bret-Vince feud and build-up. Austin guest-hosting was fun, though it felt somewhat disappointing that he didn't hit the Stone Cold Stunner on anyone. At least his role was important and significant within the context of the show. The Cena-Batista match is looking great. The Legacy feud is interesting and I'm curious to see who gets the decisive pinfall. I'm happy to see Edge as a babyface and he looks just as comfortable as a babyface as he does as a heel. Not the best Raw I've seen, but at least this show was focused and had a direction.

Henry Jenkins of Seattle, Wash. (7.0): Best: Gorgeous George announcement. Worst Match: Triple H-Randy Orton. Obviously, Vince does have giant grapefruits because the idea that Bret Hart faked the car accident is absurd. I'll let it go, though, because Hart finally started to show signs of his old personality. Thank goodness! I'm just glad "Stone Cold" didn't give him the Stunner. That's all Bret would have needed to look completely pathetic. Maybe it's just because my great grandmother loved Gorgeous George, or because "Cold Case" on Sunday night was about him, but the Hall of Fame reel did an unusually good job of convincing me that this guy really is a foundational figure in wrestling history. The whole scene looked like something out of The Incredibles. ... The war of wills between Batista and the referee was unintentional comic gold. The ref was pacing around with a blood towel, looking like a chicken waiting to lay an egg because he knew the ratings reviewers were watching. But Batista knew that if he nursed his boo-boo, it was going to ruin his image, so he refused to take it. Batista clearly understands the business better than the ref. The credibility of the WrestleMania title match depends on Batista looking unstoppable, and the gate is astronomically bigger than the fine would be... There were just three problems with this episode. (1) For some reason, despite months of bungling The Legacy angle, they managed to announce the match with a promo graphic. And it still doesn't make sense, because the match is a triple threat, but Rhodes and DiBiase are allies. Don't ask the writers what's going on with Legacy. They don't know. (2) Instead of running the Undertaker-HBK promo over and over, they could have had Undertaker and HBK work an angle. Are they just trying to get their money's worth out of the Johnny Cash licensing or what? (3) I know fans complain about how little actual wrestling there is, but when I said two years ago that I didn't care if I ever saw Cena vs. Big Show or Triple H vs. Randy Orton again, I meant it. I was done with those matches for life then, and I'm doner now. What's stale will always be stale.

-- 3/8 TNA Impact Reax

Joe of Chicago, Ill. (3.0): Best Match: A.J. Styles vs. Jeff Hardy. Worst Match: Beer Money vs. Hernandez. Best Moments: Pac's "Face Pump" on EY, Ken Anderson's promo. Since TNA is in the habit of giving their shows silly names, I'm going to name my review: "Tough-Love." Now, I'm not a WWE fan to give the TNA show a bad review. I just want to be entertained. I want TNA to succeed. But this was bad. How is it possible for TNA to have ALL of my favorite wrestlers: RVD, Scott Hall, Pac, Mr. Anderson, MCMGs, Tara, etc., and still not entertain me? How is it possible to have bona-a-fide legends like Ric Flair, Hulk Hogan, and Mick Foley on the show, and still put me to sleep? You've got Jeff Hardy, guys like Pope and Wolfe, an insanely-talented World Champion in A.J., and one of the best wrestlers ever in Kurt Angle. How can the man who gave McMahon a legit run for his money, Bischoff, as well as Vince's "#1 writer" from the Attitude era have me flipping the channel on Week 2 to see re-runs of South Park? Why is Eric Young, a guy known for being incredibly awkward and dorky, teamed up with a guy who oozes cool, in Nash? EY would be better off with Eugene. Even if Nash turns on EY, I won't care because they didn't work together to begin with. Why is Abyss a big huggable cartoon character, when his "look" says monster? Why are the babyfaces showing up in a Hummer when half the country hates Hummers? Hummers are out of style. Why does it seem like there are more commercials than actual show? Why do they insist on poorly editing the crowd's chants? Why do the Machine Guns never wrestle on Impact? Why can't we just watch Beer Money wrestle in a tag team match against another team? Like, I don't know… the Machine Guns? Why is Brooke Hogan here? Unless she can wrestle, I don't care. I could go on, and on, and on. The "creatives" at TNA just aren't very creative; they aren't "with the times," and they don't know how to tell stories in this modern era. There is a basic lack of understanding from this company on how to make stories and characters compelling. TNA has everything going for it to produce the coolest wrestling show ever. Some of the best wrestlers, some of the best personalities, good announcers, and a Monday night timeslot, but they have no idea what to do with it. So it's just a collection of stuff that doesn't gel. I'm watching the Nasty Boys again? And Brother Runt? Who named him Brother Runt, anyway? JEEZ. Hey, cool, bring back managers, but for the Nasty Boys? I could enjoy a short Nasty Boys segment about once every four weeks, but this is ridiculous. Enough with the "power ring" already. Enough dramatic skits in Hogan/Bischoff's office. Enough overexposing Hogan and Bischoff. Get with the program guys, or the ratings will really tank. I'd literally rather just watch two hours of "Scott Hall TV" with Hall and Pac running around laughing at themselves and talking to people backstage, because at least that would be interesting. So listen up, TNA: you have all of my favorite wrestlers, and I'm still not buying the PPV. What does that tell you?

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 and Impact, click here.

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