-- 8/30 WWE Raw Reax

Pete of Morristown, N.J.: I consider myself a casual Raw fan, so I was excited for the over-hyped Raw #900. But what WWE delivered last night was pure garbage. First, while I understand the need to hype an arbitrary event like a 900th episode before the show, Lawler and Cole did not need to remind us countless times during the show about the manufactured importance of this episode. I grew up idolizing Bret Hart, but can we finally get past the charade of him “competing” in matches? We know he can’t physically perform in a match. He is fine on a mic (although I would have liked an Isaac Yankem reference when Kane came out), but trying to tease him wrestling is not exciting and does nothing to promote the present or future of the business. ... I could nitpick the show to death, but I’ll focus on one more thing: who is WWE’s top dog? Theoretically, it should be the champ, yet Shamus was treated like an enhancement talent. WWE is getting into dangerous territory, as they have made both Cena and Shamus look weak in favor of Randy Orton. We know that WWE is building to another Triple H vs. Sheamus grudge match, so why make Orton look dominant when he was no one left to feud with?

Asif Balouch of Houston, Tex. (3.0): I tuned into what was advertised as an epic, monumental 900th episode of Raw only to receive a watered down episode of Smackdown. Seriously, barring the main event, every match had Smackdown talent involved. Matches on Raw were treated like filler supplementing filler. I would have just given talent the night off and showed actual, decent archived Raw highlights. Heck, a Top 10 or 20 list would have sufficed over what the creative team pulled out of their rear end. All long-running shows have clip shows, especially when the writers are burnt out or have writer's block. And the constant reminders of Raw being the longest running show was nauseatingly conceited and took away from the quality of the show. Of all the exciting memories of the show's history, those were the best clips they could muster? How can you attract casual fans looking for something to watch on Monday nights with those lame clips? The Orton-Hunter debacle? A PG-rated version of The Rock's "This is Your Life" segment? The bloated Triple H return? They might as well have shown the Chavo-Hornswoggle rivalry just to put icing on their crappy cake. If I watched Raw for the first time in my life, I would have thought pro wrestling sucks. Nexus was all over the show, but their momentum is gone. The Sheffield void was painfully apparent, as they truly look weak without him. Another thing that bugs me with Nexus is their backstage segments. Do they really have to stand in a line facing the camera when they are talking to each other? It just looks so corny. They should take a page out of how TNA does backstage segments and at least have some sense of realism when it comes to human interaction. The Bret-Undertaker segment was awful, lacked logic, and was poorly executed. Where did Bret disappear to? It would have at least been entertaining to see the Raw originals take on Nexus. ... The elimination tag started right at 10:00 p.m. CST, so I knew something was up. The typical rapid-fire finish was expected, but the fact that Cena was eliminated before Orton was interesting up until the lame ending. All in all, this Raw had nothing clip-worthy for when WWE does its next flashback episode.

Scott R. of Hartford, Conn. (4.0): Best Part: (if anything) C.M. Punk-Big Show promo. Worst Part: pretty much the whole first half of the show. Really? That's how Monday Night Raw, the "longest running weekly episodic television show in history," celebrates #900? If I remember correctly, #800 was way better than this, or even the Raw 15th Anniversary. I think one word described this episode: forgettable. ... Jericho's promo was a little frightening to me. The fact that he's saying he might leave gives me a feeling that this his days may be numbered. ... Hart-Taker never happened, but what did you expect? The Nexus attack was a good swerve, and it somewhat refueled them as "big bad heels." But only a little. Swagger-Bourne stayed on the trend of being pointless, although Alberto Del Rio's run-in was unexpected. This guy draws so much heat, and it's awesome. He is really going to have a good future in this company. ... C.M. Punk's promo was absolutely great. His promos continue to get more and more sinister. When Big Show came out, Punk's line, "Why am I always interrupted?," was priceless, along with the Captain Insano line. The Hogan impression was pretty funny, especially to hear the crowd boo. Show really looked hurt when Punk told him he had no friends, which was good acting there. This was the best segment of the night, in my opinion. ... The elimination tag was just eh. Nothing stood out to me, except for Sheamus getting pinned by Heath Slater. Who brought up that idea? ... Last thing: did anyone feel like the flashback clips were lacking some good ones? I thought they could have used so many more clips, but some of the ones they used weren't worth it. WWE better get their act together for number 1,000, and do something memorable, unlike this episode.

Richard H. of Wilmington, Ohio: I thought this was a decent episode of Raw. Lots of good stuff, worthwhile crossovers, and plot-driven angles. Having both Cena and Orton lose cleanly to Nexus, which was a great move to rebuild Nexus's momentum, was totally unexpected. The Divas were kept short, with Eve not even getting any action. Hopefully a unified Women's division will strengthen it. The worst match was the abomination that was the number one contender's tag team. It looks like they are going for yet another multi-challenger match with a triple threat tag title match at Night of Champions. ... The effect of Kane usurping his brother's powers from a confused and weakened Undertaker was good drama. While I don't like to see Taker show weakness, it is necessary if Kane is to be a believable opponent. And Nexus got even more rub as well. And, let's face it, a match between a spent Hart and a past-prime Taker would only taint their legacy, just like Flair is doing in TNA right now. ... Lastly, Jericho and Edge deserve kudos for the bravura performance they turned in. I actually thought Y2J was back in "take no prisoners" mode, while Edge looked like he was ready to spear the entire Nexus team into the nose bleed section. True to their characters, they instead left the match to save themselves for the title shot and leave their Night of Champions opponents to beat each other up.

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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