-- 9/6 WWE Raw Reax

Gary Sartori of Windsor Locks, Conn. (4.0): Best Match: Jericho-Morrison. Worst Match: Edge-Khali (twice). When Raw opened, and I saw Nexus standing in the ring, I knew right then and there, it was going to be an average show at best. The Jericho-Morrison match was a good match, and had a great swerve at the end, which I never saw coming. Jericho's reaction to losing was great. Unfortunately, after that, I thought the show went downhill. While I like Melina as the Divas champ, she needs some new and better competition other than Alicia Fox. The Divas dept. is crying out for the return of Beth Phoenix. The Edge-Khali double match was just plain awful. Khali is just too slow to be an effective wrestler. No one is going to have a good match with him. Fortunately, both matches were short, sweet, and best forgotten. Gabriel-Cena was okay, but nothing special. If Vince is trying to get Nexus over as a killer heel group, it does no good for Gabriel to lose to Cena in five minutes. ... I actually briefly fell asleep during Miz's rant. Why they gave this guy ten minutes to basically tell the world that he was awesome is beyond me. Heck, they could have put on another match instead of the Miz boring me to death. When Daniel Bryan came out, I turned down the sound because I knew Michael Cole was going to go into his "I hate Daniel Bryan" spiel. If WWE gives Bryan half a chance, he can turn out to be really good. He needs some mic work, but he can work on that. ... Orton-Barrett was good, concluding with RKO heaven. The way he laid out Darren Young, Edge, and Sheamus was beautiful. I thought it was a good way to end the show with him and Cena staring at each other. Overall, the opening and closing were solid, and held my interest. The rest of the show was forgettable.

Obaiy Fahmy of Vernon Hills, Ill. (8.5): Best Match: Chris Jericho vs. John Morrison. Worst Match: Khali vs. Edge. Huge improvement from last week. Much, much better. I thought Jericho and Morrison put on a very good match for those ten minutes they were given. I hope Jericho is not leaving WWE because, as of right now, I believe he is doing the best job putting over talent. By the way, when is WWE going to realize that Khali is not a BA anymore? He never was and never will be. I honestly think it is time they release him. Mark Henry would have been a much better choice of an opponent for Edge. And, really, Khali goes over the top rope and doesn't lose? That makes no sense. Also, can they finally give up who is the Raw GM? The whole flashing lights gimmick is getting very old. ... Randy Orton should officially be made the face of WWE. He is super over and fans from all demographics are into his character. They all love him. Super Cena has to go, but Gabriel and he could have had a very good match if they'd let Cena wrestle some more and not just get pounded on the floor. Overall, pretty good show, but I'm still questioning the decision not to follow up on naming #1 contenders for the Tag Titles after last week's no-finish during Raw.

Elliott R. of Atlanta, Ga. (5.0): Best Match: Jericho vs. Morrison. Worst Match: Khali vs. Edge. This episode should have been called Night of Bloopers. I have to point out the following:
#1 - Alicia Fox: "Undefined Champion."
#2 - The Miz replaced Bryan on "Smackdown."
#3 - The Money in the Bank briefcase has nothing in it.
#4 - We got a clear shot of that piece of paper on the GM's computer.
#5 - Khali eliminated himself from the match vs. Edge! (At least Cole pointed it out.)
#6 - At around 1:50, when Josh Mathews asked Jericho what he's going to do next, you could clearly hear "TNA TNA TNA" in the background...

Aside from the obvious listed above, I actually thought all the matches except Khali-Edge were pretty good. The exchange between Danielson-Miz was great, and Danielson's character is a much better fit from the "too violent," always pissed off thing that had been going on since he came back. I thought the Gabriel-Cena match was pretty good. It didn't flow super smooth, but Cena actually showed off a few new tricks, and Gabriel is one heck of a talented guy in the ring, especially for his size. If he can work on believably getting to his spots instead of just doing them, and get a bit better on the mic, I think he has potential to be a top star. All in all, a somewhat off night, but still pretty enjoyable to watch, with some genuinely funny bits like the Edge-Ryder exchange, Morrison-Jericho exchange, and the Miz with the fake finish to his catch phrase.

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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