WWE Monday Night Raw Report: May 17, 2010

Courtesy of wwe.com

The second ever commercial-free episode of Monday Night Raw was, well, an episode. It is really hard to describe it using any other word or logic. Things happened and quite a lot of them. Having no commercials (EXCEPT IN CANADA) worked for some aspects (made matches longer, gave more time to the mid-card) and hurt others (made matches longer, segues lacked coherence). Over two hours, we had a shocking championship win, plenty of Smackdown infiltration, a “interesting” guest host and a lot of Over The Limit hype. Let’s get this started because it’s going to take a while.

Bret Hart/Chris Jericho promo

Bret Hart makes his way to the ring to open the show and receives a warm, hometown welcome. According to Bret, he heard from “WWF” (Uh…OHHHHH…) HQ and was told that he had a U.S. Title match. Actually, according to reports, his son told him and it was “news to him.” Regardless, he decides that he does not want to be one of those old guys that hangs on and will not wrestle the Miz. Chris Jericho interrupts and goes Wrestlemania XXIV on Bret. While C.M. Punk might be the best on the mic in terms of making the audience care about what he says, Jericho is the best when it comes to mannerisms and facial expressions. When you see Jericho make his beady-eyed grin, you just believe he feels like he is better than everyone else. He gives Bret one of those in goading him into taking the match and making it a No DQ match no less. This makes sense since Bret’s match at Wrestlemania XXVI was a No DQ to limit his bumps. Bret held his own on the mic and also plugged the tag team match with the Hart Dynasty at Over The Limit. Overall, a good way to open the show.

Edge v. Christian – Pick Your Poison Match

Edge and Randy Orton would be selecting each other’s opponents tonight. Edge is out first and cuts a promo for his match at Over The Limit. Christian’s music hits and we have the dream match we’ve been waiting for. I like how Justin Roberts does not announce the hometown of a heel if they happen to be in said hometown. When Edge came out, Roberts did not make mention of Toronto, but did when Christian entered. (Side note: I went to Survivor Series 2009 in my hometown of Washington, D.C., which happens to be Batista’s, When he entered for his match with Rey Mysterio, they didn’t announce D.C. either. Nice touch). The match got off to a slow start, but they went with the “familiarity” angle with plenty of near-falls and reversals. I’m glad there were no commercials in this match; it was a solid pay-per-view style of match. We also got a great false finish with Edge reversing Christian’s failed top-rope attack into an Edgecution, but Christian kicked out. The match ends when Edge sends Christian into the ring post and hits a Spear. What a great match. With last week’s match with Kofi Kingston in mind, Christian has been on fire lately. I hope he becomes #1 Contender after the Big Show on Smackdown.

Edge v. Undertaker – Pick Your Poison Redux

After the match, Orton appears on the Titantron to congratulate Edge on his victory, but was unsure as to why Christian came out in the first place. According to Orton, Christian was not his hand-selected opponent. His real opponent? The Undertaker. Look, I understand that Orton is a face now, but as much of a storied history as the Undertaker has with Edge, Taker has had a heated rivalry with Orton in the past as well. Why would the Undertaker agree? Oy. Edge slips out of the ring and gets himself intentionally disqualified. But Christian was still there and throws Edge in for the chokeslam. We won’t see Undertaker for another three months.

Maryse/Eve Torres backstage promo

Maryse is getting her makeup done and we get the original “face Diva takes over unbeknownst to heel Diva and throws makeup all over her” gag. But then Eve beats the holy hell out of Maryse. That was pretty awesome.

Vickie Guerrero/Buzz Aldrin backstage promo

Canadians did not see this promo, but in short, Buzz Aldrin is in the back with his wife. Vickie enters and says they are in her office. Buzz actually says something important, noting that he has spoken to “WW….F….E” HQ himself and that Vickie is no longer GM and her replacement will be announced next week. The Bellas escort Vickie out? I guess they are good for something. Maybe. No, not really.

Mark Henry v. Batista

This match never happens. Henry is selling Batista’s attack last week and gets jumped behind by Batista with a 2X4. Batista destroys him and puts Henry in his modified crossface/chickenwing submission. I have a feeling that will be a factor in the “I Quit” match on Sunday. Poor Mark Henry. I bet Buzz set this up to get back at Henry for hitting him with a chair.

Ted DiBiase/R-Truth promo/Ted DiBiase (with Virgil) v. Yoshi Tatsu

Instead of commercials, there were promos that mimicked commercials. The best one teased a Mastercard advertisement featuring DiBiase and Truth. It was well done. DiBiase comes out with the real Virgil for his match against Yoshi Tatsu. A good back-and-forth contest between the two and DiBiase wins with Dream Street via a reversed buzzsaw kick. He then plugs his just-announced match with Truth at Over The Limit. DiBiase mentions that Virgil will be in his corner on Sunday, but I was surprised that Truth didn’t show up at all. This should make for an interesting undercard match. Stay tuned.

Bret Hart v. The Miz – No DQ Match for the WWE United States Championship

I try not to swear on this blog (children might be reading), but quite frankly, this entire match was a clusterf*ck. The Miz cuts a good promo before the match, Bret comes out, Miz informs Bret that he hired Vlad Kozlov and William Regal to watch out for the Hart Dynasty, then the Dynasty shows up anyways and fights off Kozlov and Regal (GASP FOR AIR). Jericho enters the ring, but Natalya joins Bret and slaps Jericho. Miz grabs Natalya before Bret decks him. Jericho gets back up, but D.H. Smith tackles him. Where the hell are Kozlov and Regal? Miz attempts the Sharpshooter on Bret, Tyson Kidd hits a springboard drop kick, the Dynasty hits the Hart Attack, Bret puts on the Sharpshooter and Miz taps out?! WHAT.

Forgive the run-on sentences, but that’s the only way I could really describe the match as what it truly was. I thought Bret’s contract expired yesterday? To quote the Rock, sweet creme on an ice cream sandwich, what in the blue hell are you doing?! The guy is 52 years old and saying that he is not in good shape would be an understatement. I will give the WWE props for its unpredictability, but I do not like this at all. The WWE “eliminates” Daniel Bryan, who was supposed to be the one to take the title off of Miz, and this is the best they can do? Are all of his matches coincidentally going to be No DQ matches? Rant over.

The commentary during this match was also unfathomable. First, Jerry Lawler questions why Bret would want to be U.S. Champion, but by the end, he is ecstatic that Bret has won. Not only that, but now that Bryan is gone, is Bret Michael Cole’s newest victim? Either that, or Cole has a thing for the Miz. Cole believes that Miz has been screwed and that Vince McMahon was screwed at Wrestlemania. I am not even going t0 try to fathom what the hell has transpired anymore. I don’t think (or hope) that Bret will be champion for long. What I can see happening is Bret vacating the title and there being a tournament set up for the U.S. Title, where Bryan Danielson returns and wins. Just a thought.

WWE Women’s Champion(s?) Layla El, Michelle McCool, and Maryse v. WWE Diva’s Champion Eve Torres and the Bella Twins

Michelle McCool has a Women’s Championship on, too? This I don’t understand, but I am glad that they didn’t attempt to explain it on Raw. It is a Smackdown issue and will have viewers tune in on Friday. Not that much of a match. Maryse wins with the French Kiss DDT on one of the Bellas (By the way, the tattoo is above one of their crotches. Just sayin’). I liked how LayCool bailed after the match and didn’t take part in the post-match fracas. They have no invested interest so they shouldn’t be involved. Nice touch.

John Cena backstage promo

It’s serious Cena time, or as I like to call it, Seri-Cena. Josh Mathews asks Cena to answer his critics, which Cena refuses to do, but actually ends up answering all of their questions anyways. Cena promises his “Cenation” that he will not quit, so it was essentially a recycled promo from Cena’s “I Quit” match with Orton from Breaking Point. By the way, Cena has broken promises before. Remember that time Cena promised not to lose another match until he regained the WWE Championship after losing to Sheamus at TLC? Yeah, he lost. Enough nitpicking. I do like Cena, but sometimes he can get too corny for me. This was one of those times.

Randy Orton v. World Heavyweight Champion Jack Swagger – Pick Your Poison Match

Did anyone else feel like Orton looked weird/naked without his black wrist tape? Anyways, a rematch from Extreme Rules that didn’t get much time. Each man hit their “vintage” spots and the match ends by DQ when Edge jumps Orton. Swagger eats an RKO, but Edge spears Orton. A good way to set up Orton/Edge while also keeping Swagger looking strong by not being pinned clean.

Buzz Aldrin/Zack Ryder promo/Ryder and Alicia Fox v. Evan Bourne and Gail Kim (with Aldrin)

The promo was a train wreck, but I did like the footage of Buzz punching a guy out. I am not going to lie when I say that was pretty badass. The match is formulaic; at least we didn’t get the Shooting Star Press this time.

John Cena v. Sheamus

I loved how aggressive Cena was off the draw, but Sheamus eventually worked on Cena’s head, setting up a weakness/target for Batista and his submission on Sunday. Neither man ever looked like they were going to get pinned until Cena went into his normal progression. Luckily, Batista interferes and we get a DQ finish. Batista destroys Cena and Sheamus did the right thing in bailing out, since this is not his match. Batista locks on his submission and tries to get Cena to quit, but the show fades out beforehand. A good cliffhanger and another reason to buy the show. The WWE did a much better job putting over Over The Limit than Extreme Rules. A very interesting show and I am looking forward to next week, which is what the WWE wants all along.

WWE Monday Night Raw Report: May 10, 2010

Courtesy of wwe.com.

Last night’s Monday Night Raw was, for lack of a better term, a clusterfuck. We had a guest host, but then another rock star came out. Then we had the guest host’s power taken away and a new (and former) GM put in its place. Finally, the GM seemingly resigned at the end of the night by virtue of threat. What the hell? After you process all of that, I will attempt to explain this episode of Raw to you. I am not making any promises. Let’s get started.

Randy Orton/Meat Loaf/Edge/Vickie Guerrero promo

Yes. it says Meat Loaf. I will get there. Orton starts the show by coming to the ring and explaining his actions against Edge last week on the Cutting Edge. According to Orton, Edge just wanted to have his biggest threat under his control. That makes sense. But before he could continue, Meat Loaf stumbles down to ringside. Why in the HELL is Meat Loaf on this show? He plugs his new album (Out today, I might add. I think that was the point of the segment). Long story short, Meat Loaf makes an ass out of himself and gets an RKO for his troubles. This brings out Edge, who brings up Orton’s penchant for assaulting celebrities and guest hosts (Meat Loaf, Wayne Brady, Freddie Prinze, Seth Green). Edge says he doesn’t like them either. Here is where I thought Edge was once again trying to recruit Orton. But it takes an interesting turn. Edge continues, saying that he has contacted WWE Global and they “tweeted” him back, agreeing that Raw guest hosts should have no authority and a permanent GM should be put in place. Out comes Vickie Guerrero to a chorus of “Excuse Me” and boos. She has officially been put in place as Raw GM once again. Her first act as GM is making a handicap match, placing Orton against Edge and a partner of his choosing.

This is quite confusing, considering that there were promos about Buzz Aldrin hosting Raw next week throughout the show. Not only that, but I didn’t think that the WWE would end the guest host gig so abruptly. Yet, there really weren’t many options for a Raw figurehead. Vickie is a heat magnet, which is always good, but frankly, she’s annoying and old news. The heel GM concept was driven into the ground with Eric Bischoff and Guerrero, but it continues to resurrect, so the WWE must see something in it. This will be something to watch.

Chris Jericho v. David Hart Smith – If Jericho wins, he and the Miz get a WWE Unified Tag Team Championship Match at Over The Limit

Per the stipulation above, it was pretty obvious that Jericho would emerge victorious. This was a good five-minute match, but nothing spectacular. Jericho wins with the Codebreaker via an eye rake. I am looking forward to this match at Over The Limit.

R-Truth (with guest host Flava Flav) v. William Regal

R-Truth is out with Flav by his side, hyping his “What’s Up” theme song. Flav looks lost, but after being a devoted follower of the Flavor of Love trilogy (don’t judge me), I was not surprised. You can see Regal pacing outside the ring, so I guess that’s Truth’s opponent. Flav plugs his new show, which sounds awful. The match finally begins and ends just as quickly when the Colons run in and attack Truth. After the damage has been done, Ted DiBiase emerges and hands Primo and Carlito envelopes. This raises the question: Did the Colons reunite on Superstars last week with the purpose of being DiBiase’s “Virgils?” Or is this something to waste time until Brett DiBiase and Joe Henning get called up? For those of you unaware, reports have surfaced that DiBiase and Henning, known as the “Fortunate Sons” in FCW, would be called up to reform their stable with Ted and turn heel in the process. Recently, however, Brett injured his knee so the plans were put on hold. The Colons could make good henchmen for DiBiase in the mean time.

Eve Torres/Maryse video package

Since there was no Divas match this week, we get a video package highlighting Eve’s rise to the Diva’s Championship. It was not bad. After the package. we see Maryse in the ring with a trainer working on what looks like judo. The trainer questions Maryse’s work ethic, which leads her to attack him. This was pretty unrealistic to me and does not really help anything. I like the idea of Maryse feeling inadequate to Eve (or so it seems), but maybe do the training segment in a more convincing fashion.

Zack Ryder v. Evan Bourne

Ryder is in the ring and Alicia Fox and Gail Kim are once again at ringside. Ryder wants to prove himself worthy (again) and even compliments Alicia before the match. Last week, the Divas seemed very unimpressed with Ryder, so why is Alicia so gaga over him this week? Don’t make me get on the continuity soapbox again. Anyways, the match between Ryder and Bourne was a solid mid-card bout. Near the end of the match, Alicia gets out of her chair in an attempt to distract Bourne from hitting the Shooting Star Press. Gail knocks Alicia off the apron and Bourne is able to hit a nasty SSP. It looked like Ryder was going to get up the entire time as he was slowly rolling towards the turnbuckle. Bourne hits it anyways and it looks like he catches Ryder’s head with his knee. That’s what I meant by nasty. Gail leaves with Bourne and I smell a mixed tag match next week on Raw.

John Cena/Sheamus/Batista promo

After the break, Cena makes his way to the ring to announce the stipulation of his match with Batista at Over The Limit. Rumor had it that Cena would announce a “Loser Leaves WWE” match, which would make the outcome extremely obvious. Instead, he announces an “I Quit” match, which makes it slightly less, but still pretty obvious. Much like Cena’s feud with Orton last year, he says that this will be the final encounter between Batista and himself. Cena goes as far as stating that he will waive his rematch clause if he was to lose. Cena then goes even further, thanking Sheamus for giving him extra time to think about the stipulation and then calls him out. The “human jar of mayonnaise” answers and Cena goads him to the ring. You can see Cena looking behind him and his gut feeling is validated when Batista comes through the crowd. Batista and Sheamus then dismantle Cena before Mark Henry, of all people, runs in to thwart Batista’s plan. Why, after arguing for the past several weeks, are Batista and Sheamus helping each other? I am getting the continuity soapbox out of the closet. I see a Sheamus-Cena feud after Batista is wrapped up. Stay tuned.

Tyson Kidd v. The Miz – If Kidd wins, Miz must defend the U.S. Title against a Hart family member of his choosing

Kidd wins with a gorgeous springboard roll-up. The Miz asks Kidd if he has really something since the stipulation allows Miz to select his opponent. I was pretty sure he was going to pick Natalya, but he decides on Bret instead. Bret has made it known that his WWE contract expires around May 17, which happens to be next Monday. Expect a big sendoff by the Miz and an even bigger push because of it.

The NXT Rookies v. John Morrison, Santino Marella, Goldust, and Yoshi Tatsu – 8 v. 4 Handicap Match

I’m not going to lie. When the WWE Superstars came out in Morrison’s slow motion, I was laughing pretty hysterically as Santino did his “air trombone” thing. It looked hilarious in slo-mo. Anyways, this was a good way to plug tonight’s NXT, which features the first elimination. Daniel Bryan finally gets a win on WWE television when he rolls up Santino for the victory. The NXT Rookies show solidarity, and for the first time since its inception, I am looking forward to tonight’s NXT (Report tomorrow).

Another lame Bella Twins/guest host/Santino/Regal/Kozlov skit. Did anyone else notice that Flav’s explanation to the Bellas was EXACTLY the same as it was to the WWE Universe earlier? Regal raps. It’s pretty bad. Moving on.

Batista v. Mark Henry

Batista sitting in the chair made me laugh. He attacks Henry as he walks into the ring because it takes him about five minutes to get through the ropes. Batista attacks the shoulder and then puts Henry in a modified crossface/armbar. This explains why Henry was used earlier; not for a possible push, but for a glorified squash. If only M.V.P. could have come out to help his partner. Oh wait. Nevermind.

Randy Orton v. Edge and Ted DiBiase – 2 v. 1 Handicap Match

Edge makes his way out with Guerrero in tow. Edge’s mystery partner is none other than Orton’s former Legacy brethren, Ted DiBiase. A pretty good contest, with every man getting his “vintage” moves and spots. Orton wins with the RKO after R-Truth distracts DiBiase. After the match, Orton stalks Vickie, who tries to threaten termination, but can only yelp and squeal. She pleads with Edge to get up, but hastily resigns in order to escape Orton. Edge gets up but Orton hits him with another RKO.

So Raw gains and loses a GM in one night. Reports have it that she was brought in for one night, but since the WWE was impressed by her heat magnetism, she might be brought on full-time. There are two very important questions that comes out of all this. What happens to Team LayCool?!? Are Matt Striker’s cougar hunting days over? Just kidding. This episode was a complete logjam. Hopefully, things will be cleared up next week.

WWE Monday Night Raw Report: May 3, 2010

Courtesy of wwe.com

I was intrigued to see what would happen on last night’s Raw all day. After Edge’s actions last week (both on Raw and Smackdown), WWE.com announced early Monday that the return of the Cutting Edge would take place with Randy Orton as his special guest. This got me even more hyped up. And quite frankly, I just love Wayne Brady. But even after all of that, I feel that Raw was still good, but did not deliver as I expected it to. Some segments were great, others were pretty bad. More or less, an average edition of Monday Night Raw. Let’s take a look at the show.

Batista & Sheamus promo/Batista v. Daniel Bryan

Batista opens the show with another quality promo. This “spotlight” stuff is really the best work of his career. It’s too bad that he might be out the door sooner rather than later. He says that John Cena’s use of duct tape to defeat him at Extreme Rules was the most embarrassing moment of Cena’s life. Batista did make a good point, though. In a Last Man Standing match, you must incapacitate your opponent. What Cena did was clever, but the way it ended definitely left the door open (sorry for the second “door” analogy in the first paragraph) for the third, and hopefully final, encounter. Batista also mentions that there would be a Beat the Clock Challenge between Cena and himself to determine who would choose the stipulation for their WWE Title match at Over The Limit. His opponent is the Miz, which seems odd, and Batista calls him out.

Out comes Sheamus instead to say “fella” 50 times. Sheamus believes he is the rightful #1 Contender. I was expecting Wayne Brady to come out and make a match between the two of them later that would ended with a no contest and make the Over The Limit match a Triple Threat, but luckily for all of us, we were spared. Sheamus is getting better on the mic every week and I am starting to see him as a bona fide main eventer after being skeptical for quite a while. He leaves and we come back from commercial with Miz not dressed to compete and carrying an envelope. Miz talks Batista up and has a doctor’s note (complete with “DOCTOR’S NOTE” inscribed on it) which is hilarious. He has a replacement and it is his NXT Rookie, Daniel Bryan.

After less-talented Rookies like David Otunga and Heath Slater received time on Raw, it was about time that Bryan had the chance to showcase his wrestling prowess. It was obvious that Batista would win, but Bryan had the audience believing he could actually make him tap out. Bryan nows look even more credible and looked strong in defeat. The U.S. Title won’t be with the Miz for much longer. Batista wins in 5:06. Cena’s opponent will be Chris Jericho. Just when I thought that Cena would beat Batista’s time without issue, he might have some trouble. This entire segment lasted 30 minutes. That is way too much time.

Eve is doing a photo shoot in the back and we get our first look at Brady. Funny segment with Jillian Hall included. After everyone else leaves, Maryse attacks Eve and picks up the Diva’s Title. Raw needs more credible women heels. Other than Maryse, there is no one else. She can’t feud with all the faces!

Ted DiBiase v. John Morrison

I never thought I would say this six months ago, but Cody Rhodes might have a brighter future than DiBiase. This “fortunate son” bit isn’t believable on DiBiase. He mentions R-Truth’s refusal to become his personal associate last week and swears to find someone to slap some sense into him. Morrison makes his way to the ring and the match ends in a countout in about two minutes after DiBiase walks out. Morrison calls him back, promising that if he loses, he would become the Virgil to DiBiase’s, well, DiBiase. This gets DiBiase’s attention and the match resumes. It was not a bad match, but nothing out of the ordinary. Morrison wins with a unique roll-up, but DiBiase attacks him after the match. Truth runs in and makes the save in what would be a common theme throughout the show.

John Cena v. Wade Barrett

Like the Miz, Jericho comes out in a suit, but says he will not make an excuse like the Miz. According to Jericho, he has nothing to prove to Cena. I wonder who Jericho will feud with now that Cena is with Batista, Orton is with Edge, and Triple H is on the injured list. Jericho calls out his own NXT Rookie, Wade Barrett, and he takes his mentor’s place. As I said earlier, I am glad that the top two (and most likely to stay in the WWE) Rookies are finally getting a chance to shine on Raw and plug NXT at the same time. Barrett, like Bryan, does a great job making it seem like he might pull off the monumental upset, but ultimately succumbs to the experience and STFU. Cena does not want to waste time and plans to announce his stipulation, but right before he does, Sheamus runs in and attacks Cena (See, I told you. It gets better. Or worse.). What’s the stipulation? Stay tuned.

Maryse v. Nikki Bella

Squash. After the match, Maryse presents the pictures from the earlier photoshoot of her attacking Eve. Eve runs out and tries to exact revenge, but is held back by officials. This is a good Raw Diva feud, considering Smackdown usually does better in that department. Let’s hope it lasts for a little longer, just long enough to find another face.

Zack Ryder v. Mark Henry

Ryder is in the ring and Alicia Fox and Gail KIm are at ringside. Ryder says he is single, so I guess Rosa Mendes will be released soon. Oh well. He calls out Primo for a rematch of last week’s Superstars, but Wayne Brady enters instead. Brady says that if Ryder wants to impress, he would need a better opponent. Sorry, Primo. Mark Henry makes his way to the ring and beats Ryder pretty handily even after a few near-falls for Ryder. The ladies leave with Henry, who needs two women to cover his surface area. Gross.

Jericho and Miz are speaking in the back about the Big Show’s lack of respect for either of them. They talk about their mutual hatred for Show and how it was the two of them who carried him back to prominence. I thought that Jericho and Miz might form a tag team when Jericho arrived on Raw. I like where this is going.

After the break, Wayne Brady, Santino Marella, William Regal, and Vlad Kozlov are in Brady’s office. More comedy from Santino and more broken English from Kozlov. Regal and Kozlov are teaming tonight. Of all people. Santino makes use of my favorite wrestling aspect: continuity. Santino asks Kozlov why he would team with Regal after he turned on him on ECW. Regal says that they have worked things out. At least we have an idea of why they are teaming. If they just came out together and there was no explanation, that would make no sense. Thank you, Santino.

WWE Unified Tag Team Champions The Hart Dynasty (with Natalya) v. William Regal and Vlad Kozlov

Now we know why Regal and Kozlov teamed: to job. Miz and Jericho are at ringside and that is where the focus of this match lies. Speaking of continuity, didn’t Jericho insult the Miz just a little while ago when he decided not to wrestle? Oh well. The Dynasty wins with the Sharpshooter and once again, there is a run-in after the match. It looks like Jericho and Miz are going to be a team, which gives Jericho something to do. Plus, this can spill into NXT, where they both can try to hold down Bryan. P.S. it is a shame that Miz’s name isn’t also Chris, because their team name could be “ChrisCho.” Ha…..

Oh, and another thing about continuity. House show lineups have Jericho and Edge teaming against Orton and Cena. Weren’t Jericho and Edge JUST in a feud for the last three months? What? Ugh.

The Cutting Edge

Edge’s “Era of Controversy” plays well into his hatred for the PG rating. I think this is the first time that the rating has been tackled in a storyline. Edge says he was the white light on Smackdown and was going to overtake Jack Swagger for the WHC before his plans were foiled by being drafted. Edge is getting cheered an awful lot, more than I thought he would or should. He plays up more of the “Ultimate Opportunist” angle and introduces Orton. Wayne Brady comes out instead and is very entertaining. I wish they utilized him more. If the WWE wants Edge to be seen as a heel, his interaction with Brady is not the way to go. He cuts an entertaining, heel-like promo (minus the cheap pop) on the other guest hosts and is eventually interrupted by Orton. Orton RKO’s Brady (which looked pretty good), which works into his tweener-ish role. Edge tries to convince Orton to rejoin him as Rated RKO and it seems there is a bit of jealousy on Edge’s part; he doesn’t understand why Orton gets cheered for his actions while Edge panders more to the crowd and yet does not get the same respect or reaction. Orton does not say anything the entire time and ends the segment with an RKO on Edge after a failed Spear. Sometimes, things are better left unsaid. Orton will have to open up eventually, but for now, this was an effective segment and a good way to end the show.

WWE Draft: The Afterthoughts

Courtesy of Google Images

With last night’s televised Draft and today’s online Supplemental Draft officially complete, it is time to look more closely at the moves made to each respective brand. While this draft didn’t have any “blockbuster” moves, some were definitely surprising and interesting. I will break down both Raw and Smackdown as a whole and by each Superstar.

Raw definitely got the better end of the deal, which seems to always happen, considering Raw is the “flagship” show and Smackdown’s currently going through a network switch. The addition of John Morrison, Edge, and Chris Jericho will definitely add to the main event scene, while new tag champions the Hart Dynasty might help to reinvigorate the tag team scene. Overall, an intriguing draft for Raw.

John Morrison – My theory of Morrison being next in line for Swagger’s title is officially ruined. He gets more exposure now, but he is much further down the face totem pole, behind Cena, Orton, and Triple H. Morrison is over with the crowd and that should continue, but he will have to work harder to get to the top. Morrison might get a crack at the Miz’s U.S. Title, but with Cena as champion for now, his main-event status is much lower than it was before.

R-Truth – This isn’t a “life-changing” move for Truth. He will remain in the mid-card and do what he did on Smackdown. Having Morrison move with him allows them to keep their team together and challenge for the titles down the road. A feud with DiBiase seems likely after last night, which would be entertaining. Hopefully, it won’t be like his last time on Raw. You know, when he exploded.

Edge – Edge moving to Raw was the biggest shocker of the night. After a hot angle with Jericho, Edge gets a fresh start. He interfered in the #1 Contender’s Match by spearing Randy Orton and costing him the match. Since he didn’t go for Batista or Sheamus, I assume he will fully transitioning back into a heel. He got a babyface reaction upon his return, but he always was more of a tweener. An Edge/Orton feud would be fun and refreshing, since it hasn’t been done since Edge returned from injury about five or six years ago. As long as we don’t get Edge/Cena right away, this is a great move for Raw.

Chris Jericho – Just when I thought Edge/Jericho would be over, Jericho moves to Raw. After fighting to stay on Raw after losing the tag titles, he is back on Raw and it’s about time. There really is nothing left on Smackdown for Jericho. He could continue his feud with Edge, either directly or indirectly through the WWE Championship picture. He can also team with the Miz (on their mutual hatred for the Big Show) and challenge for the tag titles. There will plenty for Jericho to do and I look forward to seeing what transpires.

The Great Khali & Ranjin Singh – I thought he was on sabbatical. Maybe he will be released before he comes back. i don’t know or care.

Natalya – This move was interesting considering the Dynasty’s win last night. Natalya is an amazing wrestler and will inject some life into a dormant Raw Divas scene.

Ezekiel Jackson – Currently suffering from injury, the last ever ECW Champion seemed like he would be getting a big push on Smackdown. Jackson is a perfect fit for the mid-card and could possibly even move to the main-event scene in the future and challenge for a title. It will be interesting to see how he functions without William Regal in his ear.

Goldust – Goldust is one of the WWE’s best enhancement talents and will continue to flourish at the role on Raw. He won’t be getting any big wins anytime soon, but that is not why he is there.

The Hart Dynasty – After Natalya’s move, this was natural. The Hart Dynasty finally got the push it deserved, especially with Bret around. Since they are the champions, the Dynasty can move between shows, but having them on Raw will give them more exposure and more possible opponents.

Smackdown lost too much and didn’t gain a lot back in return. Yet, the Blue Brand got three possible challengers to the WHC and some mid-card talent to help enhance the brand. Not a bad showing for Smackdown, but as always. never as good as Raw.

Kelly Kelly – The only Diva making a move on-air last night, Kelly Kelly will get a look on Smackdown. I don’t see much from her, but she is improving and will be another “credible” Diva on Friday nights.

The Big Show – After punching out the Miz, Show moves to Smackdown, where it looks like he will have another face turn. He is much more believable as a face and could possibly be in the hunt for the WHC.

Kofi Kingston – A good move for Kingston, who has floated around since his program with Orton ended in December. He will fill Truth’s role on Smackdown and finally gives me a possible usurper to Drew McIntyre’s IC Title.

Christian – With Edge and Morrison moving to Raw, Christian has been elevated to main-event status. Another rivalry with Swagger would be fun, this time over the WHC Title. These two had chemistry on ECW, so we know it will work. Finally, Captain Charisma gets the push he deserves.

Chavo Guerrero- Not too much to say. Maybe he will get more respect?

Cody Rhodes – An interesting and predictable move post-Legacy. Rhodes would be the perfect mid-card heel along with Ziggler and McIntrye.

Chris Masters – Chest-bouncing on Fridays.

Hornswoggle – …..

Rosa Mendes – Rosa moves to Smackdown and probably won’t do anything. I am surprised not to see Zack Ryder move with her.

M.V.P. – No one will benefit from a move more than M.V.P. After being drafted to Raw last year, he received a big push before languishing in a tag team with Mark Henry. Going back to Smackdown will work wonders for M.V.P., who made his name there. Like Christian, he has automatically been elevated to main-event status. We know he can work with Swagger after their mini-feud last year. Great move.

WWE Monday Night Raw Draft Special Live Report

Courtesy of Google Images

I have been very lucky to have attended two huge tapings in the past two weeks. I was at the Smackdown/NXT taping in London, England, two weeks ago (read below!), and now that I made it back to the U.S. safely (even though I slept in the Philadelphia airport Sunday night to do so), I was able to attend last night’s Monday Night Raw Draft Special. It might have been one of the best live shows I have ever seen. Like my London post, I want to share with you my experience and thoughts on last night’s show. I will have another post later analyzing the draft picks from the show and today’s Supplemental Draft. How about it?

Odd & Ends

The Richmond Coliseum isn’t what I would call a fantastic building. It it quite old and pretty small, but I think that makes for a better atmosphere sometimes. At the O2 Arena, it looked huge and the crowd was dead. But last night, I have never been a part of such a hot crowd. Before the show even started, the place was booming. Southern wrestling fans (I being one of them) are a different breed and being surrounded by them made the show 10x better. As always, there were tons of kids, but not as many as usual. A pretty adult-heavy crowd for the most part.

Also, two Superstars matches took place before the show. Gail Kim defeated Jillian Hall and Zack Ryder defeated Primo. Check in for my WWE Superstars report on Friday for more about these matches.

I will break down my thoughts on the show as they happened.

ShoMiz vs. The Hart Dynasty for the WWE Unified Tag Team Championship

The Big Show & The Miz are the first two out to start Raw and the crowd is on them quite heavily. One of the constants through the night was that if the fans in Richmond didn’t like someone, they booed so loud, I could hardly hear anything. While it sucked not to hear it all, I am happy with how enthusiastic everyone is. The Miz wants Hart to come down and declare ShoMiz the greatest tag team of all time, which he does, but not before also saying that the Mountie was the greatest Intercontinental Champion ever as well. It is amazing how great the Miz is. Did anyone see this happening four/five years ago? The crowd popped huge for Bret, who calls out the Dynasty for the title match.

This was a fantastic tag team match. D.H. Smith’s delayed vertical suplex on the Miz was impressive. Smith, like Miz, is getting better and better. Tyson Kidd was already a great talent, so I am glad Smith is catching up. The audience was very into this match and definitely got tense near the end, especially when Miz tried to use the ropes to win before Bret pushed his legs off. The ending definitely caught me by surprise. I thought that when Kidd went for the rolling senton, Show would knock him out of mid-air. When that didn’t happen and the Hart Attack did, I thought Show would get back in because it seemed like Kidd was stalling for time before putting on the Sharpshooter. But I was completely wrong. Miz taps out and we have new WWE Unified Tag Team Champions. The crowd was very excited and it was refreshing to see a new set of champions. After the match (and during the commercial break), Show knocks out Miz. Perhaps a feud is in the works? We would have to see if either man gets drafted later on tonight.

Jack Swagger/Edge backstage promo

Josh Mathews is with Swagger, who brags about his dominant victory over Randy Orton at Extreme Rules. Edge interrupts and proclaims himself next in line for the World Heavyweight Championship. I guess the feud with Chris Jericho is over. Edge/Swagger would be an interesting storyline to say the least. And I thought John Morrison would be next in line. He did beat Swagger clean last week. Oh well.

Michelle McCool & Layla El (with VIckie Guerrero) v. Maryse and WWE Diva’s Champion Eve Torres – Divas Draft Pick Match

This match is for the first draft pick of the night and it will be a Diva. There was a “We Want Mickie” chant throughout the match. Well I guess the crowd will be disappointed. To go back to my “crowd was so loud, I couldn’t hear” bit, LayCool’s promo before the match was the perfect example. I did not hear anything other than “EXCUSE ME!” Eve and Maryse shouldn’t be teaming, but at least they didn’t get along. LayCool wins with a big boot to Maryse and Smackdown gets the first pick.

SMACKDOWN RECEIVES KELLY KELLY.

Evan Bourne v. C.M. Punk (with Serena and Luke Gallows) – Draft Pick Match

A good match between two guys who haven’t faced each other (or haven’t in a long time). The crowd loved Bourne and were lukewarm towards Punk. It was obvious to me that Punk would win, but I just didn’t know how. Bourne got in a ton of offense, which surprised me. Punk wins when the masked avenger (P.S. TOTALLY Joey Mercury) enters through the crowd (right below me, I might add) and knocks Bourne off the top rope after Serena distracted the referee. Punk with the GTS and it’s over.

SMACKDOWN RECEIVES THE BIG SHOW.

Speaking of the Big Show, he is in the back with Theodore Long. Long is happy to have Show back and Show teases him before lightening up. Show is a better crowd pleaser so a face run works better for him.

Sheamus/Randy Orton/John Cena promo

Sheamus enters the ring and states that after his victory over Triple H, he should be the #1 contender. Orton enters to a big pop and disagrees, even talking about his own problems with Triple H, but facing him face-to-face. Orton did have his fair share of sneak attacks in his day, so this made me wonder how they are trying to stretch him into a face. This was the most face promo he has cut since his turn. Sheamus makes a good point by saying that Orton had his chance at Extreme Rules for the WHC and lost. Sheamus is getting more confident on the mic. Cena enters to a GARGANTUAN pop (this is the first time since 2005 I have heard almost no booing towards him) and cuts a pretty funny promo. The line about Sheamus looking like a “jar of mayo with a ketchup haircut” was fantastic. Since there is no guest host, Cena is able to determine his #1 contender. That’s odd. Why wouldn’t he pick Hornswoggle? Anyways, we get Sheamus/Orton tonight. Solid segment.

Smackdown (Rey Mysterio, IC Champion Drew McIntyre, Shad Gaspard, Kane, and R-Truth) v. Raw (Ted DiBiase, Santino Marella, Yoshi Tatsu, Mark Henry, and M.V.P.) – Battle Royal for Three Draft Picks

It was obvious that Raw would win here because that would have given Smackdown five draft picks already. It is much harder to keep up with a battle royal live than on television. The crowd was very into Rey and Santino. The spot where Mark Henry held up Kane, only for Rey to hit the 619 was awesome. The ending, with Rey and DiBiase getting near-fall after near-fall was entertaining, but I knew DiBiase would win, which he did. Entertaining match.

RAW RECEIVES JOHN MORRISON, R-TRUTH, AND EDGE

Chris Jericho v. Christian (with Heath Slater) – Draft Pick Match

Jericho comes out to whine some more, which is a great dimension to his character. He demands an apology from Slater for beating him last week. Slater can be very charismatic, but also very boring. This was the latter. Christian comes to the ring for what is a great match. These two work so well together and I kept having flashbacks to Wrestlemania 20. The crowd was split and Jericho won with a nasty Codebreaker on Christian as he came off the top rope. Jericho gives one to Slater for his troubles.

SMACKDOWN RECEIVES KOFI KINGSTON

Kingston heads out and gives Jericho Trouble In Paradise. Maybe a new feud since Edge moved to Raw?

Jack Swagger v. John Morrison – Draft Pick Match

An okay match, but not as good as last week’s match on Smackdown. Once again, this match was predictable. There was no way Swagger would lose again. The crowd started a “This Is Boring” chant halfway through and the annoying kids behind me kept shouting “The All-American American Jackass.” Swagger wins with the OKC Thunder Bomb and earns Smackdown a pick.

SMACKDOWN RECEIVES CHRISTIAN

Ted DiBiase/R-Truth Promo

Look! Carlito got on Raw just like he said he would! Anyways, DiBiase finds Truth in the back and welcomes him to Raw. As soon as DiBiase mentioned to Truth that he had an offer for him, I knew there would be a Virgil comment. And luckily for me, there was. Truth jokingly bought into it before slapping DiBiase in the face. I was actually intrigued by a DiBiase/Truth alliance. It would give Truth something to do and maybe give him a run with the Million Dollar Belt. Alas, we get a DiBiase/Truth feud instead. The “I worked hard” versus “I was given everything” kind.

Dolph Ziggler v. Hornswoggle – Draft Pick Match

This was a clusterfuck. Why the hell did Ziggler, who is being built up on Smackdown, lose to ‘Swoggle? That doesn’t help Ziggles at all. Hornswoggle wins by countout when he keeps throwing things at Ziggler. Ziggler gives him the sleeper after. Thank goodness.

RAW RECEIVES CHRIS JERICHO

Sheamus v. Randy Orton v. Batista -#1 Contender’s Match for the WWE Championship

Before Justin Roberts announces the match, Batista makes a surprise entrance and whines and complains. It was pretty funny, actually. Sheamus and Orton come out and they all bicker until Cena makes it a triple threat. Why would he do that? He already beat Batista twice. Oy.

This was a great main event. Each superstar got plenty of time to showcase their offensive sets. I won’t go into too much detail. Edge runs in near the end as Orton is preparing to give Batista the RKO and spears him. Batista rolls over and wins. Batista-Cena III. Boo.

After the show, Batista trashed-talked Orton, even calling him “Stupid RKO.” Orton gets up and gives him that. He poses and the show ends.

I think the matches were predictable, but the picks were not. It leaves many questions going into the future. Not knowing what will happen moving forward is exactly what the WWE wants and got itself last night. In the end, a great three-hour special.

Check in later for my analysis of the draft picks.

WWE Monday Night Raw Report: April 19, 2010

Courtesy of wwe.com.

Last night’s “go-home” edition of Monday Night Raw was quite peculiar and rightfully so. With the Raw Superstars (and myself) stuck in Europe thanks to the Icelandic volcano, the WWE had to scramble to put on a show as quickly as possible. It was a promo-heavy, Smackdown-ridden show which did its best to push Extreme Rules. Saturday Night Live’s MacGruber was the guest host and provided some funny moments to an already interesting night. Here are my thoughts on the show broken down by each segment.

Triple H/Straight Edge Society promo

Triple H comes down to the ring and makes light of the situation in Europe, makes some jokes about some of the stranded wrestlers, and eventually mentioned his Street Fight with Sheamus. This week, Sheamus wasn’t on Raw. Last week, Triple H wasn’t. Sheamus did a good job setting up the match with his beatdown of Kofi Kingston, but Triple H’s promo missed the mark. Sheamus bailed him out later, though (more on that later). C.M. Punk and the Straight Edge Society interrupt and Punk gets some cheap heat putting down New Jersey. Punk also plugs next week’s WWE Draft, which was a nice touch. He tries unsuccessfully to convert Triple H to the SES and eventually beats him down. Rey makes the save, he and Triple H clear the ring, and trap Punk long enough for Rey to shave a bit of Punk’s hair off. A good segment overall to get over the Rey/Punk match. It ran a bit long, but I guess that’s understandable considering the circumstances. I feel like Punk losing part of his hair means that he won’t lose it at all on Sunday. (Shameless plug: check out my Extreme Rules predictions later this week!)

Drew McIntyre v. Matt Hardy

I believe my hypothesis from last week where I stated that Drew has only faced Hardy, Kane, and Morrison this year is becoming more valid per week. Hardy sells the equilibrium problems from his previous matches with Drew. The problem being, those matches happened on Smackdown. The uneducated masses and those watching live at the Izod Center without (thankfully) Michael Cole’s commentary to fill them in might not know of Hardy’s previous injuries. The ending of Drew pulling Hardy off the top rope and pinning him was a bit forced and rushed. I don’t know where the WWE is going with this. I think it might eventually lead into a Intercontinental Title match, one that Hardy has no chance to win.

John Cena promo

Not much to say. A normal Cena promo. Humble at first, then fiery. He plugs his match with Batista on Sunday. Good enough.

Vlad Kozlov/MacGruber promo

Kozlov is in the ring and says he has a prepared statement for the audience tonight. He orders Jerry Lawler into the ring and has him read it aloud. I am still confused about how he ended ECW as a face, disappears from television, and comes back as a heel. Anyways, the promo was way too long. I did like the comment about the Nets, though. Kozlov grabs the mic and demands competition. MacGruber comes out instead. I liked how Will Forter and Kristen Wiig stayed in character throughout the night for continuity purposes at least. Funny back and forth between the two. Like David Hasselhoff last week, Forte did not take himself too seriously, which is another good thing. Vickie St. Elmo reads an announcement from Mr. McMahon, ordering a six-man tag team match tonight between Triple H, Rey Mysterio, and Edge versus Luke Gallows, C.M. Punk, and Chris Jericho. MacGruber then introduces Kozlov to his opponent, R-Truth…then he blows up. Yes, I said blows up. If you watch the replay of the explosion carefully, you can see Truth dive into the apron to avoid the blast. Pointless segment, but it gives us another guest host v. mid-card superstar match for later in the evening.

Let’s just skip the MacGruber/Triple H/Kane segment. Funny how Triple H and Kane became such friends after the whole Katie Vick thing! Who would have thought that?

Randy Orton promo

Like Cena’s, Orton’s promo was very Orton. Cold and to the point. Good tease of the draft as well. Done.

Jack Swagger v. The Undertaker

Jack Swagger issues an open challenge to any superstar in the back. This was a good way to further his overconfidence after winning the title (the gold trim on his singlet was also a nice touch). As he leaves because no one answered, the gong hit and the arena went black. Out comes the Undertaker. This was a pay-per-view quality match, which the WWE needed to sell to get viewers to hang on. Swagger gets in plenty of offense and looks strong, but the Phenom ultimately takes the match with a brutal Tombstone Piledriver. It’s usually not the best move to have a champion lose cleanly right before a pay-per-view. but beating the Undertaker cleanly is still a reach for Swagger. It set the standard for Swagger to obtain, which is nice. He was defeated by the more experience former champion. Plus, it’s the Undertaker. When does he ever lose on television?

Chris Jericho/SES/MacGruber Promo

Another humorous segment between the SES and Jericho. Jericho tells Punk to do what he says because he has beaten every man on the other team. Punk with the towel wrapped around his head was hilarious. It’s good that heels don’t get along with other heels. They have a common goal to win, but other than that, they don’t really care for each other. Good for storyline purposes. Jericho runs into St. Elmo and MacGruber and they have a funny exchange as well. Almost like the Jericho of old. To be young again.

MacGruber v. Vlad Kozlov

Do I need to say much here? Kozlov gets some shots in and goes for his uranage/chokeslam when Ryan Phillippe shows his face for the first time and makes the match a handicap match. But who will MacGruber’s partner be? His brother, KhalGruber, that’s who! Wait a minute. KhalGruber looks like a 7 foot 3 inch, 420 lb Indian former world champion. Hmmmm. And he came out to the Great Khali’s music? I thought he was on sabbatical. Oh well, it must have been a technical error. KhalGruber chases Kozlov out for the countout victory. At least this is over.

Triple H, Rey Mysterio, and Edge v. C.M. Punk, Luke Gallows, and Chris Jericho

On his way to the ring, Triple H is interrupted by Sheamus appearing on the screen. He eventually beats up a production assistant. Very scary, indeed. Triple H’s facial expression was perfect, like “What the hell do I care? You’re there beating up a camera guy.” The match itself was good. I wonder if Edge forgot that both Triple H and Rey Mysterio ruined his wedding with Vickie Guerrero. If Kane and Triple H can be friends, so can Edge and Triple H. The bad guys work over Edge’s ankle and he sells it well. Match ends with a 619 and Pedigree on Punk for the victory. Since Friday, Punk has done the job for two six-man tag matches. But both times, it took two consecutive finishers to put him down (on Friday, it was a 619 and running powerslam). Punk looks strong in defeat.

Not a bad show for one put together so hastily. I’m not sure if I’m sold on Extreme Rules, though.

Check in Wednesday for my NXT report, Friday for Superstars, Saturday for my Smackdown report, Sunday for my Extreme Rules predictions, and hopefully, Tuesday for my live Raw report!

WWE Monday Night Raw Report: April 12, 2010

courtesy of wwe.com

Last night’s Monday Night Raw did its best to set up more for Extreme Rules in less than two weeks. It accomplished that, giving the WWE Universe its World Heavyweight Title match as well as a Street Fight while also furthering the feud between John Cena and Dave Batista. Other than that, it was pretty much filler. We have a new Divas Champion as well. Here are my thoughts on the show broken down by each segment.

David Hasselhoff promo/Maryse v. Eve Torres for the WWE Divas Championship

The Hoff comes out to a pretty nice ovation (considering how DEAD the U.K. crowd seemed on television last night. I will get a better feel Tuesday night when I head to the O2 for Smackdown/NXT). He handles himself pretty well on the mic, which one would hope considering how experienced of an entertainer he is. He makes a match for Extreme Rules, announcing that Jack Swagger will defend his newly won World Title against the man who defeated him twice, Randy Orton. Good call considering Chris Jericho and Edge went to a no contest last Friday on Smackdown. Hoff’s logic was sound; if a man beats a champion twice, he deserves a chance to win the title. How profound! Instead of the predictable Triple Threat, we get an intriguing matchup. I am sure Jericho/Edge II will happen at Extreme Rules (but more on that tonight. Again, shameless plug). Hoff also announces a Babewatch Divas Triple Threat tag match for later. Out comes Eve Torres and its championship time.

The Divas match was alright. Eve has really stepped her game up and is showing incredible signs of improvement in the ring. Maryse plays the cocky heel so well, possibly better than some men doing the same thing. Her overconfidence and laughing after dodging an Eve moonsault leads to a blocked French Kiss DDT and an interesting bridge pinning combination for the win. Eve is the new Divas champion. Let’s see how long she holds onto it and who her challenger will be in the future.

ShoMiz/Bret Hart/Hart Dynasty Promo and The Miz v. David Hart Smith

The Miz and Big Show come to the ring and proclaim themselves the greatest tag team of all time. A little soon, perhaps? It works for the Miz because of who he is. Interesting to see the Big Show warm up to the Miz and not question his statements like he did a few weeks ago. I feel like the Miz’s bravado will catch up to him and we could see a Big Show/Miz program in the future. Out comes Hitman to laugh in the Miz’s face and plug his family tree of tag teams. The Hart Dynasty is out next and gets a leftover/lukewarm reception from the crowd (who is still dead. Check the pulses, please?) DH Smith gets on the mic and he struggles just a bit. Tyson Kidd is definitely the better of the two, both in the ring and on the mic. It is hard to remember a time before Wrestlemania when either of them really spoke and for good reason. Hopefully, that will get better with increased exposure. A match is made betweeen Smith and Miz, where if Smith wins, the Dynasty gets an Extreme Rules title match, but if the Miz wins, Bret must proclaim live next week on Raw that ShoMiz is the greatest tag team of all time.

Not a bad match between the two. I liked the Miz’s modified bulldog into the turnbuckle coupled with his trademark sitting jump into the ropes. I think the crowd is still getting used to the Dynasty as faces, which is why it’s good that Bret has become a valet of sorts so that the Universe can get the hint. Smith locks on the Sharpshooter, only for Show to get involved. Big Show takes out Kidd, then kidney punches Smith. Miz hits the Skull-Crushing Finale and its over. Bret is not going to do what is asked of him next week and I still see a Dynasty/ShoMiz match at Extreme Rules.

Otunga/Batista/Bellas/Hoff backstage promo

Good to see NXT rookies on the other shows (as I have said in the past). I wish it wasn’t Otunga, though. I know he has a famous wife and been on TV himself (I totally watched I Love New York. If you can Youtube clips of him on it, I would), but he is green in the ring and mediocre on the mic. Batista treats him like a “go-fer” which is a nice touch. Otunga runs into the Bellas and Hoff, who informs Otunga that Cena invited him tonight for some payback. Looks like we have John Cena v. David Otunga later.

Evan Bourne v. Carlito

A jobber-to-the-stars versus a jobber. What a match! I feel for Evan Bourne. He is over with the crowd and his Shooting Star Press is a thing of beauty. Yet, he has never had an extended push. Carlito plays his usual role of losing without much of a fight. NXT pros need to stop getting buried. Matt Hardy was on Smackdown last week. William Regal wasn’t even on TV (he wrestled the dark match) and while the Miz is doing alright, he and Daniel Bryan don’t have a relationship. All in all, I am glad Bourne got the win and maybe, just maybe, we can see him in a meaningful role. U.S. Title match, perhaps? It is Bryan’s to win, but we need someone to fill the gap until then.

John Cena v. David Otunga

I like smug John Cena. Against a rookie, there is no need to be humble John Cena. Cena works Otunga over while Batista watches from the ramp. Cena wins in quick fashion with the STFU (Yes, it will be called that here). Cena wants Batista, who does the usual “let me rip off my clothes, ruin another dress shirt, march down to the ring only to turn around” move. Too early for a confrontation. Good move here.

Sheamus promo/Sheamus v. Kofi Kingston

Sheamus cuts a promo about how and says that he still has the upper hand on Triple H. He then makes it clear that at Extreme Rules, it will be the Celtic Warrior v. The Game in a street fight. As he continues to put himself over and mock the U.K. crowd, Kofi interrupts looking for payback from last week’s beatdown. I wish he would not have done the Boom Boom Boom fireworks before speaking. That’s not serious.

Sheamus and Kofi  put on a decent match. The crowd finally woke up when Kofi hit Trouble in Paradise and popped huge for the near fall. Sheamus escapes and hits Kofi with the TV monitor for the DQ finish. Kofi is turning into Evan Bourne. After a promising program with Randy Orton, Kofi has fallen to the wayside. Now he gets used to make points. Just like Bourne does. And Bourne had his ass handed to him by Sheamus before as well. Notice the parallel? Anyways, no HHH to be seen, which is sort of surprising.

Carlito is looking for Hoff in the back when he runs in to Vlad Kozlov. Carlito threatens to quit if he is not drafted to Smackdown. Kozlov says he will destroy MacGruber next week if he does not get his way. Wasn’t Kozlov a face at the end of ECW? His last ECW appearance was clearing the ring and hugging Shelton Benjamin. What gives?

Randy Orton is with Josh Mathews (who has recovered nicely from Dolph Ziggler’s sleeper on Friday). Orton plugs Extreme Rules and says that what he does to Swagger will be just business, but tonight with Batista will be personal. No animosity between Swagger and Orton just yet, so the business angle works for now.

Divas Baywatch Triple Threat Tag

Not much to say. Santino does his thing, the ladies do theirs, and Hornswoggle makes the customary appearance. I think Santino would have been unconscious from swallowing the whistle long before ‘Swoggle Tadpole Splashed it out of his throat. Oh well.

Randy Orton v. Batista

Yet another strong match between these two bitter rivals. I like when announcers plug the history of two wrestlers and you can remember who was a face and who was a heel. When Orton was kicked out of Evolution, he was the face. When he cost Batista the title last summer, Dave was the face. It is quite confusing to remember it all. To the match itself, each men got in their respective, or “vintage,” spots. Orton with the backbreaker, elevated DDT, and twitching. Batista with the spinebuster, (almost) spear, and thumbs down. Orton goes for the punt, but Batista rolls out of the way. Match ends with a DQ when Swagger interferes and OKC Thunder Bombs Orton. Now it’s personal. Swagger leaves, Cena attacks him on the way in, and slaps on the STFU on Batista. Batista taps and eventually passes out. Cena counts to 10 and we go off the air.

It was good to see Cena get one on Batista. Swagger made it personal with Orton. Sheamus makes it more personal with Triple H short of kissing and taking out his wife. The Raw card is looking better while Smackdown got a rub of its own.

Check in tomorrow for my live Smackdown report!