James Caldwell, Torch Assistant Editor (6.5)

This show was a step-above last week's distasteful and vomit-inducing effort to build up WrestleMania 25 despite a drab first hour of Raw. The first 60 minutes lacked a sense of urgency to sell a $54.99 PPV in a tough economy. Michael Cole couldn't even muster energy for his co-partner battling Chris Jericho in a curious squash match where Lawler showed fire...after the match was over. WWE has taken the epic Jericho vs. Legends feud and slowly turned it into a first-hour-of-WrestleMania match. Sadness.

After the first hour, Big Show and John Cena got things back on track. One of Show's better matches in some time, although credit goes to Cena for working his tail off and creating movement to work around Show's body that is depreciating in value and involve the crowd in the action. Cena taking a clean loss was curious right before Mania. If he wins the title at Mania, the impact is lessened because of his clean loss on Monday. It's so odd to see him losing as frequently as he has lately after he went three years with maybe two TV losses.

I am not a fan of the Shawn Michaels vs. Undertaker build-up concerning the good vs. evil elements. This feud was sold on the merit of both men in the ring on the biggest stage. If it ain't broke, don't fix it. WWE decided something was broken or the writers couldn't figure out how to sell an already-sold product, so they over-complicated the issue. I liked the elements of Shawn Michaels one-upping Undertaker, as it gives him more incentive and should create a harder-hitting "main event" match. Expectations are high, so it will be interesting to see whether both men can rise to the occasion.

The final segment created the excitement necessary for a pre-Mania Raw. Vince needed to return to TV before Mania since he's inducting Steve Austin into the Hall of Fame and it would kill Randy Orton's program if McMahon showed up on USA Network the night before Mania looking fresh as a daisy to induct Austin. That was smart. Triple H and Orton had an even steven battle in the ring and the camera didn't focus too much on Shane and Vince trying to throw crappy punches, so it worked out well to conclude the final Raw before Mania. Good, but not great overall effort without being offensive.

Brian Hoops, PWTorch.com Contributor (5.0)

This was an OK go home show for the WWE. The highlights for me was the Shawn Michaels (again) mind games with the Undertaker and Shawn again getting the better of their interaction. This has zero shot at being the main event for Mania, but to me, this is the match that I am most looking forward to at Mania this year. It has been the best booked feud, with the focus on winning and losing in the ring and what that means to each participant.

The Randy Orton promo in the ring was very strong and the finish with the McMahons going after Legacy was also well done. From a logic standpoint, changing the storyline this late in the game detracts from this feud for me. Wasn't the start of the angle where Orton won the Rumble and wanted to face Edge for the title, but Triple H had to goad Orton into a match with him instead? And now we are supposed to believe this was Orton's plan all along? Orton was great in his role, but this was a stretch. The Austin HOF video was very well done, as the WWE excels in this area. The rest of the show was trying to build to Mania, but nothing stood out, good or bad.

Greg Parks, PWTorch.com Contributor (5.0)

I came into this show having high expectations for the go-home Raw, and I was a little disappointed. The opening divas tag match was just the appetizer for the main course: Santino. I wonder if he ends up finding a way into the battle royal on Sunday. Lawler vs. Jericho was a disappointing match that didn't do much to build the legends contest at Wrestlemania. Jericho's post-match mic work was well done though. Giving away JBL vs. Mysterio wouldn't make much sense if it was a few weeks away from a regular PPV. Instead, it's SIX DAYS away from WRESTLEMANIA and they're giving it away free. This really tells me this feud is thin and they had nothing to build with so they had to put on the match.

I didn't like Cena vs. Big Show. I swear, if I saw Show stand on Cena again I was going to scream. Yeah, it's psychology, but he did it like a dozen times. It was so slow, but it made sense for them to not give too much away before WM since both of these guys are in the title match. I again liked the Taker vs. Michaels match and the build-up for that confrontation has been better than any other thus far. The MITB battle royal was quite blah and seeing these guys in the ring every week takes away any special feeling from seeing them together in the ring on Sunday.

The final segment was just OK. Orton is better having someone to play off of than holding an interview on his own. The return of Vince and Shane, while necessary, will kind of take the focus off Triple H vs. Orton. I thought this week was the least dramatic of their meetings but you were either sold or not on the match coming into this week anyway I'm sure.

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