James Caldwell, Torch Assistant Editor (5.5)

Raw this week was a fine, but not particularly memorable episode after the excitement of WrestleMania 26 and the lack of urgency needed to begin promoting the Extreme Rules PPV. There were some bright spots on the show, specifically WWE promoting a group of fresh heels in prominent positions on Raw including The Miz, Ted DiBiase, new World champ Jack Swagger, and Sheamus. I'm not buying DiBiase's new spoiled rich kid gimmick and the promo wasn't believable, but WWE can begin to smooth out the rough edges with the evolved character.

Jack Swagger had a fine opening promo playing the serious, dry heel champion. It could work over time with audiences so frustrated with him just standing still and scowling that it will generate heat, but to go from a complete goofball to a stoic heel needed more of an explanation. I didn't like Swagger taking the RKO in the opening segment, then losing clean when he faced Orton. They have to legitimize Swagger as a star before they can get heat on him for being an "undeserving champion." Again, more rough edges to smooth out and they have plenty of time to do so.

David Otunga could be thrown into the mix of young heels who were elevated on the show. He really did belong on the show and he didn't look out of place mixing it up with some big names like John Cena and Batista. We saw it the next night on NXT when he had good heel heat after bailing on Cena. Now, he can run away to NXT and hide from Cena rather than getting his comeuppance right away. There's a program there that could work, as WWE is obviously really high on Otunga for his presence, star power, and name recognition that will help WWE get more legit press in mainstream media.

Two names that obviously need to be moved in the Draft: Kofi Kingston and Christian. Kofi was turned into an enhancement talent working with Sheamus on the show and Christian hasn't been given much to work with during WrestleMania season. At least if he's moved slightly off the radar, Michael Hayes can do something with him with Edge, Chris Jericho, or whomever ends up on Smackdown after the Draft.

Jon Mezzera, PWTorch.com Contributor (5.0)

This was the very definition of a thumbs in the middle type of show. It was an OK Raw. There were some moments to like, some to dislike, and others that were just in the middle.

It got off to a poor start with the opening segment with Jack Swagger, John Cena, Randy Orton, ShowMiz and David Otunga. It was a mess. I wasn't happy with Cena talking about Swagger not being championship material. It wasn't a good endorsement for Swagger. The rest of the segment did nothing to make me excited for the rest of the show. The ending with Orton trying to RKO Cena was odd.

I didn't like how short Sheamus vs. Kingston was, but I liked Sheamus' post-match promo. He did a good job of suggesting that Shawn Michaels retired to avoid facing him and that Triple H would be smart to do the same. Triple H's sledgehammer attack was good too.

I hated the Dress to Impress Battle Royal for the same reasons that I have put forth for almost every Diva match on Raw over the last year plus: it had too many Divas in the ring (nine in this case) and the match only lasted three minutes which wasn't good enough to allow any of the Divas to stand out. The only Diva who stood out was Maryse on guest commentary which goes to show what can happen when you actually put a singular spotlight on one of these women.

I didn't like seeing Ted DiBiase with the Million Dollar Championship as he needs to forge his own identity separate from Cody Rhodes, Randy Orton or his father. I did like his match with Christian however. To continue the up and down theme, I liked Swagger vs. Orton as the match itself was quite good. However, I did not like the outcome as Swagger should have gotten a win (even by cheating) to give him momentum as the World Champion. This was a bad night for Swagger.

The two Tag Team Championship matches were OK. The first was predictable and did nothing for me. The second had decent action, but was also predictable with Otunga walking away. Batista's attack was good, but not anything special. I didn't like it, but didn't hate it either.

Greg Parks, Torch Columnist (5.0)

The definition of a "blah" show. There was absolutely nothing here to get excited about, or look forward to next week. That said, there wasn't any outright stupid or intelligence-insulting stuff either. That has to count for something. The big feud, John Cena vs. Batista, was advanced with the announcement of the Extreme Rules match at the next PPV. They had to address Jack Swagger and his championship too, since he is/was technically on the Raw roster.

I don't like him losing cleanly to Orton. I've read a lot of people rationalizing it, and it's not something I hate, but after losing last week on Raw in the tag match then again here, for a guy who needs to be seen as something more than just a "lucky" champ, this didn't help. Maryse on commentary was the best part of the Divas battle royal. NXT Rookie David Otunga did a fine job as host and is a ready-made heel.

I'm glad they didn't pull the trigger on another "odd couple" tag team title reign, this time with Batista and Cena. Ted DiBiase beating Christian was fine; it's too early to tell on his new gimmick, but it shows promise. It also may show that WWE has no other ideas for him other than to attach his character to his father's.

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