By Jon Mezzera, Torch Specialist

RAW HITS

Opening Segment: Raw got off to a good start with a strong opening segment. It did a nice job of catching up fans on what happened at the PPV, and moved Shawn Michaels away from feuding with Randy Orton, and on to feuding with Mr. Kennedy. That was a much needed transition. Shawn was hilarious in his admission that he was planning on Super Kicking Orton. Orton was good in his on-screen promo. It was good to see Michaels ask for a rematch, but get turned down. He shouldn’t get another one right away, and this makes sense. Kennedy coming out to interrupt was great. He clearly had a reason for coming out, but that was interrupted by Michaels. Their brief brawl before William Regal came out to start a match was good as well.

Michaels - Kennedy Brawl: Raw continued nicely after the first commercial with the brawl between Michaels and Kennedy. It was a great way to tease a match, hooking the audience before the commercial, and then not delivering it. This is a perfect example of a bait and switch that works. It wasn’t announced ahead of time, so fans hadn’t been looking forward to Michaels vs. Kennedy. They were looking forward to it only through one commercial. And, they got a good amount of physicality between the two. Their brawl around the ring was fun to watch. This was a good way to set up a feud, and make fans want to see a match between the two.

Santino Marella: Santino continues to entertain each week. As I’ve said before, his in ring ability needs to improve, but he was decent here. It was good to see him get a little offense in, and his focus on Jerry Lawler’s arm was nice. The real Hit here is for when he left the ring, and got on the mic. I laughed out loud when he wore the King’s crown. His Lawler impression was very funny. This was him doing his usual bit, but in a different context which is why it was so good. Everything he does is memorable, and I continue to look forward to his appearances.

Kennedy’s Promo: Kennedy gave one of his best promos to date in the back with Todd Grisham. His sarcastic line at the beginning about coming out to show Michaels respect was very good. He also played like he was really sad about getting kicked by Michaels. It made me think the whole promo was going to be more sarcastic, but he got serious which was very good. It was well written and well delivered which is how all promos should be.

Hardy vs. Umaga: The nerve holds and Umaga’s dominance over Jeff Hardy got old during the match. But, the match had a great final few minutes and told a very good story. The ending was lousy too, but there was still plenty to like here. This is an example of telling a story in a match, as opposed to just having a sequence of moves. The story was Umaga dominating Hardy, but Hardy constantly showing fire and fighting back against the odds. Every time Umaga thought he had Hardy beat, Hardy came back. The comebacks were frequent enough to break up the monotony of the nerve holds. This match accomplished the task of really building Hardy into a never give up type of a guy. He wouldn’t stay down. The ending, as the pace quickened and the action started going back and forth, was very good. Despite the beating, Hardy stood tall at the end. Snitsky’s involvement was bad (more later), but not bad enough to ruin the match.

Closing Segment: The show got off to a good start, and it also finished strong. Orton was very good here. In fact, he was good throughout the night. He made four appearances, and delivered each time. TNA should take notes on how to feature a heel Champion multiple times in impactfull ways without him being overexposed (Orton appeared four times, juxtaposed to a recent Impact where Kurt Angle appeared nine times!). I have to admit to marking out for Chris Jericho’s return. I was a huge Jericho fan and was very glad to see him back. I enjoyed hearing his old catch phrases. He is good on the mic and can get the crowd going. He is a goof, and Orton’s facial expressions to some of the goofy things he said were very good. His interruption was good as well. Then Jericho delivered on his list of things that he is saving us from. He needs to continue to develop in his second coming. I liked his old catch phrases, but as time proceeds he needs to come up with new material as well. Jericho’s return got off to a good start.

RAW MISSES

Hornswoggle Saga: I am thrilled that Finlay is involved in the Hornswoggle - Vince McMahon saga. I thought Finlay’s interaction with McMahon was decent. But, everything else on the show involving the Little Bastard was bad. The scene in the back with McMahon, Coach and Regal was odd. I was confused. I don’t know if McMahon likes Hornswoggle or not. The Coach and Regal relationship is inconsistent. Last week they hated each other, but this week they shared a laugh about Hornswoggle. Carlito’s involvement was disappointing. He could be used for something much better than this. His “match” vs. Hornswoggle was pointless. Finlay clotheslined him and tossed Hornswoggle on top of him, and that was enough to finish him off. That was weak. Finlay’s involvement helps, but they need to have the others’ positions (especially McMahon’s) more clearly defined.

Snitsky’s Involvement: Snitsky interrupting Umaga vs. Hardy was disappointing. With Triple H, Michaels, Hardy and now Jericho, a mid-card heel had to be elevated as there are only three heels, Orton, Umaga, and Kennedy at that level. Unfortunately, WWE chose Snitsky. It should have been Carlito giving Hardy a Back Stabber. He has a recent history against Triple H. Carlito vs. Hardy would be a fun feud over the Intercontinental Championship. And, if they want to use Snitsky, then have McMahon tell his son that he was so proud of his match against a monster at the PPV, he was booking him against another monster on Raw. Have Finlay save Hornswoggle from Snitsky who is more imposing than Carlito. That is a better use of both guys.

Transvestite Joke: It seems that the WWE writers have a stockpile of Todd Grisham is gay jokes to use whenever he interviews John Cena. Now that Cena is out with an injury, they decided to give one of those jokes to Triple H, who I can only assume was more than willing to take up the role of making fun of Grisham’s sexuality from Cena. It is too bad, because Triple H was great early on in the interview when he sarcastically talked about being the good Samaritan of the WWE. The transvestite joke was unnecessary and ruined what looked to be a good promo.

Holly and Rhodes: The Hardcore Holly and Cody Rhodes storyline started out strong, but has gone down hill. Jim Ross sounded as confused as the audience as to why these guys who have been teaming are now facing. This is where a backstage vignette would have served a much greater purpose to give them both a chance to talk and advance their storyline. I don’t understand why they were wrestling. This relationship needs to be better defined.

Jon Mezzera is PWTorch.com's Hitlist Specialist, providing his point of view in the Torch's hitlist format for Raw, Smackdown, ECW, and TNA Impact each week. Email him at jmezz-torch@sbcglobal.net.

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