Email This Article - Contact Us - VIP Sign-Up - Back to Home Page

|

Maynard Damon of St. Louis, Mo. - Occupation: Bartender (5.0): Best Match: Cena & Orton vs. Entire Roster. Worst Match: Big Show vs. Y2J. It's hard to get excited about Raw without Jeff Hardy. I was among a lot of fans who were hoping he would win the MITB ladder match then challenge for the title later that night at WrestleMania. At this point they might as well cancel the MITB match; after all, whichever mid-carder wins has no chance of ever getting a title run. Is Chris Jericho a heel now? Is Big Show a face? Was it just me, or was Orton a face tonight, too? And was Triple H a heel, at least at the end? Ric Flair vs. Vince McMahon was a fun match, but I'll be disapponted if Flair's last match on Raw is a gimmick match against a non-wrestler. I know a lot of people will compain about Cena & Orton pinning so many guys, but the match was fun while it lasted, and I was disappointed and confused when it ended in DQ. It was just bizarre timing. On one hand, WWE buried the entire mid-card, then somewhat protected a handful of mid-carders with the DQ finish. Big Show vs. Mayweather doesn't excite me in the least. I like Show, but seriously, how many truly great matches has he had in his career? He's very limited in what he can do, even against the best wrestlers on any roster, so how much should we really expect from a mystery match between a lumbering giant and a guy who's never bumped? It could be a very ugly match. Tonight just didn't have that WrestleMania feel to it.

Shane McKinley of Danville, Calif. (7.0): Best Match: Main Event. Worst Match: JBL squash. Hard to rate this show. It was fun in some parts, but overall an odd show. Jericho is a heel just waiting for somebody. People who should be moved in the draft: Jericho, London & Kendrick, and Elijah Burke should be first considerations to move. I don't understand submissive holds in Punk vs. Carlito, but it's nice to see Punk get some cred and not countout victories. Bunnymania looks now like to be a fun match. The use of Santino in the "Snoopy the dog" and "Subway" bits was fun to watch. Worst match of the night was the JBL squash. A video package over JBL's brutal moves I think would have been more effective than having that "Irish need not apply" line (I didn't need that reminder) and bringing Colin back to square one. Just plain boring. Plus, the fact that two squash matches were put together back-to-back hurt the illusion of it, as "competition" was out and "getting JBL over boringly as a heel now pay us money" was in. Flair vs. Vince was fun as well. Women's match was much improved over recent showings. I actually wish Big Dick Johnson could be hosting the event instead of yet another celebrity who "really digs wrestling." I'm sure. Main event was very creative and fun (the Cena-Orton RKO stands out), but it shows that Raw really is the main event players and then a big gap between the rest of the wrestlers. Fun to watch Val Venis do his thing on the ropes. A possible Umaga vs. JBL feud may be in the works (the seeds have been planted). If that does happen, it looks to be a lot of fun to watch. Total unprotected chairshots to the head: 5 or 6.

We welcome your 1-10 score and comments on this show for a "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.

For more BREAKING NEWS on WWE, TNA!
VISIT OUR AFFILIATE - PROWRESTLING.NET

For UFC & MMA NEWS & BLOGS:
VISIT OUR SISTER SITE - MMATORCH.COM

Upgrade to PWTORCH VIP: DETAILS & SIGN-UP INFO

(c) 1999-2009 TDH Communications Inc. - All rights reserved.