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WWE Raw Reax #4: "It's nice to see a women's feud that does not revolve around Playboy, boyfriends, or I'm prettier than you."
May 20, 2008 - 10:43:52 AM
Mark Dinatale of Los Angeles, Calif. (8.0): Best Match: Batista vs. Chris Jericho. Worst: Nothing to speak of. This episode could have been a PPV, or at the very least a really good SNME. The matches were excellent, and the crowd was on fire all night. I think that alone boosted my score a little. The opening Jeff Hardy vs. Umaga was good, a double countout to ensure a rematch is a good thing. I also want to give props to the ladies matches lately. Especially this latest development with Melina and Beth Phoenix. It's nice to see a feud that does not revolve around Playboy, boyfriends, or I'm prettier than you. It actually has merit and I for one think Melina is a firecracker and love it whenever she's on screen, although Beth is really growing on me also. Maybe it's because I never saw girls like that when I lived in Buffalo. Santino was really good tonight, but like Wade, I can do without making a DUI part of a storyline. Not good. I am enjoying the HBK, Jericho, Batista angle, and tonight I was not bummed about seeing the same four guys in the main event. The crowd made it exciting and the heels got the upper hand. How about that Kennedy? I never thought I would enjoy a guy who says his name twice, but his promos make me laugh with the well timed second "Kennedy!" Good match with Regal. Good night of wrestling, I just wish they would not stack the pay-per-views on top of each other. It's too much!
Dan Strauss of Goodhue, Minn. (8.0): Best match: Y2J vs. Batista. Worst Match: The idea to run the same Jimmy Kimmel segment twice. I thought Raw put on a good show tonight. Maybe they should advertise a huge matchup like a "loser gets fired" match beforehand, but the flip side of that argument is that it rewards those that do turn in and makes it feel like you have to see every minute to catch it all. I don't know who the next Raw G.M. will be but they won't be near as effective as Regal, who will be missed on TV. Good job by WWE to keep Vince's appearance to a minimum, to give the feeling that he's still "gone." Right now Kennedy and Jeff Hardy are like lightning in a bottle for WWE in that they're so over right now that it would be hard to screw it up because they're so popular. Still, they need to be careful not to ruin it. Jeff Hardy has got to get the loudest crowd reactions and I feel after Extreme Judgement Day (ONS is basically same PPV as Sunday, just extreme) Hardy needs to be facing someone for a world title somewhere. Aside from Hardy, Chris Jericho deserves a raise for being one of the most talented wrestlers in the biz today. In the last six months the most exciting matches that I can think of are Jericho vs. HBK, Jericho vs. Jeff Hardy, Jericho vs. Batista, and the MITB. His charisma is what's built his reputation but his in-ring skills are why I like the guy. Funniest segments of the night, for the wrong reasons, were the "extreme" match stipulation announcements. When a stretcher match was announced for Shawn Michaels and a first blood and LMS championship match later, they got no crowd reaction, probably because the next PPV is 13 friggin' days away. I know PPVs are where WWE makes a lot of its money, but they are hurting their television because of it. No titles are defended or changed on TV anymore. They used to have IC or tag titles swap hands occasionally on Raw, even the WWE Championship once or twice a year. I think that's part of the reason the "attitude era" got higher ratings, because people would legitimately lose their titles on live TV.
Wayne Maye of Richmond, Va. (7.5): Best match: Chris Jericho vs. Batista. Worst Match: Beth Phoenix vs. Maria, respectively. Well, coming off of a good Judgment Day, the WWE now starts the build to One Night Stand in two weeks, which I will touch on in a bit. Jeff Hardy vs. Umaga was okay for what it was, but I'am tired of seeing this match. While I didn't like the double countout finish, once Regal made they're made a Falls Count Anywhere match for ONS, I was a little more forgiving. The Vince-Regal-Kennedy segment was good, but nothing too memorable. Not surprising to hear the comments made about money and ratings. Maria vs. Beth Phoenix was not bad, but not good either. I knew Maria didn't have a chance in this match, and with the post-match activities between Melina and Beth, am I beginning to sense a turnaround in the Women's Division or is it just me? We'll have to see. Jericho vs. Batista was the match of the night, almost PPV quality in a way. I thought they were going to do a cop out finish resulting in a three way match at ONS, but that didn't happen. I would rather see any other stipulation for HBK vs. Batista other than a stretcher match, but either way that match should be good. HBK, Jericho, and Batista storyline has been some of the most entertaining segments on WWE TV since WrestleMania. The Piper's Pit segment was hilarious. Even this segment had my wife laughing. I hope that they seriously DO NOT put Cousin Sal in a match. Kennedy vs. Regal was good, nothing more, with an ok finish. I'm curious to see where they will be going with Regal and the GM role (Teddy???). The main event tag match was another decent match, but not the possible tag team match of the year that J.R. was hyping it up to be. The finish was somewhat predictable, with Orton and JBL winning to have their rematches. Overall, Raw was a decent show, but nothing too exciting. With ONS in two weeks, they unfortunately have limited time to come up with a true buildup to the show considering the time in between PPVs. I'm a WWE loyalist first and foremost, but honestly I think this show will have the lowest buyrate of any WWE PPV in 2008. After this year's show, I really think that they should drop ONS (and Cyber Sunday also) from the PPV lineup. Either way, they still earn my big bucks!
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