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WWE Raw Reax #1: "Is it too much to ask that we get somebody NEW in the main event scene?" Jun 2, 2008 - 11:15:11 PM
Jon Jandavs of Winnipeg, Manitoba (2.0): Best Match: I didn't think any were overly great. Worst Match: Cade vs. Murdoch. The minute I saw Triple H come out to start the show I started wondering what all this talk is about changes coming to WWE, then to my surprise, oh so surprised, yes surprised John Cena walks out and starts babbling on about some crap. He mentioned THE FUTURE IS NOW. Well, am I the only one or do I think the WWE's two biggest problems right now are Triple H and Cena? Both have been main eventing for years now and ratings have done nothing but fall. Hey, Vince, a billion dollar giveaway won't even bring you ratings. Fix your show. It's a wrestling show without no wrestling. For all my life. I've been watching and I can now officially say that this is the worst I've seen it. That includes doink the clown, because at least then the wrestling was passable, now a days it's just repeat week after week with fat overweight old men like JBL or obvious juicers like Triple H or Lance Cade getting his 1000th push. It's just so pathetic. Even Santino wasn't very funny tonight. Vince McMahon needs to wake up and realize if he wants the people who used to watch his show to tune in, maybe make it watchable. Maybe have some wrestling, maybe don't push the same has-beens over and over.
Dan Strauss of Goodhue, Minn. (4.0): Best: Main Event. Worst: The money angle shoved down our throats. The opening segment with probably the three biggest babyfaces on Raw had potential, but seemed sort of flat. There were lengthy pauses in between exchanges, making it seem that they were unsure of who spoke where... Vinnie Mac's money giveaway segment was boring. I'm a big fan of Vince. He's done so many things right over the years, he even gets in the ring and takes bumps himself when it's necessary, but this giveaway angle is so friggin ridiculous. He did have one of the lines of the year when he questioned whether some of the citizenship of some Californians; I had to laugh at that one... Melina took some huge bumps in the women's match... I might sound like an idiot, but I'm all for a huge Tervor Murdoch push; the guy's hilarious... The Cena/Mickie James bit might seem stupid to some people, but I like this kind of storyline because it's something to follow and it takes a good wrestler and focuses his storyline on something other than the belt. I think this is something that's missing since the Attitude Era. Back then it just seemed like there were storylines for everyone, but there were lots of good, meaningful storylines not centered around a belt. Back then the Rock went from champion to wrestling in the "Rock 'n' Sock Connection." It took Rock away from the title so other feuds could develop, but it kept Rock in an important, developing storyline... The main event was great. The last sequence of rehearsals was well done. Funny to hear Jerry Lawler tell us that every fan was on their feet when we could clearly see that 95% of them were seated... My overall thoughts for the night are this: I don't always get all the brands in, but I haven't missed a Raw in quite some time. But even I am getting sick of the way things are going. WWE is just giving too little too late. Jericho's speech about not defending the IC Title often sounded like what I and thousands of others have written on the websites of Torch and others for months, so it seems fake now that all of a sudden he wants to defend a title best most wrestlers never even get to hold. We have seen our share of good TV matches lately. The quality wrestling matches are there, but the quality writing is not. It is frustrating to see these men and women come in sore as hell from a hardcore PPV, wrestle some quality matches, and have it thrown aside for some half-hearted storylines and a confusing, pointless giveaway.
Brian Jaffe of Iowa City, Iowa (6.0): Best Match: Hardy vs. Cena Worst Match: Cade vs. Murdoch. Raw was okay. A few quality TV matches. Santino is funny. Good diva action. Nice building of a few storylines. Let's get all that out of the way right now. I honestly can't write this reax in full, given how frustrated I am right now. Is it too much to ask that we get somebody NEW in the main event scene? I'm not taking anything away from Triple H and John Cena (although I'm not a big Cena fan), but honestly, how many months have we had either Orton, Cena, or Triple H in the maine vent? Every once in a great while, somebody will join them for a few seconds (Hardy and JBL), but those only happened on two occasions since January. It's no better on Smackdown, where Edge, Undertaker, and Batista constantly rotate for title shots (I love all three of them, but enough!) The only two times this year I have had the urge to order a WWE PPV is when Hardy was going to go for the title, and the brief moment where it seemed like Backlash would be Orton vs. JBL. (That changed mighty quickly when Triple H's music hit.) I remember a time when upper mid-carders would go after the belt on PPV... or (gasp) the title would be defended on TV! Sure, the title is defended on TV every once in a while, but it's becoming rarer and rarer to see. The WWE Draft coming up should be a nice breath of fresh air, but I have a feeling that if any of the Main Event Six (Orton, Cena, Triple H, Taker, Edge, Batista) switch brands, they'll just go straight into rotation for the belt. WWE needs to realize that giving away money on TV isn't going to help them in the long run. It's time to start having guys mix it up in the main event, even if it seems a bit early for them to be main eventing. I would LOVE to see someone like MVP, Kennedy, Matt Hardy, Umaga, or Finlay get a major title shot at the next PPV. And C.M. Punk has Money in the Bank, and I'm certainly hoping he doesn't cash it in on the ECW Title. I'm just so sick of seeing the same guys main event PPV after PPV after PPV. If WWE really wants to increase ratings, it's not about the moonnnnnnnnneyyyyy... it's about the wrestlers!
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.
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