-- 9/28 WWE Raw Reax

Luke Fleeman of Tulare, Calif. (5.0): Best match: Show/Jericho vs. MVP/Mark Henry. Worst Match: Hornswoggle debacle. This was a solid show tainted by moments of ludicrous unnecessary garbage. Sharpton was handled well, and there was no segment where his cause was belittled, and they did a good job making him important without lampooning his cause. The opening tag title match was solid, and while slow, it told good story and ended nicely. The mediocre, pointless Divas match and the stupid Santino segment led into the equally stupid and pointless Hornswoggle match. The main event was handled well with the heel tag champs doing what made sense. It seemed to be well-booked until the cell inexplicably lowered at Cena's command and then he completely
ignored two world champion's worth of damage. Then he did one move on
Orton, which finished him of somehow. Raw can't help but screw up the
nights it has something good going.

Justin James of Columbia, S.C., IT professional/author (3.0): Best Match: Bourne-Swagger. Worst Match: Cena-Orton. This show was just plain boring. The opening segment didn't feel right. Since when does Chris Jericho make nice with the guest hosts? While I can understand why many in the audience were booing Al Sharpton, the man, it is a shame that it came off that they were booing Al Sharpton's specific message of education reform, which is a worthwhile effort. Before I watched tonight, I had a hope that Sharpton would reward Beth Phoenix and MVP's pro-reading efforts with title matches; I was half-right. Unfortunately, what I was hoping to see was MVP take the title off Orton and/or Cena and really shake up the WWE Championship scene. Instead, we got another MVP/Henry-Jericho/Big Show tag match. That match dragged a bit, but the last few minutes really shone. The actual Hell in a Cell tag championship match screams "random booking." What has either Batista or Rey Mysterio done to deserve a shot at the titles? It's a repeat of the Undertaker situation going after the World Title where "past deeds" seem to equate to a title shot. The Bourne-Swagger match was very well done in the limited time that was available. The post-match promos were very well executed. Swagger's powerbomb from the huracanrana position showed once again the sheer brute strength of Swagger. I loved Bourne-Swagger matches on ECW, and I hope to see more of them on Raw. I really want to see Miz and Swagger reconcile and team up for good; they make a good pair both in the ring and on the mic. The DX-Legacy bit was sheer misery. DiBiase and Rhodes are really finding their comfort zones with the promos, but their promo was stale. We've heard it too many times already. But, sad to say, at least they showed that they respected their opponents as opponents. DX totally curried not only Legacy, but the promo itself. Did I really hear a 40-year-old man make a roundabout trip to calling another grown man a "butthole" and then spend four minutes trying to make a Hulk comparison? I hope the DX-Legacy feud dies for good at HIAC. Better yet, I hope DX breaks up for good. Did I see a Chavo face turn combined with an end to the feud with Hornswoggle? PLEASE, I hope so. The end match was really well done and booked, until the Cena-Orton finish. What a steaming pile of... First of all, the match started but never ended. What rules was it being fought under? HIAC? One fall? Second, while the SuperCena routine was okay, the coward Orton bit made zero sense. Cena was DEMOLISHED, so why did Orton run? And, here's the kicker: the last time we saw a Raw wrestler summon the cage unexpectedly, it was Triple H vs. Orton. Except it was a huge deal and there was the mystery of how he got the authority to do it, which was cleared up by the return of Stephanie McMahon. So, how did Cena get the cage to come down? More Gillette ads with Vince? I thought Al Sharpton was well used, but I think he was really out of his element. The hostile crowd did not help either. The look of relief as he walked off the stage at the end of the opening segment said it all.

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