-- 12/14 WWE Raw Reax

Paul Lucas of Tallassee, Ala. (1.0): Best Match: Legacy vs. Bourne/Kingston. Worst Match: Take your pick. In last week's Raw Reax, I pointed to an upward trend on Raw - emphasis on new talent, a focused approach to a PPV - and then we get this, utter, utter mess. Let's begin with our esteemed guest host, Dennis Miller, who I actually found mildly amusing in his opening rant, despite not agreeing with anything he said. Once the audience didn't react, he turned into a condescending jackass. A tournament for Superstar of the Year is laughable in its own right, but the apparent burial of C.M. Punk was nothing short of mind-blowing. As for the finals of Orton vs. Cena - seriously, didn't we settle this three-year feud two months ago and now they're at it again? Terrible. Sheamus was a complete after-thought, meanwhile. He was given only a brief promo in the opening hour when a large chunk of the audience wouldn't have been watching. Instead, the focus was firmly on John Cena and his quest to remain undefeated until he regains the championship. I think I just threw up in my mouth a little. Elsewhere, we had the continued fall of Kofi Kingston. Despite a good showing against Orton at TLC, he lost for a second successive night and now has zero momentum. The divas match was a complete joke, as was the winner of Diva of the Year. I realize a popular vote ruled out the rightful winner, Maryse, but seriously Maria over Mickie or Melina? Then, there was The Great Khali returning to team with the guy that put him on the injured list, Carlito becoming the new Chavo Guerrero, DX being obnoxious and the tease for Little People Court, and six matches lasting three minutes or less. The only reason this show gets a 1.0 is for the tease of Bret Hart - otherwise it would have had no redeemable features whatsoever.

Jarel Barnes of Norfolk, Va. (1.0): Best Match: Cena vs. Orton. Worst Match: Dennis Miller and the Whole Raw. Dennis Miller's constant verbal assault of dry humorless jokes killed the crowd throughout the night and I felt the presentation of the Slammys was poorly done. The one spot with Carlito attacking Matt Hardy could have been good, but WWE managed to ruin that as well by having Chris Masteroids make Carlito look extremely weak. I do admit Chris Jericho being screwed over was funny in how it was done, but having every upper mid-card wrestler dress up in corny DX outfits just made it distasteful. Hulk Hogan said it best when he said recently WWE is controlled by writers that know nothing about the wrestling business. The Divas match was pathetic and unnecessary. They have too much talent with Mickie James, Maryse, Beth, and Natalya to play Cinderella in the ring. Good or bad, I am a fan of wrestling and it's supposed to be entertaining, but this is something WWE failed at. Sheamus needs to wear regular clothes when he's not wrestling because he looks like a half-shaven albino dog and he sounded horrible on the mic. Raw was horrible in every way possible. Let's not forget Mark Henry thrown in that barely-there six-man tag match. Tthis smells of Vince Russo's undoing and the guy is already making a hot mess in Orlando for TNA. Bring on Hollywood Hogan.

Lee Beatty of St. Louis, Mo.: Something happened to me last night that has never happened in all of my years of watching wrestling (sports entertainment). I turned on USA Network, the show started, and I got as far as Dennis Miller hosting. After two minutes of his (usually funny) monologue, I fell asleep. I woke up around 2:00 a.m., totally missing the show. That, in a nutshell, should describe what's been happening to me with these guest hosts. With the exception of Jesse Ventura, only one or two have been "mildly entertaining." The rest, like Mr. Miller, tend to be so boring that they put the audience to sleep. TNA must surely be licking their chops right about now, and certainly after last night. Oh, where have you gone, Bobby Heenan, Gorilla Monsoon, Mean Gene, and Jesse Ventura? WWE could sure use you about now.

We welcome your 0-10 score and comments on this show for a "WWE 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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