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WWE Raw Reax #3: "Every Raw on the Road to WrestleMania should be at this level"

Jan 31, 2012 - 2:56:35 PM
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-- WWE Raw Reax 1/30

Joe Ward of Raleigh, N.C. (8.0): Best: Punk-Bryan. Worst: Reks losing so quickly. Wow. Punk and Brian - if WWE were to ever have a Title unification match, these are the two guys to do it. An Iron Man match between these two could be Match of the Decade. WWE has really cut back on the amount of Cena TV time - and that's a good thing - as other wrestlers are blooming with the extra time. I even enjoyed Beth squashing Eve - they need to build up Beth as the dominant Divas champion, especially with Kharma on the way back...
JerichoChrisSilouette_TB140_4.jpg
Jericho was picture-perfect and, to me, Jericho-Punk is way more compelling than anything else on the WrestleMania card. Even Cole and Lawler pointed out that it was Fresh, with no previous bad-blood between the two... Hunter and Laurinaitis was hard to watch. Hunter is just not likable with his smug and sadistic sense of humor, and I was hoping this would be the moment Laurinaitis would bust out an "Ace Crusher." Hunter made Big John sympathetic, and I have enjoyed his role much more than Hunter or Vince in that role. He's like a less-arrogant Bischoff. Undertaker's return was a nice, well-done surprise, but, honestly, a re-match between two guys who have wrestled a total of four matches the last year does nothing for me. Here's hoping Hunter uses his position to bring in someone (Brock Lesnar?) to end The Streak, rather than try again to do it himself.

Paul of Lansing, Mich., college student (9.0): Best Match: Punk vs. Bryan. Worst Match: The less-than-a-minute Divas match. This was the best Raw I've seen in a long time and it was definitely better put together than the Rumble was. The opening segment was fun, Daniel Bryan is getting better and better in his heelish role every week. And, Sheamus teasing which title he's going after was well-done (even though I think everyone assumes he's going after the World Heavyweight Title)... Orton vs. Ziggler was a good match, but it was obvious to me the Orton was going over... Say what you want about his gimmick, but Brodus is working his ass off to get it over, but he's got to start having more than just squash matches... Not much to say about Punk vs. Bryan other than they could easily headline a PPV, and the ending with Jericho was logical and well-done... Miz vs. Kofi was fine... I don't care about Cena vs. Kane, but it was fine tonight... I've grown to like Laurinaitis - he plays his role well and he gets good heat, so I bet he stays on TV one way or another. When Undertaker's music hit, I was not expecting that and it was really cool to see him. But, what struck me the most besides the wig was how old he looked. The more I think about it, the sadder it makes me, but I assume if he didn't think he could deliver a great match, he wouldn't come back. All together, this was a really good and fun edition of Raw.

Eric in Michigan (9.5): Best Match: All of them. Wow. Taker returns, Bryan and Punk have new feuds, and they even made a Brodus Clay squash entertaining.

Michael G. in Ottawa (9.5): Best Match: Punk vs. Bryan (****). Worst Match: Clay vs. Reks (*, just for Clay). This was one of the best Raws in a long time. This was the perfect way to begin the Road to WrestleMania. There were two great matches going over ten minutes in Orton-Ziggler (***1/4) and Punk-Bryan (****). There was also a nice five-minute match in Kingston-Miz (**1/2) and two squash matches with Clay-Reks and Phoenix-Eve... The opening segment was good setting the tone for the show, and I also enjoyed the Cena-Kane bit. I like aggressive Cena rather than the Cena that cuts promos and talks about how people should voice their opinion about booing or cheering him. Now, about the end of the show. I liked the segment, but I didn't LOVE it until the gong hit. I want to see where this program goes now, because it's not Triple H challenging Undertaker for a match at WrestleMania; it's Undertaker challenging Triple H for a match at WrestleMania. Hopefully, every Raw on the Road to WrestleMania can be at this level. Great show.

Richard H. of Wilmington, Ohio: Can we split the rating? The great match between Bryan and Punk was an eye-opener for a lot of the "WWE Universe." The crowd actually started slow, as they were not used to this type of action after years of sports entertainment, but, once they realized what they were witnessing, they ate it up. Later, Miz and Kofi tore it up and showed they could wrestle as well. So, definitely a Best Match for Punk-Bryan with honorable mention to Miz-Kofi. Worst had to be the arena audience, which could not recognize some outstanding talent and saved their biggest pop for another cliched, melodramatic, scenery-chewing performance by the brothers of brawling, Kane and Cena. As for the Big Johnny reveal, I popped along with everyone else when Taker's music hit. The way Trips and Taker reprised their wordless promo from last year was spine-tingling. Trips seemingly turning down the match (is he past all of his personal problems?) leaves Taker open to challenge for one of the World Titles at WM28 and retire as a champion... The Elimination Chamber main event featuring 6 under-sized wrestlers struck me as underwhelming. Where are the monsters that fit the profile of an enclosed, claustrophobic and potentially dangerous fight? I suppose they will be in the Smackdown version with Show, Henry, Swagger, Bryan, and two fillers, perhaps Khali?

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 or email us at pwtorch@gmail.com.

[Torch art credit Travis Beaven (c) PWTorch.com]


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