-- WWE Raw Reax 3/12

Minz in the U.K.: Generally, I thought Raw had a good balance of the old and new. It was good to finally see HBK, Triple H, Rock, and Taker all on one show again, as it reminded me of days gone by. However, it's pretty noticeable that Rock, in particular, was not in the same rich vain of form from days gone by and his awkwardness was on display again. Why keep laughing at your own jokes? I don't get it? And, the very last part was just plain out hard to watch. I'm also not a fan of the angle now being played out by Jericho and Punk. I was totally buying into their feud up until this week's Raw. As if Mania doesn't already present angles that have gotten personal, now this one, too? I just thought it wasn't necessary to go down this road as it just reminds me of the whole Jake Roberts-Jerry Lawler angle, which at times was hard to watch. I just hope Punk doesn't lose any of the momentum he's built up over the past year with this angle. Other than that, I thought it was a fairly good Raw show.

Jorge Lopez of Miami, Fla. (10.0): Best: Concert/Rap. Worst: None. Finally! A worthwhile two-hour-plus show. I thought throwback Cena killed it and The Rock came out strong. WWE is finally ready for WM28. The show was nicely designed and keep the attention of Attitude Era fans. The undercard is developing, Sheamus is moving to Beast-Mode, and even the Divas storyline of looking for a Mania match is developing well. So far, my WM predictions have come through somewhat. The GM match, which I thought would be an eight-man tag, has turned into a 12-man tag. Here is what I see developing - Long: Santino, Kofi, R-Truth, Khali, Ryder, and Evan Bourne (?). Laurinaitis: Otunga, Henry, Christian, Del Rio, Epico, and Primo. Therefore, I don't think the Tag Titles are defended, and if Santino keeps the U.S. Title, that will be two major titles not on the line. I think Miz will get involved somewhere on the card. The Divas WILL get a PPV match and hopefully it's Beth vs. Eve for more than two minutes. Eve is in the zone as a heel - good for her. 19 days remaining and WWE is tempting me more and more each week to shell out $60.

Michael Cardillo of L.I., N.Y. (5.0 - 3.0 for Taker-HBK, 1.0 for Daniel Bryan, 1.0 for the show). Lots of Rock scrutiny, but I think it's time to come to this conclusion - Cena has no-sold Rock into this, just as he has no-sold every opponent over the last eight years. I believe this is why there are no new stars, this is why PPV buys are down, this is why the state of the business is the way it is. Not because of PG, but because pushing Cena merchandise was more important than content and depth. Hardcore fans crucified Triple H in 2003 when he would do the same no-selling RVD and Booker T and the like, but that was on a roster deep with wrestling entertainers. There's no depth here. The only wrestler who has escaped this trap is C.M. Punk - this is due to a different set of circumstances and, right or wrong, a wrestler thinks Punk separated from Cena far too soon because they were afraid that Punk would still end up as just another victim. This build-up is so incredibly frustrating because the storyline is a pure reflection of how far the business has fallen. It's so bad that we're overly-scrutinizing the best entertainer WWE has seen in the last two decades. Is he pandering to the audience? Yes. Is he taking joy in entertaining? Yes? Was Cleveland sold out? Yes. Will I buy the pay-per-view? Not even with the chance of a Hell in the Cell triple threat between two semi-retired Superstars and a guest referee who has found a loophole to perform.

***

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.

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