-- WWE Raw Reax 8/6

Tony of Portland, Ore., student/worker (7.0): I enjoy C.M. Punk's work on the mic, and despite my reservations about the direction they're taking his character, at least they're drawing attention to the Champion being overshadowed when not in a program with John Cena. However, whether this turns into a greater realization on the part of the fans that the Champion deserves respect or if it
paints Punk as inadequate in comparison to some of the other wrestlers remains to be seen... Daniel Bryan has come a long way to discredit early assessments of being a "boring vanilla midget" - he owns that crowd... Ziggler-Jericho looks good, though I wish they had more time for a program... I missed Heath Slater this week and there was too much attention given to the fact that Sheamus stole Aburrido's car... The booking of Miz was objectionable, too.

Kevin, PWTorch reader (5.0): Best: Y2J and Dolph build-up. Worst: A.W.! I believe his his initials stand for Anyone Watching? Because when he's on, I'm channel-surfing! I thought most matches were pretty good, and I expected Show vs. Orton to be what it was since both stars are being pushed right now. I'm surprised by WWE going "Dave Batista" with C.M. Punk right now. He went from pipe bombs to whine bombs. I think it would of been more interesting to have Punk to stay face and have Cena snap over the MITB cash-in going bad. All in all, a better show than last week. And, finally, it looks like Triple H is never going to go away - he went from the End of an Era match to he just won't end! If we have to endure Lesnar again, I'd rather seen him face Randy Orton and see Randy try to bring back the legend killer persona.

Richard H. of Wilmington, Ohio: Best: Bryan-Cena (yes, I can't believe it either, a vote for Cena as best match). Worst: return of a very off Kelly Kelly, who could not seem to hit any of her moves right. And, downplaying Eve at this point when they are showcasing her as one of the Divas on the Summerslam commercial is mind-boggling... I still hate the over-run, which should be absolutely unnecessary since Raw went to three hours. The beginning talking heads bit has got to be given a rest. For an incredibly long time now, Creative has lazily used talking heads to start the show before being interrupted by the resident authority figure who almost always sets them up in matches - matches that have already been made and advertised to the arena sheep. Why bother tuning in for the first 15 minutes when all that happens is exposition? And, how many times are they going to replay the Trips-Brock replay package? ... Punk should not be upset at Cena, A.J., and Show for stealing his "spotlight" when Trips doesn't even wrestle and gets all the promotion. Ah well, at least Sandow gave Brodus a little dose of humility and saved us from yet another dancing dinosaur bit... Jericho, A.J., Bryan, and Punk continue to shine and should be given a bit more of a spotlight if WWE gets over their obsession with Cena and Show.

***

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 Grant Gould (c) PWTorch.com]

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