-- 6/22 WWE Raw Reax

Terrie Neilson of Las Vegas, Nev. (5.0) Best: Cena-Miz promo; Smackdown Six-Man. Worst: Do I need to name it? While there no technical commercials, there was enough product placement included to account for a full two-hour show. This episode was a case for putting the commercials back in. If it wasn't for the refund, I'm sure the crowd would have sat on their hands for much of this show. By show's end, it's obvious that Miz will lose to Cena on Sunday, but he got in one last good promo before then. That countdown clock to Last Man Standing was nice to let people know how much time they have to skip something if they don't want to see it. There was a Smackdown match on Raw...why? There was a teaser for misbehavior by Punk with the belt, but still why wasn't this match on Smackdown? Is there just no one left on the roster that isn't accounted for by DL or LOA? I could name a few guys who were MIA (Kofi, MVP, Matt Hardy, Noble, Kendrick, and Regal for starters). The Santina storyline gets about the only end there is to give: just being fired. Pretty decent looking editing job to put Santino into the picture; definitely better than the Jericho promo editing. Trump took his buyback too easy. Why do I get the feeling that, despite appearances, that the whole McMahon-Trump saga isn't over yet? The buyback happened because the jig was up, but that hardly means the storyline is over. The Last Man Standing match was good, but I saw a double-down finish before the show. How else are they going to carry over into Sunday? Applying Reverse Wrestling Psychology to this episode (and no spoilers), Orton retains (Triple H got in the last shot), but Rhodes and DiBiase won't fulfill the Legacy goal. Unless Rey is leaving or retiring, he wins gold and keeps the mask. After the whole Batista debacle, with Jeff's contract situation up in the air, Punk retains. Miz and Michelle got (so far) in the parting shots, so Cena and Melina will win. About the only one still open to discussion is the ECW Scramble, and we'll see what that will mean on Tuesday. Anything so I can stop rolling my eyes.

-- 6/23 ECW TV Reax

Terrie Neilson of Las Vegas, Nev. (8.0): Best: Swagger/Henry vs. Dreamer/Christian. Worst: Raw Replays. Last chance for ECW, and they're pretty much ready to go. What coulda been for Kidd-Bourne. To have the match they could have had to really turn up the crowd needed way more than a few minutes and a no-sell of Henry's multiple World's Strongest Slams. It's not as if WWE hasn't killed punishment credibility before (see: Jericho, Chris, Unforgiven 2008). Kidd-Bourne could have also benefited from not replaying the Raw video packages. I could deal SOMEWHAT with the Orton-Hunter deja vu as that is relevant to the PPV. But if the McMahon-Trump storyline stopped before it started (and won't continue), then what was the point of making a big deal out of a anti-climactic buyback? Helms returning as Hurricane? He's been gone a while and he is PG-friendly, so he should get a good welcome. Hopefully he won't get stopped again on a comeback. Henry standing tall in the main event pretty much eliminates him from winning the Scramble, just like last time. Striker using his usually heelish Classroom segment to explain the Scramble match was a good idea. I'm torn about Striker using older references. To give the impression that WWE is current, it should come from their commentators. However, Striker's commentary gimmick from Day One is one of being well-educated and well-researched. Dare I say he's a nerd or a geek. Is there anyone in current pop culture (within last five years) that could equate credibly to Mark Henry? I really don't think so. Josh is perfectly fine as commentary partner, but need to lay off the "out of touch" comments unless he can counter with something more current.

We welcome your 0-10 score and comments on these shows for a "TV 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 and ECW, click here.

We suggest these recent related articles...

WWE NEWS: Superstars SPOILERS - Results from Chicago Raw

WWE NETWORK: Monday, Oct. 12 Schedule - Raw pre-show, Sting DVD preview

WWE NEWS: Lana & Rusev reportedly engaged - follow the interesting 2015 timeline