Read on for my thoughts on last night's Raw.
I liked the opening segment. I expected Punk to be WAY harsher on the Bearer situation given what he said about Lawler, but I didn't have any issues with the segment as it was.
I hope after Mania, Big Show either gets some time off or moves into a smaller role. There are a lot of talented people who aren't getting TV time because they keep going with the "safe" option of Show.
I liked the Kane segment, though I didn't see much of a reason for him to attack Riley. It makes sense for Kane to be pissed about Punk's comments.
I'm very glad that The Shield got the better of Show. I would have been pretty upset if three guys with such positive futures had to play second fiddle to Show. Ask the Straight Edge Society and Cody Rhodes what that does to your career.
I liked the segment with Vickie, Brad, and Punk. Logical stuff. It says something about how heelish you are when even Vickie and Brad are against you.
I liked the look back at Bearer's career.
Oh my God! Dolph Ziggler won a match! Is this real life? Seriously, though. Pretty good match. I think both guys are indicative of what a wrestler should be shooting for in 2013: hard working and hungry, giving their characters their all, etc..
Fine post-match, though I hope they don't make Bryan look too weak. I still hold onto my fantasy of him beating Kane clean at some point in the next few months to establish him as a main event threat.
The Fandango stuff continues to be weird, but I guess that's par for the course for a segment involving the former Johnny Curtis. I continue to be interested in how he'll do once he actually, you know, wrestles.
GOLDEN promo by Sandow. I'd like Sandow to be the guest ring announcer or commentator for a night.
Good promo by the NAO too. I think more matches need something pre-match to add some fire. Or better yet, some build from previous shows like this match had to build anticipation.
Smart booking. Neither team lost.
Applause from me for the Heyman/Lesnar segment. That was amazing. Lesnar doesn't make jokes or play to the crowd or try to slip in inside references to get over with the smart fans. He just shows up and wrecks people. Heyman's a pure heat magnet, too. They make a great pairing. As for NAO, it's fine that they got destroyed since they're basically backstage guys at this point.
Kofi vs. Henry wasn't bad. Kofi just got caught there instead of just being destroyed, so he's somewhat protected if they build him well from here.
I liked the Rhodes Scholars/Kaitlyn/Bellas segment. The Divas division could definitely use some recognizable, established performers at this point. I think the Bellas were doing some good stuff right before they split. If they can bring that kind of energy to their act more often, I think good things will come from their return.
I liked the Ryback/Henry segment. I know it didn't do any favors for 3MB but they've pretty much been established as comedy jobbers at this point. It's not like they could go much further down the card to begin with. I think 3MB has potential (as a group and individually), but the focus should be on Ryback and Mark Henry.
Del Rio's promo was good.
I liked Del Rio vs. Cesaro a good deal. I just wish they would have protected Cesaro better. Have him be distracted by Ricardo or something. Another example of being hot and cold with a talented superstar.
Nice Kane segment. Kane said more by not uttering a single word than some people say in a whole 15-minute promo.
I liked Sheamus/Orton vs. Rhodes Scholars. It didn't do much for Rhodes or Sandow but it kept momentum going for the faces going into Mania. Rhodes Scholars' loss could mean The Shield's gain. That said, I hope Rhodes Scholars could use some momentum in the future (winning the tag titles?).
Nice stuff over the commercial.
I mostly liked the Highlight Reel, but it wouldn't shock me if they threw that segment out there at the last minute based on the whole furniture issue.
I liked Jericho vs. Miz for what it was. I guess we're in for a Triple Threat? Barrett vs. Jericho at Mania would be nice. Or maybe a Fatal 4 Way with Kofi?
Solid Colter promo as always. He's actually trying to get heat. WWE's not using him to put over a movie that will barely make any money. Priorities, people.
Swagger vs. Sin Cara was fine for putting over Swagger, but Cara looked kind of weak. This would be like sending Cena to TNA and having him lose to Bobby Roode in 3 minutes.
Not crazy about the WWE Films segment. Remember when this company was about wrestlers wrestling?
I wasn't crazy about Punk losing to Kane, even distracted. This is a pivotal point in his career and he needs to look like he's in Taker's league. A win over Kane would have helped tremendously. They could have easily had Taker do mind games AFTER Punk won.
More wrestling coming up.
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