WWE Raw on the USA Network
Live from New York, N.Y. at Madison Square Garden

[Q1] The show opened with a shot of Roddy Piper sitting backstage in front of the Piper's Pit set. He introduced himself and said that he and Piper's Pit are back. He introduced actor Luis Guzman, and hyped his movie. Piper also introduced "The Iron Chef." However, the Iron Sheik was helped into the other chair by the Bella Twins.

Guzman brought up Hulk Hogan. Sheik went ballistic and held up an old school Iron Sheik action figure and used it to beat up a Hogan action figure. Piper and Guzman delivered a "Live from New York it's Monday Night Raw" line... The new Raw opening montage aired...

Michael Cole and Jerry Lawler introduced the show and hyped the main event three-way tag match. They cut to the ring for the first match...

Powell's POV: They have a smaller set in play for this show, as our correspondent Agahzi noted from the building. I'm not sure why they went with the scaled back look or if it's permanent. If nothing else, it's a fun change for one night.

The Miz came out first and ripped on the New York fans. He said the Yankees didn't earn their World Series title. Rather, he said they bought it. He said that's why people hate New Yorkers and their sports franchises. A "Let's go Yankees" chant broke out. Miz said he didn't buy the U.S. Title, he earned it.

Powell's POV: Miz is a heel in New York right now, but the rest of the country agrees.

1. The Miz beat MVP to retain the United States Title in 3:45. MVP came out wearing a Yankees hat, which he gave to Sherri Shepherd ("The View"), who was seated at ringside. She squealed like a giddy schoolgirl. In the end, Miz hit the Skull Crushing Finale and scored the clean pin. Shepherd wasn't happy...

Powell's POV: Just when you thought we'd seen the last of MVP and Sherri, she shows up on Raw. It's nice to see Miz get a clean win. Of course, he still needs to beat a main eventer to smash through the glass ceiling at some point.

The announcers hyped Melina vs. Alicia Fox... [C]

[Q2] Highlights aired from the hijinx with Ricky Hatton from last week...

2. Santino Marella pinned Chavo Guerrero in 2:45. Santino came out wearing a Rangers jersey. He took it off to reveal a Knicks jersey. He removed that to reveal a Jets jersey. The crowd booed. He took that off and revealed a Mets jersey. More boos. He took that off and had a Phillies jersey underneath. More boos. Finally, he took that off to reveal a Yankees jersey with Derek Jeter's name and number on the back. The crowd cheered.

Chavo controlled the limited action. He went up top for his finisher, but Santino rolled around to avoid it. Hornswoggle came out wearing DX gear and chopped at Chavo, who ran after him. Santino grabbed Chavo from behind, rolled him up, and scored the pin.

After the match, the DX music played to a huge pop. Triple H and Shawn Michaels came to the ring. Cole said 20,538 fans were on their feet. Huge pop from the live crowd. Hunter hyped the fact that they were in the most famous arena in the world. "The DX Army is in the house," Hunter said.

Triple H said they wanted to come out, have some fun, embarrass a few people, and sell some merchandise. "But it's not going to happen," Hunter said. Shawn took the mic and said it was true. He held up the DX book and delivered the cheap plug. They actually plugged that there's a bookstore outside the building where the MSG fans could buy one. Shawn threw the book to Sherri Shepherd.

Hunter turned the attention to the Triple Threat match at Survivor Series. He recalled John Cena saying that DX would implode. He claimed he didn't even know what implode meant, but he said he and Shawn were on the same page. Hunter said it doesn't matter who wins the title, as long as it comes home to DX.

Shawn said he and Hunter will compete against one another at Survivor Series, but no one can tear them apart. He quickly turned the attention to Hornswoggle, because he's apparently more important than the pay-per-view. Hunter noted that Horny was in the building wearing their gear.

Hunter said it's America and everyone, including little people, can live their dreams. They called out Horny and said they would consider letting him be part of the group. Hornswoggle emerged wearing his DX gear. He entered the ring and spazzed out while performing crotch chops and other Hunter and Shawn mannerisms.

[Q3] Hunter said that before Horny could get in, he had to know if he was ready. Hunter turned it to New York and asked if they're ready. He dedicated the "Suck It" routine to Horny. However, Hunter stopped short and kicked Hornswoggle in the gut. He put him in Pedigree position and looked to the crowd. He eventually performed the Pedigree on Horny. Shawn picked up the mic and did the "If you're not down with that" routine. They brought out a DX stretcher and hauled Horny to the back... [C]

Powell's POV: Cole said Horny had been acting like "a petulant kid" and essentially endorsed Hunter's actions. Strange segment. The live crowd was hot for everything DX did, but I don't think they knew how to react to the Pedigree. Basically, they built up Horny as the kiddy hero only to have the most popular duo destroy him. I'm all for Horny going away for a while, but that was just plain odd. Are they trying to give DX more of an edge?

After the break, the announcers recapped the previous segment. Cole said it was "another classic Madison Square Garden moment, this time provided by DX." They set up a video that chronicled WWE's history at MSG...

Powell's POV: Cool video that featured plenty of past stars including Hulk Hogan, Randy Savage, Elizabeth, Bret Hart, Steve Austin, Brock Lesnar, Goldberg, and the stars of today. By the way, thanks to all the readers who pointed out that WWE usually uses a smaller set at MSG.

Cole hyped the main event... Backstage, Piper was messing around with coconuts and a fire extinguisher when Chris Jericho entered the room. Jericho complained about not getting respect from the guest hosts. Piper blew his nose. He called in Chris Masters, who did the pectoral flexing to a Black Eyed Peas song. The celebrity whore Bella Twins entered the room and fell all over Masters because they were so impressed by his pectoral routine...

A shot aired of two members of the Black Eyed Peas sitting in the crowd... [C]

Powell's POV: Man, the Bella Twins are easy (at least on TV).

[Q4] A graphic touted the success of the European tour...

Justin Roberts introduced Judah Friedlander of "30 Rock" as the special guest ring announcer. He was introduced as the greatest athlete in the world. He introduced the Divas match.

Alicia told the ring announcer to introduce her as the next champion. Friedlander said he came to watch Melina's entrance and to announce that it would be a Lumberjill match. Divas from Raw and Smackdown came out in street clothes and surrounded the ring. Cole pointed out that all the Divas involved in the match would compete in the Survivor Series match.

Powell's POV: I don't watch 30 Rock, so I have no idea if this was cool or not. Based on the live crowd's reaction, some people liked it, but the majority of the fans didn't seem to care.

3. Melina pinned Alicia Fox in a lumberjill match to retain WWE Divas Championship in 1:35. After Melina scored the clean pin, the other Divas entered the ring for a quick brawl. The babyfaces cleared the heels from the ring and celebrated with the guest ring announcer... [C]

Powell's POV: Throwaway segment. The brawl was short, predictable, and forgettable.

Cole plugged the WWE website... Cole hyped that WWE and USA Network have extended their contract through 2014. Lawler said WWE and USA Network are the greatest tag team of all time, even better than him and Cole. Sigh...

Ring announcer Justin Roberts introduced Roddy Piper. Cole pointed out that Piper took part in the original WrestleMania event at MSG with Paul Orndorff vs. Hulk Hogan and Mr. T. Piper came to the ring to a nice ovation.

[Q5] Piper said he made his career out of not being so nice. He said only New Yorkers would put up with that. He said he's had some embarrassing moments over the years. He said he embarrassed Cyndi Lauper, but said she did a good job of embarrassing herself with the song "She Bops."

Piper mentioned legends Captain Lou Albano, Hulk Hogan, Andre The Giant, and Bruno Sammartino. "If you mess with Hot Rod, you're either going to be bald or dead," Piper said. "I went there because they know I love them. I love them all. Mostly the dead ones, not so much the bald ones. I'm the reason Hulk Hogan has no hair."

Roddy said he's done some unspeakable things at MSG. "And I loved every minute of it," Piper said. He added that he has one more "dirty, rotten thing to do" before he checks out. "I want one more match with Vincent Kennedy McMahon," Piper said. He said he knows that Vince is a big fan of his. Piper said that when he did "Real Sports with Bryant Gumbell," Vince was watching. He said he knows because Vince fired him right in MSG.

Vince McMahon's music played and he came to the ring in a Vince-only black and white pinstriped suit. Vince received a big pop from the live crowd. "Nice dye job on the hair there, Hot Rod," Vince said while pointing out the obvious. Vince said Piper has done some horrible things at the Garden, but he worst was showing up tonight.

Vince said Mother Nature hasn't been so kind to Roddy. Vince said some things haven't changed. He said Roddy still has toothpick arms and a catcher's mitt face. He said the only thing that hasn't dried up and withered away was the kilt. Vince said his own father and grandfather would be ashamed of him if he beat up Piper.

Roddy mocked Vince's suit and said it matches the gray in Vince's hair. "At least my hair's not dyed," Vince responded. He referred to Piper as "Father Time." Vince said people always say they hope they can look as good as him at his age. "I always say, 'Son, you don't look as good as me now.'"

Vince said he looks better than guys like The Rock, Triple H, Shawn Michaels, Triple H, Undertaker, and Steve Austin. "And I've beaten them all," Vince said. He said that unless there's better competition in his future, he's officially retired from ring action.

Piper got serious. He said he was done playing games with Vince. He said retired was another word for coward. Piper said he doesn't want his match with Vince at a pay-per-view or WrestleMania. "I want to see if you have the guts to come down here tonight," Piper said. He said he'd be in the ring later and wanted to retire Vince for good.

Vince made faces with the microphones as Piper left the ring. Vince started to speak again, but he was cut off by a graphic for the main event... [C] An ad hyped Jesse Ventura as the special guest of the three-hour "Raw Thanksgiving" show for next Monday...

Powell's POV: We didn't get good Roddy this time around. He rambled a bit and seemed to be the only person laughing at a few of his comments. Vince delivered the better jabs, and suck ass Cole was sure to laugh out loud at all of Vince's cracks. By the way, did you know there's a pay-per-view on Sunday?

The ECW main event is Hurricane vs. Paul Burchill...

[Q6] A graphic questioned whether Vince McMahon would accept Piper's challenge for later in the show...

Sheamus came to the ring and said he's been on Raw for four weeks, and has already put one man out of the business. He issued an open challenge to anyone who was willing to face him. No one came out right away, so Sheamus went to ringside and grabbed one of the production workers. He asked the man if he had a problem with him and then kneed him in the gut. He slid the man over the announcers' table and into the guardrail.

Jerry Lawler stood up and took his headset off. Sheamus kicked Lawler in the head and left him lying on the floor next to the other man. Sheamus headed backstage as three referees, a trainer, and Cole checked on Lawler and the production crew member. The trainer helped walk Lawler backstage as the live crowd chanted "Jerry"... [C]

Powell's POV: Sheamus had a chance to take out Cole and he passed? He's dead to me. Am I the only person who thinks this makes every wrestler in the back look like a total pussy for not accepting the challenge or at least run out to make the save? Again, there's a pay-per-view on Sunday. Just making sure you knew because WWE isn't doing much to sell their own show.

After the break, Striker was seated at ringside with Cole, who was using the somber voice as he recalled Sheamus's attack. He said Striker lives in New York City and happened to be at the show. Cole broke out of the somber voice as they ran through the Survivor Series lineup...

Ring introductions for the Jack Swagger vs. Evan Bourne match took place... [C]

[Q7] 4. Jack Swagger pinned Evan Bourne. The match was joined in progress. Swagger was in control after the break. After two minutes of television time, Swagger hit his gut-wrench powerbomb finisher and scored the clean pin...

A shot aired of Piper walking backstage as the announcers questioned whether Mr. McMahon would accept his challenge... [C]

Powell's POV: Even if you're enjoying tonight's show, you'd have a difficult time coming up with anything about tonight's show that made you want to order the pay-per-view on Sunday.

Piper was in the ring after the break. Cole reminded viewers that this was not an official match. He said Piper challenged Vince to a street fight. Vince didn't come out right away. Piper took a mic from ringside. Before he could speak, Randy Orton's music played. Orton came to the ring with a mic in hand.

"I don't know if McMahon is coming out here or not, but you've got a big problem because I'm here," Orton said. Randy said that if Piper is looking for a fight, "Well..." Orton kicked Piper in the gut. Striker questioned whether the relationship between his father and Piper had anything to do with it. Cole disputed that by saying Orton has been obsessed since losing at the last pay-per-view.

Piper took a shot at Randy, but Orton knocked him down with repeated shots. Orton backed up and was about to hit the punt kick. He stopped for no reason. Kofi Kingston's music played (someone missed the cue) and he came to the ring and fought Orton. Kofi dominated the brawl and threw Orton over the guardrail at ringside.

Orton made his comeback by slamming Kofi's head on a chair. Orton took Kofi back inside the ring and continued the assault. Orton backed into the corner for the punt kick, but Kofi jumped up at the last second and took Orton down. Kofi hit Orton with a flurry of punches and they fought back to ringside.

[Q8] They fought near the production area and several referees ran out to separate them. Randy broke free and delivered a few more shots. Kofi got up and took a running leap onto Randy to fire a few more punches of his own. They fought behind the production area and into the stands. Kofi knocked Orton into the production area, where he picked up an equipment case and slammed it over Randy's head.

Kofi placed Orton onto a table as the fans chanted his name. Kofi climbed onto the railing that was behind the production area and was about to jump onto Orton when two refs pulled him down and started to take him away. Kofi got away from the refs and hit a double leg drop (Boom Drop) onto Orton, driving him through the table. The referees pulled Kofi away as Orton was left lying in a heap...

Powell's POV: Randy must have a thing for the production area given that his Iron Man match with Cena, and this brawl ended up in that area. The MSG crowd got behind Kofi in a big way. Great brawl. The highlight of the show so far and it's not even close.

The announcers hyped the new Raw theme song by Nickelback...

Backstage, John Cena cut a promo. He said MSG was about to make history again via the main event. He referred to Big Show as "an overweight Telly Savalas." Wow, nice modern reference. Cena was hyping the Survivor Series main event as a handicap match when the production crew reminded him it was a Triple Threat match.

Cena acted surprised and then went on to say that he's ready for the match. He said he hopes Hunter and Cena remain friends because they'll need shoulders to cry on after he retains the WWE Championship... Chris Jericho and Big Show were introduced for the main event... [C]

[Overrun] DX came out. John Cena made his entrance. Undertaker was next. Fans chanted his name, as the druids came out and held up torches. Cole said it was the first time in almost a year that Taker was in action on Raw.

5. Undertaker and John Cena defeated Triple H and Shawn Michaels, and Chris Jericho and Big Show in a Triple Threat tag match in 7:15. The match started with Taker, Hunter, and Show. Taker had a staredown with Hunter. "Things do not look good," the apparently clairvoyant Cole said. Sure enough, Taker and Hunter doubled up on Show.

Once they got rid of Show, Taker and Hunter fought. Hunter hit a spinebuster on Taker and then tagged in Shawn, who had a determined look on his face. Cole said it was the first time that they were in the ring together since WrestleMania. They fought briefly, but Show broke it up.

A short time later, Taker had Jericho by the throat when Cena tagged himself into the match. Taker didn't look pleased. Later, Shawn and Jericho had a fun series with HBK hitting some of his signature spots (including an elbow drop) on Jericho. He went for Sweet Chin Music, but Cena cut him off.

At 6:45, the wrestlers took turns hitting their finishers. HBK hit his on Show, Jericho hit the Codebreaker on HBK, and Taker chokeslammed Jericho. Taker was cleared from the ring by Hunter, who walked into Cena's Attitude Adjustment. Cena covered Hunter and got the win. After the match, Taker entered the ring and hit the Tombstone on Cena. "Another Madison Square Garden moment," Cole said.

Powell's POV: A strong main event that provided plenty of big confrontational moments between the top stars (Taker vs. Shawn, Taker vs. Hunter, Cena vs. Hunter, etc.) without giving too much away. Oddly enough, it looked like they were setting up a match between Taker and Cena rather than the two title matches at Survivor Series. The show had it's moments, but none made me feel like Survivor Series is a can't miss event. Odd strategy by WWE. Thanks for watching along with me tonight. I'll have a lot more to say about the show in tonight's Dot Net Member exclusive audio review. See below for signup info.

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