WWE Raw Hits

The Nexus vs. John Cena, Randy Orton, Sheamus, Edge, and Chris Jericho: An entertaining match that helped make Nexus look better than they did coming out of SummerSlam. Granted, they struggled to beat three men (Jericho and Edge don't really count given the way they left), but at least they went over. Unfortunately, this doesn't change the fact that the faction lost a lot of its mystique by losing that SummerSlam match. Heading into SummerSlam, they were portrayed as an unbeatable force. SummerSlam showed that they are not unbeatable, and thus it's impossible to restore that unbeatable vibe.

Chris Jericho says he'll leave WWE if he loses at Night of Champions: A very interesting development that plays on the widespread net story that Jericho's contract expires soon. I like it because it also caters to the casual fans who have no idea what his contractual status is. I got a kick out of Josh Matthews pointing out that Jericho has lost countless loser leaves Raw matches only to return. The serious tone Jericho took in responding to that question made it seem like he's serious about this particular stipulation, but it would be wise to have the anonymous general manager reenforce it sometime between now and Night of Champions.

900 Episodes: It's milestone moments like these that make a person stop and realize how much WWE has accomplished and grown over the years. They've provided us with plenty of things to criticize over the years, but it really is astonishing to think of how far this company has come since the territory expansion and even since Raw was launched. I must say, though, that the repeated mentions of 900 episodes and

Kane and Undertaker: There was something about seeing Kane cut a live promo on Raw rather than on the pre-taped Smackdown television show that caught my attention. The lights going on and off repeatedly got old, but it was also special to see Undertaker's appearance on the Monday night show. Did you notice the reaction the anonymous general manager's email chime received? There were some cheers and a lot of boos, but the point is that people were reacting. Even the boos didn't strike me as go away heat.

The Miz and Alex Riley vs. Kofi Kingston and Michael McGillicutty vs. Daniel Bryan and Kaval: A short match, yet fun while it lasted.

Jack Swagger vs. Evan Bourne: It's a shame that they aren't doing more with Bourne, and a case could be made for giving the match a miss based on that alone. However, I like the way they reintroduced Swagger to the Raw audience by having him acknowledge his World Hvt. Championship win since he left the brand, and then put him over decisively.

Overall show: A minor hit. I was hoping for something more memorable. I enjoyed the stroll down memory lane, but he didn't get enough of it. We got way too many modern video clips. I was also annoyed by the lack of wrestling on this show. There was way too much talking, and the Chris Jericho tease of leaving WWE was the only thing that made me want to see the Night of Champions pay-per-view. One of the things I enjoyed most about the show was the inclusion of all the Smackdown talent. Here's hoping WWE does a better job of making the Friday night show seem important now that it's moving to a Universal owned network on Oct. 1.

WWE Raw Misses

C.M. Punk and Big Show: I enjoyed Punk's performance on the mic, but name one other PG television show that will have a character point viewers to Youtube to see footage of a necrophilia angle. It was fun to see WWE have fun with it's odd history, but I never want to hear them mention the name Katie Vick again. Meanwhile, I was ready for some action by the time Big Show came out to do his Hulk Hogan impersonation. The talking just seemed to go on forever. I also didn't care for the Steve Austin tease coming on the heels of mentioning The Rock, as it just reminded viewers that WWE didn't go out of their way to bring in anyone for a special appearance on a milestone show.

Bret Hart vs. Undertaker tease: This did nothing for me and I didn't get the sense that the casual viewers in attendance were marking out in expectation of seeing that match. Don't get me wrong, this was a mega-match back in the day and it still would be if Hart were physically able to wrestle. The casual fans may not know all the details regarding Hart's medical status, but I think it's obvious to them that something is up. By the way, is Bret stuck in a different dimension now that he disappeared?

LayCool: The wannabe Beautiful People don't get heat. Rather, they seem to just plain annoy people. No, not in a "I want to see that guy get his ass kicked" way like Miz and Chris Jericho have done over the years. This is more of a "Where's my remote control" level of annoyance. I pray that unifying the women's titles doesn't mean we're going to be stuck watching LayCool on both shows.

Alberto Del Rio: The jury is still out on whether the character will be successful. He certainly has charisma and there is a lot of potential, but I hated the way he was introduced to the Raw audience. He's a JBL clone in terms of entrance and wealth. The difference is that the WWE audience had been exposed to JBL for years before he became the rich guy. He had in-ring credibility. Del Rio was portrayed as a rich guy, yet they never bothered to explain why viewers should take him seriously as an in-ring talent. I enjoyed the vignettes, but the Raw debut of the character left a lot to be desired.

R-Truth and John Morrison vs. Cody Rhodes and Drew McIntyre: It was nice to see the Smackdown talent appear on the show, but this was just a pointless match that I don't expect to lead to anything. Total time filler.

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