By Jason Powell

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WWE Raw Hits

Triple H and C.M. Punk: A strong back and forth exchange with a nice closing shot from Punk. It wasn't flawless by any means. They continue to tear each other down way too much for my taste, and I don't like the message that fan cheers determine who shines in WWE rather than wins or losses. Punk is a main eventer now, yet the verbal debate essentially required Hunter to essentially say that Punk is overrated. That said, the back and forth between the two was believable and captivating, and I like the idea of having the mics cut out repeatedly as it begs the question of who was responsible. The key to it for me was Punk hitting Hunter with the mic at the end of the segment. They didn't give away any real physicality between the two, yet it was good to see Punk deliver the shot heading into Sunday's pay-per-view.

The Miz and R-Truth: They are among the most entertaining acts on Raw. I have less of a problem with Truth clowning around now that he's in the tag team division, as the need for an edge is more necessary when he's a singles wrestler. They can get away with having some fun in a the supporting role as a tag team. Furthermore, they give the tag division more star power. They play extremely well off one another and their verbal segments have become a "must see" portion of Raw. I doubt they'll stay together long, but I'm enjoying it while it lasts.

Cody Rhodes vs. Randy Orton: A quality match and a rare win for anyone over Orton. Granted, Mark Henry was essentially responsible for Orton losing the match, but now Cody can gloat about it endlessly on Smackdown. It's perfect for his character. I just hope WWE doesn't feel the need to give Orton his win back right away. Rather, I'd like to see Cody gloat while ducking Orton for at least a few weeks.

Mark Henry: The rise of Henry as a monster heel has been a treat to watch. He's done an excellent job of portraying a dominant heel. After years of seeing him in lesser roles, it's amazing that he's been able to pull this off so quickly. Had someone told you six months ago that Henry was going to be challenging for a World Championship on pay-per-view, you probably would have rolled your eyes and viewed it as a missable match. However, creative has done an excellent job by having him take out various wrestlers, and Henry has worked hard in the ring and portrays his monster character extremely well.

Sheamus and Jerry Lawler vs. Michael McGillicutty and David Otunga: This was nothing more than a showcase match for Sheamus. I'm already bored by the dynamic between Lawler and the former tag champions, but WWE has done a good job of making Sheamus look like a babyface star during his recent appearances on Raw, and this was no exception.

WWE Raw Misses

Overall show: A minor miss. The show had its moments and closed strong, but WWE just didn't do enough to get me excited about Sunday's Night of Champions pay-per-view. That's the point of a go-home show, so while I may have been entertained more often than not, there's only so much praise I can give a go-home show that failed to sell me on the pay-per-view.

John Cena and Bret Hart vs. Alberto Del Rio and Ricardo Rodriguez: Bret returning to TV in Canada is a hit, but this match did not sell me on the pay-per-view (more on that below). WWE has to decide whether Ricardo is going to be the lovable ring announcer who just happens to be aligned with a heel or if he's an all out heel himself. They've never portrayed him as lovable, but there's clearly a segment of the viewing audience who sees him that way (myself included). If they're going to use him in this role more often, then they have to put heat on him, as I was actually feeling sympathy for his character as Cena and Hart worked him over. Obviously, that's not what WWE is going for. It can be easily corrected by having Ricardo interfere more often and showing more cockiness.

John Cena and Alberto Del Rio: WWE went from establishing Del Rio as an in-ring threat by having him win clean on television a few times coming out of the last pay-per-view to now portraying him as just another chickenshit heel champion. Perhaps I could live with it if we didn't see the company take a similar approach with so many of their top heels. Sure, they can make some money with Cena chasing the chicken champion, but I feel there's more money in establishing Del Rio as a strong heel champion and setting up a showdown match between him and Cena. By the way, the Mr. Rouke and Tattoo references have to stop. Sure, there are some similarities, but most members of the target demographic have no clue when it comes to this dated reference.

Kelly Kelly vs. Vickie Guerrero: We get it, Dolph Ziggler and Jack Swagger don't like each other. Can we just move on to the next chapter? Furthermore, I'd like to see WWE move Vickie into a more serious role so that the wrestler(s) she represents aren't overshadowed and treated like mid-card comedy acts. She draws tremendous heat, but that heat carries over to her wrestlers. They kept the match short, but I just don't see what purpose it served. I'd rather see Vickie used as a wrestler only when her character has done something heelish enough that the fans are clamoring to see her get what she has coming to her, not because the writers are trying to tell another triangle story.

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