By Jason Powell

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WWE Raw Hits

Brock Lesnar and John Cena brawl: The stiff punch from Lesnar made this more than just another pull apart brawl. Yet even if that hadn't happened, this felt like a hot angle because we don't see big brawls like this in WWE on a regular basis. They picked up where they left off last week by working the live crowd into a frenzy and making the Lesnar vs. Cena feud feel huge. Unfortunately, things spiraled out of control from there (see the Misses below for more). This was more than enough. WWE would have been wise to put this later in the show and stop there as far as Cena and Lesnar are concerned. Why not save Brock's first full length promo for a future episode rather than giving so much away in one night?

Alberto Del Rio vs. Zack Ryder: A minor hit. It was fine for what it was - a Del Rio showcase. The issue continues to be that Del Rio's character has to evolve. Nothing has changed about his character since he debuted. The sports car entrances lose their effect due to repetition, and he rarely says anything new on the mic. He feels a little fresher now, but I suspect that's only because he was sidelined by an injury. If creative doesn't find ways to shake things up, he'll be as flat as he felt prior to the injury in no time.

WWE Raw Misses

Brock Lesnar Week Two: We saw way too much of Lesnar last night. I hated the way he was tied to John Laurinaitis. WWE is preaching legitimacy while simultaneously hitching Lesnar to the wagon of the comedic heel general manager? I hated the way they flippantly announced his match with John Cena for Extreme Rules. WWE spent a year building to Rock vs. Cena, and while I didn't expect them to take the same approach with Lesnar, they failed miserably in terms of making this feel like a major happening. Brock's backstage promo had decent verbiage, yet felt like a guy reading a script, not the more genuine sounding Lesnar we heard in UFC. Um, what's Paul Heyman up to? Meanwhile, John Cena was back to smirking and acting like everything that happens to him is a joke. We just saw him take the same approach with The Rock for a full year. Would it be too much to ask for Cena's character to get angry, show intensity, and act like the situation calls for something more than the same tired smirk he would use if a mid-card heel was mocking him?

C.M. Punk and Chris Jericho: Good performances and intriguing subject matter, but the entire feud still feels so much flatter than it should. I'm sure the Chicago crowd will make their expected Extreme Rules match feel like the hottest thing in wrestling, but it doesn't seem like this will have much pay-per-view appeal. The wrestlers are playing their parts well, but the WWE Championship feels like a glorified version of the Intercontinental Title these days because it plays second fiddle to John Cena's big feuds. Furthermore, Jericho's character has yet to win a meaningful match since he returned and I don't believe viewers see him as a threat to win the championship. He needs that title and I hope WWE can breathe some new life into this program by putting it on him at Extreme Rules when people would least suspect it.

The Three Stooges: I'm so tired of watching actors play their characters on WWE Raw and having the wrestlers act like they are real people. Will Sasso did a good job with his Hulk Hogan impersonation, but I was thankful when Kane chokeslammed him and put the segment out of its misery. WWE tried to sell viewers on the legitimacy that Brock Lesnar brings to the table on the same night that they had actors playing the Three Stooges throughout the night. Make it stop!

Lord Tensai vs. Yoshi Tatsu: The Tensai character feels DOA. The fans are sitting on their hands during his matches and just aren't reacting to his power moves. I am hopeful that he can have some great matches that get people excited about the character, but right now it just looks like a throwback cartoonish gimmick. Sadly, he looks like a fat guy dressed up like a Mortal Combat character.

Cody Rhodes vs. R-Truth: I expected Big Show to get this revenge last week. While it was expected, it was logical. The repeat of Show playing a video and Rhodes losing due to the distraction just made him look like an idiot.

Brodus Clay and Santino Marella vs. Dolph Ziggler and Jack Swagger: The match was fine and got a rise out of the crowd. The problem I have with it is the idea of Ziggler being used to make Clay look good in the ring. Granted, it's a wise move from the standpoint that Ziggler is a bumping machine. However, I was hopeful that WWE was going to strap a rocket to Ziggler after WrestleMania, not use him to make the mid-card fun loving character look good. For that matter, I want to see WWE get Swagger back on track.

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