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WWE Raw Hits

WWE bait and switch: Normally, bait and switch tactics guarantee an automatic spot in the "Miss" section. However, in this case, WWE teased us with Little People's Court and failed to deliver. That's a "Hit" in my book. Unfortunately, they teased late in the show that Hornswoggle is still taking DX to court soon. I hate it when wrestling companies drop storylines without providing an ending, but I'll make another exception and give them a "Hit" if they abandon this silliness right now.

Randy Orton vs. Kofi Kingston: It's not easy to generate legitimate sympathy for babyface characters in the modern era, yet WWE accomplished that and put a lot of heat on Orton, Cody Rhodes, and Ted DiBiase in the process. This was my favorite segment of the night and it wasn't even close. It was so good that I wish they had closed the show with this match so that the final image of the show would have been Orton hovering over Kingston after the DDT.

Triple H vs. Chris Jericho: I had to go back and watch this match again because the show was so bad that I had already checked out mentally by the time the match started. Great work from both wrestlers. As much as I'd miss Jericho on Monday nights, I'm actually pulling for DX to capture the tag titles so that he can get back to workings singles matches on Smackdown.

Carlito: It was a pleasant surprise to see Carlito pop up unexpectedly on Raw and then deliver a strong promo on Cena. His comments about no one in the locker rooms liking Cena were great. Sadly, he looked like a dope by taking a bite out of the apple as if he expected Cena to just stand there and wait to be spit on. If nothing else, this segment speaks to the need for the return of managers. They obviously felt more comfortable having Carlito verbally spar with Cena than the guy who's actually challenging for the WWE Championship at TLC. Just imagine how much more effective Sheamus would be if he had the right mouthpiece.

WWE Raw Misses

Yo! Mark Henry raps: The creative team only had time for eight minutes and five seconds of wrestling until the one hour and 53-minute mark of the show, yet they somehow managed to find time for Mark Henry to bust a rhyme. Well, sort of. I don't think more than a couple of his lines actually rhymed. Henry made Randy Savage sound like Eminem in comparison.

Overall show: Too much talking, rapping, singing, and grunting, and not enough wrestling. They overbooked this show and did very little to get this viewer excited about TLC. I don't even have sympathy for them because it was a short week due to the holiday, because they could have just booked more matches and fewer storylines if they were short on time. This show was so bad that WWE should be happy that viewership was presumably down due to the big Monday Night Football game.

Sheamus: Having him beat up Santino Marella accomplished nothing. You can't have him beat up the comedy jobber and expect people to care. By the way, I'm all for Sheamus getting a push and I could care less that he's friends with Triple H. Sure, there are other wrestlers I'd prefer to see get this push, but I'm just happy that WWE finally recognizes the need for new blood in the title picture. For that matter, Sheamus is a talented performer, so it's not like he's completely miscast in this role.

Maryse and Jillian Hall vs. Melina and Gail Kim: Does creative spend more than two minutes per week on the women's division? The booking is so basic and simplistic. The women don't get real storylines. They get weak, predictable angles that set up throwaway matches between the champion and the challenger of the month.

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