Live from Seattle, Washington this is the Raw Deal. I’m guessing no Oklahoma City Thunder jerseys in the crowd huh? Too soon?
The show started with Cena, in purple gear, talking to the fans about how he would never give up. He’s got the Nexus arm band on as well as his purple shit. He spoke about how if he didn’t listen to Wade Barrett he’d be out of WWE. He can’t just go to Smackdown. He’d be out of WWE all together. It’s all he knows. He has nothing else. What about movies that nobody watches? Oh right, WWE gets him into those. I guess he’s right. He should have ended it by talking about how he texts Vince McMahon to tell him he loves him every day. It was so adorable! Hey don’t blame me if you throw up. I had to listen to this too!
The Miz came out to interrupt with Alex Riley and his briefcase. Miz talked about how he was going to captain Team Raw against Team Smackdown and right the wrong of last year when Big Show turned on team Raw to give Smackdown the win. Holy shit, we’re allowed to remember a storyline that happened a year ago? That is crazy. Sound the alarms. We can remember history! Barrett came out, told Cena his job is to be in his corner for the match against Orton at Bragging Rights. He needs him focused. The GM buzzed in to say they’ve booked matches to determine team Raw. For team captain, it’s Cena vs. Miz. After the announcement Miz said he’ll win that match and then maybe cash in on Barrett at Bragging Rights. Nothing he can do about it. Barrett went after him. Then Cena saved Barrett. Good opener. Cena was in his SUPER SERIOUS VOICE~! early on, but then lightened up when Miz came out. It worked well. All of them did a nice job of putting over the angle.
R-Truth d. Ted Dibiase (*)
Dibiase & Maryse didn’t even get an entrance. Eve was out with R-Truth to dance. Yep, that’s it. I guess there’s nothing else for her to do. Truth won in about three minutes when Goldust and Aksana (who looks way better in a dress than she does in ring gear) were petting the Million Dollar Belt at the top of the ramp. I guess we’re supposed to think that belt is worth something? The work was fine. A year ago Ted Dibiase was rumored to get the big push. Now? His stock has fallen so far I don’t expect him to ever win anymore. Truth is on team Raw now.
They plugged Smackdown. The Undertaker “returns” after not being on SD last week. What happened was his BFF Paul Bearer turned on him at Hell in a Cell, defriended him on Facebook, unfollowed him on Twitter and now Undertaker’s an emotional wreck. OMG!
Speaking of Twitter, check me out on there at Twitter.com/johnreport. I have a lot of fun. Lots of sarcastic comments, plus you’ll get links as soon as I post a column or podcasts. I try to reply to every message I receive, so if you ever want to ask me something that’s a good way to do it. How good would it be if Vince McMahon had a twitter account? Oh the things I would say.
John Morrison d. Tyson Kidd (*1/2)
Weird commentary. They had Cole say DH Smith was supposed to be in the match, but was nowhere to be found. They never officially split yet. I was figuring post match he’d show up to attack Kidd. Didn’t happen. No Nattie at ringside here. That’s disappointing. They worked hard and had awesome chemistry. It only got three minutes with Morrison winning. He hit a Rock Bottom into a Moonsault basically. Not an easy move to do, but Kidd can pull it off with him. I believe Paul Burchill used to do that that move. Last year these two had two 15 minute matches. One was on Smackdown, one was on Superstars. Look them up. Really good stuff. Big fan of those guys, especially my fellow Canuck Tyson. Morrison is on Team Raw.
Backstage Otunga, Wendy Slater and Gabriel were talking to McGillicutty (change that name!) and Harris. They’re not in Nexus, but Otunga’s wondering what’s up. Barrett showed up telling Otunga if he wants answers to come to him. He told Otunga to wrestle Orton, but Otunga said maybe Gabriel should since he’s got that devastating 450. They all agreed. I guess they’re building up Otunga to be a guy that talks tough, but is really a snitch who backs down from a fight. It seems like they’re building up a power struggle with him and Barrett down the road.
Santino d. Zack Ryder (1/2*)
This was short. Santino won with the Cobra chop. The crowd popped HUGE for it. That was great. I love how the Raw GM wants to put together the “best team possible” and then puts on a match with jobbers like Santino & Ryder while two main event caliber performers like Cena & Miz face off. I swear this GM is running the Pittsburgh Pirates, Los Angeles Clippers and Buffalo Bills on the side. UKers, insert team name of a football team that perpetually sucks. Then you can get the joke too! Santino is on Team Raw.
Post match, Tamina jumped into Santino’s arms and he acted scared of her because she’s a little too intimidating for him. It’s similar to what they did with Santino and Beth. Are we allowed to remember that?
Randy Orton d. Justin Gabriel (**1/2)
It was a solid match. They had Otunga & Slater get ejected from ringside as they went to break. I liked that because it made Gabriel look stronger to hang in there on his own. They gave Gabriel a decent amount of offense just like when he faced Cena. It went 11 minutes with Orton doing a good job of selling while also staying strong. I think Orton’s in-ring work has gotten better in recent months. He’s getting used to that babyface style a little more. The finish was a little messed up. Gabriel went up with the 450, Orton rolled away and didn’t get out in time. Gabriel ended up hitting him on the side. I assume Gabriel expected him to roll under the bottom rope to get out of the way, but that didn’t happen. It looked painful. Orton seemed okay though. He sold it for a bit, then got up and finished him with the RKO. I assume that was the planned finish. At least Orton wasn’t physically hurt by it. Cue the STUPID~! jokes.
They showed the trailer for Knucklehead, which is Big Show’s move. It doesn’t look that bad. Could be worth a look on cable TV in three years. That’s something, right?
Plug time. I wrote about TNA’s Bound for Glory live on Sunday night. I thought it was a good show for the most part, Mickie James-Canton is back on a wrestling show and it ended with a huge heel turn at the end. Will it be good for TNA long term? Time will tell.
Sheamus d. Daniel Bryan (**1/2)
Bryan got a huge pop coming out because Washington is his home state. Cole ripped on him like usual. At one point Cole said that team WWE lost at Summerslam because of Daniel Bryan even though they won and they didn’t correct him? Odd. I guess Vince doesn’t want to have “The Voice of WWE” sound like a dumbass. Too late. I loved the work here. Bryan showed a lot of heart and got some good offense in. The crowd was chanting “Daniel Bryan” at various point throughout the match. Cole was pissed! Haha. I like Cole’s announcing against Bryan. That’s when he’s at his best. I wish this match got more than 5 minutes because their chemistry was really good. It could be a future feud to elevate Bryan up the card. A lot of people ask me if I think Sheamus deserves his spot. I say yes, absolutely. He’s athletic enough for somebody his size and his offense is as believable as anybody on the roster. Sheamus won with the Brogue Kick and really put over how close Bryan came to beating him. I assume Bryan’s off team Raw because he’s got a US title mat the PPV although I dunno if that’s the case. He should be in the match otherwise. Sheamus is on team Raw.
Backstage, Truth talked to his buddy Cena. Basically the gist was he know John’s in a tough spot, but a lot of the locker room is against him now. He asked if he would take out one of them if Barrett asked. Cena didn’t say yes, but his expression suggested so. Truth said he understood because otherwise he’d have to leave WWE. There is another option, though, Truth said: “Just quit.” Word life.
They had a Tribute to the Troops video. Even Hogan was in it. Way to put over TNA. Just like last week’s Make A Wish video this is WWE’s way of saying “vote for Linda McMahon” since the election is coming up. Next week they’ll tell you that WWE saves more lives than Superman. I’m kidding, relax. I think WWE does great charity work and I love Tribute to the Troops.
CM Punk d. Evan Bourne (*)
Punk got traded to Raw. More on that shortly. He won clean in about two minutes. Punk is on team Raw. Post match he went after Bourne’s shoulder. He beat him up by tossing him into the barricades, into the ring post and ended it with the Anaconda Vice submission. The reason for this? Bourne’s going for shoulder surgery. He’ll be out for several months. Not sure how long exactly yet, but this is the last of him for 2010 I’d guess.
I thought it was a great way to bring Punk to Raw. He was being wasted on Smackdown. This was a much needed move and hopefully he can fill the void left by Jericho because to me he’s WWE’s best all around performer now. They booked him incredibly strong here. If they want to put him in a title feud against Orton it would have a lot of freshness to it. Obviously Barrett’s in the spot now, but down the road it’s something to consider.
In the ring, my fellow Canucker Natalya was cutting a promo about Laycool. I was happy with this because she rarely gets to talk. She said Laycool’s going to throw a temper tantrum when she walks out with the belt at Bragging Rights. Cover your ears, here comes Laycool. Cole loves them. Anyway, they suggest that Natalya has to shave her beard every day like her dad Jim “The Anvil” Neidhart and we even get a pic of it. Natalya laughed at it. Layla said they’re the best there is, was and ever will be. There’s a joke there. I’ll leave it. They walked out, then got up the ramp and the Raw girls were there. Oh no not the Bellas! They retreated, Natalya went to put Layla in the Sharpshooter (first time ever in high heels I imagine), but Michelle dragged her out. I was cool with this. It’s nice to see them give Natalya a chance to talk to add some heat to the feud. Works for me.
By the way next week’s Raw is in Calgary. I’m excited for that. I assume Bret Hart will be there and I hope they put Natalya over strong. I’d expect some kind of Tyson/DH confrontation too. Will be interesting to see what happens there. Of course the crowd will be great too. Love the shows from Canada! I’m going to PROMISE my Bret Hart column will be posted that Monday morning/afternoon too. Finally.
The Miz d. John Cena (**1/4)
This was held under No DQ rules. If that’s the case why doesn’t Riley just go in the ring all the time with a weapon in his hand? Instead he stood outside, and then interfered once in a while. I know I’m stupid for asking smart questions. Sorry. Every time Cena would get the advantage Riley would interfere. It was okay, but it could have been even more. They went out on the floor a bit too, teasing a table spot. Cena took some nice bumps into the ribs. This wasn’t the only match on the night where they were bumping into the barricades. Way to use them. They have the padding, but they still look like they could legit hurt. Cena put Miz in the STF, Riley interfered, so he put him in the STF and then he went back to Miz, who got out of it. Suddenly Harris & McGillicutty ran in to attack Cena. Miz covered after McGillicutty’s neckbreaker and Harris’ senton splash for the win. Basically it took four guys to beat John Cena. It didn’t bury Miz, though. He held his own for the most part. It certainly could have been worse in terms of the booking.
Post match, Miz & Riley left, so Cena went after Mike & Husky. Barrett came in to get him off of them. The GM announced a match for next week as Cena & Orton vs. McGillicutty & Harris. Barrett says if Cena loses then he has to induct McGillicutty & Harris into Nexus.
The ending was really good with Barrett taunting Cena about how he has to do what he tells him. He said he knows John wants to fight him, but he can’t do it. He kept taunting Cena. I have to say Cena did a great job in terms of facial expressions and body language here. He’s not good at selling injuries, but he’s good at selling this angle. With Cena up the ramp Barrett told him that until next week “you can’t see him.” Oh no, that is so mean! OMG! I guess house shows don’t count. But you already knew that. In all seriousness this was a strong end to Raw.
Three Stars of the Show
1. CM Punk – That’s how you re-introduce arguably the best overall performer on the roster. Thank you. Push him!
2. Wade Barrett – No match, but the promos and facial expressions were really strong.
3. Evan Bourne – Just because he’s out for a while. Dude can sell a beating. I’ll never understand why they didn’t continue his push. Oh right because he’s not tall. STUPID~!
Worst Moment of the Week
Cole saying that team WWE lost at Summerslam. It was a big match. He called it. And nobody on this show corrected him. That was weird.
7.5 out of 10
Last week: 5
Good wrestling this week! Thank you WWE. They didn’t have any matches go too long, but they were all well worked and they told a good story. You don’t have to have three star matches all the time. In this case they had a bunch of two star matches, but they had good finishes and made the winners look good for the most part.
To sum up the theme of the show we found out that team Raw is officially The Miz, Sheamus, CM Punk, John Morrison, R-Truth, Santino and a seventh man that is a question mark at the moment. According to Dave Meltzer, the rumored final member for team Raw is…Mark Henry! He wasn’t on the show tonight for personal reasons. I guess he ran out of KOOL-AID!
I have to put over again how well the Barrett/Cena ending was. They really did a good job with facial expressions, with their physical actions and the timing they showed. The show ended 15 minutes past the top of the hour probably because they went long, but that’s okay. It worked. If they keep running this angle they are going to turn Barrett into a massive heel, even moreso than he already is. They can either have Cena go full blown heel, or run this angle for months before finally having the blowoff match at an event like WrestleMania.
Random question. Last PPV where John Cena was healthy and not wrestling? It’s happening at Bragging Rights.
I miss Chris Jericho. How about you?
Every so often I want to put in some random clips. For this week let’s go with the classic Heidenreich/Snitsky promo where they delivered great lines such as “I like your poetry” and “I like what you do to babies.” Ah, the glory days.
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