A Disappointing RAW
To be honest, I don't feel much like recapping the whole RAW. I hate to be a Negative Norman, but I feel like the ball was sort of dropped a bit last night. There was a good deal of energy coming off the SummerSlam PPV and as the show started, it felt like there was a whiff in the air: new possibilities.
The first segment of the show was absolutely electric. The Edge bit with the new belt was terrific (it's dumb that it spins, but whatever) and the Jeff Hardy reappearance came off great... but what's wrong with making us wait for that match? Why wring all the juice out of it in the first night? Even if it's not going to be a PPV match (which I think would work fine for me if it was a sub-main event, which I'll get to in a second), why not give us a week or two of buildup before presenting a match that clearly everyone was excited about seeing?
But what really bothered me was the way they got rid of Mick Foley. Not in any real life "Mick deserves better" kind of way - I just think they missed an opportunity for some good, juicy television. I'm not one of these "get Vince McMahon off my TV" type of fans - I actually enjoy the Mr. McMahon character. This whole quick angle just didn't make any sense to me and left me with more questions than answers:
- Why did Foley walk up to McMahon in the first place? He looked like he just went up to say "Hi." Weird.
- In the storyline, how far in advance was the Milena turn planned by the McMahons? Was she planning it before Mick talked to Vince (for no reason)? Did Vince approach her after he talked to Mick? It all just felt incredibly illogical to me.
- Why is a grown man forced to ask these questions while watching a wrestling show? It's more sad than anything else.
I guess I'm just disappointed that Foley's ousting had nothing to do with Flair. However they did it, whether it was Flair injuring him or humiliating him or a grudging show of respect, leaving as a face or a heel - Foley should have left the WWE because of Ric Flair. He said "I quit" the night before, maybe he "quits" for real after shaking Flair's hand? Some sort of emotional payoff for that great, great feud.
Instead, we get another example of how mean Vince is. Disappointing.
I was also disappointed to see John Cena appear during the Edge match. I liked it in one sense because Cena finally got one up on somebody instead of getting bitched out again. No wonder the guy gets booed - they book him to get beaten like a bitch every week. Some bad ass. Also, I thought the fight ending in the toss into the water was good.
But still - Cena and Edge need a break from each other. It's as simple as that. I thought we were getting it with the Jeff Hardy thing, but no - here comes Cena again. I'm all for Cena getting the belt back, but he needs to earn his way up again.
I feel like RAW lost an opportunity to freshen things up a bit last night. They've got the Unforgiven PPV in less than a month and although I said I only Pfantasy book on Pfridayz, these are the matches I would have set up for Unforgiven:
Mick Foley vs. Ric Flair - Hell in a Cell "Retirement" Match
They've been talking about H in a C so much lately, I was positive this one was forthcoming. Foley has dropped two straight matches to Flair, so this one would be the payoff with Foley going over and Flair getting a much-needed vacation. It's an important enough match to play last on the card, making the next one possible...
Edge vs. Jeff Hardy - WWE Championship Match
Why not? The crowd was hot for Jeff and it doesn't need much more buildup. Just have Jeff show up a few more weeks and bother Edge until he gets angry enough to agree to the title match. And since it's not the "main event," it doesn't need to carry the show. Plus, these two have great chemistry in the ring and could put on a winner with Edge going over. But what about Cena? Well...
John Cena vs. Randy Orton vs. Carlito - Triple Threat Match to Determine #1 Contender
Three young lions fighting for a shot at the title. This one doesn't need much build-up and could be a good match. It's got three good workers and high stakes. Personally, I'd put Carlito over (I'd have him mini-feud with but not win the title from Edge) to establish him as a talent on the verge of the main event scene with Orton and Cena cancelling each other out and having to settle their issue down the road. But Vince's show is all about Vince, right? That's okay...
D-Generation X vs. Vince McMahon and Partner - Street Fight for Control of RAW
Vince is so fed up that he'll do anything to get rid of DX... including putting his control of RAW on the line. So he agrees to their stipulations: if DX wins, they control RAW. If Vince wins, DX breaks up. I'd have this originally as a Vince & Shane match, but a questionable "injury" to Shane would allow Vince a substitute - either Umaga (if he's not in a match with Kane) or the Big Show. This way, the outcome of the match is actually in doubt - if Vince has a monster on his side, he might win. Of course, he doesn't win and DX runs the show, making Vince's (who's now just a regular wrestler like everyone else) life miserable for a few weeks until he quits. Then DX can give up power to someone new (Dusty? Flair?) and get on to feuding with actual wrestlers like Edge and Randy Orton.
Throw in a little Umaga vs. Kane and you've got a pretty solid foundation for a PPV, right? Some new stuff, your old favorites used in interesting new ways. That's a PPV I'd like to see. Of course, I won't. How disappointing.
The first segment of the show was absolutely electric. The Edge bit with the new belt was terrific (it's dumb that it spins, but whatever) and the Jeff Hardy reappearance came off great... but what's wrong with making us wait for that match? Why wring all the juice out of it in the first night? Even if it's not going to be a PPV match (which I think would work fine for me if it was a sub-main event, which I'll get to in a second), why not give us a week or two of buildup before presenting a match that clearly everyone was excited about seeing?
But what really bothered me was the way they got rid of Mick Foley. Not in any real life "Mick deserves better" kind of way - I just think they missed an opportunity for some good, juicy television. I'm not one of these "get Vince McMahon off my TV" type of fans - I actually enjoy the Mr. McMahon character. This whole quick angle just didn't make any sense to me and left me with more questions than answers:
- Why did Foley walk up to McMahon in the first place? He looked like he just went up to say "Hi." Weird.
- In the storyline, how far in advance was the Milena turn planned by the McMahons? Was she planning it before Mick talked to Vince (for no reason)? Did Vince approach her after he talked to Mick? It all just felt incredibly illogical to me.
- Why is a grown man forced to ask these questions while watching a wrestling show? It's more sad than anything else.
I guess I'm just disappointed that Foley's ousting had nothing to do with Flair. However they did it, whether it was Flair injuring him or humiliating him or a grudging show of respect, leaving as a face or a heel - Foley should have left the WWE because of Ric Flair. He said "I quit" the night before, maybe he "quits" for real after shaking Flair's hand? Some sort of emotional payoff for that great, great feud.
Instead, we get another example of how mean Vince is. Disappointing.
I was also disappointed to see John Cena appear during the Edge match. I liked it in one sense because Cena finally got one up on somebody instead of getting bitched out again. No wonder the guy gets booed - they book him to get beaten like a bitch every week. Some bad ass. Also, I thought the fight ending in the toss into the water was good.
But still - Cena and Edge need a break from each other. It's as simple as that. I thought we were getting it with the Jeff Hardy thing, but no - here comes Cena again. I'm all for Cena getting the belt back, but he needs to earn his way up again.
I feel like RAW lost an opportunity to freshen things up a bit last night. They've got the Unforgiven PPV in less than a month and although I said I only Pfantasy book on Pfridayz, these are the matches I would have set up for Unforgiven:
Mick Foley vs. Ric Flair - Hell in a Cell "Retirement" Match
They've been talking about H in a C so much lately, I was positive this one was forthcoming. Foley has dropped two straight matches to Flair, so this one would be the payoff with Foley going over and Flair getting a much-needed vacation. It's an important enough match to play last on the card, making the next one possible...
Edge vs. Jeff Hardy - WWE Championship Match
Why not? The crowd was hot for Jeff and it doesn't need much more buildup. Just have Jeff show up a few more weeks and bother Edge until he gets angry enough to agree to the title match. And since it's not the "main event," it doesn't need to carry the show. Plus, these two have great chemistry in the ring and could put on a winner with Edge going over. But what about Cena? Well...
John Cena vs. Randy Orton vs. Carlito - Triple Threat Match to Determine #1 Contender
Three young lions fighting for a shot at the title. This one doesn't need much build-up and could be a good match. It's got three good workers and high stakes. Personally, I'd put Carlito over (I'd have him mini-feud with but not win the title from Edge) to establish him as a talent on the verge of the main event scene with Orton and Cena cancelling each other out and having to settle their issue down the road. But Vince's show is all about Vince, right? That's okay...
D-Generation X vs. Vince McMahon and Partner - Street Fight for Control of RAW
Vince is so fed up that he'll do anything to get rid of DX... including putting his control of RAW on the line. So he agrees to their stipulations: if DX wins, they control RAW. If Vince wins, DX breaks up. I'd have this originally as a Vince & Shane match, but a questionable "injury" to Shane would allow Vince a substitute - either Umaga (if he's not in a match with Kane) or the Big Show. This way, the outcome of the match is actually in doubt - if Vince has a monster on his side, he might win. Of course, he doesn't win and DX runs the show, making Vince's (who's now just a regular wrestler like everyone else) life miserable for a few weeks until he quits. Then DX can give up power to someone new (Dusty? Flair?) and get on to feuding with actual wrestlers like Edge and Randy Orton.
Throw in a little Umaga vs. Kane and you've got a pretty solid foundation for a PPV, right? Some new stuff, your old favorites used in interesting new ways. That's a PPV I'd like to see. Of course, I won't. How disappointing.
posted by BJ Boston at 2:38 PM
2 Comments:
Or rather than the Umaga vs. Kane match, have Kane still out with the throat injury and not be mentioned. Umaga is Vince's partner - until Kane comes down and takes him out.
This leaves Vince alone in the ring with DX - a reversal of the numbers game that's been happening for months now. It'll be very satisfying to see Vince get spanked.
That way, Umaga vs. Kane can have another month worth of buildup to the next PPV.
That's right - I'm the only one commenting on my own blog.
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