I am going to start with the Main event cage match between Chris Jericho and Batista, now all week i wasn’t looking foward to this, as i thought it was a cert that Batista would retain, just like i thought Jericho would retain at Cyber Sunday, man WWE have definetly surprised us with these two match outcomes in recent weeks, backstage before last night’s main event Shane McMahon announced that John Cena would face the winner in a World Title match at Survivor Series, this is when it hit me that i knew we were going to see another title change last night, Batista and Cena are going to be given a Wrestlemania match next year, so why let Batista and Cena go at it at Survivor Series when they know the money will be in that match next year in Houston, also they obviously wanted Cena returning to face a heel so that is why i reckon they have decided to put the title back on Jericho, personally i dont think WWE even knew how they were going to book Cena for his return to action anyway and this was the only way possible to face a heel champion at the event, i have to say the cage match last night was excellent and i enjoyed the contest, my only downpoint about this is that i am so unhappy that the World title is being treated with such low credibility, they should have kept the belt on Jericho in the first place and what do you think Batista must be thinking right now it really doesn’t help him either.
The next segment i would like to discuss is JBL going one on one against The Undertaker,now it was a short match but it’s always good to see The Undertaker on Raw, Undertaker won the match via countout then HBK ran down the ramp threw JBL in the ring and Taker hits the tombstone on the loudmouth, now what interest’s me on this segment was the long staredown The Undertaker had with HBK, was this the start of a small build up to a possible match between Taker and Michael’s at Wrestlemania 25, you even heard JR questioning The Undertaker’s stare to HBK during commentary, i really believe that we are going to see these two legends go at it in Houston.
Now next up i want to talk about Randy Orton, he was all over the show last night, and for me i am ok with this, Orton back on Raw is a breath of fresh air, i loved his outburst at the start of the show saying he is not moving until Shane or Steph come out and fire Adamle, this led to later in the evening Adamle resigning as GM and Shane forcing Orton to compete against CM Punk later in the night, this segment was ok, Adamle is no longer the GM and really looking at it, its probably the best decision that this has happened, Raw needs a fresh GM will personality- but i wouldnt mind Adamle staying around playing this outraged heel character, i really do believe we will see more of Adamle especially after he blamed Stephanie McMahon for his resignation.
Now on to Orton he lost to CM Punk via DQ when Ted Diabese interfered, Orton then lost it and kicked Diabese in the head, after the match Orton had a bitter confrontation with Manu and Rhodes, it’s only a matter of time before we see a heel stable here with Orton the ringleader, i have to say i am very interested to see what happens with Diabese, after all he eliminated his two partners in the mini royal rumble match earlier in the night where William Regal won it to get an IC Title shot next week in Manchester, England, but how does this effect the relationship with Diabese and Manu and Rhodes, is a face turn in place for Diabese, it’s going to be interesting to see what happens, personally i still say Manu does not fit in to this Priceless gimmick, give him more ring time, change his gimmick, as it is not working currently for Manu.
In other Random notes, for me CM Punk looked extremely weak again last night he was due to be defeated by Orton until Diabese’s interference, why couldn’t his tag partner Kingston run out to help him? after all they are tag champions, this then led to Kofi being pinned by Mark Henry later on in the evening when Rey Mysterio and Kingston lost to Kane and Henry, the only good thing about that segment was Khali helping Rey hit the 619 on Kane to continue his impressive face turn which i am really enjoying.
Punk and Kingston seem to win one week then the next week they are booked like total jobbers.
DX v Miz and Morisson was a strong good wrestling match, both teams upped their game last night and Miz and Morrison continue to improve week in week out as a team, the DX promo before hand was very funny indeed, going on about HBK’s hair loss and Triple H’s nose- was very good and humerous.
Fair play to Mae Young last night, she is almost 90 and she still tried her utmost in the ring last night.
And the Fu-Naki dance off, well it was fun and good to see Ron Simmons back with ‘DAMN’
MVP lost again last night to Jeff Hardy and Matt Hardy when he teamed up with The Brian Kendrick, unless they are going to start making this into a storyline soon, MVP has to get a victory under his belt as even though MVP is a heel, the guy is a good athlete and he does have fans out their Vince!
Anyway guys i would give last night’s show an 8 out of 10- i have to say, how much better is it though when all 3 brands are on the same show?, it reminds me of the old days!
UNTIL NEXT TIME
Kieran Daly- Scotland
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Watching tonight’s 800th Raw episode reminded me of all the times they had taken something that had so much potential had messed it all up. Examples:
1. The WCW/ECW invasion.
2. NWO
3. Undertaker’s biker gimik
4. Goldberg
5. DX
Ok, the fact that Shane was on WCW programming was an historical event within itself, but we all know how that turned out… A few years later, NWO makes their debut to poison nothing but the credibility of their writers. (NWO vs DX?) Sure the Rock vs. Hollywood was a great outcome of that failed storyline, but come on…
Tonights episode reminded me that their lack of consistency is probably one of the main reasons why they have to tarp off the majority of their Smackdown shows. I mean, they could have at least had X-Pac (Leader of Degeneration Mex) do a guest spot. All in all, the show was alright, didn’t stick around to watch the main event.
Thanks,
Mando
PS: I really enjoyed when they had Tazz and Jim Ross commentating on the Undertaker’s match instead of Michael Cole because Cole flat out sucks, he always manages to ruin the Undertakers entrance. Imagine Michael Cole as a ultra heel manager?
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Ok so you wanna know what i think of last nights 3 hour presentation of RAW …. hmmm where do i start … well i guess i start by saying that it being the 800th episode there was a few curve balls that i didnt see coming for one Adamle stepping down what??? i thought the jabbering nfl jock was doin a ok job … but of course they couldnt let Orton have his way and that was a way to do it i guess … from what i saw i think Mrs. Helmsley aheemm Stephanie Mcmahon is gonna be GM soon she was a lil power hungry in the segments … Shane giving a title shot to Cena cool but not like that … and not against Jericho because the only way Jericho retains is if he screws Cena … Batista v.s. Cena woulda been better to see and a Jericho v.s. Cena at Survivor Series is not a proper Main Event … now to the mid carders Kane and Mysterio feud where can this possibly go … Nowhere so enough of it … push the Tag Team Division again a lot of talent that can prosper well … Orton punting Diabiase great i love it have Diabiase turn face and square him off against Orton for the Number One Contendership …. and now Goldust is back i think him and Cody should feud of whose the best son to the American Dream!!! The WWE needs more shock value the same thing has been done so many times … how many times do u have to tag team DX together to draw ratings!!!!!!!??????? new talent new storylines!!!! new concepts !!! and thats the bottom line cause the people know WHATS COOKIN!!!!!!
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I would have to say that the three hour RAW last night was a bit lackluster. It just wasn’tt he same having such an event and not having Stone Cold, Angle, The Rock, Hogan, Foley, or even Flair there. The matches didn’t live up the the hype and the endings were not great. The DX ending was predictable, the Punk ending ruined a good match, and the main event ending was a shock but was less than spectacular. Overall, it failed to live up to any of the hype.
Spawn
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Well, Raw was the best it’s been in a few months, but still as predictable as a rock in a flower bed. The sotry on Randy Orton still seems to be the most interesting of the stories, even though they keep messing it up with the team of priceless. Is Orton a face or a heel? Taker vs JBL was exciting yet pointless. Plus who knew that Morrison was could give such a great super kick? Kung Fu Naki was terrible, and the Boogie man needs to wrestle and not so much “boogie”. Jericho needs to stop being so 90’s Rick Flairish but I’d rather have him as the heel champ, than another Roidtista vs John Cena the Weina match.
thanks,
Brad
East Texas
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I am glad they put the title back on Jericho. I thought it was a bad idea to put the title on the one dimensional Batista. Jericho is so much more entertaining, and he has always been one of my favorites. The only time Batista was entertaining was when he was breaking away from Evolution. Batista has no depth, he will not sell anyones moves. It would be nice to see some new faces in the title picture for a change, instead of JBL, Batista, and Cena, although Cena vs. Jericho would be great. Although I am predicting a triple threat for Survivor Series. As for the show yesterday, it was very well done. I like what they are doing with Orton and Priceless. Debiase will be a great star once he breaks away from Rhodes who I like and Manu who has yet to impress me.The dance segment, and the diva match was almost embarrassing for me to even watch. Nice to see Shane and Stephanie back on the show. Raw needs the McMahons. Seems as if there is a bit of a rift devoloping between the two. Will be interesting to see how it turns out. DX segment was great, and funny as always. HHH and HBK are great together. CM Punk needs to be on TV more, as well as Regal. Regal has the ability and great ring work, and he does a great job making people hate him. He would be a great top mid card performer. Santino was great as always. The announcers really irritate me, dream team would be Stryker and Ross. Oh also get rid of the Russian, he is a Hybrid of Lance Storm and Goldberg, neither of whom I liked.
Jim K. Florida
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First of all Great Website! The 3 hour RAW is what i expected it to be a “normal” RAW telecast which of late i have been losing interest in. I won’t go over the entire show but will highlight the disappointments along with a few of the highs…
The Hardy Boys….
Always a delight to see!
8 Man Battle Royal….
Got a little excited seeing Ted Jr. eliminate Cody & Manu hoping they would start a singles push with him but we can see that’s never going to happen (or at least not yet). Would have been nice to see a few more thrown into the mix though. When you think Battle Royals you usually see 15-20 men/women involved. Also too predictable of an ending!
16 Diva Tag Tam Match….
Too much way WAY too much and hugely predictable… Should have been a diva Battle Royal!
Randy Orton….
Nice to see him back as the heel that he plays so well….
Mike Adamle….
A shocker there, just started to get used to the guy so now i guess we’re in for weeks & weeks & weeks of “Who’s The Boss”, where’s Tony Danza when you need him?
Vladimir Kozlov…..
Within weeks he’ll be back to early/mid-card status!
DX against Miz/Morrison….
Always a highlight seeing DX but it still is not the same without some others (Road Dogg, Sean Waltman, etc, etc) involved.
Batista & Jericho….
A shocker there as they just put the strap back on Batista a few weeks back so now i’ll guess we see how much more they can under use Batista and overkill with Jericho!
Overall i’d rate the show a 2.5 out of 5. Would have been nice to see some of the stars from the past who help put RAW on the map though….
Dave T.
(South Lyon, Michigan)
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I was so HAPPY that Jericho went “back on his throne.” I was ticked off that they took the belt off him at Cyber Sunday, but I had hope that the Batista title run was to further Jericho’s storyline!!!
I can’t wait for Cena/Jericho at S. Series, BUT WWE had better carefully protect both guys at the ppv. Jericho should keep the belt past S. Series, but Cena should get the “better of Jericho” after the match. I predict a cheap finish or a DQ finish!
I am also really into Kane and Randy Orton at the moment! They are consistent in the work, and it makes for good tv!!!
Santino is also always dependable!!!
I am sick of DX…it’s really silly at this point. WWE hypes them like we’ll never see them again…only to promote them again 6 months down the road!!!
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Adamle getting fired, great. Orton returning, great. Jericho winning
the title back, great.
The DX segment was funny as usual, the Undertaker match seemed pretty
pointless. I like where the Orton and Dibiase/Manu/Rhodes storyline is
going. My worry about Jericho winning the title is that he is going to
lose it to Cena at Survivor Series, if he still has the title then. I
don’t really see where they are going with this one. I would like to
think Jericho won’t lose it until (and hopefully not during) Survivor
Series, but looked what just happened to Batista. Whats happened to
Vince? They are talking like he is dead, “Dad would be so proud” and I
haven’t seen him on TV for a while, I thought he would of been here at
the 800th episode celebration.
Steven Wilson,
Scotland.
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I gave up on WWE Un-Creative a loong time ago so Jericho’s win didn’t surprise me that much. what SHOULD have happened was Batista kept the belt until survivor series and Cena beat Batista and then have jericho in the nidst of their feud til wrestlemania. sure Jericho Cena is going to draw but the buy rates would have been higher if it would’ve been Batista vs Cena.
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I enjoyed the show but the only thing I didnt understand was why the audio wasnt right all night. When the opening video’s played for the live crowd it should be really loud…Its louder in my living room on monday nights! Ya know it makes it more exiting. I think its getting too routine for the production so they dont put forth enough effort because they hear it week in and week out. and later in the show it got really loud for no reason. I think they need someone new handling the audio side of production it would make for a more entertaining show. Owe and this had to be one of the smallest live crowds i have ever seen in Tampa. The place is usually sold out or close to it. Sad for wwe considering the stacked card…
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I thought that the 3 hour raw show was good, but in what seems to be the case for the WWE lately, a lot of it didn’t make sense. First of all, well I can’t even begin to tell you how overjoyed I am that Orton’s back, I didn’t get the match at all. Why the ending? It sets Orton up for a face turn, but that doesn’t seem likely to happen with his character anytime soon. Also, I would like to point out that I think it’s horrible how they are wasting CM Punk. Which leads me to his tag partner and champion Kofi Kingston? It makes no sense to team 1/2 of the tag champs with someone who is not his championship partner. Obviously, Kofi was a late fill in for the injured Evan Bourne, but it just didn’t make a lot of sense to me to have Kofi in there. Also, while I’m happy that Cena is returning, I don’t like that he gets the immediate push for a title shot. His last big match was a loss to Batista, how does this make him the #1 contender. Regardless, it will be good to see him back. I also liked the DX segment, if for nothing more than nostalgic purposes. Triple H and Shawn did a great job out there, and the segment was hysterical, but I agree with the person in the crowd shot who was holding a sign that read “Are you 50?” Funny segment, and I don’t even really like Triple H or Michaels. Finally, I don’t understand at all why Jericho defeated Batista. It really doesn’t make any sense. Giving Batista the belt for two weeks doesn’t really make any sense. Jericho, as the champion, doesn’t make sense. He just sort of fell into being champion. I don’t know, it just seems like the character he built while fueding with Michaels wouldn’t really care about the belt. It just doesn’t make a whole lot of sense to me. All in all, I thought it was one of the better Raw broadcasts this year, which isn’t really saying much, but it was still a good show. Lots of fun and a lot of nostalgia. Hopefully, with Orton back and Cena’s impending return, Raw can continue to get better.
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Raw was all in all a good show last night. “Bret The Hitman Haas” was funny as usual, my fave is still “The Great ChaarLii” and that giant Chin he had lol. DX was funny as usual, especially when Michaels talked about HHH’s nose & the flashback of the Miz at No Mercy 2006 (What the heck was he doing? lol).
The cage match was good, although I was surprised that Batista lost the belt soo fast.
But I just don’t understand why John Cena keeps getting title shots. He hasn’t even been around. I don’t think he deserves a title shot yet. Is it in his contract or something? Starting to think he has deal similar to Hogan in the 80s, you know, the one where I get a title at almost every PPV I wrestle at.
And if he wins the world heavyweight belt, I hope he leaves the design of it alone. There’s too much history to that design of the championship to mess it up with some spinner design or something.
But anyways, Raw last night was one of the better shows i’ve seen in recent weeks. Thanks for letting us comment WrestleZone. Later!
Sincerely,
Brandon Moran
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I see alot of support for Jericho’s win but also alot of criticism of both he and Cena. Cena gets a shot at the title right away. Thats fine with me, why not give it to him. He works harder than anyone on the roster. Hard workers deserve shots. The same goes for Jericho. He has worked harder carrying Raw in Cena and Orton’s absense. He also has picked up the show when stars such as Hardy and HHH went to smackdown. His bitter feud with HBK was classic; both put on great matches. Jericho has been the best heel of the last few years and has had an amazing past few months after a weak return last year. What has Batista done? Oh yeah, nothing. No memorable matches. Just a guy that is at the top because he complains alot and is big. He has had no good program or feud in recent memory and cannot work a mic. Guys like Jericho, Cena, Regal, Orton, and Dibiase are Raw. Dibiase needs to be moved up to main event level. Jericho and Cena could have a great program from now until wrestlemania with either one walking away with the belt. Why give shots to guys like Batista who dont work hard or make it look like they enjoy entertaining the fans?
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I missed bits and pieces of Raw, but what I saw I liked, and that’s not east to say about the WWE lately. Seeing Shane and Steph was great, and it showed how much this show misses them, especially Steph. I loved Steph as GM before and I think the 2 of them should just run the show. As for everything else, it wasn’t bad. I don’t know whats going on with the MVP character, but he’s pretty much been turned into a high profile jobber. At this rate, Pete Rose would beat him. I would have much rather seen Ted Debiase win the battle royal and go and get the Intercontinental Championship. I think he’d be a great Champ. The Diva’s match horrible writing. How is a 80 some year old woman knocking around, the likes of Beth, Nattie, Victoria? Totally unbelievable. D-X/Miz and Morrison, well that went as expected. I think it’s time to split Miz and Morrison and start having them compete for the ECW Championship with Matt. Those would be interesting. Mark Henery is Boring, EXTREMELY BORING! All I have to say is where’s Elijah Burke???? I missed the JBL Taker match, but I like that they continued JBL/Micheals. CM Punk/Orton i like it, it could be much more, they can run with this. Hope they don’t screw it up! Leaves us with the main event! Jericho/Batista! I’m thrilled that they dropped it back to Jericho. Batista is horrible, always has been. I’m tired of seeing the “have no Talent” run at the top of the WWE. Like with Kozlov, But anyway, Jericho needs to run with this title and beat Cena at Survivor Series.
Chris Danielsville, Pa
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For what I saw of it, they put on a solid show, thought it was interesting that they didn’t take the opportunity to bring Vince back for his shows big accomplishment, but all well I’m sure he won’t miss the next mile stone they celebrate. Was very nice to see Undertaker on Raw, and they gave him a vintage match ending, (where he tombstones his opponent even if it was after the match). the ending for the cage match was a really goo ending and seeing a major title change on Raw was a good thing for the show, course to take the strap away from Batista so quickly has got to sting him a tad (me personally not a huge fan of him anyway so not a big deal), seeing Jericho vs Cena should be a good match maybe really good at the very least to quote Monty Python “And for something completely different”. For those who wanted to see Cena, Batista the sequel my hunch if it doesn’t happen soon, it will eventually just give it a little time. I like that they aren’t just sticking with the overly predictable, as fans we should appreciate that they’ve broken complacency seeing the same things over and over again tends to make us want to bang our heads against the wall or something, its like adding seasoning to a soup you don’t want one flavor utterly over power everything example triple H as champ for what seemed like forever. We all get sick of the belt on one guy, or a the same 3 or 4. So for them to go with the un-expected here and there is nice. So let us see what happens.
Peace Out
Sarah L
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I thought it was actually a very good show, one of the better Raw’s in awhile. The DX skit was funny as usual, but the match between DX and The
Miz and John Morrison was even better. I thought this really established The Miz and Morrison as a great tag team, even in defeat, they gave DX a
run for there money and probably would have won if not for there showboating, definetely the highpoint of the show for me. I liked the
Orton/Punk ending, good to see Orton wrestling again and the kick to the head on Dibiase was solid, continuing to hint at a future alliance between priceless and Orton. I had no problem with Jericho winning the title back, it makes sense that they wanted something big to happen on the 800th episode, so they took it off Jericho for a week and let the WHC change hands on the show. Put all those things together with Taker and the Hardy Boyz wrestling on the show, it was definetely a star packed show I hoped
to see.
The only down spots for me was the IC Battle Royal as it was just a repeat of a battle royal that we have seen Regal win in the past, I think
everyone saw it coming the minute Regal was pulled under the ropes by Noble. The diva match was pointless to me, the idea of Mae Young beating
up the divas wasn’t really funny to me, watching Santino celebrate was the only enjoyable aspect of that match.
Cant forget the fact that Adamle quit, which seemed to be a crowd pleaser. I would like to note that Adamle didn’t do a terrible job as GM, he was okay and better than expected, but I am not sad to see him go either. JBL would be a definate upgrade though and I hope it happens since his in ring status has taking a beating over the past several months with several
losses.
All in all, it was a very good Raw, that had aspects of surprise, featured the top stars from all three shows and some very good matches, what more could you ask for from a live Raw????
-Cage
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I am so surprised that people are complaining about the cage match main event. When Shane announced John Cena was going to be the challenger for the World Title at Survivor Series, I was so angry because I felt the WWE had already spoiled the ending to the cage match making it obvious for a Cena Batista rematch for the World Title. I was so surprised and pleased at the ending of the match, it was exciting, creative, and Jericho proved he could be taken as a serious competitor. When was the last time the World Title changed hands on television. This was an exciting match along with most of the show. When will people realize that Batista and John Cena are one trick ponies. They do the same moves to win matches and when they wrestle eachother, there isn’t the talented guy to carry the other. I was so happy to see Jericho defeat Batista. Loved the Ted Dibiase push, Randy Orton’s mic skills, I cannot get enough of Santino Marella, DX and Miz and Morrison were hilarious, and the cage match lived up to be pay per view caliber. Great show.
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Nick was born and raised in Detroit, Michigan, and lived there until the age of 18, when he decided to pack his flack jacket and move to New York City.
