I wrote about WWE Money in the Bank live on Sunday. If you missed my write-up, click HERE to read it.
Live from Las Vegas, Nevada this is the Raw Deal…
Michael Cole and Jerry Lawler welcomed us to the 999th edition of Raw. Please get a new theme song next week.
The first thing they mentioned was that John Cena won his Money in the Bank match. We were also informed that the main event of Raw would be CM Punk vs. Big Show in a non-title match.
CM Punk entered to a thunderous ovation. He said he loves Las Vegas. I do too. Best city in the world. I miss it. Punk said it was a year ago that he said he dropped a pipe bomb. That’s right because Las Vegas is the city where Punk did his infamous “shoot” promo last June. Punk said he’s proven he’s the best in the world just like he did on Sunday against Daniel Bryan. Punk said a guy like him never would have been on the first episode of Raw yet here he is in the midst of his eighth month as WWE Champion. He said he was standing there proud to be able to be on the 1,000th episode of Raw next week. What about this 999th episode? It matters too. Sorry 999. Nobody loves you. All of a sudden the music of the Big Show started up.
Big Show walked down to the ring with a microphone in hand. Show said he was inches away from winning the Money in the Bank contract as a “Big Show sucks” chant started up. Show said he had the MITB contract he would cash it in right now. Punk ripped on him by saying Big Show almost won, but that’s what he always does. He said he beats people up, he leaves destruction in his wake and then he loses. Punk says Show has everything to be champion like the size and strength, but he lost and that’s why a guy like Punk who is half his size has the WWE Championship while all Big Show has is his big fat contract with the respect of no one. Show ripped on the fans. He said he didn’t care about the fans whether they respected him or not. Show said the company revolved around one man. Show: “You’re not special, Punk. You’re just a cog in the machine.” He didn’t say John Cena’s name, but it was implied. Punk: “I’m the WWE Champion and you’re not.” He called Show a bitter, underachieving giant. Show pointed out that Cena is Mr. Money in the Bank now, so after Big Show knocks him out in their match tonight he could lose his WWE Championship to John Cena. Show dropped the microphone in a way similar to when CM Punk would do it after a pipebomb. Show left.
Analysis: I liked the promo a lot. Punk carried himself like a confident champion while looking Show in the eye and talking trash to him when needed. Show did a good job of giving his point of view while putting out the idea that Cena could cash in the briefcase on this show. I doubt anybody believed that since we all know episode 999 doesn’t matter because all they do is talk about episode 1,000, but it’s nice to at least put the thought out there.
The announcers talked about Raw 1,000. They said the first ever episode of Raw is on Youtube.com/WWE. It’s also on Youtube if you search for it because some fan probably uploaded it just like every other episode. Cole and Lawler also mentioned that The Rock would be on Raw next Monday on Raw 1,000 in St. Louis.
Backstage, Kofi Kingston & R-Truth were shown walking backstage in preparation for their Tag Team Title match.
(Commercial)
There was a poll up on WWE.com where fans could vote for what title will be defended on Raw next week: United States Title, Intercontinental Title and Divas Title. Why not make them all defend their titles next week instead of burying the titles for a change? What a unique concept that would be. We’ll get the poll results later.
Tag Team Championships: Kofi Kingston & R-Truth vs. The Primetime Players (Darren Young & Titus O’Neil) w/AW
This is the tag title match that the PTPers earned at No Way Out. As usual, AW is miked up and offering advice for his team during the match. I really hope the idea of AW being miked up is changed soon. Hearing a guy yelling “move move move” when the other team is on offense is really annoying. Truth & Kingston got their offense in early and took the PTPers out of the ring. Kingston did a somersault dive over the top rope to take out Young & O’Neil on the floor. That was an impressive spot. They went to break for the vintage floor to commercial spot.
(Commercial)
Back in the ring, Young was in control of Kingston and he tagged in O’Neil while Kingston was in their corner. O’Neil gave Kingston a bearhug. Needless to say, I’m not a huge fan of O’Neil’s in ring work. He’s very basic in the work he does. Young’s the better of the two. He tagged in and AW combed his afro for him. What a guy. Young went to tag in O’Neil, but Kingston got free and made the hot tag to Kingston. Truth hit a sloppy DDT on O’Neil, which Young broke up. Kingston knocked Young out to the floor. AW jumped on the apron while Kingston hit the Trouble in Paradise on O’Neil on the other side of the ring and that led to R-Truth hitting the Little Jimmy for the pinfall victory after eight minutes.
Winners: Kofi Kingston & R-Truth
Post match, AW was complaining to the ref. He took his jacket off and then kicked his jacket out of frustration. That was funny at least.
Analysis: *1/4 It seemed odd when Kingston broke free for the tag. It could have been something where they decided to “go home” earlier than expected and they went into the finishing sequence. I thought they might do a title change so that the PTPers would go on to feud with Epico & Primo over the titles, but that’s not happening yet. Maybe the idea is to portray AW as a terrible manager because he distracted the ref to allow the other team to cheat (Kofi’s kick) to take advantage and win the match.
Backstage, AJ was standing there looking at her phone. Daniel Bryan walked up to her. She said she called his match down the middle on Sunday. Bryan said he was sorry for all the bad things he’s said about her since WrestleMania. He was trying to say more, but Eve walked up to them in her ring gear. She complained about how Bryan ditched her last week when they teamed up. She said she asked the Board of Directors for another tag match to face Bryan and his partner AJ. She will get to pick her own partner. “You know what they say about payback? It’s…it’s exactly what you are AJ.” She is implying the word “bitch” there. You’re welcome. Eve left. AJ asked Daniel what he was going to say. He said he’d tell her after their match later. He kissed her on the cheek.
Analysis: Good segment to build up to a tag match later. Bryan and AJ have great chemistry together so it’s nice to see that their on screen relationship will continue. Punk’s promo earlier would indicate that he’s moved on from the AJ storyline, so it’s about her and Bryan now.
(Commercial)
There was a commercial for WWE’s involvement with the 15 second video program called Tout. The link is WWE.com/Tout if you care. I’m a Twitter and Facebook guy. Not sure about Tout.
Back to the show, Cole & Lawler introduced Cena’s first Tout message. It was him saying his favorite Raw moment was when he got drafted to Raw in 2005. He hasn’t left since. Even when he was storyline “fired” he was still on the show.
Alberto Del Rio vs. Zack Ryder
Del Rio doesn’t an entrance with a car. I guess there are budget cutbacks since they have to fly in so many big names to Raw next week? That’s a joke. It’s just weird that Del Rio made his entrance by walking down the aisle. Del Rio attacked early. Ryder tried to fight back, but Del Rio dropped him with a single arm DDT. He knocked Ryder out to the floor where he kicked Ryder in the head. Del Rio threw slammed Ryder’s arm into the ring steps and then drove him back into the security wall. Ryder made it back into the ring, but Del Rio threw him shoulder first into the ringpost. Del Rio put Ryder into the Cross Armbreaker for the tapout win after about 90 seconds.
Winner: Alberto Del Rio
Analysis: 1/2* Your basic squash match that didn’t even get two minutes. Ryder continues to be one of the most poorly booked performers in WWE despite the fact that he gets a positive reaction from the fans.
Post match, Del Rio gave Ryder a Cross Armbreaker again. Suddenly, the music of Rey Mysterio started up. He was making his return after nearly one year. Storyline wise, Del Rio was the one that put him out. Mysterio charged at Del Rio. He gave Del Rio the headscissors to put him on the ropes and then he hit the 619 to a thunderous ovation. That was a really loud pop for Rey. Del Rio bailed to the floor while Mysterio talked trash.
Analysis: In case you forgot, Rey was out due to major reconstructive knee surgery and also because he failed his second drug test, which put him on the shelf for another 60 days. I’m a fan of Mysterio. I think he’s a great worker who is valuable for WWE in terms of being an upper midcard draw and as a babyface performer he’s somebody for heels to work with as they move up the roster. I think a Mysterio/Del Rio match at Summerslam is very likely although they might do it on Raw or Smackdown before that too.
Heath Slater talked about his favorite Raw moment being when he brought the One Man Band to Raw. He was talking about himself like a delusional fool and how all the legends were big fans of him. They showed a locker room door that said “WWE Raw 1,000” on it as Cole mentioned we would find out Heath Slater’s legendary opponent next.
(Commercial)
The “did you know?” informed us that Raw has aired over 300 more episodes than CSI, CSI: Miami & CSI: NY combined. And they underlined combined for effect. Yes WWE, we get it. You have more episodes than shows that air 22-24 episodes in a year. Enough already.
Heath Slater is in the ring. He wondered who it’s going to be this week. Cue the music of Rikishi. He got a nice ovation. It wasn’t that big, but it was a solid reaction.
Rikishi vs. Heath Slater
Rikishi looks about the same size as he did ten years ago although he’s probably a bit bigger. They mentioned that he was the cousin of Yokozuna and The Rock while also being the father of The Usos. Rikishi decked him with a sidekick. Slater fell to the corner where Rikishi gave him a Stinkface. Big reaction for that one. He followed that up with a Samoan Spike to the throat of Slater. That’s in tribute to his late brother Umaga although the announcers didn’t put that over. Rikishi finished him off with a Yokozuna-like Banzai Drop off the middle rope. The match went about 80 seconds.
Winner: Rikishi
Post match, Rikishi wanted to dance. The lights went off. When they came back on, his sons Jimmy & Jey Uso were in the ring with him. They all danced to Rikishi’s music.
Analysis: It was nice to see Rikishi again. He played a number of different characters in WWE over the years, but Rikishi is the one that really took off for him. I’d expect him in WWE’s Hall of Fame soon. The post match dance with his sons was an awesome sight as well. It would have been funny if Brodus Clay came out to dance with him also, but I’m not too broken up about it.
As they went to break, we saw that the match at the top of hour two would be Daniel Bryan and AJ versus Eve and a partner of her choice.
(Commercial)
I’m excited to announce that TJRSports.com is here. It’s a project I’ve been working on with my friends Mike and Scott from the FanVsFan Network and now we’re ready to share it with you. I’ve put the first column up talking about my favorite sports team. We’ll be adding more in the days and weeks to come and will likely be looking for writers for it, so look for a post on that in the coming days as well. This won’t hinder my wrestling writing. I promise you. I’ve always wanted to jump into sports writing and since the opportunity is there to do it I had to jump at it.
Back to the show, another plug for Raw 1,000 next week. The big announcement was that Degeneration X would start Raw at 8pmET next week.
Eve walked out for her match. They replayed last week when Bryan dropped to the floor when Eve wanted a tag. Eve introduced her partner as The Miz. He returned at Money in the Bank. His hair looks a bit different and the announcers put over that he was now a movie star. The movie he filmed was The Marine 3 in case you didn’t know. Daniel Bryan made his entrance and he was in his normal guy as opposed to what he wore at Money in the Bank, which had different colors. He led the crowd in “yes” chants. The Vegas crowd was very good. AJ made her entrance last as she did her skipping down to the ring. That “light it up” song is addictive isn’t it?
Daniel Bryan & AJ vs. The Miz & Eve
Bryan started it off with Miz. Miz knocked him down with a knee to the gut and then a kick to the face. AJ tagged herself in, so Eve had to enter the match as well. Eve gave her a snapmare followed by a kick to the face for two. AJ came back with a forearm to the face followed by a kick to the face and then a nice spin kick to knock Eve down. After a kick to the side, AJ ran the ropes and hit a beautiful Shining Wizard kick for the pinfall attempt. Miz distracted the ref, though, so there was no count. AJ knocked Miz off the apron with a dropkick. She gave him her creepy smile look. Miz went into the ring. Eve rolled up AJ, the ref was distracted and then Bryan rolled the girls around so AJ got the cover on Eve. The ref counted the pinfall after three minutes of action.
Winners: Daniel Bryan & AJ
Analysis: * The girls got more time in the ring than the guys. They all played their parts well. It was a well booked three minute match. Light it up.
Post match, Bryan got the microphone. He said there was something she used to say to him and he was always scared to say back. He that his career and life won’t be right if he doesn’t say it back to her. Bryan: “AJ – I love you.” If you’ll recall he didn’t say that to her when they were together even though she usually said it to him. He walked over to a guy at ringside who gave him a small box. Bryan admitted that last week he asked her a question because he wanted to become WWE Champion. He said this week he didn’t want anything except this. He got down on one knee in front of her. He opened the box to reveal a ring. Bryan: “AJ, will you marry me?” Even though she didn’t say anything, he put the ring on her left ring finger. He held the microphone towards her mouth. She smiled: “Yes!” They celebrated with a sloppy kiss. Once that ended, they joined together in yelling…you guessed it…”YES! YES! YES!”
Analysis: That was a sudden change in this storyline. I’m wondering if the marriage actually happens next week and if this means Bryan will turn babyface because it will be hard to keep him face after this. Obviously the fans are behind him with the “yes” chants everywhere he goes and since AJ is booked as a babyface it would make sense if they were a babyface couple. Of course if he does something heelish at the wedding that changes things, so it’s a matter of how they book them on Smackdown and also at the wedding next week.
We were reminded that John Cena is the new “Mr. Money in the Bank.” Also CM Punk vs. Big Show later in the show.
(Commercial)
They aired a Memorable Raw Moment from April 12, 1999 when Rock wanted to throw Austin’s “Smoking Skull” title belt over the bridge. He also knocked Austin into the water. A few weeks after that Rock ended up turning babyface, but it was a good moment. They had many better ones, though.
Michael Cole and Jerry Lawler let us know that Daniel Bryan and AJ are getting married next week during Raw 1,000.
Jack Swagger vs. Ryback
The bell never rang. Swagger attacked before the ref could ring it, so technically it wasn’t a match. Swagger hit his Gutwrench Powerbomb following a hard kick to the face. Swagger hit the Swagger Bomb. Even though the ref was in the ring, he didn’t ring the bell. Swagger went for the Ankle Lock, but Ryback powered out and that led to Swagger decking him with a shoulderblock. Ryback came back with a hard clothesline. Spinebuster by Ryback. He then gave Swagger three Powerbombs in a row. Swagger rolled out of the ring. Ryback’s music started to play. It went about two minutes.
No Match Result
Post match, Ryback led the fans in “feed me more” chants.
Analysis: I’m not sure why they booked it to be a non-match. My guess is because they are going to have a match on Smackdown or Raw next week where Ryback will get the win on Swagger. I guess the idea was that Swagger’s been mad due to all the losing of late, so he jumped Ryback and then Ryback came back to show just how strong he is.
Another reminder of CM Punk vs. Big Show later.
(Commercial)
They aired a Tout from John Cena saying he had a huge announcement regarding the Money in the Bank contract he had in his hands.
Vickie Guerrero introduced to the Winner of the World Heavyweight Championship Money in the Bank Ladder Match…Dolph Ziggler. Ziggler walked out in a suit jacket with the blue Money in the Bank briefcase in his hand. I still think they should have a picture of the World Title on the outside of the briefcase, but instead it says “Money in the Bank” on it.
Ziggler said that every single Money in the Bank contract has been cashed in successfully. He said we’re looking at the next World Heavyweight Champion. He said it’s only a matter of time before he cashes in on Sheamus. He said when he does that he’s going to be the greatest champion in WWE history. Dolph said he’ll be better than Bret Hart, better than Stone Cold Steve Austin and better than The Rock. He said he’s the show off and a future champion and it’s undisputed. The word “undisputed” was the cue for Chris Jericho’s music to start.
Chris Jericho walked down to the ring in his ridiculously expensive jacket. He went face to face with Ziggler. Before he could speak, Ziggler cut him off. Ziggler said it’s his moment. He pointed out he won his Money in the Bank match while Jericho didn’t win his. Ziggler pointed out that Jericho’s never won Money in the Bank. Ziggler asked when was the last time Jericho’s won anything? Ziggler said all Jericho talks about is how great he is, how he’s going to save us and how Jericho is the best in the world at what he does. Then Ziggler had a great line: “Apparently what you do is lose.” Ziggler said nobody’s been given more opportunities and main event matches than Jericho. I disagree with that statement, but heels lie so it’s okay. Ziggler said Jericho was all hype. He asked Jericho when was the last time he won an important match. Jericho didn’t speak. Ziggler wondered if Jericho couldn’t win the big one anymore. He said he thought Jericho was losing his touch and when he said “Vickie, I think he’s losing his touch” that’s when Jericho hit Ziggler with a Codebreaker! The crowd cheered the move from Jericho. Jericho walked off without any emotion on his face.
Analysis: I loved this segment. Loved it. Welcome back, babyface Chris Jericho. Jericho’s always been the kind of guy that likes working as a heel more than a babyface, but I think there’s a need for him as a babyface due to all of the young heels on the roster. There are potentially some awesome feuds for Jericho starting with Ziggler and then there are guys like Cody Rhodes, Wade Barrett and Alberto Del Rio that immediately stick out in my mind. When you’re an established top guy in your 40s that has reached legendary status like Jericho has it’s usually when you booked into the babyface role. This feud with Ziggler has the potential to be fantastic. I hope they get a few PPV matches out of it. I’d expect Ziggler to win the feud because he’s ten years younger, but I also think working with Jericho will elevate both guys to another level.
Another reminder of CM Punk vs. Big Show as the main event.
(Commercial)
They showed clips of fans talking about their favorite Raw moment. Cole and Lawler thought it was so cool! OMG! Since WWE is an investor in Tout they’re going to shove it down our throats all the time.
Next week: Daniel Bryan & AJ get married. Degeneration X reunites next week to kick off Raw at 8pmET. Also Brock Lesnar will be on Raw to accept Triple H’s Summerslam challenge. Considering he’s on the Summerslam poster that’s already out that should tell you what the answer is. Also next week The Rock returns. The biggest shock to me is that Steve Austin isn’t advertised for it. I would assume he’s there, but why not advertise him for it if he’s going to be there? I would expect other legends like Bret Hart, Mick Foley and possibly Undertaker to be there as well. I would expect to see a lot of old faces on the show that emanates from St. Louis (go Rams) next week.
Brodus Clay made his entrance. We already saw a fat guy dancing on this show.
They revealed the poll results about what title will be defended on Raw next week? The results were 36% for the Intercontinental Title, 34% for the Divas Title and 30% for the United States Title. That means Christian is defending the Intercontinental Title on Raw next week although they did not name the opponent.
(Commercial)
This week on Smackdown, Daniel Bryan & AJ will be guests on Christian’s Peep Show talk show segment to discuss their wedding on Monday.
The opponent for Brodus Clay was JTG, who had a different look unless you saw him on NXT a few months back. I think the most shocking thing on this show is that JTG got a full entrance.
Brodus Clay vs. JTG
Brodus Clay has had the same match for about eight months now. He actually had to sell some moves for JTG, which was odd. He finished off JTG with a headbutt to the chest and then a big splash for the win. The match went nearly three minutes.
Winner: Brodus Clay
Analysis: 1/2* I’m shocked that it took nearly three minutes for Clay to defeat somebody at JTG’s level. That’s some weird booking.
Post match, Brodus danced with the Funkadactyls and some young fans they found in the crowd.
Big Show vs. CM Punk is up after the break.
(Commercial)
There was another reminder of Raw 1,000 next week starting at 8pmET with Degeneration X members Triple H and Shawn Michaels starting the show. Think you’ve got it entrenched in your mind by now?
CM Punk vs. Big Show (Non-Title Match)
Show dropped Punk with a headbutt early. He followed that up with a shoulderblock. They went out to the floor where Punk gained control by shoving Big Show into the steel post. Show dropped him with a headbutt again. Punk used his speed to escape an attack, but when he jumped off the ropes Big Show caught him and slammed Punk to the mat. Show punched him in the ribs. If your finisher is a punch to the head why not just do that? Never mind. Punk fought back and tried to give Show a sleeper hold. Show ended up countering it with a side slam. Show went to the middle rope for a splash, but Punk rolled out of the way. It’s not Vader Time for the Big Show. Punk hit show with four clotheslines and then a kick to the gut. Show didn’t go down. Punk ran the ropes. Big Show gave him a big back body drop. Show signaled for the KO Punch. Punk dodged the punch and Punk hit him with a few kicks to the head. Punk gave Show the running knee in the corner. He hit him with a second running knee. Punk hit a third high knee. That one really connected well. Punk’s bulldog attempt was countered by Show. Show missed a splash in the corner and for the first time in the match, Show fell onto his back. The crowd cheered loudly while Punk went to the top rope. Punk hit the Flying Elbow off the top rope. That earned him a two count. That was a very good nearfall that the crowd reacted to perfectly. Punk went for a springboard attack off the ropes. Show caught him. Chokeslam connected. He covered, but he didn’t hook the leg close to the ropes. Punk got his foot on the ropes so the pinfall only earned Show a count of two. Another awesome nearfall right there. They went to the corner where Show hit Punk with punches to the ribs. The ref Mike Chioda told him to back off. Show shoved Chioda to the mat. The ref rang the bell at the ten minute mark.
Winner: CM Punk by Disqualification
Analysis: *** That was a very entertaining big man/little man type of match. Show is very capable of having good matches with the right kind of opponent. Punk has shown many times in his career that he can have these kinds of match with bigger opponents like Mark Henry and Kane during this awesome title reign of his. By not winning clean, it protects Big Show. I’m fine with TV main events like this. They don’t always need a finish. I just want a good match in this spot and that’s what we got this week.
Post match, Big Show continued to attack CM Punk. Show gave Punk a body slam in the center of the ring. The music of John Cena started up. He ran out to the ring with the red Money in the Bank briefcase in his hand. The announcers thought Cena would cash it in on the vulnerable WWE Champion.
John Cena had a microphone in his hand. He mentioned his huge announcement with regards to the MITB briefcase. He was about to announce it when Big Show cut him off. Show said he knew Cena was going to cash in the MITB briefcase right now. Show said that it’s Cena’s WWE Championship since he designed it – referencing the spinner title. Show said he would be a fool to not cash it in tonight. He pointed out how weak Punk is right now. Cena yelled: “No!” Cena looked at Punk: “CM Punk, I give you one week to prepare for the biggest match of your life. You have been WWE Champion for 239 days. So at Raw 1,000 with both of us fresh we will find out who the best in the world really is. Punk, at Raw 1,000 I’m telling you now that I am cashing in this Money in the Bank contract against you for a match for the WWE Championship.” Cena said his huge announcement was this…and then he hit Big Show in the head with the Money in the Bank briefcase. Actually his huge announcement was challenging Punk next week, but the briefcase was fun too.
To end the show, CM Punk held the WWE Title up while Cena held up the red Money in the Bank briefcase. That’s the main event of Raw 1,000 next week.
Analysis: The biggest news of the entire show is we get CM Punk vs. John Cena for the WWE Title next week on Raw. Cena is using the briefcase to cash in his opportunity in the main event next week. Could this be the first time somebody cashes in the briefcase to lose the match or will he leave the 1,000th episode of Raw as the WWE Champion? My feeling is next week’s Raw will end with John Cena as the WWE Champion. Either that or they do a screwy finish that leads to a rematch at Summerslam where Cena wins the WWE Title back. I’m all for it. Punk and Cena had one of the best matches ever last year at Money in the Bank and another awesome match at Summerslam last year. To have them in the main event of Raw 1,000 is a great thing. I’m really looking forward to it.
It was a very strong ending to Raw. Thumbs up from me.
One last thing about Punk/Cena. CM Punk tweeted the following: “@CMPunk: @jrsbbq Should call the title match next week on the #RAW1000 show. @JohnCena let’s make it happen.” – Jim Ross on commentary for that Cena/Punk match? Oh hell yeah. I hope it happens.
————–
Three Stars of the Show
1. CM Punk – Strong promo to start the show and a quality main event.
2. Big Show – Same as above. Big man was on his game.
3. Dolph Ziggler – Really liked his promo against Jericho.
The Scoreboard
7.5 out of 10
Last week: 3
2012 Average: 5.76
2012 High: 9 (January 30)
2012 Low: 3 (July 9)
Last 5 Weeks: 3, 6, 4.5, 6, 4.5
Final Thoughts
That 7.5 out of 10 is the highest rating I’ve given a Raw since April 2nd, which is the night after WrestleMania. The last three months haven’t given us great episodes of Raw. Maybe, just maybe, they’re about to go on a hot streak as we head into three hour Raw episodes and Summerslam coming up in August.
This week’s Raw was a big improvement over last week. It was necessarily about the in-ring action, which was okay. It was more about the stories building to next week, the return of Mysterio, the Bryan/AJ angle, Ziggler/Jericho working together and the intrigue surrounding the WWE Title as well. A lot of things went right this week.
You know what was great about Raw? We didn’t know who the GM was. Nor should we care. It gave more time to the performers. Better show that way. Instead of wasting our time with GM crap, midcarders got time to have matches and do promos. I don’t care who is in charge. The person in charge shouldn’t matter so much. The talent in the ring should matter more. And at least on this show they did.
Next week Raw goes to three hours. I’m not a huge fan of three hour Raw episodes, but if it means more time for the midcard and the divas then I’m all for it. If it’s more of the same of what we already get with bad comedy segments thrown in then I’m against it. Wait and see, I guess.
They’ve also loaded up next week’s show with the following:
– CM Punk vs. John Cena for the WWE Title. It’s a PPV quality main event on free TV.
– The Triple H/Shawn Michaels DX reunion to start the show.
– Brock Lesnar’s return after being away since late April.
– The Rock’s return after being away since April 2.
– The wedding of Daniel Bryan and AJ.
– The announcement of a new Raw GM.
– Surprise returns of other stars from the past.
I think Raw 1,000 will be an awesome show next week. While I have concerns about the three hour format going forward, I don’t have much doubt about how good next week’s show will be. I’m looking forward to watching it and writing about it live.
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That’s a wrap for this week. Let’s bring it home with some quick plugs.
If you’re looking for a good place to talk wrestling, sports, entertainment and anything else on your mind then check out my friends at The Oratory located at The-Oratory.com and also click on their forums because I’m posting in there regularly too. I’ve been with that site for over a decade and it’s full of a hard working people that are definitely worth your time.
I’m not sure when my top Raw 100 moments column will be ready. It might be the first week of August. I don’t want to rush it. I’m done most of it, but this week is going to kick my ass in terms of being busy. I will likely be back on Saturday with my Canton’s Corner column and then next Monday live with the Raw Deal. You can also check me out at TJRSports.com because I’m going to be writing there a lot this week especially and so will our new writers.
Until next time, thanks for reading.
John Canton – [email protected]
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