So this week we have yet another themed show as RAW presents RAW Roulette live from Las Vegas. This show was actually yet again a huge improvement from last week’s, and I would even go as far to say it was a great show. Don’t get me wrong, this show had it’s fair share of crap but when it was good, it was really good! Despite the fact that this is the third themed RAW in a row (and having this theme was completely unnecessary), I was glad to see that the theme didn’t consume the whole show. Unlike the last two weeks, the theme was imply part of the show as opposed to being THE whole show.
The Good
CM Punk’s Promo
Classifying this as “The Good” doesn’t even come close to doing this segment justice. This was honestly one of the best promos I have ever seen and definitely the best segment on RAW in a very very long time. Other than the fact that the CM Punk is the best talker in WWE right now, everything he said was completely true. This was just so real and it was just so fresh. There were parts of this promo (ie. mentioning ROH and dissing the McMahons) that pretty much had my jaw hitting the floor. I hate the fact that WWE like to put themselves and their fans in this WWE bubble where they are the only wrestling company in the world so I loved the fact that CM Punk took everyone outside of this bubble and spoke the truth. It’s also such a pity that Punk is leaving because this is the most interested I have been in WWE in years, and for the first time in years I am busting to see next week’s RAW to see what happens next.
The big question is, was this worked or not? I’m gonna guess that it was. If it was, well done WWE for producing an extremely interesting storyline for the first time in years. If it wasn’t, regardless of how he feels about being ripped to pieces on his own show, Vince should be grateful to Punk for making some of the best TV WWE has produced in years. Awesome stuff.
The Tornado Tag Team Match
This was a great match, and was definitely the match  of the night. Tornado tag team matches don’t happen very often in WWE and after tonight, I would actually like to see them a lot more often. I really preferred seeing this instead of a regular tag team match. It’s great to see Alex Riley get a push and he really is making the most of it. I can definitely see him being a big star in the near future. Awesome entrance music too!
The Steel Cage Match
This get’s put in the good pile purely because of what happened after the match. Mark Henry is being booked perfectly right now and is the most interesting he has been in years. I couldn’t help but laugh when Mark Henry approached the cage door (his old enemy from his 2006 return) and I would have loved for the door to have been jammed again. In all seriousness though, this segment was actually shocking when Big Show went through the cage. I believe the fans even chanted “Holy Shit!” which hasn’t happened in years. This feud is developing quite nicely. Yes, I know neither of these two are particularly great in the ring but I think if you put them in some kind of Hardcore gimmick match which will shadow their wrestling ability, you could have a decent match here. I’m expecting to see Big Show vs Mark Henry at Money in the Bank, and I think Henry will dominate this match and allow the feud to continue on to SummerSlam in some kind of gimmick match.
Sin Cara vs Evan Bourne
This was a really good match, which could have been amazing if it had of got another 5 or 10 minutes. I loved when the crowd chanted “power ranger” too! Funny stuff! Overall, this was a good match with some really great spots. Please for the love of God, stop announcing Evan as “Evan Air Bourne” though! Please!!!
The Bad
Kofi Kingston getting the win over Dolph Ziggler
Why did we have to see this match again? And why on earth did Kofi get the win over the champion? If you want to have a feud between these two, why not have an actual feud between the two instead of just a series of matches? Did anyone notice Dolph’s entrance video during this? Pretty much all clips of him wrestling Kofi! That’s how many times these two have wrestled! Please just end this! And at least book Dolph to win the feud, after all he is the United States Champion.
No qualifying matches for the Money In The Bank ladder match
I hate the fact that there wont be any qualifying matches this year. The match seems a lot more prestigious whenever you have to earn your spot. Also, what the hell has Jack Swagger done lately to warrant a spot in this match? And why the hell has Dolph Ziggler been snubbed from the match? I’m really hoping the lineup for the SD! match is a lot better because RAW’s lineup leaves a lot to be desired.
The way Shawn Michaels was used
Don’t get me wrong, I was thrilled to see HBK on RAW again. I’m a huge fan. But he talked about hating it when people just show up on RAW to plug something, yet all he did was plug his new show? Right… Also, why did he have to bitch out the young talent? He made the tag team champions look like crap, as well as Drew McIntyre who should be at least on the upper mid card at the minute. I just didn’t see the point in this. A good interaction with Punk just doesn’t justify him bitching out the younger talent and having no general purpose on the show. I really wish he had have been used better because all he was was a “RAW guest host/star” here.
The Ugly
Kelly Kelly vs Nikki Bella, Submission match
When I saw this match stipulation I couldn’t help but think do either even know what submission wrestling is? This was just plain ugly. Less than two minutes, blink and you’ll miss it kind of ugly. It really amazes me how bad the diva’s division has gotten in the last few weeks. I honestly think this is the worst the division has been, ever! It’s such a pity too because I honestly thought that this would be the year the division would finally develop and become great with the addition of Kharma, but since she has gone, it’s just been pure garbage. It’s not like they even need Kharma to have a good storyline. You have the likes of Beth, Natalya and Gail. Why not make a heel group out of these three who hate the divas who can’t wrestle and still get their spots? It would be interesting because it’s real, much like CM Punk’s latest storyline.
So overall, I really enjoyed this week’s RAW. As I have stated before, CM Punk just completely stole the show and made RAW for me this week. I truly can not wait to see RAW next week and see the backlash to this segment. And honestly, this is the first time in years I have looked forward to seeing the next show this much.
As always, feel free to leave feedback on anything I have said. I love reading feedback, even when it doesn’t agree with my opinion (aka. the Truth/Christian/Miz promo last week). Either leave a comment below, email me at [email protected] or facebook me at Phil.McKane.
