Raw opens with an appearance from Triple H. Does this mean Laurinaitis officially got the boot? Let’s hope so. The crowd seems to be hot tonight with lots of chants for the game. Hunter says he was out here last week to fire John Laurinaitis. He goes on to insult JL. He says JL flew to Connecticut to plead his case to the board of directors and there will be a decision shortly. Hunter says he is out here to talk about the return of The Undertaker. Hunter talks about his respect for the dead man. Hunter said he no longer felt humbled to stand in front of the dead man and that he felt bad for him when he looked him in the eyes. Hunter said he chooses to remember the dead man a certain way. He shows a dominant video package for The Undertaker and says that is how he chooses to remember him. He then shows another package of Undertaker barely able to stand and says he doesn’t want to remember it. Very good point here made by Triple H. Does this mean the dead man will taunt him into a match and end up losing? Hunter says the dead man’s legacy will never be matched. Triple H says for that reason, out of respect with all his heart he says no. Hunter says if he faces him again, he’ll have to finish it and maybe that’s what The Undertaker wants. Hunter says he will not be the guy that pushes the dead man past his limits. Hunter goes to leave the ring and his music stops playing. The lights go out. We see a video on the screen of the highlights of last year’s match with the dead man sitting in a chair watching. The Undertakers says this is not over. The dead man says his victory means nothing because of the image of being wheeled out. Undertaker says give me what is mine, vengeance, and he will give Triple H one more chance at immortality.
^Triple H just proved once again why he is one of the best promo guys of all time. He is so well spoken compared to the majority of the younger roster and can captivate an audience throughout his entire speech. The creepy Undertaker video? I loved it. It gives you that old school dead man feel that has been seen by WWE fans for over two decades. Yes, it might be the last run for The Undertaker, but it’s great to see that he plans to go out as strong as he came in. Nobody can compare to what he has done over the years.
The Big Show is out for a match with Daniel Bryan. Have we seen this before? Daniel Bryan brings AJ to the ring with him. Show and Bryan give us a decent back and forth contest. Bryan goes up top but sees Show get up. Bryan jumps down to the ring apron and Show kicks him to the floor. Bryan acts as though he has injured his knee. AJ blocks Bryan as Show goes for him. Show goes to walk off but Bryan hits his knee from behind. Show charges Bryan but Bryan moves and Show stops just short of running into AJ. Bryan takes AJ and walks up the ramp to lose the match via countout. Bryan grabs the mic after the match and says Show just proved that the first time he ran through AJ was on purpose because of how easily he pulled up this time. Bryan continues to taunt Big Show and says he will still be WHC after the Elimination Chamber.
^Bryan is incredible as the WHC. Can’t say enough for everything that Bryan has accomplished as a heel and how nicely he carries himself as the major star of the Smackdown brand. It just works for this guy. The fact that he can wrestle a great match every time he sets foot in the ring is a huge plus for a World Champion(especially one of his size).
We learn from a taped promo last week that John Cena will be waving the green flag to start the Daytona 500 on February 26. I can hardly wait.
Back from commercial and David Otunga is in the ring. Otunga puts over JL as a great GM. Wonder what show he’s watching. Otunga asks the fans to pray with him for JL’s job security. Justin Roberts announces that Triple H has ordered David Otunga to compete in a match right now. Out comes Sheamus to a nice reaction from the crowd. Sheamus makes quick work of Otunga.
^Nice to see Sheamus continue to dominate as we move towards the Elimination Chamber and get one step closer to the announcement that Sheamus will face Daniel Bryan at WrestleMania. It’s going to be a terrific match.
Chris Jericho is out to speak. Jericho says he spells the end of the garbage on Monday Night Raw. He says he has made every other performer in this company obsolete just by appearing on Raw. He says they are all Chris Jericho wannabes. He says the fans are the same way. He points out that the Miz stole his gimmick. He claims he did things in the ring that had never been seen before before Kofi, walked to the ring with Stephanie McMahon before Dolph ever had Vickie, and then there is CM Punk. Punk stole his best in the world saying and that he is nothing more than a Jericho wannabe. Jericho talks about all of his accomplishments and how he earned the right to be called the best in the world. He says this is the end of the world because he is coming back to reclaim what is his. CM Punk interrupts. Punk walks to the ring with a microphone and drops it. He holds up the WWE Title and the crowd cheers. Punk turns his backand waits for the Jericho attack. Jericho doesn’t touch him and Punk walks away. Jericho calls him a wannabe and asks him if he is going to say anything. Punk just leaves.
^Brilliant. This is the sort of buildup that these two need to create a monster rivalry for their match at WrestleMania 28. My question here is whether or not you think Chris Jericho will call Punk a copycat for coming to the ring without saying a word. I’m excited for the match that these two are going to produce. It will steal the show and really shouldn’t be on the card with Rock/Cena if they want Rock/Cena to be the main event. The three matches alone that are in the planning stages make this potentially the most exciting WrestleMania I’ve ever seen.
Wade Barrett and Cody Rhodes take on Randy Orton and the Great Khali. This is a good match all around. Khali slaps Orton in the back and tags himself in. He hits Rhodes in the head with a huge chop to pick up the victory. Ortons gets in Khali’s face after the match and Khali grabs Orton by the throat. He pushes Orton who ducks the big chop and Orton hits the RKO on the Indian giant.
^Wow! I thought for a minute Khali was actually going to appear dominant on Orton. I’m glad WWE used smart thinking to have Orton be the last one standing here. He needs the momentum heading towards WrestleMania for whatever match he ends up in. When’s Christian supposed to be coming back? Might make for a decent rivalry for Orton.
Next we have an eight diva tag team match with Tamina, Eve, Alicia Fox, and Kelly Kelly taking on Beth, Natalya, and the Bellas. This one is over fast as Tamina pins one of the Bellas with the superfly splash. Not much to say about this one. You got eight divas(half of which can wrestle) and you barely showcase any of the actual talent. I’ve begged for either legitimate wrestling that lasts longer than two minutes or for WWE to just scrap the division altogether. One or the other, please!
Hunter is backstage on the phone and is interrupted by JL himself. JL tells Triple H that Shawn Michaels is going to be on Raw next week. JL tells Hunter that he suggested Cena take on Kane in an ambulance match at the Elimination Chamber to the board of directors. Hunter says it is a good idea and then threatens JL unless he leaves his office.
^Shawn Michaels being pulled in for the storyline with Triple H and The Undertaker? I like it, as long as the guest ref rumors remain just that, rumors. If Triple H and Undertaker want to deliver the epic part three, then it needs to be without the distraction of HBK as the official in the match. I still think Laurinaitis will have his job through WrestleMania. Any idea if Mick Foley is going to get involved soon to work a rivalry for Mania also? Dolph Ziggler would be a great opponent for him. Getting back on track now…
Backstage interview with John Laurinaitis. Josh Matthews asks JL what he thinks the board’s decision will be tomorrow. JL says the board is looking for someone with integrity and someone who can admits to mistakes and learns from them. He insults Triple H and points out that he is cowardly for refusing to face The Undertaker.
^Looks like my idea for JL to run Raw through Mania will go through after all. Like I said, JL was starting to grow on me.
It’s time for the six pack challenge main event that will determine the final entrant in the Raw Elimination Chamber match! The participants are R-Truth, Kofi Kingston, Dolph Ziggler, the Miz, CM Punk, and Chris Jericho. The battle begins. Jericho appears to be missing from the ring. He is then shown laying outside the ring. Smart move by Y2J. The match ends when Punk hits a GTS on Ziggler and is pulled out of the ring by Jericho. Jericho tosses Punk over the announce table and steals the pinfall on Ziggler! Jericho will enter the Elimination Chamber match last! Punk stands up and sees Chris Jericho sitting in the ring CM Punk style with the WWE Title on his shoulder. Jericho stands up as Punk looks on in disgust.
^Making everyone think Jericho now has the advantage to win the title at the Elimination Chamber? I think it’s a good idea. I’m not sure how the booking will go, but either Punk or Jericho will be the victor in that match. The chemistry between these two is going to lead to an incredible match in Miami on April 1st. Great main event for Raw with the showcasing of all the top guys!
Kane is backstage yelling at Eve. He says Cena is starting to embrace the hate, but that he is not all the way there yet. He says if Cena doesn’t get there soon, he is afraid for Eve, for Cena, and for anyone who gets in his path. Kane says for the first time in his life, he is afraid of himself. Raw goes off the air.
^No mention of Kane all night, and we get the creepy promo on Eve that lasts under a minute? I’ll take it. Creepy Kane promos are a thousand times better than typical Kane matches(try arguing with that one). I expect Cena to do the “un-cena like” thing that I predicted he would do at the Rumble at the Elimination Chamber during their ambulance match. Can’t go too far with predictions right now though; that column will be for next week. I’m a bit surprised there was no Cena run in save during the segment with Eve. Just a creepy way to end the show I suppose.
Overall, another really good Monday Night Raw was delivered to us tonight. You had some decent matches across the board and some major storyline developments as we build to the big event on April 1st. I hope we get more than just one or two appearances from The Rock given that he is supposed to be headlining the main event of WrestleMania. Someone should call him out on this. Oh wait…they have. It’s good to see Jericho both speaking and competing on the same show; it seems to make for better television. I’ll be back with Smackdown on Friday and maybe a little something in between as we move towards the Elimination Chamber. Until next time, you’ve been ThunderStruck!
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