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Brian, Knoxville
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I thought this was a fantastic episode of Raw. I really enjoyed it.
I loved seeing Coach get stunned. Great way to kick off Raw. CM Punk got a great response from his hometown fans for his match and for the Cutting Edge which was cool.
The beatdown on Lashley was effective although it was pretty weak that they couldn't get Trump on the last show before 'Mania.
Highlight of the night though was JR getting inducted into the Hall of Fame. JR is a true legend and class act and it was brilliant to see the fans showing him their appreciation.
HBK cut a great promo and the main event was gripping. The crowd were hot which made it even better. It was fitting that HBK finally gave Cena the super kick that we were all waiting for.
I'm looking forward to the last two WWE shows plus Wrestlemania on Sunday. WWE is doing terrific right now.
Gerry Doyle, Dublin, Ireland.
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Six days until WrestleMania 23 and RAW IS THE LAST STOP TO WRESTLEMANIA UNTIL ECW AIRS TOMORROW AND THEN SMACKDOWN AIRS ON FRIDAY was a very good show except for one angle that should have insulted any wrestling fan over the age of 6 years. The wrestling was standard fare for promoting the PPV and it was nice to see CM Punk get over so well on a show that wrestling fans actually watch. The Cutting Edge was a good interview segment letting all eight MITB participants get a little face time. HBK delivered his usual solid promo and John Cena must have listened to Mike Johnson's interview with Chris Jericho. Jericho explained the process of putting together a promo and Cena put together probably his best one ever tonight!
A funny thought occurred to me during the hype for upcoming events. If the WWE sells out every overseas appearance and is having trouble with attendance at house shows in the U.S., why are they running shows in Italy two weeks after the biggest show of the year? Seems to me they could capitalize on WM and get that spike of ticket sales locally instead of wasting that momentum overseas? But hey, I'm just a dumb smart internet fan, right?
Do you mean to tell me that after spending the last four months building up Lashley as the ECW Champion and an unstoppable monster that RVD, Big Show, Test, Bob Holly and all the others couldn't stop; Lashley is weak against a kick to the johnnies by a sixty year old man? The squash by Umaga afterwards may or may not have made sense, but I wasn't even interested after the low blow. All that entire segment was was Vince McMahon's ego running amok. It was beyond stupid and I find it insulting that Vince thought someone would believe that garbage.
The final segment was predictable but it was still fun to watch anyways! The Michaels turn on Cena was well played and it may have ended up selling a few PPV buyers that were sitting on the fence as to whether to order it. And to the funny sounding guy I first saw at a Mid-South TV taping in Shreveport over 20 years ago, congrats on your Hall of Fame honor Jim Ross! Very few people have done for wrestling what you have done and it is an honor that you truly deserve!
Philip Jacobs
Elite Member
Baton Rouge
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If the creative team wanted to create a deja vu moment in the main event with Michaels staring down at his partner lying on the mat they succeeded. Whether or not this was a good creative direction is debatable. In any event, this would have made a better conclusion to the show rather than the smirk after the final commercial, which I felt served no useful purpose whatsoever. If history will repeat itself, Cena should win this Sunday.
The crowd's alternating reactions to the exchanges of blows between the Undertaker and Cena were in my view unnecessary. While I agree with many observers that Cena is not yet a technical master of his art, I think he deserves more respect than he is getting.
The announcement of Jim Ross' induction into the Hall of Fame was the highlight of the show. His warm ovation and tributes from his colleagues were most well deserved.
Ray Barnes
Surrey BC Canada
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The last two weeks on Raw and last week on Smackdown I have noticed some possible sound editing (tinkering). i.e. during the final match last evening, the overwhelming crowd sounds never seemed to match the crowd reactions caught by the camera.
Frankly, at most times it sounded like a European soccer match between Manchester & Chelsea. Their sound techs are really overworking it... or is it my imagination? Again, the crowd sounds do not match the crowd reactions... and there were many crowd shots last night during the main event.
I attend many live events (concerts, etc.), but it just seems overdone.
Just a thought.
Ken
