There is so much enjoyment to be found in the WWE as we approach WrestleMania. The complexity within the true, main event storyline with Shawn Michaels, John Cena, Edge and Randy Orton is what is I look forward to more than anything. It’s hard not to enjoy even when the bookers destroy logic of one night’s RAW. The booking was going well so far in the night with the ‘does Shawn have my back, really?’ John Cena moments, with Shawn Michaels playing the emotions and facial expressions like only Shawn can while reminding me of V from V for Vendetta (while John looks like a Boston PacMan). They even kicked off the first match of RAW with Orton versus Michaels, getting the job done for an already hot Phoenix crowd to continue to build the storylines. I particularly liked the finish where the ref catches the chair, something I don’t know if we’ve seen in years. This sets up a good foil when Orton doesn’t have Edge’s back later on for his match and Michaels hesitates to let Cena get beat for a while but still saves the day for the main event of the night. My only problem last night with booking was that once again Edge was able to change a match where he isn’t in the match anymore and Nitro (who is now okay with Melina?) gets to substitute for him. Of course, this is just normal behavior in wrestling today.
The other strong storyline was of course the McMahon/Trump/Umaga/Lashley push. Lashley is getting a great push on RAW without having to be there by the showing of the ECW video package, which Vince hopes will carry over into stronger ratings for ECW. The big news though was the ‘who will be the special guest referee?’ buildup. I enjoyed the “swerves” of the segment even though the entire arena knew it would be Austin and it was just a matter of who was going to come out to be the chad. Bischoff was a nice twist but I thought they dropped the ball to set something up further. But for the cheap pop, it worked. Speaking of cheap pop, Mick Foley has a book to plug so it’s only fitting to have him involved. Having Shane McMahon drop the news to Vince in a whisper, to get the gulp and the perfectly timed glass being broken was played perfectly. Though the crowd was just so overwhelmingly happy to see Stone Cold back, I don’t know if just coming in and drinking beer without Austin talking was the right method. I suppose they are going to save Austin talking for ECW. Regardless, welcome back Stone Cold!
Looking at the rest of RAW, I enjoyed the crazy energy of the Mickie James/Melina “Falls Count Anywhere” match though the convenient break when Candice Michelle’s towel was ripped off took away from the energy for me. Mickie’s wipe out during the top rope huracanrana looked pretty bad and I wish she could do a move like that on someone who actually had the ring experience to take the move. I’m at a loss because I feel no passion about seeing a “face” Ashley (with her new rack it seems) versus Melina at WrestleMania. Worse, neither of them can truly work.
Another problem with booking last night was the interference by Great Khali during the Flair/Carlito match. No one could really understand what Khali said when he picked up the mic, as I thought he wanted Flair, and JR insisted he wanted Kane. What I really want is for Khali to be dropped from WrestleMania. There was no resolution by the bookers to whether or not Flair and Carlito both advance, neither advance or a rematch on RAW next week to determine who advances for the Money in the Bank match will take place. Overall it was a good RAW, but last week’s was more enjoyable with less loopholes.
Finally, please go read Matthew’s column on what he would do with the tag team divisions in the WWE.
Always remember, for things to change, you have to make movement. Thanks for reading and for all the feedback, feel free to contact me anytime at Bam@4sternstaging.com.
