Kyle’s Files: LIVE Monday Night Raw Review (The Rock, John Cena, HBK, Triple H, CM Punk, Undertaker)

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This was easily the most fun wrestling show I’ve ever been to. Don’t get me wrong: I’m not saying it was the BEST show, just the most fun I ever had. The reason I had fun mostly consisted of, well, “other” activities and “had to be there” moments, but I can say one thing: those were the best 22-dollar tickets you could have. Yeah, three of us moved up to the 2nd row behind front row.

After The Rock and Cena promo ended, I got so close to Cena when he jumped in the crowd and drank beer that his beer spilled on me. I also told Jerry Lawler that I watched the Memphis DVD and he gave me a thumbs up in approval. And when he left, he waved goodbye. That was most likely the best moment of the show for me because Jerry Lawler is one of my favorite wrestlers of all time.

HBK/HHH segment

It was very hard to hear what they were saying because the crowd was VERY loud. From what I heard, it was good, though. The crowd went nuts when HBK revealed himself as the special referee. As usual, these two were complete veterans in the ring.  They just know to use the right facial expressions /mannerisms, and – importantly – they know when to pause on the mic.

US Championship Match: Jack Swagger vs. Santino

I thought the ring work was solid. They played with the crowd’s emotions by making it appear on many occasions as if Swagger was going to win. Although there was a lot going on, I think it was really booked well. The match had a lot of drama and I was convinced that Santino was going to get screwed. When Santino won, the place went nuts. When I say nuts, I mean nuts! Like, I couldn’t even hear anything I was saying. The only thing I didn’t like about this match is that I thought Johnny Ace and David Otunga being kicked off Raw overshadowed Santino’s huge win. On that note, what the hell happened to Otunga versus Khali?

Both of Rock’s ‘History Lessons’ were funny and well-written. It reminded me of the old Rock. You know, the one that use to be funny. His delivery was on cue and witty. He was also very charismatic.  The crowd loved the videos and so did I.

Alicia Fox vs. Eve

The only highlights of this match were kids no older than five chanting “hoeski”. Oh yeah, great message you’re sending there, WWE.

CM Punk and Sheamus vs. Daniel Bryan and Chris Jericho

Before the match, I told some kids who looked about ten years old that CM Punk does drugs and they almost cried. I know, I’m a douche. Anyway, the match was fun, but they gave way too much away for free in this match. CM Punk and Chris Jericho wrestled A LOT more than they should have done. And even though I see why Jericho won, doesn’t that kind of make him the ‘best in the world’ since he pinned CM Punk cleanly? All in all, I’m pretty disappointed with this feud. It felt to begin with like they’d go for something really epic. As it stands, the feud thus far has been pretty basic. The WrestleMania match still ought to great, though.

Big Show vs. The Miz

Why don’t people like this Big Show vs. Cody Rhodes feud? I think it’s very entertaining. Cody Rhodes is becoming more of a douche-bag heel, while Big Show is a properly sympathetic babyface. That’s booking 101 at its finest my friends. The match was a squash. I tried getting a “you’re a jobber” chant going but it didn’t work.

Kane vs. R-Truth

This was my piss-break match. It seemed like Orton got a large pop, though.

John Cena/Rock Promo

Yet again, the fans were so loud that it was hard to hear. The crowd was pro-Rock at first but slowly began to turn on him and actually favor Cena. I’d say overall Rock got more pops, but it was very close to 50/50. I thought it seemed like they talked more about the match and embraced why it’s so important. That’s a right step in the direction. John Cena mocking Rock for using wrist-notes is what the fans enjoyed the most. But I don’t understand why Cena would announce and kiss his wife. After all, just a few weeks ago he was sucking lips with Eve and liking it. So, the biggest ‘good guy’ in wrestling is now a player? Well if he is then cue up his music, playa! *YOU KNOW ITS THE MACMILITANT*. Oh, and I found it funny that Michael Cole was surfing the Internet on his computer while this all was going on.

Overall: It was a fun night. I don’t know how it came off on TV but being there was super fun. The main reason it was so fun was because the crowd was into the show the entire night.

For future reference, though: always ignore fans when they try to talk wrestling with you at a WWE show. They will not only go on incessantly, but some talk about the dumbest things. This one guy was telling me that WWE referees ought to be fired because they miss everything illegal that happens in a match, especially a tag-match. Another guy told me that after WrestleMania, the Rock is going to TNA. And lastly, a guy told me that Ric Flair vs. Sting was going to happen at WrestleMania this year. But yeah, a very fun night nevertheless.