As promised, I am here to discuss the results of last nights Monday Night Raw.
I want to begin by saying I was happy to see John Cena question the WWE universe for a change. He was upset they had voted him into a handicap match the previous week, and I felt the promo was good for Cena. What followed was Bray Wyatt’s choir of children, singing “He’s Got the Whole World in His Hands” whilst wearing sheep masks.
I still don’t know what to make of this segment. It was meant to represent Bray’s cult-like ways, and his mission to take members of the Cenation from John Cena. I don’t know, I feel like, the more they plug the song, the less I want to hear it. It was funny at first, it was something for the crowd to sing along in the background of a match, but to have a full choir of children singing it was slightly overkill for me. It was different for sure, it reminded me of how The Undertaker would use druids to get into the heads of opponents, and the children represented everything Cena is about. Whether you enjoyed it or not, it accomplished something, it gave WWE something extra to add to their hype video for the upcoming PPV.
Match #1 – The Uso’s defended the tag titles against Rybaxel.
After waiting 25 minutes for a match, we were treated to this. I have to admit, Rybaxel impressed me in this match. Rybaxel had good heat from the moment they entered, and it takes two teams to tango. The match was really good, The Uso’s had an injury scare, and yet, was able to defend their titles despite Jimmy hobbling on one leg throughout. This could have been a PPV match.
Match #2 – Sheamus survived Titus O’Neil.
Not sure what this match accomplished. Titus looked amazing, he had 99.9% of the offense, but yet, Sheamus can endure the beating, hit him with a Brogue Kick, and win the match. Sheamus has been stale for a long time, and Titus deserves a little better. Let these two have a proper match.
Dolph Ziggler was given a segment, instead of jobbing out for a change. He introduced Hugh Jackman, and we were treated to the awkward “it’s great to be back on Monday Night …. Raw!”. Damien Sandow entered as Magneto, dressed up in a really bad outfit and talked down to his enemy, Wolverine. Damien Sandow’s tone of voice, wow, he sounded ecstatic to be there. I’m sure he forgot his lines at one point as well, and as Ziggler mentioned, tripped up on his cape.
The segment took a turn for the worse as Magneto attempted to use his power of magnetism against Wolverine. Hugh Jackman played along by pretending his microphone was being pulled in by Magneto. After what felt like a lifetime, Jackman hip tossed Sandow, and Ziggler hit him with a Zig Zag. That received a decent pop from the crowd, but for me, the segment was incredibly unnecessary.
This was followed by Paul Heyman being Paul Heyman. Such a genius, I laughed hard when it happened.
Thanks Paul, you continue to entertain me every single week.
Match #3 – Cesaro defeated Swagger easily.
Cesaro looks great at the moment. He dominated Swagger, and just as Swagger got an upper hand, Heyman snuck up on Zeb Colter and pulled hard on his beard. This gave a good enough distraction for Cesaro to pin Swagger with a German Suplex (bridge). Felt like a short match, but made the team of Heyman & Cesaro look as strong as ever.
Match #4 – Del Rio made Cody tap out.
Alberto Del Rio has been lost in the shuffle lately, and this win was really needed for him. Cody on the other hand, we can expect to see a frustrated Cody turn on his brother and become heel again. I guess WWE feel the tag team has run its course. Shame really, because Goldust & Cody have great chemistry and often put on some of the best tag team matches.
Match #5 – Rusev won by DQ over Xavier Woods after R-Truth interfered.
I liked this. Rusev … man … am I the only fan who likes his work? His physique as well, he’s big, muscular, and so athletic at the same time, I would love to see him against someone like Big E or Brock Lesnar. Anyways, on the match itself, it was going to be a submission victory for Rusev, but R-Truth saved Xavier from that, and they were able to stop Rusev. This is the first time anyone has stopped Rusev doing what he wants to do since debuting on Raw. It took two guys to do it though, and I know Rusev will crush both of them soon.
Match #6 – 3MB won for a change, against Los Matadores.
I was happy to see 3MB win, but only because I ain’t much of a fan of the Los Matadores. They have yet to impress me, and it appears all the focus is on El Torito and Hornswoggle going forward. It doesn’t make me want to tune into the pre-show for the upcoming PPV.
Stephanie McMahon made her presence known, and “apologized” to Daniel Bryan and Brie Bella for Kane’s actions. Stephanie always sounds disingenuous, it was obvious that something was going to happen during the Divas Championship match she awarded Brie Bella.
Match #7 – No contest as Paige defended her title against Brie Bella.
I have to say, Paige made Brie look ordinary in the ring. I felt Paige was doing her primal scream a little too much. She eventually got the pop she wanted on the outside of the ring. The crowd didn’t sound into her, not like previous crowds. The match ended suddenly as Kane appeared.
Kane emerged with a hand from underneath the ring, grabbed Brie, and tried pulling her down with him. You got to wonder just how strong Brie is, because Kane had trouble pulling her down, despite being double the size. Bryan attempted to stop Kane, to no avail. After Bryan got Brie away from Kane, he told her to run away, she didn’t do this, and instead, decided to get back into the ring, where Kane grabbed her again! This was classic Kane, where has this Kane been?
It ended after Brie was able to kick Kane in the head and break free. Am I the only one who wanted Kane to pull Brie under? That would have been great, but I’ve never been a fan of the Bellas, I guess I’m biased.
Match #8 – I’m afraid I got some bad news! Wade Barrett is the number one contender.
Barrett cut a promo atop his pedestal, and let us know that #BNB will win the tournament. I enjoyed the match, and I predicted Barrett would win. The only way RVD could lose was to have interference, and Barrett took that opportunity as a heel should. I am looking forward to seeing Barrett as a three time Intercontinental Champion. What followed was an impromptu brawl amongst Cesaro, Swagger and RVD, setting up a possible triple threat at Extreme Rules.
Match #9 – No contest for Roman Reigns and Randy Orton.
As The Shield and Evolution confronted each other in the ring, we were graced with the legend of Ric Flair. I know exactly why they brought him back, WWE was getting sick and tired of the fans asking if Ric Flair would return to align himself with Evolution. Flair gave his endorsement to The Shield, which is typical Flair, align yourself with the guys who are hungrier, younger, and have better chemistry. Will the fans stop asking the question now?
The match broke down, as expected, and Evolution got the upper hand. Just as we felt Evolution was to destroy The Shield again, Seth Rollins gave Triple H a flying knee to the head, and got the crowd cheering. The crowd were seriously into this, and firmly behind The Shield, and just as we felt Triple H was going to take the triple powerbomb, Orton and Batista provided a momentary distraction so Triple H could escape.
The Shield set the tone going into the PPV, expect The Shield to go over. There isn’t a lot more to say, the show was decent, had a strange beginning, fun parts in the middle, and a great ending.
The diary will be put to rest for now, I may return with more comments in a few days time. Depends what happens, you know if I have something to write about, I will, so until then, I have been a British wrestling fan, have a good evening!
