Ali Saif/ASM sent us the following from RAW last night:
HBK opens raw to a great pop from the Boston crowd. Triple H followed suit to a great reaction from the crowd.
Triple H got some heavy boos for saying he’d end the streak. Huge pop though when HBK announced he’d be the special ref.
Santino got the pop of the night so far as he was announced for his US title match with Jack Swagger. This place went crazy for Santino’s win, crowd hasn’t been this hot since the attitude era (in Boston at least). After all the shenanigans, the crowd erupted again. The four person trombone was classic.
The Rock promo actually didn’t get a big pop, but there wasn’t much build to it, he just kind of showed up on screen. The Boston Tea Party using Cena’s merchandise got a good reaction.
Alicia Fox got absolutely no reaction, but Eve drew some great heel heat, more so than any recent diva. Match was pointless. Zack Ryder unexpectedly came out to a great reaction. Hopefully they treat him better because the crowd hangs on his every word.
Cena got a 50/50 split, and his comment on the Pats did not win him any fans, but it was a good transition for his “who remembers second place?” theory. Boring for a live crowd, maybe better on TV.
CM Punk got a loud reaction from the crowd, Sheamus got a pretty tamed response from the crowd.
Daniel Bryan drew some boos on his way down, but the crowd still loves Jericho. Until he speaks and belittles everyone, crowds will cheer him.
Punk/Jericho had a solid back and forth, makes you look forward to Wrestlemania. Crowd popped for the hot tag, but this match just seemed to drag a bit. Aside from the Macho Man elbow, this match was forgettable.
The Rock’s second promo was even funnier.
Not sure if Big Show always wiggles his rear end before he enters the ring but that was hilarious. Wasn’t Cody’s funniest Big Show/WM moment but the crowd still enjoys the continuity. Poor Miz, he actually got a better reaction than Bryan and Sheamus, but jobbed hard.
The Rock is awesome. His taped promos were more interesting than majority of the live segments.
Far too many commercial breaks. Although The Rock’s segments were funny, it felt like we were watching TV a lot, that gets annoying when you pay to see it live. It was clear that they would do this, however, when Kofi/Dolph was taped for Superstars, because why else would that be on there?
R-Truth gets a good pop but if he is face they may as well have him sing, otherwise he just becomes a bit generic. Kane’s pyro was loud as anything, but the crowd was pretty silent for him. Orton got perhaps the pop of the night and kept their feud going well with the RKO and response to Kane’s attack on Friday.
Cena gets a loud reaction, regardless if its boos or cheers (split), it is among the loudest reactions on a consistent basis. Cena is much better when he does his gimmick circa WM21, but he pushes the PG limit when he does it, so it makes sense that they limit it.
The Rock came out to the pop of the night, and the war of words continues. Very abrupt ending there, seemed like they want to limit the back and forth considering Mania is still a month away. Cena did a good job wrapping it up at the end there. Very quick segment there but it served its purpose.
After they went off the air, Cena admitted they did a lot of talking and not much fighting. Cena also talked about his brother who was diagnosed with cancer, and informed us that the tumor is shrinking and that he is doing much better… Good to hear stuff like that, Cena was practically in tears. Having had family members pass away from cancer it really helps you relate to these guys. Emotional, heartfelt message from Cena, lots of respect for him.
Dark Match: Punk/Cena vs. Kane/Jericho. Punk and Cena pick up the win.
Biggest Pops:
The Rock
Cena
Orton
Santino winning the US title
Biggest Heat:
Cena
Vicki Guerrero
Johnny Ace
