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Last night's Raw was a solid "keep things going along" show. They kept building up DX vs. Jericho & Show, Cena vs. Sheamus, Kingston vs. Orton and Melina vs. Maryse. They also started what could be a U.S. Title program with Mark Henry and Miz. There wasn't a lot of wrestling action on the show, and other than the Kingston-Orton segment (and a Carlito interview that in the long run won't matter) it wasn't a show you needed to go out of your way to see. Verne Troyer as guest host wasn't anything special, and he really didn't have much to do with the show.
Here's my thoughts on the show, as it happened:
The opening segment was perfectly fine, although it probably could have been cut down a little. It was the typical strong heel mic work by Jericho and Show, then the expected interruption by DX. They pushed their PPV bout, and set up the main event for later, with the stips that someone would be in a handicap match next week. Basic, but effective, stuff here.
Did anyone else notice how Jillian gets more heat from the crowd by warbling one word than Maryse gets with a whole promo? Maryse has never been strong on the mic, and while WWE is scripting good lines for her, the delivery just isn't there. As for the tag match, the story of the bout was Melina wanting to get her hands on Maryse, and she finally did, only to have Maryse block her finisher and get the clean pin. So, Maryse is now cemented as the top challenger to Melina with the sneak attack and now the win. It will be interesting to see if Maryse's in-ring work has improved during her layoff.
Sheamus, the Irish Rocket, does a quick promo on how he can beat John Cena without pinning him at TLC. Santino comes out, and it is a countdown to him getting squashed. Nice line about Sheamus being jealous of the "skin pigmentation" of Santino. There's the squash. No Cena, since Jerry Lawler said he isn't there yet.
We had the obligatory "put Verne Troyer next to Big Show" moment, with Verne blowing off Chris Jericho. Thankfully, this didn't lead to Jericho having further interaction with the guest host.
No, that honor fell to the Miz, who joined Verne for a series of Austin Powers references, followed by them setting up Mark Henry vs. The Miz. Verne didn't make it a title match? Why do I have a feeling Miz will be staring at the lights later?
The long-awaited Kofi Kingston vs. Randy Orton match has been something WWE has done a great job teasing, and we're still waiting for it. This was a good way to "give us the match, without giving it to us" as we had Cody Rhodes and Ted DiBiase attacking Kofi, setting up for Orton to take advantage of the injured Kingston and beat him. The only thing I didn't like about this segment was that you would expect someone, like perhaps MVP and Mark Henry, to come out and help Kofi. Other than that, this was well done, and Orton giving Kingston the top rope elevated DDT was a nice touch. I'm really enjoying the way WWE has built this feud up, and their first "real" singles match should be a good one.
Mark Henry is a clumsy dancer that fell on Jillian Hall, possibly killing her. Why? What was the point of this segment? To make Henry look like an oaf?
Hey, nice of John Cena to show up. Guess he needed to make sure WWE had plenty of ugly orange and blue Cena gear ready for holiday orders.
John Cena comes out, and like Sheamus, seems intent on reinforcing the idea that Sheamus might beat him. I don't know if anyone really buys that, but it is good for them to try. Enter Carlito, remember him? He actually got a really good promo about the locker room being sick of Cena, but I had a feeling it was just going to result in him getting squashed. Why would Carlito stand there and take three bites of an apple instead of taking a shot? Is he that dumb? Cena lays him out with one Attitude Adjustment, and Carlito rolls back to dark matches while Cena stares down Sheamus, who is on the stage. Okay segment.
Oh good, Mark Henry rapping. Seriously, what happened to the Mark Henry from ECW that just beat the crap out of people with a sadistic smile on his face? Now, he is a bad dancer and a rapper? Are we going to bring back the poems next?
The Miz landed a pretty good kick ... and that was about it for him. Mark Henry squashes him with the World's Strongest Slam, and again, why didn't Verne give his buddy a title match? I guess Henry will get his shot down the road. For now, it is dance party time. Here's a clue, WWE. Never, ever have Eve Torres dancing near Kelly Kelly. It just makes Kelly look uncoordinated.
Shawn Michaels and Triple H dream of "little people's court" at night? Hornswoggle as subtitles now because he speaks Leprechaun? Why did I come back from vacation?
The main event was good, as you would expect given the participants. I liked Jericho's DDT out of the Pedigree attempt, and the whole story of how each wrestler would pull out their trademark moves early in an attempt to catch a quick win. I actually thought Big Show on commentary was great, as he constantly reacted to what was going on in the ring. Show and Michaels got involved, and sent off. They then went right to the finish, which I liked as Triple H blocked the Codebreaker, Jericho blocked the Pedigree, Triple H blocked the Walls attempt, and then we had a rollup pin. So, it is DX vs. Jericho next week in a handicap match. Anyone want to take bets on whether Big Show will interfere?
What To Make Sure And Watch If You DVR'd The Show: I actually really liked the Carlito promo, but it isn't anything WWE will be following up on (at least, not with Carlito). I guess the Kofi-Orton segment is really the only "must watch" part of the show, but the main event isn't bad either.
