John Cena - One of the greats (Sic!)

When you write about wrestling sooner of later you feel like writing about John and I feel like it will be better to do it now then somewhere along the way.

Some people hate him, some wish him the worst in life, some love him and others don't care either way. I am kind of in that mix, somewhere in the middle. I am not going to go the "Oh I don't hate John Cena as a person, I hate his character" way, cause personally I feel like this is the biggest puss-out you can make. Character or not, gimmick or not, it's still John Felix Anthony Cena and if you present an opinion, make god damn sure you actually have one and you're not just following the crowd.

Let me make something perfectly clear from the start, I am NOT a Cena fan, never was, never will be. I do see his flaws and certain things about him do annoy the fuck out of me. Decided to put his here, since there is a lot of praise coming from below this line. You have been warned.

Cena was very lucky on when he started in wrestling, as I am sure if he started now, he wouldn't get to the level he is now and if he got into the business earlier, he would just be one of the muscle guys that are kind of ok. He was very lucky, not only him actually, OVW class of 2002 is a very good example of very fortunate people. We had Batista, Brock Lesnar, Randy Orton and John Cena that broke through around that time. And yet, for some reason, it is John that made it big in WWE. While you could argue that Batista is a bigger name world wide, but in wrestling? John Cena is the measuring stick. As I said, he was very lucky, getting in the business right after the Attitude era ended and when the biggest stars from that time were already gone or slowly stepping down, was the best time to begin a wrestling career in WWF. 

WWF? Yup, World Wrestling Federation. The acronym that World Wildlife Fund took away from the McMahon family and left them with the big "E". I am not going to go into the argument that this was the beginning of the end for main stream professional wrestling, as this is not about that. Getting back to my point... Now "WWE" needed new stars, it was time for new blood. 

When John Cena was in Ohio Valley, his name was "Prototype" and they couldn't hit the nail more straight on then they have. With the company going into new direction, dulling the edge, signing new sponsor deals, new TV deals, getting more shows, more time, more of everything... They needed new type of superstar, they needed someone reliable and they got that person.

I am not going to go into the technical side wrestling, it was said millions of times and will be said on million more occasions by people, that John Cena sucks ring-wise. Making a long story short, no, he actually doesn't. In the new model of wrestling business a worker is on the road over 200-300 days a year. Can you even begin to imagine that? In current time, professional wrestler in the main stream company has to be not only in the ring for over 2-3 hundred night a year. He or she needs to do promotional work, constant travelling, fan meetings, and I am not even mentioning the everyday training to keep in shape. A wrestler nowadays has to sacrifice a lot to get anywhere. You don't have much time to build relationships outside of work, almost no time for family, almost no time for children, it is a commitment. You have to deal with the fans and it's not always a bunch of happy people. A lot of times it's the worse examples of humanity you can imagine and you have to be nice to them, because that is what your company expects of you.

Say what you will about John Cena, but he started with nothing except the heart for wrestling. He didn't have a daddy, uncle or a cousin inside the business, he wasn't friends with anyone that mattered. He came in from nothing and earned the place he has now. People love to point out that he got stale, and while that is true, it's a formula that works for him. Cena, even after all those years, will still gather the crowd for a PPV, he will still get people to buy tickets for RAW and after that they will buy merchandise because of him. Cena will travel across the planet to every place he is needed to be, regardless if it is England, Australia or the middle of a war in Iraq and Afghanistan. He will go to every morning show and talk to everybody that the company will send him to talk to. And he will go to every sick child that asks him to come. 

He proves time and time again that the WWE can rely on him. He rarely gets injured, and you know why? That is where the part you hate so much comes in. He works his matches in a very similar (no, it's not the same way all the time, tryhards) fashion and he developed muscle memory. Because he doesn't change a whole lot, his body is used to certain moves executed in a certain order. And while you might not like it, it's a great thing. It lowers the possibilities of getting injured and when you are in the ring over 200-300 times a year? That's a whole lot of opportunities to get injured. In wrestling when people get injured it can take them off the road for weeks, months and sometimes years or just straight up end their career, it might even kill them. So yes, having a certain way of conducting matches is a good thing, it does lessen the chances of getting hurt. But even when he does get an injury, what does he do? Does he sit on his ass waiting to heal up? Nope. He works the gym despite the injury. John Cena from almost every injury comes back faster then anyone ever could, because he knows that the company needs him and he truly loves this business.

You may not like him, but if you don't have a shitload of respect for the man, you do not deserve to call yourself a wrestling fan. He proved through those years that he belongs among the greats of professional wrestling. He became a household name for WWE and he showed that he is reliable and that they can safely invest their time, money and effort into. He showed that, unlike some people, he won't quit just because he doesn't like something. He is a future Hall of Famer and very rightfully so.

And that is why it will never bother me when Cena gets another title shot after a title shot. He earned it, he deserves it.

Monday Night RAW 20 October 2014

With only few days left to Hell in a Cell PPV here's a few words about RAW. One thing certainly clear is that WWE is finally noticing how badly they fucked up with the build up to the event. We have only one storyline with a proper build and the second one kind of started. 

 

RAW started with Authority setting up the main events for HiaC and announcing that the John Cena vs Randy Orton will be a match for the number one contendership for the title that is currently gone missing. Another announcement is that in the main event of the episode we will get a handicap tag match Cena and Ambrose vs Kane, Orton and Rollins. Some people would say that it's a good thing, some would, but I won't. I see that as a problem and a big problem. I don't doubt the abilities of Rollins and Ambrose, and I am sure Orton and Cena will have a decent match as well, but if we basically see those matches every week on free TV... What exactly is the "hook" that should make me want to "want to" watch Hell in a Cell? We have seen confrontations between every person involved many times in recent weeks. As I said, there is no doubt in my mind there will be fun moments in those matches, but I have seen those matches, more or less, even more with the main event being done in a cage. Can WWE really bring something new to the table? I don't know. 

John Cena and Dean Ambrose vs Kane, Randy Orton and Seth Rollins

By now what else is there left to say? The ending of the match saw Orton take the win and Rollins curb stomping Randy after winning. It was a fun confrontation at times, quite enjoyable actually, but the only thing this established is that Randy Orton might go through a character change and somewhere along the way, we will get a confrontation with Seth Rollins. That also means WWE is desperate to find something for Seth to do, while Lesnar is just not there. They want people to not think about Brock Lesnar missing, but with each passing week they do a worse job at it, well, this time at least Heyman was present.

Winners: Kane, Randy Orton and Seth Rollins

 

Sheamus and The Usos vs The Miz and The Dust Brothers

How many time we will see this match? Don't get me wrong, I really like those confrontations, they have good action, nice work and everything... But which time was this? This time we got a win by Damien Sandow and a good reaction from the crowd to his persona. I would really like to write a whole paragraph about this, but I feel like I already had done this.

Winners: Damien Sandow and The Dust Brothers

 

AJ Lee vs Alicia Fox

Another page from a diary about the mediocre rivalry between AJ and Paige. It was just uninspired, nothing terrible, but virtually pointless. If this match wouldn't happen, we could further this story with a backstage segment and get the same, exact effect. I don't know, I just don't feel all of the hype Paige and AJ are getting. Where are those spectacular abilities everyone is talking about? I don't see them. It's a standard, standard WWE diva storyline. Alicia wins this one after a quarrel with Paige outside the ring, that turned out to be fake... Wooo...

Winner: Alicia Fox

 

Rusev vs Big E

This just made me laugh, but not because of the match I didn't care about. As I said before, I don't care about a dick tugging contest, therefore I don't give a single fuck about anything related to Rusev or Lana. The part that made me rolling with laughter was what happened after with a "soldier" jumping over the barricade and going into the ring. Rusev super-kicks the "soldier" and goes away. That makes Big Show mad and he comes down steaming and fuming and says 2 sentences I found hilarious:

There are some lines you do not cross. You do not disrespect the american soldier, ever!

That was just comedy gold, cause correct me if I am wrong, but it was WWE that wrote this segment, and it was WWE that told Rusev to do this, so... It was WWE that disrespected the american soldier and crossed, according to the Big Show, a line, you do not cross.  

Winner: Rusev

 

Brie Bella vs Summer Rae

Why are we being tormented with more of this atrocious Bella-Bella story? There is nothing left of value here, WWE. You threw everything away last week when you had Brie win over Nikki clean. Any point this had went away, there is literally NOTHING left here. Brie wins, while Nikki watches while trying to act.

Winner: Brie Bella

 

Cesaro vs Dolph Ziggler

I read spoilers from Smackdown, I know what this will lead to, but don't worry, I won't spoil anything. This was a very solid match and an unusual ending for WWE standards. Cesaro wins with a European Uppercut. Very good match, fun, action packed, great work from both sides. Match of the night hands down. 

Winner: Cesaro

 

 

And that is it, that is it for the last episode of the main show before the Hell in a Cell PPV... Give this a moment to sink in. I won't say a lot now, since I do plan on writing a piece later in the week with my predictions, where I will go into the ppv itself and what I think about everything related to it. This episode of RAW wasn't all that different from every episode we had in the past weeks. For a so called "go home" episode, I am not impressed, at all.

Overall: 3/10, if you have something else to see, watch the segment with Ambrose an a dummy and the Zilggler-Cesaro match. You can skip the rest.

Monday Night RAW 13 October 2014

Someone asked me why I don't post my reviews right after watching RAW, which I do usually in the morning after it airs, on Tuesday my time. The reason is pretty simple. It's because I don't want to be influenced by my emotions in the moment. Quite often something that irritates me when watching it, can infuriate me later or quite opposite, make sense in my head. And with that said, let's move onto the Monday's RAW.

 

So this week we started off with Ambrose going on a rant about how he would love to be in a cage with Rollins, but there is one problem he still has to face, John Cena. I don't know if that's is just me, but is Dean starting to suffer from overexposure? I might not pay a whole lot of attention to the reactions of people in the crowds, but correct me if I am wrong, are they starting to die down? I do remember Ambrose coming out to a huge ovation and now week by week it seems it's getting weaker, and if I am right, I completely understand why it is happening. The whole story between Ambrose and Rollins, cause Cena was there just to close his part that started at the Brock match, has been done completely backwards. WWE doesn't want to bring too much attention to the fact their main champion is not there and will not be there, most likely until January, so what do they do? Instead of making Seth Rollins an actual star, instead of having him fighting long, interesting matches to gather more attention and to actually give him a reason to be there... They make him a typical pussy-heel hiding behind the boss and make him seem like he cannot do anything by himself by almost always having him show up with someone next to. That doesn't build interest, that makes us, the viewers, lose interest in a character. That makes the character lose credibility, credibility, which doesn't come back from beating on jobbers no one cares about in the first place. And from Ambrose perspective, we have a rather good worker, although I will admit, I never been a fan of his (not in the indies and not in WWE), who is chasing that pussy-heel every week and every week having nothing much to say in terms of new content. People say John Cena is repeatable and while that might be true, it took him quite a few years to get to that point, Ambrose on the other hand is already there. Every time I see him, in my mind I can say whatever he has to say, before he actually says anything. And people aren't as dumb as they seem, they start to notice that. It was starting to happen to Daniel Brian before he got injured and it was starting to happen to Roman Reigns before he got injured. Yeah, I might be ranting, but that is how I feel about it.

 

Dean Ambrose and John Cena vs The Usos vs The Dust Brothers

The first match of the night was set up by the Authority to be a triple threat tag team match. The on came idea was to see if Ambrose and Cena can co-exist in a team and not kill each other, that was the idea at least. In practice it was more of a prolonging the feud between Usos and both Dusts and I can't complain really. It was a good match, lots of tag-ins and fast paced action. Again the best part of RAW seem to be at the start. Are they doing this on purpose or what? We will definitely see a tag match for the title soon between the pairs of brothers. After the match Triple H and Stephanie come out to announce that later this episode we will get a "Contract on a pole match" and the winner will face Rollins in Hell in a Cell. 

Winners: Dean Ambrose and John Cena

 

AJ Lee and Layla vs Paige and Alicia Fox

We had here a match that was, I think, meant to further the story between Paige and AJ, but it failed. There wasn't enough time given to build an actual connection, even the negative one. In what we are given, everything just turns out to be half-assed, like the ladies that were in the match. During everything Layla walks off and leaves AJ alone to show how does... that... feel? I think... They did allude to the situation from last week when AJ did that to Emma, but if that was meant to teach AJ a lesson, why did she came out on top in the end? What was even the point of this?

Winners: AJ Lee and Layla

 

Dolph Ziggler vs Randy Orton - Jack Swagger vs Seth Rollins

This match and the one after that were interlinked in a way. Orton asked Authority before it, to get the loser of the contract match later in a Hell in a Cell, cause both Cena and Ambrose can both beat Rollins any day of the week, but they can't beat Orton. That kind of set up what happened during this match, when Rollins came out and looked from the sidelines then at the end attacked Ziggler and then Orton did the same during Seth's match, attacking Swagger at the end. Both matches were good, but had a similar construction: dominate, get dominated, dominate and win, then after attack. Good matches and possibly setting up the feud of Orton vs Rollins in the future, which might be interesting.

Winners: Randy Orton/Seth Rollins

 

Big Show vs Rusev

I will not change my opinion about anything Rusev is involved with until they change the tune of his storylines. This is just a dick tugging competition and I couldn't care less about this storyline taken straight from 1980's. Mark Henry comes out to help Big Show and attacks Rusev in the process causing the DQ. After that Show knocks out Rusev with a punch.

Winner: Rusev by DQ

 

Sheamus vs The Miz 

They are definitely trying set up the match between Sheamus and Miz for the title with those matches and this one was watchable, but I just don't like to see Miz. Again, the biggest reaction in this was for Damian Sandow playing as Miz's stunt double. At the end they both dive under the ring and Sheamus grabs Sandow in the commotion, which allows Miz to crawl under the ring and get back in it to the take the win by a count out. I so don't care about Mizanin, from what I heard there was a time when literally everyone in the locker room wanted to punch him in the face, so I cannot be the only one.

Winner: The Miz

 

Nikki Bella, Cameron and Summer Rae vs Brie Bella, Natalya and Naomi

You cannot tell me this was it... All the build up between the Bellas, all the wasted time on their wooden acting, all the fucking segments ruined by them and you are telling me that the culmination to that was in a throwaway, thrash match on RAW? Not that I would like to see that, but not even on a PPV? Not even in a singles match? For fucks sake, what's wrong with you people!? Not going to touch it, and you shouldn't either, you don't want to risk catching stupid.

The winners: Brie Bella, Natalya and Naomi

 

Dean Ambrose vs John Cena - Contract on a pole match

This was just bland. They literally didn't do anything interesting. We had the Authority at the side of the ring, we had Orton, Kane and Rollins, so we all saw this will not end clean and it didn't. We all knew Cena is there only to close his part of the story and move away for Ambrose and Rollins and he did. Everything went exactly the way it was meant to go. I could go on, but there just isn't a point. It was a bland, predictable match. There was no surprises, nothing exciting. 

Winner: Dean Ambrose

 

 

Like I wrote last week, it is an off season and it is painfully obvious it is. Roster feels empty even thought we know it is not and almost nothing is really going on. I was saying this for years and I will say it again... WWE needs an actual "off-season", a real one, where people can get some time off, heal up before they injure themselves and rest before they burn out. it's just bad, it's another week in a row where RAW feels like a replay. Another week, where the only parts really worth watching are at the start and at the end. I'm serious! Check the line ups from the previous shows and tell me I am wrong. Besides a few minor differences here and there, it's like the same thing over and over and it pisses me off. 

Overall: 3 out of 10 - Watch if you really have nothing better to do

Monday Night RAW 6 October 2014

Every time it comes to talking or writing about that happened in wrestling I always have to make a decision, should I talk about from my perspective or should I try to be as objective as possible. If you read anything I posted here or know me from earlier, you know going fully objective is virtually impossible for me. It is almost impossible, especially when confronted with such a shallow, short-sighted, planning as we currently have. So, yeah, I will do my best, which may or may not be good, just saying.

 

So we start of RAW as usual, with someone from Authority in the ring, this time it was Rollins. He went of on a tangent how you don't make fun of him, you don't disrespect him and how those who do end up, which was followed with appropriate video. At the end he says that everyone wants a piece of him and he loves it, cause that means, he is in the center of attention. After that we have John Cena running to the ring attacking Rollins and him running away through the crowd, where he's confronted by Dean Ambrose, who beats on Seth as well. He runs away and out comes Steph and Triple H. They say that if Ambrose and Cena want a piece of Rollins so badly, they will get it in the main event which will be... A handicap tag team match 3 vs 2 in Ambrose and Cena vs Rollins, Orton and Kane. There will be a follow up to this down the line with Ambrose that has trust issues after Cena left him alone in a tag team match on Smackdown last week. He gets into John's face about it, and gets an answer that he would've done the same, so they are in the clear. Dean claims that it is true and that he doesn't give a crap about Cena and could take on the Authority alone. They have a stare down and Ambrose leave saying he is hungry and is going to Coney Island. Which of course means he will come back later to help Cena, which he does. During the match Dean comes out with a hot-dog cart and gets involved. After everything settles down, Steph and Triple H announce that at the PPV there will be a match in a cage between Cena and Ambrose and the winner of that gets a match with Rollins. Ambrose gives Cena a DDT and we end the show.

 

I decided to include the part from later in the show, cause it actually plays better when you look at it together, and not as two disjointed events. Personally I would've done it like this anyways, with the Cena-Ambrose segment happening right after the main event announcement. I always had a problem when the company was booking a heel, any heel, as a cowardly, pussy bad guy, who always has to hide behind somebody. I really hate it, especially when I know for a fact, that the person in question is good enough to carry on a better program. The main problem with that is that there eventually comes a time when that person has to fight for himself. Now I have no doubts that long time wrestling fans know the story of Seth Rollins, how experienced he is. The issue here are the casual fans, the majority of the WWE viewership. I am afraid that when that time eventually comes, the crowd might not buy him as an actual competitor, as someone who is capable to carry on his own weight around. How that ends up we seen many times in history, the ones in charge see it as a fault of the wrestler and bury him to make room from someone else. Rollins deserves better, and in the foreseeable future, he will not a better chance to shine in WWE. Currently we are in a downtime, the big events are done and gone, the next big event is a couple months away, both Brian and Roman are out with an injury. This is the perfect moment for Ambrose and Rollins to make a mark and show they can draw audiences. Ambrose is definitely the brighter star out of the two and with the gimmick he is given, he has much more freedom over what to do, how to act and what to say. Seth on the other hand is just another cookie-cut, cowardly heel, who uses big words, threatens everyone around him and runs like a bitch when the going gets tough. There just isn't anything unique about him, and I blame the creative for that. This whole situation is setting up a singles match between Rollins and Ambrose and it will happen, but the question is what after that? There is a lot of possibilities and not a whole lot of positive ones. But about that I will post something when we will be closer to the PPV.

John Cena vs Seth Rollins, Randy Orton and Kane

The match was pointless and pointlessly obvious about what is going to happen. We all knew that a heel team will go for a beat-down getting a DQ loss, we all knew that Dean Ambrose will return and help Cena in the end and we all knew that Deam Ambrose will attack Cena after that announcement. It was needlessly pointless. The only good thing we got from that was Dean Ambrose actually having his character developed, which doesn't happen very often in WWE. 

The winner: John Cena by DQ

 

Dolph Ziggler and the Usos vs Cesaro and the Dust Brothers

I know I am enjoying these matches more then I should, but I just do. Everyone involved is just so much fun to watch. The match was full of action, nice wrestling, quick tags, commotion and most important part, it actually looked like the people involved had fun. I already commented more then once on the matches including those guys and I don't change my mind. And the triple superkick at the end was pure fan service. Regarding matches, this was the best we have seen in the episode, again... At the beginning of the show, again... Hmm... 

The winners: Dolph Ziggler and the Usos

 

Bo Dallas vs Mark Henry

Another match in the series and again Bo wins. I get it, Mark is old, he isn't as fast and strong as he used to be. But can someone tell me exactly why is this whole thing happening? Is it just to promote Bo? Cause if it is, it isn't working. Mark Herny has no pushing power in him, too many loses under his belt, him putting someone over is meaningless.

The winner: Bo Dallas

 

Brie Bella (with a hand tied behind her back) vs Summer Rae

Ok, ok! I get it! I really do, can we please don't hammer it anymore in? I get it, seriously! Nikki is trying to punish her sister in the way she was punished when Brie was not there, but Brie is showing Nikki that everything she couldn't do, she can and does. Brie wins with, literally, one hand tied behind her back. Can we already get to the Brie vs Nikki match? It's like a visit to the dentist, we know it has to happen, we all know it won't be pleasant, but we want to get over it as fast as possible.

The winner: Brie Bella

 

Jack Swagger vs Tyson Kidd

What can you say about this match other then "it's sad"? Now don't get me wrong, I am saying it is sad, cause both of these guys are good in-ring performers. I am saying it is sad, cause neither of them has a chance to really mean anything in the grander scale of things in WWE. Well, maybe Swagger could be a jobber for the stars, but WWE will never let him become too big. And Kidd... Yeah, someone more talented could probably write a book on how much he is wasted in WWE. This match was certainly worth watching.

The winner: Jack Swagger

 

El Torito vs Hornswoggle

When the crowd is chanting "This is stupid" and "We want divas" during your match, you are doing something wrong. I mean, we get an occasional "This is stupid" chant, but you have to seriously suck for the crowd to actually chant for divas. I will not be as harsh on this, cause it was meant to be a comedic match, it was meant to be dumb and you can't say it didn't do what it was going for. Me personally? I prefer different kind of entertainment, thank you very much.

The winner: El Torito

 

Paige and Alicia Fox vs Aj Lee and Emma

I was wondering for quite a bit what to say about this one. It's basically just another match to further out the situation between Paige and Aj Lee. The match itself was completely pointless and didn't bring anything. And apparently I wasn't the only one who thought so, since Aj just walked out on Emma. I really like women wrestling, but this, this is not women wrestling, this is some Z grade cinema that happens to feature women sometimes. In the end Emma is left alone and gets a Ram-Paige for the win.

The winner: Paige and Alicia Fox

 

Sheamus vs The Miz

I really like Sheamus. I really like Sheamus when he feels like he wants to try, when the match is about something, when his opponent is good. Those times make me really like Sheamus... This one was not one of them, sadly. We had the Miz, who absolutely doesn't do anything for me in the ring and we had Sheamus, who is great, when he feels like trying, and he didn't. The match wasn't terrible by no means, but it wasn't memorable either. And when the most recognition and appreciation from the fans is going towards Damian Mizdow, it really does say something about the set up.

The winner: The Miz

 

Of course it was not the only thing that happened. We had the absolutely pointless segment with guest hosts, which came to the ring with Adam Rose. Yeah, remember him? He was getting over and then faced the fate of Fandango, now getting a segment is the pinnacle of his career. But I guess it's still better then what happened with Zack Ryder. We also got a few minute interview with Roman Reigns, which turned out really bad. The interview was short, the monotone of Reigns was annoying and they didn't even really say anything. It came and went, for all the hype they tried to make for this? I am disappointed. They have showed us some Wyatt family videos as well and now I am actually getting interested, cause apparently it seems both Rowan and Harper are going to get something out of the Wyatt family split. And last, but not least, I saved myself the chance to talk about the Rock and Rusev segment. I left it not because I feel like it was something special, although it kind of was. I left it because it was an enjoyable moment and I wanted to end the review on a positive note, at least before the final thought. I'll start by saying that no, it most likely will not lead into a match with Rusev and the Rock. The Rock, as I read, had some other business and WWE was just lucky to get him there. And no, I don't think what he did hurt Rusev at all. While sure, getting your ass whooped by someone who isn't even part time sucks, but thanks to the "who" was it, it didn't matter. The Rock is a star, not only in wrestling, he elevated beyond the main event status. This was a special occasion and no one took it to heart, if anything, it helped Rusev. Without actually beating him in a match, the Rock beat Rusev, so no Rusev has more motivation to win and show he can win. Plus the rub of Rock never hurt anyone.

 

And here we are at the end. Over this episode was either lack luster, pointless or just meh. The tag match at the beginning was nice as was the later one with Jack and Tyson, but outside of that, it was a bore. Yeah, I get the reason behind the support for Ambrose and even I can admit that he can be amusing, but that's it. Brock Lesnar is still missing, this week we didn't even get Paul Heyman to tell us why his client, Brock Lesnar, was the best. I know this is the down time, but the time hasn't been so down in a long time. Randy Orton and Kane are there just to be there now. We literally have 2 weeks, I think, till PPV and it feels like nothing is going on. If this week won't bring any movement then the next one will be packed to set up every match. 

Rating: 4 out of 10 - if it comes up, you can watch it, but don't be afraid to jump channels, as there isn't really that much happening.

Monday Night RAW 29 September 2014

Well, this week it's going to be a bit later then I would like to, but life has priority, so yeah. 

You know, sometimes when you watch something, you think to yourself: Maybe that is supposed to be so bad, maybe it was planned for everything to be hated, maybe it's just my expectations are too big. Sadly in the world of wrestling, you just wake up from day dreaming and realize you just saw WWE's product. I don't know what kind of magicians they hire to write their shows, but those people have a great talent at making everything bad, and that's just remarkable, in a way. 

 

So at the start of the show we have Stephanie and Triple H in a magnificent showing of why they should never try to act. Steph say something about quitters in a soft voice and then switches the bitch button and goes overdrive. I wonder if she learned it from HHH or maybe from her father. Either way, it's time for the Big Nose to talk and he starts normal as well and then, like with a touch of a magic wand, he starts almost growling. Ah, good old Triple H, he always only had two kind of voices for promos: Normal and gravel scratching yells. After that finally somebody remembered that Brock Lesnar will not show, cause he couldn't give less of a damn about the company, and Paul Heyman comes out. Paul talks about how disrespected Brock feels, with what happened at the Night of Champions PPV, when Seth Rollins tried to cash in the Money in the Bank briefcase on Lesnar. Out comes Rollins saying that no one told him to do what he did and he is sorry if his actions offended Brock. Heyman says that he accepts the apology, but warns Seth, that if it happens again he'll have to deal with Brock Lesnar - Of course that is going to happen only if Lesnar actually feels like dragging his ass to the ring.

I really disliked this segment. Triple H said in it that Money in the Bank briefcase is a symbol and that it is so very important. Too bad he forgot, that the "symbol" he was talking about was changed at least 4 or 5 times in the last couple of years. Now don't get me wrong, I understand that maybe, just maybe, he meant that the concept is a symbol. But that would make even less sense, since that would render the case itself pointless. I mean, it already is pointless, but no one has know, right? We don't have to spell it out loud, right? And why even bother to put Heyman in this? They didn't use him for anything else in the rest of the night, so his appearance here was rather dumb. It was too brief to mean anything and the only things he said were things he should have said a week earlier. After that we saw Ambrose teasing Rollins and a pointless, worthless, Cena attack. Overall  it was just a weak, weak, opening. It didn't do anything for any side involved. Lesnar is still not here, Heyman wasn't used to build a feud for Brock for the title defense, Cena showed up and that's it, and the only thing it did for Ambrose and Rollins was to give them anything to do in an attempt to make them mean anything. Just dumb. Luckily this dumb segment turns into an enjoyable match.

 

Dolph Ziggler vs The Miz vs Cesaro for the WWE Intercontinental Championship

Like said, this was nice and fun to watch. Cesaro is always a pleasure to see work and nobody sells better in WWE then Ziggler. It didn't have the chance to be as good as a singles match could have been, but it was still good, especially after that weak ass opening. Of course it had it's problems, mainly Cesaro. Ziggler and Miz were feuding for that title, they had a match at the pay per view and they even had a matches in which the title changed hands back and forth. While I don't like the way it was done, it makes sense that they still fight for the belt. Cesaro was thrown in there because reason, I guess. He won a number one contender at Smackdown and that was enough apparently to get a shot at the title. That's nice, I guess. Why is WWE just putting him in those matches without any rhyme or reason? Did he do something bad? Is this some kind of a punishment? His ring-work is great, he is ok on the mic, definitely better then some, so why the constant lack of direction? He just and I mean just got out from the US title fight, losing and now they've put him into the IC title bout, to lose. I don't get it, I really don't. The match was good, but the aftertaste not quite

Winner and still WWE Intercontinental Champion: Dolph Ziggler

 

Rosa Mendes vs Layla

Ok, what exactly WWE has against women? Did Vince suddenly turn gay? Well, I know he has a hard on for bigger guys, but seriously. Did Triple H bought himself a new boy toy? Did Stephanie surgically transplanted a penis on her vagina? I mean, really! This is just plain insulting, there are no more words to describe this. It is just insulting. Why? For one, we have a match, that only happens because of a stupid "fake reality" reality show - and I made clear enough, what I think about that kind of match booking. Two, they decided to put Tyson Kidd next to the ring... With his back turned to the ring and playing video games with headphones on. Really?! They couldn't do anything more insulting (that would still be PG) even if they tried. Tyson Kidd was the statement of what WWE thinks of women wrestling. They don't care, they flat out tell you that if you even watch it, you are a stupid. You could be playing games, why bother watching the ring? There is nothing there of any interest. And you know what? It works. The crowd was dead, once or twice they started chanting "Nattie's husband", but the match itself got no reaction. Of course it is worth noting it wasn't a very good match, but still, you'd think they would like to make you care, at least a little bit. Nope.

Winner: Layla

 

Mark Henry vs Bo Dallas

So I am beginning to see a pattern here. Jack Swagger loses to Rusev and Bo Dallas has a fued with Swagger, Mark Henry loses to Rusev and Bo Dallas has a match with Henry (maybe a feud?), now apparently we will get a Big Show vs Rusev match, does that mean Bo will get a chance at Show as well? Am I right? Tell me I'm right, cause I really want to scream how stupid that would be, if it would be the case. The match was short, it was slow, and Bo won. What else IS there to say?

Winner: Bo Dallas

 

Brie Bella vs Eva Marie and Cameron in a handicap match

Yay, another completely pointless match in the Bella saga. Sometimes I wonder, am I watching Twilight? I mean, as I never actually saw any of the movies I have no idea what is there. I know from internet memes there is some Bellas there, right? The reason for this match was that when Brie quit, Nikki had handicap matches all the time. The match is worthless, but at least it's not as insulting as the previous one. 

Winner: Brie Bella

 

 

Heath Slater and Titus O'neil vs Los Matadores with Adam Rose on commentary

A short, silly and pretty pointless match. We had a guy in an alligator costume, a guy with bull mask on and a guy in a bunny costume. How can you comment on that? It's just for looking, any words would just fail.

Winners: Heath Slater and Tituts O'neil

 

AJ Lee vs Alicia Fox

If you had any doubts left if WWE cares about women wrestlers, I am sure you lost them by now. It's truly amazing how bad this episode was in regard to that. This one episode showed what WWE really thinks of their female performers. They couldn't give less of a damn about the division, they couldn't give less of a damn about the championship and they let writers from a "fake reality" reality show book matches. I'm just in awe over how little respect they have for women. This match was pointless and the only thing we can take from it is that Alicia Fox is supposedly Paige's new best friend. Whoopty-fucking-do

Winner: Alicia Fox

 

 

Sheamus vs Damien Sandow

Sheamus deserves better. After that match at Night of Champion, I can say I am a fan. Maybe not a huge fan, but I am fan of Sheamus, when he feels like trying, cause then he is just awesome.

Winner: Sheamus

 

John Cena and Dean Ambrose vs Kane and Orton

A predictable match with predictable outcome. Kane, Orton and Rollins had their asses handed to them too often in ecent weeks, so it was clear as day that something will go their way for once. And, no big surprise there, it did. The show ended with heel on top, yay. I don't care, if you can't tell. This whole story, if you can even find a story there somewhere, is so lackluster. I need to see more before I even try to get invested. 

Winners: John Cena and Dean Ambrose by DQ

 

This episode of RAW was stupid and because of more then one reason it was stupid. I am still amazed at how little respect WWE has left in them for women performers and how little they care about it. The main storyline is a bore without any direction. I know it's off season, but how off can it get?

Rating: 3 out of 10 - don't watch even if there will be nothing else to see, go to sleep or for a walk instead.