Spoilers follow for the June 30th episode of Raw.
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The Raw following a PPV sets the tone for the build to the next one, and given that the next PPV is something like three weeks away, that direction needs to firm and set right away. It's fitting, then, that Triple H and Stephanie McMahon open up Raw. Then again, they seem to do that pretty much every week anyway. Why didn't they interfere last night? Why were they even at ringside?
Stephanie and Triple H recap the PPV. Daniel Bryan's still hurt. Seth Rollins won the first ladder match. John Cena was victorious and is the new WWE Champion. He's an A+ player. They welcome him out, despite seemingly being upset yesterday. Cena comes out. To commemorate Cena's 15th title win, he's going to be featured on the cover of WWE 2K15, which will hopefully be a good game with a completely redefined engine and -- sorry, I'm wishing for way too much. Cena says it's not right. The Authority is being too nice, too soon. He saw the glares that I saw. They don't control Cena, but they want to. Triple H says he has no problem with Cena. But he needs to respect The Authority. Cena says he'll do things the hard way. Triple H announces a WWE World Heavyweight Championship match for Battleground: A fatal four-way match. Cena vs. Orton vs. Kane vs. Reigns. The heels and faces will fight in a tag team match tonight. Seth Rollins comes out to remind us he has the Money in the Bank briefcase.
Apparently Seth Rollins is out for a match, as Rob Van Dam follows him.
Seth Rollins vs. Rob Van Dam
A rematch from Raw last week. This is a more technical, slow-paced match. And that makes sense. Both men were involved in a ladder match just 24 hours earlier, and those aren't easy on the body, even in a scripted sport like professional wrestling. How often do you see an abdominal stretch? Or a half Boston crab? You get that here. This doesn't really fit either man's style, but it's interesting to see and a reminder that, yes, non-technical wrestlers who have talent can still fake being technical wrestlers if required or desired. And there's no denying how talented Rollins and RVD are.
There are still some high-flying maneuvers as the match draws to a close. RVD hits a hurricanrana and a cross body splash to the outside of the ring. That's ... really it. It's a technical match for most of the time, the pace really gets picked up near the end, and then Seth Rollins wins with a Curb Stomp.
Match Rating: ***1/2
Renee Young tries to interview Seth Rollins in the ring, but he grabs the mic, tells her to introduce him as "Mr. Money in the Bank," and then gloats about how great he is. Ambrose interrupts in the Titantron. It's not over between him and Ambrose. Ambrose says he'll be there whenever Rollins tries to cash in the contract.
Lana talks about how Big E sucks (he does), and how America also sucks (debatable). Jack Swagger and Zeb Colter come out afterward. We're finally doing this feud! Swagger gets the biggest reaction he's gotten in months -- maybe years. "Let's go Swagger" chants break out. Lana and Rusev retreat, only to try to cheap shot Swagger. It doesn't work. Swagger hits a couple of arm drags and sends Rusev out of the ring. We'll see if this is a full-out face turn for Swagger, but it was an easy and logical feud to go to, and I'm glad we're finally doing it.
Sheamus and The Usos (Jimmy and Jey Uso) vs. The Wyatt Family (Bray Wyatt, Luke Harper, Erick Rowan)
I'm kind of surprised to be saying this, but these matches are better without Wyatt and Sheamus. We've seen this exact combination two times before this, and none of the contests matched what we saw at Money in the Bank last night. The additional star power doesn't help.
That's not to say this is a bad match by any stretch of the imagination. It has some good action, a couple of exciting spots, and lets most of the competitors show off for a brief period before tagging out. It just doesn't have the same intensity and excitement to it that a match like the one last night can have. It might have something to do with how Sheamus and Wyatt haven't been in this feud as much, and therefore haven't developed a great rapport with the other Superstars.
Like I said, though, this is still pretty good, and by the end, I had bought in. I was entertained. There were no stakes, there wasn't much reason to care, but it was fun. Luke Harper wins with a clothesline after everyone else was taken out.
Match Rating: ***
Nikki Bella is interviewed backstage and informed by Stephanie that she and Brie have a match against The Funkadactyls. Except Brie doesn't work here anymore. So it's a handicap match. Shouldn't Nikki be able to pick another Diva to take Brie's place? We already did the handicap "punish Nikki" match.
We're also teased that a former WWE champion is returning tonight. It's probably The Miz.
Bo Dallas comes out after the commercial break to ask us to take 60 seconds of silence for Daniel Bryan and Bad News Barrett, both of whom are currently injured. He tebows while being silent. Bo-ring. We then get a Money in the Bank flashback, showing us the segment involving Daniel Bryan, Michael Cole, and Bo Dallas. Time for the Bella match.
Nikki Bella vs. The Funkadactyls (Naomi and Cameron)
Cameron starts the match has a somewhat solid, albeit brief, match with Nikki, gets tagged out, and then Naomi wins in two moves. Then Naomi and Cameron trade words afterward.
Match Rating: *
We get a flashback watching Bad News Barrett separating his shoulder at the hands of Jack Swagger. We're going to have a battle royal at Battleground to determine the next Intercontinental champion, as the title is now vacant. Paul Heyman then comes out to do his Paul Heyman thing. He repeats what the commentators just told us. Cesaro is the number one seed in the battle royal.
Cesaro (with Paul Heyman) vs. Kofi Kingston
Despite Kofi Kingston being a four-time Intercontinental champion and still quite over with fans, he's in jobber territory right now. This is probably because outside of high-flying spots, he really isn't good at wrestling. And you can't build a whole match on those, except in gimmick matches.
But, somehow, Kofi Kingston won. I don't know how, though, because the finish came during a commercial break. No, seriously. They try to bill it as "you should get the WWE App," but that's not going to happen. I write these reviews during the commercial breaks. This was a stupid way to finish a match.
Match Rating: **
Cesaro then absolutely destroys Kofi after the match. He goes into the crowd area for a bit, and just throws Kofi all over the place. Like a real heel.
We then cut to Santino Marella having a party backstage. Alone. Adam Rose then interrupts with his rosebuds. Santino and the Rose peeps all dance. It's an advertisement for Twisted Tea. You know why they do this product placement? Because they keep circumventing adds with the stupid WWE App.
Damien Sandow comes out after the commercial break dressed and acting like Vince McMahon. After entering him in the battle royal, Stephanie comes on the Titantron and asks him what he thinks he's doing. Sandow will face The Great Khali right now.
Damien Sandow vs. The Great Khali
Khali hits his chop and pins Sandow for the win. Man, Sandow is great. Khali is not. Poor Sandow.
Match Rating: *
We get to se the return of a former WWE champion. It turns out to be ... The Miz. Shocking. He cuts a promo. He says he could have stayed in Hollywood, but came back to prove to the WWE Universe that he's great. Er, sorry, awesome.
And then "Break the Walls Down" plays, and it's Y2J! Chris Jericho has returned to interrupt The Miz's parade. Now that's how you do a swerve! The Miz looks devastated. The fans are ecstatic. Jericho says nothing before hitting the Codebreaker on The Miz. And then we get a Jericho promo. Or, it looks like we will. But then the Wyatt Family's music hits, and all three of them appear in the ring. We're going to get Jericho/Wyatt? How fantastic is that?
Fandango (with Layla) vs. Dolph Ziggler
Summer Rae comes out midway through the match and she and Ziggler make out for a bit. Fandango looks a touch upset, but then he gets hit by the Zig Zag and takes a loss. Apparently Ziggler is now playing second fiddle in a passionless Divas feud.
Match Rating: *1/2
RybAxel (Ryback and Curtis Axel) vs. Goldust and Stardust
A rematch from Money in the Bank that never should have happened on Money in the Bank. Goldust gets beat up a bit, Stardust gets a hot tag, and then the "dust" brothers win. That was not particularly entertaining.
Match Rating: **
Paige is out next to cut a promo. Are we soon going to get Eva Marie vs. Paige? Probably not, but one can hope. Or, perhaps, an AJ return? Wouldn't that be great?
Paige begins talking about how she's proved that she belongs in the WWE, not in NXT. And then...
"Let's Light it Up."
AJ Lee is back! She skips around the ring and then congratulates Paige. AJ talks about how she was too egotistical during her reign. Is she coming back a babyface? Or is it a ploy? Paige calls her on doing the same thing that Paige did at her debut. Paige won't make the same mistake that AJ did. We're getting a match!
WWE Divas Championship Match: Paige vs. AJ Lee
After a brief back and forth, AJ rolls up Paige for the win. She's the Divas champion again! Welcome back, AJ Lee!
These two will have a great match someday. This wasn't it. But it wasn't meant to be.
Match Rating: *1/2
Kane and Randy Orton vs. John Cena and Roman Reigns
Triple H is at ringside.
I don't know how anything could top the two returns that we've already seen. The match could be stellar, but all of my excitement is spent by the great programming of the last two hours and 45 minutes.
This match told a different story than most tag matches involving Roman Reigns. He was the whipping boy for much of the match. That doesn't happen. He is usually the one to be hot tagged in, not the other way around. Reigns and Orton eventually wind up leaving, fighting one another all the way to the locker room. Kane gets disqualified after hitting Cena with the steel steps. Triple H is instructing Kane to destroy Cena. Rollins comes out after Kane delivers a tombstone piledriver to Cena, and cashes in his Money in the Bank contract. Or, he tries to. The referee didn't want to let him, as Cena couldn't stand, and with the delay, Ambrose has time to run in for the save. The bell never rang, the contract wasn't cashed in, and we'll have to wait for a later date. Kane goes back to destroying Cena, but Reigns makes the save and spears Kane. Reigns and Triple H have a lengthy stare down. Triple H winds up backing down and heading to the ramp. They continue to stare to end the show.
What. A. Raw.
It?s episodes like this that remind me why I watch.
Match Rating: **1/2
The Good: Chris Jericho's return. AJ Lee's return. Rollins vs. RVD. Divas Championship change. Sandow's promo.
The Bad: Bella vs. Funkadactyls. Sandow vs. Khali. Fandango vs. Ziggler.
Match of the Night: Seth Rollins vs. Rob Van Dam.
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The Raw following a PPV sets the tone for the build to the next one, and given that the next PPV is something like three weeks away, that direction needs to firm and set right away. It's fitting, then, that Triple H and Stephanie McMahon open up Raw. Then again, they seem to do that pretty much every week anyway. Why didn't they interfere last night? Why were they even at ringside?
Stephanie and Triple H recap the PPV. Daniel Bryan's still hurt. Seth Rollins won the first ladder match. John Cena was victorious and is the new WWE Champion. He's an A+ player. They welcome him out, despite seemingly being upset yesterday. Cena comes out. To commemorate Cena's 15th title win, he's going to be featured on the cover of WWE 2K15, which will hopefully be a good game with a completely redefined engine and -- sorry, I'm wishing for way too much. Cena says it's not right. The Authority is being too nice, too soon. He saw the glares that I saw. They don't control Cena, but they want to. Triple H says he has no problem with Cena. But he needs to respect The Authority. Cena says he'll do things the hard way. Triple H announces a WWE World Heavyweight Championship match for Battleground: A fatal four-way match. Cena vs. Orton vs. Kane vs. Reigns. The heels and faces will fight in a tag team match tonight. Seth Rollins comes out to remind us he has the Money in the Bank briefcase.
Apparently Seth Rollins is out for a match, as Rob Van Dam follows him.
Seth Rollins vs. Rob Van Dam
A rematch from Raw last week. This is a more technical, slow-paced match. And that makes sense. Both men were involved in a ladder match just 24 hours earlier, and those aren't easy on the body, even in a scripted sport like professional wrestling. How often do you see an abdominal stretch? Or a half Boston crab? You get that here. This doesn't really fit either man's style, but it's interesting to see and a reminder that, yes, non-technical wrestlers who have talent can still fake being technical wrestlers if required or desired. And there's no denying how talented Rollins and RVD are.
There are still some high-flying maneuvers as the match draws to a close. RVD hits a hurricanrana and a cross body splash to the outside of the ring. That's ... really it. It's a technical match for most of the time, the pace really gets picked up near the end, and then Seth Rollins wins with a Curb Stomp.
Match Rating: ***1/2
Renee Young tries to interview Seth Rollins in the ring, but he grabs the mic, tells her to introduce him as "Mr. Money in the Bank," and then gloats about how great he is. Ambrose interrupts in the Titantron. It's not over between him and Ambrose. Ambrose says he'll be there whenever Rollins tries to cash in the contract.
Lana talks about how Big E sucks (he does), and how America also sucks (debatable). Jack Swagger and Zeb Colter come out afterward. We're finally doing this feud! Swagger gets the biggest reaction he's gotten in months -- maybe years. "Let's go Swagger" chants break out. Lana and Rusev retreat, only to try to cheap shot Swagger. It doesn't work. Swagger hits a couple of arm drags and sends Rusev out of the ring. We'll see if this is a full-out face turn for Swagger, but it was an easy and logical feud to go to, and I'm glad we're finally doing it.
Sheamus and The Usos (Jimmy and Jey Uso) vs. The Wyatt Family (Bray Wyatt, Luke Harper, Erick Rowan)
I'm kind of surprised to be saying this, but these matches are better without Wyatt and Sheamus. We've seen this exact combination two times before this, and none of the contests matched what we saw at Money in the Bank last night. The additional star power doesn't help.
That's not to say this is a bad match by any stretch of the imagination. It has some good action, a couple of exciting spots, and lets most of the competitors show off for a brief period before tagging out. It just doesn't have the same intensity and excitement to it that a match like the one last night can have. It might have something to do with how Sheamus and Wyatt haven't been in this feud as much, and therefore haven't developed a great rapport with the other Superstars.
Like I said, though, this is still pretty good, and by the end, I had bought in. I was entertained. There were no stakes, there wasn't much reason to care, but it was fun. Luke Harper wins with a clothesline after everyone else was taken out.
Match Rating: ***
Nikki Bella is interviewed backstage and informed by Stephanie that she and Brie have a match against The Funkadactyls. Except Brie doesn't work here anymore. So it's a handicap match. Shouldn't Nikki be able to pick another Diva to take Brie's place? We already did the handicap "punish Nikki" match.
We're also teased that a former WWE champion is returning tonight. It's probably The Miz.
Bo Dallas comes out after the commercial break to ask us to take 60 seconds of silence for Daniel Bryan and Bad News Barrett, both of whom are currently injured. He tebows while being silent. Bo-ring. We then get a Money in the Bank flashback, showing us the segment involving Daniel Bryan, Michael Cole, and Bo Dallas. Time for the Bella match.
Nikki Bella vs. The Funkadactyls (Naomi and Cameron)
Cameron starts the match has a somewhat solid, albeit brief, match with Nikki, gets tagged out, and then Naomi wins in two moves. Then Naomi and Cameron trade words afterward.
Match Rating: *
We get a flashback watching Bad News Barrett separating his shoulder at the hands of Jack Swagger. We're going to have a battle royal at Battleground to determine the next Intercontinental champion, as the title is now vacant. Paul Heyman then comes out to do his Paul Heyman thing. He repeats what the commentators just told us. Cesaro is the number one seed in the battle royal.
Cesaro (with Paul Heyman) vs. Kofi Kingston
Despite Kofi Kingston being a four-time Intercontinental champion and still quite over with fans, he's in jobber territory right now. This is probably because outside of high-flying spots, he really isn't good at wrestling. And you can't build a whole match on those, except in gimmick matches.
But, somehow, Kofi Kingston won. I don't know how, though, because the finish came during a commercial break. No, seriously. They try to bill it as "you should get the WWE App," but that's not going to happen. I write these reviews during the commercial breaks. This was a stupid way to finish a match.
Match Rating: **
Cesaro then absolutely destroys Kofi after the match. He goes into the crowd area for a bit, and just throws Kofi all over the place. Like a real heel.
We then cut to Santino Marella having a party backstage. Alone. Adam Rose then interrupts with his rosebuds. Santino and the Rose peeps all dance. It's an advertisement for Twisted Tea. You know why they do this product placement? Because they keep circumventing adds with the stupid WWE App.
Damien Sandow comes out after the commercial break dressed and acting like Vince McMahon. After entering him in the battle royal, Stephanie comes on the Titantron and asks him what he thinks he's doing. Sandow will face The Great Khali right now.
Damien Sandow vs. The Great Khali
Khali hits his chop and pins Sandow for the win. Man, Sandow is great. Khali is not. Poor Sandow.
Match Rating: *
We get to se the return of a former WWE champion. It turns out to be ... The Miz. Shocking. He cuts a promo. He says he could have stayed in Hollywood, but came back to prove to the WWE Universe that he's great. Er, sorry, awesome.
And then "Break the Walls Down" plays, and it's Y2J! Chris Jericho has returned to interrupt The Miz's parade. Now that's how you do a swerve! The Miz looks devastated. The fans are ecstatic. Jericho says nothing before hitting the Codebreaker on The Miz. And then we get a Jericho promo. Or, it looks like we will. But then the Wyatt Family's music hits, and all three of them appear in the ring. We're going to get Jericho/Wyatt? How fantastic is that?
Fandango (with Layla) vs. Dolph Ziggler
Summer Rae comes out midway through the match and she and Ziggler make out for a bit. Fandango looks a touch upset, but then he gets hit by the Zig Zag and takes a loss. Apparently Ziggler is now playing second fiddle in a passionless Divas feud.
Match Rating: *1/2
RybAxel (Ryback and Curtis Axel) vs. Goldust and Stardust
A rematch from Money in the Bank that never should have happened on Money in the Bank. Goldust gets beat up a bit, Stardust gets a hot tag, and then the "dust" brothers win. That was not particularly entertaining.
Match Rating: **
Paige is out next to cut a promo. Are we soon going to get Eva Marie vs. Paige? Probably not, but one can hope. Or, perhaps, an AJ return? Wouldn't that be great?
Paige begins talking about how she's proved that she belongs in the WWE, not in NXT. And then...
"Let's Light it Up."
AJ Lee is back! She skips around the ring and then congratulates Paige. AJ talks about how she was too egotistical during her reign. Is she coming back a babyface? Or is it a ploy? Paige calls her on doing the same thing that Paige did at her debut. Paige won't make the same mistake that AJ did. We're getting a match!
WWE Divas Championship Match: Paige vs. AJ Lee
After a brief back and forth, AJ rolls up Paige for the win. She's the Divas champion again! Welcome back, AJ Lee!
These two will have a great match someday. This wasn't it. But it wasn't meant to be.
Match Rating: *1/2
Kane and Randy Orton vs. John Cena and Roman Reigns
Triple H is at ringside.
I don't know how anything could top the two returns that we've already seen. The match could be stellar, but all of my excitement is spent by the great programming of the last two hours and 45 minutes.
This match told a different story than most tag matches involving Roman Reigns. He was the whipping boy for much of the match. That doesn't happen. He is usually the one to be hot tagged in, not the other way around. Reigns and Orton eventually wind up leaving, fighting one another all the way to the locker room. Kane gets disqualified after hitting Cena with the steel steps. Triple H is instructing Kane to destroy Cena. Rollins comes out after Kane delivers a tombstone piledriver to Cena, and cashes in his Money in the Bank contract. Or, he tries to. The referee didn't want to let him, as Cena couldn't stand, and with the delay, Ambrose has time to run in for the save. The bell never rang, the contract wasn't cashed in, and we'll have to wait for a later date. Kane goes back to destroying Cena, but Reigns makes the save and spears Kane. Reigns and Triple H have a lengthy stare down. Triple H winds up backing down and heading to the ramp. They continue to stare to end the show.
What. A. Raw.
It?s episodes like this that remind me why I watch.
Match Rating: **1/2
The Good: Chris Jericho's return. AJ Lee's return. Rollins vs. RVD. Divas Championship change. Sandow's promo.
The Bad: Bella vs. Funkadactyls. Sandow vs. Khali. Fandango vs. Ziggler.
Match of the Night: Seth Rollins vs. Rob Van Dam.
<color=D6D9DA>_________________________________________________________________________________
If you wish to be notified whenever I post something new, please join this <url=http://www.escapistmagazine.com/groups/view/2-50-Reviews>user group.
For an archive of all my previous WWE reviews, please go <url=http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.846764-Marters-WWE-Reviews-Archive>here.
Talk to me on the Twitter, <url=https://twitter.com/martertweet>@martertweet.
