The Great Khali and Randy Orton def. Cody Rhodes and Wade Barrett:
What I Liked:
A nice way to feature four of the six competitors in the Smackdown Elimination Chamber match. Barrett and Rhodes worked very well together, isolating Orton. I felt like you needed to showcase them more than anyone else in the match. We know Khali won't win, but we are unsure of basically the others.
What I Disliked:
Why in the hell does Khali get the pin here? I cannot stand the ignorance and idiocracy at times from the Creative Writers. He DOES NOT SELL, never will be worth a dime. I do not care how popular he is in India, he will never be able to draw money, to sell merchandise, and to be really relevant. Why is he being used? He is terrible, absolutely awful. Give me Funkasaurus instead, at least he can do more than one move. I wish they did not bury their actual talent. Ridiculous. Also, the match didn't do much for me besides the quick shine of Barrett and Rhodes.
Grade: C-
Tamina, Kelly Kelly, Alicia Fox, and Eve def Beth Phoenix, Natalya, and The Bella Twins:
What I Liked:
We finally see Tamina on Raw in a meaningful light. She is next up in the Diva carousel. She is a strong woman with a lot to offer. She is not the ditzy blonde or the former dancer, but Tamina has raw talent. I am glad she is getting a chance. She needs to speak now, let her tell her story, and further progress in her push.
What I Disliked:
The match was plain and simple: boring. Besides the splash, what did we get? A few Divas running around, useless moves by Eve, Kelly Kelly and Fox not doing much, and Beth not wrestling. There was no point at having all of these Divas in the ring together. I would rather have a tag team or one on one so we can see the Divas we need to see work in the ring.
Grade: D
Backstage Segment:
John Laurinitis enters Triple H's office. He announces that Shawn Michaels will be on Raw next week. Furthermore, he books John Cena vs. Kane in an Ambulance Match for Elimination Chamber. He pokes fun at John Laurinitis and his career, and says 10AM Tuesday, we will find out if he is fired. Why will it be announced on WWE.com? Wouldn't we rather see it live on Raw, maybe have Vince come out with Triple H? That would make the best scene and make the GM role more important.
Chris Jericho def. Dolph Ziggler, C.M. Punk, The Miz, R Truth, and Kofi Kingston in a Six Pack Challenge:
What I Liked:
A perfect way to end Raw, with the men competing for the last entrant spot in the Chamber match. Jericho did his usual, escaping and letting the others work in the ring. This continues to garner frustrations with the fans, which is exactly what he wants to do. I really liked the action in the ring, but felt like there was something missing. R Truth took a nasty bump, as he did not land correctly on Miz. Dolph faked out a suicide dive, and strutted around. I love his cockiness and show-off attitude. The ending where Jericho stole the win was perfect. Let him be that sneak and opportunistic heel. He did just that to steal a win. Punk did a good job at selling his pissed off look.
What I Disliked:
I wanted to see more of the guys who we did not see or hear much of tonight, including The Miz and Kofi. I really felt that the match lacked creativity and flow. It seemed more of 6 guys thrown in a ring with no real build towards the end. Maybe they wanted to focus solely on Jericho, but 5 other guys are in the match, too. Make us want to invest our money because we do not know what will happen. It seems to predictable right now.
Grade: B-
Kane is backstage and says Cena needs to Embrace the Hate. Eve is crying as Kane is right in her face. He says everyone needs to be scared, as he is scared of himself.
Did not really care for this. Eve is a little piece of a feud, not the actual part we all care about. This has more to do with her and Ryder than Cena. Yes, embrace the hate, but I felt no view of Cena was a let down. I just want the build to be more involved with Cena and something really personal to him, not to Ryder.
Grade: C
Raw Grade: C
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