Normally 13 isn’t the best number in the world, with all the bad luck attached to it etc. Right now it’s actually a good thing since it’s 13 days away from The Granddaddy of em All, the Showcase of The Immortals on the Grandest Stage of them all……Wrestlemania. As of the start of RAW there are seven official matches on the card, so one would think that the rest will either be made official or strongly hinted towards. So will Big Show officially replace Ryback in the 6 man tag against The Shield? How will CM Punk use The Urn this week? Will Dwayne actually show up?
Best
Ziggler: It seems like we’ve been waiting forever for WWE to realize what it has in Ziggler. Now he’s been thrown in a Tag Title match with Big E against Kane and Bryan. That’s certainly fine and should be a decent match, but with the MITB still in his possession, you’d figure they’d be him in a more high profile feud. This way when he does cash in, it won’t be such a massive jump from midcard to main event, though there’s something to be said for it coming out of nowhere. He probably won’t win the Tag title because neither he nor Big E need them and Kane and Bryan will hopefully drop them to The Shield.
Game Over?: The Hunter-Brock Mania match was rumored to happen for some time and it was uncertain how Creative could make it epic and hype it properly. Then HHH showed up and brawled with Brock, busting him open in the process. That set it off, then Heyman upped the ante in a big way with his promo last week. No Holds Barred fits what is likely to be, to quote the great JR, a slobberknocker. Putting Hunter’s career on the line adds a little more to the pot, though stacking the deck against him points to a victory by The Game.
Panel Discussion: With The Rock finally back after what seems like forever, Creative could’ve had him and Cean do another promo like last time, which they did to a certain extent. However, the inclusion of the panel of WWE Legends brought that extra layer of meaning to the exchange. In the presence of such greats as Mick Foley and Bret Hart the implication, at least in storyline, is that the two are upping their games in front of the Legends. Rock is able to get under Cena’s skin and make him snap, verbally at least, but it ratchets up the intensity incredibly. One has to wonder what they’ll do to top it on the go home RAW before Mania.
Worst
Jericho: Now all you Jerichoholics calm down, this is not going to be critical of Y2J himself, but of his apparent Mania match. Last week strongly suggested he’d be taking on Fandango and we can all certainly hope that’s not the case. Not only is Fandango unproven in the ring and as a character, he’s already starting to wear on the crowd. He can only come out and refuse to wrestle so many times before it gets old. Jericho would definitely put him over whether he lost or not, but it just seems like a waste of Y2J’s talent to elevate a guy whose ceiling is no better then Brodus Clay’s.
Orton: Randall needs to turn heel. For anyone who watches WWE regularly it’s not a shocking concept. He’s been so stale in his face role that a change is desperately needed. His mic work is still good but there are times when he stares off into the distance during interviews like he’s trying to do long division in his head. His tenuous alliance with Sheamus and Big Show provides the perfect chance for the turn. With his ‘partners’ bickering, he can slither in and screw them over at Mania. Whether he’s revealed as the leader of The Shield or it’s a solo action, it needs to happen.
Champions: WWE does alot of things poorly such as building younger stars, filling 3 hours of RAW, questionable booking and so on. The Del Rio-Cesaro Champ vs Champ match is one example of said booking. Two champions facing off should be a big thing and something that should be given a fair amount of hype, at least mention it the week before. However this one was just thrown out there. What hurt it even more was it was used as an excuse for Swagger to run in and attack the injured Ricardo. It really hurts what the match should stand mean. Remember how big a deal it was when the mid card champs faced off at Bragging Rights?
