As WWE continues the build to Elimination Chamber, they introduce yet another edition of Old School RAW. No, it’s not due to Betty White being the special guest star, but because the main match is Orton vs Cena in #773 in their series. Will they show us anything new? Will the crowd hijack it with Punk/Bryan/Boring chants? Will The Shield and The Wyatts continue to trade Tron promos or actually have one face-to-face? What about the burgeoning feud between Bryan and Korporate Kane? Will The Authority have anything to say about that? Most importantly, how will Betty White fare?
Best
Defended: One of the longest running questions in WWE was finally answered tonight. It’s ‘When will Dean Ambrose ever defend his US Title?’ Not only was it defended but it actually got a full, formal in-ring intro after a returning Mark Henry answered an open challenge from Ambrose. They actually let it go for a good amount of time as The Champ showed some good ring skills in focusing on Henry’s injured arm. Of course, it ended in a DQ as Rollins pretty much saved the title for Ambrose, but we did get a charged staredown between The Shield and The Wyatts, so that kind of made up for it.
JBL Great Quote of the Night: ‘It’s life size!’ In regards to the WWE Kid’s Magazine poster of Rey Mysterio.
Worst
The Miz: As much of a fan of The Miz as I am, even I have to admit how far he’s fallen. He hasn’t really done anything interesting since he ‘adopted’ the Figure Four from Flair and even that wasn’t handled all the well. There was some hope he might do well in his face turn since he has plenty of charisma, but whether it was booking or what not, it hasn’t worked out at all. They even tried to turn him back to heel but then remembered he was in some movie, so had to keep him as a face. Now he’s reduced to walking out in the middle of someone else’s match, putting on a headset and complaining. Saying he’s a former WWE Champion is quickly becoming like saying Khali is a former world champion.
G.O.A.T.: As if it wasn’t bad enough that we’re having Orton-Cena match #773, but the announcers have to remind us constantly of their numerous matches, even throwing out that they’re among the Greatest Of All Time. Yes they have to hype up the match, but didn’t they already go through this same stuff when these two were fighting at the Rumble? The worst part was Cena saying this match tonight will be the end of their rivalry. Well at least until they have #774 in a few weeks or months.
Questionable
Seth Rollins: Just of curiosity, is he ever going to settle on an outfit? One week he’s wearing sleeves, the next week he’s not. It’s not clear, but does he wear the same kind of tactical vest too? At least when Bray lights his pre-match lantern he always uses the same hand to hold it and the same hand for the match.
Emma: Is a comedy/dancing gimmick really the best way to utilize Emma upon her debut? Anyone who’s watched NXT will know that she’s actually quite good in the ring. She even uses a submission as a finisher! The worry right off the bat is that pairing with Santino might give her a big hole to dig out of if she ever wants to be taken seriously. After all it’s not like WWE has a good track record of utilizing female talent. It’s only been a few weeks since her debut and it could turn out for the better, but currently it doesn’t look promising.
Batista: So Del Rio has been running his mouth about The Animal, so Batista comes out tonight and destroys him. Later HHH makes Batista-Del Rio official for the Elimination Chamber PPV. How the hell are we supposed to take ADR as a legitimate threat after that? Sure he’s the usual ‘tune-up’ feud for the Rumble winner, but Creative has done better with these in the past. Even having Del Rio win some squash matches won’t make him anything resembling a threat to Batista.
