WWE RAW retort - Bryan and Orton steal the show again

WWE had a lot to live up to after the fantastic RAW they gave us last week, but with rumours that Paul Heyman and Dutch Mantel (Zeb Colter) might be dipping their fingers into creative, the fans had even higher expectations this week. It has seemed as though each RAW has had either fantastic storylines and shockers, or jaw dropping wrestling, but this week they gave us some of both.

I will admit that I was a bit upset when Bryan versus Orton ended so quickly. It felt as though the WWE was going to focus more on storylines than wrestling this week, and I was worried that we might have seen the end of the best of the work between Orton and Bryan. Luckily, we have not, and I will get back to that at the end, because it deserved to end the show.

The backstage segments with with McMahon, Triple H and Steph getting up in Vickie’s business just didn’t have the power that they’ve had in weeks past. Vickie was tweaking and worried, but there wasn’t any great in-fighting that they’ve given us the past couple of weeks. It appears as though Maddox is stepping over Vickie’s head to work with Steph, and that could further ignite the fun and fury back there. They’ve put this storyline into a bit of a lull this week, but I know it’s only a lull and nothing more. They will be coming back with so much more of this storyline, and have all summer to keep us pulled in and on the edge of our seats waiting for more.

Steph taking over for Vickie and announcing the WWE Championship MITBLM participants worked very well, and got Steph more TV time, something most viewers seem to love.

Last week I was quite upset that Rhodes Scholars were treated so badly in that Handicap Match, but this week they changed things up quite a bit, and really made Cody Rhodes look very strong in the ring. Just when I think Rhodes and Sandow have been shoved aside, Rhodes gets great match time, and Sandow is booked in a big match on Smackdown with Sheamus. Fingers crossed that Sandow will at least look solid on Smackdown, even if he doesn’t get the win.

I can’t say that Tons of Funk, the Usos, or 3MB were allowed the same respect on RAW. They really looked rough in the ring, and none of them got very good ring time. Even the winners, and new Tag Team Championship #1 Contenders, the Usos were not put over as strongly as they should have considering they’re going to be facing Rollins and Reigns at MITB for the Tag Team Championship.

While I like the Usos, and would like to see them as a solidly contending team, they’re far from that spot right now. I know there isn’t a strong team to go against the Tag Team Champs right now, but throwing the Usos in like this is a slap in the face to Rollins and Reigns, as well as the Tag Division as a whole.

Speaking of slaps in the face, who did Ryback tick off? I know he stepped in some serious hot water when he tried to criticize Bryan after their match earlier this month, and in even more hot water when he implied that he was going to kill all the fans in attendance, and maybe he was only left in the 3 Stages of Hell Match because it was booked, but it appears that he’s dropped way, way down on the roster now.

And while I understand Ryback dropping down low, I think putting him in the ring with Khali was a bigger slap than he really deserved. But then they so quickly bounced Ryback back up to working against Jericho at MITB. I think that is a strange, and somewhat daft booking. Jericho might be back to elevate an up and coming superstar, but it sure isn’t Ryback!

Punk facing off against Young was also very confusing to me. I understand that they wanted to show that Punk was a bit out of sorts because of his relationship with Heyman, but that Young looked even half that solid against Punk was terribly wrong. I don’t know what the plan is, but I don’t get it. Yes, Punk is out of sorts because his bestie is messing with his head (maybe), and having Punk out of sorts in a match makes a lot of sense, especially after the wonderful and emotionally charged work between Punk and Heyman – much of it a worked shoot – but it didn’t work against Young.

Furthermore, O’Neil really blew his spot in the ring after the match. He was very obviously supposed to be set up for the GTS before Young attacked, yet O’Neil was sliding all over Punk’s back and made it look like what it was, a botched mess. So, while the relationship between Heyman and Punk is very emotionally charged, and they used Axel perfectly, the use of the Prime Time Players was a terrible idea and could have ruined it all if Punk and Heyman hadn’t been that fantastic.

I hate to admit this, but Jericho versus ADR wasn’t that bad. In fact, it was quite a good match. I’m not a fan of ADR and feel that he’s been phoning in most of his matches, and his mic work since he joined the WWE, but in the ring with Jericho this week he shone. I will admit that it could have been Jericho who brought ADR up to the level he worked this week, because Jericho is just that great (RAW really is Jericho), but ADR wouldn’t be able to work to that level if he didn’t already have the skills.

I’m hoping that ADR’s work in this match will continue and he will show his skills when he’s in the ring with Ziggler at MITB, and not just go back to hitting Ziggler in the head like he did at Payback. Ziggler is better than that, and deserves better than that. Then again, Ziggler deserves better than most of what he’s been given from the WWE, but that is a whole other article in itself.

I don’t know who is behind the Divas Division being elevated the way it has been recently, and I’d like to think that Mantel being involved in the WWE has brought about some of that spark he added to TNA when he brought the Knockouts Division from nothing to a women’s division worth watching. Mantel brought us Gail Kim and Awesome Kong in one of the greatest women’s feud and series of matches that the world has ever seen, and it can’t be a coincidence that he’s now with the WWE and the Divas Division is getting better.

It doesn’t hurt that AJ is such a show leading Superstar. Yes, I said AJ Lee is a Superstar. I know the WWE usually uses that word for men and call women the Divas, but AJ is a Diva, and a Superstar. That woman can be sweet and sensual, rough and sexy, crazy and hot, mean and vicious, or all of them wrapped into one. She is further accentuated by Big E’s quirkiness. The man is a natural face, but working with AJ is teaching him so much about being a heel. He’s growing each week and it’s a lot of fun to watch.

Now, I might catch some cr** for loving the storyline between AJ and Kaitlyn, but loathing the ‘Piggy James’ storyline between Lay-Cool and Mickie a few years back. But to me, when one woman is picking on another for being muscular and strong, it’s a funny thing because it’s showing the smaller woman’s weaknesses. But two women picking on another woman for being chunky, especially in front of an audience who is (mostly) much heavier than the woman being abused is just dirty and leaves a bad taste in a lot of mouths. The only reason that storyline was every used was to humble Mickie for the way she reacted when Cena broke off their affair, and that’s bad business in my book. But AJ, on the other hand, is doing a great job of poking fun at herself while working against such a strong and beautiful woman as Kaitlyn.

Speaking of Cena, I have to say he was the weaker of the two on mic this week. Cena tries so hard, and continues to get the same mixed reaction each week, no matter what he says and does in that ring, but then there’s Henry who played the fans emotions even more this week in the way he mocked them. Between calling the fans puppets, laughing at making them cry, and saying he won’t apologize to anyone for what he did, Henry had the fans in the palm of his hand. The fins were yelling “What?” at Henry, and some might think that the segment didn’t work live for that reason, but think back to the reactions Henry had been getting before last week, and “What?” is a huge step up from the “Boring!” chants directed at him. Cena’s the one who got that chant tonight.

Yet again the crowning glory of RAW was Daniel Bryan. Actually, not just Bryan, but Bryan and Orton. I didn’t know if I would ever be impressed with Orton again as he has continued to shoot himself in the foot with Wellness Violations, but last week he stole my heart when he extended his hand to Bryan, pulled him into a hug and kissed him on the forehead. We were all lucky, especially Bryan, that he only had a stinger last week and wasn’t really injured, and I was worried when it was announced that they would be in a Street Fight, that they might go easy on each other.

My worry was for naught as those two men threw down in a way I never thought possible. Now, I’ve know for years, well before he came to the WWE, that Bryan was one tough little man, but I never thought I’d see Orton go to Bryan’s level. Those two men took everything they’ve been giving us the past couple months and wrenched it up a thousand percent. They hit moves, and worked more creatively than we’ve seen from Orton in years.

When Bryan first came into the WWE, he was really humbled, and treated rather sadly, especially in NXT as Miz’s Rookie. Then when Bryan was fired for working in a way he wasn’t told he couldn’t work, I was worried that was the last we were going to see of the man. Yet he returned quickly, and the matches he had with Jon Moxley while he was out were so recognized for their awesomeness that he was brought in, and is now the WWE United States Champ, so something fantastic came from Bryan’s time away.

But honestly, I never thought I’d see the WWE allow Bryan to work to that level, and I’m blown away by the fact that it’s happening. There’s only one thing that I worry about which happened in that match – the unprotected chair shot to Bryan’s head. The WWE is really becoming aware of the issues behind head injuries, and the last time there was an unprotected chair shot in the WWE, the people involved were fined $25,000 (or the WWE claimed they were fined, but as it was Triple H and Taker, they’re two of the few in the company making enough to get fined that amount and being able to afford it). I’m not sure what’s going to happen with the chair shot to the head, but I don’t see the WWE ignoring that it happened.

Then there was the way the main event ended. Bryan with the crossface on Orton; the crossface with a kendo stick was just sick. Whenever I see Bryan lock on the ‘NO! Lock’, I automatically think back to the man who made the crossface famous. But then Bryan took it to a whole new level in this match! These two men left it all out there physically, then they left it out there emotionally.

Orton offering his hand, Bryan shaking, then Orton leaving the ring looking so emotional choked me up, but then Bryan on his knees in the ring, looking so emotional himself, he actually reminded me of one of the men who trained him – HBK at WrestleMania XII. Bryan didn’t have a belt in his hands after this match, but he brought me back to HBK winning the WWF Title for the first time, and the emotion was very similar. It was a beautiful moment to end another fantastic RAW. If the WWE keeps this up, we might see the return of the glory days of pro wrestling. Could Bryan be as big as Stone Cold Steve Austin? From what he’s been showing us, I’d have to say Yes! Yes! Yes!

Thanks for reading, and I’d love to hear your thoughts and feeling about RAW.