Raw Reaction: Recapping and Grading Latest Episode (7/2)

We are closing in on the 1,000th episode of Raw, and as we go along, we continue to see feuds develop and the return of legends.

With Teddy Long as general manger this week, how did the latest episode fare? With a tag team match headlining the night, including the inclusion of John Cena, CM Punk, Chris Jericho and Daniel Bryan, the night had high standards from the get go.

Let's check out the latest episode of Raw.

Opening Segment

Opening the show with John Cena cutting a promo was not the way I wanted to start Raw. 

The word "yes" was said about 100 times, which was getting on my nerves quickly. The one saving grace was that Chris Jericho dusted off two old-school quotes ("Would you please shut the hell up" and "Raw is Jericho").

This promo did nothing for me, as the whole segment went nowhere. Well, I guess it set up the tag team match for later and it had a brawl at the end.

Grade: C

8-Man Tag Team Match

The two teams were the Prime Time Playas, Cody Rhodes and David Otunga taking on Kofi Kingston, R Truth, Santino Marella and Christian.

Some great back-and-forth action throughout the match. Was it just me, or did one of Christian's kicks to Darren Young look really stiff?

Anyways, the Primetime Playas and Rhodes ditched Otunga, who then fell victim to an interfering Brodus Clay and the rest of the opposing team.

Grade: B

We then found out for sure that Alberto del Rio will face Sheamus at Money in the Bank for the World Heavyweight Championship.

Alberto Del Rio vs. Sin Cara

Before the scheduled match, we got another Raw 1,000 moment where Shane McMahon trained Vince McMahon for the 1999 Royal Rumble, which brought back great memories for me.

The surprise opponent for del Rio was Sin Cara, who got ambushed immediately. The match never started, but it made del Rio look strong.

We then got an AJ-Daniel Bryan skit. It continued the storyline, so it wasn't a huge loss.

Grade: C

Brock Lesnar's Camp Responds

Oh great, another recap of something that happened two weeks ago. In my opinion, these constant flashbacks of happenings that occurred several weeks ago need to stop. They waste way too much time.

So tonight, Paul Heyman announced that Brock Lesnar will announce his decision to wrestle Triple H at Raw 1,000. Basically, this was yet another throw-away segment, even though Heyman is still one of the best talkers around.

Grade: F

Sheamus and AJ vs. Dolph Ziggler and Vickie Guerrero

To be honest, I did not expect much out of this match because of Vickie's involvement as an actual wrestler in the match. I also kind of wished AJ would wrestle somebody who can actually wrestle (Beth Phoenix, Natalya, etc).

Dolph and Sheamus put on a great show, as usual. The two have grown to work together very well. 

The ending of the match was pretty weak. Vickie is not a wrestler and she sold the moves pretty pathetically. The Shining Wizard that AJ performed was pretty cool, but the match was decent at best.

Grade: C+

We then saw AJ get sad with CM Punk for not seeing her match. That was interesting, as this could make Money in the Bank more intriguing.  

Heath Slater vs. Doink the Clown, Diamond Dallas Page

Heath Slater started off by taking on surprise opponent Doink the Clown. It was great to see Doink, even though that would have been better at Raw 1000 for a battle royal.

Slater beat Doink, but then Diamond Dallas Page appeared. They did not have a match, but Page hit Slater with a Diamond Cutter to make the fans happy. 

All in all, no complaints here.

Grade: A-

On a side note, I wonder who played Doink this time. Whoever it was should be ashamed, because that is Heath Slater's first victory in a long time.

Big Show vs. Kane

Two 40-odd-year-old giants wrestling at this stage is too slow for anybody's taste. This match did what it was supposed to do, which was make Big Show look good.

That being said, it was a pretty uneventful match.

We then saw Eve Torres return to television and talk to AJ. God I missed Eve.

Grade: C+ 

Tyson Kidd vs. Tensai

We got another Raw 1000 moment, which was when the DX invaded WCW. That was yet another classic WWE moment that made me reminisce on the good times.

We then got a match between Tyson Kidd and Tensai, who are both in the World Heavyweight Championship Money in the Bank match.

I thought we had a squash match in favor of Tensai, but Kidd ended up winning on a quick roll-up. Label me surprised.

Then, Tensai beat the hell out of Sakamoto. That was pretty unnecessary for TV time, but at least it got a crowd reaction.

Grade: B (for surprise factor and finally pushing Tyson Kidd)

CM Punk and John Cena vs. Chris Jericho and Daniel Bryan

Before our main event got going, we saw Tensai attack Tyson Kidd backstage. That is a great way for Tensai to gain some heat from fans, while making a storyline for the eventual Money in the Bank ladder match.

We then got to the main attraction, where four men entangled in a current/future feud tagged up to further the rivalry.

There was some decent action throughout. The minute Cena and Jericho took their brawl to the back, I knew what was around the corner.

AJ came out, set up a table and put Punk and Bryan through it. That is where the night ended.

Grade: C-

Conclusion

Hate to be pessimistic, but this was a pretty lousy episode of Raw. There was way too much AJ, way too many promos and vignettes and not enough solid wrestling matches.

Did anybody else notice that most of the commercials took place during the middle of the matches? And when they were during the matches, they were at least five minutes long?

Hopefully, the Great American Bash on Smackdown is better, because this episode left more to be desired.

Grade: D