WWE Monday Night Raw (1/10): Hits, Misses, and "What The Hell?"

Last week the WWE had a great start to the new year. Raw was better than usual and the Smackdown stars just killed it with great matches. This week, although I wanted to believe WWE could keep the fire burning, I thought we the heat subsided somewhat last night on Raw. They knew they couldn't compete with the BCS Title Game and they showed it with this show. Without further ado, I give you the hits, misses and "what the hell" moments of the night.

HITS

The New Nexus T-Shirts. I feel a little weird starting out the hits section with a new t-shirt, but what can I say, the t-shirts were pretty cool. The new shirt had a good mix of CM Punk's logo and incorporated the Nexus "N" and colors perfectly. Nexus fans should like it as well as CM Punk's fans. Ultimately, it could be the next bestseller on WWEShop.

Shawn Michaels HOF induction and his appearance. That's right, Shawn Michaels was on Raw. For those of you who were watching the BCS Title game and not Raw, all the Raw viewers got a special treat in Shawn Michaels. Jerry Lawler said it best "There is nobody who deserves to be a first ballot Hall of Famer more the Shawn Michaels".The video package they showed for him was awesome. Then we got the special treat of watching him Sweet Chin Music Alberto Del Rio.

The body language in the main event. Another weird hit, but a hit none the less. During the main event of Lawler and Orton versus Miz and Riley, Orton was setting up for the RKO on Riley. Miz tried to attack Orton from behind but Orton turned around and glared at Miz. Simply put, Miz looked scared and Orton looked like he was ready to strike. To all up and coming wrestlers, if you have an issue with promos like Orton, follow his footsteps and use your body language. It may get you on the top of the company.

MISSES

Alberto Del Rio VS R Truth. This was a rematch from last week's Raw where I also gave it a miss. This week was even worse. Del Rio is a good wrestler and has a bright future ahead of him. However, how can we take his promos seriously if he has Ricardo get involved in his match with a mid-carder for life in R-Truth. The match was like 2 minutes long before Alberto got the countout victory. I still don't know why Alberto is appearing on both shows, however if they want him to continue to do so, they will have to get him involved in a credible feud, which they can do now because supposedly his matches with Rey Mysterio are over.

Initiations for Nexus. Michael McGillicuty's was well executed. However, Husky's was a lot less worse than Mike's. Then you have Otunga's which didn't make sense. Did Punk know Otunga had no chance against Big Show or was he hoping Otunga would somehow do something to Big Show. Otunga beating up Big Show would help Wade Barrett when he faces Show on Smackdown. Either way, it was a dumb segment. Slater and Gabriel did nothing, so are they in Nexus or not? Meanwhile, Punk has done nothing either so will he be initiated or will he just initiate others?

"What the Hell"

Husky "take your shirt off.” Punk told Husky Harris to take his shirt off last night to receive his lashings. I say, "Husky, put your shirt on." He needs new wrestling gear in my opinion that doesn't show off to much of himself. I also don't understand how he will be able to put on a long match when he doesn't seem to be in great shape.

Punk on TitanTron. After what happened to Owen Hart, this really pissed me off. What the hell was the WWE thinking when they allowed Punk on the TitanTron and then continue to say that anyone who would jump off the Tron is stupid or mentally retarded. Anyone who watched the WWE in the late 90's will never forget when the news broke that Hart had died practicing a stunt for his entrance. The stunt required him to drop from the TitanTron to the ring only the harness made him get out to slow (in his opinion). He didn't use the harness and he dropped to his death. To me, this was a classless move by the WWE by making a not so clear reference to the situation. Owen's wife, Martha, is currently involved in a civil suit with the WWE over them using Owen's image and likeness and I know this can't make the WWE look good.

Raw next week will see John Cena take on CM Punk. This match is good for a couple of reasons. First, this means Cena's injury wasn't as serious as first thought, and the WWE won't have to change their plans for the near future. Second, CM Punk is finally able to wrestle and is pretty much healthy. I don't know if you caught that Punk hasn't wrestled since revealing he is the new leader of Nexus. Here's to hoping he is 100%. As always, thanks for reading and leave a comment on what you think.