What You Didn't See On RAW Last Night, More

Thanks to Brian for sending this along:

I was in attendance at the RBC Center in Raleigh tonight for RAW, and, as is usually the case, it was a great show live. Now that the excitement is dying down, however, I realize that it probably wasn't the best show to simply watch on TV. ZZ Top as the guest hosts were pretty under whelming, not because they didn't do a fine job, but mostly due to the fact that they only appeared live for a moment and the youth majority crowd couldn't get too excited for them. I thought for sure the little stage where they interviewed Mickie James would be for some kind of mini-concert, but alas I was wrong and it was covered the entire night besides that segment.

We arrived to the arena around 6:30 with the doors scheduled to open at 7:15 and the event to start at 8:15. We were lucky to get a good spot near the gate and they teased us by allowing us through the metal detectors early, only to make us wait to actually enter until 7:25. I was wearing a replica Soldier Ant mask (from Chikara,) throughout the night and got a lot of attention for it, although almost everyone confused it as a Rey Mysterio mask.

You can really tell that the product is geared towards the young now, not just due to the massive amount of them attending the shows (they made up probably at least 70% of the audience,) but through their merchandise. The WWEShop tables were dominated by Cena, Mysterio, Hardy, and Triple H. The only heel merchandise to be found were the Orton gas mask and Legacy t-shirts. Surprisingly they didn't have any Top Rope shirts for sale, although they probably cater less to the young crowd. They also had scattered merchandise for Hornswoggle, Shawn Michaels, Batista, and the Undertaker. It was also surprising not to see any shirts for Santino, Evan Bourne, or Kofi Kingston (although the latter two were just released only about a week ago.)

The crowd yelled out a ton of wooos whenever there was a break and before and after the show. As the show began they ran a Wrestlemania 25 video package that got big cheers whenever a favorite popped up. Lillian made her entrance and introduced the dark match, which was Alex Riley vs. a man billed from Raleigh named Jay (I didn't catch his last name.) Riley cut a promo saying that he had walked around N.C. State (my current school,) and found that it didn't seem like the people were very intelligent, despite us having an excellent football and basketball team (honestly that's very questionable.) He asked who had taken the SAT and his valet Beverly raised her hand. He did the usual "I'm going to educate you" act, completed with his cut off letterman's jacket. He eventually won a quick match with a modified slam that was basically a leaping Rock Bottom. He's got the sizable look that they like.

Next I was surprised to hear the school bells of Matt Striker's entrance theme as he and Josh Matthews made their way out to commentate, and was further surprised when we got pyro for the Superstars opening (I assumed they used the stock footage from the first taping.) Christian came out to a big ovation, which was followed by a good amount of heat for his opponent, William Regal. The pair had a lot of stiff offense and Regal kept dumping Christian to the outside after offense using his knee. Christian went for the Killswitch at one point but was reversed. Finish saw Regal charge Christian in the corner, only for Christian to flip and rollup Regal for the pinfall.

King and Cole were introduced and Lillian got us ready for the live cut to USA before the show. Next we saw Evan Bourne take on Jamie "outta nowhere" Noble. Bourne got in a lot of offense with his legs, as in hurricanranas and the like, but Noble stopped his quick action with mat-based holds. Bourne kept trying to go up top for the Shooting Star Press, but Noble leapt up and caught him each time. Finally Bourne kicked him in the head from the apron and hit the SSP for the victory. Crowd was hot for Bourne.

Lillian then sang the national anthem and it was great (it'll be sad to see her go.) The crowd got pumped up again for the RAW opening and let out a deafening pop for John Cena. His merchandise was everywhere, including a new foam finger. Orton got a decent amount of cheers himself until the boos started drowning them out. Hunter got a nice pop as well, but nowhere near the size of Cena's.

The crowd popped for Santino with ZZ Top and did so all night during their segments. We then got a Tribute to the Troops video package, which got the usual cheers. You could see the pyro being set up for Kofi Kingston's entrance and he got a big pop. MVP did as well and Primo ? not so much. Big Show actually got a nice reaction for his pyro and his size. During the broadcast break, Primo got some offense in and tagged in Kofi, who would eventually get overpowered by Swagger leading to his isolation away from his teammates. Primo did eventually get a large pop for winning the match, but it was short lived after the Show domination.

They gave a shot of the N.C. State Football field sign next to the arena and it actually got a ton of heat. I'd like to think that the majority of the crowd favored UNC, but I seriously doubt it the way our football program has been since losing Phillip Rivers. THE Brian Kendrick didn't get much of a reaction and we of course couldn't tell what he was saying to the announce desk. We were pleasantly surprised that Lawler got in the ring and that he won. Lot's of "Jerry! Jerry!" chants. I think it was after this segment we got another Wrestlemania package to promote Wrestlemania 25 on DVD, however it focused on Wrestlemania 24 oddly. Flair got a bunch of wooos when he was shown.

Funny bit after the Mickie/Miz/Maryse segment. After it was over Mickie continued to writhe on the ground alone and it was only after the SmackDown! promo had aired did two referees finally come to her aid.

You know Jericho's pyro is coming and yet it still hits you suddenly. Henry was over as a face and really got over once the match was done and he hit the World's Strongest Slam. He led the entire crowd in doing his new taunt where he brings his arm up and then flattens his hand on the way down to simulate the slam. I haven't seen crowds doing taunts like that since the days when the Oddities would have the entire arena waving their arms back and forth.

After a Summerslam promo we were "treated" to the Tuxedo match. Hornswoggle received a warm reaction and there were many laughs to be had at Chavo's wardrobe malfunction. You probably noticed on TV, but Lillian got verbally tripped up over the rules of the match, first calling it a "Sharp Dressed Match Tuxedo Match," and then trying to state the rules before giving up. This match was a treat for the kids and all but not very exciting. Horny struggled finally getting Chavo's pants off and it looked like Chavo might have actually undone his buttons to help.

Crowd enjoyed seeing the divas during the ZZ Top segment and we got a rundown of the Night of Champions card from the announce team. Funny that Michael Cole said "Kofi King" at one point while facing Lawler. Lillian then hosted the Kiss Cam and all the couples were willing and able, although a few were so transfixed on the Titantron that they didn't realize they were actually on screen. The diva tag match itself was average and you could notice some weak spots, though it was nice to see the girls out there.

Another Tribute to the Troops video aired and George W. Bush, who appeared at the start and end of the package, was booed heavily both times with scattered applause. ZZ Top finally made an appearance for the live crowd and they got a polite reaction. By that point everyone was ready for the main event and the two minutes they appeared was lame when I think most were expecting a live music segment due to the platform they held the Mickie interview on. Not for the band's lack of trying, but live audiences always pop harder for the things they see live in front of them.

Speaking of pops, Triple H got a massive one, way bigger than his earlier one. However, John Cena would once again get the biggest pop of the night and fans were scrambling to catch his thrown t-shirt. During the commercial break, Cody Rhodes was double teamed by Hunter and Cena until DiBiase tagged in and isolated Cena, which would set up the triangle offense between the Legacy members. The finish of the match left the crowd very happy, as well as the handshake between Cena and Hunter.

After the broadcast was over, Orton took the mic and said that their victory was a freak accident and Cena rebutted by saying that the only freaking going on was Orton's freaking out over their loss. Orton demanded a rematch and Cena left it up to the people, who cheered loudly for it to happen (despite about a fifth of the audience having left.) Legacy got back in the ring and all five men had a staredown. Suddenly Dibiase and Rhodes left the ring, leaving Orton alone and not realizing their departure. Cena walked behind Orton to show him and Orton offered a handshake to Triple H to avoid the situation. Hunter extended his hand and then gave a DX crotch chop, leaving Orton to turn around and see Cena give the "You Can't See Me," before hitting an Attitude Adjustment. Hunter followed up with a Pedigree and the two men posed for the crowd.

As Cena left and threw his wristbands into the crowd, Triple H helped Orton up and back into the ring, just to deliver another Pedigree. He posed some more and then slapped hands with all the ringside fans. He took special time to talk with the younger kids and the military men at ringside, including one kid on the corner who looked terrified of him. He even went to the fans in the obstructed seats by the stage and tried to get to the ones on the left side, but couldn't squeeze by the interview platform. One final salute and some DX arm salutes and the show was over.

All in all a great show live, but then again I saw No Mercy 2006 live and had a blast then as well. It's always more fun being in the arena, and you wouldn't believe how a dead crowd on TV can sound amazingly hot in person, so I would recommend any fans to go if you have the opportunity (even if you get the $15 nosebleed seats.)