WWE RAW Review: Punk Drops Another Pipebomb, The Rock Returns And More
On the first Monday Night Raw of 2013, we not only saw the return of the Rock, but also a TLC WWE Championship match. So what was good, and what was bad on the first Raw of the New Year, in this writer's opinion?
The Good
1) Team Rhodes Scholars picked up a big win over Team Hell No. Team Hell No is a tag team that is nearly constantly rolling with momentum. They usually always pick up big wins, and they're a fan favorite. So to see them lose on the first Raw of 2013 in a non-title match against Rhodes Scholars is huge for Sandow and Rhodes' credibility. Hell No's loss breathed a bit of fresh air into their feud with Rhodes Scholars, because presently, there really isn't another team that poses a serious threat to their titles. Hopefully Rhodes Scholar's win is the first true step on their road to becoming the new tag champs.
2) Antonio Cesaro picks up another win over Great Khali. Having Cesaro pick up another win over Khali, and hitting another Neutralizer on him, was a smart thing to do. Clearly creative is trying to build Cesaro up, and it is working. Every week Cesaro gets more and more impressive, and it's only a matter of time before he moves up the card, where he deserves to be.
3) CM Punk retained his title against Ryback. It was a bit obvious he would win somehow, as WWE has been building towards a Punk vs. Rock match for sometime now. Not a lot of build, but if you follow either wrestlers Twitter then you know it has been there. Rock vs. Punk for the WWE Title at the Rumble is the first time in awhile that WWE has me truly stumped on what's going to happen.
On one hand, it seems like a no brainer that Rock will win. After all, he is the Rock, and he doesn't wrestle every day.
On the other hand, it's well documented how proud of a wrestler CM Punk is. It doesn't seem like he would be down with dropping the belt to Rock after such a long reign. Hopefully, CM Punk somehow retains against the Rock and goes on to main event Wrestlemania against the Rock again. Or even better, a streak vs. streak match against the Undertaker.
4) The Rock vs. CM Punk promo was amazing, talk about an old school wrestling moment. The Rock going against Punk in a war of words was one of those wresting moments that doesn't happen very often, but has people buzzing like crazy when it does. If that was any indication of what's to come as their match at Royal Rumble grows closer, wrestling fans are in for a treat.
The Bad
1) The finish to the Ziggler vs. Cena match was terrible. As a matter of personal opinion, Cena isn't the curse upon wrestling most of the IWC thinks he is. However, moments like the finish to that match are why most of the people that hate him do so. Considering the fact that Ziggler has been on top of their feud for the majority of its duration, there's no reason he should have lost.
2) The Wade Barrett squash match was pointless, unless they are building towards some kind of Steamboat – Barrett feud. Honestly, why was Barrett in a squash match? He is already credible enough. The fans don't need convincing on why is elbow is devastating, or how good or a wrestler he is. Its been established.
3) Big Show beating Kofi Kingston in his squash match was pointless for the same reason the Barrett one was.
What did you think of the first Raw of 2013?