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CMV1 note – This is an evaluation of the top wrestling company’s performance level on a week-to-week basis to determine whether or not the WWE has earned our money for monthly PPV events, so that we may properly evaluate our options and make the most well-informed decision. As someone that has seen every WWE PPV ever produced, be it live in the arena, live on PPV, on tape, or on DVD, and also as someone who has reviewed PPVs and TV programming for years, I will put my experience to the test to help us all decide if spending the outrageous $44.95 price tag is worth it for each PPV. Show evaluations will be done in mini-review format, focusing on storylines likely to make it to PPV. At the end, I’ll lay down my closing thoughts. October 4-8 I cannot honestly recall a time since Wrestlemania season that I was more excited for a Raw than this one. Cena losing to Barrett and having to join the Nexus is quite interesting. When was the last time Cena’s character didn’t do exactly what you thought he was going to? Excellent first segment to start the show with the Nexus – particularly Wade Barrett – establishing (w/ a little help from the GM) that Cena basically has to do what Barrett says or get fired. There will have to be a long-term plan in order for Cena to escape his current circumstances, and that’s a good thing that’ll maybe conjure up some interest. Basically, the majority of the big happenings in the show revolved around that lone storyline. Cena did a very good job acting dejected and lost in thought. Wade continued to show why, at least from a character standpoint, he’s ready to take the next step from renegade to focused main-event star. Heading toward the Bragging Rights PPV, there was really only one other big storyline development. Edge was traded to Smackdown, but not before a verbal confrontation with Miz, who has positioned himself as the frontrunner to captain Team Raw in a 7-on-7 tag team match. The main-event of the evening was a 20-man over the top rope battle royal (CMV1 note – I am like a little kid when it comes to battle royals). The story of the match was whether or not Cena would help Barrett win. Many a solid performance was had during the match, with Sheamus, John Morrison, Miz, Barrett, and Cena all doing a great job. In the end, Cena did decide to help Barrett, even eliminating himself when it came down to the two of them. It will be Randy Orton defending the title against Barrett at Bragging Rights. Cena will be in Barrett’s corner, making that match a potential must-see. Over on the blue side of the hype machine, the main focus was again on the Undertaker-Kane feud, with Paul Bearer and Kane in cahoots and explaining their actions. Kane cut another nice promo that kept this storyline progressing. I have to admit that I find far more interesting than I ever thought I would when it first re-started. Meanwhile, Big Show was named the captain for Team Smackdown, but his comedic segment involving Hornswoggle did nothing to make me want to endorse Bragging Rights. A lot of wrestling with no clear cut direction for the majority of Smackdown, but I do have to mention the very good match between Rey Mysterio and Alberto Del Rio. They worked their tails off in the main-event. Week ending thought: Raw did enough with the Cena storyline to make the next PPV look good through week one of the build-up. October 11-15 The main focus to start off Raw was again the Cena-Nexus plot. Cena came to the ring and told the fans that he was between a rock and a hard place. Eventually, he and Miz argued over who should captain Team Raw (good, at least it’s being made to look like a big deal to be a part of that match). Barrett interrupted, though, and made it clear that he wanted Cena’s focus on the WWE title. The GM set-up a series of matches at that point to fill the roster for Team Raw, with Cena vs. Miz in the main-event to determine the team captain. Several good matches took place throughout the night, with the best being between Sheamus and Daniel Bryan. Surprisingly, Santino got a spot in a match where he was very over with the live audience. Joining those two are John Morrison (glad to see him getting a chance at another big match), R-Truth (who cares), and CM Punk (who had a nice re-debut with an injury angle to Evan Bourne). Also of note was a rare Raw diva’s interview segment, where Natalya made her intentions to win the Divas title clear. It was as good a segment between the divas as has been shown on Raw in months. In the main-event, Miz defeated Cena with the help of unofficial Nexus members Husky Harris and Mr. Imperfect. The closing segment saw Cena and Barrett tease tension before Cena ultimately had to back down. Smackdown was similarly structured as Raw, with the primary focus being the title storyline, but the rest of the show being committed to filling out Team Smackdown. With Big Show already the captain, he was challenged by Kaval to be allowed on the team. Kaval actually did survive to earn a spot, but lost it immediately to Tyler Reks (the surfer of ECW). I don’t understand why they had Kaval win NXT if he were just going to become another Chavo-like jobber. Also earning spots on the blue team were Kofi Kingston, Rey Mysterio, Alberto Del Rio (thrilled to see him get a spot on PPV), Jack Swagger (equally as thrilled that he’ll be on PPV again), and Edge (who, in the match of the night, defeated the IC Champ Dolph Ziggler). SD’s IC champ and the tag champs all lost their matches, so hopefully we’ll see some development there for mid-card matches at the PPV. The main segment of the night involved Kane and Paul Bearer announcing that the World title would be defended in a Buried Alive match against Taker at Bragging Rights. Taker got the best of Kane in a brawl to show that he’s still got some fight in him. Week ending thought: A Buried Alive match should be a draw to a lot of the newer fans if they hype it up well next week. Such a match has not been done since Survivor Series 2003, which is probably before a lot of the core audience was watching. Bragging Rights is looking like a winner, thus far. October 18-22 The most interesting thing on Raw for the last two weeks has very obviously been John Cena and his interaction with the Nexus members he was forced to join forces with, yet that was not the focus of the go-home Raw for Bragging Rights. Instead, the focus was on building the non-existent rivalry between Raw and SD. Teddy Long opened the show and took over, easily taking control from the computer. Team SD, which is stacked compared to Team Raw, stomped on the red team’s turf. Miz and the gang came out looking overmatched, which is quite a reversal from last year. Ezekial Jackson is the 7th member of Team Raw. Show vs. Miz for tonight was the result of the opening segment, but it turned out to be a bait and switch (a tactic they are using far too much). Instead, the main-event was a Raw vs. SD battle royal, won by Edge and Big Show from Team SD. In other Bragging Rights news, Dolph Ziggler and Vickie Guerrero made their presence felt, gloating over the IC title and their relationship. They were interrupted by Daniel Bryan, who suggested an IC vs. US champ match at the PPV. I like it. Bryan was made to look like an endearing dork at the end of the segment. After he made Ziggler tap, he white boy danced with some of the divas. I guess Bryan is supposed to be the representation of us – the internet fan? Also, in the first hour’s main-event, Orton and Cena teamed up to wrestle Husky Harris and Mr. Imperfect. Orton and Cena had a backstage encounter beforehand that made me wonder if they’ll main-event Mania, but then they went out and worked well together in defeating the potential newest Nexus members. Afterward, Cena was told to back away as Nexus destroyed Orton, making it look like the babyface champ will overcome the odds and retain his title according to booking 101. That should’ve been the main-event of the night and closed the show, as Raw and SD stars crossover every week and the illusion of any kind of rivalry between shows should take a backseat to the hottest rivalry in the company – not the other way around. Friday Night Smackdown started off much the same way that Raw did, with the red and blue teams confronting each other in the ring. A series of matches were set up pitting members of one team against members of the other. Miz, Sheamus, and Jackson lost to Big Show, Mysterio, and Kingston. John Morrison lost to Alberto Del Rio. Santino lost to Jack Swagger (nice to see Swagger get the strong tap out victory w/ the ankle lock; I miss seeing a variety of submission wrestlers). Edge and CM Punk ended up wrestling to a no decision when the rest of their respective teams got involved. However, the melee did end with Edge spearing Punk and the SD team standing victorious in the ring. Smackdown was again made to look like the dominant team, as they should given their advantage in star power. However, the booking would again illustrate a predictable Team Raw victory on Sunday. Predictable doesn’t sell PPV, but at least they gave the match a lot of hype this week. LayCool came out dressed as the Hart Foundation, with McCool as Bret and Layla as Neidhart/Natalya with beard. They continue to be the only entertaining thing in women’s wrestling, so despite Natalya and Kelly defeating them to give the challenger momentum heading into the PPV, I would like to see the champ retain. The main-event of the evening pitted WWE Champion Randy Orton against World Champion Kane. Orton defeated the Big Red Machine thanks to some Undertaker special effects. Kane was not a happy man afterward, but Taker was nowhere to be found so that Kane’s rage could be taken out on his brother. Instead, the lights went out and the Deadman popped up through the bottom of the ring, pulling Kane under the ring with him. They crawled out from under the ring apron and brawled until Taker got the upper hand and seized possession of the World title belt. As the show faded to black, the challenger posed for the crowd and tossed the title into the hole in the ring. Week ending thought: A lot more time was spent this week on building the secondary Raw vs. SD match. I thought that, overall, that was a smart move. I would’ve put the main Raw emphasis on Cena/Nexus, though, personally… Weighing Your Options So, we arrive the momentum of truth and pose the question: Is Bragging Rights worth it? Well, I think there’s a lot to like about the card. A Buried Alive match is something you won’t likely see for another 5 years or longer. I also think that you have to applaud the WWE for doing something new with John Cena and forcing him to be helpless and vulnerable. There’s a real possibility of a title change in the Orton-Barrett match. Then you’ve Bryan vs. Ziggler, which should be a very good mid-card match if given the chance to be. However, Team Raw vs. Team SD is pretty much something you see all the time. Wrestlers cross back and forth so often that it’s a joke to think that there’s any real brand loyalty. Also, the draw and allure of a title change no longer seems to be that big of a deal since titles change hands so frequently nowadays. The WWE title has already changed hands 5 times this year; the world title 4 times. And from my experience, a Buried Alive match is interesting to watch, but not something you should feel bad about not seeing live. Plus, there’s not a match on the card that feels “must see.” Doctor’s Orders: I would NOT recommend ordering Bragging Rights. Save your money for Survivor Series or a future PPV.
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