Raw Reactions

Well my instinct as I sit down here is that it is too late at night and Blogger is running too slowly, and I have too busy a day tomorrow, to really write a really detailed review of Raw; but every time I say that I end up being longwinded anyway, so without any promises I'll give you my overall gut reactions, in no particular order, however little or much space they may take up.

1. Overall a show that served it's purpose as the 'go-home' before Wrestlemania - it pimped the hell out of the "Granddaddy of them All", and every promo, every match, had something to do with this weekend's extravaganza. So in that sense, successful.
2. I'm concerned though that they're preaching to the choir. While last night wasn't enough to dissuade people on the fence about buying the show from doing so, I'm not entirely sure it made a compelling enough case to convince them to buy it, either. And that's bad - they threw everything they had at WM hype, and I'm not entirely sure they came up with any more 'marks' (in the traditional, carny sense of the word - look it up, Junior) than they had going into last night.
3. Some tremendous mic work - I thought the opening promo was tremendous and was disappointed in the bullshiz chaos match at the end of the night that it built to. I understand they were trying to get those last couple guys in who hadn't been in the match etc., but I think it did a disservice to the match here and now, while not doing enough to hype any particular WM match as it all got lost in the shuffle.
4. Massive kudos to the Flair-Michaels promo while we're at it. They lost me with the 'Old Yeller', bit, but overall they played their parts perfectly. I can't describe it, it was just chemistry - Youtube it if you missed it. May I ask a question though? Where have video packages like that, devoted to Flair, been the last 3 mos. he's been on the verge of retirement at the loss of one match? Only now is there really a sense that it might actually happen, while that feeling should have been there for each and every one of his one-on-one contests.
5. No Vince! The ep before Mania, and no Vince! Dude knows his role! Woohoo!
6. Bunny Mania was going to suck anyway ... and now Candice Michelle, the only one of the Diva Search Divas who can wrestle, is out and being replaced by Ashley F'N Missaro? There is no excuse for this not being Mickey-Beth one on one. I can't believe they wasted that feud and pulled the trigger on it so quickly. Or at LEAST if you want to pimp out the Playboy Diva du jour, at least give Maria a one-on-one shot @ the title. With no tag champs even appearing on Mania (except one-half of Miz and Morrison in the Money in the Bank match), and the other two secondary title holders (MVP and Chris Jericho) being swallowed up by MITB as well, at LEAST defend the women's belt. Not that that has to do with Raw I guess, but that segment with the divas and Jerry Lawler/Santino Marella just sucked; even the two awesome comedian male wrestlers weren't their usual amusing selves. Grr!
7. Lastly, to end on a note of praise, way to let Ric Flair win possibly his last match in Flair country for his team; possibly his last Raw match, and we get to see him with his arm raised as the central image and focus as the show goes off the air and barrels on to Wrestlemania. Classy, and again how Flair should have been treated these last few months ... or hell, years. I've been thinking he should retire for years (not that he shouldn't be on TV, but that he's past his wrestling prime), and last night finally, I didn't want to see him go. A feeling I should have had since the beginning of this angle.

So basically in sum, WWE got a lot right tonight, that they should have gotten right over the last month. It was awesome, but I'm afraid too little too late. Sunday will tell. And I will see you then (with some stuff in between of course). Thanks for bearing with me, not as brief as I'd expected, but hey! I expected that too. Night all! ;)