Post by edgehead on Jul 11, 2007 23:58:38 GMT -5
All righty then, Sir Den. This review was way overdue and it’s time for me to tell you like it is. Sweet, we start away with a tag match!
APA vs Kaientai: It was a very nice touch of you to put up a recap of Heat in the pre-match segment. It really makes Heat look like an important show where anything can happen and when storylines can still be developed. How long have we seen that in the E? Way too long, in my opinion. Short match, but this is what was to be expected. APA being the dominant tag team and with Essa Rios’s interference after the match, I’m assuming that we shall have APA/Essa Rios vs Kaientai very soon, maybe next Monday Night?
HBK/Y2J/Austin/Rock: Excellent promo to set up the main event. As I told you personally before, what I like the most about your shows is that it really feels like a vintage RAW in the Attitude Era where I can picture everything going on in my head as if it was really happening. Very few bookers here have the ability to do that and you’re in my book (no pun intended….oh wait, it was
) the best at that. You had all the characters pinpointed, it felt extremely real. Again, very very nice setup.
Interview with Albert: Short and sweet, to the point. I can’t say much more. I’ve never been much of an Albert fan anyway but I thought that in his last days with the E, he really improved his game and his feud with Edge was fun to watch. Let’s see what he can do with Tazz.
Segment HBK/Sid/Steph: Funny promo you did there with all 3. I have to admit that I like much more than expected Sid as the bodyguard of Steph. Hell, even the little “cameo” (or is “phoneo”
) appearance by Vince McMahon was good. I also think it is very important to not abuse of the authority figure on a show, like WWE (and TNA for that matter) are doing lately. They’re there to settle problems in key situations, not to steal the show…although HBK is actually a show stealer and it completely destroys the point I wanted to make. But anyway, you got that right, I’m sure!
Tazz vs Albert: I thought this was a good match to showcase both men’s strengths. I wish that Tazz would’ve been booked more like Taz in ECW and not the poor way he was booked with the E. Maybe that Taz wouldn’t have necessarily been WWE Champion material but at least, he would’ve made an awesome Intercontinental Champion, who could’ve put over guys like Chris Jericho and Eddie Guerrero.
Parking Garage + Hardcore Holly promos: I really like the rivalry with Kane making DX paranoid. It reminds me a little bit of the Austin vs HHH feud shortly after Austin came back from neck surgery. I’m expecting Kane to do something to DX pretty soon. As for Hardcore Holly vs Jeff Jarrett, I definitely respect the guy’s toughness but I’m not into his feud with Jarrett. But hey, let’s give it a shot.
Hardcore Holly vs Jeff Jarrett, King of the Ring Qualifier: I gotta say that was my least favourite match of the show. It’s maybe because I can’t stand both of them but I didn’t got myself into the spirit to really enjoy this match. Or it’s because I’ve been overexposed to that damn guitar of Jeff Jarrett in WCW or TNA but I hope to see Hardcore Holly move away from Jarrett as soon as possible. I think a feud in the Hardcore division should be interesting for him. But let’s see what he can do in the King of the Ring..
Kurt Angle Interview: Geeky Kurt is probably my favourite period in Angle’s stint in WWE and it really brought me some good memories of that era with this promo. I hope to see him stay the “Olympicontinental” Champion as long as possible. 2 out of 3 Falls against Eddie should be very fun to watch!
WWF IC Championship 2 out of 3 Falls, Kurt Angle vs Eddie Guerrero: WOW! I might sound a little biased (okay, VERY biased lol) but it’s an early candidate for MOTY. The match was very well built, nice tempo going. Lots of psychology and I think the falls were placed at the right time during the bout and I love the ending. I understand that you want to develop further the feud between Eddie Guerrero and X-Pac but I wish that it would’ve stayed a clean match between the two. However, I think that it made complete sense with the ending, allowing Kurt to stay the champion and it opens you the door for several possibilities for the next few shows until KOTR. I was about to say that maybe this match could’ve been placed as the main event but people will agree with me that we don’t wanna see X-Pac near a main event at any cost!
DX in the Locker Room: Once again, it follows the Austin vs DX storyline spirit from late 2000 and I really am looking forward to see what’s gonna come through…
Edge/Christian/Paul Bearer segment: HELL YEAH! Vintage E & C segment here! By far, my favourite segment (not match, segment!) of the night. This one had me rolling in laughter and I swear, I almost pissed my pants. I see a slight evolution of the Edge character, reminiscing of the Edge that turned face after he won KOTR in 2001. I was always hoping that Christian would also follow that route but it wasn’t meant to be. You really get me guessing here, Den. My heart tells me that you’ll come back with Taker pretty soon but my mind tells me that Uncle Paul might bring a new monster to feud with E & C before Taker comes back. One way or another, I’m tuning in to see.
Chris Benoit vs Road Dogg: Nothing to do with what happened on June 25th, but I wasn’t necessarily thrilled to see the match. Maybe it is because I’m more used to see Benoit deliver 5 star clinics rather than being used into a match that serves as a purpose to develop an angle. But anyway, I had the payoff I was looking for all night long, which was for Kane to raise hell, fire and brimstone on DX. Man, can’t I wait for next week. But as I said, I was disappointed with the match itself but hey, you can’t bat 1.000 every time, right?
WWE Women’s Champion Stephanie McMahon vs Jacqueline: In fantasy booking, we are often tempted to make things that wouldn’t look credible in the real WWE. Any less experienced booker would’ve probably made Stephanie McMahon like the greatest female champion in history but I’m glad to see that you stuck with the “Steph-champion-because-of-outside-help” angle. Yeah, Steph looked good in the ring, but not to the extent that it would not be believable. You made sure Sid Vicious was the X factor in the match, giving Steph the victory. I was a lil’ confused by Shane McMahon’s involvement in the postmatch action because I don’t remember what were his interactions with Steph and Sid prior to RAW. But in any event, I think the angle has been progressing great and you got me hooked on that matter for next week. I maybe would’ve switched this match in the card with the 2 out of 3 Falls but my booking sense tells me that you wanted a very strong match to end the first hour of RAW, so that’s why it was positioned there.
MAIN EVENT: Chris Jericho vs Steve Austin, The Rock as guest referee: Reading this match gave me the same feeling than reading the promo earlier in the show. I could feel the crowd’s involvement in the main event. I could feel the hatred between all 3 men. I was talking about the psychology in the 2 out of 3 falls and the pace, but I think you got this match as well built as the IC title match, but using Jericho, Austin and The Rock’s natural charisma to make it shine. Although I thought the ending was predictable, it didn’t make it weak by any means. It just sets things up for next Monday’s RAW, which should be explosive.
Overall, at the exception of 2 matches, you had an excellent card. As I told you before, you’re gonna have a tough act to follow with the IC title match and your main event. But I’m confident you’ll succeed. WELCOME BACK, DEN!
APA vs Kaientai: It was a very nice touch of you to put up a recap of Heat in the pre-match segment. It really makes Heat look like an important show where anything can happen and when storylines can still be developed. How long have we seen that in the E? Way too long, in my opinion. Short match, but this is what was to be expected. APA being the dominant tag team and with Essa Rios’s interference after the match, I’m assuming that we shall have APA/Essa Rios vs Kaientai very soon, maybe next Monday Night?
HBK/Y2J/Austin/Rock: Excellent promo to set up the main event. As I told you personally before, what I like the most about your shows is that it really feels like a vintage RAW in the Attitude Era where I can picture everything going on in my head as if it was really happening. Very few bookers here have the ability to do that and you’re in my book (no pun intended….oh wait, it was
) the best at that. You had all the characters pinpointed, it felt extremely real. Again, very very nice setup.Interview with Albert: Short and sweet, to the point. I can’t say much more. I’ve never been much of an Albert fan anyway but I thought that in his last days with the E, he really improved his game and his feud with Edge was fun to watch. Let’s see what he can do with Tazz.
Segment HBK/Sid/Steph: Funny promo you did there with all 3. I have to admit that I like much more than expected Sid as the bodyguard of Steph. Hell, even the little “cameo” (or is “phoneo”
) appearance by Vince McMahon was good. I also think it is very important to not abuse of the authority figure on a show, like WWE (and TNA for that matter) are doing lately. They’re there to settle problems in key situations, not to steal the show…although HBK is actually a show stealer and it completely destroys the point I wanted to make. But anyway, you got that right, I’m sure!Tazz vs Albert: I thought this was a good match to showcase both men’s strengths. I wish that Tazz would’ve been booked more like Taz in ECW and not the poor way he was booked with the E. Maybe that Taz wouldn’t have necessarily been WWE Champion material but at least, he would’ve made an awesome Intercontinental Champion, who could’ve put over guys like Chris Jericho and Eddie Guerrero.
Parking Garage + Hardcore Holly promos: I really like the rivalry with Kane making DX paranoid. It reminds me a little bit of the Austin vs HHH feud shortly after Austin came back from neck surgery. I’m expecting Kane to do something to DX pretty soon. As for Hardcore Holly vs Jeff Jarrett, I definitely respect the guy’s toughness but I’m not into his feud with Jarrett. But hey, let’s give it a shot.
Hardcore Holly vs Jeff Jarrett, King of the Ring Qualifier: I gotta say that was my least favourite match of the show. It’s maybe because I can’t stand both of them but I didn’t got myself into the spirit to really enjoy this match. Or it’s because I’ve been overexposed to that damn guitar of Jeff Jarrett in WCW or TNA but I hope to see Hardcore Holly move away from Jarrett as soon as possible. I think a feud in the Hardcore division should be interesting for him. But let’s see what he can do in the King of the Ring..
Kurt Angle Interview: Geeky Kurt is probably my favourite period in Angle’s stint in WWE and it really brought me some good memories of that era with this promo. I hope to see him stay the “Olympicontinental” Champion as long as possible. 2 out of 3 Falls against Eddie should be very fun to watch!
WWF IC Championship 2 out of 3 Falls, Kurt Angle vs Eddie Guerrero: WOW! I might sound a little biased (okay, VERY biased lol) but it’s an early candidate for MOTY. The match was very well built, nice tempo going. Lots of psychology and I think the falls were placed at the right time during the bout and I love the ending. I understand that you want to develop further the feud between Eddie Guerrero and X-Pac but I wish that it would’ve stayed a clean match between the two. However, I think that it made complete sense with the ending, allowing Kurt to stay the champion and it opens you the door for several possibilities for the next few shows until KOTR. I was about to say that maybe this match could’ve been placed as the main event but people will agree with me that we don’t wanna see X-Pac near a main event at any cost!
DX in the Locker Room: Once again, it follows the Austin vs DX storyline spirit from late 2000 and I really am looking forward to see what’s gonna come through…
Edge/Christian/Paul Bearer segment: HELL YEAH! Vintage E & C segment here! By far, my favourite segment (not match, segment!) of the night. This one had me rolling in laughter and I swear, I almost pissed my pants. I see a slight evolution of the Edge character, reminiscing of the Edge that turned face after he won KOTR in 2001. I was always hoping that Christian would also follow that route but it wasn’t meant to be. You really get me guessing here, Den. My heart tells me that you’ll come back with Taker pretty soon but my mind tells me that Uncle Paul might bring a new monster to feud with E & C before Taker comes back. One way or another, I’m tuning in to see.
Chris Benoit vs Road Dogg: Nothing to do with what happened on June 25th, but I wasn’t necessarily thrilled to see the match. Maybe it is because I’m more used to see Benoit deliver 5 star clinics rather than being used into a match that serves as a purpose to develop an angle. But anyway, I had the payoff I was looking for all night long, which was for Kane to raise hell, fire and brimstone on DX. Man, can’t I wait for next week. But as I said, I was disappointed with the match itself but hey, you can’t bat 1.000 every time, right?
WWE Women’s Champion Stephanie McMahon vs Jacqueline: In fantasy booking, we are often tempted to make things that wouldn’t look credible in the real WWE. Any less experienced booker would’ve probably made Stephanie McMahon like the greatest female champion in history but I’m glad to see that you stuck with the “Steph-champion-because-of-outside-help” angle. Yeah, Steph looked good in the ring, but not to the extent that it would not be believable. You made sure Sid Vicious was the X factor in the match, giving Steph the victory. I was a lil’ confused by Shane McMahon’s involvement in the postmatch action because I don’t remember what were his interactions with Steph and Sid prior to RAW. But in any event, I think the angle has been progressing great and you got me hooked on that matter for next week. I maybe would’ve switched this match in the card with the 2 out of 3 Falls but my booking sense tells me that you wanted a very strong match to end the first hour of RAW, so that’s why it was positioned there.
MAIN EVENT: Chris Jericho vs Steve Austin, The Rock as guest referee: Reading this match gave me the same feeling than reading the promo earlier in the show. I could feel the crowd’s involvement in the main event. I could feel the hatred between all 3 men. I was talking about the psychology in the 2 out of 3 falls and the pace, but I think you got this match as well built as the IC title match, but using Jericho, Austin and The Rock’s natural charisma to make it shine. Although I thought the ending was predictable, it didn’t make it weak by any means. It just sets things up for next Monday’s RAW, which should be explosive.
Overall, at the exception of 2 matches, you had an excellent card. As I told you before, you’re gonna have a tough act to follow with the IC title match and your main event. But I’m confident you’ll succeed. WELCOME BACK, DEN!
