For The Record 5.17.09: Raw Will Improve

Raw has been tough to watch since the night after Backlash. The title picture is quite dull at the moment. That’s kind of strange considering that Batista and Orton were key members of the 21st century’s greatest faction. One would think that an Orton-Batista feud would write itself. But no, for some reason their interactions have come off as flat and uninspired. It’s hard to know whether it’s the fault of the wrestlers or the writers. Whatever it is, the feud is not working. It’s doing damage to their brand.

The other headlining feud on Raw has also been downright boring. WWE did some pretty poor planning when they decided to “injure” John Cena at Backlash. They had The Big Show throw Cena through a “7000 watt searchlight” and thus incapacitate WWE’s biggest star. Since then, Cena has had to sell a ridiculous bump by moving sluggishly when on camera. At a time when Raw’s roster is so depleted, the Cena “injury” angle is ill-timed. In addition, the injury angle has not added much to Cena’s storyline with the Big Show. In fact, it has hurt their whole feud.

Minor Gripe

WWE seems to believe that silencing their Raw announcers during vicious beatdowns adds dramatic effect to their segments. When done well, that approach can be quite powerful. However, the whole “silence for dramatic effect” thing has been overdone. For example, the segment with Orton “injuring” Shane McMahon’s ankle was a bit annoying. Were we to view Orton’s actions as shocking or worthy of Cole and King’s silence after Orton’s previous half a dozen attacks on the McMahon family? Were we supposed to gasp or grimace? The announcers also acted quiet and somber when Orton kicked Vince McMahon in the head, when Orton RKO’d Stephanie McMahon, when Orton DDT’d Stephanie McMahon, and when Orton kicked Triple H in the skull at Backlash. They even went with drama during the Big Show’s attack on John Cena a couple weeks ago. The whole “silent treatment” or “folks, this is serious” approach needs to be scaled back a bit. It’s getting old.

The beatdowns also tend to be a bit too lengthy. Sometimes those segments air five or six minutes too long.

Misused Midcard

Raw’s midcard has put forth very noble efforts in the past few weeks. The problem is that wrestlers like Kofi Kingston, Brian Kendrick, The Colons, Santino Marella, and William Regal are criminally underutilized. If they were allowed to go out there and put on a few lengthy, high-octane bouts (with an occasional gimmick match here or there), Raw would not have stunk so much.

I’m not going to be totally negative however. There have been a few silver linings. MVP has been given some much deserved face time in the past few weeks. The Miz has called out WWE’s top face, John Cena, for the past three Raw programs. And William Regal is once again emerging as a solid midcard commodity.

Through it all, there’s room for optimism…

If one of Raw’s problems at the moment is their lack of star power, that issue will soon be rectified. Raw will eventually be joined by the likes of Shawn Michaels, Mr. Kennedy, Triple H, and a “healthy” John Cena. When all of those wrestlers return, Raw will have a solid upper card roster and will be enabled to begin fresh, new storylines.

Shawn Michaels

Michaels will be the most interesting person to watch. With speculation running rampant that HBK will retire at Wrestlemania XXVI, the unofficial farewell tour could begin as early as this summer. Who will he feud with? What will his goals be? Is Michaels up for one more world title run? Will DX unite to put Legacy in their place? Who knows what’s in store for Shawn Michaels. He will make 2009 an interesting year for the Raw brand.

Mr. Kennedy

Kennedy is another wrestler set to make his return. Kennedy is an entertaining talent. WWE could go in a few different directions with him.

They could push him as Raw’s number two heel. Raw could use a few more top notch talkers on the villain side, and Kennedy would fit that bill. Kennedy could also return as a face that enters into a feud with wrestlers like Matt Hardy, The Miz, or The Big Show. WWE could put him into the US Title “Division” and place him in a feud with MVP (although, for that to happen, Kennedy would have to go heel). They could make Kennedy “pay his dues” and job him out for a few months for one reason or another. I don’t know why they would do that, but I do recall that Kennedy lost cleanly to Umaga on Smackdown before he went down with his injury. WWE could even team Kennedy with Kendrick since Kendrick is looking for a tag team partner. The possibilities are seemingly endless with Kennedy. He could be groomed as one of WWE’s next main eventers, meander in the midcard division, or even become a glorified jobber.

Either way though, Kennedy’s star power will make Raw a better show. Whether Kennedy is a face or heel, jobber or upper midcarder, he usually always manages to entertain. His presence will help to get Raw out of its funk.

Triple H

The Game has not been gone long, but his presence is sorely missed. I know some people will disagree with that assertion. But Triple H is a major presence on Raw. His absence has not benefitted the brand. I would argue that his feud with Orton had more legs behind it than Batista’s feud with Orton. At least Triple H can cut a decent promo. Batista has just been awful on the mike. His poor promo skills might have been okay on Smackdown. But Raw is live; Raw is the flagship show. If a wrestler can’t talk, he usually won’t be a great Raw main eventer. That seems to be Batista’s problem.

John Cena

Cena is not technically injured. I realize that. But because he’s selling a “major” injury, he has not been able to wrestle at full capacity. That has hurt Raw. For all the criticisms Cena gets, he still adds a lot of energy to the Raw brand. When he is once again utilized as an active competitor, Raw will improve. Of course, that might not be for a while. With Cena beginning work on his latest film, a leave of absence may be in order. Who knows, maybe he’ll wrestle once a week on Raw while he’s working on the movie. I don’t know, but the main point is that Cena’s pending “return” will help Raw.

The MVP and Miz Pushes

MVP and The Miz are gaining prominence on the “A” show. WWE is wise to give those two wrestlers an opportunity to shine. MVP is a gifted athlete. He’s also confident on the mike. Hopefully, in time, MVP will be given a world title opportunity. The Miz, for his part, is the most natural heel in WWE. He has the potential to be one of WWE’s most hated figures.

Matt Hardy is also primed for a big year. Once his hand heals, Hardy will likely emerge as a major player on Raw. And who knows, if WWE is serious about pushing new stars, we might see a midcarder shock the world and win a world title. It’s unlikely, but possible.

Raw is currently experiencing its annual lull period. But things will turn around. Raw is still WWE’s preeminent, franchise show. It won’t be left to flounder for long.