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X-Blog #0095: The KJR (RAW 8/30/10)

By Derek X


Can you say anti-climactic? I can. Because that's the word I was left with after watching this supposed ground-breaking 900th episode of RAW. We all know WWE can do it big when it comes to specialty episodes, but they dropped the ball here. There were no surprise returns. No cameo appearances from anyone not already under contract. Nothing special at all. But maybe that was the point. This was just another episode of RAW. The 900th regular episode in case you were unsure about the number.

WHAT I LIKED:
Nexus/Taker/Kane: There wasn't much to like in this episode, but I did enjoy the segment between Nexus, Kane & Undertaker. If nothing else, it saved us from having to watch Bret Hart and Undertaker wrestle in what would have been a slow, sorry match. All the switching and appearances were impressive because it was done live. Kane & Undertaker aren't exactly spring chickens anymore, which made their timing even more impressive.

The Nexus, in general: This was a great episode for Nexus. They took out the Undertaker, who while not in tip-top shape right now, is still a huge target for Nexus to check off of their list. Then Wade Barrett won the main event and stood tall over Randy Orton who, mind you, is NOT John Cena. This was a shining example of how you can allow Nexus to look dominate without them dominating the entire show.


WHAT I HATED:
NXT: I would think the whole point of Daniel Bryan's exit and return was to set him apart from his NXT roots. Yet, they teamed him up with Kaval and wasted him in this match that was only done so WWE could get more viewers for the NXT season finale tomorrow night. Meanwhile, The Miz was also wasted on a such a big episode. If nothing else, at least it did further the Miz/Bryan rivalry that I hope will come to a head at Night of Champions.

We Get It: It annoyed me throughout the entirety of RAW every time Micheal Cole reminded us exactly how many episodes RAW has achieved and all the peons of shows it's overtaken. This was capitalized with King's statement of "We're a juggernaut." I'm sure Vince McMahon ejaculated at that point. I'm sure Vince really believes that WWE is a juggernaut of television. I'll give him the fact that WWE is a monopoly of pro-wrestling, but not television. There's a reason why RAW is on cable and not network television... the ratings are too low. RAW usually attains a rating between 3.0 and 4.0, which is low for network standards. But WWE will never put that on a 'Did You Know' graphic.

All the above aside, I would like to congratulate WWE on this landmark achievement. I remember watching the first episode of RAW back in 1993. I remember how excited I was that a pro-wrestling show would be on weekly. I never would have thought that it would still be on 900 episodes later. WWE RAW has been a huge part of my life growing up and while I'm highly critical of it, I've always appreciated all the entertainment it's brought to me. So, here's to WWE and the 900th episode of RAW. I hope it continues for another 900 episodes and may the next 900 be much, much better than the last 900. Congrats, WWE RAW.

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