WrestlingNerd Presents: WWE Raw Review 2/27/12 (Requiem for the Wrist Tattoo)

What up wrestling fans, I'm the WrestlingNerd bringing you another written review. Today, we take a look at WWE Raw 2/27/12. With the Rock in Portland, how will the road to WrestleMania continue? Let's find out and start the review. 

We open up the show with Requiem for a Dream. So, does that make the Rock and John Cena are nothing but a figment of our imaginations? Anyway, we are getting ready for the CM Punk/Daniel Bryan match. Punk comes out and is awaiting his opponent, but Chris Jericho comes out instead. Jericho says Punk is a great performer, but he's not the best in the world at what I do. Jericho says the "best in the world" title wasn't something he made up, as it was something the fans gave him. I must have missed that episode since I don't recall that at all. Then again, he's the bad guy and that's what bad guys do. Get ready for Jericho to go fully in jackass mode. Jericho goes on a rant in how he had nothing and worked his ass off to make it in this business, which is very similar to what Punk has created for himself. Jericho continues to call Punk a Jericho wannabe. I have a question. Does every Jericho wannabe get their own sparkle jacket? If it is, sign me up. That would be a good thing to have in a rolling blackout. Punk immediately says that Jericho never brought up "being the best" phrase, as Bret "The Hitman" Hart was the first one to start using it. Punk wants to know what Jericho is trying to prove? Is Jericho trying to prove to Punk that he's better, or is he trying to prove it to himself? Punk says Jericho is jealous since Jericho was never the top dog of the company, which is something Punk currently has. Jericho finally admits why he decided to come back to the WWE. Jericho came back to the WWE so he could embarrass Punk and take the WWE Championship at WM. Punk finally wraps it up by saying he will prove that he's the best wrestler in the world. Bryan comes out with John Laurinaitis, David Otunga, and AJ. Jericho eventually leaves as we finally get ready for the match. 

Well, Punk and Jericho had a lot to say towards each other. There was a bunch of other things they said, but this isn't a recap. I definitely encourage you to watch this segment since it was great. In many ways, THIS is what I was looking forward to the most with the Punk/Jericho feud. We know both guys can wrestle their asses off in the ring, but I was more interested in what they were going to say towards each other. The gloves finally came off tonight and both guys have set up their rivalry in a nice fashion. Both guys did a great job promo-wise, but that's nothing new. Still, it was a great way to open up the show. If we can get Wolverine, the whole "Best in the World" concept would really go a step higher. 

Match #1: CM Punk vs Daniel Bryan

As the match finally gets underway, Teddy Long and Santino come out to support Punk. Kinda ironic how Teddy is pulling for the Raw superstar and Roboinaitis is siding with the SD guy. These GMs don't discriminate. Yes, I'm aware why they are siding on opposite ends. Let's learn to have a little more fun and not be serious all the time. Teddy and Laurinaitis were on commentary. I almost expected Michael Cole to unzip Laurinaitis' pants and enjoy that robot strudel. That would definitely make Johnny Five alive. Okay, I'm have way too much fun. Punk and Bryan delivered a pretty decent match. It wasn't as great as the match they had on SD last week, but it decent considering the amount of time they were given. Otunga tried to get involved, but Santino would hit the Cobra on Otunga. Laurinaitis shoves Santino and all hell breaks loose on the outside. That's right, you don't f*** with the Ekans that's on Santino's arm. Or maybe it's an Arbok? Anyway, Teddy and Laurinaitis are arguing, which means it's time for the weasel to escape. Don't worry, it's Sheamus to the rescue. He gets Bryan back in the ring, which allows Punk to hit the GTS on Bryan. The ref is about the make the three count, but Laurinaitis stops the count. The match is officially a no contest. So, Laurinaitis wanted to make it up to the fans, so he cancels the match? That makes perfect sense. Roboinaitis has a few gears loose in his skull. After the match, Teddy and Laurinaitis take off the jackets. You know people mean business when the jacket come off. As they are arguing with each other, Punk is on the entrance ramp posing with the title. Yeah, I'm sure this isn't a trap waiting to happen. Jericho comes from behind to attack Punk. I'm gonna call wrestling logic on this one since the cameraman has no reason to focus on Punk unless something was going to happen. Especially considering that Mr. Stick and Johnny Five were busy throwing jackets in the middle of the ring. Anyway, Jericho hits a scoop slam on Punk and applies the Walls of Jericho. Officials arrive to break it up. I might as well say that there will be an announcement on WWE.com Tuesday morning. It will most likely be something on the Teddy/Laurinaitis deal. I have been thinking about this for a while. I think Teddy and Laurinaitis will have a match at WM, but it will involve the Raw and SD talents. It will probably be something like a five vs five elimination style tag match. Just my theory at this present time. Then again, I'm also insane AWWWWWWWWWWWWW…..Hi. 

No Contest

Match #2: Kelly Kelly vs Nikki Bella

Kelly won this match with a bridge. Why did this match make it on the show? There really is no storyline here and it was mostly there for fan service. Either that or WWE wanted to give you a longer bathroom/coffee break. 

Winner via pinfall: Kelly Kelly

Match #3: John Cena vs Miz

Okay, so I got distracted by something better. Can you really blame me? It isn't like you missed much here. Cena destroyed Miz with the AA and the STF. At this point, you really shouldn't be surprised. Oh, and the Miz talked about being overlooked or something. I don't know, I wasn't really paying attention since I was looking at something else. 

Winner via submission: John Cena

Match #4: Primo and Epico vs R-Truth and Kofi Kingston vs Dolph Ziggler and Jack Swagger; Triple Threat match for Tag Team Championships

There was three people always in the ring for this match, so each team had a representative. The match was pretty short, but I enjoyed it for what it was worth. Then again, things take a weird detour after the match. The finish comes when Kofi hits Trouble in Paradise on Swagger, while Primo hits the Backstabber on Swagger as well. Primo pushes Kofi out of the ring, which allows for Epico to pick up the victory. Well, at least they aren't completely tossing Primo and Epico to the nearest online show. After the match, Kane arrives and takes everyone out. Kane's arrival seems pretty random since he had nothing to do with the people involved, but Kane does need a new program. At this point in time, I'm not sure what to make of this. I don't really like the idea of Kane getting involved in this, but I'll give it a chance and see where they are going with it. Swagger has got to be the worst US Champion ever. He takes the pinfall in this match and got hit with two finishers. Swagger better just appreciate the shiny object that's around him. IT'S SHINY!!! Especially since Dolph is the main star of this team. Either way, we are getting closer and closer to that Batman brawl. Kofi is the Riddler, Kane is playing Bane, and Truth is a mixture of Scarecrow and Joker. All we need is Batman and we're all set. Hmm…..Rey Mysterio could be returning? Eh, just a random thought. 

Winner via pinfall and still WWE Tag Champs: Primo and Epico

I already mentioned the Teddy/Laurinaitis deal, but this backstage scene was hilarious. It's like the charisma is bursting out of Laurinaitis' ass since he adds so much anger to this scene. They proceed to call each other out. Mr. Excitement does have his moments. 

We are back in the ring with the Hoeski. Eve talks about how she likes to use men, but claims it isn't her fault since men are weakened by her amazing looks. She likes to do these types of things to get attention. She's actually has a point. I like how the King had to think about that for one minute. What a whore. After her promo, she heads to the back. She runs into Kelly and the Barbie doll wants to know why Eve is acting like this. Eve just laughs and walks away. For some reason, Alicia Fox shows up and stares. Why? Easiest paycheck ever. I guess something is brewing between Eve and Kelly. Yeah…..Just want I wanted. It isn't like Beth Phoenix or Tamina is available to do something for the diva division…..Wait a minute? 

Match #5: Sheamus and Big Show vs Mark Henry and Cody Rhodes

Cody played another embarrassing Show clip. This time, it was Show's match against Floyd Mayweather. Yeah, I am convinced that Show vs Cody will happen at WM. Not sure if it should be for the IC title, but I will talk about that another day. This match didn't last long…..At all. Sheamus tagged himself in and hit the Brogue Kick on Henry in a matter of seconds. Hall of Pain? More like Hall of Shame. Henry's stock is falling faster than…..Okay, I got nothing. I'm disappointed in myself. 

Winner via pinfall: Sheamus and Big Show

It was announced that Shawn Michaels will be on Raw next week. Things are definitely firing up with the Undertaker/Triple H storyline. Time for the Rock to arrive. Rocky said the usual stuff. Rock talks about how it's great to be back and creates more catchphrase that will trend worldwide. He once again stats that he will never leave the WWE. Rock talks about how he use to think Cena was a phony, but he was wrong. Rock says Cena is a Kung Pao Bitch. Yeah….Wait, what? Kung Pao Bitch? What, did it take him five minutes to think of that one? He also talks about how pro wrestlers don't fight for others, they fight for themselves. Rocky also says he fights for the fans, not himself. He continues to talk down to Mr. Breakfast Cereal until Cena finally interrupts. Cena arrives and immediately brings up the fact that Rocky has an interesting tattoo on his right wrist. Cena says the Rock is a sell out since he's no longer the Rock, he's Dwayne Johnson. As soon as Cena said his brief words, he left. Short, but effective. Rock finally says his usually stuff until the show ends. 

If you're able to zoom in on the Rock's wrist, you can see the Rock had some brief notes written. Just to clarify, this is not reading off a script. It's natural when you give a speech to at least have some brief notes so you can remember what you're discussing. If you can show me a picture of the Rock reading his entire promo on his wrist, then I will take it back, but there's a difference. At the same time, I would like to think WWE had the Rock do this? Think about it? Cena talked about how phony and scripted the Rock. What does he do the following week? He just so happens to point out the giant letters on the Rock's wrist in order to one-up him. That's at least what I would like to think. It's very possible that the brief notes were just a coincidence, but who really knows. I still think people are blowing this "letter tattoo" deal way out of proportion. Like I said, it's natural for someone to have some notes whenever they are about to give a speech/promo. You want to know the strange thing? This might has been one of the Rock's weaker promos, but the audience simply didn't give a damn. They ate up everything the Rock had to say tonight. I don't think this was a bad promo by Rock. It just seemed…..Off. Maybe it was planned that way in order to make the Rock look more scripted? You're probably asking, "Why would they want to do that?". It's to make Cena look better and more realistic. Then again, maybe this entire tattoo deal is something people are over analyzing? Some people tend to blow these things up way too much and almost forget to have fun with the product. Don't get me wrong. It's fun to talk about these things, but let's not go overboard with one scene. Let's see what happens in the next few weeks, then we can judge on how things are coming along. 

Overall Impression:

This wasn't as great as the last couple of weeks, but there was a few things that worked. Even though the Rock's promo was…..Um, different, the audience seemed to enjoy it. Cena has looked better in these last few weeks. As I said last week, I like it when Cena changes it up as opposed to resorting to poop jokes. It just makes him look more real and interesting. I thought the show started off very well. Punk and Jericho finally were given a fair amount of time to speak. It was about time we hear Punk and Jericho talk to each other. The tag match was interesting, but Kane's involvement can be a little puzzling. Then again, let's see where they are going with this. It could be a good thing. It can also suck, but we'll talk about that when the time comes. I felt the first hour was the best part of the show. The second hour is when things fell apart. I wouldn't call this a bad episode of Raw. I would say this falls in the category of average. At the same time, I think some people were expecting a little more since the Rock was there. In that respect, I don't blame you with being disappointed with tonight's show. Well, the Rock does have another appearance to redeem himself, but I don't think casual fans care. I think casual fans showed tonight that the Rock can literally say anything and they will love it because…..Well, he's the Rock. I think that's something to keep note of as we continue to watch this storyline. That's going to do it for the review and I hope you enjoyed it. As always, tell me what you thought of my review or tonight's show. I will see you guys and girls on the next WrestlingNerd show. See you next time. If you excuse me, time to get back to '90s cartoons. Yeah!!!