WrestlingNerd Presents: WWE Raw Review 6/25/12

What up wrestling fans, I'm the WrestlingNerd bringing you another written review. Today, we take a look at WWE Raw 6/25/12. How do things go this week? Let's find out and start the review. 

We open up the show with the Raw opening glitching out. Not sure if this was my satellite provider, but part of the opening got cut out. It wasn't anything serious, so not sure why I brought it up….MOVING ALONG!!! AJ is backstage and we are led to believe she's talking to CM Punk, Daniel Bryan, and Kane all at one time. She thinks that Bryan still cares for her, but she needs to move on. She likes the wild side Kane brings to the table, but he has a monster…..I mean, he is a monster……Is……IS!!! She also loves being around Punk, but thinks that Punk doesn't care for her in the same way, so maybe it's time to go their separate ways. The camera finally reveals that there are two AJs. Two AJs? Well, now this all makes sense. You know, I was going to suggest this idea…..oh……it's AJ talking to herself in the mirror…..My idea was better. So, I guess she was thinking about what she wanted to say towards the three guys. I think WWE missed a golden opportunity to cash in on AJ's crazy side. She should've been talking to a Yes shirt, a Punk plush toy, and a Kane mask. I think that would've been hilarious. Vickie Guerrero is at the ring and is the interim GM for Raw and SD this week. She announces an Elimination match coming up right now……Excuse me!!!

Match #1: CM Punk vs Daniel Bryan vs Kane; Triple Threat Elimination match

This was not a bad match to open up the show. The finish comes when AJ skips around the ring, thus causing Kane to get distracted. Punk hits the GTS on Kane, thus eliminating him. Seconds later, Bryan comes from behind to hit a kick on Punk's skull. Bryan ends up winning the match. They do build this up as the night continues, but we will get to that when it arrives. 

Winner: Daniel Bryan

Vickie, Alberto Del Rio, and Dolph Ziggler are backstage. Each one wants to be the #1 Contender to the WHC, but she can't make up her mind. It's decided that a #1 Contender match will happen tonight. Now, time to waste $100 worth of roses and throw them against a wall. Why? I have no idea. 

Match #2: Big Show vs Brodus Clay

Brodus starts to do well, but the injured knee is too much. Something about this injured knee seems familiar…

Well, why not? The match is about what you would expect. The finish comes when Brodus lifts Show up, but the knee gives out on him. Show crashes down on Brodus and picks up the victory. With the defeat, it will give Brodus motivation to get healthy and try to get his revenge on Show. It also makes Show to be a very dominate figure at the moment, so at least they are continuing Show's current character. Somebody better call Brodus' mama. Seriously, he's in the hospital. She might want to know about this. We also find out that Brock Lesnar will confront Triple H next week. 

Winner via pinfall: Big Show

Backstage with AJ and Kane. Kane basically breaks it off because he realizes he isn't integral to the plot anymore, so it's best they go their separate ways. Oh, and there was something about Kane wanting to be a monster. I…..I don't know. Once Kane leaves, AJ starts to cry AND laugh at the same time. She really might be Harley Quinn now that I think about it. Her acting is still kinda bad, but I can let it go. Especially when TNA debuts new characters that…….No, I'm not gonna talk about THAT. Therapy sessions are getting expensive. 

Match #3: Santino vs Jack Swagger; US Championship

A short match. Santino wins with the Cobra. Biff Tannen has no management and can't beat a comic relief character? I guess he never got that sports almanac. Still would like to see a change at US Champion. 

Winner via pinfall and still US Champion: Santino

John Cena is in the ring and does a WWE version of Star Wars. Oh…….oh noooooooo. Parts of this were bad, but I will give points for creativity. The best part was the Yoda impression. Before Cena can get started on his Indiana Jones promo, Chris Jericho interrupts. Cena announces that he will take part in Money in the Bank. Really? That was the "historic" announcement? It's a pretty disappointing announcement, but I guess I shouldn't expect much. I imagine they want to keep all the surprises for the 1000th episode. Cena claims that Show is out of control and they cannot allow him to become WWE Champion. That's showing tremendous faith in the current WWE Champion, isn't it? Jericho says Cena is biting off more than he can chew since Cena has never been in MITB. Vickie comes out and doesn't like the idea they are tossing their names in the match, so she announces that the BOD put Cena and Jericho in the WWE Championship MITB ladder match. So, she doesn't like them throwing their names in the hat, but announces they are in the match regardless? Who's idea was that? Vickie also makes it Jericho vs Cena later tonight. At least that part of the interruption made sense…..I guess. I liked Jericho's promo. I thought it was clever and hilarious. For the WWE Championship MITB match, it will feature Jericho, Cena, Kane and Show. I'm not sure how I feel about this match. MITB is usually a concept to elevate up and coming talent, but only former WWE Champions get to compete in this match. Well, let's see how it turns out. 

Match #4: Heath Slater vs Sycho Sid

Time for Slater to get destroyed by an older talent. It's Slater Time, baby!!! Sid looked alright. The guy did seem out of place during the match, but Sid wasn't one of the better wrestlers during his career. Sid wins with the Powerbomb. 

Winner via pinfall: Sycho Sid

Match #5: Alberto Del Rio vs Dolph Ziggler; Contract on a Pole match, winner is #1 Contender to WHC

The winner of this match would get a WHC match on SD this week. That means you get foreshadowing on top of your foreshadowing. The audience is really pulling for Dolph. I want to see Dolph in more of a tweener role. I think he can pull it off. This was a short match, but it was decent. It could've used more time, but I understood why it happened. The finish comes when Dolph knocks down the contract. Nobody retrieved it, so both guys try to fight to grab it. I like how Del Rio clearly had a shot to win it, but he pushes the contract away. Why? Because the script and the WRESTLING LOGIC told him to do it. Both guys end up taking each other out while trying to grab the contract. Sheamus interrupts and says the world title match on SD will be a Triple Threat match. I guess we have to tune into SD to find out where they are going with this. 

No Contest

Match #6: Summertime Beach Battle Royal

It was announced that Punk vs Bryan will happen at Money in the Bank for the WWE Championship. Punk tried to talk to AJ about the two of them, but AJ seems to be thinking they are more than just friends. Vickie is competing in this match. The finish comes when it's down to AJ and Vickie. Vickie pretty much eliminates herself, so AJ picks up the victory…..

Seriously, she's doing Daniel Bryan's chant during all of this. She might be crazy, but I like her. She really is the most popular diva at the moment. All hail crazy chicks. 

Winner: AJ

Match #7: John Cena vs Chris Jericho

The match wasn't too bad. The finish comes when Show arrives to distract Cena. Jericho is able to lock in the Walls of Jericho, which allows Show to hit a legdrop on Cena. Jericho leaves Cena to get killed. Show hits the Chokeslam on Cena and follows it up with Camel Clutch to end the show. So, the Cena/Show stuff ties in with the WWE MITB ladder match. It makes Jericho and Kane look like filler since Show and Cena are the prime focus. It's common for MITB to have 1-2 guys be the heavy favorites, but I think they've given away too much in a short amount of time. Hopefully, they can throw a curveball to change things up (ie: Jericho or Kane winning MITB). Then again, things have been very predictable lately.

Winner via DQ: John Cena

Overall Impression:

I did find this show better than last week, but it also isn't saying much. I liked parts of tonight's show, but other parts of it were pretty disappointing. Cena's "historic" announcement was nothing historic when you think about it. AJ and her characterization was definitely one of the positives for tonight. Also, some of the matches weren't too bad. At the same time, nothing about the show really stands out or makes an everlasting impression. I would mostly consider this an average episode of Raw, but it leaves you wanting a little more. Some people might enjoy this show, but some might not be interested in this show. I will admit that the show isn't for everyone. At least they made a couple of announcements regarding the MITB PPV, so that's a positive. I hope SD can be better than Raw this week. That's gonna 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.