Raw 3-19-12

Matches:

1. Kane v. Big Show - 2 out of 5
2. David Otunga v. Santino Marella - 2 out of 5
3. Daniel Bryan v. Zack Ryder - 3 out of 5
4. John Cena v. Mark Henry - 4 out of 5
5. Sheamus v. Miz - 4 out of 5
6. Dolph Ziggler & Jack Swagger v. R-Truth & Kofi Kingston - 2 out of 5


The first hour of Raw was entertainment-heavy. What I mean by that is that the matches were sub-par and all three were supplemented by non-wrestling extras. Cody Rhodes wore boxing gloves at ringside for Big Show's match, and afterwards handcuffed him to the ring and beat him silly. Otunga and Santino had a pose-off before the actually got their match started. And before Ryder's match, we were treated to a video package of Ryder's parking lot Rally to try to get himself to WrestleMania.

The next quarter of Raw was the part devoted to matches that were better than I was expecting them to be. It's nice to see Mark Henry still look so dominating during the better portion of his match, but I'd like to see him back in a program with someone and destroying the rest of the roster on a regular basis. His injury really derailed his push, and I'm hoping that he gets back on track sometime, and soon, before he's lost too much momentum. Meanwhile, WWE continues to struggle in finding a place for Miz. With the disintegration of the brand extension, perhaps a program with Cody Rhodes after Mania? I don't know. I just don't want to see him lost in the cracks. Maybe they'll just give up and release him, and he can go over to TNA where he can just start taking over.

And then there was the final quarter of Raw and the run-over. What a crapfest. There was a tag match to end the actual wrestling portion of the show, but I doubt anybody noticed because Aksana and Vickie were so busy tearing into each other. This was something I really didn't need to see. Afterwards, there was a promo that I didn't bother to watch between the Undertaker, Triple H, and Shawn Michaels.

I don't know if it says something about the company, or something about our growth as fans, that for the first time, Mehe and I are looking forward to the undercard of WrestleMania this year more than we are the top billings. Now, that being said, Punk/Jericho should be an absolute brawl. This week, Jericho semi-sincerely apologized for revealing Punk's dad's alcoholism to the world. But then he smiled mischievously and added that Punk's sister is a drug addict. Punk got angry and got censored when he basically told Jericho that he's gonna beat the shit out of him on April 1st. If you are looking for the best-built feud on the card this year, this is the match. This is the match that should be ending the show (with Rock/Cena being between the championship matches). Instead, it once again feels like WWE should be teaching a class called "Backwards Booking 101."