The show opened with a montage about Raw and the superstars talking about Raw. It was basically a good way to fill time and show the highlights of the Raw Xposed special that aired the night before. They then showed a new opening video that said, "WWE: The Power is Back." I don't know if that's going to replace the old one with all the show lineups and the weird-ass music, but probably not. I wish it was because it was a good sense of nostalgia and the supposed "new generation." We then go right into the Raw opening package and the pyro goes insane to the slightly modified Raw set. I would have liked to see them change the set a bit more, but I guess they figure that it's not broke, so why fix it?
From the get-go, Mick Foley's music hits and we go right into Piper's Pit. Foley puts over Piper saying that the guest doesn't normally introduce the host, but the host is a pure legend. Rowdy Piper then makes his way down to the ring to a huge pop. Piper then put over Foley saying he was a fan of his. He said he thought he was a crazy guy, but Foley jumps off cages, roofs, and into thumbtacks for fun. He then puts over Foley's new book as crazy in a good way. Piper then says he and the crowd wants to know when Foley will return. Foley said he came back last year and got his ass kicked, so he would need a good reason to this time. Piper riles up the crowd by saying Foley's got 12,000 reasons to come back. A "Foley" chant starts up as the music of the Ortons hit. For some reason, I really predicted this as soon as Foley alluded to last year. Could this be a sign of predictability to come? Bob & Randy stroll out and get in the ring. Foley yells at him asking why is here and saying Taker will beat him. Orton says he is here to talk to Piper and Piper acts like an old friend of the family acting like Orton has grown up so much. Orton tells him to shut the hell up and starts ranting about Piper and his dad and how his dad made Piper and Piper enjoyed all the success. He then decked Piper and the two went at it with Bob and Foley separating them. Bob then gave a cheap shot to Foley and Orton laid out both legends with the RKO and the family left on top. It wasn't really as good of a segment as I thought it would be. It was good, but for Piper's Pit on the Homecoming edition? I expected so much more. Plus, Piper took the RKO all wrong and it ended up looking like a crappy version of the stunner.
The announcers then hype up the Angle-Michaels match as the rubber match and next. First off, why the hell is this match first? This should definitely be the main event and I would say a better way to start off the night would be the tag match with Triple H's return. It's like giving away something way too soon. Second off, the Hardy-Edge match is also a rubber match. Why don't you put that over as much?
Commercial break version one-ah!
Teddy Long and Eric Bischoff are backstage and the Bisch is bitching about Orton on Raw. Long swears he had no idea what was going on. He then tells him that he will give him a Raw moment no one will ever forget, at SmackDown's expense. Long and Bischoff have some pretty good segments between them. It's like the absolute opposites on a spectrum. If the rumors are right, it's going to be a good feud.
Number One Contendership For WWE Championship
Thirty Minute Iron Man Match
Shawn Michaels Vs. Kurt Angle
Match was definitely good/great, but by this time, I think WWE needs to realize that Iron Man matches are not suited for TV. Lesnar-Angle did shit on ratings as well as Benoit-Triple H. Both matches were mediocre at best too and not what you would and should have expected from the four. Angle in control of Michael's neck area in the beginning was golden, but he screwed it up yet again by quickly going for the Ankle Lock. I love Angle, but using the Ankle Lock is completely absurd. His whole move set focuses on the neck/back area, and he finishes with a body part he hasn't even touched. It makes zero sense. When Angle, busts out the Ankle Lock out of desperation and late in the match, it makes sense as nothing in the neck area has worked. Even more, Angle doesn't even try to work over the ankle most of the time besides that move. After the third fall though, Angle did start to soften up the ankle more which was a surprise from Angle. Like I said, it's usually just neck work, neck work, neck work, neck work, time for the ankle, win. Match was still good, but definitely the worst of the three these two have had. Plus, it seemed like they tried to re-create the magic of the past two matches with re-done spots that just didn't work. For instance, Angle tried to do the powerbomb into the turnbuckle from Vengeance. It came off bad as Angle overshot it and the neck didn't really bounce off. HBK couldn't really sell the neck this time either because his neck didn't even hit it this time. Before I forget, we got versions two-ah and three-ah of the commercial break during this match as well. First fall went to Angle with an Angle Slam off the top rope. Second fall went to HBK with a quick roll-up through the Ankle Lock. Third fall went to Angle with the Ankle Lock. Fourth fall went to HBK with the Sweet Chin Music. I didn't really like the way they did the falls in this match either. I felt it would have been more compelling to have Angle get two up on HBK in the first fifteen minutes and then have HBK battle back in the end. Plus, the last fall saw HBK use his injured leg. He didn't even sell it like it was hurt, in all honesty. One great spot towards the end was HBK doing a Moonsault onto a standing Angle. Angle caught him and rolled it into an Ankle Lock. It looked a bit sloppy, but was nice eye-opening spot. Finish came when HBK hit the Sweet Chin Music again (no-selling again I might add) and tried to get the pin, but the clock ran out and the score was 2-2.
Winner: Draw
Star Wrestler: Kurt Angle
Shawn Michaels' selling and offense was off tonight for some reason. Michaels in control didn't really work and he barely sold the leg or neck working after his comebacks. It was just not what you would expect from HBK. Angle, on the other hand, actually worked the leg for a big surprise. He did go to the ankle too quick in my opinion, but he kept with it in the end and it made sense. Angle basically gets this nod because I was expecting a ton more that I didn't get from HBK. Wait a minute, who the hell is number one contender?
After the match, HBK asks to go to sudden death, but Angle brushes him off and strolls away. What the hell? That's like the fourth time WWE has killed the vicious Angle gimmick he has going and every time, they do it the same way by making him look like a coward. If he was a vicious heel, there is no way in hell he would just walk away. God, I love vicious Angle, but if WWE keeps burying the character like this, why do it at all?
HBK then hugged some legends at ringside and we were shown a clip of Cena at the VH1 Hip-Hop Honors thingy. Who cares?
Commercial break version four-ah!
After the break, Lillian Garcia put over Kevin Von Erich at ringside. The Von Erichs are huge in Texas, man. You know they did it just to edge VE closer to selling the WCCW library though. We then went backstage with McMahon and Bischoff. Bischoff asked for his match to be No DQ and Vince said bluntly: nope! Vince said that tonight he is in charge and Bischoff is another competitor. Bischoff says it is obvious he was made GM to be embarrassed daily and that Vince is a sick, perverted guy. McMahon states that no one knows just how perverted or sick he can be. He then excuses himself to go outside to the capacity crowd. Funny segment since it's been awhile since that kind of McMahon has showed up on TV.
McMahon then struts to the ring with the stick up his ass after a very "unique" ring introduction by Lillian. Basically, in a segment that ran way too long, Vince showed some clips of him getting the better of Austin. Austin came out. Austin showed clips of Austin getting the better of Vince. Austin made fun of Vince. Austin stunned Vince. Shane McMahon came out to a huge pop. Austin stunned Shane before he could talk. Stephanie McMahon came out. Stephanie yelled at Austin. Austin gave her the "what" treatment. Austin thought she was flirting with him. Austin asked for a kiss. Austin got slapped. Austin stunned Stephanie. Linda McMahon came out. Linda asked why. Austin explained. Linda demanded an apology. Austin's watch told him too. Austin and Linda drank beer together. Austin stunned Linda. That's it.
Phew. It was a good segment, but ran way too freaking long. It just kind of dragged on and on and on. I was entertained, but it was just kind of dumb to kill time with this segment. Most of the segments of the night ran too long though, so what do you expect? Side note: the stunner on Linda was the worst in recorded history.
Commercial break version five-ah!
They show footage of the McMahon's being helped to the back and Grisham catches up to McMahon who says someone is going to pay and get fired for this. Of course, everyone now thinks that that is JR who is going to get fired. Who knows?
Money In The Bank/Loser Leaves Raw Ladder Match
Edge Vs. Matt Hardy
Version six of the commercial breaks came here too. Man, this match was tight. I think this match was miles better than all their previous matches. True, there was no definite moment like Hardy's leg drop, but it was still full of great moments and had a lot of unique things in it that you don't see often in ladder matches. Hardy did the vice on Edge with the ladder which is probably the only time WWE fans have ever seen it. In fact, the only time I ever saw it other than this I think was Hardy-Jarrett at Victory Road. No surprise there: two Hardys! Match was just a solid ladder match that had great action and told a story poignantly. This was like everything Mysterio-Guerrero tried to do at Summerslam, but just couldn't with all the botches. Lita in this match was great too trying to sabotage Hardy and I loved the exchanges between the two. There isn't much else you can say about this match except that it just wasn't your average ladder match with the same spots here and there. Finish came when a dangling Hardy was swayed side to side by Edge until he fell off. Edge then tied Hardy up in the ropes and Lita held him there with her whole body! Edge then climbed the ring while taunting Hardy and picked up the win.
Winner: Edge
Star Wrestler: Both
In a truly great match, no one star is better than the other. This is the case here and there is not more I can say about it. Everything they did made sense, had purpose, and wasn't just for the hell of it. Perfect example was the table spot. Edge laid Hardy on a table and then just gave him a Crossbody through it. Simple, but effective. If this was TNA, there would have been 1,132,132 rotations in the air before hitting the table for the pure fact that they can't get over doing anything else. This was a truly great match and had to be seen to be believed.
Security then escorted the beaten Hardy out of the arena. How long until Hardy shows up on SmackDown? I'm actually kind of sad this feud is over, but I am really hoping that they continue the feud until Survivor Series. I mean, Hardy wasn't on Raw when he first started attacking Edge. What would stop him now? I really want this feud to continue as it is one of the best done feuds in WWE this year.
Commercial break version seven-ah!
More footage of Hardy leaving the arena was shown and he sold that like no tomorrow. Way to go sensei Hardy.
We then go backstage and Ashley and Trish are preparing for their match later. Hold on. I need to try and contain my excitement for that wrestling match later. Man, sarcasm is really wasted in print. Mae Young then showed up and started stripping. The two divas kicked her out and she walked into the hallway with Ted DiBiase, Jim Duggan, and Jimmy Snuka talking. DiBiase offered Mae two thousand dollars to put her shirt back off as the three started freaking out. DiBiase then offered Mae three thousand! Mae then took off her shirt and they all freaked out. Fabulous Moolah then came out and tried to hide Mae. Snuka then excused himself and started looking for Sister Mae! Definitely a segment with a dumb beginning, but great ending. It's sad when the old legends have better segments than the "new generation."
Maria, dressed in a homecoming dress, is then with Ric Flair. Flair puts over Triple H and tells Carlito and Masters to be ready or something like that. I wasn't really paying attention because the brown on Flair's nose was actually growing in size! Jeez, Flair is a joke to this generation. I don't even think it's WWE's fault more-so of Flair. Flair doesn't have to put Triple H over every five seconds. It's pathetic.
Commercial break version eight-ah!
Ric Flair & Triple H Vs. Carlito & Chris Masters
Good/average match and a bit better than I thought it was going to be. The beginning was really good with the double chops from Triple H and Flair followed by the double strut. Triple H didn't show much ring rust here and Carlito and Masters are actually forming a good team at this point. I'd like to see them take on some more tag teams like the Ladies' Men or the Superheroes. Carlito in control in this match was great, and probably the best Carlito has done since coming to WWE. He was in control and using some good psychology as well as great heel taunting and tendencies. There wasn't much to the match in all honesty though. It has good moves, selling, offense, and more, but no real weight to it. It just felt like it was going to end soon and it did. It was just to get over Triple H's return and it did just that. It was short and for some reason it had commercial break nine during it. Triple H got the win after hitting Carlito with the sledgehammer and then hitting the Pedigree.
Winners: Ric Flair & Triple H
Star Wrestler: Carlito
Triple H and Flair just seemed generic in this match and plus, Triple H as a face does not work at all. Masters is still improving too. Carlito in this match was just good though and held the control well and was able to tell somewhat of a story besides the "get Triple H over" mindset they seemed to have.
After the match, Triple H and Flair celebrated and then, of course, Triple H turned. It was so predictable, but definitely needed. Triple H as a face never works, but it's not like they kept him as a face for so long. Yes, Triple H got a huge pop, but who doesn't when they return after a long absence? The beat down on Flair was great though and Flair's over juicing was perfect in this instance. However, I would have much rather enjoyed to have Triple H be revealed as the guy who beat down Flair a few weeks ago to a bloody pulp. I hated the suspense that angle caused and then it was just farted out with Carlito saying, "It was me." It had no meaning, no build-up, no suspicion, et cetera. They should have played this one off like they did in 2002 with Shawn Michaels and Triple H. Triple H could have made his return with Flair still on the injured list and he goes nuts trying to find out who did it. It's then revealed that Triple H did it and then we get the feud. I would have liked that a lot better. This is till good though and as much as it was predictable, it was still a good angle.
Commercial break version ten-ah!
We come back and the assault on Flair continues. He kept screaming at him asking him why he did it or something to that effect. I don't know what that means, but I'm going to take a stab in the dark that Triple H is going to say Flair sold out or something similar. It was a good beat down, but still went way too long just like that Austin segment. If anything is hurting Homecoming, it's these long-drawn out segments. The segment ended with an extremely beat down and bloody Flair being shoved into a limo. Triple H smashes the window and tells them to get this trash out of here. We then go into another dumb commercial break. You mean to tell me this stretch of TV only had a Triple H beat down? What the hell!
Commercial break version eleven-ah!
As we come back, all the legends are in the ring. Dusty Rhodes is on the mike and starts to put over all the legends like Harley Race and Arn Anderson. Rhodes continues and Rob Conway's music hits. Conway comes out and starts insulting the legends with lines like it being Homecoming, not a retirement home and cracks about them wearing diapers. He gets in the ring and Rhodes says how he dare he do that because without them, he wouldn't be there. Rhodes tries to talk again, but Conway interrupts him again and Race clocks him and the beat down ensues. Anderson got a shot on him followed by a bionic elbow by Rhodes. Kevin Von Erich then locked in the Iron Claw to a huge pop from the crowd. As Conway tries and recovers, the legends scream at Snuka to fly. Snuka gets on top and delivers a splash to Conway. Pretty good segment, but I really think that WWE is starting to over-do it on legends. Especially with Orton on SmackDown! At this point, the commercial breaks are coming more and more frequent and the stretch of TV is really slim. WWE is really just not using their time wisely in this special.
Commercial break version twelve-ah!
Handicap Bra & Panties Match
Ashley & Trish Stratus Vs. Victoria, Candice, & Torrie Wilson
Generic bra and panties match. Finish came when someone got stripped.
Winners: Ashley & Trish Stratus
Star Wrestler: None
This may have pumped up the crowd in a much needed manner, but I don't have to like it. Would you rather me bitch for a paragraph about something I have already bitched about?
We then go backstage and Bischoff is with Angle and Bishcoff says it is going to be No DQ since Vince is gone and he is in charge now. He says he just wants to be champ for one night and then he will give the title to a true champion: Angle. Angle agrees to come down to the ring with Bishcoff and we leave with Bischoff pumping up. Doesn't anyone else find it weird that the night is almost over and we haven't even seen John Cena yet? Love him or hate him, he's the most over in WWE right now and to snub him in a three hour special is amazingly idiotic.
Commercial break version thirteen-ah!
SmackDown! Six Man Tag Match
Chris Benoit, Batista, & Rey Mysterio Vs. Christian, Eddie Guerrero, & John Bradshaw Layfield
Batista and JBL start the match off, but Bischoff strolls out and says that Vince made this match, and since Vince isn't here, he's canceling this match and it's lights out! That's a pretty good way to further the Raw/SD feud they are building towards at Survivor Series.
Commercial break version fourteen-ah!
Mean Gene Okerlund is in the middle of the ring and he has the pleasure of introducing Hulk Hogan. I liked seeing Mean Gene. He had surgery of some sort late last year and it's nice to see he's recovered all the way. Plus, having Gene interview Hogan gives this a great feeling of nostalgia. Hogan talks up the Hulkamaniacs and says he and HBK can go at it any time, but he moves on to his next opponent. He said he was backstage and heard all the rumbling not from him. He then said he wanted to know what it would be like to fight one-on-one with Stone Cold Steve Austin. The crowd pops like a soda can at this point and it leaves a great cliff hanger as we go to commercial break.
Commercial break version fifteen-ah!
WWE Championship
No Disqualification
John Cena (c) Vs. Eric Bischoff
This was about what you would expect. It got over Cena and furthered the feud of Bischoff-Cena and Angle-Cena. I'm not going to critique too much because there's not much it could have done better. They played to the strengths of Bischoff as always though with kicks to the side of Cena. Cena fought through even with Angle interfering. Finish came when Cena hit the FU and picked up the win.
Winner: John Cena
Star Wrestler: John Cena
He was the only actual wrestler so for once in "Squared Circle Reviews," John Cena gets the nod even if by default.
Angle and Cena look like they are going to go at it, but Teddy Long comes out and says Bischoff stuck his nose where it didn't belong. He says if he wants to do it gangster style, they can do it gangster style. The SmackDown! roster then rolls out and starts to attack Cena and Angle. Shortly thereafter, the Raw crew came down and a full on brawl similar to the one at the 2004 draft ensues. It was entertaining and a great way to end the show, I thought as it gives SD a lot of exposure and heavily promotes the feud on the biggest show of the year.
In closing, Raw Homecoming to me was good, but not nearly as good as it should have been. Homecoming had the potential to be the best card of the whole year and be better than even ECW: One Night Stand and Summerslam. It just failed though. They didn't really do anything else besides what was advertised, which was kind of crappy because that which was advertised, wasn't that good. Of the six matches, two were great, one was just used to get over Triple H, one was just used to get over Cena, one was just used for guys discovering hand lotion, and one didn't even happen. Most of all the segments were good, but just went way too long. They could have easily cut back on a lot of the segments like the Austin one and the Flair beat down and giving time for an impromptu match like maybe having the tag champs on the show or perhaps someone like Shelton Benjamin. All in all, it was a good show. I just don't think it lived up to its potential on the pure fact that they just did not use their time well. They had almost three and a half hours. That's longer than any PPV shy Wrestlemania and they still only had five matches and tons of drawn out segments. The show delivered in putting over the current feuds and setting the seeds to the future like Hogan-Austin and Raw-SD and it also delivered in the two heavily promoted matches, but other than that? "Potential wasted" sums up Raw Homecoming.
That's going to wrap it up from this reviewer this time. Don't forget to miss the very special live edition of "Squared Circle Reviews" this Sunday on No Mercy. I can personally guarantee you that of all the live coverage on the net. "Squared Circle Reviews" will bring you the best, most in-depth, fastest, and most entertaining coverage. Don't miss what people herald as the best coverage on the net. For more information on the live edition of "Squared Circle Reviews," click here. 'Till then, this is "Squared Circle Reviews" signing off and hoping you enjoy what you watch.
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