RAW Review: 5th January

Hello! Its the first RAW Review of the year, which of course means it was the first RAW of the year- which meant no matter how bad it got, it was the best RAW of the year by a country mile.

John Cena, The Authority Promo
Ah, How I've missed monotonous and repetitive promos in the Opening Segment. I did like the way The Authority started to praise Cena in a kind of half spiteful, half sincere way as that has the potential to add another dimension to the Cena character if they so wished, and I'm not talking about a Heel Turn- more Cena becoming an Anti-Hero sort of character. He was Superman, now he's Batman kind of thing. I like the addition of Rollins to the Title match for a number of reasons, primarily it means we won't see Cena v Brock IV. If they're given enough time and Vince permitting I can see Brock and Rollins working some magic- as with the exception of Punk this'll be the first time we'll see Brock in the Ring with someone who isn't classed as a Heavyweight. I also liked it because The Authority finally used their power to suitably fit their own ends, much in the way I thought they should have done in the Build to Survivor Series to stack the odds completely in their favour.

Bad News Barrett v Dolph Ziggler- IC Title Match (2 out of 3 Falls)
This, and what happened later on in the night is the start of the Mega-Build for Dolph going into Mania in my opinion. I liked the way this match played out in all honesty, as it left Dolph with a gripe with regard to losing his title and kept him looking strong- while also leaving Bad News Barrett looking vicious and very heelish while taking the belt. The match itself wasn't of the highest quality, although that was more due to the way the match played out with regard to the quick finish- and subsequent one-sided match.

The Ascension v Two Unnamed Jobbers
Firstly, I don't see why everyone was going ape over Ascension mocking the Road Warriors. Its Pro-Wrestling for god sake, Batista was screaming "Eddies Dead" not so long ago, and that was more in bad taste than this was and there was less of a reaction. The match was what it was, the two people they faced were so Jobbery they didn't even get names.

Roman Reigns v Big Show
The next chapter of this great feud was written tonight, with yet another 5* Action Packed extravaganza. "NOW... BACK TO REALITY!".

Nikki Bella v Natalya
So now Paige is inexplicably a babyface again, although if it means she gets a run of PPV matches for the Title- whether she wins them or not then I'm all for it.

Erick Rowan v Luke Harper
I really liked the J+J part of this match, they played enough of a comedic role- while also being heelish to make it really work. The match was what was, given the time constraints and presumably what they were told to do with regard to giving Rowan the Upper-Hand before quickly being dispatched.

Naomi, Alicia Fox Backstage Promo
This was pretty good all round, Alicia looked dangerous and a bit bitchy- and Naomi came off like a babyface.

Bray Wyatt v Dean Ambrose- Ambulance Match
It might just be me, but I thought this was pretty tame. Granted, having to structure a match that should be a trainwreck (in a good way) around Ad Breaks is ludicrous in and of itself. In comparison to some of the matches they've churned out this was one of the least violent ones- perhaps that is good in a way because it means the chance of either getting injured is lessened. Hopefully this was the Final Chapter, because despite me liking both guys- these stipulation matches are getting stale and are harming both guys.

The Miz's & Alicia Fox v The Usos & Naomi
They seem to be toning down Mizdows involvement with regard to selling to thin-air at the moment. I'm hoping this means they're going to transition Mizdow into becoming a more serious character, but it more likely means they're simply trying to position Miz above Mizdow again. The distraction finish was just bizarre, and I'm honestly not sure what they were going for- although that could be to do with the fact I was half-asleep by this point.

Ryback v Seth Rollins & Kane
I don't know why Handicap matches are never Tornado anymore, it works better on all fronts with regard to the heels being heels and the Babyface looking better when they get offence in because they've fought off both guys at the same time. The match was pretty boring in my opinion, although as I've said it could be to do with the fact I had one eye on my pillow the whole time- but there wasn't a moment in the match to really pop anyone. I did like the fact it took 2 Curb Stomps to put Ryback away, its the small things on Random RAWs such as this that help build people into looking like credible threats down the line.

Big E v Adam Rose
Unless I'm mistaken (or it happened off camera) Kofi & Xavier weren't even taken out by Tyson & Cesaro, which begs the question why they didn't help when Big E was attacked. The match was alright considering the time constraints- and the fact this was used primarily to get Tyson and Cesaro over, which is alright by me.

John Cena Appreciation Night (You Know, Officially- unofficially its been every night for over 10 Years)
I really liked the outcome of this segment. It leaves so many options- all of which I'm sure WWE will ignore. The option I'd be most in favour of is Cena having to go through hell to get all three guys re-hired, only for one (preferably Dolph) to then turn Heel on him and build to a Mania match between the two. However, there are of course other options- along the lines of a Three-Man Stable where they could either be Heels and work for The Authority- or they could be Babyfaces and wreck everything until WWE rehires them. The Dynamic of the three guys does lend itself to a stable- and they could provide a good balance if they do go down this road. They could also go down the road I've been touting for a while of having Dolph v Triple H- which is also an option now HHH has fired Dolph. These are just a few of many, many options available and I'm very intrigued to see where this thing goes.

Thanks as always for reading, as always any feedback is appreciated- and I'd also like your thoughts on the ideas I've touted with regard to Dolph, Ryback and Rowan and if you have any ideas of your own with regard to the three guys. Thanks again, and remember- this was the Best RAW of the Year.