 CM Punk takes out both Dolph Ziggler and The Miz. Solid segment to kick off the show featuring WWE COO Triple H address the cliffhanger from last week regarding John Laurinaitis as well as the return of the Undertaker. Originally, I was completely against the idea of another WrestleMania match between the two, but this promo certainly changed my mind to an extent. The Undertaker's video package was very well done and unique, making his vendetta against HHH something much different than anything we've seen before. I hope they keep this rivalry as exciting for the next two months going into Mania. Good match between World Heavyweight Champion Daniel Bryan and Big Show while it lasted. The two tell a nice story in the ring, and the count-out finish is a smart move in preserving the feud and continuing the story with AJ. Everyone was great here, giving the SmackDown title picture some nice exposure. Quick squash match with Sheamus and David Otunga that didn't seem to serve much purpose. Since Sheamus is the 2012 Royal Rumble winner, I'd much rather see face more credible Superstars if he plans on headlining WrestleMania. Nonetheless, this bout was harmless and also established Otunga as somewhat of a mini-threat with the minimal offense he received on the Celtic Warrior. Excellent promo from Chris Jericho that finally explained his motive for coming back to the WWE, while also targeting WWE Champion CM Punk as his poser. Obviously, I've been waiting for Jericho to address this for a long time now (dating back to last summer), so I personally got great enjoyment out of his usual awesome mic work here. I'm glad Punk didn't even speak a word realizing that it's a major segment that can be saved for a later date down the line, so that was a nice foreshadowing of what's to come. Meaningless tag team match with Randy Orton and The Great Khali defeating Intercontinental Champion Cody Rhodes and Wade Barrett. Although I do realize that it was done in order to hype the SmackDown Elimination Chamber, no one really got anything out of this whatsoever. Firstly, Khali should be by no means in the ring, much less dominating future World Champions. Secondly, the tension between Khali and Orton was the only positive aspect to the bout, with the Viper delivering and RKO to the Punjabi Playboy soon after.  Randy Orton executes an RKO on the Great Khali. Typical Divas tag team match that ended within mere minutes, but not as clunky and horrendous as usual. The real focus here was the fact that Divas Champion Beth Phoenix is finally developing an edgy that makes her a fierce champ, as she didn't seem to get along with anyone who stood in her way. Tamina's victory didn't do much for this viewer, but at least it feels fresh to have her earn a shot at the title if they opt to go that direction.
Triple H's confrontation with John Lauriniaitis backstage served its purpose in addressing last week's situation, but this wasn't the place to announce a pending match between bitter rivals John Cena and Kane at the Elimination Chamber pay-per-view, as it came off as anticlimactic. To make matters worse, the audience was absolutely silent when the bout was made, so that isn't a good sign. On a lighter note, hyping an appearance Shawn Michaels for next week's show is a smart move in keeping viewers intrigued in the product. Fun main event Six Pack Challenge between all the Raw Elimination Chamber participants that saw Chris Jericho earn the final entry into the bout. While R-Truth's missed spot was a disappointment (Miz is also to blame for that), the remaining five Superstars managed to carry the match for its remainder. Punk and Jericho had an exciting showdown, which only heat up from here as we head towards WrestleMania 28. Giving Y2J the victory was an excellent move to add to the speculation of him possibly winning the WWE Championship at Elimination Chamber. On a side note, his mocking of Punk following the bout was priceless. I have very little to say regarding Kane's confrontation with Eve at the conclusion of the broadcast, as it was too brief to mean anything. We've seen it all before, and it made little to no sense. I was shocked to not see either Kane or Cena featured prominently this week despite their blow-off match coming up, but this was not the correct way to progress the stale feud. Overall, a middle-of-the-road show that featured minimal action, but terrific hype for the Elimination Chamber event in only two weeks. The SmackDown stars were also reintroduced for the first time in weeks, successfully building their Chamber match as well. However, while this show wasn't necessarily bad, it felt completely forgettable despite its decent continuation of numerous story-lines. |
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