WWE RAW Review: Real Life Tragedy Fuels Wrestlemania Feud
RYBACK VS HEATH SLATER If you would have told back in 2010 when NXT started that, 3 Years Later, Heath Slater would still be employed by the WWE, I would have called you a liar, slapped you with a glove, and challenged you to a duel. Heath Slater continues to entertain me in bizarre ways. Watching him get destroyed by Ryback was normal affair. No big deal. The most beautiful part of this segment was the progression of the feud between Ryback and Mark Henry. They tried to one-up each other by destroying Heath Slater and Drew McIntyre. By the end of the beat down, 3MB was begging someone to kill them like the Ripley clones in Alien: Resurrection. I love the idea of Mark Henry and Ryback facing each other at Wrestlemania and I thoroughly enjoy that they are going to destroy other wrestlers as a way to display their dominance. ANTONIO CESARO VS ALVERTO DEL RIO This was a great match. Not as great as Bryan/Ziggler, but still fantastic. Cesaro gets better and better every week. He has adapted to the WWE style and is making it work. I normally complain about top champions picking the bones and burying the mid-card champs, but this match didnt make me start yelling at my TV screen. The match was closely contested which is more than what I can ask for. I continue to enjoy Cesaros Tiger Uppercut and look forward to it in matches. Del Rio, a wrestler I once hated, has become enjoyable ever since turning face. His heel character was stale and boring. It also didnt help that he faced Sheamus at every pay-per-view over the summer. I am really looking forward to Cesaro getting a stable feud though. As closely contested as the match was, I would like to see him face some legit title contenders for his belt. The match helped build Del Rio towards Wrestlemania which is always a good bit of continuity. RANDY ORTON AND SHEAMUS VS RHODES SCHOLARS A double-dose of Rhodes Scholars on this episode is never a bad thing. I was a little disappointed that the newly returned Bella Twins didnt accompany them to the ring. This match was typical Super Friends vs. lowly-heels. The WWE is trying to build Orton and Sheamus as a team so they can take on the SHIELD at Wrestlemania. As far as tag-team matches go, this one actually was good. It may have been cookie-cutter in the creation of the match, but the actual match was good. This was given a lot more time than matches featuring actual tag-teams. I enjoy seeing former rivals face-off years later, which is what this match did between Cody Rhodes and Randy Orton. I like watching the natural progression of their careers and like seeing them meet up down the road. Sadly, this doesnt happen enough (or it happens too oftenZiggler VS Kofi), and if it does happen, it goes unnoticed. Sheamus and Orton win the match, making them look strong going into Wrestlemania. Im not thrilled that he SHIELD is probably going going to get beat down at Mania, but I am happy that they are at least trying to build some kind of tension with the feud.