By: Todd Martin

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Blog: toddwmartin.blogspot.com

Date: 09/14/09 from Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

The Big News: Trish Stratus and Batista returned to action in the first genuinely excellent edition of Raw in ages.

Show Analysis:

Batista came out to start the show. He thanked all the fans and said it has been a rough year for him. He said that he came to say goodbye. He was then interrupted by Randy Orton. Orton said he is not happy about losing the title, but that Batista retiring cheered him up. Orton told Batista to save the speech because no one cares. He added that Batista was retiring because of him. He told Batista to hang his head and cry.

Batista laughed and said that he was laughing for two reasons. First was that Orton is predictable and second was that he knew something Orton didn’t know. Batista took off his arm brace and clotheslined Orton out of the ring. Batista said he wasn’t there to announce his retirement but rather to announce that he is going to Smackdown. No explanation was given for this. I guess they want him as an opponent for CM Punk, but Batista chasing a heel champion is really overdone. Batista further announced Trish Stratus gave him one last no holds barred match with Orton later on Raw. This was a cool little angle.

Trish Stratus came out. She’s now a brunette and she still looks great. She didn’t get as big of a reaction as I would have expected. She announced Randy Orton vs. John Cena Hell in a Cell at the next pay-per-view.

Jack Swagger and the Miz beat Kofi Kingston and Primo Colon. The heels worked over Primo. A Swagger Vader bomb attempt collided with Primo’s knees, and that gave Primo the chance to tag Kofi. Kofi came in with an ax handle off the top and a dropkick on Swagger. As he was punching Swagger in the corner, Miz made off with Kofi’s U.S. title. That distracted Kofi and Swagger hit the gut wrench power bomb on Kofi for the pin.

Alicia Fox beat Gail Kim to become the top contender for Mickie James’ title. Mickie did commentary on the match. Alicia used a leg scissors. Gail came back with clotheslines and a crossbody off the top for two. However, she missed a dropkick off the top and Alicia hit the ax kick for the pin. This was better than expected.

Backstage, Beth Phoenix wanted to know why Trish didn’t put her in the women’s contender match. Jericho then said that Trish was in love with him but he told her to hit the bricks. Trish laughed at this interpretation and made fun of Jericho’s relationship with Big Show. Beth responded that at least Jericho has the guts to compete and didn’t run away to a yoga store. Trish said she would get a tag partner and wrestle Beth and Jericho.

Shawn Michaels beat Ted DiBiase via DQ. Before the match DiBiase and Cody Rhodes bragged about making DX tap. They said that they’re no longer the sons of their fathers but rather the other way around. I really liked this not only because of its role in helping to elevate Legacy but also because it tried to emphasize an in ring result as being a particularly important development and accomplishment.

DiBiase worked over Michaels early. Michaels came back with a figure four but DiBiase broke it by going to the eyes. Michaels then sold his eyes throughout the rest of the match as DiBiase attacked him. Michaels finally came back with the elbow off the top and went for sweet chin music but Cody grabbed Michaels’ leg for the DQ. Another brawl broke out all over the place. This was a hot segment and Michaels did a really good job selling.

Evan Bourne and Hornswoggle beat Chavo Guerrero and Carlito. The heels went after Bourne. Bourne eventually made his own comeback. He had Chavo beaten down and tagged Hornswoggle. Chavo grabbed Hornswoggle but Hornswoggle spit apple in Chavo’s face and hit the frog splash for the pin. Afterwards, Chavo said that he gave up and Hornswoggle wins, so that would appear to be the end of that feud. Thank God.

John Cena did a promo backstage. He said that he wanted to give up many times at Breaking Point but that he kept his word and didn’t give up. He said that at Hell in a Cell Orton will see a more savage side of Cena. This was a much more consistently serious promo and as a result it was extremely effective.

MVP, Mark Henry and Trish Stratus beat Chris Jericho, Big Show and Beth Phoenix. It started as a tag match with MVP and Trish against Jericho and Beth. Beth and Trish started but Show quickly ran in and Henry came out too. Trish thus made a six person tag. The heels worked over MVP, who hit an overhead belly to belly on Jericho and went for the yakuza kick. Jericho tagged Beth and MVP tagged Trish in response.

Trish and MVP did balling together on Beth. MVP hit a pescado on Jericho. Trish was coming off the ropes for a dive but Henry tripped her. Henry then took out Show. Back in the ring Trish hit the Stratusphere and Stratusfaction on Beth for the pin. This was a fun match. They announced Cedric the Entertainer as the guest host next week. I’m not optimistic about that one.

Batista beat Randy Orton. Batista hit some clotheslines. Orton grabbed a chair but Batista speared him. Batista threw Orton into the announce table and steps. Orton went for the RKO but Batista countered into a spine buster. Orton left the ring, but John Cena came out to stop him from leaving. Orton couldn’t decide where to go but eventually went after Cena. Cena gave him a clothesline and threw him back in the ring. Batista hit a spine buster and Batista bomb for the pin.

This was more of a squash than anything which doesn’t help Orton, but it was entertaining and gave Batista nice closure on Orton continually getting the better of him. I assume that Legacy not being there will become a plot point leading to Orton breaking with DiBiase following Hell in a Cell or Survivor Series.

Final Thoughts:

This is the sort of show I would love Raw to be every week. It was a wrestling show, build around serious feuds and the resolution of conflict. There was plenty of talk and entertainment, but it wasn’t presented in a goofy way that taught you not to take it seriously. They did a good job reintroducing Batista, they kept the DX-Legacy program hot and Trish Stratus did a good job as host. All in all, a very enjoyable two hour program.