9-24-12 Raw results and thoughts

       Coverage and thoughts on the September 24, 2012 episode of Raw

The show starts with CM Punk & Paul Heyman in the ring. Heyman says they have bad news because this show is grinding to a halt right now. Raw won’t be presented until justice is served. Heyman then has the end of last week’s tag match played on the Tron. They show the finish in slow motion. Heyman says that everyone witnessed a great injustice to Punk. Therefore he would like to summon out to the ring the referee for last week. Brad Maddox. Heyman says that the referee will resign tonight live. Heyman says they have all night. The referee comes out. Heyman tells him to get inside the ring. Maddox says that he made a mistake. It was his first match and he was nervous. Heyman says that the referee messed up. Now he should resign. Maddox apologizes but he doesn’t feel…Punk says he doesn’t care what he feels unless he feels ashamed. Punk says the referee embarrassed him on his show. Punk asks him how he became a referee in the first place. Maddox says when Raw went to 3 hours he got a call from AJ Lee saying they needed more referees. Heyman says he is a rookie. Heyman then talks more. Punk mentions that the ref was hired by AJ the idiot GM. Punk then says if she had any brains she’d can Maddox. Then AJ skips to the ring (I don’t know why in this situation). She tells Brad he can go to the back. Heyman assumes she’s going to reverse the decision from last week. AJ says that when you assume you kind of make an ass out of you and me but mostly you. She says she’s not going to let them berate a ref and hold HER show hostage. She asks them who they think they are. Punk says he’s the WWE Champion. He is the reason she has a job and the reason the fans are in the arena. Punk says he knows why there’s such hostility between Punk & AJ. Punk then asks for a clip to be shown of why she has it out for Punk. They show AJ proposing to Punk from 2 months ago. Punk says that’s the reason for the tension. Punk says she sent an incompetent ref to screw him last week. Then Punk says that if AJ will forget what happened last week, then he will forget how she came to every show in a Punk T-Shirt. He will forget all the messages that can’t be mentioned on TV. Then Punk tells her to justify the decision and he will forget everything she’d done. Punk tells AJ to tell everyone how intimate they were behind closed doors He then tells her to tell everyone why he is the reason she always skips. Then he tells her to tell everyone that he is the best in the world. Heyman then says he’s got this. Heyman then says to AJ based on everything that he’s seen tonight….Then Heyman gets on his knee and tells AJ to marry him. He says they’ll trump all the power couples. They’ll be the most influential couple in sports entertainment history. Heyman says he will come up with all the ideas and he will give her all the credit. Then AJ slaps Heyman and heads up the ramp. Punk & Heyman stand in the ring in disbelief. This was a solid opening segment. Punk & Heyman were good on the mic as usual. The referee was ok here. AJ was decent here too.

Brad Maddox is backstage with another ref. Then AJ shows up. He thanks her for standing up for him and he won’t screw up again. AJ tells him that won’t happen again because she will see to it that he never referees again. She says that he embarrassed her and made her look like an idiot. Maddox again says he’s sorry and walks off. AJ has the blank look on her face. This was weird. AJ complained that the referee made her look like an idiot? She’s been a crazy whack job & idiot for months!

Before the next match starts, R-Truth gives “Little Jimmy” a soda. Vickie taunts him. Then Dolph & Kofi come by and Vickie eventually gets the soda thrown on her. Then the referee kicks out both Truth & Vickie.

WWE Tag Team Champion Kofi Kingston vs. Dolph Ziggler. Dolph gets the pin. This was a really good back and forth match.

Jim Ross mentions that John Cena had elbow surgery done. Then Cole reeds a tweet from Cena. JR says Cena’s there and we’ll hear from him later tonight.

They recap the latest on the Kane-Daniel Bryan saga from Smackdown.

They show a segment from earlier today at a diner. Daniel Bryan & Dr. Shelby are there. Shelby says that he’s set up a role playing exercise that will show that Kane & Daniel can co exist. Daniel asks how he plans to do that. Then Kane comes by with a waiter’s apron. Kane says this is stupid (Boy is he right). Shelby asks Daniel what he wants. Daniel says that he wants a partner who isn’t a psycho. Shelby tells Daniel this isn’t Kane. The waiter’s name is Gerald. Kane says they have a new cook because the old one took credit for everything and that annoyed him. So he grabbed him by his goat beard shoved his head into the fryer. Then he says that he sprinkled the remains of the cook’s head over everyone’s food. This was really idiotic!

Later tonight the fans can decide the team name for Kane & Daniel Bryan. Give me a break! This “fan interactive” stuff is dumb too

Zack Ryder & Santino Marella vs. The Primetime Players. The Players win when Titus pins Santino. This was a really short match.

They show a Special Guest dressing room door. We’ll find out who it is next.

Mick Foley comes to the ring. He says that he sees things on Raw that inspire him. Then he talks about the emergence of CM Punk last year. He then asks that what kind of change has punk inspired a year later. He says that this isn’t the Punk he knew and then CM Punk comes out. He tells Foley not to grand stand in front of the fans. He tells Foley that if he has something to say then he can say it to his face. Punk asks Foley if he’s selling a new kids book. Foley says he struggled with the thought of if he matters or not and Punk cleared that thought up for him. Foley says that last year he texted Punk asking how it feels to be the best in the business. 2 minutes later Punk responded thanking Mick. Foley says that he is disturbed not just by Punk’s action but his being with Heyman. Punk yells at the fans and then tells Mick he has no idea what he’s taking about. Foley says he was also a Heyman guy. Foley then says he became somebody after he stopped listening to Heyman. Punk says he gets it; he should stay away from Heyman. Foley says Heyman never lied to him but the end of the day Heyman will only do what is best for Heyman. Then Foley asks Punk why he needs a mouth piece. He tells Punk that needs to decide if he wants to be an inspiration or just a Kool-Aid drinker. Foley then mentions hell in a cell. Foley talks about the match from 1998 that made him famous. He says that he earned respect that night. Anybody who’s been in the cell goes on to be respected throughout their entire careers. Foley mentions, Shawn Michaels, Triple H & The Undertaker. Punk says that was a brilliant speech. Punk asks if Foley wants the voice of the voiceless. Foley says he wants Punk to that he’s the best in the world by getting in the cell with Cena. Punk says he heard the same speech from Cena. He talks about how Cena and Bret Hart and he says how they see them in Punk. Punk says that Bret disrespected him in Bret’s hometown. He says what would be more embarrassing is if he tried to put his hands on Foley. He says that Foley and the fans are beneath him. Punk says he’s always told the truth. He doesn’t know how often he needs to beat Cena but he does know that he doesn’t have to do anything for the fans. Punk then mentions everything that Foley did throughout his career. Punk says he won’t be a bump machine in hell in a cell. He raises the bar by being champion for 309 days. Foley then mentions 29, which is the total number of days Foley held the WWE Title during his reigns. Foley says that numbers don’t matter. The moments that define a superstar’s career does. Then he says that he talked to AJ and she let him come out to extend this opportunity to him. AJ is allowing Punk to decide for himself if he will face Cena in the cell. Foley tells Punk to make the right decision for Punk himself, for Foley and for the fans. This was a good back and forth promo here. Both Punk & Foley were great on the mic. There was a lot said here and it was difficult to recap everything that was said.

Ryback vs. Intercontinental Champion The Miz. Ryback gets the pin. This was a solid match. A fan came in the ring and security took him out. Cole & JR didn’t mention it.

Back to Kane & Daniel Bryan at the diner. Daniel says them having lunch together to settle their issues is impossible. Kane says they’ll never be friends. Then they talk about how they laid out 8 guys with the chairs. Then Daniel screams Yes and gets all psyched too. Then they show Mae Young and she says she’ll have exactly what their having. Thankfully this segment was shorter. Kane & Daniel were better here but I wasn’t thrilled that they had Mae Young in this segment. Other than that I was ok with this.

AJ has a few referees in her office. She says that in WWE they don’t have replays and that mistakes will happen. She tells the refs to have a great rest of the show. Then Del Rio, Ricardo & Otunga come in. AJ says that she knows they’ve been victims of the Brogue Kick and they were upset with Booker’s decision to reinstate it. Then Del Rio asks if this means he gets another title match. AJ says no. She then tells them that there will be a 6 man tag. Sheamus, Rey Mysterio & Sin Cara vs. Alberto Del Rio, David Otunga & Ricardo Rodriguez. Del Rio & Otunga complain but Ricardo is eager to get in the ring. This was odd too. I hated that they had her say that there aren’t instant replays in WWE. How often have we had replays when a bad call is made and the referee’s decision be over turned? It has happened before. I’m not sure what they’ll do with Del Rio. How often can we have Sheamus-Del Rio?

Tyson Kidd vs. Wade Barrett. Barrett gets the pin. This was a solid match.

Michael Cole is in the ring. He mentions that Lawler collapsed 2 weeks ago from a hearty attack. Cole says he spoke with Dr. Sampson and Sampson told him it’s a miracle how fast Lawler has recovered. Then they show King on the Tron from his home in Memphis. Cole says that Lawler looks fantastic. Lawler says his voice is raspy from having a ventilator down his throat. He says it’s great to be back with the fans and on Raw. Cole asks Lawler if he can tell him the last thing he remembers from that night. Lawler says that he remembers the Bret Hart-CM Punk promo. He remembers that he was in a tag match against Punk but didn’t remember anything else. Cole says King has gotten thousands of texts messages and tweets. He asks if King was expecting this. Lawler says he wasn’t but it’s unbelievable how many well wishes and Prayers there were for him. He says that it’s meant so much to him and he thanks everyone. Then Cole asks when King will return to commentary. King says that he defies anyone to sit next to Cole for 3 hours and not have a heart attack. He’s only kidding about that of course. He says he will return as soon as the doctors tell him he can. This was a good interview. Lawler looked good. Thank God he’s recovering well and I honestly can’t wait to see him return. GO KING!!

World Champion Sheamus, Rey Mysterio & Sin Cara vs. Alberto Del Rio, David Otunga & Ricardo Rodriguez. Sheamus, Rey & Sin Cara win when Cara pins Ricardo. This was a good match. They showed The Primetime Players watching backstage. Afterwards Sheamus gives Otunga a Brogue Kick.

Back to Kane, Daniel & Shelby at the diner. Shelby says they’ve made tremendous progress. Then he has waitress come in and gives them dinner. Daniels has pasta with meet balls and Kane has a salad. Shelby wants each guy to have some of the other guy’s dish. Kane eats the broccoli and Daniel has the meatball. Shelby asks Kane how he feels and they play a belching noise. Daniel says it wasn’t as bad as he thought. Then he has the “gonna hurl” expression. Shelby tells Daniel no but Daniel hurls. Then Kane says, “Check please.” This was ok. The check please line was comical.

Time for the fans to vote for the Kane-Daniel Bryan team name. The options are Team Teamwork, Team hell no and Team Friendship.

Daniel Bryan comes to the ring. Then Kane. Time to find out what team name the fans voted for. The fans picked Team hell no. Then Damien Sandow & Cody Rhodes come in from behind and jump the champs. Then the head up the ramp. Cody gets the mic and says that he & Sandow are now known as team Rhodes Scholars. Sandow says now the miscreants Kane & Daniel truly have a reason to be angry. “You’re Welcome.” This was ok. Not much to it. It looks like Team Rhodes Scholars will be the next team that challenge Kane & Daniel for the titles.

Layla & Alicia Fox vs. Beth Phoenix & Divas Champion Eve Torres. Beth & Eve win when Eve pins Alicia. This wasn’t much. Afterwards Kaitlyn comes out on a crutch. She says that she got the security film from when she was attacked at Night of Champions. She couldn’t see her face but could see her hair. The diva that attacked her was a blond. Then Eve asks how Beth can do a thing like that. Beth tells Kaitlyn that Eve is a liar. Then Eve kicks Beth and then gives her a swinging neck breaker.

Brodus Clay vs. Tensai. Big Show comes out. He gets on the apron and punches out Tensai. Then he gets in the ring and he punches out Brodus. I guess technically Tensai wins by DQ since Show punched him first but that doesn’t matter.

They announce Randy Orton vs. Big Show for Smackdown.

John Cena comes to the ring. He says as always there’s mixed emotions about him being there. He says he wasn’t supposed to be there but with his future in question he wanted to personally thank the fans. He thanks the fans for their support of the Rise Above Cancer organization. He says not to doubt the fans because they’re a powerful group of people. Then he thanks the fans for him. He gets a mixed reaction. He says that it feels good to hear that. He apologizes to Chad Patton & Brad Maddox. He says it’s amazing that the referees’ decisions are now in question. Then he mentions that Punk misquoted him. Cena says that Punk has turned into another guy. Then he says something and says that did everything he could to keep it PG. Then he mentions how the fans react to Cena himself and every Monday night is crazy because of the fans. He says that having to sit on the bench sucks. He isn’t guarantying anything except that he will walk in to hell in a cell to fight. He says at hell in a cell CM Punk…Then Punk & Heyman come out. Punk says he’s heard quite a few speeches over the past few weeks and he says that it reminded him of the speeches presidential candidates give. Punk says he doesn’t by Cena’s crap. He says the fans might but he doesn’t Punk says there’s only 1 him. The same guy who beat Cena at MITB and walked out of Night of Champions WWE Champion. He says that his title reign won’t end anytime soon. Cena tells Punk to shut up, face him at hell in a cell and see what happens. Punk says Cena gets countless title shots and it isn’t fair. He says they’re other wrestlers who deserve a title shot. Then the fans boo Punk. He tells the fans he will put them in their place right after he puts Cena in his. Punk says that Cena won’t be medically cleared for the cell. Punk says that Cena coming out and talking trash about Punk with an injured arm is really stupid. Then he tells Cena to run. He gives him till the count of 5 and if Cena is still there he will hurt Cena so bad it will be worse than the 8 months Cena will take to recover. Punk says he is WWE Champion and he demands respect. Then Punk & Heyman turn their backs to Cena. Punk counts down. Cena has a lead pipe and when Punk turns around Cena hits him with it. Cena then says real men wear pink and he hopes to see Punk at hell in a cell. Then he says, “Now that’s what I call a pipe bomb.” Punk was on the stage and then headed to the back. Then Cena gave the lead pipe to a fan. He shook more fans’ hands afterwards. This was a good promo. I thought both Punk & Cena were good in the mic.

Then they show Punk backstage. He walks by Mick Foley. Then Punk goes to Foley and kicks him. Then Punk has a terrified look on his face. The camera’s show that Punk is being starred down by Ryback. This ended the show. This was good. I wasn’t expecting Ryback to be at the end of this. They’re really giving him a push.

I thought this week’s show was decent overall. There wasn’t a lot of actual wrestling and there was a lot of talking but I thought most of the segments furthered the storylines well. The opening segment with Punk, Heyman, AJ & Brad Maddox was solid. Punk & Cena were good here. I liked the Punk-Cena promo at the end of the show. I thought they cut good promos here too. AJ telling Brad Maddox that he made her look like an idiot because he messed up was idiotic. How often have referees messed up over the years? I’ve never heard the authority figure say that before. The backstage bit with AJ & the referees was weak too. Having her say there are no instant replays was dumb. The part where Del Rio, Ricardo & Otunga came was ok. The Kane-Daniel Bryan at the diner segments were hit and miss. I hated the first one. The second was a bit better and the third was ok. I’m not into the new team name they have but it looks like they’ll be having Kane & Daniel face Cody & Sandow at some point. Ryback-Miz was solid. I’m not sure if they’ll put the IC Title on Ryback. I liked that they had him stare down Punk at the end of the show. The Foley-Punk segment was good too. There was a lot said there but they both cut good promos. Kofi-Dolph was a great match. Tyson-Barrett was solid. The Divas tag match wasn’t much. I’m not sure what they’re doing with Beth Phoenix. I know she’s going to be leaving the company soon. Having her as a suspect on the Kaitlyn attack was unexpected. The Jerry Lawler interview with Michael Cole was really good too. It’s good to see that Lawler is recovering well. Brodus-Tensai wasn’t much. This was about Big Show making his return. Ryder& Santino vs. The Primetime Players was short also. I thought the 6 man tag was good too. So on the whole I thought this was decent show.