I'm gonna have to doubt that Phoenix is leaving Raw based on the fact that Smackdown already has a beastly blonde with Natti Neidhart, unless she switches brands too.

Here is a question for you Kev or anyone who wants to answer, I know one brand would vastly improve the show but it's probably not feasible. Do you at least think they should eliminate one of the tag titles and let all tag teams become inter-branded?

I think it would improve the tag team division by far.

This RAW sucked to be very blunt, it was boring and overcrowded by the useless and un-intruiging Million Dollar Mania segments. For me, it is outrageous that the Million Dollar non-sense was booked to overshadow everything including the WWE Title picture during the show, i cannot believe the show closed off w/a Vinnie segment. I agree with your heading though, Jericho's heel turn was the ONLY thing worth watching this show for, while the rest was garbage, including the Trevor Murdoch segment (sorry because you like him). I also have to agree that Marella would be a much more interesting character if he didnt have to do jobs for John Cena to Cousin Sal. And on the final note, I hope Orton returns soon, people just call him boring because he doesnt have a catchphrase and isnt cracking jokes (in fact, he isnt supposed to) but he in my eyes was carrying the show since last August

Jericho pulled off the best Frank Grimes impression I've ever seen

Kevin, I believe you meant to say HBK had his head smashed in to The Obscenely Expensive Jeri-Tron 5000. I can't wait to see whee they take Jericho's Character. I love him and feel he has been under utilized since his return. I hope this goes well.

As bad as it was for the fans at home to watch Vince McMahon dialing a phone, how did those people feel who paid to see a wrestling/entertainment show?

Jericho should shine in his heel role....his return has been so underwhelming, if he is allowed to channel that frustration into his heel role, he will be GOLD.

while I'm enjoying the influx of second generation wrestlers, I am dismayed by the (lack of) crowd reactions to anything involving Rhodes and Holly as a tag team....when the inevitable split up happens, it's going to take a huge effort to get over the angle....

The Jericho turn was pretty much RAW last night for me, well Mickey wasn't too bad.

The money give away, I have to wonder how up&up that was. I mean EVERYONE they called was watching and knew the password. OK, I thought, maybe for Live Television they pre-called these people, told them Vince will be calling etc... Then after the sing-off, Vince gave that Lady $2.00. I mean if that's real and I got a call expecting thousands and you give me 2 bucks? Something's not right. Good news though, they're doing it again next week. WWE programming is at its best when the talent is featured and not Vince. The "Money Night RAW" is just another way of Vinnie Mac taking time away from the workers.

I think the thing even worse then Vince's dialing ability were his attempts to segueway into each phone segment ( "the only thing hotter than a WWE Diva is the chance to win $1 million!").
I was actually a little bummed out when I saw the main event was HHH vs Jeff Hardy, because I figured it meant a second straight RAW loss for Jeff. While he did win, you are right that it did more to make HHH look good than Jeff. Letting him jump onto Cena and HHH was nice, but it didn't erase the fact he was basically beat up for the previous 10 minutes. I also have to say it was a lot of fun listening to HHH at the announce table pumping up the legend of HHH; at least he eventually got around to praising Cena after reminding us multiple times he is a 12 time champ.
I think at this point if Beth Phoenix, JBL and Santino were in a triple threat match, it would end in triple countout or triple DQ. they have done all they can to ruin the mystique of Beth Phoenix.

Jericho's heel turn was sweet.

Jeff Hardy vs. Triple H shouldn't have been given away on free TV. It hurts the PPV product when so many high caliber matches are given away on TV just to boost ratings.

What was the point of such a quick match between Kennedy and Paul Burchill? That did nothing for either man.

The money thing was a complete disaster. It seems like one of those cutting edge ideas from Vince McMahon that only he thinks is a great idea. He needs to spend this week learning how to work one of those telephone things.

when they had Charlie Haas out with Vince, they should have let Charlie dial the numbers to move the show along. Then they should have let maria stay out there with Vince since they aren't doing anything with Maria as of late.
A reader commented on the tag team situation. Interesting thought but I doubt it would work. Miz and Morrison are on both ECW and Smackdown and frankly there are no tag teams on ECW unless they pair up some single wrestlers.
As for Beth Phoenix losing to Mickie James, she lost becuz Mickie is the champ and they don't let there champs lose to often in non-title matches. I can't see Beth going to Smackdown unless they trade her for Natalya.
I wanted to save the best for last. I loved the way Jericho turned on Shawn. When Shawn said that the only one he lied to was Chris then the heel turned right at the perfect time. Don't know how much the JerichoTron5000 costs, but it can't cost too much if shawn went thru it.

RESPONSE FROM KEVIN ECK: Actually champs often lose non-title matches to set up title matches.

Being Canadian, and thus ineligible for the money, I found those segments especially pointless. At least Charlie Haas got something to do post Heat.

I am not big on country music, but I like Murdoch's gimic. I too must be in the minority.

Here is a compromise to Mr. Bronson's suggestion: Keep the tag teams brand-based, but have only one tag title in the company to compete for. If a Raw team holds the tag title, then Smackdown teams would compete with each other for the number one contendership. Raw teams would compete for contendership too, with the top contenders from each brand squareing-off in order to determine who would face the champions.

I don't think Beth's going to SmackDown - I have a feeling Mickie will. She doesn't seem to have a set opponent at NOC, and the Divas Championship isn't making the headlines it would have done had it been a real title, so I'm thinking she does a Batista, takes the Women's Title to SmackDown with her, and defends it against Natalya at NOC.

Am I the only won who enjoys some parity in the diva division? Before when Beth was wrestling , you knew she would win so you change the channel, because the only other reason to watch is cuz their hot and thats what cinemax is for. But thats beside the point, what im trying to say is now im actually watching the diva matches and they put on an interesting show, not just seeing who looks better in a bikini

One more thing, I thought it would be more interesting to buff up the money segments by having matches to decide the winning amount/number that will be called. Doesnt have to be real, just make it more entertaining

It's a good thing Jericho turned heel simply because there was just about nobody as a significant heel on the roster. However, I think its a shame they didn't have Jericho do this sooner. The attack on HBK could have sparked a feud between Triple H and Jericho leading into a title match. I really feel a match between Jericho and Triple H at Night of Champions would have been a bit more refreshing than Cena and Triple H. I hope both guys stay on RAW after the draft so that they can still pull it off.

Other than the Jericho turn, Raw last night was very boring! Much like Smackdown always is.

McMahon's spots were awkward and out of place and done with zero imagination or creativity.

Raw is traditionally my #1 wrestling show but lately I've been enjoying TNA and even ECW more. The whole RAW show seems to be in a rut. ALmost every bit with a mid-carder comes up as dull, predictable and lazy. WWE creative should be sued for laziness and having no imagination when it comes to how it promotes the talent. TNA may bomb regularly from time to time, but at least they seem to try to do something a little different on a regular basis.

WWE better do more with the upcoming draft than just put a different set of characters into the same tired acts or things could really start to head south quick.

One thing not seen on the show was the dark match before the event, Bryan Danielson beat Lance Cade.

This is significant, for those that don't know who Bryan Danielson is, he's widely considered one of the best wrestlers in the world today, significantly better than anyone on the WWE roster right now. WWE bringing him in would be huge, although I have a bad feeling they would do what they did to CM Punk and severely limit his moveset.

RESPONSE FROM KEVIN ECK: I agree with your last statement. If he came in, I doubt he would get a big push despite his skills as a worker.

"Actually champs often lose non-title matches to set up title matches."

They do indeed, but it is a practice which I strongly dislike. I think it A) takes away from the intrigue of the showdown and B) devalues the title. It is tough for me to buy Hardcore Holly and Cody Rhodes as champs when they lose to a makeshift tag team of Snitsky and Umaga. Yes, I realize that there is a storyline behind this, so at least there is a method to the madness.

A simple, but in my opinion, better, way is to keep the champ looking near unbeatable and to get the challenger over by having him or her get clean wins over other potential challengers.

I guess I'm the only one who really likes watching Burchill and Kennedy. Overall a very weak Raw though. Dont care for million dollar mania(I work during Raw). Not interested in the title chase. Dislike CrimeTime(furthering stereotypes = bad mmkay?), havent been made to care about the lackluster holly/whatsisname tag team, not impressed with DiBiase right now until he actually does somthing other than talk (put him in flashy street clothes more often, let him show off the money he would supposedly have). Just so much blah going on with Raw right now.

RESPONSE FROM KEVIN ECK: I too like Burchill-Kennedy. I was a little surprised to see Kennedy go over so easily, although Burchill did get his heat back after the match. I suppose there is no spot for them on the next PPV because of the all-championship matches deal.

hey Kevin, i know a lot of people compared Chris Jericho's turn to that of Shawn's back in 1991. When he threw Marty Jennety through a window. But i think it can be more compared to that of Bret Hart, where both turns begin to question the moral of the people. Jericho hinted at it last night with people booing the "guy who does good" and cheering Shawn regardless of what he does. It was the same thing with Bret and Steve Austin and Bret and Shawn Michaels. Seeing that Jericho is Canadian, could we see the Anti- American heel that Bret used to be?

RESPONSE FROM KEVIN ECK: I agree with the Austin-Hart comparison from the good-bad standpoint, but I hope there is no Canada vs. America angle with Jericho-Michaels. That type of story line is stale and it's totally unnecessary with these two.

btw, in my previous comment i forgot to mention that I am really getting into Ted DiBiase Jr. He's got the look, the charisma and the mic skills, Lets hope he's good in the ring too.

And talking about wrestling abilities, to the guy who mentioned Danielson, I too respect his wrestling abilities but wwe isnt just about being a good wrestler, its also about having the look, charisma and presence, so even if Danielson's moveset wasnt limited, purely due to his looks, I would say that he would remain a mid-carder at best.

Thoughts:

JBL, Cena, and Triple H are a large part of why the WWE product (or RAW at least) is stale. I understand Triple H wanting to beat Flair's record for World titles, but Flair didn't win all of his world titles in the same damn company. Give the WWE a break, man!

Cena spent the better part of last year proving what an unbreakable babyface he is, and now he's back on the warpath it seems with yet ANOTHER WWE title opportunity in his golden future. For the record, I don't care if this go 'round with Triple H turns him sour, or if he gets drafted in two weeks. I can't see Cena because I don't WANT to.

IMO, JBL is only interesting on the mic. Therefore, he should have returned as a mouthpiece, not a wrestler, but that's just my opinion. I just can't see him having an intriguing feud with ANYONE.

As for Murdoch and the singing cowboy angle... I'm also in the minority. I like Trev, and I like the combination of he and Jillian (Cade going solo ain't half bad either, as long as he gets used). They should become a full-time duo and sing duets before all of his matches. Who knows? Maybe that would give him a psychological advantage over his opponents. They would have to be thrown by the lack of harmony.

I disagree with the Beth trade idea. At least, for right now. I think they should just stop booking Beth and Mickie in matches together, and concentrate on the storyline between the two. Mickie took the bitch-queen's crown right from her head, so to illustrate how evil and dark the Beth Phoenix character is, they should produce segments that illurstrate how Beth is trying to ruin every other aspect of Mickie's life, before she ultimately sets out to destroy her physically. Mind games are always fun to watch.

Melina, on the other hand, would be a good fit for Smackdown. I miss having her as champion, and SD could use someone with her flare, I think (actually, they could use a lot of people like that!).

As a fellow Santino fan, I have to agree that the WWE is abusing his character. I think there is a lot that they don't see, or won't acknowledge these days... like that fact that Santino's personality is his only strength as a performer. Instead of using him as enhancement talent, they could assign him other duties. He could be a manager. He could be a general manager. He'd be great in either role. He could even be a commentator! As a manager, he could still wrestler part-time, but there are better ways to handle him.

The Jericho heel turn was great! Just having Jericho back is great. I'm kind of ambivalent about the turn, though, since there are heels in the mid-card that I'd like him to feud with after Michaels (Shelton, Carlito, Morrison, MVP could all use an opponent like him to stimulate their careers).

As far as the anti-American idea goes... wouldn't that be impossible? Isn't Jericho billed from Florida now?

My God don't let me get started on how bad raw was.. EXCEPT THE JERICHO HEEL TURN. The funny thing is, it reminded me of the Rockers split. Really it did. Beth losing as much as I despise it. Needed to happen because let's be honest I love Mickie, but she just hasn't been as cool since she was the Crazy Diva. Beth Phoenix can destroy anyone on that show. She has to look Mortal sometimes. MMillion Dollar Giveaway, It's nice to see Vince doesn't even dial his own phone, he looked lost, really lost. The 3.0 Vince is yelling at Brian Gerwitz right now blaming him. Cena vs JBL just boring and annoying at this point. Why bring back "The Wrestling God" to job to every main eventer. Was Umaga tired of doing it. Speaking of, Bring in Afa Jr and let them be a tag team if Umaga is just going to used as a tool. And Snitsky.. I think it's time to call a spade a spade and just send him back to ECW, Stevie Richards needs a new fued. Raw didn't deserve the 3.0 simply on wrestling quality.

ECW declined your offer.

Friday nite (6/13) , I was watching the comedy show "The Soup" on the E! channel when the host showed a clip of Vince McMahon and all his phone problems Monday nite . He joked , " maybe they should have rehearsed that segment . You know like they do the matches ". I thought that was funny .
In reality why would Vince ever have to dial a phone ? He has one of his human dogs do it for him .... or even his son Kevin :)