Go to Youtube and look for Cena on MadTV. I promise you, you will find Dr Ken a lot funnier after watching that.

Dr. Ken is a real doctor, graduated from Duke and a hell of a funny/good guy. WWE must have told him to stay in Hangover character all night.

That show was awful all the way round...everthing from Piven to Ken, to HHH, to EVERYTHING. I walked away at the enterance of John Cena because I knew it was only going downhill. Came back for the rest but it stayed bad til the end!

I thought Seth was the best so far.

No way would I let Carlito and Masters catch me! The just don't give a D***

Another site is hinting that it's not Shawn Michaels but X-PAC that will be returning??

one of the worst raws ever they really need to push talent like MVP,Swagger and The miz but no they have the miz job to cena 4 the 10 hundreth time a bit part for mvp and they put swagger over in a three minute match. At this rate hornswoggle will get a title shot before any decent talent

Can't say that I like the guest host thing - takes away too much of the action for the shameless pandering and attention to the guest host. Can't wait for all the G.I. Joe plugs next week...

Last night was unwatchable. I had to change the channel.

Hey Kevin, I was actually disappointed by how the WWE used Dr. Ken and Piven. They were just doing weird, horrible shtick the entire night. The only redeeming part was the ending, with Ken cowering before Cena before getting dumped over the rope.

Also count me against yet another DX reunion. I hope that HHH's aborted phone call in the last half-hour means that someone besides HBK will be teaming with him, which would be a fresh idea. Why not have HHH form another stable of young guys? If he's not going to give guys a proper boost with clean victories (cough Legacy cough) then you might as well try to get them a rub via an association with The Game.

Um...you do realize that pro wrestling is fake right?

RESPONSE FROM KE: Move along, Troy.

A little harsh on Dr. Ken there, Kev. The guy has had a string of semi-funny appearances on big time comedies. including: knocked up, pineapple express, role models, step brothers, and as stated, the Hangover.

The bump that he took on the back of the head looked legit. though im kind of glad that these actors can get a glimpse of the fact that wrestling is, (despite the fact that it is scripted), very very real.

Raw has turned into a glorified Tonight Show where guest stars promote whatever it is they want to promote. WWE is alienating hardcore fans in order to sell their soul one week at at a time.

Im a professed shawn michaels mark, but tired of the DX act. I hope WWE has a swerve coming for us.

I have a better plan for Mark Henry in the short term. Team him up with Kofi Kingston and have them challenge JeriShow for the titles later on. Thoughts?

oh, and why is it a no-no to mention charles robinson by name? their names are posted on the wwe website after all.

RESPONSE FROM KE: WWE has banned saying the names of referees on TV. As for Dr. Ken, as I said, I had never heard of the guy before Monday night. I've never seen any of those movies that you mentioned.

I messaged friends of mine that Dr. Ken would be Piven's co-host on Raw, telling them how awesome the show was going to be. 2 hours later, I have lost all credibility with them. Sigh.

Kevin

I thought you weren't going to post your thoughts because almost all of this was crap. I am getting to the point where Raw isn't even worth taking up space on my DVR. I am a huge fan but I am seriously contemplating sticking with Smackdown and ECW (for Christian and Benjamin) only.

Agree that Ken Jeong was annoying last night, but that was the first time I've seen him not be funny. He's great in Role Models, Knocked Up and the Hangover, and he's an engaging talk show guest as well. Don't know what was up w/ him last night though, that character he was playing was terrible.

Kevin, agree that the show was not a good one, and that was just what I saw of it.

The 'Summerfest' thing I think might have been a work. I saw the bit with Chavo Guerrero and in that Piven was getting all kinds of wrestlers' names wrong, so I think that might have been part of the act. Admittedly, not all that funny, but there was a method to that madness.

I admit that Dr. Ken's schtick didn't go over that well on Raw, but don't let that keep you from seeing "The Hangover" if you get a chance. It's an insanely funny movie, and Ken does do a good job in it.

RESPONSE FROM KE: I don't believe for a second that WWE would script it for their big Hollywood guest host to get the name of their PPV wrong.

Well even if it was for 10 min., it was nice to see a heel guest host. Hopefully WWE have more heel host in the future.

Trainwreck Thy name is RAW 08/03/09. Kevin, you have to do a list of the worst RAW's ever. This one would probably take the 1st 5 spots. My wife barely watches wrestling, but when she peeps in the entertainment room when wrestling is on, I'm hoping and praying for a good segment. What she saw last night took me back to the unwatchable Nitro's near the end of WCW. WWE has a serious problem if they continue to chain together shows like that. Shaq was a glich in the matrix, but im finding it rare that RAW can deliver. When my wife glanced at the TV and then took a glance at me, I was almost embarassed to be a fan.

Kev i felt that they were shoving "the goods" down our necks...you know

dont worry kev i never haerd of dr ken either
and wwe is not allowed to say the names of the refs why??

What is VFW? And why can't they refer to Charles Robinson by his name like they did in WCW?

I have RAW recorded, as I had class at my dojo Monday night. I usually don't bother reading about the show before I watch it, but Kev, you are not making this sound like anything I want to see.

Smackdown! has been amazing of late. RAW, despite having some of my favorite wrestlers, has been the complete opposite. I think RAW needs a creative overhaul.

Next Monday will be the perfect night for DX to reunite with former Commisioner Slaughter in charge of the show...

HHH (and sometimes HBK) has done the "Suck it" even with PG ratings. The commentators simply say it's "a bit of DX action" and go home like nothing ever happened. Still, I would rather watch them in their full glory rather than watered-down, fourth-wall breaking, bald joking DX.

Oh who cares. As long as Shawn returns, I'm fine.

The only word that could describe Raw last night was perplexing. After quite possibly the worst opening segment in history (Dr Ken is beyond annoying), Evan Bourne was all but squashed by Swagger. The divas match was well worked, but short as usual. Kim taking the fall in and of itself wasn't an issue with the way it was done, but the way she's been losing repeatedly since rejoining the WWE, she really needs a string of victories. The handicapped match was by far the best match of the show, well worked and well booked. While HHH's line about the former Evolution members was the highlight of the show, it shouldn't have been done so closely after Legacy's victory. Just being associated with Chris Jericho has instantly made the Big Show more compelling in and out of the ring, he looked really good in the ring last night.

The Miz has either failed a drug test or will soon be getting his future endeavors letter, there's no other logical reason for the finish last night, where John Cena hit his finisher out of nowhere right after a lengthy beatdown by Legacy outside the ring. The nasty bump that Dr Ken took is proof that the stunts performed by non-wrestlers should be kept within certain limits. Floyd Mayweather landed awkwardly and was nearly injured during a similar spot with the Big Show last year before Wrestlemania. Just having Cena hit him with the Attitude Adjustment would have served the same purpose and got the same reaction.

Quote of the night from Jericho:
"He just DDT'd his foot!"

I had decided to boycott Rawfest until the guest host format ended, but last night, I broke down and tuned in long enough to see the handicap match. I was surprised that HHH lost, as I would have bet that the only way Legacy were going over was if they were to bring machine guns loaded with clips of kryptonite with them, but HHH's announcement was the last thing I wanted to hear. My tolerance for DX is very , very low, so if that bad act is returning for the umpteenth time, my boycott will stick.

I love Piven but I didn't expect him to be a wrestling fan. If they had given him the right material I've no doubt he could have killed it. Having heel guest gms is stupid when they are trying to plug stuff...

As brilliant as Piven is on Entourage, he tanked the opening segment and the show never recovered. Cena was painfully unfunny, his writers are terrible whoever they are. Completely unlikeable character for the masses. The Miz was unfairly buried.

I was a little let down last night because I had myself all amped up for HBK to return and then....nothing. Well at least he's on his way back. I just kept thinking about HBK saying that this might be his last WrestleMania, and if that's true then a nice long slow build to WM XXVI and an eventual match between HBK and HHH would be epic. Although I wish they would have saved Sgt. Slaughter as guest host till after HBK comes back and DX is together. I'd like to see DX make the Sarge look like a fool again like they did back when DX first formed.

I agree I was looking forward to seeing The Hangover but not so much now if Dr. Ken is in it. Yuck! The pacifier Piven keept sticking in his mouth got the biggest reaction of the night from me.

I like Jeremey Piven and I thought he recovered nicely by saying "You're off Summerfest too whatever that is!" I think it was just nerves that made him screw that up. I would have liked to see him do one thing though. I'd have liked to see him cutting a promo with Legacy, with them all wearing their Legacy shirts, and have Piven say "You're wearing the shirt of the group that you're in....Don't be that guy!"
To paraphrase a line he did from PCU.

Kevin,

Do you envision another heel turn for Gail Kim? The lady has clear athletic and sports entertainment talent. I also enjoy watching Mickie James...just don't like seeing these two ladies as tag-team partners.

ER

"Is pointing to your crotch and yelling 'Suck it!' family friendly?"
In my family? Yes!
But seriously, it's no more family friendly then WWE promoting "the #1 R rated comedy ever."(The Hangover) like they did several times last night.
Vince should decide what side of the fence he's on.

Kevin--two questions about RAW: Did Chavo pull something to warrant a four match losing streak to Hornswoggle, or is it just for some lame comedic effect? Also, about Miz/Cena: if Miz is supposed to be taken seriously, how is it he keeps getting squashed every week? If it's supposed to be a "rivalry" what good is it if Miz keeps getting pounded?

Chris Jericho will probably be buried for the next 8 months for almost saying Little Naitch's name. I can just imagine Vince screaming his head off right as Jericho got to Rob...

Did the Miz mizail a drug test?

Quote of the night
Jericho: "He just DDT'd his foot!"

This was the most painfully awful Raw I can remember seeing.

Don't let than him put you off seeing the Hangover, though. He's a very minor character with very little screen time.

The funny, DX-style HHH is infinitely more entertaining than the serious, King of Games or whatever he calls himself.

Kev, am I the only one who thinks that Bourne and Swagger have no chemistry in the ring? I'm a fan of both of these guys, but when they wrestle each other it just doesn't work, for either guy.

Enough said about the guest hosts, really...

I like how Swagger frowned all the way through his match and entrance only to break into his usual grin after winning...

When Triple H picked up the mic, I was hoping he'd announce his retirement, with him finally being defeated and it being near his hometown and all. He seemed to take shots at everyone, huh... "a jerk", "hurt all the time", "signing autographs in VFW or something", and to Michaels, "I thought you didn't do jobs." Would be wise to take note of that last one himself.

Jericho wasn't as composed as usual - he was talking quickly and excitedly, but I still agree that the fans are hypocritical - 87% to O'Neal? Come on, it's not popularity contest.

SuperCena is back. Even after being stomped on multiple times by the WWE champ, he goes back into the ring, delivers an FU, pins Miz, and single-handedly dominates the ring with his human "battering-ram" while withstanding a cane strike. Whee.

I had no idea who Dr. Ken was either. He was the worst thing I have ever seen, and will never see any movie he is in. Quite possibly the most untalented man in America based off that.

This was a bad raw was really shocked that HHH took shots at both Batiista & Flair and way to cut down a great win by priceless with that interview maybe HHH show call himself the show stealer because he stole their thunder. I really wished that the Bourne/Swagger would have went longer especially since they had a few botched spots. Do you think next time the WWE will actually get a host that actually knows the name of their wrestling events.

Jeremy Piven and Dr. Ken made David Arquette look tolerable. Almost.

Ted DiBiase, Jr. has had opportunities to shine. But Monday was really the first time we've seen what Cody Rhodes is capable.

When Triple H grabbed the mike I thought he was going to remind us he had just turned 40. Even if he didn't come out and say it his references to DX said it all.

A note on the Big Show. I like his new look. His look reminds me of a couple of Quebec wrestlers - the late Jos LeDuc and Paul "The Butcher" Vachon. I met Vachon about 15 years ago when he was dabbling in Canadian politics.

Speaking of Canada, with RAW being in Calgary next Monday I would hope the Hart Dynasty would make an appearance.

A couple summers ago when Edge and Cena were feuding they would beat the crap out of each other between pay per views. It would have made more sense on Raw for Orton to have lead a complete Cena beat down by the lumberjacks. That would have made good story line and saved Miz's job.

Who dressed Mark Henry?

VFW = Veterans of Foreign Wars. They typically have some sort of meeting hall or other that would be big enough for an indy event.

If Shelton Benjamin can say "go smurf yourself," I'm guessing the crotch chops are OK.

Terrible hosts. No respect for the product. Def looked like Swagger dropped/guided Kens head into the floor on purpose. Good lad! Swag did look worried after tho.

Kevin, do you ever see any of the Lucha Libre shows out of Mexico? One of the Spanish channels carried it Sunday afternoon, and there in the middle of a six sided ring (TNA's inspiration?) was X-PAC in a six-man tag with some weird-ish Doink lookalikes! Crazy, but fun stuff!

I have never heard of Dr Ken before and I hope to god that I never hear of him again. He was so annoying that I wanted to throw something at the tv when he was on. Where does the Miz go now? back to ECW hopefully and not to Smackdown please. I don't want him to ruin a great show. A pretty ordinary RAW and I must agree Kev not being allowed to call the Ref by name has to be the most stupid rule I have ever heard.

All wrestling aside, Eck, have you been living under a rock? You've never seen Knocked Up, Role Models, Pineapple Express, Step Brothers, The Hangover? I could see if you hadn't seen all of them, but none? I think you best skip the next Raw and rent one of them with the Mrs. It will do you some good, lord knows that Raw doesn't give any laughs, and seems to be frustrating you (and countless others), so give it a miss this week coming and rent a movie instead.

Derek - VFW = Veterans of Foreign Wars. They have meeting halls, like Bob said but my take on what HHH referenced was Ric Flair's age and signing autographs at the VFW, since majority of people who go there are older, they sponsor bingo's etc. That being said I'd love to see Shawn Michaels come back and reform DX - in fact, as Triple H was talking and Dibiase/Rhodes (can only tolerate Dibiase, can't stand Rhodes) were backing up the ramp, I expected music to start and Shawn to come out behind them --- But guess I'll have to wait for Summerslam for that. Of course, if he wants a 3rd one, he could bring Kevin Nash back also with him.

On another note that was the worst RAW I've seen to date --- I could have dealt, maybe with Piven, but Dr. Ken was the most annoying character I've ever seen on any show in my life. If I hadn't thought Shawn Michaels might make an appearance, I would have turned that one off in a heartbeat.

Hey, so the guest hosts were annoying and caught some quick heel heat?

That's a good thing in wrestling, right?

A bad thing for the guest host's Hollywood careers though to get people to hate them. That's sell lots of movie tickets!

Poor buggers!

They could bring back Kevin Federline as a guest host - the guy exudes heat and he had a program with Cena. Besides, what else is he doing?

"Agree that Ken Jeong was annoying last night, but that was the first time I've seen him not be funny. He's great in Role Models, Knocked Up and the Hangover, and he's an engaging talk show guest as well. Don't know what was up w/ him last night though, that character he was playing was terrible."

This has an obvious response. The characters for those movies were written by someone else. Dr. Ken as himself, clearly unfunny. Thanks be to Hollywood writers!!

Rumour (Business Week) has it that upcoming Guest hosts include Bob Barker and Rev Al Sharpton. That'll put butts in the seats!
http://www.businessweek.com/bwdaily/dnflash/content/aug2009/db2009084_008420.htm

Kevin,I must have missed it, what is the "rule" about saying the ref's name?
SUMMER-FEST???PUH-LEASE!!!

RESPONSE FROM KE: WWE has banned the use of referees' names on TV. They are simply called "the refreree" or "the official."

Why did HHH really say he was being beaten up by Legacy for weeks now? I'll have to go back and check Raw reports, but I'm pretty sure Cena and HHH have been consistently destroying all three members of Legacy.

Every match was a squash. Back to the Raw reports for me. At least Swagger won a match this week.

wwe is trying too much to mix 'the federation years' with 'the attitude' era...trying to be family friendly while trying to still be edgy. Just doesnt work.

And Mark Henry is the biggest loser, especially if he's going to be the newest protector/rival for the unbearable Hornswoggle...working with the character will block Henry from getting a 'main event' push with Orton

I don't know why but I can smell D generation Mex. Yeah that's right. I think Sean Waltman is making his comeback.

Reason: Every internet site is reporting a HBK comeback, which means only one thing. He's not coming back.And secondly, I don't think Shawn will make the lamest comeback of all time

I think the "Summerfest" was a legit botch that he just covered for quickly. Dr. Ken is hilarious in The Hangover, but he was brutally painful on Raw. At least he was dressed though (fair warning Kev if you do see the movie). I was pretty let down though since Pivens is normally so funny (PCU).

I think the VFW reference had to do with Ric taking a lot of heat for leaving the WWE to take any gig signing stuff for cash like he's some washed up has-been. I was kinda shocked Trips called him out basically.

If it wasn't going to be Shawn Michaels, my vote is for Scott Hall over X-Pac. That phone call just ends a little differently...

"Are you sober?"

What will happen 2 "The Miz"?

Kevin,thank you for answering the ref question.
Follow up:Why the rule??

RESPONSE FROM KE: WWE would have to answer that one. My guess is that WWE wants all the focus to be on the wrestlers.

Hey as much as I don't like seeing Gail lose, this was the 1rst time she has been pinned on RAW since 2004

On TV in the UK, WWE shows have been packed full of ads and spots for the "DX reunion tour" since Wrestlemania, as well as "The Undertaker's Rest In Peace" tour. I'm not sure if this just applies to the house shows, because the actual TV shows seem to be seperate. Can we read anything into that?

As for HBK Kev, i commented a few months back asking when you thought his return was coming - good call on Summer(fest)slam! I've always been a Michaels mark and as good as it would be to end his career with one of the greatest WM matches of all time, surely he needs a huge farewell run, maybe for the title...or is he done and wating for the 2010 HOF?

Kevin,thank you for answering the ref question.
Follow up:Why the rule??

RESPONSE FROM KE: WWE would have to answer that one. My guess is that WWE wants all the focus to be on the wrestlers.
---------------------------------------------------

I have to admit, your response made me spit out my drink with laughter. Granted, I realize it wasn't a joking answer and was probably accurate, but you can't help but laugh after watching the WWE bury its wrestlers and brand week after week for "guest hosts" and promote a movie no one will remember this time next month over one of its major PPVs.

"WWE would have to answer that one. My guess is that WWE wants all the focus to be on the wrestlers."

Is it possible that refs have been threatened in the past? I'm sure that after the Montreal Screwjob, Earl Hebner at least got a lot of hate mail.

Just looked at Miz's Twitter page, btw, and one of the things he had to say was this:

"still cannot believe u banned me from summerfest. I mean I can deal with summerslam n raw but summerfest how could u?"

=D

To Baltimore Sun editors: As I look at this page right now,there are two ads. One for a cheerleader calendar and the other for Ann Taylor. Something tells me the wrestling fan will be a little more interested in the calendar than in professional womens' clothing. With the current state of the newspaper industry it's important to be intelligent about generating revenue for web sites. We want o keep Kevin Eck employed.

Was Ken badly hurt after landing on his head?
Was he dropped on purpose, or will Swagger be in trouble backstage for the error (you mentioned he was already in bother for something, before)?

Al Sharpton for Guest Host!!

LOL

I see people mentioning that annoying Ken guy was in Knocked Up and Step Brothers...Saw both those movies and don't remember him at all...now if I could just block his performance on Raw out of my memory. Piven should have left him locked in that car trunk he came out of at the start of the show.

I'd rate this episode slightly above the ZZ Top episode, which isn't saying much...