Oh come on Kev, surely you didn't forget about Bryan's clena win over the Miz? 2-12 then - still not brilliant, but hey.

I wasn't actually too disappointed with Bryan's loss to Tarver this time - partly because Bryan got in plenty of offense, but mainly because this time the loss furthered multiple storylines, the Nexus angle, Miz/Bryan AND Alex Riley's RAW appearance. It made sense - something that can't be argued about some of the other 11 losses on his record.

Looking forward to seeing Miz vs Bryan continue to develop. It's got everything going for it , and could be one hell of a show-stealing feud.

Orton - good God this guy is terrifying. With all these twitches and mannerisms, he plays the unhinged psycho a little too well if you ask me. He looked amused with Gabriel - almost like a cat toying with a mouse - up until the point where he got bored and decided to kill him. And then kill Sheamus. Maybe "...bored now" could become a new Orton catchphrase.

Jericho/Barrett was solid. Sheffield/Otunga vs Morrison/R-Truth was OK, but it's interesting how little ring time Otunga's getting. The less said about the end of Edge/Slater, the better (I thought we'd had enough crappy finishes this weekend).

Cena/Young was a typical Cena match. I was totally bemused by Cena's I'm-out-cold-ref-counts-to-nine-jump-up-slide-in-ring-oh-no's-I'm-out-cold-again routine. Had to be the worst tease of a count-out I have ever seen. The match was as poor as his opening promo was entertaining.

Apart from the unneccesary rip on Justin Gabriel. What the hell?

RESPONSE FROM KE: I did forget about Bryan beating MIz.

Is it me or did I hear the GM say "If anyone interferes in one of the Nexus matches they would be handles accordingly"

While I understand that Jericho had to do the job for Barrett, I was very disappointed in Y2J's performance. He's a main-eventer, and this match looked very stiff. He deserves better than to job to somebody like Barrett.

All in all, this Raw was below-par. I actually turned it off after Orton's rampage. I thought that after Cena's funny monologue that the show would be good, but it deteriorated.

What is Michael Cole's problem with Daniel Bryan/Bryan Danielson? Is there going to be a future spot where Cole joins up with Miz and Riley, a la Bischoff with the nWo? I know Cole's in the tank for Miz, but I found that very annoying, and I like Miz.

And the backstage vignette with Darren Young and Otunga was just painful to watch. 6th graders could have read that script better.

And Hart gets yanked from the card, and there's no complaint from Hart?? Yes, I know he can't take a bump anymore and this was the best situation for everyone, but at least play it a little.

The 1 guest host was Charlie Day from It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia. They had a wrestling centric episode which I believe was entitled "The Gang Wrestles for the Troops" if you want to look it up. Roddy Piper guest stars. It's a hilarious series in general.

What has happened to the once mighty WWE Vince McMahon's empire is crumbling to the ground you have 7 former WWE champions thats 14 all together loosing to bunch of rookies except John Cena are you kidding me .

A little TMI, but at least you've got good taste, Kevin.

Dayman!

Fighter of the Nightman!

Champion of the Sun!

You're a master of karate and friendship for everyone!

Dayman!

After reflection, I think you're right about the NXT booking. At first I did think it made the NXT look weak that most of their victories came from count outs...but then again, not losing to WWE main eventers, when they themselves are still "rookies" defiantly shows their ability....in fact the three that did win clean; Barrett, Sheffield and Otunga maybe looked weaker than the others because recently Jericho hasn't been hard to beat, Truth is mid card and Morrisson's stock has never been lower...

It's great to see Bryan back on WWE - he is the reason I took interest in WWE again after turning to TNA and ROH. Additionally in a big angle with Miz (I think the most over heel in WWE) is defiantly a great step for him. Miz needs to lose that title and who better to take it than Bryan?

The new GM would've been better off introducing a new tag team...great, a renamed Tag Title championship with no one to feud over it...

"My man-crush on Shawn Michaels"

Really Kev?......Really?

RESPONSE FROM KE: No, not really. It's an on-going joke on this blog.

How was Bryan on the losing side at Summerslam? Yes, he was eliminated but he was on the winning team. If you count that as a loss, then you should consider each of his submission eliminations against Nexus as wins.

RESPONSE FROM KE: That's what happens to your brain when you're writing a blog at 4 a.m. You''re right -- that makes no sense.

You forgot that Daniel Bryan did beat the Miz on RAW before being fired.

Your maths (and memory) is way off. Daniel Bryan has won three matches in the WWE so far: the 8-on-4 handicap match that you mentioned; a 1-on-1 match against the Miz just the week before the formation of Nexus; and the 7-on-7 Summerslam match. He might have been eliminated like everyone other than SuperCena but he's still part of the winning team. So that's three wins.

The cheap wins do increase Nexus' heel heat but not as the dominant force that they were made out to be before their Summerslam defeat. I agree with your post that said these guys have come a long way in 6 months, but this whole angle is starting to strain credulity as we see Nexus has very few wins, no titles, and have now become fodder for John Cena Live at the Comedy Store.

Cena missed his opportunity to say that Darren Young looks like one of those troll dolls, which he does more than anything!! Cena's jokes are becoming lame, especially in the PG era.

Do Daniel Bryan's submission victories over Darren Young and Heath Slater at Summerslam not count in his win-loss record?

can you explain why Sheamus would interfere in Orton's match. I understand their fued but, taking down Nexus should take priority. It just didn't make any sense to me.

Bret Hart is one of my top 5 favorite wrestlers of all time but with his physical limitations, Bret absolutely no business wrestling. Now that he has inducted Stu Hart in the wwe hall of fame, the next time I want to see him is if or when the wwe inducts Owen Hart in the hall of fame.

Wade Barrett beating Chris Jericho made sense since they are trying to make Wade look like a top heel.

At first, I thought Miz was the Mart Jannetty of his tag team with John Morrison. The way their careers are going now looks like it's the other way around and I would have never thought that was possible.

The two actors who appeared briefly alongside Justin Long and The Great Khali were Charlie Day and Jason Sudeikis.
Day (the bearded one) is on "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia" with Danny DeVito. It's a pretty funny show and Day is good in it. In fact, the persona Day adopted on RAW is similar to his character on "It's Always Sunny". Sudeikis is currently a cast member on Saturday Night Live and has been for more than five years. The fact one cannot recognize a regular from SNL is a fairly good indication of how unfunny the show is and speaks of the need to put it out of its misery.

It should be noted that Daniel Bryan defeated the Miz on the May 31st episode of Raw, so Bryan's WWE TV win total stands at 2, not 1.

"Too bad he also seems to have the charisma of Steve Blackman. …"

OUCH. I always thought Blackman could use a good manager, because he had some fun matches every now and then.

Here's how the production meeting for yesterday's Raw went:

Jericho: Sure, I'll put someone over. No problem.

Orton: I will put someone over, but only via DQ or countout. I will not loose my heat.

Edge: Me too!

Cena: I will not put anyone over. I put no one over. Ever.

And if there's one thing I can't stand about Cena, it's gloating Cena. He just comes off as so smug and arrogant. He knows we know he was booked to win, right?

I also think the WWE gave away the GM's identity last night: it's Vince. Who else hates Bret Hart that much? Think about it: Vince faked the phone call setting up the mystery GM, then took a beating from Nexus to swerve us all (not sure if they were in on it or not). Hope I'm wrong, because it would be a let down.

Kev, the actors are Jason Sudeikis from SNL and Charlie Day from FX;s "Its Always Sunny in Philadelphia." If you're not watching Its Always Sunny, i really recommend that you do. The show is hilarious

Oh, I almost forgot: Charlie Day is one of the creators/stars of "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia", and the other guy (name escapes me) has appeared on several episodes of "30 Rock" as Floyd. You really need to turn off the wrestling some time!

RESPONSE FROM KE: I wish I had time to watch something other than wrestling. When NFL season starts it's going to get even worse.

"If my math is correct, Bryan, who was on the losing side at SummerSlam before falling to Tarver on Raw, is now 1-12 on WWE television, with his lone victory coming against Santino Marella in an eight-on-four tag match on Raw in May. Even worse is the fact that he is 0-2 against Tarver."

Bryan was on the winning team (Team WWE) at SummerSlam, and actually made 2 or 3 Nexus members tap.

While Bryan's win-loss record may be awful, he did defeat The Miz with a roll-up on Raw. It was the week before Nexus took out Super Cena for the first time.

"By the way, no, I am not the Raw GM. …"

that's exactly what the Raw GM would say

I thought the opening segment was well done on both sides. Cena was funny and intense and nexus was right o nthe mark. I think they once again killed Danial Bryan's momentum. What a shame because he gotten some of it back the night before. Young has been the weak link all along. I guess Riley will be the replacement Orton was on top of his game. He's ready for a run with the title as a face. Y2J is worse than Morrison. He's turning into S.D. Jones

For a show that is family oriented, for Cena to make the comment Justin Gabriel and his alternative lifestyle - i can see kids asking parents 'what does that mean" And it was odd for a company that just signed a deal with Burger King to make fun of Wendys ... Last night Cena made me even more of a hater .. With him laid out cold on the floor then when ref hit the count of 9 all of sudden he is like Superman and able to take out anyone.why oh why do they think people will believe in this stuff .. is Russo writing for WWE again

I thought Orton was going to win via disqualification. It was a bit of a stretch that the ref kept counting even after Sheamus threw a punch.

Edge is a nine-time champion, couldn't they have him go berserk and get himself DQ'd. On the other hand, I like how the announcers stated that Slater was simply dodging the spear and by a fluke beat the count, rather than simply outsmarting Edge.

The Hart Dynasty were presented a new set of "championships" not "belts" Eck.

Skip Sheffield has a bigger upside in the WWE then 1/2 the guys who outlasted him.

Jillian Hall pinned someone on Raw? I guess I did see right last night.

John Morrison is terrible on the mic, that's why he is limited in the WWE. He looks like the popular kid, but talks like sci fi geek.

Cole called a Randy Orton powerslam a scoop slam... again!

Barrett quoted Nietzsche and Twain in his promo, Cena came out and called a guy Wendy while making yo' momma jokes about his own mother. Pretty clear who got the better of that exchange.

They should have merged the tag team titles after the WWE logo change...I've checked the title's design and they still have the ol' Attitude version.

Well, I guess it's a good time to buy those replicas now before they discontinue them and become rare! Heh...

For as bad as the guest hosts were (another one is on SNL), they did setup the funniest line of the night "she butt ugly" from Khali.

Jason Sudeikis is also in one of the best SNL sketches ever too:
http://www.hulu.com/watch/147971/saturday-night-live-scared-straight

Anyway, what are the odds that the Raw GM reveal will be more of a letdown than the Kane/Undertaker reveal?

Also, can heel Michael Cole make up his mind? It's like he's bi-polar. It just needs to go somewhere already. Is it too much to ask that he leave the announce table to manage the Miz and I'll only have to hear him in one segment? Give him a bullhorn and let him dance around the ring screaming "I'm The Mi-Cole and that is viiiiiiiiiiiiiintageee!"

I liked the show. The matches werent all that great, but they were booked correctly. I hated the Cena-Young match, showing that Cena never lets anyone get a clean victory over him. During the 10-count at the end of the match, he was knocked out cold for at least 8 seconds, and he "miraculously" ran in the ring and became SuperCena. At least act like you're hurt

It's either Triple H or Shawn Michaels is the Raw GM. Hating Hart (coming from the montreal screw job and all that stuff of the 'history') and using the gimmicks from other people (would be something that DX would do) there is my prediction for the Raw GM. And what is up with Michael Cole saying he has never seen Randy Orton that way. I guess when you are doing commentary for WWE you forget what happens in the past, i.e. orton vs triple h segments from a year or 2 ago.

Yeah I gotta agree, Cena was actually entertaining and funny this week, although his remark towards Gabriel about his 'alternative' way of thinking was a little off colour (unless I misunderstood it). Sheffield is really impressing me now, he seems to really have the powerhorse angle covered.

I'm kinda bugged that Sheamus has been laid out 2 nights in a row, and yet there's been nothing from the Miz. Logically, that is definitely a miss. Speaking of the Miz, I imagine that there's gonna be a US title programme between him and Bryan in the near future.

Also, what did you think of the new tag belts eck? Personally I felt they were really rubbish looking. I do hope that this will mean that WWE actually creates a full time tag team division, because that's something that's really been missing for a while. Oh yeah, and Morrison needs to get back to Smackdown quickly or else he could be in real trouble.

Question Kev: why do you reckon WWE are having a great talent like Jericho job almost all the time these days? Makes no sense.

too much. but if it helps, just let it out eck

Seriously Kev, get a DVR, it seems like you don't know ANYTHING that isn't wrestling or Baltimore sports related. The three actors were : Justin Long [mac guy] Jason Sudekis [SNL] and Charlie Day [its always sunny in Philadelphia]. They were horrible, which is a shame because Sudekis is very funny on SNL and Its always sunny... is easily one of the funniest shows on tv.

RESPONSE FROM KE: The only things I have time to watch on TV these days besides wrestling and sports are programs my 5-year-old watches. I know all the shows on Nick Jr. and PBS Kids. See, I do know things.

Tonight would not have worked at all unless one of the Nexus was exiled. Having another clean-sweep (ala the 7 vs 7 match a few weeks ago) would have taken whatever realism is left in this storyline. I actually think Darren Young will stay in Nexus but will have to be re-initiated or hazed in order to rejoin the group (made the carry bags etc.).

I was also browsing through Rolling Stone.com and look who John Cena is hanging out with on his off days...

http://www.rollingstone.com/culture/photos/17382/190096/12

As if we needed further proof that the Attitude Era will remain dead and buried...

You're forgetting that Danielson pinned The Miz on Raw.

Good Raw this week, with the exception of Cena's really rubbish promo at the start.

Hey Kev doesnt Daniel Bryan have 2 wins on WWE tv with the other win being against The Miz in a singles match.

It had to be extremely hard for Heath not to laugh when they kept cutting to him after the Wendy's picture came on screen.

Eck, you've been infatuated with Drew since you starred in ET with her.

First off, the new tag belts are absolutely hideous. Which is too bad considering they had 2 sets of great looking belts.

Second, it is too late to save Nexus for me. They had the chance to make them look dangerous at Summerfest but opted to go with the lame Super Cena route instead. I'm not impressed by half of them getting fluke victories. I just want this story line over now so we don't have to keep seeing their sorry butts every week. They had the chance to prove they could beat WWE and they can't.

Maybe one day the WWE will grow a pair again and let something exciting happen. Probably after Super Cena retires whenever that is.

Could the GM be... Vince Mcmahon. He does hate Bret Hart.

of all the people in the world, you have an infatuation with Drew???? Seriously??? By the way, her face reminds me of Gene Snitsky.

RESPONSE FROM KE: How dare you!

They keep changing the rules with the MIB.

Shamus would have to stand up and the bell ring before the match could happen. If he's out cold the match wouldn't start (at least those are the rules this time around)

Wow. Randy Orton has been on fire since becoming a babyface. Two questions Kev.

Firstly, do you think WWE will ever turn Cena heel and have another Orton-Cena fued, only with the roles reversed? It would be fresh in that sense and would make an unbelievable 'Mania main event.

Secondly, why do you think they choose to remove Darren Young? I actually thought he was pretty decent. Better than Tarver, did you see his attempted 'boxing strikes' on Raw and at Summerslam?

Great blog Kev, keep up the excellent work.

RESPONSE FROM KE: Cena will turn someday. As I said, I wouldn;t be surprised if Young may stay on ther roster even though he is out of Nexus.

Bronze tag team titles???? It just shows how much WWE cares about their tag team division. It's sad that a division with such a prestigious History has to keep getting crapped on by WWE. I guess I have to watch TNA if I would like to see quality tag team wrestling... Or wrestling at all...

So who is the next NXTer to go? I hope it is Heath Slater or David Otunga.

I was also looking forward to a Justin Gabriel-Evan Bourne match. That would have been entertaining and the could have sold it as being competitive as well. But they had to give Randy Orton and Sheamus some time in the spotlight.

At first, I was excited for Raw, but when I realized that all the Nexus guys were going to win (whether legitimately or by fluke), it got a bit boring. It would have been better to have got rid of Otunga, Slater, Tarver and Young and left a core of Barret, Sheffield and Gabriel to become a smaller and less disruptive stable than Nexus.

Hell, have those three feud with Cena and a couple of others.

Cena insulted his own mother and then made a gay joke about Gabriel. Sigh.

I think Justin Gabriel could be next one to Jump ship from the Nexus you can see on his face that he did not want to 450 Young just like McMahon.

@ Tony...curse you for getting that d@mn Dayman song stuck in my head.

Next week Young teams with Cena (did you see that look of regret on Cena's face when he knew Nexus was going to beat up on Young?) against 2 members of the Nexus, then Young turns on Cena, they all beat him down and Young rejoins Nexus.

It was definitely a love it or hate it show, with me squarely in the hate camp. But realistically, they backed themselves in a corner by not putting the group over at the PPV when it desperately needed credibility, and in general people have been come numb to their paint by the numbers attacks. Only Wade Barrett has credibility, plus beating Jericho doesn't have the panache it once did. Even the announcers struggled to make it seem like a big deal.

On another note, poor John Morrison. For someone who was hyped as the next Heartbreak Kid, he's looking more and more like the next 1-2-3 Kid.

The Nightman Cometh!

Yeah, i guess Young could remain on Raw. And i look forward to a heel Cena. Thanks.

cena vs wade sounds great without the rest of nexus

Who do you think the gm might be?
none of bret's rivals fit. It could be HHH or maybe the return of Savage. They did use him as an action figure and his tag line in a senate commmercial

Cena said that Young was the weak link in Nexus. Then Barrett says anyone who loses is out of Nexus. Did anyone besides me see Young being booted from Nexus right at the start of the show? That was like gift wrapping a house and thinking that nobody would know what is was! And my vote for Raw GM goes to.....HAL, the computer from 2010 A Space Odessy.

Well, last night's RAW answered my question about who the "tag champs" were. When the heck did the Hart Dynasty get those? God I must have fast-forward the match, like I do with every SINGLE Divas match. I miss the days when we had high-quality female talent. Gail Kim needs to get a push ASAP! Girl CAN wrestle.

Last night showed that it is no wonder why Wade Barrett is the leader of the Nexus. Dude is a beast and is slowly becoming one of my favorite wrestlers on the WWE roster.

And poor John Morrison... being compared to Marty Jannetty is just heartbreaking.

Khali sure got the better end of that deal.
Leaving with the Bella twins. I'm jealous.

RESPONSE FROM KE: The only things I have time to watch on TV these days besides wrestling and sports are programs my 5-year-old watches. I know all the shows on Nick Jr. and PBS Kids. See, I do know things.

I have a two year old. So it's all about Ni Hao KiLan, Fresh Beat Band and Calliou for me too. (Though I did show her the 450 splash from last night and she thought it was hysterical.)

Raw continues to disappoint each week. This week, however, I don't know which was worse -- This whole Nexus garbage or Cena's "gay" comments about Gabriel.

Perhaps I just don't get it. I don't understand how the WWE can profess "family-friendly" values and marginalize a group of people. Making comments about skin color, nationality, or religion would never be tolerated. However, references to someone's gay lifestyle is funny? Kevin, you in particular were critical of WWE's "Piggy James" bit. Can I ask why you are any less critical of "gay" references? Funny? I don't think so. I think it's sad.

A Steve Blackman reference....you don't get that everyday.

And speaking of wrestlers records, Jericho hasn't won a match since he beat Evan Bourne about 2 months ago.
Heck, Chavo Guerrero has a better record then him

I am sure Keith either meant to say 2001: A Space Odyssy or 2010: Odyssey 2.

Wow, 61 comments so far! You should mention Daniel Bryan anytime you need a site traffic boost. If you really want to get some attention, get his win loss record wrong in the blog. The IWC will type their fingers to a nub correcting any and all Daniel Bryan stats.

BTW...What was Shawn Michaels' win loss record?

A Young - Cena tag team would be interesting. Cena could make the save for him the next time and then team up with him for a while (in a student -teacher set up). Young could use the rub and Cena needs a new wrinkle. As bad as the tag division is these days, they could even put the belts on them.

Where did all of these comments come from? I didn't realize so many people continue to follow wrestling. I still intend to hold out until WWE or TNA actually come up with some interesting storylines again. Bring back the Attitude Era!

@Holden

"This week, however, I don't know which was worse -- This whole Nexus garbage or Cena's "gay" comments about Gabriel."

The comment he made was his haircut made him look like an Emo/Scene kid. Are you that ignorant that you thought that was a gay joke?!

One of the things that WWE could do with Young is to send him to Smackdown to form a babyface tag team.

Hehe... Cena/Young Tag Team??? I'd love to see them pull the "Ol' Switcheroo" move .... And have it work!!!!

PS: Nice work Kev.
Your Peeps from South Africa

@Dan: It was a gay joke.

The GM angle has grown OLD. And Nuxus is growing OLD!

WOOOOOOO

@Dan:

Stop being dense. Cracking wise about someone's "alternative lifestyle", and then saying he'd have to explain the joke on late-night TV for anyone who didn't get it? That's a gay joke, dude.

With Triple H still on hiatus, someone's gotta make gay jokes for all the 13 year olds to snicker at. Cena's just picking up the slack.

About time they took care of the tag team belts. i rather wear 1 belt to the ring as opposed to wear 1 and carry 1 to the ring.

here is the link of the new belts: http://www.sescoops.com/wrestling-news/wwe-news/new-wwe-tag-team-title-belts-pictures/

For the past couple of years I have watched both RAW and TNA. I have been intrigued by TNA up until Hogan came in. RAW was disgustingly boring until the short Monday Night Wars II began and the Nexus angle began. I fast forwarded most of RAW each week until then. Over the past couple of months I have been becoming more and more interested in TNA and last week really hooked me. I was hating the potential EV 2.0 angle that was developing but I think TNA handled it well in the end and has piqued my interest.

Let me preface what I'm about to say by saying that I have not purchased any wrestling PPV since 2000. Nothing has interested me enough. I feel I am closer now to purchasing a PPV than I have in a long time. I'll tell you, it is not WWE. I literally predicted 85% of that garbage they showed Monday night. I am becoming less and less interested in the Nexus angle week after week. How am I supposed to believe the Nexus is some powerful, unstoppable force to be reckoned with when they primarily win by screwball finishes? I have to hand it to TNA, they, for the most part, have clear winners in a match.

I'm not giving TNA a pass because they sure have screwed up lately more than they have right. However, if they can build on last week's show with more like that, I believe I will buy a wrestling PPV by the end of the year and it will be TNA. While watching the Beer Money/MCMG match I got flashes of the Rock and Roll Express vs. Midnight Express again. Those matches never got old and I believe I could watch Beer Money and MCMG multiple times.

As a long time fan of wrestling and a savvy fan at that, I am consistently disgusted with how WWE hands us this kind of programming week after week. Sometimes creativity springs from adversity and I hope Vince McMahon faces adversity like he did in the 90's to pull up the creativity bar once again.

I am convinced more and more that Vince Russo is the RAW GM. Just look at the writing lately.

"Not only does he have the face of Cena, but he also has the body of The Rock and the hair of Sheamus. Too bad he also seems to have the charisma of Steve Blackman."

The Blackman line absolutely killed me. Nice one, Kev.

holden my friend, what makes you think that Kevin wasn't critical of it, just because he didn't over-analyze it? Stop over-insuating jsut because it's not spelled out to you (the sad part, I agree the comment itself was beneath Cena and wwe)