Wednesday, September 30, 2009

Raw Revelations: Sharpton - Guest or Host?


The usually outspoken Reverend Al Sharpton was announced as guest host for this past week's episode of Raw, but he actually did very little in the form of hosting. Sharpton basically gave his blessing to the MVP & Mark Henry versus Chris Jericho and Big Show match for the Unified Tag Team titles at the start of the show. He also had to work a tough crowd early in the show, as the Albany Raw fans weren't exactly receptive towards the controversial political activist, who MVP tried to get some hype going for. MVP kept butting in to "interpret" what Sharpton was saying so the fans could understand his political messages of inspiration. Not sure if fans should feel insulted over that, but the match progressed and as many expected Jericho & Show will keep their titles going into Hell in a Cell. Sharpton's only other real involvement at the show was to shake hands with various wrestlers and be on camera during their squabbles.

Sharpton was pretty much a non-factor in the show, almost more of a guest speaker or guest politician on the show to make sure his education reform tour video was shown. It's a noble cause, so I'm all for it, and with Hell in a Cell coming up, they probably wanted to put more emphasis on the Pay-Per-View buildup then Sharpton as host. He didn't seem to mind that role, of the more quiet and laid back guest on the show. He did try to do a little entertaining when the Bella Twins came out for their 2 minute skit to beg him to sing and dance for them. The Bella Twins apparently aren't just on ECW's roster, because they've now shown up on Raw the past two weeks, not that many fans are complaining.

It seems that Santino Marella is the latest on the food chain to be Hornswoggle's big brother, as he was teamed up with the leprechaun for a tag match against Chavo Guerrero and Chris Masters. Masters won it after locking the Masterlock on Santino and causing him to pass out. Afterwords, he grabbed Hornswoggle to bring into the ring for some punishment. In an interesting twist, Chavo Guerrero showed some mercy towards his diminutive foe. Chris Masters was putting a half-masterlock on the little guy, and at first Chavo enjoyed it, then decided it was enough and punched Masters. Masters was shocked by this, and maybe the fans were a bit shocked too. Even Chavo was shocked. Stay tuned...

It will be interesting to see who wins the United States Title match at Hell in a Cell. Both The Miz and Jack Swagger present interesting prospective champions, although Kingston seems to have a good deal of popularity amongst the WWE Universe. Also, the United States Title has been one of the most lengthy reigns of any title around lately. It still seems that may be the only title changing hands at the event, although the WWE loves to give Undertaker a major title for a few weeks at a time, so you never know. I won't rule out Batista and Mysterio either.

There was a "saw that coming" moment later during Raw, because as soon as anyone viewing the show at home caught a glimpse of the Hell in a Cell cage hanging up above the ring, it was clear it would be lowering down for Cena and Orton. Then again you may have been expecting one of those typical, "Cena gets beaten to a pulp before the PPV so we don't know if he'll make it to Sunday" situations, but Cena overcame once again. He actually was beaten to a pulp if you count the Chris Jericho and Big Show Gauntlet matches. Normally wrestlers don't bounce back after that sort of beating, but Cena isn't normal. Usually heading into the PPV event, they make it look like the champ is on the ropes, so it was interesting to see Cena end the show with an Attitude Adjustment on top of the cage. Makes you wonder what's in store for Sunday...

As for Raw next Monday, the guest host is NFL Pittsburgh Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger, and the media's already picking this story up. Ben's a two-time Superbowl champion, and apparently is going to bring his offensive line along with him for the show. USA Today smartly points out that Raw will be airing opposite quarterback Bret Favre's debut on Monday Night Football with his new team the Minnesota Vikings as they face his former longtime team the Green Bay Packers. You've gotta give the WWE credit for trying right?

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