Dean Ambrose, Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns’ first interview, a CM Punk/Kane match and continued development in the John Cena/AJ Lee/Dolph Ziggler and Vikki Guerrero angle.
From this alone, it’s easy to see that this was an episode of Monday Night RAW that had plenty of drama and action.
While the matches were short and none of the plot development overtly telling, this was a good teaser episode leading closer to TLC on Dec. 10.
Matches:
Titus O’Neill w/ Darren Young vs. Ryback: WWE’s hottest rookie made short work of O’Neill. After he hit a massive front powerslam, he nailed the Meat Hook Clothesline before he finished off the 300-pounder with the Shellshock.
Alberto Del Rio w/Ricardo Rodriguez vs. The Great Khali: Del Rio made a joke of the former World Champion with the Cross-Arm-Breaker in a quick bout.
Alicia Foxx vs. Tamina Snuka: Super Fly Splash. That’s all Snuka needed to take out Foxx.
Intercontinental Champion Kofi Kingston vs. Tensai: The big man had his way with Kingston early on, going through his signature offense. Kingston made a comeback with some big time leg work. Tensai blocked the Trouble in Paradise, but Kingston answered quickly with a Cross Body from outside into the ring for the win.
WWE Tag Team Champion Daniel Bryan vs. Rey Mysterio: This was a good match, as it featured a nice combination of technical showcase, submission and spots. This contest was at its best when the two traded counters. Mysterio won with the 619/Dime Drop combination.
John Cena vs. Dolph Ziggler: This could have been the main event. These two worked hard and it paid off. The chemistry is there and although the storyline is a bit weak, these two had a great match. Ziggler’s jumping DDT was the highlight of the match. Cena kicked out of the Zig-Zag and although he “hurt†his knee, interference from Lee and Guerrero led to a Cena AA for the win.
Sheamus vs. United States Champion Antonio Cesaro: This was a fantastic match as these two battled back and forth for nearly 15 minutes. Cesaro hit some power moves on Sheamus that no one has dared even try. The count-out win by Sheamus doesn’t hurt Sheamus, but it sure does prove Cesaro is the real deal.
Damien Sandow vs. Zack Ryder: Sandow sent a message to Cena by beating on his buddy. After some back and forth, Sandow won with his signature hanging neckbreaker variation.
WWE Heavyweight Champion CM Punk vs. Tag Team Champion Kane: Pretty routine encounter. Nothing special. Things got fun at the end when Kane hit the Chokeslam and Paul Heyman got involved though. So sad that Punk can’t beat Kane without help. The Shield was also ringside during the match. Punk won with the GTS.
After the match, The Shield took out Kane and Daniel Bryan. Later on, Ryback hit the ring and had some fun with the threesome, but was eventually beat down again too.
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