Columnist Corner
Featured Columnist Graham "GSM" Matthews
Every week, Bleacher Report Featured Columnist Graham "GSM" Matthews analyzes the weekly Monday Night Raw and Friday Night SmackDown broadcasts, as well as the monthly WWE pay-per-view events.
These reviews and recaps cover each segment, match, and an overall look as to how the program either succeeded or failed in making the show worthy of watching.
These reviews and recaps cover each segment, match, and an overall look as to how the program either succeeded or failed in making the show worthy of watching.
Monday Night Raw SuperShow - February 20, 2012
CM Punk extends his hand to Chris Jericho.
Intriguing segment to kick off the show featuring John Cena and Eve. Sure, Eve's overdue heel turn came out of absolutely nowhere, but that's what made this segment enjoyable. Although Cena's name-calling of Eve might be a bit too derogatory, it got the crowd behind him, which is a very good sign heading into his feud with The Rock.
Brief match with Sheamus dominating Mark Henry that should have gone much longer than it did. These two former rivals had yet to have a blow-off bout to their rivalry last summer, and this was no way to go about it. Nonetheless, it beats Sheamus going over enhancement talent as he prepares for his World Heavyweight Championship shot at WrestleMania.
Good tag team match with Kofi Kingston and R-Truth defeating WWE Tag Team Champions Primo and Epico in a non-title bout. I like the team of Truth and Kingston given their chemistry, but I don't want to see either star resort back to the tag team division when they have brighter futures in singles competition going into WrestleMania. I'd rather have them compete in the returning Money in the Bank Ladder Match at the event if nothing else.
Big congratulations go out to Ron Simmons for finally entering the WWE Hall of Fame. The video package was well done and even mentioned the fact that he was the pioneer for other African-American stars of the present. As Ron himself would say, it's about damn time.
Throwaway match between David Otunga and Ezekiel Jackson that felt meaningless. I'm not too psyched about this feud between John Laurinaitis and Teddy Long since there has been no apparent tension between the shows for years, but at least it's something. On a side note, it's nice to see Otunga get somewhat of a push since that finisher he performed on Jackson was pretty impressive for my liking.
Read the conclusion of this review and more recaps at the Columnist Corner.
Brief match with Sheamus dominating Mark Henry that should have gone much longer than it did. These two former rivals had yet to have a blow-off bout to their rivalry last summer, and this was no way to go about it. Nonetheless, it beats Sheamus going over enhancement talent as he prepares for his World Heavyweight Championship shot at WrestleMania.
Good tag team match with Kofi Kingston and R-Truth defeating WWE Tag Team Champions Primo and Epico in a non-title bout. I like the team of Truth and Kingston given their chemistry, but I don't want to see either star resort back to the tag team division when they have brighter futures in singles competition going into WrestleMania. I'd rather have them compete in the returning Money in the Bank Ladder Match at the event if nothing else.
Big congratulations go out to Ron Simmons for finally entering the WWE Hall of Fame. The video package was well done and even mentioned the fact that he was the pioneer for other African-American stars of the present. As Ron himself would say, it's about damn time.
Throwaway match between David Otunga and Ezekiel Jackson that felt meaningless. I'm not too psyched about this feud between John Laurinaitis and Teddy Long since there has been no apparent tension between the shows for years, but at least it's something. On a side note, it's nice to see Otunga get somewhat of a push since that finisher he performed on Jackson was pretty impressive for my liking.
Read the conclusion of this review and more recaps at the Columnist Corner.
Friday Night SmackDown - February 17, 2012
Superstars fight for a spot in the Elimination Chamber.
Decent tag team match with Big Show and Great Khali defeating Intercontinental Champion Cody Rhodes and Wade Barrett. Of course, anything containing Khali will be extremely limited, but it was fine for what it was. I hate the fact that neither Barrett nor Rhodes have gotten any momentum going into Sunday, which will hinder their chances of winning the Elimination Chamber.
Big Show going crazy was interesting since we don't usually see this from his character. I wouldn't necessarily call this a heel turn, but it's what's expected going into the Chamber. However, I do have a feeling a heel turn is imminent to set up a WrestleMania match with Shaq.
Good match from Ted DiBiase and Hunico, but it just felt like much of the same from last week. I'm glad they're involved in a program together, but they haven't done the best job promoting it or properly building it. Both Superstars need wins, and I'd rather see them move on in separate directions.
Fun tag team match with WWE Tag Team Champions Primo and Epico defeating the Usos in a very high-paced bout. The ending moments were incredibly suspenseful and almost had me thinking the Usos might just pick up the victory. These two teams work really well together, so I hope this isn't the last time we see them collide.
Excellent match between World Heavyweight Champion Daniel Bryan and Sheamus. Originally, I wasn't happy we were seeing this on SmackDown when it can instead be saved for WrestleMania, but the ending gave Bryan a victory while also protecting Sheamus. This could have been a possible preview of what's to come between the two, so I'm excited we'll be seeing more from them in the near future.
Read the conclusion of this review and more recaps at the Columnist Corner.
Big Show going crazy was interesting since we don't usually see this from his character. I wouldn't necessarily call this a heel turn, but it's what's expected going into the Chamber. However, I do have a feeling a heel turn is imminent to set up a WrestleMania match with Shaq.
Good match from Ted DiBiase and Hunico, but it just felt like much of the same from last week. I'm glad they're involved in a program together, but they haven't done the best job promoting it or properly building it. Both Superstars need wins, and I'd rather see them move on in separate directions.
Fun tag team match with WWE Tag Team Champions Primo and Epico defeating the Usos in a very high-paced bout. The ending moments were incredibly suspenseful and almost had me thinking the Usos might just pick up the victory. These two teams work really well together, so I hope this isn't the last time we see them collide.
Excellent match between World Heavyweight Champion Daniel Bryan and Sheamus. Originally, I wasn't happy we were seeing this on SmackDown when it can instead be saved for WrestleMania, but the ending gave Bryan a victory while also protecting Sheamus. This could have been a possible preview of what's to come between the two, so I'm excited we'll be seeing more from them in the near future.
Read the conclusion of this review and more recaps at the Columnist Corner.
WWE Elimination Chamber - February 19, 2012
CM Punk successfully retains his WWE Championship.
Solid Raw Elimination Chamber match that featured entertaining action throughout. Kofi Kingston was essentially the John Morrison of this year's Chamber match and truly shined. I was surprised to see The Miz last until the very end, and with that being said, he had a strong showing as well. Chris Jericho's "elimination" from the bout was very anticlimactic as many were expecting him to re-enter at the end, but at least it protected him going into WrestleMania.
Great Divas Championship match that was certainly one of the better ones in recent months. It's no secret that both Beth Phoenix and Tamina have chemistry, and Phoenix was able to carry her opponent to a decent seven-minute match. Now, we can hopefully move forward to Kharma challenging the Glamazon for the strap at WrestleMania 28.
Intriguing segment with the returns of Christian, Alberto Del Rio, and Mark Henry. Other than that, the announcement from John Lauriniaitis fell flat and wasn't really anything noteworthy. It was established that he plans to take the General Manager spot from Teddy Long, but this segment felt meaningless as a whole.
Suspenseful SmackDown Elimination Chamber match that started off slow, but got extremely hot towards the end. Sure, I was beyond frustrated that someone like Santino Marella eliminated two future World Champions in Wade Barrett and Cody Rhodes, but they've been buried over the last few weeks anyways, so it wasn't much to complain over. Besides, the crowd was at its hottest for Santino and it also had me doubting my original prediction of Bryan retaining. Thankfully, Bryan showed some real aggression for the first time in ages and looked strong in successfully defending his World Heavyweight Championship.
Read the conclusion of this review and more recaps at the Columnist Corner.
Great Divas Championship match that was certainly one of the better ones in recent months. It's no secret that both Beth Phoenix and Tamina have chemistry, and Phoenix was able to carry her opponent to a decent seven-minute match. Now, we can hopefully move forward to Kharma challenging the Glamazon for the strap at WrestleMania 28.
Intriguing segment with the returns of Christian, Alberto Del Rio, and Mark Henry. Other than that, the announcement from John Lauriniaitis fell flat and wasn't really anything noteworthy. It was established that he plans to take the General Manager spot from Teddy Long, but this segment felt meaningless as a whole.
Suspenseful SmackDown Elimination Chamber match that started off slow, but got extremely hot towards the end. Sure, I was beyond frustrated that someone like Santino Marella eliminated two future World Champions in Wade Barrett and Cody Rhodes, but they've been buried over the last few weeks anyways, so it wasn't much to complain over. Besides, the crowd was at its hottest for Santino and it also had me doubting my original prediction of Bryan retaining. Thankfully, Bryan showed some real aggression for the first time in ages and looked strong in successfully defending his World Heavyweight Championship.
Read the conclusion of this review and more recaps at the Columnist Corner.
Alumni Archive - Roger Gaylord
Roger Gaylord
Being one of the elite few to debut on the inaugural episode of AJM, Roger Gaylord has found success in the span of his three year NEW career including becoming a multiple tag team champion alongside his brothers, Greg and Gary, as well as emerge victorious as Intercontinental Champion in his own right. Following an attack from Billy Deadman a few months back, Roger hasn't been seen since, but his legacy of being an original will never be forgotten.
Meet more Next Era Wrestling Alumni by clicking here.
Meet more Next Era Wrestling Alumni by clicking here.
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