RAW Deal: It’s a RAW Christmas without you

MINNEAPOLIS, USA – It’s Christmas and the world is a dark place that always needs some more holiday cheer, so RAW Deal will be all about that this week.

It’s Christmas, so let’s forget about the fact that this show is essentially a Yuletide-themed rehash of the Tables, Ladders, and Chairs… and Stairs PPV. Almost 100% rehashed, even. At least it’s not totally recycled, right? I mean some of it is, but it’s Christmas, so everything gets holiday trappings.

Let’s not dwell on the fact that Hulk Hogan was Santa Claus this year, and not St. Mick Foley.

Let’s not think about the fact that tonight, John Cena and Seth Rollins faced each other one-on-one for the third time in two weeks. Don’t get yourself down this Christmas by not even considering we’ve seen the exact same spots involving J&J Security somewhere down the line a week ago. You can say that Cena and Rollins put out a great match—they did, as they usually do, because they’re two of the best wrestlers in the world—but don’t you even think about why they’re so good together, why they already know each other’s strengths and weaknesses, inside and out. Don’t even get it in your head that it might be because their matchup is getting as redundant as the reviled Cena/Orton in only less than half the time.

Don’t let the rest of the world get you down. It was an okay RAW, but the Minneapolis crowd didn’t seem to think so. Don’t let them bring your mood down, fervent wrestling fan. I mean, their hometown hero, the reigning defending WWE heavyweight champion of the world Brock Lesnar didn’t even make the 30-minute drive down from his farm to follow up on his threats from last week.

Everyone was asleep by the time Bray Wyatt and Dean Ambrose (tried) to tear the house down in the main event (a Miracle on 34th Street Fight), which is a shame because they tried so hard. Never mind the fact that they re-used (almost) all the props they had at TLC (no exploding monitors). They even had the very same result! Too bad; they put in the work, but the eggnog-hit crowd made it less of a deal than it should’ve been.

But hey, it’s okay! Just because they didn’t like it, doesn’t mean you shouldn’t, too.

It’s Christmas, so you should be thankful for a few things. Like Adam Rose finally turning heel completely. Like Dolph Ziggler and Luke Harper putting on a hell of an Intercontinental championship rematch. Like Natalya finally getting another shot at the Divas championship. Like Roman Reigns and Big Show surprisingly delivering a serviceable match. For every dark night, there is a bright star shining somewhere, and the cold, cold winter of the WWE Universe is no exception.

It’s like every Christmas morning—you take the presents you can get.=

Things you might have missed last week: There was a wonderful match between The Uppercats (the newly-formed bromance between workhorses Tyson Kidd and Cesaro) and Los Matadores, showcasing the tremendous amount of work both overlooked teams can put out. You should find the full match.

Lucha Underground had not one, but two 10-man Battle Royals for a good chance at the new Lucha Underground championship (made out of gold stolen from seven Aztec tribes), and they’re both exhilarating! Check out this one, featuring the younger, up-and-coming luchadores on the show. 

Finally, Adrian Neville and the (despicable) Kevin Owens put on a solid match on NXT that’ll definitely make you want to boo the villainous Owens. (Because otherwise, you’d cheer the heck out of him.)

Did you miss the huge slew of awesome wrestling shows the other week? Do you listen to podcasts? Would you want to listen to a local podcast about pro wrestling? If the answers to most of those questions—especially that last one—are yes, then you should check out the cleverly-named Smark Gilas-Pilipinas Podcast—featuring Mellow 94.7 DJ and PWR General Manager Stan Sy, wrestling writer Romeo Moran, and all-around multimedia person (and voice of the PWR) Raf Camus! On their latest episode, the boys cover the last three big shows: NXT Takeover R-Evolution, PWR Terminus, and WWE TLC! Check it out here! – Rappler.com