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LOOKING AT AN "A LIST CELEBRITIES" EDITION OF MONDAY NIGHT RAW 

Well, they were in Los Angeles so that meant we would see celebrity crossover for the wrestling company that now makes movies.  Unfortunately, the level of star that is willing to come onto WWE TV ain't what it used to be, which led to a couple of long and lame angles that dragged down what would have otherwise been a decent show.  There was some solid wrestling and some lame creative.  That's far too often what WWE TV is these days.

The Matches: The fans were into the Spirit Squad vs. Cryme Tyme match.  Was it because it was a decent bout or because it was the first action of the show and the debut of a new team?  I will go with the latter.  It wasn't bad but it certainly wasn't good.  People do seem like the gimmick though.  They see it for the comedy that Vinnie Mac means for it to be. ... The IC Title match was really good and easily the best part of the show.  It was a strong bout that was fast paced and fun to watch.  It was the high point of the evening. ... Wow, after all the talking that they gave us after the first couple of bouts, they decided to give us a Carlito squash.  Thanks WWE and man, you were lucky that audience was as happy to be there as they were.  A more discerning crowd, after sitting through that much yakking, may have turned on this show. ... The ladies?  It wasn't even a match, which probably isn't a bad thing.  It was fast, which I appreciate, but it wasn't a match.  Maria is hot in a non-diva way at least so I never mind watching her..  It's nice seeing nice looking, normal looking women get a push on WWE TV every now and then. ... Given the rest of the slop on the show, Orton vs. HHH was one of the better things.  It was a decent-to-good match but given the rest of this show, it probably seemed better than it normally would have.  I will freely admit that I don't care for Orton, since he bores me, so maybe that is why I didn't like the bout more.  I will also admit that I am not looking forward to this feud much at all.  But, I do think Triple H will get the best out of Orton so hopefully I will be pleasantly surprised by it. With that said though, it's nice to see DX facing real, top name guys instead of the McMahons.

The Angles: For every laugh that the opening segment got, there were three lines that made me say, "Why has this thing gone on this long?"  I guess some people popped for it, but to me when all you can do is call another guy gay to get babyface heat, well that says a lot about what is wrong with your product.  Then again, when you have middle-aged guys playing teenagers, I guess they have to play the part. ... Well, Cryme Tyme sure did get a big pop coming out.  I would be lying if I told you I was surprised by that.  I knew that even though the gimmick didn't do much for me that it would probably connect with a good portion of the fan base, and it has.  As soon as they were put in the ring with The Spirit Squad, WWE creative backed the fans who popped for them up by telling them, "Yes, these guys are faces so cheer them". ... I just love that Vince McMahon is back on TV and he doesn't acknowledge that he got a taste of his own anal medicine from DX when he checked Big Show for hemorrhoids.  It just makes me feel like they think the fans are nitwits when they totally ignore past storyline moments and then move on like nothing happened.  But, that is the WWE way and if it means that they are ending the McMahons' feud with DX, I am all for it this time around. ... Vince wants one of three belts on the line at Cyber Sunday, OK.  Will they pick Booker or Big Show's so Cena can win another belt or will they show us that the lesser brands don't matter and put Cena's title on the line?  This will be interesting. ... You know, watching Johnny Nitro, Melina and Britney Federline, I was actually finding myself longing for the days when WWE let Melina and Nitro do their press conference.  Yep, it was that bad and killed the show for me.  Well, that and the next group of goobers at least. ... I didn't at all care for all the non-wrestling "talent" on the show but watching Umaga destroy the Jackass goobers was pretty funny at least.  That one goof showed he was truly insane by not selling Umaga's work and "forcing" the big man to stiff him.  That was a definite highlight of the show. ... It was really desperate to hear WWE putting over the "A Listers" all night only to have lame people like Mr. Spears and some jokers from Jackass appear.  That says a lot about what WWE thinks is over to me, and it doesn't say anything good.  It also says a lot about the level of celebrities that used to be willing to come on WWE TV vs. those that are willing to do so now.  If that was the best that they could come up with in LA, they are better off not bothering with supposed celebrities anymore.

The Questions:

Why didn't Edge play Shawn Michaels since he is the smaller of the two guys on his team?

Then again, wasn't Edge's HHH nose kind of funny?

Did Edge have a point when he said that only simpletons got off on DX's humor?

When Triple H said Randy Orton was the most downloaded superstar on the web, did anyone else wonder if JR somehow got his hands on my email from Randy's psycho fan base?

As soon as Melina said they had an "A List celebrity" coming out, didn't that tell you (even if you didn't read the spoilers) that they wouldn't deliver one?

When JR said he saw "The Marine" and that the theater was full, didn't it point out (given the bad first weekend at the gate) that he was at one of the few places in the country that actually had a good crowd for the flick?

And, shouldn't they just rename their movie division "XFL Films" already?

How funny/sad was it for Booker to say "I don't speak ebonics"?

Did you ever think we would say the day that out of Super Crazy, Chris Masters and Shelton Benjamin, Crazy is the one who has booked as being the most legit challenger for the IC belt?

When Jerry Lawler said "the Master Lock has never been broken" would anyone else have been popped if JR said, "Because no one cares to try King"?

Wasn't it funny that later on JR also pushed that no one has broken the Master Lock, like it matters at all at this point?

Can someone please tell me that I didn't hear Booker T say, "They all look alike to me"?

Where the hell did Big Show find a bowling shirt that big?

Hey Vince, why is it you came back and never mentioned how DX made you eat Big Show's crust?

How can anyone take Johnny Nitro seriously when he acts like Kevin Federline is anything other than a guy who married a has-been?

And what does it say about K-Ded's "career" when the best gig he has gotten since his wedding was appearing on Raw?

Did I really hear the wannabe Federline call other people posers?

Would you have cared more about Cena FU'ing K Fed if, well, you actually cared about K Fed?

And how sad is it for him when even wrestling announcers have to keep referring to him as "Britney Spears' husband"?

Does anyone believe that Jerry Lawler had any idea who Steve O was?

And, would he have had more credibility if he were talking about an actress from Veronica Mars than an actor from Jackass 2?

Did anyone else forget that Rob Conway was still with WWE until last night?

When Vince told Edge, "You've got a future in the business kid", wouldn't it have been funny if he replied, "Only if you give up your role in creative, dude!"?

As soon as Steve O said, "I like Shane from the Cruiser division" didn't it pretty much guarantee someone was going to destroy him?

Did anyone else enjoy when Umaga got a little extra stiff at the end with Steve O when he didn't sell the way that he should have?

Did Lawler tell us who 3 Six Mafia were because, well, hardly anyone actually knows who they are?

Did someone forget to tell Victoria that women are supposed to come to the ring in slinky outfits instead of their uncle's long underwear?

Does anyone really believe that Eric Bischoff was ever close to pulling the plug on the nWo or ready to let Hulk Hogan go?

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