Tha Raw Report: Push It, Pull It

Put bluntly, last night's "Raw" was good. It had the feeling that a lot of guys who may have been underused in the past were about to finally get a push of some sort. However, it also had the feel of other wrestlers being held back, or, as Dan coined, "put under".

Tonight, Jeff Hardy did something he has done little of in his career...he talked. Jeff held his own on the mic (telling off Vince McMahon, the true pedigree of a main eventer), but I almost think that he might be a "less is more" kind of guy. Keep his promos short, simple, and to the point. Jeff Hardy is a guy whose ring work can clearly speak volumes for itself.

I don't know if the comparison to Saddam was used as a way of plugging "Tribute To The Troops", but either way, my point from earlier this year has been proven. How many times is Vince going to run a "I'm losing my mind" storyline? On the plus side, WWE has opened the door for a new superstar to be born overnight. Bear with me on this-

Vince is always having these angles where he sinks into madness/depression. So, introduce a new wrestler whose gimmick is that he's a pharmacist. Vince gets copious amounts of Zoloft and Prozac, and out of gratitude, gives the superstar title match after title match. Oh, man, what a sweet idea. How awesome am I?

The man who claimed to be closer to Vince than anyone, Triple H, really seems to be putting aside his ego lately. First he puts over Jeff Hardy, and now, it seems that he's set to put over Ric Flair in two weeks on the New Year's Eve edition of "Raw". As for tonight, Ric Flair faced a guy who is being constantly put under in Umaga. At this point last year, Umaga was still undefeated, and was heading into a main event match to face John Cena for the title. Now, he hasn't won a match ever since he got with his hand in the syringe jar. I suppose the upside here is that it was a loss by count-out, which makes Umaga seem like less of a job machine.

Getting back to Triple H, he faced Coach and William Regal in a Handicap Match tonight. This match seemed pointless from all aspects. Can we turn this guy heel already so he can stop trying to do these comedy spots? I suppose that as long as he's not burying everyone under the sun, I don't care.

The Great Santino Debate seems to now be a thing of the past, and it would seem that those who sided with Dan were right after all. Those wins meant nothing in the means of getting him over, and were just filler until they figured out something to do with him. He is now involved in a tag team with Carlito. Looking into my crystal ball (which is much different than looking into Donnie's balls, which Frank likes to do), I would imagine that these two men will be the next tag team champions. Apparently WWE really doesn't care about tag team wrestling, as both titles are held by makeshift teams. Oh, well. At least we got to hear the great line from Santino last night-"My partner likes to swap spit with those who aren't cool!" Classic.

Okay, I think certain people may have misinterpreted my point about JBL last night. I am very excited to see JBL wrestling again, and thought the segment with he and Y2J last night was great. However, I also think that this program should not be on "Raw". Jibbles is a "SmackDown!" guy, and the roster on that show is far thinner than that of its Monday night counterpart. Let this feud take place on "SmackDown!", which is in worse need of star power.

Getting back to Jeff Hardy, he was involved in the main event, along with Shawn Michaels, Mr. Kennedy, and Randy Orton. It would seem that Michaels and Kennedy will be feuding for at least a little while longer, which is always good. I don't understand the insistence of some people that Kennedy shouldn't be getting exposure. Back when Randy first won the World Heavyweight Championship back in 2004, people thought he didn't deserve the spot. However, through being put in big feuds and gaining experience, he continues to get better everyday, and he has truly earned the spot he has right now.

How is Kennedy ever going to take his game to the next level if he's stuck feuding with midcarders and curtain jerkers? If the company really believes in him, and believes that he can get over, this is smart booking. Let him play with the big boys; a trial by fire is often a great way to teach someone. Over time, he'll get more acquainted with that spot, and he'll get better and better, until he's at a level like Randy Orton is now.

As for the match itself, Hardy went over. I'm hopeful that the third time is the charm here. I'm really hoping that Jeff Hardy has cleaned up his act for good, and that he's going to be around for a long time, and that he's finally going to break the glass ceiling. However, a lot of that is going to be based on whether or not WWE drops the ball on this current push. I don't expect him to win the championship at Royal Rumble, but as long as he isn't one-and-done in the main event, that's fine. After all, Shawn Michaels lost his first title match at WrestleMania, and I think he turned out fine.

Tha Results:
*Mickie James, Maria, Kelly Kelly and Michelle McCool def. Melina, Jillian, Layla and Victoria
*Triple H def. William Regal & Jonathan Coachman
*Team Whitey (Cody Rhodes & Hardcore Holly) def. Lance Cade & Trevor Murdoch
*Ric Flair def. Umaga
*Carlito & Santino Marella def. Paul London & Brian Kendrick
*Jeff Hardy & Shawn Michaels def. Randy Orton & Mr. Kennedy

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