To all my faithful readers, I know there has been a severe lack of Dog Pound lately. The reason for that for that is simply, I have been so let down with the WWE as of late, I haven’t really found anything worth writing about. There are bright spots for sure (especially on Smackdown,) like CM Punk as the World Champion, Jericho/Mysterio, Jeff Hardy, John Morrison, Edge, etc. However, there is one show that has been lacking so much as of late that I feel its really bringing everything else down. I’m speaking of the WWE’s flagship show Monday Night Raw.
It may just be my opinion, but ever since this latest WWE draft, Raw has lacked something severely. A couple weeks ago when Chris Jericho showed up for the three-hour special, he hit the nail on the head. Ever since he went to Smackdown, Raw has gone down the tubes. Now, I’m not saying the success of Raw was all because of Jericho, but he certainly brought some attitude with him to the show. In the grand scheme of things, that may very well be it; Raw is just lacking an attitude.
Most of the blame I feel can be placed on the fact that Raw has become a show focused more on skits and backstage segments than actual wrestling. I mean you’d figure with all the main event and big name guys on the show they’d have much more to offer in that department. However, instead we fans are getting a lot of the same fueds and matches over and over and over again. How many times can we see Big Show face John Cena and have to hear Cole snd King wonder just how Cena is able to lift the giant? And don’t get me wrong, I like seeing Triple H and Randy Orton mix it up but how many times can we see Legacy try to jump Trips, get beat down and then Orton either runs or gets beat himself?
Let’s not forget either, that Batista will be back sooner than later and he’ll be right back in the mix for the title. So we’ll have the pleasure of seeing Batista vs. Orton again for the 13,000 time in less than a year! Now all you readers know how I feel about that; Batista to me is not a main eventer and should not get that spot.
There needs to be a changeover to freshen things up on Raw, and it needs to happen soon! What happened to MVP? When he dropped the U.S. title I thought for sure it was a call-up into the main event; especially after having a decent match with Randy Orton. For now it appears not as he was in that Triple Threat Match on SuperStars.
There are some bright spots on Raw that make it worth watching, and I wish the WWE would capitalize on what they may have. I already mentioned MVP (who deserves to at least get a small main event push to see how he does). then there’s Kofi Kingston the current United States Champion. This guy is amazingly talented and with more time on the mic could develop into something really big in the future. Then, the big name on the brand who has come such a long way..he is…THE MIZ.
Since coming to Raw during the draft and splitting from Morrison, Miz has stepped up his game to a whole new level. Having him call out John Cena right away was a smart move on the creative front; and having this small fued build and build in these early summer months has been another good move. I will say this, the Miz NEEDS to win at The Bash. There would be no excuse if the WWE has Cena go over in this match. I don’t care if Miz wins by cheating or by DQ, he needs the win a whole lot more than John Cena. Cena has already been established as the Superman of this generation, and a loss here would not hurt him in the least, but a win for the Miz could do HUGE things. To have Miz lose at The Bash would just end everything they’ve built to this point. I can’t wait to see what happens at the ppv.
With that, I’ll end this column with my predictions for the PPV this Sunday. The Bash has always been one a ppv I never really cared for, but here are my predictions nonethe less:
Legacy beats Primo/Carlito for the Unified Tag Titles. Legacy has looked weak since they’ve come together with Orton, so they need a win here to make themselves look like a legit threat to anyone.
Rey Mysterio beats Chris Jericho to win back the IC title and keep his mask. There is no way the WWE will have Rey lose his mask; its a huge seller with the kids and a great marketing tool. There is a chance it will end in a DQ to keep the fued going through Night of Champions, so we’ll see what happens.
Great Khali beats Dolph Ziggler. I like Ziggler and I believe he is another future star for the company. However, I pick Khali here because Ziggler has gotten the upperhand on him every week. The loss wouldn’t really hurt him that bad either.
Melina beats McCool to retain the Woman’s Title. This fued is to young to have the title change hands now. Melina is a strong face for the brand, and it will only intensify the fued overall.
I see Tommy Dreamer winning the ECW Scramble Match to retain the ECW title. It would be too soon to have Dreamer lose the title, and would make his win seem meaningless. I say Dreamer has at least another month with the title in him.
Randy Orton beats Triple H to retain the WWE title. At least this is what I hope happens. I think the top titles have been jumping around way to much latetly and to have Orton lose the title again this soon would make him look like a truly weak champion.
CM Punk beats Jeff Hardy to retain the World title. Again, it would be way to soon for Punk to lose and he has been on fire since winning the belt. I expect to hear a lot of pro-hardy chants here, so maybe a full Punk heel turn is in store!
Thats it for now peeps, feel free to email me with comments and feedback!
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