Criss Angel was one of the more interesting guest hosts of late.
It was not just name value and what Angel brings to the table as a "mind freak" magician, but he was able to produce different backstage skits than the usual guest hosts.
Criss Angel
1. Hornswoggle and the Bella Twins. REACT: Angel was here to promote his Las Vegas "Believe" show, which sounds cool. But he doesn't use twins in his shows? Shame on him.
2. Thread into mouth and out eye. REACT: Coolest trick he did the entire show.
3. Silencing Jillian's voice. REACT: Funny, but not realistic.
4. Match made. REACT: Good to see a guest host make a match for a change again, as Angel made the Evan Bourne vs. William Regal match.
5. Write down a number. REACT: The Number 56 was used here in what was mostly a waste-of-time segment. Regal losing a bet with his NXT rookie, Skip Sheffield, was funny because of the Travis Tritt CD.
6. Knife under which four cups with Santino Marella participating. REACT: Shouldn't there have been a "Don't try this at home" warning on this one? As my wife said, like he really would have smashed the cup with the knife under it. Dumb segment.
7. Guest ring announcer. REACT: He seemed to be having fun, so he gets points for that.
Guest host analysis: Different, and that's usually good. Better than average, but not by much. Angel's grade: C+.
The matches
1. Eve/Kelly Kelly/Gail Kim beat Alicia Fox/Katie Lea/Divas Champion Maryse. REACT: Gail and Eve seemed to carry this match. Eve getting Maryse to submit was shocking. I guess it's something new.
2. Unified Tag Team Champions The Miz/Big Show vs. John Morrison/R-Truth ends in a no-contest. REACT: Too quick, and this WrestleMania match shouldn't have happened on free TV. However, it had a solid out-of-ring beatdown and a nice WM build, making a statement by putting the champions on notice.
3. Cody Rhodes/Ted DiBiase beat Randy Orton in a 2-on-1 handicap match. REACT: Orton carried things early in a match that had a nice pace and was given a lot of time. It was good, again, to see DiBiase one-up Orton with the pin. Smart booking.
4. Evan Bourne beats William Regal in the final Money in the Bank Qualifying Match. REACT: Decent match. Christian is awesome on commentary. Big, big win for Bourne. He should have won, but I'm still kind of surprised he beat corporate-favorite Regal.
5. Vince McMahon beats John Cena in a No-Disqualification Handicap Gauntlet Match. REACT: I liked this. Kozlov, Drew McIntyre, Jack Swagger and Mark Henry were great choices. Henry, especially, as he was reluctant to help McMahon. I like how Kofi Kingston came out to help fend off Batista, who smartly got the beatdown of Cena.
The angles
1. Undertaker vs. Shawn Michaels. REACT: Strong opening segment. I liked the fear vs. the confidence/desperation angle. The WrestleMania match was given a pinfall/submission stipulation, which is all the better. I liked how Undertaker said Michaels "may be the greatest." Undertaker gave the better promo here.
2. The Miz. REACT: What a strong promo, bringing up the likes of the British Bulldog/Lex Luger and The Bushwhackers. Miz may be right in saying Big Show and him are the "last truly great tag team in the WWE."
3. John Cena vs. Batista. REACT: I like how Cena admitted he can't beat Batista but will just have to beat him. I also like how Batista later promised he wouldn't "get involved" in the main event, saying Cena needed a confidence-boost.
4. Triple H vs. Sheamus. REACT: Strange start as Sheamus grabbed the microphone from HHH. But HHH then talked to him about maybe having the "greatest first year in the history of the business." I like the make-your-name at WM angle, as HHH admitted he tried that and was beaten by John Cena and Batista (the short list) but had beaten many others (the long list). The angle then moved to "do you have the guts?" This gave HHH control back in this feud. Strong build.
5. Goldberg beats Brock Lesnar clip from WM 20 (2004) with Stone Cold Steve Austin as referee. REACT: Funny choice, as Goldberg was in the news the last few weeks denying a TNA Wrestling appearance and Lesnar has been battling health issues.
Raw analysis: Nothing horrible here, and WM was advanced nicely. Angel brings the grade down. Raw grade: B-.
Next week's Raw
1. Stone Cold Steve Austin guest hosts. REACT: I hope Austin adds to the show and doesn't steal from the WM push. He's guest host No. 37. Wow. That's a bunch.
2. The matches (John Cena-Big Show, Shawn Michaels-Chris Jericho, Triple H-Randy Orton). REACT: The first two matches are different, but I've seen HHH-Orton way too much.
LATEST HEADLINES AND MY REACTS
WWE
Gail Kim claims she wasn't hurt in last week's pillow fight match. REACT: WWE said she was hurt. She just doesn't want to admit it happened in a this kind of a match.
Linda McMahon confirms Stephanie McMahon's pregnancy. REACT: Congrats to Triple H and his wife. He is creating quite a stable. That will be No. 3 for them. Brother Shane and his wife Marissa just had their third child.
Reports of a WCW-themed Hall of Fame for 2012 in Atlanta, with Sting, Lex Luger, Ron Simmons, The Road Warriors and The Steiner Brothers being mentioned as possible inductees. REACT: I like this idea, but Sting? How about Goldberg?
Melina out for about four more months. REACT: Long recovery time is smarter than rushing back.
Carlito 0-24 on Raw. Mike Knox is 0-13 on Smackdown. REACT: Will the skids continue?
Shawn Michaels reportedly tells friends he plans to leave after WrestleMania. REACT: This might be the end for HBK, who will go down as one of the best ever.
Ultimate Warrior replaces Ric Flair in Raw intro. REACT: Warrior in this year's Hall class? Speak to me!
