The 9/11 RAW from Madison Square Garden had more of a PPV feel then that of a normal Monday night two hour show that mostly gets brought down with bad skits and short matches. The appearance of Roddy Piper was a nice surprise, and the 6-man tag was so hot that there were times that the King and JR had to tell you what the crowd was chanting. Nothing, and I mean nothing, makes a WWE event feel more special than when the crowd is into it. And Monday night in New York, the crowd was hot from the singing of "America the Beautiful" the moment the show went off the air with the McMahons and Big Show taking down DX.

Flair vs Umaga started the show, and it was a pretty solid little match that ended with Flair hitting Umaga with a chair for the DQ. At least they didn't do the 3 minute squash of Flair that they did at the PPV a few months back. Of course Kane came out and he and Umaga went at it for a few minutes. The match between these two Sunday is shaping up to be a 5 minute punch and kick feast.

Then it was Piper and the Highlanders vs the Spirit Squad. Just having Piper back in a WWE ring made the night take on a more special feel. The match wasn't much, and you can bet that the Highlanders will walk out of Toronto with the belts, but this was a nice match with a Hall of Fame presence that set up the bout on Sunday that will likely open the PPV.

The 6-man tag was by far the hottest thing on the show. The crowd was screaming pro and anti Cena chants throughout the whole thing, and I couldn't help but remember being at WrestleMania this past year when the crowd was so into the HHH vs Cena match, and how it really made that match feel bigger than it was. That is exactly how a crowd can impact a match, and it did so here. Jeff Hardy's slip off of Carlito's back was a moment that had to be re seen on the TiVo. Unreal that he didn't kill himself on that one. The match was okay, but again, it was all about the crowd and the ending did a nice job setting up Sunday between the 6 wrestlers who will all battle in single matches.

I thought the send off of Trish was well done. I don't think that until now the company or fans really appreciated all that she has done, and her final RAW match with Mickie James was well done and it did was it was supposed to do for both Trish and James, and that is set up James as the next female face, and give Trish the going out that she deserved.

As for the main, it was pretty predictable that DX would get the beat down on the show that way Sunday when they win the Hell in a Cell match it will not come as that much of a shock. HHH really sold the beating well, and it was tough to tell if the bleeding from the ear was real or not. It was well done. You do get tired of the constant outside interference, but again, this match had a direct purpose, and it did its job. I wouldn't be surprised if DX gets beat up again Sunday before their match in the cell to do a better job of the storyline of the McMahon's using their influence to try and break them down. Again though, DX should get their revenge in the end and get the win in the match.

The PPV is setting up as a pretty solid card for a minor PPV. Compare last years card which included a main of Cena vs Angle with Angle winning by DQ, Michaels vs Masters, a cage with Matt Hardy and Edge, Big Show vs Snitsky (ugh), and Flair vs Carlito, this year looks a lot stronger. I give them credit for throwing out two major stips matches with a TLC and a Hell in a Cell. Now we'll see if each one delivers.

Posted by Matt Loede on Tuesday, September 12, 2006 at 5:56 AM | Permalink