LIVE Raw thoughts

11:03 - Another reason to hate Lawler on commentary: For no reason whatsoever, he lied about Punk having cotton stuffed up his nose.

10:58 - Is it me or does it seem like CM Punk hasn't settled on what hairstyle he wants to go with now that he has short hair?

10:52 - I usually defend John Cena, but I have to say that I didn't care for the end of his promo. He kept saying "Elimination Chamber," except the term was referring to the PPV event at one point, the actual match another point, and I believe was a euphemism for a body part at yet another point. It got a bit confusing.

10:39 - Is John Cena interacting with the same guy every week in those backstage hallway segments?

10:28 - Ah, so the announcers do serve a purpose. It seems that Nexus relayed the message to Josh Matthews, who asked Sheamus about it, who made derogatory comments about Mark Henry in retaliation. In turn, Henry attacked Sheamus, weakening one of Punk's opponents. Clever.

10:24 - That Sheamus/Josh Matthews segment was just awkward. Why have Josh Matthews interrupt Sheamus in the middle of his entrance to report something that the viewing audience never saw? Wouldn't it have made more sense to have Mark Henry talking to somebody backstage? Or talking to Sheamus directly? It just came across as very odd. And since we never saw any of it, it almost seemed like Matthews was instigating. And this whole night, Nexus has really looked weak.

10:16 - It is a sad state of affairs when Ted DiBiase is putting over Jerry Lawler clean, so that Lawler can challenge for the WWE Championship on a PPV. Kyle may be right about 2010 being a highly disappointing year for DiBiase.

10:06 - What that Miz/Lawler segment desperately needed was a video montage chronicling Jerry Lawler's epic career. The vast majority of the WWE audience only knows Lawler as a joke telling announcer who wrestles a couple of short matches a year. I'm pretty well versed in my wrestling history, and that's even how I view him. A video that highlights all of Lawler's title wins and big time matches, as well as his media appearances, would have gone a long way in legitimizing him as a serious competitor. Instead, we had Lawler with his lame one liners. Making fun of Miz's haircut? To push the WWE Championship match? To quote the Miz, "Really?"

9:49 - Cole brings up a good point. Morrison is going to do some crazy shit in the Elimination Chamber match.

9:43 - The Elimination Chamber is actually a fairly interesting and unique type of match, and I'm curious if more people would be invested in it if it wasn't squished between the most popular gimmick match (Royal Rumble) and their biggest event of the year. It immediately feels insignificant in comparison. I wonder if it would find more success if it was in, say, September or October.

9:33 - Actually, let me rephrase. I'd like to see an Eve/Melina one-on-one match.

9:32 - After teasing a heel turn and then aborting them each time, it's refreshing to finally see the Bellas wrestling as heels. And by the way, I'd love to see a Melina/Eve feud.

9:21 - Another reason why I hate Lawler as a face: Truth says the wrong venue and Lawler still defends him. It's okay for heels to blindly follow somebody. They're supposed to be unlikeable and irrational. But when a face does it, they just look like a buffoon. Lawler looks like a buffoon.

9:19 - Question: Why have the GM announcement over the commercial break when you're just going to replay it once we return? Wouldn't it have made more sense to have the announcement on air, and then do Truth's entrance -- which is great for the live audience but does little for those viewing at home -- during the break?

9:13 - I've said it before and I'll say it again: I think it looks awesome when Punk's henchmen lay somebody's unconscious body over Punk's shoulders for the GTS. And I'm shocked that there were so many close up shots of Punk's face with his nose noticeably bloodied.

9:11 - I really hate Lawler as a face announcer. We all JUST watched Legacy attack CM Punk before Orton made his move in 2008, and Lawler actually says, "Then why doesn't Punk attack him? Why have Nexus do his dirty work?"

9:08 - Wow, WWE really just alluded to what happened between Orton and Punk in 2008. Bravo.

9:04 - What a waste of Vince McMahon's return. He comes back to spend two minutes talking about the Super Bowl and saying that the following week he'd be announcing the guest host of WrestleMania? Especially odd since they haven't emphasized the guest host concept in several months.

8:53 - Check back at 9:00 for my LIVE Raw thoughts. And I want to thank those have commented in recent weeks, such as Kyle and Javier, and although I haven't responded (I usually veg out following the show), I have read the comments and I deeply appreciate them. I'll try to respond more often, though!