WWE Raw - 4/21/08: King of the Ring '08

It's the royal return of the King of the Ring tournament! Who's career will skyrocket tonight? Plus, we finally get to see who wins the democratic showdown between Hillary and Obama!

1) Chris Jericho vs. M.V.P. - 4
These two had a good match on Smackdown right before 'Mania so I was hoping to get the same here. That was not the case. Jericho looked solid and popped MVP in the face with a boot so hard it left what J.R. called a "goose egg". This was decent for the short amount of time they had to work. Given a longer window, they could have a stellar match.

2) Matt Hardy vs. C.M. Punk - 4
Sweet! These guys are very evenly matched. Punk comes out with a decorated briefcase that seems to be a requirement for all MitB winners. Punks strikes were hard but the crowd was probably 60/40 for Hardy. Nice counter-move sequence at the end when Punk prevails with the GTS. Again, a decent bout for the small window. Punk should go to Smackdown, he'd be a perfect fit in the U.S. title chase.

3) The Great Khali vs. Finlay - 2
Fabulous ... a Khali bout. Hopefully, Finlay will be able to help. I will give Khali credit, he's not as bad as when he first came in a few years back. A few minutes pass, Khali hits the dreaded "chop of doom" and continually rams Finlay's leg into the ringpost until he's DQed.

4) William Regal vs. Hornswoggle - 0
Horny accompained Finlay during the previous bout. Regal comes out as Finlay is being helped back. His opponent is annouced as Hornswoggle and he drags him into the ring and applies the Regal stretch. FIN! Nothing of sustance unless it sets up something later on down the road.

5) Hardcore Holly vs. Carlito - 3
Time for some filler. Both guys seemed really lazy in this one. Carlito didn't do much of anything except punch and kick. For some reason, Holly was selling the back or it was bothering him. Best part was Carlito's excellent backstabber for the win.

6) C.M. Punk vs. Chris Jericho - 4
This could be a show-stealer. Nice exchanges. Jericho tries to throw Punk chest first on the ropes but they slip and Punk takes a header into the mat. Good spot where Punk blocks a lionsault which is in turn taken into a Walls of Jericho. Punk struggles in the hold while trying to reach the ropes. Great tease!! Punk fights back with a hard, hard kick and a sloppy GTS. Much like their previous matches tonight where they could've done more with more time.

7) William Regal vs. Finlay - 3
Finlay comes out favoring the left knee. Finlay takes a hard shot into the steps and Regal works the knee. Moments later, a Regal stretch finishes Finlay. Not their best encounter but still decent. Finlay's selling of the knee worked well.

8) "Hillary Clinton" vs. "Barack Obama" - 0
AW FUCK! It's another one of those stupid Trump vs. Rosie deals. It's not like I actually expected the real people to come out and fight, though. The Bill Clinton look-a-like is good and so is the Obama, the Hillary one looked terrible. They both cut promos for no reason. The Bill impersonator was the saving grace of this as he was cracking bad jokes. Umaga comes out as kills everyone. Vote Umaga!!

9) William Regal vs. C.M. Punk - King of the Ring Finals - 4
Much like most of the tournament tonight, they could've had a good bout (meaning 5+) if they were given the right amount of time. Punk's strikes were nice but Regal definitely tried to work some power into the bout. Not much to see because both seem tired. Regal wins with the stretch. They could've easily canceled the Obama/Clinton debacle and given this time so it could mean something. Three quick wins is not the best way to become King.

10) Triple H, John Cena, The Undertaker, & Kane vs. Randy Orton, Edge, JBL, & Chavo Guerrero - 4
Everyone is so special that they have to get their own entrance. All of them combined take up about 10 minutes of the show. Ad break three minutes in. Nothing really to note here. Heels control for most of the match until Kane gets tagged and destroys all of them. Edge gets the pin after a spear and then everyone has to hit their signature moves after the match.

Free TV is not the way to go for the KOTR. The semi-final bouts could've easily been given the time on pay-per-view to develop and make the tournament actually mean something. Instead, you get Regal beating three men in less than 15 minutes. The Clinton/Obama crap killed the crowd as did the addresses from the actual candidates. I'll have to see what happens with Regal winning the tournament but for now, I'm not sold.

Grade: C