This wasn't really a bad PPV even though it was second PPV of 2003 {The last Raw PPV was Insurrextion}.FIRST MATCH- DUDLEY BOYS VS. RODNEY MACK & CHRISTOPHER NOWINSKI W/ THEODORE LONG Pretty bad match to start the night. Rodney Mack & Christopher Nowinski get the win in this tag team match. 2/10SECOND MATCH- BOOKER T VS. Christian FOR THE WWE INTERCONTINENTAL CHAMPIONSHIP Again these two can seriously put on a good match but if Booker T can seriously win. Christian wins after a roll-up on Booker T using the ropes to get the win & retain his WWE IC title. 4/10THIRD MATCH- SCOTT STEINER VS. TEST WINNER GETS STACY'S MANAGERAL SERVICES Not a bad match between these two men as it is great to see Steiner finally getting the win. Steiner wins after a Pumphandle Slam. 3/10FOURTH MATCH- ROB VAN DAM & KANE VS. LA RESISTANCE FOR THE WORLD TAG TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP Good tag team match, it was definitely better than their previous encounter at Insurrextion. Unfortunately La Resisitance win to become the new World Tag Team Champions. 5/10FIFTH MATCH- GOLDBERG VS. CHRIS JERICHO Okay brawl between these two men as Jericho hurts Goldberg's shoulders during the match & works on them trying to wear Goldberg down. But to no avail Goldberg fights back, nails a Spear, followed by a Jackhammer to get the hard fought win. 4/10SIXTH MATCH- RIC FLAIR VS. SHAWN MICHAELS Believe it or not, the match between these two legends definitely pulls out a good match. The best highlight of the match is when Michaels nailed a flying elbow on Flair through a table {I was surprised that Michaels didn't get disqualified}. After Michaels was nearly about to get the win, Randy Orton interferes & nails an RKO on Michaels, then gets Ric Flair, puts him on Michaels for the cover as Flair gets the 3 count to get the huge win against Michaels. 5/10SEVENTH MATCH- TRIPLE H VS. KEVIN NASH IN A HELL IN A CELL MATCH FOR THE WORLD HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP SPECIAL GUEST REFEREE: MICK FOLEY Not the best Hell In A Cell match I watched but it was still alright. Both men were busted open, but HHH survived the brutal battle & nailed a Pedigree on Nash for the 3 count & to get the win to retain his World Heavyweight Championship in this brutal match. 5/10This wasn't really a bad Raw PPV as it is the second of 2003. Most of the matches were dragged down a bit but the Flair-Michaels battle & the Hell In A Cell match made the PPV pretty good & better.Overall: I'll give it 7/10 & a C+

*SPOILERS*Bad Blood was an PPV experiment the WWE conducted back a year ago, not only was it the first PPV to feature only half the roster but it was the replacement for the King of the Ring tournament. I was sad to see the idea go, but it's not like it didn't have it's share of crap with Billy Gunn & Mabel winning the damn thing in the last decade. With the new Bad Blood, RAW would host this PPV event and all the superstars employed to that show would fill the card. The result is a mixture to say the least, while there are good PPV-style matches on the card (Ric Flair/Shawn Michaels) there was filler (Dudleyz vs. Nowinski/Mack) as well. This was going to be a problem with the start as you can get half the card filled with PPV-calibre matches, but then have to fill the rest in with filler.Dudley Boyz (Bubba & D-Von Dudley) vs. Christopher Nowinski & Rodney MackTypical curtain jerker filler, with the most advanced move being a spinebuster. It's a shame that they didn't move more into D-Vons teased heel turn because it could have worked out storyline wise, (though the idea of giving singles pushes to them as a result causes me to think otherwise now). Rodney Mack I never really liked, primarily due to his lack of personality which impacts the heat he gets, Nowinski works well and considering his Tough Enough background he can improve.Rating: *1/2Test vs. Scott Steiner - Winner gets Stacy KieblerI pretty much railed on Steiner for most of last year, and with good reason as the guy botches the very first move he does in this match. After slipping on the apron while performing a double axe handle, the match progresses very uneventfully. The storyline featuring these two I will admit gave them something worthwhile to do, problem was it was all they could do and the feud lasted six months. Thankfully, this match occurred earlier in the feud which meant much of the psychology was still present. Test played a very good heel and was able to maintain his heat, shame the match wasn't any better.Rating: **Christian vs. Booker T - Intercontinental TitleYou'd think the best way to send a crowd home happy is to have the hometown hero go home with the gold, didn't happen. Instead of what should have been, we get a DQ ending that results in really nothing. The match itself was average with Booker, for some reason, being unable to work the crowd as much as he should. But he still pulled off some good spots such as a rollup off the turnbuckle and a nice missile dropkick. Christian as well works and plays a great heel and the heat he can pull off is seen as the crowd chants "Christian Sucks!" after he leaves.Rating: **1/2On a side note here to the WWE bookers: please, please do not put Mae Young on TV anymore. She was WrestleCrap three years prior and has been since and needs to be kept off to prevent any more mental scarring. I always had my theories that the only reason Vince hired Bischoff was to humiliate him on TV to get revenge...after watching this one segment, I now have reason to believe it.Kane & RVD vs. La Resistance - World Tag Team TitleIt was a pretty good match, though it felt a little short for what it was aiming for and that was putting La Resistance over. The two worked a good match and Rene being a complete natural considering his age (19). To be honest: looking back, RVD & Kane did make a good tag team in terms of chemistry (try to catch the subtle drug overtones in their promos). Also their ring styles (RVD's agility with Kane's power) seem to blend together well. Nothing really special to point out here, but it ended well and achieved the desired effect with La Resistance winning the Tag Titles.Rating: **1/2Chris Jericho vs. GoldbergThe interesting thing with Goldberg is this: the WWE immediately pushes him into a main-event feud with Rock, which ends shortly after Backlash 2003 when Rock goes back to Hollywood. This leaves a gaping hole in Goldberg's booking as he now has nowhere to go, Triple H was too busy working a feud with Kevin Nash at the time (which continued into this PPV). So after missing Judgment Day, Goldberg gets put into a midcard feud with Jericho and the result being this match. While not a bad match by any rate, you could tell that the Goldberg hype was beginning to show weakness here.The build-up had a legitimate background to it: Jericho really did resent Goldberg back in their WCW days and pretty much every word he said regarding their relationship then is a shoot. He did blame Goldberg for his lack of a push, he blamed him for killing any chances for reaching the top and other resentments he had.Jericho sells for Goldberg, puts him over and does the job...nothing really else to note folks. Well, except for the Tigger guy heckling Goldberg in the front row that actually caused Goldberg to go over and yell at him. Besides a guard rail bump where Goldberg speared through the thing, watching a Winnie the Pooh character get yelled was the best part.Rating: **Ric Flair vs. Shawn MichaelsOn paper it looks excellent, in execution you can tell this match should have happened ten years ago, (yes, Flair wasn't with the WWE back in '93, but let's just pretend). Both men did not look on top of their game, taking into consideration their prime years are behind them, (though both can perform better than other men their age). Some spots looked a little sloppy, both men looked a little tired but it was the best match on the card so I can give them that. The dirty ending didn't really work out, quite frankly this match could have been so much better if built up properly and executed at a better time.Rating: ***Triple H vs. Kevin Nash - World Heavyweight ChampionshipThe last HIAC match took place in No Mercy 2002 and showed that it was possible for a great HIAC to occur even if it doesn't make it up to the roof. This match was the conclusion for a pretty lacklustre feud between Nash and Triple H, adding a HIAC was an attempt to salvage it and while it didn't do quite that, it made the feud a little better. I guess the one reason why HIAC's have been so successful in the past are due to the illusion of bump-taking, ever since the days of the original Bad Blood with Taker/HBK people expected spots, bumps and psychology to go along with the cell. Neither Triple H and especially Nash have the illusion of bump taking, meaning that potential is gone. Like I said before though, having a good brawl like the No Mercy HIAC can make up for it.This one had some good bumps, only problem is that Foley, the guest referee, took them, (such as being knocked off the apron into the cage wall). The brawling was there and better than I expected, which included a hammer to the skull and a 2x4 wrapped with barbed wire. The reason why Lesnar/Taker's HIAC at No Mercy 2002 was a better executed brawl was the psychology, like seeing Taker's hand cast get repeatedly pounded with a steel chair, (is sends a chill down my spine when I see it). It's all about execution, and it just didn't click right between these two.Rating: **3/4Best Match: Ric Flair vs. Shawn Michaels: ***Worst Match: Dudleyz vs. Christopher Nowinski & Rodney Mack: *1/2Overall PPV Rating: 4.5/10Bad Blood was a below average PPV and certainly not what the WWE would have wanted when they started experimenting with the idea of brand exclusive PPVs. A big problem I had was with the length, this PPV is a full half hour shorter than the norm 3 hours. That can be attributed to the bookers only putting seven matches instead of the norm eight on the card. Thankfully, a spectacular Vengeance showed that brand PPVs could work a month later and earlier this month RAW put on Backlash 2004, an excellent PPV.

Ever since the brand extension in April '02, there have been debates over which is the better show- RAW or Smackdown? The general consensus is that Raw is better for storylines (look no further than Smackdown's Al Wilson fiasco or the neverending Hogan-Vince feud for proof of that!)Smackdown, however, takes the lead (generally) from a wrestling standpoint (Big Show, Albert & Rikishi excluded) with fantastic talents like Matt Hardy, Rey Mysterio, Eddy Guerrero, Billy Kidman, Chris Benoit and Kurt Angle. The Raw brand suffers from a weak selection of mid-card wrestlers, so the outlook of the first Raw-only PPV didn't seem too good. Here's what happened at June's Bad Blood (**Match result SPOILERS**)MATCH 1- Rodney Mack and Christopher Nowinski vs The Dudley Boyz. I don't like the Dudleyz (though Bubba is a good singles wrestler) and I haven't been impressed by Mack squashing 'jobbers' every week on Raw, so I wasn't looking forward to this match. At all. It was a pretty dull match with Mack & Nowinski picking up the win after Nowinski hits Bubba in the head with his protective mask. Not a great start. (2/10)MATCH 2- Scott Steiner vs Test. OK match. Steiner's fall off the apron is pretty funny! Not much else to say. Steiner wins with a version of the Flatliner/Novacaine and gets the services of Stacy Keibler. (4/10)MATCH 3- Booker T vs Christian. Quite good. Nothing too out of the ordinary, but good. I like when signature moves are swapped, so Booker's reverse DDT (Christian's move) and Christian's Bookend (Booker's move) keep things interesting. Very weak ending that the crowd did NOT like one bit! (Chants of "Bullsh*t" after the match!) Christian tries to get counted out, then deliberately gets DQ'd, blasting Booker with his IC title. Decent match, dreadful finish. (6/10)MATCH 4- La Resistance vs RVD/Kane. Another dull tag match. RVD wrestles the same match every time in the tag division. They should let him go solo again- he's a much better singles wrestler. RVD messes up a tumbling senton over the top, hitting Kane, and falls victim to a double spinebuster. La Resistance get the 1-2-3 and the tag titles. (3/10)MATCH 5- Goldberg vs Chris Jericho. The only match on the card I was really looking forward to, especially considering the history these two have had (on and off-camera). Apparently, Goldberg refused to work with Jericho back in WCW because of his size, and Jericho didn't take too kindly to it. Then, when Goldberg arrived in WWE this March, it was rumoured that the two had an altercation as a result of some derogatory comments made by Goldberg regarding Jericho. (Jericho reportedly trapped Goldberg in a front facelock!) So, this match had a pretty good build-up. The match itself was very good, I thought, even if a win for Goldberg was obvious. (Interestingly enough, Goldberg is booed for another PPV with a number of Jerichoholics leading a 'Y2J' chant). Good selling of the arm injury by Goldberg and a great effort (as always) by Jericho- the king of Raw! How is this guy not a World title contender? Spear, Jackhammer win for Goldberg. (7.5/10)MATCH 6- Ric Flair vs Shawn Michaels. Flair has surprised me recently, with a number of good matches- this being one of them. Except for a slight miscalculation with his flip-over-the-buckles spot, he & HBK work a great match. Michaels too is on top form- his top rope splash through a table to Flair is spectacular, so too is his Sweet Chin Music to the Nature Boy. Randy Orton blasts Michaels in the head with a chair and rolls 'Naitch' on top for a cheap victory. Great match. (8/10)Before the main event I must mention Austin & Bischoff's 'Redneck Triathlon'. The first event- a belching contest (with piped-in belches) was painful to watch! Awful lip-synching. Austin won. We were promised a 'pie-eating' contest and (like every other time WWE tries to be risque to win buyrates) it fails to deliver. (Remember the HLA farce at Unforgiven with Rikishi in drag? Sorry for the reminder!) Anyway, Mae Young bronco busts Bischoff in a thong and Bischoff wins the second event. Why do they bother promising things they can't deliver? Austin throws the Bisch in some pig manure for the win (bringing back some fond memories of when Triple H used to fight in those hog pen matches!) Bit of a waste of time, to be honest. (I really could have done without seeing Mae Young in a thong! Although, big respect to the woman for taking that powerbomb through a table a few years ago.)MATCH 7- Triple H vs Kevin Nash (Hell in a Cell) Better than their Judgment Day bout, but I'll never buy Nash as a serious #1 contender. Totally undeserving. Without Mick Foley as guest ref, this match wouldn't have been half as good. Great man. Triple H wins with the Pedigree, thankfully. Who will he drop the title to? I definitely don't think he'll job to Goldberg- at least not on their first encounter. Anyway, average match. Nash will go the way of Booker, Kane, RVD, Steiner and every other person who has challenged Triple H in the past- straight down into the murky depths of... the midcard. (5/10)2 very good matches, the rest poor to OK. I was surprised that Jazz vs Ivory wasn't a match (but glad at the same time, as Jazz would've killed Ivory's momentum). As a PPV, Bad Blood was average. The failure to make good on the 'pie-eating' contest will not be forgotten the next time WWE tries to promise something risque. The question now is: how will the Smackdown-only PPV Vengeance fare next month? It'll be interesting to see.

This pay-per-view was NOT too good. Hardly any of the matches were cool, Christian's match against Booker T sucked because Christian hit Booker T with his belt in order to keep it and be disqualified, Chris Nowinski hit the Dudleys with his mask to win and The hell in a Cell match was great until the Evolution (Triple H, Kevin Nash and Randy Orton) decided to interfere. What will become of the Evolution? Kane and RVD's match against La Resistance was boring because La Resistance badmouths our country. I can't believe RVD and Kane would lose to the French. The only good things about Bad Blood were Stone Cold and Eric Bischoff's "Redneck Trimuph--however you say it, with Austin winning, Goldberg's match against Jericho, winning, leaving Jericho speared and Scott Steiner's match against Test, for the management of Stacy Keibler. Otherwise, bor-ing. Do not rent or buy this when it comes out on video or DVD, it's just plain stupid and boring!