-You can say a lot about WWE, but there is no denying that they are magicians at making big shows feel big. The WWE Raw premiere on Netflix this week felt like a WrestleMania in terms of hype, anticipation, and presentation. WWE pulled out all the stops to make the show historic and succeeded with each one. In fact, they succeeded so well at hyping the show, that I’m not sure the show itself actually lived up to that hype. It came damn close, though.
Production wizardry
-In terms of production, WWE Raw was stellar. The show looked great and the Intuit Dome very much helped pop everything off the screen. The unique camera shots and angles were fresh and helped put a new coat of paint on the Raw product.
-The Rock was disappointing. Look, it’s The Rock. When WWE has a chance to get and use him, they’re going to. That makes total sense. That said, when they have The Rock, they should use The Rock. Yesterday, we got corporate boardroom Rock and that’s not The Rock. It’s crazy that he doesn’t recognize that. If there was a day to do the corporate dog and pony show, last night was it, but it doesn’t change the reality that Rock is better for WWE when he is involved in something pro wrestling related. Even if that something is running down Grayson Waller and hitting him with a Rock Bottom. That’s significantly better than what Rock put out there on the microphone this week.
-Roman Reigns vs. Solo Sikoa in the Tribal Combat Match delivered. It was slow to open, but once the crazy battle between both Bloodline factions ensued, it worked well. The match called for shenanigans and there was lots of it. Even Cody Rhodes running out and making the save for Reigns from Kevin Owens broadly made sense. Reigns is the Tribal Chief again, so the big question is what’s next for The Bloodline story? Are we in the ninth inning now?
-The Rock’s best moment was with Reigns after the Tribal Combat match. When Rock put the Ula Fala on Roman, there was palpable tension. The Rock squashed a Cody Rhodes match with the nonsense he pulled inside his opening promo, but the door is wide open for a Reigns match because of what we saw between the two this week on Raw.
Be serious, John
-John Cena. Ohhhhhhh John Cena. Can you just be serious for one second? Even in a promo where he’s laying out his final year as an active pro wrestler, he has to yuck it up and hardy har har his way to “I want to win the world title for the 17th time.” Fans would rather see and adult John Cena just put a goal out there straight up. It’s a journey to follow and get behind. What WWE set up for Cena was smart booking, but Cena has to play along and treat it better for it to be impactful. Based on this Cena promo, Cena vs. Cody Rhodes at WrestleMania seems likely.
-Liv Morgan vs. Rhea Ripley was an ok match with a really good finish. Ripley hitting Riptide twice on Morgan to win the title and then once on Dominik Mysterio was the perfect end to their feud. This needed to end and it did. The crowd loved Ripley, so that’s a good sign heading into WrestleMania season.
A nice rub
-The Undertaker is a polarizing guy these days and deservedly so. That said, he gave a nice rub to Rhea Ripley out there after her title win.
-Well, I can tell you this, Travis Scott would not have been able to smoke weed live on the USA Network. He did during Jey Uso’s entrance and that was a memorable moment. Michael Cole yeeting on top of the announce desk was also memorable, but for entirely different reasons.
-I was surprised to see Drew McIntyre job out to Jey the way he did. I know the night was about a celebration, but they could have gotten away with a heel win here. Clearly, their feud isn’t over, but the loss stunts Drew a bit. He’s been pretty protected throughout the last year. Also, even with the cool Jey Uso entrance, the audience was pretty cold for the match itself.
Booooooooooooo
-Hulk Hogan, meet the boo birds. Hogan was a disaster. The audience stopped buying what he tried to sell less than six seconds into his promo and booed him out of the building. This should tell WWE something. Hogan doesn’t have value anymore on television. He isn’t worth the trouble and baggage he brings with him. Good riddance.
-CM Punk vs. Seth Rollins was an excellent main event. It had effective near falls, big bumps, and really strong psychology that centered around both throwing everything they had at the other. Punk got the clean win, which was the smart way to book. Now, Punk can continue on into 2025 and have a strong year, or, he can tangle with Rollins more, as Rollins is unable to accept the result of the match and is a thorn in Punk’s side until WrestleMania. Either avenue is compelling.
What did you think of this week’s episode of WWE Raw? Let us know in the comments!
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