-It’s been awhile, but it was nice to see Raw start with a match this week. They did the recent production fluff of the backstage arrival of Cody, which I continue to think is a strong way to open the show, but then instead of heading into a recap vignette or promo segment, the six-man tag of Imperium vs. Jey Uso & New Day kicked things off. It’s a welcome change. Not that there’s anything wrong with other formulas, but staying fresh is key.
-Imperium vs. New Day & Jey Uso delivered. The ultimate goal of the match was to build to Gunther vs. Jey Uso next week and they hit the mark. The match crescendoed nicely and culminated with a showdown between Gunther and Jey. Jey getting the win over Giovanni Vinci was a smart way for him to build momentum and credibility, while protecting Gunther.
Gunther momentum vs. Jey Uso momentum
-Next week will be interesting. Neutralizing Jey’s momentum with a loss to Gunther is questionable, but Jey doesn’t feel like the right guy to dethrone him. If you’re looking for a clean finish, I’d look elsewhere. This match seems ripe for shenanigans of some kind that can lead to a rematch.
-WWE aired a specialty vignette for Andrade this week that painted him as a title contender. In the video, Andrade spoke about that being his goal and with Gunther as the Intercontinental Champion as a heel, you could be looking at Andrade as a babyface against him or Andrade firmly planting himself as a heel and working with Seth Rollins down the road. Either way, a vignette with as much focus as this one is a tell on how WWE sees Andrade. He’s going to be in the mix.
-Bobby Lashley vs. Bronson Reed was a palette cleanser from the first match of the night. Another good match, but in it’s own way and with a totally different “big man” style on display. Reed’s work continues to impress when he’s in the ring, but he’s yet to get wins that signify a push is on the way.
-Lashley heading to the Elimination Chamber match gives the match a boost in terms of star power, but he hasn’t been presented as a guy who is really in the mix to win.
Sami Zayn builds deeper bond with fans
-The empty arena interviews with Sami Zayn are compelling and offer fans a chance to intimately bond with him and the journey he’s on to win a world title in WWE. This week, Zayn came across as very likable, but sympathetic at the same time. These are working. HOWEVER. Shinsuke Nakamura can run a production truck now? I’m willing to give WWE a lot of leeway in terms of production because it is show business after all. This interruption was obnoxiously illogical, though.
-The crowd response to Cody Rhodes this week was all you needed to know about why WWE pivoted back to Rhodes vs. Roman Reigns at WrestleMania. Cody has the audience in the palm of his hand. They are ready for him and if this week was any indication, the audience will be even hotter for him by the time WrestleMania rolls around. It would have been nice to see Cody give some explanation as why he gave up his shot on Smackdown a couple weeks ago, but by not addressing it at all, we know the story. WWE messed up. They know it. They repaired it and they don’t want to look back at the mess they created when in their eyes things are fixed. I like continuity in my wrestling, but this isn’t a bad approach. There isn’t an explanation that works well, so why try and mess with one when the rest of the angle is as hot as it is?
Best Rollins promo ever?
-Seth Rollins cut the best promo of his career with Cody Rhodes in the ring this week. Man, he was wonderful. Rollins sold the WrestleMania angle, Cody as a challenger, Roman Reigns as an evil champion, and The Rock as the ultimate bad guy star bully. All while keeping himself a small focus too. The promo was a fantastic piece of business on the part of Rollins that wove an interesting side narrative into the Cody and Reigns match at WrestleMania. Rollins as Cody’s shield has drama written all over it, especially if Cody continues to build a team of do-gooders to assist him with The Bloodline.
-How does that play out? Well, next week is a great place to start. Cody will take on Drew McIntyre in a grudge match and what better way to get Cody a win, while protecting Drew than for Seth to get involved and make sure it’s a fair fight for Rhodes. Plus, this plants a seed for Drew vs. Seth at WrestleMania.
-Liv Morgan received an added boost of production magic to her presentation this week. Morgan has a strong story going into the Elimination Chamber. On the surface, that’s a good thing because the match could finish in a variety of ways with multiple talent having enough credibility to win. So much has been put behind Becky Lynch, though, and I can’t see Morgan derailing Lynch and grabbing the title match against Rhea Ripely for WrestleMania. Morgan and Lynch have history together. It would be smart for them to cross paths with one another with their quests colliding prior to the Chamber event in a couple weeks to further drive home their stories and the stakes of the match itself.
Bottoms up!
-Speaking of Becky Lynch, her promo this week worked well. The “bottoms up” line she really pulled off and she’s always great a being able to define the importance of matches.
-Yeah, the R-Truth and Judgement Day stuff has run it’s course. It burned hot for a while, but now is just kind of there. JD McDonagh and R-Truth bickering is one thing (and still not great), but Damian Priest still being involved can define him down in ways WWE doesn’t want.
-Man, did everyone hear that pop for Rhea Ripley this week? I mean, it was as big as just about anyone else. A level below Cody Rhodes. Maybe below Seth? Nobody else, though. Don’t look now, but those strong reactions along with her not sharing as much screen time with Dominik Mysterio and Judgement Day tell me that babyface turn is on the horizon sooner than later.
-Not a surprise to see LA Knight beat Ivar and qualify for the Elimination Chamber. Knight feels a lot like Bobby Lashley right now. Hot enough to be in the mix near the top, but not hot enough to actually do anything in the mix.
Don’t fret over Drew
-A solid main event, but nothing more. Zayn and Nakamura delivered, but nowhere near the level of their match in 2016. If you had expectations for a repeat of that, shame on you! The match served as a backdrop for a final push for next week’s main event Cody Rhodes vs. Drew McIntyre match. McIntyre closing Raw yet again is a sign that he’s still very much in the WWE plans for WrestleMania this year.
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