-Gunther was just tremendous opening up the show this week. The most important trait that he has going for him right now is that he’s believable. You buy what the guy says, no matter what and that’s a valuable piece of the puzzle when angling toward a main event level run in WWE. Gunther is able to generate heat and it greatly helps the babyfaces he’s working with. There is a track record now. Thumbs way up on this.
A street brawl
-Damian Priest was the benefactor of Gunther’s fine work. He made a B-line for Gunther after Gunther called him street trash and then simply punched him right in the mouth. That’s the move, right? Priest not showing any fear and just getting after the man that was running him down was a likable move and the ensuing brawl between both guys gave their feud a dose of something more personal than just the world title. Make no mistake, the title is at the center of this, but a personal grudge in the background will help generate interest in the match.
-My goodness. From one bad Bron Breakker entrance theme to another. This guy is cursed.
-Entrance music aside, Breakker had a good night at the office. He and Ilja Dragunov have wonderful in-ring chemistry together and Dragunov has pulled the best matches out of him. Breakker defeating Dragunov here wasn’t a surprise as a rematch with Sami Zayn for the WWE Intercontinental Championship was always the match that made sense.
Back to NXT
-When is it time for WWE to send Lyra Valkyria back to NXT? She’s not connecting with main roster fans on any level. Even in an era where fans are constantly looking for an entrance song to sing or interact with, they leave Valkyria’s alone. She doesn’t have a character and hasn’t effectively shown a personality either. That’s a lethal combination and leads to barely there reactions and doing jobs to Sonya Deville.
-This week’s Wyatt Sicks video featured Nikki Cross and a lot of yelling. It worked. We didn’t get any kind of backstory like we did last week with Rowan, but the only real backstory that matters with Cross is the creepiness. That was on full display. Well done.
-As soon as WWE announced a CM Punk appearance this week, the immediate conclusion to make was that he was fully cleared for action. Punk confirmed that news during his in-ring promo and then immediately called out Drew McIntyre for a fight. Let’s pause there. Punk was really good and the audience was fully on his side. Throughout the story with Punk and Drew, there has been an underlying truth that McIntyre has been spewing that is reasonable to understand. His gripes with Punk have merit. If there was a worry that Drew would get cheered over Punk because of that, this week’s crowd indicated that just won’t be the case.
Punk vs. Drew a “go” for Summerslam
-McIntyre and Punk were both intense while attempting to fight the other and they’ve built a story in which you believe that they both hate each other. That adds strong drama to the match that is now officially set for Summerslam.
-Square peg, round hole for Seth Rollins as the special referee for Drew vs. Punk. Look, I understand that Rollins has been hovering around both Drew and Punk for a while and that their feud cost him the world championship. I get it. The thing is, though, the personal grudge is between Drew and Punk. Rollins is on the periphery and his involvement as special referee ensures that he’s going to get involved in the personal grudge more than he should and more than the story calls for.
-The Final Testament against the former Alpha Academy students was what it was. Karrion Kross and his group needed the win and they got it. Not much else to this from the Final Testament perspective.
-As for Otis and Akira Tozawa, well, they got to show up Chad Gable once again. Hey, that’s always fun. This time, their refusal to join Gable in his fight against the Wyatt Sicks, led to Uncle Howdy surprising him in the ring and dropping him with Sister Abigail.
Are the Wyatt Sicks ready for the ring?
-Another week and another thumbs up for the Wyatt Sicks. Personally, I’m interested to hear about what sort of follow-up will come from Bo Dallas, rather than the Uncle Howdy stuff specifically. With a match at Summerslam looming, it’s important WWE gets the presentation right for Dallas/Howdy and the group. Once you take them out of the darkness and into the ring for a match, the production and horror movie tricks go away. They need to be ready for it.
-Sidebar. Gable is really effective at selling for the Wyatt Sicks. He balances fake confidence and fear with his reaction to them and it helps the angle.
-Does anyone really want to see Pete Dunne fight Sheamus? Like, as a heel? There is something likable about those two together and now that they’re fighting, the shine on that relationship has dimmed and therefore the interest in both has waned.
Dom’s just a toy
-Sorry, Rhea Ripley, but you shouldn’t care this much about Dominik Mysterio. This was a bad angle for Ripley and this love triangle saga and the bad is rooted in the issue I’ve written about for weeks. Ripley looks gullible. She doesn’t see what Dom and Liv are doing? Really? Ok, even if she truly doesn’t see it, why does she want Dom that bad anyway? Dom is her toy. If he’s out, drop him, and pick up another. That’s the Ripley that got over as big as she has. That’s the ultimate alpha. There is nothing wrong with trying to drum up some sympathy for Rhea, but Dom can’t be the catalyst for that due to the fact that he’s been so emasculated by Ripley throughout the years and is a pathetic figure that should be easy for Ripley to replace.
-Is Zelina Vega getting a push? Sure seems like it. Vega defeated Zoey Stark and a win is a win, but the context around the win is important. Lyra Valkyria lost to the same group earlier in the night. Vega gets solid reactions and reactions that are certainly better than Valkyria’s. That said, her size and ability in the ring limits her to exactly where she is on the card. So, a push? Yes. An elevation? Not so much.
-A fine little main event this week with Jey Uso and Sami Zayn teaming up to take on Finn Balor and JD McDonagh. A good match and the crowd was very invested in the Uso/Zayn duo. Balor and McDonagh losing clean as tag champions not only will cause strife in The Judgement Day, but opens the door for Uso and Zayn to challenge for the titles.
Get used to seeing this
-No surprise seeing Bron Breakker destroy Zayn as the show went off the air. Second week in a row that he’s closed the show and that’s notable given the upside he has for WWE on the main roster.
What did you think of this week’s episode of WWE Raw? Let us know in the comments!
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