Agreed.Originally Posted by Mazer
Roman can keep the Universal, but this feud against Cody is the perfect opportunity to split the titles. Cody takes the L at Mania, Roman gives him one last chance to win the WWE title for his daddy, a third person (Sami/KO/??) weasels their way into the rematch and does the job.
Cody fulfills his dream, Roman doesn’t lose any of that massive juice, the main titles get split up again.
With this talk of triple threats, I hope no one gets the idea to book a screwy, two-ref, double-pin situation where the compromise is giving one of the winners one title, the other winner gets the other title.
I'd have Cody win at Mania and then on RAW the night after, offer to spit the belts in the spirit of opportunity and loosening the stranglehold Reigns has had on the top of the card. He can keep the WWE title in honor of his pops and then the Universal can have a tourny start up that ends at Backlash.
I wouldn't hate this.
With Dexter Lumis vs. Braun Strowman in the finals?
If it means Braun gets another chance with the big belt, I’m down…
It would've been smarter for Roman to defend each title on both nights. There seemed to be a moment where they might start splitting them up when they did that tag tournament where the winner challenged for the SMACKDOWN titles a few months back.
Now it feels like we're back to that 2014 era where we're carrying around both belts but they're unified so there is no splitting anything up. They had to create a new World title i.e the Universal title. I think if they had Roman defend both he could've retained the Universal, drop the WWE, still maintaining the long reign as it started with the Universal.
I like this idea. Cody breaking the chain and restoring order to the balance would be pretty cool.
But eh... I still detest the idea of having two "rosters" and world titles. I miss when there was only one mountain top rather than two hills.
I like that the IC and US title have kind of taken over as the brand exclusive champions. You almost never see those titles on a different brand these days. I think that was what Daniel Bryan wanted to do when he won the IC strap the first time, have that be the main title on Smackdown and Lesnar or whoever can be on Raw with the undisputed title.
Having two world titles is ok if the champions are world title caliber talent and they are exclusive. It works much better when you treat like the Ruthless Aggression Era with Cena on Raw, Batista on Smackdown. The problem is when you have John Cena as WWE Champion...and Jack Swagger as World champion. I hate the "testing the waters" mentality with the World title-probably why alot of MITB cash ins never produce very many quality title reigns.
That Lesnar-Omos standoff was wild, very few people have the ability to make Brock look small in comparison.
Pretty sure Omos botched throwing Lesnar over the top rope; we might see some legitimate contact from Brock at Mania because he doesn’t like it when people actually strike him. Case in point, that one time he and Braun squared off.
I thought Brock did a really good job of putting over Omos by retreating.
I agree 100% with this. I was surprised how well both were received by the crowd. When this was first put on the card I was thinking this was not something anyone really wanted. WWE and Brcok deserve credit for getting us interested in seeing the spectacle - will Brock be able to lift the huge man?
Brock retreating was executed perfectly. Anyone who's ever watched wrestling understood this was simply a "build the anticipation" and that Brock's character of the past would never back down from anyone, let alone Omos who can't even throw a guy over the top rope on the first attempt. Brock understood that the goal of this segment was that he has to get people excited for the spectacle.
I liked the way the handshake was executed, with Omos trying to get in Brock's head by not letting go, leading to Brock having to resort to a foot stomp. Simple, old school stuff and the crowd ate it up.
We all knew that Edge/Balor was going to go down, and I like them having HITC. They hinted that Demon Balor may appear. Edge should win this as the face, but I wouldn't mind if Balor came out on top. The JD vs Gargano/Lumis was a pretty solid match. Not sure what, if anything, Priest is doing at Mania - I wouldn't be surprised if he wins the ARMBAR, while Demon Balor wins over Edge, Dom defeats his old man, and Rhea beats Charlotte, for a clean JD sweep.
Cody's promo after his match with LA Knight was fire. He is owning the crowds and making us want him to succeed.
Bronson Reed squashing Elias was filler. Reed looks like he could be a long-lost Uso cousin.
Dawkins deserves better than being a jobber. Same with Ford.
Dom interrrupting Rey's segment about his HOF induction, then challenging Rey to a match at Mania, explains why the HOF announcement was done before Rey retires. If I recall correctly, the HOF ceremony is the night before Mania, so I wonder if they wait until then for Rey to accept the Mania match?
Dom has become 10x more confident on the mic, and is eating up the hate from the crowd. Kudos to the writers who came up with the line about how his friends got Mercedes while Rey gave Dom a BMW - not even an M series. Reminded me of the heat Shane 'O Mac and the Mean Street Posse used to get.
I wish they had come up with a better story for Bianca/Asuka. Asuka helping Bianca out, and the fans cheering both, feels like a Biance heel turn may happen. WWE rarely books face vs face, and they almost never book something without knowing how the fans expected reaction.
Owens vs Solo Sikoa in a Street fight had perhaps the most obvious outcome of the night, although Rollins v Corbin was never in doubt either.
As the resident Street Profits mark, I don’t feel the need to be overly concerned.
Neither of them have had much experience as singles wrestlers, they’re being used as vehicles to build up “The Future” of the company heading into the biggest match of his career against one of the GOATs.
I’m confident that post-Mania, one/both of Ford/Dawkins will be in the US title mix with Theory, potentially even taking the title from Austin as he moves up the pecking order.
Street Profits, individually, are fine. I think they're toast as a team but they've done nearly all they can as a unit that makes sense. As for now, they're not jobbers. They're being properly utilized to help cook up a talent in preparation for Mania.
I anticipate big things for LA Knight and Bronson Reed after Mania. I can see Reed eventually being a contender for Cody at some point this year. Definitely doesn't win when he challenges Cody, but that will speak well to how he's booked by the time that happens.
I don’t get the hype at all about Bronson Reed.
I can get behind LA Knight because his mic skills are top-notch, his charisma and blend of Ric Flair meets The Rock freaking works. I’m kind of worried that he’s already in his 40s, as he’s ~20 years in there might already be too many miles on that smaller frame. His mic skills are definitely conducive to him in a MVP-mouthpiece type role into his 50s and beyond.
Any of us who grew up watching the Hart Foundation's slow split knows that sometimes you just have to see how things go with tag-teams. $treet Profits are no different. Personally think they both have main event potential.
LA Knight has grown on me but I'm still waiting for that awesome Bronson Reed moment. He's cool but there's not much to him. I thought he was a lot taller than what he is but he still looks beastly. Top rope splash is a boring finisher when Usos are already doing it and doing it much better.
And then you got Montez Ford, who looks like he’s flying every single time…
I even think Tamina has a better top rope splash than Brodus Reed.
That Rhodes/Reigns promo was amazing.
Fun Raw. This time of year we get lots of promos and squash matches, but we got some really good stuff.
Smart opening with Sami/KO and Uso's. The storyline just works, from the challenge, to Jimmy saying they don't deserve a title shot, to Jey saying its their chance to put the KO and Sami problem in the dirt. The minimal physicality interrupted by Roman's late arrival gave us the match we have been expecting, but they've delayed it, for weeks if not months, making it that much sweeter.
Roman's discussion with the bloodline put more pieces together. Jimmy shared frustration about how he blames Sami for everything. Roman got his answer from Jey - but does he believe him? Everything leading up to the closing promo was terrific, and that topped off another chapter in this great story. Roman delivered as always, and Cody continues to match him. I loved how Cody's prediction that Jey will leave Roman, Jimmy will follow, and Solo is just not ready - so Roman will be a Chief without a Tribe - got into Roman's head enough for Roman to walk away without physicality. Solo stepping up in Cody's face, backing off to go follow Roman until Cody repeats that Solo is not ready - until Cody blocked the spike with a superkick - was probably a set up for Cody to hand Solo his first loss on the main roster next week, and perhaps give a reason for Solo to not be able to help Roman at Mania.
Austin Theory and Montez Ford delivered. Theory is really smooth in the ring, and Ford in singles matches makes me not so sad about the rumored breakup of him and Dawkins. Both guys came away looking better after this match.
Chelsea Green is making the best of her "Karen" complainer gimmick. I don't know how long they can keep doing it before it gets too stale, but she is getting heat for it, and Pearce is playing his part very well.
It was clear that Mustafa Ali was jobbing to Omos quickly, but I chuckled from his "positivity" comments to Omos, saying he will beat him with his smile. Ali flips around and sells better than most. Dolph's watching backstage likely means he gets to job to Omos next week.
Logan Paul giving Miz the hard pass almost got him a face pop, but by the time he came out to the ring to insult the local team it was clear he was a heel. I liked how they leaned into Paul saying he can hang with any of them, but and even though the crowd doesn't appreciate him, he doesn't care. He understands what he has to do to keep the crowd from liking him. Seth turning off Paul's mic wasn't particularly clever, but the long walk from the time "Burn it Down" started, with the crowd singing his theme until he got in the ring to attack Paul, seemed to be a good way to prevent the crowd singing over stuff we wanted to hear. I think they really wanted to lean into the "one lucky right hand" is all Paul needs. I thought Rollins looked bad jumping well after Paul had skipped away, but the dive was impressive. Rollins seems to be channellng Macho Man's gimmick of extravagant costumes and shades, but I think that works better as a heel.
Gargano/Dominik was way better than we have come to expect from any Dom match. Priest accompanying Dom makes more sense as Mami is getting face pops. Dom getting the clean win was expected, but this was another match where both guys come away looking good. Dom telling us that he will ask his mother for permission for Rey to face in at Mania is more storyline progression that works well and keeps us interested in the week-to-week stuff.
Edge's promo with the candles bored me.
Rhea on her own seems far more of a face than when she's with Dom. This was just her promo, well before Bayley interrupted her. I am not sure it was a full face turn, but I can not be the only fan expecting a huge face pop for her when she defeats Charlotte.
I enjoyed how Gable got Otis back on board - temporarily. I chuckled when Otis ate the cucumber. The Gable/Ricochet match was terrific, and I would not mind seeing more from those two.
Ridge Holland getting chest hair removed was stupid fun. If we hadn't seen Ridge shirtless recently, it might have seemed less fake, but I think they had fun with it.
Belair lifting Piper again is still impressive. Of all the matches at Mania, Belair v Asuka has had the worst build. Two faces usually doesn't work.
When the main event is a promo, I usually don't mind falling asleep early. Happy that I used the DVR because that was amazing.
Depending on how you present it. Macho Man's over the top outfits worked almost better as a babyface especially in the early 90's when he was rocking those neon colors. People want to dress up in all that gear, that's why it was so hard to boo Savage. He had to dumb it all down, go all black and white with the nWo. I think this is what turned Seth babyface. Those over the top suits, his persona was just impossible to boo because it was so ridiculous.
I had to go back and rewatch that Rhodes/Reigns confrontation from last night. So freaking good.
-Cody and Roman went toe-to-toe on the microphone and Rhodes absolutely held his own.
-Was that the first hint of doubt we’ve seen from the Tribal Chief?
-Joe Anoa’i’s acting lessons are paying immense dividends because I swear his delivery and mannerisms are infinitely better than his SHIELD days.
-“…and this man becomes an advocate again.” :mic drop:
-I need an explanation why Roman had Solo came to the ring with his proverbial work boots on, then called the dog off. A chance to soften up his opponent less than two weeks out and he punted? Curious move and a very rare mistake, that.
What is the next step for Solo, I wonder. Does he become the second half of the tag team after Main Event Jey super kicks Jimmy and costs them the tag titles? Can Solo work a 20 minute singles match and go for the US title after Austin Theory drops it?
Nash, I think Seth became babyface because of the crowd singing along to his theme, but mostly because Riddle got himself suspended. I don't think the suits made a difference.
Not completely sure, but I was thinking that Roman called Solo off because once he (Roman) had left the ring, he realized that he needed to reassert himself as the Tribal Chief. I think Cody's remarks started to get into Roman's head, which is why Roman left the ring, but when he heard Cody continue on to dress down Solo, a member of the Bloodline, Roman quickly got back into his Head of the Table role.
I wholeheartedly agree that Roman's acting class have paid off big time. Working with Heyman also helps. In his Shield days, Roman was pretty much a strong, silent type, but his mannerisms now are so much better. Just look at his 1-1 moment earlier with Jey - how he questioned if Jey was really back in the family - and then gave him the "I love you" at the end. I am not the only one wondering if Roman believes Jey or not, and the reason why comes down to how great a job they are doing telling the story.
Cody certainly held his own this time. He gets the often-missed, but important idea that guys should never diminish their opponents, else it doesn't mean much when you defeat them. I found this interesting especially in contrast to how Cena made a point that Theory is just not ready. Cena's comments stung Theory (and the crowd), in part because we've seen Theory deliver for pretty much most of a year now (since his loss to McAfee last year), so we don't really believe Cena. But Cody's comments about Solo not being ready felt fair to many of us, especially since Cody has talked about being Randy's protege and he knows now that he wasn't ready himself back then.
But when Cody mentioned that Solo is not ready, he talked about it from his own experience. I liked how Cody said he doesn't want to hear about Dusty of family because "this match is about me", but also I loved him talking about how his Cuban mom told him to take that boy down.
When I went back to re-watch it, a couple other points I almost overlooked but wanted to mention. Heyman's facial expressions are always fantastic. I also wanted to acknowledge how Solo has really delivered. They haven't asked much, if anything of Solo on the mic, but I think his facial expressions were spot on for this situation - look as his anger when Cody repeated that he wasn't ready, but also how he conveyed the shock when Cody's superkick blocked the spike. And as Roman talked him down, he got back in his role of doing whatever Roman wants. Some segments he's pretty much just been along for the ride. I like that they are finally making him more of the story, and look forward to what else they have in mind for him. I still think Solo will end up getting banned from Ringside after attempted interference, because it will pop the crowd, and will give Cody and Roman a momentary breath in what I think may be a really long match.
I don’t think Theory is ready.
Running rampant through the midcard for a year does not deserve a W over one of the GOATs at the premiere event on the pro wrestling calendar. I’m not sure I put the US title on Cena, given his extremely limited schedule; maybe have Theory freak out and get DQ’d because he can’t finish the job. The old coaching adage of “You have to lose one before you can win one”. Have Austin drop the title over the Summer so he can move up the ladder; revisit this angle in 2-3 years when John is ready to put his career on the line in a retirement match.
Agreed. Solo has been very good when required.
The Wise Man is absolute money, like always. If you were to look in the dictionary next to “Salesman”, Paul E’s photo would be right next to the definition; his WWE Hall-of-Fame induction needs to happen sooner than later.
You make it seem as though a Theory win here would automatically put him on Mount Rushmore. It doesn't have to mean that. Theory is much better in the ring than the Miz, and the Miz got a win at Mania over Cena. What Theory needs is the rub - give us a quality match with Cena, and maybe cheat to win. Since Theory doesn't have a valet or any friends to help him out, many of the classic heel cheat moves aren't obvious / easy options, but it doesn't take more than a handful of tights after a solid match to retain his title. I don't think Cena will be available long enough to put the title on him now, so use him to put over a deserving up-and-comer.
Theory has had the rocket strapped to his back like very few others - Randy Orton and Batista are close, but their accomplishments were as faces, and Theory is doing this as a heel.
It's easy to forget that Theory only had his first WWE open tryout 5 years ago, in February 2018.
Last year at Mania, Theory was jobbing to an announcer, and taking the Stone Cold Stunner. If it wasn't for Sami Zayn's rebound after last year's Jackass spectacle, Theory would be the easiest pick for biggest turnaround star.
@3puppies Those suits AND his persona. Yeah if we want to make a list of things I would put his theme song, the suits, and the persona. You said that his look is better suited for a heel and mentioned Macho Man-yet Macho Man was even more ridiculous with the costume when he turned babyface. Go back and watch his matches in 1992-joining the nWo.
Relevancy, your honor?
The Miz was the reigning WWE champion, won via an assist from The Rock; Cena, while fairly decorated at that time, wasn’t yet in the GOAT conversation.
At this point, Theory is getting enough of a rub by merely being in a competitive WrestleMania match with Cena; he’s not quite ready for that caliber of a win.
The prosecution rests…
Cena is good at inadvertently burying his opponents. Everyone that aims a cannon at him he comes back with nukes. It's hard to battle someone on a John Cena level, especially on the mic.
I like the story of Theory wanting to be the next John Cena. Everyone else is like "I want to be the first CM Punk!" but who is actively stepping up saying I want that John Cena role, not one like it, but the exact spot he has. If Cena was active more, I would put the belt on him and then maybe he drops it a few months later. Theory should get the win, but I wouldn't be shocked if John pulls it off. There are a few title changes that will no doubt happen that are a good predictable (Rhea over Charlotte, SZ/KO over Usos, Cody over Roman, maybe even Asuka over Bianca) I think if Cena wins, nobody is going to see that coming--but what's his schedule? Probably ridiculous.
- Iyo finally got some shine and she made the most of it. Looking forward to seeing a solo run for her post-Mania.
- Instead of the silliness and lack of effort they did, they really should've just leaned more into what they did here for the build of Asuka/Bianca. Just have everyone hype them up and make you want to see this match by everyone else anticipating it.
- Rollins probably had his best all-around segment in quite some time. The crowd made him feel like a super big deal, he made short work of Ali (good callback to the past and Positve-Ali is great), and his post-match promo was to the point.
- Simple but effective promo for Bálor.
- Really curious to see how Lesnar/Omos goes. They're telling a story here that Lesnar is going to have to play a different role in the match and just seeing him work faster and aggressively in a different way is more appealing and works in this setup.
- Men's showcase match is going to be a sleeper for quality because there's just too many good people in there.
- Good Theory promo.
- Dom's character is getting so good right now. The small hints of realism probably help play a big role in him getting more comfortable on the mic.
- Pace of the main event got too slow at the end but it served its purpose.
Wife had bookclub last night so I opted to watch RAW for the first time in forever. It was pretty good. Was surprised at the winners of the women's tag qualifier.
What book are they reading?
If it’s the same one she posted about a few days ago, it’s “How To Sell a Haunted House” by Grady Hendrix.
I agree with all of this. A few more thoughts -
I enjoyed the Miz segment and his line of questioning, and I found the ladies who got a chance to speak all did very well. Trish noticeably did not say much, and she's usually someone who owns the mic. Bayley was great with her comments.
Iyo reminded us that she can really go. It seems like it's been a long while since she got to be in a singles match.
I liked the way they used other talent to talk about looking forward to Asuka v. Bianca. I think the match may disappoint, however, because there's no story behind it that makes us want to root for one over another. There's no pure heel to hate, or struggling babyface who deserves a run. They've pointedly had them both on the same side for weeks, and neither has been dastardly/arrogant/underhanded etc.
I like Positive-Ali. He may be as good at selling as anyone not named Ziggler.
Rollins post-match promo made me wonder - I had been picking him because he should win, but since I read Paul signed a multi-match deal, Paul kind of needs a fluky / cheap win. Maybe Lashley interferes and attacks Rollins after 15 minutes to give Paul the win, then Lashley demolishes Paul as well.
Roman is kind of a funny guy, and I loved Heyman in the Ray Liotta role from Goodfellas, while Roman in the Joe Pesci role was even better. As a huge fan of Goodfellas, I will be rewatching this a few times.
Ripley's promo about her destiny vs Charlotte's legacy was solid. Less doubt than ever that she will have the crowd support.
Mixed feelings about Stacey Keibler in the Hall of Fame. Mostly happy for her.
Sorry to see Priest having to job to Rey - even if it is a DQ loss. Priest has no match at Mania, and is not in the ARMBAR. I wonder which match, if any, he comes out to support his JD pals. I still think he may come out for Dom's match, get caught attempting to interfere, and banned from ringside. Crowd will pop and Dom / Rey will get a needed breather.
Solo did very well despite the loss in the longest, best match he's had. Future is bright for this guy.
I want to chime in about this whole Asuka/Bianca no clear cut heel/face to cheer. It's simple. This is one of those matches like a sporting event. I'm a Celtics fan, I'm also a Bulls fan, but when they play I don't need to HATE the other team to root for the Celtics. And it'll be a great fucking game.
There are plenty of heel/face matches on the card. Asuka has always been someone that walks that line. This is the "if you are ready to sit back and watch a great wrestling" match. Two of the most dominant women in the modern era seeing who is the absolute best after fighting side by side the last year
Can’t say I’ve been a fan of the build-up but I have little doubt the match will rock.
Asuka attacked Bianca after the match last week, so she’s not squeaky clean here. Just because they’re both likable, I highly doubt that the crowd is going to sit on their hands for this. Even if you say they’re faces, I’m sure people like one more than the other. That’s just natural so you’ll lean a certain way as long as the match is good. They’ll be working and then you’ll be captivated.
I have hated the build up or basically lack of it going to this match. It is going to deliver but I wanted more leading up to it. Just kind of got lost in the shuffle it feels like
I'm going to say this without trying to sound like a dick but where are the suggestions of what they should've done? Make Asuka heel? Why? She's impossible to boo, Kabuki Warriors were cheered when they turned on Paige. When Asuka blasted Bianca, there was a good pro-Asuka section. Bianca's a great babyface, but she's getting into that "She's been on top too long!" stage most babyfaces hit. I also don't think at this stage it warrants a Bianca heel turn. She's still super over, people like myself just want to see her in a different situation.
When people talk about this build hasn't been good I'm just curious what would be a better route. Every option outside of what they're doing feels like it would be boring and fail.
I would say until recently it’s been a bit heavy on the mutual respect side. It’s just not been that exciting, maybe Asuka could’ve heeled it up a bit earlier.
I would've been fine with what they did last night but more of it. Would've stood out as different because it is.
But why? Why does Asuka need to heel up anything? That's the thing I don't really get. I think it's a weak argument for the sake of complaining. It's the only face v. "face" match on the entire card. My problem is I watch more than pro wrestling from the WWF in 1989. I'm watching MMA, I'm watching basketball, I'm watching all these other sports where we don't have to have a dickhead on one side and a cool guy on the other.
The build of two former allies and it all coming full circle at Mania where now after all they've been through, they have to put all that aside to be the best. None of that has been forgotten in the build, they've mentioned it many times. IMHO, trying to turn anyone or making one hated to avoid the other getting booed is a bad idea. It wouldn't have worked. It's not as bad as Charlotte v. Rhea where you have two heels going head to head lol.
Well I don’t watch sport’s entertainment the same way I would normal sports games.
It’s not complaining for the sake of complaining, just an opinion. If Asuka was being a bit dirty, Bianca could’ve been a bit dirty and vengeful back. I know they’ve talked about their history but up until lately it’s still been lacking a bit of something for me. If you disagree, fine.
Still looking forward to the match no question about that.
I am not sure what they could have done but it just seems like they are okay Asuka wins an EC and goes against Bianca and there is just not a lot of interaction or anything. It is going to be a great match and I am looking forward to it.
Bianca is very talented in the ring but dreadfully boring as a character, and as a result, she feels overpushed. So any option that includes Bianca staying as the face on top is destined to be boring. They didn't handle Alexa as challenger to Belair well either, but it was overlooked by many because that felt like a placeholder / filler challenge.
WWE generally books the women heels very poorly, Bayley being the biggest exception to the rule. They seem to think that women faces have to win and heels have to lose. They don't usually let heels cheat to win. It has taken a long time to restore Shayna Baszler as a serious threat. Nikki and Piper are heels who have been booked terribly, and a result they are off the card. Not sure what happened to Carmella - she's been MIA after starting something that looked promising with Karen / Chelsea.
But then Charlotte always seems to struggle as a face, where she is now, and Rhea, despite being a heel, will probably get a huge "You Deserve It!" face chant when she wins.
So when Iyo gets a chance to look really good against the top tier Becky, its a step in the right direction.
I grabbed a screen shot of the ARMBAR. Lashley seems like a slam dunk here.
I was also going to mention that Dom is the fucking best. I picked up bits of his Spanish promo, particularly "I am taller and more handsome than my father". What a king. I hope he stomps Rey into mush at Mania and takes his mask and becomes Prince Mysterio.
I just asked, it was called The Engineer's Wife but she didn't read it 'cuz it was boring. So she read Confessions by a Japanese horror author that was excellent (no one else wanted to read it due to the subject matter so only she and another person did)..
Two things. Love the idea of Prince Mysterio. The other thing, when your wife is done with the book, check out the movie. SUPER WEIRD but it'll make sense if she's reading the book.
Dom himself was talking about potentially becoming Prince Mysterio back when he was first teaming with Rey and folks were asking him about carrying on the legacy. Would be rad and a cool twist if he did but, in kayfabe, as a heel who stole the mask like an asshole.
I'll let her know about the flick.
I thought Lesnar was going to just dip into the background for a little bit. I'm all about Cody v. Brock. I knew something was off about Brock he was wayyyyy too into being tag partners with someone. I can't even remember the last time Brock Lesnar was in a tag-team match.
Did anyone think it sounded like they had some audio issues with the crowd noise coming through? It felt like nobody was getting a crowd response like they should have. Even when Riddle returned I was like, A-what the fuck is he wearing? and B-why can't I hear the people I see going wild?
Not a fan of Riddle coming back to feud with Miz. I'll let it ride out though as both guys can deliver I just don't know if I'm feeling it rightnow.
I noticed the audio issues as well
Riddle coming back to feud with the Miz feels like it was more sending a message to the entire roster - we kept this top guy on the shelf for Mania even though his suspension was well over - and now that he's returned, we will have him prove himself all over again.
Other thoughts.
HHH's opening promo was trying to reassure us that nothing will change under new ownership, but it really felt like Vince was in charge because we opened with a long promo segment. Stu deserved his crowd cheering his name.
Theory was good, again, both on the mic and in his match with Rey. I liked the interaction with Bad Bunny and Dom/Priest. I was worried about Bad Bunny taking that bump through the table, until Graves informed us about his "separated shoulder" at the local medical facility. Pencilling in Bunny/Rey vs Dom/Priest at Backlash in Puerto Rico.
Omos getting rebuilt, with a squash on Elias. I hope Elias gets to entertain us on his guitar next week with a song about Omos. Elias is booked worse than Corbin.
Positive - ALI is working better than anything Mufasa has done thus far. Brodus Reed got a chance to talk - I suspect he will be fed to the Almighty before Vince cuts him.
Ladies tag scene feels really unimportant. Lita is starting to remind me of how Moolah looked years ago. Admittedly, I looked a lot better myself years ago.
Seth getting the crowd to sing during the commercial break, then he walked away, was really off.
Damage CTRL without Bayley feels really off.
I liked Roman's strategy session with Paul/Solo.
Sami/KO vs Street Profits was fun. Nobody expects both these teams to be together next year.
Brock's turn was well done. He's a vicious heel when he wants to be, and attacking a face is the way to do it. I was mostly surprised we didn't get fans chanting "One More Time!"
Riddle's return seemed more like this year's designated "Big Superstar return on the RAW After Wrestlemania" than any other veiled message.... and Miz is a solid worker and could use the change-up himself after not doing much himself over the last few months. He hasn't had a decent feud himself (since Lumis in December, IIRC) for quite a while. They both could use the reset.
Someone on Facebook did a collage of all the times smiley, friendly Brock came out to shake hands with superstars just to F5 'em out of nowhere: Cena, Goldberg, Reigns, now Rhodes. I thought it was telegraphed a bit myself, but after the Yee-haw Jolly Brock we've had for the last few months, people still got swerved by it.
Lashley's gotten the raw deal out of this whole thing. Dunno what's going on with Bray Wyatt but all gimmicks aside they could have had a decent match at WM.
Lashley is someone who I honestly could give or take, if he retired tomorrow he would have a great career to look back on. He's someone who I 100% like to see because of how he looks. He doesn't do anything special, he can't talk to save his life, but if anyone saw him on the Broken Skull Sessions what a great guy. It's like when I was a kid and British Bulldog would come out. I wasn't a big fan but I knew he could deliver and he looked awesome.
With that said, Lashley v. Wyatt would've been a good match. Wyatt isn't Kurt Angle, but he can bump and the 7-8 moves he does are badass.
Lashley was the best when he had MVP talking for him.
Omos sucks, reunite The Hurt Business.
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