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Raw It started with Cody Rhodes asking San Antonio what they wanted to talk about. We all knew the obvious answer. He invited Seth Rollins to the ring and the two accepted The Rock & Roman Reigns’ invitation to come to Slap this week. Cool cool. That’s not really what I want to talk about here. What caught my attention was Seth.
Cody gave him a logical way out if Seth decided not to agree to team up with him against Rocky & Roman in Mania. The man has a fight with Drew McIntyre, who deserves all of his attention. Ironically, that’s the same thing Drew said last week when he advised Seth not to worry about what would happen on Friday nights. Seth told Cody the same thing he told Drew: defeating Bloodline right now is more important than anything else. If it were Captain Jean Luc Picard, he would have said the line must be drawn here!
The way Seth dismissed Drew as someone he would easily handle says it all. Seth clearly isn’t focused on the big man and I understand why. Roman is more than personal with him; He feels responsible for the last few years and wants to put an end to it. From Seth’s point of view, he brought Roman into this world and can eliminate him. He believes that with Rock’s position in the company, if they don’t stop Roman now, then his former SHIELD partner will gain the absolute power he always craved. Yeah, that’s enough to make me or possibly anyone else forget about Drew.
It’s a character-driven story that opens up a path where Seth loses his title because he’s really focused on the big picture. The only reason the championship exists around Seth’s waist is because of Roman; Seth’s mission statement is a reign that’s nothing like his Friday night counterpart. Raw illustrated how that could possibly ruin Seth in a simple but effective way during the main event.
Jey Uso against Drew. Drew wants the apology he never received, while Jey thinks Drew is a disrespectful whiny baby. There’s enough history between these two that the match doesn’t need much buildup. The only question was when Bloodline would show up and how they would screw Jey.
They got sidetracked a bit when Solo showed up first and Cody made the save. But then Jimmy appeared out of nowhere and knocked Jey out of his game. Drew once again took advantage of Bloodline’s antics that she swears she hates, and she got a W. Foreshadowing and hammering home his hypocrisy.
But then Seth came into the ring to defend himself against Jimmy and protect Jey. He did this with Drew still in the ring and lurking behind him the entire time. Then this happened:
This is exactly what Drew warned Seth about. As Drew said earlier in the show, Seth doesn’t listen and is addicted to being the center of attention. He cares a lot about destroying Roman and company. that he is neglecting a very dangerous opponent.
That’s all very solid material that converges all of these stories into a circular shape. I really love this type of storytelling and it’s something WWE does very well when they commit to it. Seth is in trouble and instead of just saying it, they tell us repeatedly.
B-sides
lucky star
If I’m the Kabuki Warriors, I’m not impressed with Shayna Baszler and Zoey Stark’s victory over Katana Chance and Kayden Carter. While I didn’t expect them to dominate the former tag team champions, I wanted a more decisive victory. Katana and Kayden defeated their opponents with the Afterparty. And if it weren’t for Shayna saving at the last second, they would lose the match. Actually, if it weren’t for Zoey catching Katana off guard with a quick move, they wouldn’t win.
It’s the equivalent of a comeback, which is usually not a bad thing. But with Damage CTRL exploring and then giving Zoey and Shayna the championship match they want, I wanted a bigger W from the future challengers. They were victorious in a match that seemingly made the champions think they were worthy of a title shot.
Well.
Without tears
On the other hand, there is Nia Jax against Becky Lynch. Liv Morgan’s shadow loomed over this match due to Becky interfering in Liv’s match against Nia last week. Quick update for those who missed it or just don’t remember (a lot happens in a week): Liv seemingly had Nia where she wanted her, but Becky stepped in for some of that sweet revenge on Nia. Liv lost the match via DQ and then faced Becky. Liv had every right of her when she reminded Becky that it’s not all about her.
Fast forward to this week and Liv returned the favor. Before Becky lost the match via DQ, she and Nia made a pretty good exit. Nia dominated from the start, so it was a matter of Becky weathering the attack and coming back. This was violent and Becky received a serious beating. It made for a competitive and compelling match between two titans. Becky got the advantage good before Liv interfered and ruined everything for her.
That led to some backstage words between Liv and Becky, which of course resulted in the two getting into a fight.
This is cool and almost real? I want more of Becky vs. Nia. A sentence I never thought I would write but here we are.
Speak again
Welcome Andrade back to Raw officially! With Judgment Day observing, Andrade defeated Apollo Crews in his first match with the red brand.
However, time was up: where did they find Apollo? I haven’t seen that man in months! After watching his entire NXT career, it’s strange to see him without a notebook. I guess you never know what you have until you lose it.
Apollo is a good hand, so he accomplished what he needed to do without surprising me. I’m curious to know how Judgment Day influences Andrade’s future. Is he a future member or does she become his next target?
Good night
If there’s one entity that can turn Judgment Day into good guys, it’s IMPERIUM. Seriously, San Antonio applauded Damian Priest and Finn Balor like they were the Rockers back in the day. People don’t really like these IMPERIUM cats, do they?
What I liked most about this match was how easily Finn and Damian fell into their “good guy” roles. After Finn dealt Giovanni a low blow early in the match, he feels like someone called an audience the moment the crowd starts chanting for the Prince. He fought from below. They fought from below and sold everything Giovanni Vinci and Ludwig Kaiser did as if they were world champions. Specifically Finn, who took the brunt of the beating and felt every second of IMPERIUM’s methodical offensive. He bought himself some time with a wicked Sling Blade after IMPERIUM nearly ruined his tandem move.
Damian got the hot tag and it was pretty much over from there. Damian is a great tag and Yeah Judgment Day ever turns away from the dark side, here’s what it could look like.
Judgment Day got the W thanks to South Heaven, and IMPERIUM slipped away into the moonlight.
Hold the line
My favorite moment of the incredible match between Sami Zayn and Ivar came in the third act. It was something simple but it is a detail and I love matches that take care of the details no matter how small they may be. Sami tried an Exploder on the turnbuckle early in the match but, I mean, we’ve all seen Ivar. Once that didn’t work, Ivar regained control and Sami lost his slight advantage. So when Sami had another chance to make it, he tried a different strategy. He struck Ivar’s back with multiple forearm blows, thus weakening the big man and making him more susceptible to being flipped.
Mission accomplished.
It’s just smart psychology and character development during a match. Plus, it makes it feel like a real fight where strategies evolve because they have to.
Sami finally got the win, which was part of his need for momentum heading into next week’s match for a spot in Wrestlemania against GUNTHER.
And this is the part where I mention the gauntlet match:
Yo love gauntlet matches and this one has incredible stakes. Sami explained why he should hire GUNTHER before the match, but Bronson Reed said “no” to all that:
Sami spoke. Chad Gable spoke, and he was incredibly passionate and did probably the best promo of his career when he talked about taking GUNTHER’s smile and giving it to his daughter. But Bronson spoke with his actions. That works for him because, while the Aussie can talk, he lets his fists handle the verbs. He doesn’t have the emotional reasoning like Sami or Chad; he only wants gold and wants to fight.
For the record, I support Chad and think he will get the nod. He has the most compelling story, he and GUNTHER held a clinic last fall, and the reaction he’ll get in Philadelphia by defeating the Ring General might prove that the city really has a heart. I can’t say much about their tastes yet, since they like dirty birds, but at least it will show that they are human beings.
Aside from that fight between Katana and Kayden and Shayna and Zoey, this show left me very little to complain about. The Seth and Drew thing really intrigues me right now. It is a thoughtful narrative that is sometimes subtle but does not go unnoticed.
And finally, a big shout out to Michael Cole, Pat Mac and Cody for shouting out Sting. While Cody’s wasn’t as obvious as the commentary team, it was still noticed and appreciated.
What say you, inhabitants of Cageside? Did you enjoy this week’s show? And did you expect Pat to call Sting’s last fight “epic”?