Last of the Mohicans

"Oi'm back!" declared Sheamus forty minutes into the March 30 episode of Monday Night RAW.

He'd last been seen losing the United States championship to Rusev in a Network exclusive match after the November 3 RAW. Days after that it was revealed via Twitter¹ he was headed into hospital for an undisclosed surgery. It's not clear whether or not this surgery was real. It probably was, but it could easily have been invented as a reason to get Sheamus off TV and add some legitimacy to Rusev's fearsome Beast Mode.

'Great White' had needed time off for a while so whether the surgery was real or not it came at a good time. As the happy, smiley babyface who was essentially a modern version of fightin' Irishman Finlay, Sheamus had become incredibly stale. Everything from his look to the guys he's was facing needed changing.

Oh, Sheamus. No.

The look is certainly something Shaymo has addressed. He's gone from a guy with spiked up hair and a daft beard to a guy with a spiked up Mohawk and a daft beard with tassels in it. The RAW and SmackDown audiences he's appeared in front of since returning have all chanted "You look stupid!" at him. They haven't been wrong. But at least they were chanting at him. The WWE mentality these days² is that any noise is good noise.

It's still too early to say whether or not 'The Celtic Warrior' has sufficiently changed up his wrestling style. We've yet to see any new moves from him but it's still early days. His match against old foe Daniel Bryan on the April 2 SmackDown was enjoyable but there was nothing new on offer. As far as the in-ring stuff goes this is the same old Sheamus. Stiff punches, the backbreaker and the Brogue kick still seem to be the order of the day.

But at least he's changed his look. It's nice to see Sheamus making the effort with his return. So few guys try to do something different when returning to WWE, which contributes to the overall stale feeling of their shows. Sheamus being thrust into a multi-way programme with Daniel Bryan, Bad News Barrett and Dolph Ziggler is promising. He can have good singles matches against D-Bry and 'The Show Off' and the climactic four-way tussle should be exciting. But beyond that I find myself with the same problem I always have with Sheamus: it's hard to get excited about anything he does. Once he wraps up with Bryan and Ziggler there's nobody left I'm interested in seeing him face. And all the silly haircuts in the world won't change that.

***

¹ That's how WWE seems to reveal most things these days. Imagine Steve Austin's surgery back in 1999 being revealed through a tweet.

² Championed by King of Mixed Reactions Jern Cena.

The Divisional Approach

At WrestleMania the one thing I didn't want to happen, happened. And it happened twice.

Daniel Bryan won the Intercontinental championship in the show-opening seven man ladder match. Later in the night John Cena won his first United States championship in over ten years when he defeated Foreign Menace™ Rusev. Both men are former multi-time world champions. For various reasons (see here for more) I think having these traditionally secondary titles is bad for Cena, Bryan and the titles themselves.

AMERICA!!

For Bryan a reign as the IC champ has made him look like a guy who knows he couldn't cut it competing against guys like Roman Reigns (whom he lost to clean at Fast Lane) and Brock Lesnar. Going after the white belt was a safer and easier option. Meanwhile the US title looks like a trinket Cena picked up because he happened to be feuding with the guy who held it, not because he wanted to win it. Cena was motivated more by national pride and showing a Russian how great America is than by winning a championship. It also looks like something he's doing to kill time before he decides he wants the world title back. That time will come and it will be a big story within WWE because it will see Cena trying to equal the much-hyped sixteen world titles record set and held by Ric Flair.

On the same night that Bryan and Cena won their belts Seth Rollins won the WWE world championship. The only title he'd held before that (on the main roster) was the tag team title alongside Roman Reigns. Instead of Seth spending years ploughing through the ranks and winning a secondary title or two to mark himself as a rising star his first singles title was the WWE championship. This makes the world championship look like it's on the same level as the mid-card titles. Which is possibly what WWE intended, but instead of the secondary titles being elevated by this the status of the world heavyweight title has been decreased. This isn't t say Rollins isn;t a worthy champions (he is), but his victory would have meant more if he'd spent time with mid-card singles belts that meant something first.

There's hope left though. WWE could, if they wanted, position the three championships as three separate divisions. Cena and the US title could head up an unofficial hoss-slash-big lad division consisting of guys like Rusev, Big E, Cesaro, Luke Harper and Ryback. D-Bry could be the standard bearer for an indy guys-slash-nippy fellas Intercontinental division of guys like Dolph Ziggler, Dean Ambrose, Stardust and Kalisto. The WWE championship could remain the alleged top prize, something the best on the roster won, with guys filtering in and out of competition for it and challenging for the other titles in the meantime.

I wouldn't go so far as to advocate them actually announcing these divisions (that would be a turn off to a lot of people) but if they just did it I think most people would follow along and understand what was happening. Personally I'd rather they took this approach and never had any former world champs regressing to other titles (except for obvious duds like The Miz, Big Show and Sheamus) but if they're going to present all of their singles titles as more or less equal they might as well do something interesting with it.

Decreasing Value in Triplicate

I've written before that I'm not generally in favour of former world champions winning mid-card championships. It's been a while since I explained my reasons for this though so it's probably worth covering them again briefly. Generally speaking I think it's a move that hurts the credibility of the champion in question and does nothing for either of the championships. The world championship should be a promotion's top prize. If a wrestler is happy to forget about trying to regain it in favour of challenging for another title it makes the world championship look less prestigious. It makes the wrestler look like they were in over the head at the top of the card, as though they're taking  step backwards to the easier opposition of the mid-card. Rather than elevating the non-world title it makes it look like something that guys do in between world title reigns, turning it into a stopgap rather than a legitimate prize.

American champ? Maybe.
American hero? Undoubtably.

The reason I mention this is that it's currently looking as though WWE may be planning to have John Cena and Daniel Bryan win non-world titles at WrestleMania. They are respectively the face of and most popular man in the company. The reasoning, according to the most prevalent of rumours, is that if Lesnar re-signs he can retain the world championship against Roman Reigns and house shows can be structured around US champion Cena and Intercontinental champion D-Bry.

If you just glance at the idea it makes sense. Lesnar can keep his world strap and the lesser belts can be given a boost by Bryan and Cena. But realistically that's not going to happen. The US and IC belts are going to carry the same lustre they have for years no matter who holds them. And, just to be clear, that lustre is practically non-existent. Bryan and Cena won't elevate the titles simply by winning them because they're the same titles that have been aimlessly thrust around the same bunch of stagnating, going nowhere mid-carders for year. The best part of a decade in fact. By the time they're beginning to make progress at making the titles mean more, if they manage it at all, the writing team will have some other grand scheme that involves the two of them being moved back into the world title's orbit. Because this sort of schizophrenic approach is how the writing team works.

This move would make it look like Cena and Bryan are doing exactly what I said above, taking a step back and killing time before a better opportunity to become world champion presents itself. To an extent this would make sense for Cena's character. He's been trounced by Lesnar several times now. But this wouldn't be how it's presented, because doing so would involve acknowledging that Cena isn't omnipotent.

This man is better than WWE's Intercontinental championship.

Meanwhile Bryan has never faced 'The Beast'. Surely it would be better for his character, and the world championship, if he left 'Mania with no gold and announced his intention to focus on earning a match with Lesnar and defeating him for the world title. That would make it clear the WWE championship is still the biggest prize in the company and give us a sure-fire hit in Lesnar v Bryan. It would also make a Bryan v Reigns title match an interesting proposition: Reigns would have won the Rumble and defeated Bryan before being halted by Lesnar, the man Bryan would have beaten for the gold.

The thing is, this entire line of thinking is unnecessary on WWE's part anyway. Nobody buys tickets to WWE house shows based on title defences, no matter what titles they are. It's the WWE brand and the number of main event performers announced that determines whether people go or not. John Cena (or whoever) defending the world title against Seth Rollins (or whoever) doesn't make a jot of difference because everyone knows the champion will leave with the championship if the match isn't televised.

Yeah, New Japan has been very successful introducing an Intercontinental championship of their own and having it held by former world champions. But New Japan is a very different company with a very different style to WWE. A far greater emphasis is placed on match quality than in WWE. Their title also benefits from not being booked as an afterthought for well over a decade. And WWE doesn't anyone like Shinsuke Nakamura to make synonymous with their championship. Cena will never be that good and Bryan doesn't have the tenure.

As much as I'd like to see him stick around and hold the title indefinitely this whole thing makes me hope, just a bit, that Lesnar decides on returning to the UFC. At least that would make the WWE title picture ever so slightly more likely to remain interesting in the traditionally dry post-'Mania period.

The E in WWE

A couple of years ago Big E (then Langston) looked like he was going somewhere. After a successful run in NXT, including a stint as champion which began when he dethroned Seth Rollins, he debuted on the main roster at the end of 2012. Working as Dolph Ziggler's enforcer he was at 'The Show Off's' side in a tag match at WrestleMania XXIX and got to share the spotlight with him the following night on RAW when he cashed in his Money in the Bank briefcase and defeated Alberto Del Rio for the World Heavyweight championship to a thunderous ovation.

An all too early split from Ziggler proved a setback but it didn't last too long. Big E would turn face in October and wrestle Shield member Dean Ambrose for the US championship. He didn't win that belt but he would take the Intercontinental championship from Curtis Axel (yeah, Axel was IC champ, sorry for reminding you of that traumatic experience) weeks later.

Big E and a giant yellow LEGO brick there.

While he didn't have an incredible reign even by modern standards Big E did have some good matches during his time as IC kingpin. His defence against Damien Sandow at the TLC pay-per-view at the end of 2013 was fun, his match with former boss Ziggler on the March 25 Main Event was better than expected, and his match with Jack Swagger at Elimination Chamber was one of the best matches of the year. No real thought was put into Big E's reign but he showed that he was capable of producing a level of match that could make his title mean something.

After losing the championship to Bad News Barrett on May 4 at Extreme Rules Big E got nothing to do until July. After losing a tag match he and partner Kofi Kingston were confronted by an angry Xavier Woods, who heelishly told the pair they should start taking. This angle was the beginning of The New Day faction. It wasn't until November that the creative team decided what they wanted the unit to be, at which point they were officially reintroduced to TV.

Unfortunately for Big E, Kingston and Woods what the creative team wanted them to be was a generic mid-card group. They became evangelists, wearing outfits of matching colour and singing with a choir. At the time I thought it had potential. Truth be told I still do. But true to form the writing team have taken the most basic route possible with the group, giving the characters no layers, no feuds, and little material to work with beyond the initial concept. After three months that's not enough.

As the man with the most singles potential in the group Big E would probably benefit from being split off on his own at this point. Woods looks like a jobber while Kingston has been knocking around the middle of the card for so long that it should be clear to everyone he's never going to progress further. Keeping E linked to them can only take him down to their level.

It would be nice if WWE not only split Big E away from the group but did so with an actual story and used the opportunity to do something about Big E's character at the same time. The most obvious thing would be to play on the established difference in Woods' and Bigster's characters. Woods initially got The New Day together  by saying they should take, which is classic disgruntled mid-carder fare. Even when he was a heel Big E has always been a character who's pretty laid back and has a sense of humour about himself and what he does for a living. There's a natural conflict between this laid back approach and Woods' entitled outlook.

A divide could appear between the two, Woods becoming  increasingly aggressive and Big E not approving of the change. Kofi could be stuck in the middle and be gradually won over by Woods' rhetoric. Big E could eventual snap and leave them to work as a regular tag team while he resumes his singles career. This could either be an amicable split or something that takes in a pay-per-view or featured TV match. The match approach would probably be better as it would give three guys something to do and create a match that people have a reason to care about on RAW.

Honma. A good-lookin' lad.

Whether we got Big E versus Kingston or Woods or Kingston and Woods or not Big E would be freed up for a gimmick refresh. I like the idea of him being remodelled on New Japan's Tomoaki Honma. He wears colourful tights, uses a lot of headbutts and goes for his finisher as soon as matches begin. Big E could throw a convincing headbutt and I'm sure he could splash out on some new singlets. Honma tends to wear red and yellow (presumably as a nod to Hulk Hogan, for whatever reason) but adds peculiar illustrations. Big E could get some primary coloured stuff made up with pop culture imagery on it. It would be different to what most people in WWE wear. Standing out in that way would give people someone to latch onto, and if people watching RAW need anything it's something to latch onto.

Being visually different is rarely a bad thing in wrestling. The same goes for having a distinctive move set, and while headbutts are simple they're also not something anyone else in WWE is currently noted for using. Big E wouldn't necessarily need to win all the time, or even often, but putting him by himself with some things to set him apart could, in time, help him get over. The slow route is what seems to earn the respect of fans these days. Why not put some promising guys in positions to take it?

That RAW Recap 02.03.15

For the second week in a row this Monday's RAW provided nothing but confusion regarding Randy Orton. He remained affiliated with The Authority and natural nemesis Seth Rollins, even going so far as to help 'The Future' pick up a win over Roman Reigns. He smirked about doing it too, as though he's working to some master plan only he understands. That might go somewhere but even if it does it's a bit odd to have to feuding parties helping one another to win matches. Especially when one party tried to cave in the other's head using steel ring steps.

Unlike last week's episode there was more of interest than Randy Orton's Stockholm Syndrome. Probably the greatest item of interest was the appearance of The Daily Show's Jon Stewart. Following a passing remark Rollins made on the February 23 episode of RAW¹ Stewart posted a YouTube video filmed in portrait on his phone taking Rollins to task for being a turncoat and a lackey to The Authority. Rollins responded to that by crashing Stewart's show and offering him the chance to appear on RAW.

The Daily Show with Seth Rollins.

Bringing in celebrities is part of the WWE package. It's foolish to get upset about it, even when the celebrities clearly have no interest in or knowledge of the product. But Stewart didn't fall into that category. He demonstrated that he's  the WWE fan he claims with his general demeanour and referencing of past events (even though that's something that rarely happens in WWE) and carried himself well. Obviously his background  in TV and as a stand-up comedian didn't hurt, but the overwhelming feeling after Stewart's segment was over was that he'd genuinely wanted to be a part of the show, as opposed to participating just to plug something.

The specifics of that segment were as follows. Rollins sat at a desk mocked up to look like the Daily Show set (in the ring, natch) and cracked a few jokes at Stewart's expense. The audience were fairly quiet for this but that didn't matter because Rollins, Noble and Mercury all laughed uproariously at the material. This led to Stewart interrupting and slinging some jokes of his own. Naturally his comedic timing was better than Rollins's, because he's a comedian and talks for a living while promos have never been 'Mr Money in the Bank's' strength (though in fairness he's improved greatly since his early ROH days). Being a heel Rollins got aggressive and left his seat to intimidate and manhandle Stewart. Then Randy Orton wandered out, distracting S-Roll and allowing Stewart to kick him in the privates. Orton feigned ignorance at what he'd done wrong then wandered backstage.

Throughout the programme the Intercontinental championship belt was stolen by various mid-carders. This was a continuation of a plot that's been running since Fast Lane. There Dean Ambrose left with it even though he'd been unsuccessful in challenging for it. Last week Dolph Ziggler and Daniel Bryan both showed interest in the title and R-Truth grabbed it from ringside and handed it back to Ambrose after it had been reclaimed by rightful owner Bad News Barrett.

Ziggler handling stolen property there.

This week Luke Harper joined the mix. I'm in favour of the multi-man ladder match that's been announced for WrestleMania and this seems an effective enough way of building towards it. The names that seem likely to be involved are all good choices too (with the possible exception of Truth). I am disappointed that Daniel Bryan might be a participant though. I'm not desperate to see him in the main event (I understand that this is Reigns' year and I'm in favour of pretty much anyone being moved up the card) but I do think he's popular enough to merit a singles match on 'The Grandest Stage of Them All'. The singles match with Dolph Ziggler that they started to set up then dropped would have been ideal.

Other than Bray Wyatt calling for The Undertaker to respond to him, Paul Heyman talking up the Reigns versus Lesnar WrestleMania main event, and Rusev again refusing to a rematch with John Cena (all of which were very good) the only other item of interest from RAW was the Divas championship match. Nikki Bella retained her title against Paige after Brie Bella interfered to deliberately cause a disqualification and save her sister from Paige's PTO submission hold.

Unvicious knee from Nikki there.

I make note of this match because it was clearly a response to last week's criticism that WWE do not book or pay their female performers fairly. There was a notable difference to the way in which the match was laid out. Both women worked, as Steve Austin would say, snugger than they usually would, both tossed out multiple clotheslines (something you don't often see in WWE women's matches), the match lasted longer than the average TV Divas match, and, most interestingly, there were a greater variety of moves, including an attempt at a 'Double A' spinebuster by Nikki. The changes were very clear.

This was a step in the right direction but it was far from the overhaul of the Divas division that people want. But that's to be expected. You can't change the perception of a division in a week. This was a good first step. The next changes should be focusing a little less on shilling Total Divas during women's matches and giving people that aren't AJ, Paige or the Bellas a distinct character.

All told RAW wasn't bad but it wasn't especially action-packed. If the writing team want to remind us that WrestleMania's meant to be kind of a big deal they're going to have to step up their game over the next week or two. And the sooner Orton officially turns face again the better.

***

¹ Rollins said that he's so talented he could replace Stewart, who's retiring, as host of The Daily Show, a satirical news show. Just no.

Incoming Irishman

We haven’t seen Sheamus for a while. The reason for this is that he’s been off healing up from surgery he received in November. It’s possible you haven’t missed him. It would be understandable. Sheamus did nothing of note in 2014. The closest he came to being interesting was winning the United States championship and teasing a heel turn against dean Ambrose, but even that wasn’t especially memorable. His reign was just as innocuous as every other reign has been with that belt in the last three years.

The likelihood is that Sheamus will soon be back on TV. From a character perspective the natural thing for him to do upon his return would be to target Rusev, the man who defeated him for the US title on November 3. Or possibly Mark Henry, who, along with Rusev, gave him the kicking that was credited with causing his absence in storylines.

In reality Sheamus will probably not do this. He’s been due a heel turn since 2013 and gunning for Rusev or Henry would only postpone that further. I think WWE will be keen to pull the trigger on ‘Great White’ going bad. They’re short on credible heels at the moment and Sheamus needs to turn. It’s an obvious thing to do and do quickly.

Even Sheamus looks bored by the idea of his comeback.

I’m not a fan of Sheamus. I don’t find him interesting to listen to or fun to watch. His signature moves are bland. The ten punch in the ropes spot is dull. White Noise is clunky to pull off. The Brogue kick is one of the most unspectacular finishes ever, although that it has least has been built up as a credible finish within WWE. The best thing you can say about Sheamus is that he does his best work against other hossy lads like Cesaro. But everyone does good work with Cesaro.

The heel turn is unlikely to change how I feel about ‘The Celtic Warrior’ but it might make him more bearable. It will allow him to make some much needed changes to his character and present him with a fresh list of opponents. A change in allegiance will also ensure he’s a priority of the creative team, meaning he’ll be given things to do and we’ll be given reasons to be interested in him. That should last at least a few weeks.

I’d be most interested in Sheamus taking a mid-card role and working with guys like Dolph Ziggler, Luke Harper, and the also soon-to-return Bad News Barrett to continue reinvigorating the Intercontinental championship. Failing that a team-up with fellow big boys The Ascension for a series of singles and tag matches with The New Day, leading to a climactic six man exchange, would play to Sheamus’s strengths.

Realistically I think ‘Great White’ will be closer to the top of the card, because he’s apparently popular with the right people in decision-making circles. Couple that with the fact that he’s one of the bigger names on the roster these days and you have a lethal combination that means he’s usually positioned pretty well in and around the Rumble to WrestleMania period.

A WrestleMania 31 match with Dean Ambrose or Dolph Ziggler doesn’t seem out of the question. The latter wouldn’t be too bad if ‘The Show Off’ won. The former would be terribly disheartening. After a year turning himself into one of the most interesting guys in WWE the last thing ‘The Lunatic Fringe’ needs is to be saddled with Sheamus for his first ‘Mania singles match.

Perhaps worse is the potential for a Sheamus versus Roman Reigns or Sheamus versus Daniel Bryan match at ‘The Granddaddy of Them All’. Reigns is not to everyone’s taste but he’s one of WWE’s best chances to make a new star. For that to happen he needs a lot of care an attention. A feud with Sheamus does not fall into that category after his poor 2014. And while Bryan and Sheamus have had very good matches in the past (like Cesaro, nobody has a bad match with D-Bry) the last thing the most popular man in the company needs right now is to be saddled with the returning ‘Irish Curse’.

A best case scenario would actually be for Sheamus’s return to be held off until after WrestleMania. That way he could be brought in to fill the void left by Brock Lesnar and any other departing part-timers, and he could be placed into a brand new feud with someone on one of the most watched RAWs of the year. But just you watch: he’ll return at the Royal Rumble and be booked strong to set up a WrestleMania match which is top of nobodies’ wish list.

Swamp Thing

When the Wyatt Family first appeared in WWE in May 2013 it was clear who the big singles success of the group would be. It would be the man the faction was named for and the man who had been positioned as its star in the introductory vignettes. It would be Bray Wyatt.

Luke Harper and Erick Rowan seemed destined to become a solid part of WWE’s on-again, off-again tag team division. It was Wyatt who, after rebounding from a shambolic debut feud with Kane, wrestled Daniel Bryan in a singles match at Royal Rumble and John Cena at WrestleMania. Rowan and Harper may have been at his side during the excellent six man tag match opposite The Shield at Elimination Chamber but while ‘The Hounds of Justice’ were shown to be equals amongst themselves it was very clear that ‘The Eater of Worlds’ was the star and leader of his team.

Later in the year it would be Wyatt who challenged for the vacant WWE championship in a ladder match at Money in the Bank. Harper and Rowan wrestled in the opening match against Jimmy and Jey Uso, which they lost. They were in the same spot with the same team a month later at Battleground and lost again. They didn’t get to wrestle at SummerSlam at all and by the time Night of Champions rolled around they, along with Bray, had disappeared from television.

Lovely upside-down Sheamus face there.

Now here we are a couple of months later and Luke Harper is the new Intercontinental champion and Erick Rowan is heading towards a pay-per-view match with Big Show (a spot which historically signals that WWE has interest in someone). Two months ago I would have said Rowan had done nothing to distinguish himself as someone who merited a singles spot and that Harper would benefit from staying as part of a team before getting split off for a singles career.

But the split has worked better than could have been reasonably expected. The crowd reacted to Harper’s IC title win over Dolph Ziggler, to the pair’s showdown during the Survivor Series main event, and to the Rowan and Show confrontation and Harper’s match against Dean Ambrose on RAW. In fact both men have been accepted so smoothly that it seems strange WWE has opted not to go with Rowan versus Harper at TLC.

This said the situation is still jarring. WWE didn’t actually do much to get either man ready for their new roles, and both still look as though they’re associated with Wyatt. In a matter of weeks Rowan went from a big, creepy dude with an unhealthy interest in Renee Young and cuddly toys to a stand-up dude willing to help out happy chappy John Cena and confront big bad bully Big Show.

But, like I say, the Survivor Series crowd seemed pretty taken with him. I think at least part of the reason for that could be that he performed some impressive moves that hadn’t really been emphasised before (his choke bomb and spinning heel kick, most notably). If he can work out when to employ those and similar moves during his matches I think there’s a good chance he’ll keep the audience’s interest.

Meanwhile nothing much had been done to make Luke Harper look like a contender to the most prestigious active title in the company. At the end of the November 10 RAW he smacked Ziggler around and the following week he beat him after interference from Jamie Noble, Joey Mercury and Seth Rollins. That was it. A decent enough return for sure, and a nice way to give the character some edge, but not the best way to show that he’s a potential (and future) champion.

Luke Harper has eyes.

It made him look like someone who jumped a babyface, got rewarded for it, and then won a title more through shenanigans than on his own merit. That sort of booking can work. It’s done wonders for Rollins, for example. But it doesn’t seem like the sort of thing that should be done with a guy like Harper. He should be a bruiser who muscles people around, not a guy who gets his first WWE title via shady tactics.

It’s not really done much for the title itself. Previous champ Dolph Ziggler had had the gold on and off since SummerSlam. In those three months he’d treated the title like it meant something to him and defended it in some top notch matches. There may not have been quite as much variety during his reigns as there could have been but things were at least going in the right direction. On ‘The Show Off’ the title felt like it meant something.

Being on Harper doesn’t negate all of that but it does undo some of it. Ziggler is a far more prominent WWE personality and him having the title gave it a rub. That it wasn’t Seth Rollins who showed an interest in beating him for it tells us that the title is beneath him, and it shouldn’t be. A character like Rollins should want the IC title because he’s all about bragging rights and being the future. As much as I like Harper him winning the Intercontinental gold set the title’s progress back. The right change was from Ziggler to Rollins.

But on the whole I think WWE has handled the Wyatt Family split well. I still think it was premature and the three had more to offer as a faction than as separate entities, but at least they’ve been made relevant. In fact, so far it’s been Bray Wyatt who’s struggled the most, thanks to the limp material he and new rival Dean Ambrose have been given to work with. I still think he’ll be the biggest success of the three long term, but in a way it’s nice to see Rowan and Harper finding their footing before him. It speaks to their ability to survive and gain support within the often self-contradictory WWE system.

That RAW Recap 17.11.14

The main thing I picked up from this week's RAW was that everyone on Team Cena has a reason to defect to Team Authority. Depending on how you look at things that’s either a deft bit of writing or a happy accident. I'm inclined to believe it's an accident. But hey, at least they got there.

The thing is it shouldn't be an accident. WWE has been doing what it does for decades and employs so many people to contribute to their creation direction that it's not unreasonable to expect them to produce a top notch show more often than not. This week was not a top notch show. Nor was it a second notch show. It was closer to a bottom notch show. It was, to put it bluntly, bad.

And the reason for this is that their preparation for the Survivor Series pay-per-view was ill-thought-out. On the one hand yes, it made sense to have Team Authority once again perform the divide and conquer routine. But on the other hand…

On the other hand we had Ryback declaring himself to be on Team Ryback (there’s a T-shirt waiting to happen) before being positioned as the saviour of the day by aiding Cena and chums at the end of the show. We had Triple H basically cutting a babyface promo about why he should remain the heel authority figure. We had Erick Rowan demanding he be given stuffed animals and then joining Team Cena. We had Team Cena being picked apart and Cena doing absolutely nothing about it even though that directly contradicted his Hustle, Loyalty, Respect mantra.

The worst thing about this episode should have been that it was guest hosted by a cat. Instead that's not really worth mentioning because so much of the important stuff went wrong and did so at such a basic level that it never stood a chance of coming across well on screen.

Chances are that one of these men will be turning. Not Cena though, obvs.

But as I said up at the top at least the end result of RAW was a desirable one. It feels as though Cena's team is unstable. That plays well in storyline terms as it helps to present the team as underdogs. It also means that the swerve turn which seems inevitable has an element of unpredictability to it: if everyone has a reason for turning it makes it tougher to accurately say who will.

Ryback is the most logical choice for the turn, considering his declaration that he's loyal only to himself these days. He's the kind of character who'll do what benefits him at any given moment so if an opportunity comes up to help an already winning Authority then it would be utterly in character for 'The Big Guy' to take it. But it's possible the recent booking of Ryback has been designed to make us think this. If Ryback refuses an opportunity to benefit himself and remains loyal to his team it would come across as a key moment for him. It wouldn't erase the messiness of the previous few weeks but it would be enough to satisfy most people that he'd seen the error of his ways and gone full babyface (until his next heel turn, obvs). It could, in other words, cement him as a top line face, albeit in an unnecessarily convoluted manner.

Erick Rowan wouldn't be much of a surprise either. Since being "released" (anyone else think that sounds needlessly sexual?) by Bray Wyatt he's been presented as a creepy stalker dude and a simpleton who enjoys toy cats more than the average man. The character is clearly low on mental stability, which means little reason is needed for him to betray Cena. It doesn't hurt that his former Wyatt Family teammate is on the opposite team. Luke Harper could convince Rowan to walk out on the match, indirectly helping The Authority. More likely Harper will give that a try and Rowan will Eugene up and slap him about.

Big Show was offered a 2015 Hall of Fame spot and a chance to be a headliner again if he turned on Cena. That's more reason than his usually has for turning. The current heel and face line-ups and his feud with Mark Henry make me think a Show turn is unlikely. But, y’know, it’s Show. Never bet against him turning.

Not officially part of the team anymore is Sheamus. He was wiped out with a World's Strongest Slam through the announce desk. It's peculiar that this was enough to take the fightin' Irishman out when he would have made a comeback within minutes had it occurred during a match. But this was apparently so devastating that he'll be unable to compete for at least seven days.

It's possible this was done to set Sheamus up as a last minute surprise for Team Cena. More likely, but also more puzzlingly, WWE felt that Rowan would be a better fit for the team and Roman Reigns or Bad News Barrett will get the surprise partner treatment. If that's the route taken a Sheamus turn is still possible. All it would take is one of the active team members to get "injured" mid-match and taken backstage, leaving Shaymo to come charging in as a replacement (because the injured party wouldn’t have been eliminated) before swerve turning. Yes, this approach would raise the question of what The Authority's plan would have been had the mid-match injury not occurred but this is WWE and they won't care about that.

Finally there's Dolph Ziggler. We've seen him step up into the number two babyface spot over the last month and he's been adamant about standing up to The Authority. Which, in a WWE storyline, is exactly the kind of thing that would usually preface him going bad. That he's also the worst person WWE could turn heel from the team, because he's so incredibly popular, is also concerning. It would be such an obvious mistake to have 'The Show Off' go bad that it's worryingly easy to imagine WWE making it.

We have Cena to thank for this.

At least if it were to happen Ziggler would have a logical reason for turning: siding with Cena cost him his Intercontinental championship and Cena just sat in the back and watched him lose it unfairly. Yes, Cena lolled around in the back, probably on his private coach, as Cena was beaten down by Seth Rollins, Jamie Noble and Joey Mercury and then lost the IC gold to Luke Harper. Also on the plus side for a Ziggles turn is the fact that a series of Ziggler versus Cena matches would probably be the most desirable thing for Cena over the next couple of months. Not that that’s enough to make me want to see it. I’d much prefer Ziggler to stay a face with his current positioning.

The 2014 Survivor Series is an important show for WWE, as I’ve written before and will write again tomorrow in my preview. Their recent episodes of RAW have not reflected that. There have been some good aspects, most notably the importance of the Survivor Series main event coming through, but overall it’s been a sloppy affair with WWE struggling to find ways to tie a large number of performers together in one storyline. This RAW typified that.

The Top Prize

WWE is currently wasting an opportunity to elevate the status of the Intercontinental championship. With the WWE title currently sitting on Brock Lesnar’s mantelpiece and not appearing on RAW Dolph Ziggler is the highest ranked champion in the promotion. The WWE champ’s continued absence is an opportunity to raise the significance of the IC strap, but it’s not being taken.

Obviously Randy Orton and John Cena are not going to suddenly show an interest in a second string championship. Nor should they. Doing so would send the message that the IC gold is something world champions go for when they’ve nothing else to do, which would devalue it. My feeling is that once a wrestler has been world champion, the best of the best, no other singles championship should satisfy them.

The man who would be king.

But WWE has an entire roster of guys who could express an interest in the Intercontinental hardware. Since Dolph Ziggler won it the only significant challengers he’s had have been The Miz and Cesaro. Both are the sort of guy who should be challenging for the title but to have only two people (plus the not exactly high profile Bo Dallas) being the only people to express an interest in the title doesn’t make it seem like a particularly valued prize.

It also devalues the title if everyone who mentions wanting to win it gets the chance to, as has happened since ‘The Show Off’ won it. It means more if shots at it are earned. The easiest way around that is to have mid-card guys mentioning the championship in interviews and promos even if they’re not involved, or about to be involved, in a feud for it. That way it seems like something people are constantly striving to win, making it feel more valued.

Seth Rollins would be an ideal guy to express interest in it. He’s just main evented a pay-per-view and is perfectly happy to refer to hismelf as the future. He’s even gone so far as to dub himself ‘The Undisputed Future of WWE’. He is ideally placed to challenge Ziggler: he’s a major name who hasn’t yet won a world championship.

The IC title is something commonly associated with rising stars, guys who are on their way to the main event. Holding it would not harm Rollins, but it would boost the status of the belt. That status would be further enhanced when Rollins, having lost the IC title, cashed in his Money in the Bank briefcase to become WWE champion: the Intercontinental title would have just come off a guy who went on to quickly become the WWE champion. It would demonstrate that the IC title is the gateway to the main event.

You may be wondering why it’s so important that the Intercontinental title is seen in this way. Put simply, it’s because the more important it seems the more useful it becomes as a star-building tool. If a wrestler wins a belt that doesn’t mean much they’ve accomplished little, if anything. If they win a title that’s seen as only a smidge beneath the world strap, and a title that has recently come off a man who went on to capture a world title, they’ve done something considerable and will be viewed as a bigger star.

There’s still time for WWE to get their act together on this. Lesnar isn’t expected to make regular contributions again until the build for his Royal Rumble defence against Cena begins in late December or early January. That gives WWE at least two more months to script some guys to express an interest in the championship and make it seem like something that’s desired by the roster.

Enhancement Talent

As the current possessor of the Money in the Bank world-title-shot-whenever-you-want-it contract Seth Rollins is guaranteed to be in at least one world title match over the next eight months. The smart money is on him using that match against a newly crowned Roman Reigns at WrestleMania (or the night after). Whenever he cashes in the likelihood is that he'll win the championship. It's not a certainty but the statistics of previous cash-ins and his standing indicate he'll be successful.

With this in mind WWE have in Rollins someone ideally positioned and suited to help in the rebuilding process of the Intercontinental championship. Years ago the IC title was something WWE protected. It was the championship the younger guys moving up the card would win. It was the championship contested in faster, more athletic matches that weren’t like the slower, more brawling-heavy bouts that went on last. Winning the Intercontinental title was something that generally marked a guy out as either a future big name or a workhorse who’d put on great matches. Or both, of course.

Increasing the prestige of the Intercontinental championship is clearly something the promotion currently wants to do. Having Dolph Ziggler hold the title is part of their plan. He's popular and he matches all the criteria above. Getting rid of the World Heavyweight championship was also done in part to increase the relevance of the IC strap. Over the years the WHC had become the rising star's title. Look no further than the reigns Daniel Bryan and CM Punk enjoyed with it for proof of that: they were textbook second tier reigns, designed to highlight guys who weren’t deemed ready for the main event but were ready for a prominently featured spot just below it.

Whack a belt in his other hand and he's away.

Rollins is currently at the ideal level for a “traditional” Intercontinental title reign. Guys destined for the top of the card would get the title at the stage Rollins is as now to give them a final bit of polish before they won a world title. This was done to show that they were progressing but also to keep the title looking important for the mid-card guys that held it. Not everyone holding the IC can or should go on to be a world champion, but by holding the same title that a world champion once held the guys getting left behind (a less than ideal term, but it’s essentially what happens) look like they’re holding something of greater value.

WWE could do far worse than having Rollins defeat Ziggler for the title between Hell in a Cell and Survivor Series. Leaving it on him until the New Year and letting him make lengthy defences against guys who can work a fast match would enhance the title. And let’s be clear, there’s plenty of TV time for Rollins to have those lengthy matches. It would also give Rollins something fresh to do and further cement him as The Authority's anointed one.

 

It would be a boon for someone like Ziggler or Bad News Barrett to win the title from Rollins, particularly if it were a clean victory. It would do even more for the title's perception if it was won by Dean Ambrose. The championship would come off of Rollins looking more important, potentially lifting it back to its former glory, and giving WWE another useful tool for making some of those desperately needed new stars.

Return of 'The Lunatic'

Fans of WWE Studios movies (and I’m sure there are loads of them) will know that Dean Ambrose has been away for the last five weeks filming Lockdown. Those of us more interested in WWE’s wrestling output will know this too, of course, because Ambrose has been absent from RAW and SmackDown, being written out of plots after supposedly having his head caved in by Seth Rollins. It was an absence that hurt WWE because he was arguably their most popular wrestler before he was written off TV.

Ambrose’s five week stint on a movie set may have halted his momentum but it’s also likely that his time away will have made people keen to see him again. As my old pal Jim Cornette would say, nobody can be missed if they don’t leave. Absence makes the heart grow fonder and all that.

Ambrose is listed amongst the superstars confirmed for tomorrow’s episode of Monday Night RAW. That means we can expect to see him on that show but it doesn’t necessarily mean he’ll be returning there. He could just as easily show up at this evening’s Night of Champions to gain some unadvertised retribution on Seth Rollins.

In fact, a Night of Champions appearance seems likelier than a return on RAW after the news that Roman Reigns has been pulled from the pay-per-view due to injury and will be out of action for somewhere in the region of two months. It’s easy to imagine Rollins hitting the ring to have himself announced the winner of his match with Reigns via forfeit only for ‘The Lunatic Fringe’ to charge out and give him an impromptu battering. The crowd would eat that up, it would get the Rollins v Ambrose programme back on track, and keep Rollins on the pay-per-view. Three wins.

But is that the best course of action for WWE? Personally I’d like to see them take another route. Have a backstage segment in which The Authority gloat about Reigns being injured and tell Rollins that he’ll still be in action, but wrestling for the Intercontinental championship. Or have Rollins crash Christian’s pre-show Peep Show to make the announcement himself. At the start of the scheduled Miz versus Ziggler match Rollins could go to the ring only to sit at commentary, explaining that he’ll face the winner of the IC title match. ‘The Show Off’ could retain and then lose the title to Rollins immediately afterwards.

Then Ambrose could show up to give the new champ a kicking.

Give them the Intercontinental title. Both guys and the belt would benefit.

This would achieve a few things. It would keep up Rollins’ status as the spoilt chosen one of The Authority: he’d have been handed a championship match (which the commentary team could put over as unjust) and beaten a popular guy in unfair circumstances (unjust again, obvs) to win the gold. It would get the IC belt involved in the company’s hottest and longest running feud, potentially restoring some of its lustre. It would also set Ambrose up for a title win at some point in the future, further painting him as a man destined for the top and again giving the title’s status a boost.

Whether they involve the Intercontinental championship Ambrose v Rollins is the perfect match to get the Hell in a Cell treatment in October. The problem with attaching the gimmick to a pay-per-view is that it doesn’t always sync up with rivalries that are worthy of it. Hell in a Cell, as WWE’s (in theory) premiere feud-ender, is something that should be built up to over time and only used for the most serious of grudges. If there’s been any feud in WWE over the last year that deserves the Cell treatment it’s Ambrose versus Rollins.

I’m going to hope WWE see sense and book Ambrose and Rollins to close the Cell PPV inside the cage. Closing a major show would give both men a credibility boost (and the Intercontinental strap, were that involved), and Cena could always be slipped into the penultimate spot to combat concerns of there being a lack of established headliners at the top of the card. If WWE wants to get new stars over they need to break from their long-established patterns. Ambrose and Rollins closing Hell in a Cell would do that.

Irish Intercontinental

WWE currently has a great opportunity to declutter their title scene a little bit. Knowing the way the company works I don’t think they’ll have realised it or that they’ll care about it if they have. But the opportunity’s there regardless.

The Intercontinental championship was vacated a few weeks ago after champion Bad News Barrett suffered an arm injury. A new champion will be crowned at the Battleground pay-per-view in a thirty man battle royal. Yeah, thirty. That number seems a bit high considering how few legitimately over wrestlers are on the roster and that (apparently) nobody involved will wrestle in a second match on the show. But that’s what they’re going for.

One of the thirty men in the match is current United States champion Sheamus. That’s a championship that means even less than the Intercontinental title. If either the IC or the US belt was dropped then the remaining one would mean more. The fewer prizes there are on offer the greater an accomplishment it is to win one.

Give Sheamus the Intercontinental championship.

I’m not a fan of former world champions winning mid-card titles. Nor am I a fan of Sheamus. But even so I wouldn’t mind seeing ‘The Celtic Warrior’ leave Battleground as a double champion. It would allow him to appear on RAW the next night and officially combine the two titles, quietly dropping the US belt after a few weeks (or then and there on RAW). Or he could knock the US strap and the country it represents and cast it aside, providing the spark for a heel turn.

Naturally I’d much rather see the uber-talented Cesaro or Dolph Ziggler win the Intercontinental title. Or the recently revived Fandango. Or the slowly catching on Bo Dallas. Any of them would be a great choice to construct meaningful mid-card storylines around. But in Sheamus WWE has the option to finish the tidy-up started last December with the world title unification, and that’s something I’ve wanted to see them do for years.

Of course for the Intercontinental championship to truly become the star-making tool it used to be more needs to be done than unifying it with or keeping it in favour of the United States championship. It needs to be presented as a title worth winning and wrestled for in lively matches featuring performers people care about. But getting rid of the US title isn’t a bad first step.

Mid-Cardonomics

Part of the reason WWE programming is so uninspiring these days is because so few wrestlers are given things to do. The most recent rivalry to feature non-main event talent was between Hornswoggle and El Torito. Before that the last one I can remember was between Cody Rhodes and Damien Sandow. While a feud between Sandow and Rhodes is no bad thing it took place in July and August of 2013. That nicely illustrates the distinct lack of frequency for mid-card feuds and the general lack of attention.

The trouble with concentrating exclusively (or as near to exclusively as makes no difference) on writing for the main event crew should be obvious. It means scenarios get recycled and become familiar, creating indifference in viewers. It also makes it needlessly difficult to elevate fresh acts, exacerbating the staleness problem.

Every Monday a three hour RAW airs but much of it can be skipped, too much of what takes place being inconsequential filler. The opening of the show, the close of the show, the first match, and whatever airs at the turn of each hour are the only things that are likely to matter long term. Even then the specifics are repetitive and uninspired.

Give this guy something to do. Please!

What’s frustrating is that things don’t have to be this way. WWE has more than enough guys on the main roster to be able to get a healthy mid-card scene going. Bad News Barrett, Sheamus, Dolph Ziggler, Damien Sandow, Cesaro, and Cody Rhodes all have significant enough followings and the required amount of wrestling ability and personality to draw people into storylines. That list omits tag teams the Uso brothers and The Wyatt Family, guys who are ready and waiting for their shot in NXT, guys like Dean Ambrose and Seth Rollins who are not guaranteed permanent top spots quite yet, and the entire Divas division.

It’s not just the talented wrestlers WWE have access to, it’s the writing staff too. Over the years WWE as a company has proven capable of creating balanced television shows that give people the top stars they want while prepping new talent for the future. It also has a history of putting out satisfying storylines (and stinkers too, but that’s always going to happen). That the writing team has changed a lot in nature over the years doesn’t matter. Nor does the fact the people drop in and out, coming and going from the company and the creative process. The WWE product is always overseen by Vince McMahon, and has been for over thirty years. He has proven he knows how to oversee a quality wrestling show, including the prep-heavy periods of prosperity. It just seems that right now he’s not bothered about quality (or that he’s distracted by other things like his company losing money, although in truth that’s not a completely separate issue).

Even beyond the fact that they still have Vince overseeing them we’ve seen the current WWE system has capable people involved. I’m not talking about Paul Heyman or ‘Dirty’ Dutch, although the writing team could do worse than tap them for mid-card plot inspiration. I’m talking about the team of writers who put together NXT.

NXT is a different show to RAW, SmackDown and Main Event. It emphasises wrestling far more and isn’t as long. The talent of those involved in its writing are obvious. They ensure everyone on the show gets an introduction that explains what they’re about, has something to do when they appear, and gets the chance to connect with the audience. Storylines progress logically with a clear beginning, middle and end, and there’s a reason for things happening, including losses in matches.

The NXT approach is not something that could be copied and pasted onto RAW. They’re different shows that target and attract different audiences. But the approach to storyline construction would be a welcome addition to RAW. How about handing over writing duties of Dolph and the gang over to the NXT scribes? The current main roster writing crew would be freed up to make their sections better and the newcomers would be giving meaning to a bunch of talented but overlooked guys.

Even if that’s impossible for whatever reason surely something could be done about the uninspired undercard. I’ve watched wrestling for long enough to know that it doesn’t take that much to get a good mid-card scene going. Have Wrestler A and Wrestler B interfere in one another’s matches and trash talk one another for a month as Wrestler C and Wrestler D do the same for the Intercontinental championship. Have Wrestler A win his feud and make fun of Wrestler C for losing, setting them off in their own feud leaving Wrestlers B and D to do the same, maybe mixing in the birth of a plastic hand or a mysteriously vibrating gym bag or honour being regained by chopping off reproductive organs for good measure (because, y’know, that’s entertainment!). Then wrap up with the final combination before introducing Wrestler E and possibly even Wrestler F for some fresh combos and new stars. Is having a meaningful Intercontinental championship match on a pay-per-view really too much to ask?

Give mid-card wrestlers things to do, basically. The whole point of the above alphabet string would be to create matches that have meaning, giving people a reason to root for certain wrestlers and against others. It would help create anticipation for future matches too. And as much as WWE may not want to admit it it’s the lure of a hot match that elevates a show from run-of-the-mill to red hot success.

That RAW Recap 14.04.14

The opening of the April 14 RAW was not what WWE had planned when the previous week’s episode went off the air. Instead of a promo from Triple H about how he was irked by The Shield and Daniel Bryan (or whatever) we got a tribute to The Ultimate Warrior, who died of a heart attack on Tuesday April 8. The entire roster started the show stood on the stage as Jerry Lawler introduced a video package for the Hall of Famer. It was a touching compilation of rope-shaking and match footage. Afterwards Triple H instigated a Warrior chant, which everyone in the building joined in with.

The tributes would continue throughout the night, taking the form of career highlight videos focusing on specific Warrior matches. The bouts selected for inclusion were his Intercontinental title victory over the Honky Tonk Man at SummerSlam ’88, his iconic clash with Hulk Hogan at WrestleMania VI, his SummerSlam 1990 cage match opposite Rick Rude, and an edited version of his final RAW promo. WWE did a good job making Warrior look a star.

The show proper kicked off with Alberto Del Rio taking on Rob Van Dam, one of four first round matches in a tournament to determine the number one contender to Big E’s Intercontinental gold. The match was nothing special. In fact it was pretty sloppy in places. The most notable thing about it was that the announce team mentioned Van Dam’s hybrid style. For whatever reason (quite possibly because I often try and tune them out) I’d never registered that they say this in every RVD match. It’s incredibly lazy, but that won’t stop them saying it next week. Van Dam progressed to the second round after yanking ADR off the top rope and hitting him with a Five Star frog splash.

After a recap reminding us of what went down with Evolution, The Shield, and Daniel Bryan (who was on his honeymoon with Brie Bella and wouldn’t make an appearance) the week before we were shown Triple H shaking hands with Orton and Batista in an office. ‘The Game’ told his boys that he didn’t think The Shield were going to let either of them near the WWE championship and said it was an attitude that reminded him of Evolution (which was probably meant as a compliment). Then he said he doesn’t think anyone can stop them then immediately contradicted himself and said a united Evolution could. Both Batista and Orton told Tripper that he was on his own. ‘The Animal’, you see, just wants to be champ.

I suggested Goldust's robe on a TWP
episode. Maybe they're listeners.

The evening’s second match was Goldust and Cody Rhodes v RybAxel. It was enjoyable, as most things involving Cody Rhodes are. Perhaps surprisingly the heels won clean, Ryback pinning Cody off a Meathook clothesline as Cody went for a Disaster kick. It meant we got to hear RybAxel’s hunting horn heavy theme tune again, so I was all for that win.

In his latest hype video Bo Dallas told us today is a gift, which is why it’s called the present. I can’t wait until he’s on TV with this ridiculousness. There’s a lot of potential in character and I’m hopeful WWE are going to do something worthwhile with him.

Out next was Paige. We were reminded of the circumstances of her debut and title win but there was no victory promo from her. Nor was there any appearance from former champ AJ Lee. I’d expected the latter in order to set up a rematch at Extreme Rules. Presumably she was elsewhere and her reaction to the loss of her title will come next week. The new champion faced Alicia Fox in a non-title match. Fox dominated much of the match. Eventually Paige turned the tables with a kick and applied her scorpion lock for the submission victory.

Hour two opened with WWE tag team champions Jimmy and Jey Uso (whose continued popularity surprised and pleases me) facing Randy Orton and Batista. The story behind it was that the Usos had challenged the Evolution boys after the beating they’d taken around ringside the week before. The Usos started off with a barrage of punches and a pair of dives on to their foes but the match quickly proceeded into a slow pace with Team Ortista keeping things under control.

It didn’t last long. After a few minutes ‘The Viper’ left the ring to give Jimmy a beating around ringside (again) and got attacked by The Shield. Big Dave was left alone in the ring. Rollins and Ambrose sacrificed themselves distracting him to allow Reigns the chance to get into the ring and drop ‘The Animal’ with a Superman punch. That Ambrose and Rollins got taken out is a small thing but a nice touch: it demonstrates that The Shield can and do work together to accomplish their goals (here it was getting their hands on Batista) and that each man works towards the greater good. It’s something we’ve not really ever seen in WWE. For that reason alone it should be supported.

After a break Batsy and Orty were shown walking through a backstage tech area. They came across Triple H and Stephanie, who were just standing around instead of running the show. Trips said he’d told them so and wandered off. The two were left to look sour together and glare after him.

Out at ringside Paul Heyman walked out to brag about Brock Lesnar ending The Streak. He had photos cued up to remind us how everything played out at ‘Mania and said that nobody had believed him when he said The Streak would end. By his logic we should now believe everything he says and announced that Cesaro was going to be the next major star in WWE. They should play up Heyman being some sort of pro wrestling oracle. That’s a character development that could really go places.

Check out the walk on Cesaro.

‘The King of Swing’ came out to no music but was wearing his lovely, shiny ring jacket. He was there to wrestle Mark Henry in an IC tournament match. After plastering ‘The World’s Strongest Man’ with uppercuts and avoiding a World’s Strongest Slam Cesaro won the match with a Neutralizer. His win got a split reaction. I think that was as much because of the lack of a Big Swing as anything else.

Another Triple H and Stephanie segment occurred backstage. This one saw Brad Maddox dispatched to tell The Shield they had a six man tag match in the main event. The identities of their opponents were not disclosed. This was Maddox’s only contribution to the show. Sooner or later a new role is going to be needed for him. The GM spot has become obsolete (again).

Back in the arena Lana talked up Alexander Rusev in both Russian and English. After posing and talking to himself in the ring ‘The Super Athlete’ defeated Xavier Woods in a squash match with The Accolade (or the Steiner Recliner for those of us who enjoy referencing Scott Steiner). After the match R-Truth attacked Rusev. That didn’t end well for Truth. Worth noting was that Lana was shown to call Rusev off of Truth for a moment. I’m sure that was done to demonstrate that she’s the one in charge, not Rusev.

After some merciless Network plugging the third tournament took place, this one pitting Sheamus against Jack Swagger. Those who enjoy hoss fights were well served by this match. The match was a little slow for my tastes, although I did appreciate the two men not going light on one another. Sheamus won with a surprise Brogue kick after gritting his way through an ankle lock. He did a good job of selling the effects of the hold after the match.

An Adam Rose promo followed that. It was the same one that was on the week before. A new one would air later in the night, this one showing Rose winning a game of Hungry Hungry Hippos and then telling his bunny (a fully grown man in a bunny suit) not to be a lemon but a Rosebud. I love me some Adam Rose. He’s a marvellous gimmick.

A break was followed by Damien Sandow telling everyone that he was the most deserving man in WWE. Big Show waddled out but that didn’t stop ‘The Intellectual Saviour’ talking: he shouted that he wouldn’t be silenced and told people to sit back down and listen to what he had to say. It’s material like that that sets the Sandow character apart and makes it work. Sandow continued talking once Show arrived, claiming people should be begging to touch him as he walks to the ring. He said he deserves “it”, failing to specify what “it” is, because he’s earned “it”. He prodded Show in the chest and got a WMD punch for his trouble.

Presumably the segment existed to set something up for Sandow. I’ve no idea what it could be. He looked pretty pathetic here. Not only did he crumple to Show (that was to be expected frankly) but he was instructed to cut a promo that wasn’t really about anything. All we know is that Sandow feels he’s earned respect. We don’t really know he suddenly feels the need to address it on TV. Perceived lack of respect can’t be the reason: that’s something he’s been putting up with for months.

Hour two kicked off with a Bray Wyatt speech. He talked about The Man and said John Cena’s made a career out of lying to people. Cena is, according to Wyatt, not a man but a beast. Wyatt promised all the kids that he wouldn’t let Cena lie to them anymore and confided that he had Cena where he wants him, up against the ropes, and all he needs to do is give him one final push. My immediate thought was that Cena’s had enough pushing.

Bray Wyatt, 'Eater of Worlds'... and lights.

Wyatt invited Cena to come to the ring. He did, natch. The first thing he did was make a remark about pushes. So there we go: I sometimes have the same train of thought as John Cena. Cena said the monster Wyatt talks about doesn’t exist and then cracked jokes at the expense of the Family. This led to one of WWE’s favourite tropes: obviously doctored photographs. We were shown Abigail Wyatt on Myspace (Wyatt’s face on a woman’s shoulders), Mama Wyatt (Luke Harper in a dress, found via Tinder) and a Wyatt baby (Erick Roan’s head on a swaddled baby’s body). It wasn’t funny but Michael Cole dutifully mugged along anyway.

Wyatt said Cena always falls back on his jokes, so then Cena did his serious voice. He said Bray relies on Harper and Rowan and challenged him to give them a rest and face him in a cage match at Extreme Rules. Wyatt liked that and accepted the challenge. Then he sang. He has a majestic voice.

Match seven was Emma and Santino v Layla and Faaaaaan… daaaaaan… goooooo. Yeah, Summer Rae’s out and Layla’s in. The storyline reason is that Fandango grew bored of Summer and wanted a new “dance partner” (to this end we got an amusing video in which Fandango told Summer Rae “It’s not me, it’s you”). The actual reason is that Summer Rae is expected to become more significant now she’s made it to Total Divas so the decision’s been made to split her off from the mid-card dancer. Layla’s replaced her because she had nothing else to do, but it works out well because she has a dance background. Summer did not. Everyone benefits from the change really.

As all of the recent mixed tag matches between this lot have been this was nothing but basic filler. These matches are designed more to drive forward stories than anything else. Layla won after pulling Emma off the top rope. Yeah, that’s a finish now.

Backstage Stephanie gave Kane a telling off. Once he’d had enough of Steph’s yammering Kane stood up and started doing his heavy breathing routine, just as the camera angle changed to reveal that his old mask (and wig) were sitting on a table inside a glass cabinet. If that being there wasn’t weird enough (and it was) Kane reverently took hold of the mask and promised Steph that he would destroy Daniel Bryan.

The final tournament match of the evening was Dolph Ziggler v Bad News Barrett.  Bad News was surprisingly popular. I hadn’t expected that, attributing the cheers he got the week before to the large number of British fans at the event. I suppose people can sense how much Barrett enjoys playing the character and that makes them appreciate him more. The match itself was the best of the night. ‘The Show Off’ survived Barrett’s old Wasteland finisher. In turn Barrett was able to kick out of a top rope X Factor. Bad News next escaped from a Fameasser. Seconds later Ziggler slipped out of Barrett’s wild sidewalk slam. Barrett’s first Bullhammer attempt was ducked, Ziggler sneaking in a roll-up that should have gotten a better reaction as a potential finish than it did. Barrett kicked out and connected with his second Bullhammer attempt for the win.

After the match Bad News proclaimed himself the next Intercontinental champion and did the Scotty Riggs overhand claps again. Now seems a good time to discuss the title tourney. As enjoyable as Bad News has been in his last two RAW appearances I don’t think he’s getting to the final. He will face Sheamus in the second round while RVD faces Cesaro. The matches seem designed to give Sheamus and Cesaro opponents that can have great matches with them, and it’s them that I expect to go to the final. Van Dam is an enhancer at this point while BNB can fall to a former world champion without looking week, especially when he’s had two enjoyable wins leading up to it.

I could be wrong but it seems like ‘The Swiss Superman’ is the clear favourite to win the tournament. I can’t imagine anybody facing Big E for the IC gold. Given the selection I don’t want to either. Big E showed back at Elimination Chamber that he can have a good power match if he gets the time to do so. And that was with Jack Swagger. He should be able to accomplish far more with Cesaro.

Before the main event a Kane promo aired. ‘The Big Red Machine’ was shown wearing his mask and walking through various fiery locales. It was put together very quickly, considering the mask had only been put back on less than an hour before. It’s like it’s all scripted or something…

The main event saw The Shield take on Alberto Del Rio, Jack Swagger and Fandango… along with 3MB, Titus O’Neil, RybAxel, Alexander Rusev, and Bad News Barrett. Instead of taking the obvious beatdown direction the eleven men actually tagged in and out in a handicap match against Ambrose, Rollins and Reigns. Rollins was isolated, with all the heels tagging in for twenty second stints to hit him with some basic move or other. Reigns eventually got bored and went round to his foes’ corner to spear Ryback. That prompted a ringside brawl which featured dives from Ambrose and Rollins and then spilled into the ring, where the heels got the advantage on ‘The Hounds’.

It's another Triple H faction reunion!

Then Evolution’s music hit and Triple H, Batista and Orton walked out and dismissed the mid-carders. They gave Rollins a kicking and then hit Reigns with an RKO and a Batista bomb. Rollins got the same. Meanwhile Ambrose was finished off with the Batista bomb-RKO combo that was debuted at WrestleMania. Triple H encouraged Reigns to try and fight back to his feet then had him pulled up so he could give him a Pedigree. Evolution then spent the last minute of the show posing.

This was another good episode of RAW. There were no great matches, but there were good ones in Bad News Barrett v Ziggler and RybAxel v the Rhodes bros. The purpose of the show was not to give us a plethora of excellent matches, it was to get things moving for Extreme Rules. Cena versus Wyatt in a cage match is a good tone setter for the card. It looks as though a six man tag match between Evolution and The Shield and a WWE championship defence from Daniel Bryan against Kane will also be added. The title match should be fun enough but D-Bry will need a more credible opponent for Payback. The six man, on the other hand, should be a great addition to the card, and a worthwhile “special show” (they’re not pay-per-views anymore, ‘member?) main event.