That RAW Recap 14.12.15

In hindsight TLC was a setup show for the following evening's RAW. It's never really made sense to me to use pay-per-views, which people pay to watch (clue's in the name), to set up free TV shows. It goes against what makes the PPV model work. But at least it's less of a problem now than it used to be, what with PPVs being less about being a money spinner for WWE and more a selling point of the Network.

Not that this is a big deal or anything. It's simply interesting to note how the "uses" of pay-per-views has changed over the years.

Roman wins the big one.

This RAW will go down in history as The One Where Roman Reigns Won The Big One. He'd claimed his first world title at Survivor Series a month earlier of course, but that first run had been cut short at five minutes and fifteen seconds by Sheamus (hence the T-shirt). His second win feels like it's the beginning of something far more significant.

With Roman pegged as the next leading man for WWE the start of his first title reign of significance, not to mention the culmination of the lengthy storyline in which he's been held down and kept from winning the strap, this RAW is obviously more significant than most. It's the show on which WWE finally pulled the trigger on Roman becoming The Guy, something they've been building towards since Royal Rumble in January and preparing for for even longer.

The show as a whole wasn't bad but really nothing but the stuff involving Reigns and the championship mattered. Thankfully everything involving Reigns and the championship was on point. The evening kicked off with a promo Stephanie McMahon in which she teased firing Roman Reigns before calling him a coward, a failure and a disgrac. When Roman responded by telling her her family was a disgrace she slapped him half a dozen times and revealed that Vinnie Mac was on his way to the building.

The scene played out as yet another tedious Authority scene. Steph and Roman were both fine but they didn't do anything we've not seen them do before. But in conjunction with the second segment of the evening in which Reigns was in the ring with a McMahon an interesting story was told.

Roman versus Vince in his prime would probably have been really good.

When Vince rocked up at the arena he told Roman to apologise. Roman refused. He also refused to apologise on his hands and knees, and he smirked when Vince threatened to beat an apology from him. As the boss readied himself for a fight Sheamus came out and challenged Roman to a match, stating that he was so confident he could beat him he'd put the title on the line.

Vince said there was no chance in hell that match would happen. Roman snatched the microphone from Vince's hands and called him an old man and insulted his legendary "grapefruits"¹. Vince responded as he was always going to: rising to the bait and making the match, though he added a stipulation that Roman had to win or he'd be fired. He then kicked the challenger in the privates and strode up the ramp to pose with Shaymo.

The story told across these two segments was Reigns playing the McMahon family. He no-sold Steph's slapped and insulted Vince's manhood. The approach made perfect sense. They've been regulars on TV for over fifteen years. Every wrestler on the roster should know how to push their kayfabe buttons but nobody ever gets to because the McMahons are too well protected (obviously because they're the ones writing the show). Roman got to because someone involved in the scripting process was savvy enough to realise how satisfying it would be to see the McMahons get outplayed and that it would help solidify Roman's standing.

The show was rounded off with a world title match. It wasn't as great as their encounter under tables, ladders and chairs rules the night before but it was still very enjoyable. They had Vince (along with Rusev and Alberto Del Rio) on interference duty and Roman got to bleed, so it was a memorable match in its own right. After very convincing false finishes from a White Noise and the Brogue kick Reigns finally managed to drop Sheamus with a spear to win the WWE world title, for keeps, with a spear.

Michael Cole brought up a very good point as Reigns hugged the title belt to him: they were in the same arena in which Reigns had won the Royal Rumble in January. He was booed out of the building on that night, despite an endorsement from the ever-popular Rock. Eleven months later he heard nothing but cheers. That's both an endorsement for the WWE writing team and Reigns himself. The hardcore who were against him for so long were firmly won over. Now Reigns can get down to the serious business of preparing to take over from Cena.

***

¹ New to WWE? That's not an exaggeration. There was a time where we'd got twenty promos from Vince about his sexual prowess.

Rock Versus Triple H: 2015 Edition

The Rock is many things. He's a Hollywood movie star. He's a highly accomplished third generation wrestler. He's a former eight time WWE world champion. He's a future first ballot Hall of Famer. He's one of the two biggest babyfaces of the Attitude Era (the other, obviously, being 'Stone Cold' Steve Austin). Some may even go so far as to say he was the biggest star of that era but I'm not one of them.

Triple H is also many thanks. He is the current on-screen boss of the company. He too is a highly accomplished wrestler and future first ballot Hall of Fame inductee. He's also former eight time WWE champion. He's one of the two biggest heels of the Attitude Era (the other, obviously, being Vince McMahon). Some may even go so far as to say he was the biggest heel of that era but I'm not one of them.

Rock pretending to fly as he hits a Rock Bottom there.

Together they had one of the greatest rivalries of the Attitude Era. It started off over the Intercontinental title and gradually progressed to one for the world title. Somewhere along the way it became a defining feud for both men, one that didn't actually require the involvement of a title or a reason for a match to take place. It was simply one of those rivalries that had been going for so long that it was one of those rare ever-ready, ever-present disputes, the sort of thing that could flare up at any time. Sort of like Cena v Orton now, only good.

Despite the pair having separate feuds in 1998, 1999 and 2000 they never actually had a one-on-one match at WrestleMania. They completely deserved to but the closest they came was the closing portion of a four-way elimination main event, also involving Big Show and Mick Foley at WrestleMania 2000. Behind Austin versus McMahon and Austin versus The Rock it was one of the defining rivalries of the time. Behind that second programme it was the greatest rivalry of Rock's career. It was quite possibly the greatest of Triple H's, with only his work opposite the various guises of Mick Foley coming close to being both as good and as important to his career.

I mention all of this because there's been speculation since WrestleMania Play Button that Rock and Triple H will face one another at next year's WrestleMania Star in Texas. This has picked up again recently because of SummerSlam. With the event being stretched to four hours (the first WWE event not named WrestleMania to hit that mark) and being held in NYC it's fair to say that WWE will want to add something to the announced card to make it special. A showdown between the on-screen boss and his old movie-making rival would fit the bill nicely. If they came to blows to set up a future match that would be A Big Deal.

Of course, part of the previously mentioned speculative chatter regaining a Rock and Trips bout is that it would somehow involve Rhonda Rousey and Stephanie McMahon. This would make sense given the segment involving all four at 'Mania earlier this year. But while a mixed tag match at WM32 would certainly be memorable it would also feel a tiny but like a squandered opportunity.

In Rock v Triple H WWE has a perfect chance to revisit one of the company's defining rivalries and give them the only kind of match they've never had: a WrestleMania showdown. Were it to happen and Rhonda Rousey was still on the card (her ability to wrestle a match for WWE has been questioned since her UFC boss Dana White stated publicly that he wouldn't let her) then she and Steph could have a singles match. That would probably be more enjoyable anyway: a squash in which uber-heel Steph gets tapped out in a few minutes sounds like a good addition to a 'Mania card to me. Meanwhile if either Rock or Tripper were considering retiring at all in the next little while this is a match that could provide a fitting end to either career (although the assumption that Undertaker's retiring in Texas makes that unlikely, nobody wants to see two retirement matches in one night). It's the match I'd like to see WWE revisit more than any other. One final addition to the feud at a WrestleMania sounds pretty good to me.

That RAW Recap 13.07.15

In my opinion the July 2015 edition of Monday Night RAW deserves to go down as one of the best episodes of recent times. As usual it featured both good things and bad but unlike usual the good things outweighed the bad and, more importantly, when things were good they were really good. And things were never better than when Brock Lesnar and Seth Rollins faced off and when the Divas division finally got the shot in the arm it's needed for what seems like years.

Lesnar and Rollins was great because everyone involved knew exactly what was expected of them and made sure they were on top form. The pair were given the standard  issue WWE trope of a contract signing to play with but got to do something different with it. Rollins played the cocky heel who claimed to have a plan to take down his more dominant foe. Lesnar played the super-cool face not at all rattled by Rollins' bravado. Both were excellent, as were their respective seconds Kane and Paul Heyman.

I still love Lesnar even though they're going OTT with this Suplex City stuff.

What made the exchange truly great was the brawl (because there's always a brawl). Rollins tried to sneakily palm a weapon he'd stashed under the desk. Heyman noticed and called him on it. 'The Future' denied the accusation, playing up the affront for all it was worth. Lesnar's response was to flip the table over and pull out the stick¹ Rollins had hidden there. He then calmly placed it on the table and sat back down, gesturing for Rollins to make his move.

Rollins showed caution but did make his move, beaming with pride after he'd grabbed his stick back. He began taunting 'The Beast' but didn't get far before Lesnar sprang to his feet and lobbed the table in Rollins' face. A German suplex followed before Kane got involved, briefly helping Rollins to give Lesnar a kicking. Naturally this didn't last: Lesnar would shrug off Kane's efforts and F5 him outside the ring before smashing his ankle with the ring steps.

Once Lesnar had left Rollins would return to the ring and cut a promo on him, promising to "slay" him (because he's a beast, y'see) at Battleground. He then turned his attention to Kane, telling him he was nothing and stomping on his injured ankle.

Rollins left this segment looking like an opportunistic coward who people should be desperate to see receive his comeuppance. Lesnar left looking like an unstoppable juggernaut. Which is exactly what he should be. Along the way we were reminded that Lesnar is not just freakily strong but impossible to intimidate and smart, all excellent qualities in a take-no-prisoners type babyface. Basically it's stuff like this that reminds you just how great Lesnar is.

As good as the Lesnar-Rollins stuff was it's the stuff with the Divas².

Let's start with (an attempt at) a succinct summary with what happened. Divas champion Nikki Bella strolled out with her sister Brie and Bella groupie Alicia Fox. The usual routine of Nikki talking about being a strong champion only to be interrupted then played out. Paige being one of the people interrupting was not a surprise. Stephanie McMahon being the other, however, was.

Steph, inexplicably playing babyface³,  talked about Paige wanting to bring about a revolution in the Divas division and made it clear she thought this was commendable (and in fairness she couldn't have done this as a heel). She then introduced NXT stars Becky Lynch and Charlotte as Paige's allies. Charlotte, being the daughter of Ric Flair, naturally got the louder reaction of the two but not by a huge amount. That this can be said of Lynch shows how far she's come since she was entering to stereotypical Irish music and doing awkward jigs in the ring.

As Paige and her designated pals had a staredown with Team Bella the entrance music extravaganza continued and Naomi, the forgotten woman of the division, sauntered out with Tamina. Naomi said she had unfinished business with both Nikki and Paige before being told, almost patronisingly, by Stephanie that she absolutely deserved to be in the ring. Sasha Banks was then introduced as the new playmate of Naomi and Tamina and joined them in the ring to face off with Team Bella.

Finally, an exciting Divas scene.

Which is where things broke down. Nikki, Brie and Alicia turned around only to find they were also being confronted by Paige, Charlotte and Lynch. A brawl broke out. It was lengthy and a bit sloppy but it drew the audience in and it made it clear that all nine women were equals. It also ended exactly as it needed to, with Lynch trapping Brie in the armbar, Charlotte applying the figure eight leg lock to Alicia, and Banks giving Nikki the Bank Statement. It was the perfect introduction for the three women from NXT, and it was particularly nice to see women's champion Banks paired up with Divas champion Nikki.

What made all of this work is that WWE have spent so long getting around to it. It's would be misleading to say that they've done a slow burn build because they've have an awful main roster women's division for much of the last decade, but they have taken a more deliberate pace over the last few months. Team Bella has been built up as a dominant force ruling over a stagnant division. They've played on the fact that their women's division is weak as well as the common view that Nikki and Brie "don't know how to work" and written in a sensible story about a lone crusader, Paige, trying to instigate change.

With just one fifteen minute segment WWE made their main roster women's division interesting. There are so many directions they could take and matches they could present. I'm excited about the Divas division for the first time in years. And for that alone this episode will always be memorable for me.

***

¹ That it was a stick, albeit a very nice one (by which I mean it was nicely smoothed and had some varnish on it), was the only disappointing thing about this segment. With the current story being that Rollins is becoming increasingly like his on-screen mentor Triple H it would have made far more sense for him to have hidden a sledgehammer under the table.

² Look, I'm aware of how unprogressive it is to refer to women as Divas. I think we all are. But that's the label WWE (by which I mean Vince McMahon) has chosen for its female wrestlers so I'm going to use it. I'm nothing if not accurate when it comes to this sort of meaningless stuff.

³ To be fair Steph rapidly switching between heel and face is not new. She was doing it as long ago as 2003 during her time as GM of SmackDown, where she would happily play both good and bad on the same show. At least these days she tends to have the good grace to leave a few days between her turns.

Questioning Authority

When The Authority was first formed at SummerSlam 2013 it had purpose. Triple H was following in that grand old McMahon tradition making "his guy" the champion at any cost. In the case of SummerSlam 2013 it was Randy Orton. The group was also very much about making sure the championship wasn't on alleged B-plus player Daniel Bryan. The initial Authority run was very much characterised by Bryan v Orton matches and Triple H putting down D-Bry in promos.

Things got samey pretty quickly. You can only see D-Bry shout "Yes!" before getting beaten up so many times before you start wanting something with a little more depth. For that matter the novelty of laughing at Randall Keith Orton wandering around in just a T-shirt, giving him the like of a fashionably-shaven sex pest, wears off pretty quickly too. But even though there wasn't much variety at least The Authority had a reason to exist and stay together. As far as wrestling storylines went it was A Good Thing.

This man likes trousers.

Contrast that with now. There's no one standing out as definitive opposition to the group. Randy Orton has been replaced as centrepiece by Seth Rollins¹. Fair enough, a decent story was told in 'The Future' replacing 'The Apex Predator' and it was a development that made sense in terms of long-term development. But The Authority of 2013 and '14 was all about doing whatever was necessary to ensure its selected wrestlers won. The modern day incarnation does not do this. The last several months have seen an eye-wateringly dull string of teases regarding Authority members walking out on WWE champion Rollins. The most prominent was the peculiar Rollins versus Kane rivalry in which it was implied several times that 'The Big Red Machine' would turn on Rollins and his McMahon paymasters in order to claim the championship for himself. Instead of quietly retiring like everyone wants him to.

J&J security, Rollins' stooges, have gotten in on the act too, which was possibly even more dull than the Kane teases because there was never any chance they'd be portrayed as serious threats to the title, rendering the entire scenario even more pointless. But the most recent development of Triple H and Stephanie McMahon bringing Brock Lesnar back to the company as "the ultimate test" for their boy makes no sense at all. The Authority, we've been shown and told, want to control the WWE championship because that helps them control how the company is presented to the outside world. Which doesn't tally with the decision to put their cowardly heel champion who relies heavily on assistance against the most dominant man the roster's seen in years. Why would they want to give Lesnar the chance to win the title when it's been established he's his own man and he won't play The Authority's game.

It's a decision that plays down Lesnar's actions the night after WrestleMania. Y'know, the night he F5ed Michael Cole out of his shoes and attacked a cameraman (well, an indy wrestler cosplaying as a cameraman). Yes he offered a storyline apology for these actions but that still doesn't adequately explain why The Authority would bring him back with an all-is-forgiven-and-forgotten edict. Look back at how irate Stephanie was when she initially suspended 'The Beast'. It makes no sense that a few months later she'd simply bring him back and award him a title match to test her crown jewel.

At this point the most sensible thing to do would be to dissolve The Authority. Tripper and Steph would be fine with a reduced presence. Kane would be fine retiring or playing a comedically overworked and stressed middle management matchmaker in place of the McMahons. Brad Maddox could be brought in as his chief of staff or assistant. There's fun to be had there. Noble and Mercury could simply be phased out as TV presences. Rollins, easily the most important member of the faction as he's the one who'll be main eventing pay-per-views for years to come, would be better off on his own right now. It's not that he can't benefit from being the main attraction of a dastardly heel stable. It's that The Authority just isn't that dastardly anymore.

***

¹ It's interesting to note that Rollins wrestles in trousers, making him a perfect contrast to the trouser averse Orty.

That RAW Recap 30.03.15

The more I think about it the more I think WrestleMania 31 (reviewed here) is one of my favourite instalments ever. There were things I disliked about it but the good far outweighed the bad and the quality of even the worst stuff (Big Show winning the battle royal, for example) was so high that as a show it deftly overshadowed the last several 'Mania cards. It's still too early to tell but it might even be that this show is my second favourite WrestleMania behind X7, a show I, like many others, hold in incredibly high regard.

The last few years have seen the RAW after WrestleMania more lauded than the big spectacle its followed. Whether it was The Shield saving Daniel Bryan from a beating at the hands of a reformed Evolution in 2014, Dolph Ziggler's electrifying cash-in in 2013, or Brock Lesnar returning to F5 John Cena in 2012, RAW has always had something to rival 'The Showcase of Immortals'. The excellence of WrestleMania 31 meant that for the first time in years RAW was going to struggle to be the more highly regarded of the two shows.

Rematch clause, bitch.

Things got off to a strong start when Brock Lesnar and Paul Heyman marched out to the ring. Heyman introduced them, reminded everyone of what had happened the night before (because I'm sure there were loads of people watching RAW who'd chosen not to watch or read about WrestleMania), and announced that Brock Lesnar was enacting his rematch clause right then and there. Instead of new WWE champion Seth Rollins it was Stephanie McMahon who answered the pair. She informed them Rollins was still flying back from his early morning TV appearance on the east coast but that she felt certain he'd accept Lesnar's challenge upon arrival.

As an opening segment this was great. It gave the crowd Lesnar, the one person they really wanted to see, positioned him as an official babyface, and set something up for later in the programme. The writing team tries to do this fairly often but they usually have no idea what people want to see as a show's thread. I suspect this was more happy accident that considered insight, but the result's the same.

The first match saw new Intercontinental champion Daniel Bryan defend against Dolph Ziggler. Going with Ziggler versus Bryan in this spot was a clever move. It gave the crowd two more guys they cared about and the pair were awarded enough time to have a satisfying match. In storyline terms it did seem a bit off that 'The Show Off' got the first shot at D-Bry while the former IC champ Bad News Barrett was relegated to the commentary desk.

Oh, Sheamus. Who did this to you?

Bryan won after surviving a super kick and a Zig Zag and hitting the running knee. Bad News then attacked both Bryan and Ziggler before a returning Sheamus ran out to chase him off. He was sporting a ridiculous Mohawk and beard beads. In a move that shocked precisely no one 'Great White' attacked Bryan and Ziggles too, then cut a two word promo. "Oi'm back." He didn't even toss in a "fella".

An eight man tag match followed that. Cesaro and Tyson Kidd teamed with The Ascension to tangle with New Day representatives Big E and Kofi Kingston (Xavier Woods was again on standing-at-ringside duty) and the debuting Lucha Dragons. Kalisto proved incredibly popular with the live crowd. They immediately broke into an NXT chant and stayed invested in Kalisto throughout the match. The Cesaro v Kalisto exchanges were the easy highlight and made it clear that Kalisto could work as the company's new lead masked Latin star. 'The King of Flight' got the win for his team when he pinned Viktor off the Salida del Sol.

After a slow mo video of Adrian Neville performing the Red Arrow Brock Lesnar returned. Seth Rollins followed him. That the WWE world championship match was supposedly kicking off RAW's second hour set alarm bells ringing. The match clearly wasn't going to happen at this point because it was a natural main event. It was only going to happen here if an angle was planned.

The angle we got was something special. Rollins backed out of the ring at the beginning of the match and announced that he was jetlagged and his foot hurt a bit so he wasn't going to be defending the title against Lesnar. This triggered one of the most furious rampages in wrestling history from 'The Beast'. He grabbed Rollins from ringside and tossed him back into the ring. There he tried to German suplex him but Rollins landed on his feet and hit an enziguri, which Lesar no-sold.

Rollins again left the ring and tried to run through the crowd and was again caught by the former champion. Lesnar went for an F5 through the announce table but Noble and Mercury saved Rollins. Lesnar clotheslined the pair of them, giving the champ enough time to dive over the barricade and run backstage.

RIP Michael Cole.

Lesnar hurled the announced desk onto its side in frustration, crushing JBL and Booker T. Then he grabbed Michael Cole (to thunderous cheers) and took him into the ring to hit him with an F5. Not satisfied with killing WWE's former lead heel Brock grabbed an indy guy who was cosplaying as a cameraman at ringside. This brought out Steph again, demanding 'The Pain' put the man down. Lesnar did so with an F5.

Steph screeched about Lesnar' actions being unacceptable and suspended him. Lesnar paced back and forth in the ring, Heyman trying to reason with him. For a moment it felt like they were trying to tease Lesnar hoisting Heyman up for an F5 but that didn't happen. Instead the crowd chanted "One more time!" so Heyman called an audible and told Lesnar to F5 the camera lad again. Lesnar obliged and then stormed backstage with the crowd chanting his name.

This was another great sequence. It kept Lesnar as the unstoppable monster, made Rollins look like a complete coward, and created a logical reason for Lesnar's next sabbatical (necessitated by his light contract). This was the best thing on the show.

Sadly things went downhill from there. Damien Mizdow's win over Stardust was enjoyable because the audience was so into Mizdow. The Miz's post-match attack went down well for the same reason. Curtis Axel versus the debuting 'Don't Call Me Adrian' Neville was also warmly received although the match was too short to be anything particularly special.

Does the United States title mean more after this match? Not really.

Surprisingly, it was John Cena's open challenge that stopped the audience's buzz. Cena himself was greeted with a strong mixed reaction, as is always the case the night after 'Mania. Dean Ambrose got a loud response when he came out to face him. But once the match started the audience just died. They weren't as into the match as they had been the rest of the show, presumably because people would have rather seen Ambrose do something less obviously designed to simply get him on the show and seen Cena confronted by Russian killdozer Rusev. Cena won with an AA, the inevitability of which may also have harmed the crowd's response to the match as a whole.

Backstage, Renee Young asked Seth Rollins for his views on Brock Lesnar. Before he could give much of an answer Randy Orton showed up to remind us of his existence and to declare that he was going after 'The Future's' title. Rollins booked a six man tag main event with Kane and Big Show as his partners. This left Orton approximately half an hour to find two partners, the idea being that this would be hard as he's not a popular guy.

AJ Lee, Paige and Naomi defeated the Bellas and Natalya when Naomi pinned Divas champion Nikki with the Rear View. In a locker room Ryback approached Orton and talked to him about eating. This seemed to signify that he was going to help Orty out and team with him. Rusev returned to his winning ways in a match against Goldust. This match felt like what it was: an excuse to have Rusev on the show without getting him involved with Cena.

Gold piping. Gold belt. Rollins has started liking gold.

The main event saw Randy Orton, Ryback and Roman Reigns defeat Rollins, Show and Kane when Reigns speared 'The Big Red Machine'. When you stop and think about it Reigns being in this match was odd. It was a last minute addition to the show, meaning that had Rollins not made the match Reigns wouldn't have been booked but Curtis Axel an Goldust would. The crowd clearly weren't interested in the match. They amused themselves by performing a Mexican wave and performing chants for various NXT stars, including Sami Zayn, Kevin Owens, Hideo Itami and Enzo Amore. I don't blame them. This was an uninspired main event. Things should have been reworked so that the Lesnar angle closed the show.

For the first time in years WrestleMania was easily better than the RAW that proceeded it. Everything that happened with Lesnar was great, and the less-is-more approach taken with Reigns is what should have been done all along. But there wasn't enough on offer to come anywhere close to competing with 'The Granddaddy of Them All'. 2015 was the year WrestleMania took back its crown.

WWE WrestleMania 31 review

WrestleMania 31. The main event of the WWE pay-per-view calendar. It would be stretching things to say that the company has been diligently building all of its major storylines towards this for the last year but it's certainly the culmination of several months of work. Sting and Triple H's feud started in November. Miz and Mizdow have been together since around then. Orton got wiped out by The Authority, setting up his grudge match with Rollins, as long ago as October. There were clearly plans in pieces for this show a long time ago.

Of course, one of the key pieces was the WWE's new chosen one. The man chosen to lead the company into the future as one of the stars of the current generation of wrestlers. For the first time in quite a while someone was positioned to experience their first world title victory in the main event of the show. Someone was positioned to be anointed as the company's new lead star.

It just wasn't the man we were expecting.

Including the pre-show WrestleMania was six hours long. Six hours. That's a lot of WrestleMania. The first hour mostly consisted of hype videos for the show's matches and natter from the panel of Booker T, Corey Graves, Byron Saxton and host Renee Young. The highlight was a backstage meeting between Jamie Noble and Joey Mercury and The Stooges in which Noble searched for sugar and Brisco revaled he'd used it all getting coffee for Mr MackMan.

The pre-show's second hour, exclusive to the WWE Network even though the idea of a pre-show is to get some last minute buys (and, in this case, Network subscriptions), featured two matches. The first was a very good tag team title match which saw champions Cesaro and Tyson Kidd retain against, Los Matadores, the New Day combo of Big E and Kofi Kingston, and, technically, the Usos. I say technically because Jey took an early spill to the outside at the hands of Cesaro (to write him out of the match due to a pre-existing injury) which left Jimmy to fight alone.

What a pair. And the tag champs.

It was a well-constructed succession of spots, the ideal opener for a show like this as it gave people chance to cheer and cheer and cheer. Each team hit at least doubles move and there was a sequence where all the seconds fought one another, ending with Natalya taking a Rear View form Naomi. The match ended when everyone except Jimmy was involved in a double superple off the shoulders spot. Everyone but Jimmy was wiped out by it and he took the opportunity to splash Big E. Cesaro appeared from nowhere to lob Rikishi's lad out of the ring and steal the pin.

The second match was the Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal. It was not such a roaring success. Curtis Axel, who'd managed to become genuinely popular in the weeks leading up to the show based on being a guy creative overlooks, found himself overlooked by creative and eliminate first. This was likely done to stop him overshadowing the match's designated stars. This left me feeling that WWE still has no idea how to embrace organic popularity. When Hidoe Itami was KO punched off the apron by Big Show I felt the same, although he at least got to get in some kicks and eliminate Bo Dallas before he went.

My feelings changed slightly when Cesaro got to eliminate Kane with a scoop slam, the same thing he'd done to Big Show to win the previous year's battle royal. He attempted the same thing with 'The Giant' but his back gave out and he was sent over the top rope by Show. This didn't bother me as much as the treatment of Itami and Axel. There was a logical sequence which led to 'The Swiss Superman's' elimination.

Ryback fired himself up and got tossed out by Big Show befoe the match came down to Miz, Mizdow and Show. Miz pleaded with Mizdow to work with him against Big Show so the match could come down to the two of them. Mizdow didn't allow himself to be fooled. He threw 'The Awesome One' over the top rope and took his chances with 'The World's Largest Athlete'. It didn't work out well for him. He managed to survive for a minute or two but the match eventually went to Show after he simply dunked Mizdow over the top rope.

"Pull my finger."

I don't have a problem with Big Show winning. There was nothing on the line besides a trophy that looks like it's made from chocolate and tinfoil. The creative team deserve credit for embracing the Miz and Mizdow rivalry and having it come to a head here. Although I can't help but feel the crowd would have gone wild had the match come down to Mizdow and Curtis Axel. The two underdog favourites getting to close out the match could have been really suspenseful. And the Miz and Mizdow split still could have worked.

The Intercontinental championship ladder match opened the official WrestleMania show. It was preceded by a really good video that started out highlighting the importance of the championship before switching to focus on the legacy of ladder matches at WretleMania. This allowed it to cleverly gloss over how the IC title has been pretty much meaninglessness for the last fifteen years.

While the match didn't feature as many crazy bumps as I'd expected it still had plenty to choose from. A series of dives to the outside at the start of the match culminated with Ziggler getting back dropped over the top rope and Luke Harper diving onto everyone, before Dean Ambrose scaled a ladder to hit his cross body elbow. Stardust introduced a diamanté ladder, only for Barrett to kick a step off it and smack people with it. Harper did the Terry Funk ladder spot before dropping it and getting scissor kicked onto it by R-Truth. Barrett suplexed Stardust off the top of a ladder. Ambrose was Awesome bombed from the ring through a ladder by Harper. Barrett went on a Bullhammer rampage, pulling Ziggler off a ladder into the move, battering Stardust with it as he leapt off the top rope into the ring, and then smashing Truth off the ladder.

I didn't want this but I'm willing to give it a try.

Daniel Bryan nearly got the belt during this but was pulled off the ladder by Barrett. He avoided the Bullhammer and felled the defending champion with the running knee. Bryan scaled the ladder again only for Ziggler to sprint up and offer some last minute resistance at the top. They traded forearms and headbutts, D-Bry getting the last word when he knocked Ziggler to the mat with a head butt and reached up to pull down the title belt and win his first Intercontinenta championship. I'd been against Bryan winning but it went down well with the 'Mania crowd. They were happy to see Bryan triumph.

Orton v Rollins was match number two. Orton dominated the first several minutes, smacking Rollins about and no-selling buckle bomb before flooring 'The Future' with a clothesline. J&J interfered and were dropped off the apron with a double draping DDT. But that was enough of a distraction for Rollins to get in a suicide dive and take over the pace of the match. After a brief rest hold Orton comes back with clotheslines and turned a Curb Stomp attempt into a power slam.

'The Viper' hit a rough-looking T-bone suplex. Rollins escaped a draping DDT and got in an enziguri then an Asai moonsault to the outside. Back in the ring Orton got his draping DDT. Orton went for the RKO but Rollins countered into a schoolboy roll-up. Orty kicked out and then took an super kick but managed to stay on his feet to hit Rollins with an RKO.

Orton reacted to the kick out that followed with absolute shock. That seemed a bit much. Yes it normally wins him a match but people have kicked out of the move before, and this was WrestleMania, where we told that everyone goes that little bit further to make an impression. Anyway, he went for his back-up finish, the Deadly Punt™. Noble got in way and took an RKO. Mercury tried a cross body and took an RKO in mid-air. This allowed provided enough of a distraction for Rollins to recover and this time he hit Orton with a Curb Stomp.

An unspectacular photo from a really very good match.

Randy kicked out of that and Seth pulled him into position for the phoenix splash. Orton slipped out of the way as Rollins left the top rope. Rollins landed on his feet and rolled across the ring. Orton went for an RKO, got pushed off and stumbled to his knees. The match ended on a beuatifully performed exchange as Rollins went for the Curb Stomp and Orton slipped out from under him to catch him coming down with an RKO. The match could not have been better.

In a bold (or possibly stupid) move Sting and Triple H followed. They even went without the benefit of a pop song or a filler match. They did get the grand entrance treatment though. Sting came out to a Stomp-style group playing metal drums and wearing his face paint. Triple H had something themed around the Terminator. There was a headpiece themed around his tried and tested skull and crown motifs along with a red "laser" eye, four classic Terminator robots stood motionless on the stage, extras dressed up as less spectacular robots, a target-acquiring POV shot, and a cameo from Arnold Schwarzenegger in which he said "It's time to play the game!". It was weird but also nicely done. Triple H's cosplay fantasies are the closest thing to The Streak we have left at WrestleMania.

The opening few minutes were all about making Sting look like a top guy. He overpowered Trips. Then he outwrestled him. He no-sold the knee buster and went for the Scorpion deathlock. Trips wriggled out of the ring, returning to get whipped back outside via Sting's immense power. Sting followed him out and went for a splash against the barricade. Triple H moved and threw him into the steel steps.

Paul versus Steve: The Epic Collision.

Back in the ring H3 muscled Sting up for a stalling suplex then worked Sting over with knees and powerful whips into the corner before slapping on a sleeper so that 'The Vigilante' could loudly call some spots. Sting fought back and applied the deathlock. Billy Gunn, Road and X Pac ran to the DX music. Sting made short work of them with chops. The he threw Tripper out of the ring onto them for good measure. That set up a nice human crash mat for Sting to leap off the top rope onto. It looked like 'The Stinger' was finally going to put 'The Game' but a distraction from Billy Gunn allowed Trips to get in a Pedigree.

Sting kicked out so Triple H grabbed his sledgehammer. Before he could use it he was distracted by the music of the nWo and Kevin Nash, Scott Hall and Hulk Hogan swaggering down to the ring. Had he thought about it the so-called 'Cerebral Assassin' could have lamped Sting with the hammer and won the match before the nWo fellas had arrived at ringside. He was clearly awed by their shock tactics.

When they arrived the nWo dispatched DX and Sting recovered to hit a Scorpion Death Drop on Tripper. When Trips kicked out Sting put him in the deathlock. Triple H went for the sledgehammer that lay tantalisingly close. Luckily for Sting that bastion of fairness Hulk Hogan was on hand to grab it from the evil COO's clutches. That triggered a flurry of activity on the outside and DX and the nWo wiped each other. Trips sat in the hold as this went on, only managing to make it to the ropes after everything had simmered down and the camera was back on him. Funny that. It was almost like the match was staged.

Sting went to reapply the Scorpion deathlock but got lamped with Sweet Chin Music (outta nowhere!) by Shawn Michaels. Helmsley crawled into a cover and Sting kicked out. Billy handed Trips the sledgehammer. Hall handed Sting the bat. Sting dropped Triple H with a tap to the midsection then broke the hammer's staff in half. 'The Game' backed into a corner and got pummelled with fists and a Stinger Splash. 'The Vigilante' got greedy and went for a second, which gave Triple H the chance to grab hold of the top half of the sledgehammer and lamp him with it. That was enough to finally put 'The Stinger' down for three.

After the match Triple H pushed DX off and offered a handshake to Sting. Sting accepted. The entire match was far, far better than I'd expected it to be. Sting was protected, Triple H didn't try anything too fancy, and they made excellent use of run-ins. It's probably a bit odd that Sting was saved by the nWo, a group he experienced the biggest match of his career fighting against, but we can take that as the four having put aside their differences since WCW went under. Or you could go really wild and see it as acknowledgment that Sting really was with the nWo all along as they claimed in the nineties.

Backstage Maria Menounos interviewed new IC champ Daniel Bryan, asking how he felt about his win. He tried to answer and was interrupted by Pat Patterson, Roddy Piper, Ricky Stramboat, Ric Flair, and Bret Hart. They all but Bryan over (Flair got himself over too, naturally) and did a "Yes!" chant. Then Ron Simmons showed up and said "Damn!". I presume this was hilarious for those into that sort of thing.

Following a musical performance so uninspiring I can't even be bothered to look up who it was by Paige and AJ Lee teamed up to tangle with the Bellas. Paige was isolated by the twins for a while before finally managing to tag out to AJ. She worked over Nikki, Paige eliminated Brie, and then AJ made Nikki submit to the Black Widow. This was the most time I can remember Divas getting at 'Mania in years. They made the most of it and told a story in a good match.

After the audience had been given the chance to gape at the Hall of Famers it was time for Cena v Rusev II: The Russian Federation Strikes Back. Rusev entered on a tank. An actual, honest to goodness tank. There was other stuff going on with a Russian flag and troops and Lana but it was nowhere near as impressive as RUSEV RIDING A TANK. John Cena got a video of American symbolism intercut with Reagan jingoism. His actual entrance was the standard Cena entrance.

Flag-related taunts set to become wrestling's next craze.

They had another surprisingly energetic, enjoyable match. The match they gave us at Fast Lane had raised my expectations for the quality of this match. They again surpassed them. Cena pulled out his top rope leg drop, multiple AAs and the STF. Rusev busted out his regular assortment of big lad moves and  athletic kicks. He was on top of his game with his selling, ring placement, and facial expressions, perfectly getting across his increasing desperation with wild eyes and an uncharacteristic trip to the top rope.

Not to be outdone with new material Cena hit a springboard Ace crusher. Then he powered to his feet and almost casually become the first man to break out of the Accolade. Lana tried a distraction from the apron and got knocked off by Rusev. Cena then scooped him up and hit him with an AA. Just like that Cena won. It felt like Rusev should've been able to withstand more with a year-long winning streak to his name. Going down to the second AA of the night seemed very anti-climactic.

Then the stalling kicked in. You see, WWE likes to present certain wrestlers in certain ways. One such wrestler is Undertaker. He always enters to darkness because he's a spooky character and darkness is spooky. At this point it was about quarter to seven. They needed to kill time so that it was as dark as possible for 'The Dead Man's' entrance. They also needed to give the crowd time to cool down and hit the toilets before the final two matches of the card.

The expert panel and the commentary split the task of recapping the show up until that point. Then Triple H (now wearing a suit) and Stephanie  were introduced. They announced that a new attendance record of 76,976 had been set for the stadium. Steph put herself and Tripper over as the reason for this and WWE's success in general. Trips took over and said they owned everyone there and everyone watching. I thought this was leading to an appearance from Vince McMahon but instead we got The Rock. He goaded Triple H into taking his jacket off before Steph stepped in and told Rock her family had made his family then gave him a slap. She teased The Rock about ot being able to hit her because she's a woman and ordered him to the back.

Luckily Rock avoided inappropriate talk of pies.

Rock left the ring but he didn't go to the back. Instead he went over to Ronda Rousey (sporting a memetastic "It's over 9000!" T-shirt) in the front row and brought her into the ring. Steph said she and Ronda were pals. When Ronda didn't exactly go along with this Steph demanded she leave. Rock and Tripe H ended up getting into it, with Ronda giving Triple H a hip toss and then grabbing Steph. She released her and the heels hobbled backstage as Rock's music played and he declared the sequence the greatest WrestleMania moment of the night. It was good but this self-aggrandizement put me off it a bit.

With all the time that could be killed killed it was time for Undertaker versus Bray Wyatt. 'The New Face of Fear' entered first, accompanied by a gang of scarecrows, some of whom he brought to life as he walked past. This could not compare with Rusev's tank entrance. Nor, for that matter, could Undertaker's entrance. There was still plenty of light in the sky and, for the first time in a few years, there were no special props on the stage. It was just 'Taker, his jacket and hat, and the funereal music. Very much a back to basics approach.

The match was fine but not the special attraction I think many expected. The crowd didn't seemed as invested in Undertaker as they have been at recent WrestleManias and I suspect this was because of the lack of The Streak. Not having that to fight for and defend makes 'The Phenom' a bit pointless, drifting character. The Streak was tied strongly to his legacy. Without it there's very little point in him sticking around unless he's going to have a stronger presence on TV across the year, which he's obviously not.

Who'd have guessed Sting v Triple H would be more enjoyable
than Wyatt v Undertaker?

They did most, but not all, of the spots that could have been asked of them. Wyatt did his flying forearm and threw out a handful of Sister Abigails. 'Taker gave us Old School, choke slams, and Tombstone piledrivers but omitted the Hell's Gate and the Last Ride. It seemed peculiar. When a guy who only wrestles once a year has this many recognisable moves to call on you expect him to pul them all out, especially in what was possibly his penultimate match. Wyatt survived one Tombstone but fell to a second just after the fifteen minute mark.

That just left the main event: Roman Reigns challenging Brock Lesnar for the WWE world heavyweight championship.

Reigns' entrance was heavy on boos. Lesnar got a thunderous initial pop and extended cheers once he was in the ring. He also received a personal ring introduction from his advocate, Paul Heyman. I liked that. It was a good use of Heyman on a show that didn't really have any other opportunity for him to talk.

Within thirty seconds of the match starting Lesnar had hit Reigns with a German suplex and an F5. He didn't go for a cover. Instead he started with the throws and suplexes. Reigns made sporadic attempts to fight back, clotheslining and pie-facing the champion as well as chuckling, to show us that he can take a beating, but he was quickly shut down each time.

The scene before the match.

After a while Reigns was punched off the apron down to the ringside mats. He got a brief moment of hope as he headed back into the ring, kneeing Lesnar in the face as he tried to grab him. 'The Pain' shrugged that off and sent Reigns off the apron back down to the mats with a lariat. When he returned to the ring he was given more suplexes, Heyman counting along with each one. The eighth was a particularly impressive belly-to-belly from the apron, over the top rope, back into the ring. 

'The Conqueror' hit an F5 and went for the first cover of the match. Reigns kicked out. Lesnar punched away at Reigns. Reigns laughed, earning himself two more German suplexes and a third F5. Reigns kicked out again, technically breaking WWE's unwritten rule that people don't kick out of more than three finishers in a match.

Lesnar tried to shove Reigns into a ring post outside the ring but Reigns managed to reverse the attempt. Lesnar would roll back into the ring bleeding heavily. Reigns hit him with a Superman punch but the champ stayed on his feet. A second Superman punch sent 'The Beast', briefly, down to a knee. Reigns went for the move a third time but Lesnar sidestepped it and went for a German suplex. Reigns fought out and blasted Lesnar with a third Superman punch and two spears. Lesnar managed to kick out. Reigns went for another Superman punch but Lesnar caught him in mid-air and F5ed him.

With both men down Seth Rollins sprinted out to the ring and cashed in his Money in the Bank contract, sending the crowd crazy (in a positive way, obvs). The match was restarted as a triple threat and Rollins immediately booted 'The Big Dog' out of the ring and Curb Stomped Lesnar. He went for the move a second time but Lesnar snatched him up into position for the F5. Reigns thrust himself back into the action with a spear. Lesnar rolled out of the ring. Rollins hit Reigns with a Curb Stomp and pinned him to become the new WWE world heavyweight champion.

The scene  after the match.

The main event was superb. Reigns stood up to a vicious beating from Lesnar and kept coming back for more. Lesnar delivered the suplexes and F5s he's adored for. The finish was designed to accomplish several things and did so. Lesnar was kept strong by not being pinned. Reigns was presented as the wronged victim who had his moment stolen away by someone else's selfishness. Rollins was presented as an opportunistic chancer who selected the perfect moment, making a name for himself at the expense of someone who'd earned their way to the top. Which, in kayfabe terms, Reigns had with his Rumble victory and win over Daniel Bryan at Fast Lane.

WrestleMania 31 was a far better show than I'd thought. I hadn't really expected much from many of the matches. Too many of them seemed like odd choices for a big show. But there wasn't a bad match on the card. The main event was everything I wanted it to be.

What's nice is that it feels like WWE has a plan coming out of this show. I don't like Bryan and Cena having the mid-card titles but it's clearly been done for a purpose. The world title picture has Rollins on top with Lesnar, Reigns and Orton in a position to argue they deserve a championship match against him. On the night the show was a surprising success. I think it will prove to have been a success in the long term too.

***

Results summary:

Cesaro and Tyson Kidd retain the tag team championship
Big Show won the Andre Battle Royal, last eliminating Damien Mizdow
Daniel Bryan won the Intercontinental championship in a ladder match
Randy Orton defeated Seth Rollins
Triple H defeated Sting
AJ Lee and Paige defeated the Bellas
John Cena defeated Rusev to win the United States championship
Undertaker defeated Bray Wyatt
Seth Rollins defeated Roman Reigns and Brock Lesnar to win the WWE championship

AJ Lee's Search for (WW)Equality

On Monday 23 February Stephanie McMahon took to Twitter to congratulate Patricia Arquette¹ on striking a blow for women's rights by speaking in favour of equal pay for actresses. It was the sort of thing Steph does from time to time, designed as much to try and capitalise on the latest trending topics on social media as to express any genuine sentiment. It was a non-issue.

Two days later that changed when AJ Lee responded to Steph's tweet with the following message across two tweets:

Your female wrestlers have record selling merchandise and have starred in the highest rated segment of the show several times, and yet they receive a fraction of the wages and screen time of the majority of the male roster. #UseYourVoice

Steph acknowledged the tweet and thanked AJ for her opinion. The following RAW played host to a Nikki Bella versus Paige Divas championship match which was noticeably different to the average WWE women's offering. Both wrestlers hit harder and used a wider variety of moves than they usually would. After the match AJ Lee returned and united with Paige to clear the ring of the Bellas. Although no mention was made of AJ's tweets to Steph it looked as though the desired effect had been achieved.

Main event draws?

On the one hand AJ has a fair point. Matches featuring WWE's female performers are routinely positioned as toilet breaks before pay-per-view main events, get short TV matches, and are generally presented as inferior to their male counterparts. Companies like Shine and SHIMMER, the once great Knockouts division in TNA, and the way women's wrestling has been and continues to be appreciated in NXT show that a modern audience can appreciate women wrestlers as more than eye candy and filler material. The presentation of women on the main WWE roster is behind the times.

Unfortunately some of Lee's points are questionable. Not knowing the pay scale of WWE's main roster performers it's impossible to comment on whether or not women are paid fairly. What is known is that the majority of the women in NXT are paid more than the average male performers there (that's basically everyone who's not Owens, Zayn, Bálor, Itami or Neville). The reasoning behind this is that it's tough to maintain the "look" the company expects from its female performers on a developmental wage. It's not progressive reasoning but it is still more money.

The merchandise sales are harder to comment on. Most important to note is that (as revealed in an interview given by Nikki Bella) all WWE performers receive the same percentage of merchandise sales. It's also worth noting that there haven't been any reports of fans being unable to purchase the T-shirts of female performers at house show booths, as was the case with Randy Orton's shirts last year. That indicates that WWE are managing to keep up with whatever demand there is. It's also worth noting that no wrestling shows ever see an overwhelming number of T-shirts for female wrestlers in the crowd. Bullet Club's dominance in that field is safe for the time being. Basically, any deficiencies AJ detects in her merchandise cut can be attributed to her not being as popular as she thinks she is.

The biggest question regarding Lee's comments can be levied at her claim that female wrestlers have "starred in the highest rated segment of the show several times." This is true but put into context it's a far lesser deal than Lee would like it to be. First of all there are only two women currently under contract who have been in these segments: Stephanie McMahon and AJ Lee herself. In Stephanie's case she is almost always interacting with male performers. While this doesn't disprove Steph herself is an effective, believable character it doesn't prove she is either. People are just as likely watching because Triple H or John Cena or Seth Rollins are also involved, or because she generally appears in the opening and closing of the show, which are always positioned as the most important parts of WWE television shows.

To find proof of AJ's history in high rated segments you have to go back to 2012. At the time she was one of the most over performers of either gender in the company. She'd gained this popularity through a combination of having a character that was different from the norm and by being involved in a storyline with the supremely over Daniel Bryan and WWE champion CM Punk². It's entirely accurate to say she was involved in the highest rated segments of RAW at this time, but anyone in her spot would have been because they were in segments with Bryan and Punk. The success was only partially attributable to her. I think it's fair to say it was primarily attributable to Punk and Bryan: Punk remained popular until he left WWE while D-Bry remains popular to this day.

AJ herself was over at this time. I'm not claiming that she had no effect on the success of the storylines or segments she was involved with. But I don't think they would have been any less well received without her involvement. At the time I saw it as a forward-thinking move by WWE, getting audiences used to female performers associating with the male main event stars. Looking back I still see it that way, it's just a move they failed to follow through on (hardly a surprise as they fail to follow through on so much).

"Come on, Nikki. Let's practice our staring!"

On the issue of screen time Lee has a point. The main roster is (very) roughly twenty-five per cent female. Based on this it could be argued that a quarter of every show could be dedicated to women's wrestling. In practical terms this simply wouldn't work because of the fourteen women on the main roster only four definitely have characters that the majority of people care about: the Bella twins, Paige and AJ Lee (and even Paige is a shaky claim outside of Britain). Beyond them only Natalya, Summer Rae and Naomi have a semblance of character. These aren't enough names to construct a division around.

WWE's programming is currently structured around the guys who headline pay-per-views. As the success of any pay-per-view not named WrestleMania generally rests on the popularity of the wrestlers in its top one or two matches this is a sound approach. There is an argument to be made in favour of fleshing out the women's division with more interesting characters and giving them more screen time but that's a gradual process that rushing won't help with.

Lee is right in her sentiment. WWE doesn't treat its female performers as fairly as it could. Looking back to the early naughties³ and seeing the way in which Trish Stratus, Lita, Mickie James and Victoria were booked shows us that it can, which only makes the current situation even more frustrating. But her view that the current batch of female wrestlers are proven draws is incorrect. They can be, and should be given the chance to prove it, but they're not there yet.

***

¹ She's an actress. I mention this because I've never heard of her and I'm assuming other people may be in the same position. Maybe she's related to the former WCW champion...

² Kane was also involved.

³ Do we have a better term for this yet? No? Okay, can someone just shoot me, please? Thanks.

The All New Divas Division

Think Stephanie McMahon is WWE’s top female heel? You’re right. She routinely gets more boos than any other woman in the company. That it’s through a combination of her character having over a decade’s worth of history behind it and her being positioned better than most other performers is irrelevant: Steph gets ‘em booing.

But as good as she is she’s not the top female heel wrestler. Because, y’know, she’s had one proper match in the last decade. It was a good match but still, it doesn’t really qualify as a regular performer.

Nikki Bella: winner.

As far as female antagonists go the top heel wrestler in WWE is Nikki Bella. After turning on sister Brie at SummerSlam Nikki was briefly linked to The Authority before being separated to continue her feud, which let’s not forget started in the womb, alone. Which she’s done well. Not all of her promo segments have been great but enough have hit the mark to establish her new, conceited character. The quality of her matches has been better than expected too. In short Nikki has put in real work, particularly in the ring, to justify her push.

Which makes the decision to pit her against AJ Lee more than welcome. AJ’s feud with Paige started out looking promising but the two never really clicked as regular foes. Part of the problem was that the writing wasn’t particularly strong. Instead of being presented as rivals of equal ability who’s rivalry was more about respect than dislike (a standard wrestling plot, but one proven to work more often than not) they were booked to become friends before Paige went mad and started mimicking AJ’s mannerisms and acting as though she were in love with her.

That sort of story can work. It was a massive success for Mickie James and Trish Stratus in 2006, for example. But then it worked because it was given longer to develop and was presented as something other than a token women’s feud. It wasn’t the right approach for AJ and Paige. They would have been better served in a scenario that allowed fans to pick a side and cheer for their preferred wrestler, rather than trying to force people to boo one over the other. Longer, better planned matches would likely have helped too.

A woman in need of new opponents.

AJ facing Nikki gives us a new match and a new story. It also gives us a situation where one woman is someone fans will want to boo and the other is someone they’ll want to cheer. Judging by how Nikki’s been treated over the last few months it seems safe to assume WWE will give their match or matches longer than the AJ v Paige encounters. That’s something AJ has warranted for a long time and it’s something she’ll hopefully make the most of.

Looking at the current state of the Divas division it doesn’t seem inconceivable that WWE is setting Brie (Mode) Bella up for a Divas title reign. The Bellas’ feud has been presented as higher profile than the Divas title over the last couple of months, subtly positioning the twins as the real stars of the scene despite AJ’s grasp on the gold. Brie is currently spending a month as her sister’s assistant (due to a stipulation that could well be the lovechild of Vince Russo and various episodes of Seinfeld) and will clearly become more downtrodden as the weeks pass. Either Brie could be forced to help Nikki become the Divas champion and then be the next one to challenge her for it, or she could cost her the title, continue the sister versus sister programme, and pick up the title from AJ in a three-way.

Neither would be the worst sequence in the world, but by the end of the Nikki and Brie programme whoever had the championship would need some fresh opponents. Right now the women’s division only really has four characters in it: Nikki, Brie, Paige and AJ. While the sisters are locked up with AJ WWE should use ‘The Anti-Diva’ to help turn some of the current no-namers on the roster into characters people care about. They’ve made a stab at this with Alicia Fox, and could follow up with the likes of Emma, Summer Rae and Naomi, three women who already have the foundations of individual characters but just need some screen time with people we’re more familiar with.

Bubbles but not much character.

The specifics of the characters isn’t important. What matters is that they have these women interact with Paige and each other to establish characters that viewers can understand and become invested in. By the time the Brie and Nikki story finishes (which I’m assuming will be in January at the absolute latest) WWE could have a rounded group of female personalities at their disposal.

I’ve said many times before that WWE has the makings of a great women’s division. AJ, Paige, Natalya and Emma are all great wrestlers, with the Bellas being underrated after making significant improvements. If they invested time in the division they could make it mean a lot, in turn making the debuts of the likes of Charlotte, Bayley and Sasha Banks mean more when they come. Now is the time to start that, and as bizarre as it is to say the Bellas are the ones to get the ball rolling.