Wrestling Thursday: Another PPV?
It's the week before Backlash, and all through the WWE, people are saying... wait, didn't we JUST have a PPV? This is Wrestling Thursday, here to recap the week and predict Backlash.
Raw
Canada hates Roman, loves Canadians
So... is this how this was supposed to go? With the crowd hating the face and loving the heels? Because if so, mission accoplished! I mean, I guess at least Jinder got booed, probably because they literally never mention that he, much like Zayn and KO, is in fact Canadian. Also, Braun is making saves now? Please don't destroy your top face, WWE. I'm beggin ya here. At least he was there to help his recent tag team partner, and not Reigns.
Stop trying to make face Roode happen
So now, in an effort to keep Bobby Roode a face, he gets brutalized by Elias. Bobby Roode is a bad man. Everything about him says "heel." And yet, here we are. Match was okay, considering both dudes are very workmanlike.
The Authors of Ouch
So, yeah. AOP destroyed two lovable jobbers. That's nice, I guess. But with so few tag teams on Raw, how long before the eat up the Deleters of Worlds and take the title?
Elevating the erstwhile Miztourage
I really love the work Bo and Axel are doing right now. I mean, sure, no one expects them to actually have a shot against Finn and Rollins on the physical side of things. But on the mic, they are more than holding their own. Kudos, kids.
The continuing saga of Bayley and Sasha
First, the match between Sasha and Ruby was GREAT. Those two are excellent, and I hope to see them go at it for years to come. And you know what? FINE, WWE. FINE. I am resigned to not knowing who the heel and who the face is between Sasha and Bayley. Maybe y'all know. Maybe you've changed your minds 16 times by now. Maybe you'll actually make a move at some point. But I'm willing to go along for the ride for now.
Moments of Bliss and Deletions
I was ready to hate on the Alexa Bliss promo, but "it's a cup," is one of the all time great lines. She is making lemonade out of crap here. The tag champs are entertaining and fun.
So... we've given up on Lashley?
When Bobby Lashley came back, it looked like he was headed straight to the top. Right now, he's Braun's weaker partner. And what those guys are doing with Roman is anyone's guess. I do enjoy Braun's bowling ball impersonation, though. That shit is FUN. Match wasn't great.
Poor Baron
I am far from Baron Corbin's biggest fan, but I think he may be just as frustrated as his character is with the way things are going. He should flatten Jose. And Titus Worldwide? They are not, to my mind, a great fit to feud with him.
The Battle of Best Hands
In wrestling, being a "good hand" means you're skilled and experienced in the ring. You know what your doing. It also means you aren't a star. Right now, that's where Mickie and Natalya are, and it actually works. Putting them in with Ronda makes zero character sense, but it makes all the sense in the world when it compes to putting Rousey in there with workers who can help her along and take care of her.
Battle of the beardy boys
I think you may have gotten the impression that for the most part, I was underwhelmed by this week's Raw. And until these two wrestle boys had their main event match, that's true. But a great main event can cure many ills, and for a Monday night free tv show, this was a spectacular main event. I also think Finn will be a terrific heel if that's where they're going with this. I am, however, super worried that this may be happening such a short time after he started being openly supportive of queer inclusion.
Smackdown
Miz is thinking ahead
While Miz keeps talking about getting the IC belt back, he seems to be angling to get the Smackdown equivalent: The US title. And heck, let's make that happen, because he's great with a belt, and hopefully Orton won't be invloved in the thing for too long.
RKO
Oh, look, good guy who is due to fight with another good guy with a midcard belt attacks the other guy after taking care of their opponents. Didn't we JUST do this with Raw with far more compelling workers? We SURE DID.
X-Pac Heat
For the non fans in the audience, "Heat" is crowd reaction. And it's what all wrestlers want. It's what their job is to get. Good or bad, doesn't matter, as long as there's no aparhy. And then there's X-Pac heat, named for the awful Sean Waltman. This is where there's definitely a reaction, but the core feeling behind it isn't "we hate you and want to see you get beat up." It's "we hate you and want you to go away." Which is to say that much like Canada, I do not like Big Cass.
No apology
Joe, Shinsuke and AJ Styles all wrapped up in an angle is basically wrestling christmas. And everyone was great as usual.
Woods Wins!
Xavier Woods is one of the most underrated workers in the company. Sure, he's a great talker and has elevated his New Day partners in that department, but he is also a heck of a worker, and this was a fun little match between him and Sheamus. This feud could be funsies!
Battle for the kingdom
When you have The Queen, The Empress, and The Princess in one tag match, you can expect some fun. But, once again, The Iconics stole the show. Peyton and Billie keep doing great work. And Becky and Asuka got to have some redemption after last week's loss.
205 Live
Respect Hideo!
So the tag match was great, which was a given considering the participants. But the ending was the story, with Hideo possibly turning on Tozawa. When it actually happens, their feud will be awesome.
Murphy push
Blake Murphy's in ring work continues to be crisp, and after the Cedric attack, the title match is definitely coming.
Gu-lock!
Drew Gulak got to get the win back from Kalisto, and much like Murphy, is definitely headed to a title feud. I would guess Murphy is the interim feud, with Cedric/Gulak slated for Takeover.
NXT
Kairi SQUASH
(All images credit: wwe.com No video. Booo!)
It was actually nice to see Kairi get to squash an opponent for once. Lacey Evans dropping her with a punch after the match was an interesting way to go. Evans has lost to every one of the top women in NXT who she has wrestled, so this is an interesting detour.
Tag team fun
Are TM61 turning heel? Sure. Why not. Does it matter? I'm not sure. If these two teams feud, will next week be the jumping on point for War Raiders as tag champs? Because I find it hard to believe Heavy Machinery will be a serious roadblock for the former War Machine.
The reintroduction of Kona Reeves
A couple of weeks of promos preceeded the reintroduction of former NXT jobber Kona Reeves in what will probably be his real character going forward, as the angry lover of fine things. He was... okay.
EST?
(No video. Double booo!)
So Bianca won, and was incredibly impressive physically. But this match was all about Candice LaRae, and really about Johnny Gargano. And my feelings on this are known: I don't like them making Candice story be all about her hubby. But for a choice I disagree with, this was well done. Candice wasn't hurt by the loss, because it's a part of her story, and Bianca's push continues.
Well Dunne
I keep saying this, but Pete Dunne only has great matches, and Roddy Strong is a fine worker. This was tons of fun until the intevitable Era attack. Lorcan and Burch making the save makes sense for now, but I hope the plan is still for the Lads of Moustache Mountain to join with their former enemy to take on Undisputed.
Backlash Preview
So, yeah, there's a PPV on Sunday. Shocking. Let's have a peek and make predictions!
Braun Strowman and Bobby Lashley vs. Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn
Braun and Lashley look like a lock to go over, but I think maybe KO and Sami sneak their way to a pin over Lashley.
Daniel Bryan vs. Big Cass
Bryan should win, but I think they're gonna wait till Sumerslam for his Miz match, so he probably loses here, with the excuse of the damage he sustained at GRR. This way they can stretch things out a bit.
Roman Reigns vs. Samoa Joe
I mean, Roman has to go over at this point, right? Unless they've either given up on him or are finally setting him up for a heel turn.
Jeff Hardy vs. Randy Orton
I... think Hardy wins? Probably with shenanigans.
Nia Jax vs. Alexa Bliss
Nia retains. Gods, I hope Nia retains. They need to move on from the awful feud.
Seth Rollins vs. The Miz
Seth wins, and maybe Finn shows up and turns heel?
Carmella vs. Charlotte Flair
Mella should win, or escape with the title some other way. I'm going to bet on the latter: She loses by DQ due to Iconic intervention.
AJ Styles vs. Shinsuke Nakamura
I... think Shin finally goes over. That could be wishful thinking, because I super want heel champ Shinsuke. But, yeah. Shin wins in a match that finally lives up to the hype of the Mania match.
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