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The first RAW of the year was indeed very weird. The first half of the show was good, in fact, it was borderline great. And then, the second half of the show was equally as bad. Somehow, midway through the episode, those in the back must have stopped caring about the show altogether.
The main event was good of course, and that's where things picked up once again. Let's analyse some individual components and map out what worked and what did not, on this week's show. As always, feel free to leave a comment and let us know what you thought about the show, overall.
Do you think that the new McMahon regime has brought about a change in the product? Is it better than it was back when Baron Corbin was the on-screen authority figure?
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#1 Best: Absolutely packed show
The past two weeks had seen a massive decline in viewership for RAW. While this was to be expected as they took place on Christmas and New Year Eve, those in WWE probably wanted to kick off the new year with a big bang. And for the same, they brought out the heavyweights. It was a top-heavy show, but it felt important.
From John Cena to Hulk Hogan to Brock Lesnar and Braun Strowman, all the top superstars made a comeback this week. This should ideally get fans invested in the product once again. With The Royal Rumble and WrestleMania on the horizon, WWE needs viewers to tune in.
Is this a guaranteed increase in viewership for the show? I think not.
At the same time, big returns always get the WWE Universe talking.
#1 Worst: Debuting NXT superstars on Main Event?
The McMahon regime promised new faces and new opportunities a few weeks ago. And they certainly delivered on their promise. Only it wasn't on RAW this week. It was on Main Event.
Many of you who read this website know that I've been doing this for a few years now and reviewing professional wrestling is my primary occupation in life. But even I don't watch Main Event, because nothing of note ever happens on the show in terms of storyline.
It would have made sense to have EC3 come out on the main roster and have a showdown with someone like possibly Jinder Mahal. The same could have been done with Lacey Evans and Alicia Fox.
I certainly hope that some of the names that have been called up eventually show up on the shows that matter, and don't become Main Event mainstays.
#2 Best: Tribute to Mean Gene Okerlund
Listen, I am not here to discuss the morality of Hulk Hogan's return. Everyone said that WWE would find a way to make an angle out of Mean Gene's death featuring the Hulkster and it was a classic case of jumping to conclusions. For what it is worth, I thought WWE did a classy job of keeping a segment about Mean Gene, about Mean Gene.
What I want to give WWE kudos for is the beautiful promo package they put together for Mean Gene Okerlund. I've been watching professional wrestling since the early 90s, and it was so great to see Gene with all the amazing, colourful superstars from WWE's classic, iconic era.
WWE doesn't always deliver on their weekly shows. But their promo packages are always so well made.
#2 Worst: The Brock-Braun exchange
We were all hyped to see the Monster Among Men return to action from injury. We were all really kicked to see Brock Lesnar come back and hype his match up before the Royal Rumble pay-per-view. Well, both men did show up but the segment was a really confusing one, overall.
The exchange between the two men sounded unrehearsed and hokey through the segment. Braun Strowman, in particular, seemed to be struggling with his lines, and Brock Lesnar did not respond in kind, in the backstage area either. Then Brock Lesnar teased coming to the ring and things began to pick up once again.
Of course, Brock Lesnar would retreat before he locked horns with Braun Strowman. One of the issues with the Royal Rumble match is that few people are excited about it, and this did nothing to hype the match up.
#3 Best: The falls count anywhere main event match
This was a story that was told through the duration of the show. And when I say that, I actually mean it. It lasted from the opening bell to the final minutes. This is my favourite kind of sports entertainment action.
Seth Rollins was fired up by Triple H on last week's episode. He kicked things into high gear at the very top of the programming, taking out his frustrations on his opponent from last week, the Almighty Bobby Lashley.
He would bring his fired up persona to Triple H and demand a rematch for the Intercontinental Championship. The falls count anywhere match was an exciting one that Rollins seemed to have under control until Lashley interfered.
I really liked that the match took place all over the arena, living up to the stipulation.
#3 Worst: The mixed tag match
WWE does not have a Mixed Tag Team Championship at this moment. It is unlikely that such a championship will be introduced in the future either. This essentially means that all mixed tag team matches are meaningless and booked just to fill time. This week, we saw Jinder Mahal and Alicia Fox take on Ember Moon and Apollo Crews in one such match.
Ember Moon and Apollo Crews scored a very easy victory and are on their way to doing bigger things, one hopes. One needs to just bemoan the state of Jinder Mahal and just how far he's fallen down the ranks, going from the Modern Day Maharaja to a man who does breathing exercises in the ring with the Singh Brothers. The Mixed Match Challenge is over too, so I don't see the point of such a match at all.
#4 Best/worst: Corbin vs. Elias
Hello, he is Elias and he has one question for everyone here tonight. What does he have to for WWE to actually put him in a program that actually matters? He gets the best reaction from the crowd, week after week. And then he ends up losing to Baron Corbin.
Once again, I don't mind Corbin winning the match. Corbin has genuine heel heat from his stint as General Manager and it's serving him well right now. He may just be the most despised man in WWE.
I'm just confused at his win coming at the expense of Elias, who's never quite had the push that he deserves after being such a popular WWE superstar. He needs to feud with Dean Ambrose for the Intercontinental Championship.
Only when he has gold around his waist, will he be taken seriously!
