WWE: Flops from RAW, 12th August 2013

The penultimate stop before this Sunday’s PPV came from Sacramento, California as RAW rolled out its “Go home” episode, which turned out to be a great show. The segments and promos were intended to drive the point home and the superstars were successful in doing it. It also saw the return of The Big Show, and RVD was named the number one contender for the WWE United States Heavyweight championship, and he will now face Dean Ambrose at SummerSlam. Although it was a good show, there were a couple of low points. So what were the flops coming out of the show? Let’s find out.

5. No feud yet for Randy Orton

Randy Orton

The problem I had when Orton won the Money in the Bank ladder match during last month’s PPV was his lack of direction for months. Randy Orton wasn’t involved in any feud before the PPV, and apart from the “he can cash it in at any time” logic, he necessarily did not have a feud since. With Orton not even being on the SummerSlam card, it takes away the surprise element when he cashes it in. If that doesn’t happen, and WWE decides to throw a curve ball, he’ll be bumped off the card, which doesn’t speak too well for Orton.

He could’ve had a match against the likes of Miz, who has been named the “host” of SummerSlam (it’s a discreet way of saying the creative doesn’t have anything for him in the near future), or even Curtis Axel. It’s almost sad that the Intercontinental champion isn’t on the SummerSlam card, which completely destroys any faith the fans have in Axel.

4. No Shield on the show

The Shield

For some reason, the stock of The Shield has plummeted in the WWE. From being the “next big thing” in the WWE to being bumped to the pre–show of a major PPV, it will be discouraging to the three bright prospects. Although Dean Ambrose is the United States champion and Rollins/Reigns are the tag team champions, they weren’t able to make it on the main SummerSlam card. It gets even worse for the trio, as they couldn’t even find a place on this week’s episode of RAW! We’ve heard recently that Rollins and Reigns have heat backstage, and that has likely killed their momentum.

3. Fandango – Truth dance segment

Fandango

If you ask WWE how to kill 10 minutes, they would come up with what they did with Fandango and Truth. Instead of giving that same amount of time to build a rivalry, they used it for a dance off, and a sneak attack by Fandango. There are many other ways to build up a story or a rivalry instead of two guys trying to see who dances better. Later during the battle royal, Truth eliminated Fandango, and Fandango came back into the ring and threw Truth out, eliminating him in the process. Why couldn’t they just keep this instead of a horrible dance off? This is where they could’ve had something for The Shield. Or maybe I’m expecting too much from the creative.

2. Short matches on the show

I miss how a month ago we were having about 2 matches which were getting nearly 20 minutes each. Ever since, WWE has gone back to the 5 – 6 minute encounters, often ending with either outside interferences or false finishes. If WWE wants to do a rehash of what WCW did more than a decade and a half ago, it probably isn’t a good idea. Even on this week’s show, there was only one decent bout which got more than 10 minutes. Other than the Orton – Sandow match, the battle royal received more time, which cannot be taken into account. Guys like Cesaro, Christian and Bryan can make the most out of these 15 minute matches, and make it a great show.

1. AJ Lee – referee screw up

AJ Lee

On this week’s episode, we got to see a mixed tag team match between AJ Lee/Big E Langston and Natalya/The Great Khali. Towards the end, Natalya locked AJ in the Sharpshooter, but AJ tapped out too soon, even before Natalya locked it in properly. This confused everyone, including the referee, but Natalya thought on her feet and said “not yet”, and locked in the Sharpshooter once again, making AJ tap out to the submission. This is why the fans want to see Natalya instead of models on the show.