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The Ugly - The Baron Corbin Angle
I'm ecstatic that Baron Corbin is no longer the RAW GM and you should be too. Despite a promising start, RAW was stagnant, stale, and subpar with Corbin at the helm. Ratings were abysmal and he quickly became the face of the brand's steep decline.
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I do take issue; however, with the way Corbin was stripped of his GM privileges. First, the returning Braun Strowman made his way to the ring. Strowman, who recently underwent elbow surgery, had his arm in a sling and held it close to his side. While Corbin had been optimistic that Strowman wouldn't show up at all, Strowman reminded the Constable that a TLC Match didn't really have rules and that he, in turn, could utilize any form of assistance he desired.
Strowman, who is supposed to be the babyface, then called on a multitude of RAW Superstars including Finn Balor, Bobby Roode, Chad Gable, and Apollo Crews to aid him in his quest to destroy Corbin. Even Heath Slater, Corbin's personally appointed referee, turned on the RAW GM.
The Superstars surrounded the ring armed with chairs to boot, but wisely Corbin was able to make his escape, only to be confronted by former GM Kurt Angle. Angle attacked Corbin and ushered him back into the chaos where the good guys proceeded to pummel him.
The Superstars took turns assaulting Corbin until he was incapacitated enough for Strowman to cover him for the pinfall. Just like that, the Baron Corbin era was over.
The way the Corbin era ended leaves a bad taste in the mouth. The angle looked a bit too much like extreme bullying for my taste and I wasn't comfortable with the babyfaces teaming in such a fashion, especially in light of WWE's sound anti-bullying advocacy. The image of Corbin attempting to escape his adversaries, who utilized weapons to even the proverbial score, was a bit much, especially in the era of school violence.
Yes, Corbin has been a bully and some may argue that he received his just consequence, however, the entire scene sends the wrong message: that it's OK for the good guys, for heroes, to rally with weapons to conquer someone they don't necessarily like.
Strowman was coming off an injury; but, the whole endeavor makes him look weak, not like the intimidating monster he is supposed to be. It would have been better for Strowman to throw one punch or one boot and pin Corbin cleanly, but instead, the gang violence leaves me feeling a bit uneasy and if at all possible, generates some amount of sympathy toward Corbin. This was undoubtedly unintended, we hope.
