Evan Luebbe

WWE SmackDown 11/20/2020

SmackDown has been on a streak of putting together several months of excellent programming, particularly the go-home episode right before a Pay-Per-View.

Three examples are:

  1. The finals of the Intercontinental title tournament after Sami Zayn relinquished it earlier this year between Daniel Bryan and AJ Styles right before Backlash,
  2. The Intercontinental championship match between Jeff Hardy and AJ Styles on the go-home episode right before SummerSlam,
  3. And, even the recent encounter between Seth Rollins and Murphy, all three of which were Pay-Per-View-quality matches.

The November 20th edition of the program was quite possibly the greatest episode SmackDown has presented in 2020 because of the excellent transitions into each segment. Every part of the show seemed to flow together brilliantly.

Daniel Bryan was one of the highlights of the night. This edition was so well-done that there were about three segments that could have been perceived as the highlight of the night, but this was an awfully big deal, nonetheless.

The superstar Mr. McMahon opted to focus on most heavily this week was Daniel Bryan, which makes perfect sense in theory because he does not have a match scheduled for Survivor Series this Sunday. Bryan got some retribution by getting a victory over Jey Uso after being attacked by him several weeks ago. Speaking of Uso, he has benefited every bit as much as – if not more than – his cousin Roman Reigns in the past couple months since the storyline began between the two family members. Uce has been firmly established in the main event scene right beside his cousin and is serving as almost an indentured servant to The Head of The Table.

The leader of the Yes! Movement also hinted at the possibility of potentially beginning a rivalry with Sami Zayn starting immediately after Survivor Series for the Intercontinental title. Zayn has Bobby Lashley to worry about this Sunday, but Bryan has been involved on and off in the IC championship picture since June of this year. He has always been a proponent of the idea of the Intercontinental Champion defending the title on a weekly basis. AJ Styles didn’t share the same sentiment earlier in 2020, and Zayn has had similar disagreements with Bryan in recent weeks.

The Tribal Chief Roman Reigns is portraying a character right now who is so arrogant and sure of himself that people cannot help but like him, even though they know in the back of their mind that he is behaving in a very conceited manner. It is reminiscent of the way Paul Heyman’s mentality was when he was advocating for Brock Lesnar. Now that Roman has established himself as The Head of The Table and the unquestioned leader of WWE, he can now let loose and rule exactly how he sees fit.

If my memory is correct, Paul Heyman told Roman in 2015 (the year Reigns won the Royal Rumble which was not received very well – the WWE universe was clamoring for the returning Daniel Bryan) during the buildup to the WrestleMania 31 main event against Brock Lesnar that he was “the right guy, in the right place, at the wrong time.” So it’s extremely ironic that Roman does the same thing to Drew McIntyre just five years later – with Heyman at his side. This is a full-circle moment and maybe it will turn out differently for McIntyre – on the other hand, maybe it won’t. We will find out at Survivor Series.

Rollins, Mysterio and Murphy have told a brilliant story with many layers and nuances over the past six months. Murphy got the victory over Seth and it will hopefully launch him as a major superstar (as was Rollins’ intention all along. Young people like Dominik Mysterio also benefited.

The open storyline between Seth Rollins and Murphy was extremely well-done and executed nearly to perfection. It was about as good as a long-term story gets in WWE – primarily because it did its job effectively of writing Rollins off TV for his paternity leave presumably after Survivor Series. It also firmly established some groundwork for Murphy to work off of and it will hopefully springboard him into superstardom – now having an affiliation with the Mysterio family and being closely tied with them.

It’s great to see that the company found meaningful work for Chad Gable after dropping the Shorty G moniker – Otis as well after Tucker departed from SmackDown for RAW after the draft to seek greener pastures. Otis as well as Chad Gable now each have something meaningful to occupy themselves with now that Otis – with Gable in his corner – is the fifth member of Team SmackDown. And The New Day is always a welcome addition anywhere they decide to show up – now they dominate both brands, which is great marketing.

Bayley is also providing continuity between storylines by proclaiming herself the captain of the SmackDown Women’s Survivor Series Team. Bianca Belair might have something to say about that given how she has dominated every woman on the roster since WrestleMania 36. The company is looking to establish her as the next major superstar in the women’s division. Carmella also made sure Sasha Banks did not forget about her challenge for the title after her rivalry with Asuka finishes.

Drew McIntyre Becomes a Two-time WWE Champion

Drew McIntyre is having the greatest calendar year of his career, and it’s only getting better as he has now won the second WWE championship of his career against Randy Orton. Not many WWE superstars have the ability to say they have won multiple WWE titles in their career – let alone by beating Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania in the main event for the first title and winning the second by finishing a long-term program with Randy Orton. For McIntyre, his second WWE title victory felt as though it meant more in terms of furthering his status in the company and truly cementing his status as a top-tier main eventer. Immediately after the WWE championship match, The Viper tapped The Scottish Psychopath on the back of his leg as a way of giving respect and saying “good match kid. You earned it.”

McIntyre’s career year began with a Royal Rumble victory in January, followed by a victory against Lesnar for the WWE title at WrestleMania. Drew spent the middle portion of 2020 defending his title against various other superstars – such as Seth Rollins, King Corbin, Bobby Lashley, and Dolph Ziggler (who McIntyre tagged with in 2018) – slowly building credibility before getting to the ultimate payoff rivalry later in the year of being caught over by someone who is quite possibly the greatest to ever lace up a pair of boots in Randy Orton.

These two men met for the first time in this current feud in August 2020 at SummerSlam in which McIntyre got the victory. This match was followed in September with an Ambulance match which was won again by McIntyre (not by pinfall however so the rivalry could be extended). The starting match was a Hell In A Cell match in which McIntyre gave arguably his best in-ring performance ever (taking a hellacious fall from halfway up the cell). It was capped off this Monday with Randy Orton putting the finishing touches on the process of putting over Drew McIntyre as a perennial WWE champion and one of the top superstars in the entire WWE. Drew will now go on to face The Tribal Chief Roman Reigns at Survivor Series this Sunday.

Drew McIntyre has earned a significant amount of respect from me as well as the entire WWE universe – he has done everything with grace and appreciation for what he has been given. WWE has also practiced a slow-burn over the last 13 years with McIntyre. No one thought it would take quite that long for McIntyre to come into his own – Mr. McMahon had to know it would be a long process since McIntyre was so young and had much maturing to do when he was first discovered at 22 years old. But Drew McIntyre now has a sufficient amount of perspective on life at 35 now. The maturation process in life simply takes nothing but time which requires patience, but it always happens eventually. This is a similar view the company may want to take with Big E (who is a former NXT champion Mr. McMahon almost made the face of the company once upon a time).

The next opponent on the list for Drew McIntyre may be Sheamus, especially considering the symbolism which came to fruition during McIntyre’s entrance this Monday when McIntyre planted the sword Sheamus gave to him earlier in the night into the floor. Another reason this is a likely first feud for Drew McIntyre’s second reign as WWE champion is because he already has a well-established friendship with The Celtic Warrior. Two wrestlers who are friends almost always end up embarking in a rivalry at some point in time – this is just good business. Both men have so much chemistry together based on their friendship and they were also the top rivalry in all of Europe before they both signed with WWE.

Drew McIntyre may in fact be one of the top four or five superstars who can legitimately carry the WWE into the future over the course of the next 10/15 years. Obviously this cannot be said about just anyone, but McIntyre has been through more than his fair share of struggle and rejection (he has been told no multiple times by other companies, and as much as people don’t want to hear that it will strengthen their level of resolve).

Someone’s journey toward success in this or any other industry could take a much shorter amount of time or a much longer amount of time. No set amount of time can be placed on this sort of journey, but people will always find a significant amount of meaning in the journey and the way in which the process of their entire life unfolds before their eyes. For McIntyre the magic number was 19 years. No one can waste time overthinking the process of life, because then it is not enjoyed (which is the intention of life; if you’re not enjoying life then you are not doing it right. That’s the only thing I know for sure).

Now a face vs. heel match can take place at Survivor Series between Drew McIntyre and Roman Reigns.

Categories RAW

First Title Shot of Eddie Kingston’s Career

There’s a high probability Eddie Kingston will not win the AEW world title belt on November 7 at Full Gear so Tony Khan can continue working toward a Jon Moxley – Kenny Omega rivalry for the title, but that’s just what motivates Eddie Kingston to prove everyone wrong. He’s pissed that he had to wait 18 years in this business to get a shot at a world title. Moxley may not get over quite as well as an underdog as he does being the top guy in the company. His level of attitude is completely justified when he is champion, but this demeanor may come across as somewhat unnecessary and arrogant if he is chasing the title – but it worked about a year ago when he was not champion, so it might not matter.

Eddie Kingston has reminded wrestling fans that it’s a positive thing for one to feel into their emotions wholeheartedly, and actually shows strength rather than weakness. Eddie was feeling anger about the state of the world many months ago, the fact that he had to leave a tour of the United Kingdom early (surrounded by great people as well as great pay), as well as being forced to sell his wrestling gear in order to pay his mortgage. He wanted to let that anger out in a way that would potentially create some positivity in his life, so he asked the people who ran ICW if he could cut a promo filled with intense language letting out much of his anger.

Kingston did just that on July 4, 2020 and was brought over to AEW for a TNT championship match with Cody (he had mentioned Cody’s name in his expletive-filled promo about a month earlier just to see what would happen). Eddie Kingston’s in-ring work impressed people backstage instead of just simply his promo work. According to Eddie, this was the primary factor that piqued his interest in AEW, because this company viewed him as someone who could be a potential “player-coach” who could be used as not only as a manager for wrestlers but also someone who could get the job done in the ring. WWE had expressed interest in Kingston in the past but only as a promo guy who could get it done on the microphone.

After 18 years in the professional wrestling business, the 38-year-old is finally getting an opportunity to be put in a position where he has the chance to carry a top company. Eddie Kingston is plenty skilled enough but has simply never received the opportunity to do so. According to him, this will serve as justification for why he has done everything in his life and made the decision he has made that his family did not necessarily agree with. Kingston will definitely have his hands full with Jon Moxley, who essentially is the same wrestler who comes from the same type of background and has overcome very similar challenges in life on his journey to find himself.

The thick New York accent Eddie Kingston has (which sounds like a mixture of actor Robert De Niro and the former long–time owner of the Oakland Raiders Al Davis) goes perfectly with his character. It’s essentially not a character but more of an expression of his world view (just slightly more dramatic). Also, the whole reason Kingston signed with AEW is that his mother, who gave him life and “knows me better than anyone else” told him he would be happier with AEW (with more creative freedom) than WWE. This article reminds me of Chris Van Vliet’s recent interview with Chris Jericho, primarily the part in which Jericho talked about how his match in 2018 with Kenny Omega in Japan made him fall in love with wrestling again because he had no “chains” and “pure creative freedom.”

Crowded Main Event Scene

The Fiend may Benefit most if he is kept out of the World Title Picture

The main event picture on Raw was dwindled for about two months – it seemed as though Drew McIntyre and Randy Orton were the only viable main eventers for a while. Fortunately, business has picked up significantly in the past couple weeks since Hell In A Cell. Drew McIntyre has emerged as a top contender for the WWE Championship. Originally the situation looked as though The Fiend would emerge as the top contender to Randy Orton, but The Fiend has a supernatural presence and he may be better served to engage in non-title feuds, because he has enough of an aura about him – somewhat similar to The Undertaker (their encounter at WrestleMania 31 immediately comes to mind) – to the point where the WWE universe will care about him and his rivalry whether there is a title involved or not.

The Fiend also has the tendency to damage his own credibility as well as the credibility of his opponent when he engages in a title feud (Seth Rollins is a prime example of this; essentially the only time The Fiend benefited himself and his opponent during a title rivalry was when he and Daniel Bryan wrapped up their story in January 2020).

Drew McIntyre was trusted recently with the WWE Championship and did an excellent job, so there is no reason he could not be trusted again for a Second Run

Drew McIntyre might be a better candidate to become Randy Orton’s first challenger for the WWE Championship; it would benefit McIntyre to a greater degree in both the short-term and long-term future. McIntyre might even challenge Orton for the title before Survivor Series, win the WWE Championship and go on to face Roman Reigns in a champion versus champion clash at the Pay-Per-View.

Roman has more recent history with McIntyre than Randy as Drew faced The Big Dog at Mania 35, while it has been over six years since Reigns last stepped in the ring with The Viper in a singles match. This could be WWE’s way of building a long-term story between Roman Reigns and Randy Orton and giving each of their characters a sufficient amount of time to breathe (as well as the collective mind of the WWE universe) so that when they do ultimately meet, the impact of the story will be that much greater.

After Survivor Series WWE might go into a program with McIntyre and Sheamus which will wrap up before Royal Rumble at the end of January 2021. Sheamus is an extremely hard-hitting superstar with a resume plenty big enough to warrant a WWE Title match – when a superstar has a match with Sheamus, he knows he was in a match with Sheamus – a testament to how hard this man works and how seriously he takes his matches.

Orton could win World Championship Number 15 and Hold it through Mania

After finishing the rivalry with Sheamus, The Scottish Psychopath will be able to turn his attention to perhaps Randy Orton, who may challenge for the WWE championship once again come Royal Rumble. Orton could win the WWE title in January (giving him world title number 15 in his career, keeping Randy on pace to break Ric Flair’s record of 17 world titles) and hold it until WrestleMania 37 for the big payoff match with Edge. WWE typically likes to cap off these high-profile feuds by involving a title, and this WWE championship match will also likely have a stipulation (right now the company is choosing an I Quit match).

The Viper and The Rated-R Superstar met the previous two times in their current rivalry at WrestleMania 36 in a Last-Man-Standing match, and again in June 2020 at Backlash in The Greatest Wrestling Match Ever. The reason the conclusion of this rivalry was delayed is because of Edge for his triceps in June – otherwise this rivalry probably would have concluded at SummerSlam. Everything happens for a reason. We may not always understand it, but I believe there is a divine presence always looking out for us – you can call it God or whatever you want – but I believe this is what happened with Randy Orton and Edge.

Going back to Drew McIntyre’s match from this week’s edition of RAW, The Scottish Psychopath delivered his most versatile performance ever. He has always had flat out ridiculous strength and a decent amount of athleticism, but this week he was flying around the ring and over the top rope like a cruiserweight. John Morrison also took a German suplex off the top rope and completely flipped (exactly like Kurt Angle at WrestleMania 19 (Brock Lesnar almost broke his neck in their WWE title match trying to execute a shooting star press, which was an unnecessary risk).

Miz cashing-in on The Viper, and he could assert that he is now The Ultimate Opportunist (Edge’s gimmick).

This could then lead to a WWE championship match where Edge becomes WWE champion again.

Randy Orton could retain the WWE championship at WrestleMania and The Miz could cash-in the Money in the Bank contract a few weeks later on Orton (it would provide continuity that it just so happens Miz last won the WWE championship from Randy Orton also. Miz won the Money in the Bank contract from Otis at Hell In A Cell about two weeks ago. This well marked the second time someone who did not win the MITB ladder match will cash-in (the last being Edge in 2007 – also a former winner).

Mr. Kennedy won the ladder match in 2007, but unfortunately the situation with WWE did not work out for him. Vince McMahon was not crazy about him and neither was John Cena. There aren’t great odds someone will succeed in a company if the boss and the face of the company don’t necessarily gel with that person. However, the situation is quite the opposite for Otis, as Mr. McMahon is very much a supporter of the big man who is also a great comedic character for right now.

Different plans are possible for Drew McIntyre, but he will become champion again (almost a guarantee).

When you combine his rugged look and gracious demeanor, along with his physical ability, the potential for many world titles is right there. It has taken longer than expected to come to fruition, but McIntyre has learned an awful lot on this journey and evolved significantly as a human being.

Of course, this option could be totally scrapped. In that case, another option would be to make Drew McIntyre WWE champion for the second time at the first WWE live event in front of the WWE universe again after the current pandemic (who knows when that will be – let’s hope it comes in time for WrestleMania 37). McIntyre has been trusted to carry the company through this tough time, and veterans of this business say all the time that the true measure of a top draw is whether or not the company trusts you to carry the business through difficult times.

A perfect example of this phenomenon occurred in 2002 when WWE was transitioning from The Attitude Era and being so edgy/heavily reliant on the Stone Cold Steve Austin-type attitude, and toward a larger and more global audience comprised of all demographics rather than primarily the 18-49 demographic (The Demo-God Chris Jericho). Just look at who carried the major titles in WWE during that time – The Undertaker and Triple H – two of the most respected men in the wrestling business. Mr. McMahon trusts them more than anyone and they are basically family members.

McIntyre has passed this test with flying colors and has proven to be a marketable babyface. There is a strong possibility that he could finally receive a proper coronation as the face of WWE (other than of course Roman Reigns). Through making McIntyre champion immediately once fans are allowed to attend WWE live events again, Mr. McMahon would be giving himself the opportunity to find out immediately if McIntyre can consistently draw attention to the WWE product as a whole and put backsides in seats.

Categories RAW

13th Halloween Havoc

Gargano does the one thing he has not done in NXT; LeRae’s time to become champion is quickly approaching

Johnny Gargano kicked off the first Halloween Havoc in 20 years by becoming the first two-time NXT North American Champion. Johnny Wrestling has done just about everything in NXT except for becoming a champion as a heel. Damian Priest has also become an absolute star since winning the five-man ladder match at Takeover: XXX. The key for him has been the simple fact that he has been allowed the freedom to express his currently authentic self. Priest has found his niche in the professional wrestling business over the last two years in NXT, and there are big things in his future over the next two or three years.

Candice LeRae was not as fortunate on this night, but the writing is seemingly written on the wall for The Gargano Way to prove effective at least in the short-term. Io Shirai is not the most compelling character from a storyline standpoint, but she is one of the most talented performers in the world. Candice took about five bumps in this match that were absolutely horrific.

Pat McAfee will benefit Pete Dunne, Danny Burch and Oney Lorcan perhaps more than anyone else on the NXT roster by giving them all an injection of charisma to make whatever segment they are involved in each week must-see TV

It was an extremely intelligent decision by Shawn Michaels and Triple H on who they elected to align with Pat McAfee because they chose three performers who most likely needed a little bit of assistance in the charisma department. Oney Lorcan, Danny Burch, and Pete Dunne are incredibly gifted physically, but all three men need a slight injection of another layer in their particular storyline that will give fans a reason to care about them and get legitimately invested in their characters. Pat McAfee will provide them with that extra layer because he is extremely active on other platforms aside from WWE.

McAfee had his breakout performance in his debut match at Takeover: XXX in a losing effort to Adam Cole of The Undisputed Era. He then paid Ridge Holland to attack Adam Cole, and subsequently bring his lifeless carcass out to the ringside area during Kyle O’Reilly’s NXT Championship match. Unfortunately, this plan was derailed when Holland was injured not too long ago. McAfee then approached Lorcan and Burch with the same offer, and they originally said no, but after losing a number one contender’s match for the NXT Tag Team Titles to The Undisputed Era they really thought through the offer and said yes.

Categories NXT

WWE Hell In A Cell 10/25/2020: HIAC No. 42, 43, and 44

Last year’s edition was fantastic because it produced multiple indelible memories – partially because it took place just a couple days after SmackDown’s premiere episode on FOX. The main event got people talking the most about the state of WWE, because the HIAC match between Seth Rollins and The Fiend was not received well at all (on a personal note, I thought the match was somewhat clunky. Seth couldn’t see because of the red light in the arena, but otherwise it was pretty good. The WWE universe needs to remember that the superstars are giving their absolute best to entertain. So be appreciative rather than being overly critical).

Becky Lynch and Sasha Banks both gave unbelievable performances to open the night in the second ever women’s Hell In A Cell match (Sasha competed in each of them and showed plenty of raw emotion in both). Randy Orton also got a victory against Ali that will most likely get lost in the annals of WWE history (Ali didn’t even have his first name), but this was quietly a great match because of the innovation. Both men treated that match like it was their final match. One year later, they are both in much better positions as Orton is now WWE Champion for the 14th time and Mustafa Ali is leading RETRIBUTION.

Hell In A Cell 2020 will be the second edition of the event with three matches inside the Cell. The other time this happened was in 2016 (Roman Reigns vs. Rusev, Seth Rollins vs. Kevin Owens, Sasha Banks vs. Charlotte Flair in the main event). Technically, Chris Jericho snuck into the Cell with Owens to assist him in picking up the victory and retaining the Universal Championship. This was arguably the best stretch of Jericho’s career (when he put people on “The List of Jericho”) for the entire calendar year of 2016 through the spring of 2017 (Jericho is now experiencing success with another company).

Respect to Drew McIntyre – he has been a fantastic WWE Champion through the pandemic

This year’s Hell In A Cell emphasized quality over quantity with only six matches (the three primary matches were absolutely the ones in the Cell.

The main event captured the attention of the WWE universe and told a story as well as any WrestleMania main event, and to this point it is the highlight of Drew McIntyre’s career. But the biggest news is that Randy Orton won his 14th world title (three more to break Flair’s record), and his 3rd inside HIAC. The Viper has had the best year of his career (particularly on the microphone). Orton’s in-ring work is great as always simply because he is naturally gifted from a physical standpoint, likely because wrestling is basically written into his genetic code dating back to his father and grandfather.

Randy’s historic 2020 was in a way launched by the return of Edge at the Royal Rumble in January. These two men have so much continuity and comfortability with one another – it’s almost 2nd nature. The emotions behind Edge’s return after nine years and two next surgeries were the pivotal starting grounds for the greatest year of Randy Orton’s career, because Edge is essentially his brother (I know I would feel that way if my brother returned to join me in doing what we both love after nine years).

Drew McIntyre has absolutely earned my respect (as if he didn’t have it already). McIntyre delivered one of the greatest HIAC performances of all time in his first appearance inside the Cell. The high spot when he fell off the side of the Cell took fans back to the 2014 edition of this event when Dean Ambrose and Seth Rollins both fell off the side through the announce table. The one thing Randy Orton had not done in seven career matches inside Hell In A Cell is go to the top of the structure. The primary reason McIntyre himself specifically asked to do this high spot was to pay tribute to Shawn Michaels, who also took this same fall off the side of the structure in the first-ever Hell In A Cell match in 1997.

In addition to Randy Orton, McIntyre has also had a truly historic year and easily the best of his career. About the only thing Drew hadn’t done in 2020 was what he did this past Sunday: deliver a truly historic performance inside Hell In A Cell (the only thing he was unable to do was get the victory). 2020 for McIntyre started with a Royal Rumble victory in January, followed by winning the WWE Championship from Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania 36. Between April and August, he defended the title against the likes of Seth Rollins, Bobby Lashley, King Corbin and Dolph Ziggler. In August at SummerSlam, McIntyre got another clean victory against Randy Orton (he also defeated Orton a month later in an Ambulance match).

For McIntyre, this calendar year in 2020 is somewhat reminiscent of Brock Lesnar’s first full year in WWE (from the day after WrestleMania X-8 in 2002 through WrestleMania 19 in 2003). In that span, Lesnar defeated The Rock in a WWE Championship match at SummerSlam; McIntyre did the same thing against an established superstar in Randy Orton. Lesnar experienced a great Hell In A Cell encounter with The Undertaker; McIntyre did as well with Orton again. Lesnar won the 2003 Royal Rumble match and went on to win the WWE Title from Kurt Angle (even though Angle was originally supposed to keep the title for a few more months; however, it didn’t work out that way due to Angle’s neck issues); McIntyre also won the 2020 Royal Rumble and also won the WWE Title in the main event of WrestleMania 36 from Brock Lesnar – it’s funny how history continues to repeat itself.

It was simply time for Orton to win number 14 – it’s been over three years since Randy was WWE Champion. The last time Orton held the WWE Championship was in 2017 when he won the title from Bray Wyatt at WrestleMania 33 in April of that year and dropped the title a little over a month later to Jinder Mahal (that was a rocky six months).

WWE was experimenting – because Roman Reigns doesn’t open a Pay-Per-View very often, he’s normally the main event. The last time he opened a Hell In A Cell Pay-Per-View was in 2016 against Rusev in which The Big Dog successfully defended the United States Championship. It was also somewhat reminiscent of No Mercy in October of that same year in which AJ Styles defended the WWE Championship in a triple threat match to open the show.

The Tribal Chief is officially recognized; Sasha Banks and Bayley are now free to evolve into the next stage of their careers

This was an emotional way to start the night. As Jerry “The King” Lawler pointed out, Roman was channeling his inner Scar (Disney’s The Lion King) and cemented his spot at the head of the table. This laid the groundwork for the faction which will most likely take form in the coming weeks featuring Reigns as a mob boss of The Uso’s. Another facet of this match which is important to point out is that it was extremely unselfish on the part of Roman Reigns to volunteer to go first on Sunday and open the show so that Drew McIntyre could hold the main event spot – which is something he needed to cement his legacy even quicker.

This virtually guarantees that McIntyre will be launched into the perennial main event position on the card almost immediately. Roman may have thought to himself, “I don’t necessarily need to main event this Pay-Per-View again in my fourth HIAC match. It’s even Uce’s second time in the Cell (2017), but this is Drew’s first time so I will do everything I can to make it special for him.”

All of the four horsewomen in WWE – Sasha Banks, Charlette Flair, Becky Lynch, and Bayley – have now competed inside Hell In A Cell. This was Sasha Banks’ third appearance but her first victory in the demonic Cell. Maybe this time Sasha will be able to hold the SmackDown Women’s Championship past her first defense – Sasha has never successfully defended a Women’s Championship on the main roster in WWE.

It was simply time for the storyline between Sasha and Bayley to come to a conclusion because it has lasted for well over three years on the main roster and dating all the way back to NXT. It is simply time for both women to move on to the next stage in the evolution of their WWE characters. Both women proved exactly why they are invaluable to the company (particularly Sasha, who delivered arguably the best match on the show for the second straight year).

Getting more sympathy towards Otis; Lashley – Lesnar rivalry; Jeff Hardy – Elias disqualification

I could have guessed Miz might use an underhanded tactic to win the Money in the Bank briefcase for the second time in his career (2010), but I never envisioned it would be because Tucker turned on Otis. Mr. McMahon is such a vehement supporter of Otis – as evidenced by the new entrance – that one might think Vince McMahon would do anything to get Otis over. When thinking about it from a reverse psychology standpoint, it makes complete sense because this will make Otis an even more sympathetic figure. It will be extremely interesting to see exactly where Otis goes from here – Tucker as well (he’s definitely not aligned with MC M.I.Z. and Johnny Drip Drip, as Corey Graves likes to point out).

Bobby Lashley dominated as expected against SLAPJACK of RETRIBUTION (Shane Thorne from NXT, although Mr. McMahon views the main roster as a separate universe entirely from NXT). RETRIBUTION needs to start picking up victories soon – Mustafa Ali cannot buy time forever with his great promo work.

I am still holding out hope that Bobby Lashley will one day feud with Brock Lesnar (even though The Beast is currently not under contract with WWE). Lashley is on pace to become a main eventer in WWE sooner rather than later – and that money feud might be too much for McMahon and Lesnar to pass up. It seems unlikely right now but never say never with WWE.

The result of the Elias – Jeff Hardy match was fitting so neither man had to take a loss. Since WWE is so committed to pushing Jeff Hardy, and with Elias having just returned a couple of weeks ago, neither one of them could afford to take a loss right now. Elias is more of a star for the future, and Jeff Hardy is a priority right now because he only has a few years left of being a top-level superstar considering he is 43 years old. Hardy missed last year’s edition of this event, and the year before that in 2018 he participated inside Hell In A Cell for the first time in his career – essentially the one thing Hardy had never done.

Moving to FS1 for the World Series

The Big Dog and The Messiah are creating new stars in The Uso’s and Murphy – bringing them up to the top-tier

So The Uso’s are out of the Samoan Dynasty – the Anoa’i family – if Jey Uso is unable to win the Universal Championship from his cousin Roman Reigns in the first-ever “I Quit” Hell In A Cell match. This could be setting the stage for the faction on SmackDown which is most likely going to manifest within the next several weeks, with The Uso’s as the first two members. Throughout the initiation process, they will most likely become subservient to The Samoan Tribal Chief.

An interesting fact is that Jey Uso became the first WWE superstar to pin Roman Reigns on the main roster in September 2013 when the odds were stacked against The Shield (they had already established themselves as a dominant faction 10 months earlier).

This is exactly what the WWE universe has been waiting to see from Murphy – a Pay-Per-View quality match with a top-level superstar (not sure why the company would not elect to schedule a match like this for two days later at HIAC – most likely because nearly all of WWE’s revenue in the last few years has come from TV). SmackDown tends to place a heavier amount of emphasis and focus on quality in-ring performances, so someone like Murphy will fit right in. He actually has history on the blue brand as he previously had encounters with Daniel Bryan and Roman Reigns (losses) before he became the disciple of Seth Rollins.

Rollins, meanwhile, is accomplishing his primary goal right now of putting over younger superstars like Murphy. WWE bookers are also looking to gradually segue the Mysterio family out of this storyline, making it a rivalry involving just Seth Rollins and Murphy (to give Murph more of a direct spotlight.

The seemingly never-ending saga between Sasha Banks and Bayley may be coming to an end (or at least there’s an avenue for it to potentially end)

Sasha and Bayley have been heavily featured in the same storyline since becoming the first-ever Women’s Tag Team Champions in February 2019. But not just that – they have been featured in the same storyline with one another on and off for the better part of the last 3.5 years. After this long it may be time for WWE to finally move on from this storyline, simply because it’s getting a little repetitive.

Maybe just have Sasha win the SmackDown Women’s Championship and move on. WWE originally planned for this storyline between Bayley and Sasha Banks to end several months ago, but both women were embracing their roles so effectively. Because of that the company made the decision to keep the tag team titles on them for a few more months.

Chad Gable and JBL unexpectedly get a significant amount of time to shine this week

Shorty G quit just like JBL did at WrestleMania 25 in 2009 (good foreshadowing considering there is an “I Quit” match scheduled featuring the face of the company this Sunday). He didn’t quit wrestling altogether; he just doesn’t want to embody his current persona any longer of “excepting who he is” (King Corbin gave him the moniker Shorty G last year at Hell In A Cell). Lars Sullivan looked dominant as always, but Chad Gable was the real priority here, which was refreshing to see as he hasn’t been taken seriously since tagging with Shelton Benjamin in 2017 – 18.

JBL and Ron Simmons presided over the trial between Otis and The Miz. The match between these two men this Sunday will have actual stakes (unlike Elias – Jeff Hardy). Otis may be more of a comedy act right now, but the WWE universe has to remember that he is relatively young – not even 30 years old – and has the backing of the Chairman of the Board. When superstars have Mr. McMahon on their side they tend to have prosperous careers, so expect Otis to be around for a long time.

The EST being established as the next true superstar in the WWE Women’s Division

The powers backstage in WWE are working to establish legit superstars in the Women’s Division – at the moment most of the women in WWE are relatively young and don’t necessarily have the experience (the women who do, like Becky Lynch (maternity leave) and Charlotte Flair (overexposure) are out currently. Bianca Belair is at the top of the priority list right now to be established as a main eventer in the Women’s Division. The same issue is being addressed on Monday Night Raw.

It was encouraging to see Daniel Bryan back in action for the first time in approximately four months after taking paternity leave. There is a small chance he could form a tag team with Kevin Owens, since Kevin has not had a significant storyline to be able to sink his teeth into since WrestleMania (where he got his first true ‘Mania moment by defeating Seth Rollins – and also jumping off the WrestleMania sign). Their hypothetical team could emerge as contenders to the Street Profits and the SmackDown Tag Team Championships, along with the two heel tag teams of Dolph Ziggler and Robert Roode and Cesaro & Shinsuke Nakamura (who they competed against in this 8-man match to help bolster the presence of the tag team division).

Several new stars will be emerging on SmackDown within the next year

Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins are essentially the only two top-tier main event caliber superstars who can carry SmackDown on FOX as well as doing all the media appearances and being the face of the brand in the immediate future. Many would also put Daniel Bryan in this category, but the reason I hesitate to do that is that the leader of the Yes! Movement is at the stage of his life where his wife and kids are the most important people in his life – which is extremely commendable. Whoever is in the position of being in the top performer in WWE is required to make certain sacrifices for their career, and Bryan is no longer in the face of his life where he feels he necessarily needs to do that.

Daniel is at the stage of his life where he feels he’s already achieved his fair share of success in WWE and doesn’t necessarily need anymore. He is already a five-time world champion and a former Money in the Bank when, so he has already experienced his share of success in WWE – now it’s time to let other guys and girls grab the brass ring.

There are about seven superstars currently in WWE who have the ability to consistently draw people’s attention to their storylines – the other five (other than The Big Dog and Seth Rollins) were all drafted to Monday Night Raw. Those guys are Drew McIntyre, Randy Orton, Braun Strowman, The Fiend Bray Wyatt, and Keith Lee. Orton has done the best work of his career in 2020, particularly on the microphone – Edge spring boarded him into this phase of his career during the first half of 2020. McIntyre has exploded in 2020 with a Royal Rumble victory in January and subsequently winning the WWE Championship from Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania 36 and holding the title for well over six months to this point.

Strowman was told at the beginning of 2019 by Vince McMahon that he was not ready quite yet to hold a major title in WWE. Strowman’s vision came to fruition unexpectedly at WrestleMania 36 when Roman Reigns made the decision to put his family first and step away from WWE for several months until the world got a better grasp on exactly how to deal with this virus. Strowman was trusted to carry the Universal Championship for over four months before dropping it at SummerSlam to The Fiend.

The Fiend Bray Wyatt began 2020 as Universal Champion before dropping the title to Bill Goldberg in Saudi Arabia at Super Showdown in February – right before the pandemic. The Fiend participated in the first-ever Firefly FunHouse match with John Cena – and I guess won that match. The point is The Fiend had the momentum at the end of the match, so he redeemed himself after losing to Cena six years ago. Bray Wyatt then started a long-term feud with Braun Strowman right after this which lasted until SummerSlam when he won the Universal Championship – this title victory was essentially just to give The Fiend the accolade of being a two-time Universal Champion because he dropped the title to the returning Roman Reigns a week later.

Keith Lee is relatively new but has an enormous amount of potential if used correctly. WWE has already experimented with him at Survivor Series 2019 in which he pinned Seth Rollins and earned the respect of Roman Reigns. For the past two weeks, Lee has been working with Braun Strowman. The Limitless One has also gotten a pinfall victory over Randy Orton and interacting with his real-life friend Drew McIntyre on TV.

Going back to SmackDown, the fact that there are only two (maybe three) perennial main event superstars currently on the brand says that two, three, or maybe even four more will be established within the next year. Perhaps Kevin Owens and Big E (and maybe even Aleister Black to an extent) will be at the top of the priority list.

 

Best Firefly FunHouse ever, with the intro of Alexa and Bray Wyatt showing no Mercy to Ramblin’ Rabbit

Orton doing a thorough job of putting over Drew McIntyre as a perennial main eventer for the next number of years and leaving no stone unturned

The Viper’s in-ring work has been impeccable as always in 2020, but where he has flourished the most by far is on the microphone – he has undoubtedly done the best work of his career in that department, and this Monday was no exception. He will look to win his 14th career WWE Title this Sunday in his 8th career match inside Hell In A Cell. Another interesting fact is that Orton will look to win the WWE Championship for the 3rd time inside the structure.

On the other hand, Drew McIntyre will compete in his first HIAC match. This is exactly why McIntyre wanted to work with Orton – Drew knew it would benefit him exponentially to be able to work with one of the top two or three superstars in the entire company and serve to establish him as a legitimate main event – caliber superstar. Whether he gets the victory or not inside the Cell, it will do wonders for his status in WWE to even be in there with a superstar of Randy Orton’s caliber.

The fact that McIntyre has defeated Randy Orton twice already for the WWE championship (including at the second biggest Pay-Per-View of the year – SummerSlam) has elevated him exponentially and proven that his victory at WrestleMania against Brock Lesnar was no fluke. An adequate amount of time has been invested into making McIntyre successful. Randy Orton is one of the best storytellers in all of pro wrestling, and the main thing that makes him so great in this department is the extremely methodical approach he takes (a lost art in today’s extremely fast-paced world).

There was some confusion about the way Monday Night Raw ended this week, but it was the ending Mr. McMahon approved and envisioned – it served as a great cliffhanger for Sunday’s Hell In a Cell Pay-Per-View.

Strowman provides the impetus for Keith Lee to add another dimension to his character; Mustafa Ali may have found his niche

Braun Strowman got a victory over Keith Lee by using the same tactic Roman Reigns used to get the victory over him on October 16 on SmackDown – the subtle low blow the referee was unable to see. Keith Lee retaliated with one of his own after the match, and it showed a sense of aggression the WWE universe hasn’t seen before. This adds an entirely new dimension to Keith Lee’s character and serves to diversify his personality by showing that he has more than one gear or dimension to his personality that he did not show in NXT.

Strowman, in the meantime, is simply incubating after dropping the Universal Championship and in the process giving younger superstars who have less exposure under their belt (like Keith Lee, who is only a year younger than The Monster Among Men) more of a platform on Monday Night Raw

RETRIBUTION lost a little momentum at the beginning of Raw by taking a loss to The Hurt Business, but fortunately they got it back later in the program. Ali revealed himself as the SmackDown hacker from several months ago – hopefully he can now settle into a niche in WWE after a few years of searching for what exactly he wants to be. Most of the WWE universe could sense from the beginning of Mustafa Ali’s career that he had an unspoken quality about him that could profoundly resonate with the WWE universe someday. In his own words, “WWE could not figure out how to make a dime with Mustafa Ali.” However, he can only do so much on the microphone to overcome the inconsistent booking RETRIBUTION has received – the faction will have a hard time ever being taken seriously if they keep taking losses.

Kofi Kingston and Sheamus produce an unbelievable match; Miz foreshadows plans to take the Money in the Bank contract and in the process displays why he is so valuable to the company with his level of charisma

Kofi Kingston and Sheamus met in a match on Raw for the first time in nine years and had the best match of the night, getting adequate time to deliver and tell a good story. Kofi got the victory, which means that:

  1. The New Day will remain tag team champions for quite some time and
  2. For right now, Sheamus will just hang out and buy time as a mid-carder

It’s nice to simply see Sheamus still in the ring and able to give solid performances (he looked like he was on his last leg at ‘Mania 35 1.5 years ago.

The Miz took an embarrassing loss to Otis (El Gordo), but Miz is still one of the best promos in the company consistently (comedy or not). The writing is on the wall for The A-lister to steal the Money in the Bank contract – and for the WWE universe to simultaneously develop more sympathy for Otis. Otis is becoming a valuable commodity in the comedic department and he is beginning to rival R – Truth as the best comedy act in the company.

Styles getting a bodyguard; Jeff Hardy and Elias could put together an underrated gem of a match at HIAC

According to Fightful Select, AJ Styles now has a new wrinkle added to his character – the ability to hide behind a bodyguard. Mr. McMahon has now found a spot for Jordan Omogbehin. After bouncing around as a ninja a few months ago for Akira Tozawa and the bouncer for Raw Underground (which may or may not still be in existence). Jordan was part of the recruit class at the WWE performance center in 2018 along with Matt Riddle (who wrestled Styles this Monday), Damian Priest, and Mia Yim. This 7ft tall former basketball player will provide security for AJ Styles during his matches and be a person The Phenomenal One can blame when the heel loses.

WWE is resurrecting the HBK-Diesel alliance from about 25 years ago. Shawn Michaels and Diesel (Kevin Nash) met at WrestleMania XI in 1995. Styles is so similar to Michaels – in terms of in-ring ability as well as look, and Omogbehin can serve as a similar presence to what Diesel did for Michaels back in the day. The Undertaker, who participated in what could very well have been his final match with Styles at WrestleMania 36 in a Boneyard match, acknowledged that part of the reason he chose to work with The Phenomenal One was that he reminded Taker of Shawn Michaels (most WWE fans remember very fondly the first Hell In A Cell match between HBK and The Undertaker at Badd Blood 1997).

October 19 was by far the best musical performance Elias has ever given – the band significantly elevated his presence. It didn’t quite have the aura or mixture of cadences that Led Zeppelin has in “Stairway to Heaven,” but it was close. Most of the WWE universe would know it maintains continuity that Jeff Hardy was involved in the performance, because Elias attacked Jeff on October 12 with a guitar. This has the potential to be one of the better matches at Hell In A Cell on Sunday – Elias likely will not pick up the victory like he did at WrestleMania against King Corbin, because WWE is prioritizing the push of Jeff Hardy right now to keep him happy and away from AEW with his brother.

New stars emerging in the exponentially deep Women’s Division in WWE

According to reports, Lana quietly turned babyface on October 12 after being in the opposite role for nearly her entire tenure on the main roster in WWE. She recently formed a temporary alliance with Natalya as well as being put through the announce table 5 weeks in a row by Nia Jax. It’s great to see her get even a little bit of an opportunity coinciding with the release and AEW debut of her husband Miro.

Nia Jax and Shayna Baszler are certainly not a typical tag team, but they are effective nonetheless as dominant heels. The Riott Squad are currently being positioned to become the faces who ultimately dethrone them.

Categories RAW

Slow Burning Big E’s Character Development

Mr. McMahon has been extremely patient regarding the push of Big E. Intuitive members of the WWE universe could sense immediately, “this guy is a future world champion.” Mr. McMahon felt the same way, because in 2014 he narrowed his choices down to two men to be the face of the company going forward: Big E and Roman Reigns (obviously the latter was chosen, and it worked out for the best).

While Vince McMahon opted to prioritize The Big Dog first and wanted to cement him as a perennial superstar and by far the most recognizable face in WWE (this process is almost complete as Reigns is currently in the midst of the long title reign right now). Everything is coming full circle for Reigns and he is employing a new level of authenticity. Much of this can be attributed to the alliance with Paul Heyman. WWE has been waiting to align Roman and Paul since the night The Shield first debuted at Survivor Series 2012 and interfered in the WWE Championship match. This saved CM Punk’s historic 434-day tenure with the title (which The Rock would ultimately end at the Royal Rumble in January 2013 in Phoenix, Arizona), and Punk was ironically managed by Heyman at that time.

While Roman Reigns was at the forefront of the WWE universe’s attention and simultaneously receiving all the praise and criticism that comes with being the face of the company, Big E had an underrated run as Intercontinental Champion in 2013-14 and was ultimately paired with Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods as The New Day in November 2014. Vince McMahon was somewhat leery as to whether this would resonate (I would have been as well), but WWE stuck with it and it turned into the best six years of their lives. In fairness, this team did not resonate with the WWE universe for the first nine months or so, but instead grew on fans with time. That’s all the difference when one is looking at whether a gimmick works or not – did it get time to simmer with the fanbase before it was done away with?

Big E’s eventual singles push was foreshadowed earlier in 2020 – in April to be exact, right after WrestleMania 36, when E won the SmackDown Tag Team Championships by himself to make The New Day 8-time champs (9 overall). The reason E competed alone was because, at ‘Mania, Kofi competed by himself against John Morrison and Jimmy Uso (who tore an ACL during the match and is still out right now). The Miz had an illness so he could not go for a normal tag team match, but he was good a few weeks later.

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