Randy Orton and Alexa Bliss played with the emotions of the WWE universe, at least for a night with some great promo work before Monday Night RAW went off-air
I have a theory about the segment that took place this week as RAW went off the air in which Randy Orton set Alexa Bliss on fire (or at least that’s what WWE was intending to portray – this did not happen of course). My theory is that this segment is receiving a significant amount of criticism because much of the WWE universe was emotionally touched by the segment in some weird way, and not many people know exactly how to react to these emotions, so some people are lashing out at the company.
Many people are saying that this cliffhanger was purely an attempt to desperately garner more viewers, and that may be true to some extent, but many people who critique this failed to recognize how effective it was at the same time. It made everyone – including me – envision a reality without Alexa Bliss at least for a night (even though everyone over the age of 10 knows full well that the world of WWE is fictional), and no one likes it – not even me. The intention of this segment was to get people to tune into the program next week, and it worked very well.
Keith Lee defeats Sheamus in a number one contender’s match to challenge Drew McIntyre for the WWE championship next week as we kick off 2021
Keith Lee has taken a massive step in his evolution to ultimately become one of the top few superstars in WWE. Will he ever be the face of the company – probably not – but he will be an integral part of the next generation of the company. One technique he uses to calm his mind is meditation – another top-level athlete who uses this technique is Aaron Rodgers who is the favorite right now in the NFL to win the MVP award. In addition, I meditate quite often myself, so I know from first-hand experience that this is an extremely effective tool. There is no right or wrong way to do it, all you need to do is make the decision to do it.
As Mark Henry and so many others have said before, this man could be the standard of what big men are capable of in the future. In terms of the booking decision this week for WWE to have Lee go over Sheamus to earn a WWE title opportunity next week, it would have made more sense for Sheamus to get the opportunity. The only event that transpired recently that made this make any sense was the fact that The Celtic Warrior was booked rather poorly on the December 14 edition of Monday Night RAW when he took a beating with a chair while he was hung up in the ropes. On top of that, he didn’t even come to his friend Drew McIntyre’s aid later in the night. Looking at this in hindsight, this may have been enough to stop Sheamus’ momentum at least for the time being.
As another small sidenote, the December 14 edition of RAW was also when WWE received a record low viewership number of 1.527 million. It was a great decision for Keith Lee to get the victory if one takes the perspective that WWE was making a concerted effort to create a massive star in The Limitless One roughly 4 months after his debut on the main roster. In that time, he has earned victories over Randy Orton (in late August at Payback) and now Sheamus, to established superstars, and now has earned his first WWE championship match to begin 2021. Some positivity can be found in any situation – all one needs to do is find the right perspective to choose (and it may vary from person to person).
Even though Keith Lee began 2020 by winning the NXT North American championship, he will not win a title to begin 2021 because WWE is firmly behind Drew McIntyre as the top guy on RAW to carry the company through the rest of this pandemic and beyond. After all, Mr. McMahon has been extremely high on McIntyre for over a decade.
WWE seems intent on booking McIntyre vs. Lee vs. Sheamus at Royal Rumble for the WWE championship to wrap up the friendship storyline (both challengers are friends with the champion but do not necessarily get along).
Asuka has been extremely reliable and has carried the WWE women’s division since May when Becky Lynch announced her pregnancy, even though she has been overshadowed by other women nearly the entire time
Asuka has been the RAW Women’s Champion throughout Becky Lynch’s entire pregnancy – since the Money in the Bank Pay-Per-View in May – but she has been overshadowed in nearly every storyline since becoming champion. Since winning the title back from Sasha Banks at SummerSlam, she has not been the primary focus of any of her feuds but rather they have all been focused on the challenger. The rivalry with Sasha Banks and Bayley was all about them, then she put over the now-released Zelina Vega, followed by the storyline that was all about getting Lana over before WWE found out about the return of Charlotte Flair (after successful plastic surgery).
At this point, WWE is building toward Flair becoming RAW Women’s Champion (possibly at WrestleMania). This would be a great idea if the company decides to do it, but the creative team is surely well aware that Charlotte defeated Asuka for a women’s championship at the same event just three years ago. Maybe put the title on a different superstar before if that is indeed the plan. Asuka’s contribution has been incredibly underrated across the second half of 2020 as she has kept the RAW women’s division afloat and helped to create new stars.
Ricochet loses again to RETRIBUTION, and seeing that he might ultimately join the group and give them some much needed momentum; AJ Styles defeats Elias – Ricochet is most likely the next generation’s version of AJ physically, the one wrestler who is head and shoulders above everyone else
Similar to Keith Lee being the future of what big men can do in wrestling, Ricochet is the future standard of what a normal-sized man can do in wrestling. Shawn Michaels was the “standard” who was ahead of his time. AJ Styles is filling that role right now for the current generation of wrestlers and has been for many years. Ricochet is next in line to become the leader of the next-generation for in-ring work. There is just something different about this guy and the way he moves and can contort his body because most humans can’t do that.
Mustafa Ali defeated Ricochet this week and it appears as though he is going to eventually convince The One and Only to join RETRIBUTION. Maybe the addition of Ricochet will give the group the juice it has been missing so that they can fully get over with the WWE universe. Ali’s promos have only been able to compensate so much for the inconsistent 50/50 booking. The group is having a hard time gaining and sustaining any momentum since they take losses so often and are straining to gather four or five victories in a row. The WWE universe doesn’t know how seriously to take the group.
Elias is on the rise, and the addition of Jaxson Ryker adds a major amount of credibility to his overall presentation. The fact that The Drifter was booked in a match with a superstar as high up the ranks as AJ Styles is evidence. Elias is not yet at the level of The Phenomenal One, but it would be a very realistic goal for him to reach the status of a United States/Intercontinental champion by the end of 2021.