The production went up a notch but nothing really felt like it progressed storytelling wise.
I assume they went with the mindset of making it a ‘showcase’ to a broader audience. Any major plot twists would probably be lost on anyone watching for the first time in a while.
I’ve a feeling the Rumble is when they’re going to really pull the trigger on the big moments related to Reigns, Rock etc. The deliberate referrals to The Rock all of a sudden being referred to with his ‘High Chief’ title were all very obvious.
The Rock will turn, otherwise it's all been for nothing.
They made it all so deliberate. The camera angles, taking the Rock out of shot when Romans raised his finger so you'd think the Rock would attack, the shot* when the Rock walked out.
Even the opening promo, there's so much emphasis on their family history now than there was before. It's got so much potential as a story.
As for the episode itself, wasn't a big fan. Felt Hogan coming out was well out of place and forced, The Undertaker doing his little lap with the bike was just meh.
Highlights were John Cenas promo (the older I get, the more I realise how great he is/was), the Rocks opening was incredible and well done.
Also thought Triple H's pre-recorded promo and the live promo were both really well done.
It was never not going to be that type of show, as they had to go big, just felt a bit forced some of it.
The Rock will turn, otherwise it's all been for nothing.
They made it all so deliberate. The camera angles, taking the Rock out of shot when Romans raised his finger so you'd think the Rock would attack, the shit when the Rock walked out.
Even the opening promo, there's so much emphasis on their family history now than there was before. It's got so much potential as a story.
As for the episode itself, wasn't a big fan. Felt Hogan coming out was well out of place and forced, The Undertaker doing his little lap with the bike was just meh.
Highlights were John Cenas promo (the older I get, the more I realise how great he is/was), the Rocks opening was incredible and well done.
Also thought Triple H's pre-recorded promo and the live promo were both really well done.
It was never not going to be that type of show, as they had to go big, just felt a bit forced some of it.
Agree that Cena’s promo was a highlight, felt like an old school one rather than the jokey stuff he’s done recently - looking forward to this last run and hope he does the 02 in March
Didn’t like The Rock all of a sudden deciding to be all matey with Cody Rhodes for no reason.
Think it was a bit of a red herring. I'm expecting Randy Orton to be pushed towards Cody Rhodes or maybe even Cena after the Owens story is done with. I think we will see Rhodes and Reigns somewhere down the line at the end of the year.
It's all setup atm for the Rock to make out that Roman Reigns is the main man, both baby face, for Rock to turn heel again. Roman Reigns wins that feud, pure baby face.
Would set up nicely for Rhodes turning heel when he feuds again with Rhodes, if Rhodes went down the predicted 'Homelander' route, which he's more suited to imo than being a face. He's great at both, but he's made to be a heel for me.
I'm interested to see what they do with CM Punk. Let him win the Drew feud, they're probably gonna let him win the Seth Rollins feud, so I wonder if he will become champ again at some point.
There's a lot they can work with atm, they're in a really good space and not over reliant on bringing back relics as much. Punk, Rhodes, Reigns (potentially) Drew etc all still have plenty left in the tank.
The Rock will turn, otherwise it's all been for nothing.
They made it all so deliberate. The camera angles, taking the Rock out of shot when Romans raised his finger so you'd think the Rock would attack, the shit when the Rock walked out.
Even the opening promo, there's so much emphasis on their family history now than there was before. It's got so much potential as a story.
As for the episode itself, wasn't a big fan. Felt Hogan coming out was well out of place and forced, The Undertaker doing his little lap with the bike was just meh.
Highlights were John Cenas promo (the older I get, the more I realise how great he is/was), the Rocks opening was incredible and well done.
Also thought Triple H's pre-recorded promo and the live promo were both really well done.
It was never not going to be that type of show, as they had to go big, just felt a bit forced some of it.
Agree that Cena’s promo was a highlight, felt like an old school one rather than the jokey stuff he’s done recently - looking forward to this last run and hope he does the 02 in March
Was really good. Interested to see what they do with him and who his last match will be. Royal Rumble should be very good
Cena chasing the 17th world title could and should be the most compelling story of the year if done right.
First half of the year trying to get it via the Rumble/Chamber/Mania and then having the final chance by getting the Money In The Bank briefcase. Then it’s a matter of deciding whether to have him win the belt and defend it until the end of the year - or have him cash it in for the final match with the record on the line.
I thought that one of the worst Raws they have done for a while, which is more to indicate how good Raw has been.
With the hype videos it felt like they were introducing the wrestlers and storylines to a new audience, rather than continuing on from last week. The drone shots and musical chairs of ringside celebs and wrestlers were tedious. One even did a run in from back stage a little later. The first match being Solo v Roman, which could have been on a PPV, was a sign of things not being right. As was The Rock coming out as a face.
The highlight was Hogan getting booed. Hopefully we don't see him again.
Hopefully things get back to normal and that was just a one off network premier.
I thought that one of the worst Raws they have done for a while, which is more to indicate how good Raw has been.
With the hype videos it felt like they were introducing the wrestlers and storylines to a new audience, rather than continuing on from last week. The drone shots and musical chairs of ringside celebs and wrestlers were tedious. One even did a run in from back stage a little later. The first match being Solo v Roman, which could have been on a PPV, was a sign of things not being right. As was The Rock coming out as a face.
The highlight was Hogan getting booed. Hopefully we don't see him again.
Hopefully things get back to normal and that was just a one off network premier.
I mean.... they were. They are trying to get more audience and views from the Netflix move so they aimed it at casual/new/lapsed fans to a large extent - people who probably know who The Rock/Cena/The Undertaker are but don't follow week in week out.
Obviously for those who do follow in more detail it was a bit underwhelming but I suspect that we were not the main target here.
I am a big fan of Simon Miller (WhatCulture) and he made a comment I agreed with, WWE should have been confident with their product and stuck with the format which has been so successful, rather than trying to change it.
They’ve advertised Ludwig Kaiser v Sheamus for next week’s Raw. Could have given those two 15 minutes to produce a banger for the audience, but they went in a different direction.
I don't understand why they aren't confident with it, business is booming.
I get they need to do some format changes as Netflix doesn't have adverts but there were too many changes. The new Raw logo with the upside M is awful as is the new referee outfits. They look like retail workers rather than officials.
They also could have had the final of the women's IC tournament.
I assume it was just a one off and future episodes will be like last year's but with the new designs.
Comments
The production went up a notch but nothing really felt like it progressed storytelling wise.
I assume they went with the mindset of making it a ‘showcase’ to a broader audience. Any major plot twists would probably be lost on anyone watching for the first time in a while.
They made it all so deliberate. The camera angles, taking the Rock out of shot when Romans raised his finger so you'd think the Rock would attack, the shot* when the Rock walked out.
Even the opening promo, there's so much emphasis on their family history now than there was before. It's got so much potential as a story.
As for the episode itself, wasn't a big fan. Felt Hogan coming out was well out of place and forced, The Undertaker doing his little lap with the bike was just meh.
Highlights were John Cenas promo (the older I get, the more I realise how great he is/was), the Rocks opening was incredible and well done.
Also thought Triple H's pre-recorded promo and the live promo were both really well done.
It was never not going to be that type of show, as they had to go big, just felt a bit forced some of it.
It's all setup atm for the Rock to make out that Roman Reigns is the main man, both baby face, for Rock to turn heel again. Roman Reigns wins that feud, pure baby face.
Would set up nicely for Rhodes turning heel when he feuds again with Rhodes, if Rhodes went down the predicted 'Homelander' route, which he's more suited to imo than being a face. He's great at both, but he's made to be a heel for me.
I'm interested to see what they do with CM Punk. Let him win the Drew feud, they're probably gonna let him win the Seth Rollins feud, so I wonder if he will become champ again at some point.
There's a lot they can work with atm, they're in a really good space and not over reliant on bringing back relics as much. Punk, Rhodes, Reigns (potentially) Drew etc all still have plenty left in the tank.
First half of the year trying to get it via the Rumble/Chamber/Mania and then having the final chance by getting the Money In The Bank briefcase. Then it’s a matter of deciding whether to have him win the belt and defend it until the end of the year - or have him cash it in for the final match with the record on the line.
With the hype videos it felt like they were introducing the wrestlers and storylines to a new audience, rather than continuing on from last week. The drone shots and musical chairs of ringside celebs and wrestlers were tedious. One even did a run in from back stage a little later. The first match being Solo v Roman, which could have been on a PPV, was a sign of things not being right. As was The Rock coming out as a face.
The highlight was Hogan getting booed. Hopefully we don't see him again.
Hopefully things get back to normal and that was just a one off network premier.
Obviously for those who do follow in more detail it was a bit underwhelming but I suspect that we were not the main target here.
I get they need to do some format changes as Netflix doesn't have adverts but there were too many changes. The new Raw logo with the upside M is awful as is the new referee outfits. They look like retail workers rather than officials.
They also could have had the final of the women's IC tournament.
I assume it was just a one off and future episodes will be like last year's but with the new designs.