They probably (definitely) should have done this 2 years ago at a minimum, but it looks like nothing less than a viable alternative wrestling show and an unending American pandemic has caused WWE to (maybe) turn Roman Reigns heel and put him Paul Heyman.
The Week in Review
Best Promos: Big E on Talking Smack (8/28/20)
Best Angles: Retribution attacks Rey and Dominik Mysterio (RAW 8/24/20), Roman Reigns joins Paul Heyman (SmackDown 8/28/20)
Who made this worth it?: Roman Reigns, Roman Reigns, Roman Reigns
Notable Trends: WWE Enters the ThunderDome, Triple H and Karrion Kross Waste Our Time, Roman Reigns Turns Heel
RAW (8/24/20)
Shayna Baszler and Nia Jax might be a team! Aleister Black turned heel! KEITH LEE! Montez Ford and Angel Garza went all 205 Live! Bianca Belair actually wrestled on TV! Rey & Dominik teamed up! And had a good match with Rollins and Murphy!
The theme music and attire switch got all the talk by people who speak up online, but they kind of sort of gave Keith Lee a big deal debut and I thought Randy Orton did an admirable job putting him over. His sell when Keith caught his punch made me want to spend money on something.
Big fan of Lashley already having a sweet Hurt Business shirt but of course even that has “I’M IN” printed on the back. What’s with WWE and the back of the shirt, even in 2020? Does McMahon think people think it is more bang for their buck?
The Asuka vs. Sasha Banks Lumberjack Match had some fun grappling but was more gimmicks than anything.
The final moments of the show saw Retribution attack Rey and Dominik, an awesome angle that finally made Retribution look like a threat and also created an interesting web of possibilities as Rollins escaped and looked on almost approvingly. I like it when WWE tries to be interesting. They haven’t in a while.
NXT (8/26/20)
Karrion Kross started the show by vacating the NXT Title, and WHAT IN GOD’S NAME HAPPENED HERE? How did any of this happen? How did this average heater with a hot girlfriend and decent promo trick Triple H into building the territory around him? Was this some kind of joke? Even putting the embarrassing entrance aside, his entire run was forced and bad. He ran over everybody and won the title in a heatless match over a guy with actual star potential, and sure the shoulder injury isn’t his fault but him immediately dropping the strap and going away is really the only ending this entire waste of time deserved. We had to sit through all this during COVID-19! Shame on everybody.
Good for Breezango though! NXT Tag Team Champions! it was a fun match!
NXT tried to build out a midcard with confusing promos and confrontations between Tim Thatcher, Bronson Reed, and Damian Priest. I think Austin Theory returned too? I don’t believe anything Priest does, and if NXT is going to be THIS then just send Thatch to SmackDown.
They setup an NXT Title Decision Match too with a quality Ciampa return/re-build but also some shitty promos from Balor, Cole and Gargano who are becoming wrestling’s most annoying Super seniors.
Santos Escobar vs. Swerve Scott was a full banger, a match that showcased both guys as not just spot guys but a couple fellows who can put together a high-caliber match. Still not sure why they gave Swerve ONE video package where he was rapping and were like “OK that’s enough character definition for YOU.”
I cannot say Io Shirai/Rhea Ripley vs. Dakota Kai/Raquel Gonzalez added much to anyone’s vibe.
MAIN EVENT (8/26/20)
Mustafa Ali defeated Arturo Ruas in a clash of styles that mostly worked, as Ali dropped the flying and just grappled with Ruas until he got the win. Ricochet vs. Humberto Carrillo was a MATCH too, only five minutes long but they seemed to enjoy themselves.
NXT UK (8/27/20)
William Regal paid tribute to and chose Mark “Rollerball” Rocco’s only appearance in the WWF, vs. The Cobra for the Jr. Heavyweight Title from MSG 10/28/84. It’s a Cobra showcase more than anything and they work holds like Tony Nese, but it’s a cool if not must-see match. Gorilla Monsoon and Mean Gene absolutely flip out any time it gets moving too.
Toni Storm chose herself vs. Io Shirai in the Mae Young Classic Finals from Evolution, and Ilja Dragunov chose Cesaro vs. Sami Zayn from NXT ArRival. It still rules.
SMACKDOWN (8/28/20)
It also began with Mr. McMahon in a powder blue suit sending Adam Pearce of all people off to get contracts signed for PAYBACK (and protect the show from RETRIBUTION I’spose), creating a backstage environment that kind of felt like a living world for once. They do well at that kind of thing like… twice every few years.
I popped for Postman Pearce.
The matches weren’t much – Jeff Hardy vs. Nakamura felt like it was in slow-motion, while Matt Riddle vs. Shorty G was SO quick. The less said about Strowman throwing around poor Gulak the better too.
But between Roman and Heyman, Big E pinning The Miz, Sasha Banks‘ evil laugh, Otis getting excited about hard salami, and Alexa Bliss‘s dreads… this didn’t need much wrestling. A lot actually happened and the roster all nailed what was needed. Good show.
