Working Man’s WWE TV Review: 1/24/21 – 1/30/21

3… 2… 1…

It’s the week before the Royal Rumble. Man, I remember hanging with the fellas counting down that clock and waiting for the — oh boy, is that the Fiend’s music? Nevermind. Welcome to another week of whatever WWE is doing these days.

Anything Worth Watching?

Matches: Bianca Belair vs. Bayley (SmackDown 1/29/21), Daniel Bryan vs. AJ Styles (SmackDown 1/29/21), Triple Threat Match: Jake Atlas vs. August Grey vs. Ariya Daivari (205 Live 1/29/21)

Promos: Roman Reigns/Kevin Owens split-screen interview (SmackDown 1/29/21)

Angles: Mustafa Ali replaces Kofi Kingston in the Royal Rumble (RAW 1/25/21)

Wrestlers: Mustafa Ali, Finn Balor, Daniel Bryan, Bianca Belair, Roman Reigns, Kevin Owens

Key Trends: RAW is Bad, Bianca Belair, NXT Roster Replenish, The Tribal Chief

RAW (1/25/21)

Another Monday Night, another three hours of the boys and girls at RAW mastering the art of doing things without actually really doing things.

Caveat: Unless it involves that time 2 years ago that Kofi Kingston replaced Mustafa Ali in the Elimination Chamber; in that case WWE is telling a long-term layered story that I assume pays off at a WrestleMania.

Otherwise this was pretty useless. I laughed at Shelton Benjamin realizing he still had his face mask on and Riddle beating all 3 members of The Hurt Business before he got attacked by Lashley and looked like a dumbass… but for different reasons.

Sheamus hits hard.

Rating: 1/10

NXT (1/27/21)

Though both versions are hurt by the despair that has been NXT on USA, it is wild how much more interesting the Women’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic brackets are already than the Men’s. The quarter finals this week were Killian Dain/Drake Maverick vs. MSK and Grizzled Young Vets vs. Leon Ruff/KUSHIDA, and I like most of these fellas but the content is BLEAK.

We’ve got Io Shirai! We’ve got Toni Storm! OK, and we’ve also got Mercedes Martinez for some reason. NXT continues to only book their lady feuds in triple threats or worse – seriously, what’s the deal here?

Finn Balor‘s delivery has gotten good and NXT has built up the Dunne/Oney/Burch threat well enough, but there is still such low mojo here.

Rating: 3/10

MAIN EVENT (1/27/21)

Angel Garza vs. Humberto Carrillo and Jeff Hardy/Ricochet vs. Elias/Jaxson Ryker are a solid pair of matches on paper, but basic as that piece of paper. Would you believe Ricochet lost to a crappy End of Days from Ryker? Of course you would.

Rating: 3/10

NXT UK (1/28/21)

Trent Seven is slimming down to challenge for the Cruiserweight Title; Ben Carter does a great tope con hilo and quebrada. Sha Samuels applies armbars well enough but I am more interested in this Josh Morrell fella – I think he did a skytwister backflip?? Indeed, the days of NXT UK’s lives go on and on…

The main event was a Fatal 4-Way for a shot at the NXT UK Tag Team Titles, and it was the kind of match that might flip a live audience out but here it just felt silly.

Rating: 3/10

SMACKDOWN (1/29/21)

Since the Royal Rumble is on Sunday, there were a lot of RAW guys on this show and that vibe kind of dragged things down. Even so, there was an incredible Kevin Owens go-home promo and they’ve built some real momentum out of nowhere for Bryan, Bianca Belair, and… Cesaro? Nakamura? What a time.

Good wrestling too. Bianca went over Bayley in a short match that got across every point it needed too: mainly, wrestling is a competitive sport and she can beat Bayley straight-up at it. The elbow drop to Bianca’s shoulder was incredible.

Before it got overtaken by RAW people and became a 6-man then 9-man then 10-man tag, Daniel Bryan vs. AJ Styles was real good too – best AJ match since the last one he had with Bryan. The Phenomenal Forearm got countered with a butterfly suplex then armbar then YesLock and that is just one of the reasons Bryan rules.

Is anyone from RAW even in the Rumble?

Rating: 6/10

205 LIVE (1/29/21)

Ariya Daivari vs. Jake Atlas vs. August Grey… let me tell you, this was a way higher end 205 Live match than normal. They just kept going and going and at some point I lost track of who could possibly win and was biting on every false finish. It gave Atlas and Grey the opportunity to do more stuff too.

Ember Moon & Shotzi Blackheart advanced in the Dusty Classic over Marina Shafir & Zoey Stark, a newcomer who at the very least appears quite polished.

Rating: 5/10