SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)...
Jordan Shines as the Overfamiliar Heel…
Recap: The show began with Roman Reigns in the ring. Roman mentioned that he was fighting for Dean in his battle with Samoa Joe. In his words, “if you mess with one of us, you mess with all of us.” Jason Jordan then came down to the ring. Jordan said that he feels like he’s part of something meaningful, and speaking on behalf of his partner Seth, told Roman that Roman has proved that it’s his yard. Seth then came down the ramp, chastising Jordan for stepping on Roman’s moment. Jordan indicated it was all their moment. Roman told Jordan to stop referring to the group as “we”. Jordan stated that he considered their group to be the best three man group in WWE. The Balor Club came out to disagree, and Kurt Angle set a match between the two teams.
In the main event, Finn Balor pinned Seth Rollins after two critical Jason Jordan mistakes. Jordan was in the ring illegally, which caused the referee to miss a tag from Seth to Roman. After the tag went undetected, Seth fell victim to the Magic Killer. Jordan then attempted to help Seth to his feet, however this ended up preventing Seth from avoiding being taken down. Finn then won with the Coup de Grace.
Evaluation: The opening promo from Roman began pretty typically, with Roman attempting to get a rub from Dean Ambrose despite Dean being on the shelf. The promo really shined, however, once the overeager and overly comfortable Jason Jordan appeared. Jordan clearly annoyed Roman and Seth by acting as if he had been part of their group forever. Roman was particularly miffed by receiving approval on last week’s victory over Samoa Joe from Jordan, as it was clearly presumptuous of the “rookie” Jordan to tell a veteran like Roman that he had proven himself. As I mentioned last week, everyone has the experience of dealing with an annoying new acquaintance acting overfamiliar with an old group of friends, so the gimmick is relatable.
Forecast: Like last week, this Jordan angle is working. They do need to be careful here, however. A lot of Jordan’s mistakes are coming across as honest mistakes made by a an earnest guy who doesn’t know any better, and if they take that too far, Seth and Roman could seem like heels for being so tough on him. I do think they’ll find the right balance here to keep the heels and faces delineated.
WWE Embraces NJPW…
Recap: The newly reformed Balor Club came down to the ring at the top of the show to dispute Jason Jordan’s claim that Jordan and the Shield were Raw’s best three man group. Balor said that he, Gallows, and Anderson separated when they came to WWE, but always knew there would be a time for them to come together. The Balor Club showed respect for Seth and Roman, but referred to Jordan as a “nerd”. In a conversation later backstage, the group did the Bullet Club “too sweet” hand gesture.
Later in the main event, Balor Club won as described above.
Evaluation: This Balor Club angle is looking like a huge upgrade for Finn, Gallows, and Anderson. Finn looked much more relaxed and at ease than normal during his promo. He seemed to legitimately be having a good time being reunited with Gallows and Anderson. Until now Gallows and Anderson had been reduced to hawking merchandise and participating in corny costume matches, so almost any angle is a huge upgrade for them.
During the main event, Corey Graves made nonstop references to the group’s history Japan (and even showed some photos of the trio in Japan), indicating that WWE is running with the buzz created by last week’s Tokyo Dome show. The IWGP titles won by the group were also referenced by name.
Considering Balor Club is an intentional attempt to get a rub from Bullet Club, the most ironic statement from Graves was “often imitated, but never duplicated, there is only one original Balor Club.” Also, I’m not sure if this reference was intentional, but when Roman, Seth, and Jordan came out, Graves began with “talking about Elite trios in Sports Entertainment….”
Forecast: WWE seems to have changed course from ignoring Bullet Club popularity to trying to co-opt it. I would expect to see more history lessons taught to the fans in the coming weeks about the trio’s time in NJPW. Considering how poorly these three had been booked up until now, I’m excited to see where this goes.
Braun Returns to Monster Status…
Recap: Paul Heyman and Brock Lesnar came to the ring at the coveted bottom of the second hour to top of the third hour slot. Heyman expressed support for old school wrestling booking over the current trend of booking the champion in multi-person matches designed to keep the fans guessing as to how the champ can overcome the odds. On Brock’s way back up the ramp, a melee broke out as Kane and Braun Strowman appeared. After Kane and Brock were both taken down, Strowman took a grapping hook to a lighting truss, causing it to come crashing down on both of them. Kane stumbled away as Brock was taken to an ambulance.
Evaluation: It was good to see Brock as a serious monster again after some frivolity with Slater and Rhino last week. This is the classic monster persona that will make the match at Royal Rumble more interesting.
Paul Heyman vocalized my thoughts well during his promo pining for old school booking. There are way too many multi-person matches in WWE. I would like to see a challenger rise through the ranks and lay claim to a title shot based on his record and ability.
Forecast: It was good to see Braun more serious again. In the end, however, everyone expects Brock to pin Kane at Royal Rumble, as it’s an open secret that WWE wants Roman to take Brock’s title at WrestleMania.
Random Thoughts…
-Woken Matt’s video package was essentially the same as the past few weeks. Hopefully WWE starts to introduce more elements of the Woken character soon, rather than letting it languish as a one-dimensional low midcard act….
-Miz’s partner was announced as Asuka for the Mixed Match Challenge. Assuming that WWE won’t break Asuka’s streak on a Facebook publicity stunt, this seems to give away the winning team before the tournament begins…..
NOW CHECK OUT LAST WEEK’S COLUMN: TOP 3 DEVELOPMENTS – RAW: Jordan-Seth dynamic develops, The Rules for the Women’s Rumble, Reigns’s push continues
The Stroman thing was ridiculous bad. A grappling hook in a box! Was that there for Batman? The whole thing was just silly.