SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)...
It’s Bloodline season, everyone! As we roll closer and closer to Survivor Series, the vicious heel faction has slowly reclaimed their spot as the most prominent act in WWE. Boasting multiple segments on not just Smackdown but this Monday’s episode of Raw, this train shows no signs of slowing down. And, like any storyline before it, a little bit of Bloodline-fatigue began to set in. Quality aside, there’s only so many years of interference-laced Samoan family drama viewers can take before they eventually lose interest.
Last week’s episode did a good job in shaking things up, crowning new tag champs and setting in motion the build to Crown Jewel. For the first time, WWE feels as if it’s barreling forward and not trapped in various feuds running in place each week.
The rest of the blue brand’s players were no slouch either. We finally had the culmination of Hayes & Andrade’s best-of-7, some champ vs. champ promos, and multiple tag team dream matches. It’s a testament to the insane heights that WWE reaches weekly that last week’s episode felt so ordinary. 5 years ago, we’d be lauding an episode like this as the year’s best.
Tonight, it’s the go-home episode before WWE makes the long trek to Saudi. Let’s take a look at where things stand.
KEVIN OWENS vs. RANDY ORTON
Latest Developments:
Several weeks ago, Kevin Owens tried to explain his reasons for turning on Cody Rhodes, but the enraged Rhodes ambushed him. Mutual friend Randy Orton attempted to break up the brawl, but accidentally made an enemy out of Owens by refusing to pick a side.
Last week, Orton continued to pursue a singles match against Owens, speaking to Triple H himself. Triple H continually refused Orton’s pleas, eventually admitting that Owens’ brutality could be enough to put Orton on the shelf permanently. A fired-up Orton appealed to Triple H’s old killer instincts, and successfully got him to book the match for Crown Jewel.
Analysis:
A short and sweet segment to put over Randy Orton as the underdog babyface in this feud. It was nice seeing Orton and Triple H again, nearly two decades after the height of Evolution. Seeing the two of them as veterans tugged on a few heartstrings. Man, I feel old. Chemistry has to be earned, and by god could you feel the history between these two.
However, the actual promo rang a bit hollow, with Orton’s past as the Viper working against him. Portraying Owens as dangerous enough to end Orton’s career just doesn’t feel that plausible. Owens hasn’t been booked to be as vicious as this promo suggested, coming off more complain-y. And that’s fine, but establish the dynamic of the feud off the character work. It feels like WWE wants this feud to be an underdog vs a killer, but it feels more like a babyface needing to school a whiny heel. Orton doesn’t look vulnerable at all. He may be closer to retirement, but he’s still built like a tank, and making it seem like Owens could kill him doesn’t feel realistic.
And with Orton seemingly assisting Cody Rhodes tonight (more on that below), I doubt we’ll get more build to Orton-Owens beyond a quick beatdown segment or two. With that in mind, the feud doesn’t feel as bloodthirsty as WWE is telling us it is.
Overall, a serviceable segment that felt confused about the feud it wanted to sell.
Grade: B-
ANDRADE vs. CARMELO HAYES vs. LA KNIGHT
Latest Developments
For the past several months, Andrade and Carmelo Hayes engaged in an acclaimed best-of-seven series, stemming from the egotistical Hayes trying to force himself into Andrade’s spotlight. After six matches, the two were tied at three wins apiece.
Meanwhile, LA Knight won the US Championship from Logan Paul at Summerslam, and eventually ran afoul of both men. Both Andrade and Hayes secured title shots against Knight, and lost. Two weeks ago, Smackdown GM Nick Aldis broke up Andrade & Hayes brawling, and installed Knight as the special guest referee in their seventh match (the winner of which would earn another title shot).
Last week, the two finally faced off. After a fierce war building on the two’s history in-ring, Knight eventually interfered and laid out both men despite his assurance he’d call the match fairly. Post-match, a furious Nick Aldis made a triple threat match official for Crown Jewel.
Analysis
I’m in two minds about this LA Knight ending the Game Seven match prematurely. If the end goal is to turn Knight heel, this was brilliant. It displays his callousness for the fighting spirit of both men (automatically making them both lean more babyface in a welcome change), and brings his ego to the forefront of his character in a way that still feels cohesive.
If Knight’s going to remain face, this was a sloppy way to get to a triple threat at Crown Jewel. Knight abusing his role as guest ref would have been fine, but he cut the legs out from under the match before it got a chance to kick into high gear.
Andrade and Hayes felt locked in, telling a story in-ring that built on their previous matches (counters for counters for counters). The first few minutes of this match were incredible, a tournament-style sprint that sold their increased hatred for each other. Crazy to remember how small-scale this rivalry began, now it’s a full-on blood feud. If they were able to complete that story, that’d be one thing. But both men’s momentum really stuttered thanks to Knight’s premature interference. The hype has been built for the Game Seven match pretty heavily over the past few weeks. And now, it just feels… deflated.
Your mileage may vary on if that’s good heel heat or not. But for me, it definitely caused my anticipation for Crown Jewel to wane.
Grade: C+
NIA JAX & TIFFANY STRATTON CANDICE LERAE vs. BAYLEY & NAOMI
Latest Developments
In the past few months, Queen Nia Jax and her protégé Ms. MITB Tiffany Stratton ran afoul of Bayley & her ally Naomi ever since Jax won the WWE Women’s Championship from Bayley at Summerslam. Following Stratton’s rising prominence and ownership of the MITB briefcase, Jax became increasingly verbally abusive towards her.
Two weeks ago on Smackdown, Stratton was out with an illness, forcing Jax to team up with Candice LeRae against Bayley & Naomi. To her surprise, the heels pulled off the win.
Last week, Stratton returned, but Jax cruelly rebuffed her in favor of LeRae. However, LeRae was unable to notch a singles win against Naomi despite the help of Indi Hartwell.
Analysis
The seemingly impromptu pairing last week of LeRae and Jax looks to be spinning off into a LeRae/Naomi feud. I’m a big fan of Naomi picking up the win, which further re-establishes her standing as a solid midcard presence, and with Candice’s more ruthless persona this feud should give Naomi (and Bayley by extension) something meatier to sink their teeth into. As good as Nia Jax is, her promo style relies more on her smugness than any verbal jousting. LeRae should be able to get much more passionate work out of Naomi & Bayley, which both sorely need after months of lackluster one-dimensional booking.
However, focusing so much on establishing this feud was a weird choice this week, because it left little time for building the champ’s feuds for the upcoming PPV cycle. Jax brushing off Stratton was a nice plot beat, but didn’t offer anything new to their dynamic. Meanwhile, not acknowledging Jax’s match at Crown Jewel at all didn’t do any favors to build a match that few people care about (no thanks to the pointless Saudi belt on the line).
The Jax-Stratton feud has cooled off over the past few weeks. Like most breakup angles, there’s a moment where the audience’s emotion switches from sympathy to exasperation towards the abused babyface. Watching them get stepped on over and over starts to get tiresome, and I’ve reached that point with Stratton. There’s little effort put into Jax’s reasoning, so it just comes off as Jax insulting Stratton for no reason. Hopefully post-Crown Jewel this dynamic can be expanded upon more.
Grade: B
CODY RHODES vs. GUNTHER
Latest Developments
Following WWE’s announcement that Rhodes and Gunther would square off at Crown Jewel for the inaugural Crown Jewel championship, the two champs have found themselves in each other’s crosshairs. After several terse interactions, the two have separately built up the prestige of being a champion and their iron wills.
Last week, the two met face-to-face. Gunther mocked Rhodes’ over-the-top passion and cut off his famed entrance music, calling him a unfit gutless champion for brainlessly fighting every week. Rhodes replied by proclaiming his love for the wrestling business, chastising Gunther’s selfishness and his inability to bear the responsibility of being a champion.
Eventually, the two began brawling. Ludwig Kaiser and Randy Orton came out to even the odds for their respective allies. On Raw last Monday, Gunther challenged Orton & Rhodes to a tag match against himself and Kaiser for tonight.
Analysis
By far, the most engaging Rhodes vs Gunther segment in the past few weeks. Thus far, this match’s build has felt hampered by the match itself being set arbitrarily. The writing team has struggled on whether or not to focus on a simple “I’m stronger than you” rivalry, or to try and mine a personal rivalry from seemingly out of nowhere. Up until now, both champions have largely postured in bland promors and tried (in vain) to put over the prestige of the Crown Jewel belt.
This week, it finally felt like those elements coalesced into a coherent narrative base. Contrasting Rhodes and Gunther’s outlook on being champion has morphed this rivalry into one of honor, about upkeeping the prestige of WWE by finally settling who’s most worthy to stand as the brand’s mascot. This was absolutely genius, playing into both wrestlers’ sense of honor (a common theme in both of their characters already) while putting over how amazing the promotion is as a whole.
The narrative also immediately felt elevated due to both men’s viewpoints holding water. Rhodes’ commitment to being there day-in, day-out is commendable as always. But Gunther’s points about necessary selfishness in the name of prestige, and not working smart were far more nuanced than the average heel promo. While the dynamics still clearly paint Rhodes as the babyface, either man winning could plausibly lead the company as its franchise player.
The post-match brawl felt slightly redundant, with both Kaiser and Orton already in other feuds. But tonight’s tag match should be a barn-burner, and it adds dimension to a singles feud knowing both men have backup ready to intervene.
Grade: A-
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MOTOR CITY MACHINE GUNS’ ROAD TO TAG TEAM GLORY
Latest Developments
Following a series of vignettes, the Motor City Machine Guns made their debut in WWE and immediately set their sights on the WWE Tag Team Championships. Two weeks ago, the Guns won a triple threat tag team match against A-Town Town Under and Los Garzas to earn their spot in a #1 contenders match for the tag belts.
Meanwhile, DIY lost the tag team championships to The Bloodline at Summerslam, and spent the next few months attempting to recapture the gold. Following a critically triple threat ladder match, DIY lost to The Bloodline and had to yet again earn another title shot. Two weeks, ago they defeated The Profits and Pretty Deadly to face MCMG.
Last week, MCMG and DIY faced off in an epic war, with both sides drawing on their history as a duo. Eventually, MCMG won the right to face The Bloodline for the belts. Later that night, The Bloodline faced off against MCMG, and successfully a fiery Alex Shelley suggested they not wait any longer and fight for the belts then and there. Despite Nick Aldis’ reluctance, he agreed.
After another epic match, MCMG won thanks to The Bloodline’s factions infighting (more on that below), and secured their very first WWE Tag Team Championships!
Analysis
Well, MCMG isn’t wasting any time in WWE. With how crowded the main roster is, WWE doesn’t often crown debuting champions so soon. But belting up MCMG was a great choice. Their long experience as a team puts them levels above many Smackdown tag teams, relying entirely on combo moves and almost performing as one single unit. From a workrate perspective (which the tag division has largely been anchored in), MCMG provide a convincing “end boss” without being hooked to a faction that could distract them from defending the tag titles.
Additionally, Sabin & Shelley are blank slates. They don’t have established dynamics with the majority of Smackdown’s tag teams, which means each new rivalry they form can be built from scratch. This could be a great way to give established teams a fresh coat of paint, allowing them to perform in a different dynamic against new opponents.
Last week’s two matches also immediately put over the duo as warriors. Their match with DIY was an ROH-inspired classic, blending hard-hitting strikes with fluid high-flying spotfests. It was new age tag team work done to perfection, a great showcase for their style.
But it was their 2nd match that cemented them as superstars. Sabin & Shelley being unfazed by The Bloodline and daring them to fight immediately made them seem like badasses, and outmuscling a team that has steamrolled the division with pure force was an incredible feat of strength. If WWE can continue this momentum, they may have found the next lynchpin to hang the entire division on.
Grade: A+
BIANCA BELAIR & JADE CARGILL’S NEWEST CHALLENGERS
Latest Developments
Ever since winning the WWE Women’s Tag Team Championships, Bianca Belair & Jade Cargill have been defending their titles across all three brands. On Raw, the champs became entangled with Damage CTRL, a feud which intensified following Iyo Sky’s win over Belair last month. Damage CTRL eventually earned a title shot, but failed to claim the gold.
Meanwhile, two weeks ago the champs defended their titles against NXT’s Meta-Four (Jakara Jackson & Lash Legend), with former tag champs Chelsea Green & Piper Niven at ringside. After a quick squash, the champs retained, causing Meta-Four to lock horns with Green & Niven the following week.
As individual rivalries continued to intensify, last week Nick Aldis & Adam Pierce notified all 4 teams that a Women’s Tag Team Fatal 4-Way would be booked for Crown Jewel.
Analysis
FINALLY, the groundwork laid by Belair & Cargill’s multiple rivalries has begun paying off. While last week’s announcement was pitifully short (an emphatic signifier that the women’s tag belts are still low-priority), having 4 well-built teams with legitimate interconnected feuds is a huge improvement over even 2 years ago.
While Belair & Cargill still largely feel untouchable, the subtle in-ring storytelling of their challengers slowly forcing them to put in more effort makes it feel like the walls are closing in on the champs for the first time. There’s an elevation to each contender beyond “the feud of the moment”, and having failed contenders continue to stay in the orbit of the champs has cemented the tag belts as a prize worth fighting for.
Damage CTRL look fearsome as ever, Meta-Four don’t look out of place amidst their main roster contemporaries, and even Green & Niven feel much more cohesive as a unit than they did during their own reign. While it’s unlikely the champs are dethroned before sowing the seeds for a betrayal and feud between them, each challenging team could plausibly hold the titles and continue to elevate the division.
And with the title scene (especially on Raw) largely siloed off from the rest of the division, the tag belts have finally been exposed to main eventers rather than being sequestered to the midcard, raising their prestige as a whole.
Grade: B+
THE BLOODLINE CIVIL WAR
Latest Developments
Over the past weeks, Jimmy Uso unsuccessfully tried to mend fences against Jey Uso and Roman Reigns to strengthen their forces against Solo Sikoa’s Bloodline. Jey continually distanced himself from both sides, but found his hand forced when Sikoa and Jacob Fatu caused him to lose his Intercontinental Championship to Bron Breakker.
Last week, Jey Uso returned to help cause The Bloodline to lose their tag team championships as payback. After a tense moment, The Usos finally hugged as Roman watched from afar.
On Raw last Monday, Jey agreed to hash things out with Reigns tonight on Smackdown, but vowed to Jimmy they would no longer agree to be his lackeys.
Complicating matters was longtime ally Sami Zayn, who fell out with Jey over his decision to entertain reuniting with Reigns. Later, to Jey’s shock, Zayn was witnessed speaking to Sikoa in private.
Analysis
The overall characterization of last week’s Bloodline segments felt a little over all the place, with Jey’s forgiveness towards his brother seemingly fluctuating between Smackdown and Raw. The story felt like it was rushing slightly, and certain moments of nuance got lost in the shuffle. In particular, Zayn and Jey’s argument felt undercooked and flawed. After spending months portraying Zayn as a truer friend than any of his blood relatives, having Jey write him off as “not family” felt like sloppy writing at best, and character regression at worst.
However, watching Jey and Jimmy interact again was electrifying. The brothers have undeniable chemistry with each other, and you could feel the love and history in every word. Setting the scene for the undeniable confrontation between Jey and Reigns was a smart booking decision, as tonight’s segment has potential to be as iconic as “Tribal Court” in terms of character ramifications.
The increased Bloodline prominence across both shows was noticeable, but felt more earned than usual. Having a single continuous storyline across episodes of Raw and Smackdown is always a plus, as doing so keeps casuals from drifting in and out of the show (easier than normal due to wrestling’s ensemble nature). But up until now, the Bloodline’s plotlines never felt like they advanced enough to justify four or five segments in a two hour show. This week was different, with each week burning through plot at a great pace. It felt like The Bloodline were finally main characters again, rather than WWE telling us they were important but teasing plot developments at a snail’s pace.
Grade: A-
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(You can always reach PWTorch editor Wade Keller at kellerwade@gmail.com. You can also send live event results and news tips to that email. Also, we’re always looking for volunteer contributors to help us round out of coverage of the pro wrestling scene.)
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