PARKS’S TAKE: WWE met the moment with Raw’s debut on Netflix feeling epic, but the tone was a little off in one certain way

Last night’s Monday Night Raw debut on Netflix met the moment in terms of giving the show an “epic” feel. And make no mistake, this was an epic moment: WWE programming is the first weekly, live product on the largest streaming platform in the world. Vince McMahon always wanted WWE to be accepted by mainstream entertainment types and, in some ways, this felt like the finish line to that race. WWE has officially made it.

While the “feel” was epic, the tone felt a little off. WWE was expected to be self-congratulatory given the stakes here, but to some, it went a little overboard. Taking time out to thank Netflix executives and showing them on camera – twice during the show – didn’t exactly make for thrilling television to hook viewers in the opening minutes. The climax to that was The Rock getting fans in the Intuit Dome in Los Angeles to cheer for the fact that this was the largest arena gate in WWE history. Yes, fans cheered for the fact that they spent more money on the product than any other group of fans attending a WWE arena show.

Once you got past the navel-gazing, the announcers were tasked with a tough job: Getting new fans up to speed on the characters, match stipulations, and just the general beat of how Raw operates on a weekly basis. Michael Cole and Pat McAfee largely did a nice job with that. Cole is a pro’s pro and no moment is too big for him at this stage of his career.

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The bottom line is, this Raw wasn’t for you and me, those who watch all three hours of Raw every week, who follow the ins and outs of the product online. WWE had to balance the potentially millions of new viewers checking out the show for the first time (or the first time in a long time) with those who moved from USA to Netflix with Monday Night Raw. I think there was a recognition by most that WWE would be appealing to that newer audience, but a comfortable balance must be struck moving forward.

The actual content of the show felt secondary. When Rhea Ripley winning the Women’s World Title and C.M. Punk overcoming Seth Rollins in the main event is overshadowed as a talking point coming out of the show by the crowd booing Hulk Hogan, that’s a problem. The pace seemed slow by design, but again, that’s going to be a balancing act in the weeks to come.

Raw wasn’t a home run last night. In terms of giving new and old fans a feel for what the show will be, I think they succeeded. There was just enough different from a presentation perspective (some thanks to the uniqueness of the Intuit Dome itself) to freshen up the product. Whether this was all enough to keep new viewers around remains to be seen.