Wrestling’s 4Rs: The Right, Wrong and Ridiculous of WWE Raw

How the 4Rs of wRestling Work!
Here is a quick explanation of the 4R’s. The column will run TWO-THREE times a week. We will group our feelings on the shows in various categories: The Right, the wRong and the Ridiculous. The Right is stuff that worked very well: a great promo, a great match and so on. PuRgatoRy is a section between the right and wrong. It shows equal traits from both sides that cannot be ignored and needs discussed. It is not a bad place per say, as things can get remedied or go the wrong way the very next week. The wRong is what it sounds like: bad matches, bad or boring promos and so on. The Ridiculous is stuff that had no right on TV: Stupid angles and so on. And there is always a possibility of a 5th R, which is as bad as they come. This column is supposed to be analytical, and at the right time very critical of the shows, it was the whole reason it was created. This is not a “mark” column, nor a “smark” column, our goal is to analyze the show from many different fronts, reward the good and call out the bad. We will not apologize for our opinions, they are as they are, whether positive or negative.

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Raw 10.10.16:
– Kofi Kingston defeated Cesaro @ 7:47 via pin
– Bayley defeated Cami Fields @ 2:16 via pin
– Lince Dorado and Sin Cara defeated Drew Gulak and Tony Nese @ 3:11 via pin
– Sami Zayn and Neville defeated Bo Dallas and Curtis Axel @ 2:20 via pin
– R-Truth defeated Titus O’Neil @ 2:11 via pin
– Braun Strowman defeated Steven and Clay Splash @ 1:00 via pin
– Roman Reigns and Sasha Banks defeated Charlotte and Rusev @ 9:51 via submission
– Non-Title Match: Champion TJ Perkins defeated Ariya Daivari @ 5:15 via submission
– Seth Rollins defeated Chris Jericho @ 19:20 via pin

THE Right:
Opening In Ring Promo: This was an interesting attempt to play two different feuds off each other, as Sasha Banks’ and Charlotte’s in ring confrontation was interrupted by Rusev and Lana, who insisted that no one cares about the woman’s revolution and that more attention should be given to the Bulgarian Brute instead. This led to Charlotte and Sasha double dropkicking him from the ring, and shoving Lana down for good measure, and then Roman Reigns came out to provide back-up and lead in to the mixed tag match later in the evening, Reigns and Sasha against the awkward pairing of Rusev and Charlotte. At times the tone of this segment got a bit saccharine and overbearing with the GIRL POWER message, but it was enjoyable to see different characters interacting with each other and made for a fairly memorable start to the show.

Sin Cara & Lince Dorado vs. Drew Gulak & Tony Nese: This was among the better things we’ve seen from the Cruiserweight division thus far, which admittedly is not saying much. Still, while this was too short at three minutes it had loads of ideas and enthusiasm and energy packed into it, and it left you actually wanted more from this ragtag gang of wrestlers. The addition of Sin Cara also gives some welcome name value to the division, although it says a lot about what a poor job WWE have done of buildings its characters that Sin Cara gives the cruiserweights a star power boost. Despite my belly aching, there were green shoots of hope in this.

More Praise for JeriKO: It’s always a bit dispiriting when you’re reminded of how badly the Hell in a Cell PPV has spoiled the Hell in a Cell match type, and it was particularly brought home this week with Mick Foley of all people lining up a raft of matches that would get nowhere near the fabled cage if it wasn’t for the fact that it’s October. Roman Reigns vs. Rusev, Seth Rollins vs. Kevin Owens, and even Charlotte vs. Sasha Banks could all be settled more appropriately in prestigious ‘Insert Name of Whichever City We Happen to Be in Street Fights.’ Aside from hammering another nail in the coffin of the aura he almost single handedly created, however, Foley was a part of a solid in ring promo and got to experience up close and personal the dazzling chemistry between Chris Jericho and Kevin Owens. The response when Stephanie suggested Jericho could get added to the Cell match if he beat Rollins in the main event was glorious from both men, they’re both so comfortable in their characters and relationship with each other and they have such a great sense of humour and it’s all just a total joy. The simmering tension between them is compelling, and it’d be a treat to be in the crowd the night that Y2J finally turns on his good friend, better enemy. Jericho vs. Owens at Survivor Series in Canada for the Universal Championship? Yes fucking please.

Roman Reigns & Sasha Banks vs. Rusev & Charlotte: On paper this sounded a really quirky and intriguing match, but in practice because of the strict rules against intergender combat it’s just two singles matches that we’ve seen a hundred times before rotating in and out of the ring. It was still decent, mind… Roman Reigns and Sasha Banks made for a fascinating pairing, as the crowd were forced to confront a massively underrated wrestler who they all hate teaming with a moderately overrated wrestler who they all love. In the end, they mostly just decided to back the makeshift duo, and were really enthusiastic the whole way through, which helped the match along a lot. It was a surreal sight to see Reigns hot tagging in Sasha Banks of all people, but a very welcome one. A nice idea, and a good match overall.

Chris Jericho vs. Seth Rollins: This was comfortably the best thing on the show, and deserved its spot in the main event. While it was always unlikely that Jericho would get to compete in Hell in a Cell for the WWE Championship on Sunday, the promise that victory would secure him that opportunity added a certain urgency to the match, and it was easy to suspend your disbelief and imagine that Y2J was on the brink of a championship challenge. Jericho zoned in on Rollins’ ribs intelligently by way of a strategy, and in the end it turned into a really great, exciting sprint, which was a pleasant surprise since both are prone to shooting for epic and ending up with something bloated and dissatisfying instead. Not on the level of Charlotte-Sasha from the previous episode, but still one of the better wrestling matches that will air on free TV this week.

puRgatoRy:
Kofi Kingston vs. Cesaro: It says volumes about how securely the New Day have established themselves that it actually seemed a bit odd to have Kofi Kingston wrestling solo, as he did for 6 straight years from 2008-2014. He and Cesaro put a decent match together- it wasn’t either of their best work, but was only really intended to be a vehicle for displaying more dissension between the Swiss Superman and Sheamus, with the latter getting into an altercation with the rest of the New Day at ringside and distracting Cesaro long enough for Kofi to roll him up for the pin. The action moved along at a fair pace and never got boring. A respectable effort overall.

Sami Zayn & Neville vs. Bo Dallas & Curtis Axel: This was just four wrestlers spinning their wheels. Zayn and Neville are looking for something worthwhile to do, Axel and Dallas are just looking to make it through another firing season with their contracts still intact. In the mean time, they might as well do some tag wrestling. This wouldn’t have looked out of place on a house show and there’s not much to say about it.

TJ Perkins vs. Arya Daivari: An attempt has at least been made to give TJ Perkins some kind of personality, which he sorely needs to be a credible champion. Unfortunately, the personality he’s been assigned is ‘man who likes video games.’ I mean, it’s marginally better than his real life ‘man who posts regularly on r/TheRedPill’ gimmick, but it’s still not exactly inspirational. When it came down to brass tacks he polished off young Daivari fairly comfortably, although Arya got a fair bit of offense in and isn’t super exciting to watch in the ring, which kind of negates the whole point of the Cruiserweight division. An acceptable match, but TJ’s reign as champion is already littered with problems.

THE wRong:
Bayley vs. Cami Fields: Bayley returned home for the first time as a Raw wrestler and got a wonderful reaction. From there, things went downhill; she just had a nightmare match against a wrestler in Cami Fields who was clearly out of her depth. There were too many messed up spots for a three-minute spirited squash match, and ultimately I think Bayley will have just been glad to get it all over with. The best moment came at the end, when Dana Brooke sneak attacked Bayley and the inflatable hand wavy guys on the entrance ramp collapsed in a heap, literally deflated by what had happened. Nice attention to detail.

R-Truth vs. Titus O’Neil: Is there anyone in the world who really looks forward to R-Truth or Titus O’Neil matches? What do they add to the card precisely? Truth’s comedy is intermittently funny, I suppose, but O’Neil is comfortably the worst wrestler on the roster these days and has nothing to offer as an on screen performer. Any time these two are on screen it smacks of a creative team that have run out of ideas.

Braun Strowman vs. The Super Splash Bros: Yet another squash for Braun Strowman, particularly frustrating considering that we were promised something different this week and ended up getting exactly the same, but in handicap match format. Strowman demanded tougher competition for next time and warned Mick Foley that he’d be responsible for the consequences if he didn’t get it, but it’s reaching the point where it’s hard to care. How do we know it won’t just be a three on one handicap match instead?

Lesnar vs. Goldberg, Paul Heyman Promo, Blah Blah Blah Blah Blah: Who’s next? Who cares? I was a bit too young for the Monday Night Wars, but I can definitely imagine that Goldberg was a massively exciting, energizing wrestler in late nineties WCW, this explosive, relentless powerhouse mowing down the entire roster and shattering the concrete ceiling that kept anyone under the age of about 57 away from the main event. People are going to feel nostalgia for him, and that’s understandable, so if they want to base the marketing campaign for WWE 2K17 around him, great, and if people want to play through their Goldberg dream matches on it, good for them! But must we tolerate them in real life as well? Goldberg is now nearly 50 years old, he’s not wrestled in 12 years, and now he’s going to be a major part of Raw for the next few weeks, reliving a rivalry with Brock Lesnar that crashed and burned in spectacular fashion the first time out. I’m sure the first entrance with the fireworks shooting all over the place will be exciting, as will the first Spear and the first Jackhammer, but what does he have left to offer other than that? For his part, Brock’s not really cared about having good matches for over a year now and there’s no reason to think that he’ll get motivated any time soon; he’s the wrong opponent for Goldberg, Goldberg is the wrong opponent for him. If they just announce next week that it’s definitely Brock and Goldberg at Survivor Series and then do short, harmless promo segments to build up to it and have an eight-minute match at the PPV, that’s the best-case scenario. The best-case scenario is purgatory. The worst case scenario is an utter wankfest, with WWE smug and self congratulatory that they’d put this match together and keen to rub it in our faces, and the bout itself goes 15 minutes minimum and is wretched like it was in 2004 but without the boisterous Madison Square Garden crowd to somewhat redeem it. So basically, no, I’m not happy about this.

THE Ridiculous:
NOTHING

The 1116th edition is over…

LOVE IT!

5.5

The final score: review Not So Good

The 411

An uneven episode of Raw, with some really positive ideas and then a lot of lazy drivel. I felt it dragged quite a lot and I wasn't sad when it ended, but it did build to a great Jericho-Rollins match and there were good bits and pieces spread across the card. An OK show heading in to what will probably be an OK PPV.