411’s WWE Unreal Season Three, Episode Two Report: ‘The Last Time is Now’

-Written: 7.21.26
-Source: Netflix
-Run Time: 1:01:40

-Plug: Episode One

-We left off Episode one with Seth Rollins getting injured vs. Cody Rhodes and it changing everything for the rest of the year.

-“John Cena Has Just Two Matches Left In His Wrestling Career.”

-Punk wants to know where he fits into Cena’s retirement as they know there is an end date. Punk talks about their history and says from his perspective they are wrestling soulmates. We see their first match which Cena won and then Punk winning the two matches in 2011. Punk notes that Cena has an historic career and brings up The Doctor of Thuganomics.

-Michael Hayes says that character is what Cena had to pull out to get noticed. It is where John Cena broke out with the WWE audience. Cena says he would do three to four rhymes tops. Punk says the word “Punkanomics” popped in his head and he wanted to run with it. This was Punk holding a mirror up to John. Cena’s confused look is awesome. Cena notes Punk gave himself way too many lines. He was thinking Punk would forget some of the stuff, but “he crushed.” Aw man, we get a genuine message as Punk tells Cena, “John, I am going to miss you.” That’s awesome! You can see it meant a lot to Cena. Punk says it was emotional to him and it needed to be emotional for John as well. Cena says it was very special. That’s fantastic!

-Show opening!

-Back to Perth as Seth Rollins injuries himself going coast to coast with a head-butt. HHH says any plans they had went out the window. We move to RAW two days later and Seth can’t even do his pose because it hurts too much. He is rocking a Bears shirt. BANG BANG NINER GANG! Seth says this was going to be a really good year and it’s going up in smoke. He thinks people will be disappointed in him and he is disappointed in himself. He knows he has more past than future and it is slipping away a little bit and that’s “terrifying.”

-HHH goes over The Vision’s history and we get the cool graphics to make it seem more important. It started with Heyman and Rollins at Mania and then Breakker and Bronson Reed joined. The idea was Heyman and Seth using their star power to bring along and protect The Brons. Now Seth is injured and they have to explain his absence. The idea was pitched to have The Brons turn on Seth and let them take control of the reigns.

-We see them working on what they want to do backstage. Seth tells Bron not to mess with that spear and to “hit me hard as a motherfucker.” He tells Bron it is going to be replayed for years, so it needs to look great. Heyman: “this pays the bills. Hit him like Speed.” HA! He reiterates it’s not just Bron’s money, but everyone in the group. Seth says it’s the last bump he will take for six months. Bron looks sad and tells Seth, “sorry in advance.” Wrestling is great man, as he wants dude to destroy him to make sure he gets over and lead to something down the line.

-We see the spear and yeah, he didn’t hold back. Seth sold it like a champ! The alternate angles they show here are great. Bron says Seth took it like a man. Heyman raises the hands of The Brons and we have a new Vision. HHH says you can’t look at it like a disaster as it’s an opportunity to do something hopefully better. Backstage Seth says he knows what Speed feels like now.

-To the writers room where they discuss what to do with The World Title. It was an unanimous decision to put the World Title back on Punk. They know all paths are open with Punk as Champion. The idea was to let Punk carry things until they can breath again after the Seth injury.

-We are up to Saturday Night’s Main Event in Utah! Punk says the business is hard and injuries happen. Seth had to vacate, so here they are. It’s Punk vs. Uso to crown a new World Champion. The cameras shake as Punk gets the pin and now, Punk gets a proper run as there is no briefcase. He shakes hands with Post Malone in the crowd and celebrates with his cowboy hat. Backstage Punk asks what the protocol is as far as traveling with The World Title. Oh yeah, it’s been a long time she he’s got to leave the ring with a Championship in WWE. Punk gets undressed backstage as he steps into an ice bath. It resets his nervous system. He says the hard work begins now as this could be the last time he gets to hold a World Title.

-We move to Florida where Liv Morgan is building a home. She has farm animals! Fantastic. She doesn’t like eggs or milk, so they are just pets. We see her mark out over her chickens laying eggs. “Fresh out of a butthole.” She tells us she is Gionna Daddio and plays Liv Morgan on TV. She nearly gets attacked by hornets and we see a nasty nest being built in her barn area.

-Liv says she should not be a WWE Superstar. She dropped out of high school and got her GED. She was not a D1 athlete and doesn’t have family in the business. She was working at a Hooters and she makes sure to note it is a family restaurant and kids eat for free on Tuesday. Joe DeFranco stopped in with his wife and is the trainer of HHH and Steph. He was nice enough to pass on her information and she got a try-out. After the three days she was signed and has been in WWE for the last 11 years. 11-21-17 is the day she debuted on WWE TV and she has that date tattooed on the back of her neck. We see the various cuts and bruises she has suffered over the years. She says “I am sicko.” LIV MORGAN TO AEW CONFIRMED or something. We see HHH calling her a ring general and putting over how she can be put in there with anyone. He tells her she should be proud of herself.

-We go back to June as RAW is in Green Bay and Liv pops her shoulder in the opening seconds of a match with Kairi Sane. She says it sucks to have to leave a match and just walk to the back. She was trying to handle it with grace and we see the video of them popping the shoulder back in place and oh, that sound is awful. She asks them if “that’s it.” She breaks down as she was hoping they would tell her she could wrestle again. Sadly no, as that was just the start and she would be out of action. She knew the work she had to put in to get to that moment and it was taken away. She also missed Evolution, and SummerSlam in her home (New Jersey).

-Back to the writers’ room as Liv is supposed to be back at Survivor Series. Bruce says the logical thing is to have Liv cost Cena against Dom. HHH just wants to make sure she is cleared and Bruce says it can be offense only. Then they can get through the holidays and have her fully ready by Rumble.

-We jump to Survivor Series in San Diego. Cena wants to use everyone in Judgment Day to give his energy away. Dom says it cool to see Cena in that way as he wants to help everyone. Liv says she feels peaceful as today is meant to be. TJ Wilson says nobody will be expecting Liv because she wasn’t in War Games.

-Dom vs. Cena: Raquel and Roxxane are out with Dom. Cena wearing the IC Title looks weird. This was Cena’s 177th and final WWE PPV/PLE Match. I was in Cleveland watching as I was there for Niners at Browns. Cena wanted the women to get physically involved and not just tripping. He wanted them to hit BOMBS. Cena is great in this show as you can see he wanted to do everything to help anyone he could. Both Raquel and Roxanne hit their finishers on Cena. Pearce is on the headset as the producer for this one. The women are tossed by the ref, so JD and Finn Balor are out to get them some of the Cena retirement tour. Balor vs. Cena would have rocked! I need to go back and watch this show. HHH marks out over the way Finn and JD landed off the Stacked Attitude Adjustment. Liv’s music hits and she makes her return. She jumps in Cena’s arms and makes “The John Cena heel turn face.” Cena says it was way better than he did it. She kicks John in the balls and Dom gets the pin to regain The IC Title. Cena says the energy has been given away and now people want to see all these guys and what they do going forward.

-Liv apologizes to Cena for the ball shot and he tells it’s all good. Again, such interesting comments in wrestling. Cena says she didn’t want to make it look bad, but he wears denim. You stretch it tight and there’s not much give there. Cena is tremendous and I want him back so cameras can follow him around some more. Liv calls kicking him in the balls a career highlight and thanks him. She was stressing over the return and then once out there it felt like she never left.

-We are at John’s final match and it was John’s idea to do NXT vs. WWE. To the writer’s room where HHH says the show is non-canon and not storyline driven. Cena vs. GUNTHER headlines and John doesn’t want the entire show about him. He wants it to be about opportunities for others. John wanted to showcase the incredible talent in NXT: Ruca, Oba, Je’Von. He wants to give them a chance to steal the show on his last night.

-We flashback to Cena showing up to answer Angle’s challenge because someone didn’t show and he was given a chance. A writer jokes that Cena should go out first, do the job, and leave because he doesn’t want it to be about himself. HHH says DC seemed like a great place to have Cena’s last match.

-Saturday Night’s Main Event: Washington DC: Cena is grateful he had a lot of minutes. We see him singing memorabilia backstage. Oba Femi says it is poetic that John’s end is their beginning. John says WrestleMania will sell out on it’s own and didn’t need his last match. He wanted a random Saturday night in the lowest quarter they do to bring a house and good business.

-Gunther! HHH says they all agreed GUNTHER was the perfect guy. Cena knew GUNTHER was his last opponent before he wrestled Brock. HHH pitched the idea and Cena immediately was on board and he instantly mentioned it was great as he could tap. HHH seemed taken back by that and told Cena if that’s what he wants and to Cena it was great as the “never give up guy, gives up.” See, it was Cena’s idea and they just let him do what he wanted.

-Cena talks to Marty Miller about how he wants the tap shot for TV. HHH tells GUNTHER that Cena is giving him a hell of a rub and gift. HHH takes the mic and tells everyone the John Cena surprise party is coming and makes a “you can’t see me,” joke. Kevin Owens laughs and HHH thanks him for laughing. We need KO back.

-We meet Stu and how Cena talks to him every show as he makes his entrance. Cena says it was a way to talk to the fans at home. Cena talks about the work of everyone that makes the show work. That conversation with Stu is a way to show that everyone in every department is appreciated.

-Two hours before the show, John is meeting with kids because he is awesome. He then gets a picture with R-Truth and notes they are identical twins. Why did we ever want to boo this man?

-HHH tells Oba Femi to be himself and make magic out there. Jamie Noble loves the entrance. We get highlights of Cody vs. Oba and I am sure we will see that match down the line again, one day. No winner as Drew McIntyre interferes. Oba drops Drew with a choke slam. Backstage, Cody gives Oba a handshake and congratulates him.

-We get highlights of the rest of the matches with the focus being on Sol and Je’Von. Cena notes the night was a success as people were talking about the young talent.

-Punk runs into GUNTHER and gives him his props because everyone else is gassing up Cena. Funny! Punk mentions someone sent him a clip of Cena and Batista celebrating one night in the ring with Hogan and they each put their Championship on Hogan’s shoulders. We see that video and way to make me sad as we are almost at a year since his passing. Punk knew there was a reason he saw that clip and thought it was symbolic. Punk pitches the idea to Cody and you don’t have to ask him twice. He is pissed he didn’t come up with the idea and they both know Cena won’t want to do it, but they will remind him that he did it for Hogan.

-Punk goes to the floor to watch the match and admits he has been doing that recently for Cena’s matches because he wants to be a fan. We see him and Bayley go out to watch the match together and they take a selfie.

-HHH tells Cena in Gorilla to make sure he has fun. Cena thanks HHH for everything and says they had a pretty great year. HHH thanks him for 25 years since he walked in the door and they hug.

-This is great stuff as they cut to Punk and Bayley on the floor so the crowd reaction sounds so different. They draw out the beat until Cena’s music hits and then the place EXPLODES! One more time with Stu, but this time, John takes the camera and puts Stu on air. I am smiling watching this again. Man, I have to go back and watch this show again as well.

-Highlights of GUNTHER vs. Cena! Punk: “You can hit him harder that that. You hit me harder than that.” GUNTHER mocks Cena which pops Punk. GUNTHER lives on the hate, so he was perfect for this role. They cut to Bobby Roode on the headset as he was the producer on the match. I can only imagine how he felt with that honor.

-Cena calls the match beautiful poetry. He was told by everyone to take this in, and he wanted to shake them because he always took it in. He says nobody knew how ready he was for closure. GUNTHER hooks the sleeper and they do the old Hogan of letting the arm drop. Punk, Bayley, Cody, Hayes all pop when Cena’s arm goes up. Hayes: “We’re the biggest marks.” Truth!

-Cena says GUNTHER is a great heel who takes control and slows the match down. Great heels are hated because they are methodical. This is everything he wished for as it was time to “be killed off.” He brings up how people go peacefully sometimes with a smile and that’s how he wanted this character to go. Cena taps and the internet loses their minds. I have said over and over that I loved it and it was the perfect ending. Yes, I know people paid a ton of money to be there, wanting to celebrate a Cena win, but you knew Cena was always going to do what was best for business. To me it was always his call and if that’s how he wanted to go out, great! They show kids crying in the crowd.

-Punk and Cody come out to put their Championship Belts on Cena and he refuses, so Punk reminds him that he and Batista did it to Hogan. Punk: “Hogan’s not here.” Cena accepts and then leaves his shoes and armband in the middle of the ring. We see Cole crying on commentary and we see more fans crying and not just kids. “Thank you Cena,” chant as he walks through the curtain.

-We get the tweets and videos of people losing their minds over Cena tapping out. It makes me laugh! Cena says the fans didn’t understand that this was the first time a character was killed off the show. “You have to make the character’s death to further the show.” He says it was the ending of his story, but not the story. His last decision was a bold swing that was not universally liked and that’s what he wanted. He says Paul is great and he gives Cena the freedom to paint, but knows Paul has to wear the crown. We see the crowd at DC booing the shit of Paul and then harassing GUNTHER as he leaves. Cena just wanted to do what was best for business. We get people hitting on the idea that you go out on your shield.

-HHH doesn’t see Cena’s run as a failure. It was a success on all levels. Cena says he never misses a moment and goes back to how he has taken in every time he has walked down the ramp. He would want to do it forever, but he has had so many great minutes. He has been thinking about this for three years and the picture he painted is way better than he thought. He closes with “my time is up, and your time is now.”

-This will likely be the big episode for everyone as it was mainly about Cena’s last match. I give them credit for bringing up the negative reaction. As I stated, I did not have any issue with Cena leaving. I felt it was his decision from the start and sure, HHH could have pulled a Tony K and said no, you aren’t losing, but HHH is old school and knows other legends have gone out the same way. I see what Cena was going for and again, if it lived up to what he wanted, fantastic. Now, you can argue over what they’ve done with GUNTHER since, but it seems the Career Killer got derailed by injuries and other people catching fire.

-For the rest of the show, I loved the way Seth reacted to his injury and how he used it to push Bron. Their interaction before the breakup of The Vision was wonderful. All these moments where you are like, “this can only happen in wrestling,” are what makes me a fan. Liv’s return and how it tied it to Cena was fun to watch.

-Punk has been a big focus of both episodes so far and that will only continue as we get closer to Mania. I assume we will het more from Oba as well, and with his rise, I am sure they will touch on the fall of Bron after he seemed like a sure bet to be World Champion by this season airing.

-I will be back with Episode Three either later tonight after Dark Side or early tomorrow morning. Thanks for reading. I say that after everything I write, but I truly mean it. It is awesome if even just one person reads anything I write here.