Welcome to the most must-see Vulture Hound weekly review in history; welcome to… The Raw Review
After a week away in Germany I’ve had time to gather my thoughts and make my much anticipated return to the Raw Review this week. With the recent announcement of a brand split and Money In The Bank drawing ever closer I couldn’t wait to get back into the swing of things.
I think B&Q must have had a sale on ladders this week as all 6 Money In The Bank competitors opened the show sat atop of their steel towers. Kevin Owens got the high-rise debate flowing by interrupting everyones favourite ring announcer, your mum. The exchanges between the 6 men was entertaining from start to finish and made all the more hilarious when Kevin Owens made sarcastic remarks towards his competitors. It was childish yet still grasped me as an adult. This interaction really highlighted the passing of the torch from Jericho to Owens as the biggest heel in the company and why he deserves to win the Money In The Bank briefcase. Just think about it… Owens cashes in on Roman Reigns at Summer Slam and becomes the next WWE World Heavy Champion. It sounds great doesn’t it? Either that or Dean Ambrose has to cash in on the wet haired beefcake to set up a Shield triple threat we all want to see. In spite of that I wouldn’t be surprised if WWE had Del Rio win the briefcase and then unsuccessfully cash it in on a WWE Champion in John Cena because WOO MURICA! The whole Teddy Long surprise appearance was fun but at the same time quite sad. This was largely due to the fact that I miss the “tag team matches, playa”. To me, it just seemed like a cheap way to promote something we are all very aware of and marred the whole intro to the show. Despite this mismatch introduction to the show it was great to see Cesaro pick up a win against Jericho with a Sharpshooter.
A very long promo for what will inevitably be Reigns retaining his title slotted in between the next match which featured Rusev vs Jack Swagger with Titus O’Neil on guest commentary. I really want something worthwhile to come out of this. Rusev has the potential to be a future World Champion but when he’s against the likes of Swagger and O’Neil I don’t think he’s being given quite the push I was expecting. He’s a man who really deserves it. He’s worked hard the last year or so to get where he is so he shouldn’t be getting shown up by a man who has only recently been back on television a matter of weeks for allegedly groping the chairman and another man who resembles the Honey Monster. Being American isn’t what it takes to be a great US Champion. Being a great US Champion takes brute strength to beat a tiny Mexican for the title and of course having a fake Russian as your fiancé/valet.
Hey everyone, The Champ (who isn’t a champion) is back! Don’t get me wrong, I like John Cena – he’s a great entertainer and a better wrestler than Roman Reigns. He’s taking this feud with Styles into his stride already and I can’t wait to see how it develops. I just hope Ol’ Vinnie Mac isn’t using this as further opportunity to bury the former TNA star, Styles, by proving WWE’s poster boy is better than TNA’s most phenomenal champion. That’s just me thinking an old man could be so bitter. Styles even said it himself that “guys like you (Cena) bury guys like me”. The feud itself could still shape the way for The Club (I still hate saying it) to become even bigger but in the process they have to beat Big Match John, a man who rarely loses cleanly, and everyones favourite trio after the many reincarnations of Sugababes, The New Day. I don’t care how they do it but I really hope The Club (sigh) becomes the most dominant force in the WWE or else what is the point in them being here?
A feud that needs revitalising is the one between Enzo & Cass and the Vaudevillains. It seems as though Enzo isn’t being given any time to shine in ring so maybe they need to move forward with Enzo being the manager for Big Cass. I said previously that it would be great to see Cass take on Brock Lesnar but with the Beast Incarnate temporarily returning to UFC that could be further away than your relationship goals. The men from New Jersey will be part of a fatal 4 way for the tag titles at Money In The Bank but once again I can’t look further than The New Day winning this one.
Alberto Del Rio’s finisher does not make sense at all. I know most things in wrestling have to be taken with a bucket full of salt but logically all his opponents have to do is let go of the ropes. It’s clunky to say the least. I don’t have a problem with Zayn losing. That’s kind of his gimmick now. I just wish Del Rio had a better finisher to match physical presence.
Owens vs Ambrose is always a treat. Especially when Kevin Owens gets clotheslined just after snatching Byron Saxton’s headset away from him. There’s always little moments in these matches that make them great. Then again, I am a big Kevin Owens fan. Seeing JBL jump out of his skin was also a magical moment in this match. For once I found myself agreeing with the commentary team when they said that these two men always have great match ups.
Considering I missed the show last week I’m still none the wiser as to why Dana Brooke is even involved with Charlotte but I’m even more confused as to why the WWE are still persisting on making “Darren Young great again”. Unless he’s going to beat down Titus O’Neil he wont ever be great in my eyes. Going back to the Women’s Champion, it’s just bizarre how she’s had to soften her words towards her father. After she made him melt like hot wax two weeks ago the new ‘Dirtiest Player in the Game’ addressed the WWE Universe to apologise for how harsh she sounded but to reiterate in softer words that she no longer needs her father by her side. It was strange and even more so when Dana Brooke demonstrated her inability to walk across a wrestling ring to launch an attack on Becky Lynch and Natalya. It was all rather shoddy. Hopefully things pick up at Money in the Bank.
I’ve come to realise over the last couple of weeks that as much as I love the Golden Truth they don’t actually need to win to be any more over in the company. This is actually a fantastic opportunity to put over two younger underrated talents in Breezango (Tyler Breeze and Fandango). Why they weren’t named Febreeze is beyond me but I do want to reiterate that they are both legitimately good wrestlers with potential to be challenging for the Intercontinental Title at least. Here’s hoping they get a big push when the brand split happens!
There’s something endearing about the feud between New Day and The Club. It shouldn’t be entertaining but The New Day can actually turn anything into gold. Anderson and Gallows aren’t the greatest mic workers so putting them against the biggest tag team faces in the company could really help put them over if they win at Money At The Bank. It may be billed as a fatal 4 way for the tag team titles but for me there’s only two possible outcomes: 1) The New Day retain but get beat down by the Club post match. 2) The Club become the new tag team champions and begin their dominant reign in the company, eventually introducing Finn Balor into the Club. I just want the Club to succeed already!
JBL’s Best Bits:
“Holla, holla, holla!” – I never thought I’d hear JBL say those immortal words.
“I think Kevin Owens came to fight as well”… – Well duh!
“He (Teddy Long) doesn’t work here!” – Neither should you John.