DMJ

I think you could just as easily say that the turnaround/momentum that AEW is experiencing now is partially because people feel like the end is in sight for the Death Riders angle. I'd argue that the turnaround is happening despite the Death Riders storyline still being at the top of the card. I think the turnaround has much more to do with: (a) The consistent work of Ospreay, Omega, Swerve, Hangman, Ricochet, Toni Storm, Mercedes, Brody King, and, to a lesser degree, the Callis Family, the Hurt Syndicate w/ MJF, Mark Briscoe, Willow, and Speedball. It really does feel like, when you tune into Dynamite, you're going to get to see most of these stars and that, in many cases, they'll be competing or doing something to progress a storyline. I only wish they had found something for FTR & Stokely to do on this show because, when they've been featured, they've been excellent. But, overall, I think that knowing what you're going to get when you tune in has helped tremendously compared to a few years back when they had the brand split or when certain guys - Omega, MJF, CM Punk - would disappear for awhile. And, yes, I do think they've essentially been bunting/sacrificing Collision to get there...but, I'd rather get 2 very good hours of TV every week on Wednesdays than 2 very good hours spread across 4 where you don't know what to watch. (b) A comparatively bad stretch for the WWE, both in terms of the on-screen consistency, very thin PLEs, and bad PR/"buzz". With the brand split, you're often already going to "miss" half of the star power each week if you only watch one show, so, if you're super into Jey Uso or Rhea Ripley, there's no reason to watch SmackDown. The PLEs, which used to be loaded with stars, are now built around maybe 3 attraction matches and 2 midcard matches. For example, at Night of Champions, you got CM Punk, Cena, Cody, and Orton...but no Roman, no Logan Paul, Rhea in a "lesser" match (I loved it, but a No DQ match against Raquel isn't a marquee match), no Jey Uso, no GUNTHER, no Drew. As for the "buzz," well, it left sometime after the disappointing Mania show. People did not like the finish to Cena/Cody. People are not interested in Seth Rollins being the leader of a faction with Heyman and the lack of on-screen chemistry is palpable. Some of the folks who got their big Mania moment - Jey Uso, IYO, Stratton, Dominik - haven't done anything interesting or exciting since (aside from Jey losing his title). So, so, so many of the storylines on both shows feel like they're in hamster-wheel mode.

Yea, I'm sure its a nightmare to figure it all out, but ultimately, Saudi Arabia is one of the richest countries in the world and has also invested heavily into this whole enterprise. I don't see them - or the WWE, for that matter - changing things up when it is in Saudi Arabia and the WWE's best interest to act like everything is fine/safe/peachy keen. Where there's a will, there's a way and I think there's a strong will to put this show on.

Yea, I don't see Triple H bringing in Goldberg for a retirement match and (a) having him win the World Championship or (b) feeding him GUNTHER when you have so many other options of heels you can have Goldberg squash with a Spear and a Jackhammer. Even if it might/would be the wrong call to make, there's Logan Paul, Solo Sikoa, Dominik Mysterio, and Chad Gable, let alone guys Waller and Theory. If you want some heel to do the job in a squash, I think the only worse option than GUNTHER would be Drew McIntyre. I think there's something else to this Jey Uso business, personally. GUNTHER/Goldberg didn't need the title to sell the match. My guess: the title switch was the easiest option to try to boost interest for Raw on Netflix as, according to some news reports, the viewership has dipped considerably since January. They needed a reminder to fans that Raw is something you "can't miss" and needs to be watched live, which, from the onset of the Netflix/WWE partnership, was always going to be their hardest challenge. When people talk about Netflix trying to make inroads into "live TV," its because *they haven't successfully done it yet.* For all of Netflix's success, they remain the "other" in comparison to traditional TV and cable when it comes to live sports and live events. Even HBO has a decades-old history of live sports from boxing that it has helped use to sell MAX. And that was why getting the Raw rights was such a huge deal and also a gamble. In theory, the WWE has close to 2 million weekly "fixed" viewers that tune in on Monday nights at 8 PM EST to watch the show they've been watching for 30 years. It can air on USA or TNN or SyFy or wherever and that audience is going to find it on that night, at that time, and they're going to tune in. Now, pair that with Netflix's reach of 300 million worldwide and its marketing/promotion machine and the sky is the limit. So...when the reported numbers are showing that its down to about 1.6 million viewers, the question becomes, was that 2 million watching on cable the ceiling or the floor? It also means that, despite its best efforts and having the rights to one of the most established weekly live shows in TV history, as dependable as The Tonight Show but with no reruns, Netflix has not totally shaken the idea of Raw being "just another show" in a library filled with sometimes fantastic but almost always disposable shows. I mean, even great Netflix shows like Bloodline or are almost completely forgotten. When's the last time you had a conversation about Ozark? Netflix has put on some great TV series, no doubt, but the stigma of it being the destination for binge-watching an entire series in 3 days remains, as opposed to a station you "tune into" remains. That is Netflix's identity and Raw doesn't quite fit. The 1.5 million wrestling fans tuning in are okay with that, but nobody else gives a single shit, not even when you put John Cena, Paul Logan, CM Punk, Rhea Ripley, and Cody Rhodes on the same show. And if the show were to really get cold, as it likely will when the NFL season starts, that number could drop even lower. I mean, in the old days, if you're watching Monday Night Football on ESPN or ABC on your traditional TV/cable and the game is a bust, you just have to press a button and now you're watching Raw and you can just switch back during commercials to check the score. With Netflix, you're opening up a whole new app (I know, I know, first world problems, but the point still stands that convenience matters). Netflix is not designed for channel-surfers. An Intercontinental or US Championship change wouldn't do much. Nor would IYO SKY dropping her title. It needed to be a "big news" event and Jey dropping the title was a much easier thing to do, booking-wise, than ending Cena's reign.

Cena's heel turn would be "clicking" if he wasn't having dogshit matches with dogshit finishes that, at least in the case of the Mania match with Cody, are "bad on purpose" as some sort of "meta" commentary on years of valid criticisms of his work, like his telegraphing and not even hiding when he's calling spots and working "slow" compared to the "indie guys." When he literally started working in slo-mo at WrestleMania, I get that he was "getting heat"...but, at the end of the day, I've found myself bored and underwhelmed by every match of his since his return and I'm beginning to question whether Cena is doing this because it's "brilliant" trolling or because he actually can't work a good match anymore due to the accumulation of injury. The Orton match was a house show match and it was rightfully described as such by many commentators/analysts/podcast hosts, including Mark Henry, who would know something about Cena and Orton house show matches considering he probably wrestled in or saw hundreds of them over the years. The St. Louis crowd carried a match that didn't have a single original element in its entire 20+ minute runtime. But to return to Cody for a minute...Was I wrong to assume that he was supposed to be coming back as Cena's main foil? Its crazy that the collateral damage from how they messed up the R-Truth deal seems to be Cody's momentum because I don't think anyone cares at all that he's returned and is seeking revenge against Cena. And now with Punk as the challenger at the Saudi Arabia Sportswashing Celebration, Cody feels very much like he's outside the spotlight. Its a long ways until the Rumble so I'm just curious what he's going to be doing till then.

I can't speak for every person posting on R-Truth release, but I think most people recognize that it wasn't a firing. I don't think anyone is saying what the WWE did is technically unfair or complaining that they broke some sort of promise for a "job for life." I think what people - including a resounding number of actual wrestlers in the locker room - seemingly feel is that, sure, the WWE lived up to their contract and R-Truth lived up to his, but unless it is later revealed that there were on-going negotiations and the two sides couldn't meet in the middle, it certainly comes off like the WWE looked at R-Truth as just a number on a balance sheet and not as someone who, again, based on the evidence we have now, seems like he was a beloved part of the locker room. Y'know, the guys and gals that actually do the hard work and are in the trenches, making dates, training, etc. The frustration is not with WWE being "ruthless" in trimming the roster - which is why you didn't you see an outpouring of support for any of the other releases/non-renewals. The frustration is very specific to R-Truth, a guy who was clearly highly-respected, well-liked and considered a valuable part of the locker room. And, as I noted earlier, when a company doesn't do everything it can to retain someone like that, it sends a message that, ultimately, the things that R-Truth did to make the workplace a fun, positive place don't mean shit.

^ I think its the latter. I think WWE/Nick Khan/HHH are executing things that are coming from higher up and the motive is always profit. I don't think HHH woke up and thought to himself, "Let's not renew a wildly popular performer with seemingly little warning just because." Does that mean the Talent Relations department and the PR department and the head of Creative and their bosses (Khan and HHH) are blameless? No. They could've fought for R-Truth. But two things can be true at once. While it was a money-based decision, it also was a decision that I assume they felt was needed to send a bit of a message and make a little bit of a statement. The message, unfortunately, seems to be that anyone is expendable and that the WWE doesn't really give a shit about locker room morale and all that "We're like a family here" bullshit is as phony there as it is in any workplace. It's not a good look. It's also particularly hurtful due to the specific context.* The statement to viewers and fans, though, is that the WWE is evolving and changing and I think, creatively, we're seeing that shift all over both shows. Just like this is John Cena's last run, I think we are going to be seeing less and less of the stars from the first half of the 2020s. I don't think they're going to be cutting Randy Orton anytime soon, but we should probably enjoy folks like The Miz and Asuka and maybe Sheamus now while we can because, well, they're making room on the roster for the next generation. * Think about the "lifers" in WWE's history, the men (and they are mostly men) who were part of Vince's inner circle or served as his top lieutenants. Its a club of bullies, racists, perverts, power-hungry sycophant...the least offensive of the bunch were the plain ol' "old schoolers" willing to turn a blind eye to rampant hazing (and possibly sexual assault). Now think of the outpouring of emotion for R-Truth. You're telling me racist-ass Michael Hayes gets a lifetime deal but R-Truth's too expensive?

Thinking about Ricochet's search for a "crew" and most people believing it will be either Top Flight, CRU, Private Party or some other team, I kinda wish they'd go in a completely different direction and have it be, like, Evil Uno and Big Show. Just something ridiculous that makes very little sense but also kinda points to Ricochet not being able to convince an "actual" team to join him because he's such an arrogant, annoying nerd...aside from Evil Uno, who is has always been a follower, and Big Show, who could almost play it as taking pity on him or only doing it because Ricochet is paying him some ludicrous amount of money. Big Show is good at the comedy stuff, Uno is a great bumping henchman (and a good physical foil to Ricochet), and, if it works, maybe we'd even get Grayson back.

At this point, Adam Cole almost seems like he's on the roster out of pity for "what could've been." Due to his size, Cole was always going to be a hard sell as a main event-level guy for WWE and even for AEW if we're being honest. I feel like he needed everything to go right for him to overcome that and there were certainly times when things were going right. But injuries and that awful Devil storyline have basically eliminated any chance of him being a major player again. He seems like a super nice, hard-working dude, but I just don't see big things in his future. It also doesn't help that he's been doing the same entrance shtick forever and has also been attached-at-the-hip to O'Reilly and Strong to the point that it all feels like a retread of a retread of a retread.

- I think folks are really underplaying Storm/Bayne. That match was phenomenal. Easily the MOTN to me and even a potential MOTY for AEW in my book. I think with every other match on the show, you could point to this or that element not working or a bad booking decision or a lack of crowd engagement, but I found no such issues in the Women's World Championship match. Great storytelling, great character work, a bunch of awesome sequences and good signature offense out of Toni and a genuine "Oh Shit" moment in Bayne kicking out of the Storm Zero at 1. I guess maybe one could've asked for a more unique finish/pinning combo, but that feels a bit nitpicky. - The commenter above who noted Moxley's Jiu-Jitsu boner is spot-on. I guess one could argue that Moxley's offense matches his character as he transitioned from a brawler to a someone who wants to "punish" and grind his opponents down and, as a heel, him boring the audience with that style draws heat. But to pull that off, you have to be a real top-level worker and storyteller capable of planning and executing a match that features enough hope spots and cut-offs, enough twists and turns, and enough crowd interaction to make a 20+ minute match work. Moxley is not that worker.

I really, really hope not. I know that the story was supposed to lead to Darby winning the big one and being AEW's "savior," but I think that moment passed and, the good news is, you can still have Darby win the title down the line because the real story with Darby Allin is not beating Jon Moxley, the story has always been that Darby Allin is undersized, doesn't have "the look," is "too wild" to be a World Champion...but he has heart. The Death Riders thing isn't the worst storyline in wrestling history, but it doesn't feel like the "A" story and that's a problem when it is supposed to be at the top of the card. There was never any question what the "A" story was in WWE or WCW at any given time - whether it was Hogan in the 80s or the nWo or Austin/McMahon, Cena's lengthy run as the clear top guy, Daniel Bryan vs. The Authority, Becky Lynch's peak run as The Man, and most recently, the Bloodline saga. Sure, there were other angles and stories going on that were more engaging or more interesting and brief moments when a guy like Jeff Hardy might *seem* to be even more popular than the "top guy" like Cena, for example, but ultimately, when you tuned in to RAW or a PPV, there was always a sense that the top act in the company was in the top story. The Death Riders is not the top act and they're certainly not the top story. In AEW, I think the crowds are much more engaged in whatever Ospreay and Omega are doing than the Death Riders story. The crowd was more into Toni/Mariah May than the Death Riders story. I think Swerve/Ricochet had "hotter" segments than Cope/Mox did in the build-up to Revolution. The Death Riders story feels like part of the show - same as Jericho's Learning Tree - but not the "A" story. I've written about it elsewhere, but if I had the pencil, I'd take the title off Mox (and Swerve is a fantastic option this weekend) and send him home for a little. Then, you keep the Death Riders around and put PAC in the leadership role because, in terms of in-ring ability, he's gonna deliver the bangers on TV (vs. Ospreay, vs. Swerve, vs. Omega, vs. whoever) that is really AEW's bread-and-butter. Down the line, you bring back Mox and let the audience cheer for the guy again because, if MJF is "our scumbag," Moxley is kinda like "our idiot." He's a guy that the AEW fanbase wants to cheer and see do his act - even if that act is absurdly dangerous and stupid. He's likeable because, for all his bad ideas and sloppy work, for all the different ways he can make our eyes roll, I don't think anyone doubts his genuine passion for pro-wrestling and AEW. Its endearing.

Maybe its just me being cynical, but it seems like inducting "Moments" is just an excuse to bring in guys that are already in the Fame but don't necessarily have a reason to be at the Ceremony, on stage (and, ultimately, the Ceremony has become just another excuse to sell a ton of seats and merchandise). This year, having Austin at the WrestleMania Weekend thing and presumably at the Hall of Fame Ceremony to accept the award along with Bret, is the reason they're doing this. Otherwise, you're paying Austin to come out to do only off-camera work and that's kinda silly. If you're going to have the guy in Vegas, you gotta have him pop the crowd and drink a few beers.* Next year, I expect something similar - Undertaker vs. Shawn, The Rock vs. Foley, Foley vs. Undertaker - to give a reason for a big name retired guy like Undertaker or The Rock to make an appearance (though they don't really need one for The Rock anyway). I don't think they're too eager to bring Flair or Hulk back on-stage and I don't see them celebrating guys that can't really do anything for ticket sales (Savage, Piper, Andre, Warrior). I wouldn't get my hopes up that they'll be doing anything to commemorate a match like Bruno/Zybysko unless there are analytics I'm not aware of that say there is huge interest in late 70s/early 80s that can be monetized. * I wonder if he's going to charge them extra to drink that Real American swill and not his own brand, which is actually a damn tasty IPA (I haven't had his lager).

- I thought the Women's Chamber was good, not great. MOTY candidate is a biiig streeeeeetch to me. Sure, the wrestling was good and there were some cool spots but Bayley has been directionless since the DMG CTRL story ended, Roxanne Perez's gimmick is "I Was NXT Champion" (great...but for those of us that don't watch NXT or care, what is it that makes you special?), and Alexa Bliss is in that unfortunate situation of having a big return at the Rumble but clearly no real big comeback storyline laid out for her. Hopefully, Triple H takes off the noise-cancelling headphones soon and realizes that Bliss had one of the largest pops at the Rumble and that the crowd popped HUGE for her squaring off with Morgan last night. The match started off HOT with the Cargill angle and the finish was good, but the "middle" was good wrestling-for-good-wrestling's sake with a bunch of non-contenders. - We'll see how it plays out and I'm not totally sour on it or anything, but...they could've waited on this Rock story. Or maybe not? I hope I'm wrong. To me, though, Cena/Cody in a face/face match would've worked just fine. I assume Cody goes over at Mania as I'm just not sure how him getting screwed there is going to work when Mania has such a history of Babyface Overcoming Heel To Close The Show vibe. That being said, we saw Cody lose 2 years ago and it didn't halt his momentum so maybe Cena wins. But, at the same time, that was a loss against Roman during an all-time great run, not against Cena, who looks his age (somebody get this guy in a tanning bed) and has been passable-but-not-quite-his-old-self over the past few years. - Its also just a bit odd that Cena's big final run, even with a historic heel turn, will still ultimately be regarded as a footnote to a multi-year Rock/Cody program. Its giving more Austin turning heel to align himself with the "real" top villain (Vince McMahon) than Hulk Hogan turning heel and being the top villain. - I also felt like the inclusion of Travis Scott "dated" this segment, but my buddy's son, a wrestling fanatic, said it was great and reminded him of Dennis Rodman being in the nWo. Not my cup of tea, but let's remember who the target audience is and what will get social media attention (even saying "headlines" is a dated phrase). Travis Scott's involvement rubs many of us the wrong way because we don't know or care about Travis Scott. But we're not the TikTok generation. Rodman was a lightning rod in 97', but my dad would've thought him being involved in wrestling was silly and stupid while I thought it was sweet (maybe even TOO sweet). And my dad was in his early 40s then and I'm in my early 40s now. Maybe more of us would've popped for it if it were someone we think is cool like, I dunno, Robert Smith from the Cure. Or Morrisey if they wanted that extra heel heat. - I thought Zayn and KO delivered, but the commentary was just too over-the-top. You can't or at least *shouldn't* be saying things like "Sami Zayn is dead" or "This has been a massacre" when there are still 15 minutes in the match left with multiple kick-outs, babyface comebacks, and cut-offs coming. I get that they need to sell every big spot as career-ending, but it becomes gratuitous and takes away from the action when the commentators are treating every single move as a deathblow. Its like a huge neon sign flashing "This Is All Staged." - Speaking of bad commentary, Pat McAfee may have jumped the shark on this show for me. For starters, bringing up how the Canadian fans booed the national anthem repeatedly was awkward. Our President is in the midst of starting a trade war with one of our key allies (actually, more than one), so, yeah, there's some understandable tension. No need for jingoism on this show. But, even worse than that, McAfee having the anti-intuition and bad judgment to talk during the final segment. Cole and Barrett kept their comments to a minimum until AFTER Cena's turn, at which point Cole went into hysterics (which is in line with his character), but McAfee's nonsensical commentary didn't add anything and only took away from the segment. This is the issue with bringing in a guy who gets paid to talk to be a commentator. He doesn't know when to shut up and let a moment be a moment because he is literally paid to talk non-stop for hours a day. Its not his fault either, especially as the company has made it clear that they're willing to let him come and go and get a huge paycheck and do whatever he wants because he's a "name" and Corey Graves isn't. I'm not even a Graves mark, but, yeah, I think its going to be hard for me to "un-hear" McAfee's faults moving forward.

I think we're supposed to separate "The Rock" and "The Final Boss." Last night, they advertised the return of "The Final Boss" and so that's code for "The Rock will be playing his heel character" whereas, on the Netflix special, we got The Rock as the non-kayfabe actual TKO board member there to glad hand Netflix executives about how all the millionaires in the room are going to make even more millions. I guess both versions are heel but one is a "wresting heel" and the other is just an actual tone deaf rich douchebag? Anyway...I'm not super enthused about some of the ideas being thrown out there, but I guess we'll wait and see. Cody as the "Corporate Champion" seems a bit premature to me, actually. I don't get the sense that the fans are turning on him even slightly. There's an argument that he needs new challengers, but Cena/Cody seems like its on the horizon, Cena/Punk can work face/face, I think Orton/Cody could work whenever Orton comes back, and Jacob Fatu is on the brink of being a main event guy if they continue pushing him right. Cena is not turning heel for his final run. I don't even think it would make for a good story, honestly. Punk turning into The Rock's "pick" would also be really dumb to me. These guys' characters and motivations are so established that throwing away decades of that just so they could play an unfitting role for a year or two - because, again, Cena is retiring this year and Punk is not going to last much longer with his injury history - would be silly. And would be leaving a ton of money on the table. Cena's Farewell Tour is going to sell a ton more tee-shirts and rally towels to kids if he's a babyface than if he's a heel. CM Punk is a great heel, no doubt, but he's arguably even better at just playing himself and he's not a "corporate ass-kisser" guy. The money with Punk has always been using him as a lightning rod, a modern Piper, not as a suck-up. My prediction: The Rock is going to keep it ucey and his pick will be someone in the Bloodline. I want it to be Fatu. I think Fatu being "corporate-ized" but still being a madman in the ring would be a good way to test his range. We know the in-ring skills are there. We know the charisma is there in its current form. How would Fatu come across if you put him in some gaudy "expensive" shit like what the Rock was wearing? Plus, as I alluded to, while Fatu has a history outside of the WWE, to the WWE audience, he is relatively new and the parameters of his character have not been defined yet. You can play around with him more than you can Cena or Punk and, if it flops (which, based on Fatu's work so far, it probably won't), you can always reset him without having to explain much. Who do I think it will be? Jimmy or Solo.

"Some Kind of Monster" is so, so, so good. It's the documentary Goodfellas/Casino to me: a movie that I can walk into at any moment, beginning, middle, or end, and just watch the rest of the way through and thoroughly enjoy. It really doesn't matter if you start at the beginning after your first viewing. Is it the best rock doc ever? Maybe, maybe not...but the replay value is incredible. Another movie that has become that for me is I,Tonya, but whatever. As for post-Black Album 'Tallica, I don't think there's really a solid, beginning-to-end good album in the discography. Some are unlistenable (St. Anger), some are not really worth a full revisit (72 Seasons), and some are okay but maybe too bloated or self-conscious to consider as anything more than decent (Hardwired...). I'm not even precious about pre-Black Album Metallica. I just think around the mid-90s, their albums became 4-5 good songs with cool riffs surrounded by 8 to 10 songs that lacked much creative juice. I don't think good production would've saved St. Anger, which sounds like everyone having collective writer's block and blaming each other for it (the fact that they wondered if maybe the problem was Kirk's soloing just shows how crazy their thinking was during that time) and the documentary makes it pretty clear that that was at least partially what was going on. As for AEW, I'm admittedly kinda bummed that Grand Slam is not a PPV because the card is really stacked and exciting to me and I worry that its going to feel more like a "special TV episode" - predictable outcomes, matches getting cut into with commercial breaks, fewer surprises - than what it deserves. I'm hoping they find a way to make it feel like something bigger and better than one of their lame Battle of the Belt shows.

MCMG/DIY really had the worst possible positioning but something has to go there so at least we got the tag titles defended and, with only 4 matches on the card, it was the right one to put there. The work was fine, it was just happening in front of a massive crowd that was naturally cooling down after a 60+ minute match where there is literally something "new and shiny" to attract your attention every 2 minutes. Talking to a friend who was there, he went to the bathroom basically as soon as the Women's Rumble ended and said the lines for the bathroom and concessions were so long that by the time he got to his seat, he'd missed the first 2 falls. That means getting to the restroom, waiting in line, probably getting a beer, and getting back to his seat took something like 20+ minutes.