The Dudley Boyz have used their 9th Life
Ever since the Dudley Boyz came back to the WWE in 2015, they have been an after thought on WWE programming. With the success of The New Day, their run as returning veterans hitting the scene to dominate the tag division never occurred and in turn, the team became incredibly stale. Stale and boring. Last night changed all of that as we saw a much needed heel turn from D-Von and Bubba Ray.
Finally some energy and creativity is injected into these guys. They need it badly. They have it. This is their last life. If they can’t connect and roll with their new character well enough, we may see the tables be put up on the shelf forever.
Kevin Owens vs. Dolph Ziggler: We accidentally have a reason to care
Last night on Raw for the twelfth-ish time in a row we saw Kevin Owens vs. Dolph Ziggler. For some reason, last night’s match made me believe that something truly great is in the works. It felt that these two were true rivals and I enjoyed it. These guys have great matches together. That is obvious. What hasn’t been obvious is the reason for which they are fighting each other.
Now, it doesn’t matter. They’ve wrestled so many times with Ziggler coming out on top that by accident, the random meaningless matches have now led to a meaningful story of Kevin Owens getting revenge on Ziggler. It will be fun to see this story shake out in the next few weeks.
Chris Jericho vs. AJ Styles = Pro Wrestling 101
AJ Styles has been in the WWE for only a few weeks and he is currently entrenched in one of the most interesting feuds that WWE has going. Why? Pro Wrestling 101. Put two performers that excel at their craft in front of a television camera and let them work. Heel or babyface, it doesn’t matter.
Right now, both Styles and Chris Jericho are exemplifying that. The story is based around respect and it works. I haven’t been excited for a Smackdown match in a long time and can’t wait for this rematch on Thursday.
Talent = ratings.
The Roman Reigns push has shifted in a major way
In case you forgot, Roman Reigns is in the WWE World Heavyweight Championship #1 contender match at Fast Lane. It wouldn’t look like that if you watched Raw the last two weeks, but I assure you he is. Why is he invisible? Obvious answer folks. The WWE does not want to have a negative reaction for their golden child at WrestleMania this year.
Since losing the WWE championship, Reigns hasn’t looked upset or mad about it. After his return, Triple H barely acknowledged the fact that he was beat to a pulp by Reigns that kept him on the shelf for a month and half. Dean Ambrose is the guy going toe-to-toe with Lesnar in main segments on Raw. All of this is signaling a shift in the Reigns booking as the Road To WrestleMania moves on. And not a favorable one for Roman Reigns.
Dean Ambrose is a bonafide main event talent
Dean Ambrose is the man right now. While in the ring with Brock Lesnar and Paul Heyman, he looks like he belongs and is acting like he belongs. Size wise he is undoubtedly much smaller. That said, the crowd is fully buying Ambrose as a threat to Lesnar’s dominance.
Most importantly, the crowd wants to see this fight and they want to see it because of Ambrose’s hard work and connection with the audience. His intensity on the mic makes Brock look weak and beatable which is something that opponents of his have had a hard time doing in the recent past. Ambrose does it.
This two week run is going to culminate in something big, but at the very least it solidifies Ambrose as a true main eventer in the WWE.
Thanks for reading, everyone!