Takeover was excellent in every match with the womans title match the only one dipping below excellence whilst i also skipped over dunne/walter. I have only watched three walter matches and he just seems like some flabby drunk uncle that wants to wrestle people at christmas...but i have been wrong before.
Mania was a lot better than i expected although i skipped balor/lashley, hhh/batista, angle/korbin, reigns/mcintyre. battle Royals were horribly booked but the rest of the matches were great and i even fist pumped when kofi won. The main event finish felt so flat just like the end of the charlotte/sasha hell in a cell finish. Great effort from the ladies but needed another 10 minutes build i think.
Raw - again was a great show..until the unfathomable ending..
I actually thought Raw was pretty blah all around.
I thought it started on a good note with Rollins explaining Brock's disappearance and the build up for the main event between Kofi Kingston & Seth Rollins. Normally you'd dismiss that type of announcement since they'd never give away such a huge match on television, but the company is so desperate for ratings and it was Wrestlemania weekend that it actually made sense.
Then they opened up with a rematch from Wrestlemania that didn't really advance anything. I enjoy both Ryder and Hawkins, but feel like they're better characters than in-ring wrestlers. There was a better way of getting them onto the show then have them spend 15 minutes working a match. I'm also bitterly disappointed that Dash Wilder wasn't rewarded for his exploits at the Hall of Fame. They didn't have to put the belts back on them, but give Dash a nice victory over somebody just as a wink and a nod to the smark fans that were there.
The Alexa Bliss-Bayley match was a waste of everybody.
I can understand why the WWE are really high on Lacey Evans because she has a brilliant background and really looks the part. However the way they're built her up has done her no favours and it feels like a terrible waste of Becky. It reminds me of when they put Daniel Bryan with Big Cass, who's benefitting here? There were so many opponents they could have put Becky with. Sasha Banks, Nia Jaxx, Asuka etc. would have all had stronger claims. The fact they had Becky basically no-sell her finish in the opening segment really shows how much thought they put into it. Lacey hit Becky with her best shot...and nothing.
Speaking of new faces, Lars Sullivan was given the dime a dozen monster debut. The WWE have done nothing to separate him from the pack. Put him with Corbin, make him an Author of Pain do something other than making him a dime a dozen guy.
The tag team match between the teams of Gable & Roode & Ricochet & Black was good and that's a fair use of both guys but neither of these teams really matter on the show. Sure inside the tag division they've done well, but as characters on the show, it's not like they're on an arc or have anything interesting going on. Gable being Roode's mini-me feels like such a waste, if it was my call, he'd be the Universal Champion.
Again, Sami-Finn was the highlight for me, if only because Sami cut an authentic promo that felt believable and it has me curious where he's going with all of this. I hope it isn't some RTC type of deal, but if he can change up his ring-game and stop hitting all these big flashy moves it could be a game changer for him.
The Dean Ambrose segment was odd and suggests to me that the WWE want to keep the door open while he sorts himself out. Personally, I'm fine with Ambrose leaving and if he wants to continue wrestling, I hope it's outside the WWE. Outside of The Shield, it just wasn't a good fit. I was a fan of Lashley in TNA, but the WWE have absolutely destroyed his character. The only person who is benefitting is Lio Rush and I don't have any faith in the WWE keeping him over outside of Lashley.
And the main event was what it was. If they were going to have somebody come out and ruin the occassion it needed to be a new tag team that the crowd cared about. If it was The Undisputed Era it would have been great and instantly Raw has a hot program with Rollins taking on Cole. What they went with was so disrespectful to the audience and honestly a waste of Cesaro/Sheamus who both deserve better.
All in all, I thought it was a recap show and just a way for the WWE to kill time and come down from that slog of a Wrestlemania.
