RAW Deal: Oh, the humanity

KANSAS CITY, USA—A few months ago, Brock Lesnar was furious after having lost the title to Seth Rollins at WrestleMania in a shady, shady way. He asked for his rematch the night after, and Seth, like a true pro wrestling villain, bailed out of the match right before it was about to start. In a fit of rage, Lesnar beat up a cameraman and F-5ed Michael Cole, earning himself a suspension for endangering civilians. That’s human.

Last Sunday at the Battleground pay-per-view, the Undertaker returned to the WWE and cost Brock Lesnar the WWE World Heavyweight Championship. He explained his actions on this week’s episode of RAW, saying that while the cold, hard truth is that streaks were made to be broken and he lost, he couldn’t take Lesnar and advocate Paul Heyman’s endless bragging about the feat. That’s human.

Triple H and Stephanie McMahon, as the Authority tasked to do whatever it is that’s best for business, would prefer to protect this marquee SummerSlam matchup because it will make them the most money. Never mind that the wellbeing of the Authority is in danger. That’s human.

The crowd doesn’t know what to feel about this whole thing. On one hand, people are excited that the legendary Undertaker is back, someone who a lot of people love just because he’s the Undertaker. On the other hand, the more rational among us have called Taker’s character petty. Because, well, it is petty. Dredging up this 15-month old grudge is petty, whether you can relate to it or not. Reacting however you react to this—that’s human, too.

Part of the charm of the Reality Era is that not only is it highlighting actual, real-world events, but in doing so, it brings actual humanity to the forefront. It did so when CM Punk’s first pipebomb revealed both his and the actual authority’s hubris, and it continues to do so when villains like Kevin Owens and Rusev get realistic human sides that transcend traditional good guy-bad guy values.

There is a place for real stories such as these, simply because the crowd is made up of actual humans who may be able to relate. The only issue is that humanity might not actually be best for business. [Former WWE commentator] Jim Ross said, after Battleground, that a clear line between good guys and bad guys is the best way to make money. But that—and anything that theorizes with the crowd’s participation—is only as true as the crowd makes it. Even if that was the best way to do it before, if the crowd will cheer a heel and boo a face, then what good is that business model?

It’s a dilemma they need to figure out if the WWE wants to stay relevant. It’s not as simple as pushing the most popular guy, because that doesn’t necessarily imply good storytelling (look at Cena). It’s not as simple as saying they need better storytelling, because storytelling depends on proper characterization. And while good wrestling absolves most sins, it’s also not that simple, because it’s also true that wrestlers shouldn’t be wrestling for the sake of wrestling. 

Complexity is humanity’s blessing and curse.

High spots:

• While I didn’t like the segment that introduced Charlotte, Becky Lynch, and Sasha Banks to the roster last week, things are looking up. The Divas got two matches tonight, and while one more match might not be something to you, it’s a big deal. Time is a big deal, because time leads to understanding and acceptance. You give them more time, you make them feel like they’re part of the show more. Now let’s work on building better stories for them organically. 

• PULL-APART BRAWL! Well, that’s one way to hype Lesnar/Undertaker for SummerSlam. 

• The addition of Dean Ambrose and Luke Harper to Roman Reigns vs. Bray Wyatt is a good shot of adrenaline for this feud. Reigns is steadily improving his ring work, not necessarily by adding new moves to his arsenal, but honing his execution. Exciting is what you need to be when you need kids to look up to you. I just wish that they continued to run with Wyatt threatening Reigns’s daughter, as that was something we could wrap our heads around—the feud is devolving into a blood feud faster than it should be.
• This episode’s main event is pretty hot, especially with Rusev getting some sympathy on him after Owens and Sheamus bailed in the middle of the match. I’m not sure if turning Rusev face is the plan, but it looks like it’s going that way. It was a good, logical move to have Owens create tension in the team, because of course Owens wouldn’t play well with others. 

Low blows:

• Still not feeling Summer Rae being Rusev’s arm candy.
• I’m not yet sure about what to feel for Seth Rollins vs. John Cena at SummerSlam. Knowing myself, it should be good, considering the level Rollins and Cena are at, but a part of me wishes they would build up other stars for both men. I get that SummerSlam is the second-biggest show of the year and they need to stack it up, but it should be more of the “test drive” PPV for younger talents than WrestleMania. Imagine if guys like Cesaro and Kevin Owens had the same chance Daniel Bryan had two years ago? Now Cesaro, Owens, and Rusev theoretically have nothing to do right now, but the world just saw them wrestle a good main event.

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