RAW Deal: Not so Royal this time around

DALLAS, USA—On to the Rumble we go.

The pieces have finally come together: Cena hates Rollins and Lesnar, Rollins hates Cena (and just sees Lesnar as an obstacle to overcome), and Lesnar now has a reason to hate both men. Sting has showed up to continue helping out in the crusade against the Authority (although they definitely could’ve used his help when Team Cena was in the middle of getting fired). Not only is the stage set for the Royal Rumble this Sunday in Philly, but the WWE has also taken a concrete first step toward something big at WrestleMania 31.

The only problem left that we shouldn’t fail to identify here is that while the WWE World Heavyweight Championship scene has undoubtedly been hot—with all players playing their roles well—January’s main attraction, the Royal Rumble itself, doesn’t seem to have gotten enough press.

Granted, the match always sells itself and the pay-per-view. Performance in the match itself is enough to make a new star or solidify the presence of one. But this year, it just feels like no one has stood out and looked poised to take over the Rumble, regardless of who the rumors say is booked to win.

If it’s Roman Reigns, then he hasn’t looked convincing as a potential Rumble winner in his middling feud with the Big Show and the terrible promos that have come out of it on this part. (Although that most likely won’t stop Vince McMahon from executing his best-laid plans.) If it’s Daniel Bryan, then the underdog booking in light of his injury and his perennial standing against the Authority hasn’t left him with enough momentum going into Sunday. (But that’s nothing a workhorse performance in the match itself won’t fix.) If it’s Bray Wyatt, then the esoteric and bizarre nature of his character still hasn’t been addressed to justify a pursuit to the championship.

In a way, the lack of an onscreen favorite to win the whole thing may pave the way for a legitimate “anybody-can-win-it-all” atmosphere, but even that angle—one that is pretty damn easy to play up—hasn’t been pushed enough. I get that the WWE title match is really important because it’s Lesnar’s first title defense in a long time, but that doesn’t mean we can’t forget about the big annual tradition looming on the horizon.

Perhaps it’s a lack of focus on Creative’s part, or maybe a general lack of faith in everyone who isn’t involved with the championship, but this isn’t good form for one of the most anticipated pay-per-view events of the year.

In any case, we’ll see you this Sunday for what never fails to be a fun event.

High spots:

• I’m still trying to figure out whether it’s a good thing, but this show seemed to fly by for the first two hours with two huge in-ring segments and two solid matches. People will either love or hate the opening segment and/or the Legends Panel segment and that’s totally fine, but I kind of like having not so many things to absorb and process. It helps that we got two good matches (with some substantial minutes) in Daniel Bryan/Bray Wyatt (always a winner in my book) and Dean Ambrose/Bad News Barrett.
• And speaking of Daniel Bryan, I said it last week, but I really must repeat it: I’ve missed watching Bryan work. Only Dolph Ziggler, Seth Rollins, and to an extent, Dean Ambrose have brought that same energy Bryan’s ring work always brings to a show.
• Some in-ring performances you should give credit to: New Day and Kidd/Cesaro, as well as Paige and Alicia Fox.

• Ric Flair attempting to attack the Big Show was gold. Big Show punching old guys makes me happy. 

• Sting, finally! It might not have been much of anything, but the lack of development in that area has gotten us to the point where any appearance—anything at all—would’ve gotten us to pop. Finally, we’re heading somewhere.

Low blows:

• I’m honestly not sure what to make of Ziggler, Rowan, and Ryback being reinstated after a mere two weeks. On one hand, yes, you need those guys for the Rumble. On the other hand, it doesn’t help the WWE’s cause against those who lambast Creative for not letting things play out. I’m inclined to give it some credit for being an avenue to continue Sting/Triple H, but in the end I’m still not sure what to think about it.
• The Legends Panel was much ado about nothing up until Big Show came in to get over as a heel.
• And speaking of Cena’s stipulation, who wouldn’t vote to let Cena put his title shot on the line for a shot to get Team Cena’s jobs back? These vox pop angles are always an affront to everyone’s intelligence. If you’re going there anyway and setting yourselves up to look stupid when Sting comes out to distract you, just go all the way there. Let’s not waste time with this silly voting gimmick.
• It was Martin Luther King day and they didn’t take the opportunity to let the New Day reference it.
• And when did Adam Rose ally with Cesaro and Kidd?
• And why couldn’t this feud be played out using singles matches?
• How many times are we going to get Miz/Mizdow vs. the Usos? RAW needs to stop being three hours so that Creative can focus on actually being creative.
• Okay, let’s get on the Ascension this week. While there are people who like that segment for the sheer badassery and nostalgia factor of seeing the nWo, the APA, and the New Age Outlaws beat down on the Ascension, it just doesn’t look right. JBL, the heel commentator who is supposed to be on their side, even takes up arms against them. No matter what you think or feel about the Ascension—and even I will admit they’re not that great—you can’t bring up young wrestlers just to knock them down. Yes, the Ascension are floundering, but to have the system contribute to dragging them down is bad practice. It makes no one look good. It trashes the Ascension themselves, and it trashes the company itself both for the farm system failing to produce and the backstage brass being unbelievably petty. 
• And even if you spin it as the WWE tearing them down so that they can build them back up, that would imply that the endgame is them being sympathetic faces. That’s confusing, because they came in as heels who were trying to be monster heels and disrespecting their predecessors just to get heel heat, and now we’re supposed to feel sorry for them because no one takes them seriously at all? The flip-flopping is sure to hurt them more than it will help them because of how needlessly complicated it will get. They’re not the best wrestlers out there, but now I legitimately feel sorry for the Ascension. (That’s the face heat, I suppose.) That scenario is actually the best-case scenario; they don’t deserve being universally lambasted for something they were only told to do.
• And if they do end up being faces… it still wouldn’t be the best look for them. They just can’t win this battle. 

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