Seven Biggest Talking Points Following WWE Superstar Shakeup Part 1
The US and IC Champion Collide on Monday Night RAW
One of the biggest surprises during the superstar shakeup in my opinion came from the arrival of Dean Ambrose. If there is one man I was certainly not expecting to move shows it as Dean Ambrose. The IC championship belongs on Smackdown LIVE. Not to mention he's move puts Corbin in a weird poison with nothing really waiting for him. Personally, I was really hoping to see Baron as the Intercontinental Champion within the next month and its a shame to see that won't be happening. The bigger issue I have with this is the simple fact that this means both the US and IC championships are on the same show. I've made it clear in the past that I don't want to see these titles unified and while it's likely that we will see Kevin Owens move to Smackdown LIVE tonight with the US title I'm just not a fan of the idea. I don't believe there's as much waiting for him over on Smackdown and if he moves than Chris Jericho is going to have to move also. There is far too much going on between those two and as last night went to show, their rivalry is far from over. However, even if Jericho does move he won't be around for long anyway with him set to be leaving at the end of the month. I do worry for the IC title and Ambrose on RAW. I get that Ambrose needed something new and this move could in the long run be really good for him and exactly what he needed but that title is going to have to be used correctly and the booking around it needs to remain strong.Braun Strowman Steals the Show
While the biggest talking point remains the Superstar Shakeup there is one man that every single wrestling fan can not stop stalking about right now and for all the right reasons, Braun Strowman. Oh where do I even begin? He's good, really really damn good. Strowman is without a shadow of a doubt the man that has made the biggest change the since the brand split last summer and its superstars like him that proved the whole thing was a good idea in the first place. He has taken hold of every opportunity and killed it. His popularity has increased massively and with a series of strong matches now to his name he has earned the right to be names one of the best, most promising and strongest (quite literally) in the WWE today. During last nights show he continued to prove himself and standout brighter than any other star when he gave Roman Reigns the beating of his life. Reigns was set to have sit down backstage interview with Michael Cole to talk about his win over the Undertaker at Wrestlemania and the controversy there. What really amazed me more than anything if I'm being honest is the fact that Roman is still a god damn baby face. At this point you really can see just how out of touch the WWE are with its fans and what the best and right move to make is in regards to certain superstars. The entire world, even casual fans know that the best thing for Roman Reigns is to turn the man heel yet the WWE insist on continuing to push him as the big baby face. The man was almost killed last night and throughout the entire thing the crowd were chanting things such as "you deserve it" and urging Strowman to continue. I can one hundred percent root for a heel Roman but a baby face? Not in the slightest. I will however say props to him for the beating he took last night. Strowman looked like a beast and Reigns did a good job in making him look like legitimate... beast. Will this feud make anyone cheer for Roman? Not at all. What it did do however and what it will continue to do is put Strowman over. The man completely stole the show last night after almost murdering Roman Reigns and tipping over a damn Ambulance van. If there is one thing the WWE are doing right its building Strowman up. Mid way through this entire thing all I could think about was how badly I want to see him as Champion. I'm a Brock Lesnar fan, don't get me wrong, but after last night and I don't believe I'm the only one here but I want to see Strowman as champion and nobody else right now. It's just the right move to make. He's a champion and there is no denying that. The man is on fire right now.
A Much Needed Shakeup in the RAW Womens Division
If there is one good thing that came of the superstar shakeup last nights it's what we saw from the women's division. For weeks on end I have sat here and complained ab out seeing the same old same old thing from the female talent on Monday night RAW. Since the original brand split last summer we seen Nia Jax, Bayley, Sasha Banks, and Charlotte as the main focus of the women's division and that really is it. Up until now they have been the only women (and occasionally Dana) who we have seen on our screens in storyline's and big matches. Any other women that had been drafted just hasn't been seen, with Summer Rae recovering from an injury, Paige being Paige and Alicia Fox working a hundred romantic storylines with the cruiserweights the fans have been forced to watch the same women compete week in and week out and more recently everyone has grown bored of seeing the same thing every single week. You guys know how much I love women's wrestling and how all I want is for the female talent to make an impact but with the same women, despite them all being fantastic characters and performers, constantly being presented to us we were all naturally bound to grow bored. Last week we did get to see the return of Emma and trust me her return was much needed. Her arrival alone sparked some excitement and something new and fresh in the division but walking out of the RAW after Mania last week it felt as though we still needed more and the superstar shakeup was something I was hoping would allow us to see that little something the women's division over on RAW was missing take its place. If you read my Five Superstars who should Switch brands during the Superstar shakeup post and other recent blog posts you would have see me talk about Carmella in particular as she was the one female talent I strongly believed needed the move and while I one hundred and ten percent back the decisions made in the women's division last nights she remains someone I really worry about going forward. She's a face that the division on RAW could have seriously needed and to be fair the girl needs saving and RAW possibly could have done that. However, instead of Carmella, we got to see two of the biggest names on the Smackdown LIVE roster make their way over to RAW, Mickie James and former (and the only) two time Smackdown LIVE women's champion Alexa Bliss. I have to say that this was actually one of my favourite segments of the night. I was amazed but so so glad to see that Alexa picked up the biggest pop of the night. I wasn't expecting her to make the move what so ever but the crowd reaction alone proved this was a great move. The former champ had everyone up on their feet and owned her role in this segment. Mickie James soon followed and looked to be a big part of the division now. This is exactly what the girls over on RAW needed. It made me excited for the coming weeks and the future feuds. It was also interesting seeing the on screen relationship between Nia and Alexa and Nia also make such a big impact during this segment. Mickie and Alexa have really shaken up the division and finally there is plenty to look forward as far as women's wrestling and Monday night RAW go.Elias Samson Arrives on RAW & Seth Rollins is here to Stay
If you have been reading my blog and following me for long enough you will know all too well that I have never really been a fan of the drifter, Elias Samson. He's never been someone I enjoy watching and his character has never entertained me or worked for me in the slightest. However, then the former NXT star arrived on the scene last night I have to say I was pretty damn excited. Now, I don't believe I have come a major Elias Samson fan over night but I was certainly happy to see him on my TV screen. I think it boils down to being such a big NXT fan and whenever any star makes an arrival on the big stage I'm just so happy and proud of them. The drifter was no different. He was spotted walking around the arena in the crowd section during the Nia Jax VS Charlotte match and made an official appearance on the show later on. He was never a big name down in NXT but he is certainly one to keep an eye on with the capabilities to work his character better than anyone and fit in a couple of really strong matches he could have a couple of really cool moments if he's actually used correctly. Regardless, welcome to Monday night RAW Elias Samson!I'm also going to quickly touch on Seth Rollins and what we saw and heard from him during last nights show. Now, as the night went on I began to realize that Smackdown LIVE were losing some pretty huge names. The Miz, Bray Wyatt, Alexa Bliss, and Dean Ambrose were all big loses to the blue brand and replacing them is going to be extremely difficult. Thoughts very quickly moved onto who should make the move from RAW to Smackdown LIVE and one of the names that I saw pop up time and time again was Seth Rollins. A rumored name to be moving brands and seeing the way the night was going I grew confident that the architect would be making the jump over to Smackdown LIVE. However, Rollins came down to the ring to address the matter live in the ring and would announce that he was staying on Monday night RAW. The news didn't go down well with a lot of fans including myself. He's a name that Smackdown LIVE really needed and come on, who isn't desperate to see Rollins VS Nakamura!? Looking at the roster now it seems as though he's move would have made the most sense and the fact he isn't going to be switching brands means Smackdown LIVE is in a lot of trouble.
Bray Wyatt Sets his Sights on the Demon King
Keeping on the theme of bad decisions, (there really was a lot I didn't like last night) mid way through the show we learnt that Bray Wyatt was now apart of Monday night RAW when he cut a promo on Finn Balor moments after the former NXT Champion defeated Jinder Mahal. Ok, lets just get a few things straight, I'm very very excited about Bray Wyatt VS Finn Balor. I strongly believe this feud could be one of the most exciting we have seen in a long time and the thought of those two competing one on one in a twenty minuet match gives me goose bumps. I don't doubt that the work we are about to see from them over the next couple of months is going to spectacular. However, I seriously worry for Bray. Smackdown LIVE saw him finally take the spot as champion and dominate the roster. We saw his best storyline since he arrived on the scene in my personal opinion against Randy Orton and the opportunities there for him were just endless. I honestly was not expecting to see him switch brands last night. It just didn't make sense to me, not now anyway. Not when there was still so much for him on Smackdown LIVE and not when he has a big WWE Championship match against Randy Orton. Well at least we know now Bray isn't becoming a two time WWE Champion any time soon. I do worry that things are really going to go backwards for him now that he has made the move over to RAW and while I want to remain positive I find it really difficult considering I believe this was one of the biggest mistakes made last night. However, like I said, I do think he and Balor are going to present us with something huge and seriously entertaining and this does mean we are one step closer to Bray Wyatt VS Broken Matt Hardy.Overall Show and Superstar Shakeup Part one Final Thoughts
Part one of the superstar shakeup was very very interesting. I was left surprised at a lot of the decisions made and the new arrivals. I wasn't surprised to see Kalisto, Curt Hawkins, and Apollo Crews moved to RAW in the slightest. Kalisto in particular should have been drafted to RAW in the first place with the Cruiserweight division being there and while I don't believe he will become a
As far as the overall show goes I thought it was actually really good. The Revival continued to get everyone talking with their amazing performance in what was one of my favourite matches of the night against the New Day. TJ Perkins also had a much needed heel turn and Cesaro and Sheamus also remained strong talking points.
Of course I will be live tweeting throughout Smackdown LIVE tonight and you can check out what I think of the changes that will be made there in tomorrows blog post around the same time. As usual, any recent blog posts will be linked bellow and you can let me know what you thought of last nights show and the superstar shakeup by leaving a comment bellow or by tweeting me over at @TezangiVictoria.
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