There is big news out of WWE, with a major shakeup on Raw. Paul Heyman (who will remain Brock Lesnar's advocate) has been relieved of his duties as the brand's Executive Director. Although Heyman still reported to Vince McMahon, he had some hands-on control over the brand and was using it to try and create new stars, like Apollo Crews and Andrade. However, TV ratings have been in decline and, even with the understanding that world circumstances are negatively impacting the business, Vince had lost patience with the process. So, he's consolidating the writing for both the Red Brand and Blue Brand, which will now be run by himself and Bruce Prichard (aka Brother Love, who has been in charge of Smackdown ever since WWE fired Eric Bischoff last fall). It remains to be seen what that will mean for the overall product. I liked Smackdown, mostly because we got a pay per view-quality match in AJ Styles vs Daniel Bryan. They are two of the most complete wrestlers WWE has and put on a clinic of classic wrestling & wrestling psychology. Although the match was technically not the main event (if you subscribe to the belief the last match is always the main event), it was the best thing on the show. I had mixed feelings about the Jeff Hardy / Sheamus segment. It was funny in a crude way, but it was also a reminder Vince McMahon is amused by bodily functions (urine, in this case) or bathroom humour. Remember the short-lived farting Natalya storyline of a couple of years ago? Or the Uso/Revival back shaving segment? Or Drake Maverick urinating on Bobby Roode's robe? The New Day vs Cesaro & Shinsuke Nakamura was a match that fell short of what the teams can do. I mentioned in my last review that Cesaro & Nakamura are much more talented than they're allowed to show. I would've been okay with this being a title match and for there to have been a title switch here and again at Backlash. Currently, New Day are not scheduled for a match at the pay per view and I suspect that will not change. Expect PPVs to be shorter than normal during current circumstances. What we are almost certain to get is a rematch on Smackdown next week...possibly for the belts. I'm not sure quite what the WWE has planned for Otis, Tucker and Braun Strowman. A heel turn is possible, but I don't expect it to be Otis. The WWE seem happy with his babyface character. However, Strowman could be the one who proactively attacks Mr. Money in the Bank. It's also possible Tucker turns because he's annoyed Otis is preoccupied with his cash-in opportunity...not to mention Mandy Rose. The Bayley & Sasha Banks celebration segment has been done many times before. It felt like a by-the-numbers situation, with the festivities being interrupted by talent against whom they will next defend the belts. Backlash does feature a women's tag team triple threat match title match with the three teams involved in this scenario. Matt Riddle strikes me as a Rob Van Dam-type character in that he's laid back and has martial arts capabilities. I do agree with you WWE has a questionable track record with NXT talent that gets promoted to the main roster. Far too many have their characters changed, get put in contrived storylines, get used sparingly or not at all. For every Aleister Black (who has made a good transition) there are a zillion wrestlers like Eric Young, EC3, No Way Jose and Apollo Crews, who get lost and either have start-stop pushes or just never get a chance. Finally, the six man tag was a little underwhelming. Ziggler's pairing with Miz & Morrison came because of his recent history with Otis. The match really didn't increase my anticipation for the Universal title defense at Backlash (Strowman vs Miz & Morrison in a handicap match). I have to say I actually liked Raw better than you this week. Except for the Street Profits/Viking Raiders stuff, the bouts were good and the storylines are keeping my interest. I will comment on your preview after you post it and before the PPV, but exactly when I don't know.
