Triple H has had a whole day to completely change WWE’s creative strategy now he is heading up the department, so frankly I’m stunned he hasn’t made huge changes already.
Perhaps I’m being a bit harsh, especially as while I write this, he hasn’t been in the role for 24 hours, but it’s fair to say there were some small things on last night’s episode of WWE Raw which suggested change is coming to WWE under Triple H.
So, we have come up with 11 things we noticed about last night’s Raw which could well have come as a direct result of Triple H now running the promotion’s creative team. Of course, some may be coincidences, but I’ve always been taught there’s no such thing as a coincidence, especially in regards to WWE.
More Actual Wrestling
It’s crazy to think that on a wrestling show that’s 3 hours long, there are regularly weeks where we get less than 60 minutes of actual in-ring wrestling.
On last night’s episode there were 73 minutes of wrestling, which is a lot more than previous weeks.
Just looking at the prior seven weeks of Raw, it’s half an hour more in-ring action than some weeks. Here are the amount of wrestling minutes on the last seven weeks of Raw.
43
57
62
66
54
43
46
So 73 minutes is a real treat. Having wrestling on a wrestling show seems like a very good idea.
Hot Brawl Opening
Last night’s show didn’t open in the usual manner, with a wrestler or wrestlers entering the ring for either a match or a promo.
Instead, the show opened with The Miz and Logan Paul already brawling in the ring.
Now, the reported reason for this according to Dave Meltzer is that WWE didn’t want fans watching on TV to see Paul getting booed a lot, but it’s definitely a big change to the usual opening for a WWE show.
It’s a smart move, as it will actually make fans wonder what will open a show, rather than them simply assuming it will be a standard promo segment.
To add to the general sense of urgency, we also had the backstage Judgment Day and Mysterio fight, and Rollins attacking Riddle at the end of the show. It just felt more surprising.
Something Actually Happened During An Ad Break
You wouldn’t have known this if you were just watching the show at home, but Ronda Rousey actually made an appearance on last night’s show.
The reason you wouldn’t know this is that it happened during an ad-break, typically a time when wrestlers will do several chin-locks to pass the time while we wait for the adverts to finish.
After Doudrop had lost a singles match to Alexa Bliss, she told the crowd she wouldn’t leave until someone made her. Ronda made her.
Giving something extra to the live crowd is a great idea to make the product more interesting, as you want to feel like you’re getting the best experience possible when you go to a live show.
No 24/7 Championship Nonsense
The 24/7 Championship is bad and anyone associated with the belt feels immediately less interesting. Those are the facts.
Thankfully, we didn’t see anything regarding the belt on last night’s episode of Raw, which is a nice change.
Usually we get at least one tedious and overly long segment, during which you can see the fans visibly losing the will to live, so not having the belt on the show is a big plus if you ask me.
Thanks, HHH.
Watching TV Like Normal Humans
Above is how wrestlers watched TV under Vince McMahon, and who knows, maybe that’s how they’ll watch TV under Triple H, but the signs are good!
You may have spotted last night that the Mysterio family actually watched the TV like normal humans beings, by which I mean standing in front of the TV while looking at it.
I don’t know about you, but I want my wrestling to be as realistic as possible, especially when it’s already difficult to lose yourself in the world of kayfabe.
It might be a small thing, but it makes the whole show seem more realistic.
Referees Have Names?
You may know the names of some WWE referees, but that’s not because WWE told you what they are.
No, it’s actually incredibly rare that any wrestlers or commentators ever utter the name of a referee during a match, but during last night’s show, we actually heard commentary say “Shawn Bennett” which isn’t them getting confused while talking about Stu Bennett, it’s the name of the referee in the match.
Again, this is far from being a groundbreaking change, but acknowledging the referee as a person with a name makes them feel much more like part of the match, rather than a faceless onlooker who is just there to take ref bumps and lie on the floor for several weeks.
Where Was Omos?
We’ll start by saying there’s many possible reasons for Omos not being on Raw last night, so there’s every chance he’ll be back next week.
However, he is the world’s tallest man, so it’s quite noticeable when he’s not on a show at all.
Omos has been a regular feature on Raw in recent weeks and months, so for him to be missing completely on the first ever Triple H led show might mean something. Maybe Triple H likes people who can wrestle?
It probably doesn’t…but it might.
So Much Theory
Where there was no Omos, there was a lot more Theory.
As Mr Money in the Bank, it’s not surprising to see him heavily featured on the show, but this really was a huge amount of screen time for the briefcase holder.
He had a singles match with Drew McIntyre, which led to a tag match, and then he was attacked by Roman Reigns and the Bloodline as he walked back up the ramp.
We know that Vince McMahon in particular was a huge fan of Theory, and this amount of TV time could suggest Triple H is also a big advocate for the young man.
He’s definitely a future WWE Champion, and the only question is how soon his day will come.
A New Tag Team
There’s every chance this is just a filler tag team while Dolph Ziggler waits for Theory to become available, as it’s seemed like in recent weeks that the two men will be feuding.
The alternative theory is that Triple H has pulled the plug on a Theory vs. Ziggler feud, and has therefore made a franken-team between Styles and Dolph to keep the latter on TV.
Their match was absolutely fine as far as WWE matches go, and we’re not going to read too much into it, but it could be that Triple H has different visions for particular wrestlers.
More Tag Matches
Triple H is a big fan of tag team matches, and this show had a lot of them.
There were three separate tag matches and a trios tag match as the main event, meaning the vast majority of the matches on the show were multi-man matches.
There’s every chance this was the plan before Trips was given the job, but given his love of the tag format, this is something fans may need to get used to seeing in the Triple H era of WWE creative.
Avoiding Vince McMahon’s Name
The fingerprints of Vince McMahon will be on WWE’s creative product for many months and perhaps years to come, given how long he ruled over the company, but it seems like WWE stars are already being told not to mention him by name.
Considering all the allegations and investigations currently underway into the former CEO’s conduct, it’s perhaps not surprising that Roman Reigns avoided saying McMahon’s name during his promo last night.
While cutting a promo on Theory, Roman Reigns said “Your daddy is not here anymore”, a direct reference to Vince McMahon, who as far as we know, is not the biological father of Theory.
So, it’s not like WWE is trying to hide the fact Vince is gone, I mean they did a “thank you, Vince” chant last week on SmackDown. However, it will be interesting to see if the former owner’s name is mentioned on TV going forward.
To make sure you stay updated with all the latest wrestling news, add WrestleTalk.com to your Google Discover feed and follow us on Twitter!
Comments.
Loading comments…