Well, that was something.
It was certainly a unique and, at times, bizarre night in San Jose. The crowd was hot for most of the night and were rewarded with some unique moments thanks to the Raw Brand. We had some interesting title changes, a Roman Reigns beatdown and a House of Horrors Match that will likely divide fans for years to come.
With all of this in mind, I present my list of the top five most surprising moments of the WWE Payback 2017:
#5 Chris Jericho wins the US Title
It seemed so simple. Chris Jericho, the veteran who rarely wins major feuds, would help put over the “Face of America” Kevin Owens. Since Chris Jericho was about to leave to tour with his band, it made a lot of sense.
Then Chris Jericho won the title via submission clean.
It also means we aren’t quite done with Chris Jericho yet. We will see Chris Jericho on SmackDown this week and it will be interesting tos ee how long his title reign will really last. It was certainly a shock. Was it a shock that makes logical sense for the best interest of Smackdown? I guess we will find out very soon and I eagerly await the end result.
#4 Sheamus & Cesaro turn heel
I was getting really tired of the post-match handshakes between the Hardy Boyz and Sheamus & Cesaro. They had a fun little match at Payback but the ending was what made it really worthwhile.
The post-match attack was clearly the best part. Why would two competitors who have had as much success as Sheamus & Cesaro be happy to lose yet again to the returning veterans in Jeff and Matt Hardy? It made a lot of logical sense that they would have finally had enough.
The Raw Tag Team Division desperately needed some fresh heels. With The Revival currently injured and Gallows & Anderson currently floundering, the path was clear for a new heel team like Sheamus & Cesaro.
I will admit it was shocking to see Cesaro turn heel again but I hope it leads to some new chances for success. We know Raw need some better heels for sure.
#3 Alexa Bliss wins the title
I am a huge fan of Alexa Bliss. If anyone was a victor in the brand split it was a talent like Bliss. She wasn’t the biggest success in NXT and entered SmackDown as a question mark.
She quickly showed her in-ring talent and especially her impressive mic skills in the last seven months. She carried the SmackDown’s Women division as its top female heel and it showed in the loud pop she received when she appeared on Raw during the Superstar Shake-up.
The possibilities for matches with Sasha Banks and Bayley seemed great for some fun long-term feuds. Then she won her the Raw Women’s Champion clean in her first attempt.
It all seemed quite rushed. Alexa winning the title puts us back in the familiar routine of the cocky heel champion we have seen a lot on Raw recently. But with the Women’s title being constantly passed around like a hot potato, it is all getting a little bit silly. Nonetheless, it was surprising to see it yet again so soon.
#2 The entire House Of Horrors match
I know a lot of people, myself included, will have a lot to say about this match. We certainly didn’t know what to expect. We didn’t know what this match really was going to be. We knew it would be crazy with the recent antics of Bray Wyatt. It certainly wasn’t a disappointment on that front.
I know I was surprised to see shirtless Randy Orton riding a limo to a creepy black lit house. I enjoyed seeing great camera work and editing from the supposedly “House of Horrors”. I laughed at the fact that creepy dolls, sticks and a fridge attack where suppose to be scary to a modern WWE audience.
It got even better as I watched Bray take a twenty-minute limo ride from his house to the arena. How did Randy Orton make it to the arena faster than him and why didn’t he sell the fridge attack at all?
Why did it take Jinder Mahal and his new faction to finally beat Orton? It was a whole lot of crazy and certainly will affect the fan view of the night as a whole.
#1 Roman takes a beating
This match ended the way it should have. Roman Reigns, who took a massive beating just three weeks ago and suffered supposedly major injuries, lost clean to Braun Strowman at Payback. However, that doesn’t make it any less surprising.
Vince McMahon loves to protect the people he pushes to be the major star of the company: John Cena, Hulk Hogan, Steve Austin and now Roman Reigns. They rarely lose and they are protected in their booking at all times. That didn’t quite happen at Payback.
Sure, Roman got in a fair amount of offence but Braun controlled the match. He didn’t need to cheat to win as he had already done the damage over the last couple of weeks. It was the logical booking to keep your monster in Strowman strong going forward.
But to watch him continue to attack Reigns post-match and cause him to bleed was easily the most surprising moment of the show. Braun looks like a big star now and Roman should finally get a much-deserved break.
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