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We continue our build towards Hell in a Cell in this week's WWE and we went into this week's Raw and SmackDown hoping for some matches to be announced and for WWE to realise Becky Lynch wasn't a heel.
Meanwhile on NXT we would've been after some fallout from NXT TakeOver especially with the now annual and very exciting WarGames match well on its way for the yellow brand. Plus, WWE have a unique opportunity with Evolution they need to capitalise on.
So without further ado, let's take a look at the 5 things we wanted to see from WWE this week, and what they actually delivered.
#5. Becky Lynch's heel turn
What we wanted to see: At SummerSlam the crowd gave the loudest pop of the night when Becky Lynch turned on Charlotte. On the following night's SmackDown they chanted her name when she insulted them and turned her back on them. If this was supposed to be a heel turn the WWE Universe clearly weren't getting the memo.
The problem with that is that it makes the WWE's continued insistence to paint Charlotte as sympathetic and Becky as the bad guy problematic because the product they're making differs from the reaction of the audience, derailing the storyline. So we were hoping for WWE to change tact slightly to save the feud.
What they delivered: Becky Lynch did the cheap heel move of attacking the babyface champion after a successful title defence and then held the title over Charlotte's lifeless body. Naturally the crowd went wild and the WWE continues down this very bad path.
Thankfully there are reports that the WWE is going to change direction slightly and stop portraying Lynch as an out-and-out villain and more of a shade of grey type character.
#4. Johnny Gargano post-TakeOver: Brooklyn
What we wanted to see: Johnny Gargano once again failed to capture the NXT Title at NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn, losing to his nemesis Tomasso Ciampa despite brutalising a handcuffed NXT champion.
We were hoping that Gargano's ruthlessness would continue over to normal NXT programming and that he'd embrace the darker side he'd displayed during the pay-per-view, which would in turn lead him to the championship.
What they delivered: An in-ring promo where Gargano stated he'd lost himself and he didn't know what to do to fix it. Which is fine. Just fine. Except we've sort of seen it before. I'm also hoping the plan was to completely turn the crowd against Gargano who in the space of five minutes went from being the whitest of white-hot babyfaces to being on the receiving end of 'Johnny Failure' chants.
I understand the money is in the chase but when you have your top good guy lose to the same man with an injured knee and is restricted by handcuffs twice, you do end up making him look a little bit like an idiot. Let's hope that when Gargano does indeed triumph that the crowd hasn't completely turned on him and lost interest by then.
#3. Seth Rollins bringing back the open challenge
What we wanted to see: Seth Rollins won the Intercontinental Title at SummerSlam and all was right with the world again (Sorry Dolph Ziggler, I like you, but right now, Rollins is better.) We wanted to see Rollins bring back the open challenge for the Intercontinental Title and we wanted to see it used as a showcase for fantastic wrestling each week
What they delivered: So far so good! as Rollins' open challenge this week was answered by Kevin Owens and the pair put on one of the best Monday Night Raw matches in quite some time. Honestly, if you haven't seen the Kevin Owens vs Seth Rollins Intercontinental Title match from this week's Raw yet then I implore you, finish reading this article first (obviously) but then cancel your plans and go and watch it. It's great. Here are some highlights
#2. Hell in a Cell build
What we wanted to see: To cut a long story short we wanted to see Hell in a Cell matches announced. My personal preference was for Strowman vs Reigns and AJ vs Joe (the two main title matches) to be the Hell in a Cell matches. The former because Strowman doing Strowman things inside a Hell in a Cell is all kinds of exciting and the latter because the feud deserves a big payoff.
But honestly, at this stage I just wanted to see any kind of build towards the WWE's next pay-per-view. The company has a habit at the moment of coasting along on Raw and SmackDown until 'go-home' week and it does hamper hype for their pay-per-views somewhat.
What they delivered: We did get a Hell in a Cell match announced. Which is great! However, it's for, perhaps, the one feud that no-one really wanted it for - Jeff Hardy vs Randy Orton. Now, don't get me wrong, Hardy and Orton are going to put on a great match but I'd have definitely preferred AJ vs Joe instead.
Other HIAC builds that took place include Strowman cashing in on Reigns at the event, Lynch and Charlotte for the SmackDown Women's title, Lashley vs Corbin (urgh), Rollins and Ambrose vs Ziggler and McIntyre, a SmackDown tag-team tournament and Elias obviously has nothing to do, still.
#1. Evolution hype
What we wanted to see: The WWE to continue the hype that their first ever all-female pay-per-view Evolution deserves, because it really cannot be understated just how big a deal this is and we need to be reminded of that constantly.
Sure there are other things happening in the meantime like Hell in a Cell, but the WWE does Hell in a Cell every year. So, please WWE, we're begging you, make the women interesting, make Evolution unmissable, not just because it's a first-ever thing, but because the wrestling and storylines heading into it will be amazing.
What they delivered: Brie Bella being there whilst Daniel Bryan wrestled Andrade "Cien" Almas and Trish Stratus inexplicably slapping Elias. Yep. The problem with this is that you can see they're clearly trying to build towards Evolution but don't realise that simply having Stratus show up for the sake of it to be the next in a long line of people that have interrupted Elias isn't going to cut it.
Right now the best thing the women have going is Nikki Cross as the crazy witness of who killed, sorry, attacked Aleister Black and, of course, the red-hot feud between Becky Lynch and Charlotte. But I have faith in the WWE's ability to put together 7-12 captivating feuds and matches for Evolution. Honest.
Do you agree with our assessment of what we wanted to see and what WWE delivered? What do you want to see for next week's run of shows? Leave your thoughts in the comments section below!
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