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Hell in a Cell has been a filler pay per view that's been historically maligned for watering down the Hell in a Cell concept. While the event has a lackluster history, WWE has managed to put together a good card for the 2018 edition. Only two matches look like they'll be stinkers. The rest should be at least worth watching.
It's now up to the company to follow the strong card with good booking. For SmackDown, there is reason for optimism. The show has been strong consistently and while some of its big programs have cooled off, they're all still hot.
Raw is a different story. In a strange and tragic irony, the show is even worse now than it was before Brock Lesnar dropped the Universal Championship at SummerSlam. It will take a lot of effort to right the ship, but the company can do so at Hell in a Cell.
To keep SmackDown strong and strengthen Raw, here are the mistakes WWE must avoid.
#1 Breaking up Rusev Day
No one expects Rusev Day to capture the SmackDown tag team titles on Sunday, especially with the New Day vs. The Bar already being advertised for Super Show-Down in Australia. The manner in which Rusev Day loses is the most important thing in this match.
Things appear to be patched up between Aiden English and Rusev following a rocky road on the way to SummerSlam with Andrade "Cien" Almas and Zelina Vega, but this could be lulling us into a false sense of security.
Rusev and English are better together than they are apart. Even if their overall stations won't change if they're a team or not, they're far more entertaining together. Based on that alone, it would be a mistake to break them up.
#2 Ziggler and McIntyre losing to the Shield
Drew McIntyre and Dolph Ziggler thankfully liberated the Raw Tag Team Championships from the hands of the B-Team. They're now in position to bring respectability back to the titles, but they'll have formidable opponents on Sunday in The Shield.
Neither team would do wrong by the titles, to be sure, but it simply isn't the time for McIntyre and Ziggler to lose yet. The Shield carrying yet more gold would only give them even less obstacles to overcome and make Raw even more monolithic than it is now.
Failing on Sunday means The Shield will have to reassess their tactics. Perhaps there will be some dissension? It will also bring forth the opportunity for McIntyre to eventually split from Dolph Ziggler.
#3 Randy Orton losing to Jeff Hardy
Randy Orton and Jeff Hardy are on different trajectories. While Hardy's matches are getting slower and his promos are awkward, Orton has finally found his footing as a ruthless heel. There's more upside to him than Hardy right now, and for that reason alone, he should be victorious on Sunday.
Losing will give Jeff Hardy more despair and force him to change up his act. Orton, meanwhile, can move on to other things with his reinvigorated act intact. As long as he doesn't capture the WWE Championship again, he'll be welcome anywhere.
#4 Failing to keep the mixed tag team match short
The Daniel Bryan vs. The Miz feud, once the most eagerly anticipated in the company, has cooled rapidly thanks to the involvement of their wives post-SummerSlam. Miz and Bryan are excellent performers, but even they've been unable to carry their wives in this, nor will they in the match.
This should easily be one of the two worst matches of the night, even if the involvement of Brie and Maryse will probably be brief. It's best to keep this match under 10 minutes and let Bryan and Miz go their own way heading into Australia.
#5 Charlotte retaining the SmackDown Women's Championship
Good as this feud has been, there's no question as to who the star in it has been. Becky Lynch has outperformed Charlotte Flair in every segment. She's relatable and Charlotte is woefully miscast as a babyface standing opposite to her.
Becky is as hot as she has ever been and the time to pull the trigger on her is now. There are few places Charlotte can go as champion, but Becky winning the title opens up many new possibilities, most tantalizing of all being a potential WrestleMania showdown with Asuka.
Sadly, it's unlikely that Charlotte drops the title so early, especially since they're already set to do battle at Super Show-Down and possibly Evolution. Still, Becky winning would be for the best and rematches can occur thereafter.
If not, Becky needs to at least not lose clean. There needs to be a controversial finish. If Charlotte beats Becky cleanly, the feud is on ice.
#6 Failing to keep Ronda Rousey vs. Alexa Bliss short
If ever there were a time where the mandatory rematch clause was cancerous, this one is it. After being crushed at SummerSlam, there's no way that Alexa Bliss deserves another title shot. This is clearly just there to fill time.
Hopefully, there won't be a ton of time to fill.
Raw made a point of selling Ronda Rousey having a rib injury this week, so we shouldn't expect the battle to be quite as one-sided as it was at SummerSlam. Still, keeping this over 10 minutes would be a mistake. It still stretches credulity to buy Alexa Bliss as a threat against Ronda Rousey, and we shouldn't have to do so for very long.
#7 AJ Styles retaining the WWE Championship
AJ Styles has reigned over 300 days as WWE Champion. Still, his reign has often felt like it's going through the motions. Samoa Joe, meanwhile, has taken the ball and run with it past the end zone, out of the stadium, and across the street. Every time he's given the chance, he shines.
It's time to crown the Samoan Submission Machine.
Giving Joe a run with the title would instantly reinvigorate SmackDown from top to bottom. It would also force AJ Styles to change his character. Having failed his family, what would he do next? Contrast this with the trite, boring avenue of Styles retaining only to have another match with Joe in Australia.
Samoa Joe's time is now. Pull the trigger.
#8 Braun Strowman losing cleanly
I'm under no pretensions that Roman Reigns has even one half of one percent chance of losing on Sunday. After having finally conquered the conqueror, Brock Lesnar, he isn't dropping his championship on his first major defense.
Braun Strowman's position is a precarious one, though. Losing cleanly would destroy him. It would make his Money in the Bank win completely pointless and advertise that he was only there as an insurance policy against fans expressing their true feelings about the SummerSlam main event. Any monster aura he had would die.
If Strowman is to be defeated, it needs to be through some kind of shenanigans. Losing straight up would bury him forever.
