So, The Royal Rumble was a really good pay-per-view. The only clunker of the night was Bayley vs. Lacey Evans. However, The WWE Championship match, The RAW Women’s Championship match, and The Men’s Royal Rumble were strong bouts that easily made the show memorable. Speaking of memorable, holy shit, Edge is back!
For a guy that hasn’t wrestled for nearly ten years, it surely didn’t show on Sunday. I remember being stunned and sadden when he was forced to retire back in 2011, so it was a joy to see the former WWE Champion wrestling again.
Overall, the Men’s Royal Rumble was the highlight of the evening. Personally, I didn’t mind the Lesnar portion of the match too much. While I wasn’t a fan of John Morrison, Cesaro, and Keith Lee being eliminated so easily, I understood the story that were telling. I popped big when Drew McIntyre eliminated Brock Lesnar with a great looking claymore kick. I popped even bigger when McIntyre won the entire Rumble.
The former Intercontinental Champion looked like a star on Sunday. I loved how McIntyre was not only dominant throughout his time in the Rumble, but he was smart enough to keep his eye on Lesnar following the WWE Champion’s elimination.
Brock Lesnar vs. Drew McIntyre for the WWE Championship at WrestleMania 36?
Congratulations WWE, you have my money. However, the key is the follow-up. I won’t be a negative Joe here (I’ll save that for later) and dwell on how the company can easily mess this up. Simplicity is key. I’m not looking for Game of Thrones level of writing here (pre season six, of course), but a compelling story is all that I ask.
So, Charlotte Flair wins the Royal Rumble. Sigh.
Here’s the thing, The Women’s RR match was actually good, though I wasn’t a fan of some of the booking decisions. What was the point of introducing Chelsea Green into the Rumble if you weren’t going to give her a chance to shine? Why make Shayna Baszler look stupid in her elimination? Is Charlotte a babyface or a heel?
Despite the negatives, the women worked their asses off and Bianca Belair looked like a star throughout the match. Flair shouldn’t have won. Plain and simple. Charlotte is already a goddamn star. WWE did so much right by creating a new star in the men’s Royal Rumble, yet the company took five steps back by having Flair win.
The women’s division on the main roster is struggling. Unless your name is Becky Lynch or Charlotte Flair, there are no stars in the women’s division. The Royal Rumble should’ve been about creating a new face for the women’s division. I have no problem with Flair being in a top match at WrestleMania. In fact, she should be. Is there a reason why this company continues to have trouble booking secondary women’s feuds that doesn’t involve a title?
WWE had an easy match made for them. Shayna Baszler vs. Becky Lynch. There’s already so much history between these two and this is a fresh and enticing match-up. Unlike Flair, Baszler has a consistent and strong character.
Bayley vs. Charlotte isn’t that much better either. Charlotte is not the face that Smackdown needs. The problem is that Bayley isn’t that captivating of a heel. I blame this more on creative than the Smackdown Women’s champ. She’s had nothing fascinating to sink her teeth into since turning heel last year.
Charlotte Flair is a lot like Naomi Malone of Showgirls (yes, I know, an extremely dated reference), she’s not a likeable character; however, we’re forced to follow her as the lead because the script says so. BTW, check out Showgirls. It’s a hilarious comedy that is oddly being classified as a drama.
Anyways, I’m not looking forward to Charlotte vs. either champion at WrestleMania. Will she produce a good or great match against either Lynch or Bayley? Most likely; however, it’s nothing that we haven’t seen before. Even if the company goes in a different direction and a new champion is crowned before WrestleMania, Flair is just not an engaging protagonist to follow.
Overall, The Royal Rumble was a great show that has me excited for what’s to come for WrestleMania 36.