Reverse Hipster's Highlights
3. KiLynn King
King revealed that she attacked her partner, Taylor Wilde. I love this angle. King, a strong, imposing force, took a backseat to Taylor in their tag team. It was for the better, too, because King needed Taylor to elevate her. However, now we get to see how King has developed. Can she succeed on her own?
2. Toni Storm Vignette
Toni Storm's vignette in a vacuum seems really silly. The play she was acting out did little for me story-wise. However, her commitment to this most likely crazy character came across in her acting, and it drew me in and made me want to see where this story goes. I really like Timeless Toni Storm so far.
1. Kazarian vs. Eddie Edwards
Kazarian and Eddie Edwards had a war that took up a lot of Impact's time, and it was worth it. Impact delivered a PPV-quality match on regular TV. Eddie Edwards finally got his ass kicked, and there was nobody better to do it than Kazarian, who Eddie has messed with over the years. Plus, he's a great who is on a great run, considering where he is at in his career.
Rob’s Highlights (WWE)
5. Bronson Reed vs. Ricochet vs. Chad Gable, WWE Raw
This was a great triple-threat match to see who would challenge for the Intercontinental Championship and a great use of three superstars that Triple H loves that are underutilized otherwise. Chad Gable just came off a feud with Gunther, so it made sense for Bronson Reed to win and set up a big boss fight between the two.
4. Seth Rollins and Drew McIntyre, WWE Raw
Seth Rollins teased the crowd into thinking that he may be relinquishing the title due to injuries. Damian Priest tried to cash in before being stopped by Drew McIntyre. McIntyre challenged Rollins to a match at Crown Jewel, and this feels like a truly novel and championship-worthy match between the two.
3. Nick Aldis, GM, WWE SmackDown
Triple H announced a new General Manager for SmackDown and completely surprised me by bringing out Nick Aldis, who has made waves on NWA, Impact, and AEW. Aldis has an authoritative feel to him, and should he choose, could set up some big matches with himself in WWE.
2. Becky Lynch vs. Tegan Nox, WWE Raw
A lot of Triple H-era returns have gone by the wayside, and I was afraid Tegan Nox was one of those. She is electric in the ring, even when that electricity is reciprocated by nobody. For an example of that, see her work in this year’s Royal Rumble. Becky Lynch is in purgatory right now as NXT champion. It’s keeping her away from Raw’s main event scene and giving her a chance to build other superstars. Together, these two had a great match, and they both looked better after wrestling it. While Lynch won, Nox looks the best she has since the Mae Young Classic. That’s exactly how wrestling should work at its best.
1. John Cena, LA Knight, Roman Reigns, and Cody Rhodes, WWE SmackDown
Dare I say these segments on SmackDown were attitude-era-esque? Any one of these superstars could be the champion that leads the entire WWE brand. Roman Reigns is the hated years-long champion, John Cena is a living legend, Cody Rhodes is a fan favorite who has yet to finish his story, and LA Knight is getting the loudest positive reactions of anybody on the WWE roster. With Reigns back, everyone is vying for a chance at the championship. Cena and Knight have a frenemy relationship, but Rhodes is bound to get jealous if somebody jumps him in line. Among three of the industry’s best, Knight didn’t feel out of place at all.
Rob’s Lowlights (WWE)
2. JD McDonough, WWE Raw
JD McDonough lost in a glorified squash match against Drew McIntyre. For my money, he was the best wrestler on NXT. I don’t think WWE is doing any service to McDonough in this main roster run and story, trying to join Judgment Day.
1. NXTMania, Tuesday Night Wars NXT
NXT lauded this entire show as their version of WrestleMania to challenge AEW Dynamite. Aside from some of the usual good wrestling, this was filled with cameos of stars we could usually just see on Raw and SmackDown. I don’t think it lived up to the hype at all. In fact, I don’t even think any current NXT stars benefitted from the inclusion of WWE superstars.
Reverse Hipster's Lowlights
2. Saraya Loses The Title
This was a baffling decision by AEW. Saraya is one of the biggest draws in the women's division, and she is involved in the best women's faction and hottest women's story, but after just a month, AEW takes the title off of her. I like Shida, and she is definitely one of the top superstars in the division, but this is a loss for the women's division. They have hot potatoed the title and Shida winning the title back actually undercuts the women's progress. This was probably just a failed ratings stunt.
1. Collision
Collision put out a subpar showing. If they had released that entire card, which match would you have paid to see? Is it Keith Lee in a squash match? Samoa Joe vs. Willie Mack in a match where Joe obviously wasn't going to lose the title or a match with Christian and Bryan Danielson where Christian obviously wasn't going to lose his title? The closest thing Collision had to a highlight was Skye Blue vs. Kris Statlander for the TBS Title. This was messed up, too, when Blue hit an avalanche powerbomb off the top rope, and then the moment was immediately ruined by Kris just getting up like the move did no damage before catching and slamming Blue. From there, they traded blows with Blue, getting the best of Kris til Kris got the sudden win, but the lasting moment was lost, and the match ended up being just okay.
Collision needs to get some sizzle back. In the Skye Blue match, for example, just because Skye Blue wasn't going to win didn't mean she couldn't have a moment. After that avalanche, powerbomb Blue had everyone's attention. The match should have built on that instead of just moving on to the following sequence. If Blue had hit a top rope move and Kris still kicked out, then it would have been memorable for both of them. Also, more story development will make all these matches matter more than they currently do. Speaking of Development, I don't want to see Lee turn into another Jade where he wins a bunch of matches but accomplishes nothing and never gets a shot at the major players in AEW. We all know Keith Lee is big and strong, so we don't need the squash matches. We need to see Keith Lee in. an engaging story doing something meaningful.
Reverse Hipster's Winner of the Week
Despite AEW going head to head with WWE in a Tuesday Night Wars, it felt like AEW botched the booking on their show and flat out didn't put enough effort into Collision. Impact came to play this week with interesting developments and a marquee match with a good result. Impact wins the week easily.
Rob’s Winner of the Week (WWE)
I think Raw had more highlights, but SmackDown had higher highlights, and it just felt like a special show. With Triple H on hand to make big announcements and Roman Reigns returning, it just felt like everything was firing for WWE SmackDown.
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