A “reporter” was hot on the trail of The Wyatt Family this week and the vignettes leading up to their first real appearance on RAW were huge teasers. By the end of the show, the crowd was in a frenzy.
After two plus hours, the Wyatt Family was here, finally.
And damn did they make an impact.
Destroying Kane, a living WWE Legend, the WWE’s newest faction imposed their will, seemingly at will.
Away from the great matches, the “firing” of Vicki Guerrero and Brad Maddox’s appointment as the new RAW general manager was totally entertaining. The ongoing drama between the McMahons and Triple H, as well as the angle between AJ Lee and Kaitlyn also fueled the drama, while the John Cena/Mark Henry storyline continues to heat up. After a so-so episode last week, RAW clicked at exactly the right time.
With a solid card and the return of Rob Van Dam, Money in the Bank looks more than intriguing.
Matches:
Sheamus vs. Daniel Bryan: The age-old battle of speed and power. This was an epic. Sheamus was strong early on, but Bryan’s explosiveness kept things even. Every time Sheamus latched on a submission or hit a few strikes, Bryan battled back. The fans loved it. Sheamus battled back with the Irish Curse Backbreaker when it seemed Bryan was going to get cooking. The Great White followed the onslaught with big knees and strikes. The match continued as the big ginger couldn’t put Bryan away with a Rolling Fireman’s Carry. With Sheamus on the outside after a missed Brogue Kick, Bryan nailed the Suicide Dive and followed it up with a beautiful Front Dropkick. After a slew of kicks from Bryan, Sheamus landed his trademark over the shoulder chest strikes. Bryan then missed the Frankensteiner from the top, Sheamus hit the Top Rope Shoulder Block, but couldn’t put Bryan away. Sheamus soon missed the White Noise and Bryan countered with vicious kicks, earning a nearfall. Bryan didn’t help himself after he couldn’t finish off Sheamus. After Bryan missed the Top Rope Headbutt, the two traded offense, nearfalls and submissions until Bryan countered the Texas Cloverleaf into a rollup for the win.
WWE Tag Team Champions Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns vs. Brodus Clay and Tensai w/Naomi and Cameron: Tons of Funk actually had a decent match, using power and good ring psychology. On several occasions, it appeared Tensai might win the match for his team. Rollins however continues to prove his ability in the ring, using kicks and speed, while Reigns, although still the greenest of the three, hits his moves when he has to, mainly the Spear, which he used to earn the win over Tensai. Regardless, the match dragged on a good three or four minutes too long.
Chris Jericho vs. Intercontinental Champion Curtis Axel w/Paul Heyman: Good match that showed Axel can hang with an amazing worker the likes of Jericho. Y2J bounced back after Axel was the aggressor early, but a countered Lionsault and Axel’s signature Neckbreaker nearly got the youngster the win. Jericho hit the Lionsault the second time he went for it, but Axel kicked out. Axel then countered the Codebreaker into the PerfectPlex, but Jericho kicked out. Soon enough, Jericho latched on the Walls of Jericho, but Axel was able to get to the ropes. Scurrying to the outside, Axel was confronted by guest commentator and his Money in the Bank opponent, The Miz and was nearly counted out. When he got back in the ring, he walked into a Codebreaker and was pinned by Jericho.
World Heavyweight Champion Alberto Del Rio w/Ricardo Rodriguez vs. Sin Cara: A back and forth encounter that got interrupted by Dolph Ziggler, who talked smack during the rest of the match. Once Del Rio heard enough of it, the two fought on the outside and Sin Cara got involved with a huge Cross Body from top rope that caused Del Rio to get counted out.
Christian vs. Kane: A good match with zero storyline impact. Kane won with the Chokeslam.
AJ Lee and Alicia Foxx w/Big E. Langston vs. Layla and Kaitlyn: Terrible match that lasted only a few minutes. Kaitlyn nailed Lee with a Spear on the outside and the match was thrown out.
Randy Orton vs. CM Punk: An enjoyable main event that saw both Punk and Orton trade a ton of signature offense. After 10 minutes of back and forth action, Punk couldn’t hit the GTS, but Orton couldn’t stagger Punk enough to nail the RKO. Punk eventually got the last laugh and won with the GTS. But before Punk could celebrate, Daniel Bryan took both Punk and Orton out with a ladder. When it was all over, Bryan was on top of the ladder.
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