This month I’ll cover the singles matches, next month, the
tags, the women’s title, and Dark Ride.
Here’s the men’s singles card:
WWF Title: AJ Styles v. Austin Aries (Special Guest Referee….TBA)
IC Title: Brock Lesnar (w/Heyman) v. Chris Jericho
Dean Ambrose v. Tyler Black
Nick Nemeth v. Roman Reigns-Uso
Sheamus v. Braun Strowman
-There is no WWF programming the week after the Rumble,
everything in the country goes totally dark as we wait to see what happens to
Linda McMahon. But by the next weekend
it’s decided that she can no longer serve as President – Vince is sworn in –
and he addresses the country and tells us we need to get back to our lives, he
suggests we watch RAW on Monday, reminding us that its Wrestlemania
season.
-That leads to the first controversy of his presidency, he
and Linda (obviously) sold all of their stock in WWF prior to the campaign, but
the kids still have theirs, and it could be perceived that this reference to
wrestling is an attempt to self deal.
Vince apologizes, says he didn’t think of it that way, given all of the
circumstances surrounding that address, but he understands and says he won’t be
talking about the WWF for the remainder of his tenure. Vince is applauded for his decisive action
and willingness to admit wrongdoing.
-We then go back to work, many of the babyfaces wear black
Linda45 armbands throughout the build to Mania, and the posters for the show
include a Linda45 insignia in the corner.
-RAW opens with the scene in the Bullet Club locker room that
was broken away from to show Linda’s collapse at the Rumble – it’s AJ, minutes
after keeping his title over Luke Harper, just laying into Anderson and Gallows
– “where were you guys, I’m all alone out there trying to keep this title – and
who said we were bringing in the girl – I run this thing – I am the Bullet Club
– you better remember that.”
(the girl is Becky, she joined the BC at the Rumble)
-The announce discusses the tape – Nigel asks if the Bullet
Club falling apart – and then AJ comes to the ring. AJ says here’s what we should be all talking
about, that he is going to Mania as WWF Champ for a full year, the longest reign
since Danielson. RAW should be a
celebration of AJ Styles – instead, the announcers are just gossiping like
women. AJ says really the problem isn’t
Ranallo – it’s Nigel (Ranallo has been perceived as soft on the Bullet Club
given their mutual NJPW background, a kayfabe breaking photo of him with
several members, including some non WWF members, circulated prior to the Rumble
which caused a real fracture in Ranallo’s relationship with Aries, his partner
over on Dark Ride Wrestling, enough that Corey Graves returned to that announce
table to mediate the tension). AJ calls
Nigel to come up the ring – he does.
-AJ says he wants Nigel to admit that he’s a better wrestler
than Nigel ever was, Nigel says that he had a good career, was ROH Champion, was
TNA Champion – but he’s not here to put himself over, he would be lying if he
didn’t recognize that AJ Styles was a better wrestler than he was. AJ tells him to remember that and to sit back
down – and Nigel does.
-AJ repeats the same thing the following night at Fight
Night with Regal, and Regal also says that he was not as good as AJ
-AJ repeats the same thing later in the week on Dark Ride, brings
Aries into the ring – is about to ask Aries the same question – and Aries cuts
him off. Aries says he’s better than
AJ. Aries says not only did he used to
be better than AJ, not only was he better than AJ at ROH and TNA – but he’s
better than AJ now. And before AJ can
say anything, Aries punches him in the face, Aries then lays AJ out, leaves him
laying on the canvas – Aries stands over AJ and says “and at Wrestlemania, I’m
going to prove it” and exits.
-AJ doesn’t appear on any programming the following week,
but Aries cuts a promo on Dark Ride where he hammers the history of late period
TNA (this first came up in a WWF context when Sting wrestled Undertaker at
Mania and then was referenced by Aries when he put Roode and Strong together). AJ Styles was Mr. TNA, the franchise player,
the promotion was built around him and catered to him. And after years of that, a group of wrestlers
who used to work at WWF decided they wanted to burn TNA to the ground – and guys
who hated each other, like me and Bobby Roode, we decided to put our
differences aside and come together to fight them off – but AJ Styles wouldn’t
join us. TNA gave AJ Styles a career but
the idea that he wasn’t going to be the star – that he had to be part of a team,
just wasn’t worth it for him – so he left and went to Japan and that place fell
apart. That’s who AJ Styles is – so it
doesn’t surprise me to see that the Bullet Club is catching on to his bullshit,
AJ Styles is about AJ Styles and no one and nothing else matters. That idea now moves into the talking stream, and as we see those fractures within the Bullet Club there's speculation about how close they really are and if negative feelings about Styles will play a role at WM.
-We learn that Aries will appear on the next RAW, AJ opens
the show with Anderson and Gallows behind him; AJ says the Bullet Club are his
brothers, and when Austin Aries comes out to the ring, he’ll find out how close
they are.
-Aries hits the ramp – and behind him are Roode and
Strong. They hit the ring – there’s a
brawl, the Bullet Club bails out.
Danielson makes a 6 man for the main event that night, Aries gets the
fall on either Anderson or Gallows, there is only very nominal Aries/Styles
interaction, it’s teased but not realized. Given that Aries/Roode/Strong are all TNA vets (Aries/Strong were TNA tag champs, Roode's a TNA triple crown winner, one of their signature home grown guys) there's subtext that this is a TNA faction given the way Aries has characterized those last days of TNA (TNA is of course still around, but no longer has the status it once did; it's an indie as opposed to a rival) so in the way that the ROH stans have had GDI as their avatar, there's going to be TNA loyalists who are invested in Aries vs. AJ as a Mania main event.
-That’s the last match for both Aries or Styles, they’ll
cut promos but their squads will do the ring work (and there will be some other
teams involved as well, that’ll come in the tag section) Aries looks to
undercut the relationship between AJ and the rest of the Bullet Club, and there's still speculation about the strength of that relationship, AJ says
it makes sense that Aries is living in the past because that’s where all of his
best days were. Aries got the better of
AJ at the end in TNA, he took the title from him, he beat him in his last ever
TNA match – which is why the Bullet Club savagely beat him in his first night
in the WWF, and that’s the text to this match; this is the next (maybe final) chapter in a long feud that spans multiple promotions. Aries and AJ are picking it up from
5 years before at the main event of Wrestlemania. In the way the Punk/Steamboat storyline moved from TNA and ROH to WWF, we emphasize the useful continuities between the TNA program and the WWF characters of Styles/Aries to give some heft, some gravity, to this title match.
-The “who will the special guest referee be” speculation starts
ramping up halfway through the build, there’s a special guest referee for one
match at every WM – there’s some type of brawl leading to a no contest that
causes Danielson to say the title match will have the special guest referee –
and that it will be a person whose stature in the wrestling business is worthy
of the spot. Danielson really wants to
tell the fans that this isn’t some type of wrestling nonsense where you promise
a big star and then Al Snow arrives (Danielson says Mick Foley wrote that
joke). Danielson says trust me.
-Much speculation.
-Two weeks out is the announcement, Danielson has the Bullet
Club (Minus Nakamaura, we'll discuss him in the Dark Ride section) along with Aries/Roode/Strong all in the ring, it’s the main event segment
of RAW two weeks before Wrestlemania, so there’s a ton of anticipation. Danielson says watch the video wall.
-A Kurt Angle clip package plays featuring his 2 year long
WWF Title reign, the longest for any singles champion in the Wrestlemania era. From young Olympic hero to veteran heel stable
leader – the last shot is of a man in a chair turned away from the camera, he
turns around – he’s in a suit, wearing sunglasses – and when he removes him
there he is, for the first time on WWF TV in over a decade – Kurt Angle.
“It’s true. It’s
true. I’m Kurt Angle. And I’ll see you at Wrestlemania 33.”
-This is seismic, explosive, as talked about as any RAW moment in years, Angle is one of the seminal figures in WWF
history, arguably the greatest WWF Champion of all time, Angle feuded with AJ
over the belt and then was part of the Future Endeavors faction that attempted
to take over TNA that has driven this program.
It’s like Bret Hart returning if Bret had a rich post WWF career (he did
not) – but Angle was as important to the TNA world as was he to the WWF – and this
AJ/Aries match is torn directly out of a TNA storyline. Angle was positioned during his time in WWF as maybe larger in stature than the rest of the promotion (he/Benoit/Eddy really dominated WWF main events for several years) and then had the same positioning in TNA. Beginning with Joe's joining WWF, there has been steady TNA talk, increasing with Aries and Roode, increasing with the first month of this program. There's value in that, as WWF swallowed ECW and WCW, then ROH and elements of NJPW through their existing factions, they now bring TNA into the fold.
-And who ties it all together is Kurt Angle. A WWF Legend returns.
-What will he do?
Will he attack both men? Will he
call it down the middle? What version if
Kurt Angle, last seen in the WWF at WM 22, will we see in Orlando?
It’s good stuff – AJ vs Aries with Angle as the third man in
the ring.
IC: Brock Lesnar v. Chris Jericho
-Brock took from Rusev at the Rumble, as they were exiting,
Heyman called him the Real World’s Champion – and that’s where we pick it
up. Lesnar can’t wrestle again for the
WWF Title based on terms of an agreement with the promotion after his attack of
Joey Styles ended the longtime WWF announcers career. But he got this IC shot from Danielson (who
needed someone to exterminate Linda McMahon antagonist Rusev) and Heyman,
opportunistically, now parlays Lesnar’s IC win into the talking point that it’s
not the belt who makes the man – it’s the man who makes the belt – and with the
IC Belt around the waist of Brock Lesnar, the IC belt becomes the Real World
Championship.
-Heyman adds that language in every promo, this isn’t just
Lesnar/Jericho for the IC title, it’s Lesnar/Jericho for the Real World’s
Championship.
-Jericho has had a year long “last ride” storyline, a
documentary series celebrating his career, his age is the central focus of his
character now, he is a creaky veteran, getting by on guile and not athleticism –
he beat Reigns/Nemeth at the Rumble to earn this shot but now has his back
against the wrecking machine, one on one with Brock Lesnar, their first meeting
since Brock returned to the WWF.
-Jericho wrestles three times in the build – he goes against
big men and breaks them down, first it’s Corbin, then Rowan – and finally he
avenges his Survivor Series loss by somehow beating Luke Harper. Heyman scouts all 3 matches, growing more
serious with each successive match, as perhaps just perhaps, if Jericho can
find a way to beat Harper, he can find a way to beat Lesnar.
-Jericho is a guest on Heyman’s Hustle, Jericho doesn’t
downplay that he’s the underdog, agrees with all of Heyman’s assertions –
Lesnar is an unstoppable beast and it’s crazy for anyone, much less someone of
Jericho’s age to face him. Jericho even
goes along with this being a match for the Real World’s Title – he takes a dig
at AJ, says that after Aries takes down the Bullet Club at Mania, maybe they
can sort this thing out for good. Heyman
grows a little frustrated – Jericho won’t rise to any of the bait – yes, Lesnar
is the best, yes, Jericho is an old man – yes, Jericho is a heavy, heavy,
underdog. All true. But yet…despite all that…for some reason
Heyman seems nervous. Weird. Jericho says that Heyman’s known him for 20
years, watched him win titles, watched him win the Triple Crown, watched him
lived his life inside the squared circle – and Heyman knows as well as anyone
that if this is his Last Ride in the WWF, that Lesnar’s going to have to put
him down to beat him.
-It's Brock Lesnar, as dominant, as unstoppable as any professional wrestler who ever lived - against the 25 year veteran Chris Jericho whose yearlong storyline has been designed to wring nostalgia and sympathy from the fans. Heyman says this is the Real World's Championship - they meet at Wrestlemania. An announcement is made with a couple of weeks remaining in the build that Jim Ross will return at Mania to call this match specifically - and Heyman uses that as evidence that this is the Real World's Championship match.
Dean Ambrose v. Tyler Black
-
- You know the story, The Shield held the tag
belts for more than two years, the longest championship reign for any belt in
the Mania era – at WM 31 Langston (the third man in the act, a
bodyguard/enforcer/occasional worker in the mold of Neidhart’s role with the
Hart Foundation…and if you don’t know who Bret’s partner was in the Hart
Foundation, you really should watch the Counterfactual WWF Network) turned on
them, costing the tag titles and costing Black a year of his career with
injury. Ambrose decided not to pursue vengeance
but moved onto a singles career, this fractured the relationship between Black
and Ambrose, and that fracture has worsened over the course of this year until
breaking cleanly at the Rumble.
-
So, now they fight. Black, however, is on crutches, as he’s been
since Survivor Series, so his health for the match is an open question – but he
says he’ll be 100% and even if he’s not, at 50% he’s twice as good as
Ambrose. Ambrose says he won’t give
Black any home team discount, he’s attacking the leg the moment the bell
rings. Renee Young interviews both
multiple times, and she constantly suggests that the two should find a way to
patch this up, that its hard to see them like this, which is the first on
screen indication of some type of relationship she may have with the two.
-
In the go home RAW, we see a healthy Black for
the first time in months, Ambrose is wrestling…let’s say Nemeth…there’s a ref
bump, Black runs to the ring without the crutches, hits a high spot on Ambrose,
allowing Nemeth to get the fall.
Ambrose, when he realizes what has happened, is steamed, Black points
to his leg, indicating he’s fine – that Ambrose will get his best version –
Ambrose yells good, good – no excuses, no excuses on Sunday.
It's the Shield, almost by acclimation now considered the greatest WWF tag team of all time, broken up headed for a violent collision at Wrestlemania.
Nick Nemeth v. Roman Reigns-Uso
-It’s a battle of the two men who lost the chance at the IC
shot, Nemeth, the most recent Triple Crown winner, is the heel, Reigns is the
babyface who has largely been associated with the Usos tag act. The build here is tied into the build of one
of the tag matches, so that will be discussed next time, but there’s a sense
that maybe these two men are passing each other with Nemeth the one headed in
the wrong direction – and Nemeth is visibly irritated at that speculation.
Sheamus v. Braun Strowman
-Okay, so Strowman’s been killing the replacement level guys
since the beginning of 2017, squash match after squash match; he beat up Miz at
the Rumble – and that’s where Sheamus comes in, Miz earned Sheamus’s respect
with his transformation into Mike Mizanin, and when Sheamus and Strowman have
to be separated when they are working out at WWFU (Underground) that gets us to
this match. Sheamus says someone’s gotta
teach Strowman a lesson, Strowman says Sheamus and Nemeth are dinosaurs
standing in the way of new Underground blood. Strowman says Sheamus used to be known as the Cliq Killer - maybe Strowman needs to be known as the Underground Killer - that leads to Strowman mowing down that generation of Underground wrestlers - Slater, Ryder get squashed - Curt Hawkins returns and gets squashed - and in the go home, Drew McIntyre, Sheamus' old partner, returns to the WWF and Strowman kills him dead. Strowman bullies his way through the prior generation from Underground and that gets us this match.
Okay. Singles down. Pretty good, right? The Angle addition adds some juice to a good workrate main event, and if you're a TNA fan you remember that long, hot AJ/Aries program that sent AJ out of the promotion (and into NJPW and into the Bullet Club, and here we are). Jericho will give Lesnar all he possibly has - and Ambrose/Black has been building and building and building for a year and now here we are. Good stuff.
Tags and the women’s match to go. See you in a month.
