WWE Weekly BreakDown: June 17-23

 Written by: Danny Albers 

Raw 6/17

WWE pulled out all the stops on this week's episode of RAW with multiple returns and surprises.The show kicked off with one in fact, when a spiffy looking Seth Rollins, wearing an all white suit showed up to announce his return from some time off to heal his injuries. Damian Priest showed up, limping from his botch at Clash at the Castle, and stumbled through another promo. After working a couple segments for a match promoting him and Gunther, and seeing how bad he was, it makes you think if WWE expedited Seth’s return to fill in that gap. I think at the very least, Seth will keep Damian interesting for another month or two until Gunther gets the title at SummerSlam (that’s not a prediction, that’s a spoiler). So now fans can get excited for Seth Rollins challenging Damian Priest for the belt he made famous. 

Chad Gable demanded a title shot and said he will face anybody if he needs to. Adam Pierce smiled at this and so a match with Gable against “The Monster Among Men” Braun Strowman was made. Strowman would run through Gable (literally), and Gable would turn his frustrations towards his stablemates in the Alpha Academy. After slapping Akira Tozawa, Otis had enough, and he shoved down Gable and helped the injured Renee Dupree and the dejected Tozawa back to the locker room with Gable looking on. If this was the big breakup we were waiting for (I hope it’s not), then I think WWE really dropped the ball with this. It was underwhelming to say the least. WWE left a door open for more to happen, so let’s wait and see if this is just opening the door to the real collapse of The Alpha Academy, and a feud between Gable and Otis. 

Meanwhile, an angle started to form as Pat McAfee walked us through Finn Balor snatching Liv Morgan’s room key that she gave to Dom. The games continued as Dom couldn’t find his purple cow skin vest. The thief that stole this vest was none other than Liv Morgan, or came to the ring sporting the jacket. Later on, Dom tracked Liv down, told her to stop playing games, and Liv said if he wants his vest, then he needs to take it off her. As Dom is in the process of doing this, Damian Priest walks in on them and tells Dom to get lost. He then tells Liv to stop the games as Dom wants “nothing to do with her.” Live then tells Damian that Dom wants “everything to do with her.” WWE is really playing out this storyline well. It’s not insulting our intelligence, nor is it a childish and foolish storyline WWE has been known to do. 

Money in the bank qualifiers kicked off, and the first match was a triple threat between Io Sky, Zelina Vega, and Kiana James. I have to give WWE credit. Just a month ago, James was in the ring showing how much more development she needs in a match with Natalya, and a short amount of time later she’s in a match that has fans chanting “holy shit!” WWE also protected Zelina Vega when Liv Morgan came out to provide the distraction. This allowed Sky to pin James for the win. It was all executed perfectly, and they have some solid meaningful matches that can branch out from this. 

Sami Zayn came to the ring to establish a new challenger for his Intercontinental Championship. He ran a normal energetic Sami Zayn promo talking about overcoming Chad Gable. However, the challengers that came out were not what he expected. First, Bron Breakker came out with a smile on his face. It’s just been a week since he destroyed Ricochet by sending him through a windshield. Sami’s welcome for Bron wasn’t very warm, but before the two could get acquainted at all, Sheamus appeared. He challenged Sami for his IC Title, and took exception of Bron jumping the line. Sami made a match between Sheamus and Bron for later in the evening. This segment was great. All three men have legitimate claims to the title, and instead of just making a match, we’re going to see some fighting to lead up to the big dance. It also made the IC belt look prestigious that the two legitimate and accomplished stars weren’t just handed an opportunity. 

The next match was Dragon Lee VS Carlito. This match turned into a chaotic segment as has every Judgment Day VS LWO match been the last couple weeks. I think both men looked good in this match. Dragon Lee was greatly hindered by all the distractions, and of course the savvy veteran Carlito knows how to benefit from the chaos. The LWO and Judgment Day beef has only gotten stronger the last couple weeks, and now with Zelina engaged with Liv, and Rey and Dom up in arms, it’s only going to get better. 

Drew McIntyre came out to address getting screwed at Clash at the Castle, and quit WWE, walking out after saying “screw this company.” This is a solid move because I would assume Punk is close to 100% to return from injury. And to avoid more rambling and complaining by the now baby face Drew, he’s going to go silent and wait for his moment to confront the enigma that is CM Punk. It’s a wise choice not to fatigue the viewer on this feud, especially if this is one of your big draws for SummerSlam. Katana Chance and Kayden Carter faced Damage Control after this segment. It was a little forgettable following the news of McIntyre quitting. Solid usage of Carter and Chance to keep them relevant. They’re a talented young tag team and have value on the main roster. 

Bron Breaker and Sheamus squared off next in a hard hitting fight. The two battled all around the ring, and Breakker did a sick spot jumping from the ring apron to the announce desk, clotheslining Sheamus in the process. The damn crony of Gunther, Ludwig Kaiser, would once again get one over on Sheamus continuing their beef. But Breakker didn’t take any side, he took out Sheamus, and leveled Kaiser with a wild spear after running from the top of the entrance ramp to the announce table. Kaiser might be dead! Breakker came out looking terrifying from this match. This kid is the future of professional wrestling. The final match of the night was a men’s MIB qualifier between Finn Balor, Rey Mysterio, and Jey Uso. Uso is my pick to win the contract at Money In the Bank. He’s red hot right now, and provided a solid main event match that had the crowd really into it. 

The Uncle Howdy, now named the Wyatt 6 made their debut on Raw and the months of the QR codes and cryptic messages was worth it. This is probably the most unique and creative version of Bray Wyatt’s creations. As Jey Uso won the match and was celebrating in the crowd, the lights shut off. A simple, creepy piano key played. The camera brought us to centerstage, where there was a door that swung open with a blinding blue light. This is identical to the way Bray returned to WWE on his final stint before passing away. But the light turned out, and a grudge-like woman came crawling out of the door, once exposed to the lantern life, she had an extremely grotesque mask on her face. The entrance was creepier than some horror movies that I’ve seen. The cameraman was directed from there to move backstage behind the curtain, where bodies laid all over the floor. The first person we see is a character with a hammer and rabbit costume standing in the dark passageway. His massive club has the word “HELP” written on it. The camera man then moves into gorilla where everyone is knocked out, blood everywhere, with fog and blue lighting, and sitting in the corner is a guy cross legged in a buzzard mask pointing to the door leading to the locker room. As the cameraman comes out into the hall, a man is crouched in a pig mask. This caused the cameraman to do a slight jump, but then a figure is seen strutting down the hall in a very creepy and flamboyant way. This is Uncle Howdy. His mask has been slightly updated to give him a more human-like appearance  Uncle Howdy begins to make his way back to the ring with the cameraman and the animal themed character following him. They all stand for a pose as Howdy picks up the lantern and says “WE’RE HERE” and blows it out. 

That was how RAW ended. It was insane, with some people getting emotional with this being a tribute to Bray, and WWE did not hold back. I can confidently say this was some of their best camera work they’ve ever done. Every shot told a story, and it was so well choreographed and they did it live without a slip. All the designs were weird and creepier than anything we’ve ever seen on WWE television. Honestly, this level of production is up there with some horror movies. It was a really good segment. The bodies laid out made it even better. The bodies were real stars like Chad Gable and Gunther, but you didn’t see any of the action, just the aftermath as the villains sat in a pile of their own chaos. The segment channeled its own inner Psycho by Alfred Hitchcock where it let your mind play out what happened like the infamous shower scene. Loved every second of this segment and I don’t think there is any way it could have been better. I’m excited to see the havoc that this team spreads on RAW going forward.    

NXT 6/18 

“Say his name, and he appears…I believe in Joe Hendry.” Joe Hendery debuted on NXT. He wasn’t the only TNA star to appear in the battle royal, as Frankie Kazarian was in the match for a long time and made quite the impact. But Joe Hendry received the largest pop. Hendry got tossed out of the ring by the entire roster. His tense interaction with Shawn Michaels in Gorilla makes you think a TNA invasion angle might be coming. The crowd was very unhappy with his early exit. Oro Mensah attacked Ethan Page, taking him out of the match. Je’Von Evan would last eliminate Shawn Spears to win the match. But after the match, Evans agreed to put his title shot on the line against Ethan Page. 

Roxanne Perez faced all her challengers this week, pairing with Lola Vice to take on Meta-Four, Jacy Jayne and Jazmyn Nyx in a triple threat tag match. Vice and Perez looked like they had really good chemistry and can one day make a fun tag team. But after Perez got the pin, she hit a spinning backfist on the dancing Vice to send a message. This was really good as it set Vice apart from all the other challengers. Four women got meaningful exposure, but Vice is the clear threat to Perez. Staying with the women, Kelani Jordan defended her NXT Women’s North American Championship against Michin. Michin did an excellent job putting Lani over in this match. The young star looked incredible. And Jaida Parker coming out to cost Michin the match continues to develop young talent around the veteran leader. 

Oba Femi came out to cut a promo about finding a new challenger for his belt. He spoke highly of Lee and Joe Coffey, but said he’s on another level. But Wes Lee took an exception as he was not pinned. The two deserve to have a one-on-one showcase. Lee is much smaller than Oba Femi so it will be up to him to stand out and make himself look like a threat when he’s alone. 

Fallon Henley took on Carlee Bright who was accompanied by Kendal Grey. Dark Wendy Choo came out and attacked Grey, and Fallon Henley took advantage of the chaos to beat Bright. I would like to see more vignettes and video packages of athletes and stars before they appear on television. Now with the Wyatt Sicks6 on Raw, Choo seems more ridiculous than anything. The O.C faced Chase U, and surprisingly fell to Duke Hudson and Andre Chase. This was a massive victory for Chase U who’ve been almost inactive lately. The NXT tag team division isn’t as strong right now as it’s been in the past. Chase U getting momentum will greatly help the tag team division. They have to be careful not to bury The O.C, their presence is very important on the show. 

The main event saw the confident young star Evans defend his title shot against Ethan Page. Things didn’t go as planned for Evans. Ethan Page took advantage of the hurt ribs of Evans. But the involvement of Shawn Spears caused Evans the match. The ending got chaotic with Evans, Spears, Trick Williams, and Page laying at all 4 corners of the ring with the NXT Title laying in the middle of the ring, teasing a fatal 4 way match for the belt. 

SmackDown 6/21 

SmackDown kicked off live from Chicago, where CM Punk opened the show to a roaring crowd. Punk cut a promo on par with his content recently. He spoke about living up to pressure when wrestling in front of your home crowd, and Drew McIntyre failed to live up to that pressure. Surprisingly, Punk was cut off by Paul Heyman. Heyman was different from his normal self. He embraced Punk as his “real life” best friend. He told Punk to leave or acknowledge Solo Sikoa as the Tribal Chief, and if he leaves to take Heyman with him. Punk refused and out came the new and improved Bloodline. Before they had a chance to attack Punk, Cody came out with two baseball bats and stood definitely with Punk. I would have loved to see more of an interaction between Punk and Solo, but Punk chose not to undress the three young developing stars which helps put them over. 

The qualifiers for Money In the Bank continued as the pay per view is approaching 4th of July weekend. Bianca Belair, Chelsea Green, and Michin faced off in a triple threat. Michin has been getting a lot of exposure the last couple weeks. They’ve had her in some big spots. Bianca and Jade still need to get a rematch for their tag titles like Jade reminded Bianca, so I love the choice of Chelsea Green stealing this win by pinning Michin. Green is athletic, and great in the ring. She fits the MIB ladder match style way better than Bianca does. Chelsea has done some great work, so I’m excited for her to get this opportunity. 

The Bloodline members were assigned with making sure Randy Orton and Kevin Owens don’t qualify for the Money In The Bank ladder match. In the first men’s qualifiers, Randy Orton faced Carmelo Hayes and Tama Tonga. Orton came out looking strong. He was beating down Hayes and Tonga. But Tonga Loa would appear, and even though Orton fought the brothers off, Carmelo Hayes rolled Orton up to win the match. I love this choice! You continue the feud with Orton and The Bloodline while immediately making Hayes relevant by allowing him to showcase his ability at Money In The Bank. Everyone wins in this scenario. 

Backstage, Drew McIntyre brutally attacked CM Punk. The actual damage was not seen, just the bloody mess of what was left of Punk being dragged around like a trophy. McIntyre laid him at the top of the ramp and took a bracelet from Punk. This feud just continues to get more and more personal. 

The next qualifier featured Grayson Waller, Kevin Owens, and Andrade. Owens was hurt from his battles. I don’t have much to say about this match because it was quick, and it was meant to put over Owens' toughness fighting through the injury The Bloodline caused. Andrade catching Waller mid air into his finisher was pretty awesome. Andrade, Hayes, and Jey Uso make for an athletic field of challengers. LA Knight came out to call out Logan Paul. Santos Escobar came out instead as Knight and Escobar’s problems continued. Just as you forgot about him, Logan Paul appeared behind Knight to hit him with the KO punch. 

The main event was a match between Cody Rhodes and Soloa Sikoa. This wasn;t much of a match. Immediately the Bloodline got disqualified. Before the match, Solo Sikoa told Paul Heyman that Roman Reigns isn’t coming back. Solo and the Tongans attacked Orton, Rhodes, and Owens. But Solo would have the last laugh as Jacob Fatu would make his long awaited WWE debut. Fatu would attack everyone and anyone in front of him as Corey Graves put him over by calling him an unhinged psycho. Solo, The Tongans, and Jacob Fatu make up one terrifying faction. WWE has been cooking with their surprises this week. The Wyatt Sick6 on Monday, Joe Hendry Tuesday, and now Jacob Fatu on Friday. What a way to close out an insane week.