So the post-Rumble hot streak of marquee singles matches on Raw continues tonight.

Will Sasha finally turn heel? Will they manage to keep the partial revival of Bayley alive?

I think this is a huge opportunity for Bayley to remind everyone why she is so good and shouldn't be forgotten. Hopefully they get given plenty of time because if they are they will work together to make this a good one.

Sasha should turn heel

Pretty good stuff tonight. Like I said in the party thread they're doing a nice job on Raw giving all the women something to do. I've seen plenty of complaints around the internet, but I like the shades of grey characters they've written at the moment too with Sasha showing some heel signs and Alexa showing face signs.

I wish they would give Absolution a segment sometime though. I don't know whether they did when they first showed up but their purpose as a stable seems very unexplained and given that Sonya and Mandy are pretty green they really need some character in order to get over.

I think they should stick Mandy with Goldust officially, and have Paige be Sonya's manager.

Feb 13, 2018 3:15:35 GMT The Dazz said:

I think they should stick Mandy with Goldust officially, and have Paige be Sonya's manager.

Would be awesome. Rose Gold have such great chemistry

Feb 13, 2018 3:14:18 GMT @admin said:

Pretty good stuff tonight. Like I said in the party thread they're doing a nice job on Raw giving all the women something to do. I've seen plenty of complaints around the internet, but I like the shades of grey characters they've written at the moment too with Sasha showing some heel signs and Alexa showing face signs.

I'm pretty sure the Alexa stuff is just supposed to be her looking for an ally in the Chamber, but who knows. I can't really figure out where any of this stuff is going.

As far as the other thing, all I can say is that I retroactively sympathize with the people who were frustrated by the 90,000 John Cena heel turn teases that never led to anything. Hopefully it still does, but the amount of time this has gone on is crazy.

Feb 13, 2018 3:25:51 GMT The Champ said:

Feb 13, 2018 3:14:18 GMT @admin said:

Pretty good stuff tonight. Like I said in the party thread they're doing a nice job on Raw giving all the women something to do. I've seen plenty of complaints around the internet, but I like the shades of grey characters they've written at the moment too with Sasha showing some heel signs and Alexa showing face signs.

I'm pretty sure the Alexa stuff is just supposed to be her looking for an ally in the Chamber, but who knows. I can't really figure out where any of this stuff is going.

As far as the other thing, all I can say is that I retroactively sympathize with the people who were frustrated by the 90,000 John Cena heel turn teases that never led to anything. Hopefully it still does, but the amount of time this has gone on is crazy.

Yes I think you're right about Alexa, but I think the fact that it's not entirely obvious is a good thing.

Understandable that if Sasha's heel turn has been dragged out for a long time then it might not be as interesting, but coming in over the past couple of weeks it's come off well. And the way they teased Sasha turning for good on Bayley after the match gave a pretty good rub on to Nia for interrupting it.

Just to give you an idea, since I'm not sure how much you watched last year, they've been teasing it on and off since last January. So yeah, I totally agree that everything they've done since the Rumble has been good, but I am definitely ready for them to pull the trigger at this point (and San Jose would have been a real good place to do it).

Plus I'm a little worried that they're going to turn Bayley instead because it's not what people are expecting, and I can't say I'm really on board that ship.

Ok yeah, then that's ridiculous and it's not surprising to hear that people are frustrated. I understand that they have to try and keep things fresh, but it seems really silly to me that both Sasha and Charlotte are working in alignments that are clearly against what they are naturally suited to.

While Smackdown is squandering what little talent they have on their show, RAW has done good in the past few weeks in building three separate storylines: Nia vs. Asuka, Sasha vs. Bayley, and the Alexa-Mickie drama, with Absolution on the side.

I like how all these stories were worked in tonight's episode. I love how Bayley won. They are doing something good with her character now and I was scared that Sasha was gonna turn on her or just be BFFs again after tonight, but the Jax interruption was perfect in that it puts an unsureness to how Sasha would have truly reacted to losing. Alexa and Mickie had a pretty lengthy backstage segment, but they both also worked well in it. And that Asuka video package was just fire!

EDIT: Ivory also really got a really good video package announcing her induction into the HOF. I loved it so much and I am so happy for her! <3

Rousey is signing her contract at the ppv...

So once again, the women making history will mean Jack shit because all the press will be about fucking Ronda.

Feb 13, 2018 12:34:19 GMT Mistress said:

Rousey is signing her contract at the ppv...

So once again, the women making history will mean Jack shit because all the press will be about fucking Ronda.

Why does SmackDown always get snubbed out of these big names that get big press?  It's like that brand doesn't even matter anymore.

Feb 13, 2018 16:07:36 GMT CM Punk'd said:

Feb 13, 2018 12:34:19 GMT Mistress said:

Rousey is signing her contract at the ppv...

So once again, the women making history will mean Jack shit because all the press will be about fucking Ronda.

Why does SmackDown always get snubbed out of these big names that get big press?  It's like that brand doesn't even matter anymore.

SPOILER: Click to show

It never did.

Feb 13, 2018 12:34:19 GMT Mistress said:

Rousey is signing her contract at the ppv...

So once again, the women making history will mean Jack shit because all the press will be about fucking Ronda.

To take the "glass is half full" side: Ronda will be bringing more eyes to the product who will see the other women making history.

So I guess they're not doing Rousey/Flair then?

That's disappointing.

Feb 13, 2018 18:36:55 GMT Lony said:

So I guess they're not doing Rousey/Flair then?

That's disappointing.

Don't they do the brand shakeup after Mania? Charlotte gets moved to Raw, Ronda turns heel because (as we started to see last night) she'll likely get booed against anyone other than Stephanie, and there you go.

Feb 13, 2018 16:48:51 GMT Emperor said:

Feb 13, 2018 12:34:19 GMT Mistress said:

Rousey is signing her contract at the ppv...

So once again, the women making history will mean Jack shit because all the press will be about fucking Ronda.

To take the "glass is half full" side: Ronda will be bringing more eyes to the product who will see the other women making history.

Didn't work at the Rumble.
Every news outlet could give fuck all about Asuka

I don't care whether the media is talking about the other women, or whether Ronda turns out to be a draw - all I (and really, anyone) should care about is the quality of the TV. Ronda's appearance didn't stop the Rumble from being an awesome match, and she won't stop the Chamber from being cool either.

Feb 14, 2018 1:03:53 GMT @admin said:

I don't care whether the media is talking about the other women, or whether Ronda turns out to be a draw - all I (and really, anyone) should care about is the quality of the TV. Ronda's appearance didn't stop the Rumble from being an awesome match, and she won't stop the Chamber from being cool either.

I care because the "who cares about the Rumble, Ronda is here" attitude has me worried we'll never see another women's Rumble.

And that's something I've wanted since Chyna was wrestling.

Ronda overshadowing this big moments is going to hurt all the women. And why not have Ronda come out Raw and boost those ratings? 

Feb 13, 2018 22:33:07 GMT @admin said:

Feb 13, 2018 18:36:55 GMT Lony said:

So I guess they're not doing Rousey/Flair then?

That's disappointing.

Don't they do the brand shakeup after Mania? Charlotte gets moved to Raw, Ronda turns heel because (as we started to see last night) she'll likely get booed against anyone other than Stephanie, and there you go.

In your scenario, who does Charlotte drop the belt to? As of now, she has no Mania match.

Feb 14, 2018 1:12:09 GMT Mistress said:

Feb 14, 2018 1:03:53 GMT @admin said:

I don't care whether the media is talking about the other women, or whether Ronda turns out to be a draw - all I (and really, anyone) should care about is the quality of the TV. Ronda's appearance didn't stop the Rumble from being an awesome match, and she won't stop the Chamber from being cool either.

I care because the "who cares about the Rumble, Ronda is here" attitude has me worried we'll never see another women's Rumble.

And that's something I've wanted since Chyna was wrestling.

Ronda overshadowing this big moments is going to hurt all the women. And why not have Ronda come out Raw and boost those ratings? 

I'm sorry but that's just a nonsense take. There has been absolutely nothing from WWE to suggest they didn't care about the match, or that there won't be another. They pushed it hard before the event, during the event (it main evented the #2 show of the year for goodness sake!) and afterwards when Stephanie gave a number of the women individual mentions in her Raw opening promo.

I posted before about how I think they could have had her debut on Raw instead of the Rumble, and that's a legitimate argument - but really not a big deal in the great scheme of things. Ronda being around will only ensure these types of "big moments" continue to happen to the point they become more normalised.

Feb 14, 2018 1:16:43 GMT Mistress said:

Feb 13, 2018 22:33:07 GMT @admin said:

Don't they do the brand shakeup after Mania? Charlotte gets moved to Raw, Ronda turns heel because (as we started to see last night) she'll likely get booed against anyone other than Stephanie, and there you go.

In your scenario, who does Charlotte drop the belt to? As of now, she has no Mania match.

Asuka.

Feb 14, 2018 1:24:22 GMT @admin said:

Feb 14, 2018 1:12:09 GMT Mistress said:

I care because the "who cares about the Rumble, Ronda is here" attitude has me worried we'll never see another women's Rumble.

And that's something I've wanted since Chyna was wrestling.

Ronda overshadowing this big moments is going to hurt all the women. And why not have Ronda come out Raw and boost those ratings? 

I'm sorry but that's just a nonsense take. There has been absolutely nothing from WWE to suggest they didn't care about the match, or that there won't be another. They pushed it hard before the event, during the event (it main evented the #2 show of the year for goodness sake!) and afterwards when Stephanie gave a number of the women individual mentions in her Raw opening promo.

I posted before about how I think they could have had her debut on Raw instead of the Rumble, and that's a legitimate argument - but really not a big deal in the great scheme of things. Ronda being around will only ensure these types of "big moments" continue to happen to the point they become more normalised.

Feb 14, 2018 1:16:43 GMT Mistress said:

In your scenario, who does Charlotte drop the belt to? As of now, she has no Mania match.

Asuka.

Agree to disagree on part 1

And part 2...Charlotte has to drop the title before moving to Raw...so who on SD does she drop it to? Asuka sure isnt coming to SD before Mania.

Feb 14, 2018 1:26:39 GMT Mistress said:

Feb 14, 2018 1:24:22 GMT @admin said:

I'm sorry but that's just a nonsense take. There has been absolutely nothing from WWE to suggest they didn't care about the match, or that there won't be another. They pushed it hard before the event, during the event (it main evented the #2 show of the year for goodness sake!) and afterwards when Stephanie gave a number of the women individual mentions in her Raw opening promo.

I posted before about how I think they could have had her debut on Raw instead of the Rumble, and that's a legitimate argument - but really not a big deal in the great scheme of things. Ronda being around will only ensure these types of "big moments" continue to happen to the point they become more normalised.

Asuka.

Agree to disagree on part 1

And part 2...Charlotte has to drop the title before moving to Raw...so who on SD does she drop it to? Asuka sure isnt coming to SD before Mania.

Asuka chooses to face her at Wrestlemania.

You really think they'll let Asuka go to SD, though?

Sure could. They won't even notice her gone with Ronda on Raw...

Possibility that Ronda swerves and goes to Smackdown? Just cos WWE likes to swerve? Although I see Steph being present at the signing and Ronda takes her out after she signs setting up the tag team match.

Ronda going to SD is about as likely as all of us winning the lottery on the same day lol