This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is image-1.png

The Triple H Era

The Triple H era is well and truly underway in WWE, with him now leading the creative direction of the main roster instead of Vince McMahon and it’s easy to notice differences. From returning superstars, longer matches, and words such as hospital being unbanned, a much-needed wind of change is finally blowing through the main roster.

Yet while all of those changes are well and good, the littler ones deserve some love. Simply having wrestlers pass each other backstage and interact, rather than switching quickly between different locations to showcase different backstage interviews, makes the show feel like it has a faster pace. It’s the same way how an exiting wrestler passing a wrestler making their way to their ring, gives the impression that the show is so action-packed, that there isn’t time to wait for them to get out of the way for the next segment to begin.

Also on last week’s episode of Monday Night Raw, it was good to tease things in the background. You got to see the security team reacting to disturbances, wrestlers questioning why there was a car smashed into a wall in the car park, and other intriguing scenarios which seemingly led to the ‘arrest’ of former WWE NXT superstar Dexter Lumis in the audience. It rewarded the viewer for paying close attention, and from the perspective of someone who used to fast forward a lot of Raw as there were plenty of skippable segments, this sort of stuff is guaranteed to have me put the controller down.

Hit Row

On the subject of returning superstars, it was good to see Hit Row back on WWE television. They were arguably among the most shocking of the recent mass releases after being called up to the main roster as they weren’t given any real chance to showcase their talents. It felt like the rug was pulled from under them without it ever truly being laid down.

Also, their return showed how useful matches vs local talent could be. Hit Row were able to look strong and make sure everyone was talking about them, and not their opponents upon their return.

Moxley v Punk

With CM Punk returning at Quake By The Lake, it seems very likely that we will be getting Jon Moxley vs Punk at AEW All Out in order to determine the undisputed AEW World Champion. While it felt like we waited the perfect amount of time for Punk to get his first AEW world title win under his belt, it really doesn’t feel like the right time to give the voice of the voiceless the title again.

Moxley’s run still feels like there’s a lot of juice in it, there are plenty of interesting matches for him to have and you feel it’s the right decision to keep the belt on him.

However, what I can’t work out is the best way for Punk to lose and where to go with him from there. Hopefully, Tony Khan has a plan.

If you’ve enjoyed For The Pop, be sure to follow @TotallyBuzzedUK on Twitter or/and @BuzzedWrestling on Twitter so you don’t miss the next edition. Also if you wanna come moan at me or hopefully just simply debate my opinion – then @ing either account will get you noticed. Until next time.