It’s time for a brief recap of Last Week In Wrestling, where we go over who got over or was trampled by the machine.
Stepped Over: Bayley
Can someone explain what’s going on with WWE Women’s Champion Bayley? Since her Wrestlemania win, the workhorse has become a bystander in her own division. Bayley’s appearances are nothing more than her reacting to other people’s claim on her title while becoming a utility player in Naomi’s bid to win the Money In The Bank briefcase. I get Iyo Sky vibes from Bayley now, and it’s come down to how the WWE books their Women’s Champ vs anything.
Got Over: Liv Morgan
In stark contrast, Liv Morgan continues to kill it in her revenge tour story with The Judgement Day. The Women’s World Heavyweight Champ helped JD and Fin win their Tag Team Championship match against transitional champs R-Truth and Miz, a match she secured for the duo. Her work with Dom continues to deliver the right amount of soap opera/reality TV drama folks crave, and she’s even been called out for not defending her title by Zelina, setting up a match for the July 1st episode of Raw.
Stepped Over: R-Truth and Miz
Outside of R-Truth’s Wrestlemania Moment winning the tag team titles, the champion duo of Miz and R-Truth were played for laughs and never truly positioned as credible champions. While their comedy act is sometimes enjoyable, their pairing always felt forced, their entrance music is hard to listen to, their name is the worst kind of thrown together, and the schtick wore off weeks ago.
Got Over: Miz
On the bright side, Miz is pretty damn good as a color commentator on Monday Night Raw. Stepping in for Pat McAfee on last week’s show, Miz played the part of Color Man, and sounded right at home beside Michael Cole. I don’t know if this was a test for a future Miz desk run, but I would totally get behind a Miz commentator role should he decide to move on from in-ring competition.
Stepped Over: AJ Styles and The OC
AJ spent his retirement angle and title shot at Clash of the Castle. Now what? The legendary wrestler is at a strange crossroads where he has no natural path forward after losing back-to-back title shots, clean. A great story is all that is left to potentially close out his legendary career, maybe leading to an actual retirement next year. With Anderson & Gallows being the most ineffectual team in WWE, and Mia Yim taking L’s on every brand she shows up on, Uncle Allen and The OC are in a bad spot that doesn’t seem to be getting better.
Got Over: Roman Reigns
This man hasn’t been on TV since his Wrestlemania 40 loss. Thanks to Hall Of Famer Paul Heyman, Roman is now the biggest babyface in the company. When Roman returns, the pop this man receives will undoubtedly register on the Richter scale for miles. This is a testament to everyone’s incredible work in The Bloodline story, not to mention fans missing the Tribal Chief’s presence. WWE has built a mountain for Reigns to climb in the form of Tama Tonga, Tonga Loa, Jacob Fatu, and imposter Chief Solo Sikoa. He has everything he needs for an epic babyface return and run, which will certainly challenge Cody for the Face-Of-The-Company-Man title.
Notable moments from WWE TV Last Week
- The legendary Paul Heyman took a bump no 50+-year-old, out-of-shape man should take. God bless the Hall of Famer for his dedication to the bit.
- Baron Corbin returned to television after his qualifying loss, alongside perpetual loser Apollo Crews, to discuss a not-yet-realized feud between Santos Escobar, Legado Del Fantasma, and Crews. Let’s see where this goes. My guess is nowhere.
- The triumphant return of Pretty Deadly sees the enigmatic duo taking on the wasted potential known as The Street Profits next week on Smackdown.
- Still no word from Becky or Ricochet on their future plans. One would be a fool for leaving. The other, a double fool. Which is which?
- Chad Gable returned from near death to win his MitB qualifier. Let’s hope he nails it, cashes in on Seth and Damien, wins, then takes on GUNTHER at Summerslam.
- Wyatt Sicks need to recover from their kayfabe-busting Whataburger debacle. Will they wrestle or continue to lurk in the smoke and shadows?
