WWE Raw Netflix Debut Review

A huge night for WWE and wrestling in general as WWE, capitalising on its resurgent boom period in the last 2 years and partnership with UFC under the TKO banner, made it’s debut on Netflix. But how was the show itself in my opinion? Read on:

PROS:

• John Cena’s promo, kicking off his 2025 retirement tour, was absolutely outstanding. Going from the initial predictable crowd playing and turning it on it’s head by lamenting his failure to win a match in over 2000 days. It was a great way to set up his path back to earning a shot to winning his 17th world title. Also, please give us one more Cena Vs Punk match.
• Enjoyed the teases for Penta’s upcoming debut
• McCauley fucking Culkin!
• They played Across the Nation (Raw’s 2002-06 theme song)
• Dominik Mysterio remains absolutely hilarious
• Speaking of hilarious, Cole and McAtee yeeting
• That cunt Hulk Hogan getting booed out of the building
• Punk Vs Rollins was the one good match on the show and thankfully was the main event. Unlike the other supposed grudge matches on here, you could really feel the hatred between these two throughout and they worked a slow but rewarding clash where Punk had to work extremely hard to beat Rollins.

CONS:

• The whole opening segment with the video packages and Rock’s promo was predictably self-indulgent and dragged. Rock was a good choice for opening it and to immediately entice casual viewers, but I found at the very least the first half of his promo boring and robotic, before he got to the stuff with praising Cody and talking about Roman. That was good. But overall, eh.
• I’m not a fan of all the advertisements plastered all over the ring. Makes WWE’s already OTT glitzy production even worse.
• Roman Vs Solo was every God damn Roman Reigns match since 2020, yet again, and no that’s not a compliment. While I do love so many aspects of the bloodline storyline and the sheer depth of it going back years, it dies whenever it reaches the ring. Every match is the same, between the slow plodding walking around and monologuing, the false finishes late on and the interferences.
• As bad as Roman and Solo was, Rhea Ripley Vs Liv Morgan was surprisingly even worse. Even more disappointing as this was a story I was superbly invested in and had almost a year long build to Ripley getting her revenge on Morgan, this was an astonishingly ordinary match that didn’t get across their hatred for each other much at all, or even have much involvement from Dominik or Raquel. After all that, Ripley simply wins the title back in a bang average grapfest. Yay? Also….um…..what happened to the Last Woman Standing stipulation?!
• I also didn’t really care for Ripley’s title win being upstaged by a random appearance from Undertaker, but I guess I can live with it as Ripley is a huge star in her own right.
• Drew McIntyre Vs Jey Uso almost sent me to sleep it was that boring. Certainly seemed to send the live crowd to sleep. Again, for a supposed grudge match.
• Hulk Hogan. How fucking tone deaf to keep wheeling him out.

OVERALL

Despite the momentous occasion I was very disappointed by most of the show. The only things that stood out where the main event and the John Cena segment. The remaining three matches which the show was largely built around were actively bad.