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RAW WARS – Episode II – Monday Night Platoon

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Seth Rollins WWE Intercontinental Champion

Honouring Memorial Day 2018

The death of Sergeant Gordon Elias in the movie Platoon is one of the most iconic deaths in cinema history. Betrayed and wounded by a comrade, Sgt. Elias runs from North Vietnamese soldiers. With his arms raised towards the sky, he eventually succumbs to the gun fire and dies, as his fellow Americans watch the scene from a helicopter. The death of one of the truly good characters lets the audience experience the cruelty and hopelessness of war.

Showing different video packages, the WWE commemorated Memorial Day in a way that did not dwell on these negative feelings. Instead, the video segments celebrated the virtue and the heroic sacrifice of those who gave their lives while serving in the military. To drive the positive message home even further, the 28 May edition of RAW presented us with a segment that was inspired by war movie tropes. However, unlike Platoon, this segment ended on a decidedly more uplifting note. I speak of the Intercontinental Championship match between Seth Rollins and Jinder Mahal, including the Elias aftermath.

Monday Night Rollins Goes to Battle

Seth Rollins is one of the most popular WWE superstars right now. The cheers he got from the Richmond crowd are proof of that, especially as he faced off with Elias, who is another fan favourite. Rollins ousted Elias from the ring, because he had serious business to attend to: his revenge against Jinder Mahal. The ring attires of Rollins and Mahal – red and green respectively – already showcased that these two wrestlers are polar opposites. One is the beloved baby face that fights with heart and courage. The other is the hated heel that often cheats in his fights, while drawing on elements of the foreign heel gimmick.  The match thrived on the good face-heel dynamics that saw Seth opening the match very aggressively. Seth proved his resilience and determination, as he battled through the match. He did not let the Singh interference deter him, nor did he give up, after Mahal directed a chair shot at his middle section. He did somewhat snap after that, letting the heat of the battle get to him. Using a chair as well, Seth got himself disqualified, but retained the IC title.

A Shot to the Back

As he followed Singh and Mahal up the ramp, dishing out further chair shots, the crowd celebrated Seth as a hero. Understandably, after defending the IC title yet again and giving Mahal his comeuppance, Seth went on to celebrate his accomplishments of the day. Standing on the announce table, Rollins raised his arms to the ceiling before Elias felled him with a guitar shot to the back. This imagery reminded me of Platoon and for a moment I felt that hopeless creeping back. After all, another hero was cut down. Yet the WWE writers decided to not leave it at that on this Memorial Day.

True Trooper

Preceded by another Memorial Day video, Seth was helped on a stretcher. He was surrounded by medical personnel who wanted to carry him out of the arena. At this point, Seth showed what he truly is made of and refused to get carried out in defeat. Instead, despite the pain from the fall he took, he got up and left the arena on his own two feet. This sequence was not only meant to start off a potential programme with Elias and showcase Seth as a top babyface. It was also meant as a message to soldiers and their families to not give up. The segment depicted Seth braving the pain to celebrate the heroism and strength of those who risk their lives in conflicts all around the globe.

The death of Sergeant Elias is as heart-breaking as it is iconic. The WWE plays with this imagery but reframes it in a way that changes the meaning. Thus the temporary down-fall of Seth becomes a message of encouragement and hopefulness to all. I don’t think this segment will become as iconic as the Platoon scene. And with the amazing year Seth has had so far, it might not become a stand-out moment for him either. Yet, any feelgood segment that keeps fans hopeful, that may even be inspiring and encouraging, is a good one in my book. After all, with the ongoing war of opinions between the WWE and the fans, we do have scant few of these. So we might as well enjoy them and celebrate Seth as Monday Night RAW’s hero.

What do you think? Leave a comment below or message me on Twitter @KirstinHerzog1.

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Opinion

Chris King: The Wyatt Sicks’ Wasted Potential By WWE

Chris King takes a look at the WWE and their wasted potential of Uncle Howdy and the Wyatt Sicks faction.

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Wyatt Sicks WWE

Chris King takes a look at the WWE and their wasted potential of Uncle Howdy and the Wyatt Sicks faction.

It’s that time of the year again, folks; it’s unfortunate and downright awful that so many WWE superstars got released today. I’m not going to list all of them, but I am going to talk about one of my favorite factions, 

The Wyatt Sicks. Nikki Cross, Joe Gacy, Erik Rowan, and Bo Dallas (Uncle Howdy) were something special. After Bo’s brother Bray Wyatt’s tragic passing, WWE felt like there was a hole that needed to be filled. Wyatt was one of the most creative and brilliant characters, and Bo would be taking over his brother’s concept and bringing it to life. In 2024, at the end of an incredible documentary highlighting Wyatt’s career and struggles, Bo appeared on the screen portrayed as Uncle Howdy. The last time Uncle Howdy was seen on-screen was at the 2023 Royal Rumble, where Wyatt defeated LA Knight in a Pitch Black Match. Howdy jumped off a structure onto Knight. 

This post-credit scene sparked so much speculation and excitement that Wyatt’s brother would carry on his legacy and possibly debut the faction that was Wyatt’s concept. On the June 17th episode of Monday Night Raw, The Wyatt Sicks made their dramatic debut ,destroying the backstage area as well as “murdering” Chad Gable. It was such an iconic arrival for Howdy as he made his menacing walk from the back into the audience who were chanting “Holy Shit.” The Sicks and American Made (Chad Gable and The Creed Brothers) battled for months, with The Sicks being victorious. On the September 9th episode of Raw, The Sicks defeated them, with Howdy getting the win with Sister Abigail. 

The following year, The Sicks would move over to Friday Night SmackDown, and it seemed like WWE had a plan in place. They would win the tag team championships from The Street Profits and start to look dominant. Now, what should have happened next is Howdy should have won the United States title. The Sicks could have held all the gold over on the blue brand, but it never happened. The Sicks entered into a never-ending feud with The MFT’s (Solo Sikoa, Tama Tonga, Tonga Loa, JC Mateo, and Talla Tonga.) It started off exciting, and the WWE Universe was red-hot for their interactions. 

After months of repetitive matches and The MFT’s stealing their lantern, the feud grew tiresome and boring. Even Tama asked Solo why they are still holding onto the lantern, as it was destroying them as a whole. Finally on the SmackDown before Mania, Tama

gave the lantern back to Howdy against Solo’s wishes. Please explain to me why both factions fought almost every single week instead of just having one final blowoff match at WrestleMania. 

It should have been either a massive street fight or a falls count anywhere match on the grandest stage of them all. Instead, it turned into a meaningless week-after-week extravaganza that benefited no one. The MFTs won the rivalry, and The Sicks don’t even work for WWE anymore. This was the same criminalized creative process that Wyatt dealt with during his first run in the company. 

We’ll never know how much of a dangerous force The Wyatt Sicks could have been in the WWE. For all their careers’ sake, I hope they stay far away from the company for as long as possible. Every superstar that was cut deserves better!

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Opinion

Chris King: Bloodline Saga: Is This the Right Call For WWE?

Chris King questions the WWE’s logic in setting up Jacob Fatu as the next challenger for World Heavyweight Champion Roman Reigns 

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WWE Jacob Fatu Roman Reigns Backlash

Chris King questions the WWE’s logic in setting up Jacob Fatu as the next challenger for World Heavyweight Champion Roman Reigns

Roman Reigns is once again World Heavyweight Champion after his dominant win over CM Punk at WrestleMania 42. On the following night on Monday Night Raw, The OG Bloodline came back together as a well-oiled machine as The Usos stood side by side with Roman. With the WWE Universe asking who would be the first to challenge “The Tribal Chief,” Jacob Fatu shocked the world by answering the call. 

Fatu is running hot after his impressive win over Drew McIntyre and feels like he is ready to become the new world champion. This bloodline segment ended Raw, and it picked right back up on SmackDown with even Solo Sikoa and the MFTs involved. This is now two shows that have been centered around The Bloodline saga, and it’s made me question whether or not WWE should be retelling this story. 

The Bloodline (Roman Reigns, The Usos, and Solo Sikoa) ran WWE for over four years as Reigns’ henchmen, doing his dirty work to retain his title. Even though Roman has declared he doesn’t want Jey and Jimmy to serve him, it sure seems like WWE are spinning their wheels. Fatu could add a whole new chapter into the story, even if he’s not able to beat Roman at Backlash. “The Samoan Werewolf” could be forced to do the same thing as Jey did all those years ago and fall in line. 

 In my opinion, I feel like Fatu should be challenging for the Undisputed WWE Championship because that’s a title I feel like he should win. I understand standing up to your blood and trying to prove you’re the best, but I don’t think this is the right move. It feels like 2022 all over again, as The Bloodline is the central focus on both shows. If Fatu doesn’t win, what happens to all his momentum he’s been building over the last two years? 

Why did WWE make this the best choice for storyline purposes? Why couldn’t creative have come up with a different challenger for Roman? There are so many other superstars that could challenge The Tribal Chief, such as Rusev, Bron Breakker, Gunther, or even a returning Sheamus. 

I just can’t help but question WWE’s logic here, and it kind of reminds me of all the times The Shield reunited. Could WWE be pushing the same storyline too many times here? Could the WWE Universe get tired of this rinse and repeat cycle of The Bloodline Saga?

Are we about to see all the weekly episodes solely focused on The Bloodline again? Will it be cinema… Yes. Is there still money in The Bloodline… Yes. Was it the right call? That’s to be determined!

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