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Opinion

The New Day’s Positivity Leads to WWE Money in the Bank

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New Day WWE Smackdown

The New Day is on its way to WWE Money in the Bank on Sunday, June 17. One of the three will step into the ring with seven other men in an effort to win a guaranteed shot at the WWE Championship. The company has yet to announce which man will be chosen and that has speculation running rampant.

Much of that speculation has to do with what seems to be the inevitable dissolution of the team. From the moment Kofi Kingston, Xavier Woods and Big E came together, fans have been wondering when it will end.

Even after the trio first found success together and the gimmick exploded in popularity, the question was asked. How long will this last? It seems their imminent ending was more intriguing than their unlikely beginning. After all no one expected The New Day to get over and certainly no one expected them to last this long.

The New Day has been together as a unit for nearly four years. That’s two years longer than The Shield during its first reign and one year longer than the first run of D-Generation X. Even The Four Horsemen’s most lucrative ride only lasted for the first two years of its existence before the group began to deteriorate and was never the same afterward.

The New Day has defied all expectations and surprised critics from day one. Even when the group wasn’t always warmly received, they kept working until it clicked. They’re not always perfect and there have been moments when the comedy was a bit too much. But they have overcome all imperfections to become the top team in WWE.

But it’s only natural that fans would wonder what the next move is. Like an underdog team after winning a championship, The New Day’s parts are perhaps becoming more valuable than the sum. Kingston is a natural high flyer. Woods is more of a grounded showman. Big E is the powerhouse. They are great together but has the time come for them to separate and pursue their solo careers once again?

That is the point WWE has reached now. The New Day didn’t have to be included in MITB. They could have competed in a six-man tag or a traditional tag team match. The New Day could have tended to New Day business and left the world title chase to the main event level guys.

However their inclusion in the match on June 17 seems to suggest that WWE is moving forward with a split in the near future. So if that is the case and The New Day is set to end, then which one of them will get the nod at Money in the Bank?

Kofi Kingston quite possibly has the most upside of the group. Kofi has already tasted success as a singles wrestler. He knows what that life is like and he would surely readapt when The New Day is over. He’s a contender to any of the secondary championships. He would certainly have to be considered a contender to the WWE title.

Getting him to that point would require some work, if only to remind fans of just how capable he is on his own. It would take time to convince those fans that Kingston could believably become WWE champion. But once that work happens and the right amount of time passes, there’s every reason to believe that Kingston could be a main event player.

Xavier Woods also had singles experience before forming The New Day. But he did not have the success that Kofi had prior to joining him. Woods never really got the opportunity to show what he could do on his own. But maybe that’s not such a bad thing.

After all, Woods has really never looked better in his career than he did after he began working with The New Day. Now he is the glue that holds them together. If he did venture out alone, it would take more work on WWE’s part to get him over. He’s perhaps not as far along as Kofi is but with enough time, Xavier Woods could become a contender in the singles division.

Of course the consensus among WWE fans is that Big E will be the man to step out of The New Day and taste success first. He’s got the size, he’s got the power and he’s got the look. Big E is everything WWE wants in a big man because he’s quick, he’s athletic and he’s also highly entertaining.

Big E embodies the spirit of The New Day. He could take that spirit with him as an individual performer. He may or may not immediately jump ahead of everyone else on the roster but either way he would certainly be ready for the challenge. Like Kingston and Woods, Big E has already enjoyed a singles career. He knows what it takes to get over. But now he knows so much more than he did before. This could very well be Big E’s time.

But there is just no way to know which Superstar will be the one to step into Money in the Bank. It could be that WWE will go a different route and allow all three of them to participate. If that happens, then problems could develop between them during the match itself. WWE has options here and fans can only sit back and guess.

However there is no doubt that Kofi Kingston, Xavier Woods and Big E have all done far better than anyone believed they ever would. They found each other and that led them to find themselves. Each man has improved and each man is worthy of attention outside of the group. Maybe the Money in the Bank winner is in The New Day. Maybe that winner will leave The New Day far behind.


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Opinion

Greg DeMarco’s Good, Bad, & Ugly: WWE Smackdown On FOX (November 3, 2023)

It’s the go-home show for WWE Crown Jewel, and Smackdown is in full force! As is Greg’s Good, Bad, & Ugly review!

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WWE Smackdown John Cean Solo Sikoa

It’s the go-home show for WWE Crown Jewel, and Smackdown is in full force! As is Greg’s Good, Bad, & Ugly review!

WWE Smackdown On FOX sends us home for the Crown Jewel premium live event, so it has to be strong. But is it? Maybe it’s Good. Possibly it’s Bad? I sure hope it isn’t Ugly.

Let’s find out!


If you haven’t checked out Mitchell’s Results & Review for this episode of Smackdown, go and check it out now!


Good

  • Roman Reigns & LA Knight In Ring Promo – Last week LA Knight got the better of Roman, so it made sense for Roman to get it all back this week. And he did just that. “Redneck Cosplay of my cousin” was a fantastic line from Roman Reigns, but “I ain’t here to finish something” from LA Knight got a bigger reaction from me. Roman calling himself the megastar was also a phenomenal line. Good stuff all around.
  • Kevin Owens vs. Austin Theory – Kevin Patrick keeping “The 150 million hit man” schtick going for Austin Theory is so great. Milk that for all it’s worth! “What is your issue with Kevin Owens’ face?” “LOOK AT IT, MAN!” Absolutely brilliant shit. “How’s that feel, idiot?” Grayson Waller should be on commentary every week, for every match. And this match, by the way, was really good. Austin Theory has settled into his current role, showing he understands the WWE cycle. And Owens is Owens.
  • Backstage Series Of Events – We had the Bianca Belair interview where she was attacked by Damage Ctrl, followed by The Street Profits & Bobby Lashley running into Logan Paul and then B-Fab. Flowed well, no issues for me.
  • Chelsea Green & Piper Niven vs. Shotzi Blackheart & Charlotte Flair – No surprise that Charlotte Flair was the partner, and no surprise that Alba Fyre and Isla Dawn made an appearance. This was a perfectly fine TV match–didn’t set the world on fire, but also wasn’t Bad or Ugly. This was a step in this story, and an effective one.
  • The Brawling Brutes vs. Pretty Deadly in a Good Ol’ Fashioned Donnybrook! – Shout out to Sheamus, whose return I look forward to seeing. With Ridge really coming into his own, we’re to the point where all four of these guys range from good to great to fantastic on any given night. Putting Pretty Deadly into any “manly fight” is always guaranteed entertainment. Really, Pretty Deadly in anything is typically guaranteed entertainment. Pretty Deadly picking up the win was not a shock, although I’d have loved to see Butch and Ridge Holland pick up a win here. Given the rules (or lack thereof) of this match, Pretty Deadly basically won clean here.
  • Rey Mysterio vs. Logan Paul Crown Jewel Weigh-In – A very effective way to pretape something, which saves time as part of a double taping. It was essentially a go home promo, but done in a different way. I liked it. It also smoothly transitions into the rundown of the card by the commentary team, which I always appreciate.
  • Bianca Belair vs. Bayley – If you know me, you know that Bianca can be hit or miss for me. She can’t “work with anyone,” but she can definitely work with Bayley. Bayley, of course, is money with anything she does. Both women delivered a main event quality match, and no one should complain that Bianca Belair won. She’s challenging for the Women’s Championship in less than 24 canon hours, so she needs to win. Bayley is a made woman, losing here doesn’t hurt her one bit.
  • “Just Enough Nick” Nick Aldis Usage – Triple H has done an amazing job of establishing Nick Aldis. Three weeks in and he already “belongs.” Much of that is attributed to how Aldis carries himself. But they are also using him to the right degree. It’s not too much, but it’s also not too little. Adam Pearce could miss two weeks of Raw and when he shows back up, it all makes sense. For Aldis, he needs to be very present, but not overbearing or “shoved down our throats.” They have the right balance.

BAD

  • Solo Sikoa & John Cena In Ring Promo – John Cena, lost voice and all, completely buries Solo Sikoa. He “cooks” Solo, as promised. And, as Cena does, he makes Solo look like crap. Bargain Basement Tazz Rip Off? C’mon man, you’re better than that. But here’s the real problem: what happens if Solo loses? Cena made him look like a loser, and then proves that he is? Solo has to win this match. If he doesn’t, and Cena is gone, then Solo is left out in the cold. And you don’t want to do that to Solo Sikoa at this point of his career.

UGLY

  • Misstep for Theory – Referencing Halloween as if it hadn’t already happened. You can edit this episode–c’mon, man!
  • Kevin Owens’ Crotch Chop – C’mon, man! We’re better than crotch chops in 2023.

The Verdict

  • Good – 8
  • Bad – 1
  • Ugly – 2

In all honesty this was a damn good show. Milwaukee showed out considering they’d already seen 2 hours of Smackdown before this was taped. Good on them, and good on WWE for a great go home show for Crown Jewel.

Interesting of note – the pictures for this show that are posted to the WWE website are uploaded in the order the matches and segments were recorded, not the order in which they aired. Just a little tidbit that I found interesting.


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Greg DeMarco’s Wrestling Ratings Report: Monday Night Raw (10/30/2023) & WWE NXT (10/31/2023)

Greg DeMarco takes a look at your Monday and Tuesday night TV ratings. What do they mean? Do they matter?

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WWE NXT Halloween Havoc Night 2 Carmelo Hayes Ilja Dragunov

Greg DeMarco takes a look at your Monday and Tuesday night TV ratings. What do they mean? Do they matter?

Settle in for a look at this week’s ratings for WWE Monday Night Raw and WWE NXT Halloween Havoc Night 2! Both were up against some stiff competition–let’s see how they fared!

WWE Monday Night Raw (October 30, 2023)

  • Hour #1 – 1.466 million viewers, .44 demo rating, #6 for the night on cable
  • Hour #2 – 1.450 million viewers, .46 demo rating #5 for the night on cable
  • Hour #3 – 1.256 million viewers, .39 demo rating, #8 for the night on cable

WWE Monday Night Raw for October 30, 2023 faced some stiff competition on Monday night. You had Monday Night Football as normal–which aired on both ESPN and ABC–along with the usual peripheral shows (Monday Night Football Postgame, Monday Night Football Kickoff, SportsCenter, and the Monday Night Countdown, which factored into the Top 10). 6.851 million people watched Monday Night Football on ESPN, a number that more than doubles when you factor in ABC.

What does it all mean? It means that outside of Monday Night Football–on cable–WWE Monday Night Raw was the top rated show. If you take away all things NFL, Raw finishes #1, #2, and #3 for the night. Viewership did drop off for our 3, but that’s the 10 PM hour that sees kids go to bed and people checking on the Monday Night Football and World Series games.

Speaking of which, that’s another factor to consider–the World Series! 8.126 million people watched the World Series on FOX (not really that good), with another 8.356 million watching Monday Night Football on ABC (yes, more than the World Series) for a decent-at-best Lions vs Raiders match-up.

In summary, it was another successful night for WWE Monday Night Raw, which was the go-home edition of the program. You can check out my Good Bad & Ugly look at Monday’s Raw, where I gave the show an overall “Good” rating. Haven’t watched yet? Give Mitchell’s live coverage a read.


Listen to this week’s edition of Bandwagon Nerds!


WWE NXT Halloween Havoc Night 2 (October 31, 2023)

  • Entire Broadcast – 674 thousand viewers, .20 demo rating, #6 for the night on cable

WWE NXT (Halloween Havoc Night 2) for October 31, 2023, had to deal with a myriad of external factors this week. First is the most obvious–it was Halloween! Many people had plans, Trick-Or-Treat escapades and more. That right there will be a detriment to any ratings results. Add in two live NBA games, each drawing over a million viewers for TNT. Combine it all together and WWE NXT was the top rated program that wasn’t sports programming on TNT or ESPN. Hell, the entire Top 12 consisted of ESPN and TNT sports programming, plus NXT.

It’s easy to call this a failure since viewership was lost week over week. But that’s very shortsighted. The fact remains that NXT was among the most watched programming for the night, holding its own against live sports and sports-peripheral programming.  If you’re WWE and USA Network, you’re nothing but happy with these results.

NXT, of course, featured the second week of Halloween Havoc, headlined by Ilja Dragunov defending the NXT Championship against Carmelo Hayes in the third match of their trilogy. Along with that you had The Creed Brothers in a Tables, Ladders, and Scares (Chairs) match with Angel Garza & Humberto Carrillo, Lola Vice vs. Kelani Jordan in the finals of the Women’s Breakout Tournament, and much more.

I’d call the Tuesday program a ratings success. My Good, Bad, & Ugly review of NXT Halloween Havoc Night 2 is available here, where I called it “Good” overall. If you haven’t seen the show yet, check out Mitchell’s play-by-play.

As the weeks roll on, I will compile some historical data and look more about week-over-week (and beyond) patterns in all of my ratings reports.


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