I Still Love H.E.R.
There’s a fun juxtaposition between Rhea Ripley and IYO SKY. IYO finds herself in a similar
situation that Rhea did many, many moons ago when the Judgment Day turned their back on her. Her family betrayed her and she found out love was more than just a four-letter word; it was also hollow. IYO has a softer heart than Mami. Despite Asuka literally and figuratively spitting in her face last week, she can’t let her go. And that makes me wonder how far this union between friends can last.
Asuka was her usual manipulative self this week. She talked about loving IYO but then, once again, spit in her face. She said they’re family but berated and diminished her accomplishments. Asuka is excellent here. She’s devious, scary, but also a bit comical. And then there’s Kairi Sane stuck in the middle. The other half of the Kabuki Warriors has to make a choice one day. She’s just as down bad as IYO right now; they have blind loyalty to Asuka even though she clearly gives nothing in return. But it’s more complex than that. Which is why this angle sings right now; it’s about complex people rather than stereotypes or caricatures. Even Rhea, who can get painted one way, gets to show a range of emotions. She’s tender, empathetic, and extremely kind to her friend. She’s angry at Asuka and feels sorry for Kairi. Mami still gets to rampage, but she’s doing it because it’s the only way to get through to someone she cares about.
There’s a lot of thought and care put into this angle and I hope it doesn’t just end at Crown Jewel. The tag match is official and while I question how long IYO holds on to her feelings for Asuka, Kairi is the other wild card here.
There’s a lot at stake in this match that has nothing to do with a championship. Fantastic and subtle work all around. And yeah, not so subtle either. “KAIRI!”
B-Sides
Chief Rocka
Negative reinforcement is real. Someone or something can come along that supports our worst impulses. For Jey Uso, that someone is Roman Reigns, and he came back this week to do just that.
Earlier in the proceedings, Jimmy raped with his little brother about his headspace lately. Specifically, he questioned why Jey bounced last week knowing Jimmy and LA Knight needed his help. Sure, Jey showed up, but it didn’t need to get to that point. Jey blew all of that off and said helping LA won’t help them nor will it get back his championship. The rudest part of that exchange came when Jey said Jimmy wouldn’t know anything about that singles championship. At least that’s how I took it. But it was another sign that Jey is either turning into his cousin or Gollum. Personally, I’d go for the former for the hair.
During their rematch with The Vision, the action got cut a bit short because Roman showed up and wrecked shop. That’s what this whole thing was about; the Tribal Chief resurrecting after getting left for dead in Paris, and then saying all of this to the former World Heavyweight champ:
Roman’s message was clear, with the F-Bomb adding emphasis: This is all about Jey and nobody else matters. That championship is the only thing that matters. Jimmy played his role perfectly in the background. He looked concerned, scared, and sad. He sees what’s happening to his little brother and is powerless to stop it. Roman didn’t even bother “acknowledging” Jimmy’s presence.
I keep wondering does this end with another brother vs. brother battle. Or does Jimmy just throw up his hands and give it to his deity of choice? Jey’s obsession means there’s little room for anything else in his life. At what point does he have little need for his brother?
Album Cuts
- Dirty Dom lies, cheats, and steals. Yet the fans love it. If there’s one thing I took from Dom’s successful defense Intercontinental Championship defense, it’s that he’s massively over. He went full Eddie Guerrero, complete with fronting like Rusev hit him with the championship and a massive mule kick to Rusev’s nether regions for the W. And North Carolina ate it up. They couldn’t get enough of it. The guy is entertaining and his matches are more impressive every week, so I’m not surprised. At least not fully. Rusev, for his part, is an incredible monster heel, making him the perfect foil for a guy who knows he has to use his wits because braun wouldn’t be enough in this or any other lifetime. The crowd’s energy added so much to this as well. Dom is still the champ and I’m sure a rematch is coming based on him cheating, but does that change the outcome?
- Bayley, well one of her, tried making amends with Lyra Valkyria before her match against Raquel Rodriguez. Lyra, understandably, told Bayley nah because The Role Model’s behavior is more than a little out of control. That meant Bayley went into a match with a rejuvenated Raquel all by her lonesome. I might be giving this story way too much credit but I believe Bayley’s very slow start against Judgment Day’s Raquel stemmed from her utter disappointment that Lyra didn’t accept her apology. Raquel made this less of a contest and more of an exhibition during the first half. Bayley got out of her funk in act 2. And she needed to because Raquel looked monstrous when this match started; she looks better every week and I’m glad she’s embracing her powerhouse status. The turning point came when Bayley truly got the edge and Roxanne Perez interfered behind the ref’s back. She raked Bayley’s eyes during the once and future Hugger’s Figure Four attempt. That opened the door for Raquel to finish things off with a Tejana Bomb.
- But then we got some after hours action from Raquel and Roxanne. They put more hands on Bayley, which prompted a reluctant rescue from Lyra. I love the idea of Lyra going to gorilla, telling them to play her music…kinda, then sort of walk out from behind the curtain. Imagine being the person in the audio truck in that situation. All that to say I would’ve gone without the music in this situation. Anyway, Bayley once again flipped personas and The Role Model came out to play but cheered on Lyra. The world turns on this story.
- The territory copped out this week, ladies and gents. They gave the other Americanos names: Rio & Bravo. I’m a John Carpenter fan, which means I’m a Howard Hughes fan, so I’d love to think this is an homage to Rio Bravo. It’s probably not though. Sigh. Why not name them El Grande Americano 1, 2, and 3? There’s beauty in simplicity. But I digress.
- This match between El Grande Americanos and AJ Styles & Dragon Lee highlighted AJ prior to his match with John Cena. It also showed he and Dragon Lee really have great chemistry. AJ is excited about beating Johnny at Crown Jewel but this tag team is a good look for him and Dragon. They got the W over Rio & Bravo but I hope they keep this thing going for a while.
- Kofi Kingston and LA went at it this week. Why? Because the former disrespected the latter’s place on the food chain. Kofi reminded LA of his former championship status. LA reminded Kofi he’ll never have that championship again. Rude! But the New Day member talked himself into a match that ended just as Knight said it would: Kofi taking a BFT and an L. Fun match that gave LA some momentum as he sets his sights on Seth Rollins’ championship.
- Speaking of The Visionary, I really dug the video promo featuring him and Cody Rhodes. In fact, I liked it more than their face-to-face in the ring. The video crystalized their rivalry with them talking back to one another as the story progressed. It added some real weight to this Crown Jewel match, continuing something started last week. Their face-to-face hit on the same point: Seth has to defeat Cody while Cody just wants to win for the sake of competition. Cody questioned Seth’s leadership and essentially asked how can Seth ever be QB1 of the company when he’s not even QB1 of his squad. Once again, Cody played on Seth’s insecurity.
Raw was very enjoyable this week. Dom and Rusev set it off properly in the ring while the IYO-Rhea-Asuka-Kairi saga carried most of the show’s emotional weight throughout. They’re putting their best foot forward to make Crown Jewel more than just an arbitrary 8am wake up call for those of us in the states, too. There’s legitimate drama heading into the event. The show returns to its normal bat time next week, and I hope it doesn’t lose any juice along the way.
What say you, Cage Siders? Does Jey turn on Jimmy like Nino Brown turned on G Money?
