WWE Raw 4/15/2024: 3 Things We Hated And 3 Things We Loved
Two weeks removed from WWE's WrestleMania 40, we've started to see some storylines emerge. On "WWE Raw," newly-crowned Intercontinental Champion Sami Zayn has a new nemesis. On WWE SmackDown, the Bloodline has been shaken up. Newly-crowned Undisputed WWE Universal Champion Cody Rhodes is delivering promos to those in attendance at both shows. And, sadly, we will see a new WWE Women's World Champion crowned on "WWE Raw" next week.
But that's not all. Fans watching tonight's show on their TVs may have caught some familiar WWE shenanigans, with a QR code showing up on the broadcast that may seem somewhat familiar. In addition to new "Raw" tag team title-holders, we have new "Raw" tag team title belts. We've also got new tag team title no. 1 contenders. This edition of "Raw" also saw a massive — though predictable — heel turn that is sure to mix things up on WWE's flagship show. All these things and more are addressed in Wrestling Inc's April 15 edition of Three Things We Hated & Three Things We Loved.
Hate: Mami doesn't come out on top, vacates championship
When the rumors started swirling today that Rhea Ripley was injured, either fighting an ongoing issue with her wrist, or possibly actually injured during an attack by Liv Morgan last week on "WWE Raw," I immediately got nervous for everyone's favorite "Mami." When I learned she was opening the show, my fear was almost confirmed. When showtime rolled around, Ripley's music hit, and she came out looking utterly unamused and just over everything, with her right arm in a sling, I knew exactly what was going to happen — and it sucked. The Women's World Champion vacated the title due to whatever injury she's suffering from. Ripley was on such a roll, just beating Becky Lynch in a pretty good match to open WrestleMania weekend, and now, she said she'll be on the shelf for months. What. A. Bummer. Even being in the heel Judgment Day faction couldn't stop Mami from getting over with the fans with her looks and utter domination in the ring.
It will also be a bummer if it officially comes out that she was injured in last week's segment with Morgan, because I'm sure that would get Morgan heat with the fans, and possibly backstage, as well. It would be some kind of cruel serendipity, for lack of a better term, that it was Ripley who put Morgan on the shelf, and now it's the other way around. Of course, it wasn't either woman's intention either way, but it's just lame how the world, especially in professional wrestling, works sometimes.
It was then announced on "Raw" that the new Women's World Champion will be crowned on next week's show. Maybe I'm just used to WWE running multiple matches, oftentimes multiple multi-person matches, but that just seems rushed to me. After the Nia Jax promo backstage, I even had written in my notes for the show "does this happen at Backlash?" Well, thankfully I didn't have to wait long for that answer, at least. As of right now on Monday night immediately following "Raw," we have no idea just who is going to be in the match next week. My guesses of course would be Morgan and Jax, but if Lynch is taking time off after WrestleMania for her book tour and such, I'm not sure if there would be a third woman involved, or if WWE would just go the route of a traditional match.
If there's anything good that comes from Ripley vacating the championship, I hope she rests up, doesn't require surgery, and gets the treatment she needs on whatever may be injured. My first positive thought about this was also that if she's out of commission for months, then maybe she'll have time to get married, or at least plan a good portion of her wedding to AEW's Buddy Murphy. That's definitely me reaching for something even resembling a bright side, but she'll also have an awesome feud with Morgan or whoever has the championship at the time when she gets back.
Written by Daisy Ruth
Loved: DIY get another shot at the tag team titles
After not winning either the "RAW" or "SmackDown" championships at "WrestleMania 40", DIY has another opportunity. They defeated New Day and the Creed Brothers to become the No. 1 contenders for Awesome Truth's fancy new titles.
It's fitting that DIY gets a shot at Awesome Truth since R-Truth keeps thinking that they are DX. He's convinced that Tommaso Ciampa is Triple H and that Johnny Gargano is Shawn "HBK" Michaels. DIY even had DX themed gear for their 'Mania match. During the segment on "RAW" in which Awesome Truth received their new World Tag Team Championships, Truth referred to Triple H as Ciampa.
DIY is one of the best tag teams in NXT history, though they've had a rough go on the main roster, but in the last couple of months, Ciampa and Gargano have been gaining momentum. They've been picking up wins and looking like the DIY of old; the fans have gotten behind them and they've become one of the top tag teams again.
Although Awesome Truth just won the titles, it seems like the best time for DIY to win the titles. The draft is coming up in a couple weeks and it wouldn't be a surprise if Miz and R-Truth get split up. As a comedy act, there's only so much they can do with the titles. DIY would be a great team to anchor the tag team division in this new era.
Written by Samantha Schipman
Hated: Chelsea and Piper Get a Win But ...
On one hand, getting a win on TV for the first time since November of last year is a big positive for Chelsea Green and Piper Niven. On the other, their match against Kayden Carter and Katana Chance was, well, against Kayden Carter and Katana Chance, but also slotted in ahead of a promo from white hot, newly-crowned Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes, which included a "Yeetfest" between he and "The Yeetmaster" himself, Jey Uso. In short, it didn't have much of a chance to get any shine and Green, especially, deserves all the shine. Her work in this current run has been flawless and, seeing as how she didn't get any WrestleMania love, and has gotten wrecked by Jade Cargill a couple of times since, I'm fearful for what's ahead for her.
And Niven, uniquely talented in her own right, only resurfaced last Friday, so good for her to be on the upside at the end of this match but at this point, I don't see a clear, positive path for her and Green as a tag team, nor do I have a lot of faith in a meaningful program for these two, even separately, given what we've seen of late.
As for Carter and Chance, I think they both have plenty of talent but I've said for a long time that their call-up from NXT was very much premature. I think the best that can happen for them, in particular, is the upcoming WWE Draft (and I hate saying that because traditionally, I hate the draft), and flipping them right back to NXT.
So yes, great to get the win but no, it didn't mean much and I'm still not sure where we're going for here but wherever it is for Green, she'll make the most of it. I just think she can do SO MUCH MORE.
Written by Jon Jordan
Loved: Chad Gable snaps, turns to the dark side
I think we all knew Chad Gable was heading down a darker path and the heel turn directed at Sami Zayn was in the works ahead of WrestleMania 40, when Zayn went to Gable for help training for his match against then-Intercontinental Champion GUNTHER. Gable subtly, yet surely, seemed to be running Zayn ragged in the video packages they aired of his training, and maybe I was looking too far into them, but it seemed like he was doing so for a purpose, so he could be the one to get a shot at GUNTHER at WrestleMania if Zayn got injured or was too tired and worn down to compete. Or, he just wanted Zayn to lose on "The Grandest Stage of Them All," so he could get his revenge on GUNTHER for making his daughter cry. I personally think it was likely the latter, because he didn't actually want to turn on Zayn.
I think the heel turn was effective, though I saw it coming a mile away. Gable versus Zayn was the main event of the show in Zayn's home country, at the arena that was the place he saw his first wrestling show. Zayn winning and Gable holding up his hand in victory, after just being emotional in the corner after suffering a loss, solidified it for me. When Gable was off-camera and Zayn went to hug and kiss his wife in the crowd, I think everyone watching a home knew Gable was going to deck him and lay him out.
While I absolutely love Sami Zayn and I'm so happy he won the Intercontinental title at WrestleMania, I think this heel turn is exactly what Gable needed. The "SHOOOOSH!" and being the silly, comedy guy with Alpha Academy was getting a little old for me. He had an absolute banger of a match with GUNTHER, then kind of fell off for awhile as Zayn climbed the ranks to be the one to dethrone GUNTHER. He is SO good at what he does in the ring, I think it lends itself well to a heel character. The story won't just be interesting when it comes to him chasing Zayn and the championship, it will also be a great story when it comes to the rest of Alpha Academy. What's Otis going to think?! Will they even try to talk any sense in to him, or is he splitting from the group immediately? I think it makes a lot of sense overall, with Gable now being obsessed with getting the Intercontinental Championship for himself. It also continues to make the belt look strong and worthwhile, something GUNTHER worked his butt off to do.
Written by Daisy Ruth
Hated: Cody Rhodes Says Nothing New
WWE keeps pushing the fact that they're in a new era, but it's things like this Cody Rhodes segment from tonight that make that process feel much slower and more gradual than they intend it to be.
Rhodes is undoubtedly on top of the world as Undisputed WWE Universal Champion, and is one of (if not the) most over stars in WWE. Giving him time on television every week makes sense seeing as he's a draw for viewership and ticket sales, but if he's not saying anything new or nothing is being accomplished with what he's saying on a weekly basis, then it kind of makes the point of him doing any sort of promo altogether pointless. Rhodes has said the same thing tonight that he has for the past two weeks now, and it's becoming boring and repetitive to watch (which is not a feeling you want to invoke within your fans when having a champion, let alone a high profile one, speak).
WWE had the perfect opportunity for Rhodes to say something to promote the Number One Contenders match between Styles and Knight, but they instead chose the opportunity to keep The Rock's name fresh in the mind of fans and thank Seth "Freakin" Rollins for his help over WrestleMania weekend. It just makes no sense from a storytelling standpoint, with Rhodes needing to focus on his immediate challenger at WWE Backlash rather than the bigger picture with The Rock and WWE needing to set up a place for Rollins upon his return in a similar manner to what they did with CM Punk whilst he was on the shelf.
Written by Olivia Quinlan
Loved: Send me down the rabbit hole again, please!
It's not just the sentiment of Taylor Rotunda coming back into the fold to honor his late brother's legacy and continue his story as best he can. It's not just continuing to flesh out the Uncle Howdy character, which showed promise, albeit shrouded in mystery (and maybe some logistical issues with that mask and hat and such), alongside Bray Wyatt before Windham Rotunda's untimely passing. And it's not QR codes at all, which I find intrinsically annoying, especially when on assignment and trying to perfectly pause the TV just to start the chase for whatever it is they're trying to show me. I'm jacked about the overall potential behind the idea of Uncle Howdy (and friends?) coming back into the fold because as hard as it was to lose Windham the man and Bray the character, there was just so much more to be done from that wild imagination of his.
"Bray Wyatt: Becoming Immortal," as heartwrenching as it was, let us see just how much Taylor wanted to be just like his brother Windham. He said that in his own words. And of course, at the very end, we got the Howdy tease, after scenes of Taylor and Jason Baker (Windham's longtime collaborator) looking over previous work and some unfinished ideas, all of it sparking our own curiosity about what could have been — and now may still be. It would be phenomenal to see him get a chance to continue to paint a picture that will pay respect to all that Bray Wyatt was, albeit carefully, of course, but it would be all that much more with a few other connected folks, perhaps, in the fold. Erick Rowan was recently pulled from upcoming indie events. Alexa Bliss has yet to return from maternity leave. Braun Strowman is recovering from an injury. And hell, Matt Hardy is a free agent. And they all have ties to Wyatt.
All of this means nothing if we're wrong in assuming the Taylor Rotunda/Uncle Howdy connection but hey, what else could it be? No matter what, for now, it's fun. And that's what this is all supposed to be about.
Written by Jon Jordan