The Good
For Raw, the segment and match we got from Kevin Owens this week gave an idea of what they have going forward with him. After obliterating Tyler Breeze, he finally explained why he decided to come back after quitting. Basically, current General Manager Baron Corbin explained how much they needed somebody like him on their show and emphasized that they will let him do whatever he wants. This is a Kevin Owens we should all look forward to seeing.
For Smackdown, the number one contenders match for the tag team championship was really good. It was the Bar vs. Rusev Day to determine who would face the New Day at the PPV. Rusev Day ended up winning in a great back and forth match. We already have seen the Bar vs. the New Day multiple times, so it is nice to see something new for the tag division. Along with that, this is the first time Rusev Day has had a two vs. two championship match.
The Bad
For Raw, the whole The Shield vs. Braun Strowman, Drew McIntyre, and Dolph Ziggler just isn’t clicking like it should. It was basically the same thing last week where they just brawl, then the Shield gets threaten to get thrown out of the building (this doesn’t work), and then they brawl all over again. This can work one week, but to do it all over again takes away the creativity to push the rivalries to make them more intriguing.
For Smackdown, the only problem Smackdown had going to this upcoming PPV is there is no challenger for Shinsuke Nakamura’s United States Championship. Since he has won it, he has only faced off against Jeff Hardy. Along with that, other than this week, we haven’t seen him on the show much. Hopefully, WWE can find something after Hell in a Cell because this championship should get more time than it does.
The Final Verdict
Overall, WWE did do a lot this week to build up Hell in a Cell. Both shows focused a lot on it, but Smackdown did a much better job of building up their matches than Raw did. With that said, Smackdown had the better show this week. Things are more exciting for Smackdown than Raw. Every rivalry has been well told and has gotten the proper time to build. In conclusion, the Hell in a Cell PPV should be fun to watch if it is a Smackdown match because the Raw matches do look good, but the buildup behind them doesn’t have the momentum they should.
