Both the men's and women's Survivor Series: War Games promos on the "go home" edition of "Raw" on Monday night ended in big brawls. It was an easy way to generate interest in their matches on Saturday at Petco Park in San Diego (7 p.m. ET on ESPN Unlimited). Becky Lynch and AJ Lee's rivalry will be a focal point on the women's side, possibly leading to a much-wanted singles match between the two former champions. On the men's side, there's more doubt than ever as to which team is the favorite.
Where there is no doubt, at least in my mind, is how the Intercontinental Championship picture will unfold in the next couple of weeks.
We also had two quarterfinal matches in "The Last Time is Now" tournament, including Gunther and Carmelo Hayes, who had an incredible match full of expert storytelling. It's a shame Gunther and Hayes met so soon, because it could have also been a worthy final.
Nov. 24 'Raw' results
Gunther defeats Carmelo Hayes in the "Last Time Is Now" quarterfinals
Rey Mysterio defeats JD McDonagh
Solo Sikoa defeats Penta (medically unable to continue) in the "Last Time is Now" quarterfinals
Logan Paul and Drew McIntyre defeat The Usos (Jey and Jimmy Uso) in the Survivor Series: War Games advantage match
Who really has the advantage in the men's War Games match?
I was all in on a victory for The Vision at Survivor Series in the War Games match. But the fact that much of "Raw" was spent on the division among the champions' side makes one wonder if we could be in for a quick good guy redemption arc at War Games. The night began by asking who the leader of the team is -- CM Punk or Cody Rhodes -- and Roman Reigns not liking either option. The Usos tried to remind the feuding champions there was an advantage match still to handle, but the heels won and have the upper hand at War Games.
I like the idea of The Vision winning at Survivor Series because it could propel eventual challengers for the men's championships -- be that Logan Paul challenging CM Punk for the World Heavyweight Championship or Brock Lesnar challenging for Cody Rhodes' Undisputed WWE Championship -- without Rhodes or Punk having to look particularly weak in a loss. But when Reigns told Punk and Rhodes "that title would look so much better on my shoulder," he implied he could be in the title mix very soon as well.
More takeaways
Rey Mysterio's win over JD McDonagh puts him on a crash course with his son, Dominik, for the Intercontinental Championship. "Dirty Dom" will likely win back the Intercontinental title from John Cena at Survivor Series. If Rey takes on and can defeat Finn Balor at next week's "Raw," it sets him up to challenge the other member of The Judgement Day, his son Dominik, for the title.
When Cena's music hit while Dominik was in the middle of taunting Cena for not showing up to "Raw," I thought the scene might work out like Shawn Michaels playing Bret Hart's music on a 2005 episode of "Raw" and laughing at the disappointed crowd when no one showed up. But then Cena did show -- just a smaller version than expected -- when Dominik brought out Syko from Micro Wrestling Federation dressed in Cena's gear.
Pulling the "little" imposter of an opponent is a time-honored heel tradition. I definitely don't need it as a regular stunt in WWE, but for Dominik's character, in a moment when the crowd would have absolutely loved a surprise Cena appearance, it made sense. It made Dominik look uncaring, which was the intention.
A month ago Brock Lesnar split his pants executing an F-5 on "SmackDown," and Monday night he took a tumble during his entrance on "Raw." He laughed his way through both, taking it completely in stride, then switched immediately into a total menace. Few people can pull off that kind of duality in a character. Some wrestlers would be rattled, but not Lesnar. It added to his aura.
Doctors stopped the match between Penta and Solo Sikoa after Penta was injured delivering a hurricanrana on the outside of the ring. This comes at a particularly bad time, because Penta and Rey Fenix reunited as the Lucha Brothers hours earlier to challenge Dominik Mysterio and El Grande Americano on Dec. 20 in AAA Alianzas.
