WWE applying logic to their product? Well I never! Welcome to a very positive edition of the Raw Redux here on Diva Dirt. Stephanie McMahon was M.I.A this week, but we were treated to a WWE Women’s Championship match and some straight fire was lit under a secondary female feud. One match, two backstage segments and an explosive in-ring showdown – lets jump right in!
Up first this week is Becky Lynch, who is asked by Renee Young how she is dealing with the latest betrayal in her life. Becky says that she doesn’t know why everyone she keeps siding with ends up stabbing her in the back, but she is going to take that knife out and not give anyone anymore second chances. She says that even if she’s the only woman left with any sportsmanship and respect, she’s happy to be just that as it makes her better off than the rest.
Then out of nowhere, Natalya blasts Becky in the back of the head, sending her to the concrete floor. Nat then throws Bex into a crate, leaving her in a heap. Nattie says that she is ready to look out for herself for the first time in a long time. You mean in three weeks Nattie? You’ve been going it alone ever since the Divas of Doom… I think I need more of an explanation, but this was a good start.
We’re still with our favorite Canadian since Trish Stratus, Renee for our next segment as she is ready to probe Paige with some questioning. Maybe she’ll ask the former Divas Champion about her fake arrest? Or her new tattoo?
Renee instead asks Paige why she’s been on such a roll as of late. Ms Young mentions Charlotte but Paige has also been running Summer Rae ragged on WWE’s D and E shows. Let’s not forget that ‘E.
Paige discusses her history with Charlotte before the devil herself who was spoken of shows up with Dana. Paige says that she doesn’t even know what to say about “it”, referring to Dana. She does however know what to say about the champion. Once tonight is over, the spotlight will be on the woman whose house the ring is.
Immediately following that backstage segment, it is time for the big match. Paige has been logically given a title match after two wins over Charlotte on Raw, but can she scoop her first Women’s Title? Be on the lookout here for a certain Boss…
Thoughts: A pretty good show tonight for WWE’s ladies. Thank god. The girls got good time, entrances, in-ring introductions and two storylines last night – and it’s about bloody time after the total garbage we’ve gotten the last month or so. Thankfully, something really interesting has come from all of that mess.
I don’t quite have enough to go on for Nattie’s heel turn to be explained, but color me intrigued. Natalya hasn’t been anywhere near a heel since she was with a tweener with Tyson Kidd and Cesaro, so this has been a long time coming. I didn’t expect the turn considering Natalya is so popular with the audience, but her prudish attitude and often outlandish promotion of her family will make for a good heel character. I’m excited to see where this goes. Becky was a treat as always, by the way. Looking forward to their feud.
Looking to the title match, I’m glad WWE addressed Paige’s random wins and sparked some curiosity in the stale landscape of late. I didn’t think she would win for a second, but the match was done well to really heighten suspense. Paige kicking out of the moonsault was a great moment – I really loved the set-up too. I’m not sure we’ve seen a spot like that for the women in a while now.
Dana however was a mess. I enjoyed her ranting and raving in the backstage segment and at ringside (her owning the protege role is WAAAAYYYY better than her being seen as an equal to Charlotte and make more sense for the Champion storyline wise) but Dana goes seem to get a little lost out there. Her putting Charlotte’s foot on the rope was so badly done. The way it transpired, Charlotte should have been disqualified. I guess you could argue the ref throwing Dana out and giving Paige a chance at winning was a good example of him using his dissection, but I’m not so sure. Dana is ok but she isn’t just a protege to Charlotte, she’s a protege to the entire wrestling business. She’s certainly not the worst worker in the company, but she should still be in NXT. Point blank.
Looking to the future, praise be to Beyoncé that Sasha Banks is back in the title picture. This was as obvious as this week’s episode of Game of Thrones, but when a feud is this good, we’re fine with it… as long as it doesn’t lead to yet another tag team match at WWE Battleground. Let’s hope for a Fatal-4-Way instead with Paige getting pinned (sorry girl) leading to Sasha vs Charlotte at SummerSlam. We can live in hope…
