10 Impulse Reactions To The First EVER Empty Arena WWE Raw

9. He Drove All Night, To Get To You

Stone Cold Steve Austin Becky Lynch
WWE.com

Edge didn't have his pyro but he had just about everything else a fan would expect from a typical WWE entrance.

His theme interrupted the hosts that appeared not to expect him, the smoke blew from the little gimmicks off to either side of him and he posed towards nobody in particular before teeing up a polished clip that condensed last week's story into a neatly-presented package.

He then spoke in drawn out soundbites that suited the eerie silence. Of jealously. Of shared journeys and different destinations. Of the trials and tribulations both physical and mental and how he had to retire yet again thanks the Randy Orton conchairto that kicked all of this back off.

'The Rated-R Superstar' was great. In content and delivery, the promo was better than great. But it built to a Last Man Standing place that will have to take place exactly where Edge stood - the empty gym. Every mention of the 'Show Of Shows' like it was the real deal instead of Vince McMahon's pared-back bargain basement offering undermined much of the heat. A tweet from Beth Phoenix to confirm that he'd driven 17 hours to cut it only highlighted that unshakable malaise.

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Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation nearly 8 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 62,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett