10 Recent Things That Didn't Go WWE's Way

And with the return of capacity crowds also came with it the continuation of WWE's increasing love of cramming 40,000+ folks inside of a venue for one of their other big four Premium Live Events outside of the Show of Shows.

Pulling off such an accomplishment is no mean feat, your writer might add, and doing so on multiple occasions over the last year or so after such an uncertain and sensitive period in time is admirable. However, convincing that many people to pay their hard-earned cash to show up and watch is one thing. Giving them an event capable of making them want to return is something else entirely.

Royal Rumble 2022 was not that event.

Mired by the bizarre decision to give away the majority of the field in both titular matches - contests famed for their unpredictability - things also weren't aided by the blockbuster title contests being settled under dodgy circumstances.

A one-time can't-miss spectacular reduced to nothing more than lazy, predictable set-up for 'Mania showdowns next to nobody had any desire in witnessing, WWE royally crapped the bed inside of The Dome... and that's without even mentioning Shane O'Mac's surreal Rumble power trip, either.