10 Things We Learned From WWE Raw (May 29)

1. Life Sentance

Rich Swann Sasha Banks
WWE.com

Considering the booking of the females on Monday in 2017, reviving interest in the Women's Title lately had been some feat, but Alexa Bliss' magnetism as a heel paired with Bayley's new chase (and potential forced use of a weapon) added a layer of drama that had been badly lacking for 'The Hugger' since dethroning Charlotte Flair earlier this year.

A 'This Is Your Life' segment seemed to be in response to critics arguing a complete mishandling of the former NXT Women's Champion, but the company inadvertently doubled down on their clumsiness, with a painfully long and woefully scripted display that hit few marks with the live crowd and lasted an eternity on television.

Merely breathing props, the actors portraying Bayley's high school teacher, best friend and boyfriend respectively were all uniquely awful, despite a game and composed effort from Bliss in failing to stop things completely careering off a cliff.

Lowlights included some deeply odd scripting about Bayley's relationship with her father, as well as the bestie lambasting 'The Hugger' for watching wrestling. The crowd came alive (for the third consecutive week) for a kendo stick attack, which should show the company how well the stipulation is working. This nonsense wrapped around it was an utter disaster.

Contributor
Contributor

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