10 Times WWE C-Shows Were AMAZING

A strange old choice for the C-Show, this was a demonstrable A+ dynamic repeated 48 hours after WrestleMania XXX. Not considered for the angle-heavy post-‘Mania RAW, this key driver of the Shield’s babyface run was nonetheless as thrilling as it was important.

Dean Ambrose entered the fray at first, subverting his disappearing act at the more famed Elimination Chamber original, before Seth Rollins fell prey to Bray Wyatt at a time when Architect’s howls of anguish were justified in the face of him. Mercilessly smashed against the canvas, it was precisely this sort of flailing, bump-heavy performance that rendered Seth’s betrayal such an unexpected choice. His was a breakout babyface sensation in waiting.

In keeping with that theme, Roman Reigns’ genuinely explosive early cameo, all power and energy, positioned him as the company’s top face in waiting. Revisionist history paints Roman’s reception as mere backdraft to Dean and Seth’s fire—but he looked awesome here. Ambrose, meanwhile, took a proper pasting, and in doing so atoned for that disappearing act and created a platform on which to extract the maximum pathos from the events of June 2, 2014. To that end, in a borderline ingenious touch, Ambrose secured the win after Rollins’ absolutely dynamite role in the frenetic finishing sequence.

Balls-to-the-wall excitement; eclectic wrestling; stupendous character work: this genuinely warranted the obvious ‘This is awesome!’ chants.