3 Ups & 7 Downs From WWE Raw After WrestleMania 39 (3 April - Review)

1. Worst Raw After Mania Ever?

Woof.

What else can you say after that show? The Raw after WrestleMania has previously been defined by molten crowds taking over large portions of the show with their chants, surprises out the yin-yang, returning and debuting superstars, new directions for characters and an overall fun vibe.

Monday’s program provided nearly none of that. The crowd, while sometimes getting fired up for entrances and a few moments, was remarkably subdued. They couldn’t even muster the energy to boo down Austin Theory when he was begging them to eat him alive as John Cena said they would. That was an embarrassment. Either the fans should be ashamed, or it’s a testament to how little they care about Theory.

The only returning/debuting wrestler Monday night was Riddle, who was gone just under four months. No NXT call-ups, no Randy Orton, no Matt Cardona, no Jay White. It just felt like another Raw in that respect. We saw Raw and SmackDown episodes last summer and fall that had more returns and callups.

As for shocks, Brock Lesnar’s heel turn was a big deal and a huge development to close out Raw. But it was one of the only major developments and talking points coming out of the show. What should have had 3-4 conversation pieces had just one. That’s a terrible hit rate.