5 Ups & 4 Downs From WWE Raw (Oct 24)

2. A True Heel Act

It’s time to admit this writer was wrong. For months, this column has pilloried The Judgment Day for just about everything, right down to its “The” in its name.

But during the past couple months, the group has found its stride and achieved success as a true heel stable. There is no “cool” vibe to Judgment Day. They don’t have a bunch of catchphrases and hand signals that fans can imitate and play along with. They don’t even get one up on the babyfaces by being better – they just are massive cheaters with Rhea Ripley often providing a distraction or attacking a wrestler. The group is winning more than it’s losing. They’ve finally moved on from Rey Mysterio.

Perhaps the biggest boost (aside from Ripley’s ascension) for the group has been Dominik Mysterio. Despite his genetics, Dom is not a prodigy in the ring. He’s more David Flair than Charlotte Flair (gonna keep using that one until it catches on).

And The Judgment Day (and WWE) are leaning into that. They are pumping the younger Mysterio up, with Damian Priest calling him the greatest luchador of all time. Dom himself said he was this generation’s Eddie Guerrero… or better yet, Eddie was his generation’s Dominik Mysterio.

It’s all being done with a wink at the camera, which is what makes it work so well. They know in reality they’re full of it, but that’s what makes it so great. It’s fun stuff and makes it easy to “hate” them.