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I gotta tell you, I wasn’t as optimistic as usual heading into Wrestlemania Backlash. They replaced the main event with a Raw opening match. The only title on the line was the one involving Charlotte Flair. Only six matches were announced.
You know what? I was wrong! It was a good show, all the matches delivered on some level, and everybody seemed to get enough time to really tell a story. So here’s five good things about Wrestlemania Backlash!
1- Storytelling was key tonight, and it was done well. Several matches told a narrative through the actions of the participants, and overall they did a fine job
2- All four rematches from Wrestlemania served a purpose, whether it was moving the story along or changing the style of match from the first time around.
3- Madcap Moss looked good even though he and Corbin were put in the cooldown/popcorn slot before the main event. And hopefully this thing with Happy Corbin is over and the both of them can move on to something new!
4- The sign guy on the right side of your screen during entrances must have brought at least ten different boards with him. I wasn’t able to catch them all but if you haven’t watched yet, I wanted to bring him to your attention.
5- The main event was a decent match and was fun to watch, despite what I keep saying about the circumstances around it.
And now that those are out of the way, let’s get on with the show!
We start the show with your usual WWE production values, and immediately go into a pretty long video package summing up the Cody Rhodes / Seth Rollins feud.
Opening Contest: Cody Rhodes vs Seth Rollins, Wrestlemania rematch
This was fantastic, top to bottom. In the build to this rematch, Rollins repeated that his excuse for losing was that Cody had the advantage as a surprise opponent. Seth showed he was right for the better part of this match, having a reversal or evasion ready for most of Cody’s offense.
I personally never noticed that Cody hesitates every time he’s getting ready to run while in the ring. I think he’s just getting used to the ropes, which have a different tension than AEW, but I could be wrong. Regardless, Rollins seemed to know what was coming before Rhodes did. The ending sequence, featuring reversals of everything from the Falcon Arrow to the Vertebreaker, was terrific. Rollins had a rollup with a handful of tights, but Rhodes was able to roll that into his own pin, also clutching the tights, to get the pinfall victory.
Did Cody need to do the heelish thing with the tights, or was that just WWE protecting Rollins after his second loss in a row? I think he should have won clean. Also, shout out to Rollins’s gear tonight. It looked like a repurposed Nia Jax costume, but in a good way.
We get some commercials (I watch the version of Peacock that Comcast provides me) and then a recap of the drama between Bobby Lashley, MVP, and Omos.
Match #2: Omos (with MVP) vs Bobby Lashley, Wrestlemania rematch
So it turns out I’ve somehow managed to misspell Omos for the last … well, since I started this thing. Apologies. I also didn’t notice when they started announcing Omos as the “Nigerian giant”, but maybe that’s new. Bob did his new entrance with the drum beats while he stood on a lil cake, and we’re off.
Omos dominated early, but Lashley caught Omos in the ring ropes and got some solid offense in, even hitting a Flatliner on the much bigger man. He nearly had Omos beat with the Hurt Lock, until Omos broke the hold by slamming Bob into the turnbuckle. A missed spear by Lashley allowed MVP the opportunity to poke him in the eye with MVP’s cane, and Omos finished Lashley off with a two handed chokeslam and pin.
It was short, but it told the crowd Omos is still a threat, especially with MVP at ringside. Lashley did his best with what he was given, and I think that’s all we could have hoped for with this one.
More commercials, including one for Hell In A Cell coming up June 5th. I always liked it closer to Halloween, as it’s a creepy structure when used right. I mean, HELL is right there in the name!
A video from earlier today shows us Paul Heyman and The Usos in the back area, and Heyman tells us of the failures of Orton and Riddle’s mothers, as well as McIntyre’s need for psychotherapy. WWE Mother’s Day, everyone!
Another video package recaps Edge’s ascent of the Mountain of Omnipotence, the formation of Judgment Day with Damian Priest, and his ongoing battle with AJ Styles.
Match #3: Edge vs AJ Styles, Damian Priest is banned from ringside, Wrestlemania rematch
Again, it’s Judgment Day, not the New Brood. I guess we’re not getting that pay per view name back anytime soon.
AJ’s left shoulder is taped up because of the recent attacks by Edge and Priest, and the whole match revolves around that injury. Everything Edge does is focused on the arm; it’s some solid in-ring storytelling. There’s a spot where Edge rips the middle turnbuckle cover off while trying to avoid being suplexed, but then he immediately jams his shoulder on that exposed turnbuckle after a missed spear. Styles using the ropes to bounce Edge into the Styles Clash for a near fall was another great spot that highlighted how he had to work around that shoulder injury.
As expected, Damian Priest appeared, but the announcers made a point to mention that Priest was banned from RINGSIDE, not the whole arena. Finn Balor ran Priest down, which did in fact end up at the side of the ring, but we didn’t mention that. Styles went to the top rope to finish Edge off during those shenanigans, when a hooded figure hopped onto the apron and shoved AJ down. That allowed Edge to lock in a crossface, which the announcers called The Gallows, and Styles went unconscious, getting Edge the win.
After the match, the hooded figure entered the ring and knelt in front of Edge. Edge commanded them to rise, and Rhea Ripley (now with evil black hair) removed her hood and did the dramatic hamster turn! DUN DUN DUNNNNN! She smirked, she and Edge raised their arms in victory, and we have a third member of Judgment Day.
The match was excellent, and while the reveal wasn’t the surprise Balor turn I was hoping for, it was the addition to the stable many were expecting. I’m not against it! There aren’t enough intergender factions in WWE, or factions in general. I’m not sure what the point of a ringside ban is if you can still stand on the entrance ramp, but the announcers pointed it out so I guess WWE thought of that argument before I could make it.
Another commercial interlude, and we switch to our Smackdown announce team for the back half of the show. A video recap of Charlotte Flair and Ronda Rousey leads us into our next match.
Match #4: Ronda Rousey vs Charlotte Flair ©, I Quit match for the Smackdown Women’s Championship, Wrestlemania rematch
I really liked Ronda’s new gear, it’s kind of an 8-bit inspired monochrome getup. Charlotte is, as always, dramatically dressed in a black and red feathered robe, and has dark blue and purple ring gear underneath. And little glue on rhinestones all over her face and chest.
Here’s a fun game - take a drink every time one of the superstars calls the other a bitch during this match. You will not make it to match number five, I assure you.
This was a fight, and went all over the arena. A guy in a HOOK shirt in the first row was featured early, as Charlotte slammed Ronda into the barricade several times. Lots of kendo stick usage and an attempted homicide by Flair as she heaved a television camera at Rousey. There was a cool spot on the stairs of the arena, where Flair pulled Rousey halfway through the railing and bent her backwards, trying to get her to quit.
Back in the ring a little later, Ronda managed to get Charlotte into a reverse Tree of Woe, and hung off her arm outside the ring to try and get the win. Charlotte didn’t give up there, and they both fell to the ground after a while.
Pat McAfee asked if the Fiend was in the front row, observing some excellent cosplay. I wonder if Vince gets mad when he does this stuff?
Charlotte hit Ronda with Natural Selection AND the Figure 8, but neither got Rousey to quit. Ronda actually broke the Figure 8 with a chair shot, which was a nice touch. Charlotte then threatened Ronda with the chair, telling Ronda it was her last chance to quit. Rousey declined, and Charlotte responded with, “Happy Mother’s Day, bitch!” WWE Mother’s Day, everyone! The chair attack got reversed, and Ronda got Charlotte into an armbar thru the chair, which Charlotte initially didn’t submit to. Ronda told Charlotte she was hoping she’d say that, and (we learned later) broke Charlotte’s arm thru the chair, forcing Flair to scream I QUIT!
A good no rules match, and one that went around the arena and up the entrance. Some innovative offense and a good finish, and I thought Ronda needed to win here.
A commercial break and video recap lead us into…
Match #5: Madcap Moss vs Happy Corbin
Crowd wasn’t really into this one, but I think it was positioned here to give the folks in attendance a breather before the big main event. There was some polite booing whenever Corbin got some offense in, but I’m not observant enough to tell you if that was from the crowd or the production truck. Moss won with a sunset flip pinfall, letting him keep his momentum while hopefully getting him and Corbin away from each other. It was a decent match, but nothing to write home about. Or to write to you about, dear reader, so let’s move on.
Kayla Braxton is outside of the prominently labeled trainer’s room, and tells us Charlotte Flair has suffered a broken radius. Pat McAfee then explains what a radius is.
A video package of the events that turned this potentially company altering match into a large tag team affair follows. I know, I’ll stop after this match, I swear.
Main Event: Randy Orton, Drew McIntyre, and Riddle vs The Usos and Roman Reigns
The announcers keep calling them RK-McBro, but you have R-CLAY-BRO RIGHT THERE.
From the start, the match was good and the crowd was excited. Once the Bloodline was in control, Reigns was willing to enter the match briefly before quickly leaving after a little offense; he’s the shot caller, you see, and doesn’t do this for us. Later, a flurry of offense before a double tag forces McIntyre and Reigns in with nobody outside for Reigns to tag out for. The two talk a bit and get to punch-fighting. This eventually leads to Drew setting Roman up to go through the announce table, only for Reigns to reverse that into an uranage, putting McIntyre down for the remainder of the match. Riddle cleans a bit of house, taking out Roman and Jimmy Uso, but Jey attacks Riddle with a suicide dive. Jey and Riddle kick the hell outta each other, and Jey heads up top but Riddle follows and delivers a top rope RKO. Roman Reigns recovered by that point, and nailed a vulnerable Riddle with a spear and the pinfall victory. The bad guys win, and walk off basking in their completely meaningless victory.
The beginning of WWE EVIL tells us we’re done here.
In a tweet I saw a little later, the Bloodline posed for a photo with their titles, none of which were at risk at any point tonight. That’s my problem with that main event; even though I really did enjoy the match, the fact remains that the stakes were exactly the same as any other slapped together six man tag team match on either of the weekly shows. And when you pair that with the tease of a tag team unification match, one that could have really helped the tag division, it’s hard not to be disappointed.
Still, this show over-delivered by a mile. The rematches made significant changes in the way they handled their stories. Hopefully we move on from some of these feuds now. The rumor mill tells us we have until fall for a draft, assuming we maintain the brand split, so they’ll need some new feuds with the old blood on each show for a while. At the very least, tonight gave us the promise of McIntyre vs Reigns, and maybe something between Judgment Day and Balor, Styles, and Liv Morgan? WHO’S TO SAY?
Oh, not to brag, but since I did write a whole preview article, it seems like I should mention my skills at prognostication. The only match I picked wrong was The Bloodline winning the main event; in hindsight, why would I choose against Roman Reigns in any capacity? I also kinda called Ripley joining Edge, but I did hedge that bet by mentioning Ciampa and even Balor. Still, we’re gonna call it five out of six overall. Not too shabby!
I appreciate you stopping by, and would love it if you drop your thoughts in the comments section below. You can also follow me on Twitter @ElOsoPequeno, where I try to remember to post whenever I update the blog. I recap Raw, Dynamite, and Rampage weekly, and do the same with anything else I happen to watch. There’s also a weekly wrap up on Fridays, and I’ll do predictions before any big AEW or WWE pay per premium live events.
Have a good one!
