The Shake-Up is over and it had its impact on Raw, SmackDown Live and NXT. Stars were assigned to rosters after being a Free Agents for over a month, teams were split, teams were created, new horizons for already established stars.
Let's remind ourselves who went where and I will make an analysis and some suggestions for matches and rivalries.
EMBER MOON
(transferred from RAW)
Ember is a unique talent, for me. Her style is a mix of risky aerial attacks from the ropes and stunning powerful throws. It's a pure joy to watch her in the ring! I follow her career in WWE since her debut and honestly she is one of my top favorites in the current rosters.
She is born to accomplish a lot! Ember is a total champion-material. But it's all about booking...
Many fans criticize some of her appearances in Raw. Especially her short rivalry with Liv Morgan (who she defeated) and Sarah Logan (who defeated Moon), from the Riott Squad, because... sorry for me it was absurd... they all were 'new' in WWE(?!?). Helloooo! They are NXT product! There is no way to have women from NXT not putting a nice match in the ring, no matter against who they are standing against and especially when they all are NXT Alumni. So, for me, Moon had really great momentum in Raw, that she even appeared in Money In The Bank Ladder match last year and didn't miss a Rumble.
The only minus in her Raw days was that she never reached to title shot, but at the time there was no possibility for her to be involved in it. Now, we hope to see her, especially after she states it clearly, fighting Becky Lynch, for the belts. That would be a nice collision of styles.
Send her against other possible #1 Contenders!
Let her beat Charlotte Flair and Bayley, or have a rivalry with Flair, before reaching the title picture... Give her matches against Liv Morgan, Mickie James, (even) Lana and Carmella. She could be kind of loner and tweener - facing everyone. Battling faces with sportsmanship, heels with aggression.
When she beats everyone on the roster, send her straight to the Man! The War Goddess vs. The Man for the WWE SmackDown Women's Championship! It could even be on PPV (remember her TakeOver matches against Asuka or Baszler - she was amazing, back there).
So, Ember Moon has a field of opportunities in front of her!
KAIRI SANE
(transferred from NXT)
When Paige told us that she will introduce her own tag team that will challenge for the WWE Women's Tag Team Gold, I thought about The Sky Pirates. Well, everyone who thought that was 1/2 right.
Kairi Sane debuted with Asuka, as Paige's secret team.
Actually this week we saw Sane's NXT career closure - with controversial loss via DQ in a result of her teammate interference against Baszler. Kairi lost the chance to challenge for the NXT Women's belt in the future, according to the stipulation. Io Shirai - the other half of The Sky Pirates, still has a lot to accomplish in the Black and Yellow brand, like avenging her fallen friend and winning that belt!
Now, a new page has turned for Kairi. Many people asked why they teamed her with Asuka?
1. They are Japanese.
Yeah, for some people this is racist, but look further. The Japanese scene, its wrestling tradition has it's dynamic. The women in there work well as teams, even better than as singles competitors and we saw that proven at SDL. The chemistry between Asuka and Kairi was there! Their bond was immediate! No need for preparation. They will be a serious threat for every tag team on their way because they don't need to work on their link as hard as the other tandems.
2. Asuka needed a revival of her career. Some live in it. Something different.
Last months were hell for The Empress. She was booked to lose her title right on the door of WrestleMania 35. She was eliminated in the Battle Royal at the Grandest Stage of Them All, let's look several weeks earlier - she was defeated by Mandy Rose! (Nothing against Mandy, but...come on)...
Before Sane's arrival, you can hardly imagine Asuka paired with any of the women on the roster. Neither Naomi, neither Carmella or even heels or faces with strong individuality like Charlotte and Becky were a match for a tag team partners.
The decision to add Kairi as a sort of a savior and someone who adds more color to the Empress gimmick and career looks so natural. Kairi is ideal tag team partner, not only because they are from Japan. Kairi's skills can match and complete Asuka's own in-ring style. That experience will be a great asset for both women's future careers. I think that teaming up with The Pirate Princess will push Asuka even further.
So, for me, that was a great decision.
3. We really need a strong team to face the IIconics.
With Bayley and Sasha Banks, out of the tag team title picture, we really needed a strong team. Who do we have?
Sonya and Mandy?! Respect...but...Hm, no way! In Raw there is no team at this point - Riott Squad looks to be over, guys, no more. In NXT there are Aliyah and Vanessa Borne and eventually Duke and Shafir but none of them is suitable for more than a good title match, not to care for the belts.
So here they are. The hard to be defeated Japanese megastars. I think that they won't be booked to win a title match immediately. You know - there should be drama, cheap shots, more drama, but I can clearly see a tag team title reign in Kairi and Asuka's future. It would be a sin to not giving them the belts! They already screwed one great tandem - The Boss 'n' Hugs Connection, if they do this to Sane and the Empress it would be too much! Reeeally TOO MUCH!
Suggestions:
Send her team against Deville and Rose, for warming up. Maybe against some of the NXT's tandems as well. Give them more heat (they have enough for a challenge, but add more. It won't hurt). Then send them against the IIconic and add some drama - like a loss after cheap shot and then at Royal Rumble or other big PPV until the end of the year (like SummerSlam) make them victorious and awarded with their first tag team title reign, of many to come.
BAYLEY
(transferred from RAW)
How many of you were shocked when they saw Bayley on SDL, this week?
Not many, eh?
Me as well. As much as I like the Boss 'n' Hug Connection, I would love to see them working as the singles competitors who they were. I don't know if this is a punishment from Vince, but for me Bayley and Sasha, especially Sasha must deal with the issues and get themselves in hands, reminding us who they were, before all the tag team dramas.
(Maybe, some of us expected Sasha to be transferred. She wanted to be part of SDL since the latest WWE Draft Edition. But no!)
I was a little bit shocked when WWE Universe booed her the moment she pointed out her role in the reviving of the WWE Women's tag team gold. But, come on - It's Bayley! Our Bayley! The girl who made epic matches against the same Sasha Banks with who she teamed up, against the likes of Asuka and Nia Jax, against The Queen - Charlotte Flair.
Actually, I like what she accomplished on Raw. She was 1-time Raw Women's Champion in there, had some nice rivalries with Alexa Bliss, Nia Jax... She's a solid and professional worker. She even tries hard to revisit her in-ring performance, which at some point was just a series of predictable moves. I respect and love that girl, even if she just did Hugplexes!
Bayley is someone who helped a lot of fellow female Superstars to be there, where they are today. So, please keep that in mind!
Suggestions:
Matches against Charlotte, Ember and the other women, including Mickie James, before booking her for a title shot. Bayley looks solid in singles and multiple-contestants matches so use her well in that kind of battles. Title match? For sure she deserves one or two...!
LIV MORGAN
(transferred from RAW)
Since we have an article, especially about the Riott Squad's future and this one becomes really long I will try to speak shortly about Liv Morgan's transfer, which is hard - to speak shortly about someone so talented and (I can't miss pointing at that) so innovative.
That was a real shock because we didn't saw it coming.
The Riott Squad were so well packed as a team and we loved them the way they were. Buuut here we are! Liv Morgan is a singles competitor for now and we seriously hope that the Creatives have an idea what they will do with her as a character and wrestler.
Liv is in a really complicated situation. Luckily, they decided not to debut her and eventually to plan the details about her first appearance on SmackDown Live. At this point, Liv's career is in the hands of the bookers, despite her in-ring talent and devotion. We really hope that she will be used appropriately on the Blue roster.
Suggestions:
It's hard. They might use her to help to elevate Charlotte and Carmella, further. They can book her against Bayley and Ember Moon with the same idea. She will job (something she did with professional sense and she is really great in taking bumps). They could use her in a rivalry against Lana - since they had some sparks in the past when The Squad was on SDL. They could give her first victory over the Ravishing Russian, why not?!
MICKIE JAMES
(transferred from RAW)
Eh, Mickie James!
Excited about Bayley and Ember, Kairi and Liv, I almost forgot that she is moved to Tuesday's Night, as well.
What can I say? Mickie James is one of the greatest female wrestlers of our time. Her legacy is beyond WWE. She is a huge name in the business. She has our (the fans and analysts) and the Authorities respect... Nothing bad can be said about her. She's epic...
But let's be honest guys! With a hand on my heart, I will make a statement that is not meant to insult or disrespect this Legend and future Hall of Famer!
Sometimes I got the feeling like she is out of her timeline. Six-titles (Women's and Divas Championship combined), a pile of belts from TNA/Impact Wrestling and many indie promotions. She has done it all. She participated in many first-ever matches from Falls Count Anywhere, through Royal Rumble to Elimination Chamber. Looks like she has accomplished everything that could be dreamed. Now, she looks more useful as helping others to reach her heights and accomplishments.
Sorry! I just can't see her winning a singles belt. I think about a compromise -WWE Women's Tag Team Belts and I really have an idea (a crazy one of course) about who might be 'her partner in crime'... Really, I can't see her as Raw or SmackDown Women's Champion in the nearest future...
Sorry!
Suggestions:
Mickie could work with Ember Moon and Bayley, of course against them. Keep her in her heel gimmick. Send her against Carmella, match her with Charlotte Flair, despite the fact that both are heels, there is always someone who is more heel than the other one. You can book her against The Man just for a shake-up and refreshment of the title picture, in between two rivalries.
I think that they should bring someone from Mickie's past - not Trish or Lita, not Beth. For me, Melina (or Victoria) is the greatest choice! They can start as rivals - Mickie (heel). Melina (face). Just for a while! Then bam a heel turn (Melina is perfection as a heel) and pack them up for a Tag Team Titles reign. When the reign is over they can do one more rivalry between them - this time Melina as heel and Mickie as a face. Sounds awesome!
Think about it, WWE!
RECAP:
For me, SmackDown Live got the real shake-up! Adding these five women really changes the game, while Raw is losing momentum with all the dramas and repacking, SDL finally looks not one, but many steps ahead of Raw. Solid, ready for high-quality battles, storylines on the horizon.
I think that at the moment 'the biggest thing' for Raw women's roster is Lacey Evans future title match against The Man - Becky Lynch. Eventually, a push for Dana Brook and Ruby Riott as singles players should be great... and nothing else. The Boss is upset. Ronda Rousey is in a hiatus. Nia Jax is injured and that paralyzes Tamina's career. Bliss and Fox are in some sort of lethargy. Natalya is useful as a supporting character. Sarah Logan is suitable for the role of manager and mixed tag member for her husband's team - the Vikings Experience or whatever they are called.
Nothing.
SmackDown Live leads! I think that they stole the attention for months ahead with these transfers and I will follow the show with anticipation, looking at how all newcomers are blending into the current locker room. It's going to be great!
