Raw Was a Series of Missed Opportunities for the WWE

The bemoaning of missed opportunities after watching a go-home episode of Raw has become increasingly common occurrence amongst WWE fans.

Looking at this positively, it means that the WWE is consistently generating some nice ideas but those with a more negative demeanour will quickly point out that these plans are erratically executed at best.

SummerSlam's go-home Raw (08/13) was a great illustration of this, as there were some really interesting moments that were overshadowed by possibilities that have not been realized.

This doesn't necessarily make the show bad, as seen in this particular episode where praise should be given for the number of matches and quality of wrestling that was on display.

The program also got across the most important message, which is that both the WWE title match and the fight between Brock Lesnar and Triple H will be extremely close. This should entice people to purchase the PPV on Sunday.

Yet there will always be the certain sense of disappointment about this episode, as so much more could have been done with it to make it a really entertaining show. 

Brock Lesnar's Attack On Shawn Michaels

In principle, this was a great idea, as the ambush showed that Brock Lesnar has the strategic help of Paul Heyman to give him added advantage in his match with Triple H.

At the same time Lesnar kept his air of ferocity by breaking The Heartbreak Kid's arm, despite Heyman's assurances otherwise.

However the angle’s effectiveness was tarnished by the fact that Shawn Michaels, as legendary as he may be, is still a retired wrestler who Lesnar should be able to physically dominate at any time, without resorting to ambush tactics.

If Lesnar had used Heyman's tactical know-how to keep Triple H away from Michaels, so that Lesnar could display his power in front of 'The Game,' this would have gotten across the same message as the actual angle used, but Brock would have looked more powerful.

A tighter-run schedule like this would have also opened up more time for other acts and given the ending sequence more impact.

Triple H Letting Shawn Michaels Down

One recurring issue from the episode is the idea that Triple H might let Michaels down.

Many fans would like to see Michaels have one last hurrah at next year's WrestleMania against 'The Game,' so building tension between the men is a very exciting prospect. Even broaching the subject of such a high-profile event will have rumours, founded or not, circulating the Internet.

It is a shame then that the betrayal suffered by Michaels came in impossible circumstances, rather than a morally corruptible scenario where Triple H would have had to choose between benefiting himself or his friend.

As it worked out, Michaels was already locked into the kimura as 'The Game' approached the ring. Being put in a Catch-22 position where Heyman was warning Triple H that Lesnar will break Michaels arm if he gets any closer, with the knowledge that the arm may be broken anyway, leaves Triple H without any responsibility and this has subdued the effectiveness of the angle.

Lesnar's Kimura

This may be one of those small technical issues that some fans do not care about, but Lesnar's insistence on using the kimura hold from the guard rather than any top position is becoming increasingly perplexing.

Lesnar came into the WWE and then progressed through to the UFC under the idea that he was a dominant wrestler. That means he is someone who can achieve the top position and that makes landing strikes and submissions easier.

So why does Lesnar make it more difficult for himself than it need be? The move would be just as spectacular from the top, especially from the side mount where the opponent’s whole body can be turned up into some suitable agonising pose. It would even gel better with his MMA persona.

A small issue in itself, this becomes a much bigger missed opportunity when considering the market that Lesnar was brought in to attract: lapsed WWE fans who have now moved on to watch MMA instead.

These fans will pick up on a general point like this very quickly and it may reinforce their notion that WWE is fake and not worth the effort to view which, in turn, would completely negate why Lesnar was signed in the first place.

The Damien Sandow vs. Christian Match

The missed opportunity here was far more blatant.

Damien Sandow is one of the most exciting prospects to appear on Raw and Smackdown regularly while Christian is one of the best workers in the company. Combining these two in a one-on-one setting was always going to produce a great match that excited fans.

Therefore it is a real shame that this match was given just a couple of minutes before Sandow picked up the victory.

Considering that Raw finished 10 minutes earlier than normal, this match could have been given longer to develop in order to allow each performer to tell a better story. This would have helped further establish Sandow with the audience.    

JTG's Appearance

JTG only appeared on Raw because last week he tweeted his dismay at being consistently left off the main card and the fact that the Smackdown locker room are still in the Far East.

However, as the WWE gave him the opportunity, the company should have allowed JTG to run with a new anti-WWE gimmick. This could have potentially built another competitor for the WWE’s budding undercard.

Simply feeding JTG to Ryback did little for either man. JTG could have picked up a victory on RAW before being squashed by Ryback in the aftermath. This would have been far more effective in furthering each fighter’s prospects. 

Women's Match

Normally a women's tag team match that lasted more than two minutes would be a subject that would be praised, however this was a classic case of the WWE commentary team concentrating on other storylines rather than the one right in front of their faces.

Eve and Kaitlyn have a huge match on Smackdown, with the winner becoming Booker T's assistant. Everyone knows this as it was advertised several times in the show’s running.

However this had very little effect on the tag team match they had. It was a perfectly reasonable match between the four divas, but it did not add any more drama to the situation and the commentators were off talking about other events.

A perfect opportunity to put divas in the spotlight was blown there.

Using the AW Firing to Hype the Prime Time Players

AW may have been fired in the past week but the tag team, The Prime Time Players, who he represented are very much in the spotlight.  

With Kofi Kingston away on Smackdown duty, R-Truth was left to fight off the two men, which made the 'Players' look very strong going into their match on Sunday.

Yet the WWE failed to capitalize on this potential momentum by giving the No. 1 contenders any time to address the departure of their manager. Had they talked about firing AW and wanting to establish their own paths to success the tag team would have received a major boost.

Now it looks like they were dropped just before a big match, which is bad for anyone's reputation. 

WWE Title Picture

Unlike the other scenarios, the WWE did not really miss an opportunity with the WWE title picture because this was the only way to progress with the moves that the company has already made.

It can be argued that the title picture should close the show, but outside that it was a paint-by-numbers approach to a major SummerSlam match.

This goes to show the wrestling world that conservative booking does mean fewer opportunities for great moments, but also means that the right moves are made at the right time. 

Piper's Pit

Frankly, this whole thing was a shambles until Piper could be bypassed into the three-way exchange that did a great job of promoting SummerSlam. 

Their match afterwards was the highlight of the night, so it hid any potential missed opportunities that may have been evident.

The feud centres on Dolph Ziggler’s assertions that Chris Jericho can no longer win the big match. This was an opinion that The Miz was happy to agree with, so the three-way bout was initiated.

The missed opportunity was to not take advantage of Ziggler holding the Money In The Bank contract, Miz the Intercontinental championship belt, and both young superstars desiring to end Jericho’s career.

This would have been a perfect SummerSlam match with a winner-takes-all stipulation.

Such an epic encounter would have enticed many a fan to go out and buy the pay-per-view, but alas this was not to be.

So Piper's Pit and the triple threat match after will go down as a good moment rather than a game-changing one.

Another opportunity missed. 

The Positives Should Not Be Forgotten

There is an old saying in soccer that it is better for a striker to be in the right place and to miss the target than it is for the player to be afraid to get into those positions at all.

This mantra can be applied to the WWE as the company is consistently producing some good ideas and that will lead to good television. Some refinement is needed to get the best out of these plans, but cautious positivity should be in the air.