WWE No Mercy 2017: Braun Strowman's Demise and Worst Booking Decisions from PPV

The No Mercy pay-per-view has come and gone, and while the show featured above-average in-ring content, it also featured a few booking decisions that left fans scratching their heads and asking, "What the hell?"

Some revolved around the outcomes, others the action that unfolded between bells.

Another threatened the credibility of a high-profile Superstar.

Braun Strowman's Decisive Defeat

In the weeks leading into No Mercy, Braun Strowman was the hottest Superstar on the Raw brand. He was, without a doubt, the greatest threat to Brock Lesnar's Universal Championship. The fact that he obliterated and left The Beast Incarnate lying numerous times ahead of the event had fans debating the possibility The Monster Among Men could actually dethrone Lesnar.

Midway through Sunday's match, after manhandling the champion, it looked like WWE Creative may do the unthinkable and award Strowman his first title in what would amount to a squash match of its top draw.

Then Lesnar fought back from three powerslams and delivered a single F-5 to defeat Strowman and retain his title.

There was no pomp, no circumstance. There was no major brawl or jaw-dropping high spot. Lesnar, in an underwhelming match, simply executed a single finisher and pinned Strowman.

It was a massive disappointment, a questionable booking decision that essentially unraveled all of the time and effort put into establishing Strowman as an unstoppable force.

Sure, Strowman exploded through the curtain and demolished Curt Hawkins, then beat Dean Ambrose Monday night in an attempt to reignite some heat, but at some point, fans will look at the situation for what it is: When running through the rest of the roster, Strowman is a monster. When confronted with The Beast Incarnate, he is just another face in the crowd of guys Lesnar has beaten down and overcome.

He is just another guy. There is nothing any more special about Strowman than there is Erick Rowan, Kofi Kingston, Kevin Owens or Ambrose, all of whom have had their asses handed to them by the universal champion.

That booking strategy and storytelling technique is not conducive to creating stars who can carry the mantle long after Lesnar retires or returns to UFC or simply gets bored of wrestling and moves on.

Worst of all, it hurt Strowman, who has turned in one of the best years of any Superstar currently on the main roster.

Killing Finishers

Roman Reigns kicked out of three Attitude Adjustments Sunday night at No Mercy.

Strowman delivered three of his trademark running powerslams to Lesnar, only to have The Beast Incarnate kick out when covered.

The rate at which finishing maneuvers are being kicked out of in WWE is alarming.

Fans are conditioned to buy into certain moves as the trademark, signature maneuvers of a specific WWE Superstar. They are meant to pop audiences and indicate the finish of a match. When the time comes, a kick-out can mean the world and really put over whoever demonstrated the Herculean strength to shoot their shoulder off the mat.

Not anymore.

Finishers are a crutch for Superstars to lean on to drum up drama.

Rather than stringing together a cool sequence or a unique scenario, the Superstars immediately trade finishers in a manner that no longer carries any great meaning.

No one expected Cena to pin Reigns after the first Attitude Adjustment because everyone kicks out of the damn move. Strowman's case was a bit different because it had been so protected, but after Sunday, the strength demonstrated by The Monster Among Men when executing the maneuver no longer carries weight with the audience because another guy kicked out after three of them.

The trend, a product of indy wrestling, has damaged the credibility of the maneuvers, making them no better or more likely to end a match than a clothesline or a flying dropkick.

The Attitude Adjustment is just another move. The superkick can be delivered approximately 90 times before an opponent even begins to feel the effects.

It is counterproductive booking by Superstars and producers, and something that should be re-evaluated if fans are ever expected to buy the idea that Dirty Deeds, the Spear, the Skull-Crushing Finale or Sister Abigail can actually end someone's night.

Bayley Loses

Bayley returned from injury six days before No Mercy, enjoying an incredible pop during an unforgettable homecoming in San Jose, Calfornia. The crowd was hot for her, and her addition to the Fatal 5-Way match for the Raw Women's Championship generated some excitement that otherwise may not have surrounded that match.

She contributed quite a deal and even managed to plant the seeds for her upcoming program with Sasha Banks. Yet in the closing moments of the match, she ate a DDT from Alexa Bliss and was pinned clean in the center of the ring.

Perhaps WWE Creative thought it was a great finish that would shock fans who expected her to fare better than she did.

Whatever the case, all it accomplished was creating a greater schism between the character and fans than already existed.

WWE has done a terrible job of portraying the Bayley that got over with fans in NXT. When she lost there, it meant something. She fought hard to get where she did, and fans admired her for it. On the main roster, she is presented with an "aw, shucks" attitude in which she loses but it never matters because there's always next time.

There are no stakes.

Fans understand she will come right back, get another shot and probably lose then, too.

Like John Cena for so many years, those loses, when they occur, are so meaningless because he is always going to stick around the top of the roster.

At least he was better protected.

The more Bayley loses, the less likely fans are going to accept she belongs where she consistently is, regardless of how hard WWE Creative pushes her on Monday night.