In this WrestleTalk News, details on Johnny Gargano’s Raw return, another WWE injury,
Oli’s review of Raw and more.
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This rebel heart, this rebel heart.
Banging track, that.
Oh, right, we’re filming.
Johnny Gargano made his shock return to WWE on last night’s episode of Raw emanating
from Toronto, announcing that Johnny Wrestling is back.
Y’know, Tempest is back in Canada briefly, and he mentioned to me before he left that
actually, he might go to the Raw in Toronto, it would be cool to see Edge wrestle there
and he didn’t know if he’d get that chance again.
I don’t think when he went he’d also see Gargano’s return to WWE.
The return caught everyone by surprise, being included seemingly randomly in the show with
no forewarning or even an angle to set it up - but this didn’t just shock the fans
as Fightful Select has some more details.
According to the report, Gargano’s name wasn’t featured on any rundowns of the show,
much of the talent didn’t know about the return, and even a fair amount of production
weren’t clued in either.
Most people reportedly found out about Gargano’s return when he walked through backstage minutes
before his segment.
Gargano had been away from WWE since December last year, letting his contract expire as
he’d also taken some time to welcome his first child into the world, and WWE reportedly
kept up interest in re-signing him during that time, while they were also reportedly
“patient and respected Gargano’s wishes” during his time off.
There was a time, before Triple H gained power realistically, that people thought Gargano
could end up in AEW, but Fightful Select reports that negotiations between Gargano and AEW
never truly progressed to advanced stages, while Impact Wrestling was never a “serious
consideration”.
According to AEW sources speaking to Fightful Select, they didn’t believe Gargano would
end up in the company, though there were reportedly several people pushing for it.
This is genuinely such an exciting time to be a wrestling fan.
I’m pumped.
The more things change though, the more they stay the same, as the injury curse continues
to plague the wrestling industry.
On last week’s SmackDown, the team of Nikkita Lyons & Zoey Stark were replaced in the Women’s
Tag Team Title Tournament by Toxic Attraction, as WWE mentioned, because Lyons was ‘medically
unavailable’, and Stark reportedly had a concussion.
And that streak of bad luck continued as WWE announced that due to injuries sustained by
Gigi Dolin, Toxic Attraction have now been pulled from the tournament as well.
A second chance Fatal 4-Way was announced in its place to find out the replacements
in the tournament.
According to the Wrestling Observer, Dolin’s injury was actually a concussion as well,
matching Stark’s reported injury.
WrestleTalk would like to wish Gigi Dolin, Zoey Stark and anyone else that may or may
not be injured a speedy recovery.
One last quick bit before we get into the Raw review - following that episode of Raw
in Toronto, Edge cut a promo to his home country, where he interestingly noted that in an ideal
world, he’d like to retire, for real this time, next August, in Toronto.
Whether that’s when his contract expires, or he has some specific plans around that
time, who knows, but it seems we might be in the home stretch of Edge’s run in WWE.
And now hot tag to Oli.
Now it’s time for my review of Monday Night Takeover… in about 5 minutes.
Presumably because the show took place in Toronto, it started with a good old fashioned
hockey brawl, as Riddle and Seth Rollins tumbled into the crowd before being split apart.
In a really subtle production trick, Raw held off on firing their full welcoming pyro display
until after this brawl.
Not only elevating the chaotic, unpredictable feel, but also letting me say the words SUBTLE
and PRODUCTION next to each other about Monday Night Raw.
The hockey brawl wasn’t the only ooh Canada reference, though, as there was also a Trish
Stratus out to cut a nostalgia pop promo.
It’s a really smart strategy, customizing shows to the actual location.
We’re getting it again next week with Kurt Angle announced for Pittsburgh.
Bayley, IYO SKY and Dakota Kai interrupted Trish, which led into the show’s opening
match: the women’s tag team tournament semi final - Sky and Kai vs Asuka and Alexa Bliss.
It was a fine match.
Asuka and Sky worked well together.
Asuka thought she had it won when Kai tapped, but IYO had blind tagged herself in and got
the roll-up victory.
A good finish and the right result.
Of all the mountains Triple H has inherited, he’s weirdly chosen the toughest to tackle
each week on Raw: trying to make me care about Dolph Ziggler again.
And, I can’t believe I’m saying this after a decade of him being booked into oblivion.
Hot damn, it might be happening.
He had a really good match with Finn Balor, whipping the crowd into a frenzy off a few
near falls, but Ripley hit Dolph behind the referee’s back, leading to a Balor win.
Dolph has suffered the last two weeks from a tired crowd late in the show, despite good
performances.
This worked far better as the second match on the show in front of a hot Toronto audience.
Speaking of!
Chad Gable got local sports team heat by saying how Toronto aren’t very good at hockey,
issued an open challenge as they’re looking for new recruits.
They want a fighter… a request that was answered by Canada’s own Kevin Owens!
This got a huge reaction, and felt like one of those surprises that makes perfect sense
- considering their shared recent Elias DNA storyline.
It’s like KO is trying to powerbomb recent continuity out of our collective minds.
Owens won a great TV match, and then somehow laid out both of Alpha Academy afterwards
without making them look weak.
WWE is doing a fantastic job right now of booking KO’s momentum, which in turn really
helps flesh out the main event scene, building a No. 1 contender for after the current top
title feud.
Bayley beat Aliyah in her first match back since returning.
And then Dexter Lumis kidnapped a guy - and nobody cared!
I spotted two background references to the larger Lumis invasion storyline.
First Adam Pearce and his Keystone Cops walked backstage with what looked like a wanted photo.
And then later they’re all looking at something smoking near a shutter door.
It’s so much fun to want to pay attention to TV, rather than like in the Vince era,
where nothing mattered.
It took place in the blood feud tag match of AJ Styles and Bobby Lashley vs The Miz
and Ciampa.
The match itself was a bit filler.
It was the angle that played out in it that mattered.
It almost makes me wonder if that was an intentional direction: don’t have the blowaway match
we know you all, and the Miz, can have.
Do a three star match because we want people to focus on the angle.
After ten or so minutes, AJ was suddenly grabbed by a man wearing a motorcycle helmet from
the front row, who was quickly dragged off by security.
Styles walked off confused, when another motorcycle helmet guy a bit further on revealed himself
as Dexter Lumis.
It’s awesome to have genuinely smart heels.
Lumis knew they were looking for him, so he had a decoy.
It does raise the question, though, who was in the other helmet?
MJF to WWE confirmed.
Rather than attack AJ, though, Lumis kidnapped The Miz, and nobody cared.
The match was declared a DQ and AJ and Bobby just continued to beat up Ciampa, while commentary
is like, ‘a dude has been kidnapped’.
As fun as this was, I think it would have been more realistic to have Bobby and AJ stop
and try chase after Lumis too.
At least Ciampa should have.
You can’t slip one by me though, Triple H. I’ve already seen Dexter Lumis debut
three weeks ago.
He’s not really a new person.
This roster is getting stal- Oh yeah, it’s Rebel Heart playing.
OH S*** IT’S REBEL HEART PLAYING!
Johnny Gargano then walked out, totally unannounced, no build up, just after a random adbreak and
collection of hot WWE Instagram pictures, to a huge pop from Toronto’s many hardcore
fans, and a lesser pop from the confused families sitting next to them.
For them, Johnny explained that he was kind of a big deal in NXT - being a former NXT
Champion, three time North American champion, first ever triple crown winner.
A former Tag Team champion, which he won in this very building - WHO WITH JOHNNY?!
SAY WHO IT WAS WITH!
He was just in this ring.
It was a cathartic recognition that the NXT we all loved really did happen in the WWE-verse.
He cut an incredibly affable promo, getting the crowd to chant Baby Wrestling for his
kid - merch obviously incoming - and that he returned to WWE to teach his child that
any dream is possible if you work hard enough.
Which was the perfect set up for his kayfabe son to interrupt him: his former Way stablemate,
Austin Theory.
After a very funny ‘Who’s your daddy chant’ from the crowd, Theory humblebragged to his
former father figure, that he’s already competed at Mania.
He’s already become the US Champion.
All the things Johnny dreamed of, he’s already done them!
Theory then went for a high five for old time’s sake.
Gargano played it up, but then superkicked him instead.
This was a fantastic segment, not just maximising the chance for a new star to get immediately
over, but also putting him right into a meaty feud where he can be an excellent babyface.
And the main event felt bigtime in another, more mainstream way - with Edge wrestling
his first match in Toronto for over a decade.
That’s right, the main event was actually the main event for a change.
Edge and Damien Priest had a very good match, heightened by Checkov’s Beth Phoenix at
ringside.
Despite being powerbombed through the announcer’s table and being whacked in the head with a
steel chair leg, Edge hit a Canadian Destroyer - because, oh Canada!
- and a spear to win.
Ripley attacked Edge afterwards, for Beth to scare Judgement Day off - surely setting
up a mixed gender tag for Clash at the Castle.
What did you think of Raw?
Let me know in the comments.
I can’t remember a three hour Raw as genuinely good as this.
Not, oh that was a fun mess.
Or what a crazy Raw.
Or it’s better than Vince’s show.
This was genuinely good, well paced TV.
Edge wrestling, the Lumis invasion, KO gaining momentum and Johnny Wrestling debuting.
The three hours actually went by fast.
It’s the best episode of Raw of the year at 87%.
What is going on with CM Punk’s AEW heat?
Watch on to find
out more…