{"id":177734,"date":"2024-04-30T14:37:19","date_gmt":"2024-04-30T19:37:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/?p=177734"},"modified":"2024-04-30T14:37:40","modified_gmt":"2024-04-30T19:37:40","slug":"over-unders-wwe-raw-4-29-flaccid-signs-drafting-redundancy-elektr-o-lopez-patrick-mahomes-xavier-chopped-drews-pipe-bombery-brauns-monstrous-return-more","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/2024\/04\/30\/over-unders-wwe-raw-4-29-flaccid-signs-drafting-redundancy-elektr-o-lopez-patrick-mahomes-xavier-chopped-drews-pipe-bombery-brauns-monstrous-return-more\/","title":{"rendered":"OVER &#038; UNDERS &#8211; WWE RAW (4\/29): Flaccid signs, Drafting Redundancy, Elektr-o Lopez, Patrick Mahomes, Xavier Chopped, Drew&#8217;s Pipe Bombery, Braun&#8217;s monstrous return, more"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"pwtor-1594708237\" class=\"pwtor-before-content pwtor-entity-placement\"><hr \/><b>SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)... <\/b>\r\n\r\n<iframe src=\"https:\/\/widget.spreaker.com\/player?show_id=3076978&theme=light&playlist=false&playlist-continuous=false&autoplay=false&live-autoplay=false&chapters-image=true&episode_image_position=right&hide-logo=false&hide-likes=false&hide-comments=false&hide-sharing=false&hide-download=true\" width=\"100%\" height=\"140px\" frameborder=\"0\"><\/iframe>\r\n<hr \/><\/div><p>It\u2019s night 2 of the draft that completely changes the landscape of WWE, until next year, when we have another draft, that will also change the entire landscape of the WWE. And believe it or not, a year after that we\u2019ll have ANOTHER draft that completely changes the landscape of the WWE. Oh the unexpected twists and turns we\u2019ll ride. So let\u2019s dig into the most overrated and under-appreciated from this drafty episode of Monday Night Raw.<\/p>\n<p><strong>UNDER-APPRECIATED &#8211; FACTION COHABITATION<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Seeing The Judgment Day mingle with Logan Paul, iShowSpeed, and Patrick Mahomes is kind of refreshing. I feel like there was too much faction separation the past several years. I like seeing faction cohabitation. They can complement each other, share Primes, look normal next to Dominik Mysterios ever-changing shade of mustache. This week he looks like he\u2019s cosplaying Burt Reynolds. Oh Dom, always the risk taker, willing to take one for the team to keep us from being distracted by J.D. McDonagh\u2019s big head. I appreciate you, dog. Also that\u2019s the first time I think I\u2019ve used \u201cdog\u201d in a sentence and maybe pulled it off. What do you think dog? Nope. Ruined it. Put this dog of a joke down. Also I have to give props to Logan Paul for calling Jey Uso the ugly Uso brother. It\u2019s particularly heelish and funny because they\u2019re twins. Get it? Get it?!<\/p>\n<p><strong>OVERRATED &#8211; RULES OF THE DRAFT<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>WWE, do we really need a seven-line graphic outlining the ins and outs of how the draft will work? It\u2019s simpler than chocolate milk. Celebs come out, take turns announcing, you play music and show a graphic. Rinse and repeat. We don\u2019t need a red, white and blue-adorned graphic giving us an explanation the length of \u201cPride and Prejudice.\u201d Maybe if we spent less time designing and writing this lengthy graphic, someone would have noticed that Pat McAfee is going for casual Monday tonight. No suit jacket? Not even from Men\u2019s Warehouse? For shame, McAfee. For shame.<\/p>\n<p><strong>UNDER-APPRECIATED &#8211; FLACCID SIGNS<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>If you go back and watch Becky Lynch\u2019s entrance, they hilariously cut to a fan with (presumably) a pro-Becky sign. Unfortunately for him, his sign was limper than a &#8217;90s bizkit (spelling is correct for my joke\u2019s sake, sue me). It\u2019s okay, dear fan. It happens to everyone. There are dozens of sites devoted to this issue, but they never stay up for long (Eh? Eh?). I get it though. You wanted to impress the girl, you got overly excited, and what you were waiting to unleash let you down. There\u2019s always next time. It\u2019s the thought that counts. If you don\u2019t get my quip, give it a minute, it\u2019s not hard\u2026 Anyway, I\u2019m forever dubbing this fan as Flaccid Sign Guy, the clear predecessor to our beloved, red-hatted sign guy, only with a lot less bold font, so to speak.<\/p>\n<p><strong>OVERRATED &#8211; DRAFTING REDUNDANCY<\/strong><\/p><div id=\"pwtor-557105868\" class=\"pwtor-content pwtor-entity-placement\"><div align=\"center\" data-freestar-ad=\"__336x280 __336x280\" id=\"pwtorchcom_test_300x250\">\r\n  <script data-cfasync=\"false\" type=\"text\/javascript\">\r\n    freestar.config.enabled_slots.push({ placementName: \"pwtorchcom_test_300x250\", slotId: \"pwtorchcom_test_300x250\" });\r\n  <\/script>\r\n<\/div><\/div>\n<p>Stephanie McMahon graced us with her presence to deliver the monumental, epic, landscape of WWE-changing first pick in round 2 of the draft, Gunther\u2026to stay on Raw\u2026where\u2019s he\u2019s been the entire time. Thrilling. I feel like someone just told me I have to see \u201cJohn Wick 5\u201d, only to find that they just put in the same fights from part 4. I\u2019m kidding, Mr. Wick. All of your adventures are violent poetry that soothes my soul. Also, don\u2019t hurt me. But seriously, why have a draft if we\u2019re just going to draft what we already have? Where are the Shyamalan-esq twists? Where are the surprises? Give me something to unwrap here or it\u2019s going to be a disappointing Christmas morning. I wish we had Mick Foley here tonight, as Santa Claus, right here\u2026in Kansas City! Here\u2019s hoping we have a few actual changes during this epic draft where everything (might) change.<\/p>\n<p><strong>OVERRATED &#8211; MORE REDUNDANCY<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Welp, I was wrong. Jade Cargill was drafted to staying right where she is. In a very misleading way, Stephanie McMahon said a storm is heading to SmackDown before revealing that no, a storm is actually staying right where it is. Speaking of storms, this is starting to feel like a 5-days of rain forecast on what could have been a great vacation. Rain rain, go away, everyone on their brands wants to stay. Sigh. I\u2019m so bummed at the lack of excitement that I\u2019m resorting to retooling children\u2019s songs to entertain myself. At least Damage CTRL was drafted to Raw, but I have to be honest, I didn\u2019t even recall which brand they were on, so I don\u2019t think that counts. Fortunately, up next we got Kevin Owens, who\u2026oh\u2026is staying right where he is on SmackDown.<\/p>\n<p><strong>UNDER-APPRECIATED &#8211; LUDWIG \u201cTHE QUESTION\u201d KAISER<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Did anyone else notice how Samantha Irvine introduced Ludwig Kaiser during his entrance with Gunther. She did it with epic perplexity, like his name is actually a question, or he\u2019s a character suspected of murder in \u201cClue.\u201d Is Ludwif Kaiser secretly The Riddler? That, or rather those, are the questions, and he is all the answers, if Samantha\u2019s cadence is to be trusted. Someone give Samantha a raise. She literally brands and elevates every character she announces. If only she could boost Ricochet up into an interesting persona. Sigh, you can\u2019t bring work home and you can\u2019t bring your home to work I suppose.<\/p>\n<p><strong>OVERRATED &#8211; NEW DAY\u2019S CHOPPED<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>While it\u2019s a solid match, Xavier Woods versus Gunther should not be as evenly matched of a contest as it is. Gunther should be demolishing Woods without any selling or struggle. Woods, the only non-heavyweight champion in New Day history, doesn\u2019t deserve the level of offense he\u2019s getting on a guy who held and elevated a title for 666 days. That said, I will give Pat McAfee props for the clever \u201cNew\u2026Day\u2019s chopped\u201d chant.<\/p>\n<p><strong>UNDER-APPRECIATED &#8211; LIV AND DOM\u2019S SNEAKY SNEAKY<\/strong><\/p><div id=\"pwtor-1173541325\" class=\"pwtor-content-1 pwtor-entity-placement\"><!-- Tag ID: pwtorchcom_test_300x600 -->\r\n<div align=\"center\" data-freestar-ad=\"__336x280 __300x600\" id=\"pwtorchcom_test_300x600\">\r\n  <script data-cfasync=\"false\" type=\"text\/javascript\">\r\n    freestar.config.enabled_slots.push({ placementName: \"pwtorchcom_test_300x600\", slotId: \"pwtorchcom_test_300x600\" });\r\n  <\/script>\r\n<\/div><\/div>\n<p>Okay this is a hot Easter egg. Go back and watch Jey Uso and Cathy Kelley\u2019s backstage promo. Watch in the background. You see Liv Morgan exit a room and walk down the hallway. Then, a few seconds later we see Dominik Mysterio exit the same room and walk down the hallway. The plot thickens! I love that WWE is doing this. It\u2019s so fun.<\/p>\n<p><strong>OVERRATED &#8211; OVERMODULATION<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Someone please explain how mics work to iShowSpeed. Mr. Speed, iShow, you don\u2019t need to scream into the mic, sir. I think you\u2019re on a bit of a sugar high from too many Primes. Ease off of the artificial sweeteners, take a step back from the mic, and chill a little.<\/p>\n<p><strong>UNDER-APPRECIATED &#8211; PAT MCAFEE\u2019S REAR RHYTHM<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>I legitimately almost choked on a ginger ale during Jey Uso\u2019s interruption of Logan Paul. Pat McAfee, like always, engaged in the Yeet Wave to an annoying degree. That said, after Michael Cole told him \u201cyou\u2019re making an ass out of yourself,\u201d Pat had the greatest line I think he\u2019s ever had on WWE television. He responded with \u201cAre you looking at my ass? It\u2019s in perfect rhythm!\u201d Good lord was that funny. My Canada Dry Ginger Ale almost got yeeted all over my TV screen.<\/p>\n<p><strong>UNDER-APPRECIATED &#8211; LOGAN GIVES J.D. MCDONAGH FACIAL RECONSTRUCTIVE SURGERY<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>I would like to personally thank Logan Paul for taking 3 Super Bowl victories and weaponizing them against the face of J.D. McDonagh. No matter what happens to him after this, it\u2019s an improvement.<\/p>\n<p><strong>UNDER-APPRECIATED &#8211; BRAUN\u2019S MONSTROUS RETURN<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Braun Strowman coming to the side of Jey Uso was so gratifying. He looks bigger, better and badder than ever. He looks like he\u2019d scare the Yeet out of a monster among men. Forget that moniker. Braun Strowman is the monster that scared off all the other monsters. Man it feels good to see him back in a WWE ring with all of that intensity, meat and rage. Welcome, back sir.<\/p>\n<p><strong>OVERRATED &#8211; 1920S DETECTIVE BOOKER T<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>With regard to his inexplicably curly-ended mustache, someone please inform Booker T that he is neither Captain Hook, or a 1920s detective solving a whimsical caper on the streets of London? It\u2019s distracting. Also I hate it. Also do we really need to color code our outfits? Why so blue, Book? Can\u2019t solve the case? Oh look, now it\u2019s Adam Pearce, who\u2019s wearing so much red he looks like he\u2019s trying to sell Kool-Aid. He\u2019s wearing so much vibrant red that he could go jogging at night with Ray Charles and Helen Keller (if, ya know, they weren\u2019t deceased) and he\u2019d keep everyone safe. Unless he was running with zombie versions of them. Then he\u2019d see even more red. Let\u2019s not go there. We\u2019re in the middle of the epic, everything stays the same draft after all!<\/p>\n<p><strong>UNDER-APPRECIATED &#8211; DREW MCINTYRE\u2019S PIPE BOMBERY<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Drew McIntyre interrupting Booker T after he brags about the drafting of C.M. Punk to Raw with \u201cTell me you didn\u2019t just say that\u201d was glorious. Drew is just on fire right now with meta throwbacks, one-liners, and pipe bombs galore. He has enough pipe bombs to open an explosives shop at this point.<\/p>\n<p><strong>OVERRATED &#8211; DRAFT BLOOPERS<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>While the A.P.A. took the stage to announce draft picks, Ron Simmons hilariously called Elektra Lopez, Electro Lopez. Apparently she\u2019s a Spider-Man villain now\u2026DAMN.<\/p>\n<p><strong>UNDER-APPRECIATED &#8211; UGLY STEP-MOTHER<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>During this Candice LeRae versus Maxxine Dupri match, I thought Dupri showed some real fire, fluidly and improvement in the ring. I wouldn\u2019t say she\u2019s not fully green in the ring, but she\u2019s graduated to greenish blue, or a nice teal at this point. Particularly worthy of mentioning was her kip up. While massively overdone by virtually every wrestler on earth, hers has an impressive look and fluidity to it. It\u2019s almost like she did it in slow motion, and the way she stood up was like something out of a horror movie (in a good way). It was very Bray Wyatt-esq. Also, while I think Candice LeRae\u2019s stomp move looks underwhelming, calling it the Ugly Step-mother is brilliant. Get it? Get it?! Because she\u2019s STEPPING on someone and it could smash their face and render them ugly. I ruined the joke didn\u2019t I? I ugly step-mothered it. Sigh. Moving on.<\/p>\n<p><strong>UNDER-APPRECIATED &#8211; DREW MCINTYRE HATES MONEY<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>That was a killer shot of Drew McIntyre angrily storming through the V.I.P. suites looking for punk. It was fluid, pristine camera work that maneuvered effortlessly through 2 environments, not missing a second of the action. I also love that C.M. Punk left Drew an autograph. Classic Punk, amiright? That was pretty nice of him. I don\u2019t know why Drew crumbled it up. Drew you could sell that on EBay, for a lot more than a McIntyre autograph. You claim to be smarter than everyone else but you basically just tore up $300. Drew McIntyre clearly hates money.<\/p>\n<p><strong>OVERRATED &#8211; ALLEGED TIME KEEPING<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>I like the little angle of C.M. Punk saying he can finish his promo in less time than Drew McIntyre held the title at mania, and him recruiting Pat McAfee to time him. But would it kill WWE to put a timer on the screen? I for one want to know how accurate the time-keeping is. They created a mini format beat here and I want to see it play out accurately. Time is money, and I know Drew hates money, but Punk sure as hell doesn\u2019t.<\/p>\n<p><strong>OVERRATED &#8211; J.D. GETS DRAFTED<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>I\u2019m very disappointed that J.D. McDonagh got drafted, albeit by association with The Judgment Day. That said, I think Dominik Mysterio\u2019s mustache plays a more prominent role in the fact than McDonagh does. I was really hoping he\u2019d be drafted to WWE Speed. Que sera sera I suppose. The only thing more annoying than this is the fact that The Judgment Day getting drafted to Raw is yet another anti-climactic, non-change that didn\u2019t change the entire landscape of the WWE, as they have so eloquently hyped for the last week. At least SmackDown\u2019s next pick will surely be someone new to the brand. And\u2026Naomi\u2026staying right where she is. What is this draft?! I feel like someone said come watch a new season of \u201cBreaking Bad\u201d and then proceeded to just show me season 3 again. Granted, it was a GREAT season, but don\u2019t promise me something fresh and deliver me a crate of old bananas. Ship the old bananas to J.D. McDonagh.<\/p>\n<p><strong>UNDER-APPRECIATED &#8211; A FRESH PICK!<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Finally someone drafts a surprise, with Raw taking Ilja Dragunov. He\u2019s a special talent and this is the kind of call up that makes the draft exciting. I wouldn\u2019t say this redeems a night of redundancies, but it\u2019s a nice change of pace and I can\u2019t wait to see what he does on Raw.<\/p>\n<p><strong>OVERRATED &#8211; TOO LATE<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s a shame Nia Jax is moving to Smackdown because she and Liv Morgan have some solid chemistry. This is the most I\u2019ve enjoyed a Nia Jax match in a while. I don\u2019t know who to credit for this, but Liv\u2019s kicks to Nia look brutal and sound realistic. I also particularly like seeing Nia throw someone around like a Raggedy Ann doll. Remember those? I used to do the same before WWE came out with wrestling buddies. That doll always pinned me no matter how much dangerous offense I delivered onto couch cushions. But I digress. Special props to Naomi\u2019s amazing looking (and sounding) kick to an interfering Tiffany Stratton.<\/p>\n<p><strong>UNDER-APPRECIATED &#8211; TOZAWA FLIPS OUT<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>During The Awesome Truth versus Alpha Academy march, The Miz fed Akira Tozawa a boot that literally sent him back flipping off the ring apron, to the floor below. That was some of the best selling of a simple kick I\u2019ve seen in a long time. That man flipped faster than a politician being blackmailed, after being caught on tape doing something unsavory. That made my jaw drop and completely shooshed me.<\/p>\n<p><strong>OVERRATED &#8211; TOO MUCH FAKE BLOOD<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>I like that WWE occasionally uses makeup to enhance injury angles. That said, in the case of revealing what\u2019s left of J.D. McDonagh\u2019s face (after a shot to the face from Logan Paul), he looks like the recipient of a punch, and more like a \u201cHome Alone\u201d villain. It looks like some adolescent tricked him into taking a hot waffle iron to the fake. It\u2019s a bit much.<\/p>\n<p><strong>UNDER-APPRECIATED &#8211; SLEEPY JEY<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The main event with Jey Uso, Ricochet and Andrade was solid, if not a little lackluster. That said, for the first time in a very long time, Jey Uso looked completely blown up by the end of that match. Did he just have a massive dinner? Turkey isn\u2019t recommended before Raw (or IN the raw for that matter), Jey. Rest up before France!<\/p>\n<p>I\u2019ll be back Friday, on the eve of WWE saying bonjour. See you then!<\/p>\n<div class=\"pwtor-end-article-groups pwtor-entity-placement\" id=\"pwtor-1917629935\"><div id=\"pwtor-991621011\"><div align=\"center\" data-freestar-ad=\"__336x280\" id=\"pwtorchcom_medrec_3\">\r\n  <script data-cfasync=\"false\" type=\"text\/javascript\">\r\n    freestar.config.enabled_slots.push({ placementName: \"pwtorchcom_medrec_3\", slotId: \"pwtorchcom_medrec_3\" });\r\n  <\/script>\r\n<\/div>\r\n\r\nTHANK YOU FOR VISITING<\/div><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<div class=\"mh-excerpt\"><p>It\u2019s night 2 of the draft that completely changes the landscape of WWE, until next year, when we have another draft, that will also change the entire landscape of the WWE. And believe it or <a class=\"mh-excerpt-more\" href=\"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/2024\/04\/30\/over-unders-wwe-raw-4-29-flaccid-signs-drafting-redundancy-elektr-o-lopez-patrick-mahomes-xavier-chopped-drews-pipe-bombery-brauns-monstrous-return-more\/\" title=\"OVER &#038; UNDERS &#8211; WWE RAW (4\/29): Flaccid signs, Drafting Redundancy, Elektr-o Lopez, Patrick Mahomes, Xavier Chopped, Drew&#8217;s Pipe Bombery, Braun&#8217;s monstrous return, more\">[&#8230;]<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":177735,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"episode_type":"","audio_file":"","podmotor_file_id":"","podmotor_episode_id":"","cover_image":"","cover_image_id":"","duration":"","filesize":"","filesize_raw":"","date_recorded":"","explicit":"","block":"","itunes_episode_number":"","itunes_title":"","itunes_season_number":"","itunes_episode_type":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[52,6930,27],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-177734","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-opnionandanalysis","category-over-and-unders","category-specialists"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/post\/2024\/04\/Screenshot-2024-04-30-at-2.36.41\u202fPM.png","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/177734","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=177734"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/177734\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":177736,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/177734\/revisions\/177736"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/177735"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=177734"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=177734"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=177734"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}