WWE RAW on Netflix: Seth Rollins Teases An ‘Endgame’ To His Plan

There was one specific statement from Rollins that ‘hit harder’ than the rest of his promo, and that was the mention of an “Endgame” to his master plan. Since the faction’s inception, there were talks of a ‘grand scheme’ from both Heyman and Rollins, whether it be within an in-ring promo or in a backstage segment. That narrative has been abandoned over the past several weeks with bigger storylines like Cena-Truth and Jey Uso’s title reign taking center stage. Still, the most dangerous aspect of this alliance is the opportunistic approach that the former ‘Wiseman’ and current “Visionary” have utilized throughout their respective careers.

Penta vs. Bron Breakker

Rollins finished his promo by ‘ordering’ Breakker to ‘handle’ Penta as the pair were featured in tonight’s opening bout. The match was given plenty of time for each man to get over, and they did, but it was the match’s final sequence that stole the show.

After having a spear countered earlier in the match, Breakker cut Penta in half when he reversed a springboard move from the luchador into a soul-capturing spear. It was one of those nasty spear highlights to go alongside Breakker’s Royal Rumble clip with iShowSpeed. After the match, Seth walked towards Penta in the corner and told him to ‘stay out of his way’ here on out, but that would be wishful thinking on the part of Mr. MITB.

King of The Ring Semifinals

Cody Rhodes vs. Jey Uso

Aside from a couple of backstage shots and a video package, the build for this was not heavily promoted with a detailed narrative, and instead, it was booked as a 1V1 match amongst friends. A line used on commentary touched on these two deciding who is the better wrestler once the fanfare of their entrances finished.

The two men who spent the better of a year as adversaries only to deepen a bond between faces as their relationship developed. It was a battle of familiarity from the jump as the two men countered and deflected offensive sequences that would end in stare-down stalemates. It was a grueling match that forced both men to dig deep as they tested each other’s cardio along with their ability.

In the match’s final act, Cody had Jey set in the ‘Cross Rhodes’ before Jey reversed to land ‘The American Nightmare.’ That sequence began an offensive run for Jey that included a couple of superkicks before landing a devastating spear that caused Cody to hit the back of his head on the mat. Jey set up for the ‘USO Splash’ and that is when Cody regained his energy, leaping to the top turnbuckle to deliver a ‘Super Cody Cutter’ before the finishing ‘Cross Rhodes.’

Cody picked up the win over his friend and is now set to face another friend in Randy Orton, at Night of Champions in Saudi Arabia to determine this year’s King of the Ring finalist. Cody and Jey shook hands after the match, and the crowd cheered.

Queen of the Ring Semi-Finals

Jade Cargill vs. Roxanne Perez

Cargill was given a chance to really prove herself in the semifinals, working against a superstar only slightly less green than her in Roxanne Perez. Perez, who has been given some prime bookings since her call-up, would get in her own offense as Jade showcased one of her more versatile performances in WWE.

In the end, Cargill picked up the victory as the match’s heavy favorite and was confronted in the post-match by the other side of the Queen of the Ring finals and her opponent on Saturday, Auska.

Goldberg’s Gold Dilemma

A prerecorded sit-down interview between Michael Cole and Goldberg was aired during RAW, where Goldberg continued to sell the ‘embarrassment’ he suffered from Gunther back in October. In attendance as a spectator with his family, Gunther ripped into the WCW legend by questioning his wrestling ability (a familiar criticism of Goldberg) and calling him a “one-trick pony.”

The bulk of the interview was typical Goldberg promo, but it was immediately after it aired when Michael Cole exposed perhaps the most interesting aspect of the interview and match—a portion that was not shown on WWE TV. Cole revealed that he flat-out asked Goldberg if this was his final match, to which Goldberg responded with a definitive ‘yes’, according to Cole.

That’s when Cole asked what it would mean if Goldberg won the heavyweight title in his adopted home of Atlanta on Saturday Night’s Main Event, considering there is ‘no one NEXT.’ Reportedly, Goldberg responded to Cole’s question by saying, “It’s an interesting dilemma, isn’t it?” The provocative nature of this response is not in words but in its acknowledgment of the issue altogether. Gunther has to get over in this kind of match – a retiring wrestler passing the torch to the young champion with promise—but the current arch for Goldberg makes it difficult to pick against him.

After all, Goldberg is coming back for this one match, in front of his hometown fans with his family and friends likely in attendance, so not coming out of this with proper revenge over the antagonist bully feels like a booking that ‘doesn’t work for him’ (brother). Yet, a tournament resetting the continuity of the heavyweight title might be needed after the Jey run, but a Rollins cash-in could also save it on Goldberg should he find himself successful at SNME.

Gunther cut a live promo during his RAW segment where he threatened to ‘end the legend’ of Goldberg. Interestingly, Gunther was cheered on as a face, following the trend of earlier in the night, and, truthfully, Atlanta might be one of the few areas where Goldberg can still get over as a face with the full crowd.

Becky Lynch (c) vs. Bayley—Intercontinental Title

The singles match was a couples dance always destined to be a trio as Lyra Valkyria inserted herself as a face/heel hybrid to give offer this IC feud the full character spectrum. Earlier in the night, Becky saw Lyra talking to Bayley, and while the pair were not exactly on the same terms, the champ saw collusion.

The match was okay, but it never really got going the way these two are capable of because it was always meant to introduce Lyra for the triple-threat title match. Lyra came out, seemingly to aid Bayley, but ended up being a complete distraction. After taking the bump from Becky in place of Bayley, it did not take long for Lyra to jump in the ring to attack Becky. The DQ win for Bayley meant the title stays with Becks, but this feud is far from over.

The Judgement Day Will Liv On

There wasn’t a ton of storyline coming off Liv Morgan’s injury last week, other than a bummed-out Judgement Day. Still, Finn was quick to use Liv’s current absence to further Roxanne Perez’s place within the faction. First, he started pushing Dom towards Perez, something he was doing before Liv returned, and then Perez came down to help Raquel Rodriguez gain the upper hand on Rhea Ripley during their segment.

It is unclear what direction creative was headed before Liv was injured, but we know she was a pivotal part of the build towards Evolution, as reports suggest she was ‘integral’ to the overall narrative they were going to tell over the next few weeks. For now, it looks like Raquel will get a bigger push than may have been planned.