Gunther to Bret Hart: ‘My All-Time Favorite Is None Other Than Bill Goldberg’

The “season premiere” of Monday Night RAW came to us live from Calgary, Alberta, Canada, and it was hosted by none other than the “Excellence of Executions,” Bret “The Hitman” Hart. It has never been truly clear what exactly a “season premiere” indicates within the world of weekly WWE TV programming. The ‘RAW after WrestleMania has typically acted as a reset for some and a starting point for others, and the first RAW of the year has also qualified as a premiere in the way it’s been sporadically booked through the decade.

It is frustrating, at times, to see WWE take credit for the impressive achievements in the field of episodic weekly programming while simultaneously booking continuity-free TV from week to week. But you do not need any good reason to book ‘The best there is, the best there was, and the best there ever will be’ and that goes double for when the show resonates in the legend’s backyard.

Sickening Street Fight

RAW opened by highlighting what makes this era feel different—continuity in the form of story-driven, long-term booking. The crisp voice of Joe Tessitore is a terrific way to start off RAW, and there is a ‘welcome home’ feeling to his voice—something that greats like ‘Good ol’ JR’ and Gorilla Monsoon offered on ‘color.’

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As for the storytelling, you had to listen to the crowd’s response to ‘American Made’ to understand how over the Wyatt Sicks’ program has been since its inception. Off the back of incredibly well-done video vignettes, tonight’s entrances for both teams told a story from the incredible music providing the backdrop for an awe-inspired light show transcending off the faction’s gear and set pieces. As she was called on commentary, Nikki Cross jumped in the ring to gain the advantage in the surprise blitz attack. The street fight began with Uncle Howdy seated in The Wyatt rocking chair, symbolizing the faction’s “rosebud.”

To their credit, American Made showed a vulnerability in the Wyatt Sicks that we’d yet to see up until now. Howdy was booked as the strongest and most protected, and he only entered the match at the end and delivering the Sister Abigail to get rid of one of the Creed bros, while Dexter Lumis delivered the splash that would make Wyatt Sicks the winners. It was a fun match, but it feels like it was booked to be finished, so the question is, where do the Wyatt Sicks go from here? The smart money would be on keeping them off-screen for a while, something that Abe Gonzalez has commented on over the past few months on Infighting Hub podcast.

Putting The Hart Into It

Bret Hart came out to one of the loudest pops in quite some time; the crowd was hyped. “The Hitman” didn’t get much out before Gunther came out, and even though a few people this past week booked it, the moment still felt awesome. Here was one of the best, if not the best, to ever do it in the ring with the guy who could earn that moniker for his own era one day.

Gunther went for all the heel heat he could get when he (likely fibbing) claimed Bill Goldberg was a favorite of his. Goldberg and Hart’s rivalry is well-known, stemming from the ‘kick’ that ended Bret’s in-ring career. Sami Zayn came out, and the booking here is perfect when you consider Bret gave Zayn a couple intros to the RAW audience years back, and Zayn embodies that ‘never say quit’ mentality of the “Hart Dungeon.”

It all ended in a schmoz between Gunther and his next title challenger Sami Zayn. It was not a ‘big move’ segment, at least in terms of storytelling, but it added plenty to the dynamics of this feud.

Terror Twins Not Enough?

Finn Balor was given a prime position when he cut his promo on Damien Priest and the motivation for his decision to turn on their leader(s). It was a great promo that underscored the underutilized Balor, but the announcement of Liv Morgan-Rhea Ripley at Bad Blood sucked the air out of anything that would transpire between him and Priest.

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Priest eventually came out, and so did Judgement Day, and so did Liv, and the faces took an outnumbered beat down until Jey Uso made the save. It feels like if the ‘Hardy Boyz’ are making a return, this would be an ideal place to put them to maximize everyone involved. Dom later got a win off Dragon Lee, which marks another significant stride in Dom’s booking as the rumors of a singles title could be in his future. That seems far down the road, if at all, and we all know the ‘card is subject to change’ all the time.

Main Event

Back to Balor, he received even more prime positioning as the main event against Rey Mysterio. The match was terrific but did not add to this feud. It is a weird dynamic having JD sort of feud with LWO and ‘Terror Twins.’ Something will have to give in to this dynamic as Zelina feels like the odd woman out in it all. But the true focus of tonight was Balor. The intensity he brought from the beginning of the show’s first promo to his aggressive performance against Rey this felt like the ‘prince’ of Japan. This did not feel like ‘the old Balor’; it felt like a revitalized Balor.

Hell In A Cell

The Bad Blood PPV held in ’98 introduced the first ever Hell in a Cell match between Shawn Michaels and Undertaker—a match also famous for one of the greatest debuts ever, Kane. So when McIntyre was seen walking into the building with a grin on his face, you felt like something big was coming.

It had been previously booked by some, including Gonzalez, once again, that the culmination of this feud would end in a Hell in a Cell. It feels right, and it certainly elevates the way gimmick matches should. Still, seeing the potential of a feud between McIntyre and Wade Barrett was far more interesting as the latter was introduced into the segment in a way that smells like a future program.

Mario Mungia

Mario Mungia Jr. has a decade worth of experience as a combat sports journalist and correspondent which began with ThaBoxingVoice (TBV) as a podcast co-host, writer and editor-in-chief. Aside from his online resume, Mario spent a fair portion of his early career working for Spanish/English magazine Premier Round and the Mexican website Izquierdo. Mario has also contributed to NYFights while simultaneously working for MIC Sports Network as part of the broadcast crew covering local high school sports. Since then, he has launched his own podcast/live stream (Infighting/Work In Progress) and is covering pro wrestling for FightsATW.

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