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They’ve tried having Mick Foley dim the lights, and gave Shane McMahon his own personal Fight Club for a while. Neither idea stuck. They also didn’t do one of the main things they were designed to — make the third hour of Raw feel fresh, and something people stuck around to watch.
It’s an ongoing issue, and something just about everyone involved in WWE creative has labeled challenging-to-problematic. It’s also something the powers-that-be are still (pun unavoidable) wrestling with as they head into negotiations for new television/media rights deals for their Monday night franchise.
WWE CEO Nick Khan brought it up during his appearance on the LightShed Live podcast a couple weeks ago.
Hosts (and partners at media investment research firm Lightshed) Brandon Ross & Rich Greenfield brought up the WrestleMania match between Edge & Finn Bálor being stopped when Bálor was busted open, and the possibility WWE might be more open to “blood and gore” after the merger with UFC is a done deal:
“When we’re specifically talking about the 10 to 11 [pm Eastern] hour on Raw, we’re specifically talking to NBCU and ourselves about what we do with that moving forward.
“We ask, what do we do if we tweak this, that 10 to 11 hour, it is basic cable, it’s not broadcast, as you know. We think that NBCU would be supportive, but we’re not on a final conclusion on that.”
While Cody Rhodes will probably be excited about possibly being allowed to bleed on television for the first time since he left AEW, I’m not sure color is the answer to the third hour of Raw problem. Telling at least one compelling, cohesive story that pays off after 10 is probably the best solution.
But that’s trickier than just teasing the occasional blade job, so I get it.
The important thing is that WWE and their current Monday night TV partners are aware of the issue and still kicking around possible solutions.
What do you think would make the third hour of Raw more must see?
H/t ComicBook.com for transcription
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