Another week means more WWE Network additions are here! Like every week, we had several items added to the video on demand library, while we also had some original content. But was it enough?
It should be noted that there were a few more uploads aside from what you will see below. The December drop, Smackdown from 2006 and 2007 continued. Additionally, we finally saw RAW 141 hit the service. But what else was added? And how was it? Let’s take a look:
WWE Story Time
Another episode of WWE Story Time has been added to the WWE Network and the series seems to be finding an audience. More people are beginning to praise it, which is similar to what happened with another animated series Camp WWE and the sketch comedy Edge and Christian Show. Speaking of Camp WWE, we recently put up a poll asking if you’d like to see more animated shows on the service, so be sure to check it out here and give us your thoughts.
This episode of WWE Story Time was a good one, and it was all about “Life Before WWE”, as the title indicates. It featured Charlotte, The Miz, Bruno Sammartino, Paul Heyman, and Becky Lynch. The total run time is 12:52, just under thirteen minutes in length. Definitely check the show out, it is a lot of fun. The animation is amusing and the stories, while not all exciting, are usually amusing at worst.
Verdict: Watch it.
WWE Talking Smack
At this point, discussing Talking Smack feels repetitive. It is the same story every week: Talking Smack is great. Every single week I watch this show and every single week I’m left extremely satisfied. Tuesday nights just have a great combination of shows, and Talking Smack is a huge part of the reason why. It just feels raw and authentic, which is fantastic.
The hosts are Daniel Bryan and Renee Young, whom have both hosted every episode thus far with the exception of the episode where Daniel Bryan was replaced by The Miz. And the guests this week were quality as well. It includes two champions, the WWE Champion AJ Styles and the Smackdown Women’s Champion Alexa Bliss. Additionally, we heard from the Usos. Check this show out, it delivers every week.
Verdict: Watch it.
Unfiltered with Renee Young
This episode of Unfiltered with Renee Young was potentially the season finale. No new episode is listed for this week, so it seems likely that the series is done for now. And the big guest for this show was John Cena. It should be noted that this season stopped short of ten episodes at only nine, so it is possible that another episode is on the way, but for now there is no confirmation one way or another. They seemingly had an episode with Corey Graves filmed but they used part of it in a pre-main interview skit in a prior episode, so I’m not sure of the story there.
Regardless, Cena was an excellent guest as you’d expect. He was very entertaining and talked about his life and his relationship with Nikki Bella. Additionally, he talked about the things he does to improve himself, including playing piano and learning Chinese. Beyond John Cena, we also saw a brief interview with Ashton Kutcher and Danny Masterson to kick the episode off.
Verdict: Watch it.
This Week in WWE
This Week in WWE had some big stories to cover, this time. With the TLC event the Sunday prior they had to cover that show and its fallout on Smackdown. The show featured title changes along with a big swerve, which had a lot of attention. Additionally, this episode of This Week in WWE focused on the continuing saga of Sasha Banks and Charlotte Flair, along with her father Ric Flair who recently returned to television. As always, This Week in WWE isn’t must see but if you miss the weeklies, this is worth checking out to catch up on the action.
Verdict: Skip it if you watch the weeklies.
WWE 205 Live
WWE 205 Live had its best episode yet. I know the show gets a lot of backlash from some, and I wouldn’t call it perfect by any means. But I think the show has been quality in terms of getting over personalities and fleshing out some feuds, which is really what we need early on from this show. People need reasons to care. The growing pains will be over soon, I think, because this was a really good show. All three matches were really fun to watch, and all three were different from each other. We’ll have a full review soon. It should be noted that this episode isn’t actually live, it was taped the day prior due to Tribute To The Troops being taped.
Match List
Jack Gallagher vs. Drew Gulak
Lince Dorado vs. Ali Mustafa
TJ Perkins vs. Rich Swann
Verdict: Watch it.
NXT
This week I happened to be the one who covered NXT in a review, so as a result I’ll keep this entry short to not regurgitate points I already made. This was a fun show, with a few debuts and a big title change. In general, I think NXT is getting a bad hand from some people these days. Is every episode must-see? Definitely not, but its all part of a bigger package. And this episode was a strong one. Needless to say, it is worth checking out. For my review, click here.
Match List
SANITY vs. No Way Jose and Rich Swann
Kimber Lee vs. Ember Moon
NXT Championship: Samoa Joe vs. Shinsuke Nakamura
Verdict: Watch it.
Main Event
Main Event 217 has been added to the WWE Network. It aired on November 22nd of this year. The episode is prior to the switch from being a show featuring Smackdown matches to a show featuring RAW matches. With that being said, this was a special edition of the series hosted by Cathy Kelley. The show looks back at Thanksgiving moments of the past, going as far back as the Gorilla Monsoon and Bobby Heenan era. Check it out, but as always, skip the RAW recap.
Match List
Alexa Bliss vs. Naomi
Verdict: Watch it, but skip recaps.
RAW
RAW 1224 has been added to the WWE Network. This episode of Monday Night RAW originally aired on November 7th of this year. The show took place on the road to WWE Survivor Series 2016, and truthfully the show wasn’t very good. Recently, RAW has picked up in quality but I couldn’t get behind some episodes, and this was one of them. The main event was a lot of fun, though, so check that out.
Match List
Rich Swann and Sin Cara vs. Brian Kendrick and Noam Dar
New Day vs. The Club
The Shining Stars vs. The Golden Truth
Bayley, Sasha Banks, and Alicia Fox vs. Charlotte, Nia Jax, and Dana Brooke
Rusev vs. Sami Zayn
Seth Rollins vs. Roman Reigns vs. Braun Strowman vs. Chris Jericho vs. Kevin Owens
Verdict: Skip it but check out the main event.
Smackdown
The final show added to the WWE Network this week that will be covered in this forum is Smackdown Live. In particular, Smackdown 899 has been added to the service. This episode aired on November 8th of this year. This was one week before the big 900th episode and was under two weeks away from WWE Survivor Series. As always, Smackdown delivered so I recommend checking the show out.
Match List
The Vaudevillains vs. Breezango
Naomi vs. Natalya
Kalisto vs. Baron Corbin
Smackdown Women’s Championship: Alexa Bliss vs. Becky Lynch
Curt Hawkins vs. Apollo Crews
The Wyatt Family vs. Randy Orton, Dean Ambrose, and James Ellsworth
Verdict: Watch it.
Closing Thoughts
Not an amazing week, but not a terrible one either. With the Pre-Shows gone, we really could do with a bit more original content to fill the gap, and the next week doesn’t look too much stronger either, although it has the benefit of a pay-per-view. I’m very much looking forward to seeing what the new year brings our way. And with the Smackdown drop featuring 2006 and 2007, that leaves only two more drops until the entire series is available on demand. Pretty cool.
Stick to WWE Network News for more WWE Network news, reviews, and previews! Also be sure to follow me on Twitter at http://www.Twitter.com/AWWENetworkGuy and to join in on the discussion with your opinions, predictions, and desires about the WWE Network!