I’ve admittedly not been following all that closely in recent years, in large part due to being one of the cord-cutters when it comes to cable. I almost have no choice but to tune into January Sixth’s premiere episode of Monday Night Raw on Netflix, it just has that big match, can’t miss feeling to it.
Wrestling fans know, it’s all about the pop. The roar of the crowd when Cena’s entrance music hits, the hysteria that grips everyone in the arena when Undertaker’s bell rings and the lights go out. As the Netflix wait screen scrolled across the TV during a recent family gathering, the image of CM Punk hovering over the bold red letters of “RAW” got a big pop from me. The move to Netflix puts an end to Monday Night Raw’s longtime cable run, a seismic shift for WWE, and one fans should be excited about.
As a young fan, I had a VHS tape I’d re-record each week to capture the last hour of Monday Night Raw that was past my bedtime. That practice will surely be much easier for this generation of fans, as episodes will be available to re-watch immediately upon concluding live, Netflix released a page regarding all its features for Monday Night Raw here. Not only is it a positive change for existing fans, but a change that should attract new fans, and give older fans who have tuned out a reason to come back. In light of the cool five-billion-dollar deal over ten years, this still has the feel of a move that is for the fans.
Netflix is the only streaming service you don’t need to ask someone if they have it before telling them about your favorite show, and unlike some other sports leagues that have gone to streaming, it is fully included with a Netflix membership. Those hours and hours I spend scrolling through Netflix trying to find a new show and not watching anything, I’ll just throw on the latest episode of Monday Night Raw.
One can only expect that these upcoming episodes of Raw will be crowd-pleasers. The entire move to Netflix gives me the sense that Triple H and company are intent on delivering WWE’s best possible product in the best possible place. Everything about it gives me the feeling that the company wants to deliver, from the executive level to the bottom of the match card. I’m expecting some extra energy in these matches, as everyone in the ring aims to set the internet on fire.
Raw isn’t expected to change drastically in terms of its maturity level, those longing for a return to the Attitude Era may not enjoy the same humor Netflix displayed in the Tom Brady Roast. There is certainly a chance that being freed from the confines of cable may give the Netflix Era a nice home in the middle of the Attitude Era and the infamous PG Era. We can all hope to see a Netflix version of a CM Punk pipe bomb.
With its largest events on pay-per-view (or Peacock), and its flagship program now streaming, cable may soon be a thing of the past altogether for WWE. The combination of Monday Night Raw and Netflix is the missing piece to what WWE has been trying to do via the WWE Network in the past. All the archival content, reality shows, and even WWE-produced films, now have more of a chance to be seen on an app everyone already has and is already hosting its top weekly show.
Hopefully, Netflix and WWE have plans to build more content around Monday Night Raw These are just some of the possibilities that excited me upon learning of Raw’s new internet home, and it offers a lot of promise in terms of what we’re going to see take place in the ring.
Being a wrestling fan never truly leaves you, even if you aren’t watching for years at a time. WWE always has a way of pulling its old fans back in. My dad was a Hulk Hogan fan in his day, he tried to pretend he was over it when I started watching as a kid, and by the time I left for college, he and my sister were calling and asking me if I had seen last night’s Raw nearly every Tuesday morning. He later needed to be talked out of doing Undertaker’s entrance at my other sister’s wedding.
I’ve admittedly not been following all that closely in recent years, in large part due to being one of the cord-cutters when it comes to cable. I almost have no choice but to tune into January Sixth’s premiere episode of Monday Night Raw on Netflix, it just has that big match, can’t miss feeling to it.
The premiere episode comes at a pivotal time in the WWE calendar as well. The Road to WrestleMania traditionally begins at the Royal Rumble, however, the live premiere on Netflix seems to have the buzz of a WrestleMania. It may not be the same in-person week-long spectacle, but to those at home and online it is certain to generate monumental interest. As for the live event itself fans should expect to see major things happening, title implications, heel turns, and some major surprise returns we haven’t seen advertised in the leadup.
Monday Night Raw and Netflix are poised to be WWE’s top tag team over the next decade. If you haven’t watched wrestling in a while, there almost couldn’t be a better reason to start again than Raw on Netflix. Fans can only hope other sports and leagues follow suit and make it easy and affordable for fans to watch along. Maximizing eyes on the product will generate long-term interest organically and provide more business opportunities in the peripheries than simply taking the largest TV deal.
Fans will feel appreciated and likely take the money saved from paying so much to watch and buy themselves some tickets and t-shirts for a live event. More people watching will have more people talking, building a wider audience that’s able to share in the best fan experience sports can offer.
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