This past Sunday, the WWE hosted their annual Royal Rumble event, coming to us from the Alamo Dome in San Antonio, TX. A site which hosted the 1997 Royal Rumble (trying hard not to think it has been 20 years already). A Rumble that saw "Stone Cold" Steve Austin put in an impressive performance along his way to the top of the WWF at the time, and to being one of the most popular wrestlers of all-time. Sadly, the 2017 didn't really have a display like that, but after the previous couple years of lackluster Royal Rumbles, this year's edition, I felt was one of the better ones they've put on in recent years.
The Royal Rumble usually provides a solid series of undercard matches. This year was no exception. Every match on the undercard was solid to outstanding. The John Cena/AJ Styles match was one of the better matches I've seen in a very long time. Despite how some fans may feel about Cena, he does step up to the plate under the bright lights, and rarely disappoints. In the Kevin Owens vs. Roman Reigns match for the Universal Championship, despite how I personally feel about the endless push Reigns gets, and how drawn out this feud has been, both men put on a great match. Having Chris Jericho (Owens' buddy), hanging above the ring in a cage was a nice old school touch.
As for the Rumble match, I REALLY enjoyed it, well 90% percent of it. I did my best to stay away from any online sources that may've spoiled the outcome for me. When it comes to the Rumble, I want to be surprised. I loved what they did with Braun Strowman. He's been booked since the brand split last year as an unstoppable monster. His performance in the Rumble match did not disappoint. He'd eventually be eliminated, but I felt his performance was congruent with how he's been booked.
Chris Jericho was another highlight. Entrant number 2, he found himself in the Rumble and lasted about an hour. I was disappointed that the announcers barely made mention of his duration. As a kid, I used to love when Gorilla Monsoon would bring up how such and such was nearing a record. Sure, Jericho spent some of the time outside the ring, but he's had an impressive run, and the Rumble reflects it. For a man who's about 45 or so, and being in the business as long as he's been, he's putting on one of his best performances as a character since I first saw him back in 1995.
The Rumble was a lot of fun until about entrant 25 or so. Prior to that, it was mainly the younger guys, and they put on an entertaining show. From here on out, we had entrants such as Goldberg, Brock Lesnar, and The Undertaker enter the fray. With these part-timers and legends, it felt the match had some of the air sucked out of it. Topping it off was entrant 30. Guess who? Roman Reigns! I told myself if he wins, the Rumble was a bust.
As the Rumble reached its conclusion, we had Goldberg quickly eliminate Lesnar, continuing their feud. Then Reigns eliminated the Undertaker, getting me even more nervous. Fortunately, Reigns did not go home winning the Rumble. He was eliminated by Randy Orton.
Overall, despite my feelings that the WWE needs to stop relying on old-timers and continually pushing Reigns on us, they did a great job with the 2017 Royal Rumble. It's the first Rumble in several years at least I really enjoyed. I was nervous after the last couple Rumbles, but the WWE didn't let me down this year. The show gets a solid 4 stars from me.
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