Fans’ opinions vary on Judgment Day’s current story, though most take it as a soapy story of betrayal and lust. Now that Rhea Ripley has returned to kick off a universally more exciting arc, it is time to finish Judgment Day once and for all. Ripley caught Dominik Mysterio living up to his “Dirty” moniker in the most explicit fashion fans have seen thus far.
Clearly, Dominik’s grandmother didn’t watch as much General Hospital as mine did. If she had, he would have seen this coming from a mile away. When he finally decided to let his true intentions show, the person he most didn’t want to see appeared.
Before this recent chapter, The Judgment Day has been good for three things: factional combat angles, getting its members championship matches, and promoting Rhea as a star.
At this point, every member has held at least one title in the group. Furthermore, Ripley’s return pop is now the thousandth piece of evidence that she is WWE’s most prominent attraction on the Women’s roster.
With new factions like Wyatt Sicks and The Gable Alliance coming up the ranks, Judgment Day doesn’t need to be a united front against outside groups. In fact, the best thing they can do as a group is showcase and utilize the goodwill and lore they have built up and send everyone out in their own direction.
Staying Much Longer Will Undo Their Great Work
There have been more than a few times when fans questioned what WWE was doing with Judgment Day. Others still wondered openly if it wasn’t time for the group to break up years ago. Given the way that things have gone for the group, it is safe to say the worries were unfounded. Finn Balor has elevated his game as the jealous veteran.
Damian Priest is coming into his own as champion and will almost certainly get another run once Gunther has his shot to impress at the top of the card. Rhea Ripley and Dominik Mysterio have been stars for a long time.
The work they did together has resonated so well with fans that many are willing to overlook both performer’s questionable bookings. However, no act is evergreen, and change comes for everyone who wants to stay relevant.
Knowing when to walk away is an art. It is also something most wrestlers are bad at. It is not just for retirement, either. Plenty of wrestlers didn’t see their gimmick fall out of favor or their star fade until it was far too late to change it up.
That is not where the Judgment Day crew currently is; in fact, they are far from it. Each member is at their peak right now. The key for them is to know when to move on to keep their momentum and build off the work they all put in.
It is Time to Finish Judgment Day to Tell New Stories
There isn’t really anything entertaining left for Judgment Day to do as a team. They have had beef with nearly everyone at the highest levels of Raw, Smackdown, and NXT. WWE explored all of those conflicts thoroughly, and usually at Judgment Day’s expense. Who has kicked off a Monday night being interrupted by “The Other Side” at this point?
With nothing new left to accomplish together, they can finally show the fans what they can do apart—Rhea’s return to end the Days of Our Lives of it all sets that up nicely. Even before you get into what comes next, Judgment Day has a chance to be incredibly hot right now, as adversaries for the first time in years.
Yes, most of the superstars in Judgment Day have feuded with one another, including Dominik and Rhea. However, that was before they had built their dysfunctional found family into a main event act.
Now, a fight between those two, or Finn and Damian, would care more weight. Some of wrestling’s most significant moments came off the back end of betrayal. It will always be that way, and Judgment Day will be no exception. Tag team and singles matches between all of the key players can fill a considerable amount of WWE’s 3-hour timeslot as well to avoid repetition of the same stars and angles every week.
What Comes After The Judgment Day Splits Up?
Just because it is time to finish Judgment Day doesn’t mean that everyone involved fades away. Even after their inevitable infighting ends, all of the superstars involved have a bright future. The tag team of JD McDonagh and Finn Balor is an excellent addition to the tag team division.
They can have stand-out matches with established acts like The New Day or wrestle newer teams, like the Creeds, to give them some reps with two of the best in-ring performers on Raw. Finn and JD turning on their family could also backfire.
They may get to meet Raw’s new team in the Wyatt Sicks seeking justice. Additionally, Carlito and Dominik could become a team of their own, or Dominik’s redemption ark can begin.
Perhaps he tries to prove Damian and Rhea wrong by reforming Judgment Day? His strengths lie heavily outside of the ring, so that would be an intriguing way to use them and display just how hated his character is by the rest of the roster.
The two real stars of Judgment Day, Rhea Ripley and Damian Priest, can finally begin true singles runs. Priest will have presumably just lost his world title before the breakup.
His story becomes the classic prove yourself archetype. He will set out to prove he doesn’t need Judgment Day to be a world champion. That could run easily until next summer without boring audiences. His big win might even be against a legend like the retiring John Cena to really solidify his spot.
On the other hand, Ripley will almost certainly beat Liv for the title during the breakup story. She will have her belt back and be unburdened by her previous lackluster run.
Rhea defending her title on every show against the best on Raw, Smackdown, or NXT will give fans what they have been begging to see since April of 2023. All WWE has to do to get there is let a good thing end. That’s historically been hard for them, but this time it’s serious.
