There was much anticipation when the Rock announced he would be present at the Monday Night Raw Netflix premiere. Speculation abounded as to what the Final Boss would do -would he get involved in tribal combat? Nope, didn’t do that. Would he continue his feud with Cody Rhodes? Nope, seemingly did the opposite. Would he call out the retiring John Cena for one final match? Missed opportunity there.
No, the Rock didn’t do any of that. There is still much more wrestling left on the night but the Rock’s intro, which followed a spectacular one from Triple H, was much more Corporate Rock than it was People’s Champ or even Final Boss.
What’s Next for the Rock?…After Monday, we Have no Clue
The Rock entered to raucous applause and wasted no time electrifying the crowd of over 17,000 at the Intuit Dome, (which the Rock announced as the largest single-event arena TV gate in WWE’s history) and the millions (and billions) watching at home. Rock put a spin on his famous catchphrase, saying “Finally, WWE has returned to Netflix,” before acknowledging what the people wanted to hear with “Finally, the Rock has returned to Los Angeles.”
The Rock, an official Samoan High Chief, had the crowd eating out of the palm of his hands and completely owned his presence in the ring as he always does. In a short period, the Rock dropped all his signature lines and gestures including the aforementioned catchphrase, the People’s Eyebrow, and even calling Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos a “candy ass” before ending with the iconic, “If ya smell…”
It was a classic Rock appearance but in between all the pomp and circumstance, the Rock embraced his inner suit-and-tie to not just put over Cody Rhodes and acknowledge Roman Reigns as the tribal chief, the “original tribal chief,” but to also give his could-be WrestleMania 41 opponent in Rhodes a hug at ringside before leaving the ring. At the end of tribal combat, the Rock and Reigns exchanged a handshake as Rock was the one to re-crown Reigns with the ula fala.
The Road to WrestleMania hasn’t officially begun so there is technically still plenty of time for the Rock to exert his very strong influence on whatever match or opponent he chooses. Perhaps tonight was about giving the two men he’s most likely to clash with in a few months, a bit of respect. A chance to size them up and determine his next course of action. Maybe tonight, Corporate Rock was just a facade, a way to ease Rhodes and Reigns into letting their guards down before the Final Boss comes in to strike.
Tonight, we didn’t get much in that direction but hey, anything goes when you’re the Final Boss…
