I love wrestling. I love the storylines, I love the athleticism, I love live TV, and I love the ridiculousness of it all. I turned 30 last month and there are very few interests that have stuck with me from my childhood, but wrestling is one of them. There have been times when my interest has withered, but the soap opera of wrestling always manages to reel me back in.
As of January, WWE’s headline weekly show, 'Monday Night Raw', is live on Netflix worldwide. We’re a month into the $5 billion deal and the road to the most important event of the wrestling calendar is underway (Wrestlemania), making now the perfect time to dust off your wrestling boots and get back into the action. Whether you loved WWE growing up and lost interest over time, or you’ve never seen a wrestling show in your life, now’s the perfect time to start watching WWE and I’m going to explain why.
Welcome to the Netflix era
The late 90s/early 00s was prime WWE, or as it was called back then WWF, before a legal dispute with the World Wildlife Fund. With icons of the sport like Stone Cold Steve Austin and The Rock leading the charge, WWE was hotter than ever before selling out arenas all around the United States. That was, until now. Following on from a monumental sale to TKO (the company that owns UFC), WWE is now setting record gates in stadiums across the globe and has never been more popular. With adults returning to wrestling to see John Cena’s final year or CM Punk’s incredible mic work, and children engrossed with new future legends like Roman Reigns and Cody Rhodes, WWE is thriving and it’s only going to get better from here on out.
Naysayers love to throw around the idea that wrestling is “fake” and the storylines cheesy, but as I grow older I come to respect the craft more than ever before. Wrestling is indeed pre-determined, but so are all the best TV shows and best movies. But the result of a match being decided beforehand shouldn’t be a reason to dismiss or avoid giving WWE a chance, after all some of the best wrestlers in the world like Seth Rollins and CM Punk can deliver live acting in one take that you wouldn’t be surprised to see in an Academy Award-winning drama. That might be hard to believe if you’re used to the ridiculousness of the 90s, but some of the best wrestling storylines nowadays, like the infamous tale of The Bloodline, a look at the Samoan wrestling dynasty with The Rock, Roman Reigns, Jey and Jimmy Uso, and Solo Sikoa, has been pure cinema. I’m talking about interweaving weekly storylines that have only grasped an audience but have essentially reinvented the wheel when it comes to how storylines can be portrayed on live television.
In the UK and the rest of the world, Netflix doesn’t only show Raw on a Monday, but also WWE’s Friday night show, SmackDown, as well as all the Premium Live Events like Wrestlemania, Royal Rumble, and Summerslam. Speaking of Wrestlemania, the journey to the biggest event of the year began this weekend with one of the best PLEs we’ve seen in years. I may have watched wrestling for nearly three decades but I can’t remember the last time I’ve been sat on the edge of my seat, biting my nails, hoping my favorite wrestlers come out on top. The best bit, everything that happened on Saturday night at Royal Rumble is just the beginning of months of storytelling as we lead up to Wrestlemania 41 in Las Vegas on April 19th and 20th.
WWE has gone through years of irrelevancy, particularly as the company turned to PG audiences following the heyday of The Rock and Austin. But now the tides have turned and it’s not only culturally acceptable to say you watch wrestling, it’s almost cool again. Roman Reigns, Cody Rhodes, CM Punk, and Rhea Ripley, to name a few are pioneering something special on live TV and I implore anyone who’s ever watched wrestling in the past, or is looking for a new way to spend their Monday nights to give WWE on Netflix a go.
How to watch WWE on Netflix
US audiences can tune into WWE Raw every Monday night on Netflix, PLEs (the huge shows like Wrestlemania) are streamed live on Peacock.
For the rest of the world, like the UK and Australia, the full WWE catalog is available on Netflix, including WWE Raw, WWE Smackdown, and all PLEs, including Wrestlemania 41. Not only can you watch shows live, but there’s a full selection of previous shows dating back to the 80s, so you can catch up on your favorite nostalgia trip before getting stuck into modern-day action.
The next big WWE PLE is Elimination Chamber that will be streamed live on Netflix worldwide and Peacock in the US on March 1st. That said, give WWE Raw a try on Netflix at 5 p.m. PT / 8 p.m. ET / 1 a.m GMT to see what all the fuss is about. I promise, if you appreciate great stories and incredible action, you’ll be hooked in no time.
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