Finally… WWE’s Monday Night Raw has debuted on Netflix, starting a new chapter, or era, as the company likes to call it. The premiere episode, which is streaming for anyone with a Netflix subscription, had a lot going on with The Rock’s confusing return to the company’s flagship show, John Cena kicking off his farewell tour with a tease for the Royal Rumble, and Hulk Hogan getting mercilessly booed by the WWE Universe, and some great TV matches in the three-plus-hour show.
But now that the dust has settled and the excitement is starting to die down (for now, anyway), I can’t help but think about some lingering questions that have been going through my head since CM Punk pinned Seth Rollins in the main event. Here are things I’ve been pondering about Raw and how the premiere episode will impact upcoming WWE events.
What's The Deal With The Raw Runtime?
A few months after WWE had the first two-hour Raw in over a decade, the company shifted back to the three-hour format for the Netflix debut. However, it’s never been made explicitly clear if this will be the standard moving forward or an outlier. Admittedly, I’ve gotten used to the longer runtime since 2012, and going back to two hours left a lot to be desired.
Before Raw shifted over to Netflix in January 2025, Paul “Triple H” Levesque told Sports Illustrated’s SI Media Podcast that the company would be “flexible” with the runtime since Netflix was a “slightly different platform” compared to the cable channels that hosted the show for the first 32 years of its existence. While it is exciting that WWE is taking a different approach to the runtime each week and not over-or-under-stuffing the show, I’m still a little confused.
How Much Will We See John Cena Throughout 2025?
There are quite a few upcoming John Cena movies, TV shows, and other projects in the works, including his long-awaited yet long-feared retirement tour. The prolific wrestler-turned-actor had a great segment in the first episode of Raw on Netflix where he teased the upcoming Royal Rumble and his goals for the final stretch of his in-ring career, but there’s still one major unanswered question: how often will we see Cena this year?
Will it be a part-time run where he shows up in the lead-up to major WWE events like WrestleMania 41, SummerSlam, and Money in the Bank, or will we be seeing him week-in and week-out putting on fun matches with longtime rivals and new competitors? I sincerely hope it’s the latter.
Is WWE Retconning The Whole "Final Boss" Story? Because It Appears That Way
I loved seeing The Rock return to WWE during the Raw Netflix premiere, but it felt like we were getting Dwayne Johnson dressed up like the “Final Boss” instead of the heel persona that revitalized his wrestling career in 2024 and made the WrestleMania 40 main event one for the ages. In fact, with The Rock being all chummy with Cody Rhodes less than a year after viciously beating him in and out of the ring, it kind of feels like WWE is retconning the whole story.
Maybe the “Final Boss” is still hiding in there somewhere with that gaudy People’s Championship belt of his, waiting to attack when we least expect. I sincerely hope that’s the case, but I’m not holding my breath… for now.
This Has To Be The End Of Rhea Ripley And Liv Morgan's Feud, Right?
Before the end of 2024, one of my colleagues wrote about potential WrestleMania 41 matches as well as some they don’t want to see. One of those was Liv Morgan and Rhea Ripley for the Women’s World Championship, and I have to agree that this ongoing feud needs to come to an end. And after the clean end to their stellar match on Raw, which saw Ripley win back the title, I hope that this was the final chapter.
Nothing against Ripley and Morgan, but there are so many different wrestlers they each could feud with moving forward, which would give other members of the roster a chance at the title or a fulfilling story. Yeah, I know there’s the whole rematch clause, but WWE is so fast and loose with that as of late.
Netflix Didn't Really Censor Too Much During The Premiere, But Will That Continue?
The Right To Censor heel faction probably wasn’t happy, because WWE didn’t censor a whole lot during the Raw premiere. The Rock saying “bullshit,” fans chanting “Fuck you Solo” without being muted or having the screen go black, and Travis Scott holding a lit joint while walking with Jey Uso to the ring all made Raw feel less like the PG show we’ve come to know the past decade-and-a-half, and more like something out of the Attitude Era or Ruthless Aggression days.
But is this a sign of things to come or just a one-off where WWE showed fans that the new format is less restrictive than the cable days? I mean, they showed us where WWE’s new censorship line is (The Rock’s F-bomb was muted), but it’s still a mystery.
Will Netflix And WWE Ever Release The Footage We Missed During Commercial Breaks?
Despite being on Netflix, Raw still had commercial breaks during its premiere. Sure, they weren’t as bad or often as the old cable days, but unlike the international fans (they had no breaks), we missed out on a lot of in-ring spots and exclusive interviews and packages. Will we ever see that footage, at least from official channels?
I mean, you can find some of the content on social media platforms where users are sharing clips, but it’s not from WWE or Netflix. I went back to see if those missed segments were added to the on-demand version, but they weren’t and the commercials were included.
How Long Until WWE Starts Touting Raw Being In The Netflix Top 10?
I wasn’t shocked when Raw had one of the best spots on the Netflix Top 10 after its debut, and I guarantee it won’t be long before we hear Michael Cole and other WWE commentators touting that metric alongside comments like “Number 1 trending topic on X” on every show, every press conference, and everywhere else.
The question is how long until this happens? Friday night on SmackDown, next week on Raw, or sometime sooner? We shall see.
Honestly, Is Hulkamania Dead?
And lastly, is Hulkamania dead? One of the biggest surprises of the night was Hulk Hogan getting booed by the capacity crowd. I’m not talking heel heat from the WWE Universe, but instead “go away” heat. WWE posted a YouTube short showing the Hulkster’s return, but it was cut off before the boo birds were in full effect. The company also didn’t post a full clip on its YouTube page, which is odd considering Hogan is one of the biggest wrestlers of all time and essentially carried the company on his back in the ‘80s.
A colleague of mine wrote at length about the crowd reaction, arguing that it wasn’t just because of Hogan’s political comments in recent months (The Undertaker, who is also right-leaning, received a hero’s welcome upon his return the same night). I don’t see WWE bringing Hogan back out, at least not in a market like Los Angeles or anywhere else full of vocal wrestling fans.
Despite these lingering questions, I cannot wait to see how Raw does on Netflix moving forward. I mean, the show helped kick off the 2025 TV schedule in great fashion, and we haven’t even gotten to the post-Mania Raw or other big episodes yet.
