Is Shane McMahon's return to WWE having a positive impact?
When Shane McMahon returned to Monday Night Raw it stunned the WWE Universe. With very few people expecting the prodigal son to return, Shane McMahon’s return was a very big surprise. The crowd was electrified as the prospect of change re-entered the WWE. Now that Shane McMahon has been back in the WWE for a while, is he having a positive impact?
On the 22nd of February, the night that Shane McMahon returned, RAW reached 4.201 million viewers within the first hour, which was a 21% increase from the previous RAW which only reached 3.477 million viewers.
The viewership records suggest that Shane McMahon's presence is having an impact. For example, this month Shane McMahon has made three appearances on Raw; 7th March, 14th March and the 28th .
On the 7th of March, Raw's viewership attendance was 3.551 million, on the 14th March, it decreased slightly to 3.457 million. However, Shane McMahon was absent from the last but one Monday Night Raw (21st March) and the numbers dropped further to 3.39 million viewers overall.
Whether or not Shane McMahon’s presence alone is causing the numbers to drop so low is undetermined, however, such low numbers need to be addressed especially leading up to WrestleMania 32 which is now less than a week away.
If Shane McMahon does win his WrestleMania match against the Undertaker inside Hell in a Cell the current lack of interest involving Monday Night Raw would ebb and the WWE could potentially regain the viewership if Shane proceeds to listen to the fans and at least address the issues.
On the other hand, whether Shane McMahon gets control over Monday Night Raw or not the drop in viewership records needs to be addressed and sorted out if WWE management intends to increase Monday Night Raw’s viewership records and once again get people to watch Monday Night Raw.
Shane McMahon attracts the older members of the WWE Universe. Shane McMahon was a big star in the early 2000’s. During the time, the WWE were less than PG, WWE had a sense of unpredictability, ruthlessness and aggression.
When Shane McMahon returned the WWE were reminded of how far Shane McMahon would go to put on a show. Shane McMahon would do just about anything to win a fight. He’s put himself through sheets of glass and jumped off Jumbotrons all in the name of entertainment.
Is this suggesting that if Shane McMahon sticks around we will once again see signs of the WWE not only appealing to it’s younger audiences but finding it balanced to appeal to both adults and children. Whether Vince McMahon is open to the idea of once again capturing his older fans is left to be seen, however, we can hope.
As previously stated Shane McMahon brought a sense of familiarity back to the WWE Universe and we’ve recently witnessed some less than PG actions on our screens. Roman Reigns’ “nose injury”, Vince McMahon himself using strong language show that of late, WWE seems to have been pushing its boundaries and testing new limits to determine how far they can go and still have their show rated as PG.
To some, the new edgier style of programming is a welcomed change, whether it stays or not is a completely different prospect. Yet things began to change when Shane McMahon returned to WWE.
Was this predominately all his doing, probably not but we can agree that it was nice to see and unexpected. Could this lead into Wrestlemania? With three matches containing extreme elements, will WrestleMania also contain edgier segments for the adults to enjoy as well?
To conclude, whether or not Shane McMahon is the complete reason behind some small changes that are currently being tested out by WWE is unlikely, however to some there is the possibility that come April 4th, RAW will no longer by managed by the Authority but by Shane McMahon.