In this WWE Evil: Sasha Banks review, some thoughts on the third installment of the newest Peacock series from WWE.
Let’s jump in.
– Sasha notes that she’s always liked when the bad guys win in the movies. Bayley, Rey Mysterio, and Snoop Dogg are all included in this episode, so that’s a nice group with plenty of insight on her.
– Cool flashback to the brand split era in WWE, with a variety of highlights from Raw and SmackDown, including the one and only Eddie Guerrero. Sasha’s love of Eddie has been well-documented, but I always love hearing current stars detailing what inspired them to get into pro wrestling. I really need to go back and watch Eddie’s mid-2000s run again, so perhaps that’s the next review series.
– Another cool tidbit is Sasha recalling how she had wrestling journals and wrote down details of all the shows. I did the same as a fan growing up, so that’s brought back some childhood memories. We even see the notebooks and Sasha’s scribblings. That’s awesome stuff right there.
–Â The documentary does a good job connecting her work in Chaotic Wrestling to her style as a must-see performer. She decided early on to try to stand out as a character, and that was obviously the right decision since being different is usually what gets you far in this business.
– Sasha looks back at not really having a character when she first started in NXT based on Mercedes Varnado (her real name) being shy. So she turned to a variety of mediums (Floyd Mayweather, Bratz, etc.) to up her personality. Enter “The Boss,” who snapped on Paige and was off to the races from there.
– Dr. Phil is back and he talks about how these types of characters could be escapism for people who are insecure. Thus, Sasha transforms herself into an over-the-top character that’s opposite of what she is in real life. There’s probably a lot of truth with that with countless characters over the years.
– They dive into the rivalry between Sasha and Charlotte Flair. I like them pointing out how different their backgrounds are and how that drives their character’s motivations against one another. Also some nice background on the Four Horsewomen’s run in NXT.
– Now comes Sasha’s motivation during the rivalry with Bayley, including her incredible character work during their NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn and NXT TakeOver: Respect matches. The latter included her taunting Izzy and taking her Bayley headband, which was some great old school heel work.
– Sasha shares some insight into basically hitting burnout with the character being on the road 24/7. Separating the character from the person has always been a popular talking point in wrestling. I think it’s easy to forget how taxing that can be on the top stars. Sasha recalls asking Vince McMahon for her release and him saying no.
– To continue the previous point, Sasha details her decision to go to Japan and learn Strong Style to reinvigorate her love for wrestling. Then it’s the memorable return in 2019 when she came back with the blue hair and turned on Natalya on Raw.
– The episode wraps up with a look at Sasha vs. Bianca Belair at WrestleMania 37.
BLAKE’S TAKE ON WWE EVIL: SASHA BANKS
Sasha is an interesting character with more depth than what’s shown on weekly WWE television. This episode of the WWE Evil series did a good job showcasing that truth. They explored her character motivations much more in NXT, which is where fans got more of a character study on her than they do on the main roster.
I loved the insight into her ups and downs along the way. That included the transition from her initial lackluster character in NXT to hitting a breaking point with “The Boss.” Another entertaining watch, and it’s one Sasha fans will enjoy.
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