This shocking WWE Raw segment wasn't very 'PG'

Published Dec. 9, 2016 1:16 p.m. ET

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Nick Schwartz

Many WWE fans who latched on to the product during the heyday of the Attitude Era in the late '90s and early 2000s have been critical of the company's shift to a family-friendly product - but over the last few weeks, a trio of WWE Raw stars have been caught up in a very adult oriented story that's straight out of 1998.

Enzo Amore, the realest guy in the room, did an entire segment in the nude in November when his partner Big Cass locked him out of the men's locker room. Amore wandered backstage until he stumbled upon Lana, who was eventually joined by her enraged (real-life) husband Rusev.

Rusev annihilated the comically overmatched Amore in the ring in just a few moments. The following week, Enzo said it was the luckiest day of Lana's life, and made a rather suggestive and timely turkey joke before losing to Rusev yet again.

Which brings us to yesterday's episode of Raw, during which Enzo Amore accepted an invite to Lana's hotel room, stripped on command, and ended up knocked out in the hallway. Early in the show, Enzo and Cass noticed Rusev and Lana having a very loud argument backstage, and Enzo decided to step in and break it up. Lana, apparently furious with Rusev, threw her wedding ring to the ground, and hatched a plan to make Rusev appreciate her by using Amore.

Ric Flair (who would later be attacked by his own daughter) gave Enzo his car keys so he could drive to Lana's hotel, and what followed was an encounter that wouldn't have looked out of place on certain cable channels at 2 a.m.

Once Amore was at his most vulnerable, though, Lana revealed that the entire thing was a set-up, and Rusev proceeded to crush him.

According to Lana, the events were meant to teach life lessons to children!

WWE is far removed from the height of the John Cena-led "PG Era, but the hotel segment was jarring for many to watch simply because it was so different from what fans have been accustomed to. While you might not agree with the content or execution of this particular segment, it's good to see WWE experimenting with more mature storylines. The Attitude Era's not coming back, but there's a middle ground to find that will satisfy fans of all ages.

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