WWE: Unreal Documentary Review: A ‘Raw’ Insight Into Wrestling’s Biggest Stars

My Childhood With WWE & Exploring The Women’s Evolution

Growing up with WWE from 2014 onwards (back when Lucha Underground was popular), my childhood saw great inspirational changes in wrestling. Think back to the likes of the Women’s Evolution of 2016 which witnessed the infamous WWE Divas Championship change over to the WWE Women’s Championship.

Since then, women wrestlers have been regarded as ‘superstars’ instead of the aforementioned term ‘divas.’ The Women’s Evolution was heralded by such household names as Nikki and Brie – better known as ‘The Bella Twins’, Paige, and Naomi. Along with the introduction of NXT superstars, Becky Lynch, Bayley, Charlotte Flair, and Sasha Banks. Collectively they’re known as the ‘Four Horsewomen of WWE’ who spearheaded the change-making movement.

But there’s no doubt that without this movement women wrestlers would not be where they are today. Paving the way in a movement that only celebrated hosting its very own pay-per-view event in 2018, titled WWE Evolution. The event even saw legendary returning WWE Hall of Famers from the Attitude era including Lita and Trish Stratus. It’s second event hosted again only in July 2025. But it’s still another step in the right direction for women’s wrestling.

I had all these things going through my mind. I don’t know if I prepared. I definitely didn’t sleep. I know that I’m not ready for this. I was almost in tears. Just couldn’t switch on at all.

Rhea Ripley on experiencing nerves before the WWE Raw premiere on Netflix (Epi 01).

WWE: Unreal – Season One Episode Summaries

Teaming up with streaming giant Netflix for this new documentary in the Netflix Sports Series sees an inside look into the inner-workings of WWE. Each episode follows various WWE superstars in their careers. We travel back to the very beginning of their journey’s from how they began in the wrestling entertainment industry. It then covers their current workout routines, homelife, and personal struggles. This includes tough times like recovering from in-ring injuries. Here’s a breakdown on each episode.

WWE: Unreal – Episode One: “New Era”

WWE: Unreal episode one follows returning superstars like CM Punk and explores his long history with WWE. It also covers newer superstars including Rhea Ripley who deals with a tough long-term shoulder injury. We explore the behind-the-scenes look into the control room AKA the ‘Gorilla Position’ where all the planning happens e.g. how timing works in the ring.

There’s a specific focus on the main event match between WWE superstars, CM Punk and Seth Rollins on the premiere of WWE Raw on Netflix. As well as Cody Rhodes’ rise to fame and John Cena’s retirement plans as part of his final farewell tour.

Ex-wrestler-turned Head of WWE Creative, Triple H serves as the main narrator throughout the documentary. Through Triple H we explore the WWE Writer’s Room where they set up storylines, choose which wrestler will be the babyface or heel, and plan out each wrestler’s in-ring story.

WWE: Unreal – Episode Two: “Push”

The second episode in the series follows the lead-up to the 2025 Men’s Royal Rumble Match. There’s a focus on one-half of the ‘Uso brothers’ – Jey Uso and his contention for the title match spot in WrestleMania. We also get a raw insight into Cody Rhodes and how his father, wrestling icon, Dusty Rhodes shaped his career and defines the wrestler he is today.

The winner of the Royal Rumble main events WrestleMania. “What happens when I do main event WrestleMania?” Maybe there’s a part of me that’s terrified of that because it’s gonna extinguish some kind of flame that I have. But to me, the main event of WrestleMania is a goal. It is a mountaintop that I have yet to climb and plant the CM Punk flag. It is the pinnacle of what we do and what we try to achieve here in this business.

CM Punk on WrestleMania (Epi 02).

WWE: Unreal – Episode Three: “Worth the Wait”

Episode Three: “Worth the Wait” focuses on the hardworking women’s division of WWE. Chelsea Green who is usually booked to be the ‘comedy release’ in storylines has her talent finally taken seriously. In turn she is awarded a title shot. But it’s taken plenty of grit and determination for her to reach this point in her career.

Meanwhile, Charlotte Flair suffers an injury – something that is rare throughout her wrestling career. We see how she handles the run-up to her Royal Rumble win, and it highlights a time of uncertainty. While popular wrestler, Bianca Belair explores her journey leading up to WWE. Including how her signature braid makes her stand-out in the women’s division.

WWE: Unreal – Episode Four: “Heel Turn”

In the fourth episode of the series sees potentially the biggest and most shocking heel turn in wrestling history. It’s of course the life-long WWE Babyface, John Cena. And he explores the possibility of retirement and ultimately what happens when you just ‘can’t see him anymore.’ The writer’s room eventually change up the narrative and turn Cena heel in a big shake-up move for the company.

We see The Rock return at Elimination Chamber to build up momentum for Cody Rhodes’ journey to WrestleMania. Other wrestlers in this episode include how Kevin Owens misses out on a title win due to injury. While CM Punk tells-all on how the popular pay-per-view works and the toughness behind such high-octane matches.

WWE: Unreal – Episode Five: “WrestleMania”

Episode five explores an exclusive inside look into wrestling’s biggest night of the year, preparing for WrestleMania 41. Title cards included Jey Uso vs. Gunther and Charlotte Flair vs. Tiffany Stratton. We see the racing minds of the wrestlers just before they run through the curtains with their entrance music playing.

Whilst Jey Uso has doubts about his abilities to be a title contender, we see what happens when wrestlers go off-script. Here Charlotte and Tiffany enter personal territory. Tiffany decides to mention sensitive topics as loneliness and divorce whilst cutting a live promo against Charlotte.

Emotions run high and tension certainly gets heated as Triple H reminds Tiffany of WWE’s promo boundaries. We receive even more backstage footage from the ‘Gorilla Position.” This reveals how WWE manages time constraints, on-air injuries, and fast-paced live editing.

WWE: Unreal Review

From planning the WWE storylines at Royal Rumble to leading the build-up on the road to WrestleMania; of course, every wrestler at some point in their career has wished to be a ‘main eventer’. It’s those moments that lead up to big pay-per-view events where we really see how their struggles get them to such territory.

‘Raw’ Emotional Moments

Alongside top WWE wrestlers, we experience all of the emotional highs and lows from career highlights to losing titles. And even ones that open up further opportunities for storyline possibilities. As we explore an in-depth look behind the inner workings, lifestyles, and kind personalities of main eventers like Cody Rhodes and Rhea Ripley. We’re given an inside view of both male and female superstar matches and how they make history in the moment. Highly choreographed but still very much ‘real’ in terms of injuries and live mishaps, it’s a ‘raw’ behind-the-scenes look of the biggest names in wrestling right now. 

We’re even given a special insight listening into the microphones in the ‘Gorilla Position’. This is the term used to describe the control room of WWE wrestling matches. It’s here that the real-live communication happens between the referees and the heads of WWE to control each live match. Although this somewhat feels intensively intrusive even for an intimate documentary of this kind. It’s like we’re right there in the room working alongside the wrestlers as part of their locker room.

Straight from the makeup chair through to the ramp and the square-shape ring as the chairs fold-up to prepare for another day of live-wrestling. There’s ‘pulling at heartstrings’ moments like Cody Rhodes receiving his father, ex-pro-wrestler, Dusty Rhodes’ Rolex watch after he had to sell it from financial struggles. It’s something sentimental he can hold onto forever and we see exactly how much it means to him.

Everyone is on their way to Survivor Series, and I am not. I just kept hoping that someone would call me and tell me I was on. But the funny thing about wrestling is nobody tells you when you’re not on, so you just kind of have to figure it out yourself.

Chelsea Green on the business of wrestling (Epi 03).

John Cena: WWE’s Golden Wrestler 

As the WWE Creative Team asks, ‘what happens if John Cena finally turns heel?’ An important question that has been raised for decades. Clearly they’re just waiting for the right moment to put their plans into action. Wrestling since the early 2000s, John Cena is the face of the company and one of the most well-known wrestlers in the world. When you think of wrestling, you likely think of John Cena.

Gaining an insight into the WWE Writers Room shows how impactful just one storyline can be to a wrestler’s career. We see the impact John Cena has had and continues to have on the company, fellow wrestlers, and super fans. But his retirement plans are clearly just in wrestling as we see him branching out a career for himself in Hollywood. Although, of course, how he finishes his long-term career with WWE, they must also carve out space for him to honour and leave a lasting legacy on the wrestling world too.

In a way it’s like Marvel and the multiverse. There’s all these alternative universes where this happens or that happens. So you have to play them out in your mind as to where they go to and what is the best.

WWE Head of Creative, Triple H on creating WWE storylines (Epi 04).

WWE’s Iconic History 

WWE: Unreal focuses on the story behind a few wrestlers’ journeys throughout season one’s five-episode run. From WWE legends like CM Punk to popular newcomers like Rhea Ripley, we soon learn it’s a series that hasn’t really been shown before. Especially when discussing the heart of what makes wrestling. It’s an exclusive reveal of secrets behind a multi-million-dollar company because when you think of wrestling, you automatically think of WWE. 

There’s no bigger company in the wrestling entertainment industry. Pairing this with one of the biggest streamers, Netflix reaches even wider audiences. Since WWE changed-over their programming to Netflix, I’ve certainly watched more wrestling than usual – almost as much as during my childhood. 

It’s easier to access matches and watch previous documentaries in WWE’s Vault now than ever before. From previous pay-per-views like SummerSlam to learning about the history of both pioneering and new wrestlers to different eras, and the matches that made the company. 

The Power Behind WWE’s Storytelling 

The highlight of season one is for sure the insight into WWE’s storytelling. The whole process from how they map out the storylines behind each wrestler’s journey to how each match builds up to the story climax at WrestleMania. It’s easy to forget that wrestling is a form of storytelling when it’s seen as more in-your-face entertainment.

There’s so much hard work behind wrestling that we just didn’t know about before. What’s shown each week live on camera is only half of the work. Of course, it comes as a reminder that it’s not just about what we can see within the spotlight, the fame, and the cameras. But it’s also the effort and strong teamwork running behind each department that makes the show run smoothly. Like most productions, it’s the hidden people behind the cameras that create the illusion of the show’s seamlessness. 

But a slight issue with such a behind-the-scenes series like this is that it leaves you questioning, ‘will you ever view WWE the same again after seeing the secrets behind what makes their matches?’ Watching SummerSlam this past weekend after this documentary has definitely made me view WWE differently. But it’s up to the individual viewer to decide.

The story of WWE never ends. It just goes onto the next day.

Triple H on working in WWE (Epi 05). 

WWE: Unreal Documentary Series: Season Two is set to be released in 2026.

You can read our reviews on other Documentaries like Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story here.