Season Analysis

Raw

Season 2 Analysis

Season Woke Score

1.4

out of 10

Season Overview

Throughout 1994, Monday Night Raw hosts a family feud as members of the Hart family choose sides in the heated brother-against-brother war between Bret "Hit Man" Hart and the youngest member of the family, Owen.

Season Review

Season 2 of "Raw" (1994) is a professional wrestling program driven by traditional, character-based melodrama, primarily focusing on the intense family conflict and sibling rivalry between Bret Hart and Owen Hart. The narrative revolves around classic themes of jealousy, merit, betrayal, and the pursuit of a championship, with the entire Hart family structure serving as the central emotional anchor. The vast majority of the show consists of in-ring competition, which judges performers purely on their kayfabe (storyline) ability and win-loss record, adhering closely to a universal meritocratic structure. Social or political commentary is virtually nonexistent. Characters representing different nationalities or ethnicities are present—such as the Native American Tatanka, the Samoan Headshrinkers, and the Japanese-gimmicked Yokozuna—but their roles are defined by wrestling tropes (hero, villain) rather than an intersectional hierarchy. Female representation is limited to a small division centered on the Women's Championship, with no modern-day 'Girl Boss' or anti-natalist messaging. The content is entirely devoid of the sexual and ideological discussions central to contemporary critical theory, offering a stark contrast to modern media in its lack of social justice themes.

Categorical Breakdown

Identity Politics2/10

The core Hart family feud is based on sibling jealousy and wrestling merit (Owen wanting to step out of Bret's shadow and claim the top prize), not immutable characteristics or race. Character casting includes performers of various ethnic backgrounds (Native American, Samoan, etc.), but their storylines avoid lecturing on systemic oppression. Villains and heroes are defined by their actions and wrestling alignment, not by vilification of 'whiteness'.

Oikophobia1/10

As a national American professional wrestling program in 1994, the show frequently celebrates its home culture, including a prominent Independence Day celebration promoting 'stars and stripes forever'. The main conflict involves the deconstruction of a single family (the Harts), but this is a personal, melodramatic betrayal, not hostility toward Western civilization or ancestors. Institutions like the family are seen as valuable and their fracturing is a tragedy.

Feminism2/10

Female representation is marginal, primarily featuring the WWF Women's Champion, Alundra Blayze, whose segments focus on in-ring competition and title defense, demonstrating female merit within the sport. There are no plots dedicated to the 'Girl Boss' trope, the emasculation of men is not a central theme, and there is no messaging that frames motherhood as a 'prison' or career as the sole path to fulfillment.

LGBTQ+1/10

The program is a 1994 professional wrestling show that does not address alternative sexualities, gender identity, or queer theory in its narrative. The structure is exclusively normative, with the nuclear family (the Hart family) being the central drama. Sexuality is treated as private and is not centered as an identity trait in the narrative.

Anti-Theism1/10

Moral dynamics are clearly drawn between 'good guys' (faces) and 'bad guys' (heels), establishing a sense of Objective Truth within the show's universe. While it is not a religious program, traditional religion is not vilified or portrayed as the root of evil. Characters are judged by their integrity and adherence to a higher moral law of sportsmanship (for the faces), not subjected to moral relativism as a philosophical theme.